Wesley Corpus

Let us see what a picture you draw of them in this state, both as to their principles and practice. You begin with a home stroke: “In the Montanist you may behold the bold lineaments and bloated countenance of the * This accommodated quotation from Persius may be thus rendered:--“As if you had the most intimate knowledge of ns.”-EDIT. 100 LETTER. To Methodist.” (Page 17.) I wish you do not squint at the honest countenance of Mr. Venn, who is indeed as far from fear as he is from guile. But if it is somewhat “bloated,” that is not his fault; sickness may have the same effect on yours or mine. But to come closer to the point: “They have darkened re ligion with many ridiculous fancies, tending to confound the head, and to corrupt the heart.” (Page 13.) “A thorough knowledge of them would work, in every rightly-disposed mind, an abhorrence of those doctrines which directly tend to distract the head, and to debauch the heart, by turning faith into frenzy, and the grace of God into wantonness.” (Pages 101, 102.) “These doctrines are unreasonable and ridiculous, clashing with our natural ideas of the divine perfections, with the end of religion, with the honour of God, and man’s both present and future happiness. Therefore we pronounce them ‘filthy dreamers, turning faith into fancy, the gospel into farce; thus adding blasphemy to enthusiasm.” (Pages 66,68.) Take breath, Sir; there is a long paragraph behind.