THREEDIALOGUES(3) 677
substance, which hath an absolute existence without the minds of spirits, should be pro-
duced out of nothing, by the mere will of a spirit, hath been looked upon as a thing so
contrary to all reason, so impossible and absurd, that not only the most celebrated among
the ancients, but even divers modern and Christian philosophers have thought matter
co-eternal with the Deity. Lay these things together, and then judge you whether materi-
alism disposes men to believe the creation of things.
HYLAS: I own, Philonous, I think it does not. This of the creationis the last objec-
tion I can think of; and I must needs own it hath been sufficiently answered as well as the
rest. Nothing now remains to be overcome but a sort of unaccountable backwardness that
I find in myself towards your notions.
PHILONOUS: When a man is swayed, he knows not why, to one side of the question,
can this, think you, be anything else but the effect of prejudice, which never fails to
attend old and rooted notions? And indeed in this respect I cannot deny the belief of mat-
ter to have very much the advantage over the contrary opinion, with men of a learned
education.
HYLAS: I confess it seems to be as you say.
PHILONOUS: As a balance, therefore, to this weight of prejudice, let us throw into
the scale the great advantages that arise from the belief of immaterialism, both in regard
to religion and human learning. The being of a God, and incorruptibility of the soul,
those great articles of religion, are they not proved with the clearest and most immediate
evidence? When I say the being of a God,I do not mean an obscure general cause of
things, whereof we have no conception, but God,in the strict and proper sense of the
word. A being whose spirituality, omnipresence, providence, omniscience, infinite
power and goodness, are as conspicuous as the existence of sensible things, of which
(nothwithstanding the fallacious pretences and affected scruples of sceptics) there is no
more reason to doubt than of our own being. Then, with relation to human sciences. In
natural philosophy, what intricacies, what obscurities, what contradictions hath the
belief of matter led men into! To say nothing of the numberless disputes about its extent,
continuity, homogeneity, gravity, divisibility, &c.—do they not pretend to explain all
things by bodies operating on bodies, according to the laws of motion? And yet, are they
able to comprehend how one body should move another? Nay, admitting there was no
difficulty in reconciling the notion of an inert being with a cause, or in conceiving how
an accident might pass from one body to another; yet, by all their strained thoughts and
extravagant suppositions, have they been able to reach the mechanical production of any
one animal or vegetable body? Can they account, by the laws of motion, for sounds,
tastes, smells, or colours; or for the regular course of things? Have they accounted, by
physical principles, for the aptitude and contrivance even of the most inconsiderable
parts of the universe? But, laying aside matter and corporeal causes, and admitting only
the efficiency of an all-perfect mind, are not all the effects of nature easy and intelligible?
If the phenomenaare nothing else but ideas;God is a spirit,but matter an unintelligent,
unperceiving being. If they demonstrate an unlimited power in their cause; God is active
and omnipotent, but matter an inert mass. If the order regularity, and usefulness of them
can never be sufficiently admired; God is infinitely wise and provident, but matter desti-
tute of all contrivance and design. These surely are great advantages in physics.Not to
mention that the apprehension of a distant Deity naturally disposes men to a negligence
in their moralactions; which they would be more cautious of, in case they thought him
immediately present, and acting on their minds, without the interposition of matter, or
unthinking second causes. Then in metaphysics:what difficulties concerning entity in
abstract, substantial forms, hylarchic principles, plastic natures, substance and accident,