wherein all the reason and philosophy of atheism is confuted, and

Chap. III. further explained' 105atheifm, called by us hylozoical ; the principles hereof could not poffibJy beinfifled on in this place, where we were to make the mofl: plaiifible pleafor atheifm, they being diredlly contrary to thole of the Atomical, fo thatthey would have mutually deftroyed each other. For, whereas the Atomickatheifm fuppolcs the notion or idea of body to be nothing but extendedrefifting bulk, and conftquently to inckide no manner of lite and cogitationin it ; liylozoifm, on the contrary, makes al! body, as fuch, and thereforeevery fmalleft atom of it, to have hfe elTcntialJy belonging to it (naturalperception, and appetite) though without any anim.al {^"^ift or reflexiveknowledge, as iFIile, and matter or extended bulk, were but two incompleteand inadequate conceptions of one and the fim; fubftance, calledbody. By reafon of which life (net animal, but only plafticalj all parts ofmatter being fuppofcd able to form themfelves artificially and methodically(though without any deliberation or attentive confideration) to the greateftadvantage of their prefent refpettive capabilities, and therefore alfo fometimesby organization to improve themfelves further into fenfe and felf-enioymentin all animals, as alfo to univerfal reafon and reflexive knowledgein men-, it is- plain, that there is no neccfllty at all left, either of any incorporealfoul in men to make them rational, or of any Deity in the wholeiiniverfe to folve the regularity thereof. One main difi^erence betwixt thefetwo forms of atheifm is this, that the Atomical fuppofes all life whatfoeverto be accidental, generable and corruptible; but the hylozoick admits of acertain natural or plaftick life, clTential and fubllantial, ingenerable and incorruptible,though attributing the fame only to matter, as fuppofing noother fubfl;ance in the world befides it.II. Now to prevent all miftakes, we think fit here by way of caution tofuggeft, that as every Atoinifb is not therefore neceffarily an Atheifl:, foneither mud every HylozoifT: needs be accounted fuch. For whoever foholds the life of matter, as notwithilanding to aflfert another kind of ful>fiance aifo, that is immaterial and incorporeal, is no ways obnoxious to thatfoul imputation. However, we ought not to difTemble, but that there is agreat difference here betwixt thefe two, atomifm and hylozoifm, in this regard; that the former of them, namely atomifm (as hath been already declared)hath in it fjlf a natural cognation and conjundtion with incorporeifm,though violently cut ofr from it by the Democritick Atheifts ; whereas thelatter of them, hylozoifm, feems to have altogether as clofe and intimatea correfpondence with corporealifm ; becaufe, as hath been already fignified,if all matter, as fuch, have not only fuch a life, perception and felf-adivepower in it, as whereby it can form it felf to the beft advaiuage, makingthis a fun, and that an earth or planet, and fabricating the bodies of animalsmoft artificially, biit alfo axn improve it felf into fenfe and felf-enjoyment;it may as well be thought able to advance it felf higher, into all theafts of reafon and underftanding in men ; fo that there will be no need eitherof an incorporeal immortal foul in men, or a deity in the iiniverfe.Nor indeed is it eafily conceivable, how any Ihould be induced to admitfuch