# An Antidote Against Atheism/Book II/Chapter I

An
Antidote
against
Atheism.
Book II.
Chap. I.
1. That the more general Phænomena of External Nature argue the Being of a God. 2. That if Matter be self-moved, it cannot work it self into these Phænomena. 3. Much less if it rest of it self. 4. That though it were partly self-moving, partly self-resting, yet it could not produce either Sun or Stars of that figure they are. 5. That the Laws of the Motion of the Earth are not casual or fortuitous. 6. That there is a Divine Providence that does at least approve, if not direct all the Motions of the Matter; with a Reason why she permits the Effects of the mere Mechanical motion of the Matter to goe as far as they can.
1.he last thing I insisted upon was the Specifick nature of the Soul of Man, how it is an Immaterial Substance indued with these two eminent Properties, of Understanding, and Power of moving Corporeal Matter. Which truth I cleared, to the intent that when we shall discover such motions and contrivances in the largely-extended Matter of the World as imply Wisdome and Providence, we may the easilier come off to the acknowledgment of that Eternal Spiritual Essence that has fram'd Heaven and Earth, and is the Author and maker of all visible and invisible Beings.
Wherefore we being now so well furnish'd for the voiage, I would have my Atheist to take Shipping with me, and loosing from this particular Speculation of our own inward Nature, to lanch out into that vast Ocean, as I said, of the External Phænomena of Universal Nature, or walk ​with me a while on the wide Theatre of this Outward World, and diligently to attend to those many and most manifest marks and signs that I shall point him to in this outward frame of things, that naturally signifie unto us That there is a God.
And now, first, to begin with what is most general, I say that the Phænomena of Day and Night, Winter and Summer, Spring-time and Harvest, that the manner of rising and setting of the Sun, Moon and Stars, that all these are signs and tokens unto us that there is a God, that is, that things are so framed, that they naturally imply a Principle of Wisdome and Counsel in the Author of them. And if there be such an Author of external Nature, there is a God.
2. But here it will be reply'd, that mere Motion of the Universal Matter will at last necessarily grinde it self into those more rude and general Delineations of Nature that are observed in the Circuits of the Sun, Moon and Stars and the general consequences of them. But is the Mind of man grow so bold as to conceit any such thing, let him examine his Faculties what they naturally conceive of the Motion of Matter, And verily the See Des-Cartes, Princip. Philos. part. 2. artic. 22, 23.great Master of this Mechanical Hypothesis does not suppose or admit of any Specificall difference in this Universal Matter, out of which this outward frame of the World should arise. Neither do I think that any man else will easily imagine but that all the Matter of the World is of one kind for its very Substance or Essence.
Now therefore I demand concerning this universal uniform Matter, whether naturally Motion or Rest belongs unto it. If Motion, it being acknowledg'd uniform, it must be alike moved in every part or particle imaginable of it. For this Motion being naturall and essentiall to the Matter, is alike every where in it, and therefore has loosened every Atome of it to the utmost capacity; so that every particle is alike, and moved alike. And therefore there being no prevalency at all in any one Atome above another in bignesse or Motion, it is manifest that this universall Matter, to whom Motion is so essentiall and intrinsecall, will be ineffectuall for the producing of any variety of appearances in Nature, and so no Suns, nor Stars, nor Earths, nor Vortices can ever arise out of this infinitely-thin and still Matter, which must thus eternally remain unperceptible to any of our Senses, were our Senses ten thousand millions of times more subtile then they are: Indeed there could not be any such thing as either Man or Sense in the world. But we see this Matter shews it self to us in abundance of varieties of appearance; therefore there must be another Principle besides the Matter, to order the Motion of it so as may make these varieties to appear: And what will that prove but a God?
3. But if you'l say that Motion is not of the nature of Matter (as indeed it is very hard to conceive it, the Matter supposed homogeneal) but that it is inert and stupid of it self; then it must be moved from some other, and thus of necessity we shall be cast upon a God, or at least a Spiritual Substance actuating the Matter; which the Atheists are as much afraid of, as children are of Spirits, or themselves of a God.
4. But men that are much degenerate know not the natural Emanations of their own Minds, but think of all things confusedly, and ​therefore, it may be, will not stick to affirm, that either the parts of the Matter are Specifically different, or though they be not, yet some are Moveable of themselves, others inclinable to Rest, and were ever so; for it happened so to be, though there be no reason for it in the thing it self: which is to wound our Faculties with so wide a gap, that after this they will let in any thing, and take away all pretence to any principles of Knowledge.
But to scuffle & combat with them in their own dark Caverns, let the Universal Matter be a heterogeneal Chaos of confusion, variously moved and as it happens; I say, there is no likelihood that this mad Motion would ever amount to so wise a Contrivance as is discernable even in the general Delineations of Nature; nay, it will not amount to a Natural appearance of what we see, and what is conceived most easy thus to come to pass, to wit, a round Sun, Moon, and Earth. For it is shrewdly to be suspeded, if there were no Superintendent over the Motions of those Æthereall Whirle-pools, which the French Philosophy supposes, that the form of the Sun and the rest of the Stars would be oblong, not round, because the Matter recedes all along the Axis of a Vortex, as well as from the Centre; and therefore naturally the Space that is left for the finest and subtilest Element of all, of which the Sun and Stars are to consist, will be long, not round. Wherefore this round Figure we see them in must proceed from some higher Principle then the mere Agitation of the Matter: but whether simply Spermatical, or Sensitive also and Intellectual, I'll leave to the disquisition of others, who are more at leisure to meddle with such curiosities.
5. The Business that lies me in hand to make good is this. That taking that for granted which these great Naturalists would have allowed, to wit, That the Earth moves about the Sun; I say, the Laws of its Motion are such, that if they had been imposed on her by humane reason and counsel, they would have been no other then they are. So that appealing to our own Faculties, we are to confess that the motion of the Sun and Stars, or of the Earth, as our Naturalists would have it, is from a knowing Principle, or at least hath passed the Approbation and Allowance of such a Principle.
For as Art takes what Nature will afford for her purpose, and makes up the rest her self; so the Eternal Mind (that put the Universal Matter upon Motion, as I conceive most reasonable, or if the Matter be confusedly mov'd of its self, as the Atheist wilfully contends) this Eternal Mind, I say, takes the easie and natural results of this general Impress of Motion, where they are for his purpose; where they are not, he rectifies and compleats them.
6. And verily it is far more sutable to Reason, that God making the Matter of that nature, that it can by mere Motion produce something, that it should goe on so far as that single advantage could naturally carry it; that so the Wit of man, whom God hath made to contemplate the Phænemena of Nature, may have a more fit object to exercise it self upon. For thus is the Understanding of Man very highly gratifi'd , when the works of God and their manner of production are made intelligible unto him by a natural deduction of one thing from another; which would ​not have been, if God had on purpose avoided what the Matter upon Motion naturally afforded,and cancelled the Laws thereof in every thing, besides, to have altered or added any thing further, where there was no need, had been to multiply Entities to no purpose.
Thus it is therefore with Divine Providence, what that one single Impress of Motion upon the Universal Matter will afford that is usefull and good, it doth allow and take in, what it might have miscarried in or could not amount to, it directs or supplies. As in little pieces of wood naturally bow'd like a Man's Elbow, the Carver doth not unbow it, but carves an hand at the one end of it, and shapes it into the compleat figure of a Mans Arm.
That therefore that I contend for is this,' That be the Matter moved how it will, the Appearances of things are such as do manifestly intimate that they are either appointed all of them, or at least approved, by an Universal Principle of Wisdom and Counsel.