by an equitable judge:
he seems to have foreseen it; for, writing to his brother from his
prison at Louvestein whilst he was composing this treatise in Dutch
verse, "My intention, he says, is not to explain the doctrines of
Christianity, but to make the profane, the Pagans, Jews, and Mahometans
acknowledge the truth of the Christian religion, and afterwards have
recourse to our sacred books to be informed of its tenets. The Trinity,
and Christ's divinity could not be introduced into my arguments; for
these doctrines will never bring over unbelievers to the Christian
faith, and those who attempt to demonstrate them by other arguments than
such as are drawn from scripture, absolutely lose their labour: but the
authority of the scriptures being once established, these doctrines
ought to be held proved." He omitted therefore all mention of these
points, not because he disbelieved them, but because he judged it more
proper to prove first the divinity of the sacred books, and the mission
of Christ: and, as we have already observed, the same method has been
followed by the most successful writers on the Truth of Christianity.

He has been much reproached with his letter to Crellius. Grotius had
written against Socinus, and Crellius, to vindicate his master, answered
Grotius with a politeness and good-breeding seldom found in a polemical
divine. Grotius thought it his duty to reply to him, and the measures he
kept with this adversary were looked on by his enemies as a betraying of
the truth. Here follows the letter, which has been so much talked of. "I
was so far from being offended, most learned Crellius, with your book
against mine that I inwardly thanked you at that time, and now do it by
this letter, first, for treating me with so much civility, that the only
thing I have left to complain of is your complimenting me in some places
too much: next for informing me of many very useful and entertaining
things, and exciting me by your example, to examine thoroughly into the
sense of the sacred scriptures: you judge very rightly of me, that I
bear no ill-will to any one who differs from me, without prejudice to
religion; nor decline the friendship of any good man. I have found in
your book of the True Religion, which I have already gone through, and
shall read again, many judicious remarks: and I congratulate the present
age, that there are men in it who make religion consist, not so much in
subtle controversies as in amendment of