And as it serves to render the mind more judicious, so it causes the Memory to be more tenacious, and retentive of truths. The chain of truth is easily held in the memory, when one truth links in another, but the loosing of a link endangers the scattering of the whole chain. We use to say, order is the mother of memory:1 I am sure it's a singular friend to it: Hence it's observed, those that write of the art of memory, lay so great a stress upon place and number. The memory would not so soon be overcharged with a multitude of truths, if that multitude were but orderly disposed. It's the incoherence, and confusion of truths, rather than their number that distracts. Let but the understanding receive them regularly, and the memory well retain them with much more facility. A bad memory is a common complaint among Christians. All the benefit that many of you have in hearing, is from the present influence of truths upon your hearts. There is but little that sticks by you, to make a second and third impression upon them. I know it may be said of some of you, that if your affections were not better than your memories, you would need a very large charity to pass for Christians. I confess it's better to have a well-ordered heart, than a methodical head, but surely both are better than either. And for you ⟨image 7⟩that have constantly attended these exercises, and followed us through the whole series, and deduction of these truths, from text to text, and from point to point: who have begun one Sabbath, where you left another; it will be your inexcusable fault, if these things be not fixed in your understandings, and memories, as nails fastened in a sure place; especially since providence hath now brought to your eyes, what hath been so often sounding in your ears, which is no small help to fix these truths upon you, and prevent that great hazard of them, which commonly attends bare hearing: for now you may have recourse, as often as you will to them, view, and review them, till they become your own.
And as it serves to render the mind more judicious, so it causes the Memory to be more tenacious, and retentive of truths. The chain of truth is easily held in the memory, when one truth links in another, but the loosing of a link endangers the scattering of the whole chain. We use to say, order is the mother of memory:1 I am sure it's a singular friend to it: Hence it's observed, those that write of the art of memory, lay so great a stress upon place and number. The memory would not so soon be overcharged with a multitude of truths, if that multitude were but orderly disposed. It's the incoherence, and confusion of truths, rather than their number that distracts. Let but the understanding receive them regularly, and the memory well retain them with much more facillity. A bad memory is a common complaint among Christians. All the benefit that many of you have in hearing, is from the present influence of truths upon your hearts. There is but little that sticks by you, to make a second and third impression upon them. I know it may be said of some of you, that if your affections were not better than your memories, you would need a very large charity to pass for Christians. I confess it's better to have a well-ordered heart, than a methodical head, but surely both are better than either. And for you ⟨image 7⟩that have constantly attended these exercises, and followed us through the whole series, and deduction of these truths, from text to text, and from point to point: who have begun one Sabbath, where you left another; it will be your inexcusable fault, if these things be not fixed in your understandings, and memories, as nails fastened in a sure place; especially since providence hath now brought to your eyes, what hath been so often sounding in your ears, which is no small help to fix these truths upon you, and prevent that great hazard of them, which commonnly attends bare hearing: for now you may have recourse, as often as you will to them, view, and review them, till they become your own.
- 1Ordo est mater memoriae.
