“But we have observed amongst the generality of the Irish, such a declension of Christianity, so great credulity to believe ever superstitious story, such confidence in vanity, such groundless pertinacy, such vitious lives, so little sense of true Religion and the fear of God, so much care to obey the Priests, and so little to obey God: such intolerable ignorance, such fond Oathes and manners of swearing, thinking themselves more obliged by swearing on the Mass-Book than the Four Gospels, and S. Patricks Mass-Book more than any new one; swearing by their Fathers Soul, by their Godsips hand, by other things which are the product of those many tales that are told them; their not knowing upon what account they refuse to come to Church, but onely that now they are old and never did, or their Country-men do not, or their Fathers or Grandfathers never did, or that their Ancestors were Priests, and they will not alter from their Religion; and after all, can give no account of their Religion, what it is; onely they believe as their Priest bids them, and go to Mass which they understand not, and reckon their beads to tell the number and the tale of their prayers, and abstain from eggs and flesh in Lent, and visit S. Patricks Well and leave pins and ribbands, yarn or thred in their holy wells, and pray to God, S. Mary and S. Patrick, S. Columbanus and S. Bridget, and desire to be buried with S. Francis’s chord about them, and to fast on Saturdays in honour of our Lady.”

(Jeremy Taylor, from The Golden Grove, pp. 35–36, cited by William Gass in his lecture on baroque prose at Columbia.)