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 PENDLE HiLL 
 LIBRARY 
 
CORNELL UNIVERSITY LIBRARY 
 
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Cornell University 
 Library 
 
 The original of this book is in 
 the Cornell University Library. 
 
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 the United States on the use of the text. 
 
 http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924084588270 
 
REPUBLICATION 
 
 LETTERS 
 
 John Wilbur to George Crosfield; 
 
 TOGETHER WITH SOME 
 
 Selection^^ from his Correspondence 
 and other writings ; 
 
 INTEODUCTOEY ESSAY 
 
 By the Meeting foe Sufferings of N"bw England 
 Yearly Meeting of Friends, 
 
 1879. 
 
 PROVIDENCE: 
 
 J. A. & R. A. Reid, Printers. 
 
 1879. 
 
The Committee having in charge the mattel- of the republication 
 of the Letters of our late friend John "Wilbur to George Crosfield, 
 with some selections from other of his publications, for the clearing 
 of Truth and the vindication of our ancient principles, produced a 
 report recommending the same ; to include some extracts from his 
 correspondence, of letters from valuable and weighty Friends of the 
 last generation, bearing a lively testimony against unsoundness in 
 doctrine, with an iutroductory essay to the same. The report and the 
 extracts named, with the introductory essay having been read and 
 duly considered, the publication is approved, and the same Committee 
 are continued to have the care of the issue and circulation of such 
 number of copies as to them shall seem best. 
 
 Extracted from the minutes of the Meeting for Sufferings of New 
 
 England Yearly Meeting of Friends, held at Newport, Rhode Island, 
 
 6th, mo. 14th, 1879, by 
 
 JEREMIAH FOSTER, Clerk. 
 
INTRODUCTORY ESSAY 
 
 The present condition of the religious Society of 
 Friends is so anomalous and so degenerate, as scarcely 
 to fail to awaken in the naind of every thoughtful and 
 rightly concerned member, feelings of sadness and 
 alarm ; amid which we are carried back in retrospect to 
 a period within the recollection of some now living — 
 that of the breaking out of the Hicksite heresy, about 
 fifty years ago. This event had been foreseen and 
 foretold by some of the truly gifted and faithful of 
 the Lord's messengers, and brought the rightly con- 
 cerned members under great exercise and suffering, 
 in which it was clearly seen that there had been an 
 undue shrinking from faithful labor with those who 
 were adopting and covertly advocating novel and 
 deistical views, until the current had become too strong 
 and impetuous to be resisted or overcome short of an 
 open rupture. When this took place it was plainly 
 seen by the clear-sighted that the schism was caused 
 by a radical departure from the original principles of 
 the society ; yet there arose in connection with it 
 questions of order and discipline, on which there was 
 manifested a difference of opinion as to how far we 
 may tolerate a divergence of sentiment or principle, 
 before submitting to a separation, which some seemed 
 to regard as almost the greatest calamity that could 
 
4 
 
 befall the society. The strength of this view was such, 
 it is believed, as greatly to obstruct and paralyze the 
 efforts of sound Friends in standing against the apos- 
 tacy in principle; Whether the smaller number of 
 members adhering to the true principles of the society, 
 notwithstanding the defection of much the greater 
 portion of their fellow-members, should be acknowl- 
 edged and accepted, as the true bodies of Friends 
 seemed to be finally settled in the case of New York 
 and Baltimore Yearly Meetings, in both which the 
 sound Friends were in the minority, yet the smaller 
 and sound bodies were recognized as legitimate, and 
 the larger and unsound were rejected as spurious ; 
 thus establishing the position — the correctness of 
 which cannot be questioned — that the separatists are 
 they who separate themselves from the doctrines and 
 testimonies of the Society, whether they be few or 
 many. 
 
 We do not propose to dilate on the sorrowful con- 
 sequences of this departure from the ancient and well- 
 established principles of the society, or the wide- 
 spread schism that followed — these being now too 
 well understood to require further elucidation. But 
 it is evident that whilst guarding against error on the 
 one hand, the danger of falling into it on the other 
 was too much overlooked and disregarded. The un- 
 soundness of Elias Hicks and his adherents, consisted 
 or resulted iu a denial of the Divinity and offices of 
 our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, in that prepared 
 body, in which he came to do His Father's will, and 
 to suffer the just for the unjust that he might bring 
 us to God — of the benefit of his sacrifice without the 
 
gates of Jerusalem ; thus placing him merely in the 
 category of good men ; a purely deistical doctrine. 
 But ere this storm had fully passed over, there was 
 discovered by the anointed eye, a divergence of some 
 in high standing in the opposite direction ; among 
 vs^hom was Joseph John Gurney, of Norwich, England, 
 who wrote voluminously on doctrinal subjects, and who 
 even in some of his works which were submitted to, 
 and passed the Meeting for Sufferings, covertly intro- 
 duced certain unsound sentiments, which, as Friends 
 were mainly looking for error, on the other hand were 
 overlooked. Encouraged and emboldened by this, in 
 his succeeding works he ventured further, and finally 
 so great was his popularity that some of his works 
 were suffered to be printed and published without the 
 customary required revision. In these, many doctrinal 
 views were put forth inimical to those held and pub- 
 lished by our early and standard writers, among which 
 are these : That Christ himself is not the true light 
 that lighteth the heart or inner man, but outwardly 
 the Enlightener ; and that the obvious tendency of the 
 former view is to deprive the Saviour of his personal 
 attributes, and to reduce him to the rank of a princi- 
 ple, a consequence often attempted to be pressed upon 
 our first Friends by their enemies, and as often refuted. 
 He held that the gospel of Christ is not the power of 
 God unto salvation to every one that believeth, but 
 only an outward declaration or record of that which 
 is the power of God. He taught justification by faith, 
 and that faith independent of the spirit which re- 
 generates the heart, and of obedience. That there 
 is no correct divinity but that which is borrowed from 
 
the Bible — that the spirit is a 'person — and he held 
 to the resurrection of the body, and that Christ's sec- 
 ond appearance without sin unto salvation to them 
 who look for him as declared by the apostle, is noth- 
 ing more nor less than his future coming in glory to 
 judge the quick and dead ; with much more of a sim- 
 ilar bearing and tendency. Others, as Elisha Bates, 
 Isaac Crewdson, Edward Ash, and B,obert Oharleton, 
 have gone still further in the same direction, and other 
 departures from our original principles have followed, 
 and from time to time been broached — sometimes in 
 a covert and insidious manner, then again more or 
 less open, though not often official ; but we learn that 
 the Binns or Gurney division of Ohio Yearly Meeting 
 last year by minute of its select meeting made this 
 bold declaration : " We repudiate the so-called doc- 
 trine of the inner light or the gift of a portion of the 
 Holy Spirit in the soul of every man, as dangerous, 
 unsound, and unscriptural." In this strong and une- 
 quivocal language they take open issue with George 
 Fox and the early Friends and clearly place them- 
 selves on other ground, against which the early 
 Friends were concerned to bear a decided and faith- 
 ful testimony. And yet strange and inconsistent as 
 it is, and must ever be, those who have adopted the 
 radically opposite views of Gurney and others, claim 
 to be the true society of Friends — genuine successors 
 of those bright and shining lights who were raised up 
 to revive the very doctrine they now repudiate and 
 denounce. As a result, we now see many of the meet- 
 ings of professed Friends conducted much in the way 
 of those of other professors ; wherein the young and 
 
inexperienced are urged to come forward and speak 
 in the name of the Lord ; and this is held up not only 
 as a duty, but as an evidence of advancement in real 
 devotional exercise and of genuine discipleship. Nor 
 does it stop here, but singing is being introduced as a 
 necessary or desirable part of divine worship ; and the 
 young are encouraged to learn to sing in order to 
 become useful and devoted members of the society. 
 Hence, as a necessary consequence, little of that sol- 
 emn and reverent silence, so characteristic of a 
 Friends' meeting, is now practiced or experienced by 
 those who have followed in this apostate direction, 
 the time being almost entirely occupied in vocal utter- 
 ance, either in relating experience, in exhortation, in 
 prayer, or in singing ; and it requires little penetra- 
 tion to see, that between this and instrumental music, 
 there is but a short step, especially when we see it as 
 we do, largely introduced into the family circle. 
 
 Then, again, the matter of a paid ministry is begin- 
 ning to be introduced and discussed in some of the 
 Yearly Meetings ; all which affords abundant evi- 
 dence of a retrograde movement towards that vortex 
 of formality and lifelessness out of which our faithful 
 predecessors were called, and out of which they were 
 delivered as with an high Hand and an outstretched 
 Arm. While some clear-sighted watchmen on the 
 walls of our Zion early saw the tendency and the evi- 
 dent aim of those who were introducing innovations 
 in doctrine and practice, and faithfully testified 
 against them, and warned Friends of the consequen- 
 ces which they clearly foresaw would follow, there 
 were many othei's, some of whom were undoubtedly 
 
 ■t, 
 
honest, seeing the array of great names on the side of 
 tlie innovators, and well knowing their influence and 
 power in the Society, shrank from the idea of meeting 
 them in controversy, and tried to persuade themselves 
 that there was, after all, not so much occasion for 
 alarm as some thought, and, that if let alone, the cur- 
 rent of innovation would spend its force without any 
 serious result; and, greatly dreading any commotion 
 or jar, like that occasioned by Hicksism ; giving away 
 to the idea that even that would have been less destruct- 
 ive if it had been more gently and cautiously 
 handled. This timid and temporizing policy made 
 the way of those valiants who more clearly saw the 
 danger, and felt the necessity laid upon them to 
 stand firmly against it, doubly hard. They were cen- 
 sured as disturbers of the peace of the Church, were 
 placed under the ban of committees, dealt with as 
 offenders, and some finally disowned for their alle- 
 giance to the right and the true, to the law and the 
 testimony. Seeing this, the weak and the fearful 
 became still more discouraged, and so far turned 
 their backs in the day of battle as to enable the ene- 
 mies of Truth to triumph ; so the matter seems now 
 to have passed beyond the reach of remedy within 
 the pale of the society ; and there appears little left 
 for those who remain true to the ancient faith and 
 way, but to flee for their lives, as was testified by 
 John Justice, a Pennsylvania Friend, before this storm 
 arose ; for now, as before the former, there were a few 
 who were favored to foresee and forewarn Friends of 
 its approach, and the devastation following in its 
 track ; of which number was the Friend named. 
 
He resided in the countiy, but felt moved, though 
 in feeble health, to attend ameetingin the city (Phil- 
 adelphia), in which, though from bodily weakness 
 unable to rise from his seat without help, he in a re- 
 markable testimony spoke prophetically of a day of 
 trial, shaking and falling away among Friends, 
 which he saw approaching — alluded to the trials 
 and devastation occasioned by the Hicksite heresy 
 and said : " Has there not something got in and is 
 spreading amongst us, that is even more awful than 
 anything we have ever yet had to pass through?" 
 After much in this way very remarkably pertinent to 
 the times, he had to declare that there would be a 
 remnant preserved, to whom he was led very sweetly 
 to minister ; and concluded by expressing for the 
 second time these words : — 
 
 " Those who are preserved in this time, will be as 
 it were upon broken pieces of the ship." 
 
 There were many others, also, who, in the visions of 
 light saw the approach of the storm, and raised a 
 warning voice against it, among whom were some of 
 the first standing and religious experience in the 
 Society — such as Thomas Shillitoe, George and Ann 
 Jones, John and Lydia Ann Barclay, Sarah Lynes 
 Grubb, Daniel Wheeler, George Crosfield, John 
 Harrison, Jonathan Evans, Ezra Comfort, Christo- 
 pher Healy,> Samuel and Henry Cope, Hinchman 
 Haines, Ebenezer Roberts, and Jolm Wilbur ; the lat- 
 ter of whom, from the fact that he was the first, if 
 not to discern, the first publicly to expose the intro- 
 duction of this spirit of retrogression and unsound- 
 ness into the Society, became a peculiar mark for the 
 1* 
 
10 
 
 arrows of the archers. He made a religious visit to 
 Great Britain in 1831-2, and while engaged in this 
 service, he appears clearly to have seen the coming 
 heresy, and near the conclusion of his stay in Eng- 
 land he wrote a series of letters, which were subse- 
 quently published, warning his fellow-members against 
 its grievous effects, clearly setting forth the true prin- 
 ciples of the Christian faith, as held by our first 
 Friends and all their faithful followers. He returned 
 from this visit greatly afflicted in view of the sad 
 condition of the Society of Friends in that land 
 where it was first planted and raised up. This is a 
 well remembered expression of his after his return : 
 " There is something at work among Friends in Eng- 
 land, which, if it cannot be arrested, ivill land the 
 Societij on the same ground from whence our fore- 
 fathers first took their departure.'''' We now see this 
 prediction in rapid course of fulfillment, so that there 
 seems to be little left for those who have been favored 
 to see, and to struggle against this current of apostasy, 
 but to close in with the consoling invitation of the 
 Lord through the mouth of his prophet, " come, my 
 people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy 
 doors about thee : hide thyself as it were for a little 
 moment, until the indignation be overpast," — Isaiah 
 26, 20. But some of those faithful watchmen who 
 have foreseen and foretold of these days, have also 
 been favored in the visions of light to see beyond — to 
 behold a better day, and to procla'm that if those 
 whom the Lord has called, and whom he has favored 
 with an understanding of what is required at their 
 hands, whom he has blessed in many ways, and whom 
 
11 
 
 he has designed for the kingdom, shall turn away 
 backward and from a love of this present world, 
 refuse to endure the cross and despise the shame, 
 they will be left to grope their way in darkness, the 
 end of which is sorrow and death ; and there will be 
 called in to take their places, even as from the high- 
 ways and hedges, those who are made willing to 
 endure hardness as good soldiers, so that his house 
 will be filled, and a standard erected, to which there 
 will be a flocking as " doves to the windows;" and 
 " his name shall be great among the Gentiles, and in 
 every place shall incense be offered unto his name, 
 and a pure offering." The aforementioned letters of 
 John Wilbur which were addressed to his friend 
 George Crosfield, of Liverpool, brought down upon the 
 writer a mighty storm of censure and reprobation from 
 many prominent characters, both in England and in 
 his own country, who, in order to undermine primitive 
 Quakerism, endeavored to confound it with Hicksism, 
 and thus to bring it into disrepute. And in the deter- 
 mined effort to set aside some of the fundamental 
 principles of the Society and to introduce others of 
 opposite character and tendency in place of them, 
 some of the plainest provisions of the discipline were 
 disregarded, both in letter and spirit, until a separa- 
 ration was brought about in New England Yearly 
 Meeting, as was evidently intended, in case this 
 unrighteous purpose could not be effected without it. * 
 For the information of the present or rising gener- 
 ation of Friends, it seems proper to state that after the 
 
 * See J. Wilbur's "Narrative and Exposition," also his "Journal 
 and Correspondence." 
 
12 
 
 publication of these letters John Wilbur was accused, 
 pursued and treated with as an offender, for the faith- 
 ful testimony which he with other zealous watchmen 
 in accordance with an injunction of our christian 
 discipline, continued to bear against the unsound and 
 innovating sentiments of Gurney and others, which he 
 saw industriously disseminated throughout the society ; 
 and his Monthly Meeting which sustained him, was 
 laid down in a manner contrary to the plain and spe- 
 cific provisions of the discipline, and he was finally 
 disowned by another Monthly Meeting to which his, 
 at the time of its dissolution was attached. For a 
 full and clear account of these transactions see his 
 " Narrative and Exposition " wliich he proceeded to 
 publish soon after his disownment. The clear and 
 lucid statements therein made have never been refuted ; 
 and any person. Friend, or other, who may desire to 
 become availed of the information thus furnished, will 
 be amply rewarded by a perusal of this extraordinary 
 and truthful volume. It is believed that it is not 
 going too far to say that the proceedings therein nar- 
 rated exceed in unreasonableness and severity on 
 the part of members of the Society of Friends any- 
 thing in its history ; and that they are, and will remain 
 a lasting stigma and reproach on the leaders and 
 instigators of them in all coming time. And in order 
 further to show the meek and quiet spirit by which 
 he continued to be actuated, and in which he endured 
 these accumulated trials and afflictions at the hands 
 of false brethren, we feel that it is but just to his 
 memory and a solace and encouragement to the faith- 
 ful, both of the present and future ages, to republish 
 
13 
 
 some portion of the truly christian and affectionate 
 remarks contained in the introduction, and the entire 
 conclusion of the " Narrative and Exposition " feel- 
 ingly commending them to the serious consideration 
 of every honest and reflecting mind. 
 
 The edition of his letters publislied by George 
 Crosfield was small, and the influence against them 
 so potent that their circulation even in England was 
 very limited, and but few copies reached this country. 
 They were, however, republished as an appendix to his 
 journal, but that was voluminous and costly, and like 
 the letters was everywhere spoken against by the 
 leaders in nearly all the Yearly Meetings, so that they 
 have failed to get any general circulation. It is 
 believed that the time has fully come for a new edition 
 which this meeting has now decided to put foi-th, 
 leaving the candid reader to decide whether they were 
 written under right authority and at the right time ; 
 which in our judgment the pi'esent lapsed condition 
 of our religious society, as may be said, throughout 
 its length and breadth, so clearly foreseen and pointed 
 out, conclusively proves to have been so. As a fitting 
 conclusion to these remarks, and in order to show more 
 fully the deep exercises which John Wilbur passed 
 through before writing these letters, we will quote a 
 few passages from his own account taken from 
 his joui-nal. In speaking of his attendance of Lon- 
 don Yearly Meeting in 1832, after mentioning that 
 with the exception of his having visited the women's 
 meeting, he had been silent through all the meetings 
 for discipline, being greatly exercised therein, he says, 
 "In this meeting great professions of faith in the 
 
14 
 
 mediation and atonement of Jesus Christ our Lord, 
 were made, and this profession was abundantly reiter- 
 ated ; but still I mournfully felt a great want of that 
 precious sweetness and savor of life, which gives 
 weight and solidity as well as power to a meeting ; 
 and without which all the professions of faith how- 
 ever high and glowing as to words, are but as sound- 
 ing brass and a tinkling cymbal. And I am more 
 and more confirmed in the belief that the most full 
 and literally sound acknowledgement may be made 
 of faith in the blood and sacrifice of Jesus Christ our 
 blessed Redeemer, and without any reserve, too ; but 
 still it may be no more than in the oldness of the let- 
 ter, and that [this is so] for want of believing fully 
 in, and of being really and practically quickened by 
 the living power of the gospel, that calls to, and 
 enables to keep the commandments of Christ our Lord, 
 by whose spirit and grace we are sanctified through 
 obedience. For those who livingly believe, are thus 
 sanctified through obedience ; and those who are thus 
 sanctified, cannot be otherwise than believers." 
 
 " On account of overwhelming afflictions and weak- 
 ness of body, I was not able to attend the concluding 
 sitting of the Select Yearly Meeting ; for my mental 
 grief was such that I could not refrain from excessive 
 weeping, after the conclusion of the Meeting for Dis- 
 cipline ; so under the kind superintendence of my 
 friend, George Crosfield, I went immediately to my 
 lodgings and retired to my chamber where my head 
 was as waters and mine eyes as fountains of tears, in 
 weeping for the backsliding of the sons and daughters 
 of my people, occasioning the face of the Beloved to 
 
15 
 
 be so turned from us in the day of our great necessity." 
 — Pages 123 and 124. 
 
 Again, after attending the Half- Year's Meeting for 
 Wales, which was he says a painful meeting to him 
 throughout, he remarks that " a public meeting was 
 proposed for Elizabeth Fry, and appointed for the 
 evening, of which I had no sight, and being indisposed 
 I kept to my chamber, and there mourned over the 
 state of things in this land, being fully aware that 
 there are many in the station of ministers who are in 
 a great measure lost as to the times and seasons, the 
 openings and the shuttings of the blessed spirit of 
 the gospel, and whose minds seem to be so beclouded 
 and darkened that the true shining is not seen to go 
 forth with brightness as in primitive times, nor as a 
 lamp that should burn through the whole gospel day ; 
 and it is greatly to be feared that there are some who 
 are leaning too much to their own understanding, 
 instead of waiting in patience and meekness on Jesus 
 Christ, the great minister, who always keeps the key 
 in his own hands, and openeth only when he will, and 
 to whom he will." . . . . " So I continue to 
 mourn, and to feel like adopting the prophet's subse- 
 quent language of grief as I pass through this land, 
 ' How is the gold become dim ! how is the most fine 
 gold changed ! The stones of the sanctuary are poured 
 out in the top of every street ! The precious sons of 
 Zion, comparable to fine gold, how are they esteemed 
 as earthen pitchers, the work of the hands of the 
 potter ! ' For lo ! some who have shone apparently as 
 stars of the first magnitude, seem to be in danger of 
 a total eclipse ! The outward standing and influence 
 
16 
 
 of some is such, that the case seems almost, if not 
 entirely irremediable, and what the result of things 
 will be is difficult to foresee ; but many there are 
 among this people who are truly awakened to serious 
 and fearful apprehensions lest this society should be 
 shaken from its foundation." — Page 137. Not long 
 afterwards he remarks : " A disposition is making 
 its appearance in divers places in this nation and 
 among Friends, to think very little of the cross of 
 Christ practically, and to plead for liberality both of 
 faith and practice ; — the perceptible influence of the 
 Holy Spirit is mournfully deprecated by many mem- 
 bers of our Society, some of them in conspicuous 
 standing are now disposed to put the scriptures in the 
 place of the Spirit, and seem ready to hold them as 
 the only rule of faith and practice or guidance of 
 Christians. This dereliction from principle and inno- 
 vation upon the always acknowledged doctrines of 
 our Society, must have originated in the insidious 
 wiles of the enemy — a want of experience, and of 
 the true knowledge of God through our Lord and 
 Saviour Jesus Christ, and by having their minds 
 darkened through disobedience and unbelief in the 
 true shining of the everlasting light and gospel of 
 Christ ; thus becoming disposed to throw off and 
 reject the needful restraints of it ; and, notwithstand- 
 ing they fully acknowledge the propitiatory sacrifice, 
 with its blessed effects for the remission of sins, and 
 place great dependence upon it, yet at the same time, 
 Christ crucified is to them, as to the Jews and Greeks 
 formerly, to the one a stumbling block, and to the 
 other foolishness. And there is much reason to fear 
 
17 
 
 that these wise and learned professors under our name, 
 who seem disposed to looli down rather contemptu- 
 ously upon the old sort of Friends, are designing to 
 bring about a change in some of the prominent and 
 essential doctrines of our Society — such as the min- 
 istry and worship ; than which there can hardly be any 
 two named, subordinate to that of faith in God and in 
 the Lord Jesus Christ, which are more essential to the 
 preservation and support of our religious compact. 
 It is very evident that if we should come to believe 
 that the Scriptures of themselves are a sufficient guide 
 in all the walks of a Christian life, then our silent, 
 spiritual worship will ere long sink into disuse, and 
 our faith in the immediate renewing of the Divine 
 Spirit, on every occasion of the ministry, will be 
 exploded. This result is a consequence that must 
 unavoidably follow such a faith concerning the Holy 
 Scriptures, however excellent they are, in subordina- 
 tion to the Spirit which gave them forth." — Page 151. 
 At London and Middlesex Quarterly Meeting, which 
 was very full and large, the great weight of this con- 
 cern continued to press heavily upon him. Of this 
 meeting he says, " Dear Ann Jones was exercised in 
 solemn supplication, and William Allen and Daniel 
 Wheeler, in testimony acceptably ; but as for me I sat 
 silently, under a sorrowful sense of the state of things 
 in this land ; for it is clearly to be felt and seen that 
 among this people, under our name, there are two 
 armies arrayed, army against army, lifting up their 
 weapons one against the other ; and great struggles 
 are plainly to be felt and seen, by those whose eyes 
 are happily anointed by the finger of Jesus. It is 
 
18 
 
 seen also that instead of one Lord, one faith, and one 
 baptism, there is a diversity of faith as regards the 
 ministration of Him who is one by his holy, spiritual 
 baptism, and as to the worship of the true tabernacle. 
 And it is greatly to be feared that this strife will not 
 always be kept within the secret chamber and sub- 
 dued without the exposure of Anti-Christ and his 
 kingdom, and without a storm of the elements in 
 which he worketh ; and much commotion, and thun- 
 derings, and lightnings, and earthquakes will be seen 
 and heard in divers places, and the tabernacle of those 
 who have slidden from the sure foundation, the Rock 
 of Ages, however lofty and beautiful to look upon, will 
 be thrown down and removed out of the way, and 
 their place will be known no more in the heritage of 
 the Lord's spiritual Israel." — Page 157. 
 
 Under these sorrowful apprehensions, and in deep 
 solicitude for the safety of the Society, he wrote the 
 following letters : — 
 
LETTERS 
 
 ON SOME OF THE PRIMITIVE DOCTRINES OB^ CHRIS- 
 TIANITY. BY JOHN WILBUR. 
 
 " Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things 
 are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, 
 whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report ; 
 if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these 
 things." — Phil. iv. 8. 
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 In publishing the following letters, it is necessary that 
 I should briefly state some of the reasons which have 
 induced me thus to give a more extended circulation to 
 what was originally only a private communication of 
 sentiment. 
 
 They contain the views of a Friend who, during his 
 visit and gospel labors in this land, was often led into 
 deep exercise and solicitude on subjects of great inter- 
 est and importance to our religious society. The views 
 which he has taken, and the sentiments he has expressed, 
 are, in my judgment, well calculated to afford instruc- 
 tion and profit ; and to support the ancient doctrines 
 and testimonies of our society ; nor can I. doubt but they 
 will be acceptable to, and be well received by all who 
 wish these doctrines and testimonies to be maintained in 
 their ancient purity. Yet to others who may be shun- 
 
20 
 
 ning the cross, and the narrow way, and seeking for 
 themselves and their children more liberty ; endeavor- 
 ing to combine what are altogether irrec.oncilable, the 
 grandeur and friendships of this world with the j)lain 
 and simple way of truth, I expect some of the sentiments 
 contained in this work, will be very unpalatable. 
 
 A recurrence to our first principles is at all times 
 profitable and advantageous ; the present day abounds 
 with writings, both of a religious nature and others, 
 much mixed with opinions and sentiments very different 
 from those held by us as a society ; and whilst these 
 books are extensively read amongst us, there is reason 
 to fear that the perusal of them tends much to the exclu- 
 sion of the writings of our own society ; that thus loss is 
 sustained by many of our members, who are more defi- 
 cient than they ought to be, in the knowledge of our 
 principles on various important points ; a more extended 
 acquaintance with these principles, and a more stiict 
 adherence to the testimonies of the society, are much to 
 be desired, and would be of great benefit. 
 
 The following Letters are calculated to impart such 
 knowledge, and to promote such an adherence, and I 
 publish them with the hope that these may be their 
 effects — that they may be read with a desire to be 
 instructed, and to profit by the sentiments they inculcate. 
 
 GEORGE CROSFIELD. 
 
 Liverpool, Wth Month, 1832. 
 
 LETTER I. 
 
 INTKODUCTOEY. 
 MY DEAR FRIEND, 
 
 I have often recurred, with a degree of satisfaction to 
 my early impressions, as well as to the instructions 
 which were given me by my parents. They early made 
 
21 
 
 me acquainted witli the doctrines of Christianity, so far 
 as the reading of the Scriptures of Truth would give me 
 that knowledge, and I was carefully instructed to rever- 
 ence these sacred writings. The precepts of the New 
 Testament in a particular manner, did seem fully to cor- 
 respond with those secret sensations, which I was early 
 led to believe were the openings and leadings of Truth 
 upon my mind ; I was enabled also, without an expositor, 
 to receive and satisfactorily to understand, some of the 
 more prominent and simple doctrines of the gospel, as 
 to the character and the several offices of Jesus Christ 
 the Saviour of the world. 
 
 And now also in due time, the history of the Society 
 of Friends was introduced to my reading and observa- 
 tion ; and my youthful mind was thereby strengthened 
 and confirmed, to make a more perfect discrimination 
 between the works of the law and those of faith ; and to 
 perceive what faith in God, and in the Lord Jesus Christ 
 would do, even that faith which worketh by love to the 
 purifying of the heart. I saw that it was sufficient ; 
 that it enabled those sons of the morning of our day, 
 notwithstanding the mighty opposition which lay in 
 their way, to work the works of God ; even those spirit- 
 ual works which were wrought in them, and by them 
 through the sanctifying power of the Holy Spirit in the 
 covenant of God's promise unto them; even in like man- 
 ner as the primitive Christi9,ns did, they joined and 
 worked with the workings of grace in themselves to the 
 glory of God and to the praise of the Lord Jesus Christ. 
 
 And now I found myself to be one of this Society, not 
 by birth and education only, but I embraced and re- 
 ceived, and fully believed in the doctrines of Christianity 
 as professed by it, and I have ever since loved the Soci- 
 ety and its testimonies wherever they have been planted; 
 
22 
 
 not only in my native land of America, but also in this 
 nation where this the Lord's right hand planting was, as 
 regards our Society, first begun. 
 
 Seeing now that my lot has been cast amongst my 
 friends here, in the love and service of thegospel, I have 
 verily thought that the good of this people has come 
 nearer to my best desires and feelings than ever it did 
 before, and that for this reason ; that this dedication has 
 cost me more than any other service in which I have 
 been engaged; and many, yea very many in this land 
 have become as bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh; 
 if indeed I may be allowed to use and to spiritualize the 
 expression ; they have become as brothers and sisters in 
 those tender feelings which I trust spring from the one 
 blessed source of Divine love ; so that though as an alien 
 and a stranger here, as to the outward, still I feel to be 
 one of you, and in my measure, to joy in your joys and 
 grieve in your griefs — to travail in affliction with you, 
 and in desire that you may faint not: — to endeavor to 
 strengthen the hands which hang down with weakness, or 
 rather to put up a prayer that our best Helper may lift 
 them up, that he may confirm the feeble knees; and that 
 all who have taken upon them the profession, may be 
 encouraged to stand fast in the Lord, and faithfully in 
 the testimonies of our God ; so that this people, whom 
 in his own good pleasure he chose to raise up and ad- 
 vance, distinct from all others of this day, to be as a 
 beacon, a light, and a wayraark outwardly in the world, 
 may hold on their way, and continue faithful through 
 his power to support and maintain the inestimable ground 
 to which God did lead them, and gave them to stand 
 upon ; and that they may never suffer any by-way appre- 
 hension of good to draw their attention from the one 
 great object of God's peculiar design in raising them up 
 
23 
 
 to be a people, even to bear testimony to the spiritual 
 nature and design of the gospel, as well as to uphold the 
 glorious plan of redemption in all its other parts. 
 
 In whatever degree the present condition of the Chris- 
 tian world may now be improved by what has been done 
 through this people, yet if by means of their unfaithful- 
 ness, a reaction should take place and continue, we may 
 fear that when this people shall again have mingled with 
 those from whom they came out, and the advanced 
 ground of God's providence be thus vacated, that the 
 religious testimonies given them to bear will also be lost 
 with them. Should such an event occur, then indeed 
 will it be betterfor mankind coming after, that this Soci- 
 ety had never existed ; for the enemy of all good, will 
 not then fail to suggest that the ground having been 
 once taken and found to be untenable, it would be vain 
 and fruitless for any to attempt the like again ; for we 
 know, that the more efficient the means that may have 
 been resorted to to attain an object, if those means fail, 
 the more we despair of ever attaining that object. But 
 O! that the spirit and power of the gospel may never 
 give place to profession and form, however garnished 
 and glowing that form or profession may appear. 
 
 And now my dear friend, my mind having been much 
 exercised under divers weighty and important consider- 
 ations of this nature since I have been in this land, I am 
 induced to believe, it will contribute to my peace of 
 mind, to open a little and spread forth before thee, a few 
 remarks upon those subjects which have been more 
 prominently and peculiarly exercising to my mind, dur- 
 ing my labors amongstyou; but I have no hope of being 
 able to do justice to a review of so important a nature 
 as may seem to be premised, but only in such a way as I 
 can, endeavor to discharge what I apprehend to be my 
 
24 
 
 duty ; I propose, therefove, in my succeeding letters, to 
 treat upon some points arising out of the foregoing con- 
 siderations. 
 
 LETTER II. 
 
 ON THE FALL OV JCAN, AND ON CHEISTIAN REDEMPTION. 
 MY DEAR FKIEND, 
 
 If it be, as lias been affirmed, that enmity took root in 
 some of the heavenly company, and that they through- 
 pride were led into rebellion, and an attempt to set up 
 and establish a kingdom for themselves in opposition to, 
 and above the throne and kingdom of God ; still we 
 have no reason to believe that the needful and mighty 
 act of God in expelling from the regions of light their 
 arch leader with all his band, had, or could have, any 
 effect as a reconciliation, or any tendency to remove the 
 enmity, however humbling their defeat and condition. 
 N^o, nor that it were possible for those who had been 
 created free partakers with their blessed and eternal 
 King in the riches of his glorj', after such daring rebel- 
 lion and attempted usurpation, could ever be restored to 
 that glorious state which they had lost by their fall ; * 
 for, as we may well believe, no mediation could be found 
 between these rebels and Him whom they had attempted 
 to dethi'one ; they had sinned wilfully and without temp- 
 tation, and there remained therefore to them no more 
 sacrifice for sins, but they were consigned to the black- 
 ness of darkness forever.f 
 
 * " For it is impossible for tliose who were once enlightened, and 
 have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the 
 Holy Ghost, and have tasted the good word of God, and the powers 
 of the world to come, if they shall fall away, to renew them again 
 unto repentance." Heh. vi. i, 5 and 6 — also Heh. x. 26. 
 
 t "Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for 
 the devil and his angels." Matt. xxv. 41. 
 
 " For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down 
 
25 
 
 Hence, this arch-pretender, finding himself forever de- 
 feated by the power and interminable decree of God, 
 was excited to the highest pitch of hatred and malice, 
 and seeing he was now forever expelled from the glories 
 above, would seek to obtain for himself some other place 
 and kingdom where to rule. He, therefore, as it would 
 appear, then sought out, and by his subtle temptation, 
 assailed the lower creation of God, that he might hereby 
 establish his dominion over a noble race which God had 
 here placed, newly-created by his divine hand, in his own 
 image, " a little lower than the angels," and furnished 
 too with power from his almighty Creator, if he had 
 been obedient, to resist and overcome this proud usurper 
 of the prerogative of heaven ; but he, the wicked one 
 (for such he had now become) by deceit and lies, and by 
 a proud contradiction of the law and commandments of 
 God, attempted to turn away man from his allegiance to 
 his beneficent Maker and Father, and to corrupt and ob- 
 literate the character and image of uprightness and 
 holiness which God had impressed upon him ; and instead 
 thereof to stamp him with the mark and inscription of 
 the beast, which is sin, and serves to show to whose 
 kingdom he belongs. 
 
 In this the serpent succeeded but too well ; and man. 
 
 to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness to he reserved 
 unto judgment." 2 Peter ii. i. 
 
 " And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their 
 own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains, under dark- 
 ness." Jude 6. 
 
 " And there was war in heaven : Michael and his angels fought 
 against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, and pre- 
 vailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. And 
 the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the devil, and 
 satan, which deceiveth the whole world; he was cast out into the 
 earth, and his angels were cast out with him." Revelation xii. 7, 8, 
 and 9. 
 
26 
 
 through pride, and listening to the tempter, and seeking 
 to obtain knowledge beyond what his Creator had as- 
 signed to him, fell into a mighty lapse of transgression, 
 and was estranged from his Maker; the threatened 
 penalty of his disobedience was inflicted ujjon him, and 
 his condition was properly denominated death, than 
 which, if it remain, there can be no greater punishment ; 
 and this death was truly realized, inasmuch as he died 
 spiritually by losing the divine life through his trans- 
 gression. He was dead also as it regards a sense of 
 goodness ; for his feelings were now so perverted, that 
 they led him to consider God, who was truly his all benefi- 
 cent Father, to be be his enemy; he himself having 
 now become the subject of another kingdom. 
 
 As things now were, it remained entirely with God, 
 whether he would provide a way for man to return again 
 to his rightful allegiance, so that the first purpose of his 
 own benevolence and glory might still be realized ; or 
 whether he would abandon this ruined work altogether. 
 But rejoice, heaven ! and sing, O earth ! and break 
 forth into singing, O ye mountains of the forest ! love, 
 boundless love, and mercy led the way, and if a plan could 
 be found compatible with both the blessed attributes of j us- 
 tice and mercy, so that his statutes should not be rescinded 
 nor dishonored, then God would open a way for them to 
 return to himself again. And joyful to think and to 
 know, in the richness of his grace a way was found, and 
 a Mediator was also found and ordained who would for 
 this, even for this fallen creature, give life for life. For 
 however man had conceived pride, through the instilling of 
 the author of it, and had a desire to be wise in himself, 
 and to be as God, yet he had not rebelled as the fallen 
 angels had done ; hence a provision could be made and 
 adapted to remove out of the way that which had be- 
 
27 
 
 fallen him ; and this provision should apply to him, on 
 condition that he would then hy obedience reverse his 
 disobedience, for when the sacrifice for sin repented of, 
 was in that day ordained, the Lord said then unto man, 
 "If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted?" 
 
 But as it regarded the character and office of the 
 Mediator, it was seen that he must also be a man : as it 
 was man that sinned, so like must be given for like, and 
 life for life, yea and death for death. That is, the death 
 of a man temporally, (God's leniency being such.) should 
 be accepted as an equivalent pledge for the death of a 
 man spiritually, he being yet within the reach of such a 
 pledge, not having sinned as those had sinned, who had 
 fallen before him ; and so, by a pledge, should man be 
 redeemed from the judgment of death that rested upon 
 him. 
 
 But as sin could not be atoned by sin, any more than 
 disobedience could be atoned by disobedience, or hy an 
 impure offering ; and as the subsequent race of man, if 
 a race should be suffered, must descend through these 
 sin-stained progenitors; therefore the offering of a mere 
 man yet unredeemed, could not be equivalent to the 
 effecting of redemption ; and as no mere man, there- 
 fore, could be an equivalent pledge without first having 
 a pledge ; nor even then, so long as the nature and pro- 
 pensity to sin remained in him ; so, therefore, no one 
 could be found among men merely as such, that could 
 possibly redeem his brother, or give to God a ransom 
 for him. 
 
 There were also other, and still higher and greater 
 reasons, why a mere man could not be a suflicient media- 
 tor, because in the covenant of such a redemption as 
 this must be to succeed to salvation, there must be a 
 
28 
 
 bringing to repentance, before the sins which had been 
 committed could be forgiven or atoned for. And then 
 again, and which is indispensable and cannot be com- 
 muted, man's heart must be enlightened, drawn and 
 guided to the truth and to righteousness ; for although 
 he repent and his sins be remitted for once, yet without 
 something to keep him from a recurrence to them, he 
 will still sin, and never forsake the commission of it. For 
 however he may know his former sins expiated by the 
 atonement, still, if he witness not the interposition of a 
 power to preserve him in future from sin, he will go on 
 again, adding sin to sin, until the accumulation become 
 such, and the duration of his transgressions so outlive 
 the day of God's grace, that the application of the 
 mediation, whether without or within, will be rendered 
 entirely unavailing. And here we see the supreme ex- 
 cellency of the light and grace of this provision ; that if 
 observed, is able to keep us from a state, out of which 
 the atonement itself is n.ot designed to redeem us — 
 even that of sinning against the Holy Ghost. (See 
 Heb. vi. 4, 5, 6, and chap. x. 26.) 
 
 If the offering of a mere man could have been given 
 and accepted for sins already passed, still this could 
 have no effect in keeping man from sinning in future. 
 But still the interposition and mediation must be 
 effected, as wisdom teacheth us to believe, by the seed 
 of the woman, even by the man Christ Jesus, who should 
 know no sin, and in whom the fulness of God should 
 dwell bodily, and this body and life of man in which he 
 designed himself to dwell, should be a pure offering and 
 sacrifice of the first fruits, even of the first and only 
 man who never sinned. This was therefore a sacrifice 
 of a sweet smelling savour unto God, in which, and by 
 which, he would blot out from his jjresence the trans- 
 
29 
 
 gression of every penitent sinner, and obtain a place 
 ancj ground for him, whereon he would deign to meet 
 him ; and such too as would enable him to receive the 
 divine grace, and prepare him for the guidance of the 
 divine Spirit: for without this, man could not so much 
 as be brought to repentance, and much less, to that which 
 is the hardest of all attainments ; the forsaking and 
 ceasing from sin ; for the mediation as well as the media- 
 tor was to be the Immanuel, God with us ; not only God 
 in Christ Jesus, reconciling the world unto himself, but 
 also God in them through a measure of his spirit, as was 
 declared, " thou in me and I in them ! " 
 
 And we have not only abundant Scripture testimony, 
 to show the fitness and necessity of a mediator, to act 
 in us, and with us, as well as without us, and for us : 
 but our own inability alone to do anything that is good, 
 clearly teacheth us the high order and urgent necessity 
 of a spiritual and continual mediation to guide and pre- 
 serve us. Herein is much of the excellency of the 
 mediation seen, that after the expiation of repented 
 sins, He the Mediator of the whole glorious covenant 
 of life and salvation, is to us a mediator still, keeping 
 with lis, and constantly teaching us the denying of all 
 ungodliness : for such is our weakness, even -after remis- 
 sion, that but for his help continually, we should soon 
 fall into our old sins again, and our last state would be 
 worse than the first. So that in the end Christ may 
 have died for us a thousand times, (if by his judgments 
 we should be so many times brought to repentance,) and 
 still we be continually growing worse and worse ; yea, 
 and though we might all the time be acknowledging the 
 atonement, and having the most implicit confidence in 
 it, still if we do not believe in him, and receive him, the 
 promise of the Fathei-, the Immanuel to be with us, to 
 
30 
 
 keep us, all will be in vain. Yea, and if we do not by 
 the power of the agency which God giveth us, work 
 with him, and endeavor to keep his commandments, 
 then the covenant to us is broken ; yea, and by us is 
 also broken ; and moreover, if this indispensable part of 
 the covenant so clearly identified and enforced by the un- 
 deniable authority of the Scriptures, is disregarded or re- 
 jected, however clear and full our faith may be in an- 
 other indispensable part, still we are covenant breakers, 
 and but partial believers in the gospel of our Lord and 
 Saviour Jesus Christ. And again, on the other side : if 
 any man with the Bible in his hand, shall deny the di- 
 vinity of Christ, and the efficacy and necessity of his 
 outward sacrifice, then all his professions of light or 
 grace, or spirit, (if indeed he have the presumption to 
 make such a profession,) will be but a mere ignis fatuus, 
 or a counterfeit of the right thing, and will only con- 
 tribute to his condemnation. 
 
 Now if by the suggestion of an evil spirit the fall of 
 man was effected through disobedience, then are we not 
 to conclude, that through the interposition of a good 
 spirit the restoration is to be effected in the reverse of 
 that by which man fell ; even in obedience ? And obe- 
 dience is not a whit less necessary on account of what 
 has gone before it in order to make way for it ; for what 
 Christ has done for us without us, has not rescinded a 
 single obligation for us, — has not in the least exonerated 
 us from obedience, or from fulfilling as much of the con- 
 ditions as devolves upon us. In every covenant there is 
 either a promise, an obligation, or a condition, between 
 two at least ; thus in that between G-od and us, after the 
 first step which he himself has taken, to make way for 
 all his promises, as well as even the application of the 
 atonement, it is upon the condition of our obedience. 
 
31 
 
 and the fulfillment of ouv jiart of that covenant, which 
 ensures to us an eternal inheritance. 
 
 Christianity having been ordained as the blessed means 
 of restoring man from his fallen condition and from sin, 
 to a state of holiness and acceptance with God, is of all 
 things the most hateful to the devil ; yea, be hateth the 
 faith and the power as well as the author of it. He 
 strove mightily to destroy the child Jesus through the 
 instrumentality of Herod, so that if possible he might 
 frustrate and prevent his glorious mission amongst men ; 
 so likewise it is to be presumed that he unwittingly strove, 
 through the chief priests and elders, to apprehend and 
 bring him before Pilate and Herod that they might 
 destroy him, not knowing at the time, that therein he 
 was fighting against his own kingdom ; for however cun- 
 ning, yet he is not infinite in understanding, nor can he 
 know beforehand the divine purposes. For although the 
 coming of Christ, and his character as the Messiah, were so 
 clearly spoken of, that doubtless, he as well as the chil- 
 dren of men, were in expectation of it; yet the benefit of 
 his death and sufferings, were described in so mysterious 
 and hidden a manner, that even the most enlightened of 
 men could not comprehend it until after his resurrection, 
 when he himself clearly explained it to two of his disci- 
 ples as they walked from Jerusalem to Emmaus, as well 
 as at other times. Thus the enmity and malice of the 
 devil led him iguorantly on to instigate the Jews to de- 
 stroy the man Jesus, not knowing, as we may well be- 
 lieve, the satisfactory and saving purpose of the death of 
 Christ. 
 
 The plan of our salvation and redemption then, on the 
 part of Divine Providence, consists of three things : — 
 1st. Repentance, or rather his power that leads to it. 
 2d, The atoning blood of Christ : and 3d, his Holy 
 
32 
 
 Spirit which sanctifies ; and this agrees with the apostle 
 John's testimony that there are three that bear witness 
 in the earth, viz: " the Spirit, the water and the blood, 
 and these three agree in one." For we are instructed 
 that the water of Jordan, administered upon the body of 
 Jesus, and upon the bodies of men, represented repent- 
 ance, and showed, and was thus acknowledged by Jesus 
 himself, that judgment which brings to repentance com- 
 eth first ; after this the blood of Christ shed at Calvary 
 as an atonement and reconciliation for us, cometh in the 
 second place; and the gift of the Holy Spirit for our 
 guidance and sanctification comes in the third place ; and 
 this order of time, and their succession to each other, was 
 arranged by Wisdom itself ; for as the baptism of John, 
 signifying repentance, took place first ; so the offering of 
 Christ, for the expiation of sins thus rejDented of, came 
 next in succession ; and lastly, the more full diffusion 
 of the Holy Spirit followed for the accomplishment 
 and completion of the work of sanctification ; and as 
 to the two former, their order is sufficiently proved 
 by the times of those events ; and as to the latter, 
 its place is clearly demonstrated by the direction of 
 truth and the nature of things; — see John vii. 39, 
 " For the Holy Ghost was not yet given, because that 
 Jesus was not yet glorified." But after his death and 
 resurrection, he breathed on them, and bade them re- 
 ceive the Holy Ghost, which is the eternal spirit that 
 sanctifies men's hearts. John xx. 22. 
 
 There are divers operations and effects of the Spirit 
 distinctly spoken of in the Scriptures of Truth, as being 
 effectual to salvation, and they are severally alluded to 
 by Christ and his apostles, as well as by the holy men of 
 old, in such manner as if each was saving of itself ; and 
 for the reason, as I apprehend, that not one of these 
 
33 
 
 requisites, all of which ai-e indispensable to our future 
 well-being, should be overlooked or excluded from the 
 summary of our faith in the covenant of life and peace. 
 And these provisions and conditions may be thus enu- 
 merated : — 
 
 1st. That men are to be saved by the outward com- 
 ing, sufferings, and death of Jesus Christ, through 
 whom their souls are reconciled unto God. 
 
 2d. That men are to be saved by faith in God, and 
 in his Son Jesus Christ. 
 
 3d. That men are to be saved by regeneration and 
 baptism of the Spirit. 
 
 4th. That men are to be saved by Divine Grace. 
 
 5th. That men are to be saved by the Spirit of Christ 
 or of God. 
 
 6th. That men are to be saved by the knowledge of 
 God. 
 
 7th. That men are to be saved by obeying and keep- 
 ing the commandments of God, and the Lord Jesus 
 Christ. 
 
 To exemplify and demonstrate the foregoing positions, 
 I would refer to the subjoined passages of Scripture as 
 being distinctly applicable to them, and which, collect- 
 ively, would seem to constitute and include the whole 
 covenant of life and salvation.* And I would desire to 
 
 * " Even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, &c. John iii. 14. — 
 "We have redemption through his blood. Eph.i. 7. — Who gave him- 
 self for us, &c'. Titus ii. 14. — And washed us from our sins in his 
 own blood. Rev. i. 5. 
 
 " And whosoever liveth and believeth in me, &c. Jolin ::':. 2G. — 
 For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. Gal. iii. 
 26. ■ 
 
 " He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, &o. Matt, iii, 11, 12. 
 — Except a man be born again, &c. John iii. 3. — Baptism doth also 
 now save us, &o. 1 Pet. iii. 21. 
 
 " But by the grace of God, I am what I am, &c. 1 Cor. xv. 10. — 
 2* 
 
34 
 
 ask every one who is looking for the blessed hope of this 
 high calling, even the glory of salvation, whether he can 
 venture, even secretly in his own soul to disregard, or 
 openly to disavow any one of the above conditions of 
 his eternal salvation ? And whether on serious reflection 
 he would not be fearful of doing so at the great risk of 
 his soul's happiness? Then how needful it is to have a 
 full belief in the doctrines of Scripture, and in every 
 part of them, not merely assenting to some and passing 
 slightly over others, for fear that a practical and living 
 belief in them should lead us to much pain and conflict 
 of spirit, and to the mortifying of the will of the flesh. — 
 Then let every one come down and prove himself, and 
 
 My grace is sufficient for thee, &o. 2 Cor. xii, 9. — For by grace are 
 ye saved through faith. Eph. ii. 8. — For the grace of God that 
 bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men. Tit. ii. 11. 
 
 " And his Spirit, it hath gathered them. Isa. xxxiv. 16. — It is the 
 Spirit that quickeneth, &c. John vii. 63. — For the law of the Spirit 
 of life in Christ Jesus, &o. Eom. viii. 2. — But he that soweth to the 
 Spirit, &c. Gal. vi. 8. 
 
 "And this is life eternal, that they might know thee, &c. John 
 xvii. 3. 
 
 " If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted. Gen. iv. 7. 
 
 " Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and ye shall be my peo- 
 ple : and walk ye in all the ways that I have commanded you, that 
 it may be well unto you. Jerem. vii. 23. 
 
 " And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salva- 
 tion unto all them that obey him. Heb. v. 9. 
 
 "Verily, verily, I say unto you, if a man keep my saying, he shall 
 never see death. John viii. 51. 
 
 ' ' Bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ. 
 2 Cor. X. 5. 
 
 " Fear God, and keep his commandments, &c. Eccles. xii. 13. — 
 And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him because we keep his com- 
 mandments, &c. 1 John iii. 22. — He that saith, I know him, and 
 keepethnot his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 
 1 John ii. i, — He that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, 
 and he in him. 1 John iii. 24. — And this is love, that we walk after 
 his commandments, &c. 2 John 6." 
 
35 
 
 examine, by the light of Christ all the hidden and dark 
 avenues of his heart, remembering that every secret 
 thing must be opened and brought to judgment in the 
 day of Jesus Christ. And oh, how desirable, that when 
 that day shall come upon every one of us, we may sub- 
 mit to it, while there is yet tenderness in our hearts, so 
 that a spirit of unbelief in any one of these great doc- 
 trines of life and salvation may never be entertained ; 
 that none of the great truths of the gospel may be 
 looked upon with indifference, but that every one of us 
 may be so quickened and made alive unto God, by the 
 resurrection and power of Jesus Christ, as to be furnished 
 and blessed with the perceptive and all instructive guid- 
 ance and influence of his Holy Spirit. 
 
 LETTER III. 
 
 THE EFFECT OF ACTION AND REACTION UPON THE PRO- 
 FESSORS OF CHRISTIANITY, ESPECIALLY IN RELATION 
 TO THE SOCIETY OF FRIENDS. 
 
 MY DEAR FEIEND, 
 
 We learn from history, that whenever God in his 
 providence has made way for an advance of his church 
 and people, their old enemy and watchful foe, has then 
 always been ready to exercise all his manoeuvres and 
 powers to drive her back again into the wilderness ; and 
 we have no need to go further back than the Protestant 
 reformation for a proof of it ; for in a review of those 
 times, we easily recognize his palpable and bestirring 
 efforts to frustrate the Wessed work, and to tarnish the 
 beauty that seemed to be dawning upon the church, and 
 if possible, to deter her from going forward in the wav 
 which God had opened before her, even to the advanced 
 ground which he had provided for the pitching of her 
 
36 
 
 tents and tabernacles. Thus, when the early reformers 
 began to seethe errors and inconsistencies of the Romish 
 Church, the evil effects of their outward forms and ob- 
 servances could not but greatly strike their attention, 
 and particularly their doctrine of the real presence of 
 the body and blood of Christ in what was called the sac- 
 rament of the Lord's Supper ; the whole, and particularly 
 the latter, tending to a denial of the spirituality of relig- 
 ion, and the benefit of the offering once made for all, by 
 the sufferings of Jesus Christ without the gates of Jeru- 
 salem. The errors of Socinus were also propagated 
 about this time, and his followers were thus in reality 
 associated with the Romish Church in effecting the same 
 object, though by different means, and seemed to threaten 
 the overthrow and downfall of the whole doctrine of 
 Christian redemption. The earnest efforts of the honest- 
 hearted and sincere reformers urgently opposed both 
 these evils, and the Romish Church, defending in a very 
 undue manner the doctrine of works, the abuse of which 
 was the foundation of their system of priestcraft, the 
 enemy of all good, took advantage of the heat of this 
 controversy, and through a want of watchfulness and 
 care on the part of the first reformers, they were led on, 
 step by step, to such a warm defence of the doctrine of 
 the atonement, as to lose sight of the more practical 
 operation of the light, grace, and spirit of our Lord JesUs 
 Christ ; and this gained such ground at a later period, 
 during the hot disputes between the Calvinistic Puritans 
 and the Protestant Episcopacy, which retain many of 
 the Romish superstitions and errors, and they were so 
 exclusively and intently fixed on extolling the merits of 
 the former, that they very much lost sight of the neces- 
 ,sity of the latter ; and so by inattention to it, their ex- 
 perience in and faith concerning the power of practical 
 
37 
 
 religion, gradually diminished and vanished away; inso- 
 much that finally they became so void and faithless of 
 the spirit and life of religion, that he who made a pro- 
 fession of spirituality, became as it were, a by-word and 
 a hissing to these great and zealous supporters of the 
 ever blessed atonement. Yea, and those who wor- 
 shipped God in spirit, who walked in his light, and 
 believed in the perceptible guidance and influence of his 
 holy spirit, were deemed mystics and enthusiasts; and 
 now having lost the life and the power ; the faith of 
 these high prof essors generally was only literal, and their 
 devotions an imitation, consisting of forms and cere- 
 monies, and things that belonged to the outward law. 
 Thus they in their turn, as the others in another way had 
 done, made a breach in the same covenant or sj'stem of 
 Christianity, and rejected very much of the vital and 
 spiritual part, the regenerating power of the Holy Spirit. 
 
 This, we may well suppose, was effected by the action 
 and reaction of that zeal of an unregenerate heart which 
 tends to errors and extremes. But God, even her God, 
 forsook not his church. He interposed to renew his 
 whole covenant with her, notwithstanding her wavering 
 and vibrations from the true centre, the power of the 
 gospel ! He would lead her again out of the wilderness 
 where her enemy had driven her, and he would speak 
 comfortably to her. He would raise up unto her faith- 
 ful witnesses, whose hearts he would enlarge, that they 
 should understand, and whose eyes he would anoint 
 that they should see, and he would restore again to the 
 church the whole covenant entire as in primitive times, 
 and men should be able again to see equally every pro- 
 vision of his salvation. 
 
 And they, our predecessors, did see and did walk in 
 the light of the Lord Jesus, in which every one who 
 
38 
 
 walketh also believeth, and they do ever believe the 
 whole covenant of God, and their faith will be found in 
 all that faith can do, and their worts in all that works 
 can do. And they see that such faith as stands only in lit- 
 eral things, and is not also in the light, and life, and 
 power, is dead, being but partial and alone ; and in pro- 
 portion as is the increase of faith, so is the increase of 
 works ; and so vice versa, as regards a living faith, and 
 those works which are with it, which are the fruits of the 
 Spirit of God. For such a faith, according to the dec- 
 laration of the apostle, is also the fruit of the same spirit, 
 so that he who hath not the Spirit of Christ, nor walketh 
 by it, cannot have the faith as it is in Jesus. 
 
 But the coming forth of George Fox, and his cotem- 
 poraries, for the restoration of God's covenant, as well 
 as the primitive testimonies and doctrines of the gospel, 
 drew ujDon them the malice and rage of the old watchful 
 foe ; for the advancement of the church, by the redeem- 
 ing power of God through Jesus Christ, still excited the 
 most dire hatred of her enemy, the devil, whose malice, 
 as it did in the early days of the Christian Church, now 
 again instigated and poured forth a mighty volume of 
 rage and persecution against them, hoping no doubt to 
 get to himself some honor over the church of God. For 
 inasmuch as in the primitive times he was able to perse- 
 cute the Christian Church, only by and through the peo- 
 ple of the world, so now he hoped to divide Christ's 
 kingdom against itself, and if not to the overthrow of 
 all — yet to the dividing of the spoil, and himself to 
 share in it, by arraying Christian against Christian, 
 catholic against protestant, and finally, even protestant 
 Christians against each other. Now it was seen that even 
 those who were making the highest profession of the 
 atoning blood of their Redeemer, and who were placing 
 
39 
 
 the most implicit reliance aud confidence therein, could 
 be brought forward in the very face of the gospel, to 
 spoil and devour the professors of the same faith; for 
 this plain reason only, that they, the latter, were endeav- 
 oring to embrace and observe all the commands and doc- 
 trines of their Lord and Master Jesus Christ. They had 
 made a firm stand and notable advancement against the 
 kingdom of darkness, therefore the prince of darkness 
 now rose in his fury and spread the work of cruelty 
 around, increasingly striving to waste and paralyze this 
 people. But this advanced guard — this little band of 
 humble warriors, fighting under the strong banner of 
 Christ Jesus, their holy head and leader, were invincible, 
 because their Captain was with them, and went before 
 them; and for this reason, that their weapons were not 
 carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down the 
 strongholds of Satan and his armies. 
 
 I shall now proceed to make some remarks upon 
 Socinianism and infidelity, subsequent to the rise of the 
 Society of Friends, and on the introduction of these 
 opinions among them, and among other Christian pro- 
 fessors. If inquiry were to be made for the first cause 
 of these modern deviations from the soundness of 
 Christian faith, -we might easily trace it to the same 
 source whence evil first came into the world, and whence 
 we are to look for the primary origin of all iniquity ; and 
 if we were to seek for the grounds on which that first 
 cause of evil acts on our fallen nature, our inquiries must 
 end in the conviction, that it rests in a disposition for 
 insubordination to the needful restraints of the divine 
 law, and on pride, that great upholder of self, and of 
 the will of the flesh. These are the elements, in the ab- 
 sence of the humbling power of Truth, with which the 
 enemy pitches his strongholds and builds his embattle- 
 
40 
 
 merits, even in the unrestrained will of man, and in the 
 pride of his heart ; a pride which may not be seen on 
 his person, but which either his words or his actions, 
 sooner or later, will show to have a dwelling in his heart. 
 Hence, he will in a greater or less degree, stand opposed 
 to the pure, humbling, and needful restraints of the gos- 
 pel ; in some way or other this will be found, and to such 
 a degree at least, as will keep him under the dominion of 
 evil. But the out goings by which the tempter leads 
 man off from the ways of Truth, are varied according to 
 his natural disposition ; according too, to the traditions re- 
 ceived, and the condition and faith of the society with 
 which he is connected, and of those deviations which 
 lead from the Truth ; the enemy, although he regards 
 the least, still glories most in the worst and widest ; and 
 although high professing hypocrisy cannot be deemed 
 the least of these, yet open infidelity must be acknowl- 
 edged the greatest ; still it is believed, that the ready foe 
 has made the former a clue to the latter, and however 
 natural it is for things to produce their like, yet we find 
 that through the intej-position of an evil agent, the nat- 
 ural order may be broken and reversed, and a thing may 
 lead to another widely differing in its degree, and in 
 some respects in its nature, yet in denomination the same. 
 As one extreme often produces another, so may the ab- 
 horrence of one evil lead the unwary mind into its op- 
 posite evil; and although, in some dispositions, over 
 action may subside into inaction, yet it undoubtedly 
 often produces reaction ; and as it regards spiritual 
 agency, where the power of Truth is not the moving 
 principle, then there is another power which influences 
 and controls men's actions, and controls that which leads 
 to action, viz : their faith, or rather their notions or way 
 of thinking; for indeed if they are not in some degree 
 
41 
 
 under the influence of the Truth, let their profession be 
 what it may, they can have nothing which deserves the 
 name of faith. For when men forsake the power of 
 Truth, this choice gift is continued to them no longer ; 
 they then have not its renewing assurances, they are 
 trusting in a false hope, which is nothing more than the 
 spurious workings of the deceiver. The vanity and 
 pride of ascribing to man the honor of saving himself by 
 his own good works, as is done by those who rely for 
 salvation on works alone, has been eagerly grasped by 
 the devil; and at the same time that he extols it to its 
 devotees, he exhibits it in the most ridiculous point of 
 view to all such, as seeing its inconsistencies, are led into 
 the Calvinistic sentiment, which excludes good works 
 altogether, causing them to confide exclusively in Christ's 
 outward atonement for them, and in this way the enemy 
 takes advantage of man's frailty-; still charity leads us 
 to the persuasion that sincerity may exist in the one as 
 well as in the other, but practical observation obliges us 
 also to admit, that a complete character of hypocrisy 
 may be found in both. 
 
 Again, where good works or obedience are struck alto- 
 gether from the account, and God believed to be equal 
 in all his ways, and implicit confidence being placed on 
 Christ's redemption without us, then comes in the doc- 
 trine of universal salvation without any condition. In 
 all these forms of belief we can plainly seethe care taken 
 to provide an escape from the pain and conflict of the 
 sanctifying and practical work of the grace and spirit of 
 God upon men's souls for their purification, so that a 
 place may be found and abode in, for the continued in- 
 dulgence of the flesh; and the will of man, vainly at- 
 tempted to be kept alive in every form of religion, save 
 the one true form in which obedience and the power of 
 
42 
 
 the Spirit dwelletb. It must be acknowledged then, 
 that the mind let out to mere opinions, without the liv- 
 ing, fundamental and true touchstone of the light and 
 grace of God, confirmed by the Scriptures, will probably 
 run into great errors ; and so it seems many, very many, 
 have run. But the devil has not led every one in the 
 same way, though he may bring them to the same bitter 
 end at last, — for there are many paths which lead 
 through devious windings, but all come out at the same 
 sad point. He may induce both professors and non-pro- 
 fessors, (the freedom of the gospel is not apparent in 
 one, nor its fruits in the other,) to disbelieve the spirit- 
 uality of Christianity, because they see their neighbor, 
 who is high in the profession of it, either a mere enthu- 
 siast or a hypocrite. Again, he may induce some men to 
 disbelieve in the atonement of Jesus Christ, because 
 many who lay great stress upon it, are in their practice 
 no better than infidels. Furthermore, he may induce 
 many to condemn Christianity under every name and 
 form, because they see those who profess to believe in, 
 and follow the Lord Jesus Christ as a Saviour, continue 
 to pursue this world, the lust of the eye, and the pride of 
 life, with great avidity, like other men. 
 
 But after all, whatever the inducement tnay appear to 
 be, or whatever may be seen in others inclining thereto, 
 the strongest ground of unbelief is in a man's own heart, 
 and in the utter want, or loss of true religion there. To 
 such as are inclined to reasoning, Satan is fully able, suc- 
 cessfully to pervert and misrepresent the doctrines of 
 the gospel, because when their minds are darkened and 
 know not the Truth, he can and does lead them to mis- 
 take his false radiance for the light of Christ, and thereby 
 induces a great reversion of views and sentiments, mak- 
 ing light darkness, and darkness light, before them. 
 
43 
 
 Hence they become an easy prey to infidelity. In this 
 way I apprehend it was that some were seduced in the 
 early da3S of our Society, even such as had more self 
 love and spiritual pride, than vital Christianity, to wit : 
 John Perrott, John Wilkinson, and others. (See Sewell's 
 and Gough's Histories.) 
 
 But we see how soon their anti-christian doctrines 
 were discerned and detected by George Fox and his co- 
 temporaries, because the light and spirit of Christianity 
 abode in them ; even a measure of that Spirit which 
 trieth every spirit and is able to decide whether it be of 
 God or not. The judgment of Truth was thus placed 
 upon the heads of these innovators and great pretenders 
 to spirituality. And again, in more modern times, it 
 was in the self-same way, that Satan deceived and led 
 away some in Ireland and many in North America; and 
 it is believed that the facility of his victory over them, 
 was greatly owing to their self love, self righteousness, 
 and their great want of meek Christian principle. Inso- 
 much that by his transforming power, he succeeded in 
 bringing them to suppose or to profess that they supposed, 
 that our first Friends did not believe in the true divinity 
 and reconciling sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ ; than 
 which a greater absurdity, and perversion of things, 
 could hardly be imagined. For however the views of 
 others as to the spirituality of religion were such as 
 necessarily to lead our early Friends to dwell much upon 
 that part of the Christian doctrine, and to insist on the 
 leading of God's grace in the heart ; yet there is nothing 
 more obviously foreign to the truth than the pretensions 
 of those Socinian seceders, viz: that our first Friends did 
 not believe in the true godhead and manhood of Jesus 
 Christ, and in the blessed purpose of his sacrifice. So 
 that we verily know that these outbreakings, cannot in 
 
44 
 
 the least degree be grounded upon any defect in our pre- 
 decessors, in any point of Christian faith concerning the 
 offices and character of Christ ; for abundant evidence is 
 deducible from their writings to prove that such a defect 
 did not exist. 
 
 As has been before suggested, the professors of Chris- 
 tianity in the time of George Fox, had generally forsaken 
 the spirituality of religion, but were not in the least 
 wanting as to abeliefin the outward coming, the divinity 
 and sacrifice of Christ. Hence there was not that neces- 
 sity of insisting upon faith in this last-mentioned part of 
 the Covenant, respecting which there was no defect of 
 faith, as upon that part in which there was a deficiency; 
 and this their practice was according to Truth and sound 
 reasoning. For what skilful physician, being called to 
 administer to a diseased person, would not resort to such 
 medicine, as would tend to counteract the complaint 
 that was already upon him, rather than to administer to 
 a disease under which he did not suffer, and in which 
 respect he was entirely sound and healthy. Now, as the 
 literal and spiritual parts of Christianity cannot be con- 
 sidered by any truly enlightened mind to be opposing or 
 contending properties, any more than the body and soul 
 of a perfect man, so therefore there can be no necessary 
 fear, that to promote the right apprehension of the one 
 could endanger the safety of the other. To say that 
 except a man has the spirit of Christ he is none of his, 
 does not gainsay the testimony that "God was manifest 
 in the flesh, seen of angels, believed on in the world, 
 received up into glory ! " and I believe that the more true 
 spiritual Christianity a man has, the better he will be 
 qualified rightly to see and to estimate the doctrines of 
 Truth as contained in the Holy Scriptures relative to the 
 outward coming and offices of Jesus Christ ; and for 
 
45 
 
 this very reason I believe, and am abundantly convinced, 
 that our predecessors had much more of the true faith, 
 and had much clearer views of the meaning and stand- 
 ing of the Scriptures, as well as of the true divinity of, 
 and the purposes of the sufferings of our Lord and 
 Saviour, than other professors of that day, who were 
 making a high profession of their faith in them, but 
 many of whom were wanting in spiritual and vital relig- 
 ion. 
 
 LETTER IV. 
 
 ON THE SECESSION IN AMERICA. 
 MY DEAR FRIEND, 
 
 It has been supposed by some, that within the last 
 century, there had been either a defect in the faith of 
 the Society of Friends as to the outward coming and 
 atonement of Jesus Christ; or otherwise not enough of 
 care taken by its ministers to lay sufficient stress upon, 
 or to allude sufficiently to the efficacy of the sacrifice of 
 Christ without us, so as by that means to keep up a safe 
 barrier against the inroads of infidelity. I think the lat- 
 ter was the case with too many in America, and I make 
 no doubt that if Friends had been timely aware of what 
 might come, and what did afterwards come, they would 
 have been better guarded against it. But I know not 
 tliat there was any unsoundness in our Society there, 
 until the seeds were sown in the mind of him who stood 
 at the head of the late secession , excepting only in a 
 very few solitary individuals. Nor do I think that the 
 open infidel writings of Paine, nearly half a century ago, 
 had any effect in shaking the faith of Friends ; for, as 
 far as my knowledge extends, these writings were justly 
 deprecated by them, and treated everywhere with the 
 abhorrence they justly merited ; but whether the publi- 
 
46 
 
 cations of Paine, or the more artful and refined writings 
 of Priestley, contained the seed, which first fell on the 
 fitly prepared ground : to wit, the heart of the first 
 founder of the American secession, I am not prepared to 
 determine ; but through whatever medium, or whether 
 only through the agency of Satan, it seems that either 
 by a lapse into spiritual pride, or by some other means, 
 his heart was exceeding congenial to its growth, and his 
 natural talent and manner were wonderfully calculated 
 to supplant truth unobserved; as well as for the first 
 spreading the seeds of infidelity. It seems however that 
 there were a few prominent characters about the same 
 time, or soon after, who were prepared to receive from 
 this their leader those seeds of infidelity. Hence through 
 him and theru (men of great influence) awful devastation 
 was made in the Society of Friends in America; and 
 however the Socinian doctrine may have lamentably 
 spread far and wide both in Europe and America, still 
 I apprehend that so great a schism or devastation in 
 proportion to numbers, has not been known elsewhere, as 
 in the instance just mentioned. Here then a question 
 may arise, whether the Society of Friends, from its pe- 
 culiar tenets, or discipline, is more exposed to the influ- 
 ence of such doctrines, than other branches of the Chris- 
 tian church. To this it may be replied with much con- 
 fidence, that the plain, full, and true doctrines of Friends 
 are not more nearly allied to Socinianism than are those 
 of others. No ! and if indeed the doctrines of this Soci- 
 ety are the genuine doctrines of primitive Christianity, 
 which we do most surely believe, then are they farther 
 from infidelity than any others. 
 
 N"evertheless, there is no doubt at all that the devil 
 envies those most who are the most purely Christian, 
 and consequently presses them the most sorely with his 
 
47 
 
 temptations, and strives the hardest to ensnare and drive 
 them back from their advanced ground ; and upon this 
 principle we are led to believe that the temptations 
 wherewith he tempted the author of Christianity, were 
 greater than those whereby he has ever tempted men. 
 By the same rule he exerts his power more against good 
 men than against others, and besides, the more good he 
 can despoil and overcome, the greater his victory and 
 exultation. But however great the trials of those who 
 stand high in the scale of profession may be, still, if it be 
 a profession to which God hath called them, their dwell- 
 ing being "in the secret place of the Most High," they 
 "shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty," — and 
 their strength and their protection will certainly be equal 
 to the trials of their day ; hence as their feet abide upon 
 the watch tower, their habitation will be kept in safety. 
 But a mere profession of Christianity is altogether una- 
 vailing in a Quaker as in any other. Yet as it regards 
 the extent of that dereliction of principle which befell 
 so many professing with Friends in America, however 
 they may still profess to be Christians, yet every one 
 acquainted with their skepticism, cannot but fear that 
 they or their leaders have so far abandoned Christianity 
 as to forfeit their right of benefit in the outward coming 
 and propitiatory sacrifice of Jesus Christ, and conse- 
 quently their right in the whole covenant ; as all depends 
 upon that blessed sacrifice. But it would seem as if the 
 devil did make a kind of compromise with them, and 
 such too as he had made with none other than professed 
 Quakers, for as their principles lead them to believe in 
 the light, grace and spirit of Christianity, as a distin- 
 guishing article, it would seem that he despaired of so 
 managing with them, as to strike this off at once with 
 the other important part of the great plan, he therefore 
 
48 
 
 suffered them still to profess the spiritual guidance, 
 (which nevertheless if real, there is nothing that he hates 
 worse,) well knowing that if he could induce aflat denial 
 of the proper divinity and atonement of Jesus Christ 
 without them, that they would not then, in the very 
 nature of things, be sharers in the true light of Christ 
 within them, and walkin it : so that he could now deceive 
 them with his false radiance, which they should mistake 
 for the real light. For having denied "the Lord that 
 bought them," they could not be enlightened by him. 
 Now, according to their manner of thinking and read- 
 ing too, as they would of course be looking for light and 
 spirit to guide them, full opportunity presented for this 
 false light of the fallen angels, and the true light being 
 thus superseded by darkness, through unbelief and hard- 
 ness of heart, there was no power in them to distinguish 
 between the true and the false ; between Christ and anti- 
 christ ; hence antichrist took the lead, and his light 
 and his spirit became their guide! he, well pleased 
 enough with it, and with their cry, which was a contin- 
 ual reiteration of " the light! the light! the spirit! the 
 spirit!" — and Christ within but not without! yea, and 
 proud and vaunting enough is he to have wrested from 
 Christ his name ! and to obtain from the children of 
 men the honor and homage attached to their leader! 
 glorying too in his own power of transformation and de- 
 lusion, in making himself as God and sitting as God! — 
 Now in this we see his cloven foot again, and his two- 
 fold and cunning intention in pushing forward these in- 
 fidel and deluded professors to the cry of " the spirit of 
 the Lord! the spirit of the Lord!" and filling their 
 mouths continually with it, and for this very purpose ; 
 that the truly spiritual Christian, whom he cannot in the 
 same way decoy, may, if possible, be made to loathe the 
 
49 
 
 Very name of Christ in spirit, or "Christ within the 
 hope of glory," this manifestation of the covenant being 
 so continually brought forward and taken in vain by 
 those well known to be antichristians. I-Ience we see 
 the art and power of the arch-destroyer to contrive and 
 form a deadly weapon with two edges, calculated to 
 cut, to wound, and to kill each way ! he fills the mouths 
 of his deluded followers, both with a cry against Chris- 
 tian redemption, and at the same time for it; that is, 
 partly for and partly against, in order to divide Christ ; 
 thus also to divide and part asunder his people, and to 
 destroy the one-half on his right hand, and the other 
 half on his left ! 
 
 Then seeing the destroyer has gone forth, let all stand 
 fast: for he has now but dressed up his old trick in a 
 new garb, in order to play it off again upon the unwary, 
 and those who cry peace. He has instigated the Socin- 
 ian doctrine on the one hand to take captive all that is 
 possible thereby, intending that those who may escape 
 it, shall in their flight for refuge take shelter in the doc- 
 trines and opinions of men, in unconditional assurance, 
 or in the flesh without the spirit, — because therefore 
 the Socinian or Hicksite has sinfully denied the divinity 
 and atonement of Christ, shall we unnecessarily and sin- 
 fully too, abandon everything else relative to God's sal- 
 vation, that so we may establish what they deny? as if 
 it were possible for us to obtain salvation by the one 
 without the other. And will any be driven, through cow- 
 ardice, from a practical faith in divine grace, and the 
 light and spirit of the gospel, because these seceders 
 have illusively pretended thereto ? Will any man be 
 deterred from reverently naming and believing in the 
 holy name, because the atheist casts it off with scorn ? 
 Not the true Christian, no ; for if the very worst of men 
 3 
 
50 
 
 deceptively profess the best of things, that will never 
 occasion the true believer to abandon them, nor if the 
 unfaithful abandon one part of the covenant, professing 
 to support the other, it will never induce the former to 
 reverse it, for in so doing he Tvould be a covenant- 
 breaker as much as the other. 
 
 Now, in conclusion, I would ask if it is not alike dan- 
 gerous to man and dishonorable towards God, to deny 
 that Jesus Christ has done anything for our salvation 
 without us, and to deny that he is doing anything for 
 us, within us, for the same purpose ; seeing that if we 
 reject either of these provisions, we cannot be saved, for 
 we cannot so much as begin a good life, without the ap- 
 plication of that great sacrifice of his body, once made 
 for all men. Nor in the second place can we advance a 
 single day of our lives in the Christian way and warfare 
 against sin, without his presence and help continually 
 extended to us. The former was a mighty offering of 
 his own body, a living sacrifice, once made for the recon- 
 ciliation of man ; the latter is a continual extension and 
 operation of his power and spirit, light and grace, per- 
 ceptibly working in the hearts of men, for their preser- 
 vation and safe guidance through the whole course of 
 their lives; for however much and long a man may have 
 gone forward by co-operating with the spirit of God in 
 himself, yet he can never witness preservation and a 
 continuance in well-doing but through the power of this 
 grace and spirit of God working in him and with him ; 
 and if the declarations of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the 
 apostle Paul, be correct, man might for want of a con- 
 tinuance herein, sin against the Holy Ghost, and fall 
 from a good state into one from which it would be im- 
 possible even for the atonement itself to restore him. 
 
51 
 LETTER V. 
 
 ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 
 MY DEAR FRIEND, 
 
 It will be seen by every rational, well-informed mind, 
 that the comparison of two or more things together does 
 not virtually diminish the real value of either ; but af- 
 fords a ready way of exhibiting, and ascertaining, the 
 equal, or superior, or inferior properties of things differ- 
 ing both in nature and kind, viz. the good and the evil; 
 and these severally have their degrees; but my present 
 purpose will be answered by a brief recurrence to the 
 good. On this great scale is beheld, even by us, short- 
 sighted as we are, a mighty range of vast extent from 
 the lowest to the highest, in the blessed order of God's 
 assignment; for no man hath ever been able to compre- 
 hend, or to reach to the higher degrees of the radii of 
 this mighty circle; so that we see there is room for a 
 place and a station for every good thing in the spiritual 
 as well as in the temporal economy, and that, without any 
 interference or infringement upon each other. And God 
 standeth above all and over all, and through all, and is 
 in all, and ordereth all ; and in comparison of whom 
 there is no created thing which can be named in the hea- 
 ven above, or the earth beneath, or under the earth, or 
 even all things put together; they can indeed be no 
 more accounted of, than the drop of the bucket, or than 
 the particles of dust which cleave to the balance ; and 
 this is the more evinced to us by reflection on his glori- 
 ous attributes of wisdom and power, justice and mercy, 
 goodness and love, each in itself unbounded in extent; 
 yet in him all are comprehended, each of itself filling all 
 things, yet each clearly distinct; all in harmony, and 
 
52 
 
 what is wonderful, all are one, and that one is God, and 
 each of these bears witness to the whole, and God in each 
 records his mighty power, and testifies, and manifests 
 himself in all. He, Jehovah, is seen of angels, but he 
 has also manifested himself unto man ; and, which all 
 believers acknowledge, he has not only manifested him- 
 self, but also the knowledge of his will, and that too at 
 sundry times and in divers manners. 
 
 But as it regards the ways and means by which God, 
 through Jesus Christ, has revealed his will in former 
 times, or at least as respects the adaptation of those 
 ways and means to the minds of men in the present day, 
 there appears to be a great difference of opinion between 
 us as a people and other professing Christians — which 
 difference Robert Barclay in his apology for the true 
 Christian divinity, has set forth in a clear, cogent, and 
 scriptural manner. He has in that work answered the 
 great question, whether that principle which contains the 
 light, grace, spirit, and faith of the gospel, or the Bible, 
 is the first and best leader and controller of the Chris- 
 tian's life and practice; and he has fairly made the Bible 
 to decide this question itself. None need do more than 
 simply quote all the passages from the Scriptures which 
 speak in favor of both these positions, and there will 
 certainly be found a great preponderance in favor of the 
 ground taken by our early Friends, and taken also by 
 the apostles, in following the directions of our Lord, as 
 to the guidance of his spirit, and its operation upon 
 men's hearts. And I would indeed that all who may 
 have any doubts on this point — might first read the New 
 Testament carefully through with candor, and an eye to 
 the subject, and then examine Robert Barclay's proposi- 
 tion on the same subject, when the coincidence will be 
 readily seen. But though Robert Barclay has clearly 
 
53 
 
 and unanswerably demonstrated this, I would suggest 
 the following queries for the consideration of all inquir- 
 ers : — 
 
 1st. Can the Scriptures, or did they ever, save any one 
 without the spirit '? ~^ 
 
 2d. Is a person called to the work of the ministry by 
 the Scriptures, or by the sjjirit of Jesus Christ? 
 
 3d. Is a man brought under a concern to go from one 
 place to another to preach the gospel, by the Scriptures, 
 or by the constraining power of the spirit and love of 
 Jesus Christ ? 
 
 4th. And when he is arrived at the place assigned, 
 and is assembled with the people, is it not the spirit of 
 Christ that truly unfolds the Scriptures, and brings to 
 view the state of men, either in the words of Scripture, 
 or in some other suitable language ? 
 
 5th. And when a professed minister preaches in any 
 of our meetings, his doctrines notbeing repugnant to the 
 letter of the Scriptures, are the elders or others to judge 
 by the Scriptures, or by the Spirit of Truth, whether his 
 ministry is from the right spring or not? 
 
 6th. Did not the Jews think they had eternal life in 
 the Scriptures, and yet would not come unto Christ that 
 they might have life ? 
 
 Finally, Christ the Lord, is the minister and leader of 
 his people, (others as well as ministers,) for they do be- 
 lieve the truth of his gracious words, that he is with 
 them, and dwelloth in them, and girdeth them, and 
 bringeth all things to their remembrance ; and they know 
 him and his words which he spake in the days of his 
 flesh, to be unequivocal and true, and not feigned words, 
 or vain pretensions. They know too, by blessed expe- 
 rience, that their faith in him, their leader, is a practi- 
 cal and living principle — that it is not a mere theory ; and 
 
54 
 
 they find this living experience confirmed to them by- 
 literal testimonies from the Scriptures. Hence they are 
 enabled livingly to believe the Scriptures, and to assign 
 them their proper place; or rather to allow them to take 
 their own station and allotment in the blessed schedule 
 of God's providence, declaring themselves to be " profit- 
 able for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for insti'uc- 
 tion in righteousness," and that through faith they are 
 able to make us wise unto salvation; where too he has 
 also placed them, and where they acknowledge them- 
 selves to have been placed. Hereby those who attempt 
 to put them in the place of the immediate and life-giving 
 instruction of the spirit of Christ, are not true and gen- 
 uine believers of the full, fair, and irrefragable testimony 
 of the Holy Scriptures, as it relates to the question before 
 us. In making a comparison of the blessed spirit of the 
 gospel with the Scriptures of truth, there is nothing lost 
 to them ; for placing it above them is no diminution of 
 their excellency, nor of their character; nor can there be 
 any dishonor brought to the sacred writings, by placing 
 the all-manifesting spirit, and light, and grace of God, 
 through our Lord Jesus Christ, over and above them in 
 the rightful order of God's manifestations and provisions 
 for the children of men. N"ay! truly, it cannot be de- 
 rogatoiy to the Scriptures, nor to any other creature 
 here below, to place the second Adam, the Lord from 
 heaven, the quickening spirit above them ; and it may 
 be presumed that no person who believes in and is dis- 
 posed willingly and self-denyingly to wait from time to 
 time, for the coming of the Lord from heaven, the quick- 
 ening spirit, will be disposed to give the preference to 
 aught which is beneath the power, and the life, the cov- 
 ering, and the instruction, proceeding from it ; for these 
 know it to be their Alpha and Omega, truly the begin- 
 
55 
 
 ning and the end of all their Christian movements ; but 
 this would never authorize anyone in the least to believe 
 or act contrary to the Scriptures, which are a blessed 
 revelation of the will of God. 
 
 If we compare the Scriptures with the writings of our 
 early Friends, there will be nothing lost to the latter by 
 placing the former above them, and iu the higher sphere 
 of that exalted rank, where they do deservedly, and 
 ever ought to stand, far above all modern writings, for 
 several considerations which are well defined by Robert 
 Barclay. For as the Scriptures, being authentic and 
 true, place themselves below Christ and his blessed Spirit, 
 so the writings of our worthy predecessors being also 
 true, place themselves meekly and modestly, entirely be- 
 low the holy Scriptures — a correct position. 
 
 Now, therefore, as the Scriptures are true and authen- 
 tic in word and doctrine, and stand above all other writ- 
 ings, we may fully admit them to be the only outward, 
 fit rule and standard by which all the professors of 
 Christianity may prove and try their doctrines; and 
 more especially, where that Spirit which trieth the 
 spirits, is not so well known and understood. This out- 
 ward test being then generally agreed to by all, is a 
 treasure of inestimable value, and the more so because 
 it instructs them of the purchase of their redemption, and 
 emphatically directs all to the light and grace of God, 
 through the gospel; which are the very things that our 
 forefathers and we as a people have insisted on. But 
 we see, nevertheless, that for want of a perfectly single 
 eye to the light of Christ, some of the doctrines of this 
 perfect standard are misconstrued and differently under- 
 stood, so that Christendom has become divided into 
 divers denominations, and each of these denominations 
 has a creed or confession of faith peculiar to itself, and 
 
56 
 
 founded, as it is supposed, upon a right understanding of 
 the Scriptures; every individual member, therefore, of 
 these different sects feels himself bound to believe and 
 support the doctrines of the gospel as understood by his 
 own society ; and such is surely his duty, if he believes 
 with all his heart that they are correct. But whenever 
 any member of a religious body sincerely thinks that he 
 has found important errors in the fundamental doctrines 
 of his own people, it then becomes his duty openly and 
 candidly to say to them, "Thatsuch and suchbeingyour 
 faith and such and such mine, I must therefore separate 
 myself from you, my views having become established, 
 and my duty prompting me to open them to you, and 
 before all men, and not knowing but as ye are many and 
 I am but one, that ye are still more correct than I, I am 
 resolved, therefore, to take no secret measures, nor to 
 use any hidden influence, to draw you unawares into my 
 opinion ; knowing as I do that the purity and integiity 
 of the gospel is such, that no end, however seemingly 
 good, can sanctify any deceptive means to draw votaries 
 to its support." 
 
 Candid and Christian was the way taken by our early 
 Friends to gather and establish a society coinciding with 
 their own views; they maintained honest, manly ground; 
 for their object was not a perversion of right principles, 
 but a fair and lucid exhibition of them in the very face 
 of day. Far different were the subtle movements of the 
 seceders from Friends in America ; they endeavored, 
 with all the art and cunning in their power, secretly to 
 gain and to proselyte the unwary, to their new-fangled 
 system of infidelity. How much more honorable to have 
 come out into broad daylight, and proclaimed their views, 
 inviting others to their standard. There might have 
 been honor in such measures, though practiced by infidels, 
 
57 
 
 The subject before us, my dear friend, is one of deep 
 importance, (even the right assignment of the place of 
 the holy Scriptures,) when we contemplate the great 
 consequences which await the retaining or abandonment 
 of apostolic ground ; the ground taken by our predeces- 
 sors in profession, and which they supported with regard 
 to the comparative rank of the spirit of Jesus Christ, and 
 the Scriptures; for it would not require much foresight 
 and sagacity to see, that if we as a people, were to change 
 the place of the Scriptures, and exalt them above, and 
 put them in the place of the teaching of the spirit of 
 Christ, that it must inevitably, and that before long, com- 
 pletely overturn and change our ancient faith and prac- 
 tice, concerning both silent worship, and the need there 
 IS of a continually renewed qualification in a gospel 
 minister; two very prominent and important doctrines of 
 the Christian religion. They are indeed the true doc- 
 trines of the gospel of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ; 
 and they had been virtually witnessed by the real wor- 
 shippers and faithful messengers in all the previous ages 
 of the world, who waited, spoke, and wrote as they were 
 moved by the Holy Ghost. The knowledge and true 
 experience of these doctrines had been very much lost, 
 even since the more refulgent dawning of gospel light 
 upon the sons of men, until they were proclaimed, and 
 the true standard was again raised and supported through 
 much pain and suffering by George Fox and his cotem- 
 poraries; and the same doctrines continue to be acknowl- 
 edged by their successors in faith down to the present 
 ■ day. Yet it is lamentable that these doctrines remain to 
 be peculiar to the society of Friends, and that they only 
 (it is believed) as a body, are found experimentally and 
 livingly to teach and to practice them. 
 
 Inasmuch then as men, by silently waiting upon God, 
 3» 
 
68 
 
 may happily attain strength and instruction, so they can 
 thereby do more towards pulling down the strongholds 
 of sin and Satan ; therefore his enmity is the more excited, 
 and his cunning the more exercised to allure them from this 
 blessed ground; for finding his attempts to drive them 
 by violence from the truth, to bo in vain, he now very 
 insidiously resorts to art and intrigue ; he is very plaus- 
 ible with them, seeking if he can to relax their direct 
 hold upon God, and their dependence singly on him. 
 He asks but small concessions at once, and admits some- 
 thing that shall very nearly resemble the right thing, and 
 yet not be the thing itself ; he gives it a good name, 
 alleging its necessity, and extolling its advantages. And 
 however the adversary hates the Holy Scriptures, and 
 would induce men to disbelieve them altogether, still, 
 when he cannot affect this purpose, it is like himself, to 
 exalt them in name, even above their right order and 
 true standing, that so he may dishonor Christ ; hence he 
 would place the Scriptures instead of, or before the in- 
 structions of Christ's spirit, casting a shade of darkness 
 over men's minds, and over the true faith of the gospel 
 subtilely suggesting the impracticability of a direct lead- 
 ing of the Holy Spirit, and thus inducing ministers to 
 abandon that flesh-paining exercise of waiting for the 
 promise of the Father, and setting them to work to 
 preach the letter only instead of Christ Jesus in the dem 
 onstration of thespirit,and with power ; hence by degrees 
 he would in time, so thoroughly change and remove this 
 holy ground of our standing, that it might finally be 
 abandoned altogether; which must indeed unavoidably 
 be the case if we misplace the Scriptures (as some other 
 professors do,) by putting them as our instructor before 
 the Spirit; then would our worship, our ministry, and 
 our forms, become like theirs ! 
 
59 
 
 LETTER VI. 
 
 ON PLAINNESS AND SELF-DENIAL. 
 MY DEAR FRIEND, 
 
 My mind has often been brought into much painful 
 exercise on account of the many departures from the 
 wholesome Christians testimonies of simplicity and plain- 
 ness; testimonies faithfully upheld by the Society of 
 Friends in its earlier days, and times of its greater purity ; 
 leading to humility and meekness, and to the avoiding of 
 pride and high-mindedness. There is no difficulty in 
 ascertaining from whence these testimonies were drawn 
 by our early Friends, even from Jesus Christ himself, 
 that great example of meekness and self-denial ; and the 
 source too from whence every wholesome admonition, 
 and good and perfect gift are received; and if through 
 all good conscience we will " observe whatsoever he com- 
 mandeth us, even to follow him ;" and what the apostles 
 preached and observed also, we shall find it needful to 
 make a stand against the insidious pursuits of vanity, and 
 a worldly spirit, and a nurturing of the will of the flesh. 
 The apostle declared that "the grace of God which 
 bringeth salvation," teacheth (also) the " denying of 
 ungodliness and the world's lusts," and this truth, with 
 the declarations of Christ himself, to wit, "if any man 
 will be my disciple, let him deny himself and take up his 
 daily cross and follow me," and "take my yoke upon 
 you, and learn of me, for I am meek and low of heart," 
 and that of coming to be a disciple of Christ and wear- 
 ing his yoke brings us to the denying of what another 
 apostle calls " the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, 
 and the pride of life ;" and it is by this practical self- 
 denial that the followers of Christ are distinguished from 
 
60 
 
 other people ; it is not what men say, or profess, that 
 makes the ti-ue, distinctive character, for a man may 
 think much and believe jnuch, and rely much upon the 
 sufferings of Christ upon the cross, and at the same time 
 be an utter enemy to the cross of Christ, as it regards 
 his own practical endurance of it, a thing indispensable 
 to a disciple of Christ; and it is very evident, that there 
 can be no true follower, without possessing so much of 
 the spirit and power of the cross, as will work in him to 
 the mortifying of the deeds of the body ; to the sanctify- 
 ing of the spirit, and to the subjugation of the will of 
 the flesh. 
 
 And a good degree of this experience is undoubtedly 
 witnessed by individuals under different denominations ; 
 but the Society of Friends from the first, found it need- 
 ful to adhere to greater purity of manners than other 
 professors had done, in order to be more perfect follow- 
 ers of his example, as well as of his doctrine of the 
 straight and narrow way which leads to life ; believing 
 indeed the verity and truth of his sayings ; and that his 
 doctrines of the cross are unequivocal; and finding by 
 practice too, that the bearing of his cross patiently and 
 honestly, did in very deed, work to the mortifying of the 
 deeds of the flesh ; hence as a people we have seen more 
 clearly than others the necessity of " alway;-: bearing 
 about in the body, the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the 
 life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body." 
 " For we which live, are always delivered unto death for 
 Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made 
 manifest in our mortal flesh." 2 Cor. iv. 10, 11. 
 
 Whatever then may be the practices or sayings of 
 others, we feel bound faithfully to adhere to the com- 
 mands and doctrines of Christ and his apostles as re- 
 corded in holy writ, as well as to the word of God's 
 
. 61 
 
 grace in our hearts, to the denying of all desires after 
 the maxims and manners, fashions and customs, of this 
 vain world. And as this was a subject not unworthy of 
 the Son of God, and his apostles, in his and their preach- 
 ing and personal simplicity, none will do well in charging 
 his more scrupulous followers with narrow-mindedness, 
 because of their conformity to the doctrine and practice 
 of Christ and his apostles ; seeing that every one of his 
 disciples should conscientiously keep his commandments, 
 and follow his example of meekness and humility. Xor 
 let any one be deterred from the practice of a self-deny- 
 ing life because he may sometimes see traditional or 
 hypocritical professors trusting in a form of godliness 
 without the power ; for there is not one of the Christian 
 virtues, but attempts have been made to counterfeit it ; 
 and they also who make such attempts are enemies to 
 the cross of Christ and him crucified, which is the power 
 of God, and wisdom of God, and which also the apostle 
 told one of the churches, he was resolved only to know 
 amongst them. 
 
 There was I think more than one reason why the pecu- 
 liar and primitive testimonies of plainness were given to 
 and upheld by the Society of Friends ; and first, because 
 they are congenial to the very nature of Christianity in 
 its purestforrn, and agree better with its other testimonies. 
 And secondly, because if conscientiously maintained, they 
 would serve to exhibit this constant acknowledgment to 
 the world, " I am the Lord's! " And thirdly, because it 
 would be an enclosure round about the tender plants of 
 a rising generation ; for by observing these peculiarities 
 in language, manners, and appearance, there would not 
 be that inclination to mix familiarly with others ; and 
 this has proved to our beloved youth a great preserva- 
 tion from the corruptions and vanities of the world. In 
 
62 
 
 this point of view, the benefit to our Society has been 
 incalculable; for though it is not these peculiarities of 
 plainness that cause us to be fruitful, yet by them as an 
 enclosure, the fruit may be kept from being devoured. 
 It is the good soil of the garden, well cultivated, that 
 bringeth forth the fruit, but it is the fenced wall, of God's 
 providence round about, that keepeth it from being 
 devoured by the creatures without. 
 
 And so far is this testimony from being a burden or a 
 hardship, it is through the gift of Him who helpeth, a 
 choice blessing from his hand, and a blessing too, which 
 if we as a people should begin to despise and lightly es- 
 teem, God will in his displeasure perhaps remove from 
 us. Yea, and if the vine which he has planted, when he 
 looked for grapes, should be found bringing forth only 
 wild grapes, he will certainly remove this safe enclosure, 
 and suffer the wild beast to tread it down ; and he will 
 also command the clouds that they should rain no rain 
 upon it. 
 
 And as a small leak, if suffered to continue, will sink a 
 ship, however good and richly laden, and as a small 
 breach in the enclosure of the vineyard, however fruit- 
 ful, will let in thedevourer, so I believe if this testimony, 
 (however small any may deem it,) should be abandoned, 
 it would greatly endanger our safety. Yea, and if the 
 boundaries of demarkat'on between this people and 
 others, as exhibited in our peculiar testimonies, were re- 
 moved, or suffered to go down through the fear of con- 
 troversy or of singularity; then should we be prepared 
 to go back, and mingle again with others, and that defi- 
 nite and honorable characteristic by which we have been 
 known and distinguished from all others, would be seen 
 and known no more. Hence I consider it h ghly im- 
 portant to be ourselves faithful, and to train up, and in- 
 
63 
 
 struct our families in these Christian testimonies, and 
 other doctrines of Christ, by a constant exhibition of 
 this good and comely order and example, as well as by 
 clear, plain argument, and open and full declaration of 
 the hope within us. 
 
 And if the true ground of the gospel of our Lord and 
 Saviour in its primitive purity, as seen by us, cannot be 
 supported icithout controversy, then let it be done in the 
 meekness and wisdom of Jesus hy controversy ; for the 
 cause of the blessed Truth is worthy both of controversy, 
 and of a warfare too, under the banners of the Prince of 
 Peace. And to strengthen the minds of any, who 
 might be wavering, we may well refer them to the steady 
 and unabating exercises and advice of the Yearly Meet- 
 ing in London, for upwards of one hundred and fifty 
 years past ; a body which has extended its concern and 
 care over the whole Society, for its preservation in the 
 meekness, simplicity, and purity of the gospel, and 
 which, in point of religious knowledge, Christian au- 
 thority, and weight of character, has never been exceeded 
 in the Christian world, since its establishment. 
 
 And now my dear friend, in the conclusion of these 
 letters, I may well say, that they have been written in 
 the feeling of that love which knoweth no bounds ; and 
 which hath for its object the true happiness and salva- 
 tion of all ; desiring that, as I have written them in 
 simplicity and tenderness of spirit, thou wouldst permit 
 them to receive a portion of thy consideration. I feel 
 a fervent solicitude that all may stand fast in the Lord, 
 and hold the profession of their faith without wavering, 
 cleaving to the blessed Truth, and submitting to its 
 humbling power ; and thankfully receiving every pro- 
 vision of God's providence, which is dispensed to us in 
 common with others, and holding fast to those which have 
 
64 
 
 been in a more peculiar manner mercifully committed to 
 us, as the testimonies and statutes of the Lord were to 
 a people formerly. Then might we not all well say, 
 " Woe is me, that J sojourn in Mesech, that I dviell in 
 the tents of KedMr" even in the land of Midian, for the 
 crown of his pride must be reduced in Jacob; yea, 
 and it must be brought down in Israel : and again ; 
 though Esau be thy brother, and the Lord hath planted 
 him upon his high mountain, and given him a place in 
 the earth, yet Israel must not dwell with him, nor abide 
 there, for he must dwell alone. And behold Moab also, 
 his kinsman, for neither shall he join himself unto Moab, 
 however multiplied his burnt-offerings, and exalted his 
 sacrifices upon his high places ; for Israel must abide in 
 his tent, yea, even in his lowly tabernacle a little longer, 
 until the indignation be overpast; for the Lord is his 
 tent and his tabernacle, and it was he that first led him 
 forth and allotted to him his possessions in the valleys, 
 and as the trees of lign aloes hath he planted him in his 
 garden enclosed, and made him fruitful as by the river 
 side; and if he will be content to dwell in the land 
 where the Lord his God has planted him, and keep his 
 statutes, then the Lord will bless him still, in the midst 
 of the nations, and he will cause that no enchantment 
 nor divination shall prevail against him, and so shall he 
 abide as a tabernacle that shall not be taken down. And 
 though many may forsake him and despise him, because 
 he is small, and his dwelling is in a low place, and because 
 the glory of this world shineth not upon the ark of his 
 testimonies, yet let him not be dismayed, the Lord is his 
 light and God his glory; and he will encamp round 
 about him ; and his righteousness shall " go forth as 
 brightness" and his "salvation as a lamp that burneth ! " 
 
EXTRACT 
 
 FROM THE INTRODUCTION TO THE "NARRATIVE 
 AND EXPOSITION." 
 
 It is apprehended that a loss, in a greater or less de- 
 gree, of the Virtue, Life, and Power, of pure Christianity, 
 has prepared the minds of too many in the Society of 
 Friends, to imbibe sentiments which are at variance with 
 true self-denial, and a full conformity to the Cross of 
 our Lord Jesus Christ, and consequently, with his doc- 
 trines as held and laid down by the early writers in our 
 Society. That a great tendency outward, and to out- 
 ward views and outward things, has, of late, been appar- 
 ent in this once greatly -favored Society, is very obvious. 
 
 Consequently the sentiments of some writers, who have 
 not known the living savour of the Divine life to pre- 
 dominate in their own hearts, (or otherwise have lost 
 its unction,) have sorrowfully spread and taken root in 
 many minds. 
 
 And the authors of such sentiments appear to have 
 obtained great place with many of our members, and to 
 have much influence over them. 
 
 Moreover the great schism and fearful departure from 
 the Christian covenant on the one hand, in the Society 
 farther west [Hicksism] has furnished the enemy with 
 vast and powerful machinery, to delude, deceive, and 
 draw off, from the same covenant on the other hand, 
 insomuch that many of those who were not caught in 
 the snare of that apostacy, have been of late in great 
 jeopardy, by the influence and insidious sentiments of 
 persons of genius, high standing, and great learning in 
 
66 
 
 the schools of men, tending to draw away from the 
 same gospel covenant in an opposite direction. 
 
 These having lost, or never found that hidden treasure 
 of this covenant as revealed by the Divine Power in^the 
 inner man of the heart, have taken offence at the law 
 and the restraints of a meek and lowly Saviour, and so 
 far imbibed the spirit of this world and of the age, as to 
 despise the foolishness of the Cross, which is the j)ower 
 of God and the wisdom of God, and not of man, nor of 
 the flesh, but of God. 
 
 Instead of submitting, thei-efore, to die with Christ, 
 and to abide the painful struggle of yielding up the will 
 and wisdom of the flesh, these have moulded and fash- 
 ioned to themselves a substitute, by professionally extoll- 
 ing and claiming the faith of Christ's incarnate suffer- 
 ings and propitiatory sacrifice upon the Cross without 
 the gates of Jerusalem, as the whole covenant of salva- 
 tion, and by Him thus accomplished without them ; and, 
 consequently, it is feared are carnally believing and trust- 
 ing in this alone for justification, without its essential 
 concomitant, the true obedience of faith, and the work 
 of sanctification wrought in the heart. 
 
 These views, and many other of the like tendency, 
 having been avowed and published by Joseph John 
 Gurney, a member and professed minister of the Society 
 of Friends in N"orwich, Old England, and' spread far 
 and wide among Friends, have been the cause of great 
 uneasiness and much dissatisfaction in the minds of faith- 
 ful Friends; and the more, because many are found 
 among us who are disposed to advocate and defend the 
 author of them, without, and in the refusal of an exam- 
 ination of his published sentiments, or a comparison of 
 them with our acknowledged and well known doctrines. 
 
 The fact that the author of these views is a man of 
 
67 
 
 great influence, and having many supporters of a similar 
 description, does indeed give cause for much alarm 
 among the living members of this Society, well knowing, 
 as they do, by the history of things that are past, as 
 well as by those which have transpired in their own time, 
 that the existence of these troubles, in the church of 
 Christ, as occasioned by an apostacy from sound doc- 
 trines, have always had their beginning in a little obvi- 
 ous diverging, or departure from some essential points 
 of doctrine. 
 
 As two direct lines which begin to diverge from each 
 other, (though barely apparent at first,) if they continue, 
 will, in time, come to be at a great distance asunder. 
 
 So these have seen, that when men of a strong and 
 independent temperament begin to depart from the fun- 
 damental testimonies and doctrines of a religious society, 
 they go wider and wider therefrom, until a great depart- 
 ure from the true meridian is affected, or, to speak more 
 plainly, until they adopt sentiments entirely foreign to 
 those from which they at first, (but perceivably,) de- 
 parted. 
 
 Some of these concerned Friends, who have remained 
 at their posts, have watched over the "landmarks" of 
 Israel's inheritance, as they have watched over their own 
 souls, and can but tremble for the safety of the Ark of 
 his testimonies, when, with their eyes, they behold the 
 demolishing of those stakes, of which the good Shepherd 
 of the fold ordained that " not one of them should be 
 removed." 
 
 And, notwithstanding what they have fearfully beheld, 
 of that which they apprehended was an attempt to oblit- 
 erate and to cancel those distinguishing signals of our 
 profession and its defence, they have marvelled to hear 
 so many of the watchmen cry peace! peace! when the 
 
68 
 
 citadel itself is beset by a troop of strong men. They 
 believe that so great a loss cannot otherwise be sustained, 
 either by us or by the world at large, as would be sus- 
 tained by the breaking down of our distinguishing doc- 
 trines and testimonies. And, consequently they see the 
 great necessity of keeping a single eye to their safety, 
 and a scrupulous watchfulness against " every appearance 
 of evil," that may in the least forebode an apostacy of 
 principle, inasmuch as such did happen, to a sorrowful 
 extent, to the primitive church — the best of bodies — 
 and that too by small beginnings. 
 
 Furthermore, these concerned friends have felt not a 
 little responsibility resting upon themselves, and upon 
 the church at large, by reason of the committal to its charge 
 and keeping of the most exalted, efficient, and dignified 
 principles vouchsafed to the hand of man in these modern 
 times, or in any age of the woi'ld, because they are the 
 same as committed to the pi-imitive church, in all that 
 relates to Christian redemption and salvation. And 
 they have also felt something of the weight of that appeal 
 which was made of God to his Servant, the Prophet 
 Ezekiel, chap, iii, 28; also xxxiii, 8-9. "If thou do not 
 warn my people from their ways, they shall die in their 
 iniquity, but their blood will I require at thy hands," &c. 
 
 Moreover, the late attempts at innovation, by those 
 above alluded to, speak loudly as a warning to us of the 
 jeopardy which awaits us as a people; for our unfaith- 
 fulness and disloyalty to the blessed Truth is such, that 
 Satan appears to have availed himself of the advantage 
 of our relaxation, and seems resolved to divide and scat- 
 ter us from the true faith ; still we hear the cry of peace ! 
 still we hear the language of safety reiterated among us ! 
 still we see a prevalent disposition to trust in man, and 
 to make flesh our arm ! 
 
SELECTIONS 
 
 FROM THE CORRESPONDENCE. 
 
 FROM MOSES BROWN. 
 
 " Providence, 23d of 8th mo. 1833. 
 
 [This letter commences by referring to a communica- 
 tion from Thomas Shillitoe to Stephen Gould, then re- 
 cently received of which he says : ] 
 
 " I found it to contain as full a statement of matters 
 in England, and, in some respects, more so than thou 
 had mentioned ; its date is since their last Yearly Meet- 
 ing, at which their revisal of the Discipline was com- 
 pleted. He says, in effect, that a party there charge 
 Barclay with contradicting himself — -that he has done 
 great injustice to the Scriptures, by placing them as 
 the secondary instead of the primary means of salvation. 
 Perhaps this maybe a mistaken understanding of the case, 
 as it seems too bad to hold, by any professing with us. 
 He says the enemy has laid his snare there in a different 
 way from Hicksism. By some the Son is set up above the 
 Father ; and mere faith in the atonement and blood of 
 Christ is held to be sufficient for salvation (very little 
 inward work). These doctrines are securing for them 
 the right hand of fellowship from other professors, as it 
 is to be feared is the case with some in America; and 
 those who adhere to the ancient faith and doctrine are 
 stigmatized with the appellation of Hicksites." . . 
 — Jour, and Corres., pp. 176, 177. 
 
70 
 
 FROM JOHN- BAECLAT. 
 
 " Croyden, 5th of 10th mo., 1834. 
 
 MY DEAR FRIEND, 
 
 Most fully do I, and many more unite in all thou hast 
 conveyed both in those lines (referring to a letter then 
 recently received from J. W.) and in every line I have 
 heard read as coming from thy pen, and especially in 
 those clear views thou hast received, to give forth as I 
 do believe, relative to the state of the church, past, pres- 
 ent, and to come. And my heart, with the hearts of 
 many in this land, does indeed salute thee, and bid thee 
 God speed on thy journey, travail, and service; desiring 
 that no man or thing may hinder thee from doing all 
 thou hast, in thy measure and in thy day, to do for Him 
 and His glory, for His cause and people, while life and 
 strength are graciously vouchsafed. Oh, how often have 
 I remembered thee and thought of thee, as one whom 
 the Lord has made use of in an eminent manner, while 
 on thy visit to these Islands, to uncover and bring out 
 to view the working of the wily enemy, as it is this 
 day, and to manifest the path of the Just One, and the 
 work of God in and among his people 
 
 "Some of those who once were in esteem, have said 
 Penington's writings had better be put into a heap and 
 burned ; while on the other hand a preacher at Bright- 
 on, who preaches in his own chapel without pay, and is 
 flocked to, recommended publicly to his hearers Pening- 
 ton's Letters, and in consequence Friends there were ap- 
 plied to for the book ! Oh, surely there is a goodly 
 company without our pale who may even take the places 
 and the crowns too of those, be they who they may, who 
 desert the cause which once was dear to them, and which 
 they honored, but now seek to undermine, lay waste, or 
 make of none effect, endeavoring to lower the standard. 
 
71 
 
 and make it square with tlieir own notions and prac- 
 tice No convulsion awaits us, as 
 
 with you ; it might be better for us if it were so. No, 
 no; the enemy is wiser than to foment this; he would 
 not hurt us for the world ; no, only let us be induced to 
 cive up the true foundation for another, and he prom- 
 ises so gently and peaceably to glide us on it, that we 
 shall not know it, except that it will be less rugged and 
 hard to flesh and blood, without any cross or struggle, 
 and there shall be nothing taken from us that we affect 
 to prize, such as our customs and traditions, our church 
 system, and so forth, nothing shall be disturbed of all 
 this, and all the professors and the world too shall love 
 us the better ! A new edition of J. J. Gurney's Peculiar- 
 ities, with additions, has passed a committee of the 
 Morning Meeting, of which I was one. Oh, it made my 
 heart sick to attend it, only that my Master whispers, 
 ' All these things must needs come to pass — but see that 
 
 ye be not troubled.' And in this book of 
 
 which I speak, thou mayst see far more open, palpable 
 proof (in an additional chapter on worship and ministry) 
 that thy sentiments, expressed in thy 'Letters,' are in- 
 deed true, or rather short of the whole truth. It is need- 
 ful I should say, I protested in my feeble way, against the 
 tendency of the whole chapter, telling the committee 
 and the author, that the contrast was strong between 
 
 that and 'Barclay's Apology.' Oh, 
 
 that all who are not with us, would even go out from us, 
 and show their true colors; it would be more honorable 
 than to be endeavoring to insinuate something else 
 among us, which our fathers could not, neither can we 
 adopt ; nay, which we have protested against, and came 
 out from, when we became a people." — J'ovr. and Cor- 
 res.,pp. 197-200. 
 
72 
 
 FROM SAEAH [lTNES] GBUBB. 
 
 " Stoke Newington, 5th of 6th mo., 1833. 
 
 DEAK AND VALUED FKIEND, 
 
 My address to thee must be stort, for I have been 
 much engaged from day to day during this Yearly Meet- 
 ing, having in the intervals of the various sittings, many 
 Friends at my lodging in town, and at night a house 
 full here, besides visits from elders, etc. Oh, how often 
 have I thought of thee! and how painfully have thy 
 forebodings of mischief among us been realized ! Alas, 
 the enemy of all good has prevailed to no very limited 
 extent ; and the insidious spirit that showed itself last 
 year, appears now to be mighty indeed, speaking great 
 swelling words, and, for the most part, has had the pre- 
 eminence both in meetings for worship and discipline. 
 This being permitted, has, however, opened the eyes of 
 many, who were before unwilling to think that things 
 among us were such as called for alarm. I, for one, am 
 rather relieved, in the open manifestation of error in 
 doctrine that has taken place. I wished for farther oppor- 
 tunity to lay down my burden in the meeting at large, 
 and requested it, without effect ; but am satisfied in do- 
 ing what I could. There have been awful moments 
 among us, when the state of things was clearly laid 
 open in Truth's own authority. I understand that a 
 visit from the elders is impending for me ; may I be en- 
 abled to keep in the quiet, holy habitation. The same 
 individuals who were crying, peace, peace, last year, 
 have done so, this year, with increased boldness ; yea, a 
 lying spirit is gone forth, and many are believing it; 
 yet some are distinctly evincing the true spirit of proph- 
 ecy, which declares against all that would devise an 
 easier way to glory, than by the true ladder. . . . 
 
73 
 
 Farewell, — my husband and children love John Wil- 
 bur. Hoping we may be near in spirit still, I remain thy 
 afl3.ioted and affectionate friend, 
 
 Sarah Geubb. 
 
 Jour, and Corres.,pp. 182, 183. 
 
 FEOM GEORGE CEOSFIELD. 
 
 "Liverpool, Tth mo. 23d, 1834. 
 
 Speaking of John Warren's expected religious visit to 
 England, he says: — 
 
 "We shall receive him as a brother, and as one at- 
 tached to the ancient views of Friends ; if he supports 
 those views, as I trust he will, bonds and afflictions 
 and even persecutions await him in this land. I hope 
 he will be preserved; but it is wonderful bow some 
 with you have coincided with the innovating class 
 here." ... I annex an extract from a letter of 
 James Backhouse of York, dated Hobartown, in Van 
 Diemen's Land, 10th mo., 12th, 1833, as follows : "We 
 are greatly comforted by reading John Wilbur's letters; 
 it is real cause for thankfulness that he has been enabled 
 to point out the dangers attendant upon the Christian's 
 path, both on the right hand and on the left. I hope 
 the Divine blessing may rest on his labors, and that those 
 who have been like to be jostled off the foundation by 
 conflicting views, may become settled thereon in sound- 
 ness of faith, doctrine and practice, and know what it is 
 to have salt in themselves. If persons would look upon 
 the pages of Holy Scripture, as direction-posts on the 
 way of the Christian traveler, but not as the way itself, 
 they would not get far wrong. And it only says little for 
 the degree in which any have the eyes of their under- 
 standing enlightened when they begin to mistake the 
 direction-posts for the road, and to fancy that they are 
 i 
 
74 
 
 traveling on, because they now and then read them. If 
 they read them without regard to the way they point, 
 they may read them and even go the wrong way; but 
 if with diligence they attend to their direction, and con- 
 tinue to pass on from faith to faith, they will find that 
 their joy will be greatly increased by observing that they 
 make progress, and that their progress is proved by the 
 lessons taught from Holy Scripture according with those 
 learned in the way of experience, and those learned in 
 the way of experience according with those taught by 
 Holy Scripture."— Pp. 194, 195. 
 
 FROM DANIEL WHBELEE. 
 
 Written irom the vessel " Heury Freeling " dated " Papieta Bay, Is- 
 land of Otaheite, 5th mo. 21, 1835." 
 
 After an interesting and touching account of his own 
 trials and sufferings, (including the loss of his dear wife) 
 during a long detention prior to starting on the voyage 
 for the accomplishment of the great work in which he 
 was then engaged, of which close provings he says : — 
 
 " What my Master did, I knew not at the time, but have 
 since known, to the comfort and consolation of my trib- 
 ulated mind, and to the praise and glory of His grace. 
 ' What I do, thou knowest not now, but thou shalt know 
 hereafter.' " . . . . Speaking of some who censured 
 him much, he says : — 
 
 " I think they cannot be better pointed out than by 
 my saying, they were such as highly disapprove of 
 - John Wilbur's Letters ' published by George Crosfield, 
 of which I am thankful, in having several copies now 
 along with me." — P^j. 203, 204. 
 
75 
 
 FEOM SARAH TUCKEE. 
 
 " Dartmouth, 1st mo. 19th, 1836. 
 
 . . . " Although I do not go much abroad and am 
 much secluded from my friends — particularly so this 
 winter — that I get but little information how the times 
 are; yet it seems to me that it is rather a low, poor time 
 in the general, and this poverty I fear is not the worst ; 
 is it not a season of disti-ess, of great perplexity, of 
 darkness and of treading down, a day in which we are 
 called to mourning and lamentation ! and in which the 
 priests, the Lord's ministers, have to weep, as between 
 the porch and the altar, saying, ' Spare thy people, O 
 Lord, and give not thine heritage to reproach?' Such 
 indeed are ray feelings, but most gladly would I be 
 informed that I am altogether mistaken. But, notwith- 
 standing, my dear friend, I do feel, at seasons, some 
 encouragement ; a little light now and then breaks forth, 
 by which it is clearly seen that all those who adhere to 
 good old Joshua's resoliition, let others do as they may 
 they will serve the Lord, and that in his own way, (which 
 is the way of the Cross,) and not in the will and wisdom 
 of the natural man ; will be preserved, although sharp 
 may be their conflicts and deep their baptisms. Yet He 
 who knoweth those who are his, who beholdeth purity of 
 intention and cleanness of heart with Divine approba- 
 tion, will not suffer a hair of their head to be hurt; so 
 that amidst all the commotion, the jars and the rents, 
 the nps and the downs within our borders, I humbly 
 trust and believe that a precious remnant will escape, 
 whose lives will be given them for a prey. O ! that thou 
 mayst not faint or give back in the day of battle, when 
 called upon to stand for the faith, even that precious 
 faith whiuh was once delivered to the saints. I believe 
 
76 
 
 thou hast nobly stood therefor, and that thou wilt con- 
 tinue to do so, whatever thou mayst suffer ; and it seemed 
 as if I might just offer thee a word of encouragement, as 
 I feel it to arise at this time, although I know I am ad- 
 dressing one whose experience in all those things doth 
 far, very far exceed my own. Thou art not alone, I can 
 assure thee, in thy tribulated path; — I believe there are 
 not a few who are in the same way, who go bowed down 
 all .the day long, whose hearts are pained within them, 
 who are dismayed at the seeing and hearing of those 
 things which are floating within the borders of our once 
 highly favored Society. Indeed is not this the language 
 of some of the little remnant, ' Oh ! that mine head 
 were waters and mine eyes a fountain of tears, that I 
 might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter 
 of my people ? ' In my retired moments my heart is 
 sometimes raised in desire and humble prayer to the God 
 and Father of all our sure mercies, for the prosperity of 
 the true Church, that her broken walls may be repaired, 
 and her desolated gates again set up, her stakes strength- 
 ened and her cords lengthened — that she may yet break 
 forth, both on the right hand and on the left, and may 
 yet shake herself from every defilement, and thus become 
 an eternal excellency, the joy of the whole earth ! " 
 .... —Pp. 210, 211. 
 
 EEPLY — JOHN WILBUE TO SAEAH TUCKEE. 
 
 " Providence, 5th mo. 6th, 1836. 
 " Thy last salutation, my dear friend, was received in 
 due season, and was truly cordial to my mind, bringing 
 with it a savory evidence of that which unites in one and 
 makes glad the hearts of those who love the blessed 
 appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ ; and by this renewed 
 evidence and assurance I feel no reserve at all in writing 
 
77 
 
 freely to thee, as to a sister beloved, in the bonds of 
 gospel love and fellowship, in Him who hath in his ten- 
 der mercies favored us to drink together of the one spirit. 
 I have read thy letter again and again, and I can 
 assure thee that as oft as I have read it I hav^e been 
 refreshed and comforted ; and now, while writing, I am 
 made to feel thankful to the God and Father of all our 
 sure mercies, that there are here and there to be found 
 those who are traveling and laboring together, in the spirit 
 of their minds, for the safety of the Lord's people, and for 
 the keeping of his testimonies. My desire and prayer 
 for this precious few, is, that they may not only receive 
 their daily supplies of strength from the everlasting and 
 inexhaustible Fountain of life and power, but by often 
 speaking one to another, and communing one with another 
 as well secretly as expressively, they may be a strength 
 one to another. And I do account it a great favor that 
 personal separation and distance in the world, cannot 
 deprive these of such sweet communion ; they are often 
 led by the same blessed Hand, sometimes to the test of 
 their faith, in the deep waters of Jordan, and sometimes 
 to a full confirmation of it by marvellous deliverances. 
 These become thereby qualified, in the living experience 
 of God's providences, to be helpful in 'building one 
 another up in the most holy faith.' Well, then my be- 
 loved sister and fellow-traveler, let us avail ourselves of 
 his mercies in permitting us to joy in one another's joys 
 as well as to sorrow in one another's sorrows. And 
 although more constantly watching over ourselves, and 
 engaged iti intercessions for our own preservation, yet 
 these exercises are sometimes swallowed up in the greater 
 concern for the keeping and spreading of the testimonies 
 of Truth, and the preservation of the Lord's people 
 everywhere." —Pp. 211, 212. 
 
78 
 
 FKOM JOHN BAECLAT. 
 
 " Hastings, in Sussex, 8th mo., 1837. 
 
 "Oh! beloved friend, thou that saw 
 
 the first seeds and dawning of that which has now man- 
 ifested itself in degree, knowest well enough how much 
 of the same nature and root we still have, to oppress 
 and afflict us, and of which it is difficult to particular- 
 ize, or speak closely, in the abstract, without allusions 
 to individuals who give uneasiness. The author of 
 'Truth Vindicated,' Henry Martin, has, by that book 
 and the others he has since written, done what I consider 
 to be, in some respects, a similar service to that of thy- 
 self in thy published letters ; he has opened up the radi- 
 cal causes of distinction between the early and the 
 modern Friends, and their opponents. I hope thou hast 
 seen all his publications, especially the recent ones, con- 
 tinued in letters No. 1 and No. 2, and a third is soon 
 expected, which is to contain strictures on J. J. Gurney's 
 'Brief Remarks on Impartiality in the Interpretation of 
 Scripture,' &c., in which J. J. G. takes the modern and 
 usual professor-like view of many texts, which may be 
 called Quaker texts, and which we have appreciated and 
 made use of differently from others. The pamphlet of 
 J. J. G.'s in MS., was examined by our poor Morning 
 Meeting, and declined to be passed ; it was at that time 
 appended to his lamentable ' Strictures on Truth Vindi- 
 cated.' He then privately published it, as we may say, 
 that is, printed it for private circulation, not for sale ; 
 and, in consequence, it was the more rare and sought for, 
 
 and MS. copies were taken It is my 
 
 full belief, that all the outcry against Friends will be 
 overruled for the good of the Church, and spread of the 
 gospel principles we profess; and I long that all who 
 
79 
 
 cannot see with us would honestly go their ways from 
 us, and we should be the stronger, purer people, and 
 take more root downward, &g. But it is a disingenuous, 
 dark, unworthy spirit that possesses them, and they seek, 
 by remaining among us, gradually to unhinge and weaken 
 us, and if possible, to refine and divest us of what is in- 
 ti'insic and indispensable. The best among other persua- 
 sions sympathize with us; they like the old-fashioned 
 cut of Quakerism, and wish us to be faithful to our prin- 
 ciples; but it is the mass of high-professing people, that 
 are riveted to their sect and system, who rejoice in our 
 divisions and hope to gain some from us." .... 
 — Pp. 225-228. 
 
 FROM JONATHAN ETANS. 
 
 " Philadelphia, 9th mo. 11th, 1837. 
 
 "I received thy letter, and am glad to find that there 
 are some yet left, who are not carried away by the stream 
 of popularity and fashionable opinions, which now seems 
 threatening to overwhelm our poor, tried, religious So- 
 ciety. Oh, the want of weight and depth which is strik- 
 ingly evident in our meetings, both for worship and dis- 
 cipline. When met to transact the affairs of the Church, 
 what a cringing and crouching to those noted for much 
 worldly wisdom, and abundance of the riches of this 
 world; so that indeed, the pure influence of the Spirit is 
 seldom sought after or expected; it being considered 
 only mysticism or, at best, but undefined, imaginary sen- 
 sations, not safe to follow; and that which the Lord 
 hath determined a death upon, is kept alive, and made 
 the chief agent in conducting the concerns of Society, 
 which if rightly understood is surely the Lord's business. 
 The conduct of the Yearly Meeting of Ministers and 
 
80 
 
 Elders in London, is really very affecting. This man 
 J. J. Grurney, because he has written much, is considered 
 very learned, highly polished, and an acute reasoner ; 
 and being very rich, and living in high style, is greatly 
 caressed, and esteemed as almost a prodigy among us. I 
 have perused a great deal of his writings, and have been 
 sorely distressed at the darkness and confusion which is 
 almost inseparable from their contents. 
 
 The Hebrew and Greek languages being very limited, 
 one word in them will sometimes embrace several signi- 
 fications, some of which will be in entire contrast with 
 others ; this he has caught at, and then made use of these 
 opposite senses to vary the present ti-anslation of the 
 Scriptures, and to promote his purpose in undervaluing 
 and contradicting the solid sense and judgment of our 
 ancient Friends, that he may the more readily introduce 
 and propagate Episcopalian doctrines. He tries to make 
 out that the eating of the flesh, and drinking the blood 
 of Christ, means a belief in his incarnation, thus lower- 
 ing down that deep experience and blessed fellowship in 
 spirit with theLord Jesus, in his baptisms and sufferings, 
 to a mere assent of the human mind — that the gospel 
 which is preached in or to every human being, means 
 the outward preaching of the gospel doctrines, that is, 
 the declaration of the atonement of Christ; that the 
 name of Jesus does not signify his powei-, but only to 
 ask of the Father that he would grant our petitions, 
 merely because of his beloved Son, Jesus Christ; that 
 therefore we are not to look for the immediate influence 
 of the Spirit as a qualification to pray, but to push for- 
 ward into this offering whenever we incline to it ; and 
 many other changes he makes which I can call by no 
 other name than perversions. He endeavos to make 
 out that our primitive Friends were under mistaken 
 
81 
 
 views ; in order that he may, with more facility, lay 
 waste our attachment to the doctrines and testimonies 
 they held, and prepare us to embrace new schemes 
 which will be more acceptable to the unregenerate man ; 
 liberate us from the mortifying operation of the cross of 
 Christ, and cause us as a Society, to be more respected 
 by the carnal, superficial professors of religion in the 
 several denominations." .... — Pp. 228-230. 
 
 Before concluding this letter Jonathan Evans quotes 
 from Thomas Shillitoe's dying testimony concerning 
 Joseph John Gurney in which he said : — • 
 
 "I declare him to be an Episcopalian, not a Quaker. 
 I apprehend Joseph John Gurney is no Quaker in princi- 
 ple. Episcopalian views were imbibed from his educa- 
 tion and still remain with him." 
 
 FROM MAKGAEET CEOSFIELD. 
 
 "Liverpool, 2d mo. 23d, 1838. 
 
 . . . . "I can never forget thy acceptable labors 
 and company amongst us; thou came in a critical time, 
 and wast the means of preserving my husband and me 
 from swerving from the Truth ; we saw not the danger 
 until thou came, but I fear through sophistry and delu- 
 sion, and undue confidence in some, we should have 
 slidden off, and been now like some once of high stand- 
 ing, who are now wandering from mountain to hill, 
 unsettled from waiting on the true Teacher, and seeking 
 water from broken cisterns; anxiety and unhappiness 
 depicted so legibly on some of their visages as to be 
 apparent to all who see them. Since thou wast here what 
 a sea of troubles have some of us passed through ! and 
 in degree do yet; but thou knowest what a bitter sepa- 
 rating spirit can produce where it gets in ; its arrows 
 
 4* 
 
82 
 
 have been directed against thee even in this land, in this 
 house, and in my presence — a poor return for thy labor 
 of love in coming as a gospel messenger amongst us. . 
 
 . . . . " That the written works of Joseph John 
 Gurney were the foundation of the present secession, 
 [that of Beaconism] I undoubtedly believe. Many that 
 have left have declared they were the first things that 
 led them to these new views, it was so declared pub- 
 licly by several of them to the London Committee." 
 
 —P. 231. 
 
 FROM LYDIA A. BAECLAT. 
 
 " Beigate, Surrey, 6tli mo. 21st, 1841. 
 " Ah ! my dear friend, it is so cheering and strength- 
 ening to hear from thee ; it seems to give one a little lift 
 amid the trials of the day, although thy account was in- 
 deed a mournful one ; — how painful, that those who are 
 leaders of the people, and should be patterns of good 
 things, should show that such a wrong spirit is ruling in 
 them ! I do, indeed, very tenderly sympathize with thee 
 under such suffering as thou must go through, and one's 
 heart seemed filled with praise and admiration of that 
 divine Power who enables his humble, faithful servants 
 and children to wax valiant in fight, and preserves them 
 in the meekness of true wisdom ; and I do trust thou 
 wilt be supported to the end through all that may be 
 permitted to come upon thee in the unflinching ' defence 
 of the gospel.' " . . . . — P. 343. 
 
 FROM THE SAME. 
 
 " Keigate, 24th of 6th mo., 1842. 
 
 " Oh, how strikingly applicable to us as a people, are 
 those parts of Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel which are 
 
83 
 
 addressed to backsliding Israel formerly ! And is there 
 not danger of the language going forth, ' Shall I not 
 visit for these things ? Shall not my soul be avenged 
 on such a nation as this ? ' And yet when the Lord is 
 evidently calling us to weeping and mourning and gird- 
 ing with sack-cloth for the backsliding and adultery 
 amongst us, yea, for the abominations committed by the 
 elders of Israel, 'behold joy and gladness;' a boasting of 
 good times and things amongst us, and a saying like some 
 of old, 'Is not the Lord among us? None evil can come 
 upon us ! ' And it was said to such, 'Therefore shall Zi- 
 on for your sakes be ploughed as a field, and Jerusalem 
 shall become heaps ! ' " . . . — P. 352. 
 
 FEOM ANN JONES. 
 
 " Stockport, 11th mo. 16th, 1841. 
 " I have long wished for a little feeling of ability to 
 give thee a written proof of my sisterly sympathy with 
 thee in and under the protracted suffering which has fallen 
 to thy lot, for thy faithfulness in supporting the doctrines, 
 the principles, and testimonies given to our dear fore- 
 fathers, and to us as their representatives, to bear to the 
 world. . . . ' Many are the afflictions of the right- 
 eous, but the Lord delivereth him out of them all.' . 
 May patience have its perfect work, and may the faith 
 once delivered to the saints be steadily maintained and 
 boldly contended for, when its blessed Author leads into 
 the field — the armor kept on in brightness, waiting the 
 word of command to go forth, or to stand still, then we 
 have nothing to fear. Farewell in the Lord." — Pp. 348-9. 
 
 FROM THE SAME. 
 
 " Stockport, 10th mo. 25th, 1842. 
 
 " Dear Sarah Grubb's prophecies are fulfilling in a re- 
 markable manner, and I doubt not her persevering faith- 
 
84 
 
 fulness to the end, will afford lasting comfort and encour- 
 agement to many a little, hidden, suffering disciple of the 
 blessed Master. With what clearness, authority, and 
 power, did she declare at the close of one of our women's 
 Yearly Meetings, 'The testimonies and standard of Truth 
 will not be permitted to fall to the ground, friends ; ' and 
 after speaking of great scattering and desolation that 
 was coming upon the Society, she continued, ' there will 
 be a little, living, suffering remnant preserved to support 
 them, and after they have suffered awhile there will be a 
 flocking to this standard &c.' " — P. 356. 
 
 FKOM BZEA COMFOET. 
 
 " "Whitemarsh, Pa., 2d mo. 17th, 1843. 
 
 DEARLY BELOVED FKIEND, 
 
 " I trust I can thus address thee in the fellowship of that 
 gospel, which is the bond of everlasting peace — in that 
 nearness and unity which I felt with thy spirit when thou 
 came into my room in Philadelphia, the remembrance of 
 which has often been precious to me, although I was a 
 stranger, as to the outward, yet not so within. My mind 
 has often been drawn into near, and tender sympathetic 
 feeling, with, and for thee, and under that feeling I am in- 
 duced to take my pen in hand, though I seldom do so, 
 to endeavor to encourage and strengthen thee to keep 
 hold of thy shield of faith, and not cast it away as though 
 it had not been anointed; for it has been anointed thou 
 knowest, and has kept thee through many tribulations, 
 both by sea and land, as well as amongst false brethren 
 unto this day, and I pray the Father of all our sure mer- 
 cies, that we may be favored to keep it in the patience 
 unto the end. . . . And now, my dear brother, before 
 I took my pen in hand I thought I felt this testimony, and 
 I believed it was from the Lord ; Tear not, my dear ser- 
 vant, I have permitted this suffering to come upon thee 
 
85 
 
 for my righteous cause and my testimony's sake ; I will 
 be with thee, and though thou pass through the waters, 
 they shall not overflow thee ; though thou walk through 
 the fire, it shall not burn thee, and through the flames 
 they shall not kindle upon thee, and I will make of thee 
 yet fui-ther an instrument in my hand, to my honor and 
 to my glory, in a way thou hast not yet seen, and it shall 
 add to thy rejoicing while yet here, and to thy eternal 
 joy hereafter.' — I have no doubt there are many amongst 
 you as well as amongst us who would, if they were to see 
 the language I have used in describing that deceitful spirit 
 which is endeavoring to divide us asunder, call it harsh ; 
 but the time has come when it is right for every one to 
 speak the plain truth to his neighbor, of what he is favored 
 to see of the workings of this dark deceptive spirit." . 
 
 —Pp. 361, 362. 
 
 PBOM ANN JONES, 
 
 " Stockport, 1st ot 4th mo., 1843. 
 
 MY DEAR FRIEND AND BROTHER IN THE BONDS AND TRIBULATIONS OF 
 THE GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD, — 
 
 "Although men may separate thee from their com- 
 pany, may reject and deny thee the privileges of a minis- 
 ter and member in our once highly favored society, yet 
 they can no more separate thee from the living body, 
 whereof Jesus Christ is the true and holy head, than the 
 persecutors of our dear faithful Friends in the beginning 
 could separate them from Him, the true and living Vine, 
 whence they derived their sap and nourishment, their 
 unity and strength, to stand against all the wiles and 
 stratagems, and cunning, subtle snares of Satan and his 
 agents. Then be not faint-hearted, neither fear, but 
 lift up thy head in hope ; believing that thy deliver- 
 ance from all the power of the enemy draweth near, 
 
86 
 
 whether thy natural eyes may see Jacob and Israel re. 
 joice and be glad, because that the Lord most high 
 hath redeemed and delivered them, yea or nay. . . . 
 Plaintive and true, as the lamentation over Israel is, in 
 thy truly acceptable letter of 12th mo., 20th, yet I could 
 but rejoice and give thanks in finding how sweetly thy 
 mind has been sustained, by an invisible hand, through 
 much crimination and oppression. Well, the power of 
 thy accusers and oppressors is limited; and whilst I 
 doubt not thou hast many times had cause to be and 
 hast been comforted in considering Him vfho endured 
 the contradiction of sinners against himself, and hast 
 thereby been kept from growing weary of suffering or 
 fainting in thy mind ; I can and do earnestly desire for 
 thee that thy faith may be renewed and strengthened 
 from time to time, not only to commit thy cause unto 
 Him, and to trust in his holy Name, but also to remem- 
 ber that Ihe cause is His with whom is the power to 
 bring good out of that which seemeth at the time, to 
 finite short-sighted mortals, to be what may be termed 
 evil, as the ' blood of the martyrs is the seed of the 
 church,' and the shedding of the precious blood of 
 Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot, 
 was the purchase of our redemption. When the poor 
 disciples were dismayed at what had happened, and said 
 even to himself, ' We trusted that it had been he which 
 should have redeemed Israel,' ah, then how little did 
 they think that they were speaking to their crucified 
 and risen Lord ! " .... —Pp. 365-6. 
 
 FROM JOHN HARRISON. 
 
 " Manchester, 7th mo. 1st, 1845. 
 
 MY DEAR FRIEND JOHN WILBUR, 
 
 "Thy volume of proceedings* has been delivered to me 
 by an unknown hand, with my name written on one of the 
 *J. Wilbur's " NaiTative and Exposition." 
 
87 
 
 blank pages, apparently in thy hand writing. If thou art 
 the sender thereof, I am much obliged for thy valuable 
 present; and still more do I feel myself indebted for thy 
 lucid, valiant exposure of those errors and doings which 
 have too long been a burden to many honest Friends. 
 Oh, it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the liv- 
 ing God, and an awful consideration to forsake His most 
 Holy Word, to deny his ever blessed, living eternal 
 truth, by attempting to reduce the same into a dead let- 
 ter, or in any way to deny the Lord's Christ. 
 
 I remember many years ago, when Beaconism, in a 
 smouldering state, had almost stultified the energies of 
 our large meeting, and three of us — comparatively 
 strangers in it, and to one another — had to contest the 
 whole body on subjects of vital importance ; we per- 
 ceiving, before many others that there was at work a 
 deep, secret scheme to undermine and subvert the true 
 doctrines of Quakerism, under the specious pretence of 
 avoiding the dangerous errors of Hicksism, and of evan- 
 gelizing the whole town and neighborhood! I well re- 
 member, with unfeigned thankfulness, the coming forth 
 of thy valuable 'Letters,' just at the right juncture, when 
 they were most required to strengthen our doubting 
 minds and to confirm the secret feelings by which we were 
 made very sensible, not only of our own unworthiness 
 and inability to move rightly in our own wisdom and 
 strength, but that the head and heart amongst us were 
 sadly sick. By thy pamphlet, addressed to my cousin, 
 George Crosfield of Liverpool, our vision was cleared to 
 see that as you in America had, through unwatchfulness, 
 glided off the right foundation on one side, even so we in 
 this country were gradually slipping from it in an opposite 
 direction — both being the cunning, cruel work of Abad- 
 don. You were all for Christ within to the neglect of 
 the great sacrifice whereby we are put into a capacity to 
 
88 
 
 be saved, and a slighting of the history as recorded in 
 the Scriptures of Truth, which were also disparaged by 
 you; we, for 'Christ without' and the history, not caring 
 much about the mystery of religion, so that we could exalt 
 the letter high enough, even above the Spirit which gave 
 forth the Scriptures most surely to be believed. Hence 
 the kingdom of Christ becoming divided in both instan- 
 ces, the enemy gained his point 
 
 I have read every syllable of thy 
 
 book, and am affected to find that men calling themselves 
 Christians, nay, highly-professing Christians of our name, 
 should so far forget themselves and the rules of common 
 respectability as to descend, as they have done, into those 
 acts of injustice and intolerance which should shame a 
 heathen to commit. I am lending the work to all my 
 acquaintance who can appreciate it, and on one of the 
 fly leaves I have written the following inscription, viz: — 
 
 'John Wilbur and his book. — The New Englanders 
 may attempt a reply to this vol,ume. They may and 
 most likely will, put forth a vindication of their conduct, 
 and try to neutralize the statement made by this dear, 
 persecuted Friend and able minister of the gospel. One 
 thing they cannot accomplish. Do what they will, they 
 cannot disturb the great groundwork, the structure and 
 super-structure of the case. They can as easily change 
 the skin of the Ethiopian, as alter the complexion of, and 
 make sound the unsound doctrines of Joseph John Gur- 
 ney as they are palpably manifest in his writings. This 
 is my strong conviction on the perusal of this most in- 
 teresting, extraordinary and highly important volume, 
 coupled with my previous knowledge of the works of J. 
 J. G. J. H., 6th mo. 2d, 1845.' 
 
 I consider thy separation grievous and extremely 
 unjust, but I reckon its importance to thyself of small 
 moment compared with the effect it will have in a 
 
Society point of view. I consider the act as a lawless, 
 
 reckless dash at the principle which unites us ; and all 
 
 true Friends are concerned therein. If one member 
 
 suffer, then do all the living members and the living 
 
 body suffer also. Distance, rank, estimation in the 
 
 world, cannot destroy the sympathy of the members 
 
 and of the body, so long as Christ continues to be the 
 
 head of his true church, which he ever will. 
 
 Wishing thee well in the true acceptation of the 
 
 term, I subscribe myself thy very affectionate friend, 
 
 John Harrison." 
 Pp. 397-8-9. 
 
 FROM EZRA OOMFOET. 
 
 " Whitemarsh, 8th mo. 22d, 1845. 
 
 MY DEAR FRIEND JOHN WILBUR, 
 
 " I think I can truly address thee as such in the fel- 
 lowship of suffering. I have just received and read 
 what the Gurneyite Yearly Meeting [of N. E.J call a 
 statement of facts, in wliich they endeavor to cover and 
 screen themselves from blame, but by this endeavor 
 they greatly expose themselves, by showing their pro- 
 fession and conduct to be inconsistent and irreconcilable 
 with each other. By their history of facts, as they 
 would call it, they charge thee with being the whole 
 cause of all the disorders and difficulty amongst them, 
 and that it has all grown out of thy indulging in a 
 spirit of detraction, just as I was falsely charged [in the 
 Hicksite troubles], but when they come to show wherein 
 thou hast offended -in this respect, they show by their 
 proceedings, it has all grown out of thy declaring the 
 doctrinal views of J. J. Gurney as published by himself 
 to be unsound, and by doing so thou hast injured his 
 character and hurt his services as a minister of the 
 Society of Friends, for which they have dealt with and 
 disowned thee, at the same time denying that this is 
 
90 
 
 what they have disowned thee for. Then they go about 
 to justify and cover themselves under the certificate 
 granted J. J. G. by London Yearly Meeting, thus tacitly 
 acknowledging they will receive and unite with a 
 minister whom they know to be unsound, if he carry 
 such certificate with him ; but if any should venture to 
 say the views he has written and published himself, are 
 unsound, let them be ever so much so, it is the highest 
 grade of detraction, contrary to discipline and long 
 established order, and sufficient ground to disown them 
 upon. Thus whilst endeavoring to justify their incon- 
 sistency, and the base persecution they have been guilty 
 of, they have not considered that they are condemning 
 London Yearly Meeting in the case of Hannah Barnard, 
 and Philadelphia Yearly Meeting in the case of Eliag 
 Hicks, but they take the same course against sound 
 Friends, and justify themselves in the very same way 
 that the Hicksites did with us, pretending to support 
 good order, whilst they were openly and barefacedly 
 committing disorder, and shamelessly and falsely charg- 
 ing sound Friends that were supporting the order of 
 the Society with committing disorder — thus abundant- 
 ly manifesting that they make lies their refuge, — and 
 we find by the history that has been preserved by the 
 Society from its earliest period, that when individuals 
 or bodies have joined with those who were once in the 
 Truth and were favored instruments while they kept in 
 it, but who have apostatized and departed from their 
 first principles, it has been wonderfully remarkable how 
 these have all pursued the same coui-se, and have made 
 
 lies their refuge 
 
 With much love to thee, thy family, and all thy dear 
 suffering friends, as if named, I remain thy friend, 
 
 Ezra Comfoet." 
 —Pp. 401-2-4. 
 
91 
 
 FROM CHEISTOPHEE HE ALT. 
 " Bucks County, Pennsylvania, 2d of 6th mo., 1847. 
 
 MY YEKY DEAK AND MUCH BELOVED FRIEND JOHN WILBUR, 
 
 . . . . " May thou, ray dear brother in the Truth, 
 be comforted and filled with joyful hope, for greater is 
 He that is in thee, than he that is in the world ; this thou 
 hast clearly proved, by thy great suffering, for thy divine 
 Master's and the church's sake. May he be pleased to 
 make bare his holy arm of power, for thy health, both in 
 spirituals and temporals. I have often thought of thy 
 dear bosom friend, how she must be tried as well as 
 thee, in that long and sore warfare. May our blessed 
 Helper be very near to strengthen you to bear up, now 
 in your old age. I have divers times read thy 'Narra- 
 tive' as well as some other accounts, and I thought 
 nothing short of Divine power could have carried thee 
 so remarkably through. Thou hast heard by this time I 
 suppose that our Yearly Meeting this year, condemned 
 the unsound writings of Joseph John Gurney, and also 
 of Edward Ash, and the document after our next Meet- 
 ing for Sufferings will be published Oh! my 
 
 dear brother, this is a sifting time to the members of our 
 Society. I have believed our poor Society will yet be 
 sifted as wheat is sifted in a sieve, for it is declared, 'I 
 will overturn, overturn, overturn, saith the Lord, until 
 he shall come whose right it is to rule and reign. ' Our 
 Israel is too much mixed among the people of the world. 
 The language of my soul is, come out from among them, 
 and be ye separate, and touch not the unclean thing, and 
 I will save you. Now my dear brother in the gospel of 
 the dear Son of God, be not discouraged at these trying 
 times, for Zion cannot come forth out of the wilderness 
 of this world, clear as the sun, fair as the moon, and ter- 
 rible as an army with banners, leaning also on her Be- 
 
92 
 
 loved, until sli,e shall arise and shake herself from the 
 dust of the earth, and put on her beautiful garments ; 
 then she will arise with Him who is the Resurrection and 
 the Life, and because he is the bread of life, our souls 
 shall live also. Oh! that this blessed day might come 
 to the church, then will judges be restored as at the first, 
 and counsellors as at the beginning. I do believe this 
 time will come, though a great falling away may take 
 place first ; but my dear friend, a people, a favored rem- 
 nant will be preserved of the true principle and name of 
 
 Quakers 
 
 "In the great satisfaction and love which for many years 
 we have had together and for each other, the remem- 
 brance of which now rejoices my heart, I take my leave, 
 and remain thy affectionate friend. 
 
 Chbistophee Healt." 
 —Pp. 421-2-3. 
 
THE CONCLUSION TO THE " NARRATIVE 
 AND EXPOSITION." 
 
 Containing an affectionate invitation to all the honest-hearted under 
 our name, to hold fast the profession of the Christian faith, as 
 recognized and most surely believed by all our faithful predeces- 
 sors in the truth, as it is in Jesus Christ our Lord : — 
 
 In this invitation, the object of my desire and con- 
 cern is, to persuade and exhort all (and it is in the feel- 
 ings of much brotherly love and with a lively hope) to 
 be entreated to come forward more and more in a prac- 
 tical consummation of the obedience of that faith which 
 leads to the saving knowledge of God, through the reve- 
 lation of Him who died for our sins and rose again for 
 our reconciliation unto God ; and who also was and is 
 and yet to be, the Lord from Heaven, a quickening 
 Spirit. 
 
 And first, permit me to say to you, my dear friends, 
 that however very dear to me the rights and privileges of 
 the militant church, in a condition owned of God ; yet, 
 (if otherwise,) how much dearer ought to be, (and notto 
 me only, but unto every one of her children) the love of 
 God and the owning of his approving presence, which 
 are the fruits of the one living faith in the Son of God, 
 and in the fundamental and inalienable doctrines of the 
 Gospel of Christ, with the testimonies and discipline of 
 the true church; a faithful conformity whereunto through 
 obedience, being indispensable as a test of membership 
 in that body, of which Christ is the Head; and there- 
 fore of the greatest consequence to every one who would 
 desire to be a member of the true church. 
 
 And we, of the present generation, are entrusted with 
 
94 
 
 the keeping of this faith, and those testimonies, through 
 our day, and are bound by the strongest obligations, (in- 
 asmuch as our way has been made more easy, by the de- 
 livery into our hands of these testimonies, pure and ne- 
 tire by our predecessors,) to act our part faithfully, 
 through the Lord's assistance, and tender mercies; not 
 only in the scrupulously upholding of them ourselves, 
 through our day and time, as a righteous standard and 
 testimony to all men ; but to deliver and hand them down 
 to the succeeding generation, undiminished and without 
 abatement ; so that those who follow after may rejoice 
 and gather strength by means of our unflinching up- 
 rightness and willingness to endure all things for the 
 sake of Him who gave them to the church; and to bear 
 the cross and to despise the shame, in the faithful endur- 
 ance of self-denial in this, a day of lightly esteeming 
 and treading down of the holy testimony of the cross of 
 Christ, which is the power of God and wisdom of God; 
 and remains to be a mystery which has been hid for ages 
 from the wise and prudent, — from all the carnal profes- 
 sors of every age, — but revealed to the humble, and the 
 lowly, and self-denying followers of the Lamb, of every 
 generation. 
 
 And the importance, that we as a people, who have 
 advanced in the faith of vital Christianity beyond others 
 of the protestant reformation, should hold fast to the 
 testimonies that we were at the first entrusted with, (and 
 without the fear of man,) is strikingly apparent; lest we 
 through a culpable relaxation should give countenance 
 and strength to the apostacy of such other denomina- 
 tions as are retrograding into a sorrowful declension from 
 their own first principles, and thereby should bring con- 
 demnation upon ourselves on their account. 
 
 How sorrowful will it be, my dear Friends, if we, 
 
95 
 
 either willingly or heedlessly fall irrecoverably into the 
 degenerating current of the day, and with the multitude 
 go back again to the house from whence our forefatherts 
 came out, (through the cost of great tribulations,) and 
 which return must be to the utter loss of our own souls, 
 and to the great reproach of the holy profession handed 
 down to us by our worthy predecessors in the truth, and 
 would be crucifying to ourselves the Son of God afresh, 
 and putting him to an open shame. 
 
 As reasons for the goodly exercise of care, in watching 
 over ourselves and guarding the church against the 
 smaller as well as greater inlets of a departure from 
 sound doctrine and correct practices, we may once more 
 recur to the view of things which have transpired here- 
 tofore, as alluded to in the preface of this narrative, 
 both in ancient and modern times, in which was noticed 
 the sad declension of the church, under both dispensa- 
 tions, in relation to the Lord's statutes and doctrines de- 
 livered to her, showing that the former, though established 
 of the Almighty himself, did not only become the degen- 
 erate plant of a strange vine unto Him, but persecuted 
 and wickedly put his messengers to death, and finally 
 slew the Son and sent of God, before the measure of 
 her iniquity was full. And that the latter, even under 
 the gospel and name of Him who came not to destroy 
 men's lives but to save them, persecuted the messengers 
 whom he had sent to warn them of their iniquities, and 
 put them to death without mercy. 
 
 And the question was asked, and may again well be 
 asked, whether the church now is better, and more se- 
 cure against the danger of an apostate condition, than 
 the primitive Christian church was ? "Will it not be 
 acknowledged that the same enticements are now in the 
 hands of the enemy as heretofore ; and the same prone- 
 
96 
 
 ness to evil in men now as then, to wit, the love of 
 pleasure — the love of the world — the love of power 
 and other degenerating propensities ; and are not these 
 as deadly now to true religion as they ever were in any 
 age of the world ? 
 
 But we know it is so. Then, O then ! let every one 
 gird up the loins of his mind, and watch — watch and 
 pray lest we enter into temptation, and fall by the 
 subtle delusions of the wicked one. Oh, Friends ! let us 
 dwell in the light of the Lord, that so we may see the 
 snares of the enemy and avoid them — let us draw near 
 and dwell in Him who is light, and in whom there is no 
 darkness at all ; and as we come to see in him, the 
 councils of wisdom, and are made to undei'stand his 
 will, let us obey, whether it be in acting or in forbear- 
 ing to act — whether it be in the small or in the great 
 sacrifices, remembering that believing and obeying in 
 the one, is the same in the sight of God, as the believing 
 and obeying in the other. Then despise not the day of 
 small things, but keep the covenant of obedience in the 
 little as in the much, for the reward is as certain in the 
 one as in the other, even peace and joy in the Holy 
 Ghost, — for it is as we are faithful in the little, that we 
 shall be made rulers over more, and be prepared to do 
 more and more ; and so shall our strength be increased 
 from less to more, and as our eye is kept single to the 
 light of the Lord in our own souls, waiting upon Hun, 
 and keeping the word of his patience in that covenant, 
 which is as sure by night as by day — as sure in the 
 night of trial and temptation, as in the day of deliver- 
 ance and rejoicing. Hence faith and patience in the 
 disciple's experience, are a treasure of great price, and 
 contribute, even more lai'gely to his growth in the saving 
 knowledge of God, than in his more joyous seasons of 
 feasting upon the good things of his Master's table. 
 
97 
 
 Zion can only be redeemed through judgment, and 
 her converts by righteousness ; — by being plunged into 
 the river of judgment; this must be known in the ex- 
 perience of every member of the true church. He must 
 witness the sanctifying baptism and power of the Holy 
 Ghost ; and immutable justice towards all men, must be 
 the obvious characteristic of his life and conversation, 
 showing mercy to others as he would desire God would 
 show mercy to him. And in so walking in the fear of the 
 Lord, it is only that we evince by our fi'uits, that we 
 love Him above all, and our neighbor as ourselves. 
 
 By the inward operation of the judgment and power 
 of God, it is, that the members are instructed and pre- 
 pared for service in the church — to be way-marks and 
 ensamples to all men. 
 
 And among the many and important services assigned 
 to the members respectively, there are none peradven- 
 ture of greater usefulness, or of a higher order, than 
 that of the gospel ministry — a service, than which, 
 none has been more grossly abused — than which, no 
 one has been more sacrilegiously counterfeited. If true 
 and apostolic, not received of man nor by man, but by 
 the revelation of Jesus Christ — as such, it is a great 
 blessing to the church — if false, and learned only of man 
 and by man, and should 2>i"evail in the body under our 
 name, it will prove an unfailing means of a degeneracy 
 and estrangement from God, and a lapse into dead for- 
 mality ; and will greatly tend to draw away from God 
 unto men. 
 
 So far as we know, the Society of Friends is the only 
 people, among all the Christian denominations, since the 
 primitive ages, who profess to preach the gospel only as 
 the Spirit giveth utterance — who wait for the promise 
 
of the Father on all occasions as Christ taught his disci- 
 ples, to wit : — who believe it requisite to tarry until they 
 be endued with power from on high, before they attempt 
 to preach in God's great and holy name. 
 
 Hence the testimony of Friends, touching this high 
 and holy calling, is at this day the most primitive, noble 
 and dignified testimony in the world, being the only one, 
 which recognizes a sensible, direct intercourse and com- 
 munication between the heavens and the earth; or in 
 other words, from God to the children of men. 
 
 Inasmuch, then, as the Society of Friends are the only 
 people who hold fast to the faith, that Christianity itself 
 has not diminished, nor fallen off , nor its gifts and graces 
 been withdrawn from the true church, since the day when 
 the Lord told his discii^les, that the Spirit which should • 
 succeed his personal presence with them, should instruct 
 them in all things, and bring all things to their remem- 
 brance ; or since the day when he promised that he 
 would abide with them forever, even unto the end of the 
 world; — how desirable and indispensable for us, in the 
 fulfillment of ancient prophecy, " they shall all know 
 me," &c., and for the unspeakable benefit of the church, 
 as well as of the world at large, that we hold fast the 
 ])rofession of this faith without wavering — this faith of 
 the continued dispensation of the gift of the Holy Ghost 
 unto them who wait for him in sincerity and humility, 
 and believe in his power. 
 
 But this gift of God's grace and Holy Spirit, is by no 
 means exclusively given to gospel ministers, but flows 
 from the Vine, which is the fountain of life, to every liv- 
 ing branch ; — from Christ to every member of his body. 
 And all the true members, whatever their respective call- 
 ings are, as their hearts are open to receive, are by the 
 anointing of his Spirit taught and instructed to fulfill 
 
99 
 
 their duties and callings conformable to the will of God, 
 and are blessed with immediate access to him, thi'ough 
 the mediation of Christ, and without the intervention of 
 any man. 
 
 And it is as impossible for the church of Christ to re- 
 main such, and to be a living body, without the savor 
 ;.nd circulation of the Spirit and life of Christ, as for a 
 tree to remain green and fruitful without the circulation 
 of sap and nourishment from the root and from the body ; 
 or as for a man to exist in the vigor of life, without the 
 circulation from the heart, of that blood which is the 
 life of man. 
 
 But to return to the exercise of the gospel ministry. I 
 feel concerned to exhort all, who are called to that sol- 
 emn service, faithfully and patiently to wait, and to rely 
 on Him alone who is the Great Minister of the sanctuary 
 and true tabernacle which God hath pitched and not man, 
 both for the opening and the shutting, — for strength, — 
 for mouth and wisdom — tongue and utterance. ^Vnd, 
 above all things, having no confidence in themselves, or 
 in the the endowment of man's wisdom ; but tarry, I 
 entreat you, (as you would desire your own further- 
 ance, and that of your brethren,) tarry at Jerusalem 
 until ye be .endued with power from on high ; for under 
 the dominion of this power, (it only is) as it is waited 
 for in the simplicity and integrity of the soul, that the 
 work will prosper and bring peace and joy to those who 
 are thus exercised in it; and will I'edound to the glory of 
 God and the consolation of his people, whether the meas- 
 ure of the gift be less or more. Never, O never! let the 
 desire for words, either in yourselves or in others, be- 
 guile you into an unsanctified offering — beguile you into 
 a spurious ministry, or the offering of strange fire. Oh! 
 how lamentable the condition of those where a lifeless^ 
 
100 
 
 ministry prevails! How deadening to an assembly of 
 Quaker worshippers, for if it come not from God, though 
 it may jDlease the ear, or lead to head knowledge, it is 
 no better than a sounding brass and a tinkling cymbal ! 
 How much better in the sight of God, and for the church, 
 is silent worship, than the annoyance of a spurious min- 
 istry ! 
 
 The skill and artifice of man, in framing a beautiful 
 discourse, if it be but in man's wisdom and learning, 
 contributes no more to the honor of God, or the salva- 
 tion ol souls, than would man's sagacity in forming a 
 beautiful image of things above or things below ; he 
 can, of himself, no more breathe the breath of life into 
 the one than into the other. And without a portion of 
 the Divine life, which is the gift of God and testimony 
 of Jesus, preaching is no more saving, than any other 
 mere image of good things. 
 
 Hence the necessity that Christ's ministei-s, seeing they 
 are but men, should abide with the Lord Jesus in the 
 inner court of the heart, and " with him in his tribula- 
 tions, that so they may know of his doctrines," and how 
 to preach them, — that they may be instructed in the 
 counsel of his will, for it is here, in the heart, that 
 " whatsoever is to be known of him is made manifest," 
 — j)ertaining to his own glorious kingdom and the sal- 
 vation of souls ; which is at times made known to the 
 messengers of his covenant, for their own qualification 
 to minister, and for the watering and refreshing of 
 "those who serve him," as well as for the reproof and 
 instruction of " those who serve him not," to his own 
 holy and blessed acceptance. 
 
 And it is only by patiently enduring the baptism of 
 Christ and of his judgments, to the subjugation of the 
 will of the flesh in themselves, that they can be good 
 
101 
 
 stewards of the manifold grace of God, and fully jsre- 
 pared to divide the word aright among his people, and 
 clearly to discern between the precious and the vile, 
 under whatever covering such states may exist, or under 
 whatever appearance or professions men may make ; 
 these true messengers of Christ, will not be misled, by 
 what men have been, or by what they now profess to be. 
 
 Wherefore, my dear fellow-pilgrims in this high call- 
 ing of God, grudge not, I beseech you, the conflict, or 
 the reproaches, of drinking deeply of the Saviour's bit- 
 ter cup, nor the endurance of his fiery baptisms, (for his 
 own received him not, but slew him, and denied him), 
 seeing that so great salvation is the result of sufferino-, 
 and awaits the faithful and unflinching labors of those 
 who are prepared by the ordeal of his power; and who 
 have labored and have not fainted, and who have borne 
 the burden through the heat of the day. And remember 
 who it was, and from whence they came, whom John 
 saw round about the throne of God, who had washed 
 their robes and had made them white in the blood of 
 the Lamb. 
 
 And oh ! that all under our name of all classes, who 
 name the name of Jesus, may never name Him unworthily 
 or deceitfully, but, by departing from all iniquity, might 
 honor him, having his fear always before their eyes, 
 walking in all humility and lowliness before him, that 
 so their example may do honor to the high and holv 
 name of the Great Author of our salvation, and to the 
 exalted profession we are making among men. 
 
 And how, above all things, is the Christian's experience 
 in that power of God which overcomes the world, en- 
 larged, by frequently and continually seeking and feeling 
 after him with the whole heart, undivided and unre- 
 served. Oh ! fellow-probationer, forget not thy morn- 
 5* 
 
102 
 
 ing oblation, before thy head is raised from thy pillow, 
 but approach the altar of his sacrifices in thine own 
 heart, for thou mayest there witness in the silence of ce- 
 lestial excellence, the flame of his love and holy presence 
 to kindle upon thy offering ; and then when thou goest 
 by the way. He will also go along with thee, and when 
 thou liest down he will keep thee, and as thy desires are 
 unto him, he will bless thy evening sacrifices ; and again, 
 when thy slumbers are broken, in the silent watches of 
 the night, then let not thy thoughts go astray upon 
 things that perish, but keep and gather them inward, 
 and stay them upon Him whose presence fills the uni- 
 verse ; and he will become to thee the chiefest among ten 
 thousand. But when he delayeth to come unto thee, 
 then fasting and mourning will be thy lot ; and " great 
 searching of heart," and fearful enquiry, why he has 
 forsaken thee, and whether thou hast not sinned against 
 him, and gone backward, and left thy first love! Oh! 
 this is the way by which all the holy men of old, and 
 our worthy predecessors gained the experience of the 
 knowledge and way of the Lord ; and if thou would 
 gain a heavenly treasure like theirs, and follow their 
 footstejDS, to a blessed establishment in the unchange- 
 able truth, then be faithful and relax not from a daily 
 exercise in seeking Him, and staying thy mind upon 
 him ; girding up thy loins and watching for the morning, 
 possessing thy soul in the patience of God ; confessing 
 to him thy sins and short-comings, and asking forgive- 
 ness through Him who is the Mediator of God's cove- 
 nant for reconciliation with thee ; and behold he will, 
 when it please him, and in the right time, shorien and 
 dispel the hour and power of darkness and distress, and 
 cause the true light again to shine into thy soul and 
 round about thee, and will again arise himself with power 
 
103 
 
 and great glory, as from the gloom of the sepulchre, and 
 will cause thy soul to rise with him, with joy unspeak- 
 able and full of praise. 
 
 Thus described is some of the true Christian's expe- 
 rience, and the practical ground of his coming to the 
 saving knowledge of God, through the revelation of Je- 
 sus Christ, and by the means of keeping a single eye to 
 the light, and watching unto prayer without ceasing, 
 whereby the mind is stayed and kept alive unto God, 
 and preserved in the hour of temptation, and from being 
 seduced and led away "by every wind of doctrine," as 
 mei'e superficial professors are. 
 
 Hence, when this blessed experience is attained and 
 abode in by a follower of Christ, his mind will not be be- 
 guiled with false doctrines or misled by designing men, 
 thovigh such doctrines be preached in the eloquence of 
 the wisest, or even by an angel from heaven, because the 
 witness is in himself, and this witness for God will ever- 
 more, as do the holy Scriptures, contradict and deny all 
 false and delusive doctrine, because the disciple dwells 
 with him who is light, and in whom thei-e is no darkness 
 at all. And therefore thus abiding in the light, no man 
 can deceive him, nor yet the wicked one, though he 
 might assume the appearance of an angel of light. 
 
 But when men begin to hate the light, and to depart 
 from it, because their deeds are become evil, then their 
 vision is darkened, and they can scarcely distinguish be- 
 tween an ignis fatuus, or the counterfeit radiance of the 
 fallen angel, from the clear shining of the light of the 
 Lord, and are therefore exposed to the imposition of 
 false doctrines proffered to them in the wisdom of the 
 serpent by his deceitful working, and by his transforma- 
 tions are undistinguished by those " whose vision is not 
 clear." How lamentable the condition of those, viewing 
 
104 
 
 things as they do, with a clouded imagination, or 
 through an inverted medium, and therefore are led to call 
 light darkness, and darkness light; good, evil; and evil, 
 good; just like the same sort of people in the prophet's 
 time. Here we see the great powers of transformation in 
 the hands of the wicked one. And never better pleased 
 was he, as would appear, nor his kingdom better served 
 in any age, than by his success in alluring and beguiling 
 the servants of the Lord, to become and to be his ser- 
 vants ; and the more eminent in their former station the 
 more so in the latter, as fully demonstrated by events 
 which have transpired. 
 
 And how deplorable the state of those who are trans- 
 formed from the image of God to a condition of un- 
 righteousness — from the love of God to the love of the 
 world — from the fear of God to the fear of man, and 
 the desire of pleasing God exchanged for a greater 
 desire of pleasing men; a condition in which man is 
 ashamed acceptably to acknowledge the Redeemer before 
 a man who shall die, and the son of man who shall perish. 
 
 Of those who regard men more than they regard Him, 
 he will be ashamed before his Father and the holy 
 angels, and will not therefore be a mediator between 
 them and their God, whom they have despised, and 
 have more lightly esteemed Him than they have es- 
 teemed men. 
 
 With such there must be a fearful looking for of judg- 
 ment, and the righteous indignation of God's displeasure, 
 because they have more lightly esteemed the favor of, 
 and fear of God, than the persons and friendship of 
 men, which is idolatry and great offence in His sight. 
 
 Our Lord and Saviour describes the contrast between 
 the fear of man and the fear of God in a very striking 
 manner, and gives forth His command to fear God 
 
105 
 
 rather than man, in despite of the utmost that man can 
 do : " Fear not them that kill the body, and after that 
 have no more that they can do ; but I will forewarn 
 you, whomye ought to fear — fear Him who after he 
 hath killed, hath power to cast into hell," and emphati- 
 cally adds, " Yea, I say unto you, fear Him." And 
 this command stands unabated, and is as obligatory on 
 us as on his followers in that day. 
 
 Although men now have not power, by the laws of 
 the land, to kill the body, or to take men's lives on ac- 
 count of their fidelity to God, yet there are those who 
 have power and disposition to jDersecute, and to take 
 from us that which had been almost as dear as life itself 
 to us — our places, our rights, and our privileges in the 
 outward visible church. A process plainly distinguish- 
 able from the law of Christ, as will appear by a recur- 
 rence to the pattern of church government, as well as 
 the doctrines received and acknowledged aforetime by 
 the whole body, under the acknowledged guidance of 
 the spirit of Christ. 
 
 Therefore, when those who teach us doctrines, and 
 hold the rein of church government over us, shall have 
 unhappily departed from that pattern, then fear them 
 not, nor reverence them, for they will begin to deny the 
 Master's coming, and to beat the men servants and the 
 maid servants, and to lord it over the heritage of God. 
 
 Now, here is the difference, those who are ordained 
 of the Holy Ghost to teach and to rule in his church, 
 are both to be regarded and honored, so long as they 
 rule in righteousness. But when their garments become 
 defiled with enmity or the love of power, or the love 
 of filthy luci-e, or their eye becomes evil, then theii- 
 hearts are become dark, and their hands full of oppres- 
 sion, and their arm but an arm of flesh. And he that 
 
106 
 
 continueth to transfer to them the honor which only 
 belongeth unto God, or to trust in them, is accursed 
 of the Lord, though they may shine as stars of great 
 magnitude over the tabernacles of Esau ; they are no 
 longer to be called by the name of Jacob, nor surnamed 
 by the name of Israel, so long as they disregard Israel's 
 statutes and testimonies. 
 
 Hence we see the necessity of wisdom from above, 
 and a clear discernment of the states and conditions of 
 men, aside from prepossession, favor or friendship ; aside 
 from relationshii^ and all former estimations, outward 
 circumstances or outward appearances; and aside too 
 from the estimation of others. When the condition of 
 men is seen in the light, and their views, practices and 
 motives are not answerable to the pattern as above, 
 then let the loyal disciple of him in whom there is no 
 shadow of turning, and who is to give account, and bear 
 a faithful testimony against such in all meekness and 
 lowliness, move in the fear of the Lord, and trust in his 
 providence and power, and then he has nothing to fear 
 from men, nor from a host of the mighty, for as he so 
 continue and abide in the everlasting patience in the 
 secret place of the Almighty, whose refuge will be round 
 about him, and his banner over him ; and for all the suf- 
 ferings, revilings and evil reports which he shall have to 
 endure, the reward from his blessed Master's hand will 
 be an hundred fold in this present world, and in that 
 which is to come, everlasting life. 
 
 And the writer is induced to believe, through the 
 opening of truth, that a remnant will be spared from the 
 "flood of mighty waters overflowing," whilst "the beauty 
 which is on the head of the fat valley shall be a fading 
 flower, and as the hasty fruit before the summer, which 
 when he that looketh upon it, seeth; while it is yet in 
 
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 his hand he eateth it up." " In that day shall the Lord of 
 hosts be "for a crown of glory, and for a diadem of beauty 
 unto the residue of His people, and for a spirit of judgv 
 ment to him that sitteth in judgment, and for strength 
 to them that turn the battle to the gate, and many shall 
 run to and fro, and the knowledge of the Lord shall be 
 increased, and judgment shall run down as waters, and 
 righteousness as a river — the wilderness shall become 
 as Eden, and the desert as the garden of the Lord. Aliens 
 shall be thy ploughmen, and strangers shall stand and 
 feed the flock, and nations that knew not thee shall run 
 unto thee because of the Lord thy God." 
 
 It has been seen by divers of the Lord's messengers in 
 our Israel, both earlier and later, that a great declension 
 and sifting time would take place among us, and that a 
 remarkable reformation and better day would succeed. 
 
 The former we have already seen sorrowfully to have 
 been progressing, in a departure from truth's testimonies 
 and doctrines, by the insidious working of the enemy, 
 drawing away from the true faith, both on the right hand 
 and on the left. And it is believed that the day is near, 
 (if the Lord's purposes are not frustrated through fear 
 or unfaithfulness in those who have been spared and 
 called to begin the work,) when the foregoing declara- 
 tions of the prophets will be verified and fulfilled in the 
 succession of faithful messengers and standard bearers, 
 and of a better day; and of the advancement and up- 
 holding of truth's dignified testimonies to the honor of 
 God's great, and glorious, and holy name. 
 
 JOHN WILBUR. 
 
 Ilopkinton, R. I., \st month 16th, 1845.