^?s 
 
 o "PT?TTsrn-RTmvr isr .T. -v/^ 
 
 PRINCETON, N. J. 
 
 BV 813 .S75 1844 
 Stearns, William A. 1805- 
 1876. 
 s/te^/ Infant church-membership 
 
INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP, 
 
 OR THE 
 
 RELATION OP BAPTIZED CHILDREN 
 
 TO 
 
 • THE CHURCH. 
 
 BY WILLIAM A.'^TEARNS, 
 
 Pastor of the Evangelical Congregational Church, Cambridgeport. 
 
 BOSTON: 
 PUBLISHED BY CROCKER AND BREWSTER, 
 
 47 Washington- street. 
 
 1844. 
 
Entered according: to Act of Congress, in the year 1S44, 
 
 By Crocker and Brewster, 
 
 In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of Massachusetts. 
 
^ ii /I, A 
 
 \ W •-*« «v ■^"^ 
 
 
 
 i J. 
 
 TO THE MEMBERS *»T:^';'^^ 
 
 SUFFOLK NORTH ASSOCIATION^ 
 
 TO THE 
 
 CONGREGATIONAL CLERGYMEN OF NEW-ENGLAND; 
 
 AND TO ALL 
 
 PARENTS IN COVENANT WITH GOD; 
 
 THIS VOLUME 
 
 IS MOST RESPECTFULLY DEDICAT ED 
 
 BY 
 
 THE AUTHOR. 
 
If temporal estates may be conveyed 
 
 By covenants, on condition, 
 To men and to tltevr heirs, be not afraid, 
 
 My soul, to rest upon 
 The covenant of grace, by mercy made. 
 
 Do but thy duly and rely upon't, 
 
 Repentance, Faith, Obedience, 
 Whenever practised truly will amount 
 To an authentic evidence — 
 Though the deed were antidotal at the font. 
 
 Synagogue. 
 
 1* 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 This treatise is presented to the churches under a 
 deep sense of religious responsibility. It was not pre- 
 pared in a controversial spirit. Nor was it intended 
 as an attack upon that large and respectable denomi- 
 nation of Christians who differ nriost widely from the 
 leading sentiments it contains. It has been the au- 
 thor's design simply to reaffirm and establish one cf 
 those great doctrines of puritan and primitive Chris- 
 tianity on which he believes, the perpetuity, stability., 
 and progressive piety of the New-England congrega- 
 tional churches greatly depends. 
 
 He was led to the undertaking by providential cir- 
 cumstances, and without the most distant expectation 
 of making his views public. Infant baptism, and the 
 relation of baptized children to the church had been 
 exciting increased attention for several years. Pas- 
 tors and parents deplored the fact, that "the seed of 
 the church " should be accounted, and educated, in 
 so many instances, as those who are confessedly 
 
8 PREFACE. 
 
 " aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and stran- 
 gers to the covenants of promise." The subject had 
 often been conversed upon, and discussed, by clergy- 
 men in their private meetings, and especially by the 
 Suffolk North Association, with which the author is 
 pleasantly connected, and to the members of which 
 he would take this opportunity to acknowledge him- 
 self indebted for many valuable suggestions. At their 
 request, more than three years ago, he was induced 
 to undertake a Biblical investigation of the question, 
 How did our Saviour and his Apostles treat the infant 
 children of believers in reference to churchrmember- 
 ship ? The inquiry was commenced, as an assigned 
 duty which ought to be faithfully performed — but 
 without prejudices in favor of one theory or another, 
 or any special interest at that time in the subject. It 
 was prosecuted with a simple but determined desire 
 to discover and establish the truth. As the result of 
 this inquiry, a dissertation was presented to the Asso- 
 ciation, which succeeded, somewhat unexpectedly in 
 harmonizing the views of all the members present. 
 After the lapse of several months a vote was passed, 
 requesting its publication. In reviewing the manu- 
 script for this purpose, it appeared to the author that 
 a fuller developement of the principles it contained 
 might be profitable to the churches. For this reason, 
 he was led to examine the whole subject anew, and 
 prepare the treatise which is now given to the 
 public. 
 
 The writer has no desire to attach undue impor- 
 tance to the mere externals of religion. He has no 
 
PREFACE. 9 
 
 high church principles to sustain, nor any predilections 
 for a more stately worship. He professes to be a 
 congregationalist in church government of the old 
 school, — as nearly a puritan of 1648 as the changes 
 of the times will allow. He values the outward only 
 in connection with its spiritual import and influence. 
 Nor is baptism considered by him as a saving ordi- 
 nance, nor as imparting mysterious efficacy to the in- 
 fant soul, but only as one of the divinely appointed 
 means of grace, bringing the recipients into a peculiar 
 relation to God and his people and preparing the way 
 for the realization of covenant blessings. 
 
 The forms of apostolic and congregational Chris- 
 tianity are few and simple. But being ordained of 
 God, and of great practical utility, they are worthy 
 of sacred preservation. Nor should their importance 
 be underrated in consequence of the tendency in some 
 quarters, to give them unjustifiable sanctity, and load 
 the gospel with human figments and additions. In 
 the opinion of many the church is about to enter upon 
 its last great conflict with formalism. Surely it is not 
 well to com.mence the warfare by a voluntary sur- 
 render of any of the great principles we hold in com- 
 mon. True wisdom requires that we understand our- 
 selves, maintain our ground firmly, defend the ordi- 
 nances as well as the doctrines of Christ, opposing 
 heathenish ceremonies, papal superstitions, antiquated 
 additions, and modern innovations, but sacrificing no 
 jot or tittle of what God has appointed. 
 
 It is with the hope of throwing some light upon the 
 covenant relations and duties of baptized children — - 
 
10 PREFACE. 
 
 of reviving in the New-England churches one of the 
 great principles on which they were founded ; — of as- 
 sisting to " rear a holy seed," to take the place of 
 their fathers, in the kingdom of Christ, through suc- 
 cessive generations ; to prepare the way for that 
 thorough religious training which when attended with 
 prayer and faith so generally results through grace 
 and according to the promises in the early regenera- 
 tion of children ; that this book is now respectfully 
 submitted by the 
 
 Author. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 Introduction, 13 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 PROOF OF THE DOCTRINE OF INFANT CHURCH-MEM- 
 BERSHIP. 
 
 Section 1. Abrahamic Covenant, .... 17 
 
 Section 2. Our Saviour's treatment of Children in 
 reference to his Church. and Kingdom, ... 29 
 
 Section 3. The great Apostolic Commission, . . 37 
 
 Section 4. Infant Church-Membership recognised by 
 the Apostle Paul and the Corinthians, . . . 45 
 
 Section 5. Additional considerations affecting the 
 Question, 43 
 
 Section 6. Brief Review of the Constitution and gen- 
 eral History of the Church, 51 
 
12 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 NATURE AND DEGREE OF INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 Section 1. Peculiarity of this Relation, ... 54 
 Section 2. Children of the Church subject to its 
 
 supervision, ^° 
 
 Section 3. Other privileges of Baptized Children, 64 
 
 Section 4. Restrictions upon privileges, . . 67 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 PRACTICAL ADVANTAGES OF INFANT CHURCH-MEM- 
 
 79 
 BERSHIP, 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 GExNERAL SENTIMENT OF NEW-ENGLAND CONGRE- 
 GATIONALISTS AND OTHER REFORMED CHURCHES 
 ON THE SUBJECT, ^^ 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 THE DOCTRINE APPLIED IN SEVERAL ADDRESSES. 
 
 Address to Pastors, 122 
 
 Churches, 130 
 
 Parents who are Professors, . . .137 
 
 the Baptized, 144 
 
 the unhaptized, 1^5 
 
 CONCLUSION; 1^^ 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 INTIMATE AND MYSTEHIOUS CONNECTION BE- 
 TWEEN PARENTS AND CHILDREN— DESIGN OF 
 THE TREATISE— STATEMENT OF GENERAL PO- 
 SITION. 
 
 The relation which exists between parents and 
 children is perhaps the most sacred and indissoluble of 
 any upon earth. Children inherit not only the pos- 
 sessions, but generally, in a greater or less degree, the 
 honor or disgrace, the constitution and propensities, 
 the diseases and advantages of those from whom they 
 directly but mysteriously derive their existence. 
 " Bone of our bone and flesh of our flesh," they are 
 objects of the strongest affection ; and the toil and 
 solicitude of parents is often directed more earnestly 
 to their offspring, than to their own good. 
 
 The closeness of filial and parental relations is re- 
 cognised by the laws of civil society, and of God. 
 2 
 
14 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Our children are so identified with ourselves, as to be 
 considered the natural recipients of our social blessings 
 and disadvantages. Among many ancient nations, 
 punishments adjudged to the father were inflicted al- 
 most of course upon his household, and children were 
 treated as rebels or assassins, whenever a parent was 
 condemned for treason or had embued his hands in 
 human blood. So in the administration of God, not 
 only as promulgated in the second commandment, but 
 as manifested in his providence, by daily occurrences, 
 ^' the iniquities of the fathers are visited upon the 
 children, unto the third and fourth generation of them 
 that hate him " — while his mercy is shown unto many 
 generations "of them that love him and keep his com- 
 mandments." 
 
 Why the destinies of parents and children are so 
 involved in each other, it may not be easy, and it is 
 not necessary for us fully to determine. It must be 
 conceded as matter of fact — and it is only with the 
 fact that we are now concerned — that under the di- 
 vine administration a man's offspring are singularly 
 identified with himself, insomuch that when our first 
 parents fell, they involved the whole human race in 
 the evil consequences of their guilt ; and whenever 
 God has made a covenant with such distinguished and 
 faithful servants, as Noah, Abraham, and David, he 
 has generally ordained a perpetuation of blessings to 
 them by conferring the same upon their posterity. 
 
 A remarkable instance of good to be enjoyed by 
 children on account of eminent parental faith, is found 
 recorded in the seventeenth chapter of Genesis. " I 
 
INTRODUCTION. 15 
 
 will establish my covenant between me and thee, and 
 thy seed after thee, in their generations, for an ever- 
 lasting covenant; to be a God unto thee and to thy 
 seed after thee." This is the language of Jehovah to 
 an aged and beloved patriarch who had left all to 
 follow him. The whole passage, which stands as 
 context to the words rehearsed, is worthy the earnest 
 and prayerful study of all who acknowledge the au- 
 thority of Jesus, in expounding the writings of Moses, 
 and of all the prophets, and the Psalms, as having 
 important reference to himself. 
 
 This covenant not only indicates the intimacy of 
 relation which exists, in a moral and religious respect 
 between parents and children — but is supposed to ex- 
 tend its benefits to all the spiritual posterity of Abra- 
 ham ; i. e. to all who resemble him in respect to 
 faith, and also in an important sense to the children 
 of true believers forever. We receive it, as contain- 
 ing the foundation principles of a public church organ- 
 ization — and as the magna charta of our spiritual 
 privileges to the remotest day. 
 
 It is the writer's design to present a Biblical expo- 
 sition of the question. How are the young children of 
 believers to be considered and treated in reference to 
 church-membership. All reasonings derived from 
 ecclesiastical history, and human authority, will be 
 excluded from the discussion, not as unimportant in 
 themselves, nor as inconclusive on the subject pre- 
 sented, but as too indirectly appropriate to the ques- 
 tion, " What saith the Lord." But information gath- 
 ered from the word of God, explanations adapted to 
 
16 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 throw ligbt upon its meaning, and any conclusions 
 legitimately deduced, with appropriate circumstances, 
 will be considered as coming within the limits which 
 the word Biblical is intended to mark out. When 
 the leading principles of the treatise have been estab- 
 lished, some greater latitude of remark may be allow- 
 ed in further illustrating and enforcing them. 
 
 The position to be maintained is briefly this. The 
 baptized children of professing Christians are strictly 
 speaking members of the church, and with exceptions, 
 made necessary by their incapacity and their personal 
 character, should be treated in other respects as such. 
 They are not of course members by profession, nor 
 are they members in full communion, nor are they in 
 complete standing. Still they are truly members of 
 the church ; they are entitled to its prayers, to a 
 christian education, and an affectionate supervision ; 
 they are standing candidates for full communion, and 
 are to be received to the table of the Lord as soon as, 
 but not before, they give evidence of possessing the 
 requisite knowledge and faith, and are prepared to 
 take upon themselves the baptismal obligations by a 
 public profession of religion. 
 
CHAPTER I. 
 
 PROOF OF THE DOCTRINE OF INFANT CHURCH- 
 MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 Section 1. Ahrahamic Covenant — Circumcision 
 
 exchanged for Baptism Distinction between 
 
 Church-Baptism and the Baytism of Proselytes, 
 
 The doctrine of infant church-membership is de- 
 rived from the Ahrahamic covenant as follows : — 
 
 1. The visible church on earth had its commence- 
 ment as a publicly organized body with Abraham, 
 and, with some modifications has preserved its identity 
 to the present day. 
 
 2. There is strictly speaking but one church ; 
 there never has been but one general, regularly con- 
 stituted visible church in the world. For thouo^h the 
 kingdom of God anciently dwelt in many families, 
 and the patriarchal ancestor was the priest of his 
 own household, it does not appear that there was 
 any religious institution, sufficiently catholic in its 
 
 character, to be dignified with the name of church. 
 
 2* 
 
18 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 3. This one church, beginning with Abraham, 
 has existed under two dispensations or organizations, 
 corresponding to different states of society and de- 
 grees of light enjoyed. 
 
 4. It is however the same body under the chris- 
 tian dispensation, that it was under the Jewish, pre- 
 serving its fundamental principles, though with such 
 alterations in its constitution as either were explicitly 
 made by Christ and his apostles, or such as circum- 
 stances rendered necessary. 
 
 5. Now under the old dispensation infants were 
 included, by divine command, with their parents as 
 members of the church. They must therefore be 
 included as church -members under the new dispen- 
 sation, unless there is some express command to 
 the contrary, or some peculiarity in the nature of 
 the case which has the force of a command. But 
 it may be safely affirmed, that there is neither statute, 
 nor circumstance, which excludes the young children 
 of believers from the christian church. They are 
 therefore to be recognized as members of it. 
 
 The above conclusion, though inferential, necessa- 
 rily follows from the principles assumed. We proceed 
 to examine, therefore, such of these principles as 
 might otherwise be controverted. 
 
 1. The church, under both dispensations, is one 
 and the same church. 
 
 In the first place, it has one and the same covenant, 
 viz. that which was made with Abraham, and is re- 
 corded at length in the seventeenth chapter of Gene- 
 sis, in which covenant God promises to be the God of 
 
ABRAHAMIC COVENANT. 19 
 
 Abraham, and his seed after him, in their generations, 
 forever, and by accepting the conditions of which 
 Abraham pledges himself, — by implication at least, — 
 to be ever the faithful servant of God, and to bring up 
 his children and his posterity, as far as the influence 
 of his person or his character may extend, to be the 
 willing and obedient subjects of the Most High. 
 
 That this covenant, called in Genesis an everlast- 
 ing covenant, was the covenant of the christian church 
 from the first, and secured the blessings promised to 
 Abraham, both to his immediate posterity, and to all 
 gentile believers, to the remotest ages, is sufficiently 
 apparent from the assertions of St. Paul in the third 
 chapter of Galatians and elsewhere. We are distinct- 
 ly assured that Abraham's faith was the ground of his 
 acceptance with God, that all believers in after ages, 
 resembling him in faith, were to be recorded among 
 his children — that by the seed of Abraham, the right- 
 ful heirs of the promise, we are to understand, prima- 
 rily, Christ, and secondarily, all true believers as con- 
 nected with Christ — " For if ye be Christ's," says the 
 Apostle, " then are ye Abraham's seed and heirs ac- 
 cording to the promise." 
 
 Moreover, it is affirmed, as if to preclude all objec- 
 tions to this view, arising out of the national institu- 
 tions of the Jews, that this covenant, this fundamental 
 principle in the constitution of the church, was so 
 confirmed of God in Christ, that it can never be dis- 
 annulled, nor changed. Taking precedence of the 
 Mosaic institutions, 430 years in respect to time, the 
 law, as that term was understood by the Jews, is to 
 
20 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 be considered as strictly subsidiary to the promise. 
 It was introduced on account of the wickedness of 
 mankind, for the preservation of true religion until the 
 time of Christ, and to prepare the world for his 
 coming. Nor did Moses abrogate the covenant or 
 allow it to be forgotten. Under God, he was in one 
 sense the founder of the Jewish nation. He prepared 
 the Hebrew code of civil government, and for the 
 sake of the church, united church and state. But the 
 promises made unto Abraham and his seed are ever 
 held forth, as at the foundation of the Jewish Theoc- 
 racy, and the imperishable charter of peculiar privi- 
 leges. See for one instance among many, Deut. 29 : 
 10 — 13. All that was peculiarly Mosaic in the or- 
 ganization of the church, may be considered, either as 
 the natural developement of the Abrahamic principle 
 — " I will be your God, and the God of your seed, 
 and ye shall be my people " — or as means adapted to 
 secure such developement. The superstructure may 
 be repaired, or even removed, but the foundation 
 standeth sure. 
 
 The sentiments advanced are corroborated by the 
 recollection that the Abrahamic covenant, is in jpoint 
 of fact, the one great principle on which the one great 
 church is and has been established, down to the pre- 
 sent day. 
 
 What is a profession of religion, as understood by 
 Christians generally, but a public acknowledgment of 
 God in Christ as our God, with the understanding on 
 our part, that by this act, sin'cerely performed, and in 
 the way of divine appointment, we are accepted and 
 
ABRAHAMIC COVENANT. 21 
 
 recognized of the father, as his own peculiar people, 
 who if faithful to our obligations may expect peculiar 
 blessings upon ourselves and upon our children ? What- 
 ever our opinions respecting the subjects of baptism, 
 must we not agree in this, viz. that the mutual en- 
 gagement, ^' I will be thy God, and ye shall be my 
 people, and, Thou shalt be our God, and we will be 
 thy people," is the engagement, the covenant of the 
 church in all ages, and under all varieties of organiza- 
 tion ? If so the church under the new dispensation 
 has the same covenant which it had under the old, 
 and in fact as it has had from the first existence of the 
 church as a public body, in the world. 
 
 2. Though the seal of the covenant has been 
 changed, the thing signified has always remained the 
 same. Circumcision, the initiatory rite under the old 
 dispensation, is declared to be a seal of the righteous- 
 ness of faith, and, is not baptism, in like manner, a 
 seal of the righteousness of faith, under the new ? 
 Both are visible representations of the divine promise, 
 first made to Abraham, " the father of believers," and 
 from him, through Christ, to all mankind, that believ- 
 ers shall be justified by faith. 
 
 Not only is the interpretation of these seals under 
 both dispensations the same, but as signs, they both 
 have the same meaning, being used to express the 
 necessity of spiritual cleansing, in order to acceptance 
 with God. That baptism is intended to indicate the 
 necessity of spiritual cleansing, none, it is presumed, 
 will deny. Circumcision was designed to convey the 
 same idea. Compare such passages as these ; Deut. 
 
22 
 
 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP, 
 
 10 : 16 — ^' Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your 
 heart;" 30: 6—'' The Lord thy God will circum- 
 cise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the 
 Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy 
 soul that thou mayest live ; " Jer. 4 : 4 — " Circum- 
 cise yourselves to the Lord, and take away the fore- 
 skins of your hearts, ye men of Judah" — with the New 
 Testament interpretation of the rite, Rom. 2 : 28, 29, 
 " Neither is that circumcision which is outward in the 
 flesh — circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, 
 not in the letter, whose praise is not of men but of God." 
 Circumcision and baptism therefore are only different 
 methods of signifying the same thing. Under both dis- 
 pensations, you enter the church, on the same principle, 
 though the mode of illustrating or representing that 
 principle has once been changed. The essential spir- 
 itual import of this initiatory ordinance is imperishably 
 permanent, from the days of Abraham to the present, 
 from our own times, down to the remotest ages of the 
 world. Therefore, as the church covenant has al- 
 ways been the same, so the sign and seal of the cove- 
 nant have been essentially, i. e. spiritually the same 
 from the beginning. 
 
 3. St. Paul, in the 11th of Romans, virtually af- 
 firms, and conclusively proves the identity of the 
 church under both dispensations. It is one stock or 
 tree, from which certain bad branches, meaning the 
 unbelieving Jews, were broken off, and other scions, 
 or believing gentiles, were grafted in. The newly 
 converted gentiles are warned against any spirit of 
 
ABRAHAMIC COVENANT. 23 
 
 exultation over the rejected Jews, for, says the Apos- 
 tle, " If some of the branches be broken off, and thou 
 being a wild olive-tree, wert grafted in amongst them, 
 and with them partakest of the root and fatness of the 
 olive-tree. Boast not against the branches ; but if 
 thou boast, thou bearest not the root, but 
 
 THE root thee." 
 
 4. Moreover, the final recovery of the Jewish 
 people to reconciliation with God, and to the enjoy- 
 ment of covenant blessings is distinctly foretold. 
 When that event takes place, they are to be gathered, 
 not into a new church, but into the old, though now 
 existing indeed under a new organization. The olive- 
 tree remaining the same, those branches which were 
 cut off, and cast out, will be grafted in again, not into 
 another, but into their own olive-tree ; in which re- 
 spect they will have some advantage over the gentile 
 nations, the latter being grafted contrary to nature 
 from a wild olive, while the former, being simply re- 
 stored to the good tree from which they were taken, 
 will grow the more naturally upon their native stock. 
 
 Thus it appears that the Jewish and Christian 
 branch of the church have both the same covenant ; 
 the initiatory rite in both means the same thing ; and 
 St. Paul has declared both the same church. The 
 church of God, therefore, is and ever has been one 
 and only one forever. It is his kingdom on earth. 
 Nor can its identity be destroyed by the fact, that 
 some of the children of the kingdom have been cast 
 out, " and many have come from the east and the 
 
S4 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 west and the north and the south, and have sat down 
 with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom 
 of God." Indeed it is as clear that we have one and 
 only one church in two dispensations, as that we have 
 one and only one Bible in two testaments. 
 
 This church underwent some alterations, after 
 the coming of Christ. He abolished certain ob- 
 servances, some of which being introduced by Mo- 
 ses, upon the junction of church and state, as aids 
 to the civil government, were so exclusively Jewish, 
 as to be inappropriate and unmeaning to other nations, 
 and others of them being merely shadows and 
 types realized in himself, were no longer of any use. 
 Among other things, he changed the initiatory rite 
 from circumcision to baptism, baptism being better 
 adapted to the world at large, more in accordance 
 with the mild spirit of the gospel, and that expansive 
 benevolence, which was about to throw its broad 
 shadows over all nations, giving exclusive privileges 
 neither to Jew nor Greek, bond nor free, male nor 
 female, but making them all one in Christ. 
 
 But here it should be more distinctly inquired, 
 does baptism take the place of circumcision ? 
 It does. Both are seals " of the righteousness of 
 faith ; " both are signs " of the circumcision of the 
 heart." And in Col. 2 : 11, 12, St. Paul distinctly 
 recognizes the fact, that baptism represents " the cir- 
 cumcision of Christ," i. e. christian circumcision, or 
 *' the putting away of the sins of the flesh." Or, 
 as the argument is more fully stated by Dr. Wor- 
 
CIRCUMCISION EXCHANGED FOR BAPTISM. 25 
 
 cester, " Circumcision under the former dispensation 
 signified the necessity of a regeneration, or renova- 
 tion, of the heart by the Holy Spirit ; baptism under 
 the present dispensation signifies the same. Circum- 
 cision was formerly a seal of the righteousness of 
 faith ; baptism is now a seal of the same righteous- 
 ness. Circumcision was formerly a token of God's 
 gracious covenant with his people ; baptism is now a 
 token of the same covenant. Circumcision was for- 
 merly a mark or badge of solemn dedication ; baptism 
 is now a mark or badge of the same solemn dedica- 
 tion. Circumcision was formerly an appointed pre- 
 requisite of admission to the church of God ; baptism 
 Is now an appointed pre-requlsite of admission to the 
 same church. In a word, baptism is of the same im- 
 port, and of the same use In the church under the 
 present dispensation, as was circumcision under the 
 ancient." 
 
 It thus appears that the initiatory rite was changed 
 from circumcision to baptism. 
 
 Other changes were also made ; — for example, the 
 Sabbath was transferred from the seventh day of the 
 week to the first, called the Lord's day, since, though 
 " great to speak the world from naught, 'twas greater 
 to redeem ; " — the Aaronic priesthood was abolished — 
 Christ having become himself priest forever after the 
 order of Melchisedec — and the christian ministry set 
 up ; — and many of the ceremonial distinctions be- 
 tween clean and unclean, having answered their de- 
 sign, were abandoned. But none of these changes 
 3 
 
26 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIF. 
 
 could destroy the identity of the church. They only 
 extended to the cutting o£F some branches, while the 
 stock remains the same. Thus, Massachusetts was 
 Massachusetts before the American revolution as well 
 as afterwards — though its new condition and relations 
 required some modifications of its institutions. 
 
 But here it must be remarked, that no modification^ 
 express or implied, was ever made by Christ and his 
 Apostles, in reference to the privileges and duties of 
 parents, as entitled and required to introduce their 
 young children into the same fold of covenant protec- 
 tion with themselves. 
 
 It follows that as such children were included with 
 parents, as members of the church, under the first dis- 
 pensation, they must, of course, be included with 
 them under the second. 
 
 Personal JBelief essential to Adult hut not to Infant 
 Baptism and Church-membership, 
 
 The principal objection to this view is the follow^ 
 5ng : — As baptism is the only initiatory rite of the 
 christian church, belief being essential to baptism, is 
 essential to church-membership. 
 
 To this we have two answers. — 1st. There is a 
 broad distinction between church-baptism, and the 
 baptism of proselytes or adult persons converted from 
 the world. It is in reference to the latter, that the 
 Scriptures insist upon a personal faith, as an essential 
 qualification for baptism, saying, *' If thou believest 
 with all thine heart thou raayest." The Apostles 
 
PROSELYTE AND INFANT BAPTISM. 27 
 
 went forth, under the great comnalssion, to bear the 
 gospel tidings to the world, to disciple the nations, in- 
 troducing them into the school of Christ, by his ap- 
 pointed ordinance, organizing them into churches 
 founded upon the Apostles and Prophets, Jesus Christ 
 being the chief corner-stone, and building them up in 
 all the principles of the new institution. It was their 
 first business to convince the world of sin, to an- 
 nounce the Messiah as the offered Savior of mankind, 
 and urge repentance and faith as essential to salvation. 
 The badge of discipleship was baptism. Hence the 
 exhortation believe and be baptized, as though per- 
 sonal faith was essential to baptism, as indeed it was 
 for the persons to whom the apostolic message was 
 immediately addressed. But it does not follow, that, 
 when parents had been converted, and had thus be- 
 come the spiritual children of Abraham and heirs of 
 the promises, and had received the appointed sign and 
 seal of the covenant, viz. baptism, their children 
 should be excluded from any participation in those 
 blessings of church-membership, which had heretofore 
 been accorded to them in connection with parental 
 faith, ever since the patriarchal age. We should ex- 
 pect, therefore, to find belief insisted on as essential 
 to baptism, even though upon profession of belief, 
 baptism was administered not only to the believer 
 himself, but to all his straightivay. In accordance with 
 this opinion, we find the Apostle, enumerating the 
 household of Stephanas, among the very few whom 
 he baptized at Corinth. Nor was the idea, of thus 
 receiving children, on the ground of parental qualifi- 
 
28 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 cations, at all foreign from the thoughts and habits of 
 these early preachers, who were Jews. In just this 
 way, converted heathen had always been received, 
 with their families into the ancient church. Belief in 
 Israel's God was the essential pre-requisite to admis- 
 sion. But when a converted gentile, renouncing idol- 
 atry, had made acknowledgment of the God of Abra- 
 ham, and received upon his own person the seal of 
 the covenant, his children were immediately circum- 
 cised, and enrolled with the parent, as heirs of cove- 
 nant blessings, in common with the Jews. Thus, in 
 the introduction of proselytes into the church, personal 
 faith is essential to admission — but being received, 
 having now become church-members by baptism, 
 their children are henceforth the children of the cove- 
 nant, the children of the church. As such they are 
 entitled to the initiatory rite, which when performed 
 constitutes them also members of the church. 
 
 2. A second answer, though involved in the first, 
 may be more distinctly stated as follows. Allow that 
 belief was an essential pre-requisite to baptism, it was 
 also, and equally the essential pre-requisite to cir- 
 cumcision. Both are ^' the seal of the righteousness 
 of faithy Circumcision certainly was, for so the 
 Scriptures expressly affirm ; and yet circumcision was 
 applied to infants ; nay the believing Jew was com- 
 manded, under most fearful comminations, to place 
 the sign of the covenant upon his children. So bap- 
 tism, being " a seal of the righteousness of faith," is 
 to be administered to the helieving parent, and his 
 little child. Thus, though baptism is now the only 
 
OUR saviour's treatment of children. 29 
 
 introductive rite, to church-membership, the children 
 of believers are not disqualified, through want of per- 
 sonal faith, to receive its administration. 
 
 It follows then that as the church under the old 
 dispensation certainly included infants, and as nothing 
 appears to the contrary in the teachings of Christ, or 
 in the necessities of the case, the church under the 
 new dispensation must include infants also. 
 
 Section 2. The doctrine of Infant Church-memher- 
 ship derived from our Savior^ s treatment of Chil- 
 dren in reference to his Church and Kingdom. 
 
 We shall be brought to similar conclusions with the 
 foregoing, by an investigation more directly exegetical. 
 How did our Saviour treat children, in reference to 
 his church and kingdom ? 
 
 In discussing this question, there is an important 
 preliminary fact which deserves attention. Our Sa- 
 viour, himself a Jew in respect to his human nature, 
 educated amidst Jewish customs and influences, intro- 
 duced into the Jewish church, by circumcision, when 
 only eight days old, — being also the omniscient Son 
 of God, — instead of pronouncing any sentence of ex- 
 clusion upon infants, or intimating any suspicion of 
 their possible disqualification for church-membership, 
 under the new dispensation, seems to have taken 
 special pains to impress the disciples and all behold- 
 ers, with a sense of the deep and tender interest, with 
 3* 
 
30 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 which he regarded them, in reference to the kingdom 
 he was about to set up. 
 
 There is especially one passage which betirs upon 
 the subject of infant church-membership, with great 
 force, and is therefore entitled to careful examination. 
 Mat. 19: 14. "But Jesus said, suffer little children 
 (or the little children, as it is in the original) and for- 
 bid them not to come unto me, for of such is the king- 
 dom of heaven." 
 
 In order to understand the Saviour's meaning, in- 
 quire, first, what is meant by the phrase 'kingdom of 
 heaven 1 These words, as used in the New Testa- 
 ment, do not always, nor even generally intend 
 heaven, in the common acceptation of the term. 
 Heaven contains no unworthy nor imperfect members ; 
 but the kingdom of heaven consists of a mixed 
 community ; foolish virgins among the wise, tares 
 among the wheat, good and bad in the same net. 
 It is that kinodom out of which the an^-els at the 
 last day shall gather every thing that offends. It is 
 the kingdom in which the ambitious disciples were 
 desiring pre-eminence. It is the kingdom which 
 Christ came to establish on earth, and which, being 
 finally perfected, shall continue forward beyond death 
 and the judgment, in an eternal heaven. The only 
 visible presentation of it is the church. To say, 
 *' upon this rock will I build my church," is much 
 the same as to say, here is the foundation stone of my 
 kingdom. 
 
 Our second inquiry is, who are to be the subjects 
 of this kingdom ? Or rather, as it will contain some 
 
OUR saviour's treatment of children. 31 
 
 unworthy, uninvited members, who does Christ de- 
 signate as 'properly belonging to it ? He mentions in 
 the text before us two classes, the little children who 
 were brought to him, and such as are like them, or 
 rather one class Including both, viz. all persons of this 
 description. That he Intends to Include the children 
 themselves, with those who are compared to them Is 
 evident — for, 
 
 1. It can hardly be supposed that those who re- 
 semble such children are entitled to membership, he- 
 cause of that resemblance, while the children them- 
 selves whom they resemble are excluded. At all 
 events, under all the circumstances, such a mode of 
 speaking, would be peculiarly liable to mislead, and 
 should not be attributed to the Saviour without suffi- 
 cient reason. 
 
 2. The Saviour's treatment of these children im- 
 plies a recognition of their title to membership In his 
 kingdom. He was not only exceedingly displeased 
 with the disciples for rebuking those that brought 
 them, saying, "Suffer the little children to come, and. 
 forbid them not," but, by prayer and the Imposition 
 of hands, he signrfied to the bystanders, that these 
 children, though some of them Infants, and all of 
 them probably very young, were yet capable of re- 
 ceiving, either immediately or prospectively, spiritual 
 blessings. And not only so, but by an act of religious 
 consecration, he hallowed and blessed and set them 
 apart for himself, saying, at the same time, of such is 
 the kingdom of heaven. 
 
32 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 3. The reason assigned by our Saviour for receiv- 
 ing these children implies a recognition of membership, 
 in his kingdom. Why must they be allowed to come ; 
 why must the parents be gratified in their desire that 
 Jesus would consecrate and bless them ? Because, 
 says he, (for) the kingdom of heaven is composed of 
 such persons as these. If he had intended simply to 
 say, that adult persons of an humble, affectionate and 
 childlike disposition, were to be considered members 
 of his kingdom, in such a declaration we should have 
 a fact affirmed, but it would not be a reason for the 
 reception and consecration of the children. If the re- 
 semblance, implied in the words of such, were merely 
 a resemblance of " disposition and affection, that,''^ 
 says Matthew Henry, " might have served as a rea- 
 son why doves or lambs should be brought to him," 
 it certainly is not a reason why the children should 
 be blessed, and by the laying on of hands consecrated 
 to God. 
 
 Finally, we think that the Greek, toiovtuv, of such, 
 implies both the persons compared and those to whom 
 they are compared. The English reader may satisfy 
 himself by reference to a few passages. Mat. 18: 5, 
 " And whoso shall receive one such little child in my 
 name receiveth me." Now this child, as appears 
 from the connection was little believer, and therefore 
 most certainly is included with those to whom it is 
 compared. Moreover, St. Luke says, in the parallel 
 passage, '' Whosoever shall receive this child in my 
 name receiveth me." For the use of the word 
 TOiovTog in other connections, see Mark 4 : 33, " And 
 
.' - 
 
 OUR SAVIOUR S TREATMENT OF CHILDREN. 33 
 
 with many such parables spake he the word unto 
 them," i. e. whh these parables and many that are 
 like them. John 4 : 23, ^' The Father seeketh such 
 to worship him," i. e. such as true worshippers, in- 
 cluding of course the true worshippers themselves. 
 John 9 : 16, " How can a man that is a sinner do 
 such miracles," i. e. these miracles now witnessed and 
 such as are like them. In several other instances the 
 word is used in the same manner, nor am I apprized 
 of any opposing usage. It seems necessary, there- 
 fore, to suppose the Saviour to have recognised these 
 children, thus brought to him, as themselves members 
 of his kingdom. 
 
 Now from Luke 18 : 15, it appears that these chil- 
 dren, thus received as members of the kingdom, were 
 some of them at least infants. It is evident also that 
 these infants were the children of believing parents, 
 for they brought them to Jesus in faith, that he might 
 bless them. Christ then says, " Suffer the little chil- 
 dren (for the original, as already observed, employs 
 the article) to come unto me, and declares them 
 members of his kingdom." From this, it is natural to 
 infer, that all such children, in other words all the 
 little children of believing parents, being consecrated 
 to Christ by faith, and in the way of his appointment, 
 are to be considered members of his kingdom. 
 
 But this conclusion is something more than an in- 
 ference. While the words of such manifestly include 
 the children thus presented to Christ, it cannot, of 
 course, exclude other children of similar condition. 
 ToiovTog is a demonstrative pronoun, and designates a 
 
34 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 class. How far this class extends, whether to all 
 children, and even to all adults who in humility of 
 disposition resemble them, it is not necessary for our 
 present purpose to decide. It evidently extends — 
 and this is far enough for the argument — to all chil- 
 dren of the same age arid circumstances as the chil- 
 dren in question, i. e. to all the infants and young 
 children of believing parents, who bring their offspring, 
 in faith, to Christ, for his blessing — to all the children 
 of parents, to whom " pertain," says Mr. Henry, *' the 
 privileges of visible church-membership, as among the 
 Jews of old. The promise is to you and to your chil- 
 dren, 1 will be a God to them and to thy seed," 
 
 Nor is it any objection to this interpretation, that 
 we must all '^ receive the kingdom of heaven as a 
 little child," in order to admission. For how did 
 these children receive it, as its privileges were con- 
 ferred upon them by the Saviour's words ? Undoubt- 
 edly, with humility and trustful affection, without self- 
 seeking or ambition. In this way adults must receive 
 it, or not at all. 
 
 Similar remarks may be made respecting Mat. 18 : 
 3, and parallel passages: "Except ye be converted 
 and become as the little children, ye cannot enter 
 into the kingdom of heaven." By conversion, in this 
 place, we are not to understand, spiritual birth, for in 
 that respect the disciples of Christ were converted al- 
 ready, but conversion from a particular state of mind, 
 viz. from an ambitious desire of pre-eminence, to a 
 childlike humility. In this respect, it was essential 
 
OUR saviour's treatment of children. 35 
 
 for the disciples to become like children, in order to a 
 Worthy membership in Christ's kingdom. 
 
 It appears, therefore, from the foregoing considera- 
 tions, especially from the usage of toiovtcijv, of such) 
 what is also evident from the nature of the case, that, 
 not only the children noticed in Mat. 19, but all chil- 
 dren of similar condition — in other words all the little 
 children of believing parents, when consecrated to 
 Christ by faith, and in the way of his appointment are 
 to be considered members of his kingdom. And if 
 members of his kingdom, then certainly no good rea- 
 son can be given, why they should not be members of 
 his church, which is the only visible presentation of 
 his kino^dom, which in fact is his kingdom. 
 
 We are yet to inquire, more distinctly, luhy such 
 children are enrolled among the subjects of the king- 
 dom of heaven. 
 
 1. It is not on account of their innate goodness, 
 for this supposition would not only contradict the 
 great fact of the fall of man and the consequent vitiated 
 condition of human nature, so abundantly affirmed in 
 the Scriptures, but also the teachings of Christ, who 
 speaks of children as lost, even in those very passages 
 which assert the necessity of an humble, childlike 
 spirit, as one of the essential qualifications for the 
 kingdom of heaven. See Mat. 18 : 1—14. This lit- 
 tle child, though now, as it appears, a little believer,* 
 
 * N. B. The children, in Mat. 19 and parallel passages, seem to 
 have been infants, brought to Christ by others ; those in Mat. 18 and 
 parallel passages, young believers, accepted on their own account. 
 This distinction will assist to explain the passages. 
 
36 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP* 
 
 is distinctly recognised as among those originally lost 
 ones, who stood in need of and had received the Sa- 
 viour's saving grace. And if this child, ^' if one of 
 these little ones,^^ then of course all children must be 
 considered as naturally in that state, which demands 
 the intervention of Christ, for their salvation, and not 
 naturally, and of their own right,* members of his 
 kingdom. 
 
 But if the privilege actually bestowed, in Mat. 19, 
 upon some very small children, was not bestowed on 
 account of their innate goodness, it must have been on 
 account of the faith of those who offered them. 
 
 We confess that Christ did not baj)tize these chil- 
 dren, for he never baptized any one. Nor did he ad- 
 mit them to the church, for under the old dispensation, 
 being Jews, they were already members, and the 
 church under the new dispensation was not yet organ- 
 ized. But he declared them members of his kingdom, 
 and that too probably on account of the faith of the 
 parents ; and, if members of his kingdom, then fit sub- 
 jects of cAwrcA-membership, whenever the church 
 
 * To avoid any misunderstanding, the writer desires to state explic- 
 itly his confident hope of the salvation of all children who die in in- 
 fancy. This confidence is founded, not only upon the goodness of 
 God, but, respecting the children of the church, upon covenanted 
 mercy, and the recognition of such children by Christ as members of 
 his kingdom. The hope of salvation for all children, is cherished on 
 the ground, that grace abounds over sin; so that the second Adam, 
 having repaired, by redemption, the ruins of the first, has made the 
 free gift available, through the spirit, to the justification of all who 
 neither wilfully reject it, nor lose its benefits by voluntary continuation 
 in sin. The salvation of all children is, howevtr, a matter of inference 
 more thin of promise ; that of the children of believers, a matter of 
 explicit promise as well as inference. 
 
APOSTOLIC COMMISSION. 37 
 
 should become under its new organization the visible 
 presentation of his kingdom. 
 
 In short, we understand Christ to say, that children 
 offered to him in faith, by believing parents, are to be 
 recognised as his. They belong to his kingdom, and 
 when that kino;dom comes to have a church orfaniza- 
 tion, they will rightfully belong to his church ; for 
 what is the church, but the members of Christ's king- 
 dom organized according to his appointment. And if 
 this be so, then the children of believers were intend- 
 ed by Christ to be members of his church. 
 
 Section 3. The great Apostolic Commission^ con- 
 sidered in reference to Infant Church-membership. 
 
 The great commission is announced by our Saviour 
 in these words : " All power is given unto me in 
 heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore and teach all 
 nations, baptizing them in (into) the name of the 
 Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 
 teaching them to observe all things, whatsoever I have 
 commanded you ; and lo 1 am with you alway even 
 unto the end of the world." 
 
 This commission, considered in connection with the 
 circumstances under which it was given, goes to con- 
 firm the doctrine of infant church-membership, not 
 because children are expressly named as the proper 
 subjects of baptism, but because they are not express- 
 ly excluded ; for how could a Jew always accustomed 
 to infant church-membership, under the old dispensa- 
 4 
 
38 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 tion, suspect, without authority, its impropriety under 
 the new ? 
 
 But let us examine the words of our Saviour more 
 minutely. Go, says he, and teach all nations. It is 
 not necessary to inform the biblical student that the 
 original, here translated teach, is altogether a different 
 word from that translated teaching in the last verse, 
 nor that the meaning of the word in the first instance 
 is not literally to teach but to make disciples. *' Go 
 make disciples of all nations, baptizing, and instruct- 
 ing them." As soon as the import of our Saviour's 
 words was fully understood as extending to the whole 
 gentile world, the apostles must have supposed them- 
 selves commissioned to go forth, and make proselytes, 
 baptizing them and their children, and building them 
 up by complete instruction in the most holy faith. 
 For— 
 
 1. It is to be remembered that these original 
 teachers were all Jews. They had been accustomed 
 to infant church-membership, by the invariable usage 
 of their church. The initiatory ordinance was uni- 
 formly administered to the children, not on account of 
 personal faith, but of parental connection. Nor was 
 it unusual for them to witness the introduction of 
 gentile proselytes into the Jewish church ; in which 
 case the infants and children of the family were re- 
 ceived by the same introductory rite. Suppose that 
 the apostles had been sent forth into the gentile world 
 to make proselytes to the Jewish religion, and the 
 Saviour had said, "Go, disciple all nations, circum- 
 cisino^, and instructing them in all the commandments 
 
APOSTOLIC COMMISSION 39 
 
 and ordinances of Jehovah," could there have been a 
 question, whether children were to be received with 
 their parents ? Certainly not. On the same princi- 
 ple, we must believe that baptism was administered, 
 as a matter of course, to the offspring of believers in 
 connection with themselves. True, according to their 
 Jewish notions, we might expect to find them baptiz- 
 ing none but males, were it not for the express infor- 
 mation that this new initiatory rite was extended also 
 to the other sex. Acts 8 : 12. They were baptized 
 both men and women:' Gal. 3 : 27, 28, '' For as 
 many of you as have been baptized into Christ, have 
 put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there 
 is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor fe- 
 male, for ye are all one in Christ Jesus." 
 
 2. This view of the manner in which the apostolic 
 commission must have been at first understood is cor- 
 roborated by another fact. The baptism of proselytes 
 was nothing new in the Jewish church. The imme- 
 diate descendants of Abraham became children of the 
 covenant, by circumcision ; but it was required of 
 Gentiles, that they should be also ceremonially 
 cleansed by baptism. It is stated as a historical fact, 
 and probability is altogether in its favor, that the chil- 
 dren of these proselytes were uniformly baptized. 
 Now, under these circumstances, it is morally impossi- 
 ble, that any Jew, having the Saviour's commission, 
 could have hesitated a moment as to the propriety of 
 administering baptism to the little children. 
 
 But here it will be inquired, does baptism constitute 
 those who regularly receive it, members of the chris- 
 tian church ? For it must be shown not only that 
 
40 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 children are proper subjects of baptism, but also that 
 baptism visibly unites its orderly recipients to the 
 church. 
 
 In maintaining the affirmative of this question, two 
 things should be distinctly premised and understood. 
 First, the validity of a general rule is not impaired 
 but rather confirmed by a few extreme cases which 
 may be adduced as exceptions to it. Suppose that 
 under some extraordinary circumstances an unbaptiz- 
 ed person might lawfully be admitted to the Lord's 
 supper, and be recognised as a member of the church, 
 it will not follow that unbaptized persons, in ordinary 
 circumstances, should be considered, on mere profes- 
 sion of faith, church-members. Or, suppose that, in 
 certain cases, a baptized person, upon whom it may 
 never be necessary to repeat the ordinance in order to 
 its validity, is yet not a member of the church, — as 
 where a person has been excommunicated, — it will 
 not follow that baptized persons are not generally and 
 properly introduced to the church by baptism. A 
 king may come to be a king in spite of the irregularity 
 of his coronation — or one may lose the inheritance, by 
 personal disqualifications, to which a lawful conveyance 
 entitles him — but this does not destroy the validity of 
 deeds in general, nor lessen the importance of a pub- 
 lic investiture in order to the full enjoyment of royal 
 prerogatives. 
 
 Second. When it is affirmed that baptism consti- 
 tutes its regular recipients church-members, it is not 
 intended to deny, that the children of believers, ac- 
 cordinfr to the doctrine of the New-England fathers, 
 
ORDINANCE OF INITIATION. 41 
 
 are in some sense horn church-members. They are 
 indeed members by designation, but not members by 
 initiation. They are born in the covenant, but are. 
 not entitled to the blessings of the covenant, except 
 prospectively, until they receive the sign and seal of 
 the covenant. The engagement has been made, the 
 writings drawn, but the instrument would not be valid, 
 if the persons authorised to act in the case, should re- 
 fuse to sign and seal it. The circumstance of chris- 
 tian birth may give them a right to admission, and, the 
 intention to do for the children after the custom of 
 the law, may secure them the privileges of their 
 birthright, till opportunity for visible initiation is af- 
 forded — but if all suitable opportunities for this pur- 
 pose should be voluntarily neglected, the subjects of 
 such negligence must lose their claim for covenant 
 favors. Wherefore, it is said, in Gen. 17, that the 
 child who is not circumcised, at the appointed time, 
 though born in the covenant, shall be cut off from the 
 privileges of his birthright. For these reasons, cir- 
 cumcision and baptism are spoken of as initiatory or- 
 dinances, as acts visibly uniting their recipients, — the 
 first under the old dispensation, and the second under 
 the new, — to the church. They are acts without 
 which, — though entitled to admission, and, prospec- 
 tively, for a season, to covenant blessings — they are 
 not visibly constituted members. Thus the president 
 of the United States is president elect, immediately 
 upon the designation of the people, but is not author- 
 ised to act in that capacity until he is invested with 
 4* 
 
42 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 his high powers by the ceremony of inauguration, 
 and the oaths of office. 
 
 These things being premised, the question now re- 
 turns, does baptism constitute those who receive it 
 members of the christian church ? It does. For, 
 
 1. It has been already proved that circumcision 
 was the introductory ordinance of the Jewish church, 
 and that baptism under the new dispensation has 
 taken the place of circumcision under the old ; from 
 which it follows, that baptism is the introductory or- 
 dinance to the christian church. 
 
 2. Admission hy baptism appears to have been 
 the invariable apostolic custom. The commission 
 was, go forth, disciple the nations, baptizing, and then 
 instructing, and building them up in Christ. The 
 first converts, three thousand in number, joined the 
 church, on the day of their conversion, by baptism. 
 And ever after, new converts, both Jews and prose- 
 lytes, " were baptized into one body^ Nor is there 
 the slightest intimation of any other mode of admis- 
 sion to the christian church. 
 
 3. The formula of baptism itself implies that bap- 
 tism is the initiatory ordinance. We are to baptize 
 the disciple into the name of the Father, and of the 
 Son, and of the Holy Ghost. 
 
 The propriety of translating the original words 
 elg TO ovo{LU, into the name, instead of, in the name, 
 has been fully defended by Dr. Dwight, in the third 
 volume of his Theology, and by many judicious com- 
 mentators. Without dwelling upon the fact, that 
 ** ei; is never used in the New Testament, in any 
 
ORDINANCE OF INITIATION. 43 
 
 Other instance to designate any thing done in the 
 name or by the authority of Christ, but that in the 
 only case, where in the name of Christ is joined with 
 the verb baptize, Acts 2 : 38, the preposition is etti, 
 instead of £/?," the Enghsh reader may satisfy him- 
 self, by reference to a few corresponding passages. 
 1 Cor. 12: 13, "For by one spirit we are all bap- 
 tized into one body." Gal. 3: 27, "As many of 
 you as have been baptized into Christ have put on 
 Christ." Rom. 6 : 34, " Know ye not that so many 
 of us, as were baptized into Jesus Christ were bap- 
 tized into his death." It is said in 1 Cor. 10 : 2, 
 That the fathers of the Hebrew church were baptized 
 (f4) " into Moses," i. e. into the religion of Moses in 
 the cloud and in the sea. "In the name," says the 
 learned Whately, " is a manifest mis-translation, origi- 
 nating, apparently, with the Vulgate Latin, which has 
 ' m nomine. * 
 
 Instead of in the name, we must translate, baptis- 
 ing INTO the name, etc. Now the name of God, as 
 here used, is but a Hebraism for God himself. 
 Baptism into his name then, what is it but a visible 
 restoration of alienated man ? — a solemn, visible intro- 
 duction into the presence, the fellowship, the church 
 of God ? 
 
 RosenmuUer has some remarks upon this passage, 
 which, as corroborative of these views, seem worthy 
 of translation. 
 
 By the original word rendered teach in our version, 
 is meant " to make a disciple, or introduce a person 
 
 * Whately's Kingdom of Christ, page 56, note. 
 
44 INFANT CHUHCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 in an orderly manner into the christian church. The 
 name of disciples properly belongs not only to those 
 who have been fully instructed and confirmed* but to 
 those also who are in a course of training and are yet 
 to be confirmed. For since the apostles were not 
 ignorant that the children and infants of proselytes 
 from other nations must not only be called proselytes, 
 and be circumcised, but also baptized, (as Wetstenius 
 has abundantly proved,) it could not have entered 
 their minds, that children and infants must be ex- 
 punged from the catalogue of disciples, or be denied 
 baptism, unless such persons had been excepted and 
 excluded by the express words of Christ, which we no 
 ivhere read. 
 
 ^' The ends of baptism are various. But according 
 to its nature, it is especially a mark of profession, and 
 an introduction into the church. The phrase into the 
 name of the Father is a Hebraistic pleonasm for into 
 the Father. To be baptized into any one, is to come 
 under obligations by baptism, to his worship and pro- 
 fession of religion instituted by him. Thus Paul de- 
 nies that any one was baptized into his name. 1 Cor. 
 13 : 15, i. e. had entered into an engagement to him, 
 as if he were the author of the new religion. We are 
 therefore baptized into the name of the Father, i. e. 
 into the profession and worship of God, who revealed 
 himself in the Old Testament ; into the name of the 
 Son, as the true Messiah, who appeared in human 
 flesh, and by his miracles, doctrine, resurrection, as- 
 
 * Congregational confirmation is an open profession of faith. 
 
USAGE AT CORINTH. 45 
 
 cension, proved himself to be the true Messiah ; into 
 the name of the Holy Spirit, who makes gracious ap- 
 plication of spiritual benefits to us. Or more briefly, 
 we are baptized into the Father as the author of the 
 new rellsjlon, into the Son as the Lord of the new 
 association, Into the Spirit as its guide and helper." 
 
 It appears then, from the comprehensive nature of 
 the apostolic commission ; from the fact that the initi- 
 atory sacrament was extended to women, but was not 
 restricted to adults ; from the habits of thought and 
 customs in which the original teachers had been edu- 
 
 O 
 
 cated : from the use of baptism as introductory to 
 church-membership ; and from the peculiar and solemn 
 form' of words by which we are visibly received as 
 professors of Christ's religion ; It appears, nay it is a 
 necessary conclusion, that when we come into the 
 church ourselves, we ought to bring our children with 
 us, and give them up in faith unto him who " leads 
 his flock like a shepherd gathering the lambs in hlg 
 armsj and carrying them in Ms hosom%^ 
 
 Section 4. Infant Church-mcmhership recognised 
 by the Ajpostle Paul and the Corinthians, 
 
 The doctrine of infant church-membership may be 
 deduced from 1 Cor. 7 : 14, " For the unbelieving 
 husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving 
 wife Is sanctified by the husband ; else were your chil- 
 dren unclean, but now are they holy." It appears 
 from these words that the holiness of children, thus 
 
46 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 conditioned, was an acknowledged fact in the Corin- 
 thian church. This acknowledged holiness of the 
 children is adduced as proof, that a certain degree of 
 sanctity or sacredness, was thrown around the unbe- 
 lieving parent, in consequence of his or her connection 
 with a believer. And this latter fact, viz. that an 
 idea of sacredness was associated with the unbeliever, 
 when thus conditioned, is a reason why persons thus 
 united in marriage should not separate, on the ground 
 that one has become a Christian and the other not. 
 But all the reasoninor is based on the acknowledcred 
 fact that the children of the parents in question are 
 holy. 
 
 To avoid the conclusions necessarily deduced from 
 this fact, some translate the word s4V^« and a,xoL^ci^Toc^ 
 legitimate and illegitimate. But how is it possible to 
 twist the passage into such an interpretation. For if 
 we substitute legitimate and illegitimate for holy and 
 unclean, — we must, in order to be consistent, substi- 
 tute legitimatized for sanctified. Then the apostle 
 will reason thus : ^' It is an acknowledged fact that 
 the children of parents one of whom is a Christian 
 and the other not are legitimate. This proves that 
 the believing parent legitimatizes the unbelieving 
 parent — and this is a reason why they should not 
 separate." But is the idea of one parent legitimatiz- 
 ing the other parent sense or nonsense ? 
 
 But further, what could the apostle mean by saying 
 that such children are legitimate. He must use the 
 word either in a civil or a religious sense. Now we 
 know that in a civil or legal sense the unbelief of the 
 
USAGE AT CORINTH. 47 
 
 parent did not affect the legitimacy of the child. He 
 must use the word then in a relig-ious sense — but re- 
 ligious legitimacy, if the phrase has any meaning, 
 must signify that the child is the rightful heir of the 
 parents' christian privileges — in other words, that the 
 child is holy in the sense soon to be explained. 
 
 There is a still more decisive argument against the 
 interpretation in question. It is that the term ay/ov, 
 though a word of frequent occurrence, no where 
 else means legitimate. I have consulted Donnegan, 
 Schleusner, and Wahl as edited by Robinson, neither 
 of whom give any such meaning to the word. 
 Schleusner seems to have examined it with great 
 thoroughness, and though he finds it used in no less 
 than ten or twelve varieties or shades of meaning, he 
 has adduced no passage which seems capable of such 
 an interpretation, but in almost every instance ay/ov 
 may be translated holy without exposing the careful 
 reader to mistake. 
 
 These considerations appear to be decisive against 
 such an unnatural exegesis of the passage. We are 
 prepared then to ask, what does the apostle mean, 
 when he says, that the children of believers are holy 
 and the children of unbelievers are unclean. We 
 have only to look at those words as often used in the 
 Bible, in order to obtain their meaning. The terms 
 clean and unclean, not only signify good and bad, but 
 professors and non-professors, persons in covenant 
 with God and persons not in covenant. The mem- 
 bers of the Jewish church were called holy, though it 
 contained many wicked men — and all the world 
 
48 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 around was called unclean, though it contained some 
 true worshippers of God. The Jews were called 
 holy, because God had entered into covenant with 
 them and had set his mark upon them ; — their chil- 
 dren were called holy, because they in like manner 
 had been circumcised and introduced into the church. 
 When the apostle addresses this language to the Co- 
 rinthians, he must mean that the children of believers 
 are holy in a church sense — belonging to the people 
 of God, the acknowledged heirs of the parental cove- 
 nant, entitled to the initiatory rite, which is baptism, 
 and by it constituted members of the church. It is 
 on this principle that we administer baptism to chil- 
 dren, when only one of the parents is a professor. It 
 is because the apostle has declared such children to be 
 holy, that is, holy in respect to church-membership, 
 entitled to the covenant made with Abraham and his 
 seed, and thus to be considered members of the 
 church. This accords with the interpretation given 
 to the words vvv de ayia eariv (now are they holy) 
 by Schleusner, jam vero habentur membra ecclesiae 
 Christianae, but now are they members of the chris- 
 tian church. 
 
 Section 5. Additional consider aliens affecting the 
 question of Infant Church-membership, 
 
 1. It appears that the apostles baptized by house- 
 holds, just as the Jews circumcised by households.- 
 Compare the directions given to Abraham in the 17th 
 
ADDITIONAL CONSIDERATIONS. 49 
 
 of Genesis, with the baptism of Lydia and all her 
 household, and of the jailor and of all his straight- 
 way. 
 
 2. If the apostles had denied church-membership 
 to the infants of believers, then the conversion and 
 baptism of a Jewish parent would have been attended, 
 virtually, with the excommunication of his children. 
 Under the old dispensation they were members of the 
 church ; they had been initiated by circumcision ; 
 they were the children of covenant, wearing its seal 
 upon them. But after the institution of baptism, as 
 the initiatory ordinance, circumcision was discounte- 
 nanced. *' Neither circumcision availeth any thing 
 nor uncircumcision." In a short time, the bloody 
 rite is no longer received aniong believing and en- 
 lightened Hebrews, as the seal of God's covenant of 
 grace. The Jewish nation has ceased to be the 
 church. When the converted parent makes profes- 
 sion of his faith in Christ, he renounces all confidence 
 in ancient ordinances and ceremonies. He now be- 
 longs to another church, " for the old has vanished 
 away." Unless his children are entitled to church- 
 membership by baptism, they now cease to be church- 
 members at all. The parent, instead of having supe- ■ 
 rior privileges, as was promised under the gospel, is 
 deprived of one of the most precious that he formerly | 
 enjoyed. God's Israel is now the christian church — 
 the Jewish father enters it, but his children are not 
 permitted to come. In the rejection of this old and 
 cast off dispensation, they are rejected, and must 
 5 
 
50 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 henceforth be considered as " ahens from the com- 
 monwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenant of 
 promise." What an obstacle such a rejection of the 
 children must have been to the conversion of the 
 Jews ? What would the Judaizing^ teachers have 
 said to it ? Is it probable that the whole matter 
 would have passed off without one word of contro- 
 versy ? — that we should hear of no difficulties or dis- 
 putes arising from such a radical innovation ? But 
 not a word of the kind is recorded in the New Tes- 
 tament. On the contrary, the apostles re-uttered the 
 same sentiment, on the day of pentecost, which the 
 prophets and ancient saints had always taught, saying, 
 " The promise is unto you and to your children." 
 We must infer, therefore, — what might be naturally 
 supposed from the nature of the case, — that the gos- 
 pel did not restrict the privileges of parents, with re- 
 gard to their offspring, but that the church in receiving 
 the believer received his children also. 
 
 Thus it appears to be God's good pleasure to re- 
 ceive under the broad canopy of his covenant, not 
 only the father and mother professing faith in Christ, 
 but all the members of their family over whom they 
 have a parent's control. The language of the gospel 
 is like that addressed to Noah, " Come thou and all 
 thy house into the ark." 
 
REVIEW OF THE CHURCH. 51 
 
 Section 6. Foregoing Principles illustrated in a 
 General Review of the Constitution and History 
 of the Church. 
 
 Let us now, for the sake of a more definite under- 
 standing of some of the principles advanced, take a 
 brief review of the constitution and history of the 
 .church, as recorded in the Scriptures. 
 
 God made a covenant with Abraham 430 years 
 before the giving of the law at Sinai. This covenant 
 promised great and peculiar blessings to the posterity 
 of Abraham, on account of the father's faith ; per- 
 haps we should say rather to a posterity of Abraham, 
 from generation to generation forever. The pledge 
 was not given to all his posterity, for while the pa- 
 triarch had many children, it was written in " Isaac 
 shall thy seed be called." And again, respecting the 
 two children of Isaac, the elder having sold his birth- 
 right, it is written, "Jacob have I loved and Esau 
 have I hated." The sons of Jacob, however, were 
 all heirs of the promises and enjoyed peculiar bene- 
 fits until the time of Christ. Now Christ was the 
 crowning gift of all those blessings which God had 
 covenanted to bestow. When the Jewish nation re- 
 jected Christ, saying, " his blood be on us and on 
 our children," and persisted in unbelief after repent- 
 ance was preached, and salvation offered to them, 
 they, by these acts, cut themselves off from the fur- 
 ther benefits of the covenant ; — for these further and 
 more spiritual benefits were all to descend to them 
 
52 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 through Christ. But they having thus rejected Christ, 
 the advantages promised through him descended of 
 course to the posterity or rightful heirs of Christ. 
 But who are the posterity of Christ ? Or what does 
 the prophet mean when he says, " He shall see his 
 seed ? " And again, " Thou shalt break forth on the 
 right hand and on the left, and thy seed shall inherit 
 the gentiles." By the seed of Christ, we understand 
 his spiritual posterity, that is, all who believe in him 
 throughout the world, according to another part of the 
 promise made to Abraham, saying, " In thy seed, 
 i. e. Christ, shall all the nations of the earth be 
 blessed." It is in this sense and this only, as the 
 spiritual seed of Christ, that we who now believe in 
 Jesus, are the children of Abraham, and the heirs of 
 the blessings promised in the patriarchal covenant. 
 Thus the descendants of Abraham, in the line of 
 Isaac, Jacob, and the twelve patriarchs, constituted 
 the visible church on earth, down to the rejection of 
 Christ. They were the good olive-tree planted by 
 God, and continually watered by his grace. But 
 when they had rejected Christ, invoking his blood 
 upon their heads, and persisting in iaipenitence after 
 the gospel overtures had been made to them, — thus in 
 fact renouncing their covenant, — they were forthwith 
 rejected of God, and with the exception of a small 
 remnant, were virtually excommunicated. The bad 
 branches of this tree, or the unbelieving Jews were 
 cut off, leaving Christ as the stock, on which hence- 
 forth all the remaining branches are to grow, and into 
 which all believing gentiles, called wild olive trees by 
 
REVIEW pF THE CHURCH. 53 
 
 nature, were, or are to be engrafted, and, contrary to 
 what we witness in the field, are to partake of the 
 nature of the root or stock and become fruitful 
 branches in Christ. When the fulness of the gentiles 
 shall have come in — when Christ shall be acknowl- 
 edged Lord of the world, — and the nations of the 
 earth generally become members of his church — then 
 the Jews which at that time shall remain unbelieving 
 are to be converted, and these olive-trees called good 
 by nature, because they are of the stock of Abraham, 
 are to be engrafted once more into their own olive- 
 tree, that is, with the gentiles, into Christ — and so 
 the church, still retaining its identity, will remain 
 united under one head, down to the end of time. 
 Thus we have the outlines of the origin, history and 
 consummation of the church. 
 
 From the first, God required that a mark, of his 
 own appointment, should be placed upon his own ac- 
 knowledged people, upon all who were or were to be 
 successively his, by inheritance from generation to gen- 
 eration forever. This mark was at first circumcision. 
 But after the rejection of the unbelieving Jews, and 
 the adoption of the believing gentiles in their place, 
 this mark was changed from circumcision to baptism, 
 which signifies the same thing. So that baptism is 
 to be applied to the infants of believers, according to 
 the command of God, that his mark should be set 
 upon Abraham and his heirs forever, and all such in- 
 fants, on receiving baptism, become lambs of the same 
 fold with the parent flock, Infant members of the one 
 
 great church. 
 
 6* 
 
CHAPTER II. 
 
 NATURE AND DEGPuEE OF INFANT CHURCH-MEM- 
 BERSHIP. 
 
 Having thus shown that baptized infants are, strict- 
 ly speaking, members of the church, it is next in 
 order to inquire into the nature and degree of that 
 church-membership. 
 
 Section 1. Peculiarity of this Relation. 
 
 Here let it be remembered, what has been already 
 proved, that circumcision and baptism are the only 
 initiatory rites which have ever existed in the church. 
 The passover under the old dispensation, and the 
 Lord's supper under the new, were appointed not as 
 introductory to the church, but wholly for other pur- 
 poses. There is but one way of coming into the 
 christian church, and that is by haptism into the name 
 of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. 
 This is the only rite which " signifies and seals our en- 
 grafting into Christ." The water is an emblem of 
 
PECULIARITY OF THE RELATION. 55 
 
 spiritual cleansing, and a pledge of acceptance through 
 faith ; and the baptismal formula is intended for a vis- 
 ible restoration to divine favor. The meaning of the 
 ceremony is always essentially the same. It is per- 
 formed in the same manner upon all adults and upon 
 children, and implies in the general the same things. 
 It unites the recipients of it, both parents and chil- 
 dren, visibly to Christ, and makes them members of 
 his church. If Christians are not made church-mem- 
 bers by baptism — as far as any thing appears to the 
 contrary in the New Testament, they are not made 
 church-members at all. Unbaptized adults are bap- 
 tized indeed on profession of belief. But this profes- 
 sion is never the introductive act, but an act prepara- 
 tory to that which is introductive, viz. baptism. 
 
 It is freely conceded, that according to our con- 
 gregational forms at the present day, in order that we 
 be received as members in full of this or that particu- 
 lar church, we must publicly covenant with God, and 
 also with the particular church which we propose to 
 join. But our covenant with God is nothing more 
 than what is implied by baptism, and our covenant 
 with a particular church, besides being an engagement 
 " to walk in love and christian-fellowship with God's 
 people, generally (which engagement is made virtual- 
 ly by baptism) is also an introduction to the rites and 
 privileges, not to say peculiarities, of that yarticular 
 church. Were you to say, I believe in Christ with 
 all my heart, and then to receive baptism, you might 
 be entitled to all the privileges of a church which re- 
 quired no more, and thus, as all must allow, be a 
 
56 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 member of God's church. But to be entitled to the 
 peculiar privileges of some other particular church, 
 you must covenant to walk with its members accord- 
 ing to certain expressed principles of agreement. 
 Separating then what is absolutely essential from 
 what is obviously factitious, it is evident, that baptism 
 on profession of belief constitutes the person who re- 
 ceives it a church-member, just as under the Jewish 
 dispensation a gentile became a member of the Jewish 
 church, by professing his faith in the Jewish religion, 
 and receiving the rite of circumcision. 
 
 Now infants are admitted, as we have seen, by the 
 same door, but not exactly on the same principle. 
 They come in with the parents, as Isaac did with 
 Abraham, on account of the parents' belief. The 
 parents covenant for them. They are the children's 
 sponsors or endorsers. And upon the parents giving 
 their names as surety for the children, which they do, 
 virtually, on presenting them for baptism, the child is 
 received, not on account of its own goodness, but be- 
 cause it is the will of the good Shepherd to gather 
 the lambs into the same fold with the parent flock, 
 and set his mark alike upon them all. Baptized chil- 
 dren then are in the same enclosures with the parents 
 and are equally members of the church long before 
 they make any personal profession of faith. Properly 
 speaking, the question can never come up, whether 
 they shall join the church ? They belong already, 
 and a profession of religion with them is simply their 
 own most hearty acknowledgment of this fact, and of 
 the obligations it implies. Having arrived at a suita- 
 
PECULIARITY OF THE RELATION. 57 
 
 ble age, and having sufficient religious knowledge to 
 act understandingly, if they now give evidence of per- 
 sonal faith, they should be invited to ratify the doings 
 of their parents by an open profession. A public ac- 
 knowledgment of Christ, under these circumstances, 
 entitles them to participate in the sacrament of the 
 Lord's-supper, and to be considered members of the 
 church in full communion. If they refuse, through 
 conscious want of the requisite qualifications — or if, 
 applying for the privileges of full communion, they 
 should be rejected, on account of manifest want of 
 faith, they would not be immediately un-churched by 
 this refusal or rejection, but should rather be looked 
 upon as members walking in darkness and in violation 
 of baptismal vows. They are still members, they can 
 never cease to be members except by actual or vir- 
 tual excommunication. 
 
 Some minds may be so fully possessed with the 
 idea, that joining the church necessarily admits the 
 individual to all the privileges of the church, as to 
 find it difficult to distinguish between real membership 
 and membership in full communion. But are there 
 not sometimes infant kings, who are not as yet invest- 
 ed with all royal prerogatives ? — real kings, but not in 
 complete standing ? In the same orchard there is 
 often ripe and green fruit upon the same branches — 
 both are fruit, though the latter may never come to 
 maturity. In most institutions of learning, we have 
 several classes, and exclusive privileges for advanced 
 students. So in the Saviour's school. His youngest 
 pupils are truly members, though they have not yet 
 
58 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 "attained to the stature/' nor to all the privileges 
 " of perfect ones in Christ." 
 
 Section 2. Children of the Church subject to its 
 
 supervision. 
 
 To what extent are baptized children properly sub- 
 ject to the watch and discipline of the church ? This 
 is a delicate and important question. It may, how- 
 ever, be intelligibly answered. Being church-mem- 
 bers, they are to be treated in all respects like other 
 church-members, so far and only so far as the pecu- 
 liar circumstances of their age and condition will al- 
 low. This should be remembered as the great and 
 guiding principle in all that is to follow. 
 
 The church then is to watch over its children as 
 faithfully as over its adult members. The baptized 
 children are the peculiar objects of its hopes, its in- 
 structions, and its prayers. When such children fall 
 into open sin, the church should mourn over, pray for, 
 and seek to reclaim them. 
 
 In doing this they must exercise great gentleness 
 and discretion. Any thing like espionage, or officious 
 intermeddling, or attempts at undue restraint in things 
 unessential, should be scrupulously avoided. The 
 young have rights and liberties as well as the old. 
 When it is said, that they are in some sense the sub- 
 jects of discipline in the church, it is intended rather 
 that they are entitled to the affectionate supervision 
 of adult members in full communion. 
 
SUPERVISION AND DISCIPLINE. 59 
 
 In cases of unchristian conduct, — as when a bap- 
 tized child neglects public worship, or falls into a 
 habit of using profane and indecorous language, or 
 becomes a lounger about taverns, or exposes himself 
 to the suspicion of any other immorality — it may be 
 expedient to approa'ch the child, generally, in the 
 first instance, through its believing parents. If such 
 parents are really Christians they will do all in their 
 power, when properly informed of their children's 
 faults, to bring them to repentance. If they fail and 
 can do no more, let them ask the prayers of the 
 church, or if the church is numerous, and the offence 
 is not of a public nature, let them open the anguish 
 of their spirit to a few select members, obtain their 
 prayers, and take their advice. Perhaps at this stage, 
 it may be expedient for the pastor, or some one or 
 more of the brethren, at the request of the parents, or 
 on their own responsibility where the parents neglect 
 their duty, to confer with the offending child and seek 
 by every christian motive, and especially by his cove- 
 nant relation to God, to bring him to repentance. If 
 they succeed, then this faithful but kind supervision 
 redounds to the glory of God, and proves of incalcula- 
 ble advantage to the repenting child. The ends of 
 discipline are answered by this gently restraining, re- 
 forming, and even through grace, converting influence 
 of the church. 
 
 But if no good impression can be made upon some 
 wayward youth ; if, having arrived at an age capable 
 of actino- for himself, he commits and continues in 
 open and flagrant sins, pursuing a course of conduct 
 
60 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 which amounts to a renunciation of church-member- 
 ship, and this too after suitable means have been used 
 for his recovery, and little or no hope of amendment 
 remains, there could be no impropriety in removing 
 him from the church. 
 
 But this is a point which requires the exercise of 
 sound discretion. Some lawful things the apostle 
 teaches are inexpedient. Perhaps, on account of the 
 hardness of men's hearts, as society is now constituted, 
 it might be wiser, if any, once lambs of the fold, 
 should fall into what seems irreclaimable sin, and thus 
 renounce their baptismal covenant, silently, and by in- 
 formal consent to consider and treat them as aliens 
 from the commonwealth of Israel, rather than separate 
 them from the church by any direct excommunicating 
 act. The ends of discipline are the reformation of 
 offenders, the honor of the church, and the protection 
 of those who ^' think they stand." Possibly these 
 ends may be quite as well obtained, — in the case of 
 young persons, members of the church by baptism, 
 hut not in full communion, and therefore not looked 
 upon, by those without, as examples of Christianity — 
 by silent withdrawal, as by public reprehension. 
 
 One thing seems certain, there is no necessity for 
 hasty exclusions. We may wait for indications of re- 
 pentance, while by prayer and all judicious means we 
 seek to secure it, one year or ten or even under some 
 circumstances, till the individual is excommunicated 
 by death. In the mean time such persons should 
 be regarded, not as heathen and publicans, but as 
 wanderers from the good Shepherd's fold. They are 
 
SUPERVISION AND DISCIPLINE. 61 
 
 the prodigal sons of the church, for whom unwearied 
 intercessions should be made, and to whom messages 
 of mercy should be often sent, and of whose return 
 strong hopes should be cherished, until we see them 
 standing in the church, and saying, " I have sinned." 
 
 Moreover, if children were rightly educated as 
 members of the church, it is believed that cases re- 
 quiring severe discipline would be as unfrequent as 
 they now are among adults. 
 
 Be this as it may, there should be no such with- 
 drawal, from any person who sustains a good charac- 
 ter, and manifests a serious regard for the obligations 
 of religion. The reason is obvious, and may be given 
 in the words of Pres. Edwards, in answer to the ques- 
 tion, "Why these children that were born in the 
 covenant are not cast out, when in adult age they 
 make no profession ? " " They are not cast out," 
 says he, " because it is a matter held in suspense, 
 whether they do cordially consent to the covenant or 
 not ; or whether their making no profession does not 
 arise from some other cause ; and none are to be ex- 
 communicated without some positive evidence against 
 them." 
 
 Some of the foregoing remarks are predicated on 
 the supposition that parents will earnestly endeavor 
 to bring up their children " in the nurture and admo- 
 nition of the Lord," and will rejoice to avail them- 
 selves of all the good influences of the church and of 
 all needed aid of the pastor and brethren, to secure 
 
 the object. But what shall be done in case parents 
 6 
 
62 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 should wilfally neglect these baptismal duties, and 
 connive at the irreliglon of their children, or allow 
 them to go to destruction, only saying with Eli, " nay 
 my sons, for it is no good report that I hear ? " 
 
 In answer to this question, it may be observed, that 
 parents can scarcely commit a greater sin than, in 
 contempt of God's holy covenant and their own 
 solemn vows, to allow their children in immoral prac- 
 tices, or to grow up in ignorance of duty and truth. 
 For such an offence church-members should be dealt 
 with according to the general principles of church 
 discipline, which seek the repentance and reformation 
 of those who have gone out of the way. But beyond 
 this, the church have a duty also towards the baptized 
 children of such untoward professors ; it is by kind- 
 ness, by expostulation, and by all the powerful mo- 
 tives of the gcspel, if possible to reclaim and save 
 them. All baptized children are committed to the 
 sacred guardianship of the church. They are given 
 by this body or rather by God himself, more imme- 
 diately in trust, to parents. But if parents neglect 
 their duty, the church itself is under obligations to 
 perform it. 
 
 As a guiding principle on this whole subject let the 
 church never lose sight of its children, nor cease to 
 consider them candidates for full communion, nor fail, 
 by prayer, watchfulness, instruction, and other appro- 
 priate means, as far as they have power, to prepare 
 them for the Lord's supper. The duties enjoined 
 may be performed by parents, pastors, or individual 
 members, or by the body in its associated character. 
 
SUPERVISION AND DISCIPLINE. 63 
 
 Only let the person or persons more immediately re- 
 sponsible see that they are not neglected. Nothing 
 can discharore the adult members from these oblio;a- 
 tions, but the death or excommunication of the chil- 
 dren, until they make profession of their faith, or 
 are transferred in an orderly manner to another 
 church. 
 
 If the child has occasion to leave the parental roof, 
 and fix his residence in some other city or town, it 
 may not be necessary to give him a letter of dismis- 
 sion and recommendation, as in the case of adults, but 
 it is important that he should carry with him testimo- 
 nials of character and church-membership, and be 
 regularly introduced to the pastor and brethren of the 
 church with >^hom he is intending to worship. It 
 then becomes their duty, according to the principles 
 of fellowship adopted by congregational churches, to 
 love, watch over, and cherish him as a lamb of their 
 own fold. Thus when a young person removes to 
 one of our large cities, instead of being exposed to all 
 its temptations, as an irresponsible stranger, who, un- 
 known and unwarned, will almost necessarily make 
 shipwreck of faith and character — he is brought Imme- 
 diately under the restraining Influences of christian so- 
 ciety, and into the enjoyment of all the means of 
 grace. He does not pass out of the knowledge of the 
 adult members of the church in which he was born. 
 They are able to make inquiries and obtain informa- 
 tion at any time respecting him, while they among 
 whom providence has cast his lot will feel themselves 
 authorised and required to guard the purity of his 
 
64 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 morals, seek his temporal happiness and highest eter- 
 nal good. 
 
 If at any time a baptized person proposes himself 
 for public profession, in some other church than that 
 to which he properly belongs, testimonials of charac- 
 ter, and a certificate of church standing should be re- 
 quired as always indispensable to an orderly reception. 
 Thus in all cases, the children of the church are to be 
 kept under its sanctifying influences and supervision. 
 
 Section 3. Other Privileges of Baptized Children. 
 
 There are peculiar privileges which the Great 
 Head of the church has been pleased to bestow 
 upon the children of the covenant, as members of his 
 church. 
 
 They are not only entitled to a christian education, 
 to the love, guardianship and prayers of God's people, 
 but they are brought by their baptism into a most en- 
 deared and sacred relation to the Father. They be- 
 long, as we have already shown, to Christ's own fold. 
 The broad firmament of his love arches over and 
 bends around them. God has entered into an en- 
 gagement with the parents to be their God and the 
 God of their baptized children. He has set his own 
 tolcen — the badge of discipleship upon them. He 
 has made them recipients of that ordinance which, in 
 the language of the Catechism, " doth signify and 
 seal our engrafting into Christ, and partaking of the 
 benefits of the covenant of grace." He promises to 
 
PRIVILEGES OF BAPTISED CHILDREN. 65 
 
 hless the children — to bless in a special manner faith- 
 ful and earnest endeavors for their eternal good. To 
 be sure, he does not promise their salvation, uncondi- 
 tionally. But he does promise to be a God of bles- 
 sings to the baptized. The thoughtless youth may 
 never know till he sees all in the light of eternity, 
 how much restraining and special grace, and how 
 many temporal mercies, have been bestowed upon 
 him, because he is constituted by baptism a child of 
 the covenant which God has made with his people, to 
 be a God to them and to their seed. By placing his 
 marli: upon such children, he has designated them for 
 his. Inviting all men to come to him, by repentance, 
 he calls upon the baptized especially, saying, " My 
 son give me thy heart." It is as if he had said, ''On 
 account of my covenant with your father and mother, 
 I have received, consecrated, marked, and set you 
 apart, to be educated as, and to he one of my disci- 
 ples, ' Ye have not chosen me, but 1 have chosen 
 you.' I am ' beforehand with you ' — I have convey- 
 ed to you a sure title to a heavenly inheritance. I 
 have set my own hand and my own seal to the deed. 
 Your parents have subscribed, for you, to all the re- 
 quisite conditions. Had you been taken away in in- 
 fancy, you would have been received to inherit the 
 promises. But you have lived now to an age capa- 
 ble of acting for yourself — the covenant will be null 
 and void at the judgment seat of Christ, unless you 
 acknowledge it as your own. You must subscribe to 
 the conditions for yourself — those conditions are a 
 6* 
 
66 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 personal belief in the Lord Jesus Christ — you have 
 only to give in your name, by the exercise of faith, 
 and the covenant shall never be disannulled." Surely 
 then baptized children derive great and precious privi- 
 leges from their church-membership — nor can they 
 renounce them, by continuing in sin and unbelief with- 
 out a corresponding increase of guilt and danger. 
 The King of kings has taken them into his family — 
 he adopts them, conditionally, as his children, edu- 
 cates them with his children, intending that when 
 they arrive at a suitable age, if they are found to pos- 
 sess appropriate qualities, they themselves shall be the 
 princes and nobles of his royal house. 
 
 They can indeed despise and renounce their adop- 
 tion if they will. Baptism is not necessarily a saving 
 ordinance. " The sacraments become effectual means 
 of salvation, not from any virtue in them, or in him 
 that doth administer them, but only by the blessing 
 of Christ and the working of the Spirit in them who 
 by faith receive them." If that blessing is rejected 
 and that spirit resisted, baptism may only serve to 
 ao-ffravate the condemnation of a ruined soul. So on 
 the other hand, the unbaptized may be adopted on 
 profession of faith, and take the places of those chil- 
 dren of the covenant who despise their birthright. 
 But after all, the difference between the two classes, 
 in respect to privilege, is incomparably great. It is 
 like that which existed, in the days of Moses and 
 David, between the chosen people, and all other na- 
 tions of the world. The baptized have been received 
 as members of the kingdom, — to be educated in its 
 
RESTRICTIONS UPON PRIVILEGES. 67 
 
 institutions, and fitted for its services, — though liable 
 on account of unbelief to be thrust out of it. The 
 unbaptized are not members of the kingdom, though 
 they may be admitted by the exercise of saving faith. 
 Thus our Saviour said and his words should ever ring 
 in the ears of the church as an awful warning to all, 
 " Many shall come from the east and the west and 
 the north and the south, and sit down with Abraham, 
 Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of God, but the chil- 
 dren of the kingdom shall be thrust out." This 
 threatening of what may be done, in case of continued 
 unbelief and sin, does not however destroy existing 
 relations, nor diminish aught of the high privileges of 
 sonship, nor prevent the children of the church from 
 growing up under the wing of Jehovah's covenant 
 protection. 
 
 Section 4. Restrictions upon Privileges, 
 
 Baptized non-professors, though members of the 
 church, are not however entitled to full communion, 
 nor to the rights of suffrage in the church, nor to bap- 
 tism for their children. These positions will be con- 
 sidered in their order. 
 
 I. Baptized persons are not entitled without per- 
 sonal profession to the privileges of full communion. 
 They have neither the right nor the qualifications to 
 participate with their parents in the supper of the 
 Lord. This is a restriction upon the privileges of cer- 
 tain church-members, but does not annul, nor impair 
 
68 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 their church-membership. "There are," indeed, 
 " many members in one body, and all have not the 
 same office." Pastors are church-members, but all 
 church-members are not pastors. Deacons are church- 
 members, but all church-members are not deacons. 
 Females are church-members, but they are not in- 
 vested with the powers of public speech and suffi-age. 
 So baptized children are church-members, but they 
 are not entitled, without acknowledging their baptism 
 by a personal profession of faith, to the privileges of 
 full communion. 
 
 The reason of this distinction between baptism on a 
 parent's account, and the reception of the eucharist in 
 the same way, is obvious. Baptism is administered 
 to the child, without the necessity of his own consent, 
 and wholly upon the faith of his sponsors. The babe 
 receives the ordinance perhaps in unconscious slum- 
 ber — and young children, generally, without any intel- 
 ligent sense of responsibility. It is something done 
 for them, in which they are passive recipients, and 
 for which their personal consent is never required and 
 cannot be obtained. But partaking of the Lord's sup- 
 per is a personal act — and cannot worthily be at- 
 tempted without personal qualifications. 
 
 First, there must be the physical power, to eat the 
 broken bread and drink the Saviour's cup, which 
 power the baptized babe does not possess. 
 
 Next, there must be an intellectual ability for self- 
 examination, "Let a man examine himself, and so let 
 him eat of that bread and drink of that cup," which 
 ability is never found in infant years. 
 
RESTRICTIONS UPON PRIVILEGES. 69 
 
 Finally, there must be a spiritual ability rightly to 
 discern the Lord's body, in other words a renewed 
 heart. It is required by the very nature of the sacra- 
 ment, that children, in order to a participation in it, 
 should give evidence of saving faith. Nor is early 
 piety of itself alone a sufficient qualification for the or- 
 dinance unless the child is of age and capacity to act 
 understandingly in the business. He must partake of 
 the Lord's supper with an intelligent remembrance of 
 Christ, with some good reasons for trusting that he 
 does not eat and drink unworthily, with a spiritual 
 appreciation of covenant blessings and the reception 
 of them by faith. Infants and very young children 
 are excluded from the Lord's table, by the very na- 
 ture of the ordinance, nor can they be welcomed, 
 until they possess both requisite knowledge and 
 faith. 
 
 Some of these remarks will apply with equal 
 strength to baptized adults. No one may come un- 
 worthily, nor without spiritual discernment — in other 
 words without true godliness at heart. 
 
 As soon as they possess these qualifications, whether 
 children or men, they will be disposed to manifest 
 them, by a personal acknowledgment of their bap- 
 tismal obligations, and an orderly profession of their 
 faith in Christ. From this time forth, such persons, 
 '' walking worthy of their vocation," are not only 
 members, as before, but members in full communion, 
 and entitled to all the privileges of other professors. 
 
 In opposition to such views as these, it is sometimes 
 said, that as Jewish children partook of the passover 
 
70 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 without a personal profession, and on the ground of 
 infant church-membershipj so on the same principle 
 the children of christian parents ought to partake of 
 the Lord's supper. 
 
 1. We answer, that a deojree of intellio-ence and 
 faith which was sufficient for a participation in an or- 
 dinance, instituted to commemorate the deliverance 
 from Egypt, may not be sufficient to qualify a person 
 for the far more spiritual ordinance of the Lord's 
 supper. 
 
 2. It may be difficult to ascertain, at what age, 
 and exactly on what conditions, children were admit- 
 ted to the passover — but the terms of admission to the 
 Lord's table are too explicit to be misunderstood. 
 Among these are preparatory self-examination, spirit- 
 ual worthiness and discernment. Wherever these 
 qualifications have been properly made manifest, we 
 may welcome the persons possessing them, but no 
 others, to all the privileges of full communion. 
 
 IL Nor ought baptized children, through adults, 
 while they continue non-professors, to exercise equal 
 authority in church affairs with professors ; because 
 they have never performed the conditions requisite to 
 such a privilege. Thus a person may be a citizen of 
 this commonwealth, but he should not enjoy the right 
 of suffiage, till he has qualified himself in the legally 
 appointed way. The qualifications necessary to the 
 enjoyment of the church rights in question, are of 
 course no less than those which are requisite to com- 
 munion at the table, viz. a regular profession of per- 
 sonal faith. For why should any control the affairs 
 
RESTRICTIONS UPON PRIVILEGES. 71 
 
 of the church who give no indication that they are 
 personally interested in the great objects for which 
 the church was established ? 
 
 III. There is still another restriction to the privi- 
 leges of baptized non-professors. They are not enti- 
 tled to the baptism of their children. The reason 
 why baptized persons of sober life are not cut off 
 from the church, when in adult age they make no pro- 
 fession, has been stated in the words of Edwards. 
 Nor can any injury result from permitting them to 
 sustain their baptismal relation to the church, so long 
 as they maintain a serious deportment, and do not re- 
 nounce their early baptism by open breach of cove- 
 nant or sin which corresponds thereto. For though 
 church-members on their parents account, they can- 
 not perpetuate irreligion in the church, by the intro- 
 duction of their children, through baptism, until they 
 have first made acknowledgment of their own baptism 
 in the appointed way ; in other words, until by a 
 credible profession of faith, they solemnly avouch the 
 God of their fathers, the Being into whose triune 
 NAME they are baptized, to be their own God ; thus 
 standing forth like Joshua and saying, " As for me 
 and my house, we will serve the Lord." 
 
 The affirmation just made deserves the most careful 
 consideration. It is indeed one of the most important 
 points in this treatise, and answers one of the strongest 
 objections to the views herein enforced. 
 
 Is it necessary to require evidence of personal faith, 
 or what is commonly understood by a profession of 
 religion, in an adult, in order to the baptism of his 
 
72 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 children, and their orderly reception to the church ? 
 Most certainly. For if an unbelieving but baptized 
 parent, refusing to assume his own baptismal vows, 
 giving no evidence of any personal qualifications for 
 the ordinance, might, superstitiously, or to promote 
 personal estimation, claim and receive baptism for his 
 children, and these again for their children, and so on 
 from generation to generation, not only would a most 
 powerful incitement to personal religion be taken 
 away, and a holy sacrament be thus profaned, but the 
 church would lose its spirituality, and might become, 
 in the end, but little different, in its distinguishing 
 characteristics, from a community of baptized heathen. 
 
 We say then, that an orderly profession of religion, 
 by each baptized person, in successive generations, is 
 indispensable, to a perpetuation of the privileges of 
 the baptismal covenant. Nor is it difficult to demon- 
 strate the proposition. 
 
 For, first, covenant blessings are promised on con- 
 ditions. It is presumed, that being baptized, given up 
 to God in faith, religiously educated, the children of 
 pious parents, will at an early age lay hold upon the 
 covenant by faith, and take upon themselves, by an 
 open profession of religion, their baptismal vows. 
 Refusal, or failure to perform these conditions, is a 
 virtual renunciation of all the conditional blessings. 
 The chain is broken, the covenant is annulled. 
 
 2. Baptism, like circumcision, is a seal of the 
 righteousness of faith. In the case of infant baptism, 
 it is a seal of the parent's faith, placed not only upon 
 himself, but on his account, upon his child. If the 
 
RESTRICTIONS UPON PRIVILEGES. 73 
 
 parent have no faith, makes no profession of faith, 
 gives no evidence of faith, the seal placed upon his 
 child, is a seal of that which has neither actual nor 
 visible existence. Baptism under such circun:istances 
 is a manifest absurdity. 
 
 3. It will be readily acknowledged that no unhap- 
 tized parent can be entitled to baptism, o?i his own 
 account, without a suitable manifestation of faith. 
 ^' If thou believest with all thine heart thou mayest." 
 Now certainly if an adult could not claim baptism for 
 himself, without a profession of faith, he cannot claim 
 it for his child, without faith — for on what principle 
 do we baptize an infant — is it not on account of the 
 parents' faith ? 
 
 4. The very formula of baptism implies the sup- 
 posed pre-existence of faith on the part of the parent. 
 For what purpose does he bring his children to the 
 baptismal font ? Is it not that they may be solemnly 
 introduced into God's house ? And should not the 
 minister say, I baptize thee into the name of the 
 Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost ? 
 
 If any one should make answer, that presenting a 
 child for baptism is in itself a profession of faith. We 
 say, in the first place, that it is not so understood, 
 where nothing more than the silent act is required. 
 Or, secondly, if it is so understood, and if the person 
 has the faith this act is said to signify, he will not 
 hesitate to manifest it, by more express terms, accord- 
 ing to the usage of the church. So that without 
 profession, in some orderly way, he cannot give that 
 7 
 
74 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 evidence of faith, which entitles the child on its 
 parents account to the seal of the righteousness of 
 faith. 
 
 As the error of perpetuating church-membership, 
 without the qualifications appropriate to church-mem- 
 bership, is one of dangerous tendency, and at former 
 periods has done harm in the New-England churches, 
 and is in fact, as already intimated, the principle ob- 
 jection to infant church-membership, it will be proper 
 to show the fallacy on which it is founded. 
 
 1. It has been maintained that the children of 
 parents in covenant, being born in the church, are 
 church-members by birth. Of course then their 
 children will be church-members by birth, and so on 
 from generation to generation. Whence it must fol- 
 low that in process of time infidels and Mahometans 
 might be church-members by inheritance from some 
 remote ancestor who was a believer. Rejecting the 
 inference, we must necessarily reject the principle 
 from which it is deduced. 
 
 But, in fact, the children of professing Christians, 
 though in some sense born in the church, are not 
 strictly speaking church-members, until they have re- 
 ceived the appointed j!oA:en of church-membership, viz. 
 baptism. The original charter, recorded in Genesis 
 17th, is very express on this point. . The covenant 
 is broken in respect to those children upon whom the 
 seal of the covenant is not placed. Moreover the 
 covenant blessings are perpetuated only on conditions. 
 The baptized parent must recognise the principle on 
 which he became' a church-member, viz. in conse- 
 
RESTRICTIONS UPON PRIVILEGES. 75 
 
 quence of his parents' belief- — nor can he claim bap- 
 tismal privileges for his children, on any other ground, 
 than his own professed or supposed belief. *' Thus," 
 says Edwards, "the eldest sons of noblemen in Great 
 Britain are born heirs to the honors and estate of their 
 fathers ; yet this no way hinders but they may be 
 obliged, when they come to ripeness of age, in order 
 to being invested in the actual possession," — and we 
 may add convey the same to their children — " to take 
 the oath of alleo-iance : though in order to their law- 
 fully doing it, it may be necessary they should believe 
 in their hearts, that King George is the lawful prince, 
 and that they should not be enemies to him and friends 
 to the pretender." So then the parent, born himself 
 in the church, and constituted a member by the usual 
 token, must, not only in order to enjoy other privi- 
 leges of a person in full communion, but in order to 
 convey the rights of church-membership to his chil- 
 dren, take the vows of allegiance to his Maker, made 
 for him by his parents, uj)on himself. 
 
 2. It has been also maintained that whereas it 
 was the right and privilege of the Jews to circumcise 
 their children and thus introduce them into the church, 
 from generation to generation, without regard to the 
 character of the immediate parents, therefore it must 
 be among the rights and privileges of Christians to 
 baptize on the same principle. 
 
 To this we answer, first. Supposing it the duty of 
 Jewish parents to circumcise their children, even with- 
 out faith, it must be remembered, that circumcision, 
 though an introductory sacrament to the visible 
 
76 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 church, was designed also to prevent the descendants 
 of Abraham from corrupting themselves, by inter- 
 course with other nations, especially by heathen mar- 
 riages. As a means of preserving true religion, until 
 the time of Christ, through a people invested for that 
 purpose with many peculiarities, we can see a reason 
 why circumcision might be more extended in its ap- 
 plication than baptism. 
 
 2. It does not appear, however, that the offering 
 of children to God, without faith, by circumcision, was 
 acceptable, but rather the contrary. For if circum- 
 cision was required, so was love to God, obedience, 
 faith ; in still stronger terms. These very qualifica- 
 tions were in fact pre-supposed by circumcision. 
 
 3. Even if this were not so, the new dispensation 
 is confessedly far more spiritual than the old, and 
 would naturally require superior qualifications for its 
 sacraments. 
 
 4. But be this as it may — allowing that there is 
 some obscurity, as to the terms on which the initia- 
 tory ordinance was administered in the ancient church, 
 the requisites to church-membership under the gospel 
 seem sufficiently clear. Acts 16:31. '' Believe on 
 the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved and 
 thy house." 
 
 5. There is, moreover, one fact In the history of the 
 Jews, which shows conclusively the mistake of those 
 who maintain the right of baptized non-professors to 
 the baptism of their infants, from the right of any 
 Jew to make his children members of the ancient 
 church, by circumcision. The passover is that ordjs 
 
RESTRICTIONS UPON PRIVILEGES. 77 
 
 nance under the old dispensation, which corresponds 
 to the Lord's supper under the new. But the man 
 who neglected the passover, except in cases of ne- 
 cessity, was, in consequence cut off from the people 
 of the Lord ; and all church privileges, both for him- 
 self and children, were taken away. From whence 
 it would follow that those who neglect the Lord's 
 supper — in other words non-professors — have no right 
 to claim baptismal privileges for their children. 
 
 From these considerations, the propriety of insisting 
 upon a credible profession of faith, on the part of a 
 parent, before he can claim baptism for his children, 
 is most evident — nor can the notion which demands 
 baptism for the children of irreligious but baptized 
 parents, on the ground of real faith, in some remote 
 ancestor, be sustained ; though to avoid misapprehen- 
 sion, it may here be stated that in case of the decease 
 of non-professing parents, professing grand-parents, if 
 living, may on their own right dedicate the grand- 
 child, as a child, to God, and indeed any of their pos- 
 terity, or other children who are members of their 
 household, over whom they have a parent's control, 
 and for whose religious education they can become 
 personally responsible. 
 
 The nature and degree of infant church-member- 
 ship must now be apparent. All baptized persons 
 are truly church-members. Between them and others 
 there is the same general distinction as that which 
 exists between the visible church and the world. 
 7* 
 
78 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 They are the divinely appointed candidates for the 
 highest christian privileges. But in order to the com- 
 plete enjoyment of them certain personal qualifications 
 are requisite. Until these qualifications are manifest- 
 ed, they are not entitled to full communion at the 
 table of the Lord, nor to baptism for their cliildren, 
 nor to the control of church affairs. Hence they are 
 truly members of the church, but not in full enjoy- 
 ment of its privileges. They stand within the pre- 
 cincts of the temple, though not admitted to the most 
 holy place. 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 PRACTICAL ADVANTAGES OF THE DOCTRINE OF 
 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 1. On the principles enforced, the baptized chil- 
 dren will come to have a definite, intelligible and very- 
 interesting relation to the church. They will be less 
 exposed to grow up and abide amongst us as a non- 
 descript, half-christianized population, the Samaritans 
 of Christianity, likely enough to become our bitterest 
 enemies in the end. They will be considered a part 
 of ourselves, as belonging to Christ's own fold, the 
 Saviour's lambs, who can never forsake the footsteps 
 of the flock without consciousness of sin, nor abide 
 in the wilderness without being sought. Parents and 
 children will no longer be perplexed with the question, 
 " What good can infant baptism do you ? " They 
 will understand that by this initiatory rite, the sub- 
 jects of it are solemnly introduced, among the number 
 of Christ's disciples. The broad shield of covenant 
 protection is thrown over them ; they are invested 
 with the rights of christian citizenship ; they are ad- 
 
80 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 mitted to a standing in the younger classes of the 
 Saviour's school ; they are constituted heirs of the 
 peculiar christian blessings, with nothing wanting to 
 full possession, but the oath of personal allegiance. 
 If removed by death, before they are capable of an 
 intelligent rejection of Christ, they will be received, 
 on the ground of the promise, through sanctification 
 of the spirit, into the company of "saints made per- 
 fect in light." If they are preserved to adult years, 
 having now a visible growth upon the good olive-tree 
 in the garden of the Lord, and the power of his own 
 peculiar influences around them, how natural to hope 
 for that inward union at an early age, on which vital- 
 ity depends. Baptism is not to them nor to any, '' a 
 saving ordinance," but it is wonderfully preparatory 
 to that efficacious grace which saves the soul. Thus 
 in budding and grafting an orchard, the proper intro- 
 duction of the germ or scion, ensures no fruit, but it 
 is the appointed means, and not improbable precursor 
 of future fertility. 
 
 2. On the principles advanced, the act of infant 
 consecration assumes unspeakable importance. Bap- 
 tism is not the public naming of a child nor a mere 
 genteel but almost unmeaning ceremony. It is the 
 sacred setting apart, the solemn giving up to God, of 
 an immortal being, of whose unending existence, 
 whether for weal or for woe, we have been the occa- 
 sion, and for whose religious education we are respon- 
 sible. It is the public introduction of a precious spirit 
 into Jehovah's spiritual temple, into the name of the 
 Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. 
 
ADVANTAGES OF THE DOCTRINE. 81 
 
 And since the consecrated child will need that 
 cleansing which is represented by water baptism, and 
 since he must be born of the spirit, or, after becoming 
 of a responsible age, and neglecting every covenant 
 overture of mercy, be rejected, like the unbelieving 
 Jews, or like Esau who sold his birth-rio-ht for a mess 
 of pottage, — parents properly informed and impressed 
 with their obligations, will be the more solicitous, so 
 to give up their children in falth^ that through means 
 of prayer and instruction, the blood of the everlast- 
 ing covenant may, at an early age, cleanse them from 
 sin. 
 
 3. If baptized children are to be considered mem- 
 bers of the church, then churches, pastors and parents 
 will come under heavier responsibilities, in respect to 
 them, than they have usually assumed. Pastors will 
 perceive increased emphasis in the apostolic exhorta- 
 tion, "Take heed to yourselves and to «// the flock 
 over which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, 
 to feed the church of God which he hath purchased 
 with his own blood ; " and again to the words of 
 Jesus, " If thou lovest me, feed my lambs." The 
 brethren and sisters of the church will the more 
 cheerfully unite their prayers and labors and influence 
 for the right education of the young. They will, the 
 more naturally, make them subjects of daily and 
 earnest addresses to the throne of grace. Nor will 
 they consider one of the prominent objects for which 
 churches are formed, viz. the rearing of a holy seed 
 as accomplished, until they see the children generally 
 prepared and disposed to make a public profession of 
 
82 
 
 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 their faith, almost as soon as they are capable of under- 
 standing their condition and obligations. Parents, while 
 they are comforted in view of promised blessings, upon 
 their offspring, and a fellowship of faith and labor in 
 the church on their children's behalf, will be also the 
 more anxious to bring them up " in the nurture and 
 admonition of the Lord," and the more ready to 
 combine with others to secure healthful instruction, 
 and the exercise of salutary restraints ; the whole 
 church, especially parents, making common cause 
 with each other, in securing the orderly training, the 
 thorough religious education, the early piety of all the 
 children. 
 
 4. The views of infant church-membership and 
 instruction which have been advanced, would lead the 
 people of God to depend more upon long-continued 
 and patient exertions, and less upon fitful excitements. 
 While we seek " the outpouring of the Holy Spirit," 
 and rejoice when divine influences come down " as 
 rain upon the mown grass, and as showers to water a 
 dry and thirsty earth," we should be less likely to dis- 
 parage those ordinary blessings which descend silently, 
 gently, constantly, as the dew. We should be less 
 anxious to lash ourselves and each other into periodi- 
 cal and spasmodic exertions — " making perhaps more 
 haste than good speed," than to commence, and carry 
 forward, and never retire from the work of training up 
 the children of the kingdom for the service of the 
 Great King. Like the husbandman, we should have 
 long patience, and during all the season of cultivation 
 we should labor in hope. 
 
ADVANTAGES OF THE IDOCTRINE. 83 
 
 A Steady course of training in the church, relied 
 upon through grace, as the best means of salvation to 
 the children, would unquestionably produce great re- 
 sults. Its influence would be like that of Baxter's 
 weekly catechetical exercises in Kidderminster, trans- 
 forming in a few years the character of an almost en- 
 tire community. It would produce Christians of large 
 and stable growth. Early rooted and grounded in 
 the faith, though making slow progress perhaps at the 
 first, the plant of righteousness, well imbedded In the 
 soil of faith, would naturally throw out its branches 
 with so much the more luxuriance and frultfulness in 
 the end. Nothing would give such stability and 
 strength to the church as the thorough education of 
 its children who are rising to take the place of their 
 fathers in the direction of God's house. Let them see 
 the foundations and view the proportions of the build- 
 ing, and come in themselves, not as loose stones or 
 unsightly appendages, but as compact parts of the 
 temple of the Lord, and the church will be better 
 prepared to stand against the thunder-gusts and deso- 
 lating influences which threaten it. 
 
 There is no stronger power over mind than educa- 
 tion. Many errorists have understood this ; for *' the 
 children of this world are wiser in their generation 
 than the children of light." Baleful as the influence 
 may be when an immortal spirit Is reared in supersti- 
 tion and trained to a blind and implicit belief in the 
 dogmas of a false religion, there can be no question 
 that it is the duty of intelligent Christians to fortify 
 youthful minds against evil, by a sound and practical 
 
84 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 knowledge of gospel principles, " that they may con- 
 tinue in the things they have learned, knowing of 
 whom they have learned them." 
 
 The sufficiency of the Scriptures and the rights of 
 private judgment in the interpretation of them, are 
 among the fundamental doctrines of protestantism. 
 But no orthodox reformer ever protested against that 
 great Abrahamic and christian principle, that religious 
 parents are responsible for the religious education of 
 their children. The opinion which has found favor 
 in some quarters, that the minds of children should be 
 preserved unbiased, uninfluenced, untaught upon sub- 
 jects of religious belief, till they become of age to 
 act for themselves, finds no countenance in the Scrip- 
 tures, nor does reason sustain it. To say nothing of 
 the danger of leaving young minds to encounter 
 temptations, without the assistance of ^' an overcoming 
 faith," is it possible to preserve them from evil, unless by 
 pre-occupying them with good ? The question is 7iot 
 between a religious education and no education ; it is 
 between a religious education and an irreligious edu- 
 cation. Neither errorists, nor a depraved heart, nor 
 bad companions, nor *' the adversary of souls," will 
 sufl:er them to remain uninstructed. Who then is to 
 take the responsibility of pre-occupying the mind ? 
 God places it upon christian parents and the church. 
 It is their duty to assume it, and by wisdom, pains- 
 taking, and prayer, educate souls for the kingdom. 
 
 This is indeed a slow and laborious process. But 
 durability is an offspring of time — " he that believeth 
 shall not make haste." Like a tree of slow growth, 
 
ADVANTAGES OF THE DOCTRINE. 85 
 
 like an edifice long in completion — permanence of 
 character depends much upon the time and labor ex- 
 pended upon its formation. 
 
 5. A church thus constituted has not only strength 
 and stabihty in its present members — but has also the 
 seeds of perpetuity in itself. It may ingather multi- 
 tudes from the world, it may hold forth the precious 
 words of life and help to found numerous churches in 
 foreign countries, or in the region of its own abode, 
 but its principal hope, in respect to future generations, 
 will be, through the blessing of God, in itself. The 
 children are the nursery of the church, and as the 
 trees of the old orchard go to decay, it is theirs to 
 take their place. Thus the church, having christian- 
 ized a community, preserves what she gains. " In- 
 stead of the fathers are the children." The stream of 
 life deepens and widens in its natural flow, while 
 tributaries from abroad, not necessary to its progress, 
 yet go to swell the wave of salvation, and bear it with 
 more power over the world. 
 
 6. The principles of infant church-membership 
 here laid down, will help to increase the attachment 
 of children for their parent church. Instead of being 
 left, as they grow towards maturity, to wander over 
 the wide world of isms, to be picked up and proselyted 
 by whichever may find them, or to go from sect to 
 sect, " carried about b}'' every wind of doctrine," 
 having " no rest for the sole of their foot," they will 
 have a home, a holy mother church indeed, on whose 
 bosom they were nurtured, under whose protection 
 
 8 
 
86 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP* 
 
 most of them will delight to dwell, into whose hos- 
 pitable mansion even the storm-tossed prodigal will 
 rejoice eventually to return. 
 
 7. These principles of church-membership, pro- 
 perly applied, will be among the most powerful means 
 of grace. 
 
 Under the influence of a thorouo;h religious educa- 
 lion, attended with the fellowship of prayer and a 
 strong faith in the promises, the blessings of the cove- 
 nant may be expected to descend early and plenti- 
 fully upon the children of the covenant. 1st. There 
 will be the restraining power of religious principles 
 and impressions which are among the best safeguards 
 in temptation and among the strongest barriers against 
 flagrant sin. 2d. There will be the ever softening 
 influences of christian truth and emotion wonderfully 
 preparing the way for saving grace. 3d. There will 
 probably be much of the Spirit's special presence, 
 which so generally attends the faithful teachings of his 
 doctrines whose words are spirit and life. 4th. There 
 will be an increased consciousness of christian obliga- 
 tion, more like that which the adult disciple feels, 
 when he remembers that " the vows of God are upon 
 him, and in whatever world he may be fixed will 
 abide upon him to eternity." The reflection, " I am 
 a baptized child, a member of the Saviour's flock, 
 wearing the mark which he himself hath set upon 
 me ; if 1 apostatise and perish, I must go down to de- 
 struction, from the very mountain of holiness, with 
 guilt of no common aggravation upon me ; if 1 neglect 
 to appropriate the great and precious promises of God, 
 
ADVANTAGES OF THE DOCTRINE. 87 
 
 by a personal profession of faith, I virtually renounce 
 the God of my fathers, interrupting the flow of cove- 
 nant blessings intended for many generations, making 
 myself an Esau who has sold his birth-right " — these 
 and such like considerations, impressed by the Holy 
 Spirit, must naturally have an almost invincible moral 
 power upon the mind. 
 
 Especially will these principles be felt as means of 
 grace, at that period when a personal profession, by 
 the baptized, is naturally looked for in the church. 
 The question comes distinctly before the mind, — 
 Shall I now, being of responsible age, acknowledge, 
 or shall I reject the God of my fathers, or, continuing 
 undecided, hazard all my interest in covenant bles- 
 sings ? If it were expected that between the age of 
 twelve and sixteen, or soon after, each child of the 
 church would come forward with a prepared heart, to 
 own the Saviour before men, or to take the personal 
 responsibility of saying, "Go thy way for this time," 
 how serious would the reflections of such a person 
 naturally be. Suppose it were customary, as in Cal- 
 vin's church, at Geneva, even to this day, to institute 
 two or three regular inquiries into the moral and spir- 
 itual condition of the children, and especially into 
 their personal qualifications for sacramental privileges, 
 by careful examination first, of all who are twelve 
 years of age, receiving such and such only to the ta- 
 ble of the Lord as give evidence of saving, though 
 perhaps feeble faith ; second, of the same persons, as 
 many of them as still remain non-professors at four- 
 teen years of age, and again at fifteen or sixteen, — • 
 
88 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 what a solemn period would these three or four years 
 of their early life naturally become. How deep an 
 interest would pastors and all adult professors be likely 
 to feel in these young candidates for full communion. 
 And as the children of the church drew towards the 
 period usually assigned for personal profession, what 
 could exceed the anxiety and tender importunity of 
 good parents and pastors, that the long deferred bles- 
 sings might now at length be obtained. Under such 
 circumstances, if ever, we might expect to find 
 "wrestling Jacobs and prevailing Israels." 
 
 8. In this connection, it may be suitable to say a 
 word, as to the influence of these sentiments upon the 
 purity of the church. It will ever be necessary, as 
 it now is, and always has been, to guard against the 
 reception of unspiritual persons to the table of the 
 Lord. Nothing but a credible evidence of piety, and 
 visible profession of faith can qualify, even baptized 
 persons, for the privileges of full communion. It is 
 alike true of them and of all others, that a work of 
 grace upon the heart, a renewal by the Holy Spirit 
 is an essential pre-requisite, to a worthy participation 
 in the sacramental feast. The wisest guardians of 
 the church may be deceived, they often are deceived, 
 as to the qualifications of candidates proposed for ad- 
 mission. The danger is not removed by the princi- 
 ples of church-membership herein enforced. In times 
 of declension, if these should occur, it is not improba- 
 ble that some chaff would be gathered with the wheat. 
 But would other sentiments, and an opposite practice, 
 preserve from the evil. Let the ecclesiastical his- 
 
ADVANTAGES OF THE DOCTRINE. 89 
 
 tory of New-England for the last fifty years — let the 
 present condition of nriany churches in different de- 
 nominations answer. With the careful preparatory 
 instruction contemplated, how much hetter fitted 
 would our youthful candidates for full communion 
 probahly be, than many now are, who, under the in- 
 fluence of some temporary excitement, are brought 
 forward and without time for instruction are pressed 
 into the church. Among the former we might reason- 
 ably anticipate, that instead of many sudden and 
 great apostacies, or those irregular fervors which some- 
 times blaze forth so .disastrously in our day, faith 
 would grow with their growth^ and strengthen with 
 their strength, till amidst the feebleness of outward 
 infirmities, they shall come to rejoice constantly, and 
 without a doubt, in the God of their childhood, In the 
 God of their fathers, in the God of their children, in 
 their own God forever. 
 
 These remarks are not intended in disparagement of 
 any wise efforts to evangelize the world. They seek 
 the solidity, perpetuity, purity, of existing churches — 
 while they allow us to labor zealously, and rejoice 
 heartily, when many are added daily, from without, of 
 such as shall be saved. 
 
 Finally. Ttie children of the church, recognised and 
 instructed as such, would grow up to maturity with the 
 seeds of contemplation and enjoyment within them. 
 Let them commit to memory the commandments, the 
 Lord's prayer, the apostles' creed, the confession and 
 covenant of the church to which they with their parents 
 
 #8 
 
90 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 belong ; let their minds be filled with select passages of 
 Scripture, with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, 
 not in " formless jumble," but according to some in- 
 structive system ; let them be made fully acquainted 
 with the nature of baptism, of their own relation to the 
 church, of the vows which are upon them, of the pe- 
 culiar privileges proffered to their reception ; let them 
 be thoroughly indoctrinated, not only by some such 
 formula of faith as the Assembly's Catechism, but 
 more directly out of the word of God ; let all that is 
 taught be thoroughly explained, and impressed upon 
 the memory by constant repetition, till all the great 
 principles of faith and practice and church polity are 
 thoroughly understood, and fairly written out, yea 
 stereotyped upon the heart, and a broad foundation 
 will be laid not only for further improvement in 
 knowledge and holiness, but also for great and ever 
 increasing enjoyment. God's truths dwelling in the 
 regenerated soul, will be like the strings of a harp, 
 ready to give forth sweet tones whenever the breath 
 of the Spirit passes over them. Such minds will be 
 full of thoughts and objects of contemplation. Instead 
 of becoming restless the moment the social excitement 
 of a religious meeting has gone by ; instead of going 
 to every variety of religious tenet and extraordinary 
 movement, saying, "who will show us any good ? " 
 they will have a feast at home, a source of happiness 
 within — which, if it does not afford religious ecstacy, 
 will shed over the soul that " peace of God which 
 passeth all understanding." Such persons will rever- 
 
ADVANTAGES OF THE DOCTRINE. 91 
 
 ence and love truth in all its parts and bearings, and 
 not feel that the luxury of tears and transporting emo- 
 tions is the only good which religion bestows. Keep- 
 ing God's commandments, prepared by previous disci- 
 pline, to descend deeper and still deeper into the 
 mysteries of infinite love ; they will live in God's 
 world " with his glory round about them." The 
 teachers of religion, — instead of having many in their 
 flocks who wish to be pampered with high seasoned 
 dainties, who almost lose the service when there is 
 nothing stirring, nothing addressed to their own nar- 
 row experience — to whose perverted tastes much of 
 the New Testament, taken text by text, would pre- 
 sent no subject of special interest, — would have a 
 race of indoctrinated puritans, to whom any truths 
 which the Holy Spirit was interested to reveal, would 
 be precious as gold. But what can we expect when 
 early education is neglected ? That which was not 
 sown in spring — can it be found upon the fields in 
 autumn ? It is the misfortune more than the fault of 
 some Christians, that the topics of spiritual entertain- 
 ment and profitable attention are so very few. They 
 were not early rooted and grounded in first principles, 
 nor have they been convinced of the fact, that the 
 things already learned, are but the small beginnings 
 of an immeasurable knowledge. They have no idea 
 of the noble proportions and boundlessness of truth. 
 Standing beneath its magnificent porch-way, they 
 cannot believe that vast aisles and pillared arches 
 of the great temple have never yet been opened to 
 
92 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 their view, nor have patience with those who bid 
 them knock and knock and strive for admission. 
 
 Whatever may be said of the present age, it is 
 the business of the church, to prepare the coming 
 generation of her sons for active zeal in the pro- 
 pagation of rehgion, and for steady personal ad- 
 vancement in all the wonderful works of God. 
 
 Nor let it be said, that the duty of instruction 
 may be performed with equal hope of success, upon 
 those who are without, as upon those who have been 
 received within the precincts of the church. The 
 church is the temple of the Spirit. Peculiarly fa- 
 vored are they, who are called to learn wisdom and 
 piety beneath the overshadowing glory of his imme- 
 diate presence. 
 
 In any attempts to lay the foundations of immor- 
 tality in these young members of the church, as- 
 sistance may be derived from an institution peculiar 
 to our times ; I mean the Sabbath-school. Let 
 ministers oversee and provide carefully for its in- 
 terests ; let churches appoint their best members for 
 its instruction and the superintendence of its affairs ; 
 let reports of its progress and condition be frequently 
 presented to the body of professors ; let it be the 
 instituiion of the church, and never left, as it some- 
 times has been, to any and all who might volunteer 
 to direct its movements — to be called forth perhaps 
 in a body by any errorist, who, wiihout consultation 
 with its rightful guardians, is pleased to extend a 
 deceptive complaisance towards it ; — let all who teach 
 
ADVANTAGES OF THE DOCTRINE. 93 
 
 be filled with spiritual wisdom, prayer, and the Holy- 
 Ghost — let them labor both for time and for eter- 
 nity, and in a few years a generation of Christians 
 may be expected who would do honor to an apos- 
 tolic age. 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 THE GENERAL SENTIMENT OF NEW ENGLAND 
 CONGREGATIONALISTS AND OTHER REFORMED 
 CHURCHES ON THE SUBJECT. 
 
 That the principle maintained is no innovation, 
 but belongs to the congregational system, and to the 
 reformed churches generally, as well as to the doc- 
 trines of the Apostles, an abundance of testimony 
 might be adduced to show. It is presumed that none 
 will deny this assertion as far as it respects the epis- 
 copal church, the Lutheran churches, and the presby- 
 terian churches in Scotland and on the continent. 
 But some might question, before examination, whether 
 the doctrine under consideration is among the funda- 
 mental principles of ecclesiastical polity in the purest 
 churches of the new world. Whether it belongs to 
 Congregationalism, a few passages from high authority 
 will make evident. 
 
 The first is taken from " New England's Memorial, 
 by Nathaniel Morton, Secretary to the Court for the 
 jurisdiction of ^q\y Plymouth." In giving an account 
 
DOCTRINE OF NEW-ENGLAND CHURCHES. 95 
 
 of the organization of the first church in Salem, in 
 1629, he says : "The two ministers there being se- 
 riously studious of reformation, they considered the 
 state of their children together with their parents ; 
 concerning which letters did pass between Mr. Hig- 
 ginson," — one of the ministers of Salem, — " and Mr. 
 Brewster, the reverend elder of the church of Ply- 
 mouth ; and they did agree in their judgments, viz. 
 concerning the church-memhership of the children with 
 their parents, and that baptism was a seal of their 
 membership ; only when they were adult, they being 
 not scandalous, they were to be examined by the 
 church-officers, and upon their approbation of their 
 fitness, and upon the children's public and personally 
 owning of the covenant, they were to be received 
 unto the Lord's-supper. Accordingly Mr. Higgin- 
 son's eldest son, being about fifteen years of age, was 
 owned to have been received a member together with 
 his parents, and being privately examined by the pas- 
 tor, Mr. Skelton, about his knowledge in the princi- 
 ples of religion, he did present him before the church 
 when the Lord's-supper was to be administered, and 
 the child then publicly and personally owning the 
 covenant of the God of his father, he was admitted 
 unto the Lord's-supper ; it being there professedly 
 owned, according to 1 Cor. 7 : 14, that the children 
 of the church are holy unto the Lord as well as their 
 parents." 
 
 This passage clearly shows the opinion and practice 
 of the first two churches founded in New-England, viz. 
 the church in Plymouth and the church in Salem. 
 
96 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 There was a little- work published in London in 
 1643, entitled, " Church Government and Church 
 Covenant Discussed — in an Answer of the Elders of 
 the several churches in New-England, to two-and- 
 thirty Questions, sent over to them by divers minis- 
 ters in Old England." The fifth question is stated as 
 follows : — " Whether do you admit children under 
 age as members of the church tos^ether with their 
 parents, and in the admission of their parent or 
 parents ; so as thenceforth they may partake of all 
 church privileges (being otherwise fit) without any 
 other personal profession of faith or entering into 
 church covenant, when they shall come to years — 
 and how long do you count them under age ? " To 
 the firse clause of the first question, the New-England 
 elders give an explicit answer : " Infants with us are 
 admitted members in and with their parents, so as to 
 be admitted to all church privileges of which infants 
 are capable." As to the question, whether such per- 
 sons should on cominof of ao;e be admitted to the 
 Lord's-supper and all other church privileges — " This," 
 they say, '' is a question of which, by reason of the 
 infancy of these churches, we have had no occasion 
 yet to determine what to judge or practice one way 
 or the other." They then proceed to give it as their 
 opinion, that all such persons ought to enter into 
 church covenant for themselves, before being allowed 
 to participate in the higher church privileges. '^ For 
 otherwise we do confess, children that are born when 
 their parents are church-members, are in covenant 
 with God even from their birth, and their baptism did 
 
DOCTRINE OF NEW-ENGLAND CHURCHES. 97 
 
 seal it unto them. But notwithstanding their birth- 
 right, we conceive there is a necessity of their per- 
 sonal profession of faith, and taking of the church 
 covenant when they come to years, for without this it 
 cannot so well be discerned, what fitness is in them 
 for the Lord's table and other church privileges, as by 
 this means it might." — " Wherefore in this point we 
 cannot but fully approve the practice of the' reformed 
 churches, among whom it is the manner, as Zepporus 
 writeth, to admit children that were baptized in their 
 infancy to the Lord's table, by public profession of 
 their faith and entering into covenant." 
 
 Our next witness is the Cambridge Platform. It 
 was framed by the synod of 1648. The men who 
 composed that assembly were among the most distin- 
 guished inhabitants of the new world. Some of its 
 leading spirits were Wilson and Cotton of Boston, 
 Norton of Ipswich, (afterwards Cambridge,) Elliot of 
 Roxbury, Shepherd of Cambridge, Mather of Dor- 
 chester, Allen of Dedham, Rogers of Rowley, and 
 Partridge of Duxbury." They. drew the writing, as 
 Gov. Winthrop asserts, *^ according to the general 
 practice of the churches.''^ It was afterwards present- 
 ed to the churches for their consideration and ap- 
 proval — and by the action of the next general court, 
 was finally made the ecclesiastical law of the com- 
 monwealth. It was adopted as the basis of church 
 government in all the New-England colonies, and 
 may properly be denominated the original constitution 
 of the Pilgrim churches. 
 9 
 
98 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBEESHIP. 
 
 *'The matter of a visible church," says the Platform,* 
 " are saints by calling." By saints we understand, 1st. 
 " Such," etc* — here describing the characteristics of 
 adult professors ; 2d. " The children of such, who are 
 also holy." Again, " The like trial is to be required 
 from such members of the church as ivere born in the 
 same^ or received their membership and were baptized 
 in their infancy or minority, by virtue of the covenant 
 of their parents, when being grown up unto years of 
 discretion, they shall desire to be made partakers of 
 the Lord's-supper ; unto which, because holy things 
 must not be given to the unworthy, therefore, it is 
 requisite that these as well as others should come to 
 their trial and examination, and manifest their faith 
 and repentance by an open profession thereof, before 
 they are received to the Lord's-supper, and other- 
 wise not to be aduiitted thereunto. Yet these church- 
 members that were so born, or received in their child- 
 hood, before they are capable of being made partakers 
 of full communion, have many privileges which others, 
 not church-members, have not ; they are in covenant 
 with God, have the seal thereof upon them, viz. bap- 
 tism;- and so if not regenerated, yet are in a more 
 hopeful way of attaining regenerating grace, and all 
 the spiritual blessings both of the covenant and seal ; 
 they are also under church ivatch, and consequently 
 subject to the reprehensions, admonitions, and cen- 
 sures thereof, for their healing and amendment as 
 need shall require. "f 
 
 * Cambridge Platform, Chap. Ill, 1, 2. t Chap. Ill, 7, 
 
DOCTRINE OF NEW-ENGLAND CHURCHES. 99 
 
 In the year 1649, ''not three months before his 
 decease," Rev. Thomas Shepherd, " sometime pastor 
 of the church in Cambridge, New-England, who, be- 
 sides his eminent abilities, was a man of much real 
 and living communion with God, and therefore more 
 like to know the mind of Christ than many others," 
 wrote a treatise expressing views upon the subject 
 now under consideration, in full accordance with the 
 Platform. It is entitled, "The Church-member- 
 ship OF Children, and their right to baptism, ac- 
 cording to that holy and everlasting covenant of God, 
 established between himself and the faithful and their 
 seed after them in their generations ; cleared up in a 
 letter, sent to a worthy friend of the Author, and 
 many years ago* written, touching that subject." — 
 "If," says Mr. Shepherd, "the substance of that 
 covenant (the Abrahamic) was, I will be a God to 
 thee and thy seed, then this very covenant remains 
 still under the gospel, it being one and the same with 
 that ; if by virtue of that covenant, the children were 
 made members of ihe church ; and hence had a church 
 privilege and a seal administered ; then the same 
 covenant remaining the same, and in the same force 
 and benefit, our children also are taken into the like 
 membership.^' 
 
 Again, " There is the same inward cause, moving 
 God to take in the children of believing church-mem- 
 bers into the church and covenant now, to be of the 
 number of his people, as there was for taking the 
 
 *Tliis letter though written in 1649, was not published till 1662. 
 
100 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 Jews and their children, for the only cause why the 
 Lord took in the Jews and their children thus, was 
 his love and free grace and mercy. Deut. 4 : 37, 
 '' Because he loved thy fathers, therefore he chose 
 their seed." — So that I do from hence fully believe, 
 that either God's love is in these days of his gospel 
 less unto his people and servants, than in the days of 
 the Old Testament ; or if it be as great, then the 
 same love respects the seed of his people now, as 
 then it did. And, therefore, if then because he loved 
 them, he chose their seed to be of his church ; so in 
 these days, because he loveih us, he chooseth owi' seed 
 to he of his church also.^' 
 
 In another place he adds, " Hereby God gives 
 parents some comfortable hope of their children's sal- 
 vation, because they are within the pale of the visible 
 church. And if we pray for our children, why should 
 we doubt, leaving only secrets to God, if we see them 
 die before they reject the gospel positively, — T see no 
 reason for any man to doubt — of the salvation of his 
 child if he dies, or that God will not do good to his 
 child in time if he lives. This siirs up their hearts 
 to be more sincerely holy, and keep in with God, be- 
 cause of their children ; and to educate them with 
 more care and watchfulness, because they are the 
 Lord's children as well as theirs ; they are not com- 
 mon but holy vessels, therefore, let them see that they 
 are not defiled ; and hence we find, that when God 
 exhorts to any duty in Scripture, he oft makes this 
 the ground of it, " I am your God ; " and hence God 
 aggravates their sin in offering their children to Mo- 
 
DOCTRINE OF NEW-ENGLAND CHURCHES. 101 
 
 lech. Ezek. 16, '' Because they were his children, 
 that should have been better used." 
 
 These sentiments of Shepherd's were reiterated by 
 the most distinguished of the clerical settlers generally. 
 The opinions of many of them on this subject were af- 
 terwards collated by Increase Mather of Boston, and 
 published under his direction at Cambridge, in 1675. 
 The work is entitled, " The First Principles op 
 New-England, concerning the subject of Baptism 
 and Communion of Churches ; collected out of the 
 original manuscripts of the first and chief fathers 
 in the New-England churches ; with the judgment 
 of sundry learned divines of the Conj:;regational 
 way in England, concerning the said Questions ; 
 published for the benefit of those who are of the 
 rising generation of New-England." This pamphlet 
 contains the opinions of Cotton, Hooker, Stone of 
 Hartford, Richard Mather of Dorchester, Partridge of 
 Duxbury, Norton and Shepherd of Cambridge, and 
 others. All agree, in the words of Stone, " That 
 children of church-members have right to church- 
 membership by virtue of their father's covenant; " or 
 in the words of '' that judicious and eagle-eyed seer," 
 Mr. Norton, that " the children of parents in church 
 covenant are church-members and ought to be bap- 
 tized." 
 
 In 1662, by the previous appointment of the gen- 
 eral court, a synod was holden in" Boston, to consider 
 the proper extent of baptism, and of communion be- 
 tween particular churches. The subject in debate 
 9* 
 
102 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 respecting baptism was whether the children of such 
 baptized parents, as were not in full communion, 
 might receive baptism, upon their parents owning the 
 covenant and promising to submit to the discipline of 
 the church ? The answer was summed up in several 
 propositions. 
 
 " 1. They that, according to Scripture, are mem- 
 bers of the visible church are the subjects of baptism. 
 
 " 2. The members of the visible church, accord- 
 ing to Scripture, are confederate visible believers in 
 particular churches, and their infant seed, i. e. chil- 
 dren in minority, whose next parents are one or both 
 of them in covenant. 
 
 " 3. The infant seed of confederate visible be- 
 lievers are members of the same church with their 
 parents ; and when grown up, are personally under 
 the watch, discipline, and government of that church. 
 
 " 4. Those adult persons are not therefore to be 
 admitted to full communion, merely because they are 
 and continue members, without such further qualifica- 
 tions as the word of God requireth thereunto. 
 
 " 5. Such church-members, who are admitted in 
 minority, understanding the doctrine of faith, and 
 publicly professing their assent thereunto, not scanda- 
 lous in life, and solemnly owning the covenant before 
 the church, wherein they give up themselves and 
 their children to the Lord, and subject themselves to 
 the government of Christ in the church, iheir children 
 are to he hajjiized^* 
 
 * Hubbard's History of New- England, Chap. LXVII 
 
DOCTRINE OF NEW-ENGLAND CHURCHES. 103 
 
 This last proposition, as we shall see, was strongly, 
 and not without reason, opposed ; and some dissented 
 from the doctrine that baptized children are members 
 of the 'particular churches to which their parents be- 
 long,* but infant church-membership in some form 
 was the general sentiment not only of the synod and 
 the court, but of the country. 
 
 In 1679, at a synod holden in Boston, " It was 
 put to vote, whether the assembly did approve of the 
 Platform of Church Discipline. And both elders 
 and brethren did unanimously lift up their hands in 
 the affirmative, not one appearing when the vote was 
 propounded in the negative." 
 
 The Savoy confession of 1658, adopted by the 
 Boston Synod in 1680, thus defines the visible 
 catholic church : " The whole body of men through- 
 out the world, professing the faith of the gospel, 
 and obedience unto God by Christ, not destroying 
 their own profession by any errors everting the found- 
 ation, or unholiness of conversation, they and their 
 children with them are and may be called the visible 
 catholic church of Christ. "f 
 
 The churches of Connecticut were represented in 
 the synods of Cambridge and Boston, and with others 
 had adopted the Platform. But desiring to introduce 
 a system of consociation among their churches, they 
 met in synod by themselves for this purpose, and 
 finally, May 13, 1708, adopted not only certain prin- 
 ciples of consociation but also the Savoy Confession, 
 
 * Hu1>barcl's History of New- En gland, Chap. LXX. 
 t Savoy Confession, Chap. XXVI, 2. 
 
104 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 "owned and assented unto" by the Boston synod of 
 16S0, in which the church is defined as including the 
 baptized children of believers ; and also the " Heads 
 of Agreement," assented to by the presbyterians and 
 congregationalists of England in 1690 ; in which last 
 document they say, " We do conceive the whole 
 multitude of visible believers and their infant seed 
 (commonly called the catholic visible church, to be- 
 long to Christ's spiritual kingdom in this world." 
 
 In 1709, Mr. Stoddard of Northampton, published 
 his Appeal to the Learned. It is no part of the ob- 
 ject of that famous treatise to prove the right of bap- 
 tized children to a name and a place in the church. 
 Infant church-membership was assumed by this ven- 
 erable author as the unquestioned sentiment and prac- 
 tice of the times. He makes use of the "argumentum ex 
 concessis," and endeavors to draw inferences, — though 
 some of them are manifestly erroneous, — from the ac- 
 knowledged fact that baptized children are members 
 of the church. Mr. Stoddard had been a member of 
 the Boston Synod of 1680, by which the visible 
 church had been defined as including believers "^ and 
 their children with them." It is safe to affirm, there- 
 fore, without seeking further testimony, that infant 
 church-membership was the received opinion in Mas- 
 sachusetts until after 1709. 
 
 This brings us near to the times of the great Ed- 
 wards. He was settled at Northampton in 1727, as 
 colleague with Mr. Stoddard, about two years before 
 the death of the latter, and seems to have adopted his 
 principles of church-membership and communion. Mr. 
 
DOCTRINE OF NEW-ENGLAND CIIUKCHES. 105 
 
 Edwards was afterwards led to question the propriety of 
 admitting baptized persons, without personal piety or 
 profession of faith, as Mr. Stoddard had done, to the 
 Lord's-supper. He published his views in 1749, in 
 opposition to Mr. Stoddard's Appeal, and the loose 
 practice respecting communion which had crept into 
 the churches generally. From this controversy, it 
 has been affirmed in our times, without sufficient ex- 
 amination, that Edwards was opposed to the doctrine 
 of infant church-membership. Nothing can he farther 
 from the truth. He expressly concedes the point in 
 the outset, that the baptized children of professors are 
 truly members of the church, though not in complete 
 standing. Nor has any thing been advanced in this 
 discourse which stands in known opposition to the 
 principles of church-membership and communion 
 maintained by that gigantic mind in his answers to the 
 " venerable Stoddard," Solomon Williams and other 
 lax communionists of the times. Pres. Edwards had 
 no occasion to establish the doctrine of infant church- 
 membership by labored argumentation. It was a set- 
 tled principle in the constitution of the New-England 
 churches and had been from the first. Most of its 
 early defenders had undertaken their work, not so 
 much for the sake of the doctrine itself, as for the 
 inferences respecting discipline, and the extension of 
 baptismal privileges, which they considered deducible 
 from it. 
 
 The point now in dispute was not — as a newspaper 
 writer not long since intimated, — Whether baptized 
 children are to be considered members of the visible 
 
106 INF.\NT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 church ? Nor whether it was proper to allow baptism 
 to the children of baptized non-professors ? But 
 " Whether, according to the rules of Christ, any ought 
 to be admitted to the communion and privileges of 
 members of the visible church in complete standing, 
 but such as are in profession and in the eyes of the 
 church's christian judgment, godly or gracious per- 
 sons ? "* Mr. Stoddard had maintained the affirmative, 
 Mr. Edwards took the negative of this question. 
 Neither deny the great congregational doctrine of 
 infant church-membership, but both expressly recog- 
 nise and affirm it. 
 
 As considerable confusion prevails on the exact na- 
 ture of this controversy — and as some have associated 
 it erroneously with another question, viz. the relation 
 of baptized children to the church, — with which, as 
 respects simple membership, it had nothing to do — 
 it will be necessary to detail some of the historical 
 facts which preceded and are connected with it. 
 
 The first settlers of New-England were eminent for 
 wisdom and piety. They fled from the iron hand of 
 oppression in the old world for the enjoyment of civil, 
 but more especially religious liberty, in the new ; and 
 above all, that they might preserve their children from 
 evil and rear a godly generation in the wilderness. 
 ^^ Discipline, ^^ says Dr. Mather, "is the cause of God 
 in New England. We are the children of the good 
 old non-conformists. Now what was it that they did 
 suffer so much for, but that so they and their children 
 
 * Qualifications for Communion. 
 
DOCTRINE OF NEW-ENGLAND CHURCHES. 107 
 
 also might be brought under that discipline and gov- 
 ernment which Christ hath appointed in his church ? 
 And, therefore, were they by their adversaries, the 
 prelates, reproached with the name of disciplinarians; 
 should we now desert the cause it would be a sad de- 
 generacy. There are many godly souls in New-Eng- 
 land, that the great motive which prevailed with them 
 to come into this wilderness, was that so they might 
 have their children under the government of Christ in 
 his churchJ^* But at the time when the original 
 churches of the country were founded, it was the gen- 
 eral opinion of all congregationalists, presbyterians, 
 and independents, throughout the world, — that a pro- 
 fession of personal godliness was an essential pre- 
 requisite in adults, to the enjoyment of sacramental 
 ordinances. Not only the immoral, but those also 
 who on arriving at maturity neglected to take upon 
 themselves their early baptismal vows by open cove- 
 nant, were considered unworthy to partake of the 
 Lord's-supper or to receive baptism for their children. 
 The consequence was that many of the second gene- 
 ration and more of the third, growing up without 
 making a personal profession of their faith in Christ, 
 their children must necessarily be excluded from bap- 
 tism and from any membership in the church. This 
 was a sore grief to the New-England fathers. " Truly 
 when I think," says the writer last quoted, " and I 
 often think of it seriously and sadly with myself, that 
 in a plantation of religion, — for such New-England 
 
 *Mather's Subject of Baptism. 
 
108 
 
 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 was, — the inhabitants should be in the condition of 
 infidels, that the posterity of a people professing god- 
 liness, yea of the most eminent professors in the whole 
 world, should in one age be as infidels, even not so 
 much as within the compass of the visible church, or 
 have the livery and character belonging to Christians 
 upon them, whereby such are distinguished from the 
 infidel and pagan w^orld, what it has to others 1 know 
 not, but to me it has a most formidable appearance."* 
 It was considerations like these — connected with the 
 fact that none but church-members were elio-ible to 
 office or could vote at elections — which led the elders 
 of the churches, at an early period after the settle- 
 ment, to review the subject of baptism and church- 
 membership and finally to decide that the children of 
 all baptized persons who, though not professors of 
 godliness nor qualified for the Lord's-supper, were yet 
 willing to make open acknowledgment of the cove- 
 nant obligations, and promise to submit to the disci- 
 pline of the church — might, and should receive bap- 
 tism. This was a manifest innovation, upon the doc- 
 trine and practice of the fathers, and also, — as is 
 shown by Mr. Foxcroft in his letter to Edwards, — 
 upon the general sentiment of evangelical protestants 
 throughout the world.f " I never heard," says Mr. 
 Baxter, as quoted by Foxcroft, " any man baptize an 
 infant, but upon the parent's, or susceptor's, or offer- 
 er's profession of a justifying faiths It might be 
 
 * Preface to the First Principles of New-England, 
 t Appendix to Qualifications for Communion. 
 
DOCTRINE OF NEW-ENGLAND CHURCHES. 109 
 
 confessed, however, that many protestant churches in 
 Europe, had fallen into laxness and formality in their 
 ])ractice upon this subject. Be this as it may, the 
 good old puritans of New-England were sufficiently 
 scrupulous and careful, as to the terms of admission 
 to the sacraments. The doctrine of infant church- 
 membership, with the subjection of children to the 
 discipline of the church, was always received among 
 them. But the perpetuation of church-membership, 
 without the profession of faith on the part of parents, 
 was a heresy which crept in by degrees. It was first 
 a question whether baptism might be extended in any 
 cases to grand-children, whose next parents had made 
 no profession. This question was propounded as a 
 case of conscience by the church in Dorchester to the 
 Rev. John Cotton, teacher of the first church in Bos- 
 ton. The subject was publicly considered by the 
 last named church assembled for the purpose " in the 
 name of Christ." It was properly decided that the 
 grandfather might lawfully claim baptism for his 
 grand-child on two conditions. " First, that the 
 grand-child baptized by right of the grand-father's 
 covenant be committed to the grand-father's educa- 
 tion." And 2d. " That the parents of the child do 
 not thereby take occasion to neglect the due and sea- 
 sonable preparation of themselves for entrance into 
 covenant with God and his church." This letter is 
 dated Boston, Dec. 16, 1634, and signed by John 
 Cotton, Tho. Oliver, and Tho. Leverett.* It would 
 
 * First Principles of New- England. 
 
 10 
 
110 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 lead us beyond our limits, and somewhat away from the 
 subject immediately in hand, to give in detail the histori- 
 cal progress of the error in question. It may be suffi- 
 cient to say, that neglecting the extreme caution of 
 Mr. Cotton, many began to contend, that all baptized 
 children being born in the church, and every where 
 acknowledged church-members, were entitled to have 
 baptism for their children, who being also born in the 
 church were entitled to have baptism for their children 
 also, in their successive generations. The fallacy of 
 this reasoning has already been shown, in foregoing 
 pages. But sophistical as it is, it gained currency in 
 the churches, and being sustained by other considera- 
 tions, it was decided by the synod of 1662, and con- 
 firmed by the General Court, though not without con- 
 troversy and opposition, — that all persons who had 
 received baptism in infancy, ''understanding the 
 doctrine of faith, and publicly professing their assent 
 thereunto ; not scandalous in life, and solemnly own- 
 ing the covenant before the church, wherein they give 
 up themselves and their children to the Lord, and 
 subject themselves to the government of Christ in the 
 church, their children are to he baj)tized." This 
 canon was framed for the purpose already specified, 
 viz. that baptism might be administered to the chil- 
 dren of persons who, though themselves baptized in 
 infancy, were neither hopefully regenerate, nor sup- 
 posed to be qualified for the Lord's-supper. 
 
 Out of this heresy grew another. Some of the 
 churches reasoned thus : Baptized persons being 
 church-members, and as such entitled to baptism for 
 
DOCTRINE OF NEW-ENGLAND CHURCHES. Ill 
 
 their children, ought to come to the Lord's table. 
 For if they have all the qualifications requisite for the 
 enjoyment of one sacrament, they have also for the 
 other. This reasoning, with other considerations, pre- 
 pared the way for an in flood of unspiritual communi- 
 cants upon the churches which adopted it. The 
 practice of admitting such persons to the Lord's table, 
 though not general, had become so frequent that the 
 synod of 1679 saw fit to bear public testimony against 
 it. As one of the means by which the churches 
 might avert the judgments of the Lord with which 
 New-England had been visited, they say, " It is re- 
 quisite that persons be not admitted unto communion 
 in the Lord's-supper, without making a personal and 
 public profession of their faith and repentance, and 
 that therefore both elders and churches be duly 
 watchful and circumspect in this matter." To this 
 expression of opinion, Mr. Stoddard, then a young 
 man and a member of the synod, seems to have given 
 a hesitating consent. Some five-and-twenty years 
 after, he openly espoused and taught the doctrine to 
 his people in Northampton, and to the world, that the 
 Lord's-supper was intended to be a converting as well 
 as sanctifying ordinance, and should be received as 
 such by all baptized persons who were moral in their 
 lives, and serious believers in the principles of chris- 
 tian grace.* 
 
 A controversy ensued — and many churches, influ- 
 enced by the great reputation of Mr. Stoddard for 
 
 * Life of Edwards. 
 
112 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 learning, wisdom, and piety, more than by his argu- 
 ments, adopted the practice of open communion, 
 Pres. Edwards was a grandson of Mr. Stoddard, and, 
 as already observed, was settled as his colleague in 
 the ministry at Northampton, in 1727. Mr. Stoddard 
 was at that time in his eighty-fourth year, and had 
 been fifty-five years pastor of the church in Northamp- 
 ton. He was a man of great weight in the colonies, 
 and had been active in the synods and councils of the 
 last quarter of the preceding century. Through his 
 practice and the influence of his writings, unspiritual 
 members had been freely admitted to full communion, 
 and had become perhaps the majority in most churches. 
 Discipline was consequently neglected, and could not 
 be enforced. The sacrament of the supper was 
 diverted from hs original design, if not in too many 
 instances actually profaned. It was under these cir- 
 cumstances, several years after his settlement,, that 
 Edwards became fully convinced of the impolicy 
 and sin of admitting persons professedly unregenerate 
 to the Lord's table. In 1749, he published his 
 " Humble Enquiry into the Rules of the Word of 
 God, concerning the Qualifications requisite to a Com- 
 plete Standing and Full Communion in the visible 
 Christian Church." 
 
 The question discussed by Edwards, was not 
 whether baptized children were within the pale of the 
 visible church — nor whether their children might be 
 entitled to baptism — but the question was, whether 
 unregenerate persons, considering themselves unregen- 
 erate, and who were unregenerate in the judgment of 
 
DOCTRINE OF NEW-ENGLAND CHURCHES. 113 
 
 christian charity, and made no profession of faith, 
 ought, under such circumstances, to partake of the 
 Lord's-supper. Infant church-membership, therefore, 
 was not the doctrine which Edwards opposed — nor 
 had it been ever opposed by the leading fathers and 
 churches of New-England, nor was it the cause of the 
 decline of vital piety among them, nor is it responsi- 
 ble for the introduction of the halfway covenant 
 scheme, so universally condemned in our day. 
 
 Edwards believed in the doctrine of infant church- 
 membership, and would doubtless have employed his 
 great powers in its defence, if occasion had required 
 it. In the second paragraph of his ^'Qualifications for 
 Full Communion," he says : "When I speak of mem- 
 bers of the visible church of Christ in complete stand- 
 ing , I would be understood, of those who are received 
 as the proper immediate subjects of all the external 
 privileges Christ has appointed for the ordinary mem- 
 bers of his church. All that acknowledge infant bap- 
 tism, allow infants who are the proper subjects of 
 baptism and are baptized, to be in some sort members 
 of the christian church; yet none suppose them to be 
 members in such standing as to be the proper, imme- 
 diate subjects of all ecclesiastical ordinances and privi- 
 leges. But that some further qualifications are requi- 
 site in order to this, to be obtained either in a course 
 of nature, or by education, or by divine grace. And 
 some who are baptized in infancy, even after they be- 
 come to be adult, may yet remain for a season short 
 of such standing as has been spoken of, being desti- 
 10* 
 
114 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 tute of sufficient knowledge, etc., and yet not he cast 
 out of the church, or cease to be in any respect its 
 members." The same sentiment frequently occurs in 
 this celebrated treatise upon the terms of communion. 
 
 Dr. Hopkins' System of Doctrines was published 
 under his own direction in 1792. He was a pupil of 
 Edwards, lived for a season in his family, studied 
 theology with him, and adopted his theological princi- 
 ples generally as the basis on which his own system 
 was erected. His views on the subject in question 
 are valuable, as well for the light they thus reflect 
 upon Edwards' opinions, as for the weight of his own 
 character and the general influence he has exerted 
 upon the New-England church. 
 
 In his treatise concerning the baptism of the chil- 
 dren of believers, Mr. Hopkins says : " By the king- 
 dom of God, or the kingdom of heaven which is the 
 same, is meant the visible kingdom of Christ in this 
 world or his church ; in which sense this phrase is 
 most commonly used by Christ. What he declares 
 therefore is, that such children as these, that is the 
 children of his friends who believe in him, belong to 
 his kingdom, and are to he memhers of his visible 
 church, and to be with their parents numbered among 
 the redeemed." 
 
 " If children of visible believers are to be considered 
 as having a right to be visible members of the king- 
 dom of God and to be treated as such ; then they are 
 to be introduced to this visible standing in his church 
 and kingdom, by the only door which Christ has 
 fixed and opened for this, which is by being baptized 
 
DOCTRINE OF NEW-ENGLAND CHURCHES. 115 
 
 with water, in the name of the sacred Trinity, or be- 
 ing born of water." 
 
 " The christian institution, now under consideration, 
 is suited to have a salutary effect on the minds both 
 of parents and their children. Though under the 
 milder dispensation of the gospel, no one is to be put 
 to death for rejecting Christ and the gospel, even 
 though he were before this a member of the visible 
 church ; yet he is to be cut off, and cast out of the 
 visible kingdom of Christ. And every child in the 
 church, who grows up in disobedience to Christ, and 
 in this most important concern will not obey his 
 parents, is thus to be rejected and cut off, after all 
 proper means are used by his parents and the church 
 to reclaim him and bring him to his duty. Such an 
 event will be viewed by christian parents as worse 
 than death ; and is suited to be a constant, strong 
 motive, to concern, prayer and fidelity respecting 
 their children and their education ; and it tends to 
 have an equally desirable effect upon children ; and 
 must greatly impress the hearts of those who are in 
 any degree considerate and serious."* 
 
 These and similar sentiments are often repeated 
 and enforced in Mr. Hopkins' chapter on baptism. 
 He indeed goes so far as to affirm, " That real holi- 
 ness and salvation are secured to the children of be- 
 lievers, by the covenant into which the parents enter 
 with God, as it respects their children, if the parents 
 faithfully keep covenant, and fulfil what they profess 
 
 * Hopkins' System, Part. II, Chap. 5. 
 
116 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 and promise, respecting their children, when they offer 
 them in baptism." Without endorsing or controvert- 
 ing this opinion, it is sufficient, with the preceding 
 extracts, to show that Hopkins was a decided behever 
 in infant church-membership. 
 
 The opinions of Dr. Dwight on this subject next 
 deserve consideration. He was president of Yale Col- 
 lege when Hopkins' System was first published, and 
 lived till 1817. "it is objected further," says he,* 
 "in answer to the objections of Baptists, that all bap- 
 tized persons are by that class of Christians, to whom 
 I have attached myself, considered as members of the 
 church ; yet those who are baptized in infancy, are 
 not treated as if they possessed this character. Par- 
 ticularly, they are not admitted to the sacramental 
 supper ; nor made objects of ecclesiastical discipline. 
 
 " As this objection has, in my own view, a more 
 serious import, than any other which has been al- 
 letred, it deserves a particular consideration. 
 
 " In the first place, I acknowledge, without hesita- 
 tion, that the conduct of those, with whom I am in 
 immediate communion, and so far as I know them 
 their opinions also, with regard to this subject are in a 
 greater or less degree erroneous, and indefensible. 
 
 Many of the churches of this country, and many of 
 the ministers also, appear to me to have judged and 
 acted, with less accuracy, with less of scheme and 
 comprehensiveness, concerning this subject, than con- 
 cerning most others, I certainly do not intend to in- 
 lure either churches or ministers by this remark, and 
 
 * Dwight's Theology, Vol. 5, Sermon CLVII. 
 
DOCTRINE OF NEW-ENGLAND CHURCHES. 117 
 
 persuade myself that I do not. A considerable num- 
 ber of the ministers have expressed to me their own 
 dissatisfaction, with both the views and the practice, 
 of both themselves and their fellow Christians, with 
 respect to persons baptized in infancy. I am equally 
 dissatisfied with my oivn former views and practice re- 
 sjfecting this subject ; and readily admit that a part of 
 what is contained in this objection is justly chargea- 
 ble on many churches and many ministers who hold 
 the doctrine of infant baptism. But it lies against the 
 errors of men who adopt this doctrine, and not against 
 the doctrine itself 
 
 " That infants should be baptized and then be left 
 by ministers and churches in a situation undistinguish- 
 able from that of other children, appears to me irre- 
 concilable with any scriptural views of the nature and 
 importance of this sacrament." 
 
 Dr. Dwight believed in the church-membership of 
 baptized infants. " That they are members of the chris- 
 tian church, if lawfully baptized," says he, " I fully be- 
 lieve." But on one point connected with this subject, 
 this distinguished author seems to have drawn an unne- 
 cessary and injurious conclusion. For he adds, *' I con- 
 sider them members of the church general, but not of a 
 particular church." Without attempting to controvert 
 this sentiment, or establish its opposite, it is submitted 
 to the discerning whether it may not be a fact, that 
 while some children are members only of the church 
 general, baptized children most commonly are mem- 
 bers of particular churches also. Many persons were 
 anciently baptized, according to the New Testament, 
 
118 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 without uniting with any particular church, and some 
 in regions where no church had been organized. 
 Children in such, and many other circumstances which 
 might be named, would become members of the church 
 universal by baptism. But when parents are orderly 
 united to a particular church, what hinders tiieir chil- 
 dren from coming in with them? And what propriety 
 can there be in saying that they are members of the 
 church, and yet not of that particular church in which 
 perhaps they were born, in which they received the 
 initiatory ordinance, and to which their parents, and 
 they in them, seem properly to belong ? Upon any 
 other theory, how can they be subject to efficient su- 
 pervision. Is it not safe to say that — while all baptiz- 
 ed adults are members of the church general, and 
 most of them of some particular church also, — bap- 
 tized children in like manner, though all members of 
 the church universal, are yet most of them members 
 of some particular church also? 
 
 The last authority which 1 shall quote, sustaining 
 the doctrine of infant church-membership is Dr. Wor- 
 cester, a name whose recent memory is still fragrant 
 in all our churches. " The church," savs Worcester 
 in his discourses on the perpetuity of the covenant, 
 "remains the same," i. e. the same that it was under 
 the old dispensation, "and the covenant the same; the 
 relation of the children of the church is the same, and 
 the seal of the covenant, though varied in form, is 
 still of the same import, and of the same use, and to 
 be applied to the same subjects." 
 
DOCTRINE OF PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH. 119 
 
 Can it be longer questioned, in view of this full and 
 unbroken series of testimony, that infant church-mem- 
 bership is and ever has been till of late years the sen- 
 timent of our leading divines and one of the founda- 
 tion principles of the congregational churches of New- 
 England. 
 
 The whole presbyterian church of the United 
 States, as well as of the old world, maintains the same 
 doctrine. The Confession of Faith, as amended and 
 ratified by the General Assembly in 1821, defines the 
 visible church to " consist of all those throughout the 
 world, that profess the true religion, together with their 
 children, and is the kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ, 
 the house and family of God, out of which there is 
 no ordinary possibility of salvation." 
 
 The larger Catechism says, in answer to the ques- 
 tion, " What is baptism 1 " *^ Baptism is a sacrament 
 of the New Testament, wherein Christ hath ordained 
 the washing of water in the name of the Father, and 
 of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, to be the sign 
 and seal of ingrafting into himself, of remission of 
 sins by his blood, and regeneration by his Spirit, of 
 adoption and resurrection unto everlasting life ; and 
 whereby the parties baptized are solemnly admitted 
 into the visible church, and enter into an open and 
 professed engagement to be wholly and only the 
 Lord's." 
 
 In the Form of Government,* it is affirmed as fol- 
 lows : " The universal church consists of all those 
 
 * Chap. II, of the Chnrch. 
 
120 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 persons in every nation, together with their children, 
 who make profession of the holy religion of Christ 
 and of submission to his laws." " A particular church 
 consists of a number of professing Christians, \vith 
 their offspring, voluntarily associated together, for di- 
 vine worship, and godly living, agreeably to the holy 
 Scriptures, and submitting to a certain form of gov- 
 ernment." 
 
 The Book of Discipline says, " that all baptized 
 persons are members of the church, are under its 
 care, and subject to its government and discipline ; 
 and when they have arrived at years of discretion, 
 they are bound to perform all the duties of church- 
 members." 
 
 The Directory teaches on this subject : that " Chil- 
 dren horn ivithin the pale of the visible church and 
 dedicated to God in baptism, are under the inspection 
 and government of the church ; and are to be taught 
 to read, and repeat the catechism, the apostles' creed, 
 and the Lord's prayer. They are to be taught to 
 pray, to abhor sin, to fear God, and to obey the Lord 
 Jesus Christ. And when they come to years of 
 discretion, if they be free from scandal, appear sober 
 and steady, and to have sufficient knowledge to dis- 
 cern the Lord's body, they ought to be informed, it is 
 their duty and their privilege to come to the Lord's- 
 supper." 
 
 They are then to be examined as to their knowl- 
 edge and piety, and when prepared, in the judgment 
 of the eldership, for sealing ordinances, they are to 
 
DOCTRINE OF PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH. 121 
 
 be admitted to the privileges of Christians in full 
 communion. 
 
 It thus appears that the doctrine of infant church- 
 membership is no innovation, but, though it seems to 
 have been nearly lost sight of in our churches for 
 many years past, is yet, — with the exception of those 
 who deny infant baptism altogether, — the general 
 
 SENTIMENT OF THE NeW-EnGLAND CHURCHES, and 
 of THE CHRISTIAN WORLD. 
 
 U 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 THE PRECEDING PRINCIPLES APPLIED IN SEV- 
 ERAL ADDRESSES. 
 
 I. Address to Pastors, 
 
 The writer of these pages would not assume to 
 teach his fathers and brethren in the ministry. It 
 would be more congenial to his feelings, to sit at the 
 feet of many of them for instruction, on this and al- 
 most any other subject. He is certain, however, that 
 he advocates no new doctrines, while he attempts to 
 re-affirm one of the great principles of congregational- 
 ism, as held by the New-England fathers, and of 
 Christianity as taught by the Apostles, and maintain- 
 ed for substance by most denominations in the old 
 world and in the new. He confidently believes him- 
 self to have expressed no other sentiments than those 
 which have been generally held by the soundest theo- 
 logians among us. Nor can the number now be great 
 who will dissent from the fundamental principles 
 which have been examined. 
 
ADDRESS TO PASTORS. 123 
 
 It is confessed that the doctrine of infant church- 
 membership seems to have been nearly forgotten of 
 late years, and the ^practice which properly grows out 
 of it, to have fallen into almost universal neglect, in 
 our churches. Nor is it less certain, that the rite of 
 infant baptism has lost much of that sacredness in the 
 eyes of many, with which it used to be regarded by 
 congregational believers in Jesus. There are some 
 indeed, perhaps the majority among us, who still re- 
 joice greatly in God's everlasting covenant, and can 
 plead in faith for its promised blessings upon their in- 
 fant seed ; and there are others who from the power 
 of custom, or by way of privilege, can be easily in- 
 fluenced to make the baptismal consecration of their 
 children. But there are some too, — and is not the 
 number constantly increasing ? — who cannot see the 
 necessity, nor perceive the desirableness of this rite, 
 and having their minds confused respecting it, and 
 willing to avoid the trouble it occasions, are allowing 
 their children to grow up strangers to the covenant 
 of promise, and, in too many instances, without God 
 in the world. They approve of the congregational 
 principles and forms in most respects, and giving more 
 or less evidence of piety are admitted to our churches 
 upon a " half-way covenant " of modern invention. 
 They understand and appreciate the promise " I will 
 be thy God," but ^'the God of thy seed" they dis- 
 card or disconnect from the divinely appointed token 
 by which it is sealed and made sure to them. Several 
 reasons may have assisted to produce this departure 
 from the practice and faith of the fathers. Baptisti- 
 
124 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 cal opinions and usages ; democratic institutions di- 
 minishing reverence and individualizing the people, 
 making responsibilities and advantages personal rather 
 than social ; the spiritual philosophy of the times, 
 with a growing disrelish among protestants to ceremo- 
 nies and forms, putting to peril even the sacramental 
 ordinances which Christ himself appointed — these and 
 other causes have had their influence. But among 
 them all, none has been so disastrous as a general 
 forgetfulness of the relation which baptized children 
 hold to God and his church. If they are included 
 with their parents in the covenant of redemption, and 
 " baptism seals it unto them," then parents will feel 
 the importance of placing the appointed token upon 
 their offspring. But if infant baptism has scarcely an 
 intelligible meaning, or is considered a mere form of 
 consecration, and does not bring the children into 
 Christ's earthly kingdom, it will be difficult to make 
 even pious parents see its necessity. Nor can the 
 doctrine of infant baptism be pov/erfully defended 
 without that of infant church-membership upon which 
 it is properly based. And though no prophet, I de- 
 sire to record my firm conviction, that if the doctrine 
 of infant church-membership should be generally dis- 
 carded or kept out of sight — the practice of infant 
 baptism will eventually fall into greatly increased, if 
 not general neglect. There seems to be no solid 
 middle ground between old fashioned congregational- 
 ism which expresses the sentiment of the christian 
 world on the subject, and the usages of that de- 
 nomination who reject infant baptism altogether. 
 
ADDRESS TO PASTORS. 125 
 
 And Is there a question which member of this alter- 
 native we shall choose ? As congregationalists we 
 hold to the perpetuity of the Abrahamic covenant, 
 and to the superiority of the new dispensation in re- 
 spect to privileges over the old. Let us then be con- 
 sistent, and without idolizing the church on the one 
 hand, or treating it with desecration or indifference on 
 the other, let us recognise it as God's institution, 
 founded for the edification and salvation of his cove- 
 nant people, properly including all within its conse- 
 crated enclosures who have the baptismal mark of 
 discipleship upon them. 
 
 The exclusion of baptized children from a name 
 and a standing in the visible church, is most obviously 
 as far as it prevails among evangelical congregational- 
 ists, a very recent innovation. From the remarks of 
 Dr. Dwight, whose published works have been before 
 the world but a quarter of a century, and who is per- 
 sonally remembered by many of the fathers in the 
 ministry, it is evident, that the doctrine in question 
 was theoretically acknowledged in his day — for the 
 objection which he combats was founded upon the 
 acknowledgement ; while the practice and opinions of 
 many had become loose and erroneous on the subject. 
 Probably it is not — for how can it be ? — denied out- 
 right by many orthodox and thorough theologians, 
 even in our times. But the practical error of which 
 Dwight complains and which still exists to an increas- 
 ing and alarming degree deserves the prayerful con- 
 sideration of all who have been set over the house of 
 11* 
 
126 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 God. Perhaps the idea of discipline, as involving re- 
 straint and reprehension, might have been carried too 
 far by some of the early settlers of New-England. 
 But even if this be so, it is no reason why an aiFec- 
 tionate watch, direction, education of the children of 
 the church — as young but real members of it — as 
 lambs of the flock gathered with their parents into 
 the Saviour's fold — should be neglected. We should 
 give them at least, all the encouragement which 
 God's own everlasting covenant is intended to afford. 
 Nor need we conceal their true condition, with its 
 obligations and responsibilities, " though we are gen- 
 tle among them as a nurse cherisheth her children." 
 
 It is verily believed that if this principle of congre-^ 
 gationalism can once more be reduced to practice, — and 
 faithfulness in giving instruction, and in admitting 
 suitable candidates and no others to the Lord's table, 
 be not neglected — clergymen will be saved from much 
 of that agitation and anarchy which now mars their 
 labors — and from much of that grief, — in consequence 
 of the wandering of so many lambs from the fold, 
 attended as it is with general irregularity and disorder, 
 and not un frequently with the utter ruin of the chil- 
 dren — which has brought down so many good men to 
 premature graves. 
 
 Beloved brethren in the ministry, the time has 
 come for anxious inquiry, whether amidst distracting 
 influences, and multitudinous calls for service from 
 every quarter, the young of our flocks have received 
 that share of ministerial attention which the great 
 shepherd demands of those who have been especially 
 
ADDRESS TO PASTORS. 127 
 
 commissioned to feed his sheep, and feed his lambs. 
 There are many congregational clergymen who in the 
 discharge of this great duty, have not fallen behind the 
 very chiefest of the fathers. And if any of us have 
 exhausted our powers of labor upon the adult genera- 
 tion, rather than upon those who, though now com- 
 paratively insignificant, are yet silently receiving im- 
 pressions which in a few years will manifest them- 
 selves, for the renovation or destruction of the church, 
 we are not without our apology. Short and uncertain 
 settlements, multiplicity of meetings both at home and 
 abroad, exhausting preparatory study, and painstaking 
 to produce a succession of valuable if not great and 
 popular discourses, which the intelligence of our con- 
 gregations and the distraction of the times seem to 
 demand, constant solicitude arising from the unsettled 
 state of society, and that endless variety of isms 
 which have been coming in upon us and sweeping 
 over us like a flood, together with the unfortunate cus- 
 tom of estimating success almost entirely by imme- 
 diate and manifest results — these things have an in- 
 fluence in turning ofl" our minds from that numerous 
 class which, though not in a situation to assist just 
 now in opposing the waves of error and ungodUness, 
 will soon rise up in the places of their fathers to make 
 or destroy us. 
 
 It is not a question, whether men sinking already 
 under accumulated labors, shall take upon their shoul- 
 ders an additional load to crush them, but whether, if 
 any part of the ministerial burden can be lightened, 
 the care of the young is not the last to be thrown off? 
 
128 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 What is the purport of our great commission ? Most 
 of us have not been appointed as evangelists to go 
 into destitute settlements, and proselyte the inhabi- 
 tants, but while we aid to the extent of our ability in 
 bearing the gospel round the w^orld, and bringing it 
 home to every heart, it is some already existing church 
 over which the Holy Ghost hath made us overseers, 
 with the specific paramount duty to feed the sheep 
 and feed the lambs. 
 
 Valuable aid in this part of our work may be ob- 
 tained from the intelligent and pious laymen of the 
 church. Under pastoral supervision and co-operation 
 of the brotherhood, what a powerful engine of salu- 
 tary influence upon the next generation, is the exist- 
 ing Sabbath school ? Few ministers have the time, 
 especially on the Lord's-day, as religious services are 
 now conducted, to superintend its affairs. Nor is that 
 a reasonable spirit which requires that a minister 
 should engage earnestly in the duties of private cate- 
 chetical instruction, when the public teachings of the 
 sanctuary are summoning all his powers. But on the 
 other hand, we may keep up a constant supervisory 
 care of this institution. As a general of the army, as 
 masters of the ship, as invested with responsibilities 
 which we are under the oaths of office to meet, we 
 may not leave our appropriate duties entirely to 
 others. We have indeed brethren and sisters in our 
 churches, who would perhaps almost lay down their 
 lives for the children. For all their kindness of heart, 
 for their faithful teachings, for disinterested labors, it 
 becomes us to be grateful, and, availing ourselves of 
 
ADDRESS TO PASTORS. 129 
 
 all valuable assistance, we may be greatly encouraged 
 and aided in our work. But after all, the ultimate 
 responsibility of rightly directing the Sabbath school 
 comes back upon ourselves. Imposed upon us by the 
 calling of the Spirit, and the laying on of the hands 
 of the presbytery, we cannot throw it off. Until we 
 surrender our commission into the hands of the great 
 head of the church from whom we received it, we 
 must not only feed the sheep, but feed the lamhs. 
 
 It is an encourasino- circumstance that no labor 
 gives promise of such great ultimate results. It is the 
 present undergrowth which makes the future forest* 
 It is the culture of the nursery — the budding and 
 grafting of the tender shoots which determines the 
 prospective character of the orchard. A distinguished 
 statesman has said, as nearly as I can remember his 
 words, that the best data, on which to form a proph- 
 ecy of political events, ten years hence, is a knowl- 
 edge of the opinions of the rising generation. To this 
 it may be added, as a further developement of the 
 same truth, that the probable character of the church 
 fifteen or twenty-five years hence may now be discov- 
 ered, by a knowledge of our own sentiments and pur- 
 poses concerning the young. We form the minds, we 
 found the characters, we fix the principles, which are 
 destined under God to control the affairs of his king- 
 dom, during the coming age. And as these may have 
 a similar influence upon their own immediate de- 
 scendants, we become debtors not only unto children's 
 children, but to many generations. Nor need we be 
 discouraged by the smallness of our individual influ- 
 
130 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 ence, or the improbability of being an extensive bene- 
 fit to mankind. A little rivulet which rises and rip- 
 ples all unseen and alone in the wilderness of the far 
 north may become in the progress of its descent, the 
 largest river in the world. The smallest causes, 
 when faith and prayer, and energy are among them, 
 frequently produce in the providence of God, the 
 most important results. '' There is," says Milton, 
 *' as the apostle has remarked, a way to strength 
 through weakness." 
 
 It is not necessary for me to mark out any course 
 of pastoral instruction and care. They to whom 
 these thoughts are addressed, have wisdom sufficient 
 to be their own advisers. Let it be understood by 
 the baptized children, that they are all members of 
 the church ; that they are under the strongest obliga- 
 tions to acknowledge their baptismal vows ; that there 
 is a definite period assigned for decision, self-exami- 
 nation, and profession, viz. that in which they be- 
 come of age to act understandingly in the matter ; 
 that a good life, with evidence of regeneration and 
 faith are essentially pre-requisites to the Lord's-sup- 
 per ; and that the blessings of the covenant are ever 
 ready to descend upon them, and almost any course 
 of wise instruction will contribute to the desired 
 result. 
 
 II. Address to the Brotherhood of the Church, 
 
 Dear brethren and sisters in Christ, we have seen 
 something of the peculiar relation which the children 
 of professing Christians bear to the church. By our 
 
ADDRESS TO THE BROTHERHOOD. 131 
 
 terms of fellowship, as well as by the nature of the 
 case, we have peculiar duties towards them. Though 
 ministers have been appointed to take the supervision 
 of the flock, and are under the most solemn oaths of 
 office to be faithful ; this does not release the brother- 
 hood from obligation. The cause is yours as well as 
 theirs, for even ministers are '' your servants for 
 Christ's sake," chosen by yourselves, but commission- 
 ed by the Holy Ghost, to aid you and your children 
 in growing up together with them, — into a holy tem- 
 ple of the Lord. Grow then in grace and assist the 
 children to grow also. 
 
 1. By daily prayer to God for his blessing upon 
 them. Never forget this humble but not unimportant 
 portion of your number ; they are the hope of the 
 church, and if made the objects of your affectionate 
 and prayerful solicitude, will not disappoint your ex- 
 pectation. 
 
 2. By example. In this way the parent bird as- 
 sists her inexperienced young to fly. Nor can the 
 silent influence of a holy life, be other than most salu- 
 tary, as a constraining means of grace. 
 
 3. By conversation as you have opportunity ; not 
 being busybodies and intermeddlers even in the af- 
 fairs of children, but endeavoring at proper times, to 
 elevate, and enlighten their understanding, and, gently 
 fortifying their virtuous principles, make if possible 
 some healthful impression upon them all. 
 
 4. By instruction imparted, as occasion presents, 
 whether as teachers in a Sabbath school, or in any 
 other manner which propriety may direct. 
 
132 INFANT CHURCHtMEMBERSHIP. 
 
 It is the duty of the church, in connection with the 
 pastor, to make arrangements for the safety, the edu- 
 cation, the examination, and orderly reception of the 
 young, — when prepared, — to full communion. 
 
 According to principles already laid down, children 
 are to be admitted to the L#ord's table, whenever they 
 are old enough to comprehend the nature of repent- 
 ance and faith, and give evidence of true piety in 
 their lives. Let the church always be on her guard 
 to see that her young candidates for communion have 
 been qualified to receive the ordinance, by knowledge 
 and by a serious consecration of their hearts to God. 
 But at the same time we are not to look for full 
 grown Christians among those who are just entering 
 as mere babes in Christ into his school. In the lan- 
 guage of the Platform, " The weakest measure of 
 faith is to be accepted in those that desire to be ad- 
 mitted into the church, because weak Christians, if 
 sincere, have the substance of that faith, repentance 
 and holiness which is required in church-members ; 
 and such have most need of the ordinances for their 
 confirmation and growth in grace. The Lord Jesus 
 would not quench the smoking flax, nor break the 
 bruised reed, but gather the tender lambs in his arms 
 and carry them gently in his bosom. Such charity 
 and tenderness is to be used, as the weakest Christian 
 if sincere may not be excluded nor discouraged^ 
 Severity of examination is to be avoided." 
 
 As church-members you are, however, to share the 
 responsibiHties, with your pastors, of keeping the 
 doors of the church, and guarding its sacraments. 
 
ADDRESS TO THE BROTHERHOOD. 133 
 
 According to the congregational usage, though the 
 act of admission and exclusion is pastoral, yet no one 
 can be admitted nor excluded, without the previous 
 consent of the brotherhood. It is the duty of lay 
 members therefore to obtain satisfaction with regard to 
 the qualifications of all who are to be received into 
 their fellowship. Nor should the doors of the king- 
 dom ever be so widely opened, as to take in the 
 vicious, the unbelieving, the untaught in the simple 
 principles of Christianity, or those who give no evi- 
 dence of submission to God. But wherever the doc- 
 trines of faith, repentance, and obedience are under- 
 stood, and a serious desire of self-consecration is ex- 
 pressed, and the small beginnings of piety appear, and 
 there is no immorality, or " error subverting the foun- 
 dations " to oppose ; the church should say both to 
 children and adults, " Come in thou blessed of the 
 Lord." 
 
 With regard to the degree of manifest piety, which 
 is requisite to full communion, a simple rule may be 
 given. We have already intimated that there must 
 be repentance, faith, and affectionate obedience to 
 God. But as it is difficult to discern the real condi- 
 tion of the heart, we must form our opinion of chris- 
 tian character from the fruits of the Spirit, as signified 
 in the life. Moreover, as the boldest pretensions are 
 often but deceptive indications of grace, and as the 
 weakest piety is to be cherished as of inestimable 
 worth, it is reasonable to require such repentance of 
 sins as induces one to forsake them — such faith as 
 12 
 
134 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 enables the person to say sincerely, '' I receive Christ 
 as my complete and only Saviour " — such love to 
 Jesus as produces an acknowledged desire and evi- 
 dent endeavor to be like him. We cannot expect 
 that mere hahes in Christ, will understand all myste- 
 ries and all knowledge. If they can comprehend the 
 simplest principles of our religion, such truths as are 
 absolutely essential to salvation, and such as enables 
 them to participate intelligently in the sacraments, we 
 may hope that under proper instruction, they may 
 both grow in grace, and ascend gradually to the high 
 mysteries of revelation. 
 
 Nor does the duty of the church towards its chil- 
 dren terminate with their admission to the communion 
 table. They are still to be considered as weak in the 
 faith, as those who stand in need of the prayers, the 
 affectionate watch, and instruction of the older mem- 
 bers. Nor should this sweet and all constraining su- 
 pervision of christian love ever cease, till the rising 
 generation are called to take the place of their fathers, 
 in the discharge of similar obligations towards those 
 who are younger and weaker than themselves. 
 
 The modern Sabbath school is also naturally com- 
 mitted to the guardianship of the church. No agent 
 or association from abroad, no society or combination 
 of individuals at home, however wise, however pious, 
 however valuable as aids in the great work of educat- 
 ing the young, can so sustain the Sabbath school, as 
 to relieve the church from responsibility. The insti- 
 tution is theirs. They, in connection with the pastor, 
 are to appoint its officers and arrange its exercises, 
 
ADDRESS TO THE BROTHERHOOD. l3o 
 
 selecting from among themselves their wisest and best 
 members to superintend its affairs, and give faithful 
 weekly instruction to every child. 
 
 Beloved brethren in Christ, is there not wonderful 
 beauty and mercy in the institutions of our Lord ? 
 He iiathers out of the world a great multitude of 
 young but immortal souls, and on account of parental 
 faith and covenant he marks them for his own. As 
 you select some orphan, because of its relation to aa 
 old but deceased friend — or as you rescue some poor 
 outcast child from the sins and miseries of abject want, 
 and adopt it as your own, making yourself responsible 
 for its education, giving it a chance for respectability 
 among men, so God receives a great multitude of lit- 
 tle ones into his palaces, requiring his servants to 
 cherish and bring them up for him. From the day of 
 their baptism, the robes of the church, the livery of 
 Immanuel, the badges of discipleship are upon them. 
 They are a consecrated class, a peculiar people, and 
 though not necessarily new creatures in Christ Jesus, 
 are yet candidates, by divine appointment, for regen- 
 erating grace. Born of water, dedicated in faith, we 
 may reasonably expect that unless their education 
 should be neglected, or they should wilfully, like 
 Esau, sell their birthright, they will at an early age 
 give evidence of having been born of the spirit also. 
 
 How interesting then the baptismal service ! What 
 is it but the opening of heaven's gate, and the visible 
 recovery and admission of a wandering soul ? O what 
 encouragement for prayer that the heart, all unsancti- 
 fied by nature, may soon, yea now, receive that spirit- 
 
136 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 ual baptism which is represented by the outward rite, 
 and which both in parent and in child is indispensable 
 to fellowship with saints in heaven. 
 
 When some little one is solemnly introduced into 
 the kingdom of Jesus, when some sweet unconscious 
 babe is publicly consecrated to its parents' God — let 
 your hearts arise in silent holy strains of praise. Let 
 the church stretch forth her affectionate arms and take 
 the precious trust to her bosom. Let the offering be 
 presented to the great Shepherd, saying. Lord take 
 this little lamb, which we, through thy giace, have 
 snatched from the old roaring lion's mouth ; and set 
 thy mark upon it, while we solemnly covenant to 
 nourish and bring it up for thee. Then by faith you 
 may behold the heavens opening from above — the 
 Son of God descending and laying his holy hands 
 upon the child, and imparting his blessing. From 
 this time forth the baptized babe is to be recognised 
 as a child of the covenant — signed and sealed by the 
 Saviour — ordered in all things and sure. Unless such 
 children should be afterward rejected through unbe- 
 lief, the blessings of the God of their fathers will be 
 upon them, renewing, sanctifying, saving, and receiv- 
 ing them into glory — for faithful is he that hath pro- 
 mised. " I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall 
 be for a token of a covenant between me and the 
 earth. And it shall come to pass, when I bring a 
 cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in 
 the cloud ; — and I will look upon it, that I may re- 
 member the everlasting covenant between God and 
 every living creature of all flesh." Like that beau- 
 
ADDRESS TO PARENTS. 137 
 
 teous arch which spans the cloud, coming forth as a 
 bright remembrancer before the throne of God, and 
 amidst thunder, darkness and storm, speaking peace 
 and safety to man, so the church, amidst the foUies 
 and wanderings of her children, the temptations and 
 dangers which surround both herself and them — 
 
 —Surveys her covenant sign, and smiles. 
 
 " For this is as the waters of Noah unto me ; for as 
 I have sworn the waters shall no more go over the 
 earth, so have I sworn that I would not be wroth, 
 with thee." 
 
 III. Address to Parents who are Professors, 
 
 See here, my friends, the tenderness of Christ. 
 Receiving you into covenant, for your sakes, he re- 
 ceives your children also. They are the objects of 
 his peculiar watch ; " their angels do • always behold 
 your Father in heaven." Look upon them as mark- 
 ed, and consecrated to God. Educate them for the 
 Saviour's service, more than for worldly advantage ; 
 according to the principles of our religion, rather than 
 in the maxims and customs of this present evil world. 
 Follow them wherever they go with • your prayers ; 
 carry them every day in the arms of parental love to 
 the cross ; plead for their salvation as children of the 
 everlasting covenant; expect, watch for their conver- 
 sion ; and when you discover the buds of grace upon 
 them, encourage them — by a public profession of their 
 12* 
 
138 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 faith, and acknowledgement of their baptism, — to 
 come to the table of the Lord. 
 
 Let no parent suppose that he may safely delay all 
 personal inquiry into the spiritual state of his children, 
 till they get courage to come forward and boldly ask 
 the way to heaven. Remember what is said, " Ye 
 have not chosen me, but I have chosen you." So in 
 like manner, if we have hope in Christ, we should be 
 beforehand with our children, in seeking their eternal 
 salvation. We stand as their sponsors, having taken 
 upon ourselves the most solemn vows, that, as far as 
 in us lies, they shall be nurtured in the faith of our 
 Lord, and induced at an early age to make a sincere 
 and intelligent profession of their allegiance to him. 
 We can hardly expect that a timid child, naturally 
 reserved on all such subjects, and by little irregulari- 
 ties exposing himself to reproof almost every day — 
 should get courage to acknowledge himself, without 
 being questioned, an earnest seeker after Christ. 
 There have been children, and some of them very 
 young, who would have given worlds if they had pos- 
 sessed them, for confidence, for moral ability — to have 
 unbosomed a soul, full of darkness, conflicts, and dis- 
 tresses, for parental counsel. And although the heart 
 was beating with desire to throw off its burden, and 
 many a tear was shed in secret — nothing but the 
 strictest confidence, the most delicate respect for sa- 
 cred feelings — nothing but the raost favorable occa- 
 sion, nay, almost necessity, could have brought the 
 long concealed emotions into view. The experiences 
 of a soul when " heaven lays all around " it, or when 
 
ADDRESS TO PARENTS. 139 
 
 spiritual darkness shuts the light from its longing 
 vision, are not for vulgar gaze. They must be gently- 
 drawn forth by a wise and pious mind, who will treat 
 them, though they be the feelings of a child, with the 
 utmost tenderness and respect. Let the parent then 
 watch for favoring occasions. Coming down from the 
 mount of communion, and seeing the cloud of the 
 Highest overshadowing his child, let him with gentle- 
 ness and awe, but wiih naturalness and familiarity, 
 call forth his most hidden, most sacred emotions. 
 
 If there are no indications of early faith or anxious 
 seeking after God, let not the parent in covenant de- 
 spair of success, or neglect an}^ suitable opportunity, 
 of winning the wayward spirit to Christ. Perhaps in 
 some unexpected hour, a mother's sigh, a father's 
 prayer, may breathe over the youthful soul, like the 
 wind through a harp, and be made the means of 
 waking music on its strings, and bringing forth sweet 
 tones of heaven. 
 
 Be this as it may — let no parent grow weary of 
 watching, praying, seeking for the germ of faith. 
 And when all has been done by instruction and coun- 
 sel, which good judgment will allow, let the parental 
 influence be always like that of some guardian angel 
 spirit which is ever hovering near, and even though 
 unseen, sheds heavenly fragrance from its wings. 
 
 If any of you, beloved friends, have infants unhajj- 
 tized, beware of unnecessary delay in bringing them 
 to the baptismal font. We must not even seem to de- 
 spise the covenant, and expose our little ones to peril, 
 by such neglect. Remember we have no option on 
 
140 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 this subject. God not only permits, he requires us to 
 set his mark upon our babes. In that charter of 
 spiritual rights which he gave to Abraham, the father 
 of believers, amidst all the blessings promised, he has 
 uttered one terrific voice of warning. If a parent re- 
 fuse or neglect to circumcise his child, such child shall 
 be cut off from God's people ; " he has broken/' says 
 he, " my covenant.'^ Baptism has taken the place of 
 circumcision. If you neglect to offer your infants for 
 baptism, without sufficient reason for delay, you deny 
 them their birthright and hazard the displeasure of 
 him who sometimes mysteriously " visits the iniquities 
 of the fathers upon the children." I know not what 
 allowance may be made for ignorance, or unintentional 
 mistake — but when duty is made clear, it cannot be 
 neglected with impunity. 
 
 With impunity did I say, will you deny to yourself 
 and to your offspring such a privilege ? You have 
 been the occasion of their existence. By your means 
 they have entered upon a course of unending happi- 
 ness or distress. Their immortal spirits will outlast 
 the sun ; co-eternal with the eternity of God, they 
 can never cease to be. That great and good Being 
 who breathed into their nostrils the breath of life has 
 proposed to take them with yourselves under his pe- 
 culiar protection. In pursuance of this benevolent 
 design, and as an indication of your faith in his cove- 
 nant, he has given you the baptismal token. As the 
 sign of blood upon the door-posts of ancient Israel, 
 was a safeguard from the angel of death, on that awful 
 night of slaughter, when all the first-born of Egypt 
 
ADDRESS TO PARENTS. 141 
 
 perished, so the name of the Father and of the Son 
 and of the Holy Spirit, with the emblem of that sanc- 
 tification which secures fellowship with God, is a sign 
 of infinite mercy, and protection from the destroyer. 
 But, as even in favored Goshen, no master of the 
 family might expect the preservation of his household, 
 unless, as commanded, he had gathered them home, 
 and sheltered them beneath that holy sign, so we may 
 never expect the blessings of the covenant upon any, 
 by whom the toJcen of the covenant is rejected. Look 
 then upon the face of that unoffending child. Re- 
 ceive its daily caresses, as daily remembrancers of its 
 uncovenanted exposure, and its claim, by birthright, 
 for blessings thus far unreasonably denied. Weep 
 mothers, weep ! that while you yourselves have en- 
 tered the fold, your little helpless ones, justly entitled 
 to the Shepherd's care, have been left, by your negli- 
 gence, without. Go gather them in from the world 
 and brinof them to Jesus. Present them before the 
 baptismal font — 
 
 A few calm words of faith and prayer, 
 
 A few bright drops of holy dew, 
 Shall work a wonder there, 
 
 Earth's charmers never knew. 
 
 Perhaps some parents, receiving new views of the 
 importance of baptism, may now begin to be perplex- 
 ed with fear, that while their children have been cere- 
 monially given up to God, there was a failure on their 
 part, of that faith which is necessary to make the of- 
 fering acceptable. You do well to institute that soul- 
 searching inquiry. For how can we expect the bles- 
 
142 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 sings of a covenant which in fact we never made ? 
 I will suppose then that you presented your children 
 for baptism, in ignorance and thoughtlessness of the 
 solemn duty in which you was called to engage — and 
 that, considering it a mere naming ceremony, or gen- 
 teel Sabbath-day service, you have since experienced 
 from it no other reward. In remembrance of your 
 deficiency you do well to mourn. And if calamities 
 have befallen you, especially if these baptized ones 
 have been sources of anxiety or of grief, it will be 
 right to inquire, if it is not for this very neglect, that 
 God has a controversy with your house. Be this as 
 it may, a broken and a contrite spirit, even at this late 
 hour, is in the sight of God of great price. It may 
 not be possible, it certainly is not necessary, that you 
 should offer your children a second time for baptism. 
 They have already been introduced into the church, 
 and unless first excluded, cannot properly be admitted 
 again. What then is the remedy for this past defect 
 of faith ? It is found in the words of inspiration, 
 *' Repent and do thy first work." The outward act 
 was sufficient, and should not be repeated, but the in- 
 ward emotions were at fault. Let me entreat you 
 then to enter into som.e secret place and mourn, com- 
 mune with thine own ingathered spirit, and amidst the 
 multitude of its penitential thoughts, consecrate thy 
 children by earnest prayer to God, exercising that 
 faith in reference to their baptism, which ought to 
 have been experienced when it was administered. 
 
 You have a further duty towards those whom you 
 once offered to Christ. It is to inform them distinctly 
 
ADDRESS TO PARENTS. 143 
 
 that the seal of God's covenant has been placed upon 
 them, and that they are under the highest obligations to 
 make acknowledgement of it. By private but earnest 
 prayer, by a more formal consecration of the family at 
 the domestic altar, if you are a householder ; by giv- 
 ing such instruction as circumstances will allow, you 
 are now prepared to lay hold by faith upon the cove- 
 nant, and appropriate through grace the blessings it 
 secures. 
 
 Nor is it necessary, let me repeat, to perform the 
 outward ceremony again. God's own appointed mark 
 is already upon your children. He has made the 
 covenant, and signed and sealed it, according to his 
 custom. Whenever it is recognised as his covenant 
 by you, and accepted in your heart and prayers with 
 an appropriating faith, then it becomes good, to all 
 the intents and purposes for which it was given. 
 Suppose that the baptismal token, instead of water 
 had been an image of the cross, visibly and indelli- 
 bly imprinted upon the forehead. The impress would 
 be the same, however great the strength or deficiency 
 of faith. It would ever stand forth, as an assurance 
 of peculiar covenant love, to all who possess corres- 
 ponding qualifications. So long as you are without 
 these, the agreement is incomplete. But the moment 
 you possess them the covenant becomes sure. Thus 
 in the case of baptized children, whose parents pre- 
 sented them without faith. Nothing more, by way of 
 visible sign, can be wanting on the part of God. His 
 token has been placed upon the children. Accept it, 
 
144 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 ye fathers and mothers, by strong appropriating faith, 
 and it can never be disannulled. 
 
 It is safe and becoming in all parents frequently to 
 renew the baptismal vow, both secretly and in pre- 
 sence of their household. Again and again, you 
 should dedicate these objects of your love with your- 
 selves to God — again and again recognise in their pre- 
 sence, both your own covenant obligations and their 
 corresponding duties. In seasons of trial, when they 
 wilt in your arms, under the power of disease — in 
 times of discouragement, when you see them assailed 
 by temptations and ready to give way ; when, through 
 forgetfulness of their parents' God, they have come to 
 lay like a heavy burden upon your heart, what more 
 natural, as a means of relief, than retirement, self- 
 humiliation and prayer ; renew the covenant and plead 
 the promises — and as you rise from your knees, lo ! 
 the bright baptismal bow stands forth upon the melan- 
 choly cloud which overhung your spirit. '' For the 
 mountains shall depart and the hills be removed, but 
 my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall 
 the covenant of my peace be removed, saith the Lord 
 that hath mercy on thee." 
 
 IV. Address to (he Baptized. 
 
 This subject demands the attention of all the bap- 
 tized. In the first place, of those baptized persons 
 who are themselves professors. " You have come 
 under solemn obligations from which you can never 
 escape." Whether you were consecrated to God by 
 
ADDRESS TO THE BAPTIZED. 145 
 
 your parents, and have since assumed the baptismal 
 promises, by your own personal act, or whether you 
 were admitted to the church on profession of your 
 faith, you were introduced by the rite of water bap- 
 tism, and being now members in full communion, you 
 are accountable for a right discharge of all the duties, 
 — and performing your part of the engagement, are 
 entitled through grace to all the blessings of a person 
 in full covenant with God. I repeat the solemn words, 
 in full covenant with God. He who descended in 
 awful majesty on Sinai, — He who appeared in the 
 gentle form of Bethlehem's infant King, — He before 
 whose unapproachable light the ancient seraphim con- 
 tinually cry, holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Al- 
 mighty, — He who in the person of crucified Imman- 
 uel, his only begotten son, is ever saying to the peni- 
 tent, be of good cheer thy sins are forgiven thee, — 
 .He whose treasures of goodness are an unfathomed 
 deep, and whose mercy endureth forever, — He has 
 entered into an everlasting covenant with you. His 
 promises are yea and amen, imperishable as his throne, 
 and no tongue can tell the blessings which, even when 
 ages on ages on ages shall have travelled by, his friend- 
 ship shall continue to secure. With this Being, your 
 God, you have entered into an engagement of allegi- 
 ance, obedience, confidence and love. By the bap- 
 tismal act, you was solemnly introduced into his 
 church, his temple, his name, his mysterious triune 
 being. Born of water, if you have also been born of 
 the spirit, then have you entered into the invisible as 
 13 
 
146 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 well as the external kingdom of God. You have come 
 into his communion, his fellowship. You live beneath 
 the glorious cloud of his overshadowing deity. Patri- 
 archs, and priests of the inner temple, prophets and 
 apostles, holy confessors, and many a myriad of star- 
 crowned saints, whose "names" unknown on earth, 
 " are written in heaven," are but fellow-citizens with 
 you in the great household of faith. O, ye believers 
 in Jesus, introduced by baptism into the presence, into 
 the NAME of the Father, Son, and Spirit, called to an 
 endless progress in holiness, to ascend forever, mansion 
 above mansion in glory, what manner of persons ought 
 ye to be ? " Hold fast that which thou hast, that no 
 man take thy crown." The conflicts of life will soon 
 be over, its sorrows and sins will discomfit no more ; 
 and the sanctified spirit, realizing all that was em- 
 blemed by the cleansing water, shall stand forth in 
 the white baptismal robe of a Saviour's righteousness, 
 to go no more out of his presence forever. 
 
 2. I would address a few words to all baptized 
 persons who are not professors of religion, especially 
 those of whatever age, who are capable of under- 
 standing the nature, and taking upon themselves the ob- 
 ligations of that covenant under which they are placed. 
 
 Beloved friends, partakers of the heavenly calling, 
 you have been consecrated and set apart for God ; 
 and, on account of a parents' faith, the shadow of Al- 
 mighty protection has been over you to this day. 
 You are strictly members of the church — and heirs of 
 the promises. Before you were old enough to act for 
 yourselves, you were solemnly introduced by your pa- 
 
ADDRESS TO THE BAPTIZED. 147 
 
 rents, as lambs of the same flock with themselves. 
 The Shepherd of Israel received you into his fold — 
 promising to be your God, during all your earlier 
 years — and ever after — jjrovided, that when you come 
 to an understanding age, you would assume your pa- 
 rents' vows as your own. To make the covenant 
 sure, and to assist the eye of faith by that of sense, he 
 set his own mark upon you. That mark or sign of 
 the covenant is baptism. As a sign, it represents the 
 necessity of spiritual cleansing. In other words, it 
 signifies that as water cleanses the body, so you, so 
 all, must be cleansed in spirit, before you can be ad- 
 mitted to the kingdom of heaven. This peculiar 
 mark of God was placed upon you, by his appoint- 
 ment. It was not done by your own act, nor by the 
 act of your parents who brought you in their arms to 
 the altar. It was done by the act of God. A human 
 hand indeed sprinkled the consecrated drops upon your 
 brow. But man though solemnly set apart by ordi- 
 nation vows, has no power or sacredness of his own. 
 He acts only as the agent, as the servant of God, who 
 has required him to place the seal of the covenant 
 upon the children of the covenant. God then, who 
 has a right to all, has designated you for himself. He 
 has said to the parents and to the church, " take this 
 child and bring it up for me, and I will be its God." 
 By this same baptismal act, the parents promised in 
 your name, that to the extent of their ability, you 
 should renounce the vanities of the world and the lusts 
 of the flesh, and live a Christian life. Every thins; 
 was done for your salvation, except what necessarily 
 
148 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 depends on yourself. It only remains, that having 
 arrived at an understanding age, you now subscribe 
 with your own hand and heart, to the terms of this holy 
 covenant. Waiting for this your act, to which you 
 are bound by all that is sacred in parental and re- 
 deeming love, God has fulfilled his part of the prom- 
 ise, and has been your God thus far — preserving you 
 alive, and surrounding you with the restraining influ- 
 ences of his grace, and often reminding you, by a still 
 voice in the soul, that you are not your own. What 
 mean those stirrinofs of conscience — those occasional 
 meltings of heart — those secret impulses towards re- 
 pentance and towards God which you sometimes feel ? 
 What are they but the movements of his spirit, given 
 according to the baptismal covenant, and inciting you 
 to consecrate yourself to the God of your fathers ! 
 
 Let me ask then, how have you fulfilled, on your 
 part, the baptismal vow ? You are of an age to act 
 for yourself. Have you chosen or renounced your pa- 
 rents' God — the God who received you in early child- 
 hood beneath the bright expanse of his all-surrounding 
 covenant ? Perhaps you have never before realized 
 that you are, strictly speaking, a member of the church 
 — that you ought to show forth in your conduct the 
 signs of renewing grace. Examine yourselves. Do 
 you hate sin ? Do you " delight in the law of the 
 Lord after the inward man ?" Do you exercise a 
 transforming faith in Jesus Christ? Do you hold 
 communion with your heavenly father? Do you 
 strive to keep all his commandments ? You ought 
 then to make a public profession of your faith I By 
 
ADDRESS TO THE BAPTIZED. 149 
 
 solemnly avouching the Lord Jehovah to be your 
 God, in the presence of the congregation, you ought 
 to acknowledge the baptismal act of your parents to 
 be your own. Inquire not so much after the day or 
 the year of your spiritual birth, as for the evidences of 
 spiritual life. It may be that years ago the spirit of 
 God, in remembrance of this his everlasting covenant, 
 planted the seeds of grace in your heart. It may be 
 that in answer to parental prayers, ever flocking 
 around the throne of God, divine influences have been 
 descending, gently and unseen as the dew upon you — 
 and that on some favored season of unusual meltings 
 of soul, you may have begun to exercise a living faith. 
 If you have in your own experience the evidences of 
 a renewed heart, no longer delay to assume your bap- 
 tismal obligations, and acknowledge the faithfulness 
 of God in what he has done for your soul. 
 
 But if, alas, after all your privileges, you are a con- 
 scious stranger to that peace of God which passeth all 
 understanding, O then, let me expostulate with you, 
 on the exceeding ingratitude and sinfulness of your 
 course. By the rite of baptism you have been ad- 
 mitted to the church. The emblem of sanctification, 
 God's own appointed token, was placed upon your 
 brow. Perhaps at that awful moment a parent's heart 
 was beating high with liope and prayer— perhaps a 
 mother's tear mingled with the crystal drops, and 
 coursed down your unconscious cheek — perhaps some 
 guardian angel was appointed to watch over your err- 
 ing steps, and keep you, if possible, within the safe 
 enclosures of covenant love. What mean ye, O 
 13* 
 
150 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 thoughtless ones, that with guilty feet ye have strayed 
 far away from the fold ? Parental love cries after 
 you, perhaps from the skies, "know thou, O my 
 child, the God of thy fathers and serve him with a 
 perfect heart !" God's seal is set upon you — there it 
 has been, through all the storms of passion, and all 
 the sinful wanderings of an unregenerate mind ! When 
 you mingled in the worldling's revelry — in all the 
 days of prayer restrained and holy fear cast by — 
 through every scene of reckless sin or more decent 
 impenitence, the imprint of his covenant has never 
 been effaced. The impure but baptized child — 
 though now perhaps a man of numerous years, still 
 wears the holy mark. There it rests upon his dishon- 
 ored brow — and shines alone when all around is dark. 
 And there it will forever rest, pointing out the bap- 
 tized sinner as a spirit of no ordinary guilt, in the 
 realms of woe. 
 
 O friends, children of the church, whether young 
 or advanced in years, let me entreat you, in the name 
 of parents offering you to God, in the name of that 
 Shepherd who gave his life a ransom for the sheep, 
 despise no more his holy covenant ; return to the fold 
 from which you have wandered, and henceforth follow 
 in the footsteps of the flock. 
 
 3. There is yet one class among you whose position 
 is peculiarly responsible. I refer to baptized non-pro- 
 fessors who are the parents of unbaptized children. 
 It is yours to interrupt or perpetuate the flow of cov- 
 enant blessings. They have descended in silvery 
 waves from the Abrahamic fountain. Siloa's brook, 
 
ADDRESS TO THE BAPTIZED. 151 
 
 in its long meanderings, has found its way around 
 your dwelling, fertilizing the fields, and supplying 
 healthful waters for all the house. But by your own 
 negligence there is a gathering obstruction in the 
 stream, which if not soon removed, will change the 
 course of this sacred channel, and leave that beautiful 
 patrimony, which ought to descend in all its freshness 
 to your children's children, as an unwatered heath. 
 Will posterity call you blessed ? Can we venerate 
 and love the memory of an ancestor who negligently 
 squandered the estate which came to him with princely 
 privileges from his fathers, and which he was bound, 
 by natural affection and by oath, to transmit unim- 
 paired to his descendants ? Is there not cruelty be- 
 yond what is common among men to deny to our own 
 posterity, through thoughtlessness and sin, a name reg- 
 istered in the book of life ? 
 
 You my friends are in covenant with God. They 
 who taught your infant lips to say, our Father who 
 art in heaven, have committed to your trust a pearl of 
 great price, received from the skies, for themselves and 
 for all their descendants. I know not whether the 
 arms which brought you to the baptismal altar are yet 
 cold in death — or whether tears are still coursing along 
 the furrows of that cheek which wasted its youthful 
 bloom for you — but this I know, it is ingratitude, deep, 
 dark, I had almost said damning ingratitude, to throw 
 away, to tread under foot the everlasting covenant of 
 God, and deny this greatest of all blessings which 
 your fathers left you to your children. Seriously 
 consider, solemnly ponder, the dread responsibilities 
 
152 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 under which you are placed. Remember the God of 
 your parents — and secure without delay his overshad- 
 owing covenant for your children. 
 
 There is one more topic which in this connection 
 will be briefly discussed. Such is the importance of 
 baptism — that some may anxiously inquire, have I 
 been so baptized, as to be recognised by the Head of 
 the church as a member of his visible kingdom ? Were 
 my parents properly entitled to the privilege? Did 
 they present the offering with acceptable faith ? Was 
 the ordinance administered by an authorized person? 
 Was the church that received me a true church of 
 Jesus Christ ? Is my baptism certainly valid without 
 repetition ? 
 
 In answer to these questions which have occasioned 
 distress in many minds, it should be observed, that if 
 the ceremonial validity of baptism is to depend upon 
 the complete qualification of all the persons engaged 
 in its administration, no individual could ever be cer- 
 tain that he had been properly baptized. W^e must 
 look then for some different principle by which to 
 solve the difficulty in question. If there was default 
 in the administration of the ordinance, the sin must 
 come upon the defaulters. If there was sacrilege, 
 they are accountable for it. But the validity of the 
 act, as respects the baptized person, is not destroyed. 
 God's mark may have been placed upon you by un- 
 authorized hands. But still his mark is upon you. 
 You was baptized not into the deficiencies of men, not 
 into the errors of any particular church, but into the 
 church which is God's temple, into the name of 
 
ADDRESS TO THE BAPTIZED. 153 
 
 the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. 
 Whether lawfully or unlawfully, you have been ad- 
 mitted, — you are a member of the church, already 
 within its inclosures, with the badge of discipleship 
 upon you. Now if any person has performed this 
 act, without authority, on his own head be the sin. 
 As in the case of marriage, illegality in the ceremony, 
 while it exposes the violation of law to punishment, 
 does not impair the marriage contract. 
 
 Further ; all that was essential to you personally 
 in the ceremony has been performed. You have been 
 visibly consecrated to God, by the application of the 
 appointed emblem, and according to the prescribed 
 baptismal formula. Your personal acceptance of all 
 the obligations and privileges implied in this rite, 
 makes it good henceforth, whatever it may have been 
 heretofore. Be the deed more or less imperfect, as 
 respects the original signing, it becomes valid v/hen 
 you put your name to it. The seals of the instrument 
 are well enough, whoever may have put them on ; 
 the name, or your own spiritual reception of God's 
 covenant, is all that is wanted. Your case, to make 
 the worst of it, resembles that of some heathen child 
 among the ancient Canaanites or Moabites, whose pa- 
 rents, without authority or faith, performed upon him 
 the rite of circumcision, but who being afterwards con- 
 verted to Judaism, desires the privileges which belong 
 to the worshippers of Israel's God. He need not, of 
 course from the nature of the ceremony he cannot, be 
 circumcised again. The token of God is upon him, 
 let him now, by his own profession of faith, acknowl- 
 
154 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 edge it, as God's token, bringing him under the re- 
 sponsibihties and blessings of the covenant, and he 
 will be received, unquestionably, as " an Israehte in- 
 deed." 
 
 Let no one infer from these remarks that informality 
 and negligence, and the want of right views and feel- 
 ings, in the administration of baptism, is deemed of 
 inconsiderable importance. How much more satisfac- 
 tory to all concerned, how much greater the probabil- 
 ity of securing divine favor, and of obtaining a fnfil- 
 ment of all the great and precious promises implied 
 in this rite, when the ofFerino- is made accordino; to the 
 divine appointment, and with true faith on the part of 
 pastor, parents and the church. 
 
 Present your babes before the altar, ye fathers and 
 mothers in covenant, after private meditation, humilia- 
 tion and prayer. Come to the temple with holy com- 
 munings and faith, and lay the child, as the cleansing 
 emblem falls upon it, into the bosom of your God. 
 
 Let silence pervade the sanctuary, while the house 
 is filled with the Unseen, making " the place of his 
 feet glorious." 
 
 Let the church bow reverently, with serious renewal 
 of her covenants, while mercy throws open the portals 
 of the kino;dom, to gather in another of the lost. 
 
 O that God's ambassadors, as with uplifted eyes 
 and heart and dripping hand, they say, I baptize 
 thee into the name of the Father, and of the Son, and 
 of the Holy Ghost, might ever see the heavens open- 
 ed, and the spirit of God descending hke a dove and 
 lighting upon the children. And as the prayer goes 
 
ADDRESS TO THE UNBAPTIZED. 155 
 
 on, " ratify in heaven what has now been done upon 
 earth ; let what is signified by water-baptism be 
 reahzed in this and all its subjects," O that the power 
 of the Highest might come upon the congregation, and 
 the Holy Spirit overshadow the children of the church, 
 while faith whispers in every heart, " 1 have blotted 
 out as a thick cloud thy transgressions, and as a 
 cloud thy sins ; return unto me, for I have redeemed 
 thee." 
 
 V. Address to the Unbaptized, 
 
 To you, my friends, the ordinance of baptism has 
 never been administered, either on account of your 
 own faith or that of your parents. Christian faithful- 
 ness forbids concealment of your true condition. You 
 lie at the uncovenanted mercy of God justly dis- 
 pleased with the world, on account of sin. But I will 
 explain. 
 
 The scriptures fully teach the fall of man, and the con- 
 sequent sinfulness and ruin of the human race. In the 
 progress of ancient society, evil increased continually, 
 and filled the earth with violence. There was indeed 
 a gentle whisper of hope, addressed to attentive peni- 
 tence, but it came upon those wicked generations 
 before the deluge, like the first faint ray of morning 
 twilight upon a night of storms. Here and there a 
 solitary individual, like Enoch the seventh from Adam, 
 who was a preacher of righteousness and walked with 
 God, observed the heavenly harbinger, hailed it in 
 faith and rejoiced. But mankind, generally, almost 
 
156 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 entirely, became so corrupt, that He who created 
 them, could not bear tliem m his sight. He swept 
 them from the face of the earth by the flood. 
 
 With one good man and his family, miraculously 
 preserved, God entered into a covenant, that he would 
 no more destroy the earth after this manner, "though," 
 said he, " man be evil from his youth." In the midst 
 of these mighty works, humanity was put upon its 
 second trial. A few generations passed away, and 
 the, descendants of godly Noah had become nearly as 
 vile as their antediluvian progenitors. But instead of 
 destroying them a second time, God was pleased to 
 leave them to their own way, that they might be filled 
 with their own devices. 
 
 In this condition of things, he called Abraham out 
 of a land of idolaters, into the country which was af- 
 terwards possessed by his descendants ; and in con- 
 nection with the great faith and holiness of this indi- 
 vidual, having prepared his mind for it, he gave him 
 some intimations of infinite good in store for mankind, 
 and in his person laid the foundations of the church. 
 He entered into a covenant with him, for himself and 
 his posterity, saying, " in thee also shall all the na- 
 tions of the earth be blessed." He gave him the rite 
 of circumcision to assist the believer's faith, and per- 
 petuate religion in the world. As a sign, it repre- 
 sented the necessity of spiritual cleansing in order to 
 acceptance with God ; as a seal, it gave assurance of 
 mercy and blessings to all who should exercise faith. 
 
 This was the origin of the church. From these 
 small beginnings, made almost three thousand years 
 
ADDRESS TO THE UNBAPTIZED. 157 
 
 ago, It gradually increased, till in process of time, after 
 a long period of darkness, distresses and deliverances 
 the posterity of Abraham, having become like the 
 stars for multitude, had overspread and possessed the 
 holy land ; called holy because inhabited by a people 
 in covenant with God. 
 
 This nation, after its deliverance out of Egypt, and 
 organization under Moses, became the peculiar dwell- 
 ing-place of the Most High. It was called "the con- 
 gregation of the Lord," and in the dying speech of 
 martyred Stephen, " the church of God in the wilder- 
 ness." 
 
 Within this ancient church, walled round by its 
 covenant, and by its peculiar initiatory rite — and sep- 
 arated from the more utterly corrupt portions of man- 
 kind — Jehovah began to make glorious and awful rev- 
 elations of himself. By a series of astounding miracles, 
 especially by his majestic descent on Sinai, he gave 
 visible assurance of his being, of his sovereignty, of 
 his almighty power, and of his goodness. In the 
 midst of this church, though many of its members were 
 utterly abandoned, and the whole body was often in 
 " a horror of great darkness," on account of its sins, 
 there arose a multitude of holy minds, prophets, seers, 
 kings, psalmists, martyrs, whose gigantic faith, and 
 splendid intellects, and noble deeds, have never been 
 surpassed ; as also a host of humbler saints, who would 
 have done honor to the apostolic or millennial age. It 
 is those of whom it is written, in the Epistle to the 
 Hebrews, that '' through faith they subdued kingdoms, 
 14 
 
158 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the 
 mouths of lions, quenched the violence of fire, and out 
 of weakness were made strong. Others had trial of 
 cruel mockings and scourgings ; yea, moreover, of 
 bonds and imprisonments. They were stoned, they 
 were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with 
 the sword ; they wandered about in sheep-skins and 
 goat-skins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented ; (of 
 whom the world was not worthy ;) they wandered in 
 deserts and in mountains, and in dens and in caves of 
 the earth. All these having obtained a good report 
 through faith, received not the promise" — i. e. the Mes- 
 siah — " God having provided some better thing for us, 
 that they without us should not be made perfect.'^ 
 
 In this very church Jesus was born, nurtured, cru- 
 cified. He was its long promised Redeemer, its crown- 
 ing glory, its Lord. He came not to destroy it, but to 
 secure the fulfilment of the high intentions for which 
 it was founded. Standino; between the fores-oino; and 
 the succeeding eras, uniting in his own person baptism 
 and circumcision, the passover and the supper of the 
 Lord, he is a connecting link between the ancient and 
 modern end of the chain. Raised upon the cross, ex- 
 tending one of his bleeding arms over the old dispen- 
 sation and the other over the new, he binds them both 
 together in one church, of which himself is the centre, 
 the salvation and the Head ; and having given eternal 
 life to all the covenant children of God, throufrh their 
 faith in a Messiah to come, he offers the same blessing, 
 through the actually incarnate, crucified and risen 
 Saviour, to as many as come after him. 
 
ADDRESS TO THE UNBAPTIZED. 159 
 
 Thus, after the awful darkness of the crucifixion, 
 the church came forth under its risen and ascended 
 leader, hke the sun emerging from a cloud ; or, like 
 the eagle, moulting her disarrayed plumage, she threw 
 off the slough of obsolete ceremonies and unspiritual 
 members, and spread her wings for a flight among the 
 nations, in all the beauty and young strength of a re- 
 generated existence. 
 
 From the time of this great revival, this moral res- 
 urrection of the church, the Holy Spirit has taken up 
 his unseen abode in the midst, and though often with- 
 drawing from the unspiritual, being grieved away, he 
 never has forsaken, he never will depart from his peo- 
 ple, till the kingdoms of the world become subject to 
 Christ. 
 
 The church in our day is still the same body as of 
 old, preserving its identity through all varieties of 
 change, adversity, and growth. The daughter of 
 heaven, the Zion of the old testament and the new, 
 walled in by her covenant, enriched by the ordinances 
 and oracles of God, irradiated by that unseen temple 
 which is greater than Solomon's, and rejoicing in her 
 King, she is the hope and the glory of the world. 
 
 It is into this sanctuary, this *' hiding place from the 
 storm, this refuge from the tempest, this shadow of a 
 great rock in a weary land," that you are invited to 
 enter. There is room enough in this many-mansioned 
 house, there is bread of heaven, (for men eat angels' 
 food,) there is water from the everlasting well, suffi- 
 cient for all. Admitted through the door of baptism, 
 having the three characteristics of discipleship, repent- 
 
160 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 ANCE, FAITH, and OBEDIENCE, you may dwell hence- 
 forth beneath the bright expanse of Jehovah's cov- 
 enant. 
 
 Let not your minds be confused with any variety 
 of creeds, sects, and party names. "The visible 
 church," says the confession of faith, " consist of all 
 those throughout the world, that profess the true reli- 
 gion, together with their children, and is the kingdom 
 of the Lord Jesus Christ, the house and family of 
 God, out of which there is no ordinary pcssibility of 
 salvation." 
 
 The various provinces of the Saviour's kingdom, 
 may be more or less complete in their organization, 
 or loyal to their king. Some of them may be alien- 
 ated from others, and some by their idolatries, or un- 
 belief, may have cut themselves off from the fellowship 
 of the saints, and others still be exposed to punishment 
 on account of their sins. But the Head of the church 
 is able to manage all these its affairs. It is yours, to 
 submit yourself to his authority, to put yourself under 
 his government, receiving the visible token of mem- 
 bership, subscribing the covenant of allegiance, and 
 uniting yourself to the best portion of the church which 
 you can find, in the region where you dwell. By so 
 doing, you will become the blessed of the Lord, the 
 fellow-citizens of prophets and apostles, of seraphim 
 and angelic bands. You will belong to the innumer- 
 able company of the ransomed, and be the joyful sub- 
 jects of the great King. 
 
 From what has been said it will be seen that the 
 unbaptized are not in covenant with God. They are 
 
ADDRESS TO THE UNBAPTIZED. 161 
 
 " aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and stran- 
 gers from the covenant of promise." For although 
 baptism is not a saving ordinance of itself, without 
 the regenerating power of the spirit, — and although 
 the want of baptism will not exclude those who are 
 entitled to it, but cannot obtain it, from everlasting 
 life after death, — yet what confidence can we have in 
 the piety or salvation of any, by whom baptism is de- 
 spised or intentionally neglected. " He that believeth 
 and is baptized shall be saved." " Except a man be 
 born of water and of the spirit he cannot see the king- 
 dom of God." Both the outward ordinance and the 
 corresponding inward grace are made essential, by the 
 Head of the church. In the case of adults, spiritual 
 regeneration precedes baptism, as in Mark xvi, 16. 
 Amongr the infants of believers, the birth of water 
 naturally precedes the birth of the spirit, as in John 
 iii, 5. 
 
 The church, and her King, extends the invitation 
 of covenant love to all the unbaptized. Come, ye 
 weary and heavy laden, ye tempest-tossed and troub- 
 led, come. Fathers and mothers, young men and 
 maidens, old men and children, come. Come lowly, 
 come with repentance, with faith, with " a full pur- 
 pose of and endeavor after new obedience," and you 
 will find admission not only to the church on earth, 
 but through its humble peaceful walks, to that tem- 
 ple which is not made with hands, eternal in the 
 heavens. 
 
 Nor is it necessary for children who are old enough 
 to understand these remarks, to abide ever in the cold 
 14* 
 
162 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 Storms without, until their parents bring them in. 
 Born, many of them, around the church, near enough 
 to see its hght and hear its rejoicings, secretly sighing 
 to enter, they invite the sympathy of all who dwell 
 beneath the covenant of God. They cannot, they 
 must not reproach their parents ; but they cannot, 
 they ought not to forget, that the father whom they 
 reverence, the mother whom they love, have never 
 sought for them that heavenly inheritance, to which 
 they might otherwise be entitled. For this class my 
 sensibilities bleed, and were it of any avail, my tears 
 would freely flow 1 We cannot accuse them of per- 
 sonal guilt, in being aliens by birth ; nor can we con- 
 ceal the fact, that while an awful cloud hangs over 
 the world on account of sin, they remain unsheltered 
 by that covenant, which God has provided for his 
 flock, not excluding the lambs. Nor will we deny, 
 that the children of n on -professors must give evidence 
 of personal faith before they can receive those privi- 
 leges, which no believing parent or authorized sponsor 
 has secured for them. 
 
 But my young friends, there is encouragement for 
 you. Are you sorry for your sins, with that sorrow 
 which leads you to forsake them? Though weak in 
 faith, have you such confidence in Christ as enables 
 you cordially to acknowledge him as your Saviour ? 
 Have you such love to Jesus as makes you earnestly 
 desire to be like him and obey him ? Then you may 
 come to the baptismal altar, and receiving the sacred 
 ordinance at the hands of God's messenger, be hence- 
 forth as others, a child of the covenant. 
 
CONCLUSION. 
 
 I have said nothing respecting the mode of baptism, 
 nor is it necessary. The leading idea in christian 
 baptism is neither sprinkHng, nor affusion, nor immer- 
 sion. It is rather a visible restoration of lost com- 
 munion with God, a solemn introduction into the 
 name and fellowship of the Father and of the Son 
 and of the Holy Ghost. Water is a beautiful emblem 
 of that inward spiritual purification, without which 
 man being unclean is incapable of admission into the 
 kingdom. By its use in the administration of bap- 
 tism, the subject of it confesses what God has affirm- 
 ed, the necessity of a new and spiritual birth in order 
 to salvation, while at the same time he professedly 
 surrenders himself to those cleansing influences which 
 he infinitely needs. 
 
 God has been pleased to appoint this ordinance 
 also as a seal of his covenant with the penitent and 
 believing sinner ; — as an assurance that instead of the 
 law of works which requires perfect obedience from 
 the beginning, he will accept the righteousness of 
 faith. The cheerful reception of this baptismal seal, 
 thus placing implicit confidence in the divine promise 
 as did Abraham, is in itself an act of faith and amonor 
 the first fruits of the spirit. 
 
164 INFANT CHURCH-MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 In order then to acceptable baptism, we must be 
 solemnly introduced into the visible kingdom of God, 
 by the baptismal formula, and with the use of water 
 as a sign of spiritual cleansing, and as a seal of the 
 righteousness of faith. Thus we are baptized not 
 into an ocean, nor into a basin, but into the name of 
 the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. 
 Of what consequence is it, — to Him who has said, 
 " ivash you, make you clean " — " 1 will pour out my 
 spirit upon the gentiles " — " So shall he sprinkle 
 many nations ; " and again, " I will sprinlde clean 
 water upon you and ye shall be clean " — whether the 
 mere outward emblem of the inward spiritual grace, 
 thus variously represented, should descend upon its 
 subjects like the dew, be poured out as a shower, or 
 overwhelm as the sea ? Let us be solemnly intro- 
 duced into the covenant presence of God ; let us en- 
 ter the fold from which we have so grievously de- 
 parted ; let us receive upon ourselves the good Shep- 
 herd's mark ; let us live with Christ in faith and obe- 
 dience, and the covenant love of the Father will not 
 fail. 
 
 It is earnestly hoped that the time is not distant 
 when the true nature of the church, and the design of 
 its ordinances will be better understood. It is God's 
 institution, the pavilion of the Highest, the temple of 
 the Holy One. The terms of admission are repent- 
 ance and faith — actual repentance and faith in the 
 case of adults, prospective repentance and faith in the 
 case of their children. The initiatory rite is baptism. 
 All baptized persons, not excluding infants, are mem- 
 
CONCLUSION. 165 
 
 bers of it, to be educated amidst its enlightening, re- 
 generating and sanctifying influences — to be kindly 
 restrained from evil, and trained up in the nurture and 
 admonition of the Lord. What Christian, about to 
 enter the celestial city, would not wish to leave his 
 children within the enclosures of his Saviour's earthly 
 kingdom, where the inhabitants, professedly brethren, 
 are all bound to seek the eternal good of each other's 
 offspring, especially of those fatherless and motherless 
 ones, who otherwise might be fatally exposed to the 
 temptations of the world. The church indeed is not 
 the Saviour, nor should it be regarded with supersti- 
 tious veneration — nor ever be suffered to stand be- 
 tween the soul and God. But as an institution al- 
 ways illumined, when in its best estate, with the im- 
 mediate presence of the Spirit, as a divinely appointed 
 means of grace to its young members, let it be held in 
 the highest estimation. Let its adult members be 
 faithful to their trusts, so that dying believers when 
 they bid adieu to their weeping orphans, may rest the 
 more confidently upon the covenant promises of God 
 while they feel an assurance that these objects of their 
 love, will still enjoy the prayers, the instructions, the 
 affectionate supervision of saints — and instead of be- 
 ing neglected and suffered to grow up as heathen, for- 
 getful of their father's God, will be educated for glory, 
 honor and immortality, and for a happy re-union with 
 them, in the society of all the church of the first-born 
 in heaven. 
 
u^i