MASTER NEGA TIVE NO. 93-81292 MICROFILMED 1993 COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES/NEW YORK as part of the . „ "Foundations of Western Civilization Preservation Project Funded by the NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE HUMANITIES Reproductions may not be made without permission from Columbia University Library COPYRIGHT STATEMENT The copyright law of the United States - Title 17, United States Code - concerns the making of photocopies or ther reproductions of copyrighted material. Under certain conditions specified in the law, libraries and archives are authorized to furnish a photocopy or other reproduction. One of these specified conditions is that the photocopy or other reproduction is not to be "used for any purpose other than private study, scholarship, or research. ' If a user makes a request for, or later uses, a photocopy or reproduction for purposes in excess of "fair use, that user may be liable for copyright infringement. This institution reserves the right to refuse to accept a copy order if, in its judgement, fulfillment of the order would involve violation of the copyright law. A UTHOR: TITLE: TWO LETTERS, BY "FIAT JUSTITIA" ... PLA CE: LONDON DA TE: 1832 COLUMBIA UNIVEI^ITY LIBRARIES PRESERVATION DEPARTMENT I3IDLIOGRAPHIC MICROrORM TARC ET Master Negative U Original Material as Filmed - Existing Bibliographic Record • #Wh> 33742 "11 I s^corvd ^ to co-ncludi-no \^\l. Uo kHars Ly Tial Jusfillsil wilh nmfs on cKurcl-i iXu., rch Teform ... - £" i'^Jlit. Restrictions on Use: TECHNICAL MICROFORM DATA FILM SIZE: '^S/H^ IMApE PLACEMENT: lA (^^ IB, IIB REDUCTION RATIO:___//}C. DAfE FILMED: 3V>>2iil_ INITIALS 3^ HLMEDBY: RESEARCH PUBLICATIONS. INC WOODnRinnFrT / r Association for information and Image Management llOOWayne Avenue, Suite 1100 Silver Spring, Maryland 20910 301/587-8202 Centimeter 12 3 4 liiiiliiiil mj 5 iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiliiiiliiiniiiiiiiii Inches 1 T 7 8 9 iiiliiiiliiiiliiiiliiiilii ITT .0 I.I 1.25 10 ,1, n iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii Urn 2.8 163 ts. 2.5 2.2 2.0 1.8 1.4 1.6 12 13 14 15 mm i IlilllMllllllllMllll I Y MflNUFnCTURED TO fillM STflNDFIRDS BY APPLIED IMPGE, INC. \. No. 'I TWO LETTERS, If BY "FIAT JUSTITIA," AUTHOR OF A LETTER TO THE HON. & REV. BAPTIST W. NOEL; IN REPLY, THE FIRST, TO A CHURCHMAN, WHO CONDEMNS HIM FOR GOING TOO FAR; / THE SECOND, TO A DISSENTER, WHO EXPOSTULATES WITH HIM FOR NOT GOING FAR ENOUGH. miitfi an ^ppentitx* CONTAINING A LETTER FROM THE HON. AND REV. BAPTIST W. NOEL, WITH OBSERVATIONS UPON IT ; REMARKS ON THE UNITY OF THE CHURCH; CHURCH "COMMUNION ; ECCLESIASTICAL ENDOWMENTS; THEORY AND PRACTICE OF INDEPENDENCY, &c. &c. CONCLUDING WITH HINTS ON CHURCH REFORM, AS APPLICABLE TO CONGREGATIONALISTS. " We must remember that our obligation is to keep within the mean, betwixt uncharitable bitterness and pernicious flattery, not yielding to worldly respects, uor offending Christian modesty .... according to the wholesome advice of St. Gregory Nazianzen in these divine words: *We do not affect peace wirh prejudice of the true doctrine, that so we may get a name of being gentle and mild ; and y^-t we seek to conserve peace, fighting in a lawful manner, and containing ourselves within our compass and the rule of spirit. And of these things my judgment is, and for my part, I prescribe the same care to all that deal with souls and treat of true doctrine ; that neither they exasperate men's minds by harshness, nor make them haughty and insolent by submission;' but that in the cause of faith they behave themselves prudently and advisedly, and do not in tither of these things exceed the mean."— CAi«t»|TcorrA'« Works. LONDON: HOLDSWORTH AND BALL, 18, ST. Paul's church-yard. MDCCC XXXII. ADVERTISEMENT. 'la LONDON R. CLAY, PRINTER, BREAD-STREtT-HILL, CHEAPSIDE. Two or three months since, the Author of these pages received, through his publisher, a printed paper, entitled, ** A Brief Reply to the Letter addressed by * Fiat Jus- titia' to the Hon. and Rev. Baptist W. Noel, by a Layman. London: published by L. B. Seeley and Sons, 169, Fleet Street." His first feeling was to throw it aside. The letter to Mr. N^el, like other ephemeral productions, had breathed its little day, and was gone : the public had forgotten it ; and the Author did not think that the -Reply" contained any thing of sufficient importance to require him to make a demand upon the recollections of his readers. Afterwards, how- ever, it occurred to him, that as a Resolution at a public meeting is often made a mere - peg to hang a speech upon," he might make a similar use of the communication he had received, especially as he had by him a letter from a Dissenter which he had not answered, and which he might take that opportunity to notice. He has done so. A 2 IV He has replied to both his correspondents, and has thrown together thoughts and reflections of various kinds, — all, however, connected, more or less, with topics universally felt to be interesting and important at the present crisis. He has written, he trusts he can sav, to serve the inte- rests of no party ; but with a simple desire to contribute his mite to the cause of truth. He thinks it probable that some of both the great parties to which his remarks refer, will read them ; but he does not think that either will be satisfied. Some Churchmen mavlike to know what is said to the Dissenter, and some Dissenters what is said to the Churchman ; but neither, perhaps, may like what is said about themselves. The Author cannot help this, however much he may regret it : he certainly did not write for the sake of pleasing either the one or the other ; but neither was it his intention willingly to offend them : and if he should be so unfortunate as to be reproached by both, he will endeavour to find support in the consciousness that, whether he ''please men" or not, it is his desire and aim to unite love to the persons of all, without indulgence to the errors of any. 18, St. Paul's Church-Yard, Septernber 7, 1832. CON T E N T S. Letter to the Churchman ""^"j Letter from the Dissenter Letter to the Dissenter APPENDIX. No. I.-Letter from Mr. Noel, ^vith Observations .... 67 IL — Additional Notes in.-Cursory Remarks relating to some Expressions in the Letter to the Dissenter ... 85 IV._Hi,,t3 on Church Keform, as appUcaUe to Congre- gationalists . . 109 LETTER I. TO THE CHURCHMAN. B LETTER I. TO THE CHURCHMAN, IN ANSWER TQ " A BRIEF REPLY." '^/\ Sir, A FEW weeks ago I received your letter, profess- ing to be a reply to one which I had addressed about twelve months before to the Hon. and Rev. Baptist W. Noel. For some time after reading your communication, I not only doubted whether it became me to notice it, but I really felt it diffi- cult to determine whether you were serious. I was inclined to consider the thing as a mere joke, hardly supposing that you could mean your re- marks to be taken for arguments, or expect them to be regarded and treated as such. At length, however, I thought it best to give you the benefit of my doubt ; and to regard you as having no in- tention to take a hberty or to commit an imper- tinence. Concluding, therefore, that you offered your observations sincerely beheving that there was something in them, I felt that to such a belief I owed a portion of respect. I endeavoured to express that respect, by calmly examining the B 2 force of your suggestions ; and my deliberate judg- ment upon them was this — that I should not be censured by any impartial person, capable of com- prehending the argument of my former Letter, if I took no notice whatever of yours. This was, and this is still, my opinion. 1 happen to have reasons, however, quite distinct from any such opinion, for animadverting on your " Reply ;" and on account of these I intend to notice it. I shall insert every paragraph of your letter ; and will meet each as it shall seem to me that justice and candour may demand. I shall study to use nothing but fair argument ; and I hope I shall do so in a Christian spirit. I feel, however, that this would have been more easy, if your spirit had awakened my esteem, and your production itself entitled you to respect You begin, — " Sir, *' In a letter addressed !)y you to the Hon. and Rev. Baptist W. Noel, you say that there are Socinians in the Established Church, Clergy xvho preach Socinianism : by which I understand you to mean Clergy who in their sermons delivered from its pulpits, deny the Divinity of Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. " Now, Sir, as I feel the charge which you have brought against the Church to be a most im- portant one ; and as ' fiat justitia' is my motto it I €€ « (( <( <( !r recognizedy wMch, in their essence, are to be regarded in our conduct ; but which, in their mode of operation, admit of being adapted to circumstances under a wise and holy expediency ."'I This is a sentiment recognized by the practice of all sects, whether they acknowledge it in theory or not; in fact, there is no possibility of regulating church proceedings, without having constant recourse to it. It might be illustrated in numberless particulars. It is essential, for instance, that those united in the fellow- ship of the Gospel should meet together in visible com- munion ; but it is not essential when they meet, except on the Lord's Day. With respect to that, too, it is not essential at what hour they meet, how often they meet, or how long they are together: it is essential to meet for worship and instruction ; but it is Dot essential that these should always be attended to in the same order, and the same proportions ; it is not essential that prayer should be with a form, or without a form; it is not essential that there should always be preaching, that it should be intro- duced at the same part of the service, or continue for the same time. These secondary matters, these modes of carrying out the general principle, are all determined, as they ought to be, by expediency. 99 So of other things. It is essential that there should be discipline in receiving the credibly worthy to Christian privileges, and in debarring or excluding the unworthy ; but it is not essential by what precise formalities either the one or the other of these objects is attained. In most dissenting churches, certain forms, connected with the first of these, for the pattern of which you examine the original model in vain, have come to be so fixed by custom, as that they take the place of the general princi- ple, and are themselves invested with the character of New-Testament law. Again, it is essential that a church should have its bishop; but it is not essential how many bishops It should have: it may have two or ten, without infringing any principle gathered from the New Testa- ment. The primitive churches appear generally, if not always, to have had a plurality of bishops ; and I suppose the reason why our churches have, for the most part, only one, IS because they cannot afford to have more ; the state of Christianity, and of Christian churches, is so altered since primitive times, — a bishop is so much more expen- sive than in those days, — that expediency requires this departure from what then appears to have been general. Churches of any extent would find their account, I think, m returning in some measure to these primitive pluralities! —not of congregations under one pastor, but of pastors over one congregation. There might then be three or four services on the Sabbath in the same place, to meet the convenience of different classes, and to give all an equal chance of parallel advantages ; Bible-classes, and Pastoral-visitation, could both be attended to more effec- tively; there would be a real and not nominal superin- tendence of schools and Christian-instruction societies; and lay-helpers could both be trained up to greater efficiency, and be directed and regulated with greater ease. There would be more division of labour in the .details of the ministry, more of that which produces iueh surprising effects every where else, but which is never h2 100 ^ thought of as applicable where it is so much needed, or which is felt, from circumstances, to be imperatively for- bidden. Page 52, Line 2. I question ivhether Congregalionalists themselves, though impregnable in my opinion on the point of dissent from the Establishment, are either defensible or consistent in many of the parts and practices of their own systemr^ It is the fault of the public advocates of all parties to push their principles and their theories too far. In listening to some of your brethren, when delivering an introductory discourse at the ordination of a minister, in which they have explained, by their theory, the nature and consti- tution of a Christian church, I have said to myself, " how different, in many respects, you and your churches are, and how differently you really act, from the picture drawn and the principles defended." Two or three classes of inconsistencies strike me at this moment ; I will give a specimen or two under each. If time permitted, or if I were writing a dissertation, I dare say I could enlarge the list, and certainly I should pay more attention to the dress and disposition of my remarks. We are always directed, you know, in " introductory discourses," to the model,— the New Testament model. The principle of the Church of England, as episcopal and as established, and its customs or abuses in relation to pluralities, patronage, &c., are often pointedly exposed. The entire separation of the Church from the State ; the impropriety of any aid or favour from government ; the independence of each distinct Christian society ; popular election of ministers ; careful attention in every thing to primitive precedent, are advanced and maintained, and often with distinguished ability. Up to a certain point, 101 both the opposition and the advocacy are undeniably just; but I have often thought, that care should be taken, lest,' when the man has done theorizing in the pulpit, and has come down to actual practice, he does not admit in princi- ple, though not in name or degree, the very things against which his theory was directed. Now as to every thing being inadmissible but what is prescribed by the model, and every thing binding that it includes :— is a college in the model ? Are Highbury and Homerton provided for by primitive precedent.^ The iirst churches had a plurality of bishops, — have yours? The Lord's Supper every Lord's day, and mutual exhor- tation by the brethren, if able or disposed, are customs generally admitted to be primitive,— where are they now ? Ministers are represented by the theory, agreeably to original custom, as called to the office out of the church which they are chosen to serve, — are yours so called ? I have known, indeed, a young man go from a college, preach on probation, and be approved ; then be dismiss^ed from his original church, and become a member of that to which he had preached ; and th^n be called or chosen, as a member of it, to the pastoral office over the rest of his brethren; all this I have known done to ^et fact and theory to coincide, that that might be attended to which was supposed to be the original custom, and which, as such, was further supposed to have the character of law. I admire the motive in the conduct described; but, is it possible that the parties could impose upon themselves the belief that they attained their object, or that there was the least similarity between their cumbrous contrivances and the primitive proceeding which they attempted to imitate? All these, and similar discrepancies between us and what the New Testament describes, — our doing in some cases too httle, and in others too much, — these, I know, are completely defensible, on the ground of general principles and allowable expediency ; they are defensible only upon this ground, and therefore it really does not f / 102 103 become us to talk so much about the beauty of the model, and the sin of expediency, when, in practice, we depart from the one and act upon the other. Again ; with respect to the principle that Government is to do nothing for the Church but to let it alone, and the jealousy of its interference in the minutest particular, let us see how the matter stands in fact. It seems to be admitted that a Christian government, as such, — not as so many individuals, but as a government, — may, and ought, to do something in relation to the Sabbath, that is, in relation lo religion. The appointment of a Fast- Day, by the king in council, was, on a recent occasion, not only submitted to by the great body of Dissenters, but was adopted in preference to one fixed by themselves. There were two or three ministers who objected to the change, and who acted on their objections ; and this conduct was by far the most consistent with theoretical independency. Again ; your ministers do not refuse every government or political indulgence: they accept of exemption from military duty, and from serving on inquests and juries, — and they are right : it is of immense advantage that, free from such secular calls, they may ** give themselves entirely to the word of God and to prayer:" but where is the theory? strictly keeping to that, what business has the Government to know them as ministers, — or as any thing but Englishmen? Laws, it seems then, may be made to confer special immunities upon ecclesiastics. Your chapels, too, under certain conditions, are exempt from taxation ; nay, there is a parliamentary grant, formerly denominated the '' REGIUM donum," annually voted for the augmentation of the small livings of dis- senting ministers; this, though strongly objected to by some, is accepted by others ; it is dispensed according to the individual discretion, I believe, of certain ministerial « trustees, who have each a part at their disposal ; and, I doubt not, it carries gladness to the habitation and the heart of manv a worthy man. As to some other matters that strike me, the shortest way to describe them will be to quote a case in which most of them meet. I take that of a minister (whom I have in my mind at the moment) supported by a county-mission : he is appointed by that body ; he serves three churches,— that is, in three distinct villages he has a small number of communicants, who form in each place a separate church ; he is pastor of all ; he acts as such in the government of each society ; and he preaches at each place once every Sabbath. Now, let us see what we have here. Here is patronage or foreign appointment perhaps lay-appointment, as the committee of the mission might consist at the time more of laymen than of ministers ; here is episcopal superintendence and control, for, to the minister, the members of the said committee are in the place of an ecclesiastical superior ; to them he is accountable, and by them he can be removed : here is plurality, three churches under one bishop ; or, if they are considered as one church, (which, in the case f am contemplating, they are not,) then we have a church consisting of persons who do not meet together in one place. Here is single duty; here is "endow- ment," in the form of an annual grant from a fund not raised by the people who are instructed ; that is, there is such extra assistance afforded the minister, in addition to what is raised by the voluntary principle, — assistance so important, that, if it were withdrawn, the man must remove, and the people perish. This instance shews that, however the theory may demand popular election to the pastoral office, support exclusively by voluntary offerings, the freedom of churches and ministers from foreign con- trol,— yet, there are cases in which the advocates of these principles depart from them all ; yes, and their departure is sanctified by the circumstance, that a benevolent and a holy expediency demands it ; that thus they can secure a sum of good which an adherence to system would sacrifice or prevent. You know me better than to suppose that I intend, by Iir l!!i K I 104 these remarks, either to deny the correctness of the gene- ral principles of Congregationalism, or to defend the con- stitution or abuses of the Established Church. No : the very corruption of the Establishment creates the necessity for such dissenting anomalies as that which I have de- scribed ; how different, too, are its patronage, pluralities, and episcopacy? I do mean, however, to shew, how impossible it is to preserve consistency when we take very high ground, and insist on all the minute points of some theoretical device : how necessary it is to be willing to modify our theory by circumstances ; and how possible it is, that, if all would candidly acknowledge what they do, and would compare practice with practice rather than theory with theory, we might come nearer to some ami- cable adjustment, and learn to love ourselves less and our neighbours more. The time is coming, I think, when good men of all parties will feel that something must be mutually given up, and mutually admitted. The Church of England, considered as an Establishment, dividing the whole kingdom into parishes, and fixing a place of worship, a minister and a Bible in each, — looks all very beautiful upon paper, but it will not bear examination in fact ; its practical working is against it; its tendency has been to produce drones, and to propagate darkness; activity has had to be excited by rivalship, and light to be forced upon it from without. Independency, too, is very beautiful in a book, and has often been seen to advantage in large towns ; but it neither acts exclusively nor extensively purely on its own principles ; nor, if it did, would it effect equal good with what it actually accomplishes. The world, in fact, is a gainer by the happy inconsistencies of all sects. Page 59, Line 18. ** The Churchman has need to be on his guard lest, stung and exasperated by the present state of public 105 opinion, he is tempted to find a malignant satisfaction in exaggerating the evils of minor communities:'] The "British Magazine," commenced in February last, seems to have been established in the very spirit which this observation condemns. A series of articles has ap. peared in it, exhibiting various admissions which, in their honesty or their zeal, dissenting writers have at times made of the practical evils of their own system. The author of these papers seems to have had' before him all the Magazines, Reviews, &c., in which he could find any thing suited to his purpose, and to have delighted to drag from their obscurity these scattered testimonies to the awful character of congregational churches! He principally quotes from the Eclectic Review and BinneVs " Memoirs of the Rev. S. Morell." You may possibly have seen this latter work. It is long since I looked into It myself. It is so singular and extravagant in many parts, that it can hardly be (fonsidered, I should think, much of an authority. My impression, however, is, that] even in connexion with the very passages which are tranferred to the pages of the "British Magazine," there are others which would neutralize the inferences meant to be drawn from them, and the statements thev are brought to substantiate. But it is not my intention to enter mto this subject at present, further than to make the fol- lowing remark respecting it. Of all modes of attacking Dissent, this is one of the worst to which the advocate of the Establishment can have recourse. He may string together the admissions of a few writers, and turn them against Dissent ; but with tenfold interest can the Dis- senter repay him by referring to the admissions of Church- men! The partial evils of the congregational community, m which the public, as such, take no interest, may thus be exhibited within the British Magazine's circle of high- church admirers ; and they may administer for a moment a pungent pleasure, or prompt a fallacious security ;— it mil be fallacious, and will soon be discovered to be so. 106 107 To neglect the beam in our own eye, and to be taken up with the detection, (by glasses too,) of the mote in our neighbour's, is the part neither of virtue nor of wisdom. Whatever may be the evils of Dissent, they are positively microscopic compared with those of the Church. The friends of the Establishment should not forget this. To do so is not the way to avert or alter the doom that threatens it. Its abuses, it should be remembered, are public and palpable ; ** they are seen and read of all men ;" the mass of the people feel that they have an interest in their speedy removal; they must be removed, and that soon — for, in the present state of general opinion, it is impossible that they can be permitted much longer to insult earth and heaven bv their continuance and their consequences. I once thought of appending to this remark a few ex- tracts from a recent publication, entitled, ** The Present State of the Established Church, — an Apology for Seces- sion from its Communion; by a Seceding Clergyman." I should have done this, just to shew how easily the argu- ment of the British Magazine can be turned, with terrible emphasis, against the Establishment ; but I forbear. The disclosures are too painful and disgusting to suffer me to transcribe them. May they have their proper effect where tehy ought to be felt! Page 62, Line 7. ** Universal communion'''} — Your Utopian notions upon this subject, — in which few, I believe, are prepared to coincide, and still fewer to attempt to realize, remind me of two passages which bear upon them in recent publica- tions. The one is in Lord Henley's pamphlet on Church Reform, and the other in Mr. Hughes' Sermon on the Death of Robert Hall, — a chaste and beautiful compo- sition. I shall give them without comment ; except, indeed, that the second will be a kind of comment on the tirst: it supplies what is wanting to make the picture complete. Lord Henley goes a great way, and deserves unquestionable credit for the liberal idea he has dared to indulge and to describe ; but Mr. Hughes goes further, and suggests something for which his Lordship, I suspect, is still unprepared. He recommends ministerial and christian union beyond the precincts of the Church; Mr. Hughes would like to establish it within them : and it is this, and this only, which can convince the world that all evangelical denominations, though distinguished by minor diversities of view, form substantially, in sentiment, in feeling, and in fact, one Church. LORD HENLEY. *• What a noble opportunity does the state of our popu- lous towns present for the performance of one splendid act of christian magnanimity ! What a spectacle would it be of the influence of true religion on the heart, if the Church of England, and the three more numerous bodies of Trini- tarian Dissenters, forgetting all past causes of jealousy and irritation, would bury the remembrance of their triflino- differences of doctrine in the glorious object of evange- lizing the benighted millions that surround them ! If they would but unite in one grand crusade against swearino-, gin-drinking, Sabbath-breaking, disuse of prayer, alien- ation from ordinances, neglect of children, and all the abominations of a poor and ignorant population ; and if they would be content to preach nothing, and to know nothing among them but Jesus Christ, and him crucified, more would be done for the cause of religion than by thousands of sermons, or libraries full of theology. May we not hope that the days are fast approaching when * Ephraim shall not efivy Judah, and Judah shall not vex Ephraim,' but when both shall cheerfully unite in this great work and labour of love." 108 '■ i 'i MR, HUGHES. ** He (Mr. Hall) was a Baptist— hut he respected the right of private judgment ; he conceded the liberty which he asked : and having, as he thought, no inspired precept or precedent for the deed, could not persuade himself to erect the ritual peculiarity of a small denomination into a barrier which should exclude from sacramental communion every denomination besides ; though a Beveridge, and a Howe, and a Baxter, and a Wesley, and a Whitfield, and a Doddridge, and a Watts, stood without, soliciting the privilege of feasting with their brethren at the table of their common Lord. ** We may reasonably lament that such a saint and such a preacher, should not have been qualified, by civil and ecclesiastical laws, for preaching the * unsearchable riches of Christ,' wherever a sanctuary stood, and a congregation was prepared and eager to receive him." I might add to these ** cursory remarks" considerably, but they have already extended perhaps too far : I there- fore terminate them here. A. B. No. IV. HINTS ON CHURCH REFORM, AS APPLICABLE TO CONGREGaTIONALISTS. The following paper is the production of an intelligent and distinguished friend,— one who feels deeply attached to the cause of the Dissenters, who has done much for it, and who anxiously wishes to promote its advancement. In a recent conversation with him, I found that he not only entertained many views in common with myself on the condition and prospects of the body to which we belong, but that he had occasionally thought of various measures of amendment and reform. I requested him to commit to writing a few hints on these topics ; the following letter is the result, which I give to the reader verbatim and in full. I may not, perhaps, fall in with every sentiment contained in it, nor will he, I dare say, with all that I have expressed, nor will some of our readers with the suggestions of either. I consider the communication, how- ever, to be valuable and important, and I know that truth never can be injured by honest and fearless discus- sion. There are a few passages possessing a general similarity to some in the preceding pages. I had finished, no 111 ' IP however, the composition of m}? own remarks before the arrival of those of my friend, and I thought it best to hazard a little apparent repetition, than to lose what I deem an advantage, — the coincidence of sentiments inde- pendently expressed. "My Dear Sir, "The problem proposed may be thus stated: Of what modifications is the system of Congregationalism susceptible, that may adapt it to the general circum- stances of society ? ** Dissenters have been too much engrossed with their perpetual contest with the Church, to take an enlarged view of the adaptation of their scheme of polity to society at large : and any person who should intimate a suspicion of the soundness of their principles, is considered at once as harbouring the treasonable intention of deserting to the enemy. "The primary principles upon which Dissent 15 /oi/nrfe^/, I regard as incontrovertible. They are : 1. The sufficiency and exclusive authority of the Scriptures. 2. The con- sequent right of private judgement, as opposed to human authority in matters of faith. 3. Entire liberty of con- science, as regards the interference of the State. In reference to these three cardinal points. Dissent is but consistent Protestantism. ** But the scheme of Dissenting Polity, or Congrega- tionalism, involves not merely these grand principles, but a certain set of opinions, which may perhaps be thus enumerated. " 1. The purely democratic form of Church government; the popular election of the pastor; the equality of all pastors ; and the independence of every congregation. " 2. The existence of two officers only in the Churches ; the bishop, or pastor, and the deacons, who have charge of the temporal concerns. "3. The distinction between the Church, on the one hand, as a separate society or fellowship, consisting of persons willing to be subject to its rules and discipline ; and, on the other, the bulk of the " hearers" or wor- shippers composing the congregation ; also, the restriction of the Lord's Supper to the select Church. " 4. The system of voluntary contribution, and, gene- rally speaking, the dependence of the minister for support upon such contributions. " 5. Substantially, the doctrines of the Westminster Confession as the basis of communion : to which may be added, the exclusion of liturgical forms. " Waving the question, how far these secondary prin- ciples (as I would term them, in contradistinction to the primary principles of Protestantism) are Scriptural or not, they cannot claim to be regarded as incontrovertible ; and a Dissenter may be suffered to entertain doubts as to their absolute correctness, without forfeiting his character as a sound Protestant. As opposed to diocesan Episco- pacy, they may be the more correct and safer scheme of the two, without being absolutely in accordance with the Scriptural model. The points to which I wish to draw attention, as affording matter for dispassionate inquiry, are these. " 1. Can the Churches of the Congregational Dissen- ters, as consisting of small select associations of pious persons, agreeing in sentiment among themselves, but existing in the midst of general society, more or less Christian, and comprising a large number of persons equally pious, but of differing sentiments,— can such pri- vate voluntary associations be considered as bearing any analogy to the primitive Christian societies, which ex- isted in the midst of heathenism, and included all the faithful in the place? Admitting the principle of volun- tary association to be common to the primitive Churches and to modern Dissenting Churches, are not the circum- stances so totally different as to change entirely the / 112 113 i I ' I't li relative position of such societies? A Church, existing in the midst of Christian society, but not including it, is ecclesia in ecclesid. Besides, it was not optional, in pri- mitive times, whether a Christian should belong to the Church or not. If not, he was a heathen. But a man may be a sincere Christian, and yet not belong to a Dis- senting Church — a pious worshipper of the congregation, and yet not a member of the Church. What have such Churches in common, circumstantially, with the primitive societies ? ** 2. Does the constitution of Independent Churches make any provision for the extension of Christianity ? Indirectly, by allowing the liberty of prophesying, it may be said to do this : it tolerates the propagation of the Gospel, beyond any other system. But still it must be considered as making no direct provision; since, 1. the theory* recognizes no such office as that of the missionary, allowing only bishops and deacons: 2. It recognizes no authority that should send forth missionaries : 3. It pre- supposes a congregation, calling forth and choosing a minister, before any minister can be appointed to a local charge : 4. It makes no provision for the support of the missionary or itinerant. All that has been done, there- fore, by Congregationalists, has been by means of specific societies or associations, having no connexion with their system of Church polity, and acting in many respects at palpable variance with it. For, 1. The missionary is not elected by either the people to whom he is sent, or by any other Church, but is appointed by a council, board, or committee. 2. He is an ordained officer, yet is neither bishop nor deacon. 3. He is a recognized minister of the Church of Christ, yet not a minister of a particular Church. 4. He is not independent and irresponsible, * That the Missionary Society did not originate with the Indepen- dents, although now chiefly supported by them, is notorious ; but its very constitution was at variance with strict Independency. but accountable to a board of directors, and subject to oversight. A Missionary Society is an institution of Christ, or it is not. If not, if it rests only rn expedi- ency, how can it be pretended that we are adhering to a perfect model ? If it may be reconciled with the Scripture model, then Congregationalism, from which this institution is foreign, cannot be identified with the primitive model. " 3. Has Independency proved adequately efficient to meet the wants of society at home ? It seems to me that the rise and progress of Wesleyanism affords an historical proof of its limited efficiency. Wesleyanism, as well as Congregationalism, has had to make way against the in- fluence of an Establishment; but the former has shewn a power of propagating itself, far superior to the energies of the latter scheme. All that has been done of late years by the building of private chapels, as well as by County Unions, Associations, and Home Missionary Societies, must be regarded as supplementary to the scheme of Independency, and as originating with individual zeal, rather than emanating from the principles of Congrega- tional polity. " 4. What relation has an academical system to the Congregational polity ? The fitness of that system is not at.on with a church adhering to these corruptions ^ On the other hand, if called upon to point out the I 2 It U\ • I 1^ I 116 defects or weak points in the Congregational theory, 1 should be inclined to specify as such:— " 1. Inadequate or erroneous views of the genuine authority attaching to the office of pastor. •• 2. A total misconception as to the office of deacon, which, without the shadow of scriptural evidence, is identified with that of the seven officers chosen to super- intend the daily ministration. Acts vi. " 3 Limiting the officers of the Church to two sorts, pastors and deacons, to the exclusion of subordinate or assistant teachers, itinerants, catechists, m.ss.onanes, and academic teachers, who are equally officers of Christ s Church. . . , "4. Rejecting all gradation of classes within the Church. . ,1 • •< 5 Overiooking the relation of stated hearers to their recognized teacher, and of stated worshippers to the Church. . , r<, ■ • .. 6. Overiooking the responsibility of the Church in regard to the Pagan or rural population within its dio- •' 7. Disregarding the unlawfulness of schism, as charge^ able upon any two churches in the same district, not mutually recognizing each other. ** 8. The want of any central authority, such as even the most democratic system admits of, and which is neces- sary, not merely as an outward bond of union, but to render any salutary reforms practicable; the rejection, m fact, of any general organization. Even county associ- ations are of modern date, and only partially adopted. The proposed plan of a Congregational Union is an acknowledgment of the deficiency which it seeks to remedy. * 4U •'With regard to the mistaken views relating to the deacon's office, I would offer the following remarks :-- '* 1 The seven referred to in Acts vi. were a committee of management, not answering at all to the deacons of 117 the Epistles, if we may judge from the qualificntions required in the latter, nor chargeable, so far as appears, with the support of the ministry. " 2. The identification of* elder, deacon, and trustee in the same officer, which in fact prevails, is an abuse analo- gous to the mixture of secular and spiritual functions in the Clergy ; whereas the design of the appointment of the SEVEN was, to separate those functions. ** 3. Ought the same hands to collect the subscriptions, to distribute the alms of the Church, and to administer the bread and wine of the Lord's Supper ? Is this becom- ing or expedient ? Ought the seat-rent collector or tithe- gatherer to be the pastor's spiritual assistant? " 4. It is often said, that the deacon's office is purely secular. This is notoriously contrary to fact. If it were true, we want other officers. Why do they preside in spiritual matters? " The pastor ought to nominate his deacons ; L e. his assistants in governing and visiting the church ; and with them he ought to have no money transactions. Nor ought the purse to be in their hands. On the other hand, those who are entrusted with the secular business ought to be elected by the people. Were the secular concerns of a church managed by a committee so chosen, the trust would be less liable to get into the hands of an individual, and there would be less difficulty in finding proper persons for the office of deacon. With us, matters are absurdly re- versed. Trustees are rarely chosen by the people ; while deacons, the pastor's deputies, are popularly elected, so as to be independent of his control. Half the disorders in Congregational churches are attributable to this blunder. What is still more strange, the pastor is, in many cases, less stationary,— more easily removable than the deacon ; and with all the ultra-democratic jealousy betrayed in other parts of the system, the deacon is chosen for life, >yhen he ought, as being concerned in secular matters, to be chosen annually, like the churchwarden^ l3 118 119 fl! •h ** Perhaps it may be said with truth, that the theoretic errors of the Congregational system are far greater than the practical evils ; while, in the system from which we dissent, the practical errors are more palpable and serious than the theoretic ones. But Dissenters have been apt to pride themselves upon their most vulnerable points, and have not always attacked the Church of England where it is weakest and most incapable of defence. ** Now what would I suggest, it may be asked, as a re- medy for these alleged defects and errors ? If all parties are wrong, (which I conscientiously believe to be the case,) would I inculcate indifference as to which party an individual should join, or recommend the formation of a new sect ? Certainly not the former ; and as to the latter, a sect can be made only by a leader, — a Luther or Wesley, a Penn or Sandeman, ** Circumstances, however, render it not altogether im- probable that a new sect may be formed by extensive secessions from the Episcopal Church. They would have been already more numerous, had the seceders found a body with which they could unite. For want of this, the seceding Clergyman finds himself placed in a predicament of the most trying and painful kind, and one not unat- tended with moral peril. Conscientiously retaining, it may be, an attachment to the Episcopal government, and to the liturgy and ritual of the church he has left, and not prepared to embrace at once the democratic con- stitution of Congregational churches, or to submit to the rule of ** Conference," he feels himself alone, unsupported, or coolly greeted as an imperfect convert to a system he cannot approve. If he has talents that command popu- larity, he may become an Independent par excellence; but he will then be in imminent danger of becoming, if not an heresiarch, a self-sufficient, isolated, spiritual de- magogue, — the autocrat of his little circle. ** With Congregationalists, seceding Episcopalians can never be expected to unite. Neither Wesley nor Whit- field found it possible to unite with them ; and Wesley- anism grew into a sect by a sort of necessity. In itself, a new sect would be an evil ; but the evil would be greatly mitigated, if not altogether obviated, if there should be an entire and cordial recognition of each other on the part of those who differed on points of discipline and ritual. If the Episcopal Dissenter, the Congregational Dissenter, and the Wesleyan would unite, before the world, in tes- tifying their unity in essentials, by opening to each other their pulpits and their communion, and by coalescing in all plans for the evangelization of society, they would, while retaining their differences, lose the character of sects. " Upon this point, I feel irresistibly tempted to tran- scribe a few sentences from the letter of an eminent friend. * My belief settles daily into greater firmness, that the power of preaching will not develop itself, till parties are molten down, and a One Church shines out before the world: or that the two events will be simultaneous. It does not seem to me, that any hodi^ feels this in force, or is willing to believe it. My feeling and confidence are so mighty, that I could stand up in the front of Christen- dom, congregated to deny it, and alone protest for the truth. Our ideas on all subjects are clouded and perverted by our adherence to the principle of faction. This, my dear friend, is not cynical, and captious, and splenetic ; but a deep, full, and calm conviction, — slowly formed, often revolved, often dismissed, and again forcibly recovered. The truth on this great subject is just like every other great truth, too simple and obvious to draw any notice until the moment comes for all men to awake to a sense of it.' ** There is nothing in the practice of Dissenters, perhaps, so entirely inexcusable as the separation of Paedobaptists and Anti-Paedobaptists into two distinct denominations, upon the ground of a difference on one solitary, disputed point, not affecting a single article of the Christian faith. Expediency, which, on other occasions. Dissenters warmly repudiate, can alone be pleaded in defence of what I cannot il i if 120 but believe to be both inexpedient and unlawful. The extent to which the principle of free communion has of late been diffusing itself, is a great point gained ; and the cordial manner in which the ministers of the two denomi- nations coalesce, does them honour. But these circum- stances will tend either to break down the wall of partition between the two denominations altogether, or to render its preservation inexcusable. *' Differences are lawful ; sects are unlawful. As there is but one Gospel, there ought to be but one communion : — * One Lord, one faith, one baptism.' Let this be taken as the fundamental principle of Congregationalism, and it will cease to partake of the narrowness and feebleness of a sect ; it will become attractive of all that is good, instead of repulsive towards much that it ought to appropriate to itself, and will become the most comprehensive church in the Church. ** To conclude these somewhat desultory hints. — If Inde- pendents, in these days of general reform, blindly and tenaciously adhere to all their errors, they will .be of all men the most inexcusable. No bodies of men, however, as such, reform themselves. If a dozen Christian ministers, with one accord, would, in their several spheres, commence the reforms they should deem desirable and practicable, and, after a time, publish their reasons and the results, the work would rapidly go forward. With the concur- rence of their respective congregations, they have all in their own hands ; and if they maintain, with all sincerity, and forbearance, and kindness, the principle of catholicity, they will hazard no fresh schism by their innovations. Congregational union will be a salutary and excellent measure, if it is attended by, and does not preclude. Congregational reform. * Peace be upon all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity !' ** With much esteem and regard, I remain, " My dear Sir, ** Your's, very faithfully. 121 ** P. S. The passage in Lardner (relative to the use of the word Church) to which I referred in our last conversation occurs at p. 257, vol. vii. of the octavo edition. — And who is there,' says Origen, 'who must not acknowledge that the worst of those who are in the Church and who are inferior to the rest, are better than most of those who are in the churches of the people ? For instance, the church of God at Athens is quiet, mild, and well- behaved, bemg desirous to approve itself to God who is over all. But the church of the Athenians is turbulent, and by no means comparable to the church of God there' The same you must also acknowledge of the church of God at Connth, and the church of the people of the Corin- thians ; as you must also allow of the church of God at Alexandria, and the church of the people of the Alexan- drians. And if you will observe the senate of the Church of God, and the senate in every city, you will find some senators of the Church worthy to govern in the city of God, all over the world, if there were such a thing And if you should compare the presidents of the churches of God with the presidents of the people in the cities, you will find the senators and governors of the churches, though some may be inferior to others who are more perfect nevertheless you will find them to excel in virtue the sena- tors and governors of the cities.' Compare this language with the following expressions: 'O irpoiardfievog, Iv cxtto.S.-. Rom. xn. S-Ude..e. roTc ^yo.^.Vo.c v^^C^v Kal Wd.e^, tteb. xiii. 17.-nc^c eKKXr,