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 w 
 A CHARGE 
 
 THE CLERGY OF THE DIOCESE 
 
 ST. DAVID'S, 
 
 CONNOP, LORD BISHOP OP ST. DAVID'S, 
 
 DELIVERED 
 
 AT HIS PRIMARY VISITATION, 
 
 OCTOBER, 1842. 
 
 PUBLISHED AT THE REQUEST OF THE CLERGY. 
 
 SECOND EDITION. 
 
 LONDON : 
 
 RIVINGTONS, ST. PAUL'S CHURCHYARD AND WATERLOO PLACE. 
 1842.
 
 W. EVANS, PRINTER, GUILDHALL-SQUARE, CARMARTH; •».
 
 THE CLERGY 
 
 DIOCESE OF ST. DAVID'S, 
 
 THIS CHARGE, 
 
 PUBLISHED AT THEIR REQUEST, 
 
 IS RESPECTFULLY INSCRIBED, 
 
 BY THEIR 
 
 AFFECTIONATE FRIEND & BROTHER, 
 
 C. ST. DAVID'S.
 
 u, uc ;
 
 A CHARGE, 
 
 &c. 
 
 My Reverend Brethren, 
 
 If the object of our present meeting were to 
 interchange assurances of mutual respect and good- 
 will, or to transact any ordinary business connected 
 with the duties of our calling, I might have thought 
 it requisite to explain why I suffered the earliest 
 opportunity of holding it to pass by. But when I 
 reflect, that I am now addressing you for the first 
 time on this occasion, and consider the various im- 
 portant topics on which you may expect to hear my 
 opinion and advice, I feel persuaded that you will 
 not deem any apology needful for the delay, or be 
 surprised that I was desirous of gathering fuller in- 
 formation on the state of the Diocese, than I could 
 have brought to our conference, if it had taken place 
 last year. The circuit which 1 then made, for a 
 different purpose, was not, I trust, unprofitable with 
 regard to this. Indeed, 1 am conscious that my 
 knowledge of the condition of the Diocese is still 
 imperfect, and consequently that I may be led to 
 some erroneous conclusions on points which depend 
 mainly on the results of experience and observation : 
 
 A
 
 2 
 
 though I trust that these mistakes will not be of 
 serious moment, and that they will give occasion to 
 their own correction. There would, no doubt, have 
 been sufficient ground for such an apprehension in 
 any other new and large field of pastoral superintend- 
 ence. But there are — as we are all aware — circum- 
 stances peculiar to this Diocese, or common to it 
 with only a few beside, which claim especial attention, 
 both on account of their great importance, and because 
 it is more particularly with regard to them that there 
 is most room for difference of opinion, and the greatest 
 difficulty in forming a just estimate of their character, 
 and a satisfactory decision as to the best mode of 
 dealing with them. It may however be an advan- 
 tage to us, that these circumstances will be apt to 
 strike one to whom they are new, more forcibly than 
 those to whom they have been long familiar, while 
 there is, I trust, no danger lest the impression of 
 novelty should be attended with any bias to distort 
 the judgement. 
 
 The occasion on which we are assembled, while it 
 invites us to consider the present state of that portion 
 of our Church which is the scene of our labours, 
 naturally leads us to take a glance at the past, which 
 contains the germs and causes of all that we have 
 immediately before our eyes : as it is only by the 
 light which the past and the present reflect on each 
 other that we can hope to form a probable surmise 
 as to the future. There is indeed much in this 
 retrospect, as well as in the survey of what we now
 
 behold, to excite deep regret ; scarcely anything that 
 can yield unmixed satisfaction : but it would be un- 
 manly and unwise to shrink from it on that account. 
 It may be for that very reason the more instructive : 
 and it is absolutely necessary that we should learn to 
 contemplate it steadily and calmly, if we would not 
 deceive ourselves as to our real position, our true 
 interests, and our right course. 
 
 You will not suppose that it is my intention to 
 enter into a historical inquiry which would open 
 many disputed questions ; I wish simply to direct 
 your attention to a few notorious facts. The fore- 
 most among them is this : that, within a century past^ 
 a large part of the population of this Diocese has 
 been alienated from our communion, and is still in a 
 state of separation from it. It would, I repeat, be 
 foolish and dastardly to turn our eyes away from this 
 fact, or to treat it as a secret which it is possible to 
 conceal, or dangerous to divulge. It is highly de- 
 sirable that we should look it in the face, and examine 
 it in all its bearings. Various speculations have 
 been formed to account for this result, which it 
 would be foreign to our present business to notice, 
 I would only remark, that whatever opinion we 
 may adopt on this subject, we shall be in the 
 greatest danger of falling into error, and of losing 
 almost all the benefit to be derived from the lessons 
 of history, if we either attempt to refer the fact 
 to any single cause, or to explain it so as to 
 shifl all blame from the Church herself— considered
 
 in her successive members — on those who have aban- 
 doned her. Let it be our endeavour to bring an open 
 mind,, and an impartial spirit; to the consideration of 
 the fact, which we cannot but view with deep concern. 
 But let us be more especially on our guard against 
 those prejudices into which we may be most easily 
 betrayed, not only by our personal or professional 
 interests, but even by our best and purest feelings. 
 Let us not shrink from acknowledging, that the state 
 of things which we deplore has arisen in a great 
 measure out of neglect and abuses which we must 
 not attempt to disguise or palliate, and may be pro- 
 perly regarded as a penalty which the Church has to 
 pay for the selfishness, the supineness, and worldly 
 spirit, with which her affairs were conducted, and 
 her duties discharged, by those to whom they were 
 entrusted. Let us not refuse to go still farther than 
 this, and to make a confession which may appear to 
 some of us much more humiliating. Let us not 
 scruple to own, that much good has been done by 
 those who are opposed to us : that the change which 
 lias been effected, within the period we are reviewing, 
 in the moral and religious condition of the population, 
 has been in many respects salutary ; and that it has 
 been produced by those very efforts from which the 
 interests of our Church have so deeply suffered. This 
 is an admission which we ought to make, so far as 
 truth requires it, not only without reluctance, but 
 with joy and thankfulness, though we must be humbled 
 by the reflection, that this could not have been the
 
 case, had not the Church been in some great degree 
 unfaithful to her trust. And let us not desire to throw 
 all the blame on those who have gone before us, and 
 to claim an entire freedom from like transgressions 
 and omissions for ourselves. 
 
 But on the other hand, let us not, in a spirit of 
 false liberality, aggravate those features of the case 
 which we might naturally most wish to soften, nor 
 dwell exclusively on those facts which are most pain- 
 ful to our feelings, as Churchmen. Let us remember 
 that the lukewarmness and inertness, the recklessness 
 and worldly-mindedness, with which in the early part 
 of the last century the resources of the Church were 
 so often misapplied, and her duties neglected — that 
 this character was not at that time confined to this, or 
 to any part of the body, but prevailed throughout the 
 whole ; and not only so, but that if we look abroad be- 
 yond our own communion, we shall find that during the 
 same period no other was in a more flourishing state : 
 that almost all were languishing under similar or more 
 grievous disorders. And while we trace the conse- 
 quences of these common faults and errors, let us not 
 overlook the peculiar causes of weakness, the difficul- 
 ties and disadvantages under which this portion of our 
 Church has laboured, and with which it has still to 
 struggle ; the inadequate maintenance which it affords 
 to so many of her ministers, which prevents them 
 from devoting each his whole time and attention to 
 one parish ; the deficiency in church-room, which 
 excludes so large a part of the population from her
 
 6 
 
 public worship,, and compels them to seek religious 
 instruction elsewhere ; the condition of so many of 
 her sacred edifices, some sinking into irreparable 
 decay, many more in such a state as to repel any one 
 who was not willing to make a sacrifice of personal 
 comfort, if not of health, to devotion : to all which 
 must be added, in many districts, the necessity of 
 providing for the spiritual wants of a population 
 divided by a difference of language, which prevents 
 the two sections from joining in one religious service. 
 And there is another feature in the case, which ought 
 not to pass unnoticed, both for the sake of justice to 
 the Church, and because it may suggest some useful 
 lessons. It is evident that the progress of Dissent 
 has not been in proportion to the growth of any of 
 the evils, the faults and abuses, to which its origin 
 is commonly referred. On the contrary, it might 
 seem as if it had been stimulated by the reviving zeal 
 and energy which have been displayed in the Church ; 
 and which, if they had been called forth earlier and 
 more generally, would probably have been sufficient 
 to counteract it. We cannot help concluding that 
 the breach has been widened by the operation of 
 motives and principles foreign to those of its authors. 
 The leaders who reluctantly seceded, and drew others 
 away from the Church, because they could not find 
 within her pale a sufficient supply for their spiritual 
 wants, but never ceased to regard themselves as 
 members of her communion, were followed by others, 
 who have made it their main object to render the
 
 separation as complete, formal, and lasting as possible, 
 and have exhibited, and propagated, a spirit of de- 
 cided hostility toward her. We cannot but look 
 upon this as a proof, that the work which was begun 
 in many cases with pure intentions, though perhaps 
 with a great want of moderation and prudence, has 
 been since directed and forwarded by an agency in 
 which we may reasonably suspect a strong admixture 
 of human passions. For we find traces of this hostile 
 spirit as well where the difference of doctrine is 
 apparently slightest, as where it includes points of 
 the greatest moment. The fact presents an instruc- 
 tive illustration of the universal tendency of schism, 
 to which we may well apply what the wise man says 
 generally of strife, that its beginning is as when one 
 letteth out water. And it holds out a warning, 
 which will not be slighted by those who value the 
 unity of the Church, against every arbitrary, wilful 
 infringement of any rules or observances calculated 
 to secure it. We see, and feel, how much easier it 
 is to break down than to restore, to sever than to 
 reunite, to scatter than to gather again : how much 
 easier to perceive occasional inconveniences, which 
 may under particular circumstances be produced by a 
 wholesome restraint, than to foresee the disastrous con- 
 sequences which may result from a breach of the law, 
 or disregard of the authority which imposes it. We 
 learn how essential patience, caution, and humility are 
 to the exercise of charity, and that it is only by them 
 the reality can be distinguished from its counterfeit.
 
 8 
 
 It would have been a much more pleasing- part of 
 my duty, if it had been in my power to congratulate 
 you on a favourable change in the state of things we 
 have been considering, or to direct your attention to 
 any clear indication of the approach of better times 
 for this portion of the Church. I do not say that 
 such indications are not here and there perceptible ; 
 but they are neither so uniform, nor so numerous, as 
 to make it safe to dwell upon them as grounds of 
 confidence : though we may very properly derive 
 encouragement, as well as instruction, from any cases, 
 however few or obscure, in which success has attended 
 efforts which we are able to imitate. But, independent 
 of such partial advantages, there are some general 
 sources of consolation, and grounds of hope, which it 
 will be both cheering and profitable to keep in view. 1 
 would remind you, that even those among you who are 
 placed in circumstances where the actual difficulties of 
 the Church are greatest, and her prospects appear most 
 gloomy, may derive comfort from an assurance like 
 that with which the Prophet animated his desponding 
 servant : nor will it require any extraordinary reve- 
 lation to satisfy them that they need not fear, however 
 lonely and perilous their position may seem ; for in 
 many senses we may say, with regard to our adver- 
 saries, that they which be with us are more than they 
 which be with them. This is true, not only with 
 respect to such associates and auxiliaries as are only 
 to be discerned by the eye of faith, in past ages and 
 distant spheres, but with respect to the present state
 
 9 
 
 of the Church, if we will only enlarge our view, to 
 comprehend it as a whole, and do not let any local 
 obstacles obstruct our survey, and if we widen our 
 sympathy to embrace all who are partakers with us 
 in the same doctrine and fellowship. We shall then 
 undoubtedly find, in the fortunes of the entire body, 
 ample matter for joy and hope, numberless signs of 
 growing strength, of prosperous activity, of a spirit 
 tending at the same time to consolidate her foun- 
 dations, to supply her defects, and to enlarge her 
 borders ; and so, both within and without, to assert 
 her true character, and to vindicate her claims to the 
 affection and reverence of her children. While we 
 consider what has been effected and is going on else- 
 where, we might easily forget the less agreable 
 objects presented to our view in our immediate 
 neighbourhood ; but it would not be right to do so : 
 much rather ought we to dwell upon the contrast, 
 and let it stimulate and encourage us to redoubled 
 exertions. 
 
 It is also consoling to reflect, and this reflection is 
 suggested and confirmed by that which we have just 
 made, that the losses which the Church has sustained 
 among us, have not arisen from any inherent, irreme- 
 diable defect in her system, from any unsoundness 
 in her principles, or weakness in her constitution, or 
 from any cause which ought to abate the attachment 
 of her friends. It may be a question, whether they 
 are chargeable in a greater degree on the faults and 
 errors of her members and ministers, or on outward 
 
 B
 
 10 
 
 events which it was still less in her power to prevent 
 or control : but on either supposition we may trust 
 that they will be repaired, in proportion as her means 
 are enlarged, the obstacles which have checked her 
 expansion removed, and her capacities more fully 
 brought out into action. And happily this is no mere 
 possibility or devout aspiration, but a prospect which 
 we have actually before us, and which only requires 
 time to become a present reality. Among the out- 
 ward conditions most indispensably necessary for the 
 accomplishment of her objects, the two which stand 
 foremost, are undoubtedly a ministry, and places of 
 worship, in sufficient number, and convenient situa- 
 tions, for supplying the wants of the people. I need 
 scarcely observe, that there is at present a very great 
 deficiency in both respects in this diocese. Few 
 parishes possess the advantage of a resident minister, 
 who is able to devote his time exclusively to one In 
 the great majority of cases, the poverty of the endow- 
 ment has rendered it necessary to commit two parishes 
 to the care of the same person, to whom they com- 
 monly afford a barely adequate maintenance. It fol- 
 lows, of course, that either on the morning or evening 
 one of the churches remains closed every Sunday, and 
 those who are unwilling to neglect public worship 
 must seek it elsewhere. Yet even this is perhaps a 
 slighter evil than that which arises where the extent 
 of a parish prevents a portion of its inhabitants, some- 
 times the largest portion, though well inclined, from 
 resorting to the Church for Divine Service at all. We
 
 11 
 
 cannot wonder that districts should be lost to the 
 Church, we can scarcely regret that they should 
 be occupied by her adversaries, where, but for a few 
 occasional visits of the minister, who must be almost 
 a stranger, seldom seen, and still more rarely sent for, 
 there is nothing to remind the people of her existence. 
 A third case, of very frequent occurrence, is that in 
 which the difference of language in one parish ren- 
 ders it impossible for all members of the Church to 
 join in her worship at the same time ; and conse- 
 quently either one part must be wholly neglected, or 
 both imperfectly provided for. I have intimated that 
 there is room to hope that these wants will be gradu- 
 ally supplied. It must indeed, as every one is aware 
 who knows the extent of the deficiency, be a work of 
 time : but still it is consoling and encouraging to 
 have a prospect of improvement before us, however 
 slow, if steady and certain. And such we have in 
 the aid which we may look for in more quarters than 
 one. We naturally turn our thoughts in the first 
 place, toward the fund placed at the disposal of the 
 Ecclesiastical Commission : and perhaps there is no 
 part of the kingdom where the appropriation of 
 ecclesiastical property to the purposes of that fund 
 might seem to be more urgently demanded by the 
 interests of the Church, than this diocese. But the 
 benefit which it is entitled to expect from the measure 
 will not be immediately in proportion to the amount 
 of its contributions to the common fund. The reso- 
 lutions of the Commissioners, which give a just prefe-
 
 12 
 
 reace to the claims of the largest destitute masses 
 of population, will operate to postpone those of a 
 diocese in which the population is spread over a large 
 surface. In the meanwhile, however, those districts 
 out of which the revenues composing the funds issue, 
 will experience such aid as their circumstances may 
 require. But the relief of our most pressing want, 
 that of ministers and places of worship in parts now 
 almost destitute,, must still depend on private liberality, 
 and the assistance of the excellent societies which 
 have been instituted for these purposes. And we 
 have ground to hope, that they will continue to call 
 forth the pious munificence of the opulent friends of 
 the Church ; that their funds will be increased in pro- 
 portion to the growing demands made upon them ; and 
 that the spirit in which they were founded, and have 
 been supported elsewhere, will spread among the 
 affluent members of the Church in this Diocese. 
 
 Much as we must regret that legislative enactments 
 should have been necessary to enforce, wherever it 
 is practicable, the residence of the clergy among 
 their _ocks, we cannot but rejoice at the prospect, 
 that the abuses which gave occasion to those enact- 
 ments will, at no distant time, have disappeared. 
 Some interposition of the Legislature would perhaps 
 be still more desirable to put an end to the uncertainty 
 which at present prevails as to the legal means of 
 enforcing the obligation imposed by the law, of 
 keeping churches in repair. A measure which, 
 without a sacrifice of existing rights, should remove
 
 13 
 
 the occasions of discord afforded by the present 
 state of the law on this subject, would be one of the 
 greatest benefits the Church could receive from the 
 Legislature. I pass lightly over these topics, and 1 
 am far from wishing* to exaggerate the importance of 
 the relief and assistance which may be expected from 
 any of these channels. I do not think it would be at 
 all desirable, that we should conceal from ourselves, 
 that it is either precarious in its nature, or will be 
 narrowly limited in amount, and is possibly reserved 
 for a distant period. If it is fit that we should not 
 overlook any part of our brighter prospects, that we 
 should note all those signs which prove that the re- 
 sources of the Church are not exhausted, and that we 
 are not labouring without means, or against hope, it 
 is still more important that we should never forget 
 that, under the Divine blessing, it is on the spirit that 
 prevails in the Church itself that all our hopes must 
 ultimately depend. Whatever contributions may be 
 made to the work, are chiefly valuable as indications 
 of the interest taken in it; and they will be only 
 useful, in proportion as they shall be applied in a like 
 spirit of devotedness and self-denial. Without the 
 willing and zealous co-operation of the laity, the 
 exertions of the clergy, however strenuous, can 
 never be attended with more than a very scanty 
 measure of ambiguous success. It was under a deep 
 conviction of this truth, that, at the meeting of Rural 
 Deans held this summer, I proposed to revive, with 
 such modifications as the change of circumstances
 
 14 
 
 appeared to require,, the Diocesan Association insti- 
 tuted by Bishop Burgess, under the name of " The 
 Society for Promoting- Christian Knowledge and 
 Church Union, in the Diocese of St. David's," which 
 having accomplished one of its most important ob- 
 jects, in the establishment of the College at Lampeter, 
 had for several years ceased to exercise any of its 
 functions, and might be considered as extinct. The 
 unanimity with which the proposal to revive it, under 
 the name of The Church Union Society, was adop- 
 ted by the meeting, encourages me to hope that the 
 measure will be attended with happy results. As the 
 Resolutions then agreed to, which describe the ob- 
 jects of the revived Association, will soon be placed in 
 your hands, I need not occupy your time on this occa- 
 sion with a more explicit statement of those objects. I 
 trust that the more generally they become known, the 
 more they will engage the sympathy and aid of the 
 friends of the Church thoughout the Diocese. For 
 the present I will only express my earnest hope, that 
 you will both yourselves support the Association to 
 the utmost of your ability, and endeavour to obtain 
 the co-operation of the laity in your respective 
 neighbourhoods. But we must remember, that such 
 a co-operation on the part of the laity will always be 
 regulated by the degree of zeal and energy displayed 
 by the clergy, by the sense which they appear to 
 entertain of the importance of their own duties, and 
 the faithfulness with which they discharge them. 
 This, which is true at all times, is most emphatically
 
 15 
 
 true at the present juncture. The interests of the 
 Church entrusted to her ministers at a critical period, 
 are of more than ordinary magnitude. More may be 
 sacrificed by neglect or imprudence., more may be 
 won, both for this and future generations, by vigilance 
 and activity, than in times of less promise and less 
 danger, when it is sufficient to hand down the deposit 
 unimpaired. On us, in our measure, it depends, whe- 
 ther the Church shall realize her brighter prospects, 
 and be able to profit by the succour she may receive. 
 But as such opportunities, when neglected, are not to 
 be expected soon to return, unless we leave her in a 
 better condition than we found her in, it is certain 
 that we shall leave her in one much worse, and less 
 hopeful, and that we shall be answerable for the loss 
 and damage her cause will have sustained. And 
 therefore, it is to myself a source of the greatest satis- 
 faction to believe, that there prevails among the clergy 
 of this Diocese a degree of zeal and activity, not in- 
 ferior to that which is to be found in any other, or 
 in any past period ; and certainly in no other is it 
 put to the test by greater difficulties and discou- 
 ragements. The more praiseworthy and valuable it 
 is on this account, the more desirable is it that it 
 should be employed to the utmost advantage, and that 
 it should be so enlightened and regulated by right 
 principles and maxims, as not unconsciously to take 
 a direction in which it would defeat its own objects. 
 I am inclined to think that in both these respects there 
 is room for suggestions and warnings, some of which 
 may be now peculiarly seasonable.
 
 16 
 
 There is, I am persuaded, no one among us, who 
 does not feel that there is need, not only of all that 
 each can do by himself in behalf of the Church, but 
 of concert and co-operation among" those who are 
 labouring in the same cause ; no one who thinks so 
 highly of himself, as not to believe that he may learn 
 much, and derive much assistance from communica- 
 tion with his brethren, nor so engrossed with his own 
 share of the common work, as not to be desirous of 
 imparting to others whatever has been recommended 
 by his own experience to himself. We are throwing 
 away the most important of our privileges, if we 
 never, or rarely and but for very few purposes, avail 
 ourselves of our communion with one another : if 
 each remains almost entirely a stranger to the man- 
 ner in which his brethren discharge their duties, with- 
 out the means of profiting by their knowledge and 
 experience, and without an opportunity of rendering 
 any like service to them. It is not enough that we 
 are members of one great body, unless we feel our- 
 selves to be so, and realize the unity which we profess 
 by mutual sympathy and succour. One of the ad- 
 vantages resulting from such conferences as the 
 present, consists in the strengthening of this conscious- 
 ness of fellowship, and in the opportunity it affords 
 of interchanging information and opinions. But 
 these occasions occur far too rarely to answer the 
 desired end, and in this Diocese archidiaconal meet- 
 ings do not fill up the void. The place of the Arch- 
 deacon is for many purposes supplied by the Rural
 
 17 
 
 Dean, the revival of whose office was a gieat benefit 
 conferred on this Diocese, and, in the way of an 
 example which has been extensively followed, on the 
 Church at large. But, useful and indispensable as it 
 has proved, it cannot be said that it has hitherto been 
 brought out in its full efficiency here, as it has in 
 other Dioceses where it was revived at a much later 
 period. One of the objects which it answers, is to 
 convey information to the Bishop. Even this will be 
 more fully accomplished, when the visitations of the 
 Rural Deans shall be performed more regularly, and 
 a report of every thing- worthy of remark be periodi- 
 cally transmitted to the Bishop ; and this T have the 
 pleasure to know, from the assurances I received at 
 the general meeting of the Rural Deans held this 
 summer, will henceforward be carried into etfect. 
 But another important branch of their office is, to 
 serve as centres of union for the clergy of the 
 Deaneries : and this has either never been attempted, 
 or has generally failed. I am convinced that great 
 benefit would be likely to arise from meetings of the 
 Clergy, held periodically in each Deanery under the 
 presidency of the Rural Dean, for the purpose of 
 communication on all subjects connected with the 
 general and local interests of the Church. In these 
 conferences doubts might be removed, and informa- 
 tion and advice interchanged, on whatever points 
 either of doctrine or practice, might occur in the 
 course of your parochial ministrations. And with 
 these meetings there might be advantageously con-
 
 18 
 
 nected the formation of libraries and reading- societies, 
 which might supply the want of theological works, 
 and particularly of the more important in modern 
 literature, which is often so painfully felt by clergy- 
 men in retired situations with limited incomes. It 
 would not be unreasonable to expect, among other 
 fruits of such an institution, that it might contribute 
 a number of useful additions to the popular works 
 designed for the instruction of the poor. It is only 
 through the press that a great part of our population 
 is accessible to any teaching but what they receive 
 from Separatists. Plain, pithy, pointed, and lucid 
 statements, exhibiting the real doctrines of the 
 Church on disputed points, and removing the many 
 popular prejudices and errors which prevail both as to 
 the nature and the grounds of her distinguishing 
 tenets, with as little as possible of polemical discus- 
 sion, in language and style adapted to the most 
 numerous class of readers, might be of incalculable 
 service. But it is peculiarly desirable that works of 
 this description should be previously subjected to the 
 revision of a competent board, to prevent the harm 
 which would result to the cause from imperfect or exag- 
 gerated statements, or unsound arguments, into which 
 the advocate of truth may often be unconsciously 
 betrayed. There is undoubtedly at present a scarcity 
 of such publications, especially in the native language 
 of the great mass of the people, which might be 
 supplied by translations from approved English 
 works of the kind I have adverted to : and even
 
 19 
 
 though they should not be now on the list of the 
 Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, I think 
 there is ground to hope, that the Society might be 
 induced, either to enlarge its list, or to relax its 
 rules, for the sake of furthering an object so strictly 
 in accordance with its own. 
 
 I am aware that what I have here recommended is 
 nothing new. But is to be regretted that for some 
 years past, meetings such as 1 have described have 
 been generally superseded by others of a very differ- 
 ent description. The accounts which I have received 
 lead me to believe that the clerical meetings, which 
 are now very frequently held throughout the Diocese, 
 have little more in common with such conferences than 
 the name : that they are merely occasions on which 
 a number of clergymen attend Divine Service, and 
 the greater part of the time is occupied with public 
 discourses addressed to the congregation. It does 
 not appear, that a private conference of the assembled 
 clergy is any regular or usual part of the proceedings. 
 The causes which gave rise to this innovation are not 
 obscure; the motives were, and are, 1 have no doubt, 
 most praiseworthy ; the effect, it may be hoped, on 
 the whole, salutary ; but still T must be allowed to 
 express my regret, that in any instance the meetings 
 of the clergy should have assumed this form. Where 
 this is the case, it appears to me that the higher and 
 far more important object has been sacrificed to one 
 comparatively of little value. No doubt the ultimate 
 end which those who attend such meetings should
 
 20 
 
 propose to themselves, is the edification of their flocks 
 But the people is in fact deprived of the chief benefits 
 which it might derive from the consultations of its 
 pastors, if the only result is the delivery of a few 
 public discourses : while the opportunity is lost for 
 such an interchange of experience and observation, 
 as would assist each in the performance of his ordi- 
 nary ministerial duties. I do not mean that it may 
 not be very desirable to make use of such occasions 
 for the instruction of the people by means of 
 addresses from the pulpit : especially if the subjects 
 selected be of such a nature as to convey seasonable 
 information, not usually found in parochial sermons. 
 But it must be considered that the benefit produced in 
 this way is at best of a very limited and fugitive kind, 
 and not unmixt with very serious danger, both to the 
 people and the ministers. There is danger to the 
 congregation, lest they should mistake the gratifica- 
 tion of an indolent curiosity for spiritual edification, 
 and should be led to form an extravagant estimate of 
 the value of one part of the service: and there is 
 danger to the ministers, lest they should be drawn 
 into display and competition with their brethren ; 
 which can hardly fail to be sometimes the case, when 
 more than one discourse is delivered during the same 
 service. Even where this most pernicious effect is 
 not produced, it will be scarcely possible, in meetings 
 so conducted, to avoid the appearance of it, which 
 will make an impression on the hearers very unfa- 
 vourable to their spiritual edification, and not at all
 
 21 
 
 calculated to heighten their respect for the Church ot- 
 her ministers. I have observed that it is not difficult 
 to account for the origin of this practice ; but I must 
 own, that it does not appear to me to be recommend- 
 ed by this consideration. It belongs to a system which 
 is not that of the Church, and which it is neither 
 honourable nor prudent to imitate. It was a state of 
 things so far similar to our own, as to hold out what 
 may still be in some respects a useful warning to 
 ourselves, that drew the following observations from 
 one of our old Divines : — "As to sermons, I hope they 
 do not undertake to be as eminent a part of the worship 
 of God among us as prayer. If they do, I must the 
 less blame the poor ignorant people, that, when they 
 have heard a sermon or two, think that they have 
 served God for all that day or week ; nor the generality 
 of those seduced ones, who place so great a part 
 of piety In hearing, and think so much the more 
 comfortably of themselves from the number of the 
 hours spent in that exercise, which hath of late been 
 the only business of the Church (which was by God 
 entitled the House of Prayer) and the Liturgy at most 
 used but as music to entertain the auditors, till the 
 actors be attired, and the seats be full, and it be time 
 for the scene to enter."* 
 
 But the remark which I made as to the origin of 
 
 * Hammond: View of the New Directory. Works, Vol. I. p. 167, (ed. 1674.) 
 Compare Hooker, E. P. V. 81. (Vol. II. p. 524, ed. Keble.) Some excellent remarks 
 on this subject may be found in Mr. Evans's Bishopric of Souls, p. 102 : a work 
 which cannot be too strongly recommended to every clergyman's study.
 
 22 
 
 this practice admits of a more general application, 
 and seems to me so important, that I am desirous of 
 drawing your attention expressly to it, and of illus- 
 trating it by some other examples. Let me premise, 
 that I can enter very fully into the feelings which 
 may induce a Minister, anxious for the welfare of his 
 people, and the prosperity of the Church, but sur- 
 rounded by Separatists, whom he sees continually 
 increasing their numbers, to resort to extraordinary 
 expedients for the purpose of retaining or recovering 
 a congregation. It is neither strange nor blamable* 
 that he should be willing to try all allowable means 
 of attracting hearers, and, if the mass of the people 
 should be deeply imbued with sectarian prejudices, 
 that he should be inclined to every degree of accom- 
 modation to their tastes and opinions, not manifestly 
 inconsistent with his character and engagements as 
 a Minister of the Church. But let me remind you 
 that, laudable as is the motive which prompts such 
 attempts at conciliation, they may be carried too far, 
 so as to injure the cause which they are designed to 
 promote. The Church cannot be permanently a 
 gainer — she must ultimately lose — by an addition to 
 her professed members, purchased at the expence of 
 her principles, or of her legitimate authority. In 
 such cases those whom she seems to have won, do 
 not in fact belong to her : they are strangers at heart, 
 and always ready, when the temporary attraction is 
 withdrawn, to abandon her communion again. Thus, 
 where a prejudice — I fear not an uncommon one —
 
 prevails against the use of a Liturgy, or a disposition 
 to consider the sermon as the most important part of 
 the service, a clergyman, particularly a young* one, 
 may easily be tempted to humour this prejudice by 
 arbitrary curtailment, or rapid reading, or by the 
 introduction of extemporaneous prayers. In each of 
 these ways he is tacitly casting a slur upon the Church, 
 and sanctioning one of the principles most opposed to 
 her doctrine and spirit. Another mode of compromise, 
 which is not less objectionable, is the holding of 
 meetings on a Sunday out of the church, for purposes 
 to which the Church Service is destined, without 
 making use of it. There are, I fear, not a few cases 
 in which a Lecture in a schoolroom, or some other 
 common building, is substituted for the Church Ser- 
 vice, while the church remains closed. Such a prac- 
 tice appears to me equivalent to an admission, that 
 our form of prayer is really a bar, not a help, to devo- 
 tion, and may be advantageously superseded by the 
 minister's occasional effusions. I cannot distinguish 
 such meetings from conventicles : the presence and 
 presidency of the Clergyman only renders the implied 
 admission the more glaring and pernicious. It is a 
 breach of faith to the Church, as well as a violation 
 of an express engagement. The same remark applies 
 to every departure from the Rubric, grounded on no 
 other motive than deference to the taste and preju- 
 dices of a part of the congregation. Other and perhaps 
 still graver objections apply to a practice derived from 
 the same source, according to which meetings are, I
 
 24 
 
 believe, frequently held for the purpose of prayer, not 
 common, according- to the forms of the Church, nor 
 offered by the minister alone, but by as many of the 
 persons present as choose to join in it. I would not 
 seek to impose a restraint on any spontaneous exercise 
 of private devotion : but in meetings so numerous 
 and open that they cannot properly be called private, 
 it is not only to be regretted that the place and form 
 which the Church has provided should be thus neg- 
 lected, but there is too much reason to fear, that the 
 spirit of display and curiosity will be constantly apt to 
 quench that of true devotion : and the persons who 
 have been accustomed to take a leading part in these 
 exercises, will not only be likely to feel but little 
 interest in the ordinary service of the Church, but 
 will be easily tempted to come forward on other occa- 
 sions still more prominently, as teachers, and thus in 
 both ways to supersede the office of the appointed 
 Pastor. In fact, as our Church exercises her office 
 of Teacher, no less by her forms of prayer, than by 
 her Catechism, Articles, Homilies, and other doctrinal 
 formularies, so persons thus praying in public are in 
 fact assuming the same office. That they should be 
 allowed to do so by a Minister of the Church, in his 
 presence, seems to me a virtual abdication of his 
 charge, a direct encouragement to schism. 
 
 It is often difficult for a minister to draw the line 
 between his private and public ministrations. The 
 private visit, if it attracts the attendance of a nume- 
 rous company, will acquire the character of a public
 
 25 
 
 meeting, for worship and instruction, for which the 
 Church has provided certain forms, and for which 
 there is in every parish an appropriate public place. 
 But there may be circumstances, in which he has, on 
 such occasions, opportunities of addressing* many 
 whom he could not at that time collect for the daily 
 service, or perhaps be ever likely to see in the Church 
 at all ; and of addressing them in a manner better 
 suited to their peculiar wants and habits, more likely 
 to reach their understandings, and to affect their con- 
 sciences, than he could properly adopt in his public 
 ministry. Such opportunities, no doubt, ought not to 
 be neglected. But on the other hand it will be pro- 
 per to remember, that such exercises, however useful 
 in themselves, do not answer the purpose of that visit- 
 ation of the sick, in which it is a main part of the 
 Pastor's duty to inquire into the sick person's condi- 
 tion, and to adapt his discourse to the answers he may 
 receive ; an object, for which greater privacy seems 
 generally desirable. It is also necessary to be cau- 
 tious, that these meetings do not by degrees assume 
 a different character, and become occasions of schism. 
 The best effect which can result from them, and 
 which a zealous and judicious minister will keep 
 steadily in view, would be that they should lead to the 
 foundation of a weejdy Lecture in the Church. 
 
 I would add, that there may be omissions, proceed- 
 ing from the same motive, which may do no less 
 wrong to the Church, than the deviations from her 
 Rubric, which I have been noticing. In her Prayer
 
 26 
 
 Book she has so provided for the public instruction of 
 her children, that the leading- doctrines and facts of 
 our religion are constantly, in regular succession, 
 brought before their minds in the course of the daily 
 Service. But the practical application of this princi- 
 ple is left to depend very much on the Minister, who 
 in his discourses may either observe or neglect this 
 order ; and, more especially in places where the Ser- 
 mon occupies perhaps an undue share of attention, 
 unless, by his choice of subjects, he seconds the 
 intention of the Church, it will be very imperfectly 
 realised by the greater part of the congregation. The 
 omission of topics naturally suggested by the season, 
 will probably be interpreted, either as a tacit acknow- 
 ledgement that they were not of sufficient importance 
 to justify the Church in her commemoration of them, 
 or that such a distinction of times is itself indefensible. 
 The more reason there may be to apprehend that 
 such opinions are entertained by a large part of the 
 hearers, the more desirable it is that every such 
 opportunity should be diligently employed, both to 
 explain and defend, and practically to illustrate and 
 recommend the ordinances of the Church. 
 
 In general, more benefit may be expected from an 
 assiduous use of the means which the Church pre- 
 scribes, than from any extraordinary methods, foreign 
 to her system, and borrowed from her adversaries, 
 though these may appear more promising, and may 
 for a time be actually more successful in attracting 
 hearers. It must be remembered, that this kind of
 
 success is always of an ambiguous nature, and at the 
 best is only desirable as a means, not as the end, 
 which is not merely to gather large congregations, 
 but to form a people really attached to the Church, 
 and giving her a decided and intelligent preference. It 
 is so far from being all in all, that it would he. hurtful 
 to her interests, if it involved a sacrifice of her princi- 
 ples, or was obtained by expedients which cherished 
 a spirit opposed to her's. It may often require a 
 difficult exercise of patience, and courage, and faith, 
 to abstain from such seemingly innocent compliances 
 with tastes and prejudices, the existence of which we 
 regret : but it is a case in which we may find room 
 to apply the prophet's exhortation, (Is. xxx. 15,) cc In 
 quietness and in confidence shall be your strength." 
 Often the most zealous must be content with sowing 
 the seed, without even a hope that they shall be per- 
 mitted to gather or see the harvest. And in fact, 
 their most useful and important labours must be of 
 this kind. At least, they cannot expect to reap at 
 once, or very soon, the fruits of that which they spend 
 on the education of the young : and yet this is in all 
 cases a main part of their duty ; and where we have 
 least reason to be satisfied with the actual condition 
 of the Church, it is to this that we must look almost 
 exclusively for the improvement of her prospects. 
 
 Much I believe remains to be dona in every part of 
 the Diocese for the education of the poor. At the 
 same time, I am persuaded that the defect has not 
 arisen from any want of zeal and activity on the part
 
 28 
 
 of the Clergy. 1 have no reason to doubt lhat they 
 are generally impressed with a eonviction of the vast 
 importance of the subject, and that they have shewn 
 themselves ready to exert their utmost endeavours, 
 and to make great personal sacrifices, to promote the 
 cause of education. But I fear there are still but too 
 many cases, in which their efforts have failed, either 
 because they have not been sufficiently seconded by 
 the good will of the opulent laity, or because they 
 have been obstructed by local difficulties, which they 
 have hitherto been unable to overcome, in their 
 attempts to provide for the support of a teacher, or 
 the erection of a schoolroom. And this appears to be 
 most frequently the case, in places where the poverty 
 of the labourers renders them unable, or at least, 
 unwilling, to contribute, even the smallest amount, 
 toward the expence of instruction for their children. 
 It seems to be but very rarely that the temporary 
 sojourn of the Circulating Schools — to which never- 
 theless it must be owned the country has been deeply 
 indebted — has been followed by the permanent esta- 
 blishment of others. Still I have the satisfaction to 
 believe, that the number of cases in which there is a 
 total deficiency of means of instruction for the chil- 
 dren of the poor, is rapidly decreasing, and I venture 
 to hope, that the time is not distant, when this want 
 shall be every where in some degree supplied. But 
 all the information 1 have been able to collect on the 
 state of education in the Diocese, leads me to think, 
 that in most places where it is afforded, it stands in
 
 29 
 
 great need of improvement. It appears to me that 
 sufficient attention has not been paid to the qualifica- 
 tions of the teachers. I am aware indeed that the 
 scantiness of the remuneration allotted to them may 
 often render it impossible to insist upon all the condi- 
 tions which are known to be desirable. But still I 
 believe that it would not be difficult to raise the pre- 
 sent ordinary standard, and to exact from the persons 
 employed such an amount of skill and information, as 
 will enable them to impart something more than those 
 first rudiments, which are not so properly knowledge, 
 as the instruments by which the child is enabled to 
 acquire it. It would of course be highly desirable, 
 that every teacher should be qualified, not only to 
 teach the letters, but to explain the sense, of the 
 books used in the school, that he should be able to 
 communicate the first elements of vocal music, and 
 that he should be practically familiar with the most im- 
 proved methods of instruction that have been adopted 
 in the best schools of the same kind. And I am per- 
 suaded that these qualifications would soon become 
 much more common, if an opportunity was afforded 
 to persons who wished to prepare themselves for the 
 office of teacher, of seeing a school conducted accor- 
 ding to the best system, by one who possessed these 
 advantages, and which would thus at the same time 
 answer the purpose of a model and a training school. 
 You will not, I am sure, think that I attach an 
 exaggerated importance to vocal music as a part of 
 popular education, because I have mentioned an
 
 30 
 
 acquaintance with it among- what I should wish to see 
 considered as the indispensable qualifications of a 
 schoolmaster for the poor. Your experience will 
 undoubtedly have convinced you, that the value of this 
 attainment can hardly be estimated too highly,, with a 
 view to its moral and religious uses. You know 
 better than I could explain, the great benefit which 
 might be expected to result to the performance of 
 public worship, both as to the degree in which it 
 would realize the intentions of our Church, and the 
 influence it would exercise over the people, if this 
 knowledge and skill were more generally diffused 
 among the lower classes, and perhaps I may add, 
 that the natural taste and habits of the indigenous 
 population seem to offer peculiar facilities for its 
 diffusion. But there is another point, perhaps still 
 more intimately connected with their welfare, and 
 with the prospects of the Church, which does not 
 seem to be always considered in the right point of 
 view by those who have the superintendence of 
 schools for the poor, and therefore deserves a few 
 remarks in this place. An opinion seems to have 
 prevailed, that it is useless, or even inexpedient, where 
 English is not the mother tongue of the people, to 
 teach them to read their own language. I am con- 
 vinced that this maxim is quite erroneous, and 
 attended with many practical consequences, injurious 
 both to the people and to the Church. 1 believe the 
 ordinary effect to be, that they acquire but a very im- 
 perfect command over either language : that which
 
 31 
 
 they habitually speak gives them no access to books,, 
 and the books which they are able to read are seldom 
 intelligible to them without more application than 
 they have often time to bestow on any intellectual 
 labour. They consequently remain destitute of that 
 information which they might have derived with ease 
 and pleasure from works written in their own lan- 
 guage : they can join but imperfectly in the public 
 Service of the Church, and are therefore the more 
 easily persuaded to forsake it, while the Church has 
 no means of reaching them through the press, and is 
 compelled to abandon them, without a struggle., to all 
 the errors and prejudices they may imbibe, when they 
 are withdrawn from the oral instruction of her minis- 
 ters. It seems therefore highly desirable, that in all 
 such cases both languages should be taught together, 
 and there can be little doubt that this practice would 
 be attended with a more rapid progress in each. 
 
 But though it may be reasonably hoped, that by 
 such means a very considerable improvement may be 
 effected in popular education among us, 1 am per- 
 fectly aware, that there are causes which render it 
 necessary, if we would spare ourselves the pain of 
 disappointment, to confine our expectations within 
 limits far short of our wishes. The results which we 
 may look for from the most successful application of 
 the most approved system, under the most zealous and 
 able management, must still depend on circumstances 
 over which we have no controul, and which will, it is 
 to be feared, in most cases, tend to reduce the amount
 
 32 
 
 of good which can be accomplished by our utmost 
 exertions. The early age at which the parents find 
 or think it necessary to take their children away from 
 school, that they may begin to contribute by their 
 labour to the support of the family, will often put a 
 stop to the work of education before it has passed far 
 beyond the simplest elements of instruction. It will 
 be for each of you to use all your influence to prevent 
 any needless sacrifice of the highest interests of the 
 rising generation to selfish calculations of petty im- 
 mediate advantage : to consider how far the establish- 
 ment of evening schools may remedy the evil where 
 it cannot be prevented, and to see that the time 
 allowed for the purpose of education be turned by 
 judicious economy to the best account. You will, I 
 am sure, be fully sensible, that the stock of general 
 knowledge to be acquired by the children of the poor, 
 is a point of secondary importance : that the main 
 object is the formation of habits and principles which 
 will affect their character and conduct through life. 
 Permit me however to observe, that however prema- 
 turely the child's school-education may be brought to 
 a close, there can be no absolute necessity that your 
 intercourse with him should terminate at the same 
 time. He may still be within the reach of your weekly 
 catechetical instruction : and it is on this account 
 peculiarly important that this branch of your pastoral 
 duties should be diligently administered, and in a 
 manner calculated both to instruct and edify, and to 
 interest the youthful mind. And it is probably never
 
 S3 
 
 more likely to answer these ends, and at the same 
 time to strengthen the attachment of those of riper 
 years to the Church, than where such instruction is 
 given, according to the intention of the Church, in 
 the presence of the congregation. 1 am convinced 
 that many of our Churches would be much better 
 attended, if this practice were revived. Where the 
 religious instruction has been continued until the 
 child becomes a candidate for confirmatiou, the task 
 of preparation for that important rite will cost you 
 much less trouble and anxiety, while the prospect of 
 benefit from it will be greatly improved. Where on 
 the oilier hand that instruction has been for some 
 years either wholly neglected or intermitted, the op- 
 portunity afforded by a confirmation for inculcating 
 religious principles is doubly precious, as it may be 
 the first and the last you have to expect. But in all 
 cases, and in every point of view, it is of incalculable 
 value, and deserves your most earnest attention. 
 Since the advantages to be derived from the rite de- 
 pend on the state of the candidate, and this again is 
 determined much less by his years, than by the pre- 
 paration he has received, it may not be expedient to 
 establish any inflexible regulation as to the age of 
 admission : though, as a general rule, it may be 
 desirable that none should be received before they 
 have completed their fifteenth year. But in all cases 
 it is most essential that the preparation should em- 
 brace a period of sufficient length to allow time for 
 such examination as may satisfy the minister as to the
 
 34 
 
 real qualifications of the candidates, and for such 
 instruction in the leading doctrines of their religion, 
 as will enable them both clearly to understand the 
 nature of the rite, and to receive a durable impression 
 from it. 
 
 The subjects to which I have been hitherto direct- 
 ing your attention, appeared to me the most important 
 with regard to the circumstances of the Church in 
 this Diocese, and the time they have occupied has left 
 but little to spare for any others. Yet I cannot but 
 feel that 1 might not only be disappointing a natural 
 and reasonable expectation, but neglecting a valuable 
 opportunity, and that I might seem to be shrinking 
 from the discharge of a duty, if I were to pass over 
 some other questions, which deeply affect the general 
 interests of the Church, and which have been for 
 some years past, and still are, subjects of earnest con- 
 troversy. This controversy, it is true, can scarcely 
 be said to have found its way into this Diocese : here 
 it has attracted comparatively little notice, and those 
 of the Clergy who have paid any attention to it, have, 
 I believe, for the most part, viewed it as from a dis- 
 tance, and with scarcely a livelier feeling than one of 
 speculative curiosity : and this may look like a reason 
 why it might have been better to abstain from advert- 
 ing to it on this occasion. But I am not at liberty to 
 suppose that views and opinions which are elsewhere 
 exercising a powerful practical influence on a great 
 part of the body to which we belong, can be a matter 
 of indifference to any of us ; nor does our present
 
 35 
 
 tranquillity afford any security, that they may not 
 become an occasion of discord, which would weaken 
 our hands and multiply our difficulties. But it does 
 enable me to address you on the subject with some- 
 what less apprehension than I should otherwise have 
 felt, of giving offence, while it seems to impose on 
 me the duty of directing my remarks to points which 
 have a bearing on our own peculiar circumstances. 
 That you have been permitted to stand aloof, and 
 have had no inducement to take an active part in 
 that controversy, and have thus been exempted from 
 the passions and prejudices which it has excited else- 
 where, and have been enabled to form an impartial 
 judgement upon the questions involved in it, this I con- 
 sider as an advantage in your present position, which I 
 trust you will not be eager to part with ; and I hope I 
 scarcely need to caution you agairst enlisting your- 
 selves on either side, before you have made yourselves 
 fully acquainted with the merits of the case. This 
 forbearance, which is so clearly enjoined both by jus- 
 tice and prudence, will no doubt appear to you the 
 more important, when you compare the great bulk of 
 the literature which this controversy has produced, 
 with your ordinary means and opportunities of study- 
 ing it, and especially when you observe the learning, 
 ability, zeal, and piety, which have been exhibited on 
 both sides. You will be the more reluctant to ex- 
 change the attitude of spectators for that of partisans, 
 where both the contending parties present so many 
 claims to respect, and you will be the less ready to
 
 36 
 
 believe that either is in exclusive possession of the 
 truth. 
 
 However this may be, it will probably seem to many 
 persons a calamity to be deeply deplored, that gifts 
 and qualities such as I have just mentioned, which, if 
 harmoniously employed, might have rendered the 
 most important services to the Church, should have 
 been arrayed in conflict againt each other ; and no 
 doubt it would have been much more desirable that 
 they should have been drawn forth, in an equal de- 
 gree of activity, by combined exertions for the com- 
 mon cause. But I cannot on this account concur 
 with those who would regard the controversy as a 
 subject of unmixed regret, or who think that any 
 evil has hitherto arisen from it, which has not been 
 much more than counterbalanced by its beneficial 
 effects. I just now alluded to the bulk of its literary 
 productions : of those which may be considered as 
 immediately and visibly representing it. But the 
 mass of publications which though not — professedly 
 at least — of a controversial nature, are intimately 
 connected with it, and have not only taken their tone 
 and colour from it, but could not have existed without 
 it, is far greater, and I cannot but regard the whole, 
 though including much that has no more than a fugi- 
 tive or historical value, as a precious addition to our 
 theological literature, such as might perhaps suffer 
 little by comparison with all that it had received in 
 the course of a century before. And yet it is chiefly 
 valuable and interesting as an expression or indica-
 
 37 
 
 tion of the new life which has been recently awakened 
 in the Church. Others may regret that public atten- 
 tion should have been so much turned this way, and 
 diverted from the subjects which appear to them of 
 supreme importance — from politics, or science, or 
 political economy, or classical literature : but, speaking 
 to you on this occasion, I can only treat it as a matter 
 for mutual congratulation, that, through whatever 
 cause, a spirit should have been roused, which has 
 engaged so many active and powerful minds in 
 the cultivation of theological learning. As church- 
 men, we must rejoice, that the study of Divinity 
 should have begun to embrace a wider range than, 
 for a long period before, had satisfied the greater 
 part of those who dedicated themselves to the minis- 
 try, that it should have become more generally con- 
 versant with Christian antiquity, with Ecclesiastical 
 History, and with the original sources from which the 
 knowledge of these subjects is derived ; so that even 
 ordinary students much less frequently confine their 
 reading to a narrow circle of modern compilations, 
 systems, outlines, and commentaries, and not only 
 are used to carry their inquiries farther, but are more 
 desirous of seeing and judging for themselves. All 
 this indeed would be of little value, if the spirit which 
 has been awakened had been one of merely literary 
 curiosity, or intellectual energy. But every one who 
 has observed its workings, must be aware that the 
 case is very far otherwise : that it is bent, with a deep 
 consciousness, and warm earnestness, upon high
 
 38 
 
 practical ends. It may even be doubted, whether 
 there is not some danger, lest this practical tendency 
 should be carried to excess, and lead to the neglect 
 and discouragement of all critical inquiries into theo- 
 logical subjects, not obviously or immediately point- 
 ing to practical results. But it is more important, as 
 well as more pleasing, to observe, that the interest 
 thus excited appears to have given a new impulse to 
 the zeal of the friends of the Church, which has urged 
 them to extraordinary exertions in her behalf. It will 
 hardly be considered by any one as a mere casual 
 coincidence, that the last ten years should have been 
 so signally marked by so many important undertakings 
 in aid of her cause, begun in a confidence which not 
 long ago would have been deemed romantic, and 
 accomplished by sacrifices which would then have 
 appeared almost inconceivable. 
 
 Still, whatever may be the amount of the advantage 
 thus gained, it would undoubtedly be too dearly pur- 
 cased, if the price paid for it were the admission of 
 unsound doctrines, or a breach of unity, in the Church : 
 and there are many persons who believe — this indeed 
 is the very gist of the controversy — that one of these 
 evils has befallen us, and to such a degree, that our 
 only prospect of a remedy lies in the other : and 
 there are others who, though differing widely in their 
 view of the cause, look forward to the same result, 
 some with friendly uneasiness, others with hostile 
 exultation. Unhappily it cannot be denied that there 
 is some ground for these anticipations: they are often
 
 39 
 
 expressed in a manner which tends to realise them : 
 but still I trust that we are yet far removed from such 
 a deplorable alternative. And as I am sure that you, 
 my Reverend Brethren, all sympathize with me in 
 the wish that this should prove to be the case, it may 
 not be useless to state the reasons which have led me 
 to this opinion, and which induce me to contemplate 
 the present state of the controversy with much more 
 of hope than of alarm. 
 
 The main ground of my persuasion is briefly this : 
 that the controversy which now agitates the Church 
 is not a new one : that, though distinguished by some 
 peculiar features, yet at the bottom it is nothing more 
 than a revival, or, as we may choose to call it, a con- 
 tinuation, of one which is as old as the first establish- 
 ment of our Church : that it represents a contrast of 
 opinions, views, and feelings, which has never ceased 
 to exist within her pale, though varying in its outward 
 demonstrations according to the shifting phases of 
 her historical developement : sometimes apparently 
 dormant and inactive, at others breaking out, as now, 
 in passionate controversy, and at some unhappy 
 epochs — such as we hope may never again be wit- 
 nessed — venting itself in persecution, in violent exclu- 
 sion, and formal rupture. It is not only an indispu- 
 table fact, that such an opposition or divergency always 
 has existed within the Church, but it seems likewise 
 to be a necessary result of her constitution and cha- 
 racter. If the position which she has taken up, as a 
 Reformed Church, is correctly described as a mean
 
 40 
 
 between two extremes, it appears to be an inevitable 
 consequence — so long as human nature continues 
 what it is — that some of her members should incline 
 toward one extreme, others toward its opposite, 
 though all sincerely and equally attached to her doc- 
 trine and fellowship. If we are not ashamed of this 
 character of moderation which distinguishes her, if, 
 on the contrary, we rejoice in it, and regard it as her 
 most honourable attribute, as the very stamp of pru- 
 dence and charity combined, and the safest criterion 
 of truth ; then we must be content to pay the price of 
 this high privilege, in that continual contrast of opin- 
 ions, and that occasional collision of parties : though 
 this view of the case ought undoubtedly to operate as 
 a constant motive to mutual forbearance. It would 
 indeed have been surprising, if, while the Church 
 herself was accused by her Protestant adversaries of 
 too great a leaning and resemblance to the Church of 
 Rome, beeause she retained many things which they 
 viewed as Romish errors and corruptions, those of her 
 divines who laid the greatest stress on the things 
 which were thus assailed, should not have incurred a 
 like charge ; or on the other hand, if those who most 
 earnestly maintained the principles which separate 
 her from the Roman Church, should not sometimes 
 have fallen under a suspicion of indifference or disaf- 
 fection toward the other parts of her system. This, 
 which has in fact so often happened in former times, 
 is the very thing which we are now witnessing. 
 
 I am aware, however, that this observation will
 
 41 
 
 lead us but a little way toward a historical explanation 
 of the present controversy, or of the movement which 
 gave rise to it; and will still less enable us to under- 
 stand what is peculiar in its character. It may be 
 traced to a remote origin : but certainly it was not 
 transmitted to us exactly in its present form. If the 
 general outline remain the same, there is at least an air 
 of novelty about its lineaments and colour : and how- 
 ever clearly we may perceive its identity, something- 
 more is required to account for its appearance at this 
 time, and in this shape. There is indeed one very 
 simple and easy way of cutting- short this inquiry ; 
 that is, to refer the whole to some invisible superna- 
 tural agency. Viewed by different minds, and from 
 opposite points, the same event may appear either as 
 a gracious interposition of Divine Providence, or a. 
 machination of the great enemy of souls. So it was 
 with the Reformation, and so it is with the movement 
 which now agitates the Church. And doubtless in 
 most events which have been brought about by hu- 
 man means, and extensively affected by human opin- 
 ions, prejudices, and passions, there is such a mixture 
 of good and evil, that even the same person may think 
 he sees as much reason for referring- them to the one 
 author as to the other. But this is not the present 
 question. As we should not understand the character 
 of the Reformation at all the better, for being- told that 
 it was a work of God, so, to say, whether truly or not, 
 that this movement is a device of Satan, would leave 
 us as much as ever in the dark with regard to its
 
 42 
 
 nature,, occasion, and proximate causes. Nor again 
 does it appear to me, that a knowledge of the imme- 
 diate occasion from which it arose, can throw any 
 light upon its nature, or assist us toward forming an 
 estimate of its worth. But we do gain a notion of it, 
 which, though it may not be complete, is certainly 
 very important, and perhaps the only one with which, 
 as Ministers of the Church, we are practically con- 
 cerned, when we are led by the language both of its 
 friends and its adversaries, to consider it as a reaction, 
 an attempt to counteract a religious system, which it 
 found existing, and gaining ground within the Church. 
 According to the descriptions which have been given 
 of this system by those who profess to be resisting it, 
 it is represented as one which undervalues the autho- 
 rity of the Church, disregards her ordinances, neglects 
 her ritual, disparages the sacraments, virtually aban- 
 dons some of her peculiar doctrines, destroys the pro- 
 portion of her theology, and contracts its compass, by 
 the undue prominence given to a few articles of faith, 
 substitutes empty phrases, barren, unreal notions, 
 sensible excitement, feelings, and impressions, for the 
 substance of religion, for true devotion, for the con- 
 scientious discharge of social duties, for habits of self- 
 denial and charity, for the diligent cultivation and 
 practical exercise of Christian virtues ; and thus tends 
 to diffuse a kind of antinomianism, which is only the 
 more dangerous, on account of the subtlety and 
 refinement, by which it eludes superficial observation, 
 and abstains from all that would offend decency and 
 common sense.
 
 43 
 
 If it were true that such a system as this had been 
 introduced into the Church, and was making pro- 
 gress, there can be no doubt that 4l e who undertook 
 to expose and combat it would be entitled to our sym- 
 pathy, even though we might not agree with them in 
 all their principles, or approve of all the remedies they 
 proposed for the evil. But though it is certain that 
 one of the parties in the controversy represents itself 
 as contending against such a system, several of their 
 opponents have not only indignantly disclaimed all 
 connexion with it, but have seemed altogether to deny 
 its existence, and to treat it as a mere fiction, with 
 which their antagonists have either deceived them- 
 selves, or endeavoured to impose upon others : and 
 which tends, in its effect, if not in its design, 1o check 
 the growth of vital religion, by casting undeserved 
 obloquy on a portion of the Church, which is more 
 especially distinguished by its close adherence to the 
 principles of the Gospel, even if it be not entitled to 
 a name, which imports that it is in the exclusive pos- 
 session of them. There would indeed be just ground 
 for the indignation which has been expressed on this 
 subject, if the system above described had ever been 
 imputed to the individuals who have disavowed it. 
 But it seems perfectly consistent with the highest 
 respect for them, and with the fullest admission of 
 every thing they have asserted with rega 1 to their 
 own consciousness, practice, experience, and observa- 
 tion, to believe, that the evil is not so purely imaginary 
 as they have represented it. It is a question of
 
 44 
 
 fact, on which no man ought to accept another's 
 assertion as proof. But in the absence of what can 
 never be given — a proof of the negative — it seems no 
 more than common charity requires, to believe that 
 those who profess to be setting themselves against 
 such a system, are sincerely convinced of its reality. 
 As little can I doubt, that this conviction has been 
 shared by numbers beside, and that this has been a 
 main cause of the acceptance which writings directed 
 against the system have met with. My own opinion 
 on such a point can have no more weight than that of 
 any other person, who has been used to pay attention 
 to such subjects. But I must avow that the result of 
 my observation has been a very strong impression 
 both of the reality, and of the extensive prevalence of 
 the evil. 
 
 And this suggests another remark, which may pos- 
 sibly be of some use toward soothing the apprehensions 
 of persons who view the course which the controversy 
 has taken with alarm. When we hear of a school or 
 party, which is charged with an attempt to introduce 
 dangerous innovations into the Church, and are 
 informed, that it comprises a large proportion of the 
 Clergy, and a great number of the Laity, it is very 
 necessary that we should accustom ourselves to dis- 
 tinguish between the Teachers and the Disciples, the 
 Guides and the Followers : that we should remember 
 that there may be a general sympathy and approba- 
 tion, which does not exclude many differences of 
 opinion, even on important points ; that general prin-
 
 45 
 
 ciples may be adopted, but not in the sense or the 
 spirit in which they were propounded, and without 
 any of the inferences which are drawn from them, 
 either by their advocates, or their impugners. Indeed 
 examples of such partial disagreement have already 
 appeared : nor perhaps would it be difficult to point 
 out indications of considerable divergency in the 
 writers who are considered as the leaders and organs 
 of the party. But at least there seems to be no reason 
 to suspect that the mass of those with whom their 
 principles have found favour, are not heartily attached 
 to the Church in her present form, or that they are 
 dissatisfied with the language of her formularies, or 
 desirous of any change in her public worship, not 
 perfectly consistent with her existing Canons and 
 Rubric. 
 
 But to many persons all that I have been hitherto 
 saying on this subject will probably appear quite 
 foreign to what they regard as the main question : 
 that is, whether errors have not been maintained 
 within the Church, by some of her authorised teach- 
 ers, which are so clearly subversive of the fundamental 
 articles of her faith, that they cannot be safely tolera- 
 ted. The question, it must be observed, is not as to 
 the absolute and exact coincidence of every thing that 
 has been advanced with the doctrine of the Church, 
 but as to the amount and importance of any supposed 
 departure from it : not whether statements have been 
 made, which are not fully borne out by her authentic 
 language, but whether any such as are essentially
 
 46 
 
 inconsistent with her vital principles : so far exceed- 
 ing the just limits of private speculation, as to violate 
 the terms of communion, and to render those who 
 persist in them guilty of a breach of their most solemn 
 ministerial engagements. Much may have been said 
 that may demand very earnest attention, that may be 
 a fit subject for warning or censure : but if it stop 
 short of this point, it ought not to disturb the peace 
 of the Church, but may be safely left to await the 
 issue of free discussion. I must own that I have 
 hitherto met with nothing to convince me, that mat- 
 ters have been brought to such a melancholy extre- 
 mity. It would manifestly be both impracticable and 
 unseasonable to enter at large into the grounds on 
 which my judgement has been formed : but I will offer 
 a few observations on some of the subjects with regard 
 to which others seem to have been led to an opposite 
 conclusion. 
 
 Though different writers have fixed on different 
 points in the system of their opponents, as the hinges 
 of the controversy, the most prominent place seems to 
 have been generally assigned to the doctrine which 
 is the subject of our eleventh Article, and which has 
 been emphatically described as the test of a standing 
 or falling Church. A very elaborate theory has been 
 proposed on this subject by an eminent writer,* which 
 has been denounced on the other side as radically 
 false and utterly irreconcilable with our Church's 
 
 * Newman. Lectures on Justification.
 
 47 
 
 teaching on that head : and equally elaborate attempts 
 have been made to shew, that this is the root from 
 which all the other errors of the author's system have 
 sprung. With regard to my own impression, I can 
 only say, that after the closest attention I could give 
 to the dispute, I view it as one of words, involving no 
 real difference of opinion, and consequently look upon 
 both parties as in this respect equally orthodox But 
 there are some facts, which, if they do not clearly 
 point to the same conclusion, seem to me to furnish a 
 strong reason for the exercise of peculiar caution and 
 moderation in our judgements on this question. One 
 of these facts is, that the modern theory is admitted 
 to harmonise very closely with that of Bishop Bull, 
 who certainly believed his views to be in perfect 
 accordance with the formularies of his Church, and 
 though warmly attacked, was never, as far as I know, 
 charged with any of the consequences which have 
 been supposed to flow from them in their more recent 
 form. And I may add, that the work in which Bishop 
 Bull proposed his theory, the Harmonia Apostolica, 
 was strongly recommended to the Clergy of this Dio- 
 cese by Bishop Horsley in his Charge at his Primary 
 Visitation, as a "preservative from the contagion of 
 the Antinomian folly." Another fact, still more im- 
 portant, and I think not sufficiently borne in mind, is, 
 that the principal terms employed in the discussion of 
 the subject, which are therefore of most frequent 
 occurrence, admit of so many different senses, that 
 there is perpetual danger of confusion and misunder-
 
 48 
 
 standing :f so that an eager disputant may carry on 
 the contest through a bulky volume,, and yet leave his 
 antagonist's position untouched. When this is the 
 case., nothing is more natural than that complaints 
 should be made of obscurity, confusion,, paradox, and 
 self-contradiction : and accordingly, in no part of the 
 controversy do we hear such complaints more fre- 
 quently and strongly expressed, than in that which 
 relates to this point. £ But though I have not been able 
 to perceive that the doctrine of the eleventh Article 
 has been put in any peril by the manner in which it 
 is exhibited in that theory, or that the theory affords 
 the slightest countenance to the Romish doctrine of 
 Merit, 1 am not the less convinced that the ordinary 
 mode of stating the doctrine of our Church, against 
 which the author so vehemently protests, both ex- 
 presses it correctly, and sufficiently guards, so far as 
 words can do so, against the abuse of it : and I know 
 of nothing that is likely to be gained by the substitu- 
 tion of any other, unless it be, that it may serve to 
 rouse attention, to exercise thought, and to prevent the 
 mechanical repetition, and consequent idolising, of a 
 formula. 
 
 Much offence and alarm has been caused by state- 
 ments with regard to the relation between Scripture 
 
 t See Jeremy Taylor's Sermon : Fides Formata. Works, Vol. vi. p. 268, ed. 
 Heber. 
 
 X It seems very doubtful whether a collection of seemingly paradoxical and 
 self-contradictoi'y passages torn from the context of a closely reasoned work, can 
 contribute much either to enlighten the ignorant, or to convince gainsayers.
 
 49 
 
 and Tradition., which have been put forward on one 
 side as neglected and almost forgotten truths, and 
 condemned on the other as repugnant to the spirit at 
 least of our Sixth Article, and a virtual abandonment 
 of a fundamental principle of our Reformation. No 
 topic of the recent controversy has been more fruitful 
 than this : none, it may perhaps be added, has led 
 to more important and profitable inquiries. If it be 
 true, as seems hardly to be denied, that tradition had 
 not only become " to most of us an unpalatable word," 
 but one of ce vague use," and " closely associated in most 
 men's minds with a whole host of partialities and 
 antipathies," then certainly we have reason to congra- 
 tulate ourselves, that so much has been done of late 
 to clear up its ambiguity, to distinguish and ascertain 
 its various meanings, and to enable us, whether we 
 relish it or not, to use it calmly and soberly, in its 
 proper place, and with a right conception of its im- 
 port. For my present purpose it will be sufficient to 
 express my opinion, that the progress of the contro- 
 versy has shewn that the difference between the two 
 parties on this point is not one of principle, but of 
 fact. There is no dispute as to the nature of the 
 supreme authority in matters of faith : it is admitted 
 to be not the decision of uninspired men in any age, 
 much less of any human arbitrator, but the teaching 
 of our Lord and His Apostles : but one question is, 
 whether any record of that teaching is still to be 
 found, beside that which is contained in Holy Writ. 
 Those who have most magnified the authority of 
 
 G
 
 50 
 
 Tradition have proceeded on the supposition, express 
 or implied, that the Tradition they speak of has pre- 
 served a portion of that teaching-. They are met 
 with the assertion, that either no such record exists, 
 or that it is impossible to discover it. This is cer- 
 tainly a fair subject for historical investigation and 
 argument. But it is not this that constitutes the most 
 interesting- and important point of variance : the main 
 point is the relation in which Tradition is made to 
 stand to Scripture. If Scripture not only contains all 
 thing-s necessary to salvation, but delivers them so 
 plainly that every one may find them there for himself, 
 it is comparatively of little moment, whether fragments 
 of the teaching- of our Lord and His Apostles have or 
 have not been preserved elsewhere. But if Scripture 
 itself needs an interpreter, it becomes a question of 
 the highest importance, whether there exists any 
 Tradition capable of discharging that office, and how 
 far it is to be trusted. And here the divergency 
 between the opposite parties appears at first sight very 
 great indeed : the one urging all that can be said to 
 prove the obscurity of Scripture, the other insisting 
 on its plainness and perspicuity. Nevertheless, on 
 closer inspection, the points on which they agree will 
 perhaps be found both more numerous and more 
 essential than those on which they differ. It seems 
 to be admitted on both sides, that the right under- 
 standing of Scripture is not to be attained by the 
 exercise of the unassisted reason ; that it depends on 
 certain moral conditions, and a certain measure of
 
 51 
 
 spiritual illumination. And even those who contend 
 that this is the only assistance absolutely necessary, 
 would hardly deny, that the experiment has rarely, if 
 ever, been tried : or that the persons who come to the 
 study of Scripture with such assistance, also generally 
 bring with them notions and impressions derived from 
 early instruction. Nor again is it maintained by 
 either party, that the sufficiency of Scripture is such 
 as to render all other external helps to the right 
 understanding of it useless. That would be con- 
 demned as a mark of ignorant presumption, or of 
 blind enthusiasm. It is admitted, that "there are 
 many useful guides to the truth besides the Scriptures, 
 of which the writings of the early Fathers are one, 
 and an important one."* But further, it is not pre- 
 tended, that to appeal to the consent of primitive 
 antiquity, for the purpose of ascertaining the sense 
 of Scripture on articles of faith, is any peculiarity of 
 the modern school which is charged with unduly 
 exalting the authority of Tradition. On the contrary 
 it has been laid down by an eminent living divine, 
 who is not only unconnected with that school, but 
 one of its most zealous opponents, that f 'in the 
 settlement of articles of faith on the authority of 
 Scripture, the principle of the Anglican Church 
 is that of an appeal to the recorded consent of 
 primitive antiquity from the very beginning."f 
 
 * Goode. Divine Ride of Faith and Practice, I. p. 18. 
 f Faber : Primitive Doctrine of Justification, 2d ed. p. 365.
 
 52 
 
 Here indeed it has been justly observed by others, 
 that if this consent is to be taken in its strict sense, 
 as including the assent of every individual Christian 
 in any age of the Church, it is something which 
 either never existed, or at least is utterly incapable 
 of proof. And this observation — if it was ever 
 needed — is certainly very valuable. But how far 
 the consent of the great majority may be properly 
 considered as answering the same purpose, and again, 
 how far such a consent is represented by any records 
 which have been preserved to us — these are ques- 
 tions on which every one may be allowed to form his 
 own opinion. So far then we discover no difference 
 as to any principle which is peculiar to any modern 
 school. But when we proceed a step further, we 
 meet with an apparent difference of principle, and 
 one which has been represented as of vital moment. 
 For the consent of antiquity, in whatever sense it is 
 understood, may be regarded either as simply the 
 evidence of a witness, or as the authoritative decision 
 of an infallible judge. And this indeed sounds like 
 a very important distinction, though I must own that 
 it appears to me a difference more of sound than of 
 substance. For if it is the character of the witness, 
 and not the nature of his testimony, that makes his 
 evidence decisive, it seems to matter little, as to the 
 practical result, which view we take. The exercise 
 of private judgement on the doctrine delivered is 
 equally excluded by each. But even this point is 
 one in which the controversy of our day is not con-
 
 53 
 
 cerned. The party which appeals to the consent of 
 antiquity professes to hold, that " the Scripture is 
 the sole authoritative source of the Faith/' i. e. " of 
 things to be believed in order to salvation, and that 
 the church only testifies to her children what truths 
 are necessary to be believed in order to salvation, in 
 subjection to scripture ; and even when she deter- 
 mines controversies, does this not in the character of 
 a judge, but as a witness to what she herself re- 
 ceived."* I am aware, unhappilv, that it has been 
 not unfrequently insinuated, that such professions 
 are not to be trusted. I do not inquire whether in- 
 sinuations of this kind are charitable or just. I only 
 notice them for the purpose of remarking, that when 
 we are speaking about terms of communion, it is only 
 the doctrines which men profess that we can take as 
 the ground of our judgement, as we have no other 
 means of discovering what they really hold. For the 
 same reason I pass over the attempts which have 
 been made, by disputable inferences, to prove, that a 
 principle has been admitted, in appeals to tradition 
 on points as to which Scripture is silent, which, if 
 
 * Pusey : Letter to Bishop of Oxford, p. 31, 3d ed. The whole passage runs 
 thus : — " In bi-ief, then, my Lord, the meaning of our Church (as we conceive) in 
 these Articles is, that the Scripture is the sole authoritative source of the Faith, 
 i. e. of ' things to be believed in order to salvation ;' the Church is the medium 
 through which that knowledge is conveyed to individuals ; she, under her respon- 
 sibility to God, and in subjection to II is Scripture, and with the guidance of His 
 Spirit, testifies to her children, what truths are to be believed in order to salvation ; 
 expounds Scripture to them ; determines when controversies arise ; and this, not 
 in the character of a judge, but as a ' witness' to what she herself received."
 
 54 
 
 followed out, would open a door for the corruptions 
 of Romanism. And on the other hand I must 
 observe, that the object which I have now in view 
 does not lead me even to inquire, whether the lan- 
 guage which has been employed to convey certain 
 views of doctrine, is not liable to grave objections, 
 or just censure, as ambiguous, or unguarded, harsh, 
 extravagant, and ill sounding. It is not with modes 
 of expression that we are at present concerned, but 
 with the nature of the things expressed. This is a 
 remark which it is particularly necessary to bear in 
 mind, when we proceed to touch upon another class 
 of questions, which has been the subject of very 
 vehement controversy, those I mean which relate to 
 the doctrine of the Apostolical succession in its con- 
 nexion with that of the Sacraments. 
 
 Here we must be careful not to lose sight of the 
 distinction between the doctrines themselves, and the 
 connexion in which they stand, or have been placed, 
 with one another. For it is this connexion, very 
 much more than the doctrines themselves, or even the 
 manner in which they have been stated, that has 
 given offence to many excellent persons. It is not 
 I believe disputed by any one, that what is called the 
 high doctrine of the Apostolical Succession (including, 
 i. e., not only the historical fact, that the ministry of 
 our church is derived by uninterrupted descent from 
 the Apostles, but likewise that it was established by 
 them as a permanent and unalterable institution, to 
 be continued according to certain invariable regula-
 
 55 
 
 tions) I say it is hardly disputed that this doctrine 
 has been held by so large a part of our best divines, 
 and has received so much apparent countenance from 
 the anxiety shown to preserve the succession when 
 it was in danger of interruption, that it would be 
 unreasonable to complain of it as a novelty, or even 
 to represent it as being" now exclusively held by a 
 particular school. Again, whatever ground there 
 may be for the charge brought against one party in 
 the controversy, that it has exaggerated the import- 
 ance and the efficacy of the Sacraments, it does not 
 appear to involve any question of principle. Indeed, 
 since the church herself teaches, that the Sacraments 
 are generally necessary to salvation, it seems diffi- 
 cult for any one to exaggerate their importance, 
 unless he were to hold, what I believe no one 
 maintains, that the necessity is not merely general, 
 but universal and absolute. 
 
 So, language may have been used, which afforded 
 just reason for jealousy and fear, lest their dignity 
 should be so magnified as to exclude the use of other 
 means of grace, or as to substitute means for ends, or 
 as to encourage the belief that their efficacy is wholly 
 independent of internal qualifications. But since 
 these consequences are disavowed by those who have 
 been charged with them, it does not seem possible to 
 draw a line between the general principles of the 
 opposite parties on this head. But it has been very 
 truly observed, that " men may over-estimate the 
 efficacy of the sacraments, to the disparagement of
 
 56 
 
 prayer and preaching*, and reading- the Scriptures, and 
 yet b eperfectly clear from the opinion which makes 
 this efficacy depend immediately on a human admi- 
 nistrator. And so again, men may hold episcopacy 
 to be divine, and the episcopacy of apostolical suc- 
 cession to be the only true episcopacy, but yet they 
 may utterly reject the notion of its being essential to 
 the efficacy of the Sacraments/'* And the opinion of 
 such a connexion between the two doctrines has been 
 condemned both as groundless and pernicious. But I 
 conceive that it may not be useless to observe, that 
 there is a sense in which the connexion between them 
 would be neither so arbitrary, nor pregnant with such 
 dangerous consequences. If any one believes that 
 the ministerial commission may be traced through the 
 Apostles to the Head of the Church, and that it was 
 originally designed to comprehend the administration 
 of the Sacraments, then he will be naturally led to 
 consider the character of the Minister as a part of the 
 ordinance : and it will follow, that he cannot look 
 upon it as altogether immaterial, whether this part be 
 absent or not : he will not venture to say that the 
 ordinance would be, to all intents and purposes, the 
 same without it : and this he might express by saying 
 that the apostolical succession is requisite for the due 
 application of it. But it would not follow that he 
 undertakes to pronounce how far it is an essential 
 part, or to what degree its absence affects the efficacy 
 
 * Arnold : Sermons on Christian Life. Introduction, p. xxxvii.
 
 57 
 
 of the rite, or that there are not many circumstances 
 in which it may be safely omitted, and in which its 
 place will be surely and effectually supplied. f In a 
 word, there appears to be nothing in the doctrine 
 itself that is exclusive or uncharitable, beyond what is 
 implied in a strong* preference of one communion over 
 another. Its character will depend on the temper in 
 which it is embraced : and since those who maintain 
 it most firmly, still declare their belief that cc God's 
 favour is not limited to the bounds of his heritage, but 
 that, in the Church, or out of the Church, every one 
 that calleth on the name of the Lord with a pure and 
 perfect heart, shall be saved," J we would hope that its 
 influence may in most cases be found consistent both 
 with charity and humility. The prudence of putting- 
 forward such a doctrine as an instrument of contro- 
 versy, is a different question. A weapon which may 
 irritate an adversary, but does not weaken him, would 
 seem to be best kept in its sheath. Those who are 
 already hostile to the Church, are not likely to be 
 won by the revival of what they must deem an extra- 
 vagant pretension : and those who are indifferent to 
 her more evident advantages, will hardly be attracted 
 by one so questionable, and so remote from com- 
 mon apprehension, that the belief in it is enter- 
 
 f Compare an extract from a work of Bishop Cosin, in Brewer's Memoir of the 
 Author, prefixed to his edition of The History of Popish Tranmbstantiation, p. 
 xxxi. 
 
 I Newman. Sermons, vi. p. 186. 
 M
 
 58 
 
 tained with reluctance by many of those who admit 
 it.§ 
 
 I shall touch very briefly on another subject, which 
 has, I think, occupied an undue share of public atten- 
 tion, and has excited much misplaced feeling : and 
 indeed, but for that notoriety, I should have had no 
 inducement on this occasion to notice it at all. 1 
 mean the Tracts "on Reserve in communicating" 
 religious knowledge." The point of the charges 
 which have been made against their author is, that 
 he had recommended the suppressing or withholding 
 some of the fundamental truths of religion. He him- 
 self however has publicly disclaimed the meaning im- 
 puted to him, and has denied that it could be fairly 
 inferred from his language. According to his own 
 professions, his object was not to recommend or sanc- 
 tion the suppression of religious knowledge, but to 
 lay down the principles which, as he conceived, ought 
 to regulate the mode of communicating it. Now 
 here, as before, I do not inquire whether it be con- 
 sistent with charity or candour to repeat the accusa- 
 tion just as if no such disavowal and explanation 
 had ever been offered ; it is enough to say, that the 
 Church can properly take cognizance only of doc- 
 trines which are professed or acknowledged : as she 
 cannot be reproached with allowing any of her Minis- 
 ters to teach an erroneous doctrine which they have 
 either retracted or disavowed. But the agitation 
 
 § Advertisement to Vol. II. of the Tracts for the Times : quoted by Mr. Goode 
 in his pamphlet, The Case at it is, p. 19.
 
 50 
 
 which has been produced by the treatise in question, 
 induces me to add a few remarks. When I consider 
 the character of several of the persons by whom the 
 author's meaning- has been, according to his own 
 assertion, misunderstood, I am not at liberty to doubt, 
 that he must in some passages have expressed himself 
 in obscure and incautious terms. On the other hand 
 it is certain, that not a few readers who took up the 
 tracts under an unfavorable prepossession derived 
 from report and from quotations, were led by a peru- 
 sal of the whole to a widely different conception of 
 its real import. The title itself would certainly seem 
 to indicate an object very different from suppression: 
 as reserve in communicating appears to imply some 
 kind of communication : not to mention the important 
 distinction, with which we are all familiar in religious 
 subjects, between the communication of knowledge 
 as a merely intellectual process, and that of truth as 
 a moral one. But if we take a much surer test than 
 any of these, and judge of the author's drift from the 
 character of the system which he professes to repro- 
 bate, we must be inclined to consider it rather as a 
 protest against reserve, than a recommendation of it. 
 If, as he, whether with or without good reason, 
 assumed, there was a popular mode of teaching, which 
 dwelt almost exclusively on a portion of the truth, so 
 as virtually to withhold and suppress others not less 
 important, the natural remedy for the evil would have 
 been, not to keep one part back, but to bring the 
 rest more prominently forward. That the treatise is
 
 60 
 
 deficient in practical directions for the application of 
 its principles, has been admitted by its defenders.* 
 But it may still be profitable, if it tends to warn us 
 against the danger of partial views and exhibitions of 
 the truth, and to lead us more carefully to prserve 
 both the fulness and the proportion of faith. 
 
 Some much more important, as well as difficult, 
 questions are suggested by the last Tract of the 
 Series, entitled " Remarks on certain passages in the 
 Thirty-nine Articles." The objections which have 
 been made to this essay — and it has incurred the 
 censure of persons whose prepossessions were all in 
 its favour — have been directed partly against the 
 author's principle of interpretation, and partly against 
 the manner in which he applies it in his treatment of 
 the passages which are the subject of his remarks. 
 And these are points which must be carefully distin- 
 guished, and considered separately. With regard to 
 the principle itself, it appears to me that much mis- 
 apprehension has prevailed, and that it has been 
 stated by others in a manner which the writer's 
 language does not warrant. It has been sometimes 
 represented as if he held it allowable for one who 
 subscribes the Articles to reject their obvious, literal, 
 and grammatical sense, and to substitute another 
 more conformable to his own preconceived notion of 
 Catholic doctrine. This indeed is a principle which 
 would be alarmingly dangerous, if it were not so 
 
 * See A brief Analysis of the Tracts on Reserve in Communicating Religious 
 Knowledge, by Henry Arthur Woodjjate, B. D.
 
 6i 
 
 flagrantly absurd. But I do not perceive that it is 
 implied, either in the account which the author gives 
 of his object, at the outset, or in the concluding- re- 
 marks with which he meets a supposed objection. I 
 hardly understand how it can be reconciled with 
 either : his professed object being- to shew, that the 
 Articles contain no propositions or terms inconsistent 
 with the Catholic faith : and the objection which he 
 anticipates being, that the interpretation proposed, 
 though it may give the grammatical sense, is not in 
 harmony with the known opinions of the framers. 
 The objection itself assumes, I think, that no violence 
 has been done to the grammatical sense : and the 
 answer given to it, though including several distinct 
 heads, seems to amount to this : that one who sub- 
 scribes to the Articles professes his assent to the 
 opinions of their framers, so far as they are distinctly 
 expressed in the Articles themselves, but no farther : 
 and that he is not bound to adopt those which he may 
 find recorded in their other writings, for the purpose 
 of either limiting or enlarging the grammatical sense 
 of the Articles : so that, where a proposition is ex- 
 pressed in general terms, he is at liberty to differ from 
 the framers as to those points which are left undefined. 
 The author conceives, and endeavours to shew by 
 historical evidence, that the Articles were framed 
 with the intention of allowing large room for differ- 
 ence of opinion on subordinate questions. His view 
 of this subject has been severely censured, as sub- 
 jecting our Reformers to the charge of disingenuous-
 
 62 
 
 ness ; which no doubt they would have justly in- 
 curred, if they had designedly used equivocal lan- 
 guage. But a proposition may be general, yet not 
 equivocal : it may be meant, and may serve, to secure 
 unanimity among those who assent to it, to a certain 
 extent, though not to exclude a variety of sentiments 
 beyond that limit. 
 
 Whatever then may be thought as to the matter 
 of fact, the principle of interpretation, so stated, ap- 
 pears to contain nothing either absurd or dangerous : 
 and more than this, the author seems neither to have 
 asked, nor — which is more important — to have wanted 
 for his purpose. The manner in which he has ap- 
 plied his principle in the treatment of the Articles on 
 which he has commented, is of course a tolally 
 distinct question. And here I think no impartial 
 person can deny that there is much to justify the 
 sensation of surprise and alarm which was excited in 
 so many, and some very friendly quarters, by the first 
 appearance of the Tract. This impression was 
 perhaps the stronger, because the notion of a com- 
 promise between extreme opinions on a common 
 ground had been least of all associated in most minds 
 with the articles which it discusses. But even when 
 this view has been admitted, the construction put 
 upon several passages will certainly appear to ordi- 
 nary readers excessively refined and artificial, such 
 in fact as could scarcely have occurred to the writer, 
 if his judgement had not been biassed by his wishes. 
 Such is still my own impression, after all I have seen
 
 63 
 
 adduced in defence or explanation of the tract, though 
 I think it sufficient to repel the imputation of a con- 
 scious obliquity of view. And the character of the 
 Church required that such a mode of interpreting- her 
 formularies should be publicly discountenanced. But 
 on the other hand suspicions have been suggested by 
 the Tract, as to the drift of the whole, and the ulti- 
 mate tendency of the author's views, which appear 
 to be wide of his real aim, and meaning. His inter- 
 pretation of the Twenty-second Article, which, more 
 than any other part of his Remarks, has given rise to 
 these suspicions, is indeed, in my judgement, quite 
 untenable. Even if the compilers of that Article had 
 not been acquainted with the decrees of the Council 
 of Trent on the subjects mentioned in it, they could 
 not have described some of the grossest abuses of the 
 un reformed practice as the Romish doctrine, nor 
 would they probably have pronounced so mild a cen- 
 sure on such enormities as is expressed in the terms 
 " a fond thing vainly invented, and grounded upon no 
 warranty of Scripture, but rather repugnant to the 
 word of God." This would surely have been at the 
 same time much less and much more than belonged 
 to such a subject. And again, whatever might 
 have been the case with the framers of the Article, 
 the authority which imposed it, after the decrees of 
 the Council had been published, could not have 
 thought that it did not condemn the Romish doctrine 
 according to the latest and most authentic exposition 
 of it. In fact, however, it was the doctrine of the
 
 64 
 
 Schoolmen that the framers of the Article originally con- 
 demned, and the epithet Romish was afterwards sub- 
 stituted with distinct reference to the decrees of Trent. 
 The author of the Tnct therefore seems to have fallen 
 into a manifest error, when he attempts, on chronologi- 
 cal grounds, to limit the meaning- of the Article, so as 
 not to comprehend the decrees of the Council of Trent 
 on the same points. But though his remark as to the 
 date of the Articles is general, still, since the distinction 
 which he draws between the Romish doctrine, and 
 that of Trent, is strictly limited to this single Article 
 — for in no other does the expression Romish doc- 
 trine occur — it cannot be inferred that he intended 
 to intimate, that the teaching of the Council is consis- 
 tent with that of the Church of England on any other 
 points. It would indeed be sufficiently alarming to 
 believe that he thought this was the case with regard 
 to these. But though the language of the Tract, 
 taken by itself, might very easily suggest such a 
 surmise, and is on that account deserving of censure, 
 as it might fall in the way of persons who had no 
 other means of learning the author's real sentiments, 
 I think it is clear from his subsequent explanation of 
 his meaning, that the immediate purport of his 
 remark was to signify a distinction between the letter 
 of the decrees of Trent, and the spirit in which 
 it has been interpreted in the Romish schools, and by 
 the practice of the Church of Rome. And also that 
 what he would have licensed as an admissible private 
 opinion on the subject of the Article, is not recon-
 
 65 
 
 citable even with the letter of those decrees, unless on 
 a very forced and arbitrary interpretation. But I must 
 add, that the liberty for which he pleads on some 
 points, is much larger than the grounds which he 
 assigns for it. On subjects, as to which nothing can 
 be known to us but by revelation, it cannot be 
 altogether innocent, or safe, to adopt, even as matter 
 of private belief, any doctrine which has not been 
 revealed. It is either a presumptuous abuse of our 
 mental faculties, or it is suffering ourselves to be 
 beguiled by others, who have rashly and vainly 
 intruded into those things which they have not seen. 
 It diverts the mind from the contemplation of certain 
 and useful truths : it tends directly to introduce 
 superstitious practice. Even therefore if our Church 
 had been silent as to the state of the departed — which 
 is far from the case, since she makes it the subject of 
 prayer — it would not have followed that any of her 
 children is at liberty to hold a doctrine on that sub- 
 ject, as matter of belief, ivhaiever be its merits, merely 
 because it is in some sense primitive, and is a possi- 
 ble or probable opinion, that is to say, a conjecture 
 not involving any absurdity : much less to hold a doc- 
 trine which is apparently as much opposed to that of 
 our Church, as the idea of punishment is to that oijoy 
 and felicity , and the absence of God's presence to the 
 living with Him. 
 
 Before T conclude, I must still advert to another 
 feature in the controversy, which has contributed more 
 than any other to give it that air of novelty which I
 
 66 
 
 have already noticed. All the propositions maintained 
 by the writers of the modern school put together, have 
 probably produced much less effect on the mind of the 
 public, than the language in which some of them have 
 spoken of the Church of Rome on the one hand, and 
 of our Reformers on the other. That divines of our 
 communion should speak of the Roman Church in 
 terms not merely of indulgence, but of reverence, of 
 tenderness, of affection, while they spoke harshly and 
 disparagingly, not to say bitterly and contemptuously 3 
 of the Reformers, the Reformation, and Protestan- 
 tism, was not only startling and offensive, but raised 
 a suspicion, that where so much was said in spite of 
 public opinion, and against the spirit of the times, still 
 more might be meant, and only reserved for a more 
 favorable juncture. And this suspicion was of course 
 greatly strengthened by expressions which fell from 
 the same quarter, and which seemed to intimate a 
 secret design of effecting some change of undefined 
 extent in the character of our Church. Now such 
 language, taken by itself, however unseemly, intem- 
 perate, uncharitable, and unjust, would not, as I have 
 repeatedly observed, come within the scope of my 
 present remarks. It is only because it has been 
 represented as an alarming indication, and has excited 
 apprehensions of danger, that I am now induced to 
 notice it. And there are several considerations which 
 lead me to think, that in this point of view its impor- 
 tance has been greatly exaggerated. It would per- 
 haps be sufficient to say, not only ought large allow-
 
 67 
 
 ance to be made for expressions dropped in the warmth 
 of controversial discussion, but, it is not during the 
 course of a controversy that the parties usually bestow 
 their attention impartially on the opposite sides of a 
 question, or are careful to balance their own judge- 
 ments on men and things with those of their oppo- 
 nents, or to accompany their statements with all the 
 modifications and supplements which may be neces- 
 sary for a complete view of the subject. They are 
 occupied with one aspect or portion of the truth, and 
 may seem to forget that there is any other : they 
 bring it prominently forward, and appear to depress 
 all that they leave untouched : they omit what does 
 not concern their immediate object, and are thought 
 to exclude it. A person who is absorbed in the con- 
 templation of some particular merit or defect of a sys- 
 tem, will be apt to use general terms or illustrations, 
 which would be improper and extravagant if applied 
 to the whole : as, if he conceived that our Church was 
 suffering deeply from the restraint laid upon her 
 general assemblies, he might be tempted to speak of 
 her condition as a degrading bondage, though he 
 would be the last to approve of such language as a 
 general description of her case. 1 think there is not 
 only room to hope, but reason to believe, that this will 
 prove to be the true account of much that has caused 
 general disquietude in the polemical theology of our 
 day. But there are some other points which ought 
 not to be overlooked, when we are estimating; the 
 importance which is to be attached to the expressions
 
 68 
 
 of favorable feeling which have lately been used by 
 members of our communion with regard to the Church 
 of Rome. It ought not to be forgotten., that a gene- 
 ral change has taken place in the common tone of 
 sentiment on this subject; and that modes of speak- 
 ing about it have become familiar to us, which would 
 not have been tolerated while the struggle of the 
 Reformation was yet recent. The opinion by which 
 Hooker offended so many of his contemporaries,, that 
 ec God was merciful to save thousands of our fathers 
 living in popish superstitions, inasmuch as they sinned 
 ignorantly," would not now be thought by many a 
 great stretch of liberality. It has not been without 
 its effect, that so very many of our countrymen have 
 been used to look at the externals of the Roman Ca- 
 tholic worship, with feelings like those with which an 
 intelligent lover of the fine arts views the beautiful 
 remains of Pagan antiquity. But there is another 
 state of mind, widely different from this, and equally 
 removed from antiquarian enthusiasm, and from reli- 
 gious indifference, but which nevertheless may mani- 
 fest itself in a somewhat similar result. It has been 
 described by a writer of the school which is charged 
 with a tendency to Romanism, in the remark, — "We 
 are in no danger of becoming Romanists, and may 
 bear to be dispassionate, and (1 may say) philosophical 
 in our treatment of their errors."* On the same 
 principle persons who have not only condemned, but 
 
 * Tracts for the Times, No. 79, p. 3.
 
 69 
 
 have laboriously exposed the errors, corruptions, and 
 reigning spirit of the Church of Rome, might not 
 unnaturally think themselves the more at liberty to 
 give utterance not only to their general feelings of 
 charity towards her, but likewise to all those which 
 might be excited by the fairer sides of her past history 
 and her present condition, and more especially by the 
 works of many of her great writers. This however 
 will not, I am aware, serve at all to defend or account 
 for the language which has been applied to the Re- 
 formers, the Reformation, and Protestantism, and 
 which has given, in many cases, I think, very just 
 offence. But I also think that a very unfair use has 
 often been made of this language for the purposes of 
 controversy. Persons who have spoken moderately 
 themselves, have been made answerable, by a harsh 
 construction, for the expressions used by their friends, 
 and then conclusions have been drawn from these 
 expressions, which they do not warrant. And it has 
 happened that some of those which are in themselves 
 most censurable, have nevertheless been most abused, 
 and afford the least ground of alarm. I fully sympa- 
 thise with the indignation which has been roused by 
 the arbitrary misuse of the word Protestantism, by 
 which its meaning has been limited to a mere negation 
 of every thing that men on both sides profess to revere. 
 But still it seems evident that those who so misuse 
 the word can only be understood according to the 
 sense which they themselves, however unwarrantably, 
 attach to it : and that their meaning is perverted, if
 
 70 
 
 what they say of Protestantism is applied to what 
 others, in a very different sense, call the Protestant 
 Religion. It cannot indeed be denied that expres- 
 sions have been deliberately used which clearly imply 
 a certain degree of dissatisfaction with the present 
 state of the Church, a certain desire of change, a cer- 
 tain regret mingled with disapprobation at the course 
 pursued by some of our Reformers, and especially at 
 the extent to which they were swayed by foreign 
 influence. But I have yet to learn that such views 
 and feelings are inconsistent with the obligations of 
 a Minister of our Church, or with a sincere attach- 
 ment to her. I know of no authority that is entitled 
 to prescribe to any of us the opinions which he must 
 hold on the history of the Church, or the lessons 
 which he must gather from it : and I have no wish 
 to see such an authority established, whether it is to 
 be administered by a few or by the many. Rather 
 I would say, we cannot be too cautious of every ap- 
 proach toward such an odious and pernicious species 
 of spiritual tyranny. If any one is convinced, that 
 the Reformation has left nothing to desire, and that 
 it has taken away nothing that we ought to regret, 
 he may well be content with the pleasure of such a 
 belief, without seeking to force it upon others as a 
 duty. I would only observe that a contrary per- 
 suasion is at all events nothing peculiar to any party 
 in the present controversy. An admirable person, 
 in whose premature removal the Church and the 
 nation have to deplore a loss which will not be soon
 
 71 
 
 repaired, one of the most strenuous as well as able 
 opponents of the school which is reproached with 
 partiality to Romanism, had observed with his cha- 
 racteristic candour : " No wise man doubts that the 
 Reformation was imperfect, or that in the Romish 
 system there were many good institutions, and prac- 
 tices, and feelings, which it would be most desirable 
 to restore among ourselves."* There may be a 
 difference which I am notable to appreciate, between 
 the desire to restore and the wish to reappropriate, 
 but I think it can hardly be so great, that while the 
 one term is inoffensive, the other should throw the 
 Church and the country into a ferment. I am glad 
 however to see that an explanation has been offered 
 of some of the phrases which had given the greatest 
 offence, not so much because I should myself have 
 thought it necessary, as because it indicates a spirit 
 of conciliation which seems to me the thing: that is 
 most needed on both sides. f I will add but one word 
 before I drop the subject. It has been alleged as 
 an objection against the movement which gave rise 
 to this controversy, that its tendency is directly 
 counter to the spirit of the age, and betrays that its 
 authors have been misled by a blind antipathy, which 
 prevents them from discerning between the good 
 
 * Arnold : Sermons on Christian Life. Introduction, p. lvi. 
 
 f Explanation of a passage in an article on certain works of Bishop Jewell, 
 published in the British Critic for July, 1841, in a letter to the Rev. Charles Smith 
 Bird. By the Writer of the Article. See particularly p. 65 — 71.
 
 72 
 
 and the evil in the character of their own times. I 
 do not know whether the fact warrants the inference : 
 but doubtless so to set ourselves above the spirit of 
 our age, would be no less foolish and blamable than 
 the idolatrous admiration which bows to it as infallibly 
 wise, and perfectly good. I would only observe that 
 if such be the real nature of the movement, there can 
 be little reason for alarm about its progress. It is as 
 if one should dread a series of encroachments on the 
 bed of the sea, because an attempt has been some- 
 where made to shut it out by a dike. 
 
 I am aware, my Reverend Brethren, that the lan- 
 guage of moderation is commonly least welcome 
 where it is most needed. For this very reason I 
 confidently hope that what I have said will by you be 
 kindly received and favorably interpreted. And I 
 will now conclude this address, which has already 
 exceeded its just limits, with a very few words of 
 practical advice. Be on your guard against the 
 illusions of names and phrases, and against the influ- 
 ence of authority, in this matter. You may perhaps 
 suffer no loss, though you should have no means of 
 forming an opinion on the merits of this controversy ; 
 but you would sustain a grievous loss, if you should 
 borrow your opinion of it from others : you would 
 have surrendered the independence of your judge- 
 ment, and be in danger of becoming the instruments 
 of a party against your real views and intentions. 
 Remember that, though words are the necessary 
 vehicle of truth, they mostly represent it but imper-
 
 73 
 
 fectly, and that the form in which a proposition is 
 conveyed, though very important, is much less so 
 than the spirit in which it is interpreted and applied. 
 Set the highest value on those truths which both 
 parties profess, and on the authorities to which they 
 both appeal : you will probably find that they afford 
 an ample range for your professional studies, and 
 sufficient directions both for faith and practice. Be 
 still more circumspect as to that which you com- 
 municate to others, than as to what you adopt for 
 yourselves. Let the wants, rather than the tastes, of 
 your hearers supply the measure of your teaching-. 
 If you perceive that their prevailing tendency is to 
 overrate the value of their privileges as churchmen, 
 to place an undue reliance on the efficacy of outward 
 ordinances, to build their hopes less on the Divine 
 mercy than on their strict attention to the perform- 
 ance of their social and religious duties, then it will 
 be incumbent on you to warn them against the danger 
 of bigotry and superstition, of formalism and legality. 
 If on the other hand their leaning appears to be rather 
 in the opposite direction, if the predominant failing- 
 is indifference about all visible bonds of Christian 
 union, an inordinate craving for religious excitement, 
 an impatience and contempt of all forms of devotion 
 which do not minister to this appetite, a disposition 
 to regard its gratification as the substance of all 
 spiritual blessings, and to make it a substitute for 
 steady, uniform, active piety, charity, and self-denial ; 
 you would not be rightly dividing the word of truth,
 
 74 
 
 unless you dwelt frequently and earnestly on that 
 side of it which you find to be most generally over- 
 looked. Should you even, by this faithful discharge 
 of your duty, incur the reproach of preaching- your- 
 selves, or seeking to magnify your own office, you 
 need not be ashamed of your work, so long as you 
 have the witness of your conscience, that you only 
 study to shew yourselves approved unto God. And 
 you will never want a sufficient share of the appro- 
 bation and confidence of men, if you only take heed 
 that your conduct adorn and illustrate your doctrine, 
 " that" — to borrow the language of a great Father of 
 our Church — "as by your Sermons you preach in 
 season, so, by your lives you may preach out of season, 
 that is, at all seasons, and to all men, that they, seeing 
 your good works, may glorify God, on your behalf 
 and on their own/'J 
 
 I Jeremy Taylor. Sermon I. On the Minister's Duty. Works, vol. vi., p. 506. 
 
 William Evans, Printer, Journal Office, Carmarthen.
 
 
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