In his first chapter he considers the compound nature of our inestimable constitution, as consisting of Church and State. He then represents the Church as possessing a two-fold character; an incidental character, as a temporal establishment, and as a part of the constitution; and an inherent character as a spiritual society formed under a commission from Christ. He then proceeds to consider the nature of that Universal Church, the institution of which was committed by Christ to his Apostles; and the preservation of the ministry by a regular transmission of the power of ordination in uninterrupted succession from the Apostles, to whom it was committed by Christ himself. The three distinct orders of Bishops, Priests, and Deacons, are defended with much ability and learning; and the necessity of Episcopacy is clearly proved, not only from the reason of the thing, but from the history of the Church to the fifteenth century. In his expatiation upon the high importance and awful responsibility of the priestly office, the author rises into a strain of manly and pious eloquence. The state of dependence in which the great multitude of Christians throughout the nation are placed in the Established Church, for the right interpretation of the Bible, is next considered, with the nature and obligation of communion in the Established Church. The causes of separation from an Established Church are then reviewed, from which it is justly concluded, that so vast are the advantages resulting from uniformity in religious worship, that nothing short of a disagreement in the essentials of faith can justify in foro conscientiæ such a separation. The want of sufficient places for public worship being often urged as a plea for separation, the author takes occasion to aniadvert upon this shameful deficiency in such terms, as we hope will arrest the attention of the legislature itself. So admirable is the statement, that we shall present it to our readers. "That the Established Church is grossly inadequate to the population of this country is a truth which, it must be allowed, often affords a plea for separation, the force of which it seems impossible to repel. In many parishes, chiefly in or near the metropolis, the places of worship, under the establishment, are capable of containing only a small portion-often not a fifth, sometimes not a tenth, of the inhabitants. In numerous provincial parishes, the churches, though not deficient in point of number or size, are often close shut up at the regular times of Divine Service; insomuch, that it is only on alternate Sundays, and then but on one part of the day, that an opportunity is afforded to the parishioners of attending public worship; who, in many cases, having no resident Minister, are left, during the week, as sheep without a shepherd. So scanty a provision for the spiritual wants of the people might almost induce a stranger to doubt the existence of an Established Church in this country. The fault, however, rests not with the Establishment, but with the State, which, in professing to establish a Church, for the public worship of God, solemnly undertakes to afford opportunity of regularly attending that worship to all the inhabitants of the country. In direct and palpable breach of this engagement, a large portion of the population, in the very heart of the kingdom, is excluded, for want of room, from the Churches of the Establishment; whilst, in many other parts, the provision made for the clergy is so inadequate, that it is often found necessary to allot the Service of several Churches to the same Minister, in order to insure him the necessaries of life; in consequence of which distribution it necessarily happens, that the labours of a minister, the whole of which are due to each parish, are divided, perhaps, among three or four parishes, only one of which can enjoy his pastoral care, as a resident Minister. After all, in numerous instances, the income on which a clergyman has to depend for the subsistence of a large family, does not exceed that of a day labourer. These are evils of the greatest magnitude, and fraught with the most direful consequences. They call for the prompt and serious attention of the Legislature, where alone resides the power of applying a remedy. The nature of the remedy which ought to be applied, it cannot be difficult to discover. New Churches must be built, with suitable accommodation for all classes, wherever they are wanted, and the Establishment must be enabled, by adequate endowments, to furnish Ministers for the regular performance of Divine Service, in every part of the kingdom. As an auxiliary measure, the division of large parishes, without, however, any infringement upon vested rights, might, in many places, lead to the most salutary results. To effect the main purposes above mentioned, large grants would, it is true, be wanted. But, if a feeling at all proportionate to the importance of the subject were generally prevalent, can it be doubted that those grants would be forthcoming? The Established Church, it ought to be remem bered, has been deprived of nearly one-third of its legitimate property, now in the hands of lay impropriators. This property cannot, indeed, be restored, for its present possessors hold it by legal title; but, when the object is to enable the Church to realize the inexpressibly important design for which it was established, surely some compensation ought to be made to it for such a spoliation, if not for its own sake, at least for that of the community. In making, however, the necessary arrangements for the above purposes, care should be taken not to lose sight of the important truth, that the interests of religion cannot but suffer, when its ministers, on account of their external circumstances, fail to be. looked up to with respect;-or, to borrow the energetic language addressed by Whitgift, Archbishop of Canterbury, to Queen Eli zabeth, in relation to this very subject, "When they that serve at God's altar are exposed to poverty, then religion itself will be ex-: posed posed to scorn." Where there is no respect, there cannot be much influence; and, in a world like this, respect cannot be at tendant upon indigence, be the claim of merit what it may. Nor ought it to be forgotten that an expensive education is necessary to qualify the clergy for their profession, whilst they are obliged to forego all secular employments, that they may devote themselves to the service of the Altar,-that they may be instant, in season, and out of season, in the discharge of their ministerial duties. Justice, therefore, as well as sound policy, requires, that they should live by the Altar;-that an order of men, on the success of whose labours so much depends, both in this world and the next, should be enabled to enjoy, not merely the necessaries of life, but also the respect which is due to their station in society; in a word, that they should be allowed the full benefit of the sacred rule, which was promulgated with an express reference to their temporal claims,the labourer is worthy of his hire." P. 83. The claims of our own Establishment upon the veneration and the affection of its children, are urged with a spirit tempered with charity and moderation, truly worthy of the son of such a Church. The question respecting Church Authority is ably handled, and nicely balanced; and the middle course. adopted by the English Church, between the tyranny of Popery on the one hand, and the anarchy of fanaticism on the other, is stated with much clearness and precision; the one superseding by her own traditions the authority of Scripture, and the other rejecting all ecclesiastical jurisdiction or discipline what soever. The opinions of our author upon this point are so admirably expressed, that we cannot forbear from presenting them to our readers in his own words. "Steering a middle course between these opposite extremes : -between the assumption of ecclesiastical infallibility and independence, and the rejection of all ecclesiastical authority;-the Church established in this country claims, on the one hand, to be a genuine part of that visible Church, which was instituted by the Apostles, under a divine commission, to be the interpreter of Scripture, the instructor of the ignorant, the dispenser of the means of grace, and the guide of faith and worship; whilst, on the other, she considers the Holy Scriptures as the only standard of faith and practice; and is ever ready to submit her faith and worship, her doctrine and discipline, her rights and ordinances, to the test of that standard. On these grounds, and on these only, she claims the fellowship of those who live within the precincts of her pale. Animated by the mild spirit of the Gospel, she abhors all persecution for conscience sake, all compulsion in matters of religion; but, as a faithful interpreter of Scripture, she deems it her duty to declare, that schism is a sin highly offensive to Almighty God,—a sin, which disturbs the order of his kingdom, and breaks that Christian Christian unity which he has ordained to be the bond of peace and charity. Of this sin she considers those persons guilty who sepa rate from a Church, possessing apostolical authority, and whose faith and worship, in all essential points, are really Scriptural. With the utmost confidence, she claims to be a Church of this description; and, without presuming to pronounce judgment upon any man, she calls upon those who separate from her communion carefully to examine the validity of this claim, as they would escape the awful responsibility which attends unjustifiable separation from an Established Church. "Nor does she ask for an inconsiderate adherence on the part of her members. On the contrary, she invites them to compare her constitution and form of government, with the apostolical mödel, and to bring her faith and worship to the test of the Word of God. She only desires them to do this, not in the spirit of doubt or cavil, but with the dispositions inculcated by the Gospel-with all lowliness and meekness,'-and with a sense of their own ima perfections and want of assistance. When, in this manner, the devout member of the Church compares her doctrines with the oracles of truth, and her discipline with that of the Primitive Church, as exhibited in Scripture, and as further evidenced by subsequent usage; and, finding the result satisfactory, (should that be the case,) relies with increased confidence on the teacher to whom he has been already so much indebted; he may truly be said to make the Bible the rule of his faith and worship. Nay, though by thus confiding in such a Church, he should in some re spects be led into error-a case which, unless the Church be endowed with infallibility, must be considered as possible-he would be free from responsibility for that error; because he relies on that help, which infinite goodness has provided. But no such freedom from responsibility can be reasonably expected, where error is produced by a reliance upon teachers, who cannot produce apos tolical authority for their assumption of that character; who cannot make full proof of their ministry.' P. 124. We congratulate the Church upon so able and so judicious a defender of her apostolical foundation, her Christian doctrine, and her pure and primitive discipline. Though the author is unknown, we hope that his work will not remain unread. It deserves the public attention, and we trust that it will receive it. ART. VIII. The Sovereignty of God, or his Universal Empire. Two Sermons preached in the Parish Church of St. Dun stun in the West. By R. Lloyd, A. M. Vicar. pp. 73. Rivingtons. 1815. 4to. Although these Sermons were written with a view towards the great events which have agitated and still continue to agitate the the whole of Europe, yet they are sufficiently of an abstract nature to claim our attention, as a general vindication of the sovereignty of the Almighty, and of the immediate Providence of our great Moral Governor. The language of these discourses is fervent and strong, the sentiments bold and patriotic, and the doctrines sound and untinged with enthusiasm. The arguments by which the author supports his positions are founded both in reason and in scripture, and are brought forward both with judgment and decision. Some extraneous points, which bear upon the subject, are touched upon with much success, particularly the agency of evil spirits, and the literal interpretation of the Mosaic account of the fall. We were much pleased with some animadversions of our author, upon that pruriency of prophetical interpretation, which prevails in the present day, affording too often a ground for ridicule and blasphemy to the infidel and sceptic. The whole creation is to the Christian a sacred volume, in every page of which he discovers radiant characters of God's power, wisdom, and goodness. He is also an attentive observer of the SIGNS of the times: he often stands in his Watch Tower, and marks the wheels of Providence in their mysterious revolutions which are all invisibly directed by an infallible Spirit, and silently bring out of obscurity what contributes to elucidate the Scriptures by the gradual development of its train of prophecy. This is, indeed, a "light shining in a dark place." It is history anticipated by Him before whom "one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day;" and history is consequently the accomplishment of prophecy, and the only solution of it. We must wait in faith and patience for this solution: conscious of being weak and purblind expositors of the judgments of God which are unsearchable,-conscious that we know not even to this day what is precisely comprehended in the term of Antichrist, or what vials have been poured forth, or remain to be so,-or whether the effusion be synchronous or successive, let us not dogmatize upon a subject so dark and profound, or be confident interpreters, where, at most, we have only twilight to guide us in our researches. By indulging a zeal for splendid theories beyond the authority of Scripture, by brooding over such speculations till the imagination kindles and controls the judgment, how many have been led to apply the sacred predictions to rising events in too peremptory a tone, and by their loose and arbitrary interpretations of the symbolical language of prophecyhave betrayed an ignorance of its character and genius, and, while they deceived themselves, have brought no small degree of discredit upon the general cause of Christianity. I need not observe that a delusive conviction of this sort, extending itself as a principle of action, is replete with mischief. The fervors of such piety set the mind afloat in a wide field of conjecture, and' + tend |