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notice of some persons of rank, and particularly to those gentlemen who were afterwards the earls of Bedford and Leicester, and who were always ready to patronize him.

He also obtain.

ed at this time a general licence for preaching, a mark of honor conferred but on few.

Having passed some time in London, he repaired to his parish, to the pastoral care of which he chiefly devoted himself, occasionally using the king's licence to preach in other parts of the country. When he entered, however, on this new line of ministerial duty, he felt himself so much embarassed by doctrinal difficulties, that he was induc. ed to confine himself, in his ser. mons, principally to inculcating on his hearers a virtuous conduct and dissuading them from vicious pursuits. His conscience was too tender to rest satisfied for any long time with so questiona. ble a course of proceeding, as that of omitting to unfold to his flock the peculiar truths of the gospel. He became quite unhappy, and resolved to lay his case before bishop Tunstal, the bishop of Durham, who was his maternal uncle. The bishop advised him to visit the continent, that he might confer with the most eminent divines, both papist and protestant, and thus resolve his doubts; and in the mean time he might appoint a substitute to take care of his

parish. Mr. Gilpin's ideas of pas toral obligation were far too strict to allow him to follow the

whole of his uncle's counsel. It was his intention to spend two or three years abroad; and no excuse appeared to him sunicient to justify non-residence for such

a period, and on such grounds as led him away from his parish: nor could be reconcile it to his conscience, though his income was otherwise very limited, to draw any part of the means of his subsistence from a benefice, the duties attached to which he did not perform. He accord. ingly resigned his living to a friend, of whose piety as well as ability he was well assured, and set out on his journey.

On getting to London, he found the bishop greatly displeas ed at his resignation of his living, which he censured as an act of great folly and imprudence, predicting, that, if he continued to act in this manner, he must die a beggar. Gilpin excused him. self, by saying that he could not retain the living and his peace conscience too. "Conscience!"

of

replied the bishop; 66 you might have had a dispensation." "But I was afraid," rejoined Gilpin, "that when I came before the tribunal of Christ, it would not serve my turn to plead a dispen. sation from doing my duty to my flock." The bishop, notwithstanding this circumstance, parted with his nephew in good hu mor; for though he disapprov. ed of his needless scrupulosity, as he deemed it to be, he nevertheless highly respected his integrity.

Mr. Gilpin on his landing in Holland, went to Mechlin, where his brother George then was, pursuing the study of the civil law, and laboring to acquaint himself with subjects of general policy.* He was at this time a

*Mr. George Gilpin was much em. ployed in negotiations during the reign of Queen Elizabeth. He was highly es teemed both for abilities and integrity.

zealous papist: but the visit of Bernard appears to have produced an entire change in his opinions; for he became soon afterwards a warm advocate for the Reformation.

Mr. Gilpin visited most of the towns in Brabant; but he made Louvain the place of his resi. dence, because it afforded the best opportunities for study. Its noble university, consisting of many colleges, drew together learned men from all quarters; some of the most eminent divines, both papist and protestant, re sided there; and one of the chief studies of the place was theology. Here Mr. Gilpin prosecut. ed his inquiries. with great vigor and perseverance; till at length he began to have clearer and more consistent views of the doc. trines of the Reformation, and to feel thoroughly satisfied with the preference he had been disposed to give to them.

While he was thus employed, news arrived of the death of king Edward the sixth, and the accession of queen Mary. Bishop Tunstal, who had been sent to the Tower by the former, was now released, and re-established in his bishopric. This intelligence had scarcely reached him, before he received, through his brother George, the offer of a valuable living in his uncle's gift which was then vacant. His brother pressed him by a variety of arguments to accept this offer; but to all his arguments Bernard replied, that his conscience would not permit him to accept it. He wrote, on this occasion, to the bishop. An extract from this letter will explain the principles which guided bis conduct; and it would be well for the church

if such principles were more gen. erally prevalent among the cler gy.

"When I met my brother, I perceived his object was only to persuade me to take a benefice, and to continue my studies at this university; which if I had known to be the cause of his sending for me, I should not have needed to interrupt my studies to meet him; for I have so long debated the matter with learned men, especially with the holy prophets, and the most an. cient and godly writers since Christ's time, that I trust, as long as I live, never to burden my conscience with having a benefice and lying from it. My brother said that your lordship, and all my other friends, thought I was much too scrupulous in that point. But if I be too scrupulous (as I cannot think that I am,) the matter is such, that I had rather my conscience were therein a great deal too strait, than a little too large; for I am seriously persuaded that I shall never offend God by refusing to have a benefice and lie from it, so long as I judge not evil of others; which I trust I shall not, but rather pray God daily that all who have cures may discharge their office in his sight, as may tend most to his glory and the profit of his church. He replied against me, that your lordship would give me no benefice, but what you would see discharged in my absence as well, or better, than I could dis. charge it myself. To which I answered, that I would be sorry if I thought not there were many thousands in England more able to discharge a cure than I find myself; and therefore I desire

they may both take the cure and profit also, that they may be able to feed the body and the soul both, as I think all pastors are bound. As for me, I can never persuade myself to take the profit, and let another take the pains for if he should teach and preach as faithfully as ever St. Austin did, yet should I not think myself discharged. And if I should strain my conscience herein, and strive with it to remain here, or in any other uni. versity, with such a condition, the unquietness of my conscience would not suffer me to profit in study at all."—" Which of our modern gaping rooks," observes Gilpin's biographer, the bishop of Chichester, "could endeavor with more industry to obtain a benefice, than this man did to avoid one?"

This affair being settled, Mr. Gilpin continued his studies for some time longer at Louvain. While he remained there, a great many of his countrymen, driven from England by the bloody per

secutions under Mary, arrived in the low countries, to many of whom his extensive acquaintance enabled him to be particularly useful. After he had been two years at Louvain, he went to Paris, where he published a work of the bishop of Durham on the sacrament, which gave consider. able offence to the more bigoted papists. During his stay at Par. is, his aversion from popery greatly increased: he was quite disgusted with the superstition of the people, and the craft of the priests; he saw more and more the evil tendency of popery, and the necessity of a reformation; and began to view with more favor that reformation which had already commenced. The end of his going abroad being thus answered, he resolved on return. ing to England. His friends tried to dissuade him, as the Mari. an persecution still raged: but he was not deterred by this cir cumstance; and after an absence of three years, he revisited his native country.

(To be continued.

RELIGIOUS COMMUNICATIONS.

CONGREGATIONAL PRINCIPLES OF CHURCH GOVERNMENT.

Messrs. Editors,

THE observations on church government, in the Panoplist and Missionary Magazine of August, 1808, to which a reply was made in April and May, 1809; 66 may be reduced to a single point" but not exactly to the point, to which the author of the observations has reduced them in your No. of November

last. His question is this, “Is the church limited to one pastor and brotherhood of believers?" This question I believe has never been a subject of debate. I had supposed that the point in debate was, Whether one pastor, and one brotherhood of believers under his care, be not a church completely constituted in gospel order 2 On this question E.H.

has taken the negative; while the affirmative has fallen to me. But, though the constitution of the church requires. one pastor only; yet it does not limit the brethren to one: but permits them to enjoy the labors of as many as they may be disposed to choose, and able to support.

The question, however, goes beyond the constitutional num. ber of pastors; for indeed the main object of the inquiry is, to determine in whom the eccle. siastical authority is vested. Is it divided between the elders, and brethren of the church, as "two distinct departments of power," and given to the pastors as judges, and to the brethren as jurors, or assessors? Or is it vested in the church as a collective, and deliberative assembly, guided by a moderator? The affirmative of this last question appears to me to be amply supported by Scripture; and the fol. lowing is believed to be a correct statement of the truth on this subject. The judicial authority is vested in each distinct church including the pastor, or pastors, formed to act as a deliberative assembly, and empowered to judge, and decide in all cases of discipline in respect of their own members. While the church acts in the simple capacity of a popular assembly, the pastor ex officio, acts as moderator; but in voting, he has no pre-eminence above a private brother. It is not by judicial acts, but prin. cipally by teaching, and exem. plifying religion publicly, and from house to house, that he is to magnify his pastoral office. But, before I proceed to evince the truth of the above statement; I have a few cursory remarks to

on

make on the observations church government, in your No. of November.

The writer says; "There is no authority for the supposition that John addressed the churches through their pastors." But, if John did not, the Spirit of God did and this is sufficient. "He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; to him, that overcometh, will I give to eat of the hidden manna ”—Rev. ii. 17. The churches were the candlesticks, and not the stars; the brotherhood at large and not the angels. Again, "To him, that overcometh, will I give to eat of the hidden manna. Is this promise made to the elder only, that overcometh? Does not the word churches, immediately precede? and does not the pronoun him, relate to every individual member who should overcome?

It is said, "The New Testament mentions no example of a church with only one pastor." Passing over the seven churches of Asia, because there seems to be something mystical about them; I would cite an example from 3 John ix. "I wrote unto the church; but Diatrephes, who loveth to have the pre-emi. nence among them, receiveth us

not."

It is added in favor of a court of elders: "The powers attributed to the angel to try those, who say they are apostles, and find them liars, are such as no single pastor and brotherhood, are authorized to exercise." But, what if pretended apostles should encroach upon the charge of this writer? Would he not exhort his people, in their indi. vidual capacity, to try, prove,

and reject them? It is the high prerogative of every Christian "to try the spirits, whether they are of God," 1 John iv. 1. Though the original word here used, is different from that in the address to the church at Ephesus, Rev. ii. 2; yet they both denote an act of discrimi. nating, or proving, by inspection; and in neither of them is the word commonly used to express a judicial act. Paul was willing that all men should try his claims to the apostleship. Yes, certainly; though an angel from heaven should preach any other gospel, than the apostles of Christ preached; Christians, in their individual capacity, ought to try, and reject him as accursed.

To ascertain the department, in which church authority is vested, our author seems chiefly to depend, not on the words of Christ, nor on the writings of Paul; but on the epistles to the seven churches of Asia. And hence, if the track he has pursued be the right one, the point can never be clearly ascertained: it must for ever remain involved in the obscurity of a figurative style; for the right explanation of which, no literal directions to the point can be found. But, we have not generally so learn. ed Christ, in regard to his mind on church authority. We do believe that his words, in connexion with an apostle's practical comment upon them, present the subject in a luminous point of view. It is from these literal and explicit parts of the Scriptures, that the evidence, for the truth of my position, will be adduced.

"Tell it to the church; but

if he neglect to hear the church." Matt. xviii. 17. Mr.E.H. how. ever, dissents from the common acceptation of the word, church; and suggests, that our Lord did not mean the brethren; but their rulers. He says, "Direc tions are often given to a col. lective body, which apply to a part only of the individuals in. cluded in it. Paul wrote to a whole church, when he said, "Children, obey your parents; husbands, love your wives; ye fathers, provoke not your chil dren to wrath." The point here to be illustrated is this, "That directions given to a collective body, or to the whole church, often apply to a part only of the individuals included in it." But it is very plain, that Paul did not give directions to the whole church, when he gave those particular directions to parents, children, and hus. bands. He indeed directed, or addressed, his epistle to the church : but his directing an epistle to a community was a thing very different from his giving directions, in the epistle, to the several classes of the community. This reference to an epistle, therefore, utterly fails to illustrate the point in design. And it is presumed, that from writings of logical accuracy, cannot be shown, that a part only is directed, when the most explicit directions are unequivo. cally given to the whole commu nity. The directions, therefore, given to the church by Jesus Christ and by his apostle Paul, were given not to a part only but to the whole.

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