66 tisements against such offenders-" Pour out thy fury," he says, upon the heathen that know thee not, and upon the families that call not on thy name.” * "Pardon me, my dear Mrs. Sandford, if I say, that it is Christianity without Christ, to profess and not to practise. It is like the air-bubbles blown by children from the ends of pipes ;-very fair outside, with reflected rays of light, but full of emptiness within, and which a mere breath will burst. We should all of us studiously remember what is said, in the Gospel of St. Matthew, about cleaning the outside of the cup and of the platter,' and about sepulchres-and who it is that says it.” † 6 whited "I feel that we are quite open to your friendly expostulation," replied Mrs. Sandford; "for I am conscious of the propriety of having family prayers in the domestic establishment of every Christian. Mr. Sandford, however, is of a different opinion. His argument is, that the Almighty is perfectly acquainted with our wants without our telling Him, and that, therefore, it is a superfluous ceremony.' 6 "This is a very strange doctrine truly," remarked Mrs. Gracelove. "Such a principle would close the door of every church and chapel throughout Christendom; would prostrate every family altar; seal up every lip; deaden every heart; banish prayer from the world; and degrade mankind to a lower scale than the beasts that perish. This would, indeed, be to frustrate the grace of God, and to bar all access to the pardon and acceptance of our Divine Maker. Mr. Sandford can never have read his Bible, or such Matt. xxiii. 25-28. * Jer. x. 25. a wild theory, to speak mildly of it, could never have entered his head; for I am quite unwilling to entertain the other and more fatal alternative-that he has read but does not believe, or believing will not obey. This would reduce the question to one of infidelity; or, in the latter case, to something very proximate to it-a crime of such magnitude against the sovereignty of heaven, as I will not for a moment suppose your husband capable of committing." 66 Oh, no! I thank God my husband is not an infidel, though I regret to say, less strict in his religious duties than he ought to be." 66 Let me for an instant," said Mrs. Gracelove, "recall to your remembrance three or four of the most powerful and authoritative exhortations, to the duty of prayer, contained in the sacred Scriptures; which, had your husband ever read, with the smallest attention, would never have suffered him to entertain the opinion to which you have just alluded. The subject is so familiar, and so deeply interesting to my mind, as to require no effort of memory to recollect the very words themselves. "The zealous apostle of the Gentiles, in addressing his Ephesian converts, thus enjoins upon them this sacred duty- Take the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God: Praying always, with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit.'* In his Epistle to the Romans, he affectionately beseeches them to continue instant in prayer;'t and to the Thessalonians he gives the same short but energetic admonition, to pray without ceasing.' ‡ * Eph. vi. 17, 1 18. † Rom. xii. 12. 1 Thess. v. 17. 66 If we turn to the Gospel of St. Luke, we shall find a more illustrious authority still, in the person of our blessed Lord Himself. In addressing his disciples- He spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray and not to faint.' * And, in a subsequent chapter of the same Gospel, He delivered the following momentous warning, on the subject of prayer, to the disciples who accompanied Him Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.' † "To these solemn injunctions did our adorable Saviour give a Divine sanction in his own person. How often did He pray Himself to his heavenly Father, and with what fervency of spirit!" 66 They are, doubtless, striking passages," observed the lady of the house, " and if you will have the kindness to write down the texts on a slip of paper, I will take an opportunity, on some early day, to call Mr. Sandford's serious attention to them in the Bible. I assure you, he is very amiable, and by no means an unreasonable man, if you can but fix his attention, and awaken his judgment, by the force of evidence; though I fear, like myself, he is sometimes very thoughtless." "I most truly hope you will succeed," replied her pious guest, "for I can consider no family strictly Christian, and sincere in their religion, who raise not up an altar of Divine worship, within the bosom of their household, to the praise and glory of God. *Luke xviii. 1. + Luke xxi. 36. Let us never forget,-in order that we may be delivered from it, the awful curse which I have already alluded to, invoked by the prophet Jeremiah, on the heads of the prayerless. 66 6 6 "All Scripture,' we are told, is given by inspiration of God;'* therefore does the Almighty, by the voice of his inspired prophet, speak Himself the words of this fearful malediction. Do, my dear Mrs. Sandford, reflect deeply and seriously upon this important subject— "Be wise to-day !—'tis madness to defer! The vast concerns of an eternal scene!'"+ * 2 Tim. iii. 16. + Young's Night Thoughts. CHAPTER XII. THE books at length arrived, for which Mrs. Gracelove had sent to Derwent Cottage. They contained the printed and published documents, written and promulgated by the authority of the Romish Church; with the testimony of which, in favour of her argument, she felt she could enter the lists against her half sceptical opponent with triumphant success. The moment was favourable for the resumed discussion; for, immediately after breakfast, Mr. Sandford had taken his gun and gone out shooting; Miss Sandford had proceeded on a visit to a friend in the neighbourhood; and her brother and sister, several years younger than herself, were at school. Thus, the tête-à-tête was complete, and required nothing to secure it from interruption. "I have received my packet," said Mrs. Gracelove to her friend, as she closed the door of the library into which she had entered, and where the latter was seated;" and shall now, with your good pleasure, lay before you the most conclusive proofs of the truth of my assertions, made three days ago, when the subject was first named between us. You will remember I charged the Roman Catholics with idolatry; with worshipping saints, and angels, and images; and with not only worshipping the Virgin Mary, but with offering to her a more decided and fer |