We will now bring together two interesting passages which may serve in part to account for the rise and progress of the errors which the volume is intended to confute; and, having quoted them, we dismiss this publication with the expression of an earnest wish that these faithful admonitions may produce their full effect on the learned body to which they were addressed : "I conceive that all of us, not merely from that natural misgiving which every delicate and reflecting mind must feel, when attempting to form an accurate judgment of its own moral conduct, but also from the result of the course of study more especially pursued in this place, of which human philosophy and human ethics form a necessary portion, are apt, without being aware of it, or intending it, to let the impressions thus derived, blend themselves in some degree with our religious meditations. We Con forget from what entirely distinct principles Pagan and Christian morality respectively take their rise. The former aims, hopelessly indeed and ineffectually, but still it does aim, at a perfect course of virtue through an entire adequacy of good works; the latter at once throws itself, in an humble acknowledgment of sin, and with all its imperfections, upon the mercies of a reconciled God. sequently the whole moral feeling, the entire course of reasoning upon which we proceed, in the one and in the other case, are essentially different. Now, in order to judge of the Gospel rightly, we should keep this distinction continually present to our minds. Our religion is not that of Heathenism, but of Christianity. We are not to think with Aristotle, or Cicero, or Seneca, and imagine that we are thinking with Paul, or John, or Peter. We must remember that it is not a retributive debt, the price of our own deserts, which we demand of our Creator, but a gratuitous boon of undeserved mercy; that our only firm ground of reliance is not in our personal merits, but in the imputed righteousness of our crucified Redeemer. In short, we must learn to accept (in fear and trembling, I admit; but still in its full and authorized extent) that entire and plenary free gift of the remission of sins through faith in Christ's merits, which the New Testament lays down as its great fundamental truth. Now it is evident, that faith of this kind is more easily described by hearts constituted like ours, than practically arrived at. We are all of us at first sight almost incredulous, as I have already observed, of the superhuman mercy which the Gospel so distinctly announces. The mind requires to be thoroughly familiarized with Christian ethics before it can entirely conceive it, or fully assent to it." (Pp. 57-59.) And, again, in the sermon on the sufficiency of Scripture, the Preacher speaks as follows: "Not only all individuals, but all large associations of men, we should remember, have their besetting weaknesses and prejudices, which render them partially blind to the truth. Let us not then wilfully close our eyes to the fact, that we also have ours,-prejudices as obstinate, and, though more plausible, perhaps as really dangerous as those which characterize the more mixed society of the world upon which we are apt to look down. In this place, the leading principle, the prominent feature, which gives a character to our society, is our emulation in, I might almost say, our idolatry of, learning;-of learning, not merely considered as an instrument for the attainment of higher objects, but also simply and merely for its own sake. Now, the natural tendency of such a state of feeling (accompanied, I admit, with a vast preponderance of good) is to annex a high value rather to a large and indiscrimate accumulation of facts, than to a due selection and a just appreciation of them. It is always painful to have to acknowledge that information which we have obtained at a cost of much time and labour, may, after all, be of comparatively little value. We continue accordingly to attach high imaginary im portance to it; however, on the other hand, our common sense may sometimes hint to us its worthlessness. It is thus, I conceive, that we are too apt to act in our theological studies. We estimate our progress rather by the length of the road over which we have travelled, than by its right direction. The Bible we consider to be too elementary a book, unless we add to its stores sometimes the wisdom, but not unfrequently the wayward speculations and superstitions, of a more recent period. We find it difficult to be the mere implicit learners and disciples of revelation, when we aspire to be its authoritative interpreters and expounders; to be the simple bearers of a message, instead of improving upon it by Many excellent publications, by the inferior Clergy, on various portions of "this great argument," have recently appeared. But want of space has led us to confine ourselves, at present, to those which have proceeded from the Prelates of the Church; and we are happy to be able to add to the list, the name of the Bishop of Lincoln, whose recently-published Charge, though it contains no direct allusion to the Divines of the second Reformation, does, nevertheless, very plainly and pointedly, rebuke two of their leading errors, the doctrine of the independence of the Church upon the State, and the undue exaltation of the Fathers. Upon the latter point, his Lordship speaks as follows; and his testimony is the more valuable, because no one can suspect him of undervaluing patristical learning: witnesses, but as reasoners; and we pay no greater deference to their authority, than to that of other good and pious, though fallible, men. In the exercise of the right of private judgment, we are bound to consult every source of information from which we are likely to obtain the means of coming at a just conclusion; and an interpreter of the Bible would be guilty of great presumption, if he were to disregard, or to reject without examination, the opinions of the Fathers: but he is not bound implicitly to subscribe to them, even when he finds a very general agreement in any one interpretation. The only authoritative tradition is that of which Irenæus speaks, the doctrine delivered by the Apostles to the Churches which they founded, and afterwards consigned by them to writing in the volume of the New Testament, in order that it might be, in all future ages, the ground and pillar of the truth. The Church of England, therefore, almost speaks the language of Irenæus, when she declares that holy Scripture contains all things necessary to salvation; and proposes it, as the test by which the truth of every doctrine is to be tried; requiring her members to give their assent to the three Creeds, not because they were sanctioned by the decrees of Councils, not in obedience to any infallible authority residing in herself, but because they can be proved by most certain warrants of holy writ. She calls not the Scriptures the Rule of Faith. The framers of her Articles knew that, in the primitive Church, this title was applied to the Creed. But she says, that no article is to be received as a part of that Rule, which is not read in, or cannot be proved by, Scripture." (Charge, 1840, pp. 41-43.) "Who are the Fathers? A series of writers, extending through ten centuries, of whom the more recent cannot be regarded as independent witnesses to the faith of the primitive Church, but merely as repeating what had been declared to be such by those who preceded them. To the authority, then, of the early Fathers alone, can weight in this question be attached; and, when they, living as they did near to the apostolic times, tell us what was the Rule of Faith then taught, and what were the sacred books then read in the Church, we receive their testimony as that of witnesses, in whose means of information, and in whose integrity, we have perfect confidence. But when they put forth their Own arguments, in defence of the Rule of Faith, or their own interpretations of Scripture, we no longer regard them as VOL. XX. Third Series. JANUARY, 1841. In the progress of the controversy, which the present state of things at Oxford has originated, several references have been made to the principles, position, and practices of the Wesleyan Methodists. This circumstance has afforded us real pleasure; because we have long been satisfied, that the system of E Methodism must gain ground in the opinions of the public, in proportion as it is carefully examined. It will suffer much less from misrepresentation, than from neglect ; and we are willing that our opponents should express themselves as they please concerning us, while we have the unquestioned right of replying at discretion. We would not be too ready to use this right, however. A host of anonymous assailants, as malignant as they are cowardly, may be safely left to themselves; but when men of learning and character come forward to impeach us, and their writings obtain a large circulation, it is due to them, as well as to ourselves, to put in our plea, and support it as we may be able. Under these circumstances, then, we wish, before bringing this article to a close, to advert, first of all, to the observations of Mr. Platt. Towards the end of his Letter to Dr. Pusey, he adduces, as an instance of the "sad want of fixed principle in those who profess to be the defenders of our Church and civil constitution," the conduct of the "Standard" newspaper, in the recent controversy between Sir P. Laurie and the Rev. C. Cator; when, as it would appear, the conductors of that publication disavowed the sentiments of the Lord Mayor's Chaplain, and spoke of the Wesleyans as a highly respectable and valuable set of men. Upon this Mr. Platt exclaims: "Why, what miserable work is this! A set of sectaries, the most inexcusable of all, because they profess to be separated by a slighter shade of difference than any others from the Church; rebels against the authority of the Church, in fact, and, therefore, against the authority of the State also in principle. Such are the men who, because they choose for the moment to behave themselves quietly and civilly, are to be treated with all these delicate ménagemens, (our own language hardly affords a word refined enough,) and not a syllable is to be breathed to their discredit. "Non tali auxilio, nec defensoribus istis, we may well say, both of the Wesleyans themselves, and of those who thus compliment them. How can such men expect to stand in the shock for a moment! What we want is, high and well-understood principles, and unflinching, unbending minds to maintain them; minds that may be overpowered and silenced indeed by force, having to contend, as they have, with the tremendous power of him who is called by the mysterious and fearful titles of the prince of the power of the air, and the god of this world; but that can never be bent by his artifices. The very men themselves of whom we have been speaking, will far more respect him who tells them at once, kindly yet firmly, that they are wrong; that they ought to be ashamed of themselves, and to flock back to the Church from which they have departed; than him who is afraid to say whether they are wrong or right, and meets them with doubtful civility and hollow compliments." (Platt's Letter, pp. 78, 79.) Now, as between Mr. Platt and the Standard," we are not called upon to say a word; nor should we, perhaps, have introduced the passage at all, if we had not understood (as we before remarked) that Mr. Platt's Letter was "published with Dr. Pusey's consent and approbation." We respect the principle displayed in this extract; and shall show that we do so by acting upon it, and speaking as boldly to our reprover, as he would have others speak to us. We say, then, We are not "rebels against the authority of the Church, in fact." We believe her doctrines, employ her formularies, and sometimes attend her services. Her authority in matters of faith is neither denied, nor impeded in its exercise by us. In matters of discipline, her authority is exercised through the Ecclesiastical Courts, to which we have never refused obedience; and one of whose decisions we are, at this moment, engaged in maintaining against a contumacious Clergyman. If Mr. Platt means, that we are rebels against the authority of the Church, because we do not obey all the Canons of 1603, the same charge will lie with equal force against the majority of the Clergy, and all the Churchwardens in the kingdom. We are separate from the Church, we allow; but why? Because we were driven out from it. But even if we had retired voluntarily, must we needs be rebels, because we are not members? Is the Establishment authorized to say, "He that is not with me is against me?" Our author adds, that we are "rebels against the authority of the State in principle;" from which we infer, that he has forgotten that there are, in the Statute-Book, two Acts of Parliament, not yet (thank God!) quite so obselete as many of the Canons of 1603; one passed in the reign of King William III., and the other in that of George III.; and commonly called and known as the "Toleration Acts;" and that, since the first of these became the law of the land, Nonconformity has ceased to be an offence against the State. It cannot be, that he intends to charge us with disloyalty to the crown and constitution of these realms; but if he has any suspicions on this point, we can assure him, that if he will only bestow half as much pains on the Rules of our Societies, and Minutes of the Conference, as he has done on Mr. Newman's Lectures, (and this is not a large request,) he will feel that he " ought to be ashamed of himself," for thinking and speaking of us as he has done. Instead of representing us as a set of most inexcusable sectaries, whose passing civility the Church does not need, and striving, by contemptuous expressions, to put an end to what he represents as our momentary quietness, he will, when he knows us better, be thankful both to God and to us for the independent and effective support which we have now, for near a century, been enabled to afford to the cause of religion and good order in this empire; and which we hope still to furnish for generations to come: "through evil report, and through good report; as unknown, and yet well-known; as deceivers, and yet true." (To be concluded in our next.) SELECT LIST OF BOOKS RECENTLY PUBLISHED, With occasional Characteristic Notices. [The insertion of any article in this List is not to be considered as pledging us to the approbation of its contents, unless it be accompanied by some express notice of our favourable opinion. Nor is the omission of any such notice to be regarded as indicating a contrary opinion; as our limits, and other reasons, impose on us the necessity of selection and brevity.] The Hora Pauline of William Paley, D. D., carried out and illustrated in a continuous History of the apostolic Labours and Writings of St. Paul, on the Basis of the Acts; with intercalary Matter of sacred Narrative, supplied from the Epistles, and elucidated in occasional Dissertations. By James Tate, M.A., Canon Residentiary of St. Paul's. 8vo. pp. 420. Longman. The Hora Paulina of Dr. Paley has been long known as the most original, and not the least valuable, of all his publications. Its design is, to prove the truth of the sacred writings, so far as St. Paul is concerned, by means of the undesigned coincidences between his Epistles, and St. Luke's narrative in the Acts of the Apostles; and the argument is brought out and sustained with irresistible effect. This great work (for such it is in reality) is vastly improved by Mr. Tate. By placing the whole of St. Paul's history in connexion with Dr. Paley's argument, he has rendered it more clear and striking. This book, in its amended form, should have a place in the library of every biblical and theological student. The History of the Jews, from the taking of Jerusalem by Titus to the present Time: comprising a Narrative of their Wanderings, Persecutions, commercial Enterprises, and literary Exertions; with an Account of the various Efforts made for their Conversion. 18mo. pp. 304. Simpkin. The preservation of the Jews is a standing miracle, and their entire history presents one of the most striking evidences of divine revelation. The writer of this small volume has shown a laudable diligence in the collection of facts, and considerable judgment and tact in their arrangement. Of course, it is only an epitome of the Jewish history; but it will meet the case of those who have but little time for reading; and to the students of history it will serve as a useful introduction to larger works. The account which is here given of the efforts that have been made to convert the Jews is full of instruction; and, it is hoped, may serve to call forth future exertions in behalf of a people who are still "beloved for their fathers' sakes." The Biblical Cabinet; or, Hermeneutical, Exegetical, and Philological Library. Vol. XXVII. The Mineralogy and Botany of the Bible. By E. F. C. Rosenmuller. Translated from the German, with additional Notes, by T. G. Repp, and the Rev. N. Morren. 18mo. pp. 342. Edinburgh, Thomas Clark; London, Hamiltons. The Biblical Cabinet; or, Hermeneutical, Exegetical, and Philological Library. Vol. XXVIII. Park's Biographical Sketch of Tholuck; Tholuck's Life and Character of St. Paul; Sermons; and Nature and moral Influence of Heathenism. 8vo. pp. 353. Hamilton. The Biblical Cabinet; or, Hermeneutical, Exegetical, and Philological Library. Vol. XXIX. Lisco on the Parables of Jesus. 8vo. pp. 406. Hamilton. We are glad to see this important series of biblical works continued with unabated interest. Some of them, it must be admitted, contain opinions which are justly exceptionable; but the judicious student, who is well principled in theology, will deduce from the whole of them valuable information. If he read them, not to receive with implicit confidence all that the different writers lay before him, but carefully to weigh and consider their statements and reasonings, he will derive from them no light advantage. Heber; Records of the Poor; Lays from the Prophets; and other Poems. By Thomas Ragg, Author of "The Incarnation," "The Deity," "The Martyr of Verulam," &c. 12mo. pp. 236. Longman.-The verse of Mr. Ragg does not possess the polish which such writers as Bishop Heber and Mr. Milman have given to their composi-, tions; but he far surpasses them in originality and strength; and the truly Christian character of his poetry entitles him to the gratitude and esteem of all good men, especially in these days of worldliness and scepticism. Steps to sacred Geography: or, a short Account of all the Places mentioned in the New Testament. For the Use of Schools and young Persons. By James Henderson, Teacher, Craighead, Campsie. 18mo. pp. 46. Glasgow, Gallie. A very useful elementary book, which gives the true pronunciation of the names of the places mentioned in the New Testament, as well as describes their situation. It is well adapted to assist young persons in the study of the sacred volume. Christ's Discourse at Capernaum, fatal to the Doctrine of Transubstantiation; on the very Principle of Exposition adopted by the Divines of the Roman Church, and suicidally maintained by Dr. Wiseman: associated with Remarks on Dr. Wiseman's Lectures on the principal Doctrines and Practices of the Roman Catholic Church. By George Stanley Faber, B. D., Master of Sherburn Hospital, and Prebendary of Salisbury. 8vo. pp. 251. Seeley.Mr. Faber surprises us by the multiplicity of his publications; and yet not one of them appears to be written with undue haste. Generally speaking, they are as remarkable for the accuracy of their reasoning, as for the extensive research which they display. Many of them are controversial; but their spirit is Christian. The volume before us is appropriately dedicated to Dr. Turton, the Regius Professor of Divinity in the University of Cambridge, who has completely annihilated Dr. Wiseman, as the pompous and self-complacent advocate of Popery. The just view which Mr. Faber has given, and triumphantly established, of the true import of our Lord's discourse in the sixth chapter of St. John's Gospel, in opposition to the monstrous figment of transubstantiation, is a valuable service rendered to the cause of divine truth, and particularly seasonable in the present times. The Spirit of Popery: an Exposure of its Origin, Character, and Results. In Letters from a Father to his Children. 18mo. pp. 352. Religious Tract Society. A well-written and seasonable publication, beautifully printed, enriched with several excellent engravings on wood, and admirably calculated to convey to the youthful mind a just impression of the cruelty and superstition of Popery. The Training System, established in the Glasgow Normal Seminary, and its Model-Schools. By David Stow, Esq., |