doctrines of predestination, unconditional election, justification by faith alone, the resurrection of the material body, &c. and in opposition thereto maintains, that man is possessed of freewill in spiritual things; that salvation is not attainable without repentance, that is, abstaining from evils because they are sins against God, and living a life of charity and faith, according to the commandments; that man, immediately on his decease, rises again in a spiritual body, which was inclosed in his material body, and that in this spiritual body he lives as a man to eternity, either in heaven or hell, according to the quality of his past life.

It is further maintained by Baron Swedenborg, and his followers, that all those passages in the sacred Scripture, generally supposed to signify the destruction of the world by fire, &c. commonly called the last judgment, must be understood according to the above-mentioned science of correspondencies, which teaches, that by the end of the world, or consummation of the age, is not signified the destruction of the world, but the destruction or end of the present Christian church, both among Roman Catholics and Protestants of every description or denomination; and that the last judgment actually took place in the spiritual world in the year 1757; from which æra is dated the second advent of the

Lord, and the commencement of a new Christian church, which, they say, is meant by the new heaven and new earth in the Revelation, and the New Jerusalem thence descending.

Such are the outlines of Baron Swedenborg's principal doctrines, collected from his voluminous writings. His followers are numerous in England, Germany, Sweden, &c. and also in America. They use a liturgy in their worship, which, except being much shorter, is as near to that of the Church of England as the difference of doctrines will admit.-They likewise introduce a great deal of vocal music, accompanied by the organ, and the minister's dress is now exactly similar to that of the Established Church. Three places of worship are now opened in London, agreeable to this form, viz. Fryar's Street chapel, situate in Fryar's Street, Black-Friars, of which Mr. Sibly is the minister; York Street chapel, St. James's Square, of which Mr. Proud is minister; and Dudley chapel, Denmark Street, Soho, of which Mr. Hodson is minister.-Chapels are likewise established at Birmingham, Hull, Manchester, and several other places in the country*.

* Almost the whole of the above account was sent to the author for insertion by a gentleman of that denomination.

L

JOHNSONIANS.

THE Johnsonians are so called from the late Mr. J. Johnson, many years a respectable dissenting minister in Liverpool, and the author of various publications which contain his peculiar opinions. They do not call themselves Johnsonians, but the name is applied to them by Christians of other denominations, on account of the authority and influence which Mr. Johnson's writings have among them, and their adherence to his opinions. They must be regarded as a distinct denomination, as they will have no religious fellowship with those who dissent from their views of the gospel, which are sufficiently discriminating, and have sometimes applied to themselves the words of Balaam, respecting the children of Israel, The people shall dwell alone and shall not be reckoned among the nations."

The following is a summary of their religious opinions. They deny the pre-existence of Christ, and at the same time believe that he is properly God; because all the fulness of the godhead dwells in him: consequently may be said to maintain the indwelling scheme. They ässert that God cannot be divided into distinct persons: so far they agree with the Unitarians They deny the doctrine of original sin; yet

assert that no man will savingly believe the gospel, unless brought by the special influence of the spirit to receive it. They deny the natural immortality of the soul, and contend that the whole of man is at present mortal; yet maintain the separate existence of the soul between death and the resurrection. They believe that God elected Christ, and his people in him, from everlasting, that for Christ and his church all things were created; that Christ would have been manifested, his people born again and exalted to glory, though sin had never existed; that in that case the rest of mankind would all have been happy in an inferior capacity, as the servants of Christ, and his bride the church. Against the decree of sin and reprobation they are zealous. Faith they suppose to be a divine communication, the life of God in the soul. They contend that it is impossible for a real Christian to have any doubts or fears respecting his interest in Christ, or acceptance with God. Respecting the atonement and perseverance of the saints they agree with the Calvinists, and with other Baptists as to the mode and subject of baptism. Those passages of scripture which relate to the future restoration of the Jews, they suppose to have a spiritual meaning, and deny that prophecy authorizes our expectation of

their being restored to their own land. Those who die in infancy they say will be raised to life in a pure state, not to inherit the heavenly kingdom, but to inhabit the new earth, which will be formed after the conflagration, on which, they say, Christ and his church will reign a thousand years, and then be removed to some more glorious region. They contend for the restitution of all the animal creation; but believe that the wicked will be endlessly miserable. Positive punishment, as inflicted by God, they deny, and hold the language of scripture respecting the future punishment of the wicked to be figurative, and that their torment will naturally arise from their state, and exist in their minds. Such are the opinions of the Johnsonians.

They have churches in Liverpool, Norwich, Wisbeach, Newark, and the neighbourhood of Halifax, and individuals of their party in many other places. Though they have no men of much learning among them, they are many of them persons of respectable character, and much in the habit of conversing together on religious subjects. Their greatest fault is their bigotry, which leads them to speak of what other parties of Christians call charity, as a noxious weed which has grown up in the garden of God.