GENESEE EVANGELIST.—WhoIe No. 764.
For the American Presbyterian
VANISHING THINGS..
Said( the good old Puritan, Joke Wilson, to
his daughter, who asked him how he felt when
his end drew nigh:—"Vanishing Things."
Vanishing things! vanishing thingi I
This strong hour my freedom brings;
The last of sin, and the itnst of strife;
Hail to the glory—and eddies§ lifel
Vanishing things! vdbishing things!
I am borne on high, as by angel wings;
Other beings press my sitmarsh
In their mar of throng fields of light.
Vanishing things! vanishing things!
Death on yonr:beauty his shadow flings;
The cloud is scattered that hovered-o'er
The seal must cross to the living shore.
A I fel t from the.l3lessed One eheds
Per naught on the earth can F wish stay.
My rising soul in her triumph sings:
To are left for my God, poor 'ravishing things I
To bow at the throne of the Crucified.;
To be with the hosts who in faith have died:
To go where no bigots the.good pursue,
0, world, and sin, I have done with you.
Dear flock of the wilderness, farewell! +.
I go amid the first-born to dwell,
Where joy from the fountain forever springs,
And the objects we love are not vanishing things.
For the American Presbyterian.
TOO LANE!
Lips quivering with the shock,
Of those swift words that mock
All strength of will—all loving agony, ,
Saying, in .startling thunder, he must die 1
Whispered, to-night, " Too late 1"
How, from the living day,
Do men thas pass away?
I shook that man but yestreen by the hand,
I talked with him of health, of news, of land;
And now he cries "Too Too late I"
Speak to him now of One
Whose death hath pardon won;
'gnome love can make us blest In life or death!
He gathers up his faint and wasting breath
For one sad cry, "Too late I"
Ah, me 1 a shrill of pain
Shudders through each head-vein.
• How hafie I wronged a soul that Christ would save!
Unwonted, unled, hi sinks'into his grave,
Crying at last, " Too later'
And we must close the sod,
And leave him with his God.
But as we walk the streets of dailrlife,
Our ears can never lose, amid their strife,
That warning cry, 4, Too late!”
Moturg eL
4tovvtopialtbfacs,
Non a, titairtillvra =AultLst--
" For the heart grows rich in giving, all its wealth is
Irving grata,
Seeds that mildew In the garner, scattered, fill with gold
the plain."
We see this lesson written for us in beautiful ;
words wherever we turn. Even the sun, so mag
nifieent in his strength that heathen nations bowed
to worship Baal, the Suri*od—shines not for him
self. The Moon catches his biight rays upon her
round shield, and reflects them to us in softened
beauty, till we lovingly crown her Queen of the
Night.. And the Stars hang their lamps in the
old accustomed places, that the lost traveller, by
iand , or sea, may be guided safely homeward. Not
less do the humble things of earth grow beautiful
in giving. Dewdrop and flower, mountain and I
cloud, fulfil each their useful mission, and no
sooner does anything become utterly powerless,
either for use or beauty, than it is, by the same
sign, worthless.
But perhaps we might not have applied this
truth to ourselves, had not Nature's great inter
preter, our book from Heaven, repeated the un
changing law, that None of us liveth to himself.'
A thousand links of influence, like telegraphic
wires—connect our lives with those on every side,
which should be ever vibrating with messages of
blessing. Our hands are full of gifts, which we
can only truly nee by imparting them; and it is
in this precious power of dispensing good that our
Heavenly Father gives us , the privilege of being
most nearly like himself.
And then,. by a like immutable law, our hearts
and hands grow " rich in giving." The thought
which we impart leaves a richer 'one behind it.
The impulse we give the mind of another, has left
our own the stronger. It is notorious that when
onnispublishing a falsehood, by the time he, has
convinced two or three others, he has at last con
.vinced himself. And surely the reflex influence
of advocating truth will net be leis decided. Even
'the money given to accomplish some good end re
turns in. double measure to the giver, and the
harvest a happy thoughts and worthy purposed
may well oourivup the &in to a:hundred fold.
A poverty-siricken man is the selfish man ever,
though his gold be hi3aped around him abundant
and valueless as pebbles, till,.touched by some
generous hand, like the reek smitten by the rod
of Moses, it pours forth In atreauhr of - blessings.
Lips that are„silentnow on earth used to say, the;
a man might as Well own so manY ilexes of the
broad, blue sky above him, as riches here which
be does not use. And one who looked upon, life
from the highest human stand-point ever yet, at
tained, has given us as the resultof his observation
the proverb, "There is that scattereth, and yet in
ereaseth : there is that withholdeth more than is
meet, but it tended), to poverty." Both quaint
and true are these lines from the pen of Geo. H.
Calvert:
( 4 The Sun gives ever, to the'earth,
What it cad give, in nrueliotis worth.
The ocean gives in many ways,
Gives paths, giies fishes, rivers, bays;
So too, the air; it gives us breath,
When it stops giving, comes In heath.
Give, give, be always giving;
Who gives not. is not living.
The more we give,
The more we live
God's love hath in us wealth unharmed ;
Only by giving it it reaped.
The body withers, and the mind,
Is pent in by a selfish rind.
Give strength, give thoughts, give deeds,
give pet
Give Imp, give tears, t►pd give thyself.
Give, give, be always giving;
Who gives not is not living
The more wb4iVe;
The more we liVe.4
Bfo sts ei
For the Amerieart Preal?yterhut.
TEMPERANCE AID THE LADIES IN
lOWA. .•
Wyoming, lowa, Deo. 12, 1860
Heroic notions are not confined to particular
times or places; neither are they to 'be estimated
by the greatness of results. When the, soul is
roused up by a sense of wrong or impelled by be:
nevolent impulse to start suddenly from the ordi..
nary line of conduct, to dare and to achieve sem e
thing noble and praiseworthy, there is heroism.
The ladies of this place deserve approbation for
their descent on two saloons last week. They were
about fifty in number, fully prepared to brave any
danger, and to demolish the receptacles of poison.
They were like the of. Boston whq spilled the
Tea. The affair produced quite an excitement,
but no personal injury was sustained. Good citi
zens, of course, take the side of the ladies. There
is a determination now to abate the moral nut
winces. , . „
. How strange .that there can :be place `soquiet
and so reputable for good morals, hut some agent
or agents of the Prince of Darkness will seek to
burrow there and commence clandestinely the
work .of miscidef., :The. temperance banner has
waved over this place for years. The people have
had line Upon line. -and precept upon precept.,
The accomplices of Satan have been fully warned.
There are not more than two or three persons
who have been disposed to persist in the abomina
ble practice of selling strong drink, arid that very
catettlyi—but of late they became bolder. They
opened on the Sabbath. They had gambling and
swearing. They were becoming bold with a con
tempt of public opinion.
The usual results followed,—husbands and fa
thers were made drunk, young men were decoyed
and demoralized. A barn was set en , fire by a
man who was drunk, and a large amount of pro
perty was destroyed. At this crisis the ladies
arose, and, with true, moral courage, faced the
wrong-doers.
A constable who was a frequenter of the saloons
threatened to arrest the ladies,—but his threats
passed like the idle wind..
He also made some indecent remarks, which
gentlemen took up the next day, and he . became
heartily ashamed of his conduct.
One of the, saloons has since-been closed, and
the other is under a pledge of having no gambling
apparatus, and Of selling no strong drink. D.
THE RELIGIOUS WORLD ABROAD
ENGLAND.
It isjust matter oK surprise that the recent
infidel developments of the Oxford theologians,
have called:forth so little remark:-or.protesta
tion from the evangelical portion ot the nation
' al church. — We find in the last News 'of 'the
Churches, a charge of the Bishop of OxfOrd,
in,which allusion is made to this defection from
the faith, but =nothing is said as-to the Aluty or
powhr - of Abe-'churott to cast - off - these - .'deed
branches. We give"" an extract
When I say, such words as these are delibe
rately uttered by our ordained clergy, while the
slowness even of English theologians to accept
such a treatment of God's revelation is scoffed
at, whilst those who maintain the old. truth, I
trust with most of us, my brethren, are branded
as Baal's prophets and the four hundred pro
plias of the grove who cry out, for falsehood--
whilst, I say, such, words as these, are heard from
ordained men amongst us, and, who still keep
their, places in the national church, is it not-a
time for us, if we do hold openly by the. Holy
Scriptures as the
,one inspired voice of Gull's
written revelation—if we do hold to the ancient
creeds as the summary of the good deposit---if we
believe in the Lord Jesus Christ as very God
and very man—if we believe in his offering
himself on the cross as the one only true and
sufficient sacrifice, satisfaction, , and atonement
for the sins of the whole world—is it mot time
for ,us, laying aside our suspicions and our di
visions about small matters, to combine together
in prayer, and trust; and labour, and love, and
watching, lest ,whilst we dispute needlesily
shout the lesser -matters of the law, we be
robbed, unawares,' of the very foundations of
the faith ?
The Christian Medical Society recently held
its annual meeting at the Freemasons' TaYern,
Great Queen Street, Lincoln's Inn Fields. This
Society was:formed s seven years ago, with the
definite purpose of bringing Christian mem:of
the medical , profession into closer fellowship,
and with special referenCe to the spiritual 'wet
'fare of medical students, who attend lectures
and examinations at the various schools and
hospitals i lia the metropolis. The number of
medical students who repair annually to lion
don is ,9stimated:at , ,one thousand two hundred.
They form a class which is exposed to peculiar
temptatiods, and up to : . a recent period no man
has earedlor their • souls. Now, =a' gOodly and
increasing number of-them are gathered into
classes for the study of the Scriptures, presided
over by Christian physicians and surgeons.
There is good reason to believe that there is
a rapid increase- going on of true piety among
medical men ;in London, and that the skepti
cism, materialism '
and ungodliness which once
largely, prevailed among the profpsOon, are
Waning fast before the light of a living Christi
anity. -
The Midnight MiSSIOn hild a meeting in No
veniber,'at which twenty-eight of the women
present were induced to betake them Selves to
the "homes" provided' for penitents. It is be
lieved that two hundred of 'these nnfortnnate
creatures have 'been rescued by the movement,
since February last There is a 'Female Aid
Mission also engaged successfully in this diffi
cult and important work. in Edinburgh it is
said that more than one hundred have been re
claimed in a month.
PREAMiINT IN •TIITATRES
The following from the London _Record, it - -
lastrates the.peculiarnature of the services now
again held in the theatres of that city:
At the Victoria Theatre, Lambeth, there
were two services. In the afternoon the place
was speedily crowded by a strange audience,
such as one is 'very unaccustomed to see in
plebes ot public worship. It was very evident,
indeed, from the demeanor of the people, that
the large majority of them had never been in
any place of worship 'before, althOugh it .must
be said on their behalfthat, with fey exceptions,
they conducted tlieftselves with tolerable quiet
ness, if not very reverently. As soon as the
theatre was filled, there were some of the usual
calls from the pit to the gallery and from the
gallery to the pit, while those persons who oc
cupied boxes—all places being thrown open
indiscriminately—were bantered by their friends
on, their good luck. As soon, however, as the
committee and the gentleman who was to con
duct, the . service, appeared on
~the stage, all
noise waa,huslaed r and many appeared to won
der what sort of propee4ings were at)out to take
place.
PHILAIIEIiPHIA, 1861.
Revivals are reported as occurring in parishes
of the Established Church. In a Dorsetshire
village, from forty to fifty personswere confirmed
at one time. In another parish, ,, the church
which holds one thousand persons—half the po
pulation—is crowded, thirty district visitors are
actively engaged, the business .of tie public
houses has ceased, and many are converted and
added to the church.
InwpzuTY seems to meet less encouragement
than formerly, , from the w6rking-men of Eng
land, if we may judge from the declarations_pf
Canon Stowell in reference to 3Sfandhester.
During the last thirty-three years infidelity
bad more than once sought to muster its troops
and win its dark achievements in Manchester.
Many of them could remember when halls were
bniltrfor infidelity,-when preachers Were paid to
preach down the Bible; when their - churches
were invaded by men, and . women; 00,, who came
to confront the readier of God's Word, and to
-ibtimidate ,bim. WOW now the Hall of
&fence ? was coliverted; , bital tilkoble free
library for all the people =of 'Manchester.
Where, too, was the Salford Hall'of Science? .
It was converted into a good, honest Baptist
chapel': and so they .would perceive infidelity
bad been building temples for the diffusion of
wbolesetne knowledge and the worship of.Ged.
Time was, and had not far gone by, whea we
had shops opened to sell infidel publications,
and when we had ten or twelve infidel periodi
cals circulating their thousands in Manchester
and neighborhood. But of these publications
there were few, if any, that bad survived, the
quiet prOgress of God's truth, and the common
sense of the working men.
The Bible-Woman Movement in London, has
now assumed gigantic proportions, and is spread
ing, far and wide a blessed infiuenee among the
most degraded of the population.
SCOTLAND
THE CARDROSS CASE. --The;. News of the
Churches says:
Scotland has become again agitated by the
, ,
well.known Cardross Case, which has remained
over on account of the summer vacation of the
Courts. Lord Jerviswoode has decided that
the Court has a right to investigate into the
alleged irregularities of iccleshistical procedure,
with the view of reducing, if so decided, or an
nulling the church sentences—such being the
action
_brought, before the Court of Session.
The Free Church, maintains the ground that
these sentences being purely ecelesiastical, and
encroaching upon no civil function,•cannot be
revised by the Civil Courts; that the authority
to exercise discipline proceeds from Christ alone,
and, must be used only in his name. , If the
Church permitted this inquiry, it is said, it
Would allow to the State a supervision of all its
eeclesfastical procedure, and would constitute
it the ultimate court gf appeal in the spiritual
relations between the Church and its: members.
If thitt relation is' only one of civil contract,
such as bet Ween an ordinary society and its
members, which of course is subject to the ulti
mate supervisioni of the civil power, then, it is
argued, that the Church is a mere creature or
offspring of the State, and, has not, in fact, a
igaue origin The snit engrely different
from mere,ektion of aaintiges, which, of course;
the Free ,Church acknowledges any of its mi
nisters or members might pursue, in order to
prove a civil wrong, and which the Chnrch
would be bound to defend. The decision of
Lord Jerviswoode constitutes an attempt on
the ,pant of the State to supervise proceedings
affecting r a. parely spiritual relation, and implies
the right of- annulling ecclesiastical sentences,
and restoring offenders to their former position
in the churches from which they have been
ejected. It is probable that this question may,
after ,passing through the Court of Session, be
brought, by one of the parties, before the House
of Lords, and it can scarcely be doubted that all
the non-established Churches of Britain at least,
will be aroused to resist any such flagrant vio
lation of the law of •toleration, as Is implied in
this decision of the inferior court.
The Revival in Scotland is still going for
ward. Richard Weaver had visited Edinburgh
on p. preaching tour, and addressed ten or fit.
teen thousand persons at one time, in Holy
Rood Place Square. He also addressed the
Omen of that city with great effect.
IRELAND:
CHILD-STEALING BY THE ROMANISTS -A
Miss Aylward, Superintendent of a Romanist
charitable institute at Dublin, patronized by
Dr. Cullen, the well hnown ultramontanist, has
been sent to prison for refusing to answer the
inquiriei of the court in regard to the fate of
the child of a Protestant woman, (a Mrs. Mat
thews;) known to have'been'in her keeping, but
not now to be fotind. Her imprisonment is'for
six months as a common criminal.
THE METROPOLITAN 'HALL in .Thlbllll, was
still, at last accounts, the centre of a great and
extended- religious movement
.Large nunihers
remain after the public ; s ervices, to •converse
the.subject of personal religion.
Donations lave been.offered towards the ex
pense of the meetings, from a shilling to, it is
said, a thousand pounds. Trinkets are some
times sent to be disposed of for the same object,
and tot long since ain't enclosed a heavy gold'
chain. The letters are very numerous, and
often interesting. A Unitarian physician in
London, - writes: "My visit to Dublin' and the
Metropolitan Hall, has, indeed, been blessed to
my soul; now, Lean rest firmly and securely in
God the Father, through his blesied,Son, the
Lord Jesus Christ." An English vicar writes,
mentioning that it was to a sermon in the Me
tropolitan Hall, he was indebted, under God,
for his "It, was, the first time that
I was earnestly invited to Jesus Christ, 'and I
came. . . .I would
s now part s with any:
thing but my Saviour. Next Sunduy I shall
go to my poor people, and tell thernibat I have
found Jesus, and,ask them to come to Him also."
LOndon minister same over here to see the
work, ranch doubting its reality. When con
vinced, he declared such a ivork and in such a
manner could not be effected. amongstibe Eng
lish." Now he writes: "I long to te:11 you
that last night there were forty individuals in
tny,church under deep anxiety, most of whom
found the Lord Jesus before we separated; and
I know of one hundred and fifty more in the
neighborhood who are very anxious."
At the Conference of the Evangelical Alli
ance, recently held at , Nottingham, a paper was
read; giving ‘ a full account of the revival in
Wales. It is a most remarkable document,
giving evidence of truly Pentecostal influences
shed over the length and, breadth of that favored
country. By careful computation, the number
of additions to the various churches, from the
Spring 'of 1856 to that of 1860, is placed at
eighty, to ninety thousand, in s4s. population .of
about a, million and a Ulf.
The Emperor is taking a very decided post.
WALES
Fa* at
tion against thesUltramen nista of his country.
A pamphlet has ,recently apleared, in which the
expediency of vesting the Headship of the chttroh,
as a national church, in the Emperor, is discussed.
Public opinion is evidently 4rengthening against
the Papacy. Unheard of liberties are used by
prominent journals, in discussing the spiritual
as well as temporarpoier of the Papacy. The
cruel persecutiOns of Protestents in earlier days,
are most unsparingly censured.
The prospects of the American Chapel have
continued to - improve. The congregations are
large, attentive,., and serious, A special sign of
improvement is, the, growth, .of the afternoon
congregation ; and a stronger indication still is
afforded by the Thursday night prayer meeting,
which has recently' had an' attendance of about
fifty persons. The. Sunday:school is too large
for the vestry in which it is ; • .
Rev. Prof ~Revel, of the.,, 'aldensian Theologi
cal ~ellipary2 writesitth'i lain and Foreign
Christian union *tiiiii.tanic t 4. to have•been
ni n.
occupied for evangelisaticu ‘qhe stations of Milan
Pisa,
• Leghorn, and.Florpnce. We are now hoping
to send a minister to Bologna x and one to Naples,
Where they havewritten' us !that a Waldensian
• •
minister is a great desideratudt?? •
He also 'writes to Rev. E.3' Newlin pastor of
the Bloomfield (N. J.) Chnrol) which has • offered
to support a colporteur in Itali,,on condition that
,
Dr. Revel should designate one, and transmit
re
ports of his work. Dr. Revel says .he has chosen
two brothers of the well-knoWn family of the Ce
re.ghini to labour in, Sicily, art# hopes to find rea
dily the means of paying the other.
NAPLES.—The correspondent of the News of
the Churches says, under date.Of Nov. 15th:
Mr. Bruce, the agent for .tkeißritish and Fo
reign Bible Society, came, here as soon as Naples
was opened up, and his success, as well as that of
the colporteurs employed by tine and the Edin
burgh Bible Society, has bees very great.' In
Tuscany, and'" Piedmont the demand, for Bibles on
the part, of, the native booksellers has been very
small indeed. Here, on the Contrary, • the book
sellers have bought up whole 41(oies of Bibles"ara
time, and employ agents wi*. ? . s to hawk
them through the struts. ' lking down the
Toledo yeqtarday„Lsawscieral'of, these barrows
surrounded by purchasers; aid on every book
stand, whether belonging to eorporteurs'er. others,
Bibles were exposed for sale' in the , villages
round the city the colporteurihaire also met with
ready sale. They tell me,:fhowever, that religious
books, such as the Pilgrim's Progress, Father Cle
ment, the Protestant Catechfsm i Difference between
Romaiism; and Protestantism,44., etc., are more
eagerly 'Wight up than the Bible, .which consti=
totes' another striking differenne ,between the po
pulation of Naples and that of. Northern Italy.
GERMANY:
„
THE NEW PRESBYTERIAI4. 4I UONSTITIITTON.---
The struggle going on for the.: •, Rresbyterian orga
nization of the parishes in Prxsaia, Ands the prin
cipal7l diffkoulty in the indike ' ceof the people.
In some parighes the , people'wil': Ot take the trou
ble of eldeting elders. Thnliteral visitation con
due- .by tb GenoraL rinim at,-*ath he
7 e` . * - ' 4
assistance of the ableat'an DOW preachers he eau
• •
induce to accompany him' is awaketuog new life
in many a parish. , „
PROTESTANTS AND ROMANISTS.—Straney,
,di
verse movements - may be chronicled under this
head. On the one, hand,,,the progress of the
Pope in securing Concerdat;s, ,or arrangements for
the independence of the Papal- *Arch from- the
jurisdiction of the civil government, has been in
terrupted, Baden having the distinguished honor
of leading the way in Ale struggle and the victory.
On the other hand, the Protestant aristocracy of
Darmstadt .are found- siding with the Romanists
in their secret schemes to gain the supremacy, and
disagreeing with the Lower House, which has de
cided by a large majority to resist these aggres-,
sions. A remarkable - conference of leading High
Church Lutherans,. including; Professor. Leo, ,of
Halle, with leading Ilapitte, count,Stotberg and
others, was held on.the 21st ofSeptember, in Er
furt. Its ,object has been variously stated, and
the proceedings were to have been kept secret, but
the Romish, journals in their exaltation published
it far and wide, as an indicatien of the dispoiition
of the earnest Protestants to return to Rome. This
is denied by the Luttlerans,';ibo, it is said, are so
chagrined with the indiseretionof their partners
in the transactinn,.,that a second proposed confer
ence will not be The correspondent of the
News of the Churches says
'The whole revolntion Italy is regarded [on
the continent] as the work' of the Evil One, and
no expectation of good is 'entertained from the.
overthrowing of the Italian princes. Sostrong is
this fear of revolution in High Church circles,• that
some of the ultra party have hae:a meeting:with ,
influential" Roman Catholics to prepare the Way Tor
uniting the earnest Protestants and RomaniCatho
lics on the one side;against the .revolution: on the
other."
THE ADDRESSES; AT THE TERCEL :
We.give,below aud.ac,euraternports of the
addresses of Rev:, P1amr5,84443 AdiLsoi-apd
MUSOBAVE, from the Ovistian: Instructor, of this
city. Neat, week .are hope to give 4#.le other ad
dresses. The occasion was-:tine of „su,ch peculiar
interest,4hat our readers not require any apolo
gy for giving them so large,a place in our columns.
ADDRESS CiT'Nfter,BAIVNES:ki
• "Mrs Chairman, I understand that this Church
is selected for this meeting beeause•it is theuldest
in this city, if not in the country. It becomes
me, as the pastor of ,this cengrfgation, to
,thank
you for holding this meeting here. It - affordi me
great gratification 'that you have selected this
place, and I take gnat -pleasure in extending to
you a cordial: welcome. •
"Me come here to-night as Presbyterians. As
such we meet, and as such we are . more, nearly
united in doctrine and in affection than we are
with any other denotnination. It must not 'be
deemed discourteous to .others, , that welave come
together, to thank God for his mercies to us as
PresbyterianS. Nor will it, I trust, be regarded
as discourteous towards others, - that we speak of
ourselves and of those principles which distinguish
us. I propose, in this spirit, to make a few, re
marks on the principles of Pres4teria,nism.
"In the first place, I think 'they are distin
guished from all others 'hy-tire , tolace-which the
Bible holds in their regards. tailie foundation of
their, faith. Ido not 'mean to.sarthat others do
not love the . Bible—that„they do not cherish an
affectionate regard for it. 'The Bible,' says Chili
lingworth, 'is the religion of protestants;'` but if
seems to me that Presbyterians are disposed to
recognise and act upon that, principle in matters
of faith, more than others. It is, with them, a.pro
rninent and fixed principle that what is declared
in the Bible is‘to bet elieved: The circumstances
of the times which: We no* commemorate'm were
'suebfas fir bring out thieritinciple. zAt the lithe
that the First Generat,Assembly met, - there.sat on
the 'English throne ,a,,,. , .soyeroign „eminent ~for her
virtues, and yet she had a very strong proclivitY
to the rights . and customs of the Church of Wine.
Sbe insisted that the surplice should - be worn.
This Hooker refused It•seemed - like a very
small matter, yet. it. involved a great principle—
the principle, of enforcing upon the ,conscience'
what the word of "God does not enjoin., In oppo
sition' to this principle the Puritan party sprang
into existence in. England: The principles advo
cated, by them have developed themselves inour
own land. This principle of the. Bible, and the
Bible only, does not enter so directly and so fully
auto any other system as that of Presbyterianism.
You do net;find it in the churches of Germany.
Luther, if is truei.drew from. the , l3ible his great
doctrine: of • justification; but -there. were many
things retained by him , to which:the Bible Oves, no
countenance. Ile did, not oas far;as Knox. 'in
the application of 'Bible principles. The'l3ible
was laid at the Very fouridation . Of' that system , of
faith and government that was .established in Scot
land. ,
. .
• 4 ln the second place, we may see a very close
affinity 'between Presbyterianism and Calvinism.
There - seems to 'he no it'atural affinity between
'these two, yet'.they have gone on together. As .a
_matter. of fact-Presbyterianism has , not been, ;to
any _great extent, connected with Arrainianism,
Socinianism, and other forms of faith. Presbyte
rianiain is a government, Calvinism is a doctrine,
yet though thus distinct they have gone - on to
gether in this close affinity.' Presbyterianism is a
representative government. The elementary idea
is, that the people are to be represented. Presby
terianism , is, a ,constitutional government—a go
vernment of law—a government founded on the
principle-that the law of God is to be administered.
According to it the rights of all are respected.
Calvinism is a Torre of dectrine in which every
thing is fixed, settled, determined. There is in
it, as a system, nothing that is vacillating. It is
founded on everlasting truth.
"Ia the third place, there is a peculiarity of
Presbyterianism in the character.which it forms.
Presbyterians have a distinct, marked character.
Most persons have the idea that they are:stern,
hai-sh,mtevere, repulsive, uncharitable. Pope spoke
of them as sour. He thus exhibited them-in .one
of his verses. (The speaker, here made some
stalking reMarks in vindication of Presbyterians
from this charge of the poet, which we did not take
down) These things go to show that they have
a definite; a distinct character, and this character
is forined from their form of government. Dis
tinctness is its characteristic,.:. regard for law
enters intolt. One of, its great ptinciples is, that
law is to be respected. iVhirse he is a firm friend
of liberty he is also a firm friend of law, for lie
knows that there can be no liberty without law.
But the Presbyterian is a friend of liberty. Wither
spoon, one of the signers of the Declaration, was
a Presbyterian, and every Presbyterian was an ad
vocate of that Declaration.
"The doctrines to which they hold make - them
whit they are. The Presbyterian begins with
God, not with animalcules, reptiles and men. The
very system which he
,holds
,places him (Erectly
before the throne of his Creator. He looks upon
all things as taking place 'finder the operation of
laws and not the result-of contingency. These
laws lie regards as emanating directly from God.
They are not with God after4lioUghts,Thut parts
of one great plan, from the falling sparrow to the
sun in• the heavens. : The Presbyterian, therefore,
is taught by ,his very faith to look calmly on the
universe and the events that are passing around
""The - rPregßyWirarTr - ii 'thl:44leltotesidiii;
Such was John 'Calvin. In this respect there is
a marked peculiarity in Presbyterians. Rome hae
never yet relinquished the hope of bringing Eng
land back. She has however, 'I doubt not, long
since despaired of geotland. She • has sent into
England., an, eminent and learned Cardinal,, and
divided the whole realm into dioceses. Her first
instalment she has received`at Oxford. God grant
that her purposes may never be accomplished in
our father-land. She will not be likely to meet
with much sticeess among Presbyterians."
Address of REV. PB.OF. JAMES M. WILLSON
of the Synod of the Ref. Presb. Church, (Ore nanter.) , took for his theme, "The,First.
Scottish"-Reformers--itheir position add purpose."
Ile said:
"1 have listened with no little interest and in
struction to the able description we have just had
of, a Presbyterian., It is my intention to say some
thing relative to the position of those men who
met 'in theyear 1560—their positions in reference
to the great interests which were in their hands.
The agein which these men assembled was an age
fertile in great.events in the' kingdom of Christ.
Five years before the meeting of that Assembly
the liberty of the Protestant church owning the
Confession of Augsburg had been established—
thereby bringing to a close controversy that bad
lasted from , the.days of Luther. In 1557 John
Calvin, had-finally prevailed in establishing Pres
byterian diacipline as well as order in Geneva after
a trying conflict of twenty years. In the year
1559 the representatives of the Protestant Church
of... France, met in ;the city of Paris- There was
going • on in Holland that conflict which issued in
the setting up, of the seven Protestant provinces.
In England the Protestant cause was once more
in the ascendant` bythe accession' of Elizabeth to
thethrOne. Such were the circumstances of the
times under. which our fathers constituted this
Assembly, in the year 1560. From the days of
the patriot Ilatnilteri's martyrdom, in the year
1528,,there had been preaahing, and praying, and
Suffering, and the mustering of hostile armies.
"Of.the forty or•forty-two , rnembers of that As
sembiy, -sir, to .one were, the representatives of
burghe 'as distinet ,from , ministers. These men
met together because they believed in the prin
ciple of ft. - des:indica:l unify. !' They did not believe
that the e.hureh tottlitiat ebnaisted i tififragrnents.
Their idea of the church was the same as ours.
They saw her as we see her—one community—
one fainily—one body. They asserted and held
to the :doctrine of the church's independence of
outward control. They ,maintained that there
wereitwo kingdoms in Scotland :. I
"These Men acted under a solemn conviction
that Providence had put it into their hands to fur
nish Seetland with a supply Of gospel truth. They
were in -an emphatic manner ,a missionary Assem
bly. They felt, themselves called to the great work
of spreading the gospel.
"They also felt themselves called upon'to -pro
vide the thurch with a regular organization,• and
.aocordingly they established the Presbyterian sys
tem. It was in connexion with their meeting that
the First Book of Discipline-was formed. It,was
subsequently modified under the influence of An
drew Xelville, the greatest, in some respects, of
all Scotehmen: That first book contains every
principle of Presbyterianism. We cannot but
wonder, even _knowing the fact that Calvin had
already established Presbyterianism, 'that there
should be formed at such a tithe so complete a
system of church government and order.
In relation to education, these men occupied,
an advanced position. They exemplified the fact
that Presbyterians are favourable to the cause of
education. The, snbjeet of ,public , and scientific
education - received their special: attention. Pro
vision was made by them, that for every kirk there
shbuld be a school-master—a school-master, too,
qualified' to teach not only grammar but the Latin
language! Nor was this all. The CatechiSmwas
to be taught. In this respect their system was
fir wiser than ours. But not only did they make
provision for popular education, but they estab
lished that, in every 'notable town or city' there
should be a :college, which they called, "a kigh
Seminary of Learning.' We pride ourselves in'
reference to the efforts that we ,are putting forth
in favour of popular`education. Knox was in ad
, yanee, of us, in views on this subject. " The
men of those days were• men that labourer fti-4
posterity. We are not ashamed to meet together
and commemorate the doings of those men. They
were men of the true metal—men of the right
stamp—men that had wills. These men were not
''reeds shaken with the wind.' They knew what
they believed and they were determined to carry
out their convictions. They believed that the law
of Christ is good for men e‘verywhere—that it was
not good for one or. for two individuals only, but
for nations. Look at the fruits of the system
established by these men. See what Scotland has
brought forth ! Think of-what she has done under
the influence of those principles established by our
fathers. Though embracing bitt a`small-territory
and containing unly,about three millionsog pea•
ple, she has been the light of' the worlii. 'Yes,
the Lord had a great work to be done, and these
were the men to . do it. Let ns copy after their
ekample. It isw.eed to build the septilebres of
the prophets, butit is far better to receive their
teachings, it is far, better to do as they did. We,
like them, have, much.-work to do. There are
bonds yet to be sundered. Shall we dd it?"
Addres. of RiV. GE;;11:GE W. kus&ts.. - vr., D. D.,
of the " Old Schodl" Presbyterian Churet. His.
subject' was " The Reformation—the restoration
of the pure gospel—the importance of union and
co-operation among its mends.
"I was told when invited to address you on
this occasion that I should be confined to fifteen
minutes. 'Rather a short allowance for Presbyte
lions, as you will no doubt conclude. If some of
wr Scotch fathers, who sometimes went•as far as
theirs thirty-thirdlies, were here, they would say
of such short discourses, 'Shallow vessels are
soon emptied.' Suppose, however, you imagine
that I have been allowed sixty minutes instead of
fifteen, and suppose you imagine what I might
have said during that time respecting the state of
Europe prior to the Reformationthe ignorance,
superstition and immorality which then so gene
rally prevailed. Imagine, too, what I might. have
said concerning the great reformers, and of the
remarkable manner in which God raised them up
-and qualified
_them for their glorious mission—
their eminent talents, their deep piety, their active
zeal, their self-sacrificing spirit, their faith and pa
tience and enduring zeal.. Imagine, too, what I
might have said respecting their 'glorious success
under God—the diffusion of the knowledge of di
vine truth, the recognition, to a large extent, of
the rights' , of &insolence, and th6=establishiont of
- 6 - pirerchurch in doctrine, government and wor
ship.
"If by these hints you will recall these things,
you will be prepared to appreciate what I now af.
firm—that the ekiff value of the Reformation was
'the restoratiOn of a pure gospel. Ido not dispa
i-rage the blessings and privileges of an ecclesiasti
cal,-civil, and social kind, secured to us under God
by the reformers; but all these, great and precious
as they are, are as nothing when compared with
the deliverance of the souls of men from the thral
dom of Satan,' the power, the• pollution, and the
guilt: of sin, and their future and everlasting sal
vation. On this occasion I desire especially to
impress this great truth upon your hearts and me
mories—that though we are indebted to the re
formers for inestimable privileges of 'a social, po
litical and ecclesiastical description, we are in
debted to. them chiefly for the restoration of a
pure gospel. Before the reformation the people
were, not taught to confess , their sins to their
,
heavenly Father to rely, exclusively Upon the
.ostis tuts,t u
S2iitgi44,ot.tiie—hOiAt sr: ' ' ' I. guil—i ;trust:4l
y fv.
,-.- •
the intercession of the unl one Mediator, to reeog-
nise the necessity of regeneration and sanctifica
tion bythe Spirit, of God. They were instructed
to make confession to their priests, to rely for par
don on their good works, to invoke the interces
sion of saints, .and to look to the merits of saints
and purlitorial fires to qualify and fit them for
heaven. They were not taught the true way of
salvation.
"Now, in proportion, as we esteem_ the necessity
of these, must we appreciate the inestrible value
of the reformation which restored to meh a know-
ledge of the true way of life, and wbleht, under
God, has furnished the means of, everlasting sal
vation. To bring this matter home to your own
hearts—contrast what your present condition and
prospects now are, with what, they would have
been -bat for the reformation. When yotl think
of the knowledge which you enjoy, your present
hopesnnd prospects; and, remember, that but for
the Reformation you might have been, and probably
would haVe been destitute of all these things, how
ferVently grateful to God should you be for the
blessing.of the Reformation.
"How important then are union and co-opera
tion among all its' friends! How insignificant are
our peculiarities compared with these saving
truths. I do not undervalue any truth revealed
by God in his word. I recognise the duty of de
fendingiand maintaining every.part of God's will,
yet is iTnot
.true that all these minor differences
are as .nothing when compared with the gospel?
I respect the opinions of those who differ from me
on non-essentials; yet ought we not to recognise
our unity with respect to the essentials of the gos
pel, and unite our prayers and our efforts in their
maintenance and propagation.
"It is a matter of thankfulness to God that
there should be so perfect an agreement among
Protestant sects. There' is scarcely any difference
among our Presbyterian branches. Whilst, there
fore, we should Cherish a. sympathy with all Pro
testant sects, we should therish a. special - interest
in every brans k of our great family.
" If you win pardon a personal allusion, I will
illustrate-my meaning by relating an incident that
occurred, a few years after the division, whilst on
my way as a delegate to the General. Assembly.
We stopped at Cincinnati to avoid travelling on
the Sabbath. In- the Morning I attended public
worship in an Old - School Presbyterian Church.
Some proposed thatore.skould attend in an Epis
copal house of worship - in' the afternoon. I "d`e=
dined. I was then asked where I would go, as
none of Cur churches were then open; I replied,
that I should go to the New School. It was urged
that a certain Episcopal minister was a 'sound
low churchman. My reply was, Ido not doubt
it; but -a New School Presbyterian is nearer my
heart than the lowest low churchman in Christen-
dom.' I will re,cognise my. Episcopal low church
friends as nephews or nieces, and, in the presence
of papists, my high church friends as forty-second
cousins; but they are not related to we as are
Presbyterians of any school. Imu regarded as a
true blue, and I love the Old School Presbyterian
Church as 'I love my' life; but' I love all Presby
terians as I love no others.
"After all, what is mere nominal Christianity
• without the life-giving Spirit of God? •Protestant
ism may make men more• free, more virtuous, but
without perfect faith in the Son'of God they must,
though Protestants, die in their silts; and the more
light they possess—the greater their privileges,
the more aggravated will be their everlasting con
demnation. Our great aim, therefore, should, be
the salvation of men; and we should love our sys
tems of doctrine and worship, because they are
eminently adapted as, means for saving men. Our
,great aim should be, not to bring men within the
visible church of Christ,but to save their souls.
, 41 , 4 4 .4, was not Without great cretrage and patience
that our fore-fathers commenced and carried on
this great work. And so long as they continued
their 'united efforts, and directed these 'efforts
against popery, so long as they were - burnbleso
long did God smile upon their efforts. Put when
they began to divide and to becoMe estranged from
each other—when ambition and jealousy prevailed
then was'the Spirit of God in a great measure
withdrawn. - Oh, what might have been the con
dition' of Christendom this_ day, if Protestants had
remained4ithful to their Goad and the principles
which they, announced at the Reformation—if . they
had eontiniidd to, pray as their fathers had 'prayed!
instead'of the small territory possessed b the
`VOL. 19.—Whole No. 236.
whole land would have been possessed, and after
the, lapse of a few centuries the whole world would
have been subdued.
In conclusion, let me exhort you all to drink
deep of the fountains of God's truth at which
,they drank—to avoid every thing that would
distract and divide-you-to love one another and
pray for one another. Do all that Christians
can do. to propagate the principles and spirit of
the Reformation. Seek to have the spirit of
true piety in your souls, and to bring all men
to the foot of the cross. As these United States
form the great bulwark of liberty, cherish the
union of these States. Obey the Constitution
of your country. Recognise your countrymen
as brothers, and then, by the blessing of God,
the great principles of the Reformation shall be
successful.
AN ARTIDOTE-
The tried Christian should never dviell on his
troubles. Trouhle comes to furnish him with a
message to the Lord, and to drive- him out of his
, resept'state and condition : therefore many of the
Lori's people have found•great relief in trouble, by
actively engaging in the Lord's service. My tried
friend, go, if thou canst, to the chamber of the
sick, and speak of Jesus to them Go to the deso
late home of the widow, and endeavour to dry her
tears. Take her fatherless children by the hand,
and speak loving words to them of a Father in
heaven. Go to the poor labourer's cottage, where
there are many wants and few comforts, and rep
resent Jesus there, speaking of him and acting for
him. Look at the sufferings of others, and try to
relieve them. Look at the wants of others, and
try to relieve them. Look at the ignorance of
others, and endeavour to instruct them. , It is by
doing good that we get good. Be active for thy
Saviour,
and thou shalt be comforted by thy Sa
viour. The way to increase sorrow ip to dwell upon
it; and the way to obtain relief from sorrow is to
act for Jesus notwithstanding it. The action of
fresh air on the nerves, the action of God's truth
on the mind, and the action of another's sorrow on
thy, heart, will relieve, reanimate, and restore to
comfort those who go forth as messengers of mercy;
while those who confine themselves at home, dwell
ing on their griefs and woes, will continue depressed
and sad.. While, therefore, you rely on the Lord's
promise, be active in the Lord's service, and ener
getic in the bird's cause. "The hand of the
dili!=ent maketh rich; but the slothful soul shall
suffer hunger." This is as true in spirituals as in
temporals.—Strong Tower.
HOW TO RESIST DOCTRINAL ERROR.
.A. younglninister sees some form of error over
shadowing his field of labor, blighting the plants
of righteousness, and extending its baneful influ
ence wider and wider every day. He gets excited.
He almost, thinks that he "does well to be angry."
He begins to hew and hack at the shadowy mon
ster. But he finds that it grows in spite of him,
nay, his efforts seem to promote its growth, and
he learns at last, by sad experience, that his zeal
has not be,en according to knowledge.
To those who would resist the power and spread
of dangerous doctrinal errors-, we wish to make
two suggestions; not original, but highly impor
tant, and often forgotten.
I. No error has any wide or strong influence
unless it is the perversion of a truth, and general
ly the troth is one which the age demands, but
yiliich,"fdr some reason;` it dbes not receive from
the accredited teachers. Let a minister neglect
to present the duties and responsibilities of the
hearers of the gospel, and confine his preaching to
expositions of divine sovereignty ; election and
effectual calling,
.and he will find Arininianism
springing up rankly all around him. The people
feel that there must be another side—a man-ward
side of the gospel, and when that is presented,
though in excess and caricature—so as almost to
dethrone God, they receive it greedily. Let a mi
nister preach the justice without the love of God,
andhe find Universalism spreading. What shall
he do? Manifestly he must give his hearers the
truth of which these errors are the perversion.
He must present the Bible doctrines of human
duty, and of God's free love. Thus, without; ever
naming Arminianism or . Universalism, he -will
take away the foundations-on which they rest, and
they will fall of themselves. Attack an error ve
hemently, and you arouse every energy of those
who hold it in defence. But present with clear
ness and discrimination the truth which it has
counterfeited, and most of those who have been
deluded will at once prefer and embrace it.
11. No error can be successfully resisted by a
Christian minister who has the spirit of Christ.
He must speak the truth in love. He must show
that he opposes false doctrines, not because they
are contrary to his creed, but because he feels that
they are ruinous to souls. If there is in his
whole manner the tenderness of a mother who
would win her child from error because he is dear
to her, his victory is, half won already.
The ability to meet error; as here suggested,
can be acquired only by much study and much
prayer. The easy way for human nature is not
the way of ;highest success and usefulness for the
ambassador of Christ.
NEVER DESPAIR OF THE REPUBLIC.
God may hear these prayers and ‘c still the noise
of the seis, the noise of their waves, and the tu
mult of the people." He may give us to see our
sins, to , humble ourselves, in his sight, and turn
away his fierue wrath, and repent of the evil be
thought to do us. Then, as we climb the steep
mountain side up which we are laboring, and along
which the storm is howling, rocks and trees are
hurled from their ,moorings, gust and fragments
are flying, and reach the summit under a clear
sky; ...,.what a...prospect, will lie barke . These
troubles overpast, and, our Union preierved in its
integrity, and preserved not by force of arms, but
by cheerful conciliation, and with an. augmented
good-will on the part of all, what a future must be
ours. What a future to our commerce and all the
industrial arts! What a future to our educational
and all our social interests! What
. a future to our
homes of peace, comfort, safety and refinement!
What -a future to the wealth, strength,.and ag
grandizement of:this liepublie I To what a civili
zation shall we reach ! What, an influence shall
we Wield on the 'destinies of the world! What a
future to the American church! Arid shall it not
he realized ? In God, I hope and .believe•it will.
A vessel was, overtaken by a terrific hurricane in
the middle of the Atlantic ocean. After the most
astonishing efforts to weather the storm, the awful
intelligence from the captain broke upon the ear'.
of the passengers. "The ship is on her beam ends;
she will never right again; death is certain." "Not
at all, sir, not at all," exelaimed a sailor boy; "God
will, save us yet." "Why 'do you think so ?" said
the captain with , strong feeling and astonishment.
"Because,sir, at this moment they are praying un
der the lethel :Flag, in the city of Glasgow, for
ail sailors in distress, and us among the rest. God
will hear their prayers; now see if he don't." The
captain, an, old weather-beaten tar, exclaimed, with
the teams running down his cheeks, " God ;mut
their prayers may be heard in our behalf, my lit
tle preacher." At that moment a great wave strut;;
the,ship and righted her. A simultaneous shout
of exultation, gratitude and praise, louder than the
storm, went up to God. And when I think of th
thousands and thousands who, under another flat ,
are praying this morning for another storw-tosse d
vessel, how can' I despair of the Republic? upo I
will hear those prayers, and save us yet; "now
,see if , he don't." And then, what a shout of ex
ultalioil, gratitude, and praise, louder than whet
the sea claps, her hands, will pour over the hills
and the mountains of the land that we love !
Rev. S. G. Spees, Dayton, 0.
C. C. Herald