from f^e &i6rarg of (pxofcBBox ^amuef (gitffer in (glemorg of Sub^e ^amuef (Utiffer Qgrecftinribge (j}re6ente^ 6g ^amuef (QXiffer Qgrecftinribge feong to f^e £i6rarg of (Princeton C^eofogicaf ^eminarg sec INQUIRY IJVTO THE COMPARATIVE MORAL TENDENCY OE TRINITARIAN AND UNITARIAN DOCTRINES ; IN A SERIES OF LETTERS TO THE REV. DR. MILLER, OF PRINCETON. 7^ By JARED sparks. con- How great soever may be the pretence of good will, and charity, and oern for the salvation of men's souls, men cannot be forced to be saved, whether they will or no ; and, therefore, when all is done, they must be left t8 their own consciences. — Locke. BOSTON : WELLS AND LILLY— COURT-STREET. 1823. PREFACE. 1 HE presentwork contains a series of Letters originally published in tlie Unitarian Miscel- lany, 'riiey are here brought together with many important additions and alterations. The circumstances under which they first ap- peared may be briefly stated as follows. In a Sermon, preached by the Rev. Dr. "^fil- ler at tite ordination of the l?ev. Mr. Nevins in Baltimore, were introduced remarks on Unitarians, which were thought to be unrea- sonably severe and unjust. Strictures were made on these remarks, and published in the form of a letter to Dr. xMiller. To these he replied with a view to explain and vindicate tlie objectionable parts of his Sermon. 1 he third letter in the following Inquiry, entitled " Charges against the rharacter of Unitari- ans," is the one first addressed to him. All IV PREFACE. those of the remainder, whicli were originally inserted in the Miscelhiny, relate more parti- cularly to his JJeply, and the topics which it embraces. In preparin.^ these letters for separate pub- lication, tlie author deemed it advisable to omit some parts, to write others anew, to in- terweave occasional additions, and, by remov- ing as far as possible local and personal allu- sions, to clothe them with a general interest, and cause them to harmonize in illustrating the point which he aims to discuss. 1 he first and second letters, and some of the others, are wholly added. The primary purpose of the author's un- dertaking has been, to trace out the influence of certain religious opinions on the character of the persons adopting them ; and his ulti- mate object, to show that the sentiments usu- ally denominated Unitarian have a decid- ed preference in this respect to the high dogmas of orthodoxy. The discussion, in some of its parts, has taken a wide range, and been conducted, perhaps, in a somewhat de- sultory manner. This was in a measure nc- Preface. cessaryfrom the causes in wliicli it originated. It is believed, however, tliat little will be found, which has not a general bearing on the subject. The letters on Charity, and the Christian Name, may at first be thought an exception ; but when it is reflected how strong an influ- ence the various sentiments indicated in these letters have on the temper and feelings of christians, it is presumed they will be allowed to hold an important place in connexion with other parts of the work. The inquiry concerning the opinions of Newton, I ocke, and Watts, might possibly have been spared, and yet it has a natural alli- ance with the succeeding letter on the morals of celebrated Knglish Unitarians. On the whole, it is hoped, that most readers will flnd it no difficult task to discover sufficient har- mony and directness in all the essential parti- culars brought under examination. It has been no part of the author's plan to investigate the tritth of opinions, nor has he approached this branch of inquiry any farther. Vi PREFACE. than was requisite for defining articles of faith explicitly and fairly. To accomplish this, it was sometisnes necessary, as in the case of the Trinity and Atonement, to compare different views, and bring forward some of the reasons by which they are severally supported. But the chain of argument is never meant to be directed to this end ; its ultimate bearing is ex- clusively on the tendency of existing opinions^ as they affect piety and morals. CONTENTS. PJlRT I. CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. LETTER I. Value and objects of Controversy in advancing Truth and Practical Religion. Advantages of religious controversy, or discussion, p. 1. Xhe Saviour, Apostles, and primitive Christians were controvertists, 3. Reformation established by controversy, 5. One class of Christians to whom religious in- quiry can be of no service, 8. Three general topics of religious controver- sy, 9. The first pertains to Church government, ib. The second to articles of faith, II. The third to the influence of opinions on practice, 15. To this latter branch ©f controversy the present work will be chiefly confi- ned, 17. LETTER IL Causes of Divisions and Discords among Christians. The christian religion less effectual on the character of its professors, than its purifying tendency warrants us to expect, 21. Causes of divisions among Christians in eaily times, 22. In later times, 23. Fondness of Christians to control the faith of their brethren, 25. Origin and early influence of creeds, ib. Produced discord, 26. Two grnnd axioms of the Refonnation, 29. Soon deserted by the early reformers, 30. False notion of the unity VIU CONTENTS. of faith, 31. Scriptural view of this unity, 32. False mode of interpreting the Scriptures adopted by the reformers, 33. Unhappy influence of creeds after the Reformation, 34. Heresy, 37. Just remarks of Hoadly, 38. Extent of a true christian faith, 39. Believing too little, 40. Spirit of in- tolerance, 41. Its baleful effects, 42. Influence of creed making on mi- nor concerns of religious societies, 44. Disorders and wickedness in the christian church have arisen from principles opposed to Uiiitarianisiii, 46. Evils of orthodoxy, 48. LETTER III. On Charges against the Character of Unitarians. Singular mode of attacking Unitarians, 50. Charges specified, 52, 53. Per- tain to moral character, 54. Dr Pries-tley's authority improperly quoted, 55. Ciiarges unfounded, 56. Rashly applied, 57. Unitarians as moral and pious as other sects, 59. Uuitarianism is embraced at the expense of many sacrifices, 60. The charge of immorality against Unitarianism ex- tends to some of the greatest and best men, whom the world has known, 61. Many names enumerated, and testimonies quoted, 62, 63, Watts and Whitby good men after they became Unitarians, 64. Folly of rash charges against christian brethren, 65. Better to turn them from their errors by per- suasion a nd kindness, ib. LETTER IV. Charges against the Opinions of Unitarians. Value of mutual discussion, 66. An attack on character, motives, and con- duct, likely to be repelled with warmth, 68. Sincerity of Unitarians, 69. Bioad difference between charges against character, and against opinions, 70. Immorality consists not in opinion, but acts, 71. Mischievous eftects of misplaced censures, ib. Unitarians desire only to read the Scriptures and worship God, as their consciences direct, 72. In this exercise no one has a right to interfere with them, 73. They have charged no sect with immo- rality, ib. Unitarians accused of denying the essential doctrines of the christian religion, 74. Topics to be discussed ;^"rt/, christian name and cha- rity ; secondlj/, trinity and atonement; thirdly, moral influence ol Calvinism; fourthly^ sentiments and morals of English Unitarians, 75, 76. CONTENTS. IS PART U. CHRISTIAN NAME AND CHARITY. LETTER I. import of the Christian JVame^ and the Evils of confining it to particular Sects. Names how far to be regarded, 77. Important when they affect the reputa- tion of those to whom they are applied, ib. The name Christian is dear to every professed believer in Christ, 78. First applied at Antioch, 79. Has two significations as pertaining to faith, and practice, ib. Injustice of denying this name to Unitarians, 80. Hartley's definition of the term Christian, 81. President Davies' remarks on the christian name, 82. No warrant in scripture for calling any of our brethren no Christians, who claim to be followers of Christ, 83. False estimate of the essence of Christianity, 84. Bishop Watson quoted, ib. Every sect may with equal justice deny the name of chiistian to all others, 85. Consequences of ex- ercising this liberty, 86. Hostile to peace and goodness, 87. Unitarians have been the ablest defenders of Christianity, 88. Lardner, Clarke, Priestley, Chandler, Lowman, Whiston, Foster, Clayton, Hoadly, Wake- field, and a host of others, have written in express defence of the christian religion, 90. American Unitarians, who have written in defence of Chris- tianity, 94. Excellent treatise of Socinus, 96. Absurdity of denying to these men the clwistian name, 97. Emlyn quoted, 98. Popish infallibility outdone, 99. Chillingworth, 100. Bold assumption magisterially to decide on the faith of another, ib. An encroachment on Christian liberty, 101. LETTER II. On Charity as explained in the Scriptures, and practised by the first Christians. Charity earnestly inculcated by the Saviour and Apostles, 101. Calvinistic notions of charity, 102. Inconsistent with other principles of Calvinism, CONTENTS. 103. Scriptural meaning of the word charity, 105. Three general signifi- catioiis, 106. In its common acceptation it relates to the thoughts, feelings, and actions of men in their mutual intercourse, 107. Essential difiference between charity and love, 109. This illustrated by examples from scripture, 110. Evil consequences of making charity and love the same. 111. Cha- rity has its origin in the imperfections of men, 112. Its pioper exercise is exclusively towards errors and ii.nocent defects, f6. It relates to opinions more than to actions, 114. Curious quotation from Dr. Brett, 11.5. Reli- gious persccirtions have arisen out of a want of charity to the opinions ol sincere christinns, 117. Our Saviour censured no man for what he thought or believed, 119. He condemned the Pharisees for their wicked conduct, and not for their erroneous opinions, 120. Exclusive notions of charity prevent free inquiry, 121. Texts explained, by which some christians think themselves justified in calling others heretics, 122. Whitby and Lr Clerc, 125. Unitarian views of charity, 128. P^RT 111. TRINITY AND ATONEMENT. LETTER I. Various Opinions concerning the Trinity. Trinity and Atonement considered doctrines of the first importance l)y their advocHles, 129. A faith in them is said to be essential to salvation, 130. Necessary to know what they are, 131. Trinity held in an infinite variety of forms, 132. Bishop Slillingfleet speaks of five general ones, 133. Ano- ther writter tells of forty, ib. Scholastic mysticism of Cheynel, 134. Siie;lock, Barrow, South, and Waterland, 135. Various opinions of seve- ral English divines on the trinity, 136. Modal and tripersonal trinities, 140. Mystical trinity, 141. Tripersonal trinity defined, 142. Strange language of Dr. South, lb. A mystery cannot be plainly taught in the Scriptures, 144. Modes of the divine existence, 145. As various as the attributes of God, 146. CONTENTS. XI LETTER II. Doctrine of a Trinity not taught in the Scriptures. Trinitarians discourse of the plainness with which their doctrine is taught in the Scriptures, 149. This is a modern notion ISO. The Jews never found the trinity in the Old Testament, 151. The people to whom our Saviour preached understood no such doctrine, 152. The Apostles preached it not, 154. Many of the early trinitarian Fnthers expres.«ly state, that the doc- trine was not found in the Scriptures, 155. They believed it was kept out of the Bible for wise jiurposes, 156. Bishop Horsley''s unavailing attempt to weaken their testimony, 158. Distinguished writers in the Cathi'lic church have declared the trinity not to be a doctrine of scripture, 159. The same has been proved by learned Arminians, 162. By Walts and other English divines, 164. Trinity entirely a doctrine of inference, 167. Has no authority, nor value, as an article of faith, 168. Jeremy Tayloi on art.icles of faith, 169. Origin of the trinity, 170. Rammohun Roy, 171. LETTER III. Moral Tendency of a Belief in the Trinity. This doctrine injurious to morals and piety in proportion as it gives us wrong notions of the Deity, 172. Its iniquity consists in its consequences, 173. De- stroys the simplicity, and divides the object of worship, 174. Unitarians woiship God as one being, Trinitarians as three, 176. Trinity deprives God of his glory by elevating the Son above the Father, 177. Makes the example of God without force, 173. Dangerous tendency of the doctrine of two natures, 180. Humility of Christ, 181. Dr. Channing ([uoted, 182* Trinity deprives the death of Christ of all force as an argument in favour of a future resurrection, 18."?. Renders this death unavailing as a motive to obedience and holiness, 184, LETTER IV. General Remarks on the Doctrine of Jitonement.^ with a brief out- line of the Opinions of Unitarian!- on this Subject. Object and importance of the doctane, 186. Chaigi' h amst Unitarinns con- cerning this doctrine, 187. Belief in it not esstnti.il to salvation, 188. Such a belief must be the same in all, but in the case of the atonynir^nt it is not, 189. Unitarians regard the death of Christ as in the highest degree important, 192. Unitarian vievvs of atonement, 193. Polish Socinians, ib. Unitarians at Geneva, 194, In England, Emlyn, Clarke, Taylor, Pixe, PrirstJry, 195. In the United States, D;-. Chamiini;, D.. Waic, Eva: neli- cal Lutheran chuiches, 197. Three general opinions on atonement, 199. XII CONTENTS. LETTER V. Trinitarian VieiDs of Atonement. Great differences among the orthodox, 200. Calvinistic doctrine, 201. Near- ly the same as that of the Universalists, 203. Hopkinsians, 205. Scheme of Mr. Worthington, that all moral and physical evil is removed by atone- ment, 206. Arminian scheme, 207. English Church, 208. Magee's views, tiie same as those of many Unitarians, 210. Witsius quoted, 212. Ortho- dox notions of atonement run into every imaginable form, ib. Recapitula- tion, 213. The whole reduced to two general classes, 216. LETTER VL On the popular Doctrine of Atonement.^ as affecting the Character of God. This doctrine defined, 218. The same as the doctrine of satisfaction, 21&. False principle on which it is founded in regard to divine justice, 220. God may forgive sin without satisfaction, and still be just, ih.^ Two kinds of justice, 221. Calvinistic atonement takes from God the power to forgive- 222. This scheme wholly at variance with the true nature of justice, ib. Gives false impressions concerning what is called the wrath of God, 223. Influence of tliese impressions on piety, 224. Imputed sin and righteousness, ib. Impossible in themselves, and inconsistent with the attributes of God, 225. Sufferings of Christ not in the nature of punishment, 226. Opinions of Dr. Clarke and Bishop Stillingfleet, 228. Satisfaction scheme leaves no room for the free grace and mercy of God, 229. These repeatedly incul- cated in the Scriptures, 231. Merits of Christ, 232. By the Calvinistic scheme no satisfaction is made to the second and third persons of the trini- ty, 233. Makes the Son a more adorable object than the Father, 234. Christ's love to the world, 235. Infinite sin, 236. Election and reproba- tion, 237. Tendency of the doctrine of satisfaction on piety and worship, 238. LETTER Vn. On the popular Doctrine of Atonement^ as affecting the practical Virtues. Influence of the doctrine on the social relations, 242. As it lends feeble aids to piety, it cannot exert much power on morality, 243. Renders unavail- ing the example of the Deity, 244. Case of mercy and forgiveness, 245. CONTENTS. Xlll Justice the same in God, as in man, 247. Personal responsibility, moral obligation, and the precepts and sanctions of the Scriptures not ac- cordant with atonement, 243. The doctrine resolves all moral duties into motives of expediency, 249. Leaves no value in the practical rules of the Gospel, 251. Proves the innocency of evil, 252. Edwards quoted, 253. Infinite sic, 254. Objections answered, 255. LETTER Vlir. On the practical Tendency of Unitarian Views of Atonements All Christians look for salvation through Christ, 261. They differ respecting the manner in which Christ is the author of salvation, ib. This has not been revealed, 262. If Unitarians err, their error cannot affect their moral character, 263. Three opinions of Unitarians respecting the influence of the death of Christ, 264. First, it is considered as a means by which par- don is procured, 7b. Secondly, reasons are annexed why these means are effectual, 265. Views of Emlyn, 266. Benson, 267. John Taylor, 268. Thirdly, the death of Christ is considered as operating on men alone, and not on God, 270. The divine love prompts to salvation, 271. God saves men freely when they repent, 272. Goodness of God in making known the terms of pardon, 273. Christ did not save men by his death alone, but by all his works, doctrines, and sufferings, 274, Tillotson quoted, 276. Uni- tarian views rigidly moral in their tendency, 277. Human merit, 278. Calvinism points out a way to salvation without morals, 279. %lt CONTENTS. PART ir. COMPARATIVE MORAL TENDENCY OF THE LEAD- ING DOCTRINES OF CALV INISM AND THE SENTI- MENTS OF UNITARIANS. LETTER I. Calvinisiic and Unitarian Fiews of the Depravity of Man. Five points of Calvinism, 281. Calvinists Christians because they believe in Christ, 2S5. Total dep.avity defined, 288. Its bad tendency, 289. Takes away motives of love to God, and leaves man to be ruled by his own pas- sions, ib. Depravity preached by Unitavianf, 290. ConsisteiH with nioial anion and accountableness, 291. Supposes repentance and holiness with- in the reach of the human powers, 292. LETTER II. Conversion, or Divine influence, as understood by Calvinists and Unitarians. False charge against Unitarians, 293. Conversion valuable only in its ef- fects, 294. Distinctions on this subject confounded, 296. Morality consists iti action, not in opinion, 297. Calvinistic notion of Conversion defined, 298. It comes frtim God without any condition in man, 300. Witsius, Junius, and Cloppenburg, 301. Means of regeneration as taught by Calvi- Distk, lb. If the doctrine be true, it must cairy with itself an unfailing tes- timony, 302. Some persons deceive themselves in this respect, 303. Cal- viniMic conversion a miracle, 304. Its bad moral tendency, 305. Men are piissive under its operation, 306. Groundwork of fanaticism, 307. Regeneration as taught by Unitarians, 309. James Foster and Hoadly quoted lb. Many things contribute to pioduce conversion, 310. Influence of the Holy Spirit, 311. How Unitinans differ from Calvinists on the sub- ten of conveibion, 312. Scriptural view, 313. CONTENTS. it LETTER III. Calvinistic Doctrine of Election., Particular Redemption, and Perseverance, as injiuencing I iety and JVJoruls. Divine decrees, 314. Decree of Election, 315. Calvin's explanation of the doctrine, ib. A leading tenet of Calvinism, 216. This scheme deprives God of his goodness, 317. Makes him the author of every sinful act, ib. Represents him as acting an insincere part with his creatures, 319. Takes away human accountability, ib. Unsettles the foundation of piety, 320, Is a bar to the social virtues, 321. Dissipates the fears of the sinner, .'522. Encourages spiritual presimiption, 323. Remarkable language of Calvin, 324. Propensity of Calvinists to pass over this doctrine, 325. Theological Seminaries at Andover and Princeton, 326. Particular Redemption, 327. Doctrine of Perseverance, 328. Its immoral influence, 329. Modified Doctrine of election, 330. LETTER IV. Testimony of History to the influence of Calvinism. Moral tendency ol the opinions of any sect to be ascertained by facts and comparison, 332. Character and conduct of Calvin, 334. Persecution of Servetus, 335. Influence of Calvinism in Holland, 336. In England, 337. Among the early inhabitants of New England, S38. Persecution of the Quakers and Baptists, ib. Belknap q oted, 339. How far the character of being austere and puritanical indicates the prevalence of pure religion, 340. LETTER V, Doctrines of Eternal Punishment and Annihilation. Objects and effects of piety as understood by Unitarians, 342. Enthusiasm and presumption, 342. Preaching against particular vices, 345. Polish Socinians believed in eternal punishment, 348. Faith of the Swiss, French, English, and American Unitarians on this subject, 349. The doctrine of universal salvation not more peculiar to Unitarianism than Trinitarianism 350. This doctrine advanced by Origen and many of the Fathers, 351 Believed and defended by many English trinitarian divint^s, 352. Tillotson, 353. Dr. Cliauncy, 354. Calvinism and universal salvation closely allied 355. Dr. Huntingdon's Calvinism Improved, 356. Mr. White's peculia: opinion, 357. Tendency of the doctrine as relates to the love of God, 358 To a sanction of the divine laws, 360. Moral action can be influenced on. ly by what can be realized, ib. Annihilation or destruction, of the wicked 362. Not a Unitarian doctrine, ib. Writers who have opposed it, 363 Moral tendency as great as that of the scheme of eternal misery, 364. XVI CONTENTS, PART r. SENTIMENTS AND MORALS OF CELEBRATED ENG^ LISH UNITARIANS. LETTER I. Theological Sentiments of JVewton, Locke, and Watts. Great names of no value in establishing religious truth, 366. Scriptures the only authority, ib. Newton and Locke always accounted Unitarians, 367. It remains for those, who doubt the fact, to prove the contrary, ib. New- ton's history of two corruptions of scripture, ib. his remarks on the bap- tismal form, 368. Could not have been made by a Trinitarian, ib. Hop- ton Haynes's testimony to the Unitarianism of Sir Isaac Newton, 370. Tes- timony of Whiston, 372. Other testimony, 373. E.Ttract from Wetstein, ib. Dr. Chalmers's confession in regard to the Unitarianism of Newton, 374. Locke's unitarian sentiments proved from his own writings, 376. One article of faith essential to salvation, 378. Extracts from Locke's works, 380. Stillingfleet, 381. Locke's interpretations of the Epistles on unita- rian principles, 332. Opinions of Watts, 333. Merivale's letter in proof of Watts's unitarianism, 385. Lardner's testimony, i6. Watts's Solemn Ad- dress to the Deity, 386. Proof of his Unitarianism from his writings, 389. His views of the word person, ib. Of the Holy Spirit, 39L Mr. Palmer's declaration, that Watts considered the Son inferiour to the Father, 392. Watts's letter to Dr. Colman in proof that he was not a Trinitarian, 393. Watts believed in the pre-existence of Christ's human soul, 394. Wished tfi alter his Psalms and hyrnns, 395. LETTER II. Morals of Celebrated Unitarians belonging to the English Church. Episcopal Unitarians distinguished for their excellence of character, 400. Diflfcrent modes of regarding the Articles, 401, Firsl, that they are articles of peace, and not of faith, 402. Chillingwortli, Sheldon, Laud, 403. Clay- ton, 40.'). .Scrnndlji, articles to he subscribed in the sense believed by the subhciilier to be consistent with scripture, 407. Dr. Clarke, ib. Thirdli/, ariicli'6 to be considered according to the sense of the framers, 409. Paley, ib. Hoadly, 411. Bluckburne, 412. -Articles may be conscientiously sub- scribed hy persons whose opinions on many points differ, 414. Submission to the Preebyter-an form the same as subscription, 415. The one involves no more immorality than tlie other, 416. Not easy to trace Calvinism, to the extent of its evil Icndincy, 417. AN INQUIRY COMPARATIVE MORAL TENDENCY OF TRINITARIAN AND UNITARIAN DOCTRINES. PART I. CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. LETTER I. Value and Objects of Controversy in advancing Truth and Practical Religion. SIR, JL HE advantages of controversy in promoting reli- gious truth, and practical goodness, have been va- riously estimated. Some persons have imagined, that the mischief is greater than the benefit, and that piety loses more than truth gains. It Avas a saying of Dr. Young, that " the dispute about religion, and the practice of it, seldom go together." In a limit- ed sense this may be true : but in no sense does it ] 2 CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. [part i, afford an aroument against the use of controversy, nor any proof of its inutility. The fault is not in the dispute, but in the manner of the dispute ; not in the nature or tendency of controversy, but in the temper of the persons concerned. No one needs be made worse by having his opi- nions opposed ; if they are false, the quicker they are confuted and abandoned the better. And how can tlieir truth be established, if never questioned ? Every man may add to his wickedness by suffering liis passions to gain the mastery over his reason ; but no one can be in the way of danger, who is induced to examine the foundation of his opinions, give up his errors, and thus cling more closely to truth, as every man will do, who makes a right use of con- troversy. If it appears, that controvertists themselves are less improved than they ought to be, by a mutual investigation of religious subjects; if, as in the time of Austin, lempestate contentionis, serenitas charitatis ubnuljilatur, in the tempest of contention they suffer the serenity of charity to be obscured ; if they too often substitute loud talk for plain facts, and vain declamation for sound argument; the public will ne- vonheloss derive an advantage. Nothliig is so much to be dreaded in religion, as ignorance and apathy. Faith will have no value, and the commands of God no power, where there is not intelligence to direct, and energy to execute. Credulity, superstition, l)igo(ry, prejudice, may grow up in the desert soil of a prescribed and unex- LET. T.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 3 plored faith ; they may flourish there in sickly kixu- riance, till they overshadow every generous virtue and pious sentiment. But if you would see the christian character in its excellence and strength, you must rouse every faculty, and bring into united action the best powers, principles, and affections of the hu- man mind. The best mode, if not the only mode, of creating a desire of knowledge, a fondness for studying the Scriptures, and a wakeful spirit of inquiry, is to en- gage in amicable discussions of such doctrines, as are differently understood, by persons equally zealous for the cause of pure religion, and earnest in the search of truth. Whoever Avill go back to the origin of Christianity, and follow its progress down to the present time, Avill do little else, than read a continued history of religious controversy. Much the largest part of our Saviour's teaching was employed in controverting the opinions of his adversaries. He argued with the Jews, exposed their false interpretations of the law, met their objections, and confuted their reasonings. The Apostles were controvertists ; they preached to convince the world of errors, to eradicate deep impressions, to pull down an old religion and set up a new one. They were assailed by Jews and Gen- tiles, the learned and the unlearned, the wise and the simple, the poAverful and the Aveak. They maintained themselves against all parties, and every where " contended earnestly for the faith which was once delivered to the saints." They combated the enormities of heathen idolatry ; they attacked 4 CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. [part i. the prejudices of the Jews, proved the nulHty of their burdensome ritual, and the fulfilment of their prophecies in the coming of the Messiah. Such were the labours of the Apostles, and they were all per- formed in the field of controversy. The same process was continued for three centu- ries afterwards. The christian scheme was attacked by many learned men, and defended by as many oth- ers. Preachers were still raising the banner of con- troversy, and by argument and persuasion making new converts. At length councils were convened, and the fiery spirits of a few ambitious men, kindled by the love of temporal power and worldly glory, did much to retard the progress and mar the purity of the christian doctrines. But these doings ought not to be dignified Avith the name of controversy. They were furious contests stirred up by motives of secular concernment, in which no one appears to have cared for truth or religion. Articles of faith were debated, or not debated, as the case might be, and then decided by a plurality of voices. Creeds were made by acclamation, and that was declared to be a sound doctrine, Avhlch comported with the selfish A lews of the ruling party. Religion suffered by these contentions, which were equally an outrage on good sense and correct principle, yet no doubt some good was done. A new impulse Avas given to inquiry, and the knoAvledge of Christianity Avas ex- tended. "^riir lime at length came Avhen controversy nearly rcaseil. And \\ hat was religion then? The liistory LET. 1.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 5 of a benighted world for ten centuries will tell ; the black records of the Inquisition will tell ; and so will the bloody traces of a spiritual tyranny, and wicked persecution. Piety was no more ; it had degenerated into a set of outward, slavish, unmeaning ceremonies. Truth was no more ; it was lost amidst the barbarous jargon of a false philosophy, and a more false theo logy. The Scriptures were virtually no more ; they were concealed from the public eye and forgotten. Religion was no more in its original brightness and purity; it was built on another foundation; it was literally a human invention, a fiction of popes, and councils, and priests. The world submitted to the imposition and was satisfied with the counterfeit. In- quiry was no more ; the powers of intellect were be- numbed, reason dethroned, and the moral sense de- praved. No energy was left for thought or action, no light to guide, no principles to ennoble, no spirit to animate. You look back on a melancholy scene of ignorance, stupidity, oppression, servitude, dark- ness, and death.* The Reformation broke the spell, and then con- troversy revived. The early Reformers, with the * There was logomachy enough, it is true, in the darkest periods of the church, but it was a battle of words fought about shadows. The long war between the Dominicans and Franciscans concerning the merits of their tutelar doctors, Thomas and Scotus, was of tliis sort. They contended warmly and bit- terly in the region of dreams and fiction, but they rarely came down to the hum- ble sphere of common sense and rational discussion. Years were spent and volumes writen on the nature of the divine co-operation with the will of man, and on the unity of form in man. Nay, the subtle dispute about universal ideas, or the solution of the famous question, ivhether universal ideas belonged to the class of objects^ or of mere names, bewildered the most erudite doctors, 6 CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. [part i. vehement Luther and the mild Melancthon at their head, contended, like the Apostles of old, for a better faith. They waged war against error, and with tile strong forces of reason and argument, a righteous zeal and firm purpose, they were victo- rious. It was a time of storms, but the threatening elements were calmed, and a bright day succeeded. The beams of a more glorious sun shone on the world, and warmed into life, and quickened into ac- tion, the springs of intellect, the religious principle, the consciousness of moral power and moral accoun- tability. Tile Scriptures were rescued from their long imprisonment. Christians began to think, in- quire, examine, discuss. These were great acquisi- tions to the christian cause, and they were gained by force ; they were the fruits of controversy, the re- wards of an independent assertion, and manly de- fence of right and liberty. From the beo^innintj of the Reformation to the present day, controversy has prevailed among pro- testants ; sometimes with too much violence, and to a very unjustifiable extreme, it must be allowed, but never without profit. It is the chief corner stone of every sect in Christendom. Luther and Calvin were controvertists ; and so were the Dutch divines and early French protestants; so were Latimer and Cranmer ; so were Wickliffe and Knox ; Robert Bar- and kept up perpetual hostilities between the Nominalists and Realists for oenturins. It would be a perversion of language to call these contentions reli- gious controversy, from which christians could be expected to derive know- ledge or wisdom. LET. 1.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 7 clay and John Wesley ; and so Is every man, who has a mind of his own. While the liberty of thought and speech remains, while christians are mortal and fallible, controversy will never cease, and it would be an injury to religion if it should. If there be any chance of truth in this world of uncertainty, it must be from the collision of opinion. Accidental harmo- ny of thought, and sentiment, and motive, and de- sign, among any number of men, is not to be expect- ed ; it is not consistent with the laws of human na- ture. It is only by comparison and discussion, that we can hope to approximate a uniformity of opinion, especially on subjects in themselves obscure and in- tricate.* Every individual has separate interests and views. The social principle unites some ; similarity of ha- bits, and affinity of religious belief, unite others. But when the best is done, there will and must be divi- sions. These are apt to provoke the passions ; they are unfriendly to charity ; they sometimes trouble the fountains and obstruct the channels of kind feel- ing and forbearance. Such are the evils of sects and parties in religion, and deplorable indeed would they be, if the good did not, after all, greatly pre- * The benefits of controversy are well expressed in the following words of Dr. Lardner. " Its effects will be," he observes, " that we shall all better un- derstand our Bible. Possibly some errors may be mixed with our faith, which, by this means, may be separated, and our faith become more pure. Being more confirmed in the truth of our religion, we shall be more perfect in the du- ties of it. Instead of being unthinking and nominal, we shall become more generally serious and real christians." Such cannot fail to be the good effects •if religious controversy, when properly conducted. 8 CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. [part i. ponderate. The differences of party are them- selves productive of good ; more opportunities are offered for practising the christian virtues, trying the character, and proving our sincerity, than we could possibly have, if all were of one mind and one pur- pose. Each party is compelled, by the watchfulness of others, to be more cautious in belief, and circum- spect in practice ; more inquisitive after knowledge, and zealous in good works. There is one class of christians only to whom con- troversy, or religious enquiry and discussion, can be of no service. Those persons who have bound themselves to a written system of faith, in the shape of a creed or confession, which they are resolved never to forsake, or which they engage by a solemn covenant always to support, as in the case of many clergymen, church members, and professors in theo- logical institutions ; such persons cannot possibly ex- pect or hope to gain any thing by examining their opinions, and comparing them with those of others, and with the standard of the Scriptures. To change a single sentiment would be a violation of their cove- nant, and a crime. What conscientious man will al- low the suspicion to enter his mind, that any thing can bn wrong in a faith, wliicli, m tlio most solemn manner, he has pledged his veracity and conscience to cherish and support? He may defend his adopt- ed creed, and rally round the system to which he is chained, with all the aids in his power, but he can- not go a step further. He cannot open his mind to a new truth, nor suffer himself to concede, that an LET. I.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 9 opponenl's argument can have any weight, or his opinions any claim to respect. This would be to distrust the grounds of his own faith, and to betray the guilt of doubting, where lie has made a sacred engagement never to doubt. What advantage can a person, thus cramped and bound, derive from an examination of religious subjects ? The pubhc may be benefited by knowing his sentiments, and his mode of explainirsg and defending them ; but, as for himself, his journey will be a circle ; he Avill end Avhere he began. . The subjects of rehgious controversy may be ar- ranged under three general topics ; first, the nature of a christian church and the modes of worship ; secondly^ the truth of doctrines as articles of faith ; thirdly, the influence of belief on practice. A few remarks on these respectively, will show us how the charges against Unitarians stand in regard to each, and prepare us for our future inquiries. The first of these topics embraces all inquiries, which pertain to the foundation, characteristics, his- tory, government, and discipline of the church ; to the authority of the church, or any number of men calling themselves the church, in matters of faith; to modes of worship ; to external forms and ceremo- nies. In Protestant countries, this branch of contro- versy seems nearly to be exhausted. It was long ago settled in theory by Chillingworth, and Barrow, and Tillotson ; and the spirit of modern times is bringing the theory into practice. If there are yet some contenders for tradition, some who think the 10 CHARGES AOAINST UNITARIANS. [part r. Protestant cause is not sufficiently supported by the Bible, but needs the props of fathers and councils, their number is small, and their share in the sympa- thy of the christian public at large proportionably feeble. It is a fundamental principle of Protestant- ism, that christians may think and decide for them- selves, and it is now generally agreed, that they may dilFer on most of the particulars, which fall under this head of controversy, Avithout forfeiting their title to a good character, or christian privileges. Which system of church government, or plan of discipline, or mode of worship, is the best, may never be de- termined to the satisfaction of all parties ; nor is it necessary, while it is agreed, that every system and mode, approved and followed by serious christians, is consistent with a pure religion and holiness of con- duct. To this first part of controversy, the charges against Unitarians have seldom extended in any distinct or exclusive form. Their views are much the same as those of many christians of other denominations. They maintain the unlimited freedom of thought and judgment to be a hrst principle, not only of religion, but of human nature. They believe in the truth and divinity of the christian religion from the same testi- mony as others, and among their numbers may be reckoned several of the ablest defenders of Chris- tianity against the scruples of doubt, and the cavils of inlidelity. And In regard to the nature of a church, the (luaHficatlons and authority of ministers, forms of worship, and other things of this description, they do j.ET. I.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 11 not discover, that Christ has left any positive com- mands, or that he has established any one system as preferable to all others, and necessary to be adoj)ted by his true followers, as essential to salvation. The religion of Jesus Avas intended to be universal ; and. in regard to its forms, there seems to be a wise adaptation to the conditions and circumstances of men in the world, to their customs, manners, organi- zation of society, and their political and civil institu- tions. Unitarians hold, that it should be the chief endeavour to be sincere and faithful worshippers, af- ter such a manner as every individual shall in his conscience believe agreeable to the word and spirit of the Gospel. Any number of christians may unite in adopting such forms as they please, and their of- fering will be accepted, while they seriously strive to Avorship God in the purity of holiness, and to walk in the footsteps of Christ. The second topic of religious controversy includes what are usually called articles of faith. It looks not so much to demonstrable facts, as to reasonings from facts, and is less concerned in telling men what to do, than Avhat to think. The theatre of controversy, to which this topic opens, is boundless. It has been traversed in every direction, but has never been compassed, and never will be, while the powers of mind are so various, and the force of evidence is so unequally felt ; while the imagination is so fertile, and the lights and shadows of truth and error are so inti- mately blended in the objects of human thought and inquiry. 12 CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. [part i. It can never be expected, that all men will have the same conceptions of the abstruse points of reli- gion, anj more than of other things less difficult, of philosophy, science, arts, principles of taste, the cau- ses of natural phenomena, and the designs of provi- dence. Controversy has not been useless on the doctrinal parts of religion, although it has brought to hght much less sound knowledge, than the friends of a practical faith could desire. Fancy has set no bounds to her excursions, but she has often delighted more in the desert wastes of ideal speculation, than in the fertile and productive regions of reality and plain sense. The technics of a school divinity, and the subtleties of an artificial logic, contrivances well devised for making darkness more dark, and dulness more dull, have too often spread mysteries around truth, and conducted the inquirer into a maze from which no human sagacity could extricate him, and where no refuge was left but to submit to his fate. It is happy, that these pompous trifles are nearly abandoned. Their influence remains, but it is fast disappearing. Reason is assuming its just controul, common sense is throwing olF the fetters of delu- sion, and human nature itself is restless under the thraldom, wliich ignorance, and fanaticism, and folly have imposed on it. Tiieology and the sciences, a knowledge of God and of his works, have gone hand in hand ; one has smoothed the way for the other, and the progress of each is a test of the gaining power of intellect over sense, reality over fiction, freedom over servitude, and piety over a visionary enthusiasm. i-ET. I.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 13 The seventeen ponderous volumes of the seraphic doctor, Aquinas, with his learned reveries and mysti- cal refinements, and the twelve folios of his great an- tagonist, Duns Scotus, now rest undisturbed by the side of the scarcely less weighty lumber of LuUy and Paracelsus, filled with grave dissertations on the philosopher's stone, elixirs of life, horcscopes, and planetary correspondences. They are now equally forgotten, or remembered only as proofs of the de- graded condition of the human mind in the times of which they were considered the ornament and the boast. Credulity Avas the spring of a barbarous philosophy in science, and of an irrational faith in religion. Con- troversy revived a wakeful distrust ; inquiry and truth followed. Articles were examined; imposture was detected ; the Scriptures were honoured and brought into use ; the understanding was consulted ; a process was commenced, which has continued for three hundred years, and is still going on with in- creased eifect. Much rubbish has been removed ; much more remains; long creeds have been shorten- ed ; they are daily becoming shorter, and it is no vain hope, perhaps, that they may at some future period, be made to approximate the measure and stature of the Scriptures. Free and friendly discussion will hasten the time. Even then christians will have dif- ferent opinions. So let it be ; there is no help for it, nor evil in it. Let them still discuss, and be friends and brethren ; let them rejoice, that something is left to employ their powers, try their faith, exercise 14 CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. [part i. their charity, and give an ample scope to their best virtues. As Unitarians differ from those, Avho call them- selves orthodox, chiefly in points of doctrine, they have been compelled to engage much in this depart- ment of controversy. Charges of heresy, unbelief, denying the Saviour, and perverting the Scriptures, have been poured out upon them with a confidence and self-sufficiency, that bear few marks of the hu- mility inculcated in the Gospel. They have defend- ed themselves, as God has given them strength, against the prejudices of sectarism, the asperity of intolerance, the pretensions of the self-righteous, the subtleties of the ingenious, the arguments of the candid, and the sober objections of the sincere and well informed. They have claimed the privilege of obeying conscience, and of relying on the Scriptures for the truth of their opinions. Yet the same char- ges continue to be reiterated. When the arguments of Unitarians cannot be confuted, the next step is to question their motives; when such opinions as they ojienly profess are found impregnable, it is charita- bly insinuated, that others are concealed, which they dare not publish ; when reason proves a feeble or treacherous ally, it is thought honourable to employ the pioneers of censure and reproach. Argument goes out supported by recrimination, and where one fails to produce conviction, the other may succeed to rivet a prejudice. But these are abuses of contro- versy, which must gradually disappear. The spirit of tiio times will not lojjg tolerate them ; liberty and RET. I.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 15 reason will be heard, justice and truth will be re- spected. The third general topic of religious controversy which relates to the influence of opinion on practice, or the efficacy of belief on the conduct of christians, has been much less tried than either of the two pre- ceding. It has never been pursued with much method, nor to any great extent. Luther and the first Reformers brought it into the afiair of indul- gencies, works of supererogation, and perhaps some two or three other articles of the Catholic faith. But it has not been so usual to combat error with its tendency and consequences, as with the weapons af- forded by first principles and established facts. The doctrines of election, and reprobation, of total depra- vity and imputed righteousness, have been some- times examined in regard to their moral tendency by the Arminians, and others opposed to the Calvinistic dogmas ; yet the endless controversies about these doctrines have been concerned almost wholly with their foundation and reality. It was not till less than thirty years ago, that a formal attack was made on any sect of christians, as entertaining an entire system of belief unfriendly to morals, and destructive of piety. Mr. Andrew Ful- ler was the first, it is believed, who thought it his duty to descend to this ungracious task, in his indis- criminate assault on Unitarians. His book was not without ability, nor more remarkable for the author's talent at popular declamation, than for his limited acquaintance with the grounds of the Unita- rian belief, and his unguarded assertions ; for his as- 16 CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS, [part l. sumption of facts, Avhich never existed, and his de- duction of consequences, which never could follow. Tlie argumentative part of tins work, which, in- deed, was a very small part of the whole, was con- futed in two short treatises, one by Di: Toulrain, and the other by Mr. Kentish. To the declamation, rhapsody, and rashness, no reply was made, as none was necessary. The subject has been more recently touched in an eloquent sermon by Mr. Fox, but with- out any direct bearing on the controversy at large. In this country you are the first person, it is pre- sumed, who has imitated the example of Mr. Fuller. You have taken up the subject on the same grounds, and pursued it in nearly the same track. Starting with similar positions, you make similar inferences, in both of which I think you are under mistake. I believe you err in supposing Unitarianism to be the fountain of all evil, and Calvinism of all good. My reasons will appear in the sequel. By maintaining, that Unitarians are not christians, that their religious faith is false, and that it sanctions and encourages a wicked life, you have done as much as could be done to compel them to speak in their defence. He would be strangely indifferent to the value of his own character, as well as of his re- ligion, who should be reluctant to defend himself against such charges. The controversy, it is true, carries with it somewhat of an invidious aspect. It- is no |)l(asant duty to search out the weaknesses of our brethren, nor to show how inq)crfectly their j)ro- fessions agree with their j)raclice ; and much less to T,ET. I.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 17 look around and select a few persons, whom, with ourselves, we pronounce to be more holy than oth- ers. To prove, that any system of faith has a bad ten- dency is much the same as proving, that he who re- ceives it is bad in consequence of his faith. And who would delight in such a work ? We may hence learn, that, in this discussion, principles should be kept as distinct as possible from men, and that whatever may be proved to be the tendency of any doctrine, its actual effects should not be estimated except in connexion Avith other doctrines, and the peculiar circumstances of every person, Avho is judg- ed by his opinions. My chief purpose will be to make it manifest, that the faith and morals of Unitarians are not wor- thy of the odium, which your charges were calculat- ed, and, as far as appears, designed to cast on them. The best m^anner of prosecuting this purpose un- doubtedly is, to compare these with the faith and morals of Calvinists, or of other christians, at the same time that we apply the strength of argument to abstract principles. The subject naturally ap- peals to such a comparison, as the question is not, which party is perfect, but which is the most defec- tive in consequence of its faith, and whether any one is to be pointed at, and denounced, and condemned, by all the rest. An investigation of this sort, conducted Avith a proper spirit, cannot fail to terminate in benejficial results. How far (he followino; treatise will bear 1*8 CHARGES AGAINST UMITARIANS. [part r. tills character, must be left for those to decide, who are willing to read with candour, and judg^e by the christian rules of forbearance and charity. It is hoped, that nothing will be found Inconsistent with a due respect for the serious opinions of every chris- tian, nor with the liberty and independence with wl.ich every one ought to assert and defend his own sentiinenis. But on this point it would not be safe to promise much. All expei-ience has proved, that theological zeal is not contented with the sober standard of wisdom and moderation. It sometimes burns with a scorching flame, rather than with a mild light and gentle warmth. To say, that this /eal shall always be subdued to a just tempera- ment, would be presumptuous in one, who makes no pretensions to infallibility, nor claims any exemp tion from the infirmities of human nature. In exe- cuting the task before us, no other qualifications are held out, and no other exertions pledged, than such as flow from a love of truth, sincere motives, good intentions, and a warm Interest in the subject. I may at last fall to convince you, that your char- ges are Incorrect and misapplied ; I may not succeed in making It clear to your understanding, that they, who huild their highest hopes on the Gospel, and the divine character of Christ, are christians, and are to !jc treated as christians; but, should I be thus uu'^uccessful, I shall not think my labour unprofita- bly bestowed in defendirig what I deem to be the tintli nf the Gospel, in rescuing my religious belief from ungeneroiis lm[)utatlons, in doing justice to the LET. I.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 19 character of many good men, and in pleading the cause of rational piety, religious liberty, toleration, and charity. The course which the nature of the subject re- quires me to pursue, comes wholly within the third division of controversy. The truth of opinions will be no farther brought into notice, than is necessary to state them fairly. Nevertheless, the ultimate ob- ject of all honest inquiry is truth. This is an eter- nal and unchangeable reality, essentially good in itself, and salutary in its influence. When we ar- rive at truth, we are at the end of our journey ; and if all the doctrines of faith, and positions in morals, could be demonstrated to be absolutely true, it Avould be an idle waste of time to look after their consequences. But since we know, that such a de- monstration is not always possible, and that a chain of proofs, which carries conviction to one mind, fre- quently communicates no impressions to another, it is allowable to try different methods of investigation, and to turn our inquiries into any channels, which will conduct us to the main object. As a general rule, it is much easier to judge be- tween good and evil, than truth and error. We can with more confidence say, that a man's conduct is bad, than that his faith is false ; and hence we can- not always affirm, that his creed is true or false in proportion to his good or evil deeds. Many faith- ful christians, no doubt, have occasion to lament nu- merous defects of duty, which they would be unwil- ling to have charged to their unbelief. It cannot be 20 CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. [part x. denied, however, that there is a close connexion be- . tween faith and practice. A man will act according to his convictions, and an irreligious practice can never be the consequence of a right faith. So far as such a practice depends on faith at all, it will be a faith in error, for truth is the parent of good. The conclusion is obvious, that we can refer no man's conduct, either good or bad, to his faith, unless we can prove such a connexion between them, that one will necessarily proceed, or does actually proceed, from the other ; and, moreover, that no one's creed is to be set down as false, merely because he does not act as he professes to believe. By analogy, rea- son, argument, deduction, and other methods, Ave may show the evil tendency of an opinion, and its natural consequences ; but when we come to con- duct and character, we must be guided by definite principles, speak from facts, and judge with charity. iET. II.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 21 LETTER II. Causes of Divisions and Discords among Christians. SIR, It is a common and just remark, that the rehgion of the Gospel acts with less power on the hearts and lives of its professors, than its divine nature and pu- rifying tendency warrant us to expect. This truth is not more the exultation of the unbeliever, than the humiliating confession of the sincere disciple of Jesus. What all acknowledge, the faithful cannot but lament, that the authority of religion is compara- tively so little respected, and its influence so feebly felt, even among christians, who believe themselves sound in doctrine, and exemplary in practice. Some, it mav be, are better than their principles; many, it is certain, are worse ; and none are so good as not to discover many sad deficiencies, when they com- pare their own character with the example and re- quisitions of Christ. Many causes, no doubt, which are common to all christians, conspire to bring about this imperfect dis- charge of religious duty. They may often grow out of circumstances peculiar to individuals, out of a course of unexpected events, local connexions, tem- porary hopes and fears, natural disposition, tempera- ment, habit. There is, however, one source, deep 22 CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. [part i. and broad, in which all the others are swallowed up. It is the spirit of division and discord, which has reigned with so absolute a controu! in the hearts of christians during all periods of the church. To this single cause you may refer much the largest portion of evils, which have afflicted the christian world. Tliat these ill consequences should have followed the lirst attempts to promulgate the Gospel, is not surj^rizlng. The doctrines preached by the Apostles were at that time in the highest degree heterodqx in the eyes of all mankind ; they opposed establish- ed opinions and habits; they aimed a destroying blow at religions and superstitions, which had not only become venerable by their antiquity, but chevr ished till they were believed to be true and sacre^. Prejudice was arrayed against them ; the interests of men cried out that they were an innovation, and must be resisted ; the wisdom of the world proclaim- ed them a novelty, better calculated to delude than instruct the people ; human policy proscribed them as dangerous intruders on ancient forms, which ought to be censured by the friends of order, and suppres- sed by the arm of power. In this state of things, it could not be supposed, that the religion of Jesus would make its way without many struggles against opposition, or that men would quietly suffer princi- ples to gairi ground, in which they saw the ruin of their temporal interests and inilucnce. It is easy to connect with these causes, the violence aijd malignity, the persecutions and cruelties, which the fu'st chris- tians experienced from every quarter. LET, n.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 23 When we come down a few centuries lower, and beh jld the rehgion of the Gospel seated on the thrones of emperors and kings, and uttering the voice of authority and power, we have a right to be prepared for better things. From a rehgion, the first principles of which inculcate peace, and good will, and charity, we are fully authorized to look for harmony, humanity, and kindness. Was this ac- tually the result ? Far from it. Scenes of strife and contention were acted over among christians themselves, darker and more dreadful, if possible, than any to which the ignorance and ferociousness of heathenism had given countenance. " It is a ques- tion," says Hoadly, " whether more unkindness and inhumanity, more malice and hatred, more vio- lence and barbarity, have been shown by heathens and infidels towards christians for the sake of their religion, than have been shown by christians towards one another on the score of some religious diiferen- ces."* The annals of religious persecution are the records of human misery. How many have been deprived of their rights, their freedom, and posses- sions ; how many have sunk under the bloody rod of tyranny, been torn from tiieir friends, and banished from their native country; how many have been buried in dungeons, condemned as criminals, tortur- ed, and burnt, merely because they could not force their conscience and understanding to receive the notions, which chanced to run through the minds of their deluded and inhuman persecutors. Hoadly's Works, vol. I. p. 35. 24 CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. [part r; Let us take one step more, and descend to our own times. We have no persecutions now with blood, and sword, and fire ; no racks, nor dungeons, nor gibbets; but we have divisions enough ; we have heart burnings, and evil speaking, tumults, dissen- sions, animosities, violence ; we have a plentiful vo- cabulary of hard names, choicely selected and libe- rally applied to kindle the passions, provoke ill na- ture, raise high the voice of contention, and make broad the line of separation between christian brethren ; we have abundance of the spirit of party, the pride of self-consequence, appellations of re- proach, denunciations, anathemas, charges of heresy, and consigning to perdition. In short, christians have the same heats of zeal, the same uncharitableness, the same propensity to undervalue the merits and misconstrue the intentions of others, the same over-weening confidence in their own opinions, and horror at the opinions of those dif- fering from them, the same exclusive temper, and the same disposition to confine the limits of salvation to the circle of their own walks, as they had twelve centuries ago. The gradual increase of intelligence, and of respect for human rights and liberty, has mo- dified the action of these causes, and made their ef- fects more mild ; yet the seeds of discord still take root, and produce a vigorous growth. Divisions, on grounds merely of opinion and speculation, are at this (lav formidable obstacles to the peace and charity, harmony and mutual forbearance, which the Gospel in its true spirit both rorpiires. and is eminently quali- lied to ectaltlish. LET. ir.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 2D Now if we choose to search for the origin of these perversions, it will be clearly discovered in the fond- ness^ which a great majority of christians have mani- fested, for taking on themselves the guardianship of other people's consciences and faith. Thej have shown an extreme solicitude to make all persons think and believe like themselves, and, to bring this to pass, have deemed it a pious and charitable act to set at nought the rights of conscience, to silence rea- son, and demand implicit submission. Hence Chris- tendom has been deluged with creeds, and con- fessions, and symbols, and articles, till the plain believer, who supposed the words of Jesus Christ and the A})ostles to be the only true symbols of a christian's faith, has been confounded amidst such a labyrinth of contradictions. But the amaze- ment and confusion of believers have been among the least mischiefs of these strange devices. Tyrants and the abettors of faction, as well ecclesiastical as political, have found them potent engines in cramp- ing the human mind, and pressing it into the vilest compliances. Once rivet the fetters of superstition, and hangout the signal of sanctity, and there Avill be no want of numbers to rally round the standard, and engage with enthusiasm in any cause, which it may be the good pleasure of their leaders to pursue. That such were the motives, which first suggested this unholy artifice of creed-making, is too notorious to require a comment. Was not the Nicene creed itself framed amidst the fiercest heats of feuds and faction ? And when you read the history of the 4 26 CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. [part i. church during the two or three succeeding centuries, tliose fruitful eras of human symbols, does the thought ever strike you, that the prominent actors had the honour of religion at heart, or once dreamt of setting up the laws of Gospel charity, peace, humi- lity, and piety ? No, you behold a scene of scanda- lous warfare, and creeds marshalled against creeds, not to enforce the truth or practice of religion, but to express personal antipathy, to cast reproach on a minority, or to anathematize an enemy. The good Fathers at the council of Ephesus even " pronounced an anathema on all those, that should add any thing to the creed of Constantinople," hereby commencing a quarrel, not only with such as then difFored from them, but with all that ever should differ.^ Creeds were the watch-words of party ; they were fire- brands thrown among the multitude to keep alive the flame of passion and madness. They aiforded inexhaustible materials for strife and discord, and those materials were not used with a sparing or un- skilful hand by the persons, who had collected them and knew their value. To this single practice, so early commenced, of assuming power over the faith and opinions of men, and of attempting to controul them in things in which it was impossible that they should be controlled, you may refer, with a precision almost demonstra- tive, the unhappy divisions among christians before the Reformation. It was not in the power of prin- ces, popes, bishops, nor councils, to chain the thoughts. They might threaten, oppress, banish, i,ET. II.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 27 murder, as they did ; but, they could do no more. Volumes of creeds, and anathemas Avithout number, would not induce a man to believe what every prin- ciple in his nature revolted at. Using force would rouse his indignation, and make him burn with ha- tred and revenge ; or, perhaps, it might drive him to be a hypocrite and deceiver. In either case he would be more wicked for his adopted creed. Take away restraint, command every one to think for himself, assure him of his freedom and personal responsibility, tell him to be guided by the Gospel, and his faith will then be sincere, he will believe and act like a christian. These remarks prepare us for entering on the main subject of the present letter, Avliich is to inquire into the occasion of religious diiferences among Pro- testants, and to ascertain the comparative agency, which orthodoxy and Unitarian sentiments have had in causing these differences, and in promoting the re- ligious antipathy and dissensions, which have prevail- ed even from the time of Luther, and which are greatly to be lamented at the present day. The merits of the general inquiry on which we have en- tered hang with no inconsiderable weight on this pointy Certain causes have had very extensive ef- fects. To which system are these to be ascribed? Some of the leading principles, on which christian communities have been organized, and churches in- stituted, and discipline established, have tended to produce divisions, to create aversions, to clothe some men with a factitious authority, and to oppress and 28 CHARGES^ AGAINST UNITARIANS. [part r irrltate others. The party, which has embraced these principles, and put them in practice, is ac- countable for the consequences. By principles here, I do not mean any peculiar doctrines of religious faith, but the grounds assumed, and the steps taken, to promulgate these doctrines. In this respect, have the sentiments of Unitarians, or of the ortho- dox, been productive of the greatest degree of evil ? A few brief hints on the course pursued by the first Reformers and their immediate followers, or the motives by which they were influenced, and the objects at which they aimed, will place this sub- ject in its proper light, and prove, if I mistake not, that the divisions and party violence, occasioned by dilierences of opinion, owe their origin to ihe very same causes since, as before the Reformation. They will he found to have oriu^inated in building up systems of faith distinct from, the Bible, and claiming authori- ty to establish them as standards of sound doctrine, and tests (f orthodoxy. This was a foible with which the world seems to have been so much in love, that christians could not prevail on themselves to part with it, even while rebelling against its power, and deprecating its baleful tendency. In yielding to this weakness, they violated the fundamental principles of the Reformation, and created the elements of fu- ture disorder; and just in proportion as they ran to this extreme, they were opposed to the principles of Unitarlanism. This will appear as we proceed. The ll(! format ion was started on the foundation of truth antl reason. Two grand axioms were laid LET. II.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 29 down, as a basis on which the entire superstructure was to be erected, namely, the right of private judg- ment In all the concerns of religion, and the sirfficiency of the Scriptures in qualifying believers for the at- tainment of salvation. It was justly asserted, that the rights of human nature give every man liberty, nay, require it of him as a duty, to use his best pow- ers freely and Independently In determining the man- ner in which he is to serve his Maker. And, again, it was maintained with equal cogency, that the Scrip- tures, which contain a revelation fromGcd expressly designed for the moral Improvement and final salva- tion of men, must in themselves be adequate to every purpose of instruction, concerning the principles of faith and the rules of action. These axioms form the ground- work of a true scriptural theology. Let them be rigidly observed, and it will be impossible to fasten dangerous and entailed error on the mind, or to foment the elements of discord, or to multiply the tokens of perpetual altercation. Quarrels, and persecutions, and resent- ments, merely on account of differences in religious opinions, will cease, when you take away the char- ters for the defence of which the armour of sacred warfare is put on. Send all men to the Bible as the only charter of their faith, and you will place them on common ground, and bring them into a bond of union. They will not see every part of the Scrip- tures alike, but this variety of mental vision will be no obstruction to harmony, since It is allowed by the lirst laws of union, that every one shall judge of the 30 CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. [fart i. Scriptures according to the light and knowledge, which he possesses. It is the spirit of these axioms to permit Christians to differ in opinion, and yet bind them together as brethren. Had the first Reformers been faithful to the prin- ciples, which they embraced at the outset with so much wisdom and intrepidity, the history of the Protestant church would wear an aspect very differ- ent from the one, which it now exhibits. But the trial was too much for their experience, if not for their firmness. They stumbled almost at the first step, and never recovered themselves afterwards. It was a notion of the Catholics, that a perfect una- nimity of faith was absolutely necessary to constitute a true church ; and an objection, which they urged with great warmth against the Protestants, was, that the liberty assumed by them would open a door to an infinite variety of opinions, and terminate in a dismemberment of the church, and the overthrow of Christianity itself. Alarmed at these threatened consequences, and anxious to fortify themselves against the attacks of their opponents on this point, they gradually deserted their position, and became themselves deluded with the dream of a uniformity of faith. They were next driven to the severe task of devising some mode of establishing this uniformity, without destroying the fundamental axiom, which proclaimed it to be the duty of every Christian to think and judge for him- self. This project was not more absurd, than im- LET. n.] CHARGES AGAINST UiMTARIANS, 31 possible, and the attempt to put it in execution could only end in oppression, folly, and mischief. The evil originated in false views of the thing call- ed unity of faith. It was imagined to consist in a perfect uniformity of opinion^ and the first effort was to make all persons yield assent to the same inter- pretation of the Scriptures. Luther, and his follow- ers, maintained, that the Scriptures were the only rule of faith. This was consistent with the first principles of the Reformation. But they further contended, that there could be no true church with- out a perfect coincidence of opinion. This proposi- tion was directly opposed to the other. To make the two hang together, it was discovered that the Scriptures had but one sense, and it was of course afiirmed, that no one could be a true believer, who did not interpret them according to this sense. It soon came to pass, indeed, that they, who studied the Scriptures and believed them as their understanding and conscience required, were set down as heretics and ungodly men, not to be countenanced nor tolerat- ed by the faithful. Now, that there is such a thing as a unity of faith in the true christian church, no one, whether protes- tant or Catholic, can possibly doubt. But what is it ? Not a unity of belief in human interpretations of Scripture, in articles constructed by wise men, or imposed by designing ones, or sanctioned by councils and convocations. What better would the world be. what would morality and religion gain, if all men should unite in believing the contradictions of the 32 CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. [I'ART i. Athanaslan creed? How would it increase their piety or goodness to profess a unanimous belief, that the '^ Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Ghost is God, and yet there are not three Gods, but one God?" Or how would it add to their benevo- lence, humanity, and kind feelings to harmonize in the assent and declaration, that •' whosoever does not keep this faith, whole and undefiled, without doubt he shall perish everlastingly ?" Or how would it help them along in the work of holy living to unite in the faith, that they are " utterly indispos- ed, disabled, and made opposite to all good, and wholly inclined to all evil," as the Confession of Faith assures us? Would men be more wise, virtu- ous, or holy by a unity in such dogmas as these ? No. The same question may be asked, and the same an- swer returned, respecting a thousand other articles of human invention, scarcely less contradictory, or immoral in their tendency. But there is a unity, which the Gospel commands, •' a unity of the spirit in the bond of peace." Let this be established in the hearts of christians, and they will have no difficulty in coming together in the true scriptural unity of faith. Believe and practice what every one perceives to be plain, and believe it in the words, and practice it in the spirit, of the Gos- pel. There will then be a natural unity of faith in all the doctrines, which conspnc to form the chris- tian character ; for these are truths of practical im- port, and appear in essentially the same light to eve- ry honest mind. Every attempt beyond this will LET. n.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 33 only drive men asunder, and destroy the unity, which the Scriptures, left to themselves, are calculated to produce ; a unity of pious and virtuous action, of sympathy, benevolence, and affection, of love, chari- ty, hope, and righteous intention. Nothing can be more mischievous, than the fancy, which many have taken up, that all the world must be uniform in be- lieving what they choose to prescribe. We may safely affirm, that it is impossible for those, who read the Bible, not to agree in every thing necessa- ry to salvation. This is the only unity of faith, which can ever be attained ; no other is needed ; to require any other, as a qualification for christian fellowship, gives evidence either of a deplorable ig- norance of the objects of religion, or a wilful assump- tion of authority, which receives no countenance from the tenour of the Gospel, nor the reason of man. A little experience soon proved to the first Re- formers, that they could not give currency to what they would fain have acknowledged, as the one sense of Scripture. How, then, could these delusive notions of a unity of faith be realized? One resort only re- mained, and that was, to go back to the old contri- vance of creeds and restrictions. They hastened to this resort, and thus thought to accomplish, by hu- man systems, what they had despaired of doing by the native light and unaided force of the word of God. The consequence was such as might be expected. This attempt at harmony and conciliation only in- 34' CHARGES AGAIAST UJNITARIANS. [part i, creased the flame, and aggravated the evils, whlcli it was intended to allay. The creeds expressed the sentiments of their makers, and nothing more. If it chanced, that thej agreed with the Bible, it wae well ; but if it happened, that there was no such lucky agreement, they were, nevertheless, clothed with the same authority, and imposed with the same confidence and dictation. And even supposing they did agree, the persons on whom creeds were intend- ed to operate would not be more likely to believe the truths of Scripture, when woven into a set of un- scriptural phrases, than they would when expressed in the words of the Scriptures themselves. In their most favourable aspect, therefore, creeds are of no manner of use. If they contain precisely what the Bible contains, they are not wanted ; if they contain more, they are an imposition, and a clog to faith and holiness. If the word of divine truth, as revealed from heaven, will not bring about a unanimity, surely there is no little folly, no little presumption, in sup- posing it to be more easily done by any forms of hu- man contrivance. No sooner had a certain number of persons sepa- rated themselves from the main body, under pre- tence of having the true faith in a formulary of their own making, than pride and self-consequence begaa to spring up on the one j)art, and jealousy and disaf- fection on the other. These were followed by divi- sions, enmity, hatred, evil thoughts, and unrighteous deeds. They, who still adhered to the first princi- ples of the Reformation, to the freedom of judgment LET. II.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 3i» and the authority of the Scriptures, considered their liberty invaded, and were as little prepared to sub- mit to this new domination, as to the old against which they had rebelled. A spirit of resistance was awakened, and this is always accompanied with pas- sion and excitement. It leads to violence, resent- ments, harsh fcehngs, and to a thousand ill effects, which destroy peace, and the good influences of the Gospel. When it was found, that some christians valued themselves for their creed, and held it up as a badge of distinction, and a token of superiour sanctity, it is not wonderful, that others, who could not bend their consciences into that shape, should, nevertheless, re- solve not to be out-done by their brethren, especial- ly in so easy a mode of gaining consequence, and should construct a creed to their own liking. So it happened. Creeds rose upon creeds, and the inven- tors of every new one would be particularly careful to draw out the points in which they differed from others as prominent and full as possible, that they might prove how solid were their grounds of dissent. Hence every additional creed was certain to contain something not before discovered. It would have manifested a sorrowful lack of wisdom, indeed, to go through the trouble and formality of making a new creed, which should contain only what was already in others of good authority. Here, then, was a most prolific source of religious dogmas ; they were mul- tiplied from this source ; and every new article add- ed a new point of contention. 36 CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. [part i. Thus, the predictions of the Catholics were in a good degree verified by the very measures, which were emploved to prove their futility. Protestants were divided in every thing, and it was vain to ask where was the true faith. Each one found it in his own cimrch, but to thousands of others this church was heretical. To do away the reproach, a project was at length formed of bringing together the most popular creeds under the imposing title of a Harmo- ny of Confessions. This was done, but, alas, no har- mony appeared. Not a church in Christendom would have adopted any two of these confessions en- tire, much less the whole in a body. In some things they agreed, in many they dilfered ; and together they proved to what an extreme of contradictions even Protestants could run, when they abandoned the principles of the Reformation, preferred their own wisdom to the wisdom of God, and their own inventions to the simplicity of the Gospel precepts. To the passion for established Confessions may be attributed the propensity, so common among chris- tians, of calling harsh names, applying reproachful epithets, and charging their brethren with heresy and unbelief. It is observable, that they who are the most rigidly wedded to forms of faith, have usually been the tirst to commence the outcry of heresy, and the most relentless in pursuing the un- fortunate delinquent. The reason is obvious. While they are guided by human forms, why should they not condemn all persons as infidels, who persist in acknowledging assent to the Bible only ? Was any J.ET. »i.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 37 man ever denounced as a heretic for not believing in the Bible ? Not one. Martyrs have been tried by creeds, and condemned for denying creeds. They have suffered for the constancy of their faith in the Scriptures. Does not every church employ the term heretic to denote one, who rejects its assumed articles ? Does not that, which makes a heretic in ens church, make a saint in another ? Judge every man by the Bible alone, and you will have no further occasion to torture his conscience and blacken his character with the hideous terrors of excommuni- cations, anathemas, and cruel aspersions on the charge of heresy. I speak not of the original meaning of the word, but of its popular use, or rather abuse. Every per- son, charged with heresy, professes a firm and sin- cere belief in the Gospel. Otherwise he would not be a heretic, but an infidel. His accusers call him a heretic, not because he does not believe the Bible, but because he cannot believe it as they do. He is a heretic in the eyes of Calvinists, because, perhaps, he does not believe one of the five points; of Arminians, because he believes them all ; of Baptists,- because he sprinkles infants ; of Congregationalists, because he does not sprinkle them ; of Presbyterians, because he believes in bishops ; of Churchmen, because he does not believe in them. And so we are all here- tics to one another, and yet the faith and hopes of all centre in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Is it said, that in accusations of heresy, the accu- ser always understands the term to indicate a deficien- 38 CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. [part i. cy of faith in the Scriptures? Let this be granted, and the case is not altered. The accused tells you? that he does believe the Scriptures, and what better authority can be had, than his own declaration? May he not justly consider the enforcement of a charge, under such circumstances, as the wickedest persecution? Why is he to be branded with an odious epithet for valuing his faith as dearly as an- other, who may rashly accuse him of being a here- tic, for maintaining his independence and a clear con- science ? Abolish creeds, obey the Scriptures, re- spect conscience, and no room will be left for church- es, or individuals, to denounce their brethren as heretics, or to kindle discord by recrimination and offence.* But oppression and tyranny, contentions and broils, quarrels between churches, enmities between neigh- bours, coldness between friends, faction in states, tu- mults in society, tranquillity disturbed, peace de- stroyed, and good faith violated, have not constituted * The following remarks of Bishop Hoadly are just and forcible. " This is laid down as rerlain. that tliougli true religion be little regarded, but rather trampled on by the generality of the world, yet the pretences taken from thence are moving, and never fail to alarm the multitude, and to forward a design. Any doctrine manifestly framed to serve a purpose, can at any time be made the distinguishing mark of a true christian, or the true church ; and all, that will not yield to the truth of it, shall presently be branded with some religious nickname or other. Heretic, schismatic, lalitudinarian, fanalie, and the like, are all names taken from some differences, in the holding and professing the same religion. And they have been used so freely, and after sucli a manner, as that they have often effectually contributed to the destruc- tion of christian charity, to the overthrow of peace and concord, to the ruin of many excellent designs, and to tlie promoting of many bad ones." Hoadly'* Works, Fol. Vol. I. p. 36. LET. n.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 39 all the bad effects of prescribed forms of belief. They have been the refuge of depravity, the cloak of artifice, the screen of hypocrisy, a veil of dark- ness, which has concealed many a purpose of black- est die, many a heart of foulest treachery. 'I'hey have too often produced, in the language of Jerom, Concordia malorum major quam bonorum, a greater harmony of Avicked, than of good men. Who does not respect the garb of piety ? Who will suffer the eye of suspicion to rest on the robes of formal sanctity ? When a man talks much of his creed, and punctually observes the written forms of his church, does not all the world cry out, his faith is sound, and all must be right ? Here is the decep- tion. Piety is so rare a grace, that Ave are apt to connect its essence Avith forms ; and Confessions of faith are the most convenient and imposing forms imaginable. They cost nothing ; they may be had for the wearing; and they afford an impenetrable covert for every species of fraud and iniquity. Again, the habit of creed making has given rise to a dangerous fallacy respecting the extent of a true christian faith. Many seem to think a system of be- lief valuable and safe only in proportion to its length. The gradual enlargement of the standard Confessions has encouraged this notion. The most ancient creed, fabulously denominated the Apostles', contains a dozen lines; the Nicene, twice as much ; the Athanasian, twice as much more ; the Augsburg Confession contains tAventy-eight chapters ; the Eng- lish, thirty-nine articles ; the Scotch, thirty-three 40 CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. ffART i. chapters. Thus have points of difference been mul- tiplied. Every age has added something, till finally the more copious the system of faith, the more se- cure the believer thinks himself. It is no uncommon thing to find persons, who trem- ble at the thought of believing too little, but never dream of the peril of believing too much. And yet, which is the most dangerous? What is it to have a correct faith? Is it not to believe the exact truth? Is the hazard less on one side, than on the other? It seems a matter of confidence and satisfaction to some, that, since they believe all that others believe, and much more, their chance of salvation is propor- tionably enhanced. What is this much more ? If it be truth, it is important ; but if it be error, it is a pernicious addition. The doctrines of the christian religion are facts ; they are to be studied as facts, and understood as such. They rest on evidence and conviction, and to carry them beyond these, manifests weakness and credulity, rather than a teachable dis- position, or a sound mind. When you search for historical facts, are you gratified, that the historian tells you a great deal more than ever happened ? When you read a book of science, do you think it an advantage, that the writer has interwoven conjec- tures of liis own with his demonstrations, and the re- sults of his experiments? Why, then, should it be thought safe to adopt a principle m religion, which is the last, that would be admitted in the inquiries of common life, and which affords no means of distin- cuishiiii: truth from falsehood? LET. n.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 41 In short, as credulity is a more common failing than distrust, there is a much greater proneness to multiply, than diminish, the objects of faith. It is better, says Cicero, to think nothing, than to medi- tate evil. Mil sentire est melius, quam prava sentire. We may say the same of belief. It is better to have no faith at all, than to believe what is false. Addi- tions to truth are errors, and from these have chiefly arisen divisions and discords ; not from any want of faith in the essential truths of the Gospel, but from a belief, or a pretended belief, in many things not contained there. The only remedy is to go back to the Scriptures, and start with the conviction, that the true christian faith consists in believing just enough and no more. But one of the worst effects of this system of pre- scribing faith, and dictating to conscience, has been to encourage pride and a mdignant temper. Slight divisions have grown up into a most violent rancour, which has increased in bitterness, till it has ended in a consummation of all that is wicked in the human heart, the spirit of intolerance ; that spirit whose breath is a pestilence, whose touch is death, and whose delights are scenes of darkness and iniquity ; that spirit, which Christ censured in the haughty, persecuting Jews, and which incited these same Jews to demand his death, to mock at his suife rings, and revile him in his dying moments ; that spirit, which led suft'ering martyrs to the stake and consigned them to the flames ; which darkened, deluded, and tortured the world for ages, kindled the ferocious zeal of 6 42 CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. [part i- bigotry, forged the chains, and lighted up the fag- gots of persecution. Shall we say, that this spirit still lives ? Does it not live in the hearts of those, who would reproach and disturb others for their opinions, and who are more zealous to show their regard for the faith, than for the essential virtues of the christian religion ? Does it not live where mis- representation and abuse usurp the place of christian love and charity, and where hatred and malevolence blot out the kind affections ? In some degree it dwells in the breast of every man, Avho would en- croach on the religious liberty of another, and fix a stigma of reproach where he cannot fasten the chains of his creed. How is it, that the emotions of pity, humanity, and tenderness, voluntarily rise up when we behold our fellow-men in trouble, or distress, or under any temporal calamity ; but if they are suspected of be- ing so unfortunate as to entertain a false opinion, or to swerve from what we are pleased to call the true faith, they are at once denounced and shunned as dangerous to society; the passions are inflamed; they are treated rudely ; they are assaulted with the voice of menace and irritation ; the milk of human kindness seems to be dried up from its source; the currents of benevolence and sympathy are frozen in their channels? Not a trace can be detected of that mild, and forbearing, and gentle, and affection- ate spirit, which pervades the Gospel, and ought to reside in the breast of every christian. i,ET. ii.J CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 43 Why should any persons desire to persecute oth- ers, or clamour against them, because they cannot in conscience subscribe to the same articles, nor bring their minds to receive the same opinions as themselves? Is any one injured by Avhat others think? Certainly not. Why then be disturbed? Because, some have said, although we are not injured, God is dishonoured, and it is our duty to vindicate his honour, and support the cause of true religion. Let such imitate God. Does he show resent- ment ; does he inflict the punishment of his neglect and displeasure ; does he pour out the vials of his wrath on those especially, who do not agree with them in opinion ? Are they scorched by his light- nings, or do his thunders burst on their heads alone ? On the contrary, are not all equally the objects of his bounty and blessings, his paternal care and pro- tecting providence ? Shall we have the vanity and presumption to think, that we are vindicating the honour of God, by pursuing a course of action di- rectly opposed to all his dealings Avith men, by vio- lating his commands, and doing injury, where he con- fers unmeasured favours ? If we would promote his glory, let it be our highest concern to obey and Imitate him. In regard to our differences with our brethren, in which we all believe ourselves right, let us humbly ask, in the language of Paul, " Who maketh us to differ? What have we, that we did not receive ?" . God is the author of all ; him alone are we to serve ; him alone are we to please. Thus have we briefly developed the principal causes of the evils, which the protestant church at 44 CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. [part i. large has suffered. The influence of the same cau- ses may be followed into narrower circles, and be found no less destructive of religious truth, harmony, and practice. Churches there are, which profess to unite under one name, and which come together at stated times in the form of a Convocation, Conven- tion, Association, or General Assembly. Each of these has a creed, to regulate the faith of the whole body, and every member proffers a solemn declara- tion, that he will adhere to all its articles. But Avhere is the Convention, or the Assembly, in which there is any thing like a unanimity of belief? Take the English Church for an example. Have not every shade and gradation of sentiments, many of which are as opposite to each other as , light to darkness, been zealously and pertinaciously taught in that church, in defiance of the three Creeds and the thirly-nine Articles? Take the Presbyterian Church for another example. Is it not a notorious fact, that many in this enclosure are Hopkinsians and Arminians, and that a very small portion believe literally in all the dogmas of the Westminster Di- vines? No one will deny these facts. And is not the inference just, that imposing a formulary, which thus ensnares men's souls, is a source of incalculable injury to pure religion ? It leads either to hypocri- sy, to violations of a sacred agreement, or to down- right excommunication, either of which justly brings a scandal on the christian profession. The Congregationalists, and perhaps other sects, have another practice. Not content with the con- LET. n.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 45 fessions, creeds, and platforms, bequeathed to thein by their fathers, as pillars of support to the fabric of their faith, separate congregations have taken care doubly to fortify themselves by minor formularies, or covenants, to the fashion of which every member must be conformed. Into these choice symbols you will often find wrought all the mysteries of school divinity, ontology, pneumatology, and metaphysics, to which the most untutored mind in the parish must acknowledge his undoubting assent and consent, be- fore he can be admitted to the privileges of a chris- tian. Here you have the poison of this system ex- tending to the minutest ramifications of society. You may behold its effects in the divisions of church- es, law-suits about church property, quarrels among neighbours, altercations among friends, and irrecon- cileable alienations supplanting good fellowship and kind feelings. Let it be observed, however, that the mischief of creed-making does not arise simply from bringing together a set of articles, to which any one is ready to subscribe. Every man's faith is in some sense a creed, and in itself considered there is no more crime in writing it out, than there is in thinking it over in his mind. It is not writing it, nor arranging it into articles, nor endeavouring by fair argument to convince others of its truth, that clothes it with dan- ger, and converts it into an instrument of disorgani- zation and oppression. It would certainly be much better to be guided by Scripture language, and be satisfied with the words of divine wisdom, yet there 46 eilARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. [vAm i. can be no essential harm in telling the world what we believe in our own way, provided we are dispos- ed to go no farther. But, unfortunately, no one is contented to stop here ; nor have creeds ever been made for the pur[)ose alone of expressing what their makers believed. They have invariably been de- signed to operate on the minds of others; they have been thrust forward as tests of a true faith ; they have been imposed as conditions of christian fellow- ship. In this consists their mischief, in their usurpa- tion, their encroachment on right, their assault on conscience, their exclusive, intolerant tendency.* The argument of this letter conducts us to a sin- gle result, which is, that by far the largest portion of divisions, disorders, and wickedness prevalent in the christian church since the Reformation, may be distinctly referred to causes in all respects opposed to the principles of Unitarianism. With Unitarians the * The following are the pertinent remarks of Dr. Chandler, in alluding to the persecuting habit of dictating articles of faith. " As ecclesiastical history gives us so dreadful an account of the melancholy and tragical effects of this practice, one would think, that no nation, who knew the wortii of liberty, no christian protestant church, that had any regard for the peace of the flock of Christ, sliould ever be found to authorize and continue it. " What security, then, shall we have left us for truth and orthodoxy, when our subscriptions are gone .' Why, the sacred Scriptures, those oracles of the great God, and freedom and liberty to understand and interpret them as wc can. The consetiuence of this would be great integrity and peace of con- science, in the enjoyment of our religious principles; union and friendship amongst christians, notwithstanding all their differences in judgment. Wc shall lose only the incumbrances of religion, our bones of contention, the shackles of our consciences, and the snares to honesty and virtue ; whilst all that is substantially good and valuable, all that is truly divine and heavenly, would remain to enrich and bless us." Introduction to a Translation of Lim bnrrh's History of (he Inquisition, p. 110. LET. II.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS, 47 Bible is paramount to all other authority ; they ac- count it a sacred duty to maintain a perfect liberty of thought, inquiry, and judgment. They do not ad- mit, that any one, with justice to himself, and integ- rity to the christian cause, can transfer this preroga- tive to another. Religion connects every man with his Maker by personal responsibility and obligations of duty, and not through the medium of other men's thoughts and advice. The welfare of his soul de- pends on what he shall alone think, resolve, and do. All the opinions of all the world would not make him a christian, nor bring him one step nearer to his God, unless he were faithful to his own understanding and conscience. The slightest attempt to bind him to a particular notion, or to make him turn traitor to the unbiassed reflections of his own mind, is an insult to his nature, and a presumptuous attack on his moral freedom. To attempts of this sort, as we have seen, are to be ascribed almost all the evils, which, in one shape or another, have spread devastation and misery over the christian world, and counteracted the benign influ- ence of a holy religion. And they have been start- ed and prosecuted in violation of the spirit of Unita- rianism. This is no less true in principle, than fact. Unita- rians have not participated in the causes, which have produced these disasters. One reason is, to be sure, that the smallness of their numbers has pre- vented their having power to do much good or harm. But this does not weaken the argument. It only 48 CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. [part I- lays the burden more heavily on the orthodox themselves, and compels them to admit, that the persecutions, and violence, and enormous wickedness, which every serious heart deplores, have actually grown out of their sentiments. Unitarians have had no agency in the affair. The spirit of orthodoxy has reigned triumphant ; it has done all, that has been done. Now, whatever charges may be advanced against the particular opinions of Unitarians, it must at all events be granted, that experience and the history of the church exhibit effects of orthodoxy quite as terrible as any, which the most vivid imagination has pictured to itself in the train of these opinions. While engaged in examining particular sentiments in regard to their moral tendency, it is proper to keep this fact in mind, and also to remember, that the principles of orthodoxy have been thoroughly tried in all their varieties, and under every circumstance of place, time, government, laws, forms of discipline, and ecclesiastical order. They have been tried and found wanting. Not that I would use this as a proof of the truth, or perfection, of Unitarian sentiments ; these must stand on their own merits; but I do contend, that this fact, so broad and well established, is a strong evidence against the moral influence of orthodoxy, as opposed to Unitarlanlsm. It is a prac- tical demonstration in respect to the combined action of a system, and ought to have much weight in con- firming the coincident results of theory and argument, t.ET. ir.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 49 as applied to the individual parts of which that sys- tem is composed. I shall now proceed to the specific charges, which you and others have made against the character and opinions of Unitarians. I hope to make it appear from fact, and reason, and Scripture, that these char- ges have been thrown out with more haste than dis- cretion, more zeal than knowledge, more vehemence than judgment. The spirit and latitude of your charges naturally draw me into somewhat of an ex- tended view of the subject. You attack character and principles. These shall be defended both on their own grounds, and by comparing them with the character and principles of the orthodox. This is the only mode in which the subject can be fully and fairly exammed. The task, I am aware, has its difficulties. Noth- ing is more easy, than for the mind to run into ex- tremes in pursuing a favourite train of thought or in- yestigation. This is particularly true in following what we deem false opinions to their results. Imaginary consequences thicken around us as we ad- vance ; we soon persuade ourselves that they are real ; and then we are ready to charge them to the account of our opponents. " How often," says Watts, when alluding to this mode of inquiry, in his admira- ble Essay on Uncharitableness, " how often do we put their opinions upon the rack ; we torture every joint and article of them, till we have forced them to confess some formidable errors, which their au- thors never knew or dreamed of. Thus the original 7 aO CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. [part i. notions appear with a friglitful aspect, and the secta- tors of them grow to be the object of our abhorrence, and have forfeited their right to every grain of our charity." This is no doubt a natural tendency of our zeal for cherished opinions, and an eagerness to spy out something alarming in those of an opposite kind. It can hardly be hoped, perhaps, that this zeal will be entirely extinguished in prosecutmg such an investigation, as the one on which we are now en- tered. Let a knowledge of its existence and bearing- teach us a lesson of caution, moderation, candour, and charity, if it do no more. LKTTEIl HI. On Charges against the Character of Unitarians. SIR, 1 HAVE read your Ordination Sermon, preached some time since at Baltimore, and propose olfering for your consideration a few remarks on that part particularly, which relates to Unitarians. Many persons have been at a loss to conjecture, what evil star could induce you to select that occasion for mak- ing so violent and unprovoked an attack on a class of christians, who have shown no disposition to molest you, nor the society, which you had the honour to address. And I confess myself among the number LET. III.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 51 of those, who have not been able to reconcile your conduct with the maxims of christian faith and prac- tice, by which I could not doubt you aimed to be guided. It was easy to conceive, that you might have no very high respect for the opinions of Unitarians, be- cause your own are so widely different. Nor was it difficult to imagine, that you might regard these opinions as errors, and might look with concern on . the spiritual condition of those, who were so unfor- tunate as to embrace them. You might think it ne- cessary, on suitable occasions, to point out such er- rors, to confute them by fair and temperate argu- ment, and to make known their dangerous tendency. It was easy to suppose, that your love of truth, your sincerity, and your zeal in the cause of pure religion, might prompt you to so benevolent and pious a work. All this, done with moderation, and a proper spirit, would not only be pardonable, but praise-worthy. It is every preacher's duty to support what he thinks to be truth, and by all just and honourable means to dig away what he conceives to be the sandy founda- tions of error. But you have taken a course widely different from this. Instead of coming forward to detect and con- fute the dangerous opinions of Unitarians, instead of attempting to convince them by argument, and to win them from their errors by affectionate persuasion and salutary warnings, you have at the outset fixed on them the mark of heresy, denied to them the christian name, and accused them of immorality and 52 CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. [part i. irreligion in practice. You seem equally unwilling to allow them the name of christians, the praise of icoodncss, and the credit of honest intentions. But before 1 proceed further, I will quote your own words. After relating to your readers the story of Paul of Samosata and Queen Zenobia, and assur-^ ing them '• that great cities have commonly been, in all ages, the hot beds of error," you go on as follows. " In great cities, likewise, or, at least, in states of societ}' simi- lar to what is commonly found in such places, has generally commenced that fatal decline from orthodoxy, which began, perhaps, with calling in question some of what are styled the more rigid peculiarities of received creeds, and ended in em- bracing the dreadful, soul-destroying errors of Arius or Socinus. We might easily illustrate and contirm this position, Vy exam- ples, drawn from our own countrj', had we time to trace the history of several sects among us, and especially of American Unitarianism. But I forbear to pursue the illustration farther : and shall only take the liberty to ask, as 1 pass along — How it is to be accounted for, that the preaching of those who deny the Divinity and Atonement of the Saviour, and who reject the doc- trines of Human Depravity, of Regeneration, and of Justifica- tion by the righteousness of Christ— How, I ask, is it to be ac- counted for, that such preachers, all over the world, are most acceptable to the gay, the fashionable, the worldly-minded, and even the licentious ? That so many embrace and eulogize their system, without being, in the smallest perceptible degree, sanctified by it? 'J hat thousands are in love with it, and praise it ; but that we look in vain for the monuments of its reforming and purifying power ? I will not pretend to answer these ques-5 tions; but leave them to the consciences of those who believe, that the genuine doctrines of the Gospel always have had, and always will have, a tendency to promote holiness of heart and of life ; and that wc must all speedily appear before the judgment vSPat of Christ." AET, III.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 53 To these singular remarks, you add the following in the form of a note. " The aboye language, concerning the destructive nature of the Arian and Soc'mian heresies, has not been adopted lightly ; but is the result of serious deliberation, and deep conviction. And in conformity vpith this view of the subject, the Author cannot forbear to notice and record a declaration made to him- self, by the late Dr. Priestley, two or three years before the de- cease of that distinguished Unitarian. The conversation was a free and amicable one, on some of the fundamental doctrines of religion. In reply to a direct avowal on the part of the Author, that he was a Trinitarian and a Calvinist., Dr. Priestley said — '• I do not wonder that you Calvinists entertain and express a strong- ly unfavourable opinion of us Unitarians. The truth is, there neither can, nor ought to be, any compromise between us. If yot are right, we are not christians at all; and if ■rue are right, vou are gross idolaters.' These were, as nearly as can be recollected, the words, and, most accurately, the substance of his remark. And nothing, certainly, can be more just. Be- tween those who believe in the Divinity and Atonement of the Son of God, and those who entirely reject both, ' there is a great gulpk fixed.,'' which precludes all ecclesiastical intercourse. The former may greatly respect and love the latter, on account of other qualities and attainments ; but certainly cannot regard them as christians, in any correct sense of the word ; or any more in the way of salvation, than Mohammedans or Jews.'''' Such is the language, which you incorporated into an ordination sermon. The charges contained in these quotations, you will allow to be of no ordi- nary kind. It IS no trifling thing for any class of christians to be excluded in a body from the pale of Christianity, and openly accused of licencious- ness and immorality. In the remarks about to be made, it will be taken for granted, that your char- 54 CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. [parti. ges were aimed exclusively at those persons wher- ever they may be found, who call themselves Unita- rians. That they do, or do not hold to the opinions, which you attribute to them, is a thing of no conse- quence as it respects my present purpose. Your at- tack is directed at tlie moral character of Unitarian believers, not as the speculative and probable result of the nature, or tendency of their opinions, but as it actually exists. It is the correctness of your asser- tions on this point, Avhich is now to be examined. By what authority has it been declared, that among Unitarians, you " look in vain for the monuments of the reforming and purifying power" of their reli- gious sentiments? It is, indeed, to be regretted, that you did not find "time to trace the history of American Unita- rianism," before you ventured such a declaration. By such a process, perhaps, the public might have become acquainted with facts, from which the strength of this position would be more manifest. Or was it supposed, that in passing sentence of con- demnation on a large portion of the christians of this country, and in pubhshing against them the charge of immorality, there was no occasion to exhibit testimo- ny? Could it be imagined, that the persons against whom such an attack was made, would quietly sub- mit to have their characters impeached, without ex- posing unguarded asseverations, and demanding evi- dence? Although they were denied the privilege and name o{ christiajis, it could not be forgotten, that they are men, and as such can feel an injury, and per- LET. HI.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIAIVS. 55 ceive a violation of justice and the common laws of humanity, as quickly as other men of whom it might be thought a christian duty to speak in better terms. Let me first ask, for what purpose was this anec- dote about Dr. Priestley introduced? What does it prove ? I am willing to believe, that Dr. Priestley said precisely what is here put into his mouth, and yet I cannot see the least connexion between these premises and your conclusion. Was it fair or hon- ourable to quote language, which had been used in private and friendly conversation, and this from me- mory, after a lapse of twenty years ; was it fair to quote such language as a proof, that a large body of professed Christians have no title to this name, and are " no more in the way of salvation, than Moham- medans or Jews ?" But waving this consideration, pray in what respect are the words of Dr. Priestley to your purpose, except on the supposition, that your opinions are certainly right, and his certainly wrong? If Trinitarianism be, indeed, the true doctrine, then we have the authority of Dr. Priestley, to warrant us in saying, that Unitarians "are not christians at all.'"' And it is only on this condition, that his authority in any degree sanctions your conclusions. Nay, let it be admitted, that Dr. Priestley actually believed Uni- tarians to be no christians, or Trinitarians to be idola- ters, or any thing else, would this verily make it so? And above all, are the opinions of an individual to be taken as the groundwork of a sentence of condem- nation on a numerous class of christians, who mav. 56 CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. [part I. or may not, agree in adopting the views of that in- dividual. Since, then, this anecdote proves nothing, it is dif- ficult to tell why it should be thought so important as to be recorded in a book. By making Dr. Priest- ley speak this language, and giving it such a construc- tion, as you would have it bear, he is exhibited in a character directly opposite to that, in which he ap- peared during his whole life. In him no traits were more remarkable, than his mild and amiable temper, his benevolent and christian spirit, and his desire to open the door of christian fellowship to all the be- lievers in Jesus, and followers of his word. And yet, his authority is here used to justify one of the severest censures, which one christian cduld pro- nounce on another, and to sanction against persons, whose opinions resemble his, a sentence of total ex- clusion, not only from all ecclesiastical intercourse, but from the common privileges of christians. In regard to the charge of licentiousness and immo- rality, which you have made against Unitarians, you must not think me importunate in making a few di- rect and particular inquiries. Let me ask, whether you have the testimony of your own experience? Have you lived in the society of Unitarians, and do you judge from personal observation ? Have you had any direct means whatever of knowing the prac- tical effects of their principles? These questions, it is presumed, will be answered in the negative. And was it not premature, to say the least, thus to im- peach the morals of a class of christians, without hav- LET. III.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 57 ini^ from experience a most Intimate knowledge of facts? Hearsay, anJ rumour, and conjecture were not enoui^li in so grave a matter. Although you had never witnessed the state of morals or religion in a society composed wholly of Unitarians, you were undoubtedly acquainted with individuals of this belief, and some, perhaps, whom you have reason to call your friends. And have you, indeed, found among these persons such marks of depravity and irreligion, that you feel authorized from their example to fix a stigma, and pass a sen- tence of reprobation on a whole sect? If it had been your misfortune to meet only with such char- acters among Unitarians, and you judged from what you saw, it would have been but doing justice to the great body of those, who profess their belief, to let the public know the source, as well as the extent of your information. As your charges stand at pre- sent, your readers are called on to believe, that they are applicable "all over the world." And although you might think your conclusions deduced by good lo- gic, others might not, and in a case of so much im- portance, it would have seemed proper at least to make your antecedent propositions as clear as your deductions. Let me inquire further, and call your attention par- ticularly to that portion of the country, where Unita- rian principles have been long prevalent, and where they are embraced by a large portion of the commu- nity. Are you prepared to charge the people of Boston, and its vicinity, with a higher degree of im- 8 58 CHARGES AGAIAST Ui\lTARIA-\S, [^-^'^'^ ^^ morality, and depravity of manners, than is fomid irt other cities? Are you prepared to say, that the churches in that place, more than in any other, arc filled with the "gay, the fashionable, the worldly minded, and the licentious ?" In Boston, if any where, may be found a proof of your assertions, be- cause in that place the Unitarians probably make the most numerous class of society. But will you come before the public with any attempt to exhibit such proof? No. You will not assail the moral charac- ter of a great number of the leading and most re- spectable members of society. You will never inves- tigate the state of manners, the charitable and reli- gious institutions, the morals and practical piety of Unitarians, as a body, in any place, and then, publish the result of your investigation, as a proof, that they arc more " worldly minded" or " licentious," than christians of other denominations. This is an at- tempt in which you never will engage. It is true, you have hinted at discoveries, Avhich might be made, had you ^' time to trace the history of American Unitaiianism." Was not this an unfair insinuation? Your readers arc left to imagine much evil concealed, which nothing but want of time pre- vents you from bringing to light. It is incumbent on you to disabuse them by tracing this history. Let it be done impartially, and then comj)ared with the history of the Presbyterian church, or of any other church, and no Unitarian will shrink from the paral- lel. He will want no better illustration of the com- parative moral iniluence of his principles, and no clearer refutation of vour charges. LET. III.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 59 In regard to Unitarians generally, I do not doubt, that there are some among them, whose lives and conduct are not so much influenced by religious prin- ciples, as every good man and pious christian could wish. But I would gladly be informed, if there are no such among the Presbyterians, and other denomi- nations ? Are all sects immaculate, but Unitarians ? Unless this be the case, on what principles of jus- tice are these singled out, as worthy of special de- nunciation ? Unitarians are not in the habit of pro- claiming their virtues, and their religious acts from the house-top. Pii orant tacit i. Piety adores in silence. They consider religion a thing, in which a man is intimately concerned with his Maker. Where it does not exist in the heart, speak to the conscience in the still small voice of heavenly truth, and exercise a controlling influence over the atfections and the will, they look on pretensions, show, and loud profes- sions as proving little else, than hypocrisy and delu- sion. Perhaps they do not make so much parade and noise about religion, as some others ; but even allow- ing this, it still remains to be proved, that they have less of the humble spirit of fervent piety, less of earnestness in their devotions, and of ardour in their love and pursuit of truth, less, indeed, of any of those qualities, which our Saviour has declared to be re- quisite in his sincere and faithful followers. Now these are things, which have not been proved, and which it is not likely you will undertake to prove. The truth is, that, in modern times, at least, Uni- tarianism has every where been an unpopular faith. It is embraced at the expense of many sacrifices of 60 CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. [part r. personal interest and influence, of the aiTection of friends, and the esteem of tlie world. Unitarians of the present daj, both in this country and in England, are converts from the diflerent sects of orthodoxy. They have changed their seiitiments from serious conviction, founded on inquiry and a desire of truth. Every inducement, which the world could hold out, every motive, which could spring from a love of self, or a prospect of future gain, or a hoj>e of temporal aggrandizement, has conspired to try their integrity, and to keep them in the ranks of orthodoxy. They have resisted all. The silent voice of conscience has been more powerful with them, than the clamours of the world. Upheld by the majesty of truth, and the rectitude of good intention, they have shut their ears to the cry of heresy, infidelity, and irreligion ; they have submitted to the assaults of bigotry and perse- cution ; they have willingly suffered the reproaches, and given up the good opinion of mcjii, for the com- mands of Christ, and the consolations of a scriptural faith. In conduct like this do you discover no indications of a moral sense, and a righteous purpose ? What laws of human nature bring you to the conclusion, that a large class of persons have voluntarily resign- ed many of their worldly advantages, their privileges and attachments, and submitted to become the by- word of their brethren, whom they have loved and respected, and exj)osed themselves to all the odious charges, which willing credulity and ignorant zeal could devise, and yet have no claims to the merit of i.KT. III.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 61 pure motives and virtuous action ? Almost every Unitarian, in the very circumstance of avowing his sentiments, has exhibited as strong a testimony as he could exhibit, of his sincerity, his high value of reli- gious truth, and his deep sense of religious obligation. If he had any objects of selfishness to advance, any schemes of power or of profit to execute, or any other ends to attain, which are desirable in the eyes of the " worldly-minded,'' and near the heart of the "licentious," would his first step be to forfeit the good will, and put himself beyond the patronage of those, who are best able to help him forward ? Your charges have an apjjlication more extensive, than may at first appear. They reach to some of the greatest, wisest, and best men, who have adorned the world. Your sweeping denunciation embraces all Unitarians of every age and country. If your char- ges are well-founded, Newton, Locke, and Chilling- worth, were " no christians in any correct sense of the word, nor any more In the way of salvation, than Mohammedans or Jews?" And even Lardner, whom all parties honour as the best of men, and unanimous- ly quote, as the most learned and able advocate of the christian cause, must come under the same cen- sure. Those ornaments of the Episcopal church. Dr. Samuel Clarke, Hoadly, Law, and Biackburne, must be ranked with those, among Avhom " we look In vain for the monuments of the reforming and purify- ing power" of their faith. The charge of immorali- ty, of preaching to please and win the " licentious," 62 CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. [rART i. and of " not being in the smallest degree sanctified," by their religion, must rest against such men as Em- Ijn, Whiston, Priestley, Lindsey, Price, Jebb, Wake- field, Chandler, Taylor, Benson, Cappe, Foster, Kip- pis, and a host of others among the English Unitari- ans, against Avhose moral character the tongue of slander has never ventured to raise a whisper.* What excuse can be offered for the injustice done to the names of these men, by implicating their char- acters, and asserting the immoral effects of those principles, which they believed to be the foundation * This observation may be verified by turning to any notices of tlie charac- ter of these men, whether from tlieir friends or enemies. Two or three exam- ples shall be selected. The following testimony to the excellent character of Dr. Pricptley, is from the pen of the celebrated Dr. Samuel Parr, who knew him well. It is con- tained in his letter from Irenopolis to the inhabitants of Eleuthropolis. " I con- fess with sorrow, that in too many instances, such modes of defence have been used against this formidable Heresiarch, as would hardly be justifiable in the support of revelation itself, against the arrogance of a Bolingbroke, the buffoon- ery of a Mandeville, and the levity of a Voltaire. But the cause of orthodoxy requires not such aids. The church of England approves them not. The spirit of Christianity warrants them not. Let Dr. Priestley be confuted where he is mistaken. Let him be exposed where he is superficial. Let him be re- buked where he is censorious. Let him be repressed where he is dogmatical. But let not his attainments be depreciated, because they are numerous almost without a parallel. Let not his talents be ridiculed, because they are superla- tively great. Let not his morals be vilified, because they are correct without austerity, and exemplary without ostentation ; because they present even to common observers the innocence of a hermit, and the simplicity of a patriarch ; and because a philosophic eye will at once discover in them the deep fix«d root of virtuous principle, anJ the solid trunk of virtuous habit." — See Appen- dix to Magec on Ike Atonement, p. 477. Even Dr. Horsley was forced to confess his respect for the talents am' worth of his great antagonist. After expressing the little regard he had for Dr. Priestley's " argument on a particular subject," he goes on to add ; " This hinders not, but that I may entertain the respect, which I profess for your learning in other subjects ; for your abilities in all subjects in which you arc loarnt'd ; and a cordial esteem and affection for the virtues of your character, j.ET. iii.J CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 63 of true religion, wliich kindled in them the light of piety and goodness, and to the illustration and diffu- sion of which, many of them devoted their lives at the cost of the greatest sacrifices? The persons, whose names have just been mentioned, and a multi- tude of others, whose names have not been mention- ed, were remarkable for nothing more than their purity of manners and morals. It is not pretended, that there are no exceptions ; but I am confident you cannot select an equal number of names of eminence from any sect, whose biographies and whose works which I believe to be great and amiable." Horsleys Letters to Priestley, p. 276. Let. XVII. The following remarks on the character of Lindsey are from a Trinitarian, the Rev. Job Orton, who has been called the " last of the Puritans." They are contained in his Letters to Dissenting Ministers. " I am exceedingly glad," says he, " to hear, that Mr. Lindsey's chapel was so well filled, especially in the summer season, when the London congre- gations are generally thin. I have had two or three letters from that worthy and excellent man, whom I much esteem, and hold in the same veneration as I should have done one of the ejected and silenced Ministers a century ago. I have nothing to do with his particular sentiments ; but his good sense, learn- ing, piety, integrity, and desire to do good, demand the esteem and affection of every consistent Christian, especially every consistent Dissenter. " Were I to publish an account of ejected and silenced Ministers, I shoulii be strongly tempted to insert Mr. Lindsey in the list, which he mentions with so much veneration. He certainly deserves as much respect and honour as any one of them,- for the part he has acted. Perhaps few of them exceeded him in learning or Piety. I venerate him as I would any of your confessors. As to his particular sentiments, they are nothing to me, any more than Bax- ter s, or Toinbes's, or John Goodwin's. An honest, pious man, who makes such a sacrifice to truth and conscience, as he has done, is a glorious charac- ter, and deserves the respect, esteem, and veneration of every true christian, whatever his particular sentiments may be." — See Monthly Repository, Vol. I. p. 304. Among other English Unitarians, not mentioned above, whose talents and learning have never been disputed, and whose moral character will bear any scrutiny, which the eagle-eyed malice of their enemies can make, may be num- bered the following ; namely, Bishop Clayton, Abernethy, Leland, Lovvman. 64 CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. [I'AUT i. bear such uniform and unequivocal testimony to their reverence for divine truth, their amiable and excellent virtues, their christian meekness, charity, benevolence, fortitude, and a faithful discharge of their social and relisfious duties in every walk of life. Nothing can be more diametrically opposite to the entire spirit of your charges, than the facts, which may be collected, by recurring to the lives and pro- fessions of distinguished Unitarians. These facts ought to be known and respected, before the liberty is taken to cast reproach on their moral character, and their religious faith. Is it to be believed, that Watts and Whitby became bad men, when they abandoned their trinitarian sentiments ? Is there any evidence, that they were not as virtuous, as pipus, and as sincere practical christians, as they had always pre- viously been? Bishop Horsley, that paragon of meekness, candour, and charity, declared " the moral good of Unitarians to be sin." If this indeed be so, if it be really a duty to reprobate their virtues as vices, and to condemn in them what is worthy of the highest praise in others, then it must be confes- sed, that the charges against them of irreligion, licen- tiousness, and immorality, as proceeding from their Willium Petiii, Palmer, Tyrrwhit, Disney, Kenrick, Simpson, Toulmin, Reyn- olds, Estlin, Dr. Enfield, Bretland, Turner. To these may be added from among the earlier English Unitarians, Elvvall, Biddle, Firmin, and Hojnon Haynes, the friend and associate of Newton. The rare virtues of Biddle and Firmin have been celebrated by all parties. Bishop Burnet bears the highest testimony to the excellence of the latter. History of his own Times, f'ol. 111. p. 292. And even John Pyp Smith, to whom the viilues of other Unitarians seem not to be virtues, calls Firmin a " mirror of charity." — Lelttrt to Bd- sham,p.2ii. i-tr. ill.j CHARGES AGAINST UMTAKIAJSi?. (J^ religious opinions, may admit of a plausible defence, but on no other grounds. But, after all, what good is likely to be done by sucii charges ? Is it not better to do something for harmony, christian love, and mutual kindness, than to apply the torch and kindle the flame of discord ? Would not the cause of piety be more advanced by otfering arguments to convince Unitarians of their errors, or persuasions to turn them from their sins, or counsel and advice to diminish, rather than strengthen the prejudices of their enemies, to allay, rather than inflame the passions? Would it not indicate more of the christian spirit to make an eflfort to rescue and save the beings, who are represented to be diving into the depths of depravity by system, and seeking their ruin upon principle, than it would to employ such force as could be commanded to in*- crease their velocity, and hasten their destruction? Your sentence of condemnation concerns Unitarians not merely as christians, but as men, as members of society. It regards them as immoral from the influ- ence of their religious principles ; and if this be true, they ought to be shunned by all good persons, as dan- gerous to the peace and order of the community. It would raise against them the inquisition of public opinion, and not only subject them to the prejudices of party zeal, and the caprices of ignorant credulity, but it would banish from them the privileges of so- ciety, the affections of friends, the charity and respect of the virtuous and the well-informed. Such a sen tonco ?-equires explanation. It is due to truth, jus- 66 CHARGES AGAINST UiNITARIANS. fPART i. tice, and good faith ; and especially it is due to the persons who have been injured by this censure, whether intentionally or not, it is due to them, that some testimony should be advanced in its support, and some reasons assigned for so violent an attack on their morals, and their religious character. This is what they have a right to expect and demand. LETTER IV. Charges against the Opinions of Unitarians. I HAVE perused your Reply to a letter lately ad- dressed to you, respectins; certain charges against the moral character of Unitarians, contained in your Or- dination Sermon. This Reply is of a nature, which requires a continuation of my remarks. I agree en- tirely with you, that the cause of truth and righteous- ness will not suffer, but rather be promoted, by fair investigation and temperate discussion. Without these, few truths, which are of any value, can be ra- tionally and permanently established. It is only the Airnsy texture of error, that will crumble and decay at the touch. \i is only the counterfeit coin, that will be tarnished by the purifying test. And so with opinions; what is false may be detected and ex- posed by iiKjuiry and argument ; truth will stand i,ET. IV.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 67 more firm, assume a statelier majesty, and shine with a brighter lustre. For these reasons I do not regret, that you have imposed on me the necessity of speaking more at large on the subject of your charges against Unitari- ans. I should consider myself guilty of a culpable inditFerence and neglect, not to defend, when occa- sion requires, such opinions, and especially religious opinions, as I have adopted from a conviction of their truth. And if, in addition to this, I should not be prompt to repel unprovoked and unwarrantable at- tacks on my moral character, I should feel, that I had as little respect for myself, as love of virtue, and regard for religion. You complain with some warmth of the kind of language used in my letter ; you think it harsh and disrespectful. Of this I am not aware. Applied to your general character, it possibly might be so ; but it was not thus applied ; it was used with exclusive reference to your Sermon. The writer was not obli- ged to know any thing more of your character, while commenting on that discourse, than he found there displayed ; and if he did know more, it was not his duty to let this knowledge betray him into lan- guage, which would not express his sentiments, to the exclusion of that, which he was conscious the na- ture of the subject imperiously demanded. Besides, you seem to forget the provocation. Or have you seriously persuaded yourself, that there is nothing offensive in charging men, who feel that they are as sincere, as conscientious, as virtuous, and as 08 CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIAiNb. [paut i. pious as yourself, with having embraced "dreadful and soul destroying errors," and " destructive here- sies ;" and itj affirming, that they " cannot be regard- ed as christians m any correct sense of the word, or as any more in the way of salvation, than Mohamme- dans or Jews ;" that their " preachers all over the world are most acceptable to the gay, the fashiona- ble, the worldly minded, and even the licentious;" that " they are not in the smallest perceptible de- gree sanctified by their system;" and that among them, you " look in vain for the monuments of its re- forming and purifying power V Do you suppose these expressions peculiarly calculated to soften the temper of those against whom they are directed, to draw them over to conciliation and mildnes.^, or to teach them to search for soft and soothing phrases ? Would any one be thought serious, who should take such a course under circumstances like these ? An attack, which involved the opinions, motives, conduct, and character of the persons on whom it was made ; which aimed a destroying blow at every thing most valuable in life, and most consoling in prospect ; such an attack, you could hardly suppose would be gently repelled. His sensibility is not to be envied, who could feel no shock from it. Every man is bound to defend his reputation; on this depends the dignity of his character, and his usefulness in life ; when this is gone, nothing worth having re- main«. Had your attack extended to Unitarians only as members of civil society, they would have no ordinary grounds of complaint. As it is, the case LET. IV.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 69 is more aggravating ; you come down particularly on their religious character ; you accuse them of immo- rality in consequence of spiritual blindness and reli- gious errors; the principles of their faith you repre- sent to be peculiarly grateful to the loose and irreli- gious; they have no reforming power; their efficacy is not seen in the lives of those, who embrace them. We should truly not deserve the privileges of christians, if we could recognize ourselves in the pic- ture, which you have drawn. If our apathy Avere so great, as not to be excited by this exhibition, we might well suspect the truth, power, and nature of our religion. But even you allow us to be sincere. Would you allow it any longer, if we could acquiesce in the justice of your charges ? Can we be sincere in adopting principles of moral action, and of piety, and in offering a service to our Maker, which we know to be offensive in his sight ? Can we be sincere, in abetting a religion, which we are sure is working our ruin ? This is not possible, If we are sincere in any thing, it must be in what Ave believe to be the principles of a pure and holy religion, the truth as it is in Jesus, and in holding a faith, which we conceive will be the surest means of fixing the stamp of virtue and holiness on our characters, and of preparing us for realizing the hopes of a glorious immortality. To suppose a believer in Jesus sincere in pursuing the course, which you have ascribed to Unitarians, is ab- surd ; and if we are sincere in what we believe to be the true faith, and the great duties and obligations of the christian religion, we must think. — every princi- 70 CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. [pakt i. pie of our nature compels us to think, — that the mode in which you have attacked us is singularly unjust and indefensible. In your Reply, you have deserted the ground first taken, and which was the topic of discussion in my last letter. The subject in its original shape, as we have fully seen, related to the moral character of Unitarians ; and your remarks on that point only, were all, which you were desired to explain and substan- tiate. This was more than once expressly stated. You were called on to give " some reasons for your violent attack on the morals and religious character'' of Unitarians. This request has not been met, nor the subject scarcely touched. But you have entered on a broader and very dif- ferent field, by turning from character to the nature and tendency oj* opinions. This was setting aside the main purpose of inquiry. It was desired that you would point to some example ; describe the state of morals among Unitarians where they are united in separate bodies ; examine their institutions ; refer to some authentic historical record ; to the general sen- timent of mankind ; or, indeed, bring forward any sort of testimony, which should justify you in making- charges of so serious an aspect against a Avhole de- nomination of cln-istians. This has not been done, nor attempted. As to the tendency oj' opinions, it is quite another thmg ; it is to be settled by examination of principles and by argument, and may be decided either way without impeachinj;- any one's character. But actual LET, IV.] CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 71 effects must be substantiated by positive proof. To charge immorality, is to assert a fact ; evidence is demanded ; immorality consists not in an opinion, but in visible acts, which may be cited. This you have not done ; you have referred to no class of Unitari- tarians more wicked as a class, than their brethren of other denominations. You have singled them out, as prominent on the list of evil doers. Make it ap- pear, by adducing facts, and they will be satisfied. Until you do, they must continue to think, that you have accused them wrongfully, and injured them without a cause. A portion of your Reply is occupied in endeavour- ing to show the suitableness of the occasion, which you embraced for delivering the sentiments contained in your Sermon. To this I have little to say. It is natural however, to ask what good effect was likely to be produced by such unqualified and unauthenti- cated censures ? The religion of the Saviour is a religion of peace, brotherly love, good Avill, kindness, affection. These virtues he has commanded all men to practise, and made it the great characteristic of his true followers, that they love one another. Could the charges in your Sermon against Unitarians produce this effect? Would your hearers or read- ers be more ready to love those of whom so revolt- ing a picture was drawn, and who Avere denounced with so much earnestness ? And would the persons themselves, who were portrayed in such colours, have their tempers improved, their good feelings called forth, and the holy charities of their natur^^ 72 CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS, [part i. multiplied and strengthened, by listening to the lan- guage in which they were described? When all the rules of moral perception, and all the laws of virtue, and all the principles of human nature, are inverted, you may expect such a result, and not before. Such descriptions might move the uninformed and the prejudiced, to shun, reproach, and hate Unitarians, but they could never excite an emotion of christian love. There is another thing, also, which must have some weight on every fair mind. The Unitarians of the city where your Sermon was preached, had recently associated themselves into a regularly organized body for the purpose of worshipping God in such a way, as their consciences should dictate, their under- standing direct, and as they should believe the Scrip- tures to teach. In doing this, they conformed to the laws of their country, as well as to the laws of reli- gion. They asked no favours, they claimed no privi- leges, which others did not enjoy. They set up no pretensions, which they did not cheerfully allow to others; they asked no more, than to be left in quiet possession of the Bible, to be unmolested in searching for the tiTiths, which it contains, in conforming to the > instructions of the Saviour, and in seeking the salva- tion of their souls, by obeying his laws, and striving to render an acceptable service to their Maker. Notwithstanding this, it is well known, that public sentiment has been unreasonably excited against them. Their enemies have been busy to misrepresent, the -credulous have been ready to believe, the timid to sliudder with alarms, the ignorant to denounce, and a.ET. iv.l CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 73 all have been inclined to look on Unitarians with an eye of distrust and aversion. Under such circumstan- ces, and conscious of the purity of their motives, and of their responsibility to God, they could hardly deem it a mark of christian kindness in any one to hold them up as worthy of public censure, dangerous to society, unsound in faith, and immoral in their con- duct. But you say, " alloAV me to ask, are Unitarians in the habit of being very scrupulous about bringing forward their peculiar opinions on public and special occasions, and even in preaching ordination sermons ?'' This question, it is presumed, every Unitarian will joyfully answer in the negative. The time will never come, it is hoped, when Unitarians will be " scrupu- lous about bringing forward their peculiar opinions" in any place. And what is this to the purpose ? No one has complained, that you should enforce your peculiar opinions in such a place and manner as you choose. That charges were made against the char- acter of others was the complaint, and not that you attacked their opinions or published your own. On what occasion has a Unitarian preacher done this? Never. Look over their printed discourses, consult as many persons, as you will, who have heard such as have not been printed, and then show me a single example in which the Presbyterians, Episcopalians, Catholics, or any other sect, have been selected and denounced, as peculiarly immoral from the nature of their religious faith, or from any other cause ; show me but one example, and J will give up the argu- 10 74 CHARGES AGAINST L'MTARIAJVS. [part i- ment. You can find none. But suppose you could ; suppose it were true, that Presbyterians, or any other body of ciiristians, have been denounced and accused of immoraUty by Unitarian preachers, it would not readily appear, how such an outrage could justify any one in following their steps. It is time, however to dismiss this part of the sub- ject, and to come more directly to the points, which remain for discussion. In removing your charges from the moral character of Unitarians, and fixing them on the tendency of their principles and opinions, you have rendered them much more indefinite, and connected with them many additional topics. Seve- ral of the particulars, incorporated with your re- marks on the evil tendency of Unitarian sentiments, it will be necessary to examine with considerable attention ; such, for instance, as your statements concerning the christian name, the nature and objects of christian charity, and the opinions and characters of some of the most distinguished English Unitarians. The extraordinary errors, into which 1 think you have fallen in treating of these topics, seem to serve as a kind of support in your mind of other errors more important, and not less extraordinary, respect- ing the principles and tendency of Unitarian doc- trines. To correct the former, Avill aid in some de- gree to remove the latter. You charge Unitarians with denying all the essen- tial doctrines of the christian religion, and with em- bracing in their room sentiments, whose influence drives them naturally into irreligion and immorality. Y,ET. iv.J CHARGES AGAINST UNITARIANS. 75 Some of these sentiments, which are deemed most offensive and objectionable, you particularize. Such will be distinctly examined. In considering this charge in its proper latitude and various bearings, and in testing the accuracy of your views and state- ments, I shall pursue the following method. I. Inquire into the import of the christian name ; pointing out the evils of confining it to particular sects, and examining on what authority any person assumes the right of denying it to those, who believe in the Gospel, and in the divine mission of Christ. Inquire, also, into the nature of charity as explained in the Scriptures, and practised by the first christians, show- ing the weak and unscriptural pretence on which some of the orthodox Avould limit its operation to the few of a favourite party. II. Consider the doctrine of the trinity, its origin, meaning, and authority, and especially its moral ten- dency. Also, the doctrine of atonement, as under- stood by different christians, and the comparative in- fluence of Unitarian and orthodox views in relation to the character of God, the pious affections, and the practical virtues. III. A general comparison between the doctrines of Unitarianism and Calvinism in regard to their moral tendency ; embracing the views entertained by each party of the depravity of man ; of conver- sion and divine influence ; of election, particular re- demption, and perseverance ; the doctrines of future punishment and annihilation; and the tendency of Calvinism to suppress free inquiry, discourage the 76 CHARGES AGAINST UMTARIATCS. [part i. Study of the Scriptures, and retard the progress of reh2;ious knowledge. IV. An inquiry into the sentiments of celebrated Enojhsh Unitarians, Avith proofs, that any charges against their rehgious opinions, as having an immoral tendency on their lives and conduct, are groundless and unjust ; and that there is the strongest evidence of their honesty, sincerity, veracity, independence, christian temper, and christian practice. A full and mature consideration of these several topics will prepare us for the conclusion, that Calvin- istic orthodoxy lias no claims to the high pre-emi- nence to which you would raise it, either as a ra- tional and consistent system of faith, a guardian of morals, or a promoter of piety. It will, moreover, enable every impartial inquirer to divest Unitarian- ism of the ill shapen, frightful garb, in which your fancy has clothed it, and to behold under that hide- ous covering the fair proportions, majestic nature and commanding aspect, of a pure christian faith, where reason, and truth, and scripture, and charity combine to add dignity and grace. The conclusion it is hoped will also be very obvious, that there may be pious and good christians under both forms of faith J that it is quite as important for believers to love God and their brethren, as to have an orthodox creed ; and that the rewards of salvation depend on the deeds done in the body, and the virtues that dwell in the heart, more than on the ever varying opinions that float in the mind, or the dreams that play in the fancy. P^RT IL CHRISTIAN NAME AND CHARITY. LETTER I. Import of the Christian JVame, and the Evils of confin- ing it to particular Sects. SIR, -In the present letter I am to inquire into the grounds, on which you deny to Unitarians the name of Chris- tians. At first view, this subject does not seem to be of much importance. Names do not aher things, and whatever any one may choose to call us, we shall still be the same. But many things derive their im- portance as much from their consequences, as their nature. Although names are nothing in themselves, yet when they misrepresent our motives, sentiments, and characters, they are not so trifling, or unworthy of consideration, as might at first be imagined. Our reputation in the world depends on the opin- ion of others. If this opinion be perverted, or ill 78 CIIRISTUN NAME AND CHARITY. [part n. founded, it will not alter our characters, but it will Aveaken our influence, destroy our usefulness, and thus diminish our happiness. Now this result is to us a real injury, and the more to be deprecated, as coming from so unjustifiable a source, as false opinion. And besides, although K;e are not made worse, others are, because they are prompted to indulge thoughts, give currency to reports, and be guilty of conduct, which adds nothing to their own virtues, nor to the good order of society. It is obvious, then, that there is some virtue in names, and that it is the duty of every man, who values his reputation and his rights, to assert his claims to such titles, as shall truly repre- sent his character. No name is more honourable, none is more, endear- ing to every sincere follower of Christ, none is cher- ished by him with more sacredness, than the name of Christian. It is a bond of union and love, which unites the hearts of those, who are enlightened by the same truths, engaged in the same duties, encour- aged by the same promises, and pressing forward with the same hopes. This bond you have attempt- ed to sever. A large portion of the followers of Jesus, who humbly and earnestly study his Gospel, who rely implicitly on his word, who desire to bring themselves wholly in subjection to hie laws, who con- sider him to have been commissioned from heaven to make known the will of God and the terms of salva- tion to men, and whose choicest consolations are de- rived from their faith in the divinity of his character, and the truth of his doctrines, — a large portion of l,ET. I.] CHRISTIAN NAME AND CHARITY. 79 these, you would exclude from the privilege of unit- ing under his name, and deprive them of the conso- lations, blessings, and enjoyments, which such a union is calculated to ensure. Few christians, who feel the power of the religion they profess, and are sensi- ble of their own imperfections and proneness to error, would be willing to pronounce such a sentence of exclusion. Few would presume to institute such a tribunal upon the consciences and hearts of their fellow men, and place themselves in the judgment seat of Him, before whom all " must stand or fall," and who alone has power to judge. It is not my purpose here to inquire into the origin of the name christian. It was first applied to the disciples of Christ at Antioch ; but whether it was originally adopted by themselves, or given by others, we are not told ; nor is it of any moment. The pre- sent application of the term is the only thing Avith which we are concerned. In its general use it has two significations ; one re- lating to the Jaith, the other to the practice, of those to whom it is applied. You say that Unitarians can- not be " regarded as christians in any correct sense of the word." The two senses here mentioned, it is believed, are the only ones in Avhich the word can with any propriety be used. The latter of these, indeed, is acquired and forced, and is comparatively of modern origin. It is sanctioned, however, by custom. In its correct use, the word is employed exclusively to designate those, who believe in Christ as the Messi- ah, and Avho profess to receive him as their Master yO CHRlSTlAiN WAME AND CHARITY. [part ii. and Saviour. Why are you entitled to the name of Calvinist, or any other person to the patronymic of the leader, whom he professes to follow ? Is it not from this circumstance only, because you profess to receive him as a leader? And so it is with the name of christian. All, who look up to Christ as their head, and acknowledge themselves believers in him, and subjects of his kingdom, are entitled to the chris- tian name. The question is therefore to be settled, whether Unitarians are among this number? You say they are not, and explain yourself in a sort of abridgment of the second, eighth, and tenth Letters of Andrew Fuller. But neither his statements, nor yours after him, have any weight on my mind. They are mere assertions, where nothing but plain facts, and manly argument, could be of any value. You cannot be ig- norant, that in the sincerity of our hearts we believe in the truth and divine character of the religion of Jesus, as firmly as you, or any of your brethren ; that we consider, and have infinite joy in believing, his religion to be a revelation from God; that Ave be- lieve him to have performed mu-aclesby divine pow- er ; that we receive as sacred and true every word he spoke ; that his commands carry with them in our view the same authority, as the commands of God; that our hope of immortality rests wholly on ♦ he veracity of his word, and a belief in his resurrec- tion ; that we look for salvation only on the condi- tions he has made known; and that we believe faith, repentance, and holiness essential to all, who would LET. I.] CHRISTIAN NAME AND CHARITY. 81 be his true followers, and be partakers of the rewards he has promised. With this knowledge of our sen- timents, the question may well be asked, by what authority you have denied to us the name of chris- tian ? If those who have this faith, and cherish these feelings, and hold fast these hopes, are not to be called Christians, tell us what they are to be called.* In regard to the second, or popular sense of the term, I shall not say much in this place, because it comes under topics, which will be particularly dis- cussed hereafter. Good men, who are zealous in ac- quiring a knowledge of the doctrines and duties of the christian religion, and in conforming to the pre- cepts of Christ, are called Christians. And are there no such among Unitarians? The person, who strives to obey the laws of the Gospel, who is habitual in the exercises of piety and devotion, loves and aids his neighbour, subdues his passions, resists temptation, proscribes hurtful pleasures, hates vice, condemns and shuns the ways of the wicked, bears up with for- titude in adversity, submits cheerfully to the will of God, is penitent for his past sins, relies on the promises of Christ, endeavours to imbibe his spirit, and walk in his steps, — every such person is cordially * Hartley has given a very concise, and in my view, a very correct defini- tion of tire term Christian. " To believe the christian religion, is to believe that Moses and the prophets, Christ and his Apostles, were endued with divine authority, that they had a commission from God to act and teach as they did, and that he will verify their declarations concerning future things, and espe- cially those concerning a future life, by the event; or, in other words, it is to receive the Scriptures as our rule of life, and the foundation of all our hopes and fears-." Hartley's Works, Vol. II. p. 71. n 82 CHRlSTIAx\ AAME AND CHARITY. [part ii. acknowledged bj all men, not only to deserve the name, but to sustain the character of a christian. And when this character is seen, no one thinks of ask- ing what his religious creed is, before he gives him the name. Now I humbly trust, that there are as many persons of this description among Unitarians, as among other denominations. In respect to the second sense of the term, therefore, as well as the first, your harsh and ungracious sentence of exclusion is passed without a semblance of justice.* Let us look for a moment at the process, by which you have come to your extraordinary results. You say, " he, who does not receive the doctrine of man's guilt and depravity by nature, and the doctrine of the divinity and atonement of the Son of God, and * I cannot forbear to quote here an excellent passage from President Davies' Sermon on the Christ ianjyame. It breathes a spirit of liberal feeling and en- lightened charity, which may be recommended with some hope of profit to all such, as think themselves alone worthy of the name of christian. " To be a christian," says he, " is not enough now-a-days, but a man must also be something more and better ; that is, he must be a strenuous bigot to this or that particular church. But where is the reason or propriety of this? I may in- deed believe the same things, which Luther or Calvin believed ; but I do not believe them on the authoiity of Luther or Calvin, but upon the sole authority of Jesus Christ, and therefore I should not call myself by their name, as one of ' their disciples, but by the name of Christ, whom alone I acknowledge as the author of my religion, and my only Master and Lord. If I learn my religion from one of these great men, it is indeed proper I should assume their name. If I learn it from a parliament or convocation, and make their acts and canons the rule and ground of my faith, then it is enough for me to be of the establish- ed religion, be that what it will. I may witli propriety be called a mere confor- mist ; tliat is my highest character ; but I cannot properly be called a Christian^ fur a Cliristian learns his religion not from acts of parliament, or from the determination of councils, but from Jesus Christ and his Gospel." p. 229. The pious and persecuted Baxter long ago expressed similar sentiments in fewer words, when he said, "I am a christian, a mere christian; of no other religion ; my churcli is the Christian Church." LET. I.] CHRISTIAN NAME AND CHARITY. 83 of the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit, does not receive the Gospel, and is, consequently, no Chris- tian." And just before, you pronounce these doctrines to be " the essence of Christianity." And again you add, " it follows with irresistible force of evidence, to ray mind, that he who rejects those fundamental truths, however respectable, virtuous, and apparently devout he may be, rejects Christianity as really, though not under precisely the same circumsiances, yet as really as any Deist ever did ; and that he can- not, with propriety, be called a Christian in aiiy sensed Here then we have the substance of your charges, and the amount of your argument ; if argu- ment, indeed, it can be called. You have defined Christianity in your own way ; jou have made its essence to consist in doctrines of your own choosing, and then declared, that whoever does not receive this definition, and believe the doc- trines here selected, is " no christian." But what is this to the purpose ? Your convictions may be very good in your own estimation, and may have a preponderating influence on your own mind. I am willing to allow this, and yet maintain, that it gives no authority to pronounce so solemn and unqualified a denunciation against a large class of persons, who are as sincere in their faith, and value it as dearly as you, or any other christian. What did our Saviour mean, when he left to his followers the command, "Judge not, that ye be not judged ;" and the Apostle, when he asked, " Who art thou that judgest another?" Did they mean. 84 CHRISTIAN NAME AND CHARITY. [part ii. that we should solemnly charge our brethren, who cannot think as we do, with " rejecting Christianity as really as any Deist," or with being unworthy to "be called Christians in any sense ?" Did they not rather mean, that our imperfections should teach us to distrust ourselves, and that the daily evidences, which we have of our own mistakes, errors, and faults, should make us cautious how we assume the office of censor, in rashly condemning the opinions and motives of otliers ? Such is the letter and spirit of the Gospel. Let others decide liow widely it ditfers from the letter and spirit of charges like the above.* You call total depravity, and the other doctrines^ which you enumerate, " the essence of Christianity, the very life and glory of the system." And yet, m this enumeration is not embraced a belief in the exis- tence, attributes, and superintending providence of God, the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the truth and divine authority of his word, the necessity of faith, repentance, and a holy life, nor a future * Bisliop Watson gives exroUent advice on this subject of deciding for others what they sli:ill receive as tiie essence of Christianity. " When we speak concerning the truth of revealed religion," he observes, " we include not only the certainty of the divine missions of Moses and of Jesus, but the nature of the several doctrines pioniulgated by liu'm to mankind. Now you may ask me what these doctriiios are ? I know what they are to me ; but, pretending to nO degree of infallibility, I think it safer to tell you where they are contained, than whatthcy arc. They are contained in the Bible ; and if, in the reading of that Book, your sentiments concerning the doctrines of Christianity should be different from those of your neighbour, or from those of the church, be per- ijuafled on your part, that infallibility appertains as little to you, as it does to tlie church ofwliirh you arc a member, or to any imlividual, who differs from