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 V 
 
ECCLESIASTICAL CLAIMS 
 
 INVESTIGATED, 
 
 AND HHE 
 
 LIBERTY OF THE PULPIT 
 
 DEFENDED; 
 IN FIVE ESSAYS, 
 
 1, THE UNINTERRUPTED SUCCESSION ; — 2. ORDINA- 
 TION ; 3. THE SPIRITUAL GIFTS AND POWERS 
 
 OP THE CLERGY; — 4. LEARNING; — 5. MINIS- 
 TERIAL QUALIFICATIONS-* 
 
 By DANIEL ISAAC. 
 
 ♦ " Thou art a very ass ; thou art mad ; thou art courageous ; — nay, 
 thou art impudent ! By my troth, I think he is mad ; he careth 
 for nobody ! " Bishop Aylmer. 
 
 " I speak as unto Wise men ; judge ye what I say." 
 An " Apostle Paul.'- 
 
 EDINBURGH: 
 
 Printed by C. Sleivarty Printer to the University t 
 
 SOLD BY GUTHRIE AND TAIT, EDINfeURGH J J. NICHOLS, LEEDS J 
 
 T. BLANSHARD, 14, CITY-ROAD, LONDON, AND ALL 
 
 OTHER BOOKSELLERS, 
 
 1815. 
 
REFACE. 
 
 THEOLQGICiL 
 
 X HE Author turned his attention to the subjects 
 discussed in the following Essays soon after the 
 failure of Lord Sidinouth's Bill. He had hoped, 
 from the signal defeat which bigotry and intolerance 
 suffered on that memorable occasion, that religious 
 liberty would not have been soon again assailed; 
 how great then was his surprise to find, that, almost 
 immediately, a new interpretation was given to the 
 Act of Toleration, which reduced it nearly to a 
 cypher. The most singular circumstance was, that 
 every court of quarter sessions in the kingdom, with 
 one or two exceptions, viewed the act in a new light 
 all at once ; in consequence of which, all applica^ 
 tions for licences, upon the old terms, were rejected. 
 It appeared very wonderful, that the new interpreta^ 
 tion, if the true one, should have eluded the sagacity of 
 magistrates and lawyers for one hundred and twenty 
 yeiu-s ; and that, after the lapse of so long a period. 
 
IV 
 
 they should be instantaneously illuminated with the 
 knowledge of the truth, as if by immediate inspira- 
 tion. But this mystery was explained when it trans- 
 pired, that a circular had been sent to every court of 
 quarter sessions, instructing the justices in the new 
 doctrines. Compare this under-hand work with 
 public professions about liberality, the rights of con- 
 science, &c. and some illustrious characters will be 
 illustrated. It was about the same time too, that our 
 places of worship were taxed, a sacrilege never be- 
 fore practised in the world, by Heathens, Jews, o|r 
 Mahometans. 
 
 These various attempts at persecution, filled the 
 Author with indignation, and gave birth to the pre- 
 sent work. Some people will perhaps think, that 
 die new Toleration Act has rendered this little hook 
 unnecessary; the writer, however, is of a different 
 opinion, and will proceed to detail his reasons for it. 
 
 Acts of Parliament are of very little consequence, 
 if not supported by public opinion. When the 
 .sense of the nation is opposed to them, they will 
 soon grow obsolete, or be repealed. This remark 
 applies particularly to the Act in question, because 
 it is framed solely on the professed principle of 
 ^x^cdicncij. The preamble states, " Whereas it is 
 
£:£pedient,'^ Sec. But should the public opinion on 
 the subject of religious liberty change, this expe- • 
 cliency will no longer exist; it may then be judged 
 expedient to repeal the Act of Toleration, and re- 
 vive the Act of Uniformity.. 
 
 It is remarkable, that though the opinions of 
 senators, lawyers, and divines, may be cited in abun- 
 dance, in favour of religious liberty, yet there is no 
 assertion of the rights of conscience either in the old 
 or new Act of Toleration. They both go on the 
 ground of expediency. At the time the old Act 
 was passed, William and Mary were not very firmly 
 seated on the throne. The Catholics were power- 
 ful, and it was thought that the Nonconformists 
 might have united with them, and overturned the 
 infant government, had the old persecuting measures^ 
 been pursued; it was therefore judged expedient, 
 "to grant some ease to scrupulous consciences." In 
 the next reign it was deemed expedient to resume 
 the glorious work of persecution; and the Schism 
 Bill was passed, which took the children of dis- 
 senters from their parents, and put them under tlie 
 care of churchmen, that they might be educated ia 
 the principles of the establishment. A more in- 
 hmnan act than this, the ingenuity of cruelty could 
 not perhaps devise,* but heaven in judgme;ot took 
 ^3 
 
\1 
 
 away the priest-riJden Queen, the veiy day this ini- 
 quitous Act was to have taken place. 
 
 How long the present expediency will exist, it is 
 impossible to say. One thing however is certain, 
 that so long as the laws do not recognise the rights 
 of conscience, we have no security for the perma- 
 nency of our religious liberties, but in the public 
 opinion. It is therefore of the utmost importance 
 to support and peipetuate those liberal sentiments, 
 %vhich have been so long, and so generally, entej- 
 tained in this nation. 
 
 It is the more necessary to call the attention of 
 the public to the subjects discussed in the following 
 pages, on account of the uncommon pains which 
 have been taken of late years, to revive a spirit of 
 bigotry and intolerance. The secret history of Lord 
 Sidniouth's bill would be a most curious document. 
 A part of it was published in the Literary Pano- 
 rama, for July 1811 : "It consists with our know- 
 ledge, that towards ten years ago, at a meeting of three, 
 or four, or more, of the reverend the bishops (whether 
 held for the purpose, we do not recollect), the subject 
 of sectaries and their increase engaged the conversa- 
 tion. We believe that minutes of their Lordshij^s^ opi- 
 7iions, or si(s:gestions, "jccre recorded, Tlxis biU, though 
 
VII 
 
 called Lord Simouth's, we hazard little in affirming, 
 is not his Lordship's composition. The skeleton of 
 it, we presume, may be dated eight or ten years ago : 
 and the finishing of it is by conjecture ascribed to a 
 PRELATE, whose grammar and greek have lately re- 
 ceived rough usage from sectarian commentators." 
 When it is considered that Lord Sidmouth's bill, 
 had it passed, would have nearly annihilated our re- 
 ligious liberties, this conduct of the bishops looks 
 very much like a conspiracy against them. 
 
 But how happened it that eight or ten years 
 elapsed before the bill was brought into parliament ? 
 To this question we are not furnished with an 
 answer. The following fact, however, is deserving 
 of notice. Previous to the formation of this plot, it 
 was only occasionally that a book was printed, or a 
 sermon preached, against the sectaries ; but ever 
 since, both the press and pulpit have been constantly 
 bevvailino' the miseries of Methodism and the danoers 
 
 o o 
 
 of the Church. The alarm which has been sound- 
 ing so long in Zion, has at last terrified some weak 
 minds. By perpetually hearing frightful stories, 
 some people are filled with dread. Tell a child 
 about hobgoblins, and it will soon imagine it sees 
 them : If you want to ckive a man mad, confine hi»i 
 among madmen. 
 
via 
 
 The conduct of high churchmen for some years 
 past, has had very much the appearance of a syste- 
 matic plan, to render all classes of dissenters odious 
 to the nation, and prepare the way for an abridge- 
 ment of their religious privileges. In numbers of 
 pulpits the many-headed monster, Methodism, which 
 comprises all the sectaries, has been manfully en- 
 countered by the doughty champions of the church ; 
 but though it has been roughly handled, and often 
 triumphed over as an expiring foe, yet, like the beast 
 in the Revelations, its deadly wound has healed 
 again, its enemies have been dismayed, and the omi- 
 nous cry has rung through the country — " Its pro- 
 gress must be stopped ! Something must be done ! 
 The Church is in danger ! '* Prelates have made 
 many a furious charge at it ; pamphleteers have been 
 employed to pelt it with dirt, and make it look 
 hideous and frightfid; and nearly the whole corps 
 of revieweii* have been pressed into the service of 
 our aged and venerable mother, to protect her from 
 injury, and excite public indignation against the ter- 
 rible enemy which threatens her destruction, 
 
 Tliough innmnerable visitatign-sermons, pamph- 
 lets, and books have been published against Methodism 
 within the period alluded to, yet the dissenters have 
 seldom written a line in defence gf their opinions, 
 
practices, and liberties. They were ignorant of th^ 
 Episcopal plot ; and the works of their adversaries 
 were either contemptible for their ignorance and 
 dulness, or ridiculous for their impotent malice and 
 absurdity. Take a specimen : A " Christian Advo- 
 cate" at Cambridge wrote against the Methodists, 
 and was incautious enough to confess, that he did 
 not understand their principles. Another divine 
 endeavoured to awaken the sensibility, and rouse to 
 action the torpid powers of the Archbishop of Can- 
 terbury, by predicting his Grace's martyrdom, if 
 something were not speedily done to check the pro- 
 gress of fanaticism. And a canting fellow from a 
 learned criticism on Ephesians vi. 11, shrewdly in- 
 sinuated that the devil is a Methodist and the father 
 of the sect, and loudly called upon his clerical 
 brethren to " put on the whole armour of God, that 
 they might be able to stand against the methodism of 
 the devil." 
 
 From such representations as these, many people, 
 who can swallow any thing spoken by a priest, find 
 it difficult to believe, that these arch-heretics belong 
 to the human species. A friend of the author's was 
 some years ago, at an inn in Stamford, where the 
 company were conversing about the Methodists. 
 While some were describing the extravagances of 
 
the sect, lie observed one man to listen to tlie dis- 
 course with apjiarcnt astonishment : his curiosity was 
 at last excited to such a pitch that he could hold in 
 no longer, but enquired with great eagerness, " Pray 
 what sort of things are they ; for I do not know that 
 I ever saw one of them in my life !'* Tlie reader may 
 judge of his surprise, when he learned, that these 
 viojistrous things were two-legged animals like him- 
 self. 
 
 Though so much pains had been taken to prepare 
 the public mind for it, it was still a nice and critical 
 affair to introduce a bill into Parliament. For after 
 all that had been said about the enthusiasm, fanati- 
 cism, heresy, schism, and jacobinism of the sects ; 
 after all the dreadful alarms that they had polluted 
 the altar, and endangered the throne ; after all the 
 vehement demands, that, like troublesome " vermin, 
 they must all be caught, killed, and cracked," or 
 the Archbishop and liis tribe would be martyred;, 
 after all the nnghty pother from books and sermons, 
 from newspapers, magazines, and reviews ; — it was 
 still doubtful, whether any measure of restriction 
 would be carried. The subject was announced with 
 the utmost caution ; the Act of Toleration and dis- 
 senting ministers were panegyrised; and nothing 
 mQ.ra was intended than to promote the respectabiJi- 
 
XI 
 
 1|r of die dissenting body, by laying under restraint 
 a few hot-headed ignoramuses, who would not sub- 
 mit to the regulations of any religious community. 
 Generous -hearted souls ! 
 
 The next difficulty was to find a suitable time for 
 introducing the bill into the house. Two things 
 stood in the way, or it would have been brought for- 
 ward at an earlier period. IsL The King was known 
 to be averse to it. 2cf/j/. Our public men had so 
 much political business upon their hands, that they 
 had no time, even had they been disposed, to turn 
 their attention to methodism. At length the auspi- 
 cious moment arrived ! His Majesty was just laid 
 aside through indisposition ; and the Prince, though 
 his acquiescence was doubted, had not been tried. 
 Our affairs abroad, which for a long time had worn 
 an aspect gloomy as methodism, had recently taken 
 a favourable turn. The enemy had been beaten; 
 and the national exultation on the occasion, was 
 raised to the highest pitch. 
 
 A visionary could not have dreamed, that an in- 
 toxicated people, singing with enthusiasm the song 
 of victory, would be sober time enough to perceive 
 all the bearings of the bill, and be capable -of suf- 
 ** J^nt sympathy with the meditated victims of into^ 
 
Xll 
 
 lerance, to unite with them in crushing the demon 
 of persecution at its birth. 
 
 But the greatest difficulty was to quiet the appre- 
 hensions of the dissenters. This required the most 
 dextrous management. When so many writers had 
 charged them with disaffection, and called so loudly 
 and peremptorily on the government for some act 
 of coercion or restriction ; and w hen it was so well 
 known that some periodical publications were devot- 
 ed to the work of vilifying their character, and hold- 
 ing them up to the public as suspicious and dange- 
 rous persons, it is truly astonishing that any of them 
 could be deceived. To prevent alarm, however, the 
 bill was introduced by a layman. His Lordship ho- 
 noured the principal dissenting ministers with seve- 
 ral interviews, bowed and scraped, and was all polite- 
 ness. He assured them that he revered the rights 
 of conscience, and the Act of Toleration which se- 
 cured them ; that nothing was further fi'om his in- 
 tention than to abridge their religious privileges, 
 &c. &c. Many were lulled to sleep ; but the utmost 
 address was insufficient to remove the jealousy and 
 allay the fears of a few timorous souls. When the 
 bill was published, all delusion instantly vanished i 
 and the dupes of artifice, by their subsequent zeal^ 
 made ample atonement for their past credulit3% 
 
Many have nccused the framers of this bill of ig* 
 horance, but this is unjust. However deficient it 
 may be in the harmlessness of the dove, it certainly 
 contains a pretty large portion of the wisdom of the 
 serpent. But its pernicious influence on the in- 
 terests of the dissenters is now so well known, that 
 it is unnecessary to dwell upon it here. 
 
 One object of the bill, according to the Archbishop 
 of Canterbury, was, " to secure a more respectable 
 description of teachers to the dissenters than they 
 have at present." The dissenters must be under in- 
 finite obligations to the bishops for their benevolent 
 intentions and indefatigable exertions ! Shameful in* 
 grates ! that the thanks of the body have hot been re- 
 turned to their Lordships. The reader will take it 
 for granted, as a matter of course> that no ignorant 
 or immoral ministers are to be found in the esta^ 
 blisliment, or these episcopal gentlemen would lie 
 open to the imputation of being more concerned for 
 the respectability of the conventicle than the church* 
 The clergy ai'e all grown as meagre and squalid as 
 Pharaoh's lean kine, by mortifying the flesh with 
 watchings and fastings, prdyers and penances. They 
 are never seen at balls, assemblies, or theatres, danc- 
 ing attendance on the ladies ; nor huntings shooting, 
 
 racmg, or drinking with bo?iis vivants* It is mucli 
 
 B 
 
KIV 
 
 to be regretted, therefore, that dissenting ministers, 
 wlio are notoriously guilty of these practices, and are 
 scarcely ever to be found in their studies, should so 
 obstinately resist this laudiible attempt to reform 
 them, by their wise, pious, and virtuous neighbours I 
 
 The most puzzling part of his Grace's speech, is, 
 where he disclaims the character of a prophet, and 
 yet predicts a period iscJic7i the church of England 
 shall be no more. How is this ! Is it necessary, in 
 order to prolong her existence, that the Act of To- 
 leration should be better explained, and dissenting 
 teachers improved! — An actor spoils all when he 
 loses his mask. 
 
 When the fate of the bill was perceived, all pai» 
 ties were ready to disown it ; like a company of un- 
 lucky boys detected in a mischievous action, every 
 one eagerly cried out, " It was not me !" The Arch- 
 bishop of Canterbury " was sure, that so long as the 
 church of England should endure, she would not dis- 
 turb the dissenters." But if his Grace be really a 
 warm advocate for- religious liberty, and be quite sure 
 that the church of England is grown as harmless and 
 innocent as a lamb, how happened it that neither 
 himself, nor any of his right reverend brethren, ut- 
 tered a single word upon these subjects, till they saw 
 
the bill was lost ! When this ugly brat, which was 
 begotten, nursed, and brought up by the bishops, ap- 
 peared in public, the dissenters seized and strangled 
 it ; and its unnatural parents, when they saw that 
 all attempts to save its life were fruitless, confessed 
 that it ought to die. 
 
 All the inferior clergy have cause to dread the sup- 
 pression of methodism. Preaching against the secta- 
 ries has for some years been the high road to prefer- 
 ment. A young man who wishes to better his situation, 
 has only to obtain an appointment to preach before 
 his superiors, and to improve the opportunity by a 
 violent philippic against the dissenters, and he is sure 
 to gain his object. How many now enjoy fat bene- 
 fices and bishoprics as the reward of their zeal a- 
 gainst the enemies of our apostolic establishment. 
 No other qualifications are necessary to rise to dis- 
 tinction than an acquaintance with a few cant phrases, 
 and a good pair of lungs. For instance, to compose 
 an excellent visitation sermon, take a few rattling 
 words for your materials, such as schismatics, 
 atheists, rebels, traitors, miscreants, monsters, fana- 
 tics, enthusiasts, hypocrites, apostolic church, excel- 
 lent estabUshment, holy priesthood, sacred order, 
 pious clergy,^impiety, blasphemy, damnation : " Stir 
 tliese together in a warm head, and after a very little 
 B 2 
 
XVI 
 
 shaking bring them out, scum and all; distribute 
 tlieia into several periods, and your work is done*." 
 Take this precious composition into the pidpit, 
 bellow away with all your might before patrons, 
 doctors, and bishops, and you have made your for- 
 tune. 
 
 It is a matter of vast importance, that the dis- 
 senters keep united* The late attack was upon the 
 whole body; when this was perceived, all parties 
 joined and defeated it at a single sti'oke. Should 
 another attempt be made, it will most probably be 
 made against a single sect, in the hope that the other 
 sects will look on as uninterested spectators. But if 
 the wolf of persecution be permitted to tear a single 
 sheep, it is foolish to talk of the rest of the flock 
 being in safety : he will not leave the fold while one 
 remains alive. First divide and then destroy, has 
 always been the policy of the prince of darkness; 
 imd he has generally taken his measures with so 
 muph caution and secrecy, that his object has not 
 been perceived, till it was too late to defeat it. But 
 after the late conspiracy against our religious liber- 
 ties has. been detected, exposed and crushed, if one 
 party can be lulled to sleep wliile another is robbed 
 cf its most valuable privileges, and thus, in suc- 
 
 * Bradbury. 
 
xvu 
 
 cession, the ruin of all denominations be effected^ 
 posterity, instead of pitying their fate, will contem- 
 plate, with holy indignation, that criminal indiffe- 
 rence to each others interests by which it was 
 merited. The recently formed society for the pro- 
 tection of our religious Hberties^ is a laudable and 
 necessary institution; it ought to be, and it is hoped 
 will be, joined by every religious community, that 
 the influence of all may be exerted in the defence of 
 each, and then our privileges will be preserved, 
 inviolate.. 
 
 Those who wish to stop the progress of Me* 
 thodism by restriction or coercion, ought to know, 
 from the experience of all ages, that persecution has 
 never weakened a sect, but when it has been con- 
 ducted upon the broad principle of extermination; 
 and not always even then. During the three first 
 centuries, the bush grew and flourished in the fire. 
 After all the sufferings of the puritans under Eliza- 
 beth and the two succeeding princes, instead of their 
 being suppressed or diminished, it turned out that 
 more than half the nation had embraced their reli- 
 gious system. And though the nonconformists were 
 treated with greater rigour than the puritans, their 
 interest gained ground daily, and was sufficiently, 
 strong at the revolution, to turn the scale on tiie $ide 
 B 3 
 
XVlll 
 
 of liberty. In a word, persecution will defeat its 
 own end, if it do not, to use a common and vulgar 
 expression, hang Vicm all up together ; but those who 
 arc for using this summary method of extirpating 
 heresy, ought to reflect, that Haman swung upon 
 the gallows which he had erected for MordecaL 
 
 The dissenters have hitherto prided themselves 
 upon their loyalty and patriotism ; and it is astonish- 
 ing how few of them, in comparison of churchmen^ 
 have been convicted of disaffection to the govern- 
 ment, or of any crimes against the peace and good 
 order of society; yet they have often been charged 
 with conspiring against both church and state. All 
 this abuse has been patiently borne, under a per- 
 suasion that our pious, venerable, antl much esteem- 
 ed Sovereign knew the contrary, and did not love 
 them the less on account of their nonconformity* 
 His olfactory nerves were not so delicate as to smell 
 jacobinism in every creed which differed from his^ 
 o^vn. His Royal Highness the Prince Regent, it is 
 believed, entertains the liberal and enlightened sen- 
 timents of his august Father ; and while he exercises 
 the royal authority in the equal protection of all 
 classes of his subjects, in the free enjoyment of their 
 civil and religious rights, he will not find the dissen- 
 XerB behind the Aiost bigotted churchmen, in affec- 
 
XIX 
 
 tion to his person and zeal for his government. But 
 were the abominable lies of a set of incendiaries to 
 obtain credit, and were an abridgement of our reli- 
 gious liberties to be the consequence, they would, 
 most probably, cause the very evil of which they so « 
 loudly complain ; for it is no easy matter for a man 
 to retain his loyalty when it is tried by a prison, a 
 pillory) or a halter. 
 
 The practice of persecution by any church, is a 
 sei'ious objection to its title as apostoHcal. Chry- 
 sostom has a pertinent remark upon this subject: 
 " Does the sheep, says he, ever persecute the wolf? 
 No, but the wolf the sheep. So Cain persecuted 
 Abel, not Abel Cain ; so Ishmael persecuted Isaac, 
 not Isaac Ishmael; so the Jews Christ, not Christ 
 the Jews; so heretics the christians, not christians 
 heretics."* Dr Jortin observes, that " to banish, 
 imprison, plunder, starve, hang, and burn men for 
 religion, is not the gospel of Christ ; it is the gospel 
 of the devil. Where persecution begins, Christianity 
 ends. Christ never used any thing that looked like 
 force or violence, except once ; and that was to 
 drive bad men out of thje temple, and not to drive 
 them in."f 
 
 * Quoted by Jewel, Apol. p. 543, 
 f Jortin's Sermon on Persecution. . 
 
TliG following pages are not committed to the 
 pref^s with a view to serve the interests of any one 
 denomination of christians in particular, but to de- 
 fend the practice of dissenting ministers and churches 
 in general. Though the author lias not replied to 
 any single work which has appeared on the other 
 side of the question, he presumes to think, that he 
 lias more than answered fifty publications in support 
 of bigotry and intolerance. 
 
 And what is this D. Isaac who volunteers his ser- 
 vices in behalf of the whole body of dissenters ? The 
 author has no wish to draw public attention from the 
 book to himself; but as he is aware that readers are 
 usually inquisitive after authors ; and that, conse- 
 quently, it will soon be known beyond the sphere of 
 his acquaintance to what sect he belongs ; he will 
 anticipate all enquiries by an open avowal, because 
 it will furnish him with an opportunity of explain- 
 ing a point, which otherwise might lead some people 
 into mistake. Know then, that this D. Isaac, is an 
 itinerant preacher in the Wcsleyan connexion. " A 
 Methodist preacher ! " exclaims one ; and another, 
 ** Why we always thought that Methodists were 
 stanch churchmen ! " This is a point to be explaineiL 
 A peculiar excellence in the constitution of Metho- 
 dism is this : People are not required to withdraw 
 
XXI 
 
 from other religious communities when they become 
 members of the Methodist societies : A churchman 
 may remain a churchman still, and a dissenter a dis- 
 senter still. Mr Wesley was a churchman. Nine 
 tenths of those who joined his societies had made no 
 previous profession of religion at all. He advised 
 them to go to church ; and most of them complied. 
 As the greater pai't of his people thus became church- 
 men, the preachers, who were selected from among 
 them, were generally well affected towards the esta- 
 blishment, and exhorted their hearers to attend the 
 ministry of the regular clergy. 
 
 This was the state of things for some time. In 
 point of fact the greater part of both preachers and 
 people were churchmen ; but this was owing to the 
 circumstances stated above, and not to any law of 
 the connexion requiring the members to profess 
 churchism : Liberty was all along allowed ; and 
 a few from the first dissented from the establish- 
 ment. 
 
 . It is also a fact, that of late years, many of the 
 Methodists have become dissenters ; and it is doubt- 
 ful with the author, whether it be proper no^a to de- 
 signate them generally as churchmen. The princi- 
 pal cause of this incx'easing secession from the church 
 
XXJl 
 
 is to be found in the conduct of the clergy. TlicJ- 
 have preached away so histily against Metlio- 
 dism, that though the people crouched and fawn- 
 ed for some time, like spaniels under the lasl), they 
 were obliged at last to take to their heels and run 
 away. 
 
 The author is a dissenter in principle. He is 
 sensible, how^ever, that many sentiments contained 
 in his book, have no place in the creed of a respect- 
 able number of his brethren ; and as some of them 
 have written him on the subject, and expostulated 
 with him on the impropriety of publishing opinions 
 which are not generally held by the religious body 
 to which lie belongs, under an idea that the public 
 might impute his peculiar notions to all the preachers, 
 and thus include them in the censure, if censure be 
 incurred, which is due only to himself, — he wishes 
 it to be distinctly understood, that in publishing this 
 piece he is not the organ of his brethren in the 
 ministry, and that the praise or blam^ which may be 
 awarded, belongs to himself alone. 
 
 If it should be objected, that the liberty contended 
 for in the follo\ving pages is not enjoyed by the Me- 
 thodist societies, the author thinks the objector is 
 mistaken. The present members were perfectly at 
 
liberty in joining the societies, and they have the 
 same liberty to wdthdi'aw whenever they think pro- 
 per. They are the guardians of orthodoxy ; for if 
 they are of opinion that their ministers preach false 
 doctrines, hve wicked lives, or neglect discipline, 
 they have a power of dismissing them. With re- 
 spect to the choice of ministers, the members prefer 
 the itinerant plan, as they find it more edifying to 
 have a succession of preachers, than to be restricted 
 to the labours of an individual for life. Upon this 
 plan it is impossible for the people to have a liberty 
 of choice as to particular preachers, because two or 
 more societies might wish to have the same man; 
 they therefore chuse to receive such as are appointed 
 by Conference, rather than be confined to a single 
 stated minister. 
 
 The liberty pleaded for m these sheets, is not a 
 liberty in behalf of individuals to infringe upon the 
 rights of societies. Every member of a society ought 
 to conform to its regulations, or quietly withdraw. 
 Imposition is more hateful in individuals than in 
 connuunities, as it is more unreasonable for a hundred 
 to yield to one, than for one to yield to a hundred. 
 This is so generally admitted, that factious persons 
 seldom forget to plead, that they are acting in behalf 
 
xxiv 
 
 of the pcopir, and that their wishes are the wishes of 
 the jycople* 
 
 When it is asserted, that every man has a right to 
 be of what reh'gion he pleases, it is not meant that he 
 has this right independent of God, but merely inde- 
 pendent of his fellow creatures. Every man is re- 
 sponsible to God, and is obliged in conscience to be 
 guided by his word in religious matters. If he takes 
 up with a false religion, he will have to suffer the 
 consequences of it in another world ; but that is sure- 
 ly enough, without his being subjected to pains and 
 penalties in this. He does not sin against man by 
 adopting an erroneous creed, and worshiping with 
 
 * A few turbulent spirits, some years ago, agitated the Methodist 
 societies. The burden of theii" song was, that the preachers were ty- 
 rants, and the people suffering the most grievous oppressions; that 
 pothing -could save the connexion but a new constitution, founded 
 upon, what they termed, more liberal principlee, &c. The preachersr 
 conscious of their own integrity, and of the attachment of the members 
 in general to the old plan, refused to concede woat was so peremptori- 
 ly demanded The friends of the j)eople, as they styled themselves* 
 separated ; formed their new constitution ; and invited the people to 
 enter into the glorious liberty of the children of God. It turned out 
 that about one in eigliteen joined the new connexion ; so that one was 
 the people, and the other seventeen were nothing at all ! History fur- 
 nishes innumerable examples of this kind. The one had a right i.o 
 withdraw, if 1-e felt dissatisfied ; but he had no right to attempt the 
 imposition of his new yoke upon the necks of his brethren. 
 
3CXV 
 
 ridiculous rites and ceremonies ; but against his 
 Maker, and he ought to be left to the judgment of 
 God. 
 
 The strictures on the clergy in this little book are 
 not intended to apply to the moderate party, — for 
 with some of them the author is acquainted, and the 
 whole of them he highly respects ; — but to the high>- 
 flyers, who are for driving to the devil, in a chariot 
 of fire, all who refuse subjection to their spiritual au- 
 thority. Some readers will perhaps blame the au- 
 thor for not writing with perfect calmness and gra- 
 vity. The fact is, he has a great dislike to writing 
 controversy ; and as the subject was unpleasant, it 
 may possibly have had an unhappy influence upon 
 his temper. In walking through a village, liis pleas- 
 ing meditations on rural scenery, have sometimes 
 been interrupted by the barking of little insignifi- 
 cant curs ; while the noisy animals have kept at a 
 respectful distance, he has walked on, regardless of 
 their anger ; but when they have grown bolder and 
 attempted to bite, he has felt indignant and kicked 
 them away. Bigots have been long barking, and 
 he took no notice of them; but of late they have 
 attempted to bite; it became necessary to chastise 
 their folly, but it was neither easy nor necessary to 
 
 do this with much sweetness of temper. Persecution 
 
 C 
 
xxvt 
 
 is a furious, impudent fiend, which cannot be driven 
 away with a few fine, soft words. The language of 
 these sheets, however, is courtly, when compared 
 with the anti-methodistical publications of the day. 
 Till the enemies of the sectaries learn better man- 
 ners, they must submit to a little rough usage: — 
 " A whip for the horse, a bridle for the ass, and a 
 rod for the fool's back." 
 
 Since these sheets were ready for the press, the 
 author has seen a well written pamphlet by Mr 
 Hare, on " The exclusive claims of Episcopal Or- 
 dination examined and rejected." As the subjects 
 discussed in both works ai'e in some particulars the 
 same, the reader will not be surprised to find that 
 both wnters have, in some instances, emploj^ed the 
 samte arguments. The points of resemblance, how- 
 ever, are not very numerous; and where the argu- 
 ments happen to be the same, they are set in dif- 
 ferent lights ; the author, therefore, did not deem it 
 necessary to make any alterations. He has several 
 quotations from the Homilies, and one from I)r 
 Doddridge, which adorn Mr H's pages; but these 
 
XXVll 
 
 are so excellent, that he could not find in his heart 
 to draw his pen through them. He has not borrowed 
 a single sentiment from Mr H's performance, nor al- 
 tered a single line since reading it. He is sensible 
 that he might have improved his work by adopting 
 some of Mr H's masterly reasonings ; but he is too 
 honest and too idle to do it. 
 
 C2 
 
ESSAY I. 
 
 ON THE UNINTERRUPTED SUCCESSION^ 
 
 JMosT Episcopalians hold, that Jesus Christ im- 
 parted to the Apostles the gift of the Holy Ghost 
 for the office and work of the ministry; gind that 
 they conferred this gift, by the rite of ordination, 
 upon their coadjutors and immediate successors, from 
 whom have descended to the present time, a regular 
 succession of episcopally ordamed, and divinely in-, 
 spired ministers. 
 
 All who are included in this succession are deemed. 
 regular clergymen, who are fully qualified for the 
 office of spiritual guides, and whose labours are ac- 
 companied with the divine blessing. On the other 
 hand, it is stiffly maintained, that those ministers 
 who cannot trace their spiritual descent through this 
 episcopal line, are unauthorised and unaccredited 
 teachers, intruders into the sacred ministry, vaia 
 pretenders to inspiration, and deceivers of the people, 
 merely because they have not received the Holy 
 Spirit into their noSdles, like a spark of electric fire 
 through the finger ends of a right reverend prelate*. 
 
 c3 
 
so 
 
 The scheme of high churchmen, for the sake of 
 consistency, should be carried a little farther. It 
 should be extended to family worship. The suc- 
 cession is of importance only as it is the channel 
 through which the Spirit of God is supposed to be 
 conveyed to his ministers ; and the influence of the 
 Holy Ghost, in divine worship, is of importance only 
 on the presumption that no religious service can be 
 of any benefit without it. But should you allow the 
 Holy Spirit to assist a layman in teaching his fa- 
 mily, how can you deny divine assistance to the 
 same person when holding forth in the conventicle ? 
 To make the succession of any value, it ought to be 
 shewn, that no person can read the scriptures, pray, 
 or teach, to edification, in his family, without first 
 receiving the episcopal benediction ; and then every 
 householder must either be ordained a priest him- 
 self, or keep one under his roof, or not suffer any 
 religious service to be performed in his house. 
 
 But further, suppose a few neighbours or rela- 
 tions should be present at family worship, will the 
 Holy Spirit be startled at the appearance of these 
 strangers and take his flight ? or will he continue his 
 aid, that all present may receive a blessing? The 
 new Act of Toleration permits twenty strangers to 
 be present at family worship ; * and I have never 
 heard that the clergy object to this as unlawful or 
 irregular, A master of a family then may instruct 
 
 ♦ More than twenty may be present at a revel, and there is nothing 
 the matter : but moral instruction, and devotion, is, with many people, 
 a greater sin than drunkenness. 
 
SI 
 
 and pray with his wife, eight children, six servants, 
 and twenty others, without committing a church- 
 sin, though here is a congregation of thirty-five per- 
 sons ; which is more than assemble in many parish 
 churches for divine service. Here the Spirit ha^ 
 free course. It would require a profound casuist to 
 shew, that though he may do all this legally and 
 profitably, yet it would be sinfiil in him to hold a 
 meeting with the same persons in another house, 
 or with thirty-five other persons in his own house. 
 The Bramins taught, according to Arrian, that no 
 private sacrifice would be acceptable to the gods, if 
 not presented by one of the sacred order ; and if the 
 succession be a matter of any consequence, the pri- 
 vate worship of christians should be dispatched to 
 heaven by an episcopal priest* 
 
 It deserves to be noticed too, that public instruc- 
 tion may be given by writmg as well as by preaching. 
 Is it not to the fiill as wicked in a layman to address 
 us from the press, as from the pulpit? Shall we 
 then anathematise the theological writings of Locke, 
 Lyttleton, West, Addison, &c., merely because the 
 authors were not in holy orders ? No advocate for 
 the succession, I presume, will carry matters quite 
 so far as this. And yet it must be extremely absurd 
 to permit the laity to write on the subject of reli- 
 gion, but forbid them to speak upon it. He must 
 be a subtle Jesuit who can prove, that a layman may 
 print a discourse which will edify all his readers; 
 but should he preach it, it will poison all his hearers. 
 Is the same sermon, as it comes from the pen, the 
 
S2 
 
 savour of life unto life; but as it comes from the- 
 tongue, the savour of death unto death ! ! ! 
 
 Another little circumstance should not be omitted 
 here. It is well known that laymen, and even /«?/- 
 *wome7}^ have sometimes composed the discourses 
 which the clergy preach. As the authors do not 
 belong to the sacred order, it may be doubtful 
 whether such productions can profit a congregation 
 of the faithful; but the holy orators may possibly 
 possess the art of putting spirit and life into these 
 carnal compositions ! 
 
 Once more, when it is affirmed that episcopalians 
 only, have a right to teach religion, it is not in- 
 tended, we may hope, that other people have no 
 right to talk about it. But how shall we draw the 
 line betwixt conversation and preaching? To talk 
 to one or two persons about their souls may possibly 
 not be thought an invasion of the priest's office. 
 But how far may the layman venture ? may he con- 
 verse with five, ten, twenty, or a hundred people at 
 once, without transgressing the law of holy orders? 
 One would hope that a discourse from which one or 
 two might receive profit, could do no harm to fifty 
 or a hundred. In some parts of tlfe east, according 
 to Dr Buchanan, the preacliing of the priest is a 
 sort of religious conversation carried on between 
 him and the people. He asks questions, and they 
 return answers. If it should be saM that the laity 
 may talk about religion any where but in a })lace of 
 worship, — it may be demanded, and why not there 
 
53 
 
 too ? Can any place be too sacred for religious im- 
 provement ? If a layman be permitted to open his 
 mouth upon so sacred a subject, I am afraid it will 
 be difficult to prove that he has not as much right to 
 instruct a thousand people as two or three. Philip 
 is said to have preached to the eunuch ; but this 
 preaching was nothing more than an instructive con- 
 versation. Acts, viii. 30. &c. 
 
 ** No bishop, no church'* is a favourite saying 
 with the advocates for the succession. If there be 
 any truth in this saying, it is fatal to the sentiment 
 which has given it birth. " We find bishops," says 
 Stillingfleet, " discontinued for a long time in the 
 greatest churches. For if there be no church with- 
 out a bishop, where was the church of Rome, when, 
 from the martyrdom of Fabian, and the banishment 
 of Lucius, the church was governed only by the 
 clergy ? So the church of Carthage, when Cyprian 
 was banished ; the church of the east, when Mile- 
 tius of Antioch, Eusebius, Samosatenus, Pelagius of 
 Laodicea, and the rest of the orthodox bishops were 
 banished for ten years space, and Flavianus and 
 Diodorus, two presbyters, ruled the church of An- 
 tioch the mean while. The church of Carthage was 
 twenty-four years without a bishop, in the time of 
 Hunneric, king of the Vandals; and when it was 
 offered them that they might have a bishop," they 
 refiised to accept of him.* 
 
 * Stillingfleet's Irenicuin, Ch. vii, p. 576. 
 
34» 
 
 The succession cannot be supported without ad- 
 mitting the church of Rome to be a true churchy 
 and her priests tiie ministers of Christ. But as the 
 papists are not polite enough to return tlie com* 
 phment to the church of England and her clergy, 
 many weak and timorous persons, in order to be on 
 the safe side, embrace popery. What bishop Bur- 
 net says of James II. is worth transcribing: it 
 shews how easy it is to convert a high churchman to 
 the catholic faith. " He gave me this account of 
 his changing his religion. When he escaped out of 
 the hantls of the earl of Northumberland, who had 
 the charge of his education trusted to him by the 
 parliament, and had used him with great respect, all 
 due care was taken, as soon as he got beyond sea, to 
 form him to a strict adherence to the church of 
 England. Among other things, much was said of 
 the authority of the church, and of the tradition from 
 the apostles i?i support of episcopacy. So that when 
 he came to observe that there was more reason to 
 submit to the catholic church than to one particidar 
 church, and that other traditions might be taken 
 on her word, as well as episcopacy was received a- 
 mong us, he thought this step was not great, but 
 that it was very reasonable to go over to the church 
 of Rome. And Dr Steward having taught him to 
 believe a real but unconceivable presence of Christ 
 in the sacrament, he thought this went more than 
 half way to tran substantiation *." 
 
 * History of his own Times. Vol. I. p, 275, 276. 
 
:S5 
 
 A successionist maintains that the ministrations of 
 others are invalid, from whence it follows, that those 
 whom they baptize are not christians. Archbishop 
 Seeker was baptized by a dissenting minister, who 
 had not episcopal ordination, his grace therefore was 
 not a christian, and all his ministrations, of course, 
 were of none effect. Now, it is a remarkable fact, 
 and desendng of special notice by bigots, that Seeker 
 baptized the King, and most of the Royal Fami- 
 ly*, it will follow, from this high-ohurch logic, that 
 they were notdnade christians. I should be glad to 
 know what sort of a body the church of England 
 was, when its spiritual and political heads were both 
 infidel ? The apostle informs us that " from the head 
 the whole body is fitly joined together and compact- 
 ed ;" which figure, if we may apply it to this case, 
 will prove that the church was infidel from the crown 
 of the head to the sole of the foot. 
 
 If it be true that tlie Holy Ghost is solely at the 
 disposal of the bishops, is tied to the succession, and 
 has no possible way of access to a minister but through 
 the medium of episcopal hands ; it must follow, 
 since the success of the ministry depends upon the 
 divine blessing, that it is absolutely necessary, not 
 only that priests should be episcopally ordained, but 
 that their people should be able to trace their spirit- 
 ual descent from some apostle. Every man must be 
 damned, according to this prelatical divinity, who is 
 not under the guidance of a minister included in the 
 
 * Eclectic Review, Vol. vi. p. 568. 
 
Succession. As the laity are so deeply interested in 
 this affair, they ought to be furnished with faithful 
 copies of all the orders received by the succession of 
 priests, who have transmitted the Holy Ghost from 
 an apostle down to their present pastor. Without 
 this they can be at no certainty respecting their sal- 
 vation. It can avail them nothing to believe the di- 
 vinity of the scriptures, repeat an orthodox creed, 
 worship with a most excellent liturgy, receive the sa- 
 craments with the profoundest reverence, practise 
 christian morality with the greatest strictness, and 
 rejoice in the hope of heavenly bhss with the most 
 rapturous delight, — if their parson be not in the suc- 
 cession, they will soon be in hell. This point, there- 
 fore, must be settled first of all ; and it would be fol- 
 ly to enter on a religious course before the succes- 
 sion is scrupulously traced, and clearly made out. 
 
 No clerg)mian, however, has had the goodness to 
 favour his flock with this famous history. Not one 
 in fifty of the people know who ordained their priest, 
 and not one in a thousand know who consecrated the 
 bishop *. 
 
 * " No man ever did to this day,'* says Mr. Baxter, " demonstrate 
 such a succession, for the proof of his ministry j nor can all our im* 
 portunity jirevail with papists to give us such a proof. It is a thing 
 impossible for any man now alive, to prove the regular ordination of 
 all his predecessors to the apostles' days, yea or any ordination at all. 
 How can you tell that he that ordained you, did not counterfeit him- 
 self to lie ordained ? or, at least, that he was not ordained by an un- 
 ordained man ? or that his predecessors were not so ? It is a mere im- 
 possibility for us to know any such thing j we have no evidence to 
 prove it." 
 
31 
 
 It IS a singular circumstance, that churchmen 
 should make the validity of their ministrations td 
 depend upon the succession, when not one of them 
 pretends to trace it ; but all agree to make confident 
 assertions supply the place of proof. This is the 
 more remarkable, as they are liberal enough in the 
 production of historical evidence, to support mat- 
 ters of minor importance. When, for instance, 
 the dispute relates to some trivial ceremonies, a 
 folio is soon filled with citations from the primitive 
 fathers. 
 
 In disputing with the Methodists, the clergy very 
 often call for a miracle, in proof of their inspiration. 
 A Methodist pleads that he received the Spirit im- 
 mediately from God, in answer to prayer ; a church- 
 man, that he received the Spirit from the bishop, by 
 the imposition of hands. Now, why should we be 
 credulous enough to be satisfied with a mere ipse 
 dixit, in one case, and require even a miracle to 
 overcome our scepticism in the other ? Is not God 
 both as able and as willing to give the Holy Ghost, 
 
 " If the foresaid uninteirupted succession be necessary to the being 
 oi' our ministry, or churches, or ordinances, then it is incumbent on 
 all that will prove the truth of their ministry, churches, or ordinances* 
 to prove the said succession. But this is not true ; for then none 
 could prove any of them. Either it is meet that we be able to prove 
 the truth of our ministry, churches, and administrations, or not. If 
 not, then why do the adversaries call us to it ? If yea, then no man 
 among the churches in Europe, on their grounds, hath any proof; 
 and therefore must not pretend to the ministry, churches, or ordi- 
 nances ; but we must all turn Seekers to-day, and infidels to-morrow.' * 
 Baxter's Disputations, p. 169-175. 
 
 D 
 
 P 
 
98 
 
 fiS a l)Isliop? TliG Methodist, liowcvcr, does iKit, 
 like his opponents, desire his mere assertion to sii}>- 
 j)ly the place of evidence ; he believes he can prove 
 his inspiration without disturbing the order of na- 
 ture ; he appeals to the purity of his doctrine, the 
 inteoi'itv of his character, and the success of his la- 
 bours; he insists that these evidences are sufficient, 
 without shewino: siffns from heaven ; he is ready to 
 dispute this point with his adversaries ; and he will 
 allow them to call him an enthusiast and a fanatic, 
 when they have shewn that his ground is untenable. 
 A miracle ought only to be demanded, when no 
 other sufficient proof can be produced, and then the 
 demand is reasonable. The churchman affirms, that 
 110 man is a true minister who is not included in the 
 succession ; the succession, therefore, must be proved 
 to justify his ministry. But, strange to tell ! he has 
 no proof to offer. Upon his own principles, there- 
 fore, he must either work, a miracle to supply the de- 
 fect of historical evidence or expose himself to a re- 
 tort of the charge of enthusiasm and fanaticism, for 
 pretending to have received the Spirit of God from a 
 man, who, it is doubtful, never possessed it. 
 
 As the clergy do not chuse to give us the history 
 of this succession, I have a right to assume tliat they 
 cannot do it ; but as so much stress is laid upon it, 
 and as they take it for granted that they are all in 
 it, I will shew that this famous succession cannot be 
 proved, and that there is very strong presumptive 
 evidence, that our episcopalians are all out of it. 
 
39 
 
 TertuUian is quoted with triumph by the clergy, 
 as though he had brought the succession down to 
 the present generation of bishops. Speaking of the 
 heretics, this holy father demands, " Let them 
 shew us the original of their churches, and give us a 
 catalogue of their bishops in an exact succession from 
 first to last, whereby it may appear, that their first 
 bishop had either some apostle, or some apostolical 
 man, living in the time of the apostles, for his author 
 or immediate predecessor. For thus it is that apo- 
 stolical churches make their reckoning. The church 
 of Smyrna counts up to Polycarp, ordained by St 
 John ; the church of Rome to Clemens, ordained by 
 St Peter ; and so all other churches in like manner 
 exhibit their first bishops ordained by the apostles, 
 by whom the apostolical seed was propagated and 
 conveyed to others." * 
 
 It will be proper to make two or three remarks on 
 this celebrated passage. 
 
 I. It appears that in the second century, when 
 this flither flourished, there were many heretical 
 bishops not included in the succession. Even in the 
 apostolic age, there were false apostles and false 
 teachers, and the church in all ages since, has com- 
 plained of swarms of unauthorised and unaccredited 
 ministers. Now, how can we know that our bishops 
 are the lineal descendants of the apostles, and not 
 rather derived from the heretics, unless they cau. 
 
 * Tertul. de Prescript, c. 32i 
 P2 
 
40 
 
 'r give us a catalogue of their bishops, in an exact 
 succession from first to last," and shew us the apostle 
 from whom they originate ? For if it were necessary 
 in the days of Tertullian, that a bishop, in order to 
 prove his legitimacy, should make out an ejcact cata- 
 logue of all his predecessors, how much more neces- 
 sary must it be 7iou\ when so many thousands have, 
 since that time, intruded into the episcopal office. 
 
 II. Though we have Tertullian's authority for it^ 
 that the heretical bishops were not in the successionj 
 yet it was the custom of the church, when these he- 
 retics returned to her communion, to permit them 
 to retain the rank of bishops without re-ordination. 
 Thus the African and Roman churches received the. 
 donatist bishops, upon their repentance ; and, with- 
 out giving them new orders, permitted them to ex- 
 ercise their pastoral functions. Bingham has shewn 
 this at large : " Anisius, bishop of Thessalonica, 
 with a council of his provincial bishops, agreed to 
 receive those whom Bonosus, an heretical bishop of 
 Macedonia, had ordained. — Liberius admitted the 
 Macedonian bishops to communion, and allowed 
 them to continue in their office, upon their sub- 
 scription to the Nicene creed, and abjuration of their 
 former heresy. The general council of Ephesusj^ 
 made an order concerning the Massalian heretics, 
 otherwise called Eiichitcs and Enthicasts, that if any 
 of their clergy would return to the church, and in 
 writing, anathematise their former errors, they 
 should continue in the same station they were in be- 
 
41 
 
 fore. The council of Nice is thought* to hav^ 
 made the like decree in favour of the Novatian cler- 
 gy. And there is nothing more certain, than that 
 the African fathers so treated the Donatist. f " When 
 it is considered how many hundreds of heretical 
 bishops, who were out of the succession, have in 
 several ages been received into the church, and that 
 these, by ordaining others, have perpetuated a race 
 of prelates in the churchy not lineally descended from 
 the apostles ; there is much room to fear, that the 
 true succession is run out, and that the present 
 bishops are the offspring of the spurious race of he? 
 retics. 
 
 But admitting there are still some legitimate de- 
 scendants of the apostles, the odds are many against 
 
 * There is no room for a moment's iloubt upon this subject. The 
 following is the canon : « As to ihose who call tnemselves puritans, 
 if they come over to the catholic and apostolic church, the holy bjnod 
 decrees, that they loho are vrdained shall continue in the dcrgy ;^ Ivav- 
 Ing first professed in writing, that they will adhere to theclecrees of 
 the catholic church ; that is, that they will communicate with those 
 that have married a second time, and. such as have lapsed under per- 
 secution, (who have had a. time given, and a term fixed for their p,- 
 nance), so tbat th^y will in all things follow the doctrine of the catho.- 
 lie church. When none but they are found to be ordained in any city 
 or village, t/uy shall all. remain in the same order; but if any come 
 over where there is a bishop or priest of the catholic church, it is clear 
 that the bishop of the church ought to retain his dignity; and lie that 
 had been called a bishop by the puritans, shall have the hono:.r of a 
 priest, unless the bishop think fit to impart to him the nominal honour 
 [of a bishop]. Otherwise he shall pjrovide for him the place of a vil. 
 Jage bishop, or priest; that so- there may not be two bishops in one 
 f'ty. Canon 8. See Clergyman's Vade-mecum, part ii, p, 49, 50. 
 fBmgham's Antiquities, b,-iv. ch. 7. ssct. 8, 
 
our IhUgUsli bishops being of that imniber — tliey are 
 so few in comparison of the immense muUitudes 
 which formerly belonged to the Romish church ; 
 and as there is no possible way of distinguishing the 
 true from the false, but by giving the exact cata- 
 logue, the production of this curious document is 
 absolutely necessary, in order to obtain any satisfac- 
 tion respecting the apostolical origin of our prelates. 
 But who can make out this catalogue of bishops, 
 from the apostles down to the present day, without 
 including a single heretic in it? I feel no hesitation 
 in replying, No man living. 
 
 III. The succession was deemed important by 
 TertuUian, not because the bishops communicated 
 the Holy Ghost, for no one made such shocking 
 pretensions till many centuries afterwards ; but be- 
 cause, " by them the apostolical doctrine was pro- 
 pagated and conveyed to others." The heretics, 
 i.ffainst whom this father wrote, esteemed some writ- 
 jngs sacred, which were evidently spurious, and re- 
 jected others which the orthodox could prove to be 
 sacred. Those churches which were planted by the 
 apostles and their coadjutors, to whom the gospels 
 and epistles were originally intrusted, were better 
 qualified to judge what writings were truly apostoli- 
 cal, than churches which were founded but yester- 
 day, by bishops who held no intercourse with the 
 catholics. The apostohcal origin of churches, was a 
 matter of as much importance in this controversy, 
 as the uninterrupted succession of bishops. "^ Let 
 them shew us the original of their churches* The 
 
43 
 
 ckurcli of Smyrna counts up to Polycarp, ordained 
 by St John, — and all other churches exhibit their 
 first bishops ordained by the apostles." The church 
 of England was not planted by an apostle, nor did 
 an apostle ordain its first bishops. 
 
 Though the bishops in the primitive churches had 
 the custody of the divine records, yet it is not to be 
 supposed, that they were the only persons capable of 
 preserving the sacred depositum inviolate. Tertul- 
 lian was so far from thinking so, that in another 
 place* he speaks of the churches themselves as keep- 
 ing the holy books. Bishop StilUngfleet's remark 
 upon this is to the point : " What he spoke before 
 of the persons, (i. e. the bishops), he now speaks of 
 the churches themselves planted by the apostles, 
 which, by retaining the authentic epistles of the apos- 
 tles sent to them, did thereby sufficiently jprescribe 
 to all, the novel opinions of the heretics. We see 
 then, evidently, that it is the doctrine which they 
 speak of as to succession, and the persons no further 
 than as they are the conveyers of that doctrine. 
 Either, then, it must be proved, that a succession of 
 some persons in apostolical power, is necessary for 
 the conveying of this doctrine to men, or no argu- 
 ment at all can be inferred from hence for their suc- 
 ceeding the apostles in their power, because they 
 are said to convey the apostolical doctrine to suc- 
 ceeding ages.^f 
 
 * De Prescript, advers. Heret. cap. 55. 
 
 f Stillingfleet's Irenicuxn, pt. ii. ch. 6. p. 305^ 
 
44 
 
 IV. If it bo still contended, that Tertullian ii 
 pleading for an uninterrupted succession of epis- 
 copally ordained ministers, as the only medium 
 through which the Holy Ghost is conveyed to suc- 
 ceeding ages, it is sufficient to reply, that the autho- 
 rity of this father is fiital to the church of England. 
 We have a right to demand, in his own words, of 
 those churchmen who acknowledge his authority, 
 *' Shew us the original of your church, and give us a 
 catalogue of your bishops in an exact succession from 
 first to last, whereby it may appear, that your first 
 bishop had either some apostle, or some apostolical 
 man, living in the time of the apostles, for his author 
 or immediate predecessor. For thus it is, that ai)o- 
 stolical churches make their reckoning." But this 
 they cannot do. There is no such catalogue in ex- 
 istence. " Thus it is," says the holy father, " that 
 apostolical churches make their reckoning." But 
 thus the church of England cannot make her reck- 
 oning : the inference is undeniable, that the church 
 of England is not an apostolical church. The here- 
 tics, like our episcopalians, pretended that their 
 churches were apostolical ; but mere assertions passed 
 for nothing with our orthodox father : Give us, says 
 he, the exact catalogue ! 
 
 But let us leave Tertullian, and proceed. There 
 have been many impostors as well as heretics ; — per- 
 sons who have assumed the sacred office, and forged 
 orders.* These ordained multitudes in different 
 
 * " When I was young," says Mr Baxter, «' I lived in a village 
 
45 
 
 ages of the church ; they could not communicate 
 to others what they had not received themselves; 
 it follows, that all the descendants of these reli- 
 gious cheats must be pronounced, in the words 
 of the apostle,. *' sensual, not having the spirit.'* 
 Now, how can it be made appear that our modern 
 prelates are not descended from these spiritual im- 
 postors? 
 
 It is worthy of enquiry, what will become of the 
 people who are under the guidance of impostors or 
 their successors? Must these simple souls be shut 
 out of heaven for the tricks of their priests ? If it 
 be said, that, because they take them for true minis* 
 ters, their ministrations are efficacious, though their 
 orders are irregular ; — this is giving up the pointy 
 and making the benefit of their services to depend, 
 
 that had but about twenty houses ; and among these there were fiv© 
 that went out into the ministry. One was an old reader, whose ori« 
 ginal we could not reach : Another was his son, whose self-ordinatioa 
 was much suspected. The other three had letters of orders, two o^ 
 them suspected to be drawn up and forged by him, and one that was 
 suspected to ordain himself. One of them, or two, at last were proved 
 to have counterfeit orders, when they had continued many years in the 
 ministry. So that this is no rare tiling. 
 
 " Among so many temptations that in so many ages since the apos- 
 tles' days, have befallen so many men, as our predecessors in the mi"- 
 nistry, or the bishops' predecessors have been, it were a wonder if all 
 of them should escape the snare. So that we have reason to take it 
 for a thing improbable, that the succession hath not been interrupted. 
 And we kno?w that in several ages of the church, the prelates and 
 priests have been so vile, tliat in reason we could expect no better^ 
 from men so vlciouS; than forgery and abusQ." Baxter's Disputa- 
 tions, p. 170. 
 
i6 
 
 not upon the legality of their ordination, but upon 
 the good opinion and pious disposition of the wor- 
 shippers. It must be remarked here, that dissenters 
 take their ministers to be true ministers ; and if this 
 be a mistake, is it not as pardonable in them a^ in 
 churchmen ? 
 
 There are insuperable obstacles in the way of 
 tracing the episcopal succession. Our bishops pre- 
 tend to be derived from the Roman catholics. But 
 it has been shewn, that the succession has been in- 
 terrupted in that church ; for some time after the 
 martyrdom of Fabian and banishment of Lucius, the 
 orthodox were governed by the inferior Clergy. It 
 is much to be feared, that the succession was inter- 
 rupted again in the person of Pelagius the first. 
 The canons of the ancient church and of the church 
 of England state, that no less than three biifhops are 
 necessary to make a bishop. But it is a well known 
 fact that this pope was ordained by only two bishops 
 and 07ie presbyter. If it requires, therefore, the 
 united powers of three bishops to inspire an epis- 
 copal brother with the Holy Ghost, and if the power 
 of a presbyter be not equal to that of a bishop, it is 
 a clear case that Pelagius was not a true bishop, and 
 that, consequently, the succession has failed. 
 
 But supposing the succession of popes had not 
 been interrupted, how do we know that their ordi- 
 nations were all valid ? It was seldom, if ever, the 
 gase that a pope ordained his succcssorj because thq, 
 
47 
 
 canons forbade It. *' The greater part of the bishops 
 who ordained the popes are perfectly unknown; 
 tlioiigli they ought not only to be know^n, but their 
 spiritual descent from St. Peter proved ; for if any 
 of them were out of the succession, it is impossible 
 they should put the popes into it. When it is con- 
 sidered by what base arts many obtained the pope- 
 dom, and that not a few of them were ordained by 
 reputed heretics and schismatics, it must be next to 
 a miracle if the succession has not been interrupted. 
 And as the exact catalogue camiot be given, a 
 miracle to supply its place ought to be wx'ought, to 
 induce a belief in any rational mind, that the chain 
 has been preserved unbroken, and that our prelates 
 are a part of St. Peter's spiritual progeny. 
 
 If the succession cannot be traced throuorh the 
 
 o 
 
 popes, it cannot be made out at all ; because there is 
 no regular succession of bishops fi'om the Apostles 
 to the present time, in any other church; and if 
 there even were, it would still be impossible to shew 
 
 * The apostolical constitutions decreed, canon 68, that " A bishop 
 13 not allowed to ordain [for a successor, as the following words clear- 
 ly shew] whom he pleases, by conferring the episcopal dignity on 
 a brother, son, or any other near relation. For it is not just that there 
 should be heirs of the episcopal office, or that what belongs to God 
 should be given according to the affections of men, nor the church be 
 ^brought under the lews of inheritance. If any one do tliis, let the or- 
 dination be null, and let him be punished by suspension from com- 
 munion." And the synod of Antioch ordained, canon 25, that " It 
 Is not lawful for a bishop to appoint his own successor, though he be 
 at the point of death. If any thing of this sort be done, let such pro- 
 vision be null."' 
 
in 
 
 that tliey were all ordained by persons duly qualified 
 to confer holy orders. 
 
 Another circumstance fatal to the episcopal suc- 
 cession, is, that in the primitive times presbyters of- 
 ten ordained persons to the ministry in general, and 
 sometimes even ordained bishops ; so that if a modern 
 bishop could reckon up to some apostle, it is ten to 
 one but when he came to trace through the three or 
 four first centuries, he would find several preshjterian 
 links in his chain, and even one of these would spoil 
 the whole. 
 
 Bishop Stillingfleet, has proved, from Jerom and 
 the Canonists, that " In the primitive church the 
 presbyters all acted in common for the welfare of the 
 church, and either did, or might, ordain others, to 
 the same authority with themselves; because the in- 
 trinsical power of order is equally in them, and in 
 those who were after appointed governors over pres- 
 byters. And the collation of orders doth come fi'om 
 the power of order, and not merely from the power 
 of jurisdiction. It being likewise fully acknowledg- 
 ed by the schoolmen, that bishops are not superior 
 above presbyters as to the power of order *." He 
 informs us, in another place, that " In the year 452, 
 it appears by Leo, in his epistle to Rusticus Nar- 
 bonensis, that some presbyters took upon them to 
 ordain as bishops ; about which he was consulted by 
 Husticus what was to be done in that case with 
 
 * Irenlcum, chap. vl. p. 275. 
 
4^ 
 
 those so ordained." Leo replied, " Tliose clergy- 
 man who were ordained by such as took upon them 
 the office of bishops, in churches belonging to pro- 
 per bishops, if the ordination were performed by 
 the consent of the bishops, it may be looked on as 
 ' valid, and those presbyters remain in their office in 
 the church." So that by the consent, ex post facto, 
 of the true bishops, those presbyters, thus ordained, 
 were looked on as lawful presbyters, which could 
 not be, unless their ordainers had an intrinsical 
 power of ordination, which was only restrained by 
 the laws of the church, for if they have no power 
 of ordination, it is impossible they should confer 
 any thing by their ordination. If to this it be an- 
 swered, that the validity of their ordination did de- 
 pend upon the consent of the bishops, and that pres- 
 byters may ordain, if delegated thereto by bishops, as 
 Paulinus might ordain on that account at Antioch ; 
 it is easily answered, that this very power of doing it 
 by delegation, doth imply an intrinsical power in 
 themselves of doing it. For if presbyters be for- 
 bidden ordaining others by Scripture, then they can 
 neither do it in their own persons, nor by delega- 
 tion from others. And if presbyters have power of 
 •conferring nothing by their ordination, how can an 
 after consent of bishops make that act of theirs vahd, 
 for conferring right and power by it ? " * 
 
 The Synod of Ancyra decreed, canon 1 3. — " It 
 is not lawful for choiepiscopi to ordain presbyters or 
 
 * Irenjcum, chap. vii. p. 580, 381. 
 
 E 
 
5^ 
 
 deacons; nor for the presbyters of the city, iii ano- 
 ther parish, without the bishop's letter." This shews 
 that city presbyters might ordain any where, with 
 the bisliop's licence j and in their own parish, per- 
 il aps, without it. 
 
 Having shewn that anciently it was not disputed 
 but that presbyters had a right to ordain, it will be 
 proper to give some examples of their making 
 biihops. But before I do this, I wish to make one 
 observation. If the validity of presbyterian ordina- 
 tion be admitted, the dissenters cannot be out of the 
 succession, suppose the clergy be in it. Wesley and 
 Whitfield, the founders of two considerable sect^ 
 were both presbyters of the church of England ; the 
 founders of most of the other sects were either puri- 
 tan or nonconformist clergymen who left the estab- 
 lishment; and among them all the succession has 
 been perpetuated. 
 
 The presbyters of the church of Alexandria, ac- 
 cording to Jerom, exercised the privilege of ordain- 
 ing their own bishops, from the death of the evan- 
 gelist Mark to the time of Dionysius, a period of 
 near^two hundred years. Eutychius, patriarch of 
 Alexandria, expressly aflirms, *' That the twelve 
 presbyters, constituted by Mark, upon the vacancy 
 of the see, did chuse out of their number one to be 
 head over the rest, and the other eleven did lay their 
 hands upon him, and blessed him, and made him pa- 
 triarch." * 
 
 ♦ Stillingflcet's Irtn. chap. vi. p. 275, 274. 
 
51 
 
 It Is scarcely credible that these presbyters would 
 have had the temerity to make a bishop, had they not 
 received instructions to that effect from Mark, pre- 
 vious to his decease. The Apostle John is supposed 
 to have lived about thirty-iive years after the death 
 of this evangelist. Mr Baxter makes a pertinent ob- 
 servation upon this case : " Now I would leave it," 
 says he, " to any man's impartial consideration, whe- 
 ther it be credible that the holy Apostles, and all 
 the evangelists or assistants of them, then alive, 
 would have suffered this innovation arid corruption 
 in the church, without a plaui disowning it and re- 
 proving it? Would they silently see their newly 
 established order violated in their own days, and not 
 so much as tell the churches of the sin and danger ? 
 Or, if they had indeed done this, would none re- 
 gard it, nor remember it, so much as to resist the 
 sin ? These things are incredible." * 
 
 Here then we have an example of presbyters mak- 
 ing a bishop, in the days of the apostles, and in an 
 orthodox church, to be the immediate successor of 
 an inspired evangelist. As these presbj'ters had been 
 for years under the pupilage of Mark, they acted 
 most probably, in this instance, in obedience to hi&- 
 commands •» for it cannot be supposed that he would 
 neglect to give them full directions in an affliir of 
 such vast importance as the appointment of his 
 successor. This example would no doubt be ex- 
 tensively influential ; and the frequency of presbyte- 
 rian ordination in the primitive churches must inv 
 
 * Baxter's Dispu tat. p. 154. 
 E 2 
 
52 
 
 volve the episcopal succession in inextricable difficul- 
 ties. 
 
 If it were possible to trace the present race of 
 bishops up to their originals, it would turn out, I be- 
 lieve, in most instances, that they are derived from 
 presbyters. " If we believe Philostorgius," says 
 Stillingfleet, " the Gothic churches were planted 
 and governed by presbyters for above seventy years. 
 And great probability there is, that where churches 
 were planted by presbyters, as the church of France 
 by Andochius and Inignus, that afterwards, upon the 
 increase of churches and presbyters to rule them^ 
 they did from among themselves chuse one to be as 
 the bishop over them, as Photinus was at Lyons. 
 For we nowhere read, in those first plantations of 
 churches, that where there were presbyters already, 
 they sent to other churches to derive episcopal ordi- 
 nation from them." * 
 
 There is very strong evidence that our English 
 bishops, in particular, are derived from presbyters, 
 of the church of Scotland. From the time of their 
 conversion in the year 263, to the coming of Pal- 
 ladiiis in the year 430, the Scotch were governed 
 by presbyters (called Culdees) and monks. Bishops 
 were never much in vogue with our northern neigh- 
 bours. Austin revived their dying episcopacy ; but 
 it became extinct in about a century afterwards. 
 •< Mr Jones has undertaken to prove at large, that 
 the ordination of our English bishops cannot be 
 
 * Irenicum, chap. vii. p, 375. 
 
53 
 
 traced up to the church of Rome as its original; 
 that in the year 668, the successors of Austin, the 
 monk who came over A. D. 596, being ahnost en- 
 tirely extinct, by far the greatest part of the bishops 
 were of Scottish ordination by Aidan and Finan, 
 who came out of the Culdee monastery of Colum- 
 banus, and were no more than presbyters; though, 
 when the princes of the northern nations were con- 
 verted by them, they made them bishops ; i. e. gave 
 them aiithority over the clergy, and took other 
 bishops from among their converts. So that, de- 
 nying the validity of presbyterian ordination, shakes 
 the foundation of the episcopal church of England." * 
 
 If we try to trace the succession downwards, wa 
 are surrounded with difficulties, at the very begin- 
 ning. It must first be proved that Peter visited 
 Rome, and then that he acted as bishop there, which 
 is no easy task. But when we have fairly seated 
 him on the episcopal throne of the imperial city^ 
 I am afraid we must stop short.. 
 
 The learned are not agreed who was his imme^r 
 diate successor. " Some," says Bingham, ** reckon 
 Linus first, ^ then Anacletus, then Clemens ; others 
 begin with Clemens, and reckon him the first in or- 
 der from St Peter." f 
 
 Stillingfleet observes, that the Romish successioa 
 ^* is as muddy as the 1 yber itself. For here," says 
 
 * Doddridge's Lect. on Div. Lcct. 1 07. 
 I Antiquities, b. ii. ch, i. sect. iv. 
 
 r. 3 
 
54. 
 
 he, " Tcrtullian, Ruffiniis, and several others, place 
 Clement next to Peter. Ireneus and Eusebius set 
 Anacletus before him ; Epiphanius and Optatus, 
 both Anacletus and Cletus ; Augustiniis and Dama- 
 sus, with others, make Anacletus, Cletus, and Linus, 
 all to precede him. WTiat way shall we find to ex- 
 tricate ourselves out of the labyrinth, so as to recon- 
 cile it with the certamty of the form of government 
 in the apostles' times ? Certainly if the line of suc- 
 cession fail us here, where we most need it, we have 
 little cause to pin our faith upon it, as to the cer- 
 tainty of any particular form of church government 
 settled in the apostles' times, which can be drawn 
 from the help of the records of the primitive church, 
 which must be first cleared of all defectiveness^ avihi- 
 guityy partiality, and confusion, before the thing we 
 enquii'e for, can* be extracted out of them/' * 
 
 The same WTiter^ remarks : " In none of the 
 churches most spoken of, is the succession so clear 
 as is necessary. For at Jerusalem, it seems some- 
 what strange, how fifteen bishops of the circumcisioa 
 should be crowded into so narrow a room as they 
 are, so that many of them could not have above two 
 years to rule in the church. And it would bear an 
 inquiry, where the seat of the bishops of Jerusalem 
 was, from the time of the destruction of the city by 
 Titus, (when the walls were laid even with the 
 ground by Musonius), till the time of Adrian ; for 
 till that time, the succession of the bishops of the cir- 
 CMmcision continues. For Antioch, it is lar fi'om 
 
 ♦ Ir«n. p. ii. ch. vi. p 522^ 
 
55 
 
 being agreed, "whether Evodiiis or Ignatius succeed- 
 ed Peter or Paul, or the one Peter and the other 
 Paul. At Alexandria, where the succession runs 
 clearest, the original of the power is imputed to the 
 choice of presbyters, and to no divine institution. But 
 at Ephesus, the succession of bishops from Timothy, 
 is pleaded with the greatest confidence, and the tes- 
 timony brought for it is from Leontius, bishop of 
 Magnesia, in the council of Chalcedon, who says, 
 from Timothy to this day, there hath been a succession 
 of seven and twenty bishops, all of them ordained in 
 EphesusJ* Two members of the council proved, 
 however, that several of the bishops of Ephesus were 
 not ordained in that city ; and my author goes on 
 to remark upon it, that " if he were out in his al- 
 legation, no wonder if he were deceived in his tra- 
 dition. If, then, the certainty of succession relies 
 upon the credit of this Leontius, let them thank the 
 council of Chalcedon, who have sufficiently blasted 
 it, by determining the cause against him in the main 
 evidence produced by him. So much to shew how 
 far the clearest evidence for succession of bishops 
 from apostoHcal times, is from being convincing to 
 any rational man." * 
 
 The truth of the matter appears to be this. When 
 bishops lost itfee humble, unassuming spirit of their 
 divine Mast^-, and began to thirst for power and 
 dominion in the christian w^orld, they endeavoured 
 to promote their carnal objects by spiritual pretences; 
 as these were likely to have most weight with the 
 
 ♦ Iren. p. ii, ch, vi. p. 30\-^o05, 
 
56 
 
 credulous TiTiiTtitiule. If, therefore, an apostle or 
 evangelist had only visited the city where a bishop 
 afterwards resided, or if a passable fiction to that ef- 
 fect could be invented, he was reckoned the first bishop 
 of that church ; Ix^cause this would give respectabi- 
 lity and authority to the successors of so eminent a. 
 servant of God. Thus Peter was made bishop of 
 both Antioch and Rome, James of Jerusalem, Mark 
 of Alexandria, Ananias of Damascus, Barnabas of 
 Milan, Silas of Corinth, Timothy of Ephesus, Titus 
 of Crete, Epaphroditus of Philippi, &c. &c. The 
 bishops of Rome laid claim to Peter as their spiritual 
 father, though it is doubted by many whether he 
 ever saw Rome. The next step was to make him 
 the chief or prince of the apostles, and then to make 
 his successors the princes or lords of the universal 
 churclr. 
 
 If this succession could be traced, its history 
 would furnish many amusing anecdotes ; but the 
 number of astonishing miracles connected with it, are 
 suflicicnt to excite the suspicion of the incredulous* 
 Eusebius gives a very diverting account of the elec- 
 tion of Fabian.* When the people were assembled 
 to chuse a bishop, they observed a dove to settle upon 
 Fabian's head ; this was taken for an: emblem of the 
 Holy Ghost, and they immediately ajtil unanimous- 
 ly fixed upon him for their pastor. .-tWhether this 
 was a trick of Fabian to obtain a bishopric, or. a 
 story framed by priests to colour over some irregu- 
 larity in the proceedings, it is difficult to say. Sup- 
 
 * Lib. vi cb. Xxix. 
 
57 
 
 pose a Methodist were to plead, as a proof of his call 
 to the ministry, that a pigeon, or a goose, had set- 
 tled upon his head, how would all the regular clergy 
 exclaim against the enthusiasm and fanaticism of the 
 
 o 
 
 preaclier ! but when such a prodigy occurs at the 
 election of an orthodox bishop, it is, no doubt, a 
 special divine interposition ! ! 
 
 But supposing it were proved ever so clearly, that 
 there has been an uninterrupted succession of epis- 
 copally ordained ministers in the church, and that 
 our clergy are included in this succession, it is still 
 easy to shew that the course of the Spirit has been in- 
 terrupted, and this renders the outward succession 
 of no value whatever. Suppose the charter of a 
 nation's liberties were deposited in an iron chest, 
 and an order of men appointed to have the custody 
 of it ; if the charter by any means were lost, how 
 ridiculous it would appear in these gentlemen, were 
 they still to keep up their order by a ceremonious 
 incorporation of new members to fill up the occur- 
 ring vacancies, and to stand sentry in their pompoua 
 robes of office over the empty box. 
 
 According to the canons of the ancient church, 
 there are many things which will nullify the ordina- 
 tion of a bishop ; such as diabolical possession, si- 
 mony, heresy, immorality, &c. * An ordination 
 ought not to be annulled, if the Holy Ghost be ac- 
 tually given ; because in this case God has approved 
 and confirmed the work of his servants; and no 
 
 * Bingham's Antiquities, book xvii, chap. v,. 
 
authorit}^ on earth has a right to undo what bea^s- 
 tlie stamp of divine approbation. The business, 
 therefore, of unmaiving a bishop, goes upon the sup- 
 position, that he did not receive the Holy Ghost at 
 his consecration, in consequence of his not coming 
 up to the canonical character of a candidate for the 
 Jiigh and holy office. But the history of the church 
 furnishes innumerable instances of persons who w^re 
 not canonically qualified, bemg consecrated; and 
 these, by consecrating others, have perpetuated the 
 succession. No man can impart to another what he 
 does not possess himself; and, therefore, all the suc- 
 cessors of an uncanonical bishop, must be destitute 
 of the Spirit of God. Hence it follows, that an un- 
 interrupted succession of episcopally ordained men,, 
 if it could be made out, would avail nothing, since^ 
 it is a fact that the course of the Spirit has been in- 
 terrupted many centuries ago, by the ordination of 
 improper persons. 
 
 There is no way of getting over this difficulty but 
 by rejecting, as some have done, the authorit}^ of the 
 ancient canons, and insisting that the sins of men 
 cannot interrupt the S})irit of God. Those who 
 entertam this sentiment, suppose that the Spirit is 
 given to a bishop, not for his own benefit, but for 
 the good of the church; and therefore, though per^ 
 sonally his lordship may be as wicked as the devil, 
 yet mini steri all 1/ he is full of the Holy Ghost. 
 What was the father of the faitliful in comparison 
 of such believers as these 11 
 
59 
 
 The authority of these canons, however, is ac- 
 Icnowledged by the church of England. At the 
 consecration of ^ bishop we are informed that " The 
 archbishop, sitting in his chair, shall say to him that 
 is to be consecrated, Brother, forasmuch as the holy 
 scripture, and the ancient canons command, that we 
 should not be hasty in laying on hands, and admit- 
 ting any person to government in the church of 
 Christ," &c. Let us enquire into the reason of 
 these canonical nullities. 
 
 Diabolical possession, according to the canons, is- 
 sufficient to annul the ordination of a bishop. This 
 goes upon the supposition, that the Holy Ghost will 
 not enter a heart which he finds pre-occupied by 
 the devil. This is modest. If the canon be wrong, 
 we must suppose, either that the Holj^ Spirit and 
 Beelzebub agree to live together, which is contrary 
 to the apostle, who asks, " what concord hath 
 Christ with Belial?" or else, that the old serpent 
 sneaks away as the Holy Ghost enters. But if this 
 latter be the fact, how shall we account for the vices of 
 some of the holy order, who have not come behind the 
 very chief of sinners ? If a pope who is full of the Holy 
 •Ghost can be as wicked as a lay-man who is full of the 
 devil, what would his holiness be if left to himself I 
 
 As to simony, or the purchasing a bishopric with 
 Jiioney, which takes its name from Simon ]Magus, 
 who wanted to strike a bargain for the divine Spirit 
 with the apostle Peter, — nothing can be more clear 
 than that the canons which aunid the ordination of 
 
60 
 
 a "bishop guilty of tliis sin, are supported by sacred 
 Scripture. " And when Simon saw that through 
 laying on 'of the Apostle's hands, the Holy Ghost 
 was given, he offered them money, saying, give me 
 also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands, he 
 may receive the Holy Ghost. But Peter said unto 
 him, thy money perish with thee, because thou hast 
 thought that the gift of God may be purchased with 
 money. Thou hast neither part nor lot in this mat- 
 ter, for thy heart is not right in the sight of God." * 
 If this passage does not teach that the Holy Ghost 
 cannot, like worldly commodities, be purchased with 
 money, there can be no meaning in language. We 
 have then the best warrant in the world for saying, 
 that the Divine Spirit never entered into th^ head 
 or heart of a Simonist. In the eleventh century, 
 says Dr Jortin, " Simony was univ©rsally prac- 
 tised, particularly in Italy. St Romualdus exerted 
 himself, and preached against it with vehemence. 
 But, says Damianus, the writer of his hfe, (who was 
 a bishop) ' I much question whether he ever reform- 
 ed o?ie 7nan : for this poisonous heresy is the most 
 stubborn and difficult of all to be cured, especially 
 amongst the clergy of higher rank. They promise 
 amendment, and they defer it from day to day; 
 so that it is easier even to convert a Jew than a 
 bishop,^ " * Let the advocates for the succession tell 
 us where the Spirit was when the bishops were uni- 
 versally guilty of simony and not one of them could 
 be reformed ! 
 
 * Acts viil. 18—21. 
 f Rem. on Ecclesiastical History, vol. iii. p. 1 20. 
 
61 
 
 If it were granted that a wicked bishop iti the 
 church is filled with the Spirit, yet it will not be 
 maintained that he cames the Spirit out of it, when 
 he either leaves it voluntarily, or is cut off from it. 
 The sin of schism is of such a nature, that, accord- 
 ing to the unanimous testimony of both papists and 
 protestants, the party guilty of it is cut off from 
 Christ. But there have been schisms in all ages of 
 the church, and many of the schismatical bishops 
 have perpetuated the succession. Hear the author 
 of the Case of the Regale, a stanch assertor of the di- 
 vine right of episcopacy : " It wouldbe hard," says 
 he, " to find a bishop against whom some of these 
 objections (relating to the succession) do not lie. For 
 example ; all the bishops of the reformation, as well 
 in England as elsewhere, are struck off at one blow; 
 for they were all derived from those whom they 
 now account to be, and then to have been, heretics. 
 And the ordinations of the church of Rome must go 
 off too, especially since the council of Constance, that 
 turned out all the popes that were then in the world, * 
 which were three anti-popes contending one with 
 another. And they cannot say of any of their ordi- 
 nations at this day, that they are not derived from 
 some of the anti-popes. Nay, all the churches, as 
 far as tlie Arian heresy reached, may come under 
 this objection, for many of their ordinations were de- 
 rived from some or other who were Arians, Semi- 
 Arians, &c.'' f 
 
 * The sin was not in turning them out, but in letting them iu. 
 again, 
 
 f See Rights of the Christian church, chap. ix. p. 367, 
 
 F 
 
G2 
 
 Bellarmine acknowledges, " That for above eighty 
 years together, the church, for want of a lawful pope, 
 had no other head tlian what was in Heaven." And 
 Baronius complains, " How deformed was the Ro- 
 man church, when whores, no less powerful than 
 vile, bore the chief sway at Rome, and at their plea- 
 sure cJiangcd sees, and appointed bishops ; and which 
 is horrible to mention, did thrust into St Peter's see 
 tiieir ow n gallants, false popes ? Christ was then, it 
 seems, in a very deep sleep ; and, which was worse, 
 when the Lord w^as then asleep, there were no disci- 
 2')les to awaken him, being themselves all fast asleep. 
 What kind of cardinals can we think were chosen by 
 these monster si" * Such is the account given by these 
 tvro famous popish historians ! Who can look this in 
 the face and still plead for the succession ? 
 
 To come to the church of England. — She is either 
 guilty of schism, in leaving the church of Rome, 
 or she is not. If the church of Rome, at the time of 
 the reformation, w^ere a true church of Christ, and 
 enjoyed his spirit, then the church of England is 
 schismatical, and cut herself off from Christ and his 
 spirit by leaving his people ; in which case the suc- 
 cession is good for nothing, since their lordsliips, the 
 bishops, have left the spirit behind them. If the 
 church of Rome were a false church, which God had 
 deserted, then the separation is justified, but the spi- 
 rit is lost ; for the popish bishops could not give the 
 Holy Ghost to protestants, if they had it not them- 
 selves. This is a two-edged sword which cuts both 
 
 * Sec Rights of the Christian church, chap. ix. p. o5i. 
 
€3 
 
 ways ; for, whether you justify the separation or not, 
 you destroy the succession. 
 
 If it were true that the Holy Ghost is given to 
 bishops, not to make them virtuous, but to give effi- 
 cacy to their ministrations, it must follow, that they 
 could not fall into heresy; because God cannot give 
 his blessing to the preaching of false doctrine. Upon 
 this point the catholics are consistent; they make 
 their pope infallible, and maintain that their church 
 cannot err. But has there never been an instance 
 of a prelate broaching heresy ? Did not hundreds of 
 bishops, supposed to be in the. succession, once em- 
 brace Arianism, which our bishops hold to be a damn- 
 able heresy ? What council can be named which 
 did not curse some bishops, the validity of whose or- 
 dination was never disputed, for holding opinions 
 contrary to the catholic faith ? And, even in this 
 country, do all the clergj'^ who have received episco- 
 pal ordination, preach the same doctrines ? It is true 
 they have all subscribed to the same creed, and con- 
 form to the same rites and ceremonies of devotion ; 
 but it is too notorious to be denied, that the articles, 
 homilies, and liturgy, are often contradicted, and 
 their doctrines ridiculed, in the pulpit. Among the 
 clergy are Arians, Socinians, Swed'enborgians, Armi- 
 nians, and Calvinists ; and even the celebrated impos- 
 tor, Joanna Southcote, boasted of a trinity of par- 
 sons in her train of deluded votaries. And how 
 could there be those fierce contentions between the 
 evangelical and rational divines, as they are called^ 
 if they were all kept by the Holy Ghost of the same 
 r2 
 
64 
 
 mind and of the same judgment ? Does not thfe church 
 of England attempt to justify her separation from 
 the church of Rome, on the ground that the pope is 
 fallible, and that his church has erred? If those, 
 therefore, who possess the Holy Ghost are preserved 
 by him from error in doctrine, is it not certain, that 
 neither popish nor protestant priests enjoy his in- 
 fluence ? 
 
 The pretence, that the Holy Ghost is not given 
 to pre^rve from all errors in general, but only from 
 fundamental errors in particular, will not serve the 
 cause of the succession. The church of England 
 has adopted the creed of Athanasius, which declares, 
 that all who reject his explication of the trinity, shall^ 
 without douht^ 'perish coeu'laUirigly.. Now, it is a fact, 
 that at one time, nearly all the clergy in Christendom 
 were Arians ; and yet the Arian bishops were in tlxe 
 succession, or else ours are out of it. The homilies 
 of the church of England, to which every clergyman 
 ■subscribes, as containing a godly and wholesome doC" 
 trine^ Jit to he read in churches by ministers^ declare, 
 that " the popes and prelates of Rome, for the most 
 part, are worthily accounted among the number of 
 false prophets and false Christs, which deceived the 
 TTorld a long while ;" and prays that the gospel of 
 Christ may be preached and received in all parts of 
 the world, " to the beating down of sin, death, the 
 jpope, the devil, and all the kingdom of antichrist^ * 
 But these wretches, the Roman bishops, who are 
 here classed with sin, death, and the devil, as ene- 
 
 * Homily for Whitsunday, part 2d. 
 
65 
 
 mies to Christ, are supposed to have filled our 
 bishops brimful of the spirit of Christ, for the of- 
 fice and work of governoi's in the church ! Here 
 are incontrovertible proofs, if the church of England 
 may be credited, of bishops, whom churchmen be- 
 lieve to have been in the succession, erring in fun- 
 damentals. Hence the laity should be upon their 
 guard, and not implicitly receive the dogmas of their 
 spiritual guides ; — they may pay dear in the next 
 world, as well as in this, for being priest-ridden. 
 
 The canons suppose, that ignorance is a sufficient 
 reason for annulling an ordination, because no man 
 can teach religion who does not understand it. Pope 
 Gregory VI. could neither write nor read ; was he 
 not admirably well qualified to discharge the spiritual 
 duties of his exalted station ? Sculphus was made 
 archbishop of Rhemes, when he was between Jhiir 
 and^ye years of age ; was this grave and venerable 
 prelate filled with the Holy Ghost to teach and go- 
 vern the church, when he was only just got out of 
 his nurse's leading-strings ? There have been thou- 
 sands of priests as illiterate as Gregory, and others 
 who never saw the sacred writings ; but the magic 
 touch of a bishop's hands, it seems, transformed these 
 ignoramuses into infallible guides ! 
 
 But what shall we say of professed infidels in the 
 chair of St Peter ? A council was called at Rome 
 in the year 963, by the emperor Otho, to examine 
 the conduct of pope John XII, when it was proved 
 by many witnesses, " That he ordained bishops for 
 
 F 3 
 
6(3 
 
 money ; and ordained a boy of ten years old, bishop 
 of Tudortine. Of sacrilege, there needed no witness 
 but eye-sight. Of axlidtery^ they said that they saw 
 it not, but they ccrtiiinly knew, that he abused the 
 widow of Ragnerius, and his father's concubine, and 
 Anna, a widow, and her niece ; and made the holy 
 palace a common bawdy-house and stew. That he 
 ^ut out the eyes of his spiritual father, Benedict, and 
 killed him thereby. That he killed John, a cardinal 
 
 T5ub-deacon, by cutting off his ! That lie set 
 
 houses on fire, and went armed and harnessed as a 
 soldier. Tliey all, both clergy and laity, cried out, 
 that he dnmk a health of 'mine to the i>evil. That 
 at his play at dice, he would crave the help of Jxt,pi' 
 ter, VenuSi and othe?- demons,^^ &c. The bishops^ 
 deacons, clergy, and people of Rome, swore to the 
 truth of the above depositions in these words : " If 
 both the things read by Benedict the deacon, and 
 JlUhier and greater villaiiies were not committed by 
 pope John, let not St Peter absolve us from the 
 bonds of our sins; let us be found tied with the 
 bonds of Anathema, [or cursed from Christ], and be 
 set at Christ's left hand at the last day, with those 
 that said to God the Lord, Depai't from us, we 
 would not have the knowledge of thy ways.'* 
 
 The council deposed John, and set up Leo, Join 
 called a synod of bishops, who stiled him, the most 
 godly^ and most holy po_pe^ and cursed Leo and all his 
 followers. The next year, he was caught in bed 
 with another man's wife, and the incensed husband 
 dispatched his holiness^ by knocking out his braiii;B. 
 
67 
 
 Baronius and Binitts, two celebrated historians o£ 
 the Romish church, make John the true pope to his 
 death, (in opposition to Leo), and trace the succes- 
 sion through him. * An infidel, a simonist, a drunk- 
 ard, an adulterer, a murderer, a worshipper of idols 
 and devils; — a thing in human shape, worse than 
 a beast, and bad as Beelzebub, is made Christ's 
 vicar upon earth, has the power of saving and damn- 
 ing whom he pleases, is full of the Holy Ghost, the 
 father of the faithful, and the dispenser of all spiritual 
 blessings ! All this must be believed, or the succes- 
 sion is lost ! It certainly must require all the faith 
 of a priest^ to swallow so strange a compound of 
 things spiritual, carnal, and devilish. 
 
 This is not a solitary instance of the most shock- 
 ing wickedness in the superior clergy. Unnatural 
 lusts were so frequent and public, that St. Bernard, 
 in a sermon preached to the clergy of France, 
 affirmed sodomy to be so common in his time, that 
 bishops with bishops lived in it, f Nothing can be a 
 stronger proof of the degraded state of morals among 
 the clergy in those times than the following : " It 
 is an amazing thing," says Burnet, *' that in the 
 very office of consecrating bishops, examinations are 
 Ordered concerning those crimes, the very mention 
 of which give horror ; De coitu cum masculo, et cum 
 quadrupedibusr X If these monsters were under a 
 divine influence, the devil can scarcely be supposed 
 
 • Baxter's Church History, p. 328—531. 
 
 f Burnet's Exposit. Art. xxxii. p. 333. fourth edition* 
 
 \ Burnet's Exposit. Art. xxviii. p. 309. 
 
6^ 
 
 to be without it ; and if their inspiration be denied, 
 the succession cannot be supported. 
 
 In the Universal Magazine for June 1758, a very 
 entertaining account is given of the election of a 
 pope ; from which the reader may judge how far the 
 Holy Ghost is concerned in the business. It is 
 stated, that " During the whole time of the con- 
 clave's sitting, the city abounds with pasquinades, 
 copies of which are daily, in a secret manner, sold 
 in the coffee-houses to foreigners; but they are for 
 the most part, wretched performances. As all magi- 
 stracies now cease, many disorders and outrages are 
 every day committed, especially in the country; and 
 in Rome itself, it would be imprudent in foreigners, 
 who have no connexion with the candidates, and 
 consequently should have nothing to fear, to be out 
 of their lodgings after it is dark ; twenty pr thirty 
 persons being generally murdered in its streets, be- 
 fore the election is concluded." 
 
 " The conclave is the scene where the cardinals 
 principally endeavour to display their parts in artful 
 intrigues; and many transactions pass here, which 
 are far from shewing that they are divinely inspired. 
 It is notorious that whilst they sat to elect a pope in 
 1721, their animosities ran so high, that they pro- 
 ceeded to blows, with their hands and feet, and 
 threw the standishes each at the other. It is there- 
 fore not in the least surprising, that among the 
 other officers of the conclave, ai'e one or two 
 
The English reformers were no advocates for the 
 episcopal succession : they freely admitted a senti- 
 ment which is fatal to it ; namely, that there is ho 
 difference in point of order betwixt bishops and 
 presbyters, according to the New Testament. The 
 arch-bishops, bishops, and clergy, in their book, 
 entitled " The Instruction of a Christian Man,'* 
 which they subscribed with their hands, and dedi- 
 cated to the king in the year 1537, expressly de- 
 clare, in the chapter of orders^ " That priests and 
 bishops by God*s law are one and the same; and 
 that the power of ordination, and excommunication, 
 belongs equally to them both." The same decla- 
 ration is made in the book entitled, " Necessary 
 Erudition for any Christian Man," which was pub- 
 lished by act of Parliament in the year 1543, and 
 prefaced with an epistle written by Henry VIII* 
 In the office for the ordination of jpreshyters m 
 the days of Edward VI, the following text is used : 
 " Take heed unto yourselves, and to all the flock 
 of God, over which the Holy Ghost hath made 
 you overseers," literally bishops. But, afterwards, 
 when the bishops got it into their heads that they 
 are an order of ecclesiastics distinct from, and 
 superior to, presbyters, this text was left out of the 
 service. 
 
 The statute of 13 Elizabeth, cap. 12, admitted the 
 validity of the ordinations of the Scotch and other 
 reformed churches, and allowed their divines to ofl5,- 
 ciate in the church of England. 
 
70 
 
 AVliIttingliam, dean of Durham, had no other or- 
 dination than the suflragcs of the whole congrega- 
 tion at (leneva. Sandys, archbishop of York, ob- 
 tained a commission, directed to himself and some 
 others, to visit the church of Durham, with a view 
 to deprive the dean as a mere layman. The dean 
 having produced his testimonials, " The Lord Pre- 
 sident rose up and said, that he could not in con- 
 science agree to deprive him for that cause only, for, 
 says he, it will be ill taken by all the godly and 
 learned both at home and abroad, that we should 
 allow of the popish massing priests in our minis- 
 try, and disallow of ministers made in a reformed 
 church; whereupon the commission was adjourned 
 sine die, " * 
 
 Archbishop Grindal granted a licence to Mr John 
 Morrison, a Scotch divine, who had only presbyte- 
 rian ordination, in the following words : " Since 
 you, the foresaid John Morrison, about five years 
 past, in the town of Garret, in the county of Lo- 
 thian, in the kingdom of Scotland, were admitted 
 and ordained to sacred orders and the holy mi- 
 nistry, by the imposition of hands, according to the 
 laudable form and rite of the reformed church of 
 Scotland : And since the congregation of that coun- 
 ty of Lothian is conformable to the orthodox faith, 
 and sincere religion, now received in this realm of 
 England, and established by public authority. We, 
 therefore, as much as lies in us, and, as by right we 
 
 Neal's History of the Puritans, vol. i. chap. vL 
 
 II 
 
may, approving and ratifying the fonii of your ordi- 
 nation and preferment done in such manner afore- 
 said, grant you a Hcence and faculty, with the con- 
 sent and express command of tlie most reverend 
 father in Christ, the Lord Edmund, by divine pro- 
 vidence, archbishop of Canterbury, to be signified, 
 that in such orders by you taken, you may, and 
 have power in any convenient places in and through- 
 out the whole province of Canterbury, to celebrate 
 divine offices, to minister the sacraments," &c. * 
 
 Bishop Carleton says, " The power of order by 
 all writers that I can see, even of tlie church of 
 Rome, is understood to be immediately from Christ, 
 given to all bishops and priests alike in their con- 
 secration." f Dr Field argues against Bellarmine 
 on the same ground. To cite all the authorities to 
 the same purpose would be endless. 
 
 Bancroft, in a sermon preached at Paul's Cross, 
 January 12th, 1588, maintained, that the bishops of 
 England were a distinct order from priests, and had 
 superiority over them jtire divino, and directly fi'om 
 God. This doctrine had never before been public- 
 ly broached in England : it was new and strange to 
 both puritans and churchmen. Till this time it had 
 been always supposed, that the order of bishops, as 
 distinct from, and superior to presbyters, was a mere 
 human institution. Statesmen took the alarm at 
 
 " Neal's Ilistory of the Puritans, vol. i. chap. vi. 
 \ Trcatis3 of Jurisdict. p. 7. 
 
the power of bishops being derived from God, and 
 not from the magistrate, as this struck at the queen's 
 supremacy.* But the new doctrine soon became 
 fashionable among the clergy ; and the nonsense 
 which we have since heard about the episcopal suc- 
 cession, sprung out of it. 
 
 Most of the English reformers were Erastians. 
 They held, that princes are empowered by the Al- 
 mighty, to manufacture a religion and priesthood 
 for their subjects ; and our ecclesiastical constitution 
 is founded upon this principle. They were so far 
 from contending that there must be an uninterrupted 
 succession of episcopally ordained ministers in the 
 church, that they maintained, that the sole power of 
 appointing to all sacred offices is vested in the 
 Sovereign, and that his appointment is sufficient, 
 without any ordination or consecration at all. Cran- 
 mer has declared, that " All christian princes have 
 committed unto them, immediately of God, the holle 
 cure of all their subjects, as well concerning the ad- 
 ministration of Goddes word for the cure of soul, as 
 concerning the ministration of things political and 
 and civil governaunce. And in both theis ministra- 
 tions, thei must have sondry ministers under them, 
 to supply that which is appointed to their several 
 office. The ministers of Gods wourde under his 
 Majesty be the bishops, parsons, vicars, and such 
 other priests as be appointed by his Highness to that 
 ministration. All the said officers and ministers be 
 appointed, assigned, and elected in every place, by 
 
 * Neal's History of the Puritans, vol i. ch. vij^ 
 
73 
 
 the laws and orders of kings and princes. In the 
 New Testament, he that is appointed to be a bishop, 
 or a priest, needeth no consecration by the Scripture ; 
 for election or appointing thereto is sufficient." * 
 
 What blessed work the reformers would have 
 made of it, had they preached up, as many do now-a- 
 days, the inspiration of the Romish bishops and clergy, 
 and insisted that none could be true ministers of Christ 
 who were not derived fi'om them, nor any people 
 obtain salvation w^ho were not under the guidance 
 of pastors included in this succession. Had they ad- 
 mitted such absurdities as these, how could they have 
 justified their own separation ? or persuaded a single 
 soul to join with them in it ? Instead of this, they 
 boldly attacked the church of Rome as anti-christian, 
 and cliarged her bishops with being full of the devil 
 instead of the Holy Ghost. The following extract 
 from the homilies, shews the sense of the reformers 
 upon these points, and is as valuable for the strength 
 of its argument, as for the weight of its authority. 
 
 *' As the lion is known by his claws, so let us 
 learn to know these men, (the popes), by their deeds. 
 What shall we say of him that made the noble king 
 Dandalus to be tied by the neck with a chain, and 
 to lie flat down before his table, there to gnaw bones 
 like a dog? Shall we think that he had God's holy 
 spirit within him, and not rather the spirit of the 
 devil? Such a tyrant was pope Clement the VI. 
 What shall we say of him that proudly and con- 
 
 * Quoted from Stillingfleet's Irenicum, ch. vii. p. 391, 392, 
 G 
 
7-i 
 
 temptuoiisly trode Frederic, tlie emperor, under his 
 Jeet, applying the verse of the psahn unto himself, 
 Thou shalt go upon the Hon and tlie adder ; the 
 young lion and the dragon thou shalt tread under 
 thy foot? Shall we say that he had God's holy 
 spirit within him, and not rather the spirit of the 
 devil? Such a tyrant was pope Alexander the III. 
 What shall we say of liim that armed and animated 
 the son against the father, causing liim to be taken, 
 and to be cruelly famished to death, contrary to the 
 laws both of God, and also of nature ? Shall we say 
 that he had God's holy spirit within him, and not 
 rather the spirit of the devil ? Such a tyrant was 
 pope Paschal the 11. What shall we say of him 
 that came into the popedom like a fox, that reigned 
 like a lion, and died like a dog ? Shall we say that 
 he had God's holy spirit within him, and not rather 
 the spirit of the devil ? Such a t}rrant was pope 
 Boniface the VIII. What shall we say of him that 
 made Henry, the emperor, with his wife and his 
 young child, to stand at the gates of the city in the 
 rough v/inter, bare-footed and bare-legged, only 
 clothed in linsey-woolsey, eating nothing from morn- 
 ing to night, and that for the space of three days ? 
 Shall we say that he had God's holy spirit within 
 him, and not rather the spirit of the devil ? Such a 
 tyrant was pope Flildebrand, most worthy to be 
 called ix Jirebrand, if we shall term him as he hath 
 deserved. Many other examples might here be 
 alleged ; as of pope Joan, the harlot,* that was de- 
 
 * It is now genprally bolioved, tliat her la^ysljip never had the 
 fconour of fitting in St Peter's cha;r. 
 
ia 
 
 livered of a child in the High-Street, going solemnly 
 in procession ; of pope Julius the II, that wilfully 
 cast St Peter's keys into the river Tyber ; * of pope 
 Urban the VI, that caused five cardinals to be put 
 into sacks and cruelly drowned ; of pope Sergius 
 the III, that persecuted the dead body of Formosus, 
 his predecessor, when it had been buried eight years ; 
 of pope John, the XIV of that name, who, having 
 his enemy delivered into his hands, caused him to be 
 stripped stark-naked, his beard to be shaven, and 
 to be hanged up a whole day by the hair, then to be 
 set itpon an ass, with his face backward towards the 
 tail, to be carried round about the city in despite, to 
 be miserably beaten with rods ; last of «all, to be 
 thrust out of his country, and to be banished for 
 ever. But to conclude and make an end, ye shall 
 briefly take this short lesson, Wheresoever ye shall 
 find the spirit of arrogancy and pride, the spirit of 
 envy, hatred, contention, cruelty, murder, extortion, 
 &c., assure yourselves that there is the spirit of the 
 devil, and not of God, albeit they pretend outwardly 
 to the world never so much sanctity." f 
 
 On a review of this essay, we may observe, 
 
 I. That the doctrine of the succession is absurd, 
 as, in its consequences, it would deprive the laity of 
 the privilege of family worship, of writing, and even 
 of conversing on the subject of religion ; it would 
 unchristian the supreme head of the English church, 
 
 * Quere. — Were i!ioy ever found again ? 
 ■\ Homily for V»'hitsuiid;iy, part ii. 
 
76 
 
 and all churches whicli liave not set up episcopacy, 
 and borrowed the Holy Ghost from popish prelates ; 
 and it would naturally dispose all who wish to be on 
 the safe side in their religion, to go over to the 
 church of Rome. 
 
 II. The succession cannnot be proved. Its advo- 
 cates are obliged to trace it through children, he- 
 jetics, schismatics, infidels, idolaters, simonists, 
 drunkards, adulterers, sodomites, and murderers; 
 but after raking through all this filth, they cannot 
 make it out. The pretence then of being in the suc- 
 cession is a mere arbitrary assumption ; there is not 
 a minister in Christendom who can demonstrate, upon 
 this principle, the legality of his orders. Here all 
 sects are upon a level ; bishops, priests, and deacons, 
 do not stand on an inch higher ground, than tailors, 
 coblers, and tinkers ; they may all talk about the suc- 
 cession, but not one of them can prove that he is in 
 it. If it were true, therefore, which in fact it is not, 
 that a dissenting minister can furnish no evidence of 
 having the spirit immediately from God, an episco- 
 palian has no right to complain ; — the mere pretence 
 of a sectarist is entitled to as much credit as that of 
 a churchman, 
 
 III. Strong evidence has been produced that the 
 succession has been interrupted; I have a right, 
 therefore, to assume this as the fact, till episcopalians 
 prove the contrary. But if the chain of succession 
 has been broken, some one, at least, must have in- 
 truded into the sacred office, from whom our high 
 
77 
 
 churchmen derive their spiritual powers. If this 
 man had a right to assume the priesthood, so has any 
 other man; the distance of time can make no dif- 
 ference in the right ; it is as legal to intrude into the 
 ministry now, as it was five hundred or a thousand 
 years ago. Call a dissenting minister^ therefore, 
 an intruder, or what you please, yet you cannot 
 deny his right to the office, or the validity of his 
 ministrations. If this man's assumption of the priest- 
 hood were illegal, his ordinations were illegal also; 
 for no one can give what he does not possess. He 
 who holds an estate by a bad title, cannot ti'ansfer it 
 to another with a good one. Hence it follows, 
 that the orders of our episcopalians are good for. 
 nothmg, and those of the dissenters cannot be worse», 
 
 IV. No man, it is presumed, will have tl^e teme- 
 rity to controvert the fulness of evidence produced 
 in this inquiry, that the course of the spirit, through 
 the finger ends of prelates, has been interrupted 
 many centuries ago. If there were, therefore, no 
 possibility of receiving the Holy Ghost, but at the 
 hands of bishops, it is certain that he has long since 
 left the church; and this makes the ministrations^ 
 of both churchmen and dissenters equally useless.. 
 As this conclusion will not be admitted, it must 
 follow, that some person or other, after the inter- 
 ruption, received the Holy Ghost directly from God. 
 But this spoils all ; for admit that " our heavenly 
 Father will give the holy spirit to them that ask 
 him;"* and it must be very foolish to apply to 
 
 * Luke xi. 15. 
 G 3 
 
78 
 
 bishops for it, when it is so very uncertain, upon 
 their own principles, whether this invaluable gift 
 be at their disposal. 
 
 Since it cannot be denied that the course of the 
 spirit has been interrupted, the succession of ordi- 
 nation is a matter of no importance at all ; because 
 the succession of ordination is contended for, on 
 the presumption that it is the only medium through 
 which the holy spirit is conveyed to the church. If 
 the succession of ordination were proved ever so 
 clearly, it amounts to nothing; ordination is re- 
 duced to a mere unmeaning ceremony, since the 
 holy spirit has either left the clergy, or is convey- 
 ed to them through some other medium than the 
 hands of prelates. The regularity of ordinations is 
 no proof of the divine influence being attached to 
 the ministrations of the clergy. Barclay, the quaker, 
 makes a just observation upon this subject : " The 
 Spirit," says he, " speaking to the church at Lao- 
 dicea, because of her lukewarmness, Rev. iii. 16, 
 threateneth to spew her out of his mouth. Now, sup- 
 pose the church of Laodicea had continued in that 
 lukewarmness, and had come under that condem- 
 nation and judgment, though she had retained the 
 name and form of a church, and had had her pastors 
 and ministers, as no doubt she had at that time, yet 
 purely she had been no true church of Christ ; nor 
 had the authority of her pastors and teachers been 
 to be regarded, because of an outward succession, 
 
 i 
 
79 
 
 though perhaps some of them had it immediately 
 fi'om the apostles." * 
 
 V. We have seen that the sentiments of our re- 
 formers were very dffferent from those which are now 
 so strenuously maintained. They did not compli- 
 ment the church of Rome as a true church, but 
 pronounced her to be anti-christian ; and, instead of 
 attempting to shew that the popish bishops were in- 
 spired of God, they proved them to be full of the 
 devil. At present, no minister is permitted to offi- 
 ciate in the church of England who has not received 
 episcopal ordination ; whereas the reformers admit- 
 ted those who had no other ordination than the 
 hands of presbyters or the suffrages of the people. 
 We boast of the reformation ; but how far have we 
 retrograded towards popery ! I 
 
 Lastly, Having shewn that the chain of succession 
 is broken, the exclusive power claimed by priests of 
 adding to their own body must be given up, and the 
 right of the laity to assume or confer the holy office 
 must be granted. 
 
 ♦ Apology, p. 287. 8th Edition. 
 
ESSAY IL 
 
 ON ORDINATION. 
 
 Ordination is the act of conferring holy orders^ 
 or of initiating a person into the ministerial office. 
 High churchmen hold, that the power of ordination 
 was vested by Jesus Christ in the apostles, and that 
 the apostles limited the exercise of this power to 
 their successors, the bishops. It is inferred from this, 
 that the assumption of the office, or the reception of 
 it from laymen or presbyters, is illegal. 
 
 If it were true that bishops are the successors of 
 the apostles, it would not follow, that they only have 
 the right to ordain ministers, unless a restrictive 
 clause to that effect could be found in the New Tes- 
 tament, but the chapter and verse have never yet 
 been produced. 
 
 But the bishops are not the successors of the 
 apostles. They do not possess apostolical qualifica- 
 iions. They can neither work miracles, nor predict 
 with certainty future events, nor discern spirits. 
 
81 
 
 They do not discharge the duties of the apostolic 
 office. The greek word, ATreirTdPiof, signifies a messen- 
 ger, a person sent by another upon some business. 
 Jesus Christ sent his apostles to the whole world to 
 preach the gospel, and baptize their converts : " Go 
 ye, therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them 
 in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of 
 the Holy^ Ghost; teaching them to observe all things 
 whatsoever I have commanded you. Go ye into all 
 the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. 
 He that believeth and is baptized, shall be saved; 
 and he that believeth not, shall be damned." * They 
 were chosen by him for this express purpose ; " and 
 he ordained twelve, that they should be with him, 
 and that he might send them forth to preach." f 
 Preaching and baptizing, therefore, are the two 
 great duties of the apostolic office ; but our bishops 
 seldom % do either ; these duties are performed by 
 others ; and their Lordships do little else than or- 
 dain ministers, and confirm children. 
 
 The government of the church is supposed to be 
 one part of the apostolic office; and the bishops, 
 as govetmors, are said to be the successors of the 
 apostles. But this can give them no exclusive right 
 
 * Matth. xxviii. 19, 20. Mark, xvi. 15, 16. f Mark, iii. 14. 
 
 f Dr Markham, the late archbishop of York, preached part of a 
 sermon in the cathedral many years previous to his death, and pro- 
 mised to finish it at some future opportunity, but never made good his 
 engagement. Though this successor of the apostles has not favoured 
 the church with any religious publication, he has enriched the re- 
 public oi letters with a spelling book. " On the Christmas before his 
 
82 
 
 to onlain ; because those who succeed to any ^ 
 pan of the same ofilco, have on th.s ground an equa 
 ,i,du with themselves to confer holy orders AH 
 preachers must be qualified to ordain, sn.ce U has 
 been shewn, that preaching is an important and es- 
 sential part of the apostolic office. The same remark 
 applies to those who perform the nte of bapUsm. 
 
 But the apostles were not governors* of the 
 church-at least not in the sense our bishops are. 
 To have been the fixed and stated governors of par- 
 ticular churches, would have been inconsistent with 
 their general commission, to go into all the world 
 and pfeack the gospel to every creature And they 
 could not be constituted governors of the universal 
 church, for this plain reason, because it was im- 
 uos^ible for them to execute ecclesiastical discipUne 
 [„■ every christian society which they formed. For 
 instance, consider for a moment the astonishing tra- 
 vels and labours of the apostle Paul ; how could he 
 exercise episcopal jurisdiction over the churches he 
 plmtcd, when he was generally some thousands o 
 Iriiles distant from some of them? and how could 
 remote churches know where to find him, when he 
 was perpetually changing his residence? 
 
 decease he is said to have givea £ 1000 to each of Im grandchildren, 
 t uTiog .0 .he number of fo«y-seve„ ; and be is rcponcd to ha« 
 tithe sum of ^ 100,000 in legacies." See Li. Pan. vol tn. p. 1.67 
 Who aoes not long to be a successor of the apostles when e .nay 
 U,e like a prince, and save near one hundred and fifuj thoman'l 
 „1 / This man, .vho was under so great obliga.ions .0 .he stat^ 
 dirnot surely give away ^ 47,000 just before his ..aU,, w.th a v.ew 
 t« evade the legacy duty !! 
 
83 
 
 The practice of the apostles was, when they had 
 planted a church, to appoint governors, or leave the 
 brethren to manage their own affairs, according to 
 circumstances. It does not appear that any officers 
 were appointed in tlie church of Corinth; because 
 the discipline of it was executed by the whole 
 society. In the case of the incestuous person, the 
 apostle directed the brethren, *' when gathered to- 
 gether," to deliver him unto Satan, and censures 
 them for not having done this already, as they pos- 
 sessed a power of judging their owJi members, * 
 And this punishment, we are told, " was inflicted of 
 many."f Sometimes the apostles appointed officers; 
 so Paul and Barnabas, on an itinerant excursion, 
 ordained elders in every church.:]: And sometimes 
 the apostles employed others to do this work ; Paul 
 left Titus in Crete, to ordain elders in every city, 
 and enti-usted Timothy with similar powers. 
 
 The commission of the apostles included teaching 
 and baptizing, but not a word about governing. 
 When they had constituted a church in any place, 
 instead of stopping to exercise the episcopal func- 
 tions in it, they set off, according to their instruc- 
 tions, to break up new ground. It is easy to con- 
 <:eive, that when, in the course of their travels, they 
 visited a church, their advice would be asked and 
 followed upon many points ; because they enjoyed 
 an extraordinary inspiration of the Spirit, and spoke 
 the mind of Christ; but this no more proves that 
 
 * 1 Cor. V. 1—12. f 2 Cor. ii. 6. t ^<^ts, xiv. 23. 
 
u 
 
 they arc church governors, than that the counsellors 
 of kings are kings themselves. 
 
 Our bishops do not possess apostolic gifts and 
 powers, nor do they discharge) the duties of the 
 apostolic office in visiting heathen countries, and 
 planting churches by preaching and baptizing ; but 
 only execute the discipline of the church, which the 
 apostles appointed others to do ; they are not there- 
 fore, in any official sense, the successors of the 
 apostles, and consequently, their assumed right to 
 ordain, upon this pretence, falls to the ground. 
 
 When our Lord chose the twelve, " that he might 
 send them forth to preach," he is said to have or- 
 dained them; but the word, vona^ imports no more 
 than to constitute^ appoint, elect ; and there is not 
 the slightest intimation that he used any ceremonious 
 consecration. — After the ascension of Christ, only 
 two persons, Matthias and Paul, were raised to the 
 office of the apostleship ; and neither of them receiv- 
 ed any human ordination. The appointment of 
 Matthias is remarkable : " Peter stood up in the 
 midst of the disciples, (the number of the names to- 
 gether was about an hundred and twenty,") and 
 made a speech on the necessity of electing another 
 apostle to fill the place of Judas ; " and they appoint- 
 ed two, Joseph called Barsabas, who was surnamed 
 Justus, and Matthias." This shews that the election 
 was in the disciples ; and when they could not de- 
 termine which of the two was most suitable, the 
 apostles did not pretend to take the matter out of 
 
^5 
 
 their hands, but all the parties agreed to refer the 
 election to God ; they, therefore, prayed, and " gave 
 forth their lots, and the lot fell upon Matthias ;" 
 and all we read more about this business is, that " he 
 was numbered with the eleven apostles." Here the 
 whole affair of making an apostle was managed by- 
 God and the people, without the eleven, v*'ho were pre- 
 sent, presuming either to appoint or consecrate him. 
 
 The apostle Paul received no human ordination to 
 preach the gospel. " I certify you brethren," says 
 he, " that the gospel . which was preached of me is 
 not after man. For I neither received it of man, 
 neither was I taught it but by the revelation of Jesus. 
 When it pleased God, who separated me from my 
 mother's womb, and called me, by his grace, to reveal 
 his son in me, that I might preach him among the 
 heathen; immediately I conferred not with flesh 
 and blood ; neither went I up to Jerusalem to them 
 which were apostles before me ; but I went into A- 
 rabia, and returned again unto Damascus. Then, 
 after three years, I went up to Jerusalem to see Peter, 
 and abode with him fifteen days. But other of the 
 apostles saw I none, save James the Lord's bro- 
 ther." * From this account it is clear, that when he 
 received his commission from heaven, he did not go 
 to Jerusalem to receive orders from the apostles, — no, 
 nor apply for a licence to the civil magistrate, — but 
 immediately entered upon his work, and was em- 
 ployed for full three years in preaching the gospel and 
 planting churches, before he even sa^^ an apostk. 
 
 * Gal. i. 11—19. 
 
 H 
 
86 
 
 There is not the slightest evidence^ in the ivhole of 
 the Xe'-jo Testament, that the apostles ordained either 
 co-adjtitors or successors to themselves iti the apostolic 
 office. In the form of consecrating bishops, and in 
 the church of England, Acts xiii. 1 — 3, is referred 
 to ; and is, therefore, no doubt, the best authority the 
 bishops can produce to countenance their practice. 
 Upon this transaction let it be noted, \st. It is full 
 as probable that Saul and Barnabas were set apart 
 by the whole churchj as by the prophets and teachers, 
 since no individuals arc particularized as sending 
 them away. 2d//j/, There are only five officers men- 
 tioned in the account ; and as two of them were set 
 apart for the mission, there were onl}^ three, if the 
 people be rejected, to perform the ordination, name- 
 ly, Simeon, Lucius, and Manaen. But all the five 
 were officers of the same rank before this ordination 
 took place. — They are all equally and indiscriminate- 
 ly called prophets and teachers. Now^, if Saul and 
 Barnabas were put into another, and superior, office, 
 by this laying on of hands, which must be admitted, 
 or the ordination w^as of no value, and so not worth 
 contending about, then this case proves that equals 
 are authorised to elect and ordain their own supe- 
 riors ; a principle this, which traces the origin of 
 church power to the people ; the people may make 
 teachers, teachers bishops, &c. This strips their 
 lordships, the bishops, of nearly the whole of their 
 assumed importance. 3J/j/, At this famous ordina- 
 tion, no spiritual powers are given either to preach 
 the gospel, or to govern the church; the Holy 
 Ghost is not put into the heads, or the keys of St 
 
 J 
 
87 
 
 Peter into the hands of these consecrated gentlemen, 
 which leaves room for suspicion that the ordainers 
 did not properly understand their business, and per- 
 formed it so imperfectly, that the wisest course, per- 
 haps, will be to nullify the whole proceedings. 
 A'thl;t/, But, seriously, the plain state of the case is 
 this: The Holy Ghost made known to the church 
 at Antioch, that he intended Paul and Barnabas to 
 be separated from them for a season upon a special 
 mission. The brethren, by fasting, prayer, and lay- 
 ing on of hands, recommended them to the favour 
 and protection of heaven. Wlien they had finished 
 this work, they returned *' to Antioch, from whence 
 they had been recommended by the grace of God^ 
 for the work which they fulfilled.." * Here this mis- 
 sion ended; but Paul and Barnabas were both 
 preachers long before this. Paul had taught Chris- 
 tianity publicly and boldly at Damascus and Jeru- 
 salem ; and they had both preached to large congre- 
 gations at Antioch, for a whole year, f All christian 
 churches, which have any piety, imitate, in similar 
 circumstances, the conduct of these brethren. When 
 their ministers make itinerant excursions, they re- 
 commend them to the protection of God, and pray 
 for the success of their labours ; but they are not 
 so ignorant as to call this an ordination to the work 
 of the ministry. 
 
 Admitting episcopal ordination to be valid, it does 
 not follow that it is necessary, unless the New Tes- 
 tament prohibits the exercise of the christian minis- 
 
 * Acts xiv. 26. f Acts ix. 19—29. xl 25—26. 
 
 H 2 
 
58 
 
 try to all those who have it not, and this is not eyen 
 pretended. 
 
 When our episcopalians are pressed with the case 
 of the reformed churches which have no bishops, they 
 generally betray a struggle betwixt bigotry and chari- 
 ty ; to save them without bishops would diminish the 
 importance of the episcopal order, and to damn thenv. 
 merely for the want of bishops is shocking ; it is 
 therefore gravely and shrewdly remarked, that these 
 churches desire bishops, but cannot obtain them, for 
 which reason they are excusable — the will is taken 
 for the deed. This would appear plausible to some 
 people, if it were only true. But when did they ex- 
 press such a wish? and why did not the English 
 church gratify them ? But if episcopal ordination be 
 only necessary where it may be had, it is not neces*- 
 sary to our dissenting ministers, because they cannot 
 have it. Individuals have every now and then ap- 
 plied for it, but generally without success. The au- 
 thor never asked such a favour of their lordships, for 
 two reasons, Isf, He esteems himself too great art 
 heretic to be entitled to so high a privilege. And, 
 2c//j/, he is afraid that holy hands, if laid upon his 
 profane head, would not be sufficiently efficacious to 
 mend his heart. 
 
 Mere ceremonies and matters of order are not 
 to be regarded in cases of necessity. Our Lord 
 healed the sick on the sabbath-day, and bade objec- 
 tors go home and study this text: " I will have 
 jnercy and not sacrifice.'* God has not left it t9 
 
89 
 
 the option of a bishop whether men shall be saved 
 or not. When the bishop of Rome prohibited all 
 public worship throughout a whole nation, was it 
 sinful for men to meet together for the purposes of 
 devotion and instruction ? And if bishops now do 
 not ordain a sufficient number of priests, or if those 
 they ordain be ignorant or indolent, — men that 
 cannot or will not discharge the duties of their 
 functions, — must a minister of piety and abilities 
 hold his tongue, and suffer sinners to go quietly to 
 hell, without so much as exhorting them to re- 
 pentance, for this wonderful reason, because this is 
 the will and pleasure of a right reverend father in 
 God ? " If a man see another fall down in the 
 streets," says Mr Baxter, " shall he refuse to take 
 him up, because he is no physician ? If the country 
 be infected with the plague, and you have a sove- 
 reign medicine that will certainly cure it, with all 
 that will be ruled, will you let them all perish, rather 
 than apply it to them, because you are not a physi- 
 cian ? If you see the poor naked, may no one make 
 them clothes but a tailor? If you see the enemy at 
 the walls, will you not give the city warning, because 
 you are not a w^atchman, or on the guard ? If a com- 
 mander die in fight, any man that is next may take 
 his place, in case of necessity.. Will you see the 
 field lost for a point of order, because you will not 
 do the work of a commander ? A hundred such cases 
 may be put, in which it is plain that the substance of 
 the work in which men can do a great and necessary 
 good, is of the lanso of nature, though the regulating 
 of it, in point of order, may be by positive law ; but 
 H 3 
 
97) 
 
 the cessation of the obligation. of the positive hiw 
 about order, does not absolve us from the common 
 law of nature ; for then it should allow us to lay by 
 humanity." * 
 
 This he applies to the subject under consideration, 
 and very pertinently infers — " It is better that m«i 
 be disorderly saved, than orderly damned ; and that 
 the church be disorderly preserved, than orderly 
 destroyed." All men who have ability, are obliged, 
 by the laws of both nature and revelation, to instruct 
 the ignorant, reprove the wicked, and comfort the 
 distressed ; and a bishop must have more authority 
 over the conscience, than God Almighty pretends 
 to, before he can cancel this obligation. 
 
 Objection. " But the regular clergy are quite suf- 
 ficient, without the intrusion of others." That they 
 are self-sufficient^ was never doubted ; excessive mo- 
 desty does not rank among their failings. There 
 are ten thousand parishes in this nation. Suppose 
 on an average, two hundred persons attend every 
 parish church : — and this is an over, rather than an 
 under calculation ; the sum total is two millions — 
 not a fourth part of the population. Must the rest 
 all perish, rather than an unordained man shall 
 attempt their conversion? Yes, says bigotry; — ^but 
 charity is indignant at the thought. 
 
 If episcopal ordination be necessary, the ordainers 
 must be scrijptural bishops. If any sort of bishops will 
 
 » Diputat. p. 155, 
 
91 
 
 do, some denominations of dissenters are af least 
 on a level witii the church. The Moravians have 
 bishops; and to mention no more, even the great- 
 est heretics of all, the Wesleyan Methodists, have 
 two bishops in America. But these, it will be said, 
 are not true bishops, that is, they are not scrip- 
 tural, for if they were, no christian could object to 
 them. Let us then enquire, whether those in the 
 church of England be such as the New Testament 
 requires ; for, if not, they can have no more autho- 
 rity, and be entitled to no more attention, than the 
 bishops among the sectaries. 
 
 I. A bishop is required to oversee and feed his 
 flock. * But our bishops do neither ; they never 
 saw one in four of their flocks, nor spoke a word to 
 one in fifty of them. To say that the bishops em- 
 ploy other persons to superintend and instruct them, 
 is to make those other persons, and not the bishops, 
 their pastors. 
 
 II. In the days of the apostles, there were many 
 bishops to one congregation; as at Ephesus, * and 
 Philippi. f With us there are hundreds of congre- 
 gations to one bishop. 
 
 III. In the primitive times, bishops and pi-esby- 
 ters- were the same ; this will be proved as we go 
 along; — now they differ as much as master and 
 servant. 
 
 * Acts XX. 28. t Phil. i. 1. 
 
92 
 
 IV. Our Lord docs not allow his ministei's to as- 
 sume honorary titles. " Be not ye called, Rabbi,''* 
 To understand the import of this term, it may be 
 necessary to remark, that the Jews had divinity 
 schools or colleges, where the youths, destined to be 
 teachers in their synagogues, were instructed in the 
 ancient Hebrew language, the law, the rites and ce- 
 remonies of worship, &c. Literary titles were con- 
 ferred upon the students : — The highest academical 
 honour was the title of Rabbi ; which term denoted 
 not merely a teacliei\ but a man of learnings and may, 
 therefore, as Campbell has remarked, " be fitly ex- 
 pressed by the English term doctor^^ Our bishops 
 make a great parade of their learnings and assume 
 the highest literary title appropriated to ecclesiastics, 
 that of doctor of divinity. 
 
 In the same passage the apostles are enjoined to 
 call no man father upon earth, because the use of 
 this term, in a spiritual sense, is restricted to our 
 *' Father who is in heaven." In contempt of the 
 authority of Christ, and the. paternity of Deity, our 
 bishops stile themselves " right reverend fathers ia 
 God." 
 
 The apostle Peter advised aged men to assume the 
 office of bishops, but expressly charged them not to 
 be as " lords over God's heritage." f It might have 
 been supposed that this apostle would be regarded 
 by our prelates, as it is from him they pretend to 
 derive their spiritual descent. But no; instead of 
 
 * Matth. xxiii. 8, 9. f 1 Peter v. 3^ 
 
95 
 
 rejecting this title, they apply it to themselves in a 
 twofold sense ; they are church-lords, and state* 
 lords; — lord bishops, and lords of parliament. 
 
 Without enlarging upon this subject, enough has 
 been said to shew, that the bishops of the church of 
 England are not such as the apostles constituted in 
 the primitive churches ; for this reason they cannot 
 possess any exclusive power of ordination, which i* 
 all that the argument requires. 
 
 Most people, when they read about a bishop iii 
 ancient times, associate modern ideas with the name. 
 They conceive of a man who possesses thousands a 
 year, rolling in a chariot, wdth a long train of at- 
 tendants, living in pomp and pleasure, ranking with 
 the first nobility of the land, and exercising spiritual 
 jurisdiction over hundreds of churches, and hundreds 
 of thousands of souls. But the truth is, the bishops 
 hv the three first centuries were, in general, very 
 poor, and often selected from the lowest orders of 
 society. For some time after, they claimed a supe- 
 riority over presbyters, they each presided over only 
 one congregation, which was frequently very small. 
 When missionaries, who were usually called bishops, 
 first visited a country or province, they generally 
 commenced their labours in the principal cities ; and 
 when small societies were formed in the adjacent 
 villages, ministers were appointed for each of them, 
 called chorepiscopi, or village bishops. When the 
 great Gregory Thaumaturgus was made bishop of 
 >New Ca^sarea, there were only seventeen chris- 
 
94 
 
 TiANS in the cit}'. His ministry was very successful 
 at home; and, as a missionary, he preached and 
 formed societies in some towns in tlie neiglibour- 
 hood. He ordahied Alexander, a collier^ bishop of 
 Comana, a small place in the vicinity, where he had 
 made some converts. * 
 
 To hear some people talk on the necessity and 
 importance of episcopal ordination, one would sup- 
 pose that our Lord or his apostles had clearly ex- 
 plained the difference betwixt the episcopal and 
 presbyter offices, had restricted the power of ordi- 
 
 * Baxter's Disput. p. 186, 187. In the preface to this part of his 
 work, Mr Baxter has given an amusing account of the election of 
 Alexander. When Gregory conferred with the society about the 
 choice of a pastor, the simpletons were for having a man of rank and 
 shining abilities. While thoy were debating upon the subject, Gregory 
 recollected the circumstance of Samuel anointing David^ a shepherd, 
 king over Israel ; he therefore desiied them to enquire, wliether they 
 had not among the lower orders, persons eminent for piety, and pos- 
 sessed of ministerial qualifications. This roused their indignation, 
 and one of them had the insolence to tell him, by way of derision, that 
 if he wished them to take a bishop from the scum of the people, they 
 might as well chuse Alexander, the collier. Gregory sent for him, 
 and Alexander was introduced among them, ragged, and l)esmeared 
 with grime and dirt, v.hich excited general laughter. Gregory with- 
 drew with him, examined him, and found hipi to be a man of parts 
 and piety ; he instructed the collier what to do, and returning to the 
 assembly, preached on the nature of the pastoral office. By and bye, 
 Alexander, who was a comely looking man, was again presented to 
 the brethren, purified from the filth of the flesh, and decked out in 
 the canonicals of the episcopal order. What a change in the man f 
 and what a change in the assembly ! The poor collier was now chosen 
 bishop, with only one dissenting voice ! — How many of our Newcastle 
 and Kingswood coUiers would look grave, and learned, and spiritual, 
 |{id noble, were they only dressed in potticoats and powdered Migs \ 
 
95 
 
 nation to bishops, and had made the imposition of 
 their hands essential to the vaHdity of the ministry. 
 But nothing to this effect can be found in the New 
 Testament. 
 
 It is 7iot 2>^'ct^J^d^d that the Scriptures afford the 
 shadoxv of evidence that any apostle ordained a single 
 bishop, except Paid ; ?ior that he ordained one besides 
 Timothy. This must have been a criminal omission, 
 if it be true that there cannot be a church without a 
 bishop, nor an orthodox bishop without episcopal 
 ordination. Ecclesiastical historians have, however, 
 supplied the defect of the sacred scriptures upon this 
 subject. They inform us that the apostles ordained 
 James bishop of Jerusalem, that Paul ordained two 
 or three bishops of Rome, and that John did little 
 else for many years previous to his death, than travel 
 through Asia ordaining bishops for the churches. 
 These accounts are entitled to about as much credit 
 as the vulgar stories concerning mother Shipton. 
 
 Tlie only evidence to prove that Paul ordained 
 Timothy is derived from 2 Tim. i. 6. " Wherefore 
 I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift 
 of God which is in thee, by the putting on of my 
 hands." Not a hint is dropped here about an ordi- 
 nation to the episcopal office. It was the common 
 practice of the apostles to put their hands on per- 
 sons recently converted. Peter and John laid their 
 hands on the disciples at Samaria, and they received 
 the Holy Ghost. Paul laid his hands on all the 
 disciples at Ephesus, and they received the Holy 
 
96 
 
 Ghost. * Were all these christians, by this ceremony, 
 consecrated bishops ? No churchman can assert this, 
 because he cites these texts in support of confirma- 
 tion, as practised by the prelates. 
 
 Mr Baxter observes, upon the passage under con* 
 sideration, that " it may be imposition of hands in 
 confirmation, or for the first giving of the Holy 
 Ghost after baptism (ordinarily used by the apostles) 
 that is there spoken of. This seems probable from 
 the apostle's annexing it to Timothy's faith, in 
 which he succeeded his mother and grandmother ; 
 from the effects of it, the spirit of ^^oiioer, of love^ 
 and of a sound jnind, which are the fruits of con- 
 firming grace ; and from the admonition to 7iot he 
 asliamed of the testimony of our Lord, which is also 
 the fruit of confirmation." f 
 
 1 Tim. iv. 14, The apostle exhorts Timothj-y 
 " Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was 
 given thee by prophesyj with the laying on of the 
 liands of the presbijterij''' If the other text refers to 
 ardination, so does this. Were there two separate 
 ordinations, or did the apostle and presbyters concur 
 in making him a minister ? If the former, then pres* 
 byters may ordain without the presence of a bishop ; 
 if the latter, then bishops have no more right to 
 ordain without presbyters, than presbyters without 
 bishops. In this case the power of cfrdination is 
 divided equally betwixt them, and the union of both 
 is necessary to confer holy orders. 
 
 ♦ Acts viii. 14—17.— xix. 6, 7. f Disput. p. 205, 206. 
 
Supposing this to have been an ordination, what 
 office was it to? Our high churchmen hold that 
 though a bishop and presbyters are sufficient to 
 ordain a presbyter, yet three prelates are necessary 
 to confer the episcopal office ; upon their own prin- 
 ciples, therefore, Timothy, at most, could only be 
 made a presbyter/ 
 
 The truth of the matter appears to be this : On 
 one of Paul's visits to Lystra, the presbyters recom- 
 mended to him Timothy, a lad who had lately 
 joined their society, as a travelling companion.* 
 At parting, the brethren recommended their young 
 friend to the favour and protection of heaven, as 
 was common in those days of piety and simplicity, f 
 by prayer and imposition of hands. The apostle 
 assisted at the holy exercise, and Timothy received 
 a blessing to his soul. The gift which heaven im- 
 parted to him at this time could not be the epis- 
 copal office, because it is expressly stated to be " the 
 spirit of power, of love, and of a somid mind." 
 
 If Timothy was made a bishop, it was either of 
 the church universal, or of a particular church. If 
 the former, he was a pope, clothed with supreme and 
 independent power. But each of the other apostles 
 had as much right as Paul to make such an officer ; 
 and this supposes that they might have made twelve 
 governors of the universal church, each exercising a 
 
 * Acts xvi. 1, 2, 5. 
 
 f *' And when they had fasted and praj'ed, and lUycd tUeh" USU^ 
 OJi them, they sent them away." Acts xiii. 5, 
 
 1 
 
98 
 
 jurisdiction Independent of the others; which is as 
 absurd as to sup}>ose that twelve kings might reign 
 over this nation at the same time, .each exercising 
 the kingly power separately and independently. 
 
 But it is generally supposed that Timothy was 
 made bishop of Ephesus. This pretence, howevei*, 
 is completely refuted in the following extract : " It 
 appears that the apostle Paul left in the church of 
 Ephesus, which he had planted, no other successors 
 to himself than jyreshyter-bisJwjps^ or presbyterian 
 ministers, and that he did not devolve his power 
 upon any prelate. Timothy, whom the episcopa- 
 lians allege to have been the first bishop of Ephesus, 
 was present when this settlement was made ; * and it 
 is surely not to be supposed that, had he been their 
 bishop, the apostle would have devolved the w^hole 
 episcopal power upon the presbyters before his face« 
 If ever there was a season fitter than another for 
 pointing out the duty of this supposed bishop to his 
 diocese, and his presbyters duty to him, it was surely 
 when Paul w^as taking his final leave of them, and 
 discoursing so pathetically concerning the duty of 
 overseers, the coming of ravenous w^olves, and the 
 consequent hazard of the flock. In this farewell 
 discourse he tells them, that ' he had not shunned to 
 declare unto them all the counsel of God.' But 
 with what truth could this have been said, if obe- 
 dience to a diocesan bishop had been any part of 
 their duty, eidier at the time of the apostle's speak- 
 ing, or at any future period? He foresaw that 
 
 • Acts XX, 4, 5. 
 
'99 
 
 ravenous wolves would enter in among them, and 
 that even some of themselves should arise speaking 
 perverse things; and if, as the episcopalians allege, 
 diocesan episcopacy was the remedy provided for 
 those evils, is it not strange, passing sti'ange, that 
 the inspired preacher did not foresee that Timothy, 
 who was standing beside him, was destined to fill 
 that important office ? or, if he did foresee it, that he 
 omitted to recommend him to his future charge, and 
 to give him proper instructions for the discharge of 
 his duty? 
 
 ** But if Timothy was not bishop of Ephesus, 
 what, it may be asked, was his office in that city ? 
 For that he resided there for some time, and was by 
 the apostle invested v/ith authority to ordain and re- 
 buke presbyters, arc facts about which all parties are 
 agreed ; and which, indeed, cannot be controverted 
 by any reader of Paul's epistles. To this the pres- 
 byterian replies, with confidence, that the power 
 which Timothy e^cercised in the church of Ephesus 
 was that of an evangelist, * and not a fixed prelate. 
 But, according to Eusebius, the M^ork of an evan- 
 gelist was, ' to lay the foundations of the faith in 
 barbarous nations, and to constitute among them 
 pastors; after which he passed on to other countries^' 
 Accordingly we find that Timothy was resident for 
 a time at Philippi and Corinth, f as well as at Ephe- 
 sus ; and that he had as much authority over those 
 churches, as over that of which he is said to have 
 been the fixed bishop. * Now, if Timotheus come, 
 
 * 2 Tina, ir. S— 9. f Thil. ii. 19. 1 Cgr. iv. 17. xvi. 10, 11. 
 
 I 2 
 
100 
 
 see tliat he may be with you without fear, for he 
 worketh the work of the Lord, as I also do. Let 
 no man, therefore, despise him/ This text might 
 lead us to suppose that Timothy was bishop of 
 Corinth as well as of Ephesus; for it is stronger 
 than that upon which his episcopacy of the latter 
 cluirch is chiefly built. The apostle says, * ' I be- 
 sought thee to abide still at Ephesus, when I went 
 into Macedonia, that thou mightest charge some 
 that they teach no other doctrine.' But had Timo- 
 thy been the fixed bishop of that city, there would 
 surely have been no necessity for beseeching him to 
 abide with his flock. It is to be observed too, that 
 the first epistle to Timothy, which alone was written 
 to him during his residence at Ephesus, was of a 
 date prior to Paul's meeting with the elders of that 
 church at Miletus ; for in the epistle he hopes to 
 coirie to him shortly ; whereas he tells the elders at 
 Miletus that they should see his face no more. This 
 being the case, it is evident that Timothy was left by 
 the apostle at Ephesus, only to supply his place 
 during his temporary absence at Macedonia ; and 
 that he could not possibly have been constituted 
 fixed bishop of that church, since the episcopal 
 powers were afterwards committed to the presbyters 
 by the Holy Ghost in his presence." f 
 
 The fictions gathered from the ancients, to prove 
 that Timothy was bishop of Ephesus, do not merit 
 a serious confiitation. It is said he governed that 
 church thirty years : " A. D. 97, the pagans of 
 
 * 1 Tilt), i. 5. t Buck's Theological Dictionary, Art. Presbyt. 
 
101 
 
 Epliesus, we are told, made a great feast, in which 
 they carried in procession the images of their gods, 
 being masked, and armed with great clubs. Timothy 
 rushed in among them to prevent this idolatrous 
 superstition, but they killed him with stones and 
 with their clubs."* It is the generally received 
 opinion that the apostle John wrote his Revelation 
 in the year 96 ; if, therefore, the above story be true, 
 Timothy must have been the angel of the church of 
 Ephesus, to whom the apostle addressed an epistle 
 from Jesus Christ; the one account charges him 
 with apostacy, the other celebrates him as a martyr. 
 The apostle Paul represents Timothy as prudent, 
 steady and uniform; how utterly improbable that 
 such a man should in old age lose his religion, and 
 almost immediately after be inspired with fanaticism, 
 and throw away his life by an act of indiscretion ! 
 
 The case of Timothy has been examined the more 
 closely, because the whole cause of prelatieal ordi^ 
 nation rests upon it. It may, therefore, be safely 
 affirmed, that neither precept nor example can be 
 produced from the New Testament to support the 
 ©pinion, that the apostles ordained an order of men 
 superior to presbyters, and vested in them the ex^* 
 elusive privilege of ordaining all church officers. 
 
 It is admitted, however, that the scriptures affi^rd 
 proof of the ordination of bishops ; but these bishops 
 were not of an order superior to presbyters. To 
 make this subject clear to the comprehension of the 
 
 * Calmet, Art. Timothy. 
 I 3 
 
102 
 
 illiterate, it is only necessary to explain the terras. 
 The literal import of Tr^ioQvn^o^y ine$bi)tcr>i is an 
 elder^ in respect of age, an aged person. This term 
 is, in the New Testament, applied to the mem- 
 bers of ihe Jewish Sanhedrim, because they were 
 principally old men. The aged were anciently much 
 venerated for their wisdom and experience, and, 
 therefore, were generally chosen to fill places of 
 honour and trust; hence this term in process of 
 time was applied to magistrates^ and then it imported 
 not only the wisdom and gravity of age, but the dig- 
 nity and power of office. Our translators have 
 very properly rendered this word elder. We call 
 a man who is far advanced in life, an elderly man^ 
 and a member of a corporation who has civil juris- 
 diction, an alderman^ or elder-man, which word was 
 used by our Saxon ancestors to denote both an aged 
 person and a magistrate. 
 
 The word preshyte7', when applied to an officer in 
 the christian church, signifies governor ; but, as this 
 officer had no civil jurisdiction, like the Jewish pres- 
 byters, it was necessary to explain his duty by some 
 qualifying term; christian presbyters are therefore 
 called iwic^d'Trov^, overseers, i?ispectors. Hence the 
 apostle Peter * exhorts presbyters, i. e. old meii, to 
 take the oversight, {iTria-xoTrcvynii to act as bishops) of 
 the flock, and forbids them to act as lords over 
 God's heritage, f It is well known that the Jewish 
 
 * 1 Peter, v. 1, 2, 3. 
 
 •\ " The word xXr,^ss, clergi/, properly signifies a lot. But because 
 the land of Canaan was divided among the Israelites by lot, tlie word 
 
presbyters were lords over God's heritage, and tliafr 
 the appointment of presbyters in the christian church 
 was borrowed from the Jewish economy ; it will fol* 
 low, therefore, that, if presbyters and bishops are dis- 
 tinct orders of officers, presbyters are the highest in 
 dignity and power; — they are the lords and masters 
 over the church, while bishops are only their ser- 
 vants to oversee or inspect it. But as no good could 
 be expected to result from a mere transfer of lordly 
 titles and prerogatives from one order of ecclesiajstics 
 to another, the best way would be for bishops to re- 
 sign them, and presbyters to let them alone. Good 
 old bishop Latimer has well described the effects of 
 this strange and forbidden union of lord and bisJiop^ 
 in the same person : " But this much I dare say, 
 that since loi'ding and loitering hath come up, preach- 
 ing hath come down, contrary to the apostles' times ; 
 for they preached and lorded not. And now they 
 
 came to signify an heritage. Wherefore, believers being God's people, 
 or portion, the different churches or congregations for worship, ar« 
 called here God's heritages. In process of time the word xX»^4f, 
 clergy, was appropriated to the ministers of the gospel, because, being 
 considered as the successors of the Levitical priests, they were re- 
 garded as God's lot, or portion. From this prohibition it would seem, 
 that, in the apostles' days, the bishops were beginning to assume that 
 dominion over their flocks, which in after times they carried to the 
 greatest height of tyranny. Or St Peter, by inspiration foreseeing 
 what was to happen, condemned in this prohibition tlie tyranny which 
 in after time the clergy exercised." Macknight on the place. 
 
 Here we see tlie impudence of church officers in appropriating to 
 themselves exclusively a term, which, in primitive times, was common 
 to all christians. All good men are, in the scripture sense of thfi 
 word, clergymen. They are God's lot^ or heritage j or, in a mor« 
 modern phrase, the people of Gcd, 
 
104. 
 
 lord and preacli not. Ever since the prelates were- 
 made lords and nobles, the plough standeth ; there is 
 no work done ; the people starve. They are otherwise 
 occupied, some in king's matters, some are ambas- 
 sadors, some of the privy council, some to furnish 
 the court, some are lords of the jparliament^ some are 
 presidents, and comptrollers of mints. Well, well. 
 Is this their duty ? Is this their office ? Is this their 
 calling ? Should we have ministers of the church to 
 be comptrollers of the mints ? Is this a meet office 
 for a priest, that hath cure of souls? Is this hi» 
 charge ? I would here ask one question ; — I w^ould 
 fain know who comptrolleth the devil at home in his 
 parish, while he comptrolleth the mint ? If the apos- 
 tles might not leave the office of preaching to be 
 deacons, shall we leave it for minting ? A bishop 
 liath his office, a flock to teach, to look unto ; and 
 therefore he cannot meddle with another office, which 
 alone requireth an whole man. He should, there- 
 fore, give it over to whom it is meet, and labour in 
 his own business, as Paul writeth to the Thessalo- 
 nians : Liet every man do his oizn business, and follow 
 his calling. Let the priest preachy and the noble- 
 man handle the temporal matters." *" 
 
 The word presbyter, is the term of office and dig- 
 nity ; the word bishop is used to denote the dnty of 
 the presbyter office, which is to oversee, to inspect. 
 Hence tlie same officers are sometimes called pres- 
 byters, and sometimes bishops. Thus the apostle 
 Paul charged the presbyters of the church of Ephe- 
 
 • Sermon on tlie Plough. 
 
105 
 
 sus, to feed the flock, over whom the Holy Ghost 
 had made them iTia-KOTroviy bishops ; * and directed 
 Titus to ordain as presbyters, in every city in Crete, 
 men of unblemished character, because " a bishop 
 must be blameless," &c ; f but this reason would no& 
 apply, if a presbyter and bishop were not the same. 
 
 To this it is generally and triumphantly replied, 
 " It is granted that one and the same man is, in the 
 New Testament, styled sometimes a bishop and some- 
 times a presbyter ; but, although eTery bishop waS 
 undoubtedly a presbyter, it does not follow that every 
 presbyter was likewise a bishop. Aaron and his 
 sons are without any discrimination of order, fre- 
 quently styled priests ; but though he had the title 
 proper to their order, they had not the title proper 
 to his, — they are not styled high-priests. The apos- 
 tles Peter and John call themselves presbyters ; it 
 does not follow, however, as a matter of course, that 
 mere presbyters may call themselves apostles* In 
 some cases a man is at liberty to assume a title beloio 
 his proper rank, but in no case to assume one above 
 it." 
 
 This argument, if it deserves to be called one, will 
 not solve the difficulty. Episcopalians hold, that 
 Timothy was bishop of Ephesus ; the episcopal title, 
 therefore, according to the objection, did not belong 
 to any other officer in that church, though it is given 
 by the apostle Paul to the presbyters^ whom he ex- 
 pressly calls bishops, 
 
 » Acts XX. 17—28. f Titus L 5, 6, 7. 
 
106 
 
 Neither does the argument apply to what is said 
 on Titus i. 5, 6, 7. It is said, that the episcopal of- 
 fice is distinct from tliat of presbyter, and far supe- 
 rior to it in point of dignity ; the duties of a bishop 
 are supposed to be quite different in many res})ects 
 from those of a presbyter, and to be much more im- 
 portant, arduous, and difficult. But this cannot be 
 admitted ; for it would make the apostle reason fool- 
 ishly to say, that presbyters must possess such and 
 such qualifications, because these qualifications are 
 necessary to bishops, who are officers of superior 
 rank. This would be as absurd, as to require every 
 petty civil officer to possess those great abilities which 
 are necessary to the supreme magistrate. A man 
 may surely know how to use a constable-staff, who i;i 
 liot qualified to sway a sceptre. 
 
 Nothing more is required of a bishop than of a 
 presbyter. Each must support a good moral charac- 
 ter — be the husband of one wife — keep his family in 
 good order^ — and teach and govern the church of 
 God.* It is not required of either, to ordain 
 bishops, priests, and deacons ; to administer the sa- 
 craments ; to confirm children ; perform marriage 
 ceremonies, and bury the dead; nor even to preach 
 in public. When the quahfications and duties of 
 both are precisely the same, to say that they differ a^ 
 to office and order, is a contradiction in terms. 
 
 The title of bishop was formerly given to all per- 
 sons who were appointed to the oversight of either 
 
 * Acts zx. 17—28. iTim. iii. 1—7. v. 17. Titus i. 5— 9» 
 
107 
 
 men or things. Thus Eleazer tlie priest, in Num- 
 bers iv. 16, is styled illpS), which the LXX have 
 rendered g^r^e-xe^ro?, bishop ; because he had the ovev^ 
 sight of the tabernacle and its flirniture. The same 
 word in the Hebrew and Greek occurs, 2 Chronicles^ 
 xxxiv. 1 2. These were bishops, or overseers, of the 
 workmen employed in repairing the house of the 
 Lord. For the same reason, an overseer of the high- 
 ways is a bishop of the highways ; an overseer of the 
 poor, is a bishop of the poor ; and an overseer of a 
 church, which every presbyter is, is a bishop of a 
 church. 
 
 Admitting the identity of bishops and presbyters, 
 it is granted that the New Testament furnishes a 
 few examples of bishops receiving ordination, though 
 not a single instance can be produced of their giving 
 it. The only persons who conferred holy orders, 
 that we read of, were Paul and Barnabas, Timothy 
 and Titus ; the two former were apostles, and the 
 two latter evangelists. 
 
 But allowing that presbyter-bishops had the power 
 (jf ordination, it does not follow that our bishops pos- 
 sess it. The presbyter office is now split into two, 
 and its duties are divided betwixt two distinct orders 
 of men. It has been shewn, that to oversee or 
 bishop the church is a duty of the presbyter office. 
 If presbyters are obliged to discharge the duties of 
 their office personally, (and few will dispute this), it 
 must follow that bishops, as an order of men distinct 
 from presbyters, and exercising a part of their office. 
 
10^ 
 
 «re unauthorised and unaccredited intruders into the 
 christian church. 
 
 Granting, liowever, for the sake of argument, that 
 presbyters are not obhgcd to perform all the duties 
 of their office themselves, it cannot be denied tliat 
 they are superior to all the drudges employed in 
 their office. It is universally admitted, that a person 
 >vlio holds an office, the duties of which are perform- 
 ed by others, is superior to them in dignity and 
 povrer ; — they are obliged to submit to his authority; 
 they can make no new. officers without his leave; 
 he assigns them their work, and can dismiss them if 
 they do not perform it to his satisfaction. The duty 
 of preserving the peace and good order of society, 
 belongs to the kingly office ; but his Majesty employs 
 a great number of magistrates to assist him in the 
 discharge of this duty ; and they of course act in his 
 name, and by virtue of his authority. Were they 
 to cabal and make a new king, and new officers of 
 state, they would be justly looked upon as rebels and 
 traitors. Yet they have as much right to do this, 
 as bishops, who only perform a part of the presby- 
 ter office, have to make presbyters and other ec- 
 clesiastical officers. The power of ordination, if it 
 remain with either, must be in presbyters and not in 
 bishops. 
 
 Bishop Stillingfleet reasons well upon this subject : 
 
 '' Among the Jews," says he, " in the times of the 
 
 apostles, it is most evident that the name ^rggiT^vrtga* 
 
 imported not only dignity but power ; the presbyters- 
 
109 
 
 among the Jews having a power both of judg- 
 ing and teaching, given them by their Semicha or 
 ordination. Now, under the gospel, the apostles, re- 
 taining the name and the manner of ordination, 
 but not conferring that judiciary power by it, which 
 was in use among the Jews, to shew the difference 
 between the law and the gospel, it was requisite 
 some other name should be given to the governors of 
 the church, which should quahfy the importance of 
 the word presbyters to a sense proper to a gospel 
 state; which was the original of giving the name 
 £T<5-;tow6< to the governors of the church under the 
 gospel ; a name importing duty more than honour, 
 and not a title above presbyter^ but rather used by 
 way of diminution and qualification of the power im- 
 plied in the nQm.e presbyter. Therefore, to shew what 
 kind of power and duty the name presbyter import- 
 ed in the church, the office conveyed by that name 
 is called i-zitrnox-fi ; and presbyters are said g?r«rxo;!-g<y, 
 1 Pet. V. 2, where it is opposed to that lording it 
 over the people, as was the custom of the presbyters 
 among the Jews. So that, if we determine things 
 by the importance of words, and things signified by 
 them, the power of ordination was proper to the 
 name 5r§£<rCt/T«^fl5, presbyter, and not g;r/<rxor<jj, hisliop^ 
 because the former name did then import that power, 
 but not the latter." * 
 
 It is shewn, in the preceding essay, that presbyters 
 ordained in primitive times ; it is agreed on all hands, 
 however, that this privilege was soon restricted to 
 
 * Iren. Part ii. chap. vi. p. 28G. 
 
 K 
 
110 
 
 llie bishops. How sliall \vc account for it ? The so- 
 Julion of this problem is important, as it completely 
 overturns all that is said about an exclusive divine 
 right in flivour of episcopal ordination. Bishop Stil- 
 lingfleet has explained the matter; and, as too much 
 cannot be quoted from so excellent a writer, no apo- 
 logy is necessary for introducing the following ex- 
 tract : " When the apostles," says he, '* were taken 
 out of the way, and the main power left in the hands 
 of the presbyteries, the several presbyters, enjoying 
 an equal power among themselves, especially being 
 many in one city, thereby gieat occasion was given 
 to many schisms, partly by the bandying of the pres- 
 byters, one against another; partly by tlie sidings of 
 the people with some against the rest ; partly by the 
 too common use of the power of ordination in pres- 
 byters, by which they were more able to increase- 
 their own party, by ordaining those who would join 
 with them, and by this means to perpetuate schisms 
 in the church ; upon this, when tlie wiser and graver 
 sort coiisidered the abuses following the promiscuous 
 use of this power of ordination ; and, withal, having 
 in their minds the excellent frame of the government 
 of the church under the apostles, and their deputies, 
 and for preventing of future schisms and divisions 
 among themselves, they .unanimously agreed to choose 
 one out of their nmnber, who was best qualified for 
 the management of so great a trust, and to devolve 
 the exercise of the power of ordination and jurisdic- 
 tion to him ; yet so as that he act nothing of im- 
 portance, without the consent and concurrence of 
 the presbyters, who were still to be as th» conmion 
 
council of tile bishop. This I take to be the true 
 and just account of the original of episcopacy in the 
 prijnitive church according to Jerom." * 
 
 Thus it appears, that when the prcsbvters became 
 proud, factious, and tyrannical, the chmxhes agreed 
 to throw oiF the yoke, and to subject their spiritual 
 oppressors to a new order of men. This, howeverj 
 was only removing a less evil to introduce a greater. 
 These new masters ruled the churches, a* well as the 
 presbyters, with a rod of iron. They soon clauned 
 an independent power, by divine right,, to play the 
 devil, and turn the church of Christ into a synagogue 
 of Satan. Many of these ghostly fathers obtained 
 jthe mitr^e by simoniacal practices, by adulterous and 
 incestuous intrigues; and not a few fought their way 
 to the throne of St Peter in red apparel, and in gar- 
 ments dyed with blood, 
 
 •f 
 
 Though the ordination of presbyters be lawful, it is 
 not necessary. The apostle Peter exhorts aged per- 
 sons to talce^ or assume the episcopal oiiice. f Two 
 reasons may be assigned why the v/ord presbyters, in 
 this passage, signifies merely old men, and not eccle- 
 siastical officers, ist, In the fifth verse it is opposed 
 to youth; — " Likewise ye younger submit yourselves 
 unto the elder J' 2dly, The apostle calls himself a^r^5- 
 hyter, and makes this the ground of his exhortation. 
 If we take the word here in an official sense, we must 
 suppose him to urge his station in the church as the 
 reason why his advice should be followed ; but the 
 
 * Iren. part ii. ehap. vi, p. 281, 282. f 1 Peter v. 1 — 2. 
 
 k2 
 
112 
 
 higher the station the greater the autliority ; it would 
 tlierefore have been more suitable to have styled him- 
 self an apostle. On the other hand, if we take the 
 word presbyter here as relating to age, and not to 
 office, v/e at once perceive the propriety? and feel the 
 force of the apostle's address, and all difficulties vanish: 
 " The aged I exhort, who myself also am aged ; 
 likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves to the aged*" 
 
 Here is an example of an apostle exhorting old 
 men to assume the episcopal offi*;e, and admonishing 
 young men to submit to their authority. This 
 epistle is directed to the christians " throughout Pon- 
 tus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia." From 
 this it appears, that there were multitudes of churches 
 •in the apostles' days without any regular governors. 
 In such a case, the dictates of nature agree with the 
 apostle's advice, that persons of age and experience 
 ehould act as bishops or overseers. 
 
 What easy work it was in those times to make a 
 bishop ! Let only the old people agree to superin- 
 tend the young, and the young people consent to be 
 guided by the old, and the business w^as done : — a 
 college of apostolic bishops are made at once, with- 
 out either imposition of hands, or clerical infusion of 
 the Holy Ghost ! but these are not lord bishops ; — 
 *• Neither as being lords over God's heritage." 
 
 If it still be contended, that the persons exhorted 
 were presbyters by office, it is sufficient to reply, 
 that if the episcopal office belonged to a presbyter, 
 
113 
 
 tliey were exhorted to talce what they ah-eatly hdd^ 
 which is absurd ; and if it did not, they were cxhort- 
 cd to assume a superior office, which the objector 
 maintains can only he conferred ; and this destroys 
 tile whole system of priestcraft ; for if the episcopal 
 office may be assumed by a presbyter, by purity of 
 reason, the presbyter office may be assumed by a lay- 
 man. 
 
 Much confusion has been introduced into this con- 
 iroversy, by not distinguishing when the word pres* 
 hijter denotes a church officer, and when it signifies 
 merely an old man. It is generally supposed, that, 
 when applied to the apostles, it is to be taken in the 
 former sense ; hence it is inferred that the twelve, 
 as apostles, were extraordinary officers and had no 
 successors, but as presbyter-bishops they were or- 
 dinary officers, and are succeeded by us^ say the 
 episcopalians, — by us^ say the presbyterians ; but both 
 are mistaken. An apostle could not be a governor 
 of a particular church, consistent with his extraor- 
 dinary commission, to go into all the world and 
 preach the gospel to every creature. His business 
 was not, when he had founded a church, to sit 
 flown and govern it ; Tie either appointed officers, 
 or left the brethren to manage their ecclesiastical 
 concerns themselves, and went on, pursuant to the 
 commission he had received, to preach the gospel 
 in other places. The case of Peter's styling himself 
 a presbyter, had been considered. The apostle John 
 twice styles hhnself a presbyter ;* but in both places 
 
 * 2 John i. — 3 John i. 
 K 3 
 
114 
 
 the word imports no more tlian the aged, Dr 
 Mackniglit, in his paraphrase on the first of these 
 texts, says, " The a<^c(l apostle ;" in liis note on the 
 latter, he remarks, " This appellation signifies, the 
 aged aj)ostie i" and, in his preftice to the second 
 epistle, he observes, '' Heuman gives it as his 
 opinion, that in the title elder ^ there is a reference 
 to John's great age when he wrote these epistles, 
 and that he was as well known by the title of elder^ 
 as by his proper name ; so that elder was the same as 
 if he had said, the aged aj)ostle" * The apostle 
 Paul styles himself, n^t»A<5$ Tr^tc^vrng, which is proper- 
 ly rendered, Paul the aged,-\ 
 
 It is generally believed, that public preaching is 
 a necessary part of the presbyter office, but this is 
 another mistake. If our bishops and priests % did 
 not pretend to be the successors of the apostles, and 
 did not interfere with the preaching of others, but 
 only attended to the duties proper to their office, 
 they ought not to be objected to for not preaching 
 themselves ; as it will be proved presently, that the 
 office of the ministry belongs no more to them than 
 to christians in general. The office of a presbyter is 
 
 * Pref. to the 2d Epist. of John, Sect. 1. f Phil. fx. 
 
 I The Enghsh word priest, as applied to our clergy, is derived 
 from the Greek word presbyter. " Who," asks the learned Joseph 
 ]Wede, " can deny that our word priest is corrupted oi presbyter F Our 
 ancestors, the Saxons, first used j;rai5/er, whence, by a further contrac- 
 tion, cpine presle and priest. The high and low Dutch have priester ; 
 the French, prestre ; the Italian, ])rete ; but the Spaniard only speaks 
 full, presbytero." See Parkliurst's Grt'ek Lexicon, under the word 
 
115 
 
 to bishop, or oversee the church, which certainly 
 does not require the person who fills it to go into 
 the "joorld, and preach ptiblicly for the conversion of 
 iiifidels. The apostle Paul prescribed only two du- 
 ties to the presbyters of Ephesus, — to feed and over- 
 see the church. The duty of a bishop, he informs us, 
 is to " take care of the church of God ^ and the 
 qualifications for this office are, \st. Ability to teach 
 the church the laws of Qhrist, by which it is to be 
 governed.. Apt, or fit to teach. 2dly, A good ex- 
 ample, — which is self-government. Art overseer must 
 be blameless, Sfc. Sdli/, Good family govermnent. 
 One that ruleth nicell his own house, having his chiU 
 dren in subjection with all gravity ; for, if a man 
 Icnow not how to ride his own house, how shall he 
 take care of the church of God. * The qualifica- 
 tions required of a presbyter are the same, f 
 
 The question is, Do teaching axid feeding, in the 
 above texts, imply ptdilic preaching ? Two reasons 
 may be given to shew they do not. 1st, The term 
 feed, used in two of the passages, signifies to nourish 
 with wholesome doctrine ; and this teaching is limit- 
 ed to thej^ocZ:, or church. Titus's bishop is required 
 to hold fast the faithful word, that he may be able, 
 by sound doctrine, to exhort and convince the un- 
 ruly Jewish members of the church, who were for 
 imposing circumcision, and the ceremonies of the 
 law, upon the Gentile believers. Here again the 
 teaching is limited to the church. 1 Tim. iii. 2. is in 
 general terms, apt to teach, — without specifying in 
 
 * 1 Tim. iii. 5. t Titus i. 5—9. 1 Pet. r. 1—2. 
 
116 
 
 particular who are to be instructed ; but since tlie 
 above passages have restricted the exercise of the 
 bishop's prophetic^ office to the church, there is no 
 reason wliy this indefniite text should extend it fur- 
 ther. Besides, this point is settled by the nature of 
 die office, which consists in the government of the 
 church ; for the instruction v/hich it is the duty of a 
 governor to give, must be limited to his subjects. If 
 he undertake to teach others, it must be under 
 another character, which any one has an equal right 
 with himself to assume. 
 
 2d. Women held the presbyter office in the church 
 as well as men ; and a necessary quahfication of these 
 lady'2^reshyters, or lady-bishops, (which ever you please 
 to call them), was to be " teachers of good things."*' 
 But no one can suppose these women-teachers to 
 have been public preachers, when he considers that 
 the apostle would not allow a woman to pray, or 
 even appear in the church, without her veil ; and that, 
 from the delicacy of Eastern manners, a female must 
 have lost her character for modesty who should have 
 ventured to throw aside her veil, and harangue a 
 mixed assembly of both sexes, f 
 
 As a proof that there were female presbyters in 
 the primitive church, the reader is referred to Titus 
 
 * Titus ii. 5. 
 
 f Thfs is not the place to enquire, Whether the restraint which the 
 apostle imposed, was intended to operate in those countries where 
 ladies are permitted to display their charms in public^ witliout their 
 virtue being subjected to the slightest suspicion ~f 
 
il7 
 
 ii. 3. Macknight has the following note upon this 
 text : " Though the word U^icrQvri^sc? commonly sig- 
 nifies aged women indiscriminately, it evidently de- 
 notes, in this verse, such aged women as were em- 
 ployed by the church, in teaching the young of their 
 own sex, the doctrines and precepts of the christian 
 religion. For they were to be, in speech and beha- 
 viour, is^oTT^iTTUi, as became sacred perso7is ; and KuXoh- 
 ^ao-KxXcvg, good teachers. These characters, especially 
 the last mentioned, did not belong to aged women 
 in general, but only to such of them as were em- 
 ployed in teaching." His note on the second verse 
 strengthens this interpretation : " ngjo^yr^?, the word 
 used here, commonly signifies an old nmn. But Le 
 Clerc, in his additions to Hammond, hath shewed, 
 that the LXX use it to denote an office of dignity ; 
 wherefore, Tr^i^^vrx^ being of the same signification 
 with Tr^iff'^vn^ov^y it may be translated in tliis passage 
 elders. In support of this translation, I obsei've, 
 that the virtues which Titus was to inculcate on agect 
 men, are the same with those which Timothy was to 
 inculcate on bishops and deacons. They were to be 
 vYi^picXiovgj G-i/^vevi, c-A^if^oy«j, vigilant, grave, prudent. 
 See iTim. ii. 8." 
 
 The same author trans-lates yvyxucxg^ women, in 
 1 Tim. iii. 1 1 . instead of wives, as it is rendered in 
 the authorised version ; and remarks, in a note, that 
 " Chrysostom and the Greek commentators, with 
 the most ancient Latin fathers, were of opinion, that 
 the apostle, in this passage, is speaking both of those 
 women, who, in the first age, were employed in mi- 
 
118 
 
 nlstenng to the afflicted, and of those who were ap- 
 pointed to teach the young of their own sex, the 
 principles of religion. As the manners of the Greeks 
 did not permit men to have much intercourse with 
 women of character, unless they were their relations, 
 and as the Asiatics were under still greater restraints, 
 it was proper that an order of female teachers should 
 be instituted in the church, for instructing tliQ 
 young of their own sex. Of these I think the 
 apostle writes in his epistle to Titus, ch. ii. 3, 4, 
 where he gives an acccount of their office, and calls 
 them, 7r^i<j^vTi2i?, female elders^ because of their age. 
 And it is believed that they are the persons called 
 widoxDS, of whose maintenance by the church the 
 apostle speaks, 1 Tim. v. 2., and whose charactejf 
 and state he there describes, ver. 9, 10. Clement of 
 Alexandria reckons widoivs among ecclesiastical per- 
 sons, Padag. Lib. iii. ch. 12. There are many pre^ 
 cepts in scripture concerning those who are chosen^ 
 some for priests, others for bishops, others for deacons^ 
 others for mdows. Grotius tells us, these female 
 presbyters or elders, w^ere ordained by the imposi- 
 tion of hands, till the council of Laodicea ; and for 
 this he quotes the lltli canon of that council.* 
 From what is said of Euodia and Syntyche, Phil, iv, 
 S., it is probable they were female presbyters. Per- 
 haps also Priscilla, Tryphcna, and Tryphosa were of 
 
 * The canon is, *' That priestesses, or women- presideats, are not to 
 be ordained in the Church." By the superstition of after times, these 
 ladies were looked upon as a sort of sacred vestals. Pope Gregory 
 1 1, in hb first decree, curses the mau who should dare to marry ^ije 
 42^ thenL 
 
il9 
 
 tfee same order, Avith some olhers, whom, in hh 
 epistle to the Romans, he salutes, Rom. xvi. 3. 12. as 
 laboiu'lng in the Lord, For these reasons I think 
 the apostle in 1 Tim. iii. 11., describes the qualifica- 
 tions, not of the deacons' wives, but of the women 
 who, in the firs^t age, were employed by the church, 
 to minister to the sick and afflicted, and to instruct 
 the young of their own sex in the principles of the 
 christian faitli." 
 
 The primitive christians had private meetings for 
 prayer, instruction, discipline, &c. Examples of 
 each might be produced from the New Testament, 
 but it is unnecessary. For many centuries, not 
 only unbelievers were denied admission to these 
 church meetings, but even the catecliumens, or can- 
 didates for baptism, were forbid to be present at ths . 
 prajers, and the celebration of the Eucharist. In 
 the private assemblies, the presbyters instructed the 
 church ; and, in meetings of the females, the presby- 
 teresses " taught the young women."* Preaching 
 to mixed congregations of believers and unbelievers, 
 or of unbelievers only, was an office free to all. 
 
 1 Tim. v. 17, Instead of proving, as some have 
 supposed, that labouring in the word and doctrine, 
 was a part of the presbyter-office, proves the con- 
 trary. For it is evident, that, though all the pres-' 
 byters ruled, only some of them preached ; because 
 the word especially distinguishes the preachers from 
 the rest. But if the presbyter- office included in it 
 
 * Titus, ii. 4, 
 
120 
 
 the public ministry of the word, the whole of them 
 must have been preachers. 
 
 Though the Jews ordained their presbyters, both 
 of the sanhedrim and s3'nagogue, they gave full 
 liberty to any person who chose, to preach. When 
 our Lord went into tlie svnas^ojyue at Nazareth, on 
 the sabbath day, the minister politely handed to him 
 the sacred book. He preached a most admirable 
 sermon from Isaiah, Ixi. 1, 2; " and all bare him 
 witness, and wondered at the gracious words which 
 proceeded out of his mouth."* When Paul and 
 Barnabas were in the synagogue at Antioch in 
 Pisidia, " after the reading of the law and the pro- 
 phets, the rulers of the synagogue sent unto them, 
 saying, Ye men and brethren, if ye have any word 
 •of exhortation to the people, say on. Then Paul 
 stood up," and made an excellent discourse on the 
 divinity of our Saviour's mission, f Though our 
 Lord and his apostles were not ordained presbjters 
 of the Jewish church, they w^ere not denied the 
 liberty of preaching even in the places of worship 
 belonging to the national establishment. Much less 
 were they told, that, as dissenters, they could not be 
 allowed to exercise their ministry in any place in the 
 nation, till they had got it registered in the syna- 
 gogue, and had taken oaths and signed declarations, 
 in proof of their loyalty and orthodoxy. No ; — 
 Jewish bigotry was modest ! This zeal for the 
 honour and purity of religion was left to the piety 
 
 * Luke, iv. 16—22. f Acts, xiii. 14, &c. 
 
121 
 
 of christian princes, who have taught us that their 
 toleration of divine worship is religious liberty ! 
 
 In the days of the apostles, every christian, with- 
 out any ordination, was at liberty to give religious 
 Instruction. Paul and Barnabas, though perhaps 
 the two greatest preachers the church ever had, 
 entered upon the ministry, as we have seen, without 
 asking leave of either magistrates, bishops, priests, 
 or deacons. Apollos was so fully instructed in the 
 christian religion by Aquilla and Priscilla, that, in- 
 stead of finishing his education at a college, or wait- 
 ing for orders from any man, or body of men what- 
 ever, he immediately assumed the sacred office, and 
 " mightily convinced the Jews, and that publicly^ 
 shewing by the scriptures that Jesus w^as Christ." * 
 
 The apostle James, writing to the twelve tribes 
 which were scattered abroad, encouraged them to 
 instruct the ignorant, and reform the wicked. 
 " Brethren," says he, " if any of you do err from 
 the truth, and ajiy one f convert him ; let him know, 
 that he which converteth the sinner from the error 
 of his way, shall save a soul from death, and shall 
 hide a multitude of sins. J 
 
 In the church of Corinth there w^ere many gifted 
 brethren who prophesied in their public assemblies. 
 The apostle explained this term to mean exactly 
 what w^e intend by preaching, " And he that pro- 
 
 * Acts, xviii. 24—28. f Atvj one. See IMacknight on the place. 
 I James, v. 19, 20. 
 
122 
 
 l^licsictli, spcakoth unto men to eJirication, and cx- 
 liortation, and comfort." The gifted brethren were 
 so numerous, that several of them addressed the 
 congregation at the same time, which bred con- 
 fusion. The apostle directed them, for the sake of 
 order, to let one fmish his oration before another 
 commenced ; and instead of restricting the privilege 
 of preaching to a single individual episcopally or- 
 dained, which is the only order that modern hire- 
 lings can dream of, he gave them all full liberty 
 to exercise their talents in rotation : "ye may all 
 pro})hesy one by one, that all may learn, and all 
 may be comforted." * 
 
 At the time when Stephen was stoned, " there 
 was a great persecution against the church which 
 was at Jerusalem, and they were all scattered abroad 
 throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, ex- 
 cept the apostles. And tliey that were scattered 
 abroad, went every where preaching the xzord.'' f In 
 that church we are told, if *' the number of the vieu 
 was about five thousand." These were all scattered 
 abroad, and went every where preaching. Great 
 was the company of the preachers, when one church 
 could send out five thousand ! And great was the 
 liberty of preaching, when all the men in a church 
 might assume the office of the ministry ! No wonder 
 that Christianity in those days triumphed over all 
 opposition, and soon subdued millions to the obe- 
 dience of faith ! 
 
 • 1 Cor. xiv. 3— 31. f Acts, viii. 1—4. f Acts, iv. 4. 
 
123 
 
 Christians in general have not only a scriptural 
 riglit to preach the gospel, but, according to their 
 ability, it is their duty to do it. " Exhort one 
 another daily, while it is called, to day ; lest any of 
 you be hardened through the deceitfuiness of sirt. 
 Not forsaking the assembling of yourselves together, 
 as the manner of some is ; but exhorting one another; 
 and so much the more as ye see the day approach- 
 ing."* The apostle Peter commands every man 
 vvho has the gift of preaching, to exercise it, accord* 
 ing to his bcbt ability, in explaining divine truths 
 *' As every man hath received the gift, even so 
 mi?i2ster the same one to another, as good stewards- 
 of the manifold grace of God. If any man spe-ak, 
 let him speak as the oracles of God; if any man niir 
 nister, let him do it as of the ability which God 
 giveth ; that God in all things may be glorified, 
 through Jesus Christ." f The apostle Paul exliortec^ 
 the " saints and faithful brethren in Christ at Co- 
 losse" to " let the word of Christ dwell in them 
 richly, in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing onp 
 another." I He also exhorted the Corinthians, — 
 *' desire spiritual gifts, but rather that ye may pro- 
 phesy." II The^ Hebrews are severely censured for 
 not making more rapid improvement in christian 
 knowledge, that they might be able to teach others 
 the doctrines of Christ.' " For, when for the time 
 ye ought to he teachers, ye have need that one teach 
 you again, which be the first principles of the oracles 
 
 * Ileb. iii. IJ. x. 25. f 1 Peter, iv. 10, 11. \ Col. ili. Ift 
 
 Ij 1 Cor. xiv. 1. 
 L 2 
 
12i 
 
 of God ; and have become such as have need of 
 jnilk, and not of strong meat." * 
 
 When the apostle Paul was a prisoner at Rome, 
 lie rejoiced that " many of the brethren in the Lord, 
 waxing confident by his bonds, were much more 
 bold to speak the word without fear." And though 
 some of them did not preach fi'om the purest mo- 
 tives, but laboured to make a party in opposition to 
 him ; yet he did not charge them with heresy, 
 schism, enthusiasm, and fanaticism, — epithets which 
 modern bigots are brawling out against dissenters 
 till their throats are dry ; he did not call them im- 
 authorised and unaccredited teachers, intruding into 
 the sacred office ; he did not whine out a dolorous 
 lamentation, — the church is in danger ; nor did he 
 forbid their preaching, or so much as suggest a hint 
 that lie possessed any such authority. No ; — he left 
 this mean and contemptible cant to his pretended 
 successors , his noble soul soared superior to the in- 
 terests of a party ; he saw there was more work to be 
 done than they all could accomplish, and he, there- 
 fore, wiyhcd success to the labours of the sectaries* 
 His words upon this occasion, deserve to be written 
 in letters of gold. " What then?" says ho, " Not- 
 withstardi. ig every way, whether in pretence or in 
 truth, Christ is preached ; and I therein do rejoice, 
 yea, and will rejoice." f 
 
 Tlie practice of confining the work of religious 
 instruction to a dibtinct order of men, has been 
 
 *IIeb. V. 12. t Phil. i. 14—18. 
 
125 
 
 more injurious to the interests of Christianity than 
 any thing else. In the primitive times, ^vhen ahnost 
 every christian understood his religion, and could 
 teach it to others, believers were rapidly multiplied. 
 Every member of the church felt interested in its 
 prosperity, and exerted himself to serve it. Some 
 laboured privately and from house to house, among 
 their relations, friends and acquaintance; if they 
 could give but little instruction, they invited them to 
 the public meetings to be taught the way of the 
 Lord more perfectly ; others added to their private 
 labours, a word of consolation, of advice, of reproof, 
 in the assemblies of the faithful ; rnd others of supe- 
 rior acquirements, went out into the streets and 
 lanes of the city, and preached to listening and in- 
 quiring multitudes, the unsearchable riches of Christ. 
 Thus, Andrew brought his brother to Jesus. * Cor- 
 nelius " called together his kinsmen and near friends'* 
 to hear the preaching of Peter, f Matthew, the pub- 
 lican, made a gi'eat feast, and invited to it our 
 Saviour, and all the publicans among his acquaint- 
 ance, hoping they would be converted by his con- 
 versation. :{: If an unbeliever came into the publia - 
 assembly at Corinth, the gifted brethren were almost 
 sure to catch him. " He was convinced of all, judo-ed 
 of all, the secrets of his heart were made manifest,'- 
 and he lost all power of resistance ; " and so, falling- 
 down on his face, ne worsliipped God, and reported 
 that God was among them of a truth." || And in 
 the synagogues, the temples, and other places of 
 
 * John, i. 40, 41, 42. f Acts, x. 24, 25. \ Luke, y. 27-^2^ 
 [| 1 Cor. xiv. 24j 25. 
 ii 3 
 
126 
 
 public resort, the rustic eloquence of untutored ple- 
 beians converted thousands to the faith of Christ. 
 
 One man is now deemed sufficient to take the 
 spiritual charge of a whole parish, which in some 
 instances contains ten or twenty thousand inhabi- 
 tants ; and all the religious instruction which he 
 gives, is read over once a week, in about fifteen mi- 
 nutes, to perhaps two hundred of his parishioners. 
 Who can wonder that so little good is done ? The 
 Methodists act upon the primitive plan, and call all 
 the talent among them into exercise ; some pray in 
 public, others exhort, others preach in villages, and 
 the best qualified occupy the pulpits in the large 
 towns and cities ; they have a rich variety of means 
 and ministers ; multitudes are turned from the error 
 of their ways, and the faithful are perfected in virtue. 
 
 Our Lord and his apostles made the laity the 
 guardians of orthodoxy. " Take heed that no man 
 deceive you ; for many .shall come in my name, say- 
 ing, 1 am Christ, and shall deceive many. Beloved, 
 believe not every spirit, but t7y the spirits whether 
 they be of God ; because many false prophets are 
 gone out into the world. Prove all things: hold 
 fast that which is good. If there come any unto 
 you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not 
 into your house, neither bid him God speed." * 
 
 The clergy, however, soon robbed the people of 
 this privilege. They claimed the exclusive preroga- 
 
 • Matth. xxiv. 4, 5. 1 John, iv. 1. 1 Thess. v. 21. 2 John, 10. 
 
127 
 
 tive of judging what doctrines were true, and what 
 were false ; they met together in synods and coun- 
 cils, to frame articles of faith, and rites, and cere- 
 monies of worship ; and they required the people, on 
 pain of eternal damnation, implicitly to receive their 
 dogmas. There was no occasion now for the laity 
 to read the scriptures; they were deprived of the 
 right of private judgment, and were directed to look 
 for their creed, not in the New Testam^ent, but in 
 the decrees of councils. To finish the business, the 
 priests railed at the bible, as an obscure book which 
 the laity could not understand, and, therefore, to 
 avoid heresy, ought not to read. It was, conse- 
 quently, taken av/ay : — the creed-makers had ren- 
 dered it useless, and the clergy represented it as 
 dangerous. 
 
 The way was thus prepared for the introduction 
 of any thing, and every thing which could promote 
 the interest of the priesthood. It was no longer 
 necessary to prove a single article of religion by 
 either reason or scripture ; dreams and visions, 
 new revelations and miracles, supplied the place of. 
 both. The impure were seen frying in the flames 
 of purgatory, and were heard to cry most piteously 
 for a few more masses to help them out; — rusty nail^ 
 and rotten wood, though corruptible themselves, 
 could cure diseases and raise the dead, which made 
 them of immense value; — images would weep and 
 bleed, if not honoured with the offerings and devo- 
 tions of the multitude; — and the priests wore at 
 their girdles the golden keys of St Peter, with which 
 
125 
 
 tlicy could shut and open, at pleasure, the ki'iio;-' 
 dom of heaven. — The event has shewn the wisdoux 
 of the founders of our religion in giving the peo]^le 
 the right to judge, and the power to act, in reli- 
 irious matters ; and has demonstrated their follv and 
 \viekedness, in resigning their })rivileges, and betray- 
 ing their trust, into the hands of crafty and desigu- 
 
 Tlie laity have no other interest in religion tliaii 
 the salvation of their souls, and therefore can be 
 under no temptatioii to corrupt it. But the clerjiv 
 have too often aimed at pomp, vrealth, and power; 
 and, as Christianity is ^opposed to these, they have 
 laboured to keep the people in ignorance, the more 
 easily to secure their object ; and this ignorance is 
 pleaded as the reason wlu' a distinct order of men 
 should be supported to perform the services of the 
 sanctuary, and dictate the opinions of the worship- 
 pers ; like a physician who has injured the con* 
 stitutions of his patients, and thereby rendered him- 
 self necessaiy to them as long as they live. Had 
 tJhey understood something of the healing art, he 
 would not have dared to give tliem pernicious 
 drugs ; their knowledge would have secured his ho- 
 nesty, and they might have profited by his pre- 
 scriptions. — A rogue will practise his imposition* 
 ■upon the ignorant ; but he -will be honest with the 
 wise, through fear of detection. 
 
 If the ministry were open to all who choose to en- 
 fcjr into it, Christejidom would goon be blessed with- 
 
129 
 
 pastors distinguished for piety, zeal, and learning ; 
 but till then the bulk of them, must, from the nature 
 olfthings, be ignorant, idle, and wicked. The cler- 
 gy pretend to be a distinct order of men from the 
 laity, possessed of a divine right and independent 
 power to do what they please in the church. Act- 
 ing upon these principles, they have assumed the ex- 
 clusive privilege of making clergymen ; they have 
 persuaded the state to deny the people the right of 
 choosing them, and to compel the people to support 
 them. Now, suppose such a system acted upon by 
 any other craft than priestcraft, what would be the 
 consequence ? Suppose the tailors, for instance : 
 These nimble-fingered gentlemen form themselves 
 into a corporate body, and no one is allowed to make 
 a pair of new breeches, or stop a hole in a pair of 
 old ones, who has not served an apprenticeship to 
 the trade, and been duly initiated into the order, 
 by a master tailor, with the ceremony of putting a 
 thimble upon his finger, and a goose into his hand. 
 Every parish is provided with one of these state tai- 
 lors, and obliged to support him in a genteel style, to 
 keep up the credit and respectability of the order. 
 Who is so blind as not to see that, upon this plan, 
 we should be in danger of appearing in the streets 
 in a birth-day suit ? There is no competition. — The 
 livelihood of the man does not depend upon the 
 quality or quantity of his work, or upon the good 
 opinion of his emploj'ers. According to this scheme, 
 we might have a corporation of gentleman tailors^ 
 but we should have a nation in a state of nudity, or-, 
 only clothed in rags. 
 
130 
 
 This system might be defended by llic same sort 
 «f logic, which is employed by the clergy to support 
 Xhelv pretentions. It is said, that a bishop nmst bft 
 a better judge of a minister's qualifications than Jack 
 the ploughman ; so a master tailor must be better 
 able to a})prcciate the merits of one of his own pro-' 
 fcssion, than a person who does not know a thiinbb) 
 from a nut-shell. A regular bred clergyman mus|; 
 be more fit to minister in holy things, than he who, 
 *wdthout such previous preparation, assumes the sa/- 
 cred office ; and a person who has served a regulai; 
 apprenticeship to the art of stitching, must be better^ 
 qualified to make our clothes, than one who has been, 
 brought up to other employments. Once more, — 
 civil society cannot exist without religion, and there- 
 fore the state ought to support an order ox ministers- 
 to teach it ; and men cannot live in these northern 
 climes without clothes, and therefore the state ought 
 to support a corporation of tailors to make them. 
 
 . When trade is open, the ignorant and idle will 
 starve, and the wise and diligent will prosper. It Is 
 the same in religion ; let the ministry be free to all, 
 and the christian world will soon be delivered from 
 hunting, shooting, gaming, swearing, drunken par- 
 sons ; for nobody will employ them, or contribute to 
 their maintenance ; and the consciousness of this will 
 deter such characters fi'om engaging in such an em- 
 ployment. Learning and virtue will be necessary to 
 command crowded congregations and liberal sup- 
 port ; and hence the candidates for the ministry, in- 
 stead of paying court to patrons aiid prostitutes, wjll 
 
131 
 
 apply to their books and their God to qualify them-* 
 selv^es for usefulness in the church. 
 
 The history of the church, in all ages, affords a 
 practical illustration of the truth of these observa- 
 tions. Look at those countries where the established 
 religion is the only one tliat is tolerated. — Look at 
 Spain and Portugal: — What are the abilities and 
 jnorals of the clergy ? Is it possible to behold a more 
 deformed picture of ignorance and vice combined ? 
 1"he only reason why things arc not so bad in this 
 country is the toleration of dissenters. 
 
 Many attempts have been made to infringe upon 
 the act of toleration, under the pretence that the 
 church is in daimcr ; but as the alarmists have not 
 been able to carry any measure of restriction, the 
 clergy have been obliged to be more diligent in their 
 labours, and circumspect in their conduct. The 
 bishops have, of late, in their charges, loudly de- 
 manded of the clergy, an increased attention to the 
 duties of their functions, and to the pixipriety of their 
 deportment, — merely to counteract the influence of 
 the sectaries, who are said to have assailed our most 
 excellent church establishment. Hence some churches 
 have been rqmired, and others rebuilt ; additional 
 lectures have been set up, and a partial reformation 
 has been effected ; but the sole motive for all this, 
 according to the confession of the parties themselves, 
 has been a spirit of opposition to the dissenters. 
 Were the act of toleration to be repealed, the clergy 
 would be secure m tlieir indolence, and have no sti- 
 
132 
 
 muliis to exertion ; in which case, it is not saying i 
 too mucli to affirm, that the nation would soon re- 
 lapse into a state of the most deplorable ignorance, 
 and brutal barbarism. 
 
 Sozomen informs us, that there was no preaching 
 in the church of Rome ; * and though Leo intro- 
 duced the practice, it soon declined, and was discon- 
 thmcd/or^five hundred years together^ till Pius Quin- 
 tus revived it again. Neal has shewn at large in his 
 history, that, under the reigns of Elizabeth and the 
 Stuarts, the bishops laboured to keep the people in 
 ignorance; and, therefore, persecuted with uncom- 
 mon zeal, those ministers who endeavoured to en- 
 lighten them by their preaching. And, in the pre- 
 sent day, those ministers who preach most frequent- 
 ly are opposed with the greatest violence. Because 
 an itinerant preaches twice or thrice as many ser- 
 mons as a stated pastor, every possible effort is made 
 to stop his mouth. Almost every lazy drone can 
 rouse his sluggish powers to declaim against the 
 wandering tribe of fanatics, who compass sea and 
 land to make proselytes. 
 
 Ordination was never deemed necessary to a 
 preacherJitill within a few years past. Bingham ob- 
 serves, " that Origen was approved by Alexander, 
 bishop of Jerusalem, and Theoctistus of Caesarea, 
 to preach and expound the scriptures publicly in 
 the church, when he was only a layman. And when 
 Demetrius of Alexandria, made a remonstrance 
 
 * So/oracn, lib. vii. cap. 19. 
 
133 
 
 against this, as an innovation that had never been 
 seen or heard of before, that a layman should preach 
 to the people in the presence of bishops ; Alexander 
 rcpHed in a letter, and told him he was much mis- 
 taken; for it Ilea s an usual thing in many places , 
 when men were well qualified to edify the brethren, 
 for bishops to entreat them to preach to the people : 
 As 'Euelpis was requested by Neon at Laranda, 
 and Paulinus by Celsus at Iconium, and Theodo- 
 rus by Atticus at Synada. Hallier, a famous Sor- 
 bon doctor, is of opinion that they might do it by 
 permission ; and he thinks this may be deduced 
 from that canon of the fourth council of Carthage, 
 which forbids a layman to teach in the presence 
 of the clerg3^, except they request him to do it. The 
 ancient author of the comment upon the epistles, 
 under the name of St. Ambrose, says that, in the 
 beginning of Christianity, for the augmentation and 
 increase of the church, a general com?nission was 
 granted unto all, both to preach the gospel^ and bap- 
 tize, and explain the scriptures in ecclesiastical as- 
 semblies.'^ * The monks, who were only laymen, 
 preached publicly in the churches very fi^equently. 
 
 Our reformers admitted the lawfulness of ordina- 
 tion, but denied its necessity. Cranmer delivered it 
 as his deliberate judgment, in answer to some queries 
 upon the subject, that, " In the apostles' time, when 
 there were no christien princes, by whose authority 
 ministers of God's word might be appointed, nor 
 
 * Bingham's Antifjuities, book xiv, chap. iv. sect. iv. 
 
 M 
 
131. 
 
 syiincs by the sword corrected, there was no remedy 
 then for the correction of vice, or appointemgc of 
 nninisters^ bid onlij the consent of christicn multitude 
 amongc thcmsclfc, by an uniform consent to follow the 
 advice aixl persuasion of such persons, whom God 
 had most endued with the spirit of wisdom and coun- 
 saile. And tit that time, forasmuch as christien peo- 
 .|)le had no s^^'ord nor governor among them, thei 
 were constrained of necessity to take such curates 
 •and priests, as either they knew themselfes to be 
 meet thereunto, or else as were commended unto 
 them by other, that were so replete with the spirit 
 of God, with such knowledge in the profession of 
 Christ, such wisdom, such conversation and coun- 
 cell, that they ought, even of very conscience, to give 
 credit unto them, and to accept such as by theym 
 were presented. And so some tjrme the apostles and 
 other unto whom God had given abundantly his spi- 
 rit, sent or appointed ministersof God's word, some- 
 time the people did choose such as they thought meete 
 thereunto. And when any were appointed or sent 
 by the apostles or other^ the people, of their owne 
 voluntary will, with thanks -did accept them ; not 
 for the supremitie, imperie, or dominion that the apos^ 
 tells had. over themy to command as their princes^ oi- 
 masters ; but as good people, ready to obey the ad- 
 vice of good counsellors, and to accept any thing 
 that was necessary for their edification and benefit. 
 
 " The bishops and priests were one at that time, 
 *nd were not two things, but both o?ic office in the 
 beginning of Christ's religion. 
 
" A bishop may make a. priest by the scriptures, 
 and so may princes and governors also, and that by 
 the authority of God committed them, and the people 
 aUoehy their election. For as we reade that bishops 
 have done it, so christien emperors and princes usu- 
 ally have done it. And the people^ before christien- 
 princes were, commonly did elect their bishops and^ 
 priests, 
 
 " In the New Testament, he that is appointed fo 
 be a bishop or a priest, needeth no consecration by 
 the scripture; for election or appointing thei'eto is 
 
 sirfficient,'' * 
 
 Pope Alexander VI granted to the University of 
 Cambridge the privilege of licensing twelve mini- 
 sters yearly, to preach any where throughout 
 England, ybr life, mthont obtaining licences from any 
 cf the bishops ; f and several colleges in both univer- 
 sities oblige masters of arts, ^whether in orders or nof^. 
 to take a text and formally preach from it in their 
 chapels. :j: Fuller informs us that, in the reign of 
 Queen Elizabeth, " Mr Tavernour of Water-Eaton 
 in Oxfordshire, high sheriff of the county, came, in 
 pure charity, not ostentation, and gave the scholar* 
 a sermon in St Mary's, with his gold chain about 
 his neck, and his sword by his side, beginning with 
 ^hese words : « Arriving at the mount of St Mary's, 
 
 * Stilliogfleot li-en. part. i?. chap. viii. page 391, 592^ 
 
 I Neal's Purit vol. i. chap. 4, 
 
 \ Rights of Christian Church, chap. ix. p. 319, 
 
 ■ •' ■ M: 2 
 
136 
 
 in tlie stony stage, * where I now stand, I have 
 brought you some fine biscuits, baked in the oven of 
 charit}', and carefully conserved for the chickens of 
 tlie church, the sparrows of the spirit, and the sweet 
 swallows of salvation.' " f The clergy of the univer- 
 sity must have been very learned^ when a layman is 
 employed to preach such stuff as this to the stu- 
 dents under their care. In those days, however, we 
 see that laymen were permitted to preach, and to 
 preach even in churches and before universities. She- 
 riff Tavernour would cut nearly as great a dash with 
 his gold chain about his neck, and his sword by his 
 side, as doctors do when decked out with bands and 
 gov^Tis, and aprons. 
 
 It is quite inconsistent in the clergy to plead for 
 the necessity of ordination to the governors of the 
 church. e::d to all its oflicers, when the matter of 
 fact is, that those who have the chief authority in 
 the church of England arc laymen. Legislation, 
 wliich in every society is the supreme power, is 
 not lodged in the bishops, but in the king and par- 
 liament. The bishops cannot make a single law, 
 nor have they even a negative upon the legislative 
 body. Nearly all the bishops voted for Lord Sid- 
 mouth's bill, but it was lost; and nearly all the 
 bishops voted against the bill which transferred the 
 supremacy from the pope to Henry VIII, but it 
 was carried. The bishops are not even at the head 
 »f tlie executive power of the church. The king is 
 
 * A stone pulpit. 
 
 \ Fiillti's Church History of Brit. b. ix. p. 63, 
 
1*37 
 
 skipreme head^ he has the nomination of all the 
 bishops ; and their lordships would incur all the pe- 
 nalties of a premimire, were they to deny consecra- 
 tion to the bishop elect. The clergy cannot meet 
 together in convocation without the king's permis- 
 sion ; nor are their canons obligatory without his 
 sanction ; and even then they bind none but the cler- 
 gy till they receive the authority of law from the 
 parliament. The same authorities that employ 
 ecclesiastics can put them out of office, just the 
 ^ame as a master, when he pleases, can dismiss a 
 servant. Thus, at the reformation, the civil power 
 put down various orders of monks, friars, &c. Queen 
 Elizabeth deprived all the popish bishops, and this 
 act was declared good and valid by the parliament. * 
 It is as absurd in the church to consecrate the sub- 
 ordinate authorities, and deny the sacred rite to 
 the supreme, as it would be in the state to crown 
 justices and constables, instead of the sovereign. 
 Either bishops, priests, and deacons, ought not to 
 be ordained at all, or holy hands ought not to be. 
 withheld from kings and parliaments. 
 
 If Jesus Christ committed the government o£ 
 the church to bishops exclusively, with a divine and 
 independent right to exercise authority over it, then. 
 
 * 59Eliz. Ci 8. The case of a woman being supreme head <if 
 the church of England, aad making and unmaking bishops, at plea- 
 s.ure, is humbly submitted to the consideration of those clerical buf- 
 foons, who make themselves and others so merry at the expence of 
 methodists and quakers, because these sects employ ladies as preachers. 
 The methodists suffer very few females to teach in their publiQ ^serci-. 
 Wies, and allow them no authority in church governments 
 3M 3 
 
138 
 
 it must be impiety and sacrilege in kings and parlia- 
 ments to invade their prerogatives. Upon these prin- 
 ciples, bishops may legislate for the church, annex 
 penalties to their laws, and appoint courts, judges, 
 and officers to carry them into execution ; they may 
 excommunicate kings, and forbid the faithful to hold 
 any communication with them, or to obey them ; 
 they may interdict all public worship, and play over 
 again the abominable tricks of the popes, laugh at 
 human authority, and plead, that they are only re- 
 sponsible to that God for the exercise of their power 
 who entrusted them with it. 
 
 If it be replied that the divine right extends no 
 further than to the execution of the laws of Christ ; 
 it is asked, who is to judge when the clergy exceed 
 Iheir commission ? If themselves ; it must be recol- 
 lected that they have been infallible for more than a 
 thousand years, and consequently have never exceed- 
 ed their powers. The protestant clergy are about 
 as impeccable as the Romish. Archbishop Parker, 
 in the days of queen Elizabeth, refused to make any 
 alterations in the church service in favour of the pu- 
 ritans, lest it should be said^ that the church of Eng- 
 land had erred! And when the archbishop crowais 
 the king he makes him swear, that he will maintain 
 the church of England as by law establi^hed, which 
 his grace surely Avould not do, if he could see in her 
 a siiigle corruption or in:perfection. In fact there 
 never was a pope wished tor more powder than to do 
 what was right in his own eyes. The church has 
 pleaded divine authority, to bind her kings with 
 
139 
 
 chains, and her nobles with fetters of iron. If the 
 laity are to judge, then they can increase, or dimi- 
 nish the power of the clergy, as they see fit ; and 
 this conveyance of spiritual power by the people, 
 reduces the ceremonies of ordination to mere farce. 
 
 It has been shewn, that the apostles ordained 
 no spiritual * officers, but presbyters, and that, in 
 churches which they could not personally visit, they 
 advised aged, grave, and sober men to assume this 
 
 * Tlie deacons of the primitive church were not spiritual officers. 
 The occasion of theij- appointment at first was this. In the distribu- 
 tion of the alms of the church among poor widows, the Hellenists 
 (L e. the Jews who spoke the Greek language, and were strangers at 
 Jerusalem) complained that their widows were neglected. To remedy 
 this inconvenience, " The twelve called the multitude of the disciples 
 unto them, and said, it is not reason that we should leave the word of 
 God and serve tables. Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you, 
 seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost, and wisdom, 
 whom we may appoint over this business ,- but ive will give ourselves 
 continually to prayer and to the viinistry of the word. And the saying 
 pleased the whole multitude, and they chose Stephen, &c. whom they 
 set before the apostles : and when they had prayed, they laid their 
 hands on them." Serving tables, which was the business of the deacons, 
 is here opjwsed to the ministry of the wordj he ordination of a dea- 
 con, therefore, cannot possibly be an ordination to the ministry ; — . 
 it is properly an ordination to the office of overseer of the poor. The 
 clergy would have more scripture on their side, were they to insist 
 that none can be qualified to relieve the needy, who are not episcopal- 
 ly ordained, by persons who can trace their spiritual descent from the 
 apostles, than they have, when they make a ceremonious consecration 
 necessary to a preacher of the gospel. It will avail nothing to say, 
 that Stephen and Philip were both preachers afterwards, for this ordi- 
 nation, we are expressly told, was to the business of serving tables. 
 Every overseer of the poor has a right to preach the gospel, if he can, 
 as well as Stephen and Philip. 
 
140 
 
 office. They have said nothing about the necessity 
 of ordination, nor who are to perform it, nor ^\hat 
 rites and ceremonies are to be used in it ; from which 
 we may justly infer, that it is a matter of no great 
 moment. Some indeed have contended, that Acts, 
 14. 23, should be rendered, — " And when they had 
 ordained presbyters bu the suffrages of the peopled 
 In the old English bible it is rendered thus : — " And 
 when they had ordained them elders by election^* 
 But Dr Campbell, has proved, in a very satisfactory 
 manner, that, " The common import of the word 
 X8<goT«vjj(r«»T«5, is no more than to constitute, ordain, 
 or appoint any homo,*^ * The imposition of hands is 
 considered, by almost all parties, as necessary to aa 
 ordination. But though we read of the apostles 
 laying hands on persons recently baptized, that they- 
 might receive the Holy Ghost, and on the overseers 
 of the poor, when elected to serve tables, we no 
 where read of laying on of hands at the ordination 
 of presbyters. The modesty of bishops has permit- 
 ted them to usurp the exclusive prerogatives of 
 Jesus Christ, and to say, " Receive ye the Holy 
 Ghost ;" they ought therefore to convey this invalua- 
 ble gift, by the same ceremony which he used, and 
 instead of imposition of hands, they should hreatht, 
 upon the candidates for holy orders. 
 
 Objection, — " The apostle exhorts Timothy to lay 
 hands suddenly on no man^'' f He does ; but he is 
 not there speaking on the ordination of ministers, 
 but on the exercise of church discipline upon of- 
 
 * Prfliminary dissertation x. part, v. sect. tH. f 1 Tiati. v. 22, 
 
Ul 
 
 fenders : " Them that sin, rebuke before all, that 
 others also may fear." And as using the rod is a 
 very ungrateful task, and to use it judiciously a very 
 difficult task, the apostle exhorted Timothy to dis- 
 charge this duty faithfully and impartially : " I 
 charge thee before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, 
 and the elect angels, that thou observe these things 
 without preferring one before another, doing no- 
 thing by partiality." The injunction immediately 
 follovv's, — " lay hands suddenly on no man;" which, 
 as it is connected with the exercise of discipline, un- 
 doubtedly relates to it. Timothy had now been at 
 Ephesus long enough to be intimately acquainted 
 with the brethren ; there could, therefore, be no 
 reason why he should defer ordaining presbyters for 
 that church, if any were wanted ; but th<?re were 
 the strongest reasons why he should not suddenly 
 take off church censures, and restore the immoral to 
 the privileges of the faithful, (which was done in the 
 primitive church by the imposition of hands;) for 
 this, instead of making others feai\ and thereby 
 operating as a restraint upon them, would have ex- 
 posed discipline to ridicule, and emboldened trans- 
 gressors. In such a case, Timothy would have been 
 implicated in their guilt ; on which account it is 
 added, — " neither be partakers of other men's sins; 
 keep thyself pure." 
 
 It is not denied that the members of the church of 
 England have a right to model their church as they 
 please, provided they do not infringe upon the rights 
 pf other christian churches ; but when they call their 
 
©wn the most pwe and apostolic church in Christen'^ 
 dom, and pronounce all other churches heretical and 
 schismatic, which the state ought to watch witli an 
 eye of suspicion, it is high time to humble their pre- 
 tensions and expose their extravagance. All the 
 churches in this country have omitted some tilings, 
 which were deemed important by the primitive- 
 christians, and have added others for which they 
 can find no authority in the New Testament. The 
 apostle Paul required women to wear a veil in the 
 church, instituted an order of deaconesses, and com- 
 manded christians to salute one another ^Tith an 
 holy kiss. One of our Lord's last commands to the 
 apostles, was to wash one another's feet ; and James 
 commanded the presbyters to anoint the sick with 
 ©il. What church attends to all these things? or 
 supposes the observance of them to be of perpetual 
 obligation ? And who can find in the New Testa- 
 ment, archbishops, archdeacons, deans, proctors,, 
 surrogates, prebends, chancellors, &c. &c. ? We have 
 seen that, in constituting churches, the apostles 
 were guided by circmnstances ; — they admitted o£ 
 diversity, and never dreamed about uniformity : 
 hence in some churches they appointed presbyters, 
 in others they advised the aged to assume the office, 
 in others they left the exercise of discipline to all 
 the members in a general meeting ; and the office of 
 the ministry they left free to all. A few grains of 
 common sense, and the spirit of Christianity, are 
 better guides in these matters, than all the infallible^ 
 priests the church has ever produced.. 
 
14S 
 
 U^^on the principles laid down and established it 
 this essay, most, if not all, of the sects in this 
 <;ountry may defend their church order. That class 
 of officers in the Wesleyan societies, denominated 
 leaders, have been more objected to than any de- 
 scription of officers in any other community. These 
 leaders answer to the presbyter-bishops of the primi- 
 tive christians, in the fpllowing particulars, 
 
 \st. One duty of the presbyter office is to feed the 
 flock. This the leaders do, by giving instruction, 
 advice, and counsel, in their class-meetings. 
 
 2dl7j, Another duty of the presbyter office is to 
 oversee, or ride the church, and this is done by the 
 methodist-leaders. They are well acquainted with 
 their flocks, and give them directions as to their 
 christian deportment. The leaders-meeting has 
 power to admit and exclude members, to elect new 
 leaders, to inflict church censures on the immoral, 
 and to make new regulations for the particular so- 
 ciety to which they belong, provided these do not 
 infringe upon the general rules of the body. 
 
 Sdly, The presbyters were subject to the evange- 
 lists, or itinerant preachers, such as Timothy and 
 Titus. And the methodist-leaders are subject to 
 the itinerant preachers, 
 
 ^thly, There were several presbyters in every 
 church of any magnitude; and there are many 
 leaders in all the principal societies. The epistle 
 
144 
 
 to the church of Philippi is inscribed to all the 
 saints, with the bishops and deacons. Nothing, 
 perhaps, has more puzzled the advocates for dioce- 
 san episcopacy, thaii the circumstance of finding, 
 in the New Testament, a plurality of bishops over 
 a single congregation. The episcopalians who un- 
 derstand all mysteries, have ascertained the precise 
 number of bishops which governed the church of 
 Philippi ; they, of course, reduce the plurality to 
 two. It is certain, however, that there were more 
 than two bishops in the church of Ephesus. The 
 apostle, in addressing them, says, " all of you." It 
 is proper to say to two persons, " BotJi of you ;" 
 but ridiculous to say, " All of you." But what ne- 
 cessity for even two bisliops over a few christians 
 in one city, when one of our lord bishops thinks 
 himself quite sufficient to oversee many hundreds of 
 congregations. * To explain this mystery, they tell 
 us, that the Jews and Gentiles were divided into se- 
 parate churches in the same city, or town, and that 
 a biiihop was appointed over each. But how could 
 the apostle Paul countenance this, when he publicly 
 reproved Peter for withdrawing with the Jewish 
 converts fiom the communion of the Gentiles ? To 
 remove this difficulty, they pretend that this public 
 reproof was only a juggling trick, contrived by the 
 apostles themselves, to sooth the resentment of the 
 Gentiles at the haughty behaviour of the Jews ; thus 
 they sacrifice the integrity of these men of God to 
 justify their own lordly importance. 
 
 * The diocese of the bishop of London includes in it the East and 
 West Indies, and all our foreign possessions ! ! ! 
 
145 
 
 Uhly^ Some of the presbyters, we have seen, 
 were preachers; and so are some of the methodist 
 leaders. 
 
 Gihliy, An order of female presbyters was insti- 
 tuted by the apostles, whose office it was to " teach 
 the young women." To these answer the female 
 leaders, whose business it is to instruct those of 
 their own sex. 
 
 This coincidence is the more remarkable, as it 
 probably never occurred to Mr Wesley, and the 
 preachers who assisted him in the constitution of 
 the methodist societies, that in making leaders, and 
 in fixing their powers and duties, they were creat- 
 ing an order of church-officers siriiilar to the pres- 
 byter-bishops of the first christians ; but this shews 
 how naturally good men, acting under the influence 
 of the same religious principles, are led to adopt 
 the same plans. 
 
 As the subject of ordination, by the imposition 
 of hands, has recently engaged the attention of 
 many of the methodist preachers, it may not be 
 amiss to observe, that, if it be introduced into the 
 connection, the leaders, or presbyters, are the proper 
 subjects of it, and nol the preac/iers ; because there 
 are a few exam})les in the New Testament of or- 
 dination to the presbyter-office, but none whatever 
 of ordination to the work of the mhiistry. There 
 can be no serious objection, it is presumed, to ini- 
 tiate the leaders, both male and female, into office 
 N 
 
Ii6 
 
 hy the imposition of hands ; but, since there is no 
 scripture evidence to countenance the use of this 
 ceremony in the ordination of presbyters ; and since 
 '* it is easier," as one of the preachers has wittily 
 remarked in a kite publication, " to put hands u]J071 
 a person's head, than to put mental qualifications 
 into it ;" — it is humbly submitted to their considera- 
 tion, whether it would not be the wisest measure to 
 keep their hands to themselves. 
 
ESSAY III. 
 
 ex THE SPlRITtTAL GIFTS AND POWERS^ OV THE 
 CLERGY. 
 
 JMosT churchmen are of opinion that Jesus Christ 
 entrusted the Holy Ghost to the custody of bishops, 
 with an exclusive power of communicating his spiri- 
 tual gifts to the clergy, for the edification of the faith- 
 ful; and that the ministrations of those who receive the 
 episcopal benediction are full of spirit and life. These 
 opinions cannot be supported, if the uninterrupted 
 succession cannot be proved. For, admitting an in- 
 terruption, it will follow, that wherever the succession 
 failed, there the spirit was lost ; the next bishop, 
 after the chain was broken, was either selr-consti- 
 tuted, or appointed by those who had not the spirit 
 to give ; and, in either case, his ministrations and or- 
 dinations must have been nugatory. As the suc- 
 cession, therefore, has been disproved, the preten- 
 sions of the clergy must fall to the ground. But 
 since they will not easily be persuaded that they pos- 
 sess no exclusive supernatural authority, we must 
 
 N 2 
 
148 
 
 fake the trouble of investigating tlie particulars in 
 ^\ hich it is supposed to exist. 
 
 SECTION L 
 
 ON THE GIFT OF THE HOLY GHOST IN ORDINATION. 
 
 At the ordination of a priest, the bishop, laying 
 liis hands on the head of the candidate, says, 
 " Receive the Holy Ghost for the office and work of 
 a priest in the church of God, committed to thee by 
 the imposition of our hands." There is some con- 
 troversy among churchmen about the meaning of' 
 these words. The moderate party insists, that it is 
 the office^ and not the divine spirit, which is given 
 by the imposition of hands ; and that the words, 
 ** receive the Holy Ghost," are to be understood as 
 a pious wash, or prayer. 
 
 If this explanation be admitted, it is reasonable 
 to enquire, why any other person may not perform 
 the ceremony of ordination just as well as a bishop ? 
 Ko text of scripture can be quoted, which vests in 
 bishops an exclusive power of making ministers. 
 After paying the highest compliments to episcopal 
 piety, I hope it will not be deemed presum^ption to 
 affirm, that the prayers of a whole congregation for 
 the inspiration of the pastor of their choice, may 
 jiossibly be as successful, as the prayers of a bishop 
 il/r the inspiration of a priest ; and, if this be granted. 
 
U9 
 
 it cannot well bo denied, that the ordinations of 
 dissenters are as valid as those of churchmen. * 
 
 The general sentiment, however, is, tliat the bishop 
 confers the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands ;' 
 and it must be confessed, this seems to be the plain 
 and obvious meaning of the words. The phrase, 
 
 • Though I have modestly put the case upon the supposition that 
 a single bishop may have as much interest with tlie Almighty, as a 
 whole congregation of the people, because my argument required no 
 more, I am not insensible, that some of the sacred order have been 
 quite as much in love with some other things, as with prayer-books. 
 
 Theoph.ylact, patriarch of Constantinople, " who sold every eccle- 
 siastical beneSce as soon as it became vacant, had in his stable above 
 two thousand hunting horses, Avhich he fed with pignuts, pistachios, 
 dates, dried grapes, figs steeped in the most exquisite wines, to all 
 which he added the richest perfumes. One holy Tinnsday as he v/as 
 celebrating high mass, his groom brought him the joyful news that 
 one of his favourite mares had foaled ; upon wliich he threw down 
 the liturgy, left the church, and ran in raptures to the stable, whcr«> 
 having expressed his joy at that grand event, he returned to the altar 
 to finish the divine service, which he had left interrupted during hir, 
 ul)sence." Mosheim's Eccles. Hist. vol. ii. p. 4C0. Note [o] edit. 180.T. 
 
 The following advertisement, which appeared in Jackson's Oxford 
 Journal, is a proof that something of this pious disposition still exists 
 in the minds of some of the holy tribe. 
 
 " NEXT PRESENTATION. 
 
 *' To be sold by Auction, by Hoggart and Phillips, at the Auction 
 IVIart, opposite the Bank of England, on Thursday next, the 11th day 
 of April, 181], at twelve o'clock, — The next presentation to a most 
 valuable living, z"« ojie of ^/<e Jirs^ sptrrling countries: t/ie vicinity cij'' 
 fords the best courying in England, also excellent fishing, an extensive 
 cover for game, and numerous pacH of fox-hounds, harriers, ^c. ; it is 
 half an hour's ride from one of the iirst cities, and not far distant from 
 several most /as/izonaWt? watering places; the surrounding country is, 
 beautiful and healthy, and the society elegant and fashionable^ 
 
 '' The incumbent is about^y^^ years cf age, &c." 
 
 N 3 
 
^' Ileceive yc the Holy Ghost," is addressed to the 
 candidate, not to God ; and, instead of expressing a 
 wish, is imperative. It is scarcely credible, that the 
 greatest dunce would Employ such terms, either in 
 prayer to heaven, or in wishes to a friend. All the 
 advocates for the succession, lodge the power of 
 o-iviiifr the Holy Ghost in the hands of the bishops, 
 and this high authority is generally claimed by their 
 lordi^hips, and admitted by their admirers. 
 
 It is quite natural to suppose, that bishops would 
 not affect such powers, if they had not the clearest 
 warraiit of holy scripture to support them. Let us 
 vhen proceed to investigate this subject. 
 
 Considerable stress is laid upon Matt, xxviii, 1 9, 20. 
 " Go ye therefore and teach all nations, baptizing 
 them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and 
 of the Holy Ghost ; teaching them to observe all 
 things whatsoever I have commanded you ; and, lo ! 
 I am with you alvvay, even unto the end of the 
 v, orkl." Now, in the name of common sense^ what 
 docs this text say about bishops, ordination, or the 
 subjection of the spirit to the will of man ? The 
 words contain a precept, to teach all nations, as well 
 as a promise of the divine presence; tmd it is only 
 in the discharge. of the duty that the privilege can 
 be (.njoycd. Our Lord does not engage to be with 
 thcni if they stay at home, and live in ease and lux- 
 ury. Our bishops do not go and teach all nations > 
 they do not even teac/i our own nation, but leave this 
 
151 
 
 work to others ; they have therefore nothing to do 
 with the promise. 
 
 There is a promise to the fiill as strong as this, 
 made to every christian, in Heb. xiii, 5. " He hath 
 said, I will never leave thee nor forsake thee." Does 
 this gracious declaration atithorise every pious man, 
 or woman, to ordain ministers for the church, and 
 inspire them with the Hol}^ Ghost ? 
 
 Another text is John, xiv, 1 6, 1 7. "I will pray 
 the Father, and he shall give you another comforter, 
 that he may abide with you for ever ; even the spirit 
 of truth." This promise is prefaced with a condi- 
 tion: ^' Keep mi/ commandments, and I will pray," &c. 
 Wicked priests have, therefore, no interest in this 
 passage ; it concerns those only who move in the 
 path of obedience. But, further, it is not said that 
 this heavenly comforter is given by bishops, but by 
 God. This, promise is extended in the following 
 verses to all christians generally: " He that hath 
 my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that 
 loveth me ; and he that lovetli me shall be loved of 
 my Father, and I will love him, and mil manifest 
 myself to him. If a man love me, he will keep my 
 words; and my Father v/ill love him, 'and we will 
 come unto him, aiid make cur abode with him." 
 Private christians are as much interested in these 
 promises as priests, and either both, or neither, of 
 the parties are authorised by them, to impart the gift 
 of the Holy Ghost, 
 
152 
 
 Sdme have supposed that the {)romise of Christ, 
 to be with the apostles " always, even to the end of 
 the world," was not made to the mc7i, who all died 
 soon after, but to the apostolic office, which was to 
 continue to the end of time. For the same reason 
 the other promise * must be interpreted in the same 
 manner. Here is a difficulty, — how an office can be 
 a recipient of promises ; and, particularly, how an 
 office can be comforted ! 13y parity of reason, the 
 general promises of divine support and consolation 
 are not made to christians, but to the profession of 
 Christianity ; the profession is to be strcngLhcncd, 
 and the profession is to be comforted ! By uniting 
 the divine presence to the office instead of the mavy 
 an objection to the validity of the ministrations of 
 wicked priests is answered. Christ is in the office, 
 and, therefore, the service is efficacious, though the 
 devil be in the officer ! f With equal propriety it may 
 
 * John, xiv. 16, 17. 
 
 f Some persons, not mudi read in church divinity, will suspect, if no 
 authority be protlucerl, tliat the author is speaking here without book. 
 Biijhop Heveridge, in his sermon on Matt, xxviii. 18, 19. applies the 
 promise to the ajjostolic ojffice; and, on that ground, apologizes for the 
 ministrations of wicked priests. But to give a modern instance : The 
 Rev. Henry Phillpots, rector of Gateshead, vicar of Bishop-Middleham, 
 and domestic chaplain to the bishop of Durham, in a sermon preached 
 before the biihop*f»f 6t. David's, at tlie consecration of a new church, 
 at Wall's-end, in the year 1809, avows these sentiments : " It was to 
 the ojfice apostolical, that this great promise was made. This then is 
 the frffii-e, to wliich the promise of our Lord was made, that. He would 
 be ivilh it aliv'ij/s, even n>ito the end of (he world ; — with it, that is, not 
 so as peculiarly to favour the persons of those that are invested with it* 
 but so as to make the ojffice itself effectual to the great purposes for 
 which it was coeistituted For them, [the ministers,] it is very possi- 
 ble, that tiicy may be themselves cast-awai/s, and yet that they may be 
 
be affirmed, that the profession of Christianity, hs 
 being the subject of christian promises, will be saved, 
 though the professors, as being destitute of personal 
 virtue, will be damned ! 
 
 No scripture is of private interpretation. Jehovah 
 said to Moses, " My presence shall go with thee, 
 and I will give thee rest." * This promise was not 
 limited to Moses, or to an order of prophets like 
 unto himself; the whole of the Israelites enjoyed 
 the divine presence, as v/ell as their leader. The 
 reason is, Moses was the representative of the Jewish 
 church, and therefore the promises v/hich belonged 
 to the whole congregation were made to him. The 
 same remark, applies to the apostles. They were the 
 representatives of the christian church, and therefore 
 the promises of the presence of Christ, and the 
 comforts of his spirit, fo?^ ever, though made to the 
 apostles, belong to all believers in all ages. 
 
 humble instruments in God's hand, to communicate the saving know- 
 ledge of his truth to thousands. It is not personal holiness, it is not 
 even zeal for God's honour, and for the salvation of men, (how much 
 soever it may be the bounden duty of ministers to pray and labour 
 after those graces ; and how tremendous soever inay be the danger to 
 ourselves, if we miss obtaining them,) yet it is not that holiness, nor 
 that zeal, which, of themselves, can m.ake any ministerial service of 
 the slightest avail." If this be true, only put the devil into office^ 
 and he will make as good a parson as the very best of you ! The inha- 
 bitants of Wall's-end would understand the reason of this apology; 
 but strangers will think it ill-timed: Their reverences were met toge- 
 tker to make the building holy, and the grovnd around it holy ; at such 
 a time the people might naturally expect to hear something about a 
 lioly priesthood ! but with some ciiiaxhmen, iilacci must be sacred 
 and j^riesls may he pi^ojane, 
 * Exod, xxxiii. 14, 
 
15^ 
 
 The strength of the cause rests upon John, xx. 2^. 
 " He breathed on them, and said unto them, receive 
 ye the Holy Ghost." This could not be an ordination 
 to the apostleship, for they had been in office upwards 
 of three years. Our Lord did not give the Holy 
 Ghost to the apostles by imposition of hands, but by 
 breathing upon them, and he does not say a word 
 about their being empowered to confer this heavenly 
 gift upon others. This text, therefore, affords no 
 support to the practice of modern prelates, unless they 
 take it for granted, that they are authorized to do 
 every thing which Jesus Christ did ; and in that case, 
 they have power to open the eyes of the blind, andto- 
 raise the dead. 
 
 Let us next enquire, whether the apostles evcB 
 pretended to impart the Holy Ghost to others. Two 
 texts * are usually referred to. In the first we find 
 that Peter and John visited the converts at Samaria, 
 and " prayed for them that they might receive the 
 Holy Ghost. Then laid they their hands on them, 
 and they received the Holy Ghost." The circum- 
 stance of the apostles praying to God to give the 
 divine spirit, is positive evidence that he was not at 
 their disposal. There woidd have been just as much 
 propriety in supplicating the Supreme Being to lay 
 on hands, as to give the Holy Ghost, if they them- 
 selves were to do both. — The other text is nothing to 
 the purpose : " When Paul had laid his hands upon 
 them, the Holy Ghost came on them." But it is 
 
 '^ ^cts, viii. 15, 16, I7.7-xix. 6, 
 
155 
 
 n6t so much as hinted that Paul either gave, or pfe* 
 tended to give this valuable gift. This was not an 
 ordination to the ministry, because it was not a select 
 number, but the whole church, which received the 
 imposition of hands, and the gift of the spirit. — In 
 both these cases, the extraordinm^ gifts of the spirit 
 were communicated : " Simon saiso that, through lay- 
 ing on of the apostle's hands, the Holy Ghost was 
 given'* to the Samaritans, which he could not have 
 done had the ordinary gifts only been imparted; and 
 it is said of the Ephesians, that " they spake with 
 ■tongues and prophesied ^ But these are gifts which 
 our bishops do not possess, and, therefore, cannot 
 transfer. There was no ordination to the ministry 
 in either case, (and it is to none but ministers, that 
 bishops pretend to give the Holy Ghost,) as these 
 christians had only been recently baptized ; and even 
 churchmen quote these texts in support of confirma- 
 tion. 
 
 Thus we have seen that there is neither precept 
 nor example in the whole of the New Testament, to 
 countenance the practice of one christian minister 
 pretending to give the spirit of God to another. 
 Does it follow from the nature of things, that the 
 Holy Ghost, like worldly goods, may be transferred 
 from one to another at pleasure ? If so, a private 
 christian may give the Holy Ghost just as well as a 
 bishop. The apostle Peter informed the three thou- 
 sand who were pricked to the heart on the day of 
 Pentecost, that, on their repenting and submitting 
 to christian baptism, they shoidd receive the gijt of 
 
156 
 
 the Holy Ghost. He goes on to comment upon ihh 
 promise thus : " For the promise is unto you, and 
 to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as 
 many as the Lord our God shall call."* When 
 onr Lord breathed on the apostles, and said, " receive 
 ye the Holy Ghost," he was silent concerning their 
 successors ; but the promise of the apostle to private 
 christians, extends to their children^ and runs on in 
 a descending series to the latest period of the church. 
 Private christians have, therefore, a better right to 
 lay hands on their children, and say, " receive ye 
 the Holy Ghost," than bishops have to act the same 
 farce over priests. I Lid our Lord added, in his ad- 
 dress to the apostles, " For the gift is to you, and 
 to your children, or immediate successors, and to all 
 future generations of episcopally ordained ministers, 
 even as many as the Lord our God shall call to the 
 priesthood," — we should be stunned to death with 
 the clamour of priests, about the divine spirit being 
 subjected to their power. It would be deemed im- 
 pious and blasphemous in a parent, who should 
 affect to dribble the \\o\s Ghost through his finger- 
 ends into the heads of his children ; and it must be 
 as bad, or worse, in a ministp.v of religion., who ought 
 to know better, to assume any such authority over 
 the Holy One of Israel. 
 
 None but the heart-searching God can know who 
 are proper to receive the spirit for the work of the 
 ministry. A bibhop who has no means of ascertain- 
 ing the motives which influence a candidate for holy 
 
 * Acts, ii. 38, 39. 
 
157 
 
 orders, will as soon give the Holy Gliost to a Simon 
 Magus, as to an apostle ; and with his perfect igno- 
 rance of the secret working of the human mind, to 
 assume the privilege of disposing to whom he pleases, 
 of one of the sacred persons in the godhead, is 
 shockingly profane. 
 
 But there is no contradicting facts. The bishops 
 do not give the Holy Ghost. They do not confer 
 his extraordinary gifts ; for neither the ordainer nor 
 the ordained can speak with tongues, or discern 
 spirits, or w^ork miracles. They do not confer his 
 ordinary gifts ; for they neither regenerate their 
 priests, nor shed the love of God abroad in their 
 hearts, nor impel them forwards in the paths of holy 
 obedience. It is as foolisii, therefore, as it is wicked 
 to make such pretensions. 
 
 If we are to judge from the conduct of the bishops, 
 they have got the Spirit completely in their power. 
 He is permitted to excite some inward motions in 
 deacons ; but they have not a sufficient measure of 
 his influence to enable them to absolve the sick, and 
 administer the Lord's-supper. When they receive 
 priests' orders, they are favoured with another por- 
 tion of his influence ; but stiH they have not enough 
 to qualify them to govern tlie church; much less 
 have they any to spare to give td others, hence pres- 
 byter ordination is deemed good for nothing. The 
 Holy Ghost must, therefore, be received a third 
 time, to qualify for the office and work of a bishop. 
 No text of scripture is quoted to support the practice 
 
 O 
 
158 
 
 of giving the Spirit of God by piece-meal in tins 
 way ; and it is altogetlier indefensible, except as ne- 
 cessary to uphold a ^ monstrous system of priest- 
 craft. Some religious ceremonies may be laughed 
 at for their foolishness ; but when the divine spirit is 
 halved and quartered in such a manner, the shock- 
 ing impiety of the thing must excite in every virtuous 
 breast a struggle betwixt terror and indignation. 
 
 If it were supposed possible to receive the Holy 
 Ghost immediately from God, in answer to prayer, 
 it would be unnecessary to apply to a bishop. It 
 will, therefore, avail high churchmen nothing to 
 prove merely, that the apostles conferred the Holy 
 Spirit, and authorised their successors to do the 
 same, (though it is shewn that they can prove 
 neither) ; except they can also make it appear, con- 
 trary to the express words of scripture, that our 
 *' heavenly Father will" noi " give the Holy Spirit 
 to them that ask him ;'* because if God has reserved 
 to himself the power of answering the prayers of 
 his people, a dissenter may possibly be as successftd 
 "by suppUcation to a throne of grace, as a church- 
 man by kneeling devoutly to a bishop. 
 
 The authority of the reformers will weigh more 
 with some people than either scripture or reason.,. 
 Cranmer gives his judgment upon this point in 
 the following words : " In the admission of many 
 of these officers (of the church) bee divers comely ce* 
 remonies and solemnities used, which be not of ne- 
 cessity, but only for a goodly order and semely 
 
159 
 
 fashion. For if such offices and ministrations were 
 committed without such solemnitye, thei were never- 
 theles truely committed. And there is no more pro^ 
 mise of God, that grace is given in the committing of 
 the ecclesiastical office, then it is the committing of the 
 cyviUr * These sentiments are christian. Use as 
 many ceremonies as you please — lay on holy hands, 
 breathe holy breath, &c. &c. Only allow that these 
 things are not necessary, and do not unchristian 
 those who have so much film upon their eyes, that 
 they cannot "perceive them to be quite so comely 
 ns they appear to your view. The apostles put the 
 overseers of the poor into office by the imposition of 
 hands ; and the same, or other ceremonies may be 
 used in conferring other offices. Let it be allow- 
 ed, that you can give as much grace to an excise* 
 man or a constable, as a bishop can to a priest, 
 and the sentiment is candid and admissible. By the 
 bye, it is a pity that ceremonious ordination to civil 
 offices is not more frequent ; it might make the or- 
 dinations of bishops more cheap. 
 
 Nelson says, that " the words, receive thou the 
 Holy Ghost, Sfc» are in none of the ancient rituals." f 
 In fact, there is no evidence whatever that the cler- 
 gy affected to give the spirit before the thirteentli 
 century ; but when they had claimed the titles, it is 
 no wonder that they usurped the prerogatives of 
 the Supreme Being. 
 
 * Stillingfleet's Irenicum, part ii. chap. 8. p. 591.. 
 f Rights of the Clergy. Art, Ordination. 
 
 o 2 
 
160 
 
 In the primitive church, the presbyters were or- 
 dained by imposition of hands and prayer, and every 
 bishop used what form of prayer he pleased on the 
 occasion. The only form presented in the constitu- 
 tions * runs in these words : " Look, O Lord, upon 
 this thy servant, who is chosen into the presbytery 
 by the suffrage and judgment of all the clergy, and 
 fill him with the spirit of grace and counsel, that he 
 may help and govern thy people with a pure heart. 
 In like manner, as thou hadst respect to thy chosen 
 people, commanding Moses to make choice of elders, 
 whom thou didst replenish with thy spirit. And 
 now, Lord, do the same thing, preserving in us the 
 never-failing spirit of thy grace; that he, being full 
 of healing powers and instructive discourse, may 
 with meekness teach thy people, and serve thee sin- 
 cerely with a pure mind, and willing soul, and un- 
 blameably perform the sacred services for thy people, 
 through Christ, &c." 
 
 The form used at the ordination of bishops was in 
 these words: Grant to him, O Lord Almighty, by thy 
 Christ, the communication of the holy spirit, &c." f 
 
 In these instances, it is clear enough that the or- 
 dainers had no idea that they possessed a power of 
 conferring the spirit of God ; they besought his in- 
 fluence from heaven, perfectly unconscious that it re- 
 sided in their own fingers. Not a single trace can be 
 found of prelates pretending to give God Almighty 
 
 ♦ Constit. Apost. lib. viii. c"hap. 16. 
 -^ Constit. Apost. lib. viii. chap. 5. 
 
161 
 
 away, for the first twelve hundred years. Our 
 Enghsh form of ordination, it is well Ivnown, is taken 
 from the Roman pontifical. After all the talk, there- 
 fore, of Jesus Christ giving bishops a power to con- 
 fer the Holy Spirit, their mithority is derived, not 
 from the gospel according to the evangelists, but 
 from the gospel according to the popes. 
 
 SECTION 11. 
 
 ON CONFIRMATION. 
 
 In the ceremony of confirmation, a bishop lays 
 his hands upon the heads of young people, and 
 assures them, that this holy touch is a sign to cer^ 
 tify them of the gracious goodness of God towards 
 them. But how the imposition of a bishop^s hands 
 can be any sign, evidence, proof, or confirmation, to 
 any one of the divinitj' of the christian religion, and 
 of his own personal saving interest in it, is a " mys- 
 tery of godliness" w^hich will require all the sagacity 
 of his lordship to explain. It must be noted that no 
 virtue is necessary in order to enjoy this sacred and 
 soul-reviving sign. The only qualifications, required 
 of candidates for confirmation, are, that the}' be able 
 to " say the creed, the Lord's prayer, the ten com- 
 mandments, answer the other questions in the short 
 catechism," and promise to be very good for the fu- 
 ture. These things being duly certified to the bishop, 
 "xithout a single enquiry being made into their pai^t 
 conduct, he prays,—" Almighty and everlasting God. 
 
 o 3 
 
162 
 
 who hast vouchsafed to regenerate these thy savants 
 by water and the Holy Ghost, and hast given unto 
 them forgivenesss of all their sins, &c." — and then 
 j)rocceds to lay his hands upon them, which he as- 
 sures tliem is a sign of the gracious goodness of God 
 towards them. Thus, churchmen may be pardoned, 
 sanctified, and assured of their acceptance, without 
 having paid any attention to the moral precepts of 
 the gospel. 
 
 The extraordinary gifts of the spirit which follow- 
 ed the laying on of the hands of the apostles, were 
 a confirmation to the first christians that their reli- 
 gion was of God. But what confirmation can the 
 imposition of a bishop's hands be of the divine origi- 
 nal of Christianity, when no sensible influence of the 
 spirit follows the use of the rite ? If a professor of 
 Astronomy, should undertake to demonstrate the 
 truth of the Copernican system, by laying his hands 
 on the heads of students, the man would be deemed 
 fit for a strait-jacket. 
 
 The laying on of hands was performed by the 
 apostles immediately after baptism ;* and thispractice 
 obtained in the church for many centuries; hence 
 infants were confirmed as well as adults. " The 
 custom ought to have been laid aside when the ex- 
 traordinary gifts of the spirit ceased ; and it is as ri- 
 diculous to continue it now, as it would be for bishops 
 to stretch themselves upon dead persons, because a 
 
 * Acts, Tiii. 14, 17. — six. 5; ^. 
 
165 
 
 prophet and an apostle used this ceremony in re^to^ 
 ring the dead to hfe. 
 
 Confirmation was soon magnified far above bap- 
 tism, and many most ridiculous ceremonies were ad- 
 ded to it, .to command the reverence of the super- 
 stitious. A compound of oil and balsam, called 
 chrism, was consecrated by the bishop, and with this 
 he anointed the forehead and other parts of the body, 
 Cyril, bishop of Jerusalem, tells those who were 
 baptized, that " they were first anointed in the fore- 
 head, to wipe away that shame which the first man 
 by his transgression had contracted ; and that they 
 might now with open face behold the glory of the 
 Lord. Then they were anointed on the ears, that 
 they might have ears to hear the divine mysteries* 
 After that on the nose and breast, that they might 
 be a sweet savour unto the Lord, and being armed 
 with the breast-plate of righteousness, might be able 
 to withstand all the insults of the devil." * Baptism 
 without all this nonsense was supposed to be incom- 
 plete; hence the author of the Constitutions represents 
 a person who has been baptized, but not confirmed, 
 as no better than a Jew. — He has put away the filth 
 of the body by water, but is not purified from tlie 
 pollution of the soul by the spirit f. 
 
 When dioceses were enlarged, and the pastors of 
 the church became lord bishops, a custom obtained 
 in many places for presbyters ta use the unction. 
 
 • Cyril. Catech. Myst iii. c. 3. 
 I Constit. Apost. lib. vii. c. 44. 
 
164 
 
 This was foundetl upon necessity; for the people 
 were taught that they could not be saved witliout 
 confirmation ; and yet, on account of the absence of 
 the bishop, many died without receiving it, which 
 was a most distressing circumstance to the ignorant 
 and superstitious. The bishops, however, reserved to 
 themselves the sole power of making the greasy com- 
 position holy, and the presbyters applied to them 
 before Easter for the consecrated chrism to supply 
 the wants of their congregations. 
 
 After anointing the body with chrism, and making 
 the sign of the cross, the bishop put his hands on the 
 he^d of the candidate, and repeated this form : " I 
 sign thee with the sign of the cross, and confirm thee 
 with the chrism of salvation, in the name of the 
 Father, and of the Sonj and of the Holy Ghost." * 
 
 Thus the bishop and priest, between them, regene- 
 rated and filled with the spirit their deluded votaries, 
 and made them believe that, without this mummery, 
 which none but the holy order could perform with 
 due effect, they could not possibly obtain salvation. 
 Pacianus, bishpp of Barcelona, says, — " The seed of 
 Christ, that is, the spirit of God, brings forth a new 
 man, hy the hands of the priest, out of the womb of 
 the church, which is the font, faiih being the bride- 
 maid to all this. And without these three sacra- 
 ments, the laver, the chrism, and the priest, this 
 new birth is not effected. For by the laver sin is 
 
 • Hanmer's Ex^roit. U]ion Confirm, p. 45, 2d edit. 
 
165 
 
 purged, by the chrism the Holy Spirit is poured 
 down upon us ; and both these we obtain Inj the hand 
 and mouth of the priest ; and so the whole man is 
 regenerated and renewed in Christ *. 
 
 But the spirit of God is not tied to the finger ends 
 of a bishop. The Eunuch was baptized by Philip, 
 a deacon, and without waiting upon any apostle or 
 bishop for confirmation, he went on his way to Ethi- 
 opia rejoicing. Cornelius and his friends, before 
 their baptism, received the Iloly Ghost directly from 
 heaven, without the use of any ceremonies. There 
 can be no plea of necessity in this case, from the 
 want of a bishop, because the apostle Peter was pre- 
 sent ; and it is remarkable that, though he baptized 
 them, he omitted the laying on of hands. If church-^ 
 men believe that any grace is imparted at confirma- 
 tion, which none but a bishop can bestow, they are 
 guilty of the most criminal neglect in not sending 
 bishops to the East and West Indies, and to all our. 
 foreign possessions. As the diocese of London in- 
 cludes those places, it is humbly submitted to the 
 bishop, v/hether it would not be a most apostolic 
 action in his lordship, to pass through these regions. 
 " confirming the churches." 
 
 The presumption of bishops in performing the 
 ceremony of confirmation, and its pernicious in- 
 fluence on young people, are represented in a strong 
 but just light by Mr Towgood, in his letters to Mc 
 
 * ]Pingham's Antiq. b. xii. cap. 1. sect» 4. 
 
166 
 
 "White. " I pray you, Sir," says this spirited writer, 
 '* in the name of God, inform me what warrant has 
 the bishop to pronounce a man's sins all forgiven, 
 and himself regenerated by the Holy Ghost, upon 
 no other grounds than his being able to say the short 
 catechism, and declaring that he stands by his bap- 
 tismal engagements ? Will you say, that this is the 
 christian doctrine concerning the terms of acceptance 
 and forgiveness with God ? Are good vows and reso- 
 lutions, declared in the church, infallible or proper 
 proofs of a regeneration by the Holy Ghost ? Is a 
 man's professing that he repents, and promising that 
 he will live godly, that actual repentance and amend- 
 ment of life, which alone can ensure the divine pardon 
 and favour? Are there not multitudes who call Christ 
 their lord, and publicly profess to stand by their bap- 
 tismal covenant, whom, however, he will reject with 
 abhorrence at last ? You will inform me, then. Sir, 
 how the bishops, upon this mere profession and pro- 
 mise, presume to declare to Almighty God, and to 
 assure the person, that he is regenerated, forgiven, 
 and unquestionably in a state of favour with heaven i 
 
 " The expressions, you must acknowledge are 
 couched in strong and absolute terms : nor do I find 
 that there is any intimation that their forgiveness 
 depends upon their care to keep, and to live up to, 
 their baptismal engagements. No: but, though their 
 whole life hath hitherto been scandalously corrupt, 
 yet, upon their being able to say the Lord's }waycr^ 
 &c. the bishop solemnly pronounces a most absolute 
 pardon over them, appeals to Almighty God that 
 
167 
 
 he liath forgiven them all their sins, and, lest this 
 should be too little to satisfy the doubting sinner, 
 and appease his upbraiding conscience, he lays his 
 hands upon his head, and certifies him, by that sign, 
 of God's favour and goodness towards him. 
 
 " This bishop, Sir, the multitudes, who come to 
 be confirmed, are taught to consider as an ambassa- 
 dor of Christ, a successor of the apostles, and a 
 special minister of God. When they hear, then, 
 this sacred person so solemnly declaring that they 
 are fiiUy justified, pardoned, and regenerated, by the 
 Holy Ghost, can you blame them if they believe it, 
 and rest satisfied that their souls are in a safe and 
 happy state. And, as full remission of sins, and the 
 favour of God are to be had upon such easy terms, 
 t;an you wonder, should you see thousands eagerly 
 flocking from all quarters to accept it ? or, that per- 
 sons of very wild and profligate characters, should 
 often thrust themselves in to partake of this benefit, 
 and to be seen receiving upon their knees, episcopal 
 absolution, and solemn assurances of God's favour 
 and grace ** 
 
 SECTION III. 
 
 ON BAPTISM, 
 
 As bishops, on account of the great extent of their 
 dioceses, cannot perform all religious services them- 
 
 ■ Towgood's Dissent, p. 08, 39. 
 
168 
 
 selves, they have acted wisely in granting a portion 
 of the spirit to others, to supply their lack of service. 
 But still every thing is efficacious which is done by 
 the priesthood. In the office for baptism, before the 
 ceremony is performed, the person is supposed to be 
 graceless, the water is sanctified to the mystical isoasJi- 
 ing awai/ of sin, and prayer is made for the regene- 
 rating influence of the Holy Spirit. Immediately 
 after the sprinkling, the congregation is informed 
 that the " person is regenerate and grafted into the 
 body of Christ's church," and God is thanked that 
 this new convert " is 7iow born again, and made an 
 heir of everlasting salvation." When an infant has 
 been baptized in private, and it is ascertained in the 
 church that the ceremony was duly performed, the 
 priest says, " I certify you, that in this case all is 
 well done, and according to due order, concerning 
 the baptizing of this child ; who being born in ori- 
 ginal sin, and in the wrath of God, is now, by 
 the laver of regeneration in baptism^ received into 
 the number of the children of God, and heirs of 
 everlasting life." In the catechism the child is 
 taught to say, " in my baptism I was made a mem- 
 ber of Christ, a child of God, and an mheritor of 
 the kingdom of heaven." 
 
 Cornelius and his fi-iends received the Holy Ghost 
 before baptism, and Simon Magus continued grace- 
 less ajter it ; but our priests unite the divine spirit 
 to the water, and will allow of no regeneration be- 
 fore the mystical washing ,- but they certify both God 
 and man, that as soon as the sprinkling is over, the 
 
16^ 
 
 new creature is born, and an union with Christ is 
 effected. The general belief of this sentiment, that 
 the baptism of an infant is absolutely necessary to its 
 regeneration and salvation, occasions the utmost 
 anxiety and distress in the minds of superstitious 
 parents^ whose children die before a priest can be 
 procured to give them the Holy Ghost and a pass- 
 port to heaven. The practice formerly was to per- 
 mit women, or any body, to baptize a sickly child, 
 if a priest could not be procured in due time; and 
 in hard labours it was usual to baptize the head of 
 the infant before the whole delivery; but now 
 the little ones must perish, should they die be- 
 fore the priest arrives, as no other person is per- 
 mitted by the laws of the church to perform the 
 ceremony. 
 
 Some ministers, in their preaching, assure the 
 most profligate characters that they were all born 
 again in baptism, and that they ought not to believe 
 what enthusiastic preachers say concerning the ne- 
 cessity of conversion, as applicable to them. It is 
 certain, however, that if the spiritual birth does 
 really take place in baptism, the new creature, in 
 most cases, soon expires; and the corpse of de- 
 parted virtue turns to moral corruption. But let 
 a man's life be what it will, he must not be per- 
 mitted to doubt the saving efficacy of clerical mi- 
 uistrations. 
 
170 
 SECTION IV. 
 
 ON THE lord's SUPPER. 
 
 In the Lord's supper, the priest dexterously unites 
 the body and blood of Christ to the bread and wine, 
 wliich neither a deacon nor a layman is able to do. 
 Wonderful efficacy is ascribed to these holy myste- 
 ries. In the rubrick for the communion of the sick, 
 it is remarked, — '* For as much as all mortal men 
 be subject to many sudden perils, diseases, and sick- 
 nesses, and ever uncertain what time they shall de- 
 part out of this life; therefore, to the intent they 
 may be always in a readiness to die, whensoever it 
 shall please Almighty God to call them, the curates 
 shall, diligently, from time to time, (but especially 
 in times of pestilence, or other infectious sickness) 
 exhort their parishioners to the often receiving of the 
 holy communion of the body and blood of our Sa- 
 viour Christ, &c." Here the people are taught that 
 partaking of the Lord's supper is a preparation for 
 death. Many churchmen heartily believe diis doc- 
 trine, and venture their salvation upon it. Hence 
 the most notorious sinners, when about to finish their 
 career in vice, send for a priest to give them the sa- 
 crament, and prepare them for heaven. 
 
 If the sick man should defer too long to send for 
 his minister, the church in her charity accepts the 
 will for the deed ; and, on a mere profession of re- 
 ]icntance and faith, his soul is restored to spiritual 
 
171 
 
 health and soundness. " But if a man, either by 
 reason of extremity of sickness, or for want of warn- 
 ing in due time to the curate, or for lack of com- 
 pany to receive with him, or by any other just im- 
 pediment, do not receive the sacrament of Christ's 
 body and blood, the curate shall instruct him, 
 that if he do truly repent him of his sins, and 
 steadfastly believe that Jesus Christ hath suffered 
 death upon the cross for him, and shed his blooa 
 for his redemption, earnestly remembering the be- 
 nefits he hath thereby, and giving him hearty thanks 
 therefore ; he doth eat and drink the body and 
 blood of our Saviour Christ profitably to his soul's 
 health, although he do not receive the sacrament 
 with his mouth." Here it must be noted, that no 
 exception is made, nor doubt expressed, in the 
 case of the greatest profligate that ever lived. It 
 generally happens, that those who survive, return 
 again to their old courses like the dog to his vomit ; 
 which shews that their repentance was insincere, 
 their faith dead, and their thanksgiving gross hypo- 
 crisy ; yet, notwithstanding all this, had they left 
 this world just after their confession to the priest, 
 they would have died in the sure and certain hope 
 of heaven. It is in consequence of a general be- 
 lief in the saving efficacy of the last rites of the 
 church, that so many abandon themselves to all sorts 
 of vice, so long as they enjoy health and strength ; 
 and if it be true, that God will accept of profes- 
 sions and sacraments as a substitute for a life of 
 piety and virtue, they are in the right ; for who, but 
 a fool, will live iii daily acts of self-denial and flesh?- 
 V 2 
 
172 
 
 ly mortification, when he may receive from- a priest, 
 in his hi.st moments, absolution from sin, health of 
 soul, and a title to eternal life. 
 
 SECTION V. 
 
 ON ABSOLUTION. 
 
 In the office for the visitation of the sick, the al> 
 solution runs in these words : " Our Lord Jesus 
 Christ, who hath left power to his church to absolve 
 all sinners who truly repent and believe in him, of 
 his great mercy forgives thee thine offences ; and, by 
 his authority committed to me, I absolve thee from 
 all thy sins, in the name of the Father, and of the 
 Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen/* 
 
 Tliere is a difference of opinion among the clergy 
 whether the absolution he judiciary^ or only declara^ 
 the. The proud are for the former, and the modest 
 few for the latter. If nothing more be meant, than 
 that God hath given priests authority to declare, that 
 those who repent and believe shall obtain forgive- 
 ness of sin, the sentiment could not be worse ex- 
 pressed than in the words of the absolution. Besides, 
 fcveiy christian has authority from God, equally 
 with a priest, to declare to a person who is troubled 
 in his conscience, that if he heartily rq^ent and be- 
 lieve he shall find mercy. But the absolution will 
 not bear this mild interpretation ; it is not only so 
 \\*orded as to favour the judicial autliority of the 
 
J 73 
 
 ministef, but the church does not suffer a deacoH- 
 to pronounce it, (though he is permitted in reli- 
 gious assembhes to explain the doctrines of the 
 gospel) which is an unaccountable restriction, if 
 there be no power of absolution in the priest. Bishop 
 Sparrow rejects, with indignation, the declarative 
 interpretation, and asserts, that " a power barely 
 declarative is indeed none at all; and that the 
 apostles, and in them all priests, were made God's 
 vicegerents here on earth, in his name to retain 
 and forgive sins, not declaratively only, but judi- 
 cially :'^ adding, — " Our holy mother, the church, 
 hath prescribed a form of absolution in the visita- 
 tion of the sick. He, then, that assents to the 
 church of England, or believes the scriptures, or 
 gives credit to the ancient fathers, cannot deny 
 the priest the power of remitting sins." And again, 
 — " He that would be sure of pardon, let him seek 
 out a p7'iest, and make his humble confession to him ; 
 for God, who alone hath the prime and original 
 right of forgiving sins, hath delegated the priests^ 
 his judges on earth, and given them the power of ah- 
 solution ; so that they can, in his name, forgive the 
 sins of those that humbly confess unto them^ * 
 
 Our high priests found theii* assumed authority 
 on the following texts : " I will give unto thee the 
 keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatsoever 
 thou shalt bind on earth, shall be bound m heaven ; 
 and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth, shall be 
 loosed in heaven. Verily I say unto you, whatso^ 
 
 * Sermon on tlie Power of Absolutiou, on John i. 9, 
 p3 
 
] 74 
 
 ever ye shall bind on earth, shall be baund in 
 heaven; and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth, 
 shall be loosed in heaven. Whose soever sins ye 
 remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose 
 soever sins ye retain, they are retained." * 
 
 By the keifs of the kingdom of heaven being pro- 
 mised to the apostle Peter, is meant, that he should 
 oipen the gospel dispensation to the Jews and Gen- 
 tiles ; which promise was fulfilled when he preached 
 the gospel to the Jews on the day of Pentecost, and 
 to Cornelius and his friends soon afterwards, f 
 
 The power of binding and loosing, which in the 
 first text is promised to Peter, is in the second ex- 
 tended to ^very christian community. Our Lord 
 was speaking to the case of an offending brother, 
 who, if he could not be persuaded of his error by 
 private remonstrances, was to be brought before the 
 whole church, or congregation, whose decision 
 should be final. The binding and loosing hei'e is 
 the same as remitting and retaining sin in the last 
 text. If the offending brother repented, the con- 
 gregation loosed him — ^they remitted his sin, and were 
 reconciled unto him ; but if he remained incorrigi- 
 ble, they hound him — his sin was retdined^ and he 
 was expelled the society. To give authority to the 
 decisions of the church, in matters of discipline, 
 our Lord solemnly declared, that they should be 
 confirmed in the court of heaven. Two things must 
 here be noted: 
 
 * Matiliew xvj. 19. — xviiL 18. John xx. 25. -f Acts ii. 10, 
 
175 
 
 I. It is not the sin as it relates to God, but as it 
 relates to men, which the church has a power of 
 binding or loosing, retaining or remitting. " If thy 
 brother trespass against thee'^ and will not make suit- 
 able acknowledgments, he is to be treated as an hea- 
 then man and a publican, and his sin is to be hound 
 upon him *. Now, in this sense of forgiving sin, 
 priests have not only authority to do it, but, when a 
 proper apology is made, it is their duty to do it. For 
 it fallows, — " Then came Peter to liim, and said. 
 Lord, how often shall my brother sin against m&, 
 and I forgive him ? till seven times ? Jesus saith unto 
 him, I say not unto thee, until seven times ; but, un- 
 til seventy times seven." 
 
 II. The decrees of priests do not bind either on 
 earth or in heaven, when they are not according to 
 the word of God. When Peter was for binding a 
 load of Jewish ceremonies on the Gentile converts, 
 Paul resisted this unscriptural assumption of power, 
 and " withstood him to the face, because he was to 
 be blamed." And it is to be lamented, that the 
 church did not, in after times, oppose the encroach- 
 ments of a proud, pi*esumptuous, and interested 
 clergy. 
 
 The discipline of the church of Corinth was exe- 
 cuted by the laity. They had retained the sin of 
 the incestuous person, and cut him oif from their 
 communion. This had the desired effect ; he repent- 
 
 * Matt, xviii. 15—18. 
 
176 
 
 ed, and sought absolution. The apostle exhorted 
 them to bo reconciled unto him, remarking, " suffi- 
 cient to such a man is this punishment which was 
 inflicted of many. So that ye ought to forgive hiniy 
 and comfort him." * If the absolution in this in- 
 stance extended to the conscience, in the sight of 
 God, remember it was given by the laity^ and not by 
 the clergy. 
 
 Every private christian has the same power to 
 forgive a sin committed against himself, which eccle- 
 siastics have to pardon offences committed against 
 the church. In the Lord's prayer, which every chris- 
 tian ought to use, is this petition ; " Forgive us our 
 debts, as isoe forgive our debtors." 
 
 No one can forgive sins committed against God 
 but God himself. " Who can forgive sins but God 
 only? — It is God that justifieth." But to cite all 
 the texts which ascribe the justification of a sinner to 
 the Supreme Being, would fill a volume. It will be 
 said, however, that though it be the prerogative of 
 the Most High to pardon sinners, yet he may, if he 
 pleases, delegate his authority to priests. If so, then 
 prayer and supplication should be made to priests, 
 and not to God for forgiveness. The Father hath 
 committed all judgment to the Son, and this is as- 
 signed as the reason why the Father judgeth no man.f 
 By parity of reason., if he hath committed the pardon 
 of sin to the priests, it will foUow that he pardoneth 
 
 * 2 Cor. ii. 6, 7. f John, v. 22. 
 
177 
 
 no man. In this case, therefore, the priest, and not 
 the Deity, is the proper object of religious worship. 
 
 Repentance and faith are necessary to obtain the 
 favour of God, according to the whole tenor of the 
 New Testament : the priest requires a profession of 
 these before he gives absolution ; but he possesses no 
 means of ascertaining to a certainty that the condi- 
 tions of the new covenant have been duly performed. 
 Can any thing be more ridiculous and presumptuous ? 
 Is a mere saying, " I repent," and rejieating the 
 creed, that repentance and faith which obtain salva- 
 tion ? When a ptiest absolves a person who has not 
 performed the conditions required, he either tells a 
 lie, and deceives a soul to its ruin ; or else, by the 
 plenitude of his sacerdotal powers, he can " change 
 the truth of God into a lie," for the infallible word 
 hath declared, " except ye repent, ye shall all perish^ 
 He that believeth not shall be damned." 
 
 If God had given to priests a power to remit ot 
 retain sins committed against himself, he would have 
 qualified them for the due exercise of this high au- 
 thority, by giving them a thorough knowledge of the. 
 human heart; and he would have provided against 
 any wilful abuse of their power in retaining the &ins 
 of the virtuous, and remitting those of the vicious, by 
 making them men of the most inflexible integrity. 
 To believe that God has made the salvation or 
 damnation of his creatures depend upon the will of 
 ignorant and capricious ecclesiastics, is a faith worse 
 than atheism. 
 
178 
 
 The clergy are far more ready to pardon the 
 worst of sins committed against God, than to for- 
 give a venial trespass against themselves. A sinner 
 may have affronted th^ majesty of heaven for tliree- 
 score years and ten, and obtaiti an absolution for 
 nothing; but what must become of the damnable 
 heretic who dares to open his mouth, or take up his 
 pen, against the majesty of the priesthood ! 
 
 It is confessed on all hands, that till the twelfth or 
 thirteenth century, the forms of absolution were 
 not indicative, — " I absolve thee;" but deprecatory, — 
 " Christ absolve thee." The following form of ab- 
 solution is taken from the old penitential canons of 
 the year 963. For its modesty, in the height of 
 popery, it merits notice: " The Almighty God, 
 who created the heaven and the earth, and every 
 creature, have mercy upon thee, and grant thee for- 
 giveness of all thy sins, which thou hast ever com- 
 mitted, from thy being made a christian to this 
 time, through," &c. * Kelson says, " the old way of 
 absolution was by prayer and imposition of hands-; 
 but that was disused about the beginning of the 
 twelfth century, and the new method introduced 
 under those authoritative words, — I absolve thee, 
 &c. ; and, because the natural import of such a 
 positive sentence might lead men into an opiniou 
 that the clergy assumed a power of pardoning sins, 
 therefore it was always tempered with some softer 
 expression, viz. I absolve thee, in so far as it is 
 graiited to me i or, as far as the accusation comes frjom 
 
 * Free and Candid Disquisit. page 3^9, 
 
179 
 
 the pejiitent, &c.* In those days popish priests 
 were modest, in comparison of our modern reformed 
 clergy ! 
 
 SECTION VL 
 
 ON THE BURIAL SERVICE. 
 
 It is not at all surprising, when eyeiy thing done 
 by a priest is so full of spiritual efficacy, that all who 
 submit to his authority should go to heaven. Ac- 
 cordingly we find, from the burial office, that every 
 member of the church dies " in sure and certain 
 hope of the resurrection to eternal life." This office 
 is read over all indiscriminately, with the exception 
 of infidels, suicides, and excommunicated persons. 
 Moral character is out of the question. Though a 
 man die with an oath upon his tongue, in a state of 
 intoxication, or in a brothel, he is the " dear 
 t)rother" of the priest, who thanks God for deliver- 
 ing him " out of the miseries of this sinful world ;" 
 and makes meek supplication to heaven " that when 
 we shall depart this life, we may rest in Christ, as 
 our hope is this our brother doth." Thus a church- 
 man, on the ground of professions, which are un- 
 supported by a single virtue, and contradicted by 
 the worst of vices, is, through the power of the 
 priest, justified, sanctified, and glorified ! ! ! 
 
 ■Hi 
 
 " Nelson's Rights of the Clergy, Art. Absolut. 
 
180 
 
 Several curious and ingenious explications of the 
 burial office have been given by well meaning clergy- 
 men, with a view to remove that scandal which it 
 has generally occasioned. It may not be amiss to 
 notice those which moderate men have thought most 
 satisfactory. 
 
 1st, Dr Bennet says; " It is plain from the whole 
 tenor of this office, that it was never intended to be 
 used at the burial of such persons as die in a state of 
 notorious impenitence, without any appearance or 
 profession of their return to God. So that those 
 clergymen (if any such there can be) who read this 
 form at the funeral of the most profligate and de- 
 bauched sinners, do not only act without authority, 
 but against the manifest design of the church. I 
 hope, therefore, that none of my brethren will ever 
 prostitute this excellent service to the worst of pur- 
 poses, to the encouragement of vice, and the hard- 
 ening of sinners; and that they will never change 
 the whole of it into one continued and deliberate 
 falsehood by so scandalous a misapplication." * But 
 the good doctor seems to have forgotten that the 
 68th canon obliges the clergy to read the office over 
 all, except excommunicated persons. " No minister 
 shall refuse or delay to bury any corpse that is 
 brought to the church or church-yard, (convenient 
 warning being given him thereof before) in such 
 manner and form as is prescribed in the book of 
 common-prayer. And if he shah refuse, except the 
 party deceased were denounced excommunicated, 
 
 • Free and candid Disquisit. page 132, 133. 
 
majori excommunicatione, for some grievous and 
 notorious crime, (and no man able to testify of his 
 repentance,) he shall be suspended by the bishop of 
 the diocese from his ministry by the space of three 
 months." 
 
 2dly, Dr Nichols explains the matter thus : " Ac- 
 cording to the rules of christian charity, we hope 
 for the salvation of every deceased person, who dies 
 within the pale of the church ; as thinking we can- 
 not, without the greatest arrogance, exclude any, in 
 our private judgment, from the common reward of 
 christians, whom the church hath not thought fit to 
 exclude by her public censure."* To this Mr Peirce 
 replied : " I am utterly ignorant what those rules of 
 Christianity are, which require us to hope thus con- 
 cerning men, who were, it may be, notorious for all 
 manner of wickedness. The spirit of God testifies, 
 that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom 
 of God. How then can we hope, that such are 
 made partakers of the eternal inheritance, provided 
 only they died not under the church's censure? 
 How many wicked wretches are daily buried, who, 
 as they gave no signs of so much as a death-bed 
 repentance, have left us no room for such a hope in 
 their case ? To require ministers to express such a 
 hope, is as wicked, as it is absurd. Nay, if we sup- 
 pose the case to be doubtful, what occasion is there 
 to say any thing about it ? But profligate wi^etches 
 meet with that charity among our adversaries, which 
 several of the furious high blades refiise to shew to 
 
 * Defence of the Church of England, page 539. 
 
 Q 
 
182 
 
 any dissenters. Nor can it be expressed how great 
 nuschicf has been done to religion, by the promis- 
 cuous use of this form in burying the dead. Men 
 are easily hardened in their impieties, when they 
 hear such liope is entertained of those that lived 
 and died like themselves. If it were left to a minis- 
 ter's discretion to express this charitable hope of the 
 dead he buries, or not to express it, according as he 
 saw there was reason, it would be quite another 
 case. But since they are required always to say the 
 same, of all those that have been baptized, and did 
 not die excommunicate, or by laying violent hands 
 on themselves, we cannot oblige ourselves to conform 
 to such a custom." * The office does not merely ex- 
 press a judgment of charity respecting the possibility 
 of the salvation of all churchmen, though that 
 would be stretching the point quite far enough, but 
 asserts the certainty of it in the most absolute terms : 
 '' In sure and certain hope," &c. 
 
 ^dhj^ A few writers of less note suppose the sure 
 and certain hope has reference merely to the resur- 
 rection of the body, without deciding any thino- 
 about the state which follows, whether happy or 
 miserable. But this resurrection is stated in the 
 office to be to eternal life ; a phrase which, in the 
 New Testament, always denotes future happiness^ 
 and can intend nothing else in this office ; for the 
 apostle is immediately quoted where he speaks of 
 the bodies of believers being " fashioned like unto 
 
 * Peirce's Vindication oF the Dissenters, page 55Q. 
 
183 
 
 Christ's glorious body," * a privilege which is re- 
 stricted to the faithful. Besides, the ground of this 
 confidence determines the nature of it. " Foras- 
 much as it hath pleased Almighty God, of his great 
 mercy, to take unto himself the soul of our dear 
 brother here departed, we therefore commit his body 
 to the ground, " in sure and certain hope." 
 
 Though many pious clergymen have complained 
 of this office, and though several applications have 
 been made for a revision of it, nothing has been 
 done ; which proves it to be the fixed and delibe- 
 rate judgment of the church, that the most profligate 
 of her members are without doubt saved everlast- 
 ingly ; since it is incredible that she should be con- 
 scious of an error upon go momentous a subject, for 
 near three hundred years, without correcting it. 
 
 After all, the dissenters ought not to press hard 
 upon the church, for it has been recently determin- 
 ed, in a spiritual court, that the clergy are obliged 
 to read this office over them, as well as churchmen ; 
 and it would appear ill-natured to censure that chari- 
 ty as excessive to friends, which is not denied even 
 to enemies. It may also be presumed, that the de- 
 cision of this case will cure the clergy of their bi- 
 gotry ; for it would be too ludicrous to excite any 
 thing else than laughter, to hear a minister in the 
 morning denouncing dissenters as damnable heretics, 
 and to hear the same man in the afternoon, when 
 burying one of these limbs of the devil, call him a 
 
 * Phil. iii. 21. 
 
 Q2 
 
184 
 
 dear brother, who is certainly gone to heaven, and 
 pray meekly for himself and other churchmen, that 
 their last end may be like his. 
 
 The case of suicides is singular and critical. The 
 clergy have no power of judging of the state of their 
 minds, but their christian burial, which turns upon 
 this point, is determined by a jury of laymen ; so 
 that, in fact, the salvation or damnation of these un- 
 happy persons, in the judgment of the church, de- 
 pends upon the verdict of tlie laity ! 
 
ESSAY IV. 
 
 ON LEARNING. 
 
 How much learning is necessary to qualify for the 
 sacred ministry ? Just so much as is necessary to 
 acquire a knowledge of Christianity; for he who 
 understands any art or science is qualified to teach 
 it. Thus a man who understands the art of shoe- 
 making, can teach others to make shoes; a lawyer 
 who is well versed in the principles of justice, the 
 civil code of the realm, and the practice of the 
 courts, is competent to give instx'uctions on juris- 
 prudence; a physician who is acquainted with, 
 anatomy and physiology, the nature, causes and 
 symptoms of diseases, and the properties of medi- 
 cines, is sufficiently learned to give lectures on the 
 healing ai't; and the reason equally holds in relation, 
 to all other professions. 
 
 The question, therefore, is, What lemming is ne^ 
 cessaty to acquire a hnoidedge of christianitij P The 
 clergy reply, a knowledge of the languages in which . 
 
 23 
 
186 
 
 tlie sacred scriptures were originally written. But 
 this can only be true upon the supposition, -that the 
 translation does not give the sense of the original ; a 
 supposition which reflects disgrace upon the transla- 
 tors, as ignorant or designing men, in giving us a 
 s})urious version, and upon the present clergy, as 
 enemies to learning and religion, in not giving us a 
 better. When a motion is made, however, for a 
 new translation, the clergy are loudest in the cry, 
 that the old one is strictly just and faithful. It may 
 therefore be safely affirmed, that by a careful and 
 devout perusal of the bible, the christian system 
 may be comprehended, and that, consequently, a 
 knowledge of the dead languages is not necessary to 
 a teacher of the science of salvation. 
 
 But it is said, admitting our translation to be a 
 good one, yet every scholar knows, that it is im- 
 possible to give the full force and spirit of any work 
 in a translation ; and that, however well it may be 
 executed, it must from the nature of things contain 
 some errors. This is granted. But still it will not 
 be denied, that the doctrines, duties, privileges, and 
 rewards of Christianity, may all be clearly made out 
 from the authorised version, and may therefore be 
 inculcated with effect by a minister who is ignorant 
 of Greek and Hebrew. 
 
 It may justly be inferred from the imperfections 
 and errors of the translation, that a critical knowledge 
 of the originals is useful^ though not necessary. But 
 when it is considered what innumerable new traos- 
 
187 
 
 lations, paraphrases, commentaries, dissertations, 
 histories and dictionaries of the bible, we have in 
 our own language, a man of extensive reading and 
 good understanding, may acquire a critical knowledge 
 of the sacred books, without studying the languages 
 in which they were written. A dabbler in Greek 
 and Hebrew can add nothing to our stores of 
 biblical criticism, and possesses no advantages ovet 
 a mere English scholar. 
 
 If it were supposed that a minister must be a 
 master in the dead languages, the sentiment would 
 be more fatal to the church than to the conventicle; 
 for after all the parade of the clergy about learning, 
 it is questionable whether there be a body of reve- 
 rends in the protestant world, which contains so 
 large a proportion of ignoramuses as are to be 
 found in our estabUshment. Not one in a htmdred 
 of them has a critical knowledge of the Greek, nor 
 one in a thousand of the Hebrew. How con- 
 temptible to hear a man boasting of his learning, 
 who cannot deliver a discourse of twenty minutes 
 long without book, and who cannot read it with as 
 much grace and pathos as a boarding-school miss 
 does her favourite novel ! 
 
 It is pretty generally admitted, that Greek and 
 Hebrew can contribute very little more towards 
 clearing and illustratino- the sacred text. These 
 languages have been cultivated with so much zeal 
 and success, and such pains have been taken to pro- 
 cure and collate manuscripts, that there is scarcely 
 
188 
 
 any thing left for the man to do who comes after the 
 kings that, for the last two centuries, have reigned 
 over the world of sacred literature. The learned 
 have now turned their attention to the Samaritan, 
 which was the language of the Jews before the cap- 
 tivity ; to the Arabic, from which the Hebrew is 
 probably derived; and to the several oriental 
 languages which bear any affinity to the Greek and 
 Hebrew, and in which any ancient manuscripts of 
 the scriptures are to be found. The ministers 
 among the sectaries are labouring in this new field 
 of action, while the principal part of the clergy are 
 applying to the Latin, a language in which few 
 works are preserved that are not full of either the 
 debaucheries of heathenism, or the superstitions and 
 persecutions of corrupted Christianity. 
 
 There is nothing important in Christianity which 
 a man of common capacity cannot comprehend. 
 The clergy are perpetually insisting on the necessity 
 of a learned education in ministers, because they 
 have to dispense the mystei'ies of our holi) religion, 
 Tliis cant refers to baptism and the Lord's supper^ 
 Let us therefore enquire, what there is of mystery 
 and difficulty in the administration of these sacra- 
 ments. It cannot require much learning to sprinkle 
 a little water upon a child, and say, " I baptize 
 thee in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and 
 of the Holy Ghost." It must be confessed, how-^ 
 ever, that there are some mysteries in baptism, as 
 practised in the church of England. For instance : 
 there is something inexplicably mysterious in ask* 
 
189 
 
 ing an infant, " Wilt thou be baptized? Wilt 
 thou obediently keep God's holy will and command- 
 ments, and walk in the same all the days of thy 
 life?" It would be equally proper to interrogate 
 the baby upon other subjects, on which it could cer- 
 tainly give quite as much information : It might be 
 demanded, " Wilt thou be a soldier, — a sailor, — or 
 a parson ? Wilt thou at a proper age be married ? 
 &c." There is no less mystery in asking the sponsor, 
 " Dost thou, in the name of this child, renounce the 
 devil and all his works? Dost thou believe, &c?" 
 If we can believe and obey by proxy, we may also be 
 saved by proxy; for nothing more than faith and 
 obedience, is necessary to salvation. This is cer- 
 tainly a very mysterious subject ; but thus much is 
 plain, that a man who can go to heaven by jproxy^ 
 may possibly go to hell himself. 
 
 No person has a right voluntarily to become 
 responsible for another, who has not the means of 
 fulfilling the obligation. When a man, therefore, 
 engages for the virtue of another, he ought to pos- 
 sess the power of making him virtuous, which is in- 
 consistent both with free agency and the grace of 
 God, — or else he ought to possess as much virtue 
 himself, as will satisfy for them both, in which case 
 the popish doctrine of works of supererogation is 
 established, and the sale of indulgences, founded 
 upon it, justified. But whatever mystery there may be 
 in this business, it is certain no very great degree of 
 learning is necessary to ask infants and their sponsors 
 these silly questions. 
 
100 
 
 The bread and wine in the Lord's siipj)cr are- 
 called Itolif nujslrricis. 'I'lierc is nothing mysterious 
 in the celebration of the encluirist, as practised by 
 the first christians. Onr Lord did not consecrate 
 the bread and wine when he instituted the supper, 
 any jnorc than the loaves and fishes when he led the 
 multitude; for he rendered the same thanksgivinrr to 
 God on both occasions. Compare the texts: 
 
 *' And he commanded the 
 multitude to sit down on the 
 j::jr;«ss, and tonic the five I oaves ^ 
 and I lie two fishes, and lookivff 
 up to heaven, he b f. kss kd, and 
 lutAKi;, and fraxw the ioaxws 
 to his disciples J and the dis- 
 ciples to the multitude. 
 
 *' And he took the sex)cn 
 loavcSf and the Jishesy and 
 CAVE THANKS, a)id brake 
 iheniy and gave to his dis- 
 ciples, and the disciples to 
 the multitude." * 
 
 " ffesus took the hreadf 
 and iiLEssKD, and bhake, 
 and rraxie to the disciples ; 
 and said, take, eat, this is 
 my body. And he took the 
 cup, and gave thanks, 
 and ffavc to them, saying, 
 drink ye all of it." -j- 
 
 It surely is not necessary, that a man should liaV* 
 much learning to (jualify himself to express grati- 
 tude to God, to Inind about a little bread and wine) 
 
 • MaUliew, xiv. 19. xv. 3G. 
 
 •}• IMntilicw, xxvi. 2f;, 27. Our transhilors have nddfcl the pronoijfl 
 fV — '• IIo blessed it ;" but there is no it in the originnl, and should be 
 none in tlic translation ; fur it was not the Irrcad which our J>ord 
 Mc;s«d, but God. VVhon ht: look the cup, he f^nve thiinhs. If the 
 I)r(;n(inn \w rctoincd in ihe preceding verse, it ou^ht not to be oniilted 
 in tlii ,, and then tlic rtadinj; will be, " And he took the cup and gnrc 
 it tlnuik.s," which is making Christ an idolater. 
 
191 
 
 ;ind to desire the people to take it in remembrance 
 of the death of Clnist, and as figurative of his body 
 and blood. But in the church of England this sub- 
 ject is enveloped in mystery. The priest consecrates 
 the elements by a prayer ; and in doing this, he must 
 " lay his hand \\\^o\\ all the bread, and upon every 
 vessel in which there is any wine to be consecrated." 
 This is a very mysterious touch j — a deacon's hand 
 is not sufficiently holy to perform this magical ope- 
 ration ; some spiritual virtue must surely be infused 
 into the sacred food, because if any of it remains, 
 " it shall not be carried, out of the c)mrch, but the 
 priest, &c. shall, immediately after the blessing, rex'C' 
 rently eat and drink the same." 
 
 But these mysteries are explained in the cate- 
 chism, where we are told, " The body and blood of 
 Christ are verily and indeed, taken and received by 
 the faithful in the Lord's supper." It is not the 
 body and blood of Q\\\:\^tjigurativelij, or even spi- 
 riiiialhj, but verily and indeed, that is taken by the 
 iaithful. The only diflbrence, therefore, between a 
 popish and protestant priest in this affair, is, the par* 
 pist changes the bread and wine into flesh and blood, 
 and tiie protestant unites, after some mysterious man- 
 ner, the flesh and blood to the bread and wine. 
 Of the two operators, the papist is undoubtedly 
 the most dextious ; but there is, " veiily and in- 
 deed," another mystery connected with this, and 
 that is; How niany bodies has Jesus Christ, if one 
 be verily and indeed taken by each of the failhfid 
 in the Lord's suj)per ? We are as completely lost in 
 
192 
 
 this mystery, as in the transubstantiation of the ca- 
 tholics. If the priest can produce no change in the 
 bread and wine, why all this superstitious ceremony ? 
 this affectation of mystei^ ? 
 
 In the church of Corinth, there was no minister 
 to consecrate and give the elements, as is clear frpm 
 the whole relation ; for, in that case, the apostle 
 ought to have blamed the priest, and not the people, 
 for the iiTcgularities of which he complained. And 
 it ought to be noted, that though he gives directions 
 for the due celebration of this christian festival, he 
 says nothing about a priest presiding, which shews 
 that his presence is not necessary. 
 
 There are certainly mysteries of godliness, as well 
 as mysteries of iniquity ; but a preacher's duty is not 
 about mysteries, but truths clearly revealed. How 
 the three persons of the Godhead subsist in one di- 
 vine nature, and how the two natures of Christ are 
 united in one person, are mysteries which all the 
 learning in the world cannot explain. They who 
 have attempted such things, have demonstrated no- 
 thing but their own folly. 
 
 Much learning is supposed to be necessary to a 
 minister, because the arts and sciences are frequently 
 alluded to m scripture ; and such passages, it is said, 
 cannot be explained by illiterate persons. Suj)pose 
 this were true, is it necessary to explain such pas- 
 sages in teaching the way ol salvation ? Is it impos- 
 sible to preach the gospel, without demonstrating 
 
193 
 
 the Mosaic account of the creation to be strictly phi- 
 losophical ? and describing the chemical process by 
 which Aaron's calf was reduced to powder ? 
 
 There is more frequent allusion in the sacred writ- 
 ings to common arts and employments, than to the 
 higher branches of science, for most of the arts in 
 those days were in a state of infancy, and many of 
 the sacred writers were illiterate persons ; hence a 
 Jack-of-all-trades possesses many advantages over a 
 delicate gentleman who is ignorant of the concerns 
 of common life. 
 
 A farmer, in preaching from, " Ye are God's hus- 
 bandry," will plough up the fallow ground of the 
 heart, destroy the weeds of sin, sow it with the word, 
 manure it with the spirit, water it with the means of 
 grace, and keep it clean with watchfulness ; he will 
 ripen the precious grain with the sun of righteous- 
 ness, reap it with the sickle of angels, and gather it 
 into the garner of God. — Set a young man just ar- 
 rived from the university to preach from such a text, 
 and it is ten to one but he will begin to sow among 
 thorns; the seed of the word by this imprudence 
 will be choked, and his expectations at the time of 
 harvest will be disappointed. If an infidel be railing 
 at the bible as a false book, because it represents the 
 land of Canaan as a land flowing with milk and 
 honey, though modern travellers inform us it is a 
 barren wilderness, — a farmer can give him examples 
 of land, which a few years ago was unproductive, 
 that now yields thirty, sixty, or an hundred fold; 
 R 
 
194^ 
 
 and will account for the tlifFerencc betwixt the an- 
 cient and modern state of the soil, by shewing the 
 influence of cultivation upon it. But a clergymai:, 
 unacquainted with agriculture, will be foiled by such 
 objections, and will grace the triumph of infidelity. 
 A shipwright can silence all the cavils of unbelievers 
 against the capacity and shape of the ark. — He 
 can demonstrate, that her dimensions were sufficient- 
 ly large to contain so many animals, and provisions 
 for them for so long a time ; and that she was admi- 
 rably well constructed for setting at defiance the de- 
 structive element, and proudly riding on a ruined 
 world. — A sailor will give an interesting account of 
 the shipwreck of St Paul, and the anchor of hope. 
 — A weaver will preach a most affecting discourse 
 from, — " My days are swifter than a weaver's shuttle" 
 
 Upon these, and many other subjects, a common 
 mechanic has much the advantage of a man who 
 knows nothing but a few dead languages, and the 
 arts of courtly address ; discussions on the scripture 
 allusions to arts and sciences, however, are, in ge- 
 neral, more suitable for the press than the pulpit; 
 and a large fund of valuable information may be 
 collected from Harmer's Observations, and from the 
 fragments appended to Calmet's Dictionary of the 
 Bible. 
 
 f'^ A minister should be Iccirncd, it is said, to en- 
 able him to defend his religion, and convert its 
 enemies. Piety is the best defence of Christiani- 
 ty ; hence christians are exhorted, " by well doings 
 
195 
 
 to put to silence the ignorance of foolish men/* 
 The christian religion contains so excellent and, 
 perfect a system of morality, and its positive in- 
 stitutions have so close and intimate a relation to 
 its moral precepts, that infidels have never found 
 much to object to in the New Testament; — the 
 vices of professors and ministers have ever been their 
 favourite topics of scandal. The French philoso- 
 phers were perpetually declaiming on the supersti- 
 tions and sins of the church and clergy ; and with- 
 out employing scarce a single argument, which 
 would have affected the sacred books, they convert- 
 ed their countrymen into a nation of infidels. Re- 
 ligion has nothing to dread from its open enemies, 
 when not betrayed by its pretended friends. Vir- 
 tue is the sword as well as the shield of religion; 
 with this she not only defends herself against the at- 
 tacks of her foes, but also subdues them to the obe- 
 dience of faith. Our Lord prayed for the union of 
 his disciples with himself, and for their preservation 
 from the vices of the age, that the world might be- 
 lieve and know that he was sent of God ; and he 
 exhorted them to let their light shine before men, 
 that others, seeing their good works, might be m- 
 duced to glorify their heavenly Father, * 
 
 Deists are to be found principally in high life ; 
 and dissenting ministers, of course, hold little or no 
 converse with them : hence, however necessary learn- 
 ing may be to fashionable divines, who have to con- 
 flict with knight-errants, it is of very little conse^ 
 
 * John xvii. 21, 22, 23. Mattb. v. IG. 
 R 2 
 
196 
 
 qiience to persons who never had, and probably 
 never will have, such spiritual foes to encounter. 
 And with all the hard fighting against the opposers 
 of our faith, and the skill and dexterity displayed 
 by our clerical champions, what conquests have been 
 made ? Has half a dozen of mighty and noble infi- 
 dels been added within the last century to the num- 
 ber of the faithful ? It is generally over the bottle 
 that our gentry discuss the merits of Christianity ; 
 and is it to be expected, that a clergyman who par- 
 ticipates in their revels, should j make any favour- 
 able impression upon their minds, when his own 
 cheeks are reddened, and his intellects disordered 
 by h|ilf a score bumpers ? There are few preachers, 
 however, but have read Paley, Newton, Butler, &c. 
 and have thereby qualified themselves to support, 
 with as much ability as most clergymen can do, 
 the divine authority and obligation of our holy reli- 
 gion. 
 
 Proud and hauffhtv mortals think themselves the 
 only beings in the world that desei've attention. 
 Hence the gospel of Christ must be suited to the 
 classical taste, and limited to the comprehension of 
 the literati : It must command the homage, without 
 enljojhteninff the understandings of the vulvar. The 
 heathen systems of philosophy were founded upon 
 metaphysical subtleties and abstract speculations, 
 which only a few individuals of the keenest pene- 
 tration and brightest genius could possibly compre- 
 hend; and, therefore, what little good there might 
 bo in them wa^ hid from the multitude. But must 
 
197 
 
 we identify Christianity, in its leading principles^, 
 with paganism ? 
 
 The Parent of mankind hath made of one blood 
 all the nations of the earth ; we all are partakers of 
 one common nature, are exposed to the same temp- 
 tations, and are required to practise the same vir- 
 tues ; the souls of the rich and learned are not 
 more valuable in the esteem of heaven, than those 
 of the poor and illiterate ; hence we may fairly con- 
 clude, that a revelation from God must be adaptecj 
 to the capacities and circumstances of men in ge- 
 neral, since all stand in equal need of it, and all 
 are equally interested in it. The gospel recognises 
 the truth of these principles, and is constructed upon 
 them* 
 
 As the bulk of mankind have neither capacity 
 nor opportunity for making much progress in learn- 
 ing, the gospel is accommodated to their condition. 
 " The poor have the gospel preached to them. God 
 hath chosen the poor of this world, rich in faith, 
 and heirs of the kingdom." * They understood our 
 Saviour, and became converts to his doctrine : 
 " The common people heard him gladly." f The 
 meanness of his followers gave umbrage to the pha- 
 risees, who demanded, with a haughty and contemp- 
 tuous air, " Have any of the rulers, or of the pha- 
 risees believed on him ?" % The plainness and sim- 
 plicity of the gospel was treated with derision by the 
 
 * Matthew xi. 5. James ii. 5. f Mark xii. 37» 
 
 I John viL 48. 
 R 3 
 
198 
 
 Gentile philosophers, — the preaching of the cross 
 was to them Jbolis/mess, * But the bcoffs and -sneers 
 of Jewish priests and heatlien sophists could not 
 induce our Lord and his apostles to new-model the 
 New Testament to their taste : " Jesus said, I thank 
 thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because 
 thou hast hid these things from the wise and pru- 
 dent, and hast revealed them unto babes. Even so 
 Father, for so it seemed good m thy sight." f The 
 apostle Paul says, " Ye see your calling, brethren, 
 how that not many wise men after the flesh, not 
 many mighty, not many noble are called. But God 
 hath chosen the foolish things of the world, to con- 
 found the vnse; and God hath chosen the weak 
 things of the world, to confound the things v.hich 
 are mighty ; and base things of the world, and 
 things which are despised hath God chosen, yea, 
 and things which are not, to bring to nought things 
 that are ; that no flesh should glory in his pre- 
 sence." I 
 
 Had the christian revelation been wrapt up in 
 mystery and obscurity, the learned might have em- 
 ployed their curiosity upon it, and prided themselves 
 upon finding out the riddle; but this would have 
 been gratifying a few at the expence of the multi- 
 tude. Upon the present plan, the wise and prudent 
 have to stoop to receive the gospel, and are thus 
 taught humility as they enter into the kingdom of 
 God. Here all men ai'e upon a level ; the rich and 
 poor, the learned and illiterate meet together ; the 
 
 * 1 Ccr. i, 23. f M^t. xi. 25, ^6. | 1 Cor. i. 26—29. 
 
199 
 
 Lord is the Saviour of them all. The diristian re- 
 ligion contains a few articles of faith, which furnish 
 helps and motives to the practice of its precepts ; and 
 it is supported by miracles, prophecies, and intei'nal 
 characters of divinity. Its creed, morals, and evi- 
 dence, are all adapted to the meanest capacities; 
 he who runs may read, and the wayfaring man, 
 though a fool, shall not err therein. * 
 
 Telling people that the gospel system is too diffi- 
 cult for common comprehension, has had a most 
 pernicious effect upon the morals and manners of 
 the lower orders of society. The obligations of re- 
 ligion cannot be binding upon persons who are in- 
 capable of understanding its nature; if the New 
 Testament, therefore, be so mysterious, that the illi- 
 terate cannot make out its meaning, they have no- 
 thing to do with it ; and, indeed, this is all that the 
 greater part of tliem pretend to know about it. 
 They have heard so much preaching of late concern- 
 ing the mysteries of our holy religion, and the im- 
 possibility of shoemakers, carpenters, tailors, and 
 chimney-sweepei's understanding it, — all which stuff 
 has been urged with apostolic zeal, to keep theni 
 ■from the tabernacle, — that multitudes of these poor 
 delucied creatures have concluded religion is intended 
 only for the learned, and have excused themselves for 
 neglecting it in their hves, by saying : " O Sir ! these 
 things are too deep for us ! We are no skollards^-^ 
 oar parson says if we make much ado about religion, 
 it will make us crazy /'* 
 
 * Isaiah XXXV, 8. 
 
200 
 
 What then, it is demanded, must every igno- 
 ramus, who thinks he understands rehgion, be allow- 
 ed to turn preacher ? Certainly, but the people are 
 not obliged to honour ' him with their attendance ; 
 they will not listen long to the vociferations of igno- 
 rance, and pay for it into the bargain ; the evil will, 
 therefore, soon cure itself. Learning, piety, and 
 eloquence will command the multitude ; and the dull, 
 the graceless, and the senseless, will soon be obliged 
 to shut up shop. 
 
 It is commonly said, that the illiterate will propa- 
 gate false doctrine, but there is very little danger 
 from that quarter. It is agreed on all hands, that 
 there is a deformity in error which is forbidding ; 
 and hence it is necessary, in order to procure it a fa- 
 vourable reception, that it should be artfully disguis- 
 ed in the garb of truth and innocence. But an 
 ignoramus is not adequate to this task, — it requires a 
 person of consummate abilities to introduce heresy 
 without exciting suspicion ; there is not a single ar- 
 ticle in the creed of heterodoxy, but what owes its 
 prolonged existence to some literary character who 
 has taken it under his protection. Error has some- 
 times been begotten by ignorance, but it has never 
 long survived its birth when not nursed by learn- 
 ing. Instead, therefore, of lamenting that the illite- 
 rate will support heresy, it is desirable that it may 
 never get into better hands ; and then, like the Ephe- 
 mera in the natural world, it will live only for a 
 day. 
 
201 
 
 Learning is sure to lead into the paths of error, 
 when not under the guidance of piety. Two reasons 
 may be assigned for this : 1st, Learning, when not 
 humbled by religion, is jiroud. She looks above 
 truth, which dwells with the meek and lowly, and 
 builds a castle in the air, from which she receives 
 the adoration of the gaping multitude, who, for- 
 getting that it has no foundation to rest upon, are 
 lost in astonishment at the grandeur of the edifice, 
 and are extravagant in their praise of the abilities of 
 the architect. Our Saviour addressed himself in 
 thanksgiving to God, for hiding the gospel from the 
 wise and prudent, and for revealing it unto babes, 
 i. e. persons of an humble and teachable disposition. 
 And, no doubt, the principal reason why the wise 
 and prudent ones of the present day talk so much 
 about mysteries in religion, is, — the gospel is hid froiu 
 their eyes. But it is revealed to the meek and lowly, 
 who learn of Christ; and, therefore, they have no 
 mysteries in their creed. 
 
 2dly, A man of parts, without piety, finds nothing 
 in the holy, abasing, self-denying doctrines of the 
 gospel, to engage his affections ; and he can only be 
 induced to become a preacher of it from motives of 
 interest. Christianity is valuable in his esteem no 
 further than as it can be moulded into a system of 
 priestcraft ; to this object, therefore, his labours are 
 directed. And because he perceives the New Testa- 
 ment condemns most strongly in priests a haughty 
 spirit, and the love of filthy lucre, he endeavours to 
 make the laity believe, that it is a very mysterious 
 
202 
 
 book, and that a learned clergy are best qualified to 
 explain and dispense its sacred mysteries ; hence 
 creeds and liturgies, pompous rites and ceremonies, 
 have been provided to amuse the vulgar, and draw 
 their attention from the sacred records. By such 
 men, the bible is supposed to be in religion, what 
 mercury is in medicine, — taken according to the pre- 
 scriptions of a professional gentleman, it is a specific 
 for almost every evil; but otherwise, it i^ always 
 dangerous, and generally fatal, to meddle with it. 
 Thus the people are turned from the fountain of 
 truth, and persuaded to drink in error. A sensible 
 writer has remarked: — " The meanest man is as 
 -much interested and concerned in the truth of reli- 
 gion, as the greatest priest; and though his know- 
 ledge thereof be not in all respects equally easy, yet 
 in some respects it may be easier. For want of 
 learning does not so much hinder the light of the 
 layman, as worldly advantage and faction sometimes 
 does the priests. Corruption in the church, before 
 our Saviour, and in our Saviour's days, and ever 
 since, has oftener begun among the greatest priests, 
 rabbis, and bishops, than among the meanest 
 laity."* 
 
 As priestcraft is the only religion of corrupt 
 ministers, so their principal concern is to support 
 the dignity, and promote the interest of the priest- 
 hood. Popery, though a solid mass of sin and 
 error, is the best organized system of priestcraft that 
 ever was invented ; and hence all the profligate mi- 
 
 '" True Grounds of Ecclesiastical Regimen, page 8^. 
 
205 
 
 ulsters of the church of Rome, however learned, 
 have always been detennined enemies to reformation. 
 It has already been noticed, that most of the bishops * 
 voted against the very first act of the reformation, — 
 that of disowning the authority of the pope. But 
 when the king and parliament carried that point in 
 opposition to them, these mitred gentry, true to 
 their principles, that half a loaf is better than no 
 bread, all, except one, set their hands to the bill, 
 and held their places, and thus betrayed the supple- 
 ness of their consciences. 
 
 No person is silly enough to beheve, that the 
 blustering of a wicked priest, in favour of an establish- 
 ment, flows from a conviction of its apostolic consti- 
 tution, and an anxious concern for the interests of 
 religion. It is a matter of no consequence to him, 
 whether the national creed be true or false, good or 
 bad. It is enough for him, that he gets some 
 hundreds, perhaps thousands, a-} ear by it. Deme- 
 trius and his friends roared out most lustily, " Great 
 is Diana of the Ephesians ! " But he explained to 
 them the principle which inspired this holy trans- 
 port: — " By this we have our gains ! Our craft is 
 in danger ! " 
 
 The apostles, if we except Paul, were not learned 
 men. It is said that though they vvcre not favoured 
 with a liberal education, inspiration supplyed that 
 defect ; but- 1 affirm it did not. Their inspiration 
 supplied them with valuable religions sentiments, but 
 ^;did not make them learned in other things, nor 
 
204? 
 
 enable them to write with classic purity and elegance. 
 Any man, by reading the New Testament with suit- 
 able dispositions, may make himself master of their 
 sentiments, and then he has acquired all the learning 
 which they received by inspiration ; and when he has 
 added to this, a rustic education equal to theirs, he 
 is on a level with them in point of literature. As 
 the advocates for a learned ministry have long de- 
 luded the \'ulgar upon this subject, and afiinned that 
 illiterate men have no right to preach, unless they 
 possess the same kind and degree of inspiration with 
 which the apostles were favoured, and which none 
 now pretend to, but wild enthusiasts, and frantic 
 fanatics, I must prepare for the most formidable 
 opposition ; I shall not, therefore, attempt to fortify 
 my opinion by arguments of my own, but by extracts 
 from critics of the greatest eminence, whose autho- 
 rity will impose silence, shoidd their reasonings fail 
 to produce conviction. 
 
 Paul is imiversally acknowledged to have been 
 the most learned among the apostles ; if in any of 
 them, therefore, w^e may expect to find in him a iine 
 *i£ritn\ Hear Dr Macknight: " Although the ser- 
 mons and epistles of the apostle Paul be much supe- 
 rior in sentiment to the finest orations and treatises 
 of the Greeks, many who are judges of elegant 
 wi'iting, I doubt not, will pronounce them inferior, 
 both ill composition and style. But though with 
 Beza I acknowledge that Paul was enable of all the 
 <lifferent kinds of fine writing ; of the simple, the 
 pathetic, the ironical, the vehement, and the sub- 
 
^0$ 
 
 lime; and that he hath given admirable specimens 
 of these several kinds of eloquence in his sermons 
 and epistles, I would not be understood to mean, 
 that he ought, upon the whole, to be considered 
 either as an elegant or as an eloquent writer. The 
 method and connection of his writings are too much 
 concealed to entitle him to these appellations ; 
 and his style in general is neither copious nor 
 smooth. His style, upon the whole, is difficult and 
 obscure." 
 
 The apostle despised fine writing. " As he did 
 not follow the rules prescribed by the Greek rheto- 
 ricians in disposing the matter of his discourses, so 
 he hath not observed their precepts in the choice of 
 his words, the arrangement of his sentences, and the 
 measure of his periods. That kind of speaking and 
 writing which is more remarkable for an artificial 
 structure of words, and a laboured smoothtiCss of 
 periods, than for truth of sentiment and ju^.tness of 
 reasoning, was called by the apostle the wisdom of 
 speech, 1 Cor. i. 17., and the persuasive words of 
 human wisdom, 1 Cor. ii. 4. and was utterly dis- 
 claimed by him, 1 Cor. ii. 1. And /, bret/ire?i, when 
 1 came to you, came not with excellency of speech, nor 
 of wisdom, declaring the testimony of God" 
 
 The Doctor assigns three good reasons why the 
 apostle Paul, and the sacred v.riters in general, did 
 not distinguish their productions by classic purity 
 and elegance. 
 
206 
 
 1. *' In the JFrst place, a concise unadorned style 
 in preaching and writing, though accompanied with 
 some obscurity, was, in the apostle's situation, pre- 
 ferable to the clear and^ elegant manner of writing 
 practised by the Grecian orators. For as he him- 
 self tells us, it was intended by Christ, to make the 
 world sensible that the conversion of mankind was 
 accomplished, neither by the charms of speech, nor 
 by the power of sounds, nor by such arguments as a 
 vain philosophy was able to furnish ; but by those 
 great and evident miracles which accompanied the 
 first preaching of the gospel, and by the suitableness 
 of its doctrines to the necessities of mankind : facts, 
 which it is of the greatest importance for us, in these 
 later ages, to be well assured of. 1 Cor. i. 17. Christ 
 sent me to preach the gospel, not ivith msdom oj 
 speech, that the cross of Christ might not be made iu' 
 effectuaU 1 Cor. ii. 4. My discourse and my preach- 
 ing "jcas not xvith the persuasive wcn-ds of human nscis- 
 dom, hut "joith the demonstration of the spirit, and of 
 po'-dcer. 5. That your faith might not stand in the. 
 msdom of men, hut in the power of GodP 
 
 2. " Because it is well known to the critics, that 
 the style in writing which is esteemed most elegant, 
 derives its chief excellence from the frequent use of me- 
 taphors and allusions, which, though they may charm 
 the learned, are of no value in the eye of the illite- 
 rate, who cannot apply them to their proper counter- 
 parts. Wliatever delight, therefore, such latent 
 beauties may give to those who can unfold them, to 
 the vulgar they arc little better than a picture to a 
 
207 
 
 blind man ; for which reason, the apostle, with great 
 propriety, hath, for the most part, neglected them. 
 
 3. *' The sacred oracles were not designed as works 
 of genius, to attract the admiration of the learned, 
 nor to set before them a finished model of fine 
 writing for their imitation; but to turn mankind 
 from sin to God. For which pui^iose, the graces of 
 a florid, or even of a melodious style, were certainly 
 of little value, in comparison of those more solid 
 excellencies of sentiment and language, whereby th^ 
 scriptures have become the power of God unto sal- 
 vation to all who believe them ; and will continue to 
 be so till the end of time. We may therefore iii 
 this, as in every other instance, affirm with the 
 apostle, that the foolishness of God is "wiser than men, 
 and the xveakness of God is stronger than men, 
 (1 Cor. i. 25.) and may with understanding, ascribe 
 to God, only wise, the glory that is due to him, 
 on account of the admirable contrivance of liis 
 word." * 
 
 Dr Campbell remarks in his preface to John's 
 gospel : " This gospel bears marks more signal 
 than any of them, that it is the work of an illiterate 
 Jew. Upon the whole, John's style is thought to be 
 more idiomatical, and less conformable to the syn- 
 tactic order, than that of any other writer in tlie 
 New Testament. There is none whose manner 
 more bespeaks an author destitute of the advantages 
 'Which result from letters and education,^* 
 '* New Translation, Vol. i. Essay iii. 
 
 s2 
 
208 
 
 This author justifies the apostles in the use of 
 plain and homely language : " It is not to be dis- 
 sembled, says he, that the sacred penmen of the New 
 Testament have, especially in modern times, had 
 some strenuous advocates, both among foreigners 
 and amongst our own countrymen, who have, in my 
 opinion, with more zeal than judgment, defended 
 their diction, as being, when judged by the rules of 
 grammar and rhetoric, and by the practice of the 
 most celebrated writers in Greece, altogether pure 
 and elegant. They seem to suspect, that to yield, 
 even on the clearest evidence, a point of this nature, 
 though regarding ornaments merely human and ex- 
 terior, might bring dishonour on inspiration, or 
 render it questionable. I cannot help thinking that 
 these people must have very indistinct ideas on this 
 subject, and be justly said to incur the reproof which 
 Peter, on a memorable occasion, received from his 
 master, — that they savour more the things of men than 
 the things qf God. Matth. xvi. 23. Are words of any 
 kind more than arbitrary signs ? And may not the 
 same be said with justice of phrases and idioms ? Is 
 there a natural fitness in one word or phrase more 
 tban in another, for denoting the thing signified ? Is 
 not the connection between sounds and ideas merely 
 artificial, — the result of human though tacit con- 
 ventions? With regard to those rules which con- 
 stitute purity in the language of any country, what 
 are they, in effect, but the conventions which have 
 happened to obtain among the natives, particularly 
 those of the higher ranks? Vulgarisms, and foreign 
 idioms, which may obtain among strangers, and 
 
209 
 
 those of the lower ranks, have no more natural un- 
 fitness to convey the sense which they that use them 
 intend to convey by them, than the terms and 
 phrases which, in consequence of the preference 
 given by their superiors, may be regarded as ele- 
 gancies. It may be as reasonably objected against 
 our religion, that the persons by whom it was pro- 
 pagated, were chosen from what men, in high life, 
 account the dregs of the people, as that the Holy 
 Spirit should accommodate himself to the language 
 of those who were actually chosen. Nay, language 
 as well as dress, being in fact, no more than a speciesi 
 or mode, it may with as good reason be maintained 
 that the ambassadors whom Christ sent for promul- 
 gating his doctrine, should have been habited like 
 gentlemen, and men of fashion, as that they should 
 have spoken the dialect of such. Splendid style had 
 no more connection with the purpose of their mis- 
 sion than splendid apparel. The cloth which they 
 wore, how coarse soever, answered all the essential 
 purposes of cloathing ; the same may be said of the 
 language which they spoke. And if it be argued, 
 that good language would create greater respect ta 
 their persons, and closer attention to what they said^ 
 and consequently would contribute to its making a 
 deeper impression ; as much may be affirmed, with 
 truth, of a genteel appearance both of person and 
 dress. Nothing serves more powerfully to quash 
 curiosity and expectation, and consequently to de^ 
 stroy attention, than such an external figure as. 
 generally accompanies poverty and ignorance, and. 
 sugge§t§ ^ total waot of the advantages of eclugjt^ 
 
 .S3 ' "^' 
 
210 
 
 lion, and more especially, of that in(lis]oensabIc ad- 
 vantage which the fashionable world calls seeing good 
 compaiii/, 
 
 " But these very disadvantages, or defects, both 
 in speccli and in outward figure, are assigned, by the . 
 inspired writers, as the reasons of God s preference, 
 whose thoughts are not our thoughts, nor are our 
 ways his ways. Paul argues, that the success of the 
 preachers of the gospel, in spite of the absence of 
 those accomplishments in language then so higlily 
 valued, was an evidence of the divine power and 
 energy, with which their ministry was accompanied. 
 He did not address them, he tells us, 1 Cor. 1. 17. 
 ^ith the wisdom of words — with artificial periods and 
 a studied elocution, lest the cross of Christ should be 
 made of none effect ; lest to human eloquence that 
 success should be ascribed, which ought to be attri- 
 buted to the divinity of the doctrine, and the agency 
 of the spirit, in the miracles wrought in support of 
 it. There is hardly any sentiment which he is at 
 greater pains to enforce. He used none of the enti-^ 
 cing, or persuasive words of maji's wisdom. Where- 
 fore ? — That their faith might not stand in the wisdom 
 of men^ hut in the power of God, 1 Cor. ii. 4, 5. 
 Should I ask, what was the reason why our Lord 
 Jesus Christ chose for the instruments of that most 
 amazing revolution in the religious systems of man- 
 kind, men perfectly illiterate, and taken out of the 
 lowest class of the people ? your answer to this will 
 serve equally for an answer to that other question — 
 why tlid the Holy Spirit chuse to deliver such import- 
 
511 
 
 ant truths in the barbarous idiom of a few obscurtf 
 Galileans, and not in the pohter and more harmo- 
 nious strains of Grecian eloquence? I repeat it, the 
 answer to both questions is the same — That it might 
 appear, beyond contradiction, that the excellency of 
 the power was of God, and not of man. 
 
 *' Can it be accounted more strange that the Holy 
 Spirit should, by the prophet Amos, address us in 
 the style of a shepherd, and by Daniel, in that of a 
 courtier, than that by the one he should speak to 
 us in Hebrew, and by the other in Chaldee ? It is 
 as reasonable to think, that the spirit of God would 
 accommodate himself to the phraseology and diction, 
 as to the tone of voice and pronunciation, of those 
 whom he was pleased to enlighten, for it cannot be 
 denied, that the pronunciation of one person in ut- 
 tering a prophecy, might be more articulate, more 
 audible, and more affecting, than that of another — 
 in like manner as one style has more harmony, ele- 
 gance, and perspicuity than another." * 
 
 If the writings of the apostles, considered in a 
 literary point of view, were bad, their extempore 
 discourses must have been worse; because all men 
 who can write at all, can write better than they can 
 speak. The Holy Spirit suggested religious truth to 
 their minds, but left them to publish that truth to 
 the world in their own proper style of speaking and 
 writing. Had he suggested the very words also in 
 
 •^ • Campbell on the Gospels. Dissertation first. 
 
212 
 
 which that truth should be conveyed to others, ho 
 doubt the language would have been good, and the 
 style uniform. That system of religious truth which 
 the apostles received from the Holy Ghost, we have 
 received from their writings; any man, therefore, 
 who can read, may soon acquire all that learning 
 for which they were indebted to insj)iration. 
 
 During the two first centuries, the christian mi- 
 nisters in general were illiterate men : " We may 
 here remark, says Mosheim, in general, that the 
 apostolic fathers, and the other writers, who, in the 
 infancy of the church, employed their pens in the 
 cause of Christianity, were neither remarkable for 
 their learning, nor their eloquence. On the contra- 
 ry, they express the most pious and admirable senti- 
 ments in the plainest and most illiterate style. This 
 indeed, is rather a matter of honour, than of re- 
 proach to the christian cause; since we see, from 
 the conversion of a great part of mankind to the 
 gospel by the ministry of weak and illiterate men, 
 that the progress of Christianity is not to be attribu'- 
 tedto human means, but to a divine power." * 
 
 " Tlie method of teaching the sacred doctrines of 
 religion, was at this time, most simple, far removed 
 from all the subtle rules of philosophy, and all the 
 precepts of human art. This appears abundantly, 
 not only in the writings of the apostles, but also in 
 4all those of the second century, which have survived 
 
 * Eecks, Ilist. cent. i. part. 2. chap. ii. sect. 22- 
 
215 
 
 the ruins of time. Neither did the apostles, or theif 
 disciples, ever think of collecting into a regular sys- 
 tem the principal doctrines of the christian religion, 
 or of demonstrating them in a scientific or geometri* 
 cal order. The beautiful and candid simplicity of 
 these early ages, rendered such philosophical niceties 
 unnecessary ; and the great study of those who em- 
 braced the gospel, was rather to express its divine 
 influence in their dispositions and actions, than 
 to examine its doctrines with an excessive cu- 
 riosity, or to explain them by the rules of human 
 wisdom." * 
 
 The same historian remarks, that, in the second 
 century, " The christian system, as it was hitherto 
 taught, preserved its native and beautiful simplicity, 
 and was comprehended in a small number of articles. 
 The public teachers inculcated no other doctrines 
 than those that are contained in what is commonly 
 called the Apostles^ Creed : and, in the method of il- 
 lustrating them, all vain subtleties, all mysterious re- 
 searches, every thing that was beyond the reach of 
 common capacities, were carefully avoided. This 
 will by no means appear surprising to those who con- 
 sider, that, at this time, there was not the least 
 controversy about those capital doctrines of Chris- 
 tianity, which were afterwards so keenly debated in 
 the church; and who reflect, that the bishops of 
 these primitive times were, for the most part, plain 
 and illiterate men^ remarkable rather for their pietj 
 and zeal, than for their learning and eloquence. 
 
 "* Mosheim, cent. i. part. 2. chap, iii sect. o. 
 
S14 
 
 ^' This venerable simplicity was not, indeed, of 
 £t long duration; its beauty was gradually effaced 
 by the laborious efforts of human learning, and the 
 dark subtleties of imaginary science. Acute re- 
 searches were employed upon several religious sub- 
 jects, concerning which ingenious decisions were pro- 
 nounced ; and, what was worst of all, several tenets 
 of a chimerical philosophy were imprudently incor- 
 porated into the christian system." * 
 
 In the third centur}', '' the famous question con- 
 cerning the excellence and utility of hiunan learn- 
 ing was debated with great warmth among the 
 christians ; and the contending parties in this con- 
 troversy, seemed hitherto of equal force in point of 
 numbers, or nearly so. Many recommended the 
 study of philosophy, and an acquaintance with the 
 Greek and Roman literature; while others main- 
 tained, that these were pernicious to the interests 
 of genuine Christianity, and the progress of true 
 piety. The cause of letters and philosophy tri- 
 umphed, however, by degrees ; and those who wish- 
 ed well to them, gained ground more and more, 
 till at length the superiority was manifestly decided 
 in their favour." f 
 
 How did these learned gentry explain Christiani- 
 ty ?; — " The christian doctors who had applied 
 themselves to the study of letters and philosophy, 
 ^Qon abandoned the frequented paths, and struck 
 
 ^ * JVIosheim, cent, ii part 2. chap. iii. sect. 1,2. 
 
 f Ibid. cent. iii. part 2. chap. i. sect. 5. 
 
^15 
 
 out into the devious wilds of fancy. The Eg}^ptians 
 distinguished themselves in this new method of ex- 
 plaining the truth. They looked upon it as a 
 noble and glorious task, to bring the doctrines of 
 celestial wisdom into a certain subjection to the 
 precepts of their philosophy, and to make deep and 
 profound researches into the intimate nature of 
 those truths which the divine Saviour had delivered 
 to his disciples. Origen was at the head of this spe- 
 culative tribe. This great man, enchanted by the 
 diarms of the Platonic philosophy, set it up as the 
 test of all religion, and imagined that the reasons of 
 each doctrine were to be found in that favourite 
 philosophy, and their nature and extent to be deter- 
 mined by it. It must be confessed, that he handled 
 this matter with modesty and with caution ; but he 
 still gave an example to his disciples, the abuse of 
 which, could not fail to be pernicious, and under 
 the authority of which, they would naturally in- 
 dulge themselves without restraint in every wanton 
 fancy. And so, indeed, the case was, for the dis- 
 ciples of Origen, breaking forth from the limits fixed 
 by their master, interpreted, in the most licentious 
 manner, the divine truths of religion according to 
 the tenor of the Platonic philosophy. From these 
 teachers the philosophical, or scholastic t/ieologi/, as it 
 is called, derives its origin.'* * 
 
 How did they defend Christianity ? " The methods 
 now used of defending Christianity, and attacking 
 Judaism and idolatry, degenerated much from th« 
 
 * Mosheim, cent. iii. part 2. cliap. lii. sect. 1, 
 
S16 
 
 primitive simplicity, and the true rule of controvcl-- 
 s}^ The christian doctors who had been educated 
 in the schools of the rhetoricians and sophists, rashly 
 einj^loyed the arts and evasions of their subtile mas- 
 ters in the service of Christianity; and, intent only 
 upon defeating the enemy, they were too little atten- 
 tive to the means of victory, indifferent whether 
 they acquired it by artifice or plain dealing. This 
 method of disputing, which the ancients called oeco- 
 nomical, and which had victory for its object, rather 
 than truth, was in consequence of the prevaihng 
 taste for rhetoric and sophistry almost universally 
 approved." * 
 
 Let the advocates for the necessity of human 
 learning in ministers of the gospel, look at the above 
 facts and be humbled. During the most pure and 
 prosperous period of the church, its ministers were 
 illiterate. When a learned ministry came into 
 fashion, it was employed in corrupthig the simplici- 
 ty, and sullying the purity of christian doctrine and 
 manners. 
 
 God made choice of illiterate men to propagate 
 the christian faith, that the glory of their success 
 might be attributed to his co-operation. And when 
 churchmen have to contend with infidels, they em- 
 ploy this argument in a triumphant manner. But 
 when uneducated men 7iow turn many to righteous- 
 ness, thei?' success is ascribed to the devil, to novelty, 
 
 * Mosheim, cent. iii. p. 2. chap. iii. sect. 10. 
 
217 
 
 to ranterism, or to any thing rather tliaii a divine 
 influence I 
 
 The introduction of haman learning into the church 
 of Christ, led its ministers to imitate the iieathen 
 oratorsy in a pompous enunciation of the subject of 
 discourse, and the method of handhng it ; in an ex- 
 travagant profusion of figure and metaphor for the 
 sake of ornament; and in nicely adjusted and well 
 turned periods, to give ease and grace to the whole 
 composition. This new way of preaching soon be* 
 came general, for the following reasons : 
 
 Isf, It encouraged idleness* It is much easier to 
 select and put together a few fine phrases, than to 
 furnish valuable matter. Upon the new plan it was 
 quite unimportant, whether the thoughts were vigo- 
 rous or feeble, — they were lost in the language ; — 
 nature was convulsed, and the earth groaned to her 
 centre, whether the preacher was describing the 
 death of an insect, or the dissolution of the uni- 
 verse. 
 
 2 J/?/, It encouraged jcnide. The preacher was ad- 
 mired and almost adored. If he only delivered unin- 
 telligible jargon, he had the reputation of being learn- 
 ed, because he was not vmderstood ; and he felt all 
 the self-importance and self-complacency of con- 
 scious superiority. The general prevalence of this 
 sort of preaching was the jtriumph of learning over 
 common sense, and not over ignorance. 
 
 T 
 
218 
 
 The reader will be struck with the coincidence 
 betwixt the preaching of these innovators and that 
 of modern divines. The subject is pompously an- 
 nounced, — " we shall first prove this point, and se- 
 condly, that. To establish the first particular, we 
 shall call your attention to three things. And, first," 
 &c. The discourse is decked out with the most 
 splendid imagery, and set off with a few scraps of 
 Latin from some heathen moralist or poet. The 
 tone and gesture of the preacher are in unison with 
 his sermon, and shew that liis object is not to con- 
 vert his hearers, but to gain their admiration : their 
 business, therefore, is to see how he acquits himself, 
 and when the service is over they observe one to 
 another, — "A fine man! A most excellent dis- 
 course ! I dare say he has been college-hrcd ! — O 
 neighbour Clod, can you let me have a bushel of 
 oats for my horse ? — " Thus the fine man and his 
 fine discourse are dismissed ; for when no plain and 
 pointed address is made to the conscience, the heart 
 remains unaffected. 
 
 The primitive preachers gave all the riches of 
 the kingdom of God in unadorned language ; their 
 discourses were treasures in earthen vessels ; their 
 object w^as not to please but to profit their hearers, 
 not to exalt themselves but Christ Jesus the Lord ; 
 they sent their auditors away, not praising the 
 preachers, but repenting of their sins, and stedfast- 
 ly. purposing to lead a new life. The bishops, when 
 not railing against enthusiasts, will sometimes advise 
 the clergy- to study simplicity and perspicuity of 
 
219 
 
 style, that the poor may enjoy the benefit of their 
 ministrations ; but this is seldom attended to, for 
 mental imbecility and vanity are both on the side 
 of pomposity, while the grace of God and a vigo* 
 rous intellect are necessary to enable a minister to 
 conform to the primitive pattern. 
 
 It is freely admitted, however, that learning may 
 be use/ul to a pious minister, though it is not ne- 
 cessary to a profitable discharge of his duties. On 
 a review, it will appear, that literature has done 
 more harm than good in the church. If it be said 
 that the mischief has been owing to the bad hands 
 into which it has fallen, I reply, that there is still 
 danger lest it should injure the cause it is intended 
 to support ; on which account w^ should be cautious 
 not to over-rate its importance^ 
 
 But, admitting learning to be of all the import- 
 ance that many pretend, what right have the clerr 
 gy of the church of England, to speak contemptur 
 ously of the literary attamments of the ministers 
 among the sectaries ? A very great number of the 
 officiating clergy never saw an university, and, of 
 course, possess no advantages of education superior 
 to their dissenting brethren. Many of those who 
 visit Cambridge and Oxford pay but little attention 
 to their books, and the few that are industrious read 
 more heathen than christian authors; hence the 
 best educated among them possess but few qualifica- 
 tions for the ministry of the gospel. At the acade- 
 mies of the dissenters the young gentlemen are kept 
 
 T 2 
 
220 
 
 to tlieir boolcs, and e\'^ry brancli of their edacation 
 lias ix?ferencc to their future destination; hence, iu 
 general, tlaey have more solid christian learning than 
 churchmen. Add to this, that many of the clerg}'^,, 
 after having finished their education, seldom apply 
 to their books, but spend their time in hunting, 
 shooting, card-playing, &c. while dissenting minis- 
 ters are generally shut up in their studies for several 
 hours every day, and it can no longer be prol)lema- 
 tical which has the advantage in point of literature* 
 
 Though many of the itinerant preachers among 
 the Weskyan methodists, commence their career 
 with few oth-er attainments than those of a purely re- 
 ligious natui^, yet most of them soon rise to literary 
 eminence. The itinei*ants are selected from among 
 the local preachers, and many of these are men of 
 parts as well as piety. If an uneducated man, there- 
 fore, did not possess very superior natural abilities, 
 he could not attain to that distinction among his 
 brethren, which is necessary to obtain an appoint- 
 ment to a more extensive field of action. This man 
 is put under the care of a senior who superintends 
 his studies, and his progress in learning is astonish- 
 ing; hence it is, that a youth taken ^om the plough- 
 tail soon rises supei'ior to his calumniators. 
 
 The societies of the sectaries are so constituted, 
 that all the talent they possess is called into action, 
 and the most honourable and lucrative situations 
 among them are at the command of superior abili- 
 ties ; here is a stimulus to exertion ! The church is» 
 
221 
 
 the converse of all this. It is become proverbial, and 
 certainly has much truth in it, that a gentleman who 
 has several sons, will select the greatest dunce and 
 send him to college to make him a parson. Great 
 abilities are not necessary to secure the best situa- 
 tions in the church, Reading and writing are suffi- 
 cient to qualify a man to discharge clerical duties. 
 To obtain a living, he must dance attendance on pa- 
 trons ; and to obtain a bishoprick, let him " preach 
 before royalty." Where is the wonder, when these 
 things are considered, that the conventicle should 
 possess more literature than the church ? 
 
 " Men in general," says Mr Wesley, " are under 
 a great mistake with regard to what is called the 
 learned "iscorld. They do not know, they cannot 
 easily imagine, how little learning there is among 
 them. I do not speak of abstruse learning, but what 
 all divines, at least of any note, are supposed to 
 have, viz. the knowledge of the tongues, at least, 
 Latin, Greek, and Hebrew, and of the common arts- 
 and sciences, 
 
 " How few men of learning, so called, under- 
 stand Hebrew ? even so far as to read a plain chapter 
 in Genesis? Nay, how few understand Greek? 
 Make an easy experiment. Desire that grave man 
 who is urging tins objection, only to tell you the 
 linglish of the first paragraph that occurs in one of 
 Plato's Dialogues ? I am afraid we may go farther 
 still. How few understand Latin ? Give one of thern 
 all epistle of TuUy, and see how readily he wHi. 
 
 T 3 
 
222 
 
 explain it without his dictionary ? If he can hobble 
 tli rough that, 'tis odds but a Goorgick in Virgil, or 
 a Satiix) of Pcrsius sets him fast. 
 
 " And with regard to the arts and sciences, how 
 few understand so mucli as the general principles of 
 hogk ? Can one in ten of the clergy, or of the 
 masters of arts in either university, when an argu- 
 ment is brought, tell you even the mood and figure 
 wherein it is proposed, or complete an Enthymeme ? 
 Can one in ten of them demonstrate a problem or 
 theorem in Euclid's Elements ? Or define the com- 
 moii terms used in Metaphysics ? Or intelligibly ex- 
 plain the first principles of it ? Why then will they 
 pretend to that learning, which they are conscious 
 to themselves they have not." * 
 
 As to any display of icarning by the clergy in 
 j>ubhc prayer, that is out of the question : all the 
 learning exhibited, is a bare ability to read. And as 
 to the liturgy itself, however it may be admired for 
 the devotional spirit which runs through it, no man 
 of taste will commit himself so far as to affect to 
 applaud it for the elegance of its composition. 
 Numerous examples of vulgarity might be given. 
 Churchmen supplicate victory over the great enemy 
 of their salvation, in such terms as these : — " Beat 
 down Satan under our feet." Had these words not 
 been in the liturgy, and had a Methodist preacher 
 used them in the meeting, it would soon have been 
 published in the newspapers, that " an enthusiast, 
 
 * Wesle/'s Appeals, part iii. page 252, 25d. 
 
253 
 
 in the heat of his devotions, conceived of the Su- 
 preme Being as engaged in pugilistic warfare with his 
 sable majesty, and piously besought the Almighty 
 to knock the devil doiionJ^ 
 
 It is difficult to conceive how a churchman has dis- 
 posed of his modesty, when he has the assui'ance to 
 call the extempore prayers of the methodists enthu- 
 siastic rant. When did a company of fanatics at the 
 meeting, rave one against another in such language 
 as the followinof : " We beseech thee to hear ns fTood 
 Lord ! Son of God, we beseech thee to hear us ! Son 
 of God, we beseech thee to hear us t O Lamb of God, 
 that takest away lhe sins of the world, grant lis thy 
 peace ! O Lamb of God, that takest away the sins 
 of the world, have mercy upon us ! O Chnst heat 
 lis ! O Christ hear us ! Lord have mercy upon us \ 
 Lord have mercy upon us ! Christ have mercy upon 
 us ! Christ have mercy upon us ! Lord have mei'cy 
 upon us ! Lord have mercy upon us ! ! ! " This 
 language indicates a state of feeling bordering on 
 distraction ; it is abominably hypocritical when used 
 by a cold frozen-hearted formalist ; it cannot suit 
 the states of a whole congregation ; and the greatest^ 
 extravagances of methodism may be pronounced 
 sober and rational vAien compared with it. 
 
 As to preaching, it must require greater abilities 
 to deliver a discourse extempore, than to read it; 
 in th« pidpit, therefore, a dissenter appears to 
 greater advantage than a churchman. Besides, 
 when a clergyman happeiK to read a decent jcrmony 
 
224. 
 
 Lc has very little credit of it ; for there are so many 
 advertisements in the papers, of sets of fashionable 
 discourses for the accommodation of the idle, that it 
 is often shrewdly suspected he did not come honestly 
 by it. That dissenters preach much the best ser- 
 mons, is proved by their getting much the largest 
 congregations. People in general have a partiality 
 for the church, and run in crowds to it when the 
 pulpit is occupied by a man of abilities ; but this is 
 seldom the case, and hence the general complaint, 
 that the conventicle is filled and the church deserted. 
 
 Objection 1. The dissenters are followed, not be- 
 cause they are learned, but because they pretend to 
 superior sanctity, and thereby impose upon and de- 
 lude the ignorant. 
 
 Dissenters do not, and cannot, make greater pro- 
 fessions than churchmen. Is a dissenter inspired? 
 A churchman is " moved by the Holy Ghost." Is 
 the society constituted according to the institutions 
 of Christ ? " The church of England is the most 
 pure and apostolical church in Christendom.'* Do 
 dissenters promise great spiritual helps ? Church- 
 men are all pardoned and regenerated in baptism ; 
 they receive a sign of the divine favour from the 
 bishop in confirmation, and a pledge of it in the 
 Lord's supper ; they receive absolution from all their 
 sins, in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy 
 Ghost, when sick ; and, no matter what their lives 
 have been, they all die *' in sure and certain hope 
 of the resurrection to eternal life/* If the people, 
 
225 
 
 th^fefor^, were guided by professions and promises, 
 our good and venerable old mother would not have 
 to wt?ep over one lost or disobedient son* 
 
 Objection 2. The dissenters draw people from the 
 church by railing against the clergy. 
 
 Let facts speak upon this subject. Look over the 
 monthly catalogues of new publications, for many 
 years past, and to one work written against the 
 establishment, you will find, j>erhaps, fifty written 
 against the difiei-ent sects. At the meeting you will 
 seldom hear the church mentioned, except to cite 
 witli a|>probation her articles and homilies. But go 
 and hear tlie clergy : It is no matter whether the 
 preacher be evangelical or rational in his creed, good 
 or bad in his conduct, he must have a blow at 
 methodism. If railing, therefore, is to caiTy the 
 day, the meeting may be shut up immediately, — the 
 dissenters stand no better chance in contending with 
 churclimen, than Michael did in disputing with the 
 devil. Sterne has wittily remarked, that the reason 
 why he dare not bring a railing accusation was,— 
 had tltey got to railing, Beelzebub would have been 
 more than a match for the archangel. 
 
 Objection 3. They are generally the poor and igno- 
 rant who are seduced from the church, and these are 
 not qualified to judge of the abilities of the clergy. 
 
 This objection was urged against our Lord : " This 
 people who know not the law are cursed." If the 
 
226 
 
 seccders from the churcli are so ignorant that they 
 cannot appreciate the merits of the clerg}^, what 
 benefit have they derived from a pretended learned 
 ministry ? Whose business was it to have made them 
 wiser ? At the meeting they are both instructed 
 and reformed, and this shews who are the best 
 preacher^. But though those who leave the church 
 are generally ignorant, which is not much to the 
 credit of the clergy, — yet they are not the most 
 ignorant of churchmen. The poor miserable crea- 
 tures, clothed in rags, and sunk in vice, who are 
 only about one degree removed from the savage 
 state, are stanch friends of the church. Whenever 
 an army has been raised to defend the hierarchy, 
 the troops have been of this description. The 
 lowest of the rabble have been collected, made drunk, 
 marched to the meeting, and set on by the champions 
 ■of orthodoxy, to huzza, curse and swear, pelt stones 
 and rotten eggs, break windows, and wound peaceable 
 worshippers, in defence of an apostolic church and 
 learned clerg}', to the glory of God, and the honour 
 of our most excellent establishment. 
 
 Objection 4. It is not by learning that the people 
 have been drawn from the church, but by violent 
 vociferation, and the most alarming and unnatural 
 gesticulation, — such as brawling damnation in their 
 ears, smiting with the hand, stamping with the 
 foot, &c. &c. &c. 
 
 Indeed ! And has all the sober and learned in- 
 structions of the clergy come to this f A man may 
 
227 
 
 sit at their feet for years, and be wise in all the 
 learning of the church ; but, it seems, the moment 
 he hears the voice of an enthusiast, his braiys run 
 round like a whirligig; he sees visions, dreams 
 dreams, feels inspired, and is ready for a strait 
 jacket ! If such be the effect, some people will sus- 
 pect, that he was more than half cracked before 
 the methodist began to operate upon him. No 
 sensible man can be moved to any thing but pity 
 or contempt by the ravings of ignorance, and, there- 
 fore, none but fools can be gained by it : and the 
 great abilities of the clergy are employed to very 
 little purpose, if the most extravagant of fanatics 
 can produce the greatest defection from the church. 
 
 If the clergy seriously believe that ranterism is so 
 wonderfully successful, it may merit their considera- 
 tion, whether it would not be a measure of prudence 
 to meet the devil upon his own ground, and fight 
 him with his own weapons. From the specimens 
 some of them have given, there is reason to believe 
 that they would soon become proficients in this mode 
 of warfare; for, though sufficiently dull upon com- 
 mon topics, when they treat upon enthusiasm, fiUia- 
 ticism, 8cc. the wildness of their stare, and the ex- 
 travagance of their language, are sufficient to inspire 
 with alarm and terror minds the most inert and stoical. 
 
 There arc circumstances which betray a disposi- ^ 
 tion in some of the clergy not very favourable to 
 learning. Old I^ord Halifax told Dr Echard, that, 
 in his book, Of the Contempt of the Clergy^ he had 
 
22S 
 
 not bit upon \he true reason of it, viz. ihe hiowlcdge. 
 of the laity. To whicli the Doctor readily replied : — - 
 " God be thanked, there is ignorance enough still 
 among the laity, to sitpport the authoi-ity of tlie 
 clergy." * The archbishop of Canterbury thought 
 Lord Sidmouth's bill would promote the respectabi- 
 lity of the dissenters, by keeping ignorant persons 
 out of the ministry. If the clergy really wish the 
 teachers among the different sects to become a learii- 
 etl body of men, why shut them out of the univer- 
 sities? They have long complained, that the terms 
 of admis&ion to these seats of learning, are contrary 
 to their consciences, and imposed with a view to 
 their exclusion. When obstacles are thrown in the 
 way of their education, and their supposed want of 
 it made the pretence for abridging their religious 
 privileges by acts of parliament, it is easy to see that 
 tlieir enemies are contriving, not how to promote 
 tlieir respectability, but their destruction : — It is like 
 first cutting off a man's legs, and then knocking out 
 his brains because he cannot walk. 
 
 The Lancasterian system of education, which is 
 founded upon the most liberal principles, and calcu- 
 lated to banish ignorance out of the land, has had no 
 enemies to encounter but the clergy ; and their op- 
 position has been upon church principles. That 
 the state is under no apjirchension is certain, for 
 Lancaster obtained the a})probiition and patronage 
 of his majesty, and the royal family, and the princi- 
 pal of the nobility. When the clergy saw that 
 
 * Rights of the Christian Church, p, 2G8. 
 
229 
 
 their senseless clamour could not prevail against the 
 good sense of the nation, they s6t up rival schools, 
 founded upon sectarian principles, which exclude 
 the children of dissenters. 
 
 Thus, those who affect to pity our ignorance, and 
 would provide against the effects of it by legislative 
 acts, shut us out of their national schools and uni- 
 versities ! 
 
 Even the Bible society, which bids fair to illumi- 
 nate and convert the world, has met with no open 
 and avowed enemies of any consequence, except the 
 clergy, whose cJmrcli is in danger, in their own ap- 
 prehension, from the circulation' of the sacred scrip- 
 tures, when unaccompanied by a prayer-book. 
 
 That boasted learning of the clergy produces no 
 practical effect, if w^e may judge of other dioceses 
 by the diocese of Durham : Witness the following 
 advertisement, which appeared in the Newcastle 
 papers. 
 
 " At a Meeting of the Clergy of the diocese of 
 Durham, held at Newcastle upon Tyne, on Thurs- 
 day, the 5th day of September 1811. 
 
 " The Rev. the Archdeacon of Durham in 
 the Chair, 
 
 ** It was resolved, 
 
 *' Ist^ That ignorance of religion, and a conse- • 
 quent disregard of its awful sanctions, may bereckon-r 
 
 U 
 
230 
 
 cd among the chief causes of that profligacy which 
 justly excites universal alarm. 
 
 " 2<'/(//, That an increased attention to the reli- 
 gious education of all the classes of society, and 
 most particularly of the infant poor, is the only re- 
 medy that can be applied to this evil, with any hope 
 of bringing about a permanent and effectual refor- 
 mation." They then proceed to recommend the 
 institution of schools upon Dr Bell's plan, as the 
 remedy for the evil of which they complain. 
 
 What a sermon would the sJiaver have preached 
 from such a text as this ! That the education of the 
 poor upon Dr. Bell's plan, might be one means of 
 bringing about a reformation of manners, may be 
 admitted; but that it is the only method which can 
 be employed with any hope of success, is very sur- 
 prising ! It seems to follow as a necessary corollary, 
 that they have 7io Jiope of producing any real or last- 
 ing good by their praying and preaching. With 
 •what conscience can these holy alarmists share among 
 themselves a yearly revenue of about ^.200,000, 
 for teaching morality, when, according to their own 
 confession, they cannot persuade the people to prac- 
 tise it. A physician who should continue to attend 
 his patients merely to swell his bill, after he had lost 
 all hopes of doing them any good, would deserve 
 public contempt. 
 
 Observe, reader,-— This opinion of the inefficacy of 
 their ministrations is not expressed by a solitary 
 
231 
 
 individual, but by the clergy of a whole diocese. It 
 could not escape as an inadvertenc}", because they 
 were convened for the express purpose of taking into 
 consideration the state of morals in the diocese* and 
 the above is given, after the strictest scrutiny, as 
 their deUberate judgment. 
 
 There are a few words in this advertisement of 
 ambiguous import. The profligacy complained of, 
 is stated to have excited universal alarm. The alarm- 
 ists, it is presumed, are not to be identified with 
 the profligates ; and if all are terrified at sin, who 
 are the sinners ? If we take the uneducated poor to 
 be the profligates intended, then we may suppose the 
 clergy, and the higher orders of the laity, to be the 
 persons seized with this panic. But why are their 
 fears excited at the vices of the lower orders of so- 
 ciety ? Is it not notorious, to speak modestly, that 
 the poor are kept in countenance by the example of 
 the rich ? If this alarm be about the future conse-? 
 quences of immorality, it may justly be retorted, 
 " Weep not for us, but weep for yourselves." If 
 the effects of vice upon civil society be dreaded, the 
 clergy ought not to oppose the exertions of those 
 who have turned thousands to righteousness, when, 
 by their tacit confession, their own labours can avail 
 nothing towards the restoration of moral order. 
 
 It is an old and just observation, that truth is 
 mighty and will prevail. Religious truth, it has been 
 shewn, may be understood with ease ;. it may, there- 
 fore, be explained and defended without difficulty^ 
 
 u 2 
 
232 
 
 I never knew a man, however great his parts, engage 
 in controversy from a conviction of his being in the 
 rigiit, who did not place more dependence upon the 
 goodness of his cause, than upon the splendour of 
 his abilities. It is astonishing to see how an unlet- 
 tered person, with truth on his side, will foil an op- 
 ponent of the greatest talents. To instance only in 
 one particular. The clergy generally commence 
 their attack against the Methodists on the subject of 
 ins2:)iration. They endeavour to persuade people 
 that inspiration has ceased since the days of the 
 apostles, and that the Methodists are enthusiasts and 
 fanatics for pretending to it. There is not an old 
 woman among them but can reply : — " Did not you. 
 Sir, profess to be moved by the Holy Ghost, when 
 you received priest's orders ? Do not you pray in 
 your synagogues every sabbath-day :■ — ' Take not thy 
 Holy Spirit from us — Cleanse the thoughts of our 
 hckrts by the inspiration of thy Holy Spirit — Send 
 down upon all bishops and curates, and all congre- 
 gations committed to their charge, the healthful spi- 
 rit of thy grace.' The Methodists do not pretend to 
 more inspiration than this; the charge, therefore, 
 of enthusiasm and fanaticism, attaches as much to 
 you as to them. If inspiration, as you pretend, has 
 ceased, the Methodists though mistaken,' are sincere ; 
 whereas you are playing the hypocrite, and sinning 
 with your e3'es wide open." No advantages of edu- 
 cation can avail any thing in so plain a case ; and 
 upon this ground, where so many laurels have been 
 won, the feeblest stripling in the ranks of methodism, 
 Mill fearlessly encounter the greatest Goliah of thQ 
 
233 
 
 church. Let truth only have fair play^ and with 
 the most trifling aid from Hterature, she will soon 
 bring down to the ground the Babel of error, thougli 
 it be supported by all the learning in the world. 
 
 If the church of England be, as the clergy say^ 
 the most pure and apostolic church in Christendom, 
 and her ministers the most virtuous and learned 
 body of men in the world ; if the churches of dis- 
 senters be founded in error, and their ministers igno- 
 ramuses, why are the clergy perpetually roaring. 
 The church is i?i danger I It always affords me muck 
 amusement to hear a visitation sermon. In the former 
 part of the discourse the party arc flattered for their 
 parts and piety, and the church adored, as built upon 
 a rock, enjoying the divine protection, and bidding 
 an insulting defiance to the gates of hell. By and 
 l^ye, however, my ears are stmmed with a cry, — • 
 the church is in daiiger ! Gracious heavens ! I have 
 said -to myself, what is the matter f Has her God 
 forsaken her ! It is discovered, that this impregna- 
 ble fortress is tottering upon a sandy foundation \ 
 A\Tiat gigantic foe has made his appearance and 
 «ienaced her destruction ! I listen with attention and 
 anxious expectations, and at last gather from the 
 incoherent harangue, that a few noisy creatures 
 without arms or sense, are led on by the prince 
 of darkness to storm the church. More a&tonishing 
 Still ! I only reply to all such orators; — Is not God 
 jnore than a match for the devil ? Is not leai-ning^ 
 able to cope with ignorance ? If you take the af- 
 firmative, you ttuiy disjnis^ youj- fearg; if thi> «ega.- 
 
234 
 
 tivc, you give error and ignorance the advantage 
 of triitli and learning, and thereby make a Uberal 
 education of no value to a minister. 
 
 It is sometimes said, to the praise of the clergj", 
 that during the dark ages, the little learning which 
 was preserved in the world, was to be found prin- 
 cipally in monasteries and religious establishments, 
 among the sacred orders. The fact is not denied: 
 But what was the reason ? Was it not a favourite 
 tenet of the church, that ignorance is the mother of 
 devotion ? Did not the clergy, on this very prin- 
 ciple, keep the people as ignorant as possible ? And 
 after they had introduced universal darkness among 
 the laity, is it much to their credit that they preserv- 
 ed a few glimmerings of light among themselves, by 
 which they might 'profitably practise their imposi- 
 tions on the deluded vulcjar ? 
 
 Much confusion has prevailed on the subject of 
 this essay, by not distinguishing betwixt the learning 
 which is immediately related to Christianity, and that 
 which is unconnected with it. A man who under- 
 stands jurisprudence is entitled to the appellation of 
 learned gentleman; but he is no more qualified by his 
 legal knowledge to teach Christianity, than to give 
 lectures on agriculture. That sort of learning which 
 serves to explain the scriptures, ought to be studied 
 by a minister ; but that which is foreign to his pro- 
 fession may very well be dispensed with : — we da 
 not deem a man unqualified to teach music, merely 
 because he is ignorant of Newton's theory of colours. 
 
235 
 
 As christian ministers, the greater part of the 
 learning of the clergy is of^o use to them at all. 
 
 By learning Latin they become acquainted with 
 the heathen moralists ; but this does not assist 
 them either to explain or enforce christian precepts. 
 In many instances the lax morality of the old phi- 
 losophers has been recommended from our pulpits, 
 instead of the pure and sublime virtue of the gospel ; 
 and it has been enforced by considerations gather- 
 ed from the Pagan writers, such as, the nature and 
 fitness of things, the beauty of virtue, and deformity 
 of vice, the pleasures of a good life, and tniseries 
 of a bad one ; while the scriptural principles and 
 motives of obedience have been lost sight of, such 
 as, the love of God, the death of Christ, the aids 
 and comforts of the Holy Ghost, and future reward^ 
 and punishments. 
 
 The mathematics form a principal branch of edu- 
 cation at our universities. When a young man has 
 demonstrated every proposition of Euclid, he has 
 not proved one doctrine or duty of Christianity, 
 Astronomy should be understood by sailors, and 
 makers of almanacs, but it is of very little use to a 
 christian minister ; his business is not with the laws 
 of the heavenly bodi«s, but the moral government 
 of God ; it is not to trace the motions of planets 
 and comets through the heavens, but to direct the 
 motions of men on a new and living way to eternal 
 felicity. Algebra will assist us in bringing to light 
 
256 
 
 hkldcn quantities, but it will afford us no aid in de- 
 veloping the mysteries of our holy religion. 
 
 The caution of the apostle : — " Beware lest any 
 man spoil you through philosophy," is as necessa- 
 ry now as ever. The modern method of philoso- 
 phising has made more fools and infidels than chris- 
 tians. The cant about the laws of nature, and the 
 works of nature, which is now generally adopted, is 
 the invention of atheists to explain the phenomena 
 of creation and providence, without any reference 
 to the Supreme Being. Nature, they say, has con- 
 trived ^is, and done that. But what is this nature 
 that is so full of wisdom and energy ? Is it a real 
 being, or a nonentity ? If the former, wherein does 
 it differ from a divinity ? If the latter, how can it 
 either think or act at all ? 
 
 Not a few christians have learned to philosophise 
 jlway Divine, Providence. The world, it is pretend- 
 ed, is governed by general laws which were made at 
 the creation, when a force was impressed upon them 
 sufficient to keep them in perpetual operation till the 
 end of time. Hence the idea of a particular provi- 
 dence is ridiculed by many clergymen, as well as by 
 deists and atheists. Such a representation may 
 very well suit an epicurian deity, mIiosc happiness 
 consists in idleness. At night heat yoyr oven, and 
 put in your dough ; you may go to bed and sleep 
 sound ; it requires no superintendence ; by the re- 
 gular operation of the laws of nature, the bread 
 will be sufficiently baked by moxiiing. An udmir- 
 
237 
 
 able scheme of providence for a sleepy god ! If it 
 would not be deemed too presumptuous, I would 
 ask these dogmatizers, Whether it required a fa- 
 tiguing exertion of deity to create the world? and 
 if not, How it can disturb his repose, to be per- 
 petually employed in the government of it ? If every 
 thing was contrived and fitted beforehand, what is* 
 that force which the Almighty, in the beginning, 
 impressed upon his laws, to keep them in perpetual 
 operation? Did he detach his omnipotence fi'om 
 himself, and hang it, like a clock weight, to the 
 wheels of nature to prevent their standing still? 
 If God never specially interferes, but has left the 
 laws of nature to regulate every thing, I should be 
 glad to know what law of nature inspired holy men 
 to write the sacred volume ? and whether it would 
 not be more philosophical, in time of need, to pray 
 to the laws of nature, than to God ? I am very much 
 afraid that this new scheme of providence would de- 
 prive us of religion, the bible, and the prime perfec- 
 tions of deity. 
 
 If the studies of ministers were directed to sub- 
 jects immediately connected with the duties of their 
 profession, no man could say more warmly than my- 
 self, " Make them as learned as possible." But to call 
 that sort of learning a qualification for the ministry, 
 which neither, improves our knowledge of the doc- 
 trines of Christianity, nor promotes our practice of 
 its precepts, is as absurd as to affirm, that a man 
 who has only learned to make a cart wheel, is quali-» 
 fled to make a watch. 
 
238 
 
 Many people speak on the subject of tlie learninrp 
 of the clerg}^, as though the nation would be in 
 clanger of relapsing into a state of barbarism, if the 
 ministers of religion were not profoundly versed in 
 all the arts and sciences. How ridiculous is this ! Do 
 people go to church to learn arts and sciences ? Arc 
 they there instructed in mechanics, geography, his- 
 tor}', astronomy, drawing, music, &c. If the clergy 
 could teach any thing in the pulpit besides religion, 
 it would surely be orator}^; but their practice of 
 readtJig is inconsistent with the grace and energy of 
 an accomplished speaker; hence the young gentle- 
 men, who are ambitious of shining in that depart- 
 ment, attend at the bar and the senate, rather than 
 at the church, for examples of rhetorical skill. 
 Those who are interested in- the arts and sciences 
 will cultivate them, and carry them on towards per- 
 fection, whether the clergy know any thing or no- 
 thing about them ; and it is to these persons we owe 
 most of the great improvements made in them, of 
 which we so justly boast. 
 
 A good judge, on the subjects of science and 
 learning in general, has observed : — " Without en- 
 tering into an invidious and particular examination 
 of the subject, we may cursorily observe, that the 
 public has not, of late at least, been indebted for 
 the greatest improvements in science and learning, 
 to all the doctors, both the })roctors, nor to all the 
 heads of colleges and halls laid together. That 
 populous university, London, and that region of 
 litevtiiy labour, Scotland, have seized every palm of 
 
239 
 
 scholastic honour, and left the sons of Oxford and 
 Cambridge, to enjoy substantial comforts in the 
 smoke of the common or combination room. The 
 bursars' books are the only manuscripts of any value 
 produced in many colleges ; and the sweets of pen- 
 sions, exhibitions, fines, fellowships, and petty offi- 
 ces, the chief objects of academical pursuits." He 
 goes on to state, that though every candidate for a 
 degree " is obliged to be examined in the whole 
 circle of the sciences by three masters of arts," yet 
 tlie fact is, that " the greatest dunce usually gets 
 his testimonium signed with as much ease and credit, 
 as the finest genius. Tlie poor young man to be 
 examined in the sciences often knows no more of 
 them than his bedmaker, and the masters who 
 examine, are som.etimes equally unacquainted with 
 such mysteries." * 
 
 Christianity is a practical system of religion ; and 
 the business of a minister is to make his hearers 
 practical christians. If he fail to do this, he may 
 be learned in Latin, in law, in philosophy, in mathe- 
 matics, &c. but he is not a learned divine. Suppose 
 a medical gentleman were to deliver lectures on the 
 healing art, in language the most pure and elegant ; 
 suppose you could collect fi'om liis lectures that he 
 understood Latin, Greek, Arabic, &c. yet after all, 
 if he could perform no curesj he would not be 
 called a learned jphysician. Suppose another man 
 .could not lecture half so eloquently, and were per- 
 fectly ignorant of all languages except his mother- 
 
 * Knox's Efcsays, Ko. 77. 
 
240 
 
 tongue, if he were more successful in practice, he 
 would justly be deemed the wisest doctor. The 
 clergy have the cure of souls, just the same as physi- 
 cians have the cure of bodies ; and as the doctor 
 who can heal no diseases must be an ignorant quack, 
 so the minister who can convert no sinners must be 
 an ignorant divine. 
 
 Let us then bring the subject to the proper test. 
 No mail can be properly qualified for the ministrVj 
 who is not successful in it ; and his success is to be 
 estimated by the moral influence of his discourses 
 upon the hearts and lives of his auditors. There 
 may be much fine writing in his sermon ; it may be 
 adorned with the most enchanting imagery, and 
 every period may be well turned ; there may be 
 some very learned criticisms, and the whole may be 
 delivered in a very gentleman-like style ; but, after 
 all, if no moral good be effected, the end of the mi- 
 nistry is not answered, and the preacher has only 
 been taking much pains to demonstrate his own 
 folly. His business is to make his hearers virtuous ; 
 and he betrays his ignorance when he loses sight of 
 this, or when his sermons are not best adapted to 
 promote it. 
 
 It is not even pretended, that zeal for the glory of 
 God, and salvation of men, is the chief motive which 
 actuates most young men who enter into holy orders 
 in the establishment. A youth is sent to school, 
 and afterwards to college, to prepare for the mi- 
 nistry; not because his mind is crucified to the 
 
world, and vvlioUy devoted to God ; — not because 
 lie burns, with holy ardour, to lead his fellow-men, 
 on the paths of piety and virtue, to eternal glory ; 
 but because there is a valuable living in the gift of 
 the family, or he has a promise of the next presenta- 
 tion from some noble patron, or he is too simple to 
 gain a livelihood in any other profession. In such a 
 case it signifies nothing if his morals and disposhion- 
 are both 0}'430sed to the ministry ; he must qualify 
 for it, and then engage in it. But how does he 
 qualify F By studying the art of training up im- 
 mortal souls for heaven ! Such a thought never once 
 enters into his head ! No wondei', therefore, that he 
 does no good. The young men among the dis- 
 senters selected for the ministry, are, generally, per- 
 sons of good natural parts and undoubted piety; 
 who engage in the sacred employment, not from ne- 
 cessity, but choice ; their chief study is to save souls ; 
 in this art they soon become proficients ; and hence 
 their great success. 
 
 To talk about the years spent in preparation for 
 the ministry, and the knowledge acquired in gram- 
 mar, logic, rhetoric, dead languages, philosophy, 
 and mathematics, is quite beside the point, if the 
 preacher has not learned the art of making men 
 holy, just, and good. Suppose a youth were to 
 s][")end seven years in learning the art of shoemaking, 
 and when he had done could not make a pair of 
 shoes, would he not be taken for a blockhead? 
 How amusing it would be to see this dunce put on 
 all the airs of a learned Crispin, and to hear him 
 
24^ 
 
 ^^Ilate with jwofessional consequence on his seven 
 Tears studies. He heard of some Latin authors, 
 who had written well upon the art ; he determined, 
 tlierefore, to study Latin, that he might benefit by 
 their labours. To qualify himself to take measure 
 and cut out, he applied himself to geometry. Ob- 
 serving leather to be elastic, he studied philosophy 
 to find out the cause of it ; at first he inclined to the 
 Cartesian hypothesis, but, afterwards, saw reason to 
 believe that the elastic force of the air is the prin- 
 ciple of elasticity in all other bodies. If this man's, 
 parade of learning be ridiculous, because he cannot 
 make a pair of shoes ; is it not equally silly to hear 
 a minister boast of his literary acquirements, when 
 he has not learned the only business belonging to 
 his profession, v,hich is to make men virtuous ? 
 
 In all other employments, he who does his work 
 best is esteemed the most skilful workman ; and it 
 is just as true that he who makes the beet christians 
 is the most learned divine. If a tinker convert more 
 sinners from the error of their ways than a bishop, 
 he is more learned, in spite of his dirty faee and 
 apron, than the episcopal gentleman with all his 
 robes of sacerdotal importance. " He that winncth 
 souU is wise.'* 
 
ESSAY V. 
 
 ON MINISTERIAL QUALIFICATIONS. 
 
 Vv HEN a knowledge of Christianity is said to b.e 
 the only qualification absolutely necessary to a mi- 
 nister of the gospel, the proposition requires expla- 
 jiation. Virtue is as necessary as knowledge, but no 
 wicked man can thorouglily understand the christian 
 religion. 
 
 I. Virtue is necessary to a minister of the gospel. 
 One great end of the institution of the ministerial 
 office is to make men virtuous; and no instruc- 
 tions are of any value any further than as they tend 
 to purify the heart and regulate the conduct. A 
 mere knowledge of duty is not a sufficient induce-, 
 ment to men to practise it, or thtre would be no 
 wilful sinners. Religion, therefore, must be en- 
 forced as well as explained. But no wicked man 
 can press the motives of religion with sufficient 
 earnestness: 1st, Because he does not feel their force 
 upon his own mind : 2r//j/, Because conscious guilt 
 X 2 
 
must paralyze lils exertions : 3r//j/, Because his ovm-. , 
 conduct must destroy their influence upon the minds ' 
 of liis auditors. 
 
 " The carnal mind is enmity against God ; it is 
 not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can 
 be." This is as true of the clergy as of the laity ; 
 and hence, in the nature of things, a carnal priest 
 cannot feel a disposition to convert sinners to piety 
 and virtue ; on the contrary, he will do all in his 
 power to prevent it. Our Lord complained of the 
 wicked Jewish teachers, that they prevented those 
 from entering the kingdom of heaven who were 
 about to enter ; * and the apostle lays it down as a 
 princi})le, that he who is after the flesh will perse- 
 cute him who is after the spirit ; f and that all who 
 will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecu- 
 tion. X Ungodly priests have always betrayed as 
 strong a disposition as any body of men whatever 
 to persecute the righteous; to suppose, therefore, 
 that they will seriously endeavour to make others 
 virtuous, is as foolish as to expect that Satan will 
 cast out vS atan. With them genuine piety is cried 
 down as enthusiasm and fanaticism, and strict mo- 
 rality as preciseness and fleshly perfection. 
 
 There is an established order in the moral world 
 as well as in the natural. The Almighty has no 
 more appointed vice to propagate virtue, than he 
 has appointed the frost of winter to produce vege- 
 tation. According to this established order, eveiy 
 
 * Matthew xxiii. IJ. f Gall. iv. 29. t 2 Tim. iii, 12. 
 
245 
 
 tiling naturally generates its own kind. Vice be- 
 gets vice : hence the scripture adage ; " Like priest 
 like people." The vices of a priest are very pro- 
 lific; they produce some thirty', some sixty, and 
 some an hundred fold. The iniquities of the Jewish 
 nation are traced to its teachers, as their origin: 
 *' The leaders of my people have caused them to err. * 
 
 God has expressly forbidden wicked men to feeach 
 religion. " Unto the wicked, God saith, What 
 hast thou to do to declare mv statutes, or that thou 
 shouldest take my covenant in thy mouth ? Seeing 
 thou hatest instruction, and castest my w^ords behind 
 thee." * Our Saviour has cautioned his followers 
 against them : — " Beware of false prophets, which 
 come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they 
 are ravening w^olves. Ye shall knox'o them hy their 
 fruits." f "By their fruits," cannot be mea,nt, as 
 some have thought, their doctrines^ but tlieir livc^. 
 Figurative as the passage is, it indicates, with suffi- 
 cient clearness, that the false teacher, — the wolf in 
 sheep's clothing, — is a hypocrite; we cannot, how- 
 ever, infallibly infer the state of a man's mind from 
 his preaching; if his doctrine be bad, he may sin- 
 cerely believe it, in which case he is not guilty of 
 hypocrisy. Besides, our Saviour goes on to describe 
 the fate of these false prophets at the last day ; and 
 in this account their hypocrisy is not supposed to 
 consist in a disagreement between their professions 
 and doctrines, but between their professions and' 
 lives. " Not every one which saitJi unto me, Lord ! 
 
 • Psalm 1. IG, If. t Matihew vii. 15, KJ.. 
 
 K3 
 
21G 
 
 Lord ! shall enter into the kingdom of heaven ; but 
 he that doclh the will of my Father which is in 
 heaven." Their orthodoxy is not disputed; they 
 are allowed to plead, " Lord ! Lord ! have we not 
 prophebied in thy name? And in thy name have 
 cast out devils ? And in thy name done many won- 
 derful works?" But the Judge will sternly reply, 
 ** I never knew you. Depart from me ye that work 
 
 Wicked ministers must do infinite mischief. 
 Hear the apostle's cutting expostulation with an 
 immoral Jewish teacher : " Thou art confident 
 that thou thyself art a guide of the bhnd, a light 
 of them which are in darkness, an instructor of 
 the foolish, a teacher of babes, which hast the form 
 of knowledge, and of the truth in the law. Thou, 
 therefore, which teachest another, teachest thou not 
 thyself? Thou that preachest a man should not steal, 
 dost thou steal ? Thou that sayest a man should 
 not commit adultery, dost thou commit adultery ? 
 thou that abhorrest idols, dost thou commit sacri- 
 lege? Thou that makest thy boast of the law, 
 through breaking the law dishonourest thou God ?" * 
 What was the effect of this man's preaching ? " For 
 the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles 
 through you.'* Such always has been, and always 
 will be, the fruit of such a ministry. 
 
 The apostle Peter speaks to the same purpose. 
 ** But there were false prophets also among the 
 
 * Komans ii. 19—24. 
 
247 
 
 people, even as tliere shall be false teachers among 
 you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, 
 even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring 
 upon themselves swift destruction. And many shall 
 follow their pernicious ways, by reason of whom the 
 way of truth shall be evil spoken of." By what 
 marks shall the people know these false teachers, 
 who murder souls and expose the truth of God to 
 the ridicule and contempt of its enemies ? " And 
 through covetousness shall they, with. Jeigned ix'ords^ 
 make merchandise of you." * None but wicked men 
 can enter the ministry from such a motive, and they 
 can have no other. — But the business must be 
 varnished over with " feigned words." Flence the 
 covetous priest, mstead of avowing that he is prompt- 
 ed by " filthy lucre," feigns himself " moved by the 
 Holy Ghost ;" and instead of informing the people 
 that he is a spiritual merchant, he pretends to be a 
 spiritual doctor : — his object is not to make merchant 
 dise of their souls, but to cure them. Those who 
 credit these pretensions, " follow their pernicious 
 ways," and perish ; and those who discover the 
 cheat, make Christianity a party to it, and thus " the 
 ways of truth are evil spoken of" What has a 
 wickc^ priesthood done for France ? It produced li- 
 centiousness of manners, and then infidelity ; it ge- 
 nerated those principles which ruined that country, 
 and nearly all Europe ; by defiling the altar, it de- 
 stroyed the throne, and turned the land into a field 
 of blood. Wlien the consecrated profligates could 
 profit by the mask no longer, they threw it off, and 
 
 * 2 Peter ii. 1, 2, 5, 
 
24« 
 
 marched forward with brazen fi-ont to jom the raiik^ 
 of atheism. 
 
 It will perhaps be said that the vices of the priest 
 cannot lessen the obligations of tlic people to prac- 
 tise morality ; they must do as he says, and not as 
 he does. Obligation is not the question. The au- 
 thority of divine law is independent of human con- 
 duct. The question is, — Can a priest who defies 
 the autliority of God, persuade the people to respect 
 it ? Attend to this point. A priest returns home 
 drunk from a public meeting on Saturday night, 
 and preaches next morning from, " Look not thou 
 upon the wine when it is red, when it giveth his 
 colour in the cup, when it moveth itself aright^ At 
 the last it biteth like a serpent, and stingeth like an 
 adder." He is caught in bed with his neighbour's 
 wife, and takes for his text, the following Sabbath, 
 " Whoremongers and adulterers God will judge." 
 He is engaged in a law-suit with his parishioners 
 about tithes, and preaches from, — " Now, therefore, 
 there is utterly a fault among you, because ye go to 
 law one with another. Why do ye not rather tako 
 wrong ? Why do ye not rather suffer yourselves to 
 be defrauded?" Can any person be extravagant 
 enough to believe that such a wretcn can persuade 
 the drunkard to become sober, the debauchee to be- 
 come chaste, and the litigious to become peaceable ? 
 But he enforces his morality with the remark, " You 
 niust do as I say, and not as I do ! " Well said ! 
 If Satan be capable of a blush, such a declaration 
 could not fail to produce it. Only keep the profli- 
 
249 
 
 gate in countenance, by your example, for six days 
 out of the sevenj" and your grave lectures on the 
 Sabbath will teach them to make a jest of religion ; 
 thus, by precept and example, you will make them 
 impious and keep them vicious, and so complete thd' 
 character and ensure the perdition of reprobates. 
 
 It is as necessary for a minister of religion to 
 reprove sin as to give instruction concerning duty. 
 But a wicked man can never do this with effect. 
 He will seldom attempt it at all. The dreaded 
 retort of, " Physician, heal thyself," will effectually 
 deter those who retain any sense of shame ; and the 
 infamous character of the man whose conscience is 
 seared, as with a hot iron, by a long course of daring 
 impiety and immorality, will completely neutralize 
 the severity of his censure. 
 
 The divine co-operation is necessary to the suc- 
 cess of the christian ministry. " Not that we are 
 sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of our- 
 selves; but our sufficiency is of God, who hath 
 made us able ministers of the New Testament, not 
 of the letter, but of the spirit. I have planted, 
 Apollos watered; but God gave the increase. So, 
 then, neither is he that planteth, any thing, neither 
 he that watereth ; but God that giveth the increase. 
 We, then, as workers together with him, beseech 
 you also, that ye receive not the grace of God in 
 vain." Will God employ and assist a wicked man 
 in the work of converting sinners from the error of 
 their ways ? Before this question be answered, one 
 
«50 
 
 or two more must be considered : " What fellow- 
 ship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and 
 what communion hath light with darkness? and 
 what concord hath Christ with Belial?'* But, 
 
 II. No wicked man can fully understand the 
 christian religion. It is a very common and just 
 obsen^ation, that no man can attain to eminence in- 
 any profession who has not a taste for it. This ob- 
 servation is as applicable to a divine, as to a mechanic, 
 a lawyer, or a physician. And no man can possibly 
 liave a taste for religion, who is in love with sin ; 
 " The carnal mind is enmity against God ; it is not 
 subject to his laws, neither indeed can be." 
 
 Worldly considerations will sometimes prompt ^ 
 man to apply to a subject which is ungrateful to his 
 feelings. A lad is put apprentice to a business 
 which he dislikes, and his master compels him to 
 pay some attention to it. When he sets up for 
 himself, he soon becomes sensible that application is 
 necessary to his subsistence ; hence he does violence 
 to his feehngs, and endeavours to rise to mediocrity ; 
 but, except his disposition change, he never attains 
 to distinction. The case of a vicious clergyman is 
 different. During his apprenticeship at the uni- 
 versity, he is under no obligation to study religion. 
 By reading the Greek and Latin poets and histo- 
 rians, he may qualify himself to celebrate the myste- 
 ries of Bacchus and Venus; but other studies arc 
 requisite to prepare for the christian pulpit. A living 
 ipay be obtained by being related to a patron, and 
 
25i 
 
 by playing off a political squib against jacobins, or a 
 religious one against enthusiasts. The study of 
 Christianity is not necessary in order to a due dis- 
 charge of clerical duties. The prayers are all ready 
 for all occasions in the liturgy, and sets of fashionable 
 discourses in the form of manuscript, ai'e to be met 
 with in every bookseller's shop. Thus the necessity 
 of studying our holy religion is superseded ; and, 
 as nothing short of absolute necessity could in- 
 duce a profligate young spark to apply his mind to 
 it, he will do duty^ as the cant phrase is, without, 
 properly speaking, kno'xing his duty. 
 
 A mind virtuously disposed is an essential requi- 
 site to the perception of christian truth. Our Lord 
 represents vice and ignorance, virtue and knowledge, 
 as inseparably connected together : " Light is come 
 into the world, and men loved darkness rather than 
 light, because their deeds were evil. For every 
 one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh 
 to the light, lest his deeds should be discovered. 
 But he that doeth truth, cometh to the light, that 
 his deeds may be made manifest that they are wrought 
 in God. If any man will do his will, he shall know 
 of the doctrine whether it be of God. None of the 
 wicked shall understand." * 
 
 Divine illumination is necessary to a right under- 
 standing of the word of God. When David opened 
 the sacred volume, he put up this prayer t " Open 
 thou mine eyes, tliat I may behold wondrous things 
 
 i "' John, iii. 10, 20, 21. vli. 17. Duuiel, xii. LO. 
 
252 
 
 out of tliy law."* Thougli the apostles enjoyed 
 the privilege of hearing our Lord's public discourses, 
 and liis explanations of many of them in private, 
 yet they knew but little of the nature of his religion 
 till after his resurrection, when it is observed, " tlien 
 opened he their understanding, that they might 
 understand the scriptures." -f The apostle Paul lays 
 it down as a general truth, that " the natural man 
 receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God, for 
 they are foolishness unto him ; neither can he know 
 them, because they are spiritually discerned." % 
 
 The church of England is strictly orthodox upon 
 tliis point. She prays : — " Tliat it may please thee 
 to illuminate all bishops, priests, and deacons, with 
 true knowledge and understanding of thy word ; 
 and that, both by their preaching and living, they 
 may set it forth, and shew it accordingly." In the 
 second part of the homily on the knowledge of lioly 
 scripture, a saying of Chrysostom is cited with ap- 
 probation. " Chrysostom saith, that man's human 
 and worldly wisdom, or science, needeth not to the 
 understanding of scripture, but the revelation of the 
 Holy Ghost, who inspireth the true meaning unto 
 them that with humility and diligence do search 
 therefor." In the lirst part of the homily for 
 Whitsunday, we are told tliat, " The Holy Ghost, 
 because he doth instruct the hearts of the simj^le in 
 the true knowledge of God and his word, is most 
 justly termed by this name and title to be tlie spirit 
 of truth. Eusebius, in his ecclesiastical history, 
 
 * P.^a'ra cxix. 18. | Luke xxiv. 45. f I Cor. ii, 14. 
 
253 
 
 telleth a strange story of a cei;tain learned and^ 
 subtle philosopher, who, being an extreme adversary 
 to Christ and his doctrine, could by no kind of 
 learning be converted to the faith ; but was able to 
 \vithstand all the arguments that could be brought 
 against him, with little or no labour. At length 
 there started up a poor simple man of small wit and 
 less knowledge, one that was reputed among the 
 learned as an ideot ; and he, in God's name, would 
 needs take in hand to dispute with this proud philo- 
 sopher. The bishops and other learned men stand- 
 ing by, were marvellously abashed at the matter, 
 thinking that by his doings they should be all con- 
 founded and put to open shame. He notwithstand- 
 ing goeth on, and beginning in the name of the 
 Lord Jesus, brought the philosopher to such point 
 in the end, contrary to all men's expectation, that 
 he could not chuse but acknowledge the power of 
 God in his words, and to give place to the truth. 
 Was not this a miraculous work, that one silly soul, 
 of no learning, should do that which many bishops 
 of great knowledge and understanding were never 
 able to bring to pass ? " After what has been said 
 upon the subject, it is not necessary to prove here, 
 that God will not grant his holy illumination to an 
 unholy priest ; this has been proved repeatedly ; and 
 the inference is, that no wicked man can understand 
 the scriptures. 
 
 With the above explanation, which provides against 
 the licentiousness of the pulpit, it may safely and 
 confidently be affirmed, that he who understandt 
 
 Y 
 
254 
 
 Christianity has a right, and is bound in duty, to 
 teach it. Let a christian man then preach the same 
 truths to others, which, through the blessing of 
 God, enlightened his own mind and reformed his 
 life ; he will soon witness their efficacy in the con- 
 version of sinners, and this success of his labours 
 will be sufficient proof that God has called him to 
 tlie sacred work. The apostle Paul proved to the 
 Corinthians, and to all men, from the success of his 
 ministry solely, without any written credentials, that 
 he had authority from Christ to preach the gospel : 
 *^ Do we bemn aoain to commend ourselves ? or 
 
 o o 
 
 need we, as some others, epistles of commendation 
 to you, or letters of commendation from you ? Ye 
 are our epistle, written in our hearts, known and 
 read of all men. Forasmuch as ye are manifestly 
 declared to be the epistle of Christ, ministered by 
 us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the 
 living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshly 
 tables of the heart." * This reasoning will be equally 
 conclusive in favour of any minister who can give 
 proofs of usefulness; for if any man can convert 
 sinners without the approbation and co-operation of 
 God, the apostle's argument is good for nothing* 
 In comparison of these living epistles, the apostle 
 despised the written recommendation or orders, on 
 which, it seems, the fiihe teacher at Corinth set a 
 high value. How many modern divines make a 
 parade of hol;i/ orders, written with pen and ink, 
 who can shew no living epistles, written with the 
 Spirit of the living God. The various denomina- 
 
 * 2 Cor. iii. J, % 5. 
 
255 
 
 tions of dissenting ministers have reformed tens of 
 thousands of profligates ; and these evidences of 
 their success must carry conviction to every in- 
 genuous mind, that their ministry is of God. Those 
 who traduce their character, and depreciate their 
 labours, cannot stand a comparison with them in 
 point of either morals or usefuhiess. 
 
 It is supposed by many people, that all are not 
 authorised to preach by the great head of ^e 
 church, who are sufficiently qualified for the w^ork 
 by their piety and abilities. A select number, it is 
 said, are specially designated to the holy employ- 
 ment by the Almighty, and solemnly set apbirt to it 
 by the church; these alone have, what is termed, 
 a call to the minist7y. All the rest are supposed to 
 be excluded; and, therefore, should any of them, no 
 matter how well qualified in other respects, presume 
 to assume the sacred office, they are to be con- 
 sidered as sacrilegious intruders, who must answ^er 
 for their temerity at the peril of their souls. As 
 this is an error of considerable magnitude, it will 
 be proper to take some pains to explode it. 
 
 A call to preach is variously explained by the dif- 
 ferent sects. A churchman who is a candidate for 
 deacons' orders, professes to feel inwardly moved 
 by the Holy Ghost. What the clergy mean by this 
 declaration it is difficult to say, as they, almost to 
 a man, denounce a\\ feelings and impulses of the Holy 
 Ghost as enthusiasm and fanaticism. How they can 
 feel yi\i)io\xt feelings and be moved without an impulse^ 
 
 y2 
 
256 
 
 will require some little ingenuity to explain. I'iil 
 this be done, they can only evade the charge of enthu- 
 siasm and fanaticism at the expence of their honesty. 
 Nelson has a remark similar to the well known one 
 of Burnet upon this subject : " When a priest," 
 says he, " enters into orders, only to entitle himself 
 to a benefice, without any inward call from the Holy 
 Ghost, if this is the case, (as I am afraid it too fre- 
 quently happens) then he speaks false in the pre- 
 sence of God, even upon the most solemn occasion, 
 and this must be a sham dedication of himself to his 
 service, and it is very improbable, that the God of 
 truth should give any blessing to the services or mi- 
 nistry of such a person, who leaped into the church 
 by a wilful and premeditated lie." * 
 
 Every pious man is under a divine influence; but no 
 one has any reason to expect any other motion to the 
 office of the ministry than to any other christian duty. 
 It is the duty of every man to do all the good in 
 his power. It is a good work to instruct the igno- 
 rant ; it is my duty, therefore, if I understand reli- 
 gion, to instruct those who do not. The obligation 
 to teach, in this case, does not arise from the state 
 of my feelings, but from my qualifications ; suppose 
 my feelings, instead of prompting me to the employ- 
 ment, were ever so much opposed to it, it is still my 
 duty to mount the rostrum ; and the sense of duty 
 ought to prompt me to action. It is the sense of 
 duty which must give the impulse, and not the im- 
 pulse the sense of duty, otherwise, by maldng our 
 
 * Rights cf tl.e clergy, page 408. 
 
257 
 
 feelings the rule of our duty, we renounce the autho- 
 rity of the written word, and are lost in the wilds of 
 fanaticism or the gloom of infidelity, — pcihaps both. 
 
 What shocking work this doctrine of motions, be- 
 ing a rule of action, would produce, if it were ap- 
 plied to morals. An object of distress solicits my 
 charity : I have plenty of money, but I am covet- 
 ous ; I therefore feel no motion to part with it, and 
 am, consequently, under no obligation to relieve the 
 indigent. — Again, because I love money, it is ten to 
 one but I feel an impulse to take a few pounds out 
 of my neighbour's desk ; my motion makes it a duty, 
 and I should feel a guilty conscience were I to with- 
 hold my hand. 
 
 You will perhaps object, and say, " But these 
 things are sinful, and therefore you ought not to 
 regard your impulses." I deny it. Impulse is my 
 rule of action, and my impulse does not say that 
 these things are sinful. " True," you will reply, 
 " but the word of God does." Certainly. " By 
 the laxi\ (not impulse) is the knowledge of sin," as^ 
 well as duty. Here then, we have got to the point. 
 If the word of God informs me what I am to avoid, 
 and what I am to do, an impulse, or the absence 
 of it, can neither add to my obHgation nor diminish 
 from it. It is my duty to relieve the poor, and if 
 my feelings are agamst it, I must be charitable in 
 spite of them. It is my duty to be honest, and I 
 must suppress my feelings if they would make me 
 So, in preaching : — If I am qualified, to. 
 y ii 
 
258 
 
 instruct the ignorant, it is my duty to do it ; anit 
 if my feelings are opposed to it, I must silence txiem 
 with the awful consideration ; — " Woe be unto me 
 if I preach not the gospel." 
 
 But you will say, "It is not all impulses which 
 are to be followed, but those only which are excited 
 by the Holy Ghosts Very well : But how shall I 
 know that a particular motion is excited by the 
 Holy Ghost? If you say, " When the Holy Ghost 
 prompts a man to preach, he accompanies the mo- 
 tion with an inward and distinct consciousness of 
 his agency." I answer. If this be true, by making 
 the spirit's injfluence the rule of action, you render 
 the word of God of no use, for one infallible direc- 
 tor is as good as a thousand ; and we have again ar- 
 rived at fanaticism and infidelity. If revelation is to 
 be our guide, the sense of duty must give the impulse 
 to action. 
 
 A man who understands religion, and perceives it 
 to be his duty to teach it, may have his conviction 
 of duty powerfully impressed upon his mind by the 
 Holy Spirit ; just the same as by a divine influence 
 he is persuaded to practise the duties of honesty and 
 charity. The scriptures teach that " It is God who 
 worketh in us to imll and to do of his good plea- 
 sure ;" and in perfect unison with these sentiments is 
 the declaration of the church of England, that all 
 holy dcaires^ and all just ivorks, proceed from our 
 heavenly Father. But it is not the impression of 
 the Spirit of God which confers the right, or creates 
 
^259 
 
 the duty to preach, any more than it confers the 
 right or creates the duty to be just and merciful ; 
 the authority and obhgation must, in the nature of 
 tilings, be antecedent to the impression. 
 
 What has led to so much nonsense about a call to 
 the ministry, has been the generally received opi- 
 nion, that priests are a distinct order of men, spe- 
 cially designated by heaven to their holy employ- 
 ment, and solemnly set apart to it by a junta of the 
 sacred profession, with a number of pompous rites 
 and ceremonies. Now, suppose a layman to be ever 
 so well qualified to give religious instruction, — to b(? 
 even wiser and better than the parish priest, — it is 
 taken for granted, that he cannot have the inward 
 call; if he pretends to have received it, he is call- 
 ed an enthusiast ; and if he presumes to hold forth, 
 he is denounced as unauthorised and unaccredited, — 
 an usurper of the sacred office, whose ministrations 
 must be accompanied with a curse rather than a bles- 
 sing. Were the right and duty to teach Christiani- 
 ty founded upon a man's ability for the work, which 
 is the only proper basis, a coi'poration of priests 
 could no longer claim an exclusive privilege to make 
 ministers and to preach the gospel. 
 
 According to church logic, there is not an indivi- 
 dual receives the inward call, or motion, besides thosq. 
 who actually receive ordination ; nor a single ordain- 
 ed person who has not received the inward call. 
 For if more were designated to the olfice by the Al- 
 mighty, than are actually put into it by tlie bishops. 
 
260 
 
 these supernumeraries would have a right to preach 
 independent of cpi!^copal authority, (and this would 
 spoil all,) unless their lordships conceive they pos- 
 sess a power to annul the appointments of the Su- 
 preme Being ; and this would be to suppose their 
 authority superior to his. And were they to ordain 
 one whom God has not called to the work, the 
 people could derive no benefit from his ministra- 
 tions, and would, of course, be justified in looking 
 out for help from some other quarter. This then 
 is the conclusion we must come to, that God has 
 subjected himself in this business to the will of 
 , bishops ; if they appoint any or none to the mi- 
 nistry, and if those they may appoint be good, bad, 
 or indifferent, he is perfectly satisfied, — at least, no 
 doubt they beheve so ; but v» ho else can ? 
 
 It is a favourite sentiment with many, that God 
 does not give an inward call without an outward 
 call ; and that this outward call is from the church. 
 But what church ? The English church says one, 
 the calvinist church says another, the baptist church 
 says a third, &c. That every church has a right to 
 chuse its own ministers, I am not going to dispute ; 
 this right is founded in nature. But I ask, Is it 
 not a duty in christians to jn^opagate their religion ? 
 I have half a score ignorant and wicked neighbours. 
 I am a christian, and love my neighbours as my- 
 self. I could instruct and warn them, and perhaps 
 persuade them to embrace Christianity. You will go 
 to hell yourself, says one, if you preach to them that 
 they are in any danger of going there. Why ? 
 
261 
 
 Why ! because you are not episcopally ordained. 
 Will the bishop ordain me? No, not unless you 
 know the languages. Stuff! I am not going to 
 preach to these profligates in either Latin, Greek, 
 or Hebrew, but in plain English. Thus, for want 
 of an outboard call, I must not dare to talk to my 
 neighbours about their souls ! Where is common 
 sense ? 
 
 What church gave the apostles a callP or sent 
 them out to preach ? And where do the scriptures 
 say a single word about an outward call ? We read 
 in the New Testament, of a man who propagated 
 Christianity by working miracles in the name of 
 Christ, and who had received no human appoint- 
 ment to the sacred office. The apostles attempted 
 to silence this man: — " We forbad him." And 
 why, gentlemen, did you forbid him? Because he 
 was ignorant, or wicked ? No ; — but for this won- 
 derful reason, " because he followed not us." That 
 is, in modern cant, " because he would not submit 
 to the constituted authorities. Because he was mi- 
 authorised and unaccredited^ — an inti-uder^ into the 
 sacred office, selj-appointed, a dangerous schismatic^ 
 who seceded from the most pure and apostolic church 
 in Christendom" The disciples reported the case ta 
 their master, expecting, no doubt, his warmest ap- 
 probation of their conduct. Now, what did our 
 Saviour do on this occasion ? Did he deliver a long 
 harangue on the necessity of unity^ the unlawfulness 
 of assuming the ministerial office, the sin and danger 
 of schism ? Did he proceed to curse this Jirst dis^ 
 
262 
 
 senting minister ^vith bell book and candle, in the 
 name of tlie holy trinity ? So far from it, the 
 amiable Jesus approved and justified his conduct, 
 and severely ccnsm-cd their rashness and folly. lie 
 said, " forbid him not, for there is no man which 
 shall do a miracle in my name, that can lightly 
 speak evil of me ; for he that is not against us, is on 
 our part." * 
 
 Frumcntius, a layman, introduced Christianity 
 into Abyssinia, and baptized the king and his prin- 
 cipal courtiers. It is true this apostle was after- 
 wards ordained a bishop, by the orthodox Athana- 
 sius, but he ought rather to Ifave been burnt as a 
 damnable heretic, if intrusion into the sacred office 
 be a sin of the first magnitude. The .gospel was 
 introduced into Georgia, a province of Asia, by 
 B, female slave. By the number of her miracles, and 
 the sanctity of her manners, she converted the king 
 and queen, who destroyed their idols and embraced 
 the faith. His majesty, before his baptism, preached 
 to, and converted his subjects, and thus became the 
 apostle of his country before he himself was ini- 
 tiated.\ Now, would it have been better for these 
 nations to have remained in idolatry, than thus to 
 be converted by self-appointed teachers ? " I have 
 no scruple," affirms a mitred bigot, " in saying 
 that it were better it should, than that a person 
 should be employed, of whose fitness we have no 
 
 * Mark ix. 58, 39, 40. 
 * Mosheim. cent. 4. part i. chap. i. sect. xx. Burnet's Exposit, 
 ArJ. 23. 
 
263 
 
 means of judging." Supposing tliere even were an 
 irregularity in these cases, (though I cannot perceive 
 it,) it were surely better that people should go ir- 
 regularly to heaven, than decently and in order to 
 hell. 
 
 Let us then return again to the point. It is the 
 duty of every man to do all the good he can. If I 
 meet with a man more ignorant than mysell^ it is 
 my dut}', if he be willing to hear mc, to give him 
 instruction. Suppose I have several neighbours who 
 are willing to hear mc ; instead of visiting them 
 from house to house, which I have not time to do, I 
 desire them to meet me at an appointed time and 
 place, and instead of the trouble of many lectures in 
 private, I deliver one discourse to them all in 
 public ; and, O wonderful ! without either a bishop's 
 hands, or a priest's gown, I am turned parson 1 
 and while presumptuous mortals are exclaiming, 
 disorder! the harmony of heaven is improved by 
 the joy of angels over these converted sinners ! 
 
 Upon the principle here laid down, a man may 
 have a call to preach to one congregation and not to 
 another; because the one may be more ignorant, 
 and the other wiser than the teacher. The Metho- 
 dists act upon this plan. By a judicious distribution 
 of talent, the abilities of all are brought into useful 
 operation. They send preachers of inferior parts 
 into the villages, to teach the ignorant the first rudi- 
 ments of Christianity, for which service they are 
 sufficiently qualified. The congregations of a supe- 
 
264* 
 
 rior class are served by men distinguished for their 
 learning and pulpit eloquence. 
 
 Objection, — " This scheme, of permitting every 
 man to preach who fancies himself qualified by his 
 piety and knowledge, would breed endless confusion 
 and schism." It would occasion no confusion. Ko 
 man can preach to a society of christians v/ithout 
 the consent of that society. A person believes him- 
 self qualified to preach and makes a tender of his 
 services to a church. The church does not approve 
 of him, and he goes out into the world. If any 
 chuse to hear him, they may do so without con- 
 fusion, and if he cannot get a congregation, he must 
 either preach to empty pews, or sit down and be 
 quiet ; but in either case he breeds no disturbance. 
 
 The case of schism must be considered more at 
 large. Schism is sometimes a sin, and sometimes a 
 virtue. In John vii. 43, the word is used to denote 
 a difference of opinion among the multitude con- 
 cerning Christ : " There was a schism among the 
 people because of him." By comparing the pre- 
 ceding verses, it appears that our Lord gained over 
 many of the people by his doctrine. This change 
 in their sentiments produced a schism in his favour. 
 It should seem from the next verse, that these schis- 
 matics protected him from the rage of his enemies ; 
 " for some of them would have taken him, but no 
 man laid hands on him." By opening the eyes of 
 the blind, our Lord produced another schism. 
 *' Therefore, said some of the Pharisees," this man 
 
265 
 
 is not of God, because he keepeth not the Sabbath- 
 day. Others said, how can a man that is a sinner 
 do such miracles ? And there was a scJtlsm among 
 them." John ix. 1 6. Now, who were the sinners 
 in this case ? Tliose who held fast their old prqu- 
 dices against Jesus ? Or the schismatics, who looked 
 upon him as a good man ? In both the above in- 
 stances, the schismatics deserve praise ; in the former, 
 they protected our Saviour from personal injury; 
 and, in the latter, they defended the innocence of liis 
 conduct. 
 
 The only places in the Kew Testament where 
 church schisms are mentioned, are the following : 
 *' Now I beseech 3'ou, brethren, by the name of our 
 Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, 
 and that there be no schisms among you ; but that ye 
 be perfectly joined together in the same mind, and 
 in the same judgment. When ye come together in 
 the church, I hear that there be schisms among you, 
 and I partly believe it. That there should be no 
 schism in the body, but that the members should 
 have the same care one for another." * The schism, 
 in the first text, refers to their foolish partialities 
 arid antipathies respecting their preachers. One 
 said, I am of Paul ; another, I am of Apollos, &c. 
 The apostle blames them all equally ; and this is 
 not a solitary instance of a whole church being di* 
 vided into factions in itself.^ and all the factions being 
 siuFul schismatics. In the second passage, the schism 
 took place when they were come together in the 
 
 * 1 Cor. i. 10, xi. 19. xii. 25. 
 
 z 
 
266 
 
 church. It is pretty evident, from the following 
 verses, that the Corinthians took a social supper of 
 their own in the church, previous to the celebration 
 of the Eucharist. On these occasions, according to 
 the custom of the Greeks, every one brought his 
 own jM'ovisions to the meeting. The rich brethren 
 made a poni})ous display of their luxuries, while the 
 poor, who were ashamed of their ordinary and scan- 
 ty fare, divided from them and retired into a corner 
 to eat their morsel alone. Thus, as the apostlcc cm- 
 plains, one was drunken, and another hungry. The 
 rich are blamed by the apostle for causing the schism, 
 and the poor who made it are pitied. In the last 
 text the schism guarded against, was a difference of 
 opinion on the value and importance of spiritual 
 gifts. The apostle compares these gifts to the 
 members of the body, and shews, that as each 
 member is necessary to the man, so each gift is 
 necessary to the church ; and that, since the feeblest 
 and least honourable parts of the body contribute 
 to the v:elfare of the whole, and on that account 
 are prized and carefully preserved from injury, so 
 the weakest gifts contribute to the perfection of the 
 church, and are therefore entitled to the attention 
 and esteem of all believers. 
 
 The above remarks will sette to correct two 
 mistakes: \st^ It is generally supposed, that schism 
 is a separation y5'o;/z a church, whereas, in the above 
 instances, it is represented as a division in a church. 
 The christians at Corinth, are not charged with 
 forming several churches or societies in opposition 
 
267 
 
 to each other, nor are they cautioned against any 
 such thing; they are merely reproved for, and 
 warned against creating dissension in the church, 
 ^dly^ Schism is generally spoken of under the no- 
 tion of a damnable sin ; whereas, in the texts under 
 consideration, it does not appear to be marked by 
 any character of peculiar aggravation. Attend for 
 a moment longer to the three texts: In theirs/, 
 the sin lay in over-rating the abilities of some 
 preachers, and thinking meanly of the gifts of others. 
 Is this a damnable sin ? In the s^econdy the poor 
 were the schismatics, who were not blamed at all. 
 In the thirds the evil guarded against is a depreciation 
 of the value of inferior spiritual gifts; but the Corin* 
 thians are not warned against this error by threaten- 
 ing them with the terroi's of eternal damnation. 
 
 Making a schism, however, is seldom a virtue, 
 because when the schismatics happen to be right 
 in then* opinions, they often defend them by an 
 unjustifiable warmth of temper; and no opinioa is 
 of sufficient importance to excuse indulgence in thQ 
 bad passions. The worst of schismatics are they 
 who magnify petty differences into matters of the 
 utmost consequence, and who make them terms pf 
 communion, and necessary to salvation. 
 
 Objection. — " Allowing every person to preach 
 who conceives himself qualified, has been the cause of 
 our being divided into innumerable sects and parties, 
 and this surely is a great evil, which is forbidden in sa- 
 cred scripture." Where is it forbidden in j?criptui*e ? 
 z % 
 
26$ 
 
 Shew me chapter and verse. If the church of Christ 
 was to consist of one sect only, to the end of the world, 
 which is that sect? It cannot be the church of England, 
 for its constitution is only a few centuries old. It is 
 said by its advocates to have been formed on the 
 model of the primitive church, as it existed for 
 the four first centuries. Admitting this to be true, 
 for the sake of argument, it is not pretended that 
 any church since the fourth century, has had a simi- 
 lar constitution. Now, then, where was the church 
 of Christ from the fourth century to the reforma- 
 tion? What church made our thirty nine articles 
 the standard of its faith, and used our liturgy as 
 its only manual of devotion ? Let the true church 
 be found where it will, if you cannot find our ar- 
 ticles and prayer-book in it, the church of England 
 is a dissenter from it ; and, therefore, according to 
 the objection, is not a church of Christ. — Is the 
 church of Rome that sect ? It is not pretended by 
 the papists that the church of Rome is the same 
 now, that it was when first constituted by an apostle ; 
 for they freely admit, that councils have added to 
 it innumerable articles of faith, and rites and ce- 
 remonies of worship. 
 
 Both parties endeavour to justify the additions! 
 they have made, by pretending, that " the church 
 has a power to decree rights and ceremonies, and 
 authority in matters of faith." As no one pretends 
 that the church of Rome w^as not once a true 
 cliurch, b)' allowing her then to possess the power 
 plciided for, you cannot deny her to be a true church 
 
269 
 
 still. Admit this authority, and she will justify all 
 her abominations. It must be evident at once, that 
 such a power ought only to be lodged in infallible 
 hands : for if you suppose those who possess it liable 
 to err, they may soon, by virtue of it, turn the church 
 of Christ into a synagogue of Satan. Upon this 
 point the catholics are consistent. The church of 
 England, by admitting this power, cannot possibly 
 justif}^ her separation from Rome ; and by claiming 
 this power herself, without asserting infallibility, 
 she is guilty of the grossest folly. 
 
 Let us come then to the point. All parties agree 
 that the gates of hell cannot prevail against the 
 church. The objection supposes the church of Christ 
 to consist of one sect, the individuals composing 
 v.hich all agree in the same articles of faith, the same 
 formularies of worship, and the same rules of disci- 
 pline; and that this sect has existed since the days 
 of the apostles. It has been shewn, that the church 
 of Rome cannot be that sect, unless you admit her 
 plea to the divine attribute of infallibility: and the 
 fallacy of this pretension, has been so often expose 
 ed, that it is quite unnecessary to dwell upon it here : 
 The church of England cannot be that sect, because 
 it has existed only for a few centuries ; and I w^ill 
 defy any man to prove that sucli a sect is in existence. 
 The church of Christ does not consist of any one 
 sect exclusively, but of the virtuous among all sects.. 
 
 The apostles of Christ had no idea of uniformity 
 ih the constitiition of Christian churches. They 
 • z3 
 
270 
 
 made no other creed than tlic scriptures. "No per- 
 son now is so ignorant as, to beheve, that what i.-> 
 called, " The Apostles' Creed," was composed by 
 them. They made no liturgy to be used in public 
 worship, but left every church to manage this im- 
 portant business as well as it could. What is said 
 to prove that they composed forms of prayer, by in- 
 spiration, for the use of the church, does not deserve 
 serious consideration. If they made a prayer-book, 
 how happened it that it was not preserved as well as 
 their other writings ? They had no uniform plan of 
 discipline. The apostles themselves, and Timothy 
 and Titus, who were all itinerant preachers, execut- 
 ed discipline in the churches they founded and visit- 
 ed, during their stay. In their absence this power 
 was exercised by the presbyters; and where there 
 were no presbyters, as at Corinth, the people did 
 this business themselves. Presbyters were sometimes 
 appointed by apostles, or evangelists ; and sometimes, 
 with the consent of the people, they were self-ap- 
 pointed. These things have been proved at large in 
 the Essay on Ordination. Here then was as great 
 a difference between many apostolic churches, as 
 there is in the present day between many sects and 
 parties. This diversity of the primitive churches 
 is perfectly inconsistent with our modern ridiculous 
 notions about uniformity. 
 
 It has been remarked already that our Lord ex- 
 cused the man who refused to join with the apostles, 
 and to submit to their authority, which he surely 
 would not have done had it been unlawful to refuse 
 
271 
 
 subjection to an holy apostolic church. Jesus said 
 to these apostolic silencers, " forbid him not ;" let 
 him go on casting out devils and making converts 
 in his owTi way. \Mien Paul was at the head of the 
 church of Rome, there was another sect in the city 
 which was opposed to his. Instead, however, of 
 abusing them as schismatics and heretics, he re- 
 joiced in the success of their labours, though they 
 thought to add affliction to his bonds. Phil. i. 16, 
 17, 18. Many will be of opinion that the apostle 
 Paul was the only infallible head the church of 
 Rome ever had, and he denounced no curses against 
 the separatists ; so that, if the popes are not even 
 more infallible than he was, they ought to wish suc- 
 cess to all denominations of chri tians. If Paul 
 sends no spiritual thunder against those who divide 
 from an apostolic church, the anathemas of priests 
 and bishops must be perfectly harmless. 
 
 After creed-making came into fashion, the articles 
 were very few for some time ; but after the council 
 of Nice they gradually swelled mto volumes. For 
 several centuries, each bishop made a creed and 
 liturgy for the use of his own church. This is 
 proved at large by Bingham, who observes, — " That 
 every bishop had at first the power and privilege to 
 compose and order the form of divine service for his 
 own church, I have shewed in another place, where 
 I had occasion to discourse of the independency of 
 bishops, and their absolute power in their own 
 church. Where among other things I observed, 
 that as they had the privilege to 'iS:o7'd their oxc?i 
 
272 
 
 creeds, so tliey had the privilege to frame their oicu 
 liturgy ; which privilege they retained for several 
 ages ; as may be confirmed by this farther and 
 most certain observation, — that when any new cjus- 
 copal church was taken and erected out of another, 
 the new-erected church was not oblioed to follow^ 
 the model and prescriptions of the old church, but 
 mic^ht frame to herself a form of divine service 
 agreeable to her own circumstances and condition." * 
 Add to this, what no one at all acquainted with 
 ecclesiastical history will dispute, that in the primi- 
 tive times the people chose their own bishops; and it 
 will appear very evident, that both people and 
 pastors, in those times, enjo^'cd much greater liberty 
 than the members of most modern national establish- 
 ments. It is true that when a minister preached 
 any doctrine which was supposed to be novel and 
 dangerous, he was called to account before a synod 
 or a council, and if his heresy was judged by the 
 majority to be damnable, he was excommunicated ; 
 but if he agreed in suhstance with his brethren, 
 nothing more was required. 
 
 From the above it is easy to see, that there w^as 
 nearly, if not quite as great a diverity of creeds and 
 prayers used in the churches of the orthodox in 
 primitive times, as is to be found among the dis- 
 senters of the present day. Were the church of 
 England really, as she is in pretence, constituted on 
 thJ^ plan of the primitive churches ; — were the people 
 allowed to elect their own pastors; and were the 
 
 * Bingham's Antiquities, bopk xiii. chap, r, section K 
 
273 
 
 pastors required to subscribe to no other articles 
 than what are generally believed to comprise the 
 essentials of Christianity, and left at liberty in other 
 respects to use their own creeds, prayers, rites, and 
 ceremonies, — nearly all the dissenters in the king- 
 dom would conform to the establishment. 
 
 Those who deem conformity to an established 
 church a matter of importance, must surely be con- 
 vinced that its terms of communion ought to be as 
 moderate and easy as possible. There never was a 
 church which carried uniformity so far, and which, 
 therefore, made conformity so difficult to a con- 
 scientious mind, as the church of England. Its 
 ministers are not permitted to use a single ceremony 
 or prayer but what is prescribed by the liturgy ; and 
 they are required to signify their unfeigned assent 
 and consent to every thing contained in it. The 
 only liberty allowed is in preaching; and it is 
 astonishing that churchmen, in their zeal for uni- 
 formity, did not get an act of parliament to banish 
 all sermons from the pulpit, except the homilies ; 
 for it must be as dangerous to permit a clergyman 
 to use his own composition in the pulpit as in the 
 reading desk. Even the pope permits different forms 
 of prayer to be used in different places ; and both 
 Pius IV, and Gregory XIII, offered to queen 
 Elizabeth to confirm the English liturgy. * 
 
 If dissent from the established church be a damnable 
 sin, nothing should be a term of communion in it ' 
 
 * De Laune's Plea for the Noncon. pages 59, 60^ 
 
274 
 
 that is not necessary to salvation. For admitting 
 every thing in the church to be scriptural, all men 
 are not capable of perceiving every religious truth ; 
 and if some men are kept out of the church in con- 
 sequence of their scru})les about matters of minor 
 importance, churchmen are guilty of sending such 
 men to hell for trifles. But the clergy carry mat- 
 ters still farther. They suppose they have authority 
 to enjoin things which, in their own nature, are in- 
 different, and have, accordingly, imposed a great 
 number of this description. All who are \ept out 
 of the church by a doubt whether our spiritual 
 lords can alter the nature of things, by making that 
 important w^hich of itself is indifferent, are sent to 
 the devil out of mere wantonness. "' Jf thy brother 
 be grieved with thy meat, now walkest thou not 
 charitably. Destroy not him with thy meat for 
 whom Christ died." 
 
 But imposing indifferent things, it seems, was not 
 sufficient; our subscription is required to contradic- 
 tions. We must subscribe to general redemption 
 in the communion service, and to predestination in 
 the 17th article. We must affirm, w^ith the office 
 for confirmation, that the laying on of the bishops' 
 hands is a sigfi of God's gracious goodness towards 
 us, and, with the 25th article, that " confirmation 
 has not any visible sig?i, or ceremony ordained of 
 God ;" /. e. that the bishops' hands are invisible at 
 the time of confirmation. But this difficulty, with 
 many others, may be got over by shutting our eyes ; 
 for then the laying on of hands, and all absurdities, 
 
215 
 
 will be literally invisible. We must believe two 
 creeds, one of wbicli curses all who deny the Son to 
 be of the same hypostasis with the Father, though 
 the other declares that they shall without doubt 
 perish everlastingly, v/lio do not hold that there is 
 o?ie hypostasis of the Father and another of the Son, 
 If we believe either of these creeds, we are cursed 
 by the other ; if we believe both of them, we are 
 doubly cursed, z. e. by each of them for believing the 
 other; and, if we believe neither of them, we are 
 trebly cursed, /. e, by the two creeds, and the church 
 which has imposed them. The church of England 
 W'as never, perhaps, more justly characterized, than 
 by the late Lord Chatham, when he said in the 
 house of Peers, " We, my Lords, have a Calvinistic 
 creed, a Popish liturgy, and an Arminian clergy.'* 
 
 Strict as the church is with respect to the oaths 
 and subscriptions she exacts from her ministers, it is 
 a fact that there is as great a diversity of opinions 
 among the clergy as among the dissenters. In the 
 church are to be found Calvinists and Arminian s, 
 Arians and Socinians, New-Jeinisalemites, &c. &c. &c. 
 The contentions between the rational and evangelical 
 clei'gy are much more fierce than any that are wit- 
 nessed between the different denominations of dis- 
 senters. In proportion to the strictness of the.terms 
 of communion in an established church, will be the 
 depravity of its ministers. The reason is plain. 
 Many conscientious men will be kept out by their 
 scruples ; but the large emoluments attached to a 
 state religion will operate as an irresistible tempta- 
 
276 
 
 tion to tlic iiiiprliicl[)lecl. Hypocrites, wliose godli- 
 ness is gain, will, without hesitation, signify their 
 unfeigned assent and consent to every thing that 
 may be exacted. Hence it is, that the most rigo- 
 rously^ constituted establishments will always contain 
 the largest proportion of hypocritical, profligate, 
 and heretical clergy. 
 
 These observations will receive a practical illus- 
 tration, by a reference to the period when our church 
 was settled upon its present plan. According to the 
 act of uniformity, all who did not subscribe their un- 
 feigned assent and consent, to all and every particu- 
 lar contained in the prayer-book, by August 21<th, 
 1662, were to be deprived of their ecclesiastical be- 
 nefices. When the day arrived, very few copies 
 were printed off, and i/ioiisands of the clergy sub- 
 scribed more flilly to a book fknj had never sec7i, 
 than any conscientious man could do even to the 
 bible. About two thousand worthies, whose reli- 
 gion consisted in something else than loaves and 
 fishes, nobly refused to set their hands to this monu- 
 ment of the wisdom and piety of Charles* bishops, 
 and were in consequence turned out of their livings ; 
 the rest demonstrated by their conduct, that they 
 were ready to subscribe to the Koran, or any thing 
 else, for a piece of bread. 
 
 From the great difference in men's education, op* 
 portunities, and intellect, it is unreasonable to ex- 
 pect that all men will see alike in all the minor 
 points of religion ; and therefore, no friend to chris- 
 
277 
 
 tian charity and peace, will make a number of un- 
 meaning and unimportant articles and ceremonies, 
 terms of communion. There is as much difference 
 in the size of men's souls as bodies, and as much 
 difference in their taste about religious ceremonies 
 as their dress. What would be thought of the legis- 
 lature which should enact, that all the members of 
 the political society should be of the same size, shape, 
 complexion, and features, and should all wear cloth- 
 ing of the same sort, colour, quality and make ? Yet 
 this would be as wise as the attempt to establish uni- 
 formity of religion by law. There never were two 
 men who believed exactly alike upon all religious 
 subjects. Suppose they subscribe to the same doc- 
 trine, they will explain it differently. For instance, 
 several men subscribe to the doctrine of atonement : 
 one believes that Christ actually suffered all that 
 the human race had merited of the wrath of God ; 
 another limits his sufferings to a select number ; a 
 third supposes there is virtue enough in his death 
 to atone for devils, though devils have no interest 
 in it; a fourth believes that devils may be saved 
 through his death; and a fifth that they actually 
 will. Some suppose that God made some abate- 
 ment to Christ from the quantum of suffering which 
 was due to our sins, on account of the dignity of 
 his person ; while others hold that no abatement 
 was made, but being sustained by the Godhead he 
 survived that stroke of divine wrath, which \Aas 
 sufficient to crush the human race for ever. One 
 believes that the pardon of sin, promised through 
 the atonement, is conditional; another, that it is 
 A a 
 
278 
 
 unconditional. Some hold, that the pardon is only 
 sins that are past, others extend it to sins to come ; 
 some say we are forgiven at the time of believing, 
 others that we were forgiven from all eternity, &c. 
 
 &G, &C. 
 
 Uniformity is unnatural. There never were two 
 men, whose persons, tempers, or dispositions were 
 exactly alike. Animals, vegetables, and, in short, 
 all the productions of nature, differ one from another ; 
 so that it is doubtful whether, since the creation, the 
 world has produced two blades of grass exactly si- 
 milar to each other. If uniformity were attained, it 
 would not exist a moment, because every substance 
 in nature is continually undergoing some change. 
 Our bodies are not two moments the same; some 
 matter is continually going off by insensible perspira- 
 tion. Hie same observation applies to all animals. 
 The whole face of nature is perpetually changing. 
 These two characteristics of all natural productions, 
 — an infinite variety and perpetual change, — are de- 
 structive of all uniformity. The deceptions appear- 
 ances of uniformity are disgusting. The mind be- 
 comes weary with bemg employed for a length of 
 time upon any one subject ; hence the necessity of 
 relaxation, and the pleasure derived from the con- 
 templation of new objects. It is owing to this dis- 
 position of mind, that we admire the grandeur and 
 glory of God as displayed in the infinite diversity and 
 continual revolutions of his works. And it is owing 
 to the same disposition of mind, that we are fatigued 
 with sameness, and gratified with variety in religion. 
 
279 
 
 Nothing has contributed more to that general indif- 
 ference to the national religion, which is so feelingly 
 deplored Jby many of its adherents, than a want of 
 variety : it is over and over and over again, the same 
 minister, the same tone of voice, the same creeds and 
 prayers, and an annual return of the same sermons. 
 
 Let it not be supposed^ however, that the diversi'r 
 ty here pleaded for in religious matters Is a diversi- 
 ty of error. Two creeds may differ in their phraseo- 
 logy, and yet agree in substance. How many of our 
 religious disputes have turned out at last, after the 
 contending parties have mutually explained them- 
 selves, to be merely disputes about words and not 
 things. And as two persons may hold the same 
 truth, but, by wording it differently, may misun- 
 derstand each other ; so the same form of words 
 may convey truth to one mind and error to another. 
 Though, the clergy all subscribe to the same words, 
 they do not all understand them in the same sense. 
 One says, the church of England is decidedly Cal- 
 vinistic; another, that she is Arminian; and a third, 
 that she is neither ejLclusively, but opens her arms 
 to embrace both ; only one of them, if any, can pos- 
 sibly be right. So liturgies may be differently word- 
 ed, and yet each contain a service which, when 
 used by devout minds, will be acceptable to God ; 
 and the extempore efRisions of others may not be 
 less agreeable ; but an undevout mind will spoil the 
 best form in the world. Most sects hold the essen- 
 tials of Christianity ; no one creed contains every 
 truth. The subordinate truths are divided amon<r 
 A a 2 
 
280 
 
 them ; each probably contains a few which are not 
 to be found in any of the others, and it is doubtful 
 whetlier every truth be contained in the. whole of 
 them. 
 
 Admitting there are some errors in each of the 
 sects, the cure is not to be found in acts of uni- 
 formity; for suppose the established religion to be 
 as true as the bible, it is equally liable to be mis- 
 understood, so that there will always be as great a 
 diversity of religious opinions in an establishment as 
 out of it. 
 
 The best w^ay to banish error out of the religious 
 world, is to let the pulpit be open to all. Upon 
 this plan every religious opinion will be fully dis- 
 cussed ; and as truth will shine out with a clearness 
 and lustre which no abilities can give to error, she 
 will finally illuminate the world. Thus it is in po- 
 litics. Before any measure is publicly canvassed, 
 there is generally a great diversity of opinion upon 
 it ; but after it has been fully and freely discussed 
 by the splendid abilities of our senators, the nation 
 at large, except a few interested individuals and their 
 partizans, generally agree in one sentiment. 
 
 This plan, also, would afford the best security 
 against the introduction of heresy. In places where 
 the ministry is restricted to a distinct order of men, 
 as in catholic countries, there we witness the reign 
 of ignorance and error. The reason is, — the people 
 arc not permitted to think and judge for themselves: 
 
28 1 
 
 they therefore quietly fall asleep in the arms of the 
 clergy, and content themselves with believing as the 
 church believes ; they believe every thing, and know 
 nothing. In this state of mind they are prepared to 
 receive every absurdity which the clergy can invent 
 for the benefit of their craft. It is in this way 
 our Lord accounts for the introduction of heresy. 
 " While men slept," says he, " the enemy sowed 
 his tares." 
 
 The greater part of the noble army of martyrs, 
 whose heroism is celebrated in our synagogues every 
 sabbath day, were persecuted to death for preaching 
 Christ in opposition to the authority of the church. 
 Our holding up these worthies to general admira- 
 tion shews that we approve of an independent spirit 
 in our ancestors ; and when we condemn this in the 
 moderns, we are only acting over again the farce of 
 the Jews, who, in the days of our Lord, built the 
 sepulchres of the ancient prophets, and murdered 
 their contemporaries. 
 
 The matters of principal moment are, to have a. 
 heavenly temper and disposition of mind, to act: 
 under the influence of pure principles and motives, 
 and to regulate the conduct by the divine precepts. 
 An agreement in these points is the only scripture 
 rule of unity and uniformity. A parrot may be 
 taught to repeat a creed, and a monkey to perform 
 the ceremonies of worship ; and these animals might 
 be made saints in comparison of many reputed 
 orthodox christians. Men in general have always 
 
 Aa3 
 
282 
 
 betrayed a propensity to lay more stress upon articles 
 of faith and rites of devotion, than upon purity of 
 heart and rectitude of conduct. If a man only 
 adopt the popular creed, and perform the prescribed 
 ceremonies, he may be a blasphemer, a drunkard, a 
 sabbath-breaker, an adulterer, &c. and there is little 
 the matter ; the wholesome and godly discipline of 
 the church is scarcely ever employed in the correc- 
 tion of these venial faults ; but should the same man 
 attend the conventicle and reform his life, he is im- 
 mediately an arch-heretic, a damnable schismatic, a 
 wild enthusiast; his rehgion is hypocrisy, his mo- 
 rality preciseness, and his end destruction. " Come 
 to church and obey the laws, and be a dissembler, 
 be a hypocrite, or a devil if thou wilt." Such was 
 the godly counsel of a pious and venerable reformer 
 to a scrupulous puritan. See Nealj vol. i. chap. viii. 
 
 FINIS. 
 
^tWto, 
 
 BY A CHURCHMAN. 
 
 IJf all the works which have come under our 
 notice, we do not recollect one equal to this for ig- 
 norance and presumption. Mr Isaac sets himself to 
 work to prove, that there has not been an uninter- 
 rupted succession of bishops, that ordination of 
 ministers is a ceremony destitute of scripture autho- 
 rity, and of no importance, that the pretence of 
 bishops to give the Holy Ghost in ordination is 
 mere farce, that learning is of no value to a clergy- 
 man, and that the only qualifications for the ministry, 
 of any consequence, are the enthusiasm and fanati- 
 cism of methodism. 
 
 To those of our readers who wish to see all the 
 absurdities and heresies of the sectaries, embodied 
 in a small publication, we can cordially recommend 
 this volume. What judge Jeffries said, with per- 
 haps too much warmth, of the works of Mr Baxter, 
 may be soberly affirmed of these pages, — that " they 
 are as full of poison as an egg's full of meat." 
 
284? 
 
 After the many masterly defences of our excellent 
 establishment which have of late years issued from 
 the press, it is perfectly unnecessary for us to enter 
 the lists with this puny antagonist. We are very 
 much deceived if there be not generally diffused 
 among our countrymen, too much intelligence to 
 permit them to be seduced by this incoherent rhap- 
 sody ; and we suspect, that when Mr Isaac comes 
 to settle with his bookseller, his book-making fever 
 will abate; — there is no danger of his insulting 
 a second time the good sense of the public. 
 
 Hitherto tlie sectaries have spoken with some de- 
 gree of modesty, when they have expressed the rea- 
 sons of their dissent from the national church ; but 
 this writer is the most vain and coxcombical scrib- 
 bler we have ever seen. The greatest champions 
 of our celestial hierarchy, whose piety and abili- 
 ties have been uniformly respected, and sometimes 
 even panegyrized by its greatest enemies, are treat* 
 ed by this important pei^onage, with the lordly air 
 of a village pedagogue correcting his refractory 
 school-boys. The reading of this book has con- 
 vinced us more than ever, of the necessity of re- 
 pressing these fanatics by some legislative enact- 
 ment ; for, if this insolence is to be tolerated, we 
 will venture to predict, without pretending to me- 
 thodistical inspiration, that the time is not far dis- 
 tant, " when the church of England shall be no 
 
285 
 
 [N. B. The author thinks the above critique will 
 very well suit the Monthty, Critical, Anti-jacobin, 
 Edinburgh, Quarterly, and British Reviews. He 
 begs leave to assure the editors, that they are at 
 perfect liberty to insert it in their respective publi- 
 cations, on the condition of paying him half a guinea 
 each, which he presumes to think, is a very moderate 
 price for an article so orthodox, and so elegantly 
 written.] 
 
ERRATA. 
 
 Page 9 line 18 for methodism, read mcthodisms. 
 
 — 20 24 for a point, read t/ic jmnt. 
 
 So 25 for Swcdenborgirms, read Swedenburgf'aiu 
 
 — — 86 — 4 delete and. 
 
 Printed by C. Stewart, Edinbiir<:h, 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 Page. 
 
 ESSAY I. 
 
 On the Uninterrupted Succession, ^ 29 
 
 ESSAY II. 
 On Ordination 80 
 
 ESSAY III. 
 On the Spiritual Gifts and Po'wers of the Clergy, 147 
 Section I. On the Gift of the Holy Ghost iii 
 
 Ordination .148 
 
 Section II. On Confirmation 161 
 
 Section III. On Baptism 167 
 
 Section IV. On the Lord's Supper, , . .170 
 
 Section V. On Absolution 172 
 
 Section VI. On the Burial Service, . . . 179 
 
 ESSAY IV. 
 On Learning 185 
 
 ESSAY V. 
 On Ministerial dualificatioiis 243