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 THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY 
 
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 THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY 
 

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THE TRIANGLE. 
 
 SERIES OF NUMBERS 
 
 UPON 
 
 THREE THEOLOGICAL POINTS • 
 
 ENFORCED FROM 
 
 Various Pulpits in the City of New-York. 
 
 BY 
 INVESTIGATOR. 
 
 PRINTED AND PUBLISHED FOR THE ATTTHOR. 
 V«n Wiokle & Wiley, Printers. 
 
 1816. 
 
/^r^i •i^ ,U 
 
DEDICATION. 
 
 To the People of JVeiv-York, 
 
 The first of the following numbers was pub» 
 lished in the New-York Courier. A note in that paper, 
 the following day, stated, that the editor of the paper 
 declined publishing the remainder of the work, be- 
 cause it was likely to give offence. I preferred a 
 public paper to a pamphlet form, for two reasons; one 
 was, that a newspaper is read by many persons who 
 seldom have leisure, or inclination, to labour through 
 the Essays on didactic theology, found in Magazines, 
 Sermons, and Systematic Discourses. The other was, 
 that I entered on the publication not as a theologian 
 or controversiahst, but as a spectator and reporter 
 
 of facts. 
 
 To be candid, the work was principally designed 
 for the edification of those who would be willing to 
 be styled high-toned Calvinists. And it may seem, 
 perhaps, to some, a little paradoxical, that the very 
 first number should kindle such a flame of resentment, 
 as to cause alarm to the editor, of whose correct taste 
 and liberal sentiments I have no doubt, when it is a 
 
IV 
 
 fact, that the number does no more than condemn a 
 sentiment which Calvin condemns, or, at any rate, 
 does not justify — I mean the imputation of the guilt of 
 Mam's sin to his posterity/, independently of their own 
 conduct and character. Neither Calvin, Luther, nor 
 Melancthon believed in that doctrine. 
 
 People of New- York, I desire you to take notice, 
 that these high-toned Calvinists were so enraged at 
 Calvin's own sentiments, that the editor of the Courier 
 was induced not to proceed. For your satisfaction 1 
 give you the words of Calvin. He sums up his opin- 
 on of original sin in few words: »' Videtur, ergo, 
 peccatum originale haereditare naturae nostrae pravitas 
 et corruptio, in omnes animas partes diffusa." Where- 
 fore, original sin seems to be the hereditary depravity atid 
 corruption of our nature diffused into all parts of the 
 soul. " Neque," subjoins Calvin, " ista est alieni de- 
 licti obligatio. Non ita est accipiendum, ac si, inson- 
 tes ipsi et immerentes, culpam delicti ejus sustinere- 
 mus." JYeither is that an obligation or accountableness 
 for another s fault. It is not to be understood as though 
 we, ourselves innocent, should sustain the blame of his 
 {^dam^s^ transgression. 
 
 I am aware that most people have not leisure to 
 examine authors. Those, however, that will take 
 that trouble, will perceive that the views of Ori- 
 ginal Sin, Depravity, and Atonement, advocated in 
 these numbers, are not peculiar to New-England, but, 
 on the contrary, have been known and maintained in 
 the church, by many of the ablest divines, since the 
 Reformation, and by a majority in the American 
 churches. 
 
But, fellow citizens, it is not so much with their 
 sentiments that I am disposed to contend, altJiough 
 they are sufficiently incorrect and erroneous; it is with 
 their horribly intolerant, bigoted, and persecuting 
 spirit; against which every man should hft his voice, 
 and proclaim his indignation. The holy fathers and 
 friars of the inquisitorial commission were never more 
 vindictive or implacable. It comes in thunders and 
 anathemas from their desks : in cants, whispers, and 
 innuendoes among the throng: it comes larded with 
 much holy grimace^ and many sanctimonious sighs, for 
 the credulous and pious ; with much logical jargon 
 and biblical criticism for smatterers ; with spleen and 
 gall enough, when the company has sufficient pride 
 and malice to bear it ; and with firebrands for all the 
 young foxes they can catch. When they have ex- 
 hausted their topics of argument, and that they can 
 soon do, without a miracle, they resort to sarcasm and 
 ridicule, and here their talents are wonderful : Her- 
 cules often comes in " head and shoulders." 
 
 These gentlemen surely forget the age and country 
 in which they live, by three hundred years. They 
 ought to feel comfortable whilst others think for 
 themselves. And one object of these numbers is to 
 remind them, that they live in the year 1816. A man 
 in this city does not expect lo share the fate of Ser- 
 vetus, though he should differ from Calvin. I will 
 not say what a man ought to expect when he is so for- 
 tunate as not to diffisr with Calvin. 
 
 I. 
 
THE TRIANGLE, 
 
 No. I. 
 
 It is an old, and perhaps will be regarded as a trite saying, that 
 the decline of morality, in a nation, precedes and ensures the 
 decline of its prosperity. The tendency of the increase of 
 wealth, numbers, and refinement, to a deterioration of morals, is 
 exemplified in the history of the greatest nations, and is too ob- 
 vious to require proof, and too well known to need illustration. 
 Happy would it be for mankind, if the natural tendency of na- 
 tions and societies to sink into luxury, extravagance, dishonesty, 
 and all the extremes of immorality, were not, in many instances, 
 aided by the very means and institutions which are professedly 
 established for the opposite purpose. 
 
 Even religion, descended from Heaven, arrayed in the beauties 
 of virtue, and her head encompassed with the rays of divinity, 
 has been counterfeited, her institutions perverted, her doctrines 
 corrupted, her glories sullied : so that, instead of presenting aoy 
 barrier to vice, or any check to immorality, she has often become 
 their most efficient auxiliary. It has been the boast, perhaps 
 the felicity of this city, that it abounds more than any other city 
 with institutions designed to favour morality ; and while I leave 
 it for the reader to judge for himself, of the effect and success of 
 these instifufiohs, I am concerned to say that, in my opinion, 
 some of the most showy and prepossessing, at any rate, the most 
 noisy means used to promote morality and religion in this city, 
 are amongst the most useless, false, and hollow. I refer to no- 
 thing less than (he strain of preaching continually and incessant- 
 ly used, in many of the pulpits of this city ! 
 
 I have no controversy with any one, nor do I enter on this 
 subject in any other than a political point of view. I consider 
 
moralily as the liigheat ornament and strongest bulwark of soci^ 
 ety; vvhatever, tncrefore, diminishes the motives and weakens 
 the obligations to inorality, comes no less under the animadver- 
 sion of tli« politician than of the divine : as it surely no less im- 
 pairs the temporal than the spiritual interests of the community. 
 There are a few points which go perpetually into the strain of 
 preaching of certain genUemen : and theirschememay be com- 
 pared to a triangle, from which they never depart, and in which, 
 if they step out of one angle, their next step is into another ; the 
 succeeding one, into the one from whence they started. 
 
 The want of variety might be compensated by force and ex- 
 pansion of talents, were their angular scheme laid, both as to its 
 sides and angles, in the great field of truth. 
 
 Tiieir scheme commences by teaching that the whole human 
 race are guilty of the sin of Mam, independently of their own 
 conduct, and for that sin are truly deserving of eternal punish- 
 ment. We are apt to take our opinions on the credit of venera- 
 ble names, and very many names deemed venerable, if weighed 
 in the balance of unerring truth, would be found to have derived 
 their importance from a long and industrious propagation of er- 
 ror. Probably no individual man yet had time, candour, pa- 
 tience, and resolution, to examine and substantiate, on proper 
 evidence, the whole mass of his opinions. Few men proceed 
 to any considerable length in this arduous work. They take 
 their opinions, nay, their articles of faith, as they do the fashion 
 of their garments, not upon a careful inquiry, whether they are 
 the best, but upon the testimony of the tailor who makes them, 
 that they are in the fashion. 
 
 The doctrine of original sin, as just stated, is thus received 
 by its ad vocal es. It has descended from the lumber and trash 
 of the dark times of ignorance and superstition, mysticism and 
 bigotry. The great reformers did nobly, but they did not do 
 every thing. They merit the ap})roba(ion of men, and met with 
 divine acceptance for what they did, and are certainly to be ex- 
 cused for what they omitted, in their great work. I speak as 
 though the reformers held the doctrine of original sin according 
 to the tenor of the preceding statement. Some of them did° 
 others did not ; and the truth is, that a candid examination of the' 
 
9 
 
 sentiments of the fathers — of the most learned and judicious 
 divines in Europe, before the reformation, and since, will show 
 beyond all dispute, that the above statement of the doctrine of 
 original sin has never been the general or prevailing opinion of 
 the Christian church. 
 
 Yet you shall hear it inculcated from Sabbath to Sabbath in 
 many of our churches, and swallowed down, as a sveeet morsel, 
 by many a gaping mouth, that a man ought to feel himself actu- 
 ally guilty of a sin committed six thousand years before he was 
 born : nay, that, prior to all consideratiou of his own moral con. 
 duct, he ought to feel himself deserving of eternal damnation for 
 the first sin of Adam. I hesitate not to say, that no scheme of 
 religion ever propagated amongst men, contains a more mon- 
 strous, a more horrible, tenet. The atrocity of this doctrine is 
 beyond comparison. The visions of the Koran, the fictions of 
 the Sadder, the fables of the Zendavesta all give place to this : — 
 Rabinical legends, Brahminical vagaries, all vanish before it. 
 
 The idea, that all the numerous millions of Adam's posterity 
 deserve the ineffable and endless torments of hell, for a single 
 act of his, before any one of them existed, is repugnant to that 
 reason which God has given us, is subversive of all possible con- 
 ceptions of justice. No such doctrine is taught in the scriptures, 
 or can impose itself on any rational mind, which is not trammel- 
 led by education, dazzled by interest, warped by prejudice, and 
 bewildered by theory. — Thi^ is one corner of the triangle above 
 mentioned. 
 
 This doctrine perpetually urged, and the subsequent strain of 
 teaching usually attached to it, will not fail to drive the incau- 
 tious mind to secret and practical, or open infidelity. An at- 
 tempt to force such monstrous absurdities on the human under, 
 standing, will be followed by the worst effects. A man who finds 
 himself condemned for that of which he is not guilty, will feel 
 little regret for his real transgressions. 
 
 I shall not apply these remarks to the purpose I had in view, 
 till I have considered some other points of a similar character ; — 
 or, if I may resort to the metaphor alluded to, till I have pointed 
 out the other two angles of the triangle. 
 
 INVESTIGATOR. 
 2 
 
10 
 
 No. II. 
 
 Whether it maybe termed a disposition, or passion, or call- 
 ed by any other name, there is something in some men which 
 may be denominated an humble pride. I fear, could it be ana. 
 lyzed, it would not be found to want any of the most virulent 
 qualities of the true and old fashioned pride, known in the world 
 ever since the fall of man, and which, indeed, threw a morning 
 star from heaven, before it inflamed man to rebellion. It seems 
 to be the pride of the gentlemen alluded to in the preceding 
 number, to plunge down human nature as low as possible. They 
 are by no means satisfied with laying the whole human race un- 
 der the ban of eternal damnation, for an act which was commit- 
 ted before any of them existed ; — they go much farther. And 
 this brings me to the second angle of the true diagram of their 
 scheme. 
 
 They teach, and strenuously insist, that all men labour under a 
 true and physical incapacity to do any thing which God requires. 
 To this total and universal inability they deny all figurative or 
 metaphysical import, and contend that men are as truly, and in 
 the same sense, unable to obey .the law of God as they are to 
 overturn the Andes, or drain the ocean. What do we bear next ? 
 They turn immediately round, and exhort their hearers, with 
 great pathos, to do every thing which God requires, and denounce 
 their disobedience as meriting eternal damnation. Nay, this in- 
 ability and thraldom, in its whole extent, they carry back to the 
 original fountain of their guilt and condemnation, and say that 
 it was all done in Adam ; — that all the human race were made 
 guilty, and were wholly incapacitated to do any good act, in their 
 first father. Nevertheless, they go on with mighty eloquence to 
 exhort them to do every duty. 
 
 Had I not already said that their notion of original sin con- 
 tained the most monstrous error ever advanced in any scheme 
 of religion, I should be tempted to say the same of this. But I 
 will venture to say I think tliem both infinitely distant from the 
 truth Bt't, says tlu^ advocate of these truly tremendous and de- 
 testable tenets, '' This is Calvinism ; and dare you dispute Cm 
 
11 
 
 viN ?" To which I reply, If Calvin believed in these doctrines, 
 which we deny, he must have derived his light therein, for aught 
 I know, from the flames of Servetus ; indeed, they more resem- 
 ble the light of infernal than celestial fire. 
 
 This doctrine of man's inability is an insult to every man's 
 nnbiassed understanding — to the light of his conscience. It is 
 contrary to the whole current of the sacred scriptures : and, in- 
 deed, its warmest advocates are tempted to contradict themselves 
 every moment ; and when they preach best, this temptation is 
 eflectual ; or, to say the least, their contradictions are seldom 
 farther apart than the improvement from the sermon. Their 
 preaching often reminds me of the mode of writing used by some 
 ancient nations, which was from left to right, and from right to 
 left, alternately crossing the page in opposite directions. 
 
 These gentlemen, however, might be laid off into different 
 sections. Some of them, aware of the inconsistency, frankly own 
 that wicked men are under no obligation to love or obey God : 
 and thus, for the sake of theory and system, plunge still deeper 
 in error. Others boldly deny all moral agency to mankind : — 
 others again contend that men are moral agents to do wrong, but 
 not to do right; evincing still more ignorance of the philosophy 
 of the human mind than of the word of God. 
 
 Is it wonderful that there should be so many Gallios in this 
 city ? That so many should with scornful smile turn from this 
 monstrous jargon, and cry out, *' Wretched mysticism ! — Rid- 
 dles ! — contradictions ! — What, was I rendered, by Adam's first 
 act of sin, a criminal deserving endless torments ? Was I, at the 
 same time, totally incapacited to yield obedience to the Al- 
 mighty Ruler ? Was I bound had and foot six thousand years 
 ago, and rocks of adamant laid on the seal of my eternal perdition? 
 Impossible ! The glorious volume of nature itself contradicts all 
 this, and shows me a far different character of my Creator and 
 Preserver." 
 
 INVESTIGATOR. 
 
12 
 
 No. III. 
 
 We come to the third and last great point of their system of 
 theology, which makes out the triangle, from which, as I said, 
 they do not depart. They tell you there is a remedy for a part 
 of mankind ; Christ has died for an elect number. They, and 
 they only> enjoy an ofiTer of salvation; and for them alone is pro- 
 vision made. On the contrary, they plumply deny that " Christ 
 Jias tasted death for every man /' they will by no means allow 
 that *' He is a propitiation for the sins oj' the whole world -"^ they 
 abhor the idea of going '■^into all the world and preaching the 
 gospel to every creature.''^ They would tell you, that if they could 
 distinguish who the elect are, in their assemblies, they should 
 preach the gospel only to them ; they should tell them that Christ 
 died only for them : but, as for the rest, they should preach no- 
 thing but the certainty of eternal damnation. 
 
 Nor does this, though it gives the lines of the triangle, display 
 the worst features of their scheme. They go on to state, that 
 even the elect are not bound to believe in the Saviour, or to love 
 and obey him, till he has convinced them, in a supernatural way, 
 that he died for them. Thus, to the grossest error in doctrine 
 adding the basest selfishness in heart and practice. Nothing of- 
 fends them so deeply as the assertion, that the perfection and 
 glory of the Saviour are the highest motives of love and obe- 
 dience to him. Yet, as for the non-elect, they assure them that 
 their condemnation will be vastly aggravated for rejecting sal- 
 vation by Christ. 
 
 The whole of their doctrine, then, amounts to this, that a man 
 is, in the tirst place, condemned, incapacitated, and eternally re- 
 probated for the sin of Adam : in the next place, that he is con- 
 demned over again, for not doing that which he is totally, in all 
 respects, unable to do ; and, in the third place, that he is con- 
 demned, and doubly and trebly condemned, for not believing in 
 a Saviour, who never died for him,«nd with whom he has no 
 more to do than a fallen angel. 
 
13 
 
 This is what I call strong meat, and the stomach which can 
 digest such food, can, I should think, digest iron and adamant. 
 The natural and necessary deductions from these leading tenetS) 
 their various ramifications and subordinate collateral branches, 
 exert a deep influence, and diffuse an alarming complexion over 
 the whole plan of revelation. These teachers have turned their 
 faces towards the ages of darkness, and are travelling back with 
 rapid strides to the jargon of schoolmen, and the reveries and 
 superstitions of Monks. Were a painter to draw an emblem of 
 their plan, you would see the distorted phiz, squinting eye, and 
 hasgard features of perfect selfishness, mounted on the huge, 
 inflated, and putrescent carcass of Antinomianism. 
 
 Whether they admit or deny the doctrine of moral ngency, 
 their crude notions of that, and other things correlative, amount 
 to an absolute and universal virtual denial of it : of course, their 
 scheme embraces the strongest and most odious features of fa- 
 talism, or, raiher that men are mere machines, dead as inorganic 
 matter. Tbej' have no notion of moral virtue as an exercise of 
 the human mind ; they even wish that phrase expunged from 
 our language. Of course, their sermons generally lie within the 
 narrow limits already marked out; which they are pleased to 
 style, preaching Christ. 
 
 To this it is proper to add, that they are tenacious of their 
 own opinions, and intolerant of those of others in no ordinary 
 degree. I shall justify this remark, by simply adverting to the 
 recent expulsion of a young man, of unblemished character 
 and respectable talents, from a theological seminary in this 
 city. I cannot but notice, as an extraordinary coincidence, that 
 the very man who expelled him has, at this time, come out and 
 astonished the world by a pompous and flaming production in 
 ia.vour of general communion, Catholicism, and Christian charity. 
 I wish he would inform the world whether he intends they shall 
 follow his hook, or his example. I cannot express what gratitude 
 I feel to providence, that though Bonner and Gardiner should 
 revive, they would not find, in this country, a government ready 
 to second their intolerance by the flames of persecution. The 
 tiger may show his teeth and growl, but he cannot bite. 
 
 INVESTIGATOR. 
 
14 
 
 No. IV. 
 
 With no design to exaggerate or colour too highly, I have, in 
 the preceding numbers, given a sketch of the incessant strain of 
 preaching pursued in many congregations of this city. I have 
 not misrepresented, neither have I withheld the truth. As I said, 
 I have no controversy with any man : and am willing to give full 
 credit to the learning and talents of many who teach these doc- 
 trines. Indeed, I have a charitable hope that some of them 
 imagine they are labouring in the cause of truth. But truth will 
 one day instruct them that, as " they have sown the wind they 
 shall reap the whirlwind." 
 
 I will not undertake to say that all the vices of the city are 
 chargeable to the account of their errors ; far from it ; but I will 
 undertake to say that their doctrines are calculated, and tend, 
 to drive men to scepticism, deism, atheism, libertinism; nay, to 
 madness. The rash and unwary man that enters their assembly 
 is amazed to hear his assent challenged to propositions from 
 which his understanding revolts with horror: assertions are ar- 
 rogantly, as it were, crammed down his throat, which insult his 
 reason. He is told he can do nothing, yet threatened with end- 
 less perdition for his neglect. He is condemned for a sin he never 
 committed; commanded to do what he is told he cannot do; 
 and exhorted to believe in a Saviour who never died for him. 
 
 The muddiness, the confusion, the arrogance with which these 
 sentiments are hurled forth in a storm of popular eloquence, or 
 shall I say vociferation, precludes all possibility of conviction. 
 One man sits and hears it with that kind of stupid amazement 
 with which we hear a hail storm rattling upon the roof, and 
 thunder rolling over our heads, till he is stunned into a kind of 
 thoughtless reverie, and gathers as much from it as Cushi di<l 
 from the defeat of Absalom : " I saw a great tumult, my lord, O 
 king, but knew not what it was." Another hears it with con- 
 tempt and secret indignation, and as he retires, musing, says to 
 himself, " Are these the boasted principles and doctrines of reli- 
 gion, said to be so luminous, so simple, so rational, so intelligible, 
 so convincing ?" But these teachers will tell him, for his consola- 
 
lb 
 
 ^ion, " No wonder you don't understand these truths, for they 
 are evangelical truths, and you are a natural man ; therefore, you 
 cannot understand them." Wretched subterfuge ! As wise and 
 as profound as if a man should say to me that " two and two are 
 fifteen, and it is only because you want mathematical skill that 
 you can't perceive it." Alas ! what huge masses of flummery, 
 falsehood, false doctrine; what immense cargoes of wood, hay, 
 and stubble, the lumber and trash of speculation and fanaticism, 
 are vended as evangelical truth, which the. natural man cannot 
 understand ! 
 
 These teachers are often heard to bewail the departure of Bos- 
 ton from the faith, and I will not deny that there is much, very 
 much, in Boston, to be lamented, on the ground of the decay of 
 morals and sound principles ; but this I say and predict, as the 
 fate of this city, should the masses of people increase, who are 
 the followers, catechumens, admirers, and hearers of these teach- 
 ers, and I perceive the ichneumon of ambition to hare smitten 
 these gentlemen with fangs of no ordinary venom, for they aim 
 to be the head and not the tail, the following consequences may 
 be expected : 
 
 1. The strain of preaching will abound more with empty de- 
 clamation, and less with good sense : for, even now, every young 
 man that issues from their school " outHerods Herod:'''' bold as- 
 sertions will take the place of arguments ; and authority that of 
 evidence : confusion and obscurity will be gazed at, with awful 
 solemnity, as the profound of heavenly wisdom, and a set of cant 
 phrases consecrated as the true language of Zion. 
 
 2. The churches, even the special flock of these teachers — the 
 most pious and discriminating among them, will not be instructed, 
 indoctrinated, or well informed, for they will not have the means 
 of information, being taught to regard sound reasoning as world- 
 ly wisdom, just distinctions as metaphysical poison, and the 
 dogmas of their teachers as spiritual truth. 
 
 3. The great mass of their congregations will throng their 
 churches from Sabbath to Sabbath, with a perfectly vacant cu- 
 riosity, some to hear eloquence, as they go to hear Cooper at 
 the theatre, not caring what he says : some to see fashions — to 
 ineet company :— very innocently believing, because so taught^ 
 
16 
 
 that religion is a matter nowise connected with man's intel- 
 lectual and moral powers, tliey will hear with calm indifiference 
 every thing as it comes; the anomalous monsters of the doctrine 
 will float through their imaginations as things of course, or as an 
 April shadow over a hill : the awful themes of guilt, sin, and dam- 
 nation reverberate from their ears as from the cold and deaf walls ; 
 and if they take the least notice of what is said, it will be only to 
 say, " Very well, I can't help it." 
 
 4. From these immense beds of mental inaction, and moral 
 deformity, will spring a race of *' serpents," which empty decla- 
 mation cannot frighten, and a reason totally blind cannot pursue 
 or parry. In a city like this, there are great numbers of youth 
 of elevated minds, quick conceptions, strong passions, and liberal 
 education. They know that reason was not given to man to be 
 trammeled with absurdities, and trampled in the dust. They 
 will turn indignant from these " strange doctrines, and will 
 prefer rather to follow the light of nature :" or, perhaps, they will 
 say, " If these doctrines be true, my condition cannot be worse 
 than it is ; and, at any rate, I cannot make it any better by my 
 exertions. Let me then enjoy pleasure while I can." 
 
 These doctrines have already produced such reasonings, and 
 such resolutions. They have already taken deep root, and shot 
 up into an enormous growth ; and while these teachers are look- 
 ing abroad to other cities with proud comparison, and self-ap- 
 plauding pity, they have around them, and near them, in their 
 congregations, I will not say in their churches, a myriad of unbe- , 
 lievers of their own forming. They are converts in terms, but 
 infidels in fact. They assent with wonderful facility to all they 
 hear. " O yes ! it is all very true." But then, in the secret coun- 
 sels of their own hearts, they are behind a screen at all points. 
 They look on the deluge or the rainbow with equal eye. They 
 hear the thunders of the law, or the accents of mercy, with equal 
 feeling and temper. They are fortitied with boldness, armed with 
 pride, seasoned with selfishness. Talk to them about the guilt 
 of sin; they throw it all back on Adam : about duty to God ; they 
 say, " I cannot perform it; and you teach me so." Allude to a 
 Saviour, they reply, " Perhaps he did not die for me, and, if so, 
 there is no provision, even if I should believe ; besides, you al- 
 
17 
 
 low, and you teach, that I am under no obligation to believe, 
 till the Saviour shows me that I am one of his. But if I am, in 
 reality, one of his, he will, in his own time and way, show me 
 that I am such. Therefore, I am at rest." 
 
 Streams of error, however specious, however popular, con- 
 tinually pouring through a mass of population, will produce ef- 
 fects. Like a river whose deep and rapid waters eat and un- 
 dermine its banks, they threaten extensive and inevitable de- 
 struction. If the lapse of years shall not show, that the aggre- 
 gate of people, who have steadily heard these doctrines, have 
 become irreligious, profligate, and abandoned ; if successive ge- 
 nerations of youth who shall arise under such moral and intel- 
 lectual culture, do not grow up progressively ignorant, disso- 
 lute, and profane, I shall rejoice to have it appear that my fore- 
 bodings were groundless. But as I am fully aware that the di- 
 vine blessing is necessary to render even the truth successful, I 
 am equally sure that the God of truth does not crown with his 
 blessing the ministration of error. 
 
 5. Religion itself, when it has the misfortune to spring up, or 
 by any means be placed under this regimen, will not fail to wear 
 an aspect sickly and repulsive : it is an exotic in these soils, and 
 will resemble a fair plant brought from the genial climes of sum- 
 mer, to pine beneath the northern blast, or be smothered in this 
 gaseous fumes of a hot-house. Error, even in the abstract doc- 
 trines and speculations of theology, exerts a direct influence on 
 a man's conduct; and there are few common maxims more false 
 or pernicious than that if a man acts right it is no matter what 
 his speculative notions are. Show me a strenuous believer in 
 the doctrine of original sin, as above stated, and I will show you 
 a man who, generally speaking, feels no very acute sense of the 
 demerit of sin. He views it as a kind of inevitable constitution 
 of things, which must, indeed, be just, because God is just ; he 
 views it as a kind of grand mysterious artifiee, to the bottom of 
 which he cannot see; as a kind of technica theologica, which 
 never did, and never will, give any human soul any very pun- 
 gent feelings. When he contemplates Adam's act, he does not 
 feel like the murderer, who, while he washes his hands, fancies 
 
 he sees the crimson stain return. The idea of guilt transferred 
 
 3 
 
18 
 
 does uot wither and blast the soui of the criminal like that of 
 actual transgression. 
 
 Again; the man who believes in a fatal natural incapacity to 
 obey God, derived even from the first progenitor of men, must 
 view it with the same tone of feeling as he views transferred 
 guilt. He did not choose the condition in which to be born, 
 and cannot feel himself in any way accountable for it. He may, 
 indeed, consider it as a very bad condition, but then he had no 
 hand in it, and can feel no blame for it, any more than a man 
 can feel blameworthy because he was born in Europe and not 
 in America. In a word, he views it in the same mysterious, the 
 same technical light he does the doctrine before mentioned; 
 and whatever he may pretend, his own heart will secretly say 
 to him, " What I cannot do, 1 cannot, and why should I give 
 myself unavailing trouble concerning it ?" 
 
 Again ; this Christian believes that Christ died for him, ob 
 which account, he thinks he loves him very much. Well, and 
 what certain evidence of goodness is there in all this ? " Do not 
 even sinners love those that love them?" Is it a high evi- 
 dence of a man's piety, that he feels grateful to any one who 
 has done him a great favour? — Surely not. But to maintain 
 their ground here, they are pushed forward to say that there is, 
 in fact, no such thing as disinterested love. They even endea- 
 vour to throw ridicule upon the phrase, as without meaning — 
 a phrase as old as our language, and conveying an idea as old as 
 religion itself. But, for this they have a very obvious motive ; 
 because it presents a sword, if I may so say, to the very bosom 
 and heart of their scheme. But there is another term which 
 worries them still more than this, and that is selfishness — they 
 cannot bear it; they wince under it, and would fain endeavour 
 to expunge that also from our language. To use a low compa- 
 rison, it offends them as deeply as it did the tailor, in the old 
 story, to hear the name of cracklouse. " So saying, thou re- 
 proachest us also." They seem to feel that their scheme is a 
 selfish one. And if, in fact, to make our own interest and hap- 
 piness the highest and ruling motive of our conduct, may be 
 termed selfishness, their scheme of religion is purely selfish. 
 
 Aud while 1 cast no personal reflections, I do not hesitate to 
 
19 
 
 say, that men ardently attached to these speculative notions, 
 have never been found to be remarkably benevolent in their con- 
 duct. They are accused of sourness, bigotry, narrowness. I 
 appeal to the eye of the public. Let every man judge for him- 
 self. There are certainly exceptions to this remark : but even 
 numerous and splendid exceptions cannot impair a general rule. 
 
 Let the word selfishness be expunged from our language, be- 
 cause certain religious sectarians avow it to be right, yet do not 
 relish the term on account of a popular odium attached to it: — 
 expunge also the word disinterested, partly because an un- 
 meaning term, though Addison, Johnson, Watts, Tillotson, and 
 Baxter, knew its meaning well, and thought it important and ap- 
 propriate, when applied to certain actions; and partly because, if 
 it mean any thing, its meaning is far too pure and lofty to be ap- 
 plied to fallen man : — expunge also the term virtue, because they 
 say there is no such thing in either saints or sinners, and you will 
 avoid much cause of offence to the advocates of these doctrines. 
 But when you find a man avowedly selfish, never disinterested, 
 and never virtuous, what sort of a man will he be? I answer, la 
 religion he will be an Essene ; — full of contemplation — high 
 frames — heated zeal — lofty conceits — great confidence — and' 
 much holier than others : — but he is as soon cold as hot. In the • 
 world, and in business, he is steady to his text j — selfish — never 
 disinterested — and not remarkably virtuous. Yes, he vibrates 
 
 rapidly from the ardours of Vesuvius, to the chill of Greenland 
 
 burning or freezing whatever he touches. This is what I call 
 an Antinomian. 
 
 The question is, how a religion of this complexion will affect 
 the character, morals, and future welfare of this great city. A 
 question of moment ; — a question in which religious teachers 
 have some concern, since they are answerable for its effects. 
 Foster has shown in his Essay, on that subject, why men of taste 
 and learning are often found to despise religion. He says, it Is 
 because it is frequently obtruded upon their attention in a garb 
 unsuitable to its character : and, I say,oftener because its lovely 
 features are distorted— its glorious doctrines perverted— though, 
 oftener still, because they are unfriendly to the carnal mind. If 
 the officers sent to apprehend our Saviour, when they heard him, 
 
20 
 
 cried out, " Never man spake like this man !" — the man of taste 
 and learning, who hears these doctrines, will cry out in a similar 
 manner, but wilh a different import. 
 
 Alas ! I forsee the effects of the scheme ; and I remark, in the 
 last place, 
 
 6. If its most pious and devout followers derive from it an as= 
 pect unlovely and repulsive ; — if it obscure tiie beauties of reli- 
 gion, it will surely present no barrier to vice : — if it deform the 
 noblest system of truth ever presented to the human mind, it 
 will no less facilitate the advancement of dangerous errors, with 
 progressive influence, and with the power of an extended lever. 
 When Paul reasoned of rigbteou?ness, temperance, and judg- 
 ment, Felix trembled. There is a power in gospel truth to carry 
 conviction to the heart, which shall influence men's conduct — 
 which shall impose at least a partial restraint, though the work 
 be not profound, and the reformation total and lasting. But it is 
 the singular infelicity of these doctrines, not to impose, but to re- 
 move restraint; to promote pride, and not humility: — it is not 
 the trumpet of alarm, but the deadly soporific potion, that lulls 
 to security, inaction, and repose. Nothing but a consciousness 
 of wilful neglect can awaken the mind to a sense of guilt : — 
 nothing but transgressions, far nearer home than Adam, pointy 
 the soul to the dark avenue of perdition. 
 
 The extent and prevalence of the influences of these doctrines, 
 in this city, is a proof that God intends to scourge it. They will 
 not produce reformation. They will not stimulate people to good 
 works ; and as they sweep ofl* all pretensions to moral virtue at 
 one blow—all due consciousness of guilt, at another — all etforts 
 to obtain salvation, at a third — they shut the book of God, and 
 substitute for its dictates the expositions of a set of men who un- 
 blushingly profess to be selfish and interested in all they do. 
 
 I have hitherto taken no notice of the ulterior consequences 
 of these tenets, or the influence they will exert on the eternal in- 
 terests of mankind. I have considered religious institutions as a 
 dvil or political good. In this light I am concerned to percieve 
 this unwholesome strain of public instruction gradually under* 
 apining the main pillars of moral, consequently, of social virtue. 
 
 INVESTIGATOR. 
 
21 
 
 No. V. 
 
 I SAID the catechumens, admirers, and special flock of these 
 teachers, had not the means of becoming thoroughly indoctri- 
 nated in the various subjects of revelation. They sehlom go out 
 of the triangle, unless it be by some of those fortunate self con- 
 tradictions, in which they unconsciously stumble into the field 
 of truth. They then sometimes speak well for a few minutes. 
 
 " Purpureas pannus qui splendeat unus et alter.'' 
 
 But these scattered, splendid patches, are not shades which 
 heighten the beauties of a picture, but accidental lights which 
 discover the terrors of a dungeon. There is another privation 
 far more to be lamented than this. The throngs of people who 
 statedly attend their instructions, are carefully prevented from 
 imbibing any different system. Even in this land of liberty and 
 free discussion, it is incredible with what sqccess these practices 
 are attempted. The people, for the most part, are persuaded, 
 every man, to put on his own bandage about his eyes and ears. 
 Those who would not readily do that, are effectually cutoff from 
 all access to light by other means. The bustle, business, andhui <y 
 of a great city, prevents thousands from taking time for much 
 inquiry. As to books, they are good or bad, at once, according to 
 the ipse dixit of Dr Buckram, for who is so good a judge as he? — 
 As to |)reaching, every preacher is eventually excluded from 
 their pulpits, unless he is known to be a faithful disciple of their 
 scheme; i. e. triangular — and their people are most assiduously 
 dissuaded from going to other churches, even occasionally. If 
 any one, who has by chance ascended one of their desks, hap- 
 pens to strike on a string which does not vibrate in unison with 
 theirs, they are offended — they clamour, censure, inveigh ; he is 
 accused of gross indelicacy, and high presumption. But, as for 
 them, they never quit their triangle, preach where they will, or 
 when they may ; nor do they fail to call to their aid whatever 
 they ean command of argument, satire, or ridicule. 
 
 I hope I shall not be thought censorious, but, however that 
 
22 
 
 may be, I shall not refrain from the truth, which is unchangeable 
 and immortal. These gentlemen, in manoeuvring occasionally 
 display two sets of colours. There needs no greater proof of this 
 than the book before alluded to, on " general communion " Had 
 the author^'s pen been plucked from the wings of the graces, and 
 dipped in the colours of the rainbow : — had the leaves of his book 
 been composed of the flowers, and perfumed with the dews of 
 Paradise, it could not have been a more charitable, loving, bland 
 production. But is the man always so ? Was he so when he 
 
 expelled Mr. D from his seminary ? 
 
 Who does he expect to allure to his arms by this gentle warbling 
 on the soft tones of love and union ? Surely, none of the mighty 
 multitude of Christians composing three-fourths of that profes- 
 sion in the United States ; for he has cut them all asunder by one 
 expulsion. Had they but one neck, he would serve them as 
 Nero wished to serve the Romans, i. e. in an ecclesiastical sense. 
 He has put them all into the " snare of the Devil," and declared 
 them not to be endured, no, not for an hour. His book re- 
 minds me of the fabled songs of the Syrens : — but I suspect few 
 will approach the rocks, for many know the voice. 
 
 These gentlemen, at certain times, and when in certain com- 
 panies, have been heard to say, that " These differences of opi- 
 nion, about doctrines, are more in words than ideas — that they 
 are of small moment — ought not to interrupt the harmony of 
 Christians :~that, after all, we all think essentially alike," «fec. — 
 But, at other times, they speak a far different language : they cry 
 out, " delusion ! — heresy ! — blasphemy !" And this is what I 
 call two sets of colours, to be used a^ occasion may serve. 
 
 But their most terrible argument, and which they keep always 
 at hand, ready to dispense to weak and credulous people, is wor- 
 thy of particular attention. When any one attacks their scheme 
 they immediately exclaim, " That man is not a Calvinist." As 
 though Calvin and Christ stood on equal footing. This argu- 
 ment is intended to strike their adversaries dumb, and carry the 
 world before it. The Mahometans seem to prefer Mahomet to 
 Christ because he was nearer their own times : this may not be 
 the case with those humble devotees to Calvin ; but they regard 
 
23 
 
 his authority as supreme and paramount. I am sorry to add, 
 that, in this respect, there seem to be several little microscopic 
 Calvins about this city, growing fast in strength and stature. 
 
 Could the decline of the Christian church be traced to its real 
 causes ; could the seeds of those fatal errors, the germ of those 
 deep apostacies be discovered, which have spread ruin and dark- 
 ness through Christendom, they would appear to lie in this, viz. 
 a substitution of the authority of men for the word of God. 
 Their language is, " that is, indeed, the word of God, but / am 
 its expositor^ and you must follow my expositions." Hence have 
 originated creeds, formularies, liturgies, confessions of faith, 
 standards, bulls. But this is not the end. These creeds and 
 standards are but ink and paper. They must have an expositor. 
 
 One is at hand. These expositors '• are the men, 
 
 and wisdom shall die with them." It is the invariable policy of 
 ambitious men to keep one on the pinnacle of power and gran- 
 deur. They then have nothing to do but shove and clamber. 
 But these men are far from doing as Calvin did. Calvin rose 
 by his own energy and merit. These men are endeavouring to 
 ascend the slippery steep on the merits and favour of Calvin. 
 
 It is, I believe, but four or five years since a number of wise 
 heads were laid together to beat down and crush the errors of a 
 set of men deuominated Hopkinsians, who, by the by, follow 
 Hopkins about as much as I wish to follow Calvin. What me- 
 thod did they take ? — They employed a catspaw to write a book 
 entitled The Contrast. In the solemn trumpery of 500 pages 
 there are a great many instances called up, in which these Hop- 
 kinsians are said to differ from Calvin ; as though this was suffi- 
 cient to condemn them. But in order to effect this dreadful work, 
 this writer, or his masters rather, were obliged to get both Hop- 
 kins and Calvin on the rack, to garble, dissect, distort, and mis- 
 represent many passages, in the most huge and flagrant manner. 
 But no matter ; many people were made to believe that Hopkins 
 differed from Calvin ; and that was sufficient. If Calvin believed 
 that a rat's tail was five inches long, and Hopkins asserted it was 
 seven, it was abundant ; " the Contrast" was clearly and ably 
 made out ; and Hopkins was in an error, though the rat's tail 
 had never been measured. 
 
24 
 
 But I shall here despatch what I have to say of Calvin in a 
 few words: — I believe in many doctrines, perhaps in most, taught 
 by Calvin but not in all. He was a man of great energy of mind 
 and decision of character, and I trust a religious man. The 
 haughtiness and acerbity of his temper I dislike, and, as an eccle- 
 siastical pioneer and legislator, he more resembled Lycurgus than 
 Solon. From the persecution he suffered, one might have ima- 
 gined his mind would have been blanched from such foul stains 
 as intolerance and persecution ; but it was the spirit of the age 
 in which he lived : — " fuit temporum culpa non ejus." Could 
 Calvin have lived a century ; — could his designs have been ripen- 
 ed into action, and his wishes crowned with success, he would 
 have made Geneva the head of the Protestant church, and himself 
 the head of Geneva. If in this and some other respects he resem- 
 bled Cromwell, he differed from him in that he was a far better, 
 more upright and honest man. Less bold and intrepid than 
 Luther, less amiable and benevolent than Melancthon, he was 
 more acute, penetrating, and industrious than either, and was the 
 most thorough, severe, and independent reformer of the three. 
 
 INVESTIGATOR. 
 
 No. VL 
 
 When you rouse a nest of prejudices, especially those which 
 are fortified by interest and popularity, you may be assured they 
 will sting like wasps and hornets : nay, they would often *' sting 
 their victim dead," had they power. This has been the true 
 source of religious persecution. Love of truth never raised a 
 persecution: that frightful demon "is made of sterner stuff." 
 It springs from ambition — a desire to govern the opinions of 
 others ; and a religious ambition is by far the worst, the most 
 rancorous, the most hateful and unreasonable specimen of its 
 kind that ever infested the world; it is a direct invasion of 
 the rights of conscience — an atrocious and infamous invasion 
 
25 
 
 of fhe rights of God and man. A man wishes me to think as he 
 does, in order that I may subserve his purposes: not considering 
 th it [ have the same right to my opinions that he has to his. 
 
 For example, I have my own opinions concerning Original 
 Sin, Depravity, and Alonemcnt. Why should a man be angry at 
 me because I think for myself on these subjects? Why should 
 he, when he meets me in the street, cock up his nose, knit his 
 eyebrows, shrug his shoulders, look askance, and glide by me 
 like a basilisk, whose very silence tells me how much venom he 
 has got ill his bag? I should not define these traits so readily and 
 so closely, but I have seen them so often, that I am like the En- 
 glish sculptor who has visited Italy, and of course takes nothing 
 from the descriptions of others. It is not merely because he is 
 a nascent microscopic Calvin — or, if I may so speak, a Cahini- 
 cuius, and tliertfore wisiies me to think like his great master. 
 No: — he is not so disinterested &?> sW that. It is because I dare 
 be independent enough to think differently from him, and, there- 
 fore, do not follow in his train. His own conscience will not 
 allow him, for a moment, to harbour the idea that he is led to th^s 
 conduct from the love of truth. The love of truth renders men 
 meek, amiable, and candid — generous, affectionate, and conde- 
 scending. Beddes, who is to be the judge of truth ? — I have the 
 same right to judge for myself that he has. We are both equally 
 accountable to God for our opinions. 
 
 We know not how the heavenly bodies move: yet we per- 
 ceive their motions uniform, grand, and beautiful. The consti- 
 tution under which creatures exist in this world, though it is 
 mysterious, yet we perceive it to be universal, regular, and un- 
 alterable. One of its first and most obvious laws is, that all 
 creatures, which come into being in a series of generations, have 
 power to propagate that series, and that every creature shall pro- 
 duce its own likeness. Whatever of mystery there may be in 
 this constitution, it appears upon inspection to be necessary, use- 
 ful, and beautiful. If a bramble could spring from the grape, a 
 thorn from an olive tree ; — If a dove could produce a seYpent, or 
 a lamb could spring from a tiger, all order and harmony — all 
 security, usefulness, and beaufy, would fall sacrifices to univer- 
 sal disappointment, confusion, deformity, and misery. 
 
 4 
 
26 
 
 Man, though the noblest of terrestrial creatures, by the sove- 
 reign constitution of his Maker, exists under this general law :— 
 and it is admitted and believed, that, had our first parents re- 
 mained in a state of rectitude, they would have continued happy 
 and immortal ; and that all their posterity would have, in these 
 respects, i»een Hke them. Whatever mankind derive from their 
 first parents must, by the divine constitution, resemble the source 
 from whence derived ; and experience shows that they have de- 
 rive<l a nature, which, when matured into action, will act sinful- 
 ly. Hence their nature is properly said to be corrupt, and tbey 
 are in scripture called, " degenerate plants of a strange vine." 
 But blame cannot be charged to the account of any creature 
 prior to, and exclusive of, the consideration of his own voluntary 
 disposition and conduct. 
 
 I beg the reader to examine the preceding few remarks; to 
 devest himself of all prejudice in favour of names and authori- 
 ties, and he will perceive that they are almost self evidently true. 
 If the subject may be illustrated by the analogy which it bears 
 to the constitution of the natural world, Adam was constituted 
 the head of the human race, in the same sense that the first ap- 
 ple tree was constituted the head of all apple trees ; or the first 
 lion the head of all lions ; and all lions acted in the first lion, as 
 all mankind acted in Adam. 
 
 The word of God teaches tliat Ihe human race were ruined by 
 tliefallof our first parents. It was so from the sovereign con- 
 stitution already slated. " By one man sin entered into the 
 world, and death by siu, wherefore death hath passed upon all 
 men, for that all have sinnetV^ If, in consequence of Adam's fall, 
 all his posterity derived from him a sinful nature, then it is pro- 
 per to say, that, " hy Hie offence of one, tnany were made sinners-" 
 and so, of necessity, " by the offence of one, judgment came 
 upon all men lo condemnation." 
 
 If nothing de|)endpd on the exposition of these passages of St, 
 Paul, it must be admitted that this mode of expounding them is 
 fair and liberal. Indeed, it is clear, that by these expressions he 
 means to allude to tl;e grand constilution already explained, and 
 which experience every moment illustrates before our eyes. 
 But important consequences flow from a right understanding of 
 
27 
 
 these and sundry similar passages of scripture. For, if they 
 are understood to establish the idea that Adam's crime, guilt, 
 and character, are in fact transferred to his descendants, prior to 
 the consideration of their own moral character; if they are con- 
 demned for his act, independently of their own, then the first 
 principles of immutable and eternal justice are supervened and 
 destroyed, and innumerable solemn and express declarations of 
 holy writ are contradicted. 
 
 " What mean ye that ye use this proverb concerning the land 
 of Israel, saying. The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the 
 <;hildrens' teeth are set on edge ?— As I live, saith the Lord God, 
 ye shall not have occasion any more to use this proverb in 
 Israel. Behold ! all souls are mine ; as the soul of the father, 
 so also the soul of the son is mine. The soul that sinnelh, it 
 shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, nor 
 the father the iniquity of the son. Hear now, O house of Israel, 
 is not my way equal, are not your ways unequal ?" 
 
 But these words were addressed particularly to the house of 
 Israel. What then ? They go, unequivocally, to the main point 
 for which I contend ; and establish it with great force and clear- 
 ness. God here condescends to vindicate his character from 
 the charge thrown on it by the house of Israel, which was that 
 his way was unequal. He, therefore, by a solemn oath, declares 
 they shall no longer use that proverb, which indicates the impu- 
 tation of guilt, and transfer of character from father to son. 
 " All souls are mine. The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The 
 son shall not bear the iniquity of the father," &c. The equality 
 and justice of the divine government are predicated on this de- 
 claration, and do certainly depend essentially on the truth of it: 
 and it is fairly and strongly implied, that, were the son condemned 
 for the sin of his father, the way of God would not be equal. 
 
 Some, indeed, evade these remarks and conclusions by say- 
 ing, humorously, that Ezekiel was rather inclined to Arminian- 
 ism. Alas, for poor Ezekiel and James ! they neither of them 
 stand very high in the opinion of the hyper-caivinist : they were 
 rather lax. 
 
 It never entered into the heart of any of the sacred and in- 
 spired writers, from Moses to St. John, that Adam's posterity 
 
28 
 
 were any otherwise iovolved in his crime and guilt than that 
 human nature was originally and entirely corrupted in conse- 
 quence of his apostacy. The first parents being sinful, frail, 
 mortal, and miserable, such are their offspring. The doctrine 
 of a real transfer of character, and imputation of «;ui|t, over and 
 above all this, would suppose *' the childrens' tielh to be set on 
 edge" with a vengeance. Yet volumes have been written to 
 make it out; absurdities have been heaped upon absurdities: 
 thousands of pages have been written to show that we all acted 
 in Adam ; and men have strained their eyes to see how that could 
 be, till they became bloodshot— nay, even blind. And they re- 
 mind me of Erasmus' story of seven men, who went to take a 
 ride, one clear tine day, with Poole. As they were riding along 
 the road, Poole, to make himself sport, looked up into the hea- 
 vens, and suddenly crossing himself in pretended surprise, de- 
 clared he saw in the sky a monstrous dragon with fiery horns, 
 and his tail turned up into a circle. They all, very much as- 
 tonished at the declaration, looked up, but saw nothing. " Can't 
 you see it," continued Poole, " His there 1 You must certain- 
 ly be blind. Amazing! How terrible it looks. Don't you see 
 it yet? Oh! I never saw such a sight in all myjife before. 
 You certainly must see it." In short, after awhiIe,'o*e, a little 
 more credulous than the rest, said, I think I do see it. Yes, 
 yes— I see it plainly. At this, another fancied he saw it. And, 
 says Erasmus, some, by force of imagination, others, fearing 
 they should be thought less sharp-sighted than the rest, confes, 
 sed they saw if : and they soon all came in, without a dissent- 
 ing voice. The next day a particular account of the prodigy 
 was published in the papers, authenticated by the testimony of 
 six or seven credible men. 
 
 To candid, unprejudiced men, I shall use but one argument 
 to prove we «Iid not act in Adam ; and that is, because we did 
 not eijist till Ion;; after Adam left the world. 
 
 INVESTIGATOR. 
 
29 
 
 No. VII. 
 
 Dkpravity consists in (he want of holiness, or, if yon please, 
 love of sii) ; and has no connexion, strictly speaking, with a man's 
 ability to do right or to do wrong. In this sense I consider noan- 
 kind by nature as totally depraved, for (hey have no love to God, 
 to his law, or government, or gospel. They have no incapacity 
 to do right but what arises from their love to do wrong ; there is 
 no bar in (he way of their doing their whole duty, but their dis- 
 inclination to do it. Their love of sin, though voluntary, is so 
 decided and uniform, their disinclination to obey God though 
 free, is so determined and strong, that some have been pleased, 
 for the sake of (iistinc(ion, (o term it a moral inahilHy. 
 
 If it must be admitted as a perfection and felicity, in any lan- 
 guage when it is stored with words and phrases fully adapted to 
 express, without tedious circumlocution, the various ideas we 
 may wish to convey, it surely cannot be denied that the phrase, 
 moral inability ^ is both useful and necessary. If it be convenient 
 to have a phrase which shall express, in a clear and simple man- 
 ner, the im[)ediment which arises from a strong disinclination 
 to do a thing, or a voluntary determination not to do it, the phrase 
 before us is convenient. I am unable to pluck the sun from his 
 station in the heavens; this is called a natural inability. I am 
 unable to ascend a tower and throw myself <!own ; this is a moral 
 inability. And, using words according to their common and 
 popular import, in the former of these cases there is a want of 
 ability ; in the latter a want of will. 
 
 However the sinner's inability may be considered, whether 
 natural or moral ; whether in want of ability, or in want of will, 
 one thing is certain, the above distinction exists, and has been re- 
 cognised by tlie ablest, most perspicuous, and most classical wri- 
 ters in our language, and probably in all languages. Indeed, there 
 is not a day passes, there is scarcely an occurrence in which this 
 phraseology is not adopted; and I am bold to say none use it 
 oftener than those very persons who inveigh so bitterly against 
 moral inability as an idle and useless distinction. Every body, 
 l<iarned and unlearned, old and young, Uses the phrase, and under- 
 
30 
 
 stands it. Every one is in the habit of saying, when he feels an 
 utter disindination to do a thing, " I cannot do it:" When he is 
 determined not to do a certain act, " I cannot do it : I ana unable 
 to do it." This phrase prevails in all sorts of business, on all 
 occasions, in all books, and in all languages, and the man who 
 condemns the distinction has nothing to shi<;lil him from the 
 charge of dishonesty but incorrigible ignorance. 
 
 Now, no great stretch of metaphysics is necessary to perceive, 
 that if it be proper for me to say I cannot do an act, merely be- 
 cause I am determined not to do it, it is proper also to call that a 
 mora! inability, to distinguish it from that inability which arises 
 from want of power. 
 
 Having shown what I mean by a moral inability ; having said, 
 as I think, enough to put the adversaries of this distinction both 
 to silence and to shame, I now proceed to observe, in brief, 
 that mankind labour under no other kind of inability to perform 
 the whole duty wlii<'h G>j<1 requires of them. In proof of this, 
 had I time 1 mi^h' quote almost the entire volume of Scripture. 
 Were a hundred prisoners chained, like Baron Trenck, by massy 
 links and sta;)les to the f]'>or and walls of Iheir prison, should a 
 man go into the prison and begin to exhort them to hasten out 
 without delay ; what would they think of him ? they would take 
 him either for a tyrant come to insult their helplessness, or for a 
 madman or an ideot; and they would reply to his exhortation, 
 do you not see these chains? why do you insult us ? 
 
 An exhortation or command to do a duty, always implies a be: 
 lief in the one who exhorts, that he, to whom the exhortation is 
 given,iscapableof doin«^ the duty enjoined upon him. If this great 
 principle be denied, the plainest dictates of common sense and 
 justice are abolished and done away, and the Bible becomes a 
 book of riddles and contradictions. It is, indeed, such gross per- 
 version of the plainest dictates of reason, justice, and common 
 sense, that has filled all Christendom with infidels, atheists, and 
 apostates ; — that has shrouded the Christian church with dark- 
 ness — filled her with impurity and rottenness, and smitten her 
 with decline and consumption. 
 
 A great part of the Biblj3 is made up of exhortations, persua- 
 sions, and commands to mankind, to forsake their sins, and to 
 
31 
 
 love and obey God. But a set of preachers come forward and 
 employ a large portion of all their sermons in persuading, people 
 that they canuot do any of these things, which God, pd liis pro- 
 phets and apostles have exhorted and commanded them to do, 
 any more than they can pluck the sun from the heavens. And 
 when one endeavours to relieve the difficulty, by showing that 
 their inability is only of the moral kind, consisting in want of 
 will, and not of power, an outcry is raised, he is hooted and 
 scouted as an Arminian, and the people assured, over and over 
 again, that their inability is a true and natural incapacity, or want 
 of power. 
 
 Every one knows that universal assent, (" quod est norma lo- 
 quendi,'''') has rendered it as proper for me to say, I cannot throw 
 myself into a furnace, or from a precipice, as it is to say, 1 can- 
 not overturn a mountain. But these " cannots''' are of a very dif- 
 ferent character — one is a mere want of will, the other is a total 
 want of power. What rational ground of objection is there io 
 calling one a natural, the of licr a moral inability 1 The distinc- 
 tion is clear — it is easily perceived — it is useful ; for, in fact., 
 none is more used ; it is necessary, because no other simple 
 phrase can express it. Who does not perceive how it alters the 
 case, whether a man is prevented from doing his duty by want of 
 will, or by want of power ? And, I add, this distinction applies to 
 one of the most important doctrines of religion. Yet these tri- 
 angular divines cannot perceive it : but their cannot is a will not. 
 And how difficult it is to make a man see what he will not ; for 
 none are so blind as those who will not see. If you even seize 
 them by the shoulders, and tarn them by main strength round 
 towards the object, they will then turn away their face. But if 
 you force their heads round in the direction, they will then shut 
 their eyes ; force open their eyelids, and they will roll away 
 their eyeballs. 
 
 The violent opposition to this grand and obvious distinction 
 arises from this, that, if once admitted, their scheme of depravi- 
 ty is overthrown. Their successful opposition is, to them, worth 
 as much as victory. 
 
 The scripture writers wrote long before modern controversies 
 bad given a technical meaning to half the terms in theology ; long 
 
32 
 
 before the church had bnen dressed up in the stays of Aristotle, 
 or tricked out in rag?, ribands, and frin^'es of oriental philoso- 
 phy. They stood in no fear of the prdantic square and com- 
 passes of the learned Dr. Buckram. Their style, though bold 
 and figurative, was free and popular, and ea?y to be understood. 
 Indeed, as to the great doctrines of reli::li)n, it is eas}' to be un- 
 derstood by us, at this distant (hijs except where covered by the 
 cobwebs of biblical critics, and entangled by the bewildv'reil and 
 bewildering brains of learned Iheorisfs, who sit plodding in their 
 studies, till they become enveloped in cl'>ud8 and vapours, and 
 are fairly led into the great, great dismal, by an ignis fatuus; or, 
 like one of the most learned and best of men, imagine them- 
 selves a teapot. 
 
 It is impossible' to follow the strain of exhortation which flows 
 unceasingly tbrouzh the Old and New Testament, and cot per- 
 ceive that it was given on the fidl persuasion and assurance that 
 men are fully able to do what they are exhorted to do; that 
 their only impediment lies in the will, and is, of course, their 
 trime; whereas, if it lay in want of power, it would be their ex- 
 cuse. But I am mortifit<l, I blush for human nature, that it is 
 necessary to insist on this point. Tiiat it should ever have been 
 doubted is full proof of moral depravity — of wilful blindness. 
 
 Those who insist on a true and riaUirai inability in the sinner 
 to obey God, furnish him with the best excuse imaginable,- for 
 he will say, I cannot do right, and, therefore, 1 am not to blame. 
 Whereas, those who lay all the blame on tlie will, devest him of 
 all excuse, and effectually convince him of criminality. And 
 this is pro'uibly t!)e clue to tl;at flajnin:,' zeal to abollsli the dis- 
 tinction of moral inability evinced by many, and the readiness 
 to embrace the doctrine of these teachers, by a still greater 
 number. While paying, as they imagine, a profound compli- 
 ment to the shrine of humility, they find their pride and sloth 
 sufficiently gratified. 
 
 But the advocates and <)i?seminators of error have generally 
 sterner and more cogent motives, than are intrinsical to their 
 s)'stem, otherwise their mighty structures would soon crumble 
 to their foundation, and vanish "into air — thin air." Thes-e mo- 
 tives grow out of their particular circumstances : in short, they 
 
33 
 
 are selfish raotires, arising from interest and ambition. And, 
 surely, the professed champions of selfishness cannot be dis- 
 gusted with the charge of a little selfishness, since they assume 
 the thing charged by avowing the principle. Their selfish mo- 
 tives I shall hereafter notice. 
 
 If the term inability be at all applicable to a man when no- 
 thing impedes him but disinclination, the sinner's inability must 
 be pronounced wholly of the moral kind. This can be shown, 
 to a degree of certainty approaching as near to mathematical de- 
 monstration as any proposition of an abstract and moral nature. 
 It was far from the design of these numbers to enter into the de- 
 tails of argument ; and it shall suffice to say, that the sinner can 
 do his whole duty, because that duty is easy, and adapted to the 
 powers and faculties of all rational minds. If it be easy to be- 
 lieve what is made clearly evident, and to love that which is in- 
 finitely beautiful, the sinner's duty is easy. The sinner can do 
 his duty because that duty is prescribed by an infinitely wise and 
 good being, who knows how to adapt his requirements to the 
 capacities of his creatures, and whose wisdom and goodness are 
 manifested by that adaptation. That nothing prevents him from 
 conforming to all divine requirements but want of will to do it, is 
 evident from (he whole word of God, in which his nonconformity 
 is invariably placed on tliat footing alone, and is in no place as- 
 cribed to any other cause. The continual exhortations and com- 
 mands of God show us how God himself estimates the sinner's 
 abihty ; and the duty to perform, and the ability to periorm it, 
 are the exact measures of each other; m short, obligation and 
 ability correspond, and run parallel with each other, and cease 
 together. All just notions of the nature and powers of a moral 
 agent, set this point in the clearest light ; and when I hear a man 
 begin to talk about a moral agency to do wrong, but not to do 
 right, I feel myself much in the predicament of St. Anthony 
 when lecturing the fislies : and did I not know that a moral agent 
 might be very ignorant, 1 should almost be tempted to deny that 
 exalted rank to such superlative ignorance. 
 
 To believe in absurdities, and things evidently false, and to 
 practise supposed impossibilities, requires, indeed, a monstrous 
 stretch of faith, and an incredible degree of power; perhaps thesp 
 
34 
 
 strenuous advocates of mau's natural, or, if you plca*c, physical 
 inability, get that idea from the peculiar complexion of their 
 scheme. I am willing, for one, to do them the justice to confesB 
 that I labour under a true natural inability to believe in their 
 doctrines, or practice, agreeably to their faith. 
 
 INVESTIGATOR. 
 
 No. VIII. 
 
 My present object is, without descending to elaborate argu- 
 ment, to convey, in as few words as possible, what I understand 
 to be the scripture doctrine of the atonement of Christ. 
 
 As the death of Christ is generally allowed to be a propitiatory 
 sacrifice, if those who are concerned to understand the doctrine 
 of the atonement would consider atteniively in what way, or on 
 what principle, the death of Christ made propitiation for sin, I 
 think there could be but one opinionconcerning the atonement. 
 But utterly overlooking this grand point, and resorting to meta- 
 phors and comparisons which have but few points of resemblance 
 to the great subject in question, embarrassment, confusion, and 
 error have found their way into one of the plainest doctrines of 
 the Bible. 
 
 The advocates of what may be called particular atonement 
 amuse and edify themselves by continually resorting to certain 
 expressions and passages of scripture, such as that Christ died for 
 his people, laid down his life for the sheep, &,c. never considering 
 that they have no ri^ht to monopolize these expressions as sup- 
 port'tts their sch^^me. If Christ fasted death for every man, he 
 certainly did so for his people. If he were a propitialion for the 
 sins of the whole world, he certainly was for the sins of his elect. 
 If he laid down his life for all mankind, he surelj"^ did so for his 
 sheep. 
 
 The metaphor of dehl and credit has done infinite mischief in 
 this business. They consider the elect as owing a debt to justice, 
 which Christ has paid ; and his payment is of course passed to 
 their credit; so that they then have a legal right to demand par- 
 
33 
 
 dou aod justification ; and this demand is sometimes made iu 
 their prayers and religious exercises, in a manner so bold and 
 daring, as to shock the humble and penitent Christian. Yet, af- 
 ter all, they appear never to have C( red how it is that 
 the death of Christ makes propitiation for sin, or pays the debt 
 they so much talk of; and, if so, they are profoundly ignorant 
 of the nature of the atonement. But if they do not understand 
 its nature, how can they judge correctly of its extent? 
 
 The curse of the law of God is his displeasure, expressed iu 
 the punishment of transgression. But why is the law of God 
 penal ? — What end is to be answered by the punishment of the 
 transgressor? It is not because God takes delight in the misery 
 of his creatures, for its own sake. It is not to repair the breach 
 of the law, for that is impossible : what is done cannot be un- 
 done. It is not to reclaim the offender, for it does not do it. 
 It is, in one word, to show God^s haired of sin, and, in the same 
 degree, his love of holiness. This is indeed the object of pe- 
 nally under human governments : it is to show the displeasure 
 of the supreme authority at transgression. 
 
 The penalty of the divine law is the only mean of showing 
 to intelligent creatures God's hatred of sin. If the obedient and 
 disobedient fared equally well under God's government, there 
 could be no distinction made between sin and holiness. When 
 a sinner is punished, all rational creatures, who see it, perceive 
 how the Almighty Kuler regards transgression, and they will 
 fear to transgress : at the same time, they see how God honours 
 his own law, by the terrible manifestation of his displeasure ; 
 and they will be led to honour the same. 
 
 When Christ endured the curse of the law, the same disco- 
 very was made of God's hatred of transgression — the same, of 
 his regard for his own law : though, perhaps, in a still more 
 striking form than when sinners are punished for their own sins. 
 Christ, therefore, made propitiation for sin, by his death, by 
 completely answering thereby the great end of penalty, or the 
 death of the sinner. 
 
 This I understand to be the nature of the atonement or pro- 
 pitiation of Christ; and it differs essentially from all notions of 
 debt and credit, in the following particulars :-— 
 
36 
 
 1. The two caaes are entirely different in their general na- 
 ture, as, in strictness, the one is criminal, the other civil : the 
 former invdiviug the principles of a purely retributive justice, 
 the latter a justice that is strictly commutative: there being no 
 resemblance between the pardon of a criminal and the release 
 of a debtor. 
 
 2. The two cases are different in all their forms and circum- 
 6lan«;es. The satisfaction to justice is a general principle; the 
 payment of a debt a partial and local act. 
 
 3 As a criminal process always originates from, and is in fa- 
 vour of, I he public or state, the satisfaction it demands is also a 
 public satisfaction ; except where private and particular injury 
 is pusiained, which justice will also remedy by private and par- 
 ticular satisfaction: but a civil action of debt, for instance, is 
 always in favour of one or more individuals, or individual bo- 
 dies and recovers a satisfaction to an individual, &c. 
 
 4. A propitiatory satisfaction does never, from its own na- 
 ture, give the criminal a legal right to demand his discharge; 
 since it neither obliterates his crime, nor, in any degree, lessen? 
 his guilt ; and though it vests that right in the propitiator, itlmpo- 
 ses on liim no obligation to exercise it, unless he has bound him- 
 self so to do by promise. Whereas, the payment of a debt is 
 but the answer of a private demand, which demand it cancels, 
 and in return empowers the debtor to demand his discharge. 
 
 I have pomted out some, but not all, of the differences be- 
 tween the pa^ ment of a debt and a propitiatory satisfaction. 
 And i believe any man will iind himself puzzled to point out 
 one ex :,ct feature of resemblance between them. 
 
 If 1 inip,!it use tlie terms of lavv, an action from the whole uni- 
 verse lies against every sinner: the essential rights of all beings 
 demaiil l.is punishment, for transgressing the law of God. The 
 Son of GikI (luilertcikop to make propitiation for sin , to magnify 
 the law, and make it honourable, and j'et show mercy to the sin- 
 ner But here the olij'^ction coines forward with an importunate 
 question : " For whom did Chrisf undertake to make satisfac- 
 tion ? For whor-i did he irjake pr r('itiaiion ?" This question shows 
 that the querist has fixed in his mind the payment of a debt. 
 
37 
 
 which we have shown bears but a faint and remote resemblance 
 to the subject in hand. But this question admits not only of one, 
 bu t of various satisfactory answers. 
 
 1. The nature of Christ's propitiation for sin shows it to be 
 an unlimited general principle. In sustaining the curse of the 
 law, he showed in the greatest possible degree God's hatred of 
 sin, and in the same degree magnified the law, and made it 
 honourable. We are not to understand that the propitiation, or 
 satisfaction, of justice must vary, and be greater or less accord- 
 ing to the number to be saved. Yet this is clearly implied in 
 the payment of a debt, and is certainly the idea of those who hold 
 to particular atonement. They seem to imagine that all the sins 
 of the elect, forming a certain amount, are estimated, and propi- 
 tiation made for them. In this lies their error. They ought to 
 know that God has not shown his hatred of sins by the death of 
 Christ, either by number or amount, but, on the contrary, that he 
 has shown an infinite abhorrence of all sin, and an infinitely high 
 regard for the honour of his law. They cannot but perceive that 
 as much as this would have been necessary to propitiate justice, 
 had tnere been but one sinner to save, and certainly no more is 
 possible were all men to be saved. 
 
 According to their own principles, before considered, if one sin 
 were sufficient to involve not only one man, but a whole race of 
 creatures in infinite guilt and endless perdition, they must allow 
 that, after Adam's first sin, he alone could not have been saved, 
 but by the whole propitiation which Christ has made. And, at 
 any rate, it must be admitted, (hat had there been but one man, 
 and had he committed but one sin, we have no means of per- 
 ceiviug how he could have obtained pardon aud salvation, but 
 through a full and complete propitiation for sin. 
 
 We cannot, therefore, infer that Christ made propitiation for 
 the elect only, from any limitation or deficiency in the atone- 
 ment. The vicarious sufferings of Christ were, in all respects, ' 
 the same as they would have been had he intended to die for the 
 whole world : — the same his humiliation— his sufferings — his 
 condescension — his death. 
 
 2. I think I have heard gentlemen who held to a particular 
 
3^ 
 
 atonement, acknowledge that there was merit'or efficacy enough 
 in Christ's atonement to save not only this, but a thousand 
 worlds. Though I thought the expression somewhat unguarded, 
 yet, indeed, if a propitiation so full and perfect was made, in 
 what way can any one contrive to limit it to a certain part of 
 mankind ? The word of God makes no such limit, but informs 
 us that'he actually did make propitiation for the sins of the whole 
 world ; that he tasted death for every man ; that he died for 
 all ; that in him should all nations be blessed, and that his gos- 
 pel should be glad tidings to all people. 
 
 I am fully aware that a reply is ready for all these passages, 
 and a thousand more ; and I am also aware that religious disputes 
 are now maintained, not by simple scripture authority, but by 
 scripture filtrated through the conflicting opinions of great and 
 learned critics, expositors, and casuists ; against whom a point- 
 blank text of scripture is as a dart of straw thrown against Dover 
 cliffs. The shot is fair, but the rock does not fall. Tell a man 
 what the Bible says against his scheme, and he will laugh at you; 
 or. if he choose to dispute, he will, with a smile at your igno- 
 rance, reply, " I know very well that those are the words of 
 scripture, but have you not read how Dr. Dogmaticus and father 
 Fungus have explained it; and even Bishop Bigbelly is of the 
 same opinion." You may lay your fuiger on your lip and retire, 
 for you are beat ; and may bay with ^Tob, on a different occasion, 
 "If I speak I shall be swallowed up!" 
 
 This may be stiled rant, and if it be even so, I deem it the 
 only answer that is due to the bold and barefaced evasion of the 
 plaiu and simple declarations of sacred writ. But taking away 
 the fictitious, and substituting real names, and it expresses nothing 
 but the imperishable truth. But to return — 
 
 3. The gospel, in its own nature and genuine spirit, clearly 
 implies a propitiation for all mankind, and that through Christ 
 the door of mercy is set open for all. The angels sent to an- 
 nounce the Saviour's birth to the shepherds understood it thus : 
 "Behold I bring you glad tidings of great joy which shall be to 
 you and all people,''' ^c. That the invitation is made general, 
 merely because the elect of Christ are uuknown to those who 
 preach the gospel, is a poor and pitiful shift, and renders the pro- 
 
39 
 
 clamatloD liable to the charge of dishonestf , and the invitation, 
 of insincerity. Should I malce a dinner for bat two persons, and 
 then send out pressing invitations to ten; nay, and should threaten 
 the whole with my utmost displeasure if they did not come ; in 
 what light would my conduct be viewed by (hose who knew the 
 whole of the facts ? How surprised would the two be, when they 
 come to see there was provision only for them 1 And as to the 
 eight, who were invited with urgency and threatening, when 
 they come to learn that a dinner was only made for two, what 
 might they not justly say ? They might, and would say, the invi- 
 tation was false and abusive; and, had we accepted, nothing 
 was prepared for us. Far different from this was the wedding 
 feast of the king^s son. 
 
 But the all seeing God knows who his people are, yet he does 
 invite all to come. " Look unto me all ye ends of the earth, 
 and be ye saved, saith the Lord." In tine, (for to dwell on this 
 point seems like urging a self-evident proposition,) all the invi- 
 tations of the gospel are unqualified and universal ; and those who 
 finally reject them, shall hereafter know that they rejected a 
 sincere invitation to a full and infinitely rich provision. Nothing 
 can set this point in a clearer light than our Saviour's own parable 
 of the marriage of the king's son. The kingdom of heaven is 
 likened unto a certain king, which made a marriage for his son j 
 and sent forth to call those that were bidden to the wedding; 
 and they would not come. Again, he sent forth other servants, 
 aaying. Tell them which are bidden, behold, I have prepared my 
 dinner ; my oxen, and my failings are killed, and all things are 
 ready ; come unto the marriage. But they made light of it, and 
 went their ways. Matt. xxii. 2 — 5. 
 
 Can a man who reads this parable doubt of the fulness of the 
 gospel provision for all men — of the sincerity of the invitation 
 to all men — of the voluntariness of its rejection, and, of course, 
 of the ability to have accepted ? After reading this, can any one 
 ask for whom Christ made propitiation ? If there should be such, 
 ready to halt, I can only answer him by saying, " For the sins of 
 ilie whole world /' and leave him to furbish up his powers of 
 evasion. 
 
 ^. Infinitely more noble, more grand, more benevolent does 
 
40 
 
 the gospel plan appear, on the ground of a general atonement. 
 If a p^-ovince in the dominions of some monarch s'ikuUI r*be!, 
 and the monarch should, on certain terms, publish an act of grace 
 to a certain portion of the people, telling them if thej would 
 lay di»vo their arms, by such a day, they should obtain pardon 
 and be restored to favour, while all the rest were doomed to in- 
 evitable d^^struction : — would this look as magnanimous, as great^ 
 as worfhy of a mighty potentate, as though the act of grace ex- 
 tended to all ? How much more splendid and magnificent would 
 the proclamation run, did it state that the great sovereign had 
 found out a ransom for thf whole, provided they would accept 
 his overtures, and bow to his sceptre. 
 
 There is reason to adore God that this is the language of the 
 gospel. " Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to 
 every creature : he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved." 
 
 But this language is not true, if an atonement is made for but 
 
 a part. And this point, I think, has not been sufficieutly brought 
 into view It cannot be sakl to one for whom no propitiation is 
 made, •' If you will believe in Christ you shall be saved," It 
 would be the meanest and basest of all quibbles, in the most 
 sacred and awful of all concerns. It would, in fact, be nothing 
 less than a most atrocious falsehood. Were I in a ship at sea, 
 which was rapidly sinking, and the boat was already so filled 
 as not to be able to hold another person, would it be correct — 
 would it be true or decorous, should some one say to me, " Come, 
 if you will get into the boat you may go to an island, not far off, 
 and be saved ? — And to this 1 will add, especially if I were 
 chained fast in the hold of that vessel, and the boat already com- 
 pletely filled, how would it sound in my ears, should some one 
 with great earnestness say to me, Come, go into the boat — there 
 is an island near, and you may escape ? There would be false- 
 hood upon falsehood, and insult upon insult. This proposition 
 would import the following things : 1. The boat will hold you. 
 2. You have permission to enter it; and, 3 You are able to 
 
 enter it. 
 
 Whoever says to a sinner, " If you will bpli»-ve in Christ you 
 shall be saved," says to him the following ti'if u- . i.^t. Christ 
 has atoned for your sins. 2d. He is willing to save you ; and, 3d. 
 
41 
 
 You are able to believe in him. Christ himself intended all (boae 
 four things when he said to the Jews, " Ye will not come unto 
 me that ye mi^ht have life." For, surely, if he had not died for 
 them, to what purpose could he say they were unwilling to come 
 to him as a Saviour? And if there were a deeper impediment 
 than want of will, why should he ascribe their not coming to 
 the want of will ? 
 
 If there be a sinner for whom no atonement is made, that sin- 
 ner could not be saved, even should he believe in Christ : more- 
 over, if their notion of appropriating faith be true, which is, that 
 every christian must believe that Christ died in a particular man- 
 ner for him, then, whoever exhorts that sinner to believe in Christ^ 
 exhorts him to believe a lie. Wherefore, these triangular preach- 
 ers must be cautious to whom they direct their exhortations. 
 Nor will it always avail them, though they keep close to their 
 lines and angles. 
 
 5 The idea usually entertained of the sin of unbelief, and 
 which none insist upon more than these preachers, corroborates 
 the doctrine of general atonement. They generally teach that 
 saving faith consists in the christian's believing that Christ died 
 for him But how can a man believe that Christ died foi him, 
 when he, in fact, did not die for him ; and when no propitiation 
 is made for his sius ? Which side of the dilemma will they en- 
 counter ? Will they allow that Christ made propitiation for all 
 men, and thereby ground a charge of unbelief against those 
 that do not embrace the Saviour; or will they adhere to their 
 triangle, and at once exonerate the whole non-elect world from 
 the sin of unbelief.-' 
 
 But there are innumerable declarations and facts, dispersed 
 through all parts of the holy scriptures, which go to establish the 
 doctrine of a general propitiation. " Behold," saith the apostle 
 John, "the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world;" 
 alluding ptobably to the words of Isaiah, who said of the Messiah, 
 that he should make an end of sin, and bring in everlasting 
 righteousness. No expression can more fully convey the idea 
 of full and universal propitiation. And there is but one way to 
 avoid this construction, which is by mending up the passage by 
 the help of another word. The word KOSMOi:, which, in the Gifeek, 
 
 6 
 
42 
 
 18 used for world, out of eleren difierent meaniDgs, furoiehes no 
 one which requires or admits an epithet before it : and I have 
 as good a right to put before it the word European* or American, 
 ancient or modern, as any man has to put the word elect or re- 
 deemed. I believe it is nowhere in the Scriptures used to sig- 
 nify the church of Christ : on the contrary, it is generally used 
 to mean the world in its most literal sense, or the people, inde- 
 finitely, who inhabit it. 
 
 The high priest of the Jews, on the trial of our Saviour, de- 
 clared that it was necessary that one should die for the people. 
 " This he spake," saith the evangelist John, "■■not of himself, but 
 being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus should die 
 for that nation." — By what spirit did he prophesy ? — By the Spi- 
 rit of God. — Were the Jewish nation believers ? — Did they not 
 as a nation reject the Redeemer ? — Have they not as a nation 
 been unbelievers ever since ? And yet a man prophesied by the 
 inspiration of the Holy Ghost, that Christ should ditfor that na- 
 tion. This is surely out of the triangle. 
 
 But to conclude this number : there is no point in the whole 
 gospel plan, more abundantly expressed or strongly implied, than 
 that Christ, as far as propitiation or atonement is concerned, died 
 for all men — ofifered up himself a ransom for all — tasted death 
 for every man, and made propitiation for the sins of the whole 
 world. Therefore, said the Apostle to the Hebrews, '* How shall 
 we escape if we neglect so great salvation ?" Assuring them, with 
 all the force of reasoning and of eloquence, that salvation was 
 brought within their reach ; and virtually enforcing the accusation 
 laid by Christ himself, in another place, against the Scribes and 
 Pharisees, of wilfully refusing to enter into the kingdom of hea- 
 ven themselves — nay, and of preventing others that would enter 
 from going in. 
 
 Away with this contracted, limited, starved, unscriptural no- 
 tion of the atonement : — it is defacing the corner stone of the 
 christian fabric — cutting it down to a pebble, on which the glo- 
 rious superstructure cannot rest, but totters to its foundation. 
 
 It ought to be the highest glory of every gospel minister to 
 preach " Christ the Saviour of all men, but especially of them that 
 believe " to assure mankind that the door of mercy is set open 
 
43 
 
 before them, from which nothing can exclude them but their 
 refusal to enter: — that God is long suffering, not willing that any 
 should perish, but that all should come to repentance. The 
 gospel, deprived of these and similar topics, is defaced — ^its 
 beauties tarnished — its riches wasted — its influence destroyed 
 " It is another gospel." 
 
 INVESTIGATOR. 
 
 No. IX. 
 
 These gentlemen, who, to save circumlocution, may, perhaps, 
 be stiled Trigonoi, which I think they would prefer to Antimo- 
 ralinabilitists, beside the true and genuine wielding of the sword 
 of the spirit, have two ways of defending their cause. One is, 
 by casting over their whole scheme the lustre and glory of great 
 names and authorities, such as Calvin, Turretin, Pictet, Ridgely, 
 Owen, Marshall, and the like ; shrouding, under this sort of pa- 
 noply, more notions which those men never thought of, than 
 there were ever toads seen under the sweep of a rainbow after a 
 shower. The other is, by casting an invincible odium upon 
 their adversaries; accusing them of holding to the most strange, 
 dangerous, and even blasphemous sentiments : as for example, 
 that God is the author of sin ; that people must be willing to be 
 damned, in order to be saved ; that all sin consists in selfishness. 
 Beside this, they have a most incurable prejudice against cer- 
 tain terms, which are considered to be very favourite words 
 with some ; for instance, sucii terms as disinterestedness, bene- 
 volence, virtue, morality, and the like. 
 
 A paragraph or two on each of these particulars, I think will 
 be abundant to remove the mist from the eyes of most people. 
 I say mist; for the filling of people's minds with causeless ter- 
 rors, with these frightful words, reminds me of the mode of de- 
 fence used by a certain fish, which I think is called a squid ; who, 
 when he is pursued, throws back into the eyes of his pursuer a 
 
44 
 
 black cloudy water, whereby he loses the track, and the squid 
 escajif-.^. 
 
 I never, in nay life, heard a person say that he thought God 
 was the author of sin; thou}<;h I have personally known Hop- 
 kins, and many of his most disfingnished followers. That God 
 is somehow or other concerned in the existence of tin, is an in- 
 ference, however, drawn from premises which few will deny. 
 Tlie ilhjstrioiis assembly of protestant divines who formed the 
 Augsburgh confession of faith, with Luther and Melancthon at 
 their head, say, in that confession, that Satan was the author of 
 sin But, it is replied, Satan was once an angel of light, and if 
 his first sin were the firet sin ever committed in God's kingdom, 
 then, before his first sin, there was nothing sinful. Then, eifher 
 the tirst sin had no cause, or must have been caused or com- 
 mitted by a holy being. " But this is going too far back — if is 
 presumptuous." Ah ! quite too far back for these modest, htim- 
 ble, reasoners. They will do well to observe it goes no further 
 back than intuitive demonstration paves the way. I will leave 
 it for them to take which part of (he dilemma they choose, and 
 draw their own consequences. 
 
 Some people are accused of too great boldness in their rea- 
 sonings. Let us see who is the most bold and irreverent. Eve- 
 ry one believes that God existed from eternity, before sin took 
 place in his kingdom. Would it not be very bold and impious 
 to say that sin commenced contrary to his expectation? Would 
 it not be blasphemous to say that He could not have prevent- 
 ed the beiiinning of sin 1 Would it not be an impeachment of 
 all his perfections, to entertain a belief that he could even be 
 indifferent cr>ncerning an event which was to change the face 
 of his whole kinjidom, to influence the condition of all crea- 
 tures to eternity, and to lead the way to the grandest event 
 which ever engaged the attention of creatures ? 
 
 What will these modest and humble reasoners say of the incar- 
 nation, death, resurrection, reign, and glory of the Son of God, 
 the second person in the ever blessed Trinity ? Were these grand 
 events merely remedial and preventive, in reference to an 
 event no ways connected with the divine purposes ? Would it 
 be extravagant — would it be unscriptural to say that the in- 
 
45 
 
 carnation, and work of Christ, were regarded as ultimate ends, 
 even in the creati »n and general providence of God, since 
 througi) that work G d is manifested to his creatures, and hia 
 moral kingdom bi ougiit into a closer union with him ? Why, then, 
 is Christ called the btgmning of the creation of God, the first 
 born of every creature ? 
 
 God works all things after the counsel of his own will; yet, 
 according to these modest teachers, who never pry into any thing 
 beyond their depth, the whole plan of providence and redemp- 
 tion has been diverted, nay, farced into a certain channel, to ob- 
 viate the etfects of an event in which the agency of God had no 
 concern. According to this doctrine, that very event, in which 
 th« divine agency had no concern, has been the means of bring- 
 ing about more good than any event in which the divine agency 
 ever was concerned. 
 
 If God had no way to produce, Influence, and control events, 
 but such as creatures use, we then might be justly alarmed at the 
 idea of any divine agency, either direct or indirect, concerned 
 in the existence of evil. Herein is the error of mankind ; they 
 measure the methods and motives of the divine conduct by their 
 own. "Thou thoughtest that I was altogether such an one as 
 thyself, but I will reprove thee quickly." 
 
 These are some of the reasonings usually resorted to by those 
 who are accused of holding that God is the author of sin. For 
 myself, I can truly say, lever disliked the expression, and lean 
 say as much for many who are accused of holding to the doc- 
 trine. How far, and in what way, the divine agency was con- 
 cerned in the existence of evil, after submitting the foregoing 
 remarks, I leave every one to judge for himself. Their argu- 
 ment may be divided into two parts, which, lest it may be mis- 
 understood, I shall repeat. 
 
 1. They contend, that the first sin must either have had no 
 caHse, or a holy cause. Q,uis protest negare ? 
 
 2. They say that the consequences of sin have been far too 
 great, and too peculiar to admit of the supposition of inditferenc?, 
 or inefii«'iency concerning its origin, in a being of infinite power, 
 wisdom, and goodness, wh<< foresaw it. And it must be admit- 
 ted, that the work of creation ilself is considered in the scrip- 
 
46 
 
 tures as subordinate, and leading to the work of redemption ; 
 since the great Redeemer is called the beginning of the creation 
 of God, the first born of every creature. He was appointed 
 heir of all things; — the whole universe was given him as an in- 
 heritance, even before it was created. Yet, without sin there 
 could have been neither redemption, Redeemer, nor Immanuel. 
 Their notion, if they have any, seems to subject us to the base 
 and degrading idea, that the entire and eternal plan of God's 
 kingdom and government turned upon an event concerning 
 which he had neither will, agency, nor influence. 
 
 The clamour that is raised against certain people, who are said 
 to hold that a sinner must be willing to be damned in order to 
 be saved, is almost too idle and ridiculous to merit a moment's 
 attention; yet, like the discharge of the squid, it blinds people's 
 eyes, and scatters a great deal of fog and darkness. It is even 
 amusing to hear them talk ou the subject. *' What, must I be 
 willing to live with devils in fire and brimstone to all eternity, in 
 order to be saved ? Impossible ! 0, what horrible sentiments ! 
 These ppople must be monsters in human shape," &c. 
 
 The people accused of this most extraordinary error, as far as 
 I have known their opinions, hold no more, on this article, than 
 all Christians, and even the more enlightened heathen admit, to- 
 gether with Jews and Mahometans. They hold, that every ra- 
 tional creature in heaven, earth, and hell, ought to/eel perfect sub- 
 mission to the will of God. Now, if this be an error, let, it be 
 made to appear such. If it be true and correct, let these tender- 
 hearted clamourers avoid the consequences which necessarily re- 
 sult from it, if they can. While they hold unqualified submis- 
 won to the divine will the duty of all rational creatures, they al- 
 go believe that a certain degree of that submission, or resigna- 
 tion, belongs to the Christian character. And will any one deny 
 it? The Christian, they say, sees that his damnation would be 
 just, and is ready to exclaim with Job, "Though he slay me, yet 
 will I trust in him." As to any one's being willing to be an ene- 
 my to God to all eternity, it is out of the question; for damna- 
 tion, in strictness, implies the penalty of the law, and not the 
 transgression of it. It is probable that every Christian is fully 
 aware that it is n«t the will of God that hie people should be 
 
47 
 
 damned ; in feeling resignation to his will, therefore, which is one 
 evidence of their adoption, it is not implied that they feel willing 
 to be damned. 
 
 If it be right that a wicked man should be damned, I would 
 ask these good people, whether they think that a wicked man 
 ought to be willing that God should do right ? I fear they will 
 detect themselves of as huge an error as they charge upon 
 others : for, I strongly conjecture, they will not dare to say that 
 even a wicked man does right to continue to be a rebel against 
 God. 
 
 There is nothing on this subject worthy of notice ; nothing that 
 a man of sense and candour would waste a moment about; but, 
 truly, the outcry that has been raised concerning this, evinces a 
 spirit the most base, carping, and unfair. It is, indeed, not long 
 since it was declared in a public lecture, before a great audience) 
 in this city, that a certain sect of people held that all virtue com- 
 sisted in being willing to be damned. This was said, if I recollect 
 right, by the celebrated Dr. M'Fog, and is what may be called, 
 in vulgar terms, a thumper. For no such thing is believed or as- 
 serted by any one. Whether a public teacher, who thus wan- 
 tonly commits himself to falsehood for the sake of exciting popu* 
 far odium, does thereby add any thing to the score of bis faith 
 or good works, I shall not determine. 
 
 These champions for selfishness, when they hear it asserted 
 that all sin consists in selfishness, are, no doubt, much displeased. 
 This opinion, though it may be maintained by some, in their 
 metaphysical disquisitions, is peculiar to no class or denomina- 
 tion of people ; therefore, were it never so erroneous, is not to 
 be charged upon any scheme of theology. But wherein con- 
 sists its odious enormity — or in what respect is it incorrect ? 
 
 By selfishness, I mean that disposition in the mind of man 
 which sets up the interest, honour, gratification, or happiness of 
 himself above any other object. Now, I ask, what sin is human 
 nature charged with, which may not easily and directly be traced 
 to that source ? Is a man covetous ? What does the increase of 
 wealth regard but self aggrandizement and gratification ? Who 
 desires what is not his own but for that end ? Whither does am- 
 bition tend? What is the source and motive of envy, hatred, and 
 
48 
 
 revenge ? The man of pleasure, what does he aim at ? What 
 gives rise to intrigue — perjury — treason — slander ? What impels 
 the thief — the robber — the assassin — the conqueror ? 
 
 Again, I ask, whence is the reluctance of men to obey the law 
 of God ? It is because they find no gratification, no pleasure, in 
 the duties which it requires : it restrains their pleasures, and for- 
 bids the indulgence of their passions; therefore, they hate it. 
 For the same reason they hate God himself, and prefer their own 
 pleasure and gratification to his honour and glory. 
 
 Hence if is, that selfish men are often in danger of mistaking a 
 kind of natural gratitude which they feel towards God, when he 
 does them good, and prospers their enterprises, for a true and 
 holy love to God; whereas, it is butbimply the approbation and 
 enjoyment of their own interest, as flowing from his providence. 
 Christ himself teaches that to love those that love us is no very- 
 exalted excellence, since he assures us, even sinners love sinners, 
 and can feel very well disposed to requite a kindness. There is, 
 indeed, no doubt, a great deal of supposed love to God and to 
 Christ, which arises from the very lowest and most unmingled 
 selfishness. A man, by some means, imbibes a per uasion that 
 God loves him, has done him much good, and is going to do him 
 much more; nay, he goes further^ and persuades himself that 
 Christ died for him, and will save him. This is enough to ex- 
 cite his love and gratitude, and he talks how ardently he loves 
 God, and how much ds^vofed he i? to the Saviour. This is but a 
 concise view of the religion of these -^ Ifish teachers. They, in 
 fact, have the boldness to assert that the highest motive a sinner 
 has to love God and Christ, is because he has received great fa- 
 vours from them, and expects still greater. They say that ab- 
 stract views of the excellency of God's character are too remote, 
 too exalted, too far removed from human conception, to be the 
 proper foundation of love and admiration ; that, whatever they 
 may be to higher orders of creatures, they are far too pure, ex- 
 alted, and refined, to operate as motives on men 
 
 O wretched religion! Self deceived pretenders to godliness! 
 O selfishness in perfection — base — miserable, and blind ! A »nan 
 may have all this relijiion, may be full uf it, and full of zeal to 
 promote it, and yet have none of the spirit of Christ. Is there 
 
49 
 
 thennosuch thingas a divine character? Has Jesus Christ no cha- 
 racter which can be apprehended, and supremely loved, unmin- 
 gled with one consideration of self? Whence has arisen all this 
 noise about greatness, amiableness, excellency of character, even 
 in men ; which fills all books, and which has been the highest 
 object of admiration, panegyric, and delight, to men in all 
 ages ? 
 
 •■ Ah ! it is all nothing ; — all too remote and abstract to hit hu- 
 man faculties. / can love nothing hut what does me good : I 
 must perceive its connexion with my interest, or I cann.'t feel 
 any regard for it." This is selfish language ; and it is sordid 
 enough. 
 
 The character of God is sufficiently manifested to his rational 
 creatures to command supreme and universal love and adora- 
 tion. There is no character among the heroes and patriots of his- 
 tory, so fully displayed — so prominently evident — so easily and 
 clearly apprehensible. This infinitely glorious characicr is col- 
 lected from what God has revealed of himself — his nature and 
 attributes — his providence and grace, in his works and in his 
 word. 
 
 A man comes and tells me that a neighbour of his has done 
 him a very great kindness ; has paid for him a sum of money, and 
 rescued him from prosecution and from prison : what if I should 
 say to him, in reply, He has indeed been very kind, and laid you 
 under peculiar obligations. But i know that man well ; in what 
 he has done for you, he has evinced the character he universally 
 possesses. He has done thousands of such acts in the course of 
 his life, and thousands of people have shared in his beneficence. 
 The whole of his fortune is devoted to the benefit of mankind ; 
 and the various resources of his mind are directed and exhaust- 
 ed in promoting all sorts of improvements ; in founding hospitals, 
 seminaries, and liberal and charitable institutions. He has made 
 great improvements in the agriculture of his whole neighbour- 
 hood ; and has done more to encourage the arts and sciences, 
 and to promote human happiness, than r.ny man of his time. But 
 hold, says the man. (hat is all well enough, but it is nothing to me. 
 I feel no interest in t/iese abstract views of character. The good 
 he may have done to thousands, and all hia great and benevolent 
 
 ? 
 
50 
 
 plans, do uot Btrike my feelings at all. Let them be extolled by 
 those who were, or will be, interested in, and benefited by them. 
 This man has paid a hundred dollars for me, and, therefore, Hove 
 him. It cannot be supposed that I can be affected by the good 
 he has done to others; and, above all, that I can be so abstract 
 and metaphysical as to run back to consider his character and 
 disposition, prior to the consideration of his actions, and which 
 lie at the bottom of his conduct. That would be all nonsense, 
 or, at best, far too refined for me. I like the man because he 
 has done me good : he has promoted my interest, and, therefore, 
 I can feel great regard for him. 
 
 What ought I to think of such a mani* — I should, I confess, 
 consider him as a blind, unfeeling, selfish wretch, on whom the 
 great and liberal man had wasted his bounty, were it not that 
 " Mercy is twice blest, 
 
 In him who gives it, and in him who takeB." 
 
 So that one of the blessings will at least redound to the giver, 
 however the other may affect the receiver. 
 
 Room is furnished for the rise and spread of an unlimited 
 kingdom, through interminable space and eternal duration, in 
 which the glorious God and Father of all has, from ancient days, 
 poured forth emanations of his infinite goodness. In this rising and 
 spreading kingdom, adorned with magnificence answerable to the 
 power and wisdom of the divine architect, are placed innumerable 
 orders of creatures. Beginning with inactive, inorganic matter^ 
 thence rising to the vegetable, then to the sensitive and animal 
 kingdoms; and still higher to creatures of a mixed nature, com- 
 posed of body and mind, and endowed with sensation and reflec- 
 tion; and, last of all, for here our perceptions and means of know- 
 ledge terminate, to pure spirits, with whose mode of existence and 
 general habits we are still unacquainted. Through these immense 
 departments of being, the great Author has manifested one cha- 
 racter of power, wisdom, design, justice, aiul benevolence. In- 
 telligence begins with man, and ascends to higher degrees of ex- 
 cellence in angels. But as, in our present state, we do not need 
 the information, so the infinitely wise Teacher has not informed us 
 concerning the various natures, numbers, orders, residences, and 
 
51 
 
 powers of superior creatures. Yet enongh is communicated to 
 assure us that, in all those respects, they are answerable to the 
 grandeur of the kindom in which they live, and of the God and 
 Father whom they adore. 
 
 In.ways inconceivably glorious and wonderful, God is making 
 himself known to this great family : and as all rational creatures 
 are immortal, there is full reason to believe these discoveries 
 will always continue and increase ; while to contemplate, ad- 
 mire, and adore will be the ceaseless employment of holy in- 
 telligences, through a happy eternity. 
 
 Before this great family, the Almighty Father has exhibited a 
 character marked with the strongest lines — the most distinguish- 
 ed and illustrious traits. Nor is there a rational creature, whose 
 faculties are mature according to the constitution of his nature, 
 who cannot perceive it. Every thing, from the great frame of 
 nature to the minutest insect, declares his power and wisdom : 
 nor less do they declare his infinite benevolence. But the work 
 of redemption more especially brings into light, and fully illus- 
 trates, his moral perfections. Nor is it likely that this work is 
 concealed from any of his intelligent creatures: nor is it viewed 
 with less interest, delight, or astonishment, by those pure intel- 
 ligences who never fell, than it is or will be by those for whom 
 the benefits of redemption are immediately designed ; while, on 
 the contrary, the redeemed will rejoice with equal fervor in be- 
 holding divine goodness, like a mighty river, flowing from the 
 throne of God, and dispensing itself abroad in immortal streams, 
 to enrich, adorn, and glorify the whole intelligent system. 
 
 Can it be believed that the base and loathsome doctrine of 
 selfishness is violently intruded, by these teachers, even into 
 this theme 1 Yes : they will tell you that every christian, yea, 
 every saint, will be so completely occupied with the high import- 
 ance of his own hap[)iness, that he will not be able to perceive 
 any stronger motive of love to God, than because God has done 
 goodio him: and that this, of course, will be the rule of liis at- 
 tachment to all beings. May God dispel the clouds that hang 
 around them, and enlarge the ken of their mental vision : may 
 he break up this frozen winter of selfishness in their souls, and 
 warm them with holy love. 
 
52 
 
 Religion does not render a man indifierent to happiness, but it 
 shows hirn his jwh comparative nothingness and insignificance in 
 th< gi i;at king<l..m of Jehovah ; and all the acts of divine goodness 
 and mercy lo him, and to the whole human race ; all the blessings 
 which all creatures receive from God, show him clearly that 
 these hireams of goodness procned from one boundless, exhaust- 
 less ocean. And who tha: comes in sight of the ocean, in which 
 islands and continents are ail embosomed, will not be ready to 
 forget streams and rivers, which all proceed from thence and re- 
 turn thither ? 
 
 But, the shameless and strenuous vindication of selfishness, so 
 prominent in the conversation, preaching, and, I am sorry to add, 
 in the conduct of these teachers, for they are all of a piece ; the 
 virulence with which they attack all idea of disinterestedness, 
 even in the great concerns of religion, leaves room to fear that 
 the pursuit of self-interest is their supreme object. Perhaps, in- 
 deed, they will own the charge, and feel willing to abide the con- 
 sequences. If so, I pray God to show them that he has a cha- 
 racter which challenges their supreme regard ; and that he would 
 teach t;)em to approve and love every thing according to its real 
 value, whether it directly tends to promote their private interest 
 or not. This is what I call disinterested benevolence, and is fully 
 implied in the great precept, '* Thou shalt love the Lord thy 
 God with all thine heart, and thy neighbour as thyself." 
 
 INVESTIGATOR. 
 
 No. X. 
 
 I TULST it will be admitted that the reformation of the church 
 is i)y no means completely accomplished. I am sorry to be com- 
 pelled to add, that this "consujnniation, so devoutly to be wished," 
 is kept back and delayed, in {lart, by the church itself, or, more 
 correctly speaking, by individuals in its bosom, who, having 
 acquired some influence, use that iufluence to its utmost extent^ 
 
53 
 
 not merely in retarding the vessel, so long " afflicted and tossed 
 with tempests," on her voyagf, but by strivj.ig <o lay her coarse 
 backward, and to carry her a^ain towards A\e dark and stormy 
 coast she left ages ago. Of this I have giv»^n some intimations 
 in the preceding numbers. It shall be the business of the present 
 number to assign my reasons for this assertion. Whether I shall 
 substantiate it, I leave the reader to judge ; and I appeal to an 
 enlightened public, who can have no interest in wishing to be 
 deceived by the " cunning crajtmess of men" 
 
 1 appeal to the city, nay, to the consciences of the men with 
 whose motives I have made so free, and shall still make more 
 free, and whose doctrines I oppose. For conscience does not al- 
 ways go hand in hand with the clamours of contempt, nor always 
 sanction the soft flattery of parasites, or the loud hosannas of the 
 multitude. It sometimes has happened that while a man deco- 
 rates his brow with the dignified smile of self-approbation, stern 
 conscience goads his heart, and points him to an awful and im- 
 partial tribunal. 
 
 From the seventh to the fifteenth century an age of darkness 
 covered the remnant of Ihe civilized nations of the earth, the 
 church was in the wilderness, and spiritual Babylon maintained 
 her gloomy reign, in a manner, undisturbed. Yet Christ was not 
 without a witness, and there is reason to believe that many of his 
 jewels will be gathered from that period, and from those places 
 where " darkness covered the earth, and gross darkness the peo- 
 ple." In the valleys of Piedment the voice of the gospel was 
 at times heard ; and the name of Raymond holds a dreadful im- 
 mortality, from the atrocity of his crimes, and his cruelties in- 
 flicted on the followers of Christ. 
 
 The seeds of the reformation were sown previous to the days 
 of Luther, Even from the times of the crusades a series of re- 
 markable events began to loosen the fetters which bound the 
 minds of men, and gradually to weaken the foundations of the 
 papal edifice, founded in ignorance and superstition, and consoli- 
 dated by ambition. It is a common remark, that one great ij)an 
 seldom appears alone. Luther, the greatest of Christian heroes 
 since the apostolic age, was surrounded and aided by a constella- 
 tion, for such I may call them, of moa eminently fitted by Provi- 
 
54 
 
 dence for the great work they were destined to accomplish. And 
 while the flame broke out, and was rapidly spreading, in Germa- 
 ny, by a happy coincidence, a commotion was raised in England, 
 though from causes apparently far less commendaljlc, which was 
 not composed but by the separation of that natioji -from the see 
 of Rome. 
 
 The character and progress of the reformation derived many 
 of its leading traits from the character and temper of the nations 
 over which its happy influence prevailed. The thrones of Eu- 
 rope were, at that august moment, filled with greater monarchs 
 than, all things considered, ever occupied them at any other pe- 
 riod. In England, the eighth and greatest of the Henrys ; in Ger- 
 many and Spain, Charles the Fifth ; in France, Francis the First ; 
 and in TurKey, Solyman the Magnificent; while on the Papal 
 throne sat Leo the Tenth, the most powerful and accomplished 
 of ail the popes, the Augustus of spiritual Rome, if that deserves 
 to be called spiritual which was, in fact, more carnal, sensual, and 
 devilish than the Rome of Augustus Caesar. To the ambitious 
 views and great resources of these monarchs, extraordinary as it 
 may seem, was apparently owing the progress and establishment 
 of the reformation. By these means, each one, fully occupied 
 with his own projects and hopes of aggrandizement, was, in a 
 manner, withdrawn from any hostile interference, till the work 
 of God was accomplished by his own immediate instruments. 
 
 God, who is able to cause tiiat a nation shall be born in a day, 
 nevertheless usually accomplishes his great [)urposes gradually, 
 and by the use of means. The gospel kingdom at first was ushered 
 in by small and slow degrees. It was not to be expected, that 
 the Reformation would either be complete and entire, or univer- 
 sal. Yet the wisdom of God was manifested in selecting Great 
 Britain, a literary people, whose naval power was to give her a 
 ready intercourse with all the globe ; and Germany, a nation of 
 a character peculiarly decided, jwirseveriug, grave, and selfcon- 
 sistent. 
 
 To draw the line of demarcation between the first reformers 
 and the catholics, with any degree of exactness, would be diffi- 
 cult ; perhaps the attempt would be hazardous. In general, the 
 grand pillars of popery wore torn away, the enormous load of 
 
55 
 
 useless rites and ceremonies thrown off, the superstitions, corrup- 
 tions, and abominable vices of their ecclesiastical polity rejected* 
 But it was the infelicity of the first reformers, as it has been of 
 their successors, that they differed and contended. Melancthon 
 differed from Luther; Calvin from both ; Carolstadt from all; 
 and Erasmus, if he can be called a reformer, agreed with none of 
 them, though he approved of many things they did. Combina- 
 tions, however, and establishments soon took place; the Lu- 
 therans formed one, the Genevese another, the English a thiro^ 
 and the Scotch a fourth. . 
 
 Some of these establishments rejected Episcopacy and a litur- 
 gy, while others retained both. I shall avoid either discussions 
 or opinions on these points, relative to the exterior of the chris- 
 tian fabric. I think them not essentials of religion, and if pur- 
 sued with a temper and spirit conformable to their professed in- 
 tention, I hope those who may even err in these respects vrill 
 nevertheless be accepted of God. 
 
 The grand pillars of the papal throne and the enormous abuses 
 running down through every grade of that most corrupt of all 
 hierarchies, were visible and tangible to the reformers; they 
 therefore united, at once, in their demolition and removal. But 
 these were not the only objects which required the attention of 
 the reformers. Errors in doctrine — errors which, like roots, had 
 ramified into thousands of branches, spread wide, and crept far 
 and deep, beneath a soil apparently well cultivated, were still to 
 be discovered and eradicated. In this work, the first grand re- 
 formers made less progress than in some other parts of their 
 vast enterprise. The visible church had long been an apostate 
 church, and at whatever period the completion of that apostacy 
 may be fixed, the commencement of her decline may be traced 
 to times still more remote. 
 
 The days of the celebrated Greek and Latin fathers were fruit- 
 ful of errors, in doctrine and discipline, of stupendous growth ; of 
 which, if they could be estimated by weight or measure, enough 
 might be selected from the flights and plunges of O.igen alone 
 to crush an elephant to the earth. The oriental philosophy had 
 already mingled itself with, and claimed the sanction of, the doc- 
 trine of Christ. The belief t'lat good and evil were self existenfand 
 co-eternal,had sweptoff many into the deceitfuleddies of heathen- 
 
56 
 
 ism. Aod when CoDstantine ascended the throne, the Arian 
 heresy threatened tne virtual extinction of (lie christian church. 
 Hence the remark of Turretin, that " the fathers are useful tons 
 as witnesses of fact, but not aa judges of truth" was, doubtless, 
 correct. 
 
 In the dark ages, the follies and superstitions peculiar to the 
 respective nations had more or less entrenched themselves within 
 the precincts of christian doctrine. Astrology, wiih all its lumber 
 of omens, dreams, intluences, conceits, and superstitions, formed 
 a Luge portion of the piety and devotion of thousands; and lo- 
 gic, a wretched jargon of quibbles, sopSiisms, and riddles, sup- 
 ported by squadrons of analytics and dialectics, fed their under- 
 standings with wind. 
 
 To crown the whole, the philosophy aod morality of Plato and 
 Aristotle, tlio ugh not understood, were lugf>;edin and incorporated 
 with th*'ir religion, and formed some of the main pillars of their 
 faith. Hence arose realists and nominalists, together with the 
 wise and profound doctrines of substantial forms : concerning 
 which, hosts of great men disputed for ages, with all the learn- 
 ing and subtlety the world could furnish, and with all the spleen, 
 slander, and malevolence which priests, monks, bishops, and 
 cardinals, could feel or inquire. 
 
 When the superstructure of Popery was torn down and destroy- 
 ed, there still remained a great and vastly important reforinaJion 
 to be made in the opinions of men, which is still but partially ac- 
 complished. This change, though not related to objects vitally 
 important to salvation, yet very rnate;ially affects many impor, 
 tant doctrines of revelation, and many points 'if practical religion. 
 Habits of incorrect thinking and false reasaning,- sanctioned for 
 ages by great names and whole nations, cannot be sudilenly de- 
 stroyed and done away. Neither are men like Luther and his 
 coadjutors the men eventually to accomplish this work : it re- 
 quires men of equal talents, boldness, and decision of character, 
 but of a very different temperament of mind and turn of thinking. 
 
 Among the thing'-' left to be accomplished, after the reforma- 
 tion, and, doubtless, preparatory to another and far greater refor- 
 mation, still to come, 1 sh>,ll mention but three or four. 
 
 1. That the righio of man ^hould be fully undirstood and es- 
 tablished. 1 am grateful to a good providence, which has placed 
 
57 
 
 me in a country where they are better understood and more fully 
 established, than in any other country. Of all these rights, I shall, 
 at this time, only speak of those of a religious nature, as they 
 are the most sacred and important, and lie properly within the 
 scope of this subject. Religious rights, involving the duty a man 
 owes immediately to God, are by far the most necessary to be 
 maintained and tolerated, while at the same time there is the least 
 provocation to restrain them. But tyrants early learned the art 
 of making religion an engine of state policy, or, in other words, 
 of ambition; and thence sprung the oppressive doctrine of in- 
 toleration. 
 
 Nothing can be more surprising than that the reformers, 
 whose tirst theme was the tyranny and usurpation of Rome, 
 who had as yet but partially burst their chains, and were still in 
 some places menaced with racks and flames, should, notwith- 
 standing, be unable to perceive that religious freedom is the sacred 
 and inviolable right of every man. Yet nothing is more certain 
 than that they did not perceive it ; but adopted many of the per- 
 secuting maxims of the former persecutors. Even the great 
 Calvin, after whose name so many deem it an honour to be called, 
 had not been taught by the smart of persecution to abhor the 
 persecutor ; neither had the tyrannical intolerance of Rome awa- 
 kened in him the generous and liberal spirit of toleration. 
 
 I surely will not reject the truth, because Calvin held to it, but, 
 at the same time, I confess, that a persecuting protestant, other 
 things out of the question, stands lower on the list of persecutors, 
 in my estimation, than any other ; because they ought to know 
 better ; and, indeed, we read in such actions, rather the language 
 of the heart than of the understanding and conscience. We 
 can very easily apologize for them, and say it was the fault of 
 the times ; but it was no dictate of the spirit of Christ. 
 
 Since the reformation, the light of truth has shone, and the 
 priuci[>les of rehgious toleration have, perhaps, made some pro- 
 gress in every part of Christendom, not even excepting Spain and 
 Portugal. But, in our own happy country, they seem to have 
 acquired their full maturity. While it is here perceived that 
 there is no necessity of making religion an engine of state policy ; 
 while our rulers are not disposed to press religion into the service 
 
 9 
 
5& 
 
 ©f their ambition, so neither do our clergy hope to increase their 
 power and influence, by blending the church and the state. 
 Here it is, at length, fully discovered, that a man may worship 
 God according to the dictates of bis own conscience, and be 
 nevertheless a useful member of civil society. How long it will 
 be before this discovery shall be as entire and universal as it is 
 now imperfect and limited, God only knows. But that the 
 church of Christ will never recover her primitive order and pu- 
 rity till that is the case, is certain. 
 
 2. The reformers, while they had but a very imperfect know- 
 ledge of the rights of man, were equally unacquainted with th« 
 constitution and powers of the human mind. It was to (be im- 
 mortal honour of Locke, that he should lead the way, and en- 
 lighten mankind on both these subjects, very diCTcrent in their 
 nature, but equally important in their influence, yet intimately 
 connected in the same subject. And it cannot be doiibted, but 
 that his skilful delineation of the human mind led him to those 
 just and liberal views of religious freedom and toleration, with 
 which he equally surprised, in-structed, and delighted the most 
 intelligent minds in Europe. Writers have succeeded Lock« of 
 more splendour and celebrity as philologists ; and if they have 
 corrected some mistakes, and su[)p!ied some deficiencies which 
 escaped him, in his immense labours and unweared researches, 
 they have built on foundations immovably laid by him. 
 
 But another task remained; for, with whatever accuracy 
 Locke and those that followed him delineated the intellectual 
 powers of man, the dispute still remained unsettled, tvhither Uie 
 will of man were free — a dispute which was truly important, as 
 it involved many doctrines of religion and moralit3\ This dis- 
 pute, which had been carried on between papists and protestants, 
 now raged between predestinarians and Arminians; but was 
 carried on in the dark, by men who did not understand eacli 
 others ground or weapons, er, in fact, their own. 
 
 This country claims tlie honour of giving birth to the man who 
 put this grand question at rest. Jonathan Edwards, proceeding 
 on the princif)les of Locke, as far as he went into the investiga- 
 tion of the mind, settled Jlie iloctrine of the human will as firmly 
 and unanswerably as liocke had that of (he understandini;. Yei 
 
59 
 
 80, in general, as to give neither aide of the dispute the victory. 
 Bui he silenced both parlies, by demonstrating that they had both 
 fundamentally mistaken the grand principles of the sutyect about 
 which they contended. He showed, that as the will is not go- 
 verned by a self-determining power, so neither is its freedom im- 
 paired by moral depravity. Several answers were attempted to 
 this incomparable work; but some of them, it is said, were still- 
 born, and so saved the credit of their authors : while one of Ed- 
 wards's principal antagonists, as I have heard, died with vexa- 
 tion, because he came to the birth, and was not able to bring 
 forth. 
 
 Edwards, with a force of reason and intellect, which it is be- 
 lieved by many was never surpassed in any human effort, having 
 drawn the lines of this great subject, apparently concurrent with 
 truth and experience when drawn, but which no one could trace 
 till his pervading mind led the way, was able to perceive thereby 
 the import and harmony of the doctrines of the gospel which re» 
 late to the corruption and depravity of human nature, and, in o-e- 
 neral, of all the doctrines of grace He perceived that man's 
 inability to comply with the gospel constitutes the very essence 
 of his crime, being only of the moral kind, as already explain- 
 ed ; that the provision of the gospel is general, and its offer uni- 
 versal. 
 
 From his view of the constitution and powers of the mind, he 
 was able to understand and explain the doctrine of a moral ne- 
 cessity, under which man acts, harmonizing on the one hand with 
 that of divine decrees, as taught by Calvin, and, on the other, 
 with that of moral agency, which had never been so clearly ex- 
 plained and illustrated as by himself. Hence Dr. Hill, one of 
 the ablest of the Scotch divines, and the author of the Institutes^ 
 says, that Jonathan Edwards may be styled the ^^ prince of the 
 Calvinists.''^ Certain it is, that he did for them more than they 
 could do for themselves, showing the decrees of God compatible 
 with human liberty, and the doctrine of total (It'[)ravity recon- 
 cileable with man's accountableness and guilt, because of a moral 
 nature. 
 
 Edwards was followed in some of his leading opinions by Hop- 
 kins, and Bellamy, and West, and, eventually, by most of the 
 
60 
 
 evangelical divines in the northeastern section of the unioo. 
 Bis writings have been pubHshed and read in Great Britain ; and 
 many of their most distinguished writers and orthodox divines 
 have adopted the general outline of his sentiments. 
 
 Neither the term New Divinity, by which this strain of senti- 
 ment is sometimes called, is appropriate, nor any more so is 
 that of Hopkins anism. The sentiments, generrdly called New- 
 Divinity, did not originate in this country, and were known in 
 the church long before the (fays of Edwards or Hopkins. Mil- 
 ner, in his church history, asserts, that the doctrine of a limited 
 atonement was not known in the ancient Christian church till the 
 time of St. Augustine; nor is it admitted by all, that Augustine 
 himself held that sentiment. Certain it is, that the greater part 
 of protestants have held a general atonement. And through the 
 writings of many of the ablest and most orthodox divines, the 
 general strain of doctrine taught by Edwards, Hopkins, and Bel- 
 lamy, are discoyerable. 
 
 Why this system should be named after Hopkins, in preference 
 to Edwards, is not easily accounted for, unless it were because it 
 was feared the greatness and fame of Edwards would give too 
 much weight and respectability to a scheme which was called 
 after his name. Edwards was the great master spirit of his day, 
 and, in theological truth, was the luminary of his country. 
 
 The day and the labours of Edwards, and the eminent men 
 who followed in his steps, form a memorable era in the history 
 of (he church. This may be distinguished by the great and sud- 
 den increase of divine light and Christian knowledge attending 
 their ministry. For the lapse of nearly a century, no part of the 
 globe has experienced $o many, and such remarkable revivals of 
 religion, nor is there auj' country in the world where so large a 
 proportion of the whole mass of the people are known to profess 
 Christianity, attended with evidence of its sincerity. As these 
 people have rapidly emigrated into every part of the United 
 Stales, this evangelical work has followed them, and New-Eng- 
 land has been the radiating centre whence reformations have 
 spread to every part of the union. There certainly may be ex- 
 ceptions to this rema|-|£; but, as a general trutl;, it cannot be de- 
 nied. 
 
61 
 
 As it was with the grand Saxon reformer, so it was with Ed- 
 wards : they neillier of them proceeded so far into the minuter 
 pans of reformation, as some men vvino rose up after them ; yet 
 Edwards, though he travelled farther into the great fields of truth 
 than any uninspired man, was not wholly occupied with specu- 
 lation. Few men in our own country were ever made Christ's 
 honoured instruments of turning more souls to righteousness. 
 
 The reformation of Luther bore a more direct and efficient 
 relation to the demolition of the massy walls, the marble towers, 
 and iron dungeons of Rome, than to the erection of the true gos- 
 pel church. It was more general, embracing nations, courts, and 
 princes, and less directed to the internal organization of Christ's 
 church, in reference to purity of doctrine and discipline, than the 
 reformation commenced by Edwards, and carried on by others 
 coeval with, and subsequent to him. I repeat, and mention once 
 for all, that I name Edwards, and iiis fellow labourers, not because 
 he was first in the general strain of doctrine to which I allude. 
 Many distinguished men, in various parts of Europe, even as early 
 as Luther and Calvin, maiutained as nearly the same ground as 
 their imperfect notions of the human mind would admit. 
 
 But after the inquiries of Locke and Edwards had resulted in 
 the discovery and delineation of men's intellectual and mo; a I 
 powers, the true intent of revelation concerning the great doc- 
 trines of divine decrees, human depravity, liberty, accountable- 
 ness, and guilt, was belter understood, and the grand and glori- 
 ous work of the first reformers was carried forward farther to- 
 wards its ultimate consummation. 
 
 1 have dwelt long on this article, and have, in some degree, 
 anticipated, though not in its express form, what I intended for 
 the third. 
 
 3. A correct knowledge of the powers, faculties, and character 
 of the subject, will be readily perceived to be essential to a just 
 understanding of the nature of the government under which he is 
 placed. Accordingly, neither the first reformers, nor their im- 
 mediate followers, either entertained or conveyed any very cor 
 rect notions of God's moral government over the world. 
 
 Except as far as related to the elect and church of God, it is 
 very difficult to form any notion of what government they ima- 
 
62 
 
 •me God exercises over the human race; or the euda lie has in 
 view by showing them temporal favours. None of his dealings 
 with them can be corrective ; they have no trial or probation. 
 There is nothing intended for them in mercy ; there is nothing 
 designed ultimately for their amendment ; lliey have no interest 
 in reformers or reformations. I say again, no evasion or subter- 
 fuge can be so base, none so mean and barefaced, as the pretence 
 that the non-elect are unknown. They are known to God, who 
 is exercising an inGnitely wise and gracious government over the 
 world ; and he deals with them as creatures whose character and 
 destiny are fully known. 
 
 The non-elect, as many contend the reformers believed, and 
 as some of them propably did believe, labour under an immuta- 
 ble condemnation, drawn upon them by the sin of Adam ; and, 
 beside this, a fatal and natural incapacity to obey God, and an 
 eternal decree of reprobation. I then ask, what kind of govern- 
 ment does God exercise over them ? 
 
 The word of God settles this question, but on far different 
 grounds as to their condition. 
 
 It has been already remarked, that the doctrine of a propitia- 
 tion for all men, and a general proclamation of grace, presents a 
 far nobler ouUine of the plan of redemption than can arise from 
 any view of a limited atonement. The same remark applies still 
 more eminently to the idea of a mediatorial government exer- 
 cised over all men. Were divine truth silent, the hand of Provi- 
 dence, dealing out innumerable blessings to all nations, shows 
 them to be under the Mediator's reign. It cannot be denied that 
 the comparative advantages of nations and ages greally differ. 
 Atonement and redemption are widely different in their nature 
 and effects. The former sets open the door of mercy, the latter 
 applies the benefits of Christ. Some nations, and some portions 
 of mankind, have certainly been placed nearer the fountains of 
 lio-ht and mercy, and others apparently more remote ; but a God 
 of infinite poodness reigns over all ; a sovereign of almighty 
 power, aud mysterious in his ways, directs the eternal destinies 
 of all. He is uncontrolled in his operations; he can work by 
 means or without means ; by means visible or invisible. 
 TI\ere is not an idea more incongruous to the condition of the 
 
63 
 
 whole human family, to the spirit of the gospel, or to the express 
 declarations of the word of God, than that man is not in a state 
 of probation. If God commands all men everywhere to repent, 
 if he is not willing that any should perish, but that all should 
 come to repentance ; if his long suffering and mercy are directed 
 to that object, they must be in a state of trial preparatory to their 
 everlasting and unalterable condition. 
 
 In relation to the divine government, with many of the reform- 
 ers, there seemed to be but two predominating ideas, viz. Grace 
 and Fate : whereas the scriptures uniformly convey to us the notion 
 of a moral government : that the Supreme Ruler, full of mercy 
 and compassion, having conferred great temporal blessings on his 
 rebellious subjects ; havinjr wrought out a propitiation for sin, by 
 sending his son to die for the world, has issued a proclamation 
 of pardon, and an offer of mercy: not an insidious proclamaiion 
 of pardon to all, when atonement was made for but a part, and, 
 perhaps, but a very small part, if we regard the present and past 
 time, and so made uuder the shallow and deceptive pretence 
 that the true elect are not known ; but a true and sincere offer 
 of pardon to all, on the broad ground of a complete propitiation 
 and boundless provision. 
 
 But it will be asked, " If election be admitted, what does it 
 matter, after all, whether atonement be limited or general ?" To 
 which I answer, it matters every thing. A general atonement 
 renders a universal proclamation of pardon and reconciliation to 
 God consistent; it places fallen man in a state of probation; sets 
 open before him the door of mercy ; and, of course, shows us 
 why, and to what end, favours are bestowed on the wicked ; fully 
 accounts for the exhortations, warnings, persuasions, and threat- 
 enmgs, which are set before him ; or, as I said before, (and I 
 think it worth repeating,) there never was a greater, a more shame- 
 ful, or ridiculous absurdity, than to say to asinner,for whom.'Christ 
 did not die, "If you do not believe in Christ ; ou cannot be 
 saved." While, on the other hand, election is fully compatible 
 with a general atonement and the universal invitations of the gos- 
 pel. God's desi;;n to save a part of the human race lays no bar 
 in the way of the rest. If I send my boat and bring off live men 
 from a wreck, and give the other five an offer of coming also. 
 
and they refuse, they will have no excuse ; they will deserve their 
 fate If they deserved it, in case my boat had not gooe at all, 
 for refusing my offer, they deserve it doubly. 
 
 The decree of election is carried into effect, and the elect are 
 saved, not merely because they were elected, but for the same 
 reason for which they were elected. The same may be said of 
 all the decrees of God. He is infinitely wise and unchangeable. 
 His decrees I understand to be his previous and immutable de- 
 termination to do every thing in the manner which would be best, 
 or which his wisdom would approve, at the time of doing it, had 
 there been no previous decree. If, therefore, he was, in fact, able 
 tocreate, uphold, and govern a universe of intelligent creatures, 
 in perfect consistency with their freedom, he was equally able 
 to form a previous determination to do so. In short, whatever 
 he can do, he can previously design to do : and whatever he has 
 done or will do, he did unalterably and eternally design to do. 
 As much more liberty as can actually exist under an infinitely 
 wise and powerful government, can, with equal ease, certainty, 
 and equity, have been unalterably predetermined. The opposers 
 of decrees seem never to have considered, that with a being of 
 almighty power, wisdom and goodness, it is as easy to determine 
 beforehand as it is to do; and that the whole plan of divine go- 
 vernment is not carried into effect, as 1 said, merely because 
 decreed, but both its execution and decree rest immutably on 
 the same basis, viz. the entire approbation of God as the best 
 plan. 
 
 Yet, surprising as it may seem, some of our triangular preach- 
 ers pretend to have found out that God's plan is not the best pos 
 sible plan; and it offends them very much to hear any one as- 
 sert that, of all possible plans, God's plan is the best : you might 
 nearly as well tell them that all sin consists in selfishness. I 
 think they must be far greater metaphysicians than Edwards. 
 They must be as sharp-sighted as the companions of Poole, who 
 saw the fiery dragon, " cum cada rdorla in circulo." Perhaps, 
 they will draw their main argument from their ignorance, and 
 rely upon saying, that they do not know but there may be a bet- 
 ter plan. To this I shall only reply, that the material of this 
 
6d 
 
 argument is as plenty and abundant as it is useless. It is not 
 " ad ignormitiam" but ab ignorantia. 
 
 I have noticed some articles in which the reformation fell 
 short of that maturity to which it will one day certainly arrive ; 
 and have pointed out the obvious progress which has been made 
 in those articjes, in various sections of the church, and particu- 
 larly in our own country. The people, at least of our own 
 country, will not be backward to allow, that, in the great article 
 of religious freedom and toleration, we are far in advance of 
 every nation on earth. Why should it be thought incredible, 
 that we have made some progress in the great and exalted work 
 of reformation. Is it less probable that C hrist would favour his 
 church in this country than in Europe, where the accumulated 
 crimes of thousands of years swell the materials of national re- 
 tribution to a vast amount? — Where national establishments 
 and churches slumber on the bosom of luxury, and repose in 
 the golden dreams of ambition? 
 
 Why should the wrinkles of malice deepen, and the finger of 
 scorn be pointed at the names of Edwards, and Hopkins, and 
 Bellamy, and West, and Emmons, when they and their fellow 
 labourers have been made instrumental of turning many souls to 
 righteousness; and have been more successful in religious re- 
 formations than any men now living on earth ? And if that por- 
 tion of the church has been favoured and honoured with a lar- 
 ger portion of the Holy Spirit than any other, does not this fact 
 bear testimony to their doctrine ? To the purity and spirituality, 
 the life and power of their doctrine, can alone be ascribed the 
 success which has attended their labours. 
 
 With feelings of regret, which I have no words to express, I 
 am compelled to advert to the systematic, determined, perse- 
 vering, and diversified efforts of a set of men, who have acqui- 
 red influence, in this city, to subvert the doctrines and destroy 
 the influence and reputation of these reformers in the christian 
 church. Their writings are accused of consisting of nothing but 
 *• verbiage, tautology, absurdity, arminianism, socinianism, athe- 
 ism, nonsense," &c.* The reformation which they €fl*ected m 
 
 See Ur. Saranel S. Smith, in his note on the eover of Ely's Poenls. 
 9 
 
66 
 
 doctrine and discipline, though thousands of souls, both on earth 
 and in heaven, will remember it with eternal joy and triumph, 
 is either altogether hissed into opprobrious silence, or loudly 
 spoken of with contempt. 
 
 It is nothing to them, that to claim the birth of such a man as 
 Jonathan Edwards, is an honour to a nation ; that for vigour of 
 intellect he can fall into no class beneath that of Newton and 
 Aristotle. As to " verbiage," his writings, and those of many 
 of his brethren, will be read with instruction and pleasure, when 
 the vapid books of those who cast the reflection, written with 
 moon-beams and dictated by the Night mare, shall have perish- 
 ed in the rubbish, lumber, and rust of libraries. 
 
 There are two very cogent reasons why they do not answer 
 the books of these tautologists; one is, because they never read 
 them. This, of all suppositions, is the most charitable, after 
 hearing their statements, so infinitely distant from the truth. 
 Had they read the books they condemn, they must either hold 
 a different language, or give up all pretence to veracity. The 
 other is, that were they to read these books, and in those few 
 instances where they have read them, they cannot answer them. 
 Were they honest and candid, they would say, as Dr. Taylor 
 said, after reading a small tract of Edwards, " I have been wri- 
 ting these thirty years, and this little book confutes it all." 
 
 But they have no notion of argument ; they do not like that 
 way of defence ; it is too metaphysical. Their plan, both of de- 
 fence and attack, is drawn from two sources ; bold asseftious, 
 and gross ridicule. Yes, the great gun of the city has been fired 
 so incessantly, charged with this kind of ammunition, that he is 
 suspected by many to be breech-burnt. But he does not shoot 
 bullets, of coupequence nobody is killed. And, not only the 
 great gun, for I love to talk figuratively, but field pieces, swivels, 
 blunderbusses, muskets, carbines, pistols — even down to pop- 
 o-uns, have fired in sqnadrons and battalions ; and some, I be- 
 lieve, as small as the cannon made by an artist of the queen of 
 Sweden, to shoot fleas and bed-bugs with, which is still kept as 
 a curiosity in the Swedish museum. One of this last description 
 it was that fired off the '^ Contrast" already mentioned. But, 
 luckily, he did not kill even a bug. 
 
67 
 
 But the weapons of this controversy are not generally levelled 
 at Edwards, Hopkins, &,c., but against the teachers in the city, 
 supposed to hold their sentiments. Unwearied e£forts are made 
 to dislodge them from their stations, and drive them out of the 
 city. This is done by weakening their influence — representing 
 their sentiments as horrible and dangerotts — withdrawing from 
 them the confidence of their hearers — treating them with cold- 
 ness and contempt— disseminating dark surmises and uncertain 
 rumours among the people, and endeavouring, as was said In 
 another case, 
 
 •' With ambiguous words to sound or taint integrity." 
 
 Besides, great exertions are made to fill all the neighbouring 
 vacancies with ministers of their own stamp, and to prevent one 
 of a different description from obtaining a settlement. In this 
 they are greatly facilitated by a ministerial nursery, not far off, 
 in which abundance of saplings are growing, nearly ready to set; 
 and these they can prune and shape as they please. 
 
 But what is the motive of all this ? Ah ! here I must be cau 
 tious, for it is dangerous to inquire into the motives of great men. 
 I have lived long enough to discover that a man's motives are 
 generally as obvious as his conduct. And many men put me in 
 mind of the ostrich, which, when pursued over the tropical sands, 
 will run a while, and then hide his head in the sand, while bis 
 hind parts, to speak delicately, are all exposed ; and you may 
 come up and take him at pleasure. But these men hide 
 nothing ; their motives are perfectly obvious. But we may judge 
 with still greater certainty, by considering who they are. 
 
 Some of them are foreigners, from the island of Great Britain ; 
 some are Dutch, &c. ; and they certainly have their national 
 prejudices to plead their excuse. They are men of considera- 
 ble learning and talents ; and had not this paltry national preju- 
 dice covered their minds with a kind of intellectual vtllura, 
 highly unfavourable to sharp sight or quick sensation, (hey would 
 be very clever fellows. But this renders them, on certain occa- 
 sions, quite numb and rigid. It is perfectly natural for them ta 
 spurn the idea of being instructed, or detected of errors, by any 
 
68 
 
 thing indigenous to the new^ hemisphere. They did not come 
 hither to receive, but to give instryction ; " non ab allis corrigen- 
 di, sed aHos corrigere." 
 
 Some of this description there are from New-England, who 
 were once professed Hopkinsians — stars in the Zodiac— 
 
 " But, O, how fallen ! — hov changed !" 
 
 Of this number:i3 the Queen of Sweden's Httje cannon, who, little 
 as he is, is a sharp shooter. He it was, as I before said, that 
 ehot off the " Contrast." A disappointment in love, it is common- 
 ly reported, naade him, at once, an anti-Hopkinsian and a poet. 
 His poems were so lucliy in the article of flattery, to certain 
 great men he wished to please, that they effectually did his busi- 
 ness for him ; and I suspect few have read them without feeling 
 a strong propensity to do the same for themselves. There goes 
 a pleasant story with regard to this man. It is said, after bis to- 
 tal defection, wishing to convince a certain audience of the enor- 
 mous errors of the Hopkinsians, he read them, as a specimen, 
 one of his former sermons. I believe few will wonder that his 
 audience should be struck with horror. His poems fully indi- 
 cate his disappointment, as they abound in the well known 
 
 •• Hair-brained, sentimental grace." 
 
 Not grace in Calvin's sense of the word, for neither his poems, 
 Contrast, nor conduct, show much of that. But whether the Hop- 
 kinsians have reason to regret the cruelty of his mistress, or the 
 lovers of poetry to rejoice in it, I leave for future consideration. 
 
 Perhaps these men will consider it as a matter of joy and ex- 
 ultation, that this city has, from the first, shared little in the great 
 and frequent reformations prevailing to the north and east; nor 
 do they consider, that the comparatively small number of pro- 
 fessors of religion found in thjs city, would be still much smal- 
 ler if restricted to those whose profession commenced in this city. 
 
 Confused, unsettled, and bewildered, like all great cities, with 
 an immense heterogeneous mass of strangers, of no certain cha- 
 lacter, overwhelmed in business, dazzled with wealth and show, 
 and occupied with every thing more than relij2;ion, yet willing to 
 have enough of that to be fashionable here, and go to heaven 
 
09 
 
 hereafter, at some very distant day ; this city has ever afforded & 
 field of operation and influence for teachers of a complexion like 
 its own ; and they have not been wanting in sufficient numbers 
 and activity. And they have prevailed thus far, at the dreadful 
 expense of the eternal welfare of thousands of souls. 
 
 Their motive, for 1 will not shrink from the truth, in excluding 
 the reformers and reformations, the doctrines and principles of 
 New-England, is not at all of a religious or moral nature. The 
 love of truth, as I said above, does not produce persecution, en- 
 mity , pride, ill will, disdain, overreaching, undermining, intrigue. 
 They deceive the people of this city by assuming false and spe- 
 cious motives; and never was deception more exquisite, more 
 profound, or imposition more gross and triumphant. Were 
 they actuated by the love of truth and the fear of error, very dif- 
 ferent would be their aspect and behaviour. But it is the love 
 of self, and the fear of a rival, that urges them on. It is ambi* 
 tion to acquire and maintain a poor, wretched, shortlived, pitifql, 
 ghostly power and influence over men. 
 
 They feel little of the love of truth, or the love of God, or the 
 love of men, in this unhallowed system of opposition and intrigue. 
 The word of God out of the question, were they influenced by 
 human authorities, they might blush for the course they are pur- 
 suing. The names of Fuller, and Hall, and Jay, and Ryland, 
 are sufficient to show them, that the sentiments they oppose are 
 not without the support of talents and eloquence beyond the At- 
 lantic, in a comparison with which, I leave them to find a place 
 for themselves, if they can. 
 
 It is not the love of truth by which they are led ; they therefore 
 know, and have studied well, the chequered part they are to act— 
 the tortuous course they must pursue. They know in what com- 
 panies to be all meekness, gentleness, condescension, and humili 
 ty; 60 that a harmless, credulous soul, will compare one of them to 
 John the beloved disciple, another to Moses the meek lawgiver. 
 They know when and how to burn with devotion ; to soar in 
 flights of faith ; to appropriate all the promises to themselves ; to 
 knock at the gates of heaven with violence, and boldly demand 
 a seat near the fiUal throne. Ah ! says one, it is surely Daniel 
 or Isaiah come from heaven ; says another, it is a second Elijah 
 
70 
 
 ID his fiery car ; or, says a third, more like St. Paul wrapt is 
 the third heavens.* 
 
 Would that I could stop here ; but there is another part to this 
 picture : and in the sight of heaven I will not shun to declare the 
 whole truth. As far as I have gone, they very oflen hear from 
 their flatterers : — they shall hear the rest from a better friend than 
 a flatterer. They know when and how to change their dove-like 
 plumage into scales, and their snowy fleece into brindled spots, 
 and threatening fangs. There is but a little distance between a 
 sigh and a hiss, or between a smile and a grin : — and once a hiss 
 was succeeded by a stab. They know how to dart on th^ir 
 victim like a basilisk from the sand, or to reach him like a 
 Scythian with an arrow from behind a hedge. A man engaged 
 ic his own concerns, unsuspecting and unprotected, is their 
 favourite mark. And let the public know, as there is one man 
 who dares to say what he knows, that I have not made one of 
 these assertions without a correspondent fact in my eye. 
 
 The people of this city are entitled to know the grounds of 
 this whole business; they ought to know it, and they shall know 
 it, if they will read. The men in this city who hold to what ia 
 usually styled New-England sentiments, have entered into no 
 dispute with any one. They have with all possible endeavours 
 cultivated the friendship and esteem of those who differed from 
 them. They have even generally avoided entering on disputed 
 points, in their own churches, that they might avoid all appear- 
 ance of controversy. What has been the consequence 1 They 
 have been attacked with great virulence and hoetilify, and in a 
 manner, in short, which justifies every thing which has been said 
 in these numbers. 
 
 But they are accused of great errors. What are their errors ? 
 Why, they hold to a general atonement. So does a great portion 
 of the protestant church. The sentiment is clearly taught in the 
 scriptures. They cannot even show that Calvin himself held dif- 
 ferently. Most of the standard writers since the reformation hold 
 the same. — Well — they deny original sin. This is not true. 
 They deny imputation of guilt and a transfer of character ; and 
 
 * One of them ha»been denominated the St. Paul of America. 
 
71 
 
 to dill Calvin. And if any one will examine the opinions of the 
 reformers, together with their confessions of faith, he will per- 
 ceive the doctrine of imputation by no means prevalent or ge- 
 neral among them. They held to the original and entire cor- 
 ruption of human nature, by the fall, and so do we. 
 
 In a word, the preceding remarks apply with equal force also 
 to the doctrine of depravity. But, why is all this uproar? A ma- 
 jority of the Synod of New-York and New-Jersey are full in the 
 sentiments I have advanced And will these people unchurch 
 the Synod, and turn them out of doors t The General Assembly 
 of the Presbyterian Church may be nearly equally divided : 
 though in that body, the number in favour of what I consider 
 correct sentiments is rapidly increasing. 
 
 In a general survey of the protestant church in America, these 
 men cannot pretend to a majority. But having acquired a little 
 influence in this city, their arrogance and presumption seem in- 
 clined to leap over all bounds. Were they inclined to fair and 
 open controversy, they would be answered to their satisfaction ; 
 but they desire no such thing. Their plau and their hope is by 
 manoeuveriog, by secret working behind the curtain, by art and 
 intrigue, to undermine the reputation of the men who hold to 
 the sentiments which prevail in New-England, and drive them 
 from the city. 
 
 The question is, whether they will succeed. All triumph, short 
 of the triumph of truth and righteousness, is as shortlived as it is 
 impotent and vain. There was a day when the parasites of Hil- 
 debrand adored him as the vicegerent of Christ, and as the lord of 
 men's consciences. We may turn to the page of history, which 
 represents him parading through the streets of Rome, like a blaz- 
 ing star; the triple diadem sparkling on his head, and the impe- 
 rial purple floating from his shoulders. The thrones of Europe 
 shook when he frowned ; and monarcbs were obsequious to his 
 powerful mandate. There, one would be ready to say, was so- 
 lid food for ambition ; there was an object worthy of toil and 
 intrigue. But he vanished like a dream ! Ages have rolled away 
 since he went to his (inal audit before tliat God who respects not 
 the persons of princes. 
 
72 
 
 " I saw the wealthy wicked boast, * 
 
 '• Till at thy frown he fell ; 
 
 " His honours in a dream are lost, 
 
 ** And he awakes in hell.'' 
 
 Is there a menial slave, of piety and virtue, who followed at a 
 distance the chariot of Gregory the Seventh, whose character 
 and destiny any christian would not prefer to that of this spiri- 
 tual tyrant ? 
 
 The worst that can befall an ambitious spirit, is to succeed in 
 his utmost plans and wishes. But, whether he fail or succeed, 
 he is more an object of pity than resentment. And from my 
 soul I pity these busy men, the very vital principle of whose 
 scheme is selfishness and ambition; for, could they achieve 
 what they aim at, it is but the tinsel of power, spread thinner 
 than ever the gold beater spread his leaf: could they gain all 
 they seek for, and for which they dig, and climb, and creep, and 
 whisper, and trim ; for which they have in store a thousand 
 smiles, and frowns, and sighs, and hisses, and winks, and nods, 
 and flatteries, and threats, it would all evaporate in a few blasts 
 of applause, not made of the purest breath,- it would perist 
 
 " Like the baseless fabric of a vision^ 
 ** And leave not a wreck behind," 
 
 But, should it be seriously asked what evidence there is that 
 ambition is at the bottom of this conduct ; I reply, that this, and 
 this only, is sufficient to account for what they do; God is love, 
 and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him. 
 The whole conduct of these men is such as might be expected 
 from an ambitious man, labouring to supplant his rival and ene- 
 my. They show no love nor condescension — no meekness nor 
 humility — no openness nor magnanimity. If you condescend, 
 they vapour — if you resist, they are enraged — if yon retreat, they 
 pursue — and if you submit, they triumph. 
 
 Ambition, always vain, was never vainer than in this case. 
 What if they triumph ? There is not the splendid chariot, the tri- 
 umphal arch, the adoring millions; there is not the crown of ilil- 
 debrand, heavy with gold at^d gems — his splendid throne and 
 
73 
 
 imperial robes, in expectance. Nor does this base contention 
 portend a crown in beaven, or celestial robes of light and 
 glory. 
 
 The sincere friend of truth may humbly repose bis confidence 
 in the God of truth, though his foes are numerous, strong, and 
 active. And I place full confidence in the belief, that correct 
 sentiments will prevail ; that they will not be rooted out of this 
 city. Neither the pitchy, midnight cloud of the eleventh, nor 
 the early dawn of the sixteenth century, are to return ; nor are 
 the discoverers and improvers of the eighteenth century to be 
 compelled, like Gallileo and Copernicus, to retract their disco- 
 veries, in order that the champions of selfishness may rule the 
 church a little longer. Civil rulers have leartjed that they can 
 make shift to wield the sword and sce|)tre, and are in no dread 
 of a peal of thunder from the Vatican; nor are they in need of 
 monks and inquisitors at their elbow, to point out the victims of 
 the mother of harlots. The amusements of the autc-defe are 
 past; and, as for the ghostly lords and umpires of conscience, 
 they are never more to return. The faithful witnesses of trutlx 
 are no more dragged to the anvil, that their chains and fetters 
 may be made fast; nor are these moral blacksmiths longer to 
 rivet their fetters on the mind, made for free and liberal dis- 
 cussion. 
 
 But, defeated as Satan and his angels, and all bis legions of 
 spiritual despots, emissaries, and abettors are ; dislodged from 
 their main fortresses ; driven from the open field, and ferretetl 
 from glens, coverts, and fastnesses, it is astonishing to see the ac- 
 tivity, the incredible zeal, boldness, and desperation of their ex- 
 piring efforts. They can no more endure the light than ghosts 
 and goblins can abide the approach of morning ; it discloses their 
 frightful features, and pierces them through with intolerable pain. 
 Yet, in their ardour to maintain even a hairbreadth of ground, or 
 perhaps to bring off the body of Patroclus, or some hero slain, 
 they forget that they can do nothing but in darkness, and bolt 
 fairly out into open day. What do we see 1 — Their whole pa- 
 noply ! — You might nearly take their description from Ossian's 
 cloudj' ghost : " Their sword is a pale meteor, without edge or 
 point — their spear ismisl'' — their breastplate, inadeofscmething 
 
 10 
 
74 
 
 which shines in the night like burning gold,* now appears a mi- 
 serable patch of rotten wood. Their helmet is paper, whose on- 
 ly virtue is derived from some great name, such as CALVIN, 
 written on it in capitals. Yet their couMlenaiu-.e is very fierce, 
 and smoke issues from their mouth and nostrils. Did you not 
 see their weapons, you mightexpcct a terrible conflict; and, as 
 it is, they will make a stout resistance to every thing but '' the 
 sword of the Spirit, vvliich is the word of God." 
 
 I fully anticipate ail that will be said of these remark?; the 
 eontem[)tuou3 slanj^s of Arminianis.ii! Socinianism ! Ribaldry! 
 Slander! that will be thrown out. But, that reason which ren- 
 ders man the lord of (Ills terrestrial globe, and which continually 
 strives to rc?cue him from the reign of his passions and prejudi- 
 ces, if allowed to speak, will show the reader that my premises 
 are true ; and, as for the conclusions, I wait for time and expe- 
 rience, those orand correctors of folly, to justify them. That 
 tribunal before which I am perfectly certain this production will 
 fare the be-t, will be the consciences of the very men I accuse ? 
 For they weil know tJiat I speak the truth. Were they, indeed, 
 as ardently engaged in promoting truth, as they are error; in re- 
 moving old prejudices, as they are in supporting them ; in pro- 
 moting (lie spread of light and reformation, as they are in extin- 
 guishing the one, and resisting tlie other, still using the means 
 to do it which (iiey are using, they would have reason to be 
 ashamed of their conduct, and would merit the disapprobation 
 of all meu ; for the end cannot sanctify the means. 
 
 The cause of Jesus Christ, important and g;loriou3 in its nature, 
 divine in its origin, and pure in its principles, uniform and resist- 
 less in its progress, and secure of its final issue, asks no assistance 
 from those artifices by which the schemes of ambition are ac- 
 complished, much IctS does it fear those artifices, or the more 
 bold attacks of wicked men. And it will progress and prosper; 
 neither shall the gates of hell prevail against it. Let these men 
 continue to plot and whisper; let them summon to their aid their 
 sharpest satire and best logic — their boldest assertions, and most 
 pious tones, still their scheme is not on the ground of truth, and 
 
 ♦ Foxfire. 
 
75 
 
 it will not stand. After having wasted (heir wit on phantoms of 
 their own creation, their zeal in vain efforts, and all their mighty 
 resources in building castles in the air, they must at last bow 
 to the truth in those solemn scenes where the illusions of 
 ambition are not known, and where the adorations of a multi- 
 tude, led on by sophistry and intrigue, can no longer give coun- 
 tenance. 
 
 INVESTIGATOR 
 
ALL MEN ARE CONDEMNED FOR ADAM S SIN. 
 
 SECOND SERIES OF NUMBERS. 
 
 BY 
 INVESTIGATOR^ 
 
 J^EW-TORK: 
 
 PRTN'^TED AND PUBLrSHED FOR THE AUTHOR. 
 Tan Winkle & Wiley, Printers. 
 
 1816. 
 
TO 
 
 THE PEOPLE OF NEW-YORK. 
 
 I HAD almost concluded to issue this Triangle, 
 which the reader will perceive is the true and real 
 Triangle, without any address^ advertisement^ ad lecto- 
 rem, or preface ; but I feared it would resemble a 
 door without a threshold, or a building without a 
 courtyard or portico. It is not worth while for a 
 writer to say much about his motives in his preface. 
 It would be like a man who was conducting you 
 into a Museum, who should stop you at the door to 
 tell you what was to be seen : it would be quicker 
 work to let you in. And Johnson's saying, that a 
 book will fix its own age and country, is generally 
 true. 
 
 This book is not a " Habeas corpus ad responden- 
 dum^'' but rather a Habebunt corpora ad vivendum. 
 I fear the lawyers will not comprehend this phrase, 
 but the divines will, " and that will do,''"' as the great 
 Wellington said when he laid his hands on the pom- 
 mel of his saddle. The Hopkinsians are a very 
 clever set of men; all they want is to live, and " let 
 live." They are disinterestedly benevolent. They 
 
IV 
 
 wish people to know the truth, merely for the truth's 
 sake. They, to be sure, do not wish all their necks 
 to be made into one, and that put at the option of 
 Nero. A Dey of Algiers once put the Spanish Am- 
 bassador into a great mortar, and shot him away at 
 the Spanish fleet. Now, no man likes to be sent 
 out of a city in this style. I use these little meta- 
 phors to convey my ideas : nobody believes that we 
 have a Nero or the Dey of Algiers to contend with; 
 but we perceive they aim at thorough tvork, and that 
 in a summary way ; we must, therefore, do a little — 
 hence the Triangle. 
 
 I. 
 
THE TRIANGLE. 
 
 SECOND SERIES. 
 
 No. I. 
 
 I FEEju a conscious pleasure in addressing the people of this 
 noble and flourishing city — the first in the New World, and the 
 fairest on the globe. And let it not be understood that I con- 
 sider myself as environed with cross-eyed selfishness ; as im- 
 mured in a region of gloomy prejudice ; as condemned to wear 
 the galling chains forged by iron-hearted intolerance, and rivet- 
 ed by the hand of sturdy ignorance. Of these imperious and 
 unsightly demons I feel no fear; yet I revere and admire the 
 varied talents I see conspicuous in every profession and call- 
 ing, in every art and science, both liberal and mechanical — 
 
 " Where Liberty dwells there is my country," 
 
 There is not wanting liberality of sentiment, magnanimity of 
 character; nor is this city wanting in its portion — nor is it a scant- 
 ed and measured portion of intellect, adorned with the beauty 
 of virtue, enlightened with the glory of benevolence, and fairly 
 loosened from the gordian knot of interest and selfish conside- 
 ration. And I rejoice to say, that many whose theory allows 
 them but a cable's length of range, are, nevertheless, in heart 
 and practice, floating at large on the maia ocean of real benevo- 
 lence. 
 
6 
 
 Else why do I see these asylums for the sons and daughters 
 of affliction — these grand and extensive hospitals, alms-houses, 
 and receptacles for every class of the vi^retched from the "keen 
 and blighting storm of misfortune, whose extended and lofty 
 walls might vie with the palace of a monarch? whose nume- 
 rous apartments, and ample provisions, seem to promise repose 
 and comfort to all that need? Else why do I see long ranks of 
 poor children, of helpless orphans, enfilading the streets, to be 
 instructed on the sabbath ; and that by gentlemen, and even 
 ladies, of rank and fortune, whose only remuneration is the 
 pleasing consciousness of benefiting such as, by their tender 
 and helpless years, can have no knowledge of the extent of the 
 benefit intended ? 
 
 There is a nobleness of soul, a grandeur of sentiment, a dis- 
 interestedness of heart, which soars as far above all considera- 
 tion of self as the heavens are above the earth. An hour's en- 
 joyment of that sublime pleasure is worth more than a Roman 
 triumph — ^more than all the years through which ambition toils 
 and climbs, even though it gain the summit. There is such a 
 thing as doing good for the sake of the pleasure it brings; and he 
 who knows not what that means is a stranger to pleasure. 
 Let me here, for the sake of those who have never read it, re- 
 peat the story of Carazan ; and which, though I cannot reach the 
 style of its author, and may give it but imperfectly, (having no 
 book before me,) may furnish a useful lesson to some who may 
 read it. 
 
 Carazan was the richest merchant in Bagdat, with no chil- 
 dren or dependants ; his expenses had been small, and, with a 
 prosperous run of business in the silk and diamond trade of In- 
 dia for many years, he had amassed immense treasures. He 
 met with no losses, his caravans were expeditious, traded with 
 success, and returned in safety. One enterprise made way for 
 another; every successive project was formed on a greater 
 scale, and all were terminated with success. Business was 
 swayed by his influence ; merchants depended on his will ; no- 
 bles and princes envied his magnificence, and even the caliph 
 feared his power. 
 
But Carazaii lived only for Ijimself. His maxim was never 
 to move but with a prospect of advantage. He never gave to 
 the poor; he never listened to the cries of distress; calls on his 
 beneficence were repelled with a frown, and the poor had long 
 learned to shun his dwelling. 
 
 But the city was suddenly surprised with a great change in 
 Iiis conduct. He removed to a principal square, in the centre 
 of the city, and made proclamation to all the poor to resort to 
 his palace. They flocked together by hundreds, and by thou- 
 sands ; and what was their surprise to find his halls set out with 
 tables loaded with provisions ; and such things as were most 
 needed were dispersed in his porches and courtyards, and in 
 the adjoining streets. People of all ranks were astonished, but 
 could form no estimate of the motive of all this liberality and 
 profusion. 
 
 On the second day Carazan made his appearance, and mount- 
 ing a scaffold, raised for the purpose, he beckoned with his 
 hand, and the murmur of applause and admiration suddenly 
 ceased. 
 
 " People of Bagdat," said he, " I have hitherto lived to my. 
 self, henceforth I intend to live for the good of others. Listen 
 attentively to the cause of the change you see. As I was sit- 
 ting in my counting room, and meditating on future schemes 
 of accumulating more wealth, I fell asleep ; immediately I saw 
 the angel of death approaching me like a whirlwind, and, ere I 
 had time for recollection, he struck me with his dart. My 
 soul instantly forsook my body, and I found myself at the bar 
 of the Almighty. A dreadful voice from the judgment seat 
 addressed me thus ; ' You have lived entirely for yourself; you 
 have done no good to others, and, for your punishment, God 
 ordains that you be eternally banished from all society.' By 
 a resistless power I felt myself driven from the throne, and 
 carried, with inconceivable swiftness, through the heavens. 
 Suns and systems passed me, and in a moment I was on the 
 borders of creation. The shadows of boundless vacuity be- 
 gan to frown and deepen before a dreadful region of eternal 
 silence, solitude, and darkness. In another moment the faint- 
 est ray of creation expired, and I was lost for ever. 
 
8 ^ 
 
 " I stpetchetl out my hands towards the regions of existence, 
 and implored the Lord of creation to change my punishment 
 if it were but to the torments of, the damned, that I might es- 
 cape that frightful solitude; but my horror was too dreadful for 
 a moment's endurance, and I awoke. I adore the goodness of 
 the great Father who has thus taught me the value of society, 
 while he allows me lime to taste the pleasures of doing good." 
 
 I am not about to improve this story by recommending it to 
 my reader to dream for the sake of reformation. Indeed, I 
 would hope there are no Carazans in the city ; and yet I can^ 
 not but fear there are some to whom so pungent a dream 
 would be very useful. Dreams will come when they will, and 
 I am not certain I shall not have a paroxysm of dreaming be- 
 fore I get through these numbers. But there is a mode of 
 gaining information at the option of every person, and that I 
 am about to recommend — I mean reading. Every person, it 
 is well known, has not leisure for general reading, but every 
 person can read enough to answer the purpose of the present 
 recommendation. The unhappy prejudice subsisting in this 
 city against New-England sentiments would infallibly yield, 
 and be completely dissipated by a proper acquaintance with 
 ihe books in which those sentiments are contained. These 
 prejudices have not been planted so deep, and cherished with 
 such vigour, by the perusal of books, but by deriving an ac- 
 count of their books and tenets through a medium which has 
 given them a stain foreign to their nature. It has been done 
 by perversion. 
 
 True, indeed, a mind already prepossessed, and strongly 
 opinionated in error, may not be convinced by reading a book 
 wherein the truth is stated. But even this v/Hl not hold good 
 as a general rule, and in application to great bodies of people. 
 The public mind, depraved as men are, will, generally, soon 
 get right where the proper means of information are afforded. 
 
 I earnestly recommend to the people of the city to direct 
 their attention to some of the books I shall hereafter name. 
 They may rest assured that, even provided they should begin 
 to read them with prejudice and disgust, they will end with 
 pleasure and conviction; will rise up from the perusal acknow- 
 
ledging (hemsel?e3 instructed and cured of their antipathy. 
 They may be assured tliat those persons whom they hear dai- 
 ly condemning those writings, have never read them. They 
 are imposed upon in this business, and their credulity is shame- 
 fully abused. They are exactly like the man I have heard o/ 
 within a day or two, who was strongly condemning the Trian- 
 gle, and a person present asked him if he had read it ; he said 
 no, but had his account from Mr. Honeygall: well, but had 
 Blr. Honeygall read it ? Why no, he had not read it, because he 
 would not read so huge a thing; it would be wicked to read 
 it. (Aside.) He never reads any thing. 
 
 So, reader, it is just as wicked for these sage censors of 
 books to read the New-England books; and my word for it, 
 they have not that sin to answer for. I ask the great and 
 learned Dr. Buckram, (not that there is any such man in reality, 
 I only use that name in a kind of allegorical or metaphysical 
 sense ;) I ask him whether he has ever read " Edwards on the 
 Will ?" Hah ! he must think of it. 
 
 I must here let the good people into a secret of us book- 
 men which, perhaps, they don't know. It is the practice of 
 some great readers, when they have read the title of a book and 
 its contents, and cut into a paragraph here and there, to say 
 they have read it ; nor do they think it lying. Some, I believe, 
 venture so far as to say they have read a book, when they have 
 only read the letters on the back side : but that is going too 
 far : I never do that. 
 
 A powerful appeal lies from this subject to the patriotic feel- 
 ings of every American. Were any of us in France or Eng- 
 land, and should hear them commending the writers of our 
 own country, we should feel a secret gratification arising from 
 our national attachment; we should feel it an honour done fb 
 ourselves ; and so it would be. We feel a pleasure in hearing 
 the greatness of Washington, Ihe talents of Franklin and Rit- 
 tenhouse, extolled. Every American is gratified at hearing the 
 eloquent Chatham declare, in the British parliament, the Ame- 
 rican Congress to be one of the noblest bodies of men ever aa- 
 
 2 « 
 
10 
 
 sembled.* We are not backward to assert the equality, if uot 
 the ascendency, of our naval and military character. We boast 
 of our inventions in the arts — of our success in manufactures. 
 
 And with such varied excellence of talent, would it not be 
 extraordinary if, in the theological department, something im- 
 portant and respectable had not been achieved ? The fame of 
 exhibiting to the world the first perfect experiment of religious 
 freedom and toleration cannot be denied us ; and Europe her- 
 self has enrolled and immortalized the name of our first theo- 
 logical writer. Is the thought incredible that such a man as 
 Edwards should kindle the genius and rouse the talents of his 
 countrymen ? He did it; and has been followed by a constella- 
 tion of divines and writers on theology, to whom, if the imma- 
 turity of our seminaries denied the most perfect classical ex- 
 cellence, nature had not denied intellectual powers of the first 
 order, and posterity will not deny the honour of the first grade 
 of usefulness and importance in their profession. 
 
 The perusal of their writings, by the people of this city, will 
 be attended with several good effects which I shall particular- 
 ly distinguish. 
 
 1. It will diminish, if not exterminate, their prejudices against 
 New DivinJly. For they will be surprised to find their great 
 and leading doctrines, such as a general atonement, &,c , to be 
 the same as taught by the ablest and most orthodox divines 
 since the reformation. The notion of moral inability was ne- 
 ver a fabrication of the New-England divines; they will find, in 
 the clearest and best writers of England, the same idea. 
 
 2. They will find themselves instructed and pleased. Books 
 and Essays written, and Sermons dehvered, in places where 
 the work of God is carried on, cannot but derive an unction, a 
 life and spirit, from the occasions that gave them birth. As the 
 face of Moses shone when he descended from Sinai's glorious 
 vision, so men greatly emploj^ed and honoured in the work of 
 God, will transfuse through their writings the spirit of that 
 work. 
 
 * At the comraencement of the revolution. 
 
11 
 
 It is a rnournful fact, and will one day be as deeply deplored 
 by those who have done it, as by those against whom it has 
 been done, that the standard of opposition agaipst those. men 
 and their writings should be lifted in New- York : that this high- 
 ly-favoured city should be made the opposing bulwark — the 
 breastwork of opposition. I rejoice to think that such walls as 
 men build are not high, nor their foundations deep. I have no 
 fear for the ultimate success of truth ; but I fear for those who 
 are opposing its progress — especially for those who are held 
 in darkness by the craft and ambition of others. The chariot 
 of salvation will not be impeded ; it is guided by one who can 
 save and can destroy. 
 
 ■ It shall be the object of this Number to slate to the good 
 people of this city, and of the country and nation, wherever 
 these present? shall come, what documcnls, and boohs, and 7vri- 
 tings — in short, what resources may be resorted to, in order to 
 discover what those sentiments are which are falsely called new 
 divinily, and, very unappropriatelj, Hopkinsianisyn. To this I 
 now solicit the reader's attention. 
 
 Jonathan Edwards, I have elsewhere said, was the great mas- 
 ter spirit of his day. Perhaps no man ever evinced more ca- 
 paciousness of understanding and strength of intellect than he. 
 This is the opinion of very competent judges, and probably will 
 not be denied. His writings are numerous, among which his 
 Inquiry concerning the Will was his greatest production, and 
 may be considered as forming the basis of the distinguishing 
 tenets of New-England divinity, as far as ic contains any dis- 
 tinctive features. Of this I have spoken in the former series. 
 After this, his work on Religious Affections may perhaps be 
 next in point of importance. Had this been the only book he 
 pubUshed, it would have rendered his name immortal. On this 
 ground, explored by thousands of writers, he was often original, 
 generally interesting, and always unansweraljle. His History of 
 Redemption, a work left immature, was sufficient to show the 
 force and splendour of his talents. Various other important 
 works were also published by him, which brevity forbids me to 
 enumerate ; but his numerous sermons, as many of them were 
 delivered in periods of religious revival, and were more blessed 
 
12 » 
 
 as instrUDiental to that great work, if we except Whitefield'g, 
 than any ever delivered in this country, are without all parallel 
 among American sermons; and for depth of thought, force of 
 argument, and brilliance of imaj;ination ; for a majestic display of 
 truth, solemnity of address, and power to arrest the coirscience, 
 they have never been surpassed- He had the rare talent of uni- 
 ting metaphysical discussion with practical and experimental 
 truth; of appealing with equal force and propriety to tlie un- 
 derstanding and to the passions. 
 
 The style of Edwards is plain and simple, and evinces to the 
 judicious reader the progress of a gigantic mind movitig through 
 fields of truth carelfiss of the artificial adjustment and fastidious 
 polish of diction. That inelegancies may be disfeovered in his 
 style, I certainly will not deny. But when those who dare ac- 
 cuse him of " verbiage'' can show equal vigour of intellect, 
 let them boast. When those who dare censure his preaching 
 as unprofitable can show equal trophies of success, let them 
 triumph. 
 
 Par be it from me to say that Edwards was correct in all his 
 sentiments, a felicity which rarely falls to the lot of a volumi- 
 nous writer. Even Calvin was not correct in every thing. 
 Neither do I pretend or wish to say that he agreed in every point 
 with those who since his day are denominated Hopkinsians. 
 But I will say to every reader, if he will read Edwards on the Will 
 — on Religious Affections — on Redemption — on God's Last 
 End in the Creation of the World — on Moral Virtue — on Revi- 
 vals of Religion- -and various points discussed in his sermons, he 
 will have before him some booha and some documents whereby 
 to judge of Hopkinsian tenets. 
 
 Samuel Hopkins, whose dreaded and execrated name is so 
 often pronounced with strange horror by thousands of people 
 who never read a page of his writings, so often held up to cen- 
 sure and obloquy by an equal number of ujen who boast of 
 having read his works, but are equally ignorant of what they 
 contain — Samuel Hopkins wrote and published a Body of Divi- 
 nity. I shall here say little of this work ; it is sold in several 
 bookstores, and is in many libraries of this city. 1 may safely 
 say, however, that it is one of the noblest bodies of divinity ia 
 
13 
 
 the English language; and I will venture to predict that it will stand 
 as high on the shelves of future libraries, and be regarded as a 
 work of as much utility and merit, as Pictete, Ridgely, and Tur- 
 retin, when the ignorant and maniacal rage against llopkinsian- 
 ism shall have subsided ; and especially when it shall have the 
 good fortune to be judged by those who have read it. 
 
 With regard to the leading sentiments of Hopkins, they do 
 not differ materially from the most approved and orthodox di- 
 vines, and the most eminent and standard writers since the re- 
 formation. Hopkins surely did not agree with them in every 
 point, nor did any two important writers, that ever wrote, agree 
 in all points. Luther, Calvin, Melancthon, Beza, Zuinglius, 
 Bucer, Carol3tadt,all differed from each other ; nor less did Bax- 
 ter, Flavel, Owen, Watts, Doddridge, &,c. differ. With reverence 
 be it spoken, even Mason, Ely, Romeyn, and Milldoler, do not 
 agree in all points. 
 
 Beside a body of divinity, Hopkins wrote various tracts and 
 sermons, in all of which the grand abd fundamental truths of 
 religion are judiciously and ably handled. As a faithful minis- 
 ter of Christ, a public teacher, and an elementary writer on the- 
 ological and moral subjects, the American church has had few 
 more useful or more distinguished men. His style is plain, un- 
 ornamented, and simple ; with less strength and originality of 
 conception than Edwards, his style verged nearer towards neat- 
 ness and precision. In reading his pages you do not perceive 
 inanity of mind carefully concealed by an elaborate texture of 
 smooth and spider's-web phrases ; nor an eternal and dead level 
 of common places solemnly trimmed with insipid pomp, and 
 the soporific monotony of easy periods, rounded as regularly 
 as a thousand rolls of gingerbread. He wrote like a man of 
 sense, who dared to think for himself, like a man of thought, who 
 was master of his subject ; like a man of piety, who regarded 
 the truth ; and if sometimes he justifies the suspicion of affect- 
 ing to trace new paths, to launch into new speculations, show 
 me the writer of eminence who is not more or less susceptible 
 of that kind of ambition, or whose powers of mind rendered 
 similar endeavours more successful, and, of course, more war- 
 rantable. 
 
u 
 
 After Edwards and Hopkins, Bellamy may next be noticed 
 as a writer of the same order, or school, if you please. His 
 principal work is True Religion Delineated. Though this 
 book is doubtless not received as a piece of divine inspiration, 
 yet it is considered by many as a standard work : and such it 
 ought to be, and will be considered, where true religion is un- 
 derstood, and where the reign of prejudice is not completely 
 established. After this, his Dialogues on Theron and Aspasio, 
 and The Glory of the Gospel, are works of high and distin- 
 guished merit. 
 
 Beside these, Bellamy published various tracts and sermons, 
 much in the same strain of sentiment ; and though certainly not 
 to be admired as models of style and composition, they are on 
 a level with the writings of the most pious and orthodox di- 
 vines. Few ministers of the gospel were more able, faithful, 
 or successful, in the day in which he lived, or since his time ; or 
 more honoured by Christ as the visible instrument of turning 
 many to righteousness. 
 
 Dr. Jonathan Edwards, the son of the President, who Avas 
 himself also President of Union College, did honour to his coun- 
 try; and if it was not to be expected that one nation should 
 produce more than one man equal to his father; if it was impos- 
 eible for him to raise, yet he sustained the name, by the vigour 
 and acuteness of his literary productions. What he seemed to 
 ivant in greatness and extent of understanding he made up by 
 sagacity of judgment and acuteness of reasoning; and I shall 
 scarcely be contradicted when I say, that in penetration arid 
 force of intellect he has rarely been surpassed. 
 
 His publications on the Atonement, and against Dr. Chaun- 
 cy, have afforded to his adversaries the most ubpleasant speci- 
 mens and proofs of Iiis reasoning powers. 
 
 Edwards, Hopkins, and Bellamy, have long since retired from 
 their stations in the church militant, and, 1 trust, are now reap- 
 ing the fruits of their labours in the mansions of joy and rest, 
 together with many souls, the seals of their ministry on earth. 
 And it is matter of consolation, to reflect that the idle clamours 
 and reproaches which envy, pride, and ambition, are incessant- 
 ly venting against these men and their doctrine, cannot pollute 
 
15 
 
 the air, nor disturb the repose of those peaceful mansiona. And 
 if their persecutors and opposers would, for once, institute a just 
 comparison between the tokens of divine approbation bestowed 
 on the labours of these men, and on their own, it would give a 
 chill to their ambition — would rebuke their pride, and change 
 the voice of vituperation into confession and self-reproach. 
 
 Beside the writings of these men already enumerated, there 
 are many writers of the same class now living, which circum- 
 stance ought, perhaps, rather to impose silence. 
 
 Their theological magazines, religious tracts, and periodical 
 publicaiions, the work of associations of ministers of that de- 
 scription, in which all their sentiments are abundantly disclosed, 
 are immensely numerous. Sermons, however, form the princi- 
 pal department of their writings ; and although it cannot be de- 
 nied that they have published sermons which in point of execu- 
 tion are but ordinary, and perhaps sometimes incorrect in senti- 
 ment, yet they have also published sermons which, in defiance 
 of the overwhelming charge of " verbiage, tautology, and non- 
 sense," will assume and maintain their station in the first class 
 of that order of composition. 
 
 If Emmons has been charged with some peculiarities of sen- 
 timent, it should be remembered that those peculiarities are not 
 chargeable on him as a Hopkinsian, but as a writer. I say this 
 for the man of sense and candour who may read these pages. 
 As for the bigot, blind with prejudice, and mad with intolerance, 
 and who, like the countryman in Boston, would be liable to 
 mistake the stuffed skin of a quadruped for the charter of Mas- 
 sachusetts, I leave him to hug his prejudices. Any peculiar 
 notions entertained by Emmons, are no more chargeable to 
 Hopkinsianism, than the peculiar notions and reveries of Stub- 
 ner, or Blandrata, were chargeable to the doctrines of the Re- 
 formation. Stubner was among the reformers, aftil so is Em- 
 mons among the Hopkinsians. 
 
 I shall not pronounce on the peculiar opinions of Emmons. 
 Whether they are correct or not, I leave to the decisions of 
 that day which shall rectify every error, and bring truth to light. 
 But they are surely not of a nature which ought to interfere 
 with christian fellowship and communion. But Emmons, re- 
 
16 
 
 garded as a sermonizer, is surpassed by few writers of that 
 class, either living or dead ; and few sermons, considered in all 
 respects, are superior to his. His subjects, generally important, 
 are judiciously selected, and skilfully raised out of an appro- 
 priate text. His sermons are read with ease and pleasure: 
 with pleasure, because his object is perfecUy obvious, his con- 
 ceptions clear, and his arrangement natural and luminous; and 
 with ease, because short, and always rapidly progressing. 
 
 " Semperjestinat ad eventum.'" 
 
 Emmons is an original of the noblest class, and certainly one 
 of the most decided character. No candid reader, who reads 
 for instruction, is disappointed, or rises from the perusal of one 
 of his sermons without some benefit. His sermons generally 
 indicate extensive knowledge and acuteness of judgment. His 
 style is neat, appropriate, pure, and correct, though less elegant 
 and splendid than that of Hall, and less easy and graceful, per- 
 haps, than that of Jay. In fervency and pathos, we may have 
 some in our own country who excel him ; and his sermons are, 
 perhaps, too didactic — too much the essay, and not sufficiently 
 the popular address, to answer, in the best manner, all the ends 
 of preaching. With less of the flowers of May, or fruits of Octo- 
 ber, than some others, his sermons may be compared to the 
 meridian hour of a clear day in June, when the sun puts forth 
 his strength, the summer displays her maturity, and vegetation 
 all her energy. I say nothing of any uncommon turn to a pas- 
 sage of scripture he may give — of any new distinction, or mo- 
 dification, in a point of speculation; for we live in a day when 
 disputes between Monothelites and Monophisites, Realists and 
 Nominalists, no longer terminate on the rack or gibbet; when 
 wars between Troglodytes and Brobdignagoreans no more lay 
 waste cities ; nor are the differences of Bigendians and Littlen- 
 dians to be considered as heresies. 
 
 The reader of Emmons' Sermons is like one passing over 
 an extensive and well-cultivated farm ; the fences are substan- 
 tial and erect ; the fields are verdant, square, and regular, not 
 Tnangular ; the meadows are separated from the woodlands, 
 
17 
 
 and the pastures from the tillage : the mansion-house is hot 
 lofty, but neat and spacious, and speaks itself the seat of wealth, 
 but not of dissipation — of happiness, but not of ambition. The 
 prospects are diversified with hills and valleys, and enriched 
 with springs and rivulets. 
 
 The audiences who heard Emmons have heard more truth, 
 and are better instructed, waving all peculiar and discrimi- 
 nating points, than those who heard Davies, or Weatherspoon; 
 and trustins that lime will cure prejudices, and assured that sel- 
 fishness will soon yield the ground to a benevolence purely dis- 
 interested, I frankly declare, that I would as leave be thought 
 the writer of the sermons of Fmmons, as of Watts or Baxter, 
 Hall or Fuller, Sherlock or Tillotson, Saurin or Claude, Bos- 
 suet or Bourdaloue. 
 
 After the critic has screwed up his nose, scowled, hissed, 
 snufiFed, tossed, and pronounced a few such phrases as " igno- 
 rance ! — no taste ! — impudence !" and the Hke ; I would request 
 him to read a sermon of Davies, of Saurin, of Baxter, of 
 Sherlock, of Massilon, and of Emmons ; and then ask himself 
 which of them conveys the most important truth, with fewest 
 words, most simplicity and force, least aflFectation and labour, 
 and greatest clearness. I must caution him, however, to break 
 fairly through the blinding halo that surrounds great names ; to 
 be on his guard against the splendour of the great assemblies of 
 London and Paris, where nobles and monarchs worship ; to for- 
 tify his auditory nerves against the titilation of pompous phrases', 
 and majestic circumlocution, which add little to the force, beau- 
 ty, or impression of truth. A sermon is not the greater, be- 
 cause a monarch heard it, nor the better, because he admired it. 
 
 A sermon is, or ought to be, a portion of the gospel of Christ 
 adapted to the attention of a public audience ; its style and man- 
 ner may be compared to the vessels on which a public feast is 
 served up. Important truth is the food itself Now, the service 
 of diahes may be of gold, silver, porcelain, or common earthen 
 ware, pewter, or even wood. Some forty years ao:o, when the 
 good people of this country used to eat on wooden trenchers, 
 even a pewter service was thought quite splendid and luxuri^- 
 ous. Emmons treats his audience in a handsome service of 
 
18 
 
 silver ; and if there are those who can go as high as goW, en- 
 riched with diamonds, I am glad. Let it be remembered, how- 
 ever, that very indifferent food may be served up in gold, and 
 many a deadly draught has lurked in a golden goblet. 
 
 The pious and venerable West, " whose praise is in all the 
 churches" where he is known, and whose full value cannot be 
 known, but by personal acquaintance, now more than eighty 
 years of age, is still discharging the duties of the sacred office. 
 Three times has his congregation heard him pass through the 
 New Testament, expounding verse by verse the sacred oracles ; 
 illustrating and enforcing them with a propriety, acuteness, and 
 vigour, of which this country has seen no parallel : nor has any 
 minister of the present day a happier talent in that most useful 
 branch of public instruction, or is " mightier in the scriptures." 
 Dr. West's publications have not been numerous ; but what few 
 things he published, will be sufficient to perpetuate his name 
 with honour. His treatises on moral agency, and on the atone- 
 ment, will best show their force in an attempt to answer them. 
 With that inattention to the ornaments of style characteristic of 
 his early time, he evinced great vigour of thought, and justness 
 of reasoning. 
 
 Christ has honoured this worthy man in an extraordinary man- 
 ner : for the space, I believe, of sixty years, in which he has; 
 discharged, without a stain, the work of the ministry, he has 
 from time to time seen the work of God carried on amongst his 
 people ; and very many souls have been given him as seals of 
 his ministry, who will be stars in the crown of his rejoicing in 
 the day of the Lord. 
 
 Though I would willingly dispense with mentioning the names 
 of persons living, from delicacy to their feelings, yet that si- 
 lence, any further than is imposed by brevity, cannot comport 
 with the design of this enumeration, which is to show how re- 
 mote from candour and truth are those reflections and sneers, 
 which deny to New-England the name of writer or theologian* 
 And I feel it my duty to ask many young men of education and 
 talents, but recently from that quarter, who have established 
 themselves in this city in the various branches of business ; I 
 
19 
 
 ask them, whether it gives them pleasure to hear such reflec- 
 tions, 
 
 " Tossed in the jest from wind to wind ?" 
 
 I ask them, whether they have become so triangular — so sealed 
 with prejudice, as really to believe there are no writers there ? 
 
 They peradventure may have heard of the name of Dwight, 
 the maternal grandson of the great Edwards ; perhaps they may 
 have been educated under his eye and instruction, and, if so, 
 they have heard his course of theological lectures : shall I be- 
 lieve, that since they have come within the radiance of superior 
 luminaries, that they are truly converted to the belief, that there 
 is nothing in New-England — that all there is " verbiage, tau- 
 tology, and nonsense" — " no books, no documents, no writ- 
 ings ?" Some of them I know to be sons of New-England cler- 
 gymen of eminence and distinction. But here, alas ! they have 
 learned the humiliating fact, that their fathers knew nothing, 
 and were nothing; or, if any thing, in comparison as a glow- 
 worm to a star. They are, perhaps, almost ready to wrangle 
 with their fate, and wish that Bamfylde Carew had been their 
 father. 
 
 Take courage, young men, and hold up your heads ; though 
 a New-England clergyman claim you, dare to own your parent- 
 age, dare to think yourselves educated, though educated by a 
 Dwight. This language may seem enigmatical to persons at a 
 distance : here it will be well understood, and will, I trust, pro- 
 duce a salutary effect. For I do firmly believe that so great a 
 perversion of truth, so unaccountable a concealment of fact, 
 never was practised or achieved under circumstances so extra- 
 ordinary, in any other place on the globe. And whatever the 
 reader may think, he may rest assured that we have before us 
 the true ground of the controversy with New-England. I there- 
 fore said in the former series, that it all arose from ambition and 
 envy. Our adversaries seem not to be aware that there is a 
 great distinction between commerce and theology ; noryet is 
 New-England altogether ignorant of commerce. 
 
 The man whose name has been mentioned would be an ho- 
 
20 
 
 nour to any state or nation. An example so bright, a pattern so 
 illustrious, will long be remembered by hundreds who have t'elt 
 its powerful influence ; will long flourish in the talenis he has 
 elicited and matured; will long be celebrated by the genius he 
 has fostered. Dr Dwight, for general erudition and correct 
 taste, for powerful talents and unconupted integrity, is surpass- 
 ed by no man in our country. Though he may have less starch 
 in his composition than Dr. Buckram; though he may be less 
 susceptible to the courtier's gentle touch than Dr. Weathercock ; 
 for he is not a man that says one thing and does another ; yet 
 he is, ' take him for all in all," as great as the Great Gun himself. 
 The sermons, and other productions of his pen, are brilliant 
 specimens of a great and vigorous intellect, and not unworthy 
 of a descendant of Edwards. 
 
 Since the writings of New-England are accused of consist- 
 ing of nothing but " verbiage, tautology, and nonsense," I will 
 mention one writer, at least, whose sermons, if the reader may 
 give himself the trouble to examine, I can assure him he will 
 acquit of this heavy charge. Smalley's Sermons are able aud 
 handsome specimens of clear and conclusive reasoning; they 
 abound little in bold assertions, and his deductions are made with 
 caution and correctness. Nothin"; but the prejudice of the day 
 withholds from those sermons the high reputation due to solid 
 reasoning, and an able and masterly display of important truth. 
 Warburton reasoned with more erudition, and Sherlock certain- 
 ly with many more adventitious advantages, but I request the 
 " Great Gun" himself to lay a sermon of Smaih'y side by side 
 with one of Sherlock's, or of Tillotson's, or of his own, if he 
 pleases ; compare them by paragraphs, and I put him upon his 
 iionour, as a gentleman, where I am happy to say I do not sim- 
 ple him, though I do much as a metaphysician, to say which of 
 them resembles most the progress of Euclid through his 47th. 
 
 There is scarcely a writer wiio carries more of demonstration 
 through every successive period ; nor would there be a better 
 test of this, than would result from an attempt to show where 
 his argumeu fails. 
 
 Doctor S. Spring's " Moral Disquisitions," at the very sound 
 of which socae neiivous people, I suppose, will fall into the moral- 
 
21 
 
 phobia, is the last thing I shall mention. This small book, 
 if read with attention and candour, will not fail to carry convic- 
 tion to the mind : it dwells on those grand points in which New- 
 England divinity is made the subject of censure. But its fate 
 has been to be condemned by those who have not readit. 
 
 There are many writings and publications, the productions of 
 a much younger class of men, which, while they exhibit hand- 
 some specimens of classical excellence, maintain and fully illus- 
 trate the same strain of sentiment and doctrine ; but brevity- 
 forbids their enumeration. New-England, in a space of two 
 hundred and fifty miles square, has, in fact, pri)duced more ser- 
 mons, essays, religious tracts, and theological publications, and 
 those which are respectable and important in their kind, Ihaa 
 all the rest of America. Nor is there a people on earth, whose 
 religious tenets are better known, or more ably defended. Yet, 
 we are solemnly assured by an Anti-Hopkin!?ian sectarian, that 
 (here are no books, documents, &c., by wiiich their principles 
 can be known. 
 
 The truth is, there is no such sect of people on earth as 
 Hopkinsians. and I would to God there had never been such 
 an appellation known among Christians as Calvinisms ; especial- 
 ly, without they had adopted the name of a more lovely and 
 Christ like man. This rage for nick-naming sects, and exalting 
 the opinions and authorities of men, is but a younger shoot of 
 the grand apostacy. 
 
 The books and writings I have mentioned in the very imper- 
 fect sketch above, are not censured or exploded, on account 
 of their faults, regarded as literary productions ; far from it: 
 that is the least of all the fears of their adversaries. On the 
 contrary, the known conviction they carry with them, the 
 force of native genius they evince, and the spirit of piety they 
 breathe, is what renders them so much dreaded, and is the real 
 clue to the motive of those unwearied endeavours to keep them 
 out of sight, and to hiss them into silence. 
 
 Perhaps I ought not to close so copious an account of writers, 
 without saying something about the Investigator. It was a rule 
 with the Spectator, that, so long as he was unknown, he might 
 fiay what he pleased of himself; might even applaud his own 
 
22 
 
 writings at pleasure ; and he often did it. I see no reason why 
 I have not the same right ; and perhaps it is even more neces- 
 sary for me to do it, than it was for him : however, as to that, I 
 shall do as I please. In the mean time, I shall say a few things. 
 
 In the first place, they may say many unpleasant things, but 
 they cannot say I am not a writer. As a proof that I can write, 
 here is the Triarigle. It has been written, and it will be read, it 
 will spread vride, and will be remembered. In the second place, 
 this {hing has not been excited merely as an attack on error ; 
 it is offered to the public as a detergent to an intolerant, bigot- 
 ed, and persecuting spirit; as a diluent to the moral buckram 
 with which some minds are most dreadfully encased ; as a re- 
 fri"-erent to the calenture of ambition ; as an emulgent to a self- 
 ish heart; as a sudorific to the sedative frigidity of hatred; as 
 a tonic to the atony of j^eneral benevolence ; as a laxative to the 
 <rripe of spiritual pride : in fact, as a universal nostrum against 
 meddlins with those who are disposed to think for themselves. 
 And, from concurrent prognostics, 1 think it must produce a 
 good effect. 
 
 In the last place, the Investigator is a physiognomist ; gives 
 lectures on beads, and can draw portraits. No portrait has yet 
 appeared, though I perceive some rough etchings in the former 
 series have been readily claimed. One thin^ I engage, if I 
 here.ifter draw a portrait, the true Bucephalus will instantly, as 
 of old, neigh at his own likeness. 
 
 INVESTIGATOR. 
 
 No. If. 
 
 I SAID, in a former number, that attempts had been made to 
 excite an odium against Hopkinsianism. To many, no doubt, 
 this appears an unjust accusation. But however it may appear, 
 it is true, and can be fully vindicated. They say that Hopkin- 
 eians hold that a Christian ought to be willing to be damned. 
 The most that Hopkinsians contend for is, thai there may be a 
 
23 
 
 iiine when a Christian may feel in his heart to acquiesce in the 
 justice of God, even though God should cast him off" for ever. 
 Let us examine tl)is point. 
 
 The clamours on (his subject are too absurd antl ridiculous 
 to be heard with patience. I said perhaps enough in a former 
 number ; but I will here repeat, that the Hopkinsians hold no 
 more, relative to this matter, than must be admitted by all who 
 believe in divine providence. 
 
 Their teachers are in the habit of iosistiog much on the doc- 
 trine of submission to the divine will ; which, I hope, will not 
 be considered as an error. They hold, that all rational crea- 
 tures ought to feel perfect resignation to the will of God. But 
 resignation implies holiness, and God has manifested it to be 
 his will, that holy creatures should be happy. A holy creature, 
 therefore, is not required to be willing to be damned, because 
 it is not God's will that he should be damned. They dwell 
 much on this point, that every real Christian entertains a strong 
 sense of his own desert, and of the justice of God, in his condem- 
 nation, as a sinner ; and they believe that a Christian may be 
 rightly disposed towards God, ^. e. may love liim supremely be- 
 fore he has any evidence that God will save him. In this case, 
 therefore, the converted sinner sees, and fully acquiesces in, 
 the justice of God : nay, is often heard to say, " I feel that 
 Cod would be just in my condemnation ; I feel and know that 
 I deserve his wrath ; and I see clearly the beauty and the glory 
 of his justice, as well as of his mercy." 
 
 The elements, and every point in this whole business, are now 
 before the reader, and may be reduced to a set of definite pro- 
 positions, which, for the sake of perspicuily, I will here set 
 down. 
 
 1. Every rational creature ought to feel perfect resignation 
 to the will of God. Will any one deny this ? 
 
 2. Perfect resignation to God's will implies holiness, i. e. 
 love to God. 
 
 3. It is the will of God that creatures who love him shall not 
 be miserable. This will not be denied. 
 
 4. Every good man has a strong sense of the justice of God 
 
24 
 
 in his condemnation as a sinner, for without this he would 
 have no idea of grace in his salvation. This cannot be denied. 
 
 The promise of God to save a believer, by grace, cannot 
 diminish that believer's sense of his own desert. Even pardon 
 clearly implies the justice of punishment, or else there can be 
 no grace in pardon. 
 
 5. The Christian may feel rightly disposed towards God and 
 his government, that is, may love God, before he has an evi- 
 dence that God will save him. This is out of the triangle, and 
 will be denied. But I beg the reader, as he values the truth, 
 to attend with candour to this point, It may affect his own re- 
 ligion and hopes more than he is aware of. This proposition 
 is denied, because it militates against the grand fortress and 
 strong hold of what I call selfishness. 
 
 I justify the proposition by the following reasons: 
 
 1. The real Christian may judge incorrectly of his own ex- 
 ercises and feelings. They may be of the right kind, without 
 his having any degree of confidence in them. Thus I have no 
 doubt it happens, that many a converted soul does not come to 
 a due estimate of his exercises towards God, for hours, nay, 
 days and months after his conversion. He has the feelings of 
 a child, but no confidence in those feelings. It is a very rare 
 thing that a renewed sinner is able to say, " This is faith — this 
 is love — this is holiness — I am born again," immediately, the 
 first moment after his regeneration. When I see a christian 
 come forward in that manner, I am doubtful, and have reason 
 to fear he is deluded. Nor will he be very ready to give in to 
 the opinion of any one who may officiously tell him, he is a 
 renewed man ; and such persons there are always at hand. He 
 will perhaps say, " I think I love God — I seem to perceive the 
 glory ard fulm^ss of Christ, but the matter is too important : I 
 fear I am mistaken." 
 
 2. The Ciiristian's confidence of salvation is not the cause, 
 but the effect, of his love to God. There is not a more fatal 
 error in the church, and to the souls of men, than the supposi- 
 tion, that the sinner begins to love God in consequence of dis- 
 covering: that God is going to save him. The thing itself speaks 
 and shows sheer selfishness, with the broadest grin, I am 
 
25 
 
 jimazed that the bare suggestion should not excite alarm and 
 suspicion, distrust and aversion. What says our Saviour ? " If 
 ye love them that love you, what thank have ye ?" Do not 
 even sinners lov« those that love them? Such a kind of love 
 is no sign of grace. That which I feel towards God, when I 
 see that he will save me, is gratitude. Nothing can be more 
 certain than that all the wicked on earth, and that all the devils 
 in hell, could they discover that God was going to make them 
 eternally happy, would love him for it, would feel very grateful, 
 would think him a very good being. Let those who trust in such 
 a kind of love to God be assured, that their foundation is «and. 
 
 3. The nature of that love, which is due to God from all 
 creatures, shows, with the brightness of a sunbeam, that it is far 
 above gratitude, or any return or reflection of kindness. What 
 is the ground of the most perfect and exalted friendship among 
 men ? Is it a mere requital of kindness, a reflection of inter- 
 est ? Does it rest on the narrow ground of reciprocal benefits ? 
 Is it not grounded on the high and estimable qualities which 
 two persons may discover in each other ? What if General 
 Washington had reprieved a criminal from death, or paid his 
 ransom, would that criminal perceive in that generous act 
 the highest and utmost ground of respect ? Robespierre, or 
 Cateline, might have done him the same kindness. In truth, 
 all that God has done for one sinner bears no more proportion to 
 the grounds of regard discoverable in his nature and character, 
 than a single grain of sand bears to the universe. Hence, 
 
 4. Love to God is not the efl'ect or consequence of faith ; it 
 is coeval with it, nay, it is in, and belongs to the nature of 
 faith. Faith without love is good for nothing — is dead — is no 
 better than the faith of devils. As there can be no holiness in 
 the heart previous to love, and as nothing can be acceptable to 
 God without holiness, we may rest assured that holiness is not 
 only a concomitant, but a constituent of faith. 
 
 It may further be observed, that consequent on regeneration 
 there can be no earlier exercise of heart than love to God; and, 
 I leave it to the acute and able theologian to say, whether be 
 can perceive any thing in regeneration itself, but a change of 
 heart from hatred to the love of God. But by love, here, I 
 
 4 
 
26 
 
 mean not only the effect, but the cause; not only the exercise, 
 but the agency by which it is produced, that is, *' the love of 
 God shed abroad in the heart, by the Holy Ghost." " For he 
 that dwelleth in love, dwelleth in God, and God in him." 
 
 I have, I trust, shown, that love to God is not the effect of 
 faitb. The arji;uu)en(s might indeed have been amplified, but 
 that I deem unnecessary, till 1 shall see stronger reasons brought 
 against them. And, if the love of God be considered object- 
 ively, it will be seen, that it cannot arise from a conviction 
 that God is going to save the sinner. This, indeed, has been 
 already stated, but the importance given to this point by the 
 disfjute before us, renders it necessary to be more explicit. 
 
 The unregenerate man is in a state of condemnation, of 
 course, he has no evidence to believe that God will save him. If 
 regeneration be an instantaneous work, which those admit with 
 whom I am at issue, a moment of time does not intervene be- 
 tween the latt sinful exercise of the unregenerate, and the first 
 holy exercise of tlie regenerate man, or lo^e to God : in a mo- 
 ment he finds himself loving God, and feels delight in the ex- 
 ercise. The first intellectual apprehensions of the neiv man 
 are allowed to be various, by most orthodox divines, old as 
 well as new : and this must be allowed from the nature of the 
 case, and is confirmed by constant experieuce. I seldom ever 
 heard two Christians relate having had similar apprehensions, 
 either in the first moments, or first hours or days, of their Chris- 
 tian experience. Their first views may be supposed to take 
 their complexion very much from their state of knowledge, and 
 general habits of thinking. But though these cases doubtless 
 embrace an endless variety, yet there is reason to believe, that 
 God is the grand object of their apprehension; and that them- 
 selves are generally, if not entirely, out of the question, and not 
 thought of. 
 
 I first mention the case of those persons who pretend to no 
 recolleclion of the time of their conversion ; and many such 
 there are who give abundant evidence of piety. Though they 
 did not know it, there was a lime when they were renewed by 
 the Holy Ghost: no thought occurred to them, however, that 
 fl;cv were born again, or were going to be saved; so far from 
 
27 
 
 it, Uiat if any one had (old them they were Christians, they 
 would have spurned the idea, and would have said, " you flatter 
 and deceive me." What may we suppose were their exercises 
 during this time ? Why, at times they had clear and affecting 
 views of the loveliness and glory of God, of the person and 
 character of Christ, of his fulness and all-suflSciency as a Sa- 
 viour; but, then, they dare not trust to these views and feelings. 
 
 I next mention the case of such as suppose they know the 
 time of their conversion. What were their tirst views ? " There 
 was a God ; — he was an infinitely lovely and excellent being. 
 The world was his; — all nature was beautiful and glorious; — 
 all creatures seemed to praise him. The Bible was a new book. 
 There was a Christ wiihng and able to save the vilest sinner. 
 The gospel was free ; the fault was all in the sinner." And I 
 declare to the reader, that not one only, nor two, nor ten per- 
 sons have I heard say, that their view of Christ's sufficiency 
 was such, that they thought they could persuade their friends 
 immediately to embrace him. 
 
 But while the new-born Christian had these views, what of 
 himself? Did it occur to him, at the very first instant, that God 
 was going to save him, and, therefore, that he loved God for it? 
 
 Was it his very first apprehension that he should be saved ; 
 and was that the cause of his joy and love ? The idea is shock- 
 ing, and from my soul, I believe, is revolting to every pious 
 mind ; nor do I believe there is a Christian on earth whose re- 
 collection of his own experience will confirm it. I readily 
 grant, the Christian's first apprehension may be of the Saviour; 
 but then it will be of him as the son of God. " If thou belie vest 
 in thine heart that God has raised up Jesus Christ from the 
 dead, thou shalt be saved." " But," said Christ to Peter, 
 " whom do ye say that I am ?" " Thou art the Son of God ; 
 thou art the king of Israel." " Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona ; 
 tlesh and blood hath not revealed this unto thee, but my Father 
 which is in heaven." v 
 
 Christ's person, character, and work, together, form the great 
 object of faith; the assent of the understanding, and cordial con- 
 sent of the heart to it, form the exercise. But the notion of 
 appropriating faith, so called, i. e. that Christ died for me, and 
 
28 
 
 la^'iog this as the ground and motive of my love to Christ, antf 
 prior to it, and these points, in connexion with the doctrine of 
 particular atonement, make out a dead faith and selfish love to 
 the Christian, and an innocent unbelief to the sinner. 
 
 To perceive beauty, is to love. Whatever the soul's first ap- 
 prehension of God is, it is attended with a coeval perception of 
 his glorious excellence and beauty. I wish the candid and in- 
 genuous reader to observe that acts, in no case, are the proper 
 objects of love. A series of great actions indicate a great be- 
 ing ; but it is not the actions, but the actor we love. But a good 
 action done to me indicates no more goodness than as though it 
 w^ere done to some other man. I ought, in fact, to love God 
 as much for doing good to my neighbour as to myself; and 
 this I certainly shall do, if I " love my neighbour as myself.'' 
 If this be not correct, let its error be made out. 
 
 This brings into view an idea of what is usually termed disin- 
 terested love, against which a more unreasonable clamour has 
 been raised, and justified by more ridiculous shifts, and more 
 groundless aud shameless arguments, than are usually seen 
 marshalled in the field of controversy. Be it admitted, though it 
 is by no means always true, that the new-born soul's first appre- 
 hension is of Christ — his first exercise of love is towards Christ'; 
 yet there is no otherwise an act of appropriation than what is 
 implied in the perception, " that the Saviour is infinitely glori- 
 ous and excellent, willing, and all-sufficient to save ; the cbiefest 
 among ten thousand, and altogether lovely." He looks up to 
 God, and beholds him a God of love, ruling his kingdom with 
 perfect goodness; that all creatures are safe; that all interests 
 committed to him are secure. It does not, at this time, occur 
 to him that he is born again, or shall be saved. His mind is 
 filled with objects infinitely more glorious and majestic than 
 any consideration of his own interest or salvation. And, al- 
 though a great leader of the Triangular scheme has lately cau- 
 tioned his hearers, from his pulpit, to be aware of that " base 
 and absurd philosophy^ which ought not to be dignified by the 
 name of philosophy, which leaches men to leave their own hap 
 
29 
 
 piness and interest out of the question /'* yet it is a truth which 
 every Christian should know and feel, that a view of the glory 
 of God shining in the face of Jesus Christ, breaking forth on 
 the mind of the sinner, and especially for the first time, will 
 leave him little room to think of his own d«ar self, or of his in- 
 terest or salvation. 
 
 Joh seemed to have a great deal of that base and absurd phi- 
 losophy when he said, *' I have heard of thee by the hearing of 
 the ear, but now mine eye seeth thee, wherefore I abhor my- 
 self, and repent in dust and ashes." David, also, had much of 
 that philosophy when he exclaimed, " when I consider the 
 heavens, the work of thy lingers, the moon and stars, which 
 thou hast made, Lord, what is man, that thou art mindful of 
 him ?" &c. 
 
 In that solemn hour a sense of the vileness and desert of sin 
 falls upon the renewed soul with the weight of mountains ; he 
 is amazed at the mercy that has preserved him, and he ex- 
 claims, with all the feelings of his heart, and energies of his 
 soul, " God would be lovely if he should cast me off for ever." 
 How little is he inclined, at that time, or any other time, to 
 seize upon some divine promise, and boldly and arrogantly 
 threaten to keep Christ to his word. I use this phrase because 
 it was very recently used by another Triangular, who boldly 
 exhorted his Christian hearers to keep Christ to his word, i. e. 
 to make him fulful his promises. 
 
 Alas! whither does this strain of Antinomiauism tend? Whafc 
 havock it has already made, and what ruin it threatens ! But i& 
 there need to exhort mankind to be more selfish ? is there ground 
 to fear that they will not interpret the bible sufficiently favoura- 
 ble to their own characters and state ? Shall they be exhorted, if 
 I may so say, to toe the mark, and challenge the Saviour to 
 come and meet them upon his peril ? Let that great master in 
 Israel be assured, that he need be under no apprehensions lest 
 his hearers shall not be sufficiently alive to their own interest 
 and happiness. They will do that in obedience to man's ruling 
 passion. 
 
 * Dr. Mason. 
 
30 
 
 I hare dwelt long on this subject; have gone carefully over 
 that ground pointed at with so much scorn, and regarded with 
 so much terror. It amounts to this: that a man under the in- 
 fluence or clear views of God and his government, and of his 
 own exceeding vileness, all which he may have without any 
 certain evidence of his own good estate, may fully acquiesce in 
 the justice of God — may see that God would be just in casting 
 him off, and may feel as though he could love and adore God, 
 if he in fact should do it. Some writers, called Hopkinsian, 
 may have dwelt particularly on this point, but it is a matter 
 which has no necessary connexion with Hopkinsianism — ia 
 found in old writers as well as new. Devils who are now 
 suffering the wrath of God, are under the same obligation to 
 love and adore him as the angels of light in heaven. If be- 
 cause he is j)unishing (hem, they have a right to hate and 
 abh«!r him, then they certainly do right in making war on his 
 kingdom. 
 
 The reason why suf h a clamour is raised against this idea is, 
 because men cannot endure the Ihought that the glory and ho- 
 nour of God should be preferred to the happiness of a wicked 
 
 No Hopkinsian on earth ever held, or pretended, tl-at a wil- 
 lingness to be damned constitutes a habitual exercise of the 
 Christian ; for it is not the will of God that a real Cluistiaa 
 should be damned; it would be revolting against God's will, 
 and every Christian knows it ; but the willingness contended 
 for is restricted to those moments, while, as yet, the regenerate 
 man has no certain evidence that he is a Christian, or that God 
 will save him, yet still he loves God, and is, -of course, willing 
 that Gfud s will shall be dune. 1 believe I am understood, and 
 if so, J have only to say, that on this ground, the Hopkinsian is 
 willing to be at issue with his adversary. 
 
 ii it be admitted t'lat a man can love God before he has 
 Cfjdeni.e that God will save him, the point is settled; that he 
 ought so to do, nay (hat those ought so to do who know he 
 never will save tht^m, few will dare to deny : and tiiis, I think, 
 to the d;stt'ining mind, shows what the proper motive of love 
 to Gull is. baifitd and angels do, in fact, love God for the 
 KriUie reason for which wicked men and devils are bound to 
 
31 
 
 love him, viz. because he is infinitely excellent and worthy to 
 be loved. 
 
 Whether a Christian can feel willing to be an enemy to God 
 for ever, has no connexion with this entire discussion, since the 
 ivillingncss to sufifer, of which I have been speaking, relates 
 wholly to the penalty of God's law, and not to a transgression 
 of it. The breath and words, therefore, spent on that idea are 
 wholly wastt-d, and the terrible blows often given to it, are 
 dealt out to a shadow. 
 
 INVESTIGATOR. 
 
 No. III. 
 
 A CONTRAST. 
 
 1. Men are condemned for 
 the sin of Adam. 
 
 2. Men have a natural or 
 physical incapacity to obey 
 God. 
 
 1. Men are condemned for 
 their own transgressions. 
 
 2. Men have no inability to 
 obey God but what prises from 
 want of inclination, or will. 
 
 3. Christ made atonement, 3. Christ made atonement, 
 or propitiation, for none but or propitiation, for all man- 
 the elect. kiud. 
 
 4. The gospel invites none 4. The gospel invites all 
 but the elect to come to Christ, mankind to come to Christ. 
 
 5. None but the elect are 
 under obligation to believe in 
 Christ. 
 
 5. All who hear the gospel 
 are under obligation to believe 
 in Christ. 
 
 6. The elect are not bound 
 to believe in Christ till he 
 shows them that he will save 
 them. 
 
 6. Every sinner who hears 
 the gospel is l)ound to believe 
 as much at one time as an- 
 other. 
 
Hence, 
 7, No man will be condemn- 
 ed at last for unbelief, because 
 tiie elect will all believe — 
 
 For, 
 8. Faith consists in believ- 
 ins that Christ died for me. 
 
 Hence, 
 
 9. Those for whom Christ 
 did not die, cannot believe he 
 died for them, unless they can 
 believe what is not true; there- 
 fore, they cannot be condemn- 
 ed for unbelief. 
 
 Moreover, 
 
 10. Faith is neither an exer- 
 cise of the will nor understand- 
 ing, but a divine principle. 
 
 32 
 
 Hence, 
 
 7. All who hear the gos- 
 pel and do not believe, will 
 be condemned for their unbe- 
 lief— 
 
 For, 
 
 8. Faith consists in " receiv- 
 ing and resting on Christ alone 
 for salvation, as he is offered 
 in the gospel." 
 
 Hence, 
 
 9. As Christ died for all men, 
 any sinner who hears the gos- 
 pel can receive and rest on 
 him alone for salvation ; there- 
 fore, any unbeliever will be 
 condemned. 
 
 Moreover, 
 
 10. Faith is an exercise bolh 
 of the will and understanding, 
 and a divine principle is a 
 phrase without an idea. 
 
 11. The Christian begins to II. The Christian begins to 
 
 love Ciirist when he finds love Christ before he knows 
 
 Christ will save him, and that he will save him, and loves him 
 
 is the true motive of his love, for other and higher reasons. 
 
 Wherefore, 
 12. Saving faith is before, 
 and, of course, without love to 
 God, or holiness, unless holi- 
 ness be different from love. 
 
 Wherefore, 
 12. Saving faith is love in 
 its very nature, and is a holy 
 exercise, because love is ho- 
 liness. 
 
 13. A Christian cannot be 13. A shameless and bare- 
 disinterested — the interest of faced confession, as unworthy 
 self must be at the bottom, and of a philoshpher as a christian ! 
 the moving spring of all his 
 actions — even of his religion. 
 
 Reader, here is a contrast to the purpose; read it, and be as- 
 tonished ; and, I think, you cannot but be astonished. O wretch- 
 ed man that I am ! who shall deliver me from this body of 
 »eISob Antiuoraianism ? 
 
33 
 
 When I had got thus far, sickened with the odious narrowness, 
 the grovelling selfishness of this triangular place, I dropped my 
 pen and retired to rest. " In the thoughts and yisions of my 
 head upon my bed," 1 fancied myself travelling alone, through 
 an extensive and desolate country ; it was towards night, and 
 being on foot, I seemed weary with the labours of a long day's 
 travel ; I began to look out for a house of entertainment, but 
 could discern little save now and then a hamlet of unpromising 
 aspect, and at a distance from the road. At length, however, 
 a fabric, of extraordinary appearance, drew ray attention, and, 
 as I approached, a signal, near the gate, gave me the agreeable 
 notice that it was a public house. This building was perfectly 
 triangular, resembling an obtuse prismatic cone, cut perpendi- 
 cular to its principal axis, standing on its base, rising to a great 
 elevation, and terminated in a spire. It was very pleasantly 
 situated on the point of junction between two large streams of 
 water, and appeared like a place of great traffick. 
 
 I perceived much company in the house, and, on entering, a 
 man immediately presented himself whom I concluded to be 
 the landlord. His body was exceedingly corpulent and large, 
 with a little three-square head, and eyes very sharp and 
 twinkling, which seemed " to look at one another."* Hovr- 
 ever, he received me with a smile, and on asking for en- 
 tertainment he assented, and told me that in his house I would 
 find accommodations. The company were all strangers to me; 
 nor did I ever see so many cross-eyed people together before. 
 I took a seat by myself, and waited, with some impatience, for 
 supper. But my curiosity and astonishment were equally ex- 
 cited to perceive, that not only the house itself, but every thing 
 in it, was in a triangular shape ; the doors and windows, the 
 rooms and fireplaces, all exhibited that form. The chairs and 
 tables were tripods — the plates and platters, triangular con- 
 caves, and the glasses and tumblers, hollow prisms; but every 
 thing elegant in its kind, and highly fiuished. 
 
 At length supper was announced, and I took a seat at a three- 
 cornered table, with a numerous company, who seemed as well 
 
 * Genius theologioe, Novi Ebori. 
 5 
 
34 
 
 pleased as myself at the sight of something edible. We cUm* 
 menced with little ceremony, and happening to sit near the! 
 master of the house, 1 attempted some conversation with him. 
 He was affable, communicative, and sententious, as tavern 
 keepers usually are. The provision, of which there were three 
 courses, appeared well, but had, I thought, somewhat of a pe- 
 culiar taste. I called for pepper, and for salt, but still it did 
 not do ; and, I believe, the landlord himself perceived that my 
 taste was not well suited. At length he said, " give me leave, sir, 
 to help you to a relish which I think you will like, for I have 
 never had one at my table who did not admire it." 
 
 " This, sir," continued he, " is, perhaps, the most famous 
 root in the world ; its botanical name is amor sui ; it is a very 
 fine root for the table, and is beginning to be cultivated in these 
 parts, particularly in two large botanic gardens^ whence it \% 
 sent all over the country, and they find it very profitable." 
 And perceiving he had some knowledge in botany, while he 
 was putting some of it on my plate, I asked him if he knew 
 to which of the Linnsean classes it belonged. He said, he be- 
 lieved it was to the Pantandria. Whilst I was recollecting 
 whether Linnseus had such a class, he said, smiling, " the name 
 of this root sounds better in Latin than in English ; it would 
 hardly do to give it a translation. 
 
 I perceived they ate of it, round the table, by spoonfuls ; 
 and the landlord said, for his part, he could, at any time, make 
 a meal of it; in fact, wanted nothing else. 
 
 For the first moment, I thought the taste of the amor sui 
 very agreeable. It had a racy and aromatic gusto, highly 
 grateful to the palate ; but, after a while, it began to bite my 
 tono-ue, burn my lips, draw up my mouth, contract my oesopha- 
 gus ; and, in short, the more I tasted it the worse it was. It 
 put me in mind of Allen's attempt to eat the olive. A gentle- 
 man, near me, seeing my embarrassment, observed that, like 
 most high-flavoured things, at first, it seemed rather pungent 
 and harsh ; " but," said he, " sir, I have no doubt you will soon 
 be fond of it." A sour looking robust fellow, whose eyes were 
 almost wrong side outwards, declared it was now used at every 
 genteel table, and he never saw a gentleman but what liked it. 
 
35 
 
 " Why," said he, " in Scotland, my native country, some call 
 it the ministerial root, because so very convenient to cultivate 
 on their glebes ; it succeeds virell on lands which will produce 
 nothing else, and will, in this country, soon be thought more 
 valuable than the potato; and a man that does not like it must 
 be a fool." He further added, that he had recommended it, 
 with great success, in this country ; that he, and several others, 
 were determined to bring it into general cultivation and use. 
 
 In a region in all respects so perfectly trigonal, the eflfect was 
 wonderful. I could not repress my curiosity, and I feared I 
 should give offence by appearing to inspect the various little ar- 
 ticles which lay about my plate, not to say that a three-square 
 spoon did not very well suit my mouth. As the landlord seem- 
 ed willing to converse, I at last summoned sufficient confidence 
 to inform him, that my curiosity and admiration had been not 
 a little excited at the very singular form of his house and fur- 
 niture ; and I hoped he would not think me impertinent, in wish- 
 ing to know the motive for adopting this figure. 
 
 After a little pause, with a serious look, he replied, that I 
 was right in wishing an explanation, and that no offence would 
 be taken. 
 
 " This mode of building, sir," said he, " I have received from 
 my ancestors, as they did from their's ; and you must know it 
 is the true prhrdlive form. Our first and grandest maxim is, 
 never to admit of innovation. This maxim is founded in the 
 fact, that although a little good may come, yet a world of evil 
 does actually come from innovations. Why sir," continued he, 
 with increasing earnestness, " all the bad practices in the whole 
 world are but innovations. Satan was the first innovator, and 
 his first innovation was made in heaven itself. Then, our mo- 
 ther Eve made a sad innovation on the tree of knowledge, and 
 drew Adam, our father, into it. All human knowledge, sir, 
 is but innovation upon man's primitive state, which was pure 
 ignorance ; and ' ignorance is the mother of devotion.' 
 
 " With regard to this house, sir, it is of the true original, un- 
 eorrupted Tuscan order. Three posts were first set on the 
 ground, and their tops fastened together : some say four, but, 
 sir, I say three^ which I can demonstrate from the composition 
 
3e 
 
 and resolution of forces ; besides, three is the simplest form, and 
 three denotes union, strength, and perfection; it is a mysteri- 
 ous number, as every body knows. When four-square build- 
 ings came in fashion, this primitive form was forced to flee into 
 the wilderness, just as the true church did, when the great 
 whore of Babylon usurped her place ; and they will remain 
 there, and emerge together." He paused here, and waited 
 for my reply. 
 
 I tpld the landlord, he had satisfied me with the account he 
 had given of his house. He acknowledged, that there were 
 some inconveniences attending this figure of things; but, then, 
 he said, that the beauty and charm of uniformity carried every- 
 thing before it ; and, for his part, his object was to have but one 
 standard: every thing must be alike. " But, sir," said he, " we 
 carry this point farther than you imagine; for soon after our 
 children are born, we have a triangular box, or hat, if you 
 please, made for their heads, which they wear till the head 
 grows in the box into the shape we wish ; and, as they grow larger, 
 we enlarge those helmets according to their years, till at length 
 the head becomes settled in the shape you see mine, which 
 form we consider as highly favourable to acuteness of intel- 
 lect. I then noticed, that the os frontis and os occipitis of his 
 head formed the upper angles, and his chin the lower ; so that 
 the top of the head formed the base, and the chin the apex. In 
 the course of the evening, I had opportunity to see that all his 
 numerous children had heads of the same form as their father:* 
 indeed, Lavater admits, that straight lines in the skull indicate 
 strength and decision. 
 
 I perceived that this innkeeper was a mystic, had studied in 
 the occult sciences, and was even acquainted with the cabalistic 
 doctrines. " Sir," said he, " the form of all things about me, 
 is founded in much deeper reasons than you probably imagine. 
 You know, doubtless, that infinite perfection can only subsist 
 in a triune being. Among intellectual creatures, there are but 
 three grand orders, angels, men, and devils : there are, in all 
 existence, but three kinds, spirit, matter, and mixed. The 
 
 * " What do the old divines s^y about it ?" 
 
37 
 
 heavenly regions are divided into three provinces, the first, se- 
 cond, and third heavens : duration has three modifications, pre- 
 sent, past, and future. Adam's race are all in one of three 
 habitations, earth, heaven, or hell : every man has three im- 
 portant states, in the body, out of the body, and again in the 
 resurrection state. Every solid substance in nature has three 
 dimensions, length, breadth, and height. But," continued he, 
 " to come near to the point, you must be one side of a line, on 
 the other side, or else exactly on it ; and, as for the properties 
 of the triangle, philosophers, from the days of Euclid, and long 
 before, until now, have never been able to explore them. By 
 the triangle, the mariner guides his ship across the ocean, the sur- 
 veyor measures the earth, and the astronomer the heavens. In 
 a word, I take the triangle to be the symbol of strength, wis- 
 dom, and perfection ; and I am strongly inclined to believe, that 
 the soul of man is a perfect spiritual triangle." 
 
 Perceiving his enthusiasm, equal to that of Dr. Primrose for 
 monogamy, or Don Quixote for chivalry, I nodded assent to his 
 arguments, and presently desired I might be shown my lodg- 
 ings. The landlord here informed me, thathis beds, which were 
 numerous, were all pre-occupied ; and, unless I could accept 
 of a fellow lodger, he could make no arrangement that would 
 be convenient. In fact, he said, his usual custom was to put 
 three in each bed, corresponding to the three sides of the tri- 
 angle ; when, in order to avoid mixing head and feet, each one 
 must bend himself into the true figure. I assented, however 
 to take one, and a gentleman present ascended with me to the 
 chamber, of which, I understood, there were about 20 or 30 in 
 the house. But here, a ditScuUy arose : the bed was a perfect 
 triangle, and so scanty, that even the sides of it were not as 
 long as its intended occupants ; however, each of us took an 
 angle for our heads, and let our feet contend in the remaining 
 angle ; and they were antipodes, with a witness. A query 
 arose, whether these were not the beds spoken of in scripture, 
 where it says, '« their bed is shorter than that one may stretch 
 himself upon it, and their covering narrower than that he can 
 wrap himself therein." 
 
 My fellow lodger told me that the landlord was in?incible in 
 
38 
 
 this whim, that he would have every bed in his house of the 
 same size and shape : that it happened, not long since, that some 
 gentlemen travelling, who had portable bedsteads with them of 
 the usual form, had put up there, and, for their own convenience, 
 had erected and prepared their own beds. The landlord, find- 
 ing it out, went up to their chamber in a rage, and by the aid 
 of his servants, drew them out of bed, threw their furniture out 
 of the window, and expelled them from his house.* 
 
 Our situation was such as promised little comfort ; but being 
 weary, I soon fell asleep, and had the following very extraor- 
 dinary dream, which may be called a dream two stories high, 
 or Somnium in Somnio. , 
 
 I fancied myself in a region of great darkness, saving what 
 dubious light arose from distant fires, whose pale and curling 
 flames immediately brought to my mind the Tartarean lake. 
 Before I could look round me a second time, a peal of thunder 
 shook all the region, and a glare of light showed me thousands 
 of beings seated round a vast amphitheatre facing a central 
 throne. The lofty arches of Pandamonium, sustained on pillars 
 of gold, and illuminated by corruscations of flame, from the 
 burning lake, resembled a structure of solid fire. The perpe- 
 tual noise of distant thunders and tempests, which shook the 
 fabric, prevented my hearing the debates and consultations. 
 At length, however, a voice more shrill than the loudest 
 trumpet reached my ear. " Repair to your stations, and 
 discharge your duties, or the city is lost io ray kingdom. 
 Show yourselves worthy of your prince, and, since it is the 
 will of fate that you contend against a superior foe, ac- 
 quire fame by boldness and perseverance. Address yourselves 
 to every individual, and yield to nothing but almighty power. 
 Be off, and let us see 
 
 What reinforcement we can gain from hope 
 If not, what resolution from despair." 
 
 The session was closed in a manner not very agreeable to 
 tpectators in the gallery, for no sooner was the last word pro- 
 
 * He would not endure them, " no, not for an hour." 
 
39 
 
 uounced, than the vast assembly rose with a noise and rapidity' 
 equal to the explosion of' a thousand magazines of powder; 
 and each one, in departing, resembled the track of a meteor. I 
 know not what became of me, till, some time after, I found my- 
 self walking down the park on that side next to Broadway, 
 when, as usual, many people were moving up and down the 
 street. The sun from his meridian throne smiled with peculiar 
 radiance, and the prospect was gay and interesting. What most 
 engaged my attention was innumerable winged genii, drest in 
 the robes of Iris, with golden drapery floating around them, 
 which seemed soft as air, and in a long traiu gradually melted 
 into the invisible beam of the sun. One of these flew merrily 
 about the head of each person I saw, keeping pace, as they 
 ttalked, and acted much like bees when busied in extracting 
 the mellifluous dew from the heads of clover in a meadow : 
 sometimes at one ear, an'd then at the other, sometimes for a 
 moment perching on, then vaulting over, and flying round the 
 head. The ladies' large bonnets appeared to form for them a 
 pleasing vehicle, resembling an airy chariot below, and, when 
 thus perched, they might be mistaken for a lofty and elegant 
 plume. Excepting a little cloven foot, very sharp and threaten- 
 ing talons, which were, however, generally concealed, and a 
 proboscis resembling an exquisitely fine dagger, I could see 
 nothing about them which looked suspicious. Although nothing 
 is extraordinary in a dream, in which wayward fancy delights 
 to sport with the laws of reason, I was surprised at what I saw, 
 and recollected the words of the poet : 
 
 " Millions of spiritual creatures walk the earth 
 Unseen, both when we wake, and when we sleep." 
 
 At that moment my curiosity was awakened to know whe- 
 ther I had not one of these aerial attendants about my head ; 
 and, looking round, I saw behind me a vast figure of terrific 
 form and aspect, whom I could not for a moment mistake for 
 his infernal majesty He has been so often described that I 
 suspect I should add nothing new. I will only say, that his 
 glowing and protruded eyeballs evinced an ardour and pene- 
 
40 
 
 tration of viteion, not very pleasant to look at, or easy to scru- 
 tinize : and his whole form reminded me of " the sun eclipsed," 
 or " archangel ruined." 
 
 My astonishment was increased when I perceived in his hand 
 a little book, which I immediately knew to be the Triangle : 
 with a stern voice, and a frown which seemed to insphere him 
 in darkness, he demanded whether I was the author of that book. 
 " Great Lucifer," said I, " if your knowledge is as great as is 
 generally imagined, you surely must know who wrote it." 
 " Yes," says he, " I well know tliat you wrote it, and I am now 
 come to take vengeance." There is a vulgar notion prevailing that 
 no living person can speak to a spirit ; but as this vision came up 
 through the " ivory gate," the- reader will not be surprised at 
 this dialogue. I asked him what fault he found with that book. 
 " Fault," said he, " it is an audacious attack on some of my 
 best friends; and you have outdone the devil himself in lies 
 aud slander." " Very well," I replied, " if you will show me 
 a falsehood, in all that book, you may take me where you 
 please." 
 
 I had often, in the course of my life, raised a query, in 
 my own mind, whether the devil could read: being strong- 
 ly persuaded, that, like many of his followers, he had con- 
 demned books which he had never read ; and assured that to 
 prevent people from reading was one of his devices ; though 
 somewhat afraid of incensing him, I made bold, however, to 
 ask him if he could read. " You shall soon know," replied he, 
 " whether I can read." With that he turned to the 23d page; 
 " There, you say that a rat's tail was never measured : which is 
 false ; the zoologists have measured it a hundred times, for 
 they measure all animals, even the legs of a grasshopper. You 
 have told, sir, as great a lie as Goldsmith did when he said that 
 the horned cattle of America shed their horns every year ; or 
 
 as did when he said that the ants in South America 
 
 would carry off every vestige of large villages of houses in 
 three years. 
 
 I tcjd him, however, that I did not mean to assert that a rat's 
 tail was abcolutely never measured, but that Hopkins and Cal- 
 vin never measured it. " Hah " replied he, very quick, " How 
 
41 
 
 iTo you know that Hopkins and Calvin never did it ? And how 
 dare you assert what you do not know ? Hopkins and Calvin 
 did things of less importance than measuring rats' tails, and as 
 for you, you cannot say that they did not spend half their time 
 in that business." " But, sir," said I, for we now began to 
 grow somewhat poHte, *' if that book is full of lies, do you not 
 like it the better for that, for it is said that you are the father of 
 lies ?" — " Come, come," said he, " those that wish to please me 
 must tell lies about my enemies, not my friends ; at any rate, 
 they must lie to suit my purposes. I don't, indeed, care about 
 abstract and metaphysical truth ; that I confess I hate as most 
 of my best friends do — but truth or falsehood, which suits my 
 interest, I approve of. For, sir, you must know that I am a 
 selfish being." I was going to tell him that I presumed I had 
 now discovered the true cause of his resentment towards that 
 book; but he sternly interrupted me, " Come along, you are 
 convicted ;" and I believe he would have laid hands upon me"^ 
 had he not been prevented by another phenomenon. 
 
 At that moment the ground shook, and a superior light, that 
 cast no shadow, seemed breaking on the heavens. A cloud 
 appeared on the northern hemisphere, whose arching sides and 
 silvered edges gradually rose to a summit, on which sat a per- 
 sonage, which every eye, as by intuition, perceived to be im- 
 mortal Truth. 
 
 Her throne seemed ivory, and over her white robes floated 
 an azure mantle besprinkled with drops of heavenly lustre. On 
 her head was a chaplet of such flowers as spring in the regions 
 of bliss; and the summit of the diadem was distinguished by a 
 centre Of rays that resembled the morning star. The bloom of 
 eternal youth was in her countenance, but her majestic form 
 can only be described in the language of that world where she 
 is fully known. In her right hand was " the sword of the spi- 
 rit," and at her side the symbols of power and majesty. Be- 
 neath her feet the clouds were condensed in awful darkness, 
 and her chariot was borne along by the breath of the Al- 
 mighty. 
 
 I saw no more of the demon or his genii, and while every 
 eye beheld this glorious personage from afar, a gentle, but ma- 
 
42 
 
 jestic voice, in slow and solemn accents, was borne to every 
 beholder along the whispering breeze. 
 
 *' Unhappy people ! Truth alone conducts you to happiness : 
 Her path is plain — her progress is pleasant — her end is glorious. 
 Other guides obtrude upon you their services, but they impose 
 on your credulity, and will betray your confidence. Ignorance 
 was born blind : Prejudice has put out her own eyes : Error 
 speaks but to deceive, and allures but to destroy : Ambition 
 seeks you as her prey : Tradition is importunate without rea- 
 son : Pride is the sister of Folly, and without goodness, and al- 
 ways carries about with her the weapon on which she will one 
 day fall : and Selfishness, with fascinating smile, presents you 
 with her bowl of deadly poison. Too long have you followed 
 these fallacious guides. I am Truth : — It is my province to 
 conduct you in the path of life, to the bosom of the God of truth 
 and love." She ceased, and while thousands yet listened for 
 'something more, her softened close seemed to die away in a 
 distant strain of heavenly music. 
 
 But for my triangular bed, this delightful dream might have 
 continued, but here the antipodes of my bed fellow gave me so 
 violent a shock that I awoke, and behold it was a dream ! But 
 having now got back to the first floor of my dream, it appeared 
 that I had been waked at a very critical moment; for I heard a 
 great uproar and running about the house below, and somebody 
 broke into our chamber, and, in great haste, told us that the 
 house was all on fire, which the bursting of smoke , and 
 flame into our chamber but too well confirmed. We sprung 
 out of bed, and hastened down stairs, where we learned that the 
 landlord, who always slept in the apex, or upper angle of his 
 house, because he loved a lofty situation, was hemmed in by 
 the flames, and likely to perish. How it proved I cannot say, 
 for here the cry of fire and ringing of bells, in the city, awaked 
 me in good earnest. 
 
 I have heird it remarked by an old observer, that the first 
 thought which strikes the mind after waking, is generally the 
 best clue to the interpretation of a dream. Whether the first of 
 these dreams is allegorical, I leave it for the reader to judge ; 
 and whether the second is prophetic, events will declare. 
 
 INVESTIGATOR. 
 
43 
 
 No. IV. 
 
 Why is the word of God called " the sword of the Spirit ?" 
 There is great force, appropriateness, and beauty in this meta- 
 phor. In ancient warfare, the sword was the principal weapon ; 
 was of such use and importance, that it is often put for the whole 
 offensive armour ; and persons slain in war, are said to be slain 
 of the sword. The scriptures speak of pestilence, srvord, and 
 famine, as the three great scourges of men. The sword of the 
 Spirit is that weapon in the hand of God by which his enemies 
 are subdued, and brought to bow to the sceptre of his grace. 
 *' The word of God is quick and powerful, sharper than a two- 
 edged sword." 
 
 The object of this number is a solemn appeal to all who 
 shall read it : — to the friends and the enemies of truth, to the 
 people of this country at large, to this city, and to the men ia 
 this city with whom this controversy principally lies. I appeal 
 to their consciences before God, and I ask them, what general 
 strain of preaching— what scheme of doctrine, in our own 
 country, has had most influence in promoting the great work 
 of reformation — in turning many to righteousness ? What strain 
 of doctrine has had the happiest influence in turning mankind 
 from their vices, and causing them to assume the profession, 
 and exhibit the evidences, of religion, in their life and conver- 
 sation 1 Under what strain of preaching, and through what parts 
 of the union do Sabbath breaking, intemperance, profanity, de- 
 bauchery, and gambling, least prevail ? 
 
 Alas ! this will be read by many, probably, with a careless 
 reflection about provincial prejudices. But the truth cannot be 
 altered. And the truth is, that what is here usually intended 
 by the New-England strain of doctrine, including divine sove- 
 reignty, general atonement, moral inability, a probationary state, 
 the invitation of the gospel to all men, and their collateral 
 points, have been the doctrines in this country which have 
 been attended with revivals of religion, and great reformations, 
 
44 
 
 among all ranks of people. Wherever fhese doctrines have 
 been faithfully preached these salutary effects have followed. 
 
 On the contrary, show me the city, the town, the village, the 
 tract of country, where these doctrines have not been preached, 
 but where they have been opposed, beat down, ridiculed, and 
 cast out, as many in this city endeavour to do by Ihem, and I 
 will show you a place where religion is little thought of, where 
 the sword of the Spirit has lain dormant, where the work of 
 God has rarely, if ever, been carried on. God is a sovereign, 
 and surely is not limited to any certain course of means ; yet, 
 ordinarily, where the proper means are used the desired effects 
 veil! follow. From the days of Edwards till this time, in those 
 parts of this country where these doctrines have been preached, 
 there have been frequent reformations — extending often through 
 the towns of a county ; sometimes for an hundred miles in ex- 
 tent; sometimes, indeed, limited to a town or neighbourhood. 
 At the present moment. Indeed, for several years past, and al- 
 most without intermission, large districts have been favoured 
 with what, from their fruits and effects, we are authorized to 
 call outpourings of the Spirit of God. 
 
 And, I ask, for I will not be deterred by a false delicacy, or 
 by the fear of what prejudice or malevolence may say; I ask, 
 what is, and has been, (he religious state of those parts of our 
 country where these doctrines have never been beard ? Though, 
 indeed, as I said in a former number, these doctrines have 
 been disseminated, more or less, though in some places but 
 transiently, in every part of the union ; and I repeat, that, in. 
 every part of the union, they have been, more or less, favoured 
 with tokens of divine approbation. 
 
 With regard to these revivals of religion, I am aware that 
 various opinions are entertained. I am by no means about to 
 deny that some persons, who, on these occasions, espouse and 
 profess religion, do not continue afterwards to give evidence of 
 sincerity; yet, every man is awfully concerned to see to it, that 
 in speaking against these revivals, he does not speak against 
 the work of the Spirit of God, and thereby blaspheme the Holy 
 Ghost. 
 
 If these revivals are not attended with indications and 
 
45 
 
 fruits, which every Christian will allow must attend religion, 
 let them be dishonoured with the name of delusion : for instance, 
 they are usually accompanied with seriousness, anxiety, and 
 alarm. But is this an evidence of delusion ? When a man be- 
 comes convinced that he is a sinner, and exposed to eternal 
 perdition thereby, is it unreasonable to suppose he will feel 
 great alarm ? Are his fears groundless ? Rather, are not those 
 who feel no anxiety, although exposed to God's eternal wrath, 
 in a state of complete infatuation ? Was ever delusion so great 
 as that which reigns over (he man that can despise, equally, both 
 the favour and the wrath of God ? 
 
 Religious awakenings are usually attended with seriousness; 
 a desire to frequent places of public worship and instruction ; 
 and a total cessation of ordinary amusements, and even some- 
 times of business. But, are these signs of delusion ? Would 
 it not be happy for all men, if (hey would seek iirst the king- 
 dom of God, with great importunity? Are not the hopes of 
 heaven, and the fears of hell, when brought home to the mind, 
 stronger motives of action than our ordinary amusements and 
 pursuits ? " What is a man profited, if he gain the whole world, 
 and lose his own soul ?" 
 
 If these reformations do not reform mankind, they certainly 
 are not the work of God. If they do not cause the drunkard 
 to become temperate, the thief and the cheat to become ho- 
 nest men, the debauched and the lascivious to become chaste, 
 the swearer to become decent in his lauguage, the immoral 
 to become regular and exemplary ; if they do not make the re- 
 lations of life more endearing, by being sustained bet(er, and the 
 duties of life deligh(ful, by a habitual performance of them, they 
 have no claim to be of God. But, if they produce these ef- 
 fects, and actually make men better, more punctual in the dis- 
 charge of the du(ies of (he first and second table, they are not 
 the work of the devil; but it is the work of the devil to cen- 
 sure and despise them, and bring them into disrepute. It is the 
 work of the devil to laugh — no, devils cannot laugh when they 
 see men concerned about their salvation. 
 
 Is it an extraordinary thing, that a discovery of the fulness 
 and beauty of the Saviour, his willingness and power to save the 
 
46 
 
 soul, should occasion sinners to rejoice ? Who is there, that 
 had but a feeble gUmpse of the great plan of salvation, through 
 Christ, who would not rejoice, even with joy unspeakable, 
 and full of glory ? It is surely no light thing to be redeemed 
 from the curse of the law ; *' to be made free by the Son," and 
 to become an heir of his glory, a subject of bis blessed and 
 eternal kingdom. 
 
 If those people who are concerned, and greatly alarmed for 
 their eternal interests ; who seem to forsake all other pursuits 
 for those of rehgion ; who rejoice in Christ, and break off their 
 sins by righteousness, and their iniquities by turning to God : 
 I say, if these are not the religious — if these are not Christians, 
 who, and where are they ? Are they those who go merrily on 
 through life, without regrets for the past, or fears for the future ; 
 who are bewildered in the avocations of business, or fascina- 
 tions of pleasure ; who are not troubled with superstitious fears 
 of hell, and feel no apprehension of divine displeasure ; who 
 neither trouble themselves, nor others, with obtrusive concerns 
 of a future world ? Are these the followers of Christ, " who 
 are not conformed to the world, but are transformed by the re- 
 newing of their minds 1" 
 
 Are the gay and thoughtless, whose hours are divided between 
 routs and assemblies, entertainments and parties of pleasure; 
 the proud and ambitious, whose stern and haughty eye is in- 
 tensely fixed on the glittering summit of fame and power ? Are 
 these the followers of Christ, and shall they hear the high and 
 solemn benediction, " Come, ye blessed of my Father ?" 
 
 When a number of men associate together from motives of 
 pride and ambitiou ; build themselves a splendid iiouse of wor- 
 ship, and endeavour to fill it, by artfully drawing to it members 
 of other churches ; alluring by intrigue, by whispers, and incan- 
 tations, those abortions of slander, the still born brood of false- 
 hood, and all under the name of prosely tism — is this the church 
 of Christ? 
 
 There are many who wish people to become religious in a 
 more rational way, with less noise and disturbanee than usually 
 attend these reformations. Far be it from me to wish to ex- 
 clude reason from the faith or practice of Christians: but, is it 
 
47 
 
 unreasonable that a concern so vast as the soul's salvation, and, 
 especially, so opposite to the general habits and tempers of man- 
 kind as religion, should become a public sentiment — should af- 
 fect a whole society with a strong and simultaneous sensation ; 
 nay, should create a public passion ? AH great interests, all 
 public concerns, have this effect, though they are far less im- 
 portant than religion. What is the effect, when a nation is agi- 
 tated by the spirit of war ? The enthusiasm descends even to 
 children ; the theme resounds in the songs of the milk-maid and 
 shepherd — in the conversation of the peasant and plough-boy. 
 What if the inhabitants of an entire county, or province, were 
 about to remove from one kingdom to another ; a general senti- 
 ment would be awakened, and it would become the topic of pub- 
 lic conversation and attention — of animation and enthusiasm. 
 
 Where great numbers embrace religion at oce time, it is a 
 true and real emigration, and one infinitely more important than 
 a removal to India : " They are translated out of the kingdom 
 of Satan into the kingdom of God's dear Son." Is it wonderful, 
 if it should excite strong and lively sensations ? and would it 
 not be more wonderful, if it should not incorporate with it the 
 natural passions of the mind, and sometimes be marked with 
 enthusiasm. Dr. Young says, *' an undevout astronomer is 
 mad:" but, it is easier to study astronomy without devotion, 
 than it is to feel religion without passion. 
 
 We are not required to love our neighbour better than our- 
 selves ; but the great apostle of the gentiles declares, *' if we 
 are beside ourselves, it is for your sakes." If an apostle could 
 be beside himself, could almost lose the command of his rea- 
 son for others, surely it is not to be wondered at, nor faulted, 
 if men are overwhelmed with fear, elevated with hope, enrap- 
 tured with joy, in contemplation of the amazing destinies of 
 their own souls. 
 
 I fear that these nice objections to religious revivals origi- 
 nate from wrong views of religion itself; they seem evidently 
 to spring from a disgust at the sight of great numbers seeking 
 for salvation at once. They want people should keep still, and 
 say nothing about their hopes or fears of futurity. Thej' are not 
 at all disgusted at the strong passions, and enthusiastic feelings, 
 
48 
 
 often manifested at horse races, in theatres, at concerts of mu- 
 Bic, in assemblies where great events are celebrated, and in the 
 field of battle. Man, it seems, may be impassioned about every- 
 thing but religion ; there he must be cold as marble, unfeeling 
 as clay, dull as lead He must, by all means, have the forms 
 of religion, and that with as much pomp, splendour, and cere- 
 mony as you please; but he must go through those forms with 
 as little ardour, and as lifeless a monotony, as the moonlight 
 shadows of the churchyard move over the congregation of the 
 dead. 
 
 Whether the revivals of religion in this country have been 
 productive of good, which, at least, would be evidence in their 
 favour, I leave those who possess (he means to judge for them- 
 selves; and, in the silent hour of calm reflection, they will 
 judge justly. In the heat of controversy, and under the pain- 
 ful stimulus of contradiction, good men err in judgment by 
 overlooking the evidence of facts ; but when these casual clouds 
 are past over, the sun breaks forth. 
 
 But, wherever reformations are discountenanced and spoken 
 against by public teachers, they are seldom observed to fake 
 place ; and, i call upon the reader of these numbers, to look 
 around him in this city, and mark in what congregations these 
 appearances have occurred ; for, while I mean to cast no re- 
 flections, I neither mean to flatter the vanity of men. The truth 
 will bear its own weight, and will approve itself to every man's 
 conscience before God. 
 
 The strain of preacliing which, in the former series, I have, 
 styled triangular, because incessantly urging three grand points, 
 which I consider as erroneous, as far as I have, been able to ob- 
 serve, is rarely, if ever, attended with salutary etTects : it does 
 not carry conviction to the mind; men's understandings revolt 
 from it. Tell men that they are condemned for a crime they 
 never committed; that they will be punished for what they can- 
 not do; or, that tFiey will be doubly and aggravatedly con- 
 demned for not believing in a Saviour who never died for them, 
 and ihey will feel no conviction. However they may force 
 themselves into an involuntary assent, into an artiticial, as ( have 
 already said, a kind of technical belief of such proposiiionSj 
 
49 
 
 there will be no conviction of the understanding ; for there can 
 be none. They may, indeed, say, and perhaps truly, " my teach- 
 er is a great divine, has studied these things, and surely ought 
 to know ; and I have nothing to do but to surrender my under- 
 standing to his opinions and doctrines." But, alas ! the mind 
 drawn up to this tension is like an elastic bow, which owes its 
 figure to the cord which holds it ; its strength is overpowered, 
 but not its tendency. 
 
 Many of the doctrines of revelation are such, as human rea- 
 son would never reach, unaided by divine light; but being re- 
 vealed, there is no doctrine of revelation apparently absurd or 
 repugnant to reason. The three grand points, however, which 
 form the triangle, are not the only ones which, in their convic- 
 tion on the mind, remind me of the bended bow : their notion 
 of faith is inexplicable, and their idea of justitication covered 
 with mist. As for faith, it is not opinion, assent, reason, know- 
 ledge, nor love ; it is nothing which properly belongs to human 
 perceptions, nor exercises : I have sometimes heard them call 
 it a divine principle, but never could learn what principle was, 
 or wherein it consisted. If I have been able to learn what they 
 mean by justification, it is, that a certain quantify of Christ's 
 righteousness is taken and put into the Christian, on account of 
 which he is justified. The scriptures teach us that Christ has 
 atoned for sin, and the sinner is fully pardoned and freely justi- 
 fied, in consideration of what Christ has done to magnify the 
 law of God : but the notion of a transfer of Christ's righteous- 
 ness, so as to make it the righteousness of the sinner, is using 
 words without ideas. 
 
 Opposition to the doctrines which have almost uniformly 
 marked the course of reformations in this country, and, in the 
 hands of God, have been the cause of those reformations, can 
 be regarded in no other light than as a deadly aim at reforma- 
 tion itself. He who strikes at the cause, strikes with a bolder 
 hand, and with higher aim, than he who strikes at the effect. 
 He who proves that a reformation, so called, is but an excite- 
 ment of natural passion, and that its subjects may apostatize 
 from their profession, proves little ; at least, but a local fact : 
 but he who makes war oa that strain of preaching and schema 
 
 7 
 
of doctrine, which has been followed by nearly all the revivals 
 of religion in a nation, if he succeed, will not be troubled with 
 apostacies, for he will see no reformations; he will have the 
 pleasure, if it may be called a pleasure, of seeing people go 
 carelessly on through life, with no troublesome anxieties about 
 religion, or the life to come : he will tell them, from sabbath to 
 sabbath, that " Chiist died for none but the elect; that he died 
 for them, because they were the elect; and that when he makes 
 known to them their election, then they ought to love and obey 
 Iiim :'' they ivill make their oivn improvement, '' that all anxieties 
 about salvation are useless and vain. Why should we borrow 
 trouble, or anticipate evil 1 Let us eat and drink, for to-morrow 
 we (lie. If he has died for us, he will make it known to us in 
 time ; if not, then we owe him no gratitude ; and as we were all con- 
 demned in Adam, we have nothing on our own account to regret." 
 
 That people will quiet their consciences, and repose calmly, 
 and sleep soundly on this triangular bed, is as sure as that the 
 sun rises and sets. This triple, nay, quadruple thraldom, in 
 which their own voluntary agency is ip no way implicated, 
 soothes their slumber, and not a little gratiQes their pride; still 
 more so does the soporific dose " descend into their bowels like 
 water, and like oil into their bones," when a religiou is held 
 up before them vyhich is no business of theirs ; which gives them 
 a happy passiveness, and is every whit, and in all respects, as 
 distinct from their moral feelinijs and powers, as the state to 
 which it offers a remedy is without their accountability or 
 blame. As they had nothing to do in bringing themselves into 
 sin ; nothing to do in getting themselves out of it, so they are 
 highly satisfied to learn, that they have nothing to do when fairly 
 out of it. As for faith, which is the body of their religion, it 
 is no exercise of theirs, and has no connexion with their moral 
 exercises in its origin, nature, or object, for it is neither per- 
 ception nor volition, knowledge nor love. They have no 
 virtue, for there is no such thing; and, in fine, they seem to be 
 Allowed to have nothing on earth, properly to be called theirs, 
 l}ut a little selfishness. 
 
 Such a strain of preaching will scarcely be followed by a 
 spirit of reformation. The process of conversion and of Chris- 
 
51 
 
 titnizing under these tenets will, indeed, make little noise : a per- 
 son goes to his minister, and tells him be has some thoughts about 
 religion. The clergyman asks him, " Do you verily believe 
 that all men are justly condemned for the sin of Adam?" 
 " Yes." " Do you acknowledge yourself worthy of endless 
 misery for what he did ?" " Yes." " Do you believe yourself 
 totally incapacitated to obey God, or do anything which he re- 
 quires ?" <* Yes." " And can you not love Christ, who has been 
 so good as to die for you, and has done, and will do every thing 
 for you, and will carry you to heaven, and make you eternally 
 happy there 1" " O yes, I should be very ungrateful not to love 
 one who died for me, and will save me." " Very well ! you 
 have nothing to do but confirm yourself in these sentiments ; 
 you had better join the church ; there is reason to believe you 
 are one of the elect." 
 
 Let it not hfi understood that T here pretend to give all the 
 words that pass between the catecbist and his catechumen, 
 but I give the great features, and the leading points. Enough 
 more words are used; but as he is never made to feel the 
 true blame of his condition, he never feels a proper repent- 
 ance, neither can he have just conceptions of the nature or 
 application of the remedy. These convictions are sufficiently 
 silent for the most fastidious, and are followed by conversions 
 to a selfish, opinionated, intolerant temper and character ; even, 
 sometimes, to that degree, that a candid observer is at a losa 
 whether such a conversion is more the subject of felicitation 
 than of regret. If not twofold more a child of hell, he is, at 
 least, twofold more a child of prejudice, bigotry, and persecu- 
 tion. 
 
 If some men shall flutter and flounce remarkably in reading 
 these remarks, let them see to it, lest they confirm the suspi- 
 cion that they are the " wounded birds." 
 
 As this Number is an appeal to the eye of the public respecting 
 the usefulness and importance of revivals of religion, I deplore 
 that I am compelled to add, that the instances which have 
 come under the inspection of this city, are mournfully few. 
 Look into those large congregations whose fame has be«li 
 
32 
 
 spread wide by the splendour of the great names of the men, 
 ^ho are " the angels of those churches." And, I ask those 
 " angels" whether they would not rejoice to see one general 
 reformation pervading all their assemblies, and spreading 
 through the hundreds and thousands of their congregations ? 
 I am certain the angels of heaven would rejoice. Would they 
 not be glad to see all their people roused at once, to secure 
 the interests of their souls ? Would (hey not rejoice to see the 
 whole population of this capital moved, as by one spirit, to se- 
 cure one grand object? Surely, such a moment would not be 
 greater than the weight of the concern depending. A heathen 
 monarch, of a much greater city than this, once rose up from 
 his throne, and covered himself with sackcloth — was followed 
 by his court and nobles, and by all the people; even food was 
 interdicted, in a solemn fast, for three days. This was done 
 because God had declared that Nineveh should be destroyed. 
 And is there no reason to believe that God's anger burns 
 against this city T Has not the cry of its wickedness gone up to 
 heaven? And would not a reformation that should visit every 
 house, and forcibly seize every mind, be desirable ? Would it 
 not occasion joy in heaven? What if all the immense crowds 
 that move through the streets were suddenly and strongly im- 
 pressed with the belief that they were infinitely vile in the 
 sight of God ; that they were hastening to the bar of judgment, 
 and to an eternal world of retribution ? What sudden alterations 
 should we see ! Would our streets resound by night with hor- 
 rible oaths and execrations ? Would hundreds of houses be 
 crowded with scenes of drunkenness, debauchery, violence, 
 and obscenity ? Would our docks, and vessels, and lanes, and 
 alleys, teem with wretched people in whom the last efforts of 
 vice have left the semblance of humanity, but identified with 
 every thing loathsome and detestable ? Would even crowds of 
 ehii(h'en be heard profanely vociferating the awful name of 
 God in their common sports and pastimes ? Alas ! it is not con- 
 sidered that the interests and destinies of every one of these 
 souls are as truly great as those of the first rank of people. 
 The shadowy vale of death once past, and the soul discnmber- 
 
53 
 
 «d of its adventitious advantages, there will appear little dis- 
 tinction between the prince and beggar. 
 
 But what would be the effect of such a reformation as this? 
 WouUl it not be the theme of general conversation? What 
 crowds would throng the churches ? And would it be admi- 
 rable, if, under the strong impulse of a general sensation, it 
 should become what may be termed a public passion? Per- 
 haps even business, for a while, might be, in a manner, sus- 
 pended; and the ordinary, even the innocent, amusements 
 and diversions of the city would be forgotten. 
 
 A gloomy scene ! methinks I hear some one say ; and yet, 
 reader, every one of these gay people will soon see gloomier 
 scenes thanthis. The hour of death, and the solemn audit be- 
 fore the throne of judgment, will be more gloomy and dreadful, 
 and, without reformation, there will be eternal gloom and hor- 
 hor. Nor yet would such a scene as this be attended with so 
 much gloom and misery as now pervades the city. Ineffable 
 joy and pleasure would fill every pious mind at the prospect of 
 thousands of people forsaking wickedness and turning to God. 
 Religion is not of a gloomy, melancholy nature, and the con- 
 cern and anxiety attending reformations is caused, not by reli- 
 gion, but by a consciousness of the want of it. 
 
 Be it that such a reformation, in this city, would be attended 
 with some instances of delusion — some indications of fanaticism; 
 how much deeper is the delusion that now reigns over the great 
 mass of people, while they neglect their eternal interests, and 
 despise, and dishonour the God that made them. A stronger 
 fanaticism hurries them onward towards eternal ruin than at- 
 tends the religious enthusiast in the favour of bis devotions. 
 The stern and lofty front of wickedness everywhere displayed 
 —everywhere menacing — everywhere daring and obtrusive, 
 defies every thing short of almighty power. But before the 
 spirit of God be sent " to reprove the world of sin, of righteous- 
 ness, and of judgment," it shall melt like wax — it shall vanish 
 like smoke, " for strong is his hand, and high is his right 
 hand." 
 
 Such an event could not take place but with a general and 
 strong sensation. Any judge of human nature will perceive 
 
Si 
 
 (Tiat an irreligious — a wicked man, cannot suddenly pass froiri 
 that to a religious state without great anxiety and alarm ; with- 
 out unusual agitation of mind. It is not merely to say. '' I 
 will now become religious," and the work is done : habits 
 corroborated by time, and identifitd with nature, are not thus 
 broken through. The allurements of wickedness are strong, 
 and are known, from all experience, to be formidable. A drUnk-' 
 ard does not lightly say, " I will from this day become tempe- 
 rate :" the profane blasphemer, " I will henceforth use no 
 more profane language :" the dishonest, the dissipated, the 
 covetous, the liar, " I will now alter my course." I mention 
 these classes, as pre-eminently wicked, but every man, even 
 with a much fairer exterior, in his train of feelings, in his heart 
 and affections, is as truly irreli^^ious as these classes. 
 
 Religious awakenings and fears are by no means delusion 
 nor enthusiasm. They do but present truth and reality to the 
 mind with their proper interest and influence. A man on hi3 
 death bed is greatly alarmed, feels strong fears, and calls for 
 advice and prayers. Even courts of justice and legislatures, 
 when a man is condemned, and going to execution, appoint him 
 religious instruction; send him a clergyman to prepare him — '■ 
 for what ? For the very same event to which every soul in this 
 city is hastening : to prepare him for death — for the solemn 
 trial — for eternity ! Who objects to the propriety of this humane 
 regulation ? Who dares not think it decorous, nay, awfully im- 
 portant, that a man on his death-bed should feel solemnity, anx-= 
 iety, earnestness, fear — should pray, should ask prayers 1 His 
 eternal state is now to be decided ; he is now to stand that trial 
 where there is no disguise ; to bear that sentence from which 
 lies no appeal. 
 
 But the thousands that swarm in this city are in that same 
 state. They may, indeed, and some will, no doubt, live longer, 
 and some perhaps not. Mauy of them will go as suddenly, far 
 more unexpectedly, and the danger is that they will go without 
 preparation. A dreadful infatuation reigns over mankind. The 
 interests of the soul, its good estate, and salvation, are as much 
 greater, more imperative, and grand, than anf temporal concern, 
 
55 
 
 3s eternity is longer than time, as endless pains and pleasures 
 ^re more important than those of a moment. 
 
 The truth is, if all the inhabitants of this city had but a cor- 
 rect idea of their state and prospects, they would universally feel 
 that deep and trembling anxiety which a man feels on a death- 
 bed, or a criminal under sentence of death. When compared 
 with a vast and boundless futurity, every concern of life would 
 shrink into nothing. They would feel as though the change 
 was present ; the next step and eternal scenes would open ; life 
 is past, and the dread tribunal is before them. Then, all must 
 depend on the favour of the Almighty Judge. But have they 
 done any thing to secure his favour or deprecate his wrath ? No ! 
 The great body of them have equally neglected his favour and 
 his wrath, have equally despised his anger and his love ; have 
 felt no res;rets for sin ; have never made a prayer ; have seldom 
 used the name of God but in a profane oath. And are such 
 people fit for heaven? A glimpse of their condition would con- 
 Tince them that they were suited to no place but a region of 
 sin and misery. 
 
 Then they would think of the Omniscient eye that sees them — • 
 the Almighty power that holds them. They would think what 
 goodness had been answered with what ingratitude, what favour 
 by what perverseness, what love with what hatred. It would 
 occur to them that perhaps their crimes are already past for- 
 giveness, and that divine displeasure may now be ready to cut 
 them off. With such impressions they could for a moment en- 
 tertain no resolution but that of devoting so late an hour to so 
 important an exigence. I need not tell what they would do or 
 Bay : every reflecting mind will for itself strike a general out- 
 line of the course they would take. It is the course generally 
 pursued by persons who are the subjects of great awakenings. 
 *' Who," says Mr. Locke, " could come within the bare possibility 
 of infinite misery" without fear and alarm ? But if all the mul- 
 titudes in this city, excepting the comparatively small number 
 of truly pious, were convinced that they were not only " with- 
 in the bare possibility" of endless misery, but were under sen- 
 tence of the law of God, as well as hastening by their own vo- 
 luntary course to that en<jl ; that it was not only possible, but 
 
56 
 
 highly probable, that that would be their condition ; nay, that 
 there was no possibility of their escape but by deep repentance, 
 and thorough reformation, but by the pardon and acceptaoce of 
 God through Jesus Christ, they would feel and manifest the 
 greatest alarm and amazement. 
 
 That this would be the case here, we may be assured from 
 the experience of all Christendom since the reformation; and, if 
 possible, more from the experience of former years, and other 
 countries. " There were great awakenings," says Presidecft 
 Edwards, " in 1625, in the west of Scotland, when it was a com- 
 mon thing for people on hearing the word of God preached to 
 be seized with great terror and alarm, and who became, after- 
 wards, most solid and lively Christians. The same author in- 
 forms of many in France that were so wonderfully affected 
 with the preaching of the gospel, in the times of those famous 
 divines, Farel and Viret, that, for a time, they could not follow 
 their secular business." The same writer mentions similar ac- 
 counts from Ireland and other places. 
 
 President Edwards also quotes a letter from his father, iu 
 which his fatiier observes, that " it was a common thing, when 
 the famous Mr. John Rogers was preaching, for some of his hear- 
 ers even to cry out under the greatness of their alarm and ter- 
 ror. And by what I have heard," continues he, " I conclude it 
 was usual for many that heard that very awakening and rousiiig 
 preacher of God's word, to make a great cry in the congregation." 
 A religious attention, thus excited in great bodies of people, 
 cannot be safely ascribed to any cause but the influence of the 
 Spirit of God. The reasoning used by Christ himself, in answer 
 to those who blasphemously ascribed his casting out devils to 
 Beelzebub, the prince of devils, appliss, at least, if not with equal 
 force, to this case. He said, " if Satan cast out Satan, he is 
 divided againj:t himself; and how can his kingdom stand?" I 
 do not say that when a village, a town, a city, or a district of 
 people are religiously affected, that Satan is cast out ; but I say 
 that his inlluence is weakened, and his kingdom totters. It pre- 
 penfs au immediate check, as far as it extends, to the exuberance 
 of vice, to the enormity of visible wickedness. In all the sta- 
 ges of its progress and ojieration, it holds a favourable aspect 
 
57 
 
 towards deep and permanent reformation. Experience will 
 warrant the assertion, that in these general awakenings, by far 
 the greater number of those who come forward in a public pro- 
 fession of religion, are found afterwards to adorn that profession, 
 and to f;ive evidence of its truth and sincerity. It is also known 
 to be a fact, that the greater part of those who are the subjects 
 of the awakening, are found eventually to give evidence of a 
 real conversion to God. 
 
 Even those who admit regeneration to be a progressive work, 
 and believe that the agency of the sinner is more or less con- 
 cerned in it ; — in whatever way men are turned from sin to ho- 
 liness, and from the service of Satan to the service of God ; 
 every one who wishes to see tl^e great work brought about ia 
 some manner or other, cannot but be glad to see a general at- 
 tention to religious concerns. For if it does not lake that form 
 with which they are most pleased, it takes some form, and can- 
 not but result in raising the standard of public morals, and in 
 checking the torrent of vice which threatens to bear all before 
 it, and which, in great cities, becomes rapid and resistless as a 
 flood. 
 
 A reformation extending to every house in this city, would 
 be the noblest sight the lover of humanity ever saw. Its indica- 
 tions would be strong and decisive. The reign of vice, which 
 now regards no limit, but throws its malign influence within 
 every enclosure, would on all sides be curtailed. The horrid 
 clang of profaneness, the bloated features of dissipation, the 
 haggard spectacle of prostitution, the inanity of vicious idleness, 
 the menace of unbridled passion, deliberate revenge, curtained 
 behind human features, and heard remote, sometimes like 
 thunders in the bosom of darkness ; — in fine, the conflicts of 
 interest, the wiles of dishonesty, the deep-laid snares of covet- 
 ousness, which now, at every step, arrest your attention, if not 
 endanger your repose, would suddenly disappear. 
 
 What if there were even a temporary suspension of business, 
 a circumstance I have known to attend the progress of such a 
 work? Would that be any evidence against it? Is this world of 
 darkness and -sin so vastly important that nothing for a mo- 
 ment must ever interrupt man's complete and universal servi- 
 
58 
 
 (ude to its toils and cares, till he plunges into eternity ? Must « 
 man be the subject of sarcasm and contempt, because in the 
 first hours of his solicitude to secure eternal felicity, in the first 
 days of his espousal to the adorable Redeemer, he has neglect- 
 ed worldly pursuits ? Alas ! those that bring this objection, I 
 fear, have never been informed that " the love of money is the 
 root of all evil ;" have never considered, that " it is easier for a 
 camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man 
 to enter into the kingdom of heaven." Christians belong to a 
 kingdom which is not of this world ; and shall they not some- 
 times make every thing give way to the interests, pleasures, and 
 joys of that kingdom ? Especially, whilst their interests in it are 
 apparently insecure ; whilst they are solicitously and painfully 
 endeavouring to obtain "a name and a place" in that kingdom, 
 shall they not consider this world's wealth and enjoyments as 
 " lees, and dung, and dross ?" 
 
 When were the people of this city known to relax their at- 
 tention to business, under the powerful sway of religious im- 
 pulse 1 Does devotion to God, and the solemn acts of worship, 
 infringe on the days of the week ; or do the schemes of amass- 
 ing wealth, the delirium of incessant business, still fever their 
 souls on the Sabbath, distract their attention, and palsy their de- 
 votions in the house of God, and surcharge their conversation 
 in the intervals of worship ? Nor yet does it all avail them : for 
 in this perpetual and endless whirl of business, they resemble 
 the conflict of thousands endeavouring to gain a slippery sum- 
 mit, where there is not room for hundreds to stand. When 
 half way up the hill, they suddenly slide into the vale of pover- 
 ty, and from thence sink to the grave. 
 
 The King of heaven himself is the dispenser of all the bless- 
 ings of ';this life, as well as the life to come. He has said, " Be 
 not anxious for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall 
 drink, or wherewithal ye shall be clothed ; but seek first the 
 kingdom of God and the righteousness thereof, and all these 
 things shall be added unto you." Accordingly, it has been ac- 
 tually and repeatedly observed, that those towns and villages 
 who, seemingly, neglect their business, in times of religious 
 awakening, have been favoured with abundance and peculiar 
 
59 
 
 prosperity in those seasons. There is, indeed, the promise of 
 God to this effect ; and I assert what is known to many. 
 
 While I figure to myself all the inhabitants of this city, de- 
 voutly and earnestly attending to the most important of all con- 
 cerns, I cannot but consider in what a variety of respects this 
 would be, by far, the happiest city on the globe. The great 
 and sudden diminution of the number of the miserable victims 
 of vice — of criminals which throng our courts, and crowd our 
 prisons — of invalids which fill our hospitals — of paupers in our 
 alms-houses and asylums — of helpless age, without provision — 
 and infancy, without protection — of beggars patrolling the streets, 
 whose story is, generally, but a veil to their faults ; but, most 
 of all, of that numerous banditti of thieves, robbers, swindlers, 
 pilferers, incendiaries, burglars, and ruflfians, Avhose conceal- 
 ment from the public eye alone prevents a general alarm. 
 
 The immense accumulation of human masses of the above 
 description, in great cities, and which make incessant demands 
 on the justice and vigilance, as well as the charity and liberali- 
 ty of society, become, at length, like a putrid diathesis in the 
 human body ; or, to say the least, the perpetual recurrence of 
 these loathsome objects is one of the pests and torments of great 
 cities. Yet the immortal souls of all these miserable people 
 are of immense value ; the reformation that should reach and 
 recover them, would plant new stars in the firmament of glory. 
 And how delightful the thought, that the light of truth should 
 dispel the gloom from these dungeons, and, through such wide 
 departments of pain and horror, should pour the healing balm 
 of salvation. 
 
 Far above these Augean stables of sin and pain, and which 
 no Herculian labour could cleanse, there is another department 
 of vice in this city, but connected with the former by innume- 
 rable doors and headlong steps. This region appears brilliant 
 and fair ; its precincts resound with hilarity, feast, and song, 
 and it contains thousands of the opulent, the fashionable, 
 the young, and the gay. Vice is clad in splendour, and a spirit 
 reigns here which knows no moral law but inclination, and re- 
 cognises no god but pleasure. But one use is made here of 
 Jehovah's awful name, and that is to give bravery and relish to 
 
60 
 
 the idle clamours of folly — to embellish the fuiminatious of v. it 
 and mirth, and to give force and grandeur to the language of 
 passion, rage, and falsehood. Is this the abode of happiness ? 
 Its chief characteristics are restless pride without gratification — 
 ostentation without motive or reward — professions without sin- 
 cerity — ceremony without comfort — laughter without joy — 
 smiles which conceal rancour — approbation alloyed with envy, 
 and vociferous praises dying away into the whispers of ca- 
 lumny. 
 
 " Tumultuous grandeur crowds the blazinj square, 
 The rattling chariots clash, the torches glare." 
 
 What changes a work of God's spirit would cause in this 
 numerous class ; and, O ! how greatly to be desired, even fo? 
 the purposes of present happiness! But do you think that these 
 gay people, on whose countenances often dwells the smile of 
 peace — whose every step appears light and airy as the radiant 
 footstep of Aurora — whose very form and features are luminous 
 with contenlnient and hope; do you imagine they live other- 
 wise than in a continual round of unmingled enjoyment ? How 
 false is the estimate made of human happiness I These people 
 are as mistaken in their pursuit of pleasure as others are iu 
 judging of their felicities from their exterior. 
 
 They are strangers to happiness; and I am in no fear of contra- 
 diction. No, the immortal mind is not thus made. The glitter of 
 dress— -the splendour of apartments — the loftiness of houses — the 
 beauty of equipage, have all the potency of their charms from the 
 supposed admiration they excite in the eyes of spectators ; and 
 even here their vain possessors are grossly mistaken ; for more 
 than half that admiration is the most unlovely envy. The bril- 
 liance of all these things strikes the eye, but carries no pleasure 
 to the heart i the immortal spirit within well knows they are 
 but dust; and, in the midst of these baubles, indignantly retires 
 within itself, and refuses to be consoled with a portion no bet- 
 ter than what falls to the fowls of heaven, and the beasts of the 
 earth. 
 
61 
 
 Religion is man's greatest good ; it pays the most respect to 
 his most important interests; brings the soul to the knowledge 
 and possession of her proper enjoyments, and points her up^ 
 ward to her eternal inheritance. Without religion, the wealth 
 of Croesus cannot save a man from the deepest poverty ; with 
 it, the beggar Lazarus possesses boundless wealth, and shall be 
 eternally blessed. 
 
 With this idea, the object before me becomes important,Jin no 
 ordinary degree ; and as I see crowds passing by my window, 
 of all ages and conditions ; their high destiny and immortal pow- 
 ers, of which they appear to be scarcely conscious, rises upon 
 me in solemn prospect : I cannot but reflect where these per- 
 sons, and all the multitude that I see move about these streets, 
 will be after the mighty lapse of ten thousand ages. Stupidi- 
 ty may laugh, and infidelity sneer, at such a suggestion, but a 
 beathen monarch wept at the thought that all his army, the 
 greatest ever assembled, would die in a hundred years.* And 
 a greater than a heathen monarch wept over a city, doubtless 
 less guilty before God than this. Yes, after the full period of 
 ten thousand ages has rolled away, not a soul now in this city 
 shall be extinct, or, shall fail to make one of the number des- 
 tined to eternal ages of happiness or misery. 
 
 I cannot but reflect how important these days are to the thou- 
 sands I see about me, perfectly unconscious of their value, be- 
 cause thoughtless of the great purposes to be answered by 
 them, and of the great work to be done in them. As it is with 
 the whole of life itself, so it is with the business of every day ; 
 Ihey have an ulterior relation to our eternal state. I am fully 
 aware that the effusions of the holy spirit are not at the option 
 of men : it is not in the power of man to cause a reformation in 
 this city. But when I consider the boundless fulness of gos- 
 pel provision, the explicit and earnest invitations of the gospel : 
 when I know that God is long suffering, *• not willing that any 
 should perish, but that all should come to repentance :" when I 
 consider how this city has been distinguished by great and spe- 
 cial blessings of providence; shielded in war, delivered from 
 
 ♦ Xerxes the Great. 
 
62 
 
 pestilence, prospered in peace, and rising to greatness, I cannot 
 but advert to the stupidity and wickedness, which were never 
 more visible and triumphant than at the present time, with alarm 
 and foreboding. And let it be called prophesying, or by any 
 other opprobrious name, God will not suffer such blessings to 
 be answered by such ingratitude with long impunity. There 
 will be changes, and the sword of divine displeasure is, I fear, 
 already drawn ; in what way it will strike, or how it will fall, in- 
 finite wisdom only knows. 
 
 Be it that God's own work is in his own hands, and that he 
 will carry it on when and where he pleases : Christians ought to 
 know that God works by means, otherwise of what use is a 
 gospel ministry ? The Almighty and ever blessed God has pro- 
 mised to give his Holy Spirit to them that ask him. But let any 
 one, to whom a thought so improbable as a general reformation 
 in this city, may occur, who may feel a desire for the salvation 
 of this great people ; let him look round him and ask, why it is 
 that sinners are surrounded as with a wall so adamantine, so im- 
 penetrable, so impervious to conviction ? Why are the impedi- 
 ments so numerous ? Why is it so awfully improbable that we 
 shall see a general reformation here ? Why does it appear so 
 discouraging, so hoptless, so morally impossible, as almost to 
 paralyze the conception of desire, or the secret wrestlings and 
 agonizings of prayer ? There surely is a cause, nor is that 
 cause invisible in its operation. Religion is everywhere^ the 
 same. There is " balm in Gilead, and a physician there." God 
 is no more hostile to cities than to villages: his spirit is as free, 
 and bis offers of salvation as full, to the people of a crowded 
 city as of the open country. Nor are the people in cities 
 more averse to religion than in the country. 
 
 Human nature is, indeed, much the same in all places; but if 
 there is any difference, the people of large cities have more 
 sensibility, are certainly more alive to the finer feelings, and to 
 the impulse of public sensations, and are more quick and sus- 
 ceptible to sentimental impressions. They are naturally no 
 more wicked, no more inaccessible to conviction, no more ar- 
 dent in worldly pursuits, no more insensible to the eolemn 
 
63 
 
 themes of eyangeHcal truth, or to the condition and prospects 
 of (he soul, than the inhabitants of the country at large. 
 
 The difference which sinks the scale of the city to a depth 
 to liopeless, in this comparison, is owing, in a great measure, to 
 a difference in the means used to promote religion ; in short, to 
 a difference in what is denominated the means of grace. 
 
 If the reader will recur to the first numbers of the Triangle, 
 first series, he will there find stated the cause to which I here 
 allude. The strain of doctrine there described, and which has, 
 in a measure, formed (he current of opinion and tone of feeling 
 in a very great body of people in this city, suffice it to say, has 
 not been attended with many indications of reformation, and 
 has, to all appearance, presented no barrier to the overwhelm 
 ing flood of vice which threatens the city. 
 
 It will be easy to contradict this assertion, but not easy to show 
 that it is not true : " cum res ip'?a loquitur ." and I shall dismiss 
 this subject with expressing my firm belief, thai these doctrines 
 condnuing to be disseminated, enforced, and maintained in the 
 manner and form they have been, for years past, there will be 
 no reformation. I have no expectation that God will honour 
 them with that mark of his approbation ; and as for the merit 
 they claim, in point of moral suasion, or the prospect of any 
 effect they will produce in that way, I should expect as much 
 effect from the Arabian proverbs delivered in their native tongue. 
 They are not the doctrines of the frequent and great reforma- 
 tions which have been in our days, and in our country. They 
 are not " the sword of the Spirit." 
 
 The more these doctrines prevail and gain credit, the more 
 men are cors! acted by selfishness, which always brings intole- 
 rance in its tic in : the more noise is made about depravity, and 
 the greater the ostentation of setting human nature low, the 
 more is the hearer and the convert flattered in his pride and 
 quieted in his conscience, and made to sleep, by a potent anti- 
 dote, against even the thunders of truth : the more that is made 
 of faith, the less of personal holiness, and that true moral ex- 
 cellence, which gives religion its beauty and heaven its felicity. 
 So that in leading the sinner to contemplate his own depravity, 
 they faroisb him with excuses instead of overwhelming him 
 
64 
 
 with conriction ; and in leading the Chiislian (o consider the 
 gracious promises of God, they puff him up with pride, and em- 
 bolden him audaciously to demand salvation, and exhort him to 
 " keep Christ to hits word." 
 
 INVESTIGATOR. 
 
 No. V. 
 
 Amo>'g all the words which give offence to the advocates of 
 the triangular scheme, the term Metaphysics stands foremost. 
 They abhor it even more than they do morality, virtue, or 
 even disinterestedness. This prejudice against some, and so 
 many of the best words in our language, is not a mark in their 
 favour: and especially when it is considered that their antipa- 
 thy does not stop at the word itself, but goes far beyond, and 
 aims at the very things these words are used for. 
 
 Concerning these offensive words I have said something in 
 former numbers; but as somewhere on this ground, they have 
 erected one of their strongest fortresses, from which they keep 
 up a perpetual and running fire of random shot, I shall sit down 
 before it in this number: nor do I expect to find it as impreg- 
 nable as the den of Cacus. About the word disinterested, I 
 think I have already discharged my duly. It is a term, and., 
 conveys an idea, well understood, in all our best writers. Ad- 
 dison and Johnson use it frequently in the same sense we use 
 it. A man sees two men in a quarrel, and fiercely contending. 
 He steps in between them, and says, " Gentlemen, I have no 
 interest in the result of this contention; I am well disposed to- 
 wards you both. Permit me, then, to act as a mediator be- 
 tween you." This man will be likely to have influence with 
 both these men, because they perceive that he is entirely 
 difinterestcd. 
 
 I therefore said that no word in our language was belter un- 
 derstood, or more immoveably fixed in its true import. I have 
 
^3 
 
 not eeen a more handsome illustration of this word than I lately 
 read in Cox's life of Melanclhon, where he sums up and finishes 
 the character of that great man by observing, that he generally 
 acted under the influence of a purely " disinterested benevo- 
 lence." But some of our great divines would tell Cox a dif- 
 ferent story. Those men, who have eaten freely of the Amor 
 sui, pretend that it is either a phrase of false import, or else of 
 no import at all. 
 
 The word morality has not fared better. They have con- 
 demned all its family : for moral, moral agency, moral iitnea?) 
 moral depravity, and the like, are all considered as Amulekites^ 
 and proscribed. Especially the plirase moral virtue, made up 
 of two most oflfeusive words, they regard as bad as the unioa 
 of Herod and Pilate. The word moral we derive from the 
 Latin moralis, which is from mos, a law or custom. Morality 
 is conformity to law, and used in this sense. But has the Chris- 
 tian no morality ? Alas ! some professing Christians have not 
 much. But what did Christ say ? " Think not that I come to 
 destroy the law," &;c. He goes on to show, that he insisted 
 on a purer morality than even the Pharisees, who make clean 
 the outside of the cup and platter, but what is within ? — Extor- 
 tion and excess. The great command of the law is love : and 
 says the eloquent Dr. South,* " Love is not so much an affec- 
 tion of the Christian, as it is the very soul of the Christian ; he 
 does not so much feel it, as he is in it." 
 
 Moral virtue is a conformity to the divine law, or, in other 
 words, conformity to God. For as God is love, he that dwell- 
 cth in love dwelleth in God and God in him. Perfect morality, 
 therefore, is perfect love to God, by which I understand perfect 
 moral virtue. This is also sometimes called charity ; and as 
 much as St. Paul insisted on faith, he had no diminutive opi- 
 nion of it <* Now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three, 
 but the greatest of these is charity." 
 
 But the principal object of this number is Metaphysics, a 
 term against which an odium has been excited, and by means 
 of which incalculable mischief has been done. Before I enter 
 
 ^' '* An old divine." 
 9 
 
66 
 
 on this subject I cannot but remark, that I consider this as on*? 
 of the most extraordinary controversies ever carried on ; no*, 
 so much from its nature as from its means and methods. An 
 attempt to carry measures by exciting strong prejudices against 
 words, at the same time exaggerating and misrepresenting the 
 notions pretended to be affixed to those v/ords, and keeping 
 the grand points of difference wholly out of sight: this course 
 persisted in for years, and pursued with boUlness and abundant 
 success : I say, these circumstances render (his controversy^ 
 perhaps, without a parallel. 
 
 The same things, however, which render this a singular con- 
 trovcrsy, render it not a hopeless controversy : for while I am 
 perfectly assured that it results from misinformation, in very 
 great numbers, I am assured, with a certainty nearly equal, that 
 they want nothing but a right understanding of the case to come 
 into, and adopt the truth. Whatever pride of character may do 
 with a few men, with whom it may far outweigh the solemn dic- 
 tates of conscience, the great body of the people have no motive, 
 I might almost say, no selfish motive for preferring error to 
 truth. And I am well assured that, at least, some may be con- 
 vinced that their credulity has been imposed upon, and that 
 they have been deceived. They may be convinced that error 
 has held an ascendancy over truth, not by argument, but by 
 efforts of influence from men riding on the shoulders of public 
 confidence. 
 
 The case now to be mentioned is one of a most extraordi- 
 nary nature. I appeal to the people of this city at large, that 
 they have been led into the habit of believing that metaphysics 
 have no connexion with religion : — that every thing metaphy- 
 sical is improper and unbecoming the pulpit, or a gospel ser- 
 mon : and that the Hopkinsians have little else but metaphysics 
 in their sermons. They are very different from the good old 
 woman I once heard of, who, hearing her minister, in whom 
 she had great confidence, say something about metaphysics, re- 
 plied, '' O yes, I know that Christ is both jneet and physic for 
 the poor sinner." They do not, however, think quite so well 
 about metaphysics as to think it is both meet and physic for 
 
67 
 
 ihe sinner, aUhough quite as much mistaken with regard t& 
 what metapliysics are. 
 
 1. " Metaphysics, or ontology," says Johnson, " is the science 
 which treats of the affections of being in general " In strict- 
 ness, the whole of truth may be said to be divided into physi- 
 cal and metaphysical ; and to say the least, many of the doc- 
 trines of religion come properly and strictly within the depart- 
 ment of metaphysics. The term affection, as used in the 
 above definition, is taken in its larger sense, and in relation 
 both to action and passion. " By the affectious of being," says 
 Dr. Watts, " are meant all powers, properties, accidents, re- 
 lations, actions, passions, dispositions, internal qualities, exter- 
 nal adjuncts, considerations, conditions, or circumstances what- 
 soever." (See vol. 6. p. 639.) 
 
 As it is one object of this number to do away the prejudice 
 and opposition in many minds against metaphysics, by show- 
 ing to those who have not the advantage of genera! reading 
 what metaphysics truly are ; and, as I have this moment before 
 me the Belgic Encyclopedia, pubhshed in the year 1 620, and 
 dedicated to the lords of the Belgic League, and also Dr. 
 Watts' System of Metaphysics, I think it will be useful to lay 
 before the reader a compendious view of the subjects of which 
 that science treats. If the reader will keep in mind that it is 
 not Edwards nor Hopkins, and if he has not regularly studied 
 metaphysics, I presume he will not think his labour lost in 
 perusing this sketch. 
 
 Metaphysics, or ontology, treats of being, of essence, or nature ; 
 of mode and form ; of existence, whether actual or possible, 
 necessary or contingent, dependent or independent, whence ari- 
 ses the distinction between the being of God and of his creatures. 
 In the next place, it considers duration, creation, and preser- 
 vation ; and, reader, is all this chaff and nonsense 1 It then 
 considers unity and union ; but what doctrines are involved 
 here ? It treats of act and power, of action and passiveness, 
 of necessity and liberty, and of relative alTecfions ; but is all 
 this nothing ? This, reader, was the ground which the immor- 
 tal Edwards cleared of as many dangerous errors as Hercules 
 did the wilderness of monsters. It treats of truth, goodness, 
 
63 
 
 and perfeciion ; principles, causes, and eflfects ; of subject and 
 adjunct; of time, place, and ubiquity; of sameness, agree- 
 ment, and difference ; of number and order ; of mental rela- 
 tions ; of abstract notions, signs, words, and terms of art, &c. ; 
 of the chief kinds and divisions of being, as substance and 
 mode, &c. ; of natural, moral, and artificial beings and ideas. 
 
 Metaphysics is the science of being, and there is not a doc- 
 trine of religion which relates to being, which is not, more or 
 less, metaphysical. Man is a creature, finite, dependent, muta- 
 ble, and ignorant; God is the creator, infinite, independent, im- 
 mut^ible, and infinitely wise. Now, in all these, and in all 
 other affections and relations, just and correct metaphysical no- 
 tions are essentially important to a proper understanding of 
 truth. An idea, or notion, or proposition, or argument, is called 
 metaphysical, not from any abslruseness or obscurity belonging 
 to it, but froia its natural arrangement with a great class or or- 
 der of truths. 
 
 Nor has it been a little conducive to the progress and state of 
 knowledge in modern times, that classification, or, as it may be 
 called, generalization, has made such advances; and it was this 
 that suggested to the great Leibnitz (he idea, that a universal 
 language was attainable, and would one day be discovered. 
 
 Having given a general oulline of the proper subjects of meta- 
 physics, I have, under this particular, only to observe, that the 
 want of correct views of metaphysical subjects is one source 
 of the wretched darkness in that theological system which I 
 have styled triangular. As I have said in former numbers, the 
 divines advocating that system are essentially wanting in their 
 knowledge of the [jowers, affections, and relations of rational 
 beings. And, if we can admit their honesty and integrity, we 
 have only to conclude that their contemptuous slangs at meta- 
 physics, and the still more wretched work they make when 
 they exhibit a specimen of their own metaphysics, must arise 
 from their profound ignorance of that most important science. 
 
 2. The infinitely wise and holy spirit of inspiration, by whom 
 the sacred scriptures were dictated and inspired, having furnish- 
 ed the proper means, has left man to the use of his own facul- 
 ties in hfe discovery of natural knowledge ; deeming it alto- 
 
69 
 
 g^etber unimportant to arrange and classify, to distinguish an^ 
 name, the different departments of science, as mathematics, as- 
 tronomy, metaphysics. Yet the science of metaphysics; at 
 least, above all others, is abundantly grounded on the scrip- 
 tures. The grand and leading truths on which that science Tmis« 
 are not the mere assertions of Edwards, or Locke, or ivi. 1- 
 tranche, or Stewart, or Bacon, they are laid down in the word 
 of God, either by facts or inductions. 
 
 " Metaphysics, or ontology, is the science of being, regarding 
 it in reference to all its powers, properties, accidents, relations, 
 actions, passions, dispositions, qualities, conditions, and cir- 
 cumstances." Beings are, God and his creatures. Now, I 
 hope that our learned adversaries will be willing to admit that 
 the Bible teaches something concerning God and his creatures ; 
 and, beginning with the first of all propositions, that being exists, 
 which, I think, the Bible proves, there is not a power, property, 
 or accident, a relation, action, passion, a disposition, considera- 
 tion, or condition of any being, which does not afford an article 
 of metaphysical truth and knowledge. 
 
 Reserving the consideration of this subject to a future occa- 
 sion, when I can bestow on it that time and attention which are 
 due to its vast importance, I shall here only observe, that a 
 great part of the truths laid down in the scriptures, are meta- 
 physical truths ; and the grandest arguments there found, come 
 under the science of ontology. I instance the disputation be- 
 tween Job and his three friends; the arguments and expostula- 
 tions of Ezekiel ; the reasonings of St. Paul, and even of Christ 
 himself. That love is an affection of rational being, is a meta- 
 physical proposition : that God loves his kingdom, and that per- 
 fect moral virtue consists in the love of being, are equally so. 
 That men are under obligation to love God supremely, and 
 their neighbours as themselves, are propositions purely metaphy- 
 sical. In short, the grandest of all propositions, viz., that God 
 is love, is, in the highest sense, a purely metaphysical proposi- 
 tion : and the arguments by which all these propositions are 
 maintained, and, in fact, all abstract terms and ideas belong to 
 the same class or order. 
 
 That I may not be misunderstood, and to save the object*? 
 
70 
 
 a nitle breath, let me further observe, I am fuh'y aware of the 
 difference between the consideration of the affections of being 
 regarded abstractly and in themselves, or in their concrete form 
 when considered in conduct and character. In this latter state 
 (hey give rise to minor distinctions. Thus says Dr. Wattg, 
 « when they relate to kings, subjects, laws, rebellions, allegi- 
 ance, treason, kc, they are called political; when they relate 
 to God, holiness, Christianity, repentance, gospel, and salvation, 
 they are denominated theological ;" but they still belong to the 
 far more comprehensive class, metaphysical. 
 
 A discourse or discussion on the affections of beings, consi- 
 dered abstractly, in which their nature, principles, operations, 
 and laws, are professedly set forth, may be" styled a discourse 
 on metaphysics, or ontology ; but a religious essay, or sermon, 
 or body of divinity, in which metaphysical truths and reason- 
 ings are employed, is, nevertheless, denominated theology. 
 But what havock a theologian will make, who has no correct 
 knowledge of metaphysics, daily experience shows us ; and 
 two volumes of sermons, lately published in this city, would 
 form an incomparable book of reference: of which I wi|l herq- 
 after give some specimens. 
 
 3. From the character of God, the nature of his government ; 
 from the character, duty, and obligations of men ; from the com- 
 mands, threatening?, and expostulations of scripture, and from 
 similar sources found in sacred writ, may be deduced the opi- 
 iiions which the ablest and most judicious metaphysicians have 
 advanced concerning the powers and faculties of the soul. Yet, 
 as I said, the spirit of truth did not instruct men how to name 
 and classify them, nor with what olher sciences to give them a 
 place. But, notwilJistanding these advantages, numerous errors, 
 and some of tbem the most dangerous and fatal, have ever in- 
 fested the Christian church. Some of these errors arose durinir 
 the apostolic age : they have been varying their form and influ^ 
 ence, and maintained their ground through the German refor- 
 mation. 
 
 To them, in a great measure, are owing much of the myste- 
 cism and absurdity conveyed down from age to age, about ori- 
 «Mial ?in, which term Calvin himself acknowledges is not in the 
 
71 
 
 scriptures, but was invented by Augustine. Some have denred 
 the spirituality of the soul : others have asserted it to be a par- 
 ticle or emanation of the Deity, and, of course, incapable of 
 moral stain, or final misery. Some have denied its immortality 
 altogether; and others have supposed it to sleep in the grave 
 with the body till the resurrection. Some have maintained^ 
 that all the souls of the human race were made at once, and 
 are kept somewhere till bodies are ready to receive them: and 
 others, that the souls of the human race are one of the inferior 
 orders of oeons, or angels that fell, who are thrown into a state 
 of forgetfulness, and sent into bodies prepared for them, in or- 
 der to a second probation ; and it must be confessed that much 
 of human conduct favours that idea. 
 
 To this mass of opinions concerning the soul, may be added, 
 tJiat some think that there is no such thing as freedom or moral 
 agency among creatures ; that they are all like so many ma- 
 chines, or automata, moved entirely by superior agency. 
 Others, and they are not much more consistent, believe, that, 
 since the fall, men are free to do wrong and not to do right. 
 But Bible metaphysics teach, that sinful creatures are, in all re- 
 spects, as free as holy ones. It is sufilicient to render an action 
 accountable, to know that it was voluntary. A holy creature 
 loves to do right, as well as a sinful one does to do wrong. 
 We hear none of this metaphysical jargon before courts of jus- 
 tice, when a man is convicted of a crime. We never hear it 
 urged that he did it because he was not a moral agent to do 
 right. 
 
 If the reader will turn back to the contrast of sentiment, at 
 the commencement of the third number, he will perceive that 
 the true origin of nearly all the difference, arises from false me- 
 taphysics. Nor do I think, that even the notion of limited 
 atonement is altogether independent of that prolific source of 
 error, as I sliall hereafter show. 
 
 Nothing can be more alarming, nothing more ominous to the 
 friends of truth, or more hostile to the great doctrines of the 
 Gospel, than the efforts of many to banish metaphjFsics from 
 theology, and render them disgusting. Artful and designing 
 men know the efficacy of this practice. In the first place, they 
 
n 
 
 infuse iuto the minds of the mass of people, that metaphysics 
 are something odious and foreign to religion : that any thing 
 metaphysical is not preaching Christ. They then go on to ex- 
 tend and deepen this prejudice. Any thing argumentative, any 
 train of close reasoning, however demonstrative, however con- 
 ducted in the strong light of intuitive evidence, it is no matter, 
 they have but one sentence to pronounce, they can refute it all 
 in a moment : they need only say, '* Ah ! this metaphysical 
 reasoning is not the Gospel." And to the mind duly prepared 
 by prejudice, and ignorant of the nature of metaphysics, it is all 
 answered and refuted. There are books now in this city, 
 there is Edwards on the Will, in which the grounds taken are 
 as demonstrably and unanswerably maintained as any argument 
 found in Euclid : and many of these anti-metaphysical declaim* 
 ers, when in companies where they are ashamed to say other- 
 wise, will freely own it : yet the same arguments which Edwards 
 uses, when used by others, these same men, when in other com- 
 panies, will refute in a moment — " Ah ! it is all metaphysical 
 jargon ! It is not preaching Christ !" Thus they have found 
 out a way in which they can easily confront the eloquence of 
 Whitefield, or the argument of Warburton. They have only 
 to say to their infatuated admirers, " It is too metaphysical ; 
 this is not the Gospel ;" and the work is done. 
 
 But the worst evil, and that which will increase it in a geo- 
 metrical ratio, is still untouched. This abhorrence and pro- 
 scription of metaphysics is spreading into a much wider circle. 
 Young men, educated for the ministry, are carefully imbued 
 in this aqua turbida, and they will soon cast up mire and dirt 
 enough, in their sermons. Instead of reading Locke and Ed- 
 wards, which, either with or without teaching, they will be 
 made to abhor, they are kept for months or years poring over 
 rusty folios of modern Latin, whose very style might either 
 cause or cure a Tertian ague ; and which, if put into an alem- 
 bic, till all their crude notions and common places had passed 
 over, would come out a moderate duodecimo of excellent 
 matter. 
 
 From these lovely folios, they must next trudge through the 
 Herculean labour of copying, perhaps, Dr. "Verbiage's" vapid. 
 
manuscript lectures on moral philosophy, or something else, a 
 task as useful as to set them to see how many times a day they 
 could throw tlie same stick of wood out of the third story win- 
 dow; and, at any rate, it keeps them as clear of any correct 
 notious of metaphysics : whether it keeps them as clear of er- 
 ror, is another question. When these young men come before 
 the public, you will soon hear about " imputed guilt" — natural 
 inability — mora! agency to do wrong—YixmieA atonement — 
 permissive decrees— faith the sum of religion,* Sic. &ic. 
 
 4. I am perfectly aware of the task I encounter by faking 
 this ground, and coming out in sueh plain language : I have 
 counted the cost, and am prepared to meet the consequences. 
 I have been long a spectator on this ground, and have marked, 
 with undescribable emotions, the progress of this whole business; 
 and it is not a hasty resolution that I have taken to lay it before 
 the public. When I hear one with an easy, nay, careless slang, 
 explode the truths of God, and the dictates of his everlasting 
 gospel under the slur of metaphysics— when I hear metaphy- 
 sics themselves branded as error or nonsense, by many who 
 are grossly ignorant of what they are, and by others, who, if 
 they are ignorant, are wilfully and criminally so — when I know 
 they do it to answer a purpose so fatal in its nature and conse- 
 quences, I cannot be silent. 
 
 But there is one point of view in which this subject has not 
 been brought before the public, and with which I shall close 
 this number, together willi this series. These professed adver- 
 saries of metaphysics resort to them as often as Edwards, or 
 Hopkins, or any of their admirers and followers do. And, per- 
 haps, it is owing to the wretched work they make with them 
 that they are ashamed of the term, and wish to whelm it under 
 disgrace and darkness. I shall grive a few instances. 
 
 The public knows the uproar that is raised against the Hop- 
 kinsians, for holding that the divine agency was concerned ia 
 the origin of evil. But have these humble, modest, unassuming 
 people, no ideas about that point ? What says their Standard 1 
 their almost inspired assembly of divines, in their catechism ? — 
 
 * See Eomeyn's Sermons, vol. 1. p. 69, at top. 
 10 
 
71 
 
 tlicir assembly oi divJces, on whose incomparable skill and pro* 
 fundity they lay such stress? *' The decrees of God are his elcr- 
 iml purpose, 7vherchy,for his own glory, lie foreordains rohuiso- 
 ever comes to pass " And the apostle Paul, no doubt, bears 
 Ihem out in this declaration; for he declares, that God " works 
 ail things after the counsels of his own will."' Now, according 
 to the assembly, sin was foreordained, for it has surely come to 
 pass. " O, no, that is metaphysics !" Any reasonable mind 
 may perceive, that nothing can destroy the connexion between 
 the actions of a creature, and the agency of an inl^nitely wise 
 and powerful Creator, who made him, and constituted his pow- 
 ers and faculties, " O, no, that is metaphysics !" Admit that 
 a creature acts freely, God ordained and decreed that he should 
 act freely, and his acting one way no more frustrates the decree 
 than his acting another. " O, no, that is metaphysics !" , God's 
 decree no more impairs the accountableness or moral quality 
 of a sinful than a holy action. " O. no, that is metaphysics !" 
 The scripture declares that God decreed some wicked actions; 
 and if so, why not all ? " O no, that is metaphysics !" Sin 
 was either decreed, or it was not decreed: " O, no, that is 
 metaphysics!'' If it was decreed, and the divine agency no- 
 Avays concerned in bringing it to pass, then Paul was mistaken, 
 for God does not work all things after the counsels of his own 
 will, but, on the contrary, he works many things after the coun- 
 sels of some other being. " O, no, that is too metapliysica! !" 
 
 Eut let us see how they talk about this matter They say, 
 that sin was merely the fruit of the free agency of a creature. 
 And so, I answer, is every other a<-.t of his, when his will is not 
 inclined by superior power. But who is the author of that free 
 agency? " O, that is metaphysics again !" Hut their meta- 
 physics will fairly make out thU neither the purposes, nor the 
 ar'cucy of God, is at all concerned with the (fee actions of crea- 
 tures, and will effectually overturn the doctrine of decrees, and 
 establish, not Arminiaiiism, but some ism far beyond it : will 
 not only destroy all true metaphysics, but contradict a multi- 
 tude of passages of scripture. 
 
 Some have set up, and dwelt upon the idea, that it has been 
 better, on the whole, for God's kingdom, that sin has taken 
 
75 
 
 place. I mention this, however, not as any distlnciuisiriiig sen- 
 limcnt of the Hopkinsians, but merely as an opinion which 
 some of them have advanced. Against this, an outcry has been 
 made, and a " strange horror"' excited, because it is metaphy- 
 sical. And, reader, I appeal to auy man's understanding-, 
 whether this is not a reasonable, and ahnost a self-evident, sup- 
 position. If the assembly of divines are correct, and if God 
 has " for his own glory foreordained whatsoever comes to pass,"' 
 which is as metaphysical a proposition as ever was in prin<, 
 then surely he foreordained sin, because he saw it would be 
 for his glory. 
 
 And what have been the consequences of the existence of 
 sin? I answer, the infinitely glorious work of redemption; the 
 union of the divine and human nalures; the most glorious ma- 
 nifestation of God to his moral kingdom, through Jesus Christ. 
 This is metaphysical ; but is it therefore incorrect ? 
 
 Let us see by what kind of metaphysics this is refuted. A 
 great Doctor comes forward and asserts, that it is not proper to 
 say that the whole plan of divine administralion is the best pos- 
 sible ; for we do not know but that God might have made a dif- 
 ferent plan equally good, or perhaps better. If God is good, (hat 
 goodness would lead him to prefer a good plan to a bad one ; am' 
 equally so, to prefer a greater to a smaller degree of good ; but if 
 his goodness be equal to his power, and both are infinite, then (he 
 same goodness which would lead him to prefer a greater to a less 
 degree of good, would lead him to prefer tiie greatest possible 
 degree of good in his entire plan. As to alterations or dlCer 
 ences, we are compelled to believe that the diviiie scheme, as 
 it is, was preferred to all others, for such reasons as inruiite wis- 
 dom approved. Our ignorance furnislies uo more objection to 
 saying that God's plan is the best possibk^ than it is to our say- 
 ing that it is a good plan. To say, therefore, that it would have 
 been as well or better for God's kingdom, if sin had never ta- 
 ken place, is an impeachment of the wisdom and goodness of 
 God. 
 
 What kind of metaphysics are brought against the doctrine 
 of moral inability 1 Why, they say that a sinner is not a mora? 
 
76 
 
 agent (o do right, but is one to do wren?. Some, indeed, deny 
 the sinner's moral agency, together with his probationary state. 
 I cannot here descend to a consideration of their arguments : 
 but how remote from the general strain of divine truth revealed 
 in God's word I how contrary to the testimony of our own ex- 
 perience and feelings ! I^he word of God declares our actions 
 to be free and accountable, and we feel and know that they are 
 voluntary. AH parts of the scriptures declare that God is 
 waiting the repentance and return of the wicked, not willing 
 that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. 
 
 The obvious motive of the cry that is raised against metaphy- 
 sics, is to screen errors from the lash of truth, and from the resist- 
 less force of demonstrative argument: and if certain men have 
 found themselves urged to dwell upon the argumentative strain, 
 it has been owing to the obtrusive and importunate efforts of 
 error to uphold and extend the dominion of darkness. And it 
 is rare that Satan has ever resorted to so subtile, so dangerous, 
 or so successful an artifice. What method can be more con- 
 venient, or more summary, to close the ear of thousands against 
 conviction, than to say this argument is metaphysical: ah! 
 that book is nothing but metaphysics ! 
 
 The prejudice that has been excited, with efforts protracted 
 through a series of years, and cherislied with such care and 
 zeal; the prejudice of very many in this city against New-Engiaml 
 sentiments, has been owing, in a great measure, to the ceaseless 
 operation of this mischievous engine. The perpetual tire of 
 Vesta was never watched with such sleepless eyes, nor nou- 
 rished with such abundant fuel. And what harvest has grown 
 up and ripened from this assiduous cultivation? Shall 1 say a 
 harvest of errors? The mixtures of religion of any sort are 
 hardly sufficient to include theological errors : there is inanity 
 of sentiment ; there is emptiness of mind ; there is negation 
 of thought ; people are not instructed. 
 
 The New-England Sermons, Essays, and Tracts, which here 
 are absolutely and roundly condemned, as metaphysical hair- 
 splitting, are in ftict able and unanswerable demonstrations of 
 the most important truths of God's word ,• carried home- to the 
 
77 
 
 undersiandiug and consciouce by evidence; and as secure from 
 refutation as tSie solid shores that bound the ocean are from the 
 waves that break upon them. I cannot but think it inevitable, 
 that the public eye will be struck with two volumes oUriangular 
 sermons lately exhibited in this city. I entreat the reader of ser- 
 mons to lay them by the side of a book of the sermons of Ed- 
 wards, or of Emmons, and have the patience to examine and 
 compare. I trust the white paper and conspicuous print will 
 not be admitted to have any weight in the comparison, and I 
 have nothing more to ask, and nothing to fear. The reader 
 cannot but perceive the gaunt sides, narrow figure, and sharp 
 corners of the triangle. No propitiation for the sins of the 
 whole world will there meet his eye. The non-elect is, indeed, 
 in one place, insulted with the declaration that he will be 
 punished for not believing that Christ died for him. (P. 199, 
 vol. 1. 6th line from the top.) The beauty and glory of reli- 
 gion, as consisting in the whole train of lovely virtues and graces, 
 beginning with supreme love to God, nowhere meets the eye, 
 and captivates the heart. But, on the contrary, the reader is 
 told that " the righteousness of faith is the radical principle of 
 revealed religion, from Genesis to Revelation." (Vol. 1. p. 69, 
 at top.) And I will be^e stop to tell him that there is one place, 
 at least, where a more radical principle is mentioned. (1 Cor. 
 xiii. 13.) " Now abideth faith, hope, charity, but the greatest 
 of these is charity." 
 
 The author himself seems aware of his triangular figure, 
 when he observes, in his Preface, that there will be perceived 
 *' a recurrence of the same thoughts and often of the same 
 manner of expression." This he accounts for by observing, 
 that *' Great and general principles are closely connected, and 
 so incorporated with the results of these principles, that it is 
 not possible for a person whose opinions on these princi{)le3 
 and their results are definite and unwavering, to conceal or 
 dissemble his views or feelings." 
 
 I had no thought of making remarks on style, but I must 
 confess this sentence presents a heap of opinions, principles, 
 and results, which reminds me of the gordian knot. Does he 
 
78 
 
 mean to say that the great and general principles of religioa 
 and natural philosophy are connected, and incorporated with 
 the results of the principles of mathematics, and that it is not 
 possible for a person whose opinions on the principles of ma- 
 thematics and their results are definite and unwavering, to 
 conceal or dissemble his * iews or feelings about politics ? All 
 this might be understood, for his graiid proposition is, that 
 great and gcjirral principles are closely connected: which is of 
 the highest kind of universals rendered so by the removal of 
 all notes of particularity, as logicians tell us. But if great and 
 general principles are connected, then the great and gene- 
 ral principles of religion and natural philosophy are connected, 
 and so are those of law and physic. But his second proposition 
 is more extraordinary; for he says, that great and general prin- 
 ciples are incorporated with the results of these principles : with 
 a different usque ad, he seems here to mean certain principles he 
 had in his eye, but leaves us to conjecture what ; therefore, I 
 substitute mathematics, and it will stand thus : " The great and 
 general principles of religion and natural philosophy are coonect- 
 ed and incorporated with the results of the principles of the ma- 
 thematics." His third proposition is a consequence, viz. " There- 
 fore, it is not possible for a person whose opinions on these prin- 
 ciples and results are definite and unwavering to conceal or dis- 
 semble his views or feelings." But, reader, does fixedness of 
 opinion, concerning any principles and results, offer any apology 
 for repetition, or render concealment or dissembling impossible ? 
 The reader may repress his surprise that I dwell on this 
 matter, for certainly if Stephens, or Bentley, or Scaliger, might 
 give a column on a word in Virgil, I may speculate a little on 
 half a page of this preface, " quod, sine dubio, fuit elaboratum 
 industria, et prefectum ingenio." And I shall make bold to 
 olTer this as a specimen of the metaphysics of these people. 
 Now, reader, this whole argument is false. Its premises are 
 not true, and, if they were, the conclusion does not follow : and, 
 if it did, it does not answer the purpose intended by it. In the 
 first place, " great and general principles are not necessarily, 
 nor generally, connected," for, if they are, the construction I 
 
79 
 
 have given above Is correct. They may be found in the same 
 subject, but are perfectly distinct and independent. In the se- 
 cond place, they are not incorporated with the results of each 
 other, nor with their own residfs. These words, so connected, 
 make a flourish, but mean nothing. But in the third place : If it 
 be admitted that all general principles are connected, and their 
 results, dee versa, incorporated to<:;ether, (a most horrid idea!) 
 and if also admitted, that a man is definite and unwavering in his 
 opinion about them, that is no reason or apology for a repeti- 
 tion of the same thought, much less for not concealing or dis- 
 sembling his opinions. 
 
 How much better would have been the authors apology for 
 a perpetual recurrence of a few ideas, had he said, " The man 
 who moves in a triangle has but three short lines to trace, and 
 three corners to turn ?" " O ye Corinthians, ye are straitened 
 in your own bowels !" 
 
 INVESTIGATOR. 
 
 No. VI. 
 
 I HAVE before me the Pastoral Letter of the Synod of Phila- 
 delphia, dated Lancaster, September 20th, I81G, of which I 
 give the first paragraph. 
 
 " Christian Brethrekt, 
 
 " The Synod assembled in Lancaster, at the present time, 
 consists of a greater number of members than have been con- 
 vened at any meeting for many years ; and from their free con- 
 versation on the state of religion, it appears, that aV (he Pres- 
 byteries are more than commonly alive to the importance of 
 contending earnestly for the faith, once delivered to the saints, 
 and of resisting the introduction of Arian, Socinian, Arminian, 
 and Hopkinsian heresies; wiiich are some of the means by 
 which the enemy of souls would, if possible, deceive the very- 
 elect." 
 
80 
 
 The third paragraph runs thus: "May the time never come^ 
 in which our ecclesiastical, courts shall determine thatHop- 
 kinsianism and the doctrines of our confession of faith are the 
 same thing ; or that men are less exposed now, than in the days 
 of the apostles, to the danger of perverting the right ways of 
 the Lord." 
 
 People of the union, hear this, and feel what gratitude you 
 owe to a good Providence, which shields your religious rights 
 from the persecuting fury of bigotry and intolerance. The 
 tocsin is now blown, and while Truth grasps her sword, and 
 Charity veils her face, let Vigilance light her lamp, and stand at 
 her threshold. 
 
 I had closed this series, and sent it to the press, but this ex- 
 traordinary letter merits immediate consideration. Shall I dip 
 my pen in ridicule, and expose this transaction in the mock 
 robe it merits? Alas ! this cloud of darkness throws every ob- 
 ject under a shade too mournful to admit of using the livelier 
 colours. 
 
 Do we, then, in this Pastoral Letter, hear the voice and the 
 sentiments of the fathers of the church, the ceutral section of 
 the General Assembly — that august body reared by divine grace, 
 in this free and happy country, and by the special blessing of 
 God grown to a size so majestic, in a time so comparatively 
 short ? That Assembly, now spreading its branches to the east 
 and west, to the north and to ihe south, with the prospect of a 
 boundary that may still expand for ages ? 
 
 Where are the great and benevolent founders of these Synods, 
 and of this Assembly ? Has the angel of heavenly love, and 
 charity, and peace, together with them, taken her flight forever? 
 Ye spirits of Davies, and Witherspoon, and Finley, of Rodgers 
 and M'Whorter, under whose mild and harmonizing influence 
 this tree was planted, unless removed from all knowledge of 
 its prospects and dangers — from all sympathy with this region 
 of sin and death, can you behold a devouring flame kindled in 
 its central boughs, and not feel a momentary thrill of anxiety ? 
 
 I cannot but indulge in reflections like these, when I advert 
 to the character, the temper, the spirit, the wisdom of the men, 
 who, under God, were the founders of these religious institu- 
 tions. I mention these men, not because they were the only 
 
81 
 
 mea concerned in that great and benevolent work ; there wefe 
 many others equally engaged, and perhaps some equally useful. 
 The reader will now perceive the justice of the remarks 
 made in the former series, concerning the opposition made to 
 the strain of doctrine called Hopkinsian. In this number I shall 
 call his attention to a few remarks on this Pastoral Letter of 
 the Synod of Philadelphia. 
 
 1. It is impossible not to perceive that Hopkinsianism is the 
 grand error aimed at in that letter. They declare in the same 
 letter that there never was but one Socinian Society within the 
 bounds of the Synod, and it could not be (bought necessary to 
 send a circular letter to all the congregations in the Synod, 
 and, in fact, to all the continent, on account of one Antitrinita- 
 rian Society. An act so official and formal, for a single con- 
 gregation, and that, perhaps, a very small one, would scarcely 
 appear decorous. As to Arianisra, it is doubtful whether they 
 have an individual of that heresy in all their bounds. They 
 certainly have not a congregation of that order. 
 
 Nor did I ever know till now, nor was there ever a solitary 
 instance, as I have heard, of any public body, in the United 
 States, publishing a formal denunciation of Arminianism as 
 heresy. The term Arminian is variously used and understood, 
 and is applied to various shades of difference, from Arminius, 
 the founder of the sect. Few, if any, of the proteatant churches 
 have chosen to censure Arminianism as a damnable heresy ; 
 and it has never been done, before the present instance, in this 
 country. 
 
 The Philadelphia Synod seem to have forgotten that very 
 large and respectable bodies of Christians, in our own country, 
 such as the Episcopalians, Methodists, and several others, are 
 usually denominated Arminians. All these they have con- 
 demned, in the severest and strongest terms, as heretics,- have 
 held them up to public odium and abhorrence. Whatever 
 that Synod may think, I cannot but esteem them Christian 
 churches, comprising many members of great piety, and having 
 many divines of distinguished eminence. It has pleased God 
 to make the church of England, or the nation professing that 
 faith, (he graud barrier of the Protestant cause in Christendom 
 
 n 
 
V'^^ 
 
 82 
 
 for ages past, and many of their diviues are among the bright 
 est ornaments of the church of Christ ; God forbid that I should 
 call them, or think them, heretics. 
 
 2. Had this language been held in some anonymous publica- 
 tion; had it appeared in the writings of some individual, as his 
 own private opinion ; had it appeared in a public journal ; had 
 it been delivered in a sermon from the desk, the individual 
 might have been thought overheated in his zeal, and carried 
 beyond the bounds of his own cool reason. But what is it? In 
 what form does it meet our eye ? It is the act of a great num- 
 ber; the act of professed ministers of Christ and ambassadors 
 of God ; it is the act of an ecclesiastical court, the central Sy- 
 nod of the union; it is in the nature of a law, or rule, and set 
 as a precedent for all other ecclesiastical courts, and for all fu- 
 ture time. 
 
 3. It condemns, at one stroke, an immense body of Chris- 
 tians in New-England, where, it is well known, this strain 
 of sentiment prevails almost universally, and that whole body, 
 in its various sections, are amicably represented in the general 
 assembly ; and their representatives, from year to year, set on 
 the same seats by the side of members of this Synod. More- 
 over, the assembly is, also, represented in the various conven- 
 tions, or associations, of (he New-England churches, whenevel' 
 they assemble. But this would be a small consideration in 
 comparison with another : Many ministers and churches, who 
 actually belong to the general assembly, perhaps one third, 
 perhaps one half] arc full in this strain of doctrine, and are con- 
 demned as heretics by this pastoral letter. 
 
 4. The sentiments usually denominated Hopkinsian were 
 never considered as heresy by the founders of the Presbyterian 
 church in America, nor by the wisest and ablest divines who 
 difiered with them, in any subsequent period, in Europe or 
 America. Nothing was ever further from their thoughts tlian 
 any idea of making them at all a breaking point in church com- 
 munion and fellowship. Candidates for the ministry were ne- 
 ver impeded in their progress, or censured for holding them. 
 Ordination, or licensure, was never refused to a man who pro- 
 fessed them, nor was any bar laid in the way of his acceding to 
 any vacant church which had given him a call. Names, suf 
 
as 
 
 fieient to fill this paper, are now in my recollection of ministers 
 and licentiates coming from New-England, and settling within 
 the bounds of the general assembly, who are full in these sen- 
 timents ; and of ministers and licentiates going from the bounds 
 of the general assembly, to settle in the congregational churches 
 of New-England. No test, abjuration, or oath of purgation, has 
 ever been imposed or taken iu either case ; no dark suspicions 
 or jealousies; no whisperings or calumnies resorted to in the 
 general operation of these removals iu this wide extent of 
 country. The trustees of Princeton college did not start and 
 shudder with horror at Jonathan Edwards when they called 
 bim to the high and honourable station of president, although 
 the heresies of his sentiments had been long promulgated and 
 known. But I shall not descend to names, otherwise I might 
 introduce a list of great length and equal respectability, which 
 might have cooled this fervid ebullition of ecclesiastical censure 
 and proscription. 
 
 5. The measures taken by the Synod of Philadelphia are 
 pregnant with mischief, misery, and ruin ; and, all circumstan- 
 ces considered, I question whether the annals of the Christian 
 church aCFord a greater instance of rashness, imprudence, im- 
 policy, or injustice. Do they, indeed, imagine that this watch- 
 word will be taken from them, and that all the Synods in this 
 connection will ring with this dreadful denunciation, " Here- 
 sy, and the means by which, if it were possible, the enemy of 
 souls would deceive the very elect i""^ What are we to expect 
 next, provided this Synod act in character with their sentence 
 and injunction? What is the rule of the everlasting gospel? 
 *' A heretic, after the first and second admonition, reject." 
 What is to be the regular operation of this business, provided all 
 who differ from Hopkinsianism shall condemn it as heresy ? 
 Individual members are to be hurled out of churches; churches 
 are to be rent with disputes and divisions, and some of them 
 severed from Presbyteries ; Presbyteries are to be turned out 
 of Synods, and Synods divided ; and, by this time, what be- 
 comes of the Assembly itself ? Its full orb will wane, and pre^ 
 sent a fading and sickly crescent ; " will become a proverb 
 and by-word, a reproach and astonishraent" to all mankind. 
 
84 
 
 And what impreesion will this measure make on the public 
 Unind? How will it appear to this young and rising nation, 
 whose struggles for her own independence and freedom are not 
 yet forgotten ? How will it strike at the feelings of the great 
 and highly respectable fraternity of the Episcopal institution, 
 who are carelessly anathematized as heretics, merely for a 
 handsome pretext to lengthen out the rod over their shoulders 
 to reach others ? For it is not to be doubted that that form oi 
 speech, *• Arians, Socinians, Arminians," &c., was resorted to 
 merely to make the bundle of heretics as huge as possible, that, 
 by a kind of indiscrimination, the censure, the single censure on 
 the heads of the Hopkinsians might not seem solitary and par- 
 tial; in short, that it might appear one sweeping stroke at all 
 heresy. 
 
 But I asked, in a former paragraph, whether we were to un- 
 derstand this as the voice and sentiment of the fathers and 
 ttounscMors of the Presbyterian church. I rejoice to say, for 
 the honour of my country, and for the religion I profess, that 
 nothing is farther from it. I recognise, in this act, the features 
 of some fierce and furious spirits, who, in an inauspicious hour 
 of darkness and iucaution, gained so much the ascendant in that 
 .body as to procure this abortion of a Bull, who has faintly 
 jToared once, and will never be heard again. I have no doubt 
 that its authors, ere this, do, even in their closets, shudder be- 
 fore the bar of public sentiment ; that they, severally and indi- 
 •vidually, wish that, at that moment, they had been a day's jour- 
 ney from that Synod, and employed in a manner, if it would 
 not promote, that would not endanger the prosperity and exist- 
 ence of the church. 
 
 INVESTIGATOR. 
 
THE 
 
 TRIANGLE. 
 
 THIRD SERIES OF NUMBERS. 
 
 Br 
 
 THE INVESTIGATOR. 
 
 MihiTi] TO oTXV, 
 
 J^'EW-TORK .• 
 
 PRINTED AND PUBLISHED FOR THE AUTHOR. 
 Van Winkle, Wiloy & Co. Printers. 
 
 1£]6. 
 
 V,, 
 
DEDICATION. 
 
 TO THE LEARNED, AND LONG-LIVED, 
 
 JOHN DOE AND RICHARD ROE, Esquires. 
 
 GeMTLEMEIV, 
 
 It is well known that every artist and handicrafts-man is desirous 
 •f having his work approved, both as a source of emolument and re- 
 putation. This principle operates, probably, with greater force on 
 the minds of authors than of any other class of men. For, aside either 
 of profit or reputation, with which most writers have little to do, there is a 
 great pleasure in knowing, that we have power to engage the attention 
 of gentlemen of learning and leisure, or ladies of beauty and fortune, 
 even though they may dislike our productions. To know that our 
 works circulate through the finest parlours, where the pictures of heroes 
 and princes, nobles and beauties, may gaze silently upon them ; — to 
 know that they sometimes repose on the marble, beneath mirrors of 
 the greatest value and purest reflection, by which their number is 
 doubled, or on the purple sofa with the lap-dog, whence they may 
 be lifted with the fairest hand, and their titles read, though their leaves 
 are never turned over, or, perhaps, on the elegant piano, mingled with 
 leaves of musick, where, had they but ears, they might hear strains 
 sweeter than the harp of Orpheus, or the melting voice of Sappho; and 
 thence come to their long quietus, behind the folding glasses of the book- 
 case, where they enjoy perpetualand dignified repose, till, overhaled by 
 executors, the ministers of the dead, and, perhaps, go thence to auc- 
 tion ; this, I say. Gentlemen, is food to the innocent and noble ambition 
 of writers. And even at the auction, honour still pursues them : for, 
 perhaps, the auctioneer holds up a book, and says to the admiring 
 rabble, " Here, Gentlemen, here is a book from the select library of 
 Lord Mumble : see it — the leaves are as bright as though they had 
 never seen the sun." And, perhaps, Jack Fribble bids it off, and, with- 
 out tarnishing its pure pages by one exposure to the inclement air, it 
 goes to another respite of thirty years. 
 
 Such views and feelings we have, Gentlemen, and I beg you to ex- 
 cuse the plain concession of one who is ne'er the less sincere for not 
 having studied the mollia lempora J'andi. But we have still subliiner 
 hopes than these : When a Look goes from our hands, we naturally 
 
look forward, till, wrapped in future vision, we fancy it, at length, to have 
 escaped the ravages of time — to have survived more generations than 
 the Pylean sag-e — to have overlived removals, revolutions, wars, fires, 
 floods, and worms, till its lacerated covers, yellow paper, perforated 
 leaves, and rounded ans^les, no less than its antique orthography and 
 obsolete style, declare it full three hundred years old. Then we know it 
 becomes invaluable, ot'course, especially, if age has rendered it illegible. 
 It then is purchased by Dr. flummery, a descendant of the present 
 family- of that name, which I know will never become extinct, and is 
 worthy of scholiasts, readings, glossaries, and wdte variorum. I 
 shall say nothing of succeeding and splendid editions; it is among the 
 ■ old aut/tors, and that is sufficient. Thus, again, it goes on, rising from 
 dust and ashes, like a Plioenix, once or twice in six hundred years, 
 and triumphing over every thing, till it swells the flame of the last 
 conflagration. Animated by such prospects, no wonder men are wil- 
 ling to write in a garret, dine on a crust, direct their pen by the light 
 of vellum, and sleep on a pallet of straw. 
 
 I have i/it^iuioacd these tilings, Gentlemen, that you may perceive 
 I am no str-inger to the feelings of an author. Sed Jiunc ad propositum .- 
 YoL! are to know, that the Tnangle has had a tolerable circulation 
 in this country ; but the grand desideratum is to get it beyond the 
 Atlantic, and to have it read, if possible, in England. Whether it is 
 because books cannot move against the sun, 1 do not know, but few 
 of our books perform transatlantic journeys. As I have no great 
 faith in the subject I have ciiosen, to give it an interest in distant coun- 
 tries, nor have 1 full confiilence in the execution of the work to ac- 
 complish that end, I must rely on a dedication, as manj* others have 
 done, to cai ry the book where, otherwise, it would probably never go. 
 And when you understand these to be among my motives for selecting 
 yuu, [ presume you will justify my conduct, and accept the offering 
 humbly laid at your feet. 
 
 I beg permission to. dedicate to you. Gentlemen, from the grand 
 consideration of your amazing longevity, which, thougli it has never 
 occurred to any one bel'ore, (and I admire that it has not,) will be con- 
 sidered by every reader as a proper motive. Your career began be-' 
 fore the reigns of the Henrys and Edwards; and you witnessed the 
 conflicts between t!ie red and white rose; you lived through the 
 Republic and the storms raised by Cromwell ; you witnessed the 
 calamaties of the inauspicious house of Stuart — saw the Kestoration— 
 the Revolution — and have known the times ever since. You saw and 
 heard all the controversies of Papist and Protestant, "Episcopalian and 
 Presbyterian, Roundheads, Independents, Covenanters, Puritans, 
 Friends, &c. Yon witnessed the agitations and intrigues of the Kye- 
 house plot; saw the fall of Sydney and Russell ; the bigotry and follr 
 of the second James, and the vices and vagaries of the second Charles : 
 the feverish greatness and doubtful glory of William, and the uncer- 
 tain, inconsistent, and anxious administration of Anne. You must 
 have frequented the courts adorned and digniiied by the presence of 
 Bacon, Hale, Coke, Mansfield, and liiackstone. You have often stood 
 by when the elder Pitt thundered in the ear of the nation, and you 
 saw the conflict of talents and stupidity, of corruption and integritj', of 
 pride and folly, when tlie British empire was severed, and our coun- 
 try declared independent. 
 
 With such experience, Gentiemea, as you have had, and such ob- 
 servation as you must have made, what may I not expect? I have 
 frequently alluded to the limes.of the Reformation ; you lived through 
 
a.11 those times, and, no doubt, could write a history that would in- 
 struct, if not surprise, the world. To you I confidently, and may safe- 
 ly, appeal for the correctness of my declarations and statements. 
 
 To almost antediluvian longevity you add an unimpeached, and, of 
 course, an unimpeachable reputation. Though you have been the 
 constant attendants of the grandest courts of justice for many centu- 
 ries, without ever absentiug yourselves on any occasion, your names 
 are always pronounced with respect and gravity, both in doors and 
 out, by the bench, bar, clients, and spectators : a felicity which never 
 fell to the lot of any other men. This singular felicity you derive 
 from your impartiality, which is as far beyond all comparison, as are 
 your longevity and reputation. Your sole object is to guard the liber- 
 ties and repose of honest men against the rash and litigious ; to see 
 that suits, which are legally commenced, should be duly prosecuted, 
 and not to suffer a man to harass his neighbour awiiile, and then skulk 
 in silence behind the curtain. Of course, there would have been a 
 peculiar propriety in dedicating every part of this work to you. 
 
 But, Gentleirien, that trait which 1 especially admire in your cha- 
 racters, is tliat independence of mind which never has foisaken vou 
 in the worst of times, when tyrants frowned and threatened, nor in 
 the softest and most luxurious, when dissipation allures the brave, and 
 flattery circumvents tiie wise. Even when the stern Henry sent the 
 lovely and virtuous Ann Boleyn to the block, and the worthy, but too 
 yielding, Cranmer to ihe flames, you stood your ground, and felt no fear ; 
 when the bloody Mary illuminated England with the flames of mar- 
 tyrs ; when the perjured and horrid JeflVies rendered the circuit of his 
 court like the path of the destroying aifgel, you, Gentlemen, never 
 deviated from the path of justice, and no one impeached your conduct, 
 entertained a suspicion of your integrity, or a thought prejudicial to 
 your welfare. 
 
 As you have never swerved in storms of despotic fury or republican 
 ferocity ; as papal pride, episcopal power, independent arrogance, 
 and libertine licentiousness, could never ati'ect you ; as you arc always 
 the same in the calm of peace and rage of war, the quietude of esta- 
 blishment aud whirl of revolution, the night of anarchy and the noon 
 of order, it is to such- men as you 1 may safely look to patronize my 
 work. 
 
 I have duly considered. Gentlemen, that you are not lawyers, 
 though that class certainly excels all others in point of eloquence ; and 
 a real orator cannot be a bigot, though many of them are no incompe- 
 tent judges of theological opinions and doctrines : yet. they are gene- 
 rally engaged in professional business, and have not leisure to divide 
 their attention, or bestow their patronage on any side of a religious 
 controversy. And I heartily wish that a less number of them were 
 hke Gallio, " who cared for none of these things." I am likewise 
 consoled by the consideration that you are not popular men: " For," 
 says Sir William Temple, "come not too near to a man studying to 
 rise in popular favour unless you can aid him in his grand object, lest 
 you meet with a repuLe." There may be, indeed, contrived a reci- 
 procity of interest and obligation, and then you can advance with the 
 proper overture, " riiiZ/a me eHHillabo te ;'"* then it will do. But 
 )0u, Gentlemen, are in pursuit of no man's favour, sutliage, influence, 
 or pauonage. You have seen, from the raised platform of solid repu- 
 tation, numerous generations of ambitious men grasping for dominion, 
 
 • Tickle me, and I'll tickle yon. 
 
disappear, like insects swept into the lake, by the sudden wing of the 
 tempest, while yourselves remain unmoved. 
 
 Moreover, you are not authors — from whom an author as rarely gets 
 patronage as a hungry man does food from javens ; for, says Johnson, 
 few tilings can be published, however exalted or mean, however con- 
 temptible or meritorious, however great or little, from which an author 
 will not fancy some obstruction in some channel of his fame, some 
 diminution of the splendour of his reputation. The public mind can- 
 _ not be more than occupied, and, as each autlior hopes to seize a hemis- 
 phere at least, and some more, as you see, every new candidate for 
 notice and applause must take, perhaps, a share from tliose that occu- 
 pied it before; and great authors act on one another like the disturb- 
 ing influences of the planets on the centre of gravity, by which it is often 
 caused to vacillate. Well it is that some of them do not drag it beyond 
 the orbit of Saturn. But you, Gentlemen,are no authors, homines viventes 
 estis — and living men are you likely to remain. You have none of these 
 low prejudices and selfish fear«. You do not say of one excellent book, 
 it is very well, but the author was a plagiarist ; of another, it is dull and 
 tedious, and not worth reading; of a third, it is written withability, but the 
 sentiments are false ; of a fourth, the author meant well, but his subject 
 was badly handled : and so on to the hundredth, with a hut to every 
 one of them. Not but that there may, indeed, be such 6t/7s in reality, 
 for most human things have a but ; but all these huts of authors, are 
 generally expounded by one, viz., hut I am an author, which may 
 properly be called the author's hut. 
 
 Equal cause have I to rejoice, that you are not princes or nobles; iu 
 which case, among numerous candidates of patronage and favour, I 
 should have cause to fear that one so obscure and remote might be 
 overlooked, or, perhaps, easily outbid by skilful flattery, or, per- 
 liaps, by arguments more shining and solid, and motives addressed 
 more home to the heart. Yet, when it is considered that any man 
 of wealth has substantially the same ability to patronise books and 
 literature that princes have, and, perhaps, fewer demands on their 
 liberality in proportion to their ability, it is not to be doubted that a 
 fuil share of princes have been patrons of learning. 
 
 I scarcely need say, that you, Gentlemen, are not clergymen, 
 otherwise there would have been the greatest temerity and presump- 
 tion in this dedication. Had you been clergymen, and upon a careful . 
 enumeration of your sides and angles had found them to be six, instead 
 of threatening to prosecute the Investigator, as some clergymen, after 
 counting up, have done, you would, perhaps, have done what would 
 have been much worse — you would have taken no tiotice of' it. It is 
 with clerg-ymen as with all other classes of men; some of tliem are 
 very good men, and some are quite the other way, as you, in a life of 
 several hundred years, must doubtless have observed. The good cler- 
 gymen, which 1 iiope, in some countries, bear some respectable pro- 
 portion to llic whole number, iu a degree resemble the elect; they 
 are mingled with a numerous class, from which no mortal eye can 
 certainly distinguish them. Few men are viler in the sight of heaven, 
 or more full of mischief among men, than an impious clergyman ; and 
 none have done more to obstruct the progress of truth, and the inte- 
 rests of religion, tiian this ill-fated class. They derive their extraor- 
 dinary power, to this end, from their successful endeavours to establish 
 a high reputation for piety and zeal : and you, Gentlemen, no doubt, 
 well remember the lime when 'Bonner and Gardner were gazed at 
 and adored, by a deluded multitude, as saints next in holiness to the 
 
apostles — nay, wliea Alexander the Sixth and Caesar Borgia were 
 thought still much greater and better, perhaps, than even the ordinary 
 apostles. 
 
 You will not understand, Gentlemen, that I mean to fix an equal 
 indiscriminate censure on all triangular men. I am far from such 
 thoughts or feelings. But that some among them are wholly given to 
 pride, ambition, intrigue, and wickedness, I have not a doubt. And 
 if they will read these pages they will probably find a more faithful 
 monitor, and a truer portrait, than will again meet their eyes till 
 they stand at the bar of God. 
 
 I am not insensible that many clergyman are among the noblest 
 patrons, promoters, and proficients, in elegant literature and the arts. 
 But, perhaps, with an individual exception, as far as relates to this city, 
 these men are not found amongst the Trigonoi^ a name by which I 
 sometimes distinguish them. For, Gentlemen, their scheme is so in- 
 tolerably narrow, so frozen and so dark, that the mind which puts it 
 on is immediately and terribly shrunk from its ordinary size, however 
 small or great it might have been before. For the soul seems to 
 bear some resemblance to the ethereal element ; it has an elastic 
 spring, and is capable of great compression : and, perhaps, on that ac- 
 count, the ancients called them by the same name. A principal fea- 
 ture of the scheme of these teachers'is, that the understandings of men 
 are as much depraved by sin as the heart or the will. They have never 
 exhibited but one irgument which seems difficult to answer ; and whe- 
 ther that is " argumentum nd hominem" or not, I shall leave you to 
 judge ; it arisfs not from what they say, but from what they are. They 
 show such darkness of understanding, that all the dictates of charity 
 and mercy loudly plead in their behalf that it might? if possible, be 
 ascribed to some other than voluntary causes. 
 
 I have only to apprize you of one fact, Gentlemen, and I shall close. 
 It has not been, neither will it be, the object of this work, in any stage 
 of it, either pi-esent, past, or to come, to enter into theological discus- 
 sions, or controversies, properly so called : on this account regular 
 details of argument have been avoided ; besides, that the writer is 
 well aware, that whenever people are disposed to read for the sake of 
 examining arguments, books, at hand, are not wanting in which these 
 points are professedly argued and unanswerably demonstrated. I have 
 perceived, with inexpressible regret, the people of a great and flourish- 
 ing, a free and enlightened city, not only deprived of the means of 
 information, but sinking continually deeper into the absurd and gloomy 
 prejudices which covered the eyes of men three hundred years ago. 
 This object is effected by art and intrigue, by vagtie surmises and ab- 
 surd rumours, by public declamations and ecclesiastical censures. 
 The public, though somewhat of an unwieldy body, and composed of 
 crude materials, will ultimately judge correctly, when furnished with 
 the means. 
 
 Let the history of this business be stripped of its covering, and its 
 enormity will quickly appear. It cannot be for the interest of man- 
 kind to be deceived : the interest of tlie soul, and the concerns of reli- 
 gion, are too vast to be sacrificed, as any one may sec, to the pride 
 and ambition of a reptile whose infamy and misery will be propor- 
 tioned to his success, and will afford but a wretched consolation for the 
 inultitudes who have been seduced by his wiles. 
 
 As you. Gentlemen, have long personated the eye of public Justice, 
 30a can have no prejudice, and can desire nothing but that truth 
 
8 
 
 should prevail. The truth, which had made some progress in thiscity, 
 has been attacked by various means, and by violent measures. While 
 the adversaries have shown no disposition to fair and liberal discussion, 
 or to put the prevalence of conflicting sentiments on the proper issue 
 of superior conviction, they have gradually put in motion all tlie means 
 which artful ambition ever derived from prejudice, ignorance, and 
 wilful blindness. For many years past their career has been with a 
 high hand, and pursued with a supposed ascendant influence, corrobo- 
 rated with a pride of superiority, and insolence of success, intolerable 
 to such as were placed in a situation to feel the secret sting of their 
 contumely, or the lash of their public recrimination. 
 
 Their ascendancy was supposed, because their little comparative 
 omnipotence was never attempted. You are not to suppose that this 
 city was void of all intellect ; but while objects of a nature far different 
 from theological discussion principally engrossed the public attention, 
 and while a great body of people saw nothing about these men but the 
 snowj' robes and angelic meekness of peeiless sanctity, and a still 
 greater number rendered careless about a religion equally repugnant 
 to reason and common sense, and independent of every province of the 
 human mind, cared little through what conduits this turbid stream of 
 inconsistency, mystery, and fanaticism flowed, the ignorant were silent 
 through veneration, the irreligious through indifference, the pious 
 from love of peace, and the interested from motives of popularity. 
 Aiul all were silent: 
 
 ' Ind« tore, pater .^neas sie orsus ab alta.' 
 
THE TRIANGLE. 
 
 THIRD SERIES, 
 
 No. I.' 
 
 Ip the opinion of Buffon, that man is a gregarious animal, 
 were not admitted as an evidence of the fact, the observation 
 of every intelligent mind would lead to that conclusion. There 
 is something equally grand and pleasing in the idea, that all 
 rational beings are social; and. even admitting that an intelli- 
 gent creature could be so constituted as to endure solitude 
 without pain, yet, we may safely suppose, that reason would 
 be wasted, if bestowed on such a creature ; which supposition, 
 the seclusion of the hermits and many of the monastic orderfj 
 seems to justify. 
 
 If the presumption would be too great to make any allusion 
 from this idea to the mysterious nature of Deity, who, in him- 
 self, has a plentitude of perfection and felicity, we may safely, 
 and must necessarily, believe, that the most exalted of all crea- 
 tures could not be happy but in society. 
 
 Our pleasures are usually divided into corporeal and intel- 
 lectual, or mental. The pleasures of the mind are again resol- 
 ved into those of the heart and affections, and those of the un- 
 derstanding. Some of these lie nearer the region of sense, and 
 others of thought ; some seem to belong exclusively to the 
 body, others to the mind. A.ddison considers the pleasures of 
 the imagination as occupying a kind of middle region between 
 
Id 
 
 the two distinct provinces of our nature, and occasionally de- 
 riving auxiliaries from, and communicating enjoyment to both. 
 Beside these, and holding a higher and purer region, there 
 are the pleasures of the understanding. These seem to lie 
 wholly in the province of the intelligent and immortal nature. 
 What the essence of the soul is, we know not ; and we can 
 only refer it to the unknown nature and constitution of the soul, 
 that the perception or discovery of truth should give it pleasure. 
 But that it does, and that under certain circumstances, to a 
 very high degree, no one can doubt. This, perhaps, may be 
 among the final causes of the social principle. 
 
 Knowledge is the food of the mind ; and in this, the analogy 
 between the body and mind is obvious ; for, as the sustenance 
 and growth of our corporeal frame is an object ulterior to all 
 the pleasures of the palate and the gratifications of appetite, 
 80 knowledge, while it gives pure and exalted pleasure to the 
 mind, expands, ennobles, and raises it nearer the perfections of 
 more exalted natures. And there are few topics more animat- 
 ing and delightful than the consideration of the means of gain- 
 ing knowledge with which we are partially furnished here, and 
 shall be more fully hereafter. And for this we are principally 
 indebted to the gospel, in which life and immortality are brought 
 to light. In our present feeble and mortal state, our progress 
 seems slow, and often retarded; yet the grandeur of the sur- 
 rounding universe is open before us ; the volume of Reve- 
 lation is in our hands, and many sublime and glorious objects 
 engage our attention, and exalt our ideas. How, then, will it 
 be in the spiritual world, where our faculties will be strong, 
 acute, and adapted to converse with spiritual creatures of vari- 
 ous orders, and in a language of as much facility as thought ? 
 The ceaseless ages of immortality will bring amazing improve- 
 ment — will unfold new powers — elicit new faculties. And then, 
 the accumulated and still growing felicity and grandeur of mil- 
 lions of creatures, in a field of operation as unlimited as im- 
 mensity and eternity, will never cease to open new sources of 
 knowledge. But God himself— God the Creator, the Saviour, 
 the Ruler, the Lord of all, will be their chief good, the foun 
 tain of discovery, instruction, and happiness. 
 
11 
 
 The question has been discussed, whether the city or the 
 country be most favourable to the progress of the human mind 
 in knowledge. A centre of intelligence, an assemblage of cha- 
 racter, frequency of intercourse, and the influence of wealth 
 and commerce on the arts and sciences, which in every city 
 must be considerable, seem to give, at first view, decided ad- 
 vantages to the city. On the other hand, the quiet of the coun- 
 try, so favourable to calm reflection, the increased avidity of 
 the mind when restored to its natural tension and tendencies 
 by the absence of all disturbing influences; in short, the leisure 
 and silence peculiar to a region where hurry and bustle are not 
 as fashionable to those who do nothing as those who do most, 
 seem to point out the country as the place for thought and ap- 
 plication of mind. 
 
 Having, in the first number of the former series, adverted to se- 
 veral useful and benevolent improvements in this city, but which 
 speak best their own eulogium in the relief they afford to thou- 
 sands of sufi'erers, I trust it will not be displeasing to the polite 
 and ingenuous reader to reflect, for a moment, on the advantages 
 and incentives Providence has given this city to improve in 
 every thing useful and ornamental, and particularly in know- 
 ledge. 
 
 1. The commercial advantages of this city are rivalled by 
 none in the new, and by few in the old world. Should the 
 grand Columbian canal, intended to form a communication be- 
 tweeu this city and the great lakes, be opened upon the plan 
 of thoss enlightened and enterprising citizens who have made it 
 so much the object of their attention, this port would ultimately 
 surpass, in its advantages, those of Alexandria, Constantinople, 
 or London. Indeed, those of London are rather adventitious 
 than natural. On this point, the patriotic reader will do well to 
 consult the history of Carthage, of Athens, Syracuse, Venice, 
 Genoa, the cities of the Hanseatic League— I mean Antwerp, 
 Bruges, and, in later times, Hamburgh and Amsterdam. Let 
 me here, once, and once for all, implore the citizens of this 
 favoured city to forget the jealousies and collisions of private 
 interest and national politics, and direct their eyes towards that 
 bright summit of grandeur and felicity which Providence has 
 
12 
 
 Bet within their reach, and invites them, not by war and con- 
 quest, but by virtuous industry and enterprise, to ascend. 
 
 A free government and liberal policy point the way. It is 
 not the design of government to create enterprise to set peo- 
 ple at work, or to pay them when the work is done All 
 that is desired in government is to clear the way for the laudi- 
 ble efforts and operations of the enterprising and well-disposed ; 
 to repress the intrusions and infractions of dishonesty, and to' 
 honour those who do well for themselves and the public. In 
 these important respects we are favoured beyond any nation 
 that ever existed There are, indeed, various ways in which 
 government may smile on industry, and touch the wheels and 
 springs of enterprise, but that may be esteemed the wisest 
 course of legislation which, on the whole, gives property the 
 most security, presents the fewest embarrassments to private 
 enterprise, and the strongest incentives to industry in the whole 
 population of a country. With such a government we are fa- 
 voured. 
 
 3. The local and political advantages of this city are nobly 
 illustrated, and speak for themselves. What was, fifty years 
 ago, little more than a considerable village, is now in the second 
 rank of cities on the globe, with a population of an hundred 
 thousand people, rising in commerce, respectable for wealth, 
 distinguished for industry, and not wanting in public order. It 
 must be admitted, that a more general spirit of improvement in 
 the liberal arts, and in useful knowledge, would raise the 
 character, and promote the prosperity, of the city. I do not 
 make this remark without recollecting the respectable progress 
 already made by associations of gentlemen with this truly 
 noble and patriotic end in view. The societies for promoting 
 literature the arts, and the various branches of professional and 
 general knowledge, in this rising and prosperous city, cannot 
 be viewed but as objects of the highest public interest. These 
 instituti<ms, however, it should always be remembered, derive 
 the surest guarantee from an enlightened and intelligent com- 
 munity, on which they rest as their firmest basis. Wit^hout this, 
 with whatever spirit they may originate, by whatever force of 
 geniiK they may commence, thcfre can be little promise of (heir 
 perpetuity, much less of their future eminence. 
 
13 
 
 4. The sources of intelligence, instruction, and improvement, 
 are already become numerous, diversified, and great. A com- 
 mercial intercourse with polite nations, and with all parts of the 
 globe, facilitates the pursuits of the philosopher, the inquirer, 
 and the man of taste and letters. True, indeed, the want of 
 property in some that have taste, and the want of taste in others 
 that have property, diminish the advantages that might other- 
 wise flow from this grand scale of communication. Yet these 
 circumstances, whose union is so important, will sometimes 
 unite ; and where they do not, the defect must be remedied by 
 industry, liut the territories of the United States, embracing 
 so important a section of an entire continent, and so copious a 
 variety of natural productions, comprise of themselves a world 
 of knowledge still to be explored, point to great and various 
 enterprises which still sleep in the womb of futurity, and, I trust, 
 to various forms and grades of illustrious characters, still to rise 
 and adorn this youthful nation. 
 
 6. Fii>m these advantages others have risen, which, though 
 more adventitious, are not less important. The professions of 
 law and medicine are filled and supported by men of eminence ; 
 some of them distinguished by the first literary honours of Eu- 
 rope, and others whom any professional institution would be 
 proud to claim. And if our citizens feel a conscious pride and 
 pleasure in the approbation which strangers of taste and distinc- 
 tion express of the noble edifice in which our courts assemble, 
 they shall not feel less, when those persons have visited the in- 
 terior of that building, and listened to the eloquence of the bar, 
 and the wisdom, dignity, equity, and skill, of the bench of justice 
 there held. 
 
 But all these, and similar advantajjes, are evidences of one 
 great advantage, in which, perhaps, this city has been inferior 
 to none — the blessings of God, It has, indeed, been scourged, 
 but with speedy returns, and signal indications, of divine favour. 
 Pestilence and war have, at times, cast a gloom upon its pros- 
 pects, and thinned its population ; but peace, and health, and 
 plenty, have soon returned. Let not the operation of natural 
 causes withdraw our attention from that invisible band which 
 plants a nation, and builds a city. 
 
14 
 
 With these, and similar advantages for general improvement, 
 the incentives to that grand object are surely no less worthy of 
 consideration ; and some of them are peculiar to our own coun 
 try, it" not to this city. 
 
 1. Youth is a season of ardour, novelty, emulation, and hope. 
 Cities and nations, no less than individuals, have their infancy 
 and youth, their manhood and dotage, or decline. Nothing 
 merely human, and of a social nature, presents a more interest- 
 ing object, than a flourishing city wisely governed, just risen to 
 wealth and greatness, and commencing a race of glory. The 
 novelty, the untried ground to be passed over ; the discourage- 
 ments which appal the feeble, but rouse and enflame the great 
 and generous spirit ; the ardour and activity which mingle in the 
 checkered scene of clouds and sunshine ; the first noble essays 
 of art, are thus beautifully described by the prince of Latin poets : 
 
 " Instant ardentes Tyrii ; pars ducere muros 
 Molirique arcem, et manibus subvoWere saxa ; 
 Pars aptare locum tecto, et concludere sulco. 
 Jura magistratusque legunt sanctum que Senatum 
 His portus alii effodiunt ; hie alta theatris 
 Fundamenta locant alii ; iramanesque columnas 
 > Rupibus exeidunt, scenis decora alta futuris." 
 
 2. In addition to the spring which novelty gives to early pros- 
 pects and a first attempt, and the ardour with which liope in- 
 spires an untried course — principles of action to which the found- 
 ers of new institutions are no strangers — the noble and patriotic 
 feelings of our citizens have continually the advantage of deriv- 
 ing a stimulous from a two fold comparison: I mean with the 
 great cities of the polished nations of Europe, on the one hand, 
 and with the rival and rising cities of our own country, on the 
 other. 
 
 The gigantic size and antique structures, the enormous wealth 
 »nd vast power of London, that grand emporium of universal com- 
 merce, upon a just comparison, will occasion no discouragement, 
 but the reverse, when it is considered that she is what she is, after 
 a race of two thousand years. Besides, in the complex causes of 
 her elevation, though there is much to admire and imitate, yet 
 
15 
 
 various and powerful principles have there had operation, from 
 which every friend of humanity ought to desire a perpetual ex- 
 emption. London presents a stupendous aggregation of wealth, 
 intellect, and power, probably, in all respects, never equalled, 
 though, in some respects, surpassed, by ancient Rome ; yet among 
 all cities, both ancient and modern, perhaps ancient Athens 
 affords this city the noblest model for imitation. Her free go- 
 vernment, her amazing spirit of enterprise, the general intelli- 
 gence and good understanding of her citizens, the splendour of 
 her progress in the arts and sciences, and, in fine, her public 
 spirit, which, as Hobhouse, a late judicious traveller, observes, 
 enabled her to erect more magnificent works and noble edifices 
 than seemingly all the kingdoms of Europe combined could now 
 produce, show us what one small state can perform, and have 
 rendered her the admiration of the world. In praise of Athens 
 it may be said, that, though she colonised more, she conquered 
 less, than any state of equal power ; and her wars for conquest 
 were as rare as her defence was firm and terrible whenever she 
 was invaded. 
 
 In regarding Athens as a model, we cannot refrain from the 
 melancholy reflection, that, notwithstanding the splendour of 
 her arts and sciences, she was deficient in the most important 
 points of knowledge — the knowledge of God and of true religion. 
 Of this they seemed sensible, by their famous inscription, To 
 THE UNKNOWN GoD, which St. Paul made the theme of his elo- 
 quent address. Yet the powerful minds of Socrates, Plato, Py- 
 thagoras, and others, whether from their proximity to the foun- 
 tain of revelation, from their general reading, or from deeper 
 causes, had many just conceptions of God, and of the immorta- 
 lity of the soul. Yet the illuminations of these great and dis- 
 tinguished minds, proved as little to the advantage as the credit 
 of Athens. Vf hat was the fate of Socrates ? He suffered death 
 as a martyr to the truth. The priests of Jupiter and Juno could 
 not bear the splendour and convictions of that light which dis- 
 closed the darkness and impurity, the madness and folly, of their 
 superstitions. They urged the populace to put him to death. A 
 get of priests, as I said, in every nation under heaven, have al- 
 ways resisted the progress of light, and have been triangular. 
 
16 
 
 Athens was vvanling iu humanity ; her maxims of government 
 were generally cruel, severe, and haughty ; and the fate of many 
 of her best and greatest men casts a gloomy shade upon her 
 character. 
 
 Several important cities will rise, and are rising, in this coun- 
 try ; but, from various causes, there generally has been, and will 
 be, but one first-rate city in a country or nation. China and 
 Russia form the only exception to this rule now in my recol- 
 lection. The former, from her unparalleled population, being 
 almost one continued city ; and the latter has, properly speak- 
 ing, two capitals; one bein*: the seat of the empire, and the 
 other the royal residence. The wealth and talents, and, conse- 
 quently, the rank and splendour of a nation, will generally ulti- 
 mately centre in one place. There can be but one London in 
 England ; there could be but one Rome in Europe, and but one 
 Athens in Greece, thou^ih there were many independent states. 
 
 Whatever may be said of natural advantages, the standard 
 will not follow them, unless carried by the hands of industry and 
 enterprise. Futurity alone can determine what city shall eclipse 
 the glory of all others in the union. Every one is at liberty to 
 make his own conjectures, aided by the indication of present 
 appearances. But I will venture to say, that this eminence will, 
 and must rise, from the combination of three ingredients r wealthf 
 inlelled, and public spirit. Wealth alone is insufficient, as we 
 may judge from its effects on the base and sordid miser, whose 
 penuriousness, if it be not so extreme as to deprive him of per- 
 sonal comfort and gratification, will, at least, restrict his schemes 
 and enterprises to his own personal benefit. Intellect alone is 
 insufficient ; otherwise, we should see men of the greatest talents 
 successful and excelling in busin^'ss and accumulating property. 
 But where greatness of mind public spirit, enterprise and wealth 
 combine, the greatest effects are produced, as Carthage, Athens, 
 Rome, Venice, and London, have in succession evinced. 
 
 In must be admitted that wealth, more than knowledge and 
 taste, has enga.'ied the attention, and roused the enter|."nsing 
 spirits of this city. I therefore cannot but hail with pleasure 
 every indication of the commencement of a new era. Surely 
 many of our citizens are in circumstances sufficiently easy to 
 
17 
 
 allow a division of their attention between pecuniary and lite- 
 rary objects. Tlrere are many others whose decided preponde- 
 ratiou of taste towards the latter object would be sufficient to 
 command their attention and efforts undivided. I have recent- 
 ly perceived, with pleasure, efforts making to erect a forum 
 " sinejmtitice legisque terrore,''^ as a nursery of reason and elo- 
 quence, among young men of this city. I hope it will be ren- 
 dered respectable by talents, and by the patronage of every 
 friend to literature. And when it is recollected that the Ly- 
 ceum of Athens rose from as small beginnings, it would not be 
 extravagant to hope, that a future day may see this city adorn- 
 ed with an edifice where the great masters of the arts shall 
 assemble with their pupils ; where wits, orators, and philoso- 
 phers shall find apartments devoted to the exercise of their 
 several talents — an edifice whose marble columns will show, to 
 succeeding ages, no less the skill of some future Phidias, and 
 the munificence of a second Athens, than its appropriate de- 
 vices and inscriptions the noble purposes for which it arose. 
 
 3. But the noblest incentive to the pursuit of knowledge, 
 and a free and ingenuous inquiry after truth, is found in the 
 satisfaction, the security, the pleasure, which marks the progress 
 of such pursuit, and the distinguished honour and felicity which 
 crown and glorify the acquisition. 
 
 As reason is given to man for social purposes, and is laid as 
 a pledge of inestimable value, to be redeemed by suitable exer- 
 tions, it is lamentable to perceive in what innumerable instances 
 life is but the misuse of reason. If the ultimate end of living 
 were to obtain food and raioient ; if sensual enjoyment were 
 man's ultimate happiness, then, indeed, the great body of man- 
 kind answer the ends of their existence. But how far is this 
 from being the case ? How little does it accord with the awfully 
 interesting condition and amazing destiny of man ! Placed, if 
 I may so say, in the centre of illimitable space and duration; 
 revolving with a world of people the annual circuit of heaven, 
 not even without law to himself; bound. by various obligations 
 to those immediately around him, and by the perfect and im- 
 mutable obligation of the law of God ; made capable of know- 
 ing, serving, and glorifying God; destined to live and be hap- 
 
 3 
 
18 
 
 py or miserable, to all eternity : in short, a sinner condemn- 
 ed, but for awhile reprieved, and placed under a dispensation 
 of grace on further probation; soon to leave (his world, and go 
 before his great and final Judge to receive his just and etf rnal ■ 
 sentence, as the ground of which all his conduct in life is to 
 be considered. But free pardon is offered, and a union is pro- 
 posed between sinful man and his Creator, through the media- 
 tion of the adorable Redeemer. 
 
 Can the strongest mind, the most awakened conception, rise 
 to the interest of such concerns as these? Who can fathom 
 their depth, or measure tht^ir extent ? And do they furnish no 
 matter of curiosity to the inquisitive mind ? Notliing sublime 
 and gloiiou3 to the most enlightened mind? NoiUing lovely 
 and desirable to the pure and virtu'»us mind ? Notiiing formida- 
 ble and alarnjing to every vicious and depraved mind ? 
 
 The future pru.-pccts of mankind are great, yet stiM they have 
 a course of present, imm»d> le duty to perform. Beit that a 
 man is going to India to take possession of a fortune there, he 
 may ha\eto learn tlif^ art of navigation, and then conduct his 
 vessel, with g'eat lab 'ur and hazard, through a long and dan- 
 gerous voyage, before he enters on his inheritance. Alas ! in 
 thi? deceitful voya;;e of life it is that millions perish, and never 
 ^.= !fj <he region of peace. 
 
 Man, considered in a kind of general and abstract sense, is 
 immortal, even in this life ; a consideration which hardly en- 
 gages the attention of many a devout and honest Christian. 
 Human life and existence are perpetuated, not in the same, 
 but in a series of gcneiations, which gives society a perpe- 
 tuity which may be called an inferior or secondary kind of 
 imraortality. On this account it is that arts and sciences, and, 
 indeed, the fine and elegant arts, and all branches of literature, 
 become necessary. For the same reason, it is desirable for 
 nations to come up to a common level of general knowledge; 
 and, while individuals and societies endeavour to rise above the 
 common level, and extend as far as possible the sphere of hu- 
 man knowledge, they serve as pioneers, and lead the way for 
 states and nations to rise gradually to higher improvement. 
 
 yet the knowledge of religious truth is as much more ini- 
 
19 
 
 porfant than that of human science, as the interests of the soul 
 arp greater than those of the body. Every objVct which en- 
 larges the mind, and invigorates the faculties, ennobles and ex- 
 alts our nature; and such eapeciuIJy is the knowledge of our 
 Creator. 
 
 A due attention to our duty and ob']t;ations to God, who is 
 to be the eternal and infinite source of cil! me enj<i)ments, 
 will prevent our making false estimalf^s •'>f h.;), i'.e?^, «nd im- 
 bibing false notions of honour. His b!eHi:ino ^^I^;IM can confer 
 happiness; His approbation a'one is the true tcsl of h'"«r")ur. 
 And, since 1 have arrived at tliis ob^^er* i;}ion, let nn^ s-k ihe 
 brave and chivalrous ?|»ir't. who, dazzled with fulsc liotiour, is 
 ready to associate every form of dnn^ier 'vifh 'it.r-T. w!;. fli.r a 
 knowledge of the truths and eanc*' n)s of ^ ,v>t 
 
 convince a man that God had not given 
 
 it, dehberately, to the furious niu< r^un: v, ;,>.; i.:i;;:it, Ufr.UL»u 
 it, or require him to expose it in aiop^le combat. 
 
 The fields of truth are wide ; the)' smiic in ptrpetnnl verdure; 
 are covered with ever blooming flowers, and li^^htened with 
 eternal glory. They invite, solicit, and ?JSure the ini;norlal 
 mind's most noble powers to explore them — to begin that ex- 
 alted and delightful employment wi^ich shall never end. Is 
 there not danger that we shall hereafter regret our neg^ligence, 
 in suffering our minds to be overrun with errors, when the 
 means of information were near us? Is there do darger lest 
 a price so invaluable should be put into our hands, to get wis- 
 dom, but to be treated with neglect, because we have no heart 
 to improve it ? He who best secures the interest of futurity, lays 
 the broadest foundation for present hajipiness, since both are 
 accomplished by a faithful discharge of the duties God requires. 
 
 From the view we have taken of our advantages and incen- 
 tives to acquire knowledge, it appears that they are not only in 
 all respects great, but in some respects peculiar. But we seem 
 so constituted, or so perverse, as not to be able to prize ad- 
 vantages which are common and permanent, nor to feel incen- 
 tives whose operation is general. AYe seem unable to realize 
 that a noble action is as noble, though done in an obscure 
 iiamlet. as if done at the grand Olympic celebration. The 
 
20 
 
 eharm of doing nobly, is too often derived from the considera- 
 tion that it is seen, and a<lmired, and praised. Yet who is not 
 delighted and inspired with veneration at that hemic virtue, 
 that invincible fortitude, which endured, silently and alone, or 
 acted where there were none to praise or record it ? or, perhaps, 
 much more so, where every eye bt-held it with contempt, and 
 every voice loaded it with reproach. 
 
 Though the condition of human life furnishes but few oc- 
 casions to develop the character of a Solon, a Leonidas, a 
 Blatthias, or a Washington, it furnishes constant occasion for 
 equal virtues ; nay, for the same virtues, though moulded by 
 different events. The human family, truly vast, may be regard- 
 ed as disposed into two grand divisions; the one inhabiting this 
 world, the other the world of sjjirils. Though this world is 
 peopled anew once in about a century, and substantially so 
 once in thirty years, yet it is permanency occupied by eight 
 hundred millions of people; which permanency, as I said above, 
 gives society an inferior kind of iinmortality : and as to all the 
 grand purposes of society — as to art, science, morals, govern- 
 ment, religion, manners and customs, it is virtually the same as 
 though this permanency were maintained by the same persons, 
 instead of a series of generations. The conduct of some men 
 influences the condition and happiness of great portions of the 
 human family ; and the conduct of every person exerts an in- 
 fluence, to a surprising extent, on others. These influences go by 
 currents and tides; and a nation is compared to great waters: 
 immense masses of opinion, prejudice, sentiment, passion, and 
 intellect, are sometimes put into motion, from a cause or causes 
 which infinite wisdom alone can trace ; but does, in fact, trace, 
 and, with an all-discerning and discriminating equity, fixes the 
 responsibility where, perhaps, no mortal mind would suspect. 
 
 The certainty of an all-seeing Providence, and of man's future 
 and speedy accountability in another world, and the perfect re- 
 tribution that awaits him there, afford the highest encourage- 
 ment to good and virtuous actions. Let no one fear lest what 
 he does shuuUl pass unknown ; for if well done, a higher plaudit 
 awaits him than did the conquerors at the Olyinpic race; a 
 more brilliant assembly shall hear his approbation pronounced, 
 
21 
 
 nof by the herald of the ceremony, but by the roice of God ; 
 and he shall be crowned, not with fading laurel, but with im- 
 mortal honour. 
 
 But how great and fatal is their mistake, who, while living 
 here on dreams of future happiness; while their pride and canity 
 are bloated with the idea, that they are the favourites of heaven, 
 are constant worshipers at the shrine of selfishness, and live only 
 for themselves! That august being, in whom the whole family 
 in heaven and earth is named, regards his creatures here. The 
 welfare of his terrestrial family is ever before him, not less, being 
 successive, than as though it were permanent. And that man 
 who is the honoured instrument of doing good to men, of pro- 
 moting the welfare of a nation, or a state, or a city, faintly sha- 
 dows forth the beneficent Father of all. 
 
 Allow me, then, with deference, but with freedom, to address 
 these considerations to the wealthy, the learned, and the patri- 
 otic ; to those whose enlightened views may enable them to 
 discern the means of advancing; the city ; whose liberal fortune 
 clothes them with the power, and entitles them to a voice ; and 
 whose still more liberal feelings would find their highest gratifi- 
 cation in so grand an object. But why do I speak of liberal 
 fortune, since a nation's noblest enterprises are generally prior 
 to the era of wealth. The Roman capltol was built, which, says 
 Livy, " subsequent ages might adorn, but could add nothing to 
 her grandeur," while the territories of Rome were not twenty 
 miles square; and the temple of Olympian Jupiter, the magni- 
 ficence of which nothing on earth now equals, was built by the 
 commonwealth of Elis, probably smaller than a county of this 
 state. Whatever advantages there might be in promoting the 
 exterior splendour of the city, and they are numerous, as orna- 
 ment, when not at the expense of morals, improves and gratifies 
 taste, and is agreeable to nature ; yet the erection of towers, pa- 
 laces, and monuments, must be left to the impetus of great oc- 
 casions. But if the most rational origin of monuments is ad- 
 mitted to be the honour due to the memory of departed worth, 
 our citizens seem furnished with an opportunity, and a motive, 
 to bestow that honour, at least in one case, which shrinks from 
 no comparison. 
 
22 
 
 But there is a species of improvement attainable at less ex- 
 pense than that of external magnificence, and which promises 
 more solid and permanent glory. Athens, which of all cities, 
 ancient or modern, presents us the fairest model, in her govern- 
 ment, politics, and commercial character, acquired more fame 
 and honour from her arts and sciences than from lier splendid 
 temples and monuments. Her lofty ruins, indeed, which, after 
 the desolations of two thousand years, astonish the world, are 
 but the remnants of her arts and public spirit. She was the in- 
 structress of Rome ; and the revival of letters, after the night of 
 Gothic darkness, was but the resurrection of her arts and sciences. 
 
 To raise higher the standard of knowledge in a city, or nation, 
 is, in effect, to increase the sum of intellect, and the fault is not 
 in knowledge, or its promoters, if it do not increase the sum of 
 human happiness. But the accomplishment of this great work 
 is seldom the task of few, much less can it be effected by one. 
 Like the temple of Ephesus, its foundations are laid by one ge- 
 neration, its superstructure carried up by another, and its deco- 
 rations finished by a third. 
 
 INVESTIGATOR. 
 
 NO. II. 
 
 Knowledge is, like the light of heaven, free, pure, pleasant, 
 and exhaustless. It invites to possession, but admits of no pre- 
 emption, no rights exclusive, no monopoly. It is not like 
 wealth, of which one may deprive another — like honor, which 
 the breath of envy may blast — like power, which superior pow- 
 er may overcome. The rational understanding being formed 
 to acquire and treasure up knowledge, is thereby made capable 
 of endless enlargement, and the objects of knowledge are ex- 
 tended through infinite space and eternal duration. The value 
 of gold is but comparaliv»e; therefore, as its quantity increases 
 its value diminishes ; but knowledge has an absolute value ; 
 
23 
 
 wherefore, if all men had the knowledge of Newton, its value 
 would not be lessened. If every rational creature were made 
 equal in knowledge to the highest angel, by how much more 
 just were his conceptions of God, his character, and perfections, 
 by so much more would he be sensible of his own weakness 
 and ignorance. 
 
 There seems to be but one trait in the human character more 
 surprising, or a greater proof of depravity, than the indifference 
 of most people relative to the acquisition of knowledge ; espe- 
 cially, the knowledge of God. Where do they expect to go 
 when they leave this world? Into whose hands will they fall? 
 What do they expect or hope to be employed about, to all eter- 
 nity 1 Who is to find them a place of residence, and supply 
 their wants? Can it but occur to them, that their happiness 
 must be inseparably connected with the friendship and appro- 
 bation of their Creator and Preserver? Can. they avoid be- 
 lieving that God approves of some characters, and disapproves 
 of others ? 
 
 But, however absurd their opinions, or groundless their ex- 
 pectations may be, and on whatever false security they may 
 rest, why should they wish to deprive others of the light of 
 truth ? Why stop the progress of inquiry, and cut off the 
 so^urces of information ? Why seal up the eyes of thousands 
 in darkness, and consign them to ignorance, till the light of the 
 coming world shall break upon them with awful terror and 
 utter disappointment ? 
 
 This has been the grand and favourite object of a very nume- 
 rous class of men in every age and nation. And, as I said, is 
 a more surprising trait of character, a proof of deeper depravity, 
 than the inditFerence of men to truth, on their own account. I 
 do not take up this subject merely as matter of phi'osopiiical 
 speculation — I do it because the evil which it involves impends 
 this city. Resistance to free inquiry, and the progress of that 
 light and conviction which ever follows the knowledge of (he 
 truth, has long been maintained and carried on with incredible 
 vigilance and perseverance : I wish I were not constrained to 
 say, with success bordering on triumph. 
 
 There has never been wauling to any nation, elevated in a 
 
24 
 
 considerable degree above the savage state, in knowledge and 
 refinement, a class of men whose grand aim has been to pre- 
 Tent the progress of truth, and obstruct all free inquiry. They 
 seem to envy mankind the right and privilege of thinking for 
 themselves. As they arrogate to themselves the dignity of 
 being the sole arbiters of religious controversy, they resort to 
 the most summary method, which is, to hind up people's eyes, 
 and keep them in total ignorance; and in that way are guilty 
 of the most cruel, destructive, and atrocious invasion of human 
 rights and privileges which ever entered the conception of 
 man. The tyrant who enslaves the body does nothing in com- 
 parison with this. He may clothe his captive in chains, and lay 
 him low in a dungeon ; but the soul, freer than air, more rapid 
 than light, regards no chains, is limited to no dungeons. 
 
 " The thoughts, that wander thro' eternity," 
 
 defy all bolts and bars ; over its volitions raonarchs have no 
 power ; its desires can wing their way to heaven, and its inter- 
 nal operations mock at all created force. 
 
 Such are the soul's inborn powers and native freedom— nay, 
 more, it can soar above all outward forms of danger, can tri- 
 umph over death and the grave, and looks forward upon eter- 
 nity as its own. 
 
 Happy would it be for mankind did every soul know its pow- 
 er, and enjoy its freedom ; feel its dignity, and appreciate its pri- 
 vilege ! "But who could imagine that one man could enslave 
 the soul of another? There is a ketner ambition than that 
 which aims to control our externa! freedom ; an ambition to 
 enslave and bind fast in fetters the immortal intelligence within 
 us ; an ambition to direct our thoughts, opinion?, volitions, and 
 faith ; an ambition to interfere between the soul of man and his 
 God ; to estrange the soul for ever from the foutnaiu of light and 
 glory. 
 
 Itis almost too painful and humiliating to be spoken — but, since 
 it is a truth which the day of God will tnake manifest before all 
 creatures, it cannot he concealed, that a set of men, who claim to 
 he ministers of religion, have, i<t every part of the world, and in 
 
25 
 
 every age, been the agents and instruments in this horrid work. 
 They have set themselves up as the lords, or, ratlier, the tyrants 
 of men's consciences; and on a repufation for holiness, under the 
 garb of hypocrisy, have built up a system of tyranny and re- 
 ligious oppression, in comparison with which, ail temporal ty- 
 rannies and usurpations seem perfect freedom. The ministers 
 of religion have not all been of this description; God has ne- 
 ver been without true and faithful wit/iesses to maintain his 
 truth, and honour his name. But when Elijah was the only 
 prophet of the Lord in Israel, there were four hundred pro- 
 phets of Baal, and four hundred prophets of the groves. 
 
 When the si\n of righteousness rose upon the world, and the 
 gospf'l kingdom was established, whose foundations had been 
 laid of old, could it have been imagined that the meek and holy, 
 the pure and peaceful, religion of Jesus Christ would be trans- 
 formed into the bloodiest and most monstrous system of tyran- 
 ny ever seen on the earth ? That the corruption, cruelly, and, 
 crimes of Rome Heathen, would be thrown into the shade, and 
 scarcely remembered, in comparison with the surpassing and 
 incomparable wickedness of Rome Christian? It was so: and 
 this march of wickedness began by binding the conscience, and 
 resisting the progress atid the happy results of free inquiry. 
 When it was perceived by worldly men that the Church, to use 
 a common phrase, was become an object of ambition, they pour- 
 ed into it in swarms, like the locusts tiiat plagued Egypt; and 
 the gospel, whose genuine spirit was perfect meekness, peace, 
 and love, was, by degrees, perverted, and heard to speak the 
 language of pride, haughtiness, and revenj^e. These proud and 
 Felfish spiritual tyrants could not rest ; rites and ceremonies, 
 pomp and splendour, grew apace, and what was at the bottom 
 of it all was, that all right of private judgment and free in- 
 (juiry was suppressed, and every man must tamely and silently 
 submit his opinions and his conscience to these spiritual guides, 
 who were, generally, as ignorant as they were impudent. 
 
 The abominable and ridiculous claim to infallibility was the 
 last step; which was but the full surrender of the opinions and 
 faith of all the world to one lordly and ridiculous wretch, more 
 worthy of Raman's gallows than of a triple crown, 
 
 4 
 
26 
 
 But, reader, there is a tincture of this extravagant claim visi- 
 ble in our days; indeed, everywhere visible where you find 
 a little spiritual tyrant. The Reformation did not cure this 
 enormous pride; and the reformers themselves, as soon as they 
 had doubled the cape, began to lay their course back again 
 from whence they started. Nothing is more difficult than for 
 a man, stifiF with spiritual pride, and full of the idea of his own 
 importance, to believe, that a people are entitled to think for 
 themselves. The reformed churches, at first, all started from 
 this ground, and fell with fury to persecuting heretics ; and 
 where people were not willing to be converted, the zeal of their 
 spiritual guides was promptly seconded by the civil magistrate, 
 using fines, imprisonment, confiscation, banishment, and death, 
 as hopeful means of convicting the sinner, and purifying the 
 Church. — I, therefore, said, the Reformation was incomplete. 
 
 O, how unlike the gospel ! How abhorrent from the spirit of 
 Christ ! And though it surely will not be denied, that the power 
 was generally in the hands of better men, yet those persecuting 
 churches were, in the sight of Heaven, as truly ecclesiastical 
 tyrannies as the church of Rome. The homage paid by many 
 in this country to those churches, in connexion with the spirit 
 and temper they evince, shows, but too plainly, in what re- 
 spects they desire to see those times restored. Yes, when they 
 see Calvin assembling the people of Geneva, and imposing upon 
 them a religious test, causing them to swear to maintain his 
 doctrine, and forms of church order and worship, their eyes, 
 no doubt, fail with longing to see this city encircled with the 
 same hopeful barriers against error and innovation. 
 
 These men have lately set themselves up as the exclusive ad- 
 mirers and disciples of the reformers. One of them closed a 
 statement of the atfairg of his church, for the last year, before 
 the late synod held in this city, by declaring, in a very pom- 
 pous manner, that his people had been hearing " the boc- 
 TRiNES OF THK REFORMATION." Did he mean, by the doctrines 
 of the Reformation, the doctrine which Luther preached ? No. 
 Yet Luther's doctrine was certainly a doctrine of the Reforma- 
 tion. Did he mean the doctrines which Melancthon preached ? 
 No. Did he mean the doctrine of the English, or French re- 
 
27 
 
 formers? No : for among all these, as to the. points in contro- 
 versy in this city, (here was great diversify, and they were gene- 
 rally against him. Did he mean the doctrines which Calvin 
 preached ? Hardly : for Calvin did not teach the doctrine of 
 original sin, as some now preach it. And I ask that man, or 
 any man, to show the public where Calvin taught a limited 
 atonement. All that is nothing; there was a hook in that pious 
 declaration, which many an honest fish greedily swallowed ; it 
 was a hoax, and deserves no better name; and that, one of the 
 lowest and basest kind. Who does not preacli the doctrines of 
 the Reformation ? It is a term of no definite meaning, but 
 calculated to mislead the ignorant and the simple. The re- 
 formers were not agreed in doctrine. Calvin was scarcely 
 known in the group of the first reformers, and to such of them 
 as he was known, his particular notions of predestination and 
 grace were generally offensive, however correct they might be 
 in themselves. 
 
 The Reformation of the sixteenth century is regarded by the 
 protestant part of Christendom as a grand event — an event in 
 which many millions of people take a deep interest. What 
 member of the church of England, or Scotland, or Holland, or 
 of all the protestant Germanic provinces, or of the protestants 
 in France, or America, is there, Vt'ho does not regard the Refor- 
 mation as a glorious era in the Christian Church ? Yet each one 
 of this immense mass of people, who have the means of infor- 
 mation, view the reformers, and their doctrines, not without dis- 
 crimination. They see much to admire and revere, and much 
 left, as the work of subsequent reformations. 
 
 But, people of New-York, there has been another reforma- 
 tion; a reformation in our days, in which we have a deeper in- 
 terest ; a reformation not less extraordinary in its nature, or 
 glorious in its consequences: We have seen a nation rise into 
 a state of perfect freedom and civil liberty. Even this event, 
 and going no farther, is beyond all parallel in history. There 
 is a marked providence even here, which I fear many, calling 
 themselves Christians, have not regarded with the attention it 
 demands, nor the pleasure that might be expected. Is it 
 nothing that, from the discordant chaos of European aristocracy 
 
and despotism, a govtiumeut should spring up in the uew world, 
 founded in all the essential rights, and guarding all the rights 
 of man ? Is it not worthy of notice, that thirteen independent 
 states should amicably unite in this grand project ? Was there 
 any thing like it in ancient Greece — was there ever a parallel? 
 
 But it is said, in reply, that this was all a civil or polifical 
 transaction. Be it so : and was there nothing civil or political 
 in the Reformation of the sixteenth century ? What severed 
 England and Scotland from the Roman see ? Doubtless, the 
 most ambitious prince and greatest tyrant that ever filled the 
 British throne began that work. And Germany was more re- 
 formed by states than by individuals. In fact, the Reformation 
 consisted externally in throwing off the yoke of the Roman 
 pontiff; which, partly by spiritual, and partly by temporal 
 claims, he had fastened on the most powerful states in Europe, 
 and had, for ages, maintained by the sword ; by which all ty- 
 rants maintain their dominion. It was, in a great degree, a po- 
 litical revolution. 
 
 But has this country witnessed nothing but a political revolu- 
 tion ? Has not a phenomenon marked that revolution which 
 indicates juster notioiis of religion, and of the true character of 
 Christ's church, than were entertained by Luther, Melancthon, 
 or Calvin — by Knox, Cranmer, or Ridley ? — or, I add, by any, or 
 all, the'reformers put togetlier ? By some surprising influence, 
 the American people, when severed from the British empire,, 
 came to the knowledge of the grand truth, that all men are na- 
 turally free, and have equal rights ; among which liberty of con- 
 science, and the right of inquiring after truth, and worshipping 
 Cod, are the first. Connected with this, another truth of equal 
 importance was discovered, viz. that the church of Christ, 
 being a spiritual body, has no right to enforce her censures by 
 temporal penalties, or by the arm of civil power. 
 
 Here, reader, perished, not only the first, but the last, the 
 greatest, the grandest, pillars of popery. Or, to vary the figure, 
 *' the tree whose hei^t r«fched unto heaven, and the sight 
 thereof to the ends of |he earth," had been, indeed, cut down 
 by the " watcher;" hui, in t* language of the same prophet, 
 " the stump of the roots wakfeft, with a band of iron and brasS' 
 
29 
 
 m the tender grass of the fieUI." A band of iron and brass in- 
 deed ! — For notwithstanding the greatness of the Ueformatiou, 
 latterly become so popular a theme, and trumpeted so loudly, 
 to withdraw tlie attention of mankind from a much more recent 
 reformation, what church, or what nation, became so reformed 
 as to discover that people have a right to think for themselves ? 
 What nation came out so pure from this refining fire as not, in 
 their turn, to erect the bloody standard of persecution, and fall 
 Hpon heretics, i. e. all who presume to differ from them, right 
 or wrong, with fire and faggots? 
 
 From the foundation of the world, the honour, and pleasure, 
 and advantage, of perfect civil and religious liberty has been re- 
 served for this nation. No other nation, ancient or modern, 
 savage or civilized, ever enjoyed them both before. It was 
 reserved to be discovered by the leaders in the American refor- 
 mation, that a man demeaning himself peaceably in society, 
 and conducting as a good citizen, is accountable only to God 
 for his religious opinions. Should he even chance to differ 
 from what is called orthodox, or from the popular faith, he does 
 not expect to be dragged before a ghostly Jesuitical tribunal, to 
 whom he must deliver up the keys of his conscience, or be de- 
 livered over to the tormentors. A man in this country is not 
 obnged to hurry away to Canada, the West Indies, New Spain, 
 or Europe, a voluntary exile, for fear of suffering the fate of 
 a heretic ; and, perhaps, when arrived there, in hourly dread 
 that letters missive will reach the magistrates, desiring them 
 to seize and bring him to justice: But for what? for murder, 
 arson, burglary, or treason, no doubt! — Ono! because he is 
 " unsound in the faith f'' when, perhaps, in the sight of God, he 
 is the Christian, and his persecutors are the heretics. This, 
 reader, was the general mode of proceeding in those delight- 
 ful times which certain persons so ardently wish might return. 
 This was then the fashion. 
 
 Neither the gospel, nor the spirit of Christ, ever moved men 
 to persecution : every persecutor, therefore, of whatever de» 
 scription, sect, or denomination, is unsound both in faith and 
 practice, and is no model for an American. 
 
 The American reformers have discovered that a nation is not 
 
30 
 
 a church, and that a church cannot be a nation. They per- 
 ceived that there was an import in our Saviour's declaration, 
 that his kingdom was not of this world ; which, if every liing- 
 dom be a church, and every church a kingdom, can mean no- 
 thing. And it is a fact, of which I have no doubt, that next 
 to downright persecution, the greatest injury any government 
 can do a church is to establish it by law, that its decisions and 
 censures shall be enforced by civil penalties; it renders it " the 
 stump of the roots" in earnest, " with a band of iron and brass." 
 But, to the confusion and discomfiture of every religious ty- 
 rant, the band of iron and brass is broken, and the stump of 
 the roots is dug up, in this country, favored of heaven above all 
 others. To this it is owing that we see every man resorting to 
 the place of worship he may prefer, and adoring the Supreme 
 Ruler in such modes and forms as his conscience may dictate. 
 To this it is owing that we see no stern and haughty lords of 
 conscience hurling the censures of the church at one and at 
 another, with a servile set of syndics and magistrates at their 
 elbow, and a still more servile gang of delators at their heels, 
 to point his vengeance, expecting, at least, to purchase heaven 
 by gratifying the holy malice and bigotted pride of a spiritual 
 judge. To this, in a word, it is owing that our country is not, 
 at this instant, torn with religious fury and persecution ; for, I 
 call heaven to witness, that a stronger propensity to that hor- 
 rid business was never visible at any time or place. 
 
 I said, in a former series, that these people had forgot the 
 age in which they live, by three hundred years. They seem 
 not apprized of the grand events of our times, which have bro- 
 ken the slumbers of six thousand years. Soothed in the lap of 
 spiritual pride, by the cordial flattery of minions whom they 
 have trained to their hands, their eyes are covered with scales, 
 and they are strangers to the sublime and awful providence 
 which moves before us, and has lifted our country above all 
 nations in her civil freedom and religious order. They are 
 ever restless under these events ; they wish for the restoration 
 of the reign of bigotry, and that the sun, broke forth on this 
 happy nation, would rettfrn into those clouds which covered 
 him for ages. As for this country, there has been no reforrea- 
 
31 
 
 tion, no increase of knowledge, no new light, no religious ad- 
 vantages. They would esteem the restoration of the jargon of 
 school logic, the sublime mysticism of peripatetic philoso- 
 phy, and the principles of religious intolerance, a glorious event ; 
 that is, if their conduct and feelings are of a piece. For it must 
 be admitted that those were fine times for ecclesiastical lords 
 and tyrants of every grade. 
 
 In the mean time, they desire no reformation — no change that 
 shall eradicate any remaining fibre of " the stump of the roots 
 with the band of iron and brass." Every thing like an increase 
 of light is terrible to those whose glory depends on darkness ; 
 equally so is an increase of liberty to those whose power is 
 built on usurpation. As for the enlargement of their churches, 
 were they permitted to use their favourite arts, they would im- 
 mediately gather in all the fishes of the deep — even sharks, 
 sword-fish, and whales. They want no reformation for that 
 purpose. As one of our little Calviniculi lately declared, be- 
 fore the synod, he had had " ninety members added to his 
 church the last year, though with none of the northern blast at- 
 tending." I fear he might have added, none of the southern I 
 " Awake, O north wind, and come thou south, blow upon thy 
 garden!" "The wind bloweth where it listeth," said liie Son 
 of God, '* and ye hear the sound thereof, &c., so is every one 
 (hat is born of the Spirit." That man was unfortunate in the 
 metaphor by which he attempted to ridicule the work of God, 
 and I shall be glad if his ignorance shielded him from the guilt 
 of blasphemy, in that vain attempt to appear witty and brave. 
 
 The grand object of these men is to arrest the progress of 
 free inquiry, and to bring the church back to the ground it oc- 
 cupied three hundred years ago, when the wretched dogmas 
 of Aristotle, and the peripatetics, were still conflicting with moral 
 and philosophical theories little better; while, as yet, a ray of 
 light had not broken into the church relative to civil or reli- 
 gious liberty ; while the very best of the reformers had no idea 
 but of following the steps of Rome, in destroying heretics by 
 fire and sword: For surely, said they, if a wicked church may 
 persecute and destroy good men, it is very wonderful if good 
 men, when clothfd with the authority of Christ, may not punish 
 
32 
 
 m 
 
 and exterminate the wicked : in a word, when a church and a 
 nation were considered as the same thing, and provision was 
 made for rendering church-membership and privileges heredi- 
 tary as estates and titles — ^the increase of the church being ren- 
 dered as certain as that of natural population — as resting on the 
 same footing. 
 
 The men whose scheme I have described as triangular know, 
 that if people are suffered to read and inquire freely — if light 
 and knowlf-dge prevail, their scheme will fall to the ground. It 
 will not stand the test of examination ; it will not endure the 
 light of evidence; it canuot subsist under a just comparison 
 with truth. And though they look on the interference of the 
 civil law, and the arm of government to crush inquiry, as no 
 longer to be expected, they are resorting to other methods with 
 incredible industry and vigilance. And I am bold to say, that 
 there is not a spot on earth where greater pains have been taken 
 to accomplish that hopeful purpose than in this city. 
 
 I have frequently alluded to this subject in former numbers: 
 I shall here state some of the methods used to prevent inquiry, 
 and to exclude the light and truth from this city. I hope it may 
 be read with patience, even by those who differ with me in 
 opinion ; and whoever shall read it with due attention, I aver 
 that, in spite of prejudice, they will both see and feel that the 
 picture, in some points, suits the original. And I observe, 
 
 I. These pompous allusions to "the doctrines of the Refor- 
 mation," are made with no other purpose, and have no other ef- 
 fect, than to silence inquiry, and strengthen prejudice. Ah ! 
 says one, " I preach nothing but the glorious doctrines of the 
 reformers — I am no innovator — no Hopkinsiaii." Reader, do 
 you not see that all this is a priestly trick ? For how can the 
 people of this city know any thing about the doctrines of the 
 reformers ? While it fills their incautious minds with veneration 
 for a wonderful Calviniculus, it shuts their eyes, and stops their 
 ears. Perhaps, too, this declaration is made by some green- 
 horn tyrant would-be, who knows no more of the doctrines of 
 the reformers than of the doctrines taught on the other side of 
 the moon. There was one grand point in which ail the re* 
 formers agreed, viz. in candemoing the usurpations and corrup- 
 
33 
 
 tions of the church of Rome : — ^^happy would it have been had 
 they rejected all those corruptions; but, as I have said, they 
 as universally agreed in one fundamental error of Rome — that 
 intolerance and bigotry which exercises tyranny over the con- 
 sciences of men. For, as I said, this was " the stump of the 
 roots, with a band of iron and brass, in the tender grass of the 
 field." All flesh is grass ! — and, whether reformed or not, spi- 
 ritual despots generally find means to bind that grass in bundles 
 to be consumed with the rest of their works, as wood, hay, and 
 stubble. 
 
 But in the great doctrines of Christianity, the leading reform- 
 ers differed extremely, and contended vehemently. For a man, 
 therefore, at this time, to say, "I am no innovator — I preach 
 the doctrines of the Reformation," is an abuse of language, and 
 a gross insult to those who may differ from him, but could say 
 the same that he does, with as much truth, and perhaps more. 
 It is designed to cast a mist before people's eyes, who have not 
 the means of examining, and in whose minds the names of the 
 reformers — even the very sound of the phrase, "The Reforma- 
 tion," is associated with every thing great and venerable. And 
 that man who has brass and impudence enough to trump him- 
 self up as the immaculate disciple of the reformers, is regarded 
 by a credulous multitude as all made up of sanctity, truth, and 
 wisdom. 
 
 There is one point, and but one, in which these men follow 
 undeviatiugly the steps of the reformers, and that is a spirit of 
 rigid intolerance and persecution. It is with reluctance and deep 
 regret, that I allude thus frequently, and unpleasantly, to the me- 
 mory of the reformers ; but since they are laid as the first step 
 in the staircase of ambition, it is necessary that the truth should 
 be spoken, and the people undeceived. I admire and revere 
 the reformers, and have read their lives with as much pleasure 
 as any man living ; but I do not admire their faults ; and I well 
 know the spirit and maxims of the policy and government of 
 those same reformers would not be endured for a day, " no, 
 not for an hour," in this country. 
 
 Citizens of New-York, what would be your feelings, should 
 some leading clergyman in this city acquire sufficient influence 
 
 5 
 
 1 
 
34 
 
 to cause the people to be asserableil, by legal aulbority, and 
 an oath exacted from them, to maintain the forms of worship 
 and standard of doctrine he should prescribe; and that every 
 one who refused, should be utterly disgraced, and, perhaps, lia- 
 ble to be banished ? Would you like it ? Would you think 
 it line times ? Thus did Calvin in Geneva. 
 
 If, by the doctrines of the Reformation is meant, that Christ 
 died only for the electa that all men deserved endless punishment 
 for Adani's sin, independent of their own conduct, and that all 
 men, aside from their inclination, are unable to obey God, the ex- 
 pression is evidently and hugely false. These were not the doc- 
 trines of the reformers, or, at least, but a very small portion of 
 them, when compared with the whole. The phrase, at best, 
 is a vague unmeaning one, and derives its chief value from 
 its effect on prejudice and ignorance; and that is the reason 
 why it is adopted as a diplomatic term of trigonism. The peo- 
 ple borrow it from the priest, and many as profound an igno- 
 ramus as walks the street, will be heard to say, when he retires 
 from the sermon, " Ah ! this is the language of the fathers ; so 
 they preached in the days of the Reformation." 
 
 It ought to be the joy and glory of an American divine 
 to preach the doctrines of a much later reformation than that 
 in Germany ; — doctrines which prevail in a nation whose re- 
 ligious tenets are not shackled by " bands of iron and brass," 
 forged by civil magistrates, at the instigation of some haughty 
 pontiff; — doctrines which prevail, when it is no longer thought a 
 miracle for a man to rise above the more than Babel confusion 
 of school logic, or the wonderful flights of peripatetic philosophy^ 
 
 Reader, is it wonderful, is it incredible, that the first nation 
 on earth which has been able to perceive the rights of mankind, 
 both civil and religious — the first nation since the grand apostasy 
 that has exonerated the church from the alluring and destructive 
 influence of civil power— the first nation that has restored the 
 soul of man to freedom, and invited him to free inquiry in the 
 grandest of all concerns — I say, is it incredible, that such a na- 
 tion should make some progress in the discovery of truth ? 
 Or, must we go back to the days of intolerance, of ignorance, 
 of persecution ? Must we go back to the first crude vision of 
 
35 
 
 early twilight, where no shadow is distinct, because there is no 
 sunshine, and there fix the standard of truth, which no sub- 
 sequent light is to improve — before which all evidence is ta be 
 veiled, and all inquiry to cease, forever? 
 
 The progress of light and knowledge in our own country 
 is scoffed at and abused by these men ; it is treated in a manner 
 which ought to excite the pity and indignation of every friend 
 to his country, and must be regarded by Christ himself as the 
 blackest ingratitude. 
 
 This incessant driving back to the days of the reformers, to 
 the discerning eye, fully develops their object. It is to leave 
 the people nothing to do ; to extinguish, at one stroke, all in- 
 quiry after truth, which, according to them, is scarcely to be 
 found in any thing but the barbarous Latin folios of the six- 
 teenth century, which few of the people, and, in fact, not 
 many of their teachers, can read. I ask, whether it would not 
 be more honourable, more dignified, more like ministers of 
 Christ, for them to ur;^e that they preach the doctrines of the 
 gospel, the doctrines of Christ and his Apostles ? But, Ah ! 
 they know better : that would not be so safe ; would not answer 
 their purpose so well; would be more liable to detection; 
 would not be so true; although it is not a fact verj^ easil}' made 
 out, that they preach the doctrines of any one of the reform- 
 ers. Yet it is aa assertion which few of their hearers can con- 
 tradict — an assertion which fills the ignorant with great venera- 
 tion. 
 
 2. Their preaching is not calculated to excite inquiry. They 
 say, they preach the doctrines of the Reformation ; but what do 
 they preach ? A triangle ! They dwell for ever on a few lead- 
 ing points, almost without variety of discussion. A congrega- 
 tion may hear them eternally; and never be wiser. If men are 
 not selfish by nature, when proselyted or converted by their 
 preaching, they come out daring advocates for selfishness. 
 Their three grand doctrines paralyze reason, quiet the con- 
 science, extinguish all endeavour after an amendment of life, 
 or to obtain God's favour, and make out a religion independent 
 of the heart or intellect. There is nothing in sin or holiness 
 but imputation ; the sinner is condemned and punished for im- 
 
36 
 
 puted guilt, made boly, justified, and saved, by imputed right- 
 eousness. His eternal destiny to misery was sealed prior to his 
 own actions; and the religion to which he is restored, and in 
 which he is eternally to stand, has no regard to his own moral 
 actions. His religion is faith, and faith is independent of rea- 
 son, prior to love, distinct from good works, and is a divine 
 principle. 
 
 Their preaching to the unregenerate world is lamer than Me- 
 phibosheth, who was lame on both his feet ; blinder than Barti- 
 meus, who was born Wind,* and weaker than Samson shorn 
 of his seven locks. They cannot convince a soul of sin, be- 
 cause Adam had done his work for him almost six thousand 
 years ago. They cannot preach the gospel to every one, be- 
 cause Christ did not die for every one, and there is no propitia- 
 tion for every one. They cannot make a soul perceive his 
 guilt, for not embracing salvation, even if provision were made 
 for him, because they tell him he is, in every sense, unable to 
 do it. 
 
 When they sometimes get on the subject of love or charity, 
 Ihey often become so eloquent, and work their hearers up into 
 such a flame, that they could almost tear down the houses of 
 those that do not admire the doctrine as much as they do ; at 
 any rate, would drive them out of the city if they could. With 
 regard to loving our neighbour as ourself, however, they are 
 very guarded ; and a great divine has lately given a remarkably 
 tine turn to that precept. He says, instead of loving God with 
 all our heart, and our neighbour as ourselves, that the law of 
 God required that a " man should love God rvilk unceasing solici- 
 tude, and his neighbour as extensively and forcibly as the pecu- 
 liar design of the Jewish economy, and the peculiar character of' 
 the Jewish people, would permit.^''^ How ingeniously turned ! 
 
 Reader, where these doctrines prevail there is no inquiry 
 after truth ; for as the tenets naturally extinguish all inquiry and 
 investigation, the more shrewd and discerning well know, that 
 candid and fair investigation would, infalUbly, result in dis- 
 sent. Hence, 
 
 * None are so blind as those that iVill not see. 
 ■Jr Romeyn'a Sermons, vol. I. p. 105. 
 
 4^. 
 
37 
 
 3. Various arts are used to prevent inquiries and investiga- 
 tions of a doctrinal nature. I spealt of what has been done, 
 and is now doing, in this city. 
 
 What books do they recommend, or, in plain English, allow 
 their people to read ? Very few — few indeed ! When they go 
 into a house, perhaps, they are not alarmed if they see Her- 
 vey's Meditations lying on a lady's table. And, wilh all my 
 heart, let them read it. Its beautiful descriptions and elegant 
 style, though, perhaps, sometimes a little turgid, and laboriously 
 ornamented, render it an interesting book; and, in general, it is 
 very innocent, while a vein of piety runs through it. Marshall 
 and Owen will do exceedingly ; are Antinomian enough for the 
 triangular landlord. What would they say if they should see 
 Edwards, or Hopkins, or Bellamy, or Emmons, on the table ? 
 Or, perhaps, some of Andrew Fuller's works, or the Triangle ? 
 And the good lady, if she were reading them in earnest, would 
 blush, if not tremble. Not many years ago, several of these 
 gentlemen pretended to be highly exasperated, because a book- 
 seller in this city published Bellamy's True Religion Delineated. 
 Some were really in great wrath, and talked very bijr about it, 
 and seemed as if almost determined to prosecute the publisher. 
 
 A few of their people have heard there is such a book as 
 Marshall on Sanctification, and, perhaps, one in a hundred have 
 seen it; but, alas, the support of their plan has no dependence 
 on books, on reasoning, on inquiry, on discussion ! Like the. 
 fern, it grows on heaths and commons, where there is no soil — 
 in solitudes, where the implements of tillage are never used ; 
 or, perhaps, like a m ell-known plant which blossoms under 
 ground, and if exposed to the light of the sun, its fruit will 
 blast. But I hasten to observe, 
 
 4. Care is taken to keep a host of prejudices continually 
 awake against all modes and forms of inquiry. If a man comes, 
 by chance, into their pulpits, and preaches a sermon leading to 
 inquiry, and there are certain trains of reasoning eminently 
 calculated for that end, they frown upon it, and put it down, 
 even though they may chance to approve the arguments ad- 
 vanced. They have a certain slang about metaphysics which 
 $11 their people well understand. "This is well enough,'' say 
 
38 
 
 <liey, " for tlial matter, but this carnal reasoning, tbis metaphy- 
 sical hair-splitting, docs not savour of the gospel ; I would ra- 
 ther hear something about Christ." Nothing was ever more 
 artful, and nothing was ever more hypocritical. The holy and 
 glorious Redeemer himself is made the stepping-stone of am- 
 bition, and he ^that came a light into the world, to enlighten 
 every man, is made to overshadow and obscure his own doc- 
 trines. 
 
 As they allow the preaching of others to open no source of 
 instruction, and lead to no examination — as in their own sermons 
 they trace round and round the triangle, till every stated hearer 
 knows, at the reading of the text, what side or what angle is 
 coming, so neither in their conversation do they lead to a single 
 avenue of light. In private conversation, they affect great lio- 
 liness and authority. They often make some ignorant gaper 
 believe, that they can pierce the veil and see things unutterable. 
 They talk about knocking boldly at heaven's gate — about de- 
 manding of God this and that favour; and of " keeping Christ 
 to his word." But, withal, they take care to be very mysterious 
 and mystical, and while, to the purblind catechumen, their faces 
 often shine like that of Moses from the mount, the poor fellow 
 is so dazzled, bewildered, and perhaps enraptured, that he has 
 little thought of asking questions, or clearing up diCBculties, and 
 perhaps no purpose can enter his mind, in those awful moments, 
 but that of seizing hold of the skirt of this great saint, and not 
 letting go till he gets beyond the gulf. 
 
 As for doctrinal discussions and inquiries among the people, 
 they are not encouraged — they are put quite out of fashion. 
 When they happen to meet, it is rather recommended to them 
 to talk about experimental religion; to wit, feelings which nei- 
 ther they nor their masters ever had. Far be it from me to say 
 they never felt experimental religion; I hope otherwise ; but the 
 feelings of a man's heart pay no regard to the prejudices of his 
 understanding, or the absurd theories of his brain. Bread and 
 beef are bread and beef, and look and taste alike in all countries, 
 though they may be called by very different names. The ge- 
 nuine feelings of religion in a mind where gross selfishness is 
 professed, and the grandest trait of the gospel, even universal 
 
39 
 
 propitiation, ilenleil, where sin and . holiness are resolved into 
 imputation, and faith is made the radical principle of religion, 
 must be in an uncomfortable situation — must resemble some 
 cornfields in Connecticut which I have seen, where the stories 
 were so high and so large that you must turn your hoe edgewise 
 to get earth enough to cover the seed. Yet I have known no- 
 ble crops of corn sometimes raised there, notwithstanding. 
 These stones lay on the surface, the soil was deeper. May it 
 prove to be so with these triangular Christians. 
 
 At all events, their experimental conversations generally turn 
 upon the sermons they have last heard; and from them, by an 
 easy periphrasis, to the men by whom they were delivered ; on 
 which latter interesting theme they can dwell for hours with 
 great earnestness and zeal. And full and perfect details of these 
 conversations, together with all the encomiums, praises, eulogies, 
 and applauses, reach their delighted ear within twenty hours 
 from the moment of delivery. And how much better this, both 
 for the minister and his flock, than for a set of men to meet, 
 each one with his metaphysical file, hammer, chissel, drill, or 
 scraper, to try the temper and the metal of the sermon ; nay, to 
 try all parts of truth, and boldly dare to form their own opinions 
 of every proposition? — Hence, I remark, 
 
 5. They neither promote nor encourage the study of the 
 scriptures, nor of theological truth among their people. Citi- 
 zens of New-York, and Christian Brethren, 1 would not lay this 
 charge had I not perfect assurance of its truth, and did I cot 
 sincerely believe it. And if I am mistaken in a point so funda- 
 mental, it is your interests I plead — it is the interests of thou- 
 sands of souls, who are perishing for lack of knowledge, which 
 induces me thus to encounter the shafts of malevolence, the 
 rage of the designing, and the curses of the proud. But let 
 them hurl their shafts, and let them fulminate their anathemas — 
 I will declare the truth. Tlieir thunders will not be heard on 
 that day when His voice who speaks in thunders shall decide 
 the question. Their many-coloured arts will gain ho advantage 
 in that court. 
 
10 
 
 '• Where there's no shuffling, where the action lies 
 In its true nature; and we ourselves compell'd. 
 Even to the teeth and forehead of our faults. 
 To give in evidence." 
 
 When an end is recommended as worthy to be attained, is it 
 not usual to recommend and set on foot the means of attain- 
 ment? How do they promote the study of the scriptures? 
 What methods do (hey propose? — None! absolutely none! 
 A man's name may be heard afar, and his pride may be 
 gratified, by becoming a distinguished leader even in a na- 
 tional Bible Society, while his stated hearers and church mem- 
 bers may be ignorant of the Bible. I highly approve of a 
 national Bible Society ; and I would to God. that every 
 church in this city were a bible society, in a far stricter sense : 
 which they are not. But the fault primarily and principally 
 is not theirs; it is the fault of those by whose artful manage- 
 ment that fairest book of knowledge is overlooked. Be not 
 mistaken, Reader : admiring a fine sermon, or praising the 
 piety and talents of a popular preacher, implies no knowledge 
 of the Bible. 
 
 They institute an abundance of prayer meetings, to which 
 I shall certainly make no objection. But " men ought to pray 
 everywhere, lifting up holy hands without wrath and doubting." 
 " When thou prayest, enter into thy closet," said the divine 
 teacher. Every one knows that it is less necessary for men to 
 assemble for purposes of prayer than of intelligence and in- 
 struction. Prayer is the soul's desire, going to God ; and what- 
 ever justness of form, or force of elocution, we may use, or may 
 be used in our hearing, a man prays for nothing but what he de- 
 sires. I say nothing against public prayers — nothing against 
 forms of prayer, which I have often heard with delight, affection, 
 and, I hope, with consentaneous desire. But without knowledge 
 the heart cannot be good ; and these are select means and salu- 
 tary institutions for promoting knowledge. 
 
 It is the remark of Addison, than whom few men possessed 
 a sounder intellect, that he never heard six men of common 
 understanding give their opinions deliberately on any subject, 
 however familiar, without gaining some new idea. Six men of 
 
41 
 
 ordinary capacity and information, who shall sit down, for art 
 evening hour's conversation, shall read six verses in the gos- 
 pel, and give their opinions distinctly and in rotation, upon each 
 verse; canvassing each other's opinions, raising and solving ob- 
 jections with the freedom, simplicity, and kindness of Christians 
 —marking their application to, and influence on conduct, and 
 they shall retire instructed and edified, probably more than from 
 hearing an ordinary judicious sermon. They surely cannot 
 come up with Dr. Campbell, that prince of biblical critics. They 
 cannot produce an elegant and learned dissertation on the dif- 
 ferent shades of the meaning of the terms Knjuao-u, EoafyiKi^u, 
 and AiJao-MU; they cannot show that the plural of Aiaeo\ot does not 
 mean devils, or that AiatoKai signifies nothing worse than tattling 
 old women. They have not oriental learning to carry them 
 back to the Talmuds, and Targuras, to the ancient copies and 
 versions, neither can they collate so many of the different read- 
 ings, or so many of the strange and ridiculous expositions of 
 old writers, as to render the plainest passage of the Bible ob- 
 scure and unintelligible. They cannot quote Rab. Sol. Ben 
 Jarchi, Kennicottius, Father Simon, Gosselinus nor Rambag- 
 gius. 
 
 The Bible abounds in plain truth, expressed in a manner 
 adapted to the meanest capacity ; in this it surpasses any book 
 that ever was written. The greatest reader with whom I was ever 
 acquainted, once remarked to me, that he had often been sur- 
 prised to perceive, when he came to read expositors and anno- 
 tators, in how many instances his first and most childish appre- 
 hensions of the meaning of scripture had been confirmed, and 
 in bow few instances his first and earliest notions of the mean- 
 ing of the Bible, whether obtained from the conversation of his 
 parents, or from bis own almost involuntary reflections, had 
 been discovered to be incorrect. 
 
 Errors in doctrine do not generally originate from mere in- 
 advertent misconceptions of scripture, but from far more cul- 
 pable causes. Learning and ingenuity have had a large share 
 in corrupting divine truth. When a man of greai talents has a 
 favourite theory to make out, what must he do ? He runs through 
 the Bible, and like the tyrant who stretched or clipped bis guests 
 
 6 
 
42 
 
 to suit them to his bedstead, he effectually stretches or clips every 
 adverse passage till it suits him : he confuses the perspicuous, dis- 
 torts proportion, penumbrates the luminous, illustrates the ob- 
 scure ; breaks the neck of one passage to straighten it, of another 
 to crook it; clothes one passage with as many glosses as the 
 daughter of Aurengzeebe wore suits of imperial gauze, and scaiths 
 another as the morbid dissector does his subject, to lay bare the 
 muscles: — in fine, his theory is his line, which he stretches upon 
 (he Bible, and, like a master workman, raises or depresses, ad- 
 vances or retreats, every part till it hits the line. The work 
 is done ; and he has displayed great learnino; and equal talents, 
 with which the reader is charmed, and no less awed by his au- 
 thority and name. He has done it with a master's hand, and 
 perhaps it might require learning and talents equal to his own 
 to confute him. 
 
 Men admire, and the world follows him; but, reader, if God's 
 word were like the human body, it would bleed under his hand 
 ;n every part, and suffer pain in every member. By these me- 
 thods, every doctrine of the Roman, the Greek, the Arminian, 
 the Antinomian, is made out. But the word of God is not 
 such a book as can naturally lead to this infinite confusion of 
 opinions. It is ambition and selfishness that do the work. When 
 the day of God shall pour resistless light on every understand- 
 ing, men shall see that their errors have been the offspring of 
 pride and wilful blindness. 
 
 Every man is ready to say, " show me that I am wrong, and 
 I will reform." But, alas ! when errors have become popular, 
 supported by great names, beautified and adorned by wealth 
 and fashion, and fortified and defended by prejudice, passion, 
 influence, and power, who is willing to see them in the light of 
 error ? Who has fortitude to meet the frowns of the powerful, 
 the censure of those reputed for wisdom, the contempt of the, 
 learned, and the hatred or pity of the multitude 1 Barriers 
 these, through which few can break. Here lies the strength of 
 error, and the strongest bulwark against reformation. Errors 
 are generally weak in themselves, far less supported by reason 
 or evidence than truth ; but they derive gigantic force from 
 
43 
 
 tbeir agreeableness to the mind, and from the difficully there 
 is in resisting the multitude. 
 
 I am no enemy to biblical criticism; I would be quite wil- 
 ling that our masters and professors in that noble science had 
 ten times more of it than they have. I do not think tliem yet 
 mad through much learning; yet I am aware that biblical criti- 
 cism, as a profession, and as a science, may assume an attitude 
 so imposing ; may be so managed as to check, discourage, and 
 crush the taste and spirit of inquiry into the import of the 
 scriptures in the great body of the people. And I have seen, 
 with inexpressible regret and disgust, that the professed exposi- 
 tors of the Bible, in this city, do artfully carry that business 
 with so lofty and mysterious a hand, that the people, without 
 knowing it, are led to regard the Bible, except when its mean- 
 ing is dealt out to them in precious morsels by their teachers, 
 as an almost sealed book. 
 
 I ask every reflecting man whether a wise nation will sur- 
 render up their liberties at the discretion of their rulers, because 
 those rulers are wise and virtuous men ? If they do, they are 
 a ruined people; and this has been the ruin and downfall of ail 
 free governments. But how much more so has it ruined the 
 church of Christ ! When mankind surrender their understand- 
 ings and consciences, without examination, to a set of men, 
 they never more deserve to be entrusted with understandings, 
 since they refuse to use them in the grandest of ail concerns for 
 which an understanding is given, or can be of use. 
 
 The moral maxims of vital importance to human happiness, 
 the great body of practical wisdom, and, indeed, all the grand 
 truths essential to salvation, are made perfectly plain in the 
 Bible. But that which never engages the attention cannot be 
 known, however plain it is made. Nothing can sufficiently en- 
 gage the attention which is not made the subject of thought, 
 reflection, conversation, and discussion. Conversation with a 
 familiar friend, expressing our own conceptions and views of 
 a subject, is the only way in which we become acquainted 
 with that subject. Why is it necessary that ministers of re- 
 ligion should have about them such a vast apparatus of learn- 
 ing — should know so much and so accurately about theology ? 
 
44 
 
 Is it merely to make a splendu] show, and now and then come 
 out aad dazzle and astonish their hearers with the pomp of 
 their erudition ? Doubtless; if we may judge from the con- 
 duct of many. Of what use is it if a man is looked upon as a 
 walking, moving mass of divinity, if it must live and die in 
 hie carcass, and his infatuated admirers go on gazing and ad- 
 miring him for his great knowledge, while they, alas ! are 
 comparatively ignorant, sleek and easy, as the horses that drag 
 their v,aiiiage ? 
 
 One grand reason why it is useful for a clergyman to possess 
 great knowledge is, that he may communicate that knowledge, 
 and take measures that his people may also excel in knowlr-dge, 
 which I hesitate not to declare is not done at all, or most miser- 
 ably done, by many in this city. 
 
 I have said the study of the scriptures, and the discussion 
 of scripture doctrines, among the people at large, is not encour- 
 aged in this city. Who has taken any vigorous measures for 
 the attainment of that object ? What associations were ever 
 formed among the people, and what progress made. So far 
 from it, I venture to affirm, that, were any one of all these tri- 
 angular pontiffs to discover, that a large number of his most 
 judicious hearers had associated together, to meet once a week, 
 to read the scriptures, and discuss doctrinal points, he would feel 
 the greatest alarm, and would take immediate measures to sup- 
 press it. I put it to the consciences of those gentlemen that I 
 speak the truth. Yes, ttj^y would feel much alarm, and with 
 much reason : for so sure as the sun gives light, should the re- 
 ligious people of this city take a simultaneous determination 
 to " read the scriptures daily," and, like the noble Bereans, ex- 
 amine for themselves, " whether these things be so," this 
 wretched triangular, limited, contracted scheme of Antinomian 
 selfishness would vanish away. 
 
 No : there are no such associations. — And whilst there is not 
 a nobler object for which an association could be formed ; whilst 
 there are missionary societies, charitable societies, praying so- 
 cieties, Sunday school societies, bible societies, there are no 
 societies, amongst rich or poor, male or female, old or young, 
 
45 
 
 pious or impious, for reading and understanding that invaluable 
 book; for discussing and understanding those glorious and aw- 
 ful, those sublime and venerable, doctrines on which man's eter- 
 nal felicity depends. They are willing, it seems, that people 
 should pray, and give their money bountifully; that they should 
 send Bibles to the Heathen, but do they wish them, in earnest, 
 to take up that Bible, and adopt the only true and vigorous 
 methods of understanding it? "I trow not." 
 
 A nobler amusement, a richer repast for the mind, an exer- 
 cise better adapted to invigorate the faculties, enlarge the un- 
 derstanding, to amalgamate different minds, and conflicting 
 opinions, cannot be devised. And the progress which the 
 mind makes in these exercises is delightful and surprising. "I 
 will speak," said Elihu, " that I may be refreshed." The mind, 
 like the body, is invigorated by exercise ; and if never exer- 
 cised it is ever feeble and unformed. Six men, as I said above, 
 who shall give their opinions on but six verses of the scriptures, 
 however weak they may appear, at first, will, in a little time, 
 acquire facility by repeated efforts, system and arrangement by 
 previous reflection, and from those very words, which they 
 have heard pronounced hundreds of times, without awakening 
 a sino;le idea, new thoughts will occur, new beauties will expand, 
 and important knowledge will be gained. It is well known 
 that the human mind will improve in nothing to which it is 
 made but the passive spectator. And this remark applies with 
 greater force to that species of instruction derived from hearing. 
 The habitual and orderly expression of our own thoughls, at 
 stated periods, invigorates the powers of association and combi- 
 nation, fixes the mind to its object, assists comparison and de- 
 duction, while the mind resembles the distaft', and the discourse 
 the hand which draws out the thread. 
 
 But, alas ! if self evident truth fails of any effect, if the no- 
 blest motives are without force against a tide of prejudice, and 
 against the influence of a set of men, who patrole every street, 
 and stand, anedis auribus, at every corner, catching the undu- 
 lations of every whisper, and forestalling the incipient symptoms 
 of conviction, in vain do I dwell on this theme, Nevertheless^ 
 
46 
 
 it will not disturb the repose of my dying pillow, that I have 
 lifted my voice while others were silent ; that I have incurred 
 the resentment of those whose friendship will prove more for- 
 midable to thousands than their enmity can be to one. 
 
 With few words I shall close this number. I have stated 
 gome of the methods used to prevent any disposition to inquire 
 after truth; any taste for doctrinal discussion; and, combining 
 with other, and, perhaps, accidental causes, they have rendered 
 it altogether unfashionable. The very taste for such conversa- 
 tion, reading, reflection, and pursuit, is extirpated, and there 
 may also be clearly perceived in it the operation of judicial 
 blindness. It is in the nature of man to love darkness rather 
 than light, because his deeds are evil. 
 
 But there is one other method more recently resorted to, to 
 which I siiall briefly advert. The sword is drawn, and the point 
 of ecclesiastical censure is now fairly presented and opposed to 
 the breast of every one who dares to deviate from what these 
 divines term orthodoxy. In the last number of the last series, 
 I noticed the pastoral letter of the synod of Philadelphia, in 
 which Hopkinsian tenets are denounced as heresy. They have 
 also fairly past a test act by which every minister licentiate is 
 to be examined touching those points, and if found a Hopkin- 
 sian, is to be rejected. I noticed in the first series the expulsion 
 of Mr. D from a seminary in this city, because he advoca- 
 ted those sentiments; and the same man whose signature 
 adorned that disgraceful act of expulsion, has very lately, in a , 
 missionary society of this city, exerted his influence successfully 
 
 against Mr. C- , and procured his rejectioa as a missionary, 
 
 on the charge of his not being sound in the faith; although one 
 third of the board of directors of the society agree in sentiments 
 with Mr. C . 
 
 This gentleman is becoming famous on the list of bigotry 
 and intolerance, and it is tilting that his official conduct be held 
 up to public observation. Neither ought the reader to imagine 
 that I am actuated by mere gratuitous malice in calling his at- 
 tention to such conduct. The people of this country, and of 
 this city in special, ought t^i study the fable of the shepherd's 
 
boy and the wolves. They have in fact so often, and so long, 
 heard the cry of wolves: they have heard the cry of Tyranny ! 
 Tyranny ! from all quarters, from all parties, till they have 
 grown callous to the cry ; yet wolves will come at last. 
 
 The people ought to be apprised, that the points of doctrine, 
 so recently censured by these men as heresy, have never been 
 considered, in any part of this.country, as a bar to communion, 
 or as a wall of separation between Christians, as individuals or as 
 churches. They are not so considered in the churches of Eng- 
 land or Scotland, nor, indeed, by any of the protestant churches 
 in Europe, except where mingled with other matters which in- 
 volve religious order and discipline. 
 
 Is it a happy omen — does it promise well to the Christian 
 church; in this country, that such a bigoted and intolerant spirit 
 should now begin to show its deformed features and cloven 
 foot? Is it best for individuals, and churches, and Presbyteries, 
 and Synods — nay, for different denominations and sects, to begin 
 to hurl their censures and anathemas at one another? Shall 
 Bible and Missionary Societies, generally embracing denomina- 
 tions of different sentiments, turn from their great object, and 
 fall upon their own members with base invectives and furious 
 anathemas ? Yes : — this, it seems, is now to be done, and a grand 
 specimen was recently given, as already noticed, in which a 
 young licentiate of most unblemished morals, exemplary piety, 
 and promising talents, was rejected as a missionary, and con- 
 demned as unsound in the faith. 
 
 This hopeful business was managed, and violently carried 
 through, though one third of the members of the board agreed 
 in doctrine with Mr. C by the same man who aided, or rather 
 was principal, in D's expulsion. I ask the candid and well-dis- 
 posed of all denominations, of all orders, whether such a man 
 can be regarded in any other light than as a blind, haughty, and 
 furious bigot ? I ask the disinterested reader what sort of min- 
 istry that will be, trained up in his maxims, formed from his pre- 
 cepts and examples ? nor will they need to wait his falling man- 
 tle, to imbibe a double portion of his spirit : For that is a spirit, 
 into which " Nm dodi, sed natt, nnn in.ftitiili, sed imbttti sumusy 
 
48 
 
 There is no privilege, it would seem, no honour, no public 
 nor private advantas[e, to be derived from that equal considera- 
 tion, reciprocity of indulgence and charity, equality of rank and 
 immunity, which all religious sects hold in the eye of our free 
 and excellent constitution, and are thereby required to hold in 
 the eye of each other. From this soil of liberty and justice, 
 watered by the blood of patriots, is now to spring up, not a 
 crop of warriors, where dragon's teeth had been sown, but a 
 race of stern, unrelenting, religious despots, who are to change 
 the order of things in this country. And as property and lucra- 
 tive stations are primary objects with them, they will seize, if 
 possible, on the great cities, and fix their triangular iron box on 
 every pericranium they can allure, flatter, babble, or frigh- 
 ten into it; and if any one throws it ofl", ah! a heretic! a 
 heretic! "unsound in the faith!" "rotten at the core!" And 
 could they have but the syndics and civil magistrates to second 
 their pious endeavours, and carry home their holy censures, 
 what reformations we should have ! we should quickly see the 
 days of the Reformers return ; and there would be none of the 
 •' northern storm" in all this. No! but frequent blasts from a 
 hotter and more murky region. 
 
 Whoever shall read this number, and shall judge that the se- 
 verity of the remarks are disproportioned to the requisition of 
 the occasion, will do well to consider the grand theme repeated 
 by the voice of the union herself, at every anniversary of our 
 independence. Why did our forefathers leave the shores 
 of Europe, and encounter the perils of the deep — the dangers 
 and privations of the wilderness ? Liberty of conscience was 
 one grand motive. Here, under a guiding providence, they 
 planted the Tree of LiBhRTv, and by the suns and showers of 
 heaven, it has grown to a majestic size. Whoever opposes 
 the censures of the church to freedom of opinion and private 
 judgment, in the manner these men have done, is a religious ty- 
 rant, and sins against the highest privilege of the nation ; and 
 had our civil rulers no more discretion and virtue than he has, 
 our land, from being a land of freedom and happiness, would 
 become an Aceldama — a field of blood. 
 
49 
 
 Reatlcr, you hear, in these pages the voice of a single, ob" 
 scure, unknown, indi\idual. You ean, with ease, slight and 
 spurn it. With ease can you tear the unfinished page, or hurl 
 the book into the flames, as the infatuated king of Judah did the 
 message of the prophet. But you 'viU percieve that that rash act 
 did not save his country, nor himself; neither will a similar act 
 prevent or procrastinate the evils which impend. Had public bo- 
 dies a consciousness, and could the religious community of this 
 vast country speak, as saith the prince of orators, " Si ilia, una 
 voce, loqueretur,''^ she would bewail, with tears, the ingratitude of 
 her children; she would express her indignation, in a language 
 suitable to her dignity, at those who envy others the blessings 
 they derive from her ; and her contempt at Ihe impotent ambition 
 which claims powers which she never granted. But she would 
 perceive these daring attempts, generally made by strangers to 
 her blood, and aliens to her free and noble spirit : — exotics, 
 which, withering in their own native soil aad climate, have been 
 transplanted hither, to fatten on the credulity of the simple, to 
 prove the virtue of the upright, and to punish the ingratitude of 
 the wicked. 
 
 INVESTIGATOR. 
 
 No. IIL 
 
 I HAVE said, in the preceding number, that the people in this 
 city, who listen to a certain strain of preaching, which I have 
 styled triangular, are not well instructed in the great doctrines 
 of Christianity. I do not say this without a due consideration 
 of the allegation it imports ; and I am fully aware, that to the 
 candid mind of persons at a distance, or to the incautious on 
 the spot, it may appear too severe. It shall be the business of 
 this number to make good the ground here assumed. 
 
 The instructions given are incorrect in their nature, deficient 
 is their extent, and tend to extinguish rather than excite inquiry- 
 
 7 
 
50 
 
 Two volumes of sermons have lately been published in the 
 eity.* These sermons I offer as documents to prove the first 
 part of this charge, viz. that incorrect instructions are given. 
 When a man comes out in two large volumes of sermons, in a 
 great and polished city, we have some reason to believe he has 
 selected his ablest productions.f The third sermon of vol. I. is 
 entitled " The glory of a nation." Page 104-5, this writer 
 observes, 
 
 " We shall first examine their laws, (the Hebrew,) confining 
 ourselves, however, to a few general notices. 
 
 *' In these laws, the great principles of moral duty are pro- 
 mulgated with a solemnity suited to their high pre-eminence. 
 Love to God, 7vith unceasing solicitude, and love to our neigh- 
 bour, as extensively and forcibly as the peculiar design of the 
 Jewish economy, and the peculiar character of the Jewish people 
 would permit, are enjoined.'''' 
 
 On these two commands, says Christ, hang all the law and 
 the prophets ; and they doubtless comprise the soul and es- 
 sence of all religion ; " for," saith the Apostle John, " he that 
 loveth is born of God: and he that dwelleth in love, dwellethin 
 God, and God in him." 
 
 But was ever such a definition given of the law of God as 
 our divine here gives ? — a definition so poor, so meager and 
 %vretched ? — a definition which tarnishes, nay, abolishes the di- 
 vine law? I think a common school boy will perceive its hol- 
 lowness : a person nourished from youth on the amor sui will 
 even be shocked to read it. Who ever heard of loving God 
 with "solicitude?" The first and grand import of solicitude is 
 anxiety, which consists in a perturbed, depressed, fluctuating, 
 fearful, and painful state of mind. Never was there a more ill- 
 chosen term to delineate the holy and glorious affection of per- 
 fect love, which God's law requires. " Perfect love casteth out 
 fear f ' " And herein," says John, " is our love made perfect that 
 we may have boldness in the day of judgment." But does not 
 
 • Dr. Roraeyn*s. 
 
 f A great writer says, that a man must be tall at 20j beautiful at SO, rich 
 *t 40, and wise at 50 ; or else never tall, beautifulj rich, or wise. The author 
 of the sermoHS ought not to be far from wise. 
 
51 
 
 the law require perfect, supreme love to God, an aUection free 
 from all solicitude? 
 
 Selfish love lo God is indeed full of solicitude — full of anxie- 
 efy, because it is grounded on notRing but an expectation of 
 benefit; and as the selfish man*h^s no certain evidence that 
 God mil continue to do him good, nothing is so faint, so waver- 
 ing, so full of anxiety, as his love to God. 
 
 But the second part of this definition is still, if possible, more 
 extraordinary. This writer tells us, that the law requires a man 
 *' to love his neighbour as extensively and forcibly as the peculiar 
 design of the Jewish economy, and the peculiar character of the 
 Jewish people woidd permit. It seems, then, that a man's love to 
 his neighbour is to be regulated by two considerations, 1st. 
 The peculiar design of the Jewish econotny, and 2d. The peculiar 
 character of the Jewish people. In the name of all that is mar- 
 vellously absurd, I desire to know what connexion a man's 
 love to his neighbour has with the peculiar design of the Jewish 
 economy, and which way this wonderful definition points ? I 
 any definition or exposition of the spirit of the moral law ever 
 merited for a man the epithet of Antinomian, surely this defini- 
 tion does for its author. For the peculiar design of the Jewish 
 economy being long ago accomplished, that economy was 
 brought to an end ; and with it a man's obligation to love his 
 neighbour, according to this profound expositor. 
 
 But even while that economy lasted, what does this defini- 
 tion make out, concerning the extent and force of a man's love 
 to his neighbour ? — " As extensively and forcibly," says the wri- 
 ter, "as the peculiar design of the Jewish economy would per- 
 mit." Captain Cook sailed as far south as the fields of ice would 
 permit : — they stopped his progress. So, it seems, the Jews were 
 not allowed to love one another any more than their peculiar 
 economy could permit. In their peculiar economy they found 
 a harrier, at which they might tack about, from love to hatred, 
 as suddenly as Cook did when he met the fields of ice. If the 
 expression does not imply this, it implies nothing. But, alas ! 
 since the Jewish economy is abolished, and its peculiar designs 
 accomplished, men may now love as much or as little as they 
 please ; and love now makes no part of religion. 
 
52 
 
 Lfet not the reader make up his mind too suddenly, that I 
 overstrain the writer's meaning; for I will sbow him, before I 
 have done, that all this ia intended by this able expositor of the 
 divine law. 
 
 Had the learned Doctor been contented with oue definition, or, 
 rather, with setting up one barrier against the letterand spirit of 
 the law of God — had he been satisfied with liuiiling and abol- 
 ishing the obligation of love to our neighbour, with the Jewish 
 economy, he would simply have justified his classification with 
 the boldest of Antinomians. But this was not enough. This 
 duty of love to our neighbour must be narrowed down by a 
 far more definite barrier; for, to say a man must love his neigh- 
 bour as extensively and forcibly as the peculiar design of the 
 Jewish economy would permit, leaves it vastly at random. Some 
 people might be pleased to say that that economy required a 
 great degree of love, whilst others affirmed it required veiy little. 
 But our author settles this point by another barrier, of a very 
 different material. " The law required," says he, " that a man 
 should love his neighbour as extensively and forcibly as the 
 peculiar character of the Jewish people would permit.''^ 
 
 There can be no doubt what " the peculiar character of the 
 Jewish people" was. They were a people stiff-necked, and un- 
 circumcised in heart, and even during the forty days, while the 
 law was preparing on Siuai — while, as yet, the trumpet had hard- 
 ly ceased to roar, or the thunders of the voice of God to shake 
 the earth, they revolted into open idolatry, and made an idol to 
 lead them back io Egypt. The law of God, says this writer, 
 required this people to love one another as much " as their pe- 
 culiar character would permilP 
 
 Reader, this is plain English; turn to the 104th page of the 
 first volume, and there you will find it. But how much love 
 did " the peculiar character of the Jewish people permit V I an- 
 swer none; for, as a people, they were a peculiarly rebellious 
 and hardened people. To say the least, as a people they were 
 unregenerate, and void of every degree of that love to God and 
 f ach other, which his law requires. 
 
 Here is no perversion of an equivocal, or intricate sentence, 
 and the fact, on which I predicate the allegation, ia in no ma,n- 
 
53 
 
 ner constructive, but plain, simple, and obvious, for every one 
 to read. 
 
 This exposition of the law of God, seems as much to baffle 
 all comment, as it mocks at all comparison. Men, instead of 
 being required to love God supremely, and their neighbour as 
 themselves, are said to be required to love God with constant 
 solicitude — with slavish, base, and painful anxiety, and their 
 neighbour as much as their depraved nature and character 
 would permit. 
 
 Before I proceed further, I think I am justified in calling upon 
 the reader to judge for himself, whether a man who is capable 
 of giving such an exj)lanation of the love of God can be expected 
 to lead the minds of his hearers into correct and just views of 
 truth, or to convey wholesome instructions on the important 
 doctrines of revelation. His personal friends, of which class I 
 surely hope he is noi destitute, will probably say, in his vindica- 
 tion, that he sometimes gives a better explanation of this grand 
 article. Does he, indeed ? — I wish he always gave a better ; — 
 one thing is certain, he cannot give a worse; and, what is pe- 
 culiarly unfortunate for him, I have my eye on another similar 
 attempt in these sermons to fritter away to nothing the obligation 
 of loving our iieighbour as ourselves. This precept of (he law 
 comes so fearfully near to the doctrine of disinterested benevo- 
 lence, that this writer, and all others of his class, must explain it 
 away. They hate the sight and sound of it as much as the Sa- 
 racens and Turks hated the sight of a monument of Grecian 
 architecture, and have taken as much pains to destroy it ; but, 
 as it is too massive to be undermined, they have attempted to 
 dilapidate its columns, architraves, and pilasters, and deface its 
 relievos and inscriptions. 
 
 The suggestion, that the Doctor somelimes explains the divine 
 law in a less exceptionable manner, brings to my mind Sir Isaac 
 Newton's optical doctrine of ^^fcts of easy (ranstnisaion.'' He 
 supposes that luminous bodies, and particularly the sun, throw 
 out their light in certain sudden vibrations ; which, instead of a 
 better term, he is pleased to call fits of easy transmission. The 
 Doctor, in his easy fits of transmission throws out ideas which, 
 in general, he seems willing to conceal. He often speaks of the 
 
infiuUe purity and eternal obligation of the divine law ; wiiicii 
 fine flourish leads the incautious reader or hearer into a total 
 mistake. To love God with sohcitude, and our neighbour as 
 extensively and forcibly as the design of the Jewish economy, 
 and the character of the Jewish people would permit, neither 
 conveys the idea of infinite purity or eternal obligation, but ra- 
 ther of infinite vileness and eternal stupidity, and especially in 
 the expositor who dares thus to degrade and annihilate the mo- 
 ral law 
 
 For, admitting the law to be still in force, what is it worth 
 requiring men to love God with solicitude, and each other as 
 much as their depraved characters would permit? But its ob- 
 ligation being measured by the design of the Jewish economy 
 it mubt have been abrogated and done away with that economy. 
 And this is the author's meaning ; to establish which, is not 
 merely once attempted, but is the great labour of his life, and 
 aim of his public instructions. 
 
 Of what avail is a pompous concession of the infinite purity 
 and eternal obligation of the law, after such an exposition of 
 that law as we have before us ? But, independent of this exposi- 
 tion, even had this writer expounded the import and spirit of 
 the law never so correctly, his notion of the gospel places his 
 scheme precisely on the Antinomian ground. Christ has paid 
 the sinner's debt ; taken the sinner into a mystical union with 
 himself; made over his righteousness to the sinner; and asiie 
 •s " of full weight and incasure, peifeclly conformable to the law, 
 he makes them [the sinner) just, or of full weight before God, by 
 clothing them with his righteousness P 
 
 He then adds, p. 69. " This doctrine of righteousness through a 
 Redeemer, otherwise called the righteousness of faith, is the radical 
 "principle of revealed religion, from Genesis to Revelation.'" I 
 put his words in italics that they may not be overlooked. And 
 he closes this wonderful paragraph by saying, " This is the 
 
 SUBSTANCE OF THE GOSPEL." 
 
 I beg the reader to follow me with a little patience, and I 
 will ferret the serpent from the crevices of his rock. By Ifee 
 serpent I do not mean the man, but his monstrous error. 
 
 Reader, you now have before you the Doctor's view of the law 
 
55 
 
 and the gospel. The great precept on which hangs all the law 
 and the prophets, under his transforming pen, is made to say, 
 Thou shalt love the Lord thy God vvilh unceasing solicitude, i. e. 
 with painful and depressing anxiety and perturbation, and thy 
 neighbour, as much as the design of the Jewish economy, and 
 the depraved character of the Jewish people would permit. And, 
 it seems, taking them together, they permitted none at all. 
 
 His obvious motive for measuring our love to our neighbour, 
 by the design of the Jewish economy, and the character of the 
 Jewish people, was to exclude it wholly from the religion of 
 Christ; accordingly, he declares, p. 69. that '■^ this doctrine of 
 righteousness through a Redeemer, otherwise called the righteous- 
 ness of faith, is the radical principle of revealed religion, from 
 Genesis to Revelation, and is the substance of the Gospel. 
 
 In this statement of the law and gospel, I perceive a wretched 
 specimen of the unwearied endeavours, which have for years 
 been made in this city, to establish a loathsome system of selfish- 
 ness and Antinomianism ; to pervert the faith of Christians, and 
 to sap the foundations of truth. I beg the reader to notice, that 
 this view of these fundamental truths involves the following 
 errors, and I shall leave him to estimate their magnitude. 
 
 1. The law of God requires no creature to love God with 
 solicitude. If the Doctor mistook the meaning of the term solici- 
 tude, and thought it conveyed the idea of supreme love of God, 
 I would recommend it to him to recall and suppress this edi- 
 tion of his sermons, till he can have time to study the import 
 of language ; or, at any rate, to defer publishing the remaining 
 volumes, of which there seems to be a dignified hint in his 
 preface, till he can peruse Johnson or Walker. I think either 
 of these steps would save him some solicitude. He speaks of 
 Christ's exact conformity to the law. I hope he does not ima- 
 gine that Christ loved God with " unceasing solicitude," &c. &c. 
 
 2. The law of God required that a man love his neighbour 
 as himself; and so far from limiting the eztensiveness. and force 
 of that affection, by the peculiar design of the Jewish economy, 
 which would suppose the duty to expire with that economy, 
 and be vague and unmeaning while it lasted — or, by the pecu- 
 liar character of the Jewish people, which would absolutely re- 
 duce it to nothing, would annihilate it altogether ; the require- 
 
56 
 
 inent had no relation to the Jewish economy, or character of the 
 Jewish people. And no pretence was ever more absurd or 
 false, than the one here set up, for the purpose of cancelling the 
 second great command in the law, or destroying its obligation. 
 
 3. The Antinornian is known for his opposition to all moral 
 virtue; and for setting up faith, as every thing in religion: and 
 yet his faith, as much as he makes of it, is but a wretched patch 
 of mysticism, and a suitable instrument of self-deception. How 
 many degrees from this is the Doctor's idea of gospel religion? He 
 allows the Christian no righteousness but imputed righteousness. 
 He allows, indeed, that before man fell he was bound by an 
 obligation of moral or personal holiness, but as a sinner he strips 
 him of all ability — and, as a redeemed sinner, removes him in- 
 finitely distant from the department of moral virtue; — describes 
 that whole department in the most degrading, loathsome, and 
 sickening terms, as consisting in base and seltish love to God, 
 and a love to men circumscribed by the narrow and perishing 
 barriers of the Jewish economy, and the still worse character of 
 the Jewish people : in short, he profanes the temple of rational, 
 moral virtue and holiness, by something worse than swine's flesh ; 
 fills it with loathsome deformity, and disgusting filth, to prevent 
 all return to it for ever — and then most pompously declares, that 
 the righteousness of faith is the radical principle of revealed 
 religion, from the beginning of the Bible to the end, and the 
 substance of the gospel. 
 
 I ask the stated hearers of this gentleman, how long it is since 
 they have heard him, in an elaborate pulpit effort, endeavour to 
 show that religion does not consist in love, but in failh ? — in 
 which he strove, with all his might, to make out that love to 
 God and men is a merely legal, antiquated. Old Testament, 
 " Jewish economy" affair ? — in which he was at much pains 
 to scatter over the fair and glorious field of moral virtue the 
 crudities of Antinomian pollution? Many intelligent persons, 
 who are not only judges of doctrine, but of logic and sermon- 
 izing, who may chance to see these remarks, will, I trust, re- 
 member something about that sermon. 
 
 How long shall the blind be led by the blind ? How long 
 ghaU prejudice and error n«urp the throne of reason: nay, 
 
57 
 
 usurp the awful province of divine instruction, and lead theii 
 willing votaries to remediless perdition 1 Reader, these are no 
 trifles, and it looks but too much like the fearful business of 
 groping in the dark after an unknown Saviour — like seizing 
 some of the ghostly phantoms that glimmer there, and holding 
 it forth as the object of faith- To make righteousness without 
 holiness, and a religion without goodness, has ever been the 
 desideratum of wicked men; and when any project to this ef- 
 fect has been set on foot, however absurd, however monstrous, 
 it never fails of finding its advocates and admirers. 
 
 The righteousness of faith (if that phrase be properly under- 
 stood) forms certainly an important article in Christian doctrine, 
 as it refers directly to the pardon and justification of the sinner. 
 That act of grace by which the sinner is pardoned and justi- 
 fied before God, will ever be remembered with eternal grati- 
 tude and praise by all the redeemed ; nor will it be remem 
 bered, but in connection with its proper grounds, the atone- 
 ment and work of Christ, by which alone it is brought about; 
 But is there nothing in religion but pardon and justification? — 
 nothing but faith by which that pardon and justification is re- 
 ceived ? It is painful to perceive how men run distracted — in- 
 to what wild extremes they are hurried in pursuit of a favourfte 
 hypothesis. The redemption of a sinner is a glorious and a 
 most gracious work of God ; but the sinner is redeemed, par- 
 doned, justified, restored, that he may become a good subject, 
 of God's great kingdom — may be reinstated in holy and perfect 
 love for ever. 
 
 There is but one true religion in God's kingdom, as there is 
 but one law, and but one God. The moment a sinner is born 
 again, he is in that religion ; he is born into it. For he that 
 loveth is born of God, and he that dwelleth in love, dwelleth 
 in God, and God in him. Faith is an important act, which ra- 
 ther leads to, than makes up, the body of religion. Faith can 
 hardly be called a principle, in any sense ; it is a particular 
 act of a creature, and, as far as relates to the intellect, has for 
 its object certain particular acts of God — I mean the work of 
 atonement and redemption. There will be no faith in heaven ; 
 In that glorious world faith will be swallowed up in vision ; and 
 
58 
 
 ttat which in this world gives faith its moral value and excel- 
 lence, is the sole consideration that it works by love, and in 
 that way becomes holiness or virtue. 
 
 The justifying power or efficacy of faith arises from the sim- 
 ple consideration of its being the sinner's rational and hearty 
 acquiescence in the salvation God has provided for the sinner. 
 Of course, as far as the understanding is concerned, as far as 
 faith is the mere assent to the evidence of facts, there is no 
 more virtue in it than in any other assent to the understanding- 
 But when the understanding believes in the record God has 
 given of his Son, and the heart cordially receives that record, 
 and joyfully confides in it, that faith becomes saving, because 
 the sinner then " receives Christ, and rests upon him alone for 
 salvation, as he is offered in the gospel." 
 
 Faith does not derive its justifying, or saving power, from cer- 
 tain mystical qualities, or nameless properties it contains; and 
 those who talk about the implantation of divine principles, 
 which no mortal can conceive of, and the constitution of mysti- 
 cal and spiritual unions which no one can describe, deceive their 
 hearers, if not themselves. Some idea may be formed of faith 
 by considering its opposite, unbelief; which is in general hatred 
 and rejection of the truth. The great object of redemption is 
 to recover the sinner from his ruined state — to make him holy 
 and happy ; and on the sinner's part, it is necessary for him 
 to understand the plan of redemption, or so much of it as relates 
 immediately to his case ; to approve of it in his heart, to receive 
 it, and acquiesce in it, by obedience. 
 
 There is but one sort of holiness, or moral goodness, in God's 
 kingdom. Creatures who have that, are like God. and are in 
 the image of God. God is love, and he that dwelleth in love, 
 dwelleth in God, and God in him. Hence, as fallen man is in 
 a state of enmity to God, and of supreme self-love, a great 
 change is necessary to restore him to God's favour. This change 
 is called a second birth : a man must be born again, i. e. he 
 must undergo an entire change of heart, from hatred to love. 
 Hence, saith the scripture, " he that loveth is born of God, and 
 he that loveth not knoweth not God, for God is love." " And,'' 
 
69 
 
 saith the same apostle, ** we know that we have passed fronj 
 death unto life, because we love the brethren." 
 
 While the sinner perceives the nature and grounds, and ap- 
 preciates the value of pardon and acceptance before God, his 
 emotions of gratitude can be surpassed by nothing but his inde- 
 scribable and overflowing love and admiration of the infinite 
 glory and loveliness of the triune God, manifested in all ways, 
 and by all means, before bis creatures. 
 
 The notion that faith, or " the righteousness of faith," is the 
 grand principle of religion, is of a piece with all the selfish scheme- 
 It seems to intimate that the sinner cares nothing about any 
 thing but his own salvation ; — perceives nothing else, regards 
 nothing else ; while, aTthe same time, it renders religion an un- 
 feeling, unmeaning system of mysticism, and contradicts the 
 whole body of revealed truth. 
 
 " Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself." Nothing 
 can more beautifully illustrate this grand precept thau the so- 
 lemn declaration of an apostle of the Christian church, when 
 we hear him say, " We know we have passed from death unto 
 life, because we love the brethren :" when we hear him declar- 
 ing, that " he that loveth us is born of God ; nay, dwelleih in God, 
 and God in him." This does not sound much like saying, 
 that the law of God required a man to love his neighbour as 
 extensively awA forcibly as the design of the Jewish economy, 
 and the character of the Jewish people would permit. 
 
 Faith, considered as the sinner's acceptance with Christ, is 
 truly important ; and the principle of pardon and justification, 
 on the ground of Christ's merits, no Christian will be disposed 
 to think lightly of, but, Reader, the gate of a temple is not the 
 temple itself. Faith, pardon, justification, &ic. considered in 
 their causes, nature, grounds, and effects, open the gates of life 
 and glory to the sinner. Christ himself says, " I am the door," 
 &c. And this he spake, no doubt, in allusion to the sinner's 
 pardon and acceptance with God, through him. He will be 
 the king on his holy hill of Zion, will eternally reign in glory, 
 and be the glorious medium of divine manifestation, to all eter- 
 nity. But the religion of heaven, and of all holy creatures, will 
 be one. And if God is love, it will be a religion of perfect love. 
 
CO 
 
 Uo mind can rise to a conception of more perfect holiness or 
 felicity than this. It necessarily excludes all injury, and all 
 misery; it necessarily includes all wisdom, all amiableness, all 
 goodness, all perfection. 
 
 A moment's attention to the bible idea of religion will show, 
 that the author of the above definition of faith, and the right- 
 eousness of faith, entertains but a scanty and miserable notion 
 of it. I hope and trust, in the mercy of God, that the feelings 
 of his heart contradict his theoretical detinitions. Faith, as ma- 
 king any part of religion, is but the consequence of local cir- 
 cumstances, and a particular character, which will one day cease. 
 The principle that one being is justified by the merit of another, 
 though certainly forming a most illustrious display of divine 
 mercy, is not a standing rule of divine government; is neither 
 universal nor perpetual in its apjilication; but is the method 
 adapted by the infinite mercy of God to the recovery and re- 
 storation of sinners ; who, when once restored, shall lack nothing 
 of that personal holiness and perfect moral rectitude in which 
 holy creatures stand before God without a mediator. Their 
 union to, and redemption by, Christ; or, perhaps more properly, 
 the promise and purpose of God, may secure them from the 
 danger of a future rebellion, but will not stand them in stead 
 for personal holiness, or moral purity. 
 
 St. Paul differs very essentially from this writer in his idea 
 of faith, and evidently considers, and expressly declares it, in- 
 ferior to charity. " Though I liave" all faith, so that I could 
 remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. And 
 now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three — but the greatest 
 of these is charity." O no, Paul, you are greatly wiistaken for 
 once : Dr. J. B. R. says, that faith is much the greatest. 
 
 Whether the reader will consider it as descending too low 
 to go into verbal criticism, I cannot say, but the temptation, just 
 at this moment, is too strong to be resisted. The Doctor says that 
 the law requires that a man love his neighbour as exlensivelyi 
 and forcibly as the Jewish economy would permit, &c. To 
 love any person extensively is a phrase not very easy to under- 
 stand, unless he means from head to foot. A man travels 
 extensively, sees extensively, &,c. ; but I never saw any 
 iperson who loved extensively ^ Perhaps he refers to some 
 
61 
 
 practice under the Jfi\vl»h economy. But when he tclh about 
 loviiij; /" ■H-liJy I aui utterly beat ; it seems to resemble an as- 
 sault \)i et armis. Among all the fervid and rapturous phrases 
 of ch: .ily, I bel'cve it was never thought cf. 1 have iieard of 
 loving sincerely — ardenlly — vastly — div^lr.ictcdly — outrageous- 
 ly — terribly — infinitely — but never forcibly. 
 
 I. shall close this number by consi«lering a mistake, which the 
 Doctor says some believers fall into ; and that in few words. He 
 says, vol. ii. p. 280. " The mislalce under which some believers 
 (meaning Hopkinsians) labour is, that it is not Inrvful to regard 
 our jjersonal interest in matters of religion, any further than the 
 value which we possess in the scale of bcin<f ; or. in other words, 
 that we must be willing, if our value be so lotv, to rilinquish our 
 personal interest, and with it our all, for those who possess more 
 value than ourselves." 
 
 If any person by reading this, can tell wliat the mistake is, I 
 shall be glad. Does he mean that some believers have adopted 
 a false rule of valuation, and that this is their mistake? He 
 lays down no rule : he poises their personal interest against 
 their comparative value^ He puts things on opposite sides of 
 the fulcrum which ought to be on the same side. What is the 
 mistake of some believers ? Why, they say, " it is not lawful to 
 regard our personal interest, in matters of religion, any further 
 than the value which we possess in the scale of being." It 
 seems, then, that it is lawful to regard our personal interest fur- 
 ther than our value, kc But this means nothing. What does 
 he mean by "-further,"^ an adverb of place or locality ? 'ihe 
 sentence is unintelligible. I3id ever any one institute com[)ari- 
 son between his personal interest and his value in the scale of 
 being? Is there a child who does not know that ihey are equal ? 
 It is a comparison between himself and himself Yet thia 
 metaphysician has found out that a believer whose value is 
 equal, say, to ten thousand, may regard his personal interest 
 ''further;' i. e. at \5 or 20 thousand; and he is under "a mis- 
 take" if he does not do it. A queer mistake ! This eternal 
 equinting at self-interest, through logic, and through absurdity- 
 through thick and thin, I abhor. 
 
 I know of hut onr^ correct rule of valuation, and that is to 
 
62 
 
 value every thing iu God's kingdom, according to its real worth : 
 and is that a mistake 1 Perhaps the Doctor means to say, that the 
 mistake of some believers consists in this, viz., they hold that 
 they must surrender their personal interest, when it becomes 
 incompatible with the personal interest of those more valuable 
 in the scale of being than themselves. If there be any meaning 
 in what he says about " Iht mislakCy^ it must be this, though he 
 does not say it. But wherein is the mistake of this sentiment 1 
 If there be two Interests, a greater and a less, which are incom- 
 patible with each other, is it a mistake to hold that the less ought 
 to be given up for the sake of the greater ? If there are two 
 vessels at sea, one containing a hundred, and the other a thou- 
 sand souls, and one or the other of them must be lost at sea ; 
 would any man be at a loss to say which of them ought to sink ? 
 A wonderful mistake, indeed ! ! ! If my neighbour's value, in the 
 scale of being, be equal to a hundred, and mine equal to ten, 
 and the personal interest of one or the other of us must be given 
 up, is it difficult to say whose ought to be given up? Suppose, 
 for example, that the Doctor himself was worth a hundred, and I 
 but ten, and the interest of one or the other of us must be given 
 up, and the Doctor himself was to set in judgment on the question 
 — would he not, with his usual volubility, say, "I am worth ten 
 times as much as he, therefore the less must be sacrificed to the 
 greater ?'' And suppose, finally, I myself were to be the judge 
 of that question, would my interest in the matter alter the nature 
 of justice 1 Ought I to save ten, and destroy a hundred, because 
 the ten are mine ? Reader, read and judge. 
 
 But how does the Doctor make this wonderful mistake appear ? 
 His argument, which ought, at least, to make him master of the 
 magicians, is worthy to be had in everlasting remembrance, as 
 a specimen of triangular metaphysics. He takes up a whole 
 large octavo page in saying that we have no " graduated scale" 
 whereby to measure the value of each other. And what then ? 
 Who eays we have ? Does our want of a " graduated scale" to 
 measure the comparative value of men alter or impair the 
 above-mentioned rule of valuation ? The governor of the world 
 has that scale of valuation always before him ; and he has given 
 us reason and senBe, or, at least, some of us, to perceive the 
 
63 
 
 above rule of valuation to be equitable and necessary to be 
 used in all cases where a less object comes in absolute compe- 
 tition with a greater. For no other reason does he punish the 
 wicked, but because their happiness is absolutely incompatible 
 with the happiness of an infinitely greater sum of being. 
 
 Which of all the believers, (Hopkinsians he might say,) whom 
 he accuses of a mistake, ever supposed that we had in our hands 
 the "graduated scale?'' But we can perceive and demon- 
 strate, the principle of equitable valuation, and of its applica- 
 tion to all cases, where a greater and a less good stand in com- 
 petition or repugnancy to each other. But his most curious ar- 
 gument, to make out the " mistake" is, that if a believer in 
 fact, could make this valuation — "if on fair impartial examination 
 of the pretensions of others and his own, he is constrained to 
 judge that he is of more value than others, and claims his right:? 
 as such, he will be considered vain, assuming, aiid arrogant, by 
 all who understand human nature.''^ A wonderful stroke, in- 
 deed ! — What if he is considered " vain, assuming, and arrogant, 
 by all who understand human nature, does that help to prove 
 the mistake?" If his judgment be correct, as the writer grants, 
 it is the judgment of God ; and eternal justice will keep him in 
 countenance though " all who understand human nature think 
 him vain, arrogant, and assuming." 
 
 But, would not his argument have appeared better if he had 
 said, "by all who do not understand human nature?" For I 
 am sure that no man who understands human nature could 
 think him vain, arrogant, and assuming, for claiming his rights 
 which resulted from a fair impartial comparison and valuation. 
 
 The sum of the argument, provided sense can be extracted 
 from a series of sentences, which, as they stand, amount appa- 
 rently to nothing, is, 
 
 1. That, where two interests, a greater and a less, are abso- 
 lutely repugnant to each other, that the less must be sacrificed 
 to the greater, is a " mistake." 
 
 2. This mistake is made out by two grand arguments ; first, 
 that mankind have no " graduated scale" of valuation ; and, 
 secondly, that if they had, and could absolutely discover which 
 the greater and which the less interest was, it would not do for 
 
61 
 
 them to give a just and equitable derision, for fear of being 
 thought "vain, arrogant, and assuming," by all who understand 
 human nature. "A Warburton in controversy I ! !" 
 
 On page 282, the Doctor is so good as to tell us whence this 
 mistake originates- A very clever thing in him. 
 
 " The mistake of which I am speaking," says he, " ori«;inate3 
 iQ the idea that virtue or holiness consists, not in choosing and 
 performing every duty in its place, but merely in the love of 
 being, in general." An origin worthy of the "mistake !" I ask 
 the reader, in what respect these two definitions of virtue are 
 inconsistent with each other ? Does not he who loves being, in 
 general, perform every duty in its place? — and who so likely as 
 he to do it? Does not God love being, in general.^ God is 
 love; — but love must have an object; and what does God love? 
 Is not the love of being a duty in every Christian ? — and does 
 not he who loves being, in general, do that duty *'in its place ?" 
 And does not he who loves God, and angels, and men — yea, 
 his friends, and his enemies, do all these duties in their places? 
 What duty, my good Doctor, is not included in love; since love 
 worketh no ill to his neighbour, and is the fulfilling of the law? 
 But, Reader, Reader, the secret of all this metaphysical bungling, 
 and Jesuitical twisting, for argument it cannot be called, still lies 
 behind. There is, in all this harangue about the "mistake," po 
 case stated — nothing made plain — nothing refuted — no mistake 
 discoverable at the mast-head, with a first-rate spyglass. Though 
 supremely miserable and contemptible in point of argument, 
 as every reader must perceive, there was a design in it ; which 
 design did not fail of its effect. The design was to impress the 
 minds of the hearers of that sermon, that certain people held 
 to monstrous errors: — to make them believe that these people 
 pretend to carry about them " a graduated scale, to measure 
 every one's value by ; — that when they have found that one 
 man is more valuable than another, they pretend that the man 
 of minor value must, of course, surrender up all his religious 
 rights or interest to him who is of superior value ; and that 
 without any apparent motive, reason, cause, or provocation, 
 but merely because the other is of most value. 
 
 And for the origin of this wondrous " mistake," what is it ? 
 
65 
 
 Why, some people hold that virtue does not consist in doing 
 every duly in its place, but in the love ()f being, in g'.ncral. Gog 
 and Magog! what metaphysics. Suppose the love of being, ia 
 general, is a duty, do they not do it in its place ? Does not he 
 who loves God supremely, and his neighbour as himself, love 
 being, in general, and do duty in its place ? And will any 
 one deny that that is the first of all duties? Whoever does that, 
 does the sum of duty, for love is the fulfilling of the law. From 
 whom are we to expect the performance of duty in the detail, 
 if not from him who is thoroughly imbued in the first grand 
 principles of duty and virtue? 
 
 '• Since, then," continues the Doctor, p. 284, " it is obviously 
 impracticable to ascertain the precise value of different per- 
 sons, why should we tamper with the moral sensibilities of our 
 nature, by making our impartial love to them the test and evi- 
 dence of a gracious state?" Was ever a declaration so bare- 
 faced, or so impious ? More than this could scarcely have been 
 expected from the pen of Thomas Paine. It is an open and 
 bold attack on the law of God. 
 
 " Since, then." The reader perceives this to be an inference. 
 But what conclusion does he draw from what premises ? He 
 had been arguing that some were in a mistake, because they 
 supposed that a little being must give up all his interest to a 
 great one, merely on account of his superiority ; and without 
 giving the reader a glimpse of any rational opinion ever held 
 by any mortal, or confuting it by one rational argument: in 
 short, he effectually tangles down three or four pages of words 
 and sentences, and only enables the reader to conjure out the 
 the idea, that he is trying to overthrow some horrible Hopkin- 
 sian error, and then comes this inference, in nowise connected 
 with any thing preceding, that since we cannot measure the 
 value of beings, therefore we must not tamper with the sensi- 
 bilities of our nature by making impartial love to our neigh- 
 bour an evidence of grace. He that loves his neighbour as 
 himself loves him impartially, and the phrase can mean nothing 
 else. All this senseless jargon of several pages has for its sole 
 object to destroy this precept of the law; since he begins, by 
 
 saying, that precept required a man to love his neighbour as 
 
 9 
 
66 
 
 cxteusively and forcibly as the design of the Jewish economy, 
 and the character of the Jewish people, would permit : a com- 
 plete annihilation of it, as to Christians; and closes by declar- 
 ing, that, to require a man to love his neighbour impartially, 
 is a useless tampering with the sensibilities of his nature. 
 
 If this is not tampering with the law of God, I do not under- 
 stand the meaning of the term. 
 
 I trust I have redeemed my pledge, in relation to ray first al- 
 legation, to wit, that correct instructions are not given in the tri- 
 angular pulpits of the city. Far be it from me to say that they 
 preach no truth. Their sermons are not without excellent para- 
 graphs ; and these occur, as observed in a former number, when, 
 forgetting themselves and their theories, they give a loose to 
 their better feelings, and break fairly out of the triangle. They 
 then are known sometimes to tamper with a man's selfish sensi- 
 bilities, so far as to point out to him his duty, his obligations, 
 his danger, and his remedy. But so long as they preserve 
 self-consistency, and keep to the triangle, no matter whether it 
 be scalene, isosceles, equilateral, or rectangular, their instructions 
 are incorrect. 
 
 INVESTIGATOR- 
 
 No. IV. 
 
 A Letler, addressed to two distinguished members of the Jersey 
 Presbytery, the Rev. Br. — — — , and the Rev. Dr. : 
 
 Rev. Sirs, 
 
 Though the reign of superstition and astrology is past away, 
 and, with it, the belief of fortunate and unfortunate days, yet 
 you have doubtless observed, that states and empires, and the 
 most important institutions, both civil and religious, have their 
 crises, their monients of highest interest and import, on which 
 their destiny turns, and from which may be traced their misfor- 
 tunes or felicity — their prosperity or decline. I cannot but feel 
 
67 
 
 strongly persuaded, and by indications which to me appear in- 
 dubitable, that the days now passing are critical and momentous 
 to the interests and future prospects of the Presbyterian Church 
 in America, of which you are distinguished members. If it 
 should be doubted whe^ther the present time affords any indica- 
 tions which are specially ominous, my impressions still derive 
 some support from the broader ground that every day, and all 
 times, are important in their influence on all temporal institu- 
 tions, which are seldom stationary, but are always waxing or 
 waning in their interest and prosperity. 
 
 The origin and progress, the situation and prospects, of the 
 Presbyterian church in this country, are happy beyond all ex- 
 ample, and present, to the contemplative mind, an object be- 
 yond all parallel in the annals of time. I say nothing to the 
 disparagement of other churches ; and there are others for which 
 I feel a high respect, and a sincere affection ; and I most cor- 
 dially congratulate them in the enjoyment of equal privileg^es 
 and pleasing prospects. 
 
 The Presbyterian church, in her origin, resembles that of the 
 nation in which she is embosomed, and under whose umbrage- 
 ous boughs she enjoys protection and repose. And if by her 
 origin is intended the form she now bears, the same generation 
 witnessed both events, and is not yet past away. As to her 
 progress, it will be sufficient to say, she now embraces several 
 {Synods, and between thirty and forty Presbyteries. The Mi- 
 nutes of the General Assembly now lie before me, in which I 
 perceive that thirty-two Presbyteries attended her last session. 
 Her origin and progress have been pacific — have resulted 
 solely from the influence of sentiment, and the progress of con- 
 viction. And I adore and bless God, that she has been as far 
 from the disposition as the ability to increase her numbers by 
 coercion, or enforce her principles by the arm of civil power. 
 Her situation, as far as temporal things are concerned, promises 
 every thing which ean be the rational objects of hope and ex- 
 pectation. Extending through the fairest climates, she embraces 
 a respectable portion of the inhabitants of the city and the wil- 
 derness, and she connects these extremes through intermediate 
 towns and flourishing villages over a wide country. Her tem- 
 
68 
 
 poral interests are rising with the fortunes and Resources of a 
 young, enterprising, and prosperous nation. 
 
 But her ultimate prosperity depends on far other and higher 
 considerations. Whatever naay be the increase of her wealth 
 and numbers, her decline will commence with the decline of 
 holinet^s and vital religion — with the decline of sound doctrine 
 and Christian discipline. Her prosperity, therefore, is essentially 
 connected with the effectual influence of the spirit of God, in 
 the conversion of souls, and the addition of her numbers of per- 
 sons of that desf nption. Hitherto she has been highly favoured, 
 even in this respect; and as far as we can judge, or have a right 
 to judge, Christ himself has been her light — has walked in the 
 midst of liis golden candlesticks, and has supplied them with 
 holy oil and heavenly fire. 
 
 This Church, spreading her branches to the east and west, 
 and north and south, resembles " a tree planted by the rivers 
 of waters ;" and when the prospects of her future enlargement, 
 grounded on the rising fortunes of this yet infant nation, and the 
 encouragement to hope that God will bless and prosper her, 
 are considered, her friends and children cannot but rejoice, and 
 ascribe glory to the Redeemer, who has, in so short a period, 
 caused the wilderness and the solitary place to blossom like the 
 rose. 
 
 This institution, so young and beautiful, so flourishing and 
 fait — whose towering height, majestic form, and just propor- 
 tion, are discernible from distant parts of the earth, is viewed 
 by other eyes than those of children born into the kingdom of 
 light and peace — than those of friends who " prefer Jerusalem 
 above their chief joy ;" and whose most fervent prayer is, that 
 " peace may be within her walls, and prosperity within her 
 palaces." Other desires are awakened than those which seek 
 only God's glory advanced in the salvation of souls, and in the 
 spiritual welfare of Christ's church. Eyes burning with ambi- 
 tion, and aching in search of the slightest elevation, as a footing 
 to begin to scale the steep and slippery ascent, are now scru- 
 tinizing her avenues, attempting her thresholds, and knocking 
 at her doors. 
 
 I Bhall leave you, gentlemen, to judge for yourselves what in- 
 
69 
 
 roads they have made upon her " liberties" so anxiously spied 
 out already — what avenues they have explored — what posts and 
 Btalions they have seized ; or whether there has been any Ihiiig 
 like this, or nothing at all. But you surely will not find fault with 
 the Hssertion, that such things are soon to be expected in the na- 
 tural course of events ; and judging from all past experience, and, 
 shall I say, present appearances, must now be in their incipient 
 state. 
 
 •' It seems very reasonable to believe," says Dr. Witlier- 
 spoon, " that as human things are never at a stand, a church 
 and nation, in a quiet and peaceable state, is always growing in- 
 sensibly worse, till it be either so corrupt as to deserve and pro- 
 cure exterminating judgments, or, in the infinite mercy of God, 
 by some great shock or revolution, is brought back to simplicity 
 and purity, and reduced, as it were, to its first principles.'' This 
 remark, made by that great writer, in application to the church 
 of Scotland, cannot be questioned ; and is justified by the his- 
 tory of all churches and nations, and by none more than that 
 of the primitive church. 
 
 This deterioration of nations and churches often proceeds by 
 slow and imperceptible degrees, and springs from latent causes. 
 Nothing is more arduous than an attempt to stay its progress; it 
 is like resisting the force of a mighty torrent, because, as the same 
 writer observes, whoever goes so far as to intimate his belief 
 that a church is progressing in corruption, will not fail to draw 
 upon himself the resentment of all the abettors of that corrup- 
 tion. Indeed, the disease must be demonstrated before the 
 methods of cure can be exhibited. And those who are corrupt 
 themselves, and busily and zealously employed in spreatlnig 
 that corruption, will not fail to vindicate Ihemttlves by what- 
 ever weapons come in tlieir way. 
 
 Nor is the progress of error and corruption always slow: a 
 generation quickly arose that knew not Jose{)h. And we see, in 
 sacred history, the same congregation who adored, and vvor 
 shipped, and covenanted, before the dreadful glories of the God 
 of Israel on Mount Sinai, but a few months after paying vile 
 homage to a golden calf, even at the foot of that mountain. 
 
 I shall nelSher shun nor justify any inferences that may be 
 
70 
 
 ijiipposed to arise from this general strain of observations. Cha- 
 rity hopeth all things; and I fervently hope that there is not a 
 general prevalence of corruption in the church. But there are 
 certain local facts which are calculated to excite alarm — which, 
 I trust, you will not think unworthy of your consideration. 
 
 Knowing whom I addres, I deem it needless to spend time 
 in definitions or nice distinctions. For several years past there 
 has been, in various places, an increasing opposition to the 
 strain of doctrine and sentiments commonly denominated Hop- 
 kinsian. At the present time, or within a few months, ground 
 has been taken on that subject, at which, all those who gene- 
 rally adhere to that doctrine, are greatly alarmed and shocked. 
 Direct information has been given, in the form of accusation, 
 against several young men, holding those sentiments, with a 
 view to impede their settlement, and prevent their preaching in 
 certain places. 
 
 One has been informally cited to appear before his Pres- 
 bytery, though at a great distance, to answer to the charge of 
 preaching heresy. And I need only say, that the sentiments he 
 preached are such as you, gentlemen, have been preaching and 
 maintaining for many years, and that with power and success- 
 A whole synod has made a firm stand, and boldly and expressly 
 condemned Hopkinsianism, as " heresy, and that whereby the 
 enemy of souls would, if it were possible, deceive the very 
 elect." 
 
 Corresponding with these particular acts, a combined and 
 extensive influence has been used, and is using, to give the public 
 mind a general sentiment of abhorrence and indignation against 
 that strain of doctrine. And these methods of opposition have 
 been used, with great effect, in many places, by which a tone of 
 feeling has been wrought up, of a grade but a little below direct, 
 vigorous, and organized persecution. 
 
 It will be easy to say, that no person need profess himself to 
 be a Hopkinsian, or expose himself to this kind of censure and 
 opposition. And it is certainly true, that I have never called 
 myself by that name, nor do I know of any class of people who 
 have ever styled themselves so. 
 
 But, gentlffraen, the -spirit of this controversy aims not at 
 
71 
 
 words, but truths. There are three or four grand characteristics 
 of doctrine at which the whole weight and violence of this storm 
 are pointed. The man who comes out in ikese, is at once 
 branded as a Hopkinsian, and, as you see, condemned as a 
 heretic. These points are general atonement, the offer of sal- 
 vation to all — a probationary state — moral depravity, or inability, 
 or laying the bar to the sinner's salvation wholly in his will ; and 
 a religion above all selfishness. You would even be surprised 
 to know that for advancing any of these points, for even so 
 much as once condemning selfishness, and setting up God's 
 glory above all creature considerations, a man is accused of 
 many dangerous and latent errors — of heresy. Let him but 
 advance the idea, that the sinner is barred from salvation by 
 his own voluntary rejection : — let him but invite all men to 
 come to Christ, assuring them there is full provision, and he 
 falls irrevocably under all this censure and obloqny. 
 
 Be not misled by the supposition, that this opposition is 
 levelled at any of Hopkins', or Emmons', or any other man's pe- 
 culiar notions, with which you yourselves might chance to dif- 
 fer. No, Gentlemen, the opposition h aimed at the grand 
 pillars of that noble and imperishable frame of doctrine 
 which you have laboured, through all your years, to establish 
 and propogate ; doctrines, vrhich I am consoled, and more hap- 
 py than I can express, to say, you have often seen attended with 
 demonstration of the spirit, and with power, under your own 
 labours, and among your respective flocks : — doctrines, in whose 
 efficacy and saving influence many of your hearers will rejoice 
 with you to eternity. 
 
 It is somewhat rare, that any of our young men, or old men, 
 have entered into any of the peculiar distinctions, or sentiments, 
 advocated by certain ministers at the eastward. It is not com- 
 mon that close trains of metaphysical reasoning have been re- 
 sorted to, either here, or further south, by those censured as 
 Hopkinsians. They have generally confined themselves to 
 plain and simple discussions of the most important (ruths. 
 
 Yet, such are the consequences, and such things a day ha* 
 brought forth. It is for you, Reverend and beloved Sirs, to consi- 
 der whether the evil has not grown to be of sufficient magnitude 
 
72 
 
 and induced a slate of things to require some remedy. As an 
 individual, 1 think I can distinctly foresee, tiiat if negleete<l, it 
 will soon mock at all remedy. If long neglected, it will rise 
 like a giant from its cradle, and it will crush, without distinction, 
 those who cherished it by their neglect, and those who brought 
 it forth, by a tedious gestation and parturition. 
 
 I surely need not call your attention to the fact, that the 
 founders of the Presbyterian church had no intention of ma- 
 king this strain of doctrine a breaking point; and unless I am 
 much misinformed, some persons of this description were 
 among the very men that reared the fabric into its present form. 
 However that may be, the general assembly has never convened, 
 since her r)rmation, without members of those seiiUments on 
 the floor. None of the judicatories of the church, as I have 
 heard, ever were so intolerant as to think of refusing, or delay- 
 ing, ministers, licentiates, or candidates, on that ground : and in 
 the general assembly itself there has, for years, been perpetual 
 representations of the New-England churches, the common 
 source, and radiating point, whence those doctrines spread. 
 
 Among the unhappy effects likely to result from the mea- 
 sures recently taken, we may well consider the gloomy pros- 
 pects which threaten to spread over the whole body of profes- 
 sing Christians in the United States. How terrible and shpck- 
 ina; the thought that Christian brethren, friends, and neighbours, 
 united for years in the strictest bonds of amity, must be severed 
 nnder the charge of heresy. Many churches must be torn^and 
 agitated with tierce disputes, and probably rent asunder ; churches 
 must be cast out of Presbyteries, and, perhaps, Presbyteries out 
 of Synods And what appearance would the Presbyterian 
 church make, torn with divisions, distracted by disputes, rent 
 with schisms, palsied by animosities, and branded with the name 
 of a persecutor? 
 
 I need not conjecture what y ^ur feeling? would be, Gentle- 
 men, oppressed, grieved, agitated, in the contemplation of such 
 a wide scene of desolation, misery, and ruin. All connexion 
 with our northern and eastern brethren must fall a sacrilice (o 
 this fierce demon of blind persecuting rage. Nor art they alone 
 branded with the odious, and shameful epithet of heretics. 
 
73 
 
 Other denominations, even Episcopalians and Methodists, and 
 all who in any way have incurred the appellation of Arminians, 
 are also to be abhorred and contemptuously put under the ban 
 of heresy. The stern eye of detestation is to be turned upon 
 them; the finger of scorn pointed at them; the Up of pride 
 and religious bigotry are to pronounce, " There is an Arminian 
 heretic — a Hopkinsian heretic." 
 
 No more are ministers from the congregational churches of 
 New England, or licentiates from the same quarter, to come into 
 the bounds of the Presbyterian church, and to be received with 
 open arms, and affectionate welcomes into our judicatories, un- 
 less they abjure the doctrines of their fathers, and shrink them- 
 selves into the sharp and narrow limits of the triangle : from 
 which may heaven preserve them ; although it cannot but be 
 present to the mind of every one how great a number of the 
 ministers now within the bounds of the General Assembly origi- 
 nated from that quarter. 
 
 But, Gentlemen, perhaps, yea doubtless, this wall of separa- 
 tion between us and them will be considered by some as de- 
 sirable. Will it be so esteemed by you ? Perhaps the arrival 
 and establishment of ministers from those churches, now called 
 heretics, will no longer be thought necessary or 'oasistent with 
 Presbyterian policy. Perhaps it will be said that we now have 
 an established ministerial seminary, therefore it is time that the 
 streams from that northern fountain were dried up Sooner 
 may the River Euphrates be dried up, and the way of the kings 
 of the east be prepared. But at the name of a ministerial semi- 
 nary, more extensive prospects and surprising thoughts rush 
 upon my mind. 
 
 Are we, Gentlemen, to understand that young men educated 
 for the church in that seminary are to be imbued in this intole- 
 rance of spirit — are to be sent forth to preach down Hopkinsian 
 heresy ? I seem to be under both a natural and a moral ina- 
 bility to believe it ; and yet the difference of latitude between 
 them and Philadelphia is fearfully small. If a great divine in 
 Philadelphia has placed Hopkins himself in hell ; if the whole 
 synod of Philadelphia have detK)unced his doctrine as heresy, 
 
 10 
 
74 
 
 I fear for all fhe surrounding atmosphere of that region r — it has 
 » murky appearance, when seen from a distance. 
 
 Analogical reasoning is never demonstrative, and sometimes 
 fallacious; yet 1 find it difficult to believe that even the late act 
 of that Synod could have arisen without some influence and coun- 
 tenance ab extra. But from an event so sudden, so unexpected, 
 so shocking, so contrary to the whole tenor and maxims of the 
 Presbyterian church, as well as of the present age, I scarcely 
 know what to think, or what to look for next. But of one thing 
 I am assured : if this decision of the Philadelphia Synod is, in 
 truth, to be considered as the prevailing voice of the Presby- 
 terian church, as a body, she is ruined. 
 
 If sound policy be worthy of consideration, never was act 
 more impolitic than to excite the contempt and derision of im- 
 mense numbers of people, and that without the prospect of an- 
 swering on« valuable purpose thereby. You, gentlemen, v;ill 
 perceive how this rash denunciation may operate, in various 
 ways, against the increase and prosperity of this whole church; 
 and you know that great events turn on small pivots. Will peo- 
 ple who are considered as Anninians, or Uopkinsians, when they 
 see themselves by this puTilic official ukase condemned and 
 stigmatized as heretics, feel an inclination to unite with presby- 
 terianism ? Will they view them as a lovely, amiable, affection- 
 ate, and generous class of people, with whom a union would be 
 desirable, aside from aH seotiments ? Will they be likely to listen 
 to their arguments, commencing with a bull of excommunica- 
 tion ? It was precisely thus the haughty prelates of Rome treat- 
 ed Luther, when arraigned before them for his trial. Their first 
 argument was, that he was a damnable heretic, and must abjure 
 his sentiments, or meet his doom. This was not metaphysical. 
 
 Does it sound Well for an august Synod of Cfwistian ministe/s 
 to address a tetter to aH their churches, announcing that a set 
 of heretics were amongst them, and must be forthwith extirpa- 
 ted and exterminated ? Who can read this, and not perceive, 
 that, if those ghostly lords had but the arm of the civil power 
 to enforce their decree there would be additional clauses? Gen- 
 tlemen, this business has more of the smell uf fire about it than 
 
75 
 
 tiie garments of Shadrach, Meshech, and Abedrnego, after they 
 came out of the furnace. 
 
 But if this act be impolitic, it is no less unjust. For I ask, 
 were such men as Dr. Watts and Richard Baxter heretics 1 
 Men are condemned as heretics for holding precisely the same 
 general strain of sentiments. It is not singular and particular 
 tenets ; it is for holding the great and scripture doctrine of a, 
 ** propitiation for the sins of the whole world," moral depra- 
 vity, &c. as already stated. The authors of the Pastoral Letter 
 well know that there are multitudes in the communion of the 
 Presbyterian church who hold to these sentiments, and would 
 lay down their necks on the block before they would abandon 
 them, and add their names to the glorious catalogue of martyrs 
 for ihe truth. Are all these to be anathematized as heretics, 
 and proceeded against as such, unless they abjure their senti- 
 ments ? The requisition would be as unjust as the revocation 
 of the edict of Nantz, and ought to stand recorded on the same 
 page of the history of persecutions. It does not equally affect 
 men's property, but is equally levelled at the liberties of con- 
 science. 
 
 The attempt to justify this measure by an appeal to our con- 
 fession of faith, and by alleging that these men differ with 
 that confession, you well know, gentlemen, how to appreciate. 
 For myself, I consider it, not as the voice of the syren, which 
 is said to be pleasant, but as the roaring of a lion who has of 
 old " learned to catch the prey and devour men ;" it is the voice 
 of bigotry and intolerance ; it is the universal and everlasting 
 watch-word against improvement and reform. " The form of 
 sound words," that scripture phrase, for ever pressed into the 
 same inglorious service, is much insisted on in this Pastoral Let- 
 ter, and the pointed meaning it is used to convey ought to be 
 sickening to every Christian and man of sense. I call to your 
 mind, gentlemen, that it is not many centuries since Gallileo 
 and Copernicus were condemned, because they had departed 
 from " the form of sound words," viz. for teaching what they 
 kad discovered in natural philosophy, that the sun stood still, 
 and the earth revolved. 
 
 In subscribing to the confession of faith, my views were, I 
 
76 
 
 trust, not dissimilar to the views of those who compiled it. I view- 
 ed it as a n -ble system of doctrine, but as the work of fallible men, 
 and, of course, by no means infallible or perfect, or to be regarded 
 as divine law. I had never any idea of substituting it for the 
 word of G<^d, or Iayin«; it by the side of the sacred oracles, as 
 of paramount authority, at which all inquiry was to stop, and 
 disputation cease. I found myself perfectly supported in these 
 impressions of that book, by the preface to the first edition, if 
 I mistake not, in which this is frankly, and in the most ingenu- 
 ous manner, declared. It was never in the dreams of its au- 
 thors to set it up as the sovereign arbiter of conscience ; or that 
 any deviation from any points therein contained were to be 
 stigmatized as deviations from the eternal standard of truth, or 
 subject those who deviated to censure and excommunication. 
 
 I confess I have been of late frequently shocked and disgusted 
 by perceiving, on certain occasions, all reference to any higher 
 authority dropped, and solemn reference made to that, as if 
 clothed with supreme authority, and imposing irrefragable obli- 
 gation — as " to the law and to the testimony." I say, I have 
 been shocked as often as I have seen any propensity to such a 
 course; since the doctrine of human infallibility has been suf- 
 ficiently abused, and, I should imagine, sufficiently exposed and 
 derided. 
 
 You, gentlemen, cannot but be aware of the impossibility 
 and absurdity of setting up any human standard, by which im- 
 mense numbers of people, learned or unlearned, shall square 
 down their faijh to every sentence and sentiment of it, even to 
 every jot and tittle. And could such a point be achieved, which 
 yet never was, since men were on the earth, and which, from 
 the very nature of the human mind, is impossible, it could be 
 desirable upon no other supposition than that of the absolute 
 perfection of the standard. But where the system, dignified by 
 the name of standard, is confessedly the work of fallible men, 
 and, of course, may fail of rectitude in various respects, it would 
 be as useless as impracticable, as absurd as impossible, to pro- 
 cure an absolute unqualified assent to all its parts and particles 
 from every member of the church. 
 
 And what would be the consequence, if certain individuals 
 
77 
 
 ahould come to a firm and conscientious conviction, that certain 
 parts of it were wrong, but were still willing, nevertheless, to 
 abide by it as their confession of faith ? And such cases will of- 
 ten happen. The history of all churches will answer this ques- 
 tion Let the history of the Greek, Roman, English, Scottish, 
 and Genevan churches answer. These unhappy men mu?t be 
 persecuted for conscience sake, and their names cast out as <-vil. 
 Thus did Calvin himself: and while, as yet, the unhallowed 
 thunders of Rome had not done murmurring round his head, he 
 is drawing the cord of spiritual tyranny round the people of 
 Geneva, and violently squaring down every man's conscience 
 to his own views. But the objector will say. Ah, Calvin was 
 right, and, therefore, might resort to such measures. Yes — yes — 
 Calvin was right, and his object was to force every one to be 
 right also, or he would serve them as he did Servetus. 
 
 A reference to the authority and practice of the church of 
 Scotland, so highly sanctified, in the view of some persons, 
 gives no relief to my fears, and reflects no happy light on our 
 future destinies. Rather may heaven deliver us from following 
 in the rocky paths that church has trod : and I will only say, 
 she is most eulogized by those who know the least about her, 
 and, on no account, is a model for us to follow. It is true, that 
 neither a pope nor a monarch has been her head, but that hag 
 not always prevented her from being a hydra, and a haughty 
 invader of the rights of conscience. She has felt the influence 
 of an aristocracy as dark and foggy, as bleak and barren, as her 
 rugged mountains and leafless hills. 
 
 I am not ignorant of the merits of the church of Scotland. 
 They can boast of great and illustrious men, whose names will 
 be among the brightest ornaments of literature, and whose use- 
 fulness and fame, as ministers of Christ, have rarely been sur- 
 passed in modern Europe. Nor do I deny the merits of their 
 doctrine or discipline, as comprehending a noble body of theo- 
 retical and practical wisdom. May we be able to copy their 
 excellencies, and shun their defects. 
 
 It would be presumption in me, gentlemen, to undertake to 
 suggest a course of conduct to you in the present juncture of 
 affairs ; and useless to attempt to conjecture what course you 
 
78 
 
 will pursue. That a new comet has appeared on our horiaon, 
 whose motions are rapid, and aspects malign, I thing you will 
 not deny ; since every eye can see it without a telescope. It 
 matters not whether you say you are Hopkiosians or not; you 
 may, indeed, say, that you are not; for, as I have repeatedly 
 said, I have seen but few persons, in my day, who chose to adopt 
 that title. The strain of doctrine in which I myself believe I 
 know, perfectly well, neither was derived directly or indirectly 
 from Hopkins, and it is very probable you can safely say as 
 much. Our licentiates are accused of heresy, and driven from 
 places where there had been flattering prospects of speedy 
 and agreeable settlements, under cruel and unjust imputations ; 
 and the Synod of Philadelphia has raised the cry of heresy 
 against the whole strain of doctrine. 
 
 Far be it from me to wish to abridge the right of individuals, 
 or of public bodies, of promoting the scheme of doctrine they 
 approve of; or of opposing, by just aro;umentation, what they 
 dislike. And I know too well your liberality of sentiment, and 
 rnafinanimity of soul, not to be sensible that you take equal 
 pleasure in receiving and giving charitable and Christian in- 
 dulgence. There is a pleasure in this mutual forbearance which 
 infinitely transcends the gratification of the stern bigot while he 
 hinds the conscience, the lord of our actions — and fetters the 
 tongue, the glory of our frame. 
 
 But as I little expected to hear Ihe heaviest and last censure 
 of the church hurled at the sentiments which, from ,'my soul, I 
 believe to be the eternal truth of God, so, neither do I believe 
 that you, gentlemen, can hear the awful reverberation of these 
 thunders, though rolling at a distance, without inward horror 
 and astonishment. 1 presume you will not dissent from me in 
 the opinion, that it is a time of darkness and mourning. The 
 language of prophecy represents the fall of states, nations, 
 and churches, by the darkening of the luminaries of heaven. I 
 do not say that this chur(;h has fallen, but I say that a third part 
 of the stars of heaven are eclipsed; and if this spirit of intole^ 
 ranee and persecution shall prevail, and maintain her ground in 
 this church, her fall is near., 
 
 I have neither saidj nor conceded by implication, that th« 
 
79 
 
 strain of doctrine commonly styled Hopkinsian differs, in anj 
 material point, from our confession of faith ; although the 
 Synod of Philadelphia express an ardent hope, that " the time 
 may never come when those doctrines, and our confession of 
 faith, shall be considered as one and the same thing ;" but I 
 do say, and I do feel an irresistible conviction of its truth, that 
 to expect a perfect coincidence of opinion in every article and 
 idea of this, or any other confession of faith or creed, of equal 
 extent and particularity, from any considerable number of peo- 
 ple, is to expect an impossibility. Such expectations, if serious, 
 can be the offspring of nothing but ignorance or prejudice. To 
 require such a coincidence, as a term of admittance or continu- 
 ance in the church, would be madness, and would not fail of 
 consequences the most deleterious to the whole body. tJnities 
 of that kind are not to be expected, unless the days shall re- 
 turn when men are willing to sell their consciences to the mother 
 of harlots, for the privilege of drinking the cup of her abomina- 
 tions ; or, unless the morning shall break forth when creeds, 
 confessions of faith, formularies, and liturgies, some more and 
 some less excellent, but all imperfect, shall vanish before the 
 sun of righteousness, in the glory of the latter day. 
 
 An overt act of impolicy, in one of the highest judicatories 
 of the church, whatever might be Its nature and tendency, can- 
 not be viewed but with concern by every benevolent mind, 
 however disinterested or remote. But to such as are deeply 
 interested in the welfare of the church ; to such as desire no- 
 thing more sincerely than its purity and prosperity, its peace 
 and edification, it must cause emotions of deep regret and 
 solicitude. But when the nature of the measure is such that 
 its impolicy is forgotten in its injustice and cruelty ; when we 
 turn from the generous sensibility of the disinterested spectator; 
 from the painful sensations of those whose chief enjoyment 
 arises from the peace and prosperity of the church, what esti- 
 mate are we to form of the feelings of those who are the vic- 
 tims of this measure, and in a moment to be prostrated by this 
 rigorous sentence? We will suppose him a young man just en- 
 gaged in the sacred work of the ministry; and engaged with 
 all bis heart, and all his talents, to promote (he truth, according 
 
80 
 
 to his best views, and to pt-each the gospel as the iustrament 
 of turning souls to righteousness. But suddenly he is accused 
 of preaching heresy, and the accusation brought home, and hie 
 condemnation rendered irretrievable by the majestic voice of 
 an entire Synod. To these circumstances add the rage and 
 triumph of his enemies; the disappointment, sorrow, and an- 
 guish of his friends ; the interest that will be awakened in his 
 favour, by those that can feel pity and commiseration ; the ar- 
 rows of malignity, that will pursue him as a heretic, apostate, 
 hypocrite, and deceiver. What are we to tliink of such a situa- 
 tion 1 
 
 Or we will suppose him among the venerable Fathers whose 
 whitened locks and bending form show that his labours are 
 nearly past ; and that he is about to appear before the Chief 
 Shepherd, lie is condemned as an heretic, and must abjure the 
 doctrines he has preached for many years, and of the correct- 
 ness of which he has not a remaining doubl, or must g v to his 
 grave, not from the portais of the church on earth, in which he 
 has long and successfully laboured ; but as an outcast a vagrant, 
 a leprous amputated member, too corrupt to be preserved or 
 healed, must drop into a solitary grave, to rest in disgraceful 
 oblivion, or to live in the execrations and calumnies of remem- 
 brance. 
 
 And when I consider what numbers in the visible commu- 
 nion of this church ate thoroughly and conscientiously imbued 
 in this strain of doctrine, thus rashly condemned ; when I reflect 
 on the spirit of toleration and Christian liberty so gloriously risen 
 on the present age, like a phoenix from the ashes of former times, 
 but now abused and insulted before the sun ; when I consider 
 the immense and venerable body of clergy to the north and east 
 deeply implicated in this act, and condemned by this sentence; 
 when I know that these have been the doctrines of revivals, 
 sanctioned by the spirit of God in the conversion of thousands 
 of souls, I shudder in view of this act — i tremble for its conse- 
 quences — I fear for its perpetrators. 
 
 Gentlemen, you surely will not differ with me when I assert, 
 that if God has ever made bare his arm for the salvation of souls, 
 through the instrumenlaiily of truth, it has been under the preach- 
 
81 
 
 ing of these doctrines. If, since, our forefathers first touched 
 these western shores, a blessing has descended from the Re- 
 deemer's throne to his church in this new worhl, it has been 
 under the ministration of these truths. I leave it, therefore, for 
 all mankind to judge, how far the condemnation of these doc- 
 trines may be considered as "■ fighting against God." 
 
 If an act so contrary to the liberal and charitable dictates of 
 rehgious toleration, which has broke forth with splendour on 
 the present age, and with so much honour and felicity to the 
 church of Christ, shall incur the just contempt and reproaches 
 of men, how much more dreadful will be His displeasure, be- 
 fore whom all nations are as nothing, when those who aspire to 
 the blessings of bis covenant, dare to affix the seal of their im- 
 pious curse on those doctrines on which he has fixed the seal 
 of his high and unchai.'geable approbation. 
 
 Merciful God ! in the day of thy visitations, O remember not 
 our iniquities against us, for thou knowest we are but dust! 
 
 To put the best face on things they will bear, and the most 
 favourable construction that apathy itself can propose, or the 
 most calm, unsuUied, and charitable mind can think possible, 
 let us suppose that none of the violent consequences anticipat- 
 ed will follow these gloomy indications of intolerance and per- 
 secution; let us suppose that this act of the Philadelphia Synod, 
 and these collateral measures, to keep a certain strain of preach- 
 ing, and certain men, out of the great capitals, Philadelphia and 
 New- York, are merely designed as present and local remedies ; 
 let it be supposed that men of standing and established views, 
 though holding this strain of doctrine, will never be molested, 
 or an attempt made to drive them from their stations — wliat 
 then? Is this a complete salvo for all that appears ;— a sopori- 
 fic on which the friend of evangelical truth can slumber on in 
 security? What will be the amount of this? And whither 
 does this index of hope point, as the end of all^ troubles? It 
 points, gentlemen, to this : that henceforth no min^^ter or licen- 
 tiate is to gain admittance into any Presbyterian vacancy unless 
 he can be chopped down perfectly into the three-square shape ; 
 nor is any one to remain there, unless stretched or clipped to 
 the due length of the iron bedstead; especially if in, or near, 
 
 11 
 
82 
 
 uny place of distinction. Perhaps, indeed, some few, in the 
 bosom of solitudes, or defiles of mountains, will not be pursued 
 and bunted out by Dr. Buckram's letters missive; — perhaps 
 some, here and there one, seated in alpine declivities and fast- 
 nesses — housed by glaciers, and surrounded by grottoes — cra- 
 dled by tempests, and serenaded by cataracts — curtained by the 
 wilderness, and fraternized with wild buffaloes, may be let alone 
 awhile ; but I aver, however venerable and well established — 
 however pious, and however able, if placed in a conspicuous 
 station — if the eyes of Argus can discover a crevice in his wall, 
 or the hands of Briareus can enter the bar — if the Cyclops 
 can forge a bar long enough, or the Titans can sway it down, 
 they will pry him up, and work him out at last. 
 
 In the mean time, the friends of truth, scouted and distressed, 
 scattered and discouraged, will disappear, or, perhaps, some 
 will be won over by smiles, titles, or promotion. Ministers and 
 licentiates from the New-England states will perceive every 
 avenue of the Presbyterian church shut against them as here- 
 tics, and will turn their eyes towards other fields, where the 
 ground is not pre-occupied by opposition. And fields of vast 
 extent are indeed before them. As for our theological semina- 
 ry, it will be in the hands of men who will imbue, if possible, 
 every candidate whom they shall instruct and send forth, in a 
 deep abhorrence of the " Hopkinsian heresy ;" and every one will 
 go forth under a full impression that he must beat down the odi- 
 ous doctrine of disinterested benevolence, and erect selfishness 
 on its ruin. 
 
 For precisely the same reason that this narrow and illiberal 
 scheme of doctrine is vindicated, as making a part of what is 
 called our standard, every sentiment differing from this scheme, - 
 be it more or less important, will be condemned, and, with 
 imposing confidence, censured as repugnant to our confessioa 
 of faith. The advocates of error will not be slow to arm them- 
 selves with gecclesiastical censures; and spiritual thunders will 
 be hurled, without discrimination, at " the Hopkinsian heresy,** 
 and all who embrace it. 
 
 I wish it were in my power to say that the Synod of Philadel- 
 phia is the only ecclesiastical body which has already acted 
 
83 
 
 apon this plan : — would that my fears were of that ideal class 
 which relate to evils merely possible or probable. But has not 
 this humiliating scene been acted over much nearer home ? And 
 have you not seen, Gentlemen, a Presbytery very recently re- 
 fuse to put the call of a highly respectable congregation into 
 the hands of a young clergyman of exemplary piety and hand- 
 some talents ; at the remonstrance of a very small minority of 
 that congregation, comprising not more than one fifth of the 
 people, or of the property of the congregation, when it was well 
 known that their only objection to him was that he was a Hop- 
 kinsian 1 
 
 It is true this very considerable minority, legis fictions y were 
 instructed not to expose the nature of their objection against 
 
 Mr. G before the Presbytery, i. e. infijro ecclesice ; but it 
 
 is equally true, that every member of that Presbytery, and in 
 foro conscientice, knew perfectly well it was because he was a 
 Hop, as, in their dignified style, they called him. Moreover, 
 legis fidione^ this Presbytery were not to know the grounds of 
 
 the objection of this one-fifth minority to Mr. G . It was 
 
 quite enough for them that one-fifth objected against him, while 
 the urgent and importunate request of four-fifths was rejected ; 
 
 and Mr. G himself was rejected, " sine delicto, sine cri- 
 
 mine, sine inali sensu." 
 
 This congregation appealed to the Synod of New- York and 
 New-Jersey for relief from this oppressive act ; and to the 
 honour of that body be it spoken, the Synod reversed the de- 
 cision of that Presbytery, and restored to the congregation their 
 
 right of calling Mr. G to be their minister. But did it end 
 
 here ? Are the congregation and church now allowed to sit down 
 in the quiet enjoyment of their dearest and most sacred rights ? 
 What do we next see 1 A large body of the Synod, headed by 
 the very man whom the General Assembly has set at the head 
 of the Theological Seminary, and, what is remarkable, the man 
 who has endeavoured to distinguish himself as a friend to repub- 
 lican principles and the rights of mankind, rose and entered 
 their solemn protest against this decision of the Synod, and en- 
 couraged the Presbytery to appeal to the General Assembly, 
 which they accordingly did. This protest and appeal to the 
 
84 
 
 General Assembly, whatever pretences may be set up, must be 
 grounded on two grand principles: 
 
 1. It is of no importance for a Presbytery to know what the 
 nature of the objection of a minority may be against a minister. 
 If they object merely, it is enough. And as I said above, it will 
 often happen, legis Jictione, that they must not know, i. e. pre- 
 tend to know, what it is. This principle was expressly set up, 
 before the Synod, by the learned leader of the protest. He said, 
 that a Presbytery was under no obligation to " pump and sift 
 out the objections of a minority*' to a minister. Would it not 
 have been more appropriate.- to the case, had he said, They had 
 better draw the curtain close, and keep every thing snug, than 
 to talk about pumping and sifting. The Presbytery was far 
 from a disposition to pump and siftj it was more their object 
 to conceal and hide. 
 
 2. The other principle, on which this protest and appeal are 
 grounded is, that a majority of voices, even of five to one, ought 
 not to be the governing principle with a Presbytery ; that though 
 four-fifths of a church and congregation, holding also four-fifths 
 of the property, desire leave to call a minister, and although the 
 nature of the objection of the other fifth is wholly unknown, 
 yet, in such a case, the Presbytery have a right to resist the 
 call. These are the principles of the champions of liberty. And 
 had there been three instead of two, I should have compared 
 them to the three frogs which came out of the mouth of the 
 dragon, beast, and false prophet : for they were doubtless as 
 unclean. I appeal to the unbiassed sense and discernment of 
 the public, and to the common sense of mankind, whether it be 
 reasonable or decorous that a minority should object to a man, 
 and not tell the world, and the court before whom that objection 
 is brought, what that objection is. And as to the grand ques- 
 tion, whether a majority have a right to govern, to say nothing 
 of other nations, or of man's inalienable rights, it is the great 
 law of this nation I may say, both in church and state. Any 
 priticiple or rule set up to abolish this law, will not fail to create 
 a most odious tyranny. But when a majority mounts up to 
 four or five to one, both in numbers aud property; when tlje 
 resistance of the minority is so feeble as not even to allege any 
 
85 
 
 accusation, or to table any objection of an explicit form, the 
 Presbytery that shall crush and silence that majority, and listen 
 to such a minority, usurp a power with which no man, or body 
 of men, on earth are clothed by the word of God. 
 
 Moreover, I appeal to the same august tribunal, that the form 
 of opposition employed by the minority against Mr. G — — , 
 nay, the very nature of that opposition, rather speaks Mr. 
 
 G 's eulogium. Had they had any objection to him as a 
 
 preacher, or as a man ; had they thought lightly of his talents, 
 or doubted his character; in short, had there been any con- 
 siderable objection against him, which could, with propriety or 
 decency, with justness or safety, have been mentioned and 
 urged against him, the minority would have felt no delicacy in 
 declaring it. For, indeed, there is no delicacy in a transaction 
 of that solemn and important nature. When I am to choose a 
 minister, a pastor, a teacher, under whose instructions I am to 
 sit down for life — if I know of any just reason for withholding 
 from him my sufifra»e, I shall certainly make it known to him, 
 and to others ; and, above all, to that judicatory who are to be 
 influenced by it. And if I have any just conceptions of the 
 dictates of common sense, when a Presbytery perceive that a 
 very great majority are desirous to give a minister a call, and 
 a small minority come forward and object to the measure, but 
 refuse to make known the nature of their objection, that it can- 
 not be regarded as worthy of notice by any judicatory. It 
 must be presumed that they are ashamed of their own objection, 
 and by that consideration alone are prevented from declaring 
 it. And I suspect this was not far from being the case in the 
 afifair of Mr. G . 
 
 I should not, Gentlemen, have been thus particular in this de- 
 tail, but I perceive in it an organized form of opposition to 
 that strain of doctrine which I believe to be the truth, and 
 against those men who dare to preach that doctrine. It is 
 
 perfectly well known that the objection to Mr. G was 
 
 from no other cause ; for no other reason did the minority re- 
 fuse to state the nature of the objection ; and, I add, for no 
 other reason did the Presbytery refuse to pass the call to Mr. 
 G . Let rae reverse the table, and I shall throw convic- 
 
86 
 
 tion into the face of all parties, that what I say is true. Let it, 
 for a moment, be supposed that that minority had been Hopkin- 
 sians, and objected to Mr. G , do you not think their objec- 
 tions would have been " pumped and sifted" out? Do you be- 
 lieve, gentlemen, that that Presbytery would then have resisted 
 the call ? Nobody can believe it. Do you believe that, in that 
 case, you would have heard the solemn protest, with such ten- 
 der girdings of conscience, against the reversing act of the 
 Synod, and the solemn appeal which is to carry the whole bu- 
 siness up to the General Assembly ? I say, had the minority been 
 Hopkinsians, and the Presbytery, at their remonstrance, arrest- 
 ed the call of such an overwhelming majority of the Synod — re- 
 versed the decree of the Presbytery, do you believe you could 
 have heard the same voices lifted in a protest, vindicated by 
 such astonishing principles? Would you, in that case, have 
 heard it unblushingly urged, that a minority may object, with- 
 out reason, yet prevailingly, against a minister, while a majority 
 of five to one shall be crushed in their application to a Presby- 
 tery for a call ? 
 
 No, gentlemen, if this minority had been Hopkinsians, this 
 whole train of events would have been reversed. We should 
 not have heard a pretty face, with many kind simpers, deplore 
 the fate of that congregation, yet, with solemn pomposity, de- 
 clare, that the minority must be supported, and the majority of 
 five to one crushed and silenced before them ; — and why ? Be- 
 cause that is the proper, just, and rational course of the thing!. 
 Let me not shrink from the truth, which is eternal and impe- 
 rishable : it was because they wished to call a man deemed a 
 Hopkiusian. 
 
 In this shape it must go before the General Assembly, the 
 supreme Presbyterial court of this country. And in the sight of 
 God and men, it will be neither more nor less than the trial of 
 the grand question, whether a church and congregation shall 
 have a right to settle a Hopkinsiau minister. For, with men of 
 thought and discernment, the shades of difference between a 
 majorify, five to one, and a unanimous call, are trifling as they 
 relate to the urgency and just claims of that call. The rights 
 of a bare majority to <j\ll and settle a minister, even when an 
 
87 . 
 
 almost equal minority are resolute in their opposition, and 
 pointed and definite in their objections, have rarely been queS' 
 tioned; but when the disparity stands five to one, both iij num- 
 bers and property, it forms a case which comes, probably, near 
 to a level with the ordinary condition of calls — which rarely are 
 unanimous. 
 
 I have already stated that the nature of the objection to Mr. 
 
 G , though understood, was kept out of sight before the 
 
 Presbytery. I will here say nothing, how far that rule of civil 
 courts, which admits nothing to come before the higher court of 
 appeal but what was agitated, both as to matter and form, in the 
 court below, is proper to be regarded as a rule in the church of 
 Christ, though I will not disguise my fears that our ecclesiastical 
 judicatories are travelling with hasty and dangerous strides to- 
 wards the tedious and bewildering forms, the technical language, 
 and the artful sophistry of civil courts, and I suspect that many 
 of our parliamentary, legal, and courtly phrases would strike the 
 ear of a primitive Christian, or an apostle, with surprise. How- 
 ever that may be, the nature of the objection to Mr. G , 
 
 not appearing in Presbytery, or Synod, will not appear in the Ge- 
 neral Assembly. Yet, as in both Presbytery and Synod it was 
 well understood, so I trust it will be in the General Assemblj-^ ; 
 like an invisible genius, it was the moving-spring of action in 
 the Presbytery and Synod, whether the bail thrown in was 
 marked with A. or C. ; aod, of course, as every thing goes from 
 the lower to the higher court, that must go with the rest, in 
 atalu quo. 
 
 But, Gentlemen, where is Mr. G during this tedious pe- 
 riod of " the law's delay ?" What is the condition of that pa- 
 rish and congregation ? However trilling their division at first, 
 are the aspects of things, which, at every change, become more 
 and more threatening, calculated to compose their differences, 
 and to soothe their contentions ? Exposed to the rod, first of a 
 Presbytery, then of an extensive and venerated Synod, and now, 
 last of all, of the General Assembly, a body extended through 
 
 the continent, Mr. G must possess uncommon fortitude if 
 
 he be not depressed, and, perhaps, discouraged. He well knows 
 
. 88 
 
 the cause why this storm, which must finally agitate the whole 
 American church, in relation to his own case, has been set in 
 operation against him. He knows, if justice had been done him 
 at first, that the_ persons opposed to him would have been re- 
 quired to explain their objections, and, of course, that the Pres- 
 bytery would scarcely have dared to resist his call, or if they 
 had, it would have been done above board, and under no am- 
 biguous or fictitious colourings, 
 y Gentlemen, what influence will these proceedings have on the 
 minds of young men preparing for the ministry, in all parts of 
 this country ? Are we to believe they are wholly free from all 
 selfish feelings, from all liability to be warped by views of po- 
 pularity, by prospects of speedy and advantageous settlements? 
 Is every one of them a Luther, a Knox, an Edwards — ready to 
 face all opposition, and brave all dangers for the cause of truth? 
 Are they all in a situation to come to an unbiassed knowledge of 
 the truth ? These are serious considerations, and, I presume, 
 will have their due impression on your minds. 
 
 That truth has made progress in this country is as evident as 
 it is that God has poured out his spirit on his churches — is as 
 evident as it is that religious freedom and toleration have here 
 tSrst showered their blessings on mankind. The same spirit is 
 opposed to both, and is equally free and bold to declare the 
 latter profane licentiousness, and the former, error and delusion, 
 and a departure from " the form of sound words." The sun 
 from a cloudless meridian is not more visible than that a pow- 
 erful diversion is making in opposition to both, and is beginning 
 to arm itself, not with evidence, argument, or moral suasion — 
 not by addressing the understandings and consciences of men, 
 but with the varied forms of personal influence, extensive in* 
 terests, and ecclesiastical censures — with pecuniary funds, es- 
 tablishments, and institutions. And this incessant harping on 
 the reformers, and doctrines of the Reformation, this leaning 
 towards the established churches in Europe, which are no mo- 
 dels for us, is but bringing ruund a sweep of influence, and set- 
 ting up, as a mark, a kind of ' unity of the faith," which is for- 
 ever to exterminate all freedom of opinion and inquiry, and 
 
89 
 
 eTentually all liberty of conscience. And it reminds rae of an 
 anecdote I lately read in the Life of Pizarro. He had been, 
 on a certain occasion, treated with great hospitality by a tribe 
 of Indians ; and when, some time after, he was at war with that 
 tribe, and had besieged their last fortress, his generous feelings 
 wrought so upon him, on recollecting their former kindness, 
 that he determined to spare the place, and forbade his soldiers 
 plundering it. His little army was generally pleased with the 
 proposition, especially the young CastiHan warriors, who imme- 
 diately resolved not to put the people to the sword, nor seize 
 their effects. But a stern inquisitorial priest, says the writer, 
 knit his eyebrows on Pizarro, and replied, " What ! are you then 
 willing to let these abominable idolaters escape with their ef- 
 fects, and not bow their necks to the yoke of the faith ? No ! 
 they shall be canverted, or they shall die !" Pizarro, fearing to 
 exasperate this holy father, was compelled to yield the town to 
 the sword, and to the rapacity of these advocates for the yoke 
 of the faith. 
 
 And, gentlemen, may heaven long defend us from the yoke 
 of the faith worn by the protestant churches of Europe, even 
 the best of them. Their churches and clergy were interwoven 
 with their government, and the state was made an instrument 
 of their church, and the church a tool of the state. Harpnr, in 
 his "Observations," page 51, remarks, that "when the armies 
 of Bonaparte entered the Seven United Provinces, he proceed- 
 ed immediately to confiscate the property of the Belgic clergy, 
 which amounted to the moderate sum of two hundred and tifty 
 millions of dollars." A tolerable good living for the honest 
 Dutchmen, by which they have made the yoke of the faith, no 
 doubt, very strong, and as comfortable as may be. 
 
 I said they were arming themselves with the means and in- 
 fluence of institutions, of which the rejection of Mr. C as 
 a missionary, alluded to in the preceding number, is an instance. 
 And although the leader in that magnanimous act is not a mem- 
 ber of the Presbyterian church, yet he is a member of one of 
 those churches whose speeut union with the Presbyterian 
 church is hailed with such rapture in the famous Pastoral Letter 
 of the Synod of Philadelphia. 
 
 12 
 
90 
 
 My motive, gentlemen, in these particular allusions, is to show 
 that opposition to truth is concentrated to a focus, and is di- 
 recting its efforts to bar the way, as much as possible, against 
 ministers and licentiates of this strain of doctrine ; and the cases 
 
 of Mr. C , of Mr. D , of Mr. F , of Mr. G , 
 
 and of Mr. S , are in point, and shed as much light upon 
 
 the subject as they do darkness upon the conduct, the manage- 
 ment, the intrigue, resorted to on those occasions. 
 
 Unless it be presumed that every youth is possessed of in- 
 vincible firmness and incorruptible integrity, a state of things is 
 fast forming which will be too great a trial for common energy, 
 talents, and fidelity to resist; and every young man about en- 
 tering the ministry will count the cost — will see at once what 
 scheme of doctrine must render him acceptable, popular, and a 
 candidate for the most conspicuous stations ; and what scheme 
 will expose him to frowns, opposition, and charges of heresy — 
 will even prevent his receiving a call, though four-fifths of a 
 congregation were disposed to give it — will expose him to the 
 censure of Presbytery, Synod, and, perhaps, the General Assem- 
 bly : nay., if he be amicably settled, will expose him to be un- 
 dermined, slandered, abused, and, perhaps, ultimately ejected. 
 Under these circumstances, which part will he take ? And ha- 
 ving been swayed by interest and popular favour, at the ex- 
 pense of truth, in the outset of his career, what will he be af- 
 terward ? A tool for others to work with, till he finds himself in 
 a condition to use such tools as he himself once was — a trirp- 
 mer — a weathercock ; any thing which the pliant qualities of a 
 Proteus can be wrought into; any which the service of his su- 
 periors may require, and every thing which his interest and 
 ambition may dictate. 
 
 But motives prior to all these will be effectually laid in the 
 way of young men, looking towards the ministry. They must 
 go to a theological seminary : and to the honour of that semi- 
 nary be it spoken, they have not expelled, as yet, for holding 
 correct sentiments ; but from the appearance of things, in pro- 
 grcssu. that event is soon to be expected. The principle part, 
 nay, almost all who receive their education there, come out, 
 thoroughly and finishedly triangular. They go forth and preach 
 
91 
 
 all the poiuts of imputatian, contended for by any one : — a 
 limited atonement — know nothing about moral inability, and 
 count that important distinction, as a most promising young 
 divine of this city lately declared before the New-York Pres- 
 bytery, nothing but " hodge podge :" — make all religion to con- 
 sist in faith — a mystical principle above all creature perfection, 
 or conception : — disinterested benevolence a scarecrow, and a 
 little selfishness a very good Ihing : — that people must, by no 
 means, be willing to be danmed, in order that they may be 
 saved : — that moral virtue is quite an Old Testament, Jewish 
 economy, Armiuian affair, and out of date ; metaphysics, ugly 
 things : — that people must love Christ, because he is about to 
 save them, and surely they would be very ungrateful if tb^y did 
 not: — that the non-elect will be condemned for not believing 
 that Christ died for them, because they do not know but that 
 he did die for them. They never fail to impress the hearer 
 that he is, in every sense, unable to do his duty, yet will be 
 condemned for not doing it : — that he ought to believe in Christ, 
 though faith is a divine principle implanted, and can be given 
 to none but those whose debt to justice Christ has paid : — that 
 men are moral agents to do wrong, but not to do right ; and, in 
 a word, that sinners are not in a state of probation. 
 Gentlemen, 
 
 If we enjoy the honour and felicity of belonging to the first 
 nation on earth, where the sacred rights of civil and religious 
 liberty have been fully established — if in consequence of these 
 peculiar privileges, accompanied with the still greater blessing 
 of the light and influence of God's spirit, progress has been 
 made in religious knowledge, and as we approach nearer to the 
 time of the consummation of the glory of the church militant, the 
 Christian church has gained a happier remove from the grounds 
 she formerly occupied, entangled with civil government and 
 politics ; and, on the confines of darkness and superstition, shall 
 we, after this, retrace our steps, and return back into Egypt, or 
 into the wilderness of Sin ? 
 
 Is this the strain of doctrine, and this alone, henceforth to 
 be regarded as canonical? The strain every man must adopt 
 and promote, or be deemed a heretic, and a revolter from our 
 
92 
 
 standard ? Shall our young men who deviate from this be re- 
 jected as missionaries, prevented from receiving calls vrhere 
 congregations are disposed to call them, and turned away 
 from places where they are already settled ? Shall the resources 
 of the General Assembly be called forth to found a Divinity 
 College, to promote this plan of instruction ? Shall dollar socie- 
 ties, cent societies, mite societies, be organized ? Shall con- 
 tributions, donations, and every mode of voluntary taxation be 
 resorted to, in all parts of this extensive country, to erect edifi- 
 ces, institute professorships, scholarships, and all other kinds of 
 ships, to promote this distorted, halting, debasing, scheme of 
 error? Can the blessing of God be expected to follow this ob- 
 vious retrogradation ? For it is impossible not to perceive a 
 driving backward in the strain of doctrine and discipline in 
 many who, by their forwardness and imposing attitude, in all 
 our judicatories, would feign not only be thought leaders, but be 
 such in the most absolute sense of the word. 
 
 They loudly scoff at all idea or notion of any improvement 
 in doctrine or discipline, as made in this country. Though, 
 doubtless, if religious knowledge and doctrine ever made any 
 progress in any country, it has been in New-England, that land 
 which is scarcely named in comiexion with religion without a 
 sneer. And if the spirit of God has ever been poured out in 
 religious revivals, it is there ; yet, at those revivals, the finger 
 of scorn is pointed, and the sneers of contempt are not wanting. 
 I do not say that the seminary will support, exclusively, that 
 scheme oT doctrine and those intolerant and destructive mea- 
 sures. I can only judge from what I have seen and heard, and 
 perhaps a full experiment has not been made ; but I say if they 
 do, they will prove a scourge and not a blessing to the church — 
 will draw down the wrath, and not the smiles of heaven upon 
 tiie whole denomination. 
 
 An unknown weight of responsibility lies on the founders, di- 
 rectors, and instructors of (hat Institution. It commits the in- 
 terests of a I isiiig, and hiflierto prosperous church, to few hands — 
 I fear too few. The training of a ministry shall exert an influ- 
 ence nof only immediate and perceptible, but remote, extend- 
 ed, progressive, and without'end : — it has the power to purify 
 
93 
 
 or corrupt the doctrinal and moral sentiments of a nation, and 
 to all future generations. A corrupt teacher may certainly pro- 
 ceed from a very pure and correct institution ; as also may a 
 very correct teacher from a polluted fountain of instruction. 
 But, generally speaking, the scholar will be like his master, and 
 a variation from this rule is generally on the unfavourable side. 
 
 But I ask, in thesi, i. e. merely as a case supposable, what if 
 the master be a non liquet? What if, after having preached 
 twenty years the doctrines of general atonement, moral ina- 
 bility, universal offers of salvation, and man's probationary state, 
 nobody knows it ? What if, after having deeply bewailed the 
 lax practice of the church, for years, he performs prodigies 
 in converting young men to that practice ; nay, and performs 
 journeys to administer it, and keep its adherents in countenance, 
 lest they should be discouraged ; thus supporting the practice 
 which he bewails, and defeating the practice in which he be- 
 lieves ? This might be a great stretch of benevolence. But, 
 Gentlemen, if you make the pillars of your building of the wil- 
 low, the superincumbent arches must be light and buoyant, or 
 they cannot be sustained. 
 
 Gentlemen, I perceive a current, in these times, whose drift 
 is rapid, broad, and strong. I have stated my apprehensions 
 freely ; nor have I a doubt that they are just. As to the furious 
 censures that many will hurl at these suggestions, I regard them 
 as chaff; and the neglect, which others will consider as a better 
 revenge, I shall not feel. I have as much at stake, in these 
 concerns, as any person living, and no more : — the eternal ap- 
 probation of God is to be gained or lost by us all, and the so- 
 lemn hour when that great and unalterable decision is to be made, 
 is near and approaching. Neither the reflections contained in 
 this or the preceding numbers, or series, are the offspring of 
 haste or passion ; they have resulted from long observation, and 
 deliberate conviction. The drift I see is from light to darkness— = 
 the movement is retrograde ; and if the golden calf, which is to 
 lead back to Egypt, is not already cast, and shown to the camp^, 
 I shall be glad. 
 
 Your talents, your long experience, your conspicuous stations^ 
 your standing in the public confidence, and your correct senti- 
 
t 
 
 94 
 
 menls, are pledges which the church holds, that your exertions 
 in the cause of truth will be equally distinguished and decided. 
 I am, Gentlemen, with great respect, 
 your obedt. Servant, 
 
 INVESTIGATOR. 
 
 No. V. 
 
 It is done. The extraordinary scene which has agitated the 
 public mind for some time, is closed, and closed in a manner 
 which ought to fill every pious mind with alarm — -every inde- 
 pendent mind with new circumspection and resolution — every 
 generous mind with indignation. The young men's Missionary 
 Society, in this city, by a majority of 160 to 90, have con- 
 demned Mr. C as holding heretical doctrine, on the sole 
 
 : \>und of his being a Hopkinsian. Thus, a young man of most 
 ujrfleiaished moral character, of ardent piety, and uncommon 
 taknts. is laid under the odium of public censure ; is rejected 
 by v!>t missionary board, and overwhelmed with all the disgrace 
 which the ultimate censure of that society can carry with it to 
 every extremity of the Union. 
 
 But do the people of this city consider what this censure im- 
 plies, and how far it extends? Are they aware that it extends to 
 a very great proportion of professing Christians in the city.^ It 
 reaches every man" who does not come fully up to the horrible 
 and loathsome restrictions of the triangle ; to every man who 
 does not believe the whole human race deserving of eternal 
 damnation for Adam's first act; that Christ made propitiation 
 for none but the elect ; that all men were not only condemned 
 for Adam's first act, but utterly incapacitated thereby, in a 
 way which has no connexion with their disinclination, to obey 
 God; or, in other words, that their inability, caused by Adam's 
 sin, does not consist in want of will to obey God. 
 
 Cili/.i'us', is every man in this city and country to be con- 
 
95 
 
 demned and disgraced as an heretic, who does not come up to 
 these monstrous opinions ? Imagination can scarcely reach to 
 the atrocity and insolence of this whole business. The men 
 who have condemned an innocent and worthy young man, 
 claim to be Calvinists. They claim to be what they are not. 
 Calvin never disgraced religion so much as to teach the doc- 
 trines they teach. I have told you, in the Preface of the First 
 Series, what Calvin thought of original sin. It was at the same 
 distance from their views of it, that I am ; and as to a general 
 atonement, these men have been called upon, in vain, to show 
 that Calvin denied it. They cannot show it; and there is much 
 reason to believe that this young man, whom they have con- 
 demned, does not differ from Calvin in his views of the atone- 
 ment. 
 
 The doctrine of a general atonement has been the great doc- 
 trine of the Church in all ages, and almost all its sections. It 
 has been denied as rarely as the divinity of Christ; and if the 
 whole Christian Church be considered, and the whole period of 
 its duration, it will be found that as many have denied the di- 
 vinity of Christ, as the doctrine of universal propitiation for 
 sin. 
 
 But, citizens, you are told that the Socinians of Boston, and 
 that region, are sprung from Hopkinsianism You are told this 
 by men who are ready to assert any thing that will answer their 
 present purposes. Never was a more obvious or infamous 
 falsehood asserted. The Socinians of those parts are descended 
 from such men as opposed and ridiculed the reformations un- 
 der Whitefield; such men as drove Jonathan Edwards from 
 Northampton ; such men as have ever opposed Edwards, West, 
 Bellamy, and Hopkins, for the last fifty years, on the same 
 grounds, and for the same reasons, that they are opposed in this 
 city — the Antinomian ground. 
 
 And I here repeat the observation made in the first number 
 of the first series of this work, that the strain of doctrine pre- 
 dominant in this city, or, at least, in many churches of it, will 
 present no barrier to vice or error, but will ultimately prepare 
 the way for both. 
 
 Yet dangerous and fatal as this scheme of doctrine is, could 
 
96 
 
 troth and error have been left to a fair and open conflict, I 
 would have preferred to have descended to ray grave in silence, 
 assured that, wherever that conflict is carried on, on equal 
 ground, victory must crown the advocates of truth. But here 
 it has been far otherwise. While truth was hushed, and hissed, 
 and terrified into total silence — while no man presumed to lift 
 his voice against a torrent of opinion and prejudice, which 
 rolled on broad and deep as the Ganges — while pulpits thun- 
 dered, presses groaned, and conversation murmured with exe- 
 crations and anathemas, against a strain of doctrine of which 
 the people were kept in perfect ignorance, it was time that a 
 record of facts was published: — "and after the manner which 
 they call heresy, so worship I the God of my fathers." 
 
 INVESTIGATOR. 
 
THE 
 
 TRIANGLE. 
 
 FOURTH SERIES OF NUMBERS. 
 
 BY 
 
 THE INVESTIGATOR. 
 
 St^jjv^V £7r' d^iT^v oTjua? ttoAAs?? Trroti. 
 
 J\rETr-TORK.' 
 
 PRINTED AND PUBLISHED FOR THE AUTHOR. 
 
 Van Winkle, Wiley & Co., Printers, 
 
 1817. 
 
PREPA.CE TO THE FOURTH SERIES. 
 
 The resentment which certain individuals still maintain, and con- 
 tinually express, against the Triangle, and which, whether the breeze 
 whispers or storm roars, still reverberates through the city, ex- 
 cites in me various sentiments, but no variation of purpose. Regard- 
 ed in the light of a furious, relentless, arrogant, and haughty intoler- 
 ance, 1 cannot but hear it with contempt ; but considered, as in many 
 instances it is, as the result of prejudices corroborated from the cradle, 
 or of ignorance of equal ag^e and respectability, I cannot but feel con- 
 cern mingled with pity. 
 
 Had not a course of events occurred in this city, since this publi- 
 cation began, which have fully justified most of the assertions in the 
 former numbers, and especially in the first ; had not these events been 
 witnessed by the public eye, attested by the public ear, and sanction- 
 ed by the official acts of public bodies, this continual and furious roar 
 of execration might be thought less extraordinary, and perhaps more 
 excusable. 
 
 The Triangle is accused of three capital faults : of laying false ac- 
 cusations, of using indecent language, and of advancing corrupt sen- 
 timents. 
 
 In relation to the first of these charges, the city of New- York may 
 judge for herself, how much exaggeration I have been guilty of; when 
 she has lately heard the whole body of these men fiercely implead the 
 Hopkinsians at the public bar, and lay to their charge, not merely in 
 the idle slang^of chimney-corner debate, but before a large Missionary 
 Society, almost every grade, species, and aggravation of error, such 
 as Socinian, Deistical, and Atheistical heresies. And, reader, when 
 you hear these charges thundered from the house top, and propagat- 
 ed by the trumpet's blast, can you be weak enough to believe that 
 it has not long been the theme of their perpetual tattle, their gossip- 
 ing, their whispers, and intrigue. You may not know it ; I do. 
 
 And as I said, at first, but which doubtless was not heeded, this 
 controversy, this furious contention has, as it did in the Missionary So- 
 ciety, in every instance, begun with these men. They have sought 
 the quarrel — have waged the battle — have given the provocation — 
 have premeditated the attack — have thrown down the gauntlet — have 
 bared their weapons, in every instance. The advocates of Hopkin- 
 sian sentiments, from their arrival in this city, earnestly, anxiously, 
 laboriously, humbly, and, I may certainly add, prayerfully, studied the 
 peace and quiet of the city, and of the church. Yet, as I said, the 
 most industrious measures were presently taken to root them out, and 
 the whole art and science of attack, in all its variations, was long 
 practised upon them. 
 
 And, reader, one day you shall know, in spite of all your reluctance, 
 that I have not exaggerated on this poi nt. 
 
 With reference to indecent language, I shall say little. The lan- 
 guage of sarcasm is often resorted to, and I most conscientiously be- 
 lieve, if ever admissible, in any case, it was on these occasions. The 
 spirit of bigotry and intolerance affected in this free country — the 
 figure and phiz o( s. noli me tangere gossiping about in this free and en- 
 lightened city — the contour of a man's character and conduct, who 
 shall here set himself up as a little spiritual despot, are things too con- 
 temptible and base, too daring and audacious, to merit systematic and 
 solemn argument. It is hardly worth while to erect a scaffold for 
 punishing a spider, when you can crush him with your foot. 
 
 As to satire and raillery, and sometimes couched in tolerably gross 
 phrases, I must beg these humble admirers of great men to read Dr. 
 
Witherspoon's " CHAaACTiRisTics," while, at the same time, I ex- 
 hort SijiTie whose consciences are so terribly wounded by the Triangle, 
 to be careful not to strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel, in tlieir 
 behaviour concerning it. 
 
 Whether the Triangle advances corrupt sentiments, the eternal 
 fountain of light and truth will judge. Much of the rage of these 
 tender-hearted men is levelled at this article. For as to censures, 
 sarcasm, raillery, and abuse, if they have been in the habit of attend- 
 ing various churches in this city, they have heard as much from the 
 pulpit, and probably smiled, nodded assent, or slept under it, and 
 thought it very well said. 
 
 I blame no man for opposing the sentiments of the Triangle. But, 
 as the quaint proverb says, " there is a thing different from that thing." 
 They have not suoh a flaming disinterested love of truth as to be up 
 in arms when mere error is advanced. The tremendous crime com- 
 mitted is, that some one has dared to tell men what they do. But the 
 half — the thousandth part has not been told. 
 
 The most deplorable state of society is that in which a set of men 
 claim, and enjoy, the prescriptive privilege of saying and doing what 
 they please, when to trace their steps, and lay open their conduct, is 
 judged an unpardonable crime. This is slavery of the deepest shade, 
 and most miserable character ; and in this way people, if they are 
 let alone, will rivet their own chains ; will, like the people of Rome, be 
 the first to immolate Brutus and Cassius, who had fairly broken them. 
 
 But the free discussions which have lately agitated this city, and 
 which bigots, spiritual Lords would be, and some near-sighted people 
 have regarded as the most dreadful of all dreadfuls, have already pro- 
 duced the most happy effects. The veil is rent, tl)e prescriptive 
 Bovereignty of prejudice, superstition, and mysticism, is abolished, and 
 the reign of spiritual despotism is at an end. The Phoenix has arisen ; 
 a society of more than five hundred men is fonned, who know. they 
 have a right to think or themselves 
 
 In the mean time, I wish the triangular men every degree of hap- 
 piness and good fortune. Demeaning themselves as good and virtu- 
 ous citizens, I hope they will be loved and respected as such: 1 only 
 wish them suspected and despised where they attempt to throw over 
 people's heads the thoags of intolerance, which every man has more 
 reason to hate and fear than he would the horrid bow-siring of the 
 eastern despDt. Let them rest assured that I think them worthy of 
 liberty, but not to reign. 
 
 And, for the good men so terribly put out with the Triangle, I must 
 beg tliem to be composed, and devote the exuberance of their time 
 and talents a little more exclusively to the cultivation of their own 
 virtues, by which means, I think, society would receive benefit. 
 They might, in this way, render themselves very agreeable and use- 
 ful companions. But among authors, and in public disputes, they 
 will not be able to effect nmch. I question whether the writers of 
 the present day will think it worth while to ask them what they may 
 write. I fear their uneasiness arises from too iiigii an opinion of their 
 own importance : men may become very extravagant on this point. 
 It is recorded of two Roman Emperors, I believe Dioelesian and Ga- 
 lerius, that they once, in conversation, expressed themselves in the 
 foilowiog couplets : 
 
 DiocL. " When i am cipad and in ray uro 
 IVIay earth anil fire together hum, 
 And all the worid to ciniters turn." 
 
 Gil,. " Nay, wiiiU' I live I wmild desire, j 
 
 To set the uaivcrse on "fire. " *• 
 
THE TRIANGLE. 
 
 FOURTH SERIES. 
 
 No. r. 
 
 The existence of various denominations of Christians, while 
 it certainly evinces human imperfection, yet does not ceriaialy 
 prove the whole Church more corrupt,- or more liable to de- 
 clension, than she would be under a greater uniformity of senti- 
 ment- and one general communion. This remark is justified 
 by the history of the Church, while as yet there had been 
 few secessions from the Komish com>nunion. Though this 
 coo<;ideratioD cannot diminish the obligation of every Christian 
 to seek for greater unity, and to dpsire greater uniformity, in the 
 wl'olf Christian world, yet it shouh* be regarded as a motive to 
 ferv^^^nt charity, to Christian forbearance, and a spirit of tolera"-. 
 
 tiOK. 
 
 The tower of Babel 'oesan to rise, while th^- whole human 
 family spake one laii.^uage; and vvhilsi the whole Christian 
 wt-r'H formed, comijaritivtiy speaking, but one church, Con- 
 staii'iue planned and orgf^uized her government after the model 
 of the Roman empire, and made the dignitaries of each con- 
 fo\nie;ble and equal to the other; and th.- great lords of the 
 chuich were quite satisfied >ind highly gratified now, in such 
 times, that Christ's kingdom ^^hould become a kin-dom of this 
 world. 
 
 A certain class of men have sufficieutiy instructed mankind 
 
 2 
 
to believe, that uniformity of doctrine may be advocated and 
 desired, from far other motives than love to the truth. Indeed, 
 when we see a man furious for union, and becoming violently 
 intolerant, you may be as certain that he acts from sinister mo- 
 tives as that he acts at all. But whatever may be the motives 
 of such men, how mistaken are they in the means by which 
 they seek to gain their object ! They cannot but incur suspi- 
 cion — they cannot escape detection. Censure, hatred, and ma- 
 levolence, are but different methods of bringing people over to 
 their cause; and their policy, in auy free country, will drive 
 away ten persons, where it will conciliate one. You will hear 
 them constantly talking what glorious times we should have, and 
 what great things would be done, if all held to " the form of 
 sound wordy Ah ! glorious times indeed ! If all would unite 
 in one church, and make these men chief rulers, they might 
 immediately commence the building " of a city, and of a 
 tower that would reach unto heaven." Their rage for union 
 arises from the facility it would give to their schemes of ambi- 
 tion. 
 
 In the divisions of the Church of Christ, however much 
 blame may be attributed to men, there still is evident the hand 
 of God. These divisions are to be viewed in no other light 
 than that of their instrumental causes. The Almighty Ruler of 
 the Church, and of the world, could have prevented them — 
 could have caused that all bis people should be of one heart, 
 and of one mind ; and it is believed that such a day as that will 
 come. But, reader, if that day should come, it would be no 
 day of rejoicing for these furious intolerant persecutors for uni- 
 formity : it would answer their purposes still far less than the 
 present divided state of the Church, when they are quite in a 
 rage because so few will follow their standard. The day of 
 the Lord will be to many of them " a day of darkness and 
 gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness." When 
 therefore, they pray for the day of the Lord, they know not 
 what they pray for. 
 
 As in heaven itself, there will be no object gratifying to the 
 proud and seltish heart, so the real prosperity of Christ's 
 
Church will not answer one of the purposes of many who ar« 
 now most petulant and clamorous for union. It will not in- 
 crease their fame or influence ; it will put them in no better 
 humour than they now are ; it will not cause people to flock 
 after them ; and it is a great wonder, if it do not put a period 
 to all their plans for building up the Church, and throw them 
 into the shade of oblivion. 
 
 The divisions and errors of Christians are suffered by Christ 
 as a trial of the faith, the patience, and charity of his people. 
 And I have often imagined to myself, how beautiful and love- 
 ly the whole Church might appear, even notwithstanding she 
 lies in different apartments, did she but live, in all her mem- 
 bers, in the exercise of fervent charity. There certainly is a 
 limit of charity, as there is a degree of error, beyond which it 
 cannot extend. But that is a barrier so palpable, and the fea- 
 tures of heresy are so full and strong, that Christians, exercis- 
 ing the temper and spirit of their profession, need be at no dif- 
 ficulty to discover them. But under the exercises of that pure 
 and heavenly temper, the differences of Christians about the 
 minor articles and distinctions of doctrine, would be very like- 
 ly to vanish before the light of evidence. Such would be the 
 candour, the frankness, the simplicity, and plainness, with which 
 every man would point out what he supposed to be erroneous 
 in his brethren, having no motive for their conviction, but a 
 disinterested desire to promote their spiritual good ; and they, 
 none to maintain their ground, but what sprang from love to the 
 truth, there would be a strong probability of the final adjust- 
 ment of their differences of opinion ; since truth is always 
 more obvious than error, and the state and proportion of evi- 
 dence is ordinarily in favour of truth. A man has no motive 
 to be angry with a fellow creature for differing from his opinion : 
 for his views of rehgion, he is accountable to God alone, be- 
 fore whom he is soon to answer for his faith and practice. 
 
 It is nothing but the combination of selfish views and worldly 
 schemes with religion, that kindles up sectarian jealousy and 
 intolerant party animosities. It is, indeed, for the most part, 
 rank covetousness and base avarice that prompts to bigotry and 
 intolerance. Let it become indifferent where a man paid his 
 
mon^y, or care hiw aftenflarif;<j to public wofship, and this 
 (Jr* iidlijl frar r,i lio|tkiiini>iri irir)(»vatir)ii> vvMjId I'uu'Vfjr 6t' tJ<ifie 
 awtt}' — liiiB terrible morHl|ih<tbia «vouUJ be cureil — this pretend- 
 ed holy jealoufty of Arminian tenets wotiNI (|uic,|{|y {rpow cool. 
 It is your ea«h citizenB, that is the «over«;i>;ii ehariM ; it in your 
 Combination with (heir views tif interest that sharpeoB the eitge 
 of their weapon^, wliich fly ho Ihick find fnsl; — it in tlie inaje-ly 
 of rrowdid HMBerrihlieH of followerft, the f^raiifyiny conHciou^ 
 ne»B of a Hupponed ascendant influence, that blows the furnace 
 of iheir zeal ink) a s«'ven fold hent. It in not a care f(»r your 
 8alv«iion, but an ambition to controul your faith : — it is not Ihe 
 fear of heresy, but fear for a favourite system, on which their 
 p(»pul;irity depf-ndu — a '■ystem supported by pride and ambition 
 that prompts IImmp intolerance. 
 
 But their attempts are vain, and their zeal shall dissolve like 
 BDioke in the air. 'J'he (Jenius of my courilry will nut be 
 crushefl by the arm of Hpiritual despotism; she has triumphed 
 where thun<lers roitred and liiihlninns played their volleys — 
 and a voice more loud than thunder, more piercing than the 
 li}i,htnin'i s shaft nhall wither this impotent rage. The voice of 
 trutli hbally< t jirevail. 
 
 Having proceeded thus far on this essay, I received the fol- 
 lovvini; letter iti which, I think, the reader will find amusetneat, 
 if not instruction. 
 
 TO THE INVESTIGATOR. 
 
 Sir, 
 
 I. perceive, by your forrjjer numbers, that you sometimes 
 dream. I must say by you,' as the Simx-iator saii! some of liig 
 corr< spondenls used to say of him that they wished he would 
 pjeep oftener Hut that you may know Ihal oilier folks dream 
 sometimes as well as yourHelf, I make bold (o send you a (h-eam 
 ol my r)wn, and if you think jtroiier, you may give it a place 
 in the Triangle, (hough I think you and your readers mus't al- 
 low it to he a <|ii.iiliimf:nliir dream. 
 
 |f it be true, that, " from the multitude of busineaB the 
 
dream com^th," yoa need not be much at a loss what I am, 
 or into what company I have fallen. 
 
 I am, air, your very 
 
 humltle servant, 
 
 S. C. SOMNIFICATOR. 
 
 I fancied myself standing in the court-yard of an edifice of 
 gr^at ^.ize anri regiiiar proportions. This court waa spacious, 
 far f xc*;efJing in extenf any thing I had ever seen, seeming to 
 cont .in an exteorjve fif^hJ, Ita surface was smooth and ^een, 
 and interspersed with shady trees, aromatic ahrubs, and clumps 
 of rare and beautiful flowers. Marble fourit.'in-s, and jet d'eaus 
 of pure water, vari'iu.-ly disposeiJ, gave freshne-iS to the verdure ; 
 while birds of bright plumage and raelodi<*u^ notes disported 
 through the shades, filling the scene with life, cheerfulneas, 
 and beauty.* I'his spacious court, with a gradual ascent to- 
 wards the building, was bordered on one side with rich and 
 cultivated fields to an interminable extent, which in remote 
 distance disclosed hills, valleys, and roounfafhs; on another, it 
 waii skirted by a vast forest whose trees were tall, and whose 
 foliage was deep and bold. In the remaining direction, it 
 opened to a di-.tant view of the ocean. The erlifice, compared 
 to which all the buildings I ever saw would appear inconsider- 
 able, and which, whether palace, tower, or temple, my eye 
 seemed unable to determine, faced the east and as, at that 
 juncture, it was illuminated by the cheerful beams of an ascend- 
 ing -un, its appearance was bright and glorious beyond concep- 
 tion. 
 
 A peculiar tranquillity reigned everywhere; the distant 
 ocean seemed to AJumber in peace beneath a calm and cloud* 
 le-- canopy, curling in sil.er morris to the breeze; the ?• iitle 
 waving of the forest showed the quiet of the elements, \ hile 
 over the wide country seemed the sacred smile of the sabbath. 
 Id <he grand courtt», and round the -pacioas buildings, I savr 
 
 • Thf. American posple may l>e '.aid to form the wjter eonrt to the risible 
 ehureh. The forest repretecu tlie sayage nation*.— /n-«i««iy a/or. 
 
many persons whose appearance spoke the language of peace 
 and concord ; — and they were all dressed in white.* 
 
 In a scene so entirely new, and so grand and charming, I was 
 wholly at a loss where I could be ; whether I had fallen upon 
 some neighbouring planet; whether it was the celestial para- 
 dise, or whether I had been transported by some invisible 
 power, to contemplate the beauties of the morning star, I could 
 not tell. 
 
 Finding myself alone, and fearing I might trespass on some 
 sacred enclosure, forbidden to the foot of a stranger, I was in 
 suspense what course to pursue, and seemed scarcely to ven- 
 ture to move from my position. But on turning towards the 
 building, I perceived that it bore no marks of royalty, as there 
 were nothing of the equipage or pageantry of monarchs about 
 it. It was no fortress of war, as none of the military munitions, 
 or guards, were to be seen. It resembled not a palace of plea- 
 sure, and though it seemed the seat of cheerfulness and tranquil- 
 lity, there were no indications of hilarity and mirth, nothing of 
 the daring and dissolute, the fierce gentleness, and threatening 
 urbanity, which marks the polished air of fashionable parties of 
 pleasure. 
 
 As little did it bear the marks of domiciliary habitude, as 
 was evident from its amazing size and grandeur, and from the 
 absence of the domestic appearraoce of all houses, from thesu- 
 perbest palace to the humblest cottage.f 
 
 Emboldened by these appearances of peace and order, I 
 walked towards the edifice, and was amazed at its stupendous 
 height and dimensions. I passed various parties leisurely walk- 
 ing atnong the shades, enjoying the fragrance of the flowers, 
 and the pleasantness of a region so entirely delightful. I could 
 dislinguisli none of their conversation, but the air of tranquillity 
 and reflection, bordering on devotion, which was obvious in 
 thtir gesture and countenance, bespoke something sublime and 
 awful, and I perceived must have some connexion with religion. 
 As I approached, I perceived the builtiing was in three parts; 
 its site resembling three sides of a hollow square, open on the 
 
 • White was the aneient, as well as modern toke» of peac«.— / 
 
 t Tiie church is a spiritual. edifice, resembling no other building.—-/. 
 
11 
 
 side I was approaching. This square, made by the recess of the 
 central briiMing, and by the projerting of the wings on either 
 »ide, formed a majestic in^jer court, and was divided into three 
 compartments, sfparated by rows of lofty pillars, and corres- 
 pooding with tJiree grand divisions of the fabric* 
 
 Upon aniarer inspection, I was not a little surprised to per- 
 ceive the divisions of the edifice to be erected on the three 
 grand orders of architecture. The northern wing, if that might 
 be called a wing, which was of equal length, and greater depth 
 than either of the other, was of the Tuscan order — the central 
 one, of the Doric, and the southern of the Corinthian. But, 
 methinks, never were these orders so advantageously contrast- 
 ed, to judge of their comparative merits. The grave appear- 
 ance of the Tuscan columns, their massy strength and steadi- 
 ness, gave an air of safety to their towering height and superin- 
 cumbent structure. Nor did they want the grace of proportion, 
 nor the evidence of masterly execution. The solemn grandeur, 
 awful magnificence, and eternal durability of the Gothic arch, 
 executed in imperishable masses of granite, and with the able 
 jQnish of the hand of genius, seemed careless of all comparison, 
 while they reminded the spectator of that sublime declaration, 
 " the strength of the hills is his."t 
 
 The southern wing, projecting to an equal extent, but with 
 not so great a breadth of foundation, was built of costly marble, 
 was a noble specimen of the best age of the Italian school, and 
 far excelled the grandest work of Palladio, reaching near the 
 perfection of Phidias.J From the outward extremity of these 
 wings, and connecting them together, was an arch of incompa- 
 rable beauty, boldness, and granduer, under which it was neces- 
 sary to pass to enter the inner court, and to approach the vesti- 
 bule of either of the three structures ; under which, also, might 
 be seen the whole front of the central building. This edifice 
 was of the Doric order, executed on the noblest plan, and dis- 
 played much of the simplicity and chasteness of the truly an- 
 cient school.^ 
 
 • Congregational, Presbyterian, and Episcopalian. 
 
 t CoBgregational. + Episcopalian. § Presbjrterian, 
 
12 
 
 The arch, extending from wing to wing, and forming the en- 
 trance to these lajestic edifiiM^s, was indescribable; it seemed 
 to rise to heaven, and looked like the triumphal monument of 
 some bemg more Mian mortal. As I drew nearer I was seized 
 witii an emolion of reverence and awful delight which I cannot 
 express: and you will judge how this was increased, when,- 
 looking up with closer inspection, on the majestic arch, 1 saw 
 inscribed, in letters of the purest light, " Liblrxy of Con- 
 science."* I wept with emotions of j'jy and pleasure. 
 
 Overpowered with various sensations, my limbs seemed no 
 longer obedient to my volitions, and I stood in deep suspense 
 looking at times into these sacred recesses, which. 1 was per- 
 fectly assured, could be nothing but the sanctuary of God ; but 
 in doubt whether to proceed or retire. 
 
 Whilst I remained thus passive and irresolute, two ftmale 
 forms, of superior address and surpassing brightness, apprt)ach- 
 ed rae. The one I knew, as all who ever see her must intui- 
 tively know her, to be Truth. Though she appears in various 
 degrees of splendour, yet her movement, form, and countenance, 
 cannot be mistaken. She was dressed in robes that excel in purity 
 the mountain snow ; and the radiant diadem that never falls from 
 her head, is always easily distinguished. Her countenance was 
 calmly severe; the glance of her eye was penetrating, and her 
 frown no mortal can endure. The other, who was quite a stran- 
 ger, exhibited a form of grace and elegance which nothing can 
 surpass; her light blue eye, full of vivacity and gentleness, ex- 
 hibited the smile, the generous frankness, the softness and sin- 
 cerity of the opening morning, her golden tresses were gattiered 
 in a wreath of flowers, which might have been mistaken for 
 the immortal amaraathus. 
 
 " Her mantle large, of greenish hue. 
 
 My gazing wonder cliiefly drew. 
 
 Deep lights and shades bold mingling threw, 
 
 A lustre grand, 
 Ajnd seem'd to my astonished view, 
 
 A well-known land.'' 
 
 • The constitution under which eTcry man chooses his religion.—/. 
 
13 
 
 " My name," said she, *' is Toleration ; I am the companion 
 of Truth; we le^^ide in these mansions, and, if you are dispos- 
 ed to view them, we will be your guide." Restored to confi- 
 dence, by the affability of personages so truly august, and so 
 kind an offer, 1 thanked them, and accepted of their proposal. 
 We passed under the majestic arch, and stood in what may be 
 called the central aisle of the inner court. The edifice then 
 presented on three sides and as it was raised on the boht eleva- 
 tion of forty steps, the architraves and entablatures sustained 
 by lofty columns, appeared of majestic height, and astonishing 
 maunilicence. 
 
 The three edifices seemed equally to prompt curiosity, and 
 invite the stranger — won by her rich and magnificent elegance — 
 won by her bold and masterly simplicity — and won by her so- 
 lemn dignity and awful grandeur. As we moved almost in- 
 sensibly down the aisle, my guides seemed waiting to be deter- 
 mined by my preference. Toleration said to me, with a smile, 
 " Sir, you can visit all these buildings, and we will enter, first, 
 the one you may prefer." But, by this time, we had be;:;un to 
 ascend the lofty vestibule of the central edifice; and my guides 
 concluding, that, by accident or inclination, I preferred enter- 
 ing there, immediately proceeded to the door. 
 
 As Truth turned to ring the bell, she informed me that we 
 might possibly meet with some difficulty in gaining admittance; 
 for that three persons had lately obtained a residence there, by 
 the courtesy of the original proprietors of these grounds and 
 buildings, who had offi-'iously volunteered their services in 
 guarding the entrance against the intrusion of any improper 
 persons. Upon asking their I1ame^, she replied, with a srnile, 
 that they had arrived there, and acquired some influence under 
 the names of Orthodoxy, Zeal, and Vigilance; but that their 
 true names, in their native country, had been discovered to be 
 Bigotry, Intolerance, and Persecution. Upon my expressing 
 some surprise at this intelligence, Toleration observed, that 
 " they were generally well known, and thoroughly despised; 
 but having gained a residence and considerable influence, un- 
 der very imposing and specii;u« names, they ha«i Dlfachtrl se- 
 veral restless and turbulent spirits to their interest, and being 
 
 3 
 
u 
 
 io a region of great peace and tranquillity, where nothing is so 
 much regretted as measures of violence and hostility, many 
 who knew them the best, and detested them the most heartily, 
 nevertheless, preferred bearing with their impertinence, to 
 using the means for their expulsion." " But, perhaps," said 
 Truth, " you may not have a glimpse at them, for in some 
 apartments in this building, they dare not even be seen, and in 
 many others, they do not choose often to show their faces, but 
 on very special occasions." 
 
 A moment after, the door was opened by a young damsel, 
 whom: by her peculiar air, and exceeding simplicity and beau- 
 ty in person, dress, and manners, I should have almost known 
 to be Charity, had not Truth kindly pronounced her name. 
 There was nothing of ornament on her head, but the beautiful 
 ringlets of auburn hair which flowed carelessly down with 
 inimitable grace ; and with a countenance beaming the smile of 
 immortal youth, she bade us welcome, and desired us to enter. 
 
 Turning from this very uncommon door-keeper,* who, at any 
 other moment than this, could not but have commanded a more 
 interested attention, a spacious hall of great magnificence was 
 before me. Though it seemed but a common hall of entrance 
 to the interior of the building, it was fitted up with peculiar de- 
 vices and appropriate insignia. 
 
 This vast saloon was decorated with paintings and statues 
 of most extraordinary design, and unparalleled execution. It 
 seemed difficult, at first sight, to determine whether I was sur- 
 rounded with living beings, or with visions of the mind. Though 
 evidently paintings, they seemed to have been done with a bold- 
 ness of colouring, and force of expression, which as much de- 
 fied the pencil of Raphael to reach, as the pen of Shakspeare 
 to describe. The grandeur of the apartment seemed shaded 
 with the solemn gloom of twilight, while, nevertheless, the 
 vivid colourings of the scene showed an inherent lustre, re- 
 sembling, though far surpassing, a picture exquisitely illuminat- 
 ed. In a word, the shading was deep and awful, but interspersed 
 and enlivened with tints which evidently surpassed all mortal 
 
 * Charity keeps Terj few doors, either public or pritate, either of churchei 
 «r families.—/. 
 
15 
 
 skill. It was no emblem, and I felt that I was contemplating a 
 reality, whose full import I a moment after understood. 
 
 On a spacious pannel of the wall, at my right, (he hangingB 
 displayed a landscape which particularly engaged my attention. 
 A small and solitary vessel lay moored in a bay of the ocean, 
 on the shores of a vast and boundless wilderness. The world 
 of waters seemed agitated and raging beneath a wintry sky, 
 while the leafless forests discovered to the eye the snow-clad 
 hills, the rivulets chained in ice, and the lakes, now congealed 
 like marble, holding a solid mirror to the ethereal vault, and 
 the revolving lamps of heaven. The wide circuit of the waters, 
 which seemed a real prospect of the ocean, was cheered by 
 no sprightly sail ; no ship with swelling canvass was either com- 
 ing in or going out; no joyful shouts of sailors could be ima- 
 gined hastening to embrace their friends, after the perils of the 
 voyage were past; no stately vessel courting the favourable 
 gale to waft her to a distant port. 
 
 One solitary bark there was, in waters which the keels of 
 commerce had never ploughed, and where the gallant ship ne- 
 ver floated. On the neighbouring shore, a few humble cottages 
 denoted, by their form and texture, the vestiges, as did the 
 ascending smoke the present residence, of civilized man. Bui 
 how dreary was their prospect — how joyless their condition ! 
 At no very discriminating distance were discernible the winter 
 camps of the hostile savage ; the smoke of the wigwam was 
 ascending from the neighbouring hills, and along the bays and 
 inlets of the adjacent waters. Imagination might seem almost 
 to hear the mingled howl of savage men and beasts prowling 
 for their prey, and threatening to devour such of this defence- 
 less people, as the severity of the cUmate, the fierceness of the 
 elements, the rage of famine, or the angel of pestilence, on 
 this lonely shore, might spare. 
 
 A wall, or rather a defence of palisades, encircled their dwell- 
 ings, which seemed to promise little security. But without this, 
 and at a very great distance, there was another enclosure of a 
 more extraordinary nature, which, at first view, appeared like a 
 luminous circle, but on nearer inspection, I perceived it was a 
 wall of fire. The foundation glowed like solid bars of iron 
 
16 
 
 rendf^red while in a furnace, and on the top sat a quivering 
 fla !ir .\liich waved outward with fierce corupcations towards 
 (he wiklerness. Whilst the divine promise rested upon my 
 Blind " I will be a wall of tire round about thee " Truih, who 
 stood by my side, said, with a smile, " Behold the ori«;in of 
 your nation ! and the trials your forefathers endured for the 
 love of truth, and the rijihts of conscience. You see the colony 
 of Plymouth, on the tirst days of their landing. In the midst 
 of tlieir trials God was their defence." 
 
 Site then pointed to a distant part of the landscape, and I 
 cleaily perceived the course of the Hudson, channeled through 
 lofty mountains, but still winding his majestic way to the sea, 
 through the pathh ss wilderness save where tlie roving savage 
 had, at times, m;<rked out his devious peregrinations, in his fa- 
 vourite pursuits of war and hunting. She made me, however, 
 observe, remote in the dim and shadowy vista, the infant set- 
 tlements of Albany and Bergen, the one at the mouth, and the 
 other towards the sources of the river ; and again far south, on 
 the shores of Virginia, the only remaii:in^ vestige of civilization 
 to be found on the northern section of America. 
 
 I was struck with surprise, at beholdinfi on the foreground of 
 the piece, which w<mderfully epresented both map and picture, 
 and indeed, wherever Truth directed her piercing eye, and 
 pointe wim her hand, grew into a scene of living existence, 
 the same majestic arch, already described, as connecting the 
 wings of the buildings, and inscribed with the same motto, ".Li- 
 berty I T Conscience." 
 
 Till now, I had not observed a perspective glass which Truth 
 held in lier hanil, which she, at this moment, presented me, 
 after ha\ing adjusted tlie barrel to the first circle marked there- 
 on. ■' This," said she, '' will show you the effects which a 
 cetituiy can produce on a wilderne^js, where God designs to 
 build and plant a nation." As I took the glass, 1 observed at the 
 circle to which the sight was adjuste<l *720. I raised it to my 
 rye, and How changed was the scene ! The forest had nitlled 
 away from the shores of the ocean, and the banks of the larger 
 rivers smiled with cul'ivation. From Massachusetts to Virgi- 
 nia, a broad line of flourishing villages, and noble plantations, 
 
17 
 
 resembled a fringe of gold upon a broad mantle of green. And 
 now ihe whole prospect was more iliuminatfd, -and the level 
 rays of reflection seemed to indicate the sun juat risen, " the 
 blue waves of ocean rolled in light, and the mountains were 
 covered with day." 
 
 No longer was the frail and solitary bark seen before Ply- 
 moutli Numerous sail? were visible from far, and seemed 
 wafted by gales of prosperity ; and if Plymouth had become a 
 Boble village, denoting by her appearance, wealth, contentment, 
 and security, at no great distance from her had arisen a rival 
 sister, a far nobler capital, which promised one day to be the 
 nursery of patriots and heroes, and the cradle of an indepen- 
 dent nation. But if Plymouth was eclipsed by the importance 
 of a rising capital near her, how much more was Bergen lost and 
 forgotten, in another name, which was quickly to become the 
 grandest emporium of N^orth America. 
 
 After glancing to various parts of this great 'andscape, I took 
 the glass from my eye, and having drawn it to another circle, 
 marked 1820, i was about to renew my observation, when 
 Truth observed, that as I had no optics for contemplating futu- 
 rity, I should see nothing there but darkness. And as to the 
 present state of the country, continued she, you will derive 
 more benefit from industry than per5;'ective glasses. 
 
 Passing this incomparable landsc [le, my attention was drawn 
 from every other object to a portrait, which occupied the 
 western, or upper part of the saloon. It was a full length pic- 
 ture, and was evidently designed as the leading Ggure of the 
 room. For though this gallery was a hundred yards in length, 
 thirty in breadth, and twenty in height, it seemed equally con- 
 spicuous, from every part, and to an eye, but little acquainted 
 witn the fine arts, it could not he mistaken for the Genius of 
 America. But it surjiassed all description. It was standing on 
 elevated ground ; a flourishing olive seemed rising on his right 
 hand, and a princely bay tree on his left, like a towering py ra- 
 mi :, rose far above his head, from which the shadow fell round 
 him as from a meridian sun, though broken and dashed with 
 intromissioDs of bis gulden beam 
 
 The Genios, in the form and proportions of an Apollo Belvi- 
 
13 
 
 dere, far transcended the human stature in height and power, 
 and though he could not appear otherwise than terribly majes- 
 tic, he expressed the grandest lines of perfect benignity, and 
 excited the highest sensations of the sublime. In his counte- 
 nance was a placidness and security of expression indicated by 
 the union of power and goodness; fearless of danger and of war, 
 yet preferring peace, and tranquillity.* A dazzling robe of scar- 
 let descended from his shoulders, partially concealing an under- 
 ,dress of white,! and it seemed not easy to determine whether 
 the fashion of his dress was ancient or modern. | On his left 
 breast was a plate of burnished gold, surmounted with a Mosaic 
 star of brilliants of great lustre, around which was this inscrip- 
 tion, " CIVIL AND RELIGIOUS LiBEUTiT." Bearing this motto on 
 his heart, and with the robe of justice floating round him, he 
 wore a civic crown composed of the olive branch, entwined and 
 bound with an argent fillet, on which was inscribed, " Gladius 
 corpus^ scd Veritas mentem vulneral.^ Near him was a stately 
 arbour, formed by the arching branches of the elm and myrtle, 
 interlaced with vines, and through the osier trellis of a fine 
 summer retreat were seen a Bible and the Cousiitution of the 
 United Slates, engrossed on parchment, lying on a table. 
 
 The Genius, who seemed recently to have been reposing 
 there, was in the attitude of advancing forward, with his right 
 hand laid on the hilt of a splendid sword which hung in his belt, 
 and his eye sternly pursuing an object almost hid in impervious 
 shades on his right ; but, on^nearer inspection, could be dis- 
 covered. Huge and terrific, it appeared doubtful whether man 
 or monster, and its dress and countenance were assimilated to 
 the deepost shade, to wliicli it seemed anxious at this time to 
 escape. Yet, agreeable to the vulgar idea, that ghosts and gob- 
 lins are always encompassed with supernatural appearances, 
 this monster, if a huinan figure can be sufficiently hideous to 
 bear the name, was encircled with pale and livid light, and on 
 
 • Sucli is the character of the Aineriean people. — /. 
 t The liubit usually worn by Justice in allegory.—/. 
 
 i It is not easy to say whi.ther the American genius vill ultimately more 
 resemble the Greeks, Romans, French, or Knglish. — /. 
 § The sword wounds the body — truth the mind.—/. 
 
19 
 
 his breast, in letters of sulphurous flame, was visible' the word 
 
 Intolerance. 
 
 I rejoiced to see the hideous monster fly before the genius of 
 my country, and thus, I trust, it will ever be, while the favour 
 of heaven is extended to us as a people.* 
 
 Having viewed various other curiosities in this spacious gal- 
 lery, my guides proceeded to conduct me through the other 
 parts of the building, which were very numerous, and by (heir 
 forms and furniture showed the purposes to which they were 
 appropriated. This building was four stories in height. The 
 rooms on the first floor were rather small, and evidently adapted 
 to the session of a church ; and this appeared still more evident 
 from their number, which, as Truth informed me, was to the 
 amount of several hundred. Over the door which led to an- 
 other spacious gallery, into which all these apartments opened, 
 was this inscription, " Let the elders that rule well be counted 
 worthy of double honour.'"' This gallery terminated at the re- 
 mote end in a noble flight of stairs which landed us on the second 
 story, and, indeed, ascended direct to the upper loft of the 
 building. Here the apartments were as much larger as the 
 number was less, but planned in a similar form, and occupying 
 the same extent of building; and over the hall of entrance 
 leading to these apartments, I perceived this inscription, " Ne- 
 glect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by pro- 
 phecy, and the laying on the hands of the Presbytery.''' 
 
 In the third loft, there were five apartments, on a much 
 larger scale, as they included the same section of the edifice, 
 and were consequently of great extent, I here recognized the 
 difierent synods of the Church. And the motto placed at the 
 entrance of these apartments was, " In mxdiilude of counsellors 
 there is safety ^ Last of all, and on the fourth floor, was one 
 grand apartment, the high and arching dome of which was sup- 
 
 » Would to God that this picture were suspended in the vestibule of every 
 church of Christ ; or, rather, of every church which bears tliat name. lii- 
 tolerance is, indeed, a i)rinciple as weak and cowardly, as it is base and 
 cruel ; its grand exploits are always made against the defencele s, and gener- 
 ally against the innocent and worthy. — /. 
 
'20 
 
 ported on two rows of doric pillars, of excellent workmanshiji 
 and proportions. In an alcove, or fine recess, at the upper end 
 of this vast apartment, were several pieces of statuary, among 
 which I discovered the well-known forms of Davies, Finley, 
 Burr, Witherspoon, Rodgers, and M'Whorter. On the lofty 
 and beautiful arch of this recess was this inscription, " Built 
 on the foundation of the apoMes and prophets, Jesus Christ hint' 
 selfbpins Ihf chief corner stone, in whom the building fitly 
 franird together growelh into an holy temple in the Lord.'''' In 
 the centre of this group of figures, on a table made of Ameri- 
 can myrtle, lay the volume of the word of God. 
 
 We returned from the upper floor of this building to the lower 
 ones, by a different passage from that by which we ascended, 
 and I observed, that from each of the lower apartments there 
 was a separate ascent to the rooms of the second floor, as there 
 was also, from every room on the second, to those on the third 
 floor : as also, from the rooms on the second, there were di- 
 rect ascents to the fourth, or grand room, wiiich did not lie 
 through the rooms on the third floor. These circumstances 
 rendered this whole fabric a most curious piece of arclutecture ; 
 displaying, however, no less of invention, than skill in the exe- 
 cution.* 
 
 In the survey we took of this extensive fabric, Toleration di- 
 rected our course, opening every door, (for none were locked or 
 barred,) and giving us free access wherever we were inclined to 
 enter. Some of the rooms seemed at that time occupied by 
 the persons who held regular jurisdiction there : they showed 
 us every civility, invited us to prolong our stay, or to repeat our 
 visits, as our inclination might lead. 
 
 After we had spent some time in walking through various 
 apartments, in all of which a uniform neatness and <irder pre- 
 vailed, we were arrested by a singular adventure near (he door 
 of one of the rooms of the second floor. As we were ap- 
 proaching the door, and about to enter tliis apartment, three 
 men, coming out of the room, met u?, and, placing themselves 
 
 " The grand staircase first mentionerl represents the course of an appeal; 
 tlie othei- conununications are, obvious. — /. 
 
21 
 
 in our way, with a very obtrusive air, desired to know who we 
 were, and what was our business. I was not a little surprised 
 at tones so peremptory, and language so dictatorial, so uncom- 
 mon in this bouse. And observing these gentlemen, I thought 
 their countenances familiar to ray recollection, yet tbeir names 
 did not occur. 
 
 After a moment's pause, Truth replied to their demand, with 
 great composure ; " Gentlemen, this young man is a stranger 
 here, though not unknown to us ; he is about engaging in the 
 gospel ministry, and, we think, he would not be an improper per- 
 son to send abroad as an evangelist and missionary, to carry 
 the glad news of a Saviour to places destitute of that blessing. ^ 
 We have, therefore, shown him the different apartments of 
 this building, and hope he will be acceptable to those whose 
 business it is to commission men for that purpose, and also a 
 blessing to the Church of Christ. But, gentlemen," continued 
 she, " as myself and this lady have dwelt here ever since this 
 fabric was erected, and as we have not the honour of know- 
 ing you, we are under the necessity of asking the same favour / 
 of you which you did of us." 
 
 This address of Truth was received with a haughty air, and 
 these men looked as though they would give the reply, given 
 on a somewhat similar occasion, when the arch hend bad en- 
 tered into the garden of innocence, and was thf re detected by 
 Ithuriel and Zephon, two of the angelic guards of Paradise. 
 When they demanded his name, he replied, 
 
 '* Not to know me argues jourselves unknown.*' 
 
 These men were dressed in black, and so exactly resembled 
 three clergymen whom I knew, that had not one of them de- 
 clared their names to be Orthodoxy, Zeal, and Vigilance, I 
 should have supposed I knew them. It brought to mind, how- 
 ever, what I have often heard asserted, that men who in form 
 and features resemble each other, are generally found to have 
 a likeness in mind and character. A remark, in favour of which, 
 I think philosophy can furnish some reasonS) however experi- 
 ence may decide. 
 
 4 
 
22 
 
 Orthodoxy was a man of middling size, of dark complexion, 
 rather inciining to Roman or aquiline and acute features, re- 
 markably grave, quite precise in his language, affected in his 
 manners, and looked jealous, hypochondriacal, very solemn, 
 and sourly religious. The superciliary and frontal muscles 
 seemed long obedient to the agencies of spleen, pride, and ar- 
 rogance ; and his whole expression seemed to say, that he ex- 
 pected to be treated with great respect. 
 
 Zeal was a small man, rather spare, of tolerably regular fea- 
 tures, of the light and choleric temperament of complexion, 
 looked sharp, uttered quick, voluble, sententious, and round pe- 
 riods, with a voice which, had the man not been seen, might 
 have been supposed to have proceeded from a much larger 
 body, putting me in mind of the fable of the wolf and nightin- 
 gale ; and I observed that he had a remarkably little head. 
 
 Vigilance was a tall, thin figure, without colour in bis face, or 
 other expression than the faint gleaming of an uneasy smile, 
 which pain excites, rather than pleasure. He had the brown, un- 
 animated aspect of cloudy November twilight ; and if a sheep 
 could be turned into a wolf, he seemed to resemble the mon- 
 grel that would be the result, provided that metamorphosis 
 could be suddenly arrested when two thirds accomplished. With 
 a long neck, and rather small features, it appeared as if, after the 
 outline was struck, the contour had been contracted through 
 scarcity of material in the internal fabric. In short, the eyes 
 of this man, which were small, far separated, and of the colour 
 of the dark oxyd of iron, void of all brightness, expressed the 
 dull and wandering glare of morbid wakefulness, and seemed a 
 window through which suspicion, treachery, and cruelty, alone 
 held commerce with the world. 
 
 These gentlemen, however, appeared with an assumption of 
 great dignity, and with a scornful smile informed Truth that 
 they had heard of this young man, meaning me, before, and well 
 knew that he was *' unsound in the faith," desired to be no fur- 
 ther troubled with impertinent intrusions; with which, turning 
 suddenly upon us, they went into the room, and shut the door 
 with such violence that the jarring noise reverberated through 
 1 he neighbouring apartments to a great distance.* 
 
 • This clash was heard from Thiladelphia to Ne\r-Y«rk.— /• 
 
23 
 
 In our walks round this building, I discovered that there were 
 two small buildings standing just behind it, resembling it in form, 
 but smaller in size, and built of different materials. They 
 might have been mistaken for wings to the doric edifice, as they 
 joined up to it, and between them was an opening which might 
 have formed a court yard, but that it was overgrown with briars 
 and thorns, and presented no passage but a narrow foot path, 
 through which whoever passed would be liable to be scratched 
 and torn, if not bitten by some noxious reptile that crawled be- 
 low. These edifices appeared, however, very decent, and as my 
 curiosity prompted me to view their internal arrangements, I 
 proposed to my guides to take a view of them. I saw the la* 
 dies smile at each other, but did not know the meaning of it; 
 as it was their object to instruct me more by actual experience 
 than by mere intelligence. They accordingly approached near 
 the door of one of them, and I was not a little surprised to see 
 the same three figures standing before it. 
 
 As we happened to see them at a distance, I instantly halted, 
 and begged of Toleration to spare me another interview with 
 Orthodoxy, whom I did not very much admire. We accord- 
 ingly turned about ; and as I had seen these men planted at 
 this door, I concluded that we should find the entrance to the 
 other building free, or, at least, guarded by visages less grim 
 and repulsive. We approached the door, and were about to 
 open it, when, looking up, we saw inscribed in large letters over 
 it, " None are admitted here but such as will sign the Covenant.^'' 
 
 Truth, however, gave a loud rap, and immediately the door 
 was opened ; but the reader may conjecture, if he can, my sur- 
 prise when, behold, there again stood Orthodoxy, Zeal, and 
 Vigilance, looking more stern and terrific than ever ; and I seem- 
 ed as though I could hear the ancient maxim, " turn or burn," 
 distinctly pronounced. I was ready, with the poor Frenchman, 
 to exclaim, " Monsieur Tonson again !" I also recollected 
 Milton's famous passage, 
 
 -«' Black he stood as night. 
 
 Fierce as ten furies, terrible as hell, 
 And shook a dreadful dart.'' 
 
24 
 
 We turned from them without parley, aud havius; now visited 
 most parts of the hou^e my curiosity wished to see, there only 
 remaint'd one apartment in the second story, which, for reasons 
 I do not think pr tperliere to mention, 1 desired to visit, before 
 I left the house. We accordingly proceeded thither. But 
 here, as usual, while as yet we had scarcely come within sight 
 of the door, which led to this fair and beautiful chamber, for it 
 appeared to have been fitted up with more than usual pomp and 
 eleiiance, these hopeful figures crossed us, and forbid our en- 
 trance. My surprise, on seeing them, yet at a distance, was 
 redoubled, and I could not but remark to my guides, that this 
 extraordinary triumvirate must either be supernatural beings, 
 taking no time for change of place, as I was sure they could 
 not be omnipresent, or else there must be a great number of an 
 appearance too similar to admit of discrimination. 
 
 *' They are not men," said Truth, •' but phantoms, which 
 Almighty Providence has given the semblance of men, and they 
 personate the spirit and disposition of men of a certain descrip- 
 tion. They appear to the eye of reason in every place, where 
 a spirit of bigotry, intolerance, and persecution are found ; and 
 they act, ostensibly, as men of that description would act did 
 they feel no restraint from motives of interest and policy. No 
 eye sees them in these buildings, nor is the number great who 
 feel the disposition they represeut. Yet they have their follow- 
 ers, whose real characters are closely veiled, and who, under the 
 cloak of orthodoxy, cherish bigotry ; who hide intolerance in 
 the pretence of ze;il for the truth, and indulge the bitterest spirit 
 of perseoutiqn under a show of vigilance and activity to promote 
 sound doctrine and discipline But they are as destitute of sound 
 policy as they are remote from the truth and the love of God. By 
 disclosing too openly the malignity of their hearts, and baseness 
 of their principles, they shall open the eyes of mankind upon 
 their true characters, which shall be as much detested among 
 men, as they are abhorred in the sight of God. This is your 
 last interview with them, and from what you now see you may 
 judg<' nf their fiual catastrophe." 
 
 As Truth and Toleration drew nearer, these semblaaces of 
 
25 
 
 men seemed to grow more frightful in (heir appearance. Their 
 features turned to the colour of ashes, grew indistinct, and 
 lengthened into a distortion beyond all human visage. Their 
 limbs seemed dissolving, and their stature suddenly expanded; 
 they fell together into a column of smoke, whigh rolled along 
 the wall, and was soon dissipated by a current of air. 
 
 Truth at this moment seemed to become more awfully re- 
 splendent in her features, and more majestic in her form. Turn- 
 ing to me, she said, " Go, young man, and be a faithful wit- 
 ness for truth in the church of Christ, and in the world. Er- 
 ror, bigotry, and prejudice with all their train, are but empty- 
 shadows: they have no power in themselves. If they at times 
 give you trouble, it is but to try youi; patience ; if they present 
 imp'^diments, it is but to prove your strength." 
 
 My curiosity was no less satisfied than gratified in viewin** 
 this building ; and we accordingly descended into the court- 
 yard before described. I was now intending to take a view of 
 the two adjoining fabrics, viz. of the Tuscan and Corinthian 
 structures which lay on either hand. But Truth informed me 
 it might be useful and pleasing for me to take a different view of 
 these entire structures before we entered the others. She led 
 me accordingly into the outward court, at some distance, where 
 the whole might be contemplated at one view. 
 
 Here, turning towards this vast and threefold fabric, she ad- 
 justed the barrel of her perspective, which she still held in her 
 hand, to a future period, but with no visible mark to indicate its 
 date; she then gave it to me, desiring me to see what J could 
 discover. Having raised it to my eye, and brought the fabric 
 under the field of observation, at first I perceived only an indis- 
 tinct and tremulous light waving through the field, but a moment 
 after the object became clear, settled, and definite. The distance, 
 indeed, seemed greatly increased, but much more the etfulsence 
 and glot-y of the prospect. These buildings now appeared re- 
 mote, and separated from me by a broad river, or an arm of 
 the sea, where a tide or current rolled with rapidity and fierce- 
 ness, over which low clouds hunir, like a sable curtain, cover- 
 ing most parts of its surface. But beyond, and far above this 
 
20 
 
 gulf, they appeared situated on a rising plain of interminable 
 extt^nt and elevation. The fabric appeared now of one uniform 
 material of inconceivable brightness and beauty, and, by the 
 strength and brilliance of its reflected rays, looked lilie a tem- 
 ple " clothed with the sun." Multitudes of cheerful people, ar- 
 rayed in glorious attire, seemed passing in and out of these 
 buildings; and the firmament of heaven above them seemed as 
 though it might resemble, in purity and serenity, that arch of 
 the empyreal circle, which forms the glorious canopy of the 
 celestial Paradise. 
 
 My <eye was pained with the steady contemplation of such 
 brightness, and I was fain to remove the glass, but here the 
 sce^ie ended, and I awoke, and my first recollection was the 
 following incomparable lines : — 
 
 " Rise, crown'd with light, imperial Salem, rise ! 
 
 Exalt thy towery head, and lift thine eyes ! 
 
 See a long race thy spacious courts adorn ; 
 
 See future sons and daughters yet unborn. 
 
 In crowding ranks on ev'ry side arise, 
 
 Demanding life, impatient for the skies ! 
 
 See barb'rous nations at thy gates attend. 
 
 Walk in thy light, and in thy temple bend : 
 
 See thy bright altars throng'd Avith prostrate kings, 
 
 And heap'd with products of Sabxan springs ! 
 
 For thee Idume's spicy forests blow. 
 
 And seeds of gold in Ophir's mountains glow : 
 
 See heaven its sparkling portals wide display. 
 
 And break upon thee in a flood of day ! 
 
 No more tlie rising sun shall gild the morn, 
 
 Or evening Cynthia fill her silver horn ; 
 
 But lost, dissolv'd in thy superior rays. 
 
 One tide of glory, one unclouded blaze 
 
 O'erflow thy courts— the light himself shall shine 
 
 Reveal'd, and God's eternal day be thine ! 
 
 The seas shall waste, the skies in smoke decay. 
 
 Rocks fall to dust, and mountains melt away ; 
 
 But fix'd his word, his saving power remains ; 
 
 Thy realm forever lusts, thy own Messiah i*eigns !" 
 
 S. C. S. 
 
27 
 
 No. II. 
 
 Frequent allusions have been made, in the preceding num- 
 bers, to the religious tenets of the Reformers, and it is well 
 known how the pubUc is imposed upon by the specious pre- 
 tences of several divines, who claim the exclusive merit of 
 preaching the doctrines of the Reformation. I had measurably 
 satisfied myself with the animadversions already made on that 
 subject, but an ancient and very extraordinary work having fal- 
 len into my hands, I deem it an imperious duty, and it will cer- 
 tainly be a very great pleasure, to lay some documents before 
 the public, which I presume few have seen, and many will read 
 with interest. As to the authenticity of these documents, the 
 reader will entertain no doubt, after perusing what follows. 
 And I shall give them verbatim, in the style and orthography 
 in which they were published. 
 
 " These Articles^ hereafter written, were agreed upon at 
 Marpurge, by those whose names are heere vnder written^ the 3 
 of Octob. Mno 1529. 
 
 " For the^r^f, that we on both sides beleeue and hold, that 
 there is one only true naturall God, creator of all creatures, and 
 that the same God is one in essence and nature, and three fold 
 in person ; viz. Father, Sonne, and Holy Ghost, after the same 
 manner as was confirmed in the council of Nice, and as is 
 sung and read in the Nicen creed, in all the christian churches 
 in the world. 
 
 " For the second., we beleeue that not the Father, nor the Holy 
 Ghost, but the Sonne of God the Father, naturall God, became 
 man by the operation of the Holy Ghost, without the heipe of 
 the seed of man, born of the pure virgin Mary, bodily, com- 
 pleat body and soule as another man, sinne excepted. 
 
 " For the third, that the same God and Maries sonne, unsepsl- 
 rablp person, Christ Jesus, was for us crucified, dead, and buried, 
 arose from the dead, ascended into heaven, sitting on the right 
 
38 
 
 hand of God, Lord over all creatures, to rehirne againe to iadgd 
 the quirke and the dead. 
 
 *' For ihe fourth, we beleeue that orijiinal sinoe descends unto 
 TS from Adatn, by birth and inheritance, ami is such a sinne 
 that it damneth all men : and if that Christ had not come to 
 relieve vs with his <Jcath and life, then had we peiished thereby 
 everlastingly, and could neuer have come to the kingdom of 
 God. 
 
 " For ihefifth^ we beleeue that we are deliuered from the said 
 sinne and from all other sinnes, together with euerlasting death, 
 if so bee we beleeue in the said sonne of God, Jesus Christ, 
 who died for vs, and that through such a faith, not through 
 works, degrees, or orders, we may be deliuered from any 
 sinne. 
 
 " For the sixth, that such a faith is a gift of God, which we 
 haue not purchased by any foregoing workes or deserts, neither 
 can attaine there unto by our owne powers ; but the Holy Ghost 
 giues and prouides it, as it hath pleased him, into our harts 
 when we attend unto the gospel of Christ. 
 
 " For the seventh, that such a faith is our righteousnesse before 
 God, for which the Lord esteems us just, righteous, and holy, 
 without all works and deserts, and thereby delivers from sinne, 
 death, and hell, takes to grace and saveth for his sonnes sake, 
 in whom we so belieue, and thereby are made partakers of his 
 sonnes righteousnesse and life, and of the benefit of all his trea- 
 sures; therefore al cloister lining, and Abbey lubber life, as 
 unprofitable to salvation, are vtterly condemned." 
 
 The subsequent articles relate to the visible ordinances of 
 the gospel, viz., of preaching, of baptism, of confession, of 
 magistracy, of the Lord's Supper, &c., which have no peculiar 
 interest in this place. In reference to the holy supper they 
 say : 
 
 *' And though it be so that at this time we cannot agree 
 whether the true body and blood of Christ, bee bodily in the 
 bread and wine, yet ought the one part to performe Christian 
 loue to the other, so far as euery man's conscieuce will beare, 
 and both sides 6ntreate the Almighty God, with al ferueney, 
 
29 
 
 that he would settle vs in the right vnderstanding by the Holy 
 Ghost. Amen. 
 
 Signed, 
 
 MARTINUS LUTHER, STEPHANUS AGRICOLA, 
 
 PHILIP MELANCTHON, JOHANNES OECOLaMPADIUS, 
 
 JUSTUS JONAS, VLRICUS ZWINGLIUS, 
 
 ANDREAS OSIANDER, MARTINUS BUCER, 
 
 JOHANNES BRENTIUS, CASPER HEDIO." 
 
 The above declaration of doctrine was the result of a famous 
 conference held between Luther and Meh»ncthon on the one 
 part, and Zwingiius and Bucer on the other, together with their 
 principal adherents, to come, if possible, to an agreement on 
 the great points of religion, and particularly, concerning the 
 sacrament of the supper, in which Luther could not get fully 
 clear of the Romish doctrine of the real presence in the bread. 
 
 These were the distinguished leaders in the Reformation in 
 Germany and Switzerland, and among the best and ablt-st of 
 their divines. If the reader will turn to the statement I have 
 given of the doctrine of orijjinal sin, in the first series, he will, 
 at first sight, perceive it not to ditier from the views of these 
 great Reformers. The ground there taken is, that " original sia 
 descends from Adam to us by birth and inheritance," and is a 
 part of the grand constitution of nature, that every thing, propa- 
 gated in a series of generations, shall produce its own likeness. 
 
 Though the view of the leading doctrines, in the above state- 
 ment, is exceedingly concise, yet no part of the Triangle is 
 there discoverable. As to the atonement, it is well known, to 
 all the world, that the German Reformers, almost to a man, held 
 to the doctrine of universal propitiation. It was certainly so 
 with Luther and Melancthon, Zwingiius and Bucer, and all 
 the fen, whose names are signed above. But I shall detain the 
 reader with few remarks here, since the above is but a quota- 
 tion from a much more full and complete confession of failh, of 
 the Psaltzgrave church, in the founding and forming of which, 
 ZvMuglius was the principal leader. To that I shall imme- 
 diately proceed. INVESTIGATOK. 
 
 5 
 
so 
 
 No. III. 
 
 The work is entitled., 
 
 " A full declaration of the faith and ceremonies 
 professed in the dominions of the most illustrious and 
 noble Prince Frederick V., Piince Elector Pala- 
 tine. Published for the benefit and satisfaction of 
 all God's people : according to the originall, printed 
 in the High Dutch Tongue. Translated into En- 
 glish by John Rolte, and published in London, A. D. 
 1614." 
 
 The English translation is dedicated to the Right Honourable 
 Sir Edward Coke, Lord Chief Justice of England. 
 
 " A full declaration of the faith and ceremonies of the 
 Pealtzgraues churches. 
 
 " CHAP. I. 
 
 " Thai Tve have not such a detestable Jaith as is measured to 
 vs abrode by peace-hating people. 
 
 "Now to begin : we protest before God, and whole Christen- 
 dome, that we have not, in any sort, such a detestable faith, as 
 peace-hating people ascribe vnto vs, whereas they say : 
 
 That we deny God's oranipotency. 
 
 That we make God the author of sinne. 
 
 That we make God to be a tyrant. 
 
 That we deny the Godhead of Christ. 
 
 That we deny the |)er£onaI union of both natures in Christ. 
 
 That we say, that the divine and Ijunian nature in Christ have 
 no actuall and working fellowship with each other. 
 
 That we deny originall sin. 
 
81 
 
 That we deny the power of the death of Christ. 
 That we deny the necessity of beleeving in Christ, &c. &.C. 
 ♦' Such, and many more the like blasphemies against God, do 
 they accuse vs of, that we both beleeve and teach." 
 
 The reader will do well to recollect, and keep in mind, that 
 several of the heaviest of these charges are constantly urged 
 against the Hopkinsians, and perhaps he will also find, in these 
 pious and venerable Reformers, an apologist for the Hopkinsian 
 doctrines, which our Triangular men, who have so loudly and 
 so long claimed all the lleformers as their own, will not relish. 
 If all the divines in the dominions of the illustrious Frederick 
 Elector Palatine should turn out to be Hopkinsians, probably 
 
 the Rev. and most distinguished Mr. M s will pronounce 
 
 them " unsound in the faith." This denunciation, however, 
 would not disturb their peaceful slumbers in the grave. 
 
 The divines of the Psaltzgrave church having noticed the 
 errors and heresies of which they were accused, proceed in this 
 chapter with some general observations, in which they show 
 that, in these points, they agreed fundamentally with the great 
 Reformers, as well as the ancient churches. In the course of 
 which they take occasion also to enumerate the errors of which 
 Luther himself was accused, as in the following paragraph : 
 
 " Or do not the defamers know that the wretched fellow, 
 Doctor Piatorious, now, at this present, concludes against 
 blessed Doctor Luther? He writes, (i. e. Pistorius,) Doctor 
 Luther was, 
 
 A Tritheist, who said there was three Gods; 
 A Sabellian, who said there was but one person of the Godhead ; 
 An Arian, who denied the euerlasting Godhead of Christ; 
 An Eulichian, who mingled the two natures of Christ in one ; 
 A Nestorian, who separated the two natures in Christ; 
 A Valentinian, who was so mad headed as to say the human 
 nature of Christ descended from heaven; 
 
 A Marcionite, who blasphemed that Christ was not crucified 
 in very deed, but only in show. 
 
 " Such, and many more the like detestable heresies that 
 wretched fellow Pistorius construeth upon blessed Doctor Lu- 
 ther. And, to prove the same against him, cites his own words, 
 which make a great show to that end." 
 
32 
 
 I beg the reader to remember, that a similar attempt was 
 mad* iu tins rity in which a fellow, probably quite as wretched 
 as Doctor Pistprius, garbled the wiitings of Calvin and Hopkins, 
 and published a book called the "Contrast." 
 
 Tue writers of this declaration, after showing that, in those 
 points in which they were accused of heresy, they did not dif- 
 fer from Luther, nor from the primitive church, proceed to the 
 second chapter, in which their confession of faith begins. To 
 this 1 now proceed. 
 
 " CHAP. n. 
 
 *' What ourfailh is in very truth. 
 
 " Now if any man shall further demand, what then is our 
 faith indeed, the which we willingly acknowledge, then is this 
 our answere, as followeth. 
 
 " Wee beleeue there is one only true God, the Father of our 
 Lord Jt'?us Christ, with the Sonne and Holy Ghost; and that 
 accordingly, therp are three distinct persons in that one Godly 
 JEssence, the Father the Sonne and the Holy Ghost 
 
 *' Wee beleeue further, that the same one God is everlasting 
 and almighty, and c^n do .vhatsoever he will. Alsjf, that hee 
 5s infinite, and accordingly is present in all places at one lime, 
 and seeth, hearefh and knoweth all things- Also that he is just, 
 and [)unisheth no njan without desert. Also that he is merci- 
 ful, nnd iiafh no delight in the death of sinners, but that they 
 would repent themselves and live. 
 
 ** Wte beleeue further, that the same one true God created 
 heaven and earth, and all that therein is, of nothing. 
 
 " \'. ee brieeut' further, that God sustaineth and ruleth all 
 things which he created ; and that hee hath them so in hig 
 hand, that no creature can stirre or move itselfe without will; 
 and therefore nothing can come to passe without his permis- 
 sion, whether it be good or evill. Also, all that God doth at 
 present, or permitteth to come to passe, hee foreknew from 
 everlastiiii;, and with well b.^ th ught councell ha<l determined 
 that he would even so doe it, or permit it. Also, that he did 
 
33 
 
 not determine or permit any thing to come to passe, but that 
 whic he could and would turn to a good end. 
 
 *• We beleeue further, that in the beginning God created all 
 the angels and men holy and good, and especially man in his 
 likt-nesse, and to blessed immortality. But they, to wit, ihe 
 angels and the two first of mankinde, did shortly after their cre- 
 ation, fall from God their crt^aior; and have by such their fall, 
 brought not only upon themselves the wrath of God, but also 
 such a pollution of their natures, that now they can no more 
 either will or accomplish any thing that is good, which pollution 
 fell on the lost angels at one time. But mankinde inherits such 
 defilement, togfther with Ihe guiltiness both of the first and se- 
 cond death, by propagation, one from another. From whence 
 it is, that the same corruption of mankinde is called original 
 sinne." 
 
 Before I proceed, I must entreat the reader to notice the 
 sta(ement here given of the doctrine of original sin ; at least, 
 if bis object be to discover the opinion of the Reformers con- 
 cerning that doctrine, and if he be desirous to know how tiiat 
 doctrine stood, among what may be called the doctrines of the 
 Reformation. And I here as^re him, as I have already, again 
 anti again, that the notion of the imputation of the uuilt of 
 Adam's sin, as our Triangulars hold it, at this day, was un- 
 kn-nvn to the Reformers or, if not unknown, was rejected by 
 them as repugnant to all the dictates of reason, justice, and the 
 word of God. And the talk they make about the federal head- 
 shij) of Adam, as they call it, plunges them but deeper in ab- 
 surdily. To make a creature guilty of the sin of another, in- 
 dept^ndent of any moral desert of his own, is a case perfecily 
 similar to charging an innocent person with guilt; while, at the 
 .same time, it is perfectly dissimilar to the case of the imputa- 
 lion of righteousness where it is not due. The goodness of God 
 mny certainly go beyond a sinner's merit, but divine justice 
 cannot go beyond his desert, or charge him with crimes of 
 whtvh he is not guilty ; nor can any possible conslifuiion. head- 
 ship, or fe.'eral relation, help out the difficulty. Tiie={ terms 
 ma) indei'd iielp out a man'? prejudice-, and ca^t a mist before 
 bis eyes, but they cannot aid his raiioual conviction. 
 
34 
 
 But, reader, whether the crude and rank, the horrible and ab- 
 surd notion of imputation be true or not, is not the present 
 question — but whether that notion was taught by the Reformers ; 
 and 1 say it was not. They held that Adam's corrupt and de- 
 praved nature descended to his posterity, and ruined his whole 
 race. They held, as in the declaration before us, that " Man- 
 kinde inherits such defilement by propagation one from another.^'* 
 And hence, they were accused, precisely as the llopkinsians 
 are, and for the same reasons, of denying the doctrine of origi- 
 nal sin. But I proceed. 
 
 " Wee beleeue further, though such a fearefull fall, both of 
 angels and men, could not haue come to passe without Gods 
 permission, and that he appoints nothing without good conse- 
 deration, yet is not the fault of this fall in any manner to be as- 
 cribed to him ; considering that hee so created the angels and 
 men, that they had free will to turn to good as well as to bad. 
 
 *' Wee beleeue further, that it becomes not poor creatures to 
 dispute with God, wherefore he created the angels and men so 
 that they could fall. Also, wherefore he hindered not such 
 a fall, whereas hee could not well haue done it. He is the 
 Lord, and his wil is euer iust and good, though wee alwaies vn- 
 derstand it not. The Apostle Paul saith, that God hath shut vp 
 all vnder vnbeleefc, or vnder sinne, that hee might haue mercy on 
 all ; that is, that no man may bee saued but meerely by the 
 mercy of God. By this ought wee, in all reason, to let it so re- 
 maine. 
 
 *' Wee beleeue further, that the fallen 9-[gels and men could 
 not free themselues from the almighty gouernance of, but that 
 they, CM tlie one side, as well as on the other, are in the hand 
 of God, and their wickednesse cannot break out, than as God 
 bath permitted it. And this our faith is our greatest comfort on 
 ear(h. For and if the wicked angels and men had the bridle in 
 their own powers, where should we bee able to abide for them ? 
 
 " Wee beleeue further, that though God permit many sinnes, 
 in the f.illen angels, and men, and that hee vselh often times 
 their siuful actions to accomplish his holy workes (as he did 
 the abominable deeds of Absalom, to the punishment of David, 
 and the treason of Judas to the freedome of mankinde) also 
 
35 
 
 though he often punish sinne by sinne, and blind and harden 
 those commonly at last, who with seeing eies will yet be blinde 
 (as formerly he did Pharaoh, yet neuer the lesse, hee himselfe 
 bath no pleasure in sinne, much lesse doth hee prouoke or driue 
 any man thereto : but that the precedenly working cause of all 
 sinne, which goeth before is onely and alone, the free and vn- 
 forcedwill of wicked angels and men. 
 
 *' Wee beleeue further, that God hath adjudged the fallen an- 
 gels to euerlasting fire, without any grace or mercy, to terrify us 
 thereby ; that we make not a iest of the anger of God against 
 sinne. 
 
 " Wee beleeue further, that God hath indeed iust cause and 
 power also, to push downe the fallen men into euerlasting hell- 
 ish fire, without any grace or mercy. But hee hath not done it, 
 but hath offered grace again to man. And that so he might shew 
 the mercy without breach of his iustice, hee ordained his onely 
 begotten Sonne to bee our surety and Mediator, and to take the 
 punishment upon him, which wee deserued, and so deliuer vs 
 from euerlasting well deserued death, bj' his innocent death. 
 
 ♦' To accomplish the said counsell and wil of God, the hea- 
 venly Father the Sonne of God our Lord, and Redeemer Jesus 
 Christ, became man in the last times of the world, conceiued 
 by the Holy Ghost, borne of the virgin, and like vnto vs in all 
 things, sinne excepted. And when he had lined as a man thirty 
 yeeres, he began to preach and to teach the merciful pleasure 
 of his heavenly Father towards vs poore sinful men ; and in the 
 fourth yeere after that, he was captiued, crucified, put to death 
 and buried, descended into hell, and rose againe from the dead 
 the third day, and ascended into heaven, forty days after, and 
 eet himself at the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from 
 whence hee shall return to iudge the quickeand the dead. 
 
 " And, therefore, we beleeue of Christ, (hat lie is not a bare 
 man, but that he is the euerlasting Almighty Sonne of God, 
 who, at the appointed time, tooke the nature of man upon him, 
 and is now together God and man, and so shall remaine euer- 
 lastiugly in one vnseparable person. 
 
 *' And, being thus at present, both God and man, in one vn- 
 separable person, therefore do wee beleeue further^ that ali may 
 
36 
 
 be said of him, that may be said of God — all that may be said 
 of man ; yet with this caution, that euery thing must be vnder- 
 stood of him to be true, the diuine thing, according to the di- 
 uine nature, and the humane, according to the humane na- 
 ture, &I.C. 
 
 " According to which then we doe beleeue, that indeed and 
 truth the sonne of God died for vs, but yet, not according to 
 the Godhoad, but one!y according to the manhood, for the 
 Godhead cannot die. 
 
 " Of the povver of Ihe death of Christ belf'eue wee, that the 
 death of Christ. ' whilest he being not a b ire man, but the sunne 
 of G k1 ditd,) is a full aH-siiffiaent payment, not one.lyfor our 
 sinnps, hut aiso the smnes of the r^hole world. Ax\i\ thai hee by 
 his denth hatli purchased, not only foririuenuesse of sinnes but 
 also tlse new birth, by the Holy Ghost, and, lastly, everlasting 
 life. 
 
 •' But wee beleeue therewithal], that no man shall be made 
 partaker of such a benefit, but oneiy hee that belieueth on him. 
 For the scrij>ture is piaine where it saith, tic that belieueth not 
 shall he damned. 
 
 " We beleeue furtlier, that the true sauing faith cannot bee 
 Without repentatice and good works. For such a faith layeth 
 hold on Christ wholly wlso was made of God, notonely righte- 
 ousness vnto VS; but aiso sanctification. 
 
 " Wee bfleeue. further, that true blisse-making faith can- 
 not be without good works, yet, neuerthelesse, the man before 
 God's iustice seate, (that is, when hee is thoroughly touched 
 with his sinnes,) neither can, or should beare himself vpon his 
 good workes, it so being that they are euer vnperfcct. But 
 that a man shall appeale onely and alone vnto the grace of 
 God, before his iudgemcnt seate, which grace hee hath prepa- 
 red for vs in Cluist, and take hold on tlie same grace with a 
 belieuin<i heart, and so shall God forgiue him his sinnes, 
 and esteeme him iust for tlie full satisfaction of Jesus Christ, 
 And tiiat is our meaning when we sr^y that man is iustihed be- 
 fore God, onely by faith, without heipe of good works : name- 
 ly, not that good worlres should be abandoned, but onely that 
 a man should not put any coufidcnce therein. 
 
37 
 
 *' Wee beleeue, further, that God hath ordained the preach- 
 ing of his gospel to this end, that he would worke in vs faith in 
 Christ thereby, and that the same preaching of God the Lord 
 is no iest, but that it is his earnest will and intent, that all peo- 
 ple that hear such preaching should beleeue the same, and 
 should return to Christ." 
 
 And here I must beg the reader to notice, that if the atone- 
 ment of Christ, and his propitiation for sin, regards only the 
 elect, then surely the preaching of the gospel to the non-elect 
 is, indeed, no jest, because it is a thousand times worse. It is 
 the greatest possible imposition, in the most serious of all con- 
 «x;rns, to offer salvation to a sinner for whom there is no salva- 
 tion; to invite him to come to Christ, who never died for him; 
 to condeaiu him for unbelief, when, should he believe, he would 
 believe a falsehood. Thus it was viewed by the Reformers. 
 
 " Wee beleeue, further, that mankind is so corrupted by the 
 fall of our first parents, that they cannot vnderstand, or enter- 
 taine, the preaching of Christ, vnlesse God open their under- 
 standings by his holy spirit, and tvrn their hearts to Christ. 
 
 " And tiiat, therefore, the gospel is a spiritual worke of God, 
 which God bestoweth not upon all men, but also that the un- 
 derstanding and the receiving of the gospel (or to speake with 
 one word) faitli, is an especial worke of God." 
 
 With great pleasure could I go through the copying this no- 
 ble and beautiful declaration of the faith of these able and excel- 
 lent reformers. But as the remaining points of it relate to the 
 ordinances of the gospel, and do not involve the doctrines 
 which are specially called in question in these Numbers, I 
 thought it needless to give the whole, but shall close with their 
 last article. 
 
 ** And we beleeue lastly, that, for the most part, God hold- 
 cth his church under the crosse, and will first make it fuliy per- 
 fect, and glorious hereafter in the world to come ; according to 
 the patterne of his sonne, who entered into glory by affliction 
 and suffering." 
 
 Reader, you hear, in the above confession of faith, the voice, 
 not of an individual, but of a body of the ablest and best di wnea 
 the German Reformation produced, at the head of which was 
 
 6 
 
ss 
 
 the celebrated Zwinglius — I have only to rcquegt you to notice 
 their vie>^.- of original sin, of the atoneinenl. af faith, aiu! of 
 jusiificatioQ. This I do, because tbey differ on those points, 
 in no maierial idea from the doctrine Ccilled Hopliiusian; and 
 you will perceive how little that doctrine is deserving of the 
 epithet of New Divimty. But I proceed to the third chapter. 
 
 CHAP. III. 
 
 " That wee haue not founded and learnt such our faith from 
 hlinde reason^ much less from the revelation of Satan, (as some 
 calumniate us,) nor from the w<nk rvntings of men, but solely 
 and atone out of the mf llible word of God, through thegralioua 
 eidighleni'ig ofhia holy .spirit. 
 
 ♦♦ Wee reade indeede, also, the writings of men, especially 
 those whom God hatn stirred up in these last daies, againsi the 
 idolatrous Popedome, such as were Luther, IVt elanctbon, 
 Zwingiius, Oecolampadius, Bucer Brentius, Calvin, Beza, &.C. 
 And confesse, to the glory of God, that we have received iq« 
 formation from them, and do daily receive, the better how to 
 vmlerstand aright the holy scriptures, and to use them to our 
 profit. 
 
 " But we do not found ourselves in matters of faith upon the 
 eame, or any man's else, but we found ourselves in matters of 
 faith ouely and alone upon the word of God, and believe men 
 no further than they can shew what they s:*y out of the word 
 of God. And that therefore, for that we know that all men 
 may faile, though they may be as highly enlightened and as 
 holy as may possibly be, and that God is onely bee that ca' not 
 erre. And (hcrj^fore we put no confidence in man when he 
 gptaketh of himselfe." 
 
 In the ^th, 5th, and 6th chapters, they speak of their differ- 
 ence with Luther relative to the doctrine of the real presence, 
 in the bread of the sacrament, in which various arguments and 
 illustrations are used. In the 5th chapter, however, they give 
 the opinions of the fathers, which I shall quote for the enter- 
 tj^jfUiKUt of ilie lltader — They proceed: 
 
 ** Tertulliap, who lived about the yeere of Christ 200, saitb; 
 
The Lord took bread and divided it amongst his disciples, and 
 tnade the »arxie ills body, in that he said, Tbia is my t)ody, that 
 is, a representation of my body. 
 
 " Cyprian, who lived about the yeere of Christ 240, saith. 
 That the bread and the win^ are the body and the blood of 
 Christ, as, the betokening and the betokened tbing used, to 
 be termed with one name. 
 
 " Gregory Naziauzen, who lived about the yeere of Christ 
 360 nameth the bread a sign answerable to the body of Christ. 
 
 " Ctirisostome, who lived about the yeere after the birth of 
 Christ, 370, saith, The Lord hath commanded a representaiion 
 of his body in the supper. 
 
 " Theodoret, who lived about the yeere after the birth of Christ 
 440, saith, our Saviour himself hath changed the name of the 
 tokens of his body, aiid of his body to the tokens. &c. and in 
 sundry places he nameth the bread and wine, in the supper, a 
 representation, and opponent signe of the body and blood of 
 Christ. 
 
 "Augustine, who lived about the yeere after the birth of Christ 
 390, saith, The Lord hath commanded a representation of his 
 bo<ly, in the supper. 
 
 " Beda, who lived about the yeere after the birth of Christ 
 730, saith, Christ hath instituted instead of the flesh and blood 
 of the Lambe, the sacrament of his flesh and blood, in the re- 
 presentation of bread and wine. 
 
 '* Bertram, who lived about the yeere after the birth of 
 Christ 800. when some began to beleeve the bodily pr^senctt 
 of Christ in the supper, and being demanded there ibouts by 
 Charles the Great, freely declared that the bread is figuratively 
 and not really the body of Christ " 
 
 The Reader will, 1 trust, duly appreciate the importance of 
 the third chapter of this work, wherein those real Reformers, 
 who showed themselves worthy of that exalted title, disclaim all 
 reliance on the opinions of men, and all that blind and ^tupid 
 Teneration for names, which has wrought infinite mischief in tb# 
 ehurch of Christ, and to which incessant reference has laiely 
 been made, with a view to mislead the minds of the ignorant 
 and the creduloas. 
 
40 
 
 A poisonous stream of antinomianisiu has been poured into 
 the church, audaciously pretended to be the doctrine of the 
 Reformation. It is time the public were undeceived. 
 
 INVESTIGATOR. 
 
 No, III. 
 
 The Hopkinsians are accused of the monstrous, blasphemous 
 error, thai God is the author of sin. This point has already 
 been considered, but as the 7th chapter of the Declaration of 
 the Faith and Ceremonies of the Psaltzgrave Churches, ad- 
 vances the same course of reasoning on that subject that has 
 been advanced by many writers of New-England, I trust it 
 will not be displeasing to the reader to know what has been 
 the opinion of Christian churches, in other ages and nations, 
 concerning that matter. He will at least perceive that these 
 reasonings and opinions did not originate in New-England, and 
 if the Hopkinsians are, after all, incorrect, they still do not de- 
 viate from " THK DOCTRINES OP THE REFORMATION," or the Sen- 
 timents of the Reforniers. And in this chapter they will hear 
 the voice of that prince of Reformers, the immortal Luther, as 
 well as others who were ornaments of their age. 
 
 " CHAP. VII. 
 
 *' That wee doe not heleeue and teach olliernisa of Ihc foreknow- 
 ledge and almighty providence of God, ouer all creatures, and of 
 the fountaine from whence sinne springeth, than as Doctor Lu- 
 ther, of happie memory, hath bcleeucd and taught thereof 
 
 *' The second point, which was brought into controuersie af- 
 ter the death of Luther, is of the foreknowledge, that is, of the 
 almighty gouernment of God over all creatures, good and bad. 
 Of the same wee haue heretofore diuers times so declared our 
 mindes, that the contentious are forced to confesse Ihemselues, 
 that there is nothing rebukeable in the same. Ouely say they, 
 
41 
 
 Ihat wee haue aforetime spoken an<1 written of that matterj 
 otherwise than now wee doe spea5:e and write thereof. 
 
 " Admit now, that it were so indeede, ought wee therefore to 
 he railed upon, for that wee malce amendement] But for all 
 thai cli'y giue wrong information there. For (God be blessed 
 and praised) the doctrine of the foreknowledge, or ahnighty 
 gouernment of God ouer all creatures, hath been alwaies so 
 true in our churches, and so cleare, that wee neuer haue had 
 any neede to amend the same. The reader may looke ouer 
 all the catechismas and confessions of our churches, which hee 
 can euer come by ; and hee shall finde no other doctrine there- 
 in of the foreknowledge of God, than the same which wee doe 
 at present maintaine, in our sermons and writings. 
 
 *• But what they accuse vs to haue formerly taught, so ofFen- 
 «ively of the foreknowledge of God, and now to bee silent in, 
 in summe is thus much. That God hath not only seenejrom euer- 
 lasting, all that cometh to passe, whether it bee good or bad. that 
 it would come to passe, but also decreed that it should come 
 to passe, for cause of a good end, to which he would use 
 the same. Or, which is all one, that nothing is accomplished 
 without the euerlasting councell and will of God, whether it be 
 good or bad, and ihat the same euerlasting councell and will of 
 God is vnchangeable. And that according to the same al must so 
 come to passe, as it comelh to passe. Also, that the permission 
 of God when he permilteth that which is euill, is not a bare per- 
 mission, but thai God hath atwaies his hande in the work, and 
 hee turneth and ordereth euery action, to rvhat hee hath ordained 
 it, in his euerlasting councell. 
 
 "■ Out of all which they say, this must necessarily follow, that 
 God is the autho of sinne, and hath a pleasure and delight in 
 siune. This the comjilaint which they make against vs. 
 
 •* Now it is without no, that such sayings are found in mens 
 writings as are aboue rehearsed. But, neuertheless, the same 
 are also found in the writings of Doctor Luther. As, saiih he, 
 ** there comes nothing to passe without the will of God." Tom. 
 6. Wit. foL 520. A. Also, "all comes to passe onely accor- 
 ding to the euerlasting will cf God, and it must so befall vnto vs, 
 as he will." Fol. 590. B. Also, "all, in all creatures must be 
 accomplished, al"ter the diuine will." Fol. 527. A. Also, "let 
 
42 
 
 the Diatribe plot, thinke, imagine, sing, say what they will, yet 
 hatn God decreed From euerlasting, that Judas must bee a ir .i- 
 tor, then must be committed treason, and it is not iu Judas, or 
 in the power of any creature, to have it any otherwise, or to 
 change his will." Fol. 624. A. " Also, out of which it fol- 
 lowes, that it cannot be denied, that all which wee doe, and ail 
 that befalleth, whether we thinke it well or no, as befallins; by 
 chance, and is changeable, yet it must so come to passe, and 
 cannot be otherwise, if thou lookest to the will of God. For 
 God's will is powerful, and will not be hindered. For hee is 
 nothing else than (he Godly force and power itselfe. And also 
 God is the most wise, so that no man can deceiue him. When 
 now his will will not suCfer itselfe to be hindered, that it should 
 not be accomplished in time, place, manner, measure, as God 
 hath decreed and will have it." Fol. 47u. A. Also, •' This do 
 we also say, that when God worketh all, in all things, he also 
 worketh iu the ungodly, it so being that he created all things 
 alone, and ruleth alone, and moueth and driueth them accord- 
 ing to his almighty powerful working, which no creature can 
 shuune or change, but it must follow, euery thing according to 
 his own kinde, given it of God." Fol 548. Also, " All peo- 
 ple upon the earth find these two principles printed and written 
 in their hearts, that they must acknowledge in their hearts, and 
 Bay yea therevnto, when they heare them mentioned. For the 
 Jirsl, Tliat God is almighty not onely in respect of force, but 
 also in respect to powerful operation. For the second, thai he 
 knoweth all things, and hath decreed from euerlasting, and can 
 neither erre nor faile. When yea is said in the hearts of all 
 men with respect to these two principles, then it foUowe by 
 and by, most powerfully, and certainly, that man can jjainsay 
 that we were not, neither are ma'le by our own wilks ; but it 
 must so come to passe according to the will of God. And it 
 also followes, that we do nothing that we will, according to free 
 will, but what, when and ho7v God hath decreed it from euer- 
 lasting, and worketh according to his couucell and euerlasting 
 power, which can neither faile nor change." P 528. 
 
 So far, reader, you hear th»' reasoning of Luther, on this point. 
 
 " Such and many more the like sayings are written here and 
 
43 
 
 there in the writings of Doctor Luther, which doe affirme as 
 inu< h as we doe. Thu; all must so comt to pa^^se, us God kalh 
 decreed, ordamefl, and determined from euer tasting, and tha> his 
 almighty working concurreth in all things. Therefore, eitlier 
 wee doe not make God, by this our speech, the author of sii.ne; 
 or Doctor Luther must have also made him to bee the author 
 of sinne. 
 
 " It may bee both are true, might some man say, that name- 
 ly, Doctor Luther, as well as you, did erre in this point. An- 
 swer: They may faile that will, yet cannot God faile, who 
 hath spoken so euen in his holy word, of this matter, as b<»th 
 wee and Doctor Luther speake thereof, that, namely, there 
 commeth nothing to passe without the councell and will of God 
 whether it be good or bad " 
 
 Having proceeded thus far, in the language of Luther, they 
 then proceed (o give their own illustrations on the point in 
 question. As follows : 
 
 '• For example, was not that a wicked act, that Judas betrayed 
 Christ? — yet for all that Christ saith, that it was so determined 
 by God. Behold, saith /i , the hand of him that betrayeth me, 
 is with me at the table, and truly the son of man goeth as it is 
 appointed. Luk. 22. 21 ; and to the like effect, as it is written 
 of him. Math. 26. 24. (Note As it is appointed, and as it is 
 written of him, is taken m the holy scriptures, for all one. By 
 which it is manifest, that all that stands written in the scriptures, 
 that should come to passe, in time to come, was so appointed 
 by God, that it should come to passe, and that these sayings, 
 the scripture must be fulfilled, and the councell of God must stand, 
 are all one.) 
 
 " And Peter saith, whilst it was so appointed or so written, 
 it must, therefore, be accomplished. The scripture must have 
 been fulfilled, which the Holy Ghost, by the mouth of David, 
 Bpoke before of Judas. Yea, not onely the treason of Judas, 
 but also of all the wicked deeds and murtherous acts, which 
 Herod and Pilate, with the heathen and people of Israel com- 
 mi'ted against the sonne of God, saith the scripture, thqt did 
 Tvhat soever the hand and councell of Gud determined, lieforp, to 
 he done. Jets 4. 28. Yea, the scripture ascribeth this whole 
 
44 
 
 woike throughout to God the Lord himselfc, and saith. The 
 Lord would breake him, and make him subject to infirmities. 
 So was the work prinei{)ally the work of God, but Judas, Herod, 
 and Pilate, with the heatiien and people of Israel, were but in- 
 struments and tooles which God used to accomplish such a 
 worke. 
 
 "Another example. Whereas the brethren of Joseph sold 
 their innocent brother Joseph to perpetuall slavery into Egypt, 
 was not that a great sinne ? Yet Joseph saith, You sent me not 
 hither, but God. Gen. 45. 8. Did God then doe it ? Then 
 did he determine before, and conclude that hee would doe it, 
 for hee effects nothing inconsiderately, but he worketh all things 
 si'ter the councell of his owne will. 
 
 "Another example. Whereas Sampson tooke a heathen 
 woman to liis wife, against the expresse word of God, and 
 against the faithful disswasion of his parents ; was not that a 
 great sinne? And yet the scripture saith, it came of the Lord. 
 Judg. 14. 4. 
 
 " Another example. That Si)imei cursed the Lords anointed, 
 was not that a great sinne ? And yet for all that Dauid sailh. 
 The Lord hath bidden him. 
 
 " Another example. Whereas Satan prouoked Dauid to num- 
 ber the people, and Dauid did it; that was a great sin, as well 
 of Satan as of Dauid. Neuerlheless the scripture saith, not 
 barely and alone, that God did permit it, but it saith also, that 
 God did it himsclfe, as appeareth by the plaine text. .9nd the 
 nrafh cf the Lord was againe kindled against Israel, and h^ 
 ntoiied David against them, in that he said^ go number Israel 
 and Jndah. 2 Sam. 2\. \. 
 
 " Another example. Was not that a fearfuJI great sinner? that 
 the unnaturall sonne, Absalon, hoisted his aged and decaying 
 father from his kingly state, lying with his fathers ten concubines 
 iu the sight of all Israel? Yet, saith God to Dauid, not onely 
 I will permit it, but I will doe it. I will take thy wives be- 
 fore thine eyes, and give them vnto they neighbour, and he shall 
 lie with thy wives in the sight of this sonne: for thou diddest 
 if secretly, bat I will doe this thing before all Israel. 2 Sam. 
 xii. 11. 
 
45 
 
 " TJiese, and Ibe like examples, whereof there are great store 
 in the Bible, doe manifestly witnesse that the permission of 
 God. when hee permitteth that which is evill, is not a bare and 
 naked permission, but that he, also, hath a hand in the worke, 
 and he gouernes and turns it after his owne pleasure. Other- 
 wise hee could not say, * I will do it, or, I haue done it.' 
 
 " But, yet, they are hard sayings, might some one say, and 
 they seeme, in truth, to import as much as if God was thereby 
 made the causer of sinne, and had a delight in sinne. For 
 how is it possible that hee should not bee the causer of sinne, 
 and have a delight and pleasure in sinne, when he hath not 
 onely determined the same that it should be accomplished, 
 but, also, hath himselfe a hande in the worke, and moueth 
 Biankinde therevnto? 
 
 " Answer. Blind, mad and peremptory reason thinks so 
 indeed. But whosoeuer submitteth himselfe to the word of 
 God with an humble heart, he shall well know and learn to 
 vnderstand that God is no causer of sinne, or hath delight and 
 pleasure in sinne, though indeed he haue ordained that this or 
 that sinful worke of his creature should come to passe, and 
 the worke must be done, yea, hee ascribeth it to himself. 
 The which the better to vnderstand, by the God-fearing reader, 
 wee will impart this information in short, according to our 
 powers, for his assistance. 
 
 " The Almighty God, as he once created all things, euen so 
 gouerneth hee all things continually by his prouidence. There- 
 fore the prouidence of God is nothing else then the Almighty 
 gouernment of God ouer all creatures, both good and bad, and 
 containeth two parts in it 
 
 *' 1. That hee maintaineth the being and power of all creatures* 
 so far, and in what manner it pleaseth him ; without which 
 maintainance no creature can be sustained a minute of one 
 hour, or is able to rule or moue himselfe, in the least measure, 
 as Paul saith, hee giveih to all life and breath and all things. 
 a4l1so, In hime we Hue, and moue, and haue our being. 
 
 " 2. That he hath the motions of all creatures in his hands, 
 and turneth them which way he will, according to the work, 
 which hee will accomplish by them ; as Daaid saith, thaj con- 
 
 7 
 
4$ 
 
 tinue all by thine ordinances. Ps. cxix. 91., and the examples 
 manifest that, sometimes fire, somefimes water, sometitrtea 
 good, sometimes bad angels, sometimes godly, sometime* 
 ivicked men, s m 'Imes fr gs, sometimes lice, &c., must 
 8erue to accomplish his councelis. And there is nothing ex- 
 empt from such a di&posing God. Euen, also, that which 
 Beemeth to be already performed, as it is written, The lot i« 
 cast into the lap, but the whole disposition thereof is of the Lord j 
 not yet the very harts and thoughts of men, as it is written, 
 From fhe habitation of his dwelling hee beholdeth all them that 
 dwell on (he earth ; hefashioneth their hearts euery one. 
 
 " It is true, God hath, indt ed, the angels and men with thai; 
 kind and nature that they can move themselves by their own 
 free will, and either intend this or that, Euen, indeed, as they 
 doe. But for all that, hee holdeth the raines of their fiee will in 
 his hande, in such a manner that, either hee can let them proceed 
 when it goeth after his will, or hee can pull it backe, or moue 
 it to this, or the other side, euen as sometimes a man dravveth 
 on a beast to a snare, which he letteth either passe freely before 
 him, or pulleth backe, or can turne hither or thither, which 
 comparison God hiraselfe vseth, where he saith to the king of 
 Assiria, ' I will put my hooke in thy nostrils, and my bridle in 
 thy lips, and will bringe thee backe againe, the same way thou 
 comest.' Esa. xxxvii. 29. 
 
 " From whence it may well be said that the permission of 
 God is not a bare permission, but that God hath alwais a hand 
 with them in the action. For in all permissions of God con- 
 curre these two parts of the foreknowledge together. First, 
 that he sustaineth the being and power of the creature, even 
 in the committing of sinne, as is well known. Second, that he 
 hath, also, their wicked and sinful motions in his hands, and so 
 turneth them that the same must be effected thereby, which 
 hee will have effected to the furtherance of his glory, and the 
 benefit of his servants. Therelore, hep also ascribeth the 
 worke which is effected in this manner, oftentimes to himselfe, 
 as the abovenamed examples doe witnesse. 
 
 " The same is one part of (he special vnspeakeable wisdome 
 of God, that bee can so muage his goverumcut, that he, alsOj 
 
47 
 
 with those creatures, which yet doe what they doe, out of free 
 will, and in respe- f of (heirnatures eou!«i do otherwise, yet, for 
 all that, can unfaillibly accomplish the same, which hee hath 
 determined to have accomplished by them. 
 
 " Doctor Luther saith thus of this matter: If not wee our- 
 selves, but God worketh in vs our salvation, then cannot wee 
 act any thing bodily, before such time as his, is there ; doe wee, 
 frame wee, and worke wee it, the best wee can. And 1 say 
 wee must doe wickedly, not that we are enforced thereunto; 
 but as we vse to say. it must be so of necessity, without resist- 
 ance, and yet not by any powerful compulsion or force. That 
 is, when a man hath not the spirit of God, then is hee not. as it 
 were, driven headlong by force, that he must commit wicked- 
 nesse against his will, (as they vse to carry a theefe or mur- 
 Iherer to the gallows against his will,) but he doth it willingly 
 and gladly, &c; that is here, by vs, called a M( st, or a M' st 
 Bb OF NBCEssiTY, which is not subject to alteration. Wit. 
 Germ. fol. 479. Also, we know well that Judas betrayed 
 Christ willinsily ; but we say that such a will in Judas was cer- 
 tainly and vnchangeably to be accomplished, at the lime and 
 houre, as God had determined it. Or, if wee bee not yet vn- 
 derstood, then wee must make a difference of two necessities—- 
 one necessity where a thing must come to passe at a certaine 
 time without constraint. He that now heares vs speake, let 
 him know that we speake of the last, and not of Xhefir$t. 
 That is, we do not speake of this, whether Judas was willingly 
 a traitor or against his will; but whether it must come to pass 
 at the time and hour which God had determined vnchangeably, 
 that he should betray Christ willingly. Fol. 529 A. 
 
 " This is the construction of vs and Doctor Luther, how these 
 things are to be understood ; that nothing cometh to passe un- 
 lesse God hath ordained that it should come to passe, whether it 
 bee good or euil, and that it must come to passe, euen as the 
 Lord hath determined it. And that the permission of God is 
 not a bare and empty permission, but that alwaies there is min- 
 gled something of his working." 
 
 They proceed to answer objections, and to some further il- 
 lustratione, but a sufficiency has been taken to abow the reader, 
 
48 
 
 thai their reasoniugs oa this subject are precisely the same as 
 those of the writers of New-England, who are so continually ac- 
 cused of holding that God is the author of sin. I shall there- 
 fore close this number with a few remarks. 
 
 1. From the opinions of these German divines, so largely 
 quoted, it appears that they believed there was a certain divine 
 efficiency in all the accountable actions of creatures, both good 
 and bad, which, however, no way impaired or altered their ac- 
 countability: or, in their own words, " that the permission of 
 God is not a bare and empty permission, but that alwaies there 
 is mingled something of his workeing." Less than this cannot 
 be inferred from the nature and perfections of an almighty in- 
 finitely wise God, who created, and every moment sustains, all 
 creatures, and all their actions. 
 
 2. They clearly perceived two kinds of necessity operating 
 on the actions of creatures. Firstyforce, or what may be term- 
 ed physical necessity. This always destroys accountableness, 
 or is incompatible with it. Thus the planets move by physical 
 necessity; and thus a criminal, who is carried forcibly to exe- 
 cution, moves under a physical necessity. Secondly, moral ne- 
 cessity, which is so far from being inconsistent with accounta- 
 bleness, that it is essential to it. As in the above quotation : 
 " Then," says Luther, '• we must make a difference of Iwo ne- 
 cessities : one necessity y where I am forced to worke by force — 
 the other necessity, where a thing must come to passe at a certaine 
 timeJ'^ 
 
 Moral necessity arises from the infallible certainty that all 
 beings possessed of reason will act according to their choice, 
 or, as says Jonathan Edwards, " according to the greatest ap- 
 parent good, at the time." Hence the moral order of events is 
 as established and unalterable as the natural or physical ; and 
 moral necessity is as essential to freedom and accountableness, 
 as physical is incompatible with it ; and if this kind of moral ne- 
 cessity did not exist, there could be no such thing as foreknow- 
 ledge or preordination, auy more than the frame and motions 
 of the natural universe could subsist without the operation of 
 physical necessity. 
 
 It is easy to perceive that no event can be the proper object 
 
40 
 
 of prescience or preordination which is not either immediately 
 and infallibly connected with the energy of the divine will, or 
 else mediately and more remotely, though not less infallibly, 
 connected therewith, by its forming a link in the chain of events 
 infallibly connected together, as cause and effect, and which 
 chain must somewhere be connected with the almighty energy 
 of God's will. Or, in other words, it cannot be certainly fore- 
 known that any event will take place, but by its infallible con- 
 nexion with a cause which can and will produce it. " Thus," 
 says the above quotation, '' when a man bath not the spirit of 
 God, then is hee not driuen, as it were headlong, by force, that 
 he must commit wickednesse against his will, but he doth it 
 willingly and gladly ; and that is here by us called a 7mtst, or 
 must be of necessity which is not subject to alteration." But 
 (his is a moral necessity as above explained. 
 
 3. These writers had clearly in view the distinction termed 
 moral inabihty, though they did not call it by that name. Thus, 
 again, as in the above quotation, they say, '* when a man hath 
 not the spirit of God, then is he not driven by force, that he 
 should commit wickedness against his will ; but he doth it will- 
 ingly and gladly; — and, in respect to his own powers, could 
 doe otherwise, J. e. could be holy, and obey God, yet for all 
 that he must siu : and although Judas, in respect to his physi- 
 cal powers, might have done otherwise, yet, nevertheless, he 
 must betray Christ, A moral inability to do right, and a moral 
 necessity of doing wrong, always He by the side of each other, 
 are of equal force, though that force be not physical, and do in 
 no case impair a man's guilt; for they are alike the evidence of 
 freedom and the measure of guilt. If Judas betrayed Christ 
 freely and willingly, then, with respect to his own physical 
 powers, he might have done otherwise ; but, in reference to his 
 mora! character, he could not do otherwise. When a traveller 
 comes to two roads, he certainly is fully at liberty, and has 
 physical powers to take either ; but when he has made his elec- 
 tion, and taken one, then it will appear that he was morally un-r 
 able to take the other, aid, of course, that what he did was un- 
 der a moral necessity; which, as I said, consists in the infallible 
 certainty that a mau will always act according to the greatest ap 
 
50 
 
 parent good, all things coDsulered, at the time. WhoevtT, there- 
 fore says, un.lersiaiidiugly, that a manianuot a'l cnlrary (■ his 
 will, or cannot change his will, means, if I tnay ?o say, a nxtral 
 and not a physical cannot ; as Luther in the above quotatioo, 
 when he says a sinner must sin, means not a physical, but a 
 moral tnust, or necessity. 
 
 I shall conclude this number by observing, that as a moral 
 inability to do an art is a? effectual a bar as a ptiysical, so the 
 influence or force of moral is as great and certain as that of 
 a physical necessity. And I will illustrate this by citing a scrip- 
 ture fact. " And Eti^ha said unto him, ( Hazael,) go sny xmlo 
 him, (Benhadad,) Ihou mayfst certainly recover, hotvbeit the 
 Lord hath showed me that he shaU .surely die.'"'' The message 
 sent to Benhadad was, '* Thou mayest certainly recover," yet 
 Elisha told Hazael that God had assured him that Benhadad 
 should die. The murderers of Benhadad acted freely, i. e. un- 
 der no physical force or compulsion; they might have let him 
 alone ; he might have recovered, yet God's certain and eternal 
 purpose issued, and was previously declared, on the inevitable 
 operation of a merely moral necessity. They must kill him. 
 
 The observation has elsewhere been made, and it ought to 
 satisfy every humble and every rational mind, that God, who 
 can create, constitute, and uphold a moral agent, can unaltera- 
 bly decree all his actions, and can have an efScienf agency in 
 the same, and yet not impair their freedom or accountableness. 
 Those who raise an outcry at this doctrine, which is absolut ly 
 necessary to the perfections oi God, seem to think nothing of 
 the power and skill necessary to create and sustain a moral 
 agent. 
 
 INVESTIGATOR. 
 
PREFACE TO NUMBER IV. 
 
 The triangular men are endeavouring to make common cause with 
 presbyterianism, to engraft their scheme of doctrine on that Church, 
 to avail themselves of her reputation, power, and sanctions, and to 
 stigmatise all opposition to their tenets as neither more nor less thatt 
 opposition to the church. This ground is now rather preferred to the 
 old and idle outcry of ^rminianism! Several bold and successful 
 sorties have been made, even some judicatories have been unfortu- 
 nately influenced by rash and furious spirits. 
 
 They have already got up their phrases and watchwords. The 
 tessira has been sent round. " Such a man is a good Presbyterian** 
 is a phrase well understood to convey all the properties and qualities 
 of a spiritual triangle. But this expression imports something far be- 
 yond the limits of abstract doctrine, as the following number will 
 show. 
 
 These gentlemen are mistaken. The Presbyterian church in Ame- 
 rica is never to become a triangular pyramid. It is not to be doubt- 
 ed that a clear majority in that body, and, I trust, a large majority 
 are on the side of correct sentiments. The efforts which certain per- 
 sons are making to curtail and suppress the right of private judgment, 
 and bear down the truth, can neither endure the light of fair exami- 
 nation, nor the just abhorrence of a nation which knows the price of 
 her privileges. " They shall," I trust, " proceed no further, and 
 their folly shall be manifest to all men." 
 
 The Hopkinsians are condemned as odious heretics, and as preach- 
 ing doctrines which flatter the pride, and corroborate the corruptions 
 of the human heart. The object of the following number is to show- 
 that preachers may soothe the pride, flatter the vanity, and cherish 
 the corruptions of their hearers, amd yet never preach Hopkinsian doc- 
 trines. That this is done by many who lay such imposing and obtru- 
 sive cltiims to orthodoxy — that it is essential and radical to their 
 scheme of doctrine, as well as to their manner of preaching, I have 
 the fullest assurance : and if the reader do not, in the following re- 
 marks, recognise traits with which he is familiar, I will allow him t* 
 idoubt of their correctness. 
 
SS PRF.FACE. 
 
 These men, for it is precisely the same class, are endeavouring^ ts 
 bring' our judicatories into the tedious, perplexing', and endless for- 
 Tualities of civil courts, to adopt their technical phrases, their doctrines 
 of precedents, their rules of evidence, their doctrines of appeals, and 
 their whole modus operandi, by which it must often happen, perhaps 
 through some trifling informalitj', that proceedings are varied or ar- 
 rested, justice is delayed, its rights perverted, or entirely contra- 
 vened. And if the ministers of Christ are not liable to forget them- 
 selves in this immense and accumulating mass of juridical formalities 
 and legal subtleties, rendered oppressive and importunate by conflict- 
 ing interests, supported by opposition of talents and parties ; if they 
 do not lose the gentleness and benevolence, the meekness and sin- 
 cerity, the integrity and iSrmness, which belong to their character — 
 and if, when long surrounded by the appearance, they do not, at length, 
 adopt the manners, the arts, intrigues, and corruptions of civil courts, 
 with more latitude of perversion, because checked by laws less parti- 
 cular — with more pride and arrogance, because protected by an exter- 
 nal badge of humility, and with less regard to truth, because in a wi- 
 der field of construction — then perhaps there is no danger; and nei- 
 ther argument, expostulation, or sarcasm, are necessary. 
 
• No. IV. 
 
 A GOOD PRESBYTERIAN. 
 
 This is surely a most desirable article. For every thing to 
 be good according to its kind, would be '■ a consummation de- 
 voutly to be wished," both in the natural and moral world. For 
 every handycraftsman to be a good mechanic — every one who 
 commands a vessel to be a good navigator — every agriculturist 
 a good farmer — every clerk a good accountant — every member 
 of the national counsels a good statesman — every clergyman a 
 good preacher, and every professor of religion a good christian, 
 would have a happy influence on the welfare of society. 
 
 But 1 often hear the phrase, a good presbyterian, used with an 
 air of significance, with certain intonations of voice, and expres- 
 sions of countenance, which seem to indicate something border- 
 ing on an occult meaning To come plainly to the point, this 
 is a phrase almost exclusively belonging to the triangular scheme. 
 I have seldom heard it used but by gentlemen of that order, or 
 as an echo from them, or in some allusion or reference to that 
 source. It surely cannot be but that there must be many good 
 presbyterians out of the triangle ; if by good is intended the 
 common import of that term, that is, they are presbyterians in 
 sentiment, and good men ; but whether they are good presbyte- 
 rians, with a nod of the head, with a little flexure of the cervi- 
 cal muscles to the left shoulder, an approximation of the eye- 
 brows, and a curl of sentiment, half mystery, and half threat, 
 descending to the upper lip, the reader may be better able to 
 determine in the sequel of this number. Among the rhetorical 
 characteristics of this phrase, perhaps, I ought to have said it is 
 usually pronounced with an emphasis on the word presbyterian, 
 and a strong accent on the antipenultimate syllable te. 
 
 Since the words virtue, and disinterestedness, and holiness, 
 and charity, and morality, fare so badly among them, I ara 
 fceartily glad to have them so thoroughly adopt ene good term, 
 
 a 
 
54 
 
 and I am not unwilling to allow them the merit of being gocx} 
 presbyterians, as far as I have evidence to believe they are 
 jjood men. 
 
 I have been at some pains to discover th^ true technical im- 
 port of this phrase ; and to discover all its meaning is not the 
 work of a moment. Dictionaries or encylopasdias are of no use ; 
 for the terms are used to convey an import entirely remote from 
 their lexicographic definition. It reminds me of some astronomi- 
 cal discoveries which have been made by a long course of ob- 
 servation, in which patience, vigilance, and perseverance alone, 
 could arrive at the desired end. The process necessary to the 
 discovery is something like a physician carefully watching the 
 diagnostics of a lingering disease, in order that he may thereby 
 arrive at its remote and approximate causes, and the indications 
 of cure. With what success I have pursued this subject, the 
 reader will certainly judge for himself, but I suspect I have 
 nearly completed the work, and I shall immediately lay before 
 the world the result of my observations. 
 
 One thing, however, must be premised : This phrase relates 
 entirely to clergymen. As for a layman, all that is wanted of 
 him is to be a good ministerial man, which is a different affair 
 from being a good presbyterian ; though in its place not much 
 less important. The term good, even in this minor phrase, has 
 no relation to moral goodness, of course, since no such thing is 
 known in all the triangular regions. But if I am able to- suc- 
 ceed to my mind in the present article, I may perhaps give 
 the reader a small number on the qualifications of the good min- 
 isterial layman. 
 
 A good presbyterian, then, is a clergyman possessed of the 
 following qualifications : 
 
 1. He is thoroughly opposed to metaphysics; I mean meta- 
 physics according to the triangular scheme. Let no reader start 
 at this assertion, and conclude it to be extravagant — not even 
 the good presbyterians themselves — for I think I can bring its 
 truth home to every man's conscience who is capable of reflec- 
 tion, and possesses a good memory. They have the best rea- 
 sons in the world for this 'aversion. Metaphysical subjects are 
 
55 
 
 nothing but dry, curious argumentations, and if sometimes true^ 
 always useless. 
 
 And why should they trouble their hearers with nice and te- 
 dious arguments ? People are never the better for being logi- 
 cians ; they do not want to reason — they only want to believe. 
 In allusion to this, therefore, they seldom ever speak of chris- 
 tians under any other appellation than " believers." And surely 
 it is a term used in the Bible. They have a far better and more 
 instructive method of filling up their sermons than by argu- 
 ments. They prove their points by scripture ; and I have often 
 heard several whole pages of scripture brought to prove that 
 the soul of man is immortal — that his body must die — that there 
 is a future state, &.c. 
 
 It is of no consequence if every person in the assembly as 
 firmly believes the point as the preacher. He feels better satis- 
 fied to make his work strong as he goes on. He must prove it— 
 and he does prove it — and that is not metaphysics. If he takes 
 this text, " Man that is born of a woman is of few days, and 
 full of trouble," he will, perhaps, 1st. Show what is implied 
 in being born of a woman ; 2d. What is implied in being of 
 few days ; and 3d. What is implied in being full of trouble. 
 AU those points he will prove by an abundance of scripture, 
 without any mixture of metaphysics ; and that surely is preach- 
 ing out of the Bible, is it not ? 
 
 I can safely declare, that I never in my life heard one of 
 your real " good presbyterians" trouble or puzzle his audience 
 with an elaborate metaphysical argument ; unless the proving 
 of a long string of commonplace topics, by a still longer string 
 of texts of scripture, can be called such And I leave it for 
 the reader to judge, whether the good presbyterian's sermon, so 
 managed, does not produce the best effect possible ; for the more 
 points he proves by scripture, the more will his audience think 
 him mighty in the scriptures : and they cannot but say " this 
 man has prodigious knowledge in the scriptures." 
 
 Who ever read Euclid's demonstrations without a continual 
 eflfortof mind ? And for a preacher to come forward with argu- 
 ments, no matter how clear his demonstrations, that will re- 
 quire a perpetual intensity of attention from his audience, is it 
 
Hot cruel to exact from thera such painful attention ? Especial- 
 ly, the refined and delicate minds of lad.es do not waul to be 
 tortured with Euclid from the desk, when they never studied 
 bim at school. Is it not certain that the_y would be betier pleas- 
 ed with a few obvious truths, made more obvious by scriptural 
 proofs, delivered in an agreeable manner ? 
 
 The triangular preacher, or a good presbyterian, (I use them 
 as synonimous, for 1 never knew a man who was fairly out of 
 the triangle dignified by that appellation, although, for my life, 
 I c:innol fee why they are not as good as others, ; has another me- 
 thod of proving his work than by scripture, and far more agree- 
 able than by the tedious process of argument, however demon- 
 strative. He can with ease prove it by the authority ot some ot the 
 ** old divines.''^ And this^mode of proof has one advantage over 
 all others whatever; however absurd the point is he wishes 
 to prove, and however false and ridiculous the authority he 
 quotes, yet, generally speaking, the proof he wants coming up 
 suddenly, like bamuel's ghost, out of the sacred gloom of an- 
 tiquity, any opposition to the argument fares like king Saul — 
 is at once knocked down before it. And since the great ob- 
 ject of gospel preaching is to produce " belief'^ in the audience, 
 the quicker that is done the sooner that object is gained, and it 
 is not of so much moment by what methods. In this solitary 
 case we may almost admit that the end sanctifies the means. 
 I inight enlarge on this head very much, but it shall suffice tq 
 say, that the churches and congregations of the good presbyte- 
 rians, in whom a full and unwavering " belief" is achit ved, 
 never trouble themselves ab^ut metaphysical" disputes nor use- 
 less distinctions — are not carried away with every wind of 
 doctrine ; and as they believe that '' great and general princi- 
 ples are connected, and incorporated in their results,' they re- 
 ceive : 11 truth nearly as one proposition, or, at most, as included 
 in two or three grand points. They never admit of innovations, 
 and never depart tiom sound words. When they hear a new 
 preacher they never stand to examine his propositions or argu- 
 ments ; but have only to notice the run of a few sentences, and 
 they can tell whether it is the form ol sound words which denote 
 ^ good presb^'terian. But, 
 
61 
 
 2. The good presbyterian holds another advantage, perhaps 
 over uiosl othei preachers in the world. He has a (acuity of 
 preaching the irulh in a way that will never offend his audience. 
 But here some little explanations will be necessary. By truth 
 I do not mean absolute and certain truth, but, in general, such 
 matter as makes up his sermons, and which he, in the main, 
 considers as truth, although " it may chance ol wheat or some 
 other grain/' And by his audience I mean that body of people 
 who have set down under his preaching, with their minds made 
 up to like him, lor what he is as a man, and a good presbyte- 
 rian. iie may, indeed, have hearers about him who want no- 
 thing but metaphysical jargon ; who will receive nothing as truth 
 unless made out as tediously as Euclid proves that all the sides 
 of a triangle are equal to two right angles. He may have hear- 
 ers who expect he will work miracles, and who are so distract- 
 ed as to undertake to weigh all his and all their own opinions in 
 the scale of evidence, rejecting every thing which cannot be 
 proved He may have hearers who will dare audaciously to 
 rip up all the sacred and venerable customs and traditions, 
 which thousands of the greatest and best of men lived, and died, 
 and are gone to heaven in, and if he cannot have them proved 
 by scripture, or by Euclid, will imperiously and rashly reject 
 them. As for these curses to society, and scourges of good 
 presbyterianism, they may nevtr like him or any body else. 
 
 But the good presbyterian has the distinguished felicity of 
 pleasing his audience. For this I have the highest authority. 
 A great and learned doctor lately told a young clergyman that 
 there was no necessity of offending people. That for his part 
 he had preached the gospel faithfully, tor more than twenty 
 years, in a great and populous city, and had never offended his 
 audience. Perhaps this is a happy secret, known only to the 
 good presbyterian. 1 believe, however, it may be traced out. 
 I believe I have it; and if so, I shall certainly claim some me- 
 rit as an original, for setting it before the public for the benefit 
 of all young preachers. 
 
 I have reduced this important art into several general propo- 
 sitions, and if in discussing these, any else shotild appear ne- 
 cessary, it shall be noticed afterwards. 
 
58 
 
 Proposition I. 
 
 The preacher of the gospel who does not mean to oifend bis 
 
 audience must not disturb their repose, hurt their feelings, or 
 trouble their consciences too much. I do not mean to say that 
 he must never come near the conscience of his audience ; that 
 will sometimes be admissible, provided it be prudently man- 
 aged, not done too frequently, nor pressed too far. 
 
 And who can find fault with this rule ? It is well known that 
 convicting people of crimes or sins will not reform them. Be- 
 sides, when you press the gentlest of animals into a corner, 
 they will not fail to turn upon you ; much more so will the lion 
 and the wild boar of the forest: whereas, if you allow them a 
 range of field, they will generally be inoffensive. Far be it 
 from me to compare gentlemen and ladies, the refined inhabit- 
 ants of great and polished cities, to these terrible and ferocious 
 animals. But there is a principle of resistance in every inhab- 
 itant of this fallen world, which had betternot be pressed too 
 far, nor called into operation at all, unless the strongest necessi- 
 ty require it. What was the effect when even St. Paul him- 
 self reasoned of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to 
 come, and made the abandoned and profligate Felix tremble ? 
 Why, Felix shunned him ever after, and probably never heard 
 him again. But it must be remembered that St. Paul, was in- 
 inspired to do what he did, therefore could not do otherwise. 
 But as ministers now are not inspired, or at least, not all of 
 them, it stands them in hand to be cautious how they drive a- 
 way their bearers by pressing upon their consciences. 
 
 But, reader, v»'hen you see the polite and elegant part of an 
 assembly disgusted because a preacher handles their coniciences 
 too freely ; when the preacher thunders upon them so terribly 
 that the venerable head of a great man, however oppressed 
 with drowsiness, cannot for a moment recline in soft repose ; — > 
 the lovely dimpling smiles of some fair creature are superseded 
 by paleness ; graceful airs and elegant forms are forgotten, 
 and fanciful dresses, juat imported from London and Paris, shall 
 attract no attention; — what are you to think, and what will 
 
59 
 
 people say ? Surely they will say, '• This man wishes to drive 
 us to heaven : but he is much mistaken. We do not intend to 
 be driven there, even if we condescend to go there at all." 
 
 And does not a preacher owe something to humanity and po- 
 liteness ? How much better would be the effect, if, when he 
 ascends the desk, he would adjust his features to the lightsome 
 air of a gay and benignant smile ; would modulate his voice to 
 the soft and pleasant tones which regulate the conversations of 
 the polite circles ; and when he comes to certain unpleasant 
 and chilling truths, to crave the pardon of his audience, and a- 
 dopt some little softening circumlocutions, such as an expe- 
 rienced physician would resort to in speaking of an operation 
 to be performed on a child, or some person of delicate nerves, 
 when that person was present. At the same time, the preacher 
 would find it for his interest to hasten over those unpleasant and 
 frightful passages ; merely hinting the premises, let him leave 
 his hearers to draw the horrible conclusions, when they were 
 in a proper situation ; and not force it upon their attention when 
 in a great and fashionable assembly, where every thing is desir- 
 ed to be soft, charming, and polite, and every well-bred person 
 must appear sprightly and gay. 
 
 Much more might be said on this subject, and the young 
 preacher maybe assured there is something in it. If he is fre- 
 quent and pungent in his attempts to reach and alarm the 
 consciences of his hearers, they will dislike him : the refined 
 audiences of great cities will esteem him coarse, vulgar, impru- 
 dent, and inhuman. Philosophers will smile at his rawness and 
 want of knowledge : the ladies will style him by no means an 
 agreeable preacher; his most point-blank shots will fall from 
 the aged as hail from a rock of adamant ; and they will look up 
 at him and seem as though they would say " Young man, we 
 have often seen young men as zealous and confident as you 
 are :" and it is a chance if the young and gay do not avoid 
 him. 
 
 The old divine I spake of, no doubt knen^ every shade and 
 feature of the human character ; he knew well how to manage 
 these things. No wonder, then, that he preached for so many 
 years, and never gave offence. 
 
tfe 
 
 Proposition II. 
 
 A minister of the gospel, who does not mean to give oflFence, 
 must not causu his audience to mistrust that he aims at their 
 vices. He may, and must preach rousin^ly against vice and in- 
 fidelity ; but so sure as one of his hearers tinds his own vice se- 
 verely touched, he will be offended. I know a sjreat and popu- 
 lar divine in this city, who will boldiv compare intidels to dogs 
 and wild beasts; but he never gives offence He does it so wit- 
 tily they like him the better. 
 
 Ihe case of Nathan's reproof to David is often urged here ; 
 and with as little propriety as was the case of Paul and Felix in 
 the former proposition. .Nathan was inspired, and sent as a 
 propnet to reprove king David But who claims inspiration ? 
 And, reader, supposing you knew yourself to be in the habit of 
 
 telling lies ; would you like it if i\Tr. B should meet you ia 
 
 the street to-morrow, and that, too, before a great number of peo- 
 ple, and should say to you, "• Sir< you are a liar ?" And w uld 
 it not be still more uncivil and unkind to accuse a man before an 
 sudience, and at a time vvhen custom has forbidden him to 
 reply in his own defence, to deny, paliate, or vindicate his 
 
 crime ? 
 
 As this is a point of great delicacy, it cannot be looked at 
 
 with too much exactness and attention. And I shall lay down 
 a few principles or maxims which I have deduced from obser- 
 vation of the best models: I mean men famous for never givinir 
 offence, yet strenuous preachers against all wickedness. 
 
 In the first place, I would recommend to the young preacher 
 not to be too free in naming vices particularly. He may some- 
 times go so far as to specit'y certain vices, which are considered 
 as disgraceful and infamous ; and, on some rare occasions, may 
 preach a sermon against ttiesn. But his duty is to preach the 
 gospel, and, of course, dwelling on particular acts or parts of con- 
 duct would not be proper. 
 
 Classification is au excellent method of naming, vices so ns 
 not to ^ve offence. Thus, if one vice is known to prevail, it 
 may be put into a long catalogue, and pronounced with s«ch vf- 
 
01 
 
 beraent rapidity as to exoite no alarm. And a preacher is par- 
 ticularly caulioned, when he mentions any personal faults or 
 foibles of any of his bearers, to look, at that moment, round into 
 a dififerent quarter of the audience from the place the offenders 
 ait; otherwise they will infallibly be up in arms. And when 
 any particular sin is known to prevail in the audience, it may 
 be safely mentioned, provided some other sin, which does not 
 prevail, is mentioned, soon after it, and dwelt upon with great 
 emphasis and severity. 
 
 Let me also remind young preachers, that all the vices con* 
 Bected with wealth and splendour, under certain aspects, ar« 
 easily introduced into sermons without giving any offence. lo. 
 this form, indeed, I have sometimes heard the finest and most 
 exquisite compliments paid to men of fortune ; and then they 
 will bear some tolerably severe remarks about covetousness, 
 worldly mindedness, luxury, and dissipation. At the very 
 name of such a class of men, I have sometimes noticed a dozen 
 men in an audience appear to swell into a larger size ; they 
 Would seem to heave upon their seats, somewhat like a great 
 pillow from sea, when first it reaches soundings ; and would, 
 evidently show a conscious pleasure in having perhaps the eyes 
 of one hundred, and the thoughts of five times that number, 
 turned upon them, who envied them the refreshing reproof that 
 fell from the lips of the gentle orator. And when the reproof 
 fell, it was brushed from their eyebrows, without pain or effort, 
 and perhaps with a smile that reflected the orator's compliment, 
 while half the audience would say, in their hearts, " O that I 
 could merit such reproofs !" 
 
 But the preacher who makes his hearers feel the force of hi* 
 censures, and the smart of conviction, will create uneasiness, 
 will procure for himself enemies, and, perhaps, ultimately en- 
 danger his salary. Those who will not be instructed by these 
 observations must taste the fruits of their temerity. 
 
 Before I leave this proposition, it is important to observe, 
 that there are certain collateral topics which should always b# 
 associated with preaching against particular vices. Nothing i& 
 more agreeable to persons guilty of particular sins than to hear 
 it urged, that, after all^ it makes but littlt iliffer«Hce thaf~ 
 
 9 
 
62 
 
 those whose exterior is irreproachable, are generally, perhaps, 
 as wicked in some other way Or if, perhaps, they are not as 
 wicked, it is no thanks to them that they are not a great deal 
 worse than their neighbours. And this, which is no doubt a 
 truth, may, at the same time, be useful to that part of the 
 audience who are not guilty of outbreaking sins ; lest they 
 should be tempted to boast and glory over others. And is it 
 not a hard thing that those who are guilty of no immoral overt 
 acts should not be allowed some credit for their morality. 
 Some care must be bestowed on the moral part of the audi- 
 ence ; lest, when tbeir ascendency over the vicious and pro- 
 fane is denied or lessened, they are not also offended. But 
 this will be provided for in another part of the subject. 
 
 The grand object is to preach the truth, and yet not offend 
 any body ; in order to which one general observation is of al- 
 most universal use, and it applies with great force to preaching 
 against vice and open immorality. There should be a soft- 
 ness, an urbanity, a " mellowness," as I have sometimes heard 
 it styled, in all the compositions, and addresses, and style, and 
 manner of a preacher. A single qualifying term will turn the 
 arrow aside : — a softening epithet will wrap its point in silk ; — 
 a gentle pull at the bow will make it fall short of the mark, or 
 if the speaker will display all his energies, he may, by one kind 
 adjective, or adverb, raise it over the heads of his audience, 
 and then his bow may twang with dreadful sound, and the 
 hissing arrow cut the ethereal arch, and like that of Acestes 
 take fire in the clouds ; and the hearers will all rejoice thai 
 they are safe while such dreadful bolts are flying. 
 
 " T(55' wfieio-iv "xwv, dutpTipiipia ti (pa?iTjuv. 
 
 Many a frightful storm of eloquence against vice have I heard, 
 which brought to my mind the graYid fire- works of Catherine IT. 
 in honour of Prince Henry of Prussia. The line was five miles 
 in length, and the imperial court were, for two hours, seated 
 Under a continuous arch of brilliant flame. 
 
^3 
 
 Propositiow III. 
 
 Great care must be used in preaching against bypocrisy : 
 there is, perhaps, no class of men so unwilling to be detected 
 as hypocrites. It is not so much on their own account ; for they 
 are generally pretty well satisfied, in their own minds, what 
 they are, which is the cause of their extreme sensibility, but 
 they are unwilling to be laid open before others. And this rule 
 applies with nearly equal force to all the vices of the mind, such 
 as pride, malice, covetousness, and others. 
 
 What, then, must be said by the preacher in the case of 
 hypocrites ? For surely their case cannot be passed over 
 in silence. They are known to be numerous, and their case 
 is a most prominent one. There may be some preachers who 
 are hypocrites themselves, and they will have the advantage of 
 possessing a kind of moral sense about them, which will natu- 
 rally keep them on the side of prudence. Yet the desire (I 
 will not call it ambition) they may have to be thought pungent, 
 powerful, and faithful preachers, may sometimes carry them 
 too far. 
 
 The first rule is never, or very seldom, to preach against hy- 
 pocrisy professedly ; for it is a certain fact, that the delicate 
 nerves and refined feelings of that class of people never can 
 long endure the steady contemplation of that picture, even 
 though drawn in its most favourable colours; but, certainly, if 
 painted in all its hideous deformity, they will rise into opposi- 
 tion, provided they should not sink under conviction — a case 
 very improbable. 
 
 In the second place, it is not best for the preacher to intimate 
 any suspicion that there are hypocrites in his audience. For 
 he will thereby subject himself to the charge of judging hearts, 
 and of bteing unkind and uncharitable in his feelings. Prophets 
 and apostles might, lay and substantiate such charges, but unin- 
 spired preachers have no right to accuse their hearers of more 
 than they can prove inforo ecclesim. 
 
 In the third place, when hypocrisy is, if it ever is directly 
 
64 
 
 iBcntioned, or a little enlarged upon, it should be done with a 
 genlie hand, and in a mild and mellow style and manner, as 
 though the preacher could by no means, for a moment, harbour 
 the idea that any thing like it was among his people ; yet, lest 
 there might be danger, he should tenderly and most politelj^ 
 persuade them to be careful in comparing their characters with 
 our great standards, and see to it that there was no deficiency* 
 Methinks I can almost hear him with a grave and benignant 
 smile say thus : 
 
 " Brethren. I cannot make you more duly sensible than you 
 are, how important it is that you ^hould be genuine and sincere 
 Christians. Think not that J wish to discourage or dishearten 
 you. Let me rather direct your attention to the abundance and 
 fulness of the divine promises. Yet, I.e exhorted to see to it 
 that your faith is strong and unwavering, that you haive an 
 abundance of the divine spirit. Be exhorted not to be fearful 
 and unbelieving, and let your sincerity be incited by the grace 
 of him who has done and promised so much ; and since he has 
 promised, do you see that he fulfils his promises ; yea, keep him 
 to his word." 
 
 And will not an audience understand the meaning of all this? 
 Will they not believe it to be an exhortation against hypocrisy ? 
 And why should that horrible, disgusting, unfashionable tvord 
 be iised at all ? 
 
 Proposition IV". 
 
 The preacher that would not give offence must not argue 
 points too painfully, i e. must never reason very closely, nor 
 very long; much less must he deliver whole sermons, and ser- 
 mon, after sermon, which consist of compact bodies of solid rea- 
 soning. It matters not to suppose his reasoning shall amount 
 to demonstration in every case, for that would be so mtich the 
 worse. He will fail of his grand object — he will give offence. 
 Several bad consequences will follow this mode of preaching, 
 1. The entire frame of the triangular doctrines depends on 
 what some might perhaps style mystery and "Jaith.^' They 
 
cannot be supported by reasoning ; let any one attempt it, and, 
 in spite ol all his efforts, they will fall to the ground. This has 
 been often tried, and has often had a similar result. But, 
 
 2. buch a strain of argumentative preaching would produce 
 a metaphysical taste in the hearers, who would soon arrive at 
 that pass that they would take no pleasure in loose, incohe- 
 rent, and declamatory sermons ; and would be satisfied with 
 nothing but a systematic strain of reasoning. 1 he young 
 preacher should, therefore, make his discourses as declamatory 
 as possible, which will give scope for energy, zeal, and pathos; 
 and provided he introduces a great many passages of sciipture, 
 he will save himself from the charge of being a common place 
 preacher. 
 
 3 Declamatory sermons, with little or no argument, are com- 
 posed with incomparably less mental labour than those which 
 are truly argumentative and demonstrative. Hence, they are 
 far easier to every grade of talent, and, in fact, may be acquired 
 by men of the most inferior talents. In a great dearth of ta- 
 lents, therefore, who would not think it the most safe course to 
 condemn and reject argumentative preaching as useless, for the 
 sake of adopting a plan far more easy and sure of success ? nay, 
 if well followed up, sure of acquiring for a man the reputation 
 of great talents. For, reader, it is a fact, that some of our most 
 wonderfully great men are nothing more than mere declaimers. 
 They have a good deal of promptness and confidence about them ; 
 can look as wise as any man living ; can assert roundly, and 
 doing this, most people neither know nor care whether the dis- 
 course is made up ot truisms, common-places, or any thmg else, 
 provided the horrible Hopkiijsian metaphysical arguments are 
 avoided. 
 
 This matter is so extremely important that I must add some- 
 thing, for which some of my readers may have cause to thank 
 me for being tedious. I will put a secret talisman into the 
 hands of the simplest, most feeble, and insipid young man, 
 whereby, in a few years, he shall have two great D's added 
 to his name. Let him but go through college, no matter 
 bow lazy and idle he is, he must haggle down a little Latin, and 
 
66 
 
 a very little of tupto, tuptise, &c. ; then let him go to the the- 
 ological school, and fall boldly at the Hebrew, read the first verse 
 of Genesis, and one or two in Psalms. Philosophy, mathema- 
 tics, history, and works of taste, are of no consequence to him. 
 He must, by and by, attack biblical criticism, and learn how to 
 correct the translation in a dozen or twenty places : make a lit- 
 tle noise about Campbell and Stuart, overthrow Locke and Ed- 
 wards, which he can do in a fortnight, turn over a kw old Latin 
 books, such as Turretin, Pictete, and Rigeley, read a little in the 
 expositors and systematics, patch up an exegesis, and write some 
 exercises. He need not read much; must copy a great deal; 
 must talk a great deal ; think little ; never reason ; it is always 
 better to assert, and leave the onus prohandi to be made out by 
 such as, in their dull wisdom, may want it. 
 
 In short, as to learning, he may get more or less as he pleases ; 
 his grand object is to arrive at licensure, then the important 
 task commences. In his sermons, frequent quotations from the 
 old divines, and the standards, will be important. It will be 
 unlucky if he can get nothing from the old divines : and, reader, 
 I simply ask the question, whether he may not sometimes quote 
 a sentence from some old divine, even although he never saw 
 the book, provided he is sure he does not differ from that author ? 
 For instance, he may sometimes remark, " as says the learned 
 and pious Limborch or Pictete." For it would be a wonder, 
 indeed, if Limborch or Pictete did not say that thing at one 
 time or another. This would be a great help to him- on va- 
 rious occasions. 
 
 But this young man must preach soundly and roundly the 
 triangle ; must assert that mankind have no manner of ability 
 to do any thing ; — must have such terms as spiritual, mystery, 
 grace, ii/iputatian, federal head, covenant, in every sentence ; — 
 must knock down metaphysics, and all trains of reasoning ; — 
 mutt assert very boldly, and make his audience feel that he has 
 authority and power. 
 
 His tones and gestures maybe taken from a fourth rate ac- 
 tor, provided he can go so high : he must swell up his words 
 With great pomp, and if he can hit a little of the Caledonian 
 
67 
 
 brogue, all the better. Yet all must be done with a pretty air, 
 looking polite, wise, sagacious, profound, and as big as possible. 
 
 I believe I need not add, any thing like a conformity to these 
 rules will make the man a public wonder; so that even when 
 he walks the street, modesty will often compel him to lower 
 down his hat, and hide his face, to escape the ardent gaze of ob- 
 trusive curiosity.— JDi'co quid scio. 
 
 Beside these pulpit qualifications, there are some others of 
 great importance, in their influence, and their best recommen- 
 dation is that they cost little labour or effort. This young man 
 must early and strongly attach himself to great men, and lead- 
 ing characters, whether great or little. He must never oppose 
 their measures, dispute their sentiments, nor expose their foibles ; 
 must be ready to second their motions, trumpet their praise, 
 humour their passions, flatter their prejudices, imbibe their 
 ideas, and disseminate their opinions. He must, indeed, suffer 
 these men to stand upon his shoulders, and if they now and 
 then kick a little, not seem to mind it — that by their influence, 
 in due time, he may stand upon the shoulders of others. There 
 is vast science in this system, from which, though a legal and 
 visible hierarchy is excluded, with great abhorrence, yet all 
 its benefits are countervailed by a texture of influence and 
 interest, wrought into a fabric of equal height and solidity. A 
 hierarchy is a real staircase cut round a pyramid, on every step 
 of which men have a level foothold firm and easy. But where 
 no stairs are cut in the smooth steep, the ascending and super- 
 incumbent fabric of power is sustained and pushed upwards, 
 by extended substructions of broad and brawny shoulders be- 
 low. I shall say little about it : but if a man would hope to 
 rise, he must apply his shoulders to the timbers he can reach, 
 and it is no great matter where he begins. However, he must 
 bow himself, like Sampson, but for a different purpose. Yet 
 it will generally happen, that while he pushes some upwards, 
 he must pull others downwards. Thus, by a nice eye, a resolute 
 hand, and due dexterity, he will first perhaps be in eqailibrio, 
 then buoyant, at length rampant, and, last cf all, salient. He 
 will then naturally plant his hei on shoulders, or heads, below ; 
 h\\\ mm\ nerer res'^c fo -hove those above him tbal he mav rise 
 
68 
 
 after them. These are hints by-the-by ; and a. word to the 
 wise is sufficient. But here sometimes is witnessed a curiouil 
 scuffle, which would give scope to the pencil of Hogarth, or the 
 pen of Butler. 
 
 1 should now proceed to the third and last, and by far the 
 greatest quality of the good presbyterian, in the true technical 
 import of the phrase. But the very great importance of the 
 subject, together with some original hints, seem to forbid it a 
 place in this series. It will appear in the next Indeed, if I 
 have been so fortunate as to lay down rules whereby a minister 
 may preach, and not offend his audience, in this refined an4 
 fastidious age, 1 think the rest may safely be put off for a fen 
 weeks. 
 
 INVESTIGATOR, 
 
 No. V. 
 
 There is no point more importunately urged by the triangu- 
 lar divines, than that the understanding of the sinner is as much 
 depraved as the will. To make out this doctrine, they set their 
 best metaphysical powers and talents in the most logical array. 
 There is not room to enter largely into this discussion, -at pre- 
 sent; nor, indeed, can I conceive that much room or time is 
 necessary to present the subject in a point of light both intel- 
 ligible and satisfactory. 
 
 'J^he zeal which prompts these strenuous ernleavours to make 
 out the depravity of the understanding ari.ses from their profess- 
 ed desire to make the doctrine of depravity complete, affiecting 
 all parts of the soul alike, and, as they allege, to deprive the sm- 
 ner of all opportunity to boast, or glory, in any thing which he 
 has, while in a state of impenitence ; and to make out his na- 
 tural state to be the most ruined and the worst possible. In 
 their notions of ihe depravity of the understandirg. they find 
 their chief countenance and support for denying and rejecting 
 
G9 
 
 the doctrine oi moral inability ; for they say, as the understand- 
 ing is as deeply depraved as the will, there must, therefore, be 
 something in the way of a sinner's return to holiness and to 
 God, beside merely the want of will, or disposition to do it. 
 
 If a mere persuasion could alter the natural condition of men ; 
 if believing our state to be better or worse than it is, would 
 make it better or worse, there would be a motive to distort evi- 
 dence, to shut our eyes against light, and to wrest the scriptures 
 in which our characters are faithfully portrayed. But, as things 
 are, our highest interest, and only security, seems greatly to de- 
 pend on our having just conceptions of our condition, without 
 which we can hardly be supposed to receive, or appreciate, the 
 remedy God has provided. 
 
 I shall convey my opinion on this subject to the reader, under 
 the following particulars : — 
 
 1. The will, or, what is usually termed the moral faculty of 
 the soul, is that alone which has any concern with sin or holi- 
 ness, virtue or vice, or by whatever name those things may be 
 called. On the contrary, the understanding, or intellect, is that 
 faculty of the mind of which knowledge or ignorance is alone 
 predicable. It is the perceiving faculty, the eye of the soul; 
 and, according as it is differently modified, it is the fountain of 
 reason, memory, judgment, &,c. 
 
 Depravity, as far as sin or holiness, right or wrong, are con- 
 cerned, has no connexion with the understanding, is not predi- 
 cable of it, any more than it is a material substance, such as 
 stone or timber. So, on the other hand, neither is knowledge, 
 reason, memory, or judgment, predicable of the will, or moral 
 faculty. They, indeed, both belong to the soul, yet they are 
 departments distinct from, and independent of, each other. 
 Whoever asserts that the understanding is depraved, may as cor- 
 rectly assert, that the will reasons or perceives ; i. e. if he 
 means any thing more than that there is a want of knowledge, 
 judgment, or power of perception in the understanding. 
 
 2. By depravity of understanding, then, must be meant igno- 
 rance, the want of knowledge, or of strength of faculty to ac- 
 quire it. I might more largely justify and demonstrate these 
 positions, but they will not be denied. It then remains to in- 
 
 10 
 
ro 
 
 quire what neccspary and ostablished, or advr nfitious and ac- 
 cid nl.i fofirn xif>n th^re is between wirkedni-ss ■ f iieari .-nd 
 depravity of ufi()er?fanding, or ignorance, by which I mean the 
 same thinji. ^n«l this inquiry will naturally resolve itself into 
 two |)arts, viz. as it relates to reason and experience, and as it 
 relates to the express testimony of scripture. 
 
 1. The liijht of reason and experience <iff>rds no evidence 
 that there is any necessity ^ oi iimneAliale connexion, between ?in 
 and i!i;norance, either as cause and effect, or as inseparable coa- 
 coMiitants. 
 
 Sin is a free, or voluntary act ; and, for aught we can see, re- 
 quires and implies as much voluntariness and intellect — as 
 miiJ'h mo'al liberty and knowledge, as holiness. Sin is a trans- 
 gression of the \aw of God ; but the great command of the law is, 
 " Thou shah love the Lord tky God with all thine heart " Now, 
 we have no evidence that the first sin of Satan, or of Adam, or 
 that any subsequent sin of fallen angels, or men, was occasion- 
 ed by ignorance, or caused ignorance, i. e. necessarily and im- 
 mediately. 
 
 No mortal knows what the soul is: no mortal can say that a 
 Eitifid act of the will inslantly detracts, or cuts off, a single ray of 
 ligti! from the understanding, or renders the understanding, at 
 the rjexl rnxn^nt, feebler in its perceptive, retentive, reminiscent, 
 or conceptive powers. 1 speak now of the light of reason and 
 experience merply. I can readily conceive, and shall present- 
 ly show, how a si!nj)le state tn;iy d.-aw after it a state of igno- 
 rance, but this is voluntarily dune, and is wholly adventitiousto 
 a sinful state. 
 
 Experience daily shows us, that a local disease in the body, 
 by liie force of corporeal sympathies and connexions, may cause 
 a moibid diathesis through the system ; thus, a slight puncture 
 in the foot may brin;; on r II the horrible train of tetanic symp- 
 toms But who can tell me, by the light of reason and philo- 
 sophy, or by any other lisiht, in what incorporeal essence the va- 
 rious fn'idtie? of the soul inhere, so connected by a common 
 sensorium, that when one becomes diseased, all the rest arene- 
 
n 
 
 cessarily and essentially impaired ? Tf we have such a philosd" 
 pher arnongfst us, I could wish he would come out and publish 
 his knowledge for the benefit of mankind. 
 
 Sin neither originated in a mistake, nor does it proceed on 
 that footing. The most sinful being in the universe, is, perhaps, 
 inferior in kr)ovvledge to no creature, and, in fact, the sin of our 
 hvi't parents is rather represented as an increase, than a diminu- 
 tion of knovvled-ic* Sin against God does by no means con- 
 sist in hating a mistaken notion of God, bu' in haling the true 
 God ; and experience wili not show that the most wicked men 
 have generally been the most ignorant. 
 
 The great poidt I would lay down, and endeavour to establish, 
 is, that neither reason nor experience has given us any know- 
 ledge of the nature and properties of the soul, whereby we can 
 certainly conclude, that the imniediate and necessary effec* of 
 sin on the soul is to di.'ninish the stock of knowledge alre<tdy 
 acquired, or to enfeeble the power of acquiring any further 
 knowledge, such as the soul may wish and seek to acquire. 
 
 As to reason alone, aided by all its most dUigent researches 
 into the nature and properties of (he soul, it wholly fa Is in this 
 inquiry, and cannot afford one ray of evidence that the intellect 
 of a wicked man or angel, is less acute or powerful in discover- 
 ing facts, or in making comparisons or deductions, than that of 
 a holy man or angel. A similar result is obtained 03^ resor'ing 
 to all that experience can afford on this subject. Indeed, ex- 
 perieuf^e is as lame as reason; the one being ignorant of wisat 
 the voul is, as to its substafice and structure, if those ferias are 
 applicable to a purely sjjiritual being; and the other being un- 
 furnished with datafrtun whence a fair comparison can be jnaile. 
 To institute a comparison between the knowh dsje and ic<iui- 
 sition of holy and sinful angels, would be an attempt to judge of 
 things beyond our sphere of knowledge. Had the e been two 
 human pairs created instead of one — had one of tliem ret/iaiiied 
 holy, and produced a race of holy and perfect people, and could 
 we have had access to both races, we might then have m'.ule 
 some comparison:? useful to this inquiry. But among tin de- 
 
 • And the Lord God aid, behold ! the man is become as one ot us, to kaotr 
 gooC and evil. Gen, iii. 32. 
 
72 
 
 scendanta of one fallen race, we discover no means of making 
 such a comparison just or certain. Pious or holy men discover 
 no more strength of intellect than wicked men. It will be rea- 
 dily granted that they have more wisdom ; but wisdom embraces 
 more than mere intellect, and cannot be separated from moral 
 Virtue or holiness. 
 
 The understanding may be called the eye of the soul, as it is 
 the perceiving faculty. Now, it is evident, that sin injures 
 many of the corporeal faculties. Indeed, the whole province of 
 the passions and appetites, to say the least, as truly belong to 
 the body as to the mind. But they are deeply injured by sin. 
 In fine, those faculties of the body, which are more immediate- 
 ly connected with, and adapted to, the will or moral powers of 
 the soul, are all injured by sin, are rendered exorbitant, corrupt, 
 and perverse. But is a man's eyesight or hearing injured? 
 Does not a wicked man see with the bodily eye as sharply as a 
 good man ? Does he not hear as well ? Is he not as good a 
 judge of music or painting as a good man ? Is it probable that 
 Enoch or Elijah, who attained to immortality, without tasting 
 death, or that Jeremiah or St. John, who were sanctified from 
 the womb, had better eyesight or hearing, or, in short, had 
 more strength and acuteness of intellect, than Socrates or Aris- 
 totle ? 
 
 What man's intellectual powers might have been had he 
 never fallen ; how he would have progressed in knowledge 
 and intellectual capacity, furnishes, I am aware, a fine field for 
 the play of the imagination, and for the looser powers of decla- 
 mation, and I have often heard it dwelt upon with beautiful 
 flowers and fine flourishes. And all these things might have 
 been true, from circumstauces wholly adventitious to the pre- 
 sent argument. " Had man not fallen," says the devout Fla- 
 vel, " all truths would have been obvious to his view, in their 
 comely order and ravishing beauty." And are they not now, 
 with an order as comely, and a beauty as ravishing, to every 
 one, who does not voluntarily shut his eyes upon them ? To 
 shut the eye. Reader, is a very different affair from a want of 
 eyesight ; so, voluntary ignorance is no certain proof of weak- 
 ness of intellect, but rather of moral depravity. 
 
73 
 
 But these metaphysicians have an easy method of confuting 
 the foregoing remarks. They say, wicked men have know- 
 ledge and understanding in " naturals,^* as they are pleased to 
 phrase it, but not in spirituals. And the ground they take, here, 
 unites two qualities seemingly of an opposite nature : extreme 
 absurdity, and great adaptedness to the prejudices of weak 
 minds; and these quaHties are not unfrequentiy observed to 
 meet in the same opinions.* 
 
 I should reserve the consideration of this opinion till we come 
 to examine the light of scripture on this subject, but that it 
 seems necessarily connected with some observations which 
 
 • Dr. M'Leod, in a volume of Sermons just published, (Serm. 4. p. 122.) 
 remarks, ** The human mind is capable of perceiving the force of a syllogism, 
 or the truth of a mathematical proposition; but is devoid of spiritual discri- 
 mination." To prove this, he quotes the following scripture : " For what man 
 knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him ? even 
 so, the things of God knoweth no man, but the spirit of God " 
 
 The text he quotes, no doubt, has an important meaning, and is true — but 
 nothing to his purpose. The Doctor's notion of spiritual illumination, spirit- 
 ual understanding, spiritual knowledge, and twenty other spirituals, may be 
 said to form the pi-ominent trait in the scheme of godliness laid dpwn in these 
 sermons. It is set up as a main pillar, and, I fear, the parts of the structure 
 that rest upon it are but ill supported. By classing it with a syllogism and a 
 mathematical proposition, I pi-esume the Doctor will not complain that in- 
 justice is done him, by saying that he alludes wholly to the intellect or under- 
 standing. Now, admitting that spiritual illumination relates merely to the 
 intellect, and has concern with truth and matters of fact, I would 
 earnestly intreat him to inform the public of one truth, or matter of fact, con- 
 tained in all religion, which the ** human mind," as snch, without any refer- 
 ence to moral character, cannot understand, cseteris paribus, as well as it can 
 a syllogism or mathematical proposition. But, says the objector, " these are 
 speculative truths." What then ? The most perfect knowledge cannot go 
 beyond a rational and full conviction of a truth. People lose themselves in 
 the fogs of mysticism, and they should read the story of Poole's fiery dragon. 
 " But the things of God knoweth no man but the spirit of God," says ihe 
 Doctor. Surely not, I reply, till such time as God makes them known ; 
 which he has most abundantly done. The will of God, I suppose, is one of the 
 things, nay, comprehends many of the things, of God. But who were those 
 that knew their master's will and did it not, who vrere to be beaten with 
 many stripes ! — Who was it, that when they knew God, glorified him not as 
 God ? Spiritual illumination, understanding, knowledge, discernment, tie, 
 reader, has some concern with the beauty of truth ; but to see beauty is to 
 
 1.0 VE. 
 
74 
 
 must be subjoined to this head. To fbis opinion of theirs I 
 reply. 
 
 1 . What they or others can mean by knowledge of " spml- 
 uah,'' or of spiritual things, has no coniexion with a man's in- 
 tellectual caparity, strength of understanding, or, in short, kn.w- 
 led^e, accordino; to the trUe itnport of that word ; and, of course, 
 forms no part f)f the inquiry, whether the understanding is as 
 much depraved as the will. They admit the will is totally de- 
 praved, i e. wholly sinful Now. if the understandinjr is, in its 
 kind, as much depraved as the will, then it must be totally dark. 
 All knowledge must be extinguished, for ever,- as well as all 
 power, ever more, to a'quire knowledge. I say again, all 
 knowledge, absolutely, must be put out. like a burning coal 
 dropped into a river, from whif'h, in an instant, every spark of 
 light and heat is excluded. The entire intellect must be de- 
 stroyed. For they must be made to see that their idle distinc- 
 tion, between natural and spiritual knowledge, will not be able 
 to save them, in this extremity. For they admit the will to be 
 entirely depraved, and this depravity extends as much into what 
 they call naturals as spirituals The wickedness of the human 
 will is not limited to spiritual things. It is depraved in all its 
 volitions — in all its exercises. " The imagination of man's 
 heart is only evil, and that continually." " There is none that 
 doeth good, no, not one. They are together become unprofit- 
 able ; their throat is an open sepulchre, their feet are swift to 
 shed blood; destruction and misery are in their way; tlve way 
 of peace have they not known ; there is no fear of God before 
 their eyes." 
 
 Such is the sinner':^ depravity of heart or will, and it is indeed 
 total, because excluded from no \ <dition, act, or intention. Now, 
 if his understanding, according to its kind and nature, is as to- 
 tally depraved as the will, it mus^t certainly extend to every 
 perception — there can nothing be left of it : it must be extinct. 
 For as 1 have shown, depravity of understanding can consist in 
 nothing but ignorance and weakness, and, while any thing is 
 left, it cannot be totally depraved. The depravity of the will 
 is perversion; but that of the understanding, from its nature 
 
75 
 
 and kind, must be privation ; and if both are total, the conse- 
 qui nee I state must follow. 
 
 2 As we discover nothing by reason or experience which 
 pnu'es that depravity of will is necessarily connected with de- 
 pravity of understantiing, as all the advantage gained here is 
 fr> m the sole arj;ument, termed peHtio prmcipii, so, a much 
 more important question is begged, in setting up the distinction 
 between natural and spiritual things, or natural and spiritual 
 knowledge. There is. perhaps, not a more fruitful source of 
 error than this distinction; as set up and applied, by them, to 
 religious doctrine. 
 
 There is, indeed, such a thing as spiritual knowledge or un- 
 derstanding, which, 1 shall hereafter show, relates principally, if 
 not wholly, to the heart, or the moral powers of the soul; 
 which goes into tlie nature of true holiness, and of which wick- 
 ed men are incapaMe But we have no concern with that 
 kind of knowledge in an inquiry whether the undersianding is 
 depraved. 
 
 God's kingdom is made up of spiritual beings; that is, of 
 pure spirits, such as God himself, and angels ; of beings which 
 are mixed and composed of matter and spirit; and such are 
 niankin<l — of animals, vegetables, and inorganic matter. These 
 various modes of being together with their characters, spheres 
 of action, properties, affections, and offices, are the proper sub- 
 jects of knowledice. N^ow, nothing can be more evident than 
 that a wicked rreature, whose will is totally depraved, is as 
 truly susceptible of the knowledge of these various orders of 
 being, of their characters and attributes, as a holy creature. I 
 think nothing but incorrigible ignorance, or incurable prejudice, 
 will undertake to deny this. A wicked, depraved creature 
 can, beyond all question, form as correct a notion of any one 
 bring that exists, as a holy creature can, provided he be fur- 
 nished with the means of mrorma\ion. 
 
 There are immaterial beings, and such are the sufireme be- 
 ing himself, as well as the various -.rders of an'jels : we ';ur- 
 stlves have an immi^terial, or incorporeal pan, called the si.ul, 
 whi h part is neither vi.-ible, andib)'-, nt;r tangihh , t-) t!'e bodily 
 organs, and is immortal. But these truths are as justly appre- 
 
76 
 
 bended by bad men, as good. God is iufiDite, eternal, ouinipre- 
 gent, omnipotent, and immutable. He is the sole creator and 
 governor of all creatures ; rational creatures are accountable to 
 him for their conduct, as to their supreme moral ruler and 
 uniyersal father. They are all governed by one law — the ge- 
 neral and grand obligation of which is supreme love to God, 
 and perfect obedience to all his requirements. But there is 
 nothing in all this which wicked men and devils may not, and 
 do not, as truly understand, as good men and holy angels. 
 
 The nature and obligations of the law of God are as truly un- 
 derstoi)d by wicked men as good meu. There is nothing in 
 the guilt of sin, the nature of holiness, the notion and necessity 
 of pardon, which is unintelligible to the depraved heart; and, 
 in a word, the government God exercises over his creatures, 
 in all its parts, is as easily and truly understood as the govern- 
 ment of an earthly monarch, and as much more so as the di- 
 vine laws are more clear and simple, more evidently just and 
 excellent, than human laws, with this only difference, that the 
 good man loves, and the wicked man hates them. 
 
 Furthermore, the scheme of salvation, by Christ, is no less 
 plainly set forth, and clearly understood, by sinful creatures, 
 than the other parts of the divine dispensations. The sinner as 
 truly and justly feels himself condemned by the divine, as by 
 human laws. The nature and force of conviction are often 
 equally plain, and far stronger in the latter, than in the former 
 ease ; and the whole character and work of CJnisl, his jjower 
 and willingness to save the sinner ; the duties he enjoins as 
 essential to discipleship, and incitements he offers as powerful 
 motives of action, are all perfectly clear to every apprehension, 
 as 1 trust I shall soon show, under its proper head. But at 
 present I say, that, as to every purpose of intellect, knowledge, 
 reason, understanding, these subjects are as plain as any other 
 subjects, in proportion to the intelligence afforded concerning 
 them, and that is abundant; plain as the arts and sciences, as 
 history, geography, laws, or manners. 
 
 There are certainly mysterious points in the great doctrines 
 of revelation, as there are, at least, as many in natural relijrion, 
 and even in nature itself. But these are not mysterious to 
 
'77 
 
 wicked men, as sucb, speculatively considered. They at^ 
 equally so to good men, saving what results from greater atten- 
 tion ; and it is, beyond all doubt, a fact, that many a wicked, 
 unregenerate man, has a far more correct knowledge of the 
 great doctrines of revelation, than some good and very pious 
 Christians have. As far as the bare intellect is concerned, 
 they are far sounder in the faith, in the range of knowledge 
 common to both ; beside that, they have ten, perhaps a hun- 
 dred times the range, or extent of knowledge, in the whole 
 plan of truth. And the spiritual discernment of a Christian is 
 his perception of the loveliness of truth, and the God of truth, 
 in which he differs from the sinner. 
 
 Seldom did the grand adversary of God and man ever lay 
 a deeper snare for the feet of the unwary, than is perceivable 
 in this most absurd and insidious error. The term spiritual^ 
 misunderstood, and misapplied, is the bate or lure which leads 
 thousands of simple souls after an ignis Jatuus into total dark- 
 ness. The supporters of this distinction must take one of the 
 two following grounds : either, 
 
 A Christian must needs have two intellects, and two kinds of 
 knowledge, a natural and a spiritual. The natural, or unrenew- 
 ed man, they say, has no spiritual knowledge ; of course, his 
 spiritual intellect is totally dark ; and this lays the foundation o£ 
 an inability to come to Christ, independent of his will. Or, 
 
 2. The soul having but one intellect or uaderstauding, must, 
 nevertheless, be capable of two kinds of knowledge, viz. natu- 
 ral and spiritual, and the latter must be wholly destroyed by 
 sin, or else it cannot be equally depraved with the will. If the 
 understanding retains the least degree of spiritual knowledge, 
 it cannot be totally depraved, and their scheme is overthrown. 
 
 But, reader, what matchless and incredible absurdity meets 
 the eye, and shocks the common sense, of every mind in this 
 scheme. And this rises obviously and wholly from the loose- 
 ness of their metaphysical reasoning. 
 
 Spiritual knowledge, or understanding, can mean but one of 
 two things. Either, 
 
 1. The knowledge, or understanding^, which any rational 
 
 mind may have about spirihial beings. For example, whoever 
 
 11 
 
7S 
 
 knews there is a 6?od, that his perfections are infinite, eternal^ 
 and immutable ; that there is a heaven and a hell — a futnre 
 state; that the soul is immortal; that there are good and bad 
 angels; that God governs creatures by a moral law, &c. hat 
 knowledge, or understanding, of spiritual things, and, of course, 
 has spiritual knowledge. Or, 
 
 2. Which is the common scripture use of the phrase, a heart 
 and disposition attached to spiritual things; in a word, love to 
 spiritual objects, or holy love. But the want of this is the very 
 essence of moral depravity — is sin in itself, and bears no re* 
 lation to depravity of understanding, or relevancy to this argu- 
 ment. 
 
 As far as mere intellect is concerned, the understanding is 
 certainly less depraved than the will, and it will be no easy 
 matter to prove that it is depraved at all, or, in any degree, as 
 an immediate and necessary consequence, or concomitant, of 
 depravity of will. And as to two kinds of knowledge, as re- 
 lates to the intellect alone, nothing can be more absurd ihaa 
 the supposition. There is nothing in sin which impairs the sin- 
 ner's knowledge of spiritual beings, of his own duty and obli- 
 gations, or of his guilt and danger. And this, I trust, will ap- 
 pear to be the light of the sacred scriptures on this subject. 
 Nevertheless, it is proper here to observe, 
 
 3. Sin may be, and is, remotely and consequentially, the 
 cause of much ignorance, not only of God and divine things, 
 but of all branches of human knowledge. But this, as I said 
 above, is adventitious to the nature of sin, and its immediate 
 and genuine eflfect on the mind. The degeneracy of the hu- 
 man race inta a state of extreme ignorance, in consequence of 
 ain, is no certain proof that intelligent creatures, placed in other 
 .circumstances, would become ignorant, or would not, iu fact, 
 increase in knowledge. It is certain that many wicked men 
 have made great progress in knowledge, not only in arts and 
 sciences, but in the doctrines of religion. Yet it would be rea- 
 sonable to suppose, that depraved and sinful beings would take 
 little satisfaction in meditating in religious truth, which con- 
 demned their conduct, or endeavouring to improve their know- 
 ledge of God, whom they hated. It might be presumed that 
 
79 
 
 they would " not like to retain God in their knowledge." And 
 they accordingly say in their hearts, " Depart from us, O Lord, 
 for we desire not the knowledge of thy ways." 
 
 It will be readily granted that the extreme ignorance of sa- 
 vage nations has been caused by sin ; or, perhaps, more properly 
 speaking, that their moral depravity has been the cause of their 
 not rising from a savage into a civilized state. But it would be 
 easy to show, by the most copious and minute details of argu- 
 ment, that the ignorance which sin occasions is a voluntary ig- 
 norance ; that sin depraves the understanding, by shutting th« 
 «ye of the soul, that is, withdrawing its attention from the most 
 important objects, thence inducing a voluntary or wilful blind- 
 ness, and not by producing a physical effect on the understand- . 
 ing, causing an unavoidable, a necessary ignorance, which, whe- 
 ther the sinner will or not, will prevent him from coming to th« 
 saving knowledge of truth. 
 
 4. It will be readily perceived that the loss of external and 
 adventitious advantages to gain knowledge, whether greater or 
 less, occasioned by the fall of man, cannot be taken into the 
 number of the arguments in support of the depravity of the un- 
 derstanding. The certainty that a ship caonot sail where there 
 is no water, is no certain proof that there is any deficiency or 
 derangement of its constituent parts. We might presume, from 
 the light of reason, and much more from the light of revelation, 
 that if man had never fallen, his intercourse with his Maker 
 would have been attended with the greatest improvements in 
 knowledge and wisdom. Sin, which alienated his heart from 
 God, and withdrew his attention from the glorious fountain of 
 knowledge and excellence, occasioned the loss of those di- 
 vine communications which would have enriched him in 
 every mental and moral quality which adorn and dignify a ra- 
 tional creature. 
 
 But it must be remembered, that a similar withdraw of those 
 divine communications from man, had he remained uncorrupt- 
 cd by sin, would have lessened, to an amazing degree, the re- 
 sources of his improvement ; and probably even the strength 
 and acuteness of his intellect. But when we undertake (o ex- 
 amine the goodness of an organ, of an eye, for instance, we do 
 
80 
 
 Bot put it \n a dungeon — we do not withdraw from it the ob- 
 jects of vision — we do not induce the person to whom it be- 
 longs to shut it from the light. How absurd would it be for a 
 man to shut up his eyes, aud then say, '• alas ! what shall I do ? 
 my eyesight is totally depraved— I cannot see !" And this is 
 substantially the case with a sinner. 
 
 6. It is not to be understood, from the foregoing observations, 
 that 1 aflBrm that sin may not produce an immediate, and even a 
 physical etFect on the human intellect, impairing its power, acute- 
 ness, and general usefulness. All that I contend for is, that this is a 
 point which we cannot determine from any knowledge we de- 
 rive from reason and experience concerning the nature of the 
 aoul. We know not whether sin might not have impaired eve- 
 ry intellectual function or operation. We cannot assuredly 
 deny that sin has n^^t only impaired the powers of the soul, that 
 We kn(>w, and are acquainted with, but has, moreover, obstruct- 
 ed and concealed others which, in the incipient stages of being, 
 had not time to be elicited, matured, and brought into action. 
 
 The ground I take is, that reason, common observation, and 
 all experience, demonstrate that men's understandings are lees 
 afiVcteil by sin than their wills ; that we have no certain evi- 
 dence that the intellect, considered as a faculty of the soul, is, 
 in any manner, immediately, and necessarily, impaired by sinj 
 bu< especially, whether more or less, whether a great deal, op 
 not at all alTected, it is, to all intents and purposes, as sound, 
 strong, and acute, in relation to one object as another; that, if 
 it is less successful and correct in religious, than in worldilf mat- 
 ters, it is solely owing to less means of information, or less at- 
 tention to the means aSbrded ; that the distinction of spiritual^ 
 from other knowledge, is wholly without foundation. 
 
 Knowledge has to do with truth and facts, and is derived from 
 various sources ; but as to its conception and mode, in the hu- 
 man mind, it is one It cannot rise higher than to a rational 
 and full conviction. Whether a truth is made known to me 
 by God himself by an angel, or by a man ; whether I gain it 
 by intuition, deduction, sensation, or reflection, when 1 once, in 
 fact, have ii, it stands, in my mind, together with all other 
 truth, on the same ground of intellection. 
 
^1 
 
 Thia notion of the depravity of ttie understanding, whereby 
 the whole body of religious truths and doctrines is covered 
 with an inscrutable veil of mystery, is one of the boldest and 
 most mischievous of Satan's devices. Under the shanjefnl pre- 
 tence of paying a high compliment to the sacredness of truth, 
 they cover it from human eyes with a cloud, not of mystery, 
 |)ut of mist, which, following their definitions, no mortal can 
 understand; and under a pretence of setting human nature 
 low, they release the conscience from remorse, and a moral 
 agent from his duty. 
 
 That the spiritual discernment, or understanding of truth, re- 
 lates to its moral excellence and beauty, and belongs to the 
 will and afifection^ of the soul, is evidently agreeable to the 
 whole tenor of the scriptures. This I shall endeavour to show, 
 in considering what light the scriptures throw on the doctrine 
 of the depravity of the understanding. But this must be re- 
 served to the next series. 
 
 The intelligent and candid reader will perceive a wide dif- 
 ference between him who shuts his eyes to avoid seeing, and 
 him who was born blind. The former of these cases answers 
 to the conduct of men ; hence, saith the word of God, " This is 
 the condemnation that light has come into the world, and men 
 have loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds are 
 evil." 
 
 INVESTIGATOR. 
 
 No. VI. 
 BocTOR, M'Leod's Sermons. 
 
 A volume of sermons, entitled " The Life and Power of God- 
 liness," lately published, is before the pubhc. The imposing 
 title of this work, and the acknowledged talents of its author, 
 will procure for it a share of the public attention; and, if job- 
 
B2 
 
 tice has been done to a subject of such imporfance, few books 
 can be deserving of a larger share. If the writer has truly in- 
 formed the pubHc what godliness is, and wherein its life and 
 power consist, he has redeemed his pledge, laid down with an 
 immeasurable responsibiHty, and, to say nothing of the reward 
 of human approbation — to overlook the pleasing conscious- 
 ness, the noble gratification of having edified the church ©f 
 Christ, and presented before the wicked many of the best mo- 
 tives to repentance," a far richer reward awaits his labours — the 
 high and eternal approbation of the Supreme Judge of human 
 actions. 
 
 Though the task with which he charged himself can be but 
 poorly performed by one who does not live the life and feel the 
 power of godliness, yet I am far from making his production a 
 criterion to judge of his personal piety, a topic with which nei- 
 ther the critic, the theologian, nor the reviewer, has any concern ; 
 and concerning which, general reputation, and the more amiable 
 dictates of character, have secured to him a favourable deci- 
 sion. I cannot, however, avoid the persuasion, that the choice of 
 his subject was not peculiarly fortunate, nor well adapted to his 
 genius and turn of mind. But of this the reader will judge for 
 himself. Some men are sons of thunder, some of consolation; 
 and when a true son of thunder gets on themes of consolation, 
 we may apply to him the language of Garrick, " When Johnson 
 writes tragedy, declamation roars, and passion sleeps.'' 
 
 These sermons are by no means destitute of brilliancy of ex- 
 pression, and force of thought. Justice cannot deny that they 
 evince marks of genius of no ordinary grade ; but I am sorry to 
 be compelled to add, that here her claims of commendation 
 generally end. 
 
 Another day must determine whether it is my infelicity, or 
 that of this writer, that we differ in many of the most material 
 positions which he takes. If I can discover in this work any 
 thing like a description of divine life, its pulsations are feeble, 
 and it still wears the mortal hue. Indeed, a glance through 
 the v'jlurne rather presents darkness, impotence, and confusion, 
 than "///e ami power, ^' an. i reminds me of that strong expres- 
 sion in the liturgy, " In the ir>idat of life, we are in death." 
 1 he Doctor, in bis introd-uctory sermon, lays iielore the reader 
 
93 
 
 kis Tiew of what he styles " the peculiae excellencies of 
 tmb oospk,l." These he comprises in four articles, viz. 
 
 1. '' The Christian religion alone proposes to man friendship 
 and communion with God, in a Mediator ; and effects reconcilia- 
 tion, by providing a Mediator perfectly qualified for the purpose." 
 
 2. " Christianity is the only religion which provides perfect 
 satisfaction to divine justice for all the sins of them who are 
 reconciled to God." 
 
 3. " Evangelical religion alone secures to man a change oi 
 mind, by supernatural power, from sinfulness to holiness." 
 
 4. " Evangelical religion secures for believers a title to a 
 place in heaven, on account of the merits of the Redeemer." 
 
 I earnestly intreat the reader to resort to this book, and read 
 the Doctor's own illustration of these propositions; and for 
 the same reason I could wish this book might be generally read. 
 For if there be proportion, beauty, force, and grandeur, in truth 
 and godliness — if there be distortion, turpitude, obscurity, and 
 confusion in error, the eye that is not covered with scales of 
 blindness, will not read the book but with progressing convic- 
 tion, and it will serve as a caustic to bring a callous sore to due 
 sensibility. 
 
 My comment on the four propositions will be short; but as 
 they are set up as the four cardinal points of gospel excellence, 
 I cannot pass by them in silence. 
 
 His first proposition is certainly true, upon my principles, and 
 certainly false upon his ; and is a hook of error baited with truth. 
 
 His second proposition contradicts the first; while it ex- 
 presses a truth, implies an error; and as Christ's satisfaction to 
 justice is certainly the ground upon which the gospel *' propo- 
 ses to man friendship and commu%ion with God,'"' these two 
 propositions present the figure of a pyramid set upon its apex^ 
 with its base in the air ; and had it been composed of stone in- 
 stead of words, the author's head would have been in danger. 
 My meaning is, that he grounds an offer of life and immortaUty 
 to all men on a propitiation made for a part. 
 
 His third proposition is true ; but be covers it with darkness 
 in his illustration of it. He talks much about its excellent mo- 
 rality; but what then? His bearers arc taught to believe that 
 there is bo anch thing as moral virtue. He says the gospel acts 
 
84 
 
 before men the whole system of religions truth, but then their 
 understandings are totally depraved, and they are none the bet- 
 ter without supernatural illumination. He says, with great 
 emphasis, that the gospel requires holiness. '' Evangelical re- 
 ligion^'' says he, *' describes holiness in the clearest terms, rc' 
 quires it by the purest precepts, illustrates it by the best exam' 
 pies, and urges it by the tenderest molives.^^ A climax ! 
 
 But, reader, does he tell you what that holiness is to which 
 the gospel recovers man? No. Does he tell you what that 
 change of mind is which is effected by supernatual power? No. 
 Those topics, I must presume, were thought too mysterious for 
 explanation. 
 
 His fourth proposition, though, in a sense, true, since Chris- 
 tians are certainly saved by grace, yet, as it here stands, in the 
 writer's sense of it, and illustrated by his own remarks, I consi- 
 der it as one of the most bold, arrogant, and audacious strokes 
 of Antinomian pride and vanity. And I must again beg of the 
 reader to examine the proofs he brings of the truth of this pro- 
 position. He alleges nothing like proof— nothing in the shape 
 of demonstration — not even the ghost of evidence — not even 
 the abortion of an argument; and the proposiiions he brings in 
 its support are still more doubtful than his premises- I shall 
 close, for the present, by applying to these sermons the words 
 of Dr. Fuller, a writer recommended by the triangular divines 
 of this city. (See Fuller's life of Pierce, p. 249.) 
 
 " If a man, whatever be his dent-avity, be necessarily a free ajen^, 
 and accouiV-able for>aH his dispositions and actions ; if g'ospcl invita- 
 tions be addressed to' men, not as elect, nor as non-elect, but as sin- 
 nei^^s exposed to the righteous displeasure of Gqd; if Christ's obedi- 
 ence and death ral'.ier increase than diminish our ohlig-ations to love 
 God, and one another; if faith in Chnsi be a falling in with God's 
 way of salvaiion, and unbelief a faUiug out with it; if sanctiflcation 
 be a progressive work, and so essential a branch of our salvation as 
 that without it no man shiU see the Lord; if the iioly spirit instruct 
 us in nothing by his illuminating influences but. v/hal was already re- 
 vealed in the scriptures, and which we should iiave perceived but for 
 that we loved darkness rathqr than light; and if he inclines us to no- 
 thing but what was antecedently right, or to such a spirit as every in- 
 telligent creature ought, at all times, to have possessed," 
 
 then are these sermons far, very far, from being a true ex- 
 hibition of (lt(; life and power of godliness, or of gospel truth. 
 
 But they will be fnrlher considered, 
 
 INVESTIGATOR. 
 
THE TRIANGLE. 
 
THii 
 
 TRIANGLE, 
 
 PART L 
 
 3N FIVE SERIES OF NUMBERS. 
 
 BY 
 
 THE INVESTIGATOR, 
 
 ^EW-YORKt 
 
 PRINTED AND PUBLISHED FOR THE AUTHOn. 
 Van WjDkle, Wiley, k Co., Printers. 
 
 1817. 
 
stale of New- York, m : 
 
 BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the seventeenth day of May. in the fcty first year 
 of 'he Independeiiee of the United States of America, Van Winkle & Wiley, of 
 the sai i •ti-'trict, have depo^iiterl in this offiee the title of a book, the right whereof tbey 
 claim a^ propnetorj. in tlie words following, to wit: 
 " The Trianale. Tart I In Five Series of Numbers. By The Investigator." 
 In coNSfiRMiTV tn the act of Congress of the United htates. entitled, " An act for the 
 «' encouragement of learning, by securing th»- copies of maps, charts, and books, to the 
 " authors and proprietors of suoh copie';, during the times therein mentioned." and also 
 to an act, entitled, " 4n act. supplementary to an act, entitled, an act for the eneourage- 
 '' ment of learning, by securing the copies of maps, charts, and books, to the authors and 
 "proprierors of such copies, during the times therein (iientioned, and exteDdiiif, the 
 " benefits thereof to the arts of designing, engraving, and etching, historical and other 
 " prints." 
 ^ THERON RUDD, 
 
 Clerk of the Southern District of Kew-York. 
 
TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
 
 FIRST SERIES. 
 
 Page. 
 
 Dedication, - - -- ----3 
 
 No. I. The doctrine of Original Sin, as forming the first 
 
 point of the Triangle, _ - . - 7 
 
 No. II. The doctrine of Inability, as forming the second 
 
 point of the Triangle, - - - - 10 
 
 No. III. The doctrine of Atonement, as forming the third 
 
 point of the Triangle, - - - - 12 
 
 No. IV. Some consequences that may be expected to flow 
 
 from the inculcation of this scheme of doctrine, 14 
 
 No. V. Remarks on several of the arguments, or rather 
 means made use of to maintain and propagate 
 this scheme, ...... 2I 
 
 No. VI. The doctrine of Original Sin, as viewed by the 
 
 Investigator, - . . - . - 24 
 
 No. VII. The doctrine of Natural and Moral Inability, 
 
 as viewed by the Investigator, - - - 29 
 
 No. VIII. The doctrine of the Atonement, as vievved by the 
 
 Investigator, -.-... 34 
 
 No. IX. Remarks on " God's being the j5i<i/tor 0/6'iin," 
 on a sinner's " being willing to be damned in 
 order to be saved," and on the essence of Sin 
 and Holiness, ------ 43 
 
 Nq. X. The Reformation of the Church. The Refor- 
 mation of Luther and his coadjutors deticient 
 in three important respects — some remarks on 
 ^ the progress of Reformation, and the opposition 
 
 made to it at the present day, especially in this 
 
 city, 52 
 
 a 
 
Tl TABLE OF CONTENTgf, 
 
 SECOND SERIES. 
 
 Address to the inhabitants of the city of New-York, - 3 
 
 No. 1. Documents for what is falsely called New Divi- 
 nity, or " Hopkinsianism ;" or a general view 
 of the character and writings of some of the 
 most distinguished divines in New England, - 5 
 
 No. II. The question, " Ought a Christian to be willing 
 to be damned ?" examined in reference to the 
 odium cast upon those supposed to maintain 
 the affiimative — and placed upon its proper 
 footing, - - - - - --22 
 
 No. III. " A Contrast" of Antinomian and Hopkinsian 
 
 Calvinism — illustrated by an allegorical dream, 31 
 
 No. IV. An appeal to Christians, grounded upon fact, re- 
 specting the tendency of what is usually called 
 the " JVew England strain of doctrine,^'' as 
 connected with the great subject of Revivals of 
 Religion, -------43 
 
 No. V. Metaphysics ; — nature and object, as a science — 
 connexion with, and dependence upon, the 
 principles and doctrines oi revealed truth — false 
 tenets in religion the result of false metaphysics 
 — the irrational and miserable slang that i^ 
 levelled against it — some specimens oitriangu- 
 lar metaphysics, - - - - 64 
 
 No. VI. Remarks on the Pastoral letter of the Synod of 
 Philadelphia, dated Lancaster, September 20th, 
 1316. 79 
 
 THIRD SERIES. 
 
 Dedication, to the learned, and long-lived, John Doe and 
 
 Richard Roe, Esquires. _ - , - 3 
 
TABLE OF CONTENTS, VH 
 
 Page. 
 Ko. I. On the many advantages of the city of New- York, 
 
 commercial, political, civil, religious, and local, 
 for intellectual and moral improvement — to- 
 gether with incentives to activity, and perse- 
 verance in cultivating these advantages, - 9 
 
 No. JI. The importance of encouraging a spirit of Free 
 inquiry, in order to the acquisition of religious 
 knowledge — the advance that has been made in 
 this respect, chiefly in this country, upon the 
 Reformation of the sixteenth century — some of 
 the methods used to discourage and check a 
 spirit of Free inquiry, by many of the advo- 
 cates of the Triangular scheme, - - - 22 
 
 No. III. An examination of several passages in Dr. J. B. 
 Romeyn's Sermons, tending to prove the as- 
 sertion, that instructions grounded upon this 
 scheme are " incorrect in their nature," - 49 
 
 No. IV. A Letter, addressed to two distinguished members 
 
 of the Jersey Presbytery — the Rev. Dr. , 
 
 and the Rev. Dr. , - - - - C6 
 
 No. V. A few remarks on the proceedings of the Young 
 Men's Missionary Society of New- York, in re- 
 lation to the rejection of Mr. C , as their 
 
 missionary, -._„._ g^ 
 
 FOURTH SERIES, 
 
 Preface to the Fourth Series of Numbers, - " - S 
 
 No. I. The influence of Sectarianism — the design of 
 God in permitting divisions in the Church of 
 Christ — connected with an allegorical vision, 
 intended to point out the union, and justify the 
 claims, of Toleration and Trbth, - - 5 
 No. II. Articles of Faith, agreed upon at Marpurge, Oc- 
 tober 3d, 1629 by the first clnss of Reformers, 
 in which no corner of the Triangle is seen, - 27 
 
Vlll TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
 
 Page. 
 No. III. Extract from a work, (printed 1514, and dedi- 
 cated to Sir Edward Coke,) entitled '' a full 
 declaration of the Faith and ceremonies of the 
 Psaltzgraves Churches ;" some remarks on this 
 Hopkinsian document, - - - - 30 
 
 No. IV. Preface. — A Good Presbyterian, - - - 51 
 No. V. Depravity of the understanding considered, - (68 
 No. VI. A glance at *' Dr. M'Leod's Sermons on the na- 
 ture of true godliness," - - - - 81 
 
 FIFTH SERIES. 
 
 Preface, ---------3 
 
 No. I. Depravity of the understanding considered, and 
 
 concluded from the Fourth Series, - - 9 
 
 No. II. The Good Presbyterian, concluded from the 
 
 Fourth Series, - - - - - - 24 
 
 No. III. An extract of a Letter from the celebrated Gil- 
 bert Tennant, to his brother, William Tenant, 
 during his ministry in Philadelphia, - - 35 
 
 No. IV. Thoughts on Theological Truth ; — being an ab- 
 stract of the sentiments of the Investigator, re- 
 specting the principal doctrines of evangelical 
 religion, - - - - - - -38 
 
THE TRIANGLE, 
 
THE 
 
 rii 
 
 TRIANGLE. 
 
 FIFTH SERIES OF NUMBERS, 
 
 BT 
 
 THE INVESTIGATOR. 
 
 JStE W.YORK: 
 
 PRINTED AND PUBLISHED FOR THE AUTHOR. 
 
 Van Winkle, Wiley, & Co., Printers. 
 
 1817. 
 
state of Nen-Tork, ss: 
 
 BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the tenth day "f May, in the forty-first ye" "J the 
 iDdependence of the United States of America, Van VV inkle «' Wilet. of the saW 
 district, have deposited in this office the title of abook, the right whereof they claim as 
 proprietors, in the words following, to wit: 
 " The Triangle. Fifth Series of Numbers. By The Investigator." 
 In roNFORMiTT to the act of Congress of the United States, entitled, "An act for the 
 .'encoXement of learning, by secnring the copies of maps, charts, and books, to the 
 .' fu?hors and proprietors of such copies, during the times therein mentioned;" »nd also, 
 to an act entit^ed^" An act, supplementary to an act, entitled, an act for the encourage- 
 " mpnt of lean ii.e bv secur n" the copies of maps, charts, and books, to the authors and 
 nronr^etors Tsucrcop^^ times therein mentioned, and extendmg the 
 
 ..genefitsrereof^othearts'of designing, engraving, and etching historical and other 
 "Pf^ints." THERON RUDD, 
 
 C lerk of the Southern District of New- York. 
 
PREFACE 
 
 TO 
 
 THE FIFTH SERIES. 
 
 This series will close the first part of the Trian- 
 gle, a work which has roused a storm of indignation 
 and fury, whose rage appears not yet to be wholly 
 spent. I have been quite happy, however, to per- 
 eelve, that it has hitherto been harmless in its pro- 
 gress, as it has unroofed no buildings on the land, 
 nor unmoored any vessels in the harbour, though it 
 has been attended with great noise, with most ob- 
 streperous clamours, some " gnashing of teeth," and 
 terrible threats of vengeance. 
 
 A point blank shot was some time since aimed at 
 the Triangle, or rather The Investigator, but ii was, 
 perhaps, lucky for him that this shot was discharged, 
 not from the Great Gun, but from a very little gunn. 
 
of short barrel, and wide caliber ; and it appears, 
 from some oversight in loading, that the powder was 
 so inadequate to the weight of the charge, that the 
 whole load fell on the ground, not many yards from 
 the muzzle, where it still lies, and may be seen by 
 those whose curiosity may prompt inspection. The 
 wad smoked a little, affording a delightful fumigation 
 for triangular noses, but soon went out. 
 
 The general object of the Triangle has been to 
 expose the spirit of intolerance and persecution, be- 
 come so conspicuous, so bold, and daring, in this 
 city, for the last few years, and so insupportably op- 
 pressive to a certain class of people. A long train 
 of events speaks with a voice of thunder on this sub- 
 ject : A numerous and powerful phalanx of men have 
 long since laid off the mask — have boldly avowed 
 the purpose of restraining the opinions of the im- 
 mense population of this city, to their own creed — 
 or, shall I say, to their own narrow and contracted 
 views of the great doctrines of religion. 
 
 The attempts of an individual to breast the tor- 
 rent of popular opinion are always considered by 
 the weak and wavering as hopeless and useless, by 
 the leaders and demagogues of the multitude, as au- 
 dacious and wicked ; of course, they are seldom made : 
 for some, consulting their ease and popularity, others 
 
their convenience and interest ; some governed by 
 darling prejudices, and others, (not a few,) wrapped 
 in the midnight gloom of ignorance, it is found, by 
 designing men, but an easy task to lead the multi- 
 tude at their will ; and the history of the church, in 
 all ages, and in all its sections, affords a voluminous 
 comment on this subject. But if this comment be 
 voluminous, there is another not less so : the readi- 
 ness with which the great body of Christians, and all 
 ambitious men, identify religion with their temporal 
 interests, is the true source of that overbearing and 
 furious spirit which has ever harrassed the church, 
 endeavouring; to bear down all before it. It is not the 
 solemn scenes of eternity — the glory of the Almighty 
 God — the interests of the Redeemer's kino;dom — the 
 salvation of immortal souls — the terrors of the com- 
 ing judgment — the pure and supreme joys of an 
 eternal heaven — nor the endless torments of hell, 
 which form any part of the motives of their conduct, 
 who would square down men's consciences to their 
 particular views of truth. No ! no ! far other mo- 
 tives are at bottom ; it is the base ambition of mount- 
 ing on the empty blast of Fame — the rage after a 
 poor and short-lived influence over men — the desire 
 to be esteemed leaders and rulers over a large num- 
 ber of wretched beings, who are born for the awful 
 destinies of eternity. 
 
8 
 Were the love and fear of God the predominating 
 principle of their hearts, all these angrj feelings 
 would melt awaj; their weapons would fall from 
 their nerveless hands, and they would find much 
 more cause to quarrel with themselves, than with 
 their neighbours ; and their resentment at those who 
 differed from them, would suddenly change into ap- 
 prehension and alarm for their own future pros- 
 pects. 
 
 Investigator* 
 
THE TRIANGLE. 
 
 FIFTH SERIES. 
 
 No. I. 
 
 Btpravily of Understanding considered, and concluded from the 
 Fourth Series. 
 
 Part II. 
 
 Video raeliora, proboque ; deteriora sequor— Seneca. 
 
 The holy scriptures, in relation to the impediments in the 
 sinner's salvation, are far from placing the will and the under- 
 standing on the same footing. They nowhere represent the under- 
 standing as being as depraved as the heart or will, which I here 
 use as synonymous terms, or as being the cause of the sinner's 
 destruction. Directly the reverse of this breathes in every sen- 
 timent, and speaks in every page of the sacred volume. 
 
 While the depravity of the heart is universally set up as the 
 first, the last, and the only cause of the sinner's ruin, the under- 
 standing, whether more or less enlightened, is declared to have 
 sufficient light to leave the sinner "■ without excuse," and to 
 make his destruction chargeable alone to his free and voluntary 
 choice. 
 
 Were not the motive but too well known ; were not this sen* 
 timent identified as an integral part of a hideous and loathsome 
 scheme of antinomian tenets, where at every step the princi- 
 ples of eternal justice are sacrificed to the monstrous brood en- 
 gendered by darkness and superstition, where benevolence and 
 virtue n^e immolated at the shrine of selfishness, and where defor- 
 
ID 
 
 mity itself is the only rule of proportion, it would seem surprising, 
 that any one who had read the bible could pretend to draw, 
 from that exhaustless storehouse of truth, a doctrine so oppo- 
 site to the blazing light of experience, to the steady, constant, 
 and universal voice of reason, and to the innumerable and eX' 
 press declarations of that sacred book. 
 
 There is, probably, not a sentiment which ever engaged th« 
 attention of the human mind, in which all mankind, in all age* 
 and nations,are more unanimous, than that tnoi know better than 
 they do. A savage, a philosopher, a heathen, a christian, a jew, 
 a mahometan, will readily grant it, and whoever is a spectator 
 of human actions, cannot fail to know it. Ignorant as a man is, 
 or can be, his passions and inclinations will overleap the bounds 
 of his reason, and his own conscience will directly tell him so, 
 and reprove him. Nor was ever a code of morality taught oa 
 earth which so completely imbibed the inclinations of the 
 heart, as to annihilate the sphere of conscience, and supervene 
 all the dictates of reason. 
 
 The scriptures teach, that where there is great light, or know- 
 ledge of duty, that there the guilt of disobedience is great, and 
 BO, in general, they apportion the degree of guilt to that of 
 knowledge. 
 
 Judge Blackstone somewhere remarks, that a man, ignorant 
 of human laws, who falls into transgression, may, through the 
 imperfection of human administration, be holden to the legal 
 penalty, but, nevertheless, cannot be, in the eye of society, or 
 even of the law itself, impeached of moral or political turpi- 
 tude, unless the transgression be of a nature which the univer- 
 sal laws of society forbid ; which qualification supposes that 
 he might have known better. 
 
 If a total ignorance of every thing whatever, amounting to 
 the entire privation of reason, would exclude all accountable- 
 ness, as is supposed to be the case with idiots and maniacs, or 
 with beasts and incogitative machines, then a total ignorance of 
 any one thing places a man, in relation to that thing, as though 
 it did not exist. 
 
 I am fully aware of the famous, but senseless, dispute which is 
 raised here. The objector says, " But supposing a man has de- 
 
u 
 
 atroyed his own knowledge, or caused his own ignorance, what 
 then ?" And this same cavil is introduced on the subject of ina- 
 bility, and, indeed, is a part of it; for they say, the sinner has 
 destroyed his own ability — therefore, since he did it himself, he 
 is still held to perform. 
 
 There is not room to enter into this subtle point of metaphy- 
 sics here. Nor is it of much importance, since both the premi- 
 ses and the conclusion of the argument, as they use it, are false ; 
 for in the first place, sinners neither do, nor can, destroy their 
 ability to obey God, further than consists in depravation of will j 
 and, in the second place, if they could, the conclusion they draw 
 would not certainly follow. 
 
 Supposing a man commits suicide, hangs himself, and goes 
 out of the world, is he still under obligation to live with his fa- 
 mily and carry on his business ? — A man cuts off his legs, is he 
 after that under obligation to run a race ? — After a man has put 
 out his own eyes, does he commit sin for neglecting to perform 
 the duties which require eyesight ? 
 
 This subject requires careful reflection ; and I think but little 
 penetration is sufficient to enable any man to perceive that one 
 natural impossibility as effectually bars obligation as anotlier. 
 If I am the only pilot of a vessel, through a dangerous naviga- 
 tion, the man who destroys my eyesight, knowing the duty in- 
 cumbent on me, is accountable for all the consequences that 
 will follow ; and it does not vary the case whether that act is 
 done by me or another man. Whoever in that case puts out 
 my eyes, commits no sin for not navigating the vessel, for he 
 knows nothing of navigation. His sin consists in destroying 
 the power to navigate the vessel, and incurring the evils of ship- 
 wreck ; and the same will be my sin for the same reason, and 
 no other ; for after my eyes are out, I am no more able to do 
 it than he is. 
 
 The Divine government is not so weak, capricious, or impro- 
 vident, as to involve itself in the necessity of losing its dignity, 
 or exacting impossibilities. The sinner who may in any man- 
 ner destroy his own means or faculties of doing his duty in fu- 
 ture is, no doubt, guilty of a great crime, but his crime is the 
 game as would be the crime of another man, who had done 
 
12 
 
 that work for him, under equal advantages of knowing the coM' 
 sequences. 
 
 As the performance of an act, without intention, is no virtue, 
 being merely the operation of machinery, so the omission of an 
 act is no crime where there is no correspondent intention, and, 
 above all, where there is no capacity, even if there were inten- 
 tion ; otherwise a mountain might be blamed for not perform* 
 ing the duties of a rational being. 
 
 As for a man who shall destroy irrevocably his own faculties 
 to do a duly, human laws will decree such amercement as may 
 be within the scope of their policy, and the Divine government, 
 which alone weighs actions in all their relations and consequen- 
 ces, will inflict such punishment as infinite goodness shall ap» 
 prove. But neither Divine nor human laws will regard thiat 
 man in the same light they do another man, who, with full pow- 
 ers, and faculties unimpaired, intentionally refuses, from day 
 to day, to do his duty. Since the one who has disqualified 
 himself, and destroyed his own powers, may, perhaps, the next 
 hour after this outrage committed on himself, most deeply re- 
 pent of his conduct, and regret what he has done ; and this re- 
 pentance, though surely it cannot shield him from the legal con- 
 sequences, yet will not fail to place his character in a very dif- 
 ferent light, before any tribunal, from that of the wilful, deter- 
 mined aggressor, and under an economy of grace might pro- 
 cure his pardon : but were there no grace — if eternal and in- 
 flexible justice governed all worlds — still these two charactere 
 must appear widely difierent. 
 
 But all this, reader, is hypothetical reasoning of the highest 
 class. God has taken care, in the formation of rational immor- 
 tal intelligences, that their general capacity for duty and obedience 
 shall not rest on such frail, baseless foundations, as to perish 
 with the first act of disobedience. Never was a more absurd or 
 dangerous opinion advanced, than that every rebel against God 
 completely and for ever incapacitates himself to do his duty, ei- 
 ther by destroying his understanding, or by any other means. 
 
 On this subject, I beg leave to draw the reader's attention to 
 the opinions of two most eminent and learned men ; and, by the 
 hft from the same source he may also see, with bow much 
 
18 
 
 waut of candour, or of knowledge, many rashly reject t/ie die- 
 tinction between natural and moral iuability as a new notion 
 started in New England. .' 
 
 " Moral incapacity," says Dr. Howe, (Blessednef/s of the 
 Righteous, p. 231,) " is also in some sense truly natural, that is, 
 in the same sense wherein we are said to be children of wrath, 
 by nature ; therefore, human nature must be said to be created 
 hy God, and as propagated by man. In the former sense, as 
 God is the author of it, it is taken in this distinction of natural 
 and moral impotency ; which needs not further explication : — 
 yet you may take this account of it from Dr. Twisse."* The in- 
 ability of doing what is pleasing and acceptable to God is not an 
 impotence of nature, but of morals ; for, by means of original 
 sin, no faculty is wanting to us : and to this effect saith Augus- 
 tine, " Sin hath taken from no one the faculty of knowing the 
 truth ; the power yet remains, by which we can do whatever 
 we will ; or, if you please, we say that the natural power of act- 
 ing, according to their discretion, is given to all men, but not 
 the moral." 
 
 It appears from the quotations, that the distinction of moral 
 inability or impotency, was thought of before the days of Hop- 
 kins, and was taught even by Dr. Twisse, who, perhaps, the 
 leader may not know, till he is informed, was Prolocutor to 
 our famous Assembly of divines, and was, perhaps, the mosl 
 distinguished man in that Assembly. And as for Augustine, he 
 is the man above all others, who, among the ancient fathers 
 of the church, the triangular men pretend to claim. But enough 
 «f this. 
 
 Neither is the question, whether a total extinction of the 
 knowledge of duty would totally caucel all obligation, much less 
 hypothetical than the former. We do not know that such a 
 case, or that such a class of men, possessing the use of their 
 reason and faculties, ever existed in the world. We know 
 
 • Impotentla faciendi, quod Deo gratum est et acceptum, non est impo- 
 jentia naturx, sed morum. Nulla etenim nobis deestfacultas natura per pec- 
 «atum originale ; juxta illud Augustina: NulH agnoscendi veritatis abstulit 
 faeultatem. Vind. L. Sect. 6. Naturalem poteutiam quidlibet agendi pro" 
 arbitrioipsorumdicimus adomnes UAQsjaitti, noD autem poteutiam moralera. 
 
14 
 
 from the light of sacred history, that the ancient heathen nations 
 were extremely ignorant of God and the true religion : we also 
 know, that, speaking of them, the apostle Paul declares, " The 
 times of this ignorance God winked at, but now commandeth all 
 men everywhere to repent." By this mode of expression we 
 are given to understand, that God beheld the failings, supersti- 
 tions, and corruptions of their worship, with an eye less scrutini- 
 sing and severe, from the consideration of their very great ig- 
 norance. 
 
 In considering this point, however, two important cautions 
 are necessary. First, that we do not overrate the ignorance of 
 the heathen, as to its extent, and, Secondly, that we distinguish 
 between that part of it which is wilful, and that which is nece&< 
 eary or unavoidable. 
 
 Many heathen nations have in all ages been very ignorant. 
 But the Lord saith not as man saith ; and merely their want of 
 language, arts, and manners, deprives him not of the proper cri- 
 terion of judginjj their hearts. St. Paul does not allow that the 
 heathen are excluded from all possible means of knowing the 
 true God : since the works of nature declare the invisible pow- 
 er and Godhead ; and those who have not the law, are a law to 
 themselves, their consciences, in the mean time, accusing or 
 excusing them, so, as he expressly asserts, that they are with- 
 out excuse, for not loving and obeying God, according to the 
 light they have. 
 
 I wish not to express too much confidence with regard to the 
 state of the heathen, since the spirit of truth has not been plea- 
 sed to speak largely and particularly of their state ; but one 
 thing is certain, the great contempt in which their morals and 
 characters are held, by christian nations, generally flows from 
 prejudice, partiality, and unfair comparisons. Among the low- 
 er classes of people in all great cities on the globe, nearly the 
 same vices prevail, and notwithstanding the difference of laws 
 and regulations, it is melancholy to reflect how little advantage 
 those called christian, hold over others in point of morahty. 
 And it is still more remarkable, that iu the interior regions of 
 the great nations of Asia and Africa — in the huts and cabins 
 of the shepherd, tradesman, and farmer, where they are suffi- 
 
15 
 
 clently distant from the corrupting influence of cities, armies, 
 wars, and revolutions, if there be less of positive virtue, there is 
 less surely of vice. There is nothing to compare with that im- 
 mense, enormous front of moral depravity, which lifts its head 
 above the mass of the people, and like a dreadful tyrant of un- 
 limited prerogative, sways its black, and filthy sceptre ; which 
 thunders in blasphemous profanity ; winds its serpentine 
 course through a labyrinth of dishonesty — spurns all religion, 
 although, perhaps, professing the christian. 
 
 Noah and his sons taught the true religion, and from this and 
 subsequent sources it is owing that all nations admit the being 
 of God, a superintending providence, and a future state of re- 
 wards and punishments. Beside what might desceud from 
 these very ancient sources, there is another mode by which 
 heathen nations may receive Divine instruction. The light of 
 reason and conscience, furnished with ample instructions from 
 
 the volume of nature, is bestowed on every human miad. 
 
 These lights, indeed, without any previous knowledge, and un- 
 der the strong influence of native depravity, might never enable 
 the human mind to discover the being and perfections of God. 
 But when once that grand idea is awakened ; when once a rea- 
 sonable creature is informed there is a God, the creator of all 
 things— that the sou! is immortal— that there is another and far 
 more important state of being than this life, it can never be forgot- 
 ten ; and I scarcely need add, that the appearance of the visible 
 world, the grand and glorious revolutions of the heavenly bo- 
 dies, the regular change of seasons, all the laws of the animaf, 
 vegetable, and material kingdoms, serve eminently to invigorate, 
 enforce, and illustrate these great truths. 
 
 The ignorance of the heathen is truly deplorable, even that 
 part of it which is inevitable, and wholly beyond his power to 
 remove. But there is another part of his ignorance, which is 
 wilful, and far more strongly connected with his guilt and dan- 
 ger. If the improvement of a privilege be not certainly con- 
 nected with its increase, and with other privileges, its misim- 
 provement and abuse will generally be connected with its loss, 
 and certainly with guilt in proportion to its magnitude. 
 
 There is nothing impossible in the supposition that a heathen 
 
16 
 
 may look abroad upon the immeDse universe and say, *' Thar* 
 is a God, and I am his creature. Such being his kingdom, 
 how glorious and excellent must he be ?" Who can certainly say 
 what would be (he happy consequence if a heathen should fol- 
 low the best light he has 1 Should indeed obey the lam that t« 
 within him ? Should follow such light as the Father of lights af- 
 forded? Is there a certainty that no ray from the Sun of right- 
 eousness would ever reach him ? The almighty Ruler of ali 
 worlds, in whose hand are the destinies of all creatures, pays lit- 
 tle regard to those dark notions of order and consistency by 
 which our feeble minds would seem sometimes to affect to fet- 
 ter his operations. He certainly regards his own laws, but we 
 «ertainly do not comprehend the extent of their operations. 
 
 In every page of the sacred volume, the guilt of sinners ic 
 predicated upon the violation of the light, and abuse of the ad- 
 vantages they have. Of course, the guilt of different nations 
 is represented as being vastly different ; yet all as guilty, be- 
 cause all have certain advantages. AH have, at least, one cer- 
 tain advantage : They dwell in God's kingdom ; they live, and 
 move, and have their being in God : He is not very far from 
 every one of them. Since all power in heaven and earth is 
 given to Christ ; since there is subjected to him not only the 
 present world, but that which is to come, these benighted hea- 
 then dwell under his government, and he will be their final 
 judge. And as God has given him the heathen for his inheri- 
 tance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for his possession, it 
 cannot be doubted that were the light of the gospel to reach the 
 heathen, or any heathen nation, they might become the sub- 
 jects of the Redeemer's grace. 
 
 But who shall presume to limit the sphere enlightened by 
 the beams of the Sun of righteousness 1 Is he not " the true 
 light that lighteneth every man that cometh into the world 7" This 
 light, as propagated by different means, and in various ways, shines 
 with unequal degrees of strength and steadiness : but who that 
 knows the power and providence, the grace and mercy of God, 
 can assuredly say that an offer of salvation does not reach eve- 
 ry sinner ? Who can be assured that, at the day of judgment, 
 every condemned sinner will not be made dearly to see, that 
 
17 
 
 his condemnation, so far from arising from the inevitable thral- 
 dom of his uature, from which no relief had ever been brought 
 within his reach, from a depravity of his understanding, which 
 rendered his exchision from life certain, whether he would or 
 not, arose from his wilful blindness, his perverseness, and abuse 
 cf such privileges as he had been favoured with 
 
 The condemnation of those who perish under the lia;ht of 
 the gospel, will certainly issue upon the charge of their reject- 
 ing salvation; and as a propitiation is certainly made for thf sins 
 of the whole world, ( 1 John ii. 2 ) 1 must leave the reader to fis 
 in his own mind the import of (he declaration, John i. 9. ' That 
 was the true light which lighleneth every man that comelh into 
 the juor^rf," observing that, in the very next verse, the import of 
 the term world is unequivocally established ; for he observes, 
 " He was in the world, and the world was made by him." 
 
 Our Saviour declares, that the people of Sodom and Gomor- 
 rah, of Nineveh, of Tyre, and Sidon, shall be found less guilty, 
 and shall be less severely punished, in the day of judgment, thaa 
 those people who heard him preach, and enjoyed, and rejected, 
 the light of the gospel, because their privilejjes were less. Yet 
 the people of Sodom and Gomorrah, of Nineveh, of Tyre, and 
 Sidon, and of all ttiose countries, probably had much greater 
 advantages than we readily imagine; and, indeed, the advanta- 
 ges of iJl heathen, in all situations whatever, are somewhat 
 greater than many are willing to admit, and are such as will sub- 
 ject them to the charge of wilful blindness. Let us hear, on this 
 subjeft, the reasonings of St. Paul. Rom. i. 18. " For the wrath 
 of God is revealed from heaven aganist all ungodliness and im- 
 righteousness ofmen^ who hold the truth in unrighteousness, be- 
 eausc that which may be knowfi of God, is manifest in them; 
 FOR GOD HATH SHOWED IT Ui<iTo THiwM. FoT the invisible things 
 ef him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being wi' 
 derstoodby the things that are made, even his eternal power and 
 Godhead ; so that tliey are without excuse.''* 
 
 This declaration amounts to this, that God is angry at the 
 wickedness of the heathen, because he has given them sufficient 
 light to kn<»w their general duly and obligations ; " Lerausc,*' 
 says he, " that which may be known of God is 7nanfest in tiietn. 
 
18 
 
 for God hath shorved it unto t/iewi." And he explains in what 
 way ; for he says, *' The invisible things of him, from the crea- 
 tion of the world, ar^ clearly seen, being understood by the things 
 that are made, even his eternal porver and Godhead; so that they 
 are without excuse.'^ 
 
 But he proceeds: *' Because that when they Jcnew God, they 
 glorified him not as God, neither were thankful, but became vain 
 in their imaginations, their foolish heart being darkened ; pro- 
 fessing themselves to be wise, they became fools, and changed the 
 glory of the incorruptible God into an image,'^ &c. After many 
 observations upon their obstinacy and wilful blindness, he comes 
 at length to say, " And even as they did not like to retain God 
 in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to 
 do those things which are not convenient.'''' 
 
 Having stated the enormous wickedness to which they pro- 
 ceed, he finally concludes with this extraordinary remark : 
 " Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit 
 such things are worthy of death, not only do the samCy but have 
 pleasure in thetn that do them." 
 
 In the second chapter of the Epistle to the Romans, St. Paul 
 further remarks, " For not the hearers of the law are just before 
 God, but the doers of the law shall be justified. For when the 
 Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained 
 in the law, these having not the law, are a law unto themselves ; 
 which shoiv the work of the law written in their hearts, their con- 
 science also bearing witness, and their thoughts the meanwhile ac- 
 cusing or else excusing one another. ^^ — V. 13, 14, 15. fie applies 
 this reasoning in the 26th verse : " Therefore, if the uncircmnci- 
 sion keep the righteousness of the law, shall not his uncircnmci- 
 sio7i be counted for circumcision ? and judge thee, rvho by the let- 
 ter and circumcision dost transgress the law ?" 
 
 It is rare, that ignorance, with a direct and obvious allusion 
 to the intellect, is charged upon the heathen, without, at the 
 same time, putting it to the account of wilful blindness, or a 
 voluntary withdraw of the attention from the objects of reli- 
 gion. The famous passage, Ephes. iv. 18. '^^ Having oxir under- 
 standing darkened,'^ &c. will appear in this light by considering 
 its connexion, v. 1 7. " This I say, therefore, and testify in the 
 
19 
 
 Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles wallc, in the 
 vanity of their mind: (v. 18.j Having the understanding darken- 
 ed, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance 
 that is in them, because of the blindness of their hearts.''^ 
 
 The ignorance, or darkness of understanding, here mentioned, 
 is expressly ascribed to blindness of heart as its cause : ^^ because 
 of blindness of keart.^' As I would presume, there can be but 
 one opinion concerning the meaning of blindness of heart, this 
 passage places the ignorance, here ascribed to wicked men, as 
 we considered it in the former part of this essay, as among the 
 consequences of sin, but probably adventitious to its nature. 
 
 The heart is the seat of affection, of love and hatred, of sin 
 and holiness : blindness of heart is that disaffection, or sinful re- 
 gard, with which the sinner contemplates the Divine character, 
 and the great objects of religion. In this sense, the sinful heart 
 13 totally blind to the beauty of God, tlie loveliness of Christ, 
 the glory of heaven, and all the excellence of divine things. 
 Therefore it is said, 1 Cor. ii. 14. " The natural man receivclh 
 not the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness unto 
 him, neither can he know them, because they are spiritually dis- 
 cerned.^' This construction of this text is confirmed by the 
 leading phrase, " For the natural man receiveth not the things of 
 the Spirit : there is the defect ; he receiveth not, i. e. he rejects 
 them in his heart, he hates them, because they are foohshuess 
 unto him. In this sense, also, the word/f:no?DZeof^e,orthe phrase 
 to know, is often used in the word of God, when, should it be 
 applied to the intellect, or understanding strictly, the bible 
 would be cut in pieces, and be no better than a book of riddles, 
 or, rather, of palpable contradictions. The phrase to know God 
 and Jesus Christ, whom to know is life eternal, refers not to the 
 knowledge of the understanding, but of the heart ; for we have 
 just above heard the word of God declare, that the wicked do 
 Icnow God, and glorify him not as God: that they know their 
 master's will and do it not : that they know the judgment of 
 God, and that they which do such things are worthy of death, &lc.; 
 in short, that that luhich may be known of God is manifest in 
 fhem,foi- God hath shorved it unto than; so that they are without 
 'excuse for their disobedience. 
 
20 
 
 If by «i,s notion of the enlighteninij influence of the divine 
 sp.nt, .t ,. to be understood that any (hin. is revealed to the 
 sinner which h not revealed in the bibJe, if new t.ufh be com- 
 mun.cated, if Uulh be communicated in a new form, so as to 
 wiake diir.rent impressions on the mind, th. n the bible is not the 
 true revelation of God; but. on the contrary, the absurd no- 
 tions of some of the most odious fanatics which ever infested 
 and corrupted the chur.-h are justified, and all confidence ia 
 withdrawn from the standard of eternal truth. But if it be ur- 
 ged, that these enhghtening influences merely aid the sinner's 
 understanding, so as to enable h,m to understand the truth to 
 ih.s It IS replied, the understanding needs no such aid, and 'the 
 Idea ,s both unreasonable and unscriptural. Truth cannot be 
 presented plainer than it is in the word of God ; and the ditEcuN 
 ty of recew.ng it does not lie in the intellect or understanding- 
 iheir most favourite passage confirms this idea, "For tie 
 naturalman received not ike things of ihc spiru:^ They are 
 foohshness to his heart; as the fool hath said in his /..ar/there 
 .s no God. They are alone discerned by the spiritual mind, 
 wh.ch «,ay be understood, in one moment, by contrasting it 
 ^^'Uh tne carnal mind, which is declared to be enmity with 
 C.od. Now, ,f the carnal mind is enmity with God, then surely 
 the spiritual mind is love to God. 
 
 I desire the reader to observe, that the terms cam«/ and .... 
 ^iol are generally contrasted in the New Testament. " Lt 
 ike carnal mmd is enmity against God, is not sut.ject to Jus law 
 neither indeed can bc^ What ^h^n ;= fi • -f . - ' 
 
 i. \n^. tr. n ^ r ' ' ' *^''" «P""'t"a' mind ? It 
 
 B love to God. It is subject to his law, and cannot be other- 
 vise ; ,. e. loves God with all the heart. Again ; " to be carnal 
 /. ^.nded is deatK but to ,e s^ndaally ...L, ^Ir):!::^!:^ 
 But If the carnal mind is enmity against God, and to be carnaN 
 
 I'Xlt r ;' ^T\ ''" "" '""• ^'^^ ^^^^"^ -^' ^'-^ --'^y 
 
 ritual death ; and when we hear the scripture speak of the sin- 
 
 tC u , f '". ■''"''"'' '"' '" ^•"^' "^ '' «"«« understand, 
 that to be dead m trespasses and in sins \s to be in a state of 
 
 ejim.ty to God. But if enmity to God is spiritual death, then 
 
 What .8 love to God 1 It is spiritual life. For if the carnal mind 
 
21 
 
 be enmity against God, and if to be carnally minded is deatij, 
 it is but to take the predicate of these two propositions, and 
 make a new equation out oi them, if 1 may so speak, and by 
 fhe axiom that any two things, which are equal to a third, are 
 equal to one another, the unknown quantity is exterminated, or 
 spiritual death explained. Enmity to God, and death, are both 
 predicated of, and made equal to, carnal miudedness; consequent- 
 ly death, or spiritual death, is enmity against God. But as the 
 spiritual mind is contrasted with the carnal mind, or enmity to 
 God, then, by an irresistible deduction, love to God, or spiri- 
 tual life, must be predicated of the spiritual mind. And do we 
 not hear the apostle say, "to be sjrirituaUy minded is life and 
 peace?'' 
 
 The Divine illumination for which they contend, and the 
 spiritual tilings about which they talk, relate to the heart and 
 affections, and have no concern with any conceivable depravi> 
 ty of intellect, by which sinners cannot duly apprehend truth, 
 whenever presented with its proper evidence. The human un- 
 derstanding has three modes of apprehending truth. The first 
 is by intuition. Some truths, from their very nature, are so clear 
 and forcible, that the mind immediately perceives them, with- 
 out reasoning or effort : such as that the whole must be greater 
 than a part. The second is by deduction, and is only different 
 from the first, in that it embraces several steps, or links; for al- 
 though the mind may not see intuitively the connexion of the 
 two extremes of a long argument, yet it proceeds intuitively 
 from step to step, and feels an equal assurance that the 
 final conclusion rests on the certainty of intuition. The tlnird is 
 the receiving of truth, or facts, upon proper evidence. 
 
 But it is truly affecting to see how every province of truth is 
 invaded and overrun by errors of every description. Some, 
 like an army of Saracens, sweeping away every barrier, and de- 
 forming alike the beauties of nature, and the glorious temple oi 
 religion itself: others, like the frogs of Egypt, croaking with equal 
 horrors in the palace or the cotfaiie ; and others, like the locusts, 
 darkening the sun and the air, and devouring every green thing. 
 Here we see men standing high in the public confidence, decla- 
 ring from the sacred desk, that all religious truths are hidden 
 
22 
 
 from men's understandings ; that men can understand syllo- 
 gisms, rnatbernaticai and natural truths, but the moment they 
 turn their eyes towards the doctrines of religion, all is mystery 
 •—they understand nothing. 
 
 There is nothing in the v/ord of God to justify this opinion ; 
 for, as I have already observed, the passages which they allege 
 in vjnjl^cation of it, relate wholly to the depravity of (he heart, 
 and to that ignorance, which blindness of heart occasions, and 
 which the Scriptures constantly, and with great plainness, show 
 to be a wilful blindness. 
 
 The consequences arising from their scheme, if once fully es- 
 tablished, are such as cannot be contemplated but with alarm 
 and horror by those who have a proper regard for the salva- 
 tion of sinners; and with indignation and contempt by the irre- 
 ligious. If men are truly condemned for Adam's sin, without 
 any consideration of their own conduct ; if an atonement is 
 made but for a part of mankind, and yet, those for whom no 
 atonement is made are required to believe, and condemned 
 and punished for unbelief; if, exclusive of the heart and affec- 
 tions, men are so truly depraved in their understandings, 
 in relation to religious truth and doctrine, that the whole Bible 
 Is a sealed book, of which they can have no competent under- 
 standing, and yet they are required to understand that for 
 which they have no capacity, are inculpated with the heaviest 
 censures and most terrible threateniogs, for an impotency of 
 nature, born with them ; if faith be made the grand constituent of 
 all religion, and yet never so fully explained as to convey any 
 definite idea of its nature, further than that it consists in a strong 
 persuasion that Christ has died for me, and is about to save me, 
 that he has paid a debt which I owe to Divine justice, and 
 made, thereby, my discharge from punishment a matter of legal 
 demand ; that the infinitely perfect righteousness of his active 
 obedience and character are made over to me by contract, so 
 that prior to any consideration of my repentance or person- 
 al holiness, I am necessarily pardoned, and eternally justified ; 
 that in the gospel plan there is no intermediate idea, betwees 
 atonement, pardon, imputed righteousness, and eternal justifica- 
 tion ; and, of coarse;, that the christian's sanctilication is an infe- 
 
23 
 
 tior consideration, wholly out of the chain, and that love to 
 God makes no part of the religion of the gospel, strictly speak- 
 ing, although it be admitted that there is such an affection in tiie 
 christian as love,* and such another affection as selfishness ; if 
 personal holiness be kept wholly out of sight, or so feebly or 
 mystically explained, that the hearer will form no conception 
 of its usefulness or importauce ; in short, if a perpetual strain of 
 Divine promises, dealt out with no discrimination of character, 
 and calculated to foster the deepest pride and most odious hy- 
 pocrisy ; if all these combined causes of ignorance, error and 
 stupidity, will, in due time, produce astonishing effects, in this 
 city, such effects may be looked for — indeed, are already par- 
 tially produced. 
 
 If this strain of doctrine shall maintain its ground, and prevail 
 in this city, it will soon become the most corrupt, abandoned, 
 and profligate city on earth. These doctrines are themselves 
 the floodgates of corruption. When religioa sets a man loose 
 from his obligations, what further restraint is to be expected ? 
 Religion was sent in aid of the voice of conscience. She kin- 
 dled up her heavenly light, not to extinguish, but to pour new 
 strength and brilliance into the lamp of reason : and that is not 
 religion which makes war with every dictate of reason, justice, 
 and common sense, and wraps itself from the eyes of men in 
 glooms of obscurity and mists of darkness. 
 
 But if this scheme prevails in this city ; if the plans and pro- 
 jects of the men by whom it is taught and abetted, are crowned 
 with success; if they shall succeed in bearing down all before 
 them, and bringing the people into their views, the great body 
 of their hearers will soon become infidels in sentiment; their 
 minds, wearied with a constant strain of absurdities and contra- 
 dictions, will soon learn to identify religion with every thing 
 unreasonable and contemptible. Their churches will be false 
 
 • Dr. M'Leod, Serm. 9, p. 369, says, " It is easy to sliow that personal re- 
 ligion includes the exercise of love to God and man.'' But I arer, that any 
 reader, even with an eagle's eye, who shall read what he makes of it in the 
 tun of ten pages, will be convinced that it was no easy matter for him to 
 show it : and, to be sure, such another whirl of chaotie atoms, as he ther^ 
 {mts in motion, I never before saw. 
 
24 
 
 and hollow as their doctrines. The pains they are taking td 
 weed out all moral notions, niiy, Divine love itself, which is the 
 soul of all religion, as it is the nature of God, will instruct them, 
 when it is too late, that christian ministers are but uiiprofitably 
 employed in promoting selfishness, ignorance, and prejudice 
 But I leave them in the hands of him who is able to maintain 
 the cause of truth ; and who sometimes suffers error to triumph 
 as a punishment to the wicked. 
 
 INVESTIGATOR. 
 
 No. II. 
 THE GOOD PRESBYTERIAN. 
 
 (Concluded from the Fourth Series.) 
 
 Part II. 
 
 *' O fortunati quoi-um, jam mcenia surgunt !*' 
 
 Preaching plain Scripture, without tedious reasonings, or 
 dry and deceptive metaphysics, and preaching in such a man- 
 ner as to give no offence to the proud, the ignorant, the hypo- 
 critical, the fastidious, the vitious, and the dull, form two grand 
 qualifications of the good Presbyterian. 
 
 The good Presbyterian makes a conspicuous figure in the 
 ecclesiastical courts. 
 
 In this grand article, I suspect that this class of men are per- 
 haps surpa.=*sing all example of improvement. I have, with mj 
 own eyes, witnessed sudden attainments which almost reconci- 
 led me to the astonishing history of the admirable Crichton. 
 New England, as much as she boasts of her theological im- 
 provements, must acknowledge that she is far surpassed in this 
 article — in this high and exalted kind of ecclesiastical excellence. 
 
.23 
 
 If (he venerable Pindley or Uavies could now come upon 
 earth, they wouhi be astonished at the magnitude and splenduor 
 of the improvements already made, and now making. Me« 
 thinks^l can almost hear what they would say, on such an occa- 
 sion; they would exclaim, " Happy arie ! lobe distinguished 
 by such greatness ! Happy people ! born to such transcendent 
 felicity ! Flappy country ! formed for the theatre of such re- 
 markable displays of wisdom ! such varied excellences and ge- 
 nerally to be ascribed to the good presbyterian, as every year 
 unfolds itself in our ecclesiastical courts, is sufficient to chal- 
 lenge the admiration of tiie present generation, and I cannot 
 but tLir;k,. would be a useful lesson to the gentlemen of the law 
 employed on our illustrious bench of civil justice ; ami, perhaps, 
 also to our most d.istiniruislied civilians of every description. 
 
 Although brief, 1 shall be somewhat particular and elementa- 
 ry in this discussion ; and would cheerfully submit it to the 
 Mansfield of our civil courts* to say, whether eccleeiastical jii* 
 risprudeuce in our country is not rising to a respectable and 
 splendid rank. 
 
 1. On the convening of a spiritual court, you Snd yourself ia 
 a new atmos[)here of peculiar influence, powers, and density. 
 I hardly know what to call it, or to which of the departments 
 of nature or science to turn, to aid my illustration. Perhaps the 
 effects of some of the aerated gasses, in consequence of inspira- 
 tion, might resemble it. You perceive a sharpness of iuteilect, 
 an intensity of attention, an acuteness of eye, an agitation of 
 muscular lines, varied and introverted circles of light and mo- 
 tion, thought and sentiment, and flashes of import cross and wa- 
 ver on the countenance. There seems at first nothing like 
 amalgamation in the gf-neral mass. Every thing is stern, se- 
 vere, biting, dii^tant, alone, averse, opposite. But you are hap- 
 py soon to perceive that all this is but a conscious thrill of the 
 feelings of independent and inflexible justice. You are to 
 consider that the only Law Book of this court Is astonish- 
 ingly concise — comprised, as I have said, in a few duodecimo 
 pages. There is no Blackstone, Bacon, Coke, or even Bnrn's 
 
 • Judge K-. 
 4 
 
26 
 
 JuslJce, lo help along. There are few words of precedents, 
 upiniou?, or decisions, to consult : yet every step is taken, 
 every act is done by law or precedent — not a speech is made 
 without the ample and imposing dress of parliamentary discus- 
 sion. 
 
 The technifal phrases of legislatures and courts of justice, of 
 lawyers and congress orators, are necessary, and at all events 
 must be had, or the cause is injured, the dignity of the court 
 impaired, and the speaker sunk down to nothing. No wonder, 
 then, at this thrill of anxiety, this oppressive load of care, at the 
 opening of a session, when the full tale of bricks are to bfe 
 made, and no straw afforded, nor even stubble to be gathered, 
 but from the headlands, balks, and corners of distant fields, and 
 scanty harvests. And many of the court, not having the advan- 
 tage of Puffendorff, Montesquieu, or Vattel, are even uncer- 
 tain of the Jus Naturale, Morale, et Civile, of every case. All 
 these evils are suddenly remedied in a manner truly astonish- 
 ing; for, 
 
 Firsl, The courtly air of every thing in this new region, this 
 laboratory of ecclesiastical jurisprudence, is such, that numbers 
 begin, wiliiout knowing it, to breathe the air and spirit of law. 
 As was said, in another case, and with variant import, they, in 
 one moment, have a new heart, become other men, and have 
 new powers of intuition, and new modes of communication. 
 You shall see one rise, and with the most perfect parliamentary 
 air, such as would appear in Wilberforce or Canning, call for 
 " the order of the day," although, three hours before this trans- 
 formation, he v/ouid certainly not have known what that phrase 
 meant. Another will arrest a debate and insist on " the pre- 
 vious question," perhaps never, till the inspiration of that pro- 
 pitious moment, knovv'ing the technical import of that phrase. 
 Another, with singular adroitness, shall rise to move that a com- 
 mittee be appointed to report a resolution, to overturn a cause, 
 to change or new model the form of a minute to be entered on 
 record. 
 
 With astonishing expertness they acquire the style of a de- 
 liberative legislative assembly, over which is completely super- 
 induced the technical phrases of courts of law. To say nothing 
 
27 
 
 of the eonveuiencc of this learned language, I may remark, 
 how very necessary it is, in a judicatory, which, in fact, holds 
 plenary powers, both legislative, judicial and executive. But, 
 
 Secondli/, It is not to be understood that every member in 
 this court, can suddenly rise to this great attainment. Many 
 heavy, plodding men, of mere plain common sense, h««.ve the 
 infelicity never to be able to acquire this skill. They must jog 
 on as they can, but they never can hope to arrive at eminence, 
 or place their feet on the shoulders of others ; of course, they 
 can neither shove those above them, nor rise from the dead le- 
 vel of the base of the pyramid— can never become good pres- 
 byterians. 
 
 I have often heard it remarked, that a man who means to ac- 
 quire influence, must be active in the judicatories of the chfirch; 
 and (his notion seems to be the main spring of action. The 
 skill of which I am speaking, is the grand desideratum. There 
 is one art, it is said, in which some men never can acquire skill.* 
 Enough, however, can acquire this juridical skiil, to give tone 
 to the system, to take a decided preeminence, and to inspire a 
 much larger number with emulation. 
 
 Parliamentary business has one dialect, courts of justice 
 another, theologians a third; common, civil, statute, and can- 
 non laws, have distinct phrases, and separate courts ; but in the 
 court before us, they all unite ti5e spirit of their maxims, and 
 the concentrated and rectified science of (heir language. But 
 it is the superlative felicity of a few men, a few, very ^ew rare 
 spirits, to exhibit perfect models here. I have them this mo- 
 ment in my eye ; 
 
 " Eloquar, an siloam ?" 
 
 Were not the admiration of men a principle of absolute levi- 
 ty, they carry enough of it about them, to crush Hercules, 
 Sampson, or Atlas. But light as it is, I fear to load them with 
 more; I shall therefore be silent. 
 
 But though i must not speak names, I surely may give some 
 lines, perhaps filled with a liUle mezzotinto, in doing which i 
 bhallfff^I an inward Eaii^facdon, -iads perhau?, g've to some a de- 
 
t28 
 
 gi'ee of the Barae sort of pleasure, while I discharge a debt of 
 justice. 
 
 I fancy some oracle of ecclesiastical jurisprudence rising 
 slowly from his seat. Ah ! 'tis he — it is the venerable Dr. 
 Slambangus ! While he lays back his foretop, and raises and 
 waves bis hand, to put the humeri cxtensoreS in tune for har- 
 monious action ; while the ophthaluiic muscles, with awful con- 
 vergence, point the visual ray level, beneath a superciliary nex- 
 us of majesty and (hou^ihr, as when the sun from the eastern 
 horizon shows half its orb beneath a line of darkness, an at- 
 tention spreads that would almost render thoughts audible, anel 
 give an echo to silerjq.e itself. He speaks ! 
 " Mr. flioderator, 
 " When I consider the dignify of the chair you fill, which 
 dignity it derives from the dignity of HIM who tills if, who is 
 promoted by the dignitaries of the cliurch, to be the chief dig- 
 nitary of all the dignitaries of this ECCLESIASIICAL 
 COURT, 1 fee! myself dignified, wt.ile 1 dignify you. Sir, wdio 
 are dignified by those whom alt men dignify. Sir, I rise to 
 move you, that there be a commission instituted, and a com- 
 mittee appointed, to prepare and report a bill, to this house, 
 relative to the regulation of forms of business, the arrangement 
 of precedents, and the revision and enlargement of law phrases : 
 the object of which is to lay a broader foundation for juridical 
 science. And furthermore, Sir, if this motion shall prevail, 
 and be carried info effect, I have it in contemplation to intro- 
 duce another motion, which I move may be the order of the 
 day for next Monday, the object of which shall be to establish 
 a seminary of ecclesiastical or canon lavv,in which there shall 
 be three professorships : the first, to form into a body of reports 
 the decisions of ^11 judicatories, drawn from their records and 
 judgment rolls ; the second, from these reports, and from our 
 standards, to form regular digests, pandects, or codices legum 
 ecdcsiasticonwi ; the third, to arrange and complete a Lexicon 
 of legal terms and phrases, to be entitled, Lexicon verborum 
 theologiorum ecclcsiaslicoruviquc : and furthermore, that, pro- 
 vided this motion shall prevail, to move for the order of the 
 day on Tuesday, that the theological course of every candr- 
 
29 
 
 dato for Ueeusure shall be completed by four years insfrucfioii, 
 niider these professors, whi»;h 1 presume every one will per- 
 ceive to be of vital importance to tlie ministerial character." 
 
 Though 1 have stated the above motions merely as possible 
 specimens of court deliberation, yet, the reader will readily per- 
 ceive that there is far more than mere imagination in ail this. 
 How grand would be the aara, when professors, fellowships, 
 and colJPges of ecclesiastical law, shall be established. These 
 canon laws would, probably, soon derive a concurrent juris- 
 diction with all other laws of the country. We shall not then 
 eee such bungling, as we now often see with blushes, or with 
 regret. Our young divines will come forth skilful and accom- 
 plished lawyers, and our ecclesiasncal judicatories will open a 
 wide and splendid field of parliamentary eloquence and taleuts. 
 But, 
 
 2. The good presbyterian will never fail, in all the revola" 
 tions of court business, in all debates, appointments, elections, 
 influences, manoeuvres, ruses dc guerres, coup de mains, for- 
 lorn hopes, and extremities of court management, I will not 
 say intrigue, to maintain firmly, magnanimously, gloriously, 
 nay, furiously, and desperately, the power aod prerogative of 
 the clergy. And what can be more just, more excellent, more 
 necessary. Who ought to have power but men possessed of 
 holiness? Are they not born to rule? And where is authority 
 so well coupled as with wisdom and justice ? Are they not form- 
 ed and fitted to govern ? Behold their gravity, their meeknes^i, 
 their candour, their wisdom, their tender regard for the welfare 
 of all below them, their magnanimous mercy, and disinterested 
 benevolence ! 
 
 A consregation may have an anxious desire to settle a cer- 
 tain minister ; but a body of clergymen may know better than to 
 gratify that desire. An infant will sometimes cry, and be very pe- 
 tuient, because a careful and tender nurse keeps its fingers out of 
 the candle. It is often so with congregations of people ; their 
 wishes are nothing; and what do they know ? It is for their 
 good to be always subject to the high and infallible decision of 
 every ecclesiastical court, " IN ALL CASES WHATSOEV- 
 ER" — a boon, though denied the King of Tireat Britain, cjti- 
 
'SO 
 
 HOt be denied a reverend clergyman. A majority is nothing 
 iu the eye of the law ; since it is well known that the minority 
 is often on the right side of the question. 
 
 S. In the eccJesiaslical courts, the good presbyterian is 
 known by his inviolable adherence to forms. And this, in the 
 present state of business, is a most difficult affair to manage, 
 and will so remain till legal professorships are instituted. 
 Where the standard prescribes no form, and where no direct 
 order of a higher judicatory can be adduced that will touch 
 the case, I have sometimes seen the strongest indications of a 
 brown study on many countenances. In these distressing ca- 
 ses, some master-spirit always affords relief by recollecting a 
 precedent. 
 
 The ancient advocates of the doctrine of substantial forms, 
 used to say. " If it is important that a thing should be done, it 
 is equally so, that it should be d(.ne in some manner— that it 
 should have some form." Is there not reason in that argument ? 
 Can a hat exist without the form of a haf ? Forms are as essen- 
 tial as things, antl I suspect that the doctrine of substantial forms 
 will soon be revived. Why should we spurn and disparage the 
 old philosophers, and extol and revere the old divines? It is 
 absurd, and there is, no doubt, as much merit, in certain res- 
 pects, in the one class as the other. 
 
 Such glorious displays of invincible, inviolable attachment to 
 forms as I have seen ! Reader, it would do jour heart good, to 
 see the like ; it would, I aver, exalt your opiuion of human na- 
 ture. The principle of uniformity is one of the grandest of all 
 nature's harmonies. When a thing is once done, it should a/- 
 ways be done in the same manner, and then people may know- 
 how to do it. No possible improvement can countervail the 
 beauty and uniformity of sameness. The man that sticks to 
 this principle, in the judicatories of the church, cannot but rise 
 to greatness; and I, in fact, know some men wlio are toiling 
 and climbing to the high and distant eminence of the double D, 
 by dint of nothing else. Men, whose minds are naturally dull 
 flat, insipid, and inelastic as a piece of slate, by constantly and 
 strenuously pressing formality of proceeding, become, at length, 
 highly distinguished, in the spiritual court :— Moderator of a Sy- 
 
31 
 
 Bod — Moderatorof the General Assembly — Doctor — Professoi; 
 — any thing — every thing — 
 
 •* His countenance like 
 The morning star, that guides the starry flock, 
 Allur'tl them, and drew after him a third 
 Part of heaven's host." 
 
 Nothing makes a man appear so great, so reverend, so wise. 
 He becomes, at once, a sacred diplomatist — a he-goat of the 
 flock ; though these terms may not seem to agree. He is skil- 
 ful ; he is ready ; he is everywhere the^ac totum. " Quod di- 
 cendam — dicit— faciendum— Jucit.^^ Common sense, wben set 
 in competition toj'orm, appears fooJiahness ; reason no better 
 than madness, and all the rules of expediency, like David's ser- 
 vants, under the shears of Hanun, king of Moab glad to keep 
 out of court till Uvir beards are grown, or, at any rate, till they 
 can get longer garments. 
 
 4. The last thing I shall mention is the wonderful faculty of 
 some great leaders to vindicate all their doctrines, all their opi- 
 nions, all the rules, proceedings, forms, decisions, and decrees 
 of ecclesiastical courts< by their standard, consisting of a few 
 duodecimo pages ; and this is done with perfect promptitude 
 and couvincing perspicuity. There must be a ductility in the 
 standard which surpasses all examide. I do not say that every 
 man, or even every man of talents can do this : it is the rare fe- 
 licity of a few men whose genius must be as plastic as the law 
 book itself. A small piece of gold, says Lewenhoerk, will gild a 
 wire that will reach round the globe ; but these moral ductilities 
 seem, for aught I can perceive, to be absolutely infinite. But to 
 arrive at this happy talent, the ecclesiastical civilian must explore 
 the standard with the eyes of Archimedes, many times, before 
 he shall be able to pronounce the joyful "Eu?icrxu, Eujicrx».'» 
 
 Before I close on this article, I would barely suggest, whe- 
 ther it would not be better to have the bible used in a more re- 
 stricted manner. It is an exceedingly sacred book, and very 
 liable to [s -version. If every man be allowed to read it for 
 bimseif, aiid be bis own expositor, there will certainly be a di- 
 versity of . luoions both in doctrine and discipline; and many 
 people will be continually differing from the standard. All ex- 
 
32 
 
 perlence deiuouatrales (his fact, that where people make a free 
 use of the bible, wilhoat a livins oracle at hand, though duuht* 
 les3 a very phin book, they will differ concerning; its import. 
 Perhaps, indeed, this diifereace was first set on foot by some of 
 those living oracles, in earlier limes, when liwog and breathing 
 oracles were not as pure and honest as they are now, or, at 
 least, did not understand fiie bible as well as they do now, when 
 they have no motive to mislead the minds of mankind. 
 
 The question, however, is, w hether it would not be better to 
 put the standard into the hands of the people, which is a con- 
 cise and clear statement of the great points of doctrine and dis- 
 cipline, and let it be the business of their teachers to show them 
 its exact congruity to the sacred scriptures ; for so sure as they 
 set themselves about that business, they will ofteu make very 
 wild work of it. 
 
 I have been put into this train of thoughts by several indica- 
 tions which appear to look that way. I have, in the first place, 
 noticed, and especially since the science of ecclesiastical juris- 
 prudence has made such progress, that the great leaders in that 
 career never make any reference to the word of God m our ec- 
 clesiastical courts ; they appeal directly to the standard as the 
 grand and only law book, or to the paramount authority of pre- 
 cedents founded on that standard. There are, indeed, some 
 blunt, bungling, and old-fashioned men, who will sometimes 
 quote the scriptures, and urge a passage from the bible, in some 
 disputable case or question. But they are generally laughed at, 
 or frovvi:!cd upon, as totally wauling all skill and sense of pro- 
 priety ; or, perhaps, arc pitied for their ignorance, ill-timed ob- 
 servations, and rawness in such matters.* 
 
 In a few rare instances, I have known some of these uncourt- 
 ly blunderers to insinnate, (hat a certain passage in scripture ra- 
 ther militated against the standard, and in that case they never 
 failed to draw down upon themselves heavy ccusures, and strong 
 indignation. 
 
 * At a late meeting of the Young Men's Missionary Society, during tlie 
 frial of VIr, C — . a motion was made ts exclude scripture proofs, «s improper. 
 
38 
 
 In the next place, I have observed, that these true and 
 thorough ecclesiastical lawyers do not promote the reading and 
 discussion of the scriptures among their people. Such an indi- 
 naiion appearing among their people would excite alarm and 
 surprise. a» I have before remarked, and would not fail to meet 
 with 9; rious opposition. I do not hesitate to declare, ihat if 
 such a propensity should manifest itself in any of the congre'ia- 
 lions of these triangular preachers, in this city, it would not fail 
 to excite great alarm, and would immediately be suppressed 
 and put down. " What," they would say, "these people are 
 about to become wiser than their teachers !" They eadeav»)ur, 
 indeed, to get their people togetlier to pray and sing psalms. 
 
 but not for discussions I And I call upon the people 
 
 ©f this city to witness, that no meetings or associations for 
 rational inquiry into religious subjects, grounded on the scrip- 
 tures, is ever set on foot or encouraged hert..* 
 
 It would make people speculative — would result in disputes, 
 metaphysics — perhaps divisions and heresies. They had better 
 let the bible alone, and leave it for their great masters to ex- 
 plain to them that awfully mysterious book, in such time, place, 
 and manner, as they please. 
 
 Dr. M'Leod remarks, (Sermon 6, p, 232.) that in well-re- 
 gulated churches, where piety is cultivated by the pure preach- 
 ing of evangelical truth, the ordinary means of growth are the 
 noiseless conversion of the children of Zion, that is, m their in- 
 fancy. This seems to be a grand iliscovi ry, but, at the same time 
 implies a concession, that the world has never yet seen a well- 
 regulated church. The plan of regulations the Doctor has in 
 mind I presume would complete the good presbyterian, and be a 
 great benefit to the world. The Doctor informs us (p. 23 ■) " that 
 the promise of God 5ecMrfis the salvation of the ofEspring of be- 
 lievers dying in infancy." If this be true, on account of the bad 
 regulation of churches, it would seem to be the duty of all 
 
 * Bible Classes are formed, among the young people in several congrega- 
 tions m this city, and their object is highly laudable, but essentially differeat 
 from the one above mentioned, m these classes, the priest is tie oracle ; and 
 tlie knowledge which comes over, is from an alembic, whicli gives every 
 thing the exact colour and spirit of his opinion. There is nothing like free 
 discussion intended, or accomplished. 
 
 5 
 
34 
 
 Christians to pray tbat God would take away all their children 
 in infancy ; since, according to the best light we can get, grow- 
 ing up to manhood, they more than half of them live and di9 
 in impenitence, and are lost. There seems, however, to be some 
 difficulty in this opinion, but here is no place for argumentation ; 
 and the great authority of the Doctor seems to forbid it, if there 
 were. Yet, I must observe, holding this great man to his own 
 premises, if such be the condition of all the infant children of 
 believers, that dying in infancy, they would be all saved, it mUst 
 be because Christ has made atonement for all their sins, which 
 *' atonemf nt," the Doctor pays, " excludes subsequent punish- 
 inent, and implies reconciliation :" but, such being their condition 
 in infancy, I trust it will continue to be their condition, though 
 they should attain to the years of Methusaleh. On the contra- 
 ry, if the child of a believer reaches seventy years, and then 
 dies a sinner, it must be, on the Doctor's plan, because Christ 
 never died for him, and had he died in infancy, he could not 
 have been saved. 
 
 But presently the Doctor begins to talk about his children re- 
 Ject'ng God's promise of eternal salvation, and says, "they will 
 be saved, unless they reject the promise of eternal life." I only 
 desire to caution him to take care what he says ; for does he 
 mean to say, that a promise of eternal life is made to any one 
 for whom Christ did not die ? or, when made to one for whom 
 Christ did die, is it ever finally rejected ? He is over his line. 
 For myself, I read that the promises of God in Christ, are not 
 yea and nay, but yea and amen. This, however, by the by. 
 
 But I am struck with the beauty and harmony of a system. 
 We first see the doctrines of the everlasting gospel preached 
 to the church and to the world, to people of all classes, with- 
 out giving offence. Even (he qfflmce of the cross has ceased^ 
 and the gospel no longer sends a sword on earth, but peace. 
 Like a gentle anodyne, it creates peace and quiet in every bo- 
 som, and soothes every conscience. In the next place, eccle- 
 siastical polity is becoming a grand science, opening scenes well 
 calculated to furbish dormant talents, enkindle glorious ambi- 
 tion, and bring the church on high ground. In the third place, 
 a smoother road to conversion is discovered. The terrible 
 noise made about religious revivals in this country is all mis- 
 
35 
 
 take, or, more properly, a delusion. People generally become 
 religious in infancy. " This mode of bringing home to the great 
 Shepherd the lambs of his fold, seems to be more con enial with 
 the order of his kingdom, than the sudden in cur. sions which are made 
 into the territory of the god of this world in order to pluck tJie prey 
 from the mighty, and bring a stranger to the commonwealth of Israel, 
 The mode of conversion allutled to, in the latter case, is indeed 
 more remarkable ; but this fact indicates that it is somewhat jsx- 
 Traordin 4Rir." 
 
 If, then, in the numerous revivals called religious, since the 
 days of the Reformation, in all parts of Christendom, but now 
 and then an incursion has been made into the kingdom of the god 
 of this world, and if a stranger, plucked with noise and bustle from 
 the mighty, has been an extraordinary case, and not congenial to 
 the order of Christ's kingdom, let preachers become a little more 
 bland and soothing to pride and hypocrisy ; let the church be- 
 come a lilVe better regulated, and rise to more show and splen- 
 dor, and these noisy awakenings will cease to trouble and con- 
 found her spiritual lords ; the church will soon be filled up with 
 Doiseless conversions — indeed, will rise in self-importance and 
 self-deception, till her bloated and rotten fabric, together with 
 her infatuated builders, shall sink together in one common 
 ruin. INVESTIGATOR. 
 
 No. III. 
 
 In introducing a letter of the celebrated Gilbert Ten- 
 nant, to his brother, William Tennant, during his min- 
 istry in Philadelphia, I trust I shall confer a pleasure upon 
 every evangelical reader; as it furnishes a noble specimen 
 of the vigorous conceptions, and ardent zeal, of a great 
 and pious mind. 
 
 I have only to beg, that the tame and temporising spirits 
 of the present day would read it, and see the immense distance 
 they stand from the temper and feelings of the fathers of our 
 church. They may, also, if they please, perceive no less dif- 
 ference in their views of the character of God, as well as 
 the nature and quality of that aftection wliich creatures owe 
 him. INVESTIGATOR. 
 
36r 
 
 TO THE INVESTIGAT©n. 
 
 If you can make any use of this extract, it is at your service. 
 The iMiblication is in my possession. In a letter to hi? bro- 
 ther Williaui, after mt utioiiing certain measures, and modes of 
 proceedirg, which appeared to him the effects of carnal policy, 
 and ( oldness or cowardice in liie cause of religion, Mr, T says, 
 '• O, my dear brother, the prudence of hypocrites, and many of 
 the pious of this generation, though it be highly esteemed 
 auMtng men, is an abomination in the sight of God ; a mere 
 mjstery of selfish, sneaking, cowardly iniquity. They get by 
 this a good name amongst the wicked, which they call charao 
 ter. But what good do they with it? And whai comfort have 
 they in it ? Foi- my |)ar{. I look on a character so got, and so 
 kept, to be a scandal, and a reproach. Away with the abomi- 
 nation oi carnal cunning! Let us come out for God, as flames 
 of fire, and say, with gallant Luther, madness is better than 
 mildness in the cause of God ! Let us imitate dear and nobie 
 Zuinsjlius, who, when m()rtally wounded in the field of battle, 
 triumphed over his bloody papal enemies, yea, and over 
 death itself, in these ever memorable strains of heroism, 
 Quidni hoc infortunie ? O primitive simplicity, and divine for- 
 titude, whither are ye fled ? Surely all flesh have corrupted 
 their way, and there is none upright among men ! Surely, sure- 
 ly, there is no reason to be scared at the precious cross of our 
 dear and venerable Lord Jesus, or to contrive or come into 
 soft methods to please the ungodly, and screen us from the ut- 
 most weight of suffering that men or devils can inflict. (>, it is 
 honorable it is ravishing, to suflf'er for our dearest Lord! It is a 
 small expression of grateful love to our great and good masteri 
 in return ior his unmerited, immense, condescending love fo 
 us ; and, therefore, if God so please, let good and bad, men and 
 devils, roar and rage, yea, let the whole creation come against 
 us, with all its fury and force, strip us of every thing naturally 
 dear to mankind, curse us, condemn us, tear us to pieces, or 
 grind us ti^ powder, it is sweet, it is lovelj', it is precious. All 
 Kinds of suffering, and that in the highest degree that CFeir were 
 
37 
 
 or can be inflictec! by the sons of men, are welcome, dear Lord 
 Jesus Ciirist, I'or tiiee, and infinitely too little in return for thy 
 lov p. 'I'he testimony of our consciences, enlightened by the 
 H iy Ghost, that 'in simplicity and godly sincerity^ not with 
 fleshly wisdom, but by the grace of God, we have had our eon- 
 Tersation in the world,' is infinitely better and sweeter than the 
 
 applause of the whole earth. " NuUdpallescere culpa inunus.''* 
 
 The apostles did more good to mankind, under the greatest 
 reproach and contempt, than tve do, with alt our Jine charncler. 
 For our ^ood name, among the ungodly and fleshly Christians 
 of this adulterous generation, gotten by carnal compliances, is 
 to our reproach. For if we did what we should, ami as we 
 
 should, they would fall upon us and beat us for God's sake. 
 
 "But [ must stop my pen, which, from the fulness of my heart, 
 would write a volume instead of a letter, and return to observe, 
 that the aforesaid heavenly light opened to my view the Di- 
 vine perfections, both natural and moral, especially the latter, 
 arr-yed with such superior, transcendent, and inexpres- 
 sible charms, as made all the beauty of men and angels, com- 
 pared therewith, to appear as darkness and deformity. This 
 view of the Divine Excellence, (the grand source and origin of 
 being and good,) considered in the Deity himself, and as ex- 
 pressed in the works of creation, providence, and redemption, 
 inspired my soul with admiration, reverence, humility, and 
 love ; and, by its magnetic force, attracted ardent aspirations 
 of heart after God, as my chief good, last end, centre, and pat- 
 tern. I was inclined to revere Jehovah, and to love him supreme- 
 ly, merely because of his orvn intrifisic amiableness, punly, and 
 worth, without any regard to myself at all. I could not but love 
 him if he had never loved me, or shown me any kindness, nor ever 
 mould in tiine to come. In the mean while, I felt the 
 g ntle violence of innumerable, invaluable, and unmer- 
 ited benefits shed on me in a rich and unwearied profu- 
 sion, together with personal engagements, and immortal hopes, 
 su{)eradded to the former disinterested aitractives. All those 
 in conjunction fired my soul, and stiuck every spring of mo- 
 tio ' hen wa- inclined afresh to turn my back on all crea- 
 tnres, and embrace the fountain and origin of beauty and bles- 
 
38 
 
 sedness, in whom I clearly saw that complete happiness was to 
 bt^ fouati amidst ail the vicissitudes and miseries of tbe present 
 life, and in him alone ; so that if there was no future state of 
 existence at all, no future recompense, sincere piety is its own 
 reward ; yea, such a one as all the hoirours, pleasures, and 
 emoluments, of this world, amassed in the possession of one 
 man cannot balance or parallel ; its sweets are so sublime, ra- 
 ratiooal, satisfactory, and noble.'* 
 
 No. IV. 
 
 THOUGHTS ON THEOLOGICAL TRUTH. 
 
 While in the following cursory reflections on Truth, it has 
 not been my endeavour to follow the particular outline of any 
 creed or confession of faith, so neither have I taken any great 
 care, by a laboured style and philosophical accuracy of lan- 
 guajie, to shun the cavils of the captious, the ignorant, the base, 
 and the malicious which are too little the objects of my regard 
 to induce much labour or caution. 
 
 With sincerity of heart I have expressed my opinions on these 
 important subjects, aware that they are amenable to a higher 
 judgment than that of man. 
 
 I. The book of Revelation and the works of Nature are the 
 fountains of knowledge ; from one or the other of these, we 
 derive whatever we know of God, or of his creatures. We are 
 made susceptible of knowledge ; can perceive, compare, and 
 Judge ; which may be termed exercises of reason. 
 
 But, in our present state, we are not always able to refer 
 every point of knowledge to its proper fountain. With a fa- 
 culty to perceive, man is placed in the midst of a universe of 
 beings, whose natures, actions, designs, and characters, it is de- 
 sirable for him to know; but as comparatively few of these 
 objects can come under the inspection of his reason or senses, 
 lie depends on information or testimony, and this is termed ?e- 
 ncaled or nahtral, as it comes originally from God or creatures. 
 
39 
 
 f I. We are equally ignorant of the nature or essence of mat' 
 ter and mind. We perceive that they differ in all their koown 
 properties; that one is capable of thought, memorj, love, ha- 
 tred, &.C., that the other is iQcogitative,and inactive. VVethenc* 
 conclude, that they are entirely diffi^rent in their nature, and 
 the word of God establishes that distinction. But, as we judge 
 of mind or spiritual beings through the medium of material and 
 sensitive organs, vve are liable to err in our opinions or concep- 
 tions of them. It was the remark of au ancient philosopher, 
 that matter is the shadow of spirit. We know enough, how- 
 ever, of both, to establish the superior importance and excel- 
 lence of spiritual natures. 
 
 HI. " God is an object the most grand and awful that ever 
 engaged the atteutionof creatures." It is impossible to know 
 how far mankind would have discovered his being and perfec- 
 tions by the light of nature, without the aid of special revela- 
 tion. But having revealed himself, and made his character and 
 attributes known, in a special way, the light of nature and the 
 reason of the human mind do not contradict, but, in many in- 
 stances, confirm that revelation. 
 
 Neither is the idea of a special revelation of God to creatures, 
 nor are any of the t.-uths revealed, repugnant to the dictates of 
 reason, though some of them are beyond its comprehension. 
 Indeed, reason is on the side of revelation, not only in the ag- 
 gregate, but in the df^tail of its doctrines. The Athiest, who 
 shall deny the existence of God, will find his own reason far 
 more embarrassed than the Chiictian who believes io revelation. 
 The order, harmony, beauty, and magnificence of the universe, 
 favours the idea wiiich God has reveakd of bis being and attri- 
 butes. Safely might we rest the merits of the grand question 
 on the comparative reasonableness of the two propositions, viz. 
 whether the material un«verse is uncreated and eternal, or whe- 
 ther created and go"'erped by God, and that Gotl is eternal ? 
 
 The universe, as far as we can discover, is what it raiijht be 
 expected to be, under the direction of such a being as Gad has 
 revealed himself to b;' ; but ii ^vhaf could not possibly be, 
 without the exertion '>f infinite power, wisdom, atiti goodness, 
 iij one design, and by one being. 
 
40 
 
 There is but one God. The supposition of two Gods that 
 were omnipotent, would be absurd. If thi ir povvtr were ^'quul, 
 they might so effectually counteract each other, that nuthing 
 could be accomplished, and neither w^ould be omn potent : but 
 were their power unequal, the weaker surely could not be om- 
 nipottnt. With such absurdities the heathen polytheism was 
 encumbered. The surrounding starry heavens, the mighty sys- 
 tem of planets revolvins round the sun. and turning on their 
 axes to receive his beams, all in one direction, anti nearly in one 
 great plane, the clianging seasons on this globe, the animal and 
 Tegetable kingdoms, the wonderful meclianism of man, the 
 whole system of nature, in short, involving systems within sys- 
 tems, with most exquisite connexion, and regular and endless 
 gradations, all manifest unity of design, and perfection of wis- 
 dom — all favour the idea that there is but one God, one scheme 
 of providence. 
 
 God is a spirit, and omnipresent ; but were be a material be- 
 ing, either the material worlds must be a part of God, or else 
 two bodies can occupy the same place, or else he could not be 
 omnipresent. Our own reason and experience approve the doc- 
 trine of God's spirituality. We perceive that matter is incapa- 
 ble of perception, thought, or action. When at rest it vvill never 
 move, but by force ab extra; when in motion, it will never stop 
 till it meets resistance. Matter is a being perfectly passive ; 
 hence, vis incrticB, or power of inactivity, as it is called, is 
 among its primary qualities. All the phenomena of nature 
 confirm this idea. Spirit, or mind, which I here use as synony- 
 mous, is the only agent in the universe. I shall here take no 
 notice of the idle controversy sometimes raised, " How, or whe* 
 ther a spirit can move a material substance ?" When we per- 
 ceive the greatest portions of matter moving in a manner which 
 indicate and demonstrate the most perfect wisdom and unlimit- 
 ed power, we cannot doubt that they are moved by mind. In- 
 deed, when we perceive all creation through her extensive de- 
 partments, from the revolution of worlds, to the ^[rowing of 
 a spire of grass, or the circulation of the fluids of an insect, 
 and in all these infinitely varied and complicated movements, 
 
4i 
 
 evincing a uniform and astonishing adaptation of means to ends, 
 we cannot doubt that there is a God, that he is a Spirit, omni- 
 potent and omnipresent. 
 
 The object of these remarks is not to prove the being and 
 perfections of God, but to show that vvliat God has revealed 
 of Himself is not repugnant and revolting to our reason, 
 
 God is eternal. We are able to perceive that something 
 must have existed from eternity. It may perhaps not be very 
 easy to show why something could not spring up from nothing, 
 and without any cause. Yet we certainly know that it could 
 not ; and there is not a more evident truth, than that if there 
 had ever been a time when nothing existed, that nothing would 
 ever have existed. Hence, the world of beings, we perceive, 
 is full proof that some being must have been from eternity. 
 I shall not enter into arguments. Every reader knows in 
 what way the hypothesis of an eternal series of dependent 
 causes is confuted ; and every reflecting mind will perceive that 
 such a hypothesis explodes itself. For if you foegin at the fur- 
 ther end of the chain, if I may so say, and come this way, every 
 successive link in the whole chain must be at an infinite distance 
 from us : but if you begin at Ihisend, and run hack, then every 
 successive link in the whole chain must be at an assignable 
 distance from us, of course, not infinite. Coming this way, 
 from the further end, they must be all infinitely distant from us^ 
 — going the other way, from this end, they must be ail at a 
 measurable distance. In a continuous chain, part of the links 
 cannot be at a finite, and the other part at an infinite distance ; 
 for if so, what would be the distance of the middlemost ? 
 
 It is sufficiently clear to human reason, that the eternal, 
 spiritual, omnipotent, omnipresent God, revealed in the scrip- 
 tures, must have existed from eteruitj^; and have been the 
 creator, upholder, and governor of all worlds, and all creatures. 
 " The Christian who believes this must have far less credulity, 
 and do less violence to his reason," says one, " than the Atheist 
 v.ho denies it." Our strongest conceptions of infinity are doubt- 
 less attended with much weakness and obscurity. We arrive 
 at them by considering a number growing without end, or by 
 reflecting on boundless expansion. 
 
 6 
 
4-2 
 
 (jrod has infinite knowledge. Perhaps our best conceptioa 
 of this is derived from tiie con^ideration, that He knows every 
 thing which can be known, or is the proper subject of know- 
 ledge. But of the mode or manner of his perception of know- 
 ledge, we can form no conception. It comprehends the past, 
 the present, and the future : and with Him there can be neither 
 lorgetfulness, recollection, nor discovery of truth, which must 
 include the idea of immutability. It is probable that we derive 
 our notion of time, or duration, from the succession of our 
 ideas: — and of space, from our having but one point of per- 
 ception. Whether, therefore, time and space, as they appear 
 to us, are not mere relations, which have no foundation but 
 in our feeble and limited faculties, there is just reason to doubt. 
 If God perceive with equal and invariable clearness in every 
 point in universal space, and if with him there be no succession 
 of ideas, " no variableness nor shadow of turninji," his views 
 of wliat we call space and duration will be different from ours. 
 
 I hope this hypothetical manner of speaking of (hat glorious 
 Being will not be supposed to indicate feelings of irreverence. 
 Alas ! " He knows we are but dust." However perfect know- 
 ledge might change our views of space and duration, one thing 
 is certain, creatures do exist, and events do take place. It is 
 certain the sun is in one place, and the moon in another; and 
 it is equally certain, that the creation was at one time, and the 
 day of judgment will be at another. 
 
 God is holy. By this, in jjeneral, is intended his moral excel- 
 lence, goodness, and purity of character. In him is infinite wis- 
 dom, justice, goodness, amiableness of character. God is love. 
 In his work of creation, providence, and redejnption, he has 
 evinced this character; and will continue so to do, to ail 
 eternity. 
 
 Those qualities or perfections of the Divine Bemg, which 
 are proper and necessary to his nature and character, are called 
 attributes ; such as, eternity, self-existence, spirituality, omni- 
 potence, omniscience, omnipresence, immutability — which not 
 being supposed to depend on the divine will, are called natural 
 attributes. But on the contrary, holiness, justice, goodness, 
 truth, love, and mercy, as they may be said to depend on (he 
 
45 
 
 rtivine tvUl, are (lenominated moral attributes. It is an infelicity 
 in our language, that those terms by wliich we express the 
 moral attributes of God are not definite with regard to each 
 other. Thus, holiness and goodness are terms of wide import, 
 and go more or less into the nature of every moral excellence: 
 mercy is rather an act than an attribute ; and truth, which is a 
 term generally used in reference to language, is but the corres- 
 pondence of a declaration with a fact ; or, as Dr. Watts observes, 
 ** the proper joining or disjoining of signs." 
 
 IV. " And God said, Let us make man in our image, after 
 our likeness." — As this must have allusion to the soul of man, 
 and not his body, we are authorized to l)elieve that man, as a 
 moral and intellectual being, exhibits some likeness of his Cre^ 
 ator, and that, farther than what consists merely in holiness : in 
 short, that God is an icfiaitely great intelligent being, having 
 an understanding and will, and every thing necessary to consti- 
 tute an almighty, infinitely wise, and holy moral agent. God 
 has knowledge ; for the scripture declares; that " he is a God of 
 knowledge, and by him actions are weighed." He has love ; 
 *' For the Lord loveth the righteous." He has approbation 
 and aversion ; " For Jacob have 1 loved, but Esau have I hated." 
 He has anger; for " He is angry with the wicked every day." 
 We are not to understand, however, that he is agitated with 
 the sudden, vain, and fleeting passions of men. " His ways are 
 above our ways." 
 
 I leave it for the reader to judge for himself, whether the 
 anion of the divine and human natures in Christ favours the 
 idea of an intellectual and moral similarity, or resemblance, 
 between God and man, considered as a holy creature. 
 
 V. Motive, means, and end, are, in our idea, inseparable from 
 the conduct of an intelligent agent. There are certain consi- 
 derations which must induce us to undertake a work ; we use 
 a course of tneans for its accomplishment; we have an end in 
 view : commonly, indeed, we have several ends or {)urposes 
 to answer, but always a chief end. And it may be observed, 
 that every single act has its motive and end, as well as the 
 aggregate of tne labour employed in an undertaking. And in 
 the building of a tower or paUtce, the owner, the principal 
 
4i 
 
 builder or engineer, and the common labourer, may alF havie 
 different motives and ends; though at last all of them may 
 center in one great ultimate end. 
 
 It is frequently, and, perhaps, not improperly said, that God 
 is self-moved, in his great work. The meaning of this must be, 
 that his own infinite nature and perfections furnish him with the 
 motives of his conduct. Since the motive to do a work must be 
 prior to the consideration of that work, as done, the motives of 
 Ihe Creator must have arisen from something prior to the creation 
 itself. Before a thing exists, the question to be cousidered is, 
 whether it had better exist or not ; in agitating which question, 
 the labour or expense of rearing and supporting it are to be 
 balanced against the benefits which will accrue from it, when 
 made. Whichever wny this question may be decided, it will 
 certainly turn and be determined in view of interests and mo- 
 tives extrinsical to the thing in question. When infinite wis- 
 dom agitated the question, whether the universe of worlds and 
 jm. creatures should exist, and perceived an end to be answered by 
 it worthy of God, infinite goodness prompted to the exertion 
 of that power by which creation arose into being. Whence it 
 has been thought proper to say, that God, moved by his good- 
 ness, created the world for his own glory. Perfect wisdom can 
 give being to nothing, but in view of its final cause, or end, 
 which always looks at something beyond the thing itself. 
 Wherefore, the final cause, or ultimate end of all creatures, 
 comprising God's whole kingdom, must regard something be- 
 yond that kingdom, or distinct from it — something wortliy of 
 the infinite Jehovah ; and that must be his own honour and 
 glory, 
 
 VI. Every intelligent agent acts with design. Whatever God 
 does, every exertion of his agency, from the creation of crea- 
 tures to all eternity, he designed or decreed from all eternity, 
 This is evident from the consideration of his knowledge and 
 immutability. He has perfect, unchangeable knowledge of al! 
 things past, present, and to come. All events are decreed, 
 '* The decrees of God are his eternal purpose — whereby, for 
 his own glory, he hath foreordained whatsoever comes to pass." 
 Every eveat, connected with his agency, or the subject of bi« 
 
43 
 
 foreknowledge, must, of necessity, be decreed. To say nothing 
 of Divine agency in events, God's foreknowledge is perfect and 
 infallible. He knows how every event will be, before, as well 
 as after its occurrence. This idea is necessary to the support 
 of his omniscience. 
 
 Tiie supposition of God's decrees can, in no degree, endan- 
 ger the freedom or privileges of his creatures. !f God can cre- 
 ate and govern in the best manner, he can decree so to do. Let 
 it be supposed that a being of infinite power, wisdom, and 
 goodness, had created, and was employed in governing, a world 
 of creatures without any previous decree. Superadding the idea, 
 that he had determined to do what is doing, from eternity, in 
 that world, would neither add to, nor take from, the condition 
 of those creatures. What God does, in the universe, is the dic- 
 tate of infinite wisdom ; his decree to do it is but the predeter- 
 mination of that same wisdom, which eternally pre-existed his 
 acts. 
 
 The free actions of creatures are as properly the subjects of 
 a decree, as the falling a tree, or the rising of the sun. This 
 is established by the express testimony of Scripture. Indeed, 
 the decrees of God principally relate to the moral conduct of 
 creatures. I need only say, that innumerable events are de- 
 clared in the word of God, as decreed, which immediately 
 and wholly concern the free actions of creatures. If God de- 
 creed that the city of London should this day be what it is, 
 then he decreed all the steps and causes of its progress to its 
 present state. If he decreed the crucifixion of Christ, then he 
 decreed how, by whom, and for what cause it should be done. 
 
 The decrees of God in no degree interfere with the freedom 
 and accountability of creatures. Hence, one moral action is as 
 much the subject of a decree as another. 
 
 The distinction set up, between foreknowledge and de- 
 crees, is useless and groundless, as relates to this subject 5 
 the foreknowledge of God is infallible. But that infal- 
 libility must arise from the certainty of the thing fore- 
 known. Now, if a future event is certain, as to the doc- 
 trine of liberty, contingency, &c. it may as well be render- 
 ed certain bv a Divine decree, as by any other influence or 
 
46 
 
 connexiou. But wl.al cerlainty can any future event have but by 
 its connexion with his <leterniination who " worketh all thin-s 
 after the counsels of his own will ?'» '^ 
 
 The decrees of God are infinitely just, wise, and good. 
 Therefore it is that they are carried perfectly info effect 
 Were the case suppnsable, or possible, which it is not, that it 
 should now be discovered by the great Ruler, that something 
 he had decreed had better not take place, a change would 
 doubtless be made, notwithstanding the decree, and that thin.' 
 omitted. Th^ same, however, which infinite Wisdom from all 
 eternity saw best, it now sees best. Let it be our lan^uao-e 
 *' Thy will be done." " *= ' 
 
 Vfl. The decrees of God are his previous determination to 
 
 do what he has done, and will do, and may be considered as 
 
 he pan of creation, providence, and redemption, formed in 
 
 the eternal and unchanging councils of God. Ol these 1 shall 
 
 bneii^ speak. 
 
 CREATION. 
 
 Forourk„o,vl.rtseoril,ewor.K„fcreali™ we depend „l,oI. 
 ly on specal revelation ; and the idea tl,at matter in a chaotic 
 or organic stale, long pre-existe,! the creation, seems to be 
 without foundation in the wor,l of God. If any general infer- 
 ences can be dr,™ fro.n the discoveries of seolo.i.ts. ,hey 
 favour .he Mosaic accou,,. of the creation; in >vhich it is de- 
 clared that Gou cre.te.l the universe of .vorlds, and angels, and 
 men, and a.imals. The time of the creation of an Js i, not 
 specfied in the Mosaic history. Some e.ninen. wriLrs, bZ 
 ever, h,„ c that tl.ey were created but a little before th crel 
 ..on of Adam. But to »e.,t seems probable, that they must 
 have ,ema,„ed awhile in their state of innocence and glory, „„r 
 .3 .t certain or probable that their seduHion of our first pa ents 
 
 her fall. The accouitt given of them, lavours the supposition 
 •hat they had great knowledge and experience ,• norTIhre 
 any certain evidence that they had „„t existed for what we 
 
 mtSht term liousands of years or ages before the creation of 
 lijan. 
 
47 
 
 Man and angels were created moral sgent?, pure and holy,, 
 but not immulable A moral agent is a being cajjabie ifvoluri' 
 iary action. A volunlary action is what I mean by a volition, 
 and by a volition 1 mean an act of will. No higher coneeplir)n 
 of freedom of will can be formed than what a man may derive 
 from his own experience, when two objects of choice are sct 
 before him. Tiiese rnay be termed his motives ; and that ob- 
 ject, which, all things considered, presents the greatest good, 
 may be called the ruling motive, and towards that he will in- 
 cline. Hence, it is said by some, that the nil. will follow tiie 
 strongest motive ; by others, that it always is as the greatest 
 apparent or present good. 
 
 It is objected, that the will thus governed by motives, cannot 
 be free. Whoever will point out a constitution of wiil, embra- 
 cing more freedom, and better to answer tiie purpose of a ra- 
 tional being, will deserve the thanks of mankind. No one, I 
 trust, will pretend that the will can act without any motive ; 
 there then remains but one of two grounds to be taken. The 
 will must follow either the stronger or weaker motive. A piece 
 of gold and of lead are laid before a man ; if he can contrive to 
 make himself prefer the lead to the gold, he must have an ex- 
 traordinary (iegree of freedom, and moral power. 
 
 The reader who would gain light and information on this sub- 
 ject, naay consult "Edwards ou the Will," a work whici) did 
 honour not only io Edwards himself, but to the country in 
 which he v%^as born — a work which cannot be answered, nor at- 
 tentively read without conviction. 
 
 VIII. No reason can be ottered against tiie belief that God 
 formed the universe of creatures out of nothing; that is, that 
 they were not made out of any pre-existiiig material. Nor is 
 there any foundation in Scripture for believing that intelligent 
 creatures are rays, emanations, or parts, of the Deity. 
 
 PROVIDENCE. 
 
 IX. By the providence of God, we are to understand his power, 
 justice, goodness, and mercy, exerted in preserving and govern- 
 ing bis creatures. His providence is infinitely wise, all-power- 
 
49 
 
 ful, constant, uuirersa!, and eternal. It is believed by some, that 
 a power equal to that exerted in creating, h constantly necessa- 
 ry for the preservation of whatever is created ; of course, that 
 preservation is a kind of constant creation. Our knowledge, in- 
 deed, is not sufficient to deter/nine whether matter or spirit, 
 when once brought into being, would continue by virtue of its 
 own inherent nature and powers, or whether its annihilation 
 Would be the immediate consequence of an entire withdraw- 
 ment of preserving power. But as we are taught in the scrip- 
 tures, that every thing in the universe, of beauty, order, con- 
 sistency, or happiness ; that all life, both natural and spiritual, 
 depends on the preservins; power of God, we are, perhaps, justi- 
 fied in the conclusion, that created existence itself depends for 
 its continuance on preserving power and goodness. 
 
 Divine providence is not only general and universal, but par- 
 ticular and constant — extending not only to angels, hut to in- 
 sects — not only to systems of worlds, but to every particle of 
 matter. When we consider that the omnipotent Gotl is ev-^j 
 where present, and can exert his power, in all places, w> /e 
 TcHson to believe that so great a scheme of providence is ao 
 burden to him ; and can never, in one instance, for a moment, 
 fail in its operation, whether it be to uphold, to prosper, to re- 
 ward, or punish. 
 
 The operation, with such amazing uniformity, of the un- 
 jjearchable powers and principles of nature, the great laws of 
 the vegetable and animal kingdoms, the regularity and gran- 
 deur of the heavenly motions, all evince the presence and en- 
 ergies of a universal providence. With equal clearness may 
 the same be discerned in the rise and fall of nations, and, in 
 fact, in the various concerns of human life. 
 
 Still more interesting and amazing would appear the opera- 
 isous of divine providence in sustaining intellectual and spiritual 
 aatures. But those departments lie hidden from human in- 
 spection. The greatest angels that stand around his throne are 
 is dependent on his preserving goodness as the insects of a 
 eiimmer day. The constitution of their powers, and the laws 
 of operation pervading their intellectual and moral faculties, are 
 fois work. 
 
4.9 
 
 REDEMPTION. 
 
 X. Jesus Christ is the great agent in the work of redemption, 
 and is the prominent personage in the New Testament. He is 
 the immediate author and medium, as well as object of special 
 revelation ; yet not witlioufc the manifestation and co-operation 
 of the Father, and of the Holy Ghost. In Jesus Christ the di- 
 vine and human natures are united. In his divine nature lie waa 
 God, the second person in the adorable Trinity, equal with the 
 Father. In his human nature, he was the son of Mary by mi- 
 raculous generation. He lived on earth in a state of humiliation, 
 yielded a perfect obedience to the law of God, and sutTered 
 death on the cross as a propitiation for sin ; he rose from the 
 dead, ascended up on high, and is exalted to be head over all 
 things to the church. He is called the Son of God in refer- 
 ence to his humanity. 
 
 XI. The gospel inculcates the followino; doctrine, or impor- 
 tant articles of truth, viz. there is one God in tiuee persons 
 " the FATHER, the word, and the holy ghost." This mysteri- 
 ous and sublime truth, against which D is s have objected and 
 blasphemed, is above our comprehension, though in no sense 
 repugnant to our reason. It is our duty to confess our ignorance, 
 and humbly to adore God, whom we cannot comprehend. The 
 doctrine of the Trinity implies more than merely three di*j)en- 
 sations, or modes of manifestation^of one person, which amounts 
 to unitarianism : and yet it does not establish the idea of three 
 separate and distinct deities, which would be tritheism. The 
 scripture conveys the idea, that each person of the Trinity holds 
 the whole and entire divine nature and perfections. 
 
 This doctrine rests on broader evidence than the simple tes- 
 timony of scripture itself. It was held by the primitive church, 
 and has been an article of the Christian fdith in all subsequent 
 times. By broader evidence I mean, that it has been approved 
 and tested by the spirit of God, in every ago; by its influence 
 on the prosperity of the church, and in the reformafion of man- 
 kind : in short, by the promotion of holiness among men, than 
 which I know of no greater evidence of the piiiily of gospel 
 doctrine. 
 
 7 
 
69 
 
 XII. Our firat parents were created pure and holy, but they 
 fell from that state, re .elled against God, and became sinful, 
 miserable, and mortal. " And as by one man sin entered into 
 the world, and death by sin, so death hath passed upon all men, 
 for that all have sinned," " The phrase orii^inal sin," says 
 Calvin, "is not found in the scriptures, but was invented by 
 Augustine." Human nature was corrupted, in Adam, and all 
 that we have derived from him, partakes of that corruption. 
 The federal headship of Adam to his posterity, constitutes no 
 relation between them that is inconsistent with that great law 
 of nature, which is universally known, viz. that every creature 
 propaj:ated in a series of generations, shall partake of the na- 
 ture of its progenitors. The guilt of Adam's sin is not impu- 
 ted to his posterity, independently of their own moral conduct, 
 as it would be evidently subversive of all the principles of jus- 
 tice, to condemn a man for a sin, in which he had no will, no 
 consciousness, and which was committed before he existed. 
 
 The imputation of sin and of holinesss are not parallel cases; 
 it is in the nature of benignity and grace to confer favour be- 
 yond merit, but contrary to the nature of justice to inflict puu- 
 ishment beyond desert. 
 
 XIII. Human nature is depraved, but that depravity is of the 
 moral kind, and relates principally to the heart, in which there 
 is no degree of holiness — no true love to God. Of course, moral 
 depravity is properly said to be total. Yet man, in a fallen 
 gtate, is no less a moral agent ; his actions are no less free and 
 accounfable than in a holy state : holiness is as truly required 
 of him. Nor is there any impediment to his performing ])k 
 duty but what lies in a voluntary disinclination to doit. Where- 
 fore, the word of God commands him to break off his sins by 
 yighteousness, and turn to the Lord. 
 
 XIV. Regeneration is a change of heart, wrought by the 
 operation of the Holy Spirit ; and without this change of heart 
 a man cannot be saved; for " except a man be born again, 
 he cannot see the kingdom of God." But as sin does not con- 
 fist in igiior.incc, or error of the understanding, though it may 
 occasion ignorance, by withdrawing the mind from spiritual 
 thinjjs^ so the ne\y birth is not produced by an increase of 
 
51 
 
 Ijnowledge, but is the cause of such increase. Enmity to God 
 constitutes the nature of sin ; for '' sin is a transgression of the 
 Jaw" of God, and love is the fulfilling of the law. Therefore, 
 the great change of heart necessary to all sinners, is from 
 enmity to love. 
 
 XV. The sinner is justified by faith in Christ. Justifying 
 faith is the soul's belief in, and acceptance of, Christ as the Sa- 
 viour. In tiie plan of the gospel, it appears that the pardon of 
 sin is to be obtained by the propitiation, or atonement, made 
 by Jesus Christ. 
 
 The Redeemer in his glory, fulness, and grace, is exhibited 
 in the gospel : the Sun of Righteousness shines in the heavens : 
 bis powers, perfections, and disposition, are made known in a 
 proclamation of grace, that whoever will receive him as a Sa- 
 viour, shall be pardoned, justified, and saved. Under this light, 
 the sinner wants nothing but a heart to love the Saviour, in 
 order to say, with Thomas, " My Lord, and my God." Saving 
 faith is a clear apprehension of Christ in his nalure, characfer, 
 and offices, accompanied with love to Christ. But love to 
 Christ is not caused by faith, or by any intellectual apprehen- 
 sion of Christ. Nothing is holiness but love, and holiness goes 
 into the first exercise of the renewed heart: in fact, a saving 
 change of heart is a change from sin to holiness, from hatred to 
 love. 
 
 That process of mind in any one, which first imbibes a no- 
 tion that Christ died for him, and will save him, on account of 
 which he begins to love Christ, I denominate the operation of 
 selfishness, and is no evidence of saving grace. The love of 
 Christ certainly merits, and will meet with, a return of love 
 from every good or holy heart. But that love, and all such 
 love, is merely gratitude, and goes not into the true nature of 
 holiness. '* If ye love them that love you, what thank have 
 ye ? Do not even sinners love those that love them ?" The 
 love I may feel for any being who does, or will do, me good, 
 on that account, is the love of my own interest ; for had he 
 done me none of that good, he would have received none of 
 that love from me. 
 Holy love 1,3 a principle far above gratitude, The Christi.«<n 
 
62 
 
 certainly feels as much gratitude, as much thankfulness, as any 
 one; but be feels a love far above gratitude. Holy love can 
 embrace enemies as well as friends, where surely there is no 
 gratitude. Holy love is due to God from creatures to whom he 
 never will do good ; even from fallen angels, and from all the 
 wicked. The true and grand reason and motive of supreme 
 love to God, is the infinite loveliness and beauty of his nature 
 and character, which, in various ways, he has manifested to bis 
 Creatures. 
 
 There are two things in religion, which, variously modified, 
 make up its several parts. I mean knowledge and love, 1 here 
 say nothing of divine agency, which is certainly employed in 
 this important matter. As far as mere intellect is concerned, 
 a man may believe Christ is the Son of God, acd the Saviour 
 of the world. Some " sin wilfully after having received the 
 knowledge of the truth" — " crucify the Sou of God afresh, 
 aud put him to open shame." Christ said to the Jews, " Ye 
 have both seen and hated both me and my Father." 
 
 Faith is, by some writers, termed a spiritual exercise, and 
 said to spring from spiritual life. The term spiritual is often 
 used in these cases without either true or definite import ; and 
 is always so used, when used to signify something which can 
 neither be described, nor conceived of. Nothing can be found 
 in religion higher, purer, more sacred or divine, than holiness, 
 of which the grand element is love to God. " For he that 
 dwelleth in love, dvvelleth in God, and God in him ;" and '* we 
 know," saith the apostle John, " that we have passed from 
 death unto life, because we love the brethren." 
 
 Christ having made propitiation for sin, it is consistent with 
 Divine justice to pardon and justify the sinner, who shall em- 
 brace him by faith. But faith here implies love and obedience. 
 The transfer of tlie righteousness of Christ to the believer, if 
 it conveys more than that the sinner derives the benefit of par- 
 don and justification by means of Christ's work, is without 
 foundation. 
 
 XVI. The atonement of Christ is a propitiation made " for 
 the feins of the whole world," by his sufiferings and deatbj on 
 
&3> 
 
 account of which, pardon, jiiatiftcation, and eternal life, are free^ 
 Jy offered to every sitmer ; and all those, who embrace Christ 
 by faith, and yield ohedience to his gospel, shall be saved. 
 
 XVII. Every sinner, left to pursue his native dispositions of 
 heart, would reject salvation. The same voluntary enmity of 
 heart to God and holiness, which constitutes the depravity of all 
 mankind, would induce them to reject Christ. The humaa 
 heart is as averse to the mercy as to the justice of God. The 
 mercy of God is as holy as his justice, and the plan of salvation 
 by Christ, will as truly illustrate the perfection and glory of 
 Divine justice, as the everlasting punishment of the wicked. 
 Knowing, therefore, that all men would reject salvation, God 
 determined, or decreed, to save a part of the human race, by Je- 
 sus Christ, and they are called, in Scripture, " the elect of God;" 
 and them, by the influence of his Spirit, he will regenerate, and 
 Sanctify, and gather into his heavenly kingdom. 
 
 God's decree of election was a sovereign act of his grace, 
 and was not founded in his foreknowledge of their obedience. 
 But, according to the common acceptation of language, we can 
 scarcely use the phrase, *' sovereign act," without danger of 
 conveying a wrong idea ; for, in its application to the actions 
 of men, it conveys the idea of arbitrariness without reason. 
 God is (he only being qualifi*^d for absolute sovereignty. As 
 he has infinite power to do whatever his infinite wisdom and 
 goodness shall dictate, there is no possibility that his will can be 
 unjust, arbitrary, rash, or capricious. It is proper for him to 
 say, " I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I 
 will have compassion on whom I will have compassion." 
 
 Those acts of God, which are called sovereign acts, are such 
 as infinite goodness approves, and are, no doubt, grounded on 
 adequate reasons. But God has not made known the particu- 
 lar reasons why, in his election to eternal life, one man is taken 
 and another left. The Arminian ought to be reminded that his 
 controversy, in strictness, is not with the doctrine of election, as 
 here stated, but with a point much nearer houie, viz. witd the 
 idea that the salvation of the sinner turns not on his own free 
 act, but on the efficacious grace of God, which saves him. For 
 if his salvation is net of bis ovvn free act, bat of the grace of 
 
 jm 
 
54 
 
 God, it would not have been different from what it is, as I said 
 above, had there been no previous decree, provided the same 
 wisdom and goodness governed. Nothing takes place from the 
 mere arbitrary consideration of its having been decreed. 
 
 The opposition of many to the doctrine of decrees, and of 
 course to election, arises solel}-^ from a misunderstanding of 
 them. They regarded it in the same light as though every event 
 was taking place under the resistless infiuence and sway 
 of a blind, omnipotent fate; that things are as they are 
 for no reason but because immutably decreed. Never was an 
 apprehension more false. They cannot bear the idea that every 
 thing was appointed from all eternity : they seem to want to 
 reserve the power of altering matters, from day to day, as new 
 emer^^encies may arise, and the great Ruler may get better 
 light, having profited by experience. *' Thou thoughtest I was 
 altoo-ether such an one as thyself." When men decree before- 
 hand, changes are frequently necessary ; but when eternal wis- 
 dom appoints, the same reasons which induced the appoint- 
 ment, will certainly induce, and justify, its execution. If sin- 
 ners are saved by an act of Divine grace, the previous deter- 
 mination to save them does not alter the case, and, as I said, 
 the same wisdom and goodness governing, would do the same 
 thing, had it not been before determined. 
 
 Be not deceived ; be not alarmed, lest in this wide scene of 
 events, nu.merous, fleeting, and successive, as the waves of the 
 sea, the purposes of God should fail in their accomplishment, 
 be unequal in their operation, or in their result should impair 
 the rights of an individual. ••• The judge of all the earth will 
 do right." With steady eye, and perfect clearness, he per- 
 eeivcsall creatures; with almijjhty power he rules all worlds, 
 and with a providence all-wise and benevolent, he brings order 
 out of confusion, light out of darkness, and the day-spring out 
 of the shadow of death. 
 
 The election of some to eternal life, is no bar in the way of 
 those not elected. And a decree of reprobation can mean 
 nothing more than a determination not to save ; and as if is pos- 
 terior to rejection of salvation, and grounded on it, it indicates 
 iixe doctrines of a full atonement, free offers of mercy, &uU every 
 
 Mtit. 
 
55. 
 
 thing implied in a state of probation. For ifc must always b« 
 remembered that election is no more from eternity than every 
 other part of the Divine plan, such as propitiation, otfers of 
 mercy, probation, and redemption. 
 
 XVIir. The elect of Christ shall persevere in holiness,- or 
 ganctification, and be gathered into the liingdom of glory. ThiB» 
 however, depends on the purpose and promise of God, and 
 not on the strength and immutability of Christian virtue. 
 Those who appear to begin a religious life, and, at length, fall 
 from their professions and hopes, and die in a state of impeni- 
 tence, were never born again. But every true Christian is 
 born of the spirit, and kept by the power of God through faith 
 unto salvation ; and though faith is the gift of God, yet every 
 man should be encouraged in his endeavors af;er salvation. 
 No man can have any evidence of his good state, but as he 
 finds himself conformed in temper and conduct to the laws of 
 Christ. Those who have no evidence of their own piety 
 should abstain from every sinful act, and be in the way, and 
 in the use of the means of grace. 
 
 The doctrine of perseverance, as here stated, naturally fol- 
 lows, and flows from the doctrine of rei^eneration and justiSca- 
 tion, as stated above. If men turn to God and holinesji of their 
 own free will, without the special agency of the Holy Spirit, if 
 they are justified by their good works, then it would not be 
 wonderful if they should fall from grace. 
 
 Every Christian should labour to persevere in faith and good 
 works, and every man should labour to be a Christian. " Strive 
 to enter in at the straight gate." Strive to " make your calling 
 and election sure." " Let the wicked forsake his way, and the 
 unrighteous man his thoughts." , " Break off your sins by 
 righteousness." 
 
 XIX. There will be a general resurrection of the dead. 
 *' All that are in their graves shall hear the voice of the Sou of 
 God, and come forth." " Now," saith St. Paul, " hath Christ 
 risen from the dead, and become the first fruits of them that slept.'* 
 The first fruits are a specimen of the cross that is to follow. 
 Christ's body rose from the dead. " A spirit," saith he to his disci- 
 ples, " Ijath not fleeh and bones as ye see me have." His body was 
 
66 
 
 viEiblc, tangible, and real. He ale, and probably drank. If 
 this IS to be regarded as a specimen of the resurrection, the true 
 and real bodies of uiaukind will rise; but changed, and made 
 indistructible and immortal. 
 
 Some entomologists are of opinion, that the natural history 
 of insects furnishes an argument in favor of the resurrection. 
 The changes they undergo are very curious and surprising. 
 The bright aud splendid butterfly, which breaks forth from the 
 carcass of a lifeless aud corrupted, a shapeless aud loathsome 
 worm, is as far beyond all human comprehension as the resur- 
 rection of the dead ; and as truly displays the wisdom and 
 goodness of Divin^i providence, though on a smaller scale. 
 
 The resurrection of the body, though a doctrine of revela- 
 tion, yet seems to correspond with the dignity of rational na- 
 tures, and the high destinies of an immortal creature. Man ap- 
 pears to be ultimately designed for immortality, in his entire na- 
 ture. Had he never fallen, he would never have tasted death. 
 " But since by man came death, by man came also the resur- 
 rection of the dead." It will be to the eternal honour of the 
 Redeemer that he conquered death, and rescued the body from 
 the grave. In that he made the resurrection complete, and 
 raised the bodies of the whole race, whose nature he had assu- 
 med, he completed the perfection and glory of his triumph. 
 
 •' Bre k off your tears, ye saints, and tell 
 
 How high your great Deliverer reigns ; ' 
 Sing how he spi.il d the hosts of hell, 
 And led the monster death in chains." 
 
 From the consideration of the resurrestion of all the bodies 
 of our race, I would suggest wliether an argument aoes not 
 rise in favour of a full and complete propitiation, and an offer 
 of mercy to all men. It may be alleged, that it will be no 
 benefit to the wicked that their bodies are raised. Aud will 
 existence itself be a benefit ? Will all the privileges which they 
 receive in this life, prove benefits ultimately ? They surely 
 might have been benefits, had they been properly improved, 
 and, so, had the sinner properly improved his day of probation, 
 the resurrection of his body might prove a benefit. 
 
57 
 
 It has been a favourite point with some, that the church of 
 Christ would rise from the dead before the Millennium. 'I'iiis 
 idea seems not to be supported from the various representa- 
 tions of Scripture 
 
 XX. The day of judgment will immediately follow the ge- 
 neral resurrection, when angels, and men, and devils, will be 
 assembled before the Lord Jehovah Jesus He shall jud«ie the 
 world, pronounce sentence, and execute the same. In the ac- 
 count which the Lord Jesus himself gives of that day, in the 
 25th chapter of Matthew, the moral conduct of those judged 
 and sentenced is alone mentioned. ^ " Come ye blessed of my 
 Father," &c. " For I was an hungered, an ye gave me meat," 
 &c. Again, Revelation xx. 11 and 12. " And I saw a great 
 white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth 
 and heaven fled away ; and there was found no place for them. 
 And ( saw the dead, small and great, stand before God. and the 
 Books were opened; and another Book was opened which is 
 the Book of life : And the dead were judged out of those 
 things written in the Books, accordin<^: to their works.^^ Again, 
 in the following verse, " And they were judged, eoery man 
 mccordina; to his works.'*'' 
 
 When men are tried before God, ou the last great day, the 
 grand question will be, what they have done for the glory of God, 
 and for the advancement of his kingdom. Surely those who 
 do not believe in Christ, will never yield obedience to his laws, 
 will never devote themselves to his service, will never glorify- 
 bis name on earth — will not be Christians. It is freely ad- 
 mitted, that " faith is a saving grace," and that the first act 
 ©f faith, is justifying; but why? It is because it is an insu- 
 rance of a saving change of heart — of a new creature : if is 
 an evidence that old things are passed away, and that all things 
 are become new. It is, in one word, an acceptance of life and 
 salvation by Jesus Christ, to whom the understanding assents, 
 as the bon of God, and Saviour of sinners, and in whom, as such, 
 the heart is delighted, and reposes confidence. 
 
 Divine purposes, of which neither men nor angels can conceive, 
 may be answered by the general judgment; but we can easilj 
 
 8 
 
58 
 
 perceive valuable ends answered by a public trial, and sentence. 
 The power, and majesty, and jjlory of God, will then appear to 
 all creaturea in the person of Christ. Sinners shall look on him 
 whom they have pierced, and every eye shall see him, and all 
 the kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. The go- 
 vernment of God will be justified in view of all intelligent crea- 
 tures, and they shall acquiesce in the justice and goodness of 
 the final sentence. 
 
 XXI. The general judgment will issue in an everlasting state 
 of rewards and punishments. Sinful creatures will dwell in a 
 region of sin and misery. Infinite wisdom and goodness will 
 mete out the nature and degree of their sufferings. But from 
 the word of God, as well as from the nature and tendencies of 
 sin, we have reason to believe their sufferings will be great. 
 O, sinner! learn the value of the present hour, to flee from the 
 wrath to come. O, my soul ! let it be thy chief concern to seek 
 first the kingdom of God, and the righteousness thereof. 
 
 As the lost of our race will have their final residence with 
 the apostate angels ; so, the redeemed will dwell and associate 
 for ever with the elect angels. And the express and abundant 
 promises of a new heavens and new earth, I think, should be 
 received in more than a figurative sense, and ought to be un- 
 derstood as literally true. " And he that sat on the throne, said, 
 Behold, I make all things new. And I beheld a new heavens 
 and a new earth ; for the first heavens and the first earth were 
 passed away, aud there was no more sea." It may not be im- 
 pertinent to remark, that some have thought, that before the de- 
 luge there was no ocean on this globe ; that the waters were in 
 the centre, or below the surface, and the lands incrusted over 
 them.* And certainly, the researches of Hutton, Werner, and 
 other eminent geologists of the present day-, do not diminish 
 the probability of this supposition. 
 
 The glories of the new heavens and earth are sublimely de- 
 scribed in the scriptures. There will be a peculiar honour and 
 felicity in «hvtlling with angels; beings of nobler firms and 
 more exalted faculties tiian men. All the powers of conversa- 
 tion, locomotion, perception, and enjoyment, will be from the 
 
 * Burnet'3 Theory, &c, 
 
59 
 
 first much improved, and will continue to improve for ever. But 
 a chief advantage of that bhssful world will be its entire free- 
 dom from all sin, and all its consequences. To the most plea- 
 sing situation there will be added beauty of form and purity of 
 heart; it will be a vast region of pure intelligence and unmin- 
 gled friendship. One glance at that society, one thrill of (hose 
 exalted joys, will for ever cancel ail regret at the remembrance 
 of the relations and loves of this mortal life. 
 
 But every other advantage will be far outweighed by the con- 
 tinual presence, the communion, the smiles, the love of the in- 
 carnate God. The amazing, ineffable glories of divinity, con- 
 centrated in, and beaming round his person; softened, familiar- 
 ized, brought near to the converse of saints and angels by his 
 lovely humanity. Around his throne the apostles, patriarchs, 
 prophets, 'martyrs, saints, yea, all his church — all his angels 
 will gather ; each arrayed in the new-born glories of immorta- 
 lity — in the bright and spotless, the unfading and illustrious, 
 robes worn at the marriage of the Lamb. " The Lamb shall 
 be in the midst of them — shall lead them by fountains of living 
 waters ; and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes." 
 
 XXII. The church of God seems appointed to pass through 
 five successive dispensations, and may be compared to a stream 
 of water: Her fountain head was in Adam, from whom till 
 Moses, she seems a devious and almost invisible stream, wan- 
 dering through impervious forests and wilds. From Moses till 
 Christ, her waters gathered strength, were broader, though often 
 narrowed by droughts, and almost swallowed up in sandy de- 
 serts. From Christ till the Millennium she becomes a majestic 
 torrent; " her waves roll in light," vessels ply on her broad ex- 
 panse; thoujih still she has her narrows, her rapids, and cata- 
 racts. From the Millennium till the judgment, she becomes a 
 sea; for then the knowledge and glory of God " covers the earth, 
 as the waters cover the sea." From the general judgment she 
 looks forward on a broad and boundless duration of glory and 
 happiness : 
 
 <* Now vast eternity fills all her sight. 
 She floats on the broad deep with infinite delight ; 
 Her seas foreTev calm, her skies forever bright.'' 
 
m 
 
 Supb are wiy tipws of ^Ti*» doctrines of religion. The outline, 
 I confess, is very general and rapid : but if 1 have not sa'tsficed 
 clearness to brevity, unless the reader mistake the import I 
 mean to give to the terms I u.5e, he may judge for himself, 
 whrtther they be Hopkinsian, Caivinistic, Arminia i, cr any 
 thing else. Knowledge and iulormation are common stock. 
 When we read books, and discover men's opinions a id p'in- 
 ciples, and are convinced of their correctness, or find 'hey a^ree 
 with our own, we throw them into our own funds, an • . ' lenuih, 
 perhaps, forget from whom we derived them. Thus fb^'v be- 
 come our own. Bui we are in conJinual danger o*" misfaking 
 authority for evidence; and the -•pinions of men, foi Ute wo-.d. 
 of God. If we escape this rock, there is anothe ;, -^till more 
 threatening, ready to receive us; that is, the dan,;'; of .endrng 
 books, (not excepting tlie Bible it?elf.) not to d;s« ovt :^ <• hat is 
 true, but to gain confirmation in our opinions. And it is the 
 usjhappiness of most people, tha they carry this point so far 
 as carefully to avoid all books, e'--',epfing such as thev j»rf pre* 
 viously assured will give them full support. 
 
 Alas! the blind infatuation of men! could an inhabitant of 
 so tr.<e distant world, *vho did not know the perversene'-s and 
 depravity of our race, believe, that there was such a thing 
 among men as adopting a religious sentiment because it was 
 popular ?— Not because it was true, but because certain great 
 men held to it? Could a holy angel believe, that error was 
 made a stepping stone to promotion and honour? — a staircase 
 to popularity and distinction? Could he ht lleve it possible that 
 one man could hate and persecute another, because he thought 
 differently from him ; and perhaps knowins;, at the same ijme, 
 (a case which sometimes happens,} that th' .mai he persecuted 
 was right, and he was wrong? Alas! angfh d.> inow it — and 
 if susceptible of grief, cannot but mourn over *he folly and 
 ^vretchedness of our race. Devils know it — and if they can at 
 all rejoice, it must be to see themselves outdone in madness, 
 inconsistency, and folly, by men for whom a Saviour is pxo. 
 vided. 
 
 INVESTIGATOR. 
 
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