installation, under the hands of the presbytery, highly proper, and in all ordinary cases a duty.

The permanent scriptural officers in a church are bishops, or pastors, and deacons.

The members of a church, acting as such, in an assembled capacity, and not the officers, have the power to receive others to their fellowship, by judging of their spiritual state according to the word of God, and to expel offenders.

(The disciplinary power of a church, which extends to its own members only, is wholly spiritual; having exclusive reference to the religious character and relations of the subjects of it, and a church has no right to resort to temporal penalties, or civil inflictions.

Pastors or bishops are all of equal rank, and possess equal rights, and authority.

Baptism, church fellowship, and the Lord's Supper, should be granted to believers only; the former, in all cases preceding the other two in the order of time.

The Baptist principles of church polity have now been exhibited, with brief references to the scriptural grounds on which they rest. Baptists believe and advocate these principles because they are scriptural and divine, not as the products of their own wisdom, or the mere deductions of their own reason, though they approve themselves strongly to their reason and common sense. We believe that all Christians are sacredly bound to be governed by these principles, in their church capacity. And while we do not suppose that the practice of them, or of any other principles of church polity is essential to personal salvation; nor consider membership in a Baptist church, or any other church, the unfailing test of christian character; yet we are deeply convinced that all departure from these principles will be attended with injury to the cause of Christ, and to individual Christians. We pray to be actuated by higher motives in all our religious duties, than the mercenary spirit of doing and of believing nothing except what is absolutely necessary to a comfortable prospect of heaven.

It is no part of the design of this book to controvert the

views or the practices of others, nor to exhibit the various ecclesiastical systems which now prevail, in derogatory contrast with ours. Nor would any other systems be mentioned, or even referred to, but for the sake of presenting the principles here advocated with greater clearness, by exhibiting those points in which they differ respectively. For this purpose only, some of the prominent points of difference. from other existing theories and systems will be pointed out. First, then, the system of church order embraced by Baptists, differs from all national or state religious establishments, as they exist in Italy, Germany, Denmark, and England; and generally throughout Europe and the East; in maintaining that churches should not be incorporated with the state, that civil magistrates have no right to control religious opinions, rites, or forms of worship; and that the pecuniary expenses of churches should be sustained by voluntary contribution, not by compulsory taxation.

Second, it differs from all systems of ecclesiastical catholicism, papal, episcopal, and presbyterial; in maintaining that the only organized church is an assembly of baptized believers, who meet in one place for worship, for administering ordinances, and the trial of offenders. It allows of the existence of no such body as a universal, national, or provincial church, nor of any form of extensive aggregation or concentration of church power.

Third, it differs from papacy, and from every form of prelacy, whether ancient, like the Oriental; more recent as the English; or modern, like the Wesleyan, by the principle, that all church officers are selected and chosen by the christian people; that ministers are all of equal rank; and that they have no official authority except in the particular church which elects them to office.

Fourth, it is distinguished from these systems by the principle that all church power is in the church as a body, not in its ministers; that it comes to each church directly from the Lord Jesus Christ by virtue of the union of its members in the church relation, and is not transmitted by succession from any previously existing body; and that it is

the right and the duty of each church to interpret and apply the laws of Christ for itself to its own members, and to them only.

Fifth, by the principle that churches are strictly executive, and not legislative bodies; that they have no right to adopt any terms of membership except those laid down in the scriptures, nor to change the form or the subjects of church ordinances.

Sixth, it differs from all these systems in maintaining that no person can be born into a christian church, nor be made a member by any act of parents in infancy, but that to become a member in any church must be a personal, voluntary act on the part of each individual; that the new birth, or personal piety, is the qualification for membership; and that the whole assembled church is the divinely appointed organ of expressing Christ's will in the reception of members into a visible church.

Seventh, it differs from all pedobaptist systems, Papal, Episcopal, Lutheran, Moravian, Presbyterian, Methodist, and Congregational, in admitting no persons except profess ed and credible believers to either of the ordinances of the church, of which baptism, in the scriptural meaning of the term, is always to precede admission to the Lord's table; by distinguishing between spiritual and natural or political relationships; by recognizing no church relation to the children of believers any more than of others till they give evidence of piety, and at their own desire are baptized into the fellowship of the church.

PART II.

DOCTRINES.

THE principles on which churches should be constituted, according to the scriptures, and their relations to each other having been explained, the next inquiry relates to the doctrines* which they are to believe and teach. For it is plain that God has, in the scriptures, commanded every church to believe, and through its ministry and members to teach, the gospel to the world. The duty of teaching, implies that doctrines are to be explained, and, of course, understood by the teacher. The duty of understanding christian doctrine is by no means confined to ministers of the gospel; it is strongly enjoined, in the word of God, on all Christians. Private Christians are censured for their slow progress in christian knowledge, and churches as collective, independent bodies, for suffering false and corrupt doctrines among their members.

It is the right and the duty of every Christian to take the scriptures, and with such helps as he can obtain, in prayerful reliance on the Spirit of God, to determine for himself what doctrines he ought to believe and promote; and while

* The word doctrine, in its most extended signification, is used to denote whatever is taught. In this sense it would include Parts I. and III. which unfold the constitution and government of christian churches. It is here applied in its more common acceptation, to those scriptural truths which form the substance of the creed, or the confession of faith of churches, and church members.

he does so peaceably, and without infringing the rights of others, no earthly power, civil or ecclesiastical, has any right to molest him. It is likewise the duty of every christian church to decide for itself what doctrines the scriptures contain; and having done so, these doctrines form its creed. These the church agrees to maintain. If, therefore, an individual adopts views of doctrine radically different, while he ought not to be injured therefor in person or estate, he ought not to be admitted to the church; or if a member of the church renounces its creed, he deprives himself of the right to continue in its membership.

As to written confessions of faith for Baptist churches, each church adopts one for itself. This is a necessary result of their strictly independent character; yet a careful comparison of a great number shows, that though varying in expression, minuteness, and extent, there is a remarkable degree of unanimity. They contain the leading doctrines of the church in the form of distinct propositions, to be placed in the hands of all the members and candidates for baptism.

If a church has no written articles, it is liable to be annoyed by members, who, having adopted dangerous errors, declare that they understood such to be the doctrines of the church when they became members, that they can maintain their views from the Bible, the only creed of the church, — and thus deny the right of the church to censure or exclude them. To prevent such troubles and promote unity and peace, it is customary for the churches to have their articles of faith and covenant printed, and to furnish each candidate with a copy, which he voluntarily adopts as his creed, because he believes it to be true, and if afterwards he shall see fit to renounce it, he cannot complain if the church censure him and withdraw from him their fellowship. A creed so formed and used, does not fetter the church, nor oppress the conscience of any member, for it is in the hands of all the members for daily comparison with the scriptures, and can be altered by the church when necessary, with far more propriety when reduced to clear, written propositions,