a re-union with those friends whom on earth we have loved most dearly.

"Are not these motives that should animate our devotion, increase our faith, and make us willing, at any moment, 'to depart, and be with Christ, which is far better.'

"Were the Christian religion nothing but the child of human invention; still, its doctrines and its hopes are so rational and consoling, that they would be incomparably preferable to every system which infidelity ever conceived, or human ingenuity devised.

"Were Christianity but a waking dream, -it is so pleasing a dream, that reasonable beings would prefer indulging it, infinitely rather than to embracing the sober certainty' of annihilation.

"We should say with the first of Roman Orators, Yes, if I am deceived in believ ing my soul to be immortal, I am agreeably deceived, and while I live, I wish no one to deprive me of an error, which now constitutes my chief happiness.'

"Were our faith always in lively exercise, how precious would the gospel appear, contrasted with all that this world could bestow. Is there any comparison between the two as the portion of the soul? On the one hand, heaven and immortality;

on the other, the world and destruction.On the one hand, pleasure without end, happiness beyond our present comprehension, on the other, the extinction of be. ing, and of hope, in the grave.—On the one hand, God in all his majesty, his glory, and his grace,-on the other, exclusion from his presence, the blackness of darkness for ever;' and confinement in that prison of despair, where the worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.'

"Whenever, then, my Christian friend, you are summoned to the table of the Lord, endeavour to forget your cares, your trials, and your sorrows;-think rather on the short duration of the present life,-think of the grace which sustains your infirmities,-of the pardon of your sins, through the atoning death of Christ,-of the immense weight of glory that will be revealed in you hereafter, of the crown of glory, of the sceptre of righteousness, and the kingdom you will inherit, in virtue of the promise, and through the infinite merits of the Son of God.

"Saviour of the world!-Author and Finisher of our Faith-Behold us in mercy-impart to us thy grace, and when we meet around thy table, to commemorate thy death,let us feel the blessed assurance that our sins are forgiven.'

"Send down THE COMFORTER into our

hearts. Break every tie that binds us too strongly to the world. Triumph over every obstacle which opposes thy reign in our hearts. Subdue our reluctant wills,warm our cold hearts;-say to us, respectively, thy soul is mine,-it is the purchase of my blood,-I will cleanse it,- I will save it.'

"And may the God of peace that brought again from the dead, the LORD JESUS CHRIST, that great Shepherd of the sheep,-through the blood of the everlasting covenant; make us perfect in every good work, to do his will; working in us, that which is well pleasing in his sight." Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever, Amen."

The last 36 pages of the volume contain "Sacramental hymns, selected and original." Of these, such as are taken from Watts and Cowper are, of course, excellent. But we do not think that the whole, taken together, though not destitute of merit, is as good as might have been selected. Of the original hymns, we give the following as a favourable specimen:

"Ah! why do I hesitate-wherefore delay To give myself wholly to JESUS, away; Ah! why for a moment from him, would I rove,

When my heart and my treasure, and hopes are above?

"How uncertain is life! and how fading is health!

How transient are pleasures, and honours and wealth;

Then why such possessions as these should I prize,

And the solid delights of religion, despise.

"Tis done-from this moment my soul I resign,

And resolve blessed JESUS to be wholly thine;

Discarding the world, with its treacherous

charms,

I haste-dear Redeemer-I haste to thine

arms.

"Didst thou suffer and die for offenders like me?

And shall I still continue a stranger to thee?

Ah! no-I'm resolved-I'll no longer deJay

But give myself wholly to Jesus away.”

REVIVALS OF RELIGION.

Every real Christian regards the salvation of souls as infinitely the most important and interesting concern of our world. To this he views all other concerns as subordinate, and wishes them all to be subservient. He believes that it is of more importance to save a soul than to found an empire. He believes that the world stands, and that empires rise and fall, that the purposes of God for the salvation of souls may be accomplished. He considers this salvation as the great practical design of all religious instruction, written and oral; of all the dispensations of the gospel; of all bible and missionary institutions; of all the prayers, and labours, and charities, of God's people-in a word, of all exertions and enterprises for diffusing the knowledge and the influence of revealed truth.

Now, in all real revivals of religion, a number-frequently a large number of immortal souls, are brought into a state of salvation. In this lies the very essence of a genuine revival of religion. It is this that constitutes it what it is a genuine revival of religion. In such a revival, therefore, every real and well informed Christian must and will rejoice, with joy exceeding great greater than any concern, merely of a worldly kind, can produce. It follows, also, that real Christians will be extremely solicitous that what are called revivals of religion should be genuine-should be truly seasons in which many souls are brought into a state of salvation: and therefore that they should be preserved from all those excesses and abuses, which tend to diminish, and sometimes utterly to destroy, their soul-saving tendency.

Believing, as the editor of this miscellany does, in the truth and importance of the preceding remarks, he wishes exceedingly that his work

may be subservient, at once to the promotion of revivals of religion and to the preservation of them from all perversion, abuse, and evil consequences. He also wishes to gladden the hearts of the pious readers of the Christian Advocate, with all the well digested intelligence that he can collect in regard to religious revivals. But here there is a real difficulty. Many communications on this subject are hasty and crude-and really injurious, in their ultimate tendency. Communications relative to revivals, ought, if they are warm, not to be wordy and declamatory; to be always rather under than over the truth-always abounding in facts, and always marked with humility and soberness of mind. For such communications the editor of this miscellany will at all times be very thankful. In making selections from what has already appeared in print, he will look chiefly, but not exclusively, to the statements made by ecclesiastical bodies; which happily have of late become, on this interesting topick, pretty abundant. The following well written paper should have had an earlier insertion, if accident had not, till within a few days, kept it from the inspection of the editor:

A

Narrative of the State of Religion within the Bounds of the Synod of Virginia, for the Year ending Oct. 24, 1822.

Although the Synod never had so much good news to communicate; yet they have to deplore that in a few of their churches, the spirit of piety has, during the past year, suffered a visible decay. In those churches, benevolent and pious institutions have either declined or been utterly abandoned; the graces of their members generally, have been paralyzed by the chilling influences of a worldly spirit; prayer is either coldly performed or shamefully neglected; and suspicion is thrown over the whole character of some, by their apparent indifference to the Their pastors lament this state of things, means of reviving themselves and others. and solicit the prayers of other churches in their behalf.

Some of our churches have experienced no remarkable change; they have grown but little either in numbers or in grace. Others have received unusual accessions of new members without any extraordinary excitement. In several others encouraging prospects are beginning to appear: a growing attention to the means of grace,-increasing impressions upon the people,-and a reviving fervency of devo tion

among the pious, encourage the hope of a great ingathering of souls.

The general increase of Sabbath Schools, of Missionary, Education, Bible, and Tract Societies, is a pleasing feature in the present aspect of our affairs. The utility of such institutions is daily becoming more evident; to them is in a great measure to be ascribed, the gradual improvement of Virginia in morals and religion. The Young Men's Missionary Societies of Richmond and Petersburg, are worthy of particular notice, for both their magnitude and the excellent spirit with which they are animated. That of Richmond bas been for several years, in active and use. ful operation; that of Petersburg has been lately instituted, under the most favourable auspices. Such institutions are greatly needed, not only because there is a wide field for their exertions, but also because much of that field is whitening to the harIn many places, missionary labours are in considerable request, and if perseveringly afforded, would promise final and great success.

vest.

It is indicative, we trust, of a growing inclination to a visible union among dif ferent branches of the church, that several congregations of Republican Methodists, with their ministers, have lately adopted our Confession of Faith and connected themselves with the Presbytery of Hanover.

We come now to relate how the God of grace has blessed some of our churches. Our hearts overflow with gratitude, and our mouths are filled with praise, for effusions of the Spirit, such as our church in this commonwealth has never before experienced. We shall give a summary view of the most prominent facts on this subject.

Last spring the Hanover Presbytery met at Hampden Sidney College. During their meeting, God was pleased to begin a work of grace, which has continued with little abatement. Throughout the neighbourhood, general and deep impressions of divine truth have been felt; and the church at that place has been enlarged by the addition of more than fifty converts; amongst whom are several heads of families whose respectability and influence in society, will now, it is hoped, have a salutary effect upon their neighVOL. I.-Ch. Adv.

bours. Several students of the College have also found grace during this merciful visitation.

While the work was spreading in Prince Edward county, a similar one began in Petersburg, and gradually advanced, until between sixty and seventy were added to the Presbyterian church, and about one hundred to the Methodist church. Peculiar circumstances seemed in the sickly season to check its progress; but strong hopes are entertained that it will yet bring many into the fold of Christ.

The pastor of Norfolk church, with a few of his people, visited Petersburg in the time of the revival there, and carried home with him the same spirit. Great exertions were soon made and blessed in that church. Between forty and fiftyhopeful converts are the fruits.

In Richmond, although the excitement has been less powerful, the church has received about eighty new members.

The late meeting of the Hanover Presbytery at Charlotte court-house has been attended with signs of a revival. Deep impressions of religion have doubtless been made; but the occurrence is too recent to justify more than a pleasing hope of happy consequences. In the congrega tions of Briery and Buffaloe in Prince Edward, highly promising appearances of a revival have lately begun to present themselves.

In the town and vicinity of Lexington, there has also been a most glorious, and in this State, perhaps unparalleled, outpouring of the Spirit. The symptoms of it began to appear about midsummer. An afflictive disease raged among the people, and disposed them to seriousness; a new zeal and spirit of prayer became manifest in several of the pious; but for some time the hope of those who sighed and prayed for a revival, was deferred. Gradually, however, the tokens of its approach became more manifest; extraordinary means began to be used by the fervent in spirit; prayer meetings, male and female, were instituted; the sacred flame was diffused among the devout, religious meetings were frequent and crowded; and ere long, many sinners began to tremble and weep. About the middle of September, the Lord's Supper was administered at the church of New Monmouth, near Lexing

ton;

when fifty-five new converts came for. ward, and nearly the whole congregation was overwhelmed with a flow of divine feeling, so solemn, so tender, so irresistibly powerful,-yet so void of enthusiasm, so decent and orderly,-that all declared their eyes had never seen, and their souls had never felt, such a day of the power of the grace of God. Three weeks after

2 A

wards the Supper was administered in Lexington. The day of New Monmouth so far exceeded what the people had ever felt or witnessed, that they naturally distrusted the hope of seeing its like again. But the day of Lexington was not less a day of the Son of Man. At least twelve hundred persons assembled, numbers from all the adjoining congregations Sixty-one souls, (double the expected number,) came and for the first time obeyed, with streaming eyes, the Redeemer's dying command, "Do this in remembrance of me." An awful solemnity was pictured on the faces of many; but for the most part their souls were melted with the sacred fire, as when God rends the heavens in his descent, and the mountains flow down at his presence. On the following Sabbath, the Supper was administered at Oxford church, near New Monmouth. Here again, the Holy Ghost filled the souls of the people, and forty-four were added to the church.

This work of grace continues and spreads. Other congregations near Lexington are beginning to feel its power. Hopes are entertained that the faithful will not slacken their prayers, until God shall show, in many an instance more, what his grace can do. It is also a gratifying circumstance of this revival, that several students of Washington College are brought into the church. The whole number added to the church of Lexington, in the last year, is one hundred, and to those of New Monmouth and Oxford, about fifty each.

The facts disclosed in the narratives given to Synod of those revivals are a source, not only of joy and of gratitude to the Father of mercies, but of important instruction and solemn admonition to all the churches of God. This will ap pear from a consideration of the following particulars.

In those several revivals, there has been a remarkable coincidence in the material circumstances which preceded and accompanied them, and in the means which seemed to be most instrumental in their production. Most of the revived congregations had previously experienced an unusual declension of active piety, similar to that which is now observed with sorrow in some of our churches. Yet amidst the prevalent languor, there were still a few whose love had not grown cold,-whose grade of active and steadfast piety showed how far religion in others had sunk below its ordinary level. A general perception of this decline and sorrow for its occurrence, led to the use of means for a revival.

The principal means through which the blessing came, we hesitate not to say,

was prayer, the fervent prayer of faith. While prayer was neglected, or was sluggishly offered with indifferent and wavering minds, the chill gloom of spiritual death still enveloped the people. But no sooner was the spirit of prayer and supplications poured out upon them who bowed before the throne, than the Sun of Righteousness began to arise, and his vivifying influence to be felt by saint and sinner.

We observe, moreover, that the increase of praying societies, and increasing devotion in their prayers, have generally been the harbingers of a revival. Private societies of females for prayer, particu larly those of Prince Edward and Lexington,-also those of young men, particularly in Petersburg and Lexington, have been like morning stars before a day of glory.

With respect to the preaching which has been so signally blessed, it has consisted chiefly in plain, direct, and earnest addresses to the understanding and heart: the doctrines mostly insisted on were, the total depravity of mankind by nature, the guilt and danger of their unregenerate state, the necessity of the efficient operation of the Holy Ghost to convert and sanctify the soul, and of a simple reliance upon the merits of the crucified and divine Saviour for justification.-A deep impression of these doctrines upon the mind characterized the views and feelings of the converts.

In many cases, sympathetick or animal feelings have doubtless mingled their influence with that of the word and Spirit of God; but there has appeared almost nothing of what is properly termed enthusiasm :-no disorder in worship, no bodily exercise, has occurred; none have been admitted to communion who could not give a reason of the hope that was in them.

Many young men, to the joy of the church, have embraced religion; children from eleven to fourteen years of age, who were not expected to know much of the nature of religion, have professed conversion, with a clearness of views and a manifestation of piety, astonishing to men, and glorious to the grace of God: aged persons, who have spent three or four score years in sin, have in the last days of life been born again. Verily it is the work of God; human power is inadequate to the effect. The same human ability has been elsewhere exerted, and had been in those same places exerted without such effects. Sin maintained its irresisted and irresistible influence over the hearts and lives of the people. But God sends his Holy Spirit, and immediately the delusion of sin is dissipated;