congregations are distressingly uninformed of the meaning of that language which God has addressed to their understandings, and that there are popular and eloquent discourses spoken in our places of worship on the Sabbath day, and which receive the plaudits of admiring crowds, which contain no attempt to explain the portion of truth on which they are professedly grounded, and which, whilst they abound in meretricious eloquence, and in all the figures of artificial oratory, leave the hearers deplorably deficient in clear and enlightened views of that which is the alone work for which the ministry was originally appointed,-the testimony of truth. We speak it in sorrow, and with a distinct conviction how disagreeable such an avowal must be to many whom we love-but we give it as our solemn and heartfelt conviction: the word of God is but rarely explained in the pulpit, and hence it is but little understood by our people. We have listened to much-admired pieces of hortatory eloquence in the pulpits of the metropolis, to addresses in which the most jejune views of the word of God have been brought forth, and because they were brought forth in a cloud of sesquipedalian words and lofty imagery, the penury, or occasionally even the distortion of sense in the exegesis, has been forgotten amidst the admiration which has been lavished on the medium of its conveyance."

And let the "Archives du Christianisme," 14th Sept., 1839, respond to the appeal :

Any one who has studied our pulpit literature for some years, very rarely finds anything new in what is published at present. He knows almost by heart what is going to be said. Is not this the reason of the distaste which we begin to experience for the reading of sermons? Let our preachers think of this, for this observation applies as fully to what is spoken in the pulpit as to what is published."

Again, 9th March, 1839, from an ordination sermon of M. A. Monod, at Montauban, we find these fears expressed by one whom all the French Christians recognise as foremost in the sacred cause of the Gospel :

"Now that the holy doctrine begins to be in esteem among us, the danger is the most fearful that we can apprehend for our churches-it is, that there should arise in the midst of them a generation of pastors, faithful in doctrine, but unfaith

VOL. III.

ful in conduct, or merely destitute of the inner life, and announcing with a cold and indifferent heart the terrors of the law and the hopes of the gospel. It is a question, which compromises most the gospel-a heterodox pastor, or one who is orthodox without the inward life: whichever it may be, may God keep you from either form of infidelity.”

Notwithstanding this clear view of prospective dangers, we are concerned to find that M. A. Monod gives his name and influence to a work published by G. Monod, called the "Bibliothèque Littéraire Nationale," undertaken on the following principles:

"We often serve religion more in speaking according to its doctrines, than of its doctrines. The world does not comprehend the pious man when he unfolds the sublime truths which are the nourishment and the life of his soul;— this language is only understood by those who partake his faith. But when he treats other subjects which occupy and interest the human intellect, and carries into these subjects that superiority of view which the knowledge of the Scripture gives, and that moral purity which proceeds from true piety, his language is understood by all, and may do good to all; those who hear him may be at the same time instructed and sanctified. Christianity is destined to reign over the world,......to take the direction of all governments and of all manner of instruction. Is not one of the best means of preparing for this triumph to shew how it allies itself with all legitimate studies and institutions, and how, under its influence, all institutions and all studies become ameliorated and improved? Is it not one of the most powerful means to render the gospel amiable, to shew men that it associates and interests itself about their most differing occupations, and that it encloses the secret of the good of this life as well as of that which is to come." (Archives, 9th Nov., 1839.)

Certainly, "the form of the religious world" has altered greatly since the apostles set out on principles exactly the reverse of those laid down in this prospectus. “And I, brethren, when I came unto you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom and my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not stand in the wisdom of

M

......

men, but in the power of God." But then the weapons which God put into the hands of his servants were mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds. Now our wise men, indeed the very leaders of the people, have at length discovered that the enmity of the human heart is to be softened by making the gospel amiable to the natural man. But, alas, Leviathan is not so tamed; nor will he be charmed by such charmers, charm they never so wisely. Listen to the roar of this enemy of God, the world, as expressed by the editor of a leading French colonial paper, from which we quote because it expresses intelligibly enough the language of the natural heart.

Addressing christianity as a "law of exclusive spirituality," the editor says,

"Dogma of the past. You have never spoken of science, because you were ignorant and thought science fatal to humanity. You have never spoken of art, because art causes ravishing and sensual ecstasies, and that is the inspiration of the devil. You have never spoken of industry, because the royalty of man over the maternal bosom of the earth is not acknowledged by you, and that on this dwelling-place of exile and misery you condemn him to drag on a mournful life, and to obtain celestial joy proportioned to the mournful experience of here below. Your symbol is a cross, the Eternal Being a martyr in a shameful abasement.* You have bowed down the glorious front of man in a vain and unproductive prayer. You have spoken of meditation and of prayer, when it was needful to have recommended labour, and to shew the divine end of it -HAPPINESS.

“Disorders of all kinds multiply, and (singular enough!) your adepts, poor dogma, are not the last to take their part in them, while still making very beautiful discourses on the origin of good and evil, on the necessity of moderating the passions, and on eternal life.

"Do you deny this state of misery and of pollution? Have I not reason to say that the dogma which I call in question has been powerless to do good, because our age (the 5000th of the world), discloses at least as many miseries and pollutions as the past ages."-Le Cernéen, 4th Sept. 1838.

* "Christ crucified-to the Greeks foolishness' (Cor. i. 23).

This digression has led us away from M. D'Aubigné and his school of theology at Geneva. It is with sorrow of heart that we meditate on these things, and while we would not in the least accuse this eminent Christian of any departure from the faith of God's elect, but, in the sense usually understood, should consider that he is strictly orthodox, we must yet believe that he is deeply involved in that "leaning on the arm of flesh," in regard to the ministry and propagation of the gospel, which has ever been a fruitful source of weakness and sterility in the Church. "Cursed is the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the Lord-for he shall be like a heath in the desert, and shall not see when good cometh." To attempt to overcome the world with its own weapons-its eloquence, its learning, its means of influence, is to combat the Philistine in the armour of Saul, and to be assuredly overcome. It was not thus the fishermen of Galilee went forth. It was not thus that Paul went forth as the offscouring of all things in the sight of the world, but strong in the Lord and in the power of his might. It is not thus that the wants of the Church can be met. M. D'Aubigné desires that his school of theology should" become truly a school of prophets," and that it may "hasten that time, when they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying 'Know the Lord,' for they shall all know Him from the least of them even unto the greatest." We would then commend to his special attention, the 1st and 2nd chapters of 1 Corinthians, and if it should be considered "fanaticism" in us to believe that unchanging principles of the dispensation of the Spirit are therein developed, let us hear what really does make impression on the unbelieving world. We are told that Lord Bolingbroke was one day sitting in his house at Battersea, reading Calvin's Institutes, when he received a morning visit from Dr. Church. After the usual salutations, he asked the doctor if he could guess what the book was which then lay before him, “and which," says Lord Bolingbroke, "I have been studying?" "No really, my lord, I cannot," quoth the doctor. "It is Calvin's Institutes," said Lord Bolingbroke, "what do you think of these matters ?" "Oh, my lord," replied the doctor, we don't think about such antiquated

66

stuff; we teach the plain doctrines of virtue and morality, and have long laid aside those abstruse points about grace." "Look you, doctor," said Lord Bolingbroke, 66 you know I don't believe the Bible to be a divine revelation; but they who do can never defend it on any principles but the doctrine of grace. To say truth, I have at times been almost persuaded to believe it upon this view of things; and there is one argument which has gone very far with me in behalf of its authenticity, which is, that the belief in it exists upon earth even when committed to the care of such as you, who pretend to believe it, and yet deny the only principles on which it is defensible."-Countess of Huntingdon's Life and Times, vol. ii.

This observation is surely no less forcible when applied to the power of the Spirit, as alone sufficient to carry the word home to the heart, and His sovereign right to " divide to every man severally as he will," and to qualify whom He will as the bearer of the glad tidings of salvation. M. D'Aubigné is still involved in systems which grieve and hinder the Spirit's power in this very thing. Let him come forth from them, and bear faithful testimony to the truth of God in this matter, and we hesitate not for a moment to believe that he will be the means of more permanent and substantial blessing to the church, than if the evangelical college at Geneva were to pour forth an uninterrupted stream of mantaught and humanly-appointed ministers.

rally celebrated on the eighth day, and, strange as it may appear, the child is confirmed at the same time, by anointing with the meiron the forehead and the organs of the five senses; that is, the eyes, ears, nose, mouth, and hands and feet the infant is made a partaker of the communion immediately after, by rubbing his lips with the sacred elements; and lest he should at the moment of death, be so circumstanced as not to be able then to receive extreme unction from the hand of a priest, that sacrament also is administered with the other three to a babe eight days old." Elliott's Travels, vol. i. p. 287.

IDOLATRY--THE DECISION OF THOMAS AQUINAS ON THE WORSHIPPING OF IMAGES.

"I ANSWER, that we must say that which the philosopher says in his book concerning memory and recollection, there is a twofold motion (of the mind) towards an image; the one, indeed, towards the image itself, as it is a certain thing, the other in another manner towards the image, insomuch as it is the image, or representation, of another; and, between these two motions, there is this difference, that the first motion, by which the mind is moved towards the image, insomuch as it is a certain thing in itself, is different from the motion which is towards the thing: but the second motion, which is towards the image, inasmuch as it is an image, is one and the same with that motion which is towards the thing. If, therefore, it is to be said that no reverence is exhibited to the image of Christ, insomuch as it is a certain thing (say wood, either carved or painted), because reverence can only be owing to rational nature, it will then remain, that reverence should be shewn to it solely on the ground that it is an image, or representation; and thus it follows, that THE SAME REVERENCE SHOULD BE PAID TO AN IMAGE OF CHRIST, THAT IS DUE TO CHRIST HIMSELF. Since, therefore, Christ should be adored with the adoration of latria, it follows, also, that an image of Him should be adored with the adoration of latria also."

Thomas Aquinas is a Saint in the Roman Catholic Calendar, and a chief Rabbi in the papal school. Here, then, we have full-blown idolatry recommended by an intercessor of the papal

heavens. As the reader will perhaps be curious to see this extraordinary decision in the original, we subjoin the Latin.

"Respondeo dicendum quod sicut Philosophus dicit in libro de memoriâ et reminiscentiâ, duplex est motus in imaginem; unus quidem in ipsam imaginem secundum quod res quædam est, alio modo in imaginem in quantum est imago alterius, et inter hos duos motus est hæc differentia, quia primus motus quo quis movetur in imaginem, ut est res quædam est alius a motu qui est in rem: secundus autem motus qui est in imaginem in quantum est imago est unus et idem cum illo qui est in rem. Si ergo dicendum est quod imagini Christi in quantum est res quædam (puta lignum sculptum vel pictum), nulla reverentia exhibeatur, quia reverentia non nisi rationali naturæ debeat; relinquitur ergo quod exhibeatur ei reverentia sola in quantum est imago, et sic sequitur quod eadem reverentia exhibeatur imagini Christi et ipse Christo: cum ergo Christus adoretur adoratione latriæ, consequens est quod ejus imago sit adoratione latriæ adoranda."

JOURNAL OF THE

REV. JOSEPH WOLFF, LL. D.

It will be seen by the following extracts from Dr. Wolff's journal, that this well known missionary has imbibed largely of the spirit of Puseyism; indeed his journal is a sort of manifesto in favour of the views of the Oxford Tracts. Dr. Wolff's first trial of christianity was in the Romish communion, and now, after several years' association with the evangelical clergy of the low school, he has come round to tradition, and all the darkness of the "Catholic philosophy." He informs us that he has lately been preaching for Dr. Hook, who probably has helped him forward in Puseyism.

"The American Missionaries, Messrs. Goodell and Bird, have succeeded in converting two of the Armenian Bishops from the established Armenian symbols and ancient liturgy, to the vague and uncertain creed of the congregationalists of America; from their attachment to their Patriarch of Ech Miazin, who derives his succession from the Bishops of Antioch, to the half neological writings of Professor Moses Stewart, of Andover; therefore the Armenian Church has just reason to

be displeased with the Protestant Missionaries in the East. Both of these Bishops married immediately after their conversion, and in order to quiet the troubled consciences of their wives, they frequently expound to them 1 Tim. iii. 2. Bogho, the ex-patriarch of the American nation at Constantinople, was justly enraged at the American Missionaries for persuading two Bishops to leave the Armenian church, and enter into the sect of the American congregationalists-which they did much for the sake of a wife, as they married immediately after their desertion from the old orthodox and venerable Armenian Church." - Journal of the Rev. Jos. Wolff (p. 177).

"I do not believe that familiar spirits have been banished from the world by the shallow principles of neological Protestants, nor by the promoters of steam and rail-roads, nor even by the half-orthodox Platonic Protestants, like Drs. Neander and Tholuck, who deny the authenticity of whole books of sacred writ" (p. 245).

"In going through the church-yard at Gaza, I saw a priest sitting near the church-gate, reading to some of his congregation an Arabic translation of a homily of St. John Chrysostomus. After this was finished, he read a part of the liturgy. This custom has prevailed in the Eastern churches from time immemorial; and I am sure that it will preserve orthodoxy of faith [the italics are Dr. Wolff's] more than all the extempore prayers of Dissenters" (p. 196).

"We hear every day five times, as is the case in all Mohammedan countries, the cry from the Mosque, of Prayer is better than sleep.' God is God, and Mohammed is the prophet of God.' It reminds one of the prophecy of Isaiah, lxii. 6. 'I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace day nor night.' The custom of exhorting publicly, not only to public, but also to private prayer, does not only exist among Mohammedans, but also in the Roman and all catholic churches in the East. The Protestant churches form the only exception; for which we are indebted to the light of ultra-protestantism. The talismanic power of the word Protestantism has long since passed away from me" (p. 213).

"The monks of old have contributed much towards the propagation of the gospel among the Heathen. Simon

Stylites, so much ridiculed by many in modern times, had done more good, and more for the advancement of the gospel, than many modern divines by their compilations of volumes of commentaries. (Scott, &c.) The heathen Arabians were converted by him to Christianity, especially those of Palmyra. Theodoret says of him, 'This shining light, placed as it were on a candlestick, sent forth rays from all sides like the sun, and Iberians, Armenians, and Persians might be seen to draw nigh to him to receive holy baptism.' St. Antonius preserved the orthodox faith in the deserts of Thebes, with his five thousand hermits. An Abyssinian priest of the name of Christophorus, lived many years at Mar Saba; he spent whole days and nights reading the Gospel and Psalms, and at one time went into the wilderness, absorbed in deep contemplation, and fasted, according to the Greek manner, forty days. He sometimes slept, and was awakened by the howling of the lions and tigers. He was asked if he was not afraid. 'Afraid!' he answered, 'why should I be afraid? Christ is with me.' When the Arabs attacked the convent, he defended it, and wounded one of them, and for this reason he returned to Mount Sinai" (p. 216).

"The Church of England ought really to enter into a friendly correspondence with the bishops of the different churches in the East. But I cannot help thinking that the Church Missionary_Society, though they might send their Lutheran Missionaries to the Heathens, ought never to send them to the Eastern Churches. It is a gross insult to them. The great Rhenius was most useful among the Ilindoos, but he would have done harm if he had been sent to the Christian Churches" (p. 232).

"I have not the least hesitation to say that the distribution of our liturgy in the Italian and other foreign languages, will produce a greater effect than the circulation of the Scriptures; for the Italian infidels and the Eastern Christians think the English Christians have deduced from the Bible a French philosophical system like that of Voltaire. By giving them the liturgy of the Church of England they perceive that this is not the case, and they observe this with amazement" (p. 295).

In the time of Diocletian a woman, Catharine by name, had suffered martyrdom at Alexandria, when her body

was carried by angels to Mount Sinai, where she was watched by them three hundred years, and after the convent was built she was interred there with great magnificence by order of the Emperor Justinian. This is the legend of St. Catharine, which I relate as Herodotus does his history, as I heard it, without making any comment upon it— none but a cold rationalist can regard the traditions and sayings of the Eastern nations with indifference, and sneer at them; but the deep philosopher, and the theologian of Catholic principles, will treat the traditions of the ancients with reverence and respect" (p. 310).

"I conversed with several priests in Abyssinia, and drew their attention to various parts of the gospel, and I am sure that a judicious, episcopally ordained Missionary of Catholic principles, who does not ridicule their ancient and frequently most valuable traditions, will never have reason to fear being expelled from this country. Why should one go and persuade the priests to break their fast days, and then go and boast of having succeeded in the attempt of seducing, not converting, a priest ?-but here I must break off, for my blood begins to boil, and I may be betrayed into saying more than many persons, even in this country, would wish me to say” (p. 341).

"They gave me the following information about the belief still prevailing in the Abyssinian Church. After death, man goes to a separate place-the good to the Paradise of Adam, and the wicked to a place called Sheol. After the coming of the Lord, the believers shall be with Christ, and the unbelievers shall be carried to the valley of Hinnom. Adam and Eve were driven to a land called Feyt. Enoch and Elijah are now hid in Paradise, and both shall appear before the coming of the Lord. I asked how men could be saved, and receive remission of sins. He replied that one must first be baptised and take the sacrament, and when he has reached a certain age, he must confess to the Priest, and give him money and alms for the poor, and leave off doing bad. There is a great deal of truth in it, though not the whole truth" (p. 342). [i.e., something more to add to this scheme!]

"Were it not for those holy monks in the convents of Abyssinia, the name of Christ would have been forgotten there long ago. There the beautiful psalms of