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We must confess that there are many phrases in the volume on our table to which we should object; and remembering how prone mankind are to abuse doctrines to purposes of licentiousness, perhaps we should have been better pleased if our author had accompanied some of his statements with explanatory cautions. We allude more particularly to such passages as these ;

—“Yes; drunkards, fornicators, misers, careless, prayerless people, come now to God by Christ only, seeing the misery, blindness, and ruin of your condition, and your unworthiness, as it is; and even now receive, taste, and enjoy the forgiveness that is with God. Truly believe, and you have everlasting life. P. 343.

I say to you, fear not, only believe, &c. &c. P. 353.

And though we are aware that they will admit of an orthodox illustration, we cannot but subscribe to the opinion of the late Bishop of Winchester, as detailed in the third chapter of his Refutation of Calvinism, (p. 164,) where he shews that this style of preaching is "imperfect and dangerous." Our confined limits forbid the insertion of the entire passage, to which, therefore, we beg leave thus cursorily to refer our readers. In the same spirit we might enter our protest against our preacher's description of human nature as "altogether evil," (p. 187,) and deny the " entire depravity," of which he writes, (p. 184;) and except to his doctrine of experiences, (p. 183;) we might deny our author's position, "that true godliness, quite contrary to the usual course of natural things, which are brought to perfection by slow and gradual improvements, starts up in the infancy of things, and very soon appears more gloriously perfect than it does afterwards;" (p. 138.) but," de mortuis nil nisi bonum;" we forbear, therefore, to insist upon these parts of the discourses, nor will we enter upon those quinquarticular discussions, which are involved in impenetrable difficulties; the effect of the controversies upon which, (to borrow the language of Bishop Horsley,) "will never be to reconcile the jarring opinions, but to dissolve brotherly love, and disunite the members of Christ's body." Nor would we insinuate, by these observations, that the late pious Vicar of the Holy Trinity Church, in Kingston-upon-Hull, obtruded his peculiar notions in glaring or offensive prominence upon the attention of his hearers; for we must in justice remark that his "Practical Sermons," as Mr. Bickersteth has thought fit to call them, well answer to their description. He does not foolishly indulge in a dry strain of moral preaching, however, without attention to the Christian motives, by which alone religious duty can be effectually enforced. He is simple even to plainness in his manner, always grave and serious in his matter, and every where uncompromising and zealous in his exhortations.

* Bishop Horsley's Charges, p. 225,.

The following passage we quote from its applicability to the times and opinions of the present liberal generation. Our author is writing of St. John's open opposition to Cerinthus, in refusing to be in the same bath with him; and thus proceeds :

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"Doubtless, so charitable a disciple as he, was influenced by no personal ill-will to that foul heretic; and would have done him any kindness that lay in his power, either for body or soul, as every one who has the Spirit of Christ in him must. But then, as these enemies of God always labour to be countenanced by eminent ministers of Christ, that they may the more effectually spread their poison, you see how true charity requires that they be openly discountenanced by them...... But the fashion of modern times, in countenancing all sorts of opinions, and looking on them all as equally good, or at least as harmless if erroneous,―was not the apostolical way. Moreover, it shews men to be selfish, and worldly-minded, and indifferent about religion; AND FOR ANY THING THAT MEN WOULD DO, CHRISTIANITY ITSELF WOULD BE LOST IN THE WORLD.-P. 63.

How soon Christianity may be lost in these realms we will not pretend to foretell; but the symptoms which alarmed our preacher in 1796, have been appallingly aggravated in these days, and the æra of 1832 seems indeed to be anxious to accelerate the tremendous crisis! "Jews, Turks, infidels, and heretics, are to be the fond objects, it would appear, of our tenderest caresses, and the singularity of the times is, that there are no prejudices in favour of any religion."* Would to God, there were no prejudices against any religion! Would to God, there were no evil agents of Satan to stir up the prejudices of men against our venerable establishment! Would to God, there were no ferocious notions of liberty, and no rapacious avarice of schismatical agitators, to make us tremble for the fate of the British Church! The artful intrigues, and the deep-laid policy of her enemies, thicken every where around us; and one more session of Parliament to tread in the frightful steps of the present, may consummate her downfall! Hæc Deus avertat!" O, pray for the peace of Jerusalem!"

Mr. Milner's volume contains twenty-two sermons. The two first from Rev. i. 4-8, are introductory. The next twelve are practical exhortations, grounded upon the Epistles to the seven Churches. The fifteenth embraces the topic of the Millennium; and the remaining sermons have for their texts the eight first verses of the 130th Psalm. Mr. Bickersteth has appended to the discourses on the Apocalyptic Epistles some interesting notes, from the most recent writers, of the present state of each of the seven Churches.

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LITERARY REPORT.

The Variations of Popery. By the Rev.SAMUEL EDGAR. Dublin: Curry & Co. London: Westley & Davis. 1831. 8vo. Pp. 518.

THE popish and protestant controversy, in the present age, has been agitated in these kingdoms with ardour, erudition, and ability. Towards the close of the last century, it seemed to slumber. "The polemics of each party," the author truly remarks,

satisfied with the unrestricted enjoyment of their own opinions, appeared for a time to drop the pen of discussion, dismiss the weapons of hostility, and leave men, according to their several predilections, to the full, peaceable, and undisputed freedom of popery, protestantism, or neutrality.' Within a few years, however, the polemical pen, which, in the British dominions, had slept in inactivity, has resumed its labours. The oft-refuted objections of popery have been revived by its advocates in various forms, from the handsome octavo down to the penny tract: and the champions of our protestant faith have zealously re-assumed the armour of their fore-fathers; and while, in Ireland, the Right Rev. Dr. Elrington, and the late Rev. Drs. Grier and Phelan, and the Rev. Messrs. Digby, Jackson, Newland, Pope, and Ousely, besides several laymen, have nobly stood forward in defence of our common protestant faith; in Great Britain, the advocates of popery have been encountered with not inferior ability by the Right Rev. Dr. Philpotts, the Rev. Messrs. G. Townsend, Faber, and the editor of the Protestant Journal and his correspondents, by Dr. Southey, Cramp, Mr. M'Garin (of Glasgow), and other laymen. To this goodly catalogue of protestant champions we have now to add the author of "The Variations of Popery," whose elaborate treatise, though published at Belfast more than a year since, has but recently arrived in London. We gladly take the

earliest opportunity of bringing it before the readers of our journal.

This work, which, in the originality of its plan, differs (we believe) from every preceding treatise that is extant against the modern innovations of popery, is designed to employ against that baleful system, the argument, which was urged with much ingenuity, but providentially with little success, against protestants, by the artful persecutor, Bossuet, bishop of Meaux, in his celebrated "Histoire de Variations de Protestans;" whose errors, misrepresentations, and falsehoods, were, at the time of its publication, detected by Bishop Burnet, Monsieur Basnage, and other learned protestant advocates. The reformers, it is well known, disagreed in a few unimportant points of divinity; but their disagreement was rather in discipline and in ceremonies, than in faith and morality. These differences the wily Bossuet collected: what was wanting, in fact, he supplied from his own teeming imagination; and the discordancy, which was partly real, and partly fanciful, he represented as inconsistent with truth, and demonstrative of falsehood. "The Variations of Popery" are designed to retort Bossuet's argument. To an opponent who was disposed to retaliate, the striking diversities and contradictions of Romanism, present an ample field for retaliation. But to this disingenuous art of controversy, Mr. Edgar has disdained to have recourse. With a few exceptions, he has derived his materials from Romish sources, which no consistent Romanist, therefore, can honestly repudiate; and by his minute references to the volumes and pages of his authorities, (the editions of which he has specified in the beginning of his volume,) he has furnished his readers, who may be willing to accompany him in his researches, with the means of corroborating his statements.

Were we to extract all the passages of the "Variations of Popery," which are worthy of transcription, we should

copy a considerable portion of the work: we must therefore confine ourselves to the endeavour to give our readers an idea of the multifarious contents of his learned volume.

The introduction treats of the unity of protestants, the doctrinal harmony of the confessions of faith of the reformed churches, of which the author has given concise historical notices, and on the antiquity of the religion of protestants.* The antiquity of the protestant faith is easily shewn. The theology of the reformed is found in the Bible, in the writings of the fathers, especially the anteNicene fathers, in the primitive creeds, and in the early councils. Protestantism is contained in the Book of Revelation. The sacred volume is the repository of the reformed faith. The religion, therefore, which is written, as with sun-beams, in the New Testament, cannot, with any propriety, be denominated a novelty.

Chapter I. detects and exposes the VARIATIONS in the pontifical succession, historical, electoral, and moral. The episcopate, pretended to have been founded at Rome by Peter, is here shewn to be utterly destitute of foundation; while the repeated schisms between rival pontiffs mutually arrogating to themselves the attribute of infallibility, and anathematizing each other, proved that neither of them was or could be under the influence of the infallible spirit of truth.

In Chapter II. the author treats on GENERAL COUNCILS, which are as uncertain as the succession of the Roman pontiffs; one party in the Romish church computing them to

We commonly hear persons speak of the "protestant religion;" but this is an inaccurate term: for it sounds as if protestants had a religion by themselves, different from other Christians. The more proper expression is that used above, viz. the religion of protestants;" which means the pure Christianity of the New Testament, and is common to all professing Christians, only purged from the errors and corruptions gradually introduced into, and mingled with it, by the Church of Rome; against which errors and corruptions, several princes and states agreed to PROTEST at the time of the reformation.ED.

be eighteen in number, while another faction, agreeing with the preceding as to number, adopts different councils : and a third rejects either the whole, or part of the councils which are related to have intervened between the eighth and the sixteenth of these general conventions.

Chapter III. discusses the PRETENDED SUPREMACY of the pope, the origin and gradual assumption of whose usurped power are traced with great ability. The variations on this subject among the doctors of the one infallible Church are not a little amusing.

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In the succeeding Chapters (IV. to XI.) are severally discussed, INFALLIBILITY, pontifical, synodal, pontifical and synodal, and ecclesiastical;—the DEPOSING POWER, arrogated by the popes; the PERSECUTIONS inflicted by popes, kings, pseudo-saints, theologians, and councils;-the INVALIDATION of oaths, and profligate VIOLATIONS of the public faith; ARIANISM and SEMI-ARIANISM of councils and popes; the EUTYCHIANISM of some, and the MONOPHYSIANISM of others; the MONOTHELITISM of others; the PELAGIANISM of others; the disputes of the Dominicans against the Molenists, and of the Jesuits against the Jansenists. We especially recommend the chapter on popish persecutions: derived from popish authorities, its evidence of the unchangeably intolerant principles of popery, wherever popery is dominant, is such as must carry conviction to every mind that is not wilfully blinded by faction or by prejudice. The concise notice of the persecutions of the French protestants is particularly interesting: we regret that Mr. Edgar could not have access to the important documents printed at Paris, subsequently to the publication of his work, which shew the guilty privity of Charles IX. to the murderous conspiracy against his protestant subjects. †

+ Mr. Mendham has given an abstract of these precious documents in his interesting life of Saint Pius V. (which we purpose to notice in an early number of our journal)-the guilty fellow-conspirator of Charles IX.

TRANSUBSTANTIATION-IMAGE-WORSHIP-and PURGATORY, are treated at length in Chapters XII. to XIV; and the volume concludes with a history of the introduction of the constrained celibacy of the Clergy, together with all the abominations to which it gave rise.

From the preceding brief analysis, it will be seen that the author has directed his attacks, and most successfully, against the pretended unity, infallibility, antiquity, and immutability of Romanism. The conflicting opinions of pontiffs, doctors, councils, and synods, are collected and opposed to each other with unwearied industry: and one popish author is here satisfactorily confuted from another; while the unscriptural and antiscriptural innovations of popery in doctrine, discipline, and worship, are treated with a master's hand.

Mr. Edgar's work has already received the well-earned meed of approbation in Ireland, where, perhaps, its merits may be best appreciated. It is a most valuable accession to the library of every protestant, and especially of every protestant Clergyman; and we shall rejoice to know that we have been instrumental in extending its usefulness. We should recommend the addition of an index in a second impression, which we hope will, ere long, be required.

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The Messiah; A Poem, in Six Books, By ROBERT MONTGOMERY. London: Turrill. 1832. 8vo. Pp. 300. Ir the poem of Robert Montgomery has great faults, it has doubtless some redeeming beauties, though not frequent or fair enough, perhaps, to justify the efforts which he has made upon subjects far, very far beyond his reach. His attempts at the sublime are frequently unintelligible; and these are certainly his besetting faults: and yet he has some descriptions of simple beauty in the present poem, which are very effective. A churchyard scene is of this nature:

There is a haunt, whose quietude of scene
Accordeth well with hours of solemn hue,—
A churchyard, buried in a beauteous vale,
Besprinkled o'er with green and countless
graves,

And mossy tombs of unambitious pomp
Decaying into dust again. No step
Of mirth, no laughter of unfeeling life
Amid the calm of death, that spot profanes.
The skies o'erarch it with serenest love;
The winds, when visiting the dark-bough'd
elms,

An airy anthem sing; and birds and bees,
That in their innocence of summer joy,
Exult and carol with commingling glee,
But add to Solitude the lull of sound:
There is an ocean,-but his unheard waves
By noon entranced, in dreaming slumber
lie;

Or when the passion of a loud-wing'd gale Hath kindled them with sound, the stormy

tone

Of waters mellow'd into music, dies,

Like that which echoes from the world afar, Or lingers round the path of perish'd years! The Sabbath also is well described :

But ah! that day of spiritual delight, Revered of old, and by our fathers blest, The Sabbath! England, is thy halcyon

morn

Of holiness, when Heaven remembers thee With more pervading love, and sheds abroad

A balm that beautifies the face of things.

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