them love and revere the Holy Scriptures above all human writings, and draw your doctrine, your propositions, your very phrases and words from this source. If you do this, you will soon perceive that the Spirit of God will return and work through you, according to his almighty power, that which is pleasing in his sight. I must particularly request you to abstain in your pulpit addresses from the discussion of subjects purely controversial, as our fathers did. It is to be lamented, that, through a certain intellectual itching, this method is in some places become very general; so that ministers seem to take greater delight in confuting false doctrines, than teaching the true, to be more intent on pulling down than on building up, and thus infuse into the minds of their hearers, rather hatred than love; which is quite contrary to the example of Christ and his Apostles, inflicts visible injury on true godliness, and freezes Christian love among Christian people.

Imitate the simplicity of your ancestors in this respect. They felt no desire to be initiated into those subtleties, the discussion of which ought to be confined to the professor's chair; and under the conviction, that God was better pleased with a believing heart than an ingenious head; they taught their hearers to fight rather against their own sinfnl propensities, than against the errors of others. They felt certain, that on the day of final decision Christ would not enquire, what we had learned on earth, but rather what we had done; and that every one will receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad. In short, they were satisfied to follow the Apostle Paul, and to know nothing save Jesus Christ and him crucified, and to set him forth to the people.* Let this be your practice, and you will be faithful teachers of true Christianity.

It is not sufficient, however, that you preach the gospel, and for your own persons live conformably to its doctrines, but it behoves you to exhort and charge those committed to your care, to walk worthy of the gospel, and according to the power delegated to you, to subdue all things to the obedience of Christ. In this respect some of you have been too yielding,

* Math. xxv. 35.-1 Corinth. ii. 2.-Gal. iii. 1.

and through fear of man overlooked what deserved reproof. To such, I say, take courage. Others, through ignorance of the true nature of church-discipline, have endeavoured to attain their end by stern severity. To them, I say, amend your conduct. For it is easy to err on both sides, by doing too little, as well as by doing too much. If discipline is neglected, the bonds of order are slackened, and unrestrained liberty is given to sin. On the contrary, a too rigid discipline, which tries to force obedience, is inconsistent with real godliness, which must be voluntary, and either makes hypocrites, who through fear of punishment avoid transgressing, or engenders obstinacy and disregard of punishment, and induces the guilty in order to escape correction, to leave a church, where discipline is maintained. Observe, therefore, that kind of discipline which brings peace to the conscience, and does not cause uneasiness, hatred and ruin; and use the power which the Lord hath given you, to save and not to destroy. But, in order to do this, it is necessary that you exercise discipline, with unimpeachable impartiality, towards every one committed to your charge, that you be of the same mind on all occasions, and uniformly watch over the public welfare, and employ stricter or gentler means with due discretion, according to the circumstances of time and place, so that the measure of the same may be wisely adapted to the exigencies of the case. Above all it is required, that you should at no time be wanting in proper vigilance, in order to prevent transgressions and as far as possible cut off all opportunities to sin, and thereby render severer measures for amendment unnecessary.

And you, who constitute our flock, however few you may be in number, assist us with your fervent prayers to effect this holy work of our regeneration. For we all have sinned, each in his own way; therefore let us ALL repent, each for himself, that God may be gracious to all, and turn away his wrath from us.

Do not lose courage, dear brethren, for though the misery into which we have sunk, is exceedingly great; yet we have not sunk so deeply, but we may still be restored by the hand of Him, who "killeth and maketh alive, who bringeth down to the grave and bringeth up.

* 1 Sam ii. 6.

Were even our body to go to corruption, and our withered bones to lic scattered on the fields of the world, yet the Lord liveth, who can collect the dry bones, cover them with flesh and skin, and call from the four winds, the breath to come and breathe on those slain that they may live.* In plainer terms, God can raise unto himself in our stead and from our ashes, a people, who shall honor him, being enlightened by the same divine truth, inflamed by the same fire of love, and united by the same bonds of order and discipline; and thus the enemies who aim at the overthrow of the throne of Christ in the congregations of the faithful, shall be put to greater shame, and the encrease of His Church be more extensively promoted, than hath been done by us."

CHAP. IV.

STATE OF THE BRETHREN'S CHURCH AFTER THE LOSS OF RELIGIOUS LIBERTY IN BOHEMIA AND MORAVIA, TILL ITS REVIVAL IN GERMANY. FROM THE YEAR 1624 TO 1722.

THE CHURCH of the Brethren had now, without any external support, existed for more than a century and a half. During this period it weathered many a storm, and resisted the more dangerous blandishments of the world. Neither the rage of enemies nor the flattery of friends succeeded in corrupting the purity of doctrine and morals, which generally distinguished its members. Taught to receive the Word of God as the only infallible rule of faith and practice, its children were made wise unto salvation; and, nursed in the cradle of persecution, it gave to the world many noble Confessors, who, in the dungeon, at the stake, and on the scaffold, sealed their testimony of Jesus with their blood.

From a small seed it became a spreading tree, which by its ramifications afforded shelter and nourishment to many thousand travellers to Zion. This was the work of Him, who originally "called it out of darkness into his marvellous light, and ordained that it should bring forth fruit, and that its fruit should remain." The same almighty Lord, who had hitherto restrained the fury of the oppressor, and set bounds to the wrath of the enemy, did now, for wise and holy, though to us inscrutable, purposes, suffer the foe to triumph, and the candlestick of the Moravian Church to be removed.

While the war in Germany continued, the Protestants in Bohemia and Moravia still entertained hopes, that, after its ter

mination, their religious liberties would be restored. But these hopes vanished entirely when the war terminated. By the treaty of peace, concluded in Westphalia, in 1648, the kingdoms of Bohemia and Moravia came again under the papal yoke, and the Protestants, of every denomination, saw all their hopes of regaining religious liberty completely annihilated. No alternative was left them, but either to embrace popery, or, if their consciences forbade this, to prepare for the most violent and unrelenting persecution; for their enemies now had the sole power in their hands, and were not disinclined to use it to the uttermost. The secrecy, which those Protestants, who remained concealed in their native land, were forced to observe, prevented them from transmitting any authentic records of their history; whereby the world and the church have been deprived of many additional proofs of the rage of their adversaries, of the sufferings and constancy of many bold confessors of the truth, and of the grace and power of the omnipotent Lord of his Church, in preserving a race of faithful witnesses of His Word, whose light, though greatly obscured by the thick darkness, which covered their country, did here and there illumine the path of the bewildered pilgrim, and shew him the way to holiness and happiness. All, therefore, that can be done in this chapter, is to glean a few well authenticated facts concerning the circumstances of the Brethren's Church at this period, of which it may be said, that " its witnesses prophesied, clothed in sackcloth.”

On the re-commencement of persecution in Bohemia and Moravia, the Protestants sought deliverance by emigrations, which, notwithstanding all the impediments thrown in their way, was effected by thousands. The majority went into Saxony and Upper Lusatia, to the Erzgebirge, Voightland and Franconia, which were Protestant States. In some instances they built whole villages, and formed colonies of their own. In larger towns they were for a while accommodated with churches and chose their own ministers. Great companies also went into Prussia and Silesia, where they were well received and patronized by the duke of Brieg. By degrees, however, they became mixed with the other inhabitants, discontinued the use of their native