in the church, you are not certain that it will be after the death
or removal of the present incumbent; and then what are the pious
members of the church to do, if you now shut up your chapel? Would
it not be more prudent on your part, to secure the permanent
continuance of the gospel in the parish, by perpetuating its public
ministrations in your chapel, than thus hazard its entire expulsion?
If you adopt this plan, there will be a place of refuge for the
piety of the parish, if at any future time it should be compelled to
retire from the Established church."
"Such a plan, I have no doubt," replied Mr. Stevens, "would meet
with the approbation of many pious Dissenters; but I am not disposed
to adopt it. If, under the ministry of our present Rector, the
people should receive the truth, not as the word of man, but as
the word of God, they will not suffer it to disappear from amongst
them, even if they should be deprived of it in the church; but will
most certainly avail themselves of their rights as British freemen,
and erect for themselves a chapel, in which they may worship God
according to the dictates of their conscience, and enjoy a ministry
of their own choice."
But while the sun of prosperity was shining on the parish of Aston,
dispelling the gloom of ignorance and superstition which had hovered
over it for many years, it was setting on the adjoining hamlet,
which had for a longer time enjoyed the light of truth, leaving the
people in a most disconsolate state. "To lose our old pastor,"
said an old Christian to Mr. Lewellin, "was a great loss; but to
have the candlestick removed from amongst us, and the light thereof
extinguished, is a much greater loss. While we had the light we
rejoiced in it; but I fear that, like the church of Ephesus, we have
lost our first love; and as we have not repented and done our first
works, the Lord has visited us with this grievous judgment."
A few of the more influential members of the Establishment met at
Mr. Lewellin's to consider what plan they ought to adopt on the
present occasion. As they venerated the Church, and felt an ardent
attachment to its forms and ceremonies, they were unwilling to
withdraw from her communion. One gentleman said, he had been to
consult the Rev. Mr. Guion, who gave it as his decided opinion
that they should still attend their parish church, and pray for
the conversion of the new Rector. "If," he said, "you have not
the gospel in the pulpit, you have it in the desk; and though it
may not please God to answer your prayers, yet you will have this
compensation for the sacrifice you will be called upon to make--that
you have remained faithful to your Church."
"I have no wish to leave the Church," replied another; "but I must
hear the gospel. I am commanded to take heed _what I hear_; and if
I disobey this injunction, how can I expect to enjoy the Divine
blessing?" In this opinion they all concurred; and as they could
attend the neighbouring church, it was proposed that they should sit
under the ministry of the new Rector at Aston.
"But," said Mr. Lewellin, "though we who have vehicles can easily
go three or four miles on the Sabbath-day, to enjoy a pure and an
enlightened ministry, yet what are the poor and the infirm to do?
They cannot attend; and shall we leave them to spend the remainder
of their days in a state of spiritual destitution? Have they no
claim on our benevolent feelings? Shall we, by deserting them in
this their low estate, allow them to go and utter the mournful
complaint at the footstool of the Divine throne, '_No man careth for
our souls_?' Shall we provide no spiritual comforter, but suffer
them to live and die without having one near them to administer the
consolations of religion? Shall we stand still and see this fine
moral inheritance falling back into its original state of ignorance
and vice; when, by acting that part which our deceased pastor more
than once recommended, we may be the means of preserving it from
decay? Did he not say, in the last sermon he preached to us, that he
hoped the Lord would provide another minister, who would preach the
gospel to us either in the church, _or elsewhere_? And in a private
conversation, on the evening of his departure, he said, in reply to
a question, 'The great Shepherd _may pitch another fold, and lead
you to another pasturage_.'"
"If," said a gentleman, "I were to consult my own inclination, I
should still attend with my family at Broadhurst; but I do not
think we should act a generous or a Christian part if we were to
make no effort to establish a gospel ministry in the parish. Cannot
we do what Mr. Stevens did under similar circumstances? and then,
if it should please God at any future time, to favour us with a
Rector who will preach the same doctrines as those which we have
been accustomed to hear, we can return to the Church, and live and
die in her communion. And if not, we shall have this compensation
for the sacrifice which we shall be called to make, that we have
acted in accordance with the wishes of our deceased pastor, and, I
trust, in accordance with the will of our Lord and Master." This
suggestion was eagerly seized by several others; and it was finally
determined to build a neat chapel, large enough to contain about
500 worshippers; and to obtain the permanent labours of some good
minister of Jesus Christ. As soon as this decision was made known,
the pious villagers expressed their gratitude in the most affecting
terms; and offered to contribute, out of the depths of their
poverty, towards the necessary expenses which would be incurred; but
their more wealthy Christian brethren rather chose to bear the whole
burden among themselves.
One gentleman gave a piece of freehold land, on which the chapel
was erected; and adjoining it, a house for the minister, with
a large garden attached. It was built within the space of six
months; and by the exertions of Mr. Lewellin, Mr. Drew, a pious and
intelligent young man, was appointed to take the pastoral charge of
the people. Being of a catholic spirit, and wishing to render his
public ministrations generally acceptable, he prudently consented
to read the Liturgy of the Church of England. Though, at first,
some of the people sighed, and others wept as they passed by the
venerable building in which for so many years they had worshipped
the God of their fathers, yet in process of time they felt an
equal degree of attachment to this second temple, which, if less
imposing in its appearance, contained the Shechinah of truth, which
departed from the altar when the venerable Ingleby fell asleep in
Jesus. Some years after, in a conversation with the intelligent
clerk, who held the same office in the chapel as he had filled in
the church, he informed me, that his pastor bore a near resemblance
to the deceased Rector, in the amiability of his temper, and in
the ardour of his zeal for the salvation of his hearers, though he
differed from him in the manner and style of his preaching. "The
Rector, Sir," he remarked, "was a son of consolation, from whose
lips the words of mercy fell in soft and subduing accents on the
ears of the congregation; Mr. Drew is a Boanerges, the thunder of
whose eloquence awes us by its majesty; but when he has wrought up
our feelings to the highest degree of terror, he suddenly shifts the
scene, and exhibits to our view the Lamb of God, who takes away the
sins of the world. Mr. Ingleby, I think, had the finest imagination,
but Mr. Drew has the most powerful intellect; and though the former
could enter into all the variations of Christian experience with the
greatest ease, yet the latter applies the truth with equal force
to the wounded conscience. Mr. Ingleby was distinguished by the
gracefulness of his manner; Mr. Drew excels in the force and dignity
of his delivery; and though we shall never cease to respect the
memory of our former pastor, we are equally attached to our present.
Under his ministry, no less than under that of his predecessor,
many have been reclaimed from the error of their ways to the wisdom
of the just; while the young and the more advanced Christian have
been built up in the faith and the hope of the gospel. The poor are
visited in their cottages; the dying have a spiritual comforter
with them in their last moments; and over the whole parish a moral
vigilance is exercised, which receives the sanction of all the wise
and the good."
After witnessing the changes which a few years had made in the
external establishment of religion in these two parishes, while the
same moral process was going on in the salvation of the people, I
felt how superior, in its nature and tendency, is the spirit of
the gospel to that of religious bigotry. Had Mr. Stevens felt a
bigoted attachment to the principle of dissent, he would have kept
open his chapel after the settlement of Mr. Hartley at Aston, and
thus have divided the people into two distinct societies; while
the congregation at Broadhurst, if they had venerated the church
in which the venerable Ingleby had so long preached, more than
the truth which he delivered, would have been left without an
evangelical ministry. But by acting the part of wisdom and of piety,
they perpetuated the truth in each parish, without occasioning
any division amongst those who were attached to it. Though in one
village they sat to hear its enunciations on unconsecrated ground,
while in the other it addressed them within the walls of the
Establishment; yet as it derived none of its importance or worth
from the places in which it is proclaimed, nor from the ministers
who preached it, they mutually received it with meekness, as the
engrafted word which is able to save the soul. Nor can I doubt that
the Saviour visited with equal delight each congregation which
assembled together in his name--that the Divine Spirit conveyed
the same resistless energy to the Dissenting as to the Episcopal
ministry--that the angels of heaven hovered over the village
chapel with as much pleasure as over the village church; and
that those who were made meet for glory on unconsecrated ground,
were received with equal rapture by the spirits of the just made
perfect, as their brethren who had worshipped within the pale of
the Establishment. They differed in their relation to the external
forms of Christianity, but possessing its pure and heavenly spirit,
they stood in the same relation to Jesus Christ, who was their
Saviour--to the Holy Ghost, who was their Comforter--and to heaven,
which was their undefiled inheritance; and when, at the appointed
time, any of them departed this life, they were neither commended
nor censured for their denominative attachments while on earth,
but admitted into the joy of their Lord as sinners redeemed by his
blood. A friendly intercourse was kept up between the pious members
of the two churches and their respective pastors, which demonstrated
to the villagers that their religion was substantially the same in
its nature and in its design, though it differed in a few external
ceremonies. If they went to church, it was to worship God--to
confess their sins--and to hear the glad tidings of salvation; and
if they went to the village chapel, it was to engage in the same
hallowed exercises, and listen to the same gospel of peace. As
they felt no superstitious attachment to the places in which they
assembled, nor imagined that the Episcopal form of ordination gave
to the clergyman a degree of sanctity which the Dissenting minister
did not possess, they intermingled in each other's society, not
to wrangle or contend for superiority, but to cultivate the unity
of their faith, and display the excellence of that grace which
"teacheth us, that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should
live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world." Is it
not to be regretted, that a similar spirit has not been uniformly
cherished amongst the disciples of Jesus Christ? but, alas! they
have in general caught the spirit of the mother of Zebedee's
children, rather than that of their Master, and have been struggling
for the ascendency, instead of living in harmony with each other.
And is it not to this cause, more than any deficiency of evidence,
that we may fairly account for the too general rejection of the
gospel; for can we expect others to believe in its Divine origin,
when they see those who embrace it with the greatest eagerness,
displaying an intolerant temper, and refusing to hold communion with
each other because they happen to differ on a few points of opinion,
which they all acknowledge to be of secondary importance? Every
Christian should examine the following prayer of Jesus Christ, and
the reason which he assigned for presenting it:--"Neither pray I for
these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through
their word; that they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me,
and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may
believe that thou hast sent me. And the glory which thou gavest me
I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one: I in
them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that
the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as
thou hast loved me" (John xvii. 20-23).
When the spirit of religious bigotry takes possession of the
youthful breast, we naturally feel disposed to attribute it to the
immaturity of the judgment, or a deficiency in Christian principles.
We therefore conclude, that in more advanced life these unamiable
qualities will disappear, and a cordial attachment will be formed
for all of every denomination who love our Lord Jesus Christ in
sincerity and in truth. This, I believe, is generally the case,
though we sometimes see the evil spirit of bigotry souring the
temper of aged Christians, contracting their benevolence, and
rendering them more disposed to live apart from their brethren, than
on terms of friendly intercourse; and if we venture to remonstrate
with them, we are gravely told that they must preserve the
consistency of their character. Consistency! And why not preserve
the consistency of their character as Christians, who are required
to love each other as brethren, rather than the consistency of their
character as religious bigots, who neglect the weightier matters
of the law, to cultivate the mint and cummin of ecclesiastical
alienation and intolerance? Why not, when peculiar circumstances
require it, overlook the little points of difference that exist
between them; and unite as those who are endowed with the same
spirit of faith--who are governed by the same authority, and who are
moving on to the same state of blessedness and glory?
There were a few Dissenters who could not conscientiously worship
within the walls of the Establishment, even though they revered the
character of the new Rector at Aston, and approved of his ministry.
Not being able to support a society of their own denomination, they
subjected themselves to the inconvenience and expense of travelling
several miles every Sabbath to enjoy the privilege of communion
with their brethren at Broadhurst. But though they could not unite
with their fellow-Christians at Aston in the exercises of public
devotion, they were, nevertheless, zealous in co-operating with them
in the execution of those plans of benevolence which related to
the moral improvement and the temporal advantage of the hamlet in
which they resided. A latitudinarian would be disposed to censure
this unbending spirit in reference to public worship, and feel
himself justified in holding it up to general reprobation; but a
wise man will be sparing of his animadversions on conscientious
scruples, when they are not suffered to disturb the harmony of
friendly intercourse, and do not disqualify those who feel them from
uniting with others of a different faith in the cultivation of the
affections and charities of social life.
The Rev. Mr. Guion, who resided within a few miles of Broadhurst,
and who had been for many years the devoted friend of the venerable
Ingleby, was so much displeased when the pious members of the
congregation seceded from the ministry of Mr. Porteous, that he
broke off all intercourse with them, and not unfrequently expressed
his censures in rather strong language. As they chose, in opposition
to his advice, to withdraw from the pale of the Establishment,
though he knew that their new Rector preached another gospel
than that which they had heard from the lips of their deceased
pastor, he looked upon them as schismatics, with whom he could not
associate, even in the ordinary familiarities of friendship, without
endangering his reputation as a clergyman of the Church of England.
Though he admitted that some moral good might possibly result from
the establishment of a Dissenting ministry in the village, yet he
thought the evil would more than counter-balance it. He was a good
man, but not a perfect man; a zealous minister of the everlasting
gospel, but he wished that gospel to be preached only within the
pale of the Established church; and though in private life he
exhibited many traits of the Christian character, yet they were
rather too strongly marked by the blemishes of a sectarian spirit.
He occasionally met Mr. Drew, the Dissenting clergyman at
Broadhurst, at the anniversaries of the various Bible Societies in
the country, and also at the houses of Mr. Stevens and Mr. Lewellin.
On these occasions he behaved to him with all the courtesy of a
gentleman, but for a long while he appeared more disposed to shun
than to court his society. He spoke of Mr. Drew in terms of respect,
but not with the warmth of a brotherly affection as one minister
of Jesus Christ should speak of another. On one occasion, having
spoken rather more unguardedly than usual, Miss Ryder, who was one
of his own hearers, with a delicate severity of rebuke, said, "I
presume, Sir, when an angel of the Lord reports to his fellow-angels
that a sinner on earth is brought to repentance, they do not pause
to inquire whether he is a Churchman or a Dissenter before their
rejoicing begins."
"And I suppose," remarked Mrs. Stevens, "when they receive their
appointment to minister to any of the heirs of salvation, they do
not pause in their embassy, contending which shall have the honour
of waiting on a Conformist, in preference to a Nonconformist."
This colloquy was here joined by Mr. Ryder, who was as catholic in
his spirit, as he was decided in his love of the truth. "To me,"
he observed, "the ecclesiastical distinctions between church and
dissent, on which some rest such importance, appear superlatively
little and unimportant, when put in comparison with the essential
doctrines of the common salvation; and the less attention we pay
to them the better is it, I think, for our own peace and Christian
consistency. I am a Churchman in part, because I was educated as
one; and because I can hear the gospel preached by her clergy. If,
however, I were living in a parish where the gospel is disowned,
as it is at Broadhurst, I am sure I should, without a moment's
hesitation, turn a Dissenter, rather than not hear it."
"And so should I," said several voices.
It is satisfactory to be able to add, that Mr. Guion's prejudices
gradually subsided, and that in course of time he returned to the
catholic and liberal spirit which he had formerly displayed when
he contributed so generously to the necessities of the Rev. Mr.
Powell.[42] Though, in the views held by him regarding the great
body of Christians, he never attained to the largeness of heart
so eminently displayed by Mr. Ingleby; he bore, nevertheless, in
his character a strong resemblance to that excellent pastor, and
appeared as his living representative in all that was lovely and of
good report.
[42] Vol. i. p. 224.
A FAREWELL TO OLD FRIENDS.
On quitting Fairmount, to return home, the reader will recollect
that I left Mrs. Orme to remain for a short time longer at Rockhill,
as Mrs. Lewellin felt much depressed in spirits by her father's
death, and required the presence of a cheerful and affectionate
friend to enable her gradually to dispel her grief, and regain her
wonted interest in her ordinary domestic employments. Mrs. Orme's
stay was protracted much longer than she originally intended, and
the close of the year had nearly arrived before her kind friends
would allow her to depart. During the period of her sojourn at
Rockhill, she had gained many friends, who were attracted as much by
the unsophisticated kindness and liveliness of her disposition as by
her painfully interesting and romantic history. Among others, none
formed a greater intimacy than Miss Ryder, who, with her brother,
was now a frequent visitor at Rockhill and Fairmount. Mrs. Orme
was invited to spend a few days at Aston, where she found herself
exceedingly happy in the cheerful society of her new friend Anna,
and the hearty hospitality of her brother, who was led to take
a deep interest in his guest from the fancied resemblance which
she bore to Matilda Denham, the departed object of his youthful
affections. On taking leave of Mr. and Miss Ryder, Mrs. Orme made
the latter promise that she would pay her a visit in the course of
the ensuing summer, at the Elms, as Anna generally went to London
once a-year to visit an elder sister, who had been married and
settled there for some years.
About two months after Mrs. Orme's departure from Rockhill, Mr.
Ingleby died, as narrated in a foregoing chapter, and was shortly
followed to the grave by Mr. Cole, the Sector of the parish in
which Mr. and Miss Ryder resided. The reader is already aware of
the remarkable religious revolution which now took place in Aston
and the adjoining parish of Broadhurst, though of a very lamentable
description in the latter place. In the course of the same spring,
Mrs. Orme received intelligence of her husband's death, an event
which naturally excited painful emotions in her breast, though,
considering his past conduct, her grief for his loss could neither
be very deep nor poignant. Her little boy was now nearly two years
old, a lovely child both in appearance and disposition, and an
immense favourite with his grandfather, who had insisted on his
mother leaving him at the Elms when she went to visit her friends in
the west of England.
On hearing of Captain Orme's death, Miss Ryder judged it best to
defer her visit to the Elms; and consequently it was not till
the following year that she had again the pleasure of renewing
her friendship with Mrs. Orme, and thus becoming acquainted with
the other members of her family. Nothing could exceed the kind
attention paid her by Mr. and Mrs. Holmes, who felt grateful for the
kindness she had shown to Emma while at Aston. They insisted on her
remaining for a considerable period with them, and also that Mr.
Ryder should pay a visit to the Elms, and take his sister home.
Mr. and Mrs. Holmes had been much pleased with Miss Ryder, and also
with her brother when he arrived at the Elms. The happy change,
too, in his religious character, which had now taken place, led to
a strong congeniality of feeling in the intercourse between him and
his worthy host and hostess. Many a delightful excursion was taken
by the family in company with their guests; a feeling of happiness
pervaded every member of the household; and for the first time since
the death of Louisa, the family regained their former liveliness and
buoyancy of spirits. It was noticed, however, that on all occasions
Mr. Ryder contrived to secure the company of Mrs. Orme to himself,
both in the family excursions or when at home at the Elms. Various
excuses were invented to favour their being by themselves, without
awakening suspicion, which frequently excited a smile, and sometimes
a good-humoured sarcasm from her sister Jane.
"Dear, dear," said Mrs. Orme, "I left a small needle-case in the
alcove where we were sitting last evening."
"I will run, Emma, and fetch it."
"By no means, dear Jane, I won't trouble you; I can very readily put
my hand upon it."