several days, and every preparation was made to render their visit
pleasant and profitable. At length they came; and though the Rev.
Mr. Roscoe was a reformed man, yet he discovered no signs of being
a spiritual one. He was become more moral in his habits, but less
tolerant in spirit; and soon convinced his brother and his niece
that "the things which are seen and temporal" had a more powerful
ascendency over him than those "which are unseen and eternal." He
declined the invitation of the Rev. Mr. Cole, to preach on the
following Sabbath, as he was too much fatigued by his journey to
do duty; but consented to accompany the family to church. It was
a beautiful morning, still and serene; no sound was heard but the
melody of the birds, and the "church-going bell." Mr. Cole read
the Liturgy in his usual heavy, monotonous tone, which was no less
offensive to the ear, than a certain air of carelessness which hung
over his manner was repulsive of devotional feeling. He announced
his text in an elevated pitch of voice, which immediately arrested
the attention of his congregation. "The subject," he remarked,
"which I shall submit to you this morning, is taken from the tenth
chapter of St. Paul the apostle's Epistle to the Romans, and the
second verse:--'For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God,
but not according to knowledge.'"
He began by declaiming against the spirit and the conduct of the
ancient Pharisees, who were, he asserted, the troublers of the
church in a former age; and then expressed his deep regret that
the sect was not yet become extinct, but was even at this moment
augmenting its numbers, and threatening, by its untempered zeal,
and its invincible ignorance, to tarnish the lustre and destroy
the foundation of the church which is fostering them in her bosom.
"If," said he, "we run a comparison between the modern Calvinists,
who unhappily stand connected with our venerable Establishment--the
admiration and envy of the world--and the ancient Pharisees, we
shall find that they bear a close resemblance to each other; and
though a good man will pause before he gathers on his lips the
denunciations of inspired writ, yet a high sense of duty compels me
to say that the woes which our Saviour uttered against the latter,
stand directly pointed against the former. The ancient Pharisees set
aside the weightier matters of the law to attend to the ceremonials
of religion; they prescribed no bounds to their proselyting spirit,
for they would encompass sea and land to gain _even one_ proselyte;
and when they had gained him, our Saviour says that they made him
twofold more a child of hell than themselves, though they made
bolder and higher pretensions to religion than any other sect.
And who, when looking at this picture of the ancient Pharisees,
does not recognize the portrait of our modern Calvinists?--'For I
bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according
to knowledge.' But the modern Calvinists conduct themselves with
less reverence for the authority of our church, than the Pharisees
discovered for the authority of theirs; for they will dare to
reject some of our established doctrines, and explain away the
import of some of our long-settled rites and sacraments."
He then went on to prove, by quotations from the fathers and the
Book of Common Prayer, that baptismal regeneration is the only
regeneration which is necessary or possible; and positively asserted
that the conversion of persons who are already members of the
apostolic Church of England, is a mere fiction of modern fanaticism.
"These Calvinistic clergy," he added, "declaim against good works,
and exalt a dogmatic belief in certain crude opinions, as the only
necessary condition on which sinners can obtain the forgiveness
of Almighty God." Then he attempted to prove that the people must
necessarily become corrupt, among whom salvation is proclaimed,
without requiring, on their part, good works as the essential
condition of its bestowment.
"Look, my hearers," he exclaimed, "on the destructive tendency
of their style of preaching. As soon as the officiating priest
opens his lips and gives utterance to his sentiments, there is an
instantaneous commotion in his congregation. Those who lived in
peace are split into divisions, and the family or the village which
held the unity of the faith, as propounded by our pure apostolic
church, suddenly becomes the arena of religious disputations and
wrangling, and the temple of peace and unity becomes a Babel of
confusion and discord.
"Indeed, in _some instances_, children will rise up in rebellion
against the authority of their parents, till the parents, wearied by
their obstinacy, or subdued by their importunity, imbibe the same
fatal opinions, that they may regain their domestic peace.
"These priests are zealous, and they pretend that they have a
zeal of God; but it is the fire and the smoke, whose effect is to
darken and to desolate, rather than that clear and radiant light
which warms while it illumines, and gives a verdant bloom to every
springing blade and opening bud, while it directs the passenger
onwards on his journey. In a word, the labours of these men,
wherever they are successful (and such is the fatality attending
them that they are always successful), tend to give a retrograde
movement to our social habits and enjoyments, and to carry us back
to the gloomy times of the Commonwealth, when the Puritanical
devotee was seen weeping between the porch and the altar, but never
indulging himself in the innocent recreations of life.
"In fine, I feel myself compelled once more to warn you against
their doctrines, as contrary to the doctrines of our incomparable
prayer-book; to warn you against associating with them, or hearing
them preach, as you may be entangled by their sophistry before
you are aware, and while you will deplore, in common with myself
and others, their existence within the pale of our pure apostolic
church, you will endeavour, by your influence and your example, to
check the progress of the moral contagion which they have introduced
among us. That the common people, who know not the Scriptures, and
who despise the authority of their authorized teachers, should
embrace the Calvinistic doctrines, is not surprising, because they
give them a complete indemnity against every species of crime,
but that any of the well-educated and intelligent members of
society--any who have not sacrificed their virtue nor lost their
taste--should feel a predilection for them, is one of those moral
mysteries which can be accounted for only from one of two causes--a
partial derangement of intellect, or the magic charm of enthusiasm.
"To conclude: Are they zealous in propagating their doctrines?
be you zealous in opposing them; are they zealous in gaining
proselytes? be you zealous in reclaiming them; are they zealous in
putting an end to all the innocent enjoyments of social life? do you
display a superior degree of zeal in preventing such a fatal evil,
that we may enjoy life as we have been accustomed to enjoy it in our
social circles, and thus prove to a sceptical and a fanatical age,
that we can be religious without being melancholy or morose, and fit
ourselves for the happiness of a future world without sacrificing
the pleasures of the present."
When the service was concluded, the Roscoes walked home together,
but no one made any reference to the sermon, as all felt convinced
that it was directed against Mr. Roscoe, who appeared, during
the whole of the afternoon, unusually reserved. This reserve was
regarded by some of the family as a decisive evidence that the
sermon had produced its intended effect; and the polite and friendly
manner in which he received the Rev. Mr. Cole, who called in the
evening, seemed to confirm this opinion. Next morning, as they sat
at breakfast, the Rev. Mr. Roscoe said that he had anticipated
great pleasure from his visit, but, he added, "I certainly did not
anticipate the feast of delight which I enjoyed yesterday. Mr. Cole
surpassed himself. I think he gave us a correct portraiture of
modern Calvinism. O, it is a gloomy system of religion! just suited
for fanatics or enthusiasts. Don't you think Mr. Cole a very clever
and a very intelligent man?"
"Yes," replied Mr. Roscoe, "I think him clever and intelligent,
and a man of rather extensive reading. We have often passed many
pleasant evenings together in discussing literary and scientific
questions, and I have uniformly admired his dexterity in reasoning,
and the aptness of his illustrations; but, in my opinion, something
more than learning and intelligence is necessary to enable a person
to understand the scheme of salvation which is contained in the
Scriptures."
"But I presume you do not intend, like our modern fanatics, to
depreciate learning and intelligence?"
"No; I think a Christian minister cannot be too learned nor too
intelligent, but learned men do not always understand the things of
the Spirit of God, and some of the most intelligent have been known
to imbibe the most erroneous opinions. This, I suppose, you will
not deny; does it not then necessarily follow that something more
than learning and intelligence is requisite to enable a person to
understand the Scriptures?"
"O! I see you have imbibed one of the notions of our modern
fanatics. And is it possible that you can give up your understanding
to the dominion of fanaticism, which avows sentiments not less
derogatory to the dignity of man, than its unintelligible jargon is
offensive to pure taste? They say that no one can understand the
gospel unless he is taught by the Spirit of God. They think we must
be inspired to enable us to understand the Scriptures, which were
given by Divine inspiration, and which are able of themselves to
make us wise unto salvation."
"You have made several allusions to modern fanatics, and, from your
mode of expression, I conclude that you hold them in contempt."
"In sovereign contempt. They are the troublers of the church, and I
wish it were in my power to expel them."
"But if you were to expel all from the church who believe in the
necessity of a Divine illumination to enable us to understand the
Scriptures, you would retain none but those who disbelieve her
doctrines. In the homily on reading the Holy Scriptures you will
find the following passage: 'And in reading of God's Word he not
always most profiteth that is most ready in the turning of the
book, or in saying of it without the book, but he that is most
turned into it, that is, the most inspired with the Holy Ghost.'
And is there not, through the whole of the public service of our
church, a constant reference to the Holy Spirit as the agent by whom
the ignorant are instructed, the impure cleansed, and the morally
wretched consoled and made happy? Read the collect for Whitsunday:
'God, who as at this time didst teach the hearts of thy faithful
people by the sending to them the light of thy Holy Spirit, grant
us, by the same Spirit, to have a right judgment in all things,
and evermore to rejoice in his holy comfort, through the merits of
Christ Jesus our Saviour.' And if you turn to the service which
was read when you entered into priest's orders, you will find the
following verse, which breathes a language no less fervent than
scriptural:--
'Come, Holy Ghost! our souls inspire,
And lighten with celestial fire;
Thy blessed unction from above
Is comfort, life, and fire of love;
Enable with perpetual light
The dulness of our blinded sight.'
Can language more clearly or more forcibly express the necessity of
a Divine influence to aid us to understand the meaning of the Word
of God? And ought those to be stigmatized as fanatics, and expelled
from the church, who _actually_ believe their own recorded faith?
That would be an act of injustice no less flagrant than if a ruler
were to banish the faithful and loyal subject, while the convicted
traitor is permitted to enjoy the protection of the law and the
emoluments of office."
"But you will admit that there are fanatics in the church, who hold
some strange opinions, which do essential injury to society?"
"I admit that there are men who are called fanatics by those who do
not understand the doctrines of their own church. I once regarded
every zealous, and spiritual, and useful clergyman as a fanatic;
but, like others, I affixed no definite meaning to the epithet
which I employed. I found the word already coined, and I used it;
but I have since discovered its spurious qualities, and, as far as
my influence extends, I will prevent its circulation. We ought not
to stigmatize those who differ from us. If we think them wrong, we
ought to try to reclaim them, but in doing so we should make no
sacrifice of the spirit of the Christian, or the courtesy of the
gentleman."
"Then I presume you did not approve of the sermon which you heard
yesterday?"
"I did not approve of the _temper_ which Mr. Cole displayed. The
pulpit is a sacred place, and he who occupies it should always bear
a near resemblance _in spirit_, if he cannot in manner, to the
Prince of Peace. The weapons of the Christian minister never do any
execution except they are spiritual, and then they become mighty,
through God, to the pulling down of the strongholds of error, and
destroying the barriers which prejudice has raised against the
reception of the truth, and then the mind willingly submits to its
authority."
"I must confess that he was rather severe, perhaps too much so for
the sanctity of the pulpit; but the severity of his spirit did not
weaken the force of his arguments."
"But a bad spirit will often induce a wavering hearer to suspect
that the arguments are defective. An affectionate manner insinuates
itself into the heart, renders it soft and pliable, and disposes
it to imbibe the sentiments and follow the impulse of the speaker.
Whoever has attended to the effect of addresses from the pulpit,
must have perceived how much of their impression depends upon
this quality. But, instead of being cool and dispassionate in
his reasoning, and leading on the congregation from one stage of
conviction to another, by a regular process of proof, treating his
erring opponent as a fond parent treats a disobedient child, with
affection, even while a paramount regard for his welfare urges to
correction, Mr. Cole advanced with impetuosity into the heat of
the debate, dogmatized when he ought to have argued, instituted
invidious comparisons when he ought to have made an effort to
conciliate prejudices, denounced when he ought to have entreated,
and certainly left an impression on my mind that the display
I witnessed yesterday had little of the loving temper of pure
Christianity."
"But," said Mrs. Roscoe, "I really thought, from the friendly manner
in which you received Mr. Cole last evening, that his discourse in
the morning had given you as much pleasure as it gave us. Indeed, I
do not think that his spirit was bad; he spoke certainly with more
warmth than usual, but then he was anxious to convince you, I have
no doubt, of the errors which you have recently imbibed, and to warn
you of their dangerous tendency."
"If Mr. Cole displayed an antichristian temper in the pulpit, that
is no reason why I should behave unlike a gentleman in the parlour.
I shall always be glad to see him, and will treat him with the
respect which is due to his character and his office. If he thinks
I have imbibed any erroneous opinions, I shall have no objection to
give him an opportunity of correcting them; but if he calculated on
disturbing my belief in the doctrines of the Scriptures and of our
church, which I have recently embraced, he, by his mode of attack
yesterday, supplied a fresh proof of the adage, _that intolerance
defeats its own purpose_, as I am, if possible, more deeply
convinced of their truth and importance than I was before I heard
his sermon."
"I had heard," said Mrs. John Roscoe, "a great deal about Mr. Cole
before I left home, of his learning, and of his eloquence, and I
went to church yesterday with very high expectations; but I was
sadly disappointed. I listened to his sermon with great attention,
but I did not like either the sentiments, or the spirit, or the
design of the sermon. He was, when in the pulpit, more like a
gladiator aiming a deadly thrust at some living opponent, than a
minister of Jesus Christ preaching the truth in love. It certainly,
but no thanks to him, has put some new thoughts into my heart, which
I feel to be weighty and important, but which at present exist there
in a very wild and incoherent state."
"I am happy to hear you say so, dear aunt," said Miss Roscoe, "as
the incipient thoughts of a spirit, on entering and passing through
the great renovating process of Divine grace, are usually wild and
incoherent; but, in a short time, they are always reduced to obvious
and intelligible order."
"I don't quite understand you, my dear."
"But you will soon, dear aunt. The roll of Divine truth opens
gradually, and what at first is obscure and indistinct, becomes,
in the progressive unfolding, clear, intelligible, and perceptibly
harmonious; and then the comprehension of the wondrous scheme of
human redemption and salvation, against which we had yesterday
morning such a tirade of misrepresentation and abuse, is an easy,
and, I may add, a necessary action of the mind. The prophet Hosea,
speaking under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, says to the now
thinking inquirer, 'Then shall you know, if you follow on to know
the Lord.'"
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION A FICTION.
The right of private judgment on every question which stands
connected with the present or future happiness of man, is an
unalienable privilege. The exercise of this right has been, and
still is, proscribed by the genius of superstition; but the spirit
of Christianity not only sanctions but establishes it; and we are
commanded to bring every opinion which may be submitted to us to the
test of a close and severe examination. We are not to be controlled
or governed by the authority of men of learning, nor are we to
receive a doctrine as true, because it bears the marks of antiquity.
The priests of the Romish Church lay claim to infallibility; but
this extraordinary endowment is withheld from the laity, who are
commanded to receive, most implicitly, everything which they
advance, however repugnant to reason, or contrary to the Scriptures.
But this prostration of the understanding before the majesty of
the priesthood, and this tame submission to all the doctrines and
precepts which they may enforce, is an act which no intelligent
Protestant can perform.
If, then, we refuse to surrender the government of our reason
to the absolute authority of the ministers of one church, which
arrogates to itself the attribute of infallibility, shall we do it
to those of another, which makes no such lofty pretensions? We ought
unquestionably to hold in high estimation those who administer to us
the word of life; but as they are men encompassed with infirmities,
often differing from each other on the most essential articles of
the Christian faith, and liable to err in common with ourselves, it
is no less our duty than our privilege to compare what they advance
from the pulpit or from the press with the testimony of the Bible.
Did not Jesus Christ urge his hearers to search the Scriptures? and
when the apostle Paul wrote to the church at Corinth, he employed
these words:--"I speak as to wise men; judge ye what I say."
There is too much reason to fear, that while we boast of our freedom
from the spiritual dominion under which our forefathers groaned
before the Reformation, we are getting back into a state of bondage,
by voluntarily and pertinaciously adhering to ancient opinions on
religious subjects without investigating them; and hence, so few
among us are capable of distinguishing truth from error. Indeed,
so unpopular is the calm investigation of religious truth become
among a certain class of Christians, that it is deprecated as one
of the early symptoms of fanaticism. They will go to church, utter
their solemn responses, and listen to the sermon; but to compare the
sentiments of the sermon with the language of the Scripture, to see
if there be a strict accordance between what they hear and what they
read, or ought to read, is a practice which many would condemn, and
which comparatively few will adopt. Is it then surprising that we
meet with so many who are as ignorant of the Scriptures and of the
articles of their own church as they are of the Koran of Mahomet or
the Shasters of the Hindoos? Nor is this charge directed exclusively
against the lower orders of society, for it is equally applicable
to those who occupy high places in the intellectual, social, and
literary world.
* * * * *
In the evening, as the ladies of the family were attending to their
needle-work, the Rev. Mr. Roscoe made an allusion to the sermon
which Mr. Cole delivered on the preceding Sabbath, and said, that
though the spirit which he displayed might be objected to, and some
of his arguments might be deemed inconclusive, yet he decidedly
agreed with him on the subject of baptismal regeneration. He went
on to say--"I know that the evangelical clergy maintain that every
person, even the most moral and virtuous, must undergo an internal
change before they can be fitted for the kingdom of heaven; but, as
Mr. Cole very judiciously observed, this is one of the wild notions
which spring out of the luxuriance of an enthusiastic imagination,
rather than out of the soil of a matured judgment."
_Mr. Roscoe._--"But do you not believe in the necessity of
regeneration?"
_Rev. Mr. Roscoe._--"Yes, but I believe that no other than baptismal
regeneration _is either necessary, or even possible_ in this world.
We are born[12] anew in baptism, and in baptism exclusively. As
you are fond of appealing to the authority of our church on the
disputable points of religion, you will allow me the same privilege.
When the child is baptized, the priest is taught to say, 'Seeing
now, dearly beloved brethren, that this child is regenerate, and
grafted into the body of Christ's church, let us give thanks to
Almighty God for these benefits, and with one accord make our
prayers unto him, that this child may lead the rest of his life
according to this beginning.' Then follows this solemn form of
thanksgiving and prayer, which the priest is required to offer to
Almighty God: 'We yield Thee hearty thanks, most merciful Father,
that it hath pleased Thee to regenerate this infant with thy Holy
Spirit, to receive him for thine own child by adoption, and to
incorporate him into thy holy church; and humbly we beseech Thee to
grant that he, being dead unto sin, and living unto righteousness,
and being buried with Christ in his death, may crucify the old man,
and utterly abolish the whole body of sin; and that as he is made
_partaker_ of the death of thy Son, he may also be _partaker_ of his
resurrection: so that finally, with the residue of the holy church,
he may be an inheritor of thine everlasting kingdom, through Christ
Jesus our Lord.' And does not the catechism of our church teach the
child to say, in answer to the question, '_Who gave you this name?_'
'My godfathers and godmothers in my baptism, wherein I was made a
member of Christ, a child of God, and an inheritor of the kingdom of
heaven?' What language can more plainly or unequivocally prove that
baptism is regeneration; and that the child who is thus regenerated
by baptism is made a partaker of the death of Christ, a child of
God, and an inheritor of the kingdom of heaven? And as regeneration
can take place _only once, and does take place in baptism_, those
who imbibe the modern notions on this subject are convicted of error
by the authority of the church to whose decision they so often
appeal."