—but now, you were to show me a commission from God, and yet you say, 'I cannot go beyond the commandment of that body;' though Balaam was blinder than his ass, he knew better than to give such a reason. The 'body,' it seems, gives authority to its members; there must be something awful in the claims of a society which worships its own aggregate, and finds its highest sanctions, in what its members, who are nothing, agree to in their united capacity. This society also must be good, if it can shield the inefficiency of its agents; you are armed with a vast power, and though yourself a mere stammerer, have a reservoir of influence in the funds of a body of ciphers. Look, now, at your own words: a letter is not affected by the appearance of him who brings it;' it seems, then, you are but a society of penny postmen after all! now why should the letter be any worse, if a Dissenter carry it? Your own reasoning shows that the gospel, which is the divine letter, can as well be conveyed by Dissenters as by others. But proceed.

S.-"How came we here: of ourselves? No; we were solemnly commissioned from the heads or rulers of this society, the Church; they delegated to us this exclusive power of making you good.

C." A Dissenting preacher might, with equal truth, say the very same: 'how came I here;-of myself? No. The Church invited me, and my brother ministers ordained me;-nay, more, Christ commanded me.' But, Sir, we have not yet reached your divine commission: we have heard simply Church authority; now the Church is as much questioned as yourself,-indeed the Church you speak of is made up of such as you; and, therefore, your commission, so far, is self-derived.

S." But further, the teaching of this Church is full of mysteries; whereas, men would have invented an easy system.

C.-"I am not sure of that: Swedenborg invented, or rather dreamed, some strange things; are we, therefore, to believe them, because they are preposterous?

S.-"The powers assumed by the Church are awful: and, if not from God, are blasphemously assumed by man. The promise of communicating the divine nature which is nothing more than an every-day promise of the Church: is it not awful? if a lie, should we not have seen God's vengeance: and yet it is preserved, and has been for 1800 years.

C."This is a strange argument; which do you think is a greater likelihood, that God has given such a power, or that the Church is an impostor? Suppose the exorcist Jews had reasoned thus with the demons, do you think we should pretend to such power, if we had it not?' the only answer would have been what it was,-a sound beating. Yet it seems times are altered, and the extravagance of a lie is a presumption in its favour; and because sentence is not speedily executed, because God delays, he therefore forgets,-nay, more, approves; your great argument, then, is the longevity of this lie! many others have lived to a good old age: indeed, some things will not die even when their brains are out, and why? because brainless men continue to aid, abet, and foster them. Remember the summing up of your argument,—this is a great lie, and an old lie, and therefore must be a truth! It will nevertheless be a lie still, though it hang like a cloud over the world till the end of time.

S.-"Whence then did the rulers of the Church receive these truths and powers committed to them-her creeds, articles of faith, and (lastly!) her Bible? From a still vaster society, the Catholic Church, not the Romish Church; (!) trace back 1500 years, and you will find the source of the clergy's teaching powers.

C.-"Here is our old date again-1500. What is the Catholic Church? Not the Romish,' and certainly not Dissenters; what body, then, may you mean? Your description of a society is beautiful and true, but not in your application of it; the only oneness of the Church is, the relation of its various members to Christ: he is the vine, Christians are the branches, and in whatever external community they may be found, they form part of a society that escapes your definitions, and sports with all sectarian boundaries. To this vast, ancient and venerable society, 1500 years ago, we trace what we now would teach.' Indeed, and is not this ending in mist?

S.-"This society derived its power from thirteen men, who travelled, formed Churches, appointed ministers, and made them the channels for conveying, through a perpetual succession, the spirit of God himself.

C. "This is the key-stone of the arch, but like a skilful architect, you hide this important fastening; when and where did the thirteen confer this power upon their successors? We find a good deal about these men in a certain book, but little about what you speak of: nor have we any proof that you belong to the society then formed; indeed, your shorter plan would have been to have stated at once, that your commission was received from the Apostles, and is kept quietly among yourselves. You promised to indulge me with a sight of it: when lo! your commission is a bare assertion of your own, that is so ashamed of itself, as to take refuge some centuries in the distance.

S.-"Šuch, then, are the claims of a minister of the Church: no other professed minister of God in this country can say the same.

C.-"They can if they like; but surely will not be so blindly ambi

tious.

S.-"The Romanist has received the powers (!!) but confesses to have altered the doctrines.

C.-"I deny the first part; the Romanist may settle the second with you: but why should brethren disagree?

S.-"The Dissenter does not even pretend to have received either the powers or the doctrines; he asserts doctrines, and some few assert powers: but both are traced to man.

C.-"Is the Dissenter any worse for not being a pretender? but what is meant by his not pretending to doctrine, and yet asserting doctrines?— they are traced to man; you would oblige me by telling me what sect traces its doctrines to man: and secondly, by explaining wherein this would (if true) differ from you, only that you prefer ancients, whilst Dissenters, as you say, take the moderns; but you are plainly as ignorant of Dissenters as of logic; they rely on the unadulterated word of God, which (whatever you may say) is able to make men wise unto salvation, whilst you forget the great end of the gospel, which is, to bless men, and honour Christ; making it your chief aim to enslave men, and honour the

clergy you make more of the messengers than of the message; of the servants, than of their Lord; and employ those talents, and that learning, which were bestowed for the guidance of others, these you employ to mystify the path of duty;-lending yourself as a special pleader, to a cause that dishonours the talents you bring to it: taking sometimes one track, sometimes another, carefully scattering leaves around to hide the tortuosities of your course, concealing the pitifulest reasoning under a cloud of words; so that the falsehoods you advocate are not brought openly to the light, but buried beneath a flow of illustrations,

III.

STATESMEN'S RELIGION.

"EVERY PLANT WHICH MY HEAVENLY FATHER HATH NOT PLANTED SHALL BE ROOTED UP."-(Matt. xv. 13.)

In those who think a National Church right, Dissent is a sin; in those who think it wrong, silence is a shame.

SIGNS OF THE TIMES:

OR, THE COMING OF CHRIST IN THE SHAKING OF THE NATIONS.

Ir is the duty of all persons, as forming a part of the great family of mankind, to appreciate the events and tendencies of the age in which they live. Especially those living in stirring times, should know into one course of public action their own influence, however limited, should be thrown and this is why the interests of the nations of the earth are linked together by the " one God and Father of all," that each may contribute his share in the common duties and advance of the world. And not only as our guide for individual duties, are we bound to understand the state of public events, but also, as reading the foot-prints of divine providence, as God moves amongst the nations, and intimates his will and purpose, that we should know that verily God ruleth over the children of men, both as apportioning our earthly lot, and carrying out his designs even by the complication of human interests, parties, and prejudices, as well as by the direct agency of those who study and conform to his written and revealed will.

The times in which we live, are pregnant with interest, and as Christ said to the Jews, so he says to us, 66 can ye not discern the signs of these times?"

Nor is there any difference in principle, between our position and theirs ; for then there were signs of Christ's coming with reward and vengeance; for the redemption of the oppressed, for the overthrow of the obstinate: and so he is now coming in clouds with power and great glory, and may bring with him the scourge of great armies to overthrow existing despotisms, as he brought the Romans upon the city of Jerusalem; and, as in turn he overthrew the Roman power, when it was great only in extending its yoke over the conquered nations. We must not shut Christ out of history and providence; nor be blind to what is preparing the way of his gospel, by elevating the plains of human bondage, and levelling the mountains of human tyranny, to make a highway for his word, and a secure sanctuary for free conscience.

The marks of his progress, or intimations of his coming, may be seen in the signs of thesetimes, as clearly as in the days of his earthly sojourn; for what is the true object of all political and national changes except to secure liberty, wherein the Bible is carried in the ark of safety; and what is the precise aim of the allied powers of despotism, but to prevent the free use and discussion of that charter of mankind? It is this which is feared, and accordingly, the true test of a nation's freedom, is found by this one enquiry,-are the Scriptures free; is conscience bound? Where governments are active in fettering these, there do they see and fear the coming of Christ. What then are the signs of his coming, and of the freedom of the world?

We find that our Lord upbraided the Pharisees for their ignorance of the nature of events around them, whilst they were observant and knowing in other matters, and looking for signs of a wrong description.

"The Pharisees also with the Sadducees came, and tempting desired him that he would shew them a sign from heaven. He answered and said unto them, when it is evening, ye say, it will be fair weather for the sky is red. And in the morning, it will be foul weather to day: for the sky is red and lowering. O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times? A wicked and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given unto it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas. And he left them and departed."-(Matt. xvi. 1-4.)

The Jews were notorious for seeking signs of their sort, and this is given as their national characteristic; "the Jews require a sign," look for outward vulgar wonders, a brightness in the heavens, at which they may say, "lo! there!" and so they overlook that kingdom which cometh not with observation, that is not ushered in with noise, and glare, and shew, but marches silently in the course of events, and developes itself in the movements of the world, as a little leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal:" so God took and hid his gospel, to leaven the mass of society, and the signs of the times are to be sought in the events taking place.

The Jews seeking a sign, looked up to the clouds, and thought that all signs from heaven were there; but the Saviour tells them to look lower down, and find a sign from the ground, where also heaven works; for as Jonah was three days and three nights in the whale's belly, so shall the Son of Man be in the heart of the earth; and thence the sign shall appear.

Whilst in the events then occurring, above ground, but lower than the clouds, even in actual society; there also were heavenly signs: but a sign from heaven, in their cloudy sense, was not wrought to gratify their blind and insolent questioning: no such sign was given, because it would have been out of place, and because they did not deserve one :-the Pharisees "tempting him said, Master, we would see a sign from thee!"

Whereas the fact was they would not see one, for they had so closed their eyes to real signs, as not to be in the mood, and therefore not able to perceive a sign: since "their eyes they had closed," so that seeing they saw not, but were "the blind people that had eyes," and could not see for prejudice and hardness of heart.