without indignation, pity, and dismay.' Passing over the ignorance this representation betrays, it is almost incredible that, at a period at which all sorts of contrary opinions are maintained by the ministers of the Establishment, as well as all sorts of characters notoriously filling its benefices, a man should be capable of the folly of asserting that episcopal ordination operates as a restraint of any kind, much less that it secures even the semblance of unity.

It is evident that the Church of England attaches to the rite of ordination a notion far more mysterious and efficacious than is implied in the idea of a salutary restraint.' But Dr. Mant has done wisely to keep this in the back-ground. Something, it is supposed, is conveyed by the imposition of Episcopal hands; by which the awful language Receive the Holy Ghost,' is, in her estimation, justified.* If this something be merely office, legitimacy, or civil power, it is indeed all the bishop has to bestow; but how offensive in such a reference is the prostitution of our Lord's language! What gift in the least degree analogous to that which the Apostles conferred by the laying on of hands, is in the possession of Christian pastors now? Ordination in the Church of England, is a purely civil transaction: the power exercised and the power conferred, are alike derived from a political source, from regal authority, the fountain and spring of all magistracy within this king'dom;' and are regulated by the due order of the Realm. The advantages resulting from it to the individual, are entirely of a secular nature, and it has no more to do with his moral qualifications for the Christian ministry, than with the power of working miracles, or speaking in foreign tongues. Ordination among the Protestant Dissenters, is a rite of far more moral significancy, inasmuch as it constitutes a public solemn ratification of the previous appointment of an individual to the ministerial office, on the ground of a deliberate choice on the part of the church, and his ascertained fitness, in their estimation, to discharge the pastoral functions. As a further illustration of the subject, we canhot do better than transcribe the following passage from the Introductory Discourse delivered at a recent ordination of a young minister in the neighbourhood of the metropolis, and we strongly recommend the perusal of the whole of the service.

The twenty-third article of the established church, relates to ministring in the congregation; and consists of the following words:- "It is not lawful for any man to take upon him the office of public preaching or ministring the sacraments in

* This is, in fact, the representation of Hooker, who expressly applies the language of the Church to the delegated power to remit sins, supposed to be inseparable from the Episcopal succession.

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the congregation, before he be lawfully called and sent to execute the same. And those we ought to judge lawfully called and sent, which be called and chosen to this work, bý men who have public authority given unto them in the congregation to call and send ministers into the Lord's vineyard."

Now I request this Christian congregation which has already • been shewn to be a true church of Christ, to turn their attention to my young friend who appears to day in the presence of this congregation, as its future minister; and I ask you, if he be not a minister of Christ, where shall we find one? He is "lawfully called and sent to this work, by men who have authority to call and send" him, to perform all the offices of a Christian minister. I ask, if he be not a minister of Christ, where shall we find one? Shall we go to the apostles and evangelists, to the discerners of spirits of the first age, that they С may furnish us with a genuine minister? They are gone: 'their commission is executed, and they have entered upon the enjoyment of their rest. Shall we go to the successors of the apostles? Most gladly would we visit them at the extremity of the earth, did we but know where to find them. Churchmen indeed tell us, that the bishops of the English Church, C are the very men upon whom the mantles of the apostles fell, and in whom the power of discerning the spirits now dwells. • Roman Catholics assure us that this is a false assumption; • and I own I give them full credit thus far: but they go on to say, that the bishop of Rome is the only successor of St. Peter, and that to his hands the keys are committed with indivisible authority. For this allegation there is evidently more substantial ground, than any which Protestant bishops can assign for their pretensions. They have abandoned, equally * with dissenters, the communion of that Church which has the 'strongest claim to an uninterrupted succession of ecclesiastical power. As much as ourselves, the bishops of the established Church of England are obnoxious to the charge of heresy and schism. Must we then go to Rome to find a genuine 'minister of the gospel of Christ? Let those go there who can digest the monstrous enormities of that mother of superstition, idolatry, and persecution. Let those go there who can bow their necks to the most galling yoke, and who with preposterous humility can debase their understandings, to receive the dictates of a proud priest, who presumptuously C vaunts himself to be the source of all legitimate authority, the C successor of St Peter, and the vicar of Jesus Christ.

Shall we in searching for a genuine minister of Christ, go to a modern presbytery? Does the power of calling men and sending them to preach the word, and to minister the sacra<ments, reside in such an assembly? Not a vestige of proof

is, in my apprehension, to be found in the sacred oracles, to < support the claims which presbyterian ministers urge. Shall a Christian church then call a convocation of ministers of its own denomination, to appoint for it an overseer in the Lord? 'Have Congregationalists a power vested in them, which we 'look for in vain, in the presbyterian consistory, on the epis< copal bench, and upon the papal throne? I have been an independent minister for several years, but I declare I was never conscious of possessing such a power, and the con'sciousness of many of my brethren resembles, as I am well assured, my own. Independent ministers are called to preach 'the word, and to minister the ordinances of the Christian religion, by congregations, such as have been shewn to be true churches of Christ. They look upon themselves, as having power to perform these offices, because they are called to them, "by men that have authority" so to do. These are the 'members of the churches, who judge themselves to be in'structed and edified by the humble exertions of such untitled men. These churches elect for themselves ministers; they set apart a day for public ordination; they invite a number of the neighbouring ministers to assist them by their counsels and their prayers; and God is pleased to smile upon their conduct, by rendering the feeble efforts of such agents, subservient to the love of truth, and the practice of virtue.

You, my Christian brethren, are pursuing the same course. You have an indefeasible right to choose for yourselves a minister; and you have exercised this right: you now bring 'forth the minister of your choice, and with the assistance of the pastors of neighbouring churches, you appoint my young 'friend, in the presence of God, to take the spiritual oversight of you: you ordain him to be your pastor, and solemnly 'declare that you will " obey" him, as one that hath "the rule over you;" that you will" submit yourselves to him," as one "that watches for your souls," and "must give account.' Here then is a church of Christ, and my worthy young friend ' is a minister of Christ. To what a state should we indeed 'be reduced, if the power of appointing ministers were vested in any other hands, than those of the members of the church. The Church of Rome has apostatized; the Church of England imposes terms of communion to which we cannot submit: the Presbytery may become heretical and tyrannical, and abuse the power with which it has been invested: asso'ciations of congregational ministers may depart from the truth and simplicity of the gospel. What then is a society of Christians to do? Are they to remain destitute of a pastor, or to make application to sources which they disapprove? Far from it. Let them assemble together; let them implore

wisdom and fidelity from above; let them look for a man in whom the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord resides, and let them place him over them in the Lord and though there be no other church upon earth, this is one: here Christ is present: here God dwells; and here His Spirit will pour down abundant supplies of heavenly grace, and of life-giving power. I shall conclude with a request, that < none of my hearers will suspect me of ill will towards the members of the established church, either of the clergy or laity. Of the latter, many are distinguished by their piety, their zeal, and their benevolence of the former, numbers are justly intitled to the praise of whatever can be conferred of ornament or usefulness, by talents most exalted, religion most 'evangelical, or learning most profound. I trust we shall meet

in heaven: I wish them God speed in the prosecution of their important labours; but while I live on earth, I must belong to that church, in which conscience and freedom reign supreme, unshackled by the fetters of human device.'-Discourses delivered at the Ordination of the Rev. John Yockney to the Pastoral Office, at Lower-street, Islington, Nov. 1815. 8vo. 2s. 6d. onder.

We must now take our leave of Dr. Mant. The Sermon preached for the benefit of the National Schools, would supply us with fresh matter of remark, but, as it is not now printed for the first time, we shall decline entering upon the subject. Earnestly as we deprecate the strong delusions' which these Sermons uphold, and we must pity the intellectual darkness as well as bigotry in which they originate;-hard as it is to believe that the man is sincere who declares that'

no Divine promise has been given' which applies to the attendants upon what he deems an irregularly ordained ministry; still, we cannot deny ourselves the pleasure of hoping that Dr. Mant has the cause of Christianity at heart. We say this frankly and deliberately, recollecting that even Pascal believed in transubstantiation, and Fenelon bowed to the supremacy of the Pope. The solemn injunctions which are pressed upon the candidates for the ministerial office in the conclusion of the seventh Sermon, are worthy of a mind more enlightened with respect to the genius of the religion of Jesus Christ, and lead us to put as candid a construction as possible even upon these statements which must in themselves be considered as highly atrocious

We claim the indulgence of our readers while we assume · for once, in concluding this article, the free language of counsel, to two classes of evangelical Dissenters."

To those Dissenting Ministers whose language on the subject of Episcopal claims and religious liberty, would favour too much the notion that they are actuated by political feelings, we

earnestly recommend the consideration, that religious liberty is but a means, a negative though a most essential means of promoting the triumphs of the Gospel. Political liberty is indeed the greatest earthly blessing of which man can deprive his fellow; and all systems which trench upon this dearest right, tend to degrade and to demoralize mankind. The great Apostle, unwilling to countenance for a moment the assumption of arbitrary power, intimidated the unjust centurion, by telling him that he was a Roman, and the chief captain, that he was freeborn, and at the bar of Festus himself his language was: "I appeal "unto Cesar." We would not plead for a tone of conduct below the independent dignity of that greatest of Christians. But still, religion is not a political thing, and the ends we have in view as Dissenters, are not political. Every thing, how important soever, that can be considered only as belonging to the order of means, is but subordinate to that which is contemplated as the end. It is by that end that our feelings should be characterized, and the positive means of accomplishing it should evidently occupy our chief interest. And if there are men who, in the midst of error and mistake as to the means, are really employed in reference to the same end, and in spite of every disadvantage, successfully employed, it becomes us to fix our attention on those points of their character which are estimable rather than on those which provoke repugnance. Let then the essential unity of the Church of Christ be ever borne in mind, as a first principle, in all our discussions of subordinate principles.

On the other hand, how shall we address ourselves to those Dissenting Ministers, who, not in consequence of greater spirituality of mind, not in consequence of a superior portion of Christian zeal, not in consequence of a heart overflowing with goodwill towards all men, but under the influence of a worldly spirit, of a servile deference to polite opinion, or of that intellectual indolence which shrinks from the stir of controversy, would, in times like the present, compromise and compliment away the principles for which we are contending? What shall we say to those who, captivated by the intimacy of some one or two truly estimable men within the pale of the Establishment, or disgusted, it may be, at the conduct of some two or three within their own communion, fold their arms in peaceful neutrality, and dream that the Millenium has begun? And should the neighbouring town or village be the station of some more zealous labourer, who finding himself withstood in every plan of usefulness by some beneficed son of Belial inveighs in the bitterness of indignant grief against that system which necessarily, by the very nature of its patronage, throws, in a thousand instances, such moral power into the hands of so much