church, as understood by the Reformers, given in a letter from Christian County, Kentucky.

"The church at Noah Springs, established some eighteen months or two years ago, upon the New Testament, has greatly increased her members, and is still increasing. Some are added almost every Lord's day. It commenced with twentyeight members. They now number about ninety. They have done away their monthly Saturday meetings, and now meet every first day of the week. Their order is as follows: After meeting early, say between nine and ten o'clock, they engage in singing hymns of praise to their exalted King. Next, an appropriate prayer is offered by one of the elders or bishops, (for they have four selected from among themselves.) An opportunity is then afforded to any who wish to make a profession of their faith in Jesus as the Messiah. If any come forward upon such profession, they are immersed into the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; and then they are received into the congregation as fellow-disciples. One of the elders then instructs the congregation from some portion of the holy oracles. Afterwards an exhortation by one of the others is delivered. The deacons then prepare and furnish the table. One of the elders, after singing an appropriate hymn, prays, and then breaks the bread. In like manner the wine is poured; and all who have been legally naturalized, and deport themselves as disciples, are authorized to participate, without regard to any human theory or ism, to commemorate and show forth the Lord's death. A hymn is then sung, and the brethren greet each other as fellow-disciples, by a shake of the hand, and then retire." - Millennial Harbinger, Vol. I. p. 425.

A passion for restoring at once, not only the positive institutions of the New Testament, as left by the Apostles, but the primitive manners and customs, has led some of them to inquire anxiously whether a community of goods, as practised in the church at Jerusalem, is not binding on Christians at the present day, and whether our Saviour's injunction to wash one another's feet, and the ancient mode of salutation, are not of perpetual obligation. Much harm is hardly to be expected, perhaps, from their speculations about "feet-washing," as they quaintly term it; but not so of the first mentioned subject, at a time when so many community projects are afloat among sciolists in political economy, nor yet of the last, as by their own confession "the disciples have not always found it easy to make the

VOL. XIII.-N. S. VOL. VIII. NO. I. 9

proper distinction between a "holy kiss," and a "common

one.

The Reformers, though strenuously insisting on the Ancient Gospel and Ancient Order, as they understand them, profess nevertheless, like the Christians, to be irreconcilable foes to sectarianism, and ready at all times to meet their brethren of every name, on the common ground of an honest belief in the Bible. For this reason they contend, that they themselves do not constitute a new sect, and also that they can consistently "fraternize" with Unitarians, Trinitarians, and Universalists, "except as hereinafter excepted." We give Mr. Campbell's words.

"I will now show how they cannot make a sect of us. We will acknowledge all as Christians who acknowledge the gospel facts, and obey Jesus Christ. But,' says one, will you receive a Unitarian?' 'No; nor a Trinitarian. We will have neither Unitarians nor Trinitarians. 'How can this be?' 'Systems made Unitarians and Trinitarians. Renounce the system, and you renounce its creatures.'

"But the creatures of other systems now exist, and some of them will come in your way. How will you dispose of them?' I answer,' We will unmake them.' Again, I am asked, 'How will you unmake them?' I answer,By laying no emphasis upon their opinions. What is a Unitarian? One who contends that Jesus Christ is not the Son of God. Such a one has denied the faith, and therefore we reject him.' But,' says

a Trinitarian, many Unitarians acknowledge that Jesus Christ is the Son of God in a sense of their own.' 'Admit it.' Then I ask, 'How do you know they have a sense of their own? Intuitively, or by their words? 'Not intuitively, but by their words.' 'And what are those words? Are they Bible words? If they are, we cannot object to them; if they are not, we will not hear them, or, what is the same thing, we will not discuss them at all. If he will ascribe to Jesus all Bible attributes, names, works, and worship, we will not fight with him about scholastic words. But if he will not ascribe to him every thing which the first Christians ascribed, and worship and adore him as the first Christians did, we will reject him, not because of his private opinions, but because he refuses to honor Jesus as the first converts did, and withholds from him the titles and honors which God and his Apostles have bestowed upon him.'

"In like manner we will deal with a Trinitarian. If he will ascribe to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, all that the first believers ascribed, and nothing more, we will receive him ;

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but we will not allow him to apply scholastic and barbarous epithets to the Father, the Son, or the Holy Spirit. If he will dogmatize and become a factionist, we reject him; not because of his opinions, but because of his attempting to make a faction, or to lord it over God's heritage.

"And will you receive a Universalist too?' 'No; not as a Universalist. If a man, professing Universalist opinions, should apply for admission, we will receive him, if he will consent to use and apply all the Bible phrases in their plain reference to the future state of men and angels. We will not hearken to those questions which gender strifes, nor discuss them at all. If a person say such is his private opinion, let him have it as his private opinion, but lay no stress upon it; and if it be a wrong private opinion, it will die a natural death much sooner than if you attempt to kill it.'" - Millennial Harbinger, Vol. I. pp. 146, 147.

We are not much impressed with the force of this reasoning; but on such subjects it is chiefly important, doubtless, that a man should be right in his conclusions, however arrived at. We do not complain that it should be made a condition of Christian fellowship, that believers should consent in the use of Scriptural language in regard to disputed doctrines, leaving it for each individual to put that construction on this language which he thinks was intended. There is, however, a fallacy running through several of Mr. Campbell's papers on the distinction between differences respecting opinions, and differences respecting facts, practices, or institutions. Facts, practices, institutions are not opinions, it is true; but doubts may honestly arise, whether these facts, practices, or institutions have any proper or sufficient foundation in the word of God. One man may be of one opinion, and another man may be of another opinion on this question; so that, after all, the controversy will turn on a mere difference and an honest difference of opinion respecting the true import of Scripture, which, by Mr. Campbell's own confession, should present no bar to communion.

The Reformers were slow to connect themselves with the Christians, because the latter were avowedly Unitarians, and rejected the popular notions of atonement, and would not make immersion an express condition of admission to the Lord's table. By friendly conferences and mutual explanations an adjustment of these difficulties was at length effected, early in the present year, between the two denomi

nations, in the neighbourhood of Lexington and Georgetown, in Kentucky; and there is every reason to expect, that the union and amalgamation, there commenced under the happiest auspices, will pervade the West. Since they have begun to send out their preachers in company, and hold their four days' meetings and their camp-meetings in common, a new impulse has been given to their zeal, and their prospects, it may be safely said, were never more encouraging.

They want books. Without meaning to speak disparagingly of their three periodical publications, neither of which has less than two thousand subscribers, and one is said to have above four thousand, most of the articles they contain are occasional and ephemeral, the topics being selected with a view, not to their relative importance in themselves considered, but to some temporary interest. Mr. Campbell is at this moment employed in preparing a third edition of his version of the New Testament, with large additions and emendations, from which we hope much good; though we regret extremely, that he did not adopt the translation of Gilbert Wakefield, or Archbishop Newcome, instead of a compilation from Campbell, Macknight, and Doddridge, all of them second-rate scholars, as the basis of the work. They also want able and thorough treatises on the evidences of Christianity, and the principles of interpretation, and on ecclesiastical history, which, to their preachers especially, are becoming every day more and more indispensable, if they would prepare themselves to cope successfully with the arguments and cavils of intelligent deists, and the learned of other sects. Sectarian works, of any description, in the bad sense of that term, would not be acceptable; but we are assured that such books as Dr. Worcester's "Bible News," and his work on the "Atoning Sacrifice," Mr. Noyes's translations of Job and the Psalms, Mr. Gannett's "Scriptural Interpreter," and Mr. Ware's "Formation of the Christian Character," would be kindly received, and read with avidity.

More than all, they need, and we are glad to learn that they are beginning to be alive to the deficiency, an institution to which their churches may look for a succession of learned, as well as gifted and faithful ministers. The other denominations are wisely straining every nerve and sinew in this direction; and most of them already, not excepting the Catholics, Methodists, or Cumberland Presbyterians, have

their respective colleges or schools in the Western country. It is matter of just surprise and regret, that a body of Christians, whose views on most subjects are so rational and liberal, should be behind the rest in the means of theological education, especially as this alone is wanted to give their preachers a decided advantage, among the intelligent and reflecting, over most of their competitors. We doubt whether the friends of religion in this quarter could do a better service to the great cause of liberal Christianity, than by aiding, if desired, either by the gift of books, or by pecuniary contributions, in the establishment of a theological seminary in the neighbourhood of Lexington or Cincinnati, to be under the entire control of the Christians and Reformers, with the Bible alone for their creed. Though we differ widely from both these denominations on several important points, we cheerfully accord our testimony to their piety, their zeal for Christianity, their love of freedom, and the tendency of their efforts and successes, to countervail the power of irreligion and bigotry in the West.

ART. VI.-Correspondence between the First Church and the Tabernacle Church in Salem; in which the Duties of Churches are discussed, and the Rights of Conscience vindicated. Salem. Foote & Brown. 1832. 8vo.

If

EXCEPT in the relations of social and domestic life, every man is his own master, answerable only to God. If he does injury to those about him, they have a right to set bounds to his freedom; if he thinks injuriously of others, they have no right to restrain him, because his bad feeling injures himself, not them; and God only knows the heart. His feelings are his own; his opinions are his own. they lead him to actions injurious to his neighbours, they have a right to protect themselves; but his deeds are all they have a right to control. All the right there is to call man to account for his sentiments, is reserved to the Searcher of hearts. It is part of that glory which he will never give to another, be that other who he may, except as a representative of his own person and power.