my voluntary dismission of myself from my station and ministry among you, to which I am constrained by a principle of conscience and obedience to Christ, as I firmly believe, may contribute to convince you, That the gospel of Jesus is the truth of God-the pearl of great price, Matt. xiii. 45. for which we are to be willing to part with every thing, rather than fail of obtaining it to induce you

To do nothing now, which you shall not approve at that solemn hour, when you leave the world :

And to be ready at all times, and even desirous to have the Common-Prayer book reformed, and the public worship of God in it, made more conformable to the holy scriptures, for your own sakes, and that of your conscientious pastors, whenever it shall please God, in his providence, to incline our gracious Prince and Parliament, to set about so needful a work.

And now, O Holy Father, the blessed and only potentate, in conformity to what I believe, thy will and my duty, I resign unto thee, from whom I received them, my ministry and people. Do thou raise up unto them a faithful teacher, who shall more effectually preach thy word, turn many from sin, and bring all nearer to thee, their only portion and happiness. And graciously dispose of me, thine unworthy servant, where, and how I may be best enabled to serve thee according to the pure gospel of thy son, through whom, I desire to find acceptance with thee, now and for ever.

CONVERSATIONS

ON

CHRISTIAN IDOLATRY,

In the Year, 1791.

PUBLISHED BY THEOPHILUS LINDSEY, M. A,

SECOND EDITION.

LONDON:

PRINTED BY C. STOWER, 32, PATER NOSTER ROW.

THE

INTRODUCTION.

DISCOURSE with some private friends, concerning the justness and propriety of Unitarian christians using the term idolatrous, in speaking of the worship of those christians, who together and equally with the God and Father of all, worship two other divine persons, first gave rise to the thought of publishing the following conversations: which have their foundation in real life, though somewhat varied in their manner and circumstances.

But another cause urged to the publication still more powerfully.

When I was musing, and deeply impressed with the subject, a well known letter of Melancthon to Camerarius came across my mind, written soon afier * Servetus had printed

his

*This learned and ingenious physician, who was afterwards burnt alive at Geneva, merely for propagating these opinions, and persisting in them, was little more than twenty years old, when he first published his sentiments; in which he grew more confirmed, as he advanced in age. But although he could not see any grounds to think so highly of Christ as others, he entertained such reverence for him, that he is said to have died, calling upon Christ in the midst of the flames. And I have observed in his writings, invocations of Christ of a greater length. Socinus also, who lived some years after, whose sentiments are well known, maintained it to be even a duty to pray to Christ.

Socinus, and perhaps Servetus, held that the lordship and dominion ascribed to Christ, in the scriptures, implied, and authorized the worship of him, by prayer. Later writers also of what is called the Arian persuasion, have thought that the mediatorial office of Christ, to which they ascrib

A 2

his book against the Trinity, asserting that Christ was only at man; in which the former of these persons, noted for his humanity and moderation, very pathetically forebodes, and laments, the contentions, and miseries, but too much verified since even to this hour, that would be produced by the disputes then reviving, about the logos, i. e. the word, and the spirit; which are the terms used by this great friend of Luther, to denote two of the divine persons that went to compose the Trinity: but which certainly are not held out, either of them, to be gods distinct from the heavenly Father, with any very apparent degree of evidence, in the sacred writings; and therefore about which many might well entertain doubts.

And I could not help immediately saying to myself; that from the rapid progress of free inquiry, and improvement in the knowledge of the scriptures, for some years past, still. daily increasing; and from the very great plainness, and perspicuity, with which the doctrine of the divine unity is deli

ascribe much more than is to be found in scripture, warranted the worship of him; and that prayer sometimes, though not generally, might be made to him. But assuredly' no delegated power or authority, which the scriptures ascribe to Christ, can authorize invocation of him in prayer, unless he himself, or his apostles, have expressly signified, that such is the will of God. A matter of such magnitude, as the setting up of a new God and object of worship, would not have been left to men's inferences, and conclusions, from phrases, which of themselves imported nothing of the kind; but would have been made the subject of a plain command. For whatever, in respect of divine worship and prayer to any person, is not commanded in the sacred writings, is forbidden.

"You

* ПEpi Tns Tрiados scis me semper veritum esse, fore, ut hæc aliquando erumperent. Bone Deus! quales tragoedias excitabit hæc quæstio adposteros, જ εσιν υπόςασις ο λόγος ; εκ εςιν ύποφασις το πνεύμα ; i. e. know that I was always afraid that these disputes about the trinity would break out some time or other. Good God! what sad tragedies will take rise among those that come after us, from the controversy, whether the logos be a person; whether the spirit be a person "

See an account of Calvin's treatment of Servetus, p. 165, 166.