way of deliverance for them, and this deliverance it is their duty to accept of, and be reconciled to their Maker. And it is not by such argument as Mr Combe's that this doctrine will be overthrown. Another doctrine taught in the Bible, and which is the object of Mr Combe's special antipathy, is that of a particular providence. Remarking on a speech delivered by Mr Plumptre in Parliament, he strongly condemns the idea, that "sin in the people, or in their rulers, had led to a special deflection of physical nature from the ordinary course, in order to a produce a famine for the punishment of the offenders." Many men," he says, "whose scientific studies have produced in their minds a conviction of the stedfastness of the course of physical nature, have sought for the cause of the failure of the potato crop in some physical condition (unconnected with sin) of the plant itself, of the earth, the air, or the electrical fluids; which, if discovered, might in their opinion enable husbandmen in future years to avert the calamity: and they have declined to recognise fasts, humiliations, and prayers, as means adapted, according to their views of the course of Providence, to avert the recurrence of the evil. Indeed, these observances, inasmuch as they mislead the public mind with respect to its causes, are regarded by such persons as positive evils." Again, referring to sermons that were preached on the 24th of March last year, he says, "The fast-day sermons present a striking illustration of the confusion of ideas which prevails in the public mind regarding the course of Providence in temporal events. Science confirms the declaration of Scripture, that God maketh 'his sun to shine upon the evil as upon the good,' and gives no countenance to the notion, that vegetable substances prosper or suffer directly in their growth in consequence of the moral qualities of the men in whose fields they grow. On the contrary, it proclaims that their condition and productiveness depend on the soil, the heat, the moisture, the electric influences to which they are subjected, the manure, and the seed, and on the skill with which these are brought to co-operate in yielding a return. The moral qualities of their cultivators may lead them to attend to, or neglect, the proper administration of these natural causes of fertility, in so far as they are subject to human control, and, by this means, indirectly influence the productiveness of the ground; but there is no warrant in science for believing, that if all the natural conditions of fertility be present, a blight will nevertheless pass upon the crop because of the owner's general or particular sins; or, vice versa, that if these natural conditions be absent, God will nevertheless send a rich harvest in reward of the owner's piety and charity. In the Fast-day sermons, however, little attention was paid to consistency on this point. In some of them, the potato failure was ascribed directly to sin; and, stranger still, not to sin in the owners of the fields, who suffered the loss, but in their rulers, or in somebody else over whose conduct the suffering peasants had no control." We do not stop to inquire whether Mr Combe's interpretation of Mr Plumptre's speech, or his account of the fast-day sermons, be correct. Mr Plumptre may, for ought we know, hold opinions on political subjects very different from ours. As for the fast-day sermons, we heard none of them, and read none of them. And we have a pretty shrewd suspicion, that Mr Combe is much in the same predicament, and that his information respecting them has been derived only from second-hand, and is not to be depended on. What we have at present to do with, is his own opinions regarding divine Providence. He smiles at the idea, and seems to think it a piece of great weakness, to believe that people may suffer in the present world on account of the sins of their rulers. This, it seems, falls not within the sphere of his philosophy. It has never come under his observation; yet it is, nevertheless, true, nor the less generally experienced. Excepting Mr Combe, who is there that needs to be told of the miseries that nations suffer, from wars wantonly engaged in by their rulers, over whose conduct the suffering people had no control? And who needs to be reminded of the hardships and privations to which the commercial and manufacturing population of our own country had to submit so long, in consequence of unrighteous laws, enacted by a selfish aristocracy? Again, he represents it as a very absurd idea, that there should be famine in a land in consequence of the sins of the inhabitants. With a view to make out a more plausible case, he takes care to misrepresent the opinions of those who entertain this idea. He speaks of them as if they believed that a blight might pass upon the crops because of sin, even though all the natural conditions of fertility were present; and that piety and charity might be rewarded with a rich harvest, though all these natural conditions were absent. They believe no such thing. The opinion they hold is, that when God punishes the sins of a people by famine, he withholds some of the natural conditions of fertility. It may be that men have ploughed, and sowed, and manured skilfully the land; but the proper degree of moisture, or of temperature, or it may be electric influence, or some other necessary influence, to them unknown, God has been pleased to withhold; and the effect is, a failure in the produce of the earth. Nor do they expect any rich harvest to follow prayers, or piety, or charity, without labour, and skill, and care in the cultivation of the soil, and the management of its productions. They are as well aware of the ordinary course of nature as Mr C. is, and they feel thankful for the steadiness of that course, without which men would not know how to act; but they believe that all the movements of nature are under the government of that great mind that gave them existence at first. They believe that those circumstances in nature, which have the power to produce fertility, received that power from the will of the Creator; that they continue to possess that power, just because it is His will that they should do so; and if at any time it be His will that they shall cease to possess that power, they will possess it no longer. Independently of the Bible altogether, we know that the course of nature may at any time be stopped, and the whole frame of nature dissolved. Geology unfolds to us various periods in the world's history, when all the living beings in it have been destroyed, and the solid earth itself shattered into fragments. And why should it be thought absurd to believe that the wickedness of a people may be such, that the all-righteous Creator may see fit, either to awaken and reform, or to destroy them for their wickedness, by stopping in some degree the ordinary course of nature, and withholding some of those natural influences on which the supply of our wants, and the continuance of our existence, depend. Certain it is, that the Bible inculcates this belief. It tells us that the ground was cursed on account of man's sin. Thorns and thistles was it to bring forth to him; and in sorrow he was to eat of it all the days of his life. It tells us that the Lord turneth fruitful lands into barrenness; for the wickedness of them that dwell therein. And relating to us many instances in past days, of the destruction of the harvest on account of the sins of the people, it points forward in prophetic revelation to the vision of the black horse of famine, and the pale horse of death, with their riders, going forth over the earth; and having power given them to kill with sword and with hunger. With Mr Combe, however, the Bible is no authority. And though he has not frankness, or moral courage enough, to say so in as many words, he labours with all the plausibilities of which he is master, to infuse into the minds of his readers the same disregard to it which he has himself. According to him, it is now high time for the teachers of religion to concern themselves with something else than the doctrines of revelation. "I put," says he, "the following questions in all earnestness. Are the fertility of the soil, the health of the body, the prosperity of individuals and of nations-in short, the great secular interests of mankind-now governed by special acts of supernatural power? Science answers that they are not. Are they, then, governed by any regular and comprehensible natural laws? If they are not, then is this world a theatre of ánarchy, and consequently of atheism-it is a world without the practical manifestation of a God. If, on the other hand, such laws exist as science proclaims, they must be of divine institution, and worthy of all reverence; and I ask, In the standards of what church, from the pulpits of what sect, and in the schools of what denomination of Christians, are these laws taught to either ither the young or old as of divine authority, and as practical guides for conduct in this world's affairs? If we do not now live under a special supernatural government of the world, but under a government by natural laws; and if these laws are not studied, honoured, and obeyed, as God's laws, are we not actually a nation without a religion in harmony with the true order of Providence; and, therefore, without a religion adapted to practical purposes?" So, then, we are all in the wrong, and are without a religion adapted to practical purposes, because our church standards, and our pulpit ministra tions, are not occupied with such subjects as agriculture, sanitary precautions and arrangements, and political economy. The great secular interests of mankind do not form our theme on Sabbath. If Mr Combe were to read carefully the Assembly's Catechism, from the first part of which we have seen him making quotations, he would discover that a very large portion of it is occupied with describing man's duty to his Creator, to himself, and to his fellow men. He would perceive, that "a holy and reverend use of God's works" (which implies an attentive and devout study of the laws of creation) is there set forth as incumbent on man; and would find that "all lawful endeavours to preserve our own life, and the life of others;" and "the lawful procuring and furthering of our own and our neighbour's wealth, or outward estate," are declared to be required from us by God. And could he overcome his repugnance to Calvinism so far, as to be a frequenter of any of our churches, he would, no doubt, find these duties brought forward in the pulpit, and enforced, not only by such considerations as he suggests, but by motives far more powerful. We have no hesitation, however, in saying, that any church that should adopt as a portion of its standards, maxims as to the best methods of cultivating the soil, of promoting bodily health, or of money making, would forget altogether the purposes of their association; and that, to give such subjects a prominent place in the pulpit, would be a desecration both of the pulpit and of the Sabbath. Were these to be the chief objects of attention, we must of course lay aside revelation; for revelation does not give instruction, and was not needed to give instruction, regarding these. The principles of agriculture or of trade, the rules of health, the laws of civil economy, can all be discovered by the light of reason. And revelation, while it enjoins upon us to be "diligent in business," to "provide things honest in the sight of men," and to "do to others as we would that others should do to us," directs us to make use of our reason to obtain all needful information on these subjects, and having obtained it, conscientiously to apply it. But revelation has instruction to give such as nature could never have supplied, and on subjects far more important than these. We are not sure whether Mr Combe's philosophy admits that there is such a thing as sin in the world (at least in our sense of the term sin); whether there is any thing to blame in want of gratitude, or love, or reverence for the Creator, in neglecting to worship him, or to obey his will; whether there is any thing to blame in selfishness, or falsehood, or injustice, or violence to our fellow-creatures. At all events, he does not believe that we are exposed by sin to the wrath and curse of God; so that men need not be very much afraid of sin after all. But the Bible presents a very different view of things. It makes known to us the laws of God, which prescribe our duty to our Creator, to ourselves, and to one another. These laws are all infinitely right and wise, and the observance of them necessary to our happiness. It is right, therefore, that they should be guarded by the most awful sanctions. The word of God accordingly makes known to us, that all who violate these laws expose themselves to irretrievable misery; that the soul that sinneth shall die; and that there shall be indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil. Every reflecting man, therefore, perceiving that he has sinned, that he is condemned by the law of God, and is in danger of eternal perdition, is brought to the question, How shall I obtain deliverance from my lost condition? What shall I do to be saved? That is the great question with which Christian ministers have to deal, and to which the Bible alone furnishes an answer. And seeing that men are every day passing from time to eternity, removing beyond the reach of our instruction, and entering that state where all is fixed for ever, we are bound to labour diligently; to see that we lose no opportunity of teaching the way of salvation. Suppose an individual were to enter the cell of a condemned criminal, and were to propose to teach him the rules for promoting health, the best method of conducting worldly business, the way that was most likely to lead to temporal prosperity, and so on; would not he reply, Alas! the first thing that I want is deliverance from death. Can you bring me a pardon? Can you set these prison doors open, and let me go free? We have reason to bless God that we can answer these questions, when proposed to us by the convinced sinner; and that the Bible, which teaches us how to answer them, instructs us also how we are to bring others to a knowledge of their sin and danger, and of the great remedy for man's guilt and wretchedness. The churches, and the pulpits, however, in which these great truths of the Bible should be laid aside; and men's attention on Sabbath, directed to secular affairs, would offer a profane and heartless mockery to all that is sacred in religion, and all that is solemn in the destinies of man. Had our limits permitted, we could have wished to follow Mr Combe a little farther; and particularly, to have noticed at some length his boastings as to a great change which he alleges to have taken place in men's religious opinions. According to him, men, by reading in the books of the Old and New Testaments, were led to believe, that prosperity in secular affairs would always attend those who believed and worshipped aright; while those whose faith and worship were in error, would be punished by visible calamities in the present world. It would not be difficult to show, that whatever might have been the views of particular individuals, this doctrine of secular prosperity and adversity, being always according to men's faith and worship, is neither taught in the Bible, nor was ever received by the church. And, notwithstanding the array of names, from Mr Guthrie of Edinburgh to the Archbishop of Dublin, which he professes to bring forward, the same views of Provi dence that are taught in the Bible, and have been generally received by good men, are held still. But we trust that we have done enough for the object we had in view; which was to aid in unmasking Mr C., and showing to our readers what he really is. It is time that the friends of christianity were made fully aware that this man is their determined foe. Many have aided in the circulation of his writings, without having carefully perused them. They found in some parts of them, novel, practical, and useful suggestions; and without noticing the speculations destructive of religion, with which these were mixed up, they introduced them wherever their influence extended. It is believed that not a few of our ministers have been the means of introducing them into their congregational libraries. And no wonder they should find, to their deep regret, that Mr C.'s admirers among their flocks fell away to the ranks of infidelity, which has peculiar attractions for the superficial, the inexperienced, and the unreflecting. We have but recently been made acquainted with the state of the press. To the utter dismay of the community, it has been found that there is a large excess of vicious and infidel publications over the religious and the moral. Among those of the vicious and infidel class, Mr C.'s writings hold no mean place. Let them be known and treated accordingly. The great conflict of the nineteenth century between infidelity and christianity, seems now to have commenced on all sides. The principles of our faith, and the most sacred institutions of our religion, are every where assailed. Let the battle on our part be fairly and manfully fought. Let there be no traitors among us—no man professing friendship for both sides. Let our opponents profess as they may,—liberalism, philanthropy, science, we must not fail to expose them, when they aim to set men free from the fear of their Creator,-to banish from their thoughts all regard to another world, -to bring them to believe that there is no danger in sin, no need of a divine Savour, and no necessity for regeneration. Nor must we be contented merely with warnings against such sentiments from the pulpit; we must have recourse to the press, which will be found as powerful on the side of truth as on the side of error. And earnestly and perseveringly maintaining the truth, though the enemy come in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard against him. SCHEME FOR THE PUBLICATION OF "THE FATHERS AND FOUNDERS OF THE UNITED PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH." OUR readers have had their attention repeatedly called to the object and advantages of the scheme for republishing the works of the Fathers of the Secession and Relief Churches. We confess our anxious wish that these advantages should be impressed on our people throughout the bounds of the denomination, and that the scheme may meet with that early and efficient support which it richly merits. The object speaks to all that is generous and laudable in the denominational spirit of the United Church. Why should we suffer the precious remains of those venerable men, to whose talents and worth, to whose labours and services, we owe so much, to lie, in a great measure, forgotten, because now so difficult to be obtained? Is there not something of reproach in our permitting the writings of men, whose names we are proud to cherish, to become so scarce as to be met with in comparatively few of our families-not even always to be found in the hands of our ministers? This discredit may now be done away. The want which many, we are sure, have lamented, is about to be supplied; and what is necessary to accomplish these ends efficiently on behalf of the great body of the people and friends of our church, is a speedy support of the scheme, by those who wish it well. |