quity,"—about darkness pouring light on the bright pages of inspiration.

"What the Lord saith, that is our lively oracle. And since we have no evidence, that the Lord hath so spoken to his church as to furnish her any other oracles than those of the Holy Scriptures, we are left to conclude that in them is the only final rule of faith to the church—the only final authority, to which a minister is to go for the words of eternal life. Till recently it was not supposed possible that under such solemn. pledges, (as are given by ministers when ordained,) the single authority of the Scriptures, as alone the oracles of God, could be drawn into question. But strange and mortifying it is to say that the Protestant Church (i. e., the Episcopal part of it) is at this day molested with attempts within to introduce, for co-ordinate authority, that which we had hoped had long since been finally rejected and protested against, with all other like devices of the man of sin for overthrowing the reign of Christ. Into the consideration of what is now taught (in the Guide,' for instance) on the subject of tradition as the authoritative interpreter of the Scriptures, as constituting with them a joint rule of faith, as proceeding originally from the same fount of inspiration, and so meriting, in this the eighteenth century of its course, an equally reverential regard, we have no intention of entering. The existence of such an apparition in the present age of our Protestant church, has been alluded to for the sake of the strong contrast, by which it enables us to show the doctrine of our ordination vows concerning the Scriptures as alone the oracles of God; and also, that I may urge upon my brethren in the ministry, that whatever evil may come to others from the gathering up of the traditions by the draught of a drag-net, which embraces the rubbish of even seven centuries, for an infallible interpretation of the Scriptures; they, for themselves, will take heed that the affliction may be so sanctified to them, that by showing them how easily the wisdom of man may be deceived by a false angel of light,' and how prone it is, under an idea of doing God service, to pervert his plain truth by complex inventions of men, they may be led by the present evil only to search. more diligently, follow more simply, and preach more exclusively and fondly the plain text of the Bible. Be assured we escape no controversies, but multiply all, by associating with the Bible, for final authority, the judgments of men, however

numerous, learned, holy, or ancient. It is not because the Scriptures are not plain enough, that divisions in doctrine abound; but because the hearts of men are not honest enough. The same cause would darken any counsel, and pervert any rule, and the easier in proportion as the rule was strict and the counsel holy. It is no more to be supposed that God, in providing a revelation for man, would have furnished such means of understanding it, that none could help knowing the doctrine, than that he should have so displayed its evidences that none could help believing its truth. It is as really our probation whether we will so read the Scriptures as to understand their doctrine, as whether we will so read the same as to obey their precept. To seek a rule, in tradition, or in any thing else, by which to prevent the possibility of errors, and divisions, and heresies, concerning the faith, no matter what the jaundice of the eye, or the enmity of the heart, is to seek what would be wholly inconsistent with that probation under which we are held, as well for the unbiassed use of our understanding as for the obedient submission of our will. The existence of divers opinions as to what is truth, is no more the evidence that the written word, as a rule of faith, is defective, than the multiplied forms of ungodliness in a Christian land are proof of defect in the motives for holy obedience to the moral law. The remedy against error is not in mending the rule by which we measure our doctrines, but in taking the beam out of the eye that judges of their truth; not by making the Scripture profitable for doctrine by dividing its authority with the traditions of many centuries, but by humbling the reader into a more implicit submission to, and a more entire contentment with, whatever it teaches. The wayfaring man, who cannot choose his course by taking observations of the sun, as it shines in the broad daylight of the Scriptures, will little help his accuracy by resorting to the dead reckoning of tradition."

We have not yet, however, reached the summit to which "the Guide" conducts us. One Alpine height remains for us to climb. Man cannot of himself understand the Bible,-he needs something else. "Primitive Antiquity" must determine its meaning for him. This may seem at first to be setting men afloat on a sea of uncertainty, or perilling the truth with difficulty. What! must we go back, and read the musty tomes of the fathers in order to understand the Bible? or to know what we must do to be saved? Oh! no; there is no necessity for this.

"Primitive Antiquity is presented in its FULNESS AND PURITY IN THE BOOK OF COMMON PRAYER." Verily, this Prayer-Book is a wonderful work! It contains all primitive antiquity in its fulness and purity! Yes; " its liturgies and creeds, its prayers, anthems, and hymns, are all of high antiquity. They have glowed upon the lips of apostles, saints, and martyrs!" This is the summit. It is an elevation above any thing we have seen from the Oxford school. The creeds of this book date back to the apostles! The Nicene with its additions, for example, was used by the apostles! Its anthems and hymns too are of the same high antiquity! That is, the compositions of Steele, Toplady, Watts, Barbauld, Doddridge, Luther, Cowper, Addison, Wesley, Dwight, Heber, and Montgomery, have all glowed upon the lips of apostles, saints, and martyrs of high antiquity! We defy any Romanist to surpass this. Comment here is unnecessary. We have a word more to say, however, before we leave this point. The Rector tells us that this Prayer-Book contains primitive antiquity in its fulness and purity, of course there is in it a faithful transcript of the teaching and biblical exegesis of the primitive cnurch. Does it contain the teaching of the Nicene Fathers on the subject of celibacy? Does it teach what primitive antiquity taught about the condition of the soul after death? or about the nature of Christ? or the object of his sufferings and death? It does not. In its structure, this Prayer-Book conforms much more to the theolog of Leyden in the sixteenth century, than to primitive antiquity. It wears much more the aspects of the age of Edward and Elizabeth, than of the times of Irenæus and Tertullian. It is much more thoroughly penetrated with the spirit of Arminianism, than with the teachings of primitive times.

In one particular, however, we must concede it inculcates the doctrine of primitive antiquity in its fulness and purity. We refer to baptismal regeneration. The early Fathers, as is well known, ascribed to baptism a peculiar efficacy. In their view there was an inherent virtue in the act, which changed the nature of man-or that innate sin was removed from the individual, or child, in connection with the performance of this rite. This popish and unscriptural idea is taught in this Book of Common Prayer. When a child is baptized, the minister is directed to say, "We yield thee hearty thanks, most merciful Father, that it hath pleased thee to REGENERATE THIS INFANT WITH THY HOLY SPIBIT." Now, if this be true, then one of two things must follow,

either all children, baptized in the Episcopal church, are saved, or that some of them fall from grace, and become again children of wrath. Which of these horns will our Episcopal friends choose? They do not believe, we suppose, that any one who has been regenerated by the Holy Spirit is ever lost. We are compelled, therefore, to one of two conclusions-either that all infants baptized in their church are regenerated, and therefore saved, or that they speak with their lips in this case what they do not believe in their hearts.

We have said, we do not discard the writings of the Fathers. We would not. They subserve an important end. Their testimony is good as to what they saw and heard-as to what was the practice of the church in their day. But as interpreters of Scripture, as possessing co-ordinate authority with inspired writers, we receive them not. We cannot allow them to determine for us what saith the Lord. We are willing to hear their opinions, and to give them all their just weight, but further than this, we cannot go. As interpreters of the Bible, we cannot sit at their feet, and consent to receive the law from their hands. No; they are the young and inexperienced men of the church. They knew much better how to suffer than to teach-to explain the Bible.* Here they are full of blunders, often talk at random, and are contradictory. They are to serve, not to govern us. As the sole arbiters of the meaning of the Bible, we renounce them, and should just as soon think of receiving the infallibility of the Pope, or the supremacy of Victoria, or of her more illustrious maiden predecessor, in matters of faith. The Bible is a plain book in all things pertaining to life and righteousness, in all points essential to salvation, a child can understand its lessons of wisdom. It requires only an honest heart, and the application of the rules of language and of common sense, under the spiritual illumination of the Holy Ghost, to be understood in all points essential to peace on earth and joy in heaven. The student of the Bible, therefore, is to direct his course, as Paul did, by prayer, by communion with God, by attaining purity of heart, a sympathy of soul with the divine mind, the revealing Spirit, in these pages of heavenly love. At every step, and with all the help of man, he is to lift up his eye to God and ask, Open thou mine eyes, as the surest way of un

To believe, to suffer, to love-not to write, was the primitive taste.-Milner.

derstanding wondrous things out of the Bible. Yes; he must direct his course by heavenly signs, by catching every breath of celestial air. He is to be guided in ascertaining the meaning of Scripture, not by the fancies of men-not by the fulness and purity of primitive antiquity, boiled down into the consistency of some homily, or Prayer-Book-no,-but by assiduous study, and "on bended knees, and with a heart raised to heaven," by honest, persevering, and prayerful effort.*

We agree perfectly with the illustrious Prelate, whose words of burning rebuke we have quoted, that the attempt, now made in certain parts of the Episcopal church, to exalt the teachings of man's wisdom to an equal, if not higher place than those of the Holy Ghost, to make the voice of primitive antiquity the determiner of the truth as it is in Jesus, exhibits some of the worst features of the man of sin. It is an attempt by a taper light to show us the sun in the heavens, and even to cast light upon its bright and burning disk. We feel no possible sympathy with such a movement. It strikes us with peculiar infelicity that we should be turned back in these last days, as we are in this "Guide," and sent to the school of Ignatius, or of Cyprian, to ascertain what the Bible means, when they tell us that all they knew they learned from the Bible. We abhor this Oxford movement-this shameful and adulterous union of tradition with divine truth. The place of the Bible is not at the feet of human philosophy; nor yet on an equal elevation with it. It is enthroned as far above it, as the pure heaven, whence it came, is above the low earth, on which we dwell. From that celestial eminence it must not be brought down, and united with the teachings of man's wisdom-with any thing earthly. When the Saviour came into the world, he found the Scriptures wedded to tradition, and under its control and guidance, and at once and

I will not scruple to assert, that the most illiterate Christian, if he can but read his English Bible, and will but take the pains to read it in this manner, (comparing parallel passages,) will not only attain all that practical knowledge which is necessary to his salvation; but, by God's blessing, he will become learned in every thing relating to his religion in such a degree, that he will not be liable to be misled, either by the refined arguments or by the false assertions of those who endeavor to ingraft their own opinion upon the oracles of God. Bishop Horsley.