people, as a people. Besides these, however, there were other cases of what may be called individual sacrifice; that is, the offerings or sacrifices of individuals for personal considerations; and these were chiefly in cases where the compact, political and religious, existing between Jehovah and the Jewish people, had been broken by some sin, either of omission or commission, against the law, moral or ceremo nial, which had been given by Moses. The appointed mode of worship (which, in such cases, has been well described, as signifying "a desire of reconciliation and renewed friendship with God," as a portion of his chosen family) was here also by offering and sacrifice, and not by prayer. The reader may consult on this subject, the seven first chapters of Leviticus, in which the several modes of expiation to be used by individuals for private and personal offences, are minutely described. The ceremonial worship here ordained, will be found not to consist of prayer; we may infer, indeed, that prayer, or that state of repentance and pious feeling which naturally leads to prayer, was (to those who were sufficiently enlightened amongst them to comprehend it) at all times essential to the purpose of moral purification. That the Jews too, or at least the well-informed amongst them, knew this-and in the more advanced stage of their existence as a people-may be collected from what is called the dedicatory prayer of Solomon; but chiefly from the sentiments contained in the later prophetical writings. But the outward the public-the ceremonial mode of purification, expressly was by offerings and by sacrifice, and not by joining in public and social prayer.

Here then, we have traced, as it were, the history of sacrifice, in relation to the Jewish temple. We have not, indeed, gone minutely into individual cases, but we have seized the great and prominent features of the records remaining to us on the subject. We have seen the appointment of the national mode of worship under Moses;morning and evening, and once in each year; on the sabbaths, and on the various feasts. We have followed this worship into the temple, where it was introduced by Solomon. We have noticed its perversion by an idolatrous king, and its renovation by a righteous monarch; and finally, we have seen described its restoration after its complete destruction during the captivity. In all these great and striking cases, sacrifice is appointed-is spoken of; and prayer-social prayer is not appointed-is not spoken of. What shall we infer? Surely, what we have already asserted,

THAT SACRIFICE, AND NOT SOCIAL PRAYER, WAS THE APPOINTED WORSHIP OF THE JEWISH TEMPLE. There may, indeed, be incidental cases which present apparent difficulties, and, therefore, require explanation; and that explanation in a future stage of the inquiry we purpose giving. But the above, let it be observed, are not incidental cases; they, all of them, bear reference to great and important events in which the worship of the temple is either pre-figured, or established, or restored. It is, surely, to times and to cases like these that we should look, if we would collect the real nature of the temple worship. That at these times and in these cases, we do not find the appointment of social prayer, is, surely, no weak argument in support of our position

-

THAT SOCIAL OR JOINT PRAYER NEVER WAS INTENDED TO FORM, AND NEVER, IN FACT, DID FORM A PORTION OF THE WORSHIP OF THE JEWISH TEMPLE.

Our next Essay will be directed, secondly, to the praises and thanksgivings of the levites, as the present one has been chiefly devoted to the offerings and sacrifices of the priests; when we shall proceed, thirdly, to inquire into the cases of prayer recorded as having been offered up in or towards that house; not doubting, but that we shall be able to support to the very letter, the position of Prideaux already quoted-that the Jews HAD NEITHER ANY PUB

66

LIC FORMS TO PRAY BY, NOR ANY PUBLIC MINISTERS TO OFFICIATE TO THEM HEREIN ; BUT THAT ALL 68 PRAYED IN PRIVATE TO THEMSELVES, AND ALL ACCORDING To their PRIVATE CONCEPTIONS.”

On Reading Hebrew Melodies, by LORD BYRON; and Sacred Melodies, by THOMAS MOORE.

Unholy hands, to sacred themes

Awaken now the Psalmist's lyre;
Like Aaron's sons, who dared to fling
Sweet incense in unhallow'd fire."

Like his own Cain, an out-cast-wild-
See Nadab tread life's desert sand;
No gift he gives;-but hurls to earth
The altar of his brother's hand.

Abihu, warm as seraph's love,

Tracks his high course with angel wings;
Soars brightly, beauteously-then falls
To earth, like those lost stars he sings.

THE FREETHINKING CHRISTIANS' REVIEW OF THE

RELIGIOUS WORLD.'

QUAKERISM.

"Immediate Revelation being a much easier way for men to establish their opinions and regulate their conduct, than the tedious and not always successful labour of strict reasoning; it is no wonder that some have been very apt to pretend to revelation, and to persuade themselves that they are under the peculiar guidance of heaven in their actions and opinions, especially in those of them which they cannot account for by the ordinary methods of knowledge and principles of reason. Hence, we see that in all ages, men, in whom melancholy has mixed with devotion, or whose conceit of themselves has raised them into an opinion of a greater familiarity with God, and a nearer admittance to his favour, than is afforded to others, have often flattered themselves with a persuasion of an immediate intercourse with the Deity, and frequent communications from the divine spirit."

LOCKE'S Essay concerning Human Understanding.

Or the truth of the above reflections, as contained in Locke's masterly chapter on Enthusiasm,' the history of Quakerism affords abundant evidence, a portion of which evidence we have in a former Essay endeavoured to open to the reader. That George Fox, the founder of Quakerism, was one of those in whom melancholy was mixed with devotion, may be collected from the unsocial and solitary life which, before he commenced his ministry, he appears to have led. That conceit of himself had, at a very early period, raised him into an opinion of greater familiarity with God, and a nearer admittance to his favour than is afforded to others, is evinced by the assurance contained in his journal, that at the age of eleven, the Lord taught him to be faithful in all things. Besides these early communications from the Lord, it appears also from the same authority, that Satan had made various overtures to the youthful prophet, which induced him to submit his condition to a certain "ancient priest" of Warwickshire. Quakerism had, perhaps, been unknown, if happily its founder had followed the prescription given, on this occasion, by the worthy priest, for "he "bid me" (says Fox, Journal, p. 4) "TAKE TOBACCO AND "SING PSALMS;" advice intended, no doubt, to dissipate the morbid and melancholy affections to which it was evident to the superior sagacity of the priest, the Quaker lad was a prey. His vanity, however, induced him to pronounce the priest ignorant of his condition; and hence, the disorder

became confirmed in Fox, and epidemic amongst his followers.

In our last, we presented our readers with a brief sketch of the early history of Quakerism, and of the first manifestations of this supposed" immediate revelation" or inward light, which it was our endeavour to show, from facts and arguments then adduced, was calculated to engender, and had, in fact, engendered pride, fanaticism, and folly. We pledged ourselves, however, to maintain a graver charge against this fatal and fallacious doctrine of Quakerism, by proving, that it is calculated" to undermine the authority of "to the scriptures, and supercede the doctrines of the gospel." This pledge then proceed we now to redeem. THE CHRISTIAN RELIGION, or, as it is otherwise called, the GOSPEL, is a clear and simple system of revealed truth, given as a guide to the faith and practice of man: it is suited to his weakness; adapted to his wants; and necessary to his knowledge and happiness. This system consists not in the loose imaginations and uncertain suggestions of the human mind, but rather in express and defined doctrines and duties clearly communicated and easily to be collected from the scriptures of truth. Christianity proposes certain facts and principles to the judgment of men-as, the divine authority of Jesus as a messenger appointed by God, and as attested by the miracles he performed-the fact of his death and resurrection, as evidence of a future state of existence-the necessity of obedience to the divine will, as made known through Jesus-these constitute the sum and substance of the gospel. The record and the evidence of these truths are to be found in the scriptures, and the scriptures alone, as containing the history of the divine dealings with man, and as written chiefly by those who were witnesses of these things, and who were the appointed and inspired ministers of the divine will. Christianity existed, we readily grant, independent of, and anterior to, the books of the New Testament; the facts of christianity had transpired, and its principles had been promulgated before either were submitted to writing; and if Jesus and his apostles were again on earth, and we could receive from their lips the truths of christianity, then, indeed, would the scriptures of the New Testament become of minor importance; but being, as they now are, the only means by which we can arrive at a knowledge of the truths of christianity, so they are, from the very necessity of the case, the best and chief rule of faith and practice to the Christian. Clear and indisputable as these positions would appear to

be, the Quaker, by the very terms and substance of his creed, denies them all; and, by asserting that the scriptures are not essential to a knowledge of, or belief in christianity, he abandons the only authority to which we can appeal for a knowledge of revelation, for an hypothesis which is actually subversive of its truth. How effectually, indeed, the Quakers undervalue the scriptures may be collected from the works of their principal writers, and from the general history and proceedings of the sect; but the truth is, they must undervalue the scriptures-it is the direct and necessary tendency of their creed to produce such effect-their assertion of the importance they attach to the scriptures will stand them in little avail, as long as they hold the doctrine of the inward light and claim to be illuminated directly by God himself, upon the subject of religion. Conceding, indeed, to this sect the monstrous and presumptuous claim which they set up as to their possession of the spirit of God, they are but consistent in holding this to be a superior rule of faith to the scriptures; they are, however, inconsistent in affecting to attach any, the least, importance to the scriptures, and that for this evident reason, that these can teach them nothing but what they have a surer and better means of knowing. Of what importance can be the discourses and doctrines of Jesus, or the instructions and precepts of his apostles, delivered at a remote period of time, and subject, as must be confessed, in their transmission to us, to those obscurities and errors, from which no ancient written records can be free; if, in reality, the will of God be communicated to these people immediately and miraculously by God himself? The non-importance of the scriptures, upon the Quaker hypothesis, appears to us to be so clear-so really self evident, that we are doubtful whether any illustration can be offered to render it more $0. Let us suppose, however, as a case, that A is desirous of becoming acquainted with the mathematics; it may be supposed that for this purpose he will consult the Elements of Euclid. If B, however, is desirous of obtaining the same knowledge, and fancies he can do so by intuition or inspiration, will it be pretended that he would study the writings of Euclid, or attach any importance to them? Now the case of B is that of the Quaker; he professes to become acquainted with the science of religion by an infallible and unerring process-by the immediate opera tion of the divine mind upon his perceptions and faculties, and he naturally rejects a means of information, which, at