been expelled for finging Hymns, and praying extempore, they certainly would not have been lefs, but in all probability much better prepared for handling the fword of the Spirit, the Word of God, and fighting therewith, either from the Prefs or the Pulpit, the battles of the LORD of hofts, To fee or hear fuch divine exercifes treated with reproach, and spoken of with contempt by common and open blafphemers, is bad; but that any who came on purpose to be trained up for the facred work of the Miniftry, fhould be looked on as criminal, and expelled a Univerfity for being fometimes employed in them, is too fad a proof not only that "our gold is become dim, and our fine gold changed, but that our very foundations are out of course," What then. muft the righteous do? What indeed, but weep and lament? And weep and lament indeed they muft, especially when they hear further, that meeting in a religious fociety, giv-ing a word of exhortation, or expounding and commenting a little now and then upon fome portion of fcripture, are not the leaft of the accufations for which fome of these young worthies had the sentence of expulfion pronounced against them. It is recorded in the Old Teftament, that in a degenerate age," thofe that feared the LORD fpake often one to another; that the LORD hearkened and heard, and that a book of remembrance was written before him for thofe that feared the LORD, and thought on his name: and they fhall be mine in that day, faith the LORD, when I make up my jewels; jewels; and I will fpare them as a man fpareth his own fon that ferveth him." Thus it was in the Old Teftament times. Nor are fuch meetings mentioned with less approbation in the New for therein, in order that we may hold the profeffion of our faith without wavering, we are commanded to "confider one another, to provoke unto love and to good works; not forfaking the affembling ourselves together, but exhorting one another, and fo much the more, as we see the day approaching." Nay, one immediate confequence of that grand effufion of the Holy Ghost on the day of Pentecoft, we are told, was this, namely, that "they who gladly received the word, and were baptized, continued ftedfaft in the Apostles doctrine, in fellowship, in breaking of bread, and in prayer." This is a fhort, but withal a full and bleffed account of the first truly apoftolic primitive Church; and we may venture to affirm, that as we are more or lefs partakers of a true apoftolic primitive fpirit, fuch kind of religious or fellowship-meetings, will in proportion increase or decrease among us. To talk therefore, or write, or preach against, or either by private perfuafion or open violence to oppofe or endeavour to fupprefs or discountenance fuch kind of religious focieties, is flying, as it were, in the very face of the fcriptures of truth, and of the Holy Ghost himself. In all our charters granted by the Crown, wherein authority is given to bodies corporate to enact laws, it is always with this limitation, namely, that no laws fhall be enacted by fuch bodies corporate contrary to the laws of the realm. And as the Scrip tures tures are our grand Codex Legum and Magna Charta, in refpect to our religious principles and practices, what affront must we put upon our country in general, and the church of England in particular, even by barely imagining that any law now exifts that prohibits any of her members from frequenting fuch focieties as have the divine authority and fuperfcription fo apparently ftamped upon them? The Private Meetings that are in any wife deemed and denounced illegal, are fuch, and fuch only, ás are feditious, and composed of feditious perfons, who affociate, indeed, under a pretence of Religion, but in reality to plot against the ftate. The fooner any that can be convicted of this are made to forfake the affembling themselves together, the better: and though compofed of a threefold, three hundred fold, nay a three thousand fold cord, no matter if, like the cords wherewith the Philiftines bound Samfon, they were immediately broken. But as nothing of this nature can with the least shadow of truth be ob jected against the Meetings and Societies frequented by these Students, but quite the contrary urged in their favour, if Scripture and the practice of the primitive Chriftians are to be our guides, they ought not only to be permitted, but countenanced and encouraged by every true lover of our church and nation. And fuppofing in any fuch religious fociety one of them fhould venture now and then to drop a word of Exhortation, or even attempt in a small degree to open, expound, or enlarge upon fome practical text of Scripture, how can even this be looked upon as ille gal, gal, much lefs finful or worthy of expulfion, when, I could almost fay, it is a neceffary preparation for the future service of the fanctuary? To be apt to teach, is one indifpenfible qualification required by Scripture either in a Bishop or Prefbyter. But how can this aptnefs or an habit of teaching be acquired without the exercife of previous acts? Or what bufinefs is there in the world, even from the lowest mechanic, to the highest profeffion amongst us, (except that of Divinity) wherein Pupils, Clerks, nay common Apprentices, are not by previous exercises trained up for a complete proficiency in their refpective callings and occupations? Our all-wife Mafter, we know, fent his Difciples on fhort, excurfions, before he gave them the more extenfive commiffion to go into all the world and were our Students in general, under proper limitations, to be thus exercised and employed, while they are keeping terms at the Univerfity, or among their poor neighbours in the country, when they return home in time of Vacation, they would not turn out fuch meer novices, or make fuch awkward figures, as too many raw creatures do when they make their first appearance in the pulpit. I remember, above thirty years ago, after fome young Students had been vifiting the fick and imprisoned, and had been giving a word of exhortation in a private house, that upon meeting the Ordinary and Minister of the Parish in their return to College, they frankly told him what they had been doing; upon which, he turned to them and faid, "GOD bless you: I wish we had more fuch young curates." A milder, and therefore a more chriftian fentence this, than that of a late a late expulfion for the very fame fuppofed crimes and mifdemeanors. As for the reports of thefe young Students being accufed or condemned for barely being acquainted with, or occafional vifitors of fome of the most laborious pains - taking worthy parish - ministers in England, it is almoft altogether incredible. And yet the ftanders-by, as well as the fuppofed Culprits themselves, as we are informed, aver this to be real matter of fact: attended with this melancholly aggravation, that they were hiffed at, pufhed about, and treated in a manner that the vileft criminal is not allowed to be treated, either at the Old-Baily, or any Court of Juftice in the kingdom. We are . likewife told, that a copy of their indictment was afked for, but denied them. And not only fo, but that one, from whose polite behaviour in the worldly walk, better things might have been expected, was heard to fay, as he came out of Chapel, to their grand Accufer, after sentence of expulfion was pronounced, that he would have the thanks of the whole University for that day's work. Pudet hæc opprobria nobis Et dici potuiffe, et non potuisse refelli. What thanks, Reverend SIR, he may meet with from the whole Univerfity, I know not; but one thing I know, namely, that he will receive no thanks for that day's work from the innumerable company of Angels, the general affembly of the Firstborn, which are written in Heaven, or from GOD the judge of all, in that day when JESUS, the Medi ator |