conversation to them, instead of the conscious being who had cast them off, as it is to offer up our prayers to a God incarnate, or to that infirm humanity which was only assumed as being correllative to the lowest and the grossest faculties of man, and was put off so soon as the victory was gained. In no one passage that I have seen does our enlightened author apply the words, God Incarnate, or, as it is ambiguously but improperly transposed, the Incarnate God, to any other than to the infirm humanity; and unless we are to address our prayers to that infirm humanity, we have not the slightest justification for addressing them to an Incarnate God. I have not time to notice the other phrase, Divine Body, and to shew its grossness, when applied to the Incarnate God. With your permission I will defer what observations I have to make on it to another number of your work. Of the concluding remarks of your correspondent, as I do not profess to understand them, I shall say nothing. The quotations which are given from our author appear to me to be in part mistranslated, and in part misunderstood. Thus much for the present I think it right to say, that I might not be supposed to acquiesce in such interpretations as contradict the very first principles on which the Theology of the New Church is founded. *** Review of Books. An account of Emanuel Swedenborg as contained in an Eulogium to his Memory, pronounced, in the Great Hall of the House of Nobles, in the name of the Royal Academy of Sciences of Stockholm. October 7th, 1772, by M. Samuel Sandel, Coun sellor of the Royal Board of Mines, Knight of the Polar Star, and Member of the said Academy. Translated from the Swedish. With Introductory Observations exhibiting the claims of the Writings of Swedenborg to the attention of the Public and presenting a Characteristic Description of the Four General Classes into which his Works may be divided. Royal 12mo. Pp. 50. Price 1s. The pamphlet now before us we consider highly useful, inasmuch as it is well calculated to remove the gross misrepresentations, and unfounded calumnies which have but too successfully been propagated against the character of Swedenborg, as well as to the prejudice of his Theological writings, The account of Swedenborg, as contained in the Eulogium to his memory, is exceedingly interesting, and must at once make upon the mind of the unprejudiced reader a very favourable impression respecting the character and writings of that great and good man. The Eulogium, it appears, as originally delivered by Sandel, is now for the first time printed complete. It is accompanied with explanatory notes, and prefaced with "Introductory Observations exhibiting the claims of the writings of Swedenborg to the attention of the public, &c." From these Introductory Observations we make the following extract. Respecting that eminent servant of the Lord, the celebrated Emanuel Swedenborg, great misrepresentations have gone abroad, and have produced in the minds of many, most false and injurious impressions, in regard both to him and to his writings, Let, however, any one take, as a sample of his writings, those in which be delivers the doctrines of the New Church, predicted in the Revelation, as he affirms, under the symbol of the New Jerusalem; particularly, let the sample be his work intitled, On the New Jerusalem and its Heavenly Doctrine; or his Doctrines of the New Jerusalem respecting the Lord, the Sacred Scripture, Faith, and Life; which four tracts really form but one work, and have lately been published as such, though they had previously been printed separately, and may still be separately obtained. Let any one take either of these works as a sample: and if he had previously only heard the illustrious Author spoken of as the deluded visionary and bewildered enthusiast, he will be not a little surprised on its perusal. Instead of visionary statements and enthusiastic flights, he will find the words of truth and soberness, under their most legitimate stamp; doctrines deduced in the clearest manner from the literal sense of the Word of God, arranged as to their various particulars, in the most lucid order, and supported by the strongest rational considerations. Let either of these works be perused with candour, and with the attention and devout seriousness which the subjects treated of demand, and which the mode of treatment merits; and it is thought the reader must be disposed to admit, both that the doctrines which it delivers are truly the doctrines of the Word of God, and that the illumination by which they are so convincingly deduced from that source must have proceeded from its Divine Author. Let it then be seriously considered, whether a writer who was thus, on the most vital points of Christian Doctrine, the organ of the dictates of truth, could, on other parts of the same general system, be the victim of the illusions of error. There are various considerations, which, if duly reflected on, would establish the claims of this writer to the attention of the Christian world. It is generally admitted among Christians, that the prophecies of Scripture do load to the expectation of a glorious state of the church on earth a state in which she shall be glorious for the clearness of her doctrinal views and for the purity of her practice beyond anything which has hitherto been witnessed. Many commentators have seen, that such a state of the church is what is prefigured by the description of the New Jerusalem, in the Revelation, which is said to "come down from God out of heaven" (ch. xxi. 2, 10,) and to be "the tabernacle of God with men," (ver. 3). This is the view of the meaning of that prophecy taken by Swedenborg, and which is demonstrated by him with great force of reasoning and the most conclusive Scripture testimony. If this be the true view of the subject, and if Scripture does indeed deliver the oracles of truth, this New Jerusalem-this new and improved form of the Christian Church-must begin to be manifested at some time or other. The predictions respecting it cannot be allowed, by their Divine Author, to remain a dead letter for ever; at some time or other they must be accomplished. And what times have ever yet arrived, at which their accomplishment might so reasonably be considered to be about to commence, as the time now present? A longer period has already elapsed since the first foundation of the Christian Religion, than has intervened between the first communication of any former dispensation of divine things to man and its modification by a succeeding one. Neither the Antediluvian Church, nor the Noetic, nor the Israelitic, lasted so many centuries as has the Christian Church already. If then a new modification of this is ever to appear, if a New Jerusalem is ever to form the tabernacle of God with men, the present age, as the probable era of its commencement cannot be objected against on the plea of immaturity. If, also, it is reasonable to suppose that such an era would be marked by extraordinary signs, no era, assuredly, was ever more decidedly so marked than the present. For a long period, which does not seem yet to have entirely closed, the judgments of heaven have been abroad in the earth, in a more distinguished and more universal manner than has marked any former age since the establishment of the Christian church. The whole political and moral aspect of almost every country on the face of the globe, and particularly of every country where christians have had influence, has been surprisingly transformed; and even the human mind itself, throughout, as far as is known, all the great families of man, has undergone a most conspicuous change. Is it not reasonable to suppose, that these wonderful occurrences may have been in part overruled, and in part produced, by the immediate agency of Divine Providence, with reference to the accomplishment of its purposes of mercy, in the establishment of the new dispensation of genuine christianity predicted under the figure of the New Jerusalem ?-that judgments are preceding to remove obstructions out of the way, and that beneficial influences also are in operation to prepare for its reception? Most assuredly, the most decided opposer of the doctrines now proposed as those of the New Jerusalem cannot deny, that if a New Jerusalem is ever to appear in the form of a New Church among men, no times wearing more of the character which may reasonably be expected to mark the era of its commencement have ever yet been known, and none can be reasonably looked for hereafter in which that character shall be more strikingly displayed. There is much then which gives an antecedent probability to the opinion, that, as the predictions relative to the new state of the Lord's Church among mankind of which the New Jerusalem is a figure must be fulfilled at some time or other, the present is actually the time appointed by Infinite Wisdom and Goodness for that purpose. But whenever the time should arrive, it is undeniably certain, that some individual or other of the human race must be enlightened to make it known. Whenever the superior clearness of doctrinal views, introductory to superior purity of practice, which, as all commentators admit, is at some period to constitute the preeminent glory of the church, should be communicated to bless her members, it is obviously indispensable, that some individual or other of the human race should receive the illumination necessary to introduce it. Some instrument or other, peculiarly enlightened, must be raised up for the purpose. If then it is not unreasonable to suppose that the present may be the time in which the church, or state of the church, represented by the New Jerusalem, is to commence, there is no absurdity in supposing that such an instrument for communicating her doctrines may already have appeared. The illustrious Swedenborg is believed by many to have stood in this capacity. He most solemnly affirms it in various parts of his writings: is there any improbability in the belief, that he may have been the instrument which some man must be? A man who makes such an assertion either believes it himself, or he does not. He who can make such an assertion without believing it himself, must be a supremely wicked impostor. But it is impossible to entertain such a suspicion in regard to Swedenborg: not only is there the most abundant external testimony to the innocence and sincerity of his character, but these are obvious from the whole of his writings themselves; which not only exhibit throughout the purest sentiments, but breathe in every line the writer's own entire conviction of the truth of what he says. In the assertion then which we are noticing, he only advanced, what he most entirely believed. He who thus makes such an assertion, must either be completely deluded, or the assertion must be true. But it will be impossible for any one who reads with attention either of the works, for example, which we have mentioned, to imagine that its writer was the victim of delusion. Not only are the views of truth which they exhibit so elevated and clear in themselves as to recommend their own excellence to every lover of truth for its own sake, independently of all reasoning; but, as intimated before, the method in which they are arranged, the Scripture proofs by which they are supported, and the rational arguments by which they are illustrated, are all of so superior an order, as to evince in the writer the highest perfection of the rational faculties, and to render ridiculous in regard to him the imputation of self-delusion. There remains no other alternative, but that his assertion is true, that the doctrines delivered in them as those of the New Jerusalem, are really the doctrines of the New Jerusalem of prophecy,―rays of that glorious light, which, as is generally believed, was eventually to shine in the renewed Christian Church. All the other works of this illustrious author will be found equally rational, when considered apart from prejudice, and as the compositions of a man who had been specially enlightend to communicate the discoveries of Divine Truth necessary to be made at the commencement of the New Jerusalem. Miscellanea. LONDON NEW JERUSALEM CHURCH FREE SCHOOL. THE Fourth Annual Meeting of this Society took place on Wednesday. July 5th, at the Montpelier Tavern, Walworth, the Rev. T. Goyder in the Chair. The Chairman by an appropriate address briefly called the attention of the Members to the business of the Meeting, after which the Report of the Committee was read, and several resolutions passed. The Meeting was well attended, and we are happy to state that perfect unanimity, joined with a strong desire to promote the interests of the Institution very generally prevailed. At half past nine o'clock the Meeting adjourned until the first Wednesday in July, 1827. NEWCATTLE-UPON TYNE. WE are sorry to inform our readers, that the Society of the New Church in this place, is now, we believe, without a Minister. The Rev. J. Bradley, being compelled by his secular affairs, to retire from the situation. We fear that such disagreeable changes and fluctuations as these will occasionally take place in Societies, until the New Church, like other denominations of Christians, is able to do something effectually for the Ministry. BOLTON. The 12th Anniversary of the Opening of the Sunday School, at the New Jerusalem Chapel, BOLTON, Lancashire, was celebrated on Sunday, July 2nd, when an appropriate Lesson was read, 1 Kings xvii. and an impressive Sermon delivered, (by Mr. F. M. Hodson of Manchester,) from Isaiah lii. 13; and a collection made in aid of the Institution, amounting to near £16. Great satisfaction was expressed, and many persons, particularly some of the country friends from neighbouring villages, lamented that the Preacher did not lengthen his discourse; but the extreme heat of the weather induced him to be as concise as the subject would admit; he gave a brief but interesting history of the first establishment of the School: it was particularly pleasing to hear two of the hymns recited before they were sung, by two of the younger girls; which they did in a manner creditable to themselves and their instructors. The children sung delightfully to the organ, which was accompanied by a few professors, who generously volunteered their services, and the whole assembly joining, made it truly congregatioal worship. The following Hymn written for the, occasion, by Mr. F. M. Hodson, was sung by the children. Let the creation's wide domain, Young men ye first are call'd to raise Maidens, employ your warb'ling throats, His praise, who form'd each voice to sing, Old men, ye too must join the throng, Come children, -with your aged sires, And when you join the hosts above, WARWICK MEETING. THE Warwick Meeting, as we announced in our last number, was held on the 4th of this month. Previous to dinner on Wednesday, Charles Augustus Tulk, Esq. was appointed President, Thomas Banning, Esq, Vice President, and Mr. Nathaniel Shelmerdine, Secretary. On the following morning after reading the London and Manchester reports, the President delivered an address, introductory to the resolutions which were afterwards proposed and unanimously adopted, on the important subject of the Resurrection and the Life after death. The Resolutions, of which we have not yet been able to procure a copy, very strikingly and convincingly demonstrate the superiority of the views, given in the Writings of the New Jerusalem, over the commonly received opinions upon both these subjects. Though many preceding meetings have been more numerously attended, for at this there were only twenty one ladies and gentlemen present, it was felt and acknowledged to be one of no ordinary kind, as well for its pervading sphere of harmony and affection, as for the instructive conversation which enlivened every day until the close of the Meeting. MEETING IN AUGUST. The General Conference of the Ministers and other Members of the New Church, signified by the New Jerusalem in the Revelation, will take place on Tuesday, the 8th. at the Church in Peter Street, Manchester, at 10 o'clock in the Morning. VARIETIES. ACCOUNT OF THE DISCOVERY Of an inhabited Island in the Pacific. By Captain Eeg, of the Pollux Sloop of War, in the service of his Majesty the King of the Netherlands, In a Letter to Dr. Brewster from G. Moil, Professor of Natural Philosophy in the University of Utrecht.-My Dear Sir-Two vessels in the service of his Majesty the King of the Netherlads, have lately crossed the Pacific. After leaving Washington's |
