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the platform. Mr. Maguire's bishop ordains a priest, and Mr. Gregg's, if the priest desire it, receives him as an ordained minister. Mr. Maguire says, that Mr. Gregg and his church cannot conceal their popery under the robe of Calvin; and maintains, that they have derived all their distinguishing tenets from the Church of Rome, though they afterwards turn round and raise the cry of antichrist. It is, indeed, undeniably true, that

some of the most eminent divines of the Established Church of England have not only admitted the similarity of the two churches, but have even proposed a union between them-and were it customary to celebrate marriages among three parties, we can see no good reason why the Calvinistic Presbyterian churches should not be received into the confederacy. There is, certainly, one difficulty on the part of the Calvinistic Presbyterians, which is, that episcopal ordination is a sine quâ non with the two great churches.

The witty may smile at the levity, irony, and frivolity of the Reverend Messrs. Gregg and Maguire,-and the sceptical may sneer at their buffoonery, rudeness, and absurdities, but should these few sentences fall into the hands of any Jew or Mahometan, who shall read, or who may have read, the discussion, we do most earnestly beseech him, not to judge of the doctrines and laws of Christ's Gospel, either by the gross harangues of these polemical declaimers, or by the articles of their respective churches.

The following letter from the Dublin Evening Post, we much admire, and we recommend it to the attention of all our readers.

TO MY CHRISTIAN BRETHREN OF EVERY DENOMINATION..

"We too often lay aside charity to maintain faith."-POPE CLEMENT XIV.

"I will take no man's liberty of judging from him. Neither shall any man take mine from me. I will think no one the worse man nor the worse Christian; I will love no man the less for differing in opinion from me. And what measure I mete to others, I expect from them again."-CHILLINGWORTH.

BRETHREN,-It appears in the discussion of Thurs day last, that the Rev. Mr. Gregg has condemned, in no very measured terms, some of those who presumed to differ from him in their religious opinions.

In his last reply, on that day, to Mr. Maguire, he says, "I have challenged him repeatedly as to the Unitarians and other Heretics, and it has been asked me, can a man be saved who does not believe in the divinity of Jesus Christ. I say, he cannot. That is the Catholic doctrine, that he cannot be saved. The Church has spoken this-God has spoken this-and, therefore, Mr. Maguire deceived himself when he said that a Protestant could not answer the arguments of a Unitarian, because the latter would retort on him the right of private judgment." And immediately afterwards he says. "The time has come when all voices are obliged to cry out 'The Roman Catholic cannot be saved."

Where the reverend gentleman imbibed such sentiments, I know not: I think I may safely venture to say that nothing like them are to be found in that book in which, he asserts, his views of religion are solely founded. Mr. Gregg has stepped forward "to defend and uphold" the cause of that church which, in one of her articles (vi.), declares that " Holy Scripture containeth all things necessary to salvation; so that whatever is not read therein, nor may be proved thereby, is not to be required of any man that it should be believed as an article of faith, or be thought requisite or necessary to salvation."

Let us briefly consider these things; for he classes, in another part of his speech, the Unitarians with Jews, Atheists, Turks, and Infidels. In the part I before quoted, he calls them Heretics; why, I know not-" But this, I confess, that after the way that they call heresy, so worship I the God of my fathers, believing all things that are written in the Law and the Prophets; * * * and herein do I exercise myself, to have always a conscience void of offence toward God and toward men.(Acts, xxiv., 14, 16)." Again: he asserts that a man cannot be saved unless he believes Jesus to be God Almighty. And why? Because "the Church has spoken this!" I am aware that she has, in her Athanasian Creed, asserted, that unless he believe it, without doubt, he shall perish everlastingly." And, he adds, "God has spoken this." I deny it. Let him prove it out of Scripture, if he can. The words above quoted from 6th article assert, that "whatsoever is not read therein (in the Bible,) nor may be proved thereby, is not * * * necessary to salvation." The thing necessary, is to "believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved"

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-believe that he is the promised Messiah who came in to the world to save sinners; but I never read, “believe that Jesus Christ is the Almighty God, the second person of the Trinity, very God and very man ;" therefore I prefer to read our Saviour's own words, and believe them in preference to Mr. Gregg's, (or any other person's), that he was a man who told the things he heard from God;" and it must be allowed by all, that "never man spake like this man-(John, viii., 46)" How, then, can Mr. Gregg so presumptuously assert that Roman Catholics and Unitarians cannot be saved? Are not the Unitarians Protestants? I ask him, too, have not the most able defences of the Christian religion that were written in any language, been written by other than men of the Church of England? I ask him, who were those who defeated Woolaston, Collins, Shaftes bury, or the famous Bolingbroke?-UNITARIANS! and so was the great Nathaniel Lardner, the ablest defender of our holy Christian religion, and whose works have been quoted so often, and been so extensively circulated, and extracted from, and made use of by the Church of England in her controversies and works on Divinity, &c., &c. But I suppose his sweeping condemnation of them was caused by Mr. Maguire (unintentionally, I believe,) eulogising the Unitarians, by asserting they were the real Protestants, because they stood on the Bible alone, and consistently maintained that "man is accountable to God alone for his religious opinions." Truly, a Churchman, or any other professor of creeds, or man fettered by articles, could not argue with a Unitarian. Instead of the Bible, he would exhibit a prayer-book, and read out of it some creed, or the 39 articles, all of which I defy him to prove, or, to prove, what is of more consequence, that those only who profess them shall be saved. But,

"If the clergy of Christendom would now lay aside their party and sectarian animosities, and unite their exertions to cultivate and diffuse the Gospel principles of love, forbearance, and peace, how glorious would be its effects. Soon might the several countries be filled with the blessed fruits of that wisdom which is from above."-N. WORCESTER, D.D.

"Happy, indeed, would it be for the interests of mankind, if all who glory in the name of Christians

would turn away from the clouds of words which divide them into hostile parties, making the Holy Jesus, the Son of God, their point of union, and giving the right hand of fellowship to every one who, by obedience to the will of God, through our Lord and Master, shows that he loves him in sincerity."-BLANCO WHITE'S 2d Letter on Heresy and Orthodoxy.

Finally, my brethren, let me caution you not to allow the assertion of any preacher of any church, to have any weight in your mind, till it be weighed in the balances with the Holy Bible, nor let it cause you to think one thought contrary to what is taught therein, "for there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the Gospel of Christ." His Gospel pre-eminently teaches love-1st, it shows the love of God to a penitent world, looking in hope to him for salvation, through Jesus Christ, by whom we have been reconciled to God;" and 2dly, the love that man is commanded to have for his brother man. Our Saviour taught the first, emblematically, in the beautiful parable of the prodigal son, and the second, practically, in the no less beautiful parable of the good Samaritan.

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Be not deceived, my brethren, "he that doeth righteousness is righteous”—(1 John, iii., 7,) and "he that works righteousness is accepted of God"-(Acts, x., 35). And now 1 say unto you, "bear and forbear," "be ye wise as serpents, and harmless as doves”—(Mat., x., 16), "do all things without disputing"—(Phil., ii., 14), "flee these things, and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness; fight the good fight of faith; lay hold on eternal life, whereunto ye are also called, avoiding profane and vain babblings, and oppositions of science, falsely so called, which some professing have erred concerning the faith. Grace be with you. Amen."-(1st Tim., vi., 11, 21.)

Dublin, 1st June, 1838.

A UNITARIAN CHRISTIAN.

SUNDAY SCHOOLS.

There is at present a growing interest manifested, among the ministers and laity of the Non-subscribing Presbyterian bodies in this coun-try, in Sunday School education. In many congregations Sunday Schools have been for some time established, and in others arrangements are being made to form them. We regard this circumstance as

perhaps the strongest evidence of an increased zeal among our brethren. For some years the mind of Ministers was necessarily occupied in advocating the doctrines of our churches and meeting the open attacks of our opponents, as well as striving against their secret and insidious wiles. The period of such warfare is not past, but we believe there is so far rest in the church as to enable its friends to cultivate more diligently the fruits of piety, and enable them to direct their zeal to the general and Scriptural education of the people, especially of the young.

On the advantages of Sunday Schools we do not mean to dwell; they must be obvious to all. To children employed during the week, the Sabbath, sacred to rest from work, becomes the only day of instruction; to children who may attend weekly schools, an hour or two on the Sunday devoted to religious improvement gives a sacredness to that holy day, and is a relief from the indolence by which it is too often kept; to the teacher as well as to the taught, such an occupation is a source of abundant improvement—and we cannot in the present age see a more powerful vehicle of national good than well regulated Sunday Schools conducted on liberal and Christian principles.

At the approaching meeting of the three bodies' in Belfast, we earnestly hope that this subject may obtain the attention of the brethren, and that measures may be adopted to aid the exertions now made for the increase of Sunday School education. To other churches there are facilities which we do not possess. There is the Sunday School Society for Ireland' which, though professing to promote the establishment of Schools without reference to sect or party, has most strangely refused our congregation Bibles, Testaments, and other requisites, while to all others of every denomination grants are freely made. The society presume to judge our opinions, which, as a society, they have no right to do; and when they find us guilty of holding false doctrine, they refuse to give us the Scriptures, in which alone they believe truth may be found.

Turning away from the inconsistency and injustice of this society, let us hope that the three bodies,' at their approaching meeting, will co-operate in forming a Sunday-school society for themselves, and any other Christians who may unite with them. We know that a proposal of this kind will be brought before them, and we trust that they will not suffer their time to be occupied with minor points, to the exclusion or hurried consideration of a matter so seriously important.

By small subscriptions from individuals, or collections in congregations, a fund could easily be raised sufficient to enable the 'Society to afford Bibles, Testaments, Spelling-books, and Tablets, at a re

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