OBITUARY. truth: and, when their minds are wrought upon by the Spirit of God, they no longer lean to their own understandings, but rest upon the infinite understanding of God: so that when the illiterate humble Christian contemplates the mysterious joyful subject of the resurrection of his body, at the great day, he is graciously exempt from all perplexity, by simply taking God at his word, that so it shall be: he asks not," How are the dead raised?" or, “with what body he is to meet his Lord in the air." He knows and is assured, that "The same pow'r That reared the piece at first, and took it Can re-assemble the loose scatter'd parts, There can be no doubt, to those who believe in the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, that the body, prepared for him in the womb of the virgin, which was born of her at Bethlehem, which lived to be about thirty-three years of age, and which, at last, died the accursed death of the cross, was the same body which rose from the tomb the evidence of this is strikingly remarkable from the wounds of the nails and the spear remaining unclosed at his appearance to Thomas and the other disciples. "He saith to Thomas, reach hither thy fingers, and behold my hands: and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side." Forty days after our Redeemer had risen from the dead, having led his disciples to Bethany, be lifted up the hands which had been nailed to the cross, and blessed them, and ascended to heaven in the nature he assumed; a cloud receiving him out of their sight. 205 Whatever change the body of our Lord, or the bodies of Enoch and Elijah, who were translated that they should not see death, might undergo, to render them suitable for the eternal world; we can have no reason to suppose that they changed their identity. The great apostle to the Gentiles, in 1 Cor. xv. declares that—“ We shall not all sleep,”—i. e. die," but we shall all be changed. In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we-we who are alive and remain, shall be changed. And this corruptible"-not another, but—“ this and this mortal must put on immorcorruptible must put on incorruption, tality." the second coming of our Lord, he And, in Phil. iii. 21. Speaking of body, that it"-our vile body—“may says, "Who shall change our vilo be fashioned like unto his glorious body." of the same apostle npon the subject And, finally, we have the testimony in 1 Thess. iv. 15, 16, 17. "For this which are alive and remain unto the we say unto you by the Lord, that we coming of the Lord, shall not prevent himself shall descend from heaven with them which are asleep. For the Lord and the trump of God: and the dead a shout, with the voice of the archangel, in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain, shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air; and so shall we be ever with the Lord.” Upper Dorset-streel. Obituary and Recent Deaths. An Account of the Death of the late Rev. DR. ROGERS, of America, in a Letter written by his Daughter to the Rev. Dr. Evans, of Islington. T. P. desirer that I should act as her amanuensis in addressing you at this time. We solicitude expressed in your letter to feel deeply grateful for the friendly mamma, and hope you will, in kindness, overlook our very great negligence in not long since forwarding you an account of the sore bereavement we have undergone: but, really, we have lived this My afflicted mother has expressed a twelvemouth past in the midst of a Bristol, December 12, 1824. REV. AND DEAR SIR, VOL. XVIl. S variety of changes in our family, so great, that they have prevented us from attending to the fulfilment of those duties, which would otherwise have been performed. About this time twelvemonth, my sister, Sarah Ann, was united in marriage to Mr. D. Wolf, of Rhode Island: last spring my lamented father contemplated a removal there in consequence, when the stroke of death severed him from our sight to join his God in heaven. We, as soon as our health would permit, broke up housekeeping, and removed our furui ture to Bristol, Rhode Island, where we at present reside with my married sister, as she would not consent to our being separated from her. I will now, dear Sir, give you as particular a detail as possible, respecting the decease of my father. He was taken, a fortnight before his death, with a fit of apoplexy at the house of our friend Mr. Garrett. He left home perfectly well, and was explaining to their family (whilst paying them a morning visit) a passage in scripture, when he said, “Oh! my head, my head" he immediately became insensible, a physician was sent for, who ordered him to be bled; he was not revived by it, therefore my mother was sent for; I went with her, and, ob! the anguish of our hearts to find my dear est father entirely senseless. He continued several hours in that situation, when, all at once, he aroused, and became so well as to join in the conversation-we brought him home as soon as possible: just before he left the house, he said to Mrs. G. "Soon shall I be in that mansion prepared for me in my heavenly Father's kingdom." Soon after his arrival home, he became speechless. We sent for our friend and physician, Dr. Povall, who ordered him instantly to his bed: that night an eminent physician was called in, who had him cupped, and bis head was twice blistered all over, with various other severe remedies, which, in the first week, had apparently the desired effect: we murmured not; indeed our hopes were buoyant as he grew better. The physicians said all disease bad left his pulse, but be constantly complained of his eye-sight; he remained, from the time lic was taken, in a kind of stupor, with a constant inclination for sleep. Owing to the nature of his disease, we were debarred hearing those pious and affectionate expressions, which 'we knew, from a long experience, engrossed his thoughts. One afternoon, my mother asked him why he did not converse; he observed, he could not. Oh, dear Sir, what a father have wo lost; and what a husband has my mother been bereaved of. Alas! our idols must be rent from us, and I idolized my sainted father. The only fault I could perceive in his character was, a too great indulgence to his children, which blinded him entirely to our failings. But I could fill the sheet in writing his praises, and will, therefore, stop. Physicians and friends all remarked, they had never witnessed such fortitude, patience, sweetness, and acquiescence in all their desires. He was so truly pious I wonder he was left so long from his home, heaven. We are of opinion, he thought his case hopeless from the first, and longed to depart, but for his affliction at leaving his family. He was dying all the day previous to his death, (which happened the 7th day of last April) and truly can I say, we all experienced the truth of that passage, as thy days so shall thy strength be." Never could I have imagined death could appear so truly lovely, so entirely divested of its sting. "Jesus can make a dying bed Feel soft as downy pillows are." My father was continually engaged in prayer, as his eyes, until they closed in death, were raised to heaven. It was a source of great affliction to us he could not speak, but he was reduced to an infantile weakness. Aunt Josiah asked him, if he knew in whom he believed? he bowed his head in token of assent, and sweetly smiled. He apparently suffered none in dying, and departed at five o'clock on Wednesday morning, without a struggle, sigh, or groan; but sweetly fell asleep in Jesus. Directly after his departure, the most rapturous, triumphant smile shone on his countenance I ever witnessed. Never shall I forget it-it was the smile of one released from the fetters of mortality, and who had winged his flight, as a celestial spirit, to join his Saviour and his God. The day after his countenance cbanged into a calm and tranquil smile. Do not suppose, dear Dr. E., it was imagination created the idea: no, it was a happy reality. Owing to the unhappy difficulties in our church, mamma would not request a funeral sermon to be preached there, but there was one preached at Newport, his native place, (in the church he first joined) by Mr. Gammell, a very popular preacher, who has drawn up a biography of my father, which we send to you. I have a great deal, dear Sir, to write to you yet relative to our family, which the paper will not contain: I should esteem it a great privi lege to hear from you, and would endeavour to cause my epistles to be interesting. There is a plan I have in contemplation, which I would like your opinion on. My father was that kind of character, I should regret should be buried in oblivion: would you not think it advisable to have his sermons published, together with some of his letters, and his life. Many friends of my father would no doubt undertake the task. Review. THE asperity and unkindness which have been recently displayed by the Editor of the Eclectic Review, towards those of the Bap tist:who maintain that "Baptism is a term of communion,” is a matter for lamentation; because it was desirable that a work, avowedly conducted upon the principles of nonconformity, should not have been employed as the tocsin of strife, nor have been made the engine of comparatively a very inconsiderable portion of the dissenting body. The writer of the pamphlet before us, having taken a prominent part in the controversy regarding communion, had the honour of having his name associated by this Editor with the "respectable and amiable characters," and "ve nerated authorities of Booth and Fuller," but as being, nevertheless, as they were, "a tolerant abettor of a principle 30 essentially intolerant” as that of strict communion. Our author respectfully thanks the Editor for his good opinion, though he does not appear to feel greatly obliged for the accusation of having contributed towards "consecrating the dogma in the eyes of hundreds of individuals, and giving to a few gratuitous positions and talismanic phrases the semblance of power and arguments." If these assertions of the Editor are any thing more than dogmas, we are unable to perceive the reasons by which they can be supported:" Gratnilous positions!" Is it then an assertion without proof, that none but persons baptized were by the apostles admitted to a participation of the Lord's Supthen to perform the part of a magician per?" Talismanic phrases!" Is it to say, that apostolic precedent has the force of inspired authority? "Semblance of power and argument!" But if there be only the semblance of argument in such statements, then the tify their withdrawment from reasons assigned by Protestants to juschurch of Rome; or those which Dissenters employ to defend their Nonconformity, are also without force or reason! For, unless, both as Protestants and Nonconformists, we contend for the perfection of the scriptures alone, for all the purposes of faith and discipline, we cannot successfully resist the arguments by which the corruptions of the one, and the impositions of the other, are urged and defended. the But our author must be allowed to state his own view of the case. "The main principle of what is called Strict Communion is nothing more than this: that the church of Christ should be composed of persons who have been bapthe only requisite for membership, but, tized. It is not contended. that this is according to the New Testament, baptism was always required of those who professed faith in Christ, and, if the institu tion is not repealed, it is required still. This principle has been so long, and so extensively acknowledged to be correct, by nearly all professing Christians, and makes such an open appeal to the New Testament authority and practice, that it is surprising it should ever be condemned and treated with asperity; for the strict Baptists do nothing more than act on the principle, and apply it to their own views of the command of Christ. According to the mode of argument which, of late years, has been used against them, the question is not, when or how professed believers in Christ have been baptized; but, whether it is requisite that they should be baptized at all, in order that they should be members of a Christian church. This is the hinge of the controversy, as may easily be seen by any one who will examine it with candid attention. By the Eclectic Reviewer, however, the principle, as adopted by the strict Baptist, is called 'the duty of disunion-pernicious doctrine-a principle essentially intolerant-a tenet which as signs to schism a place among the articles of faith.'-He says, further, the spirit of the cause has too unequivocally manifested itself, in the many, to be both an intolerant and malignant spirit; it has especially put on this form towards those Baptist churches who have dared to act on the principle of Christian communion -one of the worst features of the system is the petty warfare which it wages in the form of detraction and depreciation both against the living and the dead-them of concision-narrow policy-sectarian party -schismatical Baptists'-who are 'without the shadow of support from ancient precedent, unless it be that of the Jewish converts, who refused to eat with the uncircumcised.' How then, it may be asked, does the system stand? The Reviewer replies, that those who have pleaded for it have had such influence, that they have 'consecrated the dogma in the eyes of hundreds of individuals, and given to a few gratuitous positions and talismanic phrases, the semblance of power and argument! Eclectic Review for 1824, Vol. xxii. New Series, pp. 270-273.” For the purpose of apologizing to those Baptists who are opposed to the opinions of the strict Baptists, the Editor produres extracts from what he calls "Mr. Hall's masterly reply to Mr. Kinghorn;" and thus he seems to think he is justified by competent authority, in the unkind and unjust as persions which he had employed. It would have afforded us pleasure to have given other extracts. This excellent pamphlet may be perused with advantage by our readers, whatever are their peculiar views on the subject of communion. Mr. Kinghorn defends himself from misrepresentations which had been given of his sentiments, with spirit, while he manifests the appropriate temper for the Christian polemic: we recognize a similar spirit in this Defeuce to that expressed by Paul, when he said, "But of those who seemed to be somewhat, whatsoever they were, it maketh no matter to me: God accepteth no man's person: for they who seemed to be somewhat in conference added nothing to me.” Interesting Narratives from the Sacred EVERY effort which is made to engage its historical narratives and its biographical sketches. Robinson's Scrip. ture Characters, and Hunter's Sacred Biography, are of the latter descrip tion; and we consider ourselves as much indebted to them. The writer of the following Narratives may be considered as having taken, in a great degree, new ground to either of these able writers; and, if he does not charm us by his vivacity, or dazzle us by the brilliancy of his imagination, nor even instruct us by the variety of his knowledge, or the expansion of his thoughts, yet in every Narrative he holds us in wrapt and delighted attention, pleases us with the chastity of his style, the elegance of his simplicity, and the pertinence and propriety of his remarks. Narratives like these are calculated to make their way almost insensibly to the youthful mind, and prepossess it in favour of those pages in which they are formed; and will, it is probable, allure them to the cultivation of those Christian excellencies which are so eminently displayed in them. The Narratives are twenty-five in number, and a very considerable portion of them are drawn from the Old Testament. The titles are comprehensive and significant. As a pleasing specimen of the volume, which we sincerely hope will be followed by another, we select a part of the improvement from the illustration "of the Character of Nebuchadnezzar the King of Babylon." "From this affecting detail of circumstances, we learn the folly of encouraging a spirit of pride. It leads us from step to step, promising, like the serpent of old, great things, till at last it plunges us into ruin. It shews us the mutability of all worldly honours. He who to-day governs many nations and people, of many languages, may to-morrow be reduced in intellect and station to a level with the brutes. Let us, then, not trust in the world, nor in any thing it can give us. It illustrates the awful consequences of having God for our enemy. If we oppose him, and act in opposition to his will, we can expect nothing but his sure displeasure, and that displeasure is awful indeed. But a small portion of it will make us unhappy, and its full extent is nothing less than eternal torment and despair. And, lastly, the subjects suggest to the YOL XVI We should have considered the pamphlet on this subject, which was noticed in our last number, as more than sufficient to answer the silly and contemptuous attack upon the Dissenters in the Quarterly Review, to which it was a reply. But here are two others, each, after its own manner, laying on heavy blows, by soft words and bard arguments, upon the clerical defamer; reminding us of the poetical description: "And thrice he slew the slain." The first of these is a production of no ordinary merit, written, as we suppose, principally to obtain a local circulation in the district in which the Reviewer resides. We are of opinion that while our author might have been justified in treating the "false tongue" of this deanery-hunting scribe with keen severity and cutting irony, yet that he has pursued the more dignified course, in not bringing against him effect, as if conscious of the strength "railing accusations," but saying in and goodness of his cause, "The Lord rebuke thee." The second reply, which is well worth reading, contains some wellselected quotations to prove, that this over-worked and ill-paid race of unfortunates, the clergy of the estab lished church, looking for help to the state lottery, in which there are but few prizes," and many blanks! may T |