MONTHLY RECORD OF PASSING EVENTS. Jehovah's Jewels. By the Rev. JOHN LEECHMAN, M.A., L.L.D., Glas. Univ. London: Elliot Stock. (pp. 260.) ALL honour to our talented and esteemed Brother Leechman for this contribution to the sacred literature of our dear native land. We believe this book will become a great favourite among men and women of cultivated minds and earnest piety, wherever our language is spoken. We should like it to become a household book, as it possesses more of that singular adaptation for both the palace and the cottage than many of its peers. How it magnifies the riches of divine grace that God should bring such rebels as we are into friendship, and make such unsightly stones bright jewels in His mediatorial crown for ever and ever! We are reminded, as we read it, of the beautiful reason assigned by Paul for the wondrous exhibition of redeeming love: "Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself according to the good pleasure of his will, TO THE PRAISE OF THE GLORY OF HIS GRACE, wherein he hath made us accepted in the BELOVED." Our brother is "a workman that need not be ashamed, rightly dividing the Word of Truth." He has succeeded in setting the precious jewels of divine truth with a master's hand, and is a very fair exponent of his own principles, when he says:-" Rare and costly jewels are generally most beautiful. This is the chief characteristic of precious gems, especially when well set. The breastplate of the Jewish High Priest must have been magnificent. The cunning work of gold, blue, purple, scarlet, and finetwined linen; the size, variety, rarity, and splendour of the jewels; the curious settings of these precious stones. Think of the fine deep red and purple colour of the ruby; of the pale green and beautiful gold colour of the topaz; of the bright, lively, glittering red and scarlet of the carbuncle; of the pure, lovely green of the emerald; of the blazing sapphire, and the diamond, flashing its rays as a 95 star, or miniature sun; and all these twelve gems set in gold in their enclosings. What could be more beautiful?" (p. 96.) He shows, however, that God's jewels, like these precious stones and metals, were once unsightly-dug out of nature's quarry, and made what they are by rich and sovereign grace. Had we space, we would give some choice extracts; instead of which we advise our readers to obtain the book, and thus enjoy a delectable treat such as is not every day to be met with. We need scarcely add that this handsome volume does credit to the enterprising publisher and printer; the getting up is all that the most fastidious taste could desire. By The Holy Bible, with Illustrations. GUSTAVE DORE. Cassell, Petter, and Galpin, London and New York. WE admire the taste displayed by the firm of Cassell and Co., in supplying the public with a Bible without note or comment, or even a marginal reference,-to stand alone in its own unadorned beauty. The typography seems all that can be desired. A thin clear plain black letter on a beautifully smooth white paper, about the antipodes of the thick old "black letter" of olden times. As for the plates we suppose the name of Gustave Doré is a sufficient guaranty to the judges and admirers of the fine arts. The Harpers, of New York, have produced an illuminated Bible; but we confess we prefer the finished works of art of Doré to those little beauties or conceits on the margin, however excellently executed. We are not, however, unconscious of the fact that pictures can delude as well as instruct, and we earnestly hope that the honour of Messrs. Cassell and Co. will come out untarnished in this respect. All we need say at present is that the specimen copy is a perfect gem. Notices of several other works are necessarily deferred to next month. [For parthenas, p. 71, read parthenos.] Monthly Becord of Passing Ebents. CHURCH-RATES.-The great Church-rate stone, who, for the first time, voted for the abolition of compulsory Church-rates. The compromise which he proposed is likely to be accepted by the great body of 96 MONTHLY RECORD OF PASSING EVENTS. Dissenters, as a fair settlement of the question. It is briefly this: the exchange of a compulsory rate for a voluntary collection, but leaving the rate-making machinery just as it now is. The magistrate, policeman, and bailiff will thus be left out, and a sort of voluntary assessment will take their places. Of course the management and disposal of the money so raised will be confined to those who have raised it, and thus dissenters will be excluded from voting on strictly church matters in the parochial vestry. The exact terms of Mr. Gladstone's proposal remain to be debated upon, and there is the further danger that Lord Derby (who carries the votes of the House of Lords in his pocket on such measures) may induce the Peers to throw out this bill, as he has done so many of its predecessors; but we, nevertheless, trust we may see daylight at last, on this vexed question. The second reading of the bill was carried by a majority of 33 in a house of 587 members, including pairs. CORPORATION OATHS.-Mr. Hatfield's bill for the abolition of the oath required of persons taking municipal offices, binding them not to injure the church of England, has for the sixth time passed the House of Commons, and is on its way to the upper House. Whether the majority of 121 by which it was passed in the Commons, will be sufficient impetus to carry it through the Lords remains to be seen, but at least it will be demonstrated that the obstruction arises simply from a desire to affix a brand upon Dissenters as such; for the use of the oath no one pretends to defend. UNIVERSITY TESTS.-A bill for the removal of restrictions by which Dissenters are practically excluded from academical distinctions at Oxford and Cambridge has been introduced in the House of Commons by Mr. Bouverie. Though Dissenters have now access to certain degrees at both universities, the fellowships which are the substantial rewards they offer to successful students, are kept out of their reach by the requirement of a subscription of conformity to the church of England from those who hold them. Dissenters are thus placed at a great disadvantage in universities intended to be national. Nor is the grievance a merely theoretical one. two sons of Mr. Aldis, Baptist minister, of Reading, have recently attained a high standing as Wranglers" at Cambridge, and would, therefore, be eligible to The fellowships; but by this restrictive test they are deprived of their proper position, and the university of the benefit of their services. Mr. Morton, a Presbyterian, of Greenock, has been just subjected to a similar deprivation. We trust that this just measure will pass into law. PROTESTANT DISSENTING DEPUTIES.The annual meeting of this body was held at Radley's Hotel, on March 5th. Sir S. M. Peto presided, and made some pertinent observations on the position of various ecclesiastical questions in Parliament. The usual formal votes relating to the officers of the society were passed, and a petition for the abolition of Church-rates adopted. PARLIAMENTARY OATHS.-The abstract propriety of one uniform oath for all members of Parliament will be questioned by none, and it is only the exceptional position and tenets of the Roman Catholic members that make any diversity allowable. At the beginning of the present session, government introduced a simple form of oath to be taken by all members alike, in the place of the various oaths at present in use. The bill embodying this oath passed a second reading on March 8th, by an overwhelming majority, on the understanding that an addition intended to bind Roman Catholic members should be made in committee. Accordingly the oath besides a declaration of allegiance to the Queen, contains an express recognition of the "Act of Settlement," by which the succession to the throne is legally confined to Protestants. CONFESSION IN THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND. -A notice has been issued at All Saints, Margaret-street, London, to the effect that there will be one of the clergy in the vestry every Wednesday afternoon from two to four, and every Friday evening from seven to nine, "willing to adminster to any one, who, being unable to quiet their own conscience, may wish to open their grief to God's minister and receive the benefit of absolution, together with ghostly counsel and advice, before receiving the sacrament of Christ's most blessed body and soul." "The clergy can also be seen at other times, if persons will signify their desire to the priest, whom they wish especially to consult, or whom they are in the habit of seeing." Thus" Confession" (as well as the "Mass") is now recognized by name as a component part of the Church of England system! OUR MISSIONS AND OUR WORK. We live in a busy world, and no one will question the activity of the present period. It is an age of universal toil, in which is cast the lot of a generation, remarkable for its practical genius, sagacious inventions, and laborious efforts. It is felt, perhaps, more than ever, that there is a power in life; and this character of strength and energy is spreading itself over numerous and extensive fields of operation. Not only in the domains of literature, science, and art is this observable, but the "religious world" also bears witness to the prevailing practical character of the present age; and with all that may be questionable in relation to the spiritual nature of the work going on around us, there is doubtless a healthiness about this zeal for active effort. It may be regarded as a protest against the indifference and idleness of a previous age, and as a reaction from a period of powerless and fruitless beliefs, it is important and of great value. There is, no doubt, much that is genuine and earnest about it. It is some acknowledgment of the true end of existence—some recognition of the meaning and dignity of life. Contemplating, therefore, the widely-extended religious operations of the present day, and the numberless activities which have been called into existence by the christian church during the last half-century, there is much cause for gratitude and hope in the onward progress of the Redeemer's kingdom. But it becomes an important question how far this spirit of practical effort and energy has stimulated us in the adoption and prosecution of measures for the advancement of the cause of Christ, and for the diffusion of those principles and truths which we profess to maintain as essential to the scriptural character and order of our churches; and which, consequently, are deemed as necessary to the progress of spiritual religion in the world at large. The department of christian effort, in both home and foreign missions, is more or less efficiently occupied by almost every section of the christian church; and for nearly half a century, at least, the churches of the Suffolk and Norfolk Baptist Association have recognized the importance of such institutions, and have not been wanting in some degree of zeal for the promotion of such objects. "The Suffolk and Norfolk Home Missionary Society' was originated nearly forty years since by the above Association, and its operations, continued to the present, have been productive of a vast amount of good in the villages and various districts of those and other counties. And if, for obvious reasons arising from the weakness of that body, and the inadequate means possessed by those churches, no effort has yet been attempted to establish and sustain any foreign mission on their own recognized principles, the importance and necessity of such operations have not been practically ignored by them. For many years past the claims of The German Baptist Mission have met with a cheerful response in most of the associated churches; and it has been felt that the scriptural character of that extensively useful mission on the continent of Europe commends itself to the sympathy of our churches, equally by the disinterested labours of its agents, the simplicity of its operations, and the purity of the principles and truths it seeks to disseminate. But the object we have in view in calling attention to these several institutions, to which our churches have so long given their adhesion and support, is to submit to the brethren and to our readers in general that those objects are not sustained by that degree of earnestness, unanimity, and zeal which they demand, or which is at all commensurate with the ability possessed, or consistent with our professions of attachment to Christ's kingdom and the cause of God and truth. For some years past the funds of our Home Mission have received no augmentation, but have rather diminished, by reason of which the operations of the Society have been necessarily contracted, instead of becoming enlarged, as ought to have been the case. In the last year also the contributions from our churches for the German Mission have considerably fallen off, and that at a time when the peculiar circumstances of the mission, in relation both to its extended operations and the persecutions endured by some of its agents, have rendered its claims more urgent and imperative. Surely this diminution of united effort to promote objects so worthy of our sympathy and aid must be deeply regretted. That many of the churches chiefly consist of the poor of this world, and that, consequently, their circumstances are such as greatly to limit the measure of their MAY, 1866. 5 98 OUR MISSIONS AND OUR WORK. support to such objects, we are fully aware, and from such of our brethren we would not, we cannot, withhold our sympathy. But, nevertheless, it is true, that among the poorest of our churches are found those who, in proportion to their means, have yielded the most generous response to the claims of the missionary cause, while larger churches, among whom are individuals of good worldly substance, are evincing little or no sympathy therewith. We, therefore, repeat that such manifest apathy and indifference to the progress of the Redeemer's cause is deeply to be lamented, and that on many accounts. It undoubtedly operates most unfavourably on those churches themselves, tending to contract their energies in every effort to sustain their own local burdens. It is also utterly at variance with the principles of the New Testament, the spirit of our Lord's great commission, and the practice of the primitive believers, of some of whom the apostle bears testimony, "That in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded unto the riches of their liberality." (2 Cor. viii. 2.) Feeling the importance of this subject, both in relation to our churches themselves and the interests of the Redeemer's kingdom in general, we affectionately and earnestly urge it upon their consideration. Let it be remembered that a church remaining inactive, inert, and indifferent to the work of missions, resembles a stagnant pool, containing little else than noxious life, and in whose depths are the elements of decay and death. But see yonder living, bubbling, overflowing fountain, sending forth its refreshing waters to irrigate and fructify the surrounding plains and vales, and you perceive therein a similitude of those churches who, in the power of a living faith, are working in the service of their Lord's kingdom, and are yielding of their substance to aid in every direction the extension of his cause in the world. 66 66 "As he is," saith the Apostle John, so are we in this world." (1 Epistle, iv. 9.) When He was in the world "his reward was with him and his work before him." And so must it ever be with his believing people, who are identified with Him in the love and labours of his kingdom. Their "work is before" them-appointed, known, pursued, and delighted in. Their reward is with_them-promised, realised, and enjoyed, in his presence, approval, and blessing; and unto whom he is still graciously saying, Behold, I come quickly, and my reward is with me, to give unto every man according to his work." (Rev. xxii. 12.) The church of Christ in this world, when endowed with his Spirit, is as he was in the world. Believers are his representatives on earth. Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus." (Heb. iii. 1.) Consider him as the Apostle of God—as the Divine Missionary of heavenly mercy to man. When he passed into the heavens as the High Priest of our profession his personal ministry as our Apostle ceased, but he has not left himself without witness. "Ye are my witnesses. Ye are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hid." He has ordained his servants and his saints to a special work. He has given his church a mission of mercy to the world: "Go, preach the gospel to every creature. "As ye go, preach." "Lo! I am with you to the end of the world." As one sun shining in the heavens is reduplicated in the numberless waves of the ocean,-so the celestial sun-the sun of righteousness-in the highest heavens, enlightens every believing soul with the light of life, and which, shining on penitent, uplifted, receptive hearts, imprints his own likeness, manifold as the waves that glance in the summer sun. Christ is the power of God. Faith-true, living, and practical faith in Christ-is a power in the world. That faith, in proportion as Christ liveth in believers, renders them also the power of God in him. And this power of God in the saints is operative; wherefore the life of faith in which it is manifest is both practical and beneficial. It is practical-its "work" being "before" us; it is beneficial-its "reward" being "with us. This faith, therefore, has a work to do in the world, where it will ever seek and find useful employment. "Faith without works is dead;" and the faith that is stationary in its relation to the outer world is but a dead letter in the heart of its possessor. An unpractical christian, at best, is a poor, foolish worker in the kingdom of heaven. A slumbering, inactive church, rocked to sleep in the cradle of self-indulgence, and whose stereotyped and powerless beliefs extend no sympathy-exert no influence towards perishing sinners beyond their own charmed circle, is little else than a religious sham-" a mockery, a delusion, and a snare.' Let all our churches, and especially the leading men among them, awake to a sense of the importance of their duties and responsibilities in relation to this matter. Upon the ministers and deacons of the churches generally depends the amount of zeal and liberality which characterizes the people. The measure of a church's CHRIST: THE EFFICACY OF HIS OFFICES. 99 activities and exertions may usually be gauged by the liberality of its leading men, upon whom, consequently, much responsibility necessarily rests. Let us all, therefore, see to it, that the key of faith on which our lives of practical devotedness to the cause of Christ is set, is that which, when sounding forth in the regions around us, will awaken a slumbering chord in the hearts of others, who shall join to swell the chorus: "How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringing good tidings that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth." CHRIST: THE EFFICACY OF HIS OFFICES. To preach CHRIST is to make known the efficacy of his offices. The counsels, purposes, and plan of grace are entrusted to him; and whatever is to be done in and for his redeemed, in order to bring them to glory, He is appointed to perform. Adapted to our state, as sinners ordained to life, CHRIST sustains the offices of Prophet, Priest, and King; and both the dignity of his person and the will of his FATHER which instituted him to these offices, render his mediation available for us. He is our PROPHET, to instruct and make us wise unto salvation. A prophet is one sent of GOD to reveal his will to men; but the deplorable state of our mind required that our mediatorial prophet should not only declare to us the will and counsels of GOD, in word and doctrine, but also give us an understanding to perceive and know the truth. By nature we are in thick darkness; being alienated from the life of GOD through the ignorance that is in us. Our faculties are blinded by the God of this world; and the taste and temper of our hearts incline us to love darkness rather than light. We hate and despise the truth, which we have not capacity to discern. "The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of GOD; for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned," CHRIST, therefore, has not only given us his word, and instituted the ministry as the channels of divine knowledge; but he sanctifies and enlightens the intellect by the supernatural unction of the HOLY ONE which teacheth all things; and gives wisdom to the ignorant, not otherwise attainable. Genius and learning are by no means pre-requisite to fit us for the reception of the light which he giveth; on the contrary we must become fools that we may be wise. He delights to display the efficacy of his teaching, by revealing the mysteries of his kingdom and grace to babes and the foolish things of this world, while they are hid from the wise and prudent. With a dignity and sovereignty, with an absoluteness and independence, worthy of himself, he passes by the science, wisdom, and philosophy of this world (like the sun shining in his own strength, without borrowing the gleam of the lamp and the taper), and gives light to them that sit in darkness, and in the shadow of death; and his illumination, reaching the heart of the guilty and wretched, is but another term for the knowledge of salvation by the remission of sins. In the office of his Priesthood HE is the truth and substance, shadowed out by the office of the Jewish High Priest. Offering sacrifice for the sins of the people, interceding for them with the sprinkling of blood upon the mercy seat in the Holy of Holies, and pronouncing a blessing on them, were the principal departments of the priestly office under the law; but these exhibited only in type and shadow the interesting verity of the priestly office of CHRIST. The sacrifice which he offered was HIMSELF, and has the perfection of expiatory and atoning virtue. His greatness gives it an immensity of worth for the purging away of sin, and making reconciliation for iniquity; and his immutability renders it of unalterable and eternal efficacy, "For by the one offering of himself he hath perfected for ever them which are sanctified." Its efficacy is not dependent or conditional, but intrinsic, unborrowed, and absolute. Exclusive of our gracious affections and works of righteousness, it has a pardoning and purifying availableness. Though like Manasseh we have perpetrated every atrocity; though like Magdalene we have been exceedingly polluted; though with Paul we may have blasphemed the name of CHRISŤ, and |