publick prayer, it would not be doing justice to the subject, if the noticing of its utility were omitted: The utility of the individual's knowing what petitions he is to consent to, and therefore being excused from the necessity of calling in the exercise of his judgment, before the yielding of the devotion of the heart; the utility also to the congregation, in not being subjected to the consequences of the ignorance or the vanity of a minister, occasionally officiating. Nothing is further from the present design, than to bring the charge against any of insufficiency for such a holy exercise, on the mere ground of their practice being different from our own. On the contrary, it is confessed, that there are many to whom this applies, who habitually put up prayers, worthy of being heard on earth and actually heard in heaven. But such would consent in the remark, that nothing can be imagined too extravagant, to be prompted by the wild zeal of some persons, in the act of prayer: descending to idle declamation, to impious familiarities, and to low buffoonery. If the evil were no greater, than the defacing of prayers by vulgar, or by puerile, or by ungrammatical, or by abstruse expressions; it would be a sufficient reason for the rescuing of the subject from the discretion of the individual. For although the Almighty Father does not expect from any of his children, beyond the talents and the opportunities bestowed; and, of course, the devout prayer of the meanest of them, however discordant in expression, is as acceptable to him as in other circumstances the most correct and polished style; yet, when we render our imperfect return of gratitude for his mercies, it should be from each of us the best he has to offer; and therefore, from collective bodies, what the most intelligent among them must approve of.

The reasons which have been offered are sufficient. And yet, they derive additional evidence from the manifest insufficiency of the authorities,

which are commonly urged from scripture, in favour of unpremeditated prayer.

There is pleaded the descent of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost, and its effects on the assembled disciples; which are pretended to bear a near resemblance of the agitations produced in some assemblies, under the praying of their ministers. But the subject of that passage, has in reality no connexion with the present. It does not even appear, that prayer was any part of the effect produced. If it were, whatever was peculiar to the occasion, was the effect of miracle evident to the senses. Besides, the whole design of the extraordinary dispensation, was to convey to the apostles in a most signal manner, and to be witnessed by numbers from various quarters then assembled to celebrate a festival-the gift of divers languages, for the preaching of the gospel among all nations. If the events of that day be necessary to spiritual prayer, how was it offered up, as we find in scripture, by saints of preceding ages; who have left devotions bearing evident impressions of the unction from above? But if, after all, the passage can be thought by any to apply to the present subject, they ought to consider it as extending beyond what has been as yet pretended; and as proving, that every member of the assembly should put up his prayers, as the "Spirit may give him utterance:" For otherwise, what the minister delivers, though it should be confessed a spiritual prayer to himself, is a form and nothing more to those who follow him.

Another misapplied text, is where St. Paul says "I will pray with the spirit and I will pray with the understanding also." The praying with the spirit, is supposed to be put in opposition to the praying with a form. But it might have been expected, that the passage would have been secured from such abuse, by the words immediately following-"I will sing with the spirit and I will sing with the understanding also." The absurdity of joining musick

and poetry to the unpremeditated effusions of the heart, has rescued this part of the passage from a similar interpretation: And it is not easy to perceive, that precomposed prayers are inconsistent with praying with the spirit, any more than precomposed psalmody with singing with the spirit. In truth, the passage has no connexion with the subject, as the context may plainly show. The praying with the spirit and the singing with the spirit, were the praying and the singing in a foreign language, under the gift of inspiration: And this, as the apostle shows, could be of no benefit to the hearers, without interpretation; which he calls praying and singing with the understanding.

There is another passage, in which the same apostle speaks of "having a form of Godliness, but denying the power thereof." Now although there is a misunderstanding of these words, when applied as here alluded to; yet we might allow the construction, without admitting its effect. Forms of prayer, are not alleged to be an actual praying; and it will be acknowledged by all, that the best forms may be made use of, without a spark of the Holy Spirit which they breathe. Still, the passage is misunderstood by those who so apply it. For the form of godliness there spoken of, as the original word* proves, is a show-an appearance-a pretence of it. In short, the matter censured is hypocrisy, not formality; although this itself is not piety.

I desist from the exposure of the poverty of such pleas; and conclude with confidence, that, when we read in the bible of the prayers of the saints being an incense presented by the holy angels before the throne of God, the sweet savour of it is not spoiled, by their being previously considered and indited; under the influence of an ardent piety, combined with correct ideas of the evangelical dispensation. [See Dissertation XII.]

Морфио

Having arrived at this point, I may look back on the principles laid down in the beginning of this lecture; and offer our liturgy to the most rigid scrutiny that may be devised-as to its being agreeable to the dictates of the most sound and cultivated judgments; as to its breathing a fervour of affection, different indeed from any thing savouring of the extravagances of the imagination or of the passions, yet demonstrating more than can be done by any thing of this sort, the Unction from above; as to its abounding in the expression of those salutary truths of Scripture, which have been received in the Christian Church in all times and places; so as always to afford rich instruction from the desk, when, as sometimes unhappily occurs, there is need of it to make up for the poverty of the pulpit; and finally, as to the end of all, in its tending to nourish gracious dispositions in the heart, and to call them forth to act in the life and conversation. To open and illustrate all these its excellencies, would be to make a review of the services of the book of Common Prayer: which is not here the object. Instead of this, I go on to apply the result, to some points immediately affected by it, and intitled to our serious consideration.

First; I apply the subject to the confirming of us in a satisfaction with the devotions of our liturgy; which have been handed down to us, partly from very early ages of the Church, and partly as the compositions of the martyrs of the English Reformation; and have since received the testimony of innumerable holy persons now with God, that they have found them the best means of lifting up to him their thoughts and their affections.

But however conspicuous and confessed the excellency of our liturgy; I wish to attach you to it, not principally on its own account, but because of its being unfavourable to every extravagance-every "wind of doctrine," as an apostle expresses himself; there evidently appearing of every thing of this sort, that it will not endure the limits so imposed.

Once more, let it be understood, that there is meant no disparagement of any prayers, which are rational and evangelical; however differing from our own in other respects. But when men and women become convulsed in publick prayer, by passion of any sort; and when such passion vents itself in groans and screams and frantick gestures; the question of the propriety of this goes much deeper, than the independent question of the propriety of forms: and such scenes are an évidence, that the persons concerned in them "have need to be taught the first principles of the doctrine of Christ." There can be no better exposure of the practices alluded to, than the supposing of them attached to the Lord's Prayer; or to any other of the prayers of the same blessed person, as recorded in the gospel of St. John; or to either of the two prayers already referred to, in the acts of the apostles. If these holy compositions were uttered in connexion with such extravagance, there would be obvious to every eye and every ear, the incongruity between the prayers and the accompaniments. The unnatural alliance would throw an air of mockery over the whole proceeding: and what can be the cause of this; but that in the prayers of scripture, there is not the kind of passion found necessary by such ravings for their support? which is therefore an animal fire, that must be kept alive by a fuel not provided for it in the gospel.

Under this view of the subject, our liturgy is much more important, than as it contains forms of prayer, however excellent. It is a maintaining of us in a medium between superstition and enthusiasm; being a standing protest against the worst of the errours which have disturbed the peace of the Church, a security to "the faith once delivered to the saints," and thus a keeping off from our ministry of unwelcome intruders; except indeed some-it is here spoken with grief-who have imposed themselves on us, by means of promises as well in private, as made publickly at the altar, at times of ordination; which have been given to the