rity of James was cited (v. 14). Tertullian, one of the Latin "Fathers," who flourished about the middle of the second century, says in his tract on Baptism, "When we come out of the water we are anointed with holy chrism, then we have the imposition of hands, which calls down the Holy Ghost." From this it appears that the baptism spoken of was the baptism of adult converts, administered by immersion, and that the laying on of hands followed immediately after the application of the chrism, and formed a concluding portion of the rite. From other sources we learn, as already intimated, that confirmation was administered immediately after the baptism of infants. The more advanced age at which it is observed in the English Church is an outgrowth of the Reformation. Nonconformists have always regarded it as a Popish invention, and their remonstrance caused it to be discontinued to infants, and led to its being applied only to children of riper years. The Council of Trent decreed the age for it to be seven years. The whole order of this office, as set forth in the Book of Common Prayer, goes to show that the confirmed persons are contemplated as taking upon themselves the promises and vows made on their behalf by their sureties when they were baptized; also that the Lord had vouchsafed to regenerate them by water and the Holy Ghost, to forgive their sins, and to give them, by the laying on of hands, a certificate of the Divine favour and goodness towards them.

From these facts we learn that the rite of confirmation consists in the laying on of hands by a bishop, who must, to authenticate its efficacy, be a successor of the apostles; and that the purpose and profession of it are to obtain the gift of the Holy Ghost. All the other matters associated with it are only collateral to the main issue. Now, these things being so, what is there in this institution that the New Church can venture to imitate? Is not the whole thing from first to last an ecclesiastical arrangement by which episcopal authority is magnified into something like a miraculous power? It starts with the assumption that baptism wipes away the guilt of "original sin," and makes the subjects of it the children of God and inheritors of the kingdom of heaven. It also provides for sponsors, who are required to promise that the children shall "renounce the devil and all his works, the pomps and vanities of this wicked world, and all the sinful lusts of the flesh; that they shall believe all the articles of the Christian faith; keep God's holy will and commandments, and walk in the same all the days of their life;" a promise which it is impossible for the sponsors to fulfil; and, finally, it assumes that the children, who are presented to be confirmed, will by that rite have conferred upon them the gift of the Holy Ghost! Thus it will be observed that confirmation is only a part of a system which takes its rise in error about the purposes of baptism, is carried on by a fiction which requires sponsors to promise impossible things, and finished by an act of superstition, so far as it supposes the gift of the Holy Spirit to be conveyed by the imposition of hands.

Under these circumstances we need not be surprised to hear that

some of our friends have taken alarm at the proposition for "introducing a rite analogous to confirmation into the institutions of the New Church." This alarm has taken different shapes. I do not share in any of them, because there is no prospect of its adoption, still it may be useful to notice two of the most prominent.

There are among us those whose love for the purity of the Church is by no means inferior to our own, who object entirely to the New Church following in any way the institutions of a dispensation which we are taught has come to an end. A letter to this effect, from a minister, was presented to the last Conference. They say it is inconsistent with our profession as a New Church, and remind us of the Divine promise respecting it: "Behold I make all things new." I do not think there is much force in objections formed on these grounds, for it seems impossible for the New Church to avoid following in some respects the external observances of its predecessor. We build churches, read and preach the Word, administer the sacraments, sing, pray, and give thanks in our worship much in the same way that other churches have done before the descent of the New Jerusalem began. Nor is it necessary that the new dispensation should avoid adopting these or any other means that may reasonably contribute to the building up of the spiritual life of our people, merely because such means may have been observed by some preceding churches. Forms of truth and spiritual use survive the perversions of their vitality, and it is allowable for a succeeding dispensation to select such forms for resuscitation when it is gifted with the power of infusing new life into them. That power the New Church is supposed to possess, and, therefore, no danger need result from their adoption. The body is of more consequence than the raiment. Swedenborg certainly contemplated this view of the case when, at the end of his work on the "Last Judgment," he said, "The state of the Church hereafter will be similar in external appearance, but dissimilar as to internals." Nor is the Divine statement, "Behold I make all things new," to be otherwise construed. We therefore need not be deterred from considering or adopting any useful forms of religion which may have been observed by former churches, merely because those churches may have fallen into decay by losing vitality and light. If there are any of those forms capable of serving the requirements of spiritual use, that is a sufficient reason for employing them, for use is among the first things of heaven and the Church. The Lord said, "Every scribe which is instructed unto the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is a householder, which brought forth out of his treasure things new and old."

But there are other friends whose sincerity and judgment are entitled to respect, who would not have us approach anything wearing the aspect of an ecclesiastical rite, lest it should provide a pasture for the exercise of priestly influence: infuse spiritual pride into the ministerial function, and so corrupt its purposes. These friends se m to scent Babylon in every ecclesiastical institution, nor are they easi'y persuaded that they may occasionally be labouring under the relaxi

tion of a little intellectual catarrh. It is not possible for the New Church to be seduced by Babylonish practices. If the pure and educating principles of this dispensation are progressive and imperishable, they will prevent the growth of sacerdotalism within its pale. Such developments among the priesthood of former churches were the poisonous offshoots and fungi of a spiritual despotism, which took advantage of a benighted community to provide for its existence. But the New Church can have no such community. It is not possible to plant such a narcotic among a people who enjoy the privilege of rational liberty in spiritual things, and who are being constantly taught that it is allowable for all men to enter intellectually into the things of faith. No doubt individual ministers may occasionally lapse and become presumptuous; but, apart from these, the ministry of the New Church can exist only as an institution for the teaching of spiritual liberty, light, and love. Those who honestly undertake this function will never be unmindful of its duties. They, like all other men, have to be regenerated; and, although the process of their regeneration may differ from that of others, the main purpose of it will always be to conquer the corruptions of their nature, and so make way for the Divine light and influence to enter in and form their character. The clear tendency of those principles is to prevent the development of ecclesiastical presumptions. Everything pertaining to the New Church ministry and the genius of its people goes to hinder the growth and discountenance the existence of such disastrous perversities within its pale. To doubt this is to give up all faith in the use of the principles themselves. To believe in the principles, and not believe that they will be accepted by the ministry as influences in the performance of their official duties, would indicate a scepticism with which I have no disposition to contend.

Now, these remarks may hardly seem relevant to the main subject of this paper. Still they appeared to be necessary in order to meet the objections and fears which have been induced in certain quarters by what I cannot help considering the unfortunate terms in which that subject has been proposed. I shall, therefore, exclude the word "rite" as well as the term "confirmation" from the suggestions I have to offer, because they signify things which cannot be included in the uses which are contemplated. They were, I presume, only employed as ready and convenient expressions for suggesting to the Church the desirableness of considering some useful means by which the young people of our Societies may be induced to attach themselves to our communion more closely than is frequently the case. The idea really uppermost in the mind of the Conference when the minute was adopted could not have been the introduction of anything like the rite of confirmation, but rather the institution of some religious instructions similar to that by which its administration is preceded. It was thought by many that if the ministers of the Church could be induced to undertake such instruction, it would interest the affections and sympathies of our young people, induce them to feel that the Church was their

spiritual home, and prepare them for attending to their first communion more early, and with more intelligence than are commonly the case. This undoubtedly was the idea entertained by the main body of the Conference. And is it not worth considering? Is it not in agree

ment with the Divine invitation, "Suffer little children to come unto me"? How can young people go to the Lord but by suitable teaching, and the influence of those spiritual surroundings which the Church is intended to provide? And what is there to hinder the Church from making such arrangements as are, in its best judgment, calculated to serve those uses? The Lord has left his Church in perfect freedom to adopt any proposition which a reasonable and enlightened conscience may think conducive to the spiritual interests of its people. Such a proposition, however, is not to be set up as a "rite," nor propounded as a doctrine, but to be considered as reasonable means by which the holy uses of the Church may be realized among the young with greater certainty and frequency than is commonly observed. I therefore venture to suggest a course by which, as it appears to me, this use may be promoted.

There can be no doubt that there is a tender and critical period in the life of young people which requires great care and attention in order to attach them to the Church. A statement concerning this period will presently appear. The aim of every Society should be to make arrangements to instruct and interest the affections of their young people in the holy things of the Divine Word, and so provide for the insinuation of those remains which at their age they are adapted to receive. The teaching should be affectionate and special; it should be conducted by the minister, and such other assistance as he can procure; and it should contemplate preparation for the enjoyment of a public religious service specially prepared for the purpose, and by which they should be introduced as junior members of the Church. After which they may be considered eligible for receiving the sacrament of the Lord's Supper. The service should consist of suitable hymns, reading of the Word, an explanatory address, and prayer: it should be short, the sentiments of it those of intelligent piety, and the terms of it sweet, simple, and easily comprehended. Admission to the service, and thereby to junior membership of the Church, should be considered as privileges. The frequency with which the service should be observed will have to be regulated by circumstances. It may be at intervals of one or two years, or as often as a certain number of young persons can be prepared and gathered together for the purpose of attending it. I think the adoption of stated periods would be the preferable course, because that would include the other, and the time being settled would keep the subject as a periodical observance before the Church, so that the parties for whose particular use it is intended may be induced to look forward to it as a special epoch in their religious career; the service should be public: publicity would add to its solemnity and usefulness.

The age at which novitiates should be eligible to participate in this

service is another consideration. No doubt the attainment of states of intelligence and piety are the principal qualifications; still, age must be included in the consideration, and therefore it may be useful to define what should be the minimum period. On this point, I think we may obtain some assistance from a statement made by Swedenborg. In treating of remains, he tells us (A.C. 2280) that they are all things in man which he receives from the Lord as means for his regeneration: in general, they consist of the entire succession of states of the affections and perceptions of goodness and truth, implanted from infancy to the end of life. These, after being received, are stored up in the mind and preserved there without man knowing anything of the process, and notwithstanding his subsequent misconduct. By these the Lord provides for Himself a place in the inmost recesses of the human mind, and they are the means through which He operates against the cupidities and falsities of our natural condition. In the Word they are spoken of as remnants; and they appear to be called remains, because, in our communications with the perversities of the world, the continuity with which they should be received is frequently broken, and by degrees they recede and seem to be extinct; nevertheless they all remair, and being many, they are called remains, and come into activity during the process of regeneration. The term, therefore, is beautifully descriptive of spiritual experience.

Swedenborg also informs us that there are three periods of human life, in each of which there are insinuated remains of specific kinds. These are the affections which pertain to the good things of infancy; the good things of ignorance; and the good things of intelligence.

The affections which pertain to the good things of infancy are those remains which are insinuated into man from the period of his birth up to the time when he begins to be instructed and to know something, Those affections flow in through the love of parents, nurses, companions, and teachers, and they are essentially the good of innocence. The affections which pertain to the good things of ignorance are those remains which are insinuated while a youth is being instructed and in the process of learning. Those affections are called the good things of ignorance, because the real purposes of learning are not as yet perceived, and therefore they are not as yet conjoined with truth. Hence, they are essentially the good of ignorance.

The affections which pertain to the good things of intelligence are those remains which are insinuated when a man has become capable of thinking, and reflecting upon what is good and true; and they are so called because the affection for goodness, which then flows in, can be conjoined with the perception of what is true, and by that conjunction it is essentially the good of intelligence.

It may be useful to notice that the remains spoken of under these several heads do not properly consist in the love of parents, nurses, companions, and teachers, nor in a love for learning, nor in an intelligent understanding of what is good and true. All these things are no doubt good in their natural way, but remains are those things which