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A PLEA FOR OPEN-AIR PREACHING.

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like these before us, what are we to do? Shall the tide of evil flow on, unrestrained by any spiritual breakwater? It may be said, that the best way to raise one is by means of the circulation of tracts and religious books. But, bear in mind that infidelity is not only propagated by means of the press. "The children of this world are wiser in their generation than the children of light." The very agency I here advocate, for defence of the truth, is already employed by these apostles of evil. In fact, many infidels are made annually by the system of open-air preaching. In Smithfield and Bonner's Fields, London, there are more than a dozen such preachers, pouring forth volumes of blasphemy every Sabbath-day, and gathering large congregations. And while this is going on out of doors, the adjacent churches are well nigh empty. What then but a direct counter agency will avail to check the evil? Religion would then be far less exposed, than now, to sarcastic sneers. Multitudes would render homage to its increased earnestness, and stand amazed at the reality of its living power. If those who are at present sunk in infidelity failed to be converted, yet many a sceptical spirit would doubtless be reclaimed from final unbelief, and gathered into the true fold of Christ.

2. The same observations apply with regard to the increased efforts of Popery.

Since the year 1829 these have been gigantic. Previous to that time there were but three Roman Catholic colleges for the education of the clergy in England. Now there are six; some of which are tenanted by foreign ecclesiastics, such as Passionists, Fathers of Charity, Redemptorists, Fathers of the Conception, and Oratorians. And who shall number the Jesuits? The whole country is dotted with their missions. In Ireland they are supreme. In Wales they have spent many thousands upon a magnificent theological college near St. Asaph, purposely to train up missionaries acquainted with the language and prejudices of the simple and enthusiastic Welsh peasantry. In a few years the

Now Victoria Park.

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Jesuits expect to have converted the chief part of North Wales. But you will say, What has this to do with open-air preaching? I answer, Much every way. For Popery, with a keener eye than Protestantism, has already commenced this great work. In London the priests are beginning to address the crowds they can gather in the courts and back alleys of such parishes as Lambeth, Southwark, &c. From the latter place a clergyman writes to the Church Pastoral-Aid Society, pressing this on their notice, he says, "You may judge of the character of our population, from the fact that Romish priests and friars, and sisters of mercy, swarm here. We had Father Ignatius walking barefoot among us not long since; and continually we meet with priests in twos and threes, declaiming in our courts and alleys."* We may be sure that this proceeds from no individual or unauthorized policy. Rome is too well disciplined to allow her priests to move a single step without the consent of her higher powers. She has counted the cost, and augured success, else the movement would not have been made. And her ground of expectation appears good. When we think of the ignorance of our poor, and their innate love for excitement, we may well dread the influence of cunning sophistry, backed by large pecuniary resources, such as will be brought to bear on them by this agency. It is not too much to expect that in our more densely crowded districts, where it is at work, hundreds of perverts will be made, unless some equally available machinery can be found on our part to counteract it. And for this I can think of nothing but a bold commencement of the same policy on the part of the parochial clergy. Protestantism need not fear the broad light of day. She need not be ashamed of openly measuring lances with her enemy. Let us bring out the Bible front to front with superstition, and prove our love for souls by shewing as much earnestness for the masses; and then, dear brethren, we shall rise to a proper estimate of the wants of our perishing

See last Occasional Paper. Jan. 1851.

countrymen, and be made a blessing to our nation.

3. But I press this even still more in connection with the amount of vice, Sabbath-breaking, and neglect of public worship, universally prevailing.

It is needless to say that all these things for the most part go together. And who with his eyes open can fully measure their extent? About 36,000 criminals pass through the metropolitan gaols, bridewells, and penitentiaries every year. The number of persons taken into custody by the metropolitan police, for various infractions of the law, amounts in a single year to about 65,000, equal to the whole population of some of our largest towns.*

With regard to the Metropolis, the Constabulary Commissioners, after careful investigation, discovered not long since, that within the boundaries of the metropolitan police there were10,444 persons who had no visible means of subsistence, but by living on fraud, &c. 4,353 committed offenders, occasional violators of the law.

2,104 known as associates of the above, and suspicious characters.

Who can wonder after this, that the sum of £51,890 was spent for the support of three prisons in the year 1848, in the county of Middlesex? Nor is this frightful picture confined to London. In the county of Hertfordshire, which is purely agricultural, £12,000 is annually paid for police and prisons. While taking the country at large, it costs us £11,000,000 per annum in the punishment of crime alone.

Now all these vast masses of our countrymen thus living on their shame are totally beyond the reach of any ordinary ministerial influence. Churches and chapels may be situated in the midst of them, but they are of no avail. It is perfectly awful to reflect on the multitudes who never enter any place of worship. It is calculated that there are at least 1,000,000 of

See Letters on "Labour and the Poor" in the Morning Chronicle."

persons in London, taking young and old together, belonging to this class. If we are to judge by the reports of the City Missionary Society, there is a single district in the parish of Marylebone, where out of 1,262 adults, as many as 1,122 live habitually in neglect of God's house. Alas, it is only a type of what remains behind, to a greater or less extent through the whole of the united kingdom.

What then shall be done? Can we say calmly and dispassionately, that the state of the country does not demand additional, and yet untried, efforts for its evangelization? While these things continue, shall we rest satisfied that we have done enough? God forbid! Rather let us hear it as a call from God to enter on a fresh field of labour. It is clear that our present machinery does not stem the evil, nor even bear at all upon it practically; let us therefore at least be animated to do something. And what can we do more effectually than enter boldly into the strongholds of Satan's kingdom, by means of open-air preaching? By this means many might be drawn to God. I believe indeed that God would honour us as his ministers with many conversions. Sin at least could it is now in the more degraded parts not be so unblushingly dominant as of our town population throughout the

land.

The experiment has yet to be tried. I say all this of course in faith. But, who that loves immortal souls, who that values the peace and welfare of society, who that desires the happiness of his country, who that prays in earnest to see the kingdom of Christ extended, who that remembers the precept, "Go ye into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in,"-will think it an experiment not worth trying? Oh, for that moral courage, that stern decision, that constraining zeal, necessary to commence the work! The Lord

pour it out upon us largely, for His

name's sake!

[To be continued.]

THE POPE'S ARROGANT CLAIM TO SUPREMACY.

By the Rev. J. TOMLIN, Tankersley Rectory, Yorkshire.

It is well known that the Pope's arrogant claim to supremacy over the universal Church of Christ, is maintained by the Romanists on the authority of our Lord's address to Peter, Mat. xvi. 18, 19. Our Lord's words are constantly reiterated in Romish catechisms, and in the preambles of papal bulls and briefs. Thus, in the recent bull of Pius the Ninth, for restoring the Romish hierarchy in England, he boldly asserts that, "the power of governing the universal Church (was) intrusted by our Lord Jesus Christ to the Roman Pontiffs in the person of St. Peter."

Although the present sifting controversy with Rome has called forth some able confutations of the Bishop of Rome's false and audacious claim, and especially a masterly one from Mr. Seely, yet as the Papists have not been fairly and fully beaten and driven from the scriptural ground on which they have ventured to take their stand, they will fall back upon their favourite argument for Peter and the Pope's supremacy, and will never quit it till Protestants can clearly show that the Romanists have wrested the passage from its real and obvious meaning, (Mat. xvi. 18, 19,) "As they do many other Scriptures to their own destruction."

1. As Peter never assumed any superiority over his brethren, nor did the other Apostles ever acknowledge or concede any pre-eminence to Peter, we may justly infer, à priori, that a critical and sound interpretation of our Lord's words do not warrant the meaning which the Romanists put upon them. Yet it is singular that Protestant writers and commentators have half conceded the argument to the Papists by their lax and unscriptural interpretation of the words, and into which they were too easily led by some of the early fathers, who said, it was not on Peter personally, but on the rock of his faith, or confession of his faith, that Christ would build His Church. Now, we nowhere find in the word of God, that faith is called a MARCH 1851.

foundation of the Church of Christ. Faith is the means by which Peter himself was built on the sole and right foundation, which is Christ, the living Rock.

2. The peculiar force and meaning of our Saviour's words are not apparent in the authorized English translation: "And I say unto thee that thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church." As there is no antecedent reference in the context to "rock," the English Protestant reader is left to infer from the analogy of Scripture that our Lord here makes an indirect allusion to Himself, as the Rock, on which alone His Church is founded, and which is a well-known and familiar image, or metaphor, of Himself, throughout the Scriptures. But the subtle Romanist tells him that Peter, in Greek, means a rock, and therefore Peter is the Rock on which our Lord builds His Church. The Romanist, however, asserts what is not true; for, the proper meaning of Peter, or Petros (Пeтpos), in Greek, is a stone, and not a rock; and is thus properly rendered, John i. 42, on the occasion of our Lord's first giving this name to "Simon son of Jonas:' "Thou shalt be called Cephas, which is, by interpretation, a stone," (Peter, in the margin.)

3. Leigh also says in his "Critica Sacra," Пerpos always signifies a stone, never a rock."

4. Moreover, the proper Greek word for rock is petra (TETрa), and not petros (TETPOs), and which is used here in the passage under our consideration, as also in other places of Holy Scripture, where a rock is intended in contradistinction to a stone. Thus, in Mat. vii. 24, the rock on which the wise man builds his house is Terpa, preceded by the definite ar ticle, and not πετρоs.

5. Again. The distinctive significations of πετρος and πετρα are most precisely marked in Mat. xvi. 18: "ou et πετρος και επι ταυτη τη πετρα οικοδομησω μου την εκκλησιαν.” Here TETроs, a stone, stands alone, without even the

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definite article; whereas Teтpa, rock, is preceded both by the definite article and demonstrative pronoun, “Tautη TNTETрa," this the rock, or, this very rock. "Thou art a stone, (Terpos) and upon this the rock I will build my Church." Supplying the obvious ellipsis, the meaning of our Lord's words may be thus correctly rendered,-"I say unto thee, that thou art Petros, a stone, (i.e. a lively stone, 1 Pet. ii. 5,) and upon this very rock (on which thou art building) I will build my Church."

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6. The omission of the definite article before Terpos in this passage must be noticed. Had our Lord intended to point out Peter, or Peter's faith, as the rock on which He would build His Church, it is manifest that He would have addressed him by the usual personal denominative, o Пerpos, which is much more definite and emphatic than simply Terpos. Nothing can be more plain than that our Lord intended by this unusual omission of the article to fix the attention of His disciples not on Peter, but on Himself, under the appropriate corresponding metaphor, the "Rock," placed in juxtaposition with a stone," and rendered most distinctive and emphatic by the definite article and demonstrative pronoun, και επι ταυτη τη πέτρα, K.TA. "and upon this very rock I will build my Church." Let us suppose, for the sake of argument, that our Lord really intended to found His Church upon Peter, or Peter's faith! then, it is manifest He would have addressed Peter by his usual and emphatic name, o Пeтρоs, and would have also used the same word in the second member of the sentence, to indicate the identity of the foundation of His Church with Peter. The meaning, under the present supposition, would then be clear and definite, ov e o Пeтроs και επι ταυτο τω πετρω οικοδομησο, κ.τ.λ.

7. The force of the omission of the article before TETρоs in ver. 18, is rendered still more obvious by the recur-> rence of the usual personal denominative only four verses below, viz. in ver. 22: "And Peter (o Пeтpos) taking him," &c. And in ver. 23 our Lord addresses him personally and emphatically by the same name : "And

turning round, he said unto Peter, (Tw Пleтpw) get thee behind me, Satan!"

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8. The folly, absurdity, and wilful perverseness of making Peter the rock, or foundation of the Church of Christ, are here strikingly manifest from our Lord's calling Peter, Satan! immediately after commending him so highly for his faith. Alas! how soon "the gates of hell prevailed' against Peter, Rome's chosen "rock." His sudden and great fall was surely a sufficient warning against such an unscriptural, foolish, and rash interpretation of our Lord's words in v. 18. The foolish builders of Rome have, like the Scribes and Pharisees of old, rejected "the Chief Corner Stone,' and, under pretence of building on Peter as a foundation, have really built their house upon the sand, like the foolish man in our Lord's parable, Mat. vii. 26. And their "refuge of lies" will be soon swept away by the floods and storms of the Lord's righteous indignation and wrath, which are even now ready to burst forth upon Rome; and great will be the fall of Babylon!

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9. Mark the conduct of the wise man, ver. 24, and the stability of his house, built upon "the rock," v. 25, "Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon the rock (επι την Terpav): and the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not for it was founded upon the Rock."

It will be observed by the attentive reader that, in this parallel passage, the definite article also precedes Terpα, and points to the particular rock on which the wise man builds, viz. the Rock, Christ. Our translators overlooked the force of the Greek article, and put "a rock" instead of "the Rock."

10. The Apostle Paul also alludes to the same beautiful and striking metaphor of our gracious Redeemer; speaking of Israel in the wilderness, (1 Cor. x. 4,) he says, "And (they) did all drink of the same spiritual drink for they drank of (a) spiritual

THE POPE'S ARROGANT CLAIM TO SUPREMACY.

Rock that followed them: and that Rock was the Christ," (n de reтpa nv O XpIOTOS). In the parallel passage, Num. xx. 7, 8, we read, "And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, Take the rod, and gather thou the assembly together, thou, and Aaron thy brother, and speak ye unto the Rock before their eyes; and (it) shall give forth his water:" Moses and Aaron were expressly commanded to "speak unto the Rock." The Hebrew is "debartem el ha sela;" the Greek of the Septuagint,λαλήσατε προς την πέτραν. "Speak ye to the Rock." How emphatic the language! The Rock is to be addressed as an intelligent Being, even as Christ, who was indeed present, and standing upon the Rock, (Ex. xvii. 6.) The definite article is prefixed both to the Hebrew and Greek names for Rock; thus, ha sela, and την πετραν.

The sin of Moses and Aaron did not consist merely in smiting the Rock twice, as is usually supposed, but chiefly in disobeying the Lord's command, to "speak unto the Rock before the eyes of the people." Instead of speaking to the Rock, they spake to the people in a spirit of anger and unbelief, saying, "Hear now, ye rebels; must we fetch you water out of this Rock?" Num. xx. 10. In ver. 12 their sin is specially marked out, as arising from unbelief.

We have already remarked that Rock is a common figure, or emblem, of our gracious and mighty Redeemer, in the Scriptures: the appropriate words in Hebrew being sela, or tsur, in contra-distinction to eben, a stone. Amongst other passages, see Deut. xxxii. 15, Psa. xcv. 1, Isa. xxxii. 2. The testimony of our best ProtestantChristian poets may be adduced in support of the true interpretation of our text. For instance, in the beautiful and well-known hymn, commencing with,

"Glorious things of thee are spoken," the Christian poet thus alludes to the security and stability of the Church: "On the Rock of Ages founded,

What can shake thy sure repose?" Also, the 725th Hymn of "the Uni

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ted Brethren's collection thus commences:

"Praise God for ever:

Boundless is His favour

To His Church and chosen flock,
Founded on Christ the Rock,
His Almighty Son."

11. We have thus endeavoured, under the guidance of the Spirit of Truth, by a sound critical interpretation of our Lord's words to Peter, supported by the analogy of Scripture, to rescue this passage entirely from the Papists, and to show that it affords not the slightest ground for building up either Peter or the Pope's supremacy; but, on the contrary, points out, as definitely as language can do, the only foundation of the true Church of Christ, which is Christ himself, "the Rock of Salvation."

12. There is a similar form of language and metaphor used by our Lord, which illustrates and confirms the interpretation here given; it occurs in John ii. 19. Our Lord, on purging the temple, being asked for a sign of His authority, replied, “Destroy this temple (Tov vaov TOUTOV) and in three days I will raise it up."

The unbelieving Jews, like the blind Romanists, mistook our Lord's meaning, and did not perceive that He was alluding metaphorically to the temple of His body, and not to the temple made with hands. Had they been in a right spirit, and attended to the peculiarly expressive terms which He used for "this temple," ver. 19, τον ναον τούτον, "this very temple," they would have understood him better: the word vaov having both the definite article and demonstrative pronoun, as in the case of πεтρа, rock.

Our Lord also uses vaos, and not epov, the former designating properly the temple, while the latter applied to all the building and courts of it. Had our Lord intended the latter, He would doubtless have used the common and appropriate term ¡epov, as in ver. 14.

13. We have yet to notice the 19th verse of Mat. xvi., which the Papists vauntingly allege as an additional and confirmatory argument of Peter and the Pope's supremacy. We need

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