Jews' Society, $586. May 10 and 11, for the Hibernian Society, 1776 dollars. Censorship of the French Press. French papers announce the establishment of the censorship and the utter destruction of the liberty of the Press. Hereafter, every number of a journal or periodical writing must, before it be printed, be furnished with the Visa of the Burea, which shall authorize the publication of it, according to art. 5, of the law of March, 1820. The censure is said to affect nothing but newspapers. Cuvier, the geologist, being appointed one of the censors, unhesitatingly declined. ORDINATIONS AND INSTALLATIONS. June 27.-Rev. THOMAS HOLIDAY, over the Union Presbyterian church, at Onesquethaw, Albany Co. N. Y. Sermon by the Rev. H. R. Weed. July 1.-The Rev. Messrs. HIRAM ADAMS, JOHN W. CURTIS, WILLIAMA. CURTIS, SAMUEL FULL, and GEORGE L. HINTON, were admitted to the holy order of Deacons, by the Bight Rev. Bishop Hobart, in St. Thomas' church, New-York. July 24.-The Rev. ENOCH CONGER was installed at Ridgefield, Huron Co. Ohio, by the Presbytery of Huron, pastor of the congregation of Ridgefield and Lyme. Sermon by the Rev. Alfred H. Betts. July 25.-Rev. JOHN BEACH was installed pastor of the congregation at Pern, by the same Presbytery Sermon by the Rev. Daniel W. Lathrop. July 31.-Rev. CHARLES HOOVER, was ordained to the work of the Gospel Ministry, in the 1st. Presbyterian church, Newark, N. J. Sermon by the Rev. John Ford, of Parsippany. Aug 2.-Rev. CORNELIUS VAN CLIFF was ordained to the work of an Evangelist, by the Classis of Philadelphia. Sermon by the Rev. Mr. Livingston. Aug. 8.-The Rev. GEORGE CHAMPLAIN SHEPARD was admitted to the order of Priests, at Hebron, by the Rt. Rev. Thomas Church Brownell. Sermon by Rev. Professor Doane, of Washington College, Hartford. TO CORRESPONDENTS. J. P. W.; E. K.; and B-m, are received. We would insert the paper of " OWEN," pointing out a misquotation of Scripture, were we satisfied, with his exposition of the passage. The error he notices, as well as another of a similar nature in the same connexion, is chargeable only to IpedCurepos: the Replyer merely repeated his language, without supposing himself to adopt the misquotation. For the benefit of ПperCurepos we will name the passage alluded to; "The Holy Spirit knocks at every human heart, operates in convincing of sin, of righteousness, and a judgment to come." The words "to come" are, as OWEN remarks, apocryphal. "Knocking at the heart" is another expression without authority, we believe, from our "authorized version." "Behold, I stand at the door, and knock." OF ORDINATION. THE Mosaic economy terminated with the death of Christ, who was a minister of the circumcision. After his resurrection, he commissioned eleven apostles, to go and disciple all nations. They were to testify the things, which they had seen and heard; and reveal the truths, which should be suggested to their minds by the Holy Spirit. Such is the basis of all present authority for evangelizing the world. But it no more follows, that any regular preacher has the commission of an apostle to govern the general church, than that he possesses the gifts of such. For as none can be strictly apostles, that is, immediately instructed and sent by Christ, so none can possess, either their inspiration and general authority, or their extraordinary power. Under the theocracy, commissions were by consecration, with imposition of hands.* The apostles being Jews, and tolerated in the Roman empire only as such, were guided by the Spirit to baptize, teach, and ordain, in the modes to which they had been accustomed. But they neither claimed, nor exercised a priesthood, nor considered ordination as an apostolical prerogative; but merely as a duty, *Num. viii. 10. xxvii. 18. VOL. I.-No. X. 64 incident to the greater work of discipling and teaching. Whilst many justify innovations on the ground of expediency, not a few have thought, that a right has devolved upon the church, through the apostles, of government, discipline, and dispensing ordinances. The present prevailing forms of ecclesiastical government, having originated since the days of the apostles, do require some such vindication; for certainly there is nei ther apostolic precept, nor example for any ordination in a particular church, except those of bishops and deacons; and if bishops and presbyters be the same office, the additional ordination, whether of the diocesan bishop, or the lay presbyter, finds no authority in the word of God. But if the church possess the right to create new officers, and to transfer to them the government, and rite of ordination, this exceeds the claim of infallibility, it is to legislate in the place of God. Matthias was elected, separated by let, and numbered with the apostles, but was neither personally sent by Christ, nor ordained by imposition of hands, being an apostle only in the appellative sense, as was Barnabas. The first ordination was of seven deacons in the church at Jerusalem, chosen by the people, and set apart by prayer, and imposition of the hands of the apostles, there being as yet no presbytery. When the prophets and teachers of the church at Antioch, prayed and imposed their hands on Saul and Barnabas, they seemed rather to have given a testimony of their concurrence to a mission, or apostleship, likely to awaken prejudices, than to have ordained them to an office. But Timothy was ordained for general purposes, by the "laying on of the hands of a presbytery," who had been ordained for an individual church. Imposition of hands might, therefore, designate, and publicly recognise persons; but it neither transmitted virtue, nor authority; nor defined duties. Paul's commission was, consequently, neither enlarged, nor restricted by the mission he received at Antioch. Nor was Timothy's office of evangelist, though an extraordinary commission to aid the apostle of the Gentiles, lessened by the concurrence of a presbytery in his ordination. The primitive churches when duly furnished, had each its presbytery and deacons; and of necessity, in planting churches, the apostles and evangelists did, when alone, respectively ordain presbyters in those which were new. * But after or * Paul and Barnabas returning to the churches which they had planted; dained presbyters for them in every church,” χειροτονησαντες δε αυτοίς πρεσβυτε pous Kara ekkλnatav with prayer and fasting. The Greeks used xapprove for electing by lifting the hand. But Paul and Barnabas could not have thus voted, being but two, yet the act was theirs. ETITION is the expression for imposing hands. More must have been intended by xuipoTovnoavres, than simply that they appoint ed; it must mean that they set them apart to the office of presbyters, for that was the effect, and such is expressed to have been the office, and it was with prayer and fasting. Although xeiporove imphes not necessarily, either voting by lifting the hand, or ordaining by imposing the hand, for it is used for constituting Moses a ruler, and Aaron and his sons priests, by God himself; yet it is probable that Paul and Barnabas did ordain by wards the presbytery of every such church ordained successors to themselves, and also deacons, not by communicating any virtue, which they had derived mystically from the apostles or evangelists; but by assigning them, in the discharge of their own duty, with the consent of the people, a share in the government and service of the church. The validity of offices in the church of Christ, is independent of the internal call. But both ordainers and ordained, should have reasonable grounds to be satisfied of the truth of this grace; which is no more, than the ordinary change of heart or disposition, with a conviction, that it is the duty of the party to preach the gospel, and that he has the requisite knowledge, learning, talents, and soundness in the faith, to render him useful. The authority of the officers of the church is derived through the apostles, who received their commission from Christ in person, and were directed by the Holy Spirit, to provide teachers for the churches, in the manner they have done. If the case of Matthias, who received sidxony, an oversight, be not an exception, the apostolic authority and gifts were peculiar to those, who were commissioned by Christ after his resurrection; and the the office of evangelist, which was nearest approximation to theirs was also extraordinary and evanescent. No evangelists appear in the history of the church after the deaths of those who were cotemporaries of the apostles; nor do any other officers, except those of individual churches, for a century after the death of John, who died the last of the apostles. The first interpretation of a rule is generally and justly supposed to be the right one; the first condition of the churchest imposition of hands, for Paul imposed his terian Mag. 1821. pp. 61. 105. 161. establishes the only ordinary offices of the New Testament to have been those of the presbyter, called also bishop, and of the deacon; and the only ordainers, except the apostles and evangelists, appear to have been the presbyteries of the respective churches. The presbyter, who presided in each, denominated in the Apocalypse, the angel of the church, was consequently thus ordained, and to the same office with his brethren. Also, if the sacred word be alone competent to prescribe and define legitimate powers, and rightful commissions of officers in the church of Christ, there is to this day no higher grade, than that of presbyter; and no one inferior to the deacon; neither is there rightful ordination, but by presbyters. These may pray for the Holy Ghost to breathe upon those, on whom they put their hands; but have no power to communicate that blessing; and that a moral virtue should proceed from the hands of any, who now ordain, is no more to be believed, than that the water in baptism should either physically, authoritatively, or mystically remove guilt. Words may invest authority, but "so send I you," did neither transfer the Mediator's commission, nor constitute the disciples priests. The apostles were embassadors of God, as well as witnesses of Christ; and being in all their work inspired of God, they were directed to ordain evangelists to plant churches; and presbyters and deacons to teach, govern, and serve them. But when such were designated by ordination, the gospel was their law, or rule of conduct; and to this day, no power is communicated to supersede such rule, but the rightful offices and ordinances remain the same. Titus, Timothy, and other evangelists, inferior in rank and gifts to the apostles only, went forth to the work; connected permanently with no particular church or church es, they superseded, during their stay, the ordinary officers in places already furnished, and ordained presbyters and deacons in those which were destitute. The works of the apostles procured that precedence and respect, to which their inspiration was entitled; the evangelists were chiefly regarded, because they spoke, and wrote the truths preached by the apostles; but no officers were left, when these were removed, except those connected with individual churches. Parochial and diocesan bishops, archbishops, primates, patriarchs, and popes, have all proceeded from presbyters, without any other spiritual ordination, than that, by which they may have been constituted presbyters. When convenience, or policy, had, after a lapse of time, introduced the rule, that no ordination by presbyters should be valid, unless performed in the presence of the primus presbyter, called for distinction the bishop, the laying on of the hands of Paul, 2 Tim. i. 6. with those of the presbytery, 1 Tim. iv. 14. was adopted as an argument to justify the novelty. But in still later times, Timothy, then deemed to have been a bishop, appeared to have been ordained only as a presbyter, because in the third century presbyters were excluded from the ordination of a bishop. To avoid this difficulty also, and escape an opposition to the word of God, the presbytery, expressly so called, which ordained Timothy, was imagined to have been a council of bishops; "Because," says Chrysostom, mere presbyters had no power to ordain a bishop;" a petitio principii worthy of the golden-mouthed father. But Jerom makes this occurrence an argument to prove presbyters and bishops to have been the same: and with correctness, for Paul had not Barnabas with him, at the time he received Timothy. Also there were no councils of bishops, except the 66 presbyteries, in the respective churches. The case of Timothy, when he had been, by modern rules, degraded from the office of evangelist to that of bishop, was still incumbered with remaining objections; for no hands ought to have been imposed, either by Paul, or the presbytery, upon him to make him a bishop; this being proper, by the apostolical canons, only to presbyters; the canons requiring, in the case of bishops, the holding the Scriptures over the head of him, who is to be ordained bishop, during the consecrating prayer. The canons, although a forgery of the fourth century, are evidence of the customs of their day, and do by this circumstance embarrass also the moderns, who suppose it an omission, although the reasons against such omission are conclusive. The letter of Polycarp, of high credibility, describes the officers of the church at Phillippi only as presbyters and deacons. In the inspired letter of Paul to the same church, the officers are addressed as bishops and deacons; the terms presbyter and bishop being as yet used promiscuously, the same of fice is obviously intended by both. Valens had fallen into error, and the letter of Polycarp, recognising the authority of the presbyters over their copresbyter, and representing him as having been "made a presbyter among them," clearly enough shows that the apostolic church at Phillippi was under its own presbyters, who exercised the powers of ordination and excommunication. This being the first testimony after the apostles, and by one who lived with them, is decisive. That the same was also the precise condition of the church at Corinth, when Clement, of whom Paul speaks, wrote from Rome his only undisputed letter to them, is obvious from its language: "Let any one among you, who is gener ous-say if the division is on my account-I go where you please, and will do what the multitude shall appoint, let the flock of Christ enjoy peace alone, with the pres byters, peo Bulεpwv, who have been appointed over it."* Of these he speaks as having the gifts of sixs, the oversight."t When Justin Martyr wrote his two apologies for the Christians, which was within fifty years of John, there were only presbyters, whereof one in each church was pools scil. perulspos, the presiding (presbyter) who administered the eucharist, and deacons who carried it to the people. Ordination was of course performed at that period, by presbyters only. Near the end of the second century Irenæus wrote against heretics, and relied chiefly on the certainty of the sameness of doctrines, by referring to the successions of bishops in the primitive churches, but whom he expressly represents as presbyters, presiding among their brethren. Such were Soter, Victor, and others in the catalogue of popes, whom he terms per Bulepos os poolavles, and if they were only προσίανίες, presiding presbyters, their being also styled bishops, amounts not even to a presumption, that there had been a secondary ordination. Clement of Alexandria places bishops in honour before presbyters, because they occupied the first seat, pwloxatsopia, in the presbytery. Nevertheless, he makes but one order above deacons; also the ordination to the office of presbyter he mentions, but nothing of any subsequent ordination. He lived into the third century. Tertullian, of the first part of the third century, gives the same representation of things at Carthage. He distinguishes bishops, presbyters and deacons; the presbytery *Clement. epist. I. c. 54. † τα δώρα της επισκοπής. Ο. 44. |