The wife and benevolent fentiments of thefe noble fouls were im bibed by the whole congregation, and fifty thousand troubled hearts were calmed in an inftant. Home they returned to eat, to drink, to fend portions, and to make mirth, because they had understood the words, that were declared unto him. Plato was alive at this time, teaching dull philofophy to cold academics: but what was he, and what was Xenophon, or Demofthenes, or any of the Pagan orators, in comparison with these men!'

In characterifing the great Preacher of righteousness Jefus Christ, he makes ufe of the following animated language:

In order to mortify human vanity, to convince the world that religion was a plain fimple thing, and that a little common fenfe ac companied with an honeft good heart was fufficient to propagate it, without any aid derived from the cabinets of princes, or the fchools of human fcience, he took twelve poor illiterate men into his company, admitted them to an intimacy with himfelf, and, after he had kept them a while in tuition, fent them to preach the good tidings of falvation to their countrymen. A while after he fent feventy more, and the difcourfes, which he delivered to each clafs at their ordination, are made up of the most wife and benevolent fentiments, that ever fell from the mouth of man. logy, and all unpolluted with puerile conceits, human politics, liteAll the topics are pure theorary dreams, ecclefiaftical traditions, party difputes, and all the other difgraces of preaching, which thofe fanctimonious hypocrites, fcribes, and pharifees, and pretended doctors and rabbies had introduced into it.

Jefus Chrift had never paid any regard to the place, where he delivered his fermons; he had taught in the temple, the fynagogues, public walks, and private houses; he had preached on mountains, and in barges and fhips. His miffionaries imitated him, and convenience for the time was confecration of the place. He had been equally indifferent to the pofture, he food, or fat, as his own ease and the popular edification required. The time also had been accommodated to the fame end. He had preached early in the morning, late in the evening, on Sabbath-days and feftivals, and whenever elfe the people had leisure and inclination to hear. It had been foretold, the Meffiah fhould not lift up, nor cry, nor cause his voice to be beard in the streets, that is, fhould not ufe the artifices of those who fought for popularity. It fhould feem, Jefus Chrift ufed very little action but that little was juft, natural, grave, and expreffive. He fometimes wept, and always felt: but he never expreffed his emotions in a theatrical manner, much less did he preach as a drowsy pedant declaims, who has no emotions to exprefs.

The fuccefs, that accompanied the ministry of our Emanuel, was truly aftonishing. My foul overflows with joy, my eyes with tears of pleasure, while I tranfcribe it. When this Sun of righteousness arofe with healing under his wings, the difinterefied populace, who lay all neglected and forlorn, benighted with ignorance, and benumbed with vice, faw the light, and hailed the brightnefs of its rifing. Up they sprang, and after him in multitudes men, women, and children went. Was he to pass a road, they climbed the trees to see him, yea the blind fat by the way-fide to hear him go by.

Was

Was he in a house, they unroofed the building to come at him. As if they could never get near enough to hear the foft accents of his voice, they preffed, they crouded, they trod upon one another to furround him. When he retired into the wildernefs, they thought him another Mofes, and would have made him a king. It was the finest thing they could think of. He, greater than the greatest monarch, defpifed worldly grandeur: but to fulfil prophecy, fitting upon a borrowed afs's colt, rode into Jerufalem the Son of the Highest, and allowed the tranfported multitude to ftrew the way with garments and branches, and to aroufe the infenfible metropolis by acclamations, the very children shouting, Hofannah! Hofannab in the highest! Hofannab to the fon of David! Blessed be be, that cometh in the name of the Lord!

The rabbies pretended, the populace knew not the law, and were curfed, and it is certain they knew not thofe glosses of the law, which traditionists affected to teach: but this ignorance was their happiness. It would have been well for the teachers, had they never known them. The populace did know the law, and often quoted it in its true fenfe. What mystery is there in the Ten Commandments! or what erudition is requifite to determine, whether he, who opened the eyes of the blind, were a worshipper of God, or a finner! It is a high privilege of poverty, that it is a state degagé, dif engaged, detached, unbiased, and nearest of all others to free inquiry. The populace are not worth poifoning by ecclefiaftical quacks, for they cannot pay for the drugs. Their fenfes of feeing and hearing, their faculties of obferving, reflecting, and reafoning, are all as equal to religious topics as those of their fuperiors, and more fo, because unfophifticated. If they apply themselves to examine, their attestation is a high degree of probability, if not a demokration. It was gloriously faid by a blind beggar to a bench of curmudgeons, Why! herein is a marvellous thing, that ye, with all your great books and broad phylacteries, long titles and hard names, wife looks and academical habits, know not whence Jefus is, and yet he hath opened my eyes. Now we, we blind beggars, we curfed people, who know not the law, we who are altogether born in fin, we know that God heareth not finners. If this man were not of God, he could do nothing.

This popularity, obtained by public preaching, fupported by a courfe of beneficent actions, many of which were miraculous, excited the envy of the leading churchmen, and they determined to deftroy Jefus. They dare not appeal to the people, his conftant auditors and companions: but they pretended loyalty to Cafar, and love to their country, and taxed the PRINCE OF PEACE with firring up fedition. We know the iffue. Let us draw a veil over this horrid part of the history of mankind, and let us pafs on to the principal object of our attention.'

Tracing the progrefs of preaching through fuccceding ages, he fays,

For fome time preaching was common to bishops, elders, deacons, and private brethren in the primitive church in procefs, it was reftrained to the bishop, and to fuch as he fhould appoint. They called the appointment ordination, and at laft attached i know

not

not what ideas of mystery and influence to the word, and of dominion to the bishop, who pronounced it. The word ordain was ori ginally equal to appoint; and if twenty Christians nominated a man to inflruct them once, the man was appointed or ordained a preacher for the time. If they requested him to continue to inftruct them, he was reputed to be ordained or appointed their minister in future, as long as they pleafed. Thefe nominations were accompanied with prayer, and fometimes with the blefing and good wishes of the feniors, expreffed by the old custom of laying the hand upon the head. From thefe fimple tranfactions came in process of time a longer train of absurdities than I have room to relate.

When a bishop or preacher travelled, he claimed no authority to exercife the duties of his function, unless he were invited by the churches, where he attended public worship. The primitive churches had no idea of a bishop at Rome prefuming to dictate to a congregation in Africa. Nothing, however, was more common than fuch friendly vifits and fermons as were then in practice. The churches thought them edifying. In cafe the bishop were fick, or abfent, one of the deacons, or fometimes a fhort-hand writer, used to read a homily, that had been preached, and perhaps published by fome good minifter, and fometimes a homily, that had been preached by the bishop of the church.

We have great obligations to primitive notaries, for they very early addreffed themfeives to take down the homilies of public preachers. Sometimes the hearers employed them, fometimes the preachers, and fometimes themfelves. For this purpofe they carried writing tablets waxed, and ftyles, that is, pointed irons, or gravers, into the affembly, and flood round the preacher to record what he faid. It was a character to a public speaker to be attended by these fcribes; for primitive Chriftians, never complaifant in matters of confcience, would not give themselves the trouble of taking down the fermons of a patriarch, if they did not like his preaching. They fay no body would write after Atticus, patriarch of Constantinople; for, though he had a great name, he was accounted but an indifferent preacher. The people thought once hearing enough of all confcience for a bad fermon. From the labours of these men, we derive many a huge folio.

What a multitude of not impertinent queftions might be afked here! Can we afcertain the motives of all these writers?-Can we tell which are corrected copies ?Is it quite fair to determine the whole character of a preacher by one extempore effufion -Were none of the writers in a hurry to get his own copy firit to market, and are the molt quick always the molt correct Are we fure the preacher spoke clearly, and had no hoarfenefs, no cold, no impedi-ment?-Can we answer for the writer's quick hearing, or the people's filence? Fathers have been quoted as fcripture: but fcripture was not taken thus. They have been alleged in proof of every thing, and well they might! If the populace then refembled the populace now, the most nonfenfical fermons were the most faleable.

The deacons placed themselves round the pulpit, and before fermon one of them cried with a loud voice, Silence-bearken-or fomething fimilar. This was repeated often, if neceffary; I fup

pofe

pofe at proper paufes, when the preacher flopped. Their manners were different from ours: but really our manners want fome of their customs. It might do fome drowsy folks good to be alarmed every five or ten minutes with-Mind what you are about-Let us liftenAttend to the word of God.

Some affirm, that all the primitive bishops preached in a gown, or a furplice, or a fomething, which Eufebius cails a, and which he fays, St. John being a priest wore. Had S. John thought

ho necessary to a good fermon, he would have left in his writings fome direction how God, who enjoined it, chose to have it made. The directions of Mofes for the habits of Aaron are f plain, that any habit-maker could work by them to this day but as for the apofile's day, we know nothing about it. Eufebius picked up a fcrap of a letter of one Polycrates, there he found who, and there we leave it. It is not improbable, that fome good preachers might' not have clothes fit to appear in, efpecially the itinerant brethren, fuch as the apoftles, and others after them, who travelled and preached. Would it be wonderful, if a congregation had kept a decent clean habit, that would cover all, for the ufe of fuch poor men as came among them! The furplice was copied from the Jewish worship, and was ordered to be worn by all who officiated in facredthings but this was in the latter part of this period, when preachers were become priests in name, and princes in fact.'

And afterwards,

:

In this period many noble places of worship were built. The old Jewish temple was the original, the reft were all taken from it. We have felt the mifery of abridging all along but here it will be lefs obfcure to omit than to abr dge. Let it, then, fuffice to obferve, that a cathedral was an imitation of the temple, and a village place of worship of a fynagogue. Hence the idea of a holy end for an altar and a circle of priests, and an unhallowed end for the common people. Hence the divifions of porches, choirs, chancels, and fo on, answering to the courts of the temple. The ambo, or pulpit, was in the choir. Some were portable, and very plain; others fixtares, ftretching out lengthwife, fo that the preacher might walk up and down in them; fome had feats and curtains, others were adorned with gold and filver, and resembled the thrones of princes more than fcaffolds for the convenience of Chriftian ministers So fays Eufebius, cenfuring the vanity of Paul of Samofeta. Hence came our modern cathedrals and parish churches, our choirs, and altars, and ftalls, and thrones in places of worthip. Many of our churches and chapels are very inconvenient to preach in. They were not erected for ichools of inftruction: but for faying mafs and facrificing, and where the pulpit fhould be, there ftands an old table covered with finery, and called an altar. In many places, the priest preaches from the middle of a fide wall, or a pillar, to the backs and fhoulders of his audience, for the pews were placed with a view to the altar, where formerly brother Mumpfimus ufed to play tricks, and not to the pulpit, where now a wife and good minifter stands and preaches to a people, in fearch, it thould feem by their looking to the old spot, for their former guides. How long fhall we facrifice manly advan tages to puerile.popish baubles!

.0

Degenerate

Degenerate as thefe days were, compared with thofe of the apoftles, they were golden ages in comparison with the times that followed. Some taught what they called pofitive theology, that is to fay, compilations of theological opinions, collected from fcripture, and fathers, and councils. Others went into fcholaftical divinity, that is, confused and metaphyfical reafonings, by which they pretended to explain the doctrines of religion. A third fort were all taken up with contemplations and inward feelings, and their divinity was myfticism. Even thefe were preferable to others, who read the categories of Ariftotle, or the life of a faint, in the church, inftead of a fermon, and who turned the church, I will not fay into a theatre, but into a booth at a country fair. The pulpit became a ftage, where ludicrous priests obtained the vulgar laugh by the lowestkind of dirty wit, efpecially at the feftivals of Chriftmas and Eafter. One of our old hiftorians fays, The devil was so pleased with the preachers of the eleventh century, that he fent them a letter of thanks from bell for the advantages which his kingdom derived from their pulpits.'

In defcribing the state of preaching in reformed countries, after paffing high encomiums on the firft reformers, and on many Puritan and Nonconformist preachers [overlooking however many great names which have adorned the English church, and greatly contributed to the improvement of preaching], our Author thus laments the influence of civil authority on the eloquence of the pulpit :

In all reformed countries the pulpit was taken into the fervice of the ftate, and became a kind of attorney or folicitor-general retained to plead for the crown. The proof of this lies in the articles, canons, and injunctions, which were girded on the clergy of thofe times; and how thoroughly the ftate clergy have underflood this to be the true condition of the pulpit, their fermons will abundantly prove. The best state instructions to preachers were given in the DIRECTORY by the affembly of divines: but even these include the great, the fatal error, the subjection of God's word to human law. If, when all other inftitutes were taken into the service of the ftate, the pulpit had efcaped, it would have been wonderful indeed: but, if the pulpit be a place, and the preacher a penfioner, in the name of common fenfe, what are we to expect from both!

From this fad conftitution we derive, the lifeleffness of later preaching. The ill-fated youth before he is aware finds himself bound to teach the opinions of a fet of minifters, who lived two hundred years, before he was born. His mafters believed their own articles, and therefore preached them with zeal: but it would be unreasonable to expect a like zeal in him for the fame doctrines, for he does not know what they are, or, having examined them, he does not think them true, and thus fubfcription to other men's creeds becomes the death of good preaching.'

After perufing thefe fpecimens of our Author's ftyle and fpirit, many of our Readers will, we apprehend, agree with us in regretting that, while in fo good a caufe he difcovers fuch a laudable portion of the fortiter in re, he has not been able to

blend