pressed go free, and that ye break every yoke? Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor, that are cast out, to thy house? when thou secst the naked, that thou cover him, and that thou hide not thyself from thy own flesh ?" This the Quakers believe to be the true fast, and not the work of a particular day, but to be the daily work of every real Chris

tian.

Indeed, no one day, in the estimation of the Quakers, can be made by human appointment either more holy or more proper for worship than another. They do not even believe that the Jewish Sabbath, which was by the appointment of God, continues in Gospel-times, or that it has been handed down by divine authority as the true Sabbath of Christians. All days with the Quakers are equally holy, and all equally proper for the worship of God. In this opinion they coincide with the ever-memorable John "For prayer, indeed," says this ve" man, was the Sabbath ordained. Yet prayer itself is sabbathless, and admits of no rest, no intermission at all. If our hands be clean, we must, as our apostle commands

Hales. nerable

commands us, lift them up every where, at all times, and make every place a church, every day a sabbath-day, every hour canonical. As you go to the market, as you stand in the streets, as you walk in the fields,-in all these places, you may pray as well, and with as good acceptance, as in the church; for you yourselves are temples of the Holy Ghost, if the Grace of God be in you, more precious than any of those which are made

with hands."

Though, however, the Quakers believe no one day in the sight of God to be holier than another, and no one capable of being rendered so by human authority, yet they think that Christians ought to assemble for the public worship of God. They think they ought to bear an outward and public testimony for God; and this can only be done by becoming members of a visible church, where they may be seen to acknowledge him publicly in the face of men. They think also, that the public worship of God increases, as it were, the fire of devotion, and enlarges the sphere of spiritual life in the souls of men. life," says Barclay,

"God causes the inward "the more to abound,

when

when his children assemble themselves diligently together to wait upon him; so that, as iron sharpeneth iron, the seeing of the faces of one another, when both are inwardly gathered unto the Life, giveth occasion for the Life secretly to rise, and to pass from vessel to vessel. And as many candles lighted, and put in one place, do greatly augment the light, and make it more to shine forth; so, when many are gathered together into the same Life, there is more of the glory of God, and his power appears to the refreshment of each individual; for that he partakes not only of the Light and Life raised in himself, but in all the rest. therefore Christ hath particularly promised a blessing to such as assemble in his name, seeing he will be in the midst of them." For these and other reasons, the Quakers think it proper that men should be drawn together to the public worship of God. But if so, they must be drawn together at certain times. Now as one day has never been in the eyes of the Quakers more desirable for such an object than another, their ancestors chose the first day in the week, because the Apostles had chosen it for the re

And

ligious

ligious assembling of themselves and their followers. And, in addition to this, that more frequent opportunities might be afforded them of bearing their outward testimony publicly for God, and of enlarging the sphere of their spiritual life, they appointed a meeting on one other day in the week in most places, and two in some others, for the same purpose.

CHAP

CHAPTER XIII.

Miscellaneous particularities Quakers careful about the use of such words as relate to religion -never use the words " Original Sin"-nor "the Word of God" for the Scriptures—nor the word " Trinity"-never pry into the latter mystery-believe in the manhood and divinity of Jesus Christ—also in a resurrection, but never attempt to fathom that subject-Make little difference between sanctification and justification -their ideas concerning the latter.

THE

HE Quakers are remarkably careful, both in their conversation and their writings on religious subjects, as to the terms which they use. They express scriptural images or ideas, as much as may be, by scriptural terms. By means of this particular caution they avoid much of the perplexity and many of the difficulties which arise to others, and escape the theological disputes. which disturb the rest of the Christian world.

The Quakers scarcely ever utter the words
Original