at Jerusalem at that season, managed the affairs of collection and distribution at first. Acts iv. 35. "The disciples brought the money and laid it down, at the apostles' feet, and there was a distribution to every one according to their need." But, Acts vi. 1. 2. "When the disciples were multiplied," the elders could not take care of all the poor; therefore the order of deacons was instituted in the next verse; and we find in Acts xi. 30. that the elders, or ministers, were not utterly divested of all power or care of the contributions, for Paul and Barnabas themselves received the contributions of the church at Antioch, to be disposed of to the poor saints in Judea: And Acts xii. 25. "Barnabas and Saul are said to return from Jerusalem, having fulfilled this service, τήν διακονίαν, this work of a deacon," as it is in the original. So that as the ruling elders probably are helps in government, as the teachers are helps in doctrine and catechising, so the deacons are helps to the pastor in the management of all the outward and temporal affairs that relate to the church's welfare. Now if these things are so, the following consequences will arise.

1. That in churches which are very small, there is no absolute necessity of such officers, as ruling elders or deacons ; for the pastor may perform all the services necessary in that church, with some very little assistance from the brethren at such special occasions, wherein his own modesty may excuse him, or his other labours prevent him. It is plain the deacons were not chosen, till disciples were multiplied.

2. As pastors and ruling elders are not utterly divested of the care of the poor by the institution of deacons, so the deacons ought not to determine any thing of considerable importance, without consult

ing the elders, as I have hinted before; nor in affairs of this kind of the biggest moment, ought any thing to be determined by elders and deacons, without the cognizance and approbation of the church, for in these temporal things we are all but stewards of what the church intrusts us with.

3. Hence perhaps we may borrow another argument for the extent of the deacon's care, that is, that it reaches to all those things of a temporal nature, wherein the brethren of the church may help the elders; for this is the very design of the deacon's office, lest the elders, or ministers of the church, might be too much interrupted in their continual attendance on the word and prayer; and especially where there are no ruling elders chosen to assist the pastor or teacher, in managing church affairs, the care of the deacons seems still to be more extensive for the help of the pastor. And perhaps the word helps, 1 Cor. xii. 28, may have some reference to these offices of ruling elders and deacons.

Thirdly. The duration of this office. Doubtless it was designed to continue througout all ages of the church, which appears from these two reasons:

1. The objects of their care always continue. "The poor ye have always with you." John xii. 8. And ye shall always have them to exercise your charity and compassion. Deut. xv. 11. And in large churches the temporal affairs thereof will be too heavy a burden for the ministers to sustain, and therefore they will need the assistance of deacons. Besides, the provision for their own support, and for the table of the Lord, will be always necessary, while we minister before the Lord in garments of flesh, and while the table of the Lord must be furnished with bread and wine, and other necessaries, in order to participate thereof.

2. They are mentioned by the apostle Paul, as stated officers of the churches, and directions given concerning their character, their behaviour, and management, as there is concerning other standing offi

cers and affairs of a church.

It may be added also, that if they were thought necessary to the primitive churches, in the age of miracles, and the age of love, when God took special care of his ministers, and excited all the members of a church, to a mutual care of one another, and of the poor, much more necessary are these officers in all the following ages, when ministers must acquire and improve their gifts by hard study, and cannot maintain themselves by the work of their hands, and when the charity and mutual care of church members waxes cold, and need some persons to be appointed for this very business.

Fourthly. The way of their constitution, or how persons are to be invested with this office; which seems to be performed by these five things.

1. By inquiring amongst the members of the church, who come nearest to the characters that are given of a deacon, Acts vi. 3. "Men of honest report, full of the Spirit, and of wisdom." 1 Tim. iii.

"Grave, not double-tongued, not given to wine, not greedy of filthy lucre, holding the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience." Unto these I might add that prudence will direct us to choose such persons who are not very poor, lest the stewardship of the church's money should be a temptation to them. Not mean or despised in the church, lest they want due courage and sufficient influence upon their brethren for the management of their office. And they should be persons capable of admonishing the rich, and of comforting the poor, even as their business is to converse with both, to receive

from the one, and distribute to the other. They should also be persons whose temper is compassionate, and who have as it were a natural care for the good of the church, and such as have some leisure hours, and who are not so overwhelmed with the cares and constant business of this life, but they may now and then devote their thoughts, and their hours, to the service of the church of Christ.

2. They must be proved before they are fixed in this office. 1 Tim. iii. 10. I do not conceive this to intend their management of the deacon's office, by way of experiment for a year or two; but rather a farther character of the persons chosen. Let them be such as are of some considerable standing in Christianity, whose character and conversation have been proved and found blameless, and fit for such an office. It seems to signify the same with that character of a bishop, verse 6. "That he must not be a novice," that is, not one that is lately converted, or lately received into the Christian church. 3. They must be chosen by the church, Acts vi. 3. "Brethren, look ye out among you seven men,' &c. The pastors, or elders must not choose them without the church, for the apostles themselves, who were inspired, would not determine the persons, but left the church to choose them, to show us the stated method of choosing ordinary officers in a church.

4. They must accept of the call of the church, and that freely, and they must solemnly devote themselves to the service of Christ and the church. For all the subjects and servants of Christ in his visible kingdom must be voluntary, and the office of a deacon must be undertaken "willingly, and not by constraint," even as the office of a bishop, 1 Pet. v. 2.

5. They must be devoted and separated to this work by the so

lemn prayers of the church, and seeking the divine benediction upon them in the discharge of their office. So were Paul and Barnabas separated to the work of the ministry amongst the gentiles, Acts xiii. 2. 3. And so the deacons to their office. Acts vi. 6.

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Here note, that the elder, or elders of the church, ministers and teachers, are to be the chief agents in this affair. So you find the apostles and teachers were the chief agents in the two texts just cited and as ministers may pronounce a benediction, or blessing in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, so perhaps here it may be proper for the minister to pronounce them blessed, if they faithfully perform this office, as well as to pray for a divine blessing upon them.

The great dispute and inquiry, whether imposition of the hands of elders in this benediction, is now necessary, as in the primitive times, may be thus resolved: In many Scriptures, where imposition of hands is mentioned, there were extraordinary and miraculous gifts conferred. You find this in Stephen and Philip, two of the first deacons, and you frequently find the Holy Ghost conferred on men by this ceremony, Acts viii. 17, 18. and chapter ix. 17-19. Nor can I find one plain and certain instance of hands imposed in the primitive churches, where we are sure it was but an ordinary

separation to an office without any extraordinary gifts conferred, or an inspired and effectual benediction given by an inspired person. Therefore I cannot conceive it necessary to be now practised; for if it had been necessary, surely there would have been some more certain direction and command for it.

But since there is so much colour given to it by some examples or expressions in Scripture, where we cannot certainly prove that extraordinary gifts were conferred, we leave every church, and every elder, to their own liberty of opinion and practice; and those that will impose hands in such a way of benediction, upon any chosen officers in a church, shall never be censured by me, nor dare I pronounce it idle or unlawful. Yet still I think, if there be any elder or elders, in that particular congregation to which they belong, these are the most proper persons to perform such a ceremony.

I would add here, that as there were many sorts of consecration of old in Jewish times, by washings, sprinklings, water, fire, &c.; in the New Testament things are said to "be sanctified by the word and prayer," 1 Tim. iv. 5. And therefore some useful instructions and exhortations from the word of God, seem very proper at the consecration of a bishop, or of a deacon, as well as prayer.-Watt's Works, Vol. VI.

Letters on Clerical Manners and Habits; addressed to a Student in the Theological Seminary at Princeton, N. J. By SAMUEL MILLER, D. D., Professor of Ecclesiastical History and Church Government, in the said Seminary. New-York: G. & C. Carvill. pp. 476.

THE table of contents to this book presents us with such an assemblage of particulars, that to review it in detail would be to write another volume. Under the two words, "manners" and "habits," the author discourses not only of the characteristics of the clown and the gentleman, but of the To av of the clerical profession,-from its humblest parochial duties up to the highest seat of presbyterian dignity -should his pupil one day be elevated to it-the moderator's chair of the General Assembly. Amidst this variety, therefore, we shall pass along lightly, in the track of the author, pausing only here and there, with a passing reflection.

In his introductory letter, Dr. M. exhibits the importance of his subject, and combats the prejudices which exist in many minds against any attempt to discuss it. We have none of the particular prejudices which he remarks upon. We apprehend, however, as indeed our author does, that no person will become truly polite from books merely. Every well bred man has acquired his manners, as he has his pronunciation, from converse with society, and not from written rules. We once witnessed the endeavors of a doctor in divinity to discipline a class of students in Walker's pronunciation. The least ingenious, and least observing, were in this department the most docile of his pupils. Under the idea of acquir

ing a popular accomplishment, these gave themselves assiduously to the subject; and truly, if any thing could have cured Walker himself of his own notions of orthoepy, it must have been the attempts of these pupils. Very similar, we imagine, would be the success which would attend a formal attempt to teach politeness from a text-book. It is not a science to be understood by propositions. He who has not acquired something of it from early discipline and from observation in the world, will hardly learn it theoretically in his study. Though he con over all the treatises he can collect together-if he carry the sloven into his chamber, whatever else he may come out of it-whether a precisian, or a fop, or an automaton,-it is altogether probable he will not come forth the gentleman. Let, for example, one of those unpolished and unpolishable graduates in divinity, who sometimes come abroad, the unjust reproach of our theological seminaries, to reform the world, who themselves are not to be reformed, learn from Dr. M.'s book, that the appropriate manners of a clergyman consist in these particulars; namely, "dignity, gentleness, condescen sion, affability, reserve, and uniformity.' You have given him the theory, but you have by no means conformed him to the practice. You have perhaps not even given him any tolerable idea of these qualities. For aiming at dignity, he becomes perchance formal,--at gentleness, he becomes tame or feminine,-at affabilty, he exercises himself in bows and smiles,--and worst of all, aiming at condescension, he puts on that graciousness of manner which is more provoking than arrogance itself. Some people are never so repulsive as when

er.

they condescend-whose look and manner say, see how obligingly I can stoop to your condition. And herein perhaps is the chief objection which some feel to works of this class--that while they are not intended for the well bred, the uncouth and clownly will make but a perverted use of them. Still, we are not of those who discard treatises on manners altogethWe believe they may be, we think the one before us will be, -of considerable utility to the world. A number of specific precepts may be given, and a number of specific errors pointed out, respecting the proprieties of life, in regard to which the reader may examine himself, and finding himself at fault touching these, he will be put upon the observation of his own manners, and of his fellow-men's about him, and will thus find himself in the right way to improvement. This, books may do, and this is" the humble office" Dr. M.

assigns to this little volume."

The value of an attractive manner is, in some degree, universally acknowledged. Even the vulgar, while they admire a genteel mansion, do at the same time secretly regard with a more invidious admiration, the refined manners of its inhabitants. And all men, as universally as they possess a sensibility to the admiration or the satire of their fellow men, though with extremely diverse notions of propriety, do endeavour in their own way, to recommend themselves by means of their address.

To a minister of the gospel, good breeding is peculiarly important. When he, the business of whose life brings him into the society of all men, that he inay win all to Christ, disgusts the refined by his coarseness, or repels the simple by his preciseness, or scandalizes the serious by his levity, or offends all by his disregard of the proprieties of life, he is eminently unhappy.

The minister of Jesus is the messenger of heaven, sent to exert a heavenly influence on his fellowmen; and the more he corresponds in manner to the spirit of the gos pel, or to the example of its first preachers, adding to the affectionateness of John the ingenousness of Peter, and the manliness of Paul, the more will he make his heavenly influence felt; while by a manner the reverse of this he not only looses his own personal influence, but he offends his sacred office; through him "the ministry is blamed."

By "good manners" Dr. M. means "those manners which Christian purity and benevolence recommend, and which, where those graces reign, they will ever be found substantially to produce;" and he adopts the sentiment of Witherspoon, that "true religion is not only consistent with, but necessary to the perfection of true politeness." Piety is favorable to politeness on every account even taking the world's standard of good breeding. It promotes simplicity, which is opposed to pedantry and affectation of every kind; it enjoins sincerity, the true quality of which those often hollow pretensions which the world calls "civilites" are but the counterfeit; it inculcates modesty, teaching us to esteem others better than ourselves, and is thus opposed to an arrogant or disrespectful manner towards others; it destroys pride, which either makes us disagreeable for our self-complacency, on the one hand, or else, on the other, causing us to be too solicitous for the respect of men, puts us ill at ease in their society;-pride, in its various modifications of superciliousness, vanity, and false diffidence, is the source of more offences against good manners than any other feeling of the human heart;-it promotes cheerfulness and affability, in the same degree that it promotes