People of the union, hear this, and feel what gratitude you owe to a good Providence, which shields your religious rights from the persecuting fury of bigotry and intolerance.

The reader will now perceive the justice of the remarks made in the former series concerning the opposition made to the strain of doctrine called Hopkinsian. In this number I shall call his attention to a few remarks on this Pastoral Letter of the Synod of Philadelphia.

1. It is impossible not to perceive that Hopkinsianism is the grand errour aimed at in that let ter. They declare in the same letter, that there never was but one Socinian society within the bounds of the Synod.-An act so official and formal for a single congregation, and that perhaps a very small one, would scarcely appear decorous. As to Arianism, it is doubtful whether they have an individual of that heresy in all their bounds.

Nor did I ever know till now, nor was there ever a solitary instance, as I have heard, of any publick body in the United States, publishing a formal de

nunciation of Arminianism, as heresy. Few if any of the Pro testant churches have chosen to censure Arminianism as a damnable heresy and it has never been done before the present instance in this country.

The Philadelphia Synod seem to have forgotten, that very large and respectable bodies of Christians in our own country, such as the Episcopalians, Methodists, and several others, are usually denominated Arminians. All these they have condemned in the severest and strongest terms, as hereticks; have held them up to publick odium and abhorrence. Whatever that Synod may think, I cannot but esteem them as Christian churches, comprising many members of great piety, and having many divines of distinguished eminence.

[The second remark will be omitted.]

3. It condemns at one stroke an immense body of Christians in New-England, where it is well known, this strain of sentiment prevails almost universally; and that whole body, in its various sections, are amicably represented in the General Assembly; and their representatives, from year to year, sit on the same seats by the side of members of the Synod. Moreover, the Assembly is also represented in various conventions or associations of the New-England churches, wherever they assemble. But this would be a small consideration in comparison with another: Many ministers and churches

who actually belong to the General Assembly, perhaps one third, perhaps one half, are full in this strain of doctrine, and are condemned as hereticks by this Pastoral Letter.

4. The sentiments usually denominated Hopkinsian, were never considered as heresy by the founders of the Presbyterian church in America, nor by the wisest and ablest divines, who differed with them in any subsequent period, in Europe or Ame

rica.

5. The measures taken by the Synod of Philadelphia, are pregnant with mischief, misery, and ruin; and all circumstances considered, I question whether the annals of the Christian church afford a greater instance of rashness, imprudence, impolicy, or injustice. Do they indeed imagine that this watchword will be taken from them, and that all the Synods in this connexion will ring with the dreadful denunciation, "HERESY, and the means by which, if it were possible, the enemy of souls would deceive the very elect?" What are we to expect next, provided this Synod act in character with their sentence and injunction? What is the rule of the everlasting gospel? "A heretick after the first and second admonition reject." What is to be the regular operation of this business, provided all who differ from Hopkinsianism shall condemn it as heresy? Individual members are to be hurled out of churches; churches are to be rent

with disputes and divisions, an some of them severed from Presbyteries: Presbyteries are to be turned out of Synods, and Synods divided; and by this time, what becomes of the Assembly itself? Its full orb will wane, and present a fading and sickly crescent; will become a proverb and by-word, a reproach and astonishment to all mankind.

And what impression will this measure make on the publick mind? How will it appear to this young and rising nation, whose struggles for her own independence and freedom are not yet forgotten? How will it strike at the feelings of the great and highly respectable fraternity of the Episcopal institution, who are carelessly anathematized as hereticks, merely for a handsome pretext to lengthen out the rod over their shoulders to reach others! For it is not to be doubted that that form of speech, "Arians, Socinians, Arminians, &c. was resorted to, merely to make the bundle of hereticks as huge as possible, that, by a kind of indiscrimination, the censure, the single censure on the heads of Hopkinsians, might not seem solitary and partial; in short, that it might appear one sweeping stroke at all heresy.

But I asked in a former paragraph, whether we were to understand this as the voice and sentiment of the fathers and counsellors of the Presbyterian church. I rejoice to say, for the honour of my country, and for the religion I profess, that

nothing is farther from it. I recognise in this act, the features of some fierce and furious spirits, who in an inauspicious hour of darkness and incaution, gained so much the ascendant in that body as to produce this abortion of a Bull, who has faintly roared once, and will never be heard again. I have no doubt that its authors ere this, do, even in their closets, shudder before the bar of publick sentiment; that they severally and individually wish, that at that moment they had been a day's journey from the Synod, and employed in a manner, if it would not promote, that it would not endanger the prosperity and existence of the church.

INVESTIGATOR.

Thus closes the second series of Numbers on the Triangle. A momentous question now occurs: -How can this ecclesiastical war in the middle states, between two classes of our orthodox brethren, be converted to pacifick and useful purposes? In addition to what has been said on the subject in the last volume of the Christian Disciple, nothing better now presents itself, than a candid exhibition of the analogy between such wars and the more bloody contests of Christian nations.

First. The rulers of a nation assume the right of making war for "actual injuries inflicted, or about to be inflicted." They also assume the right of judging and deciding, each in his own cause,

while in fact they are as liable to err as other people. Of course in a multitude of instances, war has been proclaimed, while the greater portion of errour and wrong was on the part of those who first appealed to arms.

This is precisely the case in the wars of different sects of Christians. Let ecclesiastical history be impartially examined and it will unquestionably appear, that in a majority of the cases in which a publick body of clergymen have assumed the right of denouncing as hereticks, and "holding up" their dissenting brethren "to publick odium and abhorrence," the greater portion of errour and wrong, has been on the part of those who assumed this power. Whether it be so in the case before us, the Judge of all the earth will decide. But this may be said without danger of contradiction, that in a majority of cases, where ecclesiastical bodies have assumed such power, their conduct has born a greater resemblance to that of councils of war, than councils of peace; both in regard to the temper displayed, and the prudence and justice of their proceedings.

Second. The contests of nations are produced by the influence of a few misguided or aspiring individuals, who have the address to diffuse their own jealousies, prejudices, and warring passions into the minds of others. Thus exciting a spirit of clamour, reviling, and calumny, they prepare the multitude

one

who actually belong to the General Assembly, perhaps third, perhaps one half, are full in this strain of doctrine, and are condemned as hereticks by this Pastoral Letter,

4, The sentiments usually denominated Hopkinsian, were never considered as heresy by the founders of the Presbyterian church in America, nor by the wisest and ablest divines, who differed with them in any subsequent period, in Europe or America.

5. The measures taken by the Synod of Philadelphia, are pregnant with mischief, misery, and ruin; and all circumstances considered, I question whether the annals of the Christian church afford a greater instance of rashness, imprudence, impolicy, or injustice. Do they indeed imagine that this watchword will be taken from them, and that all the Synods in this connexion will ring with the dreadful denunciation, "HERESY, and the means by which, if it were possible, the enemy of souls would deceive the very elect?" What are we to expect next, provided this Synod act in character with their sentence and injunction? What is the rule of the everlasting gospel? "A heretick after the first and second admonition reject." What is to be the regular operation of this business, provided all who differ from Hopkinsianism shall condemn it as heresy? Individual members are to be hurled out of church es; churches are to be re

with disputes and divisions, an some of them severed from Presbyteries: Presbyteries are to be turned out of Synods, and Synods divided; and by this time, what becomes of the Assembly itself? Its full orb will wane, and present a fading and sickly crescent; will become a proverb and by-word, a reproach and astonishment to all mankind.

And what impression will this measure make on the publick mind? How will it appear to this young and rising nation, whose struggles for her own independence and freedom are not yet forgotten? How will it strike at the feelings of the great and highly respectable fraternity of the Episcopal institution, who are carelessly anathematized as hereticks, merely for a handsome pretext to lengthen out the rod over their shoulders to reach others! For it is not to be doubted that that form of speech, "Arians, Socinians, Arminians, &c. was resorted to, merely to make the bundle of hereticks as huge as possible, that, by a kind of indiscrimination, the censure, the single censure on the heads of Hopkinsians, might not seem solitary and partial; in short, that it might appear one sweeping stroke at all heresy. But I