this the very nature of his Gospel? Is it not all persuasion, instruction, motive, inducement? Christ saves us then by his Gospel. Its wisdom is superhuman, and carries with it conviction to the mind of man. And God gave the Gospel to Christ." Again he says, "Christ saves men, not by expiating their sins, but by saving them from their sins; not by miraculously changing their natures, but by changing their moral action, through instruction and persuasion; not by overpowering the will, but by exciting it to the right exercise." But to conclude upon this subject, in a few words, I conceive that the Bible clearly teaches that the great Salvation by Christ is comprised in this that Christ, by all that he did and suffered, saves sinners, not in their sins, but from their sins, or rather from sinning; not against the consent of their wills, but by persuading their wills to consent; not by reconciling God to them, but by inducing them to become reconciled to their merci. ful and forgiving Father.

CHAPTER XI.

THE TRINITY IN UNITY, OR TRIUNITY CONSIDEered.

In order to substantiate, or invalidate this doctrine, we must first understand what is meant by the term, Trinity in Unity, what those who hold to it really believe; and what they would have others believe. To ascertain this is not an easy matter; because even the word trinity or triunity is nowhere to be found in the Bible; nor can it be found in any theological book or manuscript, before the second or third century. The first appearance of the word was in the writings of Theophilus, bishop of Antioch, in the latter part of the second century. And, at that time, it was used to denote, says Clemens Alexandrinus, "the bond of Christian graces, faith, hope, and charity." Nor had there, at that day, ever existed in the church, any other word of similar signification. How then can it be supposed, that the doctrine of the Trinity is a doctrine of Revelation, when it is not only not revealed in the word of God, but when there were no words formed, or in existence, no language known, by which it possibly could be revealed? Did the Almighty empower and commission Plato, Philo, or any other Heathen philosopher, or Athanasius, or any other learned bishop, to make such revelation, two, three, or four centuries after the preaching of Christ on earth, who never himself made it known, though he

was the divine messenger sent from God, and the faithful and true witness?

The self-contradictory term, trinity or triunity, is undoubtedly formed or derived from the two latin words tres and unus, numeral adjectives, which signify three and one; but must be applied to some noun or object, to make any sense at all. Besides, they do not work together, they do not harmonize, they are perfect opposites. You cannot apply both three and one to the same subject and make any sense. Instead of tres unus, or triunity, let us say, in simple English, three one men, or three one Gods, or one three man, or one three God; and who can tell what we mean, or discover any sense in what we say? Just as well could you know my opinion, from my answer, if you should ask me, if I believed in the doctrine of the Trinity, and I should answer: Yes. No. It is strange to me, that tres and unus ever got jammed together into one English word, as they are such opposites and disjunctives. They are like fire and water, they cannot exist together, one must destroy the other, if you attempt to unite them. And I wish they were fairly divorced from their unnatural connexion; because I fear that, while it continues, they will constantly produce a brood of contradictions and inconsistencies; for it is the nature of everything to produce its own like. But the present age is not accountable for the production, or introduction of this unnatural term. It was generated by Heathen philosophy, nourished and cherished during the dark ages by Monks and Friars,

fed with human creeds, catechisms, and decrees of councils, and supported by the milk and honey of both civil and eclesiastical power, till it has become gigantic; and having for a long time had a mysterious influence over the churches, now claims to hold them by possession and prescription.

There is another difficulty in ascertaining the meaning of the doctrine of the Trinity, because ever since the third century, Proteus like, it has been constantly changing its form and shape, so that it is necessary to trace its origin, progress, and features, down to the present time; to take a fair view of the whole ground; to see if the position now taken by Trinitarians is the most tenable, and one that can be supported by the Bible. I know of no better way to grapple with this mighty subject, than to state all the most important creeds, doctrines, and dogmas, that have been advanced and held, and to bring them all to the test of Revelation; and see if there is any of them that will fully accord and tally with the Bible. And if we find any that willseize it, and hold it fast, and not let it go, whatever name it may bear.I care not for names, I want the substance; I want the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. But if among all the creeds and doctrines, to which various sects have adhered, we can find none that will so agree with the word of God, then let us burn them all, or cast them into the ocean of oblivion; and sit down with the Bible only in our hands, and reason by our side, to aid our labors, and form a system of doctrines,

which will perfectly accord with the whole Revelation of God. Let the doctrine of Christ be the foundation. Let there be really and nominally but one Church of Christ on earth, as there will be but one in heaven, Then what a world this would be! No. It would not be the world. It would be heaven anticipated!

Could we find the doctrine of the Trinity clearly and expressly stated by the Prophets, by Christ, or his Apostles, we might stop there, and be satisfied. But that it is not so expressly revealed in the word of God, must be acknowledged, and is acknowledged by all. The inference to be drawn from this circumstance will be considered hereafter. The first formal creed of the early Fathers, that I have found, bearing upon this subject, is that of Irenæus, bishop of Lyons, in the second century. He says, "The Church, although dispersed throughout the whole world even to the ends of the earth, has received, from the Apostles and other disciples, that faith, which is in one God, the Father almighty, who made the heavens and the earth, and the sea and all things that are therein; and in one Jesus Christ, the Son of God, incarnate for the sake of our salvation; and in the Holy Spirit, who, by the Prophets, preached the dispensation and advent and the birth of our beloved Lord Jesus Christ from the virgin; and his passion and resurrection from the dead; and his ascension, in the flesh, into heaven; and his coming from heaven, in the glory of the Father, to restore all things, and to recall to life from the dead all