Page images
PDF
EPUB

and many Israelites, who had come to witness the ceremony. The importance he attached to the truth of Christianity, and the happiness he felt at having embraced it, will be seen from an extract of a letter he wrote to a friend in England early in January: You will be surprised to receive this directed from London. I have already been here for about seven months, and it has pleased the Almighty to lead me into the way of truth, and to the knowledge of our only Saviour Jesus Christ. I have ended my instruction, and have already confessed our Lord Jesus by the baptism with water, and I trust and hope to God that I shall also be baptized with the Holy Ghost.' In the sequel of this letter, Edward made inquiries after a situation, but the Lord had something better in store for him, and was preparing him a mansion above. The prevailing disease, the influenza, attacked him, and when nearly recovered he was thrown back by a fresh cold on the 13th of January, which took at once a very serious turn, bringing on inflammation of the heart and water on the chest; so that, notwithstanding all means were used which medical skill could devise, there was hardly any hope of his recovery. The pains he suffered were extreme, but he bore them with patience and resignation. His brethren were very kind and attentive in nursing him day and night, and during his illness he was visited by several Hebrew Christian friends, who prayed with him. The Rev.J. C. Reichardt, who had instructed him, also often sat by his bed-side, and read to him such portions of Scripture as were calculated to prepare his soul for the heavenly flight. He once asked him whether he did ever recall to his mind some of the many texts he had learned by heart. He said, Oh! yes.' When further asked, which passage in particular now gave him comfort, he quoted Rom. vi. 16, 17, "Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? But God he thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you." He also confessed that he loved the

[ocr errors]

Lord Jesus from his heart, and placed all his hopes for time and for eternity on him alone, because he had redeemed him with his precious blood. He desired to receive the Sacrament; and in accordance with his request the Rev. J. B. Cartwright administered it to him, Mr. and Mrs. Reichardt and Mr. Nicolayson joining in the participation of this blessed and solemn ordinance. The greatest anxiety he had was about his mother, to whom he had several times written, both before and after his baptism, to inform her of the circumstance of his becoming aChristian, and nothing gave him greater pleasure on his deathbed than the news, that she was not only reconciled to the step he had taken, but herself more favourably inclined towards Christianity. When he began to grow weaker and weaker, he was asked whether he would like to see some of his relations who live in London, but he declined seeing them, and said, "What can they do for me? they cannot help me, and I fear they would only disturb me." On Saturday night, the 11th of Feb., he was in much pain with difficulty of breathing, but of his own accord, repeated in a low tone of voice, every petition that was offered up for him by the Rev. J. C. Reichardt. The night was tolerable, but in the morning he felt very weak, and his appearance was somewhat changed. Towards noon, a more decided change took place, and the Rev. J. C. Reichardt being sent for from the chapel, came to his bed-side in time to receive a last farewell look, that bespoke consciousness to the last moment. The soul of this dear brother was then committed in prayer into the hands of his God and Saviour, and whilst this was done he very peacefully, without any struggle, breathed his last, to enter into the joy of his Lord, and to join those who are numbered out of the twelve tribes of Israel, in the heavenly Jerusalem.

The peaceful state, in which his soul departed, left an impression on his mortal remains, and this impression of peace on his countenance, which remained unchanged, contributed not a little to efface from the minds of his brethren that fear of death, so peculiar to the Jewish ná

tion, and to give them a practical lesson of the truth of the Christian's hope, who, in the solemn hour of

"Oh! grave,

death is able to say, where is thy victory! oh! death, where is thy sting!"

NEHEMIAH AND MODERN TIMES.

FROM A SPEECH OF THE REV. DR. COOKE, OF BELFAST.

[ocr errors]

IN the midst of such melancholy discoveries, it is consoling to reflect how times of trial, not only bring forth spirits equal to the emergency, but also rouse up qualities that would have slept inactive or sunk unknown. The genius of Nehemiah as a patriot, a legislator, and a commander, was not exhibited by his own purposes; but, like sparks from smitten flint, was elicited by collision with the enemies of God and his country. In the hour of public danger he appears a genuine Protestant of the olden time.' Building the walls of Jerusalem, whilst cleansing the chambers of the temple, he presents to us an original picture of a friend of Church and State.' And when the hour of danger arrives, and Sanballat, the Horonite, and Tobiah, the servant, and Gershon, the Arabian, plot and threaten-for such has ever been, and ever will be, the plan of the ' hereditary bondsmen,' and their confederates-retiring behind the shield of faith, he appeals to the consistency of his character, and replies to the ex-officio of the Attorney-General, and the cowardly whining of the dishonest prophet, "Shall such a man as I flee? Read, I pray you, the sixth chapter to which I refer. Independently of its inspiration, and the fact of being specially written for our ensamples, it presents a most curious and instructive parallel to the present position of Protestantism and Romanism in these lands. Did time allow, it would delight me to follow the parallel between our employ

[ocr errors]

ment in building church walls for shelter, and our deficiency of doors for exclusion; the faction of our many enemies of opposite characters and interests; the ancient invitation to meet in the plains, and the modern kneeling to the bloody Orangemen,' or blarneying the blackmouthed Presbyterians, the threatened accusation to Ahasuerus, and the accusing Address to Queen Victoria-the charge of rebellion against loyal men, and the claim of loyalty by repealing rebels. I might compare the conduct of the bribed and traitorous prophet, with the venality of the hireling press, vilifying all that is patriotic in politics, or sound in religion, for a penny a line; and I might conclude with contrasting the letters of Tobiah, to put Nehemiah in fear, with the letters of O'Connell to Lord Cloncurry, to vilify our Protestant characters, and threaten our civil and religious liberties. Never was parallel more complete in the progress of events; nor will the results be dissimilar. The wall was builded in troublous times; our civil liberties will be secured by the effort to overturn them. The temple was cleansed in the sight of its desecrators, and our churches shall be purified and upheld, whilst the voluntarious hammers, prepared for their demolition, shall crumble in the destructive hands that would have wielded them, and leave no memorial of their being but the rust-stains and the rents in the garments they have contaminated.

SOCIETY FOR PROMOTING CHRISTIAN KNOWLEDGE.

AT the December Meeting of this Society, Mr. Poynder inquired whether any answer had been received from the East India Company to the very important memorial which had been presented to them by this Society in August last. On being answered in the negative, Mr. P. intimated that both the supreme

government in India, and the Madras government, evinced a fixed determination to continue the same system of supporting Idolatry in India, for the sake of its pecuniary profits, against which the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge and the Church Missionary Society had strenuously protested.

The Board voted £25. towards the erection of a monument to the late Dr. Rottler, formerly a Missionary in India, and above fifty years connected with the Society.

Five hundred pounds were placed at the disposal of the Right Rev. the Bishop of Bombay.

Some little petulance was, as usual, displayed by one or two Clerical members of the Society, but which passed off without any particular notice or call on the chair for its interference.

It appears that the Society occasionally makes small Grants for the purchase of Copyrights, or the remuneration of the compilers of Tracts.

Some efforts were made to ascertain the present state of the long talked of Bible Commentary, but no satisfactory information appears to have been elicited.

Several grants of Books were made, and some new members were admitted.

Register of Events.

THE proceedings in Parliament have not hitherto in a religious point of view been of much interest or importance. An effort has been made to introduce some alteration into the Grenville Act, by which the proceedings in case of disputed Elections are regulated, but the obvious injustice of the proposal rendered it abortive. The Civil List, that is, the provision made for the support of her Majesty's Government, has been fixed at £385,000. per annum.

A somewhat warm debate took place in the House of Commons, on the removal of Col. Verner from the Commission of the Peace in Ireland, for proposing a party toast, and the ministry were closely pressed with the inconsistency of removing him, and allowing others, as O'Connell, &c. who had acted a still more decided part, to retain their appointments. On this occasion, and on a motion made in the House of Peers by Lord Roden, some melancholy facts concerning the state of Ireland were elicited.

Some intimations have been given of a general compulsory plan of National Education being shortly adopted; the particulars, however, are not as yet sufficiently known; though there is too much reason to fear that they will not be such as the friends of religion can approve.

We regret to find that a strong disposition prevails on the part of the most influential persons in the East Indian Company's service, to encourage that debasing idolatry which contributes to their present pecuniary advantages. This iniquitous system will, if persevered in, be more fatal to our Eastern Empire, than even the silent and gradual encroachments of the Russian autocrat,-though these last are not to be despised.

The long-continued agitation in Canada has at length broken out into insurrection. Some engagements have taken place between her Majesty's Troops and the Insurgents, which have been attended with considerable loss of life. As the Canadian winter has now set in, some months must elapse before our Troops can be reinforced, and serious apprehensions as to the result appear to be entertained. Parliament has in consequence only adjourned to January 16, instead of February 1, as originally intended.

It should not be forgotten, that Popery has long been patronized in Canada, and that the present administration has withdrawn their Annual Parliamentary Grant by which a few Protestant Missionaries were maintained in that colony. When will our government learn that religion is the most effectual promoter of loyalty; and that so long as Popery is countenanced in one part of our empire, and idolatry in another, it is vain to expect permanent peace and prosperity.

[graphic][ocr errors][merged small][merged small]
« EelmineJätka »