pleased to afford us, let us press on towards the regions of ETERNAL DAY, where in his light we shall see light; and where amidst the fullest com. munications of his love, we shall for ever love him and each other with ardours, which the best hearts, in their best moments on earth, can neither attain nor conceive*!"

Listen now to Mrs. Hamilton, a sensible member of the Established Church—" It is a great pity that the Heads of our Church of England had not, instead of prescribing CONFESSIONS OF FAITH, with regard to abstruse and speculative points of doctrine, confined themselves to those which are chiefly insisted upon in the discourses of our SAVIOUR. The creed universally enjoined should then have begun with

"I BELIEVE it is my duty to love my neighbour as myself, and to do to others as I would have others to do to me on the like occasion." And so go on through the virtues of HUMILITY, MEEKNESS, and CHARITY, BROTHERLY LOVE, FORGIVENESS OF INJURIES, &c. &c. which articles might have been subscribed to by the most tender conscience, and might probably have been repeated with as much advantage to the soul as the most incomprehensible mystery. This would have done more towards coalescing the different sects into which THE CHRISTIAN WORLD is so unhappily divided, than any mode that has yet been adopted. I fear, however, that the measure would meet with some opposition from

* Family Expositor, 1 Cor. xiii. 12, 13.

the zealots of every party. The confession of CHARITY and BROTHERLY LOVE would be justly deemed an innovation big with alarm, and quite inimical to the spirit of party*."

MR. ROGER WILLIAMS was a strict Calvinist, nor do I esteem him the less on that account. But be it known, that he had not within his bosom a spark of that spirit of JOHN CALVIN which instigated bim

Dr. Doddridge has been censured for throwing his Theological Lectures into a mathematical form, ill adapted to the nature of moral evidence, and of course not favourable to the demonstration of truth. The following singular specimen of the application of mathematics to CHRISTIAN FAITH AND PRACTICE, may be amusing to some readers, as well as make an impression on youthful minds. It is an EPITAPH on a Philomath, or lover of mathematical science

"Sacred to the Memory of W. K. whose Life demonstrated these Christian truths-that the sum of the Squares of faith and hope is ever equal to the Square of CHARITY and GOOD WORKS! Therefore, when any two of these are given, the third will always be found. That as no Figure or Space is contained by less than three Sides, so these three are essential to the form of godliness; for without FAITH no man is justified—without CHARITY our faith is not seen-and without HOPE we are of all men most miserable. By the 13th Prop. of Euclid, also, the Sum of the Angles of every Triangle is equal to two right Angles-and two right Angles infinitely produced on all Sides, must extend through all Space, so the sum of faith, hope, and charity, is equal to the two right Angles of LOVE and OBEDIENCE, which produce infinite happiness, extended throughout all ETERNITY-Q. E. D. which was to be demonstrated."

to fasten Servetus to the stake! Had MR. RICHARDS written the Memoir of Roger Williams, he would have marked the contrast in terms of admiration. Hence in his HISTORY OF LYNN, having given the biography of St. Dominic, and mentioned his death, Aug. 26, 1221, in the fifty-first year of his age, adds" It is even said that he died with great marks of piety-if so, it is to be hoped that one of those marks was that of repentance or deep contrition for his many unworthy deeds; for it is certain that he had been in no small degree a violent man and a man of blood! He was the father even of the HORRID INQUISITION, an exciter of the murderous CRUSADES against pretended heretics, and a prime abettor of the shocking cruelties exercised upon the hapless ALBIGENSES! If he really repented of these execrable misdeeds, he must have made a more hopeful exit than the renowned Reformer of Geneva, the premeditated murderer of Servetus, appears to have done."

Making every allowance for the times in which CALVIN lived, his conduct, viewed in all its atrocity, admits of little palliation. But I am happy to add, that Calvinists themselves in the present age, condemn it with pointed severity. Mr. William Jones, the author of the excellent History of the Waldenses, having eulogised CALVIN, thus expresses himself on the subject. "Yet with all these excellencies, CALVIN was a persecutor! He had yet to learn, or at least how to practise that simple lesson of the kingdom of Heaven, Whatsoever ye would

that men should do unto you, do ye even so unto them. CALVIN could never comprehend HOW ANO

THER MAN COULD HAVE AS GREAT A RIGHT TO THINK WRONG AS HE HIMSELF HAD TO THINK

RIGHT and that it is the sole prerogative of the King of Zion to punish his enemies and the corrupters of the truth! Upon this point his judgment was perverted by the principles of his education, and unhappily for his own character and the cause of truth, his conduct was founded upon this erroneous judgment. His behaviour throughout the whole affair of SERVETUS, is too well known to need any explanation in this place; but I conceive it to be the imperious duty of every friend of toleration, and the rights of conscience, to express their marked abhorrence of this part of the character of CALVIN, And more especially it is the duty of those, the similarity of whose theological creed to that which he contended for, hath subjected them to the impu tation of being his followers. As an obscure and humble individual of that class, I strenuously deprecate every attempt to palliate the enormity of CALVIN'S conduct in the instance referred to, by pleading, as many have done, that Socinus was as bitter a persecutor as himself; for until it be made apparent to-my understanding how two blacks constitute ONE WHITE, I must regard such pleas as extremely illjudged. The truth is, and it ought to be avowed, that the conduct of Calvin admits of no apology! It was a violent outrage upon the laws of humanity, as well as upon the laws of God; and has fixed a

stigma upon the character of that otherwise great man, which will never be obliterated! But let not the enemies of the truth from this take occasion, as they too often have done, to identify the spirit of persecution with the doctrines which Calvin held. His conduct in this particular has drawn tears of lamentation and regret from the eyes of thousands since his time, on account of the reproach it has brought upon the way of truth, causing it to be evil spoken of, and it will continue to suffuse, with all the consciousness of shame, the cheeks of thousands yet unborn."

The REFORMERS, by retaining the spirit of persecution, carried off with them the worst part of Popery. This is ANTICHRIST, whose germ is un charitableness, and whose fruit is every evil work. Persecution is the deadly upas-tree, that sends forth its pestilential vapours far and wide, darkening and devastating the fair face of the Christian world!

Impressively the biographer of Servetus exclaims "O BIGOTRY-thou monster, what hast thou done? To consign to the most cruel death in the prime of life, a person of a character so irreproach able, of talents so rare, of attainments so extraordinary, who might have been so useful to mankind, merely for his opinions. Infernal deed-O CAL VIN! what hast thou done? The voice of thy brother's blood crieth from the ground. But see, the blessed martyr is fallen down in the midst of the fire- his life is departed-the conflict is over-his sufferings are for ever terminated. We weep-we