administrations, even of that which is most excellent and divine, must of necessity be subject) and which are in no respect sanctioned by its principles and constitution, are no part of the Church, nor do they afford any reason for separating from it.

You acknowledge, my dear sister, that situated as you now are, you see the worst side of the Church of England. Yet that Church has provided such means of spiritual instruction as have proved to you (though placed under the most unfavourable circumstances possible) under God's blessing, the salvation of your soul! Oh, my dear sister, let not this for one moment be forgotten! Is there another Church under heaven which can produce such a wonderful case? And yet in the Church of England it is not singular, nor even rare. Other similar instances have come within my own knowledge. You are yourself a living monument of the excellence of that Church, a witness of God's blessing upon it, -even under the most unfavourable circumstances. And can you think of leaving it, till you at least have had full opportunity of

seeing the best side of it?-and of seeing something of other Churches too. For then you would find, that though very many attempts have been made by many eminent and zealous Christians, for the last two hundred years and more, to form a better Church,-all these have utterly failed. All have presently been found liable to the same abuses, or much greater. So that men, by endless schism, have run away from excellencies which they could not deny, but not escaped the abuses which they loudly denounced. In our own days indeed, the most excellent and spiritual men who have left the Church of England, after much painful experience, have been glad to return to it again. I beseech you, therefore, to pause. Do nothing hastily in a matter of so much moment. Schism is a great sin. Some of the charges you have brought against the Church of England, you will find, upon further enquiry, to be entirely unfounded. Others are abuses of administration, to which all sublunar things are liable; and which we must be content to lament, without power to remedy or prevent; till we come to a brighter and

have

more perfect state of things. When you attained to absolute perfection yourself—when you have no longer any infirmities, imperfections, and corruptions to bewail,-then may you expect to find a perfect Church. Till then, the Church at large, like the individual believer, must cry out with St. Paul, Rom. vii. 21-24. I am persuaded that the time is at hand, when all sound and spiritual Christians will be glad to seek refuge, and consolation, and union in the Church of England. But with these, which are only reasons for pausing, and for caution and calm consideration, which may prepare you in due time for further enquiry, I will dismiss the subject for the present.

I would say the same respecting the Sacrament. The Lord has probably wise reasons, which we shall hereafter discover, for depriving you of that ordinance for the present. In the meantime I will only remark that my main argument, drawn from our Saviour's express command, Luke xxii. 19, you have not noticed at all in your answer. Nor does any thing you have mentioned in the least set that aside.

Let us not set one part of God's word against another. When we do so, we may be sure that we err. And when the Lord so plainly speaks, our only wisdom surely is, not to reason and object, but to believe and obey.

May 7, 1834.

"Now the God of all grace, who has called us into his eternal glory by Christ Jesus "-(after that you have suffered awhile, my dear friend and sister in the Lord,) "make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you. To Him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen."

Oh how true it is, and witnessed by the experience of every believer, that "we must, through much tribulation, enter into the kingdom of heaven." The trials and sufferings appointed us are indeed wonderfully diversified, according to the infinite wisdom of our heavenly Father, who knows all our circumstances, and all the peculiarities of our characters and situations, who is unsearchable in wisdom, and knows both what we need, and what His grace will enable us to bear. But still it