It is often said that our only hope is in revivals of religion. But can these be expected-we had almost said, how are they possiblewithout an able, stated, numerous ministry? Without it, they are certain to end in the wild fire of the fanatic.

In pleading for the Education Society, we feel that we are pleading for one of the two or three instrumentalities which are to save our nation, and without which our power to bless the pagan world cannot exist. To let it languish is suicidal. We may depend upon it that it is an agency which is vital to the existence of every other.

ARTICLE XVI.

THE MINISTERIAL CHARACTER AND PREPARATION SUITED TO OUR COUNTRY, THE WORLD, AND THE AGE.

BY THE REV. JOHN H. RICE, D. D.

[From "the American Quarterly Register," Vol. I., 1828.]

My subject is the Ministerial character and preparation best adapted to the wants of the United States, and of the world, in the Nineteenth Century.

It is a mighty subject; fit rather to be handled by one, who stands on some high vantage ground, and is able to look through the entire state of the church and the world, than by me, who dwell in an humble and retired corner, and can just see the glancing of the light, as its rays beam over me, and just hear the report of the wonderful things which have been accomplished, and of the still more wonderful, which are in preparation. Yet, to borrow the thought of Cowper, hard as the task assigned me is, it were harder still to leave it unattempted. In this difficulty, I comfort myself with the hope, that as so great a subject can only be touched in this brief Essay, it will be taken up, hereafter, by one of more leisure, and better able to handle it in a worthy manner.

But the

It is not a little surprising, that the church has, to a great degree, overlooked the importance of forming ministerial character, and pursuing a course of preparation for the ministry of the gospel, in adaptation to the existing state of things. The groundwork of that character, indeed, must always be the same; for the religion, which it is the minister's province to teach, is unchangeable. varying condition of the world, renders it necessary to modify the instrumentality, by which the truth is carried to the consciences of men. The manner of the apostle Paul among people differing as much as though they lived in distant ages, affords a fine illustration of this remark. Look at him when preaching Jesus Christ in a Jewish Synagogue; next, see him standing on Mars Hill, among the polished, the witty, the philosophical Athenians;—then hear

him, as he addresses king Agrippa; or as he reasons of righteousness, temperance, and a judgment to come, before the representative of the Cæsars;-you find him, indeed, everywhere the same bold and dauntless teacher of righteousness; but in each particular case varying his whole manner, in adaptation to persons, times, and circumstances. Now as the Apostle Paul had a training and preparation for the ministry, which enabled him, without sacrificing one iota of religious truth, to accommodate his manner of teaching to men of all classes and nations; in like manner preachers of the gospel ought to be so educated that they shall be able to conform to the spirit of the age, and teach the whole of gospel truth in the way most likely to do good.

In the 19th Century, a mighty impulse has, assuredly, been given to the human intellect. There is a march of mind; there is an energy; a business-like character, belonging to the age in which we live, and distinguishing it from times gone by.

The energy of which I have spoken, is infused into every department of human opinion; and has communicated, as might have been expected, a corresponding vigour of action. If it is so in any part of the church; it is equally so in the world; if the watchword of "the sacramental host" is "onward," the enemy has caught the same spirit, and all the leagued and disciplined legions of the prince of darkness shout back "Onward!"

The present age, moreover, is characterized, not only by vigour of action, but by enlargement and comprehension of views. The excitement has been such the achievements of the last thirty years have been so great, that no little thing, no local, temporary interest, can fill, and satisfy the mind. Military, political, civil affairs are all conducted on a grand scale. The progress of science the freedom of the press-the facilities of intercourse between nations-the extension of education-the formation of a public opinion of the civilized world-the wide circulation of news, both political and domestic, have all served to produce this reach of thought and of purpose. The foulness of a crime perpetrated in one of our western villages, or in a hamlet in some obscure corner of England, in the course of a few weeks, awakens detestation among a hundred millions of human beings. And the moral sublimity of a truly virtuous and noble action, with like rapidity of diffusion, soon thrills through unnumbered bosoms, and calls forth admiration and praise from the wise and good of half the human race. The effect of all these circumstances is felt on the mass of christendom's population. And the church has to do her work, amidst multitudes, whose minds are dilated with strong feeling, and filled with magnificent enterprises.

Now, as a general remark, I would say that in regard to all these movements, and the spirit which urges them forward, the church must keep before the world; and, shining in the light of heaven, she must hold forth the word of life, and show to benighted and bewildered man, the way of peace and salvation. And I should think that

ministerial character ought to be formed in reference to this condition of the world. In particular,

There is an urgent call for a lofty tone of religious feeling in the ministers of the gospel. In the awakened state of christendom, when every thing is tuned to a high key, the dull and dreary monotones of listlessness will produce only disgust and contempt. Every priest and Levite must take his jubilee-trumpet, and sound such notes of heavenly melody as shall, amidst all the din and bustle and turmoil of this gross earth, be heard waxing louder and still louder, until every discordant sound shall be overpowered by the rapturous hosannas of a redeemed world. No man need expect that others, in the present mighty upstirring of human nature, will sympathise with him, and be brought under the influence of truth itself, when uttered by him, if his own feelings are flat and stale. But this excitement, to be of any real value, must be well sustained, and equable. The grand truths of the gospel must apply a constant stimulus to the heart and soul of the preacher; and he must show that it is this, and nothing else, which bears him on, through all his labours.

In the next place, preachers of the gospel must be trained for energetic action.-The enterprise of men of this age, in the various pursuits of life, are characterised by remarkable earnestness and decision. "Their driving is like the driving of Jehu, the son of Nimshi." In the eagerness of pursuit, they lean forward as they Ministers of Jesus Christ must catch the same spirit."What their hands find to do, they must do with their might." Otherwise, men will never believe that they are at all in earnest. A life of feeble effort will pass off, and the world will be as though they had never lived.

go on.

"The

But the vastness of the work affords another argument. harvest is great, and the labourers are few." So much the more, then, for them to do! They must work while it is day—and every hour in the day-or many will at last cry out, in the bitterness of their anguish, "the harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved." O! who can look over this world, lying in all the darkness and desolation of sin, and not feel that every one who loves the Lord Jesus, and especially every one who is consecrated to the work of the ministry, ought to put forth every atom of his strength in carrying forward the great design of making known the saving health of the gospel to all nations.

It deserves to be remarked, too, that as the time approaches for the consummation of the great purposes of redeeming mercy, the Head of the church shows that he intends to use, in this high service, men whose tone of feeling, whose standard of piety, and energy of action, are brought up to the requirements of the gospel. They who, in former times, might have been to some degree useful in the performance of half service, are laid aside and rejected; while the honour and happiness of success are granted to those who give their hearts undivided to this mighty work.

Again: the present age calls for ministers of comprehensive views and enlarged feelings. The field of labour is the world. The movements of the church affect the interests of the human race. The plans proposed by Christian benevolence diffuse their influence through all christendom. The opposition of infidelity, or bigotry, in the present increased and easy intercourse among nations, operrates on the same extended scale. And the minister of the gospel can hardly be reckoned fit for his station, who confines his views to one little corner, or limits his feelings to one little portion of the church.

It is high time, too, that the whole moral influence of true religion should be felt by the entire world of heathens, Mohammedans, Jews, and nominal Christians. And the man, whose heart is not big enough to take in all; whose mind cannot look beyond the plans and interests of a sect; who cannot, at one hour with the deepest interest take hold of a neighbouring Sabbath School; and at the next, give all his soul to the business of a mission located in the islands of the sea, or on the other side of the globe, is not the man for this age. He has come into the world behind his time; or has stayed in it, until such services as his seem not to be needed.

I should say, too, that the present period requires singleness of heart and purpose in the ministry; and undivided attention to its appropriate duties. A preacher of the gospel must not love money, or fame, pleasure, or power. He must love his work better than life; he must, in a peculiar and eminent degree, be ready to practise self-denial; he must be willing to go any where, be any thing, do or suffer any thing, to promote the cause of the Redeemer and the salvation of souls; he must forget his own particular interest, and lose himself in the high and hallowed enterprise of evangelizing the world.

In former times, preachers of the gospel not unfrequently gave time, attention, feeling, labour, to many interests not immediately connected with the accomplishment of their great object. But what have the ministers of a kingdom which is not of this world, to do with affairs of state, and political contests? Why should a man, whose office might well fill the hands and the heart of an angel, occupy his time with subordinate interests? If these things were once tolerated, they can be so no longer. Now, there is a call for a concentration of energy, an undivided attention, an application of the entire mental and moral power of the preacher to his holy calling.

There are two or three other particulars, which I wish to mention, and which I have reserved to this place, because they have a more or less special relation to ministerial character and preparation in the United States.

The Bible Society, in this country, will place the Bible in every family within our borders. The influence of Sabbath Schools will be felt by the children of this nation. Bible classes will ultimately be formed in all our churches. Now these institutions will exert a

very powerful influence on the intellectual and moral character of our countrymen. The teachers of religion will have to minister to people improved and elevated by familiarity with the truths of the Bible. And they will be under the necessity of becoming sound interpreters of Scripture, able to prove its meaning. This, I think, will be more the case in America, than in any other quarter of the world.

But again. This highly favoured land is peculiarly the land of Revivals. The value of these gracious visitations of the Holy Spirit, is appreciated in most of our churches. But the manner of conducting them is not yet so understood, that farther discoveries are not to be made, and greater wisdom employed in their management. It has very often happened that young men, on going out to preach the gospel, have been instrumental in producing a powerful excitement; which they have known how to conduct not much better than a landsman knows how to steer a vessel in a storm. The result is, every thing soon goes down. There is, in the case now before us, most urgent need of much prudence, much knowledge of religion, intimate acquaintance with one's own heart, and clear discernment of the difference between true religion and its various counterfeits. Farther there is a peculiarity in the state of our country, which deserves far more attention than it has ever received from the friends of religion. Our nation, with all its complicated and immense interests, is governed by OPINION. It is this which elects our rulers, and executes our laws. Every man is free, not only to have an opinion, but to maintain it to the best of his ability. Hence our countrymen evince remarkable independence of thought, and tenacity of sentiment. They stick to it, because, it is their own. In religion, this freedom and independence are very observable. Among us there is no visible head of the church; no human authority, to which men are accustomed to bow. And the preachers of the gospel must go forth, prepared to deal with hearers, who are to be convinced before they can be persuaded; to encounter men, who are accustomed to put every thing they are required to believe to a severe test; and who are always ready to question whatever is delivered from the pulpit. This is particularly the case in many of the destitute parts of the country. There cannot be a greater mistake than is committed by those, who say that half-educated men will answer well enough for the south and the west. In these regions, many, indeed, know little about religion; but they are, notwithstanding, very acute, quicksighted men; able at once to take the measure of a man's talents. And, you may rely on it, my dear sir, that an ordinary, every-day sort of a preacher, will very speedily, among them, sink into neglect and contempt. Send your best men to the destitute settlements: by all means send THEM.

Besides; as religion advances, and its friends take a higher stand, the spirit of opposition will be wider awake, and more fully determined. And there is coming on, in this country, a fearful conflict