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such only, can true unity subsist; and to these, and none others, do the excellent observations of I. Pennington apply. Those who deny the very foundation of this precious unity, viz. the union of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, as our blessed Lord, in that most holy prayer, was pleased to set forth: "That they all may be one, as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us, that the world may believe, that thou hast sent me;" such can have no claim to the privileges of that happy state.

I. Pennington says in the extract, that harsh interpretations, concerning any thing relating to one another, is unworthy to be found in an Israelite toward an Egyptian; but exceeding shameful and inexcusable to be found in one brother toward another. Harsh interpretations we entirely disapprove: but when actions speak in a language so plain and positive, as to require no interpretation, it surely cannot be a breach of christian charity to designate them by the name which they give themselves. When our friends err through inadvertency, it is our duty ever to view their failings in the most favourable light that a conscientious regard to truth will admit of; but when those errors become notorious, and are obstinately persisted in, it is incumbent upon us, to speak the truth without hypocrisy. We are not, however, to suppose that one who might be called an Egyptian, is to be placed on an equality with false brethren. No. Those who have swerved from the ancient faith of the gospel, and, while professing the name of Jesus Christ, are denying his divinity and atonement, and secretly and assiduously striving to annul the only sure bond of religious communion, and to draw the unwary from their steadfastness in Christ; such, are more to be avoided than open unbelievers. They can have no valid claim to the appellation of brethren, however they may assume the outward appearance, and seek to pass themselves as members of the true church.

The author of the essay exclaims, "How many weaknesses doth the Lord pass by in us!" and we reverently adopt the grateful language, for his mercy indeed endureth forever. But is this to be made a screen and an excuse for principles and practices subversive of the holiest doctrines and precepts of the gospel of Christ? Then Christ may have fellowship with Belial, and light hold communion with darkness.

I. Pennington says, where there is any evil manifest, wait, Oh wait, to overcome it with good! This is peculiarly proper and becoming, as relates to personal injuries or offences. But it is not to deter the sincere christian from earnestly contending for that holy faith once delivered to the saints. He is not to set down in careless indifference, and suffer the most pernicious and destructive doctrines to be disseminated, without animadversion or opposition. This would be nothing short of betraying his Lord and Master; nothing less than denying Him, before men. Such supineness would, doubtless, be viewed with great complacency, by those whose ambitious desires, and towering pride, prompt them to resort to every stratagem to promote their own views, and to gain partisans to their cause.These, have ever been the first to raise the cry of persecution against those who were honestly engaged to support the law and the testi

mony, and who dare not forsake the cause of Jesus Christ. They have stigmatized these as spiritual inquisitors; opposed the wholesome order of the church, as tyranny and oppression; and pretended great concern that liberty of conscience might be preserved, while, in truth, they are too often actuated by no better motive, than the desire to gain popularity and power, and elevate themselves into stations where they may lord it over the heritage of God.

I. Pennington, who knew well the subtle workings of this deceitful spirit, was far from intending to afford any shelter to its advocates, as he solemnly testified against them, in several of his writings. In his reply to some misrepresentations of John Pennyman, who endeavoured to show, that I. Pennington disapproved of church government, we find the following pertinent remarks.-After declaring that all worldly ambition, and wisdom, and power, is to be excluded from the true church, and the Lord's power alone to be exalted, he says

"But doth all this hinder, deny, or oppose Christ's spirit, Christ's power, Christ's truth and grace, from arising in the church, in a way of spiritual and holy government? Because man is not to aspire, nor take upon him, to reign or rule because of grace, gifts, or knowledge received; shall not therefore the head govern the body? Shall not life and truth, and the wisdom of God, spring in the church, to order and govern the church? But must every man be left to the dictates of what he calls, light in him, and not to be reproved or testified against, though the spirit of God manifest it (to them that are indeed in the light, life, spirit, and power,) that it is not light, as persons may pretend and imagine, but real darkness, gross darkness, darkness that may be felt, even by the least babes that are in the true, living sense?"-Vol. iv. page 383.

Again, in the same essay:

"But if the Lord hath taught a man, opened the same eye in him, that he opened in others, and brought into unity and uniformity with the church, in the practices which the Lord hath taught it; and he afterwards let in another spirit, and fall from these practices, and judge the very church itself for continuing in them; may not the church testify to this person, that he is erred from his guide, hath lost the light in himself and so judgeth amiss, both concerning himself and concerning the church of God? This hath been the state of some who went out from among us formerly, and may also be the state of some who go out from us now. For as there is one that gathers to the true church, so there is another that endeavours to draw and scatter from it, and then, to cause men to turn head against it, as if it were not of God, but apostatised from the spirit and principle of truth, which indeed is their own state and condition,' in God's sight, but not the church's, which was gathered and preserved by him, glory to the Lord, over all the accusations of the accuser through what mouth soever he uttered them forth."Vol. iv. page 390.

After speaking of the great value of liberty of conscience, he

says:

"Concerning what conscience is this to be understood? Is it to

be understood of the tender and weak conscience? Or of the hard and seared conscience? For the conscience which God once made tender, may afterwards come to be seared and hardened. And is the church of Christ, which is guided by the spirit and wisdom of God, taught and required by him, so to act toward the hard and seared conscience, as it is toward the tender and weak conscience? Is the hard and seared conscience, which hath forsaken the true light, spirit, and power, and turned against the truth, and is in a wrong, stiff, wilful, hardened liberty, and subtilty, to be left to its liberty, and to that spirit which draweth it out, and hardeneth it in a wrong liberty? Can there be any unity, in the light and in the spirit, had with those who are erred from the light and from the spirit, and are deceived in their own hearts concerning it, and do but only pretend to it? Can they walk sweetly and harmoniously together in differing practices, who differ also in the ground, and are not one in the foundation, even in the true light and spirit of the Lord? Ought not the church to judge this spirit, with its liberty and evil conscience, (for that spirit will make the consciences of all that let it in, evil,) as well as, to the utmost, to cherish the liberty of the tender consciences, in and to the Lord? Read and consider these scriptures following, Tit. i. 15. 1 Tim. i. 19, iv. 2."-pages 395, 396.

In some considerations on church government which he added to the former essay, he makes the following objection, viz:

"Objection. But have I not been taught to be subject to the light in my own heart, and to make that my judge? And is not this another, or new, or different doctrine from that,-now to tell me I must subject to the light of God's spirit in his church? Suppose that which the church requires, or orders, or holds forth, be different from my light, or be not yet revealed to me by the light wherewith God hath enlightened me, must I deny the light wherewith God hath enlightened me, and subject to the church's light? Or must I practice as the church orders, before I have light and faith in my own particular ?"

To this objection he replies in several paragraphs, the fifth of which we quote.

"Great sobriety is needful in such cases, wherein men are too prone to be judging others, especially the church of God. Every man is to take heed of thinking of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man, the measure of faith, Rom. xii. 3. And the young men who have not the experience of the aged, and are most apt to confidence and excursions, are in a special manner to be exhorted to be sober minded, Tit. ii. 6. Men may easily judge that others err, and that they themselves keep to the light and measure of truth in their own particulars, but it is hard to do it. But they that indeed do it, abide in the humility and innocency and lamb-like spirit, which would give no offence in any thing, neither to Jew nor Gentile, nor to the church of God. If it will go so hard with him that offends one of Christ's little ones, how will it go with him that offends His church, wherein his power and glory riseth, and is established? The church is not apt to be such an erring body, from the light, spirit, and power of

the Lord Jesus, as many who mistake concerning the light in their own particulars, are too apt to suppose."-Vol. iv. page 413.

Among the many authors, with which the early history of the Society of Friends, has made us acquainted, there are few to be found, whose controversial writings evince a more meek and heavenly temper, or whose doctrines are more pure, evangelical and scriptural, than I. Pennington's. He had largely tasted and handled of the good word of life, had learned his religion in the school of Jesus Christ, and was taught by experience, the preciousness of those glorious doctrines which are so clearly set forth in the sacred volume. Amidst all calumnies of envious accusers, the treachery of false brethren, and the storms of cruel persecution which fell to the lot of this good man, he evinced the most lamb-like patience and resignation, the most christian forbearance and good will toward all; yet as one whose hope and confidence was immoveably fixed upon Christ Jesus, the Rock of ages, he forsook not the faith, he swerved not from those precious truths which he had learned through suffering, but nobly vindicated himself and his brethrn from the charge of denying them.

His writings are richly replete with christian instruction; and those who will peruse them attentively, will find that in all the fundamental principles of the gospel of Christ, he is remarkably sound, clear, and scriptural. It is, therefore, ungenerous in the compilers of the pamphlet, to adduce his name at the present day, as authority for sentiments which are directly subversive of the whole tenor of his writings, which contravene those tenets which he strenuously contended for, and in support of which, he endured the loss of much of his temporal estate, and many long and painful imprison

ments.

X

CHAPTER V.

Observations on the extracts made by the Compilers of the Pamphlet from the works of GEORGE WHITEHEAD.

THE first quotation which we are presented with, from the works of this distinguished member of the Society of Friends, is taken from the second part of the "Christian Quaker." The chapter in which it is found, treats of " Justification and Imputation," the question under discussion, being, "Whether impure, that is, unsanctified persons, while such, be justified by the imputation of Christ's righteousness ?" George Whitehead thus objects to his opponent's doctrine :

"You have lived in sin and disobedience all your life long, and have preached to others, that perfect freedom from sin and corrup tion, is not attainable, in this life, by any, either in the beginning or end of life, but have preached many into more looseness and liberty of sinning, by telling them that it is God's good pleasure not to remove the being of sin in this life, but to suffer corruptions to remain in his saints, to keep them humble; so no part of your life is pure or clean, but corrupt and sinful; what have you to plead or say for yourselves, why sentence of damnation should not pass upon you ?" His opponent pleads in reply

"Christ's holy life and suffering is our only defence or apology, against this charge. Though I am guilty, yet satisfaction hath been made for that guilt; because, therefore, the same fault cannot be twice punished, after satisfaction, 'tis as if it never were: this is the only way of defence we have at God's tribunal. Christ's sufferings are they, for which God will justify us-they have fully satisfied justice for our sins; we may be confident, they will secure us from condemnation, it being against justice to punish those sinners a second time, that have been punished to the full already."

The nature of the question, will, we apprehend, be fully understood by our readers, after the foregoing statement. The extract given by the compilers, is taken from George Whitehead's rejoinder to the answer of his opponent; and to make his meaning more clear, we shall take in the whole of the paragraph. The part which the compilers have selected, is enclosed in brackets, designated by a hand.

"To all which, it may be justly replied, and reflected upon you, who are thus pleading and making your apology, in your sins and unholy life, this will not cover nor excuse you in your sins, if you live and die in sin, your mouths will be stopped, you will not be able to plead Christ's holy life and sufferings, to rescue you from condemnation; except you repent, ye shall all likewise perish: what in

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