the absurd ceremonies of that anti-scriptural worship. O! that pernicious liberalism! Only for it, the beast could never again have erected its horrid horn as it has done.

Such, too, is the weak simplicity, the disgraceful ignorance, of numbers nominally Protestant, as to the grounds of the controversy between Rome and us, that, not being able to "give a reason of the hope that is in them," they are prepared to embrace Popery on the slightest temptation. They would not encounter any peril by refusing. They are ignorant of the truly atrocious character of that religion they are ignorant of the massacres of the Waldenses and Albigenses; or they forget these things. They forget the slaughter of the Huguenots in France on the day of St. Bartholomew; and of the Protestants in Ireland, in 1641,1 two of the most horrifying episodes in all history. They forget the butcheries of the Inquisition, in Europe, Asia, and America. They forget the fires of Smithfield and Oxford, the burning of the martyrs in various parts of England, during the reign of the bigotted Mary. They forget, in fine, that the Papal church is clearly and unequivocally denounced in Scripture, as the scarlet whore, THE MOTHER OF ABOMINATIONS, drunk with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus, and accordingly devoted to irretrievable destruction. What more is needful to prove the

1 See HUME'S England, Charles I. chap. LV.

2 Rev. xvii.

Papacy an emanation from "the bottomless pit," than just its uniformly cruel character?1 Bishop Newton says with historical truth—‹ The heathen Emperor of Rome may have slain his thousands of innocent Christians, but the Christian Bishop of Rome hath slain his ten thousands.'

But it is alleged that she is now changed, meliorated by the enlightenment of the age, and has renounced her ancient ferocious disposition. And truly, the practice of putting to death those who refuse adopting any religious creed, be it what it may, is so alien from reason, justice, humanity, and all propriety; in brief, so diabolical, that one might well suppose that at this advanced era of the human intellect, it would in point of fact be abandoned. But we have no warrant whatever, for thinking that it would be abandoned by the church under consideration. On the contrary, there is every reason to fear, that she retains all her old inclination to persecute, if once she had the power. And why do we affirm so? Because the extirpation of those she designates heretics, is a part and parcel of her system; one that has never been repealed; one that, on her own expressed principles, never can be repealed, seeing she maintains her immutability. This, her sanguinary disposition, is clearly declared in the Bible; and woe be unto us, if we heed not its merciful intimations! It has been pretty plainly exhibited in the barbari

1 See Note VIII.

2

2 Note IX.

ties committed in Portugal during the despotism of MIGUEL barbarities, which, though outwardly perpetrated by him, were yet in reality in many instances originated by Popish ecclesiastics behind the screen, who availed themselves of him as their fitting instrument.'

And if a single shadow of doubt remained upon the matter, it would have been annihilated by the recently-discovered work of Peter DENS; published by the approbation of the Romish Hierarchy, and directed to be used by every priest as his text-book and directory of conduct;-a work wherein all the ancient odious canons and decretals authorizing the breach of faith with heretics, and the putting of them to death, are revived and ratified. Thus is Popery changed, even as the rattlesnake when it changes its skin. It is the same execrable system that it ever was-the very virus of the old serpent, whose chief engine of opposition to the gospel it has been, whose master-piece of subtilty and iniquity.2

But again. Protestants are found who affirm that there is hardly any difference between the religion of the Reformation and that referred to; and the present policy of Romanism is just to foster and confirm such misconceptions; its emissaries, with a deplorably perverted zeal, compassing sea and land to make one proselyte; insinuating themselves into families; "creeping into widows'

1 See KEITH's Signs of the Times, Vol. II. p. 250.

2 Note X.

houses, leading captive silly women, laden with divers lusts," and "beguiling unstable souls" with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish.

The tactics of the papal see have uniformly been, to accommodate herself to the prejudices of the people among whom she seeks a settlement. We may say of her, that “ her ways are moveable, that thou canst not know them." Thus, in Japan, she assimilates with the prevailing Paganism. In India, her agent, Robert De Nobili, put on the garb of a Brahmin, to beguile the poor Hindoos. In England, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, many Jesuits assumed the guise of Protestant ministers.o In France, Bossuet, in his day, pretended that the differences between them and the Protestants, were altogether trivial. A like game was formerly played in Ireland, until the heresy in question had acquired sufficient strength to enable it to unfurl its own flag. And similar is the policy pursued, we fear with too much success, to hood-wink and decoy the British people at this present moment.3

Hardly any difference between us and Rome! Why then protest? If there is not a very essen

1 Prov. v. 6.

2 HALLAM'S History.

3 of this, the writer has himself seen a specimen. It is matter of notoriety, that in Ireland, the Second Commandment is omitted in the Roman Catholic Catechism; it so expressly repudiating imageworship; and the tenth divided into two, so as to complete the proper number. In England, however, such an omission would not have suited their present object, namely, the making the two religions appear nearly to correspond. Accordingly, a few years since, the author was shown at Cheltenham a Romish Catechism, wherein the Second Commandment was inserted.

tial difference indeed, our separation was a most indefensible schism. But, do we forget the article of transubstantiation, at once so repugnant to reason, to Scripture, to the testimony of our senses, and to the possibility of things? Do we forget the substitution of penance for the indispensable grace of repentance? Do we forget the sale of indulgences to sin, the enormity that led to the Reformation in Germany or the distinction of sins into venial and mortal-the praying to departed tutelary saints -the masses for the dead-the soul-destroying figment of purgatory-their works of supererogation; while Scripture says, "there is none righteous; no not one; "1 their exaltation of human merits in place of CHRIST'S; thus striking at the very foundation of the Christian faith; their making many mediators, instead of the One only Mediator between God and man, which is Christ Jesus: And, in fine, their giving more glory to the Virgin, than to her adorable Son. Are these matters of insignificance? No; between the Church of Rome and every orthodox church, there is a difference as wide as between heaven and hell; between them there yawns a great gulph, and, that a 'fixed' gulph, eternal as Truth itself.

3

2

1 See Romans iii. 9-12, 23. 1 John i. 8, 9, 10. 2 Chron. vi. 36. Prov. xx. 9. James iii. 2.

2 Note XI.

With the New Testament in our hands, it is no difficult task to disengage ourselves in succession from each one of the popish superstitions. Taking the words of Christ and his Apostles as our sole and sufficient authority, in belief and worship, we spurn without a doubt, this long train of popish absurdities.'-' The modern Christian, Bible