6 differ but little, with respect to the point now under consideration (conversion) from those to whom the gospel was first preached. The process in both must be nearly the same. But why represent evangelical teachers, for inculcating this on their hearers, as disseminating unfounded and mischievous tenets, utterly irreconcilable with scripture and the doctrine of the church of England.'+ The following sentences may be subjoined, as their agreement with the Cal vinistic tenets is so very striking. It is not possible for man < to have any merit towards God. There is, as it were, a mu'tual transfer of the sins of men to Christ, and of Christ's < righteousness to men; so that God no longer imputeth their trespasses unto them. Since, then, justification is due to no one on the ground of works, to whomsoever it is granted, it must be an act of grace. A claim from works, and grace through faith, are incompatible. Our good works never can have any merit towards procuring the pardon of our sins, they cannot justify, or tend to justify us.' 6 6 6 Many more passages might be extracted to the same purpose; but we must spare our readers. From those that have been quoted, it is evident the Bishop, in his thoughtful hours, when his converse with his own heart, and the word of truth is the most intimate, speaks the language, and inculcates the te nets, of those who are the objects of his unprovoked hostility. While it is to be lamented that he is so little consistent with himself, he must be content to bear the scorn and contempt which the avowal of such doctrines cannot fail to procure him from those who style themselves philosophers, or rational Christians, without the honour and satisfaction of being their defender. In a former article, we hinted, that the modern Calvinists might justly accuse the Bishop of Lincoln of misrepresenting their principles. Almost every other page of the Remarks confirms what we there suggested; containing complaints of misrepresentation, and entreating that the doctrines they hold may be stated without diminution or addition. We have collected together a number of extravagant principles, which the Refutation ascribed to the evangelical teachers, but which the well informed and veracious author of the Remarks declares they reject. We shall begin with original sin, free will, and the operation of the Holy Spirit. Calvinists,' the Bishop affirms, contend that the sin of Adam introduced into his nature such a radical impotence and depravity, that it is impossible for • his descendants to make any voluntary effort towards piety + Ib. 95. * Ref. 59. Ib. 79. 110. 112. 113. 148. 6 or virtue, or in any respect to correct and improve their mo'ral and religious character. They infer, that man has no concern whatever in working out his salvation; and that the thoughts, words, and works of those who shall be saved, are the necessary and irresistible effects of divine grace.'* Now it turns out that the Calvinists hold no such opinions. They indeed contend, with his Lordship, that man has not the disposition, and consequently not the ability, to do what in the "sight of God is good; and that the influence of God's spirit is successful in its operation. But they never speak of man as obstructed in the performance of his duty by physical impossibility, nor of Christian virtues being the irresistible' effects of divine grace. So far from representing the operation of the Holy Spirit as forcing men, they teach that he sweetly inclines the heart to what is good, so that he neither destroys the will, nor interferes with the exercise of it.† 6 Having, in many parts, laid it down, that in the view of the Calvinists men are mere machines, so far as they are virtuous, the Bishop no sooner evinces the contrary, than the shout of victory resounds over the whole field of battle. But though his Lordship says, we sometimes find good works in scripture ascribed to God alone without any reference to man,'‡ in the judgement of Calvinists this is a great absurdity, as it makes man entirely passive; while they think the scripture exhibits God as disposing and assisting man to act, never as himself the sole agent. The Bishop quotes with approbation the following words from Dr. Sherlock. We say that of our'selves we can do nothing, whence they conclude that we have nothing to do. We say, that it is the grace of God which en'ables us to do every thing; from whence they conclude, that every thing must be left to the grace of God, and that we need only work ourselves into a strong persuasion that God is at work for us, and may sit still ourselves. And this per'suasion, which is generally mere enthusiasm, they dignify 'with the name of Christian faith.' On this passage the remarks of Mr. Scott are so striking, that we must beg leave to insert them at length. There have been, and still are, a considerable number, to whom the rebuke, in this quotation from Sherlock, is justly applicable: but, I have a confidence, that they receive it as frequently, constantly, and decidedly, from the evangelical clergy; as from any other ministers, either of the establishment, or elsewhere. The author of these remarks, during more than twenty years, was subjected to very much censure and many painful effects, for plainly protesting against this very enthusiasm, and Antinomian * Ref. 247. + Ref. 43. + Remarks, Vol. I.7. 9. 70. 61. || Remarks, Vol. I. 87. delusion: and he cannot but think it hard, to be included in the same general sentence of condemnation, with the persons, whose pestiferous tenets, he so long, and he trusts, successfully opposed.-We require nothing of our opponents beyond a fair discrimination. Let them state the censurable tenets, bring clear evidence against the accused, and, having proved them guilty, proceed to pass sentence on them: but surely it is not candid, to include under one general sentence, so large and multifarious a body of men, as are now called "the Calvinists," making them all accountable for the faults of some individuals; and to class among them all the evangelical clergy and their congregations! But I retract-it is not so much, in many instances, the want of candour and equity, as the want of information. We preach very publicly, but they disdain to hear us: we publish books on various subjects, but they will not deign to read them! for I hope no one, who has read them, would persist in charging us with tenets, which we openly disavow, and labour to discountenance, to the utmost of our ability.' The most curious misrepresentation of the evangelical clerThis is the gy, is to be found in the subsequent passage. 'true sense,' they are the Bishop's words, of the article,' (on free will) and we can by no means allow the inferences at⚫ tempted to be drawn from them by modern Calvinistic writers, namely, that of our own nature we are without any 'spark of goodness in us.'* This inference, which, it is said, Calvinistic writers draw from the article on free will, are the very words of the homily on Whitsunday; so that the clergy must no longer employ the language of the homilies, in their sermons or writings, for fear of being denounced as Calvinistic heretics! 66 that every Another misrepresentation before we dismiss this chapter. Christian The real orthodox divine maintains, is inspired, enlightened, sanctified, and comforted by the spirit of God;" but he rejects all pretensions to instantaneous and 'forcible conversion, and to the sensible operation of the Spi❝rit; in short, he disclaims what, in the language of modern 'Calvinists, are called experiences; that is, suggestions or perceptions, known and felt to be communicated by the ' immediate inspiration of God.'t This passage, we believe, is very much in the style of the profane, whether philoso phers, or men of the world, who, while they pretend to hold the doctrines of revelation, turn all genuine devotional feeling into ridicule, by describing it in grotesque and absurd expressions. To such men his Lordship could not have given his work a better recommendation than an infusion of profane raillery. What the modern Calvinists cali "experience," being a subject of great importance, and often perverted both by the ignorance and malice of their adversaries, a few words in explanation of it, will not, perhaps, be deemed altogether unseasonable. A deep and habitual conviction of the reality and importance of the truths revealed in scripture, must be accompanied with feelings and emotions, to which those who embrace such truths as a matter of course, or actually disbelieve them, are total strangers. Should one of this latter class of persons pass from this state of infidelity or of belief allied to it, he must, no doubt, appear to himself to enter upon a new scene of things of a very noble order, in which he would feel himself too deeply interested not to be powerfully affected. As different objects of the scene attract his attention, different emotions are excited in his mind, more or less vivacious according to the proximity of the objects. He sees by the light of heaven; so that things change their colouring and relations. The appearance that his past life assumes, occasions humility and regret, while the consequences which it is likely to involve, rouse apprehension. On the other hand, the provision that is made in the gospel, in order to remove the guilt and corruption of man, to atone for his sins and relieve his wretchedness, inspires the heart with peace and hope and joy, or awakens gratitude and desire, or excites to caution, and vigilance and acti vity. Now it is these devout and christian feelings, which are found in every sincere believer of scripture verities, that the Calvinists style experience, and which they approve when they appear to arise from a reception into the mind of the doctrine of the gospel, and when they accord with the feelings that have actuated the faithful in former ages. The real orthodox divine,' who disclaims experience in this, which is the Calvinistic sense of it, and yet maintains "that every christian is inspired, enlightened, sanctified, and comforted, by the 'spirit of God;" betrays a pitiable want of judgement and discrimination. In proceeding to the second chapter, instantaneous conversion,' we find it styled a favourite tenet of the modern Cal vinists. They are represented as exhorting their hearers to wait for a second regeneration,' and holding' regeneration by the forcible operation of the spirit.'* 'Instantaneous conversion,' however, it appears, is not a tenet of theirs at all; conversion, as they suppose, being the gradual improvement in wisdom and virtue, of those who have already been regenerated. No such phrase as 'second regeneration' is to be found in their sermons or writings; though they believe, that those who call themselves Christians, without * Ref. 83, 93. possessing the spirit, or leading the life of a Christian, would be greatly meliorated by regeneration. As to rege'neration by the forcible operation of the spirit,' the honour of inventing the expression is due to their enemies.* The Bishop would have it believed, that the Calvinists inculcate such notions of regeneration, as to allow men to fancy they have been partakers of it, and consequently heirs of future happiness, while they are regardless of the laws both of God and mant. We shall not say that this is a vile calumny; but content ourselves with observing, that every one who is born again, in the Calvinistic sense, leads a good life; and that no man has the least reason to think himself "born again," except his temper and behaviour correspond with the law of Christ.‡ In the third chapter of the Refutation, it is more than insinuated that the evangelical teachers imagine, that a man may be justified by a barren lifeless faith; that they say he has only to cherish faith in his mind, and he will be eternally happy': that by listening to them, their hearers are taught to suppose themselves the chosen vessels of God, and that no conduct, however atrocious, can finally deprive them of eternal felicity; and that the strain of their instructions tends to encourage vice and immorality§. Of these heavy and serious imputations, as no proof is alledged, the contrary averments of Mr. Scott, a man of equal veracity with the Bishop, and much better acquainted with the principles of the evangelical teachers, may satisfy us, that they are entirely void of foundation. In treating of election and reprobation, among other absurd dogmas that the Bishop attributes to the modern Calvinists, may be mentioned the following propositions: that God has made the salvation of most men impossible: that he selects, arbitrarily and capriciously, a few men to obtain salvation, dooming the rest, without any regard to their behaviour, to inevitable misery: and that having first rendered it impossible to obey his commands, he punishes them, without reason, for doing what they had not power to avoid. T Had not what has been already adduced, prepared our readers for any imputation, however groundless, they would certainly be strangely surprized, on being informed that the modern Calvinists reject all these positions with abhorrence. *Remarks,. Vol. I. 170. 178. 241. 142. + Ref. 93. Ref. 155. 165. 171. 176. |