Chapter 3

Having seen an article some months since in your Magazine on the above subject, signed Murus, and thinking the following plan an improvement upon Murus's, I shall feel much obliged by your giving it insertion in your valuable and extensively circulated periodical. And I hope I shall not be too presuming in stating that, if it is put into operation in every county, in a very few years it will entirely liquidate all the debts now existing on chapels, without any increased exertions on the part of the friends. The plan, if entered into, which I humbly trust it will be, will do away entirely with _begging cases_, will not require the minister to leave his church, will lessen the calls on his people, will enable them to raise their ministers' incomes, and eventually confer much happiness on the churches, and relieve them from pressing difficulties; whereas the systems now adopted are very inefficient, and will take three times as long to get rid of the existing burdens. I would also suggest, for the prevention of debts being again accumulated, that no chapel be allowed to be erected without advancing half the money required for building it, nor be allowed to partake of the privileges arising from this plan until the whole of the present churches are out of debt. I would also recommend the churches who adopt this plan, to give no countenance to any church begging, as the same system can be adopted in every county with certain success. There is a difficulty in Murus's plan in that of increased exertions, whereas in this, none are required.

Prop. 1. That all the churches make an annual collection, which shall be brought to the Association, and that the total amount shall be applied to the liquidation of the debt _on one chapel_, as shall be then and there agreed.

Prop. 2. That the chapel whose debt is so paid off shall contribute the interest of its debt every year, till it amounts to half the sum paid off, when it shall not be required to pay its interest money, for so I will call it.

Prop. 3. That, in addition to the interest money of the chapel so paid off, it shall not contribute less than ten shillings for every £100. of debt, till the whole of the debts are paid off the chapels in the county; by which means the deficiency of ten shillings in the pound will be made up without distressing the churches.

Prop. 4. That any church whose lot it may fall to, at the Association, to have its debt paid, who shall the next year pay the half of its debt, shall be considered to have fulfilled its agreement, and shall be liable only to its small contribution at the rate of ten shillings for every £100 debt so redeemed.

Prop. 5. That every church whose debt shall be paid off, shall bring forward sufficient and satisfactory security for the fulfilment of its contract, which may be done by four or five persons joining together for that purpose.

EXPLANATION.

Suppose the debt of a chapel which is paid off to be £600; the responsible agents above referred to shall contribute annually, till it arrives to £300, half the debt, when they will have fulfilled their agreement. But they must, from the first payment of interest till all the chapels are out of debt, contribute ten shillings for every £100 of debt, which sum, with the united exertions of the churches, will liquidate the other ten shillings in the pound. For instance: Suppose the churches in one county to be thirty, an annual contribution of three pounds from each will produce £90; this, added to the interest of the chapel so cleared, will make £120, to pay off the debt of another chapel, which shall also contribute to its interests, and small annual contribution; and so on, till all the churches are out of debt. This plan is similar to lending money without interest, as the interest paid clears the principal, and the principal they will only have to pay at ten shillings in the pound, the small annual contributions making up the deficiency. A list of the churches and their debts should be placed every year in the Magazines, with an account of the debts so reduced.

A BAPTIST. _Nov. 12, 1834._

P.S. Since writing the above, I have seen an article in the Magazine for this month, which only confirms my opinion that something must be done, and that speedily, to effect this _great_ and desirable object.

REMARKS ON A PAPER, ENTITLED "ON THE USE AND ABUSE OF THE TERM MORAL."

_To the Editor of the Baptist Magazine._

The paper of W. N. in your November number, whilst it contains some very valuable remarks on the abuse of the term _moral_, appears to aim at overthrowing one particular instance of a very general abuse, and to strike at the branch, whilst it leaves the root to flourish with the same vigour as before. The expression "moral approbation and disapprobation" cannot be deemed an unnecessary application of the term _moral_, because approbation and disapprobation are frequently excited in the mind by _physical_ agents; and although Dr. Wardlaw, in the passage quoted above by W. N., refers the approbation and disapprobation to "_moral_ agents," yet the phrase in question precedes that application, and therefore the term "moral" renders the sentence more clear than it would be, were it needful for the reader to employ the conclusion of the sentence to explain the commencement. The instance quoted from the Quarterly Review is so gross an abuse of language, that little apprehension need be entertained of its repetition. The passage stands like the topmast of a ship-wrecked vessel, to warn others of the shoal on which she was stranded. All the other instances used as illustrations in W. N.'s paper are examples of the evil attendant upon a departure from one principle, viz.: That a simile should never be explained. Of course, this principle presupposes another: That a simile should never require explanation. In the two first instances adduced--"The Lord God is a sun and shield," and "Jesus said, I am the door"--the beauty of the similes would be entirely destroyed by the use of the adjective _moral_, and the only reason why the fourth instance, "A _moral_ blight," is not so glaring an abuse of language as the two former is, that the term blight is so frequently used in a figurative sense, that, when it is so used, we are liable to forget that the expression is figurative. But for this circumstance, the ridiculous character of the phrase would be quite as obvious as the absurdity of speaking of a moral apple, or moral plum. Another instance of the inelegance of explaining a simile is met with in the prayers of those who quote from the Liturgy the passage "We have done that which we ought not to have done, and have left undone that which we ought to have done, and there is no health in us;" but distort the original to "there is no _spiritual_ health in us;" thus destroying at once the strength and harmony of one of the finest specimens of forcible and beautiful composition which decorates English literature. In this case also, as in that of "moral blight," health is so often used in a figurative sense, that we are apt to forget that the expression is a simile; or the phrase "_spiritual_ health" would sound as disagreeably as the commencement of the same portion of the Liturgy, were it altered to "We have erred and strayed from thy _spiritual_ ways, like lost _spiritual_ sheep." All these inaccuracies in composition proceed from attempts to explain similes, an attempt which ought to be cautiously avoided; because a simile is an endeavour to explain or illustrate a subject by means of some analogy subsisting between it and another subject; and it is evident, that an explanation or illustration which requires a further explanation to make it intelligible, is much better omitted; and that an explanation of that which is already clear, is a glaring instance of tautology, and, therefore, a gross defect in style.

A. _November 20th, 1834_

THE DEPARTURE OF ANOTHER YEAR.

_To the Editor of the Baptist Magazine._

Another year is gone! How solemn the reflection! How replete with instruction! Times and seasons are passing away in rapid succession; and amid the cares and avocations of the present, we seem in a great measure insensible of our near approach to an eternal world. But we are assured that "_The day of the Lord will come_." The purpose for which the world was created, and made the theatre of such mysterious and benevolent transactions, will be accomplished; the reign of grace, in the salvation of men, will terminate; the influences of the Holy Spirit in their regeneration will be no longer necessary; the preaching of the gospel, as the ordained means of conversion, shall for ever cease. Then all mankind, that have lived from the beginning of the world, will enter on a state of endless and unchangeable existence: some, in the presence of God, will enjoy the most exquisite pleasures, and obtain "an eternal weight of glory;" while others will have their abode among unbelievers, and "suffer the vengeance of eternal fire." "Seeing, then, that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought we to be in all holy conversation and godliness!"

Reader! the close of another year has brought you so much nearer the end of your probation on earth. In the space of a few months how many have perished under the stroke of death! Young and old, rich and poor, small and great, have gone down to the grave, where "they rest together, and the servant is free from his master." Before the close of 1835, what multitudes, now in the prime of life, in the pursuit of pleasure, in the possession of riches, in the road to preferment, or having secured the object of worldly ambition, will have passed into the unseen state, and rendered their account to God. The flight of _time_ calls upon the careless and undecided to consider their ways, and turn unto the Lord.

The Christian, too, should testify his gratitude to God for his continued goodness, and "lift up his head, for his redemption draweth nigh." With what seriousness and devotion should we attend to the duties of religion, so that "whether we live, we may live to the Lord; or whether we die, we may die to the Lord; that whether we live, or die, we may be the Lord's!" Let not this day come upon us unawares, and find us in a state of carnal security; but may our loins be girded, our lamps burning, and ourselves like servants waiting for their Lord's return,--"looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour, Jesus Christ." "Wherefore, beloved, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless."

T. P.

POETRY.

NEW YEAR'S DAY.

Time, the mundane sphere revolving, Brings another New Year's Day; Orb of light, 'mid lengthened shadows, Glance one soft and lingering ray, As we muse on Days receding fast away.

Pledge of joys that may await us In our future pilgrimage, Or of heavenly consolation That may coming griefs assuage, To believers Promised in the sacred page.

Many trials now are ended; Many painful conflicts o'er; Chequered scenes withdrawn for ever That can please nor vex us more; Memory only Can the faded past restore.

Many dearest forms are sleeping In the lone forsaken grave; How we wept when them consigning To the hand outstretched to save, As they struggled Through death's dark and gelid wave!

Many days of grace are ended, How improved has been the past? Time's rich grains are softly falling, Soon may drop for us the last. Changing seasons Warn us that we change as fast.

O for happy preparation For the joys that never fade! For the everlasting mansion Death and sin can ne'er invade! In the likeness Of our Lord we would be made.

As each new successive period Hastes that last mysterious one, Do we shudder, so much dreading Things invisible, unknown? Faith reposes On the Saviour's cross alone.

Sweet to meet our friends in glory, Tears for ever wiped away By the guardian hand that leads us Up the steep and narrow way, Time's short circles Lost in one eternal day!

SARISSA.

THE SUMMONS.

"And I heard a voice from heaven."--REV. xiv. 13.

A voice was heard; a voice was heard; It sounded from heaven's high throne; And the murmuring air breathed along the swift word Till on earth its dark import was known. Though it thrill'd not the ears that were list'ning around, Nor was heard by the spirits bereaved, It conducted the soul from the region of death, To receive, through the Saviour, the conqueror's wreath, From its sin-woven fetters relieved.

A voice was heard; a voice was heard; The spirit its summons obeyed; And to sorrowing Friendship still echoes the word While she weeps o'er the mouldering dead. Not a tear can e'er start from those eyelids again; Not a sigh can e'er heave from that breast:-- But reposing awhile on a pillow of clay, It will waken renew'd, and then, bounding away, Will ascend to the realms of the blest.

A voice was heard; a voice was heard; A whisper,--a whisper from God; And the soul caught with rapture the welcoming word As it enter'd its blissful abode. That voice that awoke from the death-sleep of sin, And whisper'd, "Thou too art forgiven," Stole again on the ear in the accents of love, Reassur'd of a home with its Father above, And then wafted the spirit to heaven.

[Greek: Thômas]

REVIEWS.

_Russia: or Miscellaneous Observations on the Past and Present State of that Country and its Inhabitants. Compiled from Notes made on the Spot, during Travels at different times in the Service of the Bible Society, and a Residence of many Years in that Country._ By ROBERT PINKERTON, D.D., Author of "The Present State of the Greek Church in Russia," and Foreign Agent to the British and Foreign Bible Society.--Seeley and Sons; Hatchard and Son.

A traveller, like a witness in court, should be competent and unexceptionable. Both these qualifications are indispensable to secure the confidence of his reader, and the success of his work.

Dr. Pinkerton has very strong claims on the attention of the British public. He resided in Russia many years. He lived in Moscow "the greater part of the years 1810 and 1811, and left that city only forty-eight hours before the French entered it in 1812." He is the author of "The Present State of the Greek Church in Russia." His travels in the service of the British and Foreign Bible Society have been extensive at different times. His being Foreign Agent to that Society, has given him facilities of intercourse with the higher as well as the lower orders of the inhabitants. He is personally well known to many of the clergy and of the nobility, and his intimate acquaintance with the language has enabled him to converse with people of all ranks. The work before us has been compiled from notes made on the spot. Of his competency, therefore, no one can entertain a doubt; and his high Christian character renders him an unexceptionable witness. We anticipate for this volume a cordial welcome, especially among the friends of the Bible Society. The information Dr. P. has given is clear, copious, and important. We shall transcribe a few extracts which cannot fail to gratify our readers.

The territory of this vast empire has increased within the last 364 years nearly twenty-fold. According to the last statistical accounts, the _population_ is upwards of fifty-four millions, of whom about thirty-six millions are native Russians, speaking the same language, and belonging to the national or oriental church. The _military forces_ have also increased nearly ten-fold within the last hundred years; and at the present time are estimated at about 900,000.

The _spiritual academies_ and seminaries contain upwards of 30,000 young men preparing for the sacred profession. Dr. P. says:--

"It is much to be regretted that those young men have so little time and opportunity, after finishing their academical course, for making further progress in studies suited to their profession. The cares of a family (for marriage must indispensably precede ordination in the Russian church), their labours among their flocks, the scanty support which most of them receive, together with their isolated situation in country villages, where few traces of education and civilized life have yet entered, render this almost impracticable."

The _Jesuits_ were finally expelled from the empire in 1820. At that time their number amounted to 674.

"On their reaching the frontiers of the empire, the emperor Alexander ordered them to be supplied with from thirty to forty ducats each, to bear their expenses to some other place of residence. But though this mighty force of papal agency was removed from the Russian territories by one stroke of the autocratic pen, yet the influence which they had acquired was not so easily to be annihilated; and there is no doubt, that in the succeeding intrigues which were played off so successfully against the Russian Bible Society, their powerful friends in the capital took a part." p. 62.

_Drunkenness._ On this painful topic, the author has given most melancholy information:--

"Instead of restraining the use of brandy, the government, even of the present day, affords every facility to the people to obtain it, in order to enhance the gain derived from this iniquitous source; which _amounts to nearly one-fourth of the whole revenue of the empire_."

From his calculation, it appears that there is "the enormous quantity of eighty-one millions of gallons of brandy alone drunk every year by the peasantry of this empire." pp. 75-77.

_Baptism._ Dr. P. says:--

"The cathedral church at Odessa is a noble building, in the Grecian style, with domes and crosses. One day I entered it, when the protopope, or dean, was baptizing an infant. The day was excessively cold, there being upwards of ten degrees of frost, and the water in the font almost freezing. After the ceremony was over, I expressed to the priest my surprise that they did not use tepid water, seeing the infant had to be three times immersed over head and ears in the icy bath. He smiled at my compassion, and exclaimed--'Ah, there is no danger: the child is a Russian.' Indeed, such are the superstitious opinions of the people, that were the chill taken off the water, they would probably doubt the validity of the ordinance." p. 153.

"In Great Russia, the child is baptized usually in the church, or in a private house; and the prayers, exorcisms, and ceremonies attending this ordinance, are long and complicated. The Greeks and Russians always use the trine immersion; the first, in the name of the Father--the second, in that of the Son--and the third in that of the Holy Ghost. When a priest cannot be obtained, they permit lay-baptism; and they never rebaptize on any account whatever."

The Duchobortzi sect has excited great attention:--

"They make the sacraments consist only in a spiritual reception of them, and therefore reject infant-baptism. Their origin is to be sought for among the Anabaptists, or Quakers."

It appears, however, that

"In the Ukraine, or Little Russia, it is customary also to baptize by sprinkling or pouring water upon the body. This change the Little Russians, many of whom are Uniats, adopted from the Roman Catholics, when they were under the power of the Polish government. However, in cases of necessity, even in Great Russia, baptism by sprinkling or pouring water on the body is practised, and held to be valid."

In a note, Dr. P. tells us he witnessed the baptism of an adult, in the case of the Mongolian chief, Badma, who died in 1822. He was lying in bed, in a very weak state. Prince Galitzin was godfather. Instead of immersion, water was poured on his head three times. Immediately after baptism, he received the other sacrament: bread and wine, soaked together in a cup, and given with a spoon. The pious prince evidently felt much; and when the dying man partook of the holy communion, he shed many tears. He died on the third day after his baptism.--p. 157.

_Proverbs._ We can select only a few for the entertainment and instruction of the reader.

Sin requires no teaching.

Thieves are not abroad every night; yet every night make fast.

Praise not thyself, nor dispraise.

Thou wilt not see all the world by looking out at thy own window.

A fool can cast a stone where seven wise men cannot find it.

Two hares at once, and you catch neither.

His wealth is not on the barn-floor; it is in his brains.

At home, as I like it; in company, as others will have it.

They gave a naked man a shirt, and he says, 'How coarse it is!'

Hast thou a pie? Thou wilt soon have a friend at table.

The largest ass will not make an elephant.

'Freedom,' says the bird, 'though the cage be a golden one.'

Every soldier would be general--every sailor, admiral.

In travelling, and at their sports, men show what they are.

A _Greek_ speaks truth once in the year.

The cow has a long tongue, but she is not allowed to speak.

A golden bed will not relieve the sick.

_Russian Bible Society._ Dr. P. speaks in the highest terms of the Princess Sophia Mestchersky, who was among the first to encourage him to attempt, in 1811, the formation of a Bible Society in Moscow; which in two years was realized.

"From this commencement in 1813 till my leaving Russia, the princess had published ninety-three different pieces, amounting to upwards of 400,000 copies, on religious and moral subjects, which together form eight volumes, 8vo., and which were gratuitously distributed, or sold at low prices."

Among these are the principal publications of the London Religious Tract Society.

A very favourable account of the religious character of the late emperor Alexander is given, chiefly from the communications of the illustrious princess above mentioned, and written by her at the time of his death.

The Russian Bible Society was founded in St. Petersburg, on the 23rd of January, 1813, and continued in full activity about twelve years under the patronage of Alexander. During the last three years of his reign, he was powerfully counteracted by a strong party formed among the principal nobility and clergy. There were, too, conspirators forming diabolical plans against the peace of the empire, who misrepresented to the government the character and labours of the friends of religion and of Bible Institutions, to turn away attention from themselves, and their own wicked revolutionary designs. But the mind of Alexander was not changed.

When Nicholas his brother came to the throne, the plots of the party above referred to were happily overthrown. But unhappily Seraphim, the metropolitan, with several other prelates, and one or two fanatical monks, had for some years entertained unfriendly feelings towards the Institution. The new emperor's Ukaz was published in 1826.

It is gratifying, however, to find that on the 14th of March, 1831, a new Bible Society, exclusively for the Protestants in the Russian empire, was formed at St. Petersburg, with the sanction of the present emperor; and that the president is Prince Lieven, the minister for public instruction,

"A protestant nobleman of true piety, who laboured in the cause with indefatigable zeal, during the whole period of the existence of the national institution."

We have been surprised and delighted to observe Dr. P. speaking of the present emperor as