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couraged and topt fome intrufions, they encouraged others and they gave no fmall occafion of offence by their management in the affair of Profeffor Campbell at St Andrews, who had vented feveral dangerous errors in his writings, fuch as his Oratorio Academica, his Enquiry into the Original of Moral Virtue, his Difcourfe concerning Enthufiafm, &c. wherein he afferts,

That men, by their natural powers, without revelation, cannot find out the being of a God: That the law of nature is fufficient to guide rational minds to happiness That felf-love, intereft, or pleasure, is the fole principle and motive of all virtuous and religious actions That Chrift's difciples had no notion of his Divinity before his refurrection, and before that they expected nothing from him but a worldly kingdom; and, during the interval between his death and refurrection, they looked on him as an impoftor." Likewife, while speaking against Enthufiafts, he utters feveral things very difparaging and reproachful to the work of the holy Spirit upon the fouls of the people of God. Thefe errors were brought before the Affembly 1735, who referred them to their commiffion; and they appointed a committee to confider them, and prepare their report to the next Affembly. Mr Campbell laboured to give in found and orthodox explications of thefe his pofitions, which the committee brought before the Affembly, 1736, with their remarks and cenfures upon them, and the recommendations they judged fit to be given him. The Affembly, upon hearing Mr. Campbell at great length, were of opinion that the committee's examining and ftating the matter as they had done, was fufficient to caution against the errors charged upon Mr Campbell, without giving any judgment or formal fentence upon the committee's report; only they recommended to him not to use doubtful expreffions or propofitions, which may lead his hearers or readers into error. This iffue of the procefs many, in the Affembly and out of it, were highly diflatisfied with, judging that Mr Campbell did juftly deserve a fharp rebuke for the many incautious and unfound expreffions

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he hath in his writings, however orthodox his explications might be and with these we do heartily join.

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Though the Affembly gave no judgment upon Mr Campbell's pofitions or explications, yet feverals would charge the Affembly with adopting one of his errors; becaufe, when he explained his pofitions concerning Self-love he declared he meant no more but "that our delight in the honour and glory of God was the chief motive of all virtuous and religious actions." Now (fay they), this Delight is the fame with the Self-love, or the defire of our own happiness, which is the error. charged on him yet the Affembly difmiffed him without quarrelling it. But this fhould be looked upon as a pure overfight in the Affembly, through their not adverting to the import of the word Delight, but taking delight in the glory of God," for the fame with "regard to the glory of God," because of their affinity. For when Aflembly 1737 was informed that feverals had taken offence, as if the Affembly 1736 had adopted fome of Mr Campbell's offenfive expreffions on the head of Self love, they vindicated this church from that charge, by making an act, declaring that they do stedfaftly adhere to the doctrine expreffed in our standards on that head, particularly in the answers to that quel tion in our Larger and Shorter Catechifms, What is the chief end of man?

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In the year 1735 there was an effay made by an unknown hand to alter our Shorter Catechifm, which was printed at London under the title of The Affembly's Shorter Catechifm Revifed, and rendered fitter for General Ufe. The reviser cafts it into fuch a mould, as to make it agree with Arian, Socinian, Popiíh, and Arminian fchemes of doctrine. Affoon as it was publicly known in Scotland, the commiffion took it under their confideration, as the fynod of Lothian had done before them, and paft an act condemning it, and gave warning about it to all the prefbyteries in this church, that they might be on their guard against the spreading and infection thereof. And would to God that our Affemblies had, in like manner, given plain and faithful warning to all the corners and members of this church, against

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against Profeffor Sim fon and Profeffor Campbell's errors, and others which have been vented and spread in this church, and fhewn to them their inconfiftency with the word of God, and our Confeffion of Faith and Catechifms! May God in his infinite mercy revive our zeal for all the truths therein contained, and against all forts of error oppofite thereto!

After all, it is to be regretted that the national church was not duly humbled by all thefe awful rebukes for her manifold defections, and particularly for difregarding Chrift's flock in fettlements; neither did the amend her ways and doings, and turn to the Lord: wherefore we find the hand of the Lord ftretched out against her ftill, and a new fharp trial carved out for her from an airth that none could have expected. One Captain Porteous, that had been condemned to die for feveral murders, having obtained a reprieve by the intereft of fome great men, the mob rofe up notwithstanding, and executed him at Edinburgh the 7th of September 1736. The King and Parliament refented this affront fo highly, that they framed a strange and extroardinary act for difcovering the actors: and becaufe fome of the church's enemies fuggefted, without all ground, that the Scots clergy, at least a fet of them, encouraged the people in fuch mobbish actions, they appointed all the minifters of Scotland to read the faid act in time of Divine service in their churches every firft Sabbath in the month for a whole year, beginning in August 1737 and the penalty for the first neglect of reading it was, that they fhall be declared incapable of fitting or voting in any church judicatory;" and this was to be executed against them by the civil judges in Scotland. The moft part of minifters in many fynods and prefbyteries, though they fcrupled not to condemn the outrageousTM infult of the mob as murder, yet they had not freedom to read the faid act, becaufe they judged the penalty forefaid to be property a church cenfure, feeing by it minifters would be divefted of the power of church government and difcipline, which is given them by the Lord Jefus Chrift the Head of the church, and is effential to their office as preaching or difpenfing the fa

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crament. Now, for the civil magiftrate to affume the power of the keys, or of inflicting church cenfures, which Chrift hath put in the hands of his own officers, they judged a manifeft incroachment upon Chrift's Headthip over his church, and contrary to the word of God and the Confeflion of Faith they had fubfcribed, chap. 30. par. 1. 2. and chap 23. 3. And for minifters to become the magiftrate's heralds, to proclaim this law on the Lord's day, in fuch a folemn manner, would be an homologating of this incroachment, and a confenting to this Eraftian power of the magistrate. Likewife they judged, to approve or concur with a law fo prejudicial to the doctrine and difcipline of this church, as eftablished by law civil and ecclefiaftical, would be to give up with fundamental fecurities, and act contrary to the folemn engagements miniiters come under to maintain the doctrine and difcipline of this church, and do nothing prejudicial thereto. Besides, they did not think it agreeable to the office of those, who were "ambaffadors of the gofpel of peace," to become heralds or executors of this or any fanguinary law; efpecially when they apprehended there were feveral things in it inconfiftent with juftice and equity, befides the Eraftian penalty aforementioned. These and other arguments, fet in a clear light in feveral pamphlets publifhed at that time, determined us to join with thofe who bore teftimony against the reading of the forefaid act, and to run the hazard of all its penalties. And we wish the light of all the minifters of of Scotland had been the fame with ours in this matter, which would have prevented much divifion and stumbling that different practices have occafioned.

But yet we must do juftice to those of a different light, fo far as to own, that there were feveral pious and confcientious minifters who read this act, because of the quite different view they had of it from those who refused it and feeing, by the whole tenor of their lives and actions, it appears they have acted uprightly and honeftly in other matters, we are in charity bound to think they acted fincerely in this also. Their reafons for reading were; A finful penalty in VOL. IV.

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the act, fhould not hinder their reading those parts of the act which might be lawful; and they judged they were bound to read fome parts of it, to warn their people of the danger of harbouring or fuccouring the rioters. And they did not look on the penalty fcrupled at as any church cenfure, or Eraftian incroachment upon Chrift's Headship; and, as they judged, no more was meant by it, but that the non-readers fhould forfeit the magiftrate's protection in fitting in churchcourts: and that the magiftrate, without affuming the power of the keys, might by his civil power as a magiftrate, exclude or render minifters incapable of fitting in church-courts, by confining or banishing them. And they fincerely declare, that, if they had thought their reading of that act had in the leaft wronged the Headship of the King of Zion, they would rather have fuffered the lofs of their ftipends, or any thing else. Now charity obligeth us to believe pious men to be ingenuous in fuch declarations.

But, alas! notwithstanding of all these fhaking difpenfations, the church was not brought to a right fenfe of her fins and defections; and therefore the Lord's controversy with her was not at an end: for we find the Affembly 1738 continuing in former fteps, and giving new offence to many in the church, by another decifion in a process of error. The magistrates and town-council of Edinburgh having chofen Mr William Wifhart a minifter at London to be Principal of their college, and having got a call to him alfo to be one of the minifters of the city, the prefbytery of Edinburgh refufed to concur with the faid call, and charged him with venting feveral erroneous propofitions in two of his printed fermons, with refpect to the power and office of the magiftrate in religious matters, the liberty of Chriftian subjects, the fubfcribing of Confeffions, the education of children, the influence of arguments taken from the awe of future rewards and punishments, his exceffive charity to Heathens and others who reject the gospel offers and inftitutions, and the finful and corrupt state of all men from their birth, &c. This affair being brought by ap

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