amazed, alarmed, and set all Europe in a flame, who is unacquainted with the strange religious opinions that have sprung up, and for a time, had their admirers?—If the fall of the tenth part of the great city, produced by the earthquake mentioned by St. John," opened the graves of some "witnesses," by its violent shock, and gave them life again," it cannot be denied that other witnesses were roused into activity by the tremendous shock, who propagated visionary opinions, and brought rational piety and scriptural seriousness into disrepute and contempt. The citizens of the great city, more than others, enrolled themselves under the banners of these false witnesses, and by their writings and actions shewed their mean opinion of their ancient faith, and that they had thrown off the restraints of principle, virtue, and every kind of religion

It has often, and truly been remarked, that the behaviour of people in trifling occurrences, betrays their real characters; on great occasions they are upon their guard, and wear a mask nicely made, and exactly fitted to the face. It is usual, I believe, each day previous, to the commencement of the business of the state for a minister to read the service of the church of England, in the upper and lower houses of parliament.—One of the claims of the Roman catholics is, to be admissible in parliament. But, how would a catholic reconcile to his conscience, the joining in such a religious

service, not only once, but day after day for several months together? Would a protestant of information and principle, under similar circumstances, covet a seat in a legislative assembly of Roman catholics? If a catholic should take bis seat in either of the British houses of Parliament, will he not virtually conform to the service of the Church of England? Curiosi ty may occasionally carry a person into a Synagogue, but that will not make him a Jew If for some emolument and benefit I find the same person, regularly at the synagogue, I shall consider that he has either changed his religion, or conforms to the Jewish ritual from motives of interest, and consequently that he is deficient in principle.-And, if catholics are representatives of the people, and regularly attend their duty, they must either change their religion, or take up the language of the Syrian captive, and say, "when ambition, or worldly "interest carries me into the British senate house, where the heresy of Protestantism is "each day promulgated, and I bow myself in "the service of that hateful religion, then Ố "Lord, pardon thy servant in this thing". The prophet replied very properly to Naaman, go in peace."-His commission was confined entirely to Israel;-and therefore, as he had nothing to do with it, he makes no remark upon what he said relative to his future conduct, or upon his false worship.-The Deity had permitted Elisha to cure him of his leprosy, to

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shew him and his nation, "there was no other "God, like the God of Israel".-Under the christian dispensation, the same address, would not receive the same answer from the " great prophet of the world".-He is known to have advised his hearers, "to beware of the Scribes and Pharisees, who loved to go in long cloth"ing, and the chief seats in synagogues, and "the uppermost rooms at feasts, who devoured "widows houses, and for a pretence made long prayers". If he called such men hypocrites, is it to be wondered at? And if he intimated that the gall of asps, and the poison of serpents lurked under the tongue of the hypocrite, need we doubt it? -When we talk of

the example of Christ, as worthy our imitation, and his opinions as the rule of life, and refer to his authority as decisive upon every question of duty that can arise, very little attention is paid to us. Civil rights are considered of the first importance-religious duties of the second; that is, temporal interest is the great object-the only consideration. worth attending to-There are two reasons for this opinion :— the first is the bible is only read in the days of our infancy, and it is laid aside with our nursery and school books, and seldom looked into, as it should be, in the days of our manhood-The second is ;-there is such a multitude of little books, and tracts pretending to be religious, that they supersede the necessity of looking into the real work, as many very

foolishly suppose, whilst they in reality only serve to puzzle the mind, and prevent its distinguishing truth from error.—If all these publications and cheap works, called religious, but which bring us acquainted with neither "Jesus, nor his heavenly father", were brought together, aud committed to the same fire, like the books at Ephesus on the preaching of Paul, and the decalogue, with the chief part of the sermon on the mount, were alone substituted in their stead, christians would be greatly benefitted, true religion would be known, honesty instead of cant would prevail, sincerity would root out hypocrisy, men would esteem one another, justice would mark their dealings, and the Creator would receive from them unaffected homage and adoration.-Can it then be wrong to interfere when we see men in ignorance and in error, raising altars to unknown Gods, and though calling themselves christians, worshipping they know not what?-If it is wrong, then Paul was not justified in persuading men to destroy their property, and adopt his opinions; and Christ was culpable in calling the Scribes and Pharisees hypocrites, and saying their religion was all pretence ;-and bis followers are not to be encouraged, when they honestly endeavour to imitate his example and bring the false worshipper, whether at home or abroad, out of his ignorance and absurdities, to serve the one only true and living God.

(11)--SENTENCED TO PERDITION.-

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The day of Christ shall not come, says St. Paul, " except there come a falling away "first, and that man of sin be revealed, the "son of perdition;-whom the Lord shall consume, with the spirit of his mouth, and shall "destroy with the brightness of his coming".If it is denied, that this apostacy-this man of sin, belongs to the church of Rome; I, on the other hand, have the authority of the evangelist for saying, there were men, especially amongst the highest orders of the Jews, "who had eyes", and yet could see no traces of the Messiah's character in Christ:-and when he said to these same blind people, "whosoever continues in my word shall know the truth", it will be recollected, they haughtily but falsely replied," we be Abraham's seed, and were never "in bondage to any man".-Assertions are easily made: and the catholics may say, and their protestant advocates may give them credit for the assertion, "we are not apostates from "the religion of Christ; we attempt no proselytism, we have no purgatory, we forgive no sins, we know nothing of transubstantiation, nor was our supreme head, his holiness "the pope, ever in bondage to any man"; though, a few years ago, he was little better than a captive in France, where he was compelled to pour the consecrating oil upon the unhallowed head of an usurper, and make him an

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