portance enough to find a place in the Christian Advocate. AMICUS.

Of Gibbon, it may be said with truth, that as he indulged a settled enmity toward all who bore the Christian name, so he commonly hated those worst whose faith was the most orthodox. His own character as a historian, of which he was jealous in the extreme, required that he should bestow praise on the magnanimous conduct of Athanasius; but he takes care to accompany it with as much abatement as malignant insinuation can plausibly convey. If Athanasius, "amidst the storms of persecution," is "patient of labour and careless of safety," he is represented also as "jealous of fame." If he "displayed a superiority of character and abilities," it must likewise be remen:bered that he was "tainted with the contagion of fanaticism." If he had "learning," it was "less profound and extensive than that of Eusebius ;" and his eloquence was "rude eloquence," not to be "compared with the polished oratory of Gregory and Basil."-If he was "in the orthodox school, one of the most accurate masters of the Christian theology," it must not be forgotten that he was supposed to possess two profane sciences-jurisprudence and divination." If his

"equipage was modest," it was such "as pride and policy would affect." Such is the manner of Gibbon, not merely in speaking of Athanasius, but in the general tenor of his history. The character of a man, eminent as a Christian, rarely escapes from his pen without some unmerited stain. The actions of such a man are, indeed, often admitted to be noble, but afterwards you find them imputed to motives, or connected with circumstances, that debase them. When you think that the historian has begun to be liberal of his applause, suddenly an epithet, or the turn of the sentence, or at farthest the close of the paragraph, disappoints your expectation, and leaves you in doubt whether what you have read be commendation or censure. This sly, covert, sneering, insidious method, of assailing Christianity and its professors, has not, in Gibbon, even the merit of originality. He copied it from the infidels of France, espe cially from Voltaire; and it has cast a dark shade over a work, which profound erudition, brilliant fancy, and splendid diction, had, otherwise, rendered instructive and illus trious. But for slander and impiety, there can be no compensation; and it is not fair that this history should ever be referred to as authority, for any thing connected with religion.

HELP FROM ON HIGH; OR OUR ONLY RESOURCE. A Sermon, delivered in Nassau Chapel, Princeton, New Jersey, the first Sunday in July, 1824. By Robert Gibson. Princeton, N. J. printed and sold by D. A. Borrenstein: sold also by A. Finley, Philadelphia; D. Fenton, Trenton, N. J.; and by John P. Haven, New York. pp. 30, 8vo.

It certainly is not often that we give any sermon a second reading. But we have read this twice, and with more pleasure the second time than the first. The truth is, the language of this discourse wants something of that perspicuity and plainness which ought ever to be found in such compositions. We hope that our younger brethren in the ministry will take it in good part, when we remind them that the simplicity of the gospel, the laws of good taste, and the edification of the people whom they address, all demand that a popular sermon should be, both in language and method, as far removed as possible, from every thing that is artificial and abstruse. The present fashionable style has greatly departed from that charming simplicity, which characterizes the standard writers of our language; and which is conspicuous in all the most distinguished works of the ancients. We have never read any merely human compositions which are equal, in all that is denoted by simplicity, to those of Homer and Milton. They are excelled in this respect only by the inspired writers; and by them they are excelled. Real sublimity, the criticks remark, must exist in the thought and not in the language of a writer, or speaker: and the remark is nearly as applicable to every other excellence as it is to sublimity. If the thought is not good, it is in vain to try either to supply or disguise the

defect, by wrapping it up in a mist of words, or by making it strut forth in a stilted style and involved periods. But in no compositions is this manner so objectionable as in sermons and yet in sermons, we have really sometimes witnessed so much of it, that the speakers might nearly as well have addressed the larger part of their hearers in Greek They actually did "speak' in an unknown tongue."

We have said this on the present occasion, because we think it important in itself, and because the only fault that we can discern in the uncommonlyexcellentdiscourse before us is, that the style of it partakes, rather more than a little, of the quality which we have condemned. But there is such an unusual degree of just, and powerful, and, in some respects, original thinking, in this discourse, that it is worth getting at, were it ten times more difficult than it is to ascertain it clearly. The preacher, though young, has here given us a pulpit address, which would not suffer by being compared with the best we have seen from the pen of Chalmers; and which would be still better, if it did not, in its manner, resemble Chalmers so much. The subject of Mr. Gibson's discourse the absolute necessity of God's blessing on his written and preached word, to render it profitable either to saints or sinners-is unspeakably important in itself. And he has devised a manner of presenting it in such striking views, and of illustrating and urging it by such interesting and awful considerations, that it is impossible to read it attentively and understand. ingly, without being impressed and affected by it. We do not give extracts, because we cannot give them at such lengths as to afford any thing like a just idea of the sermon as a whole. But we earnestly re

commend a careful perusal of the whole, to all our readers who may be able to obtain a copy: and we could wish it were reprinted and widely distributed. While foreign sermons are republished among us, it is reproachful that native talent is not more esteemed and encouraged. But we wish this discourse to be popular and to have a wide diffusion, from a much higher consideration than the patronage of talent-we wish it, in hope that the souls of the readers might be profited and saved by its perusal.

A PLEA FOR MINISTERIAL LIBERTY. A DISCOURSE ADDRESSED BY

AP
POINTMENT, TO THE DIRECTORS

AND STUDENTS OF THE THEOLOGI-
GAL SEMINARY OF THE PRESBYTE-

RIAN CHURCH AT PRINCETON, ON
THE 17TH OF MAY, 1824. By John
M. Duncan, pastor of the Presby-
terian church, Tammany street,
Baltimore. pp. 71.

THE UTILITY AND IMPORTANCE OF
CREEDS AND CONFESSIONS: AN IN-

TRODUCTORY LECTURE, DELIVER-
ED AT THE OPENING OF THE SUM-

MER SESSION OF THE THEOLOGI-
CAL SEMINARY OF THE PRESBYTE-

RIAN CHURCH, PRINCETON, JULY 2D,
1824. By Samuel Miller, D. D.
Professor of Ecclesiastical His-
tory and Church Government in
the said Seminary. pp. 84.

Mr. Duncan's discourse, as the title above intimates, was delivered in the presence of the directors of the Theological Seminary at Princeton. That circumstance notwithstanding, it will be found that the discourse impugns, and that violently, all "STANDARDS" or prescribed confessions of faith and forms of church government; and this, although both he, and every other clerical director present, had solemnly adopted the Confession of Faith of the Presbyterian Church;

and although the pupils of the seminary, for whose benefit the discourse was chiefly intended, were expected shortly to do the same. Mr. D. did this too-we speak of what we witnessed-within four or five hours after he had himself, in the most solemn manner, subscribed a formula, by which he pledged himself "faithfully to endeavour to carry into effect all the articles and provisions of the plan" of that seminary; one article of which declares that the institution is intended to sustain in their integrity the standards of the Presbyterian church.t And in addition to preaching, the author has thought proper to print this discourse; and thus to send it into the world with as much publicity as possible.

What are we to think of all this? Is it reconcilable either with modesty or integrity? Our principles and feelings promptly and decisively answer-no. Those of Mr.

The 10th sect. of the II. article of the plan of the seminary is in these words“Every director previously to his taking his seat as a member of the board, shall solemnly subscribe the following formula, viz.-Approving the plan of the Theolo gical Seminary of the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America, I solemnly declare and promise in the presence of God and of this board, that I will faithfully endeavour to carry into effect all the articles and provisions of said plan, and to promote the great design of the seminary."

This was the formula which Mr. D. first read, deliberately and audibly, in the presence of the board, and then subscribed his name to a copy of it, in a book kept for the purpose.

founders of the institution," as stated in In declaring "the true design of the the introduction to the plan, the very first article is the following-"It is to form men for the gospel ministry, who shall truly believe, and cordially love, and therein its genuineness, simplicity, and fulness, fore endeavour to propagate and defend, that system of religious belief and prac tice which is set forth in the Confession of Faith, Catechisms, and Plan of Govern ment and Discipline of the Presbyterian church; and thus to perpetuate and ex

tend the influence of true evangelical piety and gospel order."

D. we suppose, will answer differently;--for we are not disposed to charge him with a known and wilful departure from truth and decorum. But as he chose to beard the directors before their pupils-for what he did was really nothing less after they had given him, the youngest member of the board, the honourable appointment which enabled him to do it, and by publishing what he preached, has both extended the knowledge of his address, and made it the fair subject of publick criticism; we feel not only at liberty, but under some obligation to speak of it very plainly, if we speak of it at all. We have indeed hesitated, whether it would not be best to let it pass silently, to that oblivion to which we have no doubt it is speedily destined, without doing any thing to stop its course for a single moment. But we have been several times questioned why we did not notice it; and since the appearance of Dr. Miller's lecture, which claims our notice, we have found that we could not get along conveniently without reference to this strange discourse; and therefore we have resolved to take the two publications together and review them in connexion. We have considered too, that perhaps some wild and false notions may be getting into other heads besides that of Mr. D., which possibly we may do something to correct, before they become inveterate. We have more hope of this, than of doing him any good; although we are conscious that we sincerely wish him well.Such is our apology for the extent to which we foresee that our review will reach.

Mr. D.'s discourse purports to be grounded on 1 Cor. ix. 16-27. He spends no less than six and twenty pages of his printed sermon, in commenting on this passage of scripture; with a view, as it would seem, to prepare it for the five general propositions, which he afterwards endeavours to derive from it. VOL. II.-Ch. Adv.

He tells us, however, in a prefatory note, that when the sermon was delivered, "the analysis of the scripture passage which was selected, was, for want of time, entirely omitted." This we think was judiciously done by Mr. D.; for we believe that all his hearers, of whom we made a part, were of the opinion that his discourse was quite long enough, without these six and twenty pages of exposition. If, moreover, he had seen fit to forbear their publication, we, who have found it our irksome task to read them, should have owed him an additional obligation. Nor do we believe that the subsequent part of his address would have suffered at all by the omission; for truly, if his propositions are not obviously derived from his text and some of them, however true in themselves, we think are not-we are well persuaded they will receive no aid or plausibility whatever from the preceding comments-Such a mist of words, such "darkness visible," as envelopes these comments, certainly we have never before met with, in any thing that professed to be an exposition and illustration of holy scripture.

In our judgment Mr. D.'s discourse contains something that is orthodox, something that is erroneous, and a good deal that is unintelligible. Of each of these ingredients, which make up this singular composition, we propose to say what we think; and we will speak of the best first.

We feel no reluctance, but a real pleasure, in stating that, so far as we can understand him, Mr. D. appears to hold fast the essential doctrines of the gospel. Of these doctrines his subject did not lead him to treat directly. But from what he says incidentally, we think we can gather, that he is not only entirely free from any leaning to the Socinian or Unitarian heresy, but that he fully believes in the native depravity of man, the necessity of rege

3 S

neration by the Spirit of grace, justification solely by the righteousness of Christ, evangelical repentance for sin, the essential importance of obedience to all the commands of God, the progressive sanctification of believers, a judgment to come, and a future state of endless rewards and punishments. Not only so, but he seems to be a warm advocate for great ministerial fidelity, simplicity, zeal, charity, holy and exemplary living, and an unreserved devotion to the glory of God and the winning of souls to Jesus Christ. Now this is much as it should be; and it really looks as if Mr. D. had been intended for better things, than to be a panick-struck declaimer against all the formulas of faith in protestant Christendom, and a visionary expectant of the speedy occurrence of such a new and improved state of the world as to render all old things-not excepting Christianity itself as it has hi

therto existed as much matters out of date, as the Jewish dispensation was, after the coming of Christ and the preaching of his apostles. Here is the rock on which Mr. D. has unhappily run foul; and we heartily wish he may get off, with out eventually making shipwreck of faith and a good conscience.

What Mr. D. calls his "general practical propositions" we shall place together; although in the sermon they are announced separately, each one standing at the head of a discussion which is professedly founded on it. They are the following

"1. The minister of the gospel should consider and deport himself, as, most unequivocally, the ambassador of the Lord Jesus. However he may condescend to the infirmities of men, he is yet not without law to God, but under the law of Christ,'

"II. Our second general proposition is, that the minister of the gospel should consider his call to preach the gospel as a personal matter; never to be decided by any rains of reasoning which preclude his own consciousness of duty.

"III. Our third general proposition is,

The truth and justice of all these positions, as they stand nakedly by themselves, we are not disposed to question in the least; although, as we have already intimated, we do not think they are all contained in the particular portion of scripture which is placed at the beginning of the discourse.

Mr. D. concludes the discussion of his first proposition thus

"I would not leave this subject without adverting to its practical effect. Very much do I fear, that hearers of the gospel judge of their ministers as literary men: men of talent; men of eloquence; men

of

great systematic accuracy: but too sel

dom as men of God. O what a fall is here! Is this, brethren, our place in the house of God? But what more can we expect, if we ask for no more, if we claim no more? Know you not, that Satan never riots so voluptuously in the sorrows of our race, as when the priests of the Lord are brought low, or the ark of the Lord is gone? Know you not, that it is one of his most unwearied and successful artifices, to curtail

your influence by robbing you of your spirituality? Who should have a higher idea of the ministerial office than the minister himself? What dost thou esteem thyself to be, O preacher? Art thou not the Lord's standard bearer? Has he not put a heavenly ensign into thy right hand; and, nerving thee with all might by his Spirit in the inner man, bid thee carry it, under the auspices of Him who is the resurrection and the life, until, summoning thee to wipe from thy brow the dust and heat of battle, to bathe thy wearied limbs in the waters of immortality,' and to come up into his awful presence, thou shouldst plant it an everlasting memorial before the throne of God and the Lamb? Be faithful to thy trust. Abide at thy post. Be familiar with the prayer of faith. Tremble under no man's frown. Thy Master will justify and bless, will reward and crown thee before an assembled universe: and thy spiritual children, who have shared thy sorrows on earth, shall