20

h

TOLERANCE RESULTS FROM KNOWLEDGE AND FAITH.

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made at his trial, and that He "left us an example, that we should follow his steps, who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth."

That there are persons indifferent about all religions, is true; and it is true that some of them are, from humanity of disposition, averse to persecution and coercion. For many persons,-perhaps most,-are tolerant or intolerant according to their respective tempers, and not. according to their principles. But as far as principles are concerned, certainly the latitudinarian is the more likely to be intolerant, and the sincerely conscientious tolerant. A man who is careless about religious sincerity, may clearly see and appreciate the political convenience of religious uniformity; and if he has no religious scruples of his own, he will not be the more likely to be tender of the religious scruples of others if he is ready himself to profess what he does not believe, he will see no reason why others should not do the same.

fences, and inflict penalties on all persons opposing or rejecting the true Faith, or deprive them of civil rights, if the Apostle Paul, I say, had been thus consulted, what answer, think you, he would have § 13. Yet if the Apostle Paul, with given? What answer must he have given, these sentiments, were now on earth, if we believe him sincere in his profes- would there not be some danger of his sions, and if we believe his great Master being accounted a latitudinarian—a perto have really meant exactly what He de- son nearly indifferent about religious disclared? The Apostle would surely have tinctions,-regarding one religion nearly explained to such inquirers that Christ as good as another;-ready to profess t meant the reception of his Gospel to rest any, and believing little or nothing of on sincere inward conviction, not on con- any? For such is the character often strained outward profession, which is all attributed to any one who disapproves that legal penalties can produce:-that of the employment of secular force in their office as governors and judges, was behalf of the true Faith, or the monopoly to take cognizance of men's overt acts, by its professors, of civil rights. and to punish and restrain crimes against the civil community; but that their duty i as Christians was to regulate, and try to persuade others to regulate, the inward motives and dispositions of the heart, according to Gospel principles; and to keep themselves not from crimes merely, but from sins against God; and to "exercise themselves in having themselves a conscience void of offence, before God and man," (Acts xxiv. 16,) not in seeking to force another to speak or act against his i conscience. He would not have forbidden them to take a part (as it is most fit that the laity should) in the government of the Church, or to hold any ecclesiastical or spiritual office in it; or again, to retain their civil offices: but he would have deprecated with abhorrence their blending the two classes of offices together, and attempting to employ the power of coercion which essentially be- That man on the contrary whose own longs to the civil magistrate, in the cause conscience is tender, and his sense of of Christ's religion. He would have told religion deep-felt and sincere, will be (so them to strive to convert and reclaim their far) the more disposed to respect the neighbours from superstitious error, (even conscience of another, and to avoid as he had converted them) by instruction giving occasion to hypocritical profesand persuasion; never losing sight of sions. His own faith being founded on their great Master's rule, of doing as they genuine conviction, he will seek for the would be done by; not inflicting there- genuine conviction of others, and not fore on the unbeliever the persecution their forced conformity. He will rewhich they had disapproved when direct- member that "the highest truth, if proed against Christians; but leaving to every fessed by one who believes it not in his man that liberty of conscience which they heart, is, to him, a lie, and that he sins desired to enjoy themselves. greatly by professing it. Let us try as Such would have been the answer, I much as we will, to convince our neighthink we cannot doubt, which the bours; but let us beware of influencing Apostles would have given to such in- their conduct, when we fail in influencing quirers; and which, if Peter and Paul were now on earth, they would give to any like questions at this day. For such surely must be the decision of any one who is convinced that Jesus Himself was perfectly sincere in the declaration He

their convictions. He who bribes or frightens his neighbours into doing an act which no good man would do for reward, or from fear, is tempting his neighbour to sin; he is assisting to lower and to harden his conscience;—to make

man, instead of for the favour and from the fear of God: and if this be a sin in him, it is a double sin in us to tempt him to it."*

him act for the favour or from the fear of a want of faith in Christ's wisdom, and goodness, and power,-to call in the aid of the arm of flesh of military or civil force,-in the cause of Him who declared that He could have called in the aid of And above all, in proportion as any "more than twelve legions of angels;" man has a right understanding of the and who, when "all power was given Gospel, and a deep veneration for his unto Him in Heaven and in Earth," sent great Master, and an earnest desire to forth his disciples-not to subjugate, or tread in his steps, and a full confidence to coerce, but to "teach all nations;" in his promises, in the same degree will and "sent them forth as sheep among he perceive that the employment of the wolves," forewarned of persecutions, secular coercion in the cause of the and instructed to "bless them that cursed Gospel is at variance with the true spirit them," to return "good for evil;" and of the Gospel; and that Christ's declara- to "endure all things, hope all things,tions are to be interpreted as He himself believe all things," for which He, their knew them to be understood, then, and Master, had prepared them:-to believe are to be the guide of his followers, now. all that He had taught,—to hope all that And finally, such a man will be con- He had promised, and to endure and do vinced that it implies a sinful distrust, all that He had commanded.

ESSAY II.

ON THE CONSTITUTION OF A CHRISTIAN CHURCH, ITS POWERS, AND MINISTRY.

Οὐ γὰρ ἑαυτοὺς κηρύσσομεν, ἀλλὰ Χριστὸν Ἰησοῦν Κύριον ἑαυτοὺς δέ, δούλους ὑμῶν διὰ ̓Ιησοῦν. 2 Cor. iv. 5.

one

§ 1. Or all who acknowledged Jesus to the same conclusions in some Science, of Nazareth as their Master, "the Au- or have adopted the same system of thor and Finisher of their faith," there Agriculture or of Medicine; but it was are scarcely any who do not agree in re- to be a combination of men who should garding Him as the Founder and per- be "members of the Body of Christ," petual Head of a religious Society also;-living stones of one Spiritual Temple;* as having instituted and designed for "edifying" (i. e. building up)" one another permanent continuance, a Community or in their Faith ;"-and brethren of system of Communities, to which his holy Family. Disciples here on earth were to belong. The religion He introduced was manifestly designed by Him, and so understood by his immediate followers,-to be a social Religion. It was not merely a revelation of certain truths to be received, and of practical rules to be observed, it was not a mere system of doctrines and precepts to be embraced by each individual independently of others; and in which his agreement or co-operation with any others would be accidental; as when several men have come

*Arnold's Christian Life, p. 435.

This "Kingdom of Heaven," as it is called, which the Lord Jesus established, was proclaimed (i. e. preached)† by his forerunner, John the Baptist, as " at hand."

And the same, in this respect, was the preaching of our Lord Himself, * See Sermon IV., "On a Christian Place of

Worship," and also Dr. Hinds' "Three Temples."

†This word has come to be ordinarily applied to religious instruction; from which, however, it is always clearly distinguished in Scripture. It Lord's "preaching that the Kingdom of Heaven signifies, properly, to announce as a herald. Our was at hand," and his teaching the People, are always expressed by different words.

and of his Disciples, first the Twelve, mind of any reflecting reader of our and afterwards the Seventy,-whom He sacred books. Besides our Lord's genesent out during his ministry on earth. ral promise of "coming unto, and dwellThe good tidings they were to proclaim, ing in, any man who should love Him ( were only of the approaching Kingdom and keep his saying," there is a distinct of Heaven; it was a joyful expectation promise also of an especial presence in only that they were commissioned to any Assembly-even of "two or three— s spread it was a preparation of men's gathered together in his name." Besides hearts for the coming of that Kingdom, the general promises made to prayer,-to that they were to teach. the prayer of an individual "in the closet," there is a distinct promise also to those who shall "agree together touching something they shall ask." And it is in conformity with his own institution that Christians have, ever since, celebrated what they designate as, emphatically, the Communion, by meeting together to break bread," in commemoration of his redemption of his People.

as the alternative. But in every Com. munity, of whatever description (or in those under whose control it is placed there must reside a power of enacting enforcing, and remitting, the Penalties by which due submission to its laws and its officers is to be secured.

rotation, or by election of any kind,whatever be the number or titles of them, and whatever the distribution of their functions, (all which are matters of detail,) Officers of some kind every Community must have. And these, or some of these, while acting in their proper capacity, represent the Community; and are, so far, 3dly. Lastly, no less essential to a Com invested with whatever powers and rights munity seems to be a power, lodged some belong to it; so that their acts, their rights, where, of determining questions of Mem their claims, are considered as those of the bership. Whatever may be the claims o whole Body. We speak, e. g. indifferent-qualifications on which that may depend ly of this or that having been done by the nay, even whether the community be Áthenians, the Romans, the Carthaginians; voluntary Association, or (as is the case or by the Athenian, the Roman, or Car- with political Communities) one claiming thaginian Government or Rulers.* And compulsory power,-and whatever may so also when we speak of the acts of some be its purpose-in all cases, the admission University, or of the Governors of that to it, or exclusion from it, of each indiviUniversity, we are using two equivalent dual, must be determined by some recogexpressions. nized authority.

2dly. It seems equally essential to every Since therefore this point, and also those Community that it should have certain others above-mentioned, seem, naturally Regulations or By-laws, binding on its and necessarily, to belong to every regular own members. And if it be not wholly Community, since it must, in short, consubjected to the control, and regulated by sist of regularly constituted Members, subthe directions of some extraneous power, ject to certain Rules, and having certain but is in any degree an independent Com- Officers, it follows, that whoever directs munity, it must so far have power to en- or sanctions the establishment of a Comact, and abrogate,-to suspend, alter, and munity (as our Lord certainly did in rerestore by-laws, for itself; namely, such spect of Christian Churches,) must be regulations, extending to matters intrin- understood as thereby sanctioning those sically indifferent, as are not at variance institutions which belong to the essence with the enactments of any superior au- of a Community. To recognize a Comthority. The enforcement also of the re-munity as actually having a legitimate exgulations of a Community by some kind of Penalties, is evidently implied by the very existence of Regulations. To say of any Community that its Laws are valid, and binding on its members, is to say that the violators of them may justly be visited with penalties: and to recognize Officers in any Community is to recognize as among its Laws, submission to those officers while in the exercise of their legitimate functions.

In the case of Political Communities, which is a peculiar one, inasmuch as they necessarily exercise an absolutely-coercive power, the penalties must be determined according to the wisdom and justice of each Government, and can have no other limit. But in a voluntary Community, the ultimate Penalty must be expulsion; all others, short of this, being submitted to

* And it is to be observed that it makes no difference, as to this point, whether the Governors are elected by the governed, and in any degree restrained by them, or are hereditary and unlimited. In all cases, the established and recognized Rulers of any Community are considered as representing it.

istence, or as allowably to be formed, is to recognize it as having Officers,-as having Regulations enforced by certain Penalties, and as admitting or refusing to admit Members.

§ 3. All this, I say, seems to be implied by the very nature of the case. But, on purpose, as it should seem, to provide against any misapprehension or uncertainty, our Lord did not stop at the mere general sanction given by Him to the formation of a Christian Community, but He also particularized all the points I have been speaking of. He appointed or ordained the first Officers; He recognized the power of enacting and abrogating Rules; and He gave authority for the admitting of Members.

Such is the obvious sense of his directions to his Apostles: obvious, I mean, to them, with such habits of thought and of expression as they had, and as He must have known them to have. He must have known well what meaning his words would convey to his own countrymen, at

* See Appendix, Note (B.)

With all these points then, the Disciples of Jesus had long been familiar. And He spoke of them in terms with which they must have been well acquainted. For instance, the expression,

that time. But some things which would Officers;-the Elders or Presbyters, the appear plain and obvious to a Jew,-even Rulers of Synagogues, Ministers or Deaan unlearned Jew,-in those days, may cons, &c.-it had By-laws; being not be such as to require some examination only under the Levitical Law, but also and careful reflection to enable us, of a having authority, within certain limits, of distinct Age and Country, to apprehend making regulations, and enforcing them them in the same sense. When however by penalties (among others, that which we do examine and reflect, we can hardly we find alluded to in the New Testament, doubt, I think-considering to whom, and of excommunicating or "casting out of at what time, He was speaking-that our the Synagogue"): and it had power to Lord did sanction and enjoin the forma- admit Proselytes. tion of a permanent religious Community or Communities, possessing all those powers which have been above alluded to. The power of "binding and loosing;"-i. e. enacting and enforcing, and of abrogating or suspending regulations for "binding and loosing,"* was, and still is, a Christian Society, was recognized by his promise of the divine ratification of those acts,—the "binding and loosing in heaven." The "Keys of the Kingdom of Heaven," denote the power of admitting persons Members of the Church, and excluding them from it. And the expression respecting the "remitting and retaining of sins," if it is to be understood (as I think it is) as extending to any thing beyond the power of admitting members into Christ's Church by "Baptism for remission of sins," must relate to the enforcement or remission of ecclesiastical censures for offences against a Christian Community.

By attentive reflection on the two topics I have here suggested—namely, on the rights and powers essentially inherent in a Community, and consequently implied in the very institution of a Community, so far as they are not expressly excluded; and again on the declarations of our Lord, as they must have been understood by his Disciples, by reflection, I say, on these two topics, we shall be enabled, I think, to simplify and clear up several questions which have been sometimes involved in much artificial obscurity and difficulty.

perfectly familiar to the Jews, in the sense of enforcing and abrogating rules; or,-which amounts precisely to the same thing,-deciding as to the manner, and the extent, in which a previously existing law is to be considered as binding: as is done by our Judges in their recorded Decisions.

The Jewish Church was indeed subject, by divine authority, to the Levitical Law. But minute as were the directions of that Law, there were still many points of detail, connected with the observance of it, which required to be settled by some competent authority: such as, for instance, what was, or was not, to be regarded as "work" forbidden on the Sabbath-what was to be considered as "servile work," forbidden on certain other days;-and in what way the injunctions respecting their food, their garments, the sowing of their fields, and several other matters, were to be observed.†

In regard to regulations of this kind, our Lord recognizes the authority of the Jewish Rulers, as being so far successors of Moses; for He tells his hearers, "The Scribes and Pharisees sit in Moses' seat; all, therefore, whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe, and do." And though He adds a caution not to "do after their works, for they say, and do not," He does not teach that their personal demerits, or even that gross abuse of their power, which he strongly repro

§ 4. And our view of the sense in which our Lord's directions are to be understood will be the more clear and decided, if we reflect that all the circumstances which have been noticed as naturally pertaining to every Community, are to be found in that religious Community in which the Disciples had been brought up-the Jewish Church, or (as it is * See Lightfoot on this subject, and also Dr. called in the Old Testament) the Congre- Wotton's valuable work on the Mishna. gation, or Ecclesia,† of which each Syna-w Wotton's Selections from the Mishna, will find Those who can procure or gain access to Dr. gogue was a branch. It had regular in it much curious and interesting information relative to these and several other particulars, which throws great light on many passages of the New Testament.

* See Appendix, Note (C).

See Vitringa on the Synagogue.

Septuagint.