EXTRACT

FROM

THE LAST WILL AND TESTAMENT

OF THE LATE

REV. JOHN BAMPTON,

CANON OF SALISBURY.

"I give and bequeath my Lands and "Estates to the Chancellor, Masters, and Scho"lars of the University of Oxford-for ever, to "have and to hold all and singular the said "Lands or Estates upon trust, and to the in"tents and purposes hereinafter mentioned ; "that is to say, I will and appoint that the "Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford "for the time being shall take and receive all "the rents, issues, and profits thereof, and (after "all taxes, reparations, and necessary deduc❝tions made) that he pay all the remainder to "the endowment of eight Divinity Lecture "Sermons, to be established for ever in the said

University, and to be performed in the man"ner following:

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"I direct and appoint, that, upon the first Tuesday in Easter Term, a Lecturer be yearly "chosen by the Heads of Colleges only, and by

no others, in the room adjoining to the Printing-House, between the hours of ten in the "morning and two in the afternoon, to preach "eight Divinity Lecture Sermons, the year fol"lowing, at St. Mary's in Oxford, between the "commencement of the last month in Lent Term, and the end of the third week in Act "Term.

"Also I direct, and appoint, that the eight Divinity Lecture Sermons shall be preached " upon either of the following Subjects-to con"firm and establish the Christian Faith, and to "confute all' heretics and schismatics-upon the "divine authority of the holy Scriptures-upon "the authority of the writings of the primitive "Fathers, as to the faith and practice of the pri"mitive Church-upon the Divinity of our Lord "and Saviour Jesus Christ-upon the Divinity "of the Holy Ghost-upon the Articles of the "Christian Faith, as comprehended in the Apostles' and Nicene Creeds..

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"Also I direct, that thirty copies of the eight Divinity Lecture Sermons shall be always

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printed, within two months after they are "preached, and one copy shall be given to the "Chancellor of the University, and one copy to "the Head of every College, and one copy to "the Mayor of the city of Oxford, and one

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copy to be put into the Bodleian Library; and "the expence of printing them shall be paid "out of the revenue of the Land or Estates "given for establishing the Divinity Lecture "Sermons; and the Preacher shall not be paid, "nor be entitled to the revenue, before they " are printed.

"Also I direct and appoint, that no person "shall be qualified to preach the Divinity Lec"ture Sermons, unless he hath taken the de

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gree of Master of Arts at least, in one of the "two Universities of Oxford or Cambridge; "and that the same person shall never preach "the Divinity Lecture Sermons twice."

SERMON I.

ON MYSTERIES.

HEB. iii. 12.

Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.

IN this land, where by the blessing of God the enjoyment of religious as well as of civil liberty is secured to all men, where restraint is laid upon the avowal of opinions no farther than is absolutely necessary for the maintenance of good order both in Church and State, it is the more necessary that such opinions should be observed with attention; and that tendency to extravagance which too often springs out of liberty be prevented, if possible, from producing the destructive effects of disorder and licentiousness. In all matters is this necessary, but more especially in

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