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certain vague and desultory feelings of unworthiness, which they mistake for religious conviction, and establish within themselves a kind of factitious conscience, which taxes them with utter depravity and a determined hatred of God, whilst it overlooks the specialities of sin, and calls them off from the task of self-enquiry, and the pursuit of self-knowledge; but the transition from this state of mind to a state directly opposite to it, is easy and natural, for he who can persuade himself that he is exactly such a creature as these views of original sin represent, will find no difficulty in persuading himself that he has experienced that mystical change, or revolution of soul on which the corresponding theory of regeneration insists.”

"The call" then on which the Calvinists insist as necessary to salvation, may be considered as nothing but the effect of this hallucination, which is perhaps more clearly seen in the claim laid by them to the having been favoured by such a light from heaven, as supersedes the necessity of their own exertions in endeavouring to understand the Scriptures, and gives them an assurance of their final salvation, while they who have not received it, will be consigned to the pains of hell for ever.

In replying to the former of these privileges claimed by this sect, we would observe, that every man who studies the Holy Scriptures with a sincere desire to discover and an unprejudiced determination to admit the truth, will undoubtedly obtain such knowledge of its divine and saving truths, as will impress upon his mind the necessity of conforming his actions to its rules, afford him the truest consolation amidst the troubles of life, and supply him with the most rational and well grounded hopes of acceptance with God through the merits of the Redeemer; and thus be a sufficient lantern unto his feet, and a light unto his path. But that every man in any particular sect of Christians, is to be favoured with an especial revelation from the Deity, we deny; nay, we feel convinced that this doctrine derogates most essentially from the efficacy and value of the mission of the Son of God. In the last dispensation of mercy to mankind, we conceive that every revelation has been made to mankind that is necessary, and, in giving them the Scriptures, God has afforded them as much "light," and as powerful a "call" as the case requires. To suppose, however, that a further illumination from God is to be expected, nullifies the exercise of the faculties of the mind, supersedes the necessity of that attention to the study of the Scriptures, which the apostle recommends, and substitutes the wildest and weakest flights of fancy for religious conviction and pure faith. This "illumination" is, however, arrogantly claimed by

NO. VII. VOL. IV.

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many, as the result of their prayers and study of the Scriptures, but we perfectly agree with our author, that any persons of a warm imagination, may thus pray and thus fancy that they have obtained the light of the Spirit, "but I am persuaded that it is a delusion." We would go even further, and say, that it is an arrogance bordering upon impiety.

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With regard to the doctrines of Election and Reprobation, (of which the author presents his readers with the best opinions of those who have written on the subject;) we shall not say much, but of their sad effects we have more than once been witnesses amongst the lower classes of society. It is but lately, that we beheld their melancholy influence in the case of a person, who being unable to ascertain having received the indispensable" call," could only contemplate the horrible state of Reprobation, which had been represented as the consequence of not receiving it. Every hope of salvation through a crucified Saviour was rejected, and the blackest despair had evidently taken possession of the mind.

In furnishing a sufficient antidote to these pernicious opinions, "the Convert" will be found extremely useful, as well also in counteracting the evil tendency of many other popular opinions which the limits of a Review will not allow us to notice, but to which we strongly recommend the attention of the public, as being not only highly interesting, but highly instruc tive, and well worth serious attention. In thus expressing a favourable opinion of "the Convert," we confess ourselves to have been actuated in some measure by the wish of promoting the end which the author had in view, of leading our readers on to the prosecution of a deeper and more enlarged enquiry into these important subjects," for they are subjects which are now no longer considered, as proper only for the theological student, but occupy the attention to a greater or less degree of men of every rank of life. And though we do not bestow upon the author of the Convert, the reputation of having thrown any new light upon these topics, yet we think him fairly entitled to the credit which the utility of his work must undoubtedly gain for him.

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Declaration of the (Roman) Catholic Bishops, the Vicars Apostolic and their Coadjutors in Great Britain. London. 1826.

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THE great object of the Roman Catholics at present is to per suade the world that their doctrines are misrepresented. This

is a fact which deserves particular attention. Three centuries of fierce controversy had nearly elapsed before any one suspected that Protestants and Romanists had been contending without well knowing the ground of their difference. But such must be the case, if we believe the declarations which the Roman Catholic bishops have lately issued from time to time at the request of their parliamentary friends, who seem to have made the strange discovery, that the tenets of the Church of Rome have been most cruelly distorted in order to make them rodious.

"It having been stated to us (say the Vicars Apostolic in Great Britain) that by publishing, at the present time, a plain declaration of our real tenets, on those points which are still so much misrepresented, or misconceived, a better understanding may be established among his Majesty's subjects, and the advancement of religion and charity may be effected; hence, we the undersigned Catholic Bishops (query why not Roman Catholic?-what is there so disagreeable in this word to those whose head is the Bishop of Rome, and who upon their oath believe that the Church of Rome is the Mother and Mistress of all Churches?') have thought it our duty to publish the following declaration, in the hope, that it will be received by all who read it with the same love of truth and the same good-will, with which it is given."

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Whatever may be the standard of the measure proposed, we are most ready to use it more than doubled in our return of love of truth and good-will." But there are circumstances in this declaration which require us to pause. In the first place the declaration is not the spontaneous act of the Vicars Apostolic, in the exercise of their spiritual duties. "It has been suggested to them," and the object of the document is to establish at this time, a better understanding among Majesty's subjects;" expressions which, translated into plain English, mean that a general election being at hand, it is con venient for many candidates connected with the Roman Catholic interest that the Popish tenets which have been lately exposed in all their nakedness, should be clothed in mysterious words, and veiled in the folds of metaphysical distinctions. We find a similar measure adopted by the Romanist bishops of Ireland, exactly at the same moment of time. These regular and combined movements are suspicious; and we must be upon our guard. But, since the enemy sounds a parley, let us hear what he has to say.

After expressing their "astonishment" at the misrepresen

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Profession of Faith of Pius IV.

tations of their religious tenets, the Roman Catholic vicars comfort themselves with the idea that they and their flocks are placed in similar circumstances with "Christ himself!" who

was misrepresented;" with the Apostles, and the first Christians, whose lot was "to be first calumniated and held up to public contempt, and then persecuted and deprived not only of their civil rights and privileges, but of their property, and even of their very lives." The comparison appears to us rather inapplicable, in many very essential points; and better suited to the martyrs of the Reformation than to the successors and representatives of the Gardiners and Bonners; but we will not stop to discuss these ornamental topics of the declaration. It is the main point of complaint the misrepresentation of their doctrines-that demands the attention of our readers.

It is not difficult to understand, nay, experience makes it evident, how a sect, or religion, which begins to make its way in spite of an established hierarchy, may be, and is always libelled and misrepresented. Nothing is indeed more natural than that those who have power, and whose interest it is to blacken the character of a growing but still feeble enemy, should try to prejudice the world against them, and drown every explanation and apology in din and clamour. But who could ever have suspected that the tables were turned in the case of Protestants and Roman Catholics, and that from the time when Luther raised his voice against the established religion of Europe, till the present moment, Rome should never have been able to clear her faith from the wicked misrepresentations of her enemies? Yet, such must be the fact, unless the vicars apostolic can shew that the grounds of our controversy with their spiritual mistress have been lately changed; that modern Protestants have raised a phantom against which to eontend, or that Rome, brought to a better mind, has modified some of her tenets and suppressed some others.

It is very painful at all times to be forced to suspect the sineerity of any assertion, and more so, when the assertion is solemn, and made by persons whose official character entitles them to respect. But when we bring to mind the accurate, sober, and liberal manner in which the controversy with the Church of Rome has been renewed by the divines of our Church, when we consider the number and importance of the doctrines, which our modern writers have agreed to overlook, though they were fully admitted by all Romanists, from the time of the Reformation till almost our days; when we turn to the authentic documents which all true Roman Catholics are

sworn to believe; and then hear the cry of calumny and mis-, representation, we confess we are staggered as to the motives of such assertions.

The truth is that the present cue of the Romanists in this country is evasion and disguise, and unfortunately, there is no country in the world where they could have an ampler field for, both. There was a time when England was quite alive to the Popish controversy. The memory of the wrongs, the oppression, the insults, the cruelty which they had experienced on the part of Rome, had not been effaced. One generation had already enjoyed the fruits of their fathers' struggles in full ripeness; but the sufferings of their ancestors, combined with their partial knowledge of the fierceness and wiliness of the old enemy, were still part of an inheritance of feeling. But when the tiger had for some time been made to skulk into his lair, and the wolf compelled to put on sheep's clothing; our divines turned their attention to more agreeable subjects, and our people almost forgot that there existed a priest wearing a triple crown. Many besides, of Rome's spiritual subjects affected by the spirit of the age, became Catholics in the sense in which the greatest part of the middle and higher classes of France and Italy are still Catholics. These men were observed to care little for the Pope, and less for his priests; and were taken for fair specimens of the whole mass of English and Irish Papists. As long as our Romanist nobility and gentry continued in strict adherence to their Church's faith, their ambition was checked by their spiritual duties: for they well knew that a true Roman Catholic could not engage to defend in Parliament that part of the constitution which is a living sin in the eyes of his Church.

But the Romish faith of many grew cold, and they thought it hard to be deprived of their birth-right for the sake of doctrines, for which they felt no attachment, or which, perhaps, they absolutely rejected. Harnessed, however, as they found themselves to the Pope's car, and bound by ties of blood and friendship to thousands, who still pulled with all their might, they were naturally driven to the expedient of disguising the hideousness of Popery. Hard, indeed, must have been the struggle which these political Catholics must have had against the straight-forward bigotry of some of their Priests and Bishops; but, as it was for the final benefit of Rome, the plain speaking mouths have been stopped, especially after the example made in the zealous Priest Gandolphy. The crowd of stout believers now, being hushed, some more elegant and ver☛ satile minds were brought forward. Dr. Lingard wrote his

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