of still far more consequence, check the incidental evils connected with it, we cannot undertake to determine. Doubtless many who did not scruple to purchase game, while the penalty fell only on the poacher and vender, will be more cautious, now they themselves are exposed to a participation of the inconvenience. Still, however, in a country like this, while game is considered an elegant luxury, it must find its way to the tables of the opulent and splendid, notwithstanding every check thrown in its progress. A rich man can fully as well risk a few pounds for the sake of a gratification of this kind, as a poacher his person and liberty for the pecuniary emoluments of his avocation. We trust, therefore, that the subject will not sink to rest in our Houses of Parliament till some such effectual change is made in the whole system, as will rescue the country-at whatever sacrifice of individual pride or prejudice--from the evils of which we complain, and of which a murder, like that at Epsom, is but a single, though a fearful item, in a long and black catalogue of injuries and crimes. OBITUARY. To the Editor of the Christian Observer. On the 4th July last died, at his father's house, Ashby Cottage, near Bristol, the Rev. JOHN THRESHER SANGAR, A.M., late Fellow of Oriel College, Oxford, Chaplain to the Right Hon. Earl Grey, and Curate of St. Werburgh's, Bristol. At a very early period of his life he expressed a great desire to be educated for that sacred profession of which he afterwards became so zealous and able a minister. In order to further his wishes his parents placed him at the Grammar School, Birmingham, where he had the great advantage of being educated by the Rev. John Cooke; and it was under this excellent preceptor, that he acquired that proficiency in classical learning, which was the foundation of his subsequent success. From Birmingham he went to Oxford, and entered at Trinity College, of which society he was elected a scholar at the early age of fifteen. On several other occasions he was a successful candidate for academic honours, and his scholastic attainments were stamped by that highly honourable testimonial, an Oriel Fellowship, to which he was elected in the year 1802. Having taken his degree of A.M., he left Oxford, and was ordained by the late excellent Bishop of London, Dr. Porteus, to the curacy of ColnEngain, in Essex, where he commenced his ministerial labours in the month of November, 1804, and continued them successively at the dock-yard, Portsea, at Barton under Needwood, in Staffordshire, and at St. Werburgh's, Bristol (his native city). To the latter place he was appointed curate in 1811; and he continued there to employ those talents with which the Almighty had blessed him, in the cause of his heavenly Master, till he was visited by an illness which incapacitated him for public duty, and at length terminated his life. The last time he addressed his congregation at St. Werburgh's was on the 23d March, 1817, from 2 Tim. i. 12:"I know in whom I have believed," &c. And on the following Sunday he preached at the chapel of the Orphan Asylum, on occasion of the death of a fellow-labourer in the ministry, the Rev. John Bull, from Gen. xlviii. 21:"Behold I die, but God shall be with you." This was the last time he ap peared in the pulpit. In the beginning of the present year he had so far recovered, that he anticipated a speedy resumption of his ministerial duties; but a relapse, which occurred in the month of March, led him to turn his attention from every thing connected with the present life, and even from the immediate duties of the important station which he had occupied as a minister of the Gospel, to the more immediate contemplation of his own approaching en. trance into another and a better world. From this period he received repeated attacks of his disorder, under which he gradually wasted away, till, on the 4th July, he "fell asleep in Jesus," and entered into the joy of his Lord. Two days before his death he sent for an intimate friend, whom he addressed in nearly the following words:-"See, my dear friend, how tenderly God is acting towards me; how greatly he is taking down this my tabernacle. Though the cold chills of death are already upon me, I feel little or no pain; I have this morning derived great pleasure from the company of and I am now able to enjoy the same from yours. Of the truth of the doctrines I have preached, I am most fully persuaded: they are now my support on my dying pillow. Let me beg you to beware of the Antinomian heresy, by which 1 fear many persons in this city have been misled; it is a doctrine which will not do upon a death-bed. In order that you may be preserved from error, read much of the simple and pure word of God. The reason why so many have been turned aside is, that they have been accustomed to read too much of commentaries and religious books, and too little of the holy Scriptures. In the Bible, the Holy Spirit has given us, in their proper order and due proportion, warnings and invitations, doctrines and precepts: these are to be attended to, as well as what is said of the privileges of believ ers. In reviewing my life, there is nothing for which I desire more to bless and magt fy the God of all grace, than that he has inclined my heart to do what I could for the furtherance of those important institutions, the Bible and Church Missionary Societies; for they, in a peculiar degree, spread the name and knowledge of a Saviour." When his friend spoke to him of his family, said, "I entreat that my children may be brought up in the strict principles of the Church of England; and I should esteem it a high honour to have a son of mine a servant in the sanctuary of the Lord; but that must depend upon many circumstances, especially upon his own wishes and religious character." In reply to the inquiries of his friend as to the state of his mind, he said, "I enjoy perfect peace in my soul; I have had many sharp conflicts with my spiritual enemy, but, thank God, they are all over now, and I am able to rely simply on the precious promises and sure word of God. I do not feel that lively joy which I have so often seen and heard of in the dying hours of God's servants, but I am fully he persuaded that I am going to receive the reward of my labours, or, rather, that God is about to bless and crown the work of his own grace." His friend endeavoured to prove that such a state of mind was, in many respects, far more desirable than one of greater raptore and triumph: he answered, "You are right; St. Paul, in his Epistle to the Romans, says, the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, placing peace last, as being, perhaps, the better and more perfect gift; and it is from belie ing that my peace proceeds. I need not look at any gross or grievous sins to find cause for humiliation before God: my duties, my prayers, my sermons, whenever I think of them, drive me for hope and pardon to the Cross of Christ. I am an unprofitable servant, and my only hope is in what the blessed Saviour has done and suffered for me." The visit was concluded by his pressing his friend's hand, and saying, Remember, remember, Christ is all.”—In this spirit he waited until his dismission from a body of sin and death, occasionally requesting that some portions of Scrip ture might be read to him, as he was able to attend to them. The last chapter 'which he desired to hear, was 2 Cor. v.; upon which he commented with great clearness, though with a faultering voice, it being only two hours previous to his departure. The deceased was one of the Secreta ries to the Bristol Church of England Tract Society, from its first formation, and penned all its Reports, with the exception of that for last year. His executors intend publishing, by subscrip tion, one volume of his Sermons, many of them being found in such a state, that they were apparently intended for the press, ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. KHPTE. CLERICUS, LL.B.; E.; JUVENIS; DUBITANS; VERAX; EPISCOPALIAN; E. B. L.; C. E. S.; Memoirs of Mrs. P. and Mrs. B.; and S. O.; have been' received, and · are under consideration. D. D. will have perceived that the substance of his communication was anticipated in our last Number. We do not wish to renew the discussion which X. Y. Z. proposes. G. B.'s Memoir was long since returned as directed. We have again to request the indulgence of authors who think themselves ag grieved because their works have not been reviewed in our publication. We feel really pained that respectable individuals should thus impute to negligence, or intentional disrespect, what arises solely from the necessity of the case. We are requested, by a Correspondent, to add to the information given in our last Number, p. 556, relative to the "Grand Junction Canal Association," that at the Depository at Bulbourne, near Menesworth, Tring, fifty-five Bibles and thirty-six Testaments have been sold to the Bargemen at reduced prices; and at the Basin of the Grand Junction, at Paddington, 193 Bibles and Testaments. THE CHRISTIAN OBSERVER. No. 202.] OCTOBER, 1818. [No. 10. Vol. XVII. RELIGIOUS COMMUNICATIONS. For the Christian Observer. CURSORY REMARKS ON UNITARIANISM, AND THE ARGUMENTS BY WHICH IT IS USUALLY SUPPORTED. (Continued from p. 569.) MR.. No. X. R. WRIGHT proceeds to state an objection that might be urged against his views, by the Trinitarian, derived from the words of our Lord, I and my Father are one." (John x. 30.) He says of that assertion very justly, "Christ and the Father may be one in design, in testimony, and in their care of the church, without an identity of being." But the true question is not whether any other sense of the words, than that which is obvious, be possible, but whether it is necessary; and it should be shewn what the necessity is for doing this violence to the plain language of inspiration. Even then it would appear a harsh and strained assertion to say, "I and my Father are one," when it was only meant, that their design and object was one. Every question, however, must be determined by its proofs. Let us examine, therefore, those of our author. They are of two kinds; for they consist of an argument and an illustration. First, he says," he did not say one being, nor ought his words to be construed to mean one being; for he had before re presented himself and the Father as two beings, and he uniformly distinguished himself from the Father, even in the passage from which the above words are cited; My Father which gave them me, CHRIST, OBSERV, No, 202, Let is greater than all."" It is true, he did not say one being; but he said, "I and my Father are one," using the word "one," in the neuter gender: so that it can only be interpreted one thing, or one substance, or one being; and the last is the most proper, because it is a substantive, supplied from the signification of the verb, Quev But, however this be, if our Lord has before asserted in equally plain terms, that he and the Father are not one being, we shall be driven from this inference, and must seek for another interpretation. us see, therefore, to what this declaration, on which our author rests his argument, amounts. "My sheep shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand." (ver. 28, 29.) Here the course of reasoning would strike me as of this kind. The Saviour had said, "No one shall snatch my sheep out of my hand." His hearers might doubt this. He was before them in great humility and the power which was necessary to give effect to this promise, might be naturally called in question. Therefore, he adds, in effect; "You need not doubt my power to take care of my sheep. My Father, who gave them me, is greater than all; and you will not say that any one is able to snatch them out of my Father's hand. Now I am one with the Father." In this statement, which I conceive exhibits the exact bearing of our Lord's words, I can see nothing that would represent the Father and the Son 4 M as two distinct beings. On the contrary, the strength of the argument is built on their being but one; and in proportion to the exactness in which that position is maintained, is the soundness of the inference perceived. "I am one with the Father; and, therefore, if no one is able to pluck them out of the Father's hand, no one is able to pluck them out of mine." The argument of our author, therefore, proves nothing in this case. Let us, then, proceed to his illustration. "Christ hath illustrated the subject by the union which subsists between his disciples, also between himself and his disciples. Praying for them, he said, That they all may be one, as thou Father art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us.' John xvii. 21. The saints are to become one in God and Christ; and Christians will never become one individual being, nor will a number of Christians, however closely united, ever become one individual being: it follows, that when Christ said, 'I and my Father are one,' he could not mean one being, for Christians are to become one in the same sense as he and the Father are one."-What our blessed Saviour meant by his disciples becoming one in himself and with each other, St. Peter has explained, where he says, "His Divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him that bath called us to glory and virtue, where by are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises, that by these ye might be partakers of the Divine nature." To those, therefore, who become the true disciples of our Lord by faith, a promise is made that they shall be come partakers of the Divine nature: and this promise is fulfilled by the residence of the Holy Spirit himself within them, who gradually changes their whole nature, giving them a new heart and a right spirit, enlightening their eyes, inclining their wills to holiness, and at length assimilating the whole man to himself. That this is really the sense in which Christians are to become one in Christ and with each other, is apparent from the tenour of St. Paul's reasoning, where he says, "By one spirit are we all baptized into one body, and have been all made to drink into one spirit. But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit." (1 Cor. xii. 13; vi. 17,) And this is, indeed, as our author tells us, though not in the way that he meant it, a very forcible illustration of the union between Christ and the Father. It is not a parallel case for the whole body of believers, though one in spirit, and united both to the Father and to each other, are not one being. Indeed, where shall we look for a parallel, or how can we hope to find one, to that which is infinite and eternal? But it is an illustration; for as all believers are animated by one spirit, so are the three Persons in the sacred Trinity partakers of one Godhead: and the design of the prayer seems to be, that the Holy Spirit, which is the Spirit of the Father and the Son, might be given to the disciples also, that so they might be one with the Father and the Son, and one with each other, being all partakers of one Spirit.-Mr. Wright will perceive, that in this interpretation I understand both the illustration and the thing illustrated in a higher sense than he does, and yet confine every expression in the sacred text to its distinct and appropriate meaning. Nevertheless, we do not maintain that all Christians form but one being: for, when a comparison is instituted between two things, they are not identified by being compared, but a likeness is pointed out in some one particular, which may fail in many others. In the instance before us, the subjects of comparison are the union among Christians by the participation of the Holy Spirit, and the unity of the same Spirit in the Father and the Son. The strenuousness, however, with which I would maintain the unity of the Son with the Father in respect to his Divine nature, does not prevent my acknowledging the entire truth of the whole following passage. "The man Jesus Christ is the medium by which the Gospel and all its blessings came to men. 1 Tim. ii. 5. Eph. ii. 13, 22. Through him as man we are assured of a resurrection from the dead. 1 Cor. xv. 21. The gift of eternal life comes to us through Jesus who was crucified. Rom. vi. 23. The blessings of the Gospel are by no means diminished by being brought to us by a man, who sacrificed his life in bringing them to us." Indeed, if the author thinks, that in making these statements he is opposing Trinitarian principles, he has formed a very incorrect notion of the doctrines against which he contends. We hold, that all these blessings are derived to us from the man Christ Jesus, because he was a man-because he was crucified because (but here Mr. Wright will not agree with us) by his one oblation of himself, once offered, he made a full, perfect, and sufficient sacrifice, oblation, and satisfaction for the sins of the whole world. Yet, notwithstanding the notorious fact, that no Trinitarian now denies the real humanity of Christ Jesus, our author labours at great length to prove that truth, which no Trinitarian will dispute, with a view to establish this conclusion, which no Trinitariau can admit: "Christ is one of the human race and one of the human race, however highly distinguished, cannot, in the nature of things, be either more or less than a man." It is easy to say, dogmatically, "Such and such things cannot be." But perhaps the reader may by this time have seen enough to infer, that this writer's acquaintance with the nature of things is not sufficiently extensive to qualify him to pronounce definitively, and without assigning a reason, what is, and what is not, contrary to it. The same fallacy is still persisted in through the following argument: "As, throughout the whole of the gospel history, the writers speak of Christ, in the most unequivocal terms, as simply a man, and John as plainly as the rest, it must be absurd to suppose that the latter, in the beginning of his Gospel, represents him as a being infinitely superior to man: this is to make John contradict the other writers, and even himself; for he, in numerous instances afterwards, speaks of him simply as a man." For this representation is no other than what Trinitarians universally follow, when they maintain, that Jesus Christ is both God and man in one person: and the same remark may be made on another passage, where the author overlooks the possibility of that distinction having been made even by Christ himself, and says with much apparent irreverence; "To deny the simple humanity of Christ is to charge him with dissimulation, in speaking of himself simply as a man, when he knew he was a very. different being." We admit most fully, that the anointed Christ, who was born and crucified, was truly a man. We can therefore have no objection to the following passage: "If, laying aside prejudice, and disregarding mere human systems, we take the Prophets and Apostles for our guides, and build our faith entirely on the Scriptures, we shall be led to see that the Old Testament pointed forward to a person of the human race, whom God would raise up to be a Teacher and a Saviour; and from the New Testament at large, we shall learn that the man Jesus of Nazareth, whom the Jews crucified, whom God raised from the dead, is the very person : that a man, made in all things like his brethren, is highly exalted, and made both Lord and Christ." But, when he comments upon those texts of Scripture, which ara. |