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strength of mind sufficient to overcome the prejudice of education, (i. e. what they heard from their parents and preachers, and read in books, when children, or from the mother, to the press, and from the press to the pulpit, this doctrine, of the wrath of God, and everlasting misery, has been taught for hundreds of years past, to the disgrace of the Christian religion, or to the mild and merciful religion of Jesus.)

It is not likely that if General Washington had believed in this doctrine, he would have appointed Murray chaplain in the army, and besides made him such offers, that had Murray accepted, he might have been independent; which when Washington was informed he refused, he said, "Mr. Murray will live to be old, and repentance will be the companion of his age." Murray lived to see the prediction fulfilled as to age, but "it is well known that he was accustomed to withdraw from the approaches of affluence." But to return to Winchester.

He continued in Philadelphia about 6 years, occasionally preaching in the country; after which he travelled extensively, first in England, where he went in the year 1787, and continued there upwards of 6 years and a half, preaching to large assemblies; and then returned to America, and continued travelling and preaching till about the first of April, 1797, when he delivered a sermon under strong impressions that it would be his last, from Paul's farewell address to the elders of the Ephesian church.

He never entered a pulpit again. His death was fast approaching, and he contemplated it with calmness and joy. On the morning of his

decease he requested two or three women, who were sitting by him, to join in singing a hymn, (the Christian's farewell, or dying saint's song,) observing at the same time, that he might expire before it should be finished. He began with them; but his voice soon faltered, and the torpor of death fell upon him. They were disconcerted, and paused; but he reviving, encouraged them to proceed, and joined in the first line of each stanza, till he breathed no more.

This was

at Hartford, Conn. on the 18th of April, 1797.The asthma was the cause of his death, with which he had been afflicted, more or less, for several years. His funeral was attended on the 21st, by his numerous, sorrowing friends, and sympathizing people. Parson Strong preached a funeral sermon from Heb. ix. 37. Though an opposer of Winchester's sentiments, yet he gave him an excellent character for piety, and for his faithfulness in preaching the doctrines he believed. The truth is, Winchester was such a benevolent, kind and charitable man, that he was beloved by all, not only those of the same faith with him, but by all who knew him, however much they might be opposed to his doctrine of the universal restoration.

He respected the tender feelings of all Christians, indeed of all men; was charitable to their ignorance and absurdities, and treated all men with meekness and kindness, his opposers, as his friends. For as I have intimated before, this is the natural effect of the doctrine he believed, that as God loves all, and all are objects of his mercy, all being his children, and as a kind and tender parent, he chastises them no further than

for their good and amendment; and thus all being brethren, all should be kind one to another. It is a blessed doctrine to lead mankind in union, and to bear and forbear with each other. This Winchester well knew, and acted according to his faith.

His publications amounted to nearly forty, though most of them are small duodecimo books and pamphlets. His principal works, and which have been most read, are his Dialogues on Universal Restoration, 12 mo. and his work on the Prophecies, 2 vols. 8 vo. which contain a course of 42 Lectures, which he delivered, and published while in England. I cannot believe in so severe and long protracted punishment for the wicked, as Winchester holds to. In these Lectures, he understands and interprets the scriptures in exactly a literal sense, maintaining, agreeable to 2 Pet. iii. 10-13. Rev. xx. 11-15, and xxi. 1-5, and other similar texts, that at some future time this globe would become melted with fervent heat, and would be as melted metal, and the wicked would be raised with bodies that could not consume, and they would suffer for thousands of years in this liquid heat!— But we must recollect that Winchester was once a rigid Calvinist, and held to all the cruelties and unmerciful doctrines of that sect; and relinquishing the idea of an endless hell, and maintaining that punishment was limited, and consequently could bear no proportion to an endless state of suffering, he made a very great advance from such horrid error towards the truth.

He believed, as he holds forth in his Lectures, that in process of time, probably 42,000 years,

in which the wicked would continually suffer in this lake of fire, this globe would become thoroughly purified and renovated, and be made the new creation, or new heavens and new earth, of which we read, and prepared for the hapyy abode of all mankind; that is, this world then will become a local heaven, when all shall be subdued, renewed, and made happy forever.So he understood Ps. lxv. 17. and Îxvi. 22. 2 Pet. iii. 13. Rev. xxi. 1, 2.

I don't know that there are any Universalists in the present day, who believe in such terrible punishment: though there are many who believe in a future limited punishment; but they generally hold that the punishment will be mental, not corporeal; that it will consist in remorse of conscience, grief, and repentance for sin; and He whose mercy endureth forever, will be merciful to them, and thus being made sensible of the goodness of that being against whom they have sinned, and as it is the goodness of God that leadeth to repentance, this will be a godly sorrow, which will work repentance unto their salvation and restoration. This class of Universalists do not believe that God will punish them in wrath, but as a good and kind parent, for their good. In that they believe all must repent here or hereafter, for whatever evil they have done, and all will have forgiveness, I would advise all to repent and amend in this life, to shun all evil : this is the only way to be happy.

Notwithstanding Winchester's ideas of a literal lake of fire and brimstone, and so long a period of suffering for the wicked, and so severe as to he beyond the bounds of reason and mercy, he

has done much by his preaching and writings for the cause of truth and universal benevolence, and opened the eyes of many of the blind, even so blind as to believe in the endless wrath of God and everlasting misery. This is the greatest of allintellectual blindness, and for the day in which he lived, and considering that he came out of the Egyptian darkness cf Calvinism, he did well.

His Dialogues on the universal restoration are an unanswerable refutation of the wicked and cruel doctrine of endless misery: and though his writings make too near an approach to the cruel doctrine as taught by Bunyan, Edwards, Emmons, and other writers that I have noticed, yet there is no comparison between his doctrine and theirs; for limited or finite, can bear no proportion to unlimited or infinite duration: it is not so much as a grain of sand to the whole world; if the world was turned into fine sand; nay, not all the vast and innumerable worlds that float throughout the boundless ether. And if the pious Winchester's doctrine, of misery in a lake of fire and brimstone for 42,000 years, although it was to terminate in good, on serious consideration of it, it must strike the mind with horror, what then must be our feelings if we believe this misery will extend ad infinitum, to be absolutely without end, and no good to result from it. O surely this can never be! It is too God-dishonouring and cruel, to be admitted for a moment by any one who has the least regard for the character of God or love for his fellow-creatures.

Winchester had been intimate with the cele-. brated John Wesley, and had much conversation. with him on the subject of the final restoration..

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