be holy, why should he forsake them? The reason of His choice is in Himself; and He cannot change. Here is the only firm basis of the Christian's triumphant confidence. Our sinfulness and weakness call for abandonment. We look to ourselves and are filled with anxiety and fear. Then we turn to God and remember his firmness in mercy, remember the everlasting and unchangeable basis of our calling, and we rejoice like those who find great spoil. We rejoice with humble gratitude, "Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us, but unto thy name, give glory." "Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you, will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ." To Him be all the glory throughout eternal ages. Amen. ARTICLE IX. THE ROUND TABLE. OUR COUNTRY! But yesterday twenty millions of people were quietly, cheerfully, prosperously, pursuing the avocations of life. At the plow, the bench, the loom, the office, the anvil, the wharf, they were plying their busy toils. Our Chief Magistrate sends a fact and a call from the nation's Capitol, along the trembling wires, and these twenty millions start to their feet! From the Aroostook to the outer counties of famishing Kansas, hill and valley, city and hamlet, shop, office, and farm, have become a camp, and seventy-five thousand men are falling into the line of march for the battle-field. No Cæsar or Napoleon ever called so many to arms in so brief a week. No cause ever called so loudly for freemen. For it is proposed, in rebellion by a section of the country, to pause in a career of unparalleled prosperity, and throw up on the historic shore of the centuries the greatest national wreck that the waters of time ever washed. The issue is forced on these twenty millions by eight millions of their brethren, to go to that great ballot-box of nations, the battle-field, and vote on the questions-government or anarchy; republicanism or monarchy; the rule of majorities or minorities; the Declaration of Independence, or the edicts of plantation life. Our fathers once voted on these questions and settled them. The polls were opened at Lexing open ton, and closed at Yorktown. The vote, after eighty years' standing, is doubted. Twenty millions are moving to reaffirm it over the negative of eight millions. There is a terrible logic in "the sword of the Lord and of Gideon," and our dearest rights must receive the usual crimson baptism. Well, it is of God's method that all the steppingstones of civil progress shall be tinged and made slippery with human blood. Knowing the blessing, we accept the price. Sicut patribus, sit Deus nobis. ONE of the very pleasant things connected with our enterprise thus far is a discovery, to wit: that the number of the firm friends of the "Old Theology" is much larger than has been supposed. These all rejoice in the appearance of The Boston Review, and in the mutual knowledge of each other's existence. The letters received from various and widely distant sections of the country, do exceedingly cheer and strengthen our hearts. The brethren who have written them— lay and clerical will accept our warmest thanks, as also for their kind offices in extending our list of subscribers, which kind offices we trust they will still continue, as they know we have not a single agent in the field. As a small return for their generous coöperation, we will make a few personal introductions - all under our impenetrable phantomcloud. An able and successful young pastor from Western Massachusetts says: "In the enterprise you have undertaken I am greatly interested. With the Boston Review so far, I am delighted, and will cordially give you my feeble help and limited influence. There is abundant need of all you propose to do. Our churches have largely drifted from the Gospel of the New Testament. The sacraments are very imperfectly understood, and slightingly appreciated by believers. The doctrine of the vital and mystical union of the believer in Christ is hardly ever mentioned in many orthodox pulpits. Under the accursed influence of the sentimental religion of most of our religious papers and periodicals, a lax and demoralizing method of interpretation is creeping stealthily in, and undermining every one of the fundamental doctrines of grace. None has been so much and so steadily covered as that of Future Punishment. The paralysis of benevolence has largely resulted from secret and unconscious Universalism in the heart of our churches." A distinguished preacher in Vermont, and occupying a prominent and influential position, writes: "The articles are all of unusual and refreshing excellence." We must next introduce the very intelligent pastor of a Baptist church in Massachusetts, who says of the second number: "The first number was good, but this is a decided advance upon it in point of interest. If I had known nothing of this Review beforehand, and it had been put into my hands, I should have said on reading it -"This is not modern religious literature; this is some old book of the last century retouched with the neatness and beauty of modern art.' The truth is your Review is a hundred years behind the times, or else, what I would rather believe, it is fifty years ahead of them. I am struck with the remarkable unity of this number, the articles coming, as they do, from so many different authors. It convinces me that the Old Theology is one and the same thing, by whomsoever it is handled, and from whatever stand-point it is viewed. This Review is just suited, in my judgment, to bring the pure Gospel, unmodernized by a progressive theology, before the minds of the ministers and intelligent laymen." A pastor among the hills of New Hampshire, who also belongs to the priesthood of learning, favors us with valuable suggestions, which we shall, doubtless, turn to account. He says: "I grow stronger for the fullest and broadest possible discussion of facts and dogmas, and would pursue errorists to whatever quarter they may resort, whether to caves of the earth or to the outer regions of thin air, and would meet them and throw down the gauge, in their presence in their own element. I hope the Review will be broad and strong, as well as orthodox, and, while dealing fearlessly with all men, be perfectly tolerant with errorists, and those deemed such, — that is, slay, if it can, the error, and spare as far as warrantable, the persons and motives of the errorists." Not less gratifying is the testimony of the periodical press, as indicating at once a true appreciation of the character and objects of the Boston Review, and extensive and growing popular favor. A leading Boston Daily greeted our last issue in the terms following:- "Of this second number of a religious periodical, the appearance of which has excited unusual interest, we will only say it is better than the first number in the general quality and variety of its contents. Superior to the first it could hardly be, in respect to certain articles of which we formerly expressed our opinion. We are confident that due attention to the enterprise and such an undertaking requires unwearied attention - will soon make it extensively popular and useful among the large class into whose hands it is likely to fall." The New York Observer says: "The second number of this new Review fully maintains the high character for soundness and pungency established by the first." The testimony of the Recorder is equally decisive, as follows: "The March number of this new periodical, which is published once in two months, contains several articles of uncommon value. That on 'The Old and New Theology,' and the one on 'The Theology of Plymouth Pulpit,' are sufficient to give character to such a work for at least half a year. The continuance of articles of such ability, and bearing so directly on matters of present interest, will soon secure a good circulation for the work." Magnanimity, great and unaccountable toward ourselves! that Review live, say we."- Independent, April 4. "Let WE are sorry to see that some of our little friends are in a naughty temper. It not only makes them feel bad, but spoils their faces; and folks that get angry frequently are sure to be laughed at, and nobody cares for them or minds their scolding. They should try hard to control their naughty tempers, should never call names, and by all means should think three times at least before they speak out loud about people "lying;" because it sounds unmannerly and rude, and because folks that are hasty to charge others with "lying" are very apt to be suspected of not always keeping to the truth themselves. We trust our little friends are sorry, and we trust they will listen to us when we say to them kindly, that they must try to conquer their naughty temper, if they want people to love them. We would advise them, whenever they feel it beginning to rise in their bosom, to count a hundred before they speak, or perhaps if they would spell slowly some long word, and hard to pronounce, it might answer just as well, thus: : C-O-N G-R-E G-A T-I-O-N A-L I-S-T. The best thing of all however, we think, would be to say over to themselves every night when they go to bed, something out of the Bible, as "He that is soon angry dealeth foolishly;" Prov. 14: 17; or some nice verse of a hymn, such as "But children, you should never let ANOTHER CHURCH GONE OVER TO ARMINIANISM. - The old and the new creeds of a church in Massachusetts have been put in our hands. The alterations are the suppression of those doctrines that distinguish us from Arminians. en out. The doctrine of an "efficacious call by the Spirit of God is strickThe doctrine of Election also disappears by the suppression of the words of the Holy Ghost at the mouth of Paul-"were chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world, that they should be holy and without blame before him in love." The doctrine of God's decrees, as eternal and foreordaining, is also wanting, while the doctrine of foreknowledge is inserted. This church does not seem to have taken the advice, "in medio tutissimus ibis," in its wanderings from Calvinism. Or perhaps it began under that advice, but could not stop in medio, and so went over wholly to Arminianism. If we have read correctly of that middle line, it has a very steep though pleasantly winding grade, and the cars have no brakes. Shakspeare.. There were pre BEWARE THE IDES OF MARCH! monitions uttered on succeeding weeks in the month of March, that a very big gun was being fixed up with great and protracted labor for a discharge intended to take effect on our ill-fated selves. This thing was being done in Chicago, and in the neighborhood of the Congregational Herald." Those were weeks of suspense and apprehension, for who could tell what the result might be! Well, at last the gun went off, but, sooth to say, nobody was killed, and nobody hit; and strangest of all, there was no noise even, except a great sputtering and fizzing, though the smoke was seen at a considerable distance. For, while there was ever so much powder, there was no shot (it is supposed they hadn't any,) nor was there any wadding; hence the sputtering and fizzing. We hope no mischief was done to the office of the "Herald;" but we much fear that the " Brother" who put in the powder and touched the gun off, must have had his whiskers singed, as his beard has been grown a good while, notwithstanding his senses are not sufficiently exercised to discern between "the old and new theology." |