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Evenings with the Doctrines. By NEHEMIAH ADAMS, D. D. Boston: Gould & Lincoln. 1861. pp. 415.

THIS beautiful volume contains the substance of seventeen familiar

Tuesday evening lectures. The important leading doctrines of the Gospel are clearly stated and proved in a way to render them easily understood, and in a style that is eminently practical and attractive. The discourses are exceedingly interesting, abounding in striking and original thoughts. Those who are accustomed to regard the discussion of doctrines as necessarily dry and forbidding, can here have their mistake fully corrected. We think the book a very useful and timely one. While its reading cannot fail to remove difficulties and promote the piety of Christians, it must interest the Church anew in the reëxamination of the great principles which are so essential to intelligent and steadfast piety. And what can be of more importance in these times of drifting into dangerous speculations and superficial reading and thinking?

We sincerely wish the volume could go into every Christian family.

THERE have been laid on our table, too late for careful notice in this number, books as follows:

Rawlinson's Historical Evidences of the Truth of the Scripture Records. 1860. pp. 454. Gould & Lincoln.

Things not Generally Known. Edited by David A. Wells, and published by D. Appleton & Co. 1860. pp. 432.

The Pulpit of the American Revolution. Introduction, Notes, &c. by John Wingate Thornton. Gould & Lincoln. 1860. pp. 537. Vindication of New England Churches. By John Wise. Cong. Board of Publication. 1860. pp. 245.

The Benefits of Christ's Death. By Aonio Paleareo. Republished by Gould & Lincoln. 1860. pp. 160.

ARTICLE IX.

SHORT SERMONS.

"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the Gospel to the poor," &c. Isaiah 61: 1; Luke 4: 18, 19.

WHAT a doctrinal, practical, and fervent sermon our Saviour must have preached from this text on his visit to his native town Nazareth! As he showed who were meant by "The Captives," "The Blind," "The Bruised," and brought out clearly the state of the "brokenhearted," the means of "deliverance" and healing, and specially as he pressed now as "the acceptable" time, what mind could have remained uninstructed, and what heart unmoved. "And all bare him witness, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth." It was a solemn sermon, and one to try the heart. And yet the poor, blind, captive souls were not savingly benefited. Such is the "deceitful and desperately wicked" condition of man's heart! They began to say, "Is not this Joseph's son?" And to show them to themselves, Jesus brought out the doctrine of divine sovereignty; whereupon they were filled with murderous wrath, and they could not have remained ignorant of their guilty and lost state. What food for serious reflection and deep feeling is here both for ministers and hearers!

"With whom is no variableness."- James 1: 17.

THE word rendered variableness is in the Greek, mapalay, from which comes the striking astronomical term parallax. The stars that are so inconceivably distant that they appear precisely in the same position from the opposite sides of the earth's orbit, are said to have no parallax, no angle of difference, and so nothing can be told of their size, place, or orbit.

Here is a striking presentation of the immutability of God. No distances of time or place cause him to vary in the least possible angle or degree. To the eye of man on the earth and of Gabriel in glory God is, and will ever be, the same; and it is but natural and right that both should fall on their faces and adore and worship. He dwells in light unapproachable and full of glory. "Praise ye the Lord; praise ye the name of the Lord; praise him, O ye servants of the Lord."

ARTICLE X.

THE ROUND TABLE.

CRUMBS and half-loaves, bits and pieces, odds and ends, this and that, and some other things, seeds and fruits, scions, prunings, and dead sticks, multa et alia, et cetera, will accumulate on an Editorial Table.

We propose to clear and dust ours with the issue of each number of the "REVIEW." This little corner is reserved, in which we may shake hands all round, with or without gauntlet, as others may incline. We mean well, shall try to do well, and only ask a hearing before a verdict.

INFORMATION has been given to some extent in this region that "the anxious friends of some theology in New England, that is older than any now extant, are about to issue a new Boston Review.'

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Older,” very like than any extant in certain limited circles, and so not known to him who has thus kindly volunteered to advertise for us gratuitously. Yet we cannot reconcile this saying with a newspaper campaign of many years against a theology in New England. now assumed to be dead and gone. However, we must not probably always put this and that very close together, even when taken from the same religious sheet. If we publish nothing older than the times of the Apostles, we hope to be pardoned of good men, even if what we present is new to them in their circle.

We have it on the authority of a deacon that a young minister, fresh from seminary lore, being much averse to the preaching of doctrines or principles, soon found it difficult to know what to preach; subjects grew scarce. He finally commenced a course of sermons on Mark 1: 30. "But Simon's wife's mother lay sick of a fever," &c. 1st sermon, Who was Simon? 2d sermon, Simon had a wife. 3d sermon, Who was Simon's wife's mother? 4th sermon, Simon's wife's mother lay sick. 5th sermon, Simon's wife's mother lay sick of a fever.

At the close of the fifth sermon, as he was walking out of the church with one of his good old deacons, the bell unexpectedly struck. Upon the minister's asking the cause, the deacon quietly replied that he did not exactly know, but guessed that Peter's wife's mother was dead, as she had been sick now for several weeks.

WE feel grateful for an unsolicited, though not unexpected, and quite Independent advertisement of our doings and purposes. We feel much inclined to pay the usual price for this more than column of helpful notice, and think another such would put in funds to do it.

Though we were not conscious of conspiring for a "division movement" among the Churches, we doubt not this Religious Journal is right in divining our unborn motives. We receive humbly the rebuke from so peaceful and devout a sheet.

We are also kindly shown by it our wrongdoing in presuming to own and publish a Review in Boston. "There is to be a new Review, and Boston is to be its centre." We confess it, we had forgotten that New England is provincial, and only reserved to produce men and manuscripts and funds to be manifested elsewhere. We ought to have taken counsel, if not permission, of those whose readers and admirers are as numerous as the legions of Titus that beleaguered the Holy City. But we promise to remember.

The only thing in this long advertisement of our doings and plans that calls forth an exclamation-point, is, that there should be any difference of opinion between brethren in "reference to a publication which never yielded any remuneration to its proprietor!" And so it seems strange to some that Christian men should struggle for anything that does not pay in "current money with the merchant." Well, it is a provincial notion, still extant in some parts of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, that some things, as moral and religious principles for example, are worth an effort, even if the labor does not pay in federal currency.

It is news in this out-of-the-way place that "a few years ago" an Independent "appeal to the Churches against a divisive theological controversy, and the exposure of the secret plot, paralyzed the movement to establish the American Theological Review. For that Review was established here, and those who did it do not now recollect the reception of any paralytic shock at the time, though doubtless many shocking things were then done in some places.

We have peculiar, perhaps improper, views and feelings, in being thus judged and condemned in advance of publication. Yet we have always thought much of that profound practical remark of Sidney Smith, that he never read a book before reviewing it, because it prejudices one so.

The Round Table is dusted.

BOSTON REVIEW.

VOL. I.-MARCH, 1861.-No. 2.

ARTICLE I.

THEOLOGY, OLD AND NEW.

“Nulla novitas absque injuria; nam præsentia convellit.”

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Every novelty does some hurt, for it unsettles what is established."

Bacon.

BUNYAN, at the opening of his "Pilgrim's Progress," has crayoned for all time the outlines of the Old and New Theologies. Evangelist, in the old way of the apostles, points the conscience-stricken pilgrim to the wicket-gate and the shining light, putting the parchment-roll into his hand. But after travelling a little way, Christian is met by a Mr. Worldly Wiseman, from the very great town of Carnal Policy, who tells him of a new and pleasanter way.

Worldly Wiseman. But why wilt thou seek for ease this way, seeing so many dangers attend it? Especially since (hadst thou but patience to hear me) I could direct thee to the obtaining of what thou desirest, without the dangers that thou in this way wilt run thyself into. Yea, and the remedy is at hand. Besides, I will add, that instead of those dangers, thou shalt meet with much safety, friendship, and content.

Christian. Sir, I pray open this secret to me.

Worldly Wiseman. Why, in yonder village (the village is named Morality) there dwells a gentleman whose name is Le

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