taught that "Christ is the Saviour of the body," that is, of "the church" (Ephes. v. 23.). He is only said to save the church: there is no promise beyond it. It is said that "Without faith it is impossible to please God" (Heb. xi. 6.); but "how shall men believe in him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher, and how shall they preach except they be sent ?" (Rom. x. 14, 15.). Therefore there is ordinarily no faith and no salvation except through the teaching of God's ministers; but these ministers are only in the church. "God hath set some in the church; first, apostles; secondarily, prophets; thirdly, teachers," &c. (1 Cor. xii. 28.). In fine, this doctrine is directly taught in the following passage: "The Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved" (Acts ii. 47.). Therefore the way of salvation is by divine appointment to be found in the church only.

Such indeed has been at all times the tradition of the Christian community. Theophilus of Antioch says: "God hath given unto the world troubled with waves and storms through sin, those congregations called holy churches, in which, as in secure island havens, the truth is taught; where those who desire salvation take refuge "." Origen says: "Let no one persuade himself, let no one deceive himself: without this house, that is, without the church, no one is saved "' The martyr Cyprian says: "That man cannot have God for his

father who has not the church for his mother.

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If any

one could escape the deluge out of Noah's ark, he who is out of the church may also escape He cannot be a martyr who is not in the church, he cannot come to the kingdom, who deserts that which is to reign "." Augustine continues the chain of tradition thus: "No one cometh to salvation and eternal life, except he who hath Christ for his Head; but no one can have Christ for his Head, except he that is in his body, the church "." Fulgentius observes, that " Without this church neither doth the name of Christian help in any degree, nor doth baptism save, nor is a clean sacrifice offered to God, nor is remission of sins received, nor is the felicity of eternal life found"." These are indeed the sentiments of all the fathers and doctors of the church. I shall only add the testimony of two councils. The synod of Zerta (A.D. 412) said: "Whosoever is separated from this catholic church, however innocently he may think he lives; for this crime alone, that he is separated from the unity of Christ, will not have life, but the wrath of God remaineth on him "." The fourth council

"Habere jam non potest Deum Patrem, qui ecclesiam non habet matrem. Si potuit evadere quisquam qui extra arcam Noë fuit; et qui extra Ecclesiam foris fuerit, evadit."-Cypr. de Unit. p. 254, ed. Pamel.

y" Esse martyr non potest, qui in ecclesia non est: ad regnum pervenire non poterit, qui eam quæ regnatura est, derelinquit." -Ibid. p. 257.

"Ad ipsam vero salutem ac vitam æternam nemo pervenit, nisi qui habet caput Christum. Habere autem caput Christum nemo poterit, nisi qui in ejus corpore fuerit, quod est eccle

b

of Carthage (A.D. 398) directed, that every bishop before his ordination, should be questioned, "whether he believes that there is no salvation beyond the church ."

We are not to suppose that this was the opinion of Christians in the primitive ages only: it has been generally admitted in later times. The doctrine of salvation in the church, was held by all the Lutherans and Reformed, and by the sects which separated from them; as well as by the Romish and other churches. Luther teaches that remission of sins and sanctification are only obtained in it; and Calvin says, "beyond the bosom of the church no remission of sins is to be hoped for, nor any salvation." The Saxon confession presented to the synod of Trent, 1551, the Helvetic confession', the Belgic, the Scottish", all avow that salvation is only to be had in the Church. The Presby

Dei manet super eum."-Concil. Zertense, Harduini Concilia, tom. i. p. 1203.

"Quærendum etiam ab eo .... si extra ecclesiam catholicam nullus salvetur."-Conc. Carthag. iv. cap. i. Harduini Concilia, tom. i. p. 978.

d Luther, speaking of the church, says, "extra hanc Christianitatem, ubi huic evangelio locus non est, neque ulla est peccatorum remissio, quemadmodum nec ulla sanctificatio adesse potest." - Catechismus Major, P. ii. Symbol. Apost. art. iii.

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Quia nunc de visibili ecclesia disserere propositum est, etc. . . . Extra ejus gremium nulla est speranda peccatorum remissio, nec ulla salus, teste Iesaia (37, 32) et Joele (2, 32); quibus subscribit Ezechiel (13, 9)," etc.Calvin. Institut. iv. 1.

e Conf. Sax., art. xii. De eccl. f "Communionem vero cum ecclesia Christi vera tanti faci

mus, ut negemus eos coram Deo vivere posse, qui cum vera Christi ecclesia non communicant, sed ab ea se separant; nam ut extra arcam Noë non erat ulla salus... ita credimus, extra Christum, qui se electis in ecclesia fruendum præbet, nullam esse salutem certam."-Conf. Helvet., art. xvii. de Ecclesia.

g" Credimus quod cum. extra eam nulla sit salus, neminem....sese ab eo subducere ut seipso contentus separatim degat: sed omnes pariter teneri huic se adjungere, eique uniri, Ecclesiæ unitatem conservare," &c.-Conf. Belgica, art. xxviii.

h" Extra quam Ecclesiam nec est vita, nec æterna felicitas."Conf. Scot., art. xvi.

terian Divines assembled at Westminster, A.D. 1647, in their "Humble Advice concerning a Confession of Faith," (chap. xxv.) declare that "the visible church which is also Catholique or Universal under the Gospel (not confined to one nation as before under the Law), consists of all those throughout the world that profess the true religion, together with their children: and is the kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ, the house and family of God, out of which there is no ordinary possibility of salvation." The Independents admitted the same. Dr. Owen, their principal writer, says: "It is required that we believe that the Lord Christ hath had in all ages, and especially hath in that wherein we live, a church on the earth, confined unto no places nor parties of men, no empires nor dominions, or capable of any confinement; as also that this church is redeemed, called, sanctified by him; that it is his kingdom, his interest, his concernment in the world; that thereunto all the members of it, all the promises of God do belong and are confined; that this church he will save, preserve, and deliver from all oppositions, so as that the gates of hell shall not prevail against it; and after death will raise it up, and glorify it at the last day. This is the faith of the catholic church concerning itself; which is an ancient fundamental article of our religion. And if any one deny that there is such a church, called out of the world, separated from it, unto which alone, and all the members of it, all the promises of God do appertain in contradistinction unto all others, or confines it unto a party, unto whom these

i This confession was approved by the Scottish Presbyterians in their assembly, 1647; and being

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ratified by their Parliament in 1690, it is still received by them and their collateral societies.

things are not appropriate, he cuts himself off from the communion of the church of Christ." Even the Quakers admit "that out of the church there is no salvation," though they hold that "there may be members of this catholic church among Heathens, Turks, Jews!" "Beyond all question," say the Dissenters, "the church, and the church only, will be finally saved; the church, and the church alone, is the pillar and ground of truth; the church, and nothing but the church, secures a living and faithful ministry':

The British churches hold salvation as inseparably connected with the church only. Thus in the office of baptism we pray, that the person to be baptized may be "washed and sanctified with the Holy Ghost, that he, being delivered from thy wrath, may be received into the ark of Christ's church, and being stedfast in faith, &c. may so pass the waves of this troublesome world, that finally he may come to the land of everlasting life:" here the church of Christ is represented as the ark in which alone we obtain salvation. We afterwards pray, that "with the residue of thy holy church he may be an inheritor of thine everlasting kingdom;" evidently implying that the church only shall inherit the kingdom of heaven. And in the collect for Good Friday we pray "for all Jews, Turks, infidels, and heretics, that they may be fetched home to God's flock, that they may be saved among the remnant of the true Israelites;" evidently implying that salvation is not found out of the church of Christ. Indeed the contrary doctrine of those who say "that

j Owen's True Nature of a

Gospel Church, chap. xi.

* Barclay, prop. x. p. 273.

1 Library of Ecclesiastical Knowledge: Essays on Ch. Polity, vol. ii. p. 367.