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leads its deluded votaries to treat the Orthodox. In some of the preceding sermons, we have seen the sanguinary manner in which they were dealt with, in the Arian ages.

I have been informed, however, that the gentleman in opposition, has availed himself of the death of Servetus, by the concurrence of the deservedly esteemed John Calvin, as an offset to what I have said in relation to the persecution that the Orthodox suffered from the Arians. But that solitary instance of impropriety, on the part of. that great reformer, is a light balance indeed, against the murder of thousands and tens of thousands, who fell under the hands of Anti-Trinitarians, in the fourth and fifth centuries. He is welcome to all the consolation which he can derive from that circumstance, and to all the evidence it affords in his favor. If the Rev. John Calvin is as guilty as he insinuates, we wholly disapprove of his conduct; but much might said in his defence, if it were not a departure from the main subject.

It is, however, well understood, that our opponents lay an almost exclusive claim to candor, benevolence, liberality, and every other moral excellence; while we freely acknowledge our imperfections to be great, in every thing that is excellent. But Dr. Fuller very justly remarks, "that the candor of which the Anti-Trinitarians so largely boast, is pretty much confined to their own party, or to those who are near akin to them. Socinians can be kind to Arians, and Arians to Socinians, and each of them to Deists; but if Calvinists expect to come in for a share, let them not greatly wonder if they be disappointed." hatred they feel to our system, leads them to say many things not very congenial with that charity to which they lay so high a claim. Let us hear Mr. Lindsey in relation to this. He says, "The doctrine of Christ being possessed of two natures, is the fiction of ingenious men, determined

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at all events to believe Christ to be a different being from what he really was, and uniformly declared himself to be; by which fiction of theirs, they clude the plainest declarations of Scripture concerning him, and will prove him to be the most High God, in spite of his own most express and constant language to the contrary. And as there is no reasoning with such persons, they are to be pitied, and considered as being under a debility of mind in this respect."

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In speaking of the celebrated Augustine, one of their writers calls him "a pretended saint, but an illiterate hypocrite, of wicked dispositions." Alas! all his humble confessions could not wipe away, in the view of this writer, the crime of his Trinitarianism. By another of these candid gentlemen, the Orthodox ministers are called "a set of fools and enthusiasts; staring, stamping, and damning in nonsense; whining out the tidings of salvation, telling their auditors that grace is cheap, and works are all an empty bubble." But all this is far exceeded by another of these liberal authors. He says, "I challenge the whole body and being of moral evil itself, to invent, or inspire, or whisper any thing blacker or more wicked; yea, if sin itself had all the wit, the tongues and pens of all men and angels to all eternity, I defy it to say any thing worse of God than this. O sin! thou hast spent and emptied thyself in the doctrine of John Calvin. I renounce the doctrine as the rancor of devils; a doctrine, the preaching of which is babbling and mocking, its prayers blasphemy, and whose praises are the horrible yellings of sin and hell!" This is an awful specimen of candor, liberality, and Christian charity! No doubt, their hatred of the doctrines of grace is great; neither do we suppose that their feelings are very pleasant in relation to those who inculcate them. This is human nature-" enmity against God;" and,

therefore, all our resentment should be prayers and tears. It is important, however, that we should guard against a system which leads to such feelings and expressions. We know who hath told us, "Ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake." Let us, therefore, say like Him, "Father forgive them; for they know not what they do." In relation to such a virulent spirit, we should remember that inspired saying, "And such were some of you." The brightest of the saints have once been "children of wrath, even as others." This is a humbling consideration, and calculated to produce in our hearts the law of kindness, even towards enemies. The voice of God to us is, "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamor, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice; and be ye kind one to another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you." Eph. 4. 31, 32. For "the fruit of the Spirit is love, peace, long suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance." Gal. 5. 22, 23. The religion of Christ teaches us, "Not to be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another."

We have our doubts, whether the system of our opponents leads to such a spirit; but if it does, it will appear, notwithstanding all that we can say. To the judgment of candid observers, therefore, the systems must be submitted which we profess to believe, in relation to their moral tendency. In faithfulness, we must deny the truth of their scheme, and the possibility of being Christians with such principles; and these things will, of course, subject us in their view, to the charge of bigotry and superstition. But nothing which they can either say or do, will justify us in bringing against them, "a railing accusation." It behoves us to show, by the meekness of our temper, and the propriety of all our sayings, the purifying tendency of the doctrines we profess. We may, however,

have an unfavorable opinion of a doctrinal system, and of its moral tendency, without having any unkind feelings to its advocates.

7. We will proceed to show how the Anti-Trinitarian system leads men to neglect the everlasting concerns of the soul. In relation to this, they, in general, appear to express very little anxiety. A revival of religion, is a thing unknown in their connection. A change of opinion in favor of their scheme, is all the conversion they seem to wish to produce. With such a change, in connection with a common degree of morality, they appear to be entirely satisfied. They seem to have no conception of the nature and necessity of that, which the Scriptures call "A new heart." Many of them wholly deny the separate exisence of the soul.

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The doctrine of materiality is strongly advocated by Dr. Priestley, and it seems to be very generally received by the Anti-Trinitarian fraternity. By that philosophy, there is not an immaterial spirit connected with the body, and all mental operations, result from the peculiar modification and organization of mere matter. That system, of course, will lead its adherents to believe, that the mind is wholly suspended by death, until the resurrection. It is not the design to attempt a confutation of that theory at present that is reserved for a subsequent discussion. It is sufficient for my present purpose, just to observe, that this philosophy may be one thing, that leads to that religious indifference, which seems to pervade the whole Anti-Trinitarian denomination. On this ground, there is nothing to excite either hope or fear, between death and the resurrection; and such impressions may very naturally lead to a secret hope, that none of mankind will ever be disturbed from the repose of the grave. Be that, however, as it may, it is very obvious that there is but little religious

concern among those who believe in the Anti-Trinitarian doctrine. Who ever heard of one of them asking that solemn question, "What shall I do to be saved?" Who ever saw such an inquirer, with an unshaken belief of that doctrine? This would not be the case, if the system had any tendency to produce serious reflections. No one on that side of the question, appears to be burdened with a sense of guilt, nor with a sense of his need of sovereign mercy. In relation to eternal concerns, a remarkable ease appears on every countenance. The preaching of the Apostles certainly produced very different effects on the minds of men. How can this be accounted for, on the supposition that the system in question is truly evangelical? That Trinitarian doctrines very frequently move the hearts of men, and alter their lives, are facts that cannot be very easily denied. But why should falsehood now have such an effect as truth once had, and truth be heard at present with a cold indifference? May we not expect similar effects under similar causes, in all ages? This difficulty must hang like a dead weight on the Anti-Trinitarian system, in the view of impartial observers ?

Under the preaching of St. Peter, on the day of Pentecost, his numerous audience" were pricked in their heart;" three thousand were converted, and added to the church in one day. No such seal of heaven has ever been set to the preaching of the Anti-Trinitarian theory, in any age. If I saw such glorious effects flowing from it, I should not venture, to oppose the thing. It is really surprising that any arguments should be thought necessary to convince men, that there is no truth in a system, that is as barren of all good fruit as the deserts of Africa! The finger of God is evidently pointed against it in every generation, by refusing to accompany its promulgation with his blessing.

It seems, that the simple humanity of Christ, and deny

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