vain? British Christians! God is conquering Ireland. He has greatly honoured your agents in giving a remarkable stimulus to the public mind. We are plainly on the eve of a mighty crisis. But, to take advantage of this, you must just now furnish much additional assistance. The breach must be entered in force, to do it with effect. He summons you to come up," by your prayers and contributions, to his "help." Remember the poor, perishing Irish. Ponder well the awful words above quoted. Our prayer is, that divine grace may so open your hearts and hands, that, instead of a blighting curse, you may inherit a rich and a lasting blessing. Extracts of a letter to Mr. Green : "January 3, 1844. "After another year of labour, it is pleasant at the commencement of a new one, to know that, at least, we have lost no ground in our attacks upon the kingdom of darkness; and much more pleasant to know that we have made considerable progress, and gained decisive advantages. Let our friends in England not suppose that none are benefited by us but the few whom we report, from time to time, as having been baptized. The reverse of this is the case. I am fully persuaded that many, shall I say, many thousands, still in communion with popery and episcopacy, have received lasting benefit from your mission to Ireland; and that, in the great day of account, thousands of those around us will unite with us in praising and adoring him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood.' We often are dispirited because enlightened Roman Catholics, born, and educated, and impregnated with prejudice in favour of the apostolic, catholic, ancient, venerable, respectable, universal (at least so professed and believed Leicester E. by them) church of Rome, having some vague and undefinable notions about purgatory and transubstantiation, will not at once abandon popery and unite with us. Surely it is cause of great sorrow, that such persons should have imbibed, and in some measure retain such errors; but is there not cause for gratitude and joy, that at the present time there are still in communion with Rome numbers who love and read the Bible, and depend solely upon the atonement for salvation? I rejoice to inform you, that for the last month our meeting-house, both on Thursdays as well as Lord's days, has been well filled with hearers; the congregation is nearly doubled since November. May the Lord grant that it may continue so. On the morning of the new year we had a delightful meeting for prayer and addresses; it was cheering to me to witness the deep tone of piety, and the fervency of the prayers presented on the occasion. Most of the members of the church were present, and many other friends. Our meeting continued from ten till two o'clock, and no anxiety was evinced to separate." Subscriptions, &c. received up to the end of December, 1843. 0 Mr. Bedells 0 10 0 Miss A. Richardson, for schools 0 10 0 Mrs. J. L. Angas. Mr. D. Flintoff. 1 0 0 0 10 0 0 10 0 1 16 0 5 5 0 0 10 0 18 19 0 Mr. Ellingworth Mr. J. Fielding.... Mr. G. Goddard 1 0 0 Mr. J. Rennison ........................ 0 10 0 0 10 0 Mr. R. Pow 0 10 0 Mr. Gould.. Mr. J. D. Harris 0 10 0 R. Harris, Esq. R. Harris, Esq., jun. Mr. H. Hull 0 10 0 0 10 6 050 0 7 6 Baptist church, Rattway-court 4 3 2 Mr. A. Low ...... 2 2 0 1 11 6 Mr. J. Whitmore. Mr. Smith... Small sums South Shields Mr. Bell Small sums 0 17 1 3 2 1 1 1 0 050 050 Subscriptions and Donations thankfully received by the Secretary, Rev. SAMUEL Green, 61, Queen's Row, Walworth; by the Rev. JOSEPH ANGUS, at the Baptist Mission Rooms, 6, Fen Court, Fenchurch-street; and the Rev. STEPHEN DAVIS, 92, St. John-street-road, Islington; by ROBERT STOCK, Esq., 1, Maddox-street, Regent-street, Treasurer; Mr. J. SANDERS, 104, Great Russell-street, Bloomsbury; at the Union Bank, Argyle Place; by the Rev. C. ANDERSON, Edinburgh; the Rev. Mr. INNES, Frederick-street, Edinburgh; by the Rev. C. HARDCASTLE, Waterford; Rev. F. TRESTRAIL, Rock Grove Terrace, Strand-road, Cork; by Mr. J. HOPKINS, Cambridge Crescent, Birmingham; Rev. GEORGE GOULD, 1, Seville Place, Dublin; Rev. W. S. ECCLES, Coleraine; Rev. R. WILSON, Belfast; Rev. G. NEWENHAM WATSON, Limerick; and by any Baptist Minister, in any of our principal towns. J. Haddon, Printer, Castle Street, Finsbury. THE GENERAL BAPTIST REPOSITORY, AND MISSIONARY OBSERVER. No. 63] MARCH, 1844. APOSTOLICAL SUCCESSION. BY J. G. PIKE. Continued from page 38. Their WE have seen that the Scriptures Persons who have to occupy such an office, having received from God qualifications for its discharge, and being the gift of God to his Church, must evidently be led into the ministry by God. All christians who take the Scriptures as their guide, adopt this principle. True christian ministers may be represented as led into the ministry by God in a twofold view; first, and principally, by the promptings of his Spirit, disposing them to consecrate themselves to the Gospel ministry. This doctrine is maintained not by dissenters only, but is fully recognized in the formularies of the EngVOL. 6.-N.S. [NEW SERIES. lish Establishment, whose ministers are required solemnly to declare, that they believe themselves moved by the Holy Ghost to enter on the ministry. In a second and subordinate sense, true christian ministers may be represented as led by God into the ministry, as they are directed by the guidance of his providence. And it must be supposed, that whenever Christ puts a man into the ministry, the events of providence will be so ordered as to set before him an open door. When an individual is found to possess the character and qualifications requisite for the ministry, when he is moved by the Holy Ghost to devote himself to the sacred office, and when the leadings of God's providence unite with these things to evince that he is called of God for that work, the Scriptures sanction the solemn setting apart or ordination of him to his sacred office. This is doing all things decently, and in order. When Barnabas and Saul were going to the Gentiles, the Holy Ghost directed that they should be solemnly separated to the work to which he had called them. (Acts xiii. 2.) On this subject the I New Testament is our guide; yet there are passages in the Old that may have a bearing on it. When Joshua was to be appointed, that he might afterwards take the place of Moses, "the Lord said unto Moses, Take thee Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the spirit, and lay thine hand upon him; and set him before Eleazar the priest, and before all the congregation; and give him a charge in their sight. And thou shalt put some of thine honour upon him, that all the congregation of the children of Israel may be obedient." Ministers who can offer such proofs as those mentioned, that they are called by God, have ample evidence of the validity of their ministry. For their claim to be considered true ministers of Christ, they want no restingplace on the quaking quagmire of apostolical succession, but can rest it on the rock, that God has qualified them for their work, and, by his Spirit and his Providence, has put them into the ministry. In direct opposition to these Scriptural views stand those connected with apostolical succession. According to the Romish Church, and the popish part of the Episcopalian, every man who has been regularly ordained by an Episcopalian bishop, is a true minister of Christ; is qualified to dispense his ordinances, and communicates saving benefits by this ministration; and this he does irrespective of his character, and how unholy soever he may be. While he is reputed a true minister, the most holy and most devoted who have not been thus ordained, are no ministers at all. Dr. Dodd, who was hung for forgery, and others who have been so for much worse crimes, but who were not degraded from their office, were, according to this theory, true ministers of Christ, even under the gallows; but Baxter, and Watts, and Doddridge, and many others like them, were presumptuous intruders into the sacred office. This is the doctrine of apos No tolical succession. Carries it not absurdity and falsehood in its face? passage in God's Word gives it the slightest sanction. In no list of qualifications that fit an individual for the ministry is even a hint given about the ordination on which so much stress is laid, and on which, according to popery and puseyism, every thing, as to the validity and efficacy of the ministry, depends. The line of succession cannot possibly be traced. The consequences of a single failure in the line are tremendous to those who hold the doctrine. What then is the vaunting claim but gross and despicable imposition? Protestants, who have been deluded by the vauntings of the successionists, should further consider, that, if a line could be traced, it must be through the filthy channel of the Church of Rome. If they have any claim of succession, they have it through that Church, which God represents as a blasphemous harlot, with a cup full of abominations and filthiness; a harlot drunk with blood, the blood of God's saints; and whose progeny are like herself, for "she is the mother of harlots, and abominations of the earth.' (Rev. xvii. 5, 6.) Who like may claim connection with her, a christian minister desires it not. If others choose to be linked with her as her sons, he has no wish to be one of them. Many of the popes were monsters of vice; but, if the fancied unction connected with succession exist, it has descended through their line. Is this credible ? Can Satan communicate the gifts of God? If God declared it, we should be bound to believe it, but not till then; yet many of the popes have borne as much of the image of the wicked one as human beings can do in the present world. Has God made them the channel of invaluable blessings, and yet given no hint of such an arrangement? Impossible! The absurdity of apostolical succession is extreme. To suppose that a cere APOSTOLICAL SUCCESSION. mony performed by one person can transform another, who has no qualifications for the Christian ministry, into a minister of Christ, is ineffably absurd. Similar absurdity would be tolerated on no other subject-in no line, profession, or trade. Can a physician make an ignoramus a physician by ordination? Can a shoemaker qualify an ignorant youth for a shoemaker by performing some ceremony upon him; or a farmer take an inhabitant of London, and qualify him by ordination to become a farmer? Such a notion would be received with universal contempt and laughter. Can something equivalent to this be done in religion, a subject of infinitely more consequence than any profession or trade? Does God sanction a mode of making ministers, which men would laugh at, if it were adopted for making tailors or shoemakers? Religion is a reasonable service, and far more reasonable would it be to suppose that a bishop, by the imposition of hands, could transform copper into gold, than to suppose that anything which man can perform can transform an unholy man into a true minister of Christ. A physician of standing and experience may acknowledge a junior brother, may give him testimonials, and put some honor upon him; but, to be a physician, he must first have the qualifications of a physician. Thus a christian minister may, by ordination, acknowledge, as a fellow-labourer, a junior brother. He may give him a sanction, and put honor upon him; but, that he may be a true minister of Christ, he must first have been called by Christ, and have those qualifications for his office, without which, to suppose that ordination would transform him into a minister, would be perfectly absurd. It may be enquired, Is ordination, then, received from a state bishop, of no value? The answer is brief. many cases, where the man was not a christian, it is of none at all. In other cases, where such bishop is a man of God, it has the same value, and may In 75 answer some of the same important ends, as ordination among dissenting Churches. It derives its value, not from the fact that he who ordains is recognized by the state as a bishop, but because he is a minister of Christ; and, on the same ground as that which would attach value to the sanction given by his ordaining, any pastor of standing and experience in the Established Church might, if permitted to do so, ordain also. It The doctrine of apostolical succession is not absurd only, but wicked, being entirely opposed to Scripture in reference to what is requisite to form a christian minister. On its principles, men that are destitute of all the qualifications Christ requires, may, by another man, be made his ministers. This is evidently a wicked position. It carries with it this contradiction to divine truth, that a man can make another a true officer of Christ, who is not yet a servant of Christ, and involves the absurdity and wickedness of supposing, that the devil's servants can be made Christ's officers. It directly contradicts his express declaration, that the teachers who serve him are to be known by their fruits. To this, his solemn declaration, it virtually offers a daring denial. in effect says, You cannot know who are ministers by their fruits, you must know them by their ordination. It equally opposes the Scriptural statements respecting the characters and qualifications of christian pastors. The Scripture asserts, a bishop must have certain qualifications, and of course implies, that without them he cannot be a bishop. This doctrine in effect says, No: he may be without all those qualifications, and yet he may be a true minister, because, by ordination, he has been brought into the line of apostolical descent It goes beyond this in absurdity and wickedness, as it supposes that such a person may not only be a true minister of Christ, but, if an Episcopalian bishop, he may convey to others, and they again to |