The Eclectic review. vol. 1-New [8th]

act done by the sinner:-such is the habitude of my Hibernian intellect. Indeed the only difference between you, for instance, and the grossest advocates for justification by works, appears to me plainly to be this; that you conceive the thing to be done for justification in the sight of God, is a mental act, while they conceive it to be what is called in common parlance-an outward good life.

Now, Sir, it is very easy for an anonymous writer in a Review to assert that this simple reasoning is "almost facetious"-" meant to turn the whole subject of justification by faith to ridicule"-that it "hardly deserves a serious answer," &c. &c. But let me observe to you, that such assertions are no argument; though perhaps the most successful way of opposing truth. The more absurd my reasoning is, the more easily may it be exposed by fair reasoning. I invite you to the attempt, but I suspect you will find it too hard for

you.

I am the more confirmed in this suspicion, when I look at the little scrap of Eclectic logic,-(I will not call it English: for I would leave the illiberality of such national sneers to the privileged order of writers who assume the office of Reviewers)-which you condescend to employ against my " Hibernian logic." You say"the reasoner would hardly deny that hearing...is an act of the mind." It must amuse you greatly to be told, that I do seriously deny it. In hearing there is an impression made on my bodily organs, and conveyed to my mind: but in receiving that impression, I have learned from Mr. Locke-(who I suppose was of Irish extraction)that I am perfectly passive; that I cannot help receiving the impression, and cannot alter or modify it. Your logic may have taught you otherwise. But pardon me for requesting that you will forbear the exercise of your active powers, the first time a pistol is fired off by your ear, and try not to hear it. You seem indeed to have had some misgiving about the assertion that hearing is an act of the mind; for you immediately subjoin the term listening, as if the two things were equivalent. In listening, Sir, the man is active, in so far as he endeavours to dispose his organs so as to catch the sound. Yet even then, in hearing the sound, I do assert, that the mind does nothing. Probably you may perceive in this distinction materials for a very fine. popular sermon on the nature of the thing to be done by a sinner in order to justification.

One word on my meaning "to turn the doctrine of justification by faith into ridicule." What is commonly put forward under that name by the class of divines called evangelical, I view as a doctrine at once wicked and absurd-most wicked, as an insidious corruption. of the most important scriptural truth; and most absurd, as outraging every principle of right reason, and as utterly inconsistent with various principles which they themselves verbally acknowledge. I therefore consider myself not only bound to expose its contrariety. with the word of God, but at full liberty to mark its ridiculous absurdity. This however is a very different thing from turning the. blessed doctrine of justification by faith into ridicule.

As to the Rev. James Carlile's remarks on my sentiments, though you vouch for their justice, it would be very easy to expose the so

phistry and misrepresentation, on which they proceed: and perhaps I may sometime or another take occasion to do so. But I confess I have never yet looked at his book; though I was informed on its first appearance that he had done me the honour of attacking me. I am, Sir,

Yours, &c. &c.

JOHN WALKER.

It will not be necessary for us to comment at any length upon this Letter. The representation given of Mr. Walker's sentiments in the article referred to, was founded on a passage cited by Mr. Carlile, in his Notes, from "Remarks on certain Questions proposed to the serious Consideration of the Disciples of Christ connected with the Congregational Churches in Scotland, &c. By John Walker.” It oëcurs in note 11 to that tract. Mr. Walker's admission, that * an argument substantially similar' does occur in some of his pieces, though he cannot recollect in which, is a sufficient verification of the citation.

It is but too evident from Mr. Walker's letter, that Mr. Carlile did not misunderstand his language. He admits that, in listening, the ⚫ man is active; then, listening is, by his own shewing, an act done;' and an act, he says, is a work.' If justification follows upon a person's listening to the gospel, therefore, he is justified, it seems, by a work. We would not willingly draw down upon our heads a second epistle from our correspondent; but this, so far as we can understand him, is his notion: That the doctrine of justification by free grace, is absolutely nullified, if faith be consequent on a man's ⚫endeavouring to dispose his organs so as to catch the sound' of the Gospel. We certainly do not feel it necessary to undertake the refutation of this opinion.

That the Scriptural meaning of faith in Christ, is, merely be⚫lieving the testimony contained in the Scriptures concerning Christ," is a position which Mr. Walker is strangely mistaken in supposing peculiar to the Sandemanians. The Reviewer maintains the same thing. Were this all that Mr Walker contended for, he would speedily find himself in the mortifying predicament of not having an opponent to contend with among the popular divines. But, unfortunately for himself, to this point he does not confine his polemical zeal.

Mr. Walker may deem the only difference' between us and the grossest advocates for justification by works, a very slight and unimportant one; since he recognises no distinction between a meritorious cause and a necessary condition. To most persons, this difference will appear in another light. And here we are content that the matter should rest. A writer who, while professing himself a Protestant Christian, has no milder epithets to bestow on the doctrine of ⚫ the class of divines called evangelical' than wicked' and ' absurd,' is not a man to be reasoned with upon ordinary principles.

GENERAL INDEX.

VOL. XIX. NEW SERIES.

Alexander I., Napoleon's opinion of, 135.
Alexander's family bible, 376, et seq.;
prospectus of the work, 376; alleged
indelicacy of the authorized version,
ib.; injudicious variations in the pre-
sént revision, 377; specimens of metri-
cal arrangement, 378; want of unifor-
mity in the rendering of Jehovah, 379;
general remarks on the work, 380.
America, state of religion in, 58, 66;
see Bristed.

America, travels in, see Franklin and
James.

Analogy, remarks on, 24, 5.

Angels, remarks on the use of the word
in the New Testament, 515.
Apocalypse, remarks on the design of
the, 220.

'Arabic, easy method of acquiring the
reading of, 285.

Architecture, Greek and Roman, cha-
racterized, 273, 540; see Elmes;
moral origin of, 312.

Architects, British, notices of, 274, 547.
Arctic regions, Franklin's journey in,
521, et seq.

Armenian cemetery, description of, 309.
Armenians, account of the, 446.
Atonement, Socinian view of the, refuted,
399.

Attributes, Divine, Burder on the, 351.

Babylon, remarks on the ruins of, 302,

et seq.
Bagdad, description of, 300.
Belsham's translation of Paul's epistles,
385, et seq.; 502, et seq.; activity of
modern unitarians, 385; the epistles
not much in favour with the sect, 387;
author's assertion of their Divine autho-
rily, ib.; his theory of interpretation,
388; prima facie objection to it, 389;
import of the word ' sinners,' ib.; re-
futation of Locke's criticism, 390; the

term sinner never used in a national
sense, 591; author's hypothesis as to
the import of justification, 393; its
palpable inconsistency with the Scrip-
ture doctrine of reconciliation, 394;
and with the nature of Christian pri-
vileges, ib.; author's application of Tay-
lor's system of justification by faith, 395;
inconsistency of author's representa-
tions as to the justification of the hea-
then, 396; author's attempts to lower
the design and efficacy of the death of
Christ, 398; force of the word propi-
tiation, 399; specimens of author's
translation compared with the improv-
ed version, 502; his reading of Rom.
ix. 5. an instance of making Scripture,
502; readings of 1 Cor. i. 30, 503;
Eph. ii. 1-5, 1 Tim. v. 21, Heb. ii, 16,
ib.; remarks on the phrase "call upon
the name of the Lord," 504; author's
note on 2 Cor. xii. 9, 505; remarks on
Stephen's invocation of our Lord,
506; on Paul's interview with Christ,
ib.; on his supplications to Christ on
behalf of the Thessalonians, 507; on
the supposition of a real personal pre-
sence of Christ during the apostolic
age, ib.; author's gloss on 2 Cor. viii.
9, and Phil. ii. 7, 8, examined, 508;
personality of the Spirit vindicated
from author's sophistry, 510; author's
gloss on Rom. viii. 14-16, 511; the
gifts of the Spirit of a moral nature,
512; true character of the man of sin,
513; design of the epistle to the He-
brews, 514; version of Heb. i. 1-4,
ib.; on the use of the word angels, 515;
list of passages in which it occurs,
516; note on Gal. iii. 19, ib. ; author's
criticisms exposed, ib.; on the sup-
posed relevancy of Christ's example
on the Socinian hypothesis, 518; ge-
neral character of the work, ib.;

proofs of bias in the translator, 519;
author's notions of a purgatory, 520.
Bible, the, Alexander's new version of,
376.

Society, Norris's charges against
the, exposed, 75, et seq.; see Schole-
field.

Bible teacher's manual, 188, et seq.; im-
portance of a literal acquaintance with the
Scriptures, 189.

Biblical illustrations, 171; see Belsham,
Burder, Gisborne.

Body and Soul, 283-5; objections
which lie against religious novels, 283;
avowed object of the author to coun-
teract evangelical religion, ib. ; carica-
ture of certain gloomy religionists, ib.;
establishments rest on an alliance be-
tween religion and the world, 284; ri-
baldry and profaneness of the author,
285.

Bonaparte, memoirs of, 113, 313; see
Napoleon.

Bonar's observations on the conduct of
Judas Iscariot, 87, et seq.; the tract
recommended by Dr. Doddridge, 87;
exceptions to its statements as regard
the views of Judas, 88; Macknight's
remarks on the probable motives of the
traitor, ib.; Bishop Porteus's view of
the case, 89; true explanation of his
conduct, ib.

Bore, the, phenomenon of, 51.
Borrenstein's tables of the Syriac and

Arabic characters, 285.
Bracebridge Hall, 233, et seq.; effect
produced on the public by the Sketch
Book, 233; author's farewell to England,
234; comparative merit of the pre-
sent work, 236; English scenery, ib. ;
remarks on the English character, 237;
Dame Heyliger's shop, 239; her son
Dolph, 248; his introduction to Dr.
Knipperhausen, 241; a rainy Sunday at
an inn, 242; the rookery, 243.
'Brown's memoirs of Hervey, 456, 7;

character of Hervey's writings, 456;
his want of success as a preacher, 457.
Bowles's grave of the last Saxon, 562,

et seq.; notice of author's controversy
with Lord Byron, 562; author's son-
nets, ib.; want of compresion the
fault of his blank verse, 563; the
present poem a failure, ib. ; song of
the spirits, ib.; speech of Edgar-Atheling,
564; defects of the story, 565; even-
ing scene, ib.; song, 566.
Bowring's details of an arrest, &c. 548,
et seq.; grounds of the decision of the
English government, 548; opinion of

French counsel, ib.; the principle of
non-interference unsound, 549; conse-
quences of the alien bill, 550; its opera-
tion distinguished from Mr. Bowring's
case, 551.

Bristed on the Anglican and Anglo-
American churches, 53, et seq.; real
nature of the point at issue relative to
church polity, 53; episcopacy dis-
relished if divest of power, 54; cha-
racter of Wilks's "correlative claims
and duties," ib.; importance of the in-
quiry to America, 54; pedigree and
early life of the author, ib.; bishop
Mant the head of a school rebellion, ib. ;
reasons for not entering the church, 56;
bishop Warburton's theory of alliance, un-
scriptural, ib.; test and corporation acts
impolitic, 57; present state of the Ameri-
can episcopal church, 58; character of
the author's performance, 59; state of
the Irish church an argument against
church establishments, ib.; more evange-
lical piely out of, than in the church of
England, 60; obligations of society to
English dissenters, 61; the Anglican
church a persecutor of evangelical religion,
62; "Christian observer's" apology for
the act of uniformity exposed, 63; infi-
delity in England prevalent before the
French revolution, 64; moral effici-
ency of an establishment to be exa-
mined apart from the religious insti-
tutions independent on it, ib.; com-
plaints of pious churchmen on the subject
of patronage an argument against church
establishments, 65; case of Thomas Scott,
ib.; numbers of clergy in America,
66; question of supply and demand
in respect to religions instruction, ib. ;
episcopal church of America the least effi
cient in the country, 67; reasons for not
wishing the subversion of existing esta-
blishments, 68.

Burder (H. F.) on the attributes, 351, et
seq.; the Divine attributes not suffici-
ently dwelt on by modern divines,
352; advantages of preaching in a
series, 353; merits of the volume, ib. ;
nature of future blessedness and prospect
of the impenitent as arising from the
eternity of God, 354; Divine patience
illustrated in reference to idolatry, 356;
Divine sovereignty, ib.

Burder's (Sam.) oriental literature, 170,
et seq.; verbal coincidences often mis-
taken for legitimate illustration of
Scripture, 171; instances of critical
trifling, ib.; on the phrase daughter
of Zion,' 172; illustration of Psalm xlv.

6, ib.; other exceptionable illustra-
tions, 173.

Butler's, Bishop, definition of piety ex-
amined, 106.

Byron's, lord, 'heaven and earth,' notice
of, 216; exhausted appearance of the
author's mind, ib.

Werner, 136, 148, et seq.;
his lordship's public character con-
trasted with that of lord John Russell,
136; argument of the poem, 148;
merits of Miss Lee's original, ib.;
dialogue between Werner and his wife,
149; remarks on the character of
Werner, 153; injudicious deviations
from Kruitzner,' ib. ; fine apostrophe
to a diamond, 154; the poem a confir-
mation of the opinion that the author
has not the dramatic faculty, 155.

Calvinism, tendency of, vindicated from

Dr. Copleston's charges, &c. 22, 261;
indecency of inveighing against, 232.
Campan's, madame, memoirs of Marie
Antoinette, 415, et seq.; licentiousness
of the court of France under Louis XV.,
415; anecdote of the seduction of mile.
de Romans, 416; atrocious abduction of
mile. Tiercelin, 417; absurd etiquette of
the princess's toilet, ib.; character of
Marie Antoinette, 418; account of
mad. Campan, 419; description of
the four daughters of Louis XV., ib.;
eliquette of their daily interviews with the
king, 420; dexterity of the king in break-
ing eggs, 421; author's first introduction
to the king, ib.; sequel to the history
of mad. Campan, ib.; ominous cir-
cumstances connected with the life of
Marie Antoinette, 422; affecting anec-
dote, 423; fatal influence of the abbe
de Vermond, ib.; first appearance at
court, of the dauphiness, 424; death of
Louis XV., ib.; description of Louis
XVI., 425; remarks on author's apo-
logy for the queen's levity of conduct,
ib.; anecdote of the queen's milliner,
426; man with the iron mask, ib.; in-
fluence of the Polignac family, 427;
anecdote of Gluck and Vestris, ib.; anec-
dote of Necker, 428; disastrous choice
of the archbishop of Sens as minister,
429; anecdote of the queen, ib. ; conduct
of the court at the commencement of
the revolution, 430; noble conduct of
Barnave, ib.; grossness and weakness
of the king, 431; storming of the
Tuileries, 432.

Carlile's sermons on repentance and
faith, 327, et seq.; author's illustration
of Mr. Walker's sophism, 331; his own

view of faith contradictory, ib.; cor-
rectness of his representation of the
efficacy of faith as derived from the
truth it introduces into the soul, 340;
his distinction between faith and belief
inadmissible, ih. ; reluctance of men to
submit to the Divine testimony, 341; con-
tents of the volume, 342..
Carrington's banks of Tamar, 459; lines
on Christmas Morn, 465; author's ac-
count of his circumstances, 467; the
holiday, 468; scenery of mount Edge-
cumbe, 469; ship-launch, 470; scene on
the Tamar, 471; tower near the Weir,
472; merits of the poem, 473.
Chateaubriand, character of, 321.
Churches, remarks on the architecture
of, 544, et seq.;

Clarke's history of intolerance, vol. ii.,
450, et seq.; contents and character of
the work, 450; respective inconsistency
of Mohammedans and Christians, ib.;
mahommedism more Christian than
popery, 451; spread of mahommedism
to be accounted for only on this prin-
ciple, 452; Christianity innocent of
sanctioning intolerance, 453; protes
lantism not the originator of heresies, ib. ;
schisms quite as numerous before the
reformation, 454; scriptural nature of
keresy and schism, ib.; heresy and
schism equally chargeable on national
and sectarian churches, 455.
Collet's relics of literature, 357, et seq.;
the nonsense of one age the wisdom of
another, 357; toleration, an American
apologue, 358; the snow-spirit, a poem,
360; character of Wilmot, earl of
Rochester, ib,; letters to his lady, 361;
letter from a condemned criminal offering
to sell his body, ib.; manuscript diary,
1772, 4, 362; we have a Douglas yet,
364.
Confessions of an opium-eater, 366, el
seq.; character of the work, 366; re-
cords of opium-eaters, 367; early
history of the author, ib.; origin of his
contracting the habit, 368; his absurd
denial of the intoxicating power of
opium, ib.; case of a surgeon, 369;
case of an old whiskey drinker, ib.;
author's own case examined, 370; ef-
fects of the practice on the consti-
tution, ib. ; immoral tendency of the
work, 371.
Copleston's remarks on objections to his
inquiry, 18, et seq.; state of the con-
troversy, 18; author charged by Mr.
Grinfield with eating up his words respect-
ing archbishop King, 19; his attempt to
account for the morality of predestinarians

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