tion of a large pamphlet upon the subject of Revision about to be published by this distinguished divine, and gives this extract from the preface as a specimen of its spirit and aim:

"The General Assembly of 1889 has opened a new chapter in the history of American theology. This chapter involves some of the profoundest problems that have exercised the human mind since the days of St. Paul, and have never yet been satisfactorily solved.

"The Presbyterian Creed Revision movement is inspired by the central truth of God's saving love to all men (John fii, 16), and the corresponding duty of preaching the Gospel to every creature, in obedience to Christ's last command (Mark xvi, 15; Matt. xxviii, 19, 20). This truth and duty have taken a deeper hold on the mind and heart of the living Church than ever before, and must overrule the particularism and exclusivism of the Augustinian and Calvinistic system, with its doctrines of reprobation, preterition, and the wholesale damnation of the non-Christian world.

The movement cannot be traced to any individual, nor to any theological school or party; nor has it any leader. Like the kingdom of heaven, it has come without observation.' It has broken out suddenly, though not without long, silent preparation, and is spreading with astonishing rapidity over the Presbyterian churches in Europe and America, among laymen as well as ministers. The participation of intelligent elders in the discussion is a striking feature which distinguishes it from earlier theological controversies.

"The discussion has been conducted so far with admirable Christian temper. May its further progress give an example to the world that theologians can engage in a tournament of thought as courteous and honorable gentlemen, 'with malice toward none, with charity for all.' In battling against each other, they also battle for a common end, the promotion of truth which both have at heart, with all good men, as the supreme object of their desire.

"I was unexpectedly, though not unwillingly, drawn into this discussion. I take my stand on the side of a revision of the Westminster Creed, in accordance with the advanced stage of theology and Christianity; as some years ago I took an active part in the revision of the English Version of the Bible. The two movements are parallel, and look to the same end."

WHERE WILL IT LEAD?-A very common objection to Revision among Presbyterians just now is this: "If we begin this business we don't know where it will stop, nor where the Church

will find herself at the end of it." Does it never occur to these brethren that this is precisely the path of faith in which all good men and the Church at large have been called to walk from the beginning? This was just Abram's case. He was told to go out "not knowing whither he went." It is sufficient to know in such a matter that the first step is right, and that God bids us to take it. He will show us the next step, and we can afford to leave all the consequences with Him.

ONE of the chief causes of the blindness and confusion which now reigns in the Church's eschatology is that she has forsaken the true and Scriptural ground of faith in a future life for man, namely: the hope of a resurrection of the dead, and placed it on the false ground of the intrinsic immortality of the human soul.

ANY system of theology which, in order to preserve its consistency, is compelled to make resurrection an infinitely worse calamity than death, is its own refutation. It thereby commits felo de se.

IF death be the wages of sin, and if resurrection be due to the ransom given for all, what a reductio ad absurdum to hold that the resurrection of any class of mankind is only for the purpose of doubling their wages?

In the discussion upon Revision in the Philadelphia Presbytery Dr. J. S. McIntosh said rightly that the whole system of the Confession was founded upon the assumed fact that the whole of mankind by the fall forfeited all claim for life or for mercy, and passed under the just judgment of God. He had a perfect right, therefore, to choose a portion as vessels of mercy and to pass by the rest.

But now, as to the claim of the race upon the divine compassion, the record shows that right upon the fall this compassion was shown in the promise of a seed of the woman to bruise the serpent's head. A little further on in the history, this promise is

expanded and thrice repeated as conveying blessing to "all the families of the earth." Whether mankind as such had any claim on the divine compassion we do not care to dispute about. The fact is such compassion toward the race was immediately put in exercise.

Moreover, the Calvinistic system proceeds upon the strict literalistic interpretation of the record of "the fall." That interpretation is now compelled to justify itself in the face of all that science teaches about a pre-historic man, about the long periods of his existence on the earth, about the proofs furnished by evolution of his progressive development. The idea of a race-probation has now to be supplemented, at least, with the idea of a race education. It is too late for the old system to fall back upon the idea of logical completeness and self-sufficiency.

A LOOSE PHRASE.-An illustration of the loose use of an important phrase was afforded in a lecture by Miss Edwards, the distinguished Egyptologist, to which we listened at Association Hall. The lecturer was speaking in a very interesting way of the religion of ancient Egypt, and made the point that that people were the first to arrive at a distinct faith in the immortality of the soul. Her subsequent remarks, however, showed that they did not believe in its intrinsic immortality, but only in the survival of the soul after bodily death and in its capacity for immortality. For, in describing the well-known ordeal before Osiris, given in the Book of the Dead, she told how the righteous were admitted to the regions of the blest and ultimately obtained immortality through union with Deity, while the wicked were consigned to the infernal regions, where the soul was torn and destroyed by demons and so lost immortality.

The phrase "immortal soul" is constantly used in this same loose way, as sometimes denoting that the soul survives the death of the body, and more often as asserting that it is inherently imperishable. It would be well for controversialists on this subject to agree precisely beforehand upon what meaning they attach to

terms.

EXTRACTS FROM LETTERS.

NEWCASTLE-ON-TYNE, Dec. 11th, 1889.

DEAR BRO. BAKER: Accept of my hearty congratulations on completion of another volume of W. of R. and my sincere Godspeed to its successor. If you compare your position with that of those who advocate popular error, I can understand your "lonesomeness," but we must never forget that "the truth" Himself was left alone"-literally so far as man was concerned—and that He said, "yet, I am not alone, because the Father is with me." The Father would have us adequately appreciate the truth, and a man never seems to do that until he sees it to be the "one pearl of great price," and is prepared to sell all that he has in order that he may buy it. That was our blessed Lord's estimate of it. May it be ours also.

During this year I have looked for your monthly with great interest, and pondered its pages, I hope, with some profit. By way of trying to widen its circle I have posted regularly, on arrival, one copy to the "Vicar" of the parish where I do business, one to the "Rector" of the parish where I reside, one to a Baptist minister, two I have loaned or given away, as opportunities have occurred, and one, of course, I have kept for my own use. Inclosed, please find P. O. O. 18s. 9d. for six copies again, monthly, during 1890. I mean to put them before another batch of readers, and so try to awaken attention to their contents. I wish I could pay for more that I might scatter them widely.

Next to the resurrection of the dead as the hope of creation, a more adequate idea of Divine Judgment needs to be given to theologians. Their general idea appears to be according to a human model. A man is charged with a crime, he is arrested, witnesses for and against him are heard, and he is acquitted or condemned. If condemned, in due time the sentence is executed, and there the matter ends. As a model of Divine procedure could anything be more defective? That is a process with consequents but

no antecedents! In contradistinction to that, Divine Judgment is a process with both antecedents and consequents; and the former are as indispensable as the latter. In the first record of Divine Judgment its antecedents can be clearly traced and distinctly enumerated. When Adam was formed his organism was sound and evenly balanced, his life was untainted and adequate, his lordship extended over all his surroundings, and the law given to him was plain, positive, and Divine, as well as sanctioned by a fearful penalty. These were antecedents of his fatal transgression, and these added to that were antecedents of the Divine Judgment in his case. That being the first record of Divine Judgment it must be taken as the archetype of the biblical idea throughout, so long as there is nothing to the contrary. Where then is there anything analogous to be found in the case of Adam's progeny? From Adam to Moses there was no sin "after the similitude of Adam's transgression," and from Moses to Christ there was no law given that could give life, and life must be obtained before anything else can be required. Again: the president of a human tribunal is only a judge, and is occupied solely with the condemnation or acquittal of the prisoner before him. In contradistinction to that the President of the Divine tribunal is always more than a judgeHe is at the same time Prophet, Priest, and King—and in addition to the question of guilty or not guilty, He is occupied with the teaching, the saving, and the ruling of the prisoners before Him. Human judgment stands alone, but Divine Judgment is inseparably connected with "deliverance," "redemption," "salvation," "regeneration,” etc., and it is only the incorrigibly rebellious who are doomed to "destruction." Then it is the resurrection of the dead, and its consequents, and these really remedial, which make Divine Judgment, according to the Scriptures, possible, because it is only through these that the antecedents of Divine Judgment can be restored to man. Whether it be the sound organism, the untainted life, the lordship of surroundings, or the Divine Law, they can reach mankind generally only through resurrection, and that of a thoroughly remedial kind.

Yours very truly,

JOSEPH MOFFITT.