of Almighty God; and that this recognition is properly and happily interwoven with the piece, and does not appear like a patch, sewed on to cover an unseemly defect. The second feature of the message which gives it a charm with us, is, that it recommends, with suitable earnestness, measures for the intellectual improvement of our country. We are reproached by foreigners as being a mere money making, and money keeping people. And after every allowance which ought to be made for the peculiar circumstances of our country, a portion of justice will still remain in the reproach. Intellectual improvement is not sought or patronized as it ought to be, either by individuals, or by the legislative authorities of the United States. We hope that President Adams, who is known to be himself a ripe and various scholar, may have an influence in promoting in others, and in our country generally, a due sense of the value of every species of scientifick excellence-It is a shame to our country, which we have long deplored, and frequently mentioned in conversation, that there is not within our whole territory, any thing that deserves the name of an Astronomical Observatory. We do hope that the present Congress will co-operate with the President, in removing this reproach; and in promoting, generally, the measures which he has recommended, that our country may, as he has well described it, fulfil her implied “contract, to contribute her share of mind, of labour and expense, to the improvement of those parts of knowledge which lie beyond the reach of individual acquisition; and particularly to geographical and astronomical science." The various subjects of the President's message have been distributed to committees, appointed in both houses, to consider and report upon them. The usual standing committees have also been appointed, and likewise special committees for a variety of purposes; but no measure of importance has yet been decided on. The Secretary of the Treasury has made a long and elaborate report, on the subjects which fall within his province. The finances of the country appear to be in the most prosperous state; the national debt has rapidly decreased, and now amounts to no more than $83,710,572 60. A large part of the report consists of an argument in favour of promoting the manufactures of our country, by protecting duties.—A correspondence has also been published between the Secretary of State, and Mr. Addington, the British Charge des Affairs, relative to the treaty which was formed under Mr. Munroe's administration, for the suppression of the slave trade; and which was rejected by the Senate of the United States, because it contained an article permitting the vessels of the contracting parties severally, on the coast of Africa, to be searched by ships of war of either party. The present correspondence is merely explanatory; and the result is, that the treaty is finally rejected by us, and that this, although regretted by the British, will occasion no hostile feelings. We have heretofore expressed our regret at the rejection of this treaty, in which our own executive government saw nothing that was objectionable. We cannot now resume the subject, but will take this opportunity to remark, that on political topicks, on which the minds of our fellow citizens are divided, the Christian Advocate has hitherto been, and will continue to be, silent-unless these subjects affect the honour, or the vital interests of our country, or relate to the all important concerns of religion and morals. Then the Advocate, without regard to patronage, or the wishes of friends or foes, will speak plainly, but we hope not intemperately or uncandidly. The following article appeared in the National Intelligencer of December 28th: "It is understood that the President has nominated to the Senate as Commissioners on the part of this Government to the Assembly of American Nations at Panama, Richard C. Anderson, of Kentucky, (at present Minister to the Republick of Colombia,) and John Sergeant, of Philadelphia. William B. Rochester, of New York, is nominated as Secretary to the Commission." We have not heard what order has been taken by the Senate on this communication from the President. We presume, however, that the appointments contemplated will be made; and it is our earnest prayer that the deliberations of this Congress of American Nations at Panama, as well as those of our own Congress, may be enlightened by wisdom from above, and issue in such measures as, under the Divine blessing, shall promote freedom, happiness, peace and piety, throughout our extended continent. ERRATA IN OUR LAST NUMBER. Page 534, line 28 from bot. for "Many of them at first," read Many of them are not at first. 536, line 22, for "disputations" read dissertations. 565, line 3d from bot., for “in Palestine” read North of Palestine. Several communications, omitted for want of room in our present number, will appear in our next. THE CHRISTIAN ADVOCATE. FEBRUARY, 1826. Keligious Communications. The answer of our catechism next in order is the following"The fall brought mankind into an estate of sin and misery." The chief design of this answer is, to make the distribution of a subject, afterwards to be discussed. To say much upon it therefore, would only be to anticipate what is contained in the two subsequent answers. I shall merely request you to observe the nature and manner of the statement, made in this answer, which are-that the sin and misery brought upon mankind by the fall, are called an estate, that is, a permanent and invariable condition of existence, in which both sin and misery must be found by all the human race; and that sin is placed before misery, intimating that sin is the cause of misery, and misery the never failing consequence of sin. These general truths are developed and illustrated in the two following answers, the first of which is thus expressed-"The sinfulness of that estate whereinto man fell, consists in the guilt of Adam's first sin, the want of original righteousness, and the corruption of his whole nature, which is commonly called original sin, together with VOL. IV. Ch. Adv. all actual transgressions which proceed from it." Original sin has been usually distinguished, or divided, by dívines, into original sin imputed, and original sin inherent. Original sin imputed, is the guilt of Adam's first sin, considered as belonging to each individual of his posterity, and subjecting such individual to punishment or suffering, on that account. This point, with the objections to it, were treated at some length in the last lecture; and it is not my purpose to resume the subject at present. Original sin inherent, is what is called, in the answer before us,"the want of original righteousness, and the corruption of our whole nature." "The want of original righteousness" says Fisher, "is the want of that rectitude and purity of nature which Adam had in his first creation; consisting in a perfect conformity of all the powers and faculties of his soul to the holy nature of God, and to the law that was written on his heart. And that all mankind are destitute of this original righteousness, appears from the express testimony of God, that among all Adam's race "there is none righteous, no not one;" and that "by the deeds of the law shall no flesh be justified in his sight." It follows, upon this want of original righteousness, that all mankind are as it were, naked before God; and G that their fig-leaf coverings will stand them in no stead, before his omniscient eye, nor answer the demands of his holy law." But original sin consists not in mere privation, or in a want of original righteousness. It consists, also, in "the corruption of our whole nature;" in the universal depravation both of soul and bodyin all the faculties of the one, and in all the members of the other. Let us trace for a moment the current of this corruption, through the faculties of the soul; not entering into much reasoning on the subject, but confirming what shall be said by plain declarations from the word of God. Observe then, that the understanding of man, in his natural depraved state, is darkened and blinded; so that while this moral obscurity continues, he cannot know and receive the things of the Spirit of God." The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness unto him; neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned-Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart." The will of the natural man is depraved by sin. It is averse to the chief good; it is biassed to ward evil; it acts with hostility and rebellion against God. "Ye will not come unto me that ye might have life," said our Saviour "The carnal mind," says St. Paul, is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then, they that are in the flesh cannot please God." The affections of man, in his natural state are disordered, perverted and misplaced. They are set on trifling vanities and sinful pleasures; they attach themselves to ten thousand improper and forbid den objects; while they utterly refuse to be placed on God, as the supreme good. Their language constantly is "Who shall show us any good?" that is, any earthly good. And they constantly lead every unsanctified child of Adam to "worship and serve the creature more than the Creator, who is God over all, blessed forever." The memory of man partakes of the effects of his depravity. It is prone to retain what is vain and unprofitable, and to drop its hold on what is spiritual and truly advantageous. Hence the complaint of Moses; "Of the Rock that begat thee, thou art unmindful, and hast forgotten God that formed thee." This, indeed, was the frequent charge brought against the Israelites, notwithstanding the series of miracles that they almost constantly witnessed.-"They forgot the God of their salvation." But the charge is not confined to them. We find it mentioned as a general characteristick of the wicked that they "forget God;"-that "God is not in all their thoughts;" and experience abundantly confirms this truth. The conscience of man is affected by his depravity. Sometimes it is violated, till it becomes seared " "as with a hot iron." But when this is not the case, it too often performs its office imperfectly; not reproving and condemning when it ought, especially for secret sins. Sometimes it is so perverted that, in the language of Scripture, it calls evil good, and good evil; puts light for darkness, and darkness for light." In regard to the body, it was, you may remember, shown in the last lecture, that it is the body which is the instrument of corrupting the soul; that in Scripture "the flesh" is represented as the seat and source of sin. It is in consequence of sin, that our bodies have become mortal-they are polluted and defiled in all their members. Hence the apostolick caution "Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin." Thus you perceive that the corruption of our whole nature is most apparent; that it is impotent, and even hostile, to whatever is holy or spiritually good; and strongly inclined, or biassed, to what is evil. Of unrenewed man, it has been as true in every age of the world as it was before the flood, "that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart is only evil continually." But in opposition to the statement you have now heard-to the doctrine of our catechism, and to what I think has been clearly shown to be the doctrine of Scripture-there are those who contend that the tendency of our nature is to good, rather than to evil. In a conversation I once had with an individual of some shrewdness, who cherished this sentiment-the sentiment that children, from the first, incline to good rather than to evilI requested him to state, on what ground he supposed that he could support his opinion. He affirmed that this opinion was, with him, the result of personal observation on his own children; who he did not suppose had a better nature than others. He said, that by instructing them carefully in their duty, by warning them constantly of the dangers to which they were exposed, and by admonishing them faithfully and tenderly, as soon as he perceived them going wrong, and by restraining them, while they were unable to judge for themselves; he had not failed to render them all, examples of correct behaviour and amiable deportment. He said nothing about genuine piety in his children; and I fear knew nothing_about it in his own experience. I replied to him thus -By your own showing, it required your vigorous and uninterrupted efforts, to preserve, or to recal, your children from wrong courses: but on the supposition that the tendencies of their nature were to virtue, rather than to vice, they should have gone right without any of these efforts; nay, they should have gone right, or of themselves speedily returned to what was right, even in opposition to endeavours to mislead them. The man concerned, professed to be convinced of his error at once; and said he would not argue in opposition to the convictions of his own mind. * But alas! how often is it seen, that all the good instructions, all the seasonable advice and admonition, and all the influence of the best example, are wholly ineffectual, to form children even to an external regard to the laws of vir tue, order and sobriety?-In opposition to all, how frequently do they become examples of flagitious vice? And even in those instances in which, by the Divine blessing on a good education and example, operating on a happy natural temperament, the young are formed to a fair and amiable exterior, how often is it evident, that they have still no inward relish for, but an utter distaste and dislike of, all serious piety, of all holy exercises?, It is then as evident from experience and observation as it is from Scripture, that the tendencies of our nature are not to good, but uniformly and prevalently to evil. Indeed, I am of the opinion, that in this, as in almost every other instance, an accurate observation on the state of the world, will be found one of the best commentaries on the word of God. Whence, but from the natural and invariable corruption of the human mind, has proceeded that awful preponderance of moral evil, with which the world has, at all times, been filled? The tendencies of nature, however obstructed by incidental causes, will at last prevail. If these tendencies, in the human mind, had been natu but we do not mean that all men are sinful in the same degree; much less, that every man is as bad as he can be. There are many degrees of active malignity, and some unsanctified men are infinitely worse than others; if not naturally, yet as soon almost as comparisons can be formed. When, therefore, you hear the expression total depravity, used in the preaching of the gospel, or meet with it in the writings of the divines of our church, you are to understand by it-1. That all the powers of man, without exception, have been reached by this depravity; and in regard to moral subjects, are affected by it. 2. That this depravity has totally deprived man of that inward holy disposi rally and preponderantly in favour of virtue, there would have been, at least some period, in which mankind would have been generally or prevalently virtuous, pious and holy. We do, indeed, look for such a period; but we look for it from the effusion of the Holy Spirit, to transform the minds of men, and not from their amelioration by any other cause. But such a period has never yet been witnessed. On the contrary, what is the history of the human kind? It is little else than the history of crime and guilt-of war, of fraud, of tyranny, of violence, of treachery, of oppression, of the means which one man, or set of men, have used, to exalt themselves, by depressing, overreaching, or destroying their competition, which is essentially necessary tors. Nay, what are almost all the laws of society? Are they any thing but guards against the vices of men, which, but for these guards, would destroy society itself? Yes: every gaol, and every gibbet, and every law, is a monument, or a record, of the prevalent wickedness of man. Those codes of laws by which legislators and sages have immortalized themselves, serve to show how difficult it has been, in every age, to guard effectually against the overwhelming torrent of human depravity. I shall dismiss this topick, with a few remarks on the proper import of the phrase total depravity; because it is one that you often hear in religious discourse, and because it seems to be frequently misunderstood. It may be useful, I think, to state the import of this phrase, both positively and negatively. You will observe then, that by total depravity, we mean that all the human powers are depraved by sin, and that every individual of the human race, in his natural state, is destitute of all holiness: to the acceptable service of God; so that this holy disposition will not be possessed till it be restored by the renewing influence of Divine grace. But 3. That it is by no means to be understood that every unrenewed man is, in temper, heart and disposition, as bad as he might be, or as some actually are. On the contrary, there is in many unrenewed men, not only a great sensibility of natural conscience, but a governing regard to those principles of equity, justice, humanity and benevolence, which render them amiable in domestick life, and highly useful and honourable, as members of political society. The young man who came to our Saviour, to inquire his duty, had such qualities as a man, that the Redeemer looked on him and loved him; yet he had no real and supreme love to God, but on the contrary, was supremely attached to the world. And hundreds and thousands of the same character, are now found under the light of the gospel. (To be continued.) !.... |