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Reason will have been brought into harmonious action for the upholding of Christian truth.

SECTION 6.-Several common Epithets of Inspiration not employed in these pages.

IT will be observed by the reader, that the ordinary epithets by which "Plenary" Inspiration is distinguished from "Verbal," and "Mechanical" from

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Dynamical," are not employed in any part of this Essay. Full, or "plenary " Inspiration, whether of a book or a writer, we regard as necessarily synonymous with "verbal" Inspiration; for we know no means, except by the names of things (or words), whereby thoughts can be quickened in the mind, or recorded in a book. As to the difference between "mechanical" and "dynamical," it is broad enough. If a flute (for example), or one of Mr. Babbage's machines, or a dead man, or a man to whom the spirit was not subject, were said to be inspired, that would be "mechanical" inspiration indeed but if a living man, without the destruction of his individual characteristics, be "moved

*The writer has re-perused Mr. Maurice's admirable Essay on Inspiration since these words were written; and it is to him a source of much satisfaction to find that his estimate of the value of these epithets, "verbal" and "plenary," coincides with the opinion of Mr. Maurice. Indeed, if it were not for fear of involving that reverend and useful author in any blame which may attach to these pages, the writer would fain express his belief that the opinions set forth in this volume are, to a great extent, in accord with Mr. Maurice's views, as only too briefly stated in the well-known "Theological Essays."

by the Spirit," it can, assuredly, only be by a strengthening, or enlarging, or adding to the number of the faculties of that living man—that is, by "dynamical " inspiration.

But, after all, we know not what practical good is attained when we are supposed to have ascertained that the infallible effect of Inspiration is produced on the general contents of the Bible (which is what we presume is meant by the advocates of plenary Inspiration), or on its every word, as is maintained by the upholders of verbal Inspiration. Or, yet again, we are at a loss to imagine what great practical good accrues to us when, as an ultimate result of our examining the subject of Inspiration, we are supposed to acknowledge the manifest truth, that the Spirit operates on man as a rational being (dynamically), and not on man as a mere machine (mechanically). On such considerations we have abstained from the use of these epithets, just as we also leave unemployed the fantastic distinctions between the inspiration "of suggestion" and that "of superintendence."

SECTION 7.-The Confirming of Faith, the Removing Unbelief, and the Promotion of Charity, are the objects of this Essay.

It has been already said that the confirming of men in an intelligent and reasonable faith is one object at which we aim in publishing this Essay. A kindred object, which, it is believed, our pages will tend to effect, has been thus quaintly but graphically described

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by a great writer on the doctrine of Inspiration. Leclerc's words are :- "One consequence of our prin"ciples is, that hereby at one blow will be solved an "infinite number of difficulties, which Libertines" (i.e., Freethinkers) "are wont to allege against the Holy Scripture, and which it is not possible to solve by the ordinary principles. Their mouths will be stopped, "and it will no longer avail them to object against "Christians the contradictions which are found in the 66 Scriptures; the lowness of the style of the sacred "writers; the little order observed to be in many of "their discourses; and whatever else they have been "used to say against our divines, who have in vain "puzzled themselves to answer them. By imposing "nothing upon these men as necessary to be believed, "but the Truth of what is most essential in the His"tories of the Old and New Testament, and the "Divinity of Our Saviour's Doctrine (in which there "is nothing that is not conformable to right Reason), they will be brought to acknowledge that Christian Religion is really descended from Heaven; and will "be easily inclined to embrace that which hitherto they "have obstinately rejected, because it was grounded on "suppositions repugnant to that light of Reason by "which they were guided."

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Thus the writer hopes his work will, with the Divine blessing, be a means of converting the unbeliever, as well as of confirming the believer.

Another object we have in view is the increasing of charity among all Christians, who will observe and

reflect that those verities, which we are apt to regard as dogmatic certainties, are, after all, just matters of belief, based respectively on more or less rational and firmly-established human opinions. Obviously, if any men may attain to the infinite so far as to know an infallible oracle or guide, it is right that they, who are so infallibly enlightened, should dictate to their fallible brethren; and hence arises uncharitableness, naturally enough, out of the supposed infallibility of knowledge possessed by some men. But if, on the other hand, we all can only know in part, and not infallibly, then we should all be very humble and very patient in the prosecution of knowledge for ourselves, and in the endeavour to impart to others what we think we know. Hence humility and charity should, and to a certain extent will, arise naturally from the consciousness that God alone is to be conceived of as infallible, and that all we and ours are more or less fallible.

Thus, then, it is hoped that our Essay will be a means, however small, for the lessening of unbelief, and for the augmenting of faith and charity: and assuredly, in proportion as we may succeed in these points, so will there be hope that we shall be advancing true and godly obedience to Christ and practice of His religion, which are so essential to human happiness, and which yet are so apt to be forgotten or neglected in the heat of controversy, where strong assertion and subtle argumentation must too frequently make up for the deficiency of light which Reason and Truth can throw on either side of the questions from time to time discussed.

SECTION 8.-The Arrangement of the Work in Five Books.

THE mode in which we shall carry on our inquiry will be by asking first-Does the Bible permit us to regard its teaching as infallible? This will be the subject of our First Book. The Second Book will furnish an answer to the question-What reason have we for expecting the Bible to be infallible? Our next point, in the Third Book, will be to ascertain the true meaning of the term "Inspiration." The Fourth Book will be occupied with an endeavour to vindicate the just authority of Holy Writ. And our Concluding Book will be an endeavour to show the bearing of the preceding pages on Christian believers and Christian ministers.

SECTION 9.-Acknowledged Sources whence the Materials of this Essay have been drawn.

IN these introductory remarks, it only remains that the author should make his acknowledgments as to the sources whence his opinions are drawn. For the materials the writer lays no claim to originality; nor yet can he say that he has merely compiled them from other books. He has read Hinds, Morell, Henderson, Gaussen, Lee, and many other works, on the subject of Inspiration he has read some of the publications of Francis Newman, Froude, Theodore Parker, and others of a like school: he has read, and largely profited by, Leclerc's Five Letters on Inspiration, and Coleridge's "Confessions of an Inquiring Spirit." These, and many

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