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sition of the enemy can destroy the true Church, and that Christ will abide with all who are taught by the Holy Spirit; "but it says nothing of the infallibility of the Church of Rome, though Gregory VII. ventured to decide that the Roman Church never erred, and declared that Scripture bore witness that it never will err to all perpetuity."-Faber.

It is impossible to settle with any certainty when this error began to work; but Gregory the VIIth was Pope in the year 1076, and having made the above decision, he asserted the supremacy of the Pope over Lords temporal, by excommunicating the Emperor Henry IV. in the third Council held at Rome, and depriving him of his temporal power. Fleury remarks, that this was the first time the Popes had claimed such power.

The ancient Fathers, in their disputes with heretics, never appealed to an infallible judge on earth; in their day the idea was unknown. The doctrine of infallibilty is the root of Popish errors; it is a modern doctrine, and was not established as an article of faith till A.D. 1076. There are many opinions in the Church of Rome as to the seat of infallibility. The Jesuits say the Pope is infallible when he speaks e cathedra." Others place it in a General Council, lawfully called; while others place it in a Pope and General Council united. Another opinion is, that it rests in the whole body of the Church; but by the Church the governing part is understood, or those who would be eligible to vote in a General Council. There is no unity of teaching here, no general consent.

Scripture asserts its own sufficiency, and rejects and condemns all claims of any person or thing to equal authority with its own, to constitute articles of faith. Therefore that authority, which does make such claim, cannot really be of divine origin, whatever it may pretend to be.

By resolving Reason, Conscience, and Scripture into the will of what is called an infallible (earthly) guide, the whole constitution of Christianity is altered, as originally framed by Christ.

If an infallible earthly guide had been necessary for the Church, it would surely have been pointed out in Scripture and very clearly defined. In departing from the Scriptures, the Church of Rome shows that she will not follow the Divine and Heavenly infallible Guide which Christ promised to the Church to lead her into all truth, and which continually points to the written Word; but that she will lean to her own understanding, and this, while she is making all other human understandings bow to her dictates upon the plea of obedience to divine authority.

"The faith of Rome was once spoken of throughout the world (see Rom. i. 8). In course of time the silver became dross, and the fine gold was changed. Some of her Bishops fell into heresy. Pope Liberius into Arianism; Vigilius into Eutycheanism; Honorius was a Monothelite, and was considered as an arch-heretic by another Pope, Leo XI. and his successors. Where, then, is the infallibility? Boniface III. and his successors have borne the title of Universal Bishop, which

Pope Gregory considered as impious. Pope Gelasius, in the fifth century, condemned communion in one kind as sacrilegious his successors enforce it."-Wordsworth.

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Let every sincere and thoughtful mind weigh well the danger of seeking to this so-called infallible Church as a refuge from doubt and difficulty. Too many instances have we seen in the present day of men having great mental endowments being caught in this snare, "which offers a refuge to the thoughtful as well as a sanctuary to the profane. We may well consider a system which gains such an ascendancy over some minds as really a masterpiece of delusion.

"Man instinctively seeks good in all its kinds and degrees. The intellect desires repose in immutable truth, the heart to rest on secured blessedness. A Church claiming infallibility appeals to both, and says, 'Rest in me.'"-E. M. Bates.

"Come

Oh! beware of listening to this siren voice! unto Me," says Christ, "and I will give you rest." To put any Church or any thing in the place of Christ, is to wander from the path that leads to solid happiness. Whereas to draw near to Christ in humble and heartfelt prayer, to depend upon Him in all His fulness, to feed upon His Word, to walk in the way of His commandments, and to implore the constant aid of His Holy Spirit, is the true road to endless peace, to perfect rest, and to bliss unspeakable.

CHAPTER VI.

NINTH ARTICLE OF THE CREED, CONTINUED.—

THE COMMUNION OF SAINTS.

CATECHISM.

Q. What is meant by the Communion of Saints? A. That all the faithful are members of one body, and assist each other by their prayers and good works.

Q. And have we any communion with the saints in heaven?

A. Yes; we communicate with them as our fellow members, under the same head Jesus Christ; and are helped by their prayers.

OBSERVATIONS.

This portion of the article, like the former, begins with an invaluable truth. As the circulation of the blood is to the life of the natural body, so is the circulation of the Spirit of God through all the members of the Church

doctrines and ceremonies, or perhaps so many cases of notorious unholiness. Rome was once a holy Church, but it was her unholiness that caused the Reformation; and though there have been individuals in her own communion who have mourned over this unholiness, and though much may be traced to the influence of secular Princes, and though we are willing to listen to what Roman Catholics urge upon us, of the distinction to be made between the Papal Court and the Church of Rome; still, that very distinction overturns the pretensions of the Papacy: for if spiritual life is to flow to the Church from the Papacy, and the Papacy itself is corrupt, what must follow but the corruption of the Church that is dependent upon it? How pathetically does Baronius mourn over the vile, unsightly, execrable things that have been intruded into the sacred Apostolic See of Rome!

CATECHISM.

Q. HOW IS THE CHURCH CATHOLIC OR UNIVERSAL? A. BECAUSE SHE SUBSISTS IN ALL AGES, TEACHES ALL NATIONS, AND MAINTAINS ALL TRUTHS.

OBSERVATIONS.

Before the death of Christ, His Church had been chiefly confined to the Jews. After that stupendous event it was extended by His command to all the world, and by the teaching of the Apostles became Catholic or Universal; therefore every Christian Church since their day has borne this Catholic character. Rome was one among

a We say 'chiefly,' because Patriarchal families and Proselytes were of God's Church.

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