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full communicants upon our church books is three hundred and eight, and of these all but eighty-two have been admitted by myself. Seventyone have been removed from us by the hand of death. Concerning the majority of those who have joined the church since October 31st, 1841, I can say, "For though ye have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet have ye not many fathers; for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the Gospel." Of those who have thus been admitted since the above date, between seventy and eighty, at least, have been connected with our Sunday-school, and not a few received the first elements of their religious education in that useful Institution. "Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us, but unto thy name give glory, for thy mercy, and for thy truth's sake."

We

In the operations of Christian effort we have our Home and Foreign Missionary Auxiliaries; our Christian Instruction, Benevolent, and Dorcas Societies, and an efficient Sunday-school, well supplied with teachers. We have also, as a congregation, taken an active part in the Ragged-school Association, which originated with us, and in the Bethel Union, several of our members being actively engaged in the schools of that valuable Institution. That important Society, the Young Men's Christian Association, has some of its members from ourselves, and one of its Secretaries belongs to our church. write not these things boastingly, but simply as matters of fact, which ought to find a place in a record of this character. So far from being satisfied with what is doing, we feel that all the Societies connected with us might be much more efficient, and we trust that one influence resulting from these Jubilee services will be to stimulate us all to increased diligence in the work of the Lord. In the history of the church some have gone out from us into the work of the ministry at home, and one of our number is now pursuing his studies at the New College, London. Another, who was in our Sunday-school, is now labouring as a Missionary at Nagercoil, in India, to whose station, in aid of schools, established by his devoted partner, we have for many years sent an annual contribution.

In this review of a century and more of time which has now passed before us, if there are many things to excite our sorrow, there are others to provoke our joy. "The Lord hath done great things for us, whereof we are glad." Especially have we, who are now united as pastor and people, abundant reason to take up this note of praise. Since I have been amongst you, no less than EIGHT additional places of worship have been opened around us, and yet our spacious edifice is well attended. I record it with adoring gratitude, that the church books give evidence that during the entire history of this Christian community there has never existed a period of greater SPIRITUAL prosperity than during the past nine years. There have been times when those who worshipped here possessed a larger degree of temporal good than now falls to their lot; but in the number of additions to holy fellowship, in the general prevalence of peace and devotedness, there never has been greater cause for thankfulness than during the present pastorate. All has not been, neither is it now, as it might be, nor as it should be, either with pastor or people. Yet are we bound this day to erect our altar of "Ebenezer, saying, Hitherto hath the Lord helped us."

"But this I say, brethren, the time is short," and the course of life with all of us will very soon have reached its termination. God has done much for all of us; let us all resolve to do much for God. We are placed in very different circumstances to those of our fathers and the prophets who first met for worship upon the site of this building, or of those who first united for prayer and praise within these walls. Our opportunities for usefulness are more numerous than theirs; our difficulties in the way of pious effort are far less than those which they had to encounter. Let each one propose the inquiry, in all prayerfulness and resoluteness, "Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?" Let us determine to be more of a wORKING CHURCH. not one say, "I pray thee have me excused." The town is yet open before us, the world is lying before us. Let us all seek that this Jubilee season may be a time of holy resolve, which shall issue in renewed and energetic efforts "to the help of the Lord, to the help of the Lord against the mighty." Then shall our Zion prosper, and whatever "we have heard with our ears, or our fathers have told us," or whatever we ourselves have witnessed, we shall see far greater things than these. "Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord."

Let

This is a very gratifying state of things. Would that it were only an average sample of what exists throughout the nation! We shall now set before our readers some poetic compositions prepared for the occasion, since they may be of use to other churches when called upon to celebrate their Jubilees, without having the same amount of the poetic vein running through their fellowship which appears to characterize the pastor and some of the friends of Princess-street.

AT THE TEA MEETING.

I.

The Lord be with us when we meet
Together at his mercy-seat;
The Lord be with us when we part,
And ever keep us one in heart.
Saviour, be with us where we dwell,
To shield us from th' assaults of hell;
To wash away our every sin
That tempts without, or strives within.
The Spirit, with his quick'ning power,
Preserve and guard us evermore ;
Direct us in the narrow way,
And bring us to the realms of day.
To God the Father, God the Son,
And God the Spirit, three in one,
Be honour, praise, and glory given,
By all on earth, and all in heaven.
R. L. A.

II.

Now fifty years have roll'd away,
Since first our fathers trod
This holy place, and set apart
An altar for their God.

But, oh how few of those who saw
The dawning of that day,

Are present in this temple now!
"The fathers, where are they?"
And holy men who, from this spot,

The faithful warning gave,
Have ceas'd to warn, and moulder now
Within the silent grave.

They gladly spent their strength for God,
Nor thought the labour hard;
And now enjoy, in yonder world,

Their glorious reward.

'T was here, within these sacred walls,
When children, we were found;
By parents led, and plac'd beneath
The Gospel's joyful sound.

And though that sound has met our ear
Again, and yet again,

Yet still, alas! how many here

Have heard that sound in vain.
But let us pause, both young and old,
And ask, "Where shall we be
When fifty years again shall bring
Another Jubilee ?"

The preacher then will preach no more,
His labours will be done;
And we who hear, eternity
With us will have begun.

Jehovah's summons soon may come,
To which we all must bow;

Then let us fall before his throne,
And seek his mercy now.

III.

F. B.

I think when I see a youth walking in love,
That it looks like a flower of heaven;
That it looks like a star from the regions above,
To which grace, life, and light have been given.
Oh! how blest is their lot who early have sought
A kind friend in the Saviour of men ;
Who are by the good Spirit enlighten'd and
taught;

When they die, they shall be with him then. The Scriptures declare that the Lord takes delight

In a young man that cleanses his way, And who takes God's own Word as his lamp and his light,

To direct him by night and by day. May our churches around with young converts abound,

Such as David and Samuel, of old; And young Sarahs, and Hannahs, and Marys be found,

All safely secured in the fold.

Oh! how pleasant to see dear young brethren agree,

To promote the increase of the Word;

And who, like their dear Master, are seeking to be

All faithful and zealous for God.

Whilst their work they pursue, they have heaven in view,

And are waiting th' eternal reward; "Well done, good and true, there is glory for you, Enter ye to the joy of your Lord."

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CHRISTIAN CONTRIBUTION FOR PURPOSES OF RELIGION. NOTHING can be more clear than that money is absolutely indispensable to the furtherance of Christianity. The Scriptures are positive on this point; the language of that noble psalm, the 72nd, concerning the kingdom and glory of the Messiah, is unusually copious on this matter. The kings of Tarshish and of the Isles are to bring presents. The kings of Sheba and Seba are to offer gifts, and to him is to be given the gold of Sheba; and Isaiah, looking forward to the coming era of truth, and love, and rest, and felicity, foretells that the "forces of the Gentiles," and all their wealth shall be placed at his disposal.

At this moment, the work of the world's evangelization is most seriously crippled by the want of money both at home and abroad, and if it is to spread, there must be a vast increase of liberality among all classes of Christians. If the Papists go to the one extreme, the Protestants have gone to the other; the former perverted the doctrine of works, by placing it in the room of the righteousness of faith; the latter have not made enough of it, as the fruits of that faith, the token of a change of heart, and the expression of fervent charity. We are glad to find that the subject is being taken up in the North of Ireland, where it seems, above all places, to be necessary to put an end to that sore evil, the Regium Donum. We like the notion exceedingly, and greatly admire all projects for promoting system in this, as in everything that appertains to the Church of Christ. There are two prizes of £50 and £20 respectively, offered for the best Essay on the subject of Christian liberality. Particulars may be learned from the Prospectus which has appeared in the usual channels. The friends of the project have very properly referred to the example and the practice of some of our Protestant ancients, and they might have carried their references much farther.

In reading the biography of the most eminently pious and useful in different ages, one must have been often struck with the fact that almost all of them devoted a regular proportion of their income to the Lord in pious and charitable uses. We might mention many whose names are familiar, whose writings are venerated, and whose memory is precious, e. g., the Lord Chief Justice Hale, the IIon. Robert Boyle, Archbishop Tillotson, the Reve. Drs. Hammond, Annesley, Watts, and Doddridge, the Revs. R. Baxter, J. Wesley, T. Gouge, Brand, and R. Treffry, jun., together with the excellent Countess of Huntingdon, Mrs. Rowe, and Mrs. Bury. None of these gave less than one-tenth of their annual means or income, while several of them gave much more, and some of them gave all they had away, beyond the scriptural provision-" food and raiment."

R. Baxter, that great and exemplary master of practical theology, says, in his directory on this subject, that on the whole he believes it is the duty of Christians generally, to devote some fixed proportion of their income to the Lord; "that the one tenth is as likely a proportion a can be prescribed, and that the devoting that amount to the Lord is a matter that we have more than human direction for." Whilst an able living expositor of Scripture says, "that he thinks it may be demonstrated, from the Scriptures, that no one believing them can consistently give less than a tenth of his income annually to the cause of God, however much more he may give."

REGIUM DONUM.

MOST of our readers are already aware that the Government are under a promise no longer to bring forth in the Budget any demand on the public purse in the shape of Regium Donum. Dissenters will, therefore, henceforth cease to be in a position to be insulted by Sir R. Inglis and others in the House of Commons, when they appear with petitions and protests against the application of public money for religious, or rather irreligious purposes. Their hands before were clean; but the Chancellor of the Exchequer, in conjunction with his government, succeeded always to exhibit them under a false or a gloved appearance; they can now however, hold up their face, and stretch forth their hands as men, not only apparently, but also really, in a right position, and lift up their

voice in defence of principle. They are now in a position to appeal to their Irish brethren on the subject of the Regium Donum there. None need be told the extent of its prevalence and its mischievous operation throughout Ireland. The withdrawment of the Donum, at this moment, would go some way to extinguish a large number of the congregations-congregations deficient neither in numbers nor in wealth, but enfeebled by this opiate, which does greatly less to stimulate than to depress the benevolence of the people. Of the native benevolence and generosity of the Irish character we need say nothing. The Irish, in these respects, are second to no other people on the face of the earth; it is, moreover, settled that no portion of the Protestant world are more capable of doing justice to the voluntary principle. We appeal to our recent accounts of the doings of the congregation of Dr. Morgan, of Belfast, and, however elevated the position of that community in the scale of Christian generosity, they are not alone. Other congregations of the Presbyterian body present the most splendid examples of the same virtue.

"COLLECTION DAY."

SIR,-Under this title appears an article in your
Number for this month which I think ought to
make those for whom it is intended thoroughly
ashamed of their graceless conduct. In reading
over the article referred to, the question was
very forcibly presented to my mind. Why not
at once obey the injunction of the Apostle
Paul? 1 Cor. xvi. 2: "Upon the first day of the
week let every one lay by him in store as God
hath God prospered him, that there be no
gathering when I come;" adopt this method,
and then we shall hear no more complaints that
"collection day" is "dispersion day." In Scot-
land we have obeyed the command in so far that
we receive the free-will offerings of the people
every Lord's-day, and then we have no neces-
sity for moving, as it were, earth and heaven
to get up a certain sum on a certain day. Let
the system of weekly offerings be adopted as
completely in England as it is in Scotland, and
I am satisfied the result will more than surprise
not only "An Observer," but many others who
lament the want of consistent Christian libe-
rality.
R. S.

Glasgow, September 13, 1851.

The Union Meetings.

CONGREGATIONAL UNION OF ENGLAND AND WALES.

WE have now to apprise our readers of the main facts connected with the recent Sessions of the Congregational Union, lately held at Northampton; and are happy to report, that, in point of interest, they were inferior to none of their predecessors. The numbers were greatly beyond our anticipation; we were hardly prepared for such a body of brethren, and still less for a hospitality so princely. The weather, upon the whole, was highly favourable; the locality was fraught with the most delightful associations; and, altogether, the meetings were an occasion of general rejoicing. The business was begun with devotional exercises, at King-street Chapel, now under the pastoral care of Mr. Nicholson, when the Rev. James Baldwin Brown delivered an Address, which we have now the pleasure of setting before our readers:

THE RENEWING OF SPIRITUAL LIFE THE GREAT NEED OF OUR CHURCHES.

THE first Independent preachers of Christianity were men who had seen the Lord. "That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled of the Word of life; (for the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and show unto you that eternal life which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us ;) that which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son, Jesus Christ." Jesus, the man whom they had known in many an hour of patient suffering, calm heroism, and tender communion with the friends whom he loved,-Jesus, the God, whom they had seen embosomed in the clouds of glory, and borne with triumphant pomp to the right hand of the Father, was the one engrossing object of their contemplation. No shadow of a cloud ever floated across the calm heaven of their conviction, that He who loved them with more than a brother's tenderness was seated by the Father on the throne of universal empire, and was ever concentrating all the resources of Omnipotence on the safety of their persons, and the furtherance of their work. Such men could afford to be independent. They could afford to affront à hostile world, and say to it, "Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye; for we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard." They could afford to say this, strong as they were in the confidence that the God of all power and riches was with them, and that all the resources of the world of spirit were being silently ranged on their side. The powers of the world to come made them very independent of all other powers. They knew well that One was with them who, at the last extremity, could make the rack seem a bed of roses, and the cross a throne of more than imperial splendour and power. Their apprehension of this was rendered intensely vivid by the personal communion which they had held with Jesus, the "God manifest in the flesh." As well might you persuade a man that the brother of his heart is a shadow, as persuade Peter, James, or John, that the Lord whom they had known on earth, and watched with aching heart and straining sight as he vanished in the clouds of glory, was the vision of

Out

a dream. "I know," not "what," but
"whom I have believed," they testified,
with increasing earnestness, as the sha-
dows gathered round them, and the
scourge and the cross tried the strength
of every fibre of their faith and hope:
"I know whom I have believed, and am
persuaded that he is able to keep that
which I have committed to him against
that day." "Heart to heart, mind to
mind, eye to eye, I have met him, and
though this eye no more beholds him, I
know by ten thousand inward tokens that
he knows me and loves me still."
of this fountain-their sense of the reality
of the being of Jesus, and his relation to
the human world-gushed forth their
heroism, concentration as it was of spirit's
godliest attributes-courage, patience,
charity, and hope. Here was the secret
of the strength of those men—of their
lion-like courage, and adamantine con-
stancy-Christ was to them no name,
no mere abstract of Deity, no symbol of
fair and beautiful ideas, but a friend with
whom they had held living fellowship,
whose hand they had pressed, whose
glance they had sought, on whose bosom
they had leaned, and who now was clothed
with all the attributes of Omnipotence,
while he still obeyed the suggestions of
a most tender and sympathetic heart.

They put themselves cheerfully out of connection with all that the world, religious as well as secular, was working at in their time; they stepped calmly beyond the pale of worldly society, and made themselves a mark for its biting jests and scoffs; they became the very scum and offscouring of all things in the world's regard; but what matter? Was not Jesus and the whole world of spirit with them? Had he not said, "Fear not, I am with thee"? They knew what weight of Being that "I" represented; they knew what pressure those cords of love would bear; so they strengthened themselves in Christ to meet insult with silence, suffering with indomitable constancy, and organized opposition with most calm but persistent determination to do their work. Well they knew that though their voices might break discordant across earth's soft melodies, they were blending with that mighty choral harmony which floats ever, like incense, around the throne of Christ in heaven. These were Independent preachers of the Gospel,- -men not to be won to conformity of any sort except the highest: and the key of their position, the very citadel

of their strength, was their faith-let us rather call it their knowledge of Christ Jesus the Lord. There is no Independent preacher in any age without this. Let a man not pick up from his elders and fellows current notions about the truth, but let him touch, and taste, and handle it with the vital organs of his soul, let him have in the deeps of his own being, as they had, a witness that it is a Word of life-bread of the soul, by which, through vigorous assimilation, the spirit grows strong and Christ-like, and you have a sure guarantee of Independent teaching-the true Independence-a sublime dependence on the Highest. The mere independence of isolation man cannot achieve for himself. Conform he must to the types, be they higher, be they lower, to which he attaches his spirit. No intellectual exercise, no moral or mental effort will keep a man clear-eyed and simple-hearted about the truth, in the midst of the fearful temptations which abound to distort it or trim it to the fashion of the time; nothing can so keep him but a growing conformity, in the secret of his spirit, to Him who is the Truth, which conformity is nourished by intercourse, and ripened by love.

Must we not say, dear brethren, if we speak honestly about it,-at least, let me say what is in my heart, out of which, and not out of the mere intellect, our words should come in such scenes as this, -that there is, in the present state and constitution of our Body, a terrible pressure of temptation on all who occupy the official position of Independent preachers of the Gospel, to be untrue, not so much in word (we may keep the very letter of the Bible), but in the hidden spirit of our minds, to the reality of the truth? I am not about to say anything upon the mooted question of an official ministry. It would ill become me here to obtrude an opinion, still less would it become me to disturb with discussion the solemnity of this hour. I pass, then, the subject of the temptations of ministers in other shurches, compared with our own, and willnot touch the question whether the emptation of a minister who is entirely dependent on his people, to lay himself out to please them, is not a more healthy form of temptation than that which besets a minister who is independent of his people, not to care for them at all. Of families, societies, churches, it is alike true, "The heart knoweth its own bitterness, and the stranger intermeddleth not with its joys." Let us keep to our own

trials and struggles, for I hope we are aware of our danger, and watch against it. Every system, all organization, has its point of weakness. Spirit thus maintains its protest that while it dwells in form, and makes use of it, it is not included or limited by it. And is not our special form of trial-the thorn in the flesh which God has ordained, lest we should be exalted above measure by the ideal purity of our principles-the temptation to catch men, to please men rather than God? 66 'By this craft we have our bread." It is no shame to us. I know of no craft so worthy of bread. But

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man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word which cometh out of the mouth of God." And this relation which we sustain will prove very demoralizing to us, unless Christ be very near and very dear to our spirits,-unless the breath of his praise be the music which we pine for, and the sound of his footsteps the echo which we most joyfully hear. But if the living Lord be to our spirits what he was to the man who counted all things but loss that he might win Christ, our very temptation becomes the instrument of our work. Our dependence becomes the seal of a tender and trustful relation on the one hand, while our Independence becomes the instrument of a mighty spiritual power on the other. The staple of our ministry must be the fruit of loving acquaintance with the Master,-a record of real transactions between the soul and Christ. What we have seen, felt, and handled, and that alone, let us talk about, as the staple of all our ministrations; and entering often behind the veil, deep into the recesses of our own spirits, which range in far-off regions of the unseen world, let us bring forth ever fresh and living tidings of the realities which are there. There Jesus lives,-the Man, the Friend, the Brother,

the same as when,

with human lips, he spoke face to face with his elect Apostle, attended him through his whole career with sleepless vigilance, and nerved his heart, not to suffer, but to exult in sufferings, because the Lord stood by him to strengthen him when the hour of his death agony drew near. He loves to companion such spirits as Paul's through their pilgrimage; he prizes their love, confidence, obedience, and faith as the most precious fruits of his work. Oh! who will not vow from this time to know more of him as he loves to be known,-not as the object of pompous adoration, or orthodox discourse, but as the Friend who loves with human

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