very sensible impressions upon them, and will contribute, more or less, like the sight of His glory, to strike into them the fear and reverence of His holy name.

When St. Paul discoursed with Felix concerning the faith in Christ, he did it in such a manner, that, as "he reasoned of righteousness, temperance and judgment to come, Felix trembled;" and had the glory of God rested all the while upon the apostle, what could the governor have done more? Thus the presence of God appeared so eminently in the words and actions of St. Ambrose, when he forbid the emperor, Theodosius, in God's name, to enter into the Church, that his majesty could not have been more humbled and penitent for the innocent blood shed at Thessalonica, although he had seen the cloud of glory hang over the temple, or encircle the head of the divine prelate, while he spoke unto him. The historian tells us that the emperor returned unto his palace, sighing and weeping; and from these, without multiplying other examples, we may learn how much God may be glorified and made to appear in those actions of men, which are immediately conversant about Him.

Hither we must also reduce the glory that accrues unto God, by the respect and observance which we ought to show towards all things, times, persons, and places which belong unto Him; as, to the Scriptures, because they are His word; to the clergy, because they are His ministers; to the Church, because it is His house; to the Christian religion, because it is His religion; and to the first day of the week, because it is the Lord's day. All these things, challenge a particular respect from us, different from all other things of the same name and kind, upon the account of their relation unto God; and when we treat them with reverence for His sake, the honour of it redounds to Him; because every action of that nature is a solemn acknowledgment and declaration that He is the great and holy God.

These are all the genuine duties and effects of godliness, or religiousness, as it is distinguished from other parts of Christian piety. But, alas! how little of it is practised in this profane age? How little religious, and how much profane and atheistical discourse is now to be heard in all companies? Nay, how is the worship of God, which above all other things is ordained for His glory, dishonoured and profaned, and almost perverted to the contrary end, by the

To see how

irreverent and unworthy carriage of man. many men behave themselves in the service of God, would tempt an indifferent man to believe that they designed not to acknowledge His wisdom, power, and goodness, and their trust in, and dependance upon, His infinite Majesty; but rather to deny Him in the action, and declare to all the world, that religion is nothing but superstition, and that it is very uncertain whether there is a God or no; or if there be one, whether or not He concerns Himself in the government of the world. To this, if we add the general practice of rash and vain swearing on one hand, and solemn perjuries on the other; together with that utter disrespect which is now accounted brave and generous, to cast contempt upon all things and persons which belong unto God; we must needs acknowledge that there are great numbers of men among us, who, though they may profess God, yet, in their works, they deny Him; being so far from doing whatsoever they do to His glory, that their actions tend, and it is to be feared many of them are designed, to extirpate the notions of Him out of men's minds, His fear out of their consciences, and His name and religion out of the world.

II. So much for the first kind of human actions which immediately regard God; from whence I proceed to the second, which are such as regard our neighbours, and are practised in our dealings and conversation with them; and in these actions this is the rule-That they tend to the glory of God when they tend to the good of men, and are declarative of that excellent and comprehensive virtue which the Greeks call, Philanthropy-the Latins, Humanity—and the Christian religion, Love.

This is the general supreme law which God has commanded men; that they should love one another, according to that repeated precept of our Saviour: "This is my commandment, and these things I command you, that you love one another; and that you love one another as I have loved you."

This reiterated precept of our blessed Saviour made the apostle say unto the Thessalonians: "Now, as touching brotherly love, ye need not that I write unto you; for ye yourselves are taught of God, to love one another." And this, saith St. John, in his Epistle General, " is the message

that ye have heard from the beginning, that ye love one another." St. Paul, in several places, gives us the reason why our Lord so carefully enjoined this duty upon us; because it is the fulfilling of the second table of the law. "By love," saith he, Gal. v., "serve one another; for all the law is fulfilled in one word, thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself." And "love," saith he, Rom. xiii., "worketh no ill to his neighbour; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law."

This character of love which the apostle gives us, is indeed negative; but as all other negatives are, it is founded in positive sense, so that his meaning is at large this: Love worketh no ill, but worketh all manner of good to his neighbour; therefore, love is the fulfilling of the law. In these two prime effects of love, to do no ill, and to do all manner of good, are founded the laws of justice and charity; and in these two are comprehended all the duties which every man owes to other men.

For justice powerfully restrains us from doing any harm or injury to our neighbour, and charity pushes us on to do him all good offices and kindnesses; and, therefore, all charitable actions, which spring from the divine root of humanity or love, must needs tend to the glory of God, and the manifestation of His divine nature, who, as St. John saith, is Love; and who in the Saxon tongue (from which the dialect of our country is but one remove), is called God, because He is good; as in the case of our Saviour's answer to the ruler who called Him Good Master, (we omit the words in Saxon characters which are in the original), there is none good save only God. According to this derivation of His name, the apostle saith, that "Love is of God; and that every one that loveth is born of God; and he that loveth not," or hath not the grace of love in him, "knoweth not God; for God is love," or made up of love and kindness to men. "No man hath seen God at any time; if we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and His love is perfected in us; and hereby we know that we dwell in Him, and He in us; because He has given us of His Spirit of love."

In these words dwelleth and dwell, the apostle emphatically alludes to the Shechinah or glory by which God manifested His presence in the Jewish tabernacle or temple; and the meaning of them is, we cannot give better evidence

of God's abiding in us, and dwelling in our souls, than by the Spirit and temper of love, if we would make it appear to the world, that He is in us, or that we are of Him, and conformed unto His image and example. Nay, if we would make it appear that we are acquainted with His divine nature, or declare that we believe He hath loved us; nay, would we shew our obedience to His strictest and dearest command, which He hath exemplified in His Son; or give a right proof to others that we love Him as He hath loved us, it must be by conforming all our dealings with men to the rules of justice and charity, which are the genuine and immediate effects of love. "Beloved, let us love one another; for love is of God, and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love, dwelleth in God, and God in him; and this commandment we have from Him, that he who loveth God, loveth his brother also."

Nay, furthermore, the best proof that we can give to ourselves and others, that we are regenerate persons, and have passed from a state of death unto life, is our love to our fellow-Christians; for saith the apostle, "we know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother, abideth in death."

(To be continued.)

HISTORICAL TALES.*

The Exiles of the Cibenna.

The Chief's Daughter.

The Lily of Tiflis.

THE above are the titles of some short but interesting tales issuing from the fertile press of the Messrs. Parker, of Oxford. We learn from the preface, that

"This series of tales is designed to popularise a knowledge of Church history and the love of Church principles. We believe that the one will assist the other. Great care

* J. H. and J. Parker. (1s. each).

has been taken to secure strict accuracy in respect of dates, events, and geographical and topographical descriptions; as well as a truthful picture of the manners of the country and period treated of, and a correct reproduction of the phra seology there employed. A narrative, to be consistent, must employ the terms and represent the usages most generally adopted in the period to which the tale refers; thus, if the story belong to a rude age, there will be in it a predomi nance of the ruder elements of social life; if of the middle ages, the corruptions of the Roman Church will be conspicuous; or if the scene be laid in the East, the rites of the Greek Church will be more prominent. But the object of these tales is to give a faithful representation of the condition of the Church in past ages, in the belief that such information will greatly increase the English Churchman's gratitude for the favourable circumstances in which his own lot is cast in the present day."

The first on the list-"The Exiles of Cibenna"-is designed to show the hardships and sufferings to which the Christians in the first three centuries were exposed from their governors and neighbours in the ordinary intercourse of life, in the accomplishment of their religious duties; and in the times of persecution the dreadful cruelties that were inflicted on them, to compel them to burn incense to the gods, or to deliver up the Holy Scriptures to be burned. The first, or those who burnt incense, we call traditores, or traitors; the second were those who gave up the Holy Scriptures to be burnt to save their lives, and also to save themselves from burning incense, were called libellatici, or subscribers. But there was also a third, or superlative degree, that were called apostates; and these were those which fell away to heathenism altogether; and who were not again admitted to the Christian altar. The fury of the heathen was as great against the Holy Scriptures as it was against the Christians themselves; and to the firmness and tenacity of purpose displayed by the early Christians, do we of the present day, owe the inestimable blessing of possessing the knowledge of the Word and will of God. It is His will that we should read and meditate upon His word; and through the reading of Moses in the temple and the syna gogues, we can see in the gospel, that the people who had not the means of reading themselves, were well acquainted