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and on the 5th and 24th verses of the xviith chapter, "As God had eternally destined him to this mission, a mission eternally accomplished in its effects eternally foreseen, the glory of him who was to accomplish it was in God before the world was." "God, who is beyond time and above time, has seen what he sees, and loved what he loves, before all time." The interpretation given by the Abbé de Lamennais of the proem to John's Gospel, accords with that which is now generally adopted by Unitarians. The note on Matthew xviii. 20, is, "Man can do nothing singly; he has power only by means of association; and the power of those who unite in the name of Jesus, in the name of justice and brotherly love, is invincible.” The translator's opinions on the doctrine of the atonement may be inferred from the notes on John i. 29:-" In the degree in which the doctrine of Jesus is accepted and practised, in the same degree sin is taken away from the world;" and on chap. xv. 13, "This was why Jesus wished to die, why his death was, in some sort, necessary, that the precept of love should be confirmed by the greatest act of love." And on eternity of punishment, from the notes on Matt. xxv. 41 and 46, "In Hebrew, as in Greek, the words which we translate eternity,' have not the same metaphysical sense. They signify a long duration of time, a period, a cycle." "Eternal punishment, everlasting fire, is poignant remorse, the suffering produced in free agents by their violation of the moral law; and this suffering, of which the duration is measured by that of its cause, would be eternal, if evil itself had not a necessary limit; if the return of the will to that order which has been despised and violated here below, did not work out, in another period of his existence, the cure of the sick being." With respect to the demoniacs mentioned in Mark iii. 11, it is observed, "Certain maladies were attributed to evil spirits, which were supposed to possess men. The gospel speaks according to the ideas of the time-ideas, however, which have been perpetuated throughout many centuries, and which, though greatly weakened, exist still in our days, amongst some superstitious persons."

The reflections appended to the close of each chapter are chiefly practical, and written in the animated, glowing style of the other works of this author. As a specimen of their spirit and tendency, I subjoin an extract from those on Matthew xxv. "You have heard the legislator-now hear the judge. Behold all men assembled before him, awaiting their sentence. What does he say to them? He examines them as to their works, their works of mercy, their works of love. These constitute the distinction between the good and the evil. You have loved and served your neighbour; pass to the right: you have neglected him in his necessities, in all his miseries; pass to the left. He assigns to each, either happiness or punishment, according to their works alone. He inquires not about opinions, nor thoughts, nor creeds, not about what arises in the mind often in spite of itself, but what springs from the heart, because the heart of man has been placed in his own power. What have you done? Such is his only demand. Now if Jesus requires nothing but love and the works of love, who has the right to require more? Learn, then, the law of Christ, and resemble not the hypocritical Scribes and Pharisees, who, loading their brethren with heavy burdens, which the celestial Father has not laid on them, closes, as far as lies in their power, by this sacrilegious usurpation, the entry to the kingdom of heaven. It is to these especially that it will be said, Pass to the left."

From the extensive circulation of the former productions of M. de Lamennais, and the numerous editions they have gone through, it may be anticipated that this new work of his will be the means of diffusing liberal views of Christianity in France; and the more so at the present time, as public attention there must have been called to the subject by the recent religious movement in Germany. It is on this account I have been induced to bring the present publication under the notice of the readers of your periodical.

London, February 17, 1846.

R. H.

CRITICAL NOTICES.

Rome: its Ecclesiastical and Social Life. With a Preface by the Editor. Pp. 307. Newby, London.

THE character of this little work-which purports to be a translation from the German-may best be described in the words of its Editor, in his statement of the "two reasons" which have chiefly influenced him in presenting it to the public:

"The work appears to him well calculated to furnish useful materials of observation and topics of inquiry to those who visit the eternal city, and to serve in some measure as a hand-book to numerous travellers, who too often confine their inquiries and remarks to mere outward things, and overlook points which are of vastly greater importance to the present condition of society." (Pref., p. v.) "The second reason....is the recent development of what is called Puseyism in England, and the disputes, controversies and explanations which have grown out of it, and are still likely to occupy the public attention, both among Churchmen and Dissenters." (Ibid., p. ix.)

Looking at the volume in the light afforded by the former of these "reasons," we should deem it the production of a thoughtful and observant man. We have certainly read it with considerable interest, and must think that it could not fail to be useful to the traveller "as a hand-book."

Considered with reference to the second "reason," the work is interesting, as illustrating the actual state and spirit and social influences of Roman Catholicism, at the present day, in the seat of its greatest dignity and power.

Among the different sketches may be mentioned, as indicating the nature of the contents-"2. Commencement of the Ecclesiastical Year in Rome""8. Official Service of the Virgin and the Remissions therewith connected""12. The Jesuits in the States of the Church, their Institutions for Education, especially for Theology"-" 14. Missions in and near Rome"-" 16. Festival of Languages at the Propaganda"-"18. Schools for the People in the States of the Church"-26. The Dominion of the French"-"30. Commemoration Days and Symbols on Tombs."

We subjoin a few extracts, as a specimen of the style and matter of the work:

Reception of Puseyism in Rome.

"The news of the conversion of an Anglican divine in Oxford to the Romish Church was received with great satisfaction in Rome; as well as that of another having proved in a sermon, preached at the consecration of a church, that there could be no morality without honouring the Saints, inasmuch as these furnished the most encouraging examples to its cultivation. Nothing can exceed the diligence and zeal with which every thing that emanates from a Protestant favourable to Catholicism is propagated in Rome, but there is at the same time no feeling or desire in any case to do justice to Protestantism itself. Every thing which can be turned to its disadvantage is eagerly seized upon, as a proof that its adherents are already preparing again to return to the yoke of Catholicism, or seem as if they would seek shelter in the bosom of the Church."-P. 52.

End of Lent.

"In the evening [of Good Friday] the great ham market is opened; and on Saturday the rejoicing is no longer restrained. In Naples, on the Saturday, an ugly doll, whose head is made of an orange stuck full of feathers, the image of Lent, is handed out of the window, maltreated and destroyed.

"In Rome, the streets during the whole morning are thronged-shots of rejoicing are fired in all directions-and the vessels which had been employed to hold the salt fish, or other Lenten articles, are blown up with powder. All this clearly enough denotes that the people of the holy city are thinking far more of their deliverance from the meagre diet of Lent, and of their confession accomplished, than of redemption from sin through the sufferings of our Lord."P. 98.

Indulgences.

"Indulgences are the state-paper of the Church, payment of which is to be realized in heaven. They were not so much an invention of the hierarchy, as of the refined Italian spirit of trade. The Medici perfected this speculation in spiritual bills, and under the Popes of the house of Medici, the trade in indulgences reached its culminating point. And this was no time of superstition in Rome, but rather of refined infidelity. Should any other people again become so superstitious as to be willing purchasers of indulgences, the urbs venalis will never prove deficient in a supply equal to the demand."-P. 127.

Premium upon Marriage.

"Some of the fraternities employ the whole of their income on the celebration of masses and of ecclesiastical ceremonies and pomp, whilst others appropriate, yearly, some part of the proceeds of their endowments to the support and assistance of young women who marry, and of others who wish to become nuns. This double beneficence is characteristic of the philanthropical action of the Church throughout the whole of Italy: and both are denominated dotation. In Rome, 1400 marriages are celebrated in a year, and the brides, in the case of 1100 of these, receive dowries from the public foundations, making in all, for the city of Rome alone, between £6000 and £7000.”—P. 135.

A Roman "Domestic Mission."

"On the 2nd of February the Mission began its labours in Sta. Maria della Consolazione, at the South-eastern foot of the Capitol. At three o'clock we found two fathers sitting beside one another upon an open tribune or scaffold. One played the character of a learned instructor-the other, of a simple and ignorant objector, and the affair was carried on in a species of dialogue-the simple one throwing in occasional objections, remarks and witticisms. The representative of the latter was an old, gentle-looking, grey-bearded man. The audience, which was very numerous, was evidently favourable to him, and they did not refrain from bursting out occasionally into loud laughter at some of his pertinent or witty remarks.

"The subject of the disputation was the doctrine with respect to the Holy Ghost and the influences of the Spirit. On the previous Sunday the learned teacher had dilated upon the gift of tongues on the day of Pentecost; the auditory broke out into a loud laugh at the interlocutory remark of the representative of ignorance, that Peter might have been 'full of new wine.' I afterwards heard this incident spoken of in a Roman family, and the objection stated, and none of the party had the least idea that the objection itself belonged to the history of the event and was to be found in the Bible."—P. 186.

"Ignorans was next quieted respecting his fears that in heaven he would be nearer the lightning and more exposed to its dangers. And he also received the assurance, that heaven was accessible to the laity, and not to the clergy only. The duty of men with respect to the Holy Ghost was represented to be that of beggars, to stretch out their hands that they might receive. Nothing whatever was said of their own working together with divine grace, and the example seemed to be very satisfactory and pleasing to the great majority of the worthy and ragged congregation. The witticisms of the dialogue were not the only piquant things which we heard on this occasion."-P. 189.

The Inquisition and Judaism. A Sermon addressed to Jewish Martyrs on the Occasion of Auto-da-Fé at Lisbon, 1705. By the Archbishop of Cranganor. Also a Reply to the Sermon, by Carlos Vero. Translated by Moses Mocatta. 8vo. Pp. 191. London-Wertheimer and Co. 1845.

THIS book, which we have read with painful interest, will excite in every well-regulated mind a strong conviction of the terrible injury that is done to the religion of Jesus by bigots and persecutors. The heartless and cruel declamation of Justiniano, the Archbishop of Cranganor, was delivered to a number of Jews who had fallen into the merciless hands of the Inquisition, and one at least of whom was, for a second offence, irrevocably doomed to the flames. We cannot read this mitred ruffian's insults of the wretched men who stood before him, doomed to death or to the infamy of apostacy, without

vehement indignation. What, then, must be the feelings of those who sympathize with the religious convictions of the martyrs at Lisbon? To them, repugnance to a religion which occasioned the crimes of the Inquisition, must appear a virtue. Inasmuch as this book will excite feelings of this kind in its Hebrew readers, and increase the difficulty of alluring them into the Christian fold, we regret its publication. But glad should we be could we secure for it a wide circulation amongst all classes of Christians. For ourselves, we rejoice in the opportunity which this notice gives us of expressing our abhorrence of the system of persecution put in force against the Jews, and of which there are even in this advanced age too many lingering remains. We should not despair of persuading any intelligent Hebrew that persecution is abhorrent to the genius of the religion of Christ. We would point to the striking proof afforded by the life of the apostle Paul. Before his conversion, he was a persecutor; after he became a Christian, the sin of persecution, of which in his unconverted state he had been guilty, was a perpetual cause of personal humiliation.

We find, even in the professedly argumentative parts of the Portuguese Archbishop's Sermon, so little with which we agree, that we feel little solicitude about the success of his Spanish antagonist. The case for Christianity remains untouched, even though Carlos Vero should disprove, one by one, each of the Archbishop's positions. Should our remarks meet the eye of any son of Israel disposed to engage in the Christian controversy, we would ask him to forget what bigots have said and done, and to contemplate the arguments for the Christian faith, such as are to be found in the works of Dr. Priestley, or in the admirable essay addressed to the Jewish people by Miss Martineau, entitled "Providence as manifested through Israel.” He will find there is common ground on which the Jew and the Christian can meet and discuss their varieties of faith.

Mr. Mocatta, the translator of this work, has published it for gratuitous distribution among the Hebrew youth. He has by his introductory remarks, both to the Sermon and the Reply, excited our respect for him as a very intelligent and a liberal man. He tells us (p. 85), that his intention is not to attack the Christian religion, but to defend his own; (p. 86), that there is nothing more useful to religion than free discussion; (p. 88), that we ought to esteem and respect any person who attempts to convert us to a religion which he believes to be true. The following pleasing passage will shew our readers that Mr. Mocatta is not far from the spirit of Christ:

"Let each man adhere to his own creed, and worship God with an upright and pure intention, and not depart from what has been taught him (provided he does not feel competent to decide for himself), and leave to God the care of his salvation. He who is all-merciful, will accept his upright intentions, although his form of creed may not be the most acceptable. Let theologians talk as they please, this is what I shall ever believe; for I can never be persuaded that our merciful Creator will withhold His grace even from an upright and virtuous Mahometan, who observes his religion because he sincerely believes it to be the best manner in which he can worship God."-Pp. 91, 92.

In the remarks which Mr. Mocatta makes on the proofs which the Christian advocate must adduce before he can win to his faith the Jewish mind, he shews what a stumbling-block the orthodox doctrines of the two natures and a trinity of persons are. "They (Christians) must produce authority for asserting that He (the Messiah) was to be both God and Man. They must prove from the Old Testament that God is One and Three." (P. 91.)

We shall be glad hereafter to welcome Mr. Mocatta as an independent author as well as a translator. Long may he be enabled and disposed to continue and to make public his researches into the truths of Scripture! If they do not lead him to Jesus as the Messiah, they may perhaps induce some Christians to review their faith, and make them see the contradiction which their interpretation of the New Scriptures gives to the great doctrine of the Divine Unity, so solemnly revealed in both the Old and the New Testament. 2 I

VOL. II.

Sermons on Consolation. By F. W. P. Greenwood, D.D., Minister of King's Chapel, Boston. Third Edition. London-Chapman, Brothers.

DR. GREENWOOD's Sermons are now too well known and admired in England to need our praise. For family reading, they possess the recommendation of great variety of subject, brevity, and exquisite beauty of style. They are well adapted to all classes of readers and hearers, being level to a plain understanding, and offering many attractions to the refined. This is one of the Catholic Series. On the title-page of this volume we look with pleasure and admiration at the beautiful engraving of the head of Christ, taken from De la Roche's picture. Here it is strictly appropriate, and is an emblem of the mental beauty and true Christian spirit that pervade the volume.

Bohn's Standard Library.

MR. BOHN has entitled himself to the support and gratitude of the public by the very cheap and excellent series of works which he has begun to publish under the above title. We already have Roscoe's Leo X., Schlegel's Lectures on the Philosophy of History, and Robert Hall's Miscellaneous Works. The last-named book is now open before us. It is a handsome volume of nearly six hundred pages, containing not only the single sermons and reviews, but Dr. Gregory's Life and Mr. Foster's estimate of Hall, and a copious Index; and this is to be had, elegantly bound, for rather less money than two of the single sermons would have cost twenty years ago. We must, however, remark, that we regret that injury is done to Mr. Hall's fame by the continued re-publication of his disgraceful review of Belsham's Life of Lindsey, an effusion of bigotry which is supposed to have been penned in a season of painful mental excitement. But not Mr. Bohn, but the original Editor (Dr. Gregory), is responsible for the admission of this most unhappy essay. There is cause for thankfulness in the reflection, that, were he living, not even the fame and influence of Robert Hall could now procure admission for such a review of a respectable Unitarian book into the pages of the Eclectic. There is progress, though it be slow.

PERIODICALS.

The Patriot of February the 21st, contains an article with the following heading:-REGIUM DONUM-Reply to the "Appendix" of the Trustees, and to the "Christian Reformer." It is in the form of a letter to the Editor, occupying three columns and a half of the paper, and is subscribed, “ Daniel Katterns."

The writer of this letter avows himself to be the author of the "Reply of the Committee of the Anti-State-Church Association," which formed one of the tracts reviewed under the head of "Regium Donum" in the Christian Reformer of January last, and the object of the communication is to controvert the strictures upon that pamphlet by our reviewer, and by the Trustees of the Parliamentary Grant in the Appendix to the new edition of their “Brief Statement" recently published.

Mr. Katterns considers the "Appendix" to be "in reality, an attempted answer" to his pamphlet, but charges the authors with a want of candour, because "no intimation of this sort appears in the title-page," nor is "any express reference made to that pamphlet through the whole piece." However, he commends their prudence in pursuing this course, since it enabled them to avoid meeting his arguments in detail, and left them at liberty to choose their own topics. He also applauds their judgment in the selection, "many of the most important facts having been," he asserts, "passed without notice, while those with which they could most easily deal have been brought into a prominence not assigned to them in the document to which they reply:" moreover, they thus get rid of the obligation "to prolong the discussion," "whatever else

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