only go to church and attend to what he hears there. To those who add to this the happiness of being able to read the bible at home, I carnestly recommend the study of that sacred book, as the greatest advantage and the greatest blessing they can enjoy. It will be the guide of their youth and the comfort of their old age, They will every day find new beauties as they become more acquainted with it. Their understandings will be enlightened, their hearts will be softened. All the blessings of redeeming love will be presented to their view, all the glories of heaven will be open to their hopes. The joys and sorrows of this world will seem as nothing; they will learn to disregard its pleasures, and despise its temptations, while they press forward to the mark, with their eyes fixed on the glory which shall be revealed. And when they have finished their course with joy, they will resign their souls in peace to him who made, and who redeemed them; who will support them through the pains of death and receive them into everlasting glory. To whom with the Father, &c. Anonymous Sermon.

On the Crucifixion of Christ.

THE Church commemorates this sad tragedy, in order to invite her sons to the duty of repentance. By the devotions of the day, and the scriptures that are appointed to be read, she invites us to kneel down at the foot of the cross, and there take a humbling view of ourselves, of our manifold sins, and of his unspeakable goodness, who thus laid down his life in our behalf. If there are any who go the House of God, as Peter did to the judgment hall, merely to see the end of the matter, she hopes that like him too, they may there meet with something that will bring them to their senses, and cause them to weep for their transgressions. She hopes that some at least will remember themselves and turn unto God, when they are called to contemplate him, who knew no sin, dragged as a malefactor, before an unjust tribunal; vilely accused by false witnesses; rudely questioned by a partial and prejudiced judge; mocked, derided, indignantly spit upon, and buffeted by a band of ferocious soldiery; and when at length he is presented, by the pen of the faithful and inspired historian, laboring under the weight of his cross, then nailed to it and hanging in cruel agony, she has a right to expect that the most obdurate hearts will relent, and the eye that is unaccustomed to weep overflow with tears.

Hear him cry out in the agony of his soul, My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me! Mark the blood that trickles from his wounded hands; those hands which had been always employed in doing good, in.giving health to the sick, sight to the blind, and life to the dead; while thus engaged, through whose veins should not cold horror run? See him bow his head and expire! For whom? For thee, O sinner! For thy sins, and the sins of the whole world, thus trod alone the winc-press of his Father's wrath. Well might the rocks rend, and the strong foundations of the earth be moved; well might the dead awake, as looking for the dissolution of nature. And much more should the sinner shake and tremble, and fly unto the

P

God of mercy, that he may find mercy in the day when again he shall shake, not only this, but all worlds.

While thus we view him led as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep dumb before his shearers; while he openeth not his mouth, each un-upbraiding look, which we can but imagine he cast on surrounding beholders, should be an arrow to the soul, quick and powerful, smiting it with sorrow, humiliation, and repentance. But if notwithstanding all this, the hardened sinner remains stupid and unmoved; yet let him know, let him call to mind, that he who is now veiled in humility, who bows his head in death, and thus invites us by every endearing consideration, to turn and live, shall one time come in power and great glory, with the clouds of heaven, and compel the disobedient, with a rod of iron, to submit themselves to his sway. For to him, every knee shall bow, and every tongue shall confess, that he is Lord of all.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE CHURCHMAN'S MAGAZINE: SIR,

I OBSERVE in your address printed on the cover of the Magazine, towards the close of last year, you used the word sects, applied equally to all denominations of christians. Now as I am a pretty staunch Churchman, I have not been used to consider myself in the light of a sectary. And however fashionable it may be at the present day, to place every body on a level, and say with Swift's ill-sorted companions, "See how we apples swim;" yet I feel no disposition to join issue in the favorite cry. I wish indeed to assail no one, but with scripture and reason; and preserve consistency with my faith in the language I use. And therefore to be plain with you, Mr. Editor, that word sect did strike my ears a little harshly, and I want to know whether you think it was properly used.

B. D.

The question of B. D. though not involving a point of the first magnitude, is yet worthy of a plain answer. The word sect, was indeed used, in the address he mentions, in a manner implying that the church is a denomination standing on the same level with all others. Nor is there any reluctance to acknowledge that this was improper. We know that the term sect, is derived from a Latin word signifying cut off or divided from. Now as the episcopal church professes to be, and actually is conformed to the original primitive church, in all essential things, in doctrine and worship, in discipline and government, there is no propriety in calling it a sect. It is not cut off nor divided from that church, which was founded by Jesus Christ and his apostles. It were therefore much to be wished that all its members would adopt and uniformly adhere to the primitive and appropriate language, which was THE CHURCH. Consistency requires that in all cases we use a language conformable to our real sentiments; otherwise we may make concessions which we do not intend, and the consequence of which we may find it difficult to avoid. Innovations and novelties, whether in sentiments or words, should be cautiously avoided; for in matters of religion, so far as they are new, they are a departure from truth and propriety. THE

CHURCH is the language of the New Testament. It is authorized by all the early writers, and should therefore be preserved inviolate on all occasions of discourse or writing.

POETRY.

ance on your liberal regard for the religious rights of all men, that your will remove mistaken scruples from the mind of administration, by representing how perfectly consonant it is with our revolution, principles professed throughout all the states, that every denomination of christians have a right to pursue its own religious modes, interfering not with others. That instead of giving offence it must give content, by evidencing a friendly disposition to accommodate the people here, who are members of the church in question.

In proof of this, Congress did lately shew their attention to the accommodation of this class of christians, by communicating to the different executives your information from the Danish minister of that king's willingness to facilitate the business of ordination for our church. And the assembly of Virginia hath incorporated this Society: under which act of incorporation, the convention was held in that state, that sent both lay and clerical deputies to the general convention lately held in Philadelphia.

I have the honor to be,

with sentiments of the truest esteem and regard,

Dear Sir, your most obedient, and very humble servant. . RICHARD HENRY LEE.

His Excellency

JOHN ADAMS, Esq. Minister Plenipotentiary from the United States, of America, to the Court of London, at his house in Grosvenor Square, London.

[No. V.]

MR. JAY'S BILLET TO REV. MR. PREVOST.

MR. JAY presents his compliments to the Rev. Mr. Prevost, and has the honour of sending him, herewith enclosed, a copy of a letter from the honorable Mr. Adams, of 4th Jan. Jast, to Mr. Jay. New-York, April 5, 1786.

DEAR SIR,

[NO. VI.]

HON. MR. ADAMS's LETTER TO MR. JAY.

GROSVENOR SQUARE, JAN. 4, 1786.

A DAY or two after the receipt of your letter* of Nov. 1st, and that of President Lee, which came with it, I wrote to the Archbishop of Canterbury, by Col. Smith, for an hour when I might have the honor of paying my respects to his Grace; and was answered very politely, that he would be glad to have the honor of seeing me next day, between eleven and twelve. Accordingly I went yesterday, and was very agreeably received, by a venerable and candid prelate, with whom I had before only exchanged gifts of ceremony.

I told his Grace that, at the desire or two very respectable charac ters in America, the late President of Congress, and the present Secretary of State for the department of foreign as, I had the ketor to be the bearer to his Grace, of a letter from a convention of dewe gates from the episcopal churches in most of the southern States, which had been transmitted to me open, that I might be acquainted * This better from Mr. Jay does not appear among the file.

1

with its contents: That in this business however, I acted in no official character, having no instructions from congress, nor indeed from the convention; but I thought it most respectful to them, as well as to his Grace, to present the letter in person. The Archbishop answered, that all that he could say at present was, that he was himself very well disposed to give the satisfaction desired, for he was by no means one of those, who wished that contentions should be kept up between the two countries, or between one party and another in America; but on the contrary, was desirous of doing every thing in his power to promote harmony and good humor.

I then said that if his Grace would take the trouble of reading two letters, from Mr. Lee and Mr. Jay, he would perceive the motives of those gentlemen, in sending the letters to my care. I gave him the letters, which he read attentively and returned, and added that it was a great satisfaction to him to see, that gentlemen of character and reputation, interested themselves in it; for that the episcopalians in the United States could not have the full and complete enjoyment of their religious liberties without it; and he subjoined that it was also a great satisfaction to him, to have received this visit from me, upon, this occasion: And he would take the liberty to ask me, if it were not an improper question, whether the interposition of the English Bishops would not give uneasiness and dissatisfaction in America. I replied that my answer could be only that of a private citizen, and, in that capacity, I had no scruple to say, that the people of the United States in general were for a liberal and generous toleration-I might indeed employ a stronger word, and call it a right and the first right of mankind, to worship God according to their consciences; and therefore that I could not see any reasonable ground for dissatisfaction, and that I hoped and believed there would be none of any consequence. His Grace was then pleased to say that religion in all countries, especially a young one, ought to be attended to, as it was the foundation of government. He hoped the characters which should be recommended would be good ones. I replied that there were in the churches, in America, able men, of characters altogether irreproachable, and that such and such only, I presumed would be recommended. I then rose to take leave, and his Grace then asked me, if he might be at liberty to mention that I had made him this visit on this Occasion; I answered, certainly, if his Grace should judge it proper. Thus, Sir, I have fulfilled my commission and remain as usual, JOHN ADAMS.

Yours &c.

His Excellency JOHN JAY.

Literary Intelligence.

THE Rev. Dr. Claudius Buchanan, Vice-Provost of the College of Fort William in Bengal, by the last accounts from thence, was about to proceed to Cochin on the coast of Malabar, for the purpose of examining the ancient Hebrew manuscripts preserved in the Synagogue of the Jews at that place. The manuscripts are repre-> sented to be of a very high antiquity, being supposed to contain that portion of the scriptures which was written before the first dispersion of the Jews. A collection of them, with the European copies, has