that they shall not follow any trade, or secular occupation whatever. They are consecrated to the sacred work, as the commissioned Ministers of Christ; as men who have a dispensation of the Gospel committed to them by the great Head of the church himself, such as necessarily demands the total abandonment of all other and ordinary occupation. They are set over the Methodist flock as those who are "called" to be "separated unto the Gospel of God." (Rom. i. 1.) A divine call to the ministry is regarded in the Methodist body as of indispensable necessity; and no candidate for the regular work is accepted by the Conference who is not fully persuaded, that he "is inwardly moved by the Holy Ghost" to take upon him the office of the ministry, and devote himself to the one business of saving souls from death. And the regular Preachers are placed over the societies, in the several Circuits, as their stated teachers, their Pastors and guides.

It may be proper to pause here for a moment, for the purpose of showing in what manner the voice of the church responds to the call of God in the appointment of the Preachers to their hallowed work. In the first instance, the approbation of the church concurs with the divine call, in the separation of the Preachers to the ministerial office. A young man, who believes that he is called to the regular work, labours for some time in the capacity of a Local Preacher. The Superintendent of the Circuit then proposes him to the Quarterly-Meeting as a fit person, in his judgment, to be set apart to the ministry; and if the members of the Meeting, who have "known his manner of life," and witnessed the exercise of his talents, generally agree in opinion with the Superintendent, he is recommended by the Meeting to the District-Meeting and the Conference, to be employed wholly in the work of the ministry. As no person can be admitted into the general work, except by this method, it is evident that the whole body of the Preachers have, strictly speaking, the direct sanction

of the people. The appointment of the Preachers to the Circuits is also made with the practical concurrence of the people. It is a fundamental principle of the body, that, in order to secure the advantages of a Connexion, both Preachers and people agree to give up their individual wishes when they are evidently not compatible with a due regard for the public good. This principle operates effectually in the appointment of the Preachers. The various Circuits make known their wishes to the Conference respecting the Preachers whose labours they desire to enjoy ; and their requests are met, as far as circumstances will allow. If the public good requires that a given Circuit must submit to some disappointment at one time, at a future period it obtains the privilege of being peculiarly cared for; and thus all are gratified in their turn. This is not the place to moot the question, or it might be successfully argued, that no body of Christians enjoys to a greater extent the services of Pastors of their own approbation than do the societies, collectively con. sidered, which are comprised in the Methodist Connexion.

It will not be deemed unimportant further to remark, that the claims of the stated and regular Preachers to the pastorship of the Methodist societies do not encroach upon the legitimate province of the very useful body of the Local Preachers. In some respects, the office of Local Preacher in Methodism harmonizes with the scriptural office of Deacon. A careful consideration of the New Testament notices of the necessary qualifications of Deacons can scarcely lead to any other conclusion, than that they were intended to fill a subordinate department in teaching, as well as attend to the temporal business of the church. The rule laid down by the Apostles on the institution of the office, and by which the first seven Deacons were chosen, was, that they should be "men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost, and wisdom;" and the qualifications for the office of Deacon, in the directions given by the Apostle to Timothy, agree, as far as they

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go, in those insisted upon for that of Bishop. It is hardly to be conceived that such qualifications would have been required, had it been intended to limit the office of Deacon to the mere business of distributing the alms of the church. A reference to the sacred history shows that this was not the case. Stephen, "full of faith and power, did great wonders and miracles among the people," and maintained the truth of Christianity against its enemies, with such effect, that they, "not able to resist the wisdom and the spirit by which he spake," excited a malignant persecution against him; and the first Deacon of the church had the honour of becoming the first Christian martyr. The declaration of the Apostle, For they that have used the office of a Deacon well purchase to themselves a good degree, and great boldness in the faith which is in Christ Jesus," would moreover seem to intimate that the deaconship was designed to serve as a preparation for a higher office; and this also accords with matter of fact. Philip, another of the primitive Deacons, is afterwards found travelling as an Evangelist, wholly devoted to the work of the ministry. In accordance with this view of the subject, we are informed that, in the early ages of the church, it was customary to select from among those who had previously exercised their talents, and given proof of their integrity as Deacons, such as were raised to the pastoral office. It is in this respect that the office of Local Preacher resembles that of the primitive Deacon. The body of Local Preachers is the nursery of the regular ministry. From among them are invariably taken those who are set apart, as stated and regular Ministers, and thus invested with the pastoral superintendence of the Methodist societies; and for those who are not called to be wholly devoted to the work of preaching the Gospel, there remains an important subordinate sphere of labour, in which they may honourably and usefully exercise their talents.

But to feturn to the argument. As it could not be proved either that

the Leaders are Pastors, or that there was any flaw or defect in the claims of the regular Preachers to the pas toral office, the Conference could not meet the requirements of Mr. Kilham and his friends, and invest the Leaders with the pastoral authority, without renouncing a great scriptural principle, essential to the constitution of a Christian church, and consequently endangering that which church government is designed, very especially, to secure, the purity of the societies. The Leaders, being generally persons dependent upon business for their support, are not, in the very nature of things, so favourably circumstanced for maintaining necessary discipline as the regular Preachers. In manufacturing districts, villages or neighbourhoods may be found, where the majority of the Leaders are in the employ of some wealthy, influential individual, himself a member of the society. Let it be supposed that the conduct of this person becomes so irregular as to render severe disciplinary measures necessary; and it will be at once seen in what circumstances of difficulty and temptation the Leaders would be placed, were they invested with the pastoral authority, and had to inflict discipline upon him in whose employ they were earning their daily bread. But so long as the order of Christ is maintained in the Methodist body, the purity of the societies cannot be thus endangered. The stated and regular Preachers being independent of business, and, in consequence of the Connexion-form of the Methodist societies, not being altogether dependent either upon the particular society to which an individual offender may belong, are not exposed to such temptation to neglect the enforcement of the discipline requisite for the maintenance of Christian purity.

2. It is equally apparent, that, had the Conference met the demands of the Kilham party, it would have moreover betrayed the rights and liberties of the people committed to its care. These would have been as much endangered as Christian purity. In bad systems, as in individuals, extremes not unfrequently

I always supposed that Christianity was rejected by the great majority of learned men. I intend, however, now to examine the subject thoroughly myself. I have upon me, as my Physician says, a mortal disease, under which I may live a year and a half or two years, but not probably longer. What books, Sir, would you advise me to read?"

"The Bible," said the Elder.

"I believe you do not understand me," resumed the unbeliever, surprised in his turn: "I wish to investigate the truth of the Bible."

"I would advise you, Sir," repeated the Elder, "to read the Bible." "And," he continued, "I will give you my reasons: Most Infidels are very ignorant of the Scriptures. Now to reason on any subject with correctness, we must understand what it is about which we reason. In the next place, I consider the internal evidence of the truth of the Scriptures stronger than the external."

"And where shall I begin? "inquired the unbeliever. "At the New Testament ? "

"No," said the Elder; "at the beginning,-at Genesis."

The Infidel bought a Commentary, went home, and sat down to the serious study of the Scriptures. He applied all his strong and well-disciplined powers of mind to the Bible, to try rigidly but impartially its truth. As he went on in the perusal, he received occasional calls from the Elder. The Infidel freely remarked upon what he had read, and stated his objections. He liked this passage, he thought that touching and beautiful, but he could not credit a third.

One evening the Elder called and found the unbeliever at his office, walking the room with a dejected look, his mind apparently absorbed in thought. He continued, not noticing that any one had come in, busily to trace and retrace his steps. The Elder at length spoke. "You seem, Sir," said he, "to be in a brown study. Of what are you thinking?"

"I have been reading," replied the Infidel," the moral law."

"Well, what do you think of it?" asked the Elder.

"I will tell you what I used to think," answered the Infidel. “I supposed that Moses was the leader of a horde of banditti; that, having a strong mind, he acquired great influence over superstitious people; and that on Mount Sinai he played off some sort of fire-works, to the amazement of his ignorant followers, who imagined, in their mingled fear and superstition, that the exhibition was supernatural."

"But what do you think now?" interposed the Elder.

"I have been looking," said the Infidel, “into the nature of that law. I have been trying to see whether I can add any thing to it, or take any thing from it, so as to make it better. Sir, I cannot. It is perfect.”

"The first commandment," continued he, "directs us to make the Creator the object of our supreme love and reverence. That is right. If he be our Creator, Preserver, and supreme Benefactor, we ought to treat him, and none other, as such. The second forbids idolatry: that certainly is right. The third forbids profaneness. The fourth fixes a time for religious worship. If there be a God, he ought surely to be worshipped. It is suitable that there should be an outward homage, significant of our inward regard. If God be worshipped, it is proper that some time should be set apart for that purpose, when all may worship him, harmoniously and without interruption. One day in seven is certainly not too much; and I do not know that it is too little. The fifth defines the peculiar duties arising from the family relations. Injuries to our neighbour are then classified by the moral law. They are divided into offences against life, chastity, property, and character. And," said he, applying a legal idea with legal acuteness, "I notice that the greatest offence in each class is expressly forbidden. Thus the greatest injury to life is murder; to chastity, adultery; to property, theft; to character, perjury. Now the greater offence must include the less of the same kind. Murder must include

every injury to life; adultery every injury to purity; and so of the rest. And the moral code is closed and perfected by a command forbidding every improper desire in regard to our neighbour."

"I have been thinking," he proceeded, "where did Moses get that law ? I have read hi-tory : the Egyptians and the adjacent nations were idolaters; so were the Greeks and Romans; and the wisest and best Greeks or Romans never gave a code of morals like this. Where did Moses get this law, which surpasses the wisdom and philosophy of the most enlightened ages? He lived at a period comparatively barbarous, but he has given a law, in which the learning and sagacity of all subsequent time can detect no flaw. Where did he get it? He could not have soared so far above his age, as to have devised it himself. I am satisfied where he obtained it. It came down from heaven. I am convinced of the truth of the religion of the Bible."

remonstrated with them upon its folly and want of meaning, and said that he could never imagine before how painful profane language must be to a Christian. But did he become a sincere disciple of Christ? He always expressed great doubt upon that point. He could hope for nothing from the world, and he was afraid that he might choose other pleasures from that circumstance, without a radical change of feeling.

I learned these particulars, a few years since, from one of the parties. The lapse of time may have caused some immaterial variation, but I believe no other. I have endeavoured to be more than substantially correct, and have therefore left many important ideas unexpanded, as I understood them to occur in the actual conversation.

Let the reader meditate on this history, for it is believed to be rich in practical instruction. The main thought is this, that the moral law is a monument-a sublime monument-of the great moral transac tion at Sinai, at the delivery of the ten commandments. But let him mark also the species of unbelief, the practical temper inspired by disease, the lingering nature of the complaint, the judicious advice and kind attention of the Christian Elder, the beautiful arrangement of Providence by which these concurred, the excellence of the moral law as explained and felt, and the glorious reforming power of the Bible.Abbott's Religious Magazine.