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27. The Root of Proteftant Errors examined; or Mr. Mosheim's Queftion difcuffed, viz. How far a juft Antipathy to the Church Puppet-Shews of Papifts, has unjustly driven fome Proteftant Churches into the oppofite Extreme? 4to. Pr. 1s. Johnson.

In answer to the question here proposed, our author endeavours to prove, that all kinds and degrees of conformity to the church puppet-shews of papifts are faulty and unjustifiable; and that the pretended measures of aiding devotion, and advancing the interefts of the Chriftian religion, by making byelaws, or appointing rites and ceremonies, not enjoined by Chrift or his apostles, are of the very fame species with church puppet-shews, whether they relate to the magnificent and highly ornamented buildings, the confecration of them, the inftrumental mufic in churches, the fet order of geftures, the bowing, the kneeling, or the croffings made use of; the claims of priestly power to abfolve or condemn; the subscription required to fymbols of human composition, and to articles of faith which are of no better original. he fays, and other things of the fame human complexion, are what belong to church puppet-fhews; and fo far as Proteftant churches do countenance and cherish them, fo far are they from fhewing a juft antipathy, that they are unjustly drawn, if not driven into the fame extreme with that of the Popish profeffion. Every deviation from the fimplicity of the divine original is fo far a corruption of genuine Christianity; and in proportion to the stress which men lay on their church puppetfhews they become of depraved difpofitions, lose their native humanity and good will, and become, by their zeal and bigotry, inclined to hate and abuse rather than love and comfort one another.'

Thefe,

This is not an ill-written, though partial vindication of the conduct of our Proteftant Diffenters, with refpect to their rejection of those external rites and ceremonies which are adopted by the church of England.

28. Confiderations upon the Miracles of the Gospel: In Anfwer to the Difficulties raised by Mr. John James Rouffeau, in his Third Letter from the Mountain. Tranflated from the French of D. Claparede, Paftor, and Profeffor of Divinity at Geneva. By the Editors of the Chriftian's Magazine. 8vo. Price 2s. 6d. J. Newbery.

Mr. Rouffeau, to justify the confeffion of the Savoyard vicar, that there is no great neceffity to believe the miracles of the gofpel, has afferted, that Jefus Chrift did not perform his miracles as a proof of his miffion. But this learned writer, to confute Q4

this

this affertion, produces feveral paffages from the evangelifts by which it appears, that our Lord actually made ufe of miracles, in order to establish his authority. See John v. 36. Mat. -5, &c.

xi. 2.

He then answers the arguments which Mr. Rousseau, in support of his opinion, has deduced from our Lord's refufing, on fome occafions, to work miracles for the conviction of his hearers-from his requiring faith in the diseased before he performed his miraculous cures from his not giving his miracles the eclat and authenticity neceffary to make them true fignsand from his recommending fecrecy to those whom he cured.

Mr. Rouffeau has likewife afferted, that miracles are not an infallible proof, or one of which men can judge.

In oppofition to his reasoning on this point, Mr. Claparede endeavours to fhew, that miracles are proper to establish a divine miffion; that they are not improbable; and that they may be evidently diftinguished from natural events and impostures.

He then proceeds to confider fome difficulties respecting the cure of the man born blind, and the blind man of Bethfaida, the refurrection of Lazarus, and the cure of the Demoniacs.

On all these topics this writer argues in a plain and methodical manner; and very judiciously removes every material objection against the miracles of the gofpel, contained in the Third Letter from the Mountain.

29. Thoughts on Miracles in general, and as they relate to the Establishment of Christianity in particular: Interspersed with Remarks on Bishop Butler's Analogy of Religion with the Course of Nature. To which is added the Creed of a real Deift. 8vo. Becket.

Pr. 25.

In this tract the author has raised fome old and fuperficial objections against the credibility of miracles. He alleges, that the laws of God are perfect, and therefore immutable; that miracles are incapable of proof from teftimony, because their effects are incommunicable; that, as far as they relate to the establishment of a religious fyftem, they require a different kind of evidence from common hiftorical facts; and that, fo far from being unneceffary, they do not appear to be expedient, or likely to anfwer any good purpose to mankind.

In answer to his arguments' on this head, we may observe, that the discovery of a future ftate is of the utmost use and importance to mankind, and that the miracle of the refurrection was the most effectual way to evince the truth of this doctrine.

At the conclufion he has exhibited the creed of a real deist,

in twenty articles; which, he fays, contain a fummary of the true religion of reafon and nature.

If we are not deceived by a perfect fimilarity of ftile and fentiment, this tract, and a late work, entitled, The Morality of the New Teftament, are the productions of the fame author.

30. A fhort View of Popery, and its Effects on the Manners and Morality of Mankind; together with fome Obfervations on the Progrefs it is continually making among ft the People of thefe Realms. 8vo. Pr. 1. Flexney.

The ingenious author of this tract has reprefented the deformity of popery in very lively and ftriking colours.

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Speaking of the manner in which Chriftianity has been debased by the church of Rome, he fays, There is nothing fo abfurd, monftrous, and unnatural, in the moft ridiculous forms 'of worship, but what the forgeries of fome reputed Christians can equal, if not exceed. The dreams even of the Talmud, and the Alcoran, are outdone by the more romantic legends of the church of Rome. The ftories of St. Urfula, and her eleven thousand virgins; of my Lady's chapel at Loretto, and many others of the fame nature, are fuch monftrous abfurdities, as Mahomet himself would have blushed to have related. To fuch a pitch has the church of Rome carried her reformation in religious matters, that religion, the most folemn of all things, is rendered the most ridiculous and contemptible. Religion, instead of appearing now in that angelic garb, which fhe affumed in the firft ages, of Chriftianity, is occafionally converted into a harlequin, a virtuofo, a quack-doctor, an executioner, and a dealer in old cloaths; and to speak the truth, amongst the vast number of miracles which the church. of Rome pretends to, this extraordinary transformation may be allowed to be the only real one.'

The author takes notice of the mifchievous effects of celibacy in Roman Catholic countries, and the barbarities of papal maffacres and inquifitions; and then obferves, that popery is deftructive of learning as well as morality and religion.

How, fays he, was it ever poffible for learning to make the leaft progrefs, in countries groaning under the Romish power! Had a philofopher been hardy enough to maintain the motion of the earth, or the existence of antipodes; had a man of wit and penetration ventured to affert, that wine could not be blood, and that bread could not be flesh, or that the great toe of a cobler could not be the great toe of a faint, the philofopher and the man of wit would both of them have ftood an exceeding good chance of being fried alive for their ingenuity.'

The

The latter part of this tract contains fome fpirited obfervations on the danger we have to apprehend from Jesuits, and the progress of popery in this kingdom.

31. The Catholic Doctrine of a Trinity proved by above an hundred fhort and clear Arguments, expreffed in the Terms of the Holy Scripture, compared after a Manner entirely new, &c. To which is now added, a Letter to the common People; in answer to fome popular Arguments against the Trinity. By the Rev. William Jones, Rector of Pluckley, in Kent. Third Edit. 6 d. Robinson and Roberts.

Pr. 25.

This work was published in 1757, and mentioned in the 4th volume of our Review. The letter which is fubjoined in this edition, is much better calculated to fatisfy the common people, to which it is addreffed, than the learned and intelligent reader.

32. The Diftinction between the Ordinary and Extraordinary Gifts of the Holy Spirit, proved to have no Foundation in the New Teftament. 8vo. Pr. Is. Wilkie.

This writer, if we do not mistake his meaning, attempts to prove, that in the apoftolic age, all the gifts of the Holy Ghoft were communicated in a miraculous manner; from whence he infers, that the promises of the inward operations of the spirit, recorded in the New Teftament, no more belong to chriftians at this day, than the gift of tongues. For, fays he, whoever acknowledges that believers of the present age have no foundation in fcripture to hope for the last mentioned gift of the fpirit, because it was miraculous, and confequently peculiar to the times of the apostles, must be obliged to confefs, that they have no grounds to expect the former, because they were equally miraculous, and peculiar to the apoftolic age.

He obferves how widely paftors and minifters now differ in their opinion from the apoftles. By laying on of hands, they propofe, he says, to confer what they call the ordinary gifts of the fpirit; whereas the apostles conferred only miraculous gifts. The former therefore pretend to have a power which the latter had not.

Having alleged feveral paffages in Acts ii. and other parts of fcripture, to prove that all true believers in the apostolic age, received the like miraculous gifts of the fpirit, he obferves, those who imagine that the apoftles conferred the Holy Ghoft only on bishops, prefbyters, and deacons, or on paftors, teachers, and elders, as a diftin&t order of men from the brethren or believers in general, do not read the scriptures with that freedom from the prepoffeffions of modern fyftems, or modern

practice,

practice, which becomes the difciples of Chrift; much less with that knowledge of the state of things in the times of the apoftles, with which they ought to be prepared, who would make themselves masters of the facred writings.

In favour of this author's opinion, it must be allowed, that a fupernatural affiftance, common to Chriftians of all ages, is not to be inferred from all thofe texts which are usually cited for that purpose. The greatest part of them indifputably relate to those miraculous gifts which were peculiar to the primitive times. But it cannot be fo easily granted, that there is no ordinary affiftance of the holy fpirit to be expected in after ages; for we are told without any limitation, that our heavenly father will give the holy Spirit to them that ask him.

The tile of this writer is incorrect, and his reasoning confufed; but his fubject deferves attention.

33. Eufebes to Philetus: A Series of Letters from a Father to a Son, on a devout Temper and Life. By Stephen Addington. I 2mo. Pr. 25 6d. Buckland.

This is a pious, well-intended performance, containing fome plain and useful admonitions relative to the obfervance of the Sabbath, public and private prayer, the Lord's fupper, baptism, and other religious fubjects; and may be of service to people of ordinary capacities, or to those who read pious books for edification rather than amusement.

34. An Anfwer to Aspasio Vindicated in Eleven Letters; faid to be wrote by the late Rev. Mr. James Hervey. By a Country Clergyman. I 2mo. Cabe.

Pr. 15.

Mr. Wesley, in 1756, wrote fome remarks on Theron and Afpafio, which produced Eleven Letters from Mr. Hervey, published by his brother in 1765. In the fame year Mr. Wesley printed an answer to the perfonal accufations which were brought against him in thofe Letters. But as that reply was short and imperfect, the author of the pamphlet now before us endeavours to answer every material objection alleged against Mr. Wesley's remarks. and to clear him from the feveral charges brought against him of popery, felf-fufficiency, inconsistency, ignorance of true criticism and found divinity, denying justification by faith, and being an enemy to the righteousness of Chrift; of being an heretic, an Arian, a Socinian, a Pelagian, an Antinomian, a knave, &c.'

In the title-page to this Answer the Letters above mentioned are not abfolutely afcribed to Mr. Hervey. This writer thinks that many parts of them were not written by that humane and

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