truth; and difdaining all partial and narrow views of the Deity and his difpenfations, to fearch out all the counfel of God,' as far as it is revealed, if we wish to become wife unto falvation." P. 50.

The Bishop then proceeds to the Formularies of our Church. He begins with the article on ORIGINAL SIN; in which the expreffion, that,

"Man is very far gone from original righteoufnefs; implies, that all the original good qualities of man are not abfolutely deftroyed. This is the obvious fenfe of the paffage; and hence the Affembly of Divines, who, in the reign of Charles the First, undertook to reform, as they called it, our articles according to the Calvinistic creed, propofed to fubftitute for it: man is wholly deprived of original righteoufnefs.' The article proceeds not to pronounce with the Calvinifts, that man of his own nature can perform nothing but evil, but, that he inclineth to evil; a doctrine fundamentally different, fince an inclination, though ftrong, may be conquered. The continuance of this infection of nature,' even in the baptized, and the conftant lufting of the flesh against the Spirit, are here afferted, generally and indifcriminately, without any declaration, that either the Spirit or the flesh invariably and neceffarily prevails in any particular defcription of perfons. This article does not give any countenance to the Calviniftic notions of finlefs obedience and unfpotted purity in the elect, and of incorrigible pollution and inevitable wickednefs in the reprobate." P. 51.

The opinion of the fchoolmen refpecting Adam and Original Sin, next follows. For their notions and the refutation, the work itself must be confulted; and Archbishop King's Sermon on the Fall of Man, with Bifhop Bull on the First Covenant, to which the Bifhop of Lincoln refers.

"The tenth article upon FREE-WILL," continues our author; "teaches, that man cannot, by his natural and unaffifted exertions, fo correct the imperfection, derived from Adam, as of himself to acquire that FAITH, which would fecure falvation, or to call.on God with that DEVOTION, which gives efficacy to prayer. The mind, weakened by the fin of our first parents, cannot by our own natural ftrength be prepared for the reception of a faving faith, or for the fpiritual worship, required in the Gofpel: this mental pu rification cannot be effected without divine affiftance. This faith is not a bare belief in Chrift; it is no inftantaneous acquifition. Deliberation and reflection are neceffary, but not fufficient, to obtain this joint refult of human exertion and divine grace. It is, indeed, the gift of God: not beftowed arbitrarily, capriciously, or irrefpectively. This is the true fenfe of the tenth article. The inferences of modern Calvinistic writers, that of our own nature we are without any fpark of goodness in us,' and that man

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has

has no ability or difpofition whatever with refpect either to faith or good works are not to be allowed. Our reformers exalted not the powers of the human mind too high; nor did they deny to man Free-will in the formation of religious princi ple, or in the difcharge of religious duty *.

"In the days of the Apoftles, men, as opportunity offered, per formed their part towards converfion, although perfecting faith to the purpofe of falvation was unquestionably the work of the Spirit. Miracles were performed, at the first publication of the Gofpel; and the Apoftles appealed to the ancient prophecies relative to the Meffiah; yet men were to read, maik, learn, and inwardly digeft' the Holy Scriptures, as the only ground of ra tional belief? Our church afcribes thefe writings to divine interpofition, and evidently confiders them as calculated to induce men to hold faft the bleffed hope of everlafting life. St. Paul, when his converts fell into errors, endeavoured to bring them back to the truth as it is in Jefus, by argument, by the written word of God, or by the inftructions received from himself. He did not tell them to confult their own internal feelings; but to compare their actions and opinions with the Gofpel, as the only criterion of a faving faith.

"The Apostles, who wrote under the direction of the Holy Spirit, expreffed great anxiety, that their converts fhould walk worthy of their holy vocation, and that they fhould continue always abounding in the work of the Lord +? Is fuch carneftness in enforcing active exertion, confiftent with that paffive waiting for the impulfes of the Spirit, which modern enthusiasts recommend? Every page of the New Teftament, by its arguments, by its precepts, by its doctrines, by its promifes, by its threats, implies a freedom of choice, and a liberty of accepting or rejecting the offered means of grace. His will must be guided, and his actions muft be affifted, by the Holy Spirit. Preventing and co-operat ing grace thus does not deftroy free-agency: it does not call on man indolently to wait for the workings of the Spirit, without effort. It encourages him to commune with his own heart, and to fearch the Scriptures, as preparatory fteps; but not to rely folely upon his own strength, in the great bufinefs of working out his falvation. His fufficiency for that purpofe is of God. In this Xth article, the grace of God preventing us, that we may have a good will, and working with us,' plainly fhews, that we alfo work. Though it is God that worketh in us,' yet, we are labourers together with God §.' The grace of God prevents

Neither fo preaching the grace of God, that we take away thereby Free-will; nor on the other fide, fo extolling Free-will, that injury be done to the grace of God.' Necessary Erudition."

us Chriftians, that is, it goes before, that we may have a good will; and it works with us, when we have that good will.' The words dum volumus' while we will, fhow, that the grace of God and will of man act together, at the fame moment; and feem further to indicate, that the grace of God will be withdrawn, if we ceafe to will conformably to its fuggeftions. Good works are not attributed by our church to the fole operation of divine grace, but to the joint and contemporaneous opera tion of divine grace and human agency; and confequently not the ability, to do what in the fight of God is good, till he is influenced by the Spirit of God; but this influence of the Spirit is not irrefiftible; it does not folely of itfelf produce good works; it does not neceffarily caufe men to perform good works. A man may refift the influence of the Holy Spirit, by turning to fin in oppofition to its dictates. The Holy Spirit points out the way to life, but it refts with ourfelves, whether we will follow its directions. Every Chriftian muft admit, that the Gofpel requires duty towards God and duty towards his neighbour; and the very idea of duty implies fomething to be done by man, which he may or may not do; and this free.agency cannot exift, where the mind is under the influence of a refiftlefs power.

"The XVIth. article is irreconcilable with the doctrine of irrefiftible and indefectible grace granted exclufively to a few chofen perfons: the expreffion in the article is general, and fignifies, that all Chriftians may act in oppofition to grace, that amendment is always in their power, and that a relapfe into fin is always poffible, while they continue in this world of trial: the flothful fervant gains no credit with his earthly mafter-the indolent Christian will receive no reward from his heavenly Lord. "The Baptifmal Service in the Liturgy is exactly conformable to the IXth and Xth articles. All men are conceived and born in fin;' baptifm washes away the fin of Children, delivers them from the wrath of God, and fanctifies them with the Holy Ghoft. The Chriftian religion is a covenant between God and 'Chrift will moft furely keep the promife made in the Gofpel;' and the infant, by his fureties alfo, muft promife to renounce the devil, and believe God's holy word, and keep his commandments. This form, therefore, acknowledges indeed the corruption of human nature and the communication of fuper. natural aid, but implies, that faith and obedience are not beyond our power."

man:

The Bishop then brings additional evidence, refpe&ting Original Sin, against the oppofers of our church, from the Collects for the fourth Sunday after Epiphany, the firft after Trinity; and the third in Lent.

"Free-will and Divine grace, as afferted in the Xth article, are recognized in many prayers of our Liturgy, and human ever..

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tions are confidered both as poffible and neceffary. The collects for Eafter-day; for the fixth Sunday after the Epiphany; for the fecond Sunday after Eafter; for the ninth Sunday after Trinity; and for the first Sunday after Epiphany, are then brought forward

and illuftrated.

:

"In these, and in numerous other paffages of our public formularies, the neceffity of divine affiftance, and the co-operation of man is univerfally expreffed or understood It must not be imagined, that God could not exercise an irrefiftible power over men it is only maintained, that there is no ground for believing it is fo exercifed. Man ought not to fpeculate on what God could have done to caufe obedience and fecure falvation: it is enough for him to learn from Scripture, what God actually has done and promised; and then to confider what remains to be done by ourselves: the argument againft irresistible grace lies in a very narrow compafs. It has pleafed God to make us re. fponfible beings; refponfibility cannot exift without free-agency; free-agency is incompatible with an irrefiftible force; and, confequently, God does not act with irrefiftible force upon our minds." P. 68.

The Bifhop then quotes a paffage from the Homilies. [Third part of the Sermon for Rogation Week; Oxford Edition,] p. 417. Refpecting the corruption of human nature, and the neceffity of divine affiftance."

The Bishop then opposes the doctrine of the Church of England, on the fubject of preventing and co-operating grace, to that of the fectarifts. This paffage the young divine may make a fubject of ftudy; while the older theologian will perufe it with pleasure. The chapter then concludes with a ftatement of fome among the difficulties, to which the PAROCHIAL CLERGY are liable, in thefe days of oppofition and preverfenefs; Here let the parish prieft paufe:-legat, relegat, perlegat! Inftructed by thefe judicious, temperate, and perfpicuous obfervations from the Bishop of Lincoln, he may proceed wifely in the performance of fome moft difficult. points in his duty; and, at the fame time, he may learn how to repel the force of the artillery, which is planted fo continually against our Holy Reformed Church by the dexterity and perfeverance of HER various enemies;

Εἰ γὰρ ἐκεῖνοι μὲν, ὥστε καθ ̓ ἡμῶν εἰπεῖν, τοσαῦτα ἀγρύπνησαν, τίνος ἂν εἴημεν συγΓνώμης ἡμεῖς ἄξιοι, εἰ μηδὲ τὰς προσβολὰς τὰς καθ ̓ ἡμῶν εἰσόμε θα αποκρούεσθαι *.

St. Chryfoftom. Homil. xvii. in Joan. Vol. viii. p. 102. D.

The

The narrow limits of a review muft ever exclude long quotations; or we fhould have clofed with fingular fatisfaction this imperfect detail of what is contained in the Bishop's first chapter, by inferting his laft fix pages; the immediate perufal of which in the original work, we can only recommend to the intelligent and fedulous reader.

[To be continued in our next.]

ART. II. Memorandum on the Subject of the Earl of Elgin's. Purfuits in Greece. 8vo. Miller. 6s. 1811.

AT the very moment when the earl of Elgin thought proper in this elegant little volume, to explain to the public fome particulars relating to his magnificent collection of marbles, which are now the objects of univerfal curiofity and attention: a Moniteur of the date of April 20, was put into our hands. From this it appears that a M. Landon is publishing in Livraisons, a tranflation into French of the Antiquities of Athens, by Stuart and Revel; and speaking of the Acropolis, the Moniteur obferves as follows:

"La Defcription de la citadelle d'Athenes et de fes monumens eft tres curieufe; elle doit fournir la matiere de plufieurs Livraisons; dans celle-ci il eft question du temple de Minerve: ce celebre edifice eft le feul que non feulement nous ait tranfmis dans toute fa fevere beauté l'idee que les anciens attachoient au genre d'architecture de monumens confacrés a la religion, MAIS ANCORE IL NOUS A CONSERVE LES SEULS OUVRAGES DE PHIDIAS, ou de fon ecole, dont l'originalité foit bien conftateé, &c. &c."

We could not have had a better preliminary to our account of a volume, the contents of which inform us, that these beautiful and magnificent remains of Phidias and his fchool, executed when the arts had reached the fummit of perfection in Greece, have, by the indefatigable exertions of Lord Elgin, been fafely tranfmitted to this country, where they will, we truft, for ever conftitute a fchool for the improvement of British Genius in painting and in fculpture.

But we must now revert to the work itself, which thus, without preliminary obfervations, enters at once upon its fubject.

"In the year 1799, when Lord Elgin was appointed his Majefty's Ambaffador Extraordinary to the Ottoman Porte, he happened to be in habits of frequent intercourfe with Mr. Harrifon, an architect of great eminence in the weft of England, who had

there