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was said, whoever was the speaker, as and requested to unite with the church, though eternal happiness depended on part have been received, and the rest every word. All seemed delighted to stand propounded, expecting to be adbe there, and retired unwillingly, though mitted in a week or two. Many more at a late hour. Many times after the entertain a hope, and give evidence of a meeting had been closed, from a reluc-change of heart, but are waiting a season, tancy to depart, they would collect into prove the genuineness of the work sinall parties, and converse most ear-before they unite in the covenant ; and nestly together, and if some interesting many others are under anxious apprehensubject should be suggested, they would sion, and deep conviction; and it seems take their seats, and listen with the most probable, that if the Holy Spirit, continpatient attention till midnight, and even ues His blessed operations for a few then, would hardly be persuaded to dis- || weeks longer, with as happy results as perse. The mighty concerns of religion hitherto, another hundred will be added had gained such an ascendency upon to this church. their minds, that it seems to have superceded every other subject; and is al most the sole topic of conversation in all companies—so engaged are all to press into the kingdom of Heaven without delay.

REVIVALS OF RELIGION.

By the favor of a correspondent, and the report of the General Association of Connecticut, we are able to name the following places, as having been recentSuch are the external effects of this ly, or being at present, the scenes of reawakening, not the least appearance of formation more or less powerful. enthusiasm or extravagance, has been N. Stamford, (Con.) Bridgeport, Stafnoticed; all is still, serious, and soleinn. ford, Somers, Woodstock, Bolton, MerThere is an earnest desire, to be ration-iden, Fairfield, Greenfield, Northford, ally informed of the great doctrines of Bethel, Stratford, Northfield, Enfield, the gospel, and the method of salvation Wethersfield, Warren, Schenectady, (N. by a Redeemer. Y.) Poughkeepsie.

The sinfulness and depravity of our Our correspondent states that nine or nature, contrasted with the holiness and ten Jews in the city of New-York, have purity of God, seem to engage the whole of late been hopefully converted, one at attention of those under conviction.-the age of 60 or 70; and three or four From a deep sense of their lost condi-in Philadelphia.

The extensive work of grace already witnessed in three of our Literary Insti

tion by nature, and of their utter inabili- Intelligence received from various ty to save themselves, they are brought||parts of New-England, convinces us that upon their knees before the throne of the present is a season in which the grace, and are compelled to cry mighti-power and mercy of God are strikingly ly to God for pardon and acceptance. displayed in converting sinners. At such In due time their wills are bowed to the a period, none who love the interests of sovereignty of God, their eyes are open-Zion should grow weary in praying and ed to see the equity of all his dispensa acting for her welfare. tions, and they are willing to cast themselves upon his mercy, sinful as they are, to be disposed of as seemeth him good,tutions, and now, if we are rightly inand are content to receive salvation upon formed, extending itself to two others, the humbling terms of the Gospel; that while it strikingly displays the sovereignis, FREE GRACE and Favor—without any ty of God in selecting whom he will for merit of their own. As soon as they his eternal kingdom,and gives the church obtained this submissive frame of mind, pleasing intimations of the blessings her the conflict is over, they are comforted, king has in reserve for the generation to their minds rest in peace, and they re-come, teaches, in language more impresjoice in FAITH and HOPE of their unionsive than we can utter, the efficacy of with the Saviour. More than ONE special, united, persevering prayer.— HUNDRED SOULS, since the first of *Nassau-Hall, Yale and Dartmouth. March, have been hopefully converted + Union and Williams.

Here Merey's silver sound
Comes softly whispering by;
Inviting all arou.d

happy youth, why will you stray?
To taste of living joy.
Come learn the way to peace and truth.

Ye sprightly, young and gay,
Attend a call so sweet,
And all your honors lay
angels all, in climes above,
At your Redeemer's feet.

Soon after the commencement of the reformation at Princeton, Christians were invited, and many complied with the invitation, to pray in concert with special O reference to our colleges. To their united and persevering prayers we would trace, as a consequence established by Divine wisdom, these showers of mercy that have revived so many hearts. God will not exalt Christians, but He will ex-Thus alt his holy name. He will have respect In purest love adoring fall. unto his holy covenant. He will honor the institutions of his own appointment. He will shew that his foolishness is wiser than the wisdom of men. And when Christians in our churches stand forth like Elijah, committing their cause with confidence to Jehovah, undauntedly relying that He will let it be known that He is God in Israel, the fire of Divine grace will fall on our altars, at once humbling Christians in the dust, as inef- Rocks fall to dust, and mountains melt away; The seas shall waste, the skies in smoke decay, ficient agents, and flashing conviction on But fixt His werd, His saving power remains, all the infidel hosts of Baal. The lofti-Thy realm forever lasts, thy own Messiah reigns, ness of man shall be bowed down, and the his antagonist made the following addition to them: haughtiness of men shail be made low ;

Wake, tuncful voices, wake,
To close the grateful song,
Let sweet hosannahs break
parents sing, ye children teo,
From every heart and tongue.
Here's work for you, to praise our king.

Ye

A late writer in favor of Universal Salvation having closed his piece with these last lines of Pope's Messiah

UNIVERSALISM INDEED! and the LORD ALONE shall be exalted in||« WHEN seas shall waste, and skies in smoke that day.

[Panoplist.

A Song of Praise for human learning and
Divine Revelation.

Wake, tuneful voices wake,
Begin the grateful song,
Let sweet hosannahs break

From every heart and tongue.

Ye tutors sing, ye children too,

Here's work for you, to praise our king.

Science at his command,
From old European shores,
Has found our infant land,

Our wilderness explores.

decay,

"Rocks fall to dust, and mountains melt away,
"In adamantine chains shall death be bound,
"And hell's grim tyrant feel the eternal
wound."

But all his children reach fair Eden's shore,
Not e'er to see their father satan more.
The tott'ring drunkard shall to glory reel,
And common strumpets endless pleasure feel.
Blest are the haughty, who despise the poor,
For they're entitled to the heav'nly store,
Blest all who laugh and scoff at truth divine,
For bold revilers endless comfort find.
Blest are the clam'rous and contentious crew,
To them eternal rest and peace are due.
Blest all who hunger and who thirst to find
A chance to plunder and to cheat mankind:
Such die in peace: for God to them hath giv n

Here numerous schools instruct the mind, To be unjust on earth, and go to Heaven.

And youth refin'd attend to rules.

Where once the Indian swains,
Wild and untutored trod,
Instructive learning reigns
And scatters light abroad.
Here, heads and hearts with pens combine,
In one design, to spread the arts.

Diviner knowledge too,
In this fair climate grows,
And sweets celestial flow
From Sharon's blooming rose
The sacred word directs our way,
To realms of day to praise the Lord.

Blest is the wretch whose bowels never move
With gen'rous pity, or with tender love;
He shall find mercy from the God above.
Blest all who seek to wrangle and to fight;
Such mount from seas of blood to worids of
light.

For joys eternal are reserved for you?'
Go riot, drink, and ev'ry ill pursue,

Fear not to sin till death shall close your eyes;
Live as you please, your's is th' immortal prize.
Old Serpent hail! thou mad'st a just reply
To mother Eve, Ye shall not surely die!
But reader stop! and n God's holy fear,
With sacred truth these tenets first compare;
Il Our Saviour's sermon on the nount peruse,
Read with attention, and the banc refuse.

THE

UTICA CHRISTIAN MAGAZINE.

VOL. III.

AUGUST, 1815.

No. 2.

To the Editors of the Utica Christian Magazine. I would render our circumstances calamWhile meditating an Address to the itous; theirs who have no such blessings Christian public through your useful are in fact as calamitous as ours would publication, I received the following from be, should we be deprived of them. my friends in Connecticut. It supersedes To provide competent religious inall I could write in favor of several indi-struction for the United States, would gent but deserving members of Hamilton demand at least one pastor for every College. To all who are interested in thousand souls; which estimating the this eloquent appeal, I give assurance that family at seven members, at a medium, their charities shall be applied, on infor-will be one pastor for ONE HUNDRED AND mation that I can give, as they may direct. AZEL BACKUS.

Hamilton College, July 15th, 1815.

FIFTY families. If it should seem that the allotted charge is too small, it may be remembered, that in the Jewish economy, about one instructor was pro

AN ADDRESS OF THE CHARITABLE SOCIE-vided for every forty families, inclu

TY FOR THE EDUCATION OF INDIGENT

PIOUS YOUNG MEN, FOR THE MINISTRY

OF THE GOSPEL.

tion of children, as well as the religious ding in their duty the common educaIt is the object of this Society to as afford at least one exclusively devoted instruction of the people; which might sist in providing for our country a suffi- to religious instruction for eighty fami cient number of competent religious in-lies. It appears also, from the evidence structors. The importance of the evan- of authentic documents, that in Newgelical Ministry is generally admitted. England, so late as 1753, there was one But the state of the nation in respect to liberally educated minister to 628 souls: qualified instructors, is, it is believed, far and from a cursory examination of the from being understood. In soliciting necessary documents, it is presumed, the charitable co-operation of the public that previous to this period, back to the in this design, it becomes our duty there-first settlement of this country, the sup fore, to state, for their information, such ply was even greater than this proporfacts and estimates as we have been able tion.* to obtain; to explain generally our views as to the ways of supplying this deficiency, and particularly the way in which we propose to conduct our exertions for that purpose.

At the present time the ratio in NewEngland is about one educated minister to every 1500 souls. But whether we have gained by this diminution of religious instruction, the present relicious and moral state of New-England, compared with the first 150 years, will easily

decide.

The population of the United States at the present time may be estimated at 8,000,000. Now the civil welfare of the nation and the interests of Eternity alike demand, for this whole number, *In the year 1665, this State contained a bout 1700 families, 8 or 9000 inhabitants, and the agency of qualified, religious instructors. If it be important that any portion bout twenty ministers. Upon an avarage there they constantly enjoyed the instructions of aof this population be instructed in reli-was as much as one minister to every 85 famigion, it is equally important that all lies, or to about 430 souls. In some of the should be instructed. If the overthrow new plantations, thirty families supported a of our religious institutions in this State, than forty when they called and settled a pasminister, and commonly there was not more and the extinction of evangelical light," tor.-Trumbull's Hist. Conn,

D

There may be, perhaps, 1500 besides, who are nominally ministers of the Gos

In Great Britain and Ireland it is estim- || 5000 educated ministers of the Gospel ated that the number of worshipping as in our land; leaving a deficiency of semblies is as many as one to every 8 5000 ministers, and a population of five or 900 inhabitants. In Portugal, Spain, million destitute of proper religious inItaly, and Switzerland, the number of struction.* congregations is supposed to be still greater according to the population. In Holland, Prussia, Denmark, and thepel. But they are generally illiterate states of Germany, there may be one assembly for every 1100 souls; and in Russia there is one religious teacher, including every grade, for every 460. The medium supply for Europe may then be estimated at one minister for every 1000 souls.

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men, often not possessed even of a good English education, and in some instances unable to read or write. By them, as a body, learning is despised. With few exceptions, they are utterly unacquainted with Theology, and like other men are devoted through the week to That this is not too great a proportion, secular employment, and preach on the may appear from the fact, that in the Sabbath with such preparation as such State of Connecticut, one of the most an education, and such avocations will populous in the Union, though the num- allow. Now admitting the piety of ber of ministers, including all who bear these men, the rectitude of their mothe name, is about one to a thousand, tives, and that in the absence of a betthere are still vacancies, and unorgani- ter supply they were even benefactors zed population, and partially supplied to the country; still, with the best incongregations enough to demand the tentions, they are unable to exert that employment of nearly one hundred ad-[[ religious and moral and literary influditional ministers. The population of ence which it belongs to the Ministry the Union is so scattered, that one half to exert. It is not by preaching repenof it cannot be thrown into congrega tance and faith, exclusively, that the intions of a thousand souls; and if, interests of religion are promoted. There some places, one pastor can supply is a state of society to be formed, and to 1500 or 2000; in four times that number of places he can embody in his charge a number not exceeding 500 souls. So that assigning one minister to a thousand souls, as they are scattered over the face of the nation, is in fact a very small supply. But, could the population of the nation be organized in congregations of 1000 souls, or 150 families, the whole routine of ministerial labor, the weekly preparations for the desk, the visiting of schools, the catechetical instructions, the weekly lectures, and family visiting, added to a vast amount of miscellaneous avocations, would completely engross the whole time ofany pastor.

be formed by an extended combination of institutions, religious, civil and literary, which never exist without the cooperation of an educated Ministry.

Illiterate men, however pious, cannot command the attention of that class of the community whose education and mental culture is above their own. But his class of persons, whose souls are not to be disregarded, will ever exert a powerful influence in human affairs. And they will despise religion, and neglect her institutions, and throw the weight of their influence against the Gospel, when its chosen advocates are ignorant and unlettered men. Illiterate pastors To supply then a population of 8,000 cannot be the patrons of schools, acade 000 with competest religious instruc-mies and colleges. They cannot, and tors, at the ratio of one for a thousand, if they can they will not, exalt society demands the agency of 8000 ministers. above their own level. Education, reBut according to the best information ligious and literary, will be neglected in which can be obtained, and which to a great extent is obtained from the au- * In this population there are about 1200 orthentic printed documents of ecclesias-gamized congregations able to support a pastor -the remainder is either in the hands of illitetical bodies, there are not according to rate men, or like primeval Chaos, without form the largest computation, more than and void, and darkness resting upon it.

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their hands; civilization will decline, and immoralities multiply. If the influence of such men be better than nothing, if it do not help on the decline caused by human depravity, it is totally incompetent to arrest it.

Illiterate men have never been the chosen instruments of God to build up his cause. The Disciples of our Lord, to supply the deficiency of an education, were instructed by himself for three years; and then, were miraculously taught languages, and clothed with the power of miracles, and were guided beside by the immediate suggestions of the Holy Spirit.

little realized by the people of this state, and which no benevolent mind can contemplate without sympathy.

In the District of Maine, containing a population of 228,705, about one half the people are said to be destitute of stated religious instruction.

It appears that in the counties of Rockingham and Strafford, the two oldest and principal counties in the State of New-Hampshire, containing in 1810, exclusive of Portsmouth and Exeter, 76 towns and 83,040 inhabitants,46 towns were, in December 1813, destitute of the stated means of grace; and their inhabitants, 40,286, were not only preWhat would the Science of Law be- cluded the blessings of a regular miniscome, and the administration of justice, try, but exposed to the errors of enthuin the hands of men destitute of a com- siastic and false teachers, by whose inmon education, ignorant of the science, fluence the few remaining friends of the and who should go from the plough and religion of their fathers were counterthe workshop to the bar? What would be acted, depressed and discouraged. The the fate of medicine, and our fate, were population of New Hampshire is 214, health and life committed to the hands || 460. Now if to this 40,000 unsupplied of men who never studied the human population be added that which is in system, and knew nothing of diseases or like circumstances in other parts of the remedies, by reading or by meditation? State, the result will be probably, that And what would be the fate of agricul- || at least one third, or 71,486 of the inhabture or commerce, or the mechanic arts, itants of that State, are unsupplied with pursued with as much ignorance as at-stated religious instruction. tends an unlettered ministry, and pur- In Vermont the state of things may sued only as a calling subordinate to be a little better, though not varying another which occupied six days in greatly from the State of New-Hampseven? Is religious knowledge alone to shire.. be obtained without study? Or is the In the state of Rhode-Island; in the soul, and its eternal concern, the only whole western part of the State, incluthing on earth unworthy the attention ding a territory about 30 miles broad of an order of men educated for the and 50 long, including about one haй purpose, and devoted exclusively to the population of the State, there is but that object? It is our duty then to en-one regularly educated minister;' and gage deliberately in the enterprise of but about ten beside, of the lowest orsupplying our nation with qualified re-der of uneducated ministers. Many churligious instructors. Religion is the last thing that should be committed to the hands of ignorant and incompetent men, and the real deficiency of competent religious instructors is at least five thousand, and the population unsupplied is five millions.

ches have become utterly extinct, and many once organized congregations have been long since broken down. The Sabbath, without the least restraint, is devoted to secular business, to visiting, amusements, and profligate habits; and is more distinguished by open wickedness than any other day of the week.

If we cast our eye over the different sections of the Union, to ascertain in In the state of Connecticut there are detail, by facts and probable estimates, 218 Congregational Churches, of which the state of the nation as to religious 36 are vacant. Of other denominations instruction, the result will corroborate there are about 68 vacant churches.this general estimate. It will exhibit a Allowing these congregations to be scene of destitution and wretchedness small, we may reasonably allot one

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