Page images
PDF
EPUB

The Queen has been pleased to present the Rev. James Veitch to St Cuthberts, Edinburgh, vacant by the death of the Rev. Dr Dickson.

The Queen has been pleased to present Mr John M'Duff, preacher of the gospel, to the church and parish of Kiltins, Presbytery of Meigle, vacant by the death of the Rev. David Symers.

CALLS.-On 6th July, Mr Gardner's, to Lethnot, Presbytery of Brechin. No dissents.

On 14th July, Mr Henry's, to new church at Aberchirder, (Marnoch.) No dissents.

On 4th August, Mr Rose's, to Kilmarnock. peal taken.

Sustained, but protest and ap

No dissents.

No dissents.

On 11th August, Mr Gilchrist's, to Orwell.
On 11th August, Mr Tannach's, to Kinross.
On 23d August, Mr Blaikie's, to Drumblade. No dissents.
On 24th August, Mr Armstrong's, to Foss. No dissents.

On 7th September, Mr Burns, to the second charge, Lesmahago. No dissents.

On 10th September, Mr Manson's, to the Dean Church, Edinburgh. Consideration delayed.

ORDINATIONS, &c.-On 21st June the Presbytery of Chirnside ordained Mr John Whitelaw, preacher of the gospel in the church of Chirnside to the charge of the congregation recently formed in the island of Madeira. Mr Cowie of Whitsome presided.

On 5th July the Presbytery of Caithness met at Wick and ordained Mr Alexander Mackie, preacher of the gospel, to be a Missionary on the General Assembly's Colonial Scheme, Upper Canada.

On the 14th July the Presbytery of Edinburgh inducted the Rev. Mr Davidson, late of Drumblade, to Lady Glenorchy's church, in room of the Rev. Dr Liddell, now Principal of Queen's College, Canada. Mr Brown of St. Bernard's presided.

On 14th July the Special Commission of the General Assembly met at Stewarton, Presbytery of Irvine, and ordained the Rev. David Arthur as minister of the New Church. Dr Candlish of St George's, Edinburgh, presided.

On 14th July the Presbytery of Langholm met at Westerkirk and ordained the Rev. Wm. Burnside Dunbar to the church and parish of Westerkirk. Mr Clarke of Half Morton presided.

On 29th July the Presbytery of Strathbogie met at Aberchirder and ordained the Rev. David Henry to the pastoral charge of the congregation at Marnoch adhering to the Church of Scotland, and worshipping in the New Church. The Rev. Charles J. Brown, of Edinburgh, a member of the Special Commission, and Mr Dewar of Fochabers, Moderator of the Presbytery, presided.

On 18th August the Presbytery of Weem met at Logierait and inducted the Rev. Mr Cameron to that church and parish. Mr Irvine of Fortingall presided. On 1st Sept. the Presbytery of Selkirk met at Lilliesleaf, and ordained the Rev. Adam Gourlay to that church and parish. Mr Falconer of Ladhope presided.

On 14th September the Presbytery of Lancashire ordained the Rev. John Ferries to the pastoral charge of the North East Church, Liverpool. Mr Campbell of Manchester and others presided.

DEATHS.-On 20th June, at the Manse of Kilmalcolm, Presbytery of Greenock, the Rev. Robert Cameron, minister of that parish.

On 16th July, at the Manse of Kettins, Presbytery of Meigle, the Rev. David Symers, minister of that parish, in the 65th year of his age, and 42d of his ministry.

On 28th July, at the West-Kirk Manse, the Rev. David Dickson, D.D., one of the ministers of St Cuthbert's, in the 63d year of his age, and 40th of his ministry.

On 5th August, at 3 Maitland Street, Edinburgh, the Rev. George Tough, Minister of Ayton, Presbytery of Chirnside, in the 68th year of his age, and 40th of his ministry.

On 20th August the Rev. Alexander Wilson, Minister of Aberlour, in the 85th year of his age, and 42d of his ministry there.

THE

PRESBYTERIAN REVIEW.

JANUARY 1843.

No. LIX.

ART. I.-The Rise of the Old Dissent Exemplified in the Life of Oliver Heywood, one of the Founders of the Presbyterian Congregation in the County of York. By the REV. JOSEPH HUNTER, F.S.A. London: Longman, Brown, Green, &c. 1842. 8vo, pp. 452.

THE origin of puritan nonconformity, its ample warrant, and complete justification, will be found in the character and proceedings of Queen Elizabeth, the principles on which the Anglican church was at first based, and the means by which it was finally established.

Elizabeth was one of those persons whose character it is difficult to pourtray, because it consisted of elements apparently irreconcilable. She possessed the peculiar characteristics of both sexes in almost equal proportions. She had all the masculine energy and enlarged capacity of a strong-minded man, with all the caprice, vanity, and obstinacy of a weak-minded woman; while the circumstances in which she was placed had a direct tendency to develope and mature all the elements of her character. She was suspicious by nature, by education, and by necessity, and despotic by temperament, by habit, and by policy. Thoroughly and intensely selfish, she made all the means within her reach minister to her

Puritans and nonconformists were, at first, the common titles of those who were subsequently called presbyterians, while Brownists, sectaries, and separatists, were the ordinary appellations of those who are now called independents. See Peirce's Vindication of the Dissenters, pp. 147, 189, 205, 6, 213, 215, 223. Hanbury's Eccl. Memorials of Independents, i. 3, 5, et passim. We wish these titles were still attended to.

VOL. XV. NO. IV.

21

own interests; utterly insensible to the miseries she might occasion to the intruments of her will, or the objects of her policy.* Impatient of contradiction, not less from the strong than the weak points of her character, she quelled, with equal imperiousness, all opposition to her will, and crushed a refractory spirit in prelates, parliaments, and privy council, in puritans, papists, and populace, with as iron a rigour as was ever displayed by Henry VIII.

It was only by the favourable circumstances in which she was placed, and by the dexterity with which she regulated her personal deportment, as well as her general policy, that such a character, which could conciliate no love, enkindle no gratitude, and excite no sympathy, could inspire those feelings of national homage of which we know she was the object. Her life, to many of her protestant subjects, appeared the only barrier against the return of popery and persecution; and therefore, for their own protection, they not only tolerated the strong measures of her government, but admired her prudence, and promoted her plans. Parsimonious to an extreme in granting salaries or pensions to her servants from the royal treasures, she was munificent in rewarding, if not her ministers, at least her minions, by donations from the estates of the church; and thus she secured the applause of those-and they are always a numerous party-who look more to the value of the gift, than the legitimacy of the source whence it is drawn. Theatrical, yet imposing, in her carriage; magnificent, though coarse, in her tastes; thoroughly English in her feelings, and successful in her enterprises, she won and retained the admiration of those (always the mass in every nation) who are impressed only through their senses, judge merely by results, and admire power and splendour, without looking too curiously into the source whence the one is derived, or the objects to which the other is directed. It was part of her policy not to demand taxes from her parliaments, lest they might attempt to canvass her measures, and control her proceedings; while from the very same policy she directed the most judicious efforts to enlarge the wealth and the prosperity of the kingdom; and all this had, of course, the very strongest tendency to increase her general popularity. It must have been from

'My good old mistress,' said Sir Francis Bacon to King James in 1612, was wont to call me her watch candle, because it pleased her to say I did continually burn; and yet she suffered me to waste almost to nothing.' (Wordsworth's Eccl. Biog. iv. 70, n.) She kept Sir Francis Washington at Paris, because she found him serviceable to her purposes, till his health was completely shattered, and his fortune utterly impoverished; nor could all his petitions and representations to herself and her council, obtain either an accession to his income, a respite to his labours, or a recal from his embassy. See Strype's Annals, iii. 339, 340.

+ Bishop Short's Sketch of the History of the Church of England. 2d edit. Sect. 429, 467.

sources such as these that so much of admiration was lavished upon one who never uttered one amiable sentiment, and never performed one generous deed.

During her mass, and con

It is not less difficult to estimate Elizabeth's religious character, than to do justice to her personal and political life. sister's reign, she regularly attended confession and formed to all the ritual observances of popery.* Nor was this merely from policy, or from a desire to escape persecution from that ferocious bigot, who was well known to cherish no sisterly regard towards her; for after her accession to the throne, she continued to pray to the Virgin Mary, and, as we shall see, maintained many of the peculiar doctrines of Romanism. She believed in the real presence, which, as then understood, was synonymous with transubstantiation,† publicly censured a preacher, who preached against it in her presence, and praised another who preached in its favour. The people, in the sudden ebullition of their joy, at what they conceived the downfall of Romanism, pulled down the rood lofts, broke in pieces altars and images, and burnt up the pictures and crucifixes, which, in the days of their ignorance, they had worshipped. Elizabeth, however, indignant at such sacrilege, ordered these appendages of idolatry to be restored; and it was only after the most strenuous exertions of her prelates and counsellors, she could be induced to yield to their removal.§ But although she gave a reluctant assent to have them removed from the churches, she still retained a crucifix, with tapers burning before it, upon the altar in her own private chapel. Against this open idolatry, all her prelates, not even Cox excepted, remonstrated in a style of very unusual vehemence; and in terms the most obsequious, yet firm, they begged leave to decline officiating in her majesty's chapel until the abomination was removed. For the moment she seems to have given way to the storm. But she soon

+ Ibid. 2, 3.

[ocr errors]

Strype's Annals, i. 2. Ibid. 260-2. § Ibid. 237, 241. There is a singular letter from Jewell to Peter Martyr, (Burnet's Hist. Ref. Records, Bk. vi. No. 60,) dated 4th Feb. 1560, beginning, O my father, what shall I write thee?' in which he says, That controversy about crosses (in churches) is now hot amongst us. You can scarcely believe in so silly a matter, how men, who seemed rational, play the fool. Of these the only one you know is Cox. Tomorrow a disputation is appointed to take place upon this matter. Some members of parliament are chosen arbitrators. The disputants are, in favour of crosses, the Archbishop of Canterbury (Parker) and Cox; against them, Grindal (Bishop of London) and myself. The result lies at the mercy of our judges. However, I laugh when I think with what, and how grave and solid arguments they shall defend their paltry crosses. I shall write you the result, however it may go. At present the cause is in dependance. However, so far as I can divine, this is the last letter you shall receive from me as a bishop, for the matter is come to that pass, that we must either take back those crosses of silver and pewter, which we have broken, or resign our bishopricks.'

« PreviousContinue »