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    reasoning ; . wisdom , virtue and piety ; :. ali these had such a reasonable and beautiful mixture in him , as made , his company ., exceeding agreeable ^ entertaining , Useful and iniich desired . ' '••• if i ¦ „ * His integrity .: of . mind , as it discovered itself in his search

    after truth , in his openness to , conviction and in the frankness of the avowal of his sentiments , has appeared in his history : it was indeed a remarkable trait in his character . Wherever it led him , he would 20 . No consideration

    had weight enough to lead him into any practice or to betray him into any omission , for which his own heart should reproach or condemn him * A gentleman ? frprn pure friendship , once addressed him thus : " Mr . Sto < r-

    don , you are capable of doing a great deal of service in the church ; 1 am sensible of your abilities . I would have you be cautious as to the declaration of your

    sentiments ; or conceal them , using your Christian prudence . " To this he replied : " Do you sir suppose it to be the duty of a minister to declare what he thinks

    is truth ? " Not , " said the gentleman , u at all times : for , if you do declare it , you will cut off your usefulness ; and throw yourself out of the xninistry and .

    have no congregation . " " But , " replied he " do you think ^ sir , that is no part of usefulness ? I esteem it the noblest , If I can

    serve Christ in suffering , which everybody will , not do ; though preachers are many . And glad Should I be , if I could serve him that way even byv suffering for him . " The gentleman still in * sisted on it , that Christian pvvu dence will oblige persons to avoid

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    those things that reader ibesa useless , or unpopular . To -which Mr . Stoedon answered : * Oo you suppose , that 1 ha > e n&t tWse inclinations which you and o * hier jnen ha ^ e to live easy if I cook ! do it with a good conscience ^

    But 1 fear , the greatest part of Christian prudence * will be termed another day , uoridly pitUcy . Therefore ^ p ray sir , ; dp you 3 , ojc some of you , that insist &o much upon the prudential sckeme , write a book „ by which I iu » y be informed , where the difference lies

    between worldly policy and Christian prudence ; and it it be made clear to me , I will take wh $ t you call Christian pradence . " It will further show to advantage this part of Mr . Stogdon * » character , to lav before the reader

    the reflexions v ^ hich passed in his own mind on preparing the only sermon he ever preached in the Trinitarian controversy . He bad discoursed a year on detached subjects , and then thought it tinie

    to begin a regular body of di * vinity . He commenced this course with a preparatory sermon , tp shew the connexion of natural and revealed religion * JJe then treated of the beings and attributes of God . In the series ,

    he came to . consider the unity of God . 46 Here , " as he states the matter in a letter to a friend , I had some debate with myself , whether I should defer the doctrine of the T ^ Kinti yy till I came to revealed religion ; or give my thought * of it wow . I saw it to be as an

    important an article , as perhaps most in religion . And 1 could not tell how I could lift . up xtiy head at the great day ^ if I did baulk or shun such a solemn pointy when it came in my way . I did

    not see , but 1 might as well ski p any zpthejra tribute , ^ s this of it nit y . And thenJbow could I be said to ' -declare the whale counsel of-God ; ' or ' not to keep

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    Merri& " ir of * the Rev . Hubert Stogdon * 123

• Citation
  • Monthly Repository (1806-1838) and Unitarian Chronicle (1832-1833), March 2, 1809, page 123, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/mruc/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1734/page/3/