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btcofne believers was to state to them plainly what the Scriptures teach , and afccompany such statements with the proofs of the truth and certainty of what was there taught . They also held , that such only as believed , and manifested their faith by universal obedience , wete considered as Christians in the first ages ;
and whenever such acted contrary to their profession they were called on to repent , and if they did not , were excluded the fellowship of the first churches . That the admission or rejection of members belonged to the whole body of persons forming the church 5 they being in general better judges of ordinary
conduct than the minister , who from his situation had not such opportunities of observing them . That while love to all men was enjoined and exercised , there was a peculiar Jove , intimacy and friendship to one another , in instructing , warning and admonishing one another , and in supplying the wants of the needy .
From these views both of faith and practice a constant appeal was made to the scriptures- , and as they also differed from many , in placing no dependence pn immediate impressions or impulses , ms if these were the teachings of the Spirit of God , but believed that he taught by the plain meaning of
scrip-H £ xire , ; ; U > okmg upon every thing else as delusive , their attention was necessarily LediTery particularly to the study of the scriptures . Mr , Campbell , besides , when 4 * e became a preacher , being situated in -a country place , where he had no aiccssto libraries , and having to preach three times on . Sundays , and three or
fouT times through the week , made the scriptures his only study , and always drew his illustrations of particular passages from the connection . From these causes he formed many different ideas of ascripture passages from writers of any denomination , and still finds the great body of Sentiments such as appear consistent with the views he has now
adopted . He delighted in declaring—^ the lpvcAof ^ God as the great source of salvation ^ -tbe manner in which all piritual blessings come to us through Jesus Christ by * he bcltef of the
truththe authority which Jesus received from hiei , God and father—his example , &c . > - * 8 b % *> At ^ Newcastle he followed the same plan ^ and numbers attended who considered what they heard plain , easily ^ mulefttopd ; asd illustrative «* £ scrip-
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ture . Sometime after the subject of baptism was agitated among the different churches in connection with Mr . Haidane , Mr . Campbell , on examination , not finding any direct passages of scripture authoritatively establishing infantbaptism , relinquished it and was baptized , with about half of the church . This made many of their constant hearers leave them ; but all was done in
peace and they went on comfortably . Mr . Campbell and his church had been occasionally visited by some religious persons from Kendal , who came to Newcastle upon business . About this time they heard that Mr . Kay , the leader of this small society , had et red from the faith , by denying the divinity of Jesus Christ . This orcasioned much , grief among their Newcastle friends , a * they had the greatest affection for those of them whom they had seen . A Mr * Brown , one of them , being in
Newcastle on business , called as usual , the / entered into conversation with him , an £ were surprised to find him still appear--ing serious , appealing to the script ures ^ and hkewise manifesting much zeal fc * r what he conceived to be the truth , ami
earnest to shew " that what was mi > st influential in practice was equally held by each , while they differed in important points indeed , but points wherejn he had express scripture declaration , ' expressed in numberless places , and so plain that we ourselves admitted them ^ and endeavoured to account for therh
by distinctions which had no authority but in the imagination of rneri . " Mrf . Campbell invited him to dine on the Sunday , and the principal members of the church either dined with him or came after dinner . Mr . C . was vei ; jr unwell and went to bed , but witfheh them to be in the same room , so haft
an opportunity of hearing their conversation , without being able to join with them in it . He *\ yas somewhat sfriicft with the advantage which fre seejrnrdTtfo have over them in the number and ptain ' , * ness of his direct appeals to scripture ; anil though he was nowise convinced , y , e ~ t he determined to examine the subject with the greatest care and attention-.
As he was at that time busily employed with a large school through the day , ajfljri with a Greek class ia the : e . veuing , f 3 je - sides some private teaching , jhe cfid nq [ t i named ia t ely $ e t a bou tit : "b u t o r / eT p f the members beine : shaken by the ar J \ ' ~ ¦ *¦* v' t * gumenu ot JMr . jtJrovvn , he endeavoured
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Intelligence . — Extracts from the Unitarian Fund Report , 1813 . 195
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Citation
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Monthly Repository (1806-1838) and Unitarian Chronicle (1832-1833), March 2, 1814, page 195, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/mruc/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2438/page/59/
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