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ship , will not betid his power to the support of his own particular views of It ; and this he cannot do in his magisterial capacity without adopting some sort of machinery to connect it with the state , which , as I observed before , is not the Christianity of the New Testament , but something superadded to
it . When Mr- Belsham speaks of " indispensable duty , " if he means any thing more by it than that it is incumbent upon every person in his individual capacity to forward the interests of truth genesraU y * without the assumption of authority , he must shew his warrant for it . Before the civil
magistrate assumes the prerogative of prescribing or patronizing , which is pretty much the same thing , a particular creed or form of worship , he is bound to prove in the clearest manner the three following things : " First , that the Deity has himself propounded a direct pattern ; secondly , that the
mode he recommends is agreeable to that pattern ; and , liiirdly , that he is expressly delegated to be its advocate and guardian . " It will be clearly seen thai ; tipan the proof of these must depead not only his individual right , but the authority of the worship he establishes . Whatever excellencies
may attach to it , short of tliis , must leave the subject to be discussed upon other grounds , and resolve it into a mere question of expediency . Bishop Warburton well knew how
vulnerable he would render himself by resting his argument on the solid basis of truth , by an appeal to the New Testament ; he , therefore , defends his establishment , with its creeds , tests
and penal sanctions , on the ground of their utility . " The true end" ( says he ) " for which religion is established is ,, not to provide for the true faith , xo ,, xiut * v piuviue iui me true rarcii ,
but for civil utility . " Mr . Belsham's establishment provides as little for the propagation of truth as that of the bishop . He is for extending civil patronag ^ to Christians at large without distinction .: and he knows full well that
error and absurdity abound amongst them in as great a degree as amongst people of other religions . His system is charitable , and he must be acquitted of intentionally recommending so unjust a thing as favouritism . Herein , however , he deceives himself . Suppose Mr . Belsham and a party of his
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friends to be takei * into favour by the chief magistrate * so as to possess ; g& the influence which he would give to the civil power in ecclesiastical matters- How would he and they act in such circumstances ? Would they give
any encouragement to Tnnitananism or Calvinism ? On the contrary , would they not lend their power and patronage to an opposite creed , under the notion of its being the best and purest form of Christianity ? Reverse the
case , and give all the power and patronage to persons of the Evangelical class , and they certainly have quite as fair a claim to them as the other . They would use them differently to be sure , but the result would be the same . No
one can pretend to affirm that the sects not favoured at court would not be damaged in their civil rights . If you have an establishment , and give to it immunities , it is absurd to think of excluding a system of favouritism .
But relinquishing truth for the basis of an establishment , Mr . Belsham appears disposed to reason it on the ground of expediency . In this he agrees with the champion for establishments before quoted . Their principle is the same ; the only difference
between them being , to adopt his own language , upon the question of plus and minus . To debate the question upon this ground would be occupying too wide a field for your pages , nor would it tend to any useful purpose . The notion of expediency is as
diversified as the human intellect , and that , as the education , connexions , pursuits and employments of individuals . If the civil magistrate is to be let in as
the patron of Christianity upon such equivocal and indefinite pretences , he will be the sole judge in the matter . Expediency will bend to his pleasure ana convenience , and religion be made subservient to state purposes .
I differ from Mr . Belsham in liis statement of the true principle of Protestant Dissent . Time was , and that but little more than a century ago , when his principle was entertained with horror , as opening the flood-gates to
all manner of errors ; and even in the present day , I believe b y for the greater number of persons who attend Dissenting places of worship , would be alarmed at the idea of granting a licence to any one to maintain , and cer ^ - tainly to publish , what they consider
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SO On Mr . Belsham s Arguments for Civil Establishtnents erf Beligitin .
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Citation
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Monthly Repository (1806-1838) and Unitarian Chronicle (1832-1833), Feb. 2, 1821, page 80, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/mruc/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2497/page/16/
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