On this page
-
Text (2)
-
Untitled Article
-
Untitled Article
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
-
-
Transcript
-
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
Additionally, when viewing full transcripts, extracted text may not be in the same order as the original document.
Untitled Article
The accused did not hesitate boldly to avow and vindicate his principles of Noncoi ^ foriniJy , for whie ] bt , without t&e examination of any witnesses , he wa £ sentenced to be recommitted to Bedford jfdlP &nd if he 4 id npt recqwf a £ the end of three months , to be banished
the realm . No threats , however , or puniskment could induce him to violate the dictates of his conscience ; and though the sentence of banishment was not executed , this noble confessor was kept in prison for twelve years , enduring various evils and deprivations with Christian patience . The circumstances I have stated will account for
the general complexion of the Pilgrim ' s Progress , written by a person converted , as he supposed by supernatural agency , from a course of sin to holiness , and no doubt suggested many of the scenes therein described . Mr . Dunlop remarks , that <( the sentiments of Christian are narrow and
illiberal . " In this I think him more just and accurate than in the delineation of his character . Christian on various occasions advances his religious opinions , which are those of Mr . JBunyan himself . The doctrines of original sin , the necessity of supernatural regeneration , the immediate revelation of the Saviour to the soul of the believer
by the Father , the being clothed in the spotless robe of the righteousness of Christ , who is God , and relying on his personal obedience to the law , in doing and suffeinfor what that d
rg us require at our hands , were deemed by him to he the essential articles of the gospel . He had , indeed , no candour for any person who maintained different
sentiments , us appears from his conversation with Ignorance . What little affinity , however , has this system with the moral instructions contained in our Lord ' s admirable Sermon on the Mount ! It is indeed irreconcileable
mth Christian ' s own account of the necessity of personal righteousness for acceptance with his Judge in the day of general retribution : " The soul o * f religion is the practical part . ' Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this , to visit the fatherless
and widows in their afflictions , and to keep himself unspotted from the world / This , Talkative is not aware of ; he thinks that hearing- and saying will make a good Christian , and thus he aeceiveth his own soul . Hearing is
Untitled Article
but as the sowing of the seed * talking is not sufficient to prove that fruit is indeed in the heart and life ; and let us assure ourselves that at the d ^ y of doom , inen shall be judged according to their fruits . It will not be said
then , Did you believe ? b \ it 9 Were you doers or talkers only ? And accordingly shall they be judged . The end of the world is compared to our harvest , and you know men at Usarvest regard nothing but fruit . Not tkat
any thing can be accepted , that is not of faith ; but I speak this to shew you how insignificant the profession of Talkative will be at that day . " I wish every part of the Pilgrim ' s Progress corresponded with these just and important observations .
There is one considerable defect in this Allegory , which is , I think , as pernicious in its tendency as it is erroneous in principle . Morality is represented only as a village , and , that pilgrims may not pass through it , the author has placed it a mile out of the
way which leads to Mount Zion ; and poor Christian for his attempt to go to it , to consult with Mr . Legality , was in very imminent danger of being burnt by flashes of fire from a neighbouring hill . This , together with the severe reproof given him by Evangelist for his . rashness , exhibits morality in a point of view to be dreaded and avoided .
rather than sought for and highly valued . How much better would it . comport witU the genuine system of Christianity , if Morality were made the King ' s High-way to Mount Zion , and every deviation from it strictly forbidden !
That all persons after having entered on the Christian pilgrimage should be obliged to pass through the Slough of Respond in their way to the heavenlycity , is presenting a needless discouragement from the undertaking , and not warranted by divine revelation .
1 hat many sincere converts from darkness to light , from a course of sin to the service of God and the practice of holiness , are occasionally apt to despond of divine mercy and acceptance , is true , but this should be stated as
their infirmity , against which the genuine principles of religion , and the gracious promises of the gospel , tend to preserve them , to animate their steps , to cheer their hearts , and to brighten their prospects . The contest
Untitled Article
The Character of Christian , in Bunyarfa Pilgrim * s Progress . 73
Untitled Article
VOL . XVI . L
-
-
Citation
-
Monthly Repository (1806-1838) and Unitarian Chronicle (1832-1833), Feb. 2, 1821, page 73, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/mruc/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2497/page/9/
-