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not but thiafc tliat there are many who will agree with me in much of its contents ; I am fblly aware , that there are few whose opinions on the subject of itr would not be perused with greater iateres t and more solid conviction . Those \ vho > feel themselves , attached to the principles , whtch aaore peculiarly
ch aracterize the Un&arian Dissenters , carrn&t but be solicitous that , tlieir ininisters should be men of education / , as well as of moral merit , and that the performance of the sacred offices of religion by the vulgar and illiterate , which , I regret to say , has of late been countenanced in one or two chapels , should be marked by the most decided
disapprobation ^ Wfeen we see our minister ascend the pulpit , the belief of his . s ^ qperior attainments and more cultivated 1112 bderstaading ; must of necessity gi \ re to lias discourse both weight and author
rity - y and while we are informed , that though much which aow is hiddea shall one day be revealed , we are well aware the learning of the scholar and the theologian has thrown a light upon many passages , from which much knowledge and improvement have been derived .
We know that the wild enthusiast and ! bold declaiiaer are generally ignorant , and that humility is found only in those whose attainments are for above mediocrity . Who , Let me ask , can li # pe for impi'overnent from the silly rhapsodies of a self-created minis ^ - ter , whose luoaest employment behind the counter has been , abandoned in the
vain hope of distinguishing himself in the pulpit , and who lias unwittingly dared to pretend to give that , instruc * - tioti to others , which ., it must be ap ^ - parent ? he would , so long have needed himself ?
Is it from the hope of gaining proselytes , or from the fear of losing converts , that an enlightened and respectable minister sanctions the performance of the rejigious duties in a man whose situation in life is little better than a common servant ?
it has * alwgys been considered advisable that our priests , should receive a superior education . It is true , the great practical duties which we are called upon to perform may be enforced without eloquence ; but we look for something * more : we dissent , fl *> m / the / Establishment , and wa expect ttuvti our iniaisteps will stand
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forward aoxl be heard , not owty from their pulpits confirming the wavering , but be seen , if needfal , issuing from their closets ^ the able , yefc temperate , advocates of a righteous e&ase *
The made of worship adopted by the majority of Protestant Dissenters , is also , a strong additional rcasaR why the minister should be a man && edu
cation- So long as the extempore prayer h * okt& its plaee in their chapels , so long * may canting nonsense be heard instead of those pions and simple addresses which derive their eloquence from the heart , and : aare beautiful only from the total absence of imaginary
ornament . It is infinitely better in the propagation of important truth to appeal rather to the reason than the passions ; te&t the illiterate pastor is miserably ignorant both of what he i& to convince
and of the art of coavii * eii * g ; and , in tke place of th ^ steady , solemn * manner of the Christian gentlenaart and minister * you ; are disgu&fced with the arrogant self-importance , and the
arduous display © f that mite of knowledge , which ar-e discoverable in the clumsy candidate for holy orders . Nor is the active duty of the Christian minister confined within the walls
of his church ; he has o comfort the sick , to administer hope and consolation to the dying , to animate the pe » irtent , and to reprove the guilty . There are distinctions aad gradations of rank , and we know the influence
which they carry , even in the common concerns of life , and when we can see them backed by the more powerfol influence of mind and character , we may Mrly hope for the happiest results . When you cease to commit your pas * - tor-al duties tamen of education , as well
as of somewhat superior rank , you ' wili soon perceive the more respectable part of the congregation diminish , and its more humble members any thing but improved . They have hitherto felt respe « t , because their minister wa& superior in situation to themselves ; it was necessary , or his mfluenpe would have
been but very ifcrifling , —they w = ere enlightened , because by his- education he was enabled > in a etear and persuasive manner to > iippresa . on their mihds those precepts * with wljieb tHey o « ght to be familiar , —and the eonffm&lfcions wMch he adiaiihtstei e 4 were' ^ eeeftred with gratitude and confidence , because
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Metnon&rame &g > mmt Lag-Preaching . 447
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Citation
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Monthly Repository (1806-1838) and Unitarian Chronicle (1832-1833), Aug. 2, 1821, page 447, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/mruc/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2503/page/7/
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