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emotions which have so often oppressed me on similar occasions . And this is as it should be—it is iu harmony with the principles which bind us together , and which may have been stated in different ways , and professed under different
designations , but have always been essentially the same ; for we are the advocates not of sectarian notions , but of the principles , the great principles , which have commanded the universal assent of the
Christian church ; which have been held in all ages and all countries ; and though they have been blended with the reveries of human invention , yet have never been in terms denied by professed believers in Christianity , t
( We are the advocates of principles which are not only those of the Christian church , but of Christ . The Scriptures of the New Testament are a contiuued assertion of their truth and importance . On every page there is the Father , as the proper name of Deity ; there is
benevolence , the essence of human duty-They are the principles not only of the Christian Scriptures , but are derived even from the Jewish Scriptures ; for what are the facts of Jewish history but records of the struggle of opinion as to the powers that govern the earth , whether they be many and malignant , or one
and benevolent ? They are anterior to the records of revelation—they are the dictates of nature itself ; for if the heavens declare the glory of God , they declare the glory of but one God ; and if the earth is full of his goodness , they teach that he is essential , universal love , and that his creatures should love one
another . In whatever ways , by whatever measures , they may be promoted , to make these principles clearly understood , deeply felt , and consistently acted upon , was the object of the institution with which so many of us were formerly
connected ; and it is equally the design , of the institution whose nrst anniversary we are now celebrating though its measures may be . more varied , and , as we hope , its supporters more numerous , and its resources more ample—thereby rendering its operations more efficient .
" I am sorry , Sir , that with my recollections of those meetings , I cannot join in the congratulations which some gentlemen here have expressed as to the numbers who attend the present meeting ; for this has been the smallest meeting in
connexion with the Unitarian Fund ( now imbodied In this Association ) at which I have been present from the time of my removal to this metropolis . I should deeply regret this circumstance were I not convinced that the diminution was owing solely to temporary causes , and could it be forgotten that the number , of
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which the smalhiess is now lamented would from its magnitude have afforded delight and encouragement , not to our grandfathers and fathers who have passed away but to many of the individuals who now surround me , and that but a few
years ago . The altered feeling with which one regards an assemblage of 200 persons for the promotion of Unitarian objects is of itself a tolerably clear indication of the progress of our cause . Our friends by their absence have given a dimunitive
appearance to the meeting , corresponding with the infancy of this Association : may the strength of its infancy be sufficient to grapple . with the serpents of Ignorance and Prejudice , and the labours of its maturity rid the world of the monsters of Idolatry and Fanaticism !
" Although , Sir , my humble efforts are confiued to one department of this institution , my interest is not less in all the objects it embraces , and in all the measures it adopts . I feel the foreign objects contemplated by this Association to be of great importance , but they are not of paramount importance ; and it is more essential for us to Unitariauize this
country than it is to Christianize idolatrous nations . 1 enter , therefore , with zeal and sanguine expectation into the measures of this society , in relation to the numerous and important objects which come before it . The first of these , and which is most valuable as the means
of accomplishing all the rest 3 is the promotion of a closer union amongst ourselves . In proportion as we effect this , and only in that proportion , can it be expected that success shall attend our labourSo I do not mean an union which
implies subservience in some , and domination in others ; I do not mean an union which is to interfere with the freedom of opinion , or of agency , or which can give an asendancy to any Individual or congregation or society ; but such an union as will lead us for common
purposes to employ our common energies . The union we contemplate is not that of state religions , bound together by imposed creeds and worldly interests ; nor that of fanatics who dream they have a monopoly of salvation , a share in which can only be purchased at the price of
common sense and the best feelings or humanity . Without being thus drawn together by worldly interests , or driven into union by fanaticism , the history of our principles furnishes abundant stimulus and encouragement for united
and hearty exertion . Soon may this object be realized to the greatest extent , and by it the Association enabled to make its voice heard , as to whatever relates to our civil rights , and spread its guardian shield to protect us from in « ult ,
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308 Intelligence * — British and Foreign Unitarian Association Anniversary .
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Citation
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Monthly Repository (1806-1838) and Unitarian Chronicle (1832-1833), May 2, 1826, page 308, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/mruc/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2548/page/56/
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