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immense gulf between us—your presence is unwelcome — go out from us" ? Whether he would have made use of any such language , others must judge ; it is sufficient for my argument that no suet case ever occurred , and
that there were no persons then in existence who possessed such feelings and entertained such views . No ; the Unbelievers of that day , the Unbelievers censured and condemned in
the New Testament , were persons convinced of the reality of our Saviour ' s miracles , but ascribing them to improper , malignant agency . " This fellow doth not cast out demons but
by Beelzebub the prince of the demons . " The unbelief reprobated by the apostles was " an evil heart of unbelief , " and the term " Unbeliever" was almost synonymous with
" hypocrite . " Is Mr . Jones therefore warranted in saying of the present class of Unbelievers , € f Any weight from the New Testament is against their safety , and it is a vain affectation of candour to exc ^ fed Christ
and the apostles" ? Upon the general question , permit me just to observe , that Mr . J . in his reply says , that " he shall notice the most important parts of each writer as far as possible . But he has not noticed any important part of the most important letter , that of " An Unitarian Christian . "
The supposition of a Christian church now becoming " a mixed assemblage of Christian believers and anti-christian Deists , Jews and Mahometans , " is so outr 6 that I wonder it should be offered as an argument .
The alarm too about Deists gaining the ascendancy in our congregations and managing all our concerns , is surely unfounded . We can have no such apprehensions . The test and confession which Mr .
J . would require , viz . " The confession of Christ" is so exceedingly vague , that it would admit of a different definition in the mouth of every different sect , if not of every individual ; and many Deists would 4 * confess Christ" to have been a good and
pious man . In whom also , what man , or what body of men , is invested the right of making this examination , demanding this confession ?
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We are surely too apt to forget that the church of Christ is not our church , any more than the Lord ' s table is our table , and that of this church Christ is the Founder , the Legislator , and the Supreme Head . Can we , therefore , be justified in saying f
r r 'TIT . J ~ **\ m _ & ' "We are a society of Christians ; we have formed ourselves into a society to enjoy the privileges of the gospel , " and , in consequence , add , fc You , who do not belong to our caste , shall enjoy none of these privileges in common with us , lest you € 1
should cast a stigma upon usin the eyes of our weaker brethren" ? Being myself a firm and decided believer in the divinity of our Saviour ' s mission , I regret equally with Mr . Jones the prevalence of a spirit of scepticism , and I would do every thing "
in my power to check the progress of Deistical opinions . In the strongest terms which language can give , I would express my abhorrence of that ribaldry and profane levity with which the subject is sometimes treated . But
at the same time I think a great distinction ought to be made between the irreligious Infidel and the serious , the religious Sceptic , who is anxious lyit unable to obtain convection , who is moral , conscientious and devout .
I conceive that the sufferings of such a man , in consequence of his want of belief , must be great , and especially when he comes to apply his principles in the education of his family . Such a person is more an object of compassion than of indignation , and ought not to be driven away from the enjoyment he still receives by coming amongst us . J . G .
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JTo JV . •/ . of Liverpool . Sir , May 22 , 1826 . MR . NOAH JONES ' S letter which lately appeared in the Repository , ( pp . 72 , 73 , ) has already excited considerable discussion ,
mixed with some angry feeling , and m this discussion you have taken part . You cannot , therefore , be offended at my requesting your attention to the following observations , which have been occasioned by several parts of your communication , as printed m the Monthly Repository , p . 193 . You commence by ob 3 ^ rving that
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342 On Unbelievers joining Unitarian CongregatioTis .
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Citation
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Monthly Repository (1806-1838) and Unitarian Chronicle (1832-1833), June 2, 1826, page 342, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/mruc/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2549/page/26/
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