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Untitled Article
seldom or never be found that , faith and works are separated , even though they may not he mentioned together , for a vital faith infers also good works as its fruits , and good works include a right spirit and a pure
doctrine as necessary to their production . But if texts of Scripture are quoted apart from the connexion in which they stand , there is no doctrine so inconsistent but it may find some
support , and even opposite opinions might in this manner be defended It is therefore clear that a belief in the evidences of Christianity can only he the means and not the end : and
whoever attempts to rest in it , as m itself a sufficient claim to the Christian title , or available to salvation , will rentier nugatory many of the most solemn and important declarations of Jesus Christ , which demonstrate that Christianity is spiritual and
practical , and not merely intellectual and speculative . At the same time it carmotbe denied , that the purer the faith the greater safeguard there is for the conduct , and we would therefore by no means depreciate those
investigations or those virtuous endeavours to improve in religious knovvledge , which are the surest means of enlightening and strengthening the moral perceptions . We gladly acknowledge the authority of the miracles and their sanction to the divine
mission of Christ , though at the same time we believe that from want of information , diffidence , self-distrust , or other causes , some may never have formed a decided opinion on this
subject , and yet be very sincere practical Christians , acting up to the Jight they perceive , and fully sensible of the responsibility they lie under to their Creator . Mr . Jones ' s test then will
not answer . He will never be able to bend differing minds to one belief . Some will say they understand and believe the miracles , others that they take them on trust , but cannot
comprehend them , while many will acknowledge , if sincere , that they scarcely know their own decree of belief in them . No doubt there would be also
many cultivated and religious persons who would be able 10 give a reason for the faith that is in them , but as a testy even amongst Unitarians themselves , \ or amongst any religious
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body , it never could l > ecpme general . Indeed , supposing mvczprofessions of religious opinion were to be admitted as tests , no doctrines ha / ye ever been pointed out in which all persons can be expected to agree ; insomuch that
they may be considered as means of dissension or of hypocrisy , rather than of union . Even Mr . Noah Jones and his advocate E . C . entertain different opinions on this subject , and while one of them thinks the candidate should declare his belief in the
miracles , the other thinks he should conform himself to the ceremony of the Lord ' s Supper , with both of which a person may comply for various reasons , while a good life is an evidence of sincerity there can be little occasion to doubt . As to the subject of
Unbelievers attending Unitarian places of worship , it may be remarked , that so far from its being peculiar to our congregations , it is in reality the case with most if not all other sects , and it is well known that a great number of those who attend the Established
Church do not recognize several of its most important articles . Nor are they on this account , while their intentions are upright and their conduct moral , to be stigmatized with hypocrisy ; for the fact is , that they are placed in a difficult and painful situation , in which allowances ought to be made for some hesitation and even
inconsistency ; while their conformity , as long as they perform the various duties of life , ought rather to be considered an advantage than a disgrace to any religious community . In conclusion , we may reasonably ask , how are we to make converts to our own
clearer light and purer faith , if we clorie our doors on ail who are not of our own manner of thinking—if the truth as it is in Jesus , according to our perceptions , is to be confined entirely to ourselves ? Would it not be more consonant to the spirit of
our Saviour , instead of excluding others , to go forth even to them and proclaim in every corner of the earth the blessed tidings of salvation—to inform , to explain , to enlighten , and to make the limit of our charity and our exertions the devotion of our
fortunes and our lives I Surely if there be consolation in the benevolence of our principles , peace in their simph-
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414 On Unbelievers Joining- Unitarian Congregations .
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Citation
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Monthly Repository (1806-1838) and Unitarian Chronicle (1832-1833), July 2, 1826, page 414, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/mruc/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2550/page/34/
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