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Untitled Article
or from thinking it associated with doctrines which they do not approve . "They would , therefore , prefer the name of Protestant Dissenter , forgetful that this name also is coupled with injurious epithets , and that dissent from the Iawrest&blished Church is thought by many to be the worst species of heresy . Lgfc teem remember that the first Christians were a sect ' every where spoken against ; ' and tijat * on ? evil times and evil tongues though fallen , * they should
nojt be , deterred by the obloquy attached to a name , from giving that testimony to ' , toe " truth which the name implies . The term Protestant Dissenter is local an 4 Inappropriate . All who have rejected the Church of Rome are Protestants ; and all who , in England and Ireland , reject the church established by law , are Dissenters . But m Scotland and other countries , where Presbyterianism is the established religion , the members of the Church of England are Protestant Dissenters . The term Unitarian Christian is free from these
objections . It expresses our belief in the fundamental truth of the Bible , and unites us with all who profess the same belief in every region of the world . Agreeing that ' there is one God , and one Mediator between God and men , the man Christ Jesus ; ' they may Well agree to differ in points of subordinate interest , which are not so distinctly revealed . I hope and pray , my Lord , that no metaphysical hallucination on any subject beyond our powers , or deduced from texts which admit of different interpretations , will prove a cause
of discord among them , to make ' the Philistines rejoice , or the enemies of the Lord blaspheme ; ' but that they will take a lesson from the motto of your Lordship ' s coat of arms , ' vis unita fortior , ' they are stronger by union ; and not weaken the efforts which must be made for the revival of ' the faith once delivered to the saints / by disagreement about a name , which is sufficiently characteristic , which is not taken from that of any mortal , and which does not , like Socinianism and Arianism , imply the adoption of any doctrine to which they can object . The appellation of Christian alone would certainly be preferable ;
but it is claimed by all denominations , and the time has not yet arrived for Unitarians to be honoured by that title , x » t * efo % ^ y , beyond all others . " —Pp . 20 , 21 . On the subject of " great names , " as authorities in matters of religion , the following passage is well calculated to afford both encouragement and consolation to the sufferer for conscience' sake : " There is an authority , my Lord , which some names possess , derived not from wealth nor station , nor even from learning and talents ; but from high moral worth , from independent principle , from devotion to the truth , and from the heroism which has ' acted and suffered in its cause . Truth ,
accompanied b y such authority becomes irresistible . Error itself assumes dignity and amiability from its association with rectitude of life and integrity of purpose , and secures a respect which even truth fails to receive , when united to pride , bigotry , and the spirit of domination . We derive a strong argument in support of Christianity from the holy conversation and matchless fortitude of Its first teachers , amidst scenes of want and peril , of persecution and death . Unitariani 8 m has a similar argument in support of her pretensions , for not only are her doctrines the same as those taught by the , apostles , but many of her
advocates have borne similar persecution . They have not only had no worldly lure , mitres , stalls , and seats in Parliament , to attract them to their creed , but many of the strongest motives which influence human conduct to dissuade them from it , viz ., expulsion from universities , as in the case of Whiston ; trials before inquisitorial courts and convocations , as in the case of Dr . Samuel Clarke ; the resignation of valuable livings , as in that of Robertson and Lindsey ; fines , exile , and imprisonment , as in that of Biddle and Emlyn ; the burning of house and furniture , of precious manuscripts , the fruits of along * life ' s study , with the apparatus by which science had extended her dominion for the felicity of man , and imminent danger of being torn to pieces by the hands of an infuriated mob , as in the case of Priestley ; and in all , the orthodox maledictions of ' spiritual wickedness in high places / Such penalties might have * been avoided not only by professions of belief in law-established creeds , but simply by prudential silence . Thia their conscience forbad . They could not ;
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706 Dr . Drummond's Letters to Lord MountcashelL
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Citation
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Monthly Repository (1806-1838) and Unitarian Chronicle (1832-1833), Oct. 2, 1828, page 706, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/mruc/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2565/page/50/
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