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baptismal regeneration. . . . . . I am not aware that Protestant Church in England teaches the doctrine of baptismal regeneration except one, and that happens to be the corporation which, with none too much humility, calls itself, the Church of England. This very powerful sect does not teach this doctrine merely through a section of its ministers, who might charitably be considered as evil branches of the vine; but it openly, boldly, and plainly declares this doctrine in her own appointed standard, the Book of Common Prayer, and that in words so express, that while language is the channel of conveying intelligible sense, no process short of violent wresting from their plain meaning can ever make them say anything else."

He then quotes the child's answer from the Catechism, to the question," Who gave you this name?"

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My godfathers and godmothers in my baptism; wherein I was made a member of Christ, the child of God, and an inheritor of the kingdom of heaven.' Is not this definite and plain enough? I prize the words for their candour; they could not speak more plainly. Three times over the thing is put, lest there should be any doubt in it. The word regeneration may, by some sort of juggling, be made to mean something else, but here there can be no misunderstanding. The child is not only made a member of Christ'-union to Jesus is no mean spiritual gift-but he is made in baptism 'the child of God' also; and, since the rule is, if children then heirs,' he is also made 'an inheritor of the kingdom of heaven.' Nothing can be more plain. I venture to say that while honesty remains on earth the meaning of these words will not admit of dispute."

He quotes nothing more from the Catechism; but passes on to the Baptismal Service :

"The form for the administration of this baptism is scarcely less plain and outspoken, seeing that thanks are expressly returned unto Almighty God, because the person baptized is regenerate. Then shall the priest say, Seeing now, dearly beloved brethren, that this child is regenerate and grafted into the body of Christ's Church, let us give thanks unto Almighty God for these benefits; and with one accord make our prayers unto Him, that this child may lead the rest of his life according to this beginning.' Nor is this all; for to leave no mistake, we have the words of the thanksgiving prescribed, Then shall the priest say, We yield Thee hearty thanks, most merciful Father, that it hath pleased Thee to regenerate this infant with thy Holy Spirit, to receive him for thine own child by adoption, and to incorporate him into thy Holy Church.'

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"This, then, is the clear and unmistakable teaching of a Church calling itself Protestant. . . . Here is a Church which teaches every Lord's-day in the Sunday-school, and should, according to the Rubric, teach openly in the Church, all children that they were made members of Christ, children of God, and inheritors of the kingdom of heaven when they were baptized! Here is a professedly Protestant Church, which, every time its minister goes to the font, declares that every person there receiving baptism is

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there and then 'regenerated and grafted into the body of Christ's Church.'

Having thus described what he calls the faith of the Church of England, he vehemently opposes it :

"We ourselves are not dubious on this point, we protest that persons are not saved by being baptized.... We hold that persons are not saved by baptism; for we think, first of all, that it seems out of character with the spiritual religion which Christ came to teach, that He should make salvation depend upon mere ceremony. Judaism might possibly absorb the ceremony by way of type into her ordinances essential to eternal life; for it was a religion of types and shadows. The false religions of the heathen might inculcate salvation by a physical process; but Jesus Christ claims for His faith that it is purely spiritual, and how could He connect regeneration with a peculiar application of aqueous fluid ? I cannot see how it would be a spiritual Gospel, but I can see how it would be mechanical, if I were sent forth to teach that the mere dropping of so many drops upon the brow, or even the plunging a person in water, could save the soul. This seems to me to be the most mechanical religion now existing, and to be on a par with the praying windmills of Thibet, or the climbing up and down of Pilate's staircase, to which Luther subjected himself in the days of his darkness. . . . . If this be your teaching, that regeneration goes with baptism, I say it looks like the teaching of a spurious Church, which has craftily invented a mechanical salvation, to deceive ignorant, sensual, and grovelling minds, rather than the teaching of the most profoundly spiritual of all teachers, who rebuked Scribes and Pharisees for regarding outward rites as more important than inward grace."

Having thus fathered upon the Church the broad, unqualified doctrine, that "men are saved by baptism," he next proceeds to ridicule and contemn it :

"Are all persons who are baptized children of God? Well, let us look at the divine family. Let us mark their resemblance to their glorious Parent! Am I untruthful if I say that thousands of those who were baptized in their infancy are now in our gaols? You can ascertain the fact, if you please, by application to prison authorities. Do you believe that these men, many of whom have been living by plunder, felony, burglary, or forgery, are regenerate? If so, the Lord deliver us from such regeneration. Are these villains members of Christ? If so, Christ has sadly altered since the day when He was holy, harmless, and undefiled, separate from sinners. Has He really taken baptized drunkards and harlots to be members of His body? Do you not revolt at the supposition? It is a well-known fact that baptized persons have been hanged. Surely it can hardly be right to hang the inheritors of the kingdom of heaven! Our sheriff's have much to answer for when they officiate at the execution of the children of God, and suspend the members of Christ on the gallows! What a detestable farce is that which is transacted at the Old Bailey, when a 'dear brother' has his neck broken to the music of a sure and certain

hope of the resurrection to eternal life,' and the prayer that' when we shall depart this life we may rest in Christ, as our hope is that this our brother doth.' Here is a regenerate brother, who is far too vile to live in this world, and must be hanged by the neck until dead;-but though he is not good enough for the society of sinners, and man rejects him, he is quite prepared to enter into the presence of God, and enters eternity with a sure and certain hope of a resurrection unto eternal life.' If old Rome in her worst days ever perpetrated a grosser piece of imposture than this, I do not read things aright; if it does not require a Luther to cry down this hypocrisy as much as Popery ever did, then I do not even know that twice two make four."

And finally, having thus proved the Church of England to be as bad, or worse, than the Church of Rome herself, he goes on to spurn and execrate those clergymen of Evangelical profession who continue to adhere to her :

"It is time that there should be an end put to the flirtations of honest men with those who believe one way and swear another. If men believe baptism works regeneration, let them say so; but if they do not so believe it in their hearts, and yet subscribe, and yet more, get their livings by subscribing to words asserting it, let them find congenial associates among men who can equivocate and shuffle, for honest men will neither ask nor accept their friendship..

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"If I am not mistaken, the day will come when we shall have to fight for a simple spiritual religion far more than we do now. We have been cultivating friendship with those who are either unscriptural in creed, or else dishonest; who either believe baptismal regeneration, or profess that they do, and swear before God that they do, when they do not. The time is come when there shall be no more truce or

parley between God's servants and time-servers. The time is come when those who follow God must follow God, and those who try to trim and dress themselves, and find out a way which is pleasing to the flesh and gentle to carnal desires, must go their way. A great winnowing time is coming to God's saints, and we shall be clearer one of these days than we now are from union with those who are upholding Popery, under the pretence of teaching Protestantism. We shall be clear, I say, of those who teach salvation by baptism, instead of salvation by the blood of our blessed Master, Jesus Christ."

We have thus endeavoured, as briefly as possible, to give a general idea of the charge which Mr. Spurgeon brings against the Church of England. As to the arguments by which he combats the doctrine, that "men are saved by baptism," we do not think it needful to transfer them to our own pages, inasmuch as most of our readers must be familiar with them, and must acknowledge their force. Our controversy with Mr. Spurgeon is not upon this point. That the mere sprinkling of water cannot save a soul, or change a human heart, we willingly admit: the question between us is, whether he has rightly and truly charged the Church of England with holding that "baptism saves men." We are obliged to aver that he

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has broken the Ninth Commandment; and the only doubt we have felt is, whether we should ascribe his false witness to ignorance, or to actual dishonesty. We exceedingly dislike the latter course: we cannot bring ourselves to say to Mr. Spurgeon, Sir, that is not true; and you knew it was not true." We shall therefore range all our charges against him under the head of want of information; assuming him, as the mildest way of stating the case, to be strangely and deplorably ignorant. And having given particulars and proofs of this, we shall only add, in the second place, that he has also shown such a total want of appreciation of and sympathy with, the plain teaching of Scripture on the subject of Baptism, as should have led him to pause before he ventured to "rush into print" upon so sacred and solemn a subject.

Our notice, then, will be confined to these two points, beginning with

I. MR. SPURGEON'S SINGULAR AND ASTONISHING IGNORAnce. This we shall exhibit in several particulars :-to wit,

1. His ignorance of what the Church of England really teaches.-It may indeed seem a strange and violent supposition, that Mr. Spurgeon has never read, with care and attention, the Prayer-book and the Articles; but, forced as this supposition may seem, we resort to it rather than charge Mr. S. with flagrant dishonesty. Throughout his sermon, he constantly charges the Church with teaching that "baptism saves," that men are saved by baptism," that "every baptised person is regenerated," and the like. He cites the words of the Catechism and of the Baptismal Service for the proof of this. With equal truth he might charge St. Peter with holding the same view of Baptism; quoting the Apostle's words, "The like figure whereunto, even baptism, doth also now save us." The fault he has committed-and a grave and serious fault it is-is, to leave himself ignorant of the fact, that the Church has, in many places, expressly disclaimed the very doctrine which he so unhesitatingly and perseveringly charges upon her.

For instance, how could he have asserted, as he has done, unequivocally and plainly, some half-dozen times, that "the established religion teaches salvation by baptism," if he had known that in her Thirty-nine Articles, her well-considered Confession of Faith, she thus speaks?-" Baptism is also a sign of regeneration or new birth, whereby, as by an instrument, they that receive baptism rightly are grafted in the Church; the promises of forgiveness of sin, and of our adoption to be the sons of God by the Holy Ghost, are visibly signed and sealed; faith is confirmed, and grace increased, by virtue of prayer to God." But, of both the Sacraments, "in such only as worthily receive the same, they have a wholesome effect or operation; but they that receive them unworthily purchase to

themselves damnation." We repeat, that if Mr. Spurgeon had known that this was the declared doctrine of the Church, in her Confession of Faith, which every clergyman is required to sign, he could hardly have charged her with "teaching salvation by baptism." But surely we are entitled to ask, Why did he not know it?

We turn next to the Catechism, which Mr. Spurgeon puts in the front of his indictment. It is quite true that every child is taught to describe the "state" into which Baptism has introduced him as that of " a member of Christ, a child of God, and an inheritor of the kingdom of heaven." But why did Mr. Spurgeon stop here? Why did he not read on, and observe that the very object of the Catechism was, not so much to dwell on privileges as upon obligations? The child is immediately reminded of "what a solemn vow, promise, and profession" his sponsors had made for him. He is taught to recount and to acknowledge these obligations, and he is then told, "My good child, know this, that thou art not able to do these things of thyself, nor to walk in the commandments of God and to serve Him, without His special grace, which thou must call for by diligent prayer." Yet so ignorant of all this is Mr. Spurgeon, that he actually makes it a charge against the Church, that she teaches baptized persons to renounce the "covetous desires of the world and the carnal desires of the flesh," as if she left them ignorant of their own inability to do this without God's special grace! Again we ask, Why was Mr. S. ignorant that the Church had, in the plainest and most emphatic manner, declared this, which he imagines she had denied or concealed?

We pass on to the Baptismal Service, from which Mr. Spurgeon borrows his second ground of accusation. It rests, of course, upon the well-known words, "Seeing, then, that this child is regenerate," and "We yield Thee hearty thanks that it hath pleased Thee to regenerate this infant."

Now, Mr. S. had, in a previous page, admitted that "the word regeneration may be made to mean something else;"—in other words, this phrase, which is not a scriptural one, is not of a very precise or fully-defined character. But again we remark, that the chief thing to be regretted is, that Mr. S. did not make himself acquainted with the whole Service; but relies on a single expression, torn from the context. The Service itself speaks of a great spiritual gift, "which by nature the child cannot have." It leads those who present a child to plead the promise, "Ask and ye shall have, seek and ye shall find;" and to pray, "Give thy Holy Spirit to this infant, that he may be born again;" "Sanctify this water to the mystical washing away of sin." It calls upon the sponsors, in the child's name, to make a "solemn vow, promise, and profession." And upon

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