temperament, a benevolent nature, and a strength of gratitude, which bursts the shackles of a melancholy system. But, from the nature of the doctrine, the tendency exists and is strong; and an impartial observer will often discern it resulting in gloomy, depressing views of life and the

universe.

Trinitarianism, by thus tending to exclude bright and enlarging views of the creation, seems to me not only to chill the heart, but to injure the understanding. It does not send the mind far and wide for new and elevating objects; and we have here one explanation of the barrenness and feebleness by which theological writings are so generally marked. It is not wonderful, that the prevalent theology should want vitality and enlargement of thought, for it does not accord with the perfections of God, and the spirit of the universe. It has not its root in eternal truth; but is a narrow, technical, artificial system, the fabrication of unrefined ages, and, consequently, incapable of being blended with the new lights which are spreading over the most interesting subjects, and of being incorporated with the results and anticipations of original and progressive minds. It stands apart in the mind, instead of seizing upon new truths, and converting them into its own nutriment. With few exceptions, the Trinitarian theology of the present day, is greatly deficient in freshness of thought, and in power to awaken the interest and to meet the intellectual and spiritual wants of thinking men. I see, indeed, superior minds and great minds among the adherents of the prevalent system; but they seem to me to move in chains, and to fulfil poorly their high function of adding to the wealth of the human intellect. In theological discussion, they remind me more of Samson grinding in the narrow mill of the Philistines, than of that undaunted champion achieving victories for God's people, and enlarging the bounds of their inheritance. Now, a system which has a tendency to confine the mind, and to impair its sensibility to the manifestations of God in the universe, is so far unfriendly to piety, to a bright, joyous, hopeful, ever growing love of the Creator. It tends to generate and nourish a religion, of a low, dull, melancholy tone, such, I apprehend, as now predominates in the Christian world.

VII. Unitarianism promotes piety, by the high place which it assigns to piety in the character and work of

Jesus Christ. What is it, which the Unitarian regards as the chief glory of the character of Christ? I answer, his filial devotion, the entireness with which he surrendered himself to the will and benevolent purposes of God. The piety of Jesus, which, on the supposition of his Supreme Divinity, is a subordinate and incongruous, is, to us, his prominent and crowning, attribute. We place his " oneness with God," not in an unintelligible unity of essence, but in unity of mind and heart, in the strength of his love, through which he renounced every separate interest, and identified himself with his Father's designs. In other words, filial piety, the consecration of his whole being to the benevolent will of his Father, this is the mild glory in which he always offers himself to our minds; and, of consequence, all our sympathies with him, all our love and veneration towards him, are so many forms of delight in a pious character, and our whole knowledge of him incites us to a like surrender of our whole nature and existence to God.

In the next place, Unitarianism teaches, that the highest work or office of Christ is to call forth and strengthen piety in the human breast, and thus it sets before us this character, as the chief acquisition and end of our being. To us, the great glory of Christ's mission consists in the power with which he "reveals the Father," and establishes the "kingdom or reign of God within" the soul. By the crown which he wears, we understand the eminence which he enjoys in the most beneficent work in the universe, that of bringing back the lost mind to the knowledge, love, and likeness of its Creator. With these views of Christ's office, nothing can seem to us so important as an enlightened and profound piety, and we are quickened to seek it, as the perfection and happiness to which nature and redemption jointly summon us.

Now, we maintain that Trinitarianism obscures and weakens these views of Christ's character and work; and this it does, by insisting perpetually on others of an incongruous, discordant nature. It diminishes the power of his piety. Making him, as it does, the Supreme Being, and placing him as an equal on his Father's throne, it turns the mind from him as the meekest worshipper of God; throws into the shade, as of very inferior worth, his selfdenying obedience; and gives us other grounds for revering him, than his entire homage, his fervent love, his

cheering self-sacrifice to the Universal Parent. There is a plain incongruity in the belief of his Supreme Godhead, with the ideas of filial piety and exemplary devotion. The mind, which has been taught to regard him as of equal majesty and authority with the Father, cannot easily feel the power of his character as the affectionate son, whose meat it was to do his Father's will. The mind, accustomed to make him the Ultimate Object of worship, cannot easily recognise in him the pattern of that worship, the guide to the Most High. The characters are incongruous, and their union perplexing, so that neither exerts its full energy on the mind.

Trinitarianism also exhibits the work, as well as character of Christ, in lights less favourable to piety. It does not make the promotion of piety his chief end. It teaches, that the highest purpose of his mission was to reconcile God to man, not man to God. It teaches, that the most formidable obstacle to human happiness, lies in the claims and threatenings of divine justice. Hence, it leads men to prize Christ more, for satisfying this justice, and appeasing God's anger, than for awakening in the human soul sentiments of love towards its Father in heaven. Accordingly, multitudes seem to prize pardon more than piety, and think it a greater boon, to escape, through Christ's sufferings, the fire of hell, than to receive, through his influence, the spirit of heaven, the spirit of devotion. Is such a system propitious to a generous and ever-growing piety? If I may be allowed a short digression, I would conclude this head with the general observation, that we deem our views of Jesus Christ more interesting than those of Trinitarianism. We feel that we should lose much, by exchanging the distinct character and mild radiance, with which he offers himself to our minds, for the confused and irreconcilable glories with which that system labours to invest him. According to Unitarianism, he is a being who may be understood, for he is one mind, one conscious nature. According to the opposite faith, he is an inconceivable compound of two most dissimilar minds, joining in one person a finite and infinite nature, a soul weak and ignorant and a soul almighty and omniscient. And is such a being a proper object for human thought and affection? I add, as another important consideration, that to us, Jesus, instead of being the second of three obscure unintelligible persons, is first and pre-eminent in the sphere

in which he acts, and is thus the object of a distinct attachment, which he shares with no equals or rivals. To us, he is first of the sons of God, the Son by peculiar nearness and likeness to the Father. He is first of all the ministers of God's mercy and beneficence, and through him the largest stream of bounty flows to the creation. He is first in God's favour and love, the most accepted of worshippers, the most prevalent of intercessors. In this mighty universe, framed to be a mirror of its author, we turn to Jesus as the brightest image of God, and gratefully yield him a place in our souls, second only to the Infinite Father, to whom he himself directs our supreme affection.

SIR,

(To be Continued.)

To the Editor of the Christian Pioneer.

CONGRATULATING you, as I do most sincerely, upon the progress and prospects of rational Christianity in England and Scotland, your attention, and that of your numerous friends, is solicited to the state of religion in Ireland, -a country well worthy the consideration of the enlightened Christian, as well as the friend of human improvement. The resources of Ireland, both as it respects her native talent and produce, if brought out by adequate encouragement and just treatment, must render her a highly interesting portion of the British Empire. We trust that good things are yet in store for this hitherto much neglected country; and that more correct views in religion will be the precursors of her rise in the scale of nations.

The observations I shall now make, will be principally in reference to the North of Ireland, or Ulster. The population of the three other provinces, is, in a vast proportion, Roman Catholic. The congregations of Presbyterians in that portion of the kingdom, are very few, thinly scattered, and generally small: consisting partly of the descendants of Presbyterians from the north, who were encouraged by landed proprietors to settle there, in consequence of their industrious habits, and partly of the descendants of English Dissenters, and, in some instances, of Scottish families. At one period there were about 50 congregations; at present there are not more than the fourth of that number, and some of these, too, but lately revived by Missionaries from the General Synod of Ulster.

The causes of so many of the former congregations having lapsed into the Established Church of Ireland, and, in some few instances, into the Roman Catholic Church, may be various, and which it does not fall within our present design to consider. The mixed nature of their origin may have had its effect amongst other causes. But the congregations that have continued in being, are such as have been known to be, what is vulgarly called in this country, New Light, that is, Unitarians: or, at least, the ministers of which were so. This is known to be the case, notwithstanding one of the Missionaries to the south, the Minister who charged the Belfast Academical Institution with having admitted within it the Arian serpent, gravely asserted a few years ago before the General Synod, that the congregations which had declined were Arians, and assigned that as the cause of their declension. The Presbyterian congregations united under the Southern Association, or Synod of Munster, though small, are very respectable, in a worldly point of view. Methodists have, with their wonted zeal, made great encroachments in most places upon the congregations of the Irish Established Church; which is better known in the South of Ireland by its tithe exactions, than by the number of its adherents.

Ulster is principally inhabited by the descendants of the Scotch Presbyterians, who were encouraged to settle in it under James I. of England. They retain the Presbyterian form of Church Government, and generally the Calvinistic doctrines of the Scotch Church. There is great latitude, however, allowed with respect to doctrine, under the Synod of Ulster; hence there are amongst its members, Calvinists, Arminians, Arians, and Unitarians. Indeed, it can hardly be said that that Synod has, at present, any standard of doctrine. For, though subscription to the Westminster Confession of Faith continued to be indispensable for a very long period, yet at the present day, out of fourteen Presbyteries (exclusive of the Presbytery of Antrim), of which the General Synod consists, only four make subscription to that Confession of Faith a sine qua non; nor are even all the members of these, Calvinists. Not, indeed, that the majority of the members of the non-subscribing Presbyteries are either Unitarians or Arminians, but because the march of liberality and respect for the rights of conscience, have been so great amongst their ministers, as to lead them to value