Sidor som bilder
PDF
ePub

substitution, as was supposed by its advocates, of a better and more permanent single one-a revolution greater than that of the Reformation of the 16th or the Puseyism of the 19th century, should at once have provoked opposition in various quarters, more especially as those, who, from solemn conviction, had espoused them as true, contained in their ranks many men of cultivated minds, rare attainments, and pure principles, is not surprising. The opposition commenced in the Northern States, where the views were promulgated under more favourable auspices, and with greater success than their friends had anticipated, and was led off by their leading periodical, the North American Review, in an article of considerable ability, which we well remember, and from which it was apparent, that the claims of the new theology were likely to be held, and were held in as little favour by the scholars of that region, as those of Christianity were in ancient times by the Greeks, upon its first promulgation. Subsequently, other reviews and periodicals, particularly those devoted to theological speculation and discussion, have, from time to time, continued their warfare against the rising church, as it has gradually acquired strength and gathered numbers to the support of its cause. There have not been wanting, on the other hand, men of decided ability and zeal among themselves, who have been fully competent to maintain their own position against these assaults of their adversaries, and who have exerted their talents, with energy and spirit, for the purpose. To this course they have been driven, it would seem, with much reluctance, less from a consciousness of weakness, than from unwillingness to excite angry passions, and to incur the charge of over-action and vehemence in the maintenance of principles which are pacific in their nature, and whose tendency, they affirm, is to unite and harmonize, rather than alienate men from each otaer. Of the latter result, when religious controversies are once commenced, there is always danger, even in a country where the most unlimited freedom has long since convinced intelligent men, that their rights in respect to the truth are equal—where their powers are so — and that arrogance and assumption are the greatest of all mistakes.

"In undertaking to review the life and writings of Swedenborg, we are influenced simply by a desire to do justice to a great and good man, whose history is full of remarkable occurrences - who seems to have been animated in his herculean labors by an ardent love of truth, of science, of his country, and mankind; whose disposition was as mild and amiable, as his manners were unostentatious and engaging; whose education, acquired in the first universities of his own and of foreign countries, was excellent; whose knowledge of mankind, of customs, institutions, and religions, acquired in his extensive travels travels undertaken with the spirit and prosecuted with the zeal of the ancient philosophers, was certainly great and unusual; whose acquaintance with the principles of almost every art and science within the range of human inquiry, was minute and accurate; and whose contributions to philosophy, to the mathematics, and especially to theology, rare and wonderful in their kind, are more voluminous probably than those of any other author living or dead. The example of a man so laborious in his application, so diligent in his researches, and whose efforts of various kinds, usefully directed, were crowned with extraordinary success and singular fame, not only challenges the admiration of every well-disposed mind, but is worthy of study and imitation in any country and in any age."

"After speaking in these general and complimentary terms of Swedenborg, the writer proceeds to give an account of his writings, both

philosophical and theological, and to set forth some of his peculiar doctrines. All this is very satisfactorily done, with only a very few and unimportant exceptions, where the New Church views do not appear to have been fully understood. But the general effect can hardly fail to interest the readers of the Review, and we doubt not many will be excited to pursue their inquiries by examining the writings of Swedenborg for themselves. The article extends over a

space of more than fifty pages, and concludes as follows:

66

Upon the whole, the theological system of Swedenborg embodies many beautiful and impressive views, bearing on a great variety of topics, which awaken a lively interest, and which are well entitled to a candid consideration. We are rather favorably impressed than otherwise with what we understand of it, although we are certain that it is liable to many objections. It appears to us to be emphatically a system, capable of a manly defence, and not a mere speculative theory. Its good moral tendency cannot be doubted by any who are acquainted with the exemplary lives of those who profess to be its peculiar advocates. We have given some account of it, (which we are aware is very imperfect,) because it embraces not only curious matters, but such as are of deep and general interest, especially at the present juncture in the religious history of the world.

"It is obvious, even to the casual observer, that a general dissatisfaction prevails among the most serious and influential scholars of the present century, with the past progress and present position of our race in a religious aspect, - that many eyes are turned to the future with feelings in which hope, expectation, and alarm are curiously blended, and that all the elements of reform, or, if not of reform, of revolution, are in fearful motion. To whatever quarter we turn our eyes, be it to England, to Scotland, to Ireland, to France, to Germany, or to our own country, we see clouds arising which portend a coming storm, and clans gathering as if for battle. All is movement, excitement, and agitation in the moral and religious world, and if there be greater quiet and more apparent stability in the political, yet new plans of social organization are frequently suggested, and attempts are repeatedly made, which, however well intended, fail as often as made, to realize in practice that perfect social equality, which is the boast of our American institutions, but of which the boast and praise are more imposing and flattering, than the blessing is substantial or the praise merited. In various departments of inquiry, we hear of mighty changes, either contemplated or in progress, of which the report no sooner reaches the ear than it dies upon it, and is followed by some new proposition which either startles or amuses us. Whither tends this perpetual agitation of moral, social, and political questions? Does truth rest on no steady basis? Is society never to enjoy repose from this everlasting turmoil of conflicting opinions, which causes men in the pursuit of truth to lose their temper and distrust each other? Above all, is the great problem of Christianity—of man's duties and his destiny never to be solved, and are warring sects never to be reconciled? We look out upon the heavens, and witness the revolution of the celestial bodies from day to day and from year to year and the regular return of the seasons, of spring, summer, autumn, and winter, and we exclaim, what order! what harmony! what strength! what a Contriver, what a Preserver is he, whose Providence controls and governs the universe!

We observe the growth of plants, of flowers, and of trees; of fruits, and of harvests; the ebbing and flowing of tides; the course of rivers towards the sea; the instinct and habits of animals, the adaptation of the world to man and of man to the world in which he lives; we scrutinize everything, and we see everything perfect, beautiful, useful, and agreeable - part fitted to part and parts to the whole, and all the operations of the vast system of nature determined by certain and invariable laws, and as if deeply moved, we demand, Is science infallible and is art almost perfect, and is there nothing certain in religion?—no beautiful and harmonious system adapted to the inner man, and involving his relations with the spiritual world, which corresponds to all this external perfection of nature? Are we to be permitted to know familiarly the laws which regulate matter, and are those of spirit for ever to elude our grasp? Are men, year after year, and age after age, to dream, to speculate, to dogmatize, to denounce without any hope of rescue from the pride, the folly, and the tyranny of their fellows? Are controversies, enmities, and divisions among those who lift their eyes aloft and clamor aloud for peace, to be the only fruits of patient inquiry, of long toils and of an earnest, active and persevering devotion to the great interests of our race? Are these alone to constitute that fulfilment of ancient, hallowed, and lofty prophecy from which we have long been led to hope for better and more glorious things? Are the difficulties that embarrass the mind, when we turn to Revelation, never to be removed, and its apparent contradictions never to be reconciled? Are the seals that bind its sacred mysteries, and screen them from human gaze, never to be broken by some heaven-directed expounder —who shall at length open the book? Is desire always to fail, when the distress is greatest? Are the shadows of midnight always to hover over the landscape, and those who look out of the windows to behold nothing because their sight is gone utterly? Is there to be no second coming more glorious than the first, when the letter that kills shall be supplanted by the life-giving spirit, and when all shall see, eye to eye, those things which most concern them to behold? We have heard of such an age. We have read of it. It forms, in fact, a part of the popular creed. Men sigh for it, but they are indifferent to the signs of the times. They cannot see any meaning in the present convulsions that shake the moral world to its centre. They strain their eyes with a longing gaze to pry into the distant future, and if a new light is to appear, they have no hope that its rays are to fall upon the present generation, but that it is to dawn only upon a more favored people in some remote age. It is the persuasion of the disciples of the faith of Swedenborg, that these prospective changes in the history of Christianity, over which hope now impatiently hovers almost without hope, are, nigh at hand'- even at the very doors,' that the promised period already approaches that the seals are already broken - that light already streams, with a new and living splendor, from the sacred page, and they accordingly turn to that new star which now glitters in the East, with reverence and joy, as the harbinger of a brighter and a better day."

LETTERS FROM AMERICA.-LETTER III.

To the Editor of the Intellec. Repository. Sir,-My second letter to you was dated the 12th of August. Since then we have received your Repository for September last, in which are inserted the resolutions passed at your last Conference, relative to the three Conventions in this country. These decisions are exceedingly judicious, and have produced the best effects. The English have thus given a proof of their Christian love and esteem for their brethren equally in all parts of America.

I must now, according to promise, proceed and give you more particulars respecting the Church on this side the Atlantic, especially respecting those points which are the cause, that you have to write addresses to more Conventions than one. But before doing this, allow me to make a few observations. Let me say, that in forming an estimate of any thing in the character and customs of people in other nations, we should seek to be always guided by a kind, just, and unbiassed judgment. The men of the New Church especially, should be thus minded, when they go from home, and visit their brethren in other countries. They should be careful how they presume to censure any thing, lest what they censure should be deserving of commendation. The same rules should also be attended to by those who read the accounts which are published by travellers. The New Church, in different countries, will differ in its externals, according to the character and habits peculiar to the people among whom it is established. And this, comprising of course things non-essential, and about which we have no precise instructions, must be allowed to be perfectly proper and orderly.

Allow me here to mention a few features of American character, because of their influence in the New Church. You know that the Puritans who fled from persecution in England, and settled in the New England States of this Union, engrafted on their posterity their own rigid views and habits in the externals of religion and morality. However, on coming South and West of these States, there is less seen of this spirit; and after crossing the Alleghany mountains, there is seen but little comparatively in all this wide West. Our Western people, comN.S. NO. 51.-VOL. V.

posed principally of emigrants from various countries, are of a mixed character, so much so, that they cannot be described as a whole; will simply say, that while they are a moral and orderly people, they are of a free and independent character. Even those from New England, who are numerous, generally put off, more or less, those rigid habits just alluded to. With these characteristic differences, it may easily be seen that uniformity in all the externals of the New Church in America, is not to be expected. Let me also observe, that in America generally, and especially in the New England States, ministers of the Gospel (all called clergymen,) have more authority over their congregations than dissenting ministers have in England. Furthermore, the city of Boston lays claim, and justly so it is said, to a share of intelligence and social refinement, above the other principal cities in this Union. Its citizens are understood to be desirous of exercising some sway or influence over the literature, arts, and science of the nation.

P、

The New Church, then, had to be established among the American people. They would naturally wish their Church to be one, and to have a general Conference or Convention. The country is of vast extent, and the receivers much scattered abroad. Such being the case, and their being but few organized Societies, and all in a commencing state, you will readily see that it must have been a difficult matter to form a general Convention. To have one composed only of delegates was impossible. How can Societies send delegates more than a thousand miles from year to year? Still they would commence a Convention, and they did so; but not of delegates. They framed one as well as they could, of receivers only, that is, a Convention of any persons who might be of New Church principles, and be disposed to come and assemble together. They formed one, which met for the first time at Philadelphia in 1817, and they continued to meet from year to year, with a few interrnptions. It was called a General Conven. tion of Receivers, not of Societies. Every one present could vote if he pleased. You will see at once that such a Convention must have its inconveniences, arising principally from the circumstance

that the views and habits of people in one place differ from those in another. The brethren in Philadelphia could control it when held there, and so could those in New York or Boston, when held in either of those places. One Convention would be liable to undo what had been done at a previous one. And it was not easy to remedy such an inconvenience, because scattered receivers, of whom the Church consisted in a great measure, would be prevented from taking any part in it, if composed, like your Conference, entirely of representatives of Societies. The only course was to adapt themselves to circumstances, as well as they could. A desire to have delegates seems to have increased, for in 1822, Boston began to send them, and it was agreed next year that other Societies should do the same; but still they would suffer any receivers present to speak and vote also. That arrangement only prevented the Society belonging to the city where the Convention might be held, from having a preponderance in it.

I may here mention, that not long before this, a peculiar idea was conceived and ascribed to the brethren at Boston, which was, that between a pastor and his people there is a conjugial relation, as there is between truth and good. If this be a truth, it must be carried out as a principle of order, in which case it must produce extraordinary results. This question gave rise to much controversy, and disturbed the Church. I will not how ever, now enter further into this subject. It was needful to mention it here, because it seems to have had some influence in forming the externals of the Church. There began to prevail a desire for a very strict discipline, and organization of Societies; which might suit the people of New England, but would not be suitable to people unaccustomed to rigid Church discipline. This developed itself at length, in "high Church principles," as they are usually termed. And these have been more especially ascribed to the Church at Boston.

To proceed with the Convention. It went on from year to year, but the subject of Church order was a difficult one. The influence of the people of New England increased as the Church increased there, and the Societies there became more perfect in their discipline. In 1831 it became a rule that only delegates should vote, while any persons present of New Church principles could share in

the deliberations. The brethren at Bos. ton, or those who possessed influence there, became very influential in the general Church. The Convention began to speak authoritatively, and its decisions, from being but recommendations for Societies to adopt as they saw fit, became "prescriptions" for them to conform to. Hence a legislative spirit pervaded its councils. A system of strict organization was at length conceived and brought forth, which a great portion of the Church would not consent to; hence their open divisions.

What I have been relating, applies more especially to the Church on the other side of the Alleghany mountains. I must now speak about the Church in this Western country, in doing which, I will also give more particulars relative to the General Convention. The Western people inhabit a region very remote from the cities where the Conventions were usually held. To send delegates from year to year as far as Philadelphia or Boston, a thousand miles, perhaps, was next to impossible. The Convention endeavoured to provide against such a difficulty, by recommending district Conventions subordinate to the General one. In 1822 they passed a resolution recommending "their Western brethren to form such district Conventions as in their judgment should appear advisable." And the previous year, they unanimously voted to leave every Society "perfectly free to adopt such rules, regulations, and laws of government, as a majority of such Society might deem most congenial to its state and circumstances." All this was very liberal and acceptable. At that time, the Western brethren were comparatively few, and much scattered abroad. They wished to be one with their brethren in the East, and occasionally some one would go and attend a meeting of the Convention. They were connected with it, and adopted its decisions as far as their circumstances permitted them. To it they left the regulation of matters connected with the clergy. They exercised their own judgment in the organization of Societies. Years went on, and the Church increased. Their local position, so far remote from the Church in the East, was felt more and more as an in. convenience. Wants and wishes they had which were not attended to. At length, they decided on forming a district Convention, as a means of bringing the brethren occasionally together, strength

« FöregåendeFortsätt »