ents. enjoined is not limited to them. | them to neglect their aged parOur parents continue to be our parents as long as they live; and as fuch they are to be honored. It is true, there is a sense in which children, when they commence heads of families, are faid to forfake their parents. This, however, is far from implying a difrefpectful treatment of them. They then only go out into the wide world, and cease to lean upon their parents, as was the cafe when they were in childhood. It is clearly the fpirit, of the divine law, that children are to honor their parents, as long as the relation continues. But how can they be faid to honor their parents, when they neglect them, or are unkind to them in old age? We need not hesitate to adopt the fentiment, that when children are inattentive to their aged and infirm parents, they are guilty of dishonoring them, and of breaking the divine law. And he, who knowingly breaks one commandment, is guilty of all. The obvious duty, now inculcated, was notoriously violated, by the fcribes and pharifees, at leaft in certain cafes. But, mark with what plainnefs the Saviour reproved them, "Why do you also tranfgrefs the commandment of God by your tradition? For God commanded, faying, Honor thy father and mother and he that curfeth father or mother, let him die the death. But ye fay, Whofoever fhall fay to his father or his mother, It is a gift by whatfoever thou mightest be profited by me, and hon or not his father, or his mother, he fhall be free. Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition. Here, the Saviour pointedly reproved thofe, who had adopted a cuftom, contrary to God's law, which led 3. Gratitude to parents forbids their being neglected in old age. | Mankind are born into the world in the most abfolute state of dependence. We know they are dependent on God, in every period of their lives; but in their infant ftate, they are wholly dependent on their fellow-creatures. Ordinarily the care of them, in this feeble flate, falls to the lot of their parents; and great is their task in nourishing and bringing them up. On their account, they have many hours of anxiety-for their fakes, they have many fleeplefs nights; and, from the time of their birth, until they go away from under their care, they are continually carrying burdens for their fakes, and even afterwards. It is impoffible to describe the feelings of a parent's heart. These feelings are never made known, until experience makes them known. They who have had the privilege of being brought up by parents, ought to feel a great obligation to imitate the Saviour's kindness to his mother, and to do every thing in their power to affuage the forrows, and to lighten the burdens which come upon their parents, in their declining years. 4. The fituation of parents in old 1802.] Remarks on an ancient Gallican confeffion of faith. have families, and, perhaps, mostly scattered at a distance from them; neceffity compels them to give up the overfight of bufinefs; their memories fail; their influence in fociety is gone; and they are fast decaying. The evil days have come, and the in which years they fay they have no pleasure in them. The keepers of the house tremble, and the ftrong men bow themfelves, and the grinders ceafe because they are few, and when they look out of the windows they are darkened. All the daughters of mufick are brought low. They are afraid of that which is high, fears are in the way, and the almond-tree flourishes. In this period of life, there are many things taking place, which, to nature, are peculiarly trying and mortifying, beyond what any one conceives, until he himself comes to the period. All this is a reafon why children fhould be kind and attentive to their parents, when bowing down under the infirmities of age. Their condition demands kindness and attention. 5. If children would do as they would be done by, they will be conftrained to manifeft kindness to their aged parents. They may be called upon to confider, that if their own lives are fpared a few years, their parents will be in their graves, and they will take their places, and become the old people. They will experience the infirmities which have been stated, and they will stand in need of this kind and attentive treatment for which I am pleading. Let them now, therefore, do as they would be done by. Let them now teach their own children, if they have any, by their example, how old people, and people in fecond childhood, are to be treated. If they live within convenient dif 221 tance, let them vifit their parents -labor to comfort them under the burdens of old age, converse freely with them, and pray with them, as perhaps their parents used to pray with and for them. It is acknowledged, that the circumftances of children may be fuch, that they cannot beftow much of this world's goods on their parents, however needy they may be; but if they cannot do this, they can do other things. They can vifit them, they can labor to keep their parents from having the very painful idea that they are neglected. The fubject of the foregoing address is not without its importance, tho' rarely bro't into public view. The caufe of religion may be deeply wounded, by reafon of inattention to the duty which has now been inculcated. N proper: an ancient confeffion of faith, owned by the French church, they fay, as in the fecond article thereof, We acknowledge one God, making himself known to man, by his works of creation, providence, and the government of the world; and also, in and by his word. And then after mentioning by name, the several books of fcripture, from Genefis to Revelations, they in the fourth article fay; We acknowledge thefe books to be canonical; and to contain the rule of faith. In the fifth article, they fay, We believe that the word therein contained, did proceed from God alone, and that thefe books do contain the fum of all that truth, that is neceffary to the worship of God, and to our falvation: nor is it lawful for angels or men, to make any alteration thereof, by adding to it, or taking from it; nor hereunto may any ways fuffice, either any antiquity, cuftoms, or human wisdom, judgments, edicts, decrees, councils, vifions, or miracles. In another article they acknowledge, That the holy fcriptures teach us, that in the divine effence, there do fubfift three perfons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. In another article, they fay, We believe that man was at firft created, holy and upright, after the image of God; but by his fault fell from that grace which he received; and alienated himfelf from God, the fountain of righteousness, and of all good; and is by nature altogether corrupt, depraved in heart, and hath wholly loft his integrity. In another article, they fay, We believe that all the race of Adam, are infected with that contagion, which we call original fin. In another article, they fay, We believe that out of this univerfal corruption, and condemnation, wherein all mankind are involved; God did, in his eternal and immutable purpose, elect, in Chrift, fome to be delivered, not having refpect therein, to any good works of their own. In another article they say, We believe that Jefus Chrift, the eternal Son of God, did affume our nature; and that in one perfon, he is both God and man, In the laft article of that confeffion of faith which I fhall here mention, they fay, We believe that God will have the world gov | erned by laws, and police, to prove, as it were, bridles, to reftrain the immoral lufts of the world. How different the foregoing confeffion of faith, from the pre. fent creed, and practice of the Romifh church! May it not be faid of them, and those who are for fimbolizing with them either in the Romish or in the prefent atheistical, and deiftical errors, and delufions, as was to Lucifer of old. Ifai. xiv. 12. How art thou fallen! And when we confider how greatly many among us have deviated from the facred truths, and fimplicity of the gofpel, how proper and necessary muft appear that divine direction, in Rev. ii. 5. Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do thy first works. Let thofe who fet themselves to oppofe religion, which has for ages paft, and will ever be found, to be the greatest ornament, and fundamentally neceffary to the well being and comfort of any community; let those who set themfelves to oppose the word of God; who lightly esteem and reject the holy fcriptures, reckoning them to be falfe, illufory, and needlefs, let fuch, timely and ferioufly confider, repent and reform, left the fruit of their own doings be recompenfed upon them, as fighting against God, and forfaking their own mercies; as they love their own fouls, and would confult their own higheft, and beft intereft and good, and that of their children and fucceffors; let them be perfuaded to renounce what is fo contrary thereto : and let none imagine, and fay, that what is fo manifeftly evident from the word of God, and the experience of past ages, conducive to man's happinefs and comfort, as are religion and government, are owing merely to prieftcraft, and that they are but a delufion; they who think and conclude fo, are under a great and dreadful deception and will fooner, or later, find themselves to be deceived. PHILALETHES The labor of perfons, divinely enlightened, illuftrated, and the fubject applied to the confcience, in four letters, from VIATOR to CHRISTIANUS. (Continued from p. 102.) LETTER III. DEAR CHRISTIAN FRIEND, N my two former letters I endeavored to take a brief view of that, for which, thofe perfons labor, who have been divinely enlightened. My prefent object is to help you and myself wifely to improve, what was then written. It is therefore worthy of remark, that if the obfervations which have been made, are juft, those perfons, who neither poffefs the Christian spirit, embrace the gofpel doctrines, nor perform the common duties required of the faints, in the word of God, have never been favingly enlightened, although they may have had the = common influences of the Holy Spirit, been the fubjects of great awakenings and comforts, thought themselves Chriftians, joined to the visible church, and for many years, ftatedly attended the Lord's fupper! There is, my dear friend, great reafon to fear, that many perfons who profefs religion, have not the grace of God in their hearts ! In my travels, I have had confiderable opportunity, in different Aates, towns, and focieties, to the con make obfervations upon duct of the profeffors of religion.. And I have found fome, who lived in the total neglect of family prayer, paid little attention to the fcriptures, profaned in many ways, the holy fabbath, neglected the public worship of God, unlefs in very pleasant weather, were often abfent upon facramental occainftruction of their families, upon fions, negligent in the religious fabbath days, and upon all other occafions. I have found their examples bad, in feveral other refpects: I have seen fome to be light and vain, and in a degree profane in their converfation, flack in paying their debts, worldly minded and covetous !-I have seen others idle, profufe, fond of taverns and places of public refort, fond of ardent fpirits, and of loofe and unprofitable company!! Many perfons conduct, as tho' they imagined nothing more neceffary to constitute a Chriftian, than to belong to the church! How many who profefs religion, discover no relentings of heart for fin, make no pretenfions to communion with God, lay no fpecial restraint upon their appetites or paffions, and rarely or never fpeak about religion, unless it is to cavil at fome of its moft effential doctrines? How many, inftead of letting their light fine around them, fo that others by feeing their good works, might be led to glorify their father, who is in heaven, wound religion in the most fenfible manner, giving great occafion by their deeds, to the enemies of God to blafpheme? And do it with impunity? For in this day of declenfion it is next to impoffible, fo far as I am acquainted, to fupport that ftrict difcipline, which would be for the honor of religion! our first love, and wander far from the path of duty, and become for a feafon blind guides to our fellow-finners! We ought carefully to guard against a spirit of apathy, and labor to keep our hearts glowing with love to God and good-will to men. Inftead of indulging ourselves in irregularities, we ought to walk circumfpectly, not as fools but as wife. Redeeming the time, because the days are evil :'-to poffefs that faith which is not dead-to have a hope different from that of the hypocrite's: which, fhortly will be It is with extreme pain, I have mentioned the foregoing failings! I fhould never have done it, if they were of a private nature, but they are generally known, and in the mouth of every infidel. If it were poffible I would gladly hide them from the world! But it is utterly impoffible! It appears therefore to me, to be lawful and expedient, to mention them in this letter, for our warning, in as much as the apoftle has faid let us not fleep as do others: but let us watch and be fober. For they that fleep, fleep in the night, and they that be drunken, are drum-as the giving up of the ghoft!' ken in the night. But let us who are of the day be fober, putting on the breaft-plate of faith, and love, and for an helmet the hope of falvation.' We are always in danger, my Christian friend, of being injured by bad examples: Evil communications corrupt good manners' And One finner deftrayeth much good. We are particularly in danger, from the bad examples of the profeffors of religion, the light of the world,' and ought to be on our guard. Were it once to become fashionable for profeffing Chriftians to have nothing but their profeffion, and occafional attendance upon the Lord's table, to diftinguish them from the world, we fhould be in danger ourfelves, of growing cold and carelefs, and of giving a deep wound to that bleffed caufe, we, profeffedly, wifh above all things to advance! I hope we fhould not finally apoftatize! I know we fhould not, if the special grace of God has ever taken poffeffion of our hearts, for Christ hath faid And I give unto them eternal life; and they fhall never perish, neither fhall any pluck them out of my hand.' hand.' But we might lofe We ought to be looking for that bleffed hope, and the glorious appearing of that great God and our Saviour Jefus Chrift ; who gave himfelf for us that he might re deem us from all iniquity and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works. True religion, we may be af fured, has no tendency to make perfons truft in an old experience, nor carelefs in their manner of living; but defirous of fresh anointing from the Lord, of breathing the fpirit of real piety, of contending earnestly for the faith once delivered to the faints; and of adding to their faith virtue, and to virtue knowldge. And to knowledge temperance: and to temperance patience, and to patience godlinefs. And to godlinefs brotherly kindnefs, and to brotherly kindness charity.' Thofe perfons who are fatisfied with their prefent attainments in religion, it may be prefumed want religion, only as a traveller does a boat, to carry him over a river which he cannot ford, and if they could only be fafe, they would not trouble themselves about it! Chrift and his caufe would have no fhare of their affection nor fer |