tremendous mystery, that God entered the womb, that God was suckled, and went through the years of childhood, that God was in an agony, and that God bled, and died, and was consigned to the tomb! The Apostles, they would have us believe, were afraid of shocking the prejudices of the Jews, who obstinately adhered to the doctrine of the Unity of God, and whose views of the spirituality of the divine nature, could not harmonize with the elegant philosophy of the Alexandrine school. The Jews, to whom Christianity was first preached, were so blind as not to perceive that one God makes three Gods, and three Gods make one God! Trinity in Unity was revolting to their simple understandings, and they rejected, with impious horror, the notion, that the immortal and spiritual God bled and died on the cross! Heathen converts were, however, more accommodating in their notions. They had been familiarized to deified men, and had learned from their priests, the saving act of prostrating their understandings! The Apostles, however had not invested any disciple with their mantle. The divine spirit with which they were actuated, withdrew its visible operations. And they had left unrecorded, the great mysteries of the Christian faith, or, at least, hinted them so obscurely, that the majority of Christians, would, in all probability, die ignorant of those doctrines, the belief of which is essential to salvation! Influenced by these pious regards for the souls of heretics, some zealous Trinitarian considerately and mercifully supplied the deficiencies of the Apostolic writings, and inserted a few words, and altered others, to make the Scriptures accord with the doctrines of the church! With this charitable intention, the pious frauds we have mentioned, have been committed, and that celebrated prop of the Trinity, 1 John v. 7, was artfully introduced, "There are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost, and these three are one." It is now acknowledged to be a forgery. Griesbach, Porson, Bishop Tomline, and almost every learned and competent critic, reject the verse. It is not found in any Greek manuscript of earlier date than the 15th century. It was omitted by Luther in his German version, and in the old English Bibles of Henry VIII. Edward VI. and Elizabeth. The imposture was printed in humble characters, and with diffident pretensions, being printed in smaller types than the accompanying verses,

and being also included in brackets. Trinitarianism, however, required the aid of stronger biblical evidence than the baptismal form, Mat. xxviii. 19. This forgery, was, therefore, pressed into the service of orthodoxy, and of course the pious fraud was concealed by the removal of every mark of suspicion. In our common version, the spurious passage appears as part of the pure Word of God, and, as we might expect, is the first text adduced in the Confession of Faith, to prove, "that in the Unity of the Godhead there be three persons, of one substance, power, and eternity; God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost:" a text worthy of the doctrine it is urged to substantiate. This forgery, which is the bulwark of Trinitarianism, is published for the pure Word of God, by the Edinburgh Committee, who express so much solicitude for the dissemination of the unadulterated Scriptures. This Committee, who storm at the Parent Society, for circulating the Apocrypha with the Bible, who declaim in violent terms against the sin of speaking deceitfully for God, who avow that they are actuated in their separation from the British and Foreign Bible Society, solely by the purest motives, an earnest regard for the circulation of the Word of God undefiled; these abominators of Apocryphal practices; these lovers of the truth, the pure truth, and nothing but the truth; who wish to promote the glory, by spreading the pure Word of God; who dare not speak deceitfully for him; who have learned that the wisdom which cometh from above is first pure; who cannot participate in the use of means which they know to be unlawful, nor give countenance to those who employ them; who know that the Almighty neither needs, nor requires, nor will accept of such services, in the accomplishment of his gracious plans; this immaculate Committee, all purity and perfection, seeming to think, that "by their words. only they shall be justified, or by their words be condemned," are themselves convicted of being guilty of Apocryphal practices; they circulate as the pure Word of God, spurious passages of a most important tendency, in which doctrines of a tremendous nature are involved, doctrines represented as essential to salvation. They know, that 1 John v. 7, the pillar of orthodoxy, is abandoned by almost all learned Protestant critics; they know that this testimony to their favourite doctrine, is a base forgery; they know, that it speaks deceitfully for God, for Jesus, and the Holy

M

Spirit; they know, that the unlearned perpetually refer to it, in support of the great article of their faith, and that even clergymen, presuming on the ignorance of their audiences, quote the passage to bolster up the doctrine of the Trinity. In what terms shall we describe the disingenuousness of this imposition on the credulity and ignorance of mankind? We might heap coals of fire on their heads, if we were to recriminate in the strong terms which they themselves use. But out of their own mouths they stand condemned. They themselves virtually violate the integrity of Scripture, and are, in fact, considering their knowledge and professions, little less criminal than the impious man who presumes to corrupt the Word of God. (To be continued.)

THE CHRISTIAN PIONEER.

GLASGOW, December 9, 1826.

FOR some time past, a monthly Lecture has been delivered at Carluke, by the Rev. George Harris. Considerable attention appears to have been excited by the services. The most strange and random assertions have been made by the leaders of orthodoxy, respecting the opinions and conduct of the Unitarians. Not only have the common charges been reiterated, but warnings have been held forth to the people, not to listen to Socinian preachings, lest God, out of his wrath, should allow them to become Socinians also, as a punishment for their temerity! The sentiments of the living have been grossly misrepresented, the memory of the dead has been foully assailed. The works of Andrew Fuller have furnished the one, and Archbishop Magee's writings have been the prolific storehouse of the other. Not satisfied, however, with the vituperation so profusely lavished on Christian Unitarianism, and the writings and characters of its advocates, by these mitred and unmitred brethren, the inhabitants of Carluke have also been told, that the man who was convinced of the truth of Trinitarianism, and yet went to hear a Socinian preach, was as guilty, in the sight of God, as him who imbrues his hand in his brother's blood! The want of the spirit of Christ, manifested in such railing accusations, was too palpable to be mistaken even by persons unaccustomed

to religious inquiry. Its effect was, to induce people to hear, rather than to violate justice, by condemning without investigation. Discourses, in reply to these hard sayings, were delivered by Mr. Harris, and the audiences were considerably increased; on some occasions the school-room being too small to accommodate those who wished to judge righteous judgment. In October, a Society was formed in Carluke, of Christian Unitarians; and, on the 12th November, Mr. Harris commenced the Sabbath Worship of the Carluke Congregation. In the morning, Mr. H. dwelt on the necessity and duty of an open and fearless profession of Christian truth, accompanied by a righteous and holy practice; in the afternoon, the common doctrine of Election was compared with reason and Scripture, and shown to be opposed to both; and, in the evening, the attention of the audience was directed to those who are justly entitled to bear the Christian name and character. About eighty persons were present in the morning, double that number in the afternoon, and, in the evening, the place was crowded to excess, numbers standing at the windows outside the building. Regular Sabbath-day worship will, in future, be conducted, once a fortnight by the Members of the Congregation, and on the alternate Sabbaths, by the English Students of the University of Glasgow.

A Missionary Society has been formed at Glasgow, by the Unitarian Students of the University, for the purpose of preaching, wherever suitable places can be found, and also, for distributing moral and religious tracts at the different stations. In addition to Carluke, the following Students have commenced a Course of Lectures, to be delivered every Sabbath Evening, at Paisley;-Messrs. James Esdaile, John Esdaile, Hawkes, Jenkins, Bowles, and D. Evans; on the Trinity, Messiahship of Jesus, Defence of Unitarianism, Isaiah ix. 6, the Unity of God, the two natures of Christ, on Creeds, Universal Restoration, Christian Faith, Difference between Unitarianism and Deism, the Atonement, Original Sin, the Writer of the Hebrews a Unitarian, and on Free Inquiry.

WE are glad to learn, that the Rev. W. J. Bakewell of Edinburgh, is delivering, once a-fortnight, on Sabbath afternoons, a series of discourses on Ecclesiastical History; and that, early in January, he will commence a course of

Sabbath Evening Lectures, on the doctrines of Unitarianism. We think it highly creditable to the members of the Edinburgh Church, and speaks well, also, for the liberality of the English Unitarians, that the Unitarian Chapel in Edinburgh, built in 1823, is now entirely free from debt. May the Congregation increase and prosper.

A Course of fifteen Sabbath evening Lectures, was commenced by the Rev. George Harris, in the Unitarian Chapel of this City, on the 19th of November. Our distant readers will be happy to hear, that the three lectures already delivered, have been attended by overflowing audiences. The aisles, the vestries, every spot in which a human being could stand, have been filled, and hundreds, notwithstanding, have been obliged to go away every night unable to obtain admission. At the conclusion of the Lecture, tracts are lent out to read to any person choosing to apply, free of expense.

OUR readers will be gratified in being informed, that the Rev. J. Wright of this City, who accepted the situation of Minister to the Unitarian Congregation of Alnwick, in May last, is indefatigable in his exertions to spread abroad a knowledge of the truth, as it is in Jesus. His labours have already been successful, the sittings let in the Chapel being nearly doubled. Since July, he has been lecturing every Sabbath evening, on Christian doctrine; and the audiences have now become so numerous, as to induce him to preach also on the Thursday evenings. We heartily wish that this Congregation, most of whose members were, a few years since, of the Methodist persuasion, could be relieved of the burden of debt still remaining on the Chapel. It is a case richly meriting public liberality.

In our Number for October, we gave a very brief sketch of the proceedings of the General Synod of Ulster, at its meeting in June last. We are glad to remark, that, in stating, that "the farther consideration of subscription to the Confession of Faith was postponed to the next year," our information was incorrect, as the motion for .subscription was decided at that meeting in the negative. We have sincere pleasure, in directing the attention of our readers to the following letter and observations, for which we cheerfully acknowledge ourselves debtor to "The Christian Moderator" for October.