time of War. It will be difficult to overcome this desire of wealth, and to divert it into any other channel.... Your accompanying circular asks for co-operation, but it does not explain in what sense, other than subscription for tracts ;-now, these may be very convincing to a reflecting mind, still it is, by our laws, vested in the Government to make War - the people pay War-taxes, and troops are levied from amongst them, by the ruling authorities; but they are not the parties whom it is necessary, in the first instance, to convince of the preference of peace. In what mode, therefore, does this Society propose to effect their object? I am anxious to obtain your instruction on this question because if the Society should not be within the plan of my intended work, I may be led to devote some help towards it in other respects.-Besides, there is every reason to understand that the great events which are to be effected in the present period before the time of universal Peace shall arrive, will be effected by War, the chief instruments by which, &c. &c. - If any thing has been done to remove these obstacles, you will greatly oblige me by the communicationuntil when, I do not well know what basis for real and permanent utility and effect this Society may have; but you may be well assured, that it has my best wishes-for indeed it may excite the disposition so desirable, and so much wanted amongst us all.-Waiting favour of your answer, I remain, Sir, Your obed. Servant, 3, Great Knight Rider Street, 4 Sept. 1821. SIR,-It is with pleasure I comply with your request, through our Assistant Secretary Mr. Bevans: You seem so justly impressed with the evil of War, its contrariety to Chris tianity, with the truth of the divine prophecy which predicts the final extermination of War by the introduction of universal Peace, that I cannot doubt, an explanation of the means adopted by the Peace Society towards accomplishing, by the divine blessing, this noble and truly Christian object, will make you as much a convert to the means pursued by them, as you already are to the ultimate triumph of the principle they inculcate. 66 You think that the Peace Society should, in the first instance, endeavour to convince of the impropriety and evil of War," the ruling authorities," or government in whom it is vested by the laws to make war." If the Society were only watching over the exclusive welfare of Great Britain, if they were only endeavouring to prevent any specific war that was in contemplation between England and France, or any other power, reason would dictate that application should be made to the government in whom the law vests the power of making war, to prevent it by negociation. But the Peace Society embrace the whole of mankind, "their labours are not limited to any nation or clime," they are co-extensive with Christianity itself. You must see how vain the above application would be on any other principle than political expediency, for you seem aware that the error with respect to war lies rather in the heart, than in the understanding of those who profit by war; with such, therefore, Christian motives would have little influence. Upon Christian motives only the Peace Society profess to act; these motives they cannot contaminate with political views. Such is the hopeless prospect of beneficial result from any the application to the ruling authorities, suggested by you. Shall then the friends of Peace and of virtue, shall the disciples of the Prince of Peace, sit down with their arms folded, and see with listless indifa ference the demoralizing maxims of War propagated and acted upon, and every Christian virtue trampled under foot, without lifting up their voice, and denouncing, with Christian zeal, such abominations? You, and every man who has any love for his Divine Master, any respect for his commands, any desire that his kingdom should come, that his will should be done on earth as it is done in heaven, must answer, No. But then the question may be asked, How are we to act so as availingly to check the gigantic strides, the blood-stained progress of the demon of War? I shall answer this question, by referring you to the most ancient and most authentic accounts of the first promulgation of the Gospel of Peace and Salvation. It was preached to every creature; to the poor it was preached, not to the exclusion of the rich, of the learned, of the mighty of this world: but you will find that the leaven of the Gospel began to work in the poor of this world, among the governed, before it leavened into its spirit the governors. The principle of Peace is a branch, an important branch, of the spirit, of the inoral of the Gospel, and must be disseminated in the same Christian spirit, by convincing the understanding, and reforming the heart of man; for, till man is influenced by Christian motives, he will never learn that it is "his best interest to practise War no more." The march of intellect may effect something, but we must look to the march of Christian principle effectually to stay this desolating scourge, and substitute the arts of peace for those of war, when every man shall sit under his own vine, and under his own fig-tree, and none shall make them afraid.' You thus see that the Peace Society, no more than the Primitive Christians, interfere with the political institutions of the kingdoms of this world; they interfere not with the policy or impolicy, in the usual acceptation of the terms, of the bloody contests they have with each other to obtain redress for imaginary or real grievances. No, they condemn the whole system as antichristian. And even admitting the possibility of instilling pacific principles into the present rulers of the world, it would be only like lopping off some of the branches of the tree of discord, since their successors might again adopt the War policy. No, this baneful tree must be torn up by the roots, ambition must be dethroned from the heart of man; and this can only be done by the subjection of the mind to the all-powerful influences of the Gospel. To attain this important object, by which the spring of action will be corrected, are the efforts of the Friends of Peace therefore directed: "for though they have full confidence in the accomplishment of the divine predictions, they do not look for their accomplishment but through the gradual process of human agency, the usual means by which the Great Supreme effects his purposes of good to man. It is only as by these means the heart of man is changed, the world evangelized, and the grand moral principles of the Gospel substituted for the cold-hearted, selfish policy of the world, that the Peace Society look for the consummation of their hopes." "To expect the present system of national policy to be overthrown by means short of these, is, they consider, to calculate upon an effect being produced without an adequate cause; to substitute what is wild and visionary, for sober and rational exertions to produce peace and concord among men." The Press, that great, that powerful engine of good to man, is the medium chosen by the Peace Society to disseminate their principles; and to give to this its full energies, Societies have been formed in different quar ters of the globe, who keep up a Your obedient Servant, Thos. Bell, Secretary. 7 Sept. 1821. SIR,-I beg to acknowledge, with much thankfulness, your favour of the 5th inst. which has afforded me some useful reflections.-If any thing should occur to you further, it will be aiding the spirit of peace, to send me any communications previous to my publication, for in all its parts I am frequently adding annotations. The immense field you embrace, of striving to pacifythe natural turbulence of man, and to restrain the temper which has manifested itself more or less from the time of Cain, is indeed worthy of the present century, which is to close with its accomplishment! Will half a century effect such a glorious work! Yes, with the divine blessing!-The work, as you say, must begin in the heart of man; but ages have elapsed, without our finding seed for the harvest! Give me rules for individual practice Sons, nephews, cousins, live by the fleets and armies-Commerce cannot receive them-Professions overflow and almost every thing on which we subsist, raises a revenue for their support: Your efforts must be practical, or your theory will be deemed visionary, especially by those who know and care little about prophecy. I fear these things will never be willingly relinquished, and therefore that the close of them must be terrible, before Christian peace shall become triumphant. I entirely approve your measure, of not embracing political parties, or interfering with political institutions; but it will require all your pre caution to steer clear of this very narrowbarrier-one offensive pamphlet, or even expression, to those whom you would convert, would frustrate the abstracted motives of your Society, especially when you shall ever be drawn to shew, that any future War were not either just or necessary. On this ground it may be hoped your grand efforts will be exerted during the Peace, when no such obstacle of offence is probable. Time therefore is now more than doubly valuable.-I remain, Sir, Your obed. Servant, 3, Great Knight Rider Street, DEAR SIR,-I have received with much pleasure your last letter, in which, though you approve of the principle by which the Peace Society are influenced in their conduct, and consequently of their avoidance of political disquisitions, you still doubt the practicability of efforts that do not extend to some modification of the " political institutions" of the country, by which provision is made not only for those who are employed in the civil departments of the State, but also for their numerous dependents," sons, nephews, cousins,' who look up to them for support. As this interference with private interests, connected with "political institutions," is incompatible with the line of conduct adopted by the Peace Society, a line of conduct approved by yourself; I hesitated at first whether it demanded any particular remark; but the friendly and candid manner in which you have noticed my letter, encourages me to make another attempt to remove your doubts on this subject. I am, equally with you, convinced that the page of divine prophecy will meet with its accomplishment, that the time will come when the peaceable kingdom of the Redeemer will extend over the whole earth; but, with respect to the period of its accomplishment, I am not prepared to come to a decision, but leave it with Him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will. If we turn over the page of history, and look back at the events of former periods, we shall find that the Most High accomplished his purposes by two sorts of instruments; by those who may be called the unwilling instruments, by others who may be called the willing instruments in the divine hand. One instance will suffice to illustrate the distinction here made. The coming of the Messiah, his offering himself up as a propitiatory sacrifice for sin, his subsequent resurrection, and the spread of the Gospel, are events predicted by the prophets. No one will suspect the chief priests and rulers of the Jews, of the most remote design to bow to the divine authority of Jesus, to admit his claims as the Messiah, or to promote the ends of his divine mission; no, their malice was directed to crush him, and prove him an impostor; but the means they adopted to effect their object, were, through an overruling Providence, made subservient to the fulfilment of the prophecies respecting him. So far therefore as they promoted the designs of Christ's mission, they were unwilling instruments. On the other hand, the apostles and disciples of Jesus were commissioned by him to preach his Gospel to every creature under heaven. Now you will not associate the chief priests of the Jews, the traitor Judas, with these men who had imbibed the spirit of their Divine Master, with which they were filled on the day of Pentecostwith these cheerful willing instruments in spreading the Gospel of peace and salvation, as engaged in the same holy cause, because the former also assisted to fulfil the divine predictions respecting Christ. To apply this instance to the case before us, the sound of War will probably again be heard, and the cries of the bereaved widow and of the orphan will again ascend to heaven, calling for retribution on the authors of their woes; there will yet be further changes and revolutions among the kingdoms of the earth. Whatever may be said in extenuation of the conduct of the authors of these miseries and calamities, on account of the prejudices of education, of custom, and of associations; without any tincture of uncharitableness it may be affirmed, that their conduct betrays an ignorance of the spirit of Christianity, and of its moral precepts. Nevertheless, I have no doubt that the events produced by such antichristian conduct, will hasten that happy period, when the kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdoms of the Lord, and of his Christ; but the authors, the actors, must rank with the chief priests and rulers of the Jews, as the unwitting instruments towards accomplishing the purposes of the Most High. These events therefore, which may be compared to the wind, the earthquake and the fire, terrible in their effects, will not disturb the equanimity of the follower of the meek and lowly Saviour of men; he will neither mix nor meddle with them, he will rather withdraw himself from them, but when he is called to exertion by the still small voice of God in the conscience, he will come forth, and not only attend to its dictates himself, but direct the attention of mankind to it, as that which only can tranquillize the passions, speak peace to the soul, and introduce it into the gentleness and meekness of Christ and the consequence of this attention to the dictates of heaven will be the establishment of permanent and universal Peace on the earth. You thus see that the friend of Peace is prepared for every event, whether terrible or pacific; for he knows the wrath of man will be restrained, that it cannot pass the bounds set it by Omnipotence. May these observations convince that you, "the immense field we embrace, is" not only "worthy of the present century," but that as it is co-extensive with the magnitude of the object, so it is the only practical means, with the divine blessing, of accomplishing it. Whatever means short of producing a change in the heart of man are resorted to, we consider "wild and visionary." In this you agree with us, when you say "the work must begin in the heart of man." And why must it begin there? because in the heart of man, not of this king, or of that emperor, or minister of state, but of man in the aggregate, lies the root, the origin of War. It is only as Christian principle in active operation supplants pride, ambition, malice, envy and hatred, that we can look for the consummation of our hopes.This principle has already made considerable progress in the human mind. It has stripped war of much of that false glory by which its true features were disguised from the mass of mankind; and it is not the least important of the results of the late war, that its effects, which are yet felt by most of the nations of Europe and North America, have produced reflection, the handmaid of religion and virtue. For the fruits of this reflection, I refer you to the Peace Society established in London, with its numerous Auxiliary Societies and correspondents in the most remote parts of the British empire-to the twenty Peace Societies established in America-to the Society just established at Paris-all which have been formed since the conclusion of the late war. The very existence of so many societies, composed of Christians of every denomination, and which have sprung up within so short a period, is an indubitable proof that the Christian principle of Peace is spreading among mankind. You know, and admit, that our theory is not visionary, but the voice of prophecy, and these facts, prove that our efforts are practical, and must aid its accomplishment. The design of Peace Associations is to give vigour to individual efforts to disseminate their principles. These principles, to adopt the words of a pious Divine, "must be disseminated by those in whose hearts they reign. Few they may be at first; but the number will continually increase. Let every one consider what he can do to promote the grand work, and let him do it without delay. He that has nothing else, has a tongue to plead the cause of peace in his domestic circle, and infuse his sentiments into the minds of his neighbours too, and his acquaintances, and those he meets with in the way. Another can write clearly and forcibly let his letters to his friends bear testimony to his zeal, and let him compose tracts, to enlighten society on the subject. A third has a talent for poetry: let him in tuneful numbers touch the reader's heart, with a delineation of the miseries of war and the blessings of peace. A fourth possesses wealth, and he can purchase these publications, and spread them far and wide. A fifth is a man of genius, and could in a fuller and more elaborate treatise give an extensive as well as an impressive view of the doctrine: let him consecrate his powers to this service, in honour of the Prince of Peace. A sixth has the eloquence of Apollos; and he can stand up in a public assembly, and arrest the attention and move the heart of every hearer: let him cry aloud and spare not, and merit the title of the orator of peace. The ministers of Christ from the pulpit (and it is no improper theme for that hallowed place) can lead their audience to a sight of the sources of wars, those lusts which war in the members, and unveil their deformity; and can display with success the charming beauties * Dr. Bogue. |