,,the ,,calvinistic ,,doctrine ,,of ,,predestination ,,examined ,,and ,,refuted3 ,,being ,,the ,,substance ,,of ,a ,,series ,,of ,,discourses ,delivered in ,st4 ,george's ,m4 ,e4 ,church1 ,philadelphia1 ,,by ,,francis ,,hodgson1 ,d4 ,d4 ,,philadelphia3 ,,higgins ,,and ,,perkinpine4 ,no4 #dj ,,north ,,fourth ,,street1 #ahee4 ,entered according to the ,act of ,congress1 in the year #ahed1 by ,,francis ,,hodgson1 in the ,office of the ,clerk of the ,district ,court of the ,united ,states in and for the ,eastern ,district of ,pennsylvania4 ,,philadelphia3 ,t4 ,r4 ,,and ,p4 ,g4 ,,collins1 ,,printers4 ,,philadelphia1 ,july #ac1 #ahed4 ,rev4 ,,francis ,,hodgson1 ,d4 ,d4 ,,dear ,,sir3 ,we1 whose names are hereunto annexed1 having heard your recent series of discourses upon the ,divine ,decrees1 and believing that their publication at this time would be of great service to the cause of truth1 earnestly desire that such measures may be taken as will secure their publication at an early period4 ,we therefore respectfully solicit your concurrence1 and that you would do whatever may be necessary on your part to further our object3-- ,,james ,b4 ,,longacre1 ,p4 ,d4 ,,myers1 ,,garret ,,vanzant1 ,r4 ,,mccambridge1 ,,john ,j4 ,,hare1 ,,thomas ,w4 ,,price1 ,,daniel ,,brewster1 ,,chas4 ,,mcnichol1 ,,wm4 ,g4 ,,eckhardt1 ,,thos4 ,m4 ,,adams1 ,,chas4 ,,coyle1 ,,francis ,a4 ,,farrow1 ,,benjamin ,,heritage1 ,,thos4 ,,hare1 ,j4 ,o4 ,,campbell1 ,,samuel ,,hudson1 ,,james ,,harris1 ,,joseph ,,thompson1 ,,wm4 ,,goodhart1 ,,david ,,dailey1 ,r4 ,o4 ,,simons1 ,,jno4 ,r4 ,,morrison1 ,,amos ,,horning1 ,,james ,,huey1 ,,enos ,s4 ,,kern1 ,,john ,,fry1 ,,jno4 ,p4 ,,walker1 ,e4 ,a4 ,,smith1 ,,john ,,street1 ,,james ,d4 ,,simkins1 ,j4 ,w4 ,,butcher1 ,s4 ,w4 ,,stockton1 ,,jacob ,,hendrick1 ,,foster ,,pritchett4 ,,dear ,,brethren3-- ,the motives which induced me to preach the discourses on the ,divine ,decrees are equally decisive in favor of their publication1 as you propose4 ,i have taken the liberty to rearrange some parts of them for the benefit of the reader4 ,yours1 ,,francis ,,hodgson4 ,to ,brothers ,,longacre1 ,,myers1 and others4 ,,predestination4 ,,discourse ,i4 ,in whom also we have obtained an inheritance1 being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will4--,,eph4 i4 #aa4 ,,it would very naturally be expected of a preacher1 selecting this passage as the foundation of his discourse1 that he would have something to say upon the subject of predestination4 ,it is my purpose to make this the theme of the occasion2 and this purpose has governed me in the selection of the text4 ,the subject is one of great practical importance4 ,it relates to the ,divine government--its leading principles and the great facts of its administration4 ,some suppose that the ,methodists deny the doctrine of ,divine predestination1 that the word itself is an offence to them1 and that they are greatly perplexed and annoyed by those portions of ,scripture by which the doctrine is proclaimed4 ,this is a mistaken view4 ,we have no objection to the word2 we firmly believe the doctrine2 and all the ,scriptures1 by which it is stated or implied1 are very precious to us4 ,there is a certain theory of predestination1 the ,calvinistic theory1 which we consider unscriptural and dangerous4 ,there is another1 the ,arminian theory1 which we deem ,scriptural and of very salutary influence4 ,my plan is1 first1 to refute the false theory2 and1 secondly1 to present the true one1 and give it its proper application4 ,my discourse or discourses upon this subject may be more or less unacceptable to some on account of their controversial aspect4 ,this disadvantage cannot always be avoided4 ,controversy is not always agreeable1 yet it is often necessary4 ,error must be opposed1 and truth defended4 ,what ,i have to say1 is designed chiefly for the benefit of the younger portion of the congregation4 ,i feel that there devolves upon me not a little responsibility in reference to this class of my hearers4 ,many of them1 ,i am happy to learn1 are eagerly searching for truth1 and they have a right to expect that the pulpit will aid their inquiries1 and throw light upon their path4 ,the theory of predestination to which we object affirms that ,god has purposed1 decreed1 predetermined1 foreordained1 predestinated1 whatsoever comes to pass1 and that1 in some way or other1 he1 by his providence1 brings to pass whatever occurs4 ,the advocates of this doctrine complain loudly that they are misunderstood and misrepresented4 ,the ,rev4 ,samuel ,miller1 ,d4 ,d41 late of ,princeton ,college1 ,n4 ,j41 in a tract on ,presbyterian ,doctrine1 published by the ,presbyterian ,board of ,publication1 complains thus3 ,it may be safely said that no theological system was ever more grossly misrepresented1 or more foully and unjustly vilified than this4 ,the gross misrepresentations with which it has been assailed1 the disingenuous attempts to fasten upon it consequences which its advocates disavow and abhor2 and the unsparing calumny which is continually heaped upon it and its friends1 have scarcely been equalled in any other case in the entire annals of theological controversy4 ,the opponents of this system are wont to give the most shocking and unjust pictures of it4 ,whether this is done from ignorance or dishonesty it would be painful1 as well as vain1 at present1 to inquire4 ,the truth is1 it would be difficult to find a writer or speaker1 who has distinguished himself by opposing ,calvinism1 who has fairly represented the system1 or who really appeared to understand it4 ,they are forever fighting against a caricature4 ,some of the most grave and venerable writers in our country1 who have appeared in the ,arminian ranks1 are undoubtedly in this predicament3 whether this has arisen from the want of knowledge or the want of candor1 the effect is the same1 and the conduct is worthy of severe censure4 ,let any one carefully and dispassionately read over the ,confession of ,faith of the ,presbyterian ,church1 and he will soon perceive that the professed representations of it1 which are daily proclaimed from the pulpit and the press1 are wretched slanders1 for which no apology can be found but in the ignorance of their authors4 ,he places himself in very honorable contrast with those whom he thus severely condemns3 ,the writer of these pages1 says he1 is fully persuaded that ,arminian principles1 when traced out to their natural and unavoidable consequences1 lead to an invasion of the essential attributes of ,god1 and1 of course1 to blank and cheerless atheism4 ,yet1 in making a statement of the ,arminian system1 as actually held by its advocates1 he should consider himself inexcusable if he departed a hair's-breadth from the delineation made by its friends4 7pp4 #bf1 #bg1 #bh47 ,this writer reiterates these charges1 with interesting variations1 in his introduction to a book on the ,synod of ,dort1 published by the same establishment4 ,they1 says he1 are ever fighting against an imaginary monster of their own creation4 ,they picture to themselves the consequences which they suppose unavoidably flow from the real principles of ,calvinists1 and then1 most unjustly1 represent these consequences as a part of the system itself1 as held by its advocates4 ,again3 ,how many an eloquent page of anti-,calvinistic declamation would be instantly seen by every reader to be either calumny or nonsense1 if it had been preceded by an honest statement of what the system1 as held by ,calvinists1 really is4 7,synod of ,dort1 p4 #fd47 ,the ,rev4 ,dr4 ,beecher says1 in his work on ,skepticism3 ,i have never heard a correct statement of the ,calvinistic system from an opponent2 and1 after specifying some alleged instances of misrepresentation1 he adds3 ,it is needless to say that falsehoods more absolute and entire were never stereotyped in the foundry of the father of lies1 or with greater industry worked off for gratuitous distribution from age to age4 ,the ,rev4 ,dr4 ,musgrave1 in what he calls a ,brief ,exposition and ,vindication of the ,doctrine of the ,divine ,decrees1 as taught in the ,assembly's ,larger ,catechism1 another of the publications of the ,presbyterian ,board1 charges the opponents of ,calvinism in general1 and the ,methodists in particular1 with not only violently contesting1 but also with shockingly caricaturing1 and shamefully misrepresenting and vilifying ,calvinism--with systematic and wide-spread defamation--with wholesale traduction of moral character1 involving the ,christian reputation of some three or four thousand accredited ministers of the gospel4 ,his charity suggests an apology for much of our misrepresentation of their doctrinal system on the ground of our intellectual weakness and want of education2 but1 for our dishonorable attempts to impair the influence of ,calvinistic ministers1 and injure their churches1 he can conceive of no apology4 ,the ,rev4 ,a4 ,g4 ,fairchild1 ,d4 ,d41 in a series of discourses entitled ,the ,great ,supper1 likewise published by the ,presbyterian ,board of ,publication1 complains in these terms3 ,sectarian partisans are interested in misleading the public in regard to our real sentiments1 and hence their assertions should be received with caution4 ,those who would understand our system of doctrines1 must listen1 not to the misrepresentations of its enemies1 but to the explanations of its friends4 7p4 #dj47 ,again3 ,as these men cannot wield the civil power against us1 they will do what they can to punish us for holding doctrines which they cannot overthrow by fair and manly argument4 ,god only knows the extent to which we might have to suffer for our religion1 were it not for the protection of the laws6 ,for1 if men will publish the most wilful and deliberate untruths against us1 as they certainly do1 for no other offence than an honest difference of religious belief1 what would they not do if their power were equal to their wickedness8 7p4 #gc47 ,this writer expresses his sense of the wickedness of those who oppose ,calvinism in still stronger terms3 ,if1 then1 the doctrines of grace ,calvinism are plainly taught in the ,scriptures1 if they accord with the experience of ,christians1 and enter largely into their prayers1 then it must be exceedingly sinful to oppose and misrepresent them4 ,those who do this will eventually be found fighting against ,god4 ,we have recently heard of persons praying publicly against the election of grace1 and we wonder that their tongues did not cleave to the roof of their mouth in giving utterance to the horrid imprecation4 7p4 #agh47 ,ah6 ,these ,methodists are very wicked6 ,the ,rev4 ,l4 ,a4 ,lowry1 author of a recent work1 entitled ,search for ,truth1 published by the same high authority1 discourses as follows3-- ,when ,i see a man trying to distort the proper meaning of words1 and1 presenting a garbled statement of the views of an opponent1 ,i take it as conclusive evidence that he has a bad cause2 more when he is constantly at it1 and manifests in all that he does a feeling of uneasiness and hostility towards those who oppose him4 ,during my brief sojourn in the ,cumberland ,church1 ,i was called upon to witness many such exhibitions1 that1 in the outset of my ministerial labors1 made anything but a favorable impression on my mind4 ,i found there1 in common with all others who hold to ,arminian sentiments1 the most uncompromising and malignant opposition to the doctrines of the ,presbyterian ,church1 while there was not a man that ,i met in all my intercourse1 that could state fairly and fully what those doctrines are4 ,their views were entirely one-sided2 the truth was garbled to suit their convenience2 and the creations of their own fruitful fancy were constantly being presented before the minds of the people1 thereby deepening their prejudices1 and drawing still closer the dark folds of their mantle of ignorance and bigotry4 7pp4 #fe1 #ff47 ,again3 ,it is painful to witness the ignorance and stupidity of men--their malignity and opposition to the truth--who have learned to misrepresent and abuse ,calvinism with such bitterness of feeling1 till1 like a rattlesnake in dog-days1 they have become blinded by the poison of their own minds4 7p4 #aef47 ,in this attempt to destroy confidence in the veracity of ,arminians1 so far1 at least1 as it is connected with their representations of ,calvinism1 leading individuals are singled out for special animadversion4 ,dr4 ,miller assails the moral character of ,arminius4 ,he says of him that1 ,on first entering upon his professorship1 he seemed to take much pains to remove from himself all suspicion of heterodoxy1 by publicly maintaining theses in favor of the received doctrines2 doctrines which he afterwards zealously contradicted4 ,and that he did this contrary to his own convictions at the time1 was made abundantly evident afterwards by some of his own zealous friends4 ,but1 after he had been in his new office a year or two1 it was discovered that it was his constant practice to deliver one set of opinions in his professional chair1 and a very different set by means of private confidential manuscripts circulated among his pupils4 7,synod of ,dort1 p4 #ac47 ,dr4 ,fairchild speaks thus of a passage by ,mr4 ,wesley3 ,in the doctrinal ,tracts1 p4 #agb1 is an address to ,satan1 which we have no hesitation in saying is fraught with the most concentrated blasphemy ever proceeding from the tongue or pen of mortal1 whether ,jew1 ,pagan1 or ,infidel1 and all imputed to the ,calvinists4 ,one cannot help wondering how such transcendent impieties ever found their way into the mind of man2 ,i am not willing to transfer the language to these pages2 but the work is doubtless accessible to most readers1 having been sown broadcast over the land4 7,great ,supper1 p4 #aej47 ,he also indorses the charge of forgery which ,toplady made against ,mr4 ,wesley4 7,see p4 #aaa47 ,the late ,dr4 ,fisk is charged with garbling the ,confession of ,faith for sinister purposes 7p4 #aaa72 and with scandalous imputations against ,calvinism4 7p4 #aej47 ,it is not impossible that our ,calvinistic brethren should be misrepresented4 ,nor is it impossible that they should misrepresent both themselves and others4 ,i do not admit that they are thus misrepresented by their ,methodist opponents1 but it is not my intention to refute these charges at this time4 ,i refer to them now to justify the special caution which ,i shall observe in presenting their tenets4 ,they make it necessary for us to prove beyond the possibility of doubt that they hold the doctrines which we impute to them4 ,i shall give their views in their own words4 ,calvin says1 in his ,institutes3 ,whoever1 then1 desires to avoid this infidelity1 let him constantly remember that1 in the creatures1 there is no erratic power1 or action1 or motion1 but that they are so governed by the secret counsel of ,god1 that nothing can happen but what is subject to his knowledge1 and ,,decreed by his will4 7,vol4 i4 p4 #ahf47 ,again3 ,all future things being uncertain to us1 we hold them in suspense1 as though they might happen either one way or another4 ,yet1 this remains a fixed principle in our hearts1 that there will be ,,no event which ,god has not ,,ordained4 7,ib4 p4 #aic47 ,again3 ,they consider it absurd that a man should be blinded by the will and command of ,god1 and afterwards be punished for his blindness4 ,they1 therefore1 evade this difficulty1 by alleging that it happens only by the permission of ,god1 and not by the will of ,god2 but ,god himself1 by the most unequivocal declarations1 rejects this subterfuge4 ,that men1 however1 can effect ,,nothing but by the secret will of ,god1 and can deliberate upon nothing but what he has previously decreed1 and ,,determines by his secret direction1 is proved by express and innumerable testimonies4 7,ib4 p4 #baa47 ,again3 ,if ,god simply foresaw the fates of men1 and did not also dispose and fix them by his determination1 there would be room to agitate the question1 whether his providence or foresight rendered them at all necessary4 ,but1 since he foresees future events only in consequence of his decree that they shall happen1 it is useless to contend about foreknowledge1 while it is evident that ,,all things come to pass rather by ,,ordination and ,,decree4 7,vol ii4 p4 #afi47 ,again3 ,i shall not hesitate1 therefore1 to confess plainly1 with ,augustine1 'that the will of ,god is the necessity of things1 and that what he has willed will necessarily come to pass4' 7,ib4 p4 #aga47 ,again3 ,with respect to his secret influences1 the declaration of ,solomon concerning the heart of a king1 that it is inclined hither or thither according to the ,divine will1 certainly extends to the whole human race1 and is as much as though he had said1 that ,,whatever ,,conceptions we form in our minds1 they we directed by the secret ,,inspiration of ,,god4 7,ib4 p4 #bac47 ,finally1 for the present3 ,what ,god decrees1 says this celebrated writer1 must ,,necessarily come to pass4 7,ib4 p4 #aid47 ,i think it will not be said1 by any one who has heard me attentively1 that ,i either misrepresent1 or misunderstand1 ,calvin1 when ,i impute to him the doctrine that ,god has purposed1 decreed1 determined1 foreordained1 predestinated whatsoever comes to pass1 and that he in some way or other brings to pass whatever occurs4 ,but it may be objected that we ought not to hold modern ,calvinists responsible for all the doctrines of ,calvin2 that they no further indorse them than as they are incorporated into their acknowledged creeds4 ,to this we cordially assent4 ,by this rule we will abide4 ,what1 then1 is the language of the ,westminster ,confession of ,faith1 the established standard of orthodoxy in the ,american ,presbyterian ,churches8 ,the third chapter commends thus3 ,god1 from all eternity1 did1 by the most wise and holy counsel of his own will1 freely and unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass 7p4 #ae72 and1 at the commencement of the fifth chapter1 we read3 ,god1 the great ,creator of all things1 doth uphold1 direct1 dispose1 and govern all creatures1 actions1 and things1 from the greatest even to the least1 by his most wise and holy providence4 ,observe1 he1 according to this statement1 not only upholds and governs all creatures1 but directs and disposes all actions and things1 from the greatest even to the least4 ,the ,larger ,catechism says1 in answer to the question1 ,what are the decrees of ,god8 ,god's decrees are the wise1 free1 and holy acts of the counsel of his will1 whereby1 from all eternity1 he hath1 for his own glory1 unchangeably foreordained whatsoever comes to pass in time1 especially concerning angels and men4 ,the ,shorter ,catechism answers the same question by these words3 ,the decrees of ,god are1 his eternal purpose according to the counsel of his will1 whereby1 for his own glory1 he hath foreordained whatsoever comes to pass4 ,the next question in this ,catechism is3 ,how doth ,god execute his decrees8--,ans4 ,god executeth his decrees in the works of creation and providence4 ,in a work1 entitled ,an ,exposition of the ,confession of ,faith of the ,westminster ,assembly of ,divines1 by the ,rev4 ,robert ,shaw1 published by the ,presbyterian ,board of ,publication1 and revised by the ,committee of ,publication1 we find the following passages3 ,that ,god must have decreed all future things is a conclusion which flows necessarily from his foreknowledge1 independence1 and immutability4 7p4 #eh47 ,again3 ,the decrees of ,god relate to all future things without exception2 whatever is done in time was foreordained before the beginning of time4 7p4 #ei47 ,again3 ,if from all eternity he knew all things that come to pass1 then from eternity he must have ordained them 7p4 #fj74 ,again3 ,the foreknowledge of ,god will necessarily infer a decree2 for ,god could not foreknow that things would be1 unless he had decreed they should be4 7p4 #ei47 ,in another publication of this ,board1 entitled ,fisher's ,catechism1 we find the following questions and answers3-- ,q4 ,what are the decrees of ,god8--,ans4 ,the decrees of ,god are his eternal purpose1 according to the counsel of his will1 whereby1 for his own glory1 he hath foreordained whatsoever comes to pass4 7p4 #ea47 ,q4 ,are all the decrees of ,god then unchangeable8--,ans4 ,yes3 from all eternity1 he hath1 for his own glory1 unchangeably foreordained whatsoever comes to pass4 7p4 #ec47 ,q4 ,does anything come to pass in time but what was decreed from eternity8--,ans4 ,no3 for the very reason why anything comes to pass in time1 is because ,god decreed it4 7p4 #ed47 ,q4 ,are things that are casual or accidental positively decreed8--,ans4 ,yes4 7,ib47 ,q4 ,what has the decree of ,god fixed with respect to man's continuance in this world8--,ans4 ,it has immovably fixed the precise moment of every one's life and death1 with every particular circumstance thereof4 7,ib47 ,q4 ,how does ,god execute his decrees8--,ans4 ,god executes his decrees in the works of creation and providence4 7p4 #eg47 ,q4 ,what is it for ,god to execute his decrees8--,ans4 ,it is to bring them to pass2 or give an actual being in time1 to what he purposed from eternity4 7,ib47 ,q4 ,does not ,god leave the execution of his decrees to second causes8--,ans4 ,whatever use ,god may make of second causes1 in the execution of his decrees1 yet they are merely tools in his overruling hand1 to bring about his glorious designs1 and must do all his pleasure4 7,ib47 ,q4 ,are there not certain means by which the decrees of ,god are executed8--,ans4 ,yes2 but these means are decreed as well as the end4 7p4 #eb47 ,q4 ,is there an exact harmony or correspondence1 between ,god's decree and the execution of it8--,ans4 ,when the thing decreed is brought actually into being1 it exactly corresponds to the idea or platform of it in the infinite mind of ,god4 7p4 #eg47 ,q4 ,can none of the decrees of ,god be defeated or fail of execution8--,ans4 ,by no means4 7,ib47 ,q4 ,does ,god's governing providence include in it his immediate concurrence with every action of the creature8--,ans4 ,yes2 ,god not only efficaciously concurs in producing the action1 as to the matter of it2 but likewise predetermines the creature to such or such an action1 and not to another1 shutting up all other ways of acting1 and leaving that only open which he had determined to be done4 7p4 #fg47 ,q4 ,why are the decrees of ,god said to be absolute8--,ans4 ,because they depend upon no condition without ,god himself1 but entirely and solely upon his own sovereign will and pleasure4 7p4 #eb47 ,on page #fg he tells us that the worst action that was ever committed1 the crucifying of the ,lord of glory1 was ordered and directed by ,god4 ,the ,rev4 ,dr4 ,musgrave says1 c43 ,in the former chapter1 we endeavored to explain and prove the three following propositions3-- #a4 ,that all things that come to pass in time1 have been eternally and unchangeably foreordained1 because most certainly foreknown to the infinitely perfect ,jehovah4 7p4 #ah47 ,the ,rev4 ,dr4 ,boardman1 of this city1 in his discourses on the doctrine of election1 not only quotes with approbation that part of the ,confession of ,faith which says1 ,god1 from all eternity1 did1 by the most wise and holy counsel of his own will1 freely and unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass 7p4 #di71 but also says3 ,some persons appear to think that the ,divine decrees are restricted to spiritual matters4 ,this is so far from being a correct opinion1 that the ,scriptures represent ,,all ,,events1 however trivial1 as being embraced in those decrees4 ,in this connection1 he also affirms that the ,divine decrees embrace not only ends but means1 and that both in temporal and spiritual things1 where an end is decreed1 the means by which it is to be reached or accomplished are also decreed4 7pp4 #ef1 #eg47 ,dr4 ,chalmers1 in his discourse on ,predestination1 says3 ,let us not conceive that the agency of man can bring about one single iota of deviation from the plans and the purposes of ,god1 or that he can be compelled to vary in a single case by the movement of any of those subordinate beings whom he hath himself created4 ,there may be a diversity of operations1 but it is ,god who worketh all in all4 ,look at the resolute and independent man1 and you then see the purposes of the human mind entered upon with decision1 and followed up by vigorous and successful exertions4 ,but these only make up one diversity of ,god's operations4 ,the will of man1 active1 and spontaneous1 and fluctuating as it appears to be1 is an instrument in his hand--and he turns it at his pleasure--and he brings other instruments to act upon it--and he plies it with all its excitements--and he measures the force and proportion of each of them--and every step of every individual receives as determinate a character from the hand of ,god1 as every mile of a planet's orbit1 or every gust of wind1 or every wave of the sea1 or every particle of flying dust1 or every rivulet of flowing water4 ,this power of ,god knows no exception4 ,it is absolute and unlimited1 and while it embraces the vast1 it carries its resistless influence to all the minute and unnoticed diversities of existence4 ,it reigns and operates through all the secrecies of the inner man4 ,it gives birth to every purpose4 ,it gives impulse to every desire4 ,it gives shape and color to every conception4 ,it wields an entire ascendency over every attribute of the mind1 and the will1 and the fancy1 and the understanding1 with all the countless variety of their hidden and fugitive operations1 are submitted to it4 ,it may be supposed that while we have shown clearly and indubitably that the doctrine which we propose to examine and refute is held by ,old ,school ,presbyterians1 it would be an act of injustice upon our part1 should we impute it to those of the ,new ,school4 ,many think that the ,new ,school have rejected the leading doctrines of ,calvinism1 as set forth in the ,confession of ,faith4 ,this is a very erroneous impression4 ,a writer in the ,presbyterian ,quarterly ,review--a work recently originated and sustained by ,new ,school ,presbyterians--remarks as follows3 ,whatever difficulties there may be in the philosophy of the fact1 it is certain that the idea of ,presbyterianism actuates itself theologically in ,calvinism4 7,vol4 i4 ,no4 ,i4 p4 #ah47 ,again3 ,so far as we are informed1 there is not a minister of our body who does not love and cherish the ,westminster ,confession of ,faith as the best human delineation of ,biblical theology4 7p4 #e47 ,again3 ,after fifteen years1 in the body with which we are connected1 no man has moved to alter a tittle of the ,confession of ,faith4 7p4 #c47 ,again3 ,as we love the ,confession of ,faith and the ,catechisms1 we shall stand ready to vindicate them from ,arminian1 ,socinian1 and infidel assaults on the one side1 as well as ,antinomian glosses on the other4 7p4 #aj47 ,again3 ,we must then1 if we would obey the voice of ,god's providence1 teach our children the priceless glories of their faith 7p4 #aeb74 ,who tells them that the ,westminster ,confession of ,faith is a model of noble writing8 7p4 #aec47 ,the ,westminster ,confession of ,faith1 with the ,catechisms1 has recently been republished by the authority of the ,new ,school ,general ,assembly1 as the creed of their ,church4 ,had they made any material changes in their creed1 so far as ,calvinism is concerned1 this would have been the time to manifest them4 ,but the ,new ,school ,confession of ,faith is a mere reprint of that of the ,old ,school4 ,the ,rev4 ,albert ,barnes1 in a sermon in behalf of the ,american ,home ,missionary ,society1 preached in ,new ,york and in ,philadelphia1 says of that institution3 ,it cannot be denied1 it need not be denied1 that the form of ,christianity which it seeks and expects to propagate1 is that which has been much spoken against in the world1 and known as the ,calvinistic form1 and that it expects to make its way because there are minds in every community that are likely to embrace ,christianity in that form1 because it is presumed that the more mind is elevated1 and cultivated1 and brought into connection with schools and colleges1 the more likely it will be to embrace that form4 7p4 #ch47 ,again1 in a sermon preached before the ,new ,school ,general ,assembly1 ,may #bj1 #aheb1 he commences a paragraph with these words3 ,the ,calvinistic denomination of ,christians1 of which we are a part 7p4 #ab74 ,again1 he says3 ,as this form of ,christianity is represented in the great denominational family to which we belong1 it combines two things--the ,presbyterian form of government1 and the ,calvinistic or ,augustinian type of doctrine4 7,ib47 ,this eminent writer1 whom ,i hold in very high esteem for his learning1 intelligence1 and piety1 notwithstanding his ,calvinism1 expresses his views of the ,divine decrees in these words3-- ,but on this point1 the entire movement of the world bears the marks of being conducted according to a plan4 ,we defy a man to lay his finger on a fact which has not such a relation to other facts as to show that it is a part of a scheme2 and if of a scheme1 then of a purpose formed beforehand4 7,introd4 to ,butler's ,analogy1 p4 #ec47 ,again3 ,the event which was thus foreknown1 must have been1 for some cause1 certain and fixed1 since an uncertain event could not possibly be foreknown4 ,to talk of foreknowing a contingent event as certain1 which may or may not exist1 is an absurdity4 7,notes on ,romans1 viii4 #bi47 ,again3 ,we interpret the decrees of ,god1 so far as we can do it1 by facts2 and we say that the actual result1 by whatever means brought about1 is the expression of the design of ,god4 7,introd4 to ,butler's ,analogy1 p4 #dc47 ,the ,saybrook ,platform and ,confession of ,faith1 which contains the faith of the ,new ,england ,congregationalists1 holds precisely the same language respecting the ,divine decrees1 with the ,confession of ,faith of the ,presbyterian ,churches4 ,i am in possession of a work entitled ,a ,confession of ,faith put forth by the ,elders and ,brethren of many ,congregations of ,christians 7baptized upon profession of their faith7 in ,london and the country2 adopted by the ,baptist ,association1 met at ,philadelphia1 ,september #be1 #ageb4 ,the chapters in this ,confession which relate to ,god's decree and ,providence1 are1 with very slight variations of phraseology1 not affecting the sense1 the same with those in the ,westminster ,confession of ,faith1 and the ,saybrook ,platform4 ,it is thoroughly ,calvinistic4 ,the ,baptist ,catechism1 published by the ,american ,baptist ,publication ,society1 contains the following question and answer3-- ,q4 ,what are the decrees of ,god8--,ans4 ,the decrees of ,god are his eternal purposes1 according to the counsel of his will1 whereby1 for his own glory1 he hath foreordained whatsoever comes to pass4 ,the ,confession of ,faith of the ,dutch ,reformed ,church says3 ,we believe that the same ,god1 after he had created all things1 did not forsake them or give them up to fortune or chance1 but that he rules and governs them according to his holy will1 so that nothing happens in this world without his appointment4 ,again3 ,this doctrine affords us unspeakable consolation1 since we are taught thereby1 that nothing can befall us by chance1 but by the direction of our most gracious and ,heavenly ,father4 ,mark1 according to this1 ,,nothing happens but with the ,,appointment and by the ,,direction of our ,heavenly ,father4 ,my hearers will1 by this time1 be fully convinced that ,i have not misstated the ,calvinistic doctrine of ,divine predestination4 ,the application of this doctrine to the final destinies of men and angels constitutes the ,calvinistic doctrine of election and reprobation4 ,upon this point1 ,calvin says3-- ,predestination we call the eternal decree of ,god1 by which he has determined in himself what he would have become of every individual of mankind4 ,for they are not all created with a similar destiny1 but eternal life is foreordained for some1 and eternal damnation for others4 ,every man therefore being created for one or the other of these ends1 we say he is predestinated either to eternal life or death4 7,vol4 ii4 p4 #ade47 ,again3 ,observe2 all things being at ,god's disposal1 and the decision of salvation or death belonging to him1 he orders all things by his counsel and decree in such a manner1 that some men are born devoted from the womb to certain death1 that his name may be glorified in their destruction4 7,ib4 #afi47 ,again3 ,i inquire1 again1 how it came to pass that the fall of ,adam1 independent of any remedy1 should involve so many nations with their infant children in eternal death1 but because such was the will of ,god4 ,their tongues1 so loquacious on every other point1 must here be struck dumb4 ,it is an awful decree1 ,i confess but no one can deny that ,god foreknew the future final fate of man before he created him1 and that he did foreknow it because it was appointed by his own decree4 7,ib4 #agj47 ,upon this point1 the ,presbyterian ,confession of ,faith1 the ,saybrook ,platform1 and the ,baptist ,confession of ,faith1 hold the following language3-- ,by the decree of ,god for the manifestation of his glory1 some men and angels are predestinated to everlasting life1 and others foreordained to everlasting death4 ,those angels and men1 thus predestinated and foreordained1 are particularly and unchangeably designed2 and their number is so certain and definite1 that it cannot be either increased or diminished4 ,those of mankind that are predestinated unto life1 ,god1 before the foundation of the world was laid1 according to his eternal and immutable purpose1 and the secret counsel and good pleasure of his will1 hath chosen in ,christ1 unto everlasting glory1 out of his mere free grace and love1 without any foresight of faith or good works1 or perseverance in either of them1 or any other thing in the creature1 as conditions or causes moving him thereunto1 and all unto the praise of his glorious grace4 ,i do not say that ,calvinists never contradict any of these statements4 ,nor do ,i profess to have spread out the entire theory of ,calvinism4 ,the question now relates to their doctrine of ,divine decrees4 ,i am fully convinced that the times demand a review and comparison of the two opposing systems1 ,calvinism and ,arminianism4 ,our ,calvinistic brethren1 both ,old and ,new ,school1 are putting forth high claims in behalf of their system1 and speaking of ours in very disparaging terms4 ,the ,rev4 ,albert ,barnes tells us1 in his sermon in behalf of the ,home ,missionary ,society1 preached in #ahdi1 that the more mind is elevated1 and cultivated1 and brought into connection with colleges and schools1 the more likely it will be to embrace the ,calvinistic form of ,christianity4 ,he thinks that ,calvinists will be increased just in proportion as schools and colleges can be founded1 and an intelligent and educated ministry sent out4 ,he does not suppose that the entire mind of the west will embrace ,calvinistic views1 but he does expect that a considerable portion of the educated and ruling mind will 7p4 #dj74 ,he tells us1 in his sermon delivered before the ,new ,school ,general ,assembly1 convened in ,washington in #aheb1 that past history has shown that the class of minds most likely to embrace the ,calvinistic system is most likely to be found among the thinking1 the sober1 the educated1 the firm1 the conservative1 and the free 7p4 #aj72 that the ,calvinistic system identifies itself with education1 and a large portion of the cultivated mind of a community will be always imbued with the sentiments of the system4 7p4 #ae47 ,this seems to imply1 whatever may be intended1 that ,arminianism has special affinities for ignorance2 that it is more indebted to ignorance than to intelligence for its diffusion2 that its chances for success will be diminished1 in proportion as sound education advances1 and the ministry becomes intelligent4 ,if this be so1 ,arminians are pursuing a suicidal policy2 for no ,christian denomination has established as many colleges and academies in the same length of time as the ,methodists4 ,that ,arminianism takes better than ,calvinism with the masses is undeniable2 but this may be because it possesses a superior adaptation to the wants of humanity4 ,our ,saviour gave it as a distinctive mark of the ushering in of the last dispensation that the poor have the gospel preached unto them1 which implies that the poor1 and consequently the uneducated1 may understand it4 ,mr4 ,barnes goes further4 ,he intimates that the different theological systems are the result of some original peculiarity in certain classes of minds2 that there are minds1 not a few in number1 or unimportant in character1 which1 when converted1 will naturally embrace ,calvinism4 ,he will not undertake to say whether ,john ,wesley could have been a ,calvinist1 but he can say that ,jonathan ,edwards could never have been anything else4 ,he repeats this sentiment three years after1 in these words3 ,there are minds1 indeed1 and those in many respects of a high order1 that will not mark the phraseology6 see the truth of the ,calvinistic system2 but there are minds that can never see the truth of an opposite system4 ,we could not perhaps undertake to say whether ,john ,wesley could ever have been a ,calvinist1 but we can say that ,jonathan ,edwards could never have been anything else2 and if there be a mind in any community formed like that of ,edwards1 we anticipate that it will embrace the same great system which he defended4 ,now it is inconceivable that ,mr4 ,barnes should consider the ,arminian superior or equal to the ,calvinistic mind4 ,that must be the best mental structure which is most in harmony with the best theory4 ,the tenor of his remarks indicates clearly his opinion upon this point4 ,i can hardly express the astonishment which ,i felt upon reading this strange sentiment from so justly distinguished a writer4 ,it appeared to me to be grossly unphilosophical1 implying either that truth is not homogeneous2 that contradictory propositions may be equally true2 or that ,god has constituted some minds falsely4 ,it is presumable that between truth and mind1 in its original normal condition--mind not perverted by erroneous education1 or prejudice1 or passion1 or depravity in any form-- there will be a strict congeniality1 so that truth will be preferred to error4 ,but this doctrine implies that one set of minds will1 under the same circumstances1 from their peculiar natural constitution1 prefer the truth1 and another set reject it4 ,it is obviously of very dangerous practical tendency4 ,while the ,calvinist may refer to it to account for his being a ,calvinist1 and the ,arminian to account for his being an ,arminian1 the infidel may claim that it is from the same cause that he is an infidel4 ,his rejecting the ,bible is the natural inevitable result of the peculiar mental constitution which ,god gave him4 ,mr4 ,barnes tells us that ,calvinism does not appeal to passion2 but1 if ,i am not very greatly mistaken1 and you may judge whether ,i am or not1 its advocates appeal very significantly to pride of intellect4 ,it offers gross flattery as the price of adhesion and support4 ,what else can be inferred from the passages which ,i have quoted1 than that by becoming ,calvinists you will class yourselves with minds of a superior structure1 and with the educated and cultivated1 and will occupy an elevation from which you can look down upon the less favored ,arminians8 ,a writer in the ,new ,school ,quarterly ,review has this remark3 ,our physical frame could about as well be erect1 and adapted for its purposes without a backbone1 as piety be complete without ,calvinism4 7,vol4 i4 ,no4 ,i4 p4 #ai47 ,the ,rev4 ,mr4 ,lowry1 in his ,search for ,truth1 claims that the doctrine of human depravity--the complete ruin of man--the justice of his condemnation--the legal or covenant relation of ,adam and his posterity--the necessity of an atonement--and its vicarious nature1 belong exclusively to the ,calvinistic system4 ,he admits that the ,arminian often makes use of the same phraseology as the ,calvinist1 but then he rejects the proper and scriptural sense4 ,the ,arminian1 he says1 attempts to connect with his system the doctrine of a vicarious atonement1 because the phrase is a popular one1 and he cannot well do without it2 but when we come to examine its meaning1 we find that lie has no claim to it whatever4 ,he may hold on to the name1 but nothing more4 ,the substance is as different from the view which forms a part of his creed1 as a city on the ,atlantic coast differs from a small village in the backwoods4 7pp4 #ee1 #ef47 ,again3 ,the principles which lie at the foundation of the ,arminian doctrine of ability and grace1 are not only calculated to destroy the energies of the ,church1 and unhinge the institutions of society1 as ,i have endeavored to show1 but they go still further2 they enter the ,christian's closet1 and destroy the life and soul of his private devotions4 ,they are calculated to dry up every fountain1 and destroy every spring of religious feeling and action4 7p4 #hf47 ,again3 ,arminians are without any consistent and harmonious system of doctrine4 ,it is true that1 on speaking of the doctrines of those who hold to ,arminian sentiments1 we are in the habit of using the word system1 but it is only as a matter of convenience and courtesy4 ,some of those doctrines may sustain a logical connection with others--such as the doctrine of falling from grace1 and the denial of divine efficiency in conversion and sanctification --but ,arminianism1 as a whole1 is a coat of many colors1 that has been patched and pieced since the days of ,pelagius1 according to the taste and caprice of the man that wears it4 7p4 #aef47 ,again3 ,it requires but half an eye to see1 that the view of the fall of man and the relation we sustain to ,adam1 as found in the standards of the ,methodist ,church1 vitiate the whole ,gospel scheme2 that the principles growing out of the view there presented1 lead to fundamental error with regard to the nature of virtue and vice1 and destroy all human accountability2 that the nature of the remedy found in the same standards necessarily destroys all motive to intelligent action and labor upon the part of the ,church in the great work before her1 holds out no encouragement to prayer2 degrades the character of ,god to that of a debtor and apologist for injuries he has done to the creature2 and exalts the creature to heaven by a kind of semi-omnipotence of his own4 ,such consequences as these ,i say are dangerous and ruinous4 7p4 #aeg47 ,this book derives its importance from its being adopted by the ,presbyterian ,board of ,publication1 and its bearing the imprimatur of that institution4 ,it is commended by their catalogue as well worthy of perusal by those who have doubts as to the scriptural character of those doctrines which ignorance and prejudice brand as the horrible dogmas of ,calvinism4' ,it was published in #aheb4 ,a writer in the ,presbyterian1 of ,june #be1 #ahec1 thus expresses his views of ,arminianism3 ,did we preach ,arminianism to the people1 we could get ten into our churches where we now get one2 for it must be remembered that ,arminianism is far more palatable to depraved nature than ,calvinism4 ,again3 ,these brethren go too fast1 get men into the visible kingdom too soon2 lull them to everlasting sleep by their soporific measures and doctrinal anodynes1 thereby breaking down the barriers which separate the ,church from the world1 and ruining hundreds of souls where they save one4 ,let our young men be made to feel rather that ,arminianism is a dangerous delusion wherever it is preached1 and uphold with all their might and main real old-fashioned ,calvinism4 ,it is a very common thing with ,calvinists to refer opposition to ,calvinism to depravity1 as its source4 ,the ,presbyterian ,banner1 for ,nov4 #e1 #ahec1 contains the following3 ,the natural heart recoils from predestination4 ,the ungodly hate it4 ,our whole system is too humbling to human pride to find friends even among the vicious4 ,this is to us a strong affirmation of its truth4 ,they also claim for ,calvinism that it is not only specially conducive to civil and religious liberty1 but that it is essential thereto4 ,the ,rev4 ,dr4 ,wilson1 of the ,new ,school ,presbyterian ,church1 in an address delivered before the literary societies of ,delaware ,college1 in #aheb1 went out of his way to eulogize ,calvinism in these terms3 ,calvinism and human liberty flourish side by side1 or rather the latter is not found without the former2 and nowhere at this hour is there true freedom1 true independence of opinion in ,church or ,state where ,calvinism is not the foundation4 ,calvinists must be very forgetful of their history1 or they must suppose that all others are ignorant or forgetful of it4 ,but it is not my intention1 at present1 to reply to this extravagant pretension4 ,i do not object to the publication of these views from the pulpit and the press4 ,if our brethren entertain them1 they have a right to publish them4 ,it is manly to do so4 ,but it may be obligatory upon us to stand up for what we believe to be the truth1 and to oppose what we believe to be error4 ,i shall endeavor to do so1 the ,lord being my helper4 ,,discourse ,,ii4 ,in whom also we have obtained an inheritance1 being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will4--,,eph4 i4 #aa4 ,,in the preceding discourse1 ,i called attention to the fact that the opponents of ,calvinism are frequently charged with misunderstanding through ignorance1 or grossly misrepresenting it4 ,i read passages from several1 charging us with calumny1 defamation1 slander1 and even blasphemy4 ,in view of these charges1 often made and reiterated1 and widely spread1 with high official sanction1 and likely to be repeated whenever ,calvinism is boldly investigated1 ,i deemed it necessary to show1 by numerous quotations1 that ,i do not misrepresent it when ,i impute to it the doctrine that ,god has willed1 proposed1 and decreed whatsoever comes to pass1 and that1 in some way or other1 he brings to pass whatever occurs4 ,for this purpose1 ,i referred to the acknowledged publications of the ,presbyterian1 ,congregational1 ,baptist1 and ,reformed ,dutch ,churches4 ,i noted1 particularly1 that this doctrine is held by the ,new ,school ,presbyterians1 because it is supposed by many that they have abandoned it1 and that their rejection of it constitutes one of the points of difference between them and the ,old ,school4 ,i also quoted largely to show that earnest efforts are in progress to exalt ,calvinism1 and disparage ,arminianism and ,arminians4 ,we now propose to test this dogma of ,calvinism by reason and ,scripture4 ,we shall not1 at present1 enter upon the examination of the proof-texts1 though we hold the ,holy ,scriptures to be the ultimate authority on all theological questions1 but shall compare it with acknowledged ,scripture principles4 ,and1 yet1 it may be very reasonably expected that some attention will be paid to the passage which1 according to custom1 has been selected as presenting the subject of discourse4 ,it is the very first proof -text adduced by the ,westminster ,confession of ,faith1 but it fails to meet the demand made upon it4 ,it does not contain the doctrine sought to be proved4 ,it does1 indeed1 assert the predestination of believers to certain blessings1 a point not in dispute1 and also that they are predestinated to these blessings according to ,god's purpose2 but all this is very far from teaching that ,god has foreordained whatsoever comes to pass4 ,the proof is supposed by some to be contained in the remaining portion of the passage--who worketh all things1 c4 ,but we must take the entire expression of the apostle in order to get his meaning1 who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will4 ,by this he means to say1 merely1 that1 in whatever ,god does towards men or angels1 he is uncontrolled4 ,he carries out his own free purposes4 ,he does not conform to the counsels of others4 ,he does not yield to the clamors of discontented subjects1 or make concessions to contemporary and independent powers4 ,the words are thus paraphrased by ,mc,knight1 a ,calvinistic commentator3 ,according to the gracious purpose of him1 who effectually accomplisheth all his benevolent intentions1 by the most proper means1 according to the wise determination of his own will4 ,we may1 with as much propriety1 argue from the apostolic injunction1 ,do all things without murmurings and disputings 7,phil4 ii4 #ad71 that ,christians are required by the law of ,god to do all things absolutely1 as1 from the clause under consideration1 that ,god has decreed and executes whatsoever comes to pass4 ,but1 if our brethren insist upon so understanding the apostle1 we shall hold them to their interpretation4 ,we shall not allow them to contradict it whenever the exigencies of the argument may render it convenient4 #a4 ,in the first place1 this theory of predestination is inconsistent with the doctrine of man's free moral agency4 ,the force of this objection is readily perceived4 ,it is impossible that we should be free agents1 when all the external circumstances that affect us1 and all our mental and bodily acts1 are predetermined and brought about by ,god4 ,man is thus reduced to1 a mere passive instrument4 ,he is nothing more than a complicate and curious machine--a man-machine1 an automaton--whose every movement is conceived1 determined1 directed1 controlled by a supervisor4 ,it avails nothing to apply to him terms which signify freedom4 ,we may say that he has the power to will2 that he actually wills2 but the difficulty is not relieved4 ,the being who endowed him with this faculty has foreordained and brings to pass1 by a well-directed agency1 every movement of that faculty4 ,we may say that he wills according to his inclinations1 and is therefore free2 but ,god has decreed and brings to pass all his inclinations4 ,we may say that he acts according to his will1 and not against his will2 still nothing is gained1 since all his purposes1 and the movements by which he executes them1 are equally preordained and brought to pass by ,god4 ,we may say that he is conscious of acting freely1 but this is a mere delusion1 if the doctrine we are considering be true4 ,by the very logic which reconciles it with free agency in man1 ,i will undertake to prove that every steamboat and every railroad-engine is a free agent4 ,calvinistic free agency must be something analogous to ,bishop ,hughes's freedom of conscience1 indestructible and inviolable1 in its very nature and essence2 so that a man may be denied the privilege of reading the ,bible1 or of propagating or entertaining any opinions contrary to the ,church of ,rome--he may be thrown into prison1 and put to torture1 for refusing to subscribe to its dogmas1 or to worship according to forms which he holds to be idolatrous--and yet he enjoys freedom of conscience4 ,so1 according to the teachings of modern ,calvinism1 man is a free agent1 notwithstanding all the circumstances which surround him1 with all his sensations1 emotions1 desires1 purposes1 volitions and acts were decreed from eternity1 and brought to pass by a power which he can neither control nor resist4 ,this free agency must then be something absolutely inviolable in its nature and essence1 something which ,god himself cannot destroy or impinge except by terminating the existence of the being in whom it inheres4 ,as ,bishop ,hughes's freedom of conscience is very different from what is generally understood to be freedom of conscience1 so the free agency which may be made to harmonize with this doctrine1 is different from what is usually understood to be free agency4 ,it is not the power to act otherwise than as we do act1 or to choose or will otherwise than as we do choose or will4 #b4 ,this doctrine1 being at variance with man's free agency1 is1 by necessary consequence1 at variance with his moral accountability4 ,there would be as much reason in holding the atmosphere accountable1 or the trees1 or the grass1 or the clods1 or the stones4 ,all his views1 feelings1 and volitions1 being thus predetermined1 he can no more be accountable for them than for the circumstances of his birth1 or the natural color of his skin4 ,he cannot reasonably be made the subject of commendation or censure--of reward or punishment4 #c4 ,it also follows1 from this doctrine1 that there is not1 and cannot be any such thing as sin4 ,if man be not a free agent--if he be incapable of acting otherwise than as predetermined by ,jehovah--he is incapable of either virtue or vice4 ,it would be as reasonable to predicate virtue or vice of the flux and reflux of the tides1 or the circulation of the blood1 as of man or angel under such circumstances4 ,and1 mark6 if we1 for the sake of the argument1 should admit that man is capable of virtue1 notwithstanding all his acts are foreordained and rendered infallibly certain by a power which he cannot successfully resist1 he is still incapable of vice4 ,he cannot sin1 for this plain1 all-sufficient reason--he cannot act otherwise than according to the will of ,god4 ,nothing comes to pass in time but what was decreed from eternity4 ,none of the decrees of ,god can be defeated or fail of execution4 ,so ,calvinism explicitly affirms4 ,further1 while the inference that there is and can be no sin is fairly deducible from the supposition that man is not a free agent1 it does not depend upon that supposition4 ,let it be admitted1 for the purpose of the argument1 that man is a free agent1 and capable of sinning1 notwithstanding all his actions were predetermined1 and what is the state of the case8 ,still he has not sinned4 ,he has done nothing but what ,god freely willed and ordained he should do4 ,the perfect obedience of ,christ consisted in his doing in all respects the will of the ,father4 ,either1 then1 it may be sinful to do the will of ,god1 or there is--there can be no sin4 ,i do not know of any way in which this consequence can be avoided4 ,i do not believe that it can4 ,let us take another view of this point4 ,let the advocates of this doctrine succeed in proving that man is a free agent1 in the proper sense of the term1 and capable of sinning1 notwithstanding all his actions are decreed and brought to pass by ,god1 and we have before us this remarkable result3 ,every individual of the human race1 while in a state of probation1 without a knowledge of ,god's predetermination respecting him1 and without any controlling influence brought to bear upon him1 has1 in every instance1 willed and acted in accordance with the will of ,god4 ,the result is universal voluntary holiness4 ,here1 then1 is a dilemma4 ,either there is no possibility of sin or of holiness1 or1 if there be a possibility of sin or of holiness1 there is1 in fact1 no sin --there is1 in fact1 universal holiness4 #d4 ,if it be asserted that sin exists1 notwithstanding this perfect coincidence between the will of ,god and the conduct of his creatures1 it will follow1 most conclusively1 that ,god is the author of sin4 ,he has decreed and brings to pass all the sensations1 perceptions1 emotions1 inclinations1 volitions1 and overt actions1 of the whole human race4 ,various attempts have been made to avoid this result1 but they are all futile4 ,the ,confession of ,faith says3 ,god1 from all eternity1 did1 by the most wise and holy counsel of his own will1 freely and unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass2 yet so as thereby neither is ,god the author of sin4 ,we pay all respect to this as a disclaimer4 ,our ,presbyterian brethren do not intend to charge ,god with being the author of sin4 ,but we are compelled to regard these propositions as directly contradictory to each other4 ,is not a being the author of that which he originally designs and decrees1 and subsequently brings into existence8 and is it not maintained that he decreed from all eternity1 and brings to pass whatever occurs8 ,either sin has not come to pass1 or ,god is the author of it4 ,it is useless to say that ,god has brought to pass the act1 but not the sinfulness4 ,the sinfulness has come to pass4 ,it is useless to say that sin is man's1 and not ,god's act4 ,man does nothing but what ,god has decreed1 and1 in some infallible way leads him to do4 ,god's power1 says ,dr4 ,chalmers1 gives birth to every purpose2 it gives impulse to every desire1 gives shape and color to every conception4 ,says ,fisher1 in his ,catechism3 ,god not only efficaciously concurs in producing the action as to the matter of it1 but likewise predetermines the creature to such or such an action1 and not to another1 shutting up all other ways of acting1 and leaving only that open which he had determined to be done4 ,we might1 with vastly more plausibility1 deny that ,paul was the author of his ,epistles1 because he employed an amanuensis1 or1 for the same reason1 deny that ,milton was the author of ,paradise ,lost4 ,it is useless here to speculate upon the reasons which induced ,god to ordain and bring sin to pass4 ,we are now concerned with the fact merely1 and we hence conclude that he is the author of sin and the only being properly answerable for it4 #e4 ,if the advocates of this doctrine should still insist that it does not make ,god the author of sin2 that man is a free agent1 and properly responsible for his actions1 notwithstanding they are foreordained2 ,i press them with this plain consequence--,god is1 to say the least1 a participant in the sinning4 ,and he is not merely a coadjutor1 but the principal--the principal in every instance of sinning4 ,he originates the first conception of the sinning act4 ,he forms the plan4 ,he arranges all the circumstances4 ,he1 by his providence1 applies the influence by which the result is effectuated4 ,here1 then1 is a dilemma from which there is no escape4 ,either ,god is1 strictly and properly1 the author of sin1 or he is a participant therein1 and not merely accessory1 but the principal1 the plotter1 the prime mover1 the ,,ringleader thereof4 #f4 ,another inevitable consequence of this doctrine is that1 admitting the existence of sin1 ,god prefers sin to holiness in every instance in which sin takes place4 ,this consequence is too plain to require much illustration4 ,if ,god freely ordained whatsoever comes to pass2 if he was not under a fatal necessity of ordaining just as he did2 if he had it in his power to ordain otherwise1 he could have ordained holiness in the place of sin4 ,the fact that he was free and unnecessitated in his decrees1 and could ordain the one or the other1 according to his good pleasure1 is proof substantial that he prefers sin to holiness in every instance in which sin occurs4 ,had he preferred holiness1 he could have decreed it1 and it would have come to pass4 ,this consequence has been admitted1 and is1 by many ,calvinists at this day1 maintained as a doctrine4 ,in fact1 it has been a matter of dispute amongst ,calvinists--,dr4 ,taylor1 of ,connecticut1 taking one side1 and ,dr4 ,tyler1 of ,connecticut1 taking the other4 ,but what a shocking conception6 7,see ,christian ,spectator1 vol4 iv4 p4 #dfe47 #g4 ,nor can we resist the further conclusion1 from these premises1 that sin is not a real evil1 but1 on the contrary1 a good1 and that in every instance in which it is preferred to holiness1 it is worthy of such preference4 ,this reasoning proceeds upon the assumption that ,god is a being of infinite goodness and wisdom1 and1 therefore1 always prefers good to evil1 being1 of course1 always able to distinguish the one from the other4 ,this inference also has been admitted by many of the advocates of ,calvinistic predestination4 ,they distinctly affirm that sin is the necessary means of the greatest good1 and1 as such1 so far4 as it exists1 is preferable on the whole to holiness in its stead--that its existence is1 on the whole1 for the best4 ,i give as authority for this affirmation1 a publication of the ,presbyterian ,board1 entitled ,old and ,new ,theology4 ,on the first page we find this explicit statement3 ,it has been a common sentiment among ,new ,england divines1 since the time of ,edwards1 that sin is the necessary means of the greatest good1 and as such1 so far as it exists1 is preferable1 on the whole1 to holiness in its stead4 ,i do not charge ,dr4 ,musgrave with holding this inference as a doctrine1 and yet it is very clearly asserted in an argument designed to prove the ,calvinistic doctrine of foreordination4 ,there must1 says he1 have been a time when no creature existed1 as ,god alone is from everlasting4 ,before creation1 and from all eternity1 all things that are possible1 as well as all things that actually have or will come to pass in time1 must have been perfectly known to ,god4 ,he must1 therefore1 have known what beings and events would1 on the whole1 be most for his own glory1 and the greatest good of the universe2 and therefore1 as an infinitely wise1 benevolent1 and ,almighty ,being1 he could not but have chosen or determined1 that such beings and events1 and ,,such ,,only1 should come to pass in time4 ,the conclusion is1 therefore1 to our minds1 irresistible1 that if ,god be infinitely wise1 benevolent1 and powerful1 and perfectly foreknew what beings and events would1 on the whole1 ,,be ,,best1 he must have chosen and ordained that they should exist1 or be permitted to occur2 and that1 consequently1 everything that does actually come to pass in time1 has been eternally and unchangeably foreordained4 ,here it is argued that ,god1 as an infinitely wise1 benevolent1 and powerful being1 must have known and preferred1 and decreed1 that just such beings should exist and events occur1 as would1 on the whole1 be most for his own glory1 and the greatest good of the universe1 and such only2 and that1 consequently1 he has eternally1 and unchangeably foreordained everything that does actually come to pass in time4 ,now it is plain that all the events which have come to pass in time must answer this description--must be for the best1 for his highest glory--or the argument falls to the ground4 ,the ,rev4 ,jas4 ,mc,chain1 one of the editors of the ,calvinistic ,magazine1 in a discourse published in that periodical1 ,december1 #ahdg1 thus undertakes to prove that ,god has foreordained whatsoever comes to pass3 ,jehovah is infinitely wise2 does he not1 therefore1 know what it is ,,best should take place8 ,he is infinitely benevolent2 will he not choose1 then1 that shall take place which he knows is ,,for ,,the ,,best8 ,he is infinitely powerful2 can he not1 therefore1 cause to take place what he chooses shall take place8 ,the ,most ,high is infinitely wise1 and knows what it is ,,best should come to pass--benevolent1 and chooses to bring to pass ,,what ,,is ,,best--powerful1 and does bring to pass what he chooses as ,,best4 ,surely his infinite wisdom and goodness will choose and determine whatsoever it is best should take place1 and his almighty power will perfectly carry out his plan4 ,it is not my intention1 at this time1 to point out the fallacy of these arguments4 ,i quote them to show that the consequence which ,i have deduced from the doctrine that ,god has decreed whatsoever comes to pass--that sin is not an evil1 but a good1 and worthy of being preferred to holiness in every instance in which it occurs-- is actually recognized as a truth1 and used as a premise in proof of the ,calvinistic doctrine of the decrees4 #h4 ,and how can we avoid adopting as a legitimate conclusion1 the licentious infidel maxim1 that ,,whatever ,,is1 ,,is ,,right8 #i4 ,it is obvious1 at the first glance1 that this doctrine destroys all reasonable ground for repentance4 ,of what shall we repent8 ,of sinning8 ,let it first be proved that1 according to this doctrine1 any one has sinned1 or can sin4 ,but1 if sin be possible1 yet in every instance of sinning we have done the will of ,god4 ,he freely and unchangeably predestinated the act from all eternity4 ,his providence brought it to pass4 ,before we feel ourselves authorized to repent we should be sure that ,god has repented of his purposes and acts4 ,and1 even then1 there would be no good reason for repentance upon the part of his creatures4 ,for1 if we1 for the sake of the argument1 allow that they are able to act otherwise than as they do1 notwithstanding the ,divine decrees1 they are morally bound to submit cordially to those decrees1 leaving to ,god the responsibility of decreeing wisely4 ,hence there is no room for repentance4 ,this is precisely the application made of this doctrine by an intelligent ,calvinistic lady of ,new ,england1 ,mrs4 ,elizabeth ,stuart ,phelps1 daughter of the late ,prof4 ,stuart1 of ,andover1 and authoress of certain very popular works4 ,in the memorial of her1 prefixed to ,the ,last ,leaf of ,sunny ,side1 she is quoted as saying in her diary3 ,i never could understand or divine before1 my claim upon the ,deity's overruling care4 ,now ,i do get a glimpse of it--enough to make me feel like an infant in its mother's arms4 ,every event1 of every day1 of every hour1 is unalterably fixed4 ,each day is but the turning over a new leaf of my history1 already written by the finger of ,god--every letter of it4 ,should ,i wish to re-write--to alter--one8 ,oh1 no6 no66 no666 ,here1 you perceive1 is no ground for repentance4 ,it is repudiated4 ,she would not alter an event of her life1 a letter of her history4 ,she carries this acquiescence in the ,divine decrees so far as to say in another place3 ,i have no hope but in my ,saviour and if ,he has not saved me1 then this too1 ,i know1 is just1 and ,god's decrees ,i would not change4 #aj4 ,nor can prayer be more reasonable than repentance4 ,for what shall we pray8 ,that ,god would reverse his eternal decrees8 ,this would be to reflect upon his attributes4 ,are his decrees wrong8 ,besides1 the doctrine in question affirms them to be unchangeable4 ,shall we pray that ,god may accomplish them8 ,this can add nothing to the certainty of their accomplishment2 for they cannot be defeated4 ,so we are distinctly assured by the advocates of this theory4 ,the only apology that can be offered for prayer1 on the part of those who believe this doctrine1 is that it is decreed they shall pray4 ,but a prayer offered in strict logical accordance with this theory would be a manifest absurdity4 #aa4 ,another legitimate consequence of this doctrine is that man is not in a state of probation4 ,there is a flat contradiction between the idea that man is in a state of probation and the affirmation that the whole series of volitions1 states1 actions1 and events of his life is fixed1 unchangeably1 by the ,divine decree1 before he comes into existence4 ,i have long regarded this as an inevitable deduction from the ,calvinistic doctrine of decrees1 but it was not until lately that ,i found it actually advanced as a doctrine by a ,calvinistic writer4 ,on page #gg of ,fisher's ,catechism1 the following occurs3-- ,q4 ,is there any danger in asserting that man is not now in a state of probation1 as ,adam was8--,ans4 ,no4 ,q4 ,what1 then1 is the dangerous consequence of asserting that fallen man is still in a state of probation8--,ans4 ,this dangerous consequence would follow1 that mankind are hereby supposed to be still under a covenant of works that can justify the doer6 ,i do not mean to be understood that this dogma is held by all ,calvinists1 but1 whether held or not1 it is a legitimate inference4 #ab4 ,let us now notice the bearing of this strange tenet upon some of the leading doctrines and facts of ,christianity4 ,take the doctrine of the ,fall--which is understood to be that ,god made man in his own image--holy2 righteous1 capable of standing in his integrity1 yet liable to be seduced from it2 and that man voluntarily transgressed1 brought guilt and depravity upon himself1 and involved his posterity in moral degradation and ruin4 ,but1 if the ,calvinistic doctrine of decrees be true1 there was obviously no fall in the case4 ,there was a change in the condition of ,adam1 but that change was a part of ,god's eternal plan4 ,nothing occurred but what belonged to the divinely predetermined series of events4 ,if ,adam had acted otherwise than as he did1 ,god's original purposes would have been frustrated4 ,if there were any fall1 it should be predicated of the ,divine decrees rather than of the human subject thereof4 #ac4 ,again3 ,the plan of redemption1 it is supposed1 was designed to rescue him from a deplorable1 desperate condition1 in which his perverseness had placed him2 but1 if the doctrine we are considering be true1 the redemption1 so called1 is nothing but a part of a chain of predetermined events4 ,he was1 and is1 at no time1 in any other condition than was devised and decreed by ,jehovah as most conducive to his own glory and the highest good of the universe4 ,thus1 the redemption1 about which so much is said1 is resolved into a mere nullity4 #ad4 ,again3 ,the glorious doctrine of ,christ crucified thrills the bosom of the church with intense emotions of fear1 and penitence1 and hope1 and gratitude1 and joy4 ,paul attached so much importance to it as to say3 ,for ,i determined to know nothing among men save ,christ and him crucified4 ,but1 view it in the light of the doctrine that ,god has decreed whatsoever comes to pass1 and what does it amount to8 ,the sufferings and death of ,christ derive their importance from the fact of their being propitiatory--an atonement4 ,but for what shall they atone8 ,for acts which were determined upon1 as a part of ,god's plan1 for his glory1 and the good of the universe1 millions of ages before the human actors were born2 for acts which no more need to be atoned for than the actions of ,jesus ,christ himself4 ,to say that those acts were wrong is to reflect upon the decrees of ,god1 since nothing has come to pass but what was decreed by him2 since1 according to ,mr4 ,barnes1 we are to interpret the decrees of ,god by facts1 and the actual result1 by whatever means brought about1 expresses the design of ,god4 ,if men need atonement1 they need it for doing the will of ,god1 and for nothing else4 ,need ,i add that1 in view of the ,calvinistic doctrine of decrees1 the doctrine of atonement by the sufferings and death of ,christ is absolute nonsense8 #ae4 ,again3 ,i affirm of this doctrine that it renders utterly baseless the doctrine of pardon1 or the remission of sins4 ,it renders the offer of pardon a mockery4 ,for what is pardon offered8 ,for doing the will of ,god--for doing just what he decreed we should do2 for carrying into effect his eternal counsels4 ,how can any man need pardon if this doctrine be true8 ,should it be said1 in reply1 that although the decrees of ,god have been invariably fulfilled1 yet his precepts have been violated1 ,i rejoin that the violation of these precepts was1 according to the ,calvinistic hypothesis1 specifically decreed4 ,unless decreed1 it could not have come to pass4 ,hence1 the violation was inevitable1 from the very nature of the case4 ,god offers pardon to his creatures1 who have invariably1 from the commencement of their being1 fulfilled his decrees4 ,he offers pardon to them for violating commands which it was impossible for them to keep1 inasmuch as he had eternally decreed that they should not keep them1 and his decrees are infinitely wise and holy1 and cannot be1 frustrated4 ,further1 if ,god's decrees are righteous 7and we are told explicitly by the creed we are reviewing that they had their origin in his wise and holy counsel71 it follows that his precepts must be unrighteous1 whenever they are assumed to be in opposition to his decrees2 and surely no one can need pardon for pursuing a righteous course in opposition to an unrighteous one4 ,if it be said that his precepts and his decrees are all equally righteous1 it follows that a course in direct opposition1 in all respects1 to a righteous law is1 nevertheless1 a righteous course1 and thus the distinction between righteousness and unrighteousness is destroyed4 ,view the subject in whatever light you may1 and the offer of pardon in connection with the ,calvinistic doctrine of decrees1 becomes an impertinence and an absurdity4 #af4 ,and what is the effect of the ,calvinistic theory of predestination upon the doctrine of regeneration8 ,regeneration is usually understood to be a change by which unholy dispositions --dispositions at variance with the character and will of ,god --are substituted by those in accordance therewith4 ,but1 if ,calvinism be true1 regeneration is nothing more than a preordained change from doing the will of ,god perfectly in one way1 to doing it perfectly in another way4 #ag4 ,a consequence of this theory has been incidentally brought to view in illustrating a preceding argument1 which deserves a distinct statement4 ,it is that ,god has two hostile wills1 in relation to the same thing--his decrees1 and his published commands and prohibitions4 ,he has enjoined certain modes of action1 by the most solemn legislation1 and yet decreed1 from all eternity1 that multitudes of those whom he has subjected to those obligations1 shall constantly act at variance therewith2 so that multitudes of human beings are doing his will perfectly1 and yet violating his will at the same time4 #ah4 ,this theory makes all civil government manifestly unreasonable4 ,civil government proceeds upon the supposition that man is a free agent1 capable of choosing and acting otherwise than as he does2 but this theory1 as we have seen1 is incompatible with free agency4 ,and should we admit1 for the sake of the argument1 that it is not incompatible with free agency1 it is still irreconcilable with civil government4 ,civil legislation prohibits various modes of acting4 ,it assumes that the forbidden actions are wrong-- injurious to society--whereas1 this theory represents that all the actions that have been performed1 or will be performed1 were freely willed1 purposed1 decreed1 foreordained1 and brought to pass by ,god himself--that there are no events1 and can be none1 but what are in precise harmony with his eternal purposes--so that1 unless we suppose that ,god has from all eternity freely decreed what is wrong and injurious1 thereby subjecting human legislators to the necessity of opposing his will in order to prevent outrage and injury1 civil legislation admits of no justification or apology4 ,and if this theory is incompatible with civil legislation1 it is not less so with civil jurisprudence4 ,men assume the right to inflict severe punishment upon their fellow-men for doing what cannot be avoided1 or for not doing what they cannot possibly do4 ,or1 if it be admitted1 for the sake of the argument1 that they could act otherwise1 still they are punished for doing and suffering1 in all respects1 the will of ,god1 for merely exemplifying his eternal unchangeable decrees4 ,take either alternative1 and human jurisprudence is palpably iniquitous4 ,the only plausible apology that can be offered in behalf of civil government is1 either that human legislators and judges1 and jurors1 and counsel1 and sheriffs1 and constables are passive instruments in the hands of ,god1 in which case their proceedings are ludicrous1 the actors being mere puppets1 exhibiting all the appearance of self-determined motion1 and yet1 like those famous characters called ,punch and ,judy1 acting only as determined and effected by the wire-worker2 or1 admitting that they are free1 and executing their own determinations1 they too are doing precisely what ,god has foreordained2 so that1 in this respect1 the jury who pronounce the verdict of guilty1 and the judge who pronounces the sentence of death1 are upon a level with the alleged criminal4 ,all have done1 and are doing1 just the things which ,god has decreed they should do1 neither more nor less4 #ai4 ,i cannot but regard this theory as subversive of every rational idea of a ,divine moral government4 ,moral government implies precepts or prohibitions1 or both1 enforced by rewards and penalties1 and addressed authoritatively to beings capable of either obedience or disobedience4 ,but of what use are precepts or prohibitions if every act of every individual is fixed beforehand by the ,divine decrees8 ,as well might moral codes be addressed to steam-engines or to whirlwinds4 ,the only plausible attempt that can be made to reconcile this theory of predestination with a ,divine moral government1 is to apply the term moral government to a certain class of preordained influences designed to bring about a certain class of preordained results4 ,but this is moral government in name merely4 ,the process which the advocates of this theory call moral government is just as mechanical as that by which the motions of the planets are controlled4 ,the judiciary system of the ,divine government1 with all its solemn pageantry1 is thus reduced to a mere farce4 ,beings are arraigned1 with great judicial pomp1 and condemned1 or approved1 punished or rewarded for actions which were decreed innumerable ages before they were born1 and brought to pass by influences beyond their control1 for actions which were devised1 decreed1 and irresistibly brought to pass by the judge himself4 #bj4 ,we are now prepared for another consequence1 which hangs like a millstone around the neck of this theory1 and is sufficient1 of itself1 to sink it to the depths4 ,it represents ,god not only as decreeing one thing and commanding another directly adverse thereto1 but also as decreeing and bringing to pass opposite and contradictory events4 ,he ordained that one man should believe the ,holy ,scriptures1 and reverence them1 and that another man should1 at the same time1 deny1 and hate1 and vilify them4 ,he ordained that men should at one period of their lives preach the gospel1 and write in favor of ,christianity1 and at another period become infidel lecturers and disputants4 ,he decreed that some should believe the ,calvinistic doctrine of decrees1 and teach it1 and that others should1 at the same time1 regard it as false and oppose it4 ,he has ordained that men shall take opposite sides on all great questions1 religious1 philosophical1 or political4 ,he ordained the fugitive slave law and the recent ,nebraska and ,kansas enactment1 and all the opposition from ministers and laymen1 with which these measures have been regarded4 ,he has ordained that one party shall laud them as just and patriotic1 and that another party shall condemn and hate them as diabolical4 ,he ordained the arrest of that man on the suspicion of murder1 with all the conflicting opinions as to his guilt or innocence1 the contradictory testimony of the witnesses1 the contrary pleadings of the counsel1 the verdict of the jury pronouncing him guilty1 the sentence of the judge condemning him to death1 and the pardon of the governor under the full conviction of his innocence4 ,all the conflicting opinions and acts in the fiercest controversy that ever raged1 this theory traces up to the ,divine foreordination4 #ba4 ,it must have appeared to the audience1 by this time1 that the character of ,god is fearfully involved in this inquiry4 7#a74 ,we have already seen that this theory draws after it the logical consequences that ,god is the author of sin1 or1 if not the author of it in the strict and proper sense of the term1 at least the plotter--the prime mover of it2 that he prefers sin to holiness in every instance in which sin takes place2 that he regards sin as the necessary means of the greatest good2 that he has1 at the same time1 two hostile wills relative to the same thing4 ,and now what shall we say of his wisdom1 when we find him decreeing acts1 and bringing them to pass1 and yet1 peremptorily forbidding them--enjoining acts1 by formal solemn legislation1 which1 from all eternity he has foreordained shall never be performed8 ,when we find him ordaining measures for the promotion1 and measures for the counteraction1 of his own plans8 ,when we find him ordaining all the contradictions and vacillations by which human conduct is diversified and disgraced8--when every example of the most contemptible folly that ever turned the laugh1 or the sneer1 or the frown1 or the sentiment of pity upon its immediate perpetrators1 can be traced to the free counsels and designs of ,god1 and finds its origin there8 7#b74 ,what shall we say of the sincerity of ,god when we find him enjoining one class of actions on pain of eternal damnation1 while yet he has decreed1 and by unfailing means brings to pass1 in the same subjects1 an entirely opposite class8--when we find him threatening1 and expostulating1 and professing to be grieved1 on account of conduct which had its origin in his own free purposes1 and is effected by his own providence8--when we find him engaged in enforcing two wills respecting the same thing1 one directly the opposite of the other1 one of which must necessarily fail of accomplishment1 and then1 wrathfully charging the failure upon those who have acted in all respects as he ordained they should8--when we find him offering salvation to all men1 and solemnly asseverating that it is his will that all men should come to the knowledge of the truth1 while yet the sinning1 and ultimate damnation of myriads1 were decreed innumerable ages before they existed8 7#c74 ,what shall we say of his holiness1 when the vilest crimes that ever caused the blush of shame1 or the feeling of indignation or horror--fornication1 adultery1 bestiality1 fraud1 oppression1 lying1 murder--are in perfect coincidence with his eternal purposes1 parts of his great plan1 when he chose them in preference to their opposites1 with all the means and appliances1 great and small1 by which they were brought to pass8 7#d74 ,and what shall we say of his equity and justice1 when we find him placing his subjects under the necessity of violating his will in one way or another1 either his secret decrees or his published enactments8 ,when we find him rewarding one class of his subjects for fulfilling his decrees1 and damning another class with everlasting tortures for doing precisely the same thing8 7#e74 ,and where is his benevolence1 when he freely chooses1 prefers1 ordains1 and brings to pass all the sin and misery in the universe8 #bb4 ,again3 ,it is obvious that this theory lays the foundation of a new system of morals4 ,if it be insisted upon that1 notwithstanding ,god has decreed whatsoever comes to pass1 he is perfectly sincere1 just1 holy1 and benevolent1 we shall have obtained certain ethical principles which1 if carried out into universal practice1 would subvert all social order1 and destroy all confidence4 ,for instance1 it will follow3-- ,first4 ,that a ruler may secretly will1 purpose1 decree1 foreordain1 that his1 subjects shall act in a certain way4 ,he may put into operation effective measures to secure their concurrence with his designs4 ,meantime1 he may profess a profound and insuperable dissatisfaction with a very large proportion of the actions which he has predetermined and induced2 he may indignantly condemn and threaten to punish the actors2 he may do all this1 and yet be perfectly sincere4 ,in other words1 what men usually regard as the most thorough-paced duplicity1 is in entire accordance with perfect sincerity4 ,by this principle1 the worst hypocrite that ever lived may be fully vindicated from the charge of hypocrisy4 ,again3 ,a being may give existence to a vast multitude of other beings1 inferior1 dependent1 but yet intelligent4 ,he may assert over their actions the most absolute control4 ,he may predetermine and bring to pass every one of their actions4 ,he may shut up all other ways of acting1 and leave that only open which he had determined to be done4 ,meanwhile1 he may issue laws peremptorily requiring conduct directly opposite to his unchangeable predeterminations1 thus placing his creatures under the dire necessity of violating his secret decrees1 or his published laws2 and yet he may1 with perfect justice1 arraign1 condemn1 and punish them for the violation of these laws1 consigning them to eternal misery4 ,this theory will furnish us with a criterion of moral character--a code by which the ,neros1 ,domitians1 ,caligulas1 and ,diocletians1 whom men have reprobated and abhorred as tyrants1 may be triumphantly vindicated and made honorable4 ,again3 ,a being may be the author1 or1 if not1 in the strictest sense1 the author1 at least the planner1 the prime mover of all the wickedness that ever existed4 ,he may use effective influences in bringing it to pass1 so that it may be said1 in truth1 that he freely and unchangeably preordained and produced it1 and yet he may be perfectly holy4 ,and again3 ,a being may purpose1 foreordain1 and bring to pass all the sin and misery in the universe1 and yet be perfectly benevolent4 ,here is a principle of ethics which will more than cover and vindicate the most atrocious cruelties of the ,romish inquisition4 ,the rum-seller1 so called1 who is the agent of incalculable mischief1 may find under it the most ample protection4 ,his designs terminate upon the sale of his liquors1 and the gains which result4 ,if he could sell his fiery commodity1 and secure his gains without the misery1 he would4 ,but1 according to our new code of ethical principles1 he might go much further4 ,he might design1 as an end1 all the wretchedness that results1 and prosecute his traffic as a means to secure that end1 and yet be perfectly benevolent4 ,is it not plain that this theory1 if adopted and carried out to its legitimate logical results1 must revolutionize and reverse all our established conceptions of wisdom1 sincerity1 holiness1 equity1 justice1 and benevolence1 and introduce an entirely new estimate of moral conduct8 #bc4 ,further3 ,this theory furnishes the most complete justification of all the conduct of the worst men that ever lived1 both by the ethical principles which may be deduced from it1 and by the single consideration that their every action is in perfect harmony with the ,divine will4 ,the ,new ,testament speaks of men being without excuse2 but ,i ask1 what better excuse can be desired than that the conduct in question is in precise accordance with the will of ,god8 ,men sometimes think it an apology to say that they acted hastily--that they were misled by others--that they were not aware of the mischief likely to result from their course2 but this doctrine puts them at once upon the highest possible ground of justification4 ,the poor reprobate may be silenced1 at the day of judgment1 by the terrors which surround him1 and by the stern authority of the judge1 but not by the want of a valid plea4 ,when the sentence shall go forth consigning him to perdition for the deeds done in the body1 he will have in readiness1 whether allowed to utter it or not1 the unanswerable answer3 ,lord1 the deeds for which ,i am condemned were in all respects what thou didst predetermine4 ,i have executed from first to last thy wise and holy counsels4 ,had ,i acted otherwise1 ,i should have frustrated thy free purposes1 formed before the foundation of the world4 ,i have1 indeed1 gone contrary to thy published law1 but that thou didst render inevitable by making that law antagonistic to thy eternal decree1 which thou dost not allow to be thwarted1 in any instance1 by man or angel4 ,this plea would be equally conclusive before any human tribunal4 ,there are ,calvinistic lawyers1 or lawyers who are members of ,calvinistic churches or congregations4 ,the names of some of these are appended to a note soliciting for publication ,dr4 ,boardman's sermons on ,election4 ,in defending alleged criminals1 men of their profession often tax their ingenuity to the utmost for arguments4 ,if the insanity of the prisoner can be established1 they expect his acquittal1 though he may have perpetrated the fatal violence4 ,but why do they never offer1 in behalf of the prisoner intrusting his case to them1 that he has done nothing but what ,god willed and decreed from all eternity he should do8 that1 from the beginning to the end of the affair1 he was but executing the counsels of ,heaven--counsels which ,heaven never suffers to be frustrated1 either as to the end1 or the instrument4 ,some of them believe the doctrine1 and desire that the public should believe it4 ,why1 then1 do they never plead it when pledged to give their client the benefit of every available argument8 ,is it nothing to be able to say for him that he has not swerved a hair's-breadth from the designs of the great ,sovereign of the universe1 at whose judgment-seat all the decisions of human tribunals will be reviewed8 ,they dare not offer such a plea4 ,they know that common sense would laugh them out of countenance1 if not out of court4 ,and if all present were believers in the doctrine1 they could not attempt to reduce it to its legitimate practical application without laughing in each other's faces-- such is its essential absurdity4 ,they may circulate it in sermons1 in which eloquent nonsense is drivelled with impunity1 but they will not venture to propound it in a court1 where common sense and equity bear sway4 #bd4 ,if this doctrine be true1 it is wholly unnecessary for any of you to impose any restraint upon your passions or wills4 ,are you tempted to indulge in sensuality1 or to defraud your neighbor1 and even to assassinate him8 ,and does the inquiry arise in your mind whether the act to which you are tempted is according to the will of ,god8 ,you have only to do it1 and the result proves that it is decreed4 ,so says ,mr4 ,barnes3 ,the result1 by whatever means brought about1 expresses the design of ,god4 ,if the act be not decreed1 you cannot do it1 though you try4 ,if you can1 it is decreed that you should2 and your doing it is as inevitable as destiny itself4 ,so you may just go forward1 and the result will be right2 that is1 if ,god's decrees are right4 #be4 ,it is also an obvious consequence of this doctrine that no man can contribute anything to hip personal salvation2 that his salvation or damnation is fixed wholly by the ,divine decrees4 ,he4 cannot influence his destiny by any effort he can make4 ,there is no use in his trying4 ,indeed1 the ,westminster ,confession of ,faith informs us directly that man is altogether passive in regeneration1 and that his perseverance depends not upon his own free will1 but upon the immutability of the decree of election4 ,so that all the exhortations of the gospel and of the pulpit1 are utterly irrelevant4 ,there is a very significant passage bearing upon this point in ,chalmer's discourse on ,predestination3 ,and now1 says he1 you can have no difficulty in understanding how it is that we make our calling and election sure4 ,it is not in the power of the elect to make their election surer in itself than it really is1 for this is a sureness which is not capable of receiving any addition4 ,it is not in the power of the elect to make it surer to ,god--for all futurity is submitted to his all-seeing eye1 and his absolute knowledge stands in need of no confirmation4 ,but there is such a thing as the elect being ignorant for a time of their own election1 and their being made sure of it in the way of evidence and discovery4 ,the amount is that a man may ascertain by exertion the fact of his election1 but he can do nothing towards securing it4 ,thus ,mr4 ,wesley's famous consequence is established4 ,the elect shall be saved1 do what they will2 the reprobate shall be damned1 do what they can4 ,it is plain from these reasonings that this doctrine tends to spiritual inactivity1 and countenances licentiousness4 ,but we are told1 by ,dr4 ,boardman1 that the ,divine decrees are not the rule of our duty2 that we are not held responsible for not conforming to them2 that we are not bound to act with the least reference to them4 7p4 #de47 ,what6 ,the subjects of a government not bound to act with the least reference to the decrees of its sovereign6--not responsible for not conforming to them66 ,this is surely a strange doctrine4 ,it is an indirect concession that the practical bearing of the ,calvinistic doctrine of decrees cannot be defended4 ,but it is said that we have no right to make ,god's secret decrees our rule4 ,very true4 ,we are not arguing from his secret decrees1 but from what our brethren profess to know4 ,if the doctrine in question be a secret1 we would like to know by what authority it is so confidently stated in the ,confession of ,faith and the ,catechism4 ,how did they come by the knowledge of ,god's secret decree8 ,they may claim to be better educated than we are1 and more intelligent1 to have minds of a superior natural constitution2 but we protest against their claiming to be intrusted with the secrets of heaven4 #bf4 ,this wonderful doctrine makes out the devil and his angels to be faithful servants of ,god4 ,they have done1 throughout the past1 and are doing now1 precisely what ,god1 in his wise and holy counsel1 foreordained they should do4 #bg4 ,it leads to ,universalism4 ,if all beings do as ,god has decreed1 upon what ground can ,god punish any of them1 then1 in futurity8 ,you have only to connect with this doctrine the declaration that ,god is benevolent1 or just1 and ,universalism follows4 #bh4 ,it leads to rank infidelity4 ,it is to my mind more reasonable to believe that ,god has made no written revelation of his will1 than that he has revealed such a doctrine as this4 ,let the opinion become prevalent that it is a doctrine of the ,bible1 and1 as the consequence1 the ,bible will be rejected by thousands1 yea1 hundreds of thousands4 ,it is impossible for the ablest disputant to maintain a respectable argument against infidelity while standing upon this ground4 ,he must assume the opposite ground1 as the basis of his argument1 or he will fail signally4 ,the infidel objects to the ,bible that it represents ,god as sanctioning crime1 and making favorites of its perpetrators1 and hence concludes that it cannot be true4 ,the usual reply is that1 so far from having sanctioned vice and its perpetrators1 he has solemnly prohibited it2 that he holds the perpetrator guilty1 condemns him to severe punishment1 and will remit that punishment only in view of repentance1 and reformation1 and an atonement which fully vindicates the ,divine government1 and most impressively manifests its abhorrence of the course pursued by the transgressor4 ,but what says this doctrine8 ,that ,god has freely1 and from all eternity willed1 decreed1 foreordained1 whatsoever comes to pass4 ,the infidel objects that the ,bible contains contradictions1 and hence cannot be the word of ,god4 ,the usual answer admits that ,god cannot contradict himself1 but denies that the ,bible is chargeable with self -contradiction4 ,whereas1 this doctrine declares that ,god has decreed and brought to pass all the contradictions that were ever uttered4 ,can it be that ,god is the author of a book which represents him as ordaining and bringing to pass all the acts of crime and folly that were ever committed1 including all the lies that were ever uttered1 as having two hostile wills in relation to the same event1 as decreeing that his creatures should pursue a certain course1 and yet commanding them to pursue a contrary course1 and then1 damning them1 thousands upon thousands1 for doing what he decreed they should do8 ,it is impossible for the infidel to frame a stronger argument than this doctrine supplies him with4 ,i have shown1 unanswerably1 ,i think1 that this doctrine leads1 by obvious deduction1 to the doctrine that ,god prefers sin to holiness in every instance in which sin takes place1 and that sin is the necessary means of the greatest good4 ,i will now quote an eminent ,calvinistic minister upon the tendencies of this doctrine4 ,he is commenting upon what he calls the third solution of the question1 ,for what reason has ,god permitted sin to enter the universe8 which he states to be that ,god chose that sin should enter the universe as the necessary means of the greatest possible good4 ,wherever it exists1 therefore1 it is1 in the whole1 better than holiness would be in its place--the very doctrine which we are told by high ,calvinistic authority1 has been a common sentiment among ,new ,england divines since the days of ,edwards4 ,he says3-- ,the third solution has been extensively adopted by philosophers1 especially on the continent of ,europe2 and its ultimate reaction on the public mind had no small share1 we believe1 in creating that universal skepticism which at last broke forth upon ,europe1 in all the horrors of the ,french ,revolution4 ,while the profoundest minds were speculating themselves into the belief that sin was the necessary means of the greatest good1 better on the whole1 in each instance1 than holiness would have been in its place--common men were pressing the inquiry1 ',why1 then1 ought it to be punished8' ,voltaire laid hold of this state of things1 and assuming the principle in question to be true1 carried round its application to the breast of millions4 ,in his ,candide1 one of the most amusing tales that was ever written1 he introduces a young man of strong passions and weak understanding1 who had been taught this doctrine by a metaphysical tutor4 ,they go out into the world1 to 'promote the greatest good' by the indulgence of their passions2 certain that1 on the whole1 each sin is better than holiness would have been in its place4 ,but when ,candide begins to suffer the natural consequences of his vices1 he feels it to be but a poor consolation1 that others are now reaping the benefit of his sin4 ,is it surprising that such a work induced thousands to disbelieve in the holy providence of ,god1 and prepared multitudes to 'do evil that good might come8' 7,christian ,spectator1 vol4 i4 pp4 #cgh1 #i47 ,it would be easier1 and more reasonable1 to believe in a plurality of gods1 than that one ,god should be capable of such conflicting counsels4 ,and this would bring us to the verge of ,atheism4 #bi4 ,this doctrine covers with the wing of its sanction all the errors that were ever promulgated or conceived4 ,i do not say that they all grow out of it1 but that it justifies them4 ,why should ,i oppose ,romanism1 or ,universalism1 or ,socinianism1 or ,puseyism1 or ,infidelity1 when they are all decreed by ,jehovah8 ,christendom presents the strange spectacle of men prying into systems1 bringing to the light1 condemning1 and holding up to public odium their errors of theory and practice1 and1 yet1 holding as a fundamental article of their own creed that ,god from all eternity freely decreed1 whatsoever comes to pass4 ,let them first reject and refute the error which vindicates all errors4 ,what right has a ,calvinist to find fault with anything8 #cj4 ,again3 ,it clearly follows1 from this theory1 that any attempt to prevent the commission of sin in our neighbors1 is not only in opposition to the primary--the original will1 the eternal purposes of ,god1 but is also in opposition to the highest good of the universe2 and that we should1 as reasonable beings1 rejoice in every instance of sin--of lying1 robbery1 uncleanness1 and murder--as in every instance of holiness4 #ca4 ,i do not identify this doctrine with pagan fatalism1 but ,i hold that it is akin thereto1 and that it tends to the same practical results4 ,it is1 in my opinion1 worse than pagan fatalism4 ,that doctrine represents all events and actions as strictly necessary1 but it binds the gods as well as men4 ,all bow to that mysterious power called fate4 ,thus it relieves the gods of all blame4 ,but ,calvinism asserts the freedom of ,jehovah1 and then imputes to him the foreordination of whatever occurs in the whole universe1 and thus1 by plain logical consequence1 fastens upon him all the just blame of whatever is exceptionable4 ,calvinism is not pagan fatalism4 ,it is ,christian fatalism4 ,it is fatalism baptized4 ,,discourse ,,iii4 ,in whom also we have obtained an inheritance1 being predestinated according to the purpose of ,him who worketh all things according to the counsel of his own will4--,,eph4 i4 #aa4 ,,in the preceding discourse1 ,i showed that the ,calvinistic doctrine of the ,divine decrees leads to the following consequences1 namely1 that man is not a free agent2 that he is not properly accountable for his conduct2 that there is no sin in the world2 or1 that1 if there be sin1 ,god is the author of it2 or1 that1 if he be not strictly and properly the author1 he is at least the prime mover of it2 that1 if sin exist1 ,god prefers sin to holiness in every instance in which sin takes place2 that sin is not an evil1 but a real good2 that whatever is is right2 that there is no reasonable ground for repentance1 or for prayer1 or for pardon2 that regeneration is nothing else than a change from perfect conformity to the will of ,god in one way1 to perfect conformity to the will of ,god in another way2 that the doctrines of the fall and redemption by ,christ are gross and palpable absurdities2 that man is not in a state of probation2 that ,god has two hostile wills relative to the same thing2 that1 not only are his secret decrees and his written laws at variance1 but he has also decreed and brings to pass opposite and contradictory events2 that civil government is wholly unreasonable2 that there is in fact no moral government2 that ,god is not holy1 or just1 or wise1 or truthful1 or benevolent2 or1 that if ,god be nevertheless holy1 and wise1 and true1 and just1 and good1 we have the foundation of a new system of morals1 which1 if adopted1 must reverse all our estimates of moral character2 that man cannot contribute anything to his personal salvation2 that the devil and his angels are as faithful servants of ,god as any of his elect4 ,it was shown that it leads to ,universalism and to rank infidelity2 that it sanctions all the errors that were ever promulgated2 that it furnishes a complete justification of the worst conduct of the worst men1 that ever lived1 tends to paralyze all effort to resist temptation1 and condemns as impious any opposition to the commission of sin by our neighbors1 and1 finally1 that it is worse than the pagan doctrine of fatalism4 ,i shall now endeavor to present the true doctrine4 ,as has been said1 we do not object to the doctrine of predestination1 but to the ,calvinistic doctrine4 ,the question is not whether ,god is a ,sovereign1 or whether he has his purposes or decrees1 but how does he exercise his sovereignty--what are his purposes and decrees8 ,we deny that he has foreordained whatsoever comes to pass4 ,for all our information upon this great question we must inquire of the sacred oracles4 ,we understand them to teach that ,god1 foreseeing1 though not ordaining1 the transgression of our first parents1 decreed that it should subject them to the penalty of death--eternal death4 ,in the day that thou eatest thereof1 thou shalt surely die4 ,he also decreed that their condition should not be at once irremediable1 but that a second probation should be allowed them4 ,he also decreed that an atonement should be made1 by which the claims of his government should be vindicated1 while he granted to the offenders a respite1 and the advantages of a new trial1 and which should lay a firm foundation for whatever acts of mercy should be extended to them and their posterity4 ,he further decreed that this atonement should be effected by the suffering and death of his ,son1 who1 for the purpose of effecting this atonement1 should assume our nature1 and become ,god-man4 ,the apostle instructs us that he was delivered to suffering and death1 by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of ,god4 ,it was also decreed that the benefits of this atonement should extend to all ,adam's posterity--that ,christ should die for all4 ,he gave him a ransom for all1 that he1 by the grace of ,god1 should taste death for every man4 ,it was also predetermined in the counsels of ,heaven1 that a change should take place in the administration of the ,divine government4 ,the first administration1 sometimes called the ,adamic law or covenant1 was suited to beings perfectly innocent and pure1 but not to fallen beings1 as it made no provision for pardon or moral restoration4 ,under its authority the sinner could have no hope4 ,another decree provides that the ,son of ,god shall bear the sceptre of authority--that the government shall be upon his shoulders4 ,to this arrangement we suppose the words of the ,psalmist to refer3 ,yet have ,i set my king upon my holy hill of ,zion4 ,i will declare the decree3 the ,lord hath said unto me1 ,thou art my ,son2 this day have ,i begotten thee4 ,ask of me1 and ,i will give the heathen for thine inheritance1 and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession4 7,ps4 ii4 #f1 #g1 #h47 ,also the prayer of the apostle ,paul1 in which he speaks of the mighty power of ,god1 which he wrought in ,christ1 when he raised him from the dead1 and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places1 far above all principality1 and power1 and might1 and dominion1 and every name that is named1 not only in this world1 but also in that which is to come2 and hath put all things under his feet1 and gave him to be the head over all things to the church1 which is his body1 the fulness of him that filleth all in all4 7,eph4 i4 #ba1 #bc47 ,it is further ordained that1 under this new arrangement1 faith shall be the condition of the sinner's acceptance with ,god--that whosoever believeth shall be pardoned justified from all things2 that the act of faith which secures the pardon of one sin shall secure the pardon of all then chargeable2 that whosoever is pardoned shall be made holy1 conformed to the image of the ,son of ,god1 and made a child of ,god by adoption4 ,for whom he foreknew1 them he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his ,son4 ,having predestinated us to the adoption of children by ,jesus ,christ1 unto himself1 according to the good pleasure of his will2 that the great mediatorial scheme should be developed in successive dispensations1 usually distinguished as the ,patriarchal1 ,jewish1 and ,christian dispensations2 that one nation of people should be selected as the depository of the sacred oracles1 and as a theatre for the exhibition of the true religion2 that in the fulness of time1 ,jews and ,gentiles should be placed upon one common ground of religious privilege1 the partition wall being broken down4 ,it is also decreed that there shall be a general judgment4 ,god hath appointed a day in the which he will judge the world2 that there shall be a resurrection of the bodies of men2 that the bodies of the saints at the resurrection shall be made very glorious2 that the righteous of every age and country shall ultimately be gathered into one glorious place1 from which all sin and pain shall be excluded1 and shall constitute one undivided family forever4 ,father1 ,i will that they also whom thou hast given me be with me where ,i am1 that they may behold my glory4 ,having made known unto us the mystery of his will1 according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself3 ,that in the dispensation of the fulness of times1 he might gather together in one all things in ,christ1 both which are in ,heaven and which are on earth4 ,and1 finally1 it is decreed that while the righteous shall have life eternal1 the wicked1 the finally impenitent1 and unbelieving1 and unholy1 shall go away into everlasting punishment--shall be imprisoned in a place originally prepared for the first rebels against the ,divine government--the devil and his angels4 ,such1 as ,i understand it1 is the ,methodistic1 or ,arminian1 doctrine of the ,divine decrees4 ,there is no difficulty in sustaining this doctrine by ,scripture4 ,it is not liable to any of the objections which menace fatally the ,calvinistic scheme4 ,there is no difficulty in perceiving its harmony with man's free agency and moral accountability4 ,it does not give the slightest occasion for the question whether ,god is the author of sin4 ,he has issued decrees respecting it2 but they are all condemnatory4 ,none of them preordain it4 ,it does not admit the supposition of his being a participant in any unholy deed or device4 ,the question never came up among ,methodist divines1 whether ,god prefers1 in any instance1 sin to holiness8 ,they would not1 could not1 consider it a debatable question4 ,nor that other question--,is sin the necessary means of the greatest good8 ,calvinism is justly entitled to the honor of originating such questions as these4 ,no one would ever think of affirming upon ,arminian principles that whatever is is right4 ,arminianism lays a firm basis for ,divine moral government1 and also for civil government--for rewards and punishments4 ,it not only relieves the ,divine attributes from the fearful suspicions and imputations with which ,calvinism dishonors them1 but surrounds them with a transcendent glory4 ,it protects the morality of the ,bible from the devastating incursions to which ,calvinism exposes it1 and presents the most powerful incentives to piety4 ,it does not throw the protecting shield of the ,divine decrees over every form of error and outrage with which earth is filled1 or represent ,god as having two hostile wills4 ,it forms no entangling alliances with heathen fatalism4 ,we are not under the necessity of warning inquirers against committing themselves to the practical influence of the ,arminian doctrine of ,divine decrees1 by saying1 with ,dr4 ,boardman1 that ,these decrees are not the rule of our duty4 ,we are not held responsible for not conforming to them4 ,we are not bound to act with the least reference to them4 ,the practical bearing of the ,arminian doctrine is eminently and obviously salutary4 ,it has not a single aspect which is not favorable to piety and morality4 ,does a sinner tremble at the word of ,god8 ,he is made to feel the force of the inspired declaration that the way of transgressors is hard1 and to ponder the advantages of reformation8 ,is he not appalled and paralyzed by the terrible announcement that all his misdeeds1 the tendency1 if not the nature of which he now contemplates with horror1 are the result of a power which he cannot successfully resist2 that he is bound to the hateful course of conduct which he deplores1 by eternal decrees and that1 in despite of any feelings or desires he may have1 his course may be predestined to be worse in the future than in the past4 ,o1 no6 ,he is assured that ,god never preordained sin4 ,that he commands all men everywhere to repent1 and that what he requires of men he will enable them to do4 ,he is told that nothing binds him to sin but his depravity1 that he may avail himself of the powerful influences of the ,spirit of life in ,christ ,jesus1 which can make him free from the law of sin and death2 and that whom ,god foreknew1 as repenting1 and believing1 and availing themselves of remedial provisions1 he predestinated to be conformed to the image of his ,son--he hath chosen to be holy and without blame before him in love4 ,has the man who is seeking with penitence and prayer the favor of ,god profoundly humbling views of himself8 ,does he think it to be a wonderful stretch of condescension and mercy in ,god to forgive his innumerable and grievous offences8 ,and does he wonder whether ,god will1 in addition to pardoning him1 raise him to those high relationships to the ,godhead to which he has raised others8 ,will he extend to me the grace of adoption8 ,will he constitute and call me his child8 ,shall ,i be favored with those blessed intimacies--those varied and manifold advantages of which that relation is the guaranty8 ,how satisfactory the answer6 ,you will4 ,you will be numbered with his sons and daughters1 the coheirs with his eternal--his only begotten ,son4 ,god hath not left this an open question4 ,he hath predestinated us to the adoption of children by ,jesus ,christ unto himself4 ,for unto as many as received him1 to them gave he power to become the sons of ,god1 even to as many as believe in his name4 ,christians1 you entertain high hopes of heaven4 ,and yet1 sometimes1 it seems too much for your faith that ,god should confer upon you such blessedness and glory4 ,your faith almost staggers at the promise4 ,you are ready to say-- ,how can it be1 thou ,heavenly ,king1 ,that thou should'st us to glory bring-- ,make slaves the partners of thy throne1 ,deck'd with a never-fading crown8 ,let your faith be invigorated by the assurance that this is settled beyond dispute by ,god's eternal purpose4 ,it is decreed4 ,to him that overcometh will ,i give to sit down with me on my throne4 ,in whom also we have obtained an inheritance1 being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will4 ,nor has this measure been forced upon ,jehovah4 ,it is sometimes the case that sovereigns are compelled to yield privileges to restless and revolted subjects4 ,sometimes contemporary sovereignties combine to force a reluctant ruler into arrangements contrary to his preconceived and preferred policy4 ,sometimes potent rulers yield their preferences to the sway of sage and influential counsellors1 and find themselves committed to a policy which they execute with reluctance1 and with exceptions4 ,it is not so with any of the decrees of the ,most ,high4 ,who1 being his counsellor1 hath taught him8 ,he worketh all things according to the counsel of his own will4 ,it is the ,father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom4 ,it is no less the pleasure of the ,son3 ,father1 ,i will that they also that thou hast given me be with me where ,i am1 that they may behold my glory4 ,and he has power to carry out his purposes to their entire fulfilment4 ,o1 how precious is this doctrine of ,divine predestination6 ,you may have enemies4 ,there may be those who would deny you a place in the church on earth4 ,you may have been excommunicated and cursed for worshipping the ,god of your fathers after the manner which some call heresy4 ,your enemies would fain keep you out of heaven4 ,they profess to be able to do so4 ,but they are mistaken4 ,god has not left it to them to determine who shall enter heaven and who shall not4 ,he has fixed the conditions of salvation independently of their counsels--long before they existed--before the sun began his course4 ,he will have mercy on whom he will have mercy4 ,to accomplish their end1 they must be able to go behind all human arrangements to the decrees1 the purposes of heaven1 and revoke them4 ,will they be able to do that8 ,or1 if unable to revoke1 or induce him to revoke his decrees1 will they be able to defeat them by machinations or physical resistance8 ,surely not4 ,he will show them the immutability of his counsels4 ,he will say to them1 ,my counsel shall stand1 and ,i will do all my pleasure4 ,there is no wisdom1 or understanding1 or counsel1 against the ,lord4 ,he will make the devices of the people of none effect4 ,the ,lord of ,hosts hath purposed1 and who shall disannul it4 ,hallelujah1 for the ,lord ,god omnipotent reigneth6 ,and how glorious are the prospects which the decrees of ,god unfold6 ,these bodies must decay4 ,one of those decrees consigns us to the grave2 another provides that we shall be recalled--that death shall be conquered--shall be swallowed up of victory4 ,the prearrangements of ,heaven respecting the bodies of the saints1 are thus disclosed3 ,it is sown in corruption2 it is raised in incorruption4 ,it is sown in dishonor2 it is raised in glory4 ,it is sown in weakness2 it is raised in power4 ,it is sown a natural body2 it is raised a spiritual body4 ,religion does not extinguish or impair our social feelings1 but rather refines and invigorates them2 and1 among the hopes that we have been led to cherish1 is that of a reunion with departed friends in heaven1 and a participation in the society of the good of other climes and ages2 and it is expressly declared that the redeemed of subsequent ages shall sit down with ,abraham1 ,isaac1 and ,jacob1 in the ,kingdom of ,god4 ,and while this doctrine is so full of consolation to the ,christian1 and so fraught with healthful stimulus to piety1 it is terrible to the sinner4 ,he need not think to find anything in it to justify or to apologize for his crime1 or his impenitency4 ,nor may he indulge the hope that whatever may be the destiny of other sinners1 he will escape the damnation of hell4 ,there can be no influence brought to bear upon ,jehovah sufficient to induce him to swerve in a single instance from his plans4 ,the decrees of ,god are against him4 ,he that believeth shall be saved4 ,he that believeth not shall be damned4 ,these shall go away into everlasting punishment4 ,and he has power to execute his decrees4 ,all attempts at resistance will be as nothing4 ,the ,lord reigneth2 let the people tremble4 ,i have now presented the two rival theories4 ,there is the ,calvinistic doctrine1 and there are the consequences to which it leads4 ,we can easily detect the wisdom of the requisition that the teachers of it shall handle it with special caution1 and account for their studiously keeping it out of sight during revivals1 and in their ordinary ministrations1 and then seeking to divert attention from its practical tendencies by denying that the decrees of ,god are to be taken as the rule or test of our conduct4 ,but do ,i not repeat an ,arminian slander when ,i charge them with partially concealing or disguising the doctrine8 ,no6 ,we have high ,calvinistic authority for the imputation4 ,the following is the testimony of a distinguished ,congregational minister of ,new ,england1 the ,rev4 ,dr4 ,harvey3-- ,there is a large number of orthodox ministers in ,new ,england who1 from family alliances1 from constitutional delicacy of temper1 c4 c41 as ,i hinted above1 will temporize and make smooth work1 from an honest conviction that a full disclosure of the truth would alienate their hearers4 ,the bitter revilings of base men have been gradually and insensibly leading ,calvinistic ministers to hide their colors1 and recede from their ground4 ,dr4 ,spring's ,church1 at ,newburyport1 ,park ,street1 especially in ,dr4 ,griffin's day1 and a few others1 have stood like the ,macedonian ,phalanx4 ,but others have gone backward4 ,caution1 ,,caution1 has been the watchword of ministers4 ,when they do preach the old standard doctrines1 it is in so guarded a phraseology that they are not understood to be the same4 7,harvey on ,moral ,agency1 p4 #agd47 ,this is clear and indisputable4 ,the ,methodist preachers are probably included among the base men whose bitter revilings have brought about this state of things1 as none have done more to bring ,calvinism into discredit4 ,and yet1 with all this caution1 this doctrine is assiduously taught to little children in ,sabbath-,schools4 ,it is presented to them and inculcated without disguise4 ,i almost shudder when ,i think of it4 ,were all the wealth of this great city offered to me for the privilege of teaching this doctrine to my children1 with the understanding that ,i would withhold counter-instruction1 ,i would spurn the offer4 ,at least1 ,i would do so until my mind had become reconciled to the proposition by a slow and painful process of self-depravation1 which1 ,i acknowledge1 would not be an impossibility4 ,the apostle ,paul speaks of those who through love of money have erred from the faith4 ,our ,calvinistic brethren may have some ground for claiming that they are in advance of us in learning and intelligence1 but it is to be hoped that they will not offer their holding this doctrine as proof of the justness of the claim4 ,and if it be the case that some minds are determined1 by peculiarities in their original formation1 to the belief of ,calvinism1 ,i thank ,god that mine does not belong to that class4 ,and1 further1 it may be a source of consolation to us1 in our imputed inferiority1 that it does not require much learning or intelligence to refute ,calvinism1 or to make its supporters ashamed of it4 ,and when ,calvinists ascribe our opposition to their doctrines to depravity1 and call our objections to it impious cavillings1 as does ,dr4 ,musgrave1 we offer this apology1 that our objections are not alleged against what we understand to be the ,scripture doctrine2 and that if their doctrine be true1 and ours false1 we are1 after all1 doing nothing but what ,god has wisely foreordained we should do4 ,we would also suggest to them that any opposition to our course is resistance to the will of ,heaven1 so that it is a fair question whether the charge of depravity should not take the opposite direction1 ,but ,i do not retort it4 ,methodists never1 so far as ,i know1 seek to raise the slightest suspicion of the piety of their ,calvinistic brethren on the ground of their being ,calvinists4 ,the assertion that ,calvinism is specially and exclusively favorable to civil and religious liberty1 is a sheer pretence4 ,i will just state a few facts4 ,when the ,presbyterians obtained the ascendency in ,england1 they proceeded to establish themselves by law4 ,the ,westminster ,confession of ,faith was intended for the ,english ,establishment4 ,presbyterianism is the established religion of ,scotland at this day1 and also of ,holland1 ,geneva1 and some parts of ,germany4 ,presbyterian ministers in ,ireland are supported1 in part1 by the ,british ,government4 ,they thus consent that ,methodists1 ,baptists1 and others1 shall be taxed for their support4 ,that ,presbyterianism is not the ,established ,church in this country may be owing altogether to the fact that it has always been too weak to place itself in that position4 ,when the ,independents1 in ,cromwell's time1 obtained the ascendency1 they followed the example of the ,presbyterians4 ,the ,congregationalists of ,new ,england1 who are ,calvinists1 established their system1 by law1 in several of the colonies1 and continued to be the ,established ,church after the ,revolution1 and until the other sects1 combining with unbelievers1 became strong enough to put them down and change the ,state constitutions in favor of equal rights4 ,and1 within five or six years of the present time1 a ,presbyterian ,church1 in one of the ,states of this ,republic1 applied to the legislature1 and obtained a grant of one thousand five hundred dollars to be expended upon a ,presbyterian church edifice4 ,many ,calvinists have held1 and many do yet hold doctrines highly intolerant2 and the history of ,calvinism is crimsoned by records of blood spilled in support of its tenets4 ,it would be great wisdom on the part of our ,calvinistic brethren to allow the question of the bearing of ,calvinism upon civil and religious liberty to sleep1 undisturbed4 ,a very strong presumption of the unsoundness of the ,calvinistic doctrine of decrees arises from the fact that its advocates are compelled1 in answering objections to it1 not only to disguise1 but also flatly contradict it1 and to substitute for it ,arminian positions2 thus virtually conceding that it is indefensible4 ,dr4 ,musgrave1 as we have seen1 asserts explicitly that ,god has foreordained whatsoever comes to pass4 ,he argues that to deny this1 would be in effect to deny that ,god is infinitely wise1 benevolent1 and powerful4 ,he says3 ,we have proved1 both by reason and revelation1 that all things that come to pass are foreordained4 ,he applies this doctrine to sinful actions in the following manner3 ,now1 that the whole of ,pharaoh's conduct had not only been foreknown but foreordained is indisputable4 ,again1 he says3 ,in connection with the foregoing statements concerning the crucifixion of the ,saviour1 let us single out the case of one of the individual actors in that awful tragedy1 one whose part was the most perfidious and execrable1 and see whether his crime was not before ordained1 and he the individual predesignated as its perpetrator4 ,he proceeds to the proof of this proposition4 ,but1 when it becomes necessary to meet the palpable and irrefutable objections that this doctrine makes ,god the author of sin1 and takes away the responsibility of the creature1 he is compelled to change entirely his ground4 ,he substitutes permission for foreordination1 and defines permission to mean simply not preventing4 ,and is there no difference1 says he1 between ,god's making1 or exciting men to sin1 by his power or influence1 and his permitting1 or not preventing them from sinning8 ,between his determining to produce the evil himself1 or to cause others by his power to do it1 and his predetermining to permit men to abuse their liberty and to commit the evil by the unprevented exercise of their own voluntary efficiency8 ,i reply--there is a very great difference4 ,it is nothing less than the difference between ,calvinism and ,arminianism4 ,he is led to deny his own doctrine1 and take refuge in the one he has tried so hard to refute4 ,the ,rev4 ,dr4 ,baker1 of ,texas1 in a tract published by the ,presbyterian ,board of ,publication1 and entitled ,the ,standards of the ,presbyterian ,church a ,faithful ,mirror of the ,bible1 attempts to establish by ,scripture the proposition--,god from all eternity did1 by the most wise and holy counsel of his own will1 freely and unchangeably foreordain whatsoever comes to pass4 ,but in another1 published by the same institution1 and entitled ,the ,sovereignty of ,god ,explained and ,vindicated1 the design of which is to present the doctrine of ,divine decrees in such a light as will obviate the usual objections to the ,calvinistic view1 he says3 ,certain things ,god brings to pass by a positive agency4 ,others he simply permits to come to pass4 ,and let it be remarked1 permission and approbation do not1 by any means1 mean the same thing4 ,again3 ,does any one ask what is the difference between bringing to pass1 and permitting to come to pass8 ,i answer3 ,god brought to pass the incarnation of his ,son4 ,he permitted to come to pass his crucifixion4 ,the difference is as wide as the east is from the west4 ,but if ,god simply permits some things1 why do the creed and the catechism of the ,presbyterian ,church assert1 so unequivocally1 that he has from all eternity foreordained whatsoever comes to pass1 and that he executes1 or brings to pass all his decrees8 ,the contradiction is manifest4 ,the ,rev4 ,dr4 ,fairchild1 in his famous ,great ,supper1 says3 ,calvinists do not regard the decrees of ,god as extending to all events in the same manner4 ,some things ,god has determined to effect by his own agency1 and other things he has decreed to permit or suffer to be4 ,but1 if the ,calvinistic doctrine be that his decrees merely extend to all events 7a very different thing from his decreeing all events71 and that while he decrees and effects some he merely permits or suffers other events1 what must we understand to be the ,arminian doctrine1 against which they are called to contend so earnestly8 ,are they prepared to acknowledge that they have abandoned ,calvinism and run into ,arminianism8 ,do they mean to say that there is no difference between these systems on the point in question8 ,not at all4 ,how then do they preserve the antagonism of the two creeds8 ,what is the ,arminianism against which they are arrayed8 ,dr4 ,musgrave thus attempts the solution of this question4 ,now1 ,i submit1 whether the difficulty1 thus confessedly pressing against both systems1 is not capable on our principles1 of a much more full and satisfactory conclusion4 ,for we not only say1 as ,wesley does1 that ',god knew that it was best1 on the whole1 not to prevent the first sin of ,adam1' but we add1 that1 knowing this1 he determined not only to permit that1 but all the sins that he knew would follow from it1 and to limit and overrule the whole for his most excellent glory4 ,it seems1 then1 that the difference between ,calvinism and ,arminianism respecting the ,divine decrees is that ,calvinism affirms that ,god knew it was best1 on the whole1 not to prevent the sins which he has not prevented1 but to permit1 and limit and overrule them1 while ,arminianism affirms that ,god knew it would be best1 on the whole1 not to prevent the first sin1 but determined to prevent all the sins that he foresaw would flow from it4 ,what a strange statement6 ,to what shifts are these men driven by their unfortunate creed6 ,where does ,mr4 ,wesley1 or any other ,arminian writer1 say this directly or indirectly8 ,our author very wisely declines any references at this point4 ,mr4 ,wesley does1 indeed1 deny that ,god permitted sin1 even the first sin of ,adam1 in the sense of approving or tolerating it2 but whoever denied that ,god permits1 in the sense of suffering--not forcibly preventing1 the sins which actually occur8 ,he appropriates to himself1 unfairly1 ,mr4 ,wesley's doctrine1 and then imputes to ,mr4 ,wesley a tenet so perfectly foolish that it may be doubted whether any man ever advanced it1 whether sane or insane1 drunk or sober4 ,no6 these are not the doctrines of ,calvinism and ,arminianism respectively4 ,the reader will see the importance of the pains taken1 in the first discourse1 to identify ,calvinism4 ,i proved beyond dispute1 that ,calvinistic creeds1 ,catechisms1 and other theological treatises1 teach explicitly1 that ,god has purposed1 decreed1 foreordained1 whatsoever comes to pass2 that in some way or other he brings to pass all events2 that nothing will1 or can1 come to pass but what he has ordained2 that none of his purposes can be defeated2 that it cannot1 with truth1 be said of any event--it may or may not occur2 and that all actual results1 by whatever means obtained1 are expressions of the design1 or decree of ,god4 ,arminianism teaches on the contrary1 that ,god has not ordained whatsoever comes to pass--that some things he has preordained2 that other things he has not1 but has1 nevertheless1 approved and commanded them1 leaving it to the free agency of the creature to fulfil his requisitions2 that other things1 he not only has not foreordained1 but1 has condemned and prohibited them1 and yet permits or suffers them to be1 in preference to that violent interference with free agency which would be necessary to their forcible prevention4 ,dr4 ,fairchild tells us that this distinction between a decree to effect and a decree to permit has been adopted by ,predestinarian divines in all ages4 ,yes1 in all ages ,predestinarian divines have been compelled to abandon and contradict their creed in the progress1 and for the purpose1 of its defence4 ,but ,calvin himself formally discards and protests against this distinction4 ,he says respecting it3 ,a question of greater difficulty arises from other passages1 where ,god is said to incline or draw according to his own pleasure1 ,satan himself and all the reprobate4 ,for the carnal understanding scarcely comprehends how he1 acting by their means1 contracts no defilement from their criminality1 and even in operations common to himself and them1 is free from every fault1 and yet righteously condemns those whose ministry he uses4 ,hence was invented the distinction between doing and permitting2 because to many persons this has appeared an inexplicable difficulty1 that ,satan and all the impious are subject to the power and government of ,god1 so that he directs their malice to whatever end he pleases1 and uses their crimes for the execution of his judgments4 ,the modesty of those who are alarmed at the appearance of absurdity1 might perhaps be excusable1 if they did not attempt to vindicate the ,divine justice by a pretence utterly destitute of any foundation in truth4 ,they consider it absurd that a man should be blinded by the will and command of ,god1 and afterwards be punished for his blindness4 ,they therefore evade the difficulty1 by alleging that it happens only by the permission of ,god1 and not by the will of ,god2 but ,god himself1 by the most unequivocal declarations1 rejects this subterfuge4 ,but ,calvin protests in vain against resorting to this evasion and subterfuge4 ,it is the only way in which the advocates of his doctrine can make a plausible show of argument when pressed with certain objections4 ,hence we find the ,westminster divines employing it4 ,they tell us in their ,confession of ,faith1 that ,god was pleased1 according to his wise and holy counsel1 to permit the sin of our first parents4 ,lest1 however1 the faithful should fall into a serious mistake1 another part assures them that the providence of ,god extendeth itself to the first fall1 and all other sins of angels and men1 and that not by a bare permission1 but such as hath joined with it a most wise and powerful bounding1 and otherwise ordering and governing of them1 c4 ,the nature of that ordering and governing is explained in the declaration that ,god from all eternity did by the most wise and holy counsel of his own will1 freely and unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass4 ,but how learned men can talk of ,god's permitting what he has eternally and unchangeably ordained1 is a mystery to some of the unlearned4 ,is it necessary to tell us1 gravely1 that ,god permits to come to pass that which from all eternity he freely ordained shall come to pass8 ,he permits men and angels to do what he has predetermined they shall do1 and what they cannot avoid doing6 ,wonderful66 ,the apology for this gross misapplication of language1 on the part of men whose learning is sometimes magnified almost into infallibility1 is found in their distressing emergency4 ,in no other way can they1 with any plausibility1 meet their opponents4 ,the usefulness of this term permit is admirably indicated by the account which a ,presbyterian colporteur gives of an interview with some who objected to the ,calvinistic doctrine of decrees4 ,he says3-- ,i felt myself1 however1 sometimes compelled to combat with the opponents of our ,calvinistic creed4 ,on one occasion entering a house1 the members of which all attended the ,presbyterian ,church1 but were not members1 ,i sold a ,confession of ,faith to the gentleman2 his lady inquired what the name of the book was and on being told1 after turning over its pages in a hasty manner1 exclaimed3 ',i could never allow that book to be under my roof--it should not be read1 and it never ought to have been printed4' ,what was ,i to do8 ,the doctrine of our ,church1 so far as election is concerned1 was attacked4 ,after some little conversation on the subject1 ,i found that she and her son charged our ,confession with teaching that ,god passed a decree which put the fall of ,adam beyond the possibility of escape4 ,here was an exigency4 ,let us see how he meets it4 ,that the ,confession does teach the doctrine which the lady and her son ascribed to it1 is as plain as anything can be4 ,he decreed whatsoever comes to pass1 and executes his decrees4 ,does he ask her what objections she has to this doctrine and offer to refute them8 ,does he directly and promptly deny that ,calvinism teaches this doctrine8 ,no6 ,such a course would be rather hazardous1 considering the character of the books he was seeking to distribute1 and did actually leave with them4 ,what course1 then1 does he take8 ,i told her1 says he1 if the chapter on the fall of man said so1 ,i was as loath to believe it as she was2 and if she could find it so1 ,i would condemn the doctrine4 ,mark6 ,he does not say1 unconditionally and unequivocally that he condemned the doctrine1 and was as loath to believe it as she was1 but if the chapter which treated on the fall of man said so4 ,well1 what follows3 ,on turning to the #fth chapter1 how surprised was she to read--,this their sin ,god was pleased according to his wise and holy counsel to permit4' ,this word permit helped him out of his difficulty4 ,here was a fact1 says he1 of which they had never heard before1 and which gave them no little satisfaction4 ,he doubtless left them under the impression that the ,confession of ,faith does not teach that ,god decreed and brought to pass the sin of ,adam4 ,however1 he did not leave them until they willingly purchased the ,confession of ,faith1 the ,great ,supper1 and ,fisher's ,catechism1 which asserts1 as ,i have already shown1 that the very reason why anything comes to pass in time is1 because ,god has decreed it1 that none of the decrees of ,god can be defeated1 or fail of execution2 and that ,god predetermines the creature to such or such an action1 and not to another1 shutting up all other ways of acting1 and leaving that only open which he had determined to be done4 ,another presumption in favor of ,arminianism results from the readiness with which ,methodist preachers are installed as pastors of ,calvinistic churches1 both old and new school1 with the understanding1 if their own statements be reliable1 that they are not required to renounce or contradict the ,arminian creed4 ,arminian ministers are coming into great demand by ,calvinists4 ,they are admitted into the ,methodist ministry with the understanding that they are sound ,arminians4 ,they remain for years without exciting the least suspicion of their orthodoxy4 ,when1 all at once1 without any prior change of ecclesiastical relations1 or intimation of a change of theological views1 they walk into ,calvinistic pulpits4 ,i make no remarks at present upon the morality of this course1 but deduce that ,arminianism preaching1 to some extent1 is necessary to keep up ,calvinistic congregations4 ,methodists1 you may well prize your creed4 ,your ministers can preach it without reserve4 ,you can defend it4 ,the water of life comes to you through no corrupting medium4 ,you are in no danger of inhaling poisonous sediment4 ,it will bear analysis4 ,it comes to you fresh and abundant4 ,drink it1 and dig channels wide and long for its diffusion1 that others may be blest as you are4