The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1867-09-17 00:00:00

&daintiest InUltima.

THE REPORT OF THE RITUAL COMMISSION,
AND TUB BISHOP OF CARLISLE% CHARD&
It was well remarked by the Hari of Shaftesbury,
at the meeting in Dorchester, that if Ritualism was
to be defeated, it must be by public opulent, and
that to that cad publics opinion must be credited ;
that ta, that isformation on them, matters must be
pawed haute the °mot., by maims of lectures,
numitings, and through the press, that the apathy of
ignores°, might be replaced by the earnest/tees ol
oonsotoue danger. We weld not have a more re-
markable ',video°e of the wisdom and truth of hie
lordship's advice, than that which is furnished by the
tires report of the Commission on Ritualism. A
single glance at the name., of those who oompoee
that Commission would lead any on* well acquainted
with the affairs of the Cherub to conclude that the
report would be all oa ono side, and the dissentients
would be the few Protestants who are on the Com-
mission. But what is the cue.? and bow has it beset
brought about? Here is the important part of the
roP"t•
"We end that while these veetinects are regarded
by some witnesses as symbolical of doctrine, and by
others as a distinctive Torture whereby they d sire
sod. hoover to the Holy Oommuzuon as the highest
act of Christian worship, they are by none regarded
ametaal, and they give pave offence to
many.
"W are of opinion that His expedient to restrain
In the public service of the United Church of England
and Ireland all variations in ringlet or vesture from
that which has long been the established
of the mid tithed reliarali. and we think thalinZ
may be beet secured by Providing saricTod
with aa stay stal dá.èual proms for complaint and
Pains%

It oontains all that we ask for from the Commission—
first, aa acknowledgement that the vestment* are
not meratial, and that they give "grave °genes to
many." Secondly, that they ought to be restrained.
his in vain fur some of the Anglican journals, the
Standard included, to try and get rid of this Con.
minion to Protestantism; they may pick out certain
passages from the evideoc• and try to prove that
there is as much fault on one aide as the other; they
may place side by side the morifioe of the maim by
priests in Popish vestments, and the custom, noose-
wiry in some places, existing for three hundred
years, of not repeating the words to every communi-
cant, just as Bishops have omitted the repetition of the
words to every candidate for confirmation. Rut the
feat is the same ; the report remains where it w. ;
and bow is this to be accounted f 0,7 froisi the force
or public opinion ; Lord Bhafteebury's Bill ; the
thousand and more petitions in its favour; the
meeting at Dorchester, which encouraged his lord-
ship to undertake that measure; the meeting at
Saliebury, which told the onmmiraiooen that the
latmen of Ragland would not be trilled with any
longer ; the feeling that what the men of Wilts and
Dorset had done, others would .to if equally
insulted ; this public opinion settled the matter,
and whetever wry faces some of the oommissioners
might make, this report wee tte oonsequence,
sufficient to call for legislation, and to *ivy •
measure like Lord Shafteetitiry's through both
houses. Now, if the Dovernmmit does not undertake
it directly or iodirectly, they will not b• able to
Prevent hie lordship from doing it for them,
This same 'moonset of the common sense of the
&ghat people will likewise take the sting out cub.,
Pao-Anglican gybed, and prevent it from doing
anything more than make itself ridiculous. Dr. ,
Posey and his friends may petition this illegal and
unauthorised aseernoly of oeitain individuals holding
oflioe in the established Church of England, the
voluntary Church of America, and the Episcopal
Nonconformist Church of Scotland ; they may
request the bishops to take into coosideration the
bon mesas for a reunion between the Churches of .
Ragland and Rome, but the Synod would just aa
goon consider the beet plan for redoriog the Hones
of Stuart to the English throne. No! there is publics
opinion operating by the public pram : not oaring nee
farthing for anything bat what is true, and sensible,
and right, and against that the rev, gentlemen dare
not kick.

But it is truly refreshing to tarn from these
miserable schemers, to the acts and words of one who
is worthy of his position. la the Bishop of Carlisle
we hay., fair, hnneet, and fearless exponent of the
English Reformed Church. His charge, just de-
livered, oontrams with marvellous advantage with
the late performaacie in this diooseia Without the
leant affectation of soholarehto, it is elegant in
language, and clear in argomot ; without stilted
pomposity and studied obscurity, it is dignified by
its very simerity and the truths it immolates ; we
have here no scrape of Latin and Greek introduced
without the slightest necessity, it is this plain and
si ple language of an English gentleman sad scholar,
with nothing to be ashamed of, nothing to hide,
nothing to explain away, publicly declaring his own
and his Chorales teaching upon certain controverted
subjects. Thus he states the question at issue :

The question which was now proposed for their con-
sideration, was this, "Whit constitute@ the essence of
the ministry under the Christian dispensation r
Tosre was no concealing the fact that two distinct and
contrary theories where held upon the subject. lb.
one theory might be called the sacerdotal, the other
the evangelistic. The sacerdotal found It. most full
and complete exhibition in the formularies of Trent and
the communion of Rome; the evangelistic was embodied
in the documents and consti ution of the !lurch of
England, with a reverence, • 'implicit'', and a chase
comeliness which justly vindicated for her a most
honourable place amongst all the d•ughters of the
Reformation.

And then, having shown what important interests
ITS concerned in this question, and pointed out hos
our Chuich bids Gs refer all such qn.etions to the
Bible, his Leirdebip goes on hi sh,w what the verdict
must he if the Bible ie consulted, and what the
probable history and effect of the ritual heresy will
be if lift to itself:—

That these two theories were conflicting and incom-
patible could not be denied ; that they were contending
for a mastery within the precincts of our National
Church wee equally cer am. The sacerdotal was
commended to their favour u calculated, if carried to
its legitimate issue, to bring them into close usimila-
tion to, if not into actual reunion with what is now
designated "the Western f horde" Nay, more; it wea
the fond hope of many that the final oonstimmation
might set be witnessed of the ,estoration of a visible
oneness between Angl•can and Oriental not less than
with Occidental Christendom. Ile invited them to
refer the question to that one tribunal, the Scripture
of truth. Though isolated passages might be alleged
as giving a dine sanction to the pretensions of
emeerdotaliam, those purges cease to yield them any
countenance whatever when fairly interpreted in the
light of the teaching of Holy Writ taken in ins entirety.
So conclusively anti-sacerdotal was the verdict of the
/tibia that it was invarisi'ly found that the earl est
efforts of the apostles of the medieval as opposed to
Size lefurose4, of the hiesnrehle es twinned to the even-
gelistie theory of the Christian ministry were direo ed
to the discouragement of Scripture as the so'e and
efficient rub' of faith, and the pratical substitution of
so-called Church authority for I qvine canons of
doctrine and practise Surely this fact should at once
determine the laity to close their ears to the overtures,
however seductive they might be, of such teethes.
There must be • lie in his right band who instinctively
shrank from the volume of truth. Lot the ministry
cherish the honoured Liturgies, the pave discipline.
the apostolic order of England's Marsh ; but let them
beware of all opproaches to • mien the central point
of which was imp sing exhibition' addressed to the
fancy and the senses No wonder setae should hasten
to adopt opinions which so easily 'applied the de-
ficiencies of which they were conscious. Let the
practice of auricular confession invest them with •
power over the maids and matrons of their flocks
which bade defiance to the authority of the parent
and the husband, and society itself would be placed
at their feet In public let form, colour, incense, and
music combine to lend their delights to the office in
which, clad in garments unused for 300 years, they
elevate the host before the adoring throng, and there
could be but one remit - Christ was not there, and
where Christ was not, there, in "pito of all artful*
all I Isis-lonic representations of the Lord,
the only p, mince was that of death. Meanwhile the
sheep would not, could not, might not hear the voice
of the stranger Who should forbid their turning aside
where their hungury souls could at least find the food
they 'ought in vain at their lawful pastors' hands?
Even with regard to the general congregation, present
success would be but transitory. Let them study well
the workings of Romanisin in its own dominions.
Influenti .I as some had from time to time become by
the sheer might of native intellect and energy, the
peat body of the clergy were held in but little
honour. Why should the lesson of the Reformation be
undone' Should the miniaters of the Church of
England succeed in procuring any general recoginition
of • claim to be sacrificing priests and spi.itual judges
should the mu- and confessional be spin established
amongst us, the issue must be on all questions the rime
as in the days of yore. For a while, indeed, the ardour
of an individual enthusiasm might combine with the
seal of a recognised partisanship to produce • seeming
ecclesiastical revival. Churches nsis,,lVe thronged.
brotherhoods and sisterhoods might y multiply,
large funds for the advancement of sacerdotal interests
might be deposited in the p lastly treasury; hut the
stream could not rise higher in its course. In the end
they would have but • repetition, as in all their
promises so also in all their failures, of those fitful
resucitations of the slumbering epergne of the papacy
from which the serious mons tic ordeas of the pre.
reformation church dated their origin. The spirit of
God was not in thou mov mann ,• it is not in this
Beautiful, alluring as the vision might appear, it would
sooner or later vanish in •he mirage, leave naught
but the real desolate waste behind.
We indeed require some plain speaking from soros
of our Bishops, if the whole order is not to sink ie
hweleal contempt. If the clergyman of the Church
of England is intended to be an Evangelist, if he
is "to teach and to premonieh, to feed and provide
for the Lord's family,' es • messenger, watchman.
and steward of the Lord, what is the tnesinuig of the
following advertisement from the last Ecclesiastical
°saddle

Curacy wanted, in six or eight weeks' time,
by a 1.4 &ate of Oxford, seven yearo in holy
orders. The advertiser intones well, and is a
member of the Union. Gregorian fierriae, and
moderate distmiee frau Town mach desired.

Whet does this "elegise priest" do is our Protestant
church We must set public opinion to work again;
we mast make people swore of tile fact that when
Chun:dies become places of aniumment for the ,
frivolous and irreligious, they cease to be places of
Christian worship: we most lead them toes. the
difference between mositon• gratification and
moral and spiritual influence: and thee these sing-
ing Priesta will hare to go eleewbere for • place to
exhibit in. Every day's papers furnish fresh
evidence of the unscrupulous pertinacity with which
these min are endeavouring to make themselves safe :
within our Church : they think they have • few
moothe before Parliament meets, and they evidently
MOM to make the most of the time Protein
tants must be at their work as well, enlisting
the sympathies of their neighbours, removing the
prejudices of weak minded Churchmen, entmerag.
lug the timid, and an preparing for the neat
oampa;gn, that whoa Parliament meets we may he
ready for any emergency as • well organised body of
men, with definite objects and untied action, to
uphold be principles of the Reformation at any
wet Meanwhile lot so be thankful that we have •
man like the Bishop of Corbels, who understand,
the present crisis, and is well able to weepy his
pror position, on proper ground. Li his loss
negleftid dimes, he is doing a wonderful work for
good, and when able to be in the House of Lords his
voice ie ever heard on the side of truth. May he
lag be spared to our Church, to winless again*
these mock priests and their Episropal patrons. and
So shame their duplicity by his manly and straight..
forward utterances,