The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1868-12-22 00:00:00

BRIDPORT.

Ritiotorts Reviveth, was the subject of • lecture
delivered in the Town•hall, on Friday evening last, by
the Rev. W. Brock, rector of Bishops Waltham, in eon-
nection with the Etridport and Remainder breath of the
Church Asociatiou. The chair was taken by Joseph
Gandry, Seq. The attendance was very limited, owing
to the boisterous state of the weather. Prayer was
offered by the Rev. W. C. Templer. The chairman in
introdueing the lecturer, stated that Mr. Brock had
cemented to oome and speak to them on a most
importapt subjeet. He wee sorry that the attendance
was so small, hid that was a matter of more regret to
those who were absent, than to those who were present.
The lecturer in opening bin address, said that the
history of man showed that he was prone to folk, and
the need he had for God's help. However pore God's
truth might be, our natures lwere alwisys ready to fall
back from it. God made man upright, but man left to
himself could never make any real progress. He cannot
by hie own wisdom, save himself from his corruptions,
and sin perverts the schemes of man. The world cannot
go on without its Creator; it needs Him to restore it,
and then to govern it; and this brought us to the subject
of religions revivals—if man always falls away from the
truth, how can religion be preserved? After the
Penteeoet, Christians spread over the world, end
preached the gospel. The history of the world shows,
that in the course of time, the truth became stained with
superstition. Priesteraft so perverted Christianity, as to
bring it into ridicule. For well nigh a thousand years,
Romanism cramped the minds of men, and cleprmae4
their thought. This period was called "The Dart/
Ages" yet this period is being sought to be brought
back, by worldly people. It has been truly said, that
ritualistic preaching is worthless, of the earth, earthy.
It is not for the leatnition of souls, but for what they
call the wealth of the church. Confidence la an important
element of our nature. Priestoraft works upon this by
confession. Popery is the masterpiece of Satan.
Romanism is • religion that panders to the worldly pert
of men's nature. For izo years has this deception
held its ground, because it panders to the spirit of
the world. After the dark ages came the revivals so
noted in the history of the church. the revival of the
sixteenth !century, was dire to the outpouring of the
spirit of God. The ancient martyrs, influence arose, not
by political movement., but by the working of the
Holy Spirit on the awakening multitude —(applause)
and they were fitted for the part they had to play.
They first brought out the Bible which had been taken
away by the priests ; they next translated the Bible,
and they preached to the people in their own language.
It pleased God jud before this revival, to give to the
world the invention of printing, which aided the spread
of the revival very much. It was just an darkness end
superstitntion had reached their greatest height, that
God interfered. Our own country has had revivals
during the last century, end during the present century
there have been three, two of which were real, and one
sham. In the six Meath century most of the good was mica..
i'ned by the spread of the Bible. Then arose the Reforms-
hon. Ritualists denounced it as • schism. People laid down
their lives for the truth during the Reformation, and
"the blood of the martyrs was the seed of the oburch."
It would be a bed day day, when the martyrs were
forgotten. They were reviled by oertein persons now,
as • band of conspirators, but reviling was one of the
prominent marks of Pthistry. Men were Romanist now
without disguise, and it was • significant sign, that
certain papers published letters without any comment
which they ought to have severely reproved. In the
seventeenth century there wise another revival. Some
sneer at Puritans, but they have their revivals. In the
eighteenth eentary there was another revival. There
had been • relapse into add darkness. Men were
seduced by the pleasures which abounded in the reign
of Charles IL A few men scattered over the land,
preached against this. They were raised up, and fitted
for their work by God. Wesley, Whitfield and others,
were raised up at this time. Some in the church bad
no eyes or ears for what was going on and would not
mist those who had, but cried out against them. There
are some amongst as now doing precisely the same
thing. There were some in the present day who tried
to explode the laity from any part of the government
of the church. It wee not no in the olden ya, and it
was • great pity it should be .000 w. The Bishop of
Chichester had sanctioned the introduction of meas.
So also bad the Bishop* of Oxford and Bath and Wells.
Some persons stood aloof and their cry was "no parties."
But there should be no neutrality, it did • greet deal of
mischief. Neutrality was always bad, bet it was more
so now. God is seeding his army, and leaving them
out. The Captain of the Royal Hosts does not want
them. The battle will be height, and the victory won
without them. Christ maid "He that is not with me, Is
against Me." In this century there had been • great
missionary revival. The hist sixty tor seventy years
was eharaeterized by a great spread of the Gospel by
different means, both at home and abroad. This had
been brought about by the spirit of God. During the
last tea or twelve years, there bad been • revival in all
parts of the world, and by reading different publica-
tions, we should see that God we, reviving his work
still. Ile bad shown the evil of the mummery carried
on in the church; it would not stand the test of •
revival—(applause). Although the ritualistic prowling
bad everything to plume the eye and ear, the spirit of
God was absent God had rebuked them, by
doing his work without their aid. Thousands of
people were gathered into God's fold by other
means, ',litre they were preaching in a formal
manner. Ile now mime to what was called the
Catholic revival of the nineteenth century. It was
nothing but a sham. The rev. Ithterer then proceeded
to fully set out the forms of doctrine professed by the
Biked's* such as ruse', confession, pommies, &a, and
showed that if allowed and persevered to, they would
override the blessed effects of the Reformation. He
said the reason why no active steps were taken to put
• stop to those practises, was because treachery had
placed its foot in the highest placer of the church.
Bishops connived at the introduction of mar and
Romish doctrines into their dioceses. The bebop of
this diocese, in his late charge, especially that tart
referring to the Lord's Supper, was neither earthman
nor spiritual. bet Banish' and what our ancestors at
the Reformation protested against, and lost their lithe
for. They most disotinetly denied, that the presence
of the body of Christ was in the bread. He mu thank.
fill that a practical protest had been entered against
those doctrines in this diocese. He then spoke very
highly of the manner in which the Key. W. C. Templet
had avowed his opinion of the Flemish doctrines,
attempted to be introduced by the Bishop of Salisbury,
and said that one action was worth • thousand words.
By the subtlety and cleverness of some of the prelates,
al, aritlerte had been staved off to the present day, to the
great lot of the ritualists. He was prepared to prove
that the Bishops of Chichester Oxford, and Bath arid
Wells, had connived at the introduction of mass into
, their dioceses, and they had used their influence in con-
niving at no deciaion being given In the meleeiastioal
courts, and he Pointed out three eases in which they had
dons so. The lecture was given in aid of the Church
Aseeeiatiou, and the lecturer said it was owing to that
Association that the doctrine of real presenoe was
about to be brought before the Court of Andres upon
its real merits. The lecturer concluded by exhorting
everyone to corns forward and aid the association, as
this was a time at which aid was greatly needed.—The
, Chairman said he was sure the meeting would agree
with him that they had listened to a most eloquent and
instructive lecture, that it touched the subject very
closely, and that they would join him in awarding a
hearty vote of thanks to the leoturer. The danger of
allowing ourselves to walk in Romish ways had been
clearly shown. Alter the positive facts which had
been asserted by the lecturer, they must tied that it
would not do to allow others to sot done,but that they
masted with them—(applause)..The rev, gentleman,
in responding, said he was glad to come there that
evening as he felt it to be a duty. He was sorry there
there was such • small athendanee, but many more
would be made acquainted with the lectors through the
press.—The Roo. IL W. May proposed, and Mr.
Edmunds seconded, • vote of thanks to the Chairman
which was cordially earried.—Af ter the staging of the
40101.17 him. onetindikoPlinteds