The Express.
London, England, 1850-11-08 00:00:00

THE BISHOP OF LONDON.

A meeting of the clergy of the city of London was
held yesterday in the great hall of Sion College, at which
the Rev. Dr. Roxby presided. Dr. Croy and other ray.
nuttiest& addressed the meeting, and • petition to the
Gases was adopted, praying ter Majesty mouse measures
to be taken for the defame of the protestant religion. The
president then read from his chair the following reply from
his lordship the Bishop of London, to the address presented
to him last week from the president and fellows of Son '
College :
" Reverend and dear brethren,—l exuded nothing less
from the president and fellows of Sion College than ea
ezpremion of the indirnation with which they regard the
usurpation of authority by the Ilishdp of 'Lime in pretend-
ing to divide the kingdom of England, which has formerly
',jetted and cut off its tyraney, into new diocuer, and ap-
pointing bishops to preside ever thus, treating as nonentities
the must archbishoprics and bishopries of England
reeegnised as they have been by their predecesson,
although existing independently of them. In order
to avoid &lag that, which is forbidden of them
by the laws of ear mashy, he has done that whisk is
a palpable violation of the law of the esthetic church, even
that division over which ills decries—. 0 bac est modernw
ecclesire :desaiptieue,' says Von Espee, ' ut et episcopeuem
nine metropoleon institutio situ mettle non nisi anotoritata
Pape interveniente tamen principle consume Ono fere non
Mei ut 'jou poetulationera fist.' In fact the recent ptoma-
ines of the Pope sea be dolomite], even upon the prineiplu
of hie own canottirr, only on the ground that this realm of
England is Ups/tibia infidelhon, so that he treats us not
only u henna or selismaties, but ma unbelievers. You
have justly designatrd this novel and presumptuous move-
ment of the court of Alms as ' a bold attempt to undo/mine
snd destroy our coestitittion in share:hand state.' The ex-
tension of Papal authority le es little compatible with the
latter ea it is with the independent party of the former.
Nose of the decrees by which former popes have smutted
a right of interferesice I. the government of • country
have been abrogated or disowned. All the offensive weapons
of the Romish church are suspended in her armoury ready
to be token down and wielded when a fit misses shall occur.
The recent set of the Pope is virtually an interference with
the government of England, end ought to be denounced and
resented es such. 'So it is lawful,' says Bellarwere, 'to
resist the Pope should he invade our bodies; so is it lawful to
resist the invading of souls or troubling the Commonwealth:
It is of perilous consequence,' says Barrow, ' that fo-
reigners should hays authoritative influence upon the sub.
juts of any prince, or have power to intermUdle in lades.'
One of the wise observations a thickly strewed over that
masterly treatise in which be km effectually destroyed the
fiction of the Pope's supremacy. But it is for us, the minis.
tens of • church of God's, which has by 004'e blessing, cast
off the slough of Romish corruption at the Reformation,
to warn our people against this daring attempt of
a foreign bishop, as being an open aggression upon
the purity of her faith and worship, sad upon our
religious freedom. Let us warn them to stand fiat in the
freedom wherewith Christ has nude us free—end not to be
entangled ag .ia in the yoke of bondage. Let us be careful
to impress upon them the true mature of the differences that
unseats us from the church lot Rome, and the grounds
upon which our own as a church of the Church universal
claims erd merits the allegiance. If we are faithful to our
trust, we shell have no cause to feu. The light which was
rekindled at the Reformation, far from being extinguished
by the emissaries of darknets, will burn more brightly still
upon their own church's golden candlestick, and the people
will rejoice more and mon in its brightness. I thank,
' yon, reverend and dear brethren, for the assurance of your
prayers in my behalf, and commending you to the grace of
our Lord Jesus Christ, I em your affectionate friend and
bishop, C. J. LONDON."

Mastless with the same object were also held at
the perish eiureh of Bt. Andrew end St. Ann, B:scls Irian,
and in the ♦retry room of Si. hi:agent's, Westminster.

The followiog address, from the laity of the parish
of Trinity, Exeter, was presented to the bishop, at
the palace, Exeter, on Thursday, the 7th haat :

" To TER RIOUT Rsv. 11131/T LORD BISHOP or EXETIZ.
Hay it please your Lardship,—We, the nadersigned
lay members of the church of England, and other parishioners
of the parish of the Holy Trinity, in the city of Exeter, beg
leave to approach your lordship with the expression of oar
deep respect sod reverence for your sacred
We are mcved to address your lordship by an event
which fills us with great anxiety for the future welfare and
peace of our church and country.
" The church of Rome has attempted an aggression upon
the protestant constitution of this realm, unprecrd need
sinee the Reformatioo, by ordaining, of her own authority,
a new ecclesiastical division of England and Wales late
Ruttish sees, the titles of w►ich are taken from certain of
our cities and towns, Plymouth, in this diocese, being one
of them, and the royal city of Westminster being designated
as the ems of an arohblehop and metropolitan of the whole
kingdom.

" We cannot avoid regarding this portentous lll,llllllre as
an indication of the schismatical hopes and intentions of the
Bishop of Rome being directed towards the establishment in
this cooatty of thou grievous errors, both ' in sienna of
ceremonies cad in matters of faith,' and of those blasphem-
ous fables and dangerous deceits,' and also of that unwar-
rantable jurisdiction, which, by the biasing of God, our
church repudiated at the Reformation.
" We feel that a daring aggression hes been mode Imo
the constitutional his sad sovereignty of thee/OW& of liar
land, which all loyal subjects ought to withstood.
" Under which eircuoistances we esteem it our duty to
approach your lordship with an earnest aeiturana of our
attachment to our pare and reformed ehureb,—of our de-
sire to unite la every lawful sod 'heritable Wart to resist
papal enerowshoseut,—aid of our firs. esavietita that our
feelings in theme respects will meat with the approval of
our diocesan who, In his place in parliament, has so often
and so strenionaly dammed and resisted the pretensions
of the Booms ow._ .

" We are with slimes respect,
" Your lordship's obedient humble servants in Christ."
This address was slimed by the churchwardens, sidesmen,
overseers of the psrieh, and a very large and influential
body of the consumers, including leading &staters of
various denominations.

The bishop delivered to the deputation the follow-
ing reply:

Brother Christians and Brother Churchmen —I residue,
with great gratification, the address which lm just bean
read to me. _

The recent act of the Bishop of Rome, erotic', in direct
contradiction to the omens of the catholic churoh, to pleat
bishops is this load, which is throughout already occupied
by an opiampats, aearly as ancient as that of Rome itself,
num( ail to have melted in every taithfel member of
Christ's char* amongst as a foiling of indigestion at its
presemption. sad
lacer resolution than ever to resist the
enrichment sad oli,' spirit which km prompted it.
Whether tits est ho, ladeed, as you diniguste it, an
" aggressios on the mestitationel rights sad sovereignty of
the crown of Ragland," after all the changes in oar consti-
tution which modem legialsdaa has introduced, I do not
presume to say. If it he, it is wissibertly the duty of the
'Arleen of the Queen to take steps to vindicate the oatraged
riOts sad hamar of their royal saistrest
But, Whigs there is tee much reason to fear that the
fawnlike. whist' have bees made within the last few years
in oar fundamental laws have, in truth, removed ail
Im-
pediments to dm intrasioe of such bulls tram Rome as that
whist is ths subject of our present complaint. If this shall
prove to be the ease, It will become the people of Beibuid to
Wane their own culpable Marigold of their highest interests—
is mils of warnions repeatedly pressed upon them—rather
Wm to iadulge in furious but idle invective easiest the
wary adversary who has turned their imprudence so largely
to his own sweat.
Be this, however, as it may, it is • brash of the eubjeet
ea whisk it does not become me here to dwelL In pull*.
MOILI. SIP IMO as it shall pleemi God to give me strength to go
*him, my voice shall ma be raised—as it always hitherto
Ms beim smised—howerri feebly sad ineffectually—to men
the mesiont principles of English law—pit/m:4les, which, so
ling es thLwere permitted to retain their force were the
Nark of the majesty of the mown and tlie beet ba-
tmen of the people.
Bat eat et parliament alludes are of a spiritual eha-
millet. When called on, therefore, as I now am, to address
a highly valued portlos of Christ's dock, over which He has
INUldidid pie the pester, I would (MAU myself to the
✓ellgises meet of the case before NM Looking at it thus,
I unapt her Wm you to disarm in the presses occurrence
iaziremst d the wise dhpeasetions dGod's provides.,all the designs of men sad all the sweats of We,
to the amenspikemeat et His own blamed purposes for the
ultimate good of Rh altareh —sad a fresh call as um to me
bau faitrisi and theaktally the groat Howls( latish He has
cm this howeared hall. by Ftwolai ho ft a asp
basil wf that Mar* end glades ewer and erpowerfog
whit ortheray, table boa saumnan Imo Ile spoke,
elmno it Aim We great waft gig plbo Qin*. aimmil hes
all earldom k os nose Vat allitas of
14.1 a aimruis of fie Eguseas al "
pally any be at Isa It Meal and
=Pyea as estinsellappi el peg premnaptioa,
s k Is, ly pitman poi pangsset pain ylle
In lOW% bola en
swiligars.. ann.
rabies esnaal; iinre
wornag maralves ageheetasidi_ns . _xtbut:
te air own apottoap mum" Via we
▪ winhas abanksum—be donee dieftbe Ilieek

OW HISS of the value of that holy ordinance which, by
nod's bounty, we enj-y ; your bishop, feeling as he
ought the awful face of these special obligations which
he infused when admitted to his leered oftlee—tha people,
testifying their UT/MIMI for that office—God's endliance,
I repeat, he their edifleation not, indeed, by • blind and
sereisting, but by a ready, a dutiful, a confiding spirit of
attachment to him who bons it. And then, I will not say,
we nay lough to Peon—tar scorn is not a feeling which
ever haeosees a Christian—bet we may view with CAS
reliance on an arm more powerful than man's, uplifted for
our protection, the most daring displays of Boman ambi-
tion, nulling in the proud asnarance of legal impunity—if
our laws do indeed permit nth doings to pus with impu-
nity.
Meanwhile, I must not emit ens eonfidention which for.
eibly imprints itself upon me. Far be it from us to forget
the demand of Christian charity, that we "rejoice not in
Iniquity,"—rill, we may rejoice, thankfully rejoice, an
hoping that this altameltsa demonstration of the true cham-
ber of papal Rome—will do mutt In awakening to a better, a
more truthful mind, those amongst us who, feeling with dia.
tempered ecatenties tha fancied ce this real deficient:it a of our
own system, may have been tempted to lark with too much
complusency to a quarter which henceforth no eocaiateot, no
true catholic, can hesitate to regard as most achinuatiehl.
Is conclusion, accept—what is worthless, indeed, to all
who deem it worthlatt—bat what will n be lightly
valued by any who regard it as it 1, the voice of ens who
speaks—be he himself as unworthy se he may—with the
authority of God's appointed minister,—accept liar bishop's
blessing. The L'rd bless you, and keep you. The Lord
make his face to thine upon you, and be gracious unto you.
The Lord lift up his mentalism* upon you, and Ore you
peon—together with the spirit of peace—both new and
STUMM.