The Sun.
London, England, 1839-12-06 00:00:00

THE VOLUNTARY PRINCIPLE.

On Wednesday evening a public meeting of Evange-
lical Christians professing the voluntary principle was
held at the London Tavern, Bishopsgate-street, for the
purpose of forming a Society, to be called the Voluntary
Church Association. The meeting was very nume-
rously attended by persons of both sexes, and a con-
siderable number were obliged to go away for want of
standing-room.
At six o'clock Sir Culling Eardley Smith, Bart., was
called to the Chair.

The CHAIRMAN having briefly expressed his sense o
the responsibility of the duties he had undertaken to
discharge, and his inability to perform them as efficiently
as he could wish, proceeded to make a review of the
state of religion in this country as compared with that
on various other parts of the earth. The Mahomedan
was bound by the Koran, but in this country, he was
sorry to say, they did not find a proportionate degree of
attachment and obedience to the Bible. This state of
things was not attributable to the Gospel, but merely
to the machinery by which it was worked. The Hon.
Baronet then proceeded to argue against Church
Establishments as being great impediments to the
spread of Christianity, and said, that in this country
there was not a sufficient distinction between
nominal and practical Christians. Suppose such a
thing were established as a society of natural
philosophers, would they, did they think, admit men
who denied the great Newtonian principle that the sun
was stationary ; or in Temperance Societies, would they
appoint persons to be Committee-men, or have a go-
verning influence, who were notorious drunkards? Ind
yet they found that in the Church Establishment men
were promoted and encouraged whose lives were at
practical variance with the great principles and duties
of Christianity.—(Cheers.) The Hon. Baronet, after
an address of considerable length, in which he ably
pointed out the advantages to be derived from the
adoption of the voluntary principle, sat down amidst
great applause.
The Rev. Dr. Cox, on rising to propose the first
resolution, said that the question they had met to
discuss was not one of physical strength with regard
to political combination, but the advancement of a
great moral power unfettered and unencumbered by
any of those considerations which were calculated to
deprive them of the sympathies of the Christian public.
As that was the first day of unfurling the banners of
the Institution, he would suggest a motto as descrip-
tive of their purposes and objects, namely, " Purity,
persuasion, and peace." In the first place, their ob-
ject was to purify Christianity from all civil estab-
lishment, and, therefore, he adopted " purity ;" and
in the second, as they intended promoting moral and
civil combination, not by the sword, but by argument,
they would adopt " pe.nmasion."—(Cheers.) It was
hardly necessary for him to point out, that the end and
object of all this was, " Peace on earth, and good wilt
towards rnen."—(Cheers.) He regretted to observe,
that certain writers with whom he agreed in principle,
had issued a manifesto, by which they declared that
this question was a political one. Now, as some per-
sons might be disposed to think that the question was a
mixed one, he would state what his view of it was,
namely, that in point of fact it was essentially religious,
and incidentally political.--(Cheers.) The struggle
was not to settle the question that Government should
remain in power, but on what ground religion should
stand in this country.—(Hear, hear.) When Christ
appointed a Church Establishment for the propagation
of his Gospel, he did. not select those who were dis-
-1 tinguished by their great wealth and vast possessions,
nor were offices created for the purpose of bestowing
these benefits upon them. Such a system had since
crept in as a matter of expediency, but he hoped that
the system established by Christ would be preferred
before all human expedients. The Rev. Gentleman
concluded by proposhag a series of resolutions to the
following effect :
"I. That the Divine Lawgiver of the Christian Church
had, as they believed., expressly ordained voluntary
exertions, individual and combined, to be the exclusive
means for the maintenance and propagation of the Gos-
pel ; that any departure from this scriptural ordinance ap-
peared to them to be a direct violation of the will of Christ,
and consequently a serious injury to the Church, neces-
sarily destructive of her simplicity, spirituality, and in-
dependence, and as necessarily hostile to her complete
efficiency ; and that the removal of all the evils with
which the Church of Christ is afflicted, and her final
and universal triumph, could not be rationally ex-
pected, except in connection with an unreserved re-
turn to the original appointment of her King.
" 11. That it was the solemn duty of all who were
convinced of the exclusively spiritual character of the
kingdom of the Redeemer, to use vigorous exertions,
in order to disseminate, among all the friends of reli-
gion, a knowledge of the scriptural principles on which
their convictions are founded ; so as to correct the
wide-spread misapprehension and ignorance of those
principles which prev ail, not only among the adherents
of established church es, but even, to a large extent,
among the adhererecs of voluntary churches themselves.
" 111. That whilst there arc many different aspects,
political, economical, and ecclesiastical, in which the
connexion between the Church and the State may be
properly contemplated, it especially becomes Christians
and Christian Ministers, to regard it in the solemn
light of a religious question ; a question of extensive
good or extensive injury to the Church of Christ; a
question of obedience or disobedience to his will ; a
question to be discussed by the common friends of the
Redeemer, in the spirit of Christian love and candour,
and in the exercise of mutual forbearance."
The Rev. Dr. L'EAFCHILD seconded the adoption of
the foregoing resolu. tions, and proceededjin an eloquent
and amusing strain to advocate the voluntary principle,
and recommended that the Association in all its lec-
tures, speeches and publications, should be directed by
a spirit of charity and forbearance.
The Rev. Mr. YOUNG next addressed the meeting.
Several rules and regulations for conducting the af-
fairs of the Association, which was formed under the
name of " The Evangelical Voluntary Church Asso-
ciation," were then submitted to the meeting and ap-
proved of.
A Committee, consisting of twenty gentlemen, clergy-
men, and others, and of which Sir C. E. thnith was ap.
pointed Chairman, and G. F. Angus, Esq., treasurer,
was next elected, with power to add to their numbers.
Several Rev. Gentlemen addressed the meeting at
great length during the course of the evening, after
which thanks were voted to the Chairman and the
meeting separated.
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HINCHINGBROOK HOUSE, HUNTINGDON,—
Lordand Lady S andwich have been entertaining the
Marquis of Anglesey and Lady Adelaide Paget, Lord
Templetown, and the Hon. Edward Upton, Lord and
Lady St. John (of Bletso), and Mrs. Drummond.
PIGEON SHOOTING EXTRAORDINARY.--
Ye:terday afternoon a most splendid match against time
took place at the Red House, Battersea, between the
Marquis of Waterford and Captain Alexander, of the
Life Guards. The Marquis bet the Captain the sum of
50/. that he (Captain A.) would not within half an hour
kill one bird from the trap at fifty yards distance, which,
however, was won by the Captain, by his killing the
twelfth bird, and which was performed in 18i minutes. A
second match was then made by the same parties for a
similar sum, or
" double or quits," which was also won
by the Captain in 31; minutes. A third match was
then made by the seine parties for a similar sum, the
Captain this time betting that he would kill two birds
within the given time (half an hour), and which the
Captain also won in 5} minutes.
FAILURES IN DUBLIN.—The first failure of
any consequence for some months was announced on
Tuesday. It is that of a house in the porter-brewing
trade, heretofore considered very well circumstanced.
The liabilitie s are not great,
and i: is supposed that 205.
in the pound will ultimately be paid.