The Sun.
London, England, 1840-03-07 00:00:00

CHURCH ESTABLISHMENTS.

The first of a series of Lectures on Church Establishments
was delivered yesterday at the Hanover-square Rooms, by the
Rev. H. M'Neile. The large room, which, it will be recol-,
lected, was the scene of Dr. Chalmers's celebrated Lectures on
the same subject, was densely crowded, and among the and
dience were Lord Ashley, i\LP., Mr. Pringle, M.P., Sir It.
Inglis, M. P„ Mr. Gladstone, M. P. , and other distinguishe d
persons, with several Dissenting Ministers of eminence, as we If
as a host of Clergymen. The proceedings were commence
with reading a prayer from the formularies of the Church.
The Rev. Lecturer then commenced by alluding to the ge r 1
neral desire now manifested in the country for an extension of
the instruction of the people. He said, one party were anxioi
to supply the deficiency, which all must admit to exist, by
tending the means of religious instruction already largel Y'
though inadequately, spread through the country by the mediu
of an Established Church. Another party, on the contrar
were advocates of a system of universal seem: tr
instruction, regardless altogether of sacred subject! g;
But the controversy did not end here. There ha 6°
been found those who were bold enough to attack
once the very principle of our Establishment, and contend 3t
was unscriptural and unlawful. Courage was always imposir It'
And the constant repetition of this attack, by a band of ant z -
Churchmen who made up by energy and activity for what th,l"Y
I wanted in numbers, had tended much to weaken the conviis 7_
tions of many friends of the Church, and induce them to seed
to defraud the Church on the comparatively low grourrti
public expediency ant popular benefit, leaving out of view th. e
scriptural sanction which the Word of God appointed for 1."
tional Religious Establishments. Often, and with boastful ri '
iteration, had the advocates of the Church been challenged •:t°
the Bible—and now he accepted most cheerfully and confider &Y,
the challenge.—(Cheers.) The Rev. Geneeman procee, Set:
with a train of very close scriptural investigation, arguing t be'
the Scripture s bore out the supposition, which was the
basis of our Establishment, that there might be e
National Church—that is a nation of pr ofessii
baptized Christians—resembling the Jewish nation, ali gteci
in their distinction from the heathen world and their mix
and mingled constitut.on among themselves; and the id Ns
urged by Dr. Wardlaw, that the Jewish nation typified, not• a
nation of professing Christians, but the really good and pig'
js
among them, he treated as altogether unfounded and absuro
seeing that it was evident, from the Jewish history, that a e
Jews were, just as the body of nominal Christians are toy
composed alike of good and bad; and he said that the encic! '0
your to unite an outward distinctiveness with inward purity
• the Christian world—an attempt that must always prove tz ",
terly vain—was the root of all sectarianism.—(Loud cheers:.
He went on to argue that there was evidence in the Scrip
tures of the existence, under the term " Churches," of gt !`re
graphically divided combinations of congregations under t '0
pastoral superintendence of ecclesiastical officers analagous 1 t
our Bishops; and that this was a far preferable arrangenaet f
to the " heterogenous patchwork and feudal insubordination e
Dissent"—( Cheers,with some hisses)—and moreover that
was no trace in Scripture of a number of independent separate
religious communities.

ROYAL OLYMPIC THEATRE.
UNDER THE MANAGEMENT OF MR. BUTLER.

THIS EVENING the Entertainments will commence with
the LADIES' CLUB.

Members—Mrs. Fitzmith (in the Chair), Mrs. Glover ; Mrs.
Booklv, Miss Treble; Mrs. Twankay, Mrs. Garrick; Hon.
Mrs. O. Cloudly, Miss Connor; Hon. Mrs. Derby, Miss Fitz-
waiter ; Mrs. Major Mortar, Miss M. A. Atkinson; Lady
Harriet Smart, Mrs. Norton ; Mrs. Eliza Worrell, Miss
Hawes.
After which (a Sketch from " Boz "), entitled
HORATIO SPARKINS.
Mr. Horatio Sparkins, Mr. Wrench.
To be followed by
A FAMILIAR FRIEND.
Mrs. Chattersley, Mrs. Glover.
To conclude with a Musical Burletta, entitled
FLORIAN.
Florian, Mrs. Anderson.
Boxes, 4s. Pit, 2s. Gallery, Is.