The Liverpool Standard, and General Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1854-08-15 00:00:00

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Dublin

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strictures upon "Rosse's Ecclesii-o-
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ce," for he has given a very distorted view of

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TO THE E
SIB,

MESSRS,

THE LIVERPOOL STANDARD, AND GENERAL COMMERCIAL

Sia,—l am very sensible
that an apology is needed for
troubling you with a project
in which you have no local
interest. But the sympathies
of our holy religion are unli-
mited ; and they whose hearts
God has touched with a desire
to rebuild the walls of our
Zion, and restore the decayed
beauty of our sanctuary, will
not turn away from the fol-
lowing appeal, nor be satisfied
with their own advantages,
while the distant members of
the same body are enfeebled

Livesipool, at the present
time, presents some features
of important interest to
Churchmen. It is confessedly
one of the most important
towns in the United Kingdom.
A hundred and fifty years ago
it was a mere village. It now
contains little less than4oo,ooo
inhabitants, and the rapidity
of its increase bas of late years
been without parallel in this
country. Its commerce ex-
, tends to all parts of the world,
and it is constantly visited
by, a very large number of
strangers.
It is, moreover, a town of
considerable religious acti-
vity. Within the last five-and-
twenty years as many as this
number of churches have been
built; and the inhabitants are
certainly not behind those of
other towns in responding,
with praiseworthy liberality,
to the calls made upon them,
from time to time, by the
clergy, to extend the means
of Education and Public
Worship.
Unhappily, the prevailing
religions tone is decidedly
Puritanical. A large propor-
tion of the clergy are from
Ireland ; and several objec-
tionable features, both in the
internal arrangements of the
churches and the mode of
conducting Divine Worship,
have been introduced into this
town. Devout kneeling is,
generally speaking, impossi-
ble. Rubrical conformity is
not only disregarded, it is
publicly condemned. Any
approach to a Choral Service
or decent Ceremonial is
denounced by our popular
preachers as Popish. And not
only are the people deprived
of the Daily Service of the
Church, but the observance
of her fasts and festivals is
discountenanced, and even
the appointed offices for Holy
Week are either mutilated or
omitted altogether.
_ _

. •
With a zeal worthy of a
better cause, certain persons
have entered into a conspiracy
for buying up the patronage
of our churches, and vesting
it in trustees who hold their
own peculiar views. By this
means, their influence has
been widely extended through-
out the town, and their doc-
trines and practices are likely
to be perpetuated. To such
an extent has this been car-
ried, that, in many parts of
Liverpool, a person must go
some distance before he can
find a church where the teach-
ing of the Prayer-Book is not
directly contravened or its
rubrics transgressed.
In fact there is only one
church, and that most in.
conveniently situated for
the inhabitants generally, in
which there are prayers upon
every day of the week, in
which all the Holy-days are
observed, the weekly Commu-
nion is celebrated, and a gene-
ral Offertory permitted ; and
this church, after the expira-
tion of the present incum-
bency, falls into the hands of
the Simeon trustees.
The above remarks are far
from being made in a spirit of
resentment against those who
are guilty of these irregulari-
ties, It is charitably supposed
that they are the result, not
so much of wanton indifference
to their ordination vows, as
to the present unsatisfactory
state of Church discipline
and to the belief—entertained
also by many ill-informed
Dissenters--that our venerable
book of Common Prayer con-
tains a large amount of covert
Popery, and that much of its
ancient phraseology ought to
be expunged, or at least
brackelted, for the conve-
nience of those who dissent
from its Catholic statements.

This being the case, it is
clearly of the first importance,
not only in justice to the
people, but also as a means of
informing the public mind
and removing prejudice, that
a model Church should be
erected, in which no Purita-
nical innovations or customs
shall be permitted to mar the
beauty and completeness of
the several parts of Divine
Worship.

ADVERTISER.

ago. That it is ancient, you admit; and as the very word
" Sacrament" is one invented or adopted by the Church, I
see not how we can come at the true sense of it, except by
consulting the ancients. As said Cranmer, so would I say.

fight, "but also, I would gladly
ords that they used." True, I was not speak-
in; "ad clerum," but to a lady; but what then? I was
using the Church's language. and guarding if as she has
guarded it; and had surely a right to expect that credit
would be given me for meaning what the Church means. In
the Homily to which you refer, she clearly distinguishes Bap-
tism and the Lord's Supper from all other rites whatever,
and attributes to them the name of Sacraments in its highest
sense; but as clearly she implies, if not asserts, that certain
other rites have a sacramental character, and attributes to
them the same name in a lower sense : andi the phrases which
she implies are not mere oliter dicta, but occur in a Homily
expressly treating of Common Prayer and Sacraments. And
all this written not ad clerum, but alt populum, and to correct
the prevailing opinion that there were seven Sacraments, all
equally Sacraments with Baptism and the Lord's Supper.
The letter which you enclose for the Mercury, I shall hand
to the editor, but accompanied by a few observations similar
to the above. Had I published our correspondence, I should,
under any circumstances, have cut out that
refers to Mrs

portion wind

In conclusion, permit me to assure you, that I yield to no
one in my sincere abhorrence of Romanism. I not only
abhor it, but dread it; and, instead of growing weaker, my
abhorrence increases every year I live. And though I can-
not, of course, pretend to answer for all of those with whom
I generally symbolise, I know that the majority feel and think
as I do. %Vith many thanks for the good feeling towards my-
self which you are pleased to express, and which 1 bec, you
to believe is fully reciprocated; and sincerely hoping that we
may not even appear to come into collision in future,

I am, Rev. Sir, yours very faithfully,
Rev. W. Pollock. K. M.' Puoits

---~---

THE PROPOSED FREE CHURCH

)ITOR OF THE LIVERPOOT

Li STANDARD

Mr. Pughe's last letter to you contains the fol-
lowing passage All Mr. Pollock's rhodomcntade about
the prospectus being a prize of war, and to be dealt with
accordingly, is sufficiently answered by reminding him tlt
IT WAS HANDED TO THE EDITOR OP THE 'MAIL,' ANAT
HIM PUBLISHED IN PULL at the time when the scl

was first advertised in the local papers." This statement,
I confess, startled me exceedingly. I had felt sure that
Mr. Wray's letter, when I communicated it to you, was
still new to the public at large. In the speech which had
given rise taithis discussion, I had stated it to be a docu-
ment meant only for private circulation among the party
of the writer, and hitherto my assertion had been allowed
to pass uncontradicted. Nay, more ; on the 13th July,
Mr. Pughe himself had written of it to you —" It was cer-,
tainly neither written .nor printed for circulation
among the Puritan party, but among those from whom
help might be expected, or at least sympathy." Yet now,
at length, it appeared that Mr. Pughe and I had been
each of us alike mistaken. Mr. Wray had not been, as I
supposed, a clandestine slanderer of his brethren. I had
rather slandered him when I accused him of having "one

cage for the public generally, and another for those of

his own sect to whom he ventured to unbosom himself."
All had been, in truth, on Mr. Wray's part, honest and
above board. The document in question bad been made
public property—at all events a year ago !
But I was not prepared all at once to realise these con-
clusions. I knew enough of Mr. Pughe already to deter
me from receiving his assertions on the mere credit of
their author. I investigated the matter, and with un-
affected pain for Mr. Paghe, and still more for oar common
Church, which cannot but suffer in him, I now lay before
the public the result of my investigation.
The facts are these :—On 27th Aug., 1853, the proposed
Free Church was first advertised in the Mail. The fol-
lowing number of that journal, published on 3d Sept.,
contained a prospectus indeed by Mr. Wray, which was,
no doubt, to a considerable extent identical with the pros-
pectus which I have brought forward, but which, at the
same time, was in fact essentially another prospectus.
Here are the two in parallel columns. I beg that they
may be diligently compared. The comparison will repay
your readers. It will enlighten them not a little generally
on the tactics of Tractarianism. And if it is made in the
recollection of that statement of Mr. Pughe, which I have
placed in capitals in the first paragraph of this letter, they
will show with what amount of confidence the allegations
of that rev. gentleman are to be received
_ PRIVATE LETTER

FROM THE "MAIL,"
SEPT. 3, 1833.

PROPOSED NEW CHURCH
IN LIVERPOOL,
For Daily Prayers, Weekly
Communion, and the Cele-
bration of all the Offices of
the Church of England,
without Omission or Cur-
tailment.

Liverpool, at the present
time, presents some features
of deep interest to Church.
men. It is confessedly one of
the most important towns in
the United Kingdom. A hun-
dred and fifty years ago it was
a mere village. It now con-
tains little less than 400,000
inhabitants, and the rapidity
of its increase has of late
years been without parallel in
this country. Its commerce
extends to all parts of the
world ; and being in the high
road from America, it is con-
stantly visited by a very large
number of strangers.
It is, moreover, a town of
considerable religious acti-
vity. Within the last five-and-
twenty years as many as this
number of churches have been
built; and its inhabitants are
certainly not behind those of
other towns in responding,
with praiseworthy liberality,
to the calls made upon them
from time to time by the
clergy, to extend the means
of Education and Public Wor-
ship.
Unhappily, the prevailing
religious tone is decidedly
Puritanical. Several objec-
tionable features, both in the
internal arrangements of the
churches and the mode of
conducting Divine Worship,
have been introduced into
this town. Devout kneeling
is, generally speaking, impos-
sible. Rubrical conformity
is not only disregarded—it is
publicly condemned. Any
approach to a Choral Service
or aecent Ceremonial is de-
nounced by our popular
preachers as Popish. And
not only are the people de-
prived of the Daily Service of
the Church, but the obser-
vance of her fasts and festivals
is discountenanced, and even
the appointed offices for Holy
Week are either mutilated or
omitted altogether.

With a zeal worthy of a
better cause. certain persons
have combined to buy up the
patronage of our churches,
and to vest it in trustees who
hold their own peculiar views.
By this means their influence
has been widely extended
throughout the town, and
their doctrines and practices
are likely to be perpetuated.
To such an extent has this
been carried, that in many
parts of Liverpool a person
must go some distance before
he can find a church where
the teaching of the Prayer-
Book is not directly contra-
vened, or its rubrics trans-
gressed.
In fact there is only one
church, and that most incon.
veniently situated for the in.
habitants generally, in which
there are prayers upon every
day in the week, in which all
the Holy-days are observed,
the weekly Communion is
celebrated, and a general of-
fertory permitted; and this
church, after the expiration
of the present incumbency,
falls into the hands of the
trustees of the late Mr. Simeon.