The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1842-05-10 00:00:00

the great black cross in the Colosseum a but that Is nothitst
to the indulgence for ten, twenty, or even thirty thousand
years, that may be bought at no exorbitant rate in many of
the churches ' • so that it is amazing what a vast quantity of
treasure may be amassed in the other world, with very little
industry in this, by those who are avaricious of this spiritual
wealth, into which, indeed, the dross or riches of this world
may be converted with the happiest facility imaginable. You
may buy as many masses as will free your soul from purga-
tory for 29,000 years, at the church of St. John Lateran on
the festa of that saint ; at Santa Bibiana, on All Souls-day,
for 7,000 years; at a church near the Basilica of St. Paul,
and at another on the Quirinal Hill, for 10,000 and for 3,000
years, and at a very reasonable rate. But it is in vain to
particularize; for the greater part of the principal churches
in Rome and the neighbourhood are spiritual shops for the
sale of the said commodity." To the testimony of this au-
thor it may be added, that in the year 1800 a Spanish ship
from Europe was captured near the coast of South America
by Admiral Harvey, the captain of the Southampton frigate.
On inquiring into the nature of her cargo, he found that
there were large bales of paper on board, valued in her books
at £7,500. These bales were, therefore, brought up for ex-
amination ; and to the British officers' surprise, they proved
to be large sheets of paper, some printed in Spanish, some
in Latin, but all sealed with the seals of ecclesiastical courts
either in Spain or at Rome. They were, in fact, indulgences,
or papal pardons for various sins; and the price was marked
upon each, varying from half a dollar to seven dollars. They
had been bought in Spain, and were intended for sale in
South America. Such facts speak for themselves, and leave
us at no loss to arrive at a conclusion with regard to the
practical tendency of the system, and to estimate at its real
value the affirmation of Pius IV. on the wholesomeness of
the use of indulgences.
In one particular, indeed, we are willing to concede that
" the use of indulgences" has been salutary : for to this,
under God, we are indebted for our glorious Protestant re-
formation. It was a common saying of the monks that
Eramus " laid the egg, which Luther hatched :" but, in fact,
the first was done by Leo X. ; the second was effected by
Tetzel the Dominican, the unprincipled instrument of an
unprincipled pontiff.—Mr. Parry then gave a rapid sketch
of the origin and rise of the Reformation ; of various circum-
stances in the providence of God, which preceded it, such as
the revival of letters, and the discovery of the art of printing;
of the character of Leo ; and noticed the manner in which
too many of our modern historians, captivated by his pa-
tronage of letters, arts, and sciences, have spoken of the
Reformation, " whose scepticism," he remarked, " or in-
difference to real religion have led them to think little of that
great event in comparison with the man, whose Mecrenas
qualities far eclipsed, in their eyes, the piety, magnanimity,
and love of truth, by which a Luther was distinguished."
He adverted to the early history of the Saxon Reformer ;
his Christian indignation at the open sale of Leo's indul-
gences by the profligate Tetzel; his bold, uncompromising
opposition to them ; and concluded in these words
It has been shewn, I trust, that the first affirmation of
Pius IV. is directly contradicted by scriptural testimony :
that his second affirmation is equally destitute of truth : that
the doctrine, so far from being wholesome, is most perni-
cious and poisonous to the souls of men. The peace it im-
parts is a false peace. The practice, to which it has a natu-
ral tendency to lead, is a licentious practice. It teaches men
to build upon the sand, instead of teaching them to build
simply upon the rock. On the rock, the glorious rock, the
rock of ages, may we build our every hope of present peace,
and of bliss beyond the grave ! May the dying exclamation
of the martyr Lambert find, in life and in death, an echo in
our hearts,—" None but Christ ! none but Christ !" (Loud
cheers.)

The Doxology was then sung, and the meeting separated

SOCIETY FOR PROMOTING CHRISTIANITY

AMONG THE JEWS

The annual meeting of this society was held on Friday
morning at Exeter Hall, London. Upwards of 3000 persons
were present. Sir Thomas Baring presided, supported on
the right by the Bishop of Ripon, and on the left by Chevalier
Bunsen and Lord Ashley. The proceedings having been
opened with prayer,

.
The Chairman said that for some time past the hall in
which they then were had resounded with eloquent appeals
in behalf of the Gentile church, and in the advocacy of those
societies who had for their object the propagation of the
Gospel, and the promulgation of the glad tidings of salvation
of a crucified Redeemer to all parts of the world. He was
sure he might, on the part of every true friend of Israel, say
that they wished those societies God speed, that the heathen
might be given to our Redeemer for his possession, and that
the earth might be full of the knowledge,of the Lord as the
waters cover the sea. But they had met that day to plead
the cause of Israel. and he would venture to say that their
society yielded in importance to no other religious society in
existence. (Hear, hear.) Indeed he would be bold to say,
that it was superior to all other religious societies. (Hear.)
The Rev. Dr. Marsh having questioned the children of the
school on the fundamental truths of Christianity, delivered a
brief but touching address to them.
The Chairman called upon the Rev. W. Ayerst to read the
report.

The report adverted to the acceptance by the Archbishop
of Canterbury of the office of sole patron of the society, and
to the fact that the Archbishop of York, the Bishop of Lon-
don, and nearly all the episcopal bench have become vice-
patrons. It also mentioned the munificent donation of
£15,000 from the King of Prussia towards the erection of a.
Protestant bishopric in Jerusalem, and that the committee
had made a grant of £3OOO towards the same object. The
report stated that the aggregate amount of contributions re-
ceived during the past year towards the general and special
purposes of the society was X 24,699 Bs. 9d., being an increase
of £1760 9s. 7d. above the receipts of the preceding year.
This amount had been contributed in the following pro-
portions :—General proportions of the society, including the
Jerusalem Mission and Scripture Funds, £22,841 13s. Bd. ;
Hebrew church at Jerusalem, £1313 10s. 2d. ; hospital at
Jerusalem, £lB9 Bs. Bd. ; Jewish Converts' Relief Fund,
Jerusalem, £5l ls. ; Operative Institution, Jerusalem,
£5l ; School of Industry, Jerusalem, £55; Temporal Fund,
£197 15s. 3d. The committee stated that after defraying the
expenses of the year, they had in hand, for general purposes
to carry on the work of the society, the sum of £BOOO, vested
in exchequer bills, and £l7BB 19s. 2d. in the bands of the
treasurer. On account of the Hebrew church at Jerusalem
they had £1543 Os. 10d. in the treasurer's hands • and on ac-
count of the different funds for temporal relief already
enumerated, they had £5OO in exchequer bills, and £364 Ils.
in the hands of the treasurer, making a total balance of £B5OO
its evrelwgilter hills, and £9G913 118. in the hands of the
treasurer.

The resolutions were then moved and seconded by the
Bishop of Ripon, Lord Ashley, and the Rev. G. Bickersteth,
Dr. M`Caul, and Dr. Marsh ; after which Chevalier Bunsen
rose and delivered the following sptech :
I came this morning to this house rather to be present at,
than to speak before, this great assembly—not to speak, but
to assist the meeting with silent gratitude and cheerfulness.
(Cheers.) But, since that time, mention has been made in
the kindest and most affectionate way of the King my
Sovereign, who has sent me to this Christian country, and
a resolution has been proposed, seconded, and adopted with
so warm a manifestation of the good-will and Christian affec-
tion and regard for that monarch, that I feel I should be
wanting in my duty if I did not overcome my reluctance, my
just reluctance, to explain myself before you in language not
my own—(cheers)—if I did not attempt, I say, in a few words
—not to make a speech before you, as those who have pre-
ceded me have so eloquently done, but to thank you, not for
myself and on my behalf, hut in the name of the King who
has sent me. (Cheers.) You (turning towards the chair-
man) were present when the committee of this society pre-
sented an address to the King of Prussia on the subject to
which those who have preceded me have directed your atten-
tion. I wish I were permitted—not to repeat the words in
which the King of Prussia expressed to you his answer to
your address—l wish, 1 say, that I were able to give utter-
ance in any thing like an adequate degree to the sentiments
which he has very often expressed to me, and which I have
frequently heard him express to others on the same score.
But one thing I will say, that the King—as he at that time
stated in few words—feels and knows that he has much to
thank you for, because there is no individual, there is no
society existing which has been—to use the King's words—
so pre-eminently instrumental as yours in carrying into effect
a plan, not of the King's, but a great Christian plan, founded
on no selfish, no political, no exclusive basis, and to be car-
ried out by the instrumentality of the Church of England.
(Cheers.) I say, it will be a glory to your society to have
contributed, as it has done, to this great work ; to have been
more instrumental in effecting it than any individual or cor-
poration in the world. (Cheers.) It is true that the first
thanks of the King of Prussia are due to those just and en-
lightened prelates who received the proposals which I had
the honour to lay before them, who received them in a truly
Christian and Protestant spirit, and, in their consideration
and adoption of them, brought to bear upon the subject that
wisdom and that experience which could alone ensure success
in the prosecution of the plan. (Cheers.) But if I have to
thank, in the King's name, those prelates, have I not to
thank those at the head of the society who have exerted them-
selves most strenuously in this great work ? (Cheers.) Allow
me to make mention, as this is the first opportunity I have
had of publicly stating it, that the members of your committee
enabled me to do what I have done when I was allowed to
lay the plan of the King of Prussia before your Sovereign ;
and here I may say that I was assisted by the excellent pre-
late now at Mount Zion—(cheers,)—and by taw noble friend
(Lord Ashley), who has so eloquently addressed you, and by
the rev. gentleman who has just sat down. I, therefore,
speak only very imperfectly the King's sentiments when I say
I thank you individually and collectively for the affectionate
way in which you have this day spoken of the King, my mas-
ter. (Cheers.) But 1 think we are not met here together
to thank each other. lam sure I may say that the promi-
nent feeling of our hearts is this—that we ought to unite in
humble thanksgiving to Him who has brought us and will
keep us together. (Cheers.) Without retracing the steps
so forcibly laid before you by my noble friend, by which we
have arrived at our present position, I may, perhaps, be per-
mitted to observe, that when I look back upon what has so
recently been happily effected, I cannot but recollect that this
day twelvd months I received the :c words from the mouth

of the King of Prussia—" Go to England, and in my rrame
offer the hand of brotherhood and of brotherly co-operation
to the Church of England over the tomb of our Saviour."
(Loud cheers.) Who is there among us that, twelve months
ago, but thought that he would be offering up his earnest
prayer rather than his deep thanks for what has been so pro-
videntially accomplished for the cause of true Christianity.
(Cheers.) Of all the circumstances to which I feel myself in
my heart obliged to look back with thankfulness, I will men-
tion only two, and those two because they are not known to
you, nor to myself till a few days ago. I hold in my hand a
letter, dated Mount Zion, Easter Monday, and addressed to
me by the Bishop of Jerusalem. (The chevalier then read
copious extracts from the letter, in which the bishop spoke
in the most encouraging terms of his mission. Chevalier
Bunsen then proceeded.) Now it appears to me, that we
have here such accounts as not only justify our expectations
and our hopes, but certainly must make us thankful beyond
expression for the excess of mercy that has been shown to us.
(Cheers.) Allow me to make mention of another circum-
stance regarding my native country, and which has just
reached me. The King of Prussia, for whom you have ma-
nifested so much affection and regard, permitted that on the
Sundays between Easter and Whit Sundays a collection might
be made in the Protestant churches of that kingdom in behalf
of the schools and hospitals belonging to the bishopric of
Jerusalem on Mount Zion. (Cheers.) This appeal of the
King to his Prussian subjects has been responded to in a way
which I am sure will as much gratify you as it does the King.
(Cheers.) When my last communication left Berlin, the
whole amount of the collection was not known to the govern.
ment, but so much was known, that from the—(we did not
catch the word)—to the Rhine, this collection had met with
the greatest sympathy, both from the rich and the poor,
though the sum gathered had been more (as we understood)
indebted to the widows and the orphans' mite than to the
contributions of the rich and the mighty, and the whole pro-
duced about
ofX 1
theo,O BishopOO - ( 1 £10,000—(loud
odfj
cheers)—whicherosolem,
io assistingv.illbe plahci placed
to
the disposal
erect the schools and
Englishmen, and for
inning, your society has been so preeminently carryinghospital foroot theth a
t benefit
plan
wohfiGermans
ch, as
I said and
at the beg
in-
strumental in forwarding.
I wish only to add—we should
not forget that the moment in which we live, and the moment
in which we are assembled here,
is of awful importance.—
(Hear.)

The following are the receipts of the principal railways for
the last week :—Brighton, £2,497; Blackwall, £948; Man-
chester and Birmingham, £406; Birmingham, £17,405;
Croydon, £487; Greenwich, £227 ; South Western, £6,041 ;
Northern and Eastern, £1,415; Manchester and Leeds,
£4002; Great Western, £13,377; Birmingham and Derby,
£1,127; North Midland, £4,026 ; Great North of England,
£1,168 ; Midland Counties, £2,701; York and North Mid-
land, £1,475 ; Edinburgh and Glasgow, £2,016.