The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1851-01-09

churches OF the United States, would be inter-
ested in the preservation and advancement Of the
liberty Of opinion, in the greater intelligence Of
the people, and in the attachment and respect of
their focks, only to be obtained for the Church
by diligence, duty, earnestness, and desert, on
the part Of its officers.
Ii is worthy of remark that, from the London
Times, down through the list of bishops, rectors,
curates, lords, dukes, Nj. P's, and church papers,
who and which have Joined in this No Poperyo
cry, not one appears to have that liberality and
confidence in the eternal justice of their cause
which will permit the other side TO state Us cause
In all their public meetings, amendments of mod
Grafton and appeals by Roman Catholics for a
hearing have been uniformly voted down, while
garbled reports Of all said or done on the Roman
side, have been invariably published by the Tines,
which, though claiming to be the best Of all pos
sible instructors has thus led the way in un-
truthfulness and intolerance.
Were the Church of England alone engaged
in this crusade against religious liberty, for such
it is, there might be an apology for its conduct
so contrary to the truly Christian spirit of the
age in which we live. But, unfortunately, Meth
odists, Presbyterians, Baptists, &c, have Joined
the hue and cry, overlooking the important fact
that the present agitation concerns rival hierar-
chies alone and affects dissenters only in SO far as
it may promote their principles of ecclesiastical
polity Thus in their terror of Popery, the Dis
senters of the Kingdom have lent themselves TO
the propagation Of the tenets of the Roman
Catholic Church, il there be truth in the axiom
that "tbe blood Of the martyrs is the seed of the
Church.D They have literally strengthened a
deadly enemy who is powerful, in opposing an
other, whom their better judgments must surely
tell them is utterly powerless, in England at
least and in so doing have also given the lie to
their faith in the soundness of their own opin-
ions and the power Of truth They have aban-
doned their usual implements of spiritual war
fare-reason and principle-for passion and IA
naticism, and have proved that those are mistaken
who imagined that England had indeed attained
to any practical proficiency in the science of civil
and religious liberty. They show that England
fails to understand the constitutional doctrines
il processes; that il is really without any exalted
appreciation of the great Protestant principle of
the right of private judgment In fine, that she
has reached higher point in the science of free
dom, than that which produces intolerance rather
than federation, and aliases the right of free iu-
quiry. % g. y-,vs.yr
But may not include all England in this criti-
cism for, as far as can perceive, the Unitarisns
protest a9ainst this crusade ~ hotpr di,r4tlp ~
the teeSn Of the principle o. religious freedom
which England carries on her shield, if not in her
hearts And may say for the laboring masses OF
the Island, for those who work with their hands
from sun to sun, that they have not yet spoken on
either side Indeed, may also except the radical
political leaders Of the kingdom, but few of whom
have addressed the public on the subject and
those few have condemned the violence Of the
friends of the liberties of England as they who
would now repeal all laws enfranchisiug their
Roman Catholic brethren. falsely term themselves
Unfortunately, the classes which except above
do not enjoy 1.-THE of the political weight at
home TO which they are justly entitled. More
favored but less worthy classes comprise Eng
land, y for the most part, in political sense, as
they govern the foreign and domestic policy of the
realm. am justified in holding England re-
spousibe for these acts. Thus this mania affiicts
churchwardens, overseers, beadles, and, indeed
all who are within the sphere of the noxous in
fuence Of clerical infection Ii has also seized
on the weak minds of the classes desiring to see
their names in print, "whose name is legion y
there, as here, where we have hundreds of thou
sands who systematically court popularity by
joining in each passing respectable" cry. As a
class, the dissenting clergy have, however, lent
themselves to strengthen the church establishment
after this fashion with great unanmity striving
manfully to swell the torrent Of fudge, and to
bloat the pride of intolerance which the "highly
respectable" Of the kingdom is now manfesting
They are playing lckspittle to the church, crook
ing the pregnant hinges of the soul by wsy OF
winning patronizing smile from rector or to
achieve a cheering yell from the fox-hunting
Christians of county meeting to use the pungent
expression of an English Liberalist
No thinking and ris ht-minded man can watcl
the dOinss Of the country Dissenting parsons, il
this matter, without inwardly concluding tina
| they neither understand nor practice their owl
principles, nor, indeed, are they worthy of them
The religion Of the State has as little TO fea,
from them, as true spiritual independence to hope
What if these Barebones and Poundtexts do fgur,
at the meetings Of the ant-State Church Associ
alton, deliver lectures against that system which
compels the payment Of burial fees to the
Church. on body not inferred within the
Church's graveyard, which, when it had q soul in
it, acknowledged no allegiance to the Church, and
on no occasion placed itself within the Church's
guidance--pastoral care
What if their names are periodically adver-
tised, in huge posters, to discourse in Ebenezer
Chapel, Weigh-TIouse Meeting House, Brick
Lane Brapch, or Zion's Chapel, upon the enor-
nifty of the churchs exaction Of tithes from nom
conformists7 Does not their conduct in this first
right severe trial occurring in the last half CEN
fury, prove that they are the sycophants of power
whenever power condescends to use them-part-
ing thus with their opinions for the cheers of the
church and its supporters They ask but a
hear! hear!o to induce them 10 make common
cause with common oppressors of opinion to crush
their own fellow-suHerers under the neither mill
stone of an establishment They forget the fact
that the Queen is, spiritually, as foreign to them
as Plus TX and that the law courts of the King
dom have repeatedly decided that they are emit
tied to all rights and privileges of English cii-
zenship though treating the Queen as being
foreign to them in such matters In her cbarac-
ter of head Of the Anglican church, they utterly
repudiate her authority. They ignore her doc.
trine, discipline, Offices, and mandates. She is
enthusiastically land legally SOL of no account what
ever to the Freeburgher, the Baptist, the Presby-
terrain, the Romanist, the General Assembly of
the Church Of Scotland, &c. Indeed, whenever
she crosses the Scottish border, she Is, by the
lays Of England herself but a non-confor mist.
10 all non-conformists, the Patriarch of the Greek
Church or the Mahometan Father Of the Faithful
is not more foreign potentate than is the Queen
Of England enthusiastically and spiritually. True,
she parcels out her territory enthusiastically among
her archbishops and bishops, but al non conform
lists within their respective dioceses utterly DENY
their orders and repudiate their dominion They
are, In truth, but prelates on suiferance on the
toleraion only Of such AS in their private cspaci-
ty, Of their own free will adhere to the Anglican
sect. 1.-THE Church is indeed a S,a,e establish
mea as regards temporalities, as shall presently
show yet it is but a voluntary church as regards
sprituals; for, as before remarked, the highest
law court Of the Kingdom has on more than one
occasion pronounced "non.conformity," in all its
rights and immunities, to be part and parcel of
the law of the land. Thus can perceive no diff
ference between her right, as spiritual superior,
to apportion out the Kingdom enthusiastically, and
that Of the Pontff of Rome. Whv, under these
circumstances, may not the latter spiritually nom
mate ecclesiastical officers such as desire TO
have their souls so cared fort
To the Roman Catholics Of England, the Pope
is but Bishop-the spiritual head Of their
claiming nor receiving the al
legiance OF British subjects, may be drawn from
he late ratxiati iaiaratiaa f laadipa priest Of