from the general reason which he gives for the law of animal oblations: "The slaying of Cattle was, likewise, always regarded by the principal part of idolaters with detestation, and brute animals of that kind were held in high estimation by all of them; and at this day there are idolaters to be met with in India, who never slay them, even in those places where they are accustomed to slaughter sheep and similar animals. "To obliterate such erroneous opinions from the minds of men, it was enjoined that only these three kinds of animals, rams, goats, and cattle, should be offered in sacrifice, as it is said, (Levit. i. 2,) Ye shall bring your offering of the cattle, even of the herd, and of the flock;' so that by this means, that was offered to God as an atonement for our sin, which they esteemed as a crime of the greatest turpitude; and those depraved sentiments, which are, as it were, the disease and ulcer of the human soul were cured by directly opposite measures." (p. 273.) Thus to find a reason consistent with his theory, that the Law is to be interpreted throughout by the principle of a rival and contradictory ritual to that of the idolaters, he assumes it to be a fact, that the ancient nations in immediate connexion with the Jews, had the same aversion to kill animals as the Brahmins of India; which, as a general position, is wholly contrary to the truth of history. That there are plausible and sometimes ingenious "reasons" for some of the minor precepts and customs of the Jews, in the "More Nevochim," we acknowledge. Upon the whole, however, it is a very poor book, considered as an exposition of the Jewish institutions. But this poverty renders it instructive. It instructs by its omissions, by its absurdities, and its irrelevancies; and thus will be a useful publication to those who regard it in this negative light, and avail themselves of the much better help for understanding the Law of Moses which the judicious and enlightened translator has wisely connected with it. The whole powerfully teaches this lesson,-That the Old Testament is as inexplicable to a Jew without Christ, as the New Testament is to a Socinian without a Divine and atoning Christ; and that where this master doctrine is wanting, the light of learning only leads astray, and ingenuity of criticism only renders perplexity more intricate. From the Eclectic Review. contents. It is disquisitory, rather than historical; and the only fault that we have been able to detect in its execution, lies in the somewhat too sparing use of direct elucidation, circumstantial and consecutive. This, however, is a matter of mere taste, and Mr. Taylor has an indisputable right to conduct his argument in his own way. He has preferred the subordination of fact to discussion: we should have made the latter dependent on the former. We must not, however, be misunderstood. There is a good deal of specific illustration in the volume; and perhaps, it is the skill with which this is managed, as well as the frequent beauty of the language in which it is clothed, that has made us desirous of its more liberal exhibition. We have been much gratified by the announcement of a second part, which will, if we rightly understand its object, leave nothing further to be desired in this respect. The general subject is of the highest importance, including nothing less than the whole system of historical evidence. "The credit of literature, the certainty of history, and the truth of religion, are all involved in the secure transmission of ancient books to modern times." The laws by which our reception of testimony, in this matter, are regulated, have been frequently exhibited and illustrated, but never, so far as we are aware, so efficiently as in the volume before us. We do not attempt to conceal from our readers, that it will demand some effort to follow up the sequence and connexion of its reasoning; it is not light reading, but it will fully indemnify the student for any demand that it may make upon his attention, if he is to be repaid by clear statement, satisfactory deduction, and eloquent composition. Scepticism is a strange thing. To say nothing of its tendency to superstition, in anxiety to escape from religion, the absurdity and inconsistency of its prevarications are quite astounding. The same evidence which, in the case of profane history, is clear and conclusive, becomes, with a certain class of dogmatists, altogether without weight when applied to the Holy Scriptures. "There is reason to doubt if it be ever wise to treat flippant scepticism as we should deal with honest ignorance: but if argument, and nothing else, will content the sagacious doubter, it is plainly the part of the advocate of truth to insist upon removing the discussion from the confined ground of the evidences of Christianity, and to discuss the question in the open field of historical inquiry. Any other historical books rather than those of the New Testament should be selected as the subject of disputation; and when a conclusion is arrived at, the entire HISTORY OF THE TRANSMISSION process of the argument should be transferred, piece by piece, to the Gospels. As an histori lingness to be persuaded, which is not asked by missals, legends, or romances, others e the other. The Gospels demand a verdict ac- their libraries with splendid copies of cording to the evidence, in a firmer tone thanthers of the church, and of the Holy Scr any other ancient histories that can be put to and some, though a smaller number, to the bar of common sense. From those who are to reproduce such of the classic authors convinced of its truth, Christianity does indeed might be acquainted with." pp. 82, 3. ask the surrender of assent to whatever it reveals of the mysteries of the unseen world; but to its impugners it speaks only of things obvious and palpable as the objects and occupations of common life; and in relation to matters so simple, it demands what cannot be withheld -the same assent which we yield to the same proof in all other cases." pp. 236, 7. This distinct and forcible passage contains the text of Mr. Taylor's inquiries. He commences by inferring, from the history of Manuscripts, from quotations and references, as also from the very history of language itself, the antiquity and genuineness of the existing remains of Ancient Literature. This discussion is followed by a series of interesting illustrations of various circumstances connected with the materials, modes of writing and decoration, transcribers and illuminators of ancient manuscripts. The brief historical sketch enumerating the places most famed for the transcription of books, comprises a well concentrated mass of information. We extract two or three paragraphs. Similar praise is due to the history preservation of literature from its de the seventh, to its resuscitation in t teenth and fifteenth centuries. "Gen thets," it is well observed," usually ca them a meaning that oversteps the b truth." We accustom ourselves to hea talk of the dark ages," till we strain beyond all maintainable limit. Learn never extinct. A series of meritorious may be cited, in uninterrupted succes preserving the traditionary evidence, coloured by the opinions and feeling time, but affording protection to the of ancient learning, and adding somew without value, from its proper store. W Gothic nations overran the realms of Learning retired to the Eastern Emp the ark of its safety; and even in the and subjugated regions, the injury was While castles, palaces, and cathedr before the storm, "hundreds of religiou in strong or secluded situations, rema touched;" or, if occasionally ransacke passing columns of the invader, pixes "No spot was more famed for the production of books than Mount Athos, the lofty pro-boria, solid plate and splendid garme montory which stretches from the Macedonian coast far into the Egean sea. The heights and the sides of this mountain were almost covered with religious houses, rendered by art and nature, and by the universal opinion of the sanctity of the monks of the holy mountain,' so secure, that neither the meditations nor employments of the recluses were disturbed by the approach of violence. The chief occupation of the inmates of these establishments is affirmed to have been the transcription of books, of which each monastery boasted a large collection. contents of the treasury, the furnitur altar and the vestry, presented to the "metal more attractive," than books a the garniture of the library and the scr If the Church endeavoured to secure nopoly of knowledge, it at least provid secure custody and transmission. " cation of a monk," writes Mr. Fosbro least in the fourteenth century, con church music and the primary scienc mar, logic, and philosophy-obviousl Aristotle. Some French and Latin have been included; for these were Many extant MSS. prove that the copy-guages the monks were enjoined to ing of books was practised extensively, during the middle ages, in the monasteries of the Morea, in those of the islands of Eubea and of Crete. This latter island seems indeed to have been a place of refuge for men of learning during the latter periods of the eastern empire, who found in its monasteries, shelter and the means of subsistence. "Fifty religious establishments in Calabria and the kingdom of Naples are mentioned, from which proceeded a large number of the books afterwards collected in the libraries of Rome, Florence, Venice, and Milan. "In the monasteries of Western Europe also, especially in those of the British Islands, this system of copying was carried on. Though there were considerable diversities in the rules and practices of the monks of different orders, the elements of the monastic life were in all orders and in every country the same; and generally speaking, wherever there were monasteries, there was a manufacture of books. Yet in some houses these labours of the pen were L worthil divcated than in other public occasions. They were afterw to Oxford or Paris, to learn theology indeed, was the encouragement held terature, that, in a provincial chapt bots and priors of the Benedictine o at Northampton, A. D. 1343, men of le masters of arts were invited to becom by a promise of exemption from all vices." We are afraid of trusting ourselv the skilfully developed " methods of ing the credibility of historical work still more interesting "confirmation dence of historians, derived from inc sources;" but we must not, in justi Taylor, wholly pass over the valuab most poetically conceived illustratio mingled with the latter. Mr. T. w singular felicity on subjects conne Art. Himself a practical artist of no r he has exercised the reflective hal acute and vigorous mind, on the theo as the executive of his art; and he h | the deep bowels of a mountain of hewn stone! More complete proof of the absolute subjugation of the popular will in ancient Egypt cannot be imagined, than that afforded by the fact, that so much masonry was piled for such a purpose. The pyramids could never move the general enthusiasm of the people; they could only gratify the crazy vanity of the man at whose command they were reared. These taso they may be viewed as the proper images of a pure despotism: vast in the surface it covers, and the materials it combines, the prodigious mass serves only to give towering altitude to -a point. ject. After adverting to some of the discriminative characteristics of Grecian sculpture, he directs attention to the remains of Egyptian art, as confirming the testimony of historians respecting the perfect and peculiar despotism, civil and ecclesiastical, which prevailed over the regions of the Nile. They evince an expenditure of labour and treasure, that could be sustained only by monarchs holding at com. mand the services and the possessions of a na-pering quadrangles, as they were the product, tion of implicit slaves. They prove the control of unbounded wealth, resulting from the unexampled fertility of the Nilotic plains, and the active commerce of their tenants; and they exhibit all those signs of patient endurance and willing subservience which, in all ages, seem to have distinguished the descendants of Mizraim. "With such resources therefore at his disposal, and with a people much better fitted by their temperament and habits for labour than for war-for the inhabitants of fertile plains have ever been less warlike than those of mountainous regions-the master of Egypt could hardly do otherwise than expend his means upon extensive structures. "Such a degree of scientific skill in masonry as belongs to a middle stage of civilization, in which the human faculties are but half developed, is what the accounts of historians would lead us to expect; and it is just what these remains actually display. There is some science, but there is much more of cost and labour. The works undertaken by the Egyptian builders were such as a calculable waste of human life would complete; but not such as demand the mastery of practical difficulties by high efforts of mathematical genius. They could rear pyramids, or excavate catacombs, or hew temples from solid rocks of granite; but they attempted no works like those executed by the artists of the middle ages. For to poise so high in air the fretted roof and slender spire of a gothic minster, required a cost of mind greater than was at the command of the Egyptian kings." pp. 162, 3. The objects and purposes to which these enormous masses were devoted, give further attestation to the truth of historical record. The Pharaohs were not all capricious or truculent. Public works of extensive range and general usefulness, canals, quays, reservoirs, and aqueducts, are every where to be traced in vestiges of conspicuous magnitude. It is an illustration of the general mildness of the Egyptian despots, that the names of two among their number were consigned to detestation, as exactors of oppressive labour; as builders, not of temples but of pyramids. There might be a touch of priestcraft in this, but it shows the "A literature like that of Greece would have protected the Egyptians from the toils of building pyramids: had they possessed poets like Homer, historians like Thucydides, and philosophers like Aristotle, their kings would neither have dared, nor have wished to attach their fame to bare bulks of stone, displaying no trace of genius, either in the design or the execution. The Egyptian kings committed their names to pyramids which have long since betrayed their trust. The Greeks consigned the renown of their chiefs to the frail papyrus of the Nile, and the record still endures." pp. 164, 5. This is eloquent writing, and it enforces sentiments which are not less just than the language in which they are conveyed, is forcible. The chapter on "general principles applicable to questions of genuineness and authenticity," is full of excellent matter; but a fair analysis of it would demand from us, a somewhat disproportionate space; and we have already supplied enough of extract to satisfy our readers that the volume before us is written in a high strain of composition. In the concluding chapter, which may be considered as the application of the Author's previous inquiries, Mr. Taylor shows, that the arguments which, in all common cases, are admitted as valid proofs of genuineness and authenticity, establish a fortiori, the claims of the Holy Scriptures: that, in the number and antiquity of manuscripts; in extent of early circulation; in the importance attached to them by their possessors; in the respect paid to them by copyists of later ages; in the various and conflicting sentiments of those who accepted the sacred writings as the rule of faith; in the visible effects of these books from age to age; in the body of references and quotations; in the number of early versions; in the peculiar circumstances connected with the extinction, as vernacular idioms, of the languages in which the originals were written; in the means of comparison with spurious or rival compositions; in the strength of the in foxona from the 240 Fincher's Achievements of Prayer. tain, and the clear and forcible expression, in- * # "The Scriptures do indeed make a demand From the Eclectic Review. THE ACHIEVEMENTS OF PRAYER; were peculiar to those gracious and nation of the numerous examples h From these remarks, taken in q answer. The first thing, we think, which a thoughtful person on opening the the simplicity of the plan; and thought will be, the copious nature terials. Even persons conversant sacred volume may not be prepa discovery which is thus silently a of the Scriptures is occupied with presented to them, how considerab the matter, and the achievements This volume will answer an impor it merely has the effect of placing its proper light, and of bringing it rally under the attention of the Chri a convincing mass of evidence in In addition to this lesson, however St. James's declaration, that "the fectual prayer of a righteous m much." It would seem to be im any one who believes in the Divin of the Scriptures, after inspecting to resist the conclusion, that th faith has, by a fixed law of the Div ment, an absolute efficacy;-not indeed, or meritorious efficacy; s nates purely in the appointment connecting together the act of pra We cannot better explain the nature and de-issue, as certainly as effects follow the present in any of the visible operations of surd to urge any à priori objections against what is ascertained to be as much a law of the Divine providence, as gravitation is a law of the physical world. And if the Scriptures be a revelation from God, this fact is ascertained, and we have at least one clear axiom to lay, as a first principle, at the foundation of theological science. The Editor's intention has been, to make the Scriptures speak for themselves; and we warmly approve of his idea. Although, in reference to many passages, we might have been tempted to offer some explanatory or illustrative comment, we nevertheless acquiesce in his decision, as upon the whole the safest, to give only the sacred text. There are other works from which the inquirer may obtain satisfaction with regard either to any Biblical difficulties, or to the general subject. Some of the most striking proofs of the efficacy of prayer, occur in immediate connexion with the exceptions to its prevalence, under the extraordinary circumstances which take the case out of the general rule. We may instance the intercession of Abraham for Sodom, which, though unsuccessful, would have prevailed, had there been ten righteous persons in the city. Again, the Divine declaration in Jer. xv. 1, (which the passage above-mentioned serves to explain,) that though Moses and Samuel interceded, yet could not the sin of Jerusalem be forgiven, strongly implies the efficacy of their intercession on former occasions. The manner in which the request of Moses to be permitted to enter the land of Canaan, is denied, Deut. iii. 26, 7, while it supplies many other useful lessons, indirectly illustrates the mighty prevalence of prayer in all ordinary cases: even in this, an equivalent favour was bestowed. And in connexion with the prevalence of the intercessions of Moses for the children of Israel, it teaches us, that the prayers of the good on behalf of others, may be accepted and answered, when their requests for themselves are denied. To advert to one passage more; the limitation set to our prayers, or rather to our hopes, and to the warrant of faith, in 1 John v. 16, strongly implies the certain efficacy of intercessory prayer in every other case. It would seem as if the Almighty Hearer of Prayer was unwilling that his people should proffer any requests which could not be complied with, lest the assurance of their faith should be weakened; or lest the law of his operations should seem to be suspended, which connects asking with receiving, prayer with its answer, and faith with its reward. Into considerations of this nature, Mr. Fincher's plan has not permitted him to enter; and indeed, the passages to which we have referred, do not come under the general head of Achievements of Prover There is one the | memorable occasions;" and an Appendix, containing "Expostulation and Rebuke addressed to those who neglect Prayer" (taken also from the Scriptures); "Encouragement and Directions for Prayer," and a Selection of Thanksgivings from the Book of Psalms. Altogether, the volume forms a highly useful manual and monitor, replete with doctrine, reproof, correction, and consolation. There is a little work of a somewhat similar nature, entitled Clarke's Collection of Scripture Promises, which is a great favourite with numbers of pious persons, and is in extensive circulation.* The present volume well deserves to be considered as a companion work; and we trust that its extended sale will amply realize the benevolent design of the pious Editor; that it will be the means of recommending the sacred volume itself to many who have hitherto slighted the perusal, as well as of enkindling or reviving the spirit, and multiplying the achievements of prayer. From the Baptist Magazine. ON THE PRESENT STATE OF THE THE following paper is copied from the Maidstone Christian Instructor for June. "As our Roman Catholic fellow-subjects occupy, at this moment, an unusual share of the public attention, it is probable that many persons will peruse with interest a brief account of the manner in which the English section of the Roman Church is governed, the resources from which it is maintained, and the extent of its operations. Many questions might be asked on these subjects which the writer could not answer; he has, however, taken some pains to procure information, and he trusts that his readers will candidly accept statements, which, though incomplete, are the best that he has been able to obtain. "The Roman Catholic church in this coun try is under the superintendence of the congremittee at Rome for the conversion of heathen gation De Propaganda Fide, a standing comnations. The clergy here are regarded as missionaries; each of the stations they occupy is denominated a mission; and all are included in the phrase, the whole mission in England.' In Ireland there are bishops and priests; but in England there has not been any regular Romish hierarchy in the last two centuries. The church is governed by four superiors, denominated Vicars Apostolic, who are appointed by the Pope, and removable at his pleasure. |