the unchristian temper and conduct of some of our professing brethren, and to show their want of conformity with the spirit and example of our common Saviour. This, the only independent, christian course, I am sure every generous and noble mind must wish me to pursue, while I hold myself ready to correct all mistakes, and to publish all candid objections to my views and reasonings.

Permit me now, christian brethren, solemnly to affirm, that, in common with all other Christians, we firmly believe in the existence and providence of One eternal, all-perfect, all-pervading Spirit, the Creator, the Preserver, the Benefactor, and the Father of the universe. With all other Christians, we believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of the living God. With all other Christians, we believe that the Bible contains the faithful record of a special revelation from the infinite Jehovah. With all protestant Christians, we believe that the sacred Scriptures are a safe and sufficient guide of faith and practice, and that all persons have an equal and perfect right, nay, that it is their bounden duty, to interpret them for themselves. With all consistent Protestants, we believe that we are answerable to no man, to no body of men, to no church, to no council, for our religious opinions and observances; but only to our God, our Saviour, and our own consciences. With all consistent Protestants, we believe that the same principles of interpretation are to be applied to the holy writings which we apply to the contents of other books of equal antiquity and obscurity. Renouncing all allegiance to earthly masters, laying aside all human creeds and formularies of faith, acting in strict compliance with the fundamental principles of Protestantism, we make the Bible, and the Bible alone, the infallible standard of christian truth. and holiness. By an honest and prayerful and persevering examination of its pages, we discover sentiments which other believers reject, and we are unable to find some doctrines which others receive. It is our great reverence for the Scriptures, our firm adherence to their plain and explicit instructions, our determination to obey God rather than men, our desire of proving all things and holding fast that only which is good, which compels us to dissent from the conclusions of some of our fellow-disciples. The most important points of difference I will now proceed to mention and illustrate. I. We differ from some of our christian brethren in relation to the nature of God. They believe in what is called the doctrine of the Trinity. They believe, according to the

Andover creed, "that in the Godhead are three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost; and that these Three are One God, the same in substance, and equal in power and glory." Now I reject this doctrine for many satisfactory reasons; six of the most obvious I will briefly state.

As preliminary, however, to the discussion of this question, let me premise that there are two modes by which to proceed in the attempt to establish the doctrine of the Trinity, and that my argument must be shaped conformably. The one is, by producing passages of Scripture which expressly and directly teach or imply the doctrine, that there are three persons or distinctions in the Godhead; the other, by bringing together certain texts which seem to ascribe deity to the Son, and deity and personality to the holy Spirit, and coupling them with those texts which speak of the Father as God, and of God as one, hence to infer a triune God. This latter argument will be considered by and by. My present concern is solely with the former. Accordingly, it will be my particular object, in this communication, to show that there is no passage of Scripture which can be construed as of itself teaching or implying a threefold distinction in the Godhead; but, on the contrary, that the Deity is unequivocally and uniformly, throughout the Bible, spoken of as the holy ONE, and never as "the holy three in one." In pursuing my argument, I shall take the liberty of introducing such corroborative testimony as may present.

In the first place, then, I reject the doctrine of the Trinity, because it appears to me to be self-contradictory and absurd; and you well know that the human mind cannot receive a contradiction or an absurdity. You cannot believe that three and three make four, for this is a contradiction; neither can you believe that three are one, or that one is three. You cannot believe that three parts of an apple are three apples, or that three apples are but one apple; for this is an absurdity. Now let us apply these illustrations to the doctrine in question. If you say that the Father alone is a perfect Being, that the Son alone is a perfect Being, that the Spirit alone is a perfect Being, then you have three perfect Beings; and, consequently, three Gods; for God is nothing more nor less than one perfect Being. If, on the other hand, you assert that the Father alone is not a perfect Being, that the Son alone is not a perfect Being, that the Spirit alone is not a perfect Being, then you have three imperfect Beings; and, consequently, no God; for three imperfect Be

ings can never make one perfect Being; if they could, deities without number might be formed from the hosts of created intelligences with which the universe is filled. If you affirm that the Father is not a distinct person, that the Son is not a distinct person, that the Spirit is not a distinct person, but that Father, Son, and Spirit are merely different names for distinctions in the Deity; then you give up your belief in a trinity of persons; you believe in one God, while you mystify your doctrine with unintelligible terms. Now if you will candidly examine all the ideas which you have in your minds upon this subject, without any regard to sects or creeds, I think you will arrive at one of these three conclusions : Either that you are endeavouring to believe in three perfect Beings, and, consequently, in three Gods, which is an absurdity; or that you are endeavouring to believe in three imperfect Beings, and, consequently, in no God, which is also an absurdity; or that you do actually believe in One all-perfect, all-pervading Spirit, the only true God, which is the fundamental article of the Unitarian creed. Let me, then, ask you to investigate this point with candour, so as to ascertain if our views do not perfectly coïncide on this important question.

2. In the second place, I reject the doctrine of the Trinity, because I can find no trace of it in the Old Testament. A triune God is nowhere spoken of, and there is not a text which intimates it. It is nowhere said, and it is nowhere hinted, that there are three persons or three distinctions of any sort in the Godhead. I have read every chapter and every verse of these ancient writings, and I have never discovered one text which contains such an idea. I have never seen the slightest allusion to any such doctrine from the beginning of Genesis to the end of Malachi. I have repeatedly asked those who belong to your church to mention a single passage in the Hebrew Scriptures which either teaches or implies such a sentiment. My request has never been granted. I believe most firmly that no individual can show any such text. Now if the Trinity is revealed in these sacred books, would it not have been discovered before this period of the world? As it never has been found in their pages, is it not fair to conclude that it is not contained therein? What, then, must be our conclusion? Would the all-wise God have called a people from idolatry, would he have made them the medium of communication to other

nations, would he have given them a special revelation of his will, would he have done all this, and not so much as have disclosed his true nature in one single instance? This seems to me impossible; and as he has nowhere given them the least hint of a trinity of persons in his Godhead, this silence is conclusive evidence to my mind of the human origin of the doctrine. But I will not decide for others. I only beseech you to search prayerfully the holy records; if you find the idea of three persons or distinctions anywhere on their pages, have the goodness to send me the chapter and verse; if you should not make any such discovery, have the independence and honesty to acknowledge publicly that no trace of the Trinity can be found in the Old Testament.

3. In the third place, I reject the doctrine of the Trinity, because I never heard of its being believed by an individual of the Jewish nation. This people were peculiarly favoured by the Most High. They were entrusted with many important and divine truths. Their lawgiver, their prophets, their wise men, wrote the several books which constitute the Old Testament. These sacred writings were designed for the special benefit of their countrymen. Now can you mention the name of one Jew, from the time of Abraham to the present day, who believed that God exists in three persons or distinctions? I think not. How, then, will you account for this remarkable fact? Will you contend that the very writers and readers of the Hebrew Scriptures mistook their true meaning on the fundamental article of all religion? To my mind this supposition appears utterly inadmissible. I cannot believe the all-wise Jehovah would have permitted his benevolent designs to have been thus frustrated. I cannot admit that such ignorance on the part of the people is possible. I must, therefore, conclude that no such doctrine was ever revealed to them. I can discover no trace of it in their sacred writings, and I can hear of no individual of their whole number who ever made such a discovery. This objection is to my mind truly unanswerable. I have never seen even a plausible explanation of this insurmountable difficulty. But I would have you decide this question for yourselves. Make diligent inquiry into the religious views of the ancient church. If you can find a Trinitarian among its various members, from the period of their election to receive the knowledge of the true God to the present day, please to forward his name. If you cannot succeed in this undertak

ing, have the independence to acknowledge the fact, and the courage to admit the necessary consequence, that no such doctrine as the Trinity is contained in their Scriptures.

4. In the fourth place, I reject the doctrine of the Trinity, because I can find no trace of it in the New Testament. The blessed Jesus was educated in the Jewish religion, and in the sentiments of his ancestors. At his baptism, he received the holy Spirit without measure. He was commissioned to make a further revelation of the will of Jehovah, who had spoken to his fathers by the prophets, but who had in no instance spoken to them of a trinity of persons or distinctions in the Godhead. Did the Saviour preach this doctrine to his disciples? Did the apostles proclaim it to the world? Did they record it in their writings? I have carefully examined every sentence of the Gospels, the Acts of the Apostles, the Epistles, and the book of Revelation, and I have never been able to discover even one text which contains the idea that God exists in three persons or distinctions. I have repeatedly asked members of your church to mention a single passage which explicitly teaches the doctrine. No one has ever complied with my request. I do not believe any one ever can. -I think the evidence is perfectly conclusive that the apostles did not consider Jesus as belonging to the Godhead. For when he was apprehended, tried, and crucified, they all forsook him and fled; one denied him with cursing and swearing, and another betrayed his innocent blood for thirty pieces of silver. Could they have been guilty of such conduct, had they believed he was the very God? Impossible. Had the doctrine been revealed to them after the resurrection, would they not have explicitly declared it in their discourses and mentioned it in their letters? This they have not done, and, to my mind, this silence presents an unanswerable objection to the doctrine. But I would have you search the Scriptures for yourselves. Whenever you find a passage which expresses the idea of three persons or distinctions in God, please to forward it. If you can discover none of this description, I trust you will have the independence to declare your honest convictions.

5. In the fifth place, I reject the doctrine of the Trinity, because I can trace it, most satisfactorily, to a human origin. I have examined the early history of the christian church with considerable attention. I have not room to introduce extracts from the authorities which I have consulted; and, indeed, from the nature of the case, they would require many