an entrance into his religion, by the public and usual rites of initiation. But the fact that confirmation was really one of those rites, will yet remain to be proved; and, as regeneration by the Holy Ghost is on all hands allowed to be the consequences of baptism, by itself, and even where no confirmation is superadded,—the expression is more naturally understood, and has been, in fact, so understood by the greater part of orthodox commentators, as merely declaratory of the spiritual benefits which were to follow the external rite of water.

There is, indeed, a dangerous consequence attendant on both Taylor's arguments, that, by limiting the gift of the Holy Ghost to confirmation, he makes baptism, taken by itself, of none effect, or, at most, of no further effect, than as a decent and necessary introduction to that which would be, on this hypothesis, the main and distinctive consignation of a Christian. To this objection Taylor himself was not insensible; and he endeavours to escape from it, by a still more dangerous admission, that confirmation is, really, as generally necessary as baptism or the Lord's Supper, which is, in fact, to contradict the express doctrine of our church, and formally to elevate it to the rank of a sacrament. How little he is borne out in such doctrines by the figurative expressions of the fathers, when speaking of baptismal regeneration, will appear from a reference even to those passages on which he relies. And how unnecessary such a novel hypothesis is to the obligation and importance of the ceremony in question, may appear from the far better arguments which he afterwards produces in its favour; from the known practice of the apostles, in the case of the Samaritan converts; and from the fact, that imposition of hands is classed by St. Paul among the fundamental doctrines of Christianity b.

That confirmation was not a temporary rite, or to lose its inward and ordinary blessing when the visible and miraculous gifts were withdrawn, which, in the first ages of the church, attended it, he proves from the analogy of other external rites, which had equally, in the first ages, extraordinary effects and miraculous consignations, but which, as in the

a Vol. xi. pp. 244, 245.

b Hebrews, vi. 1, 2.

case of preaching, prayer, &c., are allowed by all parties to be still necessary, though such obvious and wonderful fruits are no longer to be anticipated from them.

The ordinary and internal graces of the Spirit are promised, as he observes, to all ages of the church; and though our consignation is by a secret power, and the work is within,"it does not therefore follow, that the external rite is not also intended," wherever that consignation is spoken of in Scripture.

"For the rite is so wholly for the mystery, and the outward for the inward, and yet, by the outward, God so usually and regularly gives the inward, that as no man is to rely upon the external ministry, as if the 'opus operatum' would do the whole duty; so no man is to neglect the external, because the internal is the more principal. The mistake in this particular hath caused great contempt of the sacraments and rituals of the church, and is the ground of the Socinian errors in these questions "."

That it was the uniform custom of the primitive church, and every where (except, perhaps, in Egypt, where he does not satisfactorily get rid of a strong testimony of St. Ambrose,) confined to the ministration of the bishop alone; that the essential parts of the rite are prayer, and imposition of hands, and that the use of oil, though very ancient, is of ecclesiastical institution only, he proves with sufficient clearness in the three following sections. In the sixth, he ably, though in a simple and unambitious style, states the spiritual benefits of which confirmation is the outward and appointed means,—and, in the last, discusses the proper age and preparation for the ceremony.

In speaking of the proper age of candidates, he holds an opinion at variance with the usual practice of the Church of England, which is seldom to admit them to the solemn rite, till they are fourteen or fifteen years of age. He, on the contrary, recommends receiving them much earlier," the sooner the better, I mean, after that reason begins to dawn;" provided only that "the children be catechized, and well instructed in the fundamentals of religion."

He proceeds, with an earnest recommendation of the

• Page 254.

ancient custom of catechizing, in which he observes, by the' way, that what is called exorcism, in the ancient church, was not, as is vulgarly supposed, an attempt to eject the devil out of innocent children, but that the exorcist was only another word for catechist; and he then winds up his argument with a short and energetic peroration, on the blessings derived from, and the obligations attached to, an attendance on the rite which he has thus vindicated.

On the whole, the learning and piety of this little tract are not unworthy of Taylor, and he deserves, at least, the praise of having made out his point satisfactorily. But, except this learning and this piety, there is, perhaps, scarcely any thing else in the Essay on Confirmation, which would mark it as his writing. He has not, indeed, slept over his task; but it cannot be said that he has drawn his bow to the full extent of his usual force and vigour. And we shall be, perhaps, the more struck with this inferiority, if we compare it with the little Essay on Friendship, which follows next in the present series, and which may be considered, without impropriety, as the earliest of his casuistic writings.

Of the lady to whom it is addressed I have already spoken; and she, certainly, deserves some credit for having suggested such a theme to Taylor, inasmuch as it was calculated, more than most others, to elicit the fires of his peculiar eloquence. It was a topic, also, on which his good sense and practical wisdom (of which qualities few men of equal genius have had a larger share), were likely to furnish very valuable rules, for the maintenance of affection in its just temper; for the increase and preservation of our interest in the breast of the beloved individual; and for the subjection and devotion of even our best and strongest feelings, to that common Father, from whom all pure affection flows. Accordingly, he has produced a splendid and powerful essay, which, though the fair and enthusiastic Orinda should seem to have preferred the forgotten one of Mr. Francis Finch, will not appear, to the generality of readers, to derogate from the high character of his greater and more laboured performances.

He begins, however, with a paradox, of which I am not sure that it does not rest on a quibble. He tells his correspondent, that friendship, in the sense under which we

commonly use the term," is not so much as named in the New Testament;" and he accounts for this, by saying, that "the greatest love, and the greatest usefulness, and the most open communication, and the noblest sufferings, and the most exemplar faithfulness, and the severest truth, and the heartiest counsel, and the greatest union of mind, of which brave men and women are capable," are, under the Christian term of charity, potentially due from us to all mankind, and directly, therefore, opposed to that affection, which is like the sun peeping through a chink," or "his beams drawn into the centre of a burning glass."

That charity, in this sense, is not friendship, is most true, since it is the general principle of affection, of which friendship is an application to particular instances, in compliance with that imperfection of our nature, and those circumstances of society, which limit our active affections, and our confidential intercourse (like our alms, and our personal intercessions), to those with whom we are brought in contact, and who only are, therefore, susceptible of our service or our tenderness.

But this limitation, and particular application of the common principle, he himself allows to be natural and necessary; and he admits, that the good and glorious Person, who, in his human nature, has given us the most perfect example of the best application and employment of all our natural affections, has left us instances, in his own conduct, of that condensed and distinctive love, which he felt, for one of the apostles, in a greater degree, than for the remaining eleven, and for the family of Lazarus, more than for the great mass of those who believed on him..

This, which the Christian Scriptures call charity, as being a particular application of the general grace, he admits, in philosophy, is called “friendship." But if the thing be named, though under a different term, in the New Testament, his assertion, that it does not occur, must resolve itself into a quibble only. And, in fact, though we have translated ayaжaw, and άyawn, perhaps, too indiscriminately, by the common and genuine term of “ love," and the almost technical term of " charity,"—it would be easy to show, not only that the corresponding word in Hebrew is applied to the "friendship" of David and Jonathan, but that άyanas

is used in the New Testament, as strictly synonymous with the proper Greek term of friendship, new, and that it is applied, both there, and in the classical writers, to express not only "love" in its exalted sense, but a much slighter degree of "liking," or "approbation"."

His doctrine, however, that friendship is the application to a particular person, of the love which, but for the weakness of our nature, we should feel for all, is strictly philosophical, as well as Christian; and there are few passages in his works more characteristic, more appropriate, or more beautiful, than the following illustration of the general principle.

"Thus, the sun is the eye of the world, and he is indifferent [impartial] to the negro, or the cold Russian; to them that dwell under the line, [qu. Pole ?] and them that stand near the tropics; the scalded Indian, or the poor boy that shakes at the foot of the Riphean hills. But the flexures of the heaven and the earth, the conveniency of abode, and the approaches to the north and south respectively, change the emanations of his beams; not that they do not pass always from him, but that they are not equally received below; but by periods and changes, by little inlets and reflections, they receive what they can. And some have only a dark day and a long night from him; snows and white cattle; a miserable life, and a perpetual harvest of catarrhs and consumptions; apoplexies and dead palsies. But some have splendid fires, and aromatic spices, rich wines, and well digested fruits, great wit, and great courage; because they dwell in his eye, and look in his face, and are the courtiers of the sun, and wait upon him in his chambers of the east. Just so it is in friendships: some are worthy, and some are necessary; some dwell hard by, and are fitted for converse; nature joins some to us, and religion combines us with others; society and accidents, parity of fortune, and equal dispositions, do actuate our friendships; which, of themselves, and in their prime disposition, are prepared for all mankind, according as any one can receive them."

Having thus defined and explained the nature of friendship, he goes on to observe, that " there may be a special friendship contracted for any special excellency whatsoever;

1 Sam. xx. 17. Schleusner, ad voc. AyanaON. e Vol. xi. p. 304.