(39), pardons (40), peregrinations (41), stations (42); his holy water (43), baptizing of bells (44), conjuring of spirits (45), crossing (46), sayning (47), anointing (48), conjuring (49), hallowing of God's good creatures (50), with the superstitious opinion joined therewith (51); his worldly monarchy (52); and wicked hierarchy (53); his three solemn vows (54), with all his shavelings of sundry sorts (55); his erroneous and bloody decrees made at Trent (56), with all the sub

(39.) Antichrist teaches the wicked and absurd doctrine of a twofold human merit-a merit of congruity, or suitableness, by which the good works of unregenerate men are said to deserve saving grace; and a merit of condignity and equal value, by which the good works of regenerated persons deserve the eternal happiness of heaven.

(40.) On the ground of satisfaction made by money, services, masses, or the like, the Pope and his agents pretend judicially to absolve professed penitents, not only from ecclesiastical censures, but from all obligations to Divine punishments in time and eternity.

(41.) This means travelling to and visiting some church, image, tomb, or the like, pretended to belong to Christ, or His saints, in order to procure pardon of sin, avert impending calamities, or obtain singular favours.

(42.) These mean weekly fasts on Wednesdays and Fridays, or little chapels to pray in for obtaining indulgence in sin, and the pardon of it; also, the singing of anthems before the image of Christ and His mother.

(43.) That is, water consecrated for sprinkling persons or things, to sanctify them for public worship, or to protect them from satanical influence.

(44.) This means washing, anointing, and naming them after some saint, with manifold ceremonies, benedictions, and prayers, in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost; and all this to make them sound comfortably and edifying to Christian souls, and terrible and confounding to devils.

(45.) Ceremoniously charging them to come out of possessed persons, or places, or to answer questions put to them.

(46.) Marking with the sign of the cross.

(47.) Sprinkling with holy water, or repeating charms like prayers, over persons or things.

(48.) Viz., with consecrated oil, or ointment.

(49.) Ceremoniously charging storms, diseases, and other troubles to depart, as if produced by the devil.

(50.) Consecrating persons or things, as water, oil, salt, ointment, priests, garments, altars, temples for worship, &c., to render them holy and effectual means of annoying the devil and his agents.

(51.) Viz., that being thus sanctified they deserve a religious veneration.

(52.) In which the Pope acts as a civil prince, and claims an unlimited power over the kingdoms of this world, particularly professed Christians.

(53.) In which the Pope, as heading the subordinate orders of cardinals, archbishops, bishops, &c., pretends to govern the spiritual concerns of the Church, as the vicar of Christ.

(54.) Viz., vows of perpetual celibacy, voluntary poverty, and implicit obedience to clerical superiors.

(55.) These mean the various orders of monks and friars, who have their heads shaven in different forms, as a badge of their pretended humility or holiness.

(56.) At a council of Romish ecclesiastics, held at Trent, in the 16th century, the abominations of Popery were publicly and solemnly established in the name of Christ and His Spirit, and a curse, extending to all the miseries of time and eternity, denounced on every Protestant on Thursday before Easter.

scribers or approvers of that cruel and bloody band, conjured against the Kirk of God (57). And finally, we detest all his vain allegories (58), rites, signs, and traditions (59), brought unto the Kirk, without, or against, the Word of God, and doctrine of his true reformed Kirk; to the which we join ourselves willingly, in doctrine, faith, religion, discipline, and use of the holy sacraments, as lively members of the same in Christ our Head, promising and swearing by the GREAT NAME OF THE LORD OUR GOD, that we shall continue in the obedience of the doctrine and discipline of this Kirk,* and shall defend the same, according to our vocation and power, all the days of our lives; under the pains contained in the law, and danger both of body and soul in the day of God's Fearful Judgment.

And seeing that many are stirred up by Satan and that Roman Antichrist, to promise, swear, subscribe, and for a time use the Holy Sacraments in the Kirk deceitfully, against their own conscience ; minding hereby, first, under the external cloak of religion, to corrupt and subvert secretly God's true religion within the Kirk; and afterwards, when time may serve, to become open enemies and persecutors of the same, under vain hope of the Pope's dispensation, devised against the Word of God, to his greater confusion, and their double condemnation in the day of the Lord Jesus: We, therefore, willing to take away all suspicion of hypocrisy, and of such double dealing with God and His Kirk, protest, and call the SEARCHER OF ALL HEARTS for witness, that our minds and hearts do fully agree with this our confession, promise, oath, and subscription; so that we are not moved with any worldly respect, but are persuaded only in our conscience, through the knowledge and love of God's true religion, imprinted in our hearts by the Holy Spirit, as we shall answer to Him in the day when the secrets of all hearts shall be disclosed.

And because we perceive that the quietness and stability of our religion and Kirk doth depend upon the safety and good behaviour of the King's Majesty, as upon a comfortable instrument of God's mercy granted to this country, for the maintaining of His Kirk and minis

(57.) This cruel and bloody band, or (as we now say) bond, means the creed of Pope Pius the IV, formed for the full confirmation and perpetual establishment of the decrees of the Council of Trent; the articles of which, all that enter into office or orders in the Romish Church are sworn to believe, maintain, and teach their people, under pain of the displeasure of Almighty God, and of His holy Apostles Peter and Paul.

(58.) In the interpretation of Scripture, or in dispensing the Sacraments. (59.) All of which are anti-scriptural, sinful, and superstitious.

The Confession which was subscribed at Holyrood House, the 25th of February, 1587-8, by the King, Lenox, Huntly, the Chancellor, and about 95 other persons, hath here added, agreeing to the word, Sir John Maxwell of Pollock hath the original parchment.

tration of justice amongst us; we protest, and promise with our hearts, under the same oath, hand-write, and pains, that we shall defend his person and authority with our goods, bodies, and lives, in the defence of Christ His Evangel, liberties of our country, ministration of justice, and punishment of iniquity, against all enemies within this realm or without, as we desire our God to be a strong and merciful defender to us in the day of our death and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ: To whom, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, be all Honour and Glory Eternally. Amen.

(To be continued.)

THE FREE CHURCH AND NATIONAL EDUCATION. THE assembling of Parliament has reawakened the demand for a national system of education for Scotland. While we write, it is still doubtful whether a measure providing such a system will be introduced during the present session. The Speech from the Throne is silent on the subject. The Lord-Advocate has said little more to the various deputations which have addressed him with reference to it, than that he will lay their views and wishes before Government. It can hardly be, however, that Government will disregard the many influential representations which have been made as to the necessity of a really national and comprehensive measure being passed without delay.

As we indicated in a previous number, incomparably the most important desideratum in such a measure is effectual provision for sound religious teaching. It is a duty which this Christian nation owes alike to Christ its Head, and to itself, to secure that His Word shall be read, and its truths and morality soundly taught, in all its schools. And in view of the growing opposition and indifference to the teaching of the Bible in national schools, it is plain that nothing will secure this adequately and permanently but the power of formal legislative enactment. Such enactment our Gallio-like Government will never make spontaneously, but we have no doubt whatever, that it would be made, if all the Churches in Scotland, hitherto professing to be anti-Voluntary in sentiment, would unite their influence in one resolute and hearty effort to obtain it.

We thought we had a right to expect good service in this direction. from the Free Church. We knew, indeed, the change which has of late taken place in the minds and counsels of the leaders of that Church on the subject of national religion. Still, we did not dream that their sentiments were so completely revolutionized as that they

would refrain from asking, and far less oppose, legislative sanction to the reading of the Bible in public schools. We remembered how nobly at the Disruption they took up Knox's idea of a school for every Church, and the godly upbringing of the young as the aim and end of every school. We considered how nobly they had striven to work out that idea in the admirably equipped schools with which they had covered the land. We said to ourselves, these men have given up the principle of Establishments, but they are still sound on the subject of national religious education: in the approaching battle for the Bible in the schools, they will come to the front; and by the numbers and influence of the Church they represent, by their right to be heard on educational matters, and by the great weight which Government must attach to their representations, they will turn the scale of victory; and to the honour of raising up in Scotland a Free Church, they will add the honour of securing to Scotland the free right to have the Bible taught in all her public schools, spite of the intolerant interference of Secularists and Voluntaries.

And had the leaders of the Free Church proved good men and true at this crisis-true to their avowed principles, and true to their former selves, the victory would have been won. But "the children of Ephraim, being armed, and carrying bows, turned back in the day of battle." We can hardly conceive anything more unworthy of the Free Church than the resolutions on the subject of national education which were adopted at a recent meeting of the Commission of Assembly, which had been called for the special consideration of the subject. These resolutions were indeed opposed by the vigorous speeches and formal protests of Dr. Begg, Mr. Nixon, and others, as well as by the votes of more than one-third of the meeting. But they embody the policy of the men whom the majority of the Church follow in very docile if not very noble submission; a deputation, every man of whom is in favour of them, was appointed to lay them before Government; so that there is little hope either of their being rescinded or of the mischief they are fitted to do being counteracted.

The first deplorable thing connected with these resolutions is that, as interpreted by those who carried them, they are meant to be opposed to all legislative sanction or even recognition of religious teaching in national schools. The last resolution declares that "if the preparation and introduction of a new measure were likely to cause delay so as to risk its being passed in the present session, they would earnestly urge the bringing in of the bill exactly as it stood at the close of last session, with such amendments as may be practicable." Now every one knows that "the bill exactly as it stood at the close of last session" contained not one word in favour of the

continuance of religious teaching in the proposed national schools. But may not this be one of the amendments on the bill which are to be obtained, if "practicable?" No! there is not the least intention of even proposing such an amendment. The fact that the resolutions were carried in opposition to a motion which craved at least some recognition of religious teaching in any proposed bill is proof conclusive as to that. In fact the one sole point in which the two motions were opposed to each other was as to whether the recognition of religious teaching should be insisted on or not. So that the Free Church, as represented by its Commission, has declared that it does not want, and will not ask the sanction of legal and governmental recognition to the teaching of God's Word in the schools of the land. Is that a decision worthy of the body which calls itself the Church of Knox, and Melville, and Henderson? Is it a decision inspired by the principles and doings of any one of all Scotland's great-hearted Reformers? Does it not derive its inspiration from Voluntaryism?

In these resolutions, further, the Commission propose that "not only the reading of the Bible, but the giving of religious instruction generally, be left to be regulated by the local school committees, under the operation of the conscience clause." Now we hesitate not to say that to leave the entire regulations as to religious instruction in the hands of local school committees, composed as we know these committees must often be, without anything on the statute-book to ensure that such instruction shall be rightly given, or even that it shall be given at all, seems a piece of remarkable folly and faithlessness. On this point let us hear the true and forcible remarks of Mr. Nixon :

"The local parties consist, among others, of the parents of the 100,000 children who are left by them uneducated, of tens of thousands who never enter a church, who know no Sabbath, who care nothing about religion for themselves or their children, who are brutishly ignorant or immoral, or who are malignant haters and scorners of all true godliness, and of a few self-confident free-thinkers who, under pretensions captivating to the popular mind, aspire to be the leaders and pioneers of public progress. To local majorities, composed more or less of such materials, is to be entrusted supreme civil authority and power to do with the religious part of education in schools what they please. That is, the Legislature shall, by statute, give a supreme power to local majorities of the people, in the exercise of the civil authority handed over to them, to introduce into our schools Protestantism or Popery, Calvinism, Arminianism, or Unitarianism, or any other ism or isms, or to shut them all out together, and leave nothing but blank practical Atheism, just as the majority in each case are pleased to determine. And that is what our friends term adequate security, so far as education is concerned, for the 'godly upbringing of the youth of this realm."" (Hear, hear, and applause.)

To this argument of Mr. Nixon's, Professor Rainy made a very weighty, though a very unintentional contribution, when he remarked that "there was a very rapid and a very ominous growth of a pre