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Real balance due from the Publishers, August 6, 1804.

1211 29

7942 72

Nett avails of the four volumes exclusive of Magazines on hand,

7309 12

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The foregoing is a true statement of the Magazine account,

as settled up to August 6, 1804.

JONATHAN BRACE, Auditors.
JOHN PORTER,

.

The sum of 1211 dollars and 29 cents, mentioned above as due from the Publishers of the Magazine, was paid by them, September 20th, to the honorable Messrs. John Treadwell and Jonathan Brace, a Committee appointed by the Trustees of the Missionary Society of Connecticut to receive the same; and by said Committee was paid to the Treasurer of the Society, as appears by the Treasurer's Receipt, as follows:

HARTFORD, September 20th, 1804.

Received from the honorable John Treadwell and Jonathan Brace, Esquires, for and in behalf of the Trustees of the Missionary Society of Connecticut, the sum of twelve hundred and eleven dollars and twenty-nine cents, for which I am accountable as Treasurer to the Missionary Society, having given a duplicate of this receipt therefor. The same being avails of the Connecticut Evangelical Magazine.

A. KINGSBURY.

1804.

Donations to the Missionary Society of Connecticut.

Sept. 20. Of honorable John Treadwell and Jonathan Brace, Esq'rs. being avails of Evangelical Magazine,

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Christianity distinguished by its

name.

The disciples were called Christians first in Antioch. Acts xi. 26.

HE high importance of

THE

Christianity, to nian, fully apologizes for every well meant attempt to illustrate and recommend it. The design of the following dissertation is to consider the import of its name.

From the first use of language the design of names has been to distinguish their subjects from other individuals of the same species, or from other species of the same kind, or they have denoted general objects. They supercede the necessity of endless circumlocution, and facilitate the communication of knowledge, by writing and the intercourse of social life. Though they may be viewed as in a sense arbitrary, it is evident they originated, at least frequently, in a supposed adaptedness to express the most distinguishing quality, relation, or circumstance of the subject. The scripture account of the VOL. V. No. 5.

names given to the first human pair by God, and to the animal world by Adam, is agreeable to this view.* And many passages in scripture history convey the same idea.

The scriptural text with which these observations are introduced, refers to an event important in the history of the primitive Church. Antioch was a large city, at a distance from Jerusalem, the capital of the kingdom of Syria, known in the prophecy of Daniel by the epithet of "the Kingdom of the North;" as that of Egypt is by "the Kingdom of the South." It consisted of that part of the Empire of Alexander the Great, which fell to Antiochus in the division of the Empire among his four principal Captains, which took place in a few years after the death of that conque

ror.

This City was built by Antiochus, and named by him to per. petuate the remembrance of his glory. In this, as in most populous places of the East, many

*Gen. i. 26. and ii. 19, 20-23. V

Jews had long dwelt among the Gentiles, who were the principal inhabitants. Happily for many there, the persecution of the disciples of Christ, in which the holy Stephen sealed the gospel testimony with his blood, occasioned such a dispersion of the disciples and preachers of the gospel, that some of them travelled as far as Antioch, preaching the gospel," and the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number believed and turned to the Lord." And although they preached the word to Jews only, it pleased God to make it successful to Gentiles, opening the door of faith to them also. Such is the fulness of divine grace that God is found even of those who sought him not.

This worthy name was evidently in a high degree proper, as Christ was the Alpha and Omega of their religion, and their hope; their Prophet, Priest and King. It is also well known to the learned, that various sects of heathen philosophers ! were at that time denominated from their leaders and foun ders.

This name, however, seems not to have been assumed by the disciples of Christ merely from human views of propriety.

The Greek word here rendered called, is not the usual word so rendered. It properly imports a particular divine agency, influence or direction, and may be very literally ren dered divinely called. We find the word in some of its forma tions several times used in the Greek Testament, in all of which it has a signification similar to that just mentioned.*

On the whole, we may be well satisfied of the propriety of the name given to the disciples of our Lord Jesus Christ, at Antioch, and that in receiv ing it they acted by divine direc tion; their religion is, therefore, termed Christianity. In illustrating the propriety of this name, we shall be led to notice a few leading marks of distinction between this religion and all other religions among men.

The conversion of Jews and Gentiles to the Christian faith, in the same city, prepared the way for their union in the same congregation, for the celebration of divine worship and ordinances; and their frequent intercourse, in that near relation, must have produced frequent occasion to mention each other, by their national distinction. This tended to excite their respective national prejudices, and to marr the happiness of their union in the Christian church. A common name seemed well adapted to prevent the evil, and none could have been invented so agreeable and proper as one derived from that of their common Lord. This would prevent the evil resulting from the frequent mention of their national distinction, express their united reverence to their master, the divine author of their religion, and would effectually distinguish them from the votaries of all other religions. xii. 25.

We shall take our view of Christianity from the sacred book in which it is revealed. It is, however, to be remembered, that we consider the whole volume of scripture as containing a divine revelation of this

*Matt. ii. 12-22. Luke ii. 26. Acts x. 22. Heb. viii. 5.-xi. 7.

The distinction between Christianity and all other religions respects its doctrines, its moral precepts and the prospects which

religion. The Old Testament | ties, in all these respects; and as constituting the first part, that he exists in that infinitely and the New Testament the perfect manner called a Trinity second and last. in unity, possessing the whole perfection of unity and of Trinity, the whole benefit of both, in all respects and especially in this, that he enjoys independent communion in himself, as an incommunicable perfection of Jehovah, in distinction from the solitary, imperfect and depen dent unity of the object of worship in the Mahometan system.

it
opens; but to consider these
grand divisions in all their rami-
fications would require many
volumes. We shall, therefore,
pursue the following concise
arrangement of a few leading
marks of distinction, viz.

The object of worship,
The ground of acceptance,
The system of morality, and
The retributions of futurity.

I. We attend to the distinctions in the object of worship. Christianity teaches the worship of the one living and true God, in distinction from the polytheism of all systems of Pagan theology. It teaches that this God is eternal and independent, in distinction from the genealogies and dependent succession of their numerous divinities. They had their Jupiter optimus maximus, or their greatest God, their Dii majores or Gods greater than another class whom they called their household Gods. All these had a beginning, and were dependent, the less on the greater, and all on their Supreme Jupiter, and he on fate, which the best of them believed to be above the Gods. Christianity teaches that this one God is possessed of all natural perfection, originally and independently; that he is omnipresent, omniscient, omnipotent and immutable, in distinction from the total deficiency and imperfection of their divini

This is usually expressed by a personal distinction in the Deity, because there is an evident foundation for the application of the three personal epithets, I, Thou and He, as used in common language; though we by no means comprehend that distinction in the infinitely perfect manner of the divine existence, as distinguished from that of created, dependent and imperfect beings; we, however, can perceive it to be necessary to independent perfection and felicity, and can apprehend no more difficulty in the belief of this doctrine, than of any other truth of natural or revealed religion, which exceeds our comprehension. We there, fore rest with unwavering faith in the true and proper divinity of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost, and that "these three are one.

This triune Deity, who is the object of Christian worship, is also possessed of infinite moral perfection, or he is immutably good. It is a dictate of right reason that a Being possessed of such natural perfections as the holy scriptures ascribe to the object of worship, and existing in such a manner, must be infinitely perfect in his moral

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