praised the good qualities of each, and gave them appropriate exhortations, and then shook hands with them for the last time. She then exhorted all present, and tried to praise God; but her strength failing her, she said in a low, humble, and plaintive tone, Lord Jesus, why carist thou not bid me come to thee now?" Her husband replied he would bid her come to him in a few minutes. After a short struggle she said, Dicetor," and expired in the possession of perfect reason and composure. What a glorious thing it is to conquer the last enemy!-the King of Terrors! To the conqueror I will give the wreath of immortality. He shall cat of the Tree of Life in the midst of the Paradise of God.' "O sweet is the season of rest, J. P. DEPARTED this life on Saturday night. September 11th, at her residence near Bethany, MARIA LOUISA, wife of R. Y HENLEY and daughter of ALEXANDER CAMPELLL, in her 26th year. It may be permitted to say, in simple and truthful terms, of this most amiable person, that, in the fulfilment of the various relations which she sustained, she has left no sup rior, and but few equals. As a daughter-a wife-a mother, there were one more dutiful, faithful, or affectionate; as a friend-a neighbor, none were more sincere or sympathizing; as a Christian, none more conscienscious in principle, more devoted in heart, more exemplary in conduet. Oh! it is hard to die in youth-in the midst of the flowers which the spring time of our years have nurtured, when a thousand wormateetions cluster around the heart, and a thousand unfolding duties claim regard. Kat, in the triumphs of the faith which she professed, the subject of this notice yielded to the Divine pleasure with patient resignation, and in her last moments gave the most affect ing evidence of her high sense of the Divine perfections, and her deep yet bunit le reliance upon the merits of her Redeemer Being asked by the writer, in order to recall her from a transient wandering of mind, if she did not love the Saviour? "Love him!" she replied with earnestness, "love hind! I love him more than any thing in this crented world." Agam she said, "I know that he has forgiven me." Requesting the attendais to sing her favorite psalm, "The angels that watch'd round the tonib," she, although apparently incapable of such an effort, accompanied them throughout in a clear voice, Soon after she sung also with them the last verse of the song beginning, "Jesus, I love thy charming name," which verse is as follows: "I'll speak the honors of thy name And, dying, triumph in thy cross, Such was the end of this truly pious and excellent woman. ETERNAL UNION OF FRIENDS. In high that world, which lies beyond If there the cherish'd heart be fond, The eye the same, except in tears→→ How sweet this very hour to die! To soar from earth and find all fears It must be so: 'tis not for self RR. 1 The present number contains 60 pages, and yet we are in arrears in getting up with our regular series on some subjects, and a variety of communications from correspondents. Probably, as our paper may not hold out to the end of the volume, allowing the October number to be counted an Extra, we shall make our next number also 60 pages; and thus bring the volume to a close. The failure of a few Students who had engaged rooms in Bethany College, but in consequence of autumnal fevers and other sickness have been prevented from arriving, has left a few vacancies for Students that may wish to enter the present season. THE SANCTIFICATION OF THE LORD'S DAY. ONE of our oldest objections to popular and fashionable Christianity, is its desecration of the Lord's day. When first we joined the Baptists we had to stipulate for the privilege of sanctifying the natal day of Christ's church, the glorious triumph of the Captain of our salvation and our faith, by meeting together on every sacred return of that most memorable of all the days, not only of the week, but of all the years of time, to partake of the symbolic loaf and cup. They generously after some debate, allowed us the privilege of thus not forsaking the weekly assembling of the household of faith to enjoy the family meal of God's beloved children. Still our doing so was often alluded to with no very kind regard; and it was represented rather as a singular peculiarity of ours, than as an essential and divinely ordained part of the sanctification of the Lord's day. I have yet the outlines of a discourse delivered by myself in the month of June, 1811, on the first meeting of the infant church of this reformation, to break the loaf in honor of the great sin-offering-the sacrifice of the Messiah. I am forcibly reminded of the argument of that discourse, which I intend to publish in a month or two, while perusing the following Circular Letter from a New Jersey Baptist Association, who are pleased to call themselves Independent Baptists. As might be expected, we are much interested in the progress and prevalence of so important an element and item of the Christian worship, and are glad to witness a growing attention to its value and importance-not only in the thousand churches of our immediate brotherhood, but among the Baptists and other denominations. The Association from which recently emanated the following exce-lent document, consists of some 16 churches and 2771 members, and stands up with us an intelligent and independent witness for the restoration of this most solemn, soul-inspiring, and sanctifying of all the means of salvation. We hope soon to see many Baptist Associa tions uniting in this much needed effort to obtain for the primitive institution of our Lord that sacred regard and veneration due to the most signal token of his love to mankind which the annals of time or the ages of eternity can possibly unfold. We would especially invite the attention of our Baptist readers to this savory and excellent lesson; and would request of their numerous Scribes and Editors that they lay the document before the whole community, requesting them to give the subject a candid, impartial, and faithful consideration. Dear Brethren CIRCULAR LETTER. A. C. THE peculiar position which we occupy, a denomination, involves peculiar responsibility. Our name isef implies the assumption of exclusive correctness in the observance of a Christian ordinance. However candidly we may disclaim all pretension to superior personal holiness, yet we unquestionably be lieve and profess, that our unlikeness to every other denomination, in a characteristic feature, is identical with our conformity therein to "the law and the testimony." And it cannot be denied that two great ordinances of the gospel are dependent, one for its existence, and both for their legitimate application, at least in the western division of Christendom, upon the uncompromising adherence of Baptists to primitive example. If such, then, is our claim to distinguished and exclusive purity of practice, does it not involve peculiar responsibility both to Him who has favored us with the understanding of his will, and to our fellow-men, before whom our claim is constantly exhibited! Possessing an influence which our well known conformity to apesto lic precedent naturally secures us, may we not reasonably be expected to walk so consistently that our influence shall not be instrumental in leading others astray? And shall we not prove ourselves unworthy of the high trust and the extensive sphere of action which Providenc has assigned us, if we do not follow on to know the Lord," and in "all things keep the ordinances as they were delivered to us?" Suffer us to call your attention, beloved brethren, to an evident de parture from the example of the primitive churches, in our unfrequent and irregular observance of the Lord's supper. It is a fact inferrible from the scriptures, and unquestionably estab lished by the uniform voice of ecclesiastical history, that this ordinance was in primitive times inseparable from the ordinary worship of the Lord's day; and that it was regarded as the prominent object of the assembling together of the church. In instituting the ordinance our Lord used these words, "Do this in remembrance of me; for as often as ye eat this bread and drink this cup ye do show the Lord's death till he come." Here is the command rendering the ordinance obligatory; and its frequent observance is here indicated by the ex pression "as often." As the first day of the week had not yet been sanctified, by the Lord s resurrection, as his day for his disciples statedly to assemble together and to keep his ordinances, our Lord could not fix the period of its return more distinctly without an anticipation which did not seem to consist with his views or circumstances at the time. After his resurrection, the Lord frequently appeared to his disciples, and more fully instructed them in the nature and ordinances of the gospel dispensation; for Luke expressly informs us that he "spake to them of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God, and gave commandments unto the Apostles whom he had chosen." His instructions were to form the basis of their future lessons to the churches; for they were to "teach" the disciples "to observe all things whatsoever he had commanded them." The future history of the churches is for our instruction. Of the first church, at Jerusalem, it is said, "they continued steadfastly in the Apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread and in prayers." In this description of the stated ordinances of the newly formed society, we have precisely the same evidence that this ordinance was a stated part of their worship, or that the church assembled every Lord's day, and observed steadfastly the other ordinances. This was the model church. In Acts xx. 7, we have a distinct example of a day of Christian worship, and one of the chief purposes for which the disciples assembled together on that day. "Upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached to them"Paul arrived at Troas on Monday, but waited seven days, for the opportunity of meeting the whole church, on the first day of the week. If it be asked, By what authority did they meet on the first, and thus neglect the seventh day? the only answer that can be given is, that the churches would not have done it without apostolie direction, nor would the Apostles have enjoined it without the express commands of the Lord Jesus; and we must equally conclude that the same authority which enjoined the setting apart of the first day of the week, connected with it the observance of this ordinance to show forth the Lord's death till he come. The two institutions must stand or fall together. If we assemble on the Lord's day, the scriptures instruct us that it is to break bread, as well as to preach, and pray, and praise. Dr. Dod. dridge says on this passage, "It is well known the primitive Christians administered the eucharist every Lord's day; and as that was the most solemn and appropriate act of worship, it is no wonder that it should be mentioned as the end of their assembling? The death and the resurrection of our Lord being the very foundation of our religion, how wisely has he ordained it, that we should have a constant memorial of them, of his death in the Lord's supper, and of his resurrection in the Lord's day. Have we not reason to lament with Dr. Watts, The primitive Christians celebrated both of these institutions on the first day of every week. We all agree to celebrate one of these -viz. his resurrection, every week on the first day; but how few are there that celebrate the memorial of his death in a constant attendance at the Lord's supper!" We do not find any solemn stated meeting of Christians for worship in the whole New Testament, without the supper. The Apostle thus addresses the Corinthians, (1 Cor. x. 20.) "When you come together, therefore, unto one place, this is not to eat the Lord's supper;" which intimates that one main design of their coming together was and ought to have been to eat the Lord's supper; though by their ill conduct they so corrupted the ordinance that it could not be called his supper. If one should now reprove Christians whom they observe to conduct improperly in meeting, in these words, 'When you come together into one place, this is not to hear the word of God preached to you; for one is talking and another is sleeping;' would not every one conclude that in the opinion of the reprover, the hearing of the word of God preached ought to be one end of their coming together? The first day was observed by this church also, as the day of assembling; for in xvi. 2, the direction is, “On the first day of the week let every one lay by in store as God hath prospered him." It is evident, therefore, from the scriptures, that the Lord's supper formed a constituent part of the religious services of the primitive Christians, and that the time chosen for their services was the first day of the week. One rule applied to all Christian communities-"Timotheus shall bring you into remembrance of my ways, which be in Christ, as I teach every where, in every church." When we leave the apostolic age, and trace the history of the church, through succeeding times, we find the practice of all Christendom to be invariably the same. Though other days of worship were also observed by different churches, yet all agreed in breaking bread every Lord's day. Hence Chrysostom, in the third century, styles the Lord's day "the day of bread." And in the fourth century, as Mosheim observes, "the Christian worship consisted in hymns, prayers, reading the scriptures a discourse addressed to the people, and concluded with the celebration of the Lord's supper." Ecc. Hist. cent. 4, part 2, ch. 4. It appears that about three hundred years after Christ, when some who had been present at the prayers and preaching of the church, began to go away without receiving the sacrament, it was so great an innovation and breach of the scripture rule, that it was decreed that whoever was guilty of it should be excommunicated. Not only was it from the beginning and for many ages the custom, the uninterrupted, unquestioned, undisputed practice of all Christian churches to break bread every Lord's day; but our present neglect of the divine rule is one of quite modern origin. For fourteen hundred years togeth er we cannot produce one example of a stated solemn Christian assembly without the Lord's supper. How have we degenerated from the example of our own Baptist fathers! In the Baptist Confession of Faith, published in 1611, is the following article:-"That every church ought, according to the example of Christ's disciples in the primitive churches, upon every first day of the week, being the Lord's day, to assemble together, to pray, pro phesy, praise God, and break bread, and perform all other parts of scriptural communion for the worship of God, and their own mutual edification, and the preservation of true religion and piety in the church." Crosby's Hist. Baptists, vol. ii. 27. Let us return, without delay, to the path of duty. "Thus saith the Lord, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls." Jer vi. 16. The pious and learned Mr. Orme thus testifies"If I might be allowed to add my own testimony, I would say, that the experience of nearly twenty years in a numerous church where this was the constant practice, made me acquainted with no evils arising |