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WITH AN APPENDIX, COXTAININ^G A PROPOSED COXSTITUTION FOR THE SYNOD; ALSO THE ACrS OF PARLIAMENT WniCH AUTPIORTZE THE ASSEMBLING TnEREOF • AND OTHER NEW MATTER. i^ il R A T A . At page 8, foot uote, for " ^." read " ^." y» " for '' ^." i-ead •' ^'" ;; 21, fourth line, for 'W/,.'' read V."^,.. •■ .4 h r' .!.'''*' ""' ""' '^' ^'^^ «f the page 34, before t.tle of Act. insert 22 Victoria, C> 13D ( nil ADDRESS TO THB LAITY OF THE DIOCESE OFQUEBEC, FROM THE CHUECH OF ENGLAND SECOND EDITION. WITH AN APPENDIX, COXTAINIXG A PROPOSED CONSTITUTION FOR THE SYNOD ALSO THE ACTS OF PARLIAMENT W^IC^ AUTIIORTZE THE ASSEMBLING TnEREOF j AND OTHER NEW MATTER. I dlii U f b £ C : MIDDLETON & DAWSON, PRINTERS, SHAW'S BUILDINGS . i ■ I 1850. f rrface is % $tm\)i (BAim. Sinop: the publication of the first ecUtiou of the follow- ing Address, several notices, both^jro and con, of the sub- jects on which it treats, have emanated from unknown sources. The Lay Association, however, when issuing u second edition to meet the increasing demand, might be ex- cused the task of alluding, at any length, to the productions of anonymous objectors, even if these had disturbed the po- sition of the Association, and if the courtesy and temper of the most elaborate of them, had been developed in mor(i polished and becoming phraseology. As it is, they arc content to reflect that such sentiments and epithets as' have been unjustly pointed at the members of the Asso- ciation, seldom indicate a good cause, and do not reflect much credit on a weak one. AVith reference to the five points, of varying import- ance, dwelt upon in their Address, it is satisfactory to the Association to find that no particular objection is made to their views relative to the Ist, 3rd, and 4th ; and al- though the 2nd and 5th have been criticized more at large, they see no reason to modify the sentiments which they have expressed. With respect to the former, (viz., the qualifications of lay delegates,) the theory that the partaking of the eucharist includes all necessary qualifica- tions, is so clearly contradicted by practical experience, that the Association cannot but adhere to the opinion that the people are the best judges of the fitness of their re- presentatives, and should not be restricted, further than i! they now are by law, in the choice of their delegates. With respect to the latter, (viz., the claimed Episcopal Veto,)* it may be observed that a volmitary transition from the autocratic to a constitutional form of govern- ment, necessarily involves fundamental but beneficial changes, whether taking place in the State or in the Church, and that it may not be expected, in such a case, to blend two uncongenial forms, by retaining in the new one, incompatible characteristics of the old. The consti- tutional principle, once adopted, should be consistently carried out. It seems, indeed, to be admitted, as regards the Synod, that " everything " (including, therefore, the Vcio) *• will depend upon the nature and provisions of the Constitution, which it will be the first duty of the Sy- nod to construct." This concession, moreover, is implied in the pains which have been taken to argue upon this matter of the Vdo, as also upon the others relative to lay qualifications, &c. Where everything, then, is confessedly to derive its synodical existence from the tenor of the • The latest modificatioa of the Veto which has been proposed is, that an appeal should lie from it to a Provincial Synod, where a separate house of Bishops would sustain the principle of Epis- copal Government. But, Ist. — This is at once to confess what is alleged, viz : that the Veto absolute ought not t^ be entrusted to one man. 2nd. — No Provincial Synod is in existence ; there may never be one ; and it will at least be soon enough when there is, for the Synod to consider this proposition. 3rd. — Being confessedly unsafe to grant a Veto without appeal, it would further be improper, until it shall have been ascertained that a Provincial Synod, when constituted, would accept an Appellate Jurisdiction, and upon what questions. 4th. — It will, on all accounts, be prudent to try the Synodical experiment first without the Veto, since this may at any time be granted, if found desirable ; but if once granted, it cannot bo revoked. X. i Constitution that may be adopted, there can be no ante- cedent rights, nor inherent privileges. The Association are, therefore, conflrmcd in their principle that everything regarding the Synod will depend upon the Constitution ; and again, that whatever the Constitution may confer, the Constitution may withhold ; especially when it is consider- ed that the law does not prescribe any provisions of a Constitution, nor recognize beforehand any prerogatives of orders, nor sanction any particular model for the Sy- nod, but leaves " the Bishop, Clergy, and Laity," (who are specified merely as comprised in the more comprehen- sive and generic designation of, " Members of the United Church of England and Ireland)" free, " in such manner and by such proceedings as they sliall adopt, to frame constitutions and make regulations, &c." for the govern- ment of the Churcli. Xor will the Association be deter- red by any misrepresentations of tlicir motives and aims from loyally desiriiig to see the foundations of the Church in this Diocese laid in the liberty of the Laity, the inde- pendence of tlie Clergy, and the constitutional preroga- tives of the Bibliop. ADDRESS. i i! The Clmrcli of Eni:^'laii(I Lfiy Association, recently formed in the City of (^ueljec, take an early opportunity of inviting the attention of their lay brethren tl)roiijj;hout the Diocese, to the nature and ohjeets of the Association, and of [(lacinjj;- Ijoforc them a few considerations connected with the inqiortaut rights and duties about to devolve u})on the Church in the present new aspect of ecclcsiastieul allairs. The circumstances v/hieh naturally gave rise to the Association, have, together wit'.i its general character and designs, been sufiicienlly exphvined in a Report'"' of a Committee appointed on the 2(Jth July last, at a public meeting of the members of the Church ; and which was adopted at a similar meeting held at the Court-llouse, on the 2iid Se{)tember following, when also the Association was formed, KeferrinT, thcrcrore, to that d.ocument for a narrative of past transactions, it is oidy proposed, on the present occasion, to glance at a few of the more iinportaut considerations wliich necessavily come under review in coimection with the powers of sy nodical action and self-government, now Ijy law conferred upon the Church, In doing this, however, the Lay Association desire to bo * Thit: document which contaiued a sketch of transactions previous to tlui formation of the Association, is suljstitutcd in this issue by the .ids of Purliur.ient which authorize Synodical action in the Church ; the proximity of the Easter elections rendering it desirable that these should be generally circulated for the iaformatioa and guidance of the coustitiiea-iies^ i \\\ i distinctly niKlcr'tootl as presuming neither to dictate nor to prescribe It the Laity at large tlic oj)iiiious 'they phouUl hold, or the line of conduct they sliould pursue, in the exercise of their newly aciiulrcd privileges. Neither do they so much pretend to impart instruciion, where, comparatively speaking, all are novices ; as, by conference, either in writing, or verbally, or both, to elicit the real sentiments of the people, in order that these may be ultimately concentrated in the legi.-lature of the Church. The general interests of the Laity are identical in all parts of the Diocese alike : neither those of the city, nor those of the towns, nor those of the rural districts, havo any inducement to over-reach each other ; nor can any- thing which ministers to the Avelfare of the haiiyc/i. masse. bo otherwise than condm:ive to the general welfare of the Church. The Association is, accordingly, open to all her adult members without distinction ; and all arc ii vltcdto enrol their names amongst its members, upon a perfect footing 01 equality, w'lerever they may happen to reside. Its objects arc tc ascertain and make public the views of the Laity upon the important snliject-matters about to be con(id':d to the Synod ; to secure, thus, for the Church, the proper influence of the known opinions and wants of the masses of her members ; and for their delegates, abil- ity to discharge their important functions with satisfaction to themselves, and advantage to the Church at large. The methods by which it is proposed to accom])lish these ends, are com})rised in a sim[)le interchange of sentiment and experience upon questions falling within the range of synodieal legislation. And while humbly yet f'-eely ex- pressing tlieir ov,'ii views, as occasion may rcqulj <% upon such questions, the Association invite the fullest commu- uication of the views of others, in order that a genuine public opinion upon matters affecting the dearest privi- leges of the present and succeeding generations, may be lis f' ■ i ii I ; i u , 'I i} ill mm 8 created in the Diocese, so that when the time shall arrive for the election of the delegates, the several congregations may the more intelligently exercise their elective frs'.'^ise, instruct their representatives accordingly, and thus render the Constitution and proceedings of the Synod, as regards its lay element, a true reflection of the opinions and wishes of the great body of the Church. It is presumed to be generally known that, under the authority of recent statutes, (19 & 20 Yic, cap. 121, and 22 Yic, cap. 139,*) the Bishop, Clergy and Laity may meet, fthe latter l)y representation,; and frame constitutions and regulations for the discipline, go- vernment, and management of the property and affairs of their respective Dioceses. This convention in each Dio- cese will be a Z)?(>ct5««»Sy?iod They may also, by such representatives as shall be determined in the several Dio- ceses, meet in General Assembly, and frame a Constitution for the general management and government of 'Jie Church in the entire Province. The Diocesan Synod and the Ge- neral Assemldy thus contemplated, bear evident ana- logy to tlr admirably constituted and successful Diocesan and General Conventions of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States. It is, however, of matters pertaining to the Diocesan Synod exclusively, that the Association are at present called upon to treat. The earliest attention of that body, when assembled in its first session at the summons of the Lord Bishop, must be given to the construction of a Constitution which may regulate its own subsequent composition and proceedings, and make other provisions contemi»lated by the law. Pos- sibly the articles of such an iafitrument need not be very numerous, at least until additions and amendments, in the form of canons or otherwise, shall have been suggested by * See Appendix A. 9 f future experience of the requirements of the Church. A Constitution, however, of some kind, will be indispensable in limine, to give organized form to a legislative assembly invested by law with very extensive powers and authori- ty ; and aithougli it miglit be deemed presumptuous and premature, were the Assoeiation to throw their ideas into a draft of a Constitution, and to publish it for tho information of the public ; yet, as a document of that description, whieli was framed by a Committee prcviooa to the date of their formation, hiis been laid uiion their table, and generally commends itself to their aiijU'oval, tliey append it to this Address,* to serve at least a.s a basi3 for the free conference upon the subject to which they respectfully invite tlicir lay brethren throughout the Di'> oese. But in the meantime, their attention has been di- rected particularly to certain points of such pronlluent importance in reference to the matter of a Coii.-;tilutiun, tliat they venture at once to allude to these somewhat in detail. And Istly. — With reference to tlie boundaries of the several constituencies, and the numb':r of delegates from each, it is perhaps of less consi'((Ucnce than is commonly .supposed, whether every sep'arate congregation, however small, in each mission or pastoral charge, should form a sc{>arato constituency, and send its delegate.^ to Synod ; or wheth- er each entire pastoral charge should 'brm but one consti- tuency. The latter, rather than the former, plan accords with prevailing precedent, and with equity, and is the one suggested ir. the draft of a constitution hereunto append- ed. But whether either of these, or a dillerent one based upon population, be adopted by the Synod, the Associa- tion recommend thai each constituency bo allowed to elect three delegate-^, as at present permitted to do by • See Appendix B. i^ i| I m (! !i|? •5 10 law. The advantages to a delegate, of having an associ- ate interested in the same locality to confer witli, are considerable ; while the election of three will diminish the chances of there being any one constituency entirely unrepresented. 2ndly. — As regards the qualifications of the delegates, the Association are clearly of opinion that the electors in each constituency are the best judges of the fitness of their representatives, and that to restrict their liberty in the choice of their delegates, would be a needless and dan- gerous interference with the elective franchise of tlie peo- ple. The idea has, nevertheless, more than once been se- riously proposed, to limit eligibility to the office of a dele- gate to communicants ; and as it may be proposed again, it may not be unnecessary to expend a few words upou the subject. The motive for the proposal may be pre- sumed to be the good one of securing for the Synod the presence of well-qualified representatives. Apart, how- ever, from the consideration that the Laity arc the safest guardians of tlicir own interests, and the best judges of the suitableness of candidates for their votes, there is the further one that the partaking of the sacred ordinance in question does not necessarily imply tjie possession of su- l^erior qualifications. It were doubtless desirable that every member of the Church appreciated all her articles, practised all her precepts, and conformed to all her ordi- nances ; and that upon the ground of their being based upon the supreme authority of the Word of God. It is also especially desirable that the qualifications of intelli- gence, honesty, and personal piety, should be attributes of every member of the Synod, clerical as well as lay. But it is difficult to discover why, out of the whole catalogue of the doctrines, moral requirements, sacramental and ce- remonial observances of the Church, one in particular should be selected as the stepping-stone to sy nodical r t"- 'i 11 honors, and the sole standard of personal suitableness for the important trust of a lay delegate ; or, why all the other characteristics of consistent churchmanship, and even all the delinquencies of the inconsistent professor, should be overlooked, and the mere participation of the eucharist be made the sole test of eligibility for the ap- proval and confidence of the constituencies. It should be remembered that conscientious scruples of various kinds are amongst the influences which deter some consistent members of the Church from approaching the Sacrament- al table. May not this very tenderness of conscience which actuates them, itself supply the strongest possible security, if accepting the functions of a delegate, that they will faithfully and conscientiously discharge them ? It is further to be considered that the adoption of the sacra- mental qualification for all lay delegates would, in this country, in some cases, so circumscribe the choice of the peo})le, as virtually to destroy it, if, indeed, it might not in others compel them, in order to be represented at all, to elect parties the least able to represent, or who would actually misrepresent them. The question must be regard- ed as belonging exclusively to the Laity ; and, if handled as a general one of peremptory discipline, especially if so mooted in order to exalt the sacramental power of the (]lergy, may open up other questions of deviation from the usages of the Church , and awaken undesirable discussions. If to communicate once a year be exacted as a qualification, why not once a month t why not also attendance in the Church at daily prayer, and on all the " saints' days," with other rubrical requirements, not more arbitrary, nor less questionable, as tests of genuine Christianity ? True, it may be urged that, in some secular elections, material guarantees are demanded for the loyalty of the elected ; and that attendance at the Lord's table implies a guaran- tee for the piety which includes all other quahfications. 'H I 13 Where religions interests, however, are concerned, every man's stake in the welfare of the Church of which he is a member, is already, presumably, a suflBcient warranty of his integrity ; but even if this were otherwise, do not the walk and conversation, both public and private, of some regular communicants, furnish lamentable proof, that, if unable to govern themselves according to the principles of the Church, they cannot be pre-eminently qualified to govern her ? The wide and delicate question of personal Church-disciiilinc, may, appropriately, at a future day, engage attention, if it do not also excite some feeling, in the Synod ; but until dealt with as a whole, it would be inconvenient and unjust to legislate partially upon the subject. Can it be presumed to comport with peculiar fitness for a legislator of the Church, to give but little or none of his goods to feed the poor, — to take God's name in vain, — to desecrate the Sabbath by secular amusements or pursuits, — to in- dulge in intemperate habits, — to slander or defraud his neighbour,— to be early on the turf, and late at the gaming table ; provided only that the Table of the Lord be ap- proached once a year, to preserve his synodical ortho- doxy ? Or, can the interests of religion imperatively re- quire the eligibility of such an one to Synod, merely because he is a communicant, and the exclusion of the moral and conscientious churchman, merely because he is not ? If it be a duty to deplore the above inconsistencies, can it be, at the same time, a duty to ignore them, and to magnify the Blmple outward oliservance of a most solemn ordinance into an atoning service which shall cover a multitude of guch delinquencies (itself, perhaps, the greatest of all) and invest, it may be, some mere ambitious formalist with an exclusive title to the suffrages, without the confidence, of the electors ? No such condition as that of the sacra- mental test is sought to be imposed on those clergymen, who, being without cure of souls, arc not required by the r 1 1 ^ tP 13 tubricto partake of tlio ordinance in question, but who will, uevertheless, take their seats in the Synod : neither need it be imposed upon the Laity.* The odious and demoralizing provisions of the Test and Corporation Act, havr. long been erased from the statute-book of the mother- country. The Association have no desire to sec them revived in tlie Constitution of a Colonial Cliurch. The law has qualified as electors " all laymen of the full age of twenty-one years, who shall declare thenisclves, in writins:, to be members of the United Church of En<]:land and Ireland, and to belong to no other religious denomina- tion."' The Association conceive that all such electors should continue to be, as they now are, eligible to be members of the Synod. Srdly. — With respect to tlie asseniljliiig and proroguing of the Synod — a subject which, although involving to a largo extent the liberty and independence of the Synod, may not require much argument — the Association are of * A. proposition to lliat cllect liaviri.!? boon nvMV' end negatived in the Dioccso of P(Min;=ylvania, in 1SJ7, '• the Lif-hop, previous to giving Ills vote, which was in the negative, gave potnc rca.sons tor his course ; tliat he greatly desired the acconiplis-hment of the object, but thought that the end was likely to be attained Ijv moans les.j ptringont ; that the sudden and pcreu;:ptory cxcIuHic!! of non-coniraunicants would leave some parishes without any re- presentation — would cast cut several exemplary members — and would impair the intkienco of pastors over many non-commuui- cants who w^crc kept from the tabic rather by pious scruples than indifference.'' In the Convention of the Diocese of New York, in 1849, " the subject was largely and thoroughly discussed, and the proposed amendment" (viz : requiring delegates to be communicants,) " was lost by a non-concurrence of orders." The subject being revived in the same Diocese, in 18."8, it was indefmitely postponed, on tlie recommendation of the Cif-Imp, who said " For several years my attention has been turned to it at ditferent times, and the more I have considered it in the light of all the facts, tholess I have felt inclined to favor it." !rii m I i u opinion that a session of that body should be held at a fixed time and place in every year, and that its proceed- ings should be liable to adjournment, only upon its own rule or resolution. The Act of Parliament empowers the Tjishop to summon the first meeting ; but the Synod, once assembled, will become the supreme authority in the (JJhurch in all matters affecting itself ; and the Association Immbly suggest that it will be the duty of the delegates to consent to no provision in the Constitution, tending to de- ])rive the Synod of the right to hold its future meetings for business, at a period to be defined in that document ; and, to adjourn them at its own discretion. It is gratifying to the Association to observe that the principle of tliis recommendation corresponds with the view of their own Diocesan; who, in 1851, "considered it desirable that the Bishop, Clergy, and Laity in each Diocese should meet together iu Synod, at such times and in such manner as may be agreed."* If otherwise, the power to convoke might become so latent as virtually to make void the Synod, by never calling it together at all ; and the power to prorogue be so wielded as to destroy all freedom of debate ; since it would be competent to the authority ])0ssessing it to stop all proceedings in the middle of an unwelcome discussion ; or, by threatening this, to silence any member, clerical or lay, at a pointed turn of an un- j)alatable speech, or indeed if he presumed to speak at all. If Todgcd with the Bishop, the power here reviewed would be an Episcopal Vdo in its most objectionable form. 4thly. — The excellent provision for a "vote by orders," in an assembly composed of mixed classes, next requires some notice from the Association. It is commended in a recent public document as "a wholesome usage ; consx^r- vative of the rights of the Clergy and Laity alike ; ob- taining universally in the Diocesan and General Conven- tions of the sister-Church in the United States ; and * Sec " Minutes of a Conforoncc of tbe Bishops. &c.'" or 15 transcribed from her excellent models into recent organi- xatioas of the Colonial Church. It is, however, utterly without precedent in the mother-Church of England and Ireland ; is known, wherever it exists, not as an inherent or abstract right, but only as a constitutional privilege ; and cannot, therefore, vest in the clerical or lay elements •jif a Synod, any more than can a Veto, absolute or quali- fied, vest in the Bishop, until authorized by a Constitu. tion lawfully adopted by the Church," The Association do not anticipate any material difference of opinion res- j)ecthig the insertion in the Constitution of the necessary provision for the safeguard of the " vote by orders." Xevcrthcless, it may supi)ly not wholly superfluous infor- matiou to some readers of this Address, if the Association offer a few remarks regarding that convenient and equita- ble method of combiuiug the clerical and lay talent of the Church, for purposes of deliberation, in a single assembly, and yet of obtaining, when desired, the separate judg- ment of each, without detriment to the interests of either. It Is believed to be an American invention, and loses none of its intrinsic value from being found everywhere in the tried machinery of that well organized Episcopal Church already referred to, to which the Colonial Church must look for other patterns of Constitutional Church-govern- ment, and of a flourishing Episcopacy. The "orders" of the above technical expression are not the three orders of the ministry — Bishop, Priests, and Deacons — as if eachol' these, besides the Laity, making in all four elements, might exercise, on demand, a separate voice ; but they are merely the two classes of the Clergy and Laity which compose the Convention. And the meaning of the "vote ])y orders" is, that, while in ordinary cases these two classes deliberate and vote together without distinction, they may, when desired, on special occasions, particularly when interests peculiar to either arc at stake, vote separately, or "by orders ;" and whou that is done, no measure Is I ■ i 1'^ : I •iji 1 , .:'« 4 16, held to be adopted unless obtaimng a majority of both orders — 1. c, a majority of the Clergy, voting apart ; and a majority of the Laity, voting apart ; or a " con- current majority," as it is termed. Thus, neitlier order can override or overbear the other, and the " vote by orders" becomes a security for the rights and interests of botli. Sthly. — The last topic upon which the Association deem it necessary here to spcalv, is the so-called " Episcopal Veto." It cannot be pretended or expected, within the compass of a single section of an Address, that a subject which has been dealt with so fully as this has bcen^ both verbally and through the medium of the press, should receive from the Association more than a passing notice of some of its loading features. It is claimed, as an essen- tial attribute of the Episcopate, that the Bishop should possess the power of an absolute negative upon any meas- ure of the Synod, carried by whatever separate majorities of both its orders. That any such autocratic authority is essential to the Episcopate, is sufficiently refuted by the notorious fact that there are upwards of thirty organized Dioceses of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States, in wliieh the Bishops are clothed with no such prerogative. To hold, therefore, that the Veto is essential to the Episcopate, is at once to unconsecrate upwards of thirty prelates of a Church which has enlarged her borders, and multiplied her Sees, during the last seventy-five years, without conferring any such power upon her Bishops. — The small and unprogressive '•''Diocese of Yermout is the * Tho justness of t!io sentiment suggested here, having been questioned, the followiDg statistics are supplied for the reader's information : — nr,^^,.-^ No. OF Clergy. Dioceses. j^g^^ Vermont 22 Jfaiuo 5 New Hampshire 7 Hassachu.setts 50 Rhode Island 18 Connecticut 79 Y. 1857. niorr,i.-« ^^- "P Ci-ERGT. DlOCE.Siy. jg3fj_ jj,.^ 23 N"ew York 171 809 17 Western New York '6 118 13 New .Jersey 39 .'!.5 77 Pennsylvania 91 165 32 Delaware 10 20 113 Maryland 71 liA, Jf. h 17 I « solitary exception to the prevailing rule. No other pre- '.edciit for it has been produced, except that it has been very recently yielded in some newly-formed Colonial •Synods witii untried Constitutions. The Association frank- ly avow their preference for the well-tried system which has worked so efficiently in the sister-Church of the ad- joining States. Nor can they perceive the wisdom or •safety of substituting, in this respect, for the happy example which that Church presents, needless experiments and untried inventions in ecclesiastical legislation, at variance with the constitutional principles, prevailing precedents, and successful experience, during three quarters of a century, of that most perfectly organized Protestant Episcopal Church in the Avorld. It is, indeed, iinpossil)le for the Association to coinprc^- iiend the consistency of desiring a Synod at all, and at the same tirao of investing its presiding officer with the power of nullifying its proceedings ; and particularly under the now recognized principle of an elective Ti^piscopate. In, perhaps, the most important act of the Synod — the elco riou of a Bishop — there can, obviously, be no Veto. Yet, by wliat reasoning can it I)e shewn that the Synod, which, proceeding to the choice of a Bishop, and therefore withoat a BLshop presiding in it, is competent to sit in uruer.s, ) years, DiOCKSES. Vir 'iniii Xo. OP CLE 1830. 75 22 •:o 8 51 (5 20 19 8 IGV. 1S57. lis 45 Of) 22 83 30 80 17 20 ... 7 ...20 4 DlOPRSE? Micliiirnn.. l.onisiaiia. No OF Cl 1839. .... 20 o . . . ." 8 EK(iY. 1857 41 34 20 2;t 45 41. 1776 lops. — is the Xoi'lli Carolina. . . ."^Diitli Cai'oliuiv.. . • ... ♦Jeor^ia Missouri.. G Ohio Illinois.... Wiscou.siu . Indian T D ofCal Oregon a .... 13 .... 4 cned, the Mississippi Kentucky Teiiuessoe .... Neweii orritnry iforiiia. 949 Dioceses. RGY. Alabama 1857. 809 118 New Ell D. of Florida.. . 1). of Iowa D. of Ai'kaasas. Pio »» 8.5 V 165 ud ^V■as B 2 liington Te •ritory 7 20 I), of Texas ...10 l&^k. Nortli West Mission ...17 80 ' B- 18 ' >i' I ,!!^ hi judgment upon a matter of the weightiest import, musfc forfeit, the moment the new Bi.shop is electeJ, its compe- tency to legislate in the smallest matters, and remain thus paralyzed, until his death resuscitate its dormant competen- cy to perform anew the waking act of a fresh election, and then to fall again into a trance ? Would not this bo virtually to limit the functions of the Synod to the election of Bishops ? But the Act of rarliameut (19 & 20 Yic, cap. 121,) empowers the Synod in every Diocese to " make regula- tions for enforcing discipline in the Church, for the appointment, deposition, deprivation, or removal, of any person bearing office therein, of whatever order or degree." Is it not perfectly legitimate to imagine, for a moment^ the case of tlie trial of a Bishop, or the proposal of a Canon for establishing a Court for that purpose, and for regulating its procecdirgs ? and is it not perfectly absurd to suppose that the Synod would have liberty in the premises, if the Bishop had been previously endowed with an absolute Veto upon all its enactments ? Nay, the ui^anlmous voles of the Clergy and Laiiy, in Synod as- sembled, would be powerless for the " exclusion from the meetings or proceedings of the Synod," (which the said Act also authorizes,) of the humblest of its mtjmbers, clerical or lay, whatever might be the proved charges against him, if he but happen to enjoy a sullieient amount of Episcopal favor and support, to secure for him a Veto upon the resolution for his expulsion. The Synod would thus be deprived of the right — inherent in all independent deliberative bodies — of purging its own floor, and protect- hig its own privileges. Again, if the Synod be qualified to choose a Bishop for the Diocese, by what rule of propriety or of common sense, may he, on the day of his election, turn round on his electors, and, by a Veto upon all their measui'cs, except that of his own elevation, 4 \d 'I 'leclart' them disqualified to judge of all other rcquiremeatH •rf the Church ? If the Bishop for the time being, con' ceutrated in his one mind all the wisdom and experience of the Church ; and in his sympathies all her wants ; and were gifted with the attribute of infallibility ; reason mlijfht that he should be entrusted with uncontrolled authority. But the best of meu are fallible ; and the wisest of fallible men are too distrustful of their own exercise of uuicstricted power to covet it ; lest their own opinions and acts should be swayed by private predilections, rather tlian the public good. What prerogative, then, can be fraught with greater danger to the Bishop himself, as well as to the Church, than that which is contended for H.s " essential to the Episcopate ?" The live Bishops themselves, indeed, (viz., of Quebec, Toronto, Newfound- land, Frederictou, and Montreal,) appear to have been conscious of this when (in their " Minutes of a Conference ot the Bishops, holden at Quebec from September 2ith to October 1st, 1851,") they adduce it as the one ground of tlieir desire for a Synod, that they " experience great difficulty in acting in accordance with their Episcopal Commission and Prerogatives, and their decisions are liable to jniscoustruction, as if emanating from their individual will, and not from the general body of the Church." It W(juld be difficult to describe or to deprecate the Episcopal I'^ettt of a synodical enactment, in more appropriate or stronger terms, than as a " decision emanating from the individual will of the Bishop," despite the expressed wishes of " the general body of the Church." It is with un- niiugled satisfaction, therefore, that the Association thus read the recorded opinion of these high authorities, includ- ing tlieir own Diocesan, as harmonizing, in this particular, so completely with their own. * * A Church of Eugland author, of grave character and great experience, says : " An absolute Veto is neither safe, aor belongs to the essence of an Episcopal Church-system. Surely it is pes- 20 I. Ill ill 1 ;i ill i U !■ The Association scarcely deem it necessary to pursue at any length the fallacious and exploded arc^unicnt attempted to be drawn from a supi)oscd analogy 'tetween the three estates of the realm, and the three f which how- ever, strictly speaking-, arc either four — Bishop, Priests, Deacons, and Laity, or only two — Clergy and Laity,) of the Church ; and then between the prerogative of the Queen and the Veto of the President on the one hand, and the claimed Vc/n of a Bishop on the other. But there is no analogy. The prerogative of the Crown of Enghuid is now on all hands conceded to be, to all practical intents and purposes, a constituiional, not an arbitrary, ]ircroga- tive, to bo used by and with the consent of the Ministry, her constitutional advisers, who are responsible to the siblc to bo a very good Episcopalian, without atlmittin-? ibat a Bishop necessarily knows better than any conceivable majority of a united body of clergy and lay delegates." '* If a m'ljority of the clergy, and a majority of the laity, voting separately, bo ob- tained in favor of a measure, it ought not to be finally negatived by any one individual." " The prevailing repugnance to the concession of the Veto has boon expressed mainly with reference to the one-man-potver ; no one individual ouglit to be thus en- trusted with the authority of negativing the united decision of bis fellows." " Our sister-church in the United States has got along these sixty years, and has prospered, without this ' essen- tial feature' of an Episcopal Church." And another — -'As the head of the clergy, the Bishop, sitting with them, will always ex- ercise as much inlluonce as one man ought to have in a delibera- tive body, particularly amongst a dependent missionary-clergy. To give him more tlian that proper weight which oITio ', talents, and piety, will always secure, by allowing him to stop aside from the body in wtiich he had been conducting a dobate, in order to veto an adopted measure upon which he had boon deliberating, would not only destroy the independence of the Church, but in the end endanger the Episcopate itself." " The Veto is a power which would clothe its possessor with an accumulation of prero- gatives not less foreign as a whole to a Scriptural Episcopate, than would this one in particular be dangerous to the indepen- dence of the Chureh." 21 people. And the Veto of the President of the United States, who is himself directly responsible to the public voice, is subject to wholesome checks, both legislative and personal. If, pending- his brief terra of oQice, the Veto any Bill, he must return it with his reasons ; and if it be rc- utiirmed by a two-thirds vote of the Legislature, his Vdo is annulled, and the measure, ipso facto, becomes law. But further, he is himself subject at the hustings to the peo- ple's quadrennial Vdo upon him. If the analogy were made complete by surrounding the Episcopal chair with a body of constitutional advis.jrs, am niable to the Synod ; or by subjecting both the claimed Veto of its occupant to the overbearing voice of the Synod, and also its occupant himself periodically to a synodical re-election, the Veto of the Bishop woidd become, in such a case, not an arbitrary power, but a constitutional privilege, for which his "Minis- try" in the one case, and both his decision and himself in tlie other, would be, at recurring periods, responsible ta the Church. The Association, however, question wdiether either of these arrangements would accord with the genius of Episcopacy ; and still more v/hether a quadrennial election of a Bishop would be less dangerous to the peace of the Church, than a Veto absolute would l>e to her liber- ty. But the pretended analogy still further fails when it ig remembered that neither of the above secular function- aries sits or deliberates in the Senate of cither country. " In no case," ol^serves an English writer, " can it be safe or constitutitional to centre the double functions of the legislative and executive in one and the same hands. Neither the Sovereign nor the President has a seat or a vote in Parliament, and even their Tl'^o is guarded by constitu- tional rv'straints which make it virtually subject to the voice of the nation, as the functions of all her members, clerical and lay, ought t o be subject to the authority of the Church. The Veto would place one of them above it,"" I'h ; ».' ] I :| "I 22 It only remains, in connection with this subject, to no- tice the deadeninj^ influence which the known possession of a '^'^eio by the Bishop must needs exert upon the vitality of the Synod in which he presides. The object of the Synod is to obtain a full and free expression of the wanta and wishes of the Church ; and, as far as practicable, to provide for them. Towards the accomplishment of these ends, she invites her members to lay all their treasurer^ of wisdom and knowledge, of intellect and inilueneo, of zeal and experience, at her feet. Everything, therefore, tend- ing to restrain them in the conception, advocacy, and com- pletion, of wholesome measures for her welfaic, would be a barrier to the attainment of the object of the Synod. The clerical element iu that body, being an assemblage of several individuals, is deliberative in character — diflering, discussing, voting, amongst themselves ; and a majority preponderates : so also is the Lay element. Under such circumstances, truth is elicited in thfi freedom of debate, and the issue is the result of fair deliberation. But, let a chilling feeling brood over the Synod, that a distinct party is present, who is not a deliberative element, cannot argue with himself, nor d' ride upon a question within himself, but whose own " individual will" can outweigh till the united logic and judgment of the Synod ; and how para- lysing to every manly and independent thought, valuable design, and forcible argument — how destructive of the end and purpose of a conference — must be the incubus of such a feeling I How useless to propose, or to reason, or for the Synod to waste its time by entertaining a motion or a suggestion until, first, the leaning and wishes of the Bishop be disclosed I The first enquiry with every member, with respect to any project for the Church's good, will be — not, is it in itself, and in its season, a desirable one ? but, what are the Bishop's projects, the Bishop's wishes, the Bishop's interests, or predilections, or even prejudices ! 23 And thns, the energy and independence of the Synod withered, and its design defeated, it will become little else than an office of record for enregistering the acts of tlic liishop, performed under the misnomer of Synodical legis- lation. " It would be quite as well," remarks a writer al- ready quoted, " to do without the semblance of legislation, as to ])c called upon to legislate within the limits which the existence of the Veto would assign to the Church's representatives." And an American writer says : — " A Veto, vested in a sitting and acting member of the legisla- tive body, destroys legislative freedom altogether. If the President has the right of thus annulling the legislative will, the attempt to legislate in his presence is a farce, and free discussion worse than useless. His vote in the negative • Ml any proposition would, of course, destroy it, even on a j)rcliuiinary question ; for there would bo a manifest im- propriety in any farther proceedings, which would be both disrespectful to him, and derogatory to the dignity of the house. But the chief reason why, in our political institu- tions, the Vcfo is never coimccted with legislative membership, applies with peculiar force to the Church. When so associated, it absorbs in its possessor absolute power. * This, I will not pass in this shape,'* not only prevents the introduction of an unwelcome subject, but exacts its modification so as to connect with the Veto- power the power of initiation." The Bishop examines, ordains, and licenses all clergymen, who, if ever leaving the Diocese, require his letters dimissory or commendatory: in this Diocese, in the present instance, as Rector of Que- bec (an oITice held unavoidably together with the Episco- * " If I recollect right," (states aa English author,) " the Bishop of Vermont says, it does not happen that he has to exer- cise the Veto which the Constitution gives him ; for when Clergy and Laity discuss a matter which the Bishop is decidedly oppoa- ixl to, ho just gets up and says so ; then they desist, and the mat- ter drops ! This is precisely what I suppose the Emperor of Russia does in his Council of Ministers or Generals !'' 24 ' 1 ul a i isi h till [IK. pal) — besides the clerical patronage of the Cathedral or Parish-Church — he is the patron of tlirec or four Chapel- ries ; he is Visitor of a College which v/ill probably send three or four more clergymen to Synod ; and as Agent of the " Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts," as well as of tlv..: " Church Society," he is the patron and paymaster of country Missionaries, locates and removes them . No calculation is here made of the number of clerical votes which he may thus direct- ly and indirectly command ; nor of the lay votes which, through the clergy, he may command also.* It cannot be denied that an immense and varied, if not alarming amount of official, moral, and material influence clusters thus already around the Episcopal chair. Surely it can- not be " essential to the Episcopate," nor necessary nor safe for the Church, that this concentration of power — which is unknown to the Hierarchy of the United Church of England and Ireland ; is also without precedent in the United States ; and which, it is believed, finds no parallel even in the Church of Rome — should be increased and consummated by adding to it, besides a presiding influence in the Synod, a Veto upou all its transactions. f If undur * It was publicly boasted by a Clergyuian, on a Into occasion, that be had a thousand people in his uiissiou, who would vote ex- actly as he dc^5ircd them ! t The subject here in hand is illuytratou by recent information from the Diocese of Nova Scotia, where — la the Syno^l which as- sembled in October last — *' Notice was given of a motion to - abolish the Bishop's V:to over the procoedings of the Synod, and to compel him to preside with his council in a separate room, that the deliberations of the Synod might be more free and unbiassed."' — {Church Witness.) The fact is pregnant with instruction re- lative to the possession of undue and anomalous powers, and to the working of untried Constitutions. The experiment of th'? Veto is already furnishing matter for discontent and agitation in the Church, which are not likely to be diminished by the reflec- tion that the Bishop may Veto any attempt of the Synod to de- prive him of the Veto with which the Constitution has endowed him. 25 Tiacli circumstances, and noiwitlistanding aW the prestige of bis office, and the weight of his patronage, any raeasuro ever receive a majority of the clerical and lay votes, con- 1 raiy to the wishes of the Bishop, the simple fact would certainly indicate a case in which his own " individual will'' ought not to outweigh and nuliify tlic decision of such ;i concurrent majority. Tlie Association, however, do not overlook the consideration thatthcie are imperfections in overy human organization, and that there will l)e disad- v^utuTCs as well as advantages attendant upon a union of ilie Clergy and Laity in one house. The latter arc those of better [(crsonal acquaintance, and amicable interchann-e ')i' thought : tlie former those, occasionally, of waim de- viate, and prccipitAte decisions,, Willi tlie view of meet- ing the contingency of oversights and hasty legiskition, t\\o draft of a Ciit one vote. ARTICLE XII. The Bishop shall have the right to reserve any canon resolution, or proceeding, he may disapprove of, within ten days from its passaiion by the Synod, upon assigning his reasons therefor, in writing, and handing a copy of the same, signed by himself, to each of the two Secretaries, for the information of the Synod ; in which case, the canon, resolution, or proceeding, shall be returned to the Synod for re-consideration at,,its next meeting, when a majority of each order shall be necessary for its adoption ARTICLE XIII. It shall be the duty of the Synod, at the first meeting thereof, and at every annual meeting subsequently, to elect, from amongst its own members, a Standing Com- mittee, one half of which to be a quorum, to be composed of three clergymen and three lay representatives, with power to fill up vacancies, who shall retain office till their successors shall be appointed. ARTICLE XIV. In case of a vacancy in the See, it shal^ be the duty of the Standing Committee to give notice of such vacancy to every clergyman and representative within ten days from their knowledge thereof ; and, at the same time, to sum- mon a meeting of the Synod to be held within not less 32 ''y. 11 'i. ;';''. m m Lhan throe months after such vacancy, for the election o( a Bishop, giving two months' notice thereof. ARTICLE XV. At all elections held by the Synod, the clergy and lay representatives shall vote by orders, by ballot ; and a ma- jority of the votes of each order shall determine the choice. ARTICLE XVI, Any cure which may be hereafter established, being desirous of uniting with the Synod of this Diocese, shall apply by letter to the Bishop, or the Standing Committee stating the due organization of the cure, the election of churchwardens, and their means of support of a minister, and their willingness to conform to the Constitution of this Diocese, and the Canons of the Synod thereof ; and at the Synod next succeeding the receipt of such application, the Bishop, or Standing Committee, shall communicate the same to the Synod for its decision theeron. Should the Synod make a favourable decision, the cure shall then be considered as in union, and entitled to all the privileges of the same. ARTICLE XVII. In the event of a General Assembly or Synod being hereafter established, it shall be the duty of the Diocesan Synod, at its first meeting thereafter, to elect such num- ber of delegates as shall be deemed necessary to represent the Diocese in such General Assembly or Synod ; provid- ed, always, that one half, at least, of such representatives -shall be laymen. ARTICLE XVIII. Any proposition for amending or altering this Consti- tution, must be introduced in writing, and leave obtained for the consideration of the same at the next meeting of the Synod ; and, if then approved by majorities of not less than two-thirds of the Clergy and Lay delegates re- spectively, it shall be adopted. A V V E N D 1 X 10 k 20 VICTORIA, CAP.12i An Aft to ciinble the Mcinbci*3 of the Uiilteil Clmri-U of Enj::;- ]aiid and Ireland in Canada, to uic-ct in Synod. Wlipreas doubts exist whctlicv tlie MeiiiMer.s of' the United Cliurcli of En<^'laud and Ireland, in tliis Province, have tlic power of regulating the affairs of their Oimreh, in matters rehatiug to diseipUne, and uccessary to order and good govcrument, and it is just that sucli doubts sliould be removed in order that they may be peruiitidl u> exercise tlie same rights of self-goverumeut that are I'lijoy- ed !)y other rehgious eonmiunities ; therefore, ITer Majes- ty, by and with the advice and consent of tlie Legi.-lativt^ Council and Assembly of Canada, enacts as follows :• — I. The Bishops, Clergy, and Laity, meml)ers of the Ignited Church of England and Ireland, in tliis Province, may meet in their several Dioceses, which are now, or may bo hereafter constituted in this Province, and in such man- ner and by such proceedings as they shall adopt, frame constitutions and make regulations for enforcing discipline in the Church, for the appointaieut, deposition, dojirivatioa or removal of any person bearing office therein, of what- ever order or degree, any rights of the Cro^\ n to the con- trary notwithstanding, and for the convenient and orderly management of the property, aflairs and interests of the Church in matters relating to aud affecting only the sai