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 2^^ THE SCRIPTURAL WAY /^, 
 
 OP SUPPORTING 
 
 THE SERVICES OF RELIGION. 
 
 A. C H A-RGE , 
 
 DELIVERED BY THE 
 
 VENERABLE T. B. FULLER, D.D., D.C.L., 
 
 AliCIIDEACON' OF NIAGAEA, 
 
 / 
 
 AT VISITATIONS OP 
 
 THE CLERGY AND CHURCHWARDENS; 
 
 Assembled at Newmarket on the 13th, and at St. Catharines on the 
 30th September ; at Peterboro' on the 5th, Cobourg the 6th, 
 
 4 
 
 and Wliitby the 7tli of November, 1869. 
 
 TORONTO: 
 
 Bell, Barker k, Co., Printers, 94 & 96 Yonqb Strebt. 
 
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■«' ' '; T 
 
 ^ 
 
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 THE SCRIPTURAL WAY 
 
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 OP SUPPORTING 
 
 SERVICES OF RELIGION. 
 
 A. CH^RGhE. 
 
 DBLIVEBBD BT THB 
 
 VENERABLE T. B. FULLER, D.D.,D.C.L., 
 
 ARCHDEACON OF NIAGARA, 
 
 AT VISITATIONS OF 
 
 THE CLERGY AND CHURCHWARDENS; 
 
 ... 
 
 Assembled at Newmarket on the 13th, and at St. Catharines on the 
 
 30th September ; at Peterboro' on the 6th, Cobourg the 6th, 
 
 and Whitby the 7th of November, 1869. 
 
 TORONTO: 
 BxLL, Babker ft Co., Printbrs, 94 & 96 Yonob Stbebt. 
 
Having been enabled, {)y tbe kind favor of a gracious God, since my 
 ftppointnient to the archdeaconry of Nia^^ara, in February, 1867, to 
 visit almoat eveiy parish and mission committed to my care by our 
 Lite venerable Bishop, 1 now meet you, brethren of the clergy and 
 laity, for the purpose of offering to you, assembled at this archdia- 
 coual visitation, some suggestions in reference to those matters, which 
 ai)pertain more particularly to the temporalities of the Church, with 
 wliich I am more es,')ecially charged, as archdeacon, and Avhich are 
 of paran)ount importance to the growth, nay to the very mainten- 
 ance, of the Chuich in this diocese. 
 
 In viiitiiig your s^iveral parishes aul missions, I liaVe learned with 
 a great deil of pleisure that, with L-vv exceptioii.s, thej are out of debt 
 for the erection of their Churches and parsonages ; and that, where 
 there remains any debt, means have been taken for its liquidation- 
 Great improvements in Church architecture are manifest in the 
 Churches more recently erected ; and special attention seems to have 
 been taken, to secure, as far as possible, the union in the services of 
 the Church of all the members of our Holy Communion present — an 
 object of the first importance, not only to the growth in grace of our 
 own people, but also to the effect that our services should have on 
 those without our fold. 
 
 I regret much, that there are not more parsonages than there are 
 amongst us, occupied by our brethren of the clergy, there being only 
 twenty-three in the whole archdeaconry, comprising the counties of 
 Lincoln, Welland, Haldimand, East and North York, Ontario, Vic- 
 toria, Durham, Pcterboro' and Northumberland ; and some of these 
 are only apologies for parsonag-es. As soon as a congregation, who 
 have a resilient minister, are out of debt for the erection of their Church, 
 they shouhl take steps to commence a parsonage at as early a day as 
 possible. Being accustomed to exeii themselves in the erection of 
 their Church, they will not find the building of their parsonage so dif- 
 ficult, as if they are allowed to fall back into the old and evil habit of 
 doing little or nothing for the Church of Christ. Besides there is 
 nothing that unites a congregation more than having before it some 
 common object, on which their thoughts are centred, and for which 
 they are called to act, Whilst the work is going on they are all as 
 one family. Too often when the work is done, and this bond of union 
 is taken off, the unity produced by it fails. Mortover, there is noth- 
 ing better calculated to secure to a parish a good clergyman than the 
 possession of a comfortable parsonage. It is always worth far more to 
 such a parish than the money it cost i*^^. When a parish has secured a 
 
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 Church and parsoiiagc, it is the duty of that parisli to secure, at h>a.st 
 a partial endowment. 0])portuniti('s are frequently occurring, whore 
 properties can be purchased for a trifle, which in the cour.,e of years 
 will be of great value. A congi'cgatlon who have built and paid for 
 their Church and parsonage, can, under ordinary circumstances, easily 
 secure for their parish a suitable endowment. It is not in the ability 
 to do these things that our peojile are deficient ; but in the practical 
 belief, that it is their duly to devote a considerable portion of their 
 means to such purposes. And, while teaching them their duty in 
 this respect, it is well for our clergy to keep before their people some 
 good work, in which they can engage and on which they can put in 
 practice the lessons they are taught. 
 
 When people are accustomed to exertion they do not dislike it. It 
 is only those unnccustomed to it, who feel it a burden. It is therefore 
 not good for a congregation, any more than it is good for an individual, 
 to have nothing to do. But surely no congregation in our archdeaconry 
 need complain of having nothing lo do for the Church of which they 
 are members. There is work for all, if not in their own favored 
 localities, iu other parts of the archdeaconry. With one excejjtion, 
 that of York, there is no county within our bounds, in which there' is 
 a resident clergyman in every township. And I am sorry to be 
 obliged to say, that there are several, which are almost entirely desti- 
 tute of the ministrations of our Chur(;h. Even in the old and well 
 settled counties of Lincoln and Wclhiiid there are three in the former, 
 and four in the latter, without a resident clergyman. In the county of 
 Haldimand we have three clergymen to ten townships. In the county 
 of Ontario we have six clergymen to eleven townships ; but of these 
 six clergymen the services of four being exclusively confined to the three 
 townships on the front, the eight townships in the rear, containing, 
 pccording to the last census, six thousand Church people, have oidy 
 two clergymen to labor in them. There were, according to the sam5 
 authority, four thousand members of the Church in the then eighteen 
 townships of the County of Victoria ; and no doubt there are many 
 more in that county, at the present time, as ma. y persons have set- 
 tled therein since the censtis was taken. To minister to these thousands, 
 scattered over this immense territory, we have three clergymen ; but as 
 the services of two of them are confined almost (exclusively to the two 
 townships on the front of the county ; those members of the C^- ^rch, 
 settled in the remaining sixteen townships, are left to the ministi.....ons 
 of the third, who, though an active and laborious missionary, cannot 
 attend to the spiritual wants of one tenth part of our people in his co2inty. 
 Nor is the destitution a whit less appalling iu the rear part of the 
 county of Peterboro', where there are two clergymen for twenty-one 
 townships. Surely, then, there is ample room, in which our people 
 may exercise the most large-hearted beneficence. 
 
But t stispecf that they neied not go beyond the limits of their own 
 ])arishe8 or missions to find those who have claims on them for faf 
 more than they do for them. In what one of our parishes or missions, 
 have our clergy the salaries that they ought to have 7 I know of 
 none in this archdeaconry : and I know what the salaries of most of 
 our clergy are. Forty years ago the salaries of the missionaries of this 
 diocese were £200 sterling per annum. That salary was not accounted 
 by the Society in England, who paid it, too high for our clergy. Nor 
 Was it. It only enabled them to live respectably and without corroding 
 care for the families that God had given them. Tlie salaries of the 
 clergy in British Guiana at the present time are £500 sterling per an- 
 num. But, taking the lower standard of £200 slerling per annum as 
 that suited for our clergy forty years ago, our clergy at the present day 
 ought to have £400 sterling or $2,000 per annum. For, during those 
 forty years, in consequence of the increase of gold in California and 
 Australia, the coat of living has doubled. But have the salaries of 
 the missionaries doubled also ? By no means ; whilst the incomes of every 
 one else in the community, the lawyers, the medical men, the merchants, 
 the farmers, the mechanics, the laboring men, have kept pace with the 
 increased cost of living ; and whilst the salaries uf the clerks in the Gov- 
 ernment offices, in the banks' and insurance offices, have been greatly 
 increased, the salaries of the missionaries of this diocese have been reduced 
 from £200 sterling/ or $2,000 a year to $600 / / The consequence has 
 been, that there are few candidates for the ministry, and fewer still 
 from the families of those clergymen, who are reduced to the greatest 
 •traits to eke out an existence. These sad and humiliating truths 
 ought to be known and duly weighed by our people. We do not desire 
 a wealthy clergy in this diocese ; but we do desire a clergy, who can 
 give themselves to the work of the Lord, "without distraction ;" and 
 it is the interest of the people, that they should have such a ministry. 
 They have, moreover, in abundance the m^ans of affording to all the 
 elergy of the diocese suck salaries as they ought to enjoy. And I believe, 
 that if they were made thoroughly acquainted with the spiritual desti- 
 tution of their brethren in many parts of the country, a' id considered, 
 as they ought, the condition of the clergy, they would do far more for 
 them, and for the waste places of the diocese, than they now do. But 
 not only do our people need to be informed of the spiritual destitution, 
 in which so many of their brethren are, and of the very straightened 
 means, which our clergy have ; but they require to be carefully and 
 constantly taught what their true position in the sight of God is — 
 that they are not oumers ; but only stewards of the good things entrusted 
 to them. 
 
 Many people express their surprise at the smallness of the contribu- 
 tions of our people to God's service. They are small ; pitifully small, 
 compared with the means, which God has entrusted to their care. But 
 
 im 
 
tltia can he accounted for, without accusing them of selfishnesa, or pen* 
 uriousness. They are liberal in other things. They are quite as ready 
 to help the poor as others are. They contributed very handsomely to 
 •• the Patriotic fund" for the relief of the widows and orphans of those 
 who fell in the Crimean war, and the Lancashire operatives, a few years 
 ago, benefited largely by their liberality. But, in regard to the claims 
 which the Church of Ood has on their means, too many are in gross ig- 
 norance. They have not been taught from their childhood up (as they 
 ought to have been taught) that God has, in all ages of the world, re- 
 quired his people to otfer to his service a considerable portion of the 
 means which He has gi'aciously enti*usted to their care. 
 
 From the first settlement of Ontario to the year 1834 " the Society 
 for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts" was ready to sup- 
 jwrt missionaries to labor amongst our people without looking to them 
 to contribute in any shape to their maintenance. All that those set- 
 tlers, who desired the ministrations of our Church, had to do, was to 
 memorialize the Bishop of the Diocese for a clergyman, and he sent their 
 memorial to the venerable society mentioned above ; and a clergyman 
 was appointed to minister to them, at a salary of £200 sterling a year, 
 paid by the Society. And when those same people required a Church, 
 another excellent Society, that "for Promoting Christian Knowledge," 
 was ready to aid them largely in the erection of their Church. But in 
 the year 1834 the Society was obliged to notify the Bishop of the Dio- 
 cese, that it would be impossible for it to continue the support of the 
 missionaries in this country, and that the Society would be compelled to 
 throw their maintenance on the people to whom they ministered. When 
 this occurred the authorities of the Diocese were enabled to draw the 
 salaries of our clergy from the Clergy Reserves fund, which, by that 
 time, yielded a considerable sum each year, and of which a large amount 
 had accumulated. They were enabled, also, to increase the number of the 
 clergy and to maintain them from this fund, till the secularization of 
 the Reserves in 1854. Had these Reserves not been secularised they 
 would have affo rded us, at the present time, ample means to support all 
 our clergy as they ought to be supported. But, as you are well aware, 
 the greater part of the fund, arising from the sale of those Reserves, has 
 been lost to us ; and only that part saved, for which our clergy, who 
 who were on the list in May, 1853, were enabled to commute their salar- 
 ies. I mention this — not for the purpose of complaining of the act 
 of our Legislature in 1854 ; (for I believe that it is the part of a good 
 subject to bow with submission to the legislation of his country, even 
 when he feels that an act of injustice has been done him, andl donotthink 
 that that act has been entirely without benefit to the Church ;) but I 
 mention it for the purpose of showing you, wby we were not formerly 
 compelled to call upon our people to do so much for the Church, as we 
 have been compelled to do since the secularization of those Reserves ; 
 
 i^ 
 
and why our pooplf, wlio were brougiit up in this country, where they 
 coiihl dopcntl upon tlic society in Kn^land iintl Ww Clergy Reserves to 
 meet our wants, liave not heen tauf^lit, as fully as tliey ouf^ht to have 
 been, and as, untlor other cireuinHtunees, they probably would 
 have been taught, their duty to eonfrilmfc of their worldly goods to the 
 support and extension of the Chtirch in thin country. Then with regard 
 to those of our people, who have been brought up in England and Ire- 
 hmd, it shouhl be rernember'^d, that the law of the land in tliesliape of 
 tithes and Chnreh rates in England, the tithe of the land paid indirect- 
 ly tlirough the landlords in Irclaiul, shut out from their sight the un- 
 deniable fact, that God has, in all arjcs of thr. world, required his people, 
 directly or indirectly, t^ contrihidc to the inaintenance of his ministry and 
 the extension of hU Church. Being ignorant of this t"iet, a' ' there being 
 in this country no law of the land recjuiriug them to eonti iite of their 
 means to (rod's service, they hive not st^cu, and, th.'rcfnre, have not re- 
 cognized their duty in this respect. l''it'tceii years ago the calls ujxm 
 our people were but few ; and those very light, compai/Ml with what we 
 have to make now. lint these c ills have to be made, and must l)e res- 
 })onded to. If the Church of Christ in our Diocese is to jiresent tlie 
 privileges of the Gosjtel to all our peo{>l(s then those who are in the en- 
 joyment of those privileges, must pnn'ide messengers to carry them to 
 others, now destitute of them, and must furnish money to support them, 
 at least in part, till those to wIiomi they are sent are able to support 
 the ministration of religion for themselves. And as her children go 
 out from her more established and weal'.hier congregations to seek new 
 homes in the wildernes.s, she ought to send with them shei^herds who 
 can keep them in the fold and gather in "others, not of this fold," that 
 there may be one fold and one shepherd. 
 
 To be enabled to do this, as it ouidit to be done, needs sure and steady 
 supplies ; flowing freely and bountifully, wherever a channel is opened, 
 and blessing him who gives, and him wlio receives. Such supplies 
 can only come fiom those, who have a dear and intelligent apprehen- 
 sion of duty, quickened and enlivened by a .strong sense of love to God 
 and man, and prompting them to bestow of their goods for the work of 
 the Lord in our land, according as he h;is commanded in his most holy 
 word. But, before attempting to laj' fully l)efore yon, what I consider 
 to be the duty of christians in this matter, and to sustain my views by 
 such arguments as I can adduce in favor of them, I wish to call your at- 
 tention to the important bearing of this money question on the spiritual 
 interests of all christians. It is too ajit to be regarded merely as a busi- 
 ness matter, or, at most, as a matter of feeling, where a decision is to 
 be left to one's own choice. It is too apt to be forgotten, that the dis- 
 l)osal, that we make of our worldly sub.stance affects even more directly 
 OUT spiritual than our tem2wral welfare. If there be a duty, which we 
 owe Almighty God in this matter, then not to discharge that duty, is 
 
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 to oommit sin ; and every .sin eominitted and not repented of, brinfjs 
 loss and sorrow to the soul. II" men spend on tlieniselvea, their I'anii- 
 lies, and their own lusts and pleasures, wliat they ought to speml for 
 the gooil of their fellow men and the glory of God, they are very tjiUltij 
 in this nuitter. For just as soon as one takes away any aet or elass of 
 actions from the control or ilire( lion of God's will, by doing so he puts 
 himself in a st:ite of opposition to Goil, incurs his displeasure, grieves 
 his Holy Spirit ami exposes himself to spiriuial death. 
 
 There is great sensitiveness among njen, especially rich men, on this 
 Hubject. They are quite willing to listen to gtMU'ralitics, and they even 
 enjoy the eloquence of earnest appeals to feeling ; but wlien you come 
 down to details and attc'injit to give them rules ap[(licable to their own 
 individual (;ases, though yoU leave the application thereof to theni- 
 selves, they are ciuite disposed to look upon such, as an uuwarrantalde 
 interference with the liberty, which, they claim, they have, to do with 
 their worldly njeans as they will. This arises in a great measure from 
 ignorance of what their true position is, as entrusted with the things of 
 this world. The laws of God, in reganl to property, have been so little 
 Understood, because .so little taught, that many men have gone .so far 
 as to say, that a iwin hris a perfect ri'jht to do what he will with his pro- 
 p'irti/,i\.iu\ that he need not, and should not, recognize God's claim upon 
 it, even in the; slightest degree. And this is the idea entertained by 
 many of the most honest men in the community : by men who are 
 punctiliously particular about giving every one his due. And thi* I 
 hold to be be the sin of the Church in reference to the use of the means 
 entrusted to her people. It has been well said, '* that when we claim 
 our |)ossession3 as our own, and that we have th<i right to determine for 
 ourselves what use we shall make of them — to what purpose we will 
 give them, and to whom we will entrust them, we sin against God ; not 
 only, because we refused to submit our actions to his control ; but be- 
 cause we rob Him of that, which belongs to Him, and which he has 
 merely entrusted to our care. VVe are not the owners ; but the tenants 
 at will of the property we possess. We are not independent possessors 
 *' in fee simple" of it : but are holders of it, for his glory, and to make 
 to Him constant returns, as an acknowledgment of His superior title, 
 and as the certain means of insuring a present blessing and a higher re- 
 ward." " No matter how small or how large the amount we have, 
 may be. He, who gives us power to acquire property, adds to this power 
 an obligation to render back to Him a portion thereof, as a reserved 
 rent ; and, if we keep this back from Him, we rob him of his due." 
 This view of the matter deserves the most careful consideration. The 
 guilt of robbing God in tithes and offerings was one of the heaviest charges 
 made by the Almighty against His ancient people ; and had much to 
 do in bringing upon them the calamities, with which they were visited. 
 This must be evident to every careful reader of the Old Testament. 
 
8 
 
 And, if the Church in this Diocese is doin^^ the very same thing, our 
 sin is very great, and we should not wonder, that the dews of heavenly 
 grace are withheld, and that our spiritual life is feeble. But, if we will, 
 in obedience to God's command, bring all our tithes into God's store- 
 house, we have His gracious promise that, other things being right with 
 us, He will ** open the windows of heaven and pour out a blessing till 
 there shall be no room to receive it. " 
 
 But not only do ignorance of duty, and that unwillingness so char- 
 acteristic of the present day to confess God's claim upon our posses- 
 sions, cause the sin of the Church in this matter to be very great ; 
 but, alas ! there are several other influences, subtle and powerful, work- 
 ing out the same result. The acquisition of wealth by our people opens 
 the way for the admission of two of the most subtle and dangerous in- 
 fluences that can affect the christian's life. Worldliness and covetous- 
 ness come in like a flood the moment a person reaches a point in social 
 life, which the possession of large means gives him. Insatiable as death, 
 and with an appetite that grows by what it feeds on, they surely draw 
 him, who begins to yield to their demands, further and further away 
 from God and holiness, and consume the best fruits of the Spirit. This 
 is the reason, why so many men and women professing godliness, who 
 spend thousands on themselves and families, can tiever afford to do any 
 thing for God and his Church. All is spent upon themselves, their 
 pomps and vanities ; and nothing is left for religion. 
 
 Let us then ascertain if we can, what God expects from his people at 
 the present time. It is indeed often claimed, that it is impossible to 
 ascertain this : because it is alleged, that we cannot point out any speci- 
 fic command in the New Testament definitely determining the propor- 
 tion of our income that we should give to God's service. But are speci- 
 fic commands always required in these matters by those, who make this 
 objection ? Where then, I would ask, do these good people find any 
 specific command in the N ew Testament, to observe the first day of the 
 week, as the christian sabbath ; or to baptize infants ; or to administer 
 the Lord's supper to our mothers and sisters in Israel ; or to have the 
 three orders of Bishop, Priest and Deacon in the christian Church ? Even 
 then, if the New Testament gives us no positive command on this sub- 
 ject ; yet if we can show what was God's mind in regard to it, under 
 the former dispensation, and what was the light, in which He viewed 
 man's possession of the good things entrusted to him ; if we can show 
 what was the practice of the primitive Church in this matter ; then, as 
 obedient children, we should cheerfully acknowledge this rule and allow 
 it to bind our consciences and direct our actions. Every intelligent 
 christian knows, that God's ancient people, the Jews, were bound by 
 God's own command to give "tithes of all thev possessed," for the sup- 
 port of the ministering tribe of Levi — that ti'ibe, which God was 
 pleased to set apart for his o\^^l service, and who were to have no inheri- 
 
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 tance ivith their brethren, the Lord heing their inheritance. But we 
 are not to suppos<% that tiie law of tithes was contined to God's chosen 
 people, the Israelites. It neitlier had its origin at the time of Moses ; 
 nor, as a rule, was it confined to the Israelites. But it rather had its 
 origin in the very beginning, and was found amongst many widely scat- 
 tered nations. We are told, on the best of authority, that it was the 
 practice of heathen nations — of Greeks, Romans, Carthaginians, Arab- 
 ians and others — to apply the tenths derived from property in general, 
 from the spoils of their enemies, from confiscated goods, or from com- 
 mercial profits, to sacred pui'poses. In the Bible we have two very re- 
 markable instances of the observance of this ancient law ; one by Abra- 
 ham, when returning victorious from the pursuit of the kings who had 
 carried off his nephew Lot, he met Melchisidec, Priest of the Most High 
 God, and gave him tithes ; a religious act, which is specially noticed 
 by the Apostle in the epistle to the Hebrews. Jacob too set up a mem- 
 orial of God's mercy shown him in Bethel, saying, " Of all that thou 
 gavest -ne, I will surely give the tenth unto them. " And the Apostle, in 
 the Epistle to the Hebrews, in referring to the case of Abraham, says 
 that he paid the tithes to Melchisidec, as the type and forerunner of 
 Christ, who abides as our priest forever, to whom, now that he is exalt- 
 ed into the heavens, it is proper that his people should pay tithes in the 
 persons of his ministers. The Mosaic tithe system was not, then, (as 
 is g(!nerally supposed) a new and independent law ; but, like the law of 
 sacrifices and the observance of the seventh day as the Lord's sabbath 
 (in reference to which he said in the fourth commandment. Remember the 
 sabbath daxj to keep it holy) — liad its basis in practices and regulations 
 existing and binding upon God's people long before the tiine of Moses, 
 and, therefore, likely to continue in force long after the law given by 
 him was done away. The most that can be claimed in regard to it is, 
 that, so far as it was specially adapted to the Jewish people, it should 
 cease with the doing away of their polity. In addition to the tenth re- 
 cognized as due by Abraham, and promised to God by their father Jacob, 
 they were required, by God's express command to Moses, to give addi- 
 tional tenths, as tokens of their obedient spirit, and as a means of se- 
 curing God's special favor and blessing. 
 
 The Mosaic tithe required, first, '* all the tithe of the land, whether of 
 the seed of the land, or of the fruits of the tree, and all the tithe of the 
 herd or flock." This belonged to the tribe of Levi, as above mentioned. 
 A second tithe was to be given for the use of the tabernacle and temple ; 
 and a third tithe was to be given for the support of the poor. These 
 were in addition to first-fruits and various offerings, so that every de- 
 vout Israelite was required, by God's own command, to give about a 
 third of his income to God's ministers, God's service, and God's poor. 
 Whatever there was of peculiar rigour in the demands made upon the 
 ancient Israelite, was found in the requisition of the additional tithes ; 
 
10 
 
 antl admitting, (as we must do) that the peculiar hardships of the eld 
 covenant are done away in Christ, still we have no right to do away all 
 law on this, more than on any other, subject ; and weare.sinii)ly left to 
 fall back on that law, which the patriarchs observed, and wliich even 
 heathen nations did not deem too exacting. The liberty witli which 
 Christ makes us free, does not release us from all law ; but only fiom 
 the law of " Commandments contained in the ordinances" of the old 
 ceremonial law. It leaves us not without the "law of God ; but under 
 the law to Christ ;" and still obedience to the revealed will of God, in 
 regard to our property, is a proof of our love to him, and a means of at- 
 taining to higher measures of grace, and to a more deep and fervent love. 
 AVe cannot then help thinking, that thu obciUcnt si)irit of a sincere and 
 earnest christian will recognize, in wliat has been adduced to-day, from 
 the practice of God's people in the patriarchal ages and under the Mo- 
 saic dispensation, a strong ground for uiaintaining that the original 
 law, requiring one tenth of every man's income for the service of God, 
 is still binding upon men, and should be so regarded by all who desire 
 to be earnest and obedient servants of the Most High God. And in this 
 view of the case we are fully sustained by some very able essays written 
 in our day on " the duty of giving to God's service according to means 
 and income." Several years ago every clergyman of this diocese was 
 furnished by some kind christian friends in Montreal with a copy of a 
 remarkable book called "Gold and the Gospel." This comprises five 
 essays v\-ritten for two prizes, one of £50 f(.r the best, aiidanotiier of £20 
 for the second best, essay on the scriptural duty of giving acconliiig to 
 means and income. These five essays were found to be so equal that ea(di 
 of the five judges ])referred a diHci'cnt essay ; anil the prizes were divided 
 amongst the writers of them. The authors of these essays were two Eng- 
 lishmen, two Irishmen, and one Scotchman. Gne is a nunister of lh' 
 Established Church of Ireland, the second is a minister of the synod of 
 Ulster, the third is a Free Kirk minister of Scotland, the fourth is an 
 Independent minister of England, and the lifth a layman. About the 
 same time a clergyman ot this Uioce.se, a num of ability and zeal, pub- 
 lished a valuable essay on the same important subject entitled " The 
 sacerdotal tithe." Nearly contemporaneous with these were three pre- 
 mium essays by three Congi'cgational miiiisters of New Enghind, and 
 also three, by three Methodist ministers of the United States, 
 on the same subject. And they one and all came to the same conclu- 
 sion, that it is the duty of every christian religiously to set apart a por- 
 tion of his income for God's service as God has blessed him ; and several 
 of these writers fixed upon a tithe as the proportion to be set apart. 
 
 And surely all the reasons that ever existed for such an arrangement 
 continue in full fonjc now, and at all times. Is this ofi"ering of a tenth 
 of our income to God's service, to be considered as an acknowledgment 
 of our dependence upon God, and of His right to all that we possess ? This 
 
ic eld 
 vixy all 
 
 loft to 
 I even 
 
 which 
 ( from 
 he old 
 5 under 
 rod, in 
 s of at- 
 iit love, 
 ere and 
 y, from 
 he Mo- 
 original 
 [)f God, 
 
 desire 
 
 1 in this 
 written 
 o means 
 ;ese was 
 )py of a 
 ises five 
 ir of£20 
 pnlingto 
 
 at ea(,'h 
 divided 
 Avo Eng- 
 
 oflh 
 
 vnod of 
 
 1 is an 
 
 >out the 
 
 1, puh- 
 
 "The 
 ree pre- 
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 States, 
 
 conclu- 
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 several 
 >art. 
 igement 
 
 a tenth 
 ^dgment 
 
 I? This 
 
 11 
 
 Vtts the ground on which this ofl'ering was plaeod of old, — "The earth is 
 the Lord's and the fulness thereof." "The silver and the gold are his.'* 
 And the condition on which we hold our possessiors is just the same 
 as that, on which men held theirs from the beginning. The Lord has 
 not ceased to be the proprietor of the world, though he has been pleased 
 to send his Son down upon the earth. Men have not ceased to be ten- 
 ants, at his will, of the things they posses.s for the time being. They 
 have not ceased to be mere .stewanls of the talents committed to them. 
 And Christians will be required to a(X'ount just, as fully for the use of 
 those talents, as will be the Jews of old for the talents they possessed 
 in their days. Besides, brethren, shall we, who have received the atone- 
 ment, which the ancient patriarchs and ])rophets and men of faith had 
 not received, but only saw afar oil' — shall we conceive it to be oxir duti/ 
 to do less for the glory of God — to acknowledge less dearly and less dis- 
 tinctly, and hiiiii fully His rule over ns, and to manifest it by less cheer- 
 ful obedience to his will, gathered from his most holy word ? Surely, 
 brethren, every reason, why tliny of oUl should honor God with their 
 substance and with the first fruits of all their increase, presses upon the 
 Christian with vastly increased obligation. If any are bound to do so, 
 it is surely they, for whose sake He, being rich, became poor, that 
 they, through his })Overty, might be rich. God might have provided 
 for his service upon earth otherwise, had he seen fit to do so. He 
 might have sent down his angels, as ministering servants upon earth, 
 to carry far and Me the blessings of the Gospel. Hut he has been 
 pleased to put this nonour on men. It has pleased Him to be served 
 in His Church by men, chosen and set apart for this special ^oork ; jxist 
 as the tribe of Levi were set apart /or his special service luidcr the Mosaic 
 dispensation. These men are called tipon to give \ip, or to abstain from 
 the usual avocations of life. They cannot be lawyers or medical men ; 
 they cannot support themselves and their families by merchandise or 
 by farming. No ; they are called to devote themselves, their time, 
 their talents, their energies to the service of God amongst his people. 
 Like the tribe of Levi, who had no inheritance amongst their brethren, 
 they are excluded by the very nature of their office from providing for 
 the su.stenance of themselvesand families in the same way, that the 
 rest of the comnmnity provide for themselves and others. And as the 
 Levitcs had a right to a maintenance from the income of their brethren, 
 so have the ministers of Christ in the present day. As servants of God, 
 waiting continually on God's people and serving them to the utmost of 
 their power, they have a right to a share of the worldly goods of those 
 who are left free to gain and to possess. What reason is there to sup- 
 pose that God will now be satisfied with a less share, devoted to this 
 particular object, than when, as in the patriarchal ages, there was 
 generally no priestly order and every man was a jmest in his own 
 house ? What right have we to conclude, that they, who preach the 
 
12 
 
 h' 
 
 Gospel should not enjoy as lanjn a measure of benefit from those, to 
 whom they preach, and for whom they minister, as was enjoyed by 
 those who served the tabernacle ? 
 
 And thus we come to the consideration of those striking words of St. 
 Paul, contained in the 9th chapter of the 1st Ei)istle to the (Corin- 
 thians, where he reasons, both from the fitness of things, and from 
 the pi inciidcs laid down in the old law, that they who minister in 
 spiritual things have a right to partake of the carnal things of tliose 
 to whom they minister. And then he closes the argument by this 
 inquiry: ** Do ye not know, that they who minister about holy thintjs 
 live of the things of the temple; a7id they xohich wait at the altar are 
 partakers of the altar? Ecen so hath the Lord ordained that they 
 who preach the Gospel sho^ild live of the Gospel.'' Here then, a perfect 
 parallel is established between the ]»ro/ision made for the L(.'vit(;s under 
 the Old Testament and for the ministers of Christ under the new. It 
 is not something left to be decided by individual tastes or notions or 
 preferences. Christ has ordained, has established, this as a pei'mancnt 
 arrangcinent in his kingdom — that his servants under the Gospel 
 should be supported in the same way, anc' by the same rule, as tvcre the 
 Jewish priesthood. If the words " even so hath the Lord ordained' 
 prescribe no rule, but leave every man at perfect liberty to do as he 
 pleases — then he who pleases to give nothing for the service of God, 
 under the Christian dispensation, violates no obligation. I'ut I would 
 ask, if every man is at liberty to give much or little or nothing, ac- 
 cording to his own fancy, what becomes of the apostle's reasoning ? 
 How could he say — that, as the Levite was to live by a tenth of the 
 incomes of the other people of Israel, the Christian minister was to do 
 the same — if it be not the duty of the people to contribute a tenth of 
 their income to his support ? Tliere is no argument, no force in the 
 words of the inspired apostle, unless the Lord has ordained that as the 
 tithes were paid to the priest of the temple, they should likewise be paid 
 to those ivho minister in holy things under the Gospel. But if this be 
 admitted, then the apostle's argument is strong and cogent ; and the 
 comparison between the way of maintaining God's ministers under the 
 two dispensations is full and complete. 
 
 This is a point of so much importance to so many thousands in this 
 Archdeaconry, that I trust you will bear with me, brethren, if I still 
 dwell on it a little longer. As 1 stated before, tliere is contained in 
 these words of St. Paul a more clear and precise authority for continuing 
 the payment of tithes to the Lord under the Gosjtel, than is anywhere 
 found for four of the most important and most widely acknowledged 
 ordinances and practices in the Christian Church. "Where, for in- 
 stance," (as has been well asked), " is there any equally precise direc- 
 tion for the change from the Jewish Sabbath, on the last day of the 
 week, to the Chiistian Sabbath, on the first day of the week, as the 
 
 81 
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 cij 
 tol 
 fo| 
 
 WC 
 
 m 
 
 Gf 
 
 thJ 
 
 apj 
 
 tht 
 
 ancl 
 
13 
 
 In this 
 
 ll still 
 
 led in 
 
 luiiig 
 
 Ikvliere 
 
 3clged 
 
 |)r iii- 
 
 lirec- 
 
 the 
 
 U the 
 
 great day of religious ohservances. Wo liave, it is true, the record in a 
 few places in the Acts of the Aposth's, of the early Christian Cliunh 
 assenihling on the first day of the week. We have the fuller and more 
 circumstantial testimony to the same effect of the early fathers and his- 
 torians of the Church ; hut no word of any one of the a[u)stles is to be 
 found, in tlie New Testament, declaring that, as the last day of the 
 week had been kept as tlie Sal)l)ath under the law, even so was the 
 first d.iy of the week to be kept as the Christian Sabbath, under the 
 Gospel dispensation. And yet, brethren, the de?j»est convictions of 
 the whole Church have always sustained and justified the authoritative 
 appointment of the day, oil which Jesus Christ arose triumphant from 
 the grave, as the great day for Christian w()rshi[) and religious observ- 
 ances. 
 
 Again, what volumes of controversy, in regard to the orders of the 
 ministry, would have been avoided, if any where in the New Testament, 
 could have been found words eipiivalent, in their application, to that 
 subject, to those to which we now refer — if it had only once been said, 
 that, as the ministry under the law was threefold, consisting of High- 
 Priests, Priests, and Levites, *' cvai <io, hath the Lord also ordained," 
 that, under the Gospel, there should likewise be Hishops, Priests and 
 Deacons. Or, again, how effectually would the whole controversy on 
 the subject of infant baptism have been settled, if we could have put 
 our finger on any page in the New Testament, which declared, that, as 
 infants were brought into covenant with God, under the Old Testament, 
 at the early age of eight days, by the rite of circumcision, cwjt so 
 they should be brought into covenant with God at an early age, under 
 the Gospel, by the rite of baj)tism. And nowhere do we find any au- 
 thority whatever for admitting females to the Lonl's suj)j)er ; l)ut the 
 manifest propriety of the thing and the practice of the early Chris- 
 tians has very proi)erly secured for our mothers and sisters and daugh- 
 ters this blessed privilege. Ikit there is nothing in the New Testa- 
 ment in favor of any of those usages and practices, at all to be com- 
 pared with St. Paul's declaration " even so hath the Lord ordained, 
 that they which preach the Gosp(d should live of the Gospel.'' And 
 yet, brethren, we regard these ordinances and practices as binding uj)on 
 us ! How much more then should we feel it our duty to observe that 
 ruk', which St. Paul so distinctly declares God himself has ordained ?" 
 And if, brethren, we consider the practice of the early Christian Church 
 (as has been well observed by a writer on this subject to whom we are 
 indebted for much of this argument) we shall see how entirely it sus- 
 tains our view of the duty of offering for God's cause, at the very least, 
 the tenth of our income. When our blessed Lord sent out his apostles 
 and seventy disciples to preach the Go.spel, they acknowledged, on 
 their return, that they lacked nothing. And after the day of Pente- 
 cost, when from the great iuimber to be supported, and the few to con- 
 
14 
 
 trilnlte to tlieir support, tlio ofrena^s must have been Very abiniJanf, 
 ■till there was no want. " Those that had possessions and goods sold 
 them, and distribution was made to all men, as every one had need.'' 
 Nor did those, who lived in subse(inent times, fail in giving more 
 to God's service than was required by the mle, by which both Jews 
 and (rentiles had be(Mi bound under the Patriairhal and Mosaic dispen- 
 sations. Thus we find Justin Maityn, who lived A.D. 160, testifying 
 to this effect — "And now we bring all that we have into common, and 
 tonimunicate it to every one that wants. " Irena-us, who lived A.D. 
 180, tells us that, "the Jews consecrated a tenth ; but the Christians 
 give all they have unto God, and would not give less than the Jews ; 
 because they have a better hope." And accordingly the learned Selden, 
 in his " History of Tithes," writes as follows : " So liberal was the de- 
 votion of believers, that their bounty to tlie Evangelical Priesthood far 
 exceeded what the tcntli would have been. The liberality formerly used 
 had been so great, that in respec^t thereof tenths would have been a 
 small part. It had been to little purpose, indeed, to have had tithes 
 of annual increase paid, when that most bountiful devotion of Chris- 
 tians continued in frecpient offerings, both of lands and goods, to such 
 large value." 
 
 As has been well remarked, ' ' These testimonies, while accounting 
 for the absence in the early Church of any recorded rule or ]»recei)t re- 
 specting the proportion of goods we owe God, still show most clearly 
 what were the convictions of duty among Christians in those purer ages 
 of faith and piety. They tleemed it unworthy of them to do less than 
 Jews or heathens had done before them. They considered themselves 
 bound rather to exceed than to fall short of the old standard. They re- 
 garded the tenth ottered to God, not as the outside fif^ure, but as the 
 very lowest sum, that they could offer." The language of St. August- 
 ine on this subject is verv striking : " Separate something and designate 
 some fixed portion, either from your yearly fruits or daily income. Will 
 you give the tenth ? The tenth, then, let it be, although this is a small 
 portion. For it is said the Pharisees give tithes. But what saith the 
 Lord — "Except your righteousness exceed the righteousneas of the 
 Scribes and Pharisees, ye shall not enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Now, 
 he, whose righteousness thou art bound to exceed, gives tithes : but thou 
 givest not a thousandth part. H ovv will you exceed him, whom you do 
 not even equal ?" The universal liberality of the early Christians in 
 maintaining the Christian ministry and providing all that was needed to 
 support and extend the Church was such, that it would have seemed 
 almost to degrade the matter to establish a rule that would have limited 
 the gifts of Christians to so small a portion as a tenth. 
 
 It is objected to this rule of giving a tenth of our income to God's 
 service, that it interferes with Christian liberty, by imposing a law in 
 regard to our offerings, where a man is left free to judge, under the 
 guidance of God's spirit, what he ought to give of his substance for 
 
 
nuidant, 
 •ods sold 
 d need." 
 rig more 
 otli Jew» 
 c dispen- 
 ;estiiyiiig 
 11011, and 
 red A.D. 
 Christians 
 ;lie Jews ; 
 d Ri'ldi'n, 
 > the de- 
 ithood far 
 erly used 
 e heen a 
 lad tithes 
 of Chris- 
 to such 
 
 ccounting 
 recept re- 
 st clearly 
 [)urer ages 
 less than 
 lemselves 
 They re- 
 nt as the 
 Angnst- 
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 le. Will 
 lis a small 
 saith the 
 la of the 
 Now, 
 Ibut thou 
 |n you do 
 gtians in 
 leeded to 
 seemed 
 limited 
 
 \o God's 
 
 law in 
 
 Ider the 
 
 Lnce for 
 
 15 
 
 God's service. Api)ly the principle of this objection to other matters ; 
 and it proves too much. It makes a man a guide to himself in every 
 thing. With the Quakers it does away with the Christian sacraments : 
 with "the Plymouth Brethren" it breaks down the Christian ministry 
 and the order of the Church. It allows every man, who fancies himself 
 guided by the Spirit, to go to any excess of license he pleases ; as many 
 have done in all ages in the name of religion — witness the Mormons of 
 our day. 
 
 But a man truly under the guidance of God's Spirit, is so far from de- 
 pending on his own impulses that he takes the utmost pains to learn 
 God's will in regard to the point in question whatever it may be ; and 
 having ascertained what that will is, he readily and gladly obeys it. 
 This is Christian liberty — the liberty of love, "the service of God, 
 whi'jh is i)erfect freedom — to subject fill our actions, with a cheerful 
 mind, to God's will." 
 
 And a law to regulate our use of money Is no more inconsistent with 
 Christian liberty, than any of the laws of the Decalogue, all of which 
 Churchmen believe to be binding on them. 
 
 A second objection to this rule is, that it is oppressive and that the 
 generality of Christians cannot afford it. This objection, at the out- 
 set, can apply only to those, whose very limited means afford them 
 only barely enough to procure for themselves and families necessary 
 food, raiment and shelter. But it so happens that some of those, who 
 observe this rule most religiously, belong to this very class ; and deem 
 it a high privilege to deny themselves, that they may, of their slender 
 means, enjoy the pleasure of contributing to the extension of God's 
 Kingdom on earth. 
 
 The principle that prompts to such giving, keeps down vain and 
 idle expenses, saves the money spent in the bar-room and in other 
 injurious ways, and prompts to industry, frugality and economy. Of 
 two men with equal incomes and equal fiimilies depending on them, 
 he who gives systematically to God's cause, is always the happier, 
 generally the richer man, than he who gives nothing. But, after all, 
 the great question is not, how we can afford it ; but does God require 
 it ? If he has, in his infinite wisdom, made it a test and trial of our 
 faith and love, it is ours to endure the trial, and stand the test, by 
 giving to him, as he has commanded us in his blessed word, and wait- 
 ing to see whether or not he will open the windows of heaven, and 
 pour down upon us of his goodness. As has been well remarked 
 — "The difficulty will be dissolved and vanish by experience. Obedi- 
 ence requires faith ; but brings its own reward Avith it. " 
 
 A third objection is, that the tenth of the incomes of all our people 
 v;ould be an exorbitant provision. But it was not so found amongst 
 the Jews. And when we consider the various objects to which these 
 tenths are to be applied, it will be manifest that they will not be at all 
 
^m 
 
 16 
 
 too niih.'li. Till' building of cliurclu's wortliy of Hod's st-rvfce : the 
 liiaiutt'iKincc of th'i Christian iniui.stry an they ought to be maintiiiiit'd ; 
 Hot on the pit if id sidiiri/ of $600 a year ; but on tliat of $2,000 a yonr : 
 the supiiort of ch-rgynicn for evi-ry four or five hun(h'*'(l houIh ; not as ii* 
 tlie average in this diocese, one for every fifteen liundred, and those too 
 Scattered over five or six townsliips, but witliin reasonable limits : the 
 HU[>i)ort of the widows and orphans of deeeased elergynien : the main- 
 tenance in conil'oil of tliose clergymen, who are n > huigcr fit for active 
 Work: the .sipport of young men of jnety and ability, but of snial 
 means, for the Christian ministry : the circulation of Hibles, I'rayer 
 liooks and otlier religious books and tracts, amongst our jieoide : the 
 maintenance of good schools for the young of our communion, where 
 they could be trained in the princii)les of our most holy faith : in short, 
 whatever is connected with the ],)romotion of religion amongst our 
 people, being amongst the things to be provided for from the contri- 
 butions of the faithful, it would be found that, one tenth of their in- 
 eomes would not be at all too nundi. Besides, brethren, we may ask 
 with emjdiasis, woidd divine wisdom have sanctioned, nay commanded^ 
 an exorbitant provision. 
 
 The want of this principle amongst our people lias forced our clergy 
 to submit to, if not to sanction and encourage, ways of raising money 
 for Cliurch purposes which their consciences have condemned. It is 
 (juite time, therefore, that tlie true Scriptural rule of oilering were gen- 
 erally inculcated. It will not be learnt unless it be taught. And who 
 are to teach this great lesson, all over our country, if our clergy do not 
 do it ? I know that there is a sensitiveness among our clergy on this 
 subject ; but think it .should not exist. If God has ordained 
 that, as under the law, his ministers were supported by the offering of 
 a fixed portion of every man's income ; so they who preach the Gos- 
 pel should be maintained by those to whom they minister ; then it be- 
 comes every minister of Christ to teach this, amongst the other things 
 that God has ordained ; and he should not be deterred from doing so 
 })y any fear of giving offence, or ol being accused of preaching for his 
 own benefit. It is an ordinance of God : and, unless he instructs his 
 people in regard to it, he does not "declare unto them the whole 
 counsel of God. " 
 
 At a time like this — when our people generally have had so little in- 
 struction in regard to their positions, as mere tenants, and not otvners, 
 of their possessions — when circumstances have shut out from the eyes 
 of our people, whether brought up in this country, or in England or 
 Ireland, the fact, that God has in all ages required his people, directly 
 or indirectly, to contribide a considerable portion of their income to the 
 support of his ministry, and the extension of his Church ; and, when so 
 many people fancy, that they are at perfect liberty, to give or to with- 
 hold their means, it becomes us to recall men to first principles, and to 
 
 yjL 
 
17 
 
 show tht'Mi (as I have einloavourod to d o to-tlay) what God's word sets 
 forth as due by (Jod's people to His scrviee. 
 
 And in coniduding this long charge I wish to call your attention to 
 an act of worshii», which has come to be almost universally overlooked 
 in our day. It is one, in reganl to which the Old Test.iinent lays down 
 many rules, to which distinct reference is made in the New Testament, 
 which is fully providcil for in our Prayer Books, and which is recog- 
 nized in the standards of otiicr religious boilies. wSome years ago I had the 
 pleasure of travelling from the city of Toronto to the Suspension Bridge, 
 Niagara Falls, with an eminent Presbyterian divine from Kentucky, 
 then residing in that city. In the course of conversation he reniarkcHl 
 to me, that he admired our Prayer Book very much ; and re I'errcd speci- 
 ally to that part of it, 'which makes ample provision for setting before 
 them in the "ollertory sentences" the diUif of ojf'rriny to God's service, 
 as a 2i't''t of jmblic worship, " Our Church," remarked he, " re([uires. 
 this from ns, as she recjuires Prayer, Praise, the reading of God's word, 
 and the preaching of the Gospel in ]mblic worship. But our peo})le^ 
 have utterly forgotten the former. They never think of offering to 
 (Jod's service as an act of public worship. They may respond gene- 
 rously to an appeal for S(jme worthy object, if it be placed before them 
 in a forcible manner. They freely throw their dollars on to the plate, 
 for the collection ; but with as little regard to God in what they do, as 
 when they throw their money into the plate, when it is sent round to 
 meet election or any other secular expenses." Now, I am afraid breth- 
 ren, that these remarks would apply equally as well to many congrega- 
 tions amongst us. But this should not be so. The offertory sentences 
 in the coianmuion ofhce are a strong witness for the ancient, the uni- 
 versal idea of public worship, that an essential ])art thereof is giving to 
 (Jod's service in God's house. It is another of those cases, wliere our 
 Prayer Book ])Uts to shame our practice — where our professions are far 
 in advance of our actions ; and which proves that the offertory in our 
 service has utterly lost its force and significance. Our jieople do not 
 understand its meaning. Our clergy neglect to explain it to those, in 
 whose hearing they repeat the senten(!es, Sunday after Sundaj . We 
 have reason to believe, that many good pious people in our congrega- 
 tions complain of the olfertory, as interfering with their devo\. 's. Sa 
 utterly ignorant are they of the origin and intention of this service, that 
 an act of worshiji, as old as any on record in the Bible, seems to them 
 an unmeaning interference with their devotions, and suggests to them 
 the bank, the shop or the market. " They have come to worship, they 
 plead, undisturbed by any rcminiscenses of their week day lives ; but 
 tliose plates, which are presented to them, carry them back to their 
 busin,'ss again, despite of themselves." Now, is not this fact a start- 
 ling rebuke to the teaching of the age, which leaves a man to believe, 
 that the duties of tlie Sunday and the duties of the week day are antag- 
 
18 
 
 onistic, the one to the other — that, whilst he must serve God on tlio 
 Sahbatli ilay, he may reasonably <mough serve the world the rest of the 
 week — that it is no part of religion to require all his life — his shop life, 
 and his market life, and his farm life, and his office life, as well as his 
 Church life, to be a continual service to Almighty God. 
 
 Is it not amazing to lind men calling themselves Christians, "con- 
 fessing that they feel, that they viust xlevote their week days to the 
 service of Mammon, and that their money is connected only with the 
 things of the world that now is. It was one design of the oHertory 
 to correct this error — to show men that a i)art of their worldly goods is 
 to be used as an ' ' offering to God" an a portion of his public service ; that 
 they should connect their money witli religious duties, and their gains 
 of it with religious associations ; that their week days should not be a 
 sordid slavery to the world ; but a service due to Almighty God, the 
 fruits of which could be offered acceptably, in his own temple. Men 
 must learn, that giving to God's service, through the offertory, is an es- 
 sential part of public worship, quite as much so as praying and singing. 
 They must recognize the plates to receive their offerings as essential 
 parts of Church furniture ; and the putting their money thereon as a 
 devotional act. They should realize the fact, that the Prayer Book, 
 calls these offerings *' the devotions of the people' — that they are re- 
 quired to offer them, as a religious service — to give to their Saviour in 
 liis own house that money, which represents the moral value of their 
 lives. * 
 
 I feel persuaded, brethren, that if the great truths, which I have en- 
 deavoured to set forth in this charge, were from time to time inculcated 
 in our pulpits, taught in our families and in our Sunday schools, and 
 disseminated far and wide by the press, (that great engine for good as 
 well as evil), a great change would come over our Diocese, our people 
 would feel it not only their duty, but their privilege, to give a fixed 
 portion of their incomes, whether smaller or larger, to God's service ; 
 the work of God would be greatly accelerated therein ; old debts for 
 Church purposes would speedily be paid ; the ministry would be suffi- 
 ciently maintained ; new churches, worthy of God's service, would be 
 built and paid for ; our missionaries would be quadrupled and main- 
 tained in a manner becoming the ministers of Christ ; and the waste 
 places of the Diocese would blossom as the rose ; whilst our people, 
 giving from right principles, and denying themselves that they might 
 give — would "grow daily in grace and in meetness for glory," at the 
 same time rejoicing, that they were counted worthy to contribute of 
 their means to God's cause on earth. 
 
fo 
 
EKi