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The Author, who has some confidence in the correctness of the views set forth in these Brief Notes, has been in- duced to publish them, in the hope that the Unity of the Synod of the Presbyterian Church of Canada may be pre* served entire, on the ground of its own Independence. Whatever may be the judgment formed on ihe causes that have given rise to the Disruption in the Parent Church, and on the conduct of parties previous to, and since, that event, it cannot be of a nature to warrant the separation of any one from the Canadian Church, which stitl holds to its original constitution. No difference of opinion respect- ing difficult and complicated proceedings, which have oc-. purred on a scene so distant, and of which few among us have very full and perfect information, shouldbe allowed to interrupt that harmony which has hitherto prevailed a- mong us, and which is so essential to the spiritual edifica- tion of our people. Although decidedly inclined to Free Church principles, as the genuine /jfptf of Presbyterianigm, he desiderates no sort. of alliance between the Synod of Canada and the Free Church, beyond that of Fraterni- ty ; and though he cannot but condemn that course which the Moderates in the Assembly have, as he thinks, in utter infatuation, pursued, yet he is not of opinion that the Sy- nod of Canada, as an independent judicature, is called to take any farther step in rcfcrtnce to the Establishment, unless it be that of renewed Protestation and ReSp^t- FUL Remonstrance. — <* For my bretJiren and tomptt* n(>ft« sakes^l will noto say y Peace be within thee. BeclaUse of the House of the Lord our Gf^d^ I will seek thpgdodJ' ROBERT MACGJLL.' Niagara, Canada West, , 12th Murch, 1944. liwi^li^Jl 01: I '■, ! I m *S )P THE RELATION oy BIH3B S^ESr®® ®3f (SAMJ^W^ to THIS OBURCB OF SCOTLAND The extraordinary events which have recently occurred in Scotland, by which the National Church — esteemed one of the Best and Securest in Christendom — has been rent into two great rival sections, have awakened an ear- nest desire in many to be informed of the precise nature of that Connexion which subsists between the Synod of Canada and the Church of Scotland, and how We may be affected by the Disruption. The question appears to us a very simple, one. The following outline of our own views will readily suggest the course of a fuller investiga- tion to those who may bo disposed to enter upon it. I. What is the Church op Scotland with which wk CLAIM Affinity. The Church of Scotland may be regarded, firsts as a Church of Christ ; and secondly, as an establishment. As the former, her character is tound in her acknowledged standards of doctrine and discipline ; as the latter, it is defined in the statute of her Incorporation. As the former^ she continues to exercise alS her prerogatives, like any other vnestablished Christian Church^-^such as the ordaining and the sending forth of Missionaries, the extending herself into other lands, and the co-operating with other Uhristlan Churches for the advancement of true religion in th9 ^ LND, occurred esteemed has been i an ear- e nature Synod of We may ppears to our own [ivestiga- it. iIGH WK rst, as a ent. As iwledged er, it is former, ny other ling and herself 'hristjan in the world. But in her established character she has engaged to perform specific duties within the Kmgdom of Scotland, to which specific privileges and restrictions are annexed by the State. Of these may be named the religious su- perintendence of parishes as divided by law, and the right to the temporal provision connected therewith : but she cannot alter the boundaries of parishes, nor in any way augment or alienate the tiends, nor confer the name or privileges of ministers of the Church of Scotland on any who are not really ministers of the establishment In this character she is only an ecclesiastical corporation estab- lished by parliament,existing under a civil statute, enjoying certain rights and privileges in order to the performance of certain specified duties, and it is not competent for her to deviate in any instance from its provisions. When any of her ministers or people go beyond the Kingdom of Scotland, to which, as an establishment, the national Church is limited, their connexion with it ceases ; her superintendence and jurisdiction cannot follow them. Yet as a Church of Christ she is bound to follow ihem and to provide for their spiritual wants to the utmost of her ability ; to send with them, or after them, ordained minis- ters ; to sustain them by pecuniary aid, to afford them her counsel ; and although she cannot admit them into formal connexion with herself as an establishment, she can recog- nize them as her expatriated children, as her true lineal descendants, as one with her by '* adhering to the same standards of doctrine, and maintaining the same forni of worship and government ;" and she may test*":' to the world her maternal solicitude, and declare to ^ ^ who in any way lend them a helping hand, ** inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these, ye have done it unto me." ^ On this ground pf a recognized filial relationship, ihie British Government has of late lent its countenance and aid to some of our Colonial Churches. Although known to it that the Church of Scotland could not extend itself as an establishment to the Colonies, yet it has been disposed, op the ground, no doubt, of the Treaty of Union, as welt as jthe high estimatipn in which the Church of Scotland i)«f Jbee^ Jbfk^^-.i.:__ ^ grfttefoi lecolleetioiiy of its ^ottiah orlgtik ^ ,-*''* fT Dnneziod laccurato Scotland iment of granted {Church Church ntitled to DO. e ground re agreed sentative because Iving ju- e other ; misted of use these Synodal ards and that the Was fully n» would Jd. The fland, but e case in country ninistersy 3st stren*- men for ractef of se tt> be : genera- ls would original y hoped, Ei^ as the Ifastly to ual bles- rks, and orlgtik tf it b^^titMy tberefora* tkttt we atcT toiiiii^etfid with xha Ctitirdb tif 'SMIan^f rattier in her character cf a Church of Christ, than in that of an eataUiabnient, it ia of moment To dia^rimiiiiitte what U peculiar to her in each of tfaeae diaraeterVf that we may maintain that which ia uniTorta! and penmnent, and reject that which is non-essential and local. Her universal and permanent characteristics, are to be found in her CoNrasaioN Awn Catecaismb ; in her Books or Discipline, in her Dimcctobt and Foem OF Chubcs Govekhhent. The accidental and the local peculiarities, which are not adapted to our circumstances, are the legal conditions by which she holds of the state as an ^atablished church, and by which her natural freedom as a Christian church is restricted. It is out of these latter peculiarities that all her recent troubles have arisen. But as they are connected with that part of her constitution which we cannot copy, not being like her established, we are not required to take part in the controversies arising out of them. We shall be better employed in offering up fervent prayer to God that the Church of our Fathers may be delivered from all evil, and be perpetuated in purity from age to age, a source df spiritual life to our native land. The Church of Scotland, then, viewed as a Church of Christ, and part of His spiritual kingdom, is constituted in obedience to His supreme authority, under those office bearers which he has appointed, and for the edification of its members in things divine and spiritual. As such it cannot derive any authority from kings and Parliaments ; it cannot without dishonor to Christ's supremacy admit their interference either to add or to alter a pin in that spiritual tabernacle which God hath erected and not man. The Church of Scotland has uniformly held these princi- ples, and declared it contrary to the allegiance which she owed to hidr divine Master to sanction any usurpation of authority in this spiritual kingdom by the secular power. Thus, in her Cattfession ch. XXX:— **The Lord Jesus as King and Head of His church hath therein appointed a government in the hand of church officers, distinct from the civil magistrate;" and in the Second Bookof DiidpUit^. ^'Thie power eccleeiastieal floweth immediately from God, ond the mediBtor Jeius Chrift, apd if tpiritu^ qqI haWDg a temporal bead on the earth, but only Cl|4fif(iK $1^ .^y apiritual Kiiig and Crovernor of his liirk'^ In the civil establishment oif religion in Sootlpiml tb^Pt fundamental principles were distinctly recognized by tb^ State. Previous to 1^67, when her coQstituiioOf franad by her own spiritual office-bear^rsy was presented to Par- liament AS that which she held and approved, ahe had been exercising fully and entirely all her functions as a church of Christ, without any connexion with or aupport from the state. The reformers of that time, at the bead of whom was Knox, were not men who would have sur- rendered this principle (or any temporal provision, or to please any King or Parliament. The principles of the reformation had pervaded the land, and the state was very well pleased to leave to the church herself the modelling of her spiritual constitution, and to ratify it by law when pre- sented to it. The Church of Scotland therefore is not the creature of an act of Parliament. The civil legislature only ratified the union between Church and State, op terms that had been agreed upon by the church, and of which her own spiritual independence was'*the basis. The Act 1592, <«commonIy called the great Charter OF THE Church op Scotland," while it confirms the pre- ceding statutes passed in favor of the church, unhappily bound the yoke of patronage upon the church and people* It should be remembered that this act was passed in an age in which very extravagant ideas were entertained uf the Toyal prerogative, which was stretched to the extreme limits of arbitrariness in matters both ecclesiastical and civil. The success of the Sovereigns in the sister kingdom of England, also, doubtless inspired James VI with the hope of obiaining, what he very much desired, a supremacy io all the eoclesiastical affairs of Scotland.* A nearer approximation to that perfect spiritual inde- pendence asserted in her standards was attained by an act of the Scottish Parliament in 1649, by which patronage waa ab olished, *'as being unlawful and umammUUtle b^ lAei ties poin juris folio and prov by con] seric olea cert time the vfor4 of Oodf and ccntn$ry to ih$ doeirinet and liher* ties of tku ehureh.** And becauia th?i rulo for the «p* pointment of minitters was clenrljr within the tpiritual jvrisdiction, the Parliament remitted it to the church in the following terms : '^And because it is needful that the just and proper interest of congregations and Presbyteries, in providing of kirks with ministers, be clearly determined by the General Assembly, and what is to be accounted a congregation having that interest ; therefore* it is hereby seriously recommended unto the next General Assembly* clearly to determine the same, and to condescend upon a certain standing way for being a settled fule therein in ail time coming." Without adverting to the intermediate period in which the conduct of the state towards the church underwent vari- ous changes, we come to the act 1690 for abolishing Prelacy (which the infatuated Stewarts perseveringly laboured to iorce upon the Scottish nation,) and for establishing Pres- byterian Church Government In the same year an act was passed, abolishing patronage, and declaring that ** in case of the vacancy of any parish, the heritors of the said parish, being protestants, and the elders, are to name and propose the persons to the whole congregation, to be either approven or disapproven by them" — their reasons to be stated, if they disapproved, and to be judged of by the Presbytery. These two acts constitute the Revolution Sbttlement of the Church of Scotland, ratified and confirmed by the Treaty of Union between Scotland and England in 1707, and statuted to ** remain and continue, unalterable^' It is evident from the second and fourth questions in the formula of Ordination, that the Church herself *iill holds to the ReooluHon settlement as the true legal form of her establishment. The second question refers to doctrine and worship', and is as follows :-***Do you sincerely own and believe the whole doctrine contained in the confession of Faith, approven by the General Assemblies of this church, ' and ratified by law in the year 1690, to be founded upon the word of God ; ^nd do you acknowledge the same as the eonfession of your faith ; and will you firmly and con- stantly adhere thereto, and to the utmost, of your power ttttartv -nmilittiiii and ^fonii'tiie Miney imd the purity of wdrsbip as prmieiitly pnbRlried in tbit na^oiml church»and atflerted in act 15^ A&seoibly 1707, entitled, • act against innovation in the worship of God I' '' The fourth ques* tion of the formula refers to government and discrpluie, and is as follows : — ** Are you persuaded that the Presby- terian government and discipline of this church are founded upon the word of God, and agreeable thereto, and i^o you promise to submit to the said government and discipline, and to concur with the same, and never to endeavour, directly or itidiroctly, the prejudice or subversion thereof, but to the ut- most of your power, in your station, to maintain, support and defend the said discipline and Presbyterian government by Kirk-sessions, Presbyteries, Provincial Synods, ari General Assemblies, d'jring all the days of your life ?" This formula of ordination was framed and adopted by act of Assembly 1711, and is conformable to the revolution settlement in 1690, as ratified in 1707 by the Treaty of Union. The Synod of Canada uses the same formula in ordination. It is, therefore, common to both, and expres- ses the views of both as to the fundamental principles of the church. The Church of Scotland, however, is not n )w in the precise state which her ordination formula cot emplates, and as established at the Revolution and by the . reaty of Union. Not more than five years had elapse (1712) when this CuDdameBtal and '^unalterable" conditic i of the Treaty was violated hy the machinations of e i infidel minister,* and the perfidy of a subservient parli$ .i3nt,and patronage which had been formerly declared, * "^latcful and unwarrantable by the word of God^ and contrary to thf- doctrines and liberties of this church,'' was revived,tn despite Of the protestations of the Greneral Assembly and the voice of the Scottish nation. The Assembly continued her protestations annually, until 1784, against this act| as a violation of national faith and an infringement of the 'inalienable rights of a christian people. From that year until 1884, in consequence of the ascendency of modbba- TiSM, the Assembly ceased formally to protest against pat- • See App9ndix,NeteA. urity of ircti,and agiftindt th ques- iscrpline, Presby- founded d uo you line, and rectly or to theut- suppbrt rcrnmont ods, ar j r life ?" opted by evolution reaty of rmul^ in d expres- iciples of •w in the emplatesr reaty of \ (1712) ' I of the I infidel .'!3nt,and ntrary to evivedyin nbly and s^ntinued is act, as nt of the hat year MODBSA- ainst pat- n h>Tiaiget krid to ii^ek i^drefio Ibr th« wfong that fA& hem inflicted on the Charch, btit a faithful band within her, stHI ebntintied to ^^sigh i(nd cry,'' because of the abominafiOB. With the view of abating the evils of patronage, the General Assembly' in 18S4 passed the Veto-Law, which gave a negative voice to the people in the election of their rninister, nnd secured the great principle, *Hhai no minit- ter should he intruded into a congregation contrary to the toiee of tks major part of the commtmieantsy Various circumstances led to the adopting of this measure at that pinrticularconjuncture. Within the church, vital religion had been greatly revived, and church accommodation to a larger extent was required than what the law provided for; without the church, the passage of the reform Bill, a few years previously, had given a larger expansion to the spirit of liberty. In short the condition of society in Scotland had undergone a total revolution. Had it been tiie same in 1834, as in 1712, when the great body of the landholders and patrons were Presbyterians, and the great body of the people in a conditio^i approaching to serfdom, a modified form of patronage might not only have been endurable, but, in some respects, beneficial. Under a monarchical government and an ancient aristocracy ,and a lengthened gradation of tank and property, it is hardly con- ceivable that the right of electing ministers,whose incomes were mostly drawn from the landlord, should be committed to the cottars and binds, which it virtually would have been had the Hgiu of vote been limited to actual communicants. No analogous instance could be found in the then existing frame-nrork of Scottish society. The elective fran- chise in the stale was limited to a very small number of per- sons. The law of patronage, therefore, made the eoclesi- asitcal franchise analogous, that is, it placed it in the hands of the Crown, and the great landed proprietors. But the Condition of society in Scotland in 1834 was vastly differ- ent. The elective franchise had been extended to all classes of the people ; the spirit of liberty which growi Wit^i intelligence and reviving religion had gained strength; the genius of Presbyterianism, always tending to the as- sertion of popular rights, had acquired greater energy. In these circumstances, it was not to be imagined thai n patronage would aland lunaasailed. But there were other ^iisea. The aristocracy oir Scolland ia dot wbatit oace wa$» It 16 DO longer Presbyterian; it is bow An- glicised in its character and religion. Most of the ariatoc racy are not only resident in England; they have become English by their engrafting upon English atocks. 3ootland is not now ti^etr country ; it is only a province of England, where their estates lie, and in which the relij^ioas peculiarities of the people are indulged accoT" djhtg to ancient custom. Such an aristocracy can have no very strong hold upon the affections of the people, and the exercise of their rights as patrons will always be looked upon with suspicion, and is very likely to be exercised without much deference to the popular wish or well-being. The full time, therefore, had come, /or the modification of the law of patronage. The church had every dispos- ition to deal gently with t7, doubtless out of regard to the large number who held that modified patronage was not an evil, and also from the great improbpbility of their ob* taining the concurrence of the state, if they should trench at all on what are held to bo the civil rights of patrons. With the diificuities of her position full in view, and with the advice of the highest legal authorities in the state, and in conformity with what she held to be her inherent and conslituiional rights, she enacted the Veto Law. The civil courts decided that this was an infringement of the patrimonial rights of the patrons ; the church maintained her ground ; frequent collisions ensued between the civil and ecclesiastical courts ; the administration of the day, though frequently invoked, would bring no relief: the DISRUPTION followed, and has left the fabric of the estab* iishment in ruins. An important question arises : which of the two sections, now familiarly known as the Residuary, and the Free Church, is truly the Church of Scotland, as defined at the revolution settlement. Those who maintain that the Church of Scotland is always that which is presently acknowledg- ed by the state, will find it within the walls of the estab- lishment. On the other hand, those who look for a church, possessing all the characteristics of Mar «6fa&/<>M0M^^ reoalutionf possessed of undoubted spiritual independence, re other it oQce I9w An- of the ; they Eogliah only a n which id accor^ have no and the looked xercised lUbeing. ification dispos- d to the veas not heir ob* i trench patrons, nd with le statCt inherent w. The I of the intained le civil he day, ef: the > estab* ections, ) Feee d at the Church Dwledg- ) estab- shurch, idenc^i 18 &nd ff«t from tike yoke of patronage, Will find it in the Free Churelik . Many are of the opinion that the time will speedily oome, when even the state will acknowledge and redress those wrongs wbieh have enforced her separation. It is not, however^the object of this inquiry to show which of the two parties have the better claim to be regarded at the Church of Scotland on the ground of constitutional law, and the maintainance of those conditions on which the establishment was based at the revolution, and confirmed by the Treaty of Union. The state, of course, decides in favor of the **Resiouart,'' and whatever quarrel may be with the state for this decision, and for the mournful cau- ses which have rendered such a discrimination necessaryt the Residuary must be held bv us as the Church of Scot- land, established by law ; as that church with which we stand in a filial relation ; a relation which, slight as it is, it would be inexpedient and undutifui to seek to dissolve, on any other ground, than an open and manifest departure from the fundamentals of those common standards by which the Church of Scotland and the Synod of Canada are equally bound as affiliated churches of the Lord Jesus Christ. • But this can never be a barrier to the Synod's entrance into fraternal correspondence with the Free Church of Scotland, with which we have so many personal ties, and to the ministers of which our Church in Canada is under so many obligation8,-->to say nothing of the yet undetermi- ned question, which multitudes, however, have already de- termined in their own minds, that she, the uncompromi- sing though disinherited advocate of the principles of the revolution settlement, is the true Church of Scotland, ac- cording to that treaty, to which a nation's faith was so' lemnly pledged, that it should ** remain and continue un- alterable.'' II. WnAf to THE fRiyE RELATION WHICH THE pRESBY- TBRiAN Church op Canaoa holos in rbsfect op the Church op Scotlano. Previous to 1881, several congregations, professing ad- * Set Appendis, Nots B« I« ft ■'i Kornioa to the Church of 8ootlafi4rluidbe€iQ,.f6riiM|dtA Oanada^ but ro bond of unity subsisted amongv them ; they had no ecclesisstKuil ju(Qlicatu,fes save the Session in each congregationy nor had they ever been recognized in any form by tiie parent church, though the ministers had iieen ordained bv Presbyteries in ^Scotland, and their mem- bers generally had been adherents of the national Church. In that year, a Convention of ministers and elders met at Kingston and formed themselves into a Synod and four Presbyteries, assuming the title of Thb Pkesbyterun Chorch OF Canada, in connexion ^jfFu the Church of Scotland, — ^ ^leaving U to the Venerable^ the General As" €etnbly^ to determine the particular nature of that cqnnexr ion which shall subsist between this Synod and the Generfitf- Assembly of the Church of Scotland,^' What our designation should be, gave rise to very lengthened and warm discussion. Some wished the Sy- nod to be wholly independent of the parent Church, and proposed that the title should be, "The S^ .ai> op the Presbyterian Church op Canada." Some wijhed that we should be incorporated with ttie parent Church, like the Presbytery of Calcutta, and the reserving clause yfjks inr sorted in our minute with the hope on their part that re- presentation in, and incoiporation with, the General As- sembly, would be conceded.* Others sustained the reser- ving clause in the hope that some relation of fraternity might be established between the parent Church and the colonial, from which the latter might derive assistance in the procuring of ministers, and the means of sup- porting them. A fourth party consented to the va'ue conditienality annexed to our assumed title, because \\ was agreeable to the parties holding the preceding views, and the insertion of it secured unanimitv at a time when it was exceedingly desirable ; but foreseeing, nevertheless, thai the parent Church could not and would not admit any co- lonial church into incorporation with her, and to represen- tation in her Assembly, and asserting that our self-assvmed connexion with her could not be any thing but nominaL 4,. Time has confirmed the correctness of the opmions of the first and last of these parties. It is now admitted on all Hbo Appendix, Note C. t lent ««ioii in nized in ^rs had )ir K9em- I!hurch. ars mejt nd four fTERI4N URCH OF sral As" conTiessr Gener^ to very the Sy- I'ch, and ► OP THE bed that like th^ was ii> that re- leral As- le reser- FERNITY and the isistance t>f pup- ie va^ue 36 \*. was ws, and n it WHS )^9r thai any co- jpresen- %s8vmed linaL IS of the \ on all Inuldf that our eonoexibn with the Cbttroli of Scotland is but nomiita/, audthat the eoeleaiastieal independence of the gynod of Ganada ia a mattefnot to t)e gainayed. It inay be established on the following grounds : 1. That the ministers and commissioners of oongrega- lions» who met in Convention, m order to constitute the Synod, though all when in Scotland connected with the Established Church, yet were in Canada, both in fact and law, beyond its jurisdiction, at the period that this step was taken. 2. That the Synod was a self-constituted body, which did not derive its powers from the General Assembly, but these resulted from that inherent and constitutional right, which belongs to all Presbyterian ministers and congrega- tions placed in similar circumstances.* c^^^j 3. That this inherent and independent right is plainly inv- plied in the terms used in the first clause of the Dec/ara- twy Enactment which reached this country in July, 1833.t 4. That this Declaratory Enactment does not define, and the General Assembly never has attempted to define, what the Synod left to its determination, the nature of our connexion with it;. because, strictly speaking, no freshy- terial connexion did or could subsist : Recognition on the part of the Assembly, on the ground of certain conditions prescribed to the colonial churches, would be the more ap- propriate term. 5. That although the determination of this question was left in indefinite terms to the General Assembly, that ve- nerable body could not have placed the Synod of Ganada in any relation implying dep^mdence and jurisdiction^ without granting to it incorporation and repreaentattxtn — privileges that could not have been conferred upon any colonial church consistently with its own Charter of In- corporation. 6. It is quite clear, moreover, from the correspondence held with leading members of the General Assembly, that such a connexion wasnever contemplated by them. | * See Appendix, Note D. •^ See Appendix, Note E. :|; See Letters in Appendix, Note C, and several of the same ienor were received from other leading ministers of the Charch. 7. All the proviBioni of the Bedamtorj EnaelnbeDt tf^ eonrormable to tbeae views of the perfect independence of the Synod. It declafes what Is proper and eatpMmt ; recommenda^ but does not enjoin; never speaks of con- nexion or jurisdiction ; evidently ai^ticipates a time when •Ten its reeomnundatione simU he inapplicable to our eireuin^ stances : and appoints a committee for giving advice and assistance, if we shall ehooie to ask them. Here is a/ro- temal relation^ but manifestly no preabyterialenmeaiion, 8. The framers of this Enactment knew far better our true position in regard to the Church of Scotland, than we did ourseives ; and it is not to be doubted that, had this document reached the Synod in 18S1, instead of 1833« it would have substituted for the self-asmmed and unautho- rized clause ** IN CONNEXION WITH THE ChURCH OP SCOT- LAND,'' which forms part of its present title, the far more appropriate description, which the General Assembly itself has used, ** adhering to the standards of the Church of Scotland, and maintaining her form of worship and go- vemment,^^ 9. This latter clause clearly describes our true character and position. There are some points connected with the Es- tablished Church of Scotland, as it now exists, which many of our ministers and people, both at home and in the colo- nies, utterly renounce and condemn — most of them grow- ing out of the grievance of patronage. In short, when we speak strictly and technically of the Church of Scotland, we understand it in the sense in which it is used in the ordination formula, and particularly in the second question of it. [Seepage 9.] 10. Ever since the formation of the Synod, it has acted as an independent judicature ; nor have its actings ever been called in question by the General Assembly, though, in at least ^oe remarkable instances, the Synod had gone in advance of that position which the Declaratory Enact- ment had recommended it to assume : — 1, the admission of Presbyterian ministers from other bodies ; 2, the licensing of probationers ; 3, the education of young men for the ministry ; 4, the appointing of new regulations for the course oT theological study ; 5, the entrance into corre- spondence with othel* Presbyterian churches ; — acts as tie^ idenoe of of obn- ne when r eireuiii»> vice and is afro- leaiion. etfer our than we had this 1833, it unautho- )r ScoT- far more ibly itself Church of ' and. gO' character th the Es- ich many the coio- jra grow- when we Scotland, ;d in the question bas acted ivgs ever t though, md gone y Enact- lission of licensing n for the for the ;o corre- -acts ai anMuiymlW proT^n,^ the (Bxereiso oC eeoleiiastieal j^df- kvr((i,c^iy)d jurilKiielioa oier tb9 ^SyncM^ w;ii|^t.laeD'r|M^^, raUdk'ahd i^epresebUktion, to heUher ebiild ma Sym)4 li#^ yteldea to lit without a, dao^roai apo. unwarifiiiiedL tiirp ., rebder or its bWii'anrf iha peopIeVtbiiritiial rigbtt an4 Iibar^ ', tiefc\ III. WHCTasa TRI TIMPOKAL ADVAMriOIS WBICH THS 11 STl^db HAS OBTAINSD raOM THB GoYBRNUBNTi OB ANY ,^ OTttKK >AltTr, UNDBR ITS PBB8ENT DESIGN ATION» MAT BB ' Putrilf tBRlt BT ANT MBASUBBS LIBBLT TO BB ADOFTBD.. Th'ekd consist of small parcels of land, bestowed uppn a few congregations ; of small sums of money granted in certaltl cases' to aid in building churches; of an i^nniial allowance to certaiil ministers ; and of the right to a cer- tain portion of the proceeds of the Clergy Reserves Tne'Continued possession of these advantages will de-. petid Upon the fulfilment of the conditions on which they. weYd bestowed, of which the fundamental element is ** ad* heHhgto the standards o( the Church oF Scotland :" a>^ departure from these would imply a forfeiture of the ad^ vantages* It ought to be remembered that these advantages were not claimed, and they were not obtained, solely on th^. grCund of our connexion with the Church of Scotland, but on our rights as Scotchmen in a British colony, under the Treaty of 0nion. The claimants, doubtless, asserted theik* adhetenee to the national church according as it might be understood conformably with that treaty, and with the laws and constitution of the church as then established. No capricious and arbitrary denial of bf.cognition, or declaration of non- relationship Kith a colonial church, if such were possible, on the part of the General AsbembI), can abrogate the rights of the subjects of the kingdom of Scotland, as guaranteed by the Treaty of Union, These remain as established in 1707, whatever revolutions the charch may undergOi or whatever may be the character of its proceedings. w i?r To tiippote ah eitreme eate. Were tlie ^jfnoi'io ^0fi>ff e^. ^ that.tlie existing ef tablishment of Scoilana, on Meovttt of . her practical defedtion from her ttandarda, or oh aCGpQqt of tHe hewinterpretation of the laws affecting her,aBcl'tb^ , new legislation of the British Parliament in her afiaii^ wihoiU her eonaenU is not the church establishment of thp ReTbTotion settlement, as recognized ih the formula of or- dination, and that on account of fundamental changes It could not acknowledge her to be the true Church of Scotr land ; a declaration to this effect, whether made in isrrpr, or on true grounds, could not affect the essential character of the Synod of Canada, or endangjBr any of her temporal interests, so long as she herself unequivocally maintained her original position, and faithfully adhered to the common standards. If this opinion on a case soextreme be cor- rect, no steps are likely to be taken which will endaiig^t the tomporalities of the Canadian church. IV. What the General. Assembly and the Stnoit OF Canada mioht be at liberty to do, (occupying BACFI an fNDEPENDENT POSITION, THOUGH STANDINO TO EACH OTHER fN A CLOSE FRATERNAL RELATIONSHIP,) IN CERTAIN SUPPOSED EMERGENCIES. 1. If the proceedings of the Synod were manifestly at variance with the standards of the Church of Scotland, it would be competent for the Assembly to declare that her relationship to the Synod was annulled. Such a declara- tion, supposing that the grounds were valid, would through iha intervention of the eivil courts here have the effect of de- priving tho church of all the advantages thatshe possessed in virtue of that relationship. But apart from any such dticiaratioQ by the General Assembly, the same deprivation wairid frvllew, were an action instituted by any eompetenl parties in tho proper civil court for malversation of trust. The property and privileges of the churchare helilon cer- tain conditions, and to apply them alienmrly might be the ground of a civrl action. 2. On the other hand, if the General Assembly should fail into heresy, or depart from the standards of the eh urcb to which it la bound by its const! lution, a» well as the j^'\i y.'X>. (• !Ui>''.rf »• i5? i (•'.'• Bomit Qf and'th^ t aflSini^ It ol* tlip a of or- anges It of Scot- n errpr^ aracter RRiporal intaihed sommoR be cpr- ixlan^^c Stnoit lUPTIMO iiNO to IP,) IN J*** ■ ■ estly at land, it lat her leclara- li rough tofde* isessecSl y such lyation ipeteol trusL ^n cer- be the rother, you use your liberty. No one can conopel > oii to believe that Shb \b not the true oW mother who is at preseiit sit- ting within the deserted wallst not^ithstaii^idjg^ all that the deserters have asserked in their *^ claim ojp kioHTSt^ ancl in their deed of **oimi8Sion and SEpARATioN.''— But at all e vents, you do not mean that you wi^l hold to the church establishment as if you were really a part of it, seeing yju are no pari of it at ally by its own declaration. You can- not mean this. Nor do >'ou mean that you entirely ap- prove of the whole course which those who now constitute ihe establishment have pursued in recent controversies I **No, sir, but 1 mean by my adherence an approver oC mother church, as the best estahlishmeht in the world /" Very well ; you are entitled to hol^ that opinion, and I rather think the fioryest Free-Church man will agree with you in it, notwithntanding the abominations by which in hi;, judgment the national church has been defiled. But there are some things, brother, connected with the present establishment, that you surely do not fully ap- prove : as for instance, unlimited patronage, — the late pndeniablo intrusions of the Court of Hession into the spi- ritual domain, — the restraints laid upon church-ex tension by the degradation of the quoad sacra ministers 1 ^* No, sir, I don t approve of these things ; I wish a remedy to be provided for them.'' Very well. Who can deny your right to hold these opinions with such limitations ; and why should not you and your brother on the other side, who are Adhering substantially to the same object, as defined in the j6rdination formula, not continue to dwell in unity and love, on the free, and scriptural, and truly Cburch-of-Scotland ground, which the Synod of Canada occupies ? 8. And ** What shall we do ?" exclaim a group of sturdy backwoodsmen, crowding around their minister as he cornea, out of his log church, after having faithfully expounded t(> them the doctcine of spiritual independence—*' What shall we do f Shall we hold hii the * Old Residnary»^orgo mtH ^9 111% |It jbrotnert to beliefe ^rese'ot sit- itl that the tb/' and But at art e church e'eing y-jti You can- tirely ap- constitute roversics ? )provaroC e world /'' on, and I vill agree by which iled. But with the i fully ap- —the late to the spl- •extension ? ^♦No. nedy to be leny your and why , who are led in the ' and love, -Scotland of sturdy he cbnnea ouoded t(> ^hatshali r g^ imth ih$ • JF>e# Church V V «< Oh, Donald, Donald," saya the minister mildly to the chiof speaker, ** what clatter is this you are continoally making about 'the Strathbogie mini* sters,' and ' the Marnoch case,' and the • interdicts,' and the 'disruption,' and *the Free Church,' and Mhe Resi-* duary,' and * shall we stay in V or •will we oo out V How, Donald, can ye either stay in, or go out, when you are not in at all ? and you have not been m the Church of Scotland since you left the quay of Greenock. And have you not been an elder of the Free Church in the Scotch Block of — ever since you came to Canada, and long before the Free Church of Scotland was dreamed of by (hose who now talk most loudly about it ? You at least are not afraid of patronage and Csesar. in these backwoods. If you should ever return to Sutherland, it will then be your duty to consider whether you ought to hold to the Establishment, or join the Free Church, but you need not perplex youi^self or ybar neighbors about the question here; only, Donald, if you can spare it, and if you please you may even stretch a point to spare it, you may send the prree of the young heifer you sold on Friday, to help your old fellow parishioners in Sutherland, whom the factor Wishies to compel to worship God in a way that may please the Duke, though they know, perhapfl fully as well as his Grace, how God is to be worshipped. We cannot stand/ my good friend, any violation of the rights of conscience— - we must help them* The price of your heifer, and of two or three busnels of wheat from each of your neighbors ia the Block, will be a stone in their kirk. * Less dirif Do' ndidt and ml(ur tooo»^ '^ y. Concluding REMAaxs. i3y a careful comparison of notes on this subj^t among those ^ho full)^ uhderstind it — by keeping in View the ee- seritial Wieritfs of the case— by rejecting inaccnrate bhd udd^fihiiidd^pressipnd which we have brbught from fitur* n^tfye^hd. >ittd'iiirhich «rO not appropriate* to our cir^oiw-*^ stances in Canada— it will be admitted that we occupir an iftdep^iidenf M!itt(^' ait'pd^^^bf l»e .ChirT^iaii dhtlfdb^ fn ihuZh^yf&tmm ib%g mnimm^ mmwti^^ OUT standards, we may correspond fi[ith any other churchy and disapprove and remonstratet as may be deemed ri]g;ht and dutiful, without putting any of our interests in peril. It would indeed be a grievous and intolerable hindrance to Presbyterianism in this colony, were the church courts here to be held bound to approve or to follow all the pro- ceedings of the Scottish Establishment, or to take any part in the troubles that arise within it in consequence of its connexion with the State. We^re connected with it rather in its character of a Church of Christ, than in that of an Establishment. It exibted in the former character long before it was connected with the State, and all its standards were formed prior to this connexion. It is in its non- established condition, therefore, that we find its true model; this alone we are under obligations to copy, and this only is adapted to our circumstances. Give us, then, this model, free from those peculiarities which have grown up around it in consequence of its civil establishment ; — give us this model of scriptural Presby- terianism, and it will in progress of time secure for itself on establishment in the understandings and in the afl&c* tions of the people of this land ; — purify it from all mere nationality, and let it be conformed in all things ** to the pattern showed upon the Mount," ocd within less than a century the Synod of Canada may comprehend under its pastoral superintendence a church mere numerous than the national establishment of Scotland ever had under its wing. Closely connected as the great body of the Preabyterian community in Canada are with Scotland, and dear as its xhurch is to us, we are constrained to look with intense in* terest on the issue of the struggle going on there. It is not to be doubted that the ecclesiastical vsformation will advance ; that the establishment will either be ** re-model- i»BD* OR ovbbthrown;" but be it the one or the other, the Church of the Scottish nation will never be consumed--^ she will rise fresh and renovated from amidst the fiery tri- bulations through which- she is passing. There are many sound meiA and true yet within the eaUbllpbment,. altboMgW * To rsmoddl, wonld only bt to restore the Cbttrsh lo its cea^ stitaOooal and Isgtl erivilegts. Set Apptnais, I^ets A. 'M'nm *'i r churchy ned right 1 peril, lindrance ch courts the pro- any part ce of its it rather lat of an cter long standards its non- le model; bis only uliarities its civil Presby- for itself pe afiec^ all mere " to the 8 than a inder its than the its wing, byteriaa ir as its ense in» >. It is iion will -MODEL- ^er, the umcd— -^ iery tri- e manr IthpiigW its CQU^ ' (fbey bad not the courage to be martyn. The m'iglvif talent of the Free Church will be plied unweariedly for her leformation ; and if the Church of Scotland shall sui vlve as a national established church, its new treaty of con- nexion with the State will be more enlightened and scrip- tural than any that Jemes VI., and modern statesmen of his school, have ever yet favo^^red. And is tt too muoli to hope that when the grievances which have given rise to the various sccessions are removed, the entire Presbv- terianisro of Scotland may be harmoniously united withr» the same fold f There are other denominations also, which, by some slight modification of their respective peculiarities, might be attracted within the circle of fraternal eo-operatiofit if •not of incorporation* There is a strong affinity between the Free Piesbyterianism of Scotland, and the Congrega- tionalism of England. What shouM prevent their union ? It would be of immense advantage to the cause of truth. Were such an union efiected, the old Puritanism of Eng- Isnd might yet lift its •head ; another Westminster Assem- bly might be convened, and another national Covenant entered into under better auspices than the former. Then, again, Free Churchism and Methodism are practically within sight of each others the^oe points, calmly and mo- derately interpreted by the wisest of both parties, might not prove an insuperable barrier ; more akin in their prac- tical operations, they will become -more akin in their sen- timents. A good understanding, •and a frequent commu- nion between these bodies, would have a powerful influ- ence in advancing the reformation, and in promoting the ■unity of the Church Catholic. This hope makes ode look upon them with a kinder eye and a warmer charity. The unity of the Church will be ratified on Bible and Mission- ary ground. Events prognosticate its approach. May it not be that the Supreme Head of the Church, >* who holds the stars in his right hand,'** has constrained tbo^ faithful men of the Free Church to get out from mi •estaiblishment so coerced by the recent encroachments of jthe civil power that it could neither extend nor reform it- tielf, not only that Ihe work of reformation may be carried ioa mote eirectuanyin.ScotIand ^ but Ihattheir example .«ii 24 spirit may be diffused into other lands, where thoChufch is atiU in bondage tOiCsBsar, that they too may be stirred up to assert their spiritual independence, and come forth into that liberty wherewith Christ has made them free ? The progress of the Protestant Reformation has been checked and marred by State control more than by any other cause. Worldly politicians taking the Church under their protection have formed and fashioned her for their own ends, heedless of the great end for which she is ordained , of God, and of the divine rule by which she is to be go- verned. The complete purgation of the errors and cor- ruptions of by-gone times will not be etFected while these Uzzahs touch the ark ;T-the work must be done by cleaner hands. The experience of every branch of the Church, since the Monk of Saxony began his career, plainly testifies that without freedom and independence in all spiritual matters no Church can either reform itself from ancient corrup- tions, or long maintain itself in purity and usefulness. In Scotland, a strenuous effort is now being made to assert this spiritual independence as the inalienable right of the Churchy and the patrimonial inheritance of every Scotch- man. Who can turn away his eyes from the arena, or look with indifference upon the combatants ? On this continent — in this colony — we fully enjoy all the advantages for which they are contending. But in the Church, as in the State^ independence amon^ &n ungodly people will very certainly degenerate into iawlessnesg This is the side OQ which our danger Hes. The spirit of insubordination tHat spurns at the sceptre of Ctesar, will not meekly submit to the yoke of Christ. Let it be in- scribed on every pillar of the Church,— let it be engraven OR the soul of every worshipper within it, that the freedom with which Christ has made us free must be regulated by ^ laws of His kingdom — and wo be to the people that in* fringe them, ** In the keeping of lua commandmentt lhir$ ■•?-j h-fi'^tff i^i^' * f? tfi:'^. r.;^;--Khinri, •>i)i: E2 Church is stirred up ^ forth into ee ? k has been y any other under their their own is ordained is to be go- rs and cor- while these > by cleaner urch, since estilies that ual matters ent corrup. fulness. In ie to assert right of the ery Scotch- arenai or \y enjoy ail But in the an ungodly lawlessnesB he spirit of !^sar, will let it bo in^ >8 engraven ihe freedon> tgulated by ipie that in* menu thir$ ^0»;t ATP matrix. >ii y ai *»; »» The Kirk of Scotland was established by the good Regent Murray and the Parliament of Scotland, and wrested the charter of her liberties from the despot James VI. b^ moral energy, with the exception of patronage, which wjvs still laid on her. Finally, at the Revolution settlement William re-enacted that charter, but abolished patronage. Thus the Kirk of Scotland was eitablished, received her en- dowmmts, and ihe protection of law, from her native King and Parliament; and its constitution, as settled at the Re- volution, received the sanction of the Scottish State, and be- came part of the constitution of this country. Then came the Union ; the ministers and people were afraid that this would open up the Kirk to innovations from the feelings of Englishmen in favour of prelacy, which they theipselves abhorred, and hence arose the violent opposition to the Chion : mostof all did they feel uneasy at the prospect of the temporal affairs of the Kirk being mana^^ed by those who are called lords spiritual, and thus be reduced to the ne- cessity of seeing the Kirk unacknowledged by the State and bereffc of its endowments, or of submitting to its arrange- ments bein^ forced upon them according to the opinions of the C!n^li«h prelates who had a seat in the Parliament which was abojut to be called into existence as supieme over the whole Island. To secure, therefore, tlie constitution of the Kirk^ itsesta* blishment and endow men ts^ and, in short, to place thesO beyond the roach of the English members who were sup* poseato be itostile to them, the Scottish Parliament passed the Act of Security, securing the Kirk of Scotland in hei^ worship, doctrine, discipline, ami governurent according to^ the Revolution settlement, which act was incorporated into the Treaty of Union, and declared in that Treaty to be> a fundamental and essential condition of the IJnioni to con* tinue fpr ever. t, For what purpose, then, were these stipulations roacte^ f^ey Were clearly restrictions upmi the power of the BritisU raiiiament. Placing them heyunrl their leacli as ilitinaHsH" e^Ujpoliticnl ritrJUs of the Kirk and people of Scotland, anid i^nich the British Parliament should have no power totuibi MtUe ad'te catenas »'> -^qtiit £ffii^iet tarn haec scil rBtus vincula Proteus. It Evil men may in one sense be said to be stronger than :good men— no moral restraint can bind tkem ; so the security of a treaty could not secure the Kirk from the hands of those who showed the low standin^i; they held in creation by their freedom from the control of right. Bolingbroke and his party came into power through the influence of a tiring-woman.* To prepare the way for the re- turn of the Stuarts to the throne, they passed an actanent patronages, with a lying preamble, and thus broke the treaty which had just been signed, and passed an act beyond their powers, and of the most unconstitutional kind. If it be true, as I conceive it most undoubtedly is, that the British Parliament have not the constitutional power to deprive us of our endowments and our Kirk's constitution* then the British Parliament cannot insist upon what they know to be tUtra vires. I noticed by chance in the Courier newspaper an article upon this same question. It hints, at the ena, of a now ad- justment of the compact between the Chui'chand the State. Does the Courier think we are mad ? No : we will main- tain our rights and the constitution of the Kirk as they were settled at the Union. — Extract from a letter in the London Olobe, Sept. 6th., 1S40. IMM'ti and pies canm titem notd their with Besid a true trine! The Princeton Review, animadverting upon the hostile attitude which some leading organs of the Free Church have assumed towards the Establishment, as if no communion were to be held with it, and ** the parish minister were to be regarded as the one excommunicated man of the district,*^ thus remaTks-:~<*This course, if right, will be found expe- dient ; if wrong, it must prove disastrous. We are con- strained to think it wrong, because it proceeds on the false assumption that the present Established Church of Scotland is not ft diurch Vf Jesus Christ. That this is a false assump- tion is to us plain, because according to the common stan- dards of the Free and of the Established Church, andaccordr ing to the common doctrine of Christendom, and the plaiii teaching of the scriptures, a church is a body of men profess- ing the true religion. That the Established Church dp profess the true religion is plain because they have the very same Confession of Faith, and therefore make the very sajiie profession that is made by their seceding brethren . If it b^ said that they differ a« to the intportant doctrine of the lorji^, •hip .of .Christ over hiscf rnu e rinswer is, first, tl^t both •;i*# 1^1' jf \-' » *; ■^-f^- ronger than the security nds of tho9e ion by theiir hrough the y for the re« act anent e the treaty eyond their \y is, that il power to institution^ what they an article a new ad- the State, will main- they were he London he hostite urch have >nimunion r were to district/' II nd expe* are con- I the false * Scotland 9 assump- Qon Stan- id accordr the plaiii n profess* ^urch dp the very BIT saMe If it ben the lordn ilyt both fkvrties'bold to the same verbf^l statement of that^ doctrine, and diflfer only as to the application of it, or as to the princir. j^les which flow from it; and secondly, that admittin|r the Establishment. to be in error as to that doctrine, such error cannot work a forfcitute of their church state, unless ic cutt tliem off from Christ 9nd the hope of salvation. iThis it can- not do, because, according to the scriptures, all who repent of their sins and put their trust in Christ are in a state of union with him, and of course in a state of grace and salvation. Besides, the doctrine that a church is not to be refsarded as a true church of Christ unless perfectly pure as to its doc- trines, is inconsistent with our common standards; it is inconsistent with the Bible, and with common sense, and the common judgment of the people of God in all places and in all ages. There fs also a glaring inconsistency, in making the practical recognition of the spiritual independence of the church necessary to its very existence, with the past and present conduct of these brethren themselves. It may even be doubted whether, according to their principles, the Church of Scotland itself, before the passage of the Veto Act, had not practicalI;|r|for many generations (?) renouncedthis very doc^ trine of spiritual independence ; for it had not onl^ submitted to the domination oi the state, but had lent its aid in crush- ing the rights of the people, and the independence of the church courts, which It now so nobly vindicates."— Those who are at a distance can form a much more dispassionate judgment of both parties, than these parties can do of each other ; and it is gratifying to find so distinct a testimony in favor of the Church of Scotland, as still a church of Christ, notwithstanding her defections, from writers who have ad- vanced much farther in their notions of eccTesiastical freedom than the most innovatir^ of the Free Churchmen of Scotland are yet prepared to go. c The author of these bribf notbs, in the days of his inex- perience, belonged to this class. In a letter addressed to a dis« tinguished Ministerof the Church of Scotland, in 1831, imme* diately after the formation of the Synod« he expressed himself thus :— « It will greatly promote the interests of our Church ill Canada, w^re the General Assembly distinctly to recog- nise our Synod, ai in connexion with the ^.hurch, and Ap- point some means by which the connexion may not b« meiiely nbminal, but real. As you will learn from our roiiitttes and thei accompanying memorial, thedeterminatioiv of thifi natiijs of our relation iB%ft entirely to (he Gentral^ Ik |be C^eneral ARSdtbbiy should receive it r^j^ieserfttffitiit frolii Qur Church every' alternate year, and that a Goiniiifssidiiei' Irqqs (he General Jkssennbly shoiild vi^it the Sy Hod df Oatm- (ia every second or fourth year. In this way our cotineiTfon iwith the Parent Church would be morn certainly presfe^ved, and qur influence with the Imperial Government thi'oUgh ^e Assembly woUld be greater. It is desirable that the legislators of our church should speedily come to some de- cision on the ({uestion. Whether the General Assen^ly can e;i[tend its jurisdiction beyond Scotland into terHtoties ac- quired since the Union ? ' The Church of England foutid no difficulty in uniting Canada to the Diocese or Canterbury ; biit the establishment of the North seems more tiitiid. Jf, however, they are in doubt about the matter, and think Presbyterianism a system worth contending for, the timid inight petition for a parliamentary sanction to receive their owa colonial churches under their jurisdiction ; for it is neither Christian nor politic that our Mother Church should shut herself up within her own little fortress^ and refuse to extend protection to, a^id to form alliance with, those who naturally belong to her.** Biefore this letter could have reached Scotland, one was received from the eminent ihiniit- ter to whom it was addressed, containing the following sen- timents : — " I hope that ere now you have met together and formed yourselves into a Synod on the principles of the Church of Scotland, and that the Committee ot the General Assembly in reporting to the next Assembly may have it in their power to recomi^ehd the Synod br Church iti Canada to the protection of the Church of Scotland. You should rigidly adhere to the constitution and government of the parent church, that you may without hesitation be recog- nized, if not as a branch of, at Jcast as a branch itrom, our truly scriptural establishment. The right of sending repre- sentatives cannot be granted, and if conceded, would do more harm than good* It seems to be very generally ad mitted that the Presbytery of India is a gross anomaly, and tlmt it would be much l>etter to. withhold the right of repre- 0^ivtation to the Assembly. You ^ill^ govern yoiirselyes eeeiesiastieally far better thap we can do.*^ , Id anoilier letter, dated 26th May, 1832, at^ the time when ^he JCNielara- lory Enactment was prepared.by tbf^ Aifseixibly taibewapt down to Presbyteries, he sajf refpiMtMigU:-~'*4ti§!m>t proposed thaty ou should hav&the fm\ii offending irf p|r^|i« taUvet. The Prioeipal C^acfarlanX an^|, I,|}tlieve>a%the lbadui($ men of the churcihj afre epiiVinoed tjti^i ifi ^ IfoVlPf a repreientation to the churches io India, ihe Asaembly ex< eteded its powem an4 commitM a ffreat. error. A,tUc|iin&; £l&ifeatM'ri^p^jrtanc<) id fesMihc^, I should tiiitilt th^ riinf ioir tiejpresdMatlbii ^n ejW ratlier llian a good ; or if do8« Miniikd and not usedt a mere s^w thing, that you would be better whhout. Brides the right of representation could icareely eJKist, or rather Goutd not at all exist, without the ri j;ht of superintendence and government on our part ; and it Wqi^Idnot be easy to exercise such superintendence over courts on the other side of the Atlantic* See, fur example, bow t^ePresbytery of Edinburgh are bothered with the Pres- bytery of Calcutta, and how difficult ihey have found it to attend to complaints from that quarter, and to redress the e'Tiis complained of." Again, in July, 1883 :^<< I sliall look With expectation for the promised account of your Sjr nod's proceedings in August. If I mistake not the institution of that Court, and your Presbyteries under it, have done good to the Presbyterian (Church of Scotland^ cause in Canada* In the eye of the government you are an organized and uni« ted body. They appear to acknowledge you as such, and you owe it more to your own exertions than to those of your friends in Britain, that there is now an approximation to a more equal distribution of the good things between you and the Church of England in Canada."-— Xc/^crt/rom* Dr» Patrick J\Iacfarlane, of Greenock, The following extracts from the Memorial addressed by the Synod to tlie General Assembly on its formation, may serve to illustrate the nature of the Synod's relation to the Assembly. No reply, as we recollect, was ever received to this Memorial, and, generally speaking, all the com- munications of the Synod were treated by the Assembly in the same wav. ** * Your Memorialists in tthus addressing you, primarily design to inform you of the formation of an Ecclesiastical Union among themselves ; and in terms of the resolution by which they were constituted into a Synod, to submit to you the determination of the precise relation which the Synod shall have to your Venerable Body ; and withal to crave the counsel of your matured experience, and the aid and encou- l^gement w.hich you may be able to extend towards them. Your Memorialists holding firmly to |he aiithorized stand* ards of the Church of Scotland, Jiayjcpps^ered their %€lt« t ilS ♦ (. vl dS^Oetl^ntoii Mtti^iiMmai re wit bf M e«l^ T^ 0|i Chuveh poUe7» yrbich Uief en^rUin,'am/tbie, JBO^fiMm •pir^al ofice #itli whi^ thejr litve beetii inv«9td^, l4 ^^'h'- nectlpn witb the ciroumstanoe^C thnr Uririg in t^e.£a^' Prpvkices; and Ihey have ^cGpidingly united, tbi^mBeiF'fii into a Synod, branched out intofoar ffistlJAct Fre^b^^ri^ :, aqd a union flowing out of a bigherprtncipl^ cbaA inereetx^ pediency, will, they confidently hope, 4hTough^ the PiVina bleitsing, remedy evils under which their Churches h^?d> hitherto laboured, and cooduce to the planting of nevr Churches. • ♦ * * * Those and other obvious considerations appeared to* your Memorialists to justify their forming themselves into a, Synod— And your Memorialists humbly hope that this step shall obtain the sanction of your Venerable Body: and your Memorialists respectfully await your decision as to the pfir- ticular nature of that connexion which shall subsist between< this Synod and your Venerable Assembly— confident, that their Churches will not be left by you fn a less favoured' situation to the Established Church of Scotland, than that in which the Episcopal Church in these and other foreign parti stands to the Established Church of England. * * E DECLARATORY ENACTMENT. Passed by the €fenerai Assembly ofths Church of Scot' land, May, 1833. '. T- t ;«i;if:i That it is ftropet and expedients for Ordained Ministers of the Church* of Scotland connected with fixed Congregations in any ot^ the British Colonies, to form themselves, where circumstances permit, into Presbyteries and Synods, adker- ing to the Standards oj this Church, and maintaining her form- of iVorship and Government. That no Minister should befecelved as a Member of any such Presbytery or Synod, when first formed, who has not^ been ordai'i^d by a PresByterv of this Church ; tuat to Minister of this Church should fie afterwards received ^.^ ai Member, who does not come specially recommended from-' thePresbyterytyywhomhe was ordained, or where he has last resided ; and tliat no Probationer of this Church should re- ceive ordination from any such Pl'esbyt^ry, except on bis producing extract of Licence, with a testimonial of his good character, from the Presbytgrysf Pre?^^ ♦«»*•;?»«! w?»»'«n w^ioso ▼H i iitereetx- Ke Piviiici 5 of nefT leared to< Ives iuto a, Lt this step and your the p^r- tt between^ Jenty that 1 far bu red. than that 3r forei{[;n J. • * ».»-^ of Scot' iiom^ he hit imiM* down to the tiino of bit fotvioe Seot*- Tliafif «• iMf $xpedtent for such Preabyteriaiy tn fA< pr<-^ Mnf iN(tfl< V* ^f^ttcotton tn tlu nalonUff to exerciie the power of Lieetisinfl: Probetioners ; but that Licentiatee of the Cfiureh of Scotland, who shall be ordained by any such Presbytery to a particular charf^e in the osanner above de- scribed, shall remain in full communion with the Church of Scotland, and retain all tlie rights and privileges which belong to Licentiates or the Ministers of this Church ; and that Members of Congrei^ticms under the charge of Minis- ters so ordained shall, on coming to Scotland, be admitted to Church privileges, on the production of satisfactory certi- ficates of their moral character from the Minister and Session of the Congregation to which they have belonged. That it is earnestly recommended to all Ministers and Pro- bationers cf this Church, who remove to those Colonies Uvithia which such Presbyteries are constituted, to put themselves under the inspection of the Presbytery of the bounds within which they may reside ; and in the event of Itheir returning to this country, t»produce Testimonials fVom Isuch Presbyterj^ or Presbyteries of their character and con- jduct during their absence. That a stan^ng Committee shsll be named by the General lAssembly, to correspond with such Churches in the ColonieM, for the purpose cfgivinsc advice on any question with regard tor yhich titey may choose to consuit the Ohurck of Scotland^ and iffording them such aid as it may be in the power of the* Dommittee to give in aU matters affecting their rights andi interests. inisters of ;regations 8, where ds, adker- l her form- er of any 10 has notr tuat !:o ivec! 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