The Suppressed Evidence:

Or, Proofs of the Miraculous Faith and Experience of the Church of Christ In All Ages From Authentic Records, Fathers, Waldenses, Hussites, Reformers, United Brethren, and etc. An Historical Sketch Suggested by the Hon. and Rev. B.W. Noel's Remarks on the Revival of miraculous powers in the Church.

By The Rev Thomas Boys, M.A.
Published -- 1832
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page 240

CHAPTER V.

THE CHURCH TO THE PRESENT DAY.

THE period of time, from the Reformation to the present day, has also had its miracles; but this is a part of the subject on which, with the exception of a single branch of it, I do not purpose at present to enter in detail. It has struck me, however, that there is one resource, to which the opponents of miraculous truth may be still disposed to turn, seeing that the authority of the Reformers is not so decidedly for them, as they had misled themselves to think: and this is, to exclaim that, after all, the Reformers, though right in other things, were not so in this : that they had discovered the truth in respect to those main points of doctrine in which they opposed the Papists, but not with respect to miracles ; and that therefore we must turn from them, and consult the generation of divines who came after them, and who had thrown off their remaining prejudices. This is a common sort of argument with the Neologians of the Continent, who represent the Reformers as having begun a work, which it was left for rationalism to perfect. But, without imputing such sentiments in the present instance, we merely tell our opponents, that, if they now feel sorry in having made an appeal to the Reformers, and wish to shift their ground, appealing to those who came after them, we are able to



TO THE PRESENT DAY. 241

meet them here also. I have looked into this part of the subject sufficiently to satisfy myself, that, if it be fairly examined and laid open, we can have no fear for the results. Certainly there is one thing which makes against us : that, where the Reformers denied Popish dogmas in a qualified and guarded manner, so as to avoid denying truths at the same time, some of those who followed them have adopted a more summary and less discriminative mode of proceeding, so as to deny truth and falsehood together. But, where-ever this has been done in respect to miracles, I believe it can be so palpably shewn to have also been done in many other things, that the authority alleged against us will be found to possess little or no weight. On the whole, we can have no fear in entering upon this part of the discussion ; and 1 proceed to give a few examples and names, extending from the time of the Reformers to our own, which will sufficiently evince our readiness to shew, when needed, that God has never left himself, during the period now under consideration, without a miraculous testimony in his Church.

BAXTER.—Prudent men have not suffered it to come down to us : but Baxter was certainly favourable, in a measure, to the doctrine of miraculous manifestations in the church. This is the more observable, because, we find him using guarded language on the subject, exactly like the Reformers; and, apparently, from the same motives. Thus, in a note upon a part of his " Saints' everlasting Rest," to which work we shall have



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to refer more at large presently, he quotes a passage from Humfredus to the following effect: " Nor is there now need of miracles, the word having sounded forth into the whole earth* :" Thus reverting to the idea, so generally, as we have seen, entertained by the Reformers, that the whole earth had been evangelized in the first ages, once for all.

Yet Baxter certainly did not mean to adopt such expressions, as disowning all miracles. We see this, for instance, in his Church History. For example, in the " contents" of chapter xii., we read " Miracles at Robert Groshead's death + : " and, in another place, " Sewale, Archbishop of York against the Pope : doth miracles ++." Here again, then, we learn the vanity of catching at single passages, or expressions of the old divines, to prove their disbelief in miraculous manifestations. But in other places, again, Baxter expressly argues in behalf of miracles; and even relates them, as having himself experienced them. First, he speaks of " eminent providences ; " but even here he uses terms, which almost prove that he really means miracles.

" I am persuaded that there is scarcely a godly experienced Christian, that carefully observes, and faithfully recordeth the providences of God toward him, but is able to bring forth some such experiment; and to shew you some such strange and unusual mercies, which may plainly





* " Nee jam opus est miraculis, cum in omnem terrain verbum sopuerit."—See the Saints' Everlasting Rest. London. 1662. Part. ii. Chap. vi. Sect. iii.

+ Church History, p. 413.

++ Ibid. p. 418.



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discover an Almighty Disposer, making good the promises of this Scripture to his servants : some in desperate diseases of body, some in other apparent dangers, delivered so suddenly, or so much against the common course of nature, when all the best remedies have failed, that NO SECOND CAUSE could have any hand in their deliverance *."

In the next section, he goes on to speak of these " extraordinary workings of God," in terms which plainly prove that he understands not merely providences but miracles.

" Had we no other argument to prove Scripture to be the word of God, but only the strange success of the prayers of the saints, while they trust upon and plead the promises with fervency, I think it might much confirm experienced men. What wonders, yea, what apparent miracles, did the prayers of former Christians procure. Hence the Christian soldiers in their army were called The thundering Legion : they could do more by their prayers, than the rest by their armies. Hence Gregory was called (Greek omitted), from his frequent miracles among the heathen. And Vincentius reporteth, that Sulpitius Bituricensis did expel the devils, heal the sick, and raise the dead, by praying to God for them +."

Baxter then goes on to detail the case of Myconius, raised by Luther. I extract the passage, to shew his full belief in the miraculous character of the transaction.

" Myconius (a godly divine) lay sick of that consumption which is called phthisis : Luther prayed earnestly, that he might be recovered, and that he might not die before himself. And so confident was he of the grant of his desire, that he writes boldly to Myconius, that he should not die now, but should remain yet longer upon this earth. Upon these prayers did Myconius presently revive as from the dead, and live six years after, till Luther was dead : and





* Saints' Rest, as before. Sect. v. + Sect. vi.



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himself hath largely written the story, and professed that when he heard Luther's letters, he seemed to hear that voice of Christ, Lazarus, come forth. Yea, so powerful and prevailing was Luther in prayer, that Justus Jonas writes of him, ' Iste vir potuit quod voluit;' That man could do what he list *."

I extract some other cases cited, though well known, for the purpose of shewing what was Baxter's opinion of them.

" What was it less than a miracle in Baynam the martyr, who told the Papists, ' Lo, here is a miracle; I feel no more pain in this fire than in a bed of down : it is as sweet to me as a bed of roses.' So bishop Farrar, who could say before he went to the fire, ' If I stir in the fire, believe not my doctrine:' and accordingly remained unmoved. Theodorus the martyr, in the midst of his torment, had one in the shape of a young man as he thought, came and wiped off his sweat, and eased him of his pain +."

But Baxter next proceeds to less remote cases, and goes on to allege his own experience.

"But what need I fetch examples so farre off? or to recite the multitudes of them, which church history doth afford us? Is there ever a praying Christian here, who knoweth what it is importunately to strive with God, and to plead His promises with Him believingly, that cannot give in his experiences of most remarkable answers? I know men's atheism and infidelity wilt never want somewhat to say against the most eminent providences, though they were miracles themselves. That nature which is so ignorant of God, and at enmity with Him, will not acknowledge Him in His clear discoveries to the world, but will ascribe all to fortune or nature, or some such idol, which indeed is nothing. But when mercies are granted in the very time of prayer, and that when to reason there is no hope, and that without the use or help of any other means or creatures, yea and perhaps many times over and over; is not this as





* Ibid. + Ibid.



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plain, as if God from heaven should say to us, I am fulfilling to thee the true word of my promise in Christ my Sonne? How many times have I known the prayer of faith to save the sick, when all physicians have given them up as 'dead!" (Here Baxter subjoins a note, to be given presently.) " It has been my own case more than once or twice, or ten times: When means have all failed, and the highest art of reason has sentenced me hopeless, yet have I been re-lieved by the prevalency of fervent prayer, and that (as the physician saith 'tuto, cite, et jucunde,' My flesh and my heart failed, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion for ever. And though He yet keep me under necessary weaknesse, and wholesome sicknesse, and certain expectation of further necessities and assaults, yet am I . constrained by most convincing experiences, to set up this stone of remembrance, and publickly to the praise of the Almighty, to acknowledge, that certainly God is true of His promises, and that they are indeed His own infallible word, and that it is a most excellent privilege to have interest in God, and a Spirit of supplication to be importunate with Him. I doubt not but most Christiana that observe the Spirit and Providences, are able to attest this prevalency of prayer by their own experiences*."

In the subjoined note, Baxter specifies a particular instance.

" Among abundance of instances that I could give, my conscience commandeth me here to give you this one, as belonging to the very words here written. I had a tumor rose on one of the tonsils or almonds of my throat, round like a pease, and at first no bigger : and at last no bigger than a small button ; and hard like a bone. The fear lest it should prove a cancer troubled me more than the thing itself. I used first dissolving medicines, and after lenient for palliation; and all in vain for about a quarter of a year. At last my conscience smote me for silencing so many former deliverances, that I had had in answer of prayers; merely



*Ibid.





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in pride, lest I should be derided as making ostentation of God's special mercies to myself, as if I were a special favourite of Heaven, I had made no public mention of them : I was that morning to preach just what is here written; and in obedience to my conscience, I spoke these words which are now in this page," (referring to the words above, to which this note is appended) " with some enlargements not here written : when I went to church I had my tumor as before, (for I frequently saw it in the glasse, and felt it constantly.) As soon as I had done preaching, I felt it was gone, and hasting to the glasse, I saw that there was not the least vestigium or cicatrix, or mark wherever it had been: nor did I at all discern what became of it. I am sure I neither swallowed it nor spit it out: and it was unlikely to dissolve by any natural cause, that had been hard like a bone a quarter of a year, notwithstanding all dissolving gargarismes. I thought fit to mention this, because it was done just as I spoke the words here written in this page. Many such marvelous mercies I have received, and known that others have received in answer to prayers*."

Not another word of citation is necessary, to prove that Baxter had both the faith and the experience of miraculous manifestations. More might be quoted, in illustration of his sentiments respecting possession, exorcism, and other matters bearing upon the subject; but the above is quite sufficient. If any one would attempt to get rid of these instances by explaining them away, and calling them nothing, I would only ask him what he would say, if men were to allege such experiences NOW. Would he call that nothing? No. He would be very angry : and prove by his anger that he viewed the matter seriously.

FULLER.—"We have in Chap. I. seen this writer citing the words of Augustine, where Augustine





* Ibid. note.





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classes the miracles of his opponents, the Donatists, under two heads, as " Forgeries of lying men," and "Prodigies of deceitful spirits;" and telling us, with such an extraordinary perversion of truth, that he so classes the miracles of his age. Hence we might suppose, that Fuller was little disposed to credit any post-Apostolic miracles. And yet we find him recording one which occurred in our own country in comparatively modern times, and evidently recording it as believing and wishing others to believe it. Speaking of our pious Edward VI. he says,

' " When crowned king, his goodnesse increased with his greatnesse, constant in his private devotions, and as successful), as fervent therein, witnesse this particular: Sir John Cheeke, his schoolmaster, fell desperately sick; of whose condition the king carefully enquired every day: at last his physitians told him, that there was no hope of his life, being given over by them for a dead man. 'No,' saith King Edward,' he will not die at this time, for this morning I begged his life from God in my prayers, and obtained it:' which accordingly came to pass ; and he soon after, against all expectation, wonderfully recovered. This was attested by the old Earle of Huntingdon, bred up in his childhood with King Edward, unto Sir Thomas Cheeke, still surviving about 80 years of age *." Here we may observe,

1. That the patient was given up by his physicians.:

2. That the king made his recovery a matter of prayer, under these (humanly speaking) desperate circumstances :

3. That the recovery was granted, " wonderfully," "against all expectation :" and







* Church History, Book vii. pp. 424, 425.



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4. That the king had a special assurance of this beforehand; so that he said confidently, " No, he will not die this time," because he had that morning begged his life from God in his prayers ; adding, by that he had " obtained it"

What more can be wanting, to make this cure miraculous? It cannot be called a common answer to prayer; because that supposes uncertainty till the answer comes. Here the petitioner speaks with the greatest certainty, and that in the face of the physicians, who had given over the sufferer, "for a dead man."—" No, he will not die at this time."

CARTWRIGHT.—I have already referred to this writer. As he opposes the Rhemists, he is of course anxious to avoid any statement which may seem to favour the popish claims, grounded upon miracles; or to admit the necessity of miracles, on the part of Protestants, in proof of their doctrines, already sufficiently proved by the miracles of Christ and his Apostles. He teaches, also, that miracles are not now ordinarily in the church, as they were in the first ages. Yet, with all these qualifications, we find him still maintaining some miraculous manifestations, both amongst the Roman Catholics and elsewhere. Thus, addressing his antagonists, he says,

" Howbeit that some miracle may sometimes be done by you, thereby to revenge the contempt of the Gospel upon those that will not believe it, it may not be denied you; lest you should lose your part amongst the false prophets, of whom Moses and our Saviour foretelleth, that they should do so great miracles, that the very elect thereby, if it were possible, should be deceived*."





• On Matt. xvii. 19.



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And again:

" By false miracles, the Apostle meaneth not only feigned miracles but those that are wrought indeed, but yet to deceive, and to confirm falsehood. For we can well afford unto the pope and his popelings the working of miracles indeed, as well as Moses and our Saviour Christ affordeth them unto the false prophets *."

Again, on Mark xiii. 22, the Rhemists say that in the latter day false Christs and false prophets " shall seem to work wonders :" but Cartwright observes, " Not seem to work wonders, as you say, but SHALL work wonders, as our Saviour Christ saith." And lastly, to come to the point, "on the words of Jesus (John xiv. 12), " Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do, because I go unto my Father," it is plainly admitted and recognised . by Cartwright, that miracles are still sometimes wrought in the church of Christ. " We believe that the Apostles and apostolical men did the wonders here mentioned, and in them the Church and whole company of believers together, and not every one particularly (as the daily experience doth declare) wrought these works. We know





*On 2 Thess ii. 9. Concerning the " lying wonders " mentioned by St. Paul in this passage, it is observable that several other commentators of the first order agree with Cartwright in the opinion, that we are not to understand merely false or pretended miracles, but real miracles, wrought in support of falsehood. For example, the celebrated Dutch divine, Gomarus, speaking of the " great signs and wonders " to be wrought by false Christs and false prophets (Matt. xxiv. 24,) says that, with respect to their end, (the propagation of error and delusion,) such miracles are all false; but, "with respect to the transaction itself, some are false, tome are true ; and, finally, some are mixed, or partly false, partly true." " Ratione vero rei, quaedam falsa, quaedam vera; quaedam denique mixta, seu partim falsa, purtim vera." Ed. Amstel. 1644.



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also that the Lord may and sometimes (extraordinarily) DOTH, work such miracles in other times, especially by their hands whose public ministry in the church he will seal and establish among men." Other miracles, which were but illusions of Satan, are spoken of by Cartwright in the same note. But the above citation is quite sufficient to prove, that he was not one ,of those who deny all miraculous manifestations in the Church of Christ.

BISHOP HALL.—No writer is better suited to teach us the same lesson, which we have already had so many opportunities of learning, in the last chapter, from the Reformers, that occasional language, apparently unfavourable to all miracles, cannot be taken in so large a sense, without great danger of misunderstanding the writer. Such language is certainly to be found in Bishop Hall. But, therefore, in reading it, we have the more need to take with us the three following observations :

1. That in thus (apparently) depreciating miracles, he is writing with a particular reference to the miracles of Roman Catholics :

2. That, even of their miracles, he admits some to have been real:

3. That he believed also in other miracles, wrought by Protestants.

The truth of the first and second of these propositions will appear plainly from his Letter to Sir David Murray #. In this letter, which seems to have been in answer to some inquiries on the subject, he ranges alleged miracles under four heads:







*Works, p. 259, &c. London. 1647.



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" The first, merely reported, not seen to be done ; the next seeming to be done, but counterfeited ; the third, truly done, but .not true miracles; the last truly miraculous, but by Satan *."

Enlarging on each of these topics, he comes at length to the fourth ; under which he states that he maintains " two things: "

" One, that miracles are wrought by Satan; the other, that those which the Romish Church boasteth, are of this nature, of this author +."

He writes, then, with a clear reference to the Romish Church; and this becomes even more clear at the close of his letter, where he says, still referring to his fourfold division,

" This short satisfaction I give, in a long question; such as I dare rest in ; and resolve that all Popish miracles are either falsely reported, or falsely done, or falsely miraculous, or falsely ascribed to Heaven ++."

But I say, even some of those miracles, that is, the last sort, he regards as real; for, as we have already seen, he uses the expressions, " that miracles are wrought by Satan ;" and again, " the last, truly miraculous, but by Satan : " and afterwards he adds, " Perhaps it will be more proper to say, that GOD works these miracles by Satan§."

So much for our first and second propositions. But now let us turn to another part of his works. In his " Specialities of Divine Providence §§," describing his tour on the Continent, he tells us how he visited the Jesuits' College at Brussels to





* p.259. +-26O- ++ p. 261. § p. 26O.

§§Some specialities of Divine Providence, in the Life of Jos. Hall, Bp. of Norwich, written with his own hand.—See Divers Treatises, by Bp. Hall, Vol. iii. London. 1662.





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confer respecting the alleged miracles of our Lady at Zichem. A Jesuit violently attacked our Church, which, he alleged, could not yield one miracle : but, says Bishop Hall, " I answered that in our Church we had manifest proof of the ejection of devils by fasting and prayer *." It is clear, then, that Bishop Hall maintained the performance of such works by Protestants as well as Romanists ; on the side of the truth, as well as on the side of Satan. It is right, then, that those who now call themselves evangelical members of the Church of England, and yet persecute the belief in miracles, should see that they are persecuting the very sentiments which were deliberately held, and maintained in controversy, by those whom they themselves profess to honour and to follow.

ROGERS.—An eminent divine, and a valuable commentator on the Thirty-nine Articles. His work went through many editions ; but is now thrown into the back ground ; I suppose, because he speaks plainly on those points of doctrine, respecting which there is so general a disposition, on the part of evangelical professors of the present day, to dissemble +. This learned and able divine, on Article xxiii., " Of ministering in the Congregation," plainly represents miraculous gifts as still forming part of the qualification for the ministry. He reduces each article to propositions ; and on the twenty-third, his first proposition is,



* P. 9

+ The Faith, Doctrine, and Religion professed and protected in the Church of England, and Dominions of the same; expressed in Thirty-nine Articles. Cambridge. 1881. p. 135.



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" None publicly may preach, but such as thereunto are authorized *."

Then follows " The proof from God's word;" and, under this head,

," Lastly, we do read, that God hath ordained in the Church some to be Apostles, some Prophets, some Teachers, some to be workers of miracles (1 Cor. xii. 28) +."

And that he speaks this not merely of times past, but of times present, is evident when we come to proposition v, which stands thus:

" They are lawful ministers, which be ordained by men lawfully appointed for the calling and sending forth of ministers ++."

Here he shews, first, that some ministers are sent immediately from God himself: as Jesus Christ, and John the Baptist, by the Father ; and the twelve Apostles, and St. Paul, by the Son; a special and extraordinary calling: secondly, that some were and are sent of men. " And some lastly are by men sent: so, in the primitive Church, by the Apostles, were Pastors and Elders ordained, who, by the same authority, ordained other Pastors and Teachers. Whence it is, that the Church, as it hath been, so it shall, till the end of the world, be provided for. They who are thus called, have power either to work miracles, as the Apostles had, or to preach and minister the sacraments where they will, as the Apostles might : but they are tied every man to his charge, which they must faithfully attend upon; except urgent occasion do enforce the contrary.

" The calling of these men is termed a general calling; and it is the ordinary, and in these days the lawful calling, allowed by the word of God §."

BENOEL.—" No writer has more successfully, and with greater freedom from all parade of words, exhibited the





*p. 136. +PP- 136, 137. ++p. 142. § pp. 142, 143.





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less obvious niceties and beauties of Scripture, than the learned Bengel; and none has more invariably made the attainments of the critic and philologist ancillary to pure and elevated piety. Of late years, his Gnomon has been rising in public estimation ; and, if I mistake not, it will rise yet higher * ."

With this testimony to Bengel from a learned pen, let us unite another, equally favourable, from the " Evangelical Church-Gazette ;" a German publication of considerable merit, not to be confounded with another, in name somewhat similar, but in character impious.

" With the return to the Gospel, and the renewed inquiry after the one thing needful, came also inquiries after the writings of this pious and enlightened theologian. Preachers in the waste of the present era, directed men's attention to him ; in consequence of which, some of his works became out of print.—See, taste, use, whatever of excellent the former age presents. More especially does his GNOMON OF THE NEW TESTAMENT invite young preachers and theologians: a book, which has few like it; concise, original, vigorous, speaking, and living; a LEARNED commentary, which, while it has its origin in profound love, deepest veneration, and knowledge of the sacred text, simply and humbly follows it; a finger-post, which points the drift of the Spirit of God, in the word of life. The grand, yet simple superscription, ' in quo ex nativa verborum vi simplicitas, profunditas, concinnitas, salubritas sensuum ccelestium indicatur,' characterizes the matter and spirit of this work. A store of solid acquirements, sanctified and animated by profound devotion, expands itself here amid the words of Holy Scripture, in order to manifest, every where, the beam of Divine light ; and every attainment, in the department of human science, brings us back to the Gospel of the Son of God, with the





• Sacred Literature, p. 70.



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confession, ' Lord, to whom shall we go? Thou hast the words of eternal life.'—Where will you find such an interpreter as this, among the modern herd of learned commentaries? Learning enough : a cloud of historical, philosophical, philological science, to darken and disfigure the true contents of Holy Scripture : but no faith for what is divine: no perception for what is holy; nothing but profane perversion, exterminating criticism of the principles of godliness, in the sophistical misapplication of human intelligence and acquirements."

In believing that miracles may yet be looked for in the Church, Bengel is sufficiently clear. On the words of St. Matthew, " And he did not many

mighty works there because of their unbelief,"he writes,

"The reason why many miracles are not now wrought, is not so much the establishment of the faith, as the general prevalence of unbelief *."

On our Lord's promise, " Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig-tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea, it shall be done," he observes,

" If such things have not been fully accomplished yet, hereafter they may be +."

And, on our Lord's final promise and legacy to his Church, " These signs shall follow them that believe ; In my name they shall cast out devils, they shall speak with new tongues," &c. Bengel thus expresses himself:





* " Causa, cur hodie non fiant miracula multa, non tain est fides plantata, quani infidelitas regnans."—Gnomon, Kd. Tubingae, 1773. (On Matt. xiii.58)

+ "Talia si minus adhuc impleta sum, postbac impleri possunt."— Ibid. (On Matt. xxi. 21.)



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" 17. (Greek Omitted) '] Them that believe, with the very same faith spoken of in the last verse. Compare Heb. xi. 33, &c. It was not in one frame, that Paul was saved, and in another that he wrought miracles. Even in the present day, faith, in every believer, has, concealed in it, a miraculous power. Every answer to prayer is in fact miraculous, even if it appear not: although, in many, in consequence both of their own infirmity and the world's unworthiness, not merely because the church is now established, (granting that the first miracles of the New Testament obtained for the Lord Jesus ' an everlasting name ' Isai. lxiii. 12.) such a power does not now discover itself. In the beginning, signs were the supports of faith: now they are also the object of faith. At Leonberg, in Wirtemburg, in the year of our Lord 1644, on the thirteenth Sunday after Trinity, a girl of twenty, who was such a cripple that she crawled on crutches scarcely a span in height, while the dean, (Raumier by name,) was setting forth, before the pulpit, the miraculous power of the name of Jesus, was suddenly made upright*."

In the third and posthumous edition of the Gnomon, from which I quote, the details of this miraculous cure are given by the editor, Bengel's son, in a note ; and also the particulars of another case, that of Joseph Jenisch. This person was born at Lavinga, Nov. 26, 1606, without a tongue+,





* "17. (Greek Omitted) ] Credentet, ea ipsa fide, de qua v. 16. Conf. Hebr. xi. 33, &c. Non fuit habitus alius, quosalvatus est Paulus; alius, quo miraculn edidit. Hodie quoque in omni fideli fides latentem habet vim miraculosam : omnis effectus precum revera miraculosus est, etiamsi non appareat: etsi in multis et propter ipsorum imbecillitatem et propter mundi indignitatem, non modo propter ecclesiam plantatam, quanquam prima miracula N.T. revera Domino Jesu nomen sternum (coll. Es. lxiii. 12.) pepererunt, ea se hodie vis non exserit. Signa initio fuere admini-cula fioei: nunc etiam sunt fidei objectum. Leonbergoe, oppido Wir-tenbergico, [A. C. 1644, Horn. xiii. p. Trin.] puella annorum 20 ita membris capta, ut fulcris vix spithamaeis reperet, dum Decanus [Rau-meierus nomine] pro suggestu miraculosam vim nominit Jesu tractaret, repente erecta est. Ibid. (On Mark xvi.17.)

+" Ab ipso partu lingua destitutus observaretur."





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Earnest prayer being offered, he received the gift of speech, and died 1675, after having discharged the ministerial office, to which in gratitude he had been dedicated, for forty years.

THE UNTED BRETHREN.—With grief I hear it reported, that there is a disinclination, in some living members of this once highly favoured communion, to acknowledge the miraculous works of the Lord; works so often vouchsafed, both in former ages and recently, on behalf of their own church, or individuals belonging to it. The same disinclination appears in some publications. But the FACTS stand on record. We have only to refer to their own history. And if any of the body be now disposed to dissemble, and, from a spirit of conformity to the unsound and corrupt part of the religious world at large, to disown and disclaim the miraculous manifestations hitherto vouchsafed to the Brethren's church, I hope that those members of the community, who are more steadfast in holding the faith and traditions of their forefathers, will be brought to that discovery of the real state of things amongst religious professors, which must, now, speedily and generally come out: namely, that evil has gained a footing in the midst of us; that a great departure has taken place, and is now still further in progress ; and that what passes for the church of Christ, as distinguished from society at large, needs not only outward separation, and distinction from the world, but inward sifting, inward scrutiny, and inward discipline; with animadversion upon those who have gone back, and, it may be, with expulsion of deceivers.



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Mr. Noel, regarding miracles in the church as quite given up since the Reformation, triumphantly reminds us of the " general unbelief * " on this subject; and observes, that

" although the concurrence of sentiment in later times is admitted, and therefore needs no proof, it is too remarkable to be passed over in silence +."

He then refers to the Puritans, and to the Christians of the United States. But he says not one word of the United Brethren. If they are now partakers of the " general unbelief" and of the " strange consent," (though still, speaking of them as a body, I doubt the fact,) it is at any rate a new thing : for, if we appeal to their history, we shall find this same body, who in fact are the only body in the Christian community that have regularly maintained the form and discipline of a church, to have also maintained the faith and experience of God's miraculous power manifested among them. I draw my examples from a work recently published, and already cited ; the Rev. A. Bost's History of the Church of the Brethren, which offers a convenient summary of facts, interspersed with many valuable remarks by the pious author.

On the subject of miraculous manifestations, M. Bost, (not, I believe, a member of the Brethren's communion,) has plainly expressed his own sentiments in the following terms; and that, even while condemning what he considers to have been a blind faith in certain prophecies and visions, which made a great noise at the time when they occurred:—



*p. 20. + P. 18





TO THE PRESENT DAY. 259

" We are, indeed, well aware, that, so far from its being possible to prove by Scripture, or by experience, that visions and dreams, the gift of miracles, healings, and other extraordinary gifts, have absolutely ceased in Christ-endom since the Apostolic times, it is on the contrary proved, both by facts and by Scripture, that there may always be these gifts where there is faith, and that they will never be entirely detached from it. We need only take care to discern the true from the false, and to distinguish from miracles proceeding from the Holy Ghost, lying miracles, or those which, without being so decidedly of the devil, do not so. decidedly indicate the presence of this Spirit of the Lord*."

These are the words of truth and soberness. And the reader need not fear that, in referring to the work in question, he will be in danger of meeting with a more exaggerated view of the miraculous experience of the Brethren's church, than that to be found in their own documents. This is not the author's disposition; and we may observe, by the way, that the subject is one, on which the Brethren themselves manifested all sobriety. I am well aware that the opinions of this highly-favoured community have been deemed fanciful and extravagant: but this is the case far more, in England than on the continent, where they are better known; and the ignorance and arrogance, which too commonly characterise a





* " Nous savons, il est vrai, que loin qu'on puisse Itablir par Ecri-ture ou par l'experience, que les visions et les songes, le don des miracles, les gufrisons, et autres dona extraordinaires aient absolument cesse dans la Chre'tiente' depuis les temps apostoliques, il est au contraire prouvfi, wit par les faits, soit par l'Ecriture, que ces dons pourront toujours se rencontrer partout ou se trouve la foi, et que jaraais ils n'en seront entiere, ment se'pare's. Nous devons seulement Stre attentifs a discerner le vrai du &vx, et k distinguer des miracles provenant de l'Esprit-Saint, les miracles de mensonge, ou ceux qui sans etre aussi diaboliques n'annon-cent pas ndcessairement la presence de cet Esprit du Seigneur."—Bost, tom. i. p. 178



260 THE CHURCH



religious profession amongst ourselves, are in nothing more detected than in the slight grounds, on which some of us have suffered ourselves to be betrayed into an undue and indiscriminate feeling of prejudice and contempt, towards the Moravian church. It is true that Zinzendorf was somewhat of too comprehensive or catholic a spirit. And, though his liberality extended only to believers who introduced mystical or fanciful expressions, and ours extends to Socinians, yet those expressions, which he tolerated rather than approved, have been made the ground of a general prejudice against the Brethren. Much of this impropriety in language the Count opposed successfully : and if any of it be found in what are called his own works, it should be remembered that the partiality of his admirers published many of his sermons, taken down as he preached them, without his revision; that he himself disowned such publications, as far as his own responsibility was involved in them ; and that he had commenced a revision of the whole, but was taken home before it was completed. Be it also remembered, that many false or mutilated expressions have been circulated, to the Brethren's disadvantage; as well as discourses and hymns, which they do not own. Nothing, therefore, can be more unjust, or more ignorant, than the prejudices that have been formed against them on such slender grounds. And, with respect to miracles in particular, we shall find nothing in their records which is contrary to scriptural sobriety, though we may doubtless find much that is displeasing to some amongst us. They acknowledged miraculous



TO THE PRESENT DAY.

manifestations, but they were on their guard against delusion. For example, on an occasion when certain Brethren were reconciled to the general communion, we find it recorded, that " amongst others, a person who represented herself as a prophetess, and whom they could not acknowledge in that character, seemed to return to religious sobriety*."

Vain, then, will be the attempt, to impute any thing of a fanciful, or unguarded character, to the Brethren's views on the subject of miraculous manifestations. Yet such manifestations we find distinctly alleged amongst them: for example, in a general description of the Brethren's churches, (1740,) we find the following simple statement: " In respect to church matter*," (this is one of the heads of the description,) " there are occasionally observed Apostolic giaces, miracles, gifts of seers, &c. They are received, in a child-like spirit, and there the matter ends +."

Thirteen or fourteen years before, when measures were in progress for the better arrangement of the affairs of the church, and the restoration of the ancient discipline, we find a Moravian brother thus expressing himself: —

" We saw therein the finger and the wonderful works of God; and were, in some measure, baptized with the Spirit of our fathers, beneath their cloud. Their Spirit returned upon us, and there were wrought in these days, amongst the Brethren, signs and miracles: and great grace was amongst us, and in all the district++."





* " Une personne, entre autres, qui faisait la propWtesse, et que Ton ne pouvait tenir pour telle, parut rentrer dans la sobriata 3piritue!l e." Tom. it. p. 19.

+ " Dans Ies affaires d'eglise on remarque quelquefois des graces apos-toliques, des miracles, des dons de voyants, etc.; on le recoit enfantine-ment, et voilA tout." p. 367.

++" Nous y vimes le doigt et Ies merveilles de Dieu, et fumes, en quel-que sortc,' baptises de l'esprit de nos peres sous leur nuee.' Leur et-



263 THE CHURCH

Zinzendorf again, towards the close of the paper just now cited, speaks, more fully, to the same purpose.

" To believe against hope is the root of the gift of miracles : and I owe this testimony to our beloved church, that Apostolic powers are there manifested. We have had undeniable proofs thereof in the unequivocal discovery of things, persons, and circumstances, which could not, humanly, have been discovered :—in the healing of maladies in themselves incurable, such as cancers, consumptions when the patient was in the agonies of death, &c, all by means of prayer, or of a single word. We have seen hypocrites publicly unmasked, without any thing that was the occasion externally; visible signs, both of condemnation and also of recovery, in men who had offended with respect to the church ; --we have seen wild beasts stopped, at the moment of their attack, by the word of the Lord, without any external aid, and without having themselves received any hurt:—we have seen matters, which no man could think of seeing brought to an issue, cleared up in a few moments :—others lost, after having been gained with the greatest ease, and that because we had not properly taken the mind of the Lord, and because he took no pleasure in them, &c.*"

Again (1730):





prit revint sur nous, il sc fit en ces jours, parmi leg Frerei, des signes et des miracles : et il y avail une grande grace parmi nous et dans toute la contreV p. IT.



* " Croire contrc espirance est la racine du don des miracles; et je dois ce tlmoignage a notre chere eiglise, que les puissances apostoliques s'y voient; nous en avons eu des preuves irrocusables dans la decouverte tres-positive de certaines choses, personnes, et circonstances qui humaine-ment ne pouvaient se decouvrir:—dans la gue>ison de maladies en elles-niumes incurables, de cancers, de .phtliisies avancees jusqu'a l'agonie, etc., le tout au moyen de la prifere, ou d'une seule parole. On a vu des hypocrites publiquement de'masque's, sans qu'il y en ait eu aucune occasion au debors :—des signes visibles soit de condamnation, soit aussi de r^tabligse-ment, dans des hommes qui sYtaient rendus coupables envers lYglise:— on a vu des betes feroces arretees au moment de leur attaque par la parole du Seigneur, sans aucun secours du dehors, et sans qu'elles recassent elles-memes aucun doomage :—on a vu des choses ou pas un homme



TO THE PRESENT DAY. 263

" At this juncture, various supernatural gtfts were manifested in the church, and miraculous cures were wrought. The Brethren and the Sisters believed, in a childlike spirit, what the Saviour had said respecting the efficacy of prayer ; and when any object strongly interested them, they used to speak to Him about it, and to trust in Him as capable of all good : then it was done unto them according to their faith. The Count" (Zinzendorf) " rejoiced at it with all his heart, and silently praised the Saviour who thus willingly condescended to what is poor and little. In this freedom of the Brethren towards our Saviour Jesus Christ, he recognized a fruit of the Spirit; concerning which, they ought on no account to make themselves uneasy, whoever it might be; but rather to respect him. At the same time he did not wish the Brethren and Sisters to make too much noise about these matters, and regard them as extraordinary; but when, for example, a brother was cured of any disease, even one of the worst kind, by a single word or by some prayer, he viewed this as a very simple matter; calling to mind, even, that saying of Scripture, that ' signs were not for those who believe, but for those who believe not*.'"





n'aur.iit su imaginer d'issue, raises au clair en peu de moments:—d'autres •e perdre apres avoir il6 acquises avec la dernie're facility, et cela parce qu'onn'avait pas suffisament saisi l'intention du Seigneur, et parce qu'il n'y prenait pas plaisir, etc." pp. 371, 372.





* " A cette epoque (1730), il se manifesta dans I'e'glise difKrents dons

surnaturels, et il se fit des gue'risons miraculeuses. Les freres et les soeurs

croyaient enfantinement ce que le Sauveur avait dit de l'efficace

laient, et le croyaient capable de toute sorte de bien (und trauten ihm

ulles Qute m); puis il leur e"tait fait selon. leur foi. Le comte s'en rejouissait de tout son cceur, et louaif dans le silence le Sauveur qui s'abaissait si volontiers vers ce qui est pauvre et petit, II reconnaissait dans cette familiarity des Freres envers notre Seigneur Je'sus-Christ, un fruit de l'Esprit, au sujet duquel on devait bien se garder d'inqui&er qui que ce fut, et qu'au contraire on devait respecter. En rneme temps it ne veulait pas que les freres et soeurs fissent trop de bruit de ces chose) et les regardassent comme extraordinaires; mais lorsque par exemple, quelque frere 6tait gue"ri de quelque maladie, mime des plus graves par une seule parole ou par quelque priere, il regardait cela comme une chose toute simple; rappelant mcme cette parole de l'Ecriture, que les signes n'e*taient pas faits peurles croyants mail pour les incre'dules.' pp. 405, 406.





264 THE CHURCH

The reader, perhaps, will feel desirous to know what is the general character of the facts recorded in M. Bost's work.

" As to the truth of the facts, I think," says he, " that my authorities may be accounted most respectable. Not to mention that the German nation in general, to which I am indebted for them, has an established character for honesty and solidity; the Moravian Brethren in particular, and their writers, share the same character in the highest degree; and their writings possess every quality that can entitle them to it*."

As to the character of the church in which the miraculous manifestations took place:

" The congregation, of which the church then consisted, had for its germ, as we have seen, the choice of the choice of Bohemia and Moravia. A great part of them were witnesses who had resisted even to blood, and even to tortures; who had seen with joy the spoiling of their goods, and in whom the Spirit of their ancestors lived again. They were either such men as Christian David, Melchior Nitschmann, Neisser, and the like, or the fathers, mothers, brothers, and sisters of these men, animated by the same Spirit, and united in the same bonds. With them were united other Christians, who had been previously attached to other Protestant Churches, but who had all felt the need of a more vital religion, and of a closer spiritual union, &c. +"



* " Quant & la ve'rite' lies fails, je crois qu'on peut tenir mes autories pour trbs-respectables. Outre que la nation Allemande qui me les fournit,

iouit en general d'une reputation affermie de droiture et de solidite, les Freres Moraves en particulier, et leurs ecrivains, partagent cette meme reputation a un treVhaut degre; et leurs ecrits portent tous les caracteres qui peuvent la me'riter." Tom. i. pp. vi, vii.

+ " L'auditoire dont se composait alors 1 Yglise, avait pour noyau, comme nous l'avons vu, lYlite de 1 e"lite des contre'es de la Boheme et de la Moravie. C'ltaient en grande partie des te'moins qui avaient r£sist£ jus-qu'au sang et jusqu'aux tortures, qui avaient vu avecjoie le dYpouille-ment de leurs biens, et en qui vivait, rajeuni, l'esprit de leurs ancetres; cYtaient ou des Christian David, des Melchior Nitschmann, des Neisser et autres homines semblables, ou des peres, meres, freres ou soeurs de ces homines, anime's du meme esprit et engage's dans la meme alliance. C'etaient encore d'autres Chretiens, preceddemment attaches a





TO THE PRESENT DAY. 265

And with respect to the theological attainments and character of Zinzendorf himself, the following is the account of his examination, on entering into holy orders. -

'S At length he sought of the professors of Stralsund, a succession of conferences, which should serve as his examination, and last some days. For Zinzendorf did not wish to confine himself to a common examination ; and in order to give his examiners all possible acquaintance with his principles and conduct, he accompanied all his acts with supplementary notes (fuller avowals of his sentiments), in various papers, that went very fully into particulars. ' I showed and told them,' he writes on this subject, ' by mouth, in writing, and in five public discourses, all that I ever believed and did throughout my whole life, in theory and in practice; but they retained the favourable judgment which they had pronounced upon me.' Never, perhaps, did a candidate for the sacred ministry undergo, or challenge, a more severe examination*."

1. The miraculous aids and manifestations related in the records of the Brethren are so numerous, that, in coming to detail them, one might hesitate where to begin. Some deliverances are spoken of as miraculous, which it may be thought should only be called marvelous. But, as the willows spring up most freely by the watercourses, so the churches and individuals that are





---------------------------------

diverses eglises protestantes, mais qui avaient tous e'prouve' le besoin d'une pie'te' plus vive et d'un lien spirituel plus dtroit, &c." Tdm. ii. pp. 377, 378. * " Enfin, il demanda aux professeurs de Stralsund une suitede conferences qui devaient constituer son examen et qui durerent quelques jours. Car Zinzendorf ne voulut pas s'en tenir a un examen ordinaire: et pour donner a ses exarainateurs toute la connaissance possible de ses principes et de sa conduite, il ajouta a tous les actes des notes sup-ple"mentaircs (uberiores mentis declarationes) de plusieurs pieces tres-detaillees. ' Je leur ai montre1 et dit,' ecrit-il a ce sujet, ' de bouche et par e"crit et en cinq predications, toutce que j'ai jamais cru et fait dans ma vie, en theorie et en pratique—Mais ils en sont rested au jugement favorable qu'ils avaient porte' sur moi.' II est probable que jamais candidat au saint ministere n'a subi ni proroque' d'examen plus rigoureux que celm-la." pp. 218, 819.



266 THE CHURCH ,

most attentive and faithful in noting and recording their experience of the marvels of God's providence, are most in the way, and most in the habit, of experiencing that still higher kind of aid that may be properly called miraculous. I proceed, therefore, under this head, rather upon the plan of furnishing sincere inquirers with the whole of the case, than of putting forth a guarded statement: and shall still, as before, offer some instances, which, it may be thought, will not bear to be called miraculous in the stricter sense of the term; though without being prepared to admit, even here, that the exception would always be just. Let us first hear some of the expressions used. With reference to the state of the Brethren previous to their emigration, we read,

" In a word, no means were neglected to wrest from them their faith ; till at length the Lord miraculously brought forth, out of this land of oppression, all those who sought Him with their whole heart, and were willing to forsake their goods, and even their own life, to follow Him*."

Christian David, who felt it his duty to go back, occasionally, to Moravia, the scene of persecution,

" regarded himself, as it has been already stated, as possessing an assurance of being herein an instrument of God: and all counsels and orders to prevent him were futile. He returned often to this holy work in the midst of extreme dangers and miraculous deliverances +."





* " En un mot, il n'y eut pas de moyens qu'on n'employat pour leur airacher leur foi; jusqu'a ce qu'enfin le Seigneur fit sortir miraculeuse-mcnt de ce pays d'opprcssion, tous ceux qui le cherchaient de tout leur coeur, et qui elaient disposes a abandonner leurs biens et mecme leur propre vie pour le suivre." p. 327.

+" Comme on l'a dit, il se tenait pour assure d'etre en cela un instrument de Dieu; et tous les avis et les ordres contraires etaient inutiles. II retourna plusieurs fois a cette oeuvre sainte au milieu de dangers extremes et de de'livrances miraculeuses." p. 354.



TO THE PRESENT DAY. 267

David Nitschmann wrote his own life, and gives a detailed account of his imprisonment, and " of the miraculous escape which the Lord vouchsafed to him*."

The younger Melchior

" was first kept for a long time without food, then bound so tight with cords, that blood issued from his mouth, nose, and skin; which left him, after his miraculous escape in 1725, in a feeble state of health to the end of his short but good life +."

Many believers emigrated from Bohemia, in 1732, 1733, 1734.

" They experienced more than one marvelous deliverance, which, as well as the sufferings of those who were seized during their flight, cannot be read without emotion++."

Now some of these escapes and deliverances may be considered as'" merely" extraordinary and marvelous, not properly miraculous: especially in the present day, when there is a tacit conspiracy to exclude miraculous faith, and that in the religious world as well as out of it; when, to secure this object, there is a common understanding, that as few things are to be acknowledged really miracles as possible; and when, to gain this end, definitions are employed, and conditions required, which would exclude miracles of the New Testament. But, though it might plausibly be urged,



* " Surla delivrance miraculeuse quele Seigneur lui accorda." p. 328.

+" Fut d'abord priv6 de nournture pendant long-temps, puis ensuite lie de cordes avec une telle force, que le sang lui sortait par la bouche, le nez et la peau; ce qui lui laissa, apr£s la merveilleuse delivrance qu'il 6.prouva en 1725, une saute faible jusqu'a la fin de sa courte, mais bonne vie." p. 331.

++ " Ils oprouverent plus d'une delivrance merveilleuse qui, de meme que les souffrances de ceux qui furent saisis dans leur fuite, ne peuvent selire sans attendrissement." tom. ii. p. 193.



268 THE CHURCH

that some of the deliverances referred to above were merely marvelous, not miraculous, it could not be that all were.

In the following instance, though to me it seems the readiest solution to call it miraculous, some might discern merely a marvelous interposition of Providence; nay, others, nothing but chance.

" Andre Beyer was detained in prison at Kunewalde more than a year, and tortured in various ways, because he would not abjure his faith and his connexion with the Brethren. But when every effort failed, they determined to load him with chains, and to cast him into a deep and damp dungeon. On the day when this sentence was to have been put in execution, a brother and fellow-prisoner, David Fritsch by name, unintentionally pushed the door of their prison, and the great chain, which was stretched across the door on the outside, gave way. They opened the door, saw no sentinel, went home, took their wives and their children, one of them only six months old, and fled*."

Those who, in this instance, when the great chain gave way, at the moment when the prisoner unintentionally pushed the door, see nothing but what is accidental, or, at the utmost, nothing but what is merely extraordinary, must allow me, in the following instance, to maintain something decidedly miraculous. The account is Nitschmann's, already referred to.—





* " Andre Beyer fut tenu en prison a Kunewalde, audela d'un an, et tourmente en di verses manieres, parce qu'il ne voulait pas abjurer sa foi et ses relations avec les Freres; mais comme tout fut inutile, on decida de le charger de chaines et de le ^eter dans un cachot profond et humide. Le jour oil ce jugement devait 4tre execute, un frere, nomme David Fritsch, qui se trouvait en prison avec lui.poussa sans dessein la porte de la prison ou ils se trouvaient, et la grosse chaine qui dtait tendue en dehors devant la porte, sauta. Ils puvrirent la porte, ne virent point de sentinelle, se rendirent chez eux, prirent leurs femmes et leurs enfenls, dont l'un n'avait que six mois, ct s'enfuircnt." Tom i. p. 351.



TO THE PRESENT DAY. 269

" When all this investigation was over, they shut us up again all together, chained two and two: I however was ironed apart.

" One Thursday evening, I told my brethren that I had thoughts, of leaving them that night. ' And I too,' instantly added David Schneider: ' I mean to go with you.' We had to wait till eleven. Not knowing how I should be able to get rid of my irons, I laid my hand upon the padlock which fastened them, to try and open it with a knife; and, behold, it was opened ! I began to weep for joy, and I said to Schneider, ' Now I see it is the will of God that we should go.' We removed the irons from our feet, we took leave of the other Brethren in profound silence, and crossed the court to see if we could find a ladder. I went as far as the principal passage, which was secured 2 by two doors; and I found the first opened, and the second also. This was a second sign to us that we were to go. Being once out of the castle we hung our irons on the wall, and we crossed the garden to reach my dwelling, where we waited a while, that I might tell my wife how she should proceed when I sent some one to fetch her*."

Here, the purpose of departing, expressed before



* " Quand toute cette enquete eut pris fin, on nous renferma de nou-veau tous dans une meme piece, enchaines deux a deux; mais moi j'eus des fers a part.

" Un jeudi au soir, • je dis a mes fibres que je pensais les quitter cette ouit—' Moi aussi,' ajouta aussitot David Schneider, 'je veux aller avec toi.' 11 nous fallut atiendre jusqu'a onze heures. No sachant comment je parviendrais a me ddbarrasser de mes fers, je portai la main au cadenas qui les retenait, pour essayer de l'ouvrir avec un couteau; et voila il e'tait ouvert. Je me mis k pleurer de joie, et je dis a Schneider: ' A pr6sent je vois que c'est la volonte de Dieu que nous nous en allions.' Nous dtames les fers de nos pieds, nous primes conge des autres freres dans un profond silence, et nous traversames la cour pour voir si nous pourrions trouver une echelle. J'allai jusqu'au grand passage, qui e'tait ferme' de deux portes ; et je trouvai la premiere ouverte, et la seconde aussi. Ce fut pour nous un second signe que nous devions nous en alter. Une fois hors du chateau nous pendlmes nos fers k la muraille, et nous traversames* le jardin pour nous rend re chez moi, ou nous nous arretemes un peu, pour dire ii ma femme comment elle aurait a se conduire lorsque j'enver-rais quelqu'un pour la prendre.' pp. 333, 334.

" ' Nous rappelons que notre traduction est d'une scrupuleuse fidelite: nous donnons le recit tel quel, et nous laissons faire les reflexions aux lecteun."



270 THE CHURCH

the means of escape were known ; the deliverance from irons without any human means; the doors ' of the prison found open; all contribute to invest the occurrence with a miraculous character. But, further, the evidence is double, throughout, Tim prisoners express, beforehand, their intention of leaving the prison that night: two persons, both ironed, escape from their irons without mortal aid : two prison-doors are found open.

The deliverance of another of the Brethren, though less distinguished, perhaps, by supernatural or marvelous circumstances, is worthy of being here recorded. After the escape of the two former prisoners, their wives were commanded to send some one to fetch them back. David Heikel was sent; and, after some days, returning unsuccessful, and being imprisoned, he also escaped! The following is the narrative:—

"The judge instantly put him in prison, and told him that, for having favoured the escape of the two prisoners, he should be hanged. 'That he calmly answered, ' is according as God wills it or not. Unless he please, it will not so be.' They threw him into a cold and dark hole, where he remained three days without eating or drinking. Then they brought him, half dead with cold, before the judge; that, in his presence, he might declare what he knew of the two men that had escaped. On his still protesting that he knew nothing about them, they took him into a warmer apartment, where they gave him a morsel of bread such as they used to give to dogs, and some dirty water ; be then heard them charge the keeper to watch him carefully. But that very circumstance appeared to him, he says, an invitation to flee" [possibly because he recollected the miraculous deliverance of Paul and Sills, after a similar charge had been given to the galore at Philip]. " He gently opened the door, saw that the sentinels were so



TO THE PRESENT PAY. 271

placed that he might pass without being perceived, by a back door, into the garden, and thence into the village. He then passed through the village in the open day, took leave of some of the Brethren, set out speedily for Saxon, and arrived happily at Herrnhut*."

If this instance has nothing in it, in the strict "Sense of the term, miraculous, I choose rather to insert it, for the sake of believers whom it may interest, than to leave it out for the sake of escaping the cavils of mock professors.

2. Before passing on to some other instances of marvelous or miraculous experience in the records of the Brethren, it may here be proper to say a word of their practice of deciding, in some doubt-Ail cases, by lot. This they did, on the principle that a reference to the lot was a reference to the will of God (as we know it was in the choice of Matthias, Acts i. 24—26). Their principle, says M. Bost, was

" to refer the decision of doubtful cases, where opinions are divided, to the lot, or rather, under this title, to the Lord himself +."





* " Aussitot le juge le fit mettre en prison, et lui declara que pour avoir facility Invasion dea deux prisonniers, il serait pendu. ' C'estselon,' T6-pondit-il tranquillement,' c'est selon que Dieu le voudra ou non ; s'il ne le reut pas, il n'en sera rien.' On le jeta dans un trou froid et sombre, ou il rest* trois jours sans manger ni boire. Enguite on le conduisit a moiti£ mort de froid, devant le juge, pour y dire positivement ce qu'il sa-vait des deux hommes qui s 'e'taient echappes. Comme il perseverait a protester qu'il n'en savait absolument rien, on le conduisit dans un apparte-ment plus chaud, ou on lui donna un morpeau du pain qu'on donnaitaux chiens, et de l'eau sale : puis il entendit qu'on recommandait au gardien de le surveiller soigneusement. Mais cela merne lui parut otre, k ce qu'il dit, une invitation il s'enfuir: il ouvrit doucement la porte, vit les senti-nelles place'es de manie're qu'il put passer, sans etre apercu, par une porte de derriere dans le jardin, et de 1a dans le village. Puis il traversa le village en plein jour, prit conge de quelques freres, partit en hate pour la Saxe et arriva heureusemment a Herrnhout." tom. i. pp. 334, 345.

+ " —de remettre au sort, ou plutot, sous ce nom, au Seigneur lui-meme, la decision des cas douteux ou les avis sont partages. tom. ii. p. 131.



272 THE CHURCH

Now a faith that regards a reference to the lot as a reference to the Lord himself is, whether you call it right or wrong, a miraculous faith; because it supposes a particular interposition, on the Lord's part, to make the lot decide properly. But we find every reason to conclude, in the case of the Brethren, that the practice was right and not wrong. A special blessing attended decisions thus come to. I believe it may be safely said, that, without the lot, we should never have had the Moravian missions. And, without the Moravian missions, we probably should never have had any missions whatever, that deserved the name, in the Protestant church. Add to this, that the manner in which the lot—when, in cases that seemed particularly doubtful, again and again referred to— again and again gave the same decision, was sometimes most wonderful: and the blessing that followed in abiding by this decision, even when it was. that which commended itself the least to the natural judgment, most marked and signal.

On one occasion, for instance, it had been agreed to choose four out of twelve distinguished persons amongst the Brethren, for the peculiar exercise of certain functions in the church; and to make the selection by lot. The fourth choice fell upon a young person; Melchior Nitschmann, aged twenty-five,

" whose nomination was surrounded with extraordinary circumstances. He had at first been introduced to be drawn for with the others, on account of his eminent gifts; but his name having come forth once, they thought, as he was so young, they might submit him to the trial by lot again. It came forth a second time. It seemed, even, according to the account of the historian whom we follow



TO THE PRESENT DAY. 273

"in this matter (Gedenktage), that, even after the Lord had made this second declaration, they might subject this young Brother to a third drawing. ' His name,' says the historian, ' having, nevertheless, again found its place among the twelve, without their being aware of it, and the little boy who drew the tickets having again named Melchior

Nitschmann as fourth ancient, the Church was penetrated with profound astonishment: he, on the contrary, looked neither surprised, nor confounded, nor pleased ; but satisfied himself with saying that he hardly knew how this could happen, unless it were that the Saviour took pleasure in having a very poor and a very wretched servant. The Church, knowing and highly esteeming him, far from making any objection, admired the superintending influence of God, and honoured him, from that moment*," &c.

- I observed that a choice made thus by lot, against natural judgment, the lot repeatedly giving the same decision, was sometimes attended by a signal blessing. Now, then, mark the blessing in the present instance.

" Subsequently, Zinzendorf was able to give him such a testimony as this which follows. ' Every way that he discharged his office of ancient, this saying of the Lord was seen to be fulfilled in him, ' Whatsoever he doth shall





*" Dont la nomination fut entouree de eireonstances extraordinaires. On l'avait d'abord admis au tirage comme les autres, a cause de ses grands dons; mais son nom etant sorti une premiere fois, on crut pouvoir, a cause de sa ieunesse, le soumettre de nouveau au tort, il sortit une seconde fois ; il paraitrait meme, d'apres le recit de l'historien que nous suivons ici (Gedtnktage), qu'on se permit, meme npres cette seconde declaration du Seigneur, de soumettre ce jeune frere A un troisieme tirage. Son nom, dit l'historien, s'e'tant pourtant retrouve' sans qu'on s'en doutat, parmi les douze, et le jeune garcon qui tirait les billets, ayant de nouveau nomine1 Melchior Nitschmann pour quatrieme ancien, 1 eglise fut plnetree d'un etonneraent profond; lui, au contraire, n'eut l'air ni surpris, ni confus, ni joyeux ; mais il se borna a dire qu'il ne savait trop pourquoi telle chose arrivait, a moins que ce ne fut parce que le Seigneur prenait plaisir i avoir un serviteur bien pauvre et bien miserable. L'eglise, qui le connaissait et l'estimait it un haut degrg, bien loin de faire aucune objection,admira les directions de Dieu, et l'honora, dcs ce moment," &c.—Tom.ii. pp. 6, 7.



274 THE CHURCH

prosper. 'To appease divisions, to bring back those who had gone astray, to break up cabals, to awaken souls and lead them on, to exhort and rebuke, to inspire the trifling with godly sorrow, to console the repentant, to love the Brethren and devote his life to their service, was his daily work. His heart was inflamed in prayer, and his secret petitions never ceased to flow. In labour he was assiduous, to his Master obedient in all things, though peculiarly embarrassed and awkward in secular matters. He had a penetrating mind, and always knew how to use it, at proper seasons and in the proper place, in the most suitable manner, and with great modesty. With all this, he was free without levity, humble without meanness, compassionate without effeminacy, friendly without fawning, collected without affectation, quick without precipitance, poor without sloth, simple without folly, well-informed without pretending to know every thing. In a word, it was truly his endeavour to be, in this world, what the Saviour was himself*.'"

No doubt the manner of choosing Nitschmann for the ministry would by many be deemed " enthusiastic." But would that all those who are " regularly " chosen, and who want neither " si quis," title, nor testimonials, were such as this





* " Dans la suite, Zinzendorf pouvait lui rendre le temoignage que voici: Dans toute la maniere dont il remplissait ses fonctions d'ancien, on voyait t'accomplir cette parole du Seigntur: Il re'ussit dans toute ce

qu'il entreprend. Apaiser des divisions, ramener des egares, dissiper

es cabales, reVeiller et conduire des ames, exhorter et reprendre, in— spirer une tristesse selon Dieu aux aines. legeres, consoler ceux qui se repentaient, aimer les freres et leur consacrersa vie, e'e'taitson ceuvre de tout les jours. II priait avec un caeur brulant, et il ne pouvait tarir dans l'oraison secrete. II 6taii assidu au travail, obe'issant il son Maitre en toutes clioses, quoique extremement embarrass*; et maladroit dans les affaires exUirieures. II avait l'esprit pe'ne'trant, et il savait toujours l'employer, en temps et lieu, de la maniere la plus convenable et avec une grande modestie. Avec cela il etait franc sans legerete', humble sans bassesse, compatissant sans mollesse, amical sans cajolerie, recueilli sans affectation, vif sans precipitation, pauvre sans paresse, simple sans jbtre sot, ricbe en connaissances sans pretention & tout savoir; en un mot, il cherchait vraiment a itre dans ce monde tel que le Seigneur avait ete luimeme."—p. 7.



TO THE PRESENT DAY. 275



simple weaver, whom the Lord appointed by lot! We might "not, then, have to see a proud establishment vailing her mitred turrets in the mire, for Antichrist to trample on !

Other instances of choosing the ministers of the church by lot were attended with a similar blessing. " One of these nominations might well surprise us, unless, as we may boldly say, a church which accomplished such extraordinary results, had acquired, by the wonderful fruits which it produced at this juncture, a claim that we should suspend our judgment on those of its actions which might seem unusual; for the Brethren were neither ignorant nor light characters.—They had ventured to place, in the number of the females eligible for the functions of

.Ancient for the sisters, a young woman, by name Anne Nitschmann, (sister of the excellent Melchior Nitschmann,) aged only fifteen : and she was the person designated by the lot *."

This choice, too, appears to have been attended with a signal blessing.—Zinzendorf himself, also, was determined, by lot, in entering into holy orders.

" Finally, after having submitted all to the Saviour, by means of the lot, which decided for the project, the Count set himself to accomplish it +."

So, too, when a question arose about the appointment of bishops:



* " L'une de ces nominations etonnerait a juste litre, si comme on peut le dire hardiment, l'ealise qui faisait des choses si extraordinaires n'avait acquis, par lea fruits admirable* qu'elle portait a cette epoque' ledroit qu on suspende con jugement sur ceux dea ses actei qui parat-traient extraordinaires: car les freres n'etaient ni ignorants, ni legers.-On avait ose mettre au nombre des e ligible, pour les fonctions d'ancienne des soeurs, une jeune Anne Nitschmann, soeur de l'excellent Melchior Nitschmann, agee seulement de quinze ans : et ce fut elle que le sort indiqua."—pp. 120,131.

+ " Eofin, apres avoir soumis le tout au Sauveur, par la voie du tort, qui decida pour le projet, le eomte y mit la main."—p. 217.



276 THE CHURCH

" After having, by means of the lot, placed the measure in the hands of the Lord, who authorized it, the Brethren had then only to look out, among themselves, for the individual whom they might consider most proper to receive the office of bishop. The choice, also sanctioned by lot, fell on David Nitschmann *."

Such, too, was the practice in the Conferences of the Ancients.

" When, after having weighed all things maturely, and in the sincere desire of discovering the will of God, they still felt doubtful on any matter, they used to refer it to the immediate decision of the Lord, by consulting him by the lot +."

• And lastly, the same course was pursued, in determining to send forth THEIR FIRST MISSIONARIES.

" Such were the proceedings of the present year" (1731) " with respect to this mission" (that to St. Thomas). " But the zeal of the Church was so tempered with prudence, that more than another year elapsed, before it took a decided course; nor did it, even then, till, by means of the lot, it had consulted the Lord, who modified the enterprise.

" In an assembly of the council of the Church, which had previously been held, they had at first subjected Leopold, only, to this trial; and the lot had decided, that, for the time, he should not set out. But, as Dober did not the less persist in his wishes, the Count, who personally was quite of Dober's mind, asked him, perceiving all the hesitation of the other Brethren, if he also would consent, in his own case, to refer the matter to the Lord,





* " Apres avoir remis la chose, par la voie du sort, entre les mains du Seigneur, qui l'a-utorisa, les Freres n'eurent done plus qu'a chercber entre eux celui qu'ils croyaient le plus propre a recevoir la charge d'eveque. Le choix, egalement approuve' par le sort, tomba sur David Nitschmann."—p. 233.

+ " Et lorsque, apres avoir pese toutes choses bien inurement, et dans le sincere desir de rencontrer la volonte de Dieu, on avait encore des doutes sur quelque objet, on le remettait a la decision immediate du Seigneur, en le consultant par le sort."—pp. 8, 9.



TO THE PRESENT DAY. 277

by means of the lot. Dober answered, that so far as his own conviction was concerned, he had no need ; but that, with respect to the Brethren's, they might do according to their desire. They called upon him, therefore, to draw for himself, out of a certain number of lots which expressed different opinions; and he drew that which said, ' Let the child go, the Lord is with him.' This put an end to all doubts and questions. Dober was installed in his new vocation, and Linner gave him the Church's benediction*."

Such were the beginnings of the missions of the United Brethren. These undertakings, which the Lord has so signally blessed, and which the Protestant church has attempted, so largely, to imitate, turned, at their commencement, upon an appeal to the Divine will, to be miraculously manifested by disposing and ordering a decision by

LOT.

The lot, however, was also referred to, in other matters of the highest importance. The very existence of the Church of the Brethren, as a separate community, turned upon the same thing.



*" Voila ce qui se passa, cette anne"e, a l'e"gard de cette mission : mais IViglise unissait a son zele une telle prudence qu'il s'e'coula encore plus d'un an, avant qu'elle prlt un parti, et meme alors elle ne le fit qu'apres avoir consults le Seigneur, par la voie du sort, qui modifia lintreprise.

"Dans une assembled du conseil de l'6glise,qui s'e'tait tenue pre'ce'dem* me'nt, on avait d'abord mis Leupold seul a cette 6preuve : et le sort avait de'cide' que pour le moment, if ne partirait pas. Mais comme Dober n'en persistait pas moinsdans son d€sir, lecomte qui, pour sa personne e"tait entierement de l'avis de Dober, lui demanda, en voyant toutes les hesitations des autres freres, s'il consentirait aussi, lui de son cote, a ce qu'on remit l'affaire au Seigneur, par la voie du sort. Dober rlspon?it que pour sa conviction a lui, li n'en avait pas besoin, mais que pour celledes freres, ils pourraient faire ce qu'ils desireraient. On l'appela donc a tirer lui-meme sur un certain nombre de billets qui exprimaient des avis differents, et il eut celui qui portait: ' Laissez aller cet enfant, le Seigneur est avec lui.' Cela mit fin a toutes les hesitations, Dober fut installe dans sa nouvelle vocation, et Linner lui donna la benediction de l' eglise." —pp. 139,140.



278 THE CHURCH

The Count, influenced perhaps by external circumstances, wished, at one time, though afterwards probably he cordially rejoiced that his desires had been opposed, to blend the Moravian Community with the Lutheran Church. Others, on the contrary, urged, that their existing constitution and discipline had been attended with such a blessing, that they could not abandon them.—

" The Count, however, still pressed the point, and his rank as superintendent of the Church, and lord of the domain, connected with his transcendant gifts, gave such weight to his sentiments, that the Church agreed to refer, with him, the decision of this so solemn question to the Lord himself, by the method of the lot. Thus the Church of the Brethren and all its future destinies, its continuation or its extinction, were to depend on a yes or a no that should issue from the urn.

" According to the ancient custom of. the Brethren, they made two lots; on the first of which they wrote, ' To them that are without law, be as if you were without law; being not without law, since you are under the law to Christ; but in order to gain them that are without law.' The other was, ' Brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught.' The Church prayed the Lord that he would graciously reveal to his own the purposes of his wisdom; and we may suppose with what reverential expectation they saw a child, not four years old, bring out one of these two lots.... 'Brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught!' —Such was the Lord's decision !

" Then, as one soul, and with a heart penetrated with thankfulness to God, the Brethren renewed, in a body, their covenant with the Lord; and cordially promised him, to abide, from that time forth, without variation, in the same ecclesiastical constitution, boldly to employ themselves in the work of Christ, and to proclaim his Gospel throughout the world, and to all the nations to whom he should send them. The Count himself was charged with addressing



TO THE PRESENT DAY.

the church in a discourse upon the subject; and he did so with extraordinary power and copiousness.

" Perhaps it will excite astonishment, that the decision of so important an affair should have been referred to the lot. But it should be observed, that the thing was of a kind that might be proper, or not; that the Brethren found not, in the Bible, any positive direction to determine them; and that, in consequence, they were in this case left at liberty to act according to their principle, which is," (the words have been already cited,) " to refer the decision of doubtful cases, where opinions are divided, to the lot, or rather, under this title, to the Lord himself. Both parties being now satisfied and tranquilized, the Brethren, from that time, took, with perfect resignation, the obloquy to which the novelty of their institutions and the hatred of the world exposed them. From that time, also, they continued to labour in their work with courage, and with reliance on the Lord's help, without suffering any thing to turn them aside ; being persuaded that the plan which they had adopted was that which it pleased the Lord they should follow *."

Thus, while a reference to the lot, on such occa-



* " Cependant le comte insistait encore, et sa qualite de prepose de l'dglise et de seigneur du lieu, jointe a ses dons dclatants, donnaient un tel poids a son avis, que l'eglise consentit il remettre, avec lui, la decision de cette question si solennelle, au Seigneur lui-meme par la voie du sort. Ainsi l'Eglise des Freres et toutes ses destinies futures, son existence ulteiieure ou son aneantissement, allaient dependre du oui on du non qui sortirait d'une urne.

" Conformement a l'ancien usage des Freres, on fit deux billets, sur le premier desquels on £crivit: ' A ceux qui sont suns hi, soyez comme si vous itiez suns loi; non que vous soyez sans loi, puisque vous etes sous la hi de Christ, mais afin de gagncr ceux qui sont sans hi.' L'autre billet portait: ' Mes frlret! demeures fermes et retenez Us enseignements que vous avtz apprit.' L'e'glise se mit en prieres pour demander au Seigneur de vouloir bien faire connaitre aux siens 1'intention dj sa sagesse: et Ton conpoit dans quelle solennelle attente elle vit un enfant au-dessous de

quatre ang sortir l'un de ces deux billets......

" ' Mesfrlres ! demeurez fermes, et retenez let enseignements que. vout

avez appris !......' Telle fut la decision du Seigneur!

" Alors, comme une seule arae, et le coeur pe'ne'tre' de reconnaissance envers Dieu, les Freres renouvelerent ensemble leur alliance avec le Seigneur, et lui promirent avec effusion, de perseverer desormais sans varier dans cette constitution, de s'employer courageusement a 1'oeuvre de Christ, et d'annoncer son Evangile par tout le monde, et a toutes les nations vers lesquelles il les enverriat. Le comte lui-meme fut charge



280 THE CHURCH

sions, proves the belief of the Brethren, that the Lord would, in an extraordinary manner, inter-pose to direct the lot aright, the success of this reference, and the blessing which attended it, prove their belief correct. It is to be observed, however, that the Brethren do not appear to have appealed to the lot precipitately and promiscuously, on all occasions alike : but only in difficult emergencies, when they specially needed direction, and that with all seriousness, and with due solemnity of preparation.

3. Connected with this mode of decision, was that by particular texts, generally those contained in the Daily Texts of the Brethren. Here, again, when the reader comes to see the course adopted, he will perceive a reference to some supernatural interposition on the part of the Most High : for when, in addition to the general light and instruction vouchsafed to us in God's word, we look for particular monitions or encouragements in particular cases of which that word says nothing expressly, and this by a coincidence of a text, that has been chosen for a certain day long before, with some business that happens to be in hand upon that day, this can only be by looking for some particular pre-appointment and pre-arrangement



-----------------------

d'addresser a ce sujet un discours a l'eglise; etLil le fit avec une force et Une abondance extraordinaires.

" Peut-etre sera-t-on e'tonne' que la decision d'une affaire de cette importance ait ete remise au sort; mais on doit remarquer que la chose e'tait de nature a pouvoir avoir lieu, ou ne l'avoir pas ; que les Freres ne voy-aient dans la Bible aucune instruction positive qui put les determiner, et que par consequent ils pouvaient sans scrupule agir ici suivant leur principe, qui est de remettre au sort, oil plutot, sous ce nom, au Seigneur lui-meme, la decision des cas douteux ou les avis sont partages. Satisfaits maintenant et tranquillises de part et d'autre, les Freres accepterent des lors avec une entifere resignation l'opprobre auquel les exposaient la nouveaute de leurs institutions et la haine du monde. Des lors aussi ils continucrent si travailler a leur oeuvre avec courage et dans le confiance en l'assistance du Seigneur, sans se laisser



TO THE PRESENT DAY. 281

on the part of the Lord, out of the ordinary course of his government, and therefore possessing a supernatural character. And when we not only look for this, but find it to be so; when we meet with the coincidences looked for, when we act upon them, and, in so acting, constantly find a blessing ; this is not a natural, or ordinary, but a supernatural and miraculous experience. Yet such has been the experience of the United Brethren.

The disposition of the Brethren to note particular texts, as falling out in connection with the events of particular days on which they occurred, may be observed in some instances which, though striking, may not be thought marvelous. Thus, after successfully preaching the Gospel to the Blacks of St. Thomas, under very discouraging circumstances, just after their first arrival on the first mission,

" The Brethren, who were always fond of observing the Coincidences of the daily texts with the events of the day, remark that this memorable day was the third of the four Sundays in Advent, for which the Gospel in the Lutheran Church," (and also in the Church of England,) " is a portion of Matt, xi., containing the words ' the poor have the gospel preached to them*."'

Other cases, however, are more striking. For example, when a report had been brought to Herrnhut by Count Zinzendorf, of some encouraging circumstances which seemed to mark an opening for this mission to the Negroes,



-------------------------

detourner par quoi que ce Cut; persuades que le plan dans lequel ils e'taien entres, etait celui que le Seigneur voulait qu'ils suivissent." pp. 130,131. * " Les Freres, toujours attache's a remarquer les coincidences des textes journaliefs avec les e've'nements du jour, obserrent que ce jour memorable e'tait le troisieme des quatre Dimanches de 1'A vent, qui a pour Evangile dans l'eglise Luthe'rienne la portion de Matthieu XI, ou se trou-vent ces mots: ' L'e'vangile est preche aux pauvres.'" p. 149.



282 THE CHURCH

" His statement produced, in Leonard Dober and Tobias Leopold, two young Brethren full of life and courage," (they have been already referred to,) '' a lively desire to go and preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ. They were intimate friends, but they did not open their minds to one another that day. The next morning, Dober, still feeling the impulse which had occupied him, and kept him awake all night, but uncertain as to the nature of the feeling, and suspecting that it might be some vain thought, opened, at if he would thus seek counsel of the Lord, the text-book which he bad at hand, and there found these words, ' It is not a vain thing for you, because it is your life,' &c. (Deut. xxxii.47.) These words greatly strengthened his persuasion and restored his courage *."

I must continue the narrative, though at the risk of anticipating what I have to say on another part of the Brethren's experience.

" It was at that time his custom to converse every evening, and that often till midnight, with Tobias Leopold, on the manner in which the day had been passed, and then to pray with him. As this was the individual that he had especially thought of in selecting a fellow-labourer, he communicated his views to him, having determined, if he consented, to consider the matter decided as far as he himself was concerned, and then to communicate it to his ecclesiastical superiors. What was his joy, when Leopold informed him that he felt the same desire to visit the slaves of St. Thomas; and that the only fellow-labourer that he, too, had been able to think of, was his friend If"





* " Son recit produisit chez Leonard Dober et Tobie Leupold, deux jeunes frereg pleins de vie et de courage, un vif desir d'aller annoncer la bonne nouvelle de Jdsus-Christ. Us £taient intitnes amis; mais ce jour-la ils ne se dirent rien de ce qui se passait dans leur ame. Le lendemain matin Dober sentant toujours en lui l'impulsion qui l'avait occupl toute la nuit, et qui ne lui avait guere laisst de repos, incertain sur la nature de ce sentiment, et dans le doute si ce ne serait pas quelque vaine pensee, ouvrit, comme pour consulter ainsi le Seigneur, le livre de textes qu'il avait sous la main, et y trouva ces mots: ' Ce n'est pas une parole qui vous soit proposed en vain, mais c'est votre vie, etc' Ces mots affermi-rent beaucoup sa persuasion et lui rendirent le courage." p. 135.

+ " II avait coutume, a cette epque, de s'entretenir tous les soiri, et



TO THE PRESENT DAY. 283

The unmarried Brethren used to go, at certain times, through the streets of Herrnhut singing hymns.

. " One evening, when Dober and Leopold were thus passing along, singing, in company with their brethren, by the open part of the town, (sur la place,) as the troop approached the house of the Count, he came forward into the midst of them with Schaeffer, a minister of the Gospel, then on a visit at Herrnhut, and said to him, though, as yet, entirely ignorant of the thought of the two Brethren, ' Behold, Sir, amongst these Brethren, future missionaries to St. Thomas, Greenland, Lapland, &c.' These few words, uttered by the Count with the tone of full assurance of faith, increased, still farther, our Brethren's joy, and they determined to communicate confidentially to the Count the • purposes of their hearts *."

At Copenhagen, two of the missionaries, preparing to set forth, met with great discouragements.

" In the midst of all these discouragements, the Brethren remained unmoveable. Nitschmann declined the proposal made to him by Dober, to return to Herrnhut and leave him to set out alone; and, in the failure of all human aid, they held the more steadily to Him who made the heavens and the earth. One day, when they were particularly depressed, they found the following words in the Text-book: ' Hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?' which



___________

souvent jusqu'a minuit, avec Tobie Leupold, sur la maniere dont le jour s'etait passe ; puis de prier avec lui. Comme c'dtait en outre & lui qu'U avait pen&£ en se choisissant en lui-meme un compagnon d'ccuvre, il lui communiqua son idee, resolu s'il y consentait, de regarder la chose comme decidee quant a lui-meme, et de la communiquer aiors a ses su-perieurs ecclesiastiques. Quelle ne fut pas sa joie lorsqu'il apprit de son ami qu'il eprouvait le meme deir d'aller chez les esclaves de Saint-Thomas, et qu'il n'avait pu non plus penser a un autre compagnon d'oenvre qu'a son ami 1" pp. 135, 136.



* " Un soir que Dober et Leupold passaient ainsi, dans la compairnie de leurs freres, sur la place, en chantant, la troupe approchant de la raaison du comte, celui-ci s'avanca au milieu d'eux avec le ministre



284 THE CHURCH

restored them to full assurance that God would infallibly finish what he had begun*."

Should an objector feel disposed to treat with contempt this practice of expecting direction or encouragement from particular texts, let him remember, that the question is not, at present, respecting our opinions, but respecting the opinions-of the United Brethren. And it is worthy of remark, how their missions to the heathen, so highly blessed of God, and so much better conducted than any others, had their origin amidst such references to texts and to the lot, as some directors of modern missions would deem contemptible. But—"Ye are they which justify yourselves before men!"

4. Another point, in the miraculous experience of the United Brethren, lies in presentiments, impressions on the mind, and inward impulses; often felt by them, independent of the general teachings of God's word, and that of the Holy Spirit connected therewith; and therefore, in their character, particular, extraordinary, and supernatural. Such



--------------

Sclseffer, alors en visite a Herrnhout, et lui (lit, sans rien savoir encore de la pensle des deux freres: ' Monsieur, voici parmi ces freres des missionnaires future pour Saint-Thomas, le Greenland, la Laponie, etc' Ce peu de mots que le comte prononpa du ton d'une ferme assurance de foi, ajouta encore a la joie de nos freres qui prirent la resolution de faire connaitre au comte, mais en confidence, les pense'es qui se mouvaient dans leurs coeurs." p. 136.

* " Au milieu de tous ces sujets de dlcouragement, les freres resterent inebranlables. Nitschmann n'accepta point la proposition que lui fit Dober de retourner a Herrnhout pour le laisser partir seul, et tout secoura Iiumain leur manquant, ils s'en tinrent d'autant plus fermement a Celui qui a fait la terre et les cieux.

" Un jour qu'ils 6taient particulierement abattus, ils trouverent ces paroles dans le livre de texte : ' II a dit, et ne la fera-t-il point? II a parle, et ne le ratifiera-t-il point?' qui leur rendirent la parfaite certitude que Dieu acheverait infailUblement ce qu'il avait commence." p. 145.



TO THE PRESENT DAY. 285

impulses, impressions, and presentiments, we find them attentively noting, sedulously recording, and faithfully acting upon, with a great attendant blessing.

" As soon as the two brethren, the Neissers, were settled in their new residence, Christian David, fully persuaded that the inclination, which urged him, again and again, to repair to Moravia and Bohemia, was an impulse from God, went in search of new Brethren in those countries, ' He was employed as an historian of that period relates in familiar terms, ' at the beginning of 1723, in boarding the hall of the Count's house at Bertholdsdorf, and had only half finished it, when suddenly he left on the spot his adze and rule, and returned bareheaded, a distance of seventy leagues, to the three other brethren, the Neissers, that he had left at Sehlen*.'"

Here, as a caution to my younger friends, it may be proper to observe that the Christian David, who took this extraordinary and sudden step, was no light and unstable professor; but a believer of deep experience, steadfast faith, and exemplary constancy in the ways of God. What he did, then, on a Divine impulse, and with a success and blessing, in the result, which owned the procedure as of God, is no authority for flightiness and self-willed inconstancy in the young and undecided.

The missionaries, again, of whom we have already spoken, met with every discouragement on





* " Aussitot que les deux freres Neisser furent etablis dans leur nou-velle habitation, Christian David, pleinement persuade quele besoin qui le pressait touiours de nouveau de se rendre en Moravie et en Boheme, etait une impulsion de Dieu, alia chercher de nouveaux frbres dans ces pays ' II &ait occupe",' raconte familierement un histonen de cette £ooque 'au commencement de 1723, a plancheer la salle de la maison du com'te a Bertholdsdorf, et n'en avail encore fait que la moitie, lorsque tout d'un coup il laisse la sa hache et sa regie, et retourne, sans chapeau, k soixante et Six lieues de la, vers les trois autres freres Neisser qu'il avait laisses a Sehlen.'"—Tom. i. p. 321.



286 „ THE CHURCH

their way to the sea coast, where they were to embark. Various objections were urged; an individual, the Countess of Stollberg, was the only person who gave them any comfort or encouragement : they were told terrible stories about the cruelty of the Cannibals, and their ranker against Europeans: Dober, however,

" used to answer, that he himself was astonished, when he thought upon his project; but that he could not help following the impulse which he felt, and obeying therein the will of God*."

The impulse sometimes came in the form of a strong presentiment, which, when felt, was acted upon. This presentiment was particular, and not such as could be derived from the general declarations of Scripture: as, for instance, when the foundations of the future settlement of Herrnhut were laid upon a hill, which was considered perfectly unfit to build upon, because it wanted water. The blessings, which followed this establishment, are well known to all persons acquainted with the Brethren's history; and the presentiment itself was felt against hope. Heitz, the steward, writes to Count Zinzendorf,

" My lady " (the Countess) " recommended the hill behind the village, where the water is excellent. I preferred the other hill, where the high road passes, because the soil is better. So also my lady thought; but she objected that there was no water, nor even a likelihood of finding any. I said to her, God can give it, and took my leave.—Mr. Marche was of my opinion +."





*" Dober avait coutume de re'pondre qu'il ^tait e'tonne" lui-meme, quand il pensait a' son projet, mats qu'il ne pouvait s'empecher de suivre l'impulsion qu'il eprouvait, et d'obir en cela a la volonte de Dieu." Vol. ii. p. 142.

+" Madame proposait la coline derriere le village, oil l'on trouve d'excellente eau; je pre'fe'rais l'autre colline par ou passe la route, parce



TO THE PRESENT DAY. 287

Afterwards, by a morning mist, Heitz was led to hope that his expectation was well founded. He adds,

" I was alone, and with burning tears I lifted up my heart to God, to lay before him the misery and the wishes of these good people," (the settlers, Christian exiles from Moravia,) " and also to beseech him to prevent our doing any thing contrary to his will. Yet I felt an enlargement to say to the Lord, ' On this spot will I build in thy name the first house to thine honour*.'"

Heitz's presentiment, that water would be found, proved correct.

"' While the three brothers,' says he, ' were busy with their building, I began to sink the well. But the lookers on laughed at this undertaking, even more than at that of the house: and said, that if it had been possible to get water on this spot, it would have been built upon from the beginning of the world ; and that the water would not have waited, to come there, for the arrival of Count Zinzendorf's steward. After having employed two men on this work for a fortnight, there still was no water, and the workmen wanted to go. I told them to work on, and that I would pay them. They answered, that there was no water nevertheless, and that every body laughed at them. I then answered them, that if, in the course of this third week, they found none, we would set about something else. They then returned to the work, and from Monday evening they came to wet flint; this went on during Tuesday; and on Wednesday, the fourth of November, we had water in



-------------------

que le terrain y est meilleur. Madame le pensait aussi; mais elle ob-jectait qu'il n'y avait point d'eau, ni meme de probability d'y en trouyer. Je lui dis: Dieu peut en dormer, et je la quittai.—M. Marche pensn comme moi." Vol. i. p. 263.

* " J'gtais tout seul, et j'elevai mon coeur a Dieu avec des larmes brftlantes, pour lui exposer la roisere et les dfcsirs de ces bonnes gens, et pour lui demander aussi de ne nous rien laisser faire qui fut contraire & sa volonte'. Mais je sentis la liberty de dire an Seigneur: C ett ici que je battirai en ton nom la premiere maison & ton honneur." Ibid.



288 THE CHURCH

abundance. M. Marche wrote me a letter of congratulation *."

' As many buildings advance, from their foundations to their top stones, to the sound of oaths, blasphemy, and execrations, so the building of the town of Herrnhut, the center and source of so many blessings both to the Brethren, to Christendom, and to the heathen, proceeded to sounds of prophecy.

" Marche was continually predicting that the glory of God should there be seen +."

And shortly after a house was erected, Dr. Schaeffer

"used, in preaching, these memorable words:' that one day, according to his inmost conviction, God would on those hills kindle a light, which should shine through all the country ++'"

Heitz,

" in his presentiments concerning this house, had wished to assist in raising its first upright, and to drive its first nail§."





* " 'Pendant que les troisfreres,'dit-il,' s'occupaient a finirleur construction, je commencai st faire creuser le puits; mais ceux qui voyaient cette entreprise, s'en moquaient encore plus que de celle de la maison, et disaient que si on avait pu avoir de 1'eau en cet endroit, on y aurait bati depuis le commencement du monde, et que l'eau n'aurait pas attendue pour y venir, l'arrive'e de l'intendant du comte de Zinzendorf. Apres avoir fait travailler deux hotnmes a' cet ouvrage pendant quinze jours, il ne venait encore point d'eau ; et les ouvriers voulaient s'en aller. Je leur dis de travailler encore; que je les paierais. Mais ils me re'pli-quaient qu'e'galement il ne venait point d'eau, et que tout le monde se moquait d'eux. Alors je leur re'pondis que si, dans le courant de cette troisicme semaine, ils n'en trouvaient point, nous nous mettrions aquelque chose d'autre. Ils se remirent done a' l'ouvrage et des le Lundi soir on trouva du caillou humide; cela continua le Mardi; et le Mercredi 4 No-vembre, nous eumes de l'eau en abondance. M. Marche m'en ecrivit un billet de felicitations."' pp. 266, 267.

+ " Marche annonp ait toujours qu'on y verrait la gloire de Dieu." p. 267.

++—se servit,dans sa predication, de ces parolesme'morables: 'Qu'un jour, suivant sa conviction intime, Dieu allumerait sur ces collines une lumiere qui resplendirait par tout le pays.'" Ibid.

§ "—dans les pressentiments qui l'occupaient sur cette maison, avait voulu aider a' en dresser la premiere colonne, et y planter le premier clou." p. 268.



TO THE PRESENT DAY. 289

Some emigrants, arriving when there were but three houses built, thought the place extremely small,

" because Christian David had always spoken to them of it, as if they were founding a town*."

He spoke of it prophetically, as what it was to be; and never were godly anticipations more fully accomplished in the result.

" These Brethren arrived at an extraordinary moment; and, generally speaking, this twelfth of May has ever been most remarkable in the history of the Brethren : partly because, afterwards, many important things occurred on the same date, which caused Zinzendorf to call it the critical day ; partly because of the striking coincidences which took place on that concerning which we are now speaking, and because of the presentiments with which it was filled +."

Again ;

" Very late in the evening," (of July 2d, 1727,) "Schwedler, returning thence to his home, knelt down upon a hill over against Herrnhut, and blessed this place with surprising tenderness, and as it were by a particular presentiment; for he never saw it again ++."

Afterwards, when the Missionaries were approaching the scene of their future labours, where conflicts and trials awaited them, they felt a presentiment of what was to befall them.

" We must not then be surprised if, in coming in sight





* "—parce que Christian David leur en avait toujours parle comme d'une rille que Ton fondait" p. 340.

+" CesFrerea arnvaient dans un moment singulier; et en general ce 12 Mai eat resta tres-remarquable dans l'histoire des Freres, soil parce que dans la suit il se passa a' la meme date plusieurs choses importantes, ce qui le fit appeler, par Zinzendorf, le jour critique, soit par les coincidences frappantes qui eurent lieu dans celui dont nous nous occupons et paries pressentiments dont il futrempli." pp. 340, 341.

++ "he soir Schwedler s'en retournant fort tard chez lui, s'agenouilla sur une hauteur devant Herrnhout, et be'nit cet endroit avec une effusion etonnante,et comme par un pressentiment particulier; car il ne l'a jamais revu."—Tom. ii. p. 12.



290 THE CHURCH

of St. Thomas, they felt, as it were, an extremely painful presentiment. It was justified by the result*."

Again, when Dober was informed of the arrival of fourteen Brethren and four Sisters at Saint-Croix,

" this news gave him more uneasiness than joy, for he foresaw at once the sad conclusion of this enterprise+;"

which was, that ten of the party died in the first few months, and others afterwards, and the colony was broken up: a result of such a kind, that even a general presentiment of it, surely, could hardly be felt except from some particular communication, especially as a subsequent attempt was fully successful.

But, perhaps, amongst all the presentiments, or premonitions, recorded in the volumes before us, none is more remarkable than one felt by Count Zinzendorf himself.

" In the course of this same journey, a very remarkable circumstance befell him. Having staid, one day, with a Count of his acquaintance, and having, according to custom, continued the conversation very far on in the night, he prepared to retire to rest: but a singular presentiment impelled him instantly to continue his journey. Having thereupon consulted the Lord in prayer, he was confirmed in this feeling; he took his leave of the Count, had his horses put to, and had scarcely set out, when the ceiling of the room where he was to have slept fell in ! The Count, in whose house this took place, retained a deep impression of the occurrence; and Spangenberg, who re-





* " II ne faut done pas s'fetonner si a la vue de Saint-Thomaf, ilt eprou-v«!rent comme un pressentiment extremement douloureux; la luite l'a justifie." p. 147.

+" Mais cette nouvelle donna k Dober plus d'inquietude que de joie, car il prfcvit aussit&t la triste fin de cette entreprise. p. 155.



TO THE PRESENT DAY. 291

lates the fact, had himself seen both this individual and the room *."

In one instance the impression conveyed to the mind assumed the character of a remarkable coincidence. This was on an occasion, when the Spirit of grace and supplication was largely poured out on the congregation at Herrnhut; and the observable circumstance is, that two ancients of the congregation, who were then at a great distance +, and knew not what was going forward, did nevertheless experience peculiar emotions at the time, drawing their hearts towards the church from which they were separated, and which was praying for them. The Church's account is to the following effect :—

" We prayed God with full assurance of faith, that he would also bless our two ancients, Christian David and Melchior Nitschmann, who were then absent with a good intention, and that he would condescend to bring them into communion with us, and to make them taste something of what we ourselves were experiencing ++."

Shortly after follows the account of what the Ancients felt.—





* " Il lui arriva dans ce meme voyage une chose bien remarquable. S'e'tant arrate un jour chez un corate de ses connaissances, et ayant prolonge: comme de coatume la conversation fort avant dans la nuit, il se disposait a aller prendre ion repos ; mais un ipressentiment singulier le poussa A continuer a' l'instant son voyage. Ayant consults la-dessus le Seigneur par la priere, il fut fortifie dans son sentiment; il dit adieu au comte, il rait attcler, et k peine esl-il parti, que le plafond de la cambre dans laquelle il devait coucher s'ucroule. Le comte chez qui cela la s'etait passl, en a conserve une impression profonde, et Spangenberg qui rap-porte ce fait, a vu lui-meme et cette personne et l'appartemcnt en question." p. 243.

+ " Dans un grand t'loignement." p. 44.

++ " —nous le priames avec certitude de foi qu'il voulat bien benir aussi no* deux anciens, Christian David et Melchior Nitschmann, absents dans une bonne intention, et qu'il daignat les attirer dans notre communion, et leur faire gotter quelque chose de ce que nous eprouvions." p. 24.



292 THE CHURCH .

" When Christian David and Melchior Nitschmann returned, on the twenty-eighth of August, they forthwith asked us what we had been doing on the thirteenth, in the forenoon : for that they were then at Sablat, in the orphan-house; that at ten o'clock they felt themselves in an extraordinary manner moved to pray: that they ascended to an upper apartment, and cast themselves down before the Saviour; and that, there, they had been penetrated with an unusually tender remembrance of the Church at Herrnhut, which had caused them to shed floods of tears: that they had never felt so happy in all their lives; and that they had asked one" another what their Church could be doing, and whether it had any idea of the grace then vouchsafed to them : (how we have seen that, at this very moment, it was praying for them!)—Their astonishment and their joy were the more lively, when they were told the great things which had taken place*."

Spiritual emotions, experienced either by the two absent brethren or by the church, might in themselves not be deemed extraordinary; and worldly people would explain them away, as mere excitement. But a coincidence of such emotions, in the two parties separated from one another, without any mutual understanding by natural means, is a thing above explanation, or solution upon natural principles, and must be regarded as supernatural and miraculous.







* " Lorsque Christian David et Melchior Nitsclimann revinrent, le 28 Aout, ils nous demandbrent uussitot ce que nous avions done fait le 13, avant midi? Qu'ils etaient alors a Sablat, dans la maison des or-phelins; qu'a dix heures ils s'etaient sentis pousses extraordinairement a la priere; qu'ils ^taient months au grenier, s'etaient prosterne's devant le Sauveur; et que la ils avaient ete pe'ne'tre's d'un souvenir e'tonnamment doux de l'Eglise de Herrnhout, qui leur avait fait verser des torrents de larmes. Qu'en leur vie ils ne sY'taient sentis si heureux, et qu'ils s'ctaient demande ce que faisait leur e'glise, si elle se doutait bien de la giace qui leur e'tait donnee? (Or nous avons vu que, dans ce meme moment, elle priait pour eux!)—Leur e'tonnement et leur joie furent d'autant plus vifs, quand on leur reconta Us grandes choses qui venaient de se passer."



p. 25.



TO THE PRESENT DAY. 293

Another coincidence, which we find elsewhere recorded, is the following.

" The Minister, also, Schaeffer, delivered a discourse which made a. lively impression, and in the course of which an occurrence, remarkable enough, took place. While he was speaking, with power, concerning the victory over sin, which faith gives the true Christian, a strange preacher circulated through the congregation, as an objection, these words of Scripture, 'A just man falleth seven times.' (Prov. xxiv. 16.) Schseffer, who had not heard him, was led nevertheless to handle this very objection in a triumphant manner, which caused great admiration among the people*."

One other coincidence seems striking, and I will venture to mention it. It is on record, that a remarkable, improvement took place in the evangelical experience of Zinzendorf, and a great increase in his love to the Saviour as well as a great enlargement of his communion with Him, upon an occasion that may by some be thought indequate and even trifling; namely, when, some papers having been burnt, a small portion, that had escaped the fire, was afterward found.





* " Le ministre Schaeffer vint aussi tenir un discours qui produisit une vive repression, et pendant lequel il se passa une chose assez remarqua-ble. Comme il parlait avec force de la victoire que la foi donne au vrai Chretien sur le peche', un predicateur etranger fit circuler au milieu de la foule, comme objection, ces mots de l'Ecriture, que ' le juste peche pourtant sept fois le jour.' (Prov. xxiv. 16.) Schaeffer qui ne l'avait pas entendu se trouvu cepeiidant trailer cette meme objection d'une maniere victorieuse, ce qui causa un grand ('etonnemont parmi le peuple." p. 12.

I am not aware that the Brethren were chargeable, on the whole, with extravagant views on the subject of Chrislian perfection, even if particular expressions may be cited against them. The consciousness of remaining -corruption, in the believer, should never lead to a compromise with sin ; and it is to be feared that the low state of faith, and of religious experience, amongst ourselves, has led us too far to sink the standard, which the Brethren may be thought, by some of us, to have raised too high.



294 THE CHURCH

" An event, insignificant in appearance, seems to have answered the purpose of fully developing his ideas on this subject: and it appears to have been considered important, as the historians of the Brethren uniformly relate it when they come to this epoch of their history. The Count having caused some papers to be thrown into a stove, they afterwards found, amongst the cinders, a small portion of a leaf, that had escaped the fire, on which was written ' the daily word* of Feb. 24, ' He shall choose our inheritance for us, the excellency of Jacob whom he loved :' and beneath were added these two lines of an old Lutheran hymn:

' Shew us where our election stands, Graven on thy two pierced hands *.'"

That this discovery led to an affecting and pious conversation amongst the Brethren, upon the sufferings and the wounds of Jesus, and that there followed an enlargement of their views upon this subject, together with an entire alteration in their style of preaching, which led them to date from that moment the commencement of the happiest times of their church, and of the blessings of which it became the instrument in a multitude of places in the four quarters of the world, may not be thought a marvelous circumstance, even by those who would call it an interesting one. But it strikes me that this occurrence of finding the unconsumed morsel of paper, ought to be





* " Une e've'nement extrfemement petit en apparence parait avoir gervi a faire eclore entibrtment ses idles sur se sujet; et il semble qu'il Alt juge1 important, puisque les historiens des Freres ne manquent guere de le raconter quand ils en viennent a cette e'poque de leur histoire. Le comte ayant fait jeter quelques papiers dans une poele, on retrouva dans les cendres une petite portion de feuille intacte, sur laquelle e'tait ecrit la parole du 24 Fevrier: ' Il nous a choisi un heritage, la gloire de Jacob, qu'il che'rit.' Et au-dessous on avait adjoute' ceo deux vers d'un vieux cantique Luthrien ; " Fais-nous voir notre election—Sur tes deux mains perches." pp. 85, 86.



TO THE PRESENT DAY. 295

viewed in connection with another circumstance, to which, if we may be allowed the conjecture, it seems not impossible that the Lord Jesus, who orders all things" in the Church, meant it to correspond. When Zinzendorf himself was but a little child, he adopted an infantine but affecting method of declaring his early love to Christ.

" When four years old, he used to write assurances addressed to his Saviour, to express to Him the love he bare Him; and he used to throw them out of the window, feeling certain that He would not fail to find them *."

Now may we not view these two circumstances together? The CHILD throws his little notes to the winds of heaven, to be borne to the Saviour of children, and to testify of the love which that gentle and gracious Saviour had Himself begun to kindle in his bosom. The MAN receives a note from the same Saviour, in the paper found, testifying of His love in return; a note which comes, like an angel bringing gifts, a light bearer of a weight of blessings. I know not whether the Brethren themselves, whose writers so particularly record these two occurrences, are at all accustomed to view them thus in connection. The connection to me appears striking. The mutual reference of the two gives to each a more affecting character. Without claiming for the coincidence the title of miracle in its highest sense, I could not refrain, amongst other coincidences, from mentioning it. If any reader deem it unimportant, I will only beg him to pass on without giving it a

*" A l'age de quatre ans, il ecrivait des mots de billet a' son Sauveur pour lui exprimer son amour; et il les jetait par la fenctre, dans la con-fiance qu'il saurait bien les trouver."—Tom. i. p. 273.



296 THE CHURCH

place in the argument; and let not the unbelieving scoff.

5. In connection with premonitions, presentiments, and coincidences, we are naturally led to notice actual prophecies, or predictions. Of these, the history of the Brethren is not wanting in examples : and the events which fulfilled them are matters of record. For instance, it is related of George Joeschke, of Sehlen, who had a son, in his old age, to whom he was tenderly attached, that "When, in 1707, he saw his end approaching, wishing to confer on this child and on his nephews his last blessing, he assembled them round his bed, and, once more, solemnly exhorted them to abide faithful to Jesus, as they had been taught to know him, even to death: shewing them that they ought to cleave to him with all their soul; and that then they would see a great deliverance; for God, said he, hears the prayers of his elect, who cry day and night to him. ' It is true added he, ' that our liberty is extinct: the greater part of our descendants are gradually surrendering themselves to the love of the world, and are become a prey to Popery : as far as appearances go, the cause of the Brethren is lost.—But, my children, you will see it; there will come a deliverance for the remnant that are left. Whether it will take place in Moravia, or whether you will abandon this Babel, I know not; but I am certain that this will no more be long delayed. I incline to think that you will emigrate, to find a place where you can serve God without fear, according to his Word. When the time for it shall come, be prepared, and beware of being the last, or of staying behind: remember what I have already said to you.—To conclude, I commend to you this little one, my only child; I particularly commend him to thee, Augustine. He, also, must belong to Jesus. Do not lose sight of him; and, when you emigrate, take him with you*."





* " Lorsqu'en 1707, il vit approcher sa fin, desirant dormer a ce petit



TO THE PRESENT DAY. 297

This occurred, as we have seen, in 1707. The emigration took place in 1722. One of the party, about to set out when they had heard of a safe retreat, remembered the young Joeschke, now eighteen years old, whom his aged father had so earnestly commended to their care.

" He remembered his last words, and all that ho had foretold; and, seeing how marvelously these events were now coming to pass, he reminded Augustine of his engagement *."

The young man accompanied them in their emigration.

While on this subject, I must be pardoned if I cannot pass over an incident, in which the principal character is a child of eighteen months. Another of Zinzendorf's children lay dying.

" When, the day before its death, this child was suffering greatly, the little Charity, then eighteen months old, took





enfant et a ses neveux sa derniere benediction, il les rassembla autour de son lit, et les exhorta encore une fois solennellement a rester ndeles jusqu'4 la mort a Jesus, tel qu'ils avaient appris a le connaitre; leur montrant qu'ils devaient s'attacher a lui de toute leur ame, et qu'alors ils verraient une grande deiivrance; car Dieu, dit-il, exauce la priere de ses elus qui orient a lui jour et nuit. ' II est vrai,' ajouta-t-il, ' que notre liberte est an6antie; la plupart de nos descendants se livrent de plus en plus a l'amour du monde, et sonte engloutis par le Papisme; toutes les apparences in-diqueraient que la cause des Freres est perdue.—Mais, mes enfants, vous le verrez, il viendra une delivrance pour ceux qui sont demeure's de reste. Si elle aura lieu en Moravie, ou si vous quitterez cette Babel, c'est ce que j'ignore; maisje suis sur que cela ne tardera plus long-temps; je penche a croire que vous sortirez du pays, pour trouver un lieu ou vous puissiez servir Dieu sans crainte, d'apres sa Parole! Quand le temps en viendra, soyez prets, et prenez garde d'etre les derniers,*ou de rester entierement en arriere : souvenez-vous de ce que je vous ai deja dit.—Ennn, je vous recommande ce petit, mon seul enfant: je te le recommande a toi, Au-gustin, en particulier, il faut qu'il appartienne aussi a Jesus. Ne le perdez pas de vue, et lorsque vous sortirez du pays, prenez-le avec vous. pp. 245, 246.



* "Il se souvint de ses derniers discours et de tout ce qu'il avait an-nonce'; et voyant de quelle merveilleuse maniere ces clioses s'accom-plissaient actuellement, il ranpela a Augustin l'engagement particulier qu'il avait pris envers son oncle mou rant au sujct de cet enfant." p. 257.



298 THE CHURCH

a turn round the cradle, and sang, with a charming voice and quite distinctly:

" Lamb of Emmanuel's fold,

Thus thy life's brief moments wane; To-morrow come, thy time is told, So ends all thy pain *."

The wife of Zinzendorf, also, seems to have possessed, on occasions, an insight into the future, beyond what can be accounted for as mere sagacity.

When Zinzendorf was about to enter into holy orders, he duly considered this project, in his circumstances so extraordinary, " first by himself, then with his wife, who, with astonishing distinctness, shewed and foretold him all that happened in consequence +."

On one occasion, upon hearing of an order of banishment, Zinzendorf exclaimed that he should not be able to return, to settle at Herrnhut, " for ten years." He was able to return, a year after, for a while, by the interest of his father-in-law at court; but through new intrigues he was compelled to depart once more, and then was ten years absent. The order of banishment was for life : but, as the historian observes, David Nitschmann noted the Count's words, and the event confirmed them ++.





* " Comme, le jour avant son deces, cet enfant souffrait beaucoup, la petite Caritas (celle dont nous avons parle en premier lieu), Age'e alors de dix-huit mois, tournait autour du berceau, chantant d'une voix char-mante et tres-distincte:

Petit agneau, douce brebis, C'est ainsi que va la vie: Demain, o brebis cherie, Tous tes maux seront finis." pp. 306, 307.

The reader will pardon a free translation. I have translated to preserve the prediction of little Charity, that her brother would die the next day. +—d'abord lui seul, puis avec sa femme, qui lui en montra et lui en predit toutesles suites avec une perspicacitd etonnante."—Tom. ii. p. 217, ++" David Nitschmann prit note de ces paroles, et la suite les a confirmees." p. 232.



TO THE PRESENT DAY. 299

"The king sent to Herrnhut the rescript, which forbad his ever returning from exile. It has already been stated that this order was taken off at the end of ten years; the Count, however, set out without any hope thereof except that of faith, but faith of a very definite kind *."

6. The history of Count Zinzendorf records, also, some remarkable answers to prayer: for example, when one of his children lay on her deathbed.—

" Her mother, however, was absent: and, the servants apprehending that the babe would die without her mother's again beholding her, the Count asked the Saviour to keep her alive; expressly adding, however, that he knew not what he asked, and that he was resigned to the event, whatever it might be. At the same instant, the violence of the symptoms ceased ; and the child remained, till the first of December, the day when the mother returned, in a state that no longer appeared at all alarming. The moment, however, that the mother arrived, the child relapsed into its former state +."

The day following the child died.

Another instance of answer to prayer, which may be thought still more remarkable, took place at St. Thomas. The missionaries, when the Count arrived there, had been in prison three months.

" The interposition of the Count obtained the Brethren's release; and, when they were brought to him, he-kissed their hands, on receiving them, and that before the officer





* " Le roi envoya a Herrnhout le rescrit qui'lui defendait a jaimiis le retour dans le pays. On a deja dit que cet ordre fut lev£ au bout de dix aiis; mais le cornte partit sans avoir la-dessus d'autre esperance que cellc de la foi, mais d'une foi tres-prononce'e." pp. 270, 271.

+" Cependant la mere etait absente, et les domestiques craignant que la petite ne mourut avant que sa mbre put la voir encore une fois, le comte demanda au Saureur de la conserver, en ajoutant cependant d'une maniere expresse, qu'il ne savait ce qu'il demandait, et qu'il se rlsignait a tout. Au meme instant la violence des symtomes s'arreta, et l'enfant resta jusqu'au 1" Decembre, jour du retour de sa mere, dans un etat qui ne presentait plus rien d'alarmant. Mais des que la mere fut arrive'e, l'enfant retombadans l'etat du 26 Novembre."—Tom. i. pp. 304,305.









300 THE CHURCH

who conducted them, to testify his respect for these pretended culprits. ' The day of my arrival,' wrote Zinzendorf to his Brethren in Europe, ' my brethren, who knew nothing whatever of my voyage, but thought they stood in need of me, had prayed to the Saviour to send me to them. To us there is nothing extraordinary in such occurrences; we are pretty well used to them *."

But, to bring these extracts to a conclusion, the reader will judge whether any thing less than a miracle is recorded in the two following instances.

" With respect to Nitschmann the father, he was put in prison with two other Brethren; they also were left, three days, without food. (We now resume Nitschmann's narrative.) ' Our wives,' he writes, ' came to implore permission of the jailers to bring us some food. But, our window having lost a pane, I cried out to them, from our place of confinement on the third floor, that they had no occasion to make themselves the least uneasy, for we felt no hunger +.'"

This was in the year 1724. The following occurrence appears to have taken place a few years later.

" Jean de Watteville had a childlike confidence in our Saviour's promise to hear his children's prayers. Of this



* " Sur l'intervention du comte on relficha aussitot les frcres, et lors-qu'on les lui amena il les ref ut, en presence m£me de l'officier qui les conduisait, en leur baisant les mains, pour te'moigner 1'estime qu'il faisait de ces pre'tendus malfaiteurs.

"' Le jour ou je suis arrive",' dcrivait Zinzendorf a ses freres d'Europe, ' mes freres qui ne savaient absolument rien de mon voyage, mais qui crovaient avoir besoin de moi, avaient demands au Sauveurde m'envoyer chez eux. De pareilles choses n'ont rien de surprenant pour nous; nous y sommes passablement accoutume's.' "—Tom. ft. pp. 289, 290.

+ " Quant au pfire Nitschmann, il Cut mis en prison avec deux autres freres; on les laissa aussi manquer de toute nourriture, pendant trois jours. (Ici nous reprenons le re"cit de Nitschmann.) ' Nos femines,' e"crit ee frfere, ' venaient conjurer les geoliers de leur permettre de nous apporter quelque chose it manger. Mais comme il manquait une vitre a none fenfetre, je leur criai, de notre troisie'me dtage oil nous dtious ren-ferrae's, qu'elles ne devaient nullcment s'inquie'ter, que nous n'eprouvions aucune faim."—Tom. i. pp.331, 332.



TO THE PRESENT DAY. 301

he often had experience: one example we will here offer. A married Sister became extremely ill at Herrnhut. The physician had given up all hope, and her husband was plunged in grief. Watteville visited the patient, found her joyfully expecting her removal, and took his leave, after having encouraged her in this happy frame. It was, at that time, still the practice for the unmarried Brethren, on Sunday evenings, to go about, singing hymns before the Brethren's houses, with an instrumental accompaniment. Watteville made them sing some appropriate hymns under the window of the sick Sister ; at the same time praying in his heart to the Lord that he would be pleased, if he thought good, to restore her to health. He conceived a hope of this, so full of sweetness and faith, that he sang, , with confidence, these lines:

" Cross, upon Calvory lifted high, When Jesus gave himself to die, Come, warm a heart redeemed by grace, And kindle gratitude to praise. " When, at the last, I pant for breath, Name but the Cross, my hope in death, Soon as I hear the blissful word, My voice returns, to praise the Lord. " What was the astonishment of those who surrounded the bed of this dying Sister, when they saw her sit up, and join, with a tone of animation, in singing the last line,

" My voice returns, &c.!

" To his great amazement and delight, he found her, on re-ascending to her chamber, quite well. She recovered perfectly; and not till five-and-thirty years after did he attend her earthly tabernacle to its resting place *."



* " Jean de Watteville avait une confiance enfantine & la promesse qu'a faite le Sauveur qu'il exaucerait ses enfants dans leurs priferes. II en eut plusieurs preuves dont nous ne citerons que celle-ci. Une sceur marine tomba trcs-malade a Herrnhout. Le m&lecin arait d6]h perdu toute esplrance, et son mari dtait dans une profonde tristesse. Watteville se rendit chez la malade, vit qu'elle allait avec joie au devant de son delogement, et la quitta apres 1'avoir fortifie'e danscet heureux sentiment.

Cetait alors encore l'usage que les freres non-mari('s parcourussent le'n-droit le Dimanche soir en chantant, accompagne's de quelquei instruments de musique, des cantiques devant les maisons des frferes. Watteville fit chanter sous les fenetres de la sceur malade des cantiques qui allaient h la circonstance, tout en priant le Seigneur en son coeur qu'il voulut bien, s'il le iugeait bon, rf tablir cette sceur. 11 en con;ut une si douce espc-rance de foi qu'il entonna avec con nance ce verset:

" Croix sacre'e (6ii) Ou meurt mon Sauveur, De mon fime raclictce Enflamme l'ardeur! Quand je serais aux abois, Qtt'on vienne & nommer la croix,

Sa pensde (bis)....

" Quel ne fut pai lYtonnement de tous ceux qui entouraient le lit de cette mourante, lorsqu'on la vit se dresser sur son scant et se joindre vivement au chant de la derniere ligne, en ces mots:

" Me rendrait la voix.

" En remontant dan* sa chambre il fut rempli d'etonnement et de joie en la voyant tres-bien : elle gudrit enticement, et ce n'est que trente-cinq ans plus tard qu'il accompagna au repos sa ddpouille mortelle." Tom. ii. pp. 406—408. Th« difficulty of giving an exact rendering in rhyme must here again be my excuse for a free translation. * Remarks, p. 20.



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Such is a brief and imperfect sketch of the miraculous experience of the United Brethren. Alone, it is quite sufficient to meet the question of Mr. Noel; when, urging, as matter of acknowledged fact, that eminent Christians have agreed in disclaiming miracles, he asks,

" And how can this general unbelief be accounted for? Is there any other truth respecting which Christians have erred with such a strange consent *."

Alas! Let Mr. Noel look around him, and truly a strange consent will meet his eyes. A consent to suppress facts by denial, by the keeping back of evidence, by ill-treating those who bring it forward, and by cabals and underhand interference to stop their mouths, is strange indeed amongst Christians, for its proper title is conspiracy. But, in this consent, the Brethren, at least those of a better day, have not been partakers.



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Some instances I have indeed given, where the terms entering into the stricter definition of a miracle are not perhaps fulfilled : but in others, candour, I am sure, will find no room for cavil: for example where a dying Sister, after having been given over by her medical attendant, is raised, in answer to the prayer of faith, to instantaneous health. And even the effrontery that would question such miraculous facts, can never deny the miraculous claim. For the truth, which, in confidence of the little information now possessed by many religious professors, has been boldly questioned, is, that Christians have, in modern days, made any claim to miracles. But on this point, we have seen, there is evidence at hand, express and to the point:

" There were wrought in these days, amongst the Brethren, signs and miracles:" " I owe this testimony to our beloved church, that apostolic powers are there manifested. We have had undeniable proofs thereof—in the healing of maladies in themselves incurable, such as cancers, consumptions when the patient was in the agonies of death, &c. all by means of prayer, or of a single word." " At this juncture, various supernatural gifts were manifested in the church, and miraculous cures were wrought." -

But, as if all Christians had really united in disclaiming miracles, Mr. Noel proceeds,

" Usually, on obscure truths, there is much debate: here, all, without one misgiving, rush consentaneously into error*."

Consentaneous error, with the above evidence before me, I must again deny. That cannot, at any rate, be called wholly error, which is in part conspiracy. It is error in some quarters, through



* Remarks, p. 20.



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ignorance. But for much of that ignorance, the conspirators are responsible. It is an ignorance of facts, unknown to some, because never sought out by them; unknown to others, because with trembling apprehension, or through base compromise, suppressed.

The Reformed Dutch Church.—The Church of the United Brethren has usually been regarded, by the Christians of Holland, with some degree of hostility, or, at any rate, of coldness and distance. But there is often an agreement in the experience of believers, even when errors, on one or both sides, keep them apart. Not having at hand the materials for enlarging on the miraculous experience of the Dutch believers, I gladly avail myself of some translated extracts from a particular work, for which I am indebted to the kindness of the Rev. Mr. Thelwall. It will be seen, from his few prefatory remarks, that the extracts are not only interesting in themselves, but valuable as throwing some light upon the opinions and experience of the body to which the writer of them belonged, and which comprehends the true representatives of the old Dutch Church as established at the Reformation. Mr. Thelwall says:

" The following instances of Dreams, which cannot be explained except by reference to supernatural agency, are extracted from a work entitled ' Verzameling van merkwaardige Droomen en Gebeurtenissen,—door Wilh. Greve, M.D. te Noordwijk,' • A Collection of remarkable Dreams and Events, by William Greve, M.D. at Noordwijk,' Amsterdam, 1819. The author appears from the whole work to have been a well-informed,



TO THE PRESENT DAY. 305

sober minded, and truly pious man: a decided Christian of the old Dutch school, firmly established in the principles of the church to which he belonged, yet truly tolerant and charitable towards those who differed from him on points not absolutely fundamental. The views which he maintains serve also to illustrate the opinions and feelings of the old-fashioned Christians in Holland, among whom he was educated, being the son of a faithful and active minister of the old school." Then follow the extracts.

" Francois Valentijn relates in his Old and New East Indies 4, fol. 312, That the Governor-General of the Dutch Indies, John Maatzuiker,'on the 11th of February, 1662, dreamed that he saw Arnold de Vlaming van Ouds-hoorn, Member of the Council of India, and Admiral of the Fleet, who had sailed from Batavia for his native country, on Dec. 23, 1661, in extreme danger, and heard him call several times for help. He was so disturbed hereby that he woke. He however composed himself to sleep again, but fell again into a similar dream, respecting the same gentleman, and then very clearly saw him perish with his ship; wherewith being more disturbed than before he woke again... ..He then remained awake, noted the day, the month, and the year, with the whole history, sealed it, and gave notice thereof next day to the other Members of the Government, as well as to the Secretary of their Honours, to whom he committed that sealed letter, with a charge to take good care of! it, till tidings of this fleet should arrive from the Cape of Good Hope.—Accounts were afterwards brought from the Cape, and the island of Mauritius, that that gentleman, upon the same day of the that very month, with his ship named het hof van Holland, and some others, had sunk with man and mouse.

" Whoever doubts hereof, and asks, Is that dream authentic? it was so far off, and an Oriental story; let him





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take a voyage to Batavia, where the above-mentioned paper yet remains among the archives, or at least did so

twenty years ago, as I have been assured by a Member of the Council of India who returned to this country*."

" P. Nieuwland, a well known Minister at the Hague, relates " (in a book published in 1766) " that a Mr. Laan, afterwards Professor at Franeker, while studying at Utrecht, dreamed on a certain night, that he found himself at the Court of Ispahan, which was very numerous and in high glee; he heard there two words in a strange language, which were wholly unknown to him, but the sound of which he retained very distinctly in his memory. Musing over this dream, it occurred to him very opportunity that he might take the liberty to inquire about them of Professor Mill, then lecturing upon the Jewish Antiquities, after lecture was ended ; which having done, he was told that these two words in the Persian, by way of joyful shout, signified as much as, He is dead! He is dead! Professor Mil!



* " Francois Valentyn, verhaalt in zijn Chid- en A'iVuj Oottindien, 4. fol. 312. Dat ile Heer Gouverneur Generaal van NeMands Indian, Joan Maatzuiker op den 11 February 1662 droomde, dat hij den Heer Arnold de Vlaming van Oudslioorn, ordinair Haad van Iurfirn, en Zeevoogd over devloot, die den 23 December 1661 van Batavia naar liet Vaderland vertrokken was, in zwaren nood zag, en ettelijke malen, hem om hull) hoorde roepen.—Zijn Ed. word hier door zood.mig ont-steld, dat liij er wakker van werd. — Hij begaf zich eohter weer tot slapen, doch geraakte wederom aan dergelijken droom van dien zc-lfdm Heer, en zag hem toen zeer klaar met zijn schip vergaan, waarrau rijn Ed. toen nog mcer, dan te voren,onUteld zijnde, weder onlwaakte.......

Zijn Ed. bleef toen wakker, teekende den dag, de maand en het jaw, met de historie aan, veraegelde hot, en gaf er daags daaraan kennit van aan de andere Heeren Leden van de Hooge Regering, alt mede aan den Geheimschrijver van hunne Edelheden, aan denwelken bij dat verzegeld brief je overgaf, met last van dit wel te bewaren, tot dat men van de Kuap de (lucdeHoopUjdmg van deze vloot krijgen zou.—Men kreeg naderkand van het Eiland Mauritius en van de Kaap berigt, dat die Heer, opdenzelt-den dag van die maand, met zijn schip, genaamd hethofvan Holland, en nog eenige anderen, met man en muis gezonken was.

" Wie nu bier ook nog rnogt twijfelen, en vragen : u die droom tckt f het it toch ook xoo verre van hier, en een Oottench vcrhaal,—die reit* sleclits naar Batavia, alwaar het bovengenoemde papier nog in de archiven berust, ten minste nog voor twintig jaren, zoo at* rnij toen door een repatrieerend Raad van Indicn venekerd is."—pp. 2J,2J.



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advised Mr. Laan to keep an accurate note of the night wherein he had had that dream.

" Now it should be known that Mr. Laan had a brother at Ispahan, who was Consul of their High Mightinesses there. This Consul was in high favour at the court, at least with the Shah, which drew down upon him the envy of the courtiers, who opposed him every way ; which he observing withdrew himself from the storm, and requested and obtained his recall from their H. M. and took leave of Ispahan, laden with rich presents. These, however, the envious courtiers grudged the consul, and sent some villains after him, when he had departed from Ispahan by night, who strangled him; which by evidence of the date of the letters, accurately agreed with the time of that dream which the then student had dreamed*."

" In the year 1712 was present at Batavia, at a magnificent feast of the supreme government of India, Mr. de Haze, invested with an important office by the united East-India Company. ...At this feast there arose some



• " P. Nieuwland, beroemd Predikant 's Gravenhage,....verhaalt....van denHeer Laan, namaals Professor te Franeker, dat zijn E. te Utrecht stu-deerende, op zekeren nacht droomde, dat hi) zich te Ispahan aan 't hof, dat zeer talrijk en in gala, was, bevond; hij hoorde daar twee woordcn in een vreemd dialect, die hem geheel onbekend waren, doch welker klank hij zeer ondcrscheiden in zijn geheugen bewaard had —Over dezen drooin malende, valt hem gelukkig in, dat hij Professor Mill, collegie houdende over de Joodche Oudheden, na het afgaan van het collegie, de vrijheid zoude gebruiken, er naar te vragen, hetwelk doende, -deze keuingte houden ran den nacht, waarin hij dien droom gehad had.

" Nu dient men te weten, dat de Heer Loan te Ispahan eenen broeder had, die aldaar Conaul van H. Hoogmogende was; deze Consul stond in bhkende gunst van het hof, althans van den Schach, hetgeen hem den nijd ran de liovelingen berokkende, die hem op allerlei wijzen tegen stonden, dot hij bemerkende, zich aan die on-weersvlaag onttrok, en zijn rappel van H. H. M. verzocht, en bekwam, scheidende van Ispahan, met Hike geschenkcn overladen zijnde; edoch de naijterige hovelingen misgunden ait aan den Heere Consul, en zonden hem, die des nachts van Ispahan vertrokken was, eenige booswichten no, welke hem verworgden; hetgeen naar uitwijzen van den datum der brieven, met den tijd van dien droom, door den toenmaligen student gedroomd, naauwkewig orereeVi kwam."—pp. 23, 24.





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difference respecting the drinking of certain toasts, whereupon Mr. de Haze offered himself as umpire, and then proposed, Health with the peace, which at this moment is signed in our fatherland ("at Utrecht)! The question naturally arose, How he could know that? and some pledge of its truth was demanded. Whereupon Mr. de Haze answered : For the first, I know not myself; but for the second, upon such a day of such a month (which he accurately mentioned) the tidings shall be brought here to Batavia; and for further pledge hereof, I propose that on the day I have named, a princely feast shall be prepared, whereof the expenses shall be paid by the gentlemen here present, collectively, if it shall then appear that I have this day spoken the truth: but if the contrary shall appear, I take all upon my own account alone.

" When some months had elapsed the day came, and Mr. de Haze had taken care to prepare a feast well worthy of the pomp of the great men of India; it passed off with much good cheer and heart's content, but not without some raillery against Mr. de Haze, on account of the non-arrival of news; whereupon he observed that the day was not yet over, and proposed that the company should take a sail upon the road of Batavia, with the Company's yacht, which he had made ready for the occasion, in order to meet the vessel which must bring the news,—taking tea on board. This was done; and they had scarcely passed the island of Onrust, when the man, who was set at the maintop on the look out, cried, A sail! Coming nearer they saw, first through telescopes, and then with the naked eye, a Dutch ship uncommonly dressed out with flags and streamers; and finally, when they, came within hail, the company on board the yacht heard with amazement the joyful cry of, Peace in our fatherland! peace in our fatherland! peace in our fatherland! huzza I The event confirmed the fact of its having been signed on the same day, and at the same hour, that Mr. de Haze had wished the company joy thereupon *."



* "In het jaar 1712, bevond zich te Batavia, aan eenen prachtigeo maaltijd, der hooge Indische regering, de Heer de Haze, met eene aan-zienlijke bediening bij de vereenigdeT)ostindische Compagnie bekleed. .?.. Aan dezen maaltijd onstond er geschil wegens het drinken van lekere conditien, waarop de Heer de Haze zich annbood tot middelaar, en toon voorstelde: heil met den vredt, die op dit oogenblik in het vaderland (te Utrecht) geteekend wordt! Natuurlijk ontstond de vraag, hoe hij zulks we ten kon? en zekerheid van zijn gezegde; waarop de Haze antwoordde: het eertte weet ik zelfniet, moor wut het tweede aangaat, opdenzooveelsten van die maand (welke hij preciselijk opgaf) zal de tijding er van hier op Batavia gebragt worden, en tot meerdere zekerheid, proponeer ik, om tegen den door mij genoemden dag, eenen vorstelijken vreugde maaltijd aan te leggen, waarvan de kosten zullen gedragen worden door de gezamenlijke? Heeren, thans hier tegenwoordig; mdien het alt dan zal buiken dat ik heden de waarheid tprak; doch indien het tegendeel blijkt, dan neme ik nll.es voor mijne rekening alleen.

" Na verloop van eenige maanden verscheen die dag, en de Heer de Haze had gezorgd eenen maaltijd te doen aanrigten, de pracht der Indische grooten ten voile waardig; vrolijk en vergenoegd liep dezelve ten einde, niet zonder railjerie ecbter, tegen den Heer de Haze, wegens her weg-blijven der tijding ; dan hij maakte de aanmerking, dat de dag nog niet om was, en stelde aan het gezelschap voor, om met het compagniesiagt, dat hij daartoe in gereedheid had doen brengen, een togtje op de Bata-viasche reede te doen, ten einde het vaartujg, dat de tijding moest over-brengen, te gemoet te varen,—onder het gebruik der thee.—Dit ges-chiedde; men was naauwelijks het Eiland Onrutt te boven gexeild, of de man, die in den top der mast op den uitkijk gesteld was, riep: een leil! wat uaderkomende, zag men eerst door kijkers, naderhand met het bloote oog, een vaderlandsch scheepje buitengewoon met vlaggen en wimpels versierd, en eindelijk, toen men elkander beroepen kon, hoonde het gezelschap, dat zich in het jagt bevond, tot hunne verbazing de vreugdekreet: vrede in het vaderland! vrede in het vaderland! vrede in het vaderland ! hoezee I De uitkomst bevesligde, dat dezelve geteekend was op denzelfden dag, op hetzelfde uur, dat de Heer de Haze net gezelschap er mede geluk gewenscht hadde." pp.24—26.



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" Of the same sort as the last mentioned is a dream communicated to me in the year 1787, by the late Rev. Mr. van der Souw, formerly minister at Naarden, then Emeritus, atid residing at Leyden.

" An honest, pious, substantial tradesman, a tailor, At Naarden, having a number of children, through unforeseen accidents, bad debts, or the falling off of business, fell into poverty, without any fault of his own. While musing day by day upon the means of helping himself, and leaving nothing untried which seemed likely to improve his circumstances, he dreamed one night that he consulted with one of his friends. This man said to him : Betake yourself to the Papenbrug at Amsterdam at twelve o'clock,



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and there you will find a person who will tell you what you must do. He relates this dream to his wife in the morning, who advises him to take no heed of dreams, and dissuades him from his purpose of going to Amsterdam. He therefore stays at home, but has the same dream again the following night. Now she dares no more dissuade him: he takes his walking stick and sets oft' early in the morning; arrives at the appointed bridge at twelve o'clock, and walks several times up and down; a beggar who stands there addresses him, asking if he sought for any thing. He. Yea, my friend! but what 1 seek you cannot help me to. The Beggar. That is more than you can tell! He briefly relates his dream, without however Mentioning his place of abode; whereupon the beggar answered him: lie who takes heed of dreams has certainly a screw loose in his head. If I would attend to dreams I might perhaps become very rich: for I dreamt this night that £ was at Naarden, in a garden behind the house of a tailor; in the middle stood an immense flower pot, covered with blue sand and partly gilded; having set this a little on one side there appeared a red tiling, which being also removed, I discovered a very large brazen vessel, filled with pieces of gold: but I should think I was doing a very foolish thing, if on that account I should go all the way to Naarden. The tailor hearing his garden so accurately described was filled with amazement and joy, and said: I thank you for your good advice; I see you are right, and I will take your advice! and having wished him health and better days, departed to his house. When he arrived, his wife asked him: Well now, have you found the man who should tell you what to do1. He. Yea, my love! God the Lord will provide, and give the issue! She followed him into the garden, with wonder sees him remove the flower pot from its place, with much trouble break away the red tiling, and, after a little digging, discover a great unwieldy brazen vessel. Now both wife and children laid their hands to the work, and at last succeeded in opening the vessel, wherein they found a treasure of a value not to be named,—probably there hid and left behind, at a time when the place was formerly besieged ! See



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there then the distressed family delivered from the utmost Want, and not only so, but gifted with greater riches than they had lost! See there a dream cleared up and explained by another* dream, as was once the case with Daniel *. The tailor thus delivered now thought with thankfulness of the poor beggar. He goes again to Amsterdam, finds him out, relates what had happened, and gives him a consider able present, advising him at the same time not to reject all dreams as falsehood! +"



* Dan. ii. 14—46.

+ "Van soortgelijken aard als de laatstgemelde, is een droom, mij medegedeeld A". 1787, door wijlen den Wel-Eerw. Heer v. d; Souw, in leven Piedikant te Naarden, destijds Emeritus, en wonende te heyden. Een eerlijk, godsdienstig, welgesteld man, van handwerk een kleermaker, te Naarden, hebbende een aantal kinderen, geraakte door onvoorziene toevallen, kwade betaling, of verloop zijner zaken, buiten eigene schuld, in eenen behoeftigen staat; dag aan dag peinzende op middelen om zich te redden, niets onbeproefd latende, dat hem dienstig scheen om zijn bestaan te verbeteren, droomt hi) op eenen nacht, dat hij met eenen zijner kennissen raadpleegde. Deze zeide tot hem: vervoeg u ten twaalf we op de Papenbrug te Amsterdam, daar zv.lt gij iemand vinden, die u zal zeggen wat gij dam moet. Hij verbaalt des morgens zijnen droom aan zijne huisvrouw, die hem raadt om toch op geene droomen te letten, en hem zijn voornemen, om naar Amsterdam te reizen, ontraadt.—Hij blijft t'hui
Nu

, wien het ten laaute

gelukte, om den pot te openen, waarin zig eenen schat van ounoemelijke waarde (waarschijnlijk tijdens eener vroegere belegering der stad, aldaar geborgen en acbter gelaten) vonden ! Zie daar het verlegen huisgezin uit den dringendsten nood gered, niet alieen, maar met grooter' rijkdom dan zij verloren hadden, begiftigd!—Zie daar eenen droom, door een' anderen droom, even als in het geval van Daniel opgehelderd en ver-klaard; nu gedacht de geredde kleermaker ook met dankbaarheid aan den armen bedelaar; hij reist andermaal naar Amsterdam, zoekt hem op, verhaalt hem zijn wedervaren, geeft hem eene aanzienlijke vereering met bijgevoegden raad, van niet alle droomen alt bedrog te verwerpen.'"pp. 26—29.





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" I now proceed to fulfill my promise in the preface, and to relate a dream which I myself had in my 17th year.—In the year 1779, while dwelling in the house of my beloved parents at Berkel, where my father was minister, and gave me instruction preparatory to my going to the University, I had free access to his study. My father, as member of the Reverend Classis of Delft and Delfland, had received in his turn a certain very important paper, which lay on his reading desk (which needed to be produced at the next meeting of the Synod, and within a few days ought to be forwarded to another minister, who followed him in order). This paper was missing; and, as no one but my father and myself ever entered the study—I myself being wont to keep the key when my father was from home—it was very natural that my father should suspect that I had taken away the paper, and used it for one purpose or another.

" Fruitlessly and in vain were all books that had been lately used, so far as could be remembered, searched and turned over. Now, as it was not proved, nor could be, that I designedly or accidentally had been the cause of the loss, I had no need to be afraid of any punishment; but the continual anxiety in which I saw my beloved father, respecting a pledge committed to his care, and on which so much depended,—added to the apprehension of losing my father's confidence,—caused me to pass some sleepless nights. At last, on the fourth night, I fell asleep, and a-dreaming. I imagined myself to be sitting in a very small chamber or cabinet which is behind the study, and almost always remained closed, because property and dif-





TO THE PRESENT DAY. 313

ferent things of value were there laid by. I imagined myself to be sitting before an open bureau, which then I had never seen opened ; that I drew out a certain drawer, turned it upside down and, lo ! there, to my great amazement, fell out the long sought paper that was missing, which I knew very well when I saw it. I woke with joy, and wished to surprise my father with the good news; but it was still as dark as pitch, so I put it off till the morning, and fell asleep again through weariness (not having slept for three nights), and dreamed again the very same things. On waking again, I see the first glimmering of the day-break; and as my father always rose before sun-rise, I spring joyfully out of bed, find him already down stairs, and call out to him with great joy, It is found! Father. Where? I. In your bureau. Father. How can you know that? I. I have dreamed it. Father. Dreams are deceitful. I. But you must just go and see. Father. It is impossible. I. (muttering and displeased at the disappointment, and half to myself, yet audibly) There it lies, nevertheless. My dear, good father, who would bear no contradiction from me, gave me a box on the ear, which I bore in silence,— and set to work with him in the study. At breakfast it was our regular custom to read aloud two or more chapters in the Bible; which was done either by my father or myself. We were called to breakfast.—I. I have no appetite, but request permission to read. This was granted. Now as a chapter of the New Testament came in order, I asked, May I this morning, for once, read where I choose? Father. The whole Bible is God's word; read, therefore, where you will. I turned to the 5th chapter of the Second Book of Kings, and read the history of the cleansing of Naaman the Syrian ; and when I came to the 13th verse, My father, if the prophet had bid thee do some great thing, wouldst thou not have done it?—I let these words follow : Dear Father, you are really just like Naaman I requested of you but a little thing which costs no great trouble, and Father. Stop: go up stairs with me immediately. We went: my mother followed. My father opened the cabinet and the bureau. I cried out with joy, Oh! all is just as I



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saw it in my dream: this is the drawer. I seized it in full confidence, turned it over, and, \o ! the undermost paper, which was now become the uppermost, was the long sought, the lost one. My pen cannot suitably describe the spectacle of joy, wonder, and other emotions, which now followed. I obtained, to make up for the blow which I had undeservedly received, a present which was highly gratifying to me. .

" My father had some days before written out a lease ; and with this, by mistake, he had taken up and locked up the lost paper, which was folded to the same size *."



* " Nu ga ik mijne belofte in de aanspreak (en § 14) gedaan, verTullen, en eenen droom verhalen, mij zelven op mijn 17ejaar bejegend.-—In het jaar 1779, ten huize ran mijne geliefde Ouders te lkrkti wonende, alwaar mijne Vader Prcdikant -was, en mij in de voorbereidende akademische wetenschappen onderwees, had ik den vrijen toegana tot het atudeer-vertrek.—Mijn vader had, als lid der Eerw. klassis van Delft en Delfland, op zijne beurt, zeker gewigtig papier (dat op de aanstaande synodnle vergadering dienen, en binnen vveinige dagen aan een' ander' Predikant, die hem in rang volgde, verzonden moast worden) op zijne lecstafel liggen : dit papier raakt weg, en daar er nooit buiten mijn' vader en mij, iemand op de studeerkamer kwam, hebbende ik zelf, alt mijn vader van huis was, den sleutel onder mij, was het zeer natuurlijk, dat ik bij mijn' vader in verdenking geraken moest, dit papier te hebben weggenomen, en misscliien gebruikt tot eene of andere behoefte.

" Vruchteloos en te vergeefs werden alle binnen kort gebruikte boeken, zooveel men zich kon herinneren, nagezocht en doorbladerd —Daar het niet bewezen was,'of kon worden, dat ik, het zij opzettelijk of bij ongeluk, de oorzaak van het wegraken was, behoefde ik ook roor geene straf zoo zeer te vreezen,—dan, de angst, waarin ik mijn gelicfden vader gedurig zag, wegens een pand, zijner zorge toevertrouwd, en waaraan zooveel gelegen was,—gevoegd bij de vrees, dat ik mijn vader* vertrouwen toch zou verliezen, deden mij eenige nachten slapeloos doorbrengen.—Den vierden nacht geraakte ik eindelijk in slaap en aan het droomen.—Ik verbeeldde mij te zitten in zeker klein kamertje of kabinetje, dat achter de studeerkamer is, en meest altijd gesloten bleef, om dat aldaar effecten en andere zaken van waarde geborgen werden.—Ik verbeeldde mij te zitten voor eene geopende bureau, die ik toen nog nimmer open gezien had, zeker laadje uit te halen, het onderste boven te keeren, en, ziedaar, tot mijne groote verbazing, valt er het lang gezochte, vermiste papier, dat ik zeer wel kende, uit.—Ik wordt vanblijdscnap wakker, wil mijnen vader met die goede tijding verassen,^dan het is nog stikdonker nacht!—ik stel zulk9 uit tot den morgenstond ; val door vermoeidheid, in drie nachten niet geslappen hebbende, weder in slaap, en droom andermaal onder dezelfde omstandigheden.—Nu wakker wordende, zie ik de eerste schemering van den dageraad, en daar mijn vader altijd voor zonne-opgang opstond, spring ik blijmoedig het bed uit, vind den man reeds beneden, en roep met groote blijdschap hem toe: Het is gevonden I vader. Waar? ik. In woe bureau, vader. Hoe, of vanwaar hint gij dit wcten? ik. Ik heb het gedroomd ! vader. Droomen is bedrog ! ik. Maar gij moeit evenwel cens gaun zien.' vader. Het is niet mogelijk ! ik. (Pruttelende, en misnoegd over de teleurstelling, half binnen'g monds, echter boorbaar) Het ligt er toch in. Mijn lieve goede vader, die geene tegenspraak van mij wilde dulden, geeft mij eenen klap om de ooren, dien ik zwi jgende verdraag—en op de studeerkamer mij met hem aan het werk begeef;—onder het ontbijt hietd de gewoonte standvastig plaats, om twee of meer kapittels in den bijbel overluid te lezen, dat door mij, of door mijnen vader verrigt werd :—wij worden afgeroepen om te ont-bijten. ik. Ik lieb geen' trek om te eten, maar verzoek de vrijheid om te mogen lezen. Dit wordt mij toegestaan ; daar nu een hoofddeel uit het N. Testament aan de beurt lag, vraag ik: mag ik dczcn morgen ecns naar vtijne verkiezing lezen? vader. De Bijbel is overal Gods woord, lees dus wat gij wilt. Ik sla op het 5e kappittel van het tweede boek der Koningen, en lees de historic der reiniging van naaman den Syrier; en gekomen aan vers 13, daar zijne knechten tot hem zeggen : mijn Vader! moo die Profeet tot u eene groote zake gesproken hadde, zoudt gij xe niet gedaan hebben? laat ik er op volgen, lieve Vader ! gij zijt viaarlijk aan Naaman gelijk ! ik heb van u maar eene kleine zake begeerd, die weinig moeite kost, en.... vader. houd op, go tcrstond met mij naar boven ! Wij gingen, Moeder volgde; Vader onsloot kamer en bureau, ik roep met vreugde : o idles is zoo als ik het in den droom zag, dit is het luadje ; ik greep het vol vertrouwen, keerde he^om. en ziedaar, het onderste papier nu het bovenste geworden, was het gezochte, het verlorene. Mijne pen weigert mij het tooneel, dat nu volgde, van blijdschap, verwondering en andere gemoedsbeweging naar waarde te schetsen; ik verkreeg, ter ver-goeding van de onschuldig ontvangen oorveeg, een mij zeer aangenaam geschenk.

" Mijn Vader had eenige dageu te voren eene huurcedel geschreven, en met dezelve het verloren papier, dat even eens gevouwen was, bij ver-gissing opgenomen en weggfesloten." pp.33—36



TO THE PRESENT DAY. 315

"As sure as there is a notion that the time of miracles is past, even so sure does it appear to me that the hand of God in no respect is shortened; that that which has happened heretofore may happen still, and perhaps does happen much oftener than is commonly thought *."

Having been favored with these extracts by Mr. Thelwall, I here feel constrained to add, that nothing can be more disgraceful or scandalous than the attempt of the Christian Observer to confound my friend with the school of Regent ---



* " Zoo reker als er eene stelling is, dat de tijd der wondeiwerken voorbij is; even zoo zeker komt het mij voor, dat de hand Goda in geenen deele nog verkort is, dat hetgeen, wat voorheen gebeurde, nog geschieden kan, en misscliien nog meer geschiedt, dan men gemeenlijk wel denkt." p. 43.



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Square, from which he is farther removed than many of those who now profess themselves opposed to it. If a man is to be represented as of that school because he believes that a miracle may happen in his own times, so might Grotius, Tillotson, Bengel, and Bp. Hall. But, so far from admitting the peculiarities of the school in question, —those, for instance, respecting the Humanity,— Mr. Thelwall is the only person I have yet met with who seemed able to give any clear statement of the scriptural reasons for rejecting them *.

The Church of England.—Whatever attempts may now be made to suppress the fact, the Church of England, as established at and after the Reformation, will be found to have distinctly recognized the doctrine of miracles; and that, (1; in her Canons, (2) in her Liturgy, and (3) in her Homilies. To be consistent, indeed, no Episcopal church can do otherwise : for the doctrines of apostolic succession and miraculous succession must stand or fall together.

1. The Seventy-second Canon directs, somewhat quaintly, that no minister or ministers shall, without the license of the Bishop of the diocese, " attempt, upon any pretense whatsoever, either of possession or obsession, by fasting and prayer, to cast

* I may add, that Mr. Thelwall resisted the party in the Committee of the Trinitarian Bible Society, who stand before the public as the opponents of this school, because he thought their measures intemperate, irregular, and overbearing; and because they appeared to him to be mixed up with personal feelings of enmity, and with a spirit of persecution, which ought not to be allowed an entrance in a religious institution. When, on the contrary, he feared that the other party, from withstanding one evil, had run into another, and shewed, as he thought, a disposition to admit members belonging to the school in question, he withdrew from them also, till he could be satisfied that this was not the case.



TO THE PRESENT DAY. 317

out any devil or devils, under pain of the imputation of imposture or cosenage, and deposition from the ministry." It is clear that this direction does not deny the possibility of Satanic possession, or of dispossession; but requires only that it be not attempted without due authority from the diocesan. Thus irregularities are repressed, but the thing itself is admitted. I know there has been an attempt to explain the words away. But, if they mean nothing, what need of trick and concealment? The present case affords another instance, of the endeavour to suppress truth by small verbal iniquities. In the Table of Contents of the 'Constitutions and 'Canons Ecclesiastical, the reference to the Seventy-second Canon stands thus:

" Ministers not to appoint public or private Fasts or prophecies, or to exorcise, but by authority."

But it so happens that the same canon says something about exercises: advantage was taken of this to get rid of the mention of exorcism by the variation of a single letter: and, in other copies, the reference stands thus:

" Ministers not to appoint public or private Fasts or prophecies, or to exercise, but by authority *."

If the sentence in the Canon about possession, obsession, and the casting out of devils, really mean nothing, why this attempt to keep it out of sight by a miserable trick?

2. The Book of Common Prayer also, in its unabridged form, contained a distinct recognition



* Constitutions and Canons Ecclesiastical. London. 1678. Sm. quarto.



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of miraculous gifts. I refer to the gift of heating, said to have been exercised by the kings of England. The reality of this gift thus exercised, is a subject which I am not here called upon to discuss: though, if any feel disposed to reject the idea at once, as absurd, they will only betray their own ignorance; for people are little aware how much has been written on this subject; and perhaps it would surprise them to be told that there yet exists a mass of evidence to the fact, which would be deemed amply sufficient to establish any other fact in English history *. The point now to be mentioned is, that the service used on the occasion, when people came to be healed, and the king performed the ordinance of touching, VMX formerly a part of our Prayer-book; and I understand there are editions as late as 1721 or 1723, in which it yet retains its place. The service may also be found, with all the particulars, in the work of Browne to which I have just referred in a note f. But this is not the point which I now wish to urge. The circumstance of most importance is, that we have distinct evidence of the recognition of this gift of healing by our Church, in her Protestant character. That it, we find the recognition of the same gift in popish times:



* See, for example, " An Anatomic Chrurgical Treaties of Glandules and Strumaes, and etc. Together with the Royal Gift of Healing, or Cure thereof by Contrast or Imposition of hands, performed for above 640 years by our Kings of England, continuously with the (?poor scan?) Effects, and miraculous Events, and etc. All which are described by John Browne, one of his Majesties (Poor scan???) Chirurgeon of his Majesty's Hospital." London, 1684

+ See part the third, Entitled Charisma (???) (The Royal God" p83, &c.

(Some of this footnote was not clear on the copy and could not be read.)





TO THE PRESENT DAY. 319

but does our church, on becoming Protestant; reject or disown it? By no means. First of all, we find the Roman-Catholic service, used previous to the Reformation, and framed accordingly : it, commences by the King's confessing, and that not only to Him who pardons sin, but " to the blessed Virgin Mary and to all saints*." But, secondly, we have the Protestant service—a part, till times comparatively recent omitted it, of our Protestant Prayer-book—perpetuating the practice, though cleared of Roman-Catholic peculiarities. Thus the confession to the Virgin Mary is excluded, but the recognition of a miraculous gift is retained—This is no such fanciful matter, as many would suppose. To this miraculous gift it is, that reference is made by Bishop Bull, in a passage which the kindness of a friend enabled me to quote on a former occasion, and which I now quote again. The Bishop, preaching upon St. Paul's thorn in the flesh, observes that the gift of miracles, and particularly the gift of curing diseases, was so given by Christ to his Apostles, as not to be at their own absolute disposal, but to be dispensed by them as the Giver should think fit +• He instances the example of St. Paul, in not curing himself, and in not curing Timothy. He then proceeds :

" And (by the way) perhaps this is the best account that can be given of the relique and remainder of the primitive

* See " Ceremonies for the Mealing of them that be diseased with the Klag't Evil, used in the Time of King Henry VII." in the Literary Mownm.—London. 1702.

+ Sermon on 2 Cor. xii. 7—9. Second Observation. Sermons. Vol I 1713.



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gift of healing, for some hundred years past, visible in this our nation, and annexed to the succession of our Christian • Kings: I mean the cure of the otherwise generally incurable disease, called Morbus Regius or the King's Evil. That divers persons desperately laboring under it have been cured by the mere touch of the royal hand, assisted with the prayers of the priests of our Church attending, is unquestionable, unless the faith of all our ancient writers, and the consentient report of hundreds of most credible persons in our own age," (the writer died 1709-10,) " attesting the same, be to be questioned."

He then proceeds to shew that, if some were not cured, this was because God had not given the gift so absolutely, but that he still kept the reins of it in his own hand; as he had shewn, just before, in the case of the Apostle. Thus, up to not many years before the service was finally excluded from our Prayer-book, we find a Bishop—whatever might be his doctrines on some important points, certainly a respectable authority in a matter of fact—asserting the gift, and asserting it upon the consentient report of hundreds of most credible persons in his own age, attesting the same.

3. The sentence of the Common Prayer and the Canons being such as we have seen, those who seek the denial of miracles in the authorized formularies of the Church of England will in vain turn for comfort to the Homilies. The Homily " Against Peril of Idolatry " plainly admits (in accordance with the Reformers, as we have already seen,) that, " where images be," some miraculous acts may have been done by illusion of the devil; observing, that

" Neither ought miracles to persuade us to do contrary



TO THE PRESENT DAY. 321

to God's word. For the Scriptures have for a warning hereof foreshewed, that the kingdom of Antichrist shall be mighty in miracles and wonders, to the strong illusion of all the reprobate*."

The same Homily, also, to prove the estimation in which Epiphanius, who flourished towards the end of the fourth century, was held, cites a passage recording miracles wrought by him.—

" And in the Tripartite Ecclesiastical History, the ninth book, and forty-eighth chapter, is testified, that ' Epiphanius, being yet alive, did work miracles, and that after his death devils, being expelled at his grave or tomb, did roar.' Thus you see what authority St. Jerome, and that most ancient history," (I cite only the latter authority, as referring to, our present purpose;) "give unto the holy and learned Bishop Epiphanius, whose judgment of images in churches and temples, then beginning by stealth, to creep in, is worthy to be noted +."

And this Homily also represents, as a miraculous sign, a darkness of the sun as late as the eighth century, which continued seventeen days:

" In this history, joined to Eutropius, it is written, that the sun was darkened by the space of seventeen days most strangely and dreadfully, and that all men said, that for the horribleness of that cruel and unnatural fact of Irene, and the putting out of the Emperor's eyes, the sun had lost his light. But, indeed, God would signify, by the darkness of the sun, into what darkness and blindness of ignorance and idolatry all Christendom .should fall, by the occasion of images. The bright dun of his eternal truth, and light of his holy word, by the mists and black clouds of men's traditions being blemished and darkened, as by sundry most terrible earthquakes, that happened about the same time, God signified, that the quiet state of true religion should by such idolatry be most horribly tossed and turmoiled ++."



* p. 195. + P-159. ++ p. 172.





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But to come to more recent times, the Homily for Whitsunday distinctly represents the Holy Spirit as still working miraculously, and conferring miraculous gifts.

" Now, let us consider what the Holy Ghost is, and how consequently he worketh his miraculous works towards mankind *."

It may be urged, that here his internal operations, only, are intended; as where it is said, afterwards,

"Did not God's Holy Spirit miraculously work in Matthew +"

I answer, His internal operations may be included : but these are plainly not the only ones meant; witness the next page:

" Here is now that glass, wherein thou must behold thyself, and discern whether thou have the Holy Ghost within thee, or the spirit of the flesh. If thou see that thy works be virtuous and good, consonant to the prescript rule of God's word, savouring and tasting not of the flesh but of the Spirit, then assure thyself that thou art endued with the Holy Ghost: otherwise, in thinking well of thyself, thou dost nothing else but deceive thyself. The Holy Ghost doth always declare himself by his fruitful and gracious gifts; namely, by the word of wisdom, by the word of knowledge, which is the understanding of the Scriptures by faith, in doing of miracles, by healing them that are diseased, by prophecy, which is the declaration of God's mysteries, by discerning of spirits, diversities of tongues, interpretation of tongues, and so forth. All which gifts, as they proceed from one Spirit, and are severally given to man according to the measurable distribution of the Holy Ghost; even so do they bring men, and not without good cause, into a wonderful admiration of God's Divine power ++."



• p. 388. + p. 390 ++ p. 391.



?

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And in the next page," Much more might here be spoken of the manifold gifts and graces of the Holy Ghost, most excellent and wonderful in our eyes; but to make a long discourse through all, the shortness of time will not serve *."

I must now, then, turn to those opponents of post-Apostolic miracles who profess themselves members of the Church of England, and tell them, with the evidence here before their faces, that their extreme wrath, and persecuting bitterness of opposition, are any thing but churchman-like. What a shameless and scandalous deception; when it is clear not only that miracles were wrought, admitted, or experienced, both by the Reformers, and by those most resembling them before and after the Reformation, but that the doctrine is distinctly recognized by our Church, to choose out that amongst all modern heresies which is viewed with the greatest horror, but a few years after they themselves blinked it in another quarter, and to write, under the name of every one who thinks the Christian dispensation miraculous, that he belongs to this ! The fact, however, is, that the bulk of those modern opponents of miracles, who pass for churchmen, are not churchmen, but liberals. Whenever a man persecutes, I know him for a "liberal" beforehand : and whenever a man sets up for a "liberal" he is sure to prove a persecutor.

So much for the doctrines of the Church of England. Advancing to particular occurrences of recent date, we find the subject branching



* p. 392.



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out into so many details, that I feel a difficulty in taking it up, unless with more leisure than I can at present command. I may observe, however; that the narrative respecting the convert from Popery, who once met a maniac in the streets, and was dashed by him to the earth, given in the Morning Watch, and derided in the Christian Observer as anile and absurd, is taken from the life of the celebrated Boos, a life well known on the Continent, and distinguished by many miraculous circumstances. Fire certainly came down from heaven, and consumed his paper, while he was meditating to preach a written sermon, and thus to evade the preaching of the truth. The writer of his life is the excellent Gosner, a distinguished and pious minister, now living at Berlin, who knew him well. Any person acquainted with the religious state of Germany, especially if he has resided in that city, will be able to inform the Christian Observer that Gosner is a well known and highly respected pastor, not at all wanting in sobriety of mind, and not at all despised or persecuted by his pious brethren in the ministry abroad, because he has written a book recording miraculous occurrences which happened within his own knowledge. And Gosner himself, in conversing with a beloved and honoured friend of mine, respecting the times to which his book relates, and respecting what Boos and other believers then experienced, assured him that their persecutions were so sharp that they needed miracles to sustain their faith.

And here let me mention an occurrence, which I find recorded in the " Memoirs, Sermons, and



TO THE PRESENT DAY. 325

Letters of the Rev. W. A. Gunn," by the Rev. I. Saunders, A.M. It is related in Mr. Gunn's common-place book, and refers to an exemplary young believer, by name Comley.

" His constitution was naturally weak. A fever, about three years and a half ago, rendered it more debilitated still. Myself as well as others heard him say,—the expression is remarkable, but no comment shall be made,— ' The Lord Jesus has been with me, and says he will return in three years and a half.'—So he did, for then J. Comely died."

Here also I must be permitted again to put on record the miraculous cure of Miss Fancourt. Many have discredited or denied it, to whom the particulars of the case -are unknown. I do most sincerely both rejoice and sympathize with the venerable father, who, discrediting modern miracles, was in a most unlooked-for manner brought to believe in them, by a supernatural work of healing which took place in his own family, without having been in the least expected or even dreamt of, the moment before, by any member of his household : and who thus, in a manner equally unlooked-for, found himself and his beloved daughter suddenly, without any thing sought on their part, made the objects of vulgar clamor, suspicion, reiterated obloquy, and absolute falsehood.

I now proceed to record the case: and I do so, (as in that related by Milner, of the believers, who spake, to the glory of God, after their tongues had been cut out,) for the sake of upholding the principle that truth, when it has been assailed, is still truth ; and that we are not to give up miraculous facts, merely because unbelief or prejudice has attempted to falsify them.



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Miss Fancouit's statement.—" In the month of November, 1822, having for some months been in a bad state of health, it pleased God to visit me with a hip disease. Perfect rest was recommended by the late Mr. Pearson of Golden Square, as absolutely necessary: cupping and blistering were immediately resorted to : the next summer, 1823, sea air and warm sea-bathing were advised ; which advice was followed, but deriving no benefit, by the wish of Mr. Pearson, Mr. Jarvis placed in the hip a caustic issue. The following winter was spent in London: in the spring, 1824, Margate air and warm sea-bathing were again tried. Here, by the advice of Mr. Jarvis, who considered the disease abated, I used crutches; though still there was much pain, and it was long before the leg affected was put to the ground. Again the winter was spent in London, and, the pain increasing, Mr. Travers saw me: he ordered leeches and blisters, which were applied with some little relief. The second time he saw me he ordered the issue to be closed, and to endeavor to leave off the crutches, fearing the back should be injured, ordering tonics. His advice was followed : still the pain increased : leeches were again applied ; and in the spring, 1825, Margate was again tried. Here for some months I gradually became better, so as to be able to walk about, though feeling occasionally much pain in the back ; but in the month of October, imprudently walking out in a high cold wind, the pain greatly increased : leeches and blisters were again applied, and entire rest recommended. Finding no relief, another large caustic issue was placed in the hip. This winter was passed at Margate; and fever attacked me, so as to produce dangerous illness. By the blessing of God on the means used, the fever left me. Recovering from this, the back feeling much pain, as well as the hip, Mr. Jarvis found it necessary immediately to burn an issue in the back : in the course of a month, another was placed on the opposite side of the bone. It pleased God to bless these means: the following summer, 1826, all the issues were closed : permission given to attempt to walk. In July I returned to London, able, with the assistance of a



TO THE PRESENT PAY. 327

stick, to walk a short distance, though always feeling pain : having been at home about ten days, the pain "Very much increased both in the back and hip. By Mr. Parkinson perfect rest was recommended. Different applications were made; but not having the desired effect, two more issues were placed in the back, and in a short time a seton in the hip : these, not giving essential relief, were closed: Devonshire air advised. In February, 1827, I went. Here, under Mr. Tripe, a course of mercury was given; leeches over and over again applied; many times bled in the arm, he being of opinion it arose from the liver being diseased. This did not produce the effect desired : another issue was placed in the hip. In the winter another dangerous illness attacked me, from which it pleased God to recover me : the old disease still as strong as ever; another seton was applied. This was the last application ; and in September, 1828, I returned home as unable to walk as when leaving it: once or twice the attempt was made, but produced much pain. From this time no means have been used, excepting constant confinement to the couch. Within these few weeks, even on the very day in which Jesus so manifested his Almighty power, I had attempted to walk: scarcely could I put one foot before the other: the limbs trembled very much. Thus it continued till the 20th of October, 1830 ; when a kind friend, who had seen me about two months before, had been led by God to pray earnestly for my recovery; remembering what is written, ' Whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.' He asked in faith, and God graciously answered his prayer. On Wednesday night, my friend

being about to leave the room, Mr. G------begged to be

excused a short time. Sitting near me, we talked of his relatives, and of the death of his brother: rising, he said, They will expect me at supper, and put out his hand. After asking some questions respecting the disease, he added, It is melancholy to see a person so constantly confined : I answered, It is sent in mercy. Do you think so? Do you think the same mercy could restore you? God gave me faith, and I answered, Yes. Do you believe



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Jesus could heal, as in old times? Yes. Do you believe it is only unbelief that prevents it? Yes. Do you believe that Jesus could heal you at this very time? Yes. (Between these questions he was evidently engaged in prayer.) Then, he added, get up and walk: come down to your family. He then had hold of my hand : he prayed to God to glorify the name of Jesus. I rose from my couch quite strong. God took away all my pains, and we walked down stairs,—dear Mr. G. praying most fervently, Lord have mercy upon us! Christ have mercy upon us! Having been down a short time, finding my handkerchief left on the couch, taking the candle, I fetched it. The next day I walked more than a quarter of a mile ; and on Sunday from the Episcopal Jews' Chapel, a distance of one mile and a quarter. Up to this time God continues to strengthen me, and I am perfectly well. To Jesus be all the glory.—Nov. 13, 1830."

To this must be added a part of the statement of the Rev. Mr. Fancourt.—

" Under this peculiar dispensation of mercy, there rests on my mind a solemn conviction that the glory of God and the interest of religion are deeply involved in the publicity which it will probably acquire. But without shrinking from the responsibility attached to the declaration, I profess myself ready to bear my open testimony to a notable fact; namely, that, as I view it, God has raised an impotent cripple, in the person of my youngest daughter, to instantaneous soundness of her bodily limbs, by faith in the name of Jesus, being taught by her mother church to know and feel that there is none other name under heaven given to man in whom and through whom she could receive health and salvation, but only the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. In this faith, through the instrumentality of ' the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man (for God heareth not sinners), which availeth much, God has done exceeding abundantly above all that we could ask or think.' I am aware that there are questions of difficult solution, as to the instrumentality by which the



TO THE PRESENT DAY. 329

benefit has been bestowed : but who would not tremble at the fearful conclusion which would result from a denial of Divine interposition? Deprecating such a thought, I feel persuaded that they are most on the side of truth and soberness, who unite with us in telling the church that God has done great things for us, whereof we are glad, which in their first communication made us ' like them that dream.'"

The extreme virulence with which this miraculous occurrence was assailed on its first announcement, can be equaled only by the disingenuous silence, since I publicly exposed the falsehoods and misrepresentations of the assailants. There have, indeed, been some references and allusions, oblique or anonymous. But the absolute abandonment of all attempt at honest and open reply to my statement, may be cited as affording a perfect specimen of controversial confutation. I say confutation, not conviction ; because the adversary is evidently silenced, without having abandoned his error : he has not cordially received the truth; but he has nothing more to say against it. Meanwhile the miraculous cure itself, having been thus questioned at first, but questioned no more when the facts of the case were set in their true light, may now be regarded as proved and admitted : and the vindictive expedient of so precipitately retreating from the discussion, in order to go on assailing me by a series of personal attacks, serves but to render the proof and the admission more complete.

Other occurrences of recent date might here be mentioned : but this is an extensive subject. The reader will recollect a remarkable instance of recovery, in answer to the prayers of our pious



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King Edward, and positively foretold by him before it took place, although the patient had 'been given up by his physicians. It may here be proper to mention, that this occurrence is recorded, in the " Selection from Early Protestant Divines of the Church of England," by that last representative of a better race of evangelical divines than he left behind him, the Rev. Legh Richmond*. He, good man, expressed to me once his surprise, that his work found so little acceptance with evangelical professors. He knew not, nor could I then tell him, the reason. The fact is, that we do not follow Cranmer, Latimer, Ridley, and our Reformers, who were churchmen. We follow the later Puritans. A republication of their works would have met with greater success. There is a repugnance, amongst us, to the genuine doctrines of the Reformation, which even the name of Legh Richmond in the title-page could not vanquish.

In closing the present chapter I beg leave once more to remind the reader, that the question, as stated by our opponents, is not merely one of facts, but of opinions. In other words, they not merely deny the actual occurrence of post-Apostolic or of recent miracles; but go so far as to assert, with much face, that there has not been any belief or admission of such things, in the Christian church. Of these notions, the reader has, in the last two chapters, seen contradiction upon contradiction ; in quotations, or examples, from Huss, Calvin, Martyr, Bucer, Pellican, Beza, Bullinger,



* p. 321. Selection, &.c. London. 1817.





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Luther, Musculus, Knox, Wisheart, Fox, Zuing-lius, Baxter, Cartwright, Hall, Rogers, Bengel, the United Brethren, and the Church of England. From these citations it is perfectly clear, that the admission and belief of miracles has never departed from the Church; and thus the question of opinion is settled. But still, be it remembered, this is not all. We have seen gifts of healing in the Church of the United Brethren. We have seen Knox and Wisheart predicting local occurrences. We have seen Luther raising up Mecum and Melancthon. These occurrences, and others of the same order, not merely determine what have been the opinions of the Church, but prove, by incontrovertible facts, that it has not been left destitute of miraculous experience.

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