man's own conscience and experience; and the eighth proposition is ridiculously absurd. The ninth is extremely vague and ambiguous. If it be meant that the grace of God, promised to every sincere believer under the Christian dispensation, is not granted for the performance of every act of honesty between man and man in their intercourse with each other in the affairs of this world, the truth of the proposition may be granted; for such acts are performed in hordes of savages, who never heard, and would not understand, one sentence of the Gospel; but if the meaning be, that the grace and assistance of God is not necessary to enable Christians to perform those acts and acquire those dispositions, without which they cannot be "meet to be partakers of the inheritance with the saints in light," it is indisputably false. The tenth proposition is likewise ambiguous. In the first place, it is absurd to talk of the merits of man, in the proper sense of the words, for man can merit nothing from his Maker; but if it be meant that larger and larger effusions of grace (if I may use such an expression) are bestowed on us, in proportion to the use that we have made of those which we have already received, the truth of the proposition might be easily proved from Scripture. The eleventh and twelfth propositions are both indisputably false; but, as I have already observed, we cannot be certain that these propositions were so expressed by Pelagius himself.

That the human race is, in Scripture, everywhere

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represented as rendered liable to death and to many other physical and moral evils, in consequence of the fall of the first pair, must be admitted; and the only difficulty is, to reconcile this with the moral attributes of God-those attributes, of which, if we were not previously convinced, we could place no confidence in any revelation, whether real or only pretended. The Calvinistic notions of hereditary guilt, in the proper sense of the word guilt, and of the imputation of the guilt of one person to another, are such as no enlightened and unprejudiced mind will be easily induced to admit; whilst the Pelagian doctrine is inconsistent with the whole tenor of the Old and New Testaments. It is not, therefore, wonderful that the doctrines peculiar to Calvinism, on the one hand, as well as the whole Pelagian system on the other, should be called in question by men eminent for piety and learning in different countries, and in churches differently constituted. Accordingly, to the most revolting of the Calvinistic tenets, objections were publicly urged, at nearly the same period, by Dr Laud, president of St John's College, Oxford-afterwards Archbishop of Canterbury, and James Van Harmin, or Arminius, Divinity Professor at Leyden; and as Arminius left a strong party behind him in Holland, all who espoused his opinions, or indeed opposed the peculiar dogmas of Calvin, have, in this country, been commonly called Arminians, and in Holland Remonstrants.

The English Arminians, however, though they all deny hereditary guilt in the proper sense of the

words, have very different notions of the effects produced on human nature by the fall of our first parents. Some of them believe that the soul, being naturally immortal, the extinction of consciousness was not implied in that death which Adam by his fall had brought on himself and all his posterity; but that a moral taint, or propensity to evil, has been conveyed from him to the souls of all his descendants by ordinary generation. Others considering this notion as tending to materialism, and indeed as inconceivable on any other principle, contend that there is no occasion to suppose that a moral taint was, or could be, communicated from Adam to the souls of his children; for since we know by experience, that certain diseases of the body affect all the powers of the mind to which it is united, it is surely more probable that the temperament of the bodies of all men, when they became mortal, and liable to diseases of various kinds, became, at the same time, such as to debase the powers of the minds united to them, than that God, in punishment of Adam's sin, should have determined to infuse into the bodies of all his descendants, minds tainted with moral depravity. A third party of those, who among us are called Arminians, or Pelagians, or sometimes by a name of much worse import, observe that they find in Scripture no evidence whatever of the powers of the human mind being depraved by the fall of Adam and Eve; that Adam fell under a temptation which many of his sons, supposed to be degenerated, have resisted and overcome; that on his

represented as rendered liable to death and to other physical and moral evils, in conseque the fall of the first pair, must be admitted; & only difficulty is, to reconcile this with the mo tributes of God-those attributes, of which were not previously convinced, we could place fidence in any revelation, whether real or o tended. The Calvinistic notions of heredita in the proper sense of the word guilt, and imputation of the guilt of one person to anot such as no enlightened and unprejudiced mi be easily induced to admit ; whilst the Pelagi trine is inconsistent with the whole tenor of 1 and New Testaments. It is not, therefore, w ful that the doctrines peculiar to Calvinism, one hand, as well as the whole Pelagian sys the other, should be called in question by m nent for piety and learning in different co and in churches differently constituted. Accc ly, to the most revolting of the Calvinistic objections were publicly urged, at nearly th period, by Dr Laud, president of St John's C Oxford-afterwards Archbishop of Canterbu James Van Harmin, or Arminius, Divinit fessor at Leyden; and as Arminius left a party behind him in Holland, all who espou opinions, or indeed opposed the peculiar dog Calvin, have, in this country, been commonly Arminians, and in Holland Remonstrants.

The English Arminians, however, though all deny hereditary guilt in the proper sense c

words, have very different notions of the effects pro duced on human nature by the fall of our first pa rents. Some of them believe that the soul, being naturally immortal, the extinction of consciousness was not implied in that death which Adam by his fall had brought on himself and all his posterity; but that a moral taint, or propensity to evil, has been conveyed from him to the souls of all his de scendants by ordinary generation. Others consider ing this notion as tending to materialism, and indeed as inconceivable on any other principle, cus tend that there is no occasion to suppose that a mo ral taint was, or could be, communicated from Adam to the souls of his children; for since we know by experience, that certain diseases of the body affect all the powers of the mind to which it is united, it is surely more probable that the temperament of the bodies of all men, when they became mortal, and liable to diseases of various kinds, became, at the same time, such as to debase the powers of the minds united to them, than that God, in punishment of Adam's sin, should have determined to infuse into the bodies of all his descendants, minds tainted with moral depravity. A third party of those, who among us are called Arminians, or Pelagians, or sometimes by a name of much worse import, observe that they find in Scripture no evidence whatever of the powers of the human mind being depraved by the fall of Adam and Eve; that Adam fell under a tempts tion which many of his sons, supposed to be dege nerated, have resisted and overcome; that on his

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