18 FEBRUARY 1905, Page 14

one born and brought up among the Congrega- tionalists, and

who spent some years in the public ministry of that body, I ought to know something about their views of the Sacraments, and my impression most . certainly bears out the, statement of "A. E. T." in the Syectator of February 4th. Dr. Dale, it is true, held what might be called a doctrine of "Sacramental grace," but in this he stood almost alone, in proof of which we have the very significant fact that his "Manual of Congregational Principles," though written by express desire of the Com- mittee of the Congregational Union, excited such an amount of opposition and controversy that it was found expedient in subsequent editions to omit all the sections referring to the Sacraments! How your correspondent of last week, Mr. Rattan- bury, could point to Hugh Price Hughes as an exponent of ordinary Methodist belief as to Sacramental grace is simply amazing. I have just finished reading Miss Hughes's most interesting Life of her father, and nothing there is made clearer than that all through his strenuous career Price Hughes took a line of his own, representing a species of "High Churchism " quite as peculiar and distinctive in the Wesleyan body as that associated with the names of Drs. Dale and Berry among the Congregationalists. To say that any number of so-called Free Churchmen regard Holy Communion as "a means of grace" proves nothing ad rem„ for might not the same be said of preaching P—I am, Sir, Are., ANGLICANUS.

LTO THE EDITOR OP THE "SPECTATOR.")