[To THE EDITOR OF THE"SPECTATOR. " ] Sin,—The interesting article on "
The Spirit of the Anglican Church" in last week's Spectator recalls to my mind some Bampton Lectures preached half-a-century ago by one pre- maturely, as it seemed, taken from us, John Ernest Bode, student of Christ Church, author of the well-known Confir- mation hymn, " 0 Jesus, I have promised to serve Thee to the end." The title of the Lectures seems anticipative of a later and happier age : "Absence of Precision in the Formu- laries of the Church of England, Scriptural and Suited to a State of Probation." It has been the fashion with those who have not studied the subject very profoundly to speak of the Church of England as a compromise, and to echo the epigram, which Burke attributes to Chatham, as to its "Calvinistic Articles and Popish Liturgy." It would be more accurate to describe it, with the writer of the article, as a comprehension. The result is that, notwithstanding the efforts of those who have tried to capture the Church in the interests of a party, room happily has been found in it for good men of various shades of religious thought. With regard to the unique position of the Church of England, to which the article also refers, as a possible "reconciler of Christendom," it may be interesting to recall some (let us hope) prophetic words of Joseph de Maistre :- " Si jamais les chretiens se rapprochent, comme tout les y invite, it semble que la motion doit partir de reglise d'Angleterre. Le presbyterianisme fut une oeuvre Francoise, et par consequent une oeuvre exageree. Nous sommes trop eloignes des sectateurs d'un suite trop pen substantiel; it n'y a pas moyen de nous entendre ; mais reglise Anglicane, qui nous touche d'une main, touche d'autre ceux que nous ne ponvous toucher ; et quoique,
sous un certain point de vue, elle soit en butte aux coups de deux partis, et queue presente le spectacle un peu ridicule d'un revolts qui preche l'obeissance, cependant elle est tres precieuse sous d'autres aspects, et pent etre consider& comme use de ces inter- medes chimiques, capable d'approcher des elemens inassociables de leer nature."
Previous page
