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tioned, or in any other work of similar authority. If you find it in the council, in its catechism, or in any of the works which I have mentioned, the roman-catholics must abide the consequences. If you do not find it; you may abuse the doctrine and those who maintain it, in any terms you think proper; but you are not entitled to charge it upon the roman-catholics: it is merely the imagination of an individual; it is no part oF THE CATHOLIC

CREED.

If any of the ridiculous doctrines, which are maintained by any of the sectaries mentioned in a publication (not unknown to you,)-The Letters of Don Manuel Alvarez Espriella*,—(all of whom appeal to the scriptures, and protest against popery, and are therefore, according to the protestant catechism, published by the learned bishop of St. David's, to be deemed protestants); should be charged by a roman-catholic on a protestant of the church of England, as a tenet of his religious

* Espriella's list of them is curious: “Arminians, So. ❝cinians, Baxterians, Presbyterians, New-Americans, Sa“ bellians, Lutherans, Unitarians, Millenarians, Necessarians, "Sublapsarians, Supralapsarians, Muggletonians, Antino"mians, Hutchinsonians, Sandemonians, Baptists, Anabap"tists, Podobaptists, Methodists, Universalists, Calvinists, "Materialists, Destructionists, Brownists, Independants, Pro"testants, Hugonots, Non-jurors, Seceders, Hernhutters, Dunkers, Jumpers, Shakers, and Quakers, &c. &c. &c." A precious nomenclature! An interesting account of many of these sectaries is given in the "Histoire des Sectes Re"ligieuses, par M. Gregoire, 2 vols. 8vo. 1810." From this work Espriella might have considerably augmented his own list.

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creed, might not the protestant justly require the roman-catholic to point out the doctrine or the practice thus charged upon him, either in the Bible, or at least in the Thirty-nine Articles, the Homilies, or the Liturgy? and, if it should not be found in any of these, would not the protestant be justly acquitted of all responsibility for it? By parity of reason,-in all the cases, in which you charge the roman-catholics with corrupt doctrine, will they not be entitled to an acquittal? unless you produce, in the council, or in some other of the works I have referred to, the corrupt doctrine for which you criminate him.

It is the same with respect to the practices, for which, in a multitude of instances, you have criminated the roman-catholics, sometimes individually, but oftener collectively: May you not be justly required to show, that the council, or some of the works which have been referred to, contains the doctrine which prescribes, or sanctions, or excuses, the practice thus charged on the roman-catholics? and, if no such doctrine should be found in them, will you not be bound to retract the charge?

Here then I confidently take my stand.—I acknowledge that individual catholics have maintained unjustifiable doctrines, and have been guilty of unjustifiable practices; but I insist on the production of the tenet, justly ascribable to the catholic creed, to which any such doctrine or practice can fairly be attributed. I aver, that not one such tenet can be produced if it cannot, I claim for my church an acquittal from your charges.

Does not this alone answer every charge in " the "Book of the Church?" I admire the elegance, the energy of its style, and the many other beauties of composition, with which it abounds; but I find nowhere in it a citation from any work, or any document, like those I have mentioned, which prescribes, or sanctions, or excuses any corrupt doctrine, or any unjustifiable practice. Till such a passage is found, much may be said about our creed, and about our practices: we ourselves should join in much of what may be so said; but every charge, not substantiated in the manner I have mentioned,

"Is but leather and prunella!"

РОРЕ.

15

LETTER I.

GENERAL DIFFUSION OF THE ROMAN-CATHOLIC

RELIGION.

SIR,

THE smallness of the number of the romancatholics in England, compared to that of its general population, is always before the eyes of protestants; and too often prevents them from sufficiently attending to the general diffusion of the roman-catholic religion over the habitable globe; or to the immense numerical superiority of its members over those of any protestant church, and even over those of all protestant churches in the aggregate.

"The catholic," says doctor Milner, "is still "the religion of the states of Italy, of most of the "Swiss cantons, of Piedmont, of France, of Spain, "of Portugal, and of the islands of the Medi

terranean; in three parts in four of the Irish, of "far the greater part of the Netherlands, Poland, "Bohemia, Germany, Hungary, and the neighbour"ing provinces; and, in those kingdoms and states, "in which it is not the established religion, its fol"lowers are very numerous, as in Holland, Russia, Turkey, the Lutheran and Calvinistic states of Germany and England. Even in Sweden and Denmark, several catholic congregations, with "their respective pastors, are to be found. The "whole vast continent of South America, inhabited "by many millions of converted Indians, as well as

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'by many Spaniards and Portuguese, may be said "to be catholic. The same may be said of the empire of Mexico, and the surrounding kingdoms "in North America, including California, Cuba, Hispaniola, &c. Canada and Louisiana are chiefly "catholic; and throughout the United Provinces, "the catholic religion, with its several establish"ments, is completely protected and unboundedly "propagated. To say nothing of the islands of "Africa inhabited by catholics, such as Malta,

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Madeira, Cape Verd, the Canaries, the Azores, "Mauritius, Goree, &c. there are numerous "churches of catholics established and organized "under their pastors in Egypt, Ethiopia, Algiers, "Tunis, and the other Barbary states on the "northern coast; particularly at Angola and Congo. "Even on the eastern coast, particularly in the

kingdom of Zanguebar and Monomotapa, are 66 numerous catholic churches. There are also nu"merous catholic priests, and many bishops, with "numerous flocks, throughout the greater part "of Asia. All the Maronites about Mount Li"banus, with their bishops, priests and monks, are "catholics; and so are many Armenians, Persians "and other christians of the surrounding kingdoms "and provinces. In whatever island or states the Portuguese or Spanish power does prevail, or has "prevailed, most of the inhabitants, and in some, "all of them, have been converted. The whole population of the Phillippine Islands, consist"ing of two millions of souls, is all catholic. The "diocese of Goa contains 400,000 catholics. In

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