extracts from such writings. Some of these extracts are, indeed, disgusting for their impurity, and shocking for their impiety; but this I cannot help. To get acquainted with any thing, people must see it as it is. I know that many of my readers were quite ignorant of the true character of popery. I have undertaken to show it to them. I have, I trust, been in some degree successful, so far as I have gone. There are many Protestants that did not believe popery to be so bad as it is. They had a general idea that it was, during the dark ages, a system of cruelty, superstition, and idolatry; but they did not believe it to be so in the present day. Now, it is my object to convince them that it is what it has always been. In establishing this point, considered abstractly, I have the concurrence of popish writers themselves. They maintain that their religion is infallible and unchangeable. It cannot therefore be improved. There are many Protestants who charitably and liberally maintain that popery is not so bad as it was; but Papists themselves spurn the compliment; and it argues a great degree of simplicity and good nature in Protestants, to persist in representing the church of Rome as better than she wishes to be represented. Notwithstanding all the evidence which is before the world, Papists maintain broadly that their church never was idolatrous, which is a piece of as barefaced effrontery as to maintain that she never was guilty of persecution. They believe things contrary to the evidence of their own senses, and they expect us to do the same. They believe, for instance, that what they see to be a round piece of bread in the form of a wafer, is the real body and blood, soul and divinity, of Jesus Christ; and as such they worship it with divine honour: yet they say this is not idolatry, for the priest has changed the wafer into God, though they see, and feel, and taste it to be a wafer still. This is not merely an error of the dark ages. It is taught as plainly in their modern catechisms, and believed as firmly at this day, as it was in the tenth century, when St. Dunstan preached it, and when Odo, archbishop of Canterbury, confirmed it by a miracle. (See Part I. page 33.) Now as Papists give up their senses when they believe this, we must give up our senses when we believe them not to be idolaters. In like manner they maintain that the worship of saints is not idolatry, upon no better authority, that I know of, than that the pope has raised them to be gods and goddesses. But while we know that they are creatures; when we read the prayers and supplications that are addressed to them; and when we find that Papists actually trust and hope in them, we must give up not our senses only, but our reason too, before we can believe that they are not guilty of idolatry. I confess it would be extremely convenient for the cause of popery, if Protestants would be persuaded to make such a surrender;-if every one would give up his reason, and his senses, and his conscience, to the direction of holy church, popery would soon appear among us in all its glory, that is, the solemn gloom of midnight darkness. The church of Rome in the darkest ages had its literature, such as it was. It has been held in contempt in England generally for two hundred years; but contemptible as it is, it has begun to revive. have given extracts from the Life of St. Wenefride, for the double purpose of proving Papists to be idolaters, and affording a specimen of their literature. We are indebted to Mr. Andrews for this; and from the advertisements on the cover of his Orthodox Journal,* I see he has published some other works calculated for the midnight meridian of popery; and it will not be his fault if these works do not soon become as popular as their Scotch cousin, "Old Mortality," in "Tales of my Landlord." But leaving all these things for the present, I request the attention of my readers to some farther particulars relating to the idol of Wales, the far-famed St. Wenefride. It will be recollected by the readers of my last number, that she and St. Beuno before they parted, had agreed upon a method of corresponding with each other, such as, I believe, never occurred to any two lovers whose adventures are recorded in either profane history or pious romance. When she had a letter, or any thing else to send to her beloved saint, she had only to throw it into the well, and it would reach him in safety, and free of postage, in whatever part of the world he might be at the time. Take the following proof of the fact. "Gratitude for received favours is not only a moral virtue, but the eternal employ of cherubims and seraphims, who are now adoring and offering never-ending thanks to the infinite goodness of their omnipotent Creator, who commanded them out of the chaos of nothing. Saint Wenefride had a most grateful soul; she honoured St. Beuno as an eminent servant of God; she loved him as a father; she respected him as a master; and could never sufficiently acknowledge her duty to her greatest benefactor, after him who had made her. St. Beuno delivered to her the first rudiments of perfection; he incited her to embrace a religious state; he obtained for her by his prayers a second life, and polished her interior, that she was amiable in the sight of God and men. To make some small return, she sent him every year a token, after the manner he had prescribed. In the beginning of May, almost a year after his departure, with the help of her religious sisters, she finished a curious embroidered vestment; and wrap * On the cover of his last number are the following advertisements. I will do Mr. Andrews the favour of giving them more extensive publicity, without expense to him, which I question if any other editor in the kingdom would do. "A new edition of BONA MORS; or, the art of dying happily, in the congregation of Jesus Christ crucified, and of his condoling mother. To which is added, the noSARY of our blessed lady. Price tenpence, bound in sheep." From the title of this work, we learn that the "congregation," that is the church of Rome, is equally the property of Christ and the Virgin Mary. "A half length portrait of the RIGHT REV. DR. MILNER. Engraved in the line manner. Proofs on India paper, two guineas. Prints, one guinea. "Two beautiful small prints of our blessed Saviour and the Virgin Mary. Proofs, 5s. the pair. Prints, 3s. "A very fine head of OUR BLESSED SAVIOUR, crowned with thorns. 12 inches by 16 do.-Proofs, 15s. Prints, 9s." It would not perhaps be fair to infer that the prices which Mr. Andrews sets upon these respective heads, indicate the comparative value of the originals in his esteem; but one thing is certain, that Dr. Milner appears, in the Orthodox Journal, to be by far the most important personage of the three. I hope Mr. Andrews will thank me for this hint, as it will furnish him with matter for declamation about my want of candour, for two or three numbers of THE VINDICATOR. This will be of the more value to him, as he must be at a loss for matter if he does not choose to answer me on the subjects of transubstantiation, and idol worship. As I am in the way of bestowing favours on Mr. Andrews, I will inform him that I have made one real contradiction in this number of THE PROTESTANT, which I hope he will be able to find out, seeing he is so quicksighted as to find many contradictions where there are none. ping the same in a woollen cloth, she went down with her religious "The holy man was then walking on the seashore, and wondered If any of my readers should demur to the assertion of the author, that "uninterrupted tradition from father to son for so many centuries, any body can tell. She is represented as having collected a number of young women; as having become their governess; as teaching them the way of perfection; and as acquiring such a degree of merit in the sight of God, as to be enabled to work miraculous cures; but still the question will recur, what was it that she did? and the answer must be, Nothing. Her perfection seems to have consisted in downright inanity, and in teaching other young women to be as idle as herself. "What are you doing there, Jack?" "Nothing, master." "And, Tom, what are you doing?" "I am helping Jack, master." This seems to express the whole history of those godly virgins, who were associated under the government of the holy saint. These young women would have been much more profitably employed in their fathers' houses; assisting their parents in the business of their respective families; in taking husbands, and rearing families of their own, than in devoting themselves to celibacy and idleness, to gratify the humour of a wandering monk. I say this upon the supposition that the story is authentic; but whether it be so or not, the revival and republication of it by Mr. Andrews, seems intended to revive the monastic spirit among our countrymen, and to encourage young women to devote themselves to a single life, by representing this as more holy and more pleasing to God than the state of marriage, which is contrary to common sense, the law of nature, and the express declaration of the word of God. St. Wenefride, as was predicted by St. Beuno, left the place of her birth and martyrdom, and set out a-wandering, she knew not whither, which would not, in our degenerate days, be reckoned very honourable in a young lady of noble birth; but these saints, it will be said, may do any thing. She settled at last in a place called Guitherin, where there was a monastery, where she surprised all by her wonderful knowledge of heavenly mysteries, and her extraordinary sanctity; yet after reading her history, nobody can tell wherein her knowledge or her sanctity consisted. Yet she was a person of uncommon merit in the sight of God, insomuch that while living, and after death, she could procure by her prayers whatever she asked of him. This is the bane and the poison of those books which Mr. Andrews is reprinting for the instruction, I should rather say the destruction, of the rising generation. They are not only calculated to conceal the truth of God's word from the mind of the reader, but by making use of certain expressions borrowed from the word of God, they convey sentiments directly opposed to it. They exalt the merits of a creature; they put an idol in the place of the Saviour; and then they pervert and prostitute his own word to give credit to the imposture. My readers must excuse me for occupying so much of their time with such stuff as St. Wenefride. Had I found her history in some old musty volume, which was not likely ever to be reprinted, I would have made shorter extracts, and have dismissed her with little ceremony, under an apprehension, perhaps, that the world would never hear of her again; but since the organ of English Papists in London, has reprinted the work in a cheap form; seeing it has the sanction of Dr. Milner, bishop, and vicar apostolic, so far as to allow his name to be used as a voucher for a miracle lately performed by the holy saint, who died for the second time above eleven hundred years ago; seeing this work is strongly recommended by the editor, and is likely to obtain extensive circulation among English Papists, and perhaps Protestants, I think it of importance to my readers to be acquainted with the nature of the work, and the doctrines which it inculcates, which are throughout impious and idolatrous, yet expressed in language that wears an air of piety, and therefore more likely to deceive the simple and unwary. This is the sort of reading which Papists are providing for the many thousands of their children, who, at the expense of Protestants, are learning to read; and unless they are furnished with something better; unless the Bible is put into their hands, it may turn out that all our efforts to educate the popish youth, will have the effect of making them more subtle and confirmed idolaters. I could not tell how the bones of this saint were dug up and transported to Shrewsbury, some hundreds of years after her death;-of the miracles which these bones performed at the time of their translation, of which Robertus Salopiensis was an eyewitness; but I must pass over these trivial matters, and come to things of more importance. Christians, whose religion is derived from the Bible, believe that saints who have departed this life, are at rest with their Saviour in heaven, and that they have done with worldly cares. They believe that Christ himself has all power in heaven and earth, that he alone is intrusted with the management of his church, and that he takes a particular interest in the happiness of every individual member. But the poor slaves of Rome cannot look so high for protection and comfort. They are taught to trust in some fellow-creature of a saint, or in a company of saints, whose souls are supposed to be still ready to go about any business which their worshippers have in heaven: and their bodies, even to the least of their bones, nay their very clothes, and even the thongs which have tied their shoes, can perform wonderful cures on earth. But as no one saint, except the Virgin Mary, can do every thing, and be in all places at the same time, the church of Rome has made a very convenient distribution, and as distinct a division of labour among the saints in heaven, as any manufacturer on earth can make among his artificers. By this imaginary distribution, they first divide their saints into countries. St. James is appointed to take care of Spain St. Sebastin has the charge of Portugal: St. Denis of France: St. Mark of the Venetians: St. Nicholas of the Moscovites: St. Ambrose of Milan: the three Kings of the electorate of Cologne: St. Barbara of Germany, &c. Before the reformation, St. George had the charge of England, St. Andrew of Scotland, and St. Patrick of Ireland. Secondly, they subdivide the employment of the saints in these and other countries, after the several sorts of trades and professions of the people. St. Nicholas and St. Christopher have the oversight of seamen; St. Catherine is over the scholars; St. Austin takes care of the divines: St. Luke of the painters; St. Ivo of the lawyers; St. Eustachius of the hunters; St. Crispin of the shoemakers; St. Magdalene and St. Afra have the charge of those unhappy women who are no better than they should be. Some are even put to the most vile and degrading services; for instance, St. Anthony has the charge of swine; St. Pelagius of cows; St. Eulogius of horses; St. Vendeline and St. Gallus have the care of both sheep and geese. What mean ideas |