support of the charge alleged against the members of the Church, Bernard, Abbot of Clairvaux, at the close of the eleventh and former half of the twelfth century, occupies high rank. Besides making frequent mention of the Virgin, he wrote homilies in her praise. In one place, having affirmed that the word Mary signifies "Star of the Sea," and endeavoured to show its appropriate application, he thus proceeds to exhort his hearers: "If the waves of temptation arise, if thou runnest against the rocks of tribulation, look to the Star, called Mary. If passion, or avarice, or the allurement of the flesh, toss the little bark of thy mind, look to Mary. If disturbed by the heinousness of thy crimes, confused by the foulness of thy conscience, terrified by the horror of judgment, thou beginnest to be swallowed up in the gulf of sorrow, the abyss of despair, think on Mary. In perils, in difficulties, in matters of doubt, think upon Mary, invoke Mary. Let her not depart from thy mouth, let her not depart from thy heart; and, that thou mayest obtain the suffrage of her prayers, forsake not the example of her conversation. Following her, thou wanderest not; beseeching her, thou despairest not; thinking of her, thou errest not. She herself upholding thee, thou sinkest not into ruin; she herself protecting thee, thou fearest not; she herself leading thee, thou art not fatigued; she herself being propitious to thee, thou obtainest; and thus, in thine ownself, thou dost experience how deservedly it is said, And the name of the Virgin was Mary."

Here, also, is a " prayer of Saint Bernard to the blessed Virgin," extracted from a Roman Catholic book of devotion, printed at Cork in 1836: "Remember, O most pious Virgin, it is a thing unheard of, that thou ever forsakest those who have recourse to thee. Encouraged with this hope and confidence, my most dear Mother, I, a most miserable sinner, cast myself at thy sacred feet, humbly begging that thou wilt adopt me as thy son for ever, and take upon thee the care of my eter

nal salvation. Do not, Mother of the Word Incarnate, reject my petition, but graciously hear and grant it. Amen!"

St. Bonaventure, Cardinal Bishop of Albano, is accounted one of the most eminent Saints of the Roman Church. He lived in the middle and latter part of the thirteenth century. He wrote many pieces in honour of Mary: among them, his "Psalter" is, perhaps, the best known. In this, taking the hundred and fifty Psalms, this " seraphic Doctor so changes the commencement of each as to address them, not to the one only Jehovah, but to the Virgin Mary. So offensive to some Papists is this undeniable specimen of direct invocation and religious worship, addressed and paid to Mary, that they have ventured to affirm, that it has been put into the Index of Prohibited Books; and others to assert, that the book was not written by him. In reply to these assertions, it is sufficient to state, that a careful examination of all the "Indexes" has demonstrated that the "Psalter of Bonaventure" is not to be found in them; and as to its spuriousness, it is placed in the body of the Vatican edition of his works, published under the auspices of Sixtus V., the editors of which state, that they have thrown into the appendix the works whose genuineness has been at all doubted: and it has been recommended in the strongest terms by the highest authority in the Church; for the Bull issued by Sixtus, and prefixed to the first volume of the works, stamps the "Psalter" with his decided approbation.

A few specimens of the devotions thus provided by Bonaventure will serve to exhibit their character, and at the same time show what the Romanist actually does, though he does not WORSHIP Mary: "Blessed is the man that loveth thy name, O Virgin Mary; thy grace shall strengthen his heart." "As a fertile spot, irrigated by fountains of water, thou shalt plant in him the fruit of righteousness." "In thee, O Lady, have I put my trust; let me never be confounded in thy

grace uphold me. Thou art my strength and my refuge: my consolation and my protection. Unto thee, O Lady, have I cried, when my heart was troubled; and thou hast heard me from the top of the everlasting hills. Draw me out of the pit which they have laid privily for me; for thou art my helper. Into thy hands, O Lady, I commend my spirit; my whole life, and my last day." "We praise thee, the Mother of God; we acknowledge thee, Mary, the Virgin. All the earth doth venerate thee, (veneratur,) the spouse of the eternal Father. To thee all angels and archangels, to thee thrones and principalities, do service!" "O Lady, save thy people, that we may be partakers of thy Son's inheritance "Vouchsafe, O sweet Mary, to keep us now and ever without sin." "In thee do we hope, O sweet Mary; do thou defend us eternally!" "Hail, O Virgin, end of wrath! purge our faults, and grant to us, the course of this world being ended, that we may not be confounded for our sins!"

Alphonso Liguori, who died in 1787, aged ninety, and who was canonized by Gregory XVI. on the 26th of May, 1839, composed a number of prayers and hymns in honour of the Virgin Mary. His writings having been rigorously examined, have been declared to contain nothing worthy of censure; and this sentence was approved by Pius VII., in 1803. We may, therefore, conclude, that the sentiments of this reputed saint are actually those of the modern Romish Church; or, at all events, that they are so wherever, Protestantism being absent, Romanism may speak and act without reserve. In one of his works,-"The Glories of Mary, Mother of God,"-these sentences occur: Albertus Magnus says, that Mary was prefigured by Queen Esther; of whom we read in holy Scripture that she had been raised to the throne for the preservation of her brethren, the Jewish people. What Mordecai said to this woman, poor sinners may address to Mary: Imagine not, omnipotent and ever

glorious Virgin, that God has elevated you to the dignity of Queen, merely for your personal honour and advantage, but rather that you may mediate and obtain pardon for men, your offending brethren. And if Assuerus heard the prayer of Esther, through love, will not God, who has an infinite love for Mary, fling away at her suit the thunderbolts which he was going to hurl on wretched

sinners?" And from the same: 'Hope of the universe, my only hope, come to my assistance!"

Nor does the present Pope at all recede from the position thus occupied. In his encyclical letter, on his election to the Pontificate, issued May 5th, 1832, and not since reclaimed against, (so that thus, by tacit consent, it becomes judidicium irreformabile,) he says, "That she who has been through every great calamity our patroness and protectress, may watch over us writing to you, (lit., may stand over us propitious,'-nobis adstet propitia,) and lead our mind by her heavenly influence-(lit., 'by her heavenly inspiration '-cœlesti aflatu suo) to those counsels which may prove most salutary to Christ's flock."-Laity's Directory, 1833, p. 2.

That which is thus taught by the Doctors of the Church may be looked for, of course, in the formularies of the Church. The passages which refer to these doctrines, and reduce them to practice, have been repeatedly given to the world, and prove, not, it seems, beyond contradiction, but certainly beyond any thing like fair disproof, that the Vir gin Mary is directly worshipped in the Roman Church. Sacred festivals are held in her honour, and language used, the effect of which cannot be otherwise than a complete mental repose and satisfaction in the power of one, who is yet acknowledged, when controversy arises, to be only a creature, although it might be said, that the various attributes supposed to belong to her, would represent her, if something less than Creator, yet much more than a mere creature. The "Salve Regina" hymn may be taken as a specimen of the rest :

Solve vincla reis,
Profer lumen cæcis,
Mala nostra pelle,
Bona cuncta posce.
Monstra te esse matrem,
Sumat per te preces
Qui pro nobis natus,
Tulit esse tuus.
Virgo singularis
Inter omnes mitis,
Nos culpis solutos,
Mites fac el castos,
Vitam præsta puram,
Iter para tutum,

Ut videntes Jesum
Semper collatemur.

"Loosen the chains of the guilty,
Present light to the blind,
Drive away our evils,

Ask (for us) all good things.
Show thyself to be Mother;

Let Him receive by thee (our) prayers
Who for us was born,

And condescended to be thine.

O singular Virgin,

Meek above all others!

Us, released from our sins,

Make both meek and chaste.
Grant (us) a pure life,
Prepare (us) a safe journey,
That, beholding Jesus,

We may always rejoice together!"

The various devotional works current among the members of the Roman Church, abound with such addresses. Thus, in one printed at Dublin, (Coyne, 1839,) this language occurs: "O holy Mary, merciful Queen of heaven! Daughter of God the Father, Mother of God the Son, Spouse of the Holy Spirit, noble Couch of the whole Trinity; elected by the Father, preserved by the Son, beloved by the Holy Ghost; overshadowed by the Father, inhabited by the Son, filled with all grace by the Holy Ghost! THROUGH THEE, AND FOR THEE, may I be blessed by God the Father, who created me; may I be blessed by God the Son, who redeemed me; may I be blessed by God the Holy Ghost, who sanctified me in baptism; and may the most sacred Trinity, through thy intercession, receive my soul at the hour of death!"

Only another address of the kind shall be quoted. It is, "A Prayer to be offered before the image of the most holy Madonna of Salvation, venerated in the church of St. Francesco a Ripa." This is one of the churches at Rome, and before an

66

altar in it this prayer is hung up, and copies of it are given away: "O true source of life, O perennial fountain of all our salvation, great Queen of heaven, most holy Mary, who by your incomparable virtues have been so dear to the eyes of God, who hast merited to conceive in your virgin womb Jesus Christ, the Author of life, and therewith to become the mother of a God made man; become also the compassionate mother of us wretched mortals. Turn towards me, I beseech you, the benignant eye of your mercy. Extend to me the strong arm of your most powerful patronage, to regard my manifold bodily and spiritual miseries, and to raise me from the sink of my most grievous transgressions. And as you were pre-chosen, among all women, to give the universal divine Restorer to a lost world, permit wretched me, my most amiable Lady, to choose you for my special advocate, in order that by the favour of your most powerful intercession, I may obtain of His divine Majesty, together with the graces necessary for me, perfect health of body; so that I may better serve you, and praise you, together with your blessed Son, in this life, and finally may obtain eternal health of soul; and may jointly love and enjoy you through the whole of a blessed eternity in heaven. Amen!"

Such being the direction given to the public mind, no wonder that the masses completely receive it, and think, feel, speak, and act, according to the influence under which they are thus continually placed. Practically, though the names of Father, Son, and Spirit are mentioned, the real application is made to Mary; the real confidence is placed in Mary. And thus is it found by travellers in Roman Catholic countries. In England, Romanists are on their guard; and, to a greater extent than they are aware, Protestant influences are brought to bear on their habits of thought and feeling, modifying them so much, that they do not furnish anything like a fair specimen of the real Romanist mind and character. Por

tugal, Spain, Italy, Austria,-these are the countries in which the masses of the population are to be observed; and the repeated, unequivocal, demonstrative testimony of travellers, -even of modern travellers,-is, that the Virgin Mary is the great object of Roman Catholic devotion. And thus does Popery break, and teach men to break, the positive commandments of God,-command

ments summed up by our Lord himself, in the memorable sentence given in the beginning of this paper,"Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.” And if these words do not forbid the practice of Mary-worship, there are no words in Scripture by which any practice whatsoever is forbidden. E. T.

THE Annual Meeting of the Irish Conference was held this year in the city of Cork, commencing on Friday morning, June 25th, and closing on Thursday evening, July 1st. The Rev. Robert Newton, President of the British Conference, presided. He was accompanied by the Rev. John Bowers, of Leeds; and the Rev. Walter O. Croggon attended as the General Superintendent of the Irish Missions and Schools. The Preparatory Committees began to meet on the Tuesday preceding; and it was found that, on the whole, the finances of the Irish Methodist Connexion were in an advancing state, and the numbers in society increased by above two hundred. many parts of the country there are still great difficulties to be contended with; yet the Lord continues to bless the efforts of his servants, and in many places to crown those efforts with success.

In

The whole of the business of the Conference was conducted in great harmony, and much union appeared among the Preachers.

The public religious services on the Sabbath were attended by large and attentive congregations; and a divine blessing_seemed to rest on the people. At the Patrick's-street chapel the President preached at noon, and Mr. Bowers in the evening. The services connected with the reception of five young men into full connexion with the Conference, and their ordination to the sacred office, by the imposition of hands, produced a powerful effect, as well as the excellent charge delivered by the President.

Two Supernumerary Preachers have finished their course during the past year. Nine young men, well recommended, have been received by the Con

ference; four of whom proceed to the Theological Institution in London, and the others are appointed to Circuits or Missions.

We learn, with pleasure, that a Wesleyan-Methodist School Society, for Ireland, has been agreed upon at the Conference, having for its object the extension of Wesleyan daily schools throughout Ireland.

When the Stations, as arranged by the Committee, were brought into the Conference, they were read twice, and confirmed without a single alteration. This expedited the business of the Conference considerably; so that the Preachers left the city, and returned to their work, thus providentially escaping the awful scenes of disorder, confusion, and bloodshed, that took place at the election immediately after.

The societies in Ireland are in peace; the Preachers are one in mind and heart; and we trust that the next year will be pregnant with good to this interesting but afflicted country.

The Irish Methodist Connexion suffers grievously, from year to year, by means of emigration. In consequence of incessant political agitation, and the per secuting spirit of Popery, in many places life and property are insecure; so that honest and industrious Protestant fami lies repair to distant countries in pursuit of that quiet and protection which they cannot obtain in the land of their fathers. During the past year nearly ONE THOUSAND members of the Methodist societies have thus been separated from their connexions, to the injury of the good cause which they had espoused, and the discouragement of their Pastors and religious friends. No class of men are more justly entitled to the affection

ate sympathy, and the prayers, of Protestant Christians, than the Wesleyan Ministers in Ireland. Their labours are

severe, and their privations great; but "their judgment is with the Lord, and their work with their God."

THE Annual Conference of the Wesleyan Methodist Ministers was this year held in Manchester. A much larger number of Preachers than usual assembled on the present occasion: at one time not fewer than five hundred and twenty were in the town. Notwithstanding the largeness of the number,-and it ought to be added, notwithstanding that general commercial depression in which Manchester has had to participate,-provision for the entertainment of the Ministers of the Connexion, thus assembled for the transaction of its important business, was abundantly made, and the Preachers left Manchester, the work which had called them there being concluded, with a very thankful sense of the affectionate hospitality of their numerous friends.

As usual, the various Preparatory Committees assembled some days before the official commencement of the Conference. This, as we suppose is now generally known, is always fixed for the last Wednesday in the month of July. On the 28th of July, therefore, according to the appointment of the last year's Conference, held at Newcastle-upon-Tyne, the Wesleyan Ministers assembled at Oldham-street chapel, Manchester, to hold the Conference for 1841. After the customary opening services, and the usual attention to the necessary business of filling up the vacancies occasioned in the legal hundred by superannuations and deaths, the Preachers proceeded to the election of a President for the coming year. Their choice fell upon the Rev. James Dixon. The Rev. John Hannah, D. D., was re-elected to the office of Secretary; as were the Rev. John Bowers and the Rev. Isaac Keeling, to that of Sub-Secretaries. other officers having been re-appointed or appointed, (as the case might be,) the regular business of the Conference proceeded in its usual order.

The

The "Annual Minutes" for the present year will show the various and important subjects to which the attention of the Conference was directed during its various sittings: to these, as containing the official Resolutions upon these different subjects, the more particular attention of the reader is referred.

Our limits will only allow a brief and passing notice to some of the principal topics.

The returns from the different Circuits, &c., of the number of members in the societies under the pastoral charge of the Conference, disclosed a net increase, in the course of the year, of 11,565; the total number of members being 440,294. Of this increase it is a very pleasing circumstance that no fewer than 5,730, being about half of the entire amount, has arisen on the Missionary stations. Besides this, however, it appeared from the schedules brought to Conference, that the number of persons on trial for admission into the Wesleyan societies amounts to no less than 16,825. May the good work which we trust has commenced in these persons, be carried on to their full establishment and final salvation !

The number of deaths among the Wesleyan Ministers during the past year was reported to be twenty-eight. In this solemn record of mortality, the reading of which is always productive of very powerful feelings, were not a few much-honoured names; some of those who, though for several years they had been unable to pursue their wonted labours, remained to the last, calmly waiting for their change; while others referred to brethren of whom it might truly be said that their sun had gone down while yet it was noon. The Conference was especially affected by hearing read, on the list of those who had thus departed in the faith of the Gospel, and rested from their labours, the name of its late President, the Rev. Theophilus Lessey. This eminent Minister, it will be recollected, was elected President by the Liverpool Conference, in 1839. During the sittings of the Conference he discharged the duties of his office fully to the satisfaction of his brethren: soon afterwards, however, symptoms of serious indisposition appeared, which, though sometimes seeming to open a prospect of recovery, yet gradually became more decided till no doubt remained as to what was their real character, and what would be their ultimate issue. of these lamented Ministers of Christ, or of the others who have this year

But