- Connell John
Germinating weather— Mr Thornton the Minister of the
foundery methodist chapel preached this morning, at the second
Presbyterian church, for Mr Wood— His text was from 1.
John 2.1—[“]If any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus
Christ, the righteous. 2. And he is the propitiation for our sins: and
not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.” A regular
calvinistic discourse of the old presbyterian school— Jesus is here an
Advocate with the father; being himself the propitiation for the sins of
the whole world— But if he is the advocate how can he be the judge? and
if he is the judge how can he be the propitiation? The rigid calvinists
consider the atonement by the death of the man Christ Jesus, as the
vital part of Christianity, and that whoever disbelieves it is no
Christian.— It is an example of what the human mind may be brought to
believe as a creed in conflict with common sense— It is too absurd to
bear one ray of the Sunbeam concentrated through the burning glass of
reason— There is an atonement for sin by the blood of Christ, proclaimed
in the New Covenant, and largely set forth in the Epistles of Paul. But it is not the calvinistic creed— Mr Thornton urged with great earnestness that
repentance could of itself have any efficacy to obtain the pardon of
sin— But what is sin? Lucretia
Motte to convince me that nothing less than the immediate
abolition of Slavery could satisfy her, said to me—why ’tis a Sin! Now if it be a Sin, has it been atoned for
by the blood of Christ? and if it has been atoned for, what need is
there either for the abolition of Slavery, or for repentance to take
away the Sin? The most incomprehensible thing to me in the calvinistic
atonement is how the crucifixion of Jesus more than 1800 years ago,
could atone for all the sins of all mankind from that time forth till
the end of the world— Mr Thornton said he
had promised Mr Wood that he would see to
his pulpit’s being supplied during his absence— And as Bishop Waugh would preach for him at
the foundery chapel this morning, he had concluded to take Mr Wood’s place himself— After the service,
walking home I witnessed a greeting between Mr Thornton, and Mr Penrose of Pennsylvania the
new Solicitor of the Treasury.— They had been old acquaintance at
Carlisle— After dinner at St. John’s Church,
Mr
Hawley read the Evening prayer for the 5th. Sunday in Lent, and preached from Job
31.14. “What then shall I do when God riseth up? and when he visiteth,
what shall I answer him?” Well was it for Mr
Hawley that with this verse he did not take the one immediately before
and the one immediately after it. Mr John Connell was here this
evening, much improved in Spirits; but he says the President is in great perplexity
about the appointment of a Collector of the Customs at Philadelphia— The
President has been yesterday and this day confined to his bed with a
vernal chill— I received this evening a Letter from Mr Lewis
Tappan of New-York and another from Messrs.
Jocelyn, Leavitt and Tappan the Committee for
the Amistad captives, which furnishes matter for much deliberation, and
deliberate meditation for me.