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point with us, he faid, That he neither could, nor intended to hinder any way the work we were about; though he could be more glad, to fee it publicly done in the Danish Church here. We replied, we would begin in our own house, till we received further orders from him. Coming home, we found the house crouded with people, to hear the word of God, whom we readily served as well as we could. But fome ill-difpofed men, highly displeased with our design, began to exclaim against it. However, this proved but a means to draw more people, and fome, even of the firft rank, would now and then come to hear us, so that the room in our house was hardly big enough to hold them. At last the Governor fent his fecretary, and enquired, whether we had a mind to preach once a week in the Church here ? We faid, we were ready for it at any time, if we had but the approbation of the Danish Minifters; which the Governor, after the removal of fome obstacles, brought about at laft. We presented the Danish Church with two and twenty pfalm-books. And from that time, viz. from the month of December 1706, we have conftantly continued to preach therein. We had abundance of difficulties to struggle with in carrying this point; but find now fuch a bleffing from thence, that it affords us matter of joy and comfort. By this means we had now a fair opportunity to lay the word of God before Heathens, Mahometans, and Chriftians. Truly, we often did not know, from whence to fetch the neceffary fupplies, to fupport both spirit and body; having been all along engaged from morning till night, to converse with all forts of people. But the Lord hath hitherto affifted us fo powerfully, that both Chriftians and Heathens begin to be convinced, that God is with us; especially fince they fee, that by his grace we endeavour to render our life and converfation conformable to the doctrine we preach.

We muft needs fay, that what we have undertaken hitherto, in fingleness of heart, has been attended with the conviction

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of many, and the converfion of fome fouls. The first of our baptismal acts was folemnly performed in the Danish Church with five Heathens, which were chriftened, after they had given an account of all the Articles of the Chriftian Faith. This they did with fuch readinefs of mind, that many old people were afhamed thereat, and we ourfelves convinced, they had a found fenfe of what they outwardly performed. Nay, God hath affifted us fo far, that we have been able to build a Church among the Malabarians here. In the name of God, and in hopes of being fupported by our King, we laid the foundation of it, beflowing thereon all we could poffibly Ipare from our yearly penfion. Every one that faw it, laughed at it as a filly and rafh defign, and cried us down for fots, venturing upon a thing, which, they thought, would certainly come to nothing. However, we profecuted our defign, a friend fending fifty rixdollars towards it. By this forwardnefs of our work, the enemies were confounded, and fome of them did then contribute fomething themselves; which proved no small comfort to us. Thus is the building finished at laft. It lies without the town, in the midst of a multitude of Malabarians, near the high road, built all of flone. It was confecrated the fourteenth of Auguft, which was the eighth Sunday after Trinity, in the prefence of a great conflux of Heathens, Mahometans and Chriftians; who had a fermon preached to them both in Portuguese and Malabarick.

This folemnity was performed to the no small aftonishment of abundance of people, who visibly discovered the finger of God attending us all along in this work. And thus we have now, for feven weeks together, performed the public fervice in our Jerufalem, (this being the name we have given to our new-built Church) by preaching, catechizing, and administering the facrament of the Lord's Supper. We continue alfo to preach every Wednesday, in our native language, in the Danish Church, called Sion. Every Sunday morning we preach in our Church Portuguese, and in the afternoon Ma

labarick,

labarick, each fermon being concluded with a fhort catechizing of children. The fame is obferved every Friday; only, that one day we perform it in Malabarisk, and the other in Portuguese. Multitudes of people flock together to hear us, Malabarians, Blacks, and Chriftians, every one being allowed to come in, let him be Heathen, Mahometan, Papist, or Proteftant. However, our fmall congregation more nearly committed to our charge, have their peculiar feats fitted up for them.

At this rate the work of God runs on amain. Our congregation confifts of fixty three perfons; and another is to be baptized to morrow. We hope, more will fhortly come over, there being pretty many up and down, that have already received a favourable impreffion of the Chriftian Religion. There is a blind man in our congregation, endued with a large measure of the Spirit of God, who begins to be very serviceable to us in the catechizing of others. He has fuch an holy zeal for Chriftianity, that every one is aftonished at his fervent and affectionate delivery in points of Religion. We cannot express, what a tender love we bear to our new planted congregation. Nay, our love is arrived to that degree; and our forwardness to serve that nation, is come to that pitch, that we are refolved to live and die with them; though, according to the tenor of our engagement, we might have liberty to return to Denmark after a stay of three or five years in this country. At least, we cannot harbour as yet any thoughts of returning home, though we be daily exposed to the perfecutions of our enemies on all fides, and taken up all the day long with uninterrupted business to carry on the defign once begun. I am fure you would wonder, if we should give you an account at large of all the oppofitions we have met with hitherto. Yet all thefe engines, fet on work by the devil, have only ferved the more gloriously to display the work of God, and to unite us the nearer to Him, who is the only fupport of the diftreffed. Heathens

and

and Mahometans are kind enough to us, and love to be in our company; notwithstanding we have all along laid open to them the vanity of their idolatrous and fuperftitious worhip. But those that pretend to be Christians, and are worse than Heathens at the bottom, have fhewn us all the fpite and malice they ever could. However, there is a remnant left among them too, that love to be fincerely dealt with.

[To be continued.]

Farther THOUGHTS on SEPARATION from the CHURCH.

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1. FROM

ROM a child I was taught to love and reverence the Scripture, the Oracles of God: and next to these, to efteem the Primitive Fathers, the Writers of the three firft centuries. Next after the Primitive Church, I esteemed our own, the Church of England, as the most Scriptural, National Church in the world, I therefore, not only affented to all the doctrines, but observed all the rubric in the Liturgy and that with all poffible exactnefs, even at the peril of my life.

2. In this judginent, and with this spirit I went to America, Arongly attached to the Bible, the Primitive Church, and the Church of England, from which I would not vary in one jot or tittle on any account whatever. In this fpirit I returned as regular a Clergyman as any in the three kingdoms: till after not being permitted to preach in the Churches, I was con trained to preach in the open air.

3. Here was my firft irregularity. And it was not voluntary but conftrained, The fecond was extemporary prayer. This likewife I believed to be my bounden duty, for the fake of those who defired me to watch over their fouls. I could not in confcience refrain from it: neither from accepting thofe, who defired to ferve me as fens in the Gospel.

4. When

When the people joined together, fimply to help each other to heaven, increafed by hundreds and thousands, ftill they had no more thought of leaving the Church than of leaving the kingdom. Nay, I continually and earnestly cautioned them againt it reminding them that we were a part of the Church of England, whom God had raifed up, not only to fave our own fouls, but to enliven our neighbours, thofe of the Church in particular. And at the first meeting of all our Preachers in Conference, in June 1744, I exhorted them to keep to the Church, obferving, that this was our peculiar glory, Not to form any New Sect, but abiding in our own Church, to do to all men all the good we poffibly could.

5. But as more Diffenters joined with us, many of whom were much prejudiced againft the Church, these, with or with out defign, were continually infufing their own prejudices into their brethren. I faw this, and gave warning of it from time to time, both in private and in public. And in the year 1758, I refolved to bring the matter to a fair iffue. So I defired the point might be confidered at large, Whether it was expedient for the Methodists to leave the Church? The ar guments on both fides were difcuffed for several days; and at length we agreed, without a diffenting voice, "It is by no means expedient that the Methodists fhould leave the Church of England."

6. Nevertheless, the fame leaven continued to work, in various parts of the kingdom. The grand argument (which in fome particular cases must be acknowledged to have weight) was this: "The Minifter of the parish wherein we dwell, neither lives nor preaches the Gofpel. He walks in the way to hell himself, and teaches his flock to do the fame. Can you advise them to attend his preaching?" I cannot advise them to it. "What then can they do, on the Lord's-day, fuppofe no other Church be near? Do you advise them to go to a diffenting Meeting? Or to meet in their own Preaching-houfe?" Where this is really the cafe, I cannot blame them if they do. Although

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