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Friendly Letters to the Society of Friends
Friendly Letters to the Society of Friends Author:Ralph Wardlaw Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: LETTER III. THE SAME SUBJECT CONTINUED. Respected Friends, In the conclusion of my last letter, I had just announced a fourth general observation, ... more »in regard to the standard of religious truth and duty. I repeat the terms in which it was then stated, and proceed with the consideration of it:—" That the " modern revelations of Quakerism, even on the as- " sumption of their being genuine, and of their be- " ing certified to the mind of the individual with " divine assurance,—yet can be of avail, so far as " their authority is concerned, and the consequent " obligation they impose, to him only who receives "t/iem. How are they to avail for others?"—The question is one of essential moment—How are they attested ? Whatever assurance inspired men had of old, that " the Divinity stirred within them," and that the intimations to their minds were from Him, —this assurance was exclusively their own. They could not convey it to other minds. It was of too peculiar a nature, to be known otherwise than by experience. Hence they required credentials of their commission, and of the divine authority of their message. They performed miracles ; they delivered predictions. If any man, therefore, now assures us of his being " moved by the Holy Spirit," like the " holy men of God" by whom the divine oracles were delivered of old, we are fully entitled to demand his credentials; to say to him, " What sign showest thou, that we may see it and believe thee ?" In what other way is the revelation given to one man to have authority with another? Must we, in all cases, take it upon trust; and, whenever a man—let the excellence of his character be what it may—is pleased to assure us that " the Spirit moveth him" to make any particular communication, must we accept it simply on his word, and defe...« less