Records of the Life of the Rev. John Murray/Chapter IX.
CHAPTER IX.
Conclusion.
"And now the feverish dream of Life is o'er."
HAD we talents, we would exhibit a portrait of the deceased: But, besides that we feel ourselves inadequate to a task so arduous, we are not perfectly convinced of its propriety. Friendship might be too warm, and admiration too lavish. His colleague has been his eulogist, and no friend of the deceased will pronounce the panegyric an exaggeration. Perhaps it does not contain a more just, or a more happy paragraph than the following: "Without a second to aid him, you saw him pass along these shores from Maryland to New-Hampshire, like the lonely Pelican of the wilderness, publishing, as with the voice of an angel, the tidings of everlasting life to the whole world, in the name, and through the mission of our Lord Jesus Christ."
It has been said that persuasion dwelt upon the lips of our philanthropist. The pages of recollection furnish many instances of his powerful, and soul-subduing eloquence. We are impelled to select, from the fading Record, two facts, which are well authenticated:—
A London mob had assembled in great force, with the most destructive and murderous designs. Time-honoured edifices were to be demolished, and the weapons of death to be pointed at the most valuable lives. This scene of riot was exhibited during the troubles relative to Mr. Wilkes; all was tumult and tremendous uproar; an attempt at reasoning was stifled by outrageous clamour; the efforts of peace officers were fruitless, and the military was on the point of being called into action, when Mr. Murray, returning from some religious meeting to his peaceful home, found himself in the midst of the infuriated rioters, and instantly mounting a stand, which opportunely presented, he harangued the lawless multitude; and, by soothing their prejudices, addressing their passions, and pointing out the only legitimate steps for the purpose of obtaining redress, he first obtained silence, next softened and ameliorated their passions, and finally dispersed without mischief a most enraged populace. A nobleman, seizing him by the hand, impressively said, "Young man, I thank you; I am ignorant of your name, but I bear testimony to your wonderful abilities. By your exertions, much blood and treasure have this night been saved."
The second instance which we present is nearer home. A motion was made in the legislature of a sister state, then province, to raise a sum of money for the relief of the Bostonians, suffering from the severe decrees of a British ministry. Mr. Murray attended the debates; the motion was seconded, and supported, with spirit and judgment, and it was opposed with some violence, and little reason. It was put to vote, and lost by a majority of twelve persons; Mr. Murray's particular adherents voting against it. It happened he was, on that day, to dine at the house of a Doctor B———, one of the triumphant majority, with several gentlemen on the same side of the question, when his powerful animadversions, and reasoning upon the subject, wrought so great a revolution, as to produce a reconsideration of the vote, and the motion for succouring the Bostonians, passed by a majority of nine persons.
Mr. Murray has been accused of licentious opinions and practices. His letters to his friends would fill many volumes; addressed to the private ear of those he best loved, they ought to decide upon his opinions; and, for his life, perhaps no man of abilities so stinted was ever a greater blessing to mankind. We indulge ourselves with giving one letter, written to the son of a most intimate friend:—
"You are placed at school for two purposes; the improvement of your understanding, and the formation of virtuous principles. It cannot be doubted that the improvement of the heart is esteemed by those to whom you are most dear, beyond the most cultivated intellect. It is your business to unite these estimable objects; your heart and understanding should be emulous in pursuit of excellence. Ethics, improved and elevated by the christian religion, become the guides to real wisdom and solid happiness; these they could never have attained in the schools of heathen philosophy. It is not expected that you should thus early be engaged in the profound disquisitions of theology. The plain doctrines of the religion, which it is hoped you will profess, have been explained to you; but the principal business is to open your heart for the reception of those sentiments and principles, which will conduce to the direction of your actions, in the employments and engagements of your subsequent life. Permit me, however, to remind you of the necessity of reading the scriptures, that is, of drinking the sacred waters at the fountain head. But, to read the scriptures with advantage, judgment is necessary, and as your judgment is not yet matured, you must submit to the direction of your instructors. The plainest, and most perspicuous passages will, for the present, best deserve and reward your attention. The historical parts of the Old Testament will entertain you, if you consider them only in a classical point of view, as valuable passages of ancient history; but I would call your attention more immediately to the books which are most replete with moral instruction, such as the Proverbs of Solomon, the Wisdom of the Son of Sirach, and the admirable book entitled, Ecclesiasticus. I trust the time will come, when the prophecies will most pleasingly instruct you; at present you will peruse them for the poetical beauties, which they confessedly display. Isaiah abounds with fine passages of this description, and Jeremiah is by no means deficient in this line. You have no doubt read Pope's Messiah, and could not but have observed, that its most pleasing imagery is selected from Isaiah. If you read the Old Testament with a taste for its beauties, you will accomplish two important purposes; you will acquire a knowledge of the Holy Bible, which is your duty, and you will improve your taste and judgment. The New Testament requires the attention of every one, who professes himself a christian. You must read it with that humility, which becomes a finite being, but more particularly a young person; you will do well to pay especial attention to the sermon on the Mount, and to that admirable epitome of all moral philosophy, the rule of doing to others, as we would they should do unto us. If you pay due obedience to this precept, you will never hesitate in determining what part you are, upon every occasion, to act. It is proper you should familiarize your mind to the language of scripture; although you may not fully comprehend the sacred writings, you will thus treasure up in your memory many useful passages, which may become in future highly consolatory. An early acquaintance with the letter of the old and new testaments, has been found substantial props through lengthening years; but all this, my dear young friend, will avail but little, unless you add thereto prayer and praise. Make it therefore a rule, never to be violated, to pray night and morning. The Redeemer, while clothed in humanity, earnestly and fervently addressed the Deity; forget not, therefore, to offer your private addresses to the Father of your spirit, at retiring to rest, and with the early dawn. Your age is the age of inadvertence; you enjoy health, and you are a stranger to the cares of the world. Cheerfulness does indeed become you, but let me pray you to consider the value of time, and the importance of appropriating it to wisdom. Consider your parents; the anxiety they experience upon your account; most ardently do they desire your improvement. Laudably ambitious, they are solicitous that you should be eminent, in whatever profession or employment you may be destined to engage. To see you contemptible, would fill them with the extreme of anguish; and, trust me, nothing will rescue you from contempt, but individual merit, a good disposition, adorned by literature, and embellished by the lighter accomplishments, and especially elevated by christianity. Your parents have laboured indefatigably, to promote you; but it remains with yourself to give success to their endeavours. The mind is not like a vessel, into which we may pour any good quality, whatever the director may choose; it is rather like a plant, which, by the operation of its own internal powers, imbibes the nutriment afforded by the earth. I repeat; it is certain, that instructors can serve you only, in conjunction with your own efforts. Let me then entreat you to exert yourself, if you have any regard for those parents, whose happiness so much depends upon your conduct; if you have any regard for your own honour, felicity, and prosperity; if you hope to be useful, and respected in society.
If the testimony of respectable cotemporaries; of men who disdained flattery, and whose judgment was unquestionable; who delighted to address our departed friend in the strains of panegyric—if these vouchers were permitted to decide in his favour, we could produce a cloud of witnesses. We content ourselves with a few extracts, from the many letters which might be produced. General Greene thus writes: "You may remember, I promised you a letter at the close of every campaign. Had I the tongue of a Murray to proclaim, or the pen of a Robertson to record, the occurrences of this campaign should be delineated to the honour of America. The Monmouth battle, and the action upon Rhode-Island, were no small triumphs to us, who had so often been necessitated to turn our backs. To behold our fellows, chasing the British off the field of battle, afforded a pleasure, which you can better conceive, than I describe. If, my dear Murray, I had before been an unbeliever, I have had sufficient evidence of the intervention of Divine Providence, to reclaim me from infidelity; my heart, I do assure you, overflows with gratitude to Him, whose arm is mightier than all the Princes of the earth. In the midst of difficulties, and I have encountered many, my heart reverts to you; were you addressing me from the pulpit, you could convince me that considering the World to which I am hastening, I have not the least cause of complaint—I sigh for an opportunity of listening to the music of your voice.
"Are you and the priests upon any better terms? Or are they as mad with you as ever? Well, go on, and prosper, and may God bless you to the end of the chapter." Again, General Greene writes: "It is, my dear sir, a long time since you and I have had a friendly meeting. God only knows when we shall be thus blest. It is impossible for me to give you an adequate idea of the distress of the once happy people of New Jersey; I know your fancy is lively, and your genius fertile; give your faculties full scope, in drawing a picture, and it will still fall far short of the original. How greatly would you be pained were you present; you who sympathize with every thing in distress, and feel, and share the miseries of all around you. Oh, my dear friend, may God preserve you from such complicated distress. Soon after you left me upon Long Island, I was seized with a violent fit of sickness; my restoration was unexpected, but my health is now confirmed. Oh what would I give for a few hours uninterrupted conversation with our dear Murray. I beseech you to visit Mrs. Greene in Coventry." One more extract from the letters of General Greene shall suffice. "Once more, on the close of the campaign, I am to announce to my very dear friend, that I am still an inhabitant of this globe. We have had a hard and bloody campaign, yet we ought rather to dwell upon the mercies we have received, than to repine because they are not greater. But man is a thankless creature; yet you, dear Murray, know, that the mercies of God are happily proportioned to our weakness. Retired to winter quarters, the social passions once more kindled into life. Love and friendship triumph over the heart, and the sweet pleasure of domestic happiness, call to remembrance my once happy circle of friends, in which you my dear Sir, appear in the first rank. My friendship for you is indeed of the warmest description. My attachment was not hastily formed, and it will not easily be relinquished. I early admired your talents; your morals have earned my esteem; and neither distance nor circumstances will diminish my affection."
The subjoined extracts are from letters written by gentlemen of high respectability, in the mercantile, literary, and christian world. The first extract is from a letter, soliciting a visit from the Preacher.
"The grand, the glorious expedition, in which you are engaged, to disseminate truth, and knowledge; the assurances we can give you how little is known here, and how eagerly it is wished, that the ways of God to man should be made manifest, will I trust induce you to make an exertion in our behalf. My ardent prayer is for your life, and health. The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few; yet I trust in God, that the beams of light will irradiate this benighted world, and that he will accelerate that eternal day, when the Son shall give up the kingdom to the Father, and God shall be all in all."
"You solicit me to write; my writing can afford you no novelty, for what intellectual ground is there, that you have not trod, or that I can mark out, which you have not before observed. I am wearied with reiterated reflection, and I pant for that sky, where I may range without confinement. The simple truths of the gospel please me much. I rest in confidence that Christ died for me, rose again for my justification, and will make me completely blessed; that I am essentially united to, and a part of that nature, which pervades all space, and a spark of that fire, that shall escape to heaven, its native seat. I recollect your preaching with pleasure, and I bless God for the light he has been pleased to convey to my mind, through your instrumentality; may your labours be blest with success; but I predict the genuine Gospel labourers will be but few. Poor man! you must stand singly opposed, without human aid: be persuaded that the conflict will be inferior to your strength. I really despise the world, for their treatment of you; but you know who says, "Be of good cheer, I have overcome the World." What mildness was there in the majesty of the person of the Redeemer! He could have been no other than the Deity, enrobed in a mantle of flesh. I venerate the liberal, the magnanimous principles of your general and your colonel; and I love them for their friendship for you, and the estimation in which they hold you. It is so rare to meet with liberal and enlarged minds, that when I do, I exult at the discovery, and my soul leaps to embrace them. Should you have a vacant moment, you will do well to fill it by writing to us, your children."
"Never, my dear Murray, can I forget you, while memory holds her seat in this benighted vale. The impressions are too lasting to be effaced, and so deeply are they marked together, that, when the ideas of the great redemption arise in my mind, those of Relly and Murray, are inseparable therefrom, as the mediums through which sublime truth beamed upon my soul. I am desirous of anticipating that adult age, you so beautifully describe, when knowledge shall be conveyed, not by the obstructed tongue, or tardy pen, but by intuition. But, my dear sir, you must wait till that expected day, before I can tell you how much I esteem, how much I love you. Among a number of things you have taught me, I reckon it not the least, that the disposal of human affairs is in the direction of a Being, whose operations will always produce the best consequences. I, however, find it difficult to suppress the indignation I feel at the treatment you receive. What shall cure these distempered minds? what shall compose the tumult of their frenzy, or rouse their feverish repose? not the skill of an Isaiah, nor the prayers of a Paul; nothing short of the prescription of the grand Physician, who is the Healer of the Nations, and the application of that tree, whose leaf is for medicine. My wishes for you in this case are vain; but I can never appreciate the aspirations of my heart; not that you may be exempt from the conflict, but that you may conquer, and you will conquer; your reward is above, secure from the rage of impotent man, and the invasion of the grand adversary of human nature."
"To be possessed of your confidence and frindship, would be flattering to me in the highest degree. My wishes are to deserve both. You do indeed appear to me a chosen one, an elect soul. Call these expressions extravagant if you please, but they are as far short of what I feel, as language is inadequate to the expression of the refined taste of the mind."
"Among the almost innumerable systems, respecting our nature, being, and our end, in which the world has been so perplexed, and have exposed themselves so variously, none claims so fair a title to truth as the one you promulgate. But the world have not so liberally attributed goodness to Deity. Our benignant religion develops the goodness of God in the enlightening sun, the fructifying rain, the cheering wine, and the nutritious bread; in short, in a thousand million examples, with which nature so liberally abounds. Indeed we should seldom be unhappy, did we more constantly realize the presence of a redeeming God. I admire the candour of your mind, which is ever stepping forth, as the advocate of your friends, although I may occasionally drop from that stand in your friendship, which it would be my pride to maintain; it is a persuasion, which I can never relinquish, that the wanderings of my heart may be reclaimed in an instant. Your letters are present with me, they are under my pillow; I bind them to me as phylacteries, and I attentively watch for a moment of leisure, to acknowledge them. Murray, should you pass out of time before me, I should experience some exquisitely painful sensations. O! may you be for a long, long time to come, invulnerable to the shafts of disease; yet why should I wish to turn the dart, that will give you passport to a life of bliss and immortality! You who agonize at the present state of existence. No, let me neither accelerate, nor retard, even by a wish, that period of humanity, but invoke our common Father that we may be strengthened by the way, and with faith and patience quietly wait the expected release."
"Your letter, my dear Murray, is like a great magazine, full of instruction and entertainment. Were I to attempt to give it due and just consideration, I should write a volume, and probably not succeed at last. You say, and I believe it, that we shall be built up again upon a superior principle. The world is so involved in the wicked one, that I am really glad to find any one willing to allow the goodness of God, in any view; it is at least one step toward a just way of thinking. I pray you to be content with your present standing, you are too infirm to visit far from home; where you speak, you are heard by many strangers, who enter your Capital, whom you know not, but who hear, and know you; so I think your station is clearly pointed out, to which you do well to adhere. I regret exceedingly, that I cannot attend your expositions of the ceremonial Law, in which I understand you are engaged. Those laws are a deep and rich mine of instruction. The Scriptures are One, like a great Epic; their action is One, the Restoration of a lost Nature. The subordinate parts evidently point to the great Head and captain of our salvation. Go on, my dear Sir, and may you be the means of bringing many sons to glory. Allow me to say, you ought to write more frequently; your diligence and activity are well known to me, but it seems incumbent upon you to give to the world your explanations of the sacred writings. Yes, I repeat, you would do well to bestow some portion of your time to record and elucidate, many passages which, when you are gone, may speak for you. The event of your death, however dreaded, must be met by the greater part of your hearers, and, although they may have remaining to them the sacred writings, yet you are aware, that a preacher is necessary. I have compared you to some of the general elements of life, whose good and salubrious existences are not known, until they are lost. I consider you employed in removing the scales from the darkened eye, fortifying the timid mind against the approaching dissolution of nature, securing it from the blandishments of delusion, and leading it to arm against the terrors of calamity and pain. I myself am indebted to you in hundreds of instances for light, and most important information. I need not repeat my best wishes to you; they present themselves to me in full, whenever your memory occurs to me. I feel that it is hereafter, when you and I are liberated, that I shall derive a part of my happiness from the perfection of your friendship. May the least and lightest pains infest you here; this is the utmost a mortal dare wish, or request."
"Yes, my dear Sir, I am now sensible of the value of existence; and the assurance of immortality has become my greatest happiness. The time was, when, to my serious moments, immortality appeared garbed in horror; many a time have I wished I had never been born; but, blessed change, I can now perceive that light, which shined in me, even then,—although my darkness comprehended it not; but, blessed be God, my eyes are at length opened. O! may God, all-gracious, watch over you, and preserve you from every evil. The Almighty in great mercy hath loaned you to a benighted world; may the rich blessing be long continued."
"Gratitude, dear and honoured Sir, calls upon me to acknowledge my great obligations for the glorious declaration of those important truths, of which, until I had the pleasure of seeing Mr. Murray, I was entirely ignorant. From that blessed era, I date the commencement of my terrestrial felicity. It is to you, as an instrument, I am indebted for a glimpse of the beautiful harmony of the sacred writings; I can now behold, with devout admiration, the great salvation promised us by the word, by the oath of Jehovah, in that holy book, which, although possessed by many, is neither understood nor valued, except by a few elected individuals. I much wish for your continued instruction; and I know you take pleasure in considering it your duty to impart your knowledge of the Redeemer to the creature, whom He hath purchased with His blood. Would it were the will of God to give you a permanent standing among the circle of my friends, who are so greatly devoted to you; then, dear Sir, would our heaven be commenced upon earth, and all would be one continued scene of uninterrupted praises and thanksgiving, for the great Redemption, wrought out by the death and sufferings of our blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ."
"Murray, how greatly you succeed, when engaged upon a theme which I emphatically call your own. I love to hear you speak upon any subject; but on this, you are, I had almost said, divine; your whole soul seems engaged, when dwelling upon the Redeemer, and His love to man; nothing but the voice of the God who made you, and who hath so wonderfully endowed you, can exceed the honied accents of your heaven-inspired tongue. Do you wonder that I am daily wishing myself among the number of your hearers, your happy hearers! but how contrasted is the life of a soldier, to that of the peaceful Christian, seated at the feet of Jesus."
A respectable gentleman, writing, nearly two years since, from the City of Philadelphia, and speaking relative to the recent publication of the venerable, the now departed saint, gratefully says: "These volumes, your Letters and Sketches, are all I hoped for, wished, or expected; they are much more. I bless God, not only for the treasures of wisdom committed to his venerable servant, but also that his valuable life has been preserved to accomplish this work; a production, which will live, and be read with ineffable delight, when the rubbish of ages shall have been consigned to oblivion."
Should any curiosity exist respecting Mr. Murray's political sentiments, it may be sufficient to say, that he was in heart an American. America was the Country of his adoption. He was decidedly and uniformly opposed to the oppression of the British ministry, and he would have embraced any upright measures to have procured redress; yet, perhaps, he would have been as well pleased, had England and America been united upon terms of equality and reciprocal benefit; nor can it be denied, that he was, indubitably, an Anti-Gallican. In our opinion, a total dereliction of Country stamps miscreant upon the individual, who harbours feelings, so reprehensible. England was the native Country of the Preacher; the virtues flourished in his bosom, among which the amor patriæ glowed with no common lustre. He frequently amused himself with writing in numbers, which, so soon as written, he generally committed to the flames. The following inartificial lines, written one hour after he received intelligence of the demise of the celebrated, and meritorious Earl of Chatham, may be considered as a correct delineation of his political views and wishes.
"Swift on the car of fancy borne along,
And safely landed on my native Isle,
I join the mourning train, assembled there,
And stand unnoticed near the hallow'd corse:
I mark the empty pageantry of state,
A pageantry, alas! not empty here,
For here are real signs of real woe;
All ranks, all orders, mingle in the throng;
Some raise the voice in majesty of woe:
Some silent stand as statues—pale with grief—
At sight of these, my tears more copious flow.
Hark—from yon seat a voice assails my ear,
Than music in its softest strains more sweet.
'Tis Camden! favoured sage, exalted chief,
He calls his mourning country to attend,
As thus he pours the elegiac strain.
"From life's low vale, where all was calm repose,
And, taught by heaven, the mind drank classic lore,
To the tumultuous scenes of busy life,
This peerless man, in hour of dread dismay,
By pitying heaven, in mercy to our land,
Was summon'd forth. He gracious heard, and came,
Hail'd by Britannia's united voice;
His royal master look'd benignly kind,
And bade him welcome to his arms, his heart;
For howsoe'er remote their varied spheres,
Congenial souls, 'twould seem, inform'd them both.
No longer view'd as servant, but as friend,
In all his Sovereign's councils he had part,
Their hopes and fears, their aims and ends the same,
The Nation gave her treasures to his care,
Himself the richest treasure she possess'd;
And anxious eyes from every rank were rais'd,
With serious awe, and steadfast hope to Him;
Nor were their hopes, their expectations vain.
New life, new views, fresh vigor nerv'd his arm;
All that was wrong, his vigilance set right,
And, what was greater far, preserv'd it so.
The foes he met (for who from foes is free)
Were, to the peerless jewel of his worth,
Like toiling lapidary to the costly gem,
They made its brightness more conspicuous shine.
The fawning sycophant oft sought his smile,
But piercing eye-beams struck the caitiff blind;
The foes to virtue trembled at his nod,
While her glad sons flock'd hovering round their Sire.
The Merchant watch'd his eye; the sons of Art,
The Swain who turns the glebe, but chiefly he
On glory bent, who plough'd the watery way,
Panting to grasp the treasures of the globe,
He carefully this Pole-star still observ'd,
And safely voyaged, with this star in view.
How wild, alas! he'll wander now 'tis hid.
The secrets of all states, blest heaven-taught sage,
To thy pervading eye were all unveil'd,
And every dark intrigue was known to thee.
The Gallic power trembled at thy nod,
And proud Castalia, cowering, bent to thee.
In dire suspense the awe-struck Nations stood,
Nor could predict where next would burst the storm.
Lo! as he points, our Castles float along,
And British thunders roll from shore to shore;
The sooty tribes of Afric shrink appall'd,
And China's crafty sons distrust their skill.
In this great Legislator's hand, our flag,
Like that fam'd wand into a serpent chang'd,
As Hebrew sages sung in days of yore,
Made every other flag obsequious bow,
And every Nation own'd or felt his power.
But, while remotest lands through fear obey'd,
His grateful Country serv'd with filial love,
And every son of Albion shar'd his care.
Nor did the British garden, blooming round,
Alone engage the heavenly labourer's toil;
With watchful eye he view'd those tender shoots,
Whilome transplanted to Columbia's soil;
Those tender lambs he gently led along,
And to their plaints still bent a parent's ear.
Dear, much lov'd offspring of this happy Isle,
With us, sincere, ye mourn the common loss;
With us lament the Father and the Friend:
But, while our bursting hearts deplore his flight,
Perfidious Bourbon ghastly grins his joy;
The Gallic Cock now feebly claps his wings
And thinks to hear the Lion roar no more.
Base, treacherous, cringing, dastard slaves, beware;
Although our Sun be set to rise no more,
The moon and stars shall guide the Lion's paw
To seize thee trembling in thy close retreat.
Already mark! he shakes his shaggy mane,
And growling rises from his murky den;
His eye-balls roll with rage—they shoot forth flames,
He grinds his teeth, and finds them solid still;
He tries his paws, and finds his talons strong.
Our groans have rous'd him; see, he sleeps no more,
But still the royal issue of this Isle,
This highly favour'd regent of the main,
Secure may stand, nor fear the Lion's rage.
What though the Demons of this Land may strive,
To set the gen'rous Lion on her sons,
The Lion shrinks—so ancient Bards declare—
Nor will destroy the issue nobly born.
But those perfidious, who would set him on,
With ghastly looks, and souls appall'd by fear,
Too late shall feel the horrors of despair."
But it is the Religionist we are solicitous to characterize; and although the sentiments of the Preacher may be gathered from his writings, yet, as this Volume may come under the eye of some individuals, who may not possess the publication to which we have so often alluded, it may be proper, in this place to attempt a brief outline of the most prominent features in his creed.
His full soul believed in one great and indivisible first cause, or origin of all created beings; before this great First Cause One Eternal now, was, is, and will be ever present. Every thing which has past, is passing, or shall pass, was ordained in His eternal purpose, and actually passed in review before Him, ere ever the worlds were formed, or countless systems commenced their revolutions.
The God of our Philanthropist was Omnipotent, Omnipresent, and Omniscient; consequently he performed all his will; was, is, and will be, present through all space, through time and through eternity. In the prosecution of His plans, myriads of angels, in their various orders, were by his Omnipotent power commanded into being; these cherubim and seraphim, angels and arch angels, surrounded the throne of the Most High. The morning stars sang together, and all the hosts of Heaven rejoiced.
But, strange as it may appear to our finite understanding, fell discord, with peace-destroying influence, reared his hydra, his tremendous head. Various conjectures hover round this phenomenon. The origin of evil has exercised intellects the most profound and erudite; but he, who can develop the arcana of the Almighty, may claim equality with his God. It should be our care not to attribute to Deity a mode of conduct irreconcealible with rectitude; and to keep close to that revelation, which he hath graciously vouchsafed to bestow upon us.
The creation of man succeeded the fall of the angelic nature. God said,—Let Us make man, &c. &c. Speaking in the plural, with an eye to the complexity of that character He had predetermined to assume, and, as we before observed, past, present, and future constituted, to the ken of Deity, one complete whole; and thus were important occurrences garbed in language, suited to the elevation of the Godhead. In process of time, this august Creator, was to be enrobed in humanity and become the son born; was to be exhibited as a holy spirit of consolation, taking of the things of Jesus, and exhibiting them to the mind, thus speaking peace. Mr. Murray was at the same time a Unitarian, and a Trinitarian, beholding, constantly beholding the trinity in the unity. Let us make man in our image, after our own likeness.—Yea, verily, man may be considered as made in the image, and after the likeness of his Creator. The figure is striking; man is a triune being, body, soul, and spirit, yet no individual is considered as three, but one man, the Trinity in Unity. The Almighty, clad in garments of flesh, became the God-Man, and, speaking of Himself as man, he says, my Father is greater than me; while, reverting to the divinity, he affirms, the Father and He are One. Philip, have I been so long with thee, and dost thou say, show me the Father? he who hath seen me, hath seen the Father. Was this true,—or was Jesus Christ an Impostor? In this view the scriptures are beautifully consistent. I am God the Saviour; a just God and a Saviour; there is none beside me.—This same evangelical prophet exultingly exclaims, Isaiah ix. 6. Unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, the mighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. Such were the comprehensive views of Deity, which became more and more luminous to the mental eye of the Preacher.
He believed, that the creation of human beings made a part of the divine purpose; in which sacred, uncontrolable, and irreversible purpose, the whole family of man were originally and intimately united to their august Creator, in a manner mysterious, and as much beyond our limited conception, as the Creator is superior to the creature whom He hath formed.
Adam the first was a figure of Adam the second. Adam the first, the prototype; Adam the second, the substance of the prototype, the Creator of all Worlds, the Lord from Heaven. The sacred scriptures abound with figures of this mysterious, this ennobling, this soul-satisfying Union; among which, perhaps, none is more expressive than that of the Head and Members constituting one body, of which Jesus Christ was the immaculate Head. Hence the propriety and necessity, of looking with a single eye to Jesus Christ. We are members of the body of Christ, who is the head of every man: Should a single member of this mystical body be finally lost, the Redeemer must, through eternity, remain imperfect.
A Law was given, to the complete obedience of which, everlasting life was annexed; but no individual member was ever able to fulfil this Law; it was only the head and members collectively in their glorious head, that was furnished with abilities adequate to a performance of such vast magnitude. Yea verily, we do indeed break the divine Law, in thought, in word, and in deed, and the lip of truth declares, he who offends in one point is guilty of all.
Why then was the commandment so exceeding broad? To convince mankind of imbecility; and that the rectitude they had forfeited, could never, in their own individual characters, be regained. But the plan of Deity was without an error, the revolution of time ushered in the great Representative, or more properly speaking, the Head of the body; and the forfeit was paid, full atonement was presented, the ransom given, and, in this hour of nature's jubilee, the prodigal family restored to their original possessor.
To make this truth manifest was the great business of our Promulgator. He was convinced, that only he, who believed, could be saved; and that he, who believed not, was indubitably damned. Hence he has frequently said, he did not believe in universal salvation, because he saw the majority of mankind were not saved. But he was a firm believer in Universal Redemption; because that sacred volume, which he steadfastly, and unwaveringly believed to be the word of God, assured him the price was paid, and the whole human family was redeemed.
It was the neglecting to distinguish between salvation and redemption, which so frequently drew upon the preacher the charge of prevarication, or, as it was termed by Mr. C———, hiding. An article of intelligence may be an established fact; it may most importantly affect us; but so long as the mind refuses to admit its authenticity, we are undeniably subjected to all those agonizing apprehensions, which we should endure, if no such fact existed; and it was the salvation from these mental sufferings, which Mr. Murray supposed consequent upon a preached Gospel; in other words, an exemption from those tortures, that consciousness of condemnation, which is most emphatically described, when it is said, He who believeth not, is, or shall be damned.
Yet it is an established truth, that every believer was once an unbeliever; every believer, then, was once damned, and it was only when he became a believer, that he was saved from those countless agonies, which erst times pierced him through with many sorrows. But he was redeemed, the price was paid, ere ever he was called into existence. Thus, in this view, redemption and salvation are distinct considerations.
The Preacher unhesitatingly believed, all who learned of the Father would come to Jesus, and that all would finally be taught of God. He was a decided believer in the doctrine of angels of light, and angels of darkness, of ministering spirits of light, and of demons stimulating to deeds of darkness. He looked forward to a judgment to come, when countless numbers, among the children of men, would rise to the resurrection of damnation, and, ignorant of the genuine character of the Redeemer, would call upon the rocks and mountains to fall upon them, and hide them from the wrath of the Lamb; and, believing himself a humble instrument in the hand of God, ordained by Him to the ministry of reconciliation, he was never so completely happy, as when declaring the gospel to be believed; and calling upon men, every where, to receive the glad tidings of salvation. He was persuaded that those, who lied down in sorrow, would continue unhappy wanderers, until the opening of that book, in which every human being, every member of Christ was written; yet he had no idea of any purgation for sin, save what was suffered by Christ Jesus, who, by Himself, purged our sins. Writing of Mr. Winchester to a friend, Mr. Murray thus expressed himself, "Mr. Winchester is full with Mr. Law, and of course preaches purgatorial satisfaction. According to these gentlemen, every man must finally be his own Saviour! If I must suffer as much, in my own person, as will satisfy divine justice, how is, or how can Christ Jesus be, my Saviour? If this purgatorial doctrine be true, the ministry of reconciliation, committed to the Apostles, must be false; "to wit, God was in Christ reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing unto them their trespasses." In fact, I know no persons further from Christianity, genuine Christianity, than such Universalists."
Mr. Murray supposed the inquietude of unembodied, or departed spirits, a natural effect, derived from a cause. As unbelievers, they cannot see the things which belong to their peace; but he greatly rejoiced, that however at present enveloped in darkness, there were, and are, things that did and do belong to their peace, that the day cometh, when whatsoever is hid shall be revealed, and, that at the period of the restitution of all things, the word, the oath of Jehovah was pledged, that every eye should see, and every tongue confess. The Preacher was persuaded that a few, even in the present dispensation, were elected out of the world, to embrace the truth, previous to their passing out of time. These, judging themselves, are therefore not to be judged; Saints of God, they shall surround the Redeemer at his second coming, or be caught up in the air to meet the God-Man; after which, the whole world shall be summoned at the imperial bar of the Sire of angels and of men, the Creator of all worlds: That a separation will then take place; the Judge, the Redeemer will divide them, as a shepherd divides the sheep from the goats; will separate every individual from that body of sin and death, of which Paul complained, being burdened; from that fallen spirit, which attaches to every individual in such sort as to the man among the tombs, rendering it a truth, that he who sleepeth, apparently alone upon his bed, is, nevertheless, still connected with his tormentor, and will so continue, until this glorious day of separation, and of restitution; when these two shall be separated, one from another, the one taken, and the other left. The fallen angels, figured by the goats, shall be ranged on the left hand, while the harassed human nature, redeemed by the God who created it, shall be found on the right hand of the Most High. Thus, after the world is judged, out of the things written in the books; after they are found guilty before God, and every mouth is stopped, the book of life shall be opened, in which all the members of the Redeemer, every individual of the Human Family, shall be found written; and the ransomed of the Lord shall be declared denizens of that kingdom, where dwelleth felicity uninterrupted.
Such were the leading sentiments of Our Universalist; and he was firmly of opinion, that the doctrines of the Gospel, rightly understood, would teach men, every where, to be careful of maintaining good works, to love one another, and in all things to regard the best interests of their brother man.
Conversant with the Preacher upwards of forty years, we never knew his testimony to vary, in the smallest degree. In joy and in sorrow, in health, in sickness, and in death, not a single cloud appeared to gather upon the Countenance of his God, or to obstruct, so far as it referred to his prospects beyond the grave, the clear sunshine of His soul.
If we except the Rev. John Tyler, episcopalian minister in Norwich, Connecticut, and the Rev. Edward Mitchell in the city of New-York, we do not know that the sentiments of any Preacher of Universalism, now upon this Continent, are exactly in unison with the departed Promulgator. But, if they build upon the great foundation, we devoutly wish them God speed; well assured, that those who build upon this foundation—gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble—every man's work shall be made manifest. For the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work, of what sort it is. If any man's work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any man's work shall be burnt, he shall suffer loss, but he himself shall be saved; yet so, as by fire.
Mr. Murray's last marriage was the result of a strong and holy friendship, founded upon the Rock of ages; and, originating in devout admiration of redeeming love, it is fervently hoped, and unwaveringly believed, that this Union will be perfected in another and a better World.
One son, and one daughter, were the Offspring of this marriage. The son surrendered his innocent life in the birth; the daughter still survives, the prop, and consolation of her widowed Mother.
