After this private domestic duty to Almighty God, morning and evening, I should hope with such preparations, no one will be deficient in public duty every revolving Sabbath in God’s holy church, to enable him to become as perfect a Christian as possible on earth; for private prayer is only one part of a Christian’s duty; to which must be added, public devotion, praise, gratitude, and thanksgiving, for daily benefits received from Almighty God, on the sacred Sabbath. Private prayer without public devotion is imperfect, like faith without works of charity, benevolence, and Christian love will not complete the true disciple of our Lord, like unto St. John; but an union of faith and good works daily practised will plead for mercy, and a resurrection from the dead to endless happiness.
Our excellent church requires three necessary offices to be observed, besides public worship, as preparatory to our Saviour’s interference for miserable sinners:—Baptism, Confirmation, receiving the holy Sacrament frequently, particularly on the sacred days which have a preface appointed to be read in the communion service, which are on the nativity of Christ, or Christmas-day, Easter-day, Whit-Sunday, Ascension-day, Trinity-Sunday.
Our blessed Saviour was born in a manger, on Christmas-day, to teach mankind humility; suffered death on the cross, on Good Friday, to teach patience and resignation in affliction, troubles, and death; rose again the third day from the dead on Easter Sunday, convincing all the world he had conquered sin and wickedness.
On Ascension-day, after his most glorious resurrection from the dead, he manifestly appeared to his Apostles; and in their sight, he ascended up into Heaven to prepare a place for faithful Christians.
On Whitsunday, he sent down his Holy Spirit, like a dove, upon the Apostles, teaching the way, the truth, and the light of the Gospel.
Trinity Sunday is observed as a total union of Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, in heaven.
It is my eager wish, for the great benefit of both parishes, as an encouragement to religion, and the regular practice of it, that a Bible, the Common Prayer Book, the Whole Duty of Man, was in every house. The opulent part of the parishes, I have every reason to believe, have some of these books, Bible, Common Prayer, (perhaps not the book called the Whole Duty of Man), but I earnestly entreat them to buy it. Seven or eight shillings will. It contains the whole duly of a Christian: it is divided and subdivided into several Sundays, and an excellent substitute for sermons; for if religious discourses are not written by orthodox divines educated at either of our Universities of Oxford and Cambridge, and well chosen for unlearned people to read, they sometimes urge the ignorant, for want of such superior education, to dive into mysteries which they cannot unfold, and increase the number of dissenters, many of whom presume to be teachers, by law authority, though without divine authority, and add greatly to the number of fanatics, by which means the blind lead the blind, though perhaps without any original intention of mischief.
Our blessed Redeemer was no respecter of persons; he came to save the poor as well as the rich, both to be inheritors of the kingdom of heaven; and it is becoming the poor should practise religion, and join in the service on the sacred Sabbath; for which reason, it was my wish a Sunday School might be established in both parishes, which has been done, one of some years, from which great benefit has ensued; the other is in its infancy, but I hope it will flourish, and be as effectual to stop vice as the other; for the beginning of all evil in general proceeds from neglect of early duty on the sacred Sabbath; but the future advantages of this institution must be considered, as well as the present; for after the children have learnt to read, and having no books, their parents being unable to purchase any, what will be the consequence? An oblivion of all their once acquired Christian duty? If some remedy is not prescribed, which I humbly recommend to all my wealthy parishioners to enter into, that the word of God may never be forgotten from infancy to old age, but cherished and nourished till the hour of death, as the most inestimable treasure, meriting the greatest future reward, and will never be forgotten by the almighty Disposer of all human events, when the humane and charitable will appear before him.
I recommend a Bible in every poor man’s house, but this may be too expensive; but the one I shall offer will not; as I am a Member of the Society in London for propagating Christian Knowledge, I shall have an opportunity of purchasing the books at a reasonable rate; so as every poor man’s house may have a Testament, Common Prayer, as I have the great satisfaction to assure my parishioners (of Orton), if the parents cannot read, the children can; by which means, whoever comes to church, may bring a prayer book, and join in the service, and the testament read at home.
I beseech you to listen to my entreaties for a subscription for the benefit of religion, and shew your permanent gratitude to the Almighty for his bountiful harvest; and likewise for the many great victories gained by our armies and our allies, in foreign countries, compelling the insulting tyrant disgracefully to retreat with irreparable loss to his own country. But think, my parishioners, how this our native country, and united dominions, should excel all others in Europe in religion and gratitude, and give every token of present and future praise to the God of all mercies, who has so favourably defended us with his shield and buckler, never to have permitted the enemy’s sword to be drawn in our land during the contest of 20 years.