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end, by fhowing the origin and progrefs of the Church of the Brethren, and the true ftate of their cafe.The Author, who departed this life in 1777, was fo kind as to undertake fome emendations from papers and obfervations put into his hands for the use of this Tranflation. But it pleafed God to take him to himself before he had completed it. However, it hath been in feveral places corrected and amended, agreeably to his intentions and to authentic documents.'

The Author himself candidly acknowledges, that this Work is not a complete hiftory of the Church of the Brethren. It is no more than an essay, and indeed the very firft of the kind which has been compiled, to oblige and ferve fome candid hiftorians, who defired it, and others who wished to fee a true and connected account of each congregation and miffion of the Brethren. My plan of brevity confined me to the chief events of the Church, without defcending to many tranfactions of individuals. But as the late Count Zinzendorf has been. a principal character in the renewed Church of the Brethren, I could not avoid taking notice of many of his transactions, so far as they had any influence on the affairs of that Church ; although we hope to see them fet in a more clear and full light in the Memoirs of his Life *. But yet I have related every thing touching him, as well as every other incident and tranfaction of the Brethren, as concifely as poffible. With respect to fuch events only, as have given rife to particularly remarkable revolutions in the affairs of the Brethren, I have been more full and circumftantial.'The Author, after a ferious, but fimple declaration of his having written nothing but what his confcience witneffed to the truth of, makes an honeft conceffion with respect to the imperfections and weakneffes of those men, who were made the inftruments of erecting anew the Church of the Brethren. They were men (fays he), and the work could not be conducted without mistakes. A reader who loves the truth will not expect to read the faults, yea crimes, which the adverfaries or flanderers have unjustly laid to their charge, with a refutation of them. This is a Hiftory, and no Apology. What is actually true, I would not conceal; but have candidly, and uprightly pointed out the mistakes and errors of my brethren, who have alfo, with an open and honeft heart, pointed out to me many miftakes which had hitherto been unknown to myself.?

* Thefe Memoirs of the Life of Count Zinzendorf have been printed in Germany in eight volumes, two of which have been tranf lated and published in English. (The Editor.)

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This Hiftory is divided into two capital Parts, viz. the Ancient and Modern ftate of the Church of the Brethren. Each of these parts is fubdivided into chapters and fections, for the fake of order and perfpicuity. The first part includes four general heads, viz. The ftate of the Chriftian religion in Bohemia, from its first reception there by the preaching of two Greek monks, Cyrillus and Methodius, about the year 890, until the formation of a particular Church of the Brethren in the year 1457, of which church John Hufs, and, after him, the renowned Zifka, laid a foundation; the former by his preaching, and the latter by his valour. The fecond divifion of this ancient department of the Hiftory, treats of the extenfion and perfecution of the Church of the Brethren, and carries on their history to the reformation of Luther. The next chapter gives an account of the negotiations of the Brethren with the reformers and their fucceffors; and the increase of their fociety in Pruffia and Poland. The fourth chapter relates a variety of events which fucceeded the great emigration into Poland and Pruffia, and the ftate of the Brethren in Bohemia and Moravia after their return, when they obtained security under the Emperor Maximilian II. This part of the hiftory brings us to their difperfion in 1627.

At the conclufion of this firft divifion of the present Work, the Author gives us a lift of the names of the Bohemian, Mɑravian, and Polish bifhops of the Unity of the Brethren, according to the order of their fucceffion, from the year 1467 to the revival of their church in a later period. The laft that is commemorated in this catalogue is David Nitfchmann, a very diftinguished character in the Hiftory of the Modern Church of the Brethren, who was confecrated bishop in 1735 by Jablonfky, at Berlin; and it was from the venerable David that Count Zinzendorf received his epifcopal authority.

The fecond Part of this Hiftory is divided into ten chapters, and treats very copioufly of the ftate of the Moravian Church, from the renewal of the Unity of the Brethren in 1727, to the general fynod held at Marienbourn in 1769.-In this divifion of the Work, we have a particular account of the firft eftablishment of the Society at Herrnhutt; of Count Zinzendorf's commiffions to Pennsylvania and England; of the orders and regulations of the Church of the Brethren; the miniftrations and labours, miffions and perfecutions, of the most distinguished leaders of this fect: together with a variety of incidental reflections that were fuggefted by the various fubjects of this claborate Work.

The prefent church of the Moravians may afcribe its reftoration, in a great measure, to the industry of one Chriftian David.

At

At Goerlitz, where he had worked at his trade as a carpenter, he had received fome religious impreffions from the fermons and conversation of two pious minifters of that place, which laid a foundation for that zeal which actuated his future conduct.

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In 1717, he vifited the small remnant of the ancient Church of the Unity, that had preferved themselves free from the cor ruptions of other Proteftant churches, and had formed a fociety for religious exercifes in a little village in Moravia. He found their fituation à precarious one; and as they were willing to emigrate, in order to find fome fecure fettlement in a Proteftant country, he, after some time, found means to recommend them to the patronage of Count Zinzendorf, then nearly of age, and just returned from his travels. To this Nobleman (Tays our Author), whofe grandfather had left Auftria for the fake of the gofpel, and who, even in the tenth year of his age, had formed a refolution of becoming a preacher of the gofpel, though for the prefent, in compliance with the will of his relations, he was obliged to alter it, was Chriftian David led, in the year 1721, by an efpecial direction of divine Providence, to folicit a reception of fome Moravian families. He obtained for answer, that they might come whenever they pleased: he should endeavour to provide for them in such places, where their emigration fhould be attended with no difturbances. Upon this intelligence, the two brothers (defcendents of the ancient Brethren of the Unity), Augustin and Jacob Neiffer, cutlers by trade, with their wives and children, and three or four more of the fame family, fet out on their journey on the Wednesday in Whitfun-week 1722; and under the guidance of Chriftian David, arrived without any moleftation at the house of the Rev. Mr. Schaefer at Goerlitz. Having been entertained there for a week, Chriftian David and the two Neiffers were sent with a letter of recommendation to Mr. Marche, a tutor in the Count's family at Grofs Hennerfdorf. This gentleman prefented them to the Count's grandmother, Lady De Gerfdorf. The fpot fixed upon for the refidence of these people was Hutberg, in Upper Lufatia, near Zittau. To this place they were directed by Mr. Heitz, mafter of the Count's household. This gentleman, in a letter to the Count, recites the great objections which the emigrants made against fettling in a fpot fo defolate as that which had been allotted for their refidence. But thefe objections were over- ruled; and Mr. Heitz, from fome fecret premonition of the future eminence of Hutberg, 'vowed to the Lord, that he would, in his name, build the firft house for them on that very spot where, with many tears, he was offering up his fupplications on their account,' The old lady of Hennersdorf approved of this measure; and when the Moravians arrived at the farm-houfe, in the vicinity of this fpot,

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The fent the poor ftrangers a cow, that they might be furnished with milk for their little children; and ordered Mr. Heitz to fhew them the trees to be cut down for their building.'Both Mr. Marche and Christian David approved of this allotment. The former encouraged them; and upon one of their women's objecting-" Where they were to get water in the wilderness?" he replied, "If ye believe, ye fhall fee the glory of God in this defert-place." Chriftian David ftriking his carpenter's axe into the tree in the fame fpot, uttered these words, Here hath the sparrow found a houfe, and the fwallow a neft for herself-even thy altars, O Lord of Hofts!" Thus the timber being appointed them, they, on the 17th of June, felled the first tree for the first houfe in Herrnhut. "They are now (Mr. Heitz writes to the Count at Drefden) full of courage and chearfulness, intending, even before winter, to build a house for themselves, and to do all the carpenter's work themfelves, without the affiftance of any other perfon.". And this they effected (fays our Author) amidst all poverty and weakness of body; for they were obliged to put up with very spare and low food.Nor could Chriftian David, Mr. Marche, and the Rev. Mr. Schaefer, refrain, upon occafion, to intimate hopes of the increase and flourishing ftate of this place at fome future time. Chriftian David fhowed those friends who came to see the building, the future fireets of the City; and the last, in his fermon preached at the induction of the Rev. Mr. Rothe on the 8th of Auguft, made ufe of these words, "God will fet up a light on this hill, which shall shine through the whole .country."

On the 7th of October they entered their first house; and about Martinmas Mr. Heitz delivered a difcourfe, at the dedication of it, from If. lxii. 6, 7. All prefent were much affected; and Christian David concluded with a prayer, and the hymn, Jerufalem, God's city thau, &c.

The name of Herrnhut tock its rife from the master of the household, who concluded his report to the Count on the 8th of July with thefe words:" God hath given Mr. Marche great courage to engage in this work. May he blefs it according to his loving kindness, and grant that your Excellency may build a city on the hill called the Hutberg [i. e. Watch Hill], which may not only ftand under the guardianship and watch of the Lord, but where even all the inhabitants may ftand on the watch of the Lord (DES HERRNHUT), fo that they may not hold their peace day nor night." But yet this name was not current till 1724, when the minifter, by occafion of praying at church for a pregnant woman, publicly made use of the appellation Herrnhut.' Thefe (fays our Author) were the small beginnings of that household, which afterwards, like the grain

of

of mustard-feed (Mark xiv. 31, 32.), became a tree, in whofe branches many thousands of Chriftians and Heathens have found a fecure habitation, and a falutary paftime for their fouls."

The various revolutions which took place at Herrnhut, and every circumftance that more particularly concerned the eftablishment and increase of the Moravian Church there, are related in the present history with sufficient minutenefs. We shall conclude this Article with an account of the vifit with which Herrnhut was honoured by the Emperor Jofeph II. the 30th June 1766, on his way from Saxony to Bohemia. His Imperial Majefty was pleased to take a view of the choir-houses, œconomies, manufactories, and several handicraft bufineffes, to be present at the ufual congregation-meeting, and to take a night's lodging at Herrnhut. He enquired of the Brethren, and particularly of Count Henry xxviii Reuss, very minutely into all the inward and outward regulations of the congregation, and fignified his fatisfaction of what he faw and heard; and after fome years was pleafed to take notice of it again to Count Henry at Prague, in the moft gracious terms.'

This Hiftory, we doubt not, will be a very valuable acquifition to the Brethren; and we think all cand d Chriftians, though not of their fociety, may read many parts of it with much edification. The Author difcovers a pious difpofition, and feems totally fuperior to those bigotted and felfish principles which generally actuate the zealots of a party.

ART. VII. The Life of Mr. Thomas Firmin, Citizen of London. By Jofeph Cornish, Paitor of the Church of Proteftant Diffenters at Colyton, in the County of Devon. Izmo. 2 s. bound. Johnfon. 1780.

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IOGRAPHY affords, in common with general hiftory, an agreeable and entertaining amufement; but this is not all, it has peculiar advantages. It furnishes examples for our conduct in the private walks of life; it displays, in the lives of good men, the amiable character of virtue; and fhews human nature in its beft forms. Whereas the hiftory of empires, and of the world, introduces us into the cabinet of ambitious and wicked ftatesmen, or leads us into fields of carnage and flaughter, where we meet with nothing but what excites, or ought to excite, deteftation and horror.

Among the names which reflect honour on their fpecies, that of Mr. Firmin, for real worth and extenfive ufefulness, yields fcarcely to any. His life has hitherto been exhibited only in large biographical works, or in memoirs of him published foon after his death, which are now rarely to be met with: whoever has seen them, we apprehend, will think with Mr. Cornish, that

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