lady; also Rev. Mr. Lowndes, of the London Missionary Society, and his family; besides relatives, the godfather, god-mother, &c.

When the font or laver-a large brazen vessel-had been set in the middle of the room, and the three lighted tapers, to the picture of the virgin Ma

The following communication from Mr. Buel will be read with interest, as indicating the state of religious feeling and the prospects of mis-ry, had been placed on the centre table, sionary labor among the Greeks. The cereit was announced that the ceremony monies connected with infant baptism, which was about to commence. are described at some length, constitute a distinguishing feature of the Greek Church. The practice of Trine Immersion, here referred to, prevails throughout that church, which, it will be recollected, embraces a larger number of nominal members than all the protestant denominations in Christendom.

On

I am happy to announce only tidings of good respecting the health and general prosperity of the mission. account of the departure of the English mail-steamer several days earlier than its usual time, the letters of Mr. Love and Mrs. Dickson, instead of being forwarded by the present opportunity as was expected, will be retained for the next mail, which will leave about the middle of October. As the affairs of the mission are particularly described in the reserved letters, I shall confine myself in this to some marks and extracts from my journal, designed to illustrate the religion and manners of the Greeks.

re

The deacon, the god-father, and godmother, stood, each holding a lighted priest in his sacred vestments entered taper. The company arose, and the and took his station at the font.

The most striking things in the appearance of this personage, were his costly gilded robes, put on over the formly dressed, a small low-crowned full black gown in which he is unihat without a brim, which custom hair, floating in curls over the shoulallows him always to wear-his long ders-and a venerable beard, which has been suffered to grow ever since he was inducted into the priestly office.

The child was now brought in the ed three times in its face, and sealed arms of the nurse. The priest breathit, by making the sign of the cross upon its forehead and breast; then troductory prayers, three of which facing the east, he read four or five inwere for the exorcism of the evil spirits. They close as follows:-"Expel from this child every evil and unclean spirit, concealed and nestled in his my-heart; the spirit of deceit, of malice, of idolatry, and covetousness; the spirit of falsehood, and of all impurity, which worketh according to the teachings of the devil; and make him a sheep of thy holy shepherd, Jesus Christ; and a worthy member of thy

Baptism of a Greek child. A few weeks since, Mrs. B. and self accepted an invitation from our teacher to be present at the baptism of his child. At five in the afternoon we found the company assembled at his residence, consisting of an Associate Professor in the University, and his

P. "Hast thou covenanted with Father, amen,"-" in the name of the Christ ?"

It is then clothed with a gown, preAfter some change in his vestments, sented by the god-father with some the priest begins a series of responses jewelry, such as ear-rings or bracelets, with the deacon, of which the follow-attached to it, the priest saying, "the ing will serve as a specimen.

Some collects-such as the first part of the sixth chapter of Romans, and the last part of the 28th of MatthewĎ. "We beseech thee, O Lord." are then read, and more prayers reThen follow the consecrating pray-peated, when the priest with a sponge ers, during which the priest sanctifies wipes the face, hands, &c., of the obild,

The use of the chrism, in the Greek

as baptism, and always makes a part of that rite. "It is the second mystery, in which the baptized person receives the graces of the Holy Spirit, and the

saying "Thou hast been baptized, that of kindred; so that intermarriages enlightened, anointed, sanctified and are not allowed between the families, washed, in the name of the Father, until the eighth degree of spiritual reand of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost,lationship. now and forever, amen." Another improvement upon the sim-church, is deemed quite as essential plicity of the primitive ordinance, remains to be mentioned. After an appropriate prayer, the priest takes a pair of scissors, and clips off a lock of hair from each side of the head, al-confirmation of the divine favor which ways imitating the sign of the cross, was bestowed in baptism." The holy and pronounces the formula-" The oil is prepared with great care. The servant of the Lord is sheared, in the sacred Eikonas, or the boards on name of the Father, and of the Son, which are painted the likenesses of and of the Holy Ghost, now and for- the virgin Mary and other saints, are ever, amen." The locks of hair are used for fuel in heating the oil, in orintended as the first fruits of the re-der that it may absorb the divinity as generated child, and are presented as an offering unto God.

it emanates from these burning idols. Bigotry and superstition of the people.

It is upon such superstitions and ceremonies that the Greeks rely for salvation. Their baptism and the intercession of the virgin are the Alpha and Omega of their religion. It is truly affecting to observe the apparent sincerity and veneration with which many Greeks of considerable intelligence

The remainder of the interview is spent in a convivial way, until the visiters choose to retire. There seemed to be little regard to solemnity during the ceremony; on the contrary, at every considerable pause, the company would fall into a jovial conversation about the scene before them, in which the priest very heartily participated. On taking his leave, the priest pre-regard their "holy baptism.” A Greek sents the child to the mother, and administers a word of counsel respecting its education in the faith of the church. At length he concludes the ceremonies of the occasion, by making the sign of the cross upon the top of the door, with the smoke of the burning taper, as he passes out of the house.

can never be pressed with the subject of a change of heart, without his intrenching himself behind this refuge. "Baptism is the first and most essential mystery, by which a person becomes a member of God's family, and a new creature in Christ, and a partaker of eternal life." "In baptism God gives to a person the forgiveness of sin, through the mediation of the Son; this signifying, that, as the body of the baptized is washed with water, so the soul, by the grace of God, is washed and cleansed from sins, according to the words of our Lord, Except a man be born of water, and of the spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.'" Thus reads the church catechism.

The age of the child is reckoned from the time of its baptism. In this instance, as it was to be named after the virgin Mary, the christening had been deferred seven or eight months, until the supposed anniversary of the death, or, as the Greeks call it, "the sleep of the virgin." The usual time for the ceremony is on the eighth day, or as soon after as may be convenient. If, before that time, sickness endangers Of course it is a great piece of arrothe salvation of the infant, the rite is gance, for foreigners to come among a administered with all possible des- nation of christians, to teach them repatch. Instances of this kind have ligion. The Greeks interpret the comoccurred here even among Protestant mission of our Lord, thus, "He comfamilies. Indeed ministers of the lat-manded the apostles to disciple the heater faith in this country, in case of the then, not christians,” and the ready inferanticipated death of the child, have ence is," that we have no divine authormade as much haste to confer the sav-ity for discipling and baptizing Greeks, ing ordinance, as ever did priest of the Greek or the Romish church. I speak what I know respecting this matter.

who are already a nation of baptized christians." The Greeks hold that "they are born with christian blood in It may be remarked here, that the them, and that baptism is only a necesrelation which the god-father and god-sary symbol of an inward grace, which mother hold to the baptized child, is they have inherited from christian paregarded as scarcely less sacred than rents." This very remark was made, the

other day, by a school inspector of this island, in conversation with Constantine. The latter had only to refer him to John i. 13: "Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God."

The Jew never placed greater reliance upon circumcision, than the Greek does upon his baptism. If the former believed that "no circumcised descendant of Abraham could be lost," -the Greek believes as firmly, that for no crimes can he be in danger of damnation, if he but continues in the faith of the church.

It is wrong, it is criminal unfaithfulness to the truth, and to the souls of men, to spare such dogmas, whether from fear, or from deference to religious prejudices. What then shall be thought of the wisdom or the benevolence of those, who would dissuade us from bringing the truth to bear upon the destructive superstitions of this people, especially as it is difficult, if not impossible, ever to state the simple and saving truths of the gospel, without touching and arousing those superstitions? Pray how could Paul have preached the gospel to the Jews, if he had been silent on the subject of circumcision?

many precious passages being left out; as Acts iv. 12: "Neither is there salvation in any other; for there is no other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved." This text, if it should happen to lodge in the thoughts of the people, would be a very inconvenient one for their system of picture worship. This artifice of expunging is not easily detected, owing to the miscellaneous manner in which their two books are arranged. Short collections for every Sabbath, and for different occasions, are taken from any and every part of the "Gospels," and jumbled together upon no principle but that of confusion; and so of the "Acts and Epistles." Professing to contain the whole New Testament, these books are a deception. The genuineness of the omitted passages cannot, however, be disputed, since they are found in the Russian Greek bible, whose authority is never questioned.

Religious books and instruction—Infidel works-Ignorance of the scriptures.

But there is another kind of reading with which the people are more liberally supplied; that is, the Seinaxaria. It is a collection in ten or twelve books,

The authority of the Bible acknowledged chiefly of legendary tales, or wonderful and ridiculous stories, respecting -Corruption of the Greek scriptures. the lives and miracles of some of the But the bible is a powerful instrument most eminent saints. They are writfor the pulling down of these "strong ten in a style suited to the most vulgar holds." It is the acknowledged source minds, and their effect upon the morals of religious belief. There is, therefore, of the people is often that of lewd and a common standard of appeal; and indelicate fiction. These books are when their superstitions, however read in the churches on saints' days, venerable, are brought to this test, there and other occasions; each chapter beis no Greek who does not shrink from ing assigned to a particular day or the trial, and feel his foundations dis- festival. This is nearly all the instructurbed. But the people, alas! are tion which is given in the churches; deprived of the privilege of reading for the priests never preach, except on their own scriptures. These are ac- a few Sabbaths in lent. These Seincessible only to the priests, whose in- axaria also supply all the religious terest it is to conceal the truth; who reading out of the churches; indeed live upon the harvest of the supersti- there is but little other reading of any tions which they themselves have kind among the mass of the people. The New Testament in ancient The consequence is, that they have a Greek, which is contained in two much greater veneration for some old books, one "The Euangelion or Gos- saints of the dark ages, and a few more pels," the other "The Acts and Epistles worthy "fathers" of the church, than of the Apostles," is ordained to be read in for either Christ, or his apostles. An the churches in the course of the year. analysis of these books would present But the ancient language is unintel- a pretty complete epitome of the populigible to the mass of the people; and lar religious belief. I should say that even a learned Greek can make noth- the book-stores keep a very good suping out of it, when read in the long-ply of works, literary and scientific, drawn, sing-song tone of the parish with which modern Greek literature is priest. Moreover the New Testament daily enriched; and these find some of the churches is a mutilated book-purchasers among the most intelligent

sown.

class. There is also an abundance, comparatively, of infidel books, in Greek, Italian and French, which rarely fail to produce their desired effects whenever they are read.

The fact that people often quote for scripture what can only be found in the Seinaxaria, shows how little biblical knowledge they possess. For example, Constantine said to his school inspector,

the French and English teachers, and a number of the students have solicited Mr. L. to give them private lessons in the English.

It seems to be the design of Providence "to open an effectual door" for the preaching of the gospel in this country through the instrumentality of a native ministry. Such a result we wish to keep specially in mind. There are in this land, abundant materials for this

"What authority have you for wor-right arm of an efficient missionary esshipping the Eikonas (pictures) of Christ"

"Why, sir," he replied, "don't you know it is said in the Gospels, that when Christ was once asked for his picture, he took his handkerchief and wiped his face with it, when there was left upon it a perfect image of himself? | And this is the original of all the Eikonas of Christ which are found in the churches?"

"Where do you find that story in the bible" C. asked.

"O, I do not remember, at this moment, in what part of the Euangelion it is; you will easily find it."

tablishment. Of this fact we have some gratifying evidence in the case of our beloved br. Apostolos, not to mention now another who promises much as a fellow-laborer, at no distant period. It is an especial cause for gratitude, that the two young men, besides Apostolos, who are now regarded by us as dear brethren in the Lord, seem to be peculiarly fitted, in many respects, to become pioneers in the work of evangelizing their countrymen.

Concerning Apostolos, we can speak with gratifying assurance. He has just left us for Patras, after a visit of three weeks, which he made to Corfu at our It needs only the diffusion of scrip-request. His services at P. have astural knowledge, attended with the di-sumed a very interesting character. vine blessing, to dispel all this moral | Having taken charge of a depository gloom, and restore to this land the of books for gratuitous distribution, he light which shone upon it in the was beset from morning till night with brightest days of the primitive church. applicants, and visiters who called for religious conversation. To make a

The spirit of inquiry which has been awak-judicious disposal of his books, and to ened by the labors of our brethren, both at Patras and Corfu, is very encouraging, as will be seen by the subjoined statements. Theological students-Demand for books -Apostolos-Favorable prospects.

The most frequent and promising applicants for our books, are the students of the Theological Seminary in this city. Sometimes Mr. Love's study presents quite a little congregation of these gentlemen of the black gown, who eagerly receive the scriptures, the publications of the American Tract Society, and other useful works.

About fifty young men having studied at the University, are now taking their four years' course in this seminary. A limited number is selected from each of the Ionian Islands, who are supported by government during their theological studies, on condition of their refunding five hundred dollars if they do not enter the priesthood. The course of study, which is, at best, a miserably meagre affair, has been of late curtailed, by the absence of

be eminently useful as a religious teacher, he seems to be well qualified, by his knowledge of character, acquaintance with the scriptures, and the lively interest he takes in giving the gospel to his benighted and deluded countrymen. Influenced by this motive, and by the providential circumstances alluded to, he has felt it to be his duty to relinquish his employment, though it subjected him to considerable pecuniary sacrifice, and to enter the service of the Board, as an assistant. If a new missionary were sent to Patras to-day, it would be three years before he could be as directly and extensively useful as Apostolos is. We commend him, and the two disciples of whom he speaks, and the little band of inquirers at that station, to the prayers of God's people, and to the kind notice of the Board.

In conversation last evening with Constantine, mentioned above, he expressed his religious exercises as follows. He says "he loves the Savior, and feels a confidence that his love is real; for, while he felt formerly not the