ey were intellectually gifted. This is God's
great mercy indeed, for which we must ever be thankful. Primitive
doctrine has been explored for us in every direction, and the
original principles of the Gospel and the Church patiently brought to
light. But one thing is still wanting: our champions and teachers
have lived in stormy times: political and other influences have acted
upon them variously in their day, and have since obstructed a careful
consolidation of their judgments. We have a vast inheritance, but no
inventory of our treasures. All is given us in profusion; it remains
for us to catalogue, sort, distribute, select, harmonise, and
complete. We have more than we know how to use; stores of learning,
but little that is precise and serviceable; Catholic truth and
individual opinion, first principles and the guesses of genius, all
mingled in the same works, and requiring to be discriminated. We meet
with truths overstated or misdirected, matters of detail variously
taken, facts incompletely proved or applied, and rules inconsistently
urged or discordantly interpreted. Such indeed is the state of every
deep philosophy in its first stages, and therefore of theological
knowledge. What we need at present for our Church's well-being, is
not invention, nor originality, nor sagacity, nor even learning in
our divines, at least in the first place, though all gifts of God are
in a measure needed, and never can be unseasonable when used
religiously, but we need peculiarly a sound judgment, patient
thought, discrimination, a comprehensive mind, an abstinence from all
private fancies and caprices and personal tastes,--in a word, Divine
Wisdom."

The subject of the volume is the doctrine of the _Via Media_, a name
which had already been applied to the Anglican system by writers of
name. It is an expressive title, but not altogether satisfactory,
because it is at first sight negative. This had been the reason of my
dislike to the word "Protestant;" in the idea which it conveyed, it
was not the profession of any religion at all, and was compatible
with infidelity. A _Via Media_ was but a receding from extremes,
therefore I had to draw it out into a shape, and a character; before
it had claims on our respect, it must first be shown to be one,
intelligible, and consistent. This was the first condition of any
reasonable treatise on the _Via Media_. The second condition, and
necessary too, was not in my power. I could only hope that