standing and purify the heart, as prejudicial to the progress of true holiness and virtue, and as tending to lull mankind into a presumptuous and fatal security. They maintained also, at the same time, that these doctrines were as false as they were pernicious; that the sins of our first parents were imputed to them alone, and not to their posterity; that we derive no corruption from their fall, but are born as pure and unspotted as Adam came from the hand of his Creator; that mankind, therefore, are capable of repentance and amendment, and of arriving at the highest degrees of piety and virtue by the use of their own natural powers and faculties; and that although external grace is necessary to excite their endeavours, they can have no need of the internal succours of the Divine Spirit.

These opinions were opposed by many divines, and more particularly by St. Augustin, who maintained the necessity of the divine grace in order to salvation, and the absolute decrees of God with respect to the future conditions of men. These notions were afterwards carried to a greater extent by certain monks of Adrumetum, who maintained that God not only predestinated the wicked to eternal punishment, but also to the guilt and transgression for which they are punished; and that thus both the good and bad actions of all men were determined from eternity by the divine decree, and by an invincible necessity.

Shortly after this, a new and different modification was given to the doctrines of Augustin by Cassian, a monk of France, who attempted to reconcile them with the errors of Pelagius and Cælestius. In tais he was assisted by many, who were anxious to put an end to these unhappy dissensions in the church, but whom their enemies now branded with the name of Semi-Pelagians. The opinions of these have been often much misrepresented, but as generally explained by the learned they seem to amount to the following:That inward preventing grace was not necessary to form in the soul the first beginnings of true repentance and amendment; but that every man is capable of producing these by the mere power of his natural faculties, as also of exercising faith in Christ, and forming the purposes of a holy and sincere obedience. They acknowledged, however, at the same time that none could persevere, or advance in that holy and virtuous course, which they had the power of beginning, without the perpetual support and the powerful assistance of the divine grace.

We have a very learned treatise on the subject of Free-will, written not

long after the commencement of this controversy by Ephraem Syrus, whose works have been edited by Dr. J. Asseman. He considers the subject in four dissertations, and on the following grounds resolves the will to be free:

1. From the goodness of the Deity.

2. From exhortations being addressed to us, and punishments being awarded on disobedience.

3. From a capability in man of distinguishing good and evil, and of preferring either.

4. From the universal feeling among all men that an external impulse causes them to decide on any particular action.

The tenth article of our own church, "of Free-will," is equally opposed to the doctrine of Pelagius, who maintained that man was so entire in his liberty that he has no need of any other grace but that of pardon, and of proposing the truths of religion to his knowledge; and to those of the SemiPelagians, who although they admitted the necessity of an assisting inward grace to enable man to persevere, yet thought that the first conversion of the will to God was the effect of a man's own free choice. This article expressly declares that The condition of man after the fall of Adam is such, that he cannot turn and prepare himself by his own natural strength and good works to faith, and calling upon God;" and that "we have no power to do good works, pleasant and acceptable to God, without the grace of God by Christ preventing us, that we may have a good will, and working with us when we have that good will.”

Thus we perceive this article asserts both an assisting and a preventing grace; and Bishop Burnet, in his exposition, shows, that the twofold doctrine of inward assistances being given to our powers, besides the ordinary outward blessings of Providence, and that of there being a preventing grace, by which the will is first moved, and disposed to turn to God; is clearly deduced from and conformable with, the language of the whole of the New Testament. -Exposition of the Tenth Article.

FRENCH PROPHETS, certain enthusiastic fanatics, who fancied themselves, or pretended to be, inspired by the Holy Ghost, and gave themselves out as prophets sent by God. These first appeared in Dauphiny and Vivarais in France, in the year 1688, and hence acquired the name of French Prophets. They consisted of a great number of people of both sexes and of all ages, some of their assemblies, it is said, amounting to three or four thousand persons. Their prophecies were generally delivered in the midst of fits and

extacies, accompanied with tremblings, faintings, and the most violent agitation of the body; and the principal burden of their prediction was the approaching dissolution of all things, and particularly of the downfall of popery.

A few of these prophets came over into England in the year 1706, where they soon propagated the same fanatical spirit, so that hundreds of them are said to have delivered at the same time their prophetic warnings in and about London. They announced themselves as messengers sent by God to give warning to all nations under heaven, beginning with England, of the near approach of the kingdom of Christ, the happy times of the church, the millenium state, &c.; and declared that this mission of his servants should be rendered manifest by signs and wonders from heaven, particularly by the judgments of God on the wicked by famine, pestilence, earthquakes, &c. who being exterminated by the destroying angel, there should be but one Lord, one faith, one heart, and one voice among all mankind. All these things they declared should come to pass over the whole earth within the space of three years.

They pretended, also, to have been endowed with the gifts of languages, of discerning the hidden secrets of the heart, of administering the same inspiration to others by the laying on of hands, and of healing the sick. As a proof of their own inspiration, they insisted upon their experience of an ineffable joy and happiness, the spirit of prayer which was manifest in them, and the answers their prayers received from God.

FRIAR, from the Latin frater, a brother, a term which is common to monks of all orders, from there being a kind of fraternity or brotherhood, presumed to exist between the several members of the same convent or monastery.

Friars have been generally distinguished into four principal branches. 1. Minors, Grey Friars, or Franciscans. 2. Augustines. 3. Dominicans, or Black Friars. 4. White Friars, or Carmelites. From these four the remainders have sprung.

In a more peculiar sense the term friar is restrained to such monks as are not priests; those who are in orders being usually called Fathers.

FRIENDS, SOCIETY OF, a class of dissenters from the church of England. See article, Quakers.

FUNERAL RITES, ceremonies used upon the interments or burial of the See article, Burial.

dead.

It is remarkable that the Scotch church have no funeral service or cere

mony, in which they differ not only from Christians in general, but from the Jews, Turks, and most of the Pagans. Sir P. Ricaut, in his preface to his State of the Greek and Armenian Churches, says, that the Dutch nation at Smyrna rehearse no prayers at the burial of the dead; and that not only the eastern churches are scandalised at this, but that the Jews and Turks take offence at this silence of prayers; wondering what sort of heresy or sect was sprung up in the world so different from the religion of all the prophets.--See Birne's Blame of Kirk Burials.

The early Christians used many ceremonies in the interment of the dead. The carrying the body to the church, and afterwards to the grave, was usually performed by the nearest relations of the deceased, or by persons of such rank as his station in life rendered suitable. Thus St. Jerome, in his epitaph of Paula, informs us that bishops officiated in bearing her body to the grave. And the learned Durant, from many passages of the ancient Christian writers, proves that the highest rank of the clergy thought it no reproach to their dignity to carry the bier. The burning of torches also, or other lights, was very common, and considered as an honour paid to the departed soul. Mr. Strutt, in his antiquities, tells us that the having a great many of these was a special mark of esteem, in those who made the funeral, to the deceased. We learn also from Durant that it was customary to invite the poor to funerals, among whom doles were distributed according to the estate and quality of the deceased, with the view of procuring rest, through the intercession of their prayers, to the soul of the deceased.

For a further and ample account of all the religious ceremonies and solemnities made use of by the primitive Christians in burying the dead, see Bingham's Orig. Eccl. b. xxiii. c. 3.

ADDENDA.

BLASPHEMY. By the statute 53 Geo. III. c. 160, that of the 9 and 10 Will. III. c. 32, mentioned under this article, together with other statutes against the crime of blasphemy, so far as they relate to persons denying the Trinity, is repealed.-See this Article, p. 262.

BURIAL. By the statute 4 Geo. IV. c. 52, it is enacted, that it shall not be lawful for any coroner, &c. to issue any warrant directing the interment of the remains of persons, against whom a verdict of felo de se shall be had, in any public highway; but that such coroner, &c. shall give directions for the private interment of such persons, without any stake being driven through their body, in the church-yard or the burial-ground of the parish, &c. in which their remains might by the laws or customs of England be interred, if such verdict had not been found against them; such interment being made within twenty-four hours from the finding of the inquisition, and to take place between the hours of nine and twelve at night.-See this Article, p. 285.

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