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terest, are £4173. The expenditure, however, amounted to £4879, and that, too, though the whole salary of one of the ordinary professors was saved to the Committee, the Congregation of St George's having relieved them from the claim which Dr Candlish had for a portion at least of the year's salary. This leaves a balance against the Committee for last year of £745, as exhibited by the abstract of accounts now in the hands of the members of Assembly. And this, added to the sum of £1200 formerly mentioned as inserted in the receipts for the year 1846-47, with interest thereon, makes at present a debt due by the Committee of £2060. From this detail, the Assembly will perceive that this debt of £2060, at present attaching to this Committee, is to be ascribed wholly to two causes. 1st, That the want of a collection in the year 1845-46 involved them in a debt of above £1300, while the collection for the subsequent year merely defrayed the annual expenditure, and afforded no means of liquidating that debt, though the Committee were not till recently aware of this. And, 2d, that the income for the year ending in March last, fell short of the expenditure for the same period by £625; i. e. the balance of £745 exhibited by this abstract of accounts, minus the £120 which was brought as a balance from the preceding year.

In these circumstances, it becomes indispensable that the Church should distinctly understand what is the amount of ordinary annual expenditure connected with the education of candidates for the ministry, which has already, with her sanction, been undertaken. The annual expenditure of the existing collegiate arrangements which the Church has already sanctioned, including those at Aberdeen and St Andrews, as well as Edinburgh, cannot be safely estimated at less than £5000 a year, more than £4000 of this being spent in salaries to professors and tutors, and these salaries being, so far as the Committee have any means of knowing, not regarded by the Church as extravagant. The Committee do not see how, consistently with keeping up the existing arrangements, the expenditure can be materially diminished. The sum arising from the fees of students cannot be estimated at more than £1200, so that the sum which the Church is called upon to raise by

collections and subscriptions for defraying the ordinary annual expenditure of existing collegiate arrangements, without making a provision for the liquidation of the debt, is £3800, a considerably larger sum than has ever yet been raised by annual contributions.

It is proper also for the Committee to remind the Assembly, that the expense of purchasing and fitting up the building at present used as a college, amounting to about £4500, has never been defrayed by the Church. As the property must be disposed of when it is no longer needed for collegiate purposes, and as it is of course uncertain what may be the amount of loss upon the whole transaction, i.e. how far the sum for which it may be ultimately resold may come short of that paid for purchasing it and fitting it up, it was thought better, instead of calling upon the Church to subscribe the money at the time, to procure it from other sources, and the interest of the principal part of this sum still forms one of the annual charges upon the income of the Committee.

The Committee would remind the Assembly that in the re port given in to the Assembly of 1846, by their late lamented Convener, proposals were made of material changes upon the theological curriculum, changes which, if carried out, would have introduced some provisions which he had long regarded as indispensable to an efficient theological education. The Assembly expressed generally their approbation of the recommendations of the report on the curriculum, and transmitted it to Presbyteries that they might consider it more deliberately, and make suggestions about any of the points involved in it. Accordingly twenty Presbyteries sent up returns upon the curriculum to the Assembly of 1847, fifteen of which wholly approved of it, one disapproved of it, and the remaining four approved of it generally, though with some modifications. In these circumstances, and from the impossibility of discussing the subject at the time, last Assembly again transmitted the report upon the curriculum to Presbyteries for their suggestions. There have been this year sent up from Presbyteries thirty-two returns upon this subject, a number not equal to one-half of the Presbyteries of the Church. Of these thirty-two returns, ten approve of the whole curriculum as recommended

in the report, and eleven more, making twenty-one in all, approve of the theological curriculum, while the others suggest changes in some one or more of the recommendations of the report. The Committee think it important again to bring under the consideration of the Church what appears to be necessary for providing a full and complete theological curriculum, and securing to candidates for the ministry an efficient and adequate theological education, suited to the necessities and demands of the age. For this purpose it may be proper to give a brief review of the whole provision now proposed to be made, substantially accordant with the recommendations of the report, which has already obtained the general approbation of two successive Assemblies, and the sanction of a decided majority of the Presbyteries which have sent in returns, but with such modifications as have been suggested by farther reflection and experience.

1st, The Committee would take the liberty of pressing upon the consideration of the Assembly the propriety of adopting some more efficient and systematic provision than at present exists for testing the character and qualifications of students before they are allowed to enter the Hall, or to commence the study of theology. Presbyteries should certainly retain all their present powers and functions in this matter, and exercise them with increasing regularity and strictness. But experience seems to shew that a Presbyterial examination is not sufficient to secure that all students shall be sufficiently qualified in literature and philosophy to prepare them for entering with advantage upon the study of theology. That this be done in a regular, consistent, and systematic way, and in accordance with something like a uniform standard, it seems indispensable that all students, before they are allowed to begin the study of theology, with a view to the holy ministry, should be examined upon literature and philosophy, and passed by a general board of examiners, appointed by the Church for that purpose. This would tend to secure the possession of a respectable measure of attainments by all students who were allowed to enter the Hall, an object never likely to be effected in any other way. The Committee would press this subject upon the consideration of the Assembly, and would farther

suggest it as desirable that all students should be again examined by this Board at the conclusion of their theological studies, before they are allowed to begin their trials for licence.

There is another suggestion upon this point which the Committee would take the liberty of making, and that is, the necessity of students acquiring a knowledge of the elements of Hebrew before they enter the Hall, and of this forming a part of the preliminary examination before the commencement of their theological studies. The reason of this suggestion must be so obvious to every one who has gone through the theological curriculum that has hitherto obtained in Scottish Universities with intelligence, that the Committee will not dwell upon it. They do not anticipate any difference of opinion as to the propriety of the Church making provision for securing this.

The two leading objects which it seems necessary to provide for, in a course of theological study directed to the object of preparing a body of young men for entering, fairly accomplished, upon the work of the ministry in a particular church, are these: 1st, That they should be initiated into the critical study, upon sound principles, of the sacred Scriptures in the original languages, and should be conducted over a considerable portion at least of the inspired volume; and 2d, That they should be instructed in the general scheme of scriptural doc trine and revealed truth, as it is set forth in the symbolical books of the particular Church with which the Theological seminary is connected. No theological curriculum can be regarded as complete, which does not provide for both these objects; and it does not seem possible to provide for them adequately and efficiently in a shorter space of time than four sessions, or by the labours of fewer than four Professors.

In regard to the provision for the securing the 2d of these objects, viz. instructing the students systematically in the whole scheme of scriptural doctrine, as developed in the standards of the Church, the Committee have no modifications to suggest on the proposals contained in the Report, as prepared by Dr Chalmers. These proposals were, that this department of work should be divided between two Professors, each of whom should

have charge of the students of two years, and should have two classes a-day, one for each of the two years' students under his care. This arrangement of course implies that the regular students of each class shall consist only of the students of one particular year, or of about one-fourth of the whole students attending the Hall at the time, while it secures what could not be secured in any other way, the manifestly indispensable object of providing for the students of each year instruction suited to their standing and progress, and carrying them in systematic order, and regular succession, over the whole scheme of Scriptural doctrine. Following out this general idea, the natural division of the subject suggested that the one Professor should superintend the studies of students of the 1st and 4th years' attendance at the Hall, and the other those of students of the 2d and 3d years' attendance. The course for first-year students would thus comprehend the Evidences of the truth of Christianity, and of the Divine origin and inspiration of the sacred Scriptures, the Canon, the Rule of Faith, and some general instructions as to the way and manner in which the Scriptures ought to be used and applied, so as to serve their intended object. The course for students of the 2d and 3d years would comprehend the exposition of the system of Scriptural doctrine in the more limited sense of the word, as including those scriptural truths which bear more immediately upon the personal salvation, and the ultimate destiny of men individually; while that for fourth-year's students would comprehend the exposition of the doctrines and instructions of Scripture with respect to the Church as an organised society, its general characters, properties, and objects; its worship, government, and discipline; the sacraments, and the ministry; with a view of the duties of ministers. This scheme of provision seems to have met with the general approbation of the Church. No Presbytery has disapproved of it. One Presbytery has recommended that the appointment of two Professors of Theology should be postponed; and another Presbytery by recommending the appointment of a Professor of Church History at Aberdeen, in order to complete the theological faculty there, seems to contemplate, either that one Professor of Theology is to instruct daily four different classes, or else,

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