To the Editor of the Times and Seasons

Dear Sir,-I would not wish to intrude on your valuable space, but if you can find room for a short letter I would esteem it as a favor. I commenced giving an out-line of the church from the days of the apostles; but it swelled beyond my expectations, and I was obliged to leave it about the twelfth century: from which time to the reformation by Wickliff in 1360, it was one mass of ignorance and superstition.-For while the Waldenses stood aloof from the Church of Rome, they had fallen into the grossest darkness, and they hailed as brethren every one who protested against the pope no matter as to their religious opinions. A Rev. master of arts in Liverpool attempted to prove that the Church of England received their priesthood and authority from the Waldenses; but with all the art he was master of he failed, for it is notorious that the reformation in that church by Henry the Eight was not a reformation in either doctrine or dicipline [discipline] but a transfer of the same power from the pope to the king, and what little reformation the church of England has experienced has been by peace-meal, for her ministers have been greedy dogs, and what the pope had instituted where money was to be received they have stuck to it like as many leeches, and sucked the very life's-blood from the people, and yet they are ashamed of, and cry mightily against, purgatory, but are very careful as soon as they hear of a death in any part of England to apply for a mortuary. What is that for? Why, to get the deseased [deceased] out of purgatory! This same M. A. of Liverpool is very boisterous against purgatory, but a firm believer in receiving the money. But to return more directly to the subject. We find Luther, and Melanchton busy in the 16th century endeavoring to throw some light around them and reform the morals of the people.-They drew an out-line of their doctrine and called a counsel.

But as it is with mankind that when once their minds are roused to a sense of their privileges, and elated with success, they run to the extremes; thus the absudities [absurdities?] of men laid foundations for churches, such for instance as the Ana-baptist, who took their rise about 1533, in Westphalia on the Netherlands. A furious rabble rose up pretending to have a commission from heaven, whose object was to overturn all civil institutions and establish a republic. They committed the most horrible excess. Their leaders were Mathias, a baker, and Boccold, a tailor. They contended for having all things common,

as plurality of wives, and that magistrates were unnecessary, and for baptism by immersion, and as the subjects had been previously sprinkled they received the name of Ana-baptists. Boccold pretended to be a prophet, and marched through the streets naked, crying with a loud voice, That the kingdom of Zion was at hand. He had fourteen wives at one time, one of whom he beheaded with his own hands, because she was "getting weak in the faith."-HE arrived at great power, but was finally taken prisoner, and after being exhibited through the cities of Germany, was conveyed to Munster and put to death in the most cruel manner; but his principles respecting baptism are still extant. These excesses caused much trouble to the mind of Luther, for all these were pointed out as his followers, but he and the Waldenses differed from them both as to the mode of baptism, and many other points of doctrine. But the grand link had been broken by which the church was connected, and they rapidly began to fill up the mystical number of 666.

The Antinomians, the Sacramentarians, Calvanists, &c. &c., soon sprung up and were equally persecuted in their turns by their elder sisters till they got some foot-hold. After the first reformers had fought the battle for private judgment and been successful, others arose amongst themselves who thought they saw some error; but, say they, no! it was not for you to think and sent them off to prison, thus poor Bunyan spent about twelve years in a prison because he thought for himself, but finally the dissenters from the reformed church, became so numerous that they succeeded in establishing private judgment when there immediately sprang up men making divisions after division or in other words men began business for themselves on every hand till the one church had become a thousand: and infidelity has spread throughout the land, and the body is nowhere to be found. For the church of God was overcome and scattered to the four winds like the wreck of a vessel in a mighty storm. And now there is a great commotion going on in the religious world as to the best means of getting back again into the arms of the old mother. It would have been very glaring to have gone back all at once, after so much abuse being heaped on the old lady, and therefore Mr. Pusey is sent forth as a pioneer to prepare the way, and as things were looking desperate, he takes a desperate stride of one half the distance to begin with, and so we have again nearly all the gaudy ceremonies and splendid exhibitions of idolatrous Rome, in full force in the Church of England, with penance, purgatory, extreme unction, transubstantiation, image worship, &c. &c. &c. The greatest anxiety is displayed to get all safely back again as soon as possible.

There id a general move in the sectarian world and they all seem to be looking for something; and like those of old to a man, almost, fighting against the truth: crying the Mormons ought to be exterminated because they believe in revelation. Now, which of these wise-acres can tell us without revelation which of all the sects are right-or the church of Christ? for we are informed that there are upwards of 540, and no man can surely be found foolish enough to say that they are all right; for their doctrines are diverse one from another, and none of them agree with the bible. I will venture to say (if the bible be true,) that they are all wrong. For I think 1 [I] have shown in a previous letter, that before the twelfth century the whole christian world had either embraced Popery or Mahometanism, and the bible says no one can bring a clean thing out of an unclean.

But, sir, let them rage; they love darkness rather than light, because their deeds are evil; for they are not so foolish but they know that if the Lord should speak, he would disapprove of their doings, for there is no variableness nor shadow of turning with him-I, the Lord, change not,-and he tells us that Jerusalem was destroyed of old BECAUSE THEIR PRIESTS PREACHED FOR HIRE!!! And now they are so far sunk in infidelity as to hire themselves to preach for their hundreds and their thousands, and such is their heaven-daring assumption as to lean upon the Lord and say, is not God with us? My God! how long are these things to continue, and the people satisfied to have them so?

In hopes, sir, that the time is not far distant when the truth shall go forth, and the morning, to the ends of the earth and cause every honest heart to rejoice, I subscribe myself your affectionate brother in the new covenant,

John Greenhow.