inspired writers were not true, or that it was incumbent at all times, and upon all Christians, to disregard them. It has been strenuously contended that there were such bishops in the infancy of the Church, and that allusion is made to them in Scripture ; but, without directly op- posing the assertion, this much must be admitted, that the proof of it is less clear than that bishops and pres- byters were represented as the same in rank and in au- thority. Indeed, there does not appear to have been any occasion for this higher order. To presbyters was actually committed the most important charge of feed- ing the Church of God, that is, of promoting the spiritual improvement of mankind; and it is remarkable that their privilege of separating from the people by ordina- tion the ministers of religion is explicitly acknowledged in the case of Timothy, whom the apostle admonishes not to neglect the gift that was in him, and which had been given by prophecy, and by the laying-on of the hands of the presbytery; by which can be meant only the imposition of the hands of those who were denomi- nated presbyters or bishops. But although all the parts of the ministerial duty had been intrusted to presbyters, it is still contended that the New Testament indicates the existence of bishops as a higher order. There has, however, been much diversity of opinion in relation to this point by those who contend for the divine institu- tion of Episcopacy (q. v.). Some of them maintain that the apostles, while they lived, were the bishops of the Christian Church ; but this, and upon irrefragable grounds, is denied by others. Some urge that Timothy and Titus were, in what they call the true sense of the term, bishops; but many deny this, founding their de- nial upon the fact that these evangelists did not reside within the bounds, and were not limited to the admin- istration, of any one church, but were sent wherever it was resolved to bring men to the knowledge of divine truth. Many conceive that the question is settled by the epistles in the book of Revelation being addressed to the angels of the respective churches named by the apostle. But it is far from being obvious what is im- plied under the appellation angel. There has been much dispute about this point, and it is certainly a deviation from all the usual rides by which we are guided in in- terpreting Scripture to bring an obscure and doubtful passage in illustration of one about the import of which, if we attend to the language used, there can be no doubt. It may, therefore, be safely affirmed that there is nothing clear and specific in the writings of the New Testament which qualifies the positive declarations that bishops and presbyters were the same officers; that the ground upon which the distinction between them is placed is, at least, far from obviously supporting it ; and that there is not the slightest intimation that the ob- servance of such a distinction is at all important, much less absolutely essential, to a true Christian Church, in- somuch that where it is disregarded the ordinances of divine appointment cannot be properly dispensed. If, therefore, it be established — and some of the most learn- ed and zealous advocates for the hierarchy which after- wards arose have been compelled to admit it — that Scripture has not. recognised any difference of rank or order between the ordinary teachers of the Gospel, all other means of maintaining this difference should be with Protestants of no force. Says Coleman, " Even the most zealous advocates of the episcopal system in the Greek, Roman, and English Church are constrained to recognise and admit the identity of the terms ittiWo- ttoc. and irptafirTtpoc;, according to the vsus loquendi of the ancient Church. They are constrained to admit that the distinction between the office of bishop anil presbyter, which prevailed about the 3d and 4th centu- ries, and to a period still later, was unknown in the first two centuries." It may be shown that the admission of the distinction is not incompatible with the great ends for which a ministry was appointed, and even in particular cases may tend to promote them ; but still it is merely a matter of human regulation, not binding
PRESBYTER
512
PRESBYTER
fcpoil Christians, and not in any way connected with the vital influence of the Gospel dispensation. The Whole ofthe writers of antiquity might be urged in sup- port of it, if thai could be done; and, after all, every private Christian would be entitled lo judge for himself, ami to be directed by his own judgment, unless ii be maintained thai where Scripture lias affirmed the ex- istence of equality, this is to be counteracted and sot at naught by the testimonies and assertions of a sel of writers who, although honored with the name of fa- 1 1 m - r-. are very far, indeed, from being infallible, and who have, in fact, often delivered sentiments which even they who, upon a particular emergency, cling to them must confess to be directly at variance with all thai is s.uiud in reason or venerable and sublime in religion. It also follows, from the Scriptural identity of bishops and presbyters, thai no Church in which this identity is preserved can on that account be considered a- hav- ing departed from the apostolic model, or its ministers be viewed, al leasl with any good reason, as having less