Prolocutor, the chairman or president of convoca- tion in England. See Cosvot a i kin.
Promater. See Sponsor.
Promise (some form of "i~X, to say, or "CI, to speak; iirayyeKia) is a solemn asseveration, by which one pledges bis veracity that he will perform, or cause to be performed, for the benefit of another, the thing which he mentions. A promise, in the scriptural sense ol the term, i- a declaration or assurance of the divine will, in which God signifies what particular blessings
"i g 1 things he will freely bestow, as well as the evils
which he will remove. Promises differ from the com- mands of ( Sod, inasmuch as the former are significations ol the divine will concerning a duty enjoined to be per- formed, while the promises relate t ercy to be re- ceived. The t: exceeding greal and precious promises" are applicable to all believers; they appertain to the present and the future life (2 Pet, i,4). Some partic- ular promises are predictions, as the promise of the ml the blessings of the Gospel (Rom. iv. 18,
1 I: Gal. lib I I 29). Hence the Hebrews were calll d
the " children of the pr ise" | Rom. ix, 8). So all the
true believi rs in the Lord Jesus Christ are called ••chil- dren" and -heir, of the promise" (Gal. iv, 20; Heb. vi, 12, 17 i. There are four classes of promises mentioned in the Scriptures, particularly in the New Test I, promises relating to the Messiah; 2, promises relating to the Church; ::. promises of blessings, both temporal and spiritual, to the pen- : and, l. promises encouraging
the exercise of the several graces and duties that com- pos,- the Christian character. The lirst two of these classes, indeed, are many of them predictions as well as promises. See Pjbophect. The consideration of t tic others should prove, 1. an antidote to despair; 2, a mo- tive to patience under affliction ; 3, an incentive to per- severance in well-doing; l. a call tor prayer.
PROMISE is a Bolemn asseveration by which one pledges his veracity that he shall perform, or cause to be performed, the thing which he mentions. The ob- ligation of promises arises from the necessity of the well-being and existence ol society. " Virtue requires," as Dr. Doddridge observes, "that promises be fulfilled. The promisee, i. c. the person to whom the promise is matlr. acquires a property in virtue of the promise. The uncertainty of property would evidently be at- tended with great inconvenience. By failing to fulfil my promise. I either Bhow that I was not sincere in making it, or that 1 have little constancy or resolution, and either way injure my character, and consequently my usefulness in life. Promises, however, are not bind- ing, 1. if they were made by us before we came to such exercise of reason as to be tit to transact affairs of mo- ment ; or if by any distemper or sudden surprise we are deprived of the exercise of our reason at the time when the promise is made; •_'. if the promise was made on a false presumption, in which the promiser, after the most diligent inquiry, was imposed upon, especially if he were deceived by the fraud of the promisee; 3, if the thing itself be vicious, for virtue cannot require that vice should he committed; I. if the accomplishment of the promise be so hard and intolerable that there is reason to believe that, had it been foreseen, it would not have been an accepted case; 5, if the promise be not accepted, or if it depend on conditions not performed." — Ruck. TheoL hut. s. v. Rut really this question con- cerning the validity and obligation of a promise given or obtained under false views is a matter that falls within the Casuistry of Ethics— a very uncertain ground. See Grotius, De Jure, lib. ii. cap. xi; Paley, Moral Philos- ophy, vol. i. eh. v; Grove, Moral Philosophy, vol. ii. ch. xii, p. 2; Watts. Sermons, ser. 20} Dyrnond, Essays; Verplanek, On Contracts. See Obligation; Pboba-
BILISM.
PROMISES OF COD are the kind declarations of his Word, in which lie hath assured us be will bestow blessings upon bis people. The promises contained in the sacred Scriptures may be considered, I. divine as to their origin; '-'. suitable as to their nature; .">. abundant as to their number: 1. (dear as to their expression; .">. certain as to their accomplishment The consideration of them should, 1, prove an antidote to despair; 2, a motive to patience; :;. a call for prayer; 4. a spur to perseverance. See Clark, On the Promises} Ruck. Ser- mons, ser. 11.
Promissum. See Pactum.
Promotio per saltum is. in the Church of Rome, the intentional disregard of the legal scale of the different orders. It is the collation or the obtention of a higher order by way of skipping one or several Other orders, which, according to rule, ought to precede. In consequence, lie who has been ordained /»/■ saltum
cannot perform the f iions of the order thus unlaw- fully bestowed until the next inferior order has been subsequently obtained also (<-. mi. I>i.<t. Hi); this infe- rior degree the bishop can confer on him. and allow him
at once to perform the duties of the higher degrt