“And I believe in one catholic and apostolic church.” Setting aside the word apostolic, this is the only good part in the belief; for depend upon it readers, that till there is an universality of mind and action throughout the world in one direction, we never shall have true happiness. Therefore I praise the belief in a catholic or universal church or community; but the objectionable word apostolic pulls me down from the Utopia to which I had begun to soar, for that word spoils all. With the word apostle are strangely mingled together some ideas of Peter, the Pope, the Inquisition, thumbscrews, racks, stakes, and other adjuncts to an apostolic church. “I acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins.” Only think, readers, the church set at loggerheads, and nearly £100,000 spent on the last nine words. A bishop, with all the courage imaginable, speaking what the _Times_ tells him may cost him his mitre, and then excommunicating the whole who disagree with him, the _Times_ of course included, on account of these words! I think after this we had better read the passage again. What is baptism? Answer: Saying long prayers over a baby in long clothes, till you wake it, and then sprinkling water on it till you make it cry! What is remission of sins? Answer: Don’t know. Now I believe the grand question in dispute is whether the grace comes before the baptism or at it, or after it, or whether it comes at all; and to settle this question they have employed themselves in worrying one another with threats, protests, and prohibitions, to the benefit of the lawyers and us poor inquirers. I say our benefit, too, for we are told that when rogues fall out honest men get their own. What absurdity is contained in the idea that the baptising of a child with water saved it from being damned for sins that it never committed! or, how still more absurd is the idea that the child would be damned if it were not baptised at all; yet this doctrine is taught and inculcated by the Creed of the Church of England. The creed proceeds: “I look for the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come.” Together with this resurrection are associated the ideas that we shall be brought before the bar of God and give an account of our deeds, and that the bad shall be sent to hell and the good to heaven. Now we are told that hell is a lake of brimstone and fire; if that is the case, I deny that there can be eternal punishment, for science proves that there is not enough brimstone in any finite space to burn one man for ever, let alone several millions: and with regard to heaven, if I am to go there I hope it will not be near the planet Uranus, for I should feel too cold; or near the sun, for then I should feel too hot, and should not be very happy. However, take it at the worst, we freethinkers should be better off than the believer, for bad as the believer makes his God, he surely could never be unjust enough to send me to hell for speaking what I