fessed Christians for conference and mutual admonishing of "one another," the dark ages advanced upon the church, and the power of religion passed away.

When the light of the Reformation began to dawn upon Western Europe, and the Isles of our covenant fathers, the prayer-meeting began to revive, and with its revival true. religion revived. Luther and his contemporaries were men of prayer, and often met together for social prayer. Calvin and Zwingle were men of prayer, and mingled often with kindred spirits in social prayer. John Knox-the North Star of the Reformation, the champion of the prayermeeting-moulded his Scotland and his Scottish Church with its forming power in the very incipiency of his organization. The Melvilles, too, with Henderson and Rutherford, and Cameron and Renwick, and of later times, M'Cheyne-all men of prayer, all revivalists, and most of them sharers in revival. But we are trenching upon history. To that department we must again refer the reader. Only here, some facts of our own times, now passing into history, and briefly. The times of 1858 were times of conventions, and prayer-meetings, and revivals, of which a United Church has been, for these eleven years past, the historic witness, as also to the truth that the prayer-meeting is a means of revival of religion. In any local revival for these twelve years past, in any of our congregations, in every instance the revival of the prayer-meeting has been the revival of religion, and the revival of religion has been the revival of the prayer-meeting. These angels of blessing God has joined together inseparably; to enjoy the one is to enjoy the other.

5. The prayer-meeting is a means of promoting unity in the Church.

Whenever unity obtains in the church, there is a revived state of religion. "Behold how good and how

pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity." Like the unction from the Holy One; like the dews from heaven; there the Lord commands the blessing-the blessing of everlasting life. Here is the life-power of religion. The prayer-meeting in a congregation brings Christian brethren often together. Here more intimate acquaintance. is formed. As true Christians know each other better, so will they love each other more. As they love each other more, they will feel their interests the more closely identified, and the bonds that bind in one strengthened. Like one loving family bound together by the identity of interest, and the bond of affection; like one body, one member suffering, all the members suffer with it. Here they culti vate harmony in affection, so in judgment, mind and faith, and so live and walk together in blessed unity, preparing more and more for that perfectly blessed harmony when all shall come together in one with Christ.

Experience and the divine testimony concur in confirming the truth that the prayer-meeting is the ordinary and efficient means of promoting union of divided churches. While discussions from pulpit and press, and argument in all proper ways may aid in bringing discordant churches to see eye to eye, yet all these without prayer will not only fail, but will, very likely, occasion parties differing to diverge from truth and unity more and more. Prayer must be employed to secure the spirit and love of unity. Controversy without the spirit of prayer will tend to foster prejudice and party spirit, perhaps strife and discord, and the confirming of party issues and party lines more and more.

A spirit of prayer and a love for Christian conference will bring Christians together face to face in the prayermeeting and religious convention, from which positions Christian brethren will understand each other better than

from any other stand-point. And as Christian brethren understand each other better, they will love each other more. And as they understand and love each other more, so will they desire the more to dwell together in unity. But to secure these is the desideratum. Their spirit is from God and of his grace, we are assured; yet united prayer is the means of securing this love of the brethren, this unity of mind and of judgment, and mutual desire to enjoy fellowship in the bonds of peace. Such we have seen and known in times past. Christians and Christian churches long alienated, and Christian feeling imbittered by controversy, have been sweetly subdued under the spirit. of unity; but only through the power of prayer and Christian conference. These have a power-not a mere sensational power, without reason, sense, or truth-a power like the morning cloud; but the power of a divinely ordained instrumentality, taking hold of the heart, and deepened by the Holy Spirit, the Author of the spirit of prayer and unity.

It was the spirit of unity, induced by united prayer and conference of sweet remembrance, that brought together in one united church fragments long alienated by distance and controversy. For many long years that union hung quivering in the balances, putting to severest test the strongest faith. Sometimes the friends of the union almost despaired of success, or again were called to hope against hope, till the period of prayermeetings and conventions came, bringing brethren together face to face, in the spirit of prayer and love. Then, as by the direction of the finger of God, the union was happily consummated, to the joy of its friends, and to the practical illustration of the advantages of the prayer-meeting in promoting union of churches, and dispensing in a united church the spirit of unity, and strengthening the bonds of peace. As this united church was brought forth under

the influence of the prayer-meeting, and as she still thrives. under, and largely enjoys its power, may she long cherish its hallowed and uniting influences, and practice the assembling together of kindred spirits for prayer and conference.

While we would not predict, but reason from analogy, from the history and experience of the past, and from the direct teaching of the word of God, we would say, we have little hope of successful union of the divided churches, in the future, till we see earnest prayer-meetings and religious conventions for conference on the subject of ecclesiastical union. And that this happy future may soon come, let all in their respective circles cherish the spirit of concerted prayer, and sustain the social prayer-meeting.

If unity of faith, confidence, brotherly love and harmony, in operations, be maintained in the church and in our congregations, the prayer-meeting, in its true spirit, as designed by the Head of the Church in appointing the ordinance, must be observed. Not the prayer-meeting as appended to some form of official pastoral administration— not the prayer-meeting in name, and the pastoral week evening lecture in fact-not the prayer-meeting of a few, and these of pious women mainly; but the apostolical meeting in the private upper rooms, the doors being shut, the prayer-meeting of the people, for the people, by the people, and in such way as will bring-not one-tenth of the church membership only-but the whole to the assembling of themselves together, in primitive manner and spirit. Here it is that unity has its birth-place; here it is cradled; here it is trained; here it becomes a three-fold cord; here is the centre of the unity of the church; for here is the soil-the genial soil beside the waters-where unity strikes deeply its roots, and whence it draws its life-power to bind together in comely brotherhood.

6. The prayer-meeting is the normal school of the church for training young men for public usefulness.

A ruling elder should be not only a man of piety, but to be efficient and useful, fitted for all the duties of his office, he should be qualified to conduct prayer-meetings, and lead in their exercises intelligently and dispassionately, with grace and solemnity. He should be qualified for visiting the sick, and to meet all the varied duties of such visits. Here is call for a ripe, Bible-trained mind—need for one who can with readiness speak to the dying from the word of God. Here is need for calmness, ease, and fulness of unction in prayer. The prayer-meeting opens for the young men of the church just the school required for training the material for an efficient eldership. Here young men should be called to lead in prayer. And to prepare for this part of the normal school exercises, let young men be early called to lead in family worship, and in the young men's prayer-meeting. If young men pray in secret; if they are called, in their father's absence, to lead in the worship of the family, thus they can pass up from primary to higher normal training, and become efficient members of the prayer-meeting. Thus trained, the young men of the church may be qualified for leading in prayer in any public meeting, or religious convention, or ecclesiastical assembly; as also at the sick bed for the edification and comfort of the sick and dying. Had we such an eldership, then everywhere might the sick be encouraged to carry out the injunction, as authoritatively binding on them and on the ruling elder as on the pastor: "Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord." James v. 14. Can we expect our eldership to have, and to impart such unction around the sick bed without training?