of the last Survey, that several members of the Armenian Church were awakening to a conviction of its errors of two of these we extract

the following account from the publications of the Board.

Of a Priest of that Church it is said

Signior Wortabet is a young man, who left the Armenian Convent at Jerusalem about two years ago; thoughtless, and without settled principle. Entering the service of Mr. Goodell, as literary assistant, he, of course, had many conversations with that Missionary, and received much instruction. Until last summer, however, no strong hold seems to have been taken on his conscience: but then he became deeply serious; and began in earnest to seek for true religion in the heart, which there is much reason to believe he has obtained.

Mr. Goodell says of this Young Ecclesiastic

He is no longer that vain, thoughtless youth, who appeared never to have per

mitted one solemn reflection to enter

his mind: there is a perceptible change in his deportment and conversation. He speaks of his spiritual hopes and fears, and makes inquiries on Christian experience, like one who has indeed been converted and become like a little child. We watch over him with a godly jealousy, when we remember the deceitfulness of the heart; but, judging from present appearances, we do hope that he has passed from death unto life.

At a later period, he adds

Signior Wortabet appears more and more like one who has put off the old man, and put on the new man; having new hopes, new desires, new pleasures, new aversions, new motives. With Christian faithfulness, tenderness, and zeal, he warns his friends of their danger, reads and explains the Word of God to them, and endeavours to bring them to the knowledge of the truth.

Of one of the Armenian Archbishops mentioned in the Survey, the following account is given

His name is Dionysius. He is familiarly called Carabet; an Armenian word signifying a "forerunner," which name was given him, at his own request, by Mr. Goodell, in the hope that he might prove, as he seems likely to do, the forerunner of great good to his

nation." He was born at Constantinople; and spent 36 years of his life in the Armenian Convent at Jerusalem, the last nine of which he was Bishop; and for a long time was principal Secretary to the establishment. He is now

about 50 years old; and, on account of his age, his services, his acquirements, and his general standing, is considered as sustaining in his Church the rank of an Archbishop, and, in his official documents, subscribes himself as such. Three years ago, disgusted with the superstitions and corruptions of his Church, he left the Convent, and what property he possessed, (about 1000 dollars, which the Convent refused to deliver up to him,) and came to Sidon; intending to proceed to Constantinople, and end his days in his native city but meeting with Mr. Goodell at Sidon, he became his instructor in the Armenian-Turkish Language, or the Turkish Language written in the Armenian Character, and has remained with him ever since.

Archbishop as he was, he used profane language; and, at first, appeared perfectly unconscious that it was sinful: but, on being admonished, he abandoned the practice. He invariably attended Divine Service on the Sabbath; and appeared greatly pleased with the seriousness with which it was conducted; the like to which, he said, was nowhere else to be found in Syria. Being harassed with Letters from his Convent, inviting, beseeching, commanding him to return, he renounced his monastic vows; and, to cut off all hope and possibility of his return, entered into the marriage state. So bold a step-which, in fact, set at nought the whole monastic sytem of his of conversation throughout Syria. An Church-became matter of surprise and Armenian Council being held, soon after, at Bagdad, at which were present Priests Echmiazin, in the Greater Armenia, the and Bishops from Jerusalem, and from residence of the Chief Patriarch of the Armenian Church, as well as from other

parts of the East, the case of Dionysius was brought forward and discussed. Whether the Grand Patriarch, whose ample Diocese embraces two-and-forty Archbishoprics, was himself present, we are not informed: but, after long inquiry, no way was found in which the revolted subject could be brought to punishment. At this Council, the Priesthood were treated by the Laity with the most disrespectful freedom.

In the early part of last year, Mr. Goodell thus speaks of the Archbishop

Signior Carabet baptized his child on Christmas Day, in the presence of those who assemble to hear our exposition of the Scriptures: he composed a prayer for the occasion, made a few suitable remarks, and performed the whole with decency and seriousness; in a manner calculated to do good, and without any of the superstitions and rediculous ceremonies of all the Oriental Churches. He was very anxious that I should baptize the child; and I had several very affecting and solemn conversations with him on the subject: though there has been a great change in him, though his moral character is unexceptionable, though he is able and zealous in enforc ing the doctrines of the Gospel, attentive to religious duties, and takes the Bible as a SUFFICIENT, and as the ONLY, rule of faith and practice; yet the evidence is not perfectly satisfactory, that he has been transformed by the renewing of his mind into the image of Christ : there is no POSITIVE evidence to the contrary, but there appears to be want

ing positive evidence in favour. I should be pleased to hear him express more humbling views of himself for sin; and to see him more anxious to repair, if possible, the injury which he has done to the souls of men, by the bad example

which he has set and the erroneous doc

trines which he has inculcated: but, perhaps, we are expecting too much from one whose education has been so unlike our own, whose heart has been so long blinded and hardened by sin, and whose eyes have never beheld, nor his mind conceived, the holy tendency of Christian Example and Christian Effort. But, though he is reserved in speaking of his own feelings, he frequently expresses an abhorrence of his former course of life: on one occasion,

when we were lamenting our want of elementary books, he exclaimed

Oh how I have mis-spent my life! No less than twenty years, I was writing, night and day, to the Patriarch of Constantinople, about the foolish concerns of the Convent; and how much good I might have done, had I been all this time engaged in making Dictionaries, Grammars, &c. But, alas! in all these Convents, every effort to improve and enlighten mankind is discouraged, and every sober inquiry after truth is frowned upon.

On another occasion, when one made

a remark on his diligence in business, he replied

I am grieved, when I think how much of my time has run to waste; and how I have employed all the vigour of my life and wasted my strength in that wherein is no profit.

As it repects this venerable, useful, and interesting man, I think of nothing more suitable to recommend to you in your intercessions at the Throne of Grace, than that he may know what it is to fall down deep in the dust before God; and what it is to have the Spirit of adoption sent forth into his heart, crying, Abba, Father!

At a late date, Mr. Goodell adds the following satisfactory testimony

Signior Carabet is more reserved in expressing his own feelings on experimental religion than Signior Wortabet; but it has evidently been with him a occasionally conversed with Signior season of great searchings of heart. He Wortabet, and gave him judicious advice during the anxiety and distress of his mind; and was frequently present in my conversations with him, seldom weeping, and now and then fetching a speaking, but sitting and listening, and deep sigh. His outward conduct has, for a long time, been unexceptionable.

Of another Armenian Archbishop, named Jacob Aga, it is said—

His understanding has so far been convinced, that he co-operates with the

Missionaries in their work of reformation. He has resided with the English Consul at Sidon, as his Agent. In consequence of his marrying a wife from a Maronite Family, she and all her father's house were excommunicated by the Maronite Patriarch.

Great Excitement among the Armenians of Constantinople.

We noticed, at p. 333 of our last Number, a Farewell Letter written by Mr. King on his departure from Syria. In this Letter, Mr. King assigned reasons why he could not become a Roman Catholic. Of this Letter, and its effect on the Armenians of Constantinople, Mr. Goodell thus writes, on the 29th of September

Mr. King's Farewell Letter, which (with considerable additions by myself, having special reference to the Armenians)

1. That all the former Deacons, and Priests, and Bishops in the Convent at Jerusalem be required to leave the Convent immediately and that the Patriarch put in their place a few persons, whom he may choose; provided they be persons once married, but now widowers.

we had translated into Turkish, found its way to Constantinople in Signior Wortabet's hand-writing, and produced an amazing excitement among the onehundred-thousand Armenians of that capital. A Council was immediately held, consisting of all the Armenian Monks, and Priests, and Bishops, and Patriarchs, of whom several happened at that time to be at Constantinople; and of all the principal Armenians of the Laity; together with two of the Greek Patriarchs, viz, the Greek Patriarch of Constantinople and the Patriarch of Jerusalem.

Mr. King's Letter, with the Scripture proofs, which I had furnished abundantly in the margin, was then read; with a suitable pause after each section: and the question was solemnly asked-" Are these things so?-Are the facts, stated in this Letter, true ?-And is the Letter itself agreeable to the Word of God ?”

The Bible-yes, the holy, blessed, long-neglected Bible-was produced and examined; and, when they could not make it speak a different language from the Letter, they called for the Original, in order to be sure that their translation was a faithful one. In the end, they were forced to acknowledge, that the Letter was agreeable to the Holy Scriptures.

The Monks and Priests and Bishops then said to the Patriarchs-" Three of your principal men have, agreeably to this Letter and to the Bible, married wives, and are now overturning the whole system of our Church: if they are doing right, we will all go and do likewise; but, if they are not doing right, we insist upon your putting an immediate stop to their proceedings and bringing them to justice."

Here they were all in a perfect dilemma; and the Council was divided. At last, the principal Armenians said to their Ecclesiastics-" This business does not belong to us: it belongs to you. We know very well that you are all bad men; that, with all your professions of purity, you are the most impure among the defiled-that you have in your cloisters both women and children- and that you annually pay much money, which all comes from our pockets, for this abominable purpose. But this is not our business-it is YOURS; and we leave it with you to act as you please." After much disputation and recrimination, the following Resolutions were finally agreed upon

2. That, from this day, until TWENTY-FIVE YEARS have expired, no individual be allowed to become a Monk or to be ordained a Priest.

3. That boys and women be not permitted to go hereafter on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem; and that if men go, they be not allowed to remain more than four days in Jerusalem, and that they never be again permitted to witness the pretended Miracle of the Holy Fire!

To this last Resolution, the Greek Patriarchs made many objections; and earnestly besought that it might rot pass: "For," said they, "if we now let it be known, that the Miracle of the Holy Fire was all an imposition, we shall be ridiculed by our enemies; and shall lose all credit with our own people, many of whom will become Turks."

But all the Resolutions passed, and the Patriarch of Constantinople sent Letters, officially, through all his Patriarchate, to put them in execution.

The First Resolution was passed in consequence of the low state of the Convent; the decline of which is attributed, in a great measure, to the influence of the Armenians who are with me.

The Second Resolution was in consequence of the universal complaint of the ignorance, profligacy, and numbers of the Clergy: the high probability at present

is, that not another Armenian will ever take the Monastic Vow!

To this plain statement, which was made to me yesterday, by an Armenian who was present at the Council and saw and heard all that passed, I need add no comments. You yourself will perceive, that the Armenians are evidently ripe for a moral revolution.

The marriage and conduct of the Armenian Ecclesiastics had prepared the Members of their communion at Constantinople for Mr. King's Letter: Mr. Goodell writes on this subject

When the marriage of these men was first reported at Constantinople, it was supposed that they had altogether renounced Christianity; and the general impression was, that, like Judas, they had betrayed their Master: when it was afterward reported, that they still believed in the Christian Religion, and were attentively reading the Bible, it produced some astonishment: but when

Mr. King's Letter arrived, and it was ascertained what views they had adopted and in what labours they were actually engaged, it was like an electric shock, making a sudden and powerful impression upon all.

In reference to this extraordinary state of things, it is remarked in the Missionary Herald, published by the Board

The occurrences reported are, indeed, so wonderful, so beyond what even the friends and supporters of Missions had dared to expect, that, at first, they seem almost incredible. The reader should observe, however, that the Letter was written on the 29th of September, that the substance of it was confirmed on the 5th of the following month, and not doubted by the Missionaries on the 18th; at which time, Mr. Goodell wrote to the Corresponding Secretary in the manner following

Some of the accounts may seem to you strange and contradictory; and, indeed, they seem so to us. There is a movement upon the minds of many: but, in the midst of religious inquiry and discussion, and of singular public acts abroad, it demands our gratitude, that there continues around us, in the immediate sphere of our own labours, a spirit of grace, abasing the lofty, subduing the rebellious, and making solemn the thoughtless and gay.

Encouragements amidst Dangers and

The last ten months have been to us a season of the deepest interest. We have seen this dry and thirsty land, parched with the drought of more than a thousand years; and we have seen a little cloud rising, and gently shedding down refreshing showers. We have seen ridicule, and scorn, and persecution, and the most virulent opposition; and we have seen the omnipotence of God's truth and the omnipotence of His Spirit, in carrying forward the great work of benevolence in spite of the machinations of the powers of darkness. We have seen this wretched Government convulsed in every part, the picture of horror, and carrying consternation through all ranks of society in Turkey; and we have seen the reAugust, 1827.

establishment of a branch of that kingdom of peace and righteousness, which is to break in pieces and destroy all other kingdoms, and which is to endure for ever. We have seen violence and oppression almost beyond the endurance of human nature-men gnawing their tongues for pain, and threatening to put a period to an existence so embittered as to be deemed no longer a blessing, but repenting not of their evil deeds; and we

have seen a few melted, not by the Judgments, but by the Mercies of hea ven-not subdued by the wrongs and cruelties which they suffer nor driven by the terrors of the world to come, but and in the day of God's saving power drawn by the cords of everlasting love made the willing subjects of His king

dom.

time, in which our bosoms have not been Scarcely has a day passed for a long agitated by witnessing scenes or hearing reports, encouraging or discouraging to us, inspiring now hope, now fear. We are alarmed, now, by Greek cruisers before the town-and now, by the appearance of Mohammed Ali's fleet. At one time, we are told that firmâns have been purchased from the Grand Signior to seize upon those Armenians connected with us, who have embraced the Protestant Faith-and at another, that our beloved brother Asaad Shidiak, who has long been suffering for the sake of Christ, is almost worne out, or is already dead, from the severity of the treatment To-day, we are troubled at the Customwhich he receives from the Patriarch. House in getting passed any thing printed in Arabic; and are compelled to hear the angry voices and to witness the distorted countenances of those, (not Mussulmans, but Christians!) who exclaim, "These books ought to be thrown into the sea"-to-morrow, we are imposed upon by the cupidity of some of the Emirs, and are thwarted in our plans by the hostility of others. At one moment, we have before us all the horrors of a famine; and are prohibited by the Pacha from importing any thing from abroad, except by paying such enormous duties as that it shall be no detriment to his own monopoly-and at another, we receive official notice of the fear of a rupture between England and the Porte, and are warned to provide for our personal safety. We hear of wars and rumours of wars, of pestilence and famine, of carnage and blood. 3 B

Consul of this place and his own Pacha, in consequence of the resistance of the Consul to the merciless exactions and dreadful oppressions of the Pacha. We have great reason for thankfulnesss, that we have thus far been preserved, to such a degree, from the insolence of the Turks; but we know not what shall be on the morrow. A man's HAT is always more safe in America, than a man's HEAD is in Turkey.

When we removed the body of our dear brother Fisk to the ground purchased for the purpose, a neighbouring Turk threatened to tear it from the grave. But, whatever may become of these our earthly tabernacles, after we shall have put them off, we know, that He, whom we serve, is faithful, and will surely find them all again at the resurrection of the just.

And, in the midst of all these, and many, many more such like things, it is, on the other hand, reported to us for our comfort-at one time, that there is a prospect of the deliverance of poor Asaad Shidiak from prison and from death-at another, that different individuals, scattered here and there, have, by the simple reading of the Word of God, become convinced of the errors of their Church, some of whom boldly and warmly espouse the cause of truth: now, that light is surely breaking forth upon many of these dark villages, and that important moral changes are already taking place and, now, that the whole Armenian Church has publicly reformed some of her abuses, and that she appears fast preparing to undergo a complete moral revolution: most of which intelligence, bad and good, is perhaps contradicted the second day, modified the third, or confirmed the fourth. In the mean time, one of our Schoolmasters is writing to us, that the prejudices against Female Education are breaking away, and that he has FIFTEEN GIRLS in his school; another, that he has FORTY-TWO in his; while the Superintendant reports, that, in all our schools, there are NINETY GIRLS, and nearly FOUR HUNDRED BOYS. We thank God, and take courage. We sit down in our families, and ten or twelve natives sit down with us, every evening, to read the Holy Scriptures, and to listen to our expositions and exhortations: one tells us of the darkness and stubbornness and anguish of his soul, and requests our prayers: another expresses the hope, that God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined into his heart to give him the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. We listen to their different relations, and endeavour to give them suitable directions: we see evidence, that God Himself is in the midst of us, convincing and converting, enlightening and regenerating some of those around us; and we say and feel, that it is good for us to be here.

From other communications of Mr.Goodell we extract further statements in reference to their trials and hopes: he writes

It is much to our disadvantage, that there is, at present, a coldness between England and the Ottoman Porte, in consequence of the sympathy and interference of England in the affairs of the Greeks; and also between the English

Let not these threatening dangers discourage the Committee. In case even of an open war, let Missionaries come forth, as God's host. They can take, from Malta or Smyrna, French or other passports, as the case may require; and we have much confidence, that all these political commotions will bring into contact with us new and important points of observation and labour, and will introduce us to untried and unthought-of fields of usefulness. What benevolent eye would be bathed in tears, unless it were in tears of holy rejoicing, to see the Beast and the False Prophet taken; and all these ancient fabrics of superstition and of political despotism, which seem to have sprung up from the bottomless pit, crumble to atoms, and be found no more at all?

There is something pleasant in the thought, that you and we may be permitted to live, and to look, at the expiration of the TWENTY-FIVE YEARS, upon those bright scenes of Armenia and of the countries around her, which seem even now to be unfolding.

He adds, on another occasionIn case of an open war between bably be obliged to leave the country, England and the Porte, we should protill peace should be restored; for Mount Lebanon, which would afford a secure retreat for all others, would be the last place that we should think of resorting to for safety, in the present state of feeling, among the Priests, Bishops, Patriarchs, and Emirs, toward us. Our hand is against every man, and every man's hand is against us. The WORLD shall