Q. MY lively, lovely, little child! declare,
What is thy Christian name? and then in brief,
With serious heart, and an assured air,
Repeat aloud thy faith and thy belief.

A. The Christian name I bear, is Constantine;
And tho' in Adam I was lost of old,
Yet now, at last, I'm sav'd, thro' grace divine,
By Christ, the true Messiah, long foretold.

Q. Who gave thee, say, the name by which thou'rt call'd,
Tho' thou wert erst with all the human race,
By Adam's shameful lapse, to sin enthrall'd,
The child of wrath, and in a wretched case?

A. My sponsors at the font, with faith sincere,
(As I have since been made to understand)
Gave me the name, which I am proud to bear,
According to our Saviour's own command.

Q. But what advantage thence to thee has flow'd,
When thou wert at the sacred font baptiz'd,
With water, by the minister of God:
Since so much woe is in thy life compriz'd?

A. A member I of Christ, am made thereby,
A child of the Almighty God above,
An heir apparent of the realms on high,
And happy in my blessed Saviour's love.

Q. What was the vow thy sponsors then exprest?
What was the solemn promise that they gave,
By which with equal tenure to the best,
Thou wast entitled all those rights to have?

A. Three sev'ral things they promis'd in my name,
Which I shall never, whilst I breathe, forget ;
But, thro' God's grace, will strive to do the same,
'Till I have paid, far as I can, the debt.

Q. What were the things they promis'd to fulfil
For thee - 'till thou to proper age shou'dst grow,
When of thyself thou hadst no pow'r, nor will?
Tell me aloud, if thou the same dost know.

A. First, I observe, that I renounce entire
The wily fiend, and his infernal deeds,
This wicked world, with ev'ry vain desire,
And sinful lust, that from the flesh proceeds.

Take notice, next, I did by them engage
The Christian Faith for ever to maintain,
I mean those doctrines of each sacred page,
Which all may from their creed, in short, obtain.

Thirdly, that I, with reverential awe,
Shall God's commands and will reveal'd obey,
And lead, according to his given law,
A godly life, unto my dying day.

Q. To this belief art thou engag'd so fast?
And is thy obligation, say, so great,
That thou the promise, which for thee they past,
Must now make good, and their whole vow complete?

A. All this I must believe, and, what is more,
I'm bound the same entirely to fulfil,
As far as is consistent with my pow'r ;
And, if I'm able, by God's grace, I will:

And hearty thanks I to my Maker owe,
That he vouchsaf'd such favour to afford,
As his salvation unto me to show,
Thro' Jesus Christ, my ever-blessed Lord:

And earnestly I pray that he wou'd deign,
To me, the grace of constancy to give,
That I may, in this hopeful state, remain,
'Till I, with him, in endless bliss shall live.

Q. Rehearse, with voice distinct and solemn air,
Those articles the Christian Faith requires,
That I may thence collect, how just they are,
And on what grounds thou foundest thy desires.