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1 2 3

PHILOSOPHY

THE BIBLE VINDICATED

REV. C. O'BRIEN, D. D.

CHARLOTTETOWN, P. E. L:
BREMNER BROTHERS, PRINTERS, QUEEN ST.

1876.

Entered according to Act of Parliament, in the year one thonaand eight
hundred and eoventy-slx, by Cohnelids O'Brien, D. D., in the office of
the Minister of Agriculture and Statietice of the Dominion of Canada.

\-i

PREFACE.

(^pi N the Holy Bible we have truths of the natural and
'^l supernatural order ; we have historic, philosophic,
^0Jf theologic, and other truths. Being destined for all
vS time, and for the good of mankind, its teachings can
never be antiquated, neither can they ever run counter with
the real interests of man. Inspired by an Infinite Wisdom
its words are not emp*;y sounds, but are replete with sublime
meaning ; its assertions are not vague and contradictory, but
precise and harmonious throughout. Ages will bring no
change to the truth of its message ; scholars will never exhaust
the treasury of its lore. Learned believers will reverently
investigate its history and its claims to our obedience, not
because they have any doubt, but to give a " reason for
the faith that is in them," and its light will shine the
more brightly : learned unbelievers will assail first one,
thea another of its truths, vainly calling to their aid some
particular branch of knowledge, but each development of
science will only tend to ca«t a more brilliant ray — if that
were possible — of evidence around its eternal verities. In
the following pages the Author has endeavoured to present.

PREFACE.

in a compendious form, the Philosophic truths of the
Bible, and to prove them as concisely as possible. Only
such truths as can be koown by the lijxht of human reason
are here subjected to treatment. Historic truths, and those
which could only be known by revelation, fall not uritliio
the scope of this roughly sketched treatise.

In this age of crude theories and disjointed systems
that are launched upon the stream of literature, in a wild
confusion not unlike the shifting visions of a diseased
brain, it may not be amiss to offer to the consideration
of the public a system of Philosophy the oldest, the most
coherent, the most ennobling that this world has ever
seen. The christian philosopher is not haunted by the
ambitiop of "founding" a ncAv school of philosophy:
he may, indeed, be the founder of a new method of
treatment, but substantially all his conclusions are found
in the Bible. Briefly outlined the christian system of
philosophy is this : " thfere exists an infinite, necessary,
intelligent Being who, of his own free will, created all
contingent things ; those he rules by his providence and
ca ('es for in his love. Man is the lord of visible creation ;
ho is the work of the Most High, and is endowed with
freedom of will and an immortal soul. A law has been
imposed upon him by his Creator ; by its observance he
can merit reward, by its transgression he will incur con-
dign punishment. Viewing man historically the moral
necessity of a revelatiou is made manifest ; God can re-
veal, he has, in fact, revealed. Miracles are possible, and

U.J'"--

PREFACE.

they are one of the evidences of revelation. No one truth
can contradict another, hence between reason and revela-
tion there can be no reiil contradiction." Many other
questions bearing on these points till up the grand system
of biblic philosophy. It is one of great importance ; it
has direct bearing on social life ; its exposition and defence
constitute a noble work.

Two things liavc long appeared certain to the Author —
first, that the science of Metaphysics is not so dry, diffi-
cult, and obscure as it is generally thought : secondly, that
the spread of irreligion is greatly facilitated by an almost
general ignorance of the elementary principles of this science.
The very mention of metaphysics sends a shudder through
the frames of many persons. They look upon it as a
something misty and obscure ; they fancy that it is a sort
of scientific nightmare which broods gloomily over the
brain of the anxious student. Others do not dread it to
such an extent ; still, they consider it an unprofitable
study. To them it is a virgin forest, filled with gnarled
old trunks that defy alike the axe of the husbandman, and
the eating tooth of time. They cannot penetrate its mazy
depths, they say: a tangled undergrowth of hard defini-
tions intervenes between themselves and the knotty trees
of Substance, Existence, Creation, and other giant trunks
that grow in the vast wood-land of metaphysics. Perhaps
they have ventured to peer timidly into its leafy groves ;
and then started back with a feeling akin to that experienced
by children, when they hurry away from a dense wood,

PBEFACE.

terrified by the echo of their own footfalls. Others a;^in,
will ij^norantly dechiim af^uinst this science without know-
ing more about it than its name. That the spread of ir-
religion is facilitated by an ignorance of metaphysics, is
evident. The person who has mustered the elements of this
science can refute materialism : he can prove that the soul is
not matter ; that it is a something distinct and different from
the body ; that the will is free, consequently that we are
responsible for our actions. He can refute, in a word, all
those false philosophic principles which are opposed to Biblic
Revelation ; he can prove that between Revelation and true
science there can be no opposition. Man is probably, no
more prone to evil now, than what he formerly was ; but
man, both professors and scholars, are more superficial in
their attainments. Herein it seems, lies the explanation of
this widesprciid infidelity. " Professors "' who now are ex-
tolled us prodigies of learning, would, had their lot been cast
in the oft reviled "middle ages," have been considered noisy
school-boys. No respectable university, or college, would
have allowed them to occupy a chair.

Now the Author was, and is, firmly persuaded that
inetaphysics could be made more popular ; the science
though abstract is not abstruse. Like every other human
science it has been overshadowed by professional mystery ;
professional jargon and jugglery are the twin dragons that
guard the entrance to every human science. If you over-
come the former by patient study, you are still in danger
of being kept away from the enchanted castle by the mis-

PREFACE.

leac'.ing tricks of the latter. The priucc of philosoplicrs,
St. Thomas, has shown us that a profound subject may
be treated in a clear manner. Truth is always clear in
itself; hence natural truths can be made quite clear to
every person of ordinary intelligence. It is only when
the path of truth is left, or when a writer strives to ex-
plain something inexplicable by human reason, that con-
fusion and jbacurity arise. Whole pages are filled with
misty propositions, jagged reasonings, and contradictory
assertions about the simplest truth. A few words is often
enough about a question which will be agitated in news-
papers and reviews for months. To endeavour to popu-
larize the elements of metaphysics, and thus to oppose, in
some degi'ce, a barrier to the spread of irreligious theories,
was the object of the writer. This work is not intended
for a class-book ; it is rather intended as a book in the
reading of which any intelligent person may find profit.
Hence the style is not dry and strictly philosophic. The
wish of the Author was to clothe the great truths of met-
aphysics which bear immediately on religion, in language
which might be clear, and not devoid of attraction. How
far he has succeeded the public will judge. Even if his
work be pronounced a failure, he will not forego the belief
that such a thing is possible, and if taken in hands by a
more competent writer, would be productive of great good.
The age is busy and restless ; large volumes or long chap-
ters are not, as a general rule, read. Hence brevity join-
ed with pei'spicuity has been chiefly kept in view. Of a

Vlli

FREFACE.

: (

set purpose, an outspoken, or what some may call an
arrogaut tone, has, in many places, been adopted. When
error is continually brawling in a dogmatic manner the
defenders of truth ought not to put their propositions for-
ward apologetically.

The Author desires to publicly express his obligations
to the Rev. Azade J. Trudelle, of Hope River, formerly
his professor, who kindly read the manuscript, and made
some valuable suggestions. Had circumstances permitted
the adoption of them all, the work would be much more
worthy of public favour.

Even when desirous of keeping the i?ght path, the human
mind may err in its train of reasonings ; or it may advance
propositions that are at variance with the truth. Almighty
God has instituted, as we believe, a church which is the
depository and guardian of revelation. Between natural
and revealed truths there can be no contradiction ; the
latter being known with infallible certainty have an inde-
clinable right to the consent of our intellect. Whatever
is opposed to them must, of necessity, be false. Hence
if there be in these pages aught that is opposed to the
teachings of that church we repudiate, condemn, and hold
it for not written, and wish our readers to do the same.
The cause of true knowledge can never be promoted by
rebellion against the truth.

Indian River, Feast of the Assumption, 1876.

CONTENTS.

PART FIRST.— NATURAL TIIEOLOGY.

Chapter I.— Our Starting Point.

Two errors, Rationalism and Scepticism, to be avoided ^Vp know some
truths, but our intelligence is limited— We aiiart from cet.; n.ty, or tVom
tliree grand truths i>AO£ 1

Chapter II.— Fundamental Tp' ins.

Our existence, our ability to know with certainty, ind the prir'Mplo of con-
tradiction u e called I< undnnicntul Truths— Theae do no^ i. uire proof,
they aio jusupposcd— Subjective ond ol>jective truth j—^ivprchension
and comprehension 4

Chapter III.— Sources of Certainty.

Innerconsciousness— Evidence— Universal consent in that which intiraatelv
interests each individual— Testimony of trustworthy witnesses— Each
faculty has its legitimate object 7

Chapter IV.— The Subject /.

The existence of the subject / cannot be doubted— A sure basis of philoso-
phy-Precision of terminology required — Substances and accidents —
Simple, compound, and spiritual substances— Necessary substance— pos-
sible things 9

Chapter V. — Causa Causarum, or the First Substance.

Nobility of this subject— Current of modem thought seems to run back-
wara— Absurdity of a denial of God— What we mean by God— What soii.e
mean by that name .12

Chapter VI.— The Existence of God.

The subject I is certain that it is limited and dependent— Each one musi
admit the existence either of eflfects or phenomena— A first action, or a
first cause must be admitted; this must be trom itself— The infinite a
simple act— Numbers always finite— Reasoning from abstract principles
must be admitted— German transcendcntalists- A mixed mode of reason-
ing ....... 16

X CONTENTS.

Chapter VII.— The Intelligence and TVill of God.

Attempts to deny a personal God— God has the plenitude of being, and of
knowledge— Ue actud fVcc'v ; hence he has will. . . . page 22

Chapter VIII.— God as learnt from the Physical Order.

Beauties of visible creation— Absurdity of supposing an unintelligent cause
—Absurdity of supposing matter wltii its properties as a a\ rtlcient ex-
])lanation of the physical order— Physical laws not always constant in
their development 26

Chapter IX.— Universal Pelief in the Existence

of a God.

Belief in the existence of a God constant and universal— Its cause is the
evidence of reason— Ignorance of physical laws not the cause of this
belief— Tlie greatest minds believe m a personal God— His ruling power
always acknowledged 34

Chapter X.— Recapitulatory.

Solidity of our position— How the subject / lose to a knowledge of God's
existence— Attributes of God— His inllnity 38

Chapter XI.— Pantheism.

What it is- It is very insidious— Reasons why— Its various systems— Their
common fundamental princii)le — Confusion of destinction with diversity
exi)08ed— Various ways in wliich one thing may bo contained in another—
Absolute and relative perfections— Admission of Unite perfections not
devogatoi7 to the inflnite— Plurality of substances— Pernicious effects of
pantheism 41

Chapter XII.— Reality of the Physical Wori^d.

Real and ideal deflned— Every substance a reality— Every substance a force
— Notion of existence — Perception really in us— Object oi pciv^Ci^^ion must
be a teality— Nature of the jihysical world— Two erroneous systems on
this head confuted— True system evident ^ . 60

Chapter XIII.— Creation.

The ways of error various— Consistency of a true system— Creation defined
— Finite substances created by (Joil — Created things not eternal —Time and
creation coeval— UnchangealJility of God's essence not effected by crea-
tiou— Conservatism— Only God can annihilate — Action of created tlimgs. 69

Chapter XIV.— Providence.

Providence deflned— Proved from various heads— It is easily reconciled
with ail physical and moral facts 68

Chapter XV.— End of Creation.

God had an end in view in creating— It is the external manifestation of his
perfectious— How this is obtained despite the malibo of men and devils 73

CONTENTS.
FAET SECOND.— PSYCHOLOGY.

Chapter I.— Nature of the Subject 7.

Know thyself— What is meant by the soul— Its continned indentity with
it&elf— Substance and accident dellned— Sensations ex])lained— How ex-
cited— Monads— Essence of things unchangeable- Inertia an abscn<-c of
a self-determining power— Three classes of monads. . . taue 77

Chai'ter II. — Simplicity of the Soul.

Haters of human dignity— Their theory— -Ours— Simplicity of the soul de-
monstrated from its jierception of a s({uare — Objection of matcrialiHts
answered— Self-determining power of the soul proves its eiraplicity— So
does comparsion of ideas 87

Chapter III.— Spirituality of the Soul.

Spirituality deliaed— It is no figment of the schools— Traces of this idea
found amonjj all nations — Fundamentally it is as old as our race; its
present precision due to Christianity — Spirituality of soul demonstrated
from actions of intellect and will 06

Chapter IV. — Essence and Origin of the Soul.

We have a clear idea of the soul— Limitation of knowledge no proof of its
total absence— Various false theories regarding origin of the soul refuted
—Its true origin assigned 100

Chapter V.— Faculties of the Soul.

Two fn*and faculties, intelligence and will — What memory is-^lmnpination
—Intelligence and will not distinct from the soul— P»!rcei)tion— Ideat.—
Knowledge, how acquired— Difference between an idea and its perception
— Cause and origin of ideas— Theories regarding them — The soul niutit
always have some knowledge— Two ideas, at least, coeval with the ex-
istence of the soul 105

Chapter VI.— The Will.

Two-fold tendency in man— Animal tendencies must be guided by reason
— All desire happiness— Liberty of the will explained — Physical and
moral liberty, what they mean— Power of erring not necessary to true
liberty— Definition US

Chapter VII. — ^I.irerty of the Wir.r .

It is proved, lut, ^frovi our inner conmousnesn—lnd , from the nature of finite
f/oi)dn — ,irti,from the notion of ren»on — i/A, from the vuiunir of mtimj of all
maiilHnd — ^'th, from the absurdities which wouUl follow in the c'ontrar»
sentence H?

Chapter VIII.— Union of the Soul and IJodv.

The whole individii'>,l man considered — Union of soul and body, iihysical
and substantial— Importance of previous chaplcvB- Facts of psychology

Xll

CONTENTS.

reconciled with those of physiology— Reciprocal action between soul and
bodv— The soul the viviflcr of the body — Organic sanity a condition for
healthy intellectual action, not its cause — Sleep, disease, death— perfect-
ibility of our intellectual powers I'A'iE 123

Chapter IX.— Immortality of the Soul.

Importance of this subject in a social and moral point of view— Desfrading
effects of mj;terialisni — Idea of immortality— The soul can exist and act
separated from the body— No created force, no natural process can destroy
the soul— Goil wishes it to be immortal, as proved from his wisdom and
justice— Man's nature considered in itself, and in its relation to society
proves the immortality of the .soul— Universal belief of mankind, and ir-
dividual feeling eviuce the same truth 133

Chapter X.— Cause of Evil in the World.

Evil a negative of good— metaphysical, physical, and moral evil— Only
moral evil con^ dered — Absurdity of the manichean system: its insuf-
llciency even if admitted— Abuse of human liberty the cause of moral
evil— God's concurrence in human actions explamed— Only good the effect
of God's action 142

Chapter XI.— Knowledge of God, and Liberty
OF Man's Will.

God's knowledge ever infinite, ever the same : man's acquired by degrees-
Future free actions of man known to God — This knowledge does not effect
their freedom — Man does not do them because God knows them, but God
knows them because man is about to do them 147

Chai'ter XII.— Future Punishment.

Ignorance and presumption of those who deride the teachings of Christian-
ity — Selllsm, or animalism strong at denial— Naturally a law has been im-
posed on man— Its observers and transgressors cannot obtain the same
afler-stttte — Dei)rivation of the enjoyment of the supreme good part of the
punishment of tlie impious — Bitterness of tliis punishment — God is just
as well as merciful; mercy reigns here, justice will preside in the next
me. . 161

Chapter XIII.— Psychological Phenomena.

Life — Laws of propagation of sentient things— Vital principle always
created by God— Examination of some phenomena that seem to i)rove
that one soul can act ou another even in life— Certain class of dreams. 158

Chapter XIV.— Principle of life in the Brute Creation.

Degrading tendency of the theory of evolution— Brutes have various sen-
sations and distinct sensilde i)erceptions — The subject of these is phys-
ically simple, and created by God— Essential difference between the
human soul and the vital principle of brutes— Absolute impossibility of
the latter developing into the former— Instinct no degree of intelligence —
Essential difference between them as seen from the power of roasoning
and articulate speech in man— Neither actively nor potentially is i-eason
jn brutes- -Cruelty to brutes considered— Man's prerogatives regarding
lirutos , 1C4

CONTENTS.

XUl

Chapter XV.— Darwinism.

Hankcrers after notoriety — Darwinism subversive of the common consent
of mankind, of morality, and of reason — What it is— Authorities cited by
Mr. Darwin prove nothing in Ills favor — His appeal to the reader— He dis-
courses with wonderful self-complacency on "changed conditions " and
"organism," but tells us nothing new— .some of hi.s dilliculties answered
— "Inherited qualities" explained — He rambles and relates, but does not
argue very clojicly— His conclusion that "all species may be Irom four or
live," or fjerhaps fewer, subjected to e.xamiuation — It is illogical, it is op-
posed to facts — Progressive development, if it exists, is the natural effect
of innate causes, hence each generation ought to shoiV a change; but this
is not so— Metaphysical argument against his theory— Species — Plan and
order of creation not diflicult to understand— Mosaic history of creation
cannot be refuted— Darv» in and posterity page 179

TART THmD.— QUESTTOXS IIAVIXG AN IKTDIATE
CONNECTION WITH ONTOLOGY.

in-

CiiAPTER I.— Time, Eternity, Space.

Time a succession of events—It exists relatively to the finite, not to the in-
Unite- Eternity nol made up of year.s— It is relative to the infinite — Space,
I)opular notion ot it— Extension a relative i>roperty — It is a relation of one
finite being te another — It is a phenomenon arising from our limitation of
essence— St. Thomas felt the truth of this theory— Its harmony with cath-
olic dogma— neither time nor extension for the infinite. . . . 197

Chapter II. — Certitude.

We can be certain of some things— First ])rinciple of certitude is the intellect
perceiving— St. Thomas and .St. Augustine quoted— Diflerence between this
doctrine and rationalism — It is philosopliic and in harmony witli sound
theology 206

Chapter III. — Religion.

Religious tendency of some kind ever exhibited bv the human race— What
we mean by religion— Its connection with metaphysics. . . , 210

Chapter IV. — Revelation. '

Harmony of the Sciences— Revelation defined— It is possible— Its accept-
ance no dcgredation to I'eason 213

Chapter V.— Necessity of Revelation.

Literary imposters — Historic view of mank'nd — Great depravity of man, as
a general rule, betbre Christ— Morally spe.iking, revelation was necessary
to emancipate mankind from their degrading errors. . . . 219

Chapter IV.— Miracles.

Difference in proceedings of tin. true and false philosopher— nniversal be-
lief in miracles— What they are— No natural law abrogated or suspeuJed
—Sublimation of natural lorces possible— Miracles not to remedy an over-
Bight ol the Creator; they entered into the pluu of creation. . . 224

xiv

CONTENTS.

Chapter VII.— Existence of Miracles.

Tbey were always -looked upon as a test of a divine mission— Scfentlflo
proof of miracles can 1>e obtained even t^om the testimony of ttie ignorant
—Canons on this point— Miracles did not cease with the apostolic times-
Prophecy : it is a miracle in the intellectual order— Its possibility and
Bcientilic proof. page 234

Chapter VIII.— A Divine Revelation has been made.

Authenticity of the scriptures assummcd— General belief, in early times, ot
the coming of a Redeemer— Historic fact of the coming of the one who
claimed to be son of God— How his works prove this— Intellectual beuellts
from his teaching— Its expansion and duration 24i

Chapter IX.— Religious Indifference.

Scientific fops— Their vagaries— Right idea of modem arid free thought—
An internul as well as an external order— Religious indifferauce a sign of
mental decay— Why we ought to accept revelation 247

Chapter X.— How to seek Revelation.

Faith often vilified— Dangers to youth from an infidel atmosphere— Method
to be followed in seeking revelation— Not a metho<l of logical induction,
but one from motives of credibility— Miracles as motives-iUnity and per-
petuity of a system of revelation 252

Chapter XI. — Faith and Reason.

Contradictions of pretended scientists— Manufactured fame— Fai'.' does not
enslave reason, it ennobles it— No real contradiction between truths reveal-
ed, and true conclusions of science— A German egg story — Assent to re-
vealed truths most reasonable— Two natural ways of acquiring truth-
Faith must be intolerant of error, reason perfectible, faitli unchange-
able 258

Chapter XII.— Faith in its relation to the body politic

Man is sociable by nature— God wishes civil society— God the source of all
power -True sense of the "divine right" of kings — difl"erence between
conferring power and determming its organ— Kcetponsibilitics of rulers —
A king may forfeit his rlKht. to rule — Who is to judge his ofience ?— Two
divinely constituted orders in tlie world— Origin of collisions between
church and state— Gregory VII and Pius IX— War of hell against the
church— Education— Man can fully discharge all his obligations both to
church and state 269

Chapter XIII.— The Resurrection of the Body.

Growth and decay in the vegetable kingdom— Cheering hope of the resurrec-
tion — Its possibility- No suspension or abrogation ot nature's laws is verifi-
ed in the resurrection— Difllculty met— Two reasons that tend to piovo
that our bodies will rise a^aiu- Burial and cremation. . . . 286

itifiO
rant
es—
and

234

DE.

i, Ot

who

etlts

242

hfr-
11 of
247

hod
ion,
jer-
252

not
sal-
re-
h—

ge-
258

all
Jen

8 —
WO

ten

bhe

269

BC-

ifl-
vo

586

I! :

I !

ERRATA.

Page 24, second paragraph, eighteenth line, for "we elected,"
read "he elected." '

Page 145, second paragraph, fourth line, for "exacted by
God," read "required of God."

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE

VINDICATED.

ted,"
dby

CHAPTER I. V

OUR STARTING POINT.

^ j N order that our investigations, in any branch of
^%\\ ^»'»»^'"i svinuce, may be useful, we must liave con-
Q^ ^^^tantly before our eyes tlie great truth that huni.-Ai
> ^ lutelhgeuce is incapable of comprehending every-
th.ng. There are two errors which, like Charybdis and
bcylla, render dangerous the course along whi<-h tlie
metaphysician has to steer. «onie, degrading reason bv
maintaining that it is incapable of acquiring truth, havl'
been drawn into the vortex of scepticism : others, extoll-
lug It too much by asserting that it is capable of discover-
ing and comprehending all truth, have been lost in the
whirl-pool of rationalism. Each of these errors is danger-
ous ; each of them is an insult to human reason. The
followers of the first must admit that we know at least one
thmg with certainty, viz.: that toe know nothing: the
followers of the second insult reason by disregarding its
teachings. Our intelligence tells us that we are limited
beings; consequently our capacity must be limited: it

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

proves, moreover, that there is an unlimited and infinite
Being, and as a logical consequence, it tells us that our
limited capacity cannot fully comprehend that unlimited
Being, that inlinite Truth, Those simple observations arc,
of themselves, quite suiricicut to overthrow the bulwarks of
scepticism and rationalism. Once that the rampart has
fallen the min.irets and turrets of ornamental rhfeoric Avill
offer but a I'eeble resistance to the blows of trnth. Any
intelligent school-boy who retains these observations in his
memory can confute the most gloomy sceptic, or the most
inflated rationalist.

The two false extremes, scepticism and rntiomdism, ])('ovc
conclusively two things : fu'st, that Ave can know .^ome truths,
secondly, that our intelligence is limited and liaiile to err in
its logical deductions. The sce])tic and the rationalist must
both admit at least one certainty ; they nni><t, likewise, admit
that they cannot both be right ; hence the human intellect is
liable to err in deducing its conclusions,

The middle course, then, between these rugged promonto-
ries of error, is ^afe. It is the course which Catholic Philos-
ophors, guided by faith as a compass, and enlightened bv the
teachings of Divine Kovclation, have ever sailed. Faith does
not destroy reason ; it ennobles it ; it opens up a broader field
for the speculations of the intellect. Once we are certain that
a thing is so, wc can detect reasons for its being so which
perhaps, we would never have detected. Hence we cannot
bo a thorough Philosopher without being first a sound The-
ologian ; hence, too, the fact that infidelity cannot produce
one worthy of the name of riiilosoi>her. Let it be under-
stood from the outset that we deny the title of Philosopher
to the founders of schools of error. 'Tis a sad thing to hear
a man called a Philosopher who has spent the talents God
gave him, in obscuring the liglit ; 'tis sadder still to hear

OUB STARTING POINT. 3

this done by Christians. The man who, as a general rule,
blunders in the art he professes to follow, is not called a
tradesman, but a botcher : why, then, call meaningless scrib-
blers riiilosophers. They are literary fungi.

We start in our metaphysical investigations from certainty,
or if you will, from three grand truths — viz : our own exist-
ence ; our ability to know with certainty some truth ; and
that a thing cunnot both be and not be, under the same respect,
at the same time. Unless these bo presupposed you can have
no science. Sciuuee is the " knowledge of things hy means
of their ultimate causes ; " knowledge is such that its contra-
dictory cannot be true. If, therefore, Ave do not suppose the
existence of the intelligent subject 7, we cannot have know-
ledge, or anything else ; equally we cannot have it unless we
have an aptitude for knowing with certainty ; and equally
we cannot have it imless the principle of contradiction be
admitted. Therefore these three truths are the basis of all
philosophic science — the starting point of all metaphysical
investigations.

he
oes

at
ich
not
le-
icc
er-
ler

ar
f)d
■L'iir

CHAPTER 11.

I I;

FUNDAMENTAL TRUTHS.

HE great philosopliers of the past called the three
truths, mentioDcd in the preceding chapter, /undo
mental truths. Our own existence was called the
first fad: our ability to know with certainty, \\\q first
pr{7iciplc; and the axiom, " the same thing cannot both be and
not be, under the same respect, at the same time" the i>rinciple
of contradiction. We shall call them by the same names : the
human mind has strayed long enough from the right path in
metaphysics, let us humbly endeavour to return to it.

These three truths do not require proof ; because, as we have
seen, they must bo presupposed in every scientiiic research.
A truth is proved, or demonstrated by a principle more
clearly perceived than itself. Hence it follows that every-
thing cannot be proved, because there are some things so
clearly perceived that nothing can be more so. These things
can be simply declared, not demonstrated. Amongst this class
of things come the fundamental truths. So self-evident are
they, that to attempt to demonstrate them would be as
ridiculous as to hold up a rush taper to show the, daylight.
The man who attempts to deny his own existence is not to be
reasoned with ; a kindly keeper is required : or if he be
considered sane, a rude shake might possibly awaken him to
the fact that he both exists and feels. He who denies the

FUNDAMENTAL TRUTHS.

first principle, affirms it, for lie maintains that he is sure at
least, of one thing, viz, — of knowing nothing. The one
who denies the principle of contradiction likewise affirms it,
because he must invoke it to support his denial ; since, then,
these truths are self-evident and cannot be denied, or called
in doubt without evident absurdity, they are rightly termed
fundamental, and are to be admitted by every sane mind.

Truth nuiy be considered suhjecHvehj^ inasmuch as it is an
apprehension of the intelligent subj^U't ; or objectively^ that
is, in the object itself. Cousidereu objectively, "whatever
is is true in as much as it is, *' o;-, it is the conformity of the
object to the archetypal idea in the divine mind, about which
more will be said hereafter. Subjective truth is the con-
formity of our idea of an object to that object itself. If we
apprehend it a» it is, we have truth concerning it. It is here
to be observed that there is a vast difference between appre-
hending, and comprehending. To apprehend, it is sufficient
to be cognizant of the existence of an object and of its
characteristics : to comprehend, it is necessary to know of the
existence of the object, and all its properties. If there be
even one only property which we cannot explain, or which
is beyond tlic range of our intellect, we do not fully compre-
hend the object. Hence we apprehend numberless things ;
we comprehend but few. Facts we have in abundance,
and hence information is not scarce : the why of facts is
rarely known, and hence knowledge is very limited. The
commonest facts of every-day life are often insoluble myster-
ies ; and still, strange to say, men who cannot solve even
these, pretend to explain learnedly the most sublime truths,
A moment's reflection ought to convince anyone that our
intelligence, whilst on the one hand it knows, and can know
much, on the other is limited ; and that there are a thousand
and one truths above its grasp — far beyond its province.

PHILOSOPHT OP THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

Until we have mastered this fact, or acquired tliis humility
of intellect, it is useless to boj^in scientific researches. Wo
would only lose our time and muddle our brains, by straiuiuj
after the impossible.

-ar

'Vw3^gL>^'

■ : 1 1

CHAPTER III.

SOURCES OP CERTAINTY.

iE have seen that wc can he cortaiti of some thinjrs : it
nijiy bo well to say a few words oa some of the chief
Tr)lt^ ^^^^' ' ' "^ certainty.

c !\' 1st. — Our inner consciousness, or the intellisent
subject 7, modified in a certain way, and testifying to its
modification. It is self-evident, that this is a source of
certainty regarding the intimate affections of the sentient
subject. No one can persuade a man that he feels warm so
long as his inner consciousness testifies that he feels cold.
The same may be said of tlie various affections of the subject /.

2nd. — Evidence or the apprehension, by the intellect, of
a necessary connection between a subject and its predicate.
The perfection of the intelligence is the acquisition of truth;
hence it must be fitted to acquire it. But it could not be
fitted to acquire it, were it possible that it could err when it
calmly and deliberately apprehends a necessary connection
between a subject and its predicate. No means of correct-
ing such an error could be found ; consequently the mind
would be unfitted for the acquiring of certainty.

3rd. — Universal consent in a thing which intimately
interests each individual. This universal consent means that
in all ages, under every variety of circumstances, mankind
have agreed in recognizing as true, something which inti-

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

]

V ■')

matc'ly concerns eacli and tdl. Tlic reuson is, that a constant
and universal effect, such as this avouM be, requires a con-
stant and universal cause. But, liunianly speakiufjf, there
can be no constant and universal cause, except the evidence
of reason. Passion, prejudice, fear, education, every other
cause imaginable, is local and variable. The evidence of
reason only will remain unchanging and unchangeable in
sunshine, or in gloom ; in poverty, or in wealth. When the
trutii admitted by this universal consent, ought to act rather
as a restraint on the passions and pleasures of mankind,
than as an incentive to their indulgence, the more forcibly
does tills consent strike us as a source of certainty.

4th. — The testimony of persons worthy of faith. Persons
are worthy of faith when it is known that they have a know-
ledge of what they testily, and a desire to speak truly. As
this source of certainty ])ortains more to history, than to
metaphysics we shall merely mention it here.

Our external s'^nses : sight, touch, &c., are in a certain
degree, sources of certainty regarding the' legitimate
objects. They enable us to shun many dangers, but tiiey
are not fitted, nor intended for the acquisition of metaphysical
truth. The eye of the cliemist will serve him in discovering
the physical properties of bodies ; but cnco he presumes to
cast it beyond its legitimate bounds, and to sweep with it the
vast horizon of metaphysics, he can no longer rely on its
fidelity. The gross errors of Huxley, Darwin, and Tyndall,
have originated in a disregard of the pnnciplo known to
every tyro in logic that each faculty is a faithful witness
only in regard to its legitimate objects.

CHAPTER IV.

THE SUBJECT J.

nLMOST every truth has been denied, or called in
doubt, by some one who called himself a philosopher.
Cicero tells us there is nothing so absurd but what
^"^ has been maiutuined, at some time, by some would-bo
follower of wisdom. This jrrent truth should make us intel-
lectually humble and cautious. There is one truth, however,
which no one can seriously deny, or doubt — that is, his OAvn
existence. Whether he considers himself as thinking truly
or falsely, as feeling real or imaginary sensations, he must
still admit the fact, I think, I feel. He may call everything
else in doubt ; ho may view the world with the eye of a
cynic ; he may deny the existence of God ; of right and
wrong, but turn as he will, deny what he may, the one great
truth, I feel, I think, will force itself contiuuallv ijjou him.
St. Augustine, the greatest human mind after Solomon, indi-
cates this truth as a most sure basis of philosophy, (L. de
liber, arb.) Des Cartes, amongst moderns, took his cue
from that great Doctor of the Church. Now this 1 which
feels, thinks, and wishes, and whose existence no one denies,
will ha called by us the intelligent subject /, or the soul.
Precision of terminology is the cream of science. Sophists,
and dealers in false scientific coins, delight in obscurity of
laigiiage, and iudefinitcness of terms. With them obscure

PniLOSOPIIY OP THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

phraseology holds the place of a military ambuscade ; and
want of precision the place of grape-shot. A forest of
difficulties can he hewn down by a few sharp defining strokes.
W "., this intelligent subject I exists. More than this, it
testifies to the existence in itself, of various affections, some
pleasing, others disagrcablc. It, likewise, testifies that these
affections are often produced by something which is not itself;
sometiiing of whose existence it is as certain as what it is of
its own ; but whose actions it cannot control, or modify.
Hence the inner consciousness of the subject I makes us
certain of the existence of numberless other things, distinct,
and different from itself, and from one anotiier. We thus
arrive at the firm conviction that we are but one of an
immense multitude of beings, which surround us on i'.ll sides.
Some of these we apprehend as essentially similar to our-
selves ; others as essentially different. We accurately dis-
tinguish between the affections which are in us and caused
by ourselves, and those which are, indeed, in us but not
caused by us. Hence the certainty of the existence of ob-
jects which form no part of our being, of wiiich we are not
modifications, and which are not ]nodifications of us. The
inevitable conclusion, then, from inner consciousness and
evidence is, that we^ many beings like ourselves, and many
unlike exist. Another conclusion from these sources of cer-
tainty is, that we are limited in our being, restricted in our
capacity, and subject to modifications during our existence.
Now we call suhsta7ice that which exists by itself, not
requiring another in which to adhere, as in a subject.
From this it follows that we know ourselves, and many other
things to be substances. The modifications, or affections,
which we advert in ourselves, and apprehend in others, we
call accidents. These require, humanly speaking, a subject
in which to adhere.

THE SUBJECT /.

A substance is physically simple when it has no parts into
V'hich it can be divided : it is physically compound when it
can be divided into parts. A substance is spiritual when it
is simple and endowed with intelligence and will, and can
exercise these independently of corporeal organs. That sub-
stances physically simple exist is easily proved. Compound
substances exist ; therefore simple ones exist. The anteced-
ent Avill not be denied ; we are certain of the existence of
beings distinct from ourselves, and which can be divided
into parts. This being granted, the consequence, therefore
simple ones exist, is as inevitable as the following: a brick
house exists ; therefore each particular brick of which it is
composed exists. In a word, composition presupposes sim-
plicity. If we have a compound, its component parts must
exist. Therefore there are some physically simple substances.

A substance is said to be necessary, or to exist necessarily,
when it depends from no preceding cause, but contains in
itself the reason of its own existence ; otherwise it is con-
tingent.

A thing is possihle when the notes which form its conception
are not mutually destructive : otherwise it is impossible ; or,
what is the same, it is au absurdity.

CT^i^l^rc)

CHAPTER V.

CAUSA CAUSARUMc; OR THE FIRST SUBSTANCE,

ij HE luiman reason is
l| in vindicatinf? tlie h

;XJ^ ...I.- i_ 1- .

is never more nobly employed than
honour of its Creator. The genius
>vhi{;h discovers, and evolves the physical laws by
Avhich the planc^s are guided in their orbits; or,
which demonstrates some intricate proposition, is hailed, and
justly too, as engaged in a noble pursuit. But much more
noble is the study of that intellect which rises in its investi-
gations far ])eyond the most distant stars, — transcends in its
sublime flight the various orbs which whirl through the
azure, passes the innumerable orders and grades of created
things, and their physical laws, and iixes its attention on
Him from whom all these depend. If it be accoiuited great
wisdom to know something of the motions of the solar
system, how much more wisdom must it not be to know
something of the great Author of that system ? And if it be a
noble science to investigate the secondary causes which are
continually at work in nature, how much more noble will it
not be to learn something of the First Cause of all — the
great " Causa Causarum " recognized by Socrates, Plato and
Cicero.

One might have thought that our boasted " progress **
had been such as to render unnecessary a formal proof of
the existence of a First Cause — of a Creator, One might

CAUSA CAUSARUM, OR THE FIRST SUBSTAN'CE.

have reasoned thus : if the greatest minds of antiquity, with
all their disadvantages, clearlv jjcrceived that an intelligent
cause must have been at work in the ordering of the world,
surely the great minds of to-day, with all their advantages,
must be firmly convinced on this point, And so, indeed, all
great minds are quite certain of the existence of an intelligent
first cause. But there are some minds which pretend to bo
great, and which make a huge parade of unmeaning bombast,
m order to be considered learned, which endeavour to deny
tliat First Cause. It would seem as if that most irregular of
streams, the "current of modern thought," as it is eu-
phonitusly termed by those who sail adown its tide, had bent
backward its course and run, up hill, to the dim ages of the
past. Certain it is that the scientific barque, in which many
who claim to be advanced thinkers paddle their dangerous
way along, is composed of the fragments, and the most
shattered ones too, of the old sophistical punts broken cen-
turies ago by the blows of Aristotle, Socrates aud Plato.
During their pK-asure trip up the '* current of modem
thought," our thinkers discovered these stranded and con-
demned boats ; wishing probably, to appear singular, they
attempted to make wrecks sea-worthy by painting them
anew. The brilliant colouring of their word-painting dazzled
the eyes of a few who cheered, as the professors sailed along :
the heads of the poor professors became dizzy at the sound
of the applause ; they claimed as their own the ship which
they had merely varnished.

Seriously, it is hard to imagine how anyone, laying pre-
tentions to sanity, could deny the existence of that, without
which, he himself would be an absurdity — viz : an eifect
without a cause. We can see only one reasonable explam^
tion of this mental aberration. We do not wish to accuse
the teachers of philsophic error, or any one else of moral

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

i i

1 1

1 )
I I

deliaquencics, but wc must say that the practical coiichision
from any theory which denies either au avenging God, or
the liberty of the will, or the immortality of the soul, or the
eternity of punishment, is — do as you please, so long as you
escape the clutches of the civil law. The human mind is nat-
urally logical ; it may not sec, nor care to see, tlie error in
the premises ; but it will clearly perceive that, taking any
of these systems as its guide, the individual who kills his
own mother, or debauches his own sister, may be just as
easy in mind, and (piitc as respectable, as the son who
toils for the support of his parent, or braves dangers for the
honour of his sister. In a few years tliey will be both in
the dust; their constituent atoms floating in the " iiiHnitc
azure of the past," and no more ! Tlic cultivated mind re-
volts at this infamous conclusion : even those who uphold the
false theories al)()ve named, would scarcely dare defend, in any
resi)ectablc company, these deductions. vStill, they are severely
logical ; they are as cogent as any geometi'ical demonstration.
Now, it is evident that when the logical conseipience of any
premises is absurd, the premises themselves must be faulty.
Hence none of these systems can be correct. But the race
of men who compose the comnuuiists, will eagerly lend ear
to such doctrines. It just suits them.

The good man, be he learned or illiterate, rejoices to
believe that there exists a Being, innueusc^ eternal, incom-
prehensible, supreme and perfect, that does not depend from
any cause, but contains in itself the reason of its existence.
It is an IJns a .se, a self-existing Being. They believe
this Being to be endowed with intelligence and will: its
intelligence designed all the glorious works we see, and
t- ' laws which govern them ; and its free will created them.
.. ., s jijing is one, simple, inlinite act, knowing no change —
{, . .i:i;i no knowledge because always infinitely wise — losing

CAUSA CAUSAllUM, OR THE FIBST SUBSTANCE.

',VC

its
m.

»4

no power, because always the source of action. This Beiug
exercises a watchful Providence over all its works ; it will
punish the trans;j;ressor, and reward the doer of its will. It
is culled God ; and we rej<ucc to call it Father. Ri^ht
reason can demonstrate the existence of such a being, w'ith
the above-mentioned attrjLutes. 'Tis the noblest work
of the metapliysician to prove this. Those who boast so
much about followinji; reason would do well to attend to the
arguments which will be set forth in the next chapter. If
they will only grasp tiie logical outcome of arguments from
reason, they will be thoroughly convinced that there is a God,
such as we have described.

There are few, perhaps none, who seek the appellation
of learned, who deny the existence of sonu' higher force than
that of matter. But many will '-idy admit a God after their
own fanhion. With some lie is a })0\ver, but a blind one,
and one tiiat necessarily acts • with others, He is intelligiMit,
but otiose : lie made the world, perhaps, but does not look
after it : He is a kind of absentee landlord, only less atten-
tive ; the latter will sometimes (alas ! very often) evict his
poor tenants, whereas the former will never punish them.
Now, all this talk about " nature," and other such names, by
which certain writers seek to elude tlie arguments in favour
of the existence of God, is mere chaff thrown into the eyes
of the unthiidiing. Either this "nature" is such a being as
we have described God to be, or it is not. If it is, then it
is the chi'istians' God, and Catholic Philosoj)hy is right: if
it is not, it cannot be the First Cause, so they are oidy act-
ing absurdly by having r»'course to it. They nmst either
build on the same foundation with us, or they cannot build
at nil, unless they have become adepts in that i)eculiar branch
of iirchitecture which devotes itself to the building of
" castles in the air."

CHAPTER VI.

THE EXISTKNOE OF GOD.

jE defined abov'e what wc mean by God ; bnt avc will
prove, by parts, His attribntes. We will first prove
the exi.stencc of a substance which is the First Cause,
the primary actor, from which depend all visible things.
AVe have shown that each one is intimately convinced of
the fact — / exist. The intelligent suhject /, not only knows
its own existence as a certainty, but it, likewise, knows with
equal certainty, that it is dependent and limited. If it asks
itself the questions: what am I? whence came I? The ans-
wer will inevitably be : I am limited, subject to change,
dependent. I am an eflfect produced by some cause. But
suppose for a moment some one should say : I exist inde-
pendent of any cause. Then you must have in yourself the
reason of your existence ; you exist by necessity of your
nature ; consequently you must have always existed, such ag
you are now. No one, outside of a mad-house, has ever
asserted that he has always existed such as he now is : hence
lie cannot exist by necessity of nature ; he must be con-
tingent, or in other words dependent. Moreover we are
convinced, as shown previously, that numberless thing3 exist :
we see things daily springing up which were not before.
Now no matter what may be the peculiar system of so-called
philosophy which any one may follow, he must admit either

THE EXISTENCE OF GOD.

ige,

eflfcds or phenomena. The Ej^ofist and Idealist must admit
the thinking suhjoet and its modifications : the Sceptic, tlie
vicissitudes of phenomena ; the Materialist, matter; Kant
and Hume, ofl'ects. Each one is, therefore, intimately con-
vinced that there are, at least, various vicissitudes of
phenomena, — various actions of which one is determined by
another. Now in this motion of things ; in this succession
of cause and effect, there must be a first action or cause.
Produce the chain as long as you will, you must eventually
hang it to an immoveable something which nothing precedes.
There must be a first action in these phenomena, or a first
carise amid the various causes and effects. To escape this
argument, there is but one way, and 'tis this : to suppose a
lo7ig chain made up of links hut ivithout a first one. If any
one can persuade oneself that this way is reasonable, one
will certainly be clear of the dilficulty, but in no other way
can one hope to escape admitting a first action, or cause.
If A is from B, and B from C, and C from D, and so on, no
matter how many links you imagine, there must be the first
one, Z. Being the first it cannot be from a preceding one ;
it must be from itself.

It may here be remarked that infinite is that, greater than
which nothing can be conceived. Nothing can be added to
Infinity, nothing can be taken from it. It is not made up of
any amount of finite things ; if it were, something could
be always added to it. The infinite must, therefore, be l
simple act. Number," are always finite : so is a series of units
no matter how long you may imagine it ; for it will be com-
posed of one, two, three, &c. It is as absurd, then, to talk
of an infinite number, as what it is to suppose the long chain
without a first link. No one, therefore, can have recourse to
an infinite series of successive phenomena, or of causes and
efi'ects. No matter how many the successions may have been
3

I ■ : I

;

ill;

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

lip to tlic present moment, they must be finite, because they
can be numbered by one, two, three, ibur, &c. Let the intelli-
gent subject I turn whichsoever way it will, in explaining the
phenomena, or effects, of whose existence it is certain, it
must eventually come to a first action, or cause ; otherwise
it must swallow one of two absurdities — either a succession
of phenomena without a first, or a series of dependent effects
without a first independent cause. The pa<i:an poet saw the
absurdity of this conclusion and said: "the last link of the
chain must be fastened to the foot of Jupiter." And Young :
*'can one link depend and not the whole?" The conclusion
from the above is simple and inevitable ; there exists a first
actor or cause. We have shown that this consequence must
be arrived at, no matter what theory one may embrace :
either phenomena or effects must be admitted. Either of
these being admitted, the above conclusion must be admitted ;
otherwise, the mind is diseased. There can be no argument
•with the man who holds a series of phenomena without a
first one, or a chain of dependent effects and causes without
an independent cause.

Now this first actor must be from itself; being first it
canuot be from a preceding one, It must, therefore, exist
by necessity of its nature : it is entirely independent of any
other, whilst all others depend from it. It must have always
existed, because its essence always necessarily included exist-
ence. It must be unchangeable, because whatever it has, it
has by necessity of nature. It must be infinite, because it
could not be limited by any other, being independent ; nor by
itself, because it did not deliberate on its mode of existence
before existing ; and moreover it is by necessity of nature.

In order to leave no room for sophistry, we will here
observe that reasoning from abstract principles must be
admitted, A certain modern English author, following in

THE EXISTENCE OF OOD.

5t It

jxist
any
ays
:ist-
Ls, it
jse it
|r by
mce
ture.
Ihere
be

g i»

the steps of some thiek-hcaded sceptic, rejects metaphys-
ics. One can well iinajjine a common debauchee un-
willing to recognize anything more refined, or subtle, than
gross physical sensations. His course of life clouds his
intellect, and renders him altogether unfit for scientific pur-
suits. But how a cultivated mind, such as, no doubt, the
author in question thinks his to be, could reject metaphysics,
one knows not how to explain. Certain it is that some fool-
ishly deny reasoning from abstract principles ; everything must
be a posteriori. Now all mathematical science is founded
in tiie evidence of conceptions, or abstract principles ; and
eacli individual who has attained the use of reason, even
the most illiterate, knows certain calculations with niunbers,
and, by a kind of natural Geometry, measures angles, lines,
and surfaces. Therefore each individual is intimately con-
vinced of the truth of conclusions derived from abstract
principles. When, then, he finds himself modified by ex-
ternal causes, and beholds the vicissitudes of things, and
their mutual dependence, he arrives at the certainty that
there must bo a first absolute, and independent action from
•which the others depend.

Finally, to meet the objections of the disciples of the tran-
scendental German school, who, lulled into a semi-somnifer-
ous state, by lager beer and strong cigars, talk misty things
which they call transcendental, we will put our argument
into another shape. Really, a sensible man ought not to take
notice of the hazy, verbose German transcendentalists. The
unwary too often take obscurity of expression for sublimity
of ideas, and for depth of research : hence the applause of
the German ''Philosophers." It was the boast of one Ger-
man " founder of a school," Hegel, that only one person
understood him, and not even that one understood him. We
suspect that he was the individual himself: and it is quite

PIIILOSOniY OP THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

:.l i

CHMlible that ho did not underHtnud hiins(df. If ho did he
couhl, most ccrtuiuly, ho express himsell' as to eiiahle others
to get, ut least, a i'aint inkliiin; of his inoaniiig. 80 luueh
for our estimation of CJermati transeeiideiitalists.

Kant asserted that abstract notions showed oidv the a^xrce-
ment of ideas, and did not prove, with certainty, the actual
existence of any object. ISIoreover, althouLrli he aihuitted
the existence of (lod, he nuuntained that reason could not
prove the fact, liahnes has ^justly observed that Kant's
"critique of pure Reason" is the deatli of reason.

To rebut the above subtilty of Kant, and other kindred
ones, we put our ar^jfiniuiiit into anotlier form. Somethinjif
exists: therefore an Ens a se exists. It is evident that tliis
is not purely an argument a priori; it is not from purely
abstract notions. It is ix. mixed mode of reasoninj;. The
antecedent asserts a fact admitted by all — viz : something
exists ; at least / exist, Avhether I be a ])henomenon or an
effect: then from the existence of this something the reason
deduces the existence of a necessjiry Being, an Ens a se.
It proceeds by the inexorable logic of evidence. Sitmethlng
exists : tiiis something is either a necessary being, or it is
not. If the former, then there exists a necessary being, and
our first step is secure : if tiie latter, this something not ex-
isting by necessity of nature, must have been produced by
something else, which we will call B. The (piestion arises,
is B a necessary being? If it be, then it is the substance
whose existence we seek to prove : if not it must be from C.
Thus we fall into a series of depent^M!.; effects and causes,
and must, as shown above, admit a first independent cause,
or swallow the long suspended chain, that has no first sus-
pended link.

From the foregoing it is evident that there is no refuge
for the atheist, save in a maze of absurdities. Any boy of

THE EXISTKNCE OP GOD.

orillnary itKcUijreiice can coiifutci the most subtle fttlieist, ide-
alist, or any otlier tollo\vi>r of tiie ff*'ntta error, as rejiards
the existence of a Hrst and in(h'|K'ndcnt canse. A phenom-
enon, or an ellect exists. Thcret'ore there exists a primary
uctor. C)f no truth can the dispassionate mind be more
tiiorongiily convinced. To r«'jcct it wo must "kill reason,"
becanse we must nnike om* very reason an absnydity.

Lastly the snbject /, as shown bclbre, is firndy convinced
that it is not inlinite: tinit it exercises no control over nniny
external thin;;s. Hence the necessary being, whose existence
the intelli;rent snbject / deihices from the existence of phc-
nomeini, or eH'ects, is not the / itself, but something alto-
gether distinct from, and independent of it. It would be
either a piece ot satire or pride, or sheer nnidnes.s, to pretend
that everything is comi)rised in tlie subject /. Tiuit some-
thing distinct from the thinking snbject exists, is as clear to
the mind as its own existence ; e(pially clear to it is the fact
that it is not the primary cause of that something. There-
fore outside of itself tlie great primary actor is to be sought.

'■r^,'^

=sf*»v-

<.J3<^-

ill;

CHAPTER VII.

THE INTELLIGENCE AND WILL OF GOD.

J I T might seem superfluous to many to hold a polemic
I dissertation on the Intelligence and Will of God.
*^G> ^^^^ wish, however, is to prove by the light of reason,
^ every assertion we make. We trust that these met-
aphysical disquisitions, so far as they go, will be complete.
Infidelity threatens destruction to the human race, In its
mad career it spares nothing. It sends ahead its loathsome
precursor — impiety. Hearts must be first depraved before
intellects can embrace absurdities. A soul unspotted by sin
could never be induced to deny its Creator. The impious
systems of a revived paganism that, like noxious weeds,
spring up thick and fast, are the sickly products of souls
deprived of the light of grace. Wore it possible, then, to
prove that God is but a blind force, free rein could be given
to our basest passions. Hence the efforts to destroy the idea
of a personal God. 'Tis the old, old cry of the wicked ; it
was raised in the time of David — God does not understand :
non intelligit Deus, It has come down the path-way' of
ages, an. has been taken up and screeched in chorus by
modern infidels. Being driven, by the force of evidence, to
admit some primary actor, who must be independent and
supreme, they vainly seek to have him shorn of intelligence.
We wish to expose the fallacy of their theories ; to vindicate

THE INTELLIGENCE AND WILL OF GOD.

ihe glory of our Creator ; to supply arms by which each
reader may successfully combat their errors. Hence our
intention of contesting each inch of ground. We know that
right is on our side, and we are confident of success.

We have proved the existence of a Being which exists by
necessity of nature — v;hich is independent of everything
else, and which is the first c{»use of all. Whatever this
being has, it has by the necessity of nature, and consequently
it can never have, at any time, anything which it had not
always. With it there can be no change ; for it there was
no yesterday, neither will it have a to-morrow. It simply
is. The definition which that Being gave of itself, as re-
corded by Moses, is the self-same as that which right
reason must give it — I am what I am — or, in another place
— " who is, sent thee." Yes ; this is God ; He who is.
Being necessary. He is, as we saw, infinite ; consequently,
He has the plenitude of being. "I am what I am." To
prove intelligence in God we can £rst use an argument a
priori, God is infinite ; therefore perfect. This is self-
evident ; for the infinite is that to which nothing can be
added ; but something can be added to the imperfect — viz :
the perfection it lacks. Hence, since God is infinite He
must be perfect. Now intelligence is, undoubtedly, a very
great perfection : consequently it must be in God. Intel-
ligence is a simple perfection ; it does not include the idea of
any defect. Reason supposes a detect — viz : the necessity
of deducing conclusions regarding things less clearly known,
from ones more known. Hence in God there is intelligence,
but no necessity of reasoning. He knows in the same man-
ner as He exists, that is — liy necessity of nature. The
manner of acting follows the manner of existing. In God
existence is by necessity ; so is knowledge : the essence of God
necessarily includes existence ; so it, likewise, includes know-

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

r.i

!i' V.

led^e. The essence is infinite ; so is the knowlcdjre. Tlic
iuiinite must be a simple act. There cannot be in it any
parls, otherwise it could be added to, and subtracted from.
Hence in the infinite tiiere is no real distinction between the
essence and its attributes. God having the plenitude of being
must have the plenitude of knowledge. Everything know-
able must be known to Ilim ; and this knowledge is not
acquired by parts, nor by deducing conclusions ; but it is all
in one simple act, eternal and unchangeable. All this is
clear from the fact of His being infinitely perfect.

But the doriders of metaphysics may call this too subtile.
One would suppose that no reasoning could be too fine spun for
the "great minds" of our great age. If their intellectual
powers be such as they boast them to be, they ought to
delight in abstruse logical investigations. But since the
mud, to which they so viciously cleave, unfits them for a
lofty mental flight, we will give other proofs. God is as
shown above the first cause. Either he acted freely in
producing the pheuonieua, or eflH^cts which exist, or he did
not. If he were necessitated in acting, then everything
exists by necessity. Now that which exists by necessity
must be unchangeable, because whatever it has, it has
necessarily, and consequently nnist have the sapie always.
But the subject 7 testifies that it, and all visible things are
subject to modifications. We know to-day something which
we did not know yesterday. Therefore we do not exist by
necessity of nature, therefore the primary cause acted freely
in producing us. We elected to act ; but election supposes
an act of intelligence, and freedom of will. Hence from the
nature of the subject / and other phenomena, it is conclu-
sively proved that God has intelligence and freedom of will.
Wo only exist because he freely elected to give us existence.
This argument is founded in the essence of contingent things ;

IIP

TIIK INTELLIGENCE AND WILL OF GOD.

the reason is led on to its conclusion by the force of evidence.
Pantheism, be it rej^l, ideal, or eniauistic is completely de-
stroyed by this reasoning-. It is to be hoped that this ar-
gument is not too "subtle," or '^«choIastic," for the ''irrcni
minds" which follow the "current of modern thought."

':^rj^'

j^^

Bi>ti

I-

COAPTER VIII.

GOD AS LEARKT FROM THE PHYSICAL ORDER.

(I HE cultured mind will, already, have found sufficient
I proof of the existence of a personal God, such as
W^ christians believe to exist. But all minds are not
-^Qp cultured; and some are so much cultured that they
seem to have run to seed. Amonjjst these latter must be
classed the gushing writer who, in well-written prose, rejects
metaphysics. The hey-day of his intellect must be with the
*' years beyond the deluge;" no flowers, no matter how
brilliant their hues, can attract his gaze. Hard, dry seeds,
much akin to acorns, are the only pleasures of his imagina-
tion. 'Tis a sad lot, yet, the usual one reserved tor those
whom pride has drawn from the path of trutli.

For the unlettered, then, as well as for the lovers of phys-
ical nature, Ave will trace the footsteps of God in the
universe. Physics, being a less sublime science than meta-
physics, is more adapted to the understanding of those who
care only to sport a moth-like existence of a day. It would
be useless to enumerate here the beauties and order of visible
things. Each one sees them for oneself. If he is a scholar
he can read the glowing pages of Cicero, of Virgil, of Young,
or of every writer of note, whether ancient or modern. On
no one subject has so much been written, as on the wonder-
ful beauty aud order of the universe. On no subject has

GOD AS LEAKNT FROM THE PHYSICAL ORDER.

there been so much unanimity of sentiment. The writer of
centuries ago, — the writer of to-day, — the writer in the east,
as well as in the west, have all proclaimed aloud the same
fact, that beauty, harmony, regularity, prevail in the physical
order. If one is not a scholar, one has only to step forth
into the fields and watch the plants and flowers springing up,
producing useful fruits, or delighting the eye, and then form-
ing a seed from which another similar plant will, in due
season, shoot forth. He will remember that the seasons
come round with unfailing regularity ; no matter how great
the heat may be to-day he is sure that a cool season will soon
come to refresh the parched earth ; no matter how deep the
enow may lie on his well-tilled fields he is certain that it will
melt, and leave tiie ground fresh and vigcrous, in time for
the next crop. Let him then raise his eyes to the heavens
and he Avill see the glorious sun continually returning to
cheer us with his light, and to fertilize the liclds with his
heat. When he sees it sinking, in a blaze of glory, to rest,
no fear of its never again api)e;uing disturbs him. He is
certain that in a few hours it will return, and he makes his
calculations for work or })leasure, accordingly. liy night,
he sees tlie heavens studded with innumerable stars, and from
observations he has learnt that he can determine the hours of
night by the relative positions of some of them. He knows
with certainty the phases of the moon, and he, likewise,
knows, though ignorant of astronomy, that the moon and
the planets have their appointed course ; they wliirl rapidly
around ; cross each othei''s path ; draw near, pursue, recede,
but never come in contact. If a man be learned in the
physical sciences he has groat cause for wonder. He learns
that in all the changes, whether eflected by light, heat, or
electricity, no one particle is ever made, or destroyed. lie
finds the atmosphere to be a vast store-house, in which are

iiiii

I
11

FHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLK VINDICATED.

treasured up tlic atoms of decayed matter, to become, in
time, the elemeuts of other bodies. A coutinual rouud of
production and decay is goin;^ on ; Avell-reguUited hiAvs are
observed in all physical phenomena. Now, let a man be what
he may, he nmst admit the fact of the existence and regular-
ity of i)hysical phenomena, such as we have described. The
question at once arises : is there any author of these? If so,
who, and what is he? A man who desires knowledge, must
not be content to know the mere fact of the existence of a
thing ; he must endeavour to learn as mu(;h as possible, its
cause. The questions asked above will naturally rise in the
mind of any one who considers the phenomena described. Is
there any jiuihor of these? No one in his senses, will say
that there Is i. cj. . , or author of these striking effects.
He may quibble about the nature of that cause, but he nuist
admit tluit tin..': ;«" s'^>me i^'vniary actor; otherwise he has a
series of phemomena wit hum a first one ; a chain of depen-
dent effects without a cause. The first question must be
answered affirmatively, yes, there is an author, or a first
actor. Who, and what is he? We will not give in detai'. the
various erroneous answers to this (piestion. We will say;
the author is either intelligent, or he is not. The atheists
whether they be materialists, ])antheists, or any other ists,
say that the author is not intelligent. They labour, in
various ways, to obsciu'e the truth ; still, shorn of their
stiq)idity and verbosity, their theoi'ies are reduced to this ;
the author of the j)hysical order is not an intelligent cause.
I^et youthfid readers bear this well in miiul. Let them not
be deceived \>y high-sounding terms, or brilliant expressions.
Tlie whole question must be reduced to logical terms : either
the cause is intelligent, or it is not. If it is intelligent it
must be something distinct from the phenomena ; for no one,
it is to be supposed, is so demented as to attribute iutelii-

GOD AS LEARNT FROM THE PHYSICAL ORDER.

g'cnce to physirnl ])lienoinenn. In the Inpothesis, then, that
the cause is intellijrent, it must be tlie infinite God of whom
Ave spoke ; because the author of tiie phenomena must be in-
dependent, and must exist by necessity of nature, not being
from any other cause ; and consecjuently nuist be inlinite.
They who take the other iiorn of the dilemma are tossed into
the regions of absurdity. They must say the author is not
intelligent. Can any man believe that laws, to understand
which great human intellects have labored, have come from
an unintelligent lawgiver? But let us pursue them more
cogently. Your author is cha'^ce. But, pray, who and
wdiat is this chance? Is it intelligent? If so, you admit aa
intelligent author of the physical order. If it is not, it is
nothing : wriggle as you may, if chance is unintelligent it is
a mere notliing, a blind for the unwary: it can be nothing
more than that you mean pluniomena are the productions of
a lottery, a game of hazard. If the right ticket happens to
be extracted from the box, the sun will rise to-morrow ; pi-o-
vided always, that thousands of other tickets are so extracted
that each planet will keep its course, and not come in colli-
sion with the earth. And for thousands upon tliousands of
days this game of lottery has been going on, and thousands
upon thousands of just the right sort of tickets are coming
out, from amongst millions upon millions of ones which
might just as well be extracted ! Can any absurdity be
greater than this? Yet, reduced to its last analysis, such is
the theory of chance. Such the stuff which the would-be
doughty champions of reason ask us to believe. Place even
fifteen numbers into a box, and it is a moral certainty that
you will not extract the same number three consecutive
times. But what if you had millions of numbers in the box,
and had to extract, in the same order, the same hundred
numbers, a hundred times? Bah ! it is sickening to have to
write against such nonsense !

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BliXE VINDICATED.

Ilillt

But some will say, you mis-rq>rescnt our theory : wc do
not believe in chance, as the author, any more than you : we
explain physical phenomena by supposing matter with its
properties, and physical laws of attraction, repulsion, &c.
This theory has, at first sight, r-.u appearance of learning, and
saves its advocates from being immediately laughed at, as
bogus lottery agents. In reality, however, it is founded in
the old game of chance. Modern atheists saw the absurdity
of the casus of the ancients, and abandoned it ; the ship was
leaky, so they fled ; but the boat into which they leaped,
though more gaudily painted, is not a whit more sea-worthy.
Let us overhaul it. They suppose matter with its physical
properties. Not a bad supposition to begin Avith ; but it has
just this grievous fault — it is only a supposition. Let us
make the supposition that we ask them how came this matter
•with its properties? Is it from chance? They answer in-
dignantly, no ; we do not admit chance as an autlior. Very
good ; is it from itself ? If it is, you admit an Ens a se a
substance that exists by necessity of nature, and, consequently
an infinite one. But, as shown above, the infinite must be
simple : hence it is not matter which is always compound.
Therefore if you say that the elements arc from themselves,
you admit not one, but millions of necessary beings, each
infinite, each intelligent, each unchangeable. This absurdity
is just as great as chance. If you say that matter is not from
itself it must be from another, from, say, B. If B is from it-
self we come to our infinite substance God ; if not he is from
C, and climbing up the genealogical stem we must finally come
to the parent Z. No other preceding him, he must be from
himself, and is, therefore, God. Hence when we analyze
this learned supposition, its supposers muHt either be content
to herd with the ancient charice men, or they must admit a
personal God,

GOD AS LEARNT FROM THE PHYSICAL ORDER.

Not to be too Imrd on tlie enlightened tliinkcrs let us
leave unquestioned their gratuitous supposition ; let us for
a moment, suppose thiit nuitter exists with its various
properties and laws : not even then coidd this well-ordered
universe arise, without an intelligent cause to dispose, in
certain places, certain quantities of matter. If the elements of
matter existed independently of God, they would exist by ne-
cessity of nature : all their properties and actions would be
essential and, as a consequence, unchangeable. The position
they first occupied, and the actions tliey first prodnced, Avould
be necessary, and therefore should always remain the same.
The order and collocation which were in the beginning, would
have to continue until the end. Now the science of geology
evidently demonstrates that many changes have taken place,
and are still going on. This could not be, if matter and its
properties arc to be supposed as existing and acting indepen-
dently of any supreme cause. If even one part of matter, if
even one element of a body should change its site, the whole
physical order, with one fell swoop, would fall into chaos,
unless there be an intelligent cause that foresaw this change
of site, and provided an opportune remedy. It is evident that
we can change the relative position of whole masses, and,
still, the harmony of nature is undisturbed.

Again ; from no other collocation of elements than the act-
ul one, could this physical order arise, if it be purely the
production of matter and its properties. Now it is self-evident
that the number of possible collocations which the particles
of the world could have is many millions. Must it not have
been a most happy chance which brought about the present
one? As Cicero said when refuting this same absurd theory,
it is just as credible to suppose that by tossing in the air a
number of types they would form, on reaching the ground,
the annals of Ennius, as to suppose that this well-ordered

PHILOSOPHY OF THK HIHLE VINDICATKD.

globe could b(! the result of eUiuients poHsc.sscd of eertain
pliyjsicai proj)ertie,s. Would any upholder of this system be-
lieve thiit liis eliil)onite cssay.s could be formed by tosniug in
the air all the type and phitit.s of every printing ollice in
London. Yet, it is more credible tluit this should take place
than that all the beauties, wonders, and harmony of nature
should arise merely from matter and its forces.

Finally, it Is admitted that various circumstances, such as
difference of temperature, relation of site and a thousand
others exercise a luodifying effect on matter and its ])roperties.
How is it, then, that in man, beast, bird and fish, the eye,
for instance, always occupies the same site, in the same race.
Why does it not frequently appear on the top of the head, or
the arm, back, or neck? The embryo is, certainly, subject
to various causes which must modify the properties of matter,
still the eye appears in millions of men, for thousands of
years, in the same place, and that place, too, the safest and
most useful. It must, indeed, be a consistent chance that
does all this. Take any one. of the thousand and one phen-
omena of every-day life, which occur with equal regularity,
though under veiy different circumstances, and you "will find
how vain it is to attem})t to explain them by merely supposing
matter with its forces. But if you suppose an infinite in-
telligence that gave each element its peculiar properties, and
foresaw all possible contingences, and so disposed matter as
to meet them, and which prepared a ready compensation for
each change, or loss, then, and then only, can the physical
order be explained. All difficulties vanish ; the mind may-
be overcome at the depth of the wisdom of that cause, but
it is intimately convinced that only such wisdom could pro-
duce such effects.

We can here add a fact which must be known to those
who are versed in physies — viz : that physical laws are not

GOD AS LEARNT FROM THE niYSICAL ORDER.

always constant, or rep:ular in their development. Ouo
example is sntlicient : it is a law that the inti'nsity of elec-
tricity in a ;;alv{uiic pih; increases with the number of pairs
of zinc, copper and cloth saturated in diluted fiulplmric acid.
This law liolds good for a limited number of pairs ; finally a
certain intensity is reached and, add as many pairs as you
will, that intensity will not increase. INIoreover you can so
alter the condition of the surrounding atmosphere as to come
to this stopping point, sooner or later. Many other laws are
subject to like anomalies. We know the explanation of this
phenomenon, still, it does not destroy the fact tiuit physical
laws are not necessarily alike, at all times, in their evolution.
Hence it is nnscientitic to suppose that the various j)henomena
could occur with such regularity, even though matter and its
properties existed independently of God. From this the read-
er will sec how cautious he ought to be, in accepting the
dicta of certain scientists, who talk about nature and its laws.
The physical order loudly proclaims an Infinite Intelligence.

-^^^^3^L>>

CHAPTER IX.

h.:

UNIVERSAL BELIEF IN THE EXISTENCE OF A GOD.

F we turn down the pages of liistory ; if we rcftd tho
annals of any nation, or listen to the tradition of any
tribe, we find that all men, at all times, have agreed
'{^ in admitting the existence of a being superior to them-
selves ; a being whom they ought to adore. Those wlio luivo
pretended to disbelieve in a God are so few that they are, ia
the moral order, what monstrosities are in the physical. No
one for a moment considers that the monstiosities which, from
time to time, come into existence, destroy certain physiologi-
cal laws ; neither can any one pretend that the few atheists,
who reject reason for a time, destroy the universal belief in
a God. Of course, many and great re the errors regarding
the nature and attributes of God ; but the fact remains lirm
that all men have been intimately convinced tluit there exists
a being far superior to themselves. No sceptic has attempt-
ed to seriously question this universal consent. Ejjicurus
admitted it ; Kant, although he alleged that reason could not
prove the existence of God, said that we ought to hold his
existence by reason of this fact. It is scarcely necessary to
transcribe the words of Plutarch against Colotes ; he says :
*' If you roam over the earth you may find cities without
walls, letters, kings, palaces, wealth, and monies ; cities ig-
norant of gymnasiums and theatres ; but a city without

UNIVERSAL BELIEF IN THE EXISTENCE OF A GOD.

*t8.

•US

not

his

out

temples and jyofTs, which docs not use prayers, oaths and
oracles, which does not offer sacrifice to procure favors, and
which does not strive to ward off evils by religious rites, no
one ever saw. I think it easier to found a city without
ground for it, than for a city to be founded and stand, if the
idea of a God be destroyed." Plutarch would have been
confirmed in this belief had he lived in tlie days of Petroleum
and Paris. Now, the Philosopher ought to seek the reason
of this universal belief. It is constant and universal ; tliere-
fore its cause is constant and universal ; were it not, the
effect would be sometimes existing without hny cause. No
other constant and universal cause can be assigned except the
evidence of reason, the voice of nature heard by all who at-
tain the use of reason. Even the blasphemies which come
from the mouth of the impious attest their belief. These
imprecations are the ravings of a soul r iturally Christian,
We have said that no other cause, save the evidence of rea-
son can be assigned. All others are either limited, or vari-
able. Priest-craft, or any other craft, is not sufficient; it
might succeed with some, and in some places, and for a time ;
but it could not be constant and universal. Prejudices vary ;
ignorance is lessened ; what is advantageous to one is disad-
vantageous to another. Thus we can go through the various
causes assigned for this fact, and we will find them all inade-
quate. The voice of nature alone, always the same, whether
by the Ganges, or the Amazon, can explain this universal
consent.

The great stronghold of modern atheists,* who consider
that the acme of knowledge is circumscribed by the narrow
limits of their brain, is the ignorance of the people regarding
physical laws. This ignorance, they say, explains the uni-
versal phenomenon. Of course, all was darkness in the
world until the particular atiicist who makes this assertion,

«f

nilLOSOPIIY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

lionored this mundane sphere by being born in it. This in-
tolerable pride is so senseless that Ave would not notice it,
only we wish to guard young readers against an error into
which they may easily fall, if they read infidel books, or
newspapers. Reading continually the stale stock-phrases, of
" modern thought,"' and '' progress of the age," on the one
hand, and " mcdijcval ignorance," on the other, they may
think that only the illiterate believe in the christians' God ;
and that only the atheists are learned. Now the case is
just the reverse. The most learned in nature's laws were,
and are, the iirmcst believers in God as ruler of the universe.
Liebnitz, Newton, Linanis, Bonnet and a host of others in
the past ; Sccchi and others Avliom each reader can name for
Iiimself in the present. The atheists cannot point to a man
in their ranks, or who ever belonged to them, that enjoys
any solid reputation as a scliolar, or a scientist. A few of
them enjoy a manufactured fame, which lasts for a day : but
none of them has ever attained that enduring glory which
bespeaks great genius. When they will have their names as
indelibly stamped on the ])ages of their respective country's
history, and as intimately linked with its scientific glory, as
the great names above, then will it be time enough for them
to prate about " mediaeval ignorance." So far as the ages
of the Avorld have run out, all the genius, all the ti'ue nobility
of the human race has been on the side Avhich defends a Su-
preme Ruler ; rui the other, has l)een the bloated Ej)icurean,
the depraved libertine, and the self-c(mceited theorist. This
may sound har?h, hut it is the stern fact as ])roved by his-
tory. If any one can j)ersua(' iieself that halC-a-do/en pro-
fessors, who can write suilic' .ily well to varnish over their
gross blunders, comprise the intelligence of the human race,
the reader, while pitying his dehusiou, must surely laugh at
his folly.

UNIVERSAL BELIEF IN THE EXISTENCE OF A GOD.

Finally, the voice of nature, speaking through man, not
only proclaims the existence of a God, but, also, his ruling
])ovver. 8uj)plications and sacrifices for rain, or fair weather,
thanksgivings for plentiful crops, all tend to prove the same
thing, — belief in the ruling power of God. They must have
been convinced that the physical laws were subject to him ;
that by an act of his will he could intervene in an extraor-
dinary manner. Men have believed, and sad experience has
taught us moderns, that hunum society cannot exist without
a rec()"rnition of God. There can be no society without the
recognition and observance of moral precepts. Take away
these and you have a den of thieves, a vast brothel of ini-
quity. Now the idea of a moral law, or obligation, neces-
sarily supposes a lawgiver, and a vindicator of that law.
Hence human society absolutely requires a belief in God.
Since, therefore, all men, at all times, have believed in a
God, and since without this belief society is impossible, it 18
tlie insanity of absurdity to doubt the existence of God. We
will here observe that very many of the traditions of the hu-
man race, though disfigured by fables, if considered in their
substantial })art, will be seen to point to tliis same universal
belief in a God, and even to a primitive revelation.

CHAPTER X.

i^i

RECAPITULATORY.

^i AKING for our starting point the three fundamental
6n| I truths, I exist, I can know witli certainty, and the
((^^ principle of contradiction, we established ourselves
Cr^ on a solid foundation. Our camp was so well forti-
fied that no assault could make a breach in its walls. Any
blow aimed at either of those three truths, only redounds on
the aggressor. By denying, or doubting, cither of them, he
proves it. Hence the impregnability of our position. From
this safe retreat we made an attack on the lines of atheism ;
we went forth armed with some certainties, and from these
deduced, by the evidence of reason, others. The intelligent
subject /did not remain shut up in itself; its reason Avants a
wider field in which to seek for trutii. The subject / equal-
ly convinced of its own, as of others* existence, sought en-
lightenment. It wished to know Avho, and what, is the
primary actor of the wonderful phenomena it contemplates.
Strong in the conviction of its ability to know with certainty,
it began its investigations. It soon discovered that there
cannot be a series of phenomena without a first ; or a chain
of effects and causes without a primary cause. In either
case this primary actor must exist by necessity of nature ;
its very idea supposes it. If it is the first, then it is from no
other ; therefore by necessity of nature. Thus the subject I

BECAPITULATORY.

arrived at the conviction that there exists a necessary Being,
independent of others, and from whom all else depends.
Proceeding in its investigations it saw that since mundane
objects are contingent, the necessary Being must have pro-
duced them freely ; but free action supposes intelligence.
Therefore it became convinced that this necessary Being is
endowed with intelligence and free will. The subjtct / has
thus, by the light of its reason, arrived at the knowledge of
a personal God. It confirmed this knowledge from the phy-
sical order, and from the universal consent of man. The
feeble shots fired by the atheists were easily turned aside.
Their only refuge was in submission, or in a hibyrinth of
absurdity. Chance, chance ! *Twas the " abyss crying to
the abyss." The subject / having vindicated the dignity of
its reason, finds a ser.se of joy and relief. The wonders of
nature are no longer matters of perplexity ; it knows them
to be the productions of an infinite Intelligence.

Turning again to this necessary Being it finds it eternal,
supreme, perfect. There can not be two infinite substances ;
the very idea is self-destructive. Hence God must be one
substance, and that substance must be simple. It can have
no parts, otherwise it could be increased, or decreased.
Whatever property is in the infinite, must be infinite, because
it is nothing more tluui the essence considered under a cer-
tain respect. Being a necessary substance all its properties
are necessary ; hence it is unchangeable ; its properties being
unchangeable and iufnite it must once, together, and always
know and will, whatever it knows and wills. God is thus a
simple act, having the plenitude of being, and the fulness of
wisdom. Whatever is kuowable must be known to him in
that one act. He omprehends himself, because his intelli-
gence is infinite ; he cannot be comprehended by anything
else, because everytliing net God is finite and of limited capa-

ii»

rniLOsopuY of the bible vindicated.

city. Being intcllijreiit, he established an order; being good,
he desires its observance ; being wise, lie provided means for
this purpose ; being perfect, ho must hate the transgressor ;
being powerful, he will punish him.

God being infinite, he must comprehend everything. He
is more intimately present to each tiling than what that
thing is to itself. Still, he is not dittused in parts through
matter, because he is simple ; but by reason of his infinity
everything which exists must exist in Him, although distinct
from II im. He is tiie infinite reality ; outside of Ilim tliere
is nothing ; we are living and moving in the ocean of his in-
finity, but are always distinct and diverse from Him. This
infinity of God, not rightly understood, luis been the occasion,
to some, of propagating a pernicious error which we will
refute in the next chapter. The subject / is lost in wonder
contemplating such a Being, it cannot comprehend it ; but it
sees how beautiful and consonant to reason is all this,

/;:Js>s?.

CDAPTER XI.

PANTHEISM.

AXTIIEISM is only masked atlioisni ; its advocates
pursue various paths, but the iinal conchisiou from
tlu'ir priii('i[)los must inevitably be, tln're is no God.
lis erroneous system is very insidious, and its
cfTects are most disastrous. It speaks often of God, and
with pretended veneration ; in fact, its champions are, ac-
cording to themselves, the only true zealots of God's infinite
perfection. Hence its danpfer, especially to those who are
not much versed in metaphysics. It is pernicious in its con-
sequences, In as much as, it destroys the liberty, and coiisc-
quently, the responsibility, of human action ; and makes riirht
and wrong ec[ually the necessary result of the action of the
inlinite. It is thus more impious, perhaj)s, than ()])eu
atheism, and quite as absurd. It is a horrible blasphemy to
deny the existence of God ; but, in our oj)inion, it is still
worse to admit the existence of an infinitely perfect Being,
and thou to attribute to him all manner of ini<iuity. But
sncli, strij)])ed of its pious mask, is the outcome of panthtMsm.
As we before observe«l, to deny a i)ersonal (iod is the great
object of those who have reason to fear him. >»'<)t })eing
able to succeed by open atheism, l)ecause the natural convic-
tion of man was, of itself, suflicient to refute that absm'dity,
the impious became all at once seized with a great admira-

PIULOSOPIIY OP THE DIBLE VINDICATED.

1 I'

tion of the inHnity of God, and made God everything, that
they might succeed in making hiiu nothing. The reader
must always remember that the God mentioned by the pan-
theist, is not the God of the christians. Our God is, as wo
have shown, an infinite, necessary Bi'ing, snjjrcme, perfect,
and endowed witli intelligence and liberty of action ; the God
of the pantheist is an aggregation of contradictions : ho is
infinite, but likewise finite, because the phenomena we seo
are God; he is perfect, but likewise imperfect, because tho
cincucious cause of sin; he is intelligent, because he is man's
intellect, but he is likewise unintelligent, because he is a
otonc. It is scarcely credible that any sane man ever serious-
ly maintained such absurdities; unless, indeed, God permit-
ted one who denied him with his mouth, to become so
blinded, as to be given over to a reprobate sense. 'Tis a sad
proof of mental aberration that Spinoza, the modern cham-
pion, or perhaps, even the author, of the system, has been
applauded as the vindicator of the infinite perfe<'tion, and as
a rigorous logician ! Why, the school boy, who in his first
logical essay would be guilty of such gross contradiction,
would most surely be doomed to lose his first holiday, and
obliged to write five hundred times — Idem non potest simul
esse et non esse — the same thing cannot both be and not bo
at the same time. Yet, such is the itch with some to drug
themselves of Christian truth, that they will gulph down
anything against it, even though reason be choked in the
attempt.

Perhaps some may think we are manufacturing accusations
against the men who speak so religiously about the Infinite.
If so they are deceived. VV^e will advance nothing wiiich
we are not prepared to substantiate. A slight knowledge of
metaphysics, and a little logic, are all that is required to
prove our charges. Our object is to warn the youthful

PANTHEISM.

rentier of the pretty veil, wliich conceals the hideous features ;
and then to lift that veil and .show pantheism to be a stupid
monster, the offspring of ignorance and conceit.

Pantheism, like all errors, has been split up into various
gystoras. The principal ones are Realistic, Idealistic and
Emanastic. It is not our purpose to refute these singly.
Indeed, we think that christian writers commit a blunder,
when they lose their time in writing an elaborate refutation
of every erroneous conclusion, from gome false premises.
There are some men whom you can never convince ; their
intellect is a tangled Avilderness, and their heart a parched
mountain ridge. You may labor to cultivate the one, or to
clear the other, but your efforts will be vain, unless the dews
from heaven irrigate the soil, Any man who will defend
conclusions which necessarily follow from a principle that is
proved to bo false, is, it would seem, one of these iuconvia-
ciblo men. Hence wo will content ourselves with demon-
strating the fallacy of the pantheistic principle ; observing
that all pantheists, of whatever hue, start from the same
proposition — there is but one substance, and that infinite.
Spinoza strives hard to prove this ; so do all subsequent
pantheists. The fundamental error in t'uir mental wander-
ings consists in confounding distinction with diversity. Two
things perfectly, alike in all their properties are not diverse,
but they are distinct, one is not the other. Two things, with
qualities unlike, arc both diverse and distinct. Anyone sees
the vast difference between diversity and distinction. Now
the reader will, perhaps, hardly believe that the great(!)
logician Spinoza ignorantly confounded these two. But
here are his words : " There cannot be but one substance.
If there were many, they should be known by means of
different attributes, and then they would have nothing in
common." Therefore, according to this beautiful piece of

PIlILOSOniY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

Ill'

reasoning, tlicre is no sucli thing as numeric difference : if
A and B are <\vo apples alike iu size, color, flavor, &c., A
is B. This -is in philosophy, what communism is in society
— your house is mine. Thus at the onset we discover the
flaw in Spinoza's argument. His train of reasoning is
founded on the supposition that there is no such thing as
numeric distinction ; this supposition is shown to he false ;
hence the airy fahric falls in ruin. The pantheist must first
prove that two ohjccts, without any diversity of properties,
are not distinct. This he can never do, consecpiently he has
no starting point. He is like Archimades, he has no ful-
crum on which to rest his lever ; consequently he cannot
move the heavens and the earth.

The next oracular proposition of the Dutch Apollo is
eqiudly absurd: "Two substances of different attributes
would have nothing in common, and one could not be the
cause of the other ; for, to bo its cause it should contain it in
its essence and produce effects on it." Here we find that
this boasted genius had no higher idea of the way in which
an effect could be contained iu iis cause, than the grovelling
material one of water in a basin, or a chicjc in the shell.
Certainly if there is no water in the cuj) I cannot pour any
out of it ; but there is a more elevated idea of cause and
eflf'ect. The intricate piece of machinery was not in the
mechanic, but did he not produce it? Try to persuade a
man that some j)iece of work which he has just performed,
■was not done- by him ; you will say, it has different attributes
from you, therefore it was not iu you ; consequently yoil did
not make it. The veriest boor would laugh at you and say :
" true it, as it is, was not in me, but there was in mo the
-power of producing it." By this simple observation, which
the most ignorant workman would make, the great difficulty
would bo solved. Truly the sublime genius of the pantheist
borders ou the ridiculous.

PANTHEISM.

The t'.vo errors exposed above are the result of I'lrnorauce
of tlie nature of the luliiiitc. God is iniiiiitely perfect; eou-
sequeutly every })erfeelion which is found in a finite beiuj^
must be in God in some manner. The pantheist is i'i;<:lit
when he says that in God is found every perfection wiiich is
in the creature ; but he orrs re;xardin<» the manner in wliich
it is in him. There are three ways by which one thin<; may
be contained in another: 1st — INIaterially, or formally, as
water in a basin : 2iul — Eminently, that is, in a greater
degree, or a more nolde nuumer, as the j)Ower of a govei-nor
iu the king: 3rd — Virtually, that is, wlien the cause has the
power of producing the effect ; thus, the engine is contained
in its manuhu'turer. Again ; perfections are either absolute,
or relative. In the conc('j)tion of the former there is no idea
of a defect in(du<led ; the perfection is absolute : iu the con-
ception of relative perfections there is included the idea of a
defect which limits them, and makes them perfections only
in a sense relative to something else. Thus, intelligence is
an absolute ])erfection, though it is not necessarily inlinite,
because it simply includes the idea of understanding ; reason,
or reasoning, is only a relative perfection, because it supposes
the necessity of deduction and argues a defect in the posses-
Gor, viz : a limitation of luiderstanding. Now we say that
the perfections of finite beings arc contained in the Inlinite ia
some one of these three ways. Simple perfections are con-
tained iu him formally ; relative ones, either eminently, or
virtually. Hence the number and variety of finite perfections
iu created beings, do not derogate from the iufinite perfection
of God. They serve rather as a means of giving us some
diln inkling of what must be his glory, since he contains
each and all of them, in a greater degree, and in a more
sublime manner. Spinoza, seeing only one way in which a
thing could be contained in its cause, viz : in a formal man-
ner, thought it derogatory to the Infinite to admit any per-

'^'1

*' ' ■ i

•■■ ■: ! i

ll '

I I

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

fection distinct from his. The foolish objection, — if you add
tlie perfection of the finite to tlie infinite yon increase tlio
latter — arises from not nnderstanding the various ways by
which an effect may be contained in its cause. Suppose
Parliament were to pass a hiw conferring the power of a
governor on her Majesty, what wouUl the Queen say to Mr.
Disraeli when he would inform her of the loyal act? Some-
thing, most probably, like what (^uccn Elizabeth is reported
to have said to the "men of Coventry," — "Good lack I
what fools you be, have I not already that power, aye, and
a much greater one. 'Twas I who, out of the plenitude of
my 8overei<5u power, gave jurisdiction to the governor ; mine
was not decreased by the act ; neither can it be increased by
lis revocation." This response would bring to the blushing
Premier's mind the old axiom : qui potest plus, potest et
minus, in codem gcnerc. Now apply this to the Infinite :
out of the fulness of his perfection he bestowed certain
limited perfections on creatures. Was his perfection de-
creased by the act? Evidently not, even as the imparting of
knowled'jre to others does not diminish our own store.
Would his perfection be increased were you to add to it the
perfection of the creature? Certainly not, for he has alreitdy
that same perfection in an infinitely greater degi'ee. From
this it is evident that Ave can explain in a reasonable manner
the existence of finite and infinite perfections, and can show
how the admission of finite ones in no Avay derogates from
the infinite ; on the other hand, Spinoza and his followers
are driven to admit contradictory properties in God, and thus
destroy him. There are certainly finite perfections ; but
these, they say, are in tlie infinite in a formal manner.
Therefore the infinite is also finite ! These properties make
God a contradiction, or in other words, destroy him. There-
fore pantheism, reduced to its last terms, is atheism. Have
we not proved some of our charges ?

PANTHEISM.

"We ini;j:ht here end the question, because we Imvc proved
the nhsiirdity of the suppositions on which puntheinm, as a
syntt'in, is built up. But we will pursue the subject still
further. Is there but one substance? The subject / being
consulted answers unhesitatinj^ly, there are many distinct sub-
Btances. At least, there are two, I and not I. My inner
consciousness testilies clearly to the fact that there exists
something whicii is not I, nor a part of me, nor a modification
of me. If there are not, at least, two distinct substances,
there is none at all ; for to the subject / essentially pertains
the judgment, A is not B. If in reality A is B then tiiero
is a perpetual opposition between the idea and the reality, or
rather there would be no reality being always and necessarily
false. Hence there would be no substance at all. But we
have seen that the subject / must be admitted ; therefore,
also, the not /or another distinct substance. If there can be
two, there is no reason wliy there cannot be a thousand and
one : now the subject / is persuaded that there are many.
Therefore, in fact, many distinct substances exist.

This is still further confirmed by our relations with kindred
subjects. In the pantheistic systems, A is B, consequently
Hegel is Newton, and Jones is Brown. Now the subject /
reasons thus : if I am Jones I must know everything that
Jones knows ; but experience teaches me that I do not know
many things known to him; therefore I cannot be Jones-
"We would wish to see on answer, in form, to this reasoning.
High-sounding plirases will not avail in syllogistic argument-
ation ; mysterious words will not do. The question is: is
Brown the same substance as Jones, yes, or no? If he is,
his feelings, ideas and knowledge must be identical with those
of Jones. But they certainly are not ; therefore they must
be distinct substances. Therefore every shade of pantheism
is false. This latter argument ought to have somcj force iu

PIIILOSOrilY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

I .

III

Gcrninny now. The " tratisri'ndcntul " Gennim may say,
pcrliaps, with impunity, that IJismarck is pious Willijun, or
IJisuiarck is God ; but woo Ix'ticK; him it' \w should say
Bismarck is Kidhnaun, or Kulhuaiiu is a inoditicatic^n, or au
emanation, or an idea ol' IJismarck ! The (hm^cons of tho
cmi)irc wouhl soon rejoice at the reception of another occu-
pant ! Why the coarsest taunt that the coarse mind of Bis-
marck couM invent against tlie '* ritramontanes," tluit is,
the Catljolic party, was to assert that Kulhnaiui hehniged to
them. Evidently he disowned all connection with that indi-
vidiuil. Hence if there be any disciple of IleL'cl in tho
Fatherland, he had better be on his ji^uard : let him not
comprise in his hicid system of the I being the not I, two
such — well, pious ])ilgrim8, as Bisuiarck jind Kullmami.

Fiiudly, pantheism is most pernicious in its elfects on
Pociety. Everything being cither a necessary moililication,
Ol' an emanation, or a manifestation of the infinite, it follows
that God is the author of every impiety. If we are not respon-
sible agents, our actions arc lU'cessary ; if I kill my neighbor
it is only a necessary manifestation of the infinite : if I burn
his house with petroleum, it is only a necessary phenomenon
of the infinite. And thus we might go through the sickening
catalogue of vices, and find in them nothing reprehensible ;
they would be all necessary manifestions of the infinite.
The very demons would disown such blasphemy. Order,
physical or moral ; duty, charity, heroism, all arc destroyed
by this infernal system, because all become necessary pheno-
mena. Such, gentle reader, is the logical outcome of })an-
tlieism ; such the conclusions from that system that begins
with hypocritical professions of veneration for the maje.-* •
the Iniinite. We need not be surprised at this ; ignorai: t
the elements of metaphysics, and self-conceit, could scavt> !y
produce aught else. Those who, perhaps, ucver read a line

PANTHEISM.

of scholastic philosophy sneer at it ; they start out in their
investigations with confused ideas, and with the fixed purpose
to destroy, if they can, Christianity. What wonder that such
as these should fall into the most stupid errors? What
wonder if they make a god of their own ? 'Tis their interest
to do so ; but to quote Bruyere : there does not exist a sober,
temperate, chaste, jusi man that denies the existence of God.

Rii

1 1
ii

CHAPTER XII.

THE REALITY OF THE I'UYSICAL WORLD.

P^AL is a term generally used by metapliysiclans iu
opposition to ideal. A tiling is said to be ideal, or
to exist ideally, Avlieu it exists merely in the mind of
the subject /, thus a golden mountain exists ideally.
It is to be observed that nothing can have an ideal existence
the notes of Avhich are contradictory. Thus a round square
cannot have an ideal existence, because the properties of
rotundity and squareness are mutually destructive in the
same subject. Such things are said to be impossible, absurd,
or simply nothing. Wlien there is no repugnance in the
notes of a thing, it is possible, although it never existed
really, and, peiluij)s, never will. A thing is said to be real,
or to exist really, when its notes do not involve a contradic-
tion, and when it, moreover, has an existence outside of the
miud of the subject /. In order to avoid all cavilling about
terms, -we mean by real existence a substance in act ; a being
whose existence is as actual as is that of the subject /.
Hence, with us, substantial and real, in regard to existence,
are convertible terms. Every substance is a reality ; every
reality is a substance. Again ; a substance is a force, that
is, every substance has necessarily action. The manner in
which difl'erent substances act, is different, but each and all
have a proper action. The uotiou of existence needs no ex-

THE REALITY OF THE PHYSICAL WORLD.

planntion ; there is notliing more clearly known than the first
fact, I exist, I am. Let the subject / imagine a not I that
has the same certainty as itself, so that the not / may say
with equal conviction, I exist, I am ; it will thus have as
clear a perception of what the existence of a thing outside of
itself is, as it is possible to have. Many rail against the
*' subtilities of the schools," but it is open to doubt if ever
the most subtle school-man, engaged in a more otiose questicm
than is that of seeking to elaborately explain the meaning of
existence. The most clear-headed philosopher has no more
correct, or perspicuous idea of what it is, than has the
peasant. The certainty of both is equal in measure, degree,
and kind ; neither of them can find a stronger asseveration
than — I am as certain of it as I am that I exist.

Now it is a fact wliich no skeptic, or idealist attempts to
deny, that the subject / has a conviction that it perceives
various things which it calls trees, stones, grass, horses, &c.,
and the aggregation of those it calls tlie physical world, the
universe, cication. This conviction is not fleeting; from
the cradle to the tomb it perseveres in the subject /. Wo
cannot divest ourselves of it ; the sceptic, or idealist, may
say that there is no reality corresponding to our perception,
still he must and does admit that the perception is really in
us. Now it is self-evident that a mere negation cannot be
perceived; I perccnve a notiiing, is equivalent to saying, I
have no perception at all. The ftict of our having tiie per*
ception of the physical world being admitted by all — and it
having been sliown tliat whatever we perceive must be a
something, it inevitably follows that the object of our percep-
tions must be a reality. You may differ as to the nature of
that reality ; you may deny that it has the {Properties attribu-
ted to it ; you may say that it is produced by God, or by the
intrinsic power of the subject /; but you can never deny the

PHILOSOrnY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

V' 1

t'l'ii

'■j

reality of the object of our perceptions. Wc thus, at once,
distinguish between the nature and the reality of the physical
world. Its reality, in the sense explained, that is, in as
much as the object of our perception must be a something,
cannot be questioned. You may just as well deny the exist-
ence of the subject / as deny its perception ; you may just as
well deny its perception as assert that the object of its percep-
tion is a nothing. Hence the only controversy can be about
the nature of the admitted reality. Philosophy seeks the
knowledge of things through their C{»uses ; we are not content
to know a fact, we desire to know its why. What, then, is
the object, Avhat the cause of this universal and constant
perception ? For our part we think the question is easily
answered ; we do not consider ourselves as possessing what
is termed genius, still, we must confess to a feeling of sur-
prise that those, who are considered as having had that
mental quality, should have fallen into absurdities, when
endeavoring to answer this question. Perhaj^s tiio very
simplicity of the answer may be the reason that genius did
not perceive it. Possibly genius is, in the mental order,
what aristocracy is in the social ; it only takes notice of
elevated notions, and consequently, like its social counterpart,
sometimes proves itself ridiculous. Or it may be that a wish
to air some original idea may have caused authors, of un-
doubted attainments, to theori w when they ouglit to philoso-
phize. Be this as it may, the strange fact remains that
some have attributed the sensations which we experience,
and which arc commonly thought to he produced by external
finite agents, to the immediate action of G(xl ; others to au
intrinsic and necessary force of the subject /. All other
erroneous system* ou this head, can be reduced to one of
these two. Let us first analyze these systems, then we will
give the correct one. Th© authors of tho first system recog-

THE REALITY OF THE PHYSICAL WORLD.

nize, at least, two distinct substances, God and the subject /.
They arc not, therefore, pantheists nor atlieists. They admit
the multiplicity of substances ; why stop at two? Evidently,
accordin^f to them, there is no contradiction in admitting
thousands of distinct substances. So far all right. But
why attribute to God actions which can, from their own
principle of the multiplicity of substances, be otherwise ac-
counted for? It is unphilosophic to have recourse to the
Infinite to explain phenomena that can be explained other-
wise. It savors of that pagan superstition which depicts
Jupiter with a gleaming thunderbolt in his hand. We do not
deny but what God could, and, perhaps, sometimes does,
excite in us sensations which would be produced by the ob-
ject to which wo refer them. But these are exceptional
cases ; and moreover, there is always a means of knowing
with certainty, that the object is dily apparently, not really
present. Theology supplies an example in the B. Eucharist,
Now what we contend is this : the subject / can know with
certainty, as already proved ; its object is truth ; the acquisi-
tion of knowledge is a part of its perfection. It must, then,
have a natural aptitude for truth, and a natural tendency to
it, as well as a means of detecting error. Now the subject
/ is borne by a natural and invincible tendency to attribute
some of its sensations to external and finite objects as the
true cause of them. Tho *^:rmer casts a seed into the
ground, he sees it growing, h^j cuts it, shells it, grinds it,
finally eats it, During the progress of these various actions
the subject / by a natural and invincible tendency attributes
the various sensations of feeling, sigiit, weariness in cutting
and threshing, and refreshment in eating, not directly to God,
but to a finite substance. If he be in error, his error is in-
vincible : if he be in error, nature has led him into that error :
and nature must be hourly leading millions into invincible

i ■

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

error ; or to put it stronger ; God, the infinite truth, for those
who defend this system believe in God, is not only permitting
us to fail into error, but is drawing us at every moment into
it. The aptitude of the mind for truth ; the ability of detect-
ing error, are both destroyed, and the subject / l>ecomes the
sport of a continual and necessary delusion. Let it not be
said that this delusion can be dispelled ; the few writers, who
labor to build up this system, cannot be said to destroy the
universal conviction of mankind. Moreover, before their
time there was no escape from the error ; millions of intel-
lects, during thousands of yeais, Avere liourly led into neces-
sary error. Who Avill believe it? Again; as we before ob-
served, if there be a perpetual conflict between the idea and
the perception, the subject /becomes a continual falsity, or a
nonentity. But if we suppose God to be the inunediate cause
of our sensations, this perpetual conflict would be verified.
Therefore, this system would deny what it aihnits, viz. : the
existence of the subject /. Finally, the mind is iutinuitely
convinced that many sensations may be produced in itself at
pleasure. I will to stretch out my hand and I feel the table ;
I will to close my eyes and the lovely scenery fades. Now
if the sensations are caused directly by God how can a
simple act of my will prevent their reception ?

The second false system is very absurd and only merits
mention in order to show the reader how cautious we ought
to be, and what humility of intellect we ought to have. All
the sensations are produced by an intrinsic and necessary
force of the soul. Such is the system. Now wo have some
sensations Avhich wo suffer against our will ; we wish to
avoid them, but Ave cannot ; Ave are certain that the thing
which produces them is not the subject 7. No one could
convince the Avretch stretched on the rack that it Avas the
same subject /that both felt and inflicted the pain. 'Tistho
old story, the not /is the /; Kullmaun is Bismurck.

1 -

THE REALITY OF THE PHYSICAL WORLD.

These two systems being exploded, it remains for us to
explain the true one: 'tis simple, lop^ical, harmonious, worthy
of the majesty of God, and consonant to liuman reason. We
proved against the pantheists tliat, at least, two substances
really distinct exist. But not oidy does the subject / pro-
nounce infallibly that it is not the not /, but it with equal
certainty says B is not C, C is not D. It may be unable to
enumerate all the points of distinction, but it knows enough
of them to be certain that they are distinct and diverse. In
its communication Avith other intelligent subjects, the mind
not only discovers its own distinction from them, but, like-
wise, their distinction from one another. During the course
of its life it finds ])lienomena susceptible of modification at
will ; that which it calls a rock will always present the same
appearance, and produce identical sensations, unless the sub-
ject / choses to seize what it calls a sledge, and effect there-
with modifications on it. 'Twould be romancing to the moon
to say that these appearances, which respond to my will,
have no real cause outside of myself, or are produced by
God, who suits his action to my caprice. Bear always in
mind that we are metaphysically certain of the existence of,
at least, two substances ; hence plurality of substance is, not
only not contradictory, but actually exists. Again, we are
metaphysically certain that the finite I acts, consequently,
that it is capable of causing a sensation, provided there be
any object on which to act. Moreover, by communication,
we become metaphysically certain that there is a not I which
ia finite like ourselves, because it does not know something
which we know. Therefore we have the infinite, and, at
least, two finite 3ubstances. We can thus proceed, by the
evidence of reason, and prove that many finite substances
exist. Their existence becomes as certain as our own. Now
a substance is a force ; or if it please better, a substance must

PHILOSOPHY OP THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

have action ; therefore, it can produce sensations. Therefore
the various sensations we experience are produced by finite
substances ; and our natural and invincible tendency to at-
tribute sensations to finite beings is reconcilable with our
aptitude for truth. In this system everything is coherent ;
God is the primary cause ; finite substances secondary ones.
The essential notion of a substance, viz. : force, just fits in ;
we prove various substances to exist ; their essential notion
implies action, and action is here attributed to them. The
greatness and wisdon of God shines more resplendently ; his
dignity is better consulted. The subject / is no longer a
continually deluded being ; its chain of reasonings harmonizes
with its natural propensity. To explain tlie phenomena of
daily life we have no need to recur to absurdities ; we have
proved the possibility of this system ; reason finds it in
harmony with its natural tendency. The system which
attributes phenomena to any intrinsic force in the soul, was
shown absurd ; the other, if not proved actually absurd, is
shown to be most improbable, unphilosophic, and even
injurious to God, We thus see that the universal belief is,
in this case, more reasonable than the fantastic imaginings
of philosophic minds in their moments of aberration.

The physical order, then, is real ; there are thousands of
substances distinct from us ; by reason of their essential
property, force, they act and produce the phenomena which
make up the physical world. These substances are finite
and contingent, for they are subject to modifications ; they
depend from the Infinite, and are only secondary causes.
But if we seek still further and ask : when I perceive a stone,
what is it? It is an aggregate of simple substances having
such relation to one another that they form a whole, which
is, consequently, compound ; and properly called matter.
Each one of the simple elements, of whioh the stone is

THE REALITY OP THE PHYSICAL WORLD.

composed, has its force and acts on the organs of vision :
each element, having a different rcUitioa to us, acts difl >rent-
ly, or in a different direction, and hence we di^tioguish ri,'i;ht
and left, up and down, in the stone. Each simple elemei^t
of the stone retains its individuality, so to speak ; tiiough
the relation of the elements to one another is such, as to
cause them to exercise a mutual action from which results
adhesion, and a compound whole ; still no element is, as it
were, swallowed up. It is scarcely correct to say ^' com-
pound substance ;" substance is essentially simple. A certain
relation of a number of simple substauccH produces what is
called a compound substance ; but this composition does not
affect the essence of the substance ; it only betokens an
external relation. The components must be prior to the
compounds ; just as the individual soldiers must be prior to
the brigade. Hence materialism involves a radical contra-
diction, and argues ignorance of the most obvious principles.
To sum up : many finite substances exist ; substance essen-
tially supposes action : in reality it acts. A certain relation
of various simple substances produces what is called matter,
or compound substances. These necessarily have action : if
we have a certain relation to them they act on us and produce
sensations. From expericTice we find that certain portions
of matter produce identical sensations, hence we classify
them under one head, calling them stones, &c. •When but a
few substances make up a compound whole we may feel the
action of the compound although we do not see it ; thus the
odor from the flowers, although invisible, produces a sensa-
tion. The reason may be, the imperfect sensibility of th'^
visual organs. There is no doubt but the odor, being com-
posed of various simple substances, acts on our organs of
sight ; but its components being few in number, their action
is weak, and makes no noticeable impression on the eye.

PIIILOSOPIIV OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

• -I-

Wero the sonsilMlity of our organs very much increased, we
conhl see vuriouH thinpjs which are now invisible. Ahhonj]^h,
therefore, a thinjr is invisible, it does not at all follow that It
is not actinj;^ on our eye ; it is like a j^eutlc tap on the knocker,
a real actir»n, but one too weak to produce the desired effect.
Another reason may be assigned : the combination of forces
in the invisible odor being that of only a few, the relation
which each one has to us may be so nearly identical, that we
cannot distinguish a diversity of direction, or camiot collocate
them to the right, or left. Our system gives a rational proof
of the reality of the ])hysical world, and a satisfactory
explanation of its jdienomeua.

ill

CHAPTER XIII.

CREATION.

HE ways of error arc muiiv and stranijc ; tlioy arolike
llie wakes made by ships traversin;^ an nnknown sou.
As the noble barque passes pvoudly on, a f^littering
^l^ trail appears ; the passengers gaze on it with silent
delight ; they watch the curling and rippling of the disturbed
water with deep interest. Innumerable prisms are formed
•which divide, reflect, refract the rays of light in so many
difl'erent ways that the most fantastic and, at times, gorgeous
colorings illume the track. It would seem to the gazer that
ail illuminated pathway was formed along which lie might,
at least, return to his starting point if he could not reach his
destination. But lo ! a few moments elapse ; the swaying of
the watery elements ceases ; the fleeting ])risms dissolve ; the
illumination dies out, and the erst glittering trail becomes
conlbunded with the great mass of dull, sluggish brine.
Other vessels will cross that track and not observe it ; the
same barque that formed it, seeing breakers ahead, will turu
about and cross and re-cross it a dozen of times, while the
man at the wheel innigines that he is steering back along the
original course. Thus the propagators and defenders of
false systems, exploring the vast field of metaphysics, will
present a theory clad with beautiful expressions, and decked
yilh all the glory of oruameutal rhetoric. Its outward beauty

PIIILOSOniY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

Ill

» I :

oxcites the sympathy of the liearer ; he ima^^iuos it tlic truest
"cvohitioii of modem thought;" surely this brilliant system
is the way of truth. If, however, he he a man of thou<j;ht|
and follow the deductions of this system — listen to its explan-
ations of the daily phenomoua wo witness, he will see how
inconsistent it is ; how it has to destroy to-day what it labored
to build up yesterday. It is as uncertain a guide to itself
and others, as is the wake of the ship to the 'nigh ted
mariner. On the other hand, a true system of philosophy is
aJways consistent ; it may appear j)lain, even commonplace,
because truth is more simple than error, but its explanation
of one phenomenon will not contradict its explanation of
others. It may not, always, be able to make us comprehend
everything of which it treats ; but this will arise rather from
our limited capacity than from any defect of the system.
The beacon, placed near a point of danger, does not tell the
sailor whether it be a reef, a shoal, or a whirl j)Ool, that is to
be avoided : it merely tells of certain shipwreck if he ventures
to approach. So a true system of philosophy can always
warn us from following paths that end in absurdity, even
though it may not be able to prove, with metaphysical cer-
tainty, that the opposite is the right road. The same succeeds
with the geometrician. A reductio ad abaurdum demon-
stration is just as convincing, just as certain, as a direct
one. It is unfair, therefore, to require from the metaphysician
a direct proof of everything ; one of two contradictory pro-
positions must be true ; if one be shown absurd the other
must be right. So with contradictory systems. The man
who really desires truth Avill keep these things In view, and
not waste his time in meaningless cavils.

We have proved the existence of various substances, and
the reality of the physical wo^-ld. But the mind is not yet
satisfied. It seeks more truth ; it asks : whence are these

CREATION.

substances? The answer to this question involves tho
cxphmatiun of the word placed at tho head of this chapter,
Creation. Creation, or tho act of creatiupr, is a free act of
the Infinite, willing that substances, which before were only
possible, exist. As shown above the notion of existence is
clear enough, as is, also, that of non-existence ; henco the
conception of creation can offer no dilliculty. Imagine
nothing but God existing ; he Avills the subject 1 to exist, and
straiglitway I am. This is creation : nothing is not tlie
material out of which I was formed ; it simply indicates a
negative terminus from which God's action began. There
was nothing but God ; he willed, and the subject I rejoices
in existence. In philosophy production differs from creation :
the former supposes the pre-existence of the material out of
which the article is made. Thus, a chair is produ(;ed, not
created, by the mechanic. It is only a new form of old
material. In creation both form and substance are new.
God being absolutely simple in essence it follows that, in the
event of his creating, he did not make the things out of part
of himself, nor out of anything else, because we suppose
nothing but God existing: hence a transit was made from
nothing to something. The will of God was the etlicieut
cause of our existence. "We have an imperfect image of this
in ourselves : an act of our vvill becomes the cause of various
emotions ; what was merely possible is made, by an act of
the Avill, real. A true transit is made ffom nothing to some-
thing.

Having explained the notion of creation, a notion which
is clear and involves no contradiction, we answer the question :
whence are the various finite substances? by replying, they
were created by God. Those who ^idmit the plurality of
substances, and that is nearly everyone, materialists included,
cannot, with even an attempt at reasoning, deny this. Either
these various substances arc all necessary beings, or they

niiLosoriiY OF the ninLE vindicated.

II •

arc not. If the former, then we would have many infinite
beinffs ; because a thing which cxiHt.s by ncc»'s.«ity of nature
must bo, as proved before, inlliiitc. Ibit ])hn'ality of intinito
being's is a repujrnant idea ; each wouhl have all power, and
at the same time it would not be all powerful, for it would
not have power over its brother infinite. Then'fore, phu'ality
of infinite bein<^s is repujjnant ; therefore, likewise, plurality
of necessary beinprs is repUGjiuint. Therefore there can bo
but one necessary substatu'e ; all ihr others are contin'jent,
or dcpendcjit on some other for their existence. We thus
fall on the other horn of the dih-nuna, viz : they arc not all
necessary beinj^s : consefpientiy they are the effects of a
primary cause ; A may have been produced by li, B by C,
but the last otu; Z, must be the «lirect effect of tiie Infinite.
Nothin^r existing except the Infinite, he being simple, and
being the efficient cause of Z, he must have created it. Once
you admit the phirality of substances, you must admit the
contingency of all of them except one; contingent substances
being admitted, creation is necessarily supposed. The trite
axiom, as clear as 2X2=4, is not more severely correct, is
not one whit clearer, than the argument in favor of creation.
It is difficult to imagine what fascination so overdomls any
intellect as to make it reject this self-evident reasoning.
Unless it be a pride similar to that of Lucifer, who thought
to make himself like unto the IMost High, one cannot see
what else it is. Were we not created, of course wc would
be necessary beings, and consequently, infinite. Tom, Dick,
and Harry, each being infinite, each being supreme, Tom
would be superior to Dick, Dick superior to Tom, and Harry
superior to Tom and Dick. If they should happen to come
in collision, the feline tribe of Kilkenny could no longer be
cited as the most unflinching warriors on record. They, at
least, saved their tails ; but Harry, Tom, and Dick would
knock one another into nothing 1

CUKATION.

The pantheist, whose principle is that there is only quo
substmice, has some show of reason when ho conil)ata
creation. No one else has. IJut, with the pantheist, it is
only a show of reason, not reason itstslf. We proved, (M)n-
clnsively, that the fnndaniental principle of Pantheism i8
false; we tlcnionstrate*! the existence of various snhstances.
If at least two <lo yot exist, none exists, hecanse if the not /
is the / then the / is a j)erpetual contradiction, a nothinjjf.
There bein^ two, one ninst be cn-aled as shown above. If
you admit the creation of Jones, one does not tind any philo-
sophic reason for denyinj; the same to Smith. To sum up:
those who admit the plurality of substances nuist either adn»it
the creation of all of tliem save one, or must fall into the
absurdity of admitting a plurality of infmiles. Those who
admit only one Hid)stance are first to be instructed in the
most elementary principles of lo^ic, tor example, the principle
of contradiction ; then they are to be led into the camp of
metaphysics and tau;?ht the pr()i)er dellnitiou of substance ;
after which they may be able to j^rasp tlu' evidence of the
arguments adduced to prove the plurality of substances.
Only gross i/Miorance, or a headstrong spirit, could keep a
man a pantheist after that very elementary training. The
intelligent reader will Hud suHiclent proofs in this, and pre-
ceding chapters, to enable him to prove the fact of creation
to any man of sane mind.

From the fact that creation is an act of the free will of the
Infinite, for finite beings being contingent there was no
necessity of creating them, it follows that created things are
not eternal. You may make them millions upon millions of
years old, still, the free action of the Infinite was prior to
them ; consequently they are not eternal. Again, the very
notion of a created eternal is repugnant. Contingency neces-
sarily involves the idea of a beginning, however remote ; they

PHILOSOPHT OP THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

were not ; God willed, and they were. Eternal matter is ag
full of meaning as a round square.

It would be long and profitless to enumerate the various
grotesque theories of the uucients, regarding the origin of
tlie universe. They were not pantheists, however. Blinded
tliough they were by the debasing superstitions of paganism,
they still retained a suificient glimmering of reason's lamp to
enable them to acquire the obvious truth that the / and the
not / were substantially distinct. Generally they admitted
the eternity of matter, but even in this error, Iheir greatest
minds were far superior in logical acun^cn to our modern
materit.Usts. They had an Intinite God, the supreme ruler
of all, and the vindicator of h»3 law. Plato, Socrates, or
Cicero, would have laugln'u to scorn the gross idea of the
materialist, who reeo^.jizes nought in creation save what is
matter.

Time and creation are coeval ; so soon as the first finite
being passed into existence, time began, not before. We
have said that God once, always and forever wills what he
wills. Hence the act of creation, considered in God, does
not include the idea of change. It was once, always and
forever willed by him. By that act things passed into exist-
ence and assumed extrinsic relations to God ; but intrinsically
the infinite substance suflered no mutation. Daily things
might come into existence, and still no change would take
place in the essence of God ; new external relations would
be formed, but no inward mtitation ; for in the one act is
included everything that he will ever create. Suppose a man
lecturing to twenty persons ; he has an extrinsic relation to
each of them by reason of his voice acting on their organs of
hearing. If another man should enter, the speaker will
assume an outward relation which he had not previously,
but uo inward change is effected. The voice that fell on

CREATION.

the cars of twenty now falls on those of twenty-one, but it is
the same voice, and will remain the same, even though new
listeners arrive each moment. This may help to give us
some imperfect idea of the unchangeability of God, while
new substances come into existence. Only God can create,
because the act requires an infinite power. From not to be,
to existence, is the greatest possible transit ; only an infinite
power could effect that. In this, physical science gives its
testimony. Its first principle is that by no chemical moans
can one particle of matter be made, or destroyed. Changes
on existing matter may be effected, but no creation, no anni-
hilation. 'Tis necessarily so ; 'tis happy for us that it is so.
AVe are not at the mercy of friends, or foes. Could each one
create, the earth, instead of being a well-regulated warehouse,
■would soon become a disordered lumber-room, each one
creating as fancy might dictate.

It is to be observed that in contingent things there is no
more necessary connection between the successive momctits
of their duration than what there was between tiieir crtiatinn,
and the first moment of their existence. Hcing contingent,
there is never any necessity of existence in tlieir essence ;
conse(iuently, in the same manner that they recpiire an act
of God to bring them into existence, in like manner they
require his continual action to preserve tiiem in it. This act
is called conservaticn, but it is in God, identical with the act
of creation ; or it is the perpetual contimiance of the creative
act. From this it follows that a [)()sitive act is not reipiired,
on the part of God, in oriK-r to anniliilute ; he need only
suspend the creative act. Since aiuiihilation su|)p«)ses a
suspension of God's act, it follows that only God can anniiii-
late. How beautil'ul and coherent is the system of truth !
How satisfactorily it can explain abstruse things ! It never
contradicts itself: but each devel(>i)ment unfolds some new

rrr

rUILOSOPIIY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

III I i

charm, — oARm's some new ?atisfactioi) to the mitid. No
obscurity, no «^roj)in;^ in llie dark: startinj,' from certainty, it
Avulk.s straight on, aofjuiring f'refh lij^ht and new vij^or at
each step. Truth after truth is added to the store ; it follows
the fifoMen chain that links each to the other and all to God.
Th(! needle does not ])oint as unerrin;^ly to the |)()le as does
ri;iht reason, when investigating the physical wcjrld, point to
God.

It is worthy of note that the account <:iven Ijy Moses, of
the creation, is just what right reason and geological research
lind it to be. Moses is, we think, the oidy Hiici'Mit philoso-
pher who speaks of creation. Is this fuct not strong pre-
sumptive evidence of inspiration ?

When we call God the Creator, and pri:v..iry cause of the
physical order, wo do not ex(;lude the action ot creati.'d things.
On the contrary, \\i\ Indd tli.t every std)stance acts, in some
v/ay or other. God create d nnmmeral)le monads ; he endowed
them with various ))ro|)erties ; essentially they had action.
His inlinite wisdom designed an ordered universe in which
planets should revolve, plants grow, seasons succeed each
other, &.C. : but this sublime machinery was to be kept in
motion in virtue of the various properties given to created
things. Strata were to be formed— minerals to coalesce —
fossils to accumulate, during lapsing centuries, through the
action of created things. Hence what are called " physical
laws," are the foreseen and intended results of the properties
given bv (Jod to the sui)stances he ci'eated. Certain conditions
being verified, certain results must h)llow. Had God wished
he (joidd have given ditl'erent properties to the monads ;
ditterent physical laws would have been the residt ; he might
have given a repellent, instead of an attractive property, to
two balls of lead. In u word, all (M-eated things being con-
tiugeut, then* creation and accideutui properties depeud from

CREATION.

the free will of God. God, tlicn, de><igncd the physical
order; its sublime rcj^uhu ity and hoiuity would prove it; he
gave such properties to the mouads, and provided such ready
compeusatious, in case of disturbances effected throui^h the
action of free aj^ents, that that order will persevere so long
as he has decreed it to endure, and no lonj^er. The action
being from him, he can at any moment revoke it : he can, if
he deem it expedient, suspend the usual effect of any, or all,
of the physical laws. The piiysical world, with its code of
laws, is, on a sublime scale, what an intricate piece of
maciiiuery is on a small one. The mechanic designs in his
mind a Avutch ; he sees that such wheels indented in such a
m;i>Mier, are necessary, and he {)rej)ares them. lie disposes
ihem in proper positions ; tlie spring moves, the machinery is
set in motion. 'Tis \vjuit he foresaw and intended, liy a
'light alteration he could make the wheel turn to the left
iustcad of the right. Unlike God, he cannot j)rovide a com-
pensation for disturbances, and the machinery must eventuall/
istop.

the
ical

•ties
ions

ned
ids ;

ght
[, to

'on-

'om

CnAPTER XIV.

I '

|i|^:i

PROVIDENCE.

T is generally supposed tliat an author thinks more of
his literary pro<hi<'tion.s, tlian what oMici.-* tiiiuk of
them. It is not at all likely that a writer \\ ould tear
(L out the leaves iVoni his own hook, in ordir to have
something in whit'h to wrap up an ounce of snnti*, or a tallow
caudle. The grocer, however, would not hesitate to do it.
In this connection 1 shall never forget the in>pressian made
upon my mind, hy an incident of which I was an eye-witness.
Some companions and myself cailetl at a grocery, in a little
town in Italy. We were glutting edibles for a lunch of which
we would partake, on the hank of a beautiful lake near by.
Oiie of the necessary articles of an JtarKiii mcroxfa is jin's-
ciuttOj ham. We aske<l for haiu, and the burly groc<!r
weighed out the required (juautily. lie must have been an
aristocratic grocer, for he did not use conunou bi'own wrap-
ping paper. Several large volumes were lying on the shelves ;
he tore some loaves out of the largest one and i-olled our
ham carefully enough in it. We asked him why he tore the
book ; he replied that he intended using them all for a like
purpose ; they can>e cheaj)er tlian wrapping pnper. Gn look-
ing at the leaves in whidi our jiresciutto was infolded, judge
of our surprise to find them to be from the mifortuiuite
Passaglia's great work, *' I>e Immaculatu Cuuceptionc,""

rKOVIDKNCE.

How vain appeared the aspirations of au author after fame,
if his works were to receive such usuage as this ! Yet, with-
out doubt, tlie productions of otlier groat writers have, at
times, suffered simihir treatment. Tlieir authors, however,
will treasure them up ; (hist them carefully; arrange thorn
neatly. Every intelligent workman, if his works prove good,
likes and cares for them. Now God is, as we showed above,
the creator of the phy>ical order ; we and every visible thing
are the works of his hand. The natural conclusion is, he
loves and (^res for us : the contrary would bo as unnatural
ns it is false. God was free to create ; having resolved to
operate he must have intended his work for some purpose,
otherwise he would bo a foolish God : being all-powerful he
is able to attain the desired end. Hence tho wisdom of God
absolutely requires that he should dispose and direct all
things so as to obtain the end desired. This disposition and
directiou is called Providence ; therefore the providence of
God is to be admitted. 80 self-evident is this fact that few,
very few, either ancient or modern, ever doubted of it. The
epicureans did, for the gross reason that God being happy ia
himself, would not mar that happiness by troubling himself
with mundane affairs. Some moderns deny it ; possibly ia
order to give free rein to their passions. As was before
remarked, every means is tried in order to destroy the idea
of an avenging God. Not being able to deny his existence,
they seek to make him blind ; he created, they say, but he
cares no more about us ; he has left us to ourselves ; he will
not require an account of our actions. The impious said
the same in David's time — non requiret Deus. Of course
we do not deny the liberty of action enjoyed by mau ; we do
not say that he does always what would be most pleasing to
God ; far from it ; but we say that God created the world for
a purpose ; Ut disposed and directed it to that end ; and he

pniLOSorny of the bible vindicated.

f '.

l\m

will have that ond despite tlic malice of men and devils.
We do not say that every event is directly brou;^ht about hy
God ; but we say that every event was foreseen by him, and
that he so disposed thinj^s as to make each event finally
subservient to the jrreat intended end. To deny this would
be to deny the intelli^rence of God in not knowiu^j^ the future :
or his power in not bciini^ able to attain the desired end by
reason of created obstacles. Frf)m this there is no escape.

We proved the existence of God from the duration and
regularity of the physical order ; we dct«'cted his foot-prints
on all sides. Tlicrelbrc we proved his Provideiice. Again,
the universal belief of man can be invoked. The history of
every nation has no fact so prominently brought into view,
as its belief in a (iod, and in his j)rovidence. SatM'itices for
rain, before battle, before barguins ; prayers and ottV-ring.s
were made at all times by the pagans. The Jewish and
Christian religion directly teach the j)r()videnceof God. We
luu'e thus the whole of mankind with a few excc))ti()ns, so
few that they no more destroy the universal testimony, than
do the solar specks imjxule the glorious sunlight. These
latter swim in an ocean of brightness but remain opaque, au
expressive image of that lunuan intelligence which is blind
to the existence and proviilencc of God, thougli bathed in a
8oa of evidence. Whether, then, we consider the wisdom
and power of God, or the physical order, or the histO!*y of
the human race, we must be convinced that God did not
ereato his works and then abandon them ; but that he disposes
and directs them to the end for which he brought them into
existence.

It seems altogether credible that many of those learned iu
physical science, who deny the Providence of God, do so
from not rightly understanding: what sound metaphysics
teaches on this head. They imagine that we take all acliou

PROVIDENCE.

from pliysionl tliinps: that wc atlribute every phenomenon,
that is a little unusual, to the immediate action of God,
Now we condemn the t'ooli.sh theory ot" " occasionalism,'' or
a destroyiii^r of secondary causes ; we contend, and what is
more we prove, (hat every substance is essentially active,
and that, ^renerally spcakinjr, physical phetiomcna are the
results of the action of physical things. We combat, and we
tliink, successfully, the superstitious idea of recurring to the
Divinity for an explanation of these phenomena, as a general
rule. At the same time we contend that these etfects were
foreseen and intended by God ; that he gave action to created
things to produce these etfects, and that he provides, daily
and hourly, a ready compensation for all incidental distur-
bances, so that the physical order may coritinue until he shall
please to permit a final catastro])he. This is his providence
as regards the ])hysical world. No man of science, unless he
wishes to deny (iod, can deny this. It is as idle to talk
about the absolute immutability of the properties of a con-
tingent being, as what it is to talk about its necessity. The
properties of a being are co-extensive with its nature ; the
nature being finite, contingent and, consequently, dependent,
the properties must be the same. Moveover, we gave an
exami)le to prove that physical laws are not regular in their
development, and are influenced by various circumstances.
Therefoi'e there nnist have been an intelligence that foresaw
and provided for all these varieties of circumstances, in order
that the harmony of nature might not be destroyed. The
man Avho fails to sec this is but a tyro in the science of
nature. Those who make a study of physical things become
enamoured of the order, beaiitv and harmonv therein discov-
ered Tiiey behold crystals following, in their formation,
certain fixed laws ; the salts of the earth's surface producing,
by chemical action, the various minerals we prize ; the thermo-

PIIILOSOl'IIV OK THE itlBLE VINDICATED.

V i

electric currents of the earth, caused by the luieciual hcatluji^
of its surltKre, <lirecting the course of the nui<?netic uclmIIc.
All these phenomena, producied hy physical action, eniapturi!
them ; they too often rest satisHed with the couteniphilion of
these facts, and never ask tlieniselvcs the question : *' but
whence these salts, and whence their action?" We do not
deny the truths reveahMl by chemistry ; we accept them, and
only find in them new cause of wonder at the wisdom ami
power of the Most lli;^h — new proof of the existence and
providence of God. Let the chemist hcdd to all the certain
conclusions of his science ; but let iiim, at tiu? same time,
remember tiiat other sciences have iheir truths ; so that,
while hohling fast to ins own, he may endeavor to learn the
trutlis of metaphysics. It would be a professioiuil cra/e for
a man to ima;i:ini! that there were truths in no other profession
except in his own. Now the truth of one science can never
be opposed to the truth of another. The sensible nuin will
acce|)t them all, k.iowiu;^ that there «!an be no real contra-
diction between them, ahhou;;h there uuiy bo an appaient
one. Sound metaphysics, while invincibly j)i'oviu;z the exist-
ence of God, the fact of creation and providencre, easily and
clearly reconciles these truths with the wondrous order and
action of physical tiiin^^s. In fact, metaphysical truths are
nece.-sary to explain the physical ones. Now the lover of
chemistry, who rejects the demonstrations of metai)hy.sics,
can give no reasonable explanation of the origin of the
phenomena he so iviuch achnires. lie has only a choice
between two absurdities — the neiressity of (M)utingent things,
or the action of that mysterious t)ld rogue, Chance, Wo
should all be eclectics in the sense in which St. Clement of
Alexandria was one, viz : in seeking truth wherever it is ;
but not in the sense of some who proteud to x'ccoucilo contra-
dictory propositions.

CHAPTER XV.

TIIK KNU OF CUKATIOX.

Vj showM that CJod, bciiii; mi iiitt'llii^ont operator,
muf<t have had souu; end in view in crtiatiiii;. Wheii-
^*Tt) t;ver wc perioriu an action d(;lil)erately, we always
c ^ have an object in doing it. Perhaps the action may
be really disailvantaijeons to us, still wi; apprehend it under
a respect in which we inia«j;ine that it will benetit us. Wo
may do it to ^atisly a Iiatred, to obtain wealth, tame, or
favor with God ; but at all times, and in the cast; of all, there
is an object in the pei-formanee of every deliberate action.
The more sensible the man is, the more reasonable will be
the object ; the mort; capable and reasonable he is, the ji^reater
it will be. Fr(jmthis co.isideration we arrive at the certainty
that (jod, who deliberatelv created, must have had an end ia
view. Now (rod beinj^ infinitely wise and perfect must have
intended an end worthv of himself; otherwise hi' would 1)0
imperfi'ct. The man who does an action unbecomin<^ one in
his sphere of life, i.- said to dis^j^rrui hiujself — to have acted
foolishly. Man, being iinite, may perform an action, and
intend something unworthy of iiis dignity, but with Ciod it
eamiot be thus. Iniinite in wisdom, his action nuisl have an
end worthy of that wisdom. IJut it is self-evident that there
is nothing w(U'thy of God, exccj)! (iod himself: hence we
must conclude that the end intended by God, in creating,

rriiLOSoniY of the ninLE vindicatkd.

t i

I
I

f: 1

must bo the external manifestation of his iiiliiiite perfections,
his fjlory, \vis(h)ni, power. We say •' external niani testa! ion,"
beeanse milliotis of worlds can add nolhinj; to hi-* intrinsic
glory; it is already infinite; bnt by creation it is ontwardly
expressed. This was the i-nd in view, and w»'ll is it attained
in creation; tlu^ he.'ivens, indeed, relate the glory of God;
the streams and rivnlets nmrniur his praises ; the innnmer-
ablc flowers that bloom be-|)eak his beanty ; the whole
physical order j)ro(daims his wisdom and power. It is quite
evident that the whole irratl(»nal creation consiantlv gh)rific8
God: but what about mMi:, the high-priest of nature? Some
may doubt whether (iod attains the intended end in his
regard. The absolute end of man's creation is God's glory ;
but there is anolher conditional end of man whi.'h more
immediately concerns mm him-ielf: it is to glorify Gad by
good deeds in life, and to receive eternal happini'ss in heaven.
This latter end is, we say, conditi(Mial, d('pe;nlent on tin; free
will of man assisted by the grace of (Jod. If man glorifies
God by virtuous acticuis, he will attain his final and i)ersoiuil
end ; if Ik; does not, he .will lose his jicrsomil en<l, but the
absolute end intended by God will be gaiue(l despite man's
malice. (Jod can be glorified cxterufdly by manifestations of
his iniinite- goodness, or by manifestations of his infinite
justice. If inan be virtuous. God is glorilied in his goodness ;
if he be impious, God will be glorifu-d in his justice by con-
demning him. To man oidv will there be a loss if he be
wicked to him only ; tin; gain if virtuous: in cither case God
will have his glory. Hence the absolute end intended by
God in creating will be always attained. Moreover the very
passions and crimes of man will be made subservient to God's
glory. The Almighty doe not wish sin ; he hates and will
punish it ; but if, abusing his tree will, man should commit
crimes, God will know how to bring glory to himself out of

TOE END OF CREATION.

•»»

thorn. ExnmplcR may mako thi:^ intorcstitifj point rloaror.
God dill not \\\s]\ tlio JrwH to c'rucifV tin- Saviour ; tliey did
it, nevcrtlu'lesH, and from lliat act cnnio the priory of the
triuinj)li ovtT sin and dcatli. (Jod did not wish the oppres-
sion of Kriii ; she was o|)pressed, nevertheh'ss, and out of
tlnit oppression (lod (h"ew the jrhiry of havin;; his i'aitli sj)read
over Australia, America, Africa, (iod does not wish the
impious conduct ol the tyrant Hismarck ; hut of his own
j)erverse will, Hisman'k rajres airainst our holy chni'ch, and
God is «rloriliiMl in the constancy of the jjersecnted, who
renew hcfore a world, jrrown old in initpiities, the heroism
of early Christianity. Thus we niiudit brinj; to examination
cvcrv historic fact, and see how out of the malice «)f man
God drew clory to himself, When the day of final reckoning
will have come we will sec all this more <deiirly. In the
meainime the liLdit of reason is sullicient to cnahle us to dis-
cover the end of creation, and to prove to us that non;j:ht can
frnslrate the desiirns of the Omnipotent. The faint heart, or
the mind not ^riven to meditation, is often assailed with a
douht of God's providence; hut we siiould reflect that(«od is
n ;»eneral provider, not a particular one. The order of his
jirovidenoe is iiot that the just should always prosper here;
they may sometimes, or they nniy not. God j^ave faculties
to man ; hy the exen-ise of th<'se, by tlie eoncurreuce of
varioiis circumstances, riches, for instance, may he acipiired.
The impious sets all his faculties to work to gain money, by
lawful, or unlawful means. Were God to step in at all
times and hy his immediat(> action to frustrate the schemes
of that man, he would be destroying the order established by
himself. Out of the injustice of that wretch he will finally
have his glory ; but being eternal, he can be patient. Again,
there is none so bad but has, at some time, done a good
ftctiou. Each good action will get its reward ; the impious

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,<j:et tliat reward here in worldly comforts, f\ime and wealth.
Ill a word, the providence of God is a ircneral law ; he never
sanction?? evil, ho only permits it; but out of it he will draw
good. The impicMis man who is attentive to bnsiness often
succeeds, because God does not wisli to disturb the order of
his providence by making attention to business and industry
unsuccessful. All this, however, only proves that the book
of accounts is not closed by death.

■ .ii

i i

PART SECOND.

PSYCHOLOGY.

SYCHOLOGY is a science whidi treats of tlie nature
and attributes of the human soul. It holds the second
Zf^M) rank in metaphysics. No words arereqnired to im-
pi^'^ press upon any thoughtful mind the importance of
this branch of knowledge. It is a pity that its study is so
much neglected. Persons quite capable of Avriting with ease
and elegance in various languages — persons brilliant in
drawing-rooms, or eloquent on platforms, are often found to
be profoundly ignorant of the nature of their own soul.
They have a sliadowy idea that it is a something, and there
their knowledge of it ends. This universal ignorance, on
this point, is very favorable to the growth of errors regarding
religion and social duties. It is our humble wish to excite
an interest in this science ; to make its study as easy and
pleasing as the nature of the subject will allow. Truth and
perspicuity are to be consulted ; lience inelegancies of dictiou
may abound, but, we trust, obscurity will be rare.

CIIAPTKR I.

NATURIS Ol-" Till-: SUBJECT /.

i !

ITITERTO wc -were content with the fact of our own
cxii^tence ; wc started from the fundamental fact, I
yC^yl am, I exist. Tlie princijjle "whicli was con.'^cious of
^ "^^ its own existence we calUnl the subject 7, so as to
leave no room for misunderstandinji", or sophistry. No one,
he he pantheist, idealist, or materialist, could attack us, for
we simi)ly conlhied ourselves to the admitted fact^ I am, I
think. Taking our own existence for a basis we showed
that two other facts were to be admitted, viz : the aptitude of
the subject / to acquire certainty, and the principle of con-
tradiction. The former, it may be observed, is presupposed
in the fact that we are certain of existinj^ ; the latter is sup»
posed by denyinfr» or doubtin<r it. Our position, thus, became
such that no sane man would dream of assailing it : on all
sides it was impregnable. From the evidence of reason we
demonstrated the existence of a supreme being that exists by
necessity of nature, and who is, consecjuently, infinite, perfect,
the creator and ruler of the physical world. Each of tiiese
truths was shown to be as certain as the existence of the
subject /; in fact, once that a finite being, such as we know
ourselves to be, exists, there must exist the infinite from
which it depends. The absurdities of pantheism, egoism, and
epicureanism, were fully exposed : although we did not occupy

NATURE OF THE SUBJECT /.

f'cct,

liese

the

now

rom

and

■L'upy

ourselves wiih the various phases of these erroueous systems,
we clearly proved tliat their i'mulanieutal ])riuciples ^vere
false ; that heiiij^ dcmoustrated, no niitid open to couvietiou
would defend their conclusions how specious soever they
might ap])ear. So many truths heiiig acquired respecting
things exti'insic to the subject /, it now behooves us to turn
our attention inwardly and, from the / itself, to learn what
it is.

An ancient philosopher is said to have given expression to

the sentiment — know thyself — and to have considei'ed it a

most important knowledge. And truly it is most imj)ortant.

What Avould it avail us to know the history of nations, the

deeds of renowned leaders, the changes of empires, the huge

mass of celestial bodies with their wonderfid order, and

celerity of motion, if we were ignorant of our own nature, —

our condition, our origin and our end? Hence it is a study

worthy of man to endeavor to know himself, both in a moi-al

and metaphysical sense. It is not, however, an easy nuitter

for man to know himself; he is according to the Greeks, a

" mikrokosmos," or a little world, inasnuudi as his structure

exhibits, in a small mass, the greatest marvels of visible

creation. In the christian system of pliiloso})liy there are, ia

man, two distinct and diverse substances so united as to act

reciprocally, and to constitute one individual, Peter. At

present we will not speak of that gross material part which

we feel and see. Few, if any, deny its existence. AVe have

said that each one is conscious of the fact of his own existence ;

I am, I exist, I think, I will, I feel. The subject, or principle,

which has this consciousness, was, hitherto, called by us the

subject /; we now say that this is what we call the human

soul. Therefore, in the sense explained, the soul exists. If

any materialist should ever glance over these pages, let him

not, as he cornea to this, accuse us of " petitiouem priucipii,'*

PiiiLOSoniY or tiik ijible vindicated.

Siii. ;i <

i * It ■

! Ri

lill!

of supposing wliiit is to be proved. [To will not tiii<l here a
stumble in logic. We have not, us yet, Miitl whether the
soul be simple, or compound, distinct or not from the body :
we merely explain what we mean by tlie soul, viz : the sub-
ject /, the principle that is conscious of feclinj^, Avilling,
imderstiuiding. In this sense, neither he, nor any one else
can deny the soul to exist. Step by step we will proceed ;
inch by inch we will dislodge the materialists from their
fancied strongholds, by the inexorable force of reasoning ;
little by little they must surrender, or be scattered in wild
dismay, like u tlock of bats Avhirling blindly away from the
presence of a blazing light.

The principle, then, of intelligence and will, and which we
call the sold, exists. What is it? AVhat is its nature?
This is the question to be answered in this chapter. If the
soul reflects a moment on itself it becomes conscious that it
is the one same principle that thinks, feels aiid knows. It
does not say : I think, but another I knows : it is quite cer-
tain that it is the one same I that does both. Moreover, it
is certam that although it has various and changing aifections,
still, the subject of these is always identical. I am the same
1 that think to-day, as thought yesterday, or a year ago. I
am one and the same ; my feelings, thoughts and wishes
succeed one another in ra})id succession, but still /, the sub-
ject of these, remain unchanged. I am, as it were, the
stationary screen on which the fleeting images of a magic
lantern appear and vanish, and are quickly followed by
others. The old man tottering under the weight of eighty
years, recognizes "himself as the same one who, at seven,
chased butterflies in midsummer. Therefore the soul is
always one and the same. This identity of the soul with
itself will help to give a clear idea of what a substance is as
opposed to accideuts. Substance is usually defined : " That

f, «'

NATURE OF THE SUBJECT /.

en,
is

•ith
as

that

which exists hy itself not requirinrj another in which to adhere
as its suhject." An accident does not exist by itself but
requires another in which to adhere ; thus size or sliape is an
accident. The accidents may chanjje, but the substance
remains the same. From this it is evident tliat tlie soul is a
substance, and the various sensations and emotions we ex-
perience are accidents, or modifictitions of the soul. These
latter do not exist by themselves ; they require the soul as a
subject in which to adhere. Take a piece of soft wax ; you
can fashion it vith the hand in any way you [dease ; now you
make it round, now oblonjr, now square. These different
shapes are accidents, or modifications of the wax ; but during
all these passiiges from shape to siiape, there was something
permanent, something Vvhicli the hand did not destroy, though
it destroyed the shapes. That something was the substance
of the wax. Thus in the soul the principle that is always
identical Avith itself proves the soul to be a substance, audits
varying emotions accidents.

Again, as we before observed, action, of some kind, is
essential to a substance, and only a substance can have
action. In our sense, then, whatever acts is a substance.
Now it is evident that the soul acts ; our inner consciousness
testifies that the soul can, and does ^iroduce various actions :
therefore the soul is a substance. We have said that what-
ever acts is a substance ; it might be objected that color,
for instance, is au accident, but it apparently acts on our
visual organs. To this we reply, that color is only a sensjv-
tion excited in the soul by reason of the action of sonv com-
pound substance ; according to the various relations of the
parts of the colored object to onr another, various colors are
produced. The ray of light which falls on the object is
divided, and reflected to the eye. A certain disposition of
parts will reflect one of the prismatic coloi's, another disposi-

l^W

lli

! .

jlij
' If'
1 1|

PIllLOSOrHY OP THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

tion, a different one, or a combination of several. Thus the
rehitive positions of the parts of matter, at'tin^j; on the ray of
li'i:ht before it is reflected to the eye, is the reason that matter
excites in the soul the sensation of this or that color. By
steeping wool in certain sohitions a clumge is effected in tijc
previous relations of its parts, an«l it excites in the soul a
different sensation ; we say its hue is changed. In a word,
what are called the " properties of bodies" are the sensations
excited in the soul by the action of the sul)stance. These
properties are beacons to warn us of a resistance to our
passage.

It is now evident that only a substance can excite a sensa-
tion ; sensation is the result of action on the soul ; only
substances can act. Therefore only they can excite sensa-
tions. Now since we continually have sensations of various
kinds, and since we are certain that many of them are not
produced by our own soul, we are certain that some substance,
besides ourselves, exists. But we proved before that the
iniiuite srbstance does ;iot excite these sensations ; theretbre
Ave are certain that many, very many substances exist. From
the uniformity of sensations produced by some objects, we
deduce uniformity of action on their part ; from uniformity
of action we conclude similarity of substance, and thus classify
certain objects under one generic term of stones, metals,
wood.

If it be still further inquired after the nature of substance,
we must remind the seeker that we do not see intuitively the
nature of things ; we judge of objects only by their properties,
or the effects produced by them on our soul. When the
chemist analyzes a portion of matter, he learns more about
it than what he knew before ; still, his knowledge has been
acquired by means of his senses. If the test has been made
by fire, the fire o&ly served to set free certain ingredients,

NATURE OF THE SUBJECT J.

lice,
the
ios,
the

)OUt

leeu
ade

QtS,

under the form of vnpor. He could, thus, judge better of
the remaiuin*]^ iiiji^rcdients. If he resorted to mixing, the
ctfect of tiie object under trial, was seen to resemble, or to
difl'er from the cflect produced on the mixture by anotlier
object ; hence he could deduce the .similarity, or diversity of
the two objects. In a word, tests, of any kind, are oidy
scientilic sj)ectaclc8 ; they enable the operator to observe
properties that would otherwise have escaped notice. The
judjLrnient of the greatest chemist, like that of the most ignor-
ant, is only from the sensation produced in his soul by the
object under examination.

For our own j)art we would say that a substance is a force ;
if that is not sutlicrieiit, we can only say we know no more
about it. God is the great reality, the great force ; being
good, and desirous of diffusing his bounty, he created innu-
merable forces, or substances ; these, having no physical
parts, may be called, with Liebnitz, monads. Each monad
imitates in some way the Divine Essence ; some imitate it ia
a greater, others in a lesser, degree. J^ich has something
in common with the other, and also, with God ; they all have,
at least, action. These monads, being contingent, can only
have such properties as God chooses to give them ; in other
words, they were made to imitate his essence in a certain
way, and they must always retain that imitation. To deny
this would be to attribute to them an infinite power, viz : the
power of creating ; for if you say that they essentially imitate
God in a greater degree than what they formerly did,
they nuist have created themselves anew. We must distin-
guish between an essential and an accidental resemblance:
take two rough boards and smooth and paint one of them.
The one so treated may be made to bear a resemblance to a
marble slab ; accidentally it does, but essentially it no more
resembles marble than what the rou^h one does. In a word,

PIIILOSOniY OF TIIK niULE VINDICATED.

i'lii
illil

m li

li'i

essence l)eiii;j: tluit by "whicli a (hin;^ is wliut it is, it follows
that the eHsenco of aiiytliiiifif is ahsoliitely uiieliaui^a^ablc.
Now the essential pntperlics of a tliin<>;, that is, the properties
without wliich a thiti;j: cannot be imagined, are jjroportioncd
to the essence, f^rouncled in it, and conso(piently, absolutely
unchanjjjeable. Hence it is evident that the pectuliar essential
force }^iven to a monad, at its creation, must remain essen-
tially unchanjjTcd, so lou"! as that monad exists. We have
here, as will be shown in another place, a nu'taj)hysical
priiiciple that ])roves the absjolnlercpuLrnance of the Darwinian
theory of development i'rom ihe monkey to the man.

It may be thonujht that Ave arc makinj^ a mere <5ratuitous
supposition regarding the existence of monads. Sui)i)ositiou
is an article in which the true philosopher does not deal ; he
leaves that unprolitable branch of speculation to philosojdiic
quacks, such as Hegel, Kant, Darwin and id (jeniis omne.
Facts are our wares, and the-i- demonstration our advertise-
ment. We have proved tlie existence of various substances ;
all admit compound ones such as stones, wood and iron. It
was shown before that a compound thing })resupposes the
parts of which it is compounded. Just as the whole house
presupposes the existence of each brick, so each brick pre-
supposes the exist'^nco of the parts of Avhich it is made up.
It is true that some imagined divisibility of matter to proceed
indefinitely ; but this, probably, arose from following with
the eye each successive division. Take a brick : it is a finite
object and necessarily nnule up of a finite number of parts ;
we do not mean atorns^ for these are compound, also, but a
certain determined number of simple parts must be in that
compound object. Now wo cannot by any chemical means
completely disintegrate the brick, consequently, physically
speaking, wc are batlled in the division. But our reason
says, the parts being finite in number if I go ou taking away

NATURE OF THE 8U1JJECT /.

one part at a time, I must filially nrrivo at tlie last ono. If
there arc but teti buckets of water m the well I caiuiot draw
twelve therefrom : if the uuuiber of parts is definite, the divi-
siou must end. If, therefore, wo use our reason, and not
our seiiM(!S, we inevitably lind that a compourul sui)stauce is
made up nf many siini)le ones ; these are what we call monads ;
therefore monads exist. Sinct* monads exist, and are simple,
they must have come into existence by creation ; because it
is evident from their physical simplicity that they are not the
result of a process of formation ; they are not from themselves,
because they are finite ; therefore they were created by God,
and each has, ami must always retain, such essential proper-
ties only as were bestowed upon it by the creator. Hence
8im])le substances exist ; but all substances essentially have
action ; therefore simi)le substances act. Materialists must
be pressed hard on this point. Though these simple sub-
stances do not fall under the notice of our senses, they are
not to be looked upon as mere nothings ; possibly if our
senses were more acute we might experience their action.
In any case, they have action as an essential requirement.

In order to avoid misconception we must explain a term
which is often taken in a wrong sense, viz : inertia. Inertia
does not mean an absence of all action ; nor does it mean a
state of rest : it simply implied an indifference in the object
to either rest or motion ; consequently, it bespeaks the absence
of a self-determining power. Put a stone in motion ; it is
inert ; put it at rest, it is inert, because it would keep forever
either of these states unless some extrinsic cause should
intervene. But wliether in motion, or at rest, the stone,
though inert, was acting.

There are, then, monads created by God and endowed
with such properties that by their various relations they
might, generally speaking, produce all visible objects and

jft

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1 1

riiii.osopiiY OF Tii:: bible vindicatkd.

plionomona. Reason can discover three classes, at least,
of monads in visible creation. The essential diflerenci! be-
tween these classes consists in the nioiuids of each class
imitating the divine essence in a difl'erent degree. The
dirterenco being thus essential, a moiuid of one class cao
never be developed into one of a higher, nor can it degi-nerate
into one of a lower. The simple substances that are the
components of matter, constitute the lowest class of monads.
They have action but not self-determining power. The
principle of life and feeling in the brute creation comprises a
higher class ; in addition to action they have sensaiion and
life. The subject / of each man, the principle that knows
and wills, or human souls make up the highest class. These
have action, life, self-<letormining power, intelligence and
free will. This is the nature of the soul.

I do not know whether all of tlie foregoing reasoning will
appear as evident to the reader as it does to myself. In any
case we have proved the soul to be a sul>stance, an active
being: moreover wo clearly showed the possibility of simple
substances, that is, such as have no physical parts. We will
now undertake to prove that the soul is a simple substance.
No one can say a jiriori that it is absurd ; because simple
substances can exist and act Our proofs will show it to bo
a metaphysical certainty.

(©1

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CIIArXER II.

SIMPLICITY OF TUE SOUL.

^i\ '^ '^^ generally supposed that man inclines to pride ;
,j)\l that he will rather seek to exalt than to duji^rade
cff^rf himself. He boasts of his ancestry if, perr-hanco,
3'fjj any of them may have been distinguished ; sometii..ja
even when they have not >» en distinguished b\it only notorious
for their rascality. " Blue blood " is a weaknes.^ that runs
pretty well through the veins of the human family. By one
of these huge delusions under which a people labor at times,
the United States are supposed to be the very paradise of
democrats, or rather, the nursery of kings ; for every man of
them thinks himself a sovereign. Let the foreigner, who is
simple enough to cherish this idea, land in America and
proclaim himself poor, sprung of obscure parents, but still
equal, socially, to the bulls and bears of Wall street. A
crowd of boys might proclaim him a " brick " — a policeman
would cal! him a " flat" and warn him to beware of "sharks,"
while a raw native might say "that's the lingo." But the
aristocratic circle would simply ignore him. If we turn our
gaze backward and look up the stream of time, we will see
that some of the great ones of antiquity were not satisfied
with having a long human pedigree, they aimed still higher,
and boasted descent from the gods. These facts go to prove
that man seeks to exalt himself by dignity of origin. Some

t ,

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PIIILOSOrilY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

r" 1

111^

ii ll

;^- i

tlioiiirlit that this arose from an inward consciousness of a
dignity that strove to vindicate itself. Be this as h may, it
is pretty evident that the generality of mankind arc not in-
different to the glory of ancestry. Latterly some notable
exceptions have appeared on the stage. They seem to hate,
•with a bitter hate, the dignity of human origin and of our
present state. "We are, they say, but ingenious pieces of
. mechanism, set in motion in some strange way. Our feelings,
thoughts and wishes, — all our noble aspirations — our heroic
resolves — our most sublime conceptions, that wliich we call
om* soul, all these are but the unsubstantial quiverings of the
human mechanism. The machinery will run for a time, and
then, — that which thought, loved, felt, longed for bliss will
be no more ; the broken machinery Avill fall to dust, and
everlasting nothing will be man's only doom. It must be
admitted that this theory is not calculated to flatter human
pride, nor to conduce to generous actions. Humiliating
though it is, it is not the offspring of humble parents ; it is
an excrescence rather of human pride ; or the figment of
guilty minds. A man imagines himself learned ; he hankers
after notoriety ; he cannot obtain it by following the beaten
track, for his genius is not suflicient to give now expression
to old truths. He delves in his own brain ; the mine is not
very rich, but he strikes upon a crude idea. In die clothing
of this with expression he carefully interweaves threads of
pure gold ; a jumbled mass of truth and falsehood is the re-
sult. The uncautious note only the glittering of the dress,
they do not see the utter Avorthlessness of the idea. The,
operator becomes noted ; sometimes ke knows well that he is
only obtaining applause under false pretences ; sometimes he
persuades himself he is right, either from pride, or from a
wish that there was no hei-eafter, as he has reason to fear it.
Some again who see the wondrous structure of the body,
its great adaptability to its end, and not properly understand-

SIMPLICITY OF THE SOUL.

is
ho

a
it.

ing wliat sound metaphysics teaches ahoiit the soul, and its
union with the body, *'<ill into error. If any such shouhl road
tliese pages, we ask hiin, as he vahies true knowiedj^o, to
read the whole of the treatise on the sold before throwing the
book aside. If he will do this he will see how easily the
truths of psychology are reconciled with physiological facts.

It Avould be a desolate task to enumerate the various
opinions broached regarding the nature of the soul. Our
point is to demonstrate that it is something distinct and
diverse from the body ; that it is not the fibres, brain, nor
any part of matter, but that it is a simple substance, endow-
ed with various facnlties, having a union with the body, but
not confused with it; and conseqnently, that the dissolution
of the body does not involve the destruction of the soul. We
r,lrea<ly proved that it must be a substance, for the subject
I certainly acts. The emotions, thoughts and wishes of each
of us must be in a subject, not in airy nothingness ; this
subject must be a substance, because an accident in an acci-
dent is repugnant. The soul being a substance, it must be
either simplf. or compound ; there is no medium. If it is
admitted to be simple, then oiu* tusk is eniled ; if not it nuist
be compound. Now let us examine closely and we will find
that it is absolutely impossible for the soul to be a compound
substance, that is, one made up of physical parts.

Each one is conscious of having the idea of a square, for
instance : this object presents itself to us with its parts so
arranged that we distinguish four sides; each particle of the
surface is acting on the soul ; the one at the right side is not
identical with the one at the left ; each has its own action,
and each is acting on the soul through the medium of the
visual organs. If now yoa say the soul is compound, it
must bo made up of a certain nun^ber of parts, say ton.
Since we perceive the square, either there is a pc oeptiou of

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PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

I'i

the square in each of the ten parts, or a part of it in each
part, or the whole of it in one of the ten parts. One of these
three hypotheses must be cliosen, no other is possible. If
you take the first one, viz : that the perception of the whole
square is in each part, you grant more than we want ; for
each of these parts being supposed simple, you give ten
simple subjects of perception ; we only ask one. But our
intimate sense clearly testifies that the subject of perception
is only one ; only one / perceives, not ten. If you take the
second, viz : that there is only a part of the perception in
each part, it follows that since each part is distinct, there
would be no one subject in us that perceived a whole square ;
each one perceived a tenth of it. Now it cannot be said that
these partial perceptions might coalesce and form one. For
apart from the fact that perception is an action that remains
in its subject, there is the same dilliculty. If they coalesce
they must unite in one part; is that part simple? If so you
^raat the simple soul. Is it compound? If so, then the
same argument retur,ps ; either the united perceptions are all
in one simple part or not. If the former, we have the soul ; if
the latter, then again no one part has a full perception. Thus
you would be running round forever in a circle. The same
argument, the stime ditficulty continually lemains ; you would
never have a subject in man that perceived the square, unless
it were devoid of physical parts. There remains only the
third hypothesis, viz : that the whole perception is only iu
one part: this part being simple, you admit a simple subject
of percei)tion. This would be tiie soul ; the other parts would
be, at most, organs of perception. From this argument it
is self-evident that only a simple subject could perceive a
square ; since we perceive a square it follows that the subject
/ is simple ; but it is, also, a substance : therefore the soul is
a simple substance.

tct

SIMPLICITY OF THE SOUL.

This arg'iment may be illustrated by remarking that a
compound substance can only have a representation of a
thing by parts on parts. Place a square block before a
mirror ; there will be seen a representation of the square,
but only a part of it on each part of the glass. Suppose each
particle of glass as conscious. No one part of it would be
conscious of the representation of the whole square : it would
only know its own part. The same would be the case wer^
the soul compound.

From this it is quite clear that it is absolutely impossible
for matter to perceive. Materialists say we do not know all
the properties of matter, consequently we are unable to say
whether or no, it can perceive. This is a specious objection
and apt to mislead the unthinking. To refute it, however, it
is enough to remark that it is one thing to know all the pro-
perties of an object, and auot'^.er to know what properties are
repugnant to it. In order to know the latter, it is not neces-
sary to know the former. I do not know all the properties
of Jones, but I feel quite certain that he cannot " leap over
the moon." I do not know all the properties of a delicately
constructed sewing machine, but I am certain that it i.s abso-
lutely impossible, physically speaking, for it to sew two
metal plates together. Thus this oft-repeated objection is
only a miserable sophism founded in a false supposition.
If we know only one property of an object we have a meta-
physical certainty that tiiat object cannot possess another
property which is contradictory to the first oe : of matter
we know that it has parts; ve have shown the impossibility
of poi'ception of a square, unless in one simple part : therefore
we have a metaphysical certainty th natter caimot perceive.

Another proof can be drawn from the self-determining
power of the soul. All admit that matter is inert ; it is, in
fact, the characteristic of matter : it is one of Newton's three

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PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

laws regarding gravitation. No one attempts to gainsay it.
Now we are intimately conscious that our soul is not inert ;
the subject /can modify itself whenever it pleases. Quicker
than lightning it can turn its attenti(jn from one object to
another ; with one glance it can survey an extended land-
scape, attending to mountain, valley, trees, rock and lake.
More than this ; it can determine the body to motion ; it wills
to write, and straightway the muscles of the arm are set to
work; the joints of arm, hand; tingers, — all are in rapid
play ; it changes its will and these cease their motion. The
man who woidd deny this determination to motion to be an
effect produced by the soul must be mentally deranged.
Therefore the soul is not inert ; it has a selt-determining
power ; as a consequence it is not matter, or in other words,
it is not a compound substance : it must, therefore, be a
simple substance, as there is no medium. This argument is
as decisive as the first one, and its force is, perhaps, more
easily understood. It is idle to look for an explanation of
this effect in the b'-iin, or in any part f)f the system. The
subject /, or the soul, that wills to write, must be a some-
thing ; either it must be a simple substance, or a certain
portion of the human frame. If the latter, it would be inert,
and incapable of modifying itself. Even if wo supposed the
absurdity that a certain portion of our body was the subject
/, how could it act in thi.s manner? Each particle must be
endowed with a determining power ; how then would unity
of action invariably result ? One would contract the muscle
to the riglit, another to the left, another midway, and so on.
Imagine a crowd of men together ; they begin to move ;
would it be possible that they should all go in the same
direction, even once, unless there were one master mind
that ruled and directed their course ? Certainly not ; how if
they were moving hundreds of times a day? The same

■f>

SIMPLICITY OF THE SOUL.

must bo in the human system ; tliero must be one simple
substance endowed with superior ([ualities, with determining
power. Only in this way could there be harn\ony of action
in man. Imagine a person climbing a dangerous cliff as the
only means of escape from death. The eyes are ciigerly
seeking a root, or branch that may aiVord support ; the hands
convulsively clutch it ; the feet nervously })ress against the
rock toget some slight support from its uneven surface;
every joint is quivering, every fibre is vibrating, every muscle
is strained — all, all these actions are conspiring to the one
end ; one is subordinate to the other, and all work harmoni-
ously. Can any rational being convince hinvself that the
subject / which is all the time conscious of the danger and
dilliculties of the situation, which sees the means of escape,
and directs the action of the whole frame-work of man, is
nought but a sensation of the brain, a nervous phenomenon,
or a mass of matter?

Again ; the soul compares two ideas and judges concern-
ing them. This o})eratiou can only take place in a subject
which is physically simple. In i'act ; either the two ideas
co-exist formally in the soul ; or one of them exists with a
remembrance of the other ; or the remembrance of both exists.
One of these three hypotheses nuist be verified, otherwise
there could be no comparison instituted. Therefore, in the
act of comparing, there are two distinct, and widely different
representations in the sold, at the same point of time. Now
this could not be possible were the soul physically compound ;
the parts of the one woidd become confused with the parts
of the other ; neither wo ild be true ; an ideal monstrosity,
so to speak, would be the result. If you say that one repre-
sentation would be in one part of the subject, the other in
another part, you do not escape the diiliculty. In that sup-
position there could be no comparison ; each part of the soul
would have its own idea, but could not compare it with the

A I

PniLOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

one in another part ; no more than Peter can compare an
idea of his own with one that is in the mind of John. Both
ideas mnst be in the self-same subject, at the same moment,
otherwise comparison is impossible. If our ideas and affec-
tions are but physiological phenemona, but the quivering of
the fibres, it would be the height of madness to talk of com-
parision. As well might you suppose that a bell could com-
pare its various sounds, as that nuui could compare his ideas,
unless you admit in the latter a substance physically simple
and intelligent, Avhich is the subject of all ideas and sensa-
tions, and which, by reason of its self-determining power,
can excite feelings formerly had, and compare them with the
present ones. This is so self-evident tliat it is hard to
inuigine that a rational being could seriously impugn it.

Finally ; the subject I is, as we before observed, identical
with itself, from the first moment of its earthly course to
the last. Now all material things are undergoing continual
change ; few, if any, of the particles of our bodies are identical
with those wo called ours ten vears ago. Several times
during the allotted three score and ten our corporeal elements
are renewed, but our soul remains alwavs the same. Were
it physically compound it would, undoubtedly, be subject to
the same change.

From the foregoing arguments it will be seen that our
soul whose existence, as an intelligent and sentient subject,
all must admit, is a substance physically simple, distinct and
different from the body, and consequently, that the dissolution
of the latter does not necessarily include the destruction of
the former. Moreover, material substances are absolutely
incapable of thought, because the whole idea must be in an
indivisible unity. Parts physically distinct can conspire to
produce one external action ; but they can never conspire to
produce an internal one ; if they could all their forces would
have to be transfused into one of the parts.

CHAPTER III.

SPIRITUALITY OF THE SOUL.

EIIHAPS no philosophic truth so commends itself to
the feelings of our nature as the one we are going to
demonstrate. We all feel this truth ; we all are glad
'^'^ to feel it. We recognize in ourselves a nobility and
dignity superior to that in other visible things. We admire
the delicacy and wonderful structure of our body, still we are
intimately convinced that there is something in us more
wonderful still ; something which is not necessarily dependent
on this tangible organism in the exercise of its powers,
although united to it. This conviction more or less plainly
shadowed forth in conversation, points to the spirituality of
the soul. We call a spiritual substance a simple substance
endowed with will and intelligence, and capable of exercising
these independently of corporeal organs. Our soul, as shown
above, is the subject of will and intelligence ; it is, also, a
simple substance ; consequently if we prove that it can
exercise its faculties independent of sensorial organs it will
be spiritual. The spirituality of the soul is no figment of the
scholastics, as certain ones, who only lack the one thing to
le learned, viz : knowledge, pretend. The idea is traceable
in the philosophy of every nation, from ]\roses to our own
time. Its dress may be as varied as the costumes at a mas-
querade ; but as surely as a human being is enshrouded iu

PniLOSOPIIY OP THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

Hi I ■

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each of these fantastic masks, just so surely is the idea of
the spirituality of tlie soul, hidden under all the ridieulous
expressions about genii, the Klysiuu tields, Thor, Manitou,
and all the ;^ods and iroddesses tiiat ever obtained a niche in
Koine's great Pantheon. The legends generally ran, that
these had fonneriy been men renowned during life, and
clianged into gods. The conviction of these peojjle, then,
was that v,eath did not destroy all of man — 7inn omnis moriar
— but that a something of him triumi)hed ovei- the wreck of
the body and thought and willed, although hidden from
mortal gaze. It is true that often they made the soul a
body of more refined moidd, still there renuiins tlie iunda-
mental idea of a distinction and diversity between ih.e soul
and body, and of the life of tlic soul after its separation from
its grosser companion. No nation, or tribe, ever yet con-
foinided the soul with the body in such a manner, as to deny
to the former the power of acting independently of the latter.
They were considerably in advance of our modern pagans.
They made the soul of the nature of fire, or air, or thrice
refined matter. Now we maintain that this is an idea of
spirituality in the embryo. The light of the christian reli-
gion illumed men's minds ; their thoughts turned into purer
channels ; they ceased to be the " aninuil man," of Avhich
St. Paul speaks, and became more spiritualized. Hence
their philosophy became clearer ; their expressions more
precise ; their ideas more refined, Hence they proved that
the soul cannot be matter, not even the most subtle; it
must be physically simple ; at the same time they held with
the ancients that it can and does act independently of the
corporeal organs. Fuiulamentally the idea of spirituality is
as old as the human race ; the precision it now enjoys is the
effect of Christianity. It is mere trickery to quibble about
terminology once your adversary has plainly stated the seuse

SPIRITUALITY OP THE SOUL.

he nttarhes to it. A vast deal of philosophic precision is due
to scholastic philosophy, aud its trenchaut form of argumen-
tation — the syllogism.

It is a philosophic axiom that the " manner of acting
follows the manner of existing," or a thing acts in accordance
with its nature. Hence sensible organs can only be affected
by sensible things. That which is entirely above and beyond
the range of physical nature cannot, it is evident, be conceived
by a subject whose perceptions are entirely dependent on
corporeal organs. The thick plate of an iron-dad ship of
war is not more impervious to an arrow that what our organs
of sense are to the conveyance of purely intellectual ideas.
Now we have ideas that are altogether outside the spiiere of
sensible things ; we have abstract notions ; we apprehend
perfections, relations, and dependencies ; we contemplate
virtue and truth. In a word, our intelligence rises far above
all material things, and reasons about trutiis which have no
material property. Were our intellect but the slave of
organic iustruments, were it but the tremor of our nervous
system, or a mere sensation of the brain, it could not have
even one abstract idea ; it could not deduce conclusions ; it
would be insensible to heroic actions ; to glory, fame, or
the judgment of posterity. If, therefore, we wish to have a
rational explanation of our intellectual operations, and of the
feelings which sway many of our noblest actions, we must
recognize in our soul the ability to exercise its intelligence
independently of sensible organs.

If we consider the actions of our will we shall perceive,
even more clearly, the spirituality of the soul. Corporeal
organs, like mechanical arrangements, act necessarily aud in
a uniform manner, provided the conditions of action be
fullilled. Our eye must see, if open in the light ; our ear
must hear sound that strikes on it — all our senses must be

(l:

riiiLOSoniY OF the bible vindicated.

I V

affected by external objects under certain comlitious. More-
over our senses, by reason of their sensitive ten«lency,
seek to avoid that wliicli causes them pain. The eye instinct-
ively closes in a filarin^ li^''^ — ^^'^ hands are iier>on8ly
■withdi'awn from objects which are too hot, or too cold.
Kow any one can prove for oneself that our will can resist
this sensitive tendency. Despite the sull'erin^s caused by
keepinj^ our hand in freezin*; water, we can keep it there.
Our sense of feelinj; craves to be released, but our will cau
lord it over the sensation and hold it captive. Do you sup-
pose that Scan'ohi did not experience bitter })ain while hohl-
inji^ his hand in the camp-fire of Porsenna? Aye, surely lie
did, and all his sensations rose in rebellion and demanded its
withdrawal ; but his will was inflexible ; it acted not only
not in accordance Avith his sensations, but in direct opposition
to them. Thercifore the will must be capable of beinjr exer-
cised independently of corporeal organs. Take the actions of
every day life. How many continually repel the sugj^estious
of the sense ; some throu<rh love of virtue — some throu,irh a
sense of honor — some through fear of infamy. Each of
these motives is suilicient to prove the spirituality of the soul.
If our soul were the sport of our organic system, Sodom
and Gomorrah Avould have plenty of companions in infamy.
It could not be otherwise. "Why should we differ in our
actions from the brutes of the field, if the principle of action
within us be swayed necessarily by our sense? And if it
be not necessarily swayed by the sense, is it not, in some
things at least, independent of it? Most certainly, unless
you wish to maintain the absurdity that it is both independent
in some things, and absolutely dependent in all. Therefore
whether we consider the actions of our intelligence, or of our
Mill, we find that these faculties can be exercised indepen-
dently of corporeal organs. Hence our soul is a spiritual

SPIRITUALITY OF THE SOUi.

tious

being. It in outnide of the physical order ; it is, in fuct,
what its lonjrin^H and noble aspirutions su;;f;est it to be — the
heir to a great kingdom. We do not deny but that in sensi-
tive operations our soul is dependent on corj)oreal organs and
seusil)le things ; but this admission does not affect the truth
of our argument. It only proves that our soul and body arc
intimately united ; we "Nvill speak hereafter ot Miat union.
For the present we arc content t(» place in a dear light the
spirituality of our soul. This truth is impjigiieii by many
who do not understand what it means ; the slightest consid-
eration is sutlicient to learn its existence. Some deny it
through baser motives, viz : to excuse their wickedness, or
to vindicate the " free love " theory. Kach denial of meta-
physical truth ends by debasing man ; it cannot be otherwise.
If we recede from metaphysics we must approach ])hy8ics,
or rather physical things. The jjassions and their gratifica-
tion become the field of speculation, and the gi*oss camp of
practice. From this we can gather the connection betweea
scientific truth and divine revelation. He who ceases to be
a christian, must likewise, cease to be a metaphysician.

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IV
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CHAPTER IV.

ESSENCE AND ORIGIN OF THE SOUL.

..-5

T is strnnj^c, hut nevertheless true, that some who,
at times, over-estimate tlie power and capacity of
reason, are the first to debase it, when its conchisious
(ij^ tell a;;ainst their pet theories. It is nothin<^ for
them to bound, with one graceful somersault, from one pole
of error to the other. The reason, perliaps, is, that since no
great brain power is required to propound ridiculous proposi-
tions, they find the mental leap quite feasible. Probably it
is pleasant ; truth never cloys ; it is never a stale subject
of meditation ; but error, in order to be agreeable, must be
novel. Hence the evident selt-satisfaction with which modern
theorizers view their contradictory statements. To-day, rea-
son knows all ; no God is necessary — no revelation is to be
thought of: to-morrow, because reason proves the existence
of God and of an immortal soul, it is only a sickly ray in-
capacle of having a clear idea of what the soul is. Thus
these " will-o'-the-wisp " philosophers give a pale gleam
here ; vanish, and show a shadowy flickering in the opposite
direction. God help the 'nightcd youth that follows such
phantoms of light. He will soon flop into Tyndall's " stag-
nant pool," if he does not previously sink beyond his depth
in the mire.

Now we maintain that we have a clear idea of the soul.
When we know its chief properties, and distinguish accurately

ESSKNCK AND ORIGIN OF TIIK SOUL.

101

!)Pt\v«MMJ it ami other objects, \vc ccrtiiiiily liavo a clear
idea of it. AVe do not know all al)oiit it; neither do wo
know all about a jiraia of wheat, still we have no doubt but
what our idea of wheat is sullieiently clear and distinct.
We know the soul to be a simple substance, endowed with
intelli;jfenee and will ; we know what thiise tiuMdties import,
iind how the soul exercises them by aselt-ileterminin;; power.
Knowin^i^ all this we would never conlbund the soul with
jinythin;; else. Hence our idea of it is clear and distinct.
The controversy as to whether actuid, or only potential
thou^iht and will, are essential to the soul, can be easily

(led

ath

iti(!al

!t^

■*ubst{

ance

necessarily acts, as before a. jwn ; moreover, every substance
acts in accordance with its nature ; the nature; of a spiritual
.substance is to think and will; the soul iss])irilual ; therefore
it necessarily, or essentially, thinks and wills. Dilliculties
jnay lu*re j)resent themselves about iniuite ideas : we may
discuss that point Juirealter: but whatever may be one's
opinion re<rardiiig the existence of such ideas, one must
admit the above conclusion. We are too apt to boast a
victory before it is gained. Because our oj)ponent is unable
to solve some difliculty which arises from his conclusion, we
call upon him to surrender. This is a sophistical method
of winning the day. When a conclusion inevitably flows
from true premises, no matter what dilliculties are started,
they cannot destroy the truth of the conclusion. If an ob-
jection goes to prove the absurdity of our reasoning, then we
must^dispose of it ; if it merely tends to obtain a reconeiliatioa
of our coudu.siou with some tiieory of another, we are not
held to take notice of it. Even if we confess our inability to
give the required explanation, it does not invalidate our
argument. We must always bear in mind that " truth is
not opposed to truth." If our statement is sUowu to Ue

102

niTLOSOniY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

*'i

il i

.'■■■i.

mctiiphysioully certain, vrc must never recede from It ; no
otlier truth can be opposed to it. TI.ere may be an apparent
contradiction, but not a real one. It' Ave cannot reconcile
the two, a greater intellect can. Hence limitation of know-
ledge is no proof of its total absence. I place uncarded wool
into one part of a machine, and rolls come forth from another
part. I know the fact that the machinery produced the rolls,
but ])erhaps 1 cannot explain how it was done. Am I,
therefore, to say the machiiu'ry did not do it? Surely not,
A so))hism as dear to the shallow controversialist as to the
Avould-be })hysico-mctaphysician, is laid bare by the al)()ve
observations. Let the reader bear well in mind that once
we prove a ])roposition we are not obliged to lind a solution
for any diiliculty that nuvy arise therefrom ; we are in ])0S-
scssion, and our opponent nuist prove the truth of his objec-
ts n, not we its falsity.

Tlie essence of the soul, then, is that it is an ever-active,
simple and s})iritual substaii'\'. The nv'st profound medita-
tion on it shows thij;> and nought else ; the most learned
metaphysicians, if yon divest their propositions of technicali-
ties, assert this ; our inner consciousness conUrms it. "\\'heu
■we speak of the miion of tlie soul with the body we will ex-
plain some apparent dilliculties.

Regarding the origin of the soul, some fanciful theories
have been projiounded. Pythagoras and some of the stoics
atlirmed that it was a part of the divinity : some " modern
tliinkers," who, by the way, are not modern in thought, j)ro-
fess the same absurdity. In fact all pantheists must hold
some such opinion, for if there bo but one substance, tlie soul
must be that substance, or a part of it, or a moditication of
it. In order that the reader may clearly perceive the impo-
sition of these " modern thinkers," who dress up in modern
attire the stale and oft-refuted errors of antiquity, and seek

ESSENCE AND OUIGIN OF THE SOUL.

103

odorn
vseck

to palm them off as ori<rlnal, as the latest outcome of moderu
thought, as the graiul reward of modern progress, we will
quote a few lines from St. Augustine. From them each
one fan see how ^\at great doctor of the church, in a few
iiithy i)hrases, refutes tiftecn centuries in advance, our mo«lern
})anthcists. He says : '• AVc see the soul sinful and in alHic-
tion, seeking truth, and re([uiring a deliverer. This change-
fulness shows me that the f^oul is not God ; because if the
soul were the substance of God, the substance of God would
err, wouhl be outraged, would be deceived, which is madness
to say." (Contra Faustum Manichaum.) As we Ix'fore
observed the '" current of modern thought," has evidently set
up hill, and seems resolved to go out by the " gate of life,
not death."

The Chaldeans, Egyptians, Socrates and Plato asserted
that all the souls were created at once, in the beginning of
tivi.e. According to some the souls were once blissful
inhal)itants of the stars, but owing to some crime, were cast
out from their starry home, and doomed to ex[)iation in these
gross bodies. This poetic theory is, in all probability, a
corru])tion of the primeval tradition regarding the fall of the
rebellious angels, or the sin in paradise. It is another ])ro()f
of the unity of the hiuua\i family, and of biblic history.
That our souls did not exist ]ire\iously to their union with the
body is easily shown. IMemoi-y is an essential ;-ttribute of
our soul ; if we existed in a former state we nuist uecessai'ily
have some recollection, however faint, of our jjrevious life.
But we have no siu-li remembrance. The furthest stretch of
our nuunory is to the days when we tumbled on the lloor, or
lieard sweet lullaby on our mother's knee. We are more
obiivious of that previous state, than Avas the Tichborne
t'Lumant of his Latin and French. Again ; if om* souls are
united to our bodies as a punishment, we ought to long i'or a

■m

104

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

i^iil I

r M

separation. But we naturally desire to live ; we naturally
shudder at the thought of a separation between soul and
body. Then ' re the union must be natural ; it is no punish-
ment. Metempsychosis, or transmigration of souls, is so
ridiculous as not to need comment. It is another sad instance
of the wanderings of the human mind.

It is not very diificult to trace the origin of the soul to its
true source, if we oidy listen to our reason. It is created
immediately by God, when it is to be infused into the body.
The soul, ])eing a simple and spiritual substance, cannot be a
a part of matter ; it caiuiot be a part of another sini})le sub-
stance ; there remains, therefore, but the one way by which
it can come into existence, viz : creation. But only God can
create ; therefore our soul is created immediately by Him.
It did not exist in a previous state, as shown above ; more-
over, since its union Avith the body is natural it is evident
that their union is coeval with their existence. Finally,
since our memory is bouiided by tlie fair horizon of childhood's
dawn, there is no philosophic reason to say that our soul was
created ])reviously to its union with the body: if it Avere, it
must have been otiose and unconscious, or a self-contradictory
beinj;. Theref(jre the soul is created when it is to be infused
into the body. A\Mien that precise time is, we do not under-
take to prove. In all likelihood it is the very moment of
vCouception.

(e)(9)

IQ |gW?.?^

I t' I

CHAPTER V.

rii

FACULTIES OF THE SOUL.

E have pIioavu tliat the 8oul is a simple and spiritual
substance : it has no ])hysical parts ; we cannot <lis-

^ tiufruisli in it a rijrht and a loft, an up and a down.

' It belongs to an order of things entirely different to
the physical one in which we move. It is a force brought
into existence by the wish of the Supreme Force — God. It
is not a blind unfeeling force like attraction ; it imitates more
fully the Infinite Essence ; it is endowed with intelligence,
memory, will, and various other faculties. This multiplicity
of faculties does not argue multiplicity of parts in the soul ;
on the contrary, it serves to confirm its simplicity. It is the
one same principle that thinks, wills, and remembers. Now
we say that there are two grand faculties of the soul, intelli-
gence and will ; all the others spring from one or other of
these two, oi partly from both. At first sight nn^mory seems
to be a distinct faculty, and is generally held to be such ; but
a little ucflection will show that it is onlv the intelligence
concentrating its power on itself, instead of directing it to
the consideration of something outside of itself. ^Vhen wo
arc asked, do we remember such an occurrence, our mind
passes in rapid review the various ideas garnered up in its
well-regulated store-house, until it lights uj)()n the one it
seeJiS. Imagination differs from memory inasmuch us it is

106

rniLOSOPHY OF THE BIULE VINDICATED.

» I!

i>i

'. !l '

. 1 )

i I! '

iHi

partly a sensitive, aiid partly an intellcotiuil operation, Avliilst
memory is purely intellectual. Inisigination aids the nvniory,
because by recall in^j; the circumstances of place, position of
objects, &c., the concatenation of ideas ■will be more perfect.
A delicacy of organization occasions a liveliness of imagina-
tion, l)eing more sensitive to im])ressions than a coarser one.
It seems too near an ajjproacli to materialism to mako
memory consist in resuscitating: in the nervous libres, or in
the l)rain, the sensations had at a former period. Something
like this hapjiens in imagination ; but we can remember
purely intellectual ideas — what we thought about God, justice,
truth. From this it is apparent that memory is the intelli-
gence scanning itself. Hence memory remains after the
separation of the soul from the Ijody.

Now we say that the two grand faculties of the soul, viz :
intelligence and will, are the soul itself: they are not a part
of the soul, or anything in it distinct from itself. Intelligence
is the soul considered inasmuch as it thinks, com|)ares,
analyzes, i!cc : Avill is the soul assenting to something, or
determining itself to present or future action. This is evi-
dent from the fact that the soul is a simple and spiritual
force. The one agent may act under various conditions and
seem to be many ditferent agents. Thus positive and negative
electricity are the one agent; light, heat, and electricity are,
accoi'ding to some, the self-same agent though acting so
dilferently. We shul' here treat of the Intelligence.

Each one understands what is meant by perceiving, by
knowing: no ex})lanation could give us a clearer idea of this
operation than we already have. We might, possibly, mys-
tify some and cause them to thitdc us learned by entering into
an obscure treatise on this simple operation of the soul : wo
prefer, however, to make metaj)hysics, what it really is,
clear and concise, even at the risk of being cousidered super-

-I; !

FACULTIES OF THE SOUL.

107

1 ,
4

)iircs,
,-5 or
cvi-
'itual
>s and
irative
V are,

ficial. One thin"; i.s very certain to our niiu'l.i and it is that
many philosophers have <^onc too deep ; in fact they luvve h>st
tliemselvcs in the profundity of their exco^^itations. A desiro
to aj)poar a deep and orijriiud thinker will sometimes take
possession even of the cool l>rain of a metaphysician, and
cause him to write paf^cs of unintelli<^il)le matter, on the
most intelli^fible sul)ji'ct. Each one is fullv cojiuizaut of
what it is to know. This ojjcration of knowina: is an act of
.inti.'lligence, or it is, in other words, the soul ])erceiving.
Truth and good are the two objects of the soul ; inasmuch a3
the soul is seeking, or contemplating truth, it is the intelli-
gence ; inasmuch as it pursues good, it is the will. To know
is the great and natural desire of the soul ; we perceive many
things ; we know a great deal, still we fain would add to our
store. Each new truth we learn gives pleasure to tht; soul.
When we perceive a thing we are said to ac(piire an idea of
it. Hence an idea is a representation of a thing in the mind ;
not a sensible, but an intellectual representation. A great
deal has been written about the nature of ideas, and the
manner of ac([uiriiig them. If we consider attentively the
nature of truth, and the nature of the soul, wc will not fuid
great difficulty on this point. Whatever is, inasmuch as it
is, is ti'ue. As before explained, all things Vvhicli exist, or
which are possible in tliemselves considered, imitate in a
certain degree the Divine Essence. In it tlu'y have the rea-
son of their intelligibility ; in it they intidligibly shine.
Abstract from that essence and reality ceases, and, as a
consequence, truth. Objectively considered, all truth is ia
God. As regards the soul, we are to bear in mind that it ia
a spiritual force of limited power : one of it>; objects is truth ;
hence essentially it has an aptitude to acfjuire it. The
Su})reme Intelligence sees all truth in itself once, always,
and altogether ; but a created iutelligeuce, like the soul,

,l'»*

•a I

fl'flpi ■

SBBH

108

riiiLOsoriiY OF the bible vindicated.

'fti

acquires its corrnitions by the exorcise of its power. All
iialuriil knowledge which we acquire, is but the outcome of
the action of the soul, in its pursuit after truth. Now since
there are visil^le and invisible thiiiirs, it follows that truth
may be refei'red to a double order, the sensible and the
intellectual. Our soul being intimately united to our body
perceives some things through the instrumentality of the
senses, others purely through the idea itself. The knowledge
of liistcn-ic facts (by this we mean all sensible facts past or
present) is acipiired through the instrumentality of our senses :
we read them ; see them ; hear them narrated ; feel their
existence. AH knowledge deriv(Ml I'rom reasoning, compar-
ing, analogy, analysis, sythesis, or any kindred operation, is
accpiired through the idea, and is intellectual. When we
listen to the reasoning of another we ac(piire anew cognition ;
but it has not been transfused into us from the reasoner : his
words merely served to call our attention to some manner of
considering a(jnestion in which we never before looked at it.
Our own soul turned its inborn {)ower in the direction indi-
catiMl and ac(iuired the truth. INIasters or books, in the strict
sense of the word, never teach us intellectual truth ; they
only admonish our soul to fix its attention on snch a chain
of reasoning; the evidence of the argument is seen by both
souls, but how? Let St. Augustine answer: " If we both
see to be true what thou sayest, and what I say, where, I
would say, do we see it? I certainly do not see it in thee,
iiur thou in me, but we both see it in the unchangeable truth
which is above our minds," (L. xii. Conf. cap. 25.) By the
accjuisition of knowledge no new being is added to the soul ;
its latent i-n-er is developed, or brought into play. By
stud ■'■ >i! • souls in relation with a variety of objects,
ixwc .':■■.-■':■ c its field of action: we ransack history to

gleau .1 M . .; . of the reasoning of the ancients; or we

FACULTIES OF THE SOUL.

109

jects,

\y to

read the wrltin^^s of our contemporaries. In caoli ease the
soul develops its power ; study is to the soul what gyuuiastic
exercises arc to the body ; or it is like the breath of air
■which, while adding nothing to the essence of a live coal,
still, makes it glow more brightly. While, then, we acquire
a cognition of many facts through means of the senses, all
knowledge, properly so called, is the effect of the internal
action of the soul. Ilence it follows that the soul, if sepa-
rated from the body, could, by internal action, acquire
knowledge. It would be conscious of its own existence, and
from that it could prove the existence of God, and his great
perfections. It could then speculate on justice, truth, good-
ness, and innumerable other subjects fraught with intellectual
ideas.

There is a difference between an idea and the perception
of it. Perception is the consciousness which the soul has
that it is contemplating a truth ;. the idea is the object of
contemplation. Perception is, then, a modification of the
soul ; the intelligibility of a thing, or its idea, is not a modi-
fication of the soul ; neither does it pertain to the soul, for
even if my soul never existed, the intelligibility of, say a
triangle, would still be.

Cause and Origin of Ideas.

That we have various ideas no one denies ; but regarding
the cause and origin of them much has been written. Mate-
rialists and all those whose minds are of a gross mould,
pretend that in some way or other, all our ideas arise from
the senses. We have already said enough to show the
absurdity of this baseless theory. Purely intellectual ideas,
whose existence no one can deny, are altogether beyond the
sphere of the senses, and completely independent of them.
But let us take a soul fresh from the creating hand of God,
and see how it acquires its ideas. Some have looked upon

<Ji

niTLOSOrilY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

•i

18 i

the newly created soul as altogether devoid of ideas ; others
liave niainlained tliat it has direct and innate ones ; otlicrs,
a^raii): that after a sufficient evolution of the organization,
primordial ideas, such as truth, justice, &c., are produced in
it. Here again we tiiink there is a large amount of philoso-
phic confusion, and an unnecessary quantity of mental
writhing. The nature of tlie soul, as often repeated, is a
sul)stantial spii'ituality ; a force the very essence of which is
that it slionkl tiiink, understand, know, will. You can as
easily conceive fire without heat, as a soul without action.
An intelligent being must know something ; a force must
essentially act ; and it must act in accordance with its nature.
Hence, the soul being intelligent ; being a spiritual force,
must from its first instant of existence have knowledge. It
will be conscious that it is, and that it desires happiness.
But to desire supposes an idea. Therefore we must either
admit some ideas which are essentially coeval with the soul,
or we must make the soul a self-contradictory being, both
intelligent naturally, and knowing nothing ; essentially active,
but still not acting. This would be about the ne plus ultra
of meta))liysical blindness. . Truth, or the acquisition of
ideas, being the object of the intellect, it has from its creator
an aptitude for this purpose, and the power to prosecute its
object. The soul being linked to the body has its action
modified by this latter ; its innate power cannot be developed
until certain organic conditions are verified in the body.
Thus, perhaps, the soul, for some time, has only two ideas ;
when at length the requisite organization of the individual
is verified, the soul develops its power and acquires other
ideas. It does not follow from this that our ideas are all
ac<piired through the senses ; the two first Avere gained by a
purely intellectual act of the soul necessarily conscious of
existeucc and of its desire ; many others camiot be acquired

|)ody.
leas ;
idual
other
|c all

|18 of

lirod

FACULTIES OF THE SOUL.

Ill

witliout a certain orjraiiic condition ; but a condition issome-
thiujr very ditlerent from a cause. A perfection of organiza-
tion is an essential condition for the full development of the
power of the soul : this we grant, but Ave have already proved,
that vi'riHod tiiis condition, the soul, by its intrinsic action of
reflection, reasoning, &c., can, and does ac(|uire numerous
truths. When the child has grown to be a youth, the soul
begins more freely its play. Retlecting on its own existence,
it Avill soon accjuire an idea of efl'ect and cause, and will rise
to a knowledge of the existence of God. Many external
circumstances accelerate, and render more complete our men-
tal development, such as study, conversation and teachers.

Our conclusion, then, is this ; the soul must necessarily
know its own existence and something about ha])piness ;
therefore it has two ideas Avhich are called innate, but not
correctly ; they are coeval with the soul. Actually these
ideas and the soul are synchronous ; higically the soul is first,
for the ideas are had by the action of the soul, Tiie soul is
a spiritual force cai)able of acquiring truth; naturally joined
to a body its action is modified by this latter ; its power cannot
be fully developed until certain organic conditions are fulfilled :
once these are verified it begins to develop, both by reason of
its inward actions of reflection, comparison, reasoning, &c.,
and by outward circumstances of study and teaching. This
conclusion inevitably flows from the nature of the soul, and
its union with the body.

AVhether there be more than two coeval ideas Ave are not
prepared to prove. Many have tliought that the first
principles of the moral order are innate. We find them
constant, uniform and universal. This is strong presumption
in favor of their being essentially connected Avith the soul.
Some might possibly be acquired ; from its OAvn existence the
soul could prove the existence of God, and his infinite per-

11'

pi,

1 i'.-i

112

rniLOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

fcction ; knowinp^ him to be its cause the soul wouM see the
necessity of ucknowlcdging its dependence and of rcspectiuj^
him. Kuowinj? that there are bein;[^8 like to ourselves, and
knowing that we would not wish certain things to be done to
us, we could infer that we ought not to do them to other«.
Still, since a knowledge of the first principles of the natural
law seems to be prior to all consideration or reflection of this
sort, it appears more philosophic to say that there is, essen-
tially, in the soul a habit, or tendency, infused by the creator,
by which the soul, at once, perceives the evidence of the
general principles of the natural law, so soon as a given
perfection of the physical organism is verified. Hence the
universal idea of right and wrong. We think that the nature,
cause, and origin of ideas, as well as the modes of acquiring
them, have been made suthcicntly clear.

CHAPTER VI.

THE WILL.

|E now come to the consideration of the second grand
faculty — the will. As before observed, the will is
the Hoiil considered in its pursuit after good. Rela-
tively, good is, whatever is consentaneous to the nature
of a being ; in general, whatever is, inasmuch as it is, is
good. Everything has a tendency to that which can nourish,
preserve and perfect it ; or it naturally tends to its special
good. In the lower creation this tendency is a blind force of
their nature ; it is part of a providential plan for the preser-
vation of linite things. In man there is a two-fold tendency,
by reason of his two-fold nature : the body has its animal
tendency, and ♦^^he soul its intellectual, or spiritual. Each
one is conscious of this ; we crave food and warmth for our
bodies, and we long for truth, knowledge and a rest of spirit.
Now we are not to consider the two constituent parts of
man disjoiutedly ; we are to take them as they are in nature,
linked together, and forming one individual ; and we are not
to consider the relative good of each part in the abstract, but
the good of the person in the concrete. The nature of man
being rational, it follows, that although certain things might
be good for the body were it unconnected with a reasonable
soul, we must reject them as a good of the individual man,
if they are contrary to the dictates of reason. This point

I i'

^li

114

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

ehoiild always be kept in view. It is a common sophism of
tlio sensualist to reason about the body, and our sciisuul
appetites, as if they were disjoined from a rational soul.
Our animal tendencies to food, drink, &c., are good, in
themselves considered ; their indulgence, however, is to be
regulated by reason. There may be obligations imposed on
the individual, which are known to reason : these obligations
may require certain checks to the sensible apnetites ; if these
restraints be disregarded there is a revolution in man ; reason
is dethroned, and a rational being acts in an irrational
manner. Each one can see that this would be an evil to the
individual man, although it might be a good to the body
considered in the abstract. In a word, being reasonable
beings, all our actions should be in accordance with the
dictates of reason. We need say no more about our tendency
to sensible things.

The soul naturally tends to spiritual good. We all inti-
mately experience this fact ; we all desire happiness. Now
perfect happiness consists in a complete satisfaction of that
tendency by which we are borne towards good. As before
observed, the will is the soul considered in its pursuit after
good ; we essentially seek good, and hence the will, inasmuch
as it is a tendency to good in general, acts by a necessity of
nature. It cannot desire unhappiness ; it nevtsr chooses a
thing because it is bad, but because it apprehends it, under
some respect, as good for it. When one casts away^ m h fit
of spite, one's money, the will apprehends this act as a fiatis-
faetion of its spleen : in reality the action is hurtful to the
individual, but the soul chooses to look at it under a respect
in which there is an apparent good in it, and decides to act.
Now our soul has a self-determining power ; we can, at
pleasure, direct our attention to this or that object ; we can
think on this, or that. The question arises : is the tendency

THE WILL.

115

to good free ? is the stlf-determining power of the soul subject
to some metaphysical law, to some blind fate, to a necessity
of any k^nd? This is a mo.st important question: on it
hangs the whole weight of the moral law, all virtue, duty
and responsibility. We say at one, that as regards the
tendency to good in general, the will is not free ; it must
seek either real, or apparent good : but we maintain that as
regards the choice of this or that particular good, or their
rejection, — as regards the doing or leaving undone, or doing
in this way or that way, a particular action, the will is en-
tirely free ; it is not subject to iiuy intrinsic or extrinsic
necessity ; but the soul freely elects what it decides on per-
forming in all these cases.

This is what is meant by " liberty of the will ;" this is
physical, not moral liberty. Physically we are free to plunge
the dagger into a sleeper's heart ; morally we are not free to
do it. We here speak of physical liberty. The ability of
doing evil is not necessary to true liberty : evil being an
imperfection, the power of deflecting from good does not add
to the nobility and perfection of a nature, but detracts from
it. Hence our power of erring, of doing wrong, is an imper-
fection ; it is unnecessary to true liberty, The power of
choosing this good, or that, in this way, or that, now or
hereafter, is all that is included in the idea of true liberty of
the will. An infinitely perfect being cannot deflect from
good ; it would be a contradiction ; still God is, in the true
sense of the word, free.

The action of a reasonable being supposes a knowledge of
the thing sought to be obtained — nothing is desired unless
previously known. In all deliberate actions, then, there is
an act'of intelligence perceiving the object and its real or
apparent good, and an act of the will determining itself to
the pursuit of that object. Freedom of the will consists lA

■1

fi:iit

»'!'

lie

PIIILOSOFHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

an active power of the soul by which the soul can, of itself, act^
or not act, choose this, or that, provided all the conditions
requisite for acting he verified. A choice may be made in one
of three ways : l8t. — We may choose one of two contradic-
tories, love, or not love. 2d. — One of two contraries, love,
or hate. 3d. — One of many different things, study, ride,
walk.

Although no metaphysical truth, after the certainty of our
own existence, is more evident to one who reflects for an
instant, than is the liberty of the will, siill many seek to
deny it, either altogetiier, or in part. Fate, chance, physical
laws and various visionary old tyrants are conjured up to
explain our actions without admitting that noblest attribute
of man, liberty of will. Like a nurse who calls a hobgoblin
to devour a naughty child, and then personaios the dread
ghoul by making unearthly bowlings, the opponents of human
liberty summon their dark monsters of fate, and straightwa) ,
without proving their existence, yell as if refractory humanity
were being devoured and led off by these spirits of the
" vasty deep," In theology we exposed the humbug of fate
and chance : we« showed them to be simply nothing. The
question is narrowed down to this : our actions are the effects
of an active force ; not being contemporary, either one pro-
• duces the other, or the soul produces each one. Nothing
outside of the soul could force it to will this or that, because
in that supposi 'on it would both will, and not will the same
thing at the same time. This logic might do for men of fate,
but not for us. Neither does one action produce another ;
the soul freely determines all its deliberate actions.

'tions
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love,

ride,

of our

for an

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the same
HI of fatc^
another ;

CHAPTER VII.

LIBERTY OF THE WILL.

HIS important mclaphysical and moral truth must
now be fully proved. Above wc explained what the
will is, and in what way it is free ; now we will
C7"c7 evfdve some arguments to confirm our proposition.
1st. — From our irner consciousness : as seen above, by
\nner consciousness, or our intimate sense, is meant the soul
affected in a certain way, and conscious of Ixnng so affected.
It is an infallible means of truth regarding the present affec-
tions of the sold; for it is the soul itself testifying to its
present modifications. Deny this and the soid becomes a
contradiction, it fvels, for instance, pain, and does not feel it ;
loves, and does not love the same object at the same time.
NoA^ our inner consciousness testifies that we are free ;
thereibre our will enjoys imnumity from all co-action and
necessity in its choice of finite goods. Liberty is certainly
an affection of the soul ; heiu'e it is directly the object of
intimate sense ; when then this sense testifies to the existence
ot this affection, it must, itifa^ibly, exist. That our intimate
sense testifies to the existence of freedom of choice is evident.
Each one is intimately conscious that when various objects
are presented to one's consideration, there is no force which
compels one to choose this or that ; each one, in such a case,
recognizes only in the activity of one's soul, the reason of

l\'

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PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

1 '

^.1 'I

one's choice ; each one, after choosing, is self-complacent if
the thing proves a success, and self-condemnatory if a failure :
each one, taught by one's past experience, resolves to act ia
a similar, or different manner in the same circumstances.
Now all this proves that we are daily and hourly intimately,
conscious that our actions are subject to no necessity from
within, or without, but are entirely dependent on the activity
of the soul, which determines itself at pleasure. Therefore,
in fact, we are free.

2d. — From the nature of finite goods : our soul desires
good : it has almost an unlimited capacity for good. Imagine
all the riches and pleasures of this world ; the most delightful
gardens and bowers ; the most entertaining company, and
luxurious feasts — everything that we can Imagine of earthly
good, and ask yourself, would I be happy if I had all these?
The inevitable answer is, no, there is still something to be
desired. Hence the capacity of the soul for good is greater
than can be filled by created things. Now if an accumulatioQ
of earthly delights cannot fill the soul, much less can one
particular one do it : but if our will were necessitated in its
choice by the good apprehended in an object, that good
ought to be equal, at least, to the capacity of the soul. Since
no created good is equal to this capacity, it follows that it
cannot necessitate the choice of the soul. It would be as
sensible to say that it could, as what it would be to maintain
that a donkey engine could draw a train of cars which ten
large ones could not keep in motion.

3d. — From the notion of reason : A great doctor has said
— man is reasonable ; therefore he is free. This noble argu-
ment of St. Thomas is unanswerable. That man is reason-
able, no one, I suppose, will deny. Now the connection
between reason and liberty of action is this : everything acts
according to its nature; consequently a rational being must

LIBERTY OF THE WILL.

119

snt if
nre :
ict in
mces.
lately,
from
jtivity
refore,

desires

Tiagine
liglitful
ay, and
earthly
I these?
x(T to be
jxreater
mvlation
can one
;d in its
liat good
Since
3 that it
lid be as
maintain
vhich ten

has said
oble argu-
is reason-
connection
^thing acta
3eing must

act ia a reasonable manner. To act in a reasonable manner
supposes perception of the object, a reflection on its suitable-
ness to the perceiver, and a rejection or choice of it. But
this supposes freedom of will. In other words : the measure
of our desire is our perception of the real, or apparent good
ia an object: in all earthly goods there is some defect, some
aspect uuder which they may be considered as not good, or
even hurtful. Now the intellect may cor-sider them either
under one aspect, or another ; it will apprehend, at most, a
limited amount of good ; it will clearly perceive that that
good cannot satisfy the capacity of the soul ; it will apprehend
that this one is preferable to that, or that none of them is
desirable. Therefore the will will choose this one in prefer-
ence to that, or reject them all. A little boy goes up to an
apple stall : each apple has some good in it, and so his reason
says ; he turns them over looking for a nice ripe one ; he
almost decides on taking this one, but catches sight of a
better one, and, perhaps, is taking out his pence to pay for
it, when he resolves to try some other stalls before purchas-
ing. He goes to the next one and suits himself; was he not
free all along in his choice ? When he returns home his little
sister asks for one ; he has two, one much better than the
other ; he longs to eat the better one, all his sensitive appetites
demand that he keep it, but the generous little fellow says,
no, and gives the better one to his sister, although, perhaps,
his eye, aye, even his tooth, sheds a tear at the moment.
Could any sane person pretend that such a boy did not possess
liberty of will ? The inborn activity of his soul determined
each of his actions.

4th. — From the manner of acting of all manJcind : when
we wish one to do, or to leave undone, something we en-
treat, persuade or threaten. People make agreements about
meeting at a certain time and place ; they often pay in advance

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PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

for labor to be performed ; nations form alliances ; leaders of
armies hold consultations ; parliaments enact laws ; trans-
gressors are punished ; the well-deserving of the common-
Avealth are rewarded. All this goes to prove that all men,
at all times, have been intimately convinced that the soul, by
its own activity, determines itself to action. Of what avail
would agreements be if we were not sure that we were free?
Why hold consultations on the mode of attack, if all be sub-
ject to a blind inexorable fate? Prudential precautions
would be idle observances ; laws to punish would be sheer
cruelty, if the will is destitute of liberty. If our actions be
determined by physical laws, or physiological phenomena,
how can we be certain that we can cease writing in five, ten,
fifteen minutes hence? Yet we have no doubt but what we
can read, write, rise, sit down or walk at any stated time.
If our actions be subject to fate, we can subject fate to our
fancy ; if they be determined by physiological causes, we can
determine, at pleasure, those causes. This looks so much
like liberty that mankind is disposed to believe itself free.
No court of justice would listen to the culprit, were he to
enter the plea, that he was forced by a necessity of nature to
commit the crime. Yet he would be justified in so doing
were his will not free. Therefore the incidents of daily life,
the history of all nations, teach us that all men have at all
times been convinced of the liberty of the will : this universal
and constant effect requires a universal and constant cause.
This cause is the inner consciousness of each individual ; or
this effect arises from the evidence of truth ; each soul being
adapted to acquire truth.

5th. — From the ahstirdities which would follow in the con-
trary sentence. It must be well borne in mind that Avithout
real liberty of action, there cau be no responsibility. Unless
my rational principle can, by its active force, deterraiuo my

LIBERTY OF THE WILL.

121

actions, I cannot be accountable for ^-'om. Again, if the
will be not really free, there can be no difference between
what are called good and bad actions. IicM3e, unless our
will is free there is no such thing as a moral order ; virtue
and vice are empty names ; thanksgivings to benefactors,
nonsense ; duty towards God, an idle assertion ; hate of ini-
quity, and punishment of transgressors, unjust. The coward
who fled from iiis post, or the traitor who sold his country to
the enemy, is worthy of the same praise as the hero who
fronted the invader and repelled his attack. This is no
poetic exaggeration ; in sober fact all this would be true if
the determination of our actions did not depend on the un-
trammelod activity of our souls. It is useless to seek to find
a third term ; either our will is under no necessity from
within or without iu its choice, or it is. If the Hrst, then
it is free, and we are responsible for our actions : if the
second, then all these absurdities necessarily follow ; the
whole human race has been for ages under a huge delusion,
in a matter, too, which nearly coucerns each one. We do
not think that any one can seriously deny the liberty of the
Avill ; no one, surely, is prepared to say that I may just as
well raise my arm and smite him to ihe ground as not. Yet,
if I am not free, what harm in doing it? Some deny, Avith
their lips, free will, but they would scarcely accept the above
enumerated absurdities. Still, such is the itch of some to
be considered occentric, or to fight against the truths of
Christianity, that they defend a theory from the inevitable
consequences of which, tlieir better nature recoils. It would
be more creditable to their intellects to defend no principle
whose consequences they must repudiate. Some seek to ease
their troubled conscience by invoking fate ; but in vain.
They cannot succeed even in deceiving themselves ; when
some enterprise has proved a failure they bitterly reproach

I'i-

gage:

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122

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

their hasty action ; iu seeking to gratify those passions, for
the sake of which they deny liberty of will, they plot and
plan the most efficacious means. In a word, no sane man
can seriously believe that his actions are subject to any fatal
necessity. Let each one, tlien, thank God, for the noble
attribute of liberty, and use it in such a manner that he need
never wish that it could be denied.

"^^^.V

"'^^

•r,\

.-.r^

CHAPTER VIII.

UNION OF THE SOUL AND BODY.

-6/

^a^.

F we wish to know as much of man as reason can
teach, we must consider the whole individual. Wo
have proved beyond a doubt that there is in man a
S'Aj simple, spiritual substance, called the soul ; this soul
is the principle of thought, will, and feeling; truth and good
are its objects : in its pursuit after the former it can acquire
certainty, and in its choice of finite gf)od8 it is under no in-
trinsic or extrinsic necessity, that is, the will enjoys liberty,
But there is more than this in man ; there is a material part,
an exceedingly beautiful piece of mechanism, provided with
delicate organic apparatus, called the body. In life, neither
of these, taken by itself, constitutes the individual man ; the
person arises from an intimate union of these two distinct
and diverse substances. Each, considered separately, has
properties peculiar to itself; considered in their union, they
have properties and actions which could not pertain to either
of them if they were disunited. Man perceives a house, for
instance : this could not be done by the body alone, because
as proved, a compound substance cannot be the subject of
perception ; neither could it be done by the soul alone, natu-
rally speaking, because to see a material thing it recpiires
material organs, the eyes. From this, and many similar
properties of manj it is clear that man is a being composed

('I-

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i
Pi

mmm

124

PIIILOSOniY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATKD.

:.|IP:I

of a spirituiil and corporeal part, physienlly and sid)slantially
united. Tlicir union is not accidental ; neither is the sonl in
the body like a man on a velocipcdi; : biit they are so united
that from their union arises a ratioiuil individual, having
properties diverse from those of either substaLces, separately
considered. Such is man ; such we must consider him if we
wish to arrive at a reasonable explanation of ourselves, our
thoughts and our daily actions. Hitherto we treated only of
the more noble part of man ; now we will view him in his
entirety. It is not our intention to prove the existence of
the body ; avc take it for granted ; neither will we speak of
its anat{)mi(;al structure ; we will merely consider its union
with the soul. It may be objected by some, that hitherto we
have spent a great deal of time on a dry meta{)liysical ques-
tion. Now the question about our soul was surely a meta-
physical one, but it was neither dry, nor uninteresting. It
is replete with great social and religious principles. If the
soul were not simple and spiritual, the will would not be
free, and consequently, there would be no ditfo;v3nce between
acts of virtue and vice : it would not be immt)rtal, and
consequently, there would be no punishment to fear, no
reward to merit ; our final end would be in this life. We
would be creatures of a brief span, doomed to flutter a moth-
like existence amid the garish trappings of life, and then to
sink into nothing, like the veriest mote that sports a one-day
life in the sunbeam. Dreary, unlovable, desolating doctrine
of materialism — that chills the warm yearnings of future*;
bliss — that checks the generous im{)ulses of heroism, and
restrains the lofty flight of intellect, — is all that would
remain. We pity the blindness, the debasement, of those
who bow in servile fear before a sculptured god ; but is not
the intellectual darkness of the materialist as great, perhaps
greater? And there are men who pretend to be cultivated

TJNION OF THE SOUL AND BODY.

125

— who lay pretensions to literary acquirements — who sneer
at the " i<;:norancc of the middle a<i:es," who do not blush to
assert that there is nought in man exccj)t the •(ross material
body, which is palpable and visible. Hence we iuive deemed
it well to prove the soul to be simple and spiritual, endowed
with intelligence and free will ; that it can exercise these
without the aid of corporeal organs ; and, consequently, when
its tabernacle of clay will have been dissolved it can still live
and act ; can receive merited reward, or condign puuislimeut.
But, unhappily, in our age we are in too great a hurry : even
as you will see men drawing on their coats as they are rushing
from the house, so, too, you may see them (luittiug educa-
tional establishments, before their mind has been mailed
with the armor of truth. Dollars and cemts are the objects
in view ; if boys can icad, without stammering, trashy novels,
and sickening love tales, and calculate interest with tolerable
ease, they fancy themselves etlucated, and straightway begin
life. If they have not received a good moral training they
give way, at onc-e, to debasing passions ; the light of intellect
becomes clouded ; faith has eitlier never been possessed, or
has been renounced. Like dumb animals < they are content
with animal pleasures ; finally, either to banish the fear that
haunts them, or because their intelligence has become almost
darkened, they admit nothing in man except flesh and bones,
fibres and muscles. Others, again, considering the wonder-
ful structure of the human body ; seeing its net-work of
delicate fibres all tending to the brain, are lost in amaze at its
harmony of design, and disposition of parts, and think it
sufficient to explain all the thoughts and affections of man.
Had such persons studied metaphysics they would have
learned that it is impossible for compound substances, how
delicate soever they may be, to think, feel) or reason. Since
truth can never be opposed to truth, that which metaphysics

(' I

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126

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

evidently demonstrates cannot, by any possibility, be opposed
to any fact made known by anatomy or physiology. Tliere
may be an apparent contradiction, but it cannot be real.

Now there are certain physiological facts which' seem to
be opposed to what we have said about the soul. Insanity,
for instance, may arise from a compression of the skull on
the brain, from a diseased organ, or from other causes.
Since we say the soul is the principle of reason, it might
appear diHlcult to see how reason could be affected by a
vitiated organ. A right idea of the union of soul and body
explains it. We have two undoubted facts : 1st, the soul is
the principle of reason ; 2d, insanity may be occasioned by
a physical disorder. They appear to clash ; what is to be
done? A sensible man would not deny either; he would
seek to reconcile them ; if he coi ild not succeed he would
humbly profess his ignorance, and recognize the limitation of
his intellect. But an unlearned and proud person, not wish-
ing us to think that there was anything beyond his compre-
hension, would deny the existence of the soul, and, Alexander
like, would untie the knot by ignoring it. We can, however,
easily reconcile these two facts, the one of psychology, the
other of physiology. God, in creating man, ordained that
he should be a being composed of a material body and an
immaterial soul so united, that from their union there should
arise an individual endowed with reason and free will.
This individual would have a tendency both to sensible, and
intellectual good, by reason of his two parts ; his reason,
being the nobler, should guide and moderate, within due
limits, the tendency to earthly things. The soul was, thus,
pre-ordained to a union with the body, and the body was
pre-disposed for this union. A mutual commerce, or recipro-
city of action, naturally exists, betvreen body and soul in the
individual. Of itself the body is a beautiful piece of mechan-

UNION OF THE SOUL AND BODT.

1S7

* ism ; symmetrically proportioned ; artisticftlly fashioned.
But it is without motion — an inert mass. Imapue the body
of Adam, fresh from the hand of God that fashioned it,
stretched on its kindred clay : you may admire its noble
brow, its well-cut lip, its chiselled parian cheek, its delicate
nostril, its raven locks. *Tis a beautiful, yet a sad sight :
for the brow is cold, the lips are motionless, the cheeks are
ashy, the eyes are vacant. Now imagine that you are
watching the Almighty breathing into it the spirit of life,
that is, infusing into it a soul. How sudden, how glorious
the change ! Warmth comes to the brow, motion to the lips,
color to the checks ; the nostrils dilate with the play of
emotions ; intelligence gleams in the eyes. Life and motion
are seen where before there were only stillness uud death :
the mechanism of the body is set in motion ; the musclea
contract, the form rises from the earth, and Adam walks
forth the lord of creation. The soul is thus the vivifier of
the body, the principle of life and action. It makes the body
move at pleasure, and thus acts upon it ; the body receives
on its organs of sense impressions from external objects, and
transmits them to the soul. In this consists the commerce
of soul and body, or reciprocity of action of which we have
spoken. In order, however, that this mutual action may
continue, the organs of the body must remain in a healthy,
or normal state. If they become impaired to a certain
degree, or in a certain way, the soul can no longer act on
them as usual, and insanity may result. The soul will not
be diseased, but owing to the vitiated state of the organic
parts of the body, it receives from them disordered impres-
sions, and unreal representations. The totterings of the
drunkard, the phantoms which haunt the victim of delirium
tremens^ are explained by the liquor having acted so on the
nerves, and on the organs of sight, as to have throwathem out

;J'f-

"■mi

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128

riiiLosoriiY OF the bible vindicated.

it'

of tlioir normal .state ; the soul Htill act.s on tlieni, but not as
i'oinu'ily. Tlu; fiiiLrerH may fly as usual ov(!r (lie chords ot
an untuned harp, hut the uuiHic, hintead of heiu;i^ sweet and
hannonious, will grate harshly on the ear; so the soul may
endeavor to move the body with lu-m tread, but the locomo-
tive organs being vitiated, a stumbling gait is the result.
An unnatural trembling of the visual nerves, will convey a
false impression of external objects, causing one candle to
appear in half-a-dozen different places, and transforming
beautiful designs on the wall, into hideous monsters. In a
word, soul and body being intimately united, certain organic
conditions are necessary in order that the soul may rightly
exercise its power. Organic sanity is a condition necessary
for healthy intellectual action, not the cause of it ; hence the
explanation of insanity, and the inability to stndy when
suffering from headache. All physiological facts which
appear to clash with the spirituality of the soul, can be thus
explained, and only serve as confirmations of our conclusion
that the union between soul and body is physical and sub-
stantial.

Sleep is a partial cessation of the commerce between body
and soul ; rest is needful tor the fatigued muscles and sinews,
and for the harassed fibres of the brain, but it is not necessary
for a soul. The activity of the soul is seen even during
sleep ; we are often conscious of pain in our slumber ; it is a
dull and confused sensation, because the sensitive organs are
more or less relaxed, and less obnoxious to impressions.
Again, dreams prove that the mind is ever active, altliough,
by reason of the abnormal condition of the organic system,
its action is often fantastic. The body, being composite,
tends to dissolution ; this is the inexorable enemy of all
compound substances. The various forms of disease arise
from a dissolution setting in iu some particular part of the

,!lii!|I

UNION OF TIIK SOUL AND HODY.

129

system. The wliole art of modiciue consists in p:iviiif? such
dru;;s as tend to stay the dissolution, or to restore the waste
which has ah'civdy (akcn phicc. If this be not done the
process of decay goes on ; sometimes (juickly, sometimes
8h)wly, accordiii;^ as the pnxhicing cause is more or less
virulent. One hy one the orf^nns niay become so aft'ccted
tl 'if^ soul cun uo lonj?er make use of them ; at length the
Viuti ones give way ; the pulse beats no more, the action of
the heart is stilled, the commerce between the soul and body
is rendered impossihlc ; the in<lividual dies. The body
moulders in dust, because j)hysically compound ; the soul
being simple and spiritual, cannot corrupt. A dispassionate
consideration of tht' nature of compound, and simple sul>
stances, and a rational survey of man's actions and thoughts,
easily effect a reconcih'atiou between the facts of jjsychology
and those of physiology. A knowledge of both these sciences
is necessary, if wc wish to learn all that can be learnt of
our U'es. Some metaphysicians have ignored too much the
re ^cal action of soul and body ; they have, apparently,
been stricken with a dread of materialism, and havt' almost
flown to the opjjositc pole. A great many physiologists have
never learnt metaphysics ; enamored of their own branch of
study, they neglect, or despise, other branches ; they develop
their intellect oidy in one way, viz : through the senses ;
hence they begin to think that nought is to be admitted
except what falls under the sense. In their anatomical
investigations, they do not see, or feel, the soul ; upon this
they conclude, it does not exist. A very illogical conse-
quence, but one too commonly deduced. If they used their
reason a little, they could prove satisfactorily, that notwith-
standing the beauty and adaptation of the body, it is merely
a machine without a motive power. Its parts, however

delicate, could never be a principle of thought and will ; its
10

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130

PHILOSOPHY OP THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

III

fiubtle fluids, and net-work of nerves and fibres, can be only
conditions^ not causes, of communication Avith other tLings.
Tlie miserable sophisms that are flaunted in our face as facts,
the grotescjue theories regarding man which many delve from
their uncultivated brains, could never mislead the medical
student who had made a good course of metaphysics.

We have now established the fact of a reciprocity of action
bctAveen the soul and body : it might still be asked : " but
liow does the soul act on the body, and vice-versa?" We
know the fact, can we know its how f It must be borne in
mind that even if we cannot answer this question, the truth
of what has been proved above remains intact. There are
innumerable facts which science, in its present state, at least
cannot explain. Materialists would profit nothing by our
ignorance, because we would ask them to explain how any
one force acts on another. We can answer our ([uestion
equally as well as they can that. It is a fact that at the will
of the soul our muscles contract and expand. Why so?
The soul is a force ; the body is an aggregate of forces ; the
former is of a superior nature and domineers over the inferior
ones. Volition acts on the subtle, but inferior forces,' of
whicli the brain fluid is composed ; these act upon the fibres
and muscles and thus set the whole nuichinery in motion.
Volition is something like the discharge of an electric bat-
tery ; the electricity discharged will act upon an object and
be carried over it to a distance ; so the self-determining force
of the soul, being naturally ordained to act on the un-self-
determining forces of the body with which it is united, sets
them in motion, and guides their course Since our soul is
a finite being it can only have imm^ . .le relation with a
limited number of inferior forces ; i^^nce it can only act
immediately on our bodies ; through means of the body it
can place itself in mediate relation with other objects, aud

UNION OP THE SOUL AND BODY.

131

Perfectibility of our Intellectual Powers.

There are some facts known to all which might here be
examined: 1st, Some persons are naturally more apt to
acquire science than others ; 2(1, Cultivation perfects the
intellect. The explanation of the first is this : man is to
acquire knowledge, naturally, by the exercise of the powers
of his soul. While in life we are not to view the soul sepa-
rately, we must consider it united to a body. Although, as
shown above, the soul can, by abstraction, have intellectual
ideas, such as could never fall under the sense, and is con-
sequently, spiritual, still the matter, we may call it, of most
of Its ideas, is derived through the senses. We use our eyes
to read, our ears to listen to the professor, our phantasy to
re()resent ideas. Hence it follows that our impressions will
partake of the nature of the organs, through which they are
conveyed to the soul. An organic change will produce a
corresponding change in the matter of our ideas. A fine,
delicate organization will be more sensitive to the impressions
of external things, and will convey them more faithfully than
a coarser one. Lively, subtle fluids will be quicker in their
operation than sluggish ones. The ditference of organization,
then, is the reason of the difference of natural aptitude for
learning. It is a consequence of the intimate union of soul
and body. Regarding the second fact, that cultivation per-
fects our intellectual powers, the explanation is obvious.
The object of the intellect is truth ; it has, coevally with its
existence, a certain amount of truth, and the power and
aptitude of acquiring more. By the exercise of this power
it increases its store of knowledge. Cultivation of the intel-
lect is but a bringing into play its power ; an opening up for
it of a wider range of action, and, as a consequence, an ad-
ding to its ideas. As before observed, it is the gymnasium
of the soul. This perfectibility of the intellect is another
proof of its spirituality, Were we nought but well-regulated

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132

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

machines, kept, in motion by some force akin to electricity —
were our thoughts and affections only organic plienomena,
there would be no possibility of advancing in science. A
power to analyze, to judge, to compare various facts or im-
pressions, and a power to recall former ones, are necessary
in order to increase in knowledge. Now no one who has not
abdicated one's reason, will pretend that such a power could,
by any possibility, belong to mere sensations, or nervous
affections, or any other of the materialistic substitutes for a
spiritual soul. One affection, or plienomenon, would have
no connection with the others ; it would come, and pass
away forever, like the trembling of a lute. Without a per-
manent principle of life and intelligence, there could be no
perception, or remembrance of an affection.

Tliis explanation of the diifcrence of intellectual power in
individuals, is more satisfactory, and more in accordance
with anatomical observations, than that of relative weight of
brain ; or anterior and posterior development ; or facial
angle. Each of these theories is contradicted by actual fact.
No doubt certain forms of head, certain developments of
physiognomy, are often found associated with great, or poor
talents in the person. It only follows from tliis that a system
well or ill adapted to receive impressions, shows certain
characteristic marks ; it does not follow that these marks are
causes. Again, we believe that, to a certain extent, the
natural tendency of a person may be known from anatomical,
or physiognomic observations ; but, since the will is free, we
can never conclude that the person is addicted to the passions
towards which, natin-ally, he is inclined. A pronness to any
vice, or virtue may be checked, and altogether overcome by
the will. Hence phrenology, or the reading of character
from the development of certain bumps, may, perhaps, tell
the natural tendency of an individual ; but it can never tell
vbat his conduct really is, because of his liberty of will.

■icity —
omena,
ce. A
or im-
scessary
has not
r could,
nervous
3S for a
1(1 have
lid pass
t a per-
i be no

owcr in

jordance
eight of

>r facial
iial fact.

ueiits of
or poor
I system
certain
arks are
eiit, the
tomical,
free, we
passions
ss to any
)iue by
laracter
laps, tell
ever tell

will.

(•(

CHAPTER IX.

IMMORTALITY OF THE SODL.

hitherto
e not,

V9 i N a social and moral point of view, what has hi
(^ j i been proved, would be of little avail could wi
k(>r: likewise, prove that our soul is immortal. If our

^'{L soul were to perish with its earthly companion, our
final end would be in this world ; no hope of a life beyond
the grave would cheer the gloom of the just man in affliction ;
no fear of a stern judge would deter the impious. Our life
here would be the greatest boon of existence, because with-
out it we could not enjoy anything ; hence its preservation
would be at once our chief good, and primary duty. He
who would expose it to danger would be a fool ; he who
would not remorselessly break down and trample upon all
ties of friendship and blood, in order not to endanger it,
would be the laughing stock of a community. What social
chaos would result from this. The mother would cast thei
diseased babe from her breast, lest she might bocome affected
thereby ; the husband would shun the house in whicii lay
stretched the wasted form of his wife, smitten by some con-
tagious disease. The soldier would desert his post, and
leave the city to perish, if thus he could jirolong his life.
Our final end being, in this supposition, in this world, all the
pleasures we could cull would be our chief pursuit. If a
man were an obstacle to the attainment of t-jme gratification,

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PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

to strike him down relentlessly Avould be our inalienable
right. Darwin's process of selection would go on beautifully'
in such a state of society. Now let it not be objected, that
a moral sense, or natural love, or reason, would be sufficient
to prevent sucii consequences. These stimulants to civilized
life exist only because the soul is immortal. If we were to
end with death, our moral sense, our love, our reason, would
all cry out : — " take all you can ; enjoy yourself as much as
possible ; " eat, drink, and be merry, for to-morrow we die.'*
This would, necessarily, be the promptings of a nature
doomed to only a brief existence. Did reason tell me to
consider another before myself, in the supposition of our souls
being mortal, it would be unreasonable. Life is the greatest
temporal boon, since it is the foundation of all others ; hence
it would be madness to expose it for the sake of another,
unless there were an hereafter. From this it can be seen
what a degrading, selfish, anti-social doctrine materialism is ;
what a misshapen brood of social evils it would engender ; it
can, likewise, be seen what services the Catholic church has
rendered to humanity ; by ordering all teachers of philosophy
in universities, to refute the errors of an author read, regard-
ing the immortality and unity of the soul, and similar errors,
since, so the words run, — these are all soluble — (Act. Cone.
Labbaei Tom. xiv. p. 187.) Does anyone know whether
the enemies of our church call tliis a degradation of reason?
The idea of immortality includes the idea of perpetual
existence and life. Hence when Ave say the soul is immortal
we mean that it Avill exist forever, and exercise vital actions.
It is not the kind of immortality attributed to it by some
physical scientists, who make it, after death, an unintelligent
substance floating in the azure, like electricity ; our idea of
immortality is at once more noble, and more philosophic ;
the soul will exist, and wiU be, as in life, intelligent. "VVe

IMMORTALITY OP THE SOUL.

135

will proceed in our proof by steps : 1st, The soul can exist
and act when separated from the body. 2d, No created
force, no natural j)rocess can destroy the soul. 3d, God only
could destroy it, but he will not, he wisiies it to be immortal.

Regarding tlie first proposition, that the soul can exist and
act when disunited from the body, we merely need 'recall
that we proved the soul to be a substance distinct and diverse
from the body: althouglj united in life they are not merged
in one, but eadi remains a distinct substance. Hence the
dissohition of the body does not involve the necessity of the
destruction of the so\d, no more than the death of one person
involves the death of his neighbor. Tiie soul can, therefore,
exist after the deca/ of the body. It can also act ; it is a
substance, or force ; all substances necessarily act, and act
according to their nature. Therefore tlie soul acts as long
as it exists, and arts as a spiritual sid>stance, viz : by exer-
cising acts of intelligence and will. But it can exist separate
from the body ; therefore, also, it can act as an intelligent
being. It will not want for ideas on which to exercise its
power; apart from its rcmeml)rance of the ones acquired iu
life, it will always have the knowledge of its own existence,
from which it cou.d deduce the existence of God and his
great perfections.

The second proposition says, that no created force, no
natural process cai destroy the soul. There arc only two
ways by wliich a *hing can be destroyed, either by dissolu-
tion of its parts, rr by unnihihition. Now we proved the
soul to be physicaly simple ; hence it cannot perish by dis-
solution, for only compound substances can be dissolved.
The only way, tlen, by which the soul can perish is by
annihilation, Bu; we showed in theoh)gy, that as only God
can create, so ou^y he can annihilate, for annihilation is a
suspension of the creative act. Moreover, all scientists

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136

PHiLOSopnr OF the bible vindicated.

agree, that by no natural power can any particle of matter
be made, or destroyed. Tlierefore the soul, which is a sub-
stauce, cannot be destroyed by any created power. Its
properties of thought and will cannot be destroyed, because
they are essential. That which cannot destroy the essence
of a simple being cannot destroy its essential properties.

There remains, then, but one Avay by which the soul can
perish, viz : by the action of its creator. Now, absolutely
speaking, God could annihilate the soul ; but looking at
things as they are constituted by him, and not at the manner
in which they might have been created, tvc can prove that
not only he will not destroy the soul, but that he positively
wishes and intends it to be immortal. We proved that all
things were created for the glory of God ; he is the end of
man ; his external glory is the object of creation. Again,
we proved man to be rational and free. Now since God is
infinitely wise he must have provided metujs suthcient and
suitable to the nature of each thing, to enaMe it to attain its
end. These means, as regfirds a ratioua. and free being,
must be certain laws, or directions, according to which it
should conform its actions. An intelligeutbeing is not to be
dragged to its end ; its dignity requires that it be directed to
it by laws in keeping with its nature. ThiB we find a priori
that God must have imposed certain laws en man : this con-
clusion is confirmed a posterion. Every jation, each indi-
vidual, has, at all limes, held certain actbns to be lawful
and obligatory, such as to reverence parents, and to obey
God ; and have looked upon others as unhuvful, as crimes.
This constant universal fact can only be explained, by saying
that it arises from the evidence of reason. N^ other sufficient
cause could be assigned. Education, sujierstition, social
intercourse and any thing of that sort is dumgeable : not
only is it different among different uatiout, but it varies

IMMORTALITY OF THE SOUL.

137

araonf^ the same nation durinfjf the hipse of ages ; while the
judgment of men, regarding these actions, remains unchanged.
Therefore it is from the evidence of reason : therefore natur-
ally a law has been imposed on man. Now God must have
affixed a sufficient sanction to that law, otherwise he would
be a foolish legislator. He must have determined a reward
sufficiently great, and must have threatened a punishment
sufficiently severe, to warrant a rational being in observing
it at any cost. His wisdom requires this. Now, if we
abstract from a future life, there is no motive sufficient to
induce a man to observe this law at all times. Were there
any such motive it would have to be one of these three :
1st, the good and evil of this life : 2d, the love of vii'tue and
hatred of vice : 3d, the congruity of the law with the light of
reason. Now it is evident that the lirst is insufficient ; for
the goods and miseries of this world are indiscriminately
enjo.}cd by the observers of the law and by its transgressors.
Very often, indeed, the just have more of the miseries, and
a smaller share of the goods of life. Again, in the case of
killing a man and usurping his possessions, the breaking of
the law would confer a temporal good. It could not be the
love of virtue and hatred of vice ; if we were to end n'ith
death virtue would lose its charm, and vice its horror.
Again, our perception of the beauty of virtue is not so very
keen, especially when our interest in life, and our passions,
solicit us to pursue a contrary course. Vice at first sight is
liateful, but alas ! how soon does it lose its horror ! Pope
truly says :

" Vice is a monster of such ludeons mein.
That to be hated needs but to be seen ;
If seen too oft, grown familiar vvitli its face,
We tirst endure, then pity, then ('nil)race.''

Finally, the congruity of the law with the light of reason
would not suffice. Without an hereafter the final end of

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188

rniLOSOPHT OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

i '3

man would be in this life ; consequently reason would tell
him that tlie law was not to be observed whenever it clashed
with his present enjoyment or gain. Therefore unless the
soul is to exist and live after its separation from tlie body,
God would not have affixed a sufficient sanction to tlie law
imposed by him on man. But this would be absurd. There-
fore the soul does not perish with the body.

But the justice of God, no less tljan his wisdom, demands
that the soul should survive the wreck of the body. Being
just he must wish and provide that the lot of the observers
of his law be better than that of its breakers. Now It is
abundantly evident that in this life the lotof the just is often
worse than that of the wicked. Therefore there must be
another life in which due portions will be meted out to all.

If we consider the nature of man, either in itself, or in its
relation to society, we will see, with equal clearness, the
necessity of admitting another life. Man naturally and
invincibly desires perfect happiness ; all his actions prove it ;
he never performs the slightest turn, he nevir determines
himself to action, without seeking either present, or future
happiness of some kind. This longing after felicity is com-
mon to all ; it cannot be explained without admitting that it
is inherent to, and inborn of our nature. Therefore it has
God for its author. But that which has God for an author
can never be useless, or vain ; consequently this ardent desire
of felicity can be satiated. Now it is clear that it never can
be satisfied in this life ; no one would pretend that man can
ever have all the desires of his heart gratified in this world.
Therefore there must be another life, in which this happiness,
so ardently desired, can be obtained. Moreover, reason tells
us that our happiness is linked to an observance of the moral
law ; now in order to observe that law we must often under-
go great sufferings ; we must often deprive ourselves of many

IMMOBTALITY OP THE SOUL.

139

worlflly benefits. If, then, there be no other life, reason is
a false guide ; it is worse ; it is a traitor ; our conseienee is
a vain prejudice ; our probity of life a weakness ; God him-
self would be making us enemies to ourselves ; he would be
our heartless tyrant. Such a tissue of absurdities is repug-
nant to natural reason. Therefore another life must be
admitted. Again, the brute creation have all their desires
gratified in this world ; they only seek sensible good, and
they get it. Now since man can never, under any circum-
stances, obtain perfect satisfaction of his desires whilst here,
it would follow that unless there be an hereafter, his lot
would be much worse than that of the brute creation. It
would be better for man to degenerate iuto a monkey, than
to go on developing intellectuality. If Darwin seeks man's
good, he ought to turn his attention to the finding of some
process of " natural selection," by which the human family
can, as soon as possible, become idiotic gorillas, to be happy
like those that now chatter unintelligibly along the banks of
the Nile. St. Augustine, as usual, in a few well-chosen
words, proves our immortality : " If we were brate animals,
we would love only a carnal life, and that which was sensible ;
this would be a sufficient good for us, and therefore, since it
would be such, we would not seek anything else." (De. Civ.
Dei L. cap. 28.)

Considering man relatively to society his nature demands
an after life. Man is sociable by nature ; society is an out-
come of our natural tendency. The individual has duties
towards the state of which he is a citizen. It is sometimes
an imperative duty for the citizen to expose his life to certain
danger for the good of the commonwealth, Now this duty
necessarily supposes a future life ; as often observed already,
if we abstract from immortality, the present life would be
our greatest good, the foundation of all other good. There

i -._■
i . :

140

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

m :

»i ; I

I'l

i I

I! i

would, tlien, be uo duty ho consonant to reason as tlie pre-
servatiou of life : hence tiie individual could never find himself
obliged, by the dictates of reason, to expose it to certain
danger for the preservation of the state, or for any other
purpose. Again, in society, only public offences can be
punished. Without the tliought of a future state there would
be no restraint on the secret actions of the citizens. How
long would society last in such a case? About as long as
good-fellowship appears to exist between a pen of pigs, viz :
until the appearance of the swill-tub ; then it is each pig for
himself, and woe to the weak.

A final and cumulative argument can be drawn from the
universal belief of mankind. Every tribe and nation, ancient
or modern, has believed in a future state of some sort or
other, It may be the Elysian fields, and shady groves of the
poetic Greeks ; it may be the avernus of the stern Romans ;
it may be the sensual heaven of the Moslem ; it may be the
happy hunting ground of the Red-man ; or it may be some-
thing more refined or coarser, but look where you will, you
•will always find in the history of nations the fundamental
idea of a future life. " Non omnis moriar," was as common
with the mass, as with the cultured. More than this, there
was joined with this belief of after existence, a belief that
different lots aw^aited the just and impious. In the case of
each nation an observance of certain general principles of
morality, was the condition necessary to ensure a happy
seat. Now this constant universal belief, like all other facts
of a similar nature, can only be explained by attributing it
to the evidence of reason. Therefore nature is the author
of this belief: ther<'fore it is true.

Again, each individual feels within him that he is not
cjfomed to perish ; he recoils from the thought ; why? because
it is unnatural. Truly, as well as beautifully, Addison
wrote : —

Hi. I

IMMORTALITY OF THE SOUL.

141

III

" It must b(^ so, Plato, thou roasoiiost well,
Klse whence this pleasin;:; hope, this fond desire,
This loii^in<j after Ininioitality i*
Or why this secret dread, this inward horror
Of fallin;^ into noufj;iit':' Wiiy shrinks the soul
IJacii on itself, and startles at «lestru(;tionV
'Tis the Divinity that stirs within ua;
'Tis Heaven itself tliat i)olnts out an hereafter
And intimates eternity to man."

Briefly we can thus sum up the (h-eary lot of man, if there
existed no future life. He would be a rational being, destined
for an irrational end ; his reason would be at once his polar
star and his rock of certain shipwrecic ; his nature would
have a longing t!nit there would never bo any ho})e of satis-
fying ; his condition would be more miserable than that of
the brute creation. Having an aptitude and tendency to
social life, he should either do violence to himself and renounce
it, or join it to his own sure detriment. All the ennobling
instincts of his nature, such as courage, care of tlie afflicted,
desire of intellectual perfection and generous promptings,
would be so many inveterate domestic enemies, hounding
him on to his own destruction. Unhappy here from a thou-
sand unavoidable causes, certain that he would be so during
life, and, cruellest of all his tortures, sure that in a few
brief years his soul, more vilely used than a particle of
clay, would be quenched in nothingness forever. It would
be a gloomy prospect ; but our consolation is that our soul
is immortal.

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CHAPTER X.

CAUSE OF EVIL IN THE WORLD.

O lenf^thy ar^riimcnt is required to prove that there is
much evil iu the world. No very fine-drawn defini-
tion of it is required: each one is convinced that
^^ certain things are to be left undone ; if tiicy be done
they are said to be evil, sinful. However, in may not be so
generally understood that evil is a negation of good, a
deflection from it. Just as cold is the negation of heat, so
evil is of good. The action from which evil follows may bo
positive, but evil will always remain something negative ;
the object of the actor is always real, or apparent good ; but
inasmuch as his action deflects from the rule of rectitude, it
is said to produce evil. There are three species of good :
metaphysical, physical and moral ; corresponding to these
there are three species of evil so-called. A defect of greater
perfection iu a being is what is called metaphysical evil ; but
in reality it is no evil ; it is the necessary consequence of a
finite nature. Every created thing must be deficient of some
higher perfection of essence, but this is, strictly, no evil.
Physical evil is a defect of the normal physical good of a
being ; thus blindness, ill-health, &c., are physical evils.
Moral evil is, as said, a defect of due moral good, a departure
from the rule of rectitude. The question concerning the
cause of evil is an ancient one ; like many simple questions,

CAUSE OF EVIL IN THE WORLD.

143

'•e;

it seems to have puzzled some wise heads. Perhaps the
very Hiin|)licity of it may have been the reason of its apparent
dilliciihy. Great minds, sometimes, overlooi< an easy
exjihuuition of a ph«'nomenon, and bucome nnnhlled, in seek-
ing to render satisliu'lory their own wild conceits. It is
singniar that nniny who are by no means noted for their
virtne and <j;oodness, would wish to impress us with a lofty
idea of their respect fur God. Unfortunately lor their pur-
pose, their acuteiiess is not equal to their zeal. Unused to
retlection on Ciod, they awkwardly trip when they propound
their sanctimonious theories. In order to deny the Provi-
dence of Ciod, they piously exclaim: " there are many evils
in the world ; but a frood God, if he had care of the world,
would not permit these evils ; therefore he cares nought
about what we do here below." This is the sura total of
the arguments deduced from the existence of evil in the
world, against God's Providence. It aU'ects a mighty rever-
ence for the sanctity of the Creator, while, in fact, it denies
him both sanctity and wisdom. The question regarding the
origin of evil, is thus closely united with the Providence of
God ; to palliate their own impiety, to stifle, if possible, the
voice of conscience, many do not hesitate to deny to God
iufelligeuce ; and they cloak their wickedness under an
appearance of profound respect, for what a personal God
ought, according to them, to do. We nov/ confine ourselves
to the origin of moral evil.

The manicha?ans, who were a shade less impious than
modern deists and pantheists, asserted that there were two
iipremc principles, one good, the other evil ; from the former
OAine all -rood, all evil from the latter. Although it is hard
to restn. a burst of laughter when reading this silly explan-
aiion of the cause of evil, the reader must remember that
liayle, whose works are the treasury of modern unbelievers^

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144

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

actually ileferuled the cause of the manichaeans. Wlmt
opiuiou can be formed of the philosophic ^orth of the writings
of a man who maintains a patent absurdity, a proposition
contradictory in two of its ideas? Two swpreme principles
is the apex of absurdity, unless, perchance, a principle
supremely evil, may surmount evcjn the giddy height of the
former. It is quite evident that two things cannot l)e both
supreme ; supreme does not admit either a superior, or an
equal ; hence if two things be equal, neither is sujireme ;
they are both conlingent, and one superior to both exists.
Any child knows that much. Again ; evil being a privation
of good, a being supremely evil, would be a supreme priva-
tion, a suj)reme nothing.

But not oidy is this system most absurd, it is also quite
insulKcient for the purpose. Either the bad principle is from
itself, or from the good one ; if the latter, then the same
ditliculty remains ; if the former, then it must be iutinitely
perfect ; but being perfect it could not commit evil. In a
word, the system is too absurd to merit a moment's conaid-
eration.

What, then, is the cause of moral evil? The abuse of
human liberty ; the act of man who misuses the gift of God.
God created man free ; he wished him to follow the directions
given for his guidance, but he does not force him to it. The
physical power given to man, and the ability to direct that
power, are, in themselves considered, good ; these God gave
to man, and, consecpiently, gave him something good. God
preserves these gifts to man for a certain time, and in this
his action has good, likewise, for its effect. The direction of
the physical power of man to a bad end, is the eifect of the
misuse of liberty of will ; and otdy man is to blame for this.
When the murderer raises his hand to bury the knife in the
heart of his victim, what part has God in the act ? This ; he

CAUSE OP EVIL IN THE WORLD.

145

ifi-ij

tiona
The
that
gave
God
this
on of
the
this,
the
; he

gave the murderer physical power ; he gave him ability to
direct tliat power ; in this only good appears ; evil begins
when that power is directed to a bad end, In this case, when
it is directed to the taking away of a life : but this direction
is purely the work of man ; therefore God has no part in the
malice of the act. The murderer might have directed his
physical power to the preservation of his victim's life ; but
he chose otherwise, God, therefore, concurs in physical acta
by supplying and preserving the necessary strength, and this
is something good ; in the evil of acts he does not concur at
all ; for evil results from the direction of the physical act,
and this direction is purely the work of the human will.

But some will say : God could have prevented evil, wHy
did he not do it ? Now it is to be borne in mind that God is
not held to create that which is best ; his liberty would be
destroyed. Moreover, all that can be exacted by God, when
creating, is that the being created by him be so endowed as
to be enabled to acquire the end for which it was created.
His justice and wisdom require this ; his sanctity requires
that the effect of his action be good. Now in the case of
man, the creative action produced good, viz : the physical
strength of body, the light of reason and the power of self-
determination ; this justified God's sanctity. Being free,
man needs not do evil ; God imposed on him a law by the
observance of which he caa attain his final end : God gave
him sufficient means to observe it ; therefore his justice and
wisdom are justified. We cannot, therefore, exact any more
of God ; we ought rather to thank him for what he has
already given. Out of his own pure goodness he gave us
life, reason, freedom of will, many temporal benefits* and he
has prepared for us an eternity of happiness which we can
acquire, if we be faithful to his inspirations. For these

innumerable favors we ought to be humbly thankful ^ instead
n

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146

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

J I

of grumbliDg at his bounty for not bestowing more. Grod
could have confirmed us (fo in good that we would never sin ;
had he done so, he would not have been any better in him-
self; he would only have been more bountiful towards us;
he did not choose to do this, neither was he obliged to do it.
The question can be summed up thus : the manichseaa
system is absurd, and insufficient if admitted. Evil arises
from an abuse of the liberty of will ; liberty is, in itself^
something good, but being misused it produces evil. God^
in giving man liberty of will, bestowed upon him a favor ;
he is not obliged to impede man in misusing it, for he 8ati»'
fied his goodness in conferring good on man ; and he satisfied
his justice and wisdom by giving him means suffi<»ent to
attain to his final end. From the fact that evil exists, and
is caused by a misuse of human liberty, we can deduce a
strong argument to prove that a stern retribution awaits the
impious in another life. By how much they have been
delinquents, by so much will they be punished.

UUii.

Ood
Bin ;
lim-
us;
it.
asan
rises
selfy
>od»
I'or ;
atift-
sfied
It to

and
ce a

the
been

CHAPTER XI.

KNOWLEDGE OF GOD, AND LIBERTY OF 1IAN*S WILL.

HE question to be considered in this chapter is a
ixed one ; it embraces some of the priaciples estab-
lis^hed in natural theology, and some psychological
CQf facts; heuce we deferred its consideration until the
present. God is a being infinite in all his perfections ;
theiefore his knowledge has no limits ; it is incapable of
increase, or dimiuution. He knows no more to-day than he
<iid when he said : " let there be light ;" he will know no
more when time will be past, than what he knows at present.
The reason of this is evident ; every reality, everything
knowable has the sufficient reason of its reality and cogno»-
cibility in his divine essence. Now God knows himself;
consequently he knows every reality, whether it exists or not ;
he is cognizant of everything knowable because in his essence
is the reason of all cognoscibility. Fro :> this it follows that
for God there is no past, nor future ; be i^> an infinite, simple
act, once, always, and together, willing and knowing what-
eoever he wills and knows. Everything that will come to
pass, or that could take place, is a reality, and consequently,
is knowable ; the reason of its reality and cognoscibility is
in the divine essence ; therefore it is known to God. Man's
knowledge, by reason of his limitation, is acquired by d^
^rees ; being fiuite, we can have that relatiou to ihiugs.

148

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

I 'il

through which our knowledge is chiefly obtained, only with
a limited number of beings ; according as we put ourselves,
or are put, in that relation with other objects, we acquire a
knowledge concerning them ; thus it is that there is a future
relatively to us ; and thus it is that our knowledge is not all
in one act, but is acquired by degrees. Some, judging of
G oa s knowledge as they do of man's, fall into the grevious
blunder of making his knowledge a piece of patch-work,
instead of a whole and seamle.ss robe. From what has been
said, it is evident that God knows everything knowable, the
future as well as the past.

On he other hand, we proved that man enjoyed liberty of
will ; we saw that he can, at pleasure, determine himself to
action, or to rest ; he can choose this or that finite good.
The question arises : " does God know the future free actions
of man? does he know what I will choose to-morrow?"
Most certainly ; these actions, although uot yet exercised, are
possibilities, or, in other words, realities, and consequently,
knowable ; in God's essence is the reason of their reality and
cognoscibility ; hence they must be known to him. This
reasoning is metaphysically certain ; but an apparent difficulty
occurs. Put into form it is this : either God does not know
the future free actions of man, or man is not free ; for what
God knows is about to be, must come to pass, as he cannot
be deceived ; therefore it necessarily happens ; consequently,
we must either deny God's knowledge, or man's free will.
This difficulty, at first sight, has a formidable appearance.
Cicero thought it so insoluble, that he denied God's know-
ledge of the future free actions of man ; ho was intimately
convinced of the existence of liberty of the will, and, to quote
St. 'Augustine, *' he made us sacriligious, that he might
make us free." Others have admitted God's knowledge, but
denied oui liberty. Now the true philosopher will never

.'M.,

KNOWLEDGE OF GOD, AND LIBERTY OF MAN's WILL. 149

deny either of two conflicting facts ; once that he has proved
both to be facts, he is sure that there can be no real contra-
diction between them ; he will seek to reconcile them if
possible ; if he cannot succeed in this, he will lay them by,
and label them, " unreconciled facts;" he will put them in
the same catalogue with innumerable facts of a similar nature.
This is the mode of procedure of true science ; the couuter-
feit article, conscious of its own worthlessuess, is afraid to
acknowledge ignorance of anything, lest its total absence of
knowledge might be suspected. Hence it will boldly deny
some well-established truth, or it will propound some ridicu-
lous theory. Regarding the present question, a little meta-
physical refinement will suffice to harmonize facts which
seem discordant. God knows what choice Peter will make
to-morrow, still that choice will be perfectly free. Peter
will not do the action because God knows it ; but God knows
it because Peter will do it. The fure-knowledge of God,
like any other cognition, supposes its object, it does not
make it. It is merely a speculative knowledge, and has no
influence whatsoever on the action. It has the same relation
to Peter s actions, as my sense of hearing has to the noise he
makes ; each is speculative ; each supposes its object. Physi-
cally speaking, God's foreknowledge is prior to human action,
but logically it is not. Every action, being somethitjg real,
must have existed representatively in the divine mind from
all eternity, as an object of God's knowledge. There can be
no knowledge without the knowable ; hence logically the
determinatiou of the free agent to action, is prior to the fore-
knowledge of it ; the action is, therefore, unaffected by this
knowledge. Once that we master the idea that all reality
has its reason in the divine essence, and that everything
knowable must be known to an infinite intelligence, and that
logically knowledge is posterior to the knowable, the difiiculty

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150

PHILOSOPHT OP THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

disappears ; because the various circumstances in which a
created will would be placed, and its choice in each cane, are
realities, and consequently, known to God ; but since the
choice is something knowable it must be prior, logically, to-
the knowledge had of it ; hence it is not caused by that
knowledge.

From the foregoing it is obvious that as regards God, there
is no such thing as chance. A chance event does not mean
an effect without a cause, for that would be an absurdity ;
but it means an unforseen and an unlooked for one. Thus,
two friends have been separated for yeai-s. Each, without
acquainting the other, sets out for a certain spot, and both
arrive at the same moment. The meeting is called a chance
one ; but it was not without its cause. The act of each
friend determining himself to go to the particular spot, on a
stated day, caused the nieeting ; but since this mutual deter-
mination was unknown, and unthonght of, the encounter is
called one of chance. Now since God knows the every future
determination of free agents, no eifeet of their actions can be
unforseen by him. Knowing the constitution of physical
things, and their laws, he knows all their effe<rt3 »nd future
changes. The stream of life rolls onward, bringing daily
new beings with its tide ; these buffet with the waves, or
idly float with the current ; no one of tht^m knows whether
the other will keep the straight course, or decline to tiie left;
be only, in whose infinite essence is the reason of all reality,
knows the future plashings of one and all.

CHAPTER XII.

FUTURE PUNISHMENT.

OME persons take a pecnliar pleasure in pnlHog up
the long fixed stakes of univeri^al belief A strange
mental delusion causes them to see awry evert liing
of the past : densely ignorant themselves, they pro-
claim the vastness of their fancied knowledge, and deride
what they jauntily term ^^superstition of the past." If one
were to ask what is this ^* superstition of the past," one
would find it embraced the leading truths of philosophy, —
truths which human reason long ago conclusively established
— truths which the most brilliant intellect of every age be-
lieved and demonstrated — truths which Christianity, likewise,
teaches and evolves Now this intolerant and intolerable
pride of a few untrained intellects, which despises all the
learning of the past, and which endeavors to persuade man-
kind that it was in hopeless darkness until the effulgence of
these vagrant intelligences burst forth, is both laughable and
provoking. Can any one repress an amused smile when
reading the lofty pretensions of these modern lights? Not
only can they tell man what he ought to do, but they can,
likewise, legislate for the supreme intelligence. They pro-
mulgate, in pompous phrase, the laws which the Almighty
must observe in his actions: if he will not observe them,
they threaten (awful punishment) to renounce him, to deny

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PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

his existence, to mount his supposed throne, and ref^ as
gods themselves ! Were these mad vagaries not blasphemous
they would be highly amusing. The most deplorable feature
of this mental madness is, that it rarely has a lucid interval.
It chiefly arises from a complete concentration of the mind
on itself; the lunatic never looks out to the genial day around
him ; shut up in its own diseased prison-house the mind
broods and mopes on self, self, until it becomes impressed
with the idea that nought but self is worth considering.
Unwary scribblers, wishing to be thought piquant, and unable
to judge between the mutterings of selfism and the plain
arguments of reasoning minds, adopt the latest theory, aa
ladies do the latest style of dress, without attending to its
reasonableness. Hence newspapers and magazines, reviews
and monthlies, teem with flippant gibes against the very
axioms of reason. It is to be noted, however, that this
intolerable selfism always attacks, as superstitions, the beliefs,
or propositions, which tend to restrain the indulgence of the
baser passions. It always advocates something which, if
practised, would degrade, not ennoble man. Hence, perhaps,
animalism, not selfism, would be the more correct term for
this disease. We never find selfism propounding any system
of ethics by the observance of which the nobler properties of
man would be brought into play. It pretends to emancipate
reason from the bondage of superstition, but it only rivets on
it the shackles of sensuality : it assumes the championship of
freedom, but it only sets up the debasing tyranny of material-
ism. This is sufficient to stamp it with lasting infamy.

In order that the reign of animalism may be brought
about, its supporters are not particular what line of argument
they pursue. Nothing, in the way of denial, comes amiss to
these intellectual giants ; in fact denial is their strong point.
The envious might be tempted to say that they prefer denial

FUTURE PUNISHMENT.

153

because it is always easy ; it requires no great mental endow-
ments to fit a man for denial. As shown before, if you take
away the belief of the existence of a personal God, or of an
immaterial and immortal soul, or of future retribution, you
give a clear track for the march of sensuality. Now we
have to demonstrate that not only God exists, and that our

will is free, and our souls immortal,but, likewise, that future
punishment awaits the impious. We have proved all except
the last named fact. For our basis, we take the established
truth that our soul is immortal : therefore some kind of life
Awaits each soul after the dissolution of the body. It must
be borne in mind that we do not attempt here to prove the
■existence of hell, as taught by Christianity ; that belongs to
sacred theology ; we only undertake to show, from reason,
that the impious soul is not happy ; it receives some kind of
punishment. Any one who has not bidden adieu to reason
must admit that a law has been imposed on man ; some
things are to be done, others are forbidden. " Do unto an-
other as you would another do to yon," is an axiom of reason ;
so is this other — '•' that which you would not wish to be done
to yourself, do not do to another." Clearly then some things
are commanded, others are prohibited. Therefore naturally
a law has been imposed on man. But there can be no law
without a lawgiver ; consequently there exists a supreme
lawgiver, infinite and intelligent who has imposed on man an
unchangeable law. Moreover, reason tells us, that this
legislator is not indifferent regarding the observance, or
transgression of his commands. It was shown above that a
sufficient penalty must have been threatened against trans-
gressors ; that penalty.it was also shown, was not in this
world; therefore it must be paid in the next. Agnin, God
is just ; he must intend the lot of those who observe his law
Xo be better than that of those who break it ; but in this life

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154

PFIILOSOniY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

the lot of the former is often worse than that of the latter:
therefore in the next life due portions will be a^pignedto all.
Let any rational being take into consideration the following
case which often is verified. Here is a just man, obhcrving
at all times the law of God ; he is in poverty, but he does
not repine ; he could acquire wealth by unlawful means, but
would suffer cruel tormeuts rather than obtain it by a trans-
gression, lie is ready to stretch out his hand to those more
neetly than hims-elf ; he is often found by the bedfide of the
ttiif'erin}; iiml afflicted. Here is his neighbor who has never
set a limit to the indulgence of his passions ; hard, cruel,
dishonest, li<'entious, he is as indifferent to the misery of
others as he is ready to inflict it for his own aggrandizement.
A sudden <ieath cuts down both these men at the same
moment. One was surprised in the performance of an act
of «hari'y ; the other was called away in the mid>t of a
8<:lieme of oppression. These two souls, so differently pre-
pared, the one so conscious of good works perlormed, the
otljer so polluted with iniquity, enter upon another life.
C«« any wme man pretend that the lot of both will be alike?
Hi' the just soul enters into a state of luippiness, what will
become of the imf)ious one? Evidently it cannot be happy:
more tlian this, the tratisgressious against the eternal law
miist be «venged ; it mut^t suffer.

Were one to inquire si ill further, and seek to find out in
what that suffering would consist, it would be no difiicult
task to show that part of it, at least, would consist iu being
deprived of the enjoyment of the supreme good. It was
shown that our will has an indefinite capacity for good;
nothing that we can inuigine in this world, no aggregate of
earthly plea'^ures could ever satiate our longing for happiness.
Since this longing has been ingrafted on our nature, if must
have God for its author ; hence there are means provided by

FOTURB PUNISHMENT.

155

which it may be eatlslied. Now only the enjoyment of the
supreme good, of God, can Bfttisfy our cravinj^ after felicity :
therefore there are means provided, through the use of which
the human soul can arrive at this enjoyment. Keason tells
us that !?ome of these means are tho observance of the natural
law. It is clear that the soul which enters on the next life
in the friendship of God will have its longing after happiness
satisfied, by being put in enjoyment of the supreme good : on
the other hand, the soul which leaves this world in enmity
with God, cannot be placed in the enjoyment of that good;
for then it would be equally happy with God's friends. It
will, therefore, be deprived of that good, the only one which
can give it perfect hajpiness. That deprivation will cause
an indescribable suffering : the soul, freed from its union
with the body, will no longer have an appetite for sensible
pleasure ; by an overpowering tendency of nature it will be
driven on to long and long for the enjoyment of the supreme
good. It will see that it could easily have been happy for-
ever, but that for a few degrading pleasures of earth, it
foreswore its creator, and forfeited its felicity. Not even the
fleeting satisfactions of life will remain for it to enjoy ; it
will be incapable of enjoying anything, save that ^\hich it
has lost forever. It will tend to God by an impulse of
nature, but stern justice, with uplifted sword, will banish it
from the presence of the only object on which it desires to
look. One sight of that object will be vouchsafed it, but not
as a pleasure ; the remembrance, of that sight will only bring
additional bitterness to the desolate soul, for it will then
under«;tand how much it has lost, and how easily it could
have gained its happiness. An awful feeling of desolation
will come over it ; never, never to have one moment's rest ;
never, never to have even the shadow of a satisfaction, or
enjoyment ; ever, ever to crave, and never, no, never to

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156

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

obtain. Sullen gloom, and grim despnir will be its cruel
tormentors; its accomplices in sin will be its loathsome com-
paniuns ; curses on its own foolishness, and useless upbraidings
of its friends in iniquity will be at once its occupation and
its torment. That the impious will suffer, at least this
mucli, reason clearly proves. No one who reflects on this
could think it light, or easily borne. Were one to suffer all
the miseries imaginable in this world, such as disease, cold,
hunger, pains, &c., they would not be so insupportiible as
the loss of the impious ; because, in life, we have always
some little comfort, some enjoyments in the midst of our
afflietions ; and, above all, the certainty that they will end
soon, and the hope of future hajjpiness. But the soul,
deprived in the next world of the enjoyment of the supreme
good, will not have one solitary satisfaction, and it will have
an invincible certainty that it never will have any.

It is not uncommon to hear the impious prate flippantly
about God's goodness ; without goodness themselves, and
often very demons of cruelty in satisfying themselves, it is
somewhat strange that they should attribute so much mercy
to God. In fact they make him all mercy, and no justice.
Now it should be remembered that God is infinite in all his
perfections ; his mercy is intinite, but so, also, is his justice.
These two can never come in collision ; the first is daily
exercised towards his creatures by bestowing fresh blessings
on them, even while they are insulting him ; his justice will
be exercised in punishing if in spite of all his favors and
warnings, a soul will continue to outrage him. Mercy
reigns over all his works in this world ; but justice will pre-
side in the next. You may as well deny the existence of
God, as deny that he will punish the wicked : a God shorn
of justice is no God ; he who would impose a law and not
reward its observers, and punish its transgressors, could not

FUTURE PUNISHMENT.

157

be an infinite being. Hence it is more logical, but not les
impious, to deny God's existence, limn to admit it and deny
his justice. But some will exclaim : there is no puni.shment ;
God never made man to send him to hell. Quite true God
did not make man for that purpose, nevertheless ho will send
many thither ; because man, by abusing his liberty of will,
will force God, by reason of his justice, to condemn him to
eternal punishment. It is not, then, God who is to blame,
but man himself. It will not do to invoke God's mercy as a
reason for still further offending him. It is sometimes urged
that we suffer in this world for our transgressions, by remorse
of conscience. True, sin brings with itself bitterness ; but
only in the case of pretty good people is this bitterness miich
experienced. This punishment of sin decreases with the
increase of vice, until the hardened wretch knows scarcely
what conscience is. Were this the only punishment of sin,
it would fall more lightly on the hoary sinner, than on the
youth guilty of only, one crime.

:|P

CHAPTER XIII.

tSTCnOLOQICAL PHENOMENA.

IIK soul is evidently the principle of life arc' actiou in
man ; this has been fully established. We may go
Cop;^ fdrther, and postulate what will be hefeafter demon-
Cfc3 stmted^ vizj that in all ':cntient beings there is a
simple substance, or principle of life, which is» likewise, the
subject of sensation. There is, as will also be shown, an
essential difference between the vital principle of the brute
creation, and the human soulj although they have some
things in common, such as physical simplicity and sensibility.
A considerable amount of learned lore has been expended,
from time to time, especially in England, on the question of
*' spontaneous generation." It has been maintained that
certain sentient beings come into existence without genera-
tion ; the germ of life was enclosed witliin, or rather, waa a
part of tite putrid mass, and spoutancously burst forth into
full life. The conclusion sought to be drawn by some is,
that tlie vital principle of sentient beings is only matter, and,
consequently, the human soul can be a particle of matter.
Altliough we proved beyond all doubt that the human soul
is physically simple and essentially diverse from matter,
■till a few words on the question of " spontaneous generation,"
may not be amiss. The works of the creator are innumerable
Rud varied; turn where we will) we fiud everything teeming

PSYCHOLOGICAL PHENOMENA.

159

with life ; the earth, air, water are vast conservatories of
liviiij; beings. They differ in size^ physical organization, and
perfection, but all have one note, at least, in common, that
ifi, life. In each there is a vital principle distinct and diverse
from the material part which is seen by the eye, or discov-
ered by the microscope. From age to age these innumerable
species of living beings are preserved and propagated ; the
' power and wisdom ot the creator are manifested continually
by their existence. Certain fixed laws e.stablish the mode of
their propagation. In the productio'n of their physical parts
heat is always an active agent ; under its influence the
relative position of the parts of the seed is changed ; a new
comb nation of elements results. Now the fixed law for the
coming into existence of a sentient being is this ; whenever
certain elements are combined and grouped in a determinate
manner, the vital principle is created and infused into thai
mass ; it is then no longer a corrupted heap, it in a sentient
being in embryo. Under ;>!uitable circumstances it will be
developed ; in the case of some beings, rapidly, in the case of
others, slowly. It matters not how this combiiation of
elements is brought 'about ; the law is fixed ; whenever the
necessary grouping and combination are verified, the vital
principle will be created and infused. The chicken will come
forth from the egg heated artificially, equally as well as from
the one warmed by the natural process of incubation. Now
in the case of those beings which seem to come into existence
by spontaneous generation, the exphmatinn is simple enoiigh.
There is a heap of matter ; in it are all the elements required
for the organization of a certain class of beings, but they are
not in proper relation to each other. By some natural pro-
cess, such as the action of light, heat, or electricity, the mas*
of matter is decomposed ; part is set free as gas ; parts which
.have uu affinity for one another are drawu more closelj

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160

PIIILOSOPnY OP THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

together ; the former grouping of elementary particles is
changed, and a new one succeeds. After various changes of
position, and diflfereut combinations, the particles required
for the organization of a certain sentient being are brought
into proper relations; the condition for an exercising of the
established law for the coming into existence of that being is
verified ; the vital principle is created, and vivifies the embryo
organism. This explains the origin of life under any cir-
cumstances whatsoever. The only exception that can be
taken to it is, that we suppose the vital principle to be created
immediately by God, and infused into the organism. We
do suppose this ; but we ^vill prove in the next chapter that
this is really the case. In fact, what we said r^bout the
origin of the human soul would be sufficient.

This much will do on the question '»{ life; it is not an
abstruse one ; to fully undc;rstund it, if is only necessary that
the philosopher should have no prejudice against christian
teaching wljen investigating it. If he set out with the fixed
purpose of endeavoring to establish materialism, he will
make many mental splurges, and propound many specious
theorie?', and still will not master a* very simple, though
beautiful, law for the existence of sentient beings.

There are some phenomc la observable in every-day life,
which might here occupy a moment's consideration. We
approach the subject with ditfidence, rather seeking light
than bearing it. The opinion about to be given regarding
these phenomena, may be very wide of the mark, but we
think there is something of truth in it. We will first take

the old saying: "speak of the and he is sure to

appear." No one can have failed to observe that, often as
he has been speaking about, or thinking very much about, a
person, that person has appeared. Each one can remember
scores of times when this circumstance happened. Now an

PSYCHOLOGICAL PIIENCMKNA.

161

we
ike
to
as
,a
bcr
aa

event which, in every age, frcqueiiily happens in certain
circumstances, must have some connection with these circum-
stances. It seems most anti-philosophic to entirely disconnect
the two. Taking it for granted then, that t!iere is some
link between the event and the comlitions, the philosopher
ought to endeavor to discover what it is. The following
explanation is sti invest ed : the friend who nppears intended to
call on you ; he tliought about you, about calling on you;
and pt 'ably, on the way thought often about you, and
ini.igined himself speaking with you. This internal action
of his, this deep consideration of the soul, acted somehow on
your soul, and '■'irred up thou;:,lits of him ; and so you began
to speak of tiim. The objection at once is : how could his
soul act on mine? Even if tlu' how cannot be shown it
would nn* f How that it did not act. That the active sub-
stance, ;>r fv 'ce called the soul, acts bn the force of which
the body is composed, has been fully established ; now wc
<;an see no valid reason for saying that one spiritual force,
or soul, cannot act on another, to some extent, at least.
Analogy would rather say that it could ; and experience
seems to contirm the argmnent from ainilogy. It may appear
egotistic to appeal to personal experience : but the writer,
from the time he Hr^t read psychology, thought that one soul
could act on another even in life, lie took note of the occur-
rence, or veritication of the saw quoted above, and found
some remarkable coincidences. Each one might, perhaps,
be sutJiciently explained by saying it was merely accidental,
if it ah)ne were considered ; but it would appear to the mind
of ;he writer, highly improbable, and mojt unphilosophic, to
assign them all to the theory of chanre coincidence*?.
Again ; if you look intently on the side-face, or head of a
person, that person, unless engaged in conversation, or buried
iu deep thought, will turn towards you : nay, more ; look

1G2

PHILOSOPHY OP THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

intently on one asleep and that one will awake. Now
something ninst have acted on these persona; it was not
your body, because you were not in physical contact with
them ; it was soul acting on soul. A good many phenomena,
such as those culled '' presentiments," and others which are
often lightly relegated to the sphere of real superstitious,
might thus find a rational explanation.

Finally, another psychologic phenomenon worthy of con-
sideration, is a certain chiss of dreams, — not those fantastic
notions that often pass through a sleeper's mind, and which
are di^jointed and mixed fragments of waking experiences —
but those dreams in which you see places and persons never
before seen, but which are at once recognized when after-
wards viewed. That such dreams are not unfrequent is, it
may be said, undoubted. How can they be explained?
Sleep is a partial suspension of the commerce between soul
and body. May it not be supposed that, in that state, the
spirituality of the soul conies more fully into play? More
fidly disengaged than in its waking moments, from the
trammels of the body, the operations of the soul may bo
more spiritualized ; in its regard space will, for the lime at
least, be partially annihilated. The sleeper may be resting
his weary form on the plains of central America, and his
soul, though united to it, may be contemplating the Boulevards
of Paris, liow does it do this? The soul is not of the same
order of beings as the body ; we are not to exclaim impossible
for soul, because impossible for the body. The soul is ever
active, ever acting; the supposed invincible reasons of Locke
to the contrary, cannot stand against syllogistic rigor: ft
substance necessarily luns, and acts in accordance with itif
nature ; the soul is a spiritual substance ; therefore it must
always act by thought of some kind, and by will of happiness,
«at least. Now the soul disentangled, in part, from its

PSYCHOLOGICAL PHENOMENA.

168

grosser companion, may perceive created things without the
help of corporeal organs, by their essence. This would
explain how it happens that some perceptions during sleep
are so vivid, photographed almost on the mind.

■ ' J

^ I* \ m'L

CHAPTER XIV.

f,^.

PRINCIPLE OF LIFE IN THE BRUTE CREATION.

P3RE the vag;arics of " modern thouglit " of a noble

turn, we would not have much need to dwell lon;^ on

^ty%. this subject. But it happcms that our would-be

; fj emancipators from the ''superstitions of the past,"

belong to an ignoble race. Unlike most weak mortals, Ihey
are not ashamed of the fact ; they rather boast of it. Their
genealogical tree, like the spruce and juniper, has its roots
firm set in the ground. The first link of the heathen poet's
chain was fixed (o the foot of Jupiter ; but the spongy roots
of our gi^at " thinkers' " parent tree has a more lowly
fastening. True, their progenitors are an antique stock ;
but ancient blood is, with them, no stimulant to pride. Our
•* thinkers " are humble; they only ima.'ine themselves
better than those who have noble ideas of man ; these they
pity, or despise ; while they fondle the chimpanzee, or ourang-
outang, as an undeveloped brother. It is scarcely fair,
however, for them to claim the wiiole human family as
vassals of their house. Tnose barons of the middle ages,
whom no doubt they heartily despise, only claimed, as*
vassals, a few families: our "thinkers," on the contrary,
seek to subjugate all mankind. If they are themselves but
cultured apes, why insist that we should profess ourselves
their kinsmen ? Is it because they have given themselves

PRINCIPLE OP LIFE IN THE feRUTE CREATION. 165

over to animalism, that they want to degrade all to their
own level? Whether they differ much or little, praetically,
from the lower aiiimiils, should be best known to themselves ;
that essentially they are ditferent and diverse we are prepared
to substantiate.

No elaborate piece of reasonitig is required to prove that
the brute creation feel, see. hear, taste, and smell. They
are subject to various sensations ; they are not indifferent to
the infliciion of a wound. They exhibit all the outwaid and
sensitive si«ns of pain, which are exhibited by man ; hence,
.since we cannot transform ourselves into one of them, we
judge of their sensations, just as we do of those of human
beings, viz : by their actions. Brutes are not, then, mere
insensitive pieces of machinery ; they have a sentient principle
which is the subject of their various sensations. Undoubt-
edly they perceive exteriuil bodies ; they turn aside from the
barrier that crosses their path, just as surely as a man would
do it. Their perceptions cannot be mere confused represen-
tations, because they distinguish between an object seen
before, and a strange one. We do not think it necessary to
enter into a fuither proof of the proposition that brutes have
distinct sensihlc perceptions. Any one who will give the
subject a moment's thought will at once admit it. There is,
then, in brutes a subject of per'^eption. This subject must
be })liysically simple. We use the same argument as was
evolved in proving the simplicity of the human soul. If the
perceiving subject were compound, either the whole percep-
tion would be in one of its parts, or a part in each part, oP
all in each part. If it were all in one part, aiul if that part
be supposed simple, then the perceiving subject is simple : if
if be compound, again we say that one of the three above
hypotheses must be verified, and we would repeat the argu-
meut uutil it would have to be admitted that that part was

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PHILOSOPHT OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

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simple. If a part of the perception be said to be in each
part of the subject, no one part could have a full perception
of anything; there would be no distinct perception, and no
power of distinguishing between objects. Finally, if the
whole perception be in each part, the brute would see not
one, but a dozen or more objects instead of one. Now
their action proves that they see only the one object, when
there is only one. Neither, therefore, of the three supposi-
tions can be admitted ; we must, then, conclude that the
subject of perception in brutes is physically simple. It is so
evident that feeling and perception require a subject devoid
of physical parts that Condillac arguing against Biiffon said
we must cither deny brutes to have real sensations, or we
must grant that their subject of sensation is immaterial. In
fact, it this subject be made up of parts there would be in a
lamb many subjects of sensation, or many individuals ; be-
cause suppose each feeling part endowed with reason, it
could say I feel ; hence what is called one lamb would be,
in reality, many lambs. The force of nonsense could not go
much further.

There is, then, in brutes a principle of life and sensation
which is physically simple ; it is called, by analogy, their
soul ; btit the reader must bear well in mind that it is essen-
tially difterent from the human vsoul. It is now evident that,
in the coming into existence of all sentient beings, a direct
action of the creator concurs. The body may be formed in
embryo by the action of finite causes ; but the sentient prin-
ciple, being immaterial, must come into existence by creation.
It is not a part of any pre-existing matter, because essentially
different from it ; it is not from itself, because it is finite ;
therefore it is immediately created by God. When the
Creator determined to create this visible world, and all that
it contains, he gave to many creatures reproductive organs

PRINCirLE OF LIFE IN THK URUTE CUEATION.

167

SO that the species mi<j;ht be propHL'aitMl ; but only tlie material
part can be thus produced: the inunaterial, or Muntieiit
principle, must be, us shown above, ilu; worii of the creative
liand. Accordin*; to the law establi^hcMl by the creator, the
sentient principh', will bo crcaied whenever the material
elements are duly combined and jirotipi'd. 'riius from a;i;o
to ajjje, innumerable tientient bein;:^s come into existence,
natural and finite causes concnrrin;r vviih the action of the
luHniie.

The chief question, re;5ar<Iin;^ t!»e vital principle of brutes,
is to determine in what, and how much, it is diverse from
the human sold. ISeHism, the h.trhinixer of animalism, is
liere our opponent. Tliis eidi^htened /.s/u, as usual, is for
degrading man ; it only recognizes a dithirenc*! in degree
between our soul, and the vital prin«iple of a brute. The
'• superstitions of the past," said tiuit there was an essential
difference — that by no length of time, by no |)rocess of
cnltiM-e could a brute be developed into a man. The learned
" modern thinker" cuts a sorry liiure when placed in juxta-
position with the monk of anti(|uity. Brutes exhibit nnuiy
wonderful phenomena of sagacity ; they act, at times, in
such a manner as to appear almost eiulowed with reason:
hereupon some erratic genius, fired by a noble zeal to vindi-
cate the cjilumniated, exclain»s : "explain this if yon can ;
defiiui for me the limits between reason and instinct." This
is about the substance of all his arguments, lie thinks tfiem
triumphant ; and rejoices in the dix'overy ol a kin>man.
Now the defenders of true philosophy often, in chai-ity, per-
iiaps, or through inadvertence, endeavor to define the
required limits. They attempt more than they are called
.upon to do — more than they can do. In order to deline the
precise difference between any two given objects, it is ncces-
aary to have au adequate idea of both, ^'ow we have not

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an adequate idea eitlier of reason, or of instinct ; hence it i«
unfair and ridieiilons, to re(|iiii'e the exact ditFereiice between
them. IJut we can show that there is an e.-iseritial difference ;
the one has es.«e:ilial propeities whi(rh are not found in the
Otiier ; hetjce there U a diversity of exseiure, at)d not merely
o:'e of de;^ree. Oii(!C this is demonstrated wo can quietly
rest on our oars ; all the examples of j^airacity a<ldnced cannot
affect our position The esseiuie of thini'-' is unchangeahle ;
the diversity between the essence of two things may be more,
or less ; but be it litile, or great, so long as theie is a diversity,
one i.^ not of the same species as the other, and can never
develop into it.

We freely admit that brutes Inive perception joined with a
remembiance of fornicr sensations ; they rcognize objects
Been before, and in this manner proxidence has provided
that, from exj)ei ience, they may learn what things are to be
avoide<l as hurtful to them. Hence too, they can remember,
and perform the tricks taught them by man. Ti.ey, likewise,
have sensitive appetites, and spout. ineous motion. Hence
they seek the oltjcct of their appetites with great sagacity.
When the dog scents the carrion he recognizes it as connected
with an objec: pleasing to his appetite, and bouiuJs away in
the right dii'ection. God wished the various specties of beings
created by him to be preserved and propagated ; he, therefore,
endowed each species wiih properties suitable for these pur-
poses. It is no wonder, then, that brutes should have the
above properties ; they are means well adapted to the desired
end. When the bee fills its cell with honey, it acts from
instinct. By instinct we mean an impulse, or tendency of
nature by which brutes are borne to a.oid that whi(d; is
destructive to them, and to provide that which is necessary*
for their preservation. All this we (concede to brutes ; all
this is in man with other essential properties that are not iu

PUINCIPLE OF LIFE IN THE BUUTE CREATION.

169

brntea. We will consider a few of these properties, in order
that the essential differenco between a human soul, and the
vital principle of a brute, may be apparent.

1st, The power of reasoning;. It is not necessary to stop
to prove that essentially man has the power of reasonin<» ;'he
can deduce the effect from a cause ; he can assiirii the cause
from the effect ; from the more known, he can learn the less
known. Now we assert that this property is not in iuMitea,
neither actively, nor potentially. That it is not in them
actively, few will deny. In all their works and ac'ions an
unvaryiiiij: sameness is ob.^erved. They construct wonder-
fully skillful nests and lairs, hut the last one is no better
than the first ; what sai^acity they have is born full-blown.
It never improves, it never trrows less. Take an ei^;;, and
by artificial moans supply the process of incubation; never
let the youni; bird see one of its kind. When it is full-^rown
it will build a nest as neat and as commodious as the one
constructed by t'ae oldest of its kind. Its action is no! the
effect of oxanipie, for it saw none ; it cannot be the effect of
reasonin;^, for it could not reason about a thing; entirely
unknown. Either its action is the efre(;t of an irresistible

impulse of nature, or its genius is ma

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that of man ; for only by slow stages, through much hibor
and comparison, in the course of many years, can man arrive
at such perfection in his works. None, I think, will give
the bird more talent than what he will accoid to num.
Therefore the work of the bird is not the eH'ect of reasoning,
comparison and study ; it is the effect of an impulse of natiu'Cx
Keason, actively exercised, must always progress ; new ideas
and new modes of action must arise from comparison of
various works : reflection on them will suggest improvements,
and ornamentatiovi. Take a nomadic tribe; they sleep at
first on the ground ; the shade of some tree is their only

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protection. After a time, from an observation of the boughs
of trees covered with leaves, tliey drive f-takes into the earth,
and stret^'li over tliem the hides of wihl beasts. A step in
advance has been made in the matter of habitation. They
rove less, owing to the proximity of a hostile tribe ; they feel
the want of sometliiiig more histing than (he tent of goat
skins. Tramping through a boggy soil they note its property
of adhesion ; they find it hardens by exposure to the sun.
What if a pile of it were laised around the tent? They try
an expei'iment, and rejoice to find a solid wall, impervious to
rain and wind. Tliis is an impi'ovemeiiton the tent. Their
habits becorfic more agricultural ; the mud wall is found to
be damp and gloomy : wood split and fastened together
would be more airy and drier. They try it, and thus from
year to year they go on, making expeiiments, compai-ing,
culling here and there. A city springs up; neat wooden
cottages are succeeded by substantial buildings of brick and
stone ; these are superseded by magnificent palaces of mai'ble ;
the nomadic tribe has given birth to a mighty ruition. Now
anyone who wonld follow out, in his iunigination, the pro-
gress of various tribes, and note their ever-advancing strides
of improvement ; and who would then turn his attention to
the total want of progress in works, or form of society,
amongst brutes ; and who, after that, would assert that
brutes actively reasoned, is unfit for argument, lie is simply
insane.

Another, and a more obvious proof of want of reasoning
in brutes is this : Everyone who has travelled during the
winter season, when the snow is very deep, has been atmoyed
by meeting cattle on the road. \\'hen you are within sight
of a gate you see an intelligent looking cow coming forth ;
yhe stops, looks dinvn the road, sees you, sees the deep snow,
but, nevertheless, advances. 8he meets your horse; she

PRINCIPLE OP LIFE IN THE BRUTE CREATION.

171

cannot pass but must turn and retrace her steps until she
arrives back at the gate, through which she bolts to escape.
Now did she actively use reason, she woidd have waited at
the gate until you passed ; the smallest child would have done
it. By reasoning she would have seen that she could not do
better than remain. This fact, trifling and perhaps, little
thought of, is quite sufficieut to convince any sound intellect
that brutes are devoid of the adtive use jf reason.

Equally evident is it, that they have not got it potentially,
or in the germ. If they had, it must, through time, become
active, else why the power? Now it is certain that domestic
animals, such as the horse, cow, sheep, and dog, live in the
same manner as they did thousands of ytfars ago Their
society is no different ; their actions are the same ; a total
want of progress marks all their descendants ft would
surely be unreasonable to say that they have reason poten-
tially, and yet m vke no advancement in refinement. For
centuries the horse has been the slave of man ; with bit and
halter he is led about by a little child ; beaten, half-starved,
ill-housed, he still remains docile as belbre. He never
attternpts to stir up his fellows to a rebellion against man.
Yet had he but an infinitesimal part of the intelligence of the
most degraded human slave, he could soon free himself from
liis state of bondage ; he could soon trample upon iiis cruel
master, and dictate terms of peace to mankind. An uprising-
of the horses, dogs, mules, and oxen, which would be quite
possible had they a spark of reason, would be something
more dreadful than the rebellion of the slaves in ancient
Rome. We may justly conclude that tiie existence, in brutes,
of a faculty which for several thousai.d years has never been
exorcised, is as mythical as that of the ghosts which haunt
lonely church-yards on dark nights.

2d, Language: Rational speech is an essential attribute of
man ; in a {q\w rare casci.-, by reason of sone physical defect,

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PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

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the use of this faculty may be Impeded ; still it is possessed
potentially, even by the mute. With the rapidity of liixlitiiing,
with unerring precision, we can make known our feelings,
affeciions, and our most profound ideas. We are endowed
witli a mechanism so wonderful iu construction that, at will,
we can modify onr voice ; we can prodnce a variety of
sounds ; we can imitate strange ones ; reproduce past ones,
and express, by these means, thoughts and feelings in rapid
succession. We make no excuse for translating from Balmes
— (Kleui Phil) the following beautifid passage* "The
mechanism of the voice, the great facility with which it obeys
the orders of the will, clothing thought with a sensible form,
is one of the most wonderful things imaginable. Who caa
measure the time which passes between the conception of an
idea and its outward expression? Consider the orator from
whose lips there flows, like a golden t<tream, a discourse,
with the impetuosity of a cataract; how many ideas of every
kind, the physical, the metaphysical ; the simple, the com-
pound ; judgments, reasonings, comparisons, analysis, syn-
thesis, — he expresses them all with the same facility as he"
conceives them. A thought rises in the orator's miiul, and
at the same moment, with the rapidity of lightning, it flashes
in the mind of the listener; still it was necessary that the
thought should be conceived, that the will should prescribe a
movement of the organs of speech, that the air should vibrate,
that the vibration should reach the tympanum of the list ner
and be communicated to his brain, and that the sound should
serve his intellect as a countersign to perceive the idea. . . .
Aiul what is most wonderful is, that this is not a privilege
of the learned, it is the patrimony of humanity; the rudest
boor, the most ignorant old woman can do that which is done
by the most famous orator ; the facility, the rapidity, the
prodigy of expression are the same ; when we treat of so

PRINCIPLE OF LIFE IN THE BRUTE CREATION.

173

wonderful a phenomenon, what do a little more, or le!?» of
polish in expression, and attention in pronunciation, si;^iiify?
That which is admirable is in the lan^ruajic itself, not in
these slight adjuncts. Let us recognize the wisdom and
goodness of the Creator, and return him thanks for so great
a benefit." No one will .say that the mechanism of the voice
could be so moduhited without the use of reason. Tlie un-
taught hand may sweep over the keys of an organ and
produce some sounds, but there will be no harmony, nor
melody in the strain ; there will be no series of sound calling
to one and another ; no combination and succession of notes
■v^ ill enrapture the listener ; so the organs of speech, unless
guided in their movements by intelligence, will emit no
intelligible sound. A monotonous bow-wow-wow, or a
piteous m-rt-a-a, may be produced without reason ; but
intelligence is required for articulate orations. Moreover,
man can perfect language ; he can add to his vocabulary ; he
can modify his inflections and emphasis. All these are the
residts of intelligence. Now, if we turn to the brute creation,
we find in many of them organic vocular mechanisms like
unto ours. Tiirough them they emit certain sounds indica-
tive of pleasure, pain, fear or other natural sensations, but
that is all. Their vocabulary is limited indeed, and it never
varies ; the little bee when flying in search of flowers from
which to extract honey, emitted the same unvarying buzz
centuries ago in Hymettus, as what its fellows do to-day in
our gardens : theblcatinorof the flocks which Romulus tended
on the Aventiue, was similar to that which we hear on our
hillsides. No increase of words, no change of tone, no
variety of expression has taken place among the brute creation
during the lapse of ages. A few rude sounds which indicate
a limited number of natural sensations, constitute their lan-
guage. They never make appointments ; tlioy never descant

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174

PllTLOSOrilY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

on the beauties of nature ; they never attempt oratory. The
domestic gander is the best specimen we have of a brute
orator ; his gabbling is the nearest approach we have to the
vapid declamation of some bipeds, who advocate Darwinism.
Now the abs-ence of progress, or change in the language of
brutes, can only be attributed to their want of reason. The
faintest glinimer of intelligence would produce, in one day, a
change- >«'ature has given them the means of expressing,
instinctively, some natural feelings, for their preservation and
propagation ; hence the necessity of vocal organs. Again ;
man instinctively cries out Mhen suffering pain ; so will a
brute ; but there is this notable diflei ence : man can restrain
his cries because endowed with reason and free will ; but the
brute cannot, because its cries are an impulse of nature, and
it lacks an intelligence to control them.

Ftom the foregoing we can conclude that brutes are
utterly devoid of intelligence either in act, or in power.
Moreover, the characteristic of reason is progress, that of
instinct, stagnation. The former, by an innate power of
self-determination, develops and waxes wise ; the latter, being
a mere impulse of Jaature, is never changed, or moditied.
Therefore between instinct and reason there is a difference of
kind ; the former is no degree of the latter, otherwise it
would inevitably advance. A quality which is essential to
the subject of reason, is wanting in the subject of instinct;
hence essentially they are distinct and diverse ; one can never
develop into the other, for the essence of things is immutable.
The workings of instinct are, at times, wonderful, and should
make us recognize the wisdom of the Creator who provided
so well for the preservation of his creatures ; but if we exa-
mine closely these workings we at once discover the absence
of a reason which foresees danger, and provides against it.
The ant will construct its store-house with great skill,

PRINCIPLE OF LIFE IN THE BUUTE CREATION.

175

because prompted bj nature ; but, because (levoi(^ of intelli-
gence, it foresees no danger from man, and builds ou the
roadside, soon to be rudely disturbed. Untaught by this
disaster it will rebuild in a similar spot and sufler a similar
misfortune. The bee will store away its honey in well-
contrived cells, disregarding the preseuec of man who will
soon rob it of the fruits of its lalK)r. Man constructs his
habitations and store-houses with a foresight of danger,
again'^t which he provides. If he has unconsciously built ia
the vici'iity of a hostile tribe, he either abandons the dtvn-
gerous locality, or strongly fortifies his dwelling. lie foresees
danger from fire, flood and sword, and takes preeautioua, in
as much as he can, against them. The work of in,stinct may
be neat and skilful, but it will ever lack the provision,
against fortuitous danger, observable iu the rudest pi'oducts
of reason. This difference invincibly proves the absence of
an intellectual faculty in brutes — a faculty which not merely
notes present wants and conveniences, but which, also, specu-
lates upon, and provides against, future contingencies.

Admire, then, if you ^"ill, the works of the imhistrious
brute creation ; praise their neatness i-nd finish ; be delighted
with their adaptation for their necessary pur^poses. Your
doing this ought to be but another motive to adore the
infinite wisdom and goodness of God who has provided so
wisely, and so well, for his dumb creatures. But as you
value a reputation for common sense, do not confoimd the
cause of these works with that of the wonderful achievements
of man. The bee-hive, beavers'-dam and store-house of ants
may be ingenious, but a natural impure, or instinct, is
sutRcient to explain them ; only, bowever, a power of com-
paring, analyzing, combining and foreseeing, can be a sufficient
cause of the noble war-ships of Eingland— of the pyramids of
Egypt — of St. Peter's at Rome — of the bridges which span

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PlIILOSOniY OP THE niBLK VINDICATED.

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rnpM Ptronms — of the railways a\ liicli infcr8cct ffieatcoiintrics,
aniiiliilatin^' space — of the telej^raplis wliicli brinj; rt^gioiin i'ur
remote into instant coinmiinicatioii, ariniliilalin;; time — ol llie
tlioiisanil and one j^reut woik.>5 wliicli are the issue and
eml)()(liincnt of laiman reason It would be a childish
weakness, after such eonsidertitions, to attribute one particle
of reasoning power to brutes.

Cruehy to Brutes.

There arc some natures prone to gross contradictions:
to-day they show a cruel callousness to human misery, and,
pei'haps, to-morrow they will melt in morbid sympathy over
a derelict cat. Here they lui-n with loathing from a scarred
and suffering child ; there they catch up and hug a limping
dog, that has been worsted in a scuffle with a neighboi'ing
cur. The starving mother may plead in vain at their doors,
for food for lier starving babe ; but the whine of a hungry
spaniel is answered with the half of a six-penny loaf. They
express no liorror at the sight of human beings crowded into
filthy huts — huddled together, ten in a room not large enough
for two ; but a cry of indignation, loud, long and deep, issues
from their throats, at the sight of a car-load of swine, some-
what uncomfcJrtably bestowed. Thoy form associations to
applaud and perpetuate, if possible, cruel laws ; and they
join societies to prevent cruelty to brutes. Is this an out-
come of " modern thought ?" Now we are far from wishing
to sneer at a compassionate nattu-e keenly alive to every
form of suffering; but we confess to no sympathy with that
maudlin sentiment, too common, alas ! of Avithdrawing all
pity from human misery to bestow it on the fancied ills of
brutes. We may safely assert, as a general rule, to which,
of course, there are exceptions, that tliose who parade most
pity for suffering brutes, have least for suffering man. It
was reported some years ago, we know not with what foiin-

ling
very
that
all
of
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most
It
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PUINCIPLB OF LIFE IN THE BRUTE CREATION.

177

dation in ftipt, that an old huly in London, bequeathed her
estate for the foundation of an asylum for abandoned cats.
It is to be hoped that the Judge of Probate declared her
insane, and directed the property to be handed over to an
orphanage. England seems to be the hot-bed of a sickly
sentiment of charity to brutes ; and England seems to be a
country much in need of love for her suffering children.
Even those in England who ought to know better, find it
hard to divest themselves of the ludicrous idea in vogue,
regarding the treatment of brutes. If we consider the rela-
tion in which the lower creation stands to man, we will
easily arrive at a rational conclusion on this question.

1st — Brutes have no rights, properly so called ; right is a
" power morally inviolable ;" hence it supposes reason in its
subject. There being no right in brutes, there can be no
duty on the part of man, towards them.

2d — Brutes were created for the benefit of man ; hence
man can use, and slay them when it conduces to his comfort,
or legitimate convenience to do so.

3d — Brutes being a benefit conferred by God on man, it
follows that man has duties towards God concerning the use
of said benefit.

From these principles which are evident, it follows that no
matter what man may do to a brute, he never infringes any
right of the brute ; if he wantonly destroy cattle, fish or
fowls, he is misusing God's benefits. He who knowingly
and unnecessarily ill-treats a dumb animal, manifests an evil
disposition which it is well to curb, even by fines and
imprisonment ; but it ought to be clccTrly proved that the ill-
usage was conscious, deliberate, not in a moment of anger,
and unnecessary, otherwise the real right of man is infringed
to vindicate an imaginary one of a brute. It is quite within
man's prerogatives to inflict pain on brutes, when any end»

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I'lIILOSOI'HY OF TIIK UIHLE VINDICATED.

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advantageous to liimself, is to he obtained. Vivisection, for
purposes of cxperinicnt, is licit, even when there is only a
probability of its being useful. In a word, common sense
tells us that since brutes were created for our use and benelit,
we can destroy them if troublesome, or subject them to pain
if advantageous. Hence few experience any quiilnis of
conscience, in remorselessly crushing those proverlually
nimble little creatures which skip over the sleeper's form,
causing him to dream of pins, needles, and other sharp
instruments. It would be well if societies for the '' preven-
tion of cruelty to animals," were to turn their attention to
the sufferings of humanity, and alleviate a trifle of human
"WTetchedncss. We do not advocate free license for a brutal
nature to vent its spleen on a poor dumb animal : but we
would prefer charity to man first, and then prevention of
cruelty to beasts. The suffering endured by brutes is not so
great as, at first sight, it might seem to be. It is only
physical, and only the pain of the moment. Devoid of
reason, they can have no mental anguish, nor can they fore-
see and dread a future suffering.

<:w^'

CHAPTER XV.

DARWINISM.

IlEllE are various ways of arriving at the temple of
fame, if by "fame" be meant a notoriety, whether
eiivial)le or not. Trtie, the statues of but few find
r^ permanent niches in that temple ; ihongh many may,
for a season, be exalted to the honors of its altars, and
smothered, ahnost, in a cloud of iiu-eiise I'aised by an admiring
and luithinking crowd. The adulations of the moment are
the ambition of many ; hence the innumerable artilices to
secure this fleeting satisfaction. The hill of science, oa
whose summit stands the temple of fame, is steep and high ;
it has a secure road hedged with firmly rooted trees, which
yield not beneath the climber's grasp ; but there are various
other paths along a shelly ledge ; one false step, one nervous
movement of the body, is sutlicient to precipitate the unwary
toiler from these treacherous ways. A motley crowd of
writers jostle against each other, on those insecure roads ;
the ascent, along them, is shorter than by the royal road ;
but amidst the confusion and rude pushing of author against
author, many a daring adventurer slips downward into the
dark gulf which yawns beneath ; one by one they fall with
sullen plash ; a wavy motion of the dark surface succeeds,
and the aspirant for popular adulation is buried in the black
waters of oblivion. In the meantime, the pains-taking

i* 1

180

PIIIL0?01MIV OP THK BIBLE VINDICATED.

•a ::i

J ;.

climber by tlie secure road mounts slowly, but surely, till he
reaches the reward of true inerit-eiuluring fame. Persona
who Hcek for literary, or scientific notoriety, without any
nobler object in view, are re;^ardles3 of the intrinni'! merits,
or demeriia, of their writings They desire to make a dis-
play ; to dazzle the common herd ; to say something that has
an air of ori^^inality, oo it ever so old in substance, or absurd
in itself. Hence the mania for founding " schools of thought ;**
those who inveigh most against masters, are striving to be-
come the great teachers of our age ; possibly they imagine
that never, until now, has there appeared one among raea
capable of being a master. In fact, one is inclined to think
that modern unbelievers, if one give ear to their words,
possess, embody and express the total of human wisdom.
The great philosophers of antiquity, and the great writers of
Christianity, are drivelling idiots in the estimation of these
modest theorizers. Fie.c^ly as did the Iconoclasts rush
against the christian churches to break the images of the
saints, do these aspirants assail the temple of fame, to cast
down, smash and trample under foot the statues of great
pagan and christian philosophers, M^hich have so long adorned
• its niches. Their motive is easily understood : so long as
these masters are honored, the vagaries, crude notions,
illogical deductions of modern pagans can never come into
repute. We do not say that all our contemporary theorizers
are actuated by these motives ; but we do think that a childish
vanity of wishing to propound something startling, has led
many a thinker from the right path.

But our object is not to ridicule silly aspirants to fame.
They will soon be forgotten. Something must, however, be
said respecting what is known as " Darwinism." We do
not undertake to say by what motives Mr. Darwin was
prompted to propound and defend his wild theory. This

DARWINISM.

181

Lme.

I was
:hii

much, however, may be said of the theory itself, — it is sub-
versive of the common eonneiit of uiiiiikiiid, of morality, and
of reason Mankind has always placed an essential differ-
ence between man and the lower creation ; it is ditricuit to
imagine how morality can co-exist with belief in a system,
which recognizes no essential dilforence between a hnnuiQ
soul and the vital principle of brutes; and reason is at once
subverted if it bo made a degree of instinct. RiMluced to its
ultimate analysis '' Darwinism " is a theory which supposes
a natural progression, or development, from species of a
lower, to species of a higher order. According fn it. num is
but an evolution of this physical proj^rossion ; the rli;iftering
ape developed into the speaking man ; the great wheel of
nature's mill is whirlitig round, and each r« lotion tunu
out a new, an<l more finely poimded grist of animat I clay.
The beautiliii uoctrine of St. Thom.is regarding th, graduated
Bcah ,f created thingx, on which is seen mjvrkod the various
species of beings, rising in perfection from the inert clod, to
man on whose brow is visible the impress of the creator, was
dimly perceived, and greatly mi.'- apprehended by Mr. Darwin.
Instead of seizinjj the fjolden links of creation's chain as a
means of connecting man with God, he endeavored to twist
it into a fetter wherewith to bind man to the baboon. la
support of a theory so opposed to all pre-existing notions,
one naturally expects its author to adduce arguments.- But
what is the fact? In his " Origin of Species," Mr. Darwin
seeks to appal us, in the begiiuiing, by citing a number of
authors whom he calls '' famed," «&c., and who, he thinks,
favor his views. Now in matters of science, considered
apart from revelation, as Darwin considers the origin of
species, the opinions of a man, and his '• I think " and '' it is
probable," are not of any avail ; no, even if the man be famed
for his philosophic lore, a quality we by no means concede

182

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

I,.!
i

! i

>|J

III

to Mr. Darwin's aiithoritirs. Their opinions will be worth
just as much as the arguments they adduce to support them,
and no more. Tiiis Uiiy seem scant reverence to these
gentlemen ; still it is all we can aifoi-d to show them in the
present case. Most of them, probably, would laugh at the
idea of admitting the authority of the most learned society
on earth.; we claim, therefore, the privilege of scouting their
dicta, uidess their arguments will stand a philosophic test.
This is a fair fight against our adversaries on their owa
ground ; they will have small reason to claim the champion-
ship in pure reasoning, ere this review be ended. Claiming
then, the undoubted right of rejecting the hcUcfs^ thoufjhU,
and opinions of Mr. Darwin's densely arrayed band of authors,
when not supported by convincing reasons, we approach the
ranks drawn out to overawe us poor mortals. Not one
Bolitary argument do we find ; not one single reason adduced ;
nothing but assertions more or less explicit, which show that
these men had some kind of a belief, in some kind of natural
process of progression, gradation, or natural selection. This
grand army, then, placed as outposts to tVighten persons off
from Mr. Darwin's airy castle, vanishes ; the brou^od armor
is turned to lead ; the polished weapons bsconu wooden
spears. The cited authoi's are 'Ike pasteboard sentinels set
up to scare the boys ; from afar they look fiurce ; their bran-
dished swords threaten destruction ; but if the urchins evince
a little courage, and advance a few paces, they shout with
glee to seethe fierce mustachios shrink into the upper lip;
the upraised sword cleave to the arm ; the stern eye vacant
and unmeaning. The value of the citations made by Mr.
Darwin is not equal to the value of the paper whereon they
are written ; because they contain no arguments ; they show
simply what the pectdiar opinion of these gentlemen was.
This unsupported opinion loses weight when we reflect on

DARWINISM.

183

the saying of Cicero — that there is no absurdity so great but
what has had some philosopher for its supporter.

So much for Mr. Darwin's famed authorities. But what
savs the man liimsi^H? Has he any arj^unient to evolve in
support of his theory? By no maans. In the introduction
we are told the causes of the publication of his " abstract."
He kindly requests the reader to repose confidence in his
accuracy, when he dors not quote authorities. He atTecta
great candor, and a total freedom from prejudices. It may
be here observed, that when once a man has thrown down
the gauntlet to the Catholic church, he immediately preiends
that he is altogether untrammeled by vulgar prejudices ; in
short, that he, and he only, is capable of pronouncing a dis-
passionate judgment. Unfortutuitely many are deceived by
this quiet assumption of impartiality ; they little think that
no greater slave to prejudice can be imagined than the man
who loftily rejects the authority and science of ages ; and who
acknowledges that he sets out with the conviction that the
opposite of his theory i.s false. In fact, such persons have
alieady pronounced judgment in their own favor ; how then,
can they lay claim to impartiality? B.it to return: the
introduction is so written as to disposi^ the unreflecting to
consider Mr. Darwin a laborious student of nature, and a
most dispassionate judge. He, thus, enlists at once the
sympathies of his readers, and disposes them to believe him
very h^arned

111 liis first chapter, headed " Variation under Domestica-
tion," Darwin makes to his sympathetic readers a huge
display of erudition. He discourses on " changed conditions,"
''organism," and '"reproductive system," with such an
amount of self-complacency, as would lead one to suppose
that he was imparting much information. But wliat is the
fact? He tells us nuthiiig that we. did not / —^ow long ago. lie

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184

PHILOSOPHY OP THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

says that descendants from the same parent stock undergo
variations ! that variations may be moi-e or less ! that they
depend on various causes. Now it rnay be safely asserted
that any boy, or n;irl either, who has come to the use of
reason, is fully aware of the fact that accidental varintious
are verified in the descenduiits of Organic beings ; and anyone
who has merely skimmed with the tips of his lips the stream
of chemical lore, will not be at a loss to explain the causes of
these variations. The difference of hue in the feathers of
domestic fowls, from the same stock, which seems to Mr.
Darwin to be almost inexplicable to common mortals, unless
we suppose, *' natural selection," atid a law of progress be
admitted — and the difference of length in the horns of
cattle, — which is no doubt an anjumentum corrnitum, al-
though the horU' be too soft to inflict an injury on the
luckless wight who might fall on them — are readily explained
by boys learning the rudiments of cheirastry. A forward
young urchin would reply to the great ditliculty : " nothing
easier of explanation. All bodies organic and inorganic,
are composed of various elements : the proportion of these
elements, and their relative grouping determine the nature of
the body ; the slightes^t change of proportion, or grouping,
will cause a change more or less marked in the resulting
body. Now since organic bodies receive their increment
partly from internal, and partly from external stratification,
it follows that the nature of the soil must exert an influence
on plants in determining their size and accidental properties ;
and the nature of the food must do the same in the case of
living beings ; whilst the state of the atmosphere must have
an influence on both. Sow wheat in poor soil, the growth
will be slight ; put lime on the same land and sow the same
kind of wheat, the growth will be luxuriant ; because lime
contains an abundance of the elements of which the stalk is

DARWINISM.

185

ting
lent
ion,
fence

of
-e
rth
line
ime
la

composed. Color, being only au affection of the soul caused
by the reflection of light from an object, — and since light is
reflected this way or that, according as the particles of the
object have this or that relation, it follows that the slightest
change of proportion, or position of elements will effect a
change of color. Hence since each domestic fowl cannot,
physically speaking, be ever subject to precisely the same
conditions of life, a variation of size and plumage must be
the result ; this variation cotilirms the theory of elementary
proportion and grouping." Thus would the boy solve the
great Darwinian difficulty. Organic chemistry fully demon-
strates the trutb of his solution. We are well aware that
the state of the reproductive system aflecis the dchcendauts ;
but every breath of air, every morsel of food, every excite-
ment, or depression of spirits — in a word, each of tiie thousand
and one changes to which finite beings are necessarily subject,
has a certain influence on the reproductive system ; conse-
quently the \eiYy essence and nature of things finite must
cause a slight variation in their offspring. The striking
similarity often noticeable in twins arises from the ova having
a similar chemical combination ; and the dissimilarity some-
times seen is explained by a difference of chemical nature in
them. The color of hair, size and such like accidental
variations, present no dilficulty, and argue no gradation;
they necessarily follow from the theory of grouping and
proportion.

Mr. Darwin thinks it a poser to exj lain how a porson will
sometimes exhibit the peculiarities, not of his parents, bi.t of
some remote ancestor. The explanation is not i'ar to be
sought. The quality is in' • ited, that is, hande«l down by
the reproductive system ; it is in the whole line of descendants,
but is latent in many ; its manifestation being impeded by a
variety of circumstaaces, such as the presence of a greater

h- i

18G

PIULOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATEn.

5 ,

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?ff,,

fjnatility of antaj^otiistic elements. Some remote (Icsoeiidant
cornea into existence, under a change of conditions, vvliich
lessen tliese elements and, at once, the quality peculiar to
tlie far oft ])rofrenitor, being unimpeded, manifests itself.
Ijcre the reinark made by Dr. Johnson about Pope's '" Essay
on Man," might be applied to Mr. Darwin's work so far.
The great critic said that in the essay, where true, there was
iioihiiig but the commonest truths, but told in such melodious
numbers that persons reading the work fancied they learnt
what they did not previously know ; so with Darwin's work ;
it treats in such mysterious terms the most obvious and
easily explained variations, that one might almost thiidc one
read something new, — something to explain which nothing
shoi-t of •' natural selection," " gradation," and laws of pro-
gross would sulHce.

It would l)e a useless task to follow him through his weary
pages, in the hope of lighting on a logical argument, "'i proof
of his theoi-y. We find many facts, useful to be known, bui
useless as ])roofs oi a system to which they are antagonistic.
There is greater dilliculty in confuting an author who merely
rambles and relates, than one who closely reasons. Hence
all modern teachers of error eschew svHoiristic arguments,
and waywar<i!y rove between the poles, niul often beyond
them,of tlieir subject. We must, therefore, take Mr. Darwin's
conclusion, j)lace it in a mental crucible, and see if it can
stand a scientiiic test. He thinks that all living species m;iy
be from four or live ; he even inclines, by i-eason of analogy,
to one. Now this is the conclusion of all his labors, watchings
and studies, it is mature judgment, given at a mature ixpra^
after mature consideration. It will seem rash, in one unknown
to fame, to contest the soundness of such a conclusion. The
serious want of Mr. Darwin's theory, like all false systems,
in the want of logical sequence. Because accidental variations

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•oiul
ill's
can

may

UlgS

own
The
;iu8,
lions

DARWINISM.

187

are verified, and because we cannot explain the reason of
certain physical parts, therefore it is serenely concluded, all
species arc from a few, very few, perhaps one, prijuordial
type. To most people this will seem a 7?ou sequitur, an
illo;^icHl conclusion. Yet, if we sift Mr Darwin's evidence,
and pulverize his facts, we find that he has no stronger
arfjinnent than the above. It is true he does not ])ut it into
such scholastic form, for that would he the death-blow of his
system ; but it is diffused over pa;^,.,s upon pages of his work.
To he just, v.'e must say that he does not always use surface
ariruments ; he often dives into the disordered de|)ths of fossil
stratifications. He delves in these jrloomy recesses, and
extracts therefrom bones of various shapes and sizes; these
he fits tojj^eiher with great nicety of design, and produces an
elephantine monster, more terrible in its grim and bony
outlines, and more fraught with <lestruction to biblic history,
than was the wooden horse to fated Ilium. Ouronlv <'onso-
lation is that the race is extinct, and has left no authenticated
genealogy. Hence Mr. Darwin can only surmise as to its
descent. In sober truth we have had too mtich disjointed
writing floated down the *' current of modern thouiiht." An
intellectual chaos is the outcome, and punishment of the
rejection of divine faith. Instead of premises firmly c^ tab-
lished, and conclusions logically drawn, we have |x»lished
phrases, atjd assertions, praettrcaque nihil.

We can guage the value of Darwinism by what we have
said regarding its pretended proofs. But we will now assume
an aggressive attitude. The theory ot evolution necessarily
supposes a naturjtl and irresistible tendency to pi-ogress in
the scale of beings. According to it the rude, primordial
types contiiined a principle of progression, a tendency to
.selection, and were subject to a law of development. These
qualities of the original species were inherent in their nature ;

188

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

the germ of future greatness was implanted, but was to be
developed by slow, but sure, degrees. Now, unless the
maximum of perfection has been obtained, which Mr. Darwin
cannot admit, these principles of progressive development
must be still at work ; not only in man, but, also, in all
creation. Progressive development, being a natural eflfect
ot* innate causes, must be manifested, in some slight degree
at least, in each generation. It would be an evident absur-
dity for an evolutionist to say that the action of progression
was suspended for many generations, and then made a giant
stride. Nature does not go by jumps, but by equal paces :
hence the law of development, if it exists, must be continually
in force ; and a slight progression must occur in each genera-
tion. This being the case, a notable change must be effected
in the course of three hundred generations. Now if we
suppose seventy- five generations in a thousand years, we
speak of brutes, we will have three hundred in four thousand
years. The treasures of ancient Egypt, in a scientific point
of view, are still extant ; they are four thousand years old.
From them we can learn that the bee of to-day has no
appreciable difference from his antique progenitor; the
donkey of our time is as stupid as was his far oif ancestors :
there is no essential physical difference between the domestic
animals of to-day and those of four thousand years ago; yet,
at least, three hundred genei'ations have intervened. There-
fore the law of progressive development must be at a standstill.
Perhaps it will make a leap some fine day, and we may find
apes transformed into professors of natural science. The
examiners of candidates for the civil service might make the
following a test question : if during a space of four thousand
years, no appreciable change has taken place, either in the
organism, or in the instinctive powers of gorillas, how many
years must have elapsed since the progenitors of Darwin

DARWINISM.

189

i, we
isand
point

old.
13 no

the
tors :
liestic

l; yet,

here-
still,
find
The
e the
sand
the
any
rwia

clmtteved unintelligibly by the source of the Niger? It is
impdsing a little too much on human credulity to ask it to
believe in progressive development of species, when it has,
likewise, to believe that an innate, necessary 'aw of progression
has not progressed in three hundred generations.

The above argument shows that stern, stubborn facts are
against Mr. Darwin. But there is more yet. The meta-
physical education of the evolutionist has been cruelly
neglected. He appears to know nothing about the simple
principle of life, which we proved to be distinct and diverse
from the physical part of sentient beings. We proved in the
preceding chapter, that there is an essential difference between
the soul of man, and the vital principle of brutes. Hence
the latter cannot develop into the former. Even, then, if it
were admitted, which we think can never be proved, that
the physical organism of an ape could develop into that of a
man, the vivifying and intellectual principle of man would be
wanting. We would have the body of a man, with the vital
principle of an ape. When one reads the vagaries of some
" modern thinkers '* one is almost inclined to believe that
such is the fact. It was shown that our soul is a simple and
spiritual substance, created by God. In the Darwinian
theory we must either say the soul is created directly by
God and infused into the body, or it is not. If the former,
the development of intellectual power is from the act of God
who creates each successive soul with a larger grasp of
intellect ; if the latter, we fall into gross materialism ; for a
principle produced by finite agencies must be something
material. In a word, Mr. Darwin is, or is not, a materialist ;
if he be a materialist, what he ought logically to be, he has
been abundantly confuted ; if not, we would ask : does the
soul come from God? If it does not, it must be something
material ; for only matter can be the production of chemical,

190

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

IIP

Bis .

or any finite action. If it is from God, tlicn the whole theory
of evohition falls. The father and son must be of the iilHine
species ; bnt they would not be, were any essential property
in tln! soul of the one, and not in the other. Evolution is
self-destructive uidess it supposes materialism ; if it supposes
materialism it becomes the vul^j^ar error of vul^j^ar minds, so
often refuted. Mr. Djirwin must have studied to small
purpose;, if this is to be his only emolument.

A vast anu)unt of useless speculation would be spared,
could naturalists but determine what really constitutes a
specilic difference. Of this nuudi, at least, we are certain,
from principles of rational evidence, that the human soul
cannot be a development, or an evohition of an inferior being.
It is siiliple ; only by creation can a simple substance come
into existence, llissentially it is endowed with intellect and
will ; these attributes arc wanting in every other visible
being. Hence there is an essential ditference between the
soul and every other vital principle in visible creation. But
the essence of things is as unchangeable as God himself;
therefore such as the hinnan soul was, essentially, five
thousand years ago, such it is to-day ; stich it will be forever.
If we oidy keep in view that an essential property can never
be superadded to a being after its creation, we will readily
perceive the fallacy of supposing things essentially different^
to be the descendants of one parent stock. It will not do to
assert that reason is in apes in the germ : if it were, by force
of the supposed law of progression, it should manifest signs
of development in two generations ; especially when brought
up in the society of man. But no such sign is manifested :
the various tricks, or acq'ri'ements, of a well-trained baboon
excite astonishment ; but they are not incompatible with pure
instinct. That no amount of training can effect an intellectuai
development in these creatures is proved from the fact, that

DAUWINISM.

191

ive

er.

iver

igus
ight
ed :
oon
)ure

that

the offHpritig of hif/hh/ cnUivated apes are as stupid, a* were
their progenitors before they were trained.

Again, .substance is force ; tbe human soul is a aubstai/ce :
it is, therefore, a force. The action of a forcv may be
modified, but it can never be annihilated ; it wouhl be a
contradiction of ideas. The same holds for the vital priiu'iple
in brutes. Now if the force of reasoning be in brutes, it*
action may, indeed, be modilied, but not annihilated; henci^
some trace of it would be discovered immediately ; by train-
ing it woidd quickly develop. But facts are in direct
contradictio!! with this; therefore there is no reasoning force
in brutes, even in the germ. But out of what does uot
exist, nothing can be evolved ; therefoie the reasoning power
of man caiuiot be a development of a potential fjiculty in
brutes. Enough has been said to prove the intense stu[)idiiy
of Darwinism as a philosophic theory.

The plan and order of creation, which are such puzzles to
some scientists, are ditlicult of understanding oidy to those
who seek to establish ones of their own. We are not to
specidate as to what might have been, or could be ; we are
to take creation as we hnd it, in the concrete, with its various
classes of beings. We find some which have certain pro-
perties, clearly essential ; and others wanting in those
properties. The inevitable conclusion is: they are sprung
from different ancestors. How did these ancestors come
into existence? Not of themselves, because finite; not by
chance, for that means nothing; by creation; the will of
God ordained them to exist, and straightway they existed.
He provided means of propagation ; he provided sustenance.
Between the inert clod which was to be the footstool and
recepticle of sentient things, and man who was to be the
lord of visible creation, innumerable species of beings were
to exist, in harmouioua gradation. The creative act was, in

II'

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192

PniLOSOPIlY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

itself, con.sidered one and undivided ; relatively to us it is
miilliforin. How many cenhiries may have run out their
sands, .since finst these mundane elements were created, we
can never tell. From the science of geology, one might
conclude that they were very many. Alluvial deposits,
fossil beds, and stratified rocks which seem to have been
formed by slow processes, during many ages, would appear
to point to a remote antiquity. The christian scientist who
defends the accuracy of the history of the world recorded in
Genesis, has no difficult task. Me is not obliged to consider
the dai/s, mentioned by Moses, as identical in duration with
what we call a day. The Hebrew, word translated day,
means a space of time. How long, or how short that space
was, the inspired writer does not say. Hence we may accord
millions of years tc each, without violence to the sacred text.
All we are coucerned about is the antiquity of man ; we
must believe that mankind are the descendants of Adam, the
noble work of the sixth day. Those geologists and naturalists
who have an itch for contradicting biblic history, must, if
they wish to convict it of falsehood, prove that man has been
an inhabitant of this globe for more than about six thousand
years. This they cannot do. The bones of various species
of animals, some of which are extinct, have been discovered
in fossil beds to which great length of years have been
attributed; but no trace of human remains has been found in
these fossiliferous strata. Truth can never be opposed to
truth ; what is true in geologic science cannot subvert the
truths of revelation ; in fact, it tends to confirm them. When
we hear trumpeted abroad some wonderful discovery of a
geologist, which appears to contradict revelation ; we must
first see if the fact be established on sure basis, or proved
from sound principles ; then we are to examine what revela-
tion really teaches on the point. If this be done we will

DARWINISM!

193

the
hen
)f a
aust
ved
ela-
wiU

certainlv find that there U no contradiction hetwecn the
truths of science and revealed ones. We icnow what a shout
of triumph was raised hy iiifiilel phih)suj)hers, when it was
supposed that ;^eoloiry made the workl ohler than the years
allowed it by the bible. But their triumph was short-lived :
they forgot that Genesis does not tell the age of the world ;
it is only man's age that is recorded. Fifteen centuries ago
St. Augustine silenced them on this poii.t, as on many others ;
he, living in v/hat evohitionista must ,onsider a very be-
nighted age, told us that the days meriiioned by Moses might
be taken for epochs ; he said the seventh day still continues.
He appears to have been nearly as learned as our scientists,
who fifteen centuries later, aided, also, by their law of
development, have discovered and heralded abroad the same
fact. Altho\igh, then, we may allow millions of years to
the past of the world, we are far from admitting all the crude
theories of geologists on this score. It has been shown too
often that their calculations are untrustworthy ; thousands of
years assigned to certain deposits, have dwindled down to a
few hundreds, on further investigation. Wliat secrets of the
past may be embedded in the earth, and may, hereafter, be
dug up, we cannot tell ; of this much we are certain, nothing
will be found to prove the antic^uity of our race to be greater
than tliat assigned it by Moses. We may observe, likewise,
that he who formed Adam in his maturity, without making
him pas>s through the stages of infancy, childhood and youth,
may have made the world with the traces of a gradual growth.
In his concluding remarks Mr. Darwin glances into
futurity ; he evidently sees the flickering of that glory which
is to form a halo round his name. Although he may be
derided now, he feels serenely content that posterity will
recognize his genius ; he has been, clearly, born before hi»
age ; the law of development has acted too quickly " ^ hig
u

I'i

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;;

3 i:i

I' ^

i .

194

rniLOSornY of the bible vindicated.

case. lie feels tlmt liis contemponiries will not emanfipnto
themselves from their prejudices at his biddiii;^ ; but his
modesty sii^f^ests, as a buhn, that great men are always met
with coiitradic'tioD, He, as well as Newton, must suffer this :
but hope points to a risitig generation who will listen to his
voice. Now, we will also act the prophet, and peer
cautiously into the uncertain future. Our glance sees the
twilight of Darwin's glory ; he saw its dawn ; this generation
saw its noon-tide; its setting is not far off. A handful of
physicists, ignorant of the elements of metaphysics, and an
unthinking crowd charmed by novelty of theory, and grace
of style, kindled the smoky torches of his short-lived glory.
The scientific world was sliding, for some time, down an
inclined plane ; Darwin, Huxley and Tyndall gave the last
push, and plopped it into the " stagnant pool." The plash
and shock were the only warnings it would heed ; those who
wore not intellectually killed are scrambling up and returning
slowly, but surely, to the firm citadel built by St. Thomas.

-~^%

,0.

PART THIRD.

QUESTIONS HAVING AN INTIMATE CONNECTION WITH ONTOLOGY.

r\lO

('/f I ^J^^^^^'- '^'^ various questions, very interesting to tlic
c J I cultivated, which, being of a mixed nature, we have
jfpj^"^ not sought to phiee under distinct headings, but will
L(c/ group them all under the above title. Some of them
are merely spcculanve, others practical ; these will be of
service in this age of fluctuating .systems ; those will enlarge
the mind, and open up vast fields for thought. A well-
disciplined mind enjoys pu'-e delights in investigating such
subjects: the ill-trained intellect is a torment to itself, and a
source of laughter to others, when it treats of great truths.
Its vague assertions, its aimless analysis, its piteous calls for
light, with something of the desperation of Aeneas calling
his lost Creusa, move to smiles 'mid our tears. Of all the
race of untrained thinkers German transcendentalists are the
most ludicrous. Their ignorance of self-evident truths is
often intense ; their intellectual pride, generally, stupendous.
They stoutly denounce dogmatizing, and straightway begin
to " evolve " all manner of dogmatic nonsense, from their
'* inner consciousness ;" they sneer at the credulity of those
who believe well-established truths, and theu swallow unutter-

1 1'

196

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

^■•"ilf-;' ^^ 7

able absurdities. From the beginning of our race until the
present day, the same fearful retribution has always swiftly
followed the sin of intellectual pride. Mere conceit, or
foolish vanity, regarding dress and personal appearance,
although ineffably silly, is not of a kind with the pride of
which we speak, nor is it subjected to such dire punishments.
When a created intelligence disclaims all subjection to a
higher power ; when it sets up its own poor light in opposition
to a divinely guided guardian of revealed truth ; when it
throws down the gauntlet to sixty generations of christians,
and proclaims itself superior to them all, it is a masler-stroke
of retributive justice to leave it to itself, and to its ridiculous
errors. Sooner or later it will discover, as did our mother
Eve, that it has not become wise, but rather that it has been
sadly duped. It may not make that discovery this side of
the tomb ; it may not make it until, startled from its dream
of wisdom by the never ceasing cry of lost souls, it, too, will
swell the infernal chorus of — " v;e fools ! we thought their
lives madness and their end without honor." Yes, intellec-
tual pride, or that unreasonable preference of one's own
opinions to the decisions of a divinely instituted guide, is a
tilting passport to the gloomy regions of him who thought to
be like unto the Rlost High. It is the murky vapor which
has obscured the light of many a glowing star ; it is the
ttorm-cloud which has uprooted many an oak of the forest.
It is often a consequence of a deficient, or ill-regulated
education : sometimes it is the eiTect of an indulgence of evil
passions. In every case it is punished by being left to its
own helplessness. In the following scientific speculations
the head-lights of revelation are steadily kept in view, while
the mind, illumed by these, pushes vigorously on the search
after philosophic truth.

CHAPTER I.

TIME, ETERNITY, SPACE.

E all speak about time ; we complain of its tardy
passage, or sigh over its quick fleeing moments.
K Our promises, appointments, hopes, schemes of
aggrandizement or pleasure, all have reference to
time. Fc.v stop to inquire in what it consists ; few seek to
have any definite idea of its import. Those who speculate
on its nature are often perplexed ; yet its comprehension is
not very difficult. If we mark the order of events we say,
such or such a time passed between their trans})iration.
John came an hour after Joseph; Peter. lived five years.
In these examples the succession of events is the measure of
time, whilst the events themselves are its extremes. Between
the transpiration of the two events, viz : the arrival of John
and that of Joseph, an hour passed, or a pendulun. oscillated
sixty times sixty. From this we gather that our idea of time
is engendered by the succession of events. Some phenomena,
being of constant recurrence, are naturally taken as measures
of time. The sun appears and disappears, then appears
again, and so on, day after day. This is our great division
of time-— day whilst we perceive the rays of the sun, — night
when they are withdrawn. Were the sun to shine uninter-
ruptedly our idea of time would be vastly modified ; there
would be still a succession of other events, and consequently,

(•r

198

nnLOSoriiY of the uiiilk vindicatkd.

* I

l-!'i

time, but it would uot be llic ])robleui it now is. Now since
time ne('cs8iivily im|)ort.s tlio 'nWii of succession, or tiie
acquisition of new perceptions, it follows that time can only
be oomelliing relative to Hnite boin<;8. liecausc the infinite
acquires no new ideas ; because he is intimately present to
everythinf;, there can be no succession for him, and, in
consequence, no time. We can understand this more clearly
if we reflect, that because we are of limited capju'ity, we
cannot have inunediate relations to everything, we cannot
know all things. According as we come into certain relations
with objects, we perceive something which wc did not see
before ; a succession is verilied, an idea of time is engendered.
The intellect acquires a kuowl 'dge not had previously ; it
experiences a succession ; compaiing its present, with its
previous, state, it says: there was a time \\\\cn I did not
know this. Now since the inliiiite is a simple act, knowing
all, being intinuitely i)resent to all, he cannot acquire new
knowledge, he caniu)t undergo any change, hence ibr him
there is no time. We can have a faint idea of this by
observing that when we keep our minds intently fixed on one
subject, for example, on s(une ma*, hematical problem, we are
unconscious of time, and are surprised, when roused, to
perceive what a succession of movements have taken place,
in the meantime, in our watch. Perhaps, what appeared to
us as a moment, was what others call two hours. The more
our Avants are lew, and our minds at rest, the shorter does
time appear; the fretful or inqjatient sufierer imagines it
much longer. From this it can be gathered (hat, in Heaven,
the blessed have a widely diU'erent notion of time from ours.

Eternifif.

The idea of Eternity can be gained from that of time ; the
latter is not a part of the former ; eternity does not consist
of an iufiuile series of years. It is continual cxisteuce with-

TIME, ETERNITY, SPACE.

199

out succession. Time is existence with succession. Now
since only the infinite is witiiout succession, because only he
is iu)(;luiiigeable, it follows that eternity is relative to the
infinite only. If we would seek to have an idea of eternity,
we must divest ourselves of our material notion of thiiii^s ;
wc must iniaui;irie God, an infinite, simple act, once, always
and together knowing and willing what he knows and wills.
For him there is no rising, or setting sun to form a constant
recurrence of phenomena ; he is ever intinnitcly present to
the sun ; tliere is no acquisition of ideas, for he knows
everything knowable ; there is no longing after anything, for
he is supremely happy. Unchanging, and unchangeable in
essence or wish, he exists, free from the limits of space, and

ever without time.

Space.

We approach a very knarTcd question : what is space? is
it real? what is its extent? Whilst in life our vision is
shrouded ; we see appearances ; our judgments are formed,
naturally, from the impressions received. Each one knows
wluit is understood by distance, in the popular mind. Bodies
are said to be extended, that is, to have parts outside of
parts, and, consequently, to occupy a portion of space.
Space itself is said to be the capacity of containing bodies.
At first sight this seems quite plain and correct; we, for all
practical purposes, understand sutlicient by this. Poets sing
of the vastnesa of space : geometricians cut it up, and enclose
portions of it with lines of various imaginary proportions:
natural philosophers enumerate extension among the essential
properties of bodies. It would seem from this, that our
notion of space and extension was sufficiently satisfactory,
♦Such, indeed, it is in a practical point of view. If, however,
we raise our minds to speculate on what really constitutes
extension, or to find in what it finally consists, the question

200

PHILOSOPHY OP THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

1 ii

i \

becomes beset with greater dilliculties. We hold, and have
proved, the objective reality of bodies ; no amount of sophistry
can impose on mankind the absurdity that only the suhject /
exists as a substance. As seen, there are innumerable
substances in creation, some visible and compound, such as
wood and stone ; others invi^ible and simple, such as the
human soul. The objective rei.lify of the corporeal world
is not less firmly established in the following theory regard-
ing extension, than what it is in the popular one.

It is to be observed that our ideas of extension are entirely
relative, or more properly, extension is a rehifive property.
We say an object is ten feet in length ; ihat is, compared
with a foot rule it is ten times longer than that measure.
There is no absolute stai dard of measurement ; all that the
intellect can do is to compare the proportion an object bears
to some conventional unit of comparison, as perceived through
the senses. Hence if we suppose that on some night, whilst
all are buried in sleep, the world should diminish to the size
of a pea-nut, and we. and all things else should decrease in
the same proportion, on awaking no one would be aware of
the change. Our usual standards of weiglit and measure
when iipplied to objects, would letain the same p: oportion
as on the previous day. In reality the yard measure would
be incalculably less, but relatively to surrounding objects it
would be the same. Peter was six f»'et high yesterday ; he
is six feet to-day ; how coidd wo know that the foot of yes-
terday was greater than it is to-day? The animalcula that
exist in a drop of water, if we imagine them endowed with
reason, would think the passing from one extreme of that
drop to the other an achievement as great, as we the walking
round our world. From these considerations we can acquire
a tolerably correct notion of extension ; it is a relation of one
finite beinj^ to another. As was observed when speakiag of

TIME, ETERNITY, SPACE.

201

time, by reason of our Hmitcation we cannot be in immediate
relation with every bein<^. Tliose tliiiij^s which are more
remotely related to us, are said to be distant ; by various
physical contortions we change our relation to those things,
and we are said to approach, or to recede. That vacuum^
which seems to intervetie between us and those distant
objects, is an absence of any sensible reality. Hence space
is a nothiu;:^ ; it is the privation of perceptible reality, just as
darkness is the privation of li;^ht. From this it follows that
since God is the iiiiiriito reality, being intimately present to
everytliMig, there can be, for him, no extended plains, nor
lofty mountains to explore. Again ; since our soul is a
simple, spiritual svd)stance, its relation to corporeal things is
not to be restricted by oiu* ideas of relation between two
visible objects. When we consider the union of soul with
body, we must remember that the soul belongs to one order
of beings, and the body to another ; consequently no contra-
diction can be shown in the assertion that the soul, though
simple and inextended, is present, or has immediate relation
with every part of thecon^pound body. Place and extension
being terms relative only to sensible olijects, we must guard
against applying them to simple and spiritual ones.

That extension is but a phenomenon arising from our
limitation of essence, can be «lemonstrated with nuithemalical
rigor. All matter is composed of simple substances, or
forces : a iinite object must bo exhausted by a tinite number
of divisions. Now a simple substance, or force, is evidently
without extension ; it has no parts, consequently no relation
of distance. The question at once arises : how can you so
connect, or dispose a certain number of inextended forces,
go as to produce an extended one? Evidently, no way can
be found except the one, viz : you must leave a space between
them. But this supposes what is to be proved, vi^: that

■I

202

PHILOSOPHY OF thk ihule vindicatkd.

extension is reul ; moreover what is that pparc? What is
between the force A and the force B? Either a reality, or
uothin^r ; if nothing, then there is no di'^tance between them ;
if a reality, what is it? is it extended? if not, s ill no dis-
tance ; if it is, then what are between the component forces
of which if is constituted? We cannot, in finite things, go
on ad infill itaiii ; hence we must sooner or later come to a
stop ; what is between the ultimate particles* of the last
intervening body? Nothing; then it must be inextended ;
but if it be inextended the particles of the penultinnite body,
between which it is supposed to intervene, cannot be really
distant from one another ; hence that body is, likewise, inex-
teinlcd iSo must the anti-penultimate, for the same I'eason ;
so must each preceding one. The whole explanation of the
phenomenon of extension is contained in this ; we are finite;
our relation to other objects must be of various degrees ; a
compound substance, such as a tree, has \arious components ;
to each of these we have a dilferent relation; we express
these various relations by saying the right and left, the
bottom and top, and thus form extension.

From the above reflections it can be seen that the saying
of the followers of Aristotle, that the soul is all in the whole
body, and all in each part of it, though ridiculed by some, is
in no way absurd. In fact, it is the only reasonable explan-
ation of physiological phenomena. God, though eminently
simple, is all in the whole world, and all in each part of it,
still he is inextended. The soul, being finite, cannot be thus
intimately j)reseut to everything, but it can be so to a limited
number of things, such as are the various parts of the body.

hit. Thomas saw the dawning of the theory expounded
r^ ->ve. liis mighty intellect outran many centuries, and
;...r *»<.'ipated in the light and development of future ages. la
(; .k'», ^rim. quest. 7G, ud. 8) he proves the soul to be all ia

TIME, ETERNITY, SPACE.

203

the whole body, and all in each part of it ; and in (Tcrtia
quest. 76) explaining the real presence, lie feels, rather than
comprehends the truth of this system. Had he the advantage
of the profiress made in physical science since hivS day, he
would have left us a luminous treatise on the dynamic theory,
and a satisfactory explanation of all ditlicultics I'cgarding
extension.

There is a harmony and connection between all truths.
Althoujrli it is not the duty of the phihjsopher to expound
revealed truths, we may observe that the true idea ot' extension
given above, beautifully harmonizes with the Catholic dojma
of the real presence. Once tlnit we mastei' the idea that
extension is a mere relation, the dilHcnlties drawn from the
apparent contradiction of placin;j: Christ, whole and entire,
under tlie appearance of a si dl iiost, vanish, like the
*' unsubstantial pageant of a dream" Thus jis science goes
on, developing and progressing, instead of coming in collision
with the tt'achings of the Church, as demented scriltblers
Iiowl it must, it but serves to coulirm, if that were necessary,
many of her doctrines, and to reveal the inner beauty of
God's holy fane. Here just yne question might be asked of
"modern thinkers:" how does it conje to pass that Catholic
philosophers and theologians, centuries ago, proponndi'd and
defended a theory regarding extension, substantially the
same, as that which you must now tardily admit to be true?
They were not, then, grossly contradictory in their assertions ;
th^ " subtilities of the schools," against which many of your
herd sneer, are here proved to be founded in right reason.

Time and Extension are, then, the inevitable phenomena
of a limited nature ; a succession of perceptions causes tho
foi.ner ; a diversity of relation the latter. IJoth argue a
want of ulterior perfection in us ; for the infinite, in whom is
the p'euitude of perfection, they cannct exist. The soul,

't (1

I :!

!-hi

204

PIITLOSOPIIY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

being of an order superior to that of the body, must approach
more nearly the attributes of God. Hence, when separated
from the body, its ideas of time and extension must be
wonderfully modified. It will not have to fly upward, or
downward, to meet its judge. Imagine a man immured in
a cave ; through the chinks some straggling rays enter ; from
these he judges that far, far olf there is great light ; an
earthquake hurls down his piison walls ; without having to
move a step he is in the glorious sunlight. So too when
death has torn aside our earthy veil which permits some rays
to enter, the freed soul, without motion, will be in the
presence of its maker ; for in Him we live and move and
have our being.

\ i

t 'i

\\ ^:

*- fir -^^

II li^

CHAPTER II.

CEUTITUDE.

I ■

irp CIENCE necessarily bej^ets certitude ; if we have the
(^^M^ former, we must possess tlie hitter. Again, as shown
\^C ^" *'i^ beginning', our minds are capable of attaining
t^^ certainty ; either we must say with the sceptic that
science is impossible, and then follows the curious consequence
that, whilst steadfastly denying the possibility of certainty,
we are strenuously upholding its existence, by reiterating
that we are certain we know nothing : or we must admit
with sane humanity that there are many things of which Ave
arc certain. As a matter of fact, tlien, certitude exists ;
there is no contradiction between a limited intelligence and
certain knowledge. The human mind has an aptitude for
certainty. It is idle, then, to inquire, " is science possible?"
The question is as childish as this other one : is it possible
for the subject J to exist? The very questions contain their
own answers ; if you ask, is science possible? you suppose * .
is ; for you will be satisfied with either yes or no ; whichever
you accept you confirm the possibility, nay the existence of
one cognition, at least. It is a piece of hyper-transcendental
foolery to speculate on the possibility of that, of the existence
of which we are, and must necessarily be certain, A question
may be raised as to how we know ; but there can be no
question about the fact that we know many things. HeQc«

200

rillLOSOPIIY OF TIIK niBT-K VINDTCATED.

although one iimy not be able to explain by what prooos.s tlio
intellect acqiiire.s knowle(l;i:e, still, the Hccptie would ;iain no
victory. The reasonin;; : '' yon don't know how yonr soul
apprehends snch an idea ; theiefore it does not Jty)prehend it
at nil," would scarcely pass unquestioned by the veriest tyro
in lo;:ie. From this we can .iud;,^' how sad are the abei-rations
of hiunan intellect, in those conceited ])hilosophizers who
maintained that no science could be had unless we had first
fouiul and proved its base. Generally each of them placed
a new base, and, conse([uently, it would follow that nothing
was known till Mr. A. placed his <'otnidati(jn ; people, then,
thouirht they knew soinelliin;x, but Mr. IJ. arises, di;^s up A's
base and lays a new one, loudly asserting that nothing could
have been known until his time. Thus the comedy goes on ;
C. springs a mine under the foundation placed by B., and
begins anew. One hardly knows whether to laugh at the
folly of such (fcrmaii base-digging, or to be angry at the
amazing conceit of those philosophic fiedglings who imagine
that there was no science until they came to place its base.
No one human intellect has a monopoly of knowledge ; the
mighty men of the past knew many things ; the mighty mcu
of to-day know, perhaps, more ; but a still greater luimber of
things kuowable are now unknown Avhich the mighty men
of the future will know. We are certain that there is a limit
to human understanding, but whether there be many, or few
undiscovered truths, as yet, within that limit, we know not ;
of this much we are sure, the limit has not yet been reached.
Perhaps it never will, in life ; but under the fostering and
guiding cure of holy church, in the future as in the past, the
human intellect will go on developing ; now an Augustine,
now a Thomas, now a Raphael, now a IMichael-Angelo will
lead his age, and make advances on future ones. Each
devoted student may add one small stone, at least, to the
edifice of human science.

!i!

CKnTITUDE.

207

Iliiviiic^ (lisfiinl(Ml, ns uHoltss, all qncstioti ns to the possi-
bility of cuilitudo, we muy iiiqtiire in what docs the tirst
priiu'ii)le of certitude coiifsirit. Since there is certitude for
the iiilelU'ct, there must be ii priiniiry crilerion by which the
mind may know with certainty the motives which dettrmine
it to prcmounce jiMJ^^ment, and, also, the necessary connexion
of thes(; motives with tiie truth. This is wiuit we mean by
the lirst principle of certitude. Now it is evident that that
principle must be one known without demonstration, and
intrinsic to I'ach individual. Since it is the tirst it cjtiuiot
be demonstrated by any preceding one ; and since each
individual mind is capable of certitude, each must have, in
itself, a rule, or criterion by which it exj)ends all motives of
credibility. Uidess this principle be in each mind there
could never be certainty amon^ men ; if you suppose the
principle to be extrinsic, before a mind can be certain, it
must tirst determine within itself — does that motive exist?
is it credible? Therefore any extrinsic principle cannot be
first, for it must be jiidired by an interior one ; hence the lirst
principle of certitude is intrinsic to each mind.

Individual reason, or the intellect pi'rceivini^, is that
principle ; the intellect cannot be ij^nnrant of its existence,
ueither can it be ignorant of the objective reality of its acts ;
therefore it is certain of the existence of certainty, inasmuch
as it is certain of these. St. Thomas (de. Verit, qs. 1 1 art.
1 ad. 13 an.) says :

" Certitude of science arises from certainty of principles.
.... hence it is from the light of reason divinely
bestowed within, by which God s])eaks in us, not from man
teaching without, that a thing is known with certainty."
And (Lib. 3 cont. gent. cap. 154). " By natural light the
intellect is made certain of the things which it knows by "that
light." St. Augustine, writing against the sceptics of his

ifl

li-JMi

ill:

^ ; I ■

if' \

■i

208

PHILOSOPHY OF TIIK BIBLK VINDICATKL

time, turtuHl the tables on them with a venpfcnnce ; (do Vcrn.
R('ll.*'i'.j). 39 1) 73) he writes: *' lie who |)er('eiverf him.self
doiil)tiii;r, perceives whnt is true, mid h certain of that which
he perceives ; therefore he is certain of what is true." Per-
haj)s the whole rau^e of philosophy does not atl'ord a more
trenchant ar;,nnnent than this. It j)roves two things : tirst,
8ce[)ti('isni is impossible ; secondly, the principle of certainty
is intrinsic — it is the mind perceivin;.'.

This doctrine is wichdy ditl'erent from that tau^^^ht by
rationalists. It merely asserts that reason is the rule of
truth in the luitural order, and a requisite in the suj)ernatural
to know the motive of faith. It maintains the (li;j^nity of
reason, while it recognizes its limitation. On the other
hand, rationalists pretend that nothing should be believed
except what can be demonstrated by reason. If this means
anything, it means that human reason is infinite, or at least,
that there exists no being suj)erior to itself. For, if a
superior nature exists, it cannot be fully grasped by an
inferior one ; there must be in it some reality outside the
reach of its inferior. This reality will be a truth which may
be known, with certainty, by some other means.

Again, this docti'ine is truly philosophic. It asserts that
nothing is to be considered as certain except that which
reason either directly perceives, or that which it knows to
have a motive of certainty. If the intellect were never td
pronounce judgment until it perceived the essential relations
of things, or some motive for their certainty, it would never
fall into error ; it would invarisj.bt) acquire true science.
Passions, preconceived notions, intellec'ual pride — all con-
spire to lead man astray. The world spins round and hustlea
men along ; a craze to keep ahead of all, causes many to
pronounce judgment ere they have examined the case in all
its bearings. Hence the crude and absurd theories that

CEUTITUDE.

209

confuse men*3 bruiiij^. Reason is invoked aa the nutlioress
otHysttais whieh involve nintual destruction ; these systems
do not exist because produeetl by reason, but because she
was absent ihiriii;; their incubation. Were one just recover-
ing from a severe iUness to attempt to walk tar one would
fall by the way, not beiitusc of one's return\n;^ health, but
because it had not fully returned ; so, too, when one a<lhered
to a proposition whose truth, or whose motive of certainty,
lA not perceived, one falls into error, not led by reason, but
rather a;;ainst its dictate.

Finally this doctrine is in harmony with sound theology.
Those who have the inheritan(;e of the faith can, by its
application, give a reason for the faith that is in them, viz :
because it has a motive of certainty ; those who are Avithout
can, by its guidance, solve these two questions : has God
spoken? is he to be believed? Were individual reason to
thoroughly examine these two questions, it would tind an
allirmative answer to each. It wt)uld, thus, be led ou
towards faith, and belter disposed for its reception.

.'\^!^

I r

■ '

llil I

CHAPTER III.

|;;!; ,

RELIGION.

€^ ' , ,.. . ■ . .

K^J i\ NTELLPXTUAL perfection conpists in the acquisitioa
r) j of truth ; the perfection of the wi'l in embracing it.
C'r^r: Our noble fucuUies have been given for noble purposes.
'(r To know is the natural desire of all ; to grasp sublime
truths is the delight of the cultured ; to follow these truths is
the joy of the virtuous. The true philosopher will never sit
down and idly fold his hands, saying : " f have found out all
truth — nothing more remains to be investigated." The
stolid arrogance of even a German transcendentalist would
hardly go so far in words, whatever it might do in actions.-
Hence whatever else a philosopher may want, he will never
lack a subject of interesting investigation. His mind can
always find something whereby its powers may be developed,
and its happiness increased. Of a certainty, a theme not
unworthy of the considei-ation of the learned, is that one
which, since man first was, has occupied the attention of the
wisest and most noble of our race. No one, thei-efore, needs
woiuk that we proceed to consider religion in its various
signitications. Here is a great psychological fact, or pheno-
menon, vi/ : our whole race has ever exhibited some religious
tendency ; it has ever occupied itself with speculations on
matters which it called sujjernatural. The historic fact is
there ; uo denial or evasion is possible. From the Bible to

iiisitioa
ciiig it.
irposcs.
sublime
;niths is
icver sit
1 out all
The

t AVOulcl

actious.-
11 never
iud eau
veloped,
uMiie not

\at one
n of the
e, needs

\ arious
r pheno-
•eligiou*

ions ou
fact is
Bible to

RELIGION.

211

the latest tract issued in England, every page of our history
or literature, bristles with its proof, [n view of this, what
would a profound thinker do? Would he, like Dickens*
Podsnap, dismiss the whole subject with one majestic sweep
of his hand, or would he endeavor to explore its hidden
springs? In good sooth he would do the latter ; none but a
brainless coxcomb would treat, as undeserving of notice, so
grave a question. When we find the intellectual giants of
our race — Moses, Solomon, Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Cicero,
St. Paul, St. Augustine, St. Thomas, Liebnitz and Newton,
and a host of others, all employing their eloquent tongues,
or their more eloquent peus, in treating of religion in some
way or other, we can afford to disregard the sneers of our
lilliputian " modern thinkers" wlien wriliiig on this subject.
That science which best promotes all which men most prize,
honor, truth, fidelity, justice, temperance, and above all,
charity, is surely worthy of the greatest mind. Even in the
absurd supposition that we are but moths of an hour, ripples
on a trackless deep, religion would be a subject deserving of
Cor)sideration, inasmuch as it would promote social happiness.
But when we reflect that our souls aie immortal, that after
a few struggles here an endless aiier-state awaits us, that
science which treats of that future life becomes one of primary
importance.

We here assume religion in the sense of a collection of
beliefs and duties pertaining to the worship of God. It
may be asked: is this connected with metaphysics? Assur-
edly it is, and most intimately. By metaphysics we prove
the existence of a supreme being, the source and origin of
all reality, the author of our existence, our supreme Lord
and Master. From this idea necessarily follows the obligation
on our part, of recognizing and properly honoring him from
whom we depend. Reason and every right sentiment of our

H-t

I I'

If;

112

PIlILOSOPnY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

Ill

I;!

nature dictate this. Thus we have, at once, a natural religion
which prescribes internal, external and public worship.
Internal, because we must recognize and acknowledge our
dependence ; external, because reason dictates that God is to
be honored by acts of the man, that is, not merely by hig
soul, but, also, by those outward actions which are the
natural signs and sequence of internal feelings. Moreover,
experience teaches that our nature is so constituted that
external worship foments internal ; it is the breeze playing
on the ever-increasing spark. It prescribes public worship,
because reason teaches that God is the author, not only of
individuals, but also of a whole community which, being as
it were a moral unity, has its special actions and duties and
its special obligation of honoring its author. The history of
individuals as well as of nations prove that thus man always
-thought and acted. Prejudices, want of reflection, passions,
often led men to mistake the true object of worship ; still,
every sacrifice offered from Abel's to the latest victim to the
Juggernaut, are so many proofs of the firm conviction of
mankind that there exists a supreme being who is to be
worshipped both privately and publicly.

jligion
>rship.
^e our
d is to
by hii
ire the
reover,
id that
phiyiag
orship,
only of
leing as
:ies and
story of
always
assions,
p ; still,
n to the
ctiou of
is to be

CHAPTER IV.

REVELATION.

I HAT was said in the preceding chapter will hardly
be questioned by anyone ; still it was requii-ed for a
better understanding of the present all-important
^ subject. That the supreme being sliould be lionored,
is a self-evident proposition ; no less evident is this other —
he should be honored in the way most pleasing to himself.
We here suppose that which was proved in tlie first part,
viz : that God exists ; that he is personal, not a vague notion,
nor yet a great unknowable. He is the first force, the
primary cause, not blind and unreasoning like the attraction
of gra.itation, but infinitely wise and omniscient. Of his
own free will he created finite beings, and he rules the world
by his divine Providence It is necessai-y to recall these
truths before entering on our subject matter. Like a
beaut ifidly disposed but intricate web, the various sciences
are linked together ; each thread has its peculiar use and
special charm; each thread, if carefidly followed through its.
devious ways and various connecting links, will lead to the
common source. It one thread be cut, the hapless explorer
becomes involved in a clewless labyrinth ; it is possible that
he may strike again on the right path, but the chances are a
thousand to one against him. The student is charmed with
the beauties of each thread, but only when it will be given

f •

;!U

214

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

tl !i

him to take in the whole at a glance, will he have an idea
of the sublime beauty and harmony of the sciences. Ho
will then see them like so many shining fibres of chaste
colors, neatly interwoven and harmoniously matchef', forming
a veil of glory through which some rays of the eternal light
within penetrate and sparkle. He will then, indeed, wonder
why man should have ever dared to hack and hew and rend
this veil by endeavoring to make one science contradict
another. We bring back to our remembrance the truths
learnt in natural theology and follow them up.

Since God is our creator he is the author of our intellect ;
through it we learn many truths ; these, we say, we kno\r
naturally. By revelation we mean a special action of God
by which he makes known to us truths, by other means than
natural ones. Now the question is : can God make known
truths to us by other than natural means? There are somo
who, strange as it may appear, deny that he can. This
denial is equivalent to a negalion of God ; for one man can
make known to another his ideas ; if God cannot do this
much he is less than man, or in other words, he is not God.
Thus rationalism is atheism under a more specious cloak,
Now there are two orders of truths which may be the matter
of revelation, those which could be knowh naturally, and
• those which could not. Regarding the first order no ouo
who apprehends God as a personal being, infinitely powerful
and wise, can have a moment's doubt. Since God is the
source and origin of all reality he must know these truths ;
knowing them he can make them known ; surely no one will
deny to God the power which one admits every old woman
to have, viz : that of making known her ideas. " Modern
thinkers" will talk vaguely of the " first motor," God and
*' nature,'* but what do they mean ? Either they mean a
personal being, or not. If the former, then that being can

BEVELATION.

215

make known its kno\vledj;e, and revelation will be possible.
If the latter, then they are simply ?.: heists under false colors,
and are to be confuted by first proving the existence of a
personal God. It is to be borne in mind that when we assert
that God can make known his ideas, we do not claim more
for him than each one claims for oneself. We can make
known our thoughts and wishes in various ways ; and shall
not he whom we call infinite, be able to do asmucn? If so,
revelation of truths which man might learn naturally is
evidently possible.

But can God reveal truths which could never be known
by human jreasoo ? We answer yes, most certainly. In
fact, God can do it, 1st, if there be such truths ; 2d, if he
knows them ; 3d. if to reveal them be neither contrary to his
nature, nor to right reason. Now these three things are
verified. That there exist truths which human reason could
never of itself know is clearly seen from a consideration of
the human intellect and of God. Our intellect is limited ;
true, it is susceptible of development. Many things which
once appeared beyond the grasp of reason, are now seen to
be its toys ; many which are now considered as impossible of
demonstration by human reason, ages hence, may be the
pastime of school-boys. We cannot fix the limits of reason ;
we cannot say, thus far and no further can it go. But all
this being admitted the stubborn fact remains that it is
limited, essentially, inexorably limited. We cannot, like
the greedy farmers in the time of Horace, pull up the stakes
which mark our boundaries ; they are part aud parcel of our
nature. Were the intellect unlimited it would not be
susceptible of development, for the infinite is perfect. No
matter, then, how much we may boast of the progi'ess of
intellect, we must admit that there is a point beyond which
it cannot ^o. This being established let us consider tho

:J?'I

if:;

216

PITILOSOPIIY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

"i :t

nature of God. He is the infinite, unlimited reality. Now
no matter how much our mind may learn of this j^reat
reality, there will be always a something of it beyond its
grasp, because, as seen, the mind is limited. This luiattain-
able something in the essence of God will be pregnant with
truths. Hence there are, for a certainty, truths which
reason, of itself, can never know.

2d, God knows them ; as shown before, the infinite knows
everything knowable. He comprelieiuls his own infinite
reality, in which is the reason of all other realities. He
knows thns his own nature and attributes, and all the works
of his hand. We :• '^ piecemeal and with limitation ; he
beholds everything iii one comprehensive glance. There is
no reality uncor.ancted with him.

3d, It is neitlicr i iitiary to the nature of God, nor to
right reason, for God to rcvetil truths beyond our comjjre-
hension. Firi>t it is not contrary to the nature of God.
God is essentially gocd ; now the characteristic of goodness
is a tendency to impart to others that which itself envoys.
Hence God lavishes on his creatures so many benefits and
means of enjoyment. Now all will admit that the acqui^^ition
of truth is, in this life, a great source of pleasure to rational
beings. Everyone strives to know ; a man of cultured
intellect will despise the pleasures of the cup, will forsake
the society of friends, Avill strain. l)is eyes by a dim light, will
abandon all to pore over books, in order to acquire more
knowledge From this it will be seen how much in harmony
with God's infinite goodness is revelation. By it he increases
the means of enjoyment of rational beings.

Moreover, man owes to his creator the snbjection of all
his faculties. Will, intellect, memory, all that we have of
good is from him, and ought to pay him due homage. Wo
must, likewise, bear iu mind that to the creator appertains

M I

REVELATION.

217

Now

great

ind its

attain-

it Avitli

which I

knows
inliuite
s. He
s works
on ; he
.'here is

, nor to

conipre-
)f God.
oodiiess
enjoys,
its and
nit^ition
•utional
'uUured
forsake
:ht, will
e more
larmony
ncreases

n of all
have of
re. Wo
jpertttina

the right of imposing the conditions of subjection. Now in
what could our intellect more fully exhibit its homage, than
in believing triiths it did not comprehend, solely because they
were revealed? What other honuige could our intellect
oflfer? It shows no special subjection by holding as certain
truths which it can of itself demonstrate.

In the second place it is not contrary to right reason. It
is self-evident that revelation would aild a new perfection to
human intelligence. It woidd increase its knowledge ;
enlarge the horizon of its view ; open up to it a vast field
for reverential investigation. It is not considered contrary
to reason for the parent to teach the child — for the master to
instruct the scholar ; neither would it be so for God to teach
his creatures.

It nmst not be argued that revelation would be a degrada-
tion of reason, inasmuch as it requires the assent of the
intellect to truths which it does not comprehend. This is
the pet argument of self-styled philosophers, but it has no
more weight than the glittering gossamer. When we believe
revealed truths we have a motive of credibility for our belief.
This motive is the certainly of God's tiutlifuhiess. We
know that he knows all ; we know he is truthful ; if, then,
he should reveal anything, we are certain it nuist be true.
Is not this a logical and reasonable belief? The greater
part of our natural cognitions does not rest on so sure a
basis. We believe many things because persons whom wo
think worthy of credence have told us so ; no one ((uestions
the reasonableness of such beliefs. IMudi less should any
one call irrational the belief in revealed truths. We thus
see that there are truths which human intelligence could
never of itself grasp; thai God knows these truths; and
that it is neither repugnant to his natino, nor to the nature
of reason to reveal them. Therefore, revelation is possible.

til

218

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

.|^ i

III

r«iir

Whoever impugns this conclusion, or the argument? which
lead up to it has either a wroag idea of God, or of human
reason, or of both. If a personal God be admitted he must
be infinite in essence and in knowledge ; human reason is
essentially limited ; hence it cannot know all that God knows.
But God being infinite in power can make known tx) man
some of the truths, unknown to man but known to him.
Hence the possibility of revelation. The reader will find
that those who deny the possibility of revelation have a most
grotesque idea of God. His name may frequently appear in
their writings ; they may, even, profess great reverence for
him ; but they will, probably, take upon themselves the task
of determining what he should do, and how he should comport
himself. They will make him something like the sovereign
of England ; he may reign, but he mnst not govern. And
those who do this are the very ones who prate so flippantly
about " modern thought " and " progress of ideas." Verily,
their absurdity and impiety have not even the charm of
novelty ; they are but echoes from many a pagan tomb.

-^^!

mi^

which
iiimaa
■i. must
ison is

illOVVS.

o man
him.
ill find

a most
»pear in
nee for
he task
comport
)vereigii
I. And
ippantly

Verily,
iiarm of
nb.

• CHA.PTER V.

NECESSITY OF RKVELA.T10N.

HE most etficac'ious antidote for intellectual pride is,
one would suppose, a retlection on the vajiaries of
IsP^ human genius. Notwithstanding all the gabbling of
C"^ our modern half-fledged philosophers, about their
incomparable genius and learning, society, in the long run,
tires of their nonsense, and learns their want of value. It
80on discovers that anything ingetiious in their theories has
been raked from out the dn.^t of depai ted heathens. It finds
that these birds are brilliant, but that their plumage is otdy
painted, and, what is still more degrading, that it is stolen.
They have prowled, like ghouls, around the graves of
Xenophanes, Zeno, ]\Ietrodorus and other ancient writers,
and evoked, by necromanic art, their long silent spirits.
Confiding in tlie superficial knowledge of modern society,
they steal largely from those tombs, and come before tlie
world decked out in the ill-gotten costumes. For a tinie the
fraud is unperceived, and the greatest literary rogue is the
greatest hero. But time, that relentless foe to impostors,
brings about their detection and overthrow. What moderate-
ly educated person when reading Tyndall's vaunted outcomes
of " modern thought," and " modern progress," would suspect
that he was but reviving, clumsily enough, a theory exploded
centuries before the coming of Christ? Or who would

■In

220

riiiLOSoniY OF the bible vindicatkd.

imiifiino that Huxley iincarthcMl his errors in the (lu?»ty corner
of'u library? Or that the whole army of theorizers against
the teachings of ehristiunity contains not an officer, or a
soldier stamped with the seal of originality ? lint so it is;
and so the world sooner or later finds out. Hence it is that
the educated part of society, while recognizing the value of
modern inventions and progress, proclaims that in intellectual
power Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Cicero and many other
ancients, were immensely superior to the geniuses of our
own days. This assertion cannot be impugned. If, then,
tliese mighty minds were only stumbling and groping their
way to ])riniary truths, and often sadly wandered from the
right path, we have in them a striking evidence of our
intellectual imperfection. When the strong oaks are riven,
there is but small chance for the escape of the beech.

Now, oiir object is not to depreciate human intelligence ;
Tve have already vindicated its dignity. But to understand
aright the human mind it must be viewed in its historic
aspect.^ It is but a childish egotism to look upon ourselves
as anything but an infinitesimal fraction of hunumity. We
discuss in this place the necessity of revelation ; in doing tliis
we are not to limit our consideration to this or that man, or
nation ; we must contemplate our race in its entirety.
!Moreover, the revelation of which we ai'e going to treat is a
cleai'er and fuller exposition of the natural law. We have
proved that revelation is possible ; we now purpose proving
that, viewing man in his actual state, a revelation of the
natural law was morally necessary, that is, without it men
would have had the greatest difficulty in learning the truths
of natural religion, and in knowing their obligations. It is
true that by the light of reason alone the primary truths of
the natural law may be acquired ; but it is equally true that
few thus acquired them. Why this was so theology tells ua

NECESSITY OF REVELATION.

221

corner

a}:i;aiust

r, or a

< it is ;
i^ that

ftluc of

illectual

y other

^ of our

If, then,

njl their

i'om the

! of our

•e riven,

lligence ;

iderstand
historic

aurselves

ty. We

oing tliis
man, or
entirety,
real is a

We have

e proving

n of the

It it men

le truths

lis. It is
truths of
true that
y tells ua

■when it «lemonstrateH the fall of man. Cicero when consid-
ering the perversity of man, felt that some change must have
been effected in him ; as St. Augustine says : he '' saw the
effect hut not the cause, for, being ignorant of the scriptures,
be knew not about origiiuil sin." It is not, however, tha
province of the philosopher to follow up this point. lie can
take man such as history paints him, and show from thai
picture the moral necessity of revelation in the seuse
explained.

A dreary sight is presented to the student of the history of
man before the coming of Christ. If we except the Jewit^h
nation, what ignorance of God, the human soul, and virtue
holds our race degraded ! Man bowed to works of his own
hand! adored an oifion, as did the Egyptians ; burnt incense
before grotesque statues which they venerated as gods ; got
drunk in honor of Bacchus ; offered homage to Venus by
filthy impurity ; exalted these and various other vices by
placing themiHider the guardianship of some god or goddess.
Often human beings were sacriticed ; parents were considered
justified in exposing and leaving their deformed babes to
perish. Deeds, which a christian pen refuses to name, were
publicly applauded. It must bo borne in mind that this
perversity of morals was not confined to barbarous nations;
much, very mucii of it, existed amongst the cultured Greeks
and Romans. It was truly a gloomy time — a time to which
the apostle refers when he says that men were " living without
hope, and without God in the world." This moral perversity
was not a passing cloud on the human race ; it was, or wc'ilJ
have been, an endless night deepening in darkness as agea
rolled on, without the aid of revelation. The further man
receded from the days of primitive revelation in Eden, the
more obscure became the moral darkness that brooded over
him. Early Grecian and Roman historitius have more deeds

'In

ft: r

222

ririLOSOPiiy or tiik iuble vindicated.

1. I

i.:'

i !
1

lit; ;:

of rinhiral virtue and licroism to reLite, tlian their PiuTossors,
Readinj^ the history of matikind, exceplin^if alwuvM the Jews,
we note a <jra(hial (Icf^cneracy. Horace noted it in his day,
and phiced on record that:

" The af;c of our fat hers, worse than that of our p^rand-
fathers, bore us who are about to leave a still more vicioiw
pro^jfeny."

The fine arts flourished amonp^st these people ; they were
gkilled in war, hut the moral sense was blunted and festering.
Of themselves they could never free themselves; for very
few, indeed, would seriously turn their attention, for a len<ith
of time, to the science of morals. Moreover, they were
steeped in prejudice and infamy from their chihlhood.
Cicero (Tuscul. L. 3 N. 1) wiys : ''As sf^)n as we are born
we are in the midst of continual wickedness, and a very
great perversity of o])inions, so that we seem to imbibe error
with our nui'se's milk. When we arc returned to our psirents,
we are handed over to teachers, and then we become imbued
with so many errors, that truth yields to falsehood, and
nature itself to prejudice." This is but too true a picture of
the state of the gentiles in his da} . It would be morally
impossible for persons under such circumstances to eman(ri-
pate themselves from their woPsc than Egyptian darkness.

Iseither coidd they hope for redemption from their philo-
Bophers. No school of ancient philosophy was free from
gross errors. Socrates, Aristotle and the divine Plato,
ftltliou<^h intellectually far in advance of Darwin, Tyndall,
or Huxley, were stumbling and groping along, but never
reached the full light. Their disciples instead of emerging
still more into the day, turned back and plunged hopelessly
into the Erebus from which their masters had partly escaped.
When we remind our readers that Plato admitted the com-
munity of wives, the exposition of infants, and drunkenness

flews,
is (lay,

grftiul-
vicioitf

y were
stering.
;)r very
\ length
;y wer»
ildliood.
ire born
a very
be error
[psirents^
imbued
()(1. and
licture of
morally
einaiK^i-
tiess,
ir philo-
■ee from
Plato,
'ynduU,
it never
merging
ipelessly
escaped,
the com-
ikeuues*

NECESSITY OF UEV ELATION.

223

at the feasts of Biicclms, we have surely said enough to
prove that philosophy jiniong the aticieiits was insutlicient to
teacii men their duties. Hut more than this ; like our inoihrn
theorizers atid constitution tinkers, the ancient philosopberi
disagreed on questions of religion and morality. Worso
«till, Cicero [Qua-st. Tuscul. L. 2, N. 12] informs us thai
their lives were sadly out of harmony with their teachings.
He writes : '' How many philosophers are found whoso
morals, whose manner of life is such as reason demands?
How many who think that their doctrine ought to be a rule
of life, and not an ostentation of knowledge? How many
who obey themselves and observe their own decrees? Wo
see some eager for money, others desirous of honor, many
the slaves of impurity ; so that their life is wonderfully
ditfcrent from their teaching." Can any r(iasonal)le man
suppose that a populace, steeped in debasiii; vices, could be
brought to even that much of goodness which the j)hilosopherg
professed, whilst they saw these teachers leading lives such
as Cicero describes? We think not.

Now unless we admit an evident improbability, viz : that
man could of himself, or by the assistance of the ancient
philosophers, acquire a knowledge of many of the fundamental
truths of the natural law, we nnist confess that, taking man
such as history paints him, revelation was morally necessary,
From a consideiation of the social, moral and political evil*
of Gentile nations, even the most polished, we have a
convincing proof of the insntliciency of human reason to
ele\ate mankind, or to form a right society. We have,
likewise, an additional cause of thankfulness for the philosophj
01 the holy scriptures.

iffl

lil 'i

CHAPTER VI.

MIRACLES.

I ERE any proof required to convince an intelligent
person that onr champions of " evolution " are not
^ philosophers, it could casil}' be supplied by pointing
out the unscieutilic way in which they dispose of the
accumulated beliefs and testimonies of learned and con-
scientious men during many centuries. A philosopher is
cautious in admitting, but he is equally cautious in denying.
His golden rule is to distinguish and to investigate ; he may
not pause to inquire into the truth, or falsehood, of nursery
tales, but he will assuredly pay respect to an alleged fact
which is based upon the testimony of many witnesses. Now,
if there be one fact that stands out sharply defined in the
religious history of man, it is the belief in supernatural
events, or miracles. The Bible, every ecclesiastical history,
the writings of all the great doctors of the church, the books
of nearly every modern scholar, whether Catholic or Pro-
testant, and the firm belief of Christendom, all with one voice
proclaim that miracles hav been wrought. In the eyes of
any reasonable being this > ,nt to be enough to make anyone
hesitate before condemning the possibility of such events.
But our " men of progress " pay no attention to such authori-
ties ; they deem the question unworthy of consideration, and
merely ridicule Us defenders. In justice it must be admitted

MIRACLES.

225

elligent
are not
pointing
ic of the
,nd con-
jplicr is
^enying.
he may
nursery
ged fact
Now,
(1 in the
rnaiural
listory,
le books
or Pro-
)ne voice
eyes of
c anyone
events,
authori-
ion, and
admitted

that, at times, some one of these scientists condescends to
argue the matter, and endeavors to give his reasons for
rejecting miracles. In such cases one of two things is
surely seen ; either the writer does not understand what is
meant by a miracle, or he denies, by implicalion, the
existence of God. This may appear a harsh and ungenerous
judgment, still, in any case that has falleu under our obser-
vation, we can prove it to be true.

It is necessary to fully and clearly understand what is
meant by a miracle, or a miraculous event. Too often
persons apply the term miracle to some extraordinary natural
effect, the cause of which they cannot perceive. ilence the
adversaries of Christianity seize upon these popular miracles,
show them to be natural effects, and exult as if the impossi-
bility of miracles were demonstrated. They forget the
saying of Rousseau (Lettres de la mont.) that he who resists
to the Reasoning which proves the possibility of miracles
from the infinite power of God, is a fit subject for Bedlam.
A miracle may be defined : an effect produced by the extra-
ordinary intervention of the creative power in the order of
things. Hence only the creator can, of himself, perform
miracles. Any change from the usual course of events
brought about by mere created force, is not a miracle. Still,
God may use a human being as the instrument of his power ;
in that case we say stich a one performed a miracle, but we
do not mean that he did it by reason of his natural endow-
ments. It is self-evident that an extraordinary intervention
of God can do as much as an ordinary one ; but the ordinary
intervention produces various results ; therefore an extra-
ordinary one can produce other results ; hence miracles are
possible. In this reasoning, if is taken for granted that God
can intervene in an extraordinary manner, in created things.
Who can deny it? If you say he was exhausted by a passing

J',.

226

PinL(>SOPIlY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATKD.

IH''-

ri-i.

mHnifestation of liia power, y«>u deny his iufinity ; if he be
inexhauj(ted and inexliuustible, he cao nmnifest his power
anew. Again, we proved that the natural law and order of
(Creation is from God ; to each particle he gave its special
power of action, and combined them all with such inliiiite
wisdom, as to produce the wonderful harmony of creation.
The framer of that law, and its preserver, is infinitely
superior to the law, and can obtain from it effects which
oveicome the ordinary ones.

The great arg«»ment, against the possibility of niiraclef is
taken from tlie stabi.ity of the laws of nature. It may be
thus stated: a miracle would be destructive of the stability
and universality of the physical, ci.emical and viial laws of
nature ; it was the divine wisdom that established tiieselaws ;
therefore, it is concluded, a suspension, or destruction of
these laws woidd be an act of contradiction on the part of
the creator. This is the only real argument against the
abstract possibility of miracles, and it umst be admitted that
it piesents a formidable appearance. It is founded on the
wisdom of God, who is the author of the laws which miracles
are supposed to destroy or suspend. We are far fiom
despising this objection when so stated ; we are equally far
from shrinking from its consideration. We are convinced of
two things — the stability and universality of natuie's laws,
and the possibility of miracles. These two may appear
contradictory, but their amicable conciliation is easy. The
ground is cut from under our adversaries by admitting with
them that no suspension, no destruction, no contradiction of
the physical laws is ever verified. When a miracle is per-
formed these laws are not suspended, much less destroyed,
they are simply iutensijicd, or, in other words, the creative
power sublimates them. To render this quite clear we have
only to reflect that the forces of matter, the operatious of

MIKACLES.

227

he be
power
der of
special
nliiiite
nation*
riiiitely
which

clef i3
nay be
tability
laws of
ie laws ;
Lotion of

part of
(inst the

ted that
oil the
miracles
from
illy far

luced of

e'si laws.

•y

appear
, The

inj?

with
iction of
e U per-
et*troyed,
creative
we have
atious of

wliich constitute the laws of nature, were impressed on the
various siib.-tance.s by the creator; if the magnet attracts the
needle, it was God who gave it that force; if oxygen and
hydrogen combine to form water, it was God who gave them
that adtiptabiliiy. In a word, the forces of matter are from
God. Now it is a constant law of nature, that the etfect is
proportionate to the cause, A mass of matter of a certain
size will have a greater power of attraction than half tjie
same mass. If we suppose two balls of lead, equal in every
respect, except in size, the mass of one being double that of
the other, it is a known fact that the disturbing power of the
larger is just double that of the smaller. But if we suppose
the attractive force of the smaller ball to be intensiHed, or
sublimated, so that it becomes double what it at first was,
its disturbing power will be equal to that of the larger one.
An extraordinaiy effect is produced by the smaller ball, bul
it is not destructive of any natural law ; it is in perfect har-
mony with them all. The possibility of the intensification
of natural forces is easily shown. The study of electricity
supplies a well-known proof. Take two magnets equal in
every respect; each will hold suspended a weight equal, let
us suppose, to one pound. Now wind a few feet of isolatecf
copper wire around one of them, and jitlach one end to aa
electric battery. Cause a current to flow through the wire ;
on trial it will be found that the magnet, around which the
wire is wound, will hold suspended a fur greater weight than
one pound, so long as the current flows. The othtr magnet
is unchanged; its power of attraction remains the same.
This simple example proves that the attractive force of a
magnet is intensified by an electric current passing around
it. No one recognizes in this a suspension, or destruction of
any natural law ; the effect i^. vmtsual^ but, relatively to the
producing cause, it is qu\;e uatural. It is just \vhat thfi

228

PIIILOSOniY OF TUB BIBLE VINDICATED.

fi->

operator expected, because he knows that, if the cause be
sublimated, the efl'ect will be, not coutradidory to the cause
before its sublimation, but superior to it, being proportioned
to the increased power. Since God is the author of created
forces, and since the intensification of these forces involves no
contradiction, God can intensify, or sublimate them. Surely
he can do what an electric current can. Kow a miracle is
nothing more than an efllect produced by an extraordinary
intervention of the creator, intensifying and sublimating the
natural forces. The possibility of this extraordinary inter-
vention cannot be denied ; it is not opposed to any divine
attribute, nor to any physical law ; on the contrary, it is
conformable to right reason that the infinite power (an act
at pleasure, when, as in the case of intensiiying pliysical
forces, no contradiction is involved. Therefore the abstract
possibility of miracles is as clearly demonstrable, as any
proposition of Euclid.

The above explanation of the nature of miracles may not,
at first sight, appear satisfactory ; still, it is substantially the
same as that given by St. Thomas and all Catholic; philoso-
phers. According to them a miracle is an (Jfed that exceeds
the order and Jorce of created powers. Its author must be
God, either immediately, or through some created agency.
There is no defect in the definition ; but too often there is a
defect in the explanation. IVIaii} , when defending the
possibility of miracles, explain them as effects, contrary to
the natural order of things, produced by the intervention of
God who suspends the physical laws, or acts in opposition to
them. Such an explanation is erroneous, and gives strength
to our adversaries. The definition proposed by us, whilst it
proclaims that only God is the first cause of miracles,
recognizes the constant and universal stability of nature's
laws. No suspension, or destruction of them is verified

MIRACLES.

229

fse be
cause
tioned
reated
ves no
Surely
ncle is
■dinary
ing the
k' inter-

diviue
y, it is
(an act
)Viysical
abstract

as any

nay not,
lly the

philoso-
txceeds

must be

agency,
re is a
11 g the
vary to
ntion of

)sition to
strength
whilst it
niracles,
nature's
verified

when God works a miracle ; he who gave the forces suhlimatea
them, for some reason worthy of liimself ; and the cflToct of
^this sublimation, or the miracle, relalively to God, is just as
natural an effect, as those produced by the forces before their
sublimation. Thus the power of the infinite is unchecked;
his wisdom in not disturbing laws made by liimself is mini-
fesfed ; no violence is done to natural forces, or laws ; never-
theless this beautiful and sublime way of showing his gh»ry
to his creatures is left open. Truly the depths of the wisdom
of God are great. Lot us consider one or two examples of
miracles to show how they harmonize with this idea. A
person suffering from a grevious malady is suddenly restored
to health. Our scientists say, " impossible ; such a fact
would destroy, or dis^tuib physiological laws." We answer:
by no means ; such a fact is in perfect keeping with these
laws. In sooth ; the vital, chemical and physiological forces
are operating in the sick man, but not in their normal
manner. All that is required to restore him to health is to
make these forces act normally. This the physician endea-
vors to do by giving certain dings that have an influence on
this, or that force. Kow God, who gave the medicinal
virtue to that drug, can act at once on the Jbrces, and elevate
them in such a manner as lO restore them instantly to their
normal state. A miracle is the consequence ; the sick man
has been restored to health in a moment. No law has been
suspended or disturbed ; no force has been destroyed ;
relatively to the producing cause the effect is natural. If
there be no contradiction of physical laws, when the attractive
power of the magnet is increased, by the passing round it
of an electric current, there is, assuredly, no contradiction of
them, when the vital forces of a sick man are sublimated by
the intervention of God.

Again ; here is a dead body ; perhaps corruption has set

i.i

;»

■4%

~ 1

230

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

'!i i

:! I

in ; perb.ips for four days it has Yoen in the prpnlclire, and
DOW is fetid. The blood i." congealed ; the mechanism of the
heart is motiotdesp ; the spirit has fiown. To recall that
cold, loathsome mass to life and action, might appear a
contradiction to all r'atiiral laws : still it is not. It would be
contraiy to what usually happens ; it could only be done by
an infinite power, but it could be done without suspen<!iiigy
in the least, the laws of nature. In fact ; no particle of what
"was in life the man, has been destroyed ; as a consequence,
DO force has be«n annihilated. Kvery .species of force that
existed and operated in the living being, si'l exist? and
operates, although in a modified maimer. If then, by nn
extraordinary intervention, the pover that created these
forces were to intensify and sublimate them sufficiently, each
Stray particle would, at once, return to its former position ;
the vital part that ga\e \\ay, and rendered the body incaj able
of continuing its commerce with the ^oul, would be healed;
the sold u lii( h had been created to vi\jfy that body, and to
remain united to it as long as its vital paits were capable of
Fustaiiiing their action, would, according to tie law and
secondary end of its creation, resume its commerce In
keeping with me^physical, physical and physiological laws
the decomposition could be arrested ; the vitiated parts
restored; tlie mutual commetce between soul and body
resumed, and Lazarus coidd walk foith from his gloomy
sepulchre. To split the rocks, and to rend the veil of the
temple, it on'y required that their repulsive force should be
intensified, and straightway, as a necessary consequences the
rocks were riven, and the veil rent. In short, every miraele
can be shown, not only not to su.-pend, di-tuib, or contradict
the laws of nature, but to be produced in accordance with
them. Still it can on'y be performed by God ; for only he,
by an act of will, can intensify physical forc«is. When a

MIRACLES.

231

e, and

of the
11 that
pear a
oiiUlbe
one by
eiM'.injTr
[>f what
queiK'Cy
rce that
i.^t? anci
,, by aa
0(1 these
tly,eat'h
position ;
inca| able
} healed ;
, and to
)able of
iw and
ice Iq
cal laws
ed parts
nd body
gloomy
il of the
loold be
LMice, the
y niiv»u;le
ontradict
lice with
otdy he,
\Vheu a

nei

mati is said to work miracles, it is always to be borne in
mind that he is merely the instrument employed by God for
that piirpo.><e.

Tha po.s.>-ibility of miracles beinj? demonstrated, a question,
as to the reasons why they shonld be performed, may arise.
We do not pretend to assign motives of action to the infinite,
or to Iwnow why he should at any particular time intervene
in ai extraordinary maimer. Still, we can establish the
existetioe of a law iniimately connected with the divine
government of the world ; a law little heeded, when not
absolutely denied, by worldlings ; a law exercised under
given circumstances, from the crjaion of man till now; a
law as natural ami fixed in its effects as that of gravitation.
This law is tiie law of the extraordinary intervention of the
Creator. It must not be suppo-<e.l that miiacles were an
after-thought on the, part of God. Tt)0 often they aie con-
sidered as ^iuch, and people will ask : •' could not (jlod ha\ o
obtained t! e desired end without having now to interfere?"
As well may we ask : could not God have brought about
veL'etation by a difl'erent process to that which af present
takes place? Doubtless he could ; but he chose the present
law of vegetation ; and his law of extraorditniry intervention
is just as natural, in regard to him, as is that which governs
the growth of plants. His inrttiite wisdom hal before its
eye, like a vast panorama, the whole order and scope of
creation. In these were included, not oidy material things
and laws, but, likewise and chiefly, intellectinil beings and
laws of morality. The univeri-e was to be i vast arena
made up of physical matter combinetl, actuated an<l governed
by firmly established laws; and of intelligent biings endowed
wiih freedom of will, destined for a moial end, and subject
to laws superior to physical ones. It did not e-cape the
knowledge of the infinite that man, abusing his liberty uf

gi •
I"

232

piiiLOSorriY OF the bible vindicated.

will, would break intellectual and moral laws, and mar the
harmony of creation. He saw that many would endeavor to
defraud him of the intended end, and i^eek to erase from the
human mind a belief in his existence and providence.
Seeing all this, and having in more esteem the moral end of
creation than its physical one, was it not a design most
consonant to reason, and worthy of the Almighty, to establish,
side by side with physical and intellectual laws, a law of
extraordinary intervention, not suspensive of the former, nor
contradictory to them ; but one by which he nn*{>ht give
undeniable proof of his providence, and promote man's moral
end? lie saw the fall of Adam, and its misshapen brood of
evils ; he saw the tierce battle that would rage between justice
and wickedness, from the dawn in Eden until the twilight
in Jehosaphat. Why, seeing all this, he created man such
as he did, is not for us to inquire. But since he did it, and
since he desires our moral rectitude, and since he is so good
in himself, the law of extraordinary intervention, or of
miracles, enters as fittingly into the plan of creation as does
that of molecular attraction. Miracles, then, are not per-
formed to remedy an oversight of the creator ; they are not
the result of a sudden determination on the part of God to
interfere here below in an unusual manner ; they are
wrought, in accordance with a law constituted from the
beginning, whenever circumstances known to the supreme
wi>dom warrant its exerci>e. If this were well borne in
mind the world would hear less about " violent disturbances
of nature's laws ;" and less unscientific declamation against
the possibility of miracles.

When are verified the conditions for an exercise of the
law of miracles? We do not know ; God alone who estab-
lished the law, is judge of the requisite conditions. This
much is certain : such a law is iu harmony with all physical.

Eir the

IV or to

)m the

idence.
end of

n most

tal)li^^h,

hiw of

iier, nor

ht give

's moral

brood of

[1 jvistice

twilight

lan such

d ii, "wd
so good

n, or of

1 as does

QOt per-

are not

f God to
hey are

|trom the
supreme
borne in
urbances
u against

36 of the
► estab-
hs. This
physical.

MIRACLES.

238

intellectual and moral order; evidently possible, and, in the
present state of man and things, morally necessary. Also,
it is certain that miracles are wrought tor the moral benefit
of man, and only in confirmation of the truth, Since
miracles are the work of the right hand of the Most High,
they can never be performed except for some end worthy of
the creator. Siich an end might be the confirujation of a
divinely revealed religion ; the vindication of some divine
attribute ; or to prove that God is wonderful in his holy ones.
This chapter may be concluded with what was said in the
beginning: he who denies the possiibility of miracles, either
does not understand their nature and law, or ho denies the
omnipotence of God, and, by implication, his existeiu-e. We
may add, that although wo maintain that miracles are no
suspension of natural laws, still wo freely believe and grant
that God could, tor reasons worthy cf himself, suspend or
abrogate every physical law. His omnipotence can abolish
what his omnipotence constituted.

;

CIIAPTKR Vir.

KXI-TKNCK OF MIUACLKS.

J,\; iS iiifUcatcd in the proccilinir cljaptcr, matikind lias
Yjf\S Jil^^'*iy^ been persuaded, not only of the ab.-tract
^' pos>il)iliiy of niirucles, bnt, also, of their actual
v)^6 performance. The holy scriptures record many. It
may here be observed that in the bible, tlie Hebrew word
for miracle is qJu-hurolh^ and the Greek one, dtcnameis, both
figriifyirirjf force ; this meaniiijr is clo-ely followed in the
explanation «;i\en above of the nature of miracles. In every
a;re miracle:^ ha\ e been looked U| on k^ a test of a divine
mission ; ihey are the outward revehitions of an extraordinary
intervention of the supreme power; they are the eternal seal
of truth. By them IMoses proved to the E,^yptian king that
G )d was with him ; by them the prophets convinced a stitF-
necked people tiiat their mission was from above. Wheel
Christ proclaimed his divinity the Jews asked what signs he
did to confirm it. lie appealed to the works, or miracles he
had perlbrmed. In later ages the belief has ever been the
Fame ; juiracles performed in conlirmation of a doctrine
alleged to be di\ine, must be held as iiuincible proof.
Hence the enemies ol chri-iianity endeavor either to show
the impossibiiity of miracles, or failing in this, to deny their
pel tbrmancc. W'i.h surprii^^ingcoolness, or rather impudence,
Ihey maintain that no miracle has been seientitically p oved :

F.XISTENCE OF MIIJACLKS.

235

kind has
. ab.-tract
>ir acnuil
nany. It
vew word
meis, both
ed iu the
In every
f a divine
iiordiuary
Iteriial tseal
kinji; that
ed a stitf-
e. When
lit sij^iis he
piracies he
been the
[t doctrine
hie proof,
r to fallow
deny their
ujpudence,
ly p oved :

that the peneral crowd U an iiicompotciit jiid«^c of stich an
event ; that the niirarlcsof scriptnre are fables, or iiivontions
of an i-rnorant lunltiuide, or the woik of slci;:ht of hand,
Kow a scientific writer nnis^t, in his invcsii^iauoiif, proceed
ac(or(b'ng to well-foninled cMn<)Il^ of cii i( i^m ; l:e nuist
weij^h the motives of ceriainiy »iddiicc<l. an<l decide by the
li^dit of evidenii?, no: by ibe obscni^ty of prejudice. It is a
wry fpccions argnjuent to sav, that if a miracle beporlbiincd
it i> bicin;!ht til^ait accordinjr to an occult law ; conscquenily
an uiiedncHted multiinde is imaiaUe of decidiii;; sti<h a
iTieliipliy.''ical point. lint we inn.st dislin^ni.-h tiie viamnr ia
V liich a niir4\cle is performed, from the miracle itself. The
fotnier njay be bidden, and, if you ^\ilI, undi!«coveral)le ; but
the hitler is a smfilhle fort; <-onseqtiently, in this re.-pect, it
occupies the same catej:ory in history as the result of a battle,
or an eruption of Ve.-uvins. The tran.-p«rent scphi^m of
confounding an event with its nuinner <if production, caa
mislead no one who <!ives a he<'()i.d ihon^dit to the foiiject.
The old wonnin who .-ees her eablmL'e> dai'y increasing: in
gize. can testify to tiie fact of their havinjr j^rown, aUhoii;r|i
she nuiy be quite ignorant of the law whirh governs their
giowih ; so. too. the o!d wonnin who beheld a miracle <'an
testify to the fact of its existence, whll-t in total ignorance
of its law. Old women are acc()unle<l good judges of death ;
if three or four pronounce life extinct we cease t«» ln>pe for
the recovery of our friend ; no one di-eains of doubting their
deci>ion ; they have looked too ofien on death to be deceived*
liut if they wa-h and enshroud that lifeless nni^s, and care-
fully snjooth its })il|c\v in ihc collin. a;id sit l)y it for davd
and nights, and then follow it t(» the tond), and then mourn
dui-ing four long days and nights, who so demenied as to
doubt the reality (tf the death? The fact of the di'ath m
beyond dispute ; the mure fully .so when we aihl sorrowing

23G

PHILOSOPHY OF TIIK BIBLE VINDICATKD.

^lili '

1 ■"

Pi t

«H

i,r*

rclutivcs niid sympathizing; friends to the other witnesses.
But if at the end of four <hiys, thin same train of nionrncrs
should wend their way to the eiudosed sepulchre of their lost
friend, and heholil, at the cull of one wjio wi^pt and raided
his eyes to heaven and thanked his father that he Inid heard
him, the dead man come forth and walk and h-peak, would
not the fact of his restoration to life be eqiudly as certain as
had been his dcjith ? Assuredly so ; both events were sensible
facts witnessed by several persons. Ajrain ; a certain man
has been known by hundreds to have been a cripple from his
birth ; every day, lor years, he was seen sittinj; by the way-
side be;:<.Mn;^. In the presence of these who knew him, at
the voice of a great teacher, he at once leaped up and walked.
The instantaneous cure is a sensible fact, perfectly cognizable
by all who have eyes; it nuitters not that they do not under-
stand the law that operated it. In a word, every nnracle
which aflects the body is a visible fact ; its existence can be
determined by the canons which decide on the value of human
testimony.

In general, miracles are not to be hastily admitted ; being
unus\ud facts, they mtist be proved by evidence. Wo here
speak of the scientific proof of miracles, apart from a divine
authority which may have decided on particular ones. When
a man asserts that he saw a person walking on the waters, the
first thought is that he was deceived An optical delusion, a
hallucination, a wilful falsehood, each in turn is suggested as
the origin of the story. So unusual is the event narrated,
that we say the chances are a hundred to one against its
reality, and in favor of an optical delusion. Very tr • ' tt
let us consider that the chances are a liundred t( iliat

eyes whi( h, for years, saw aright, and faithfully ti tWrerl
the impressions of >i.>-ible objects, saw aright, likewi,-, . thi»
particular time. If the event be extraordinary, extraordiuaiy

tnesj^cs.
lourncrs
licir lost
il rai.-ed
ul lit-ard
k, would
Mtain as
'Sponsible
a in man
1 from his
the way-
,v him, at
[1 walked,
oguizable
jot undcr-
y luiracle
ce can be
of human

ed ; being
We here

1 a divine
AYhcn
aters, the
elusion, a

imested as
narrated,
irainst it»

: ' .t
11 at
t erred
•wi.-. . tliia
•aordiuiuy

EXISTKNCE OF MIUACI.KS.

237

likcwiise, is the visual deception. One U as im) robable as
the other. Now if three or four persons he added to the iirnt
witness, each of whom avers that he saw the man walkiii;^ on
the waters, the probability in favor of what thoy stale is
four time.'' greater, than the probability of an optical delusion.
By addin;; more witnesses, what was at first sight improbable,
then prol/able, becomes morally certain. It is a moral
impossibility tluit a number of persons could, at the same
moment, without an extraordinary intervention of the creator,
lose the nornuil »ise of their eyes. Since walking on the
waters does not imply a metaphysical contradiction, nor even
a, plii/sical one, because it might be brought about by inten-
sifying the repulsive force of the water, or by sublimating its
force of coiiesion, and since it is morally impossible that a
nund)er of persons could fall victims to an o|)tical vagaiy, the
scientific num would admit that the fact was clearly estab-
lished ; and, if a christian, he would add : '• the finger of God
is here."

If the miraculous fact were the resfoiation of the dead to
life, the proof would be even more easy than in the first case.
The reason is evident : sight, touch, and reason combine to
afford an invincible proof that a person, looked upon as dead,
and lying for several days in a sepulchre, must be truly dead,
and incapable of resuscitation by any ordinary means or
power. If they who saw the person buried, should witness
him coming forth from the tomb, sight, touch, hearing, and
memory would combine to identify him with the friend thej
knew before. No sane man could seriously pretend that all
the senses of several persons, had, at the same time, and
respecting the same object, become subject to a strange
hallucination. This trick of all the senses would be more
inexplicable and unreasonable, than the resurrection of a
score of dead. Yet, to such extravagant absurdities are the
ad rsaries of miracles driven.

238

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLK VIXDICATEn.

'
:ll!!

'ijli:

I'Ji

From what lias been swid, it is abuiidtintly evidei.t tlint all
wliii'h i.s requiretl, in ord* r to discern a I'rttt, even one wlikh
partakes of the ndiaculous, is the m^rnial use of the pen-es.
These ai'e just as acute, and as strong in the ignorant, as in
the educated. Hence, regarding tlie existence of a sensibl€f
fact, the testimony of the former is equally as good as that
of the hitter. Thev can attest that such a one died, and was
ent(»ml)ed for some days; then, that at the command of one
wlio prochiimed himself Son of God, the dead man cames
ibrih. They may not be able to explain how it was effected ;.
they may not even think it miraculous ; no matter ; tliey
establish the fact. Let infiiUls prove that it was effected by
ordinary means, or by natural power. Now, since any
hunum being, having the use of reason, and the use of his
external senses, is a competent witness for establishing the
existence of a miraculous iact, in as much as it is a sensible
effect, we have only to apply the criterion of historic truth,
in ascientilic investigation of the existence of miiacles. Can
any historic truth be established beyond a doubt? Certainly ;
then so can the existence of miiacles. The primary test of
historic truth is this: that a number of persons, of different
states, habits, and inclinations, unanimously consent ia
attesting to the })erformancc of a sensible woik, of which they
were eye-witnesses. This testimony increases in weight
when the fact is extraordinary, such as the raising of the
dead, the cure of one born blind, the feeding of thousands
with five small loaves- and two fishes. Such events, being
unusual, make a deeper impression on the witnesses, and are
more faithfully rememl)ered. 'I'he weight is still increased
when enemies who hiite, even to the death, the one who is
alleged to have done such things, j(»iu with friends in bearing
witness to their performance. Is'ow this lest of liisioric truth
U verified in the history of the miracles attributed to Jesuf

Iiat all
whii'h

,, as in

ensible

as tliibt

ihI was

of one

1 cajn»

fected ;.

-; they

3ted by

ice any

J of his ,

linj; the

sensible

c tnith,

s. Can
ainly ;
test of
fferent

sent ia
ich they
weight
of the
o Uganda
s, being
aTi<l are
lereased
who is
bearing
ritr irnth
to Jesu«

EXISTENCE OF MIUACLE8.

239

Christ. They were performed in the presence of crowds ;
people bronght their sick as he passed alont', and by a word
he cured them. His enemies, those who finally put him to
death, saw and admitted these wonderful facts. Apart from
the gospels, the Jewish rabbi, the Jewi>h historian Josephus,
the pagan Cel-us and a host of others, have recoided for all
posterity, that the miracles of Christ were accepted as
undoubted facts, by enemies of his doctrine. It is beyond
our present scope to give a critical di>*seitation on these
miracles ; we only indicate the manner by whii h their truth
may be scieniitically established.

Did miracles cease with the apostolic times? This is
answered in the affirmative by some. Wc say no, nor have
they 3 ct ceased, nor will they cea- e, until the angel's trumpet
shall sound the hour for the accomplishment of the last great
miracle — the resurrection of tl'v- dc>ad. 'Jo omit thousands
of others who wrought miracles as God's instruments, we
may cite St. Francis Xavier. I»o histoiic fact is more fully
established, than are his numerous miracles. If pretended
scieUists would only peruse attentively the process for his
cano'.uzation, and the documents connected therewith, they
M'ould either have to discredit the battle of Hastings, tliewar
of the IJoses, the An:ierican Revolution, or they would have
to admit the reality of his miraculous performances Since
they are not likely to do this, let more recent events be
brought to their notic^e. We are not prone to credit every
old woman's tale of wonders wrought by an extraordinary
intervention of God ; but are the cures effected at Lourdes to
be ignored? Let a disbeliever go thither: let him examine,
with the aid of all his scientific lore, each diseased one that
comes up, until he has satisfied himself that he has foimd
one really sick Let him watch this one drinking the water,
and note what follows. If the persou is evidently cured,

•I

240

PIIILOSOPnY OP THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

what will he say? Will he admit that the " arm of God is

not yet shortened ;" or will he, like the Jews of old, refuse

to acknowledge the doctrine of Christ, des^pite the wouders

witnessed.

Prophecy.

Prophecy is a miracle in the intellectual order, just as
the instantaneous healing of a sick man is one in the physical.
It consists in the certain manife^^tation of a future event
which could not be foreseen naturally. Hence, prophecy, to
be real, must be made prior to the event, and be a knowledge
unattainable by any natural means. To have a scientific
power the event must, likewise, have come to pass. After
what has been said touching miracles, little is here required.
Prophecy is possible ; God knows the future, both those
things which are the result of natural laws, and the free
actions of mam This has already been proved. He can
make known that knowledge to others, as demonstrated in
the chapter on Revelation, Hence prophecy is possible.
This species of miracle does not suspend, or disturb any
intellectual order ; it is in harmony with psychological laws.
By the aid of the pluuitasy the soul represents many things
to itself. In prophecy we can imagine that the soul of the
prophet has its powers sublimated, and that the phantasy is
quickened and refined. The mental vision is extended, —
the light of intelligence intensified, — the powers of perception
become more nearly akin to what they will hereafter be,
and a divinely excited phantasm of the future is presented.
This is not opposed to any metaphysical principle ; and it is
in keeping with the mode of intellectual perception. The
very fact that Christianity proclaimed and defended the
possibility of miracles and prophecy, a possibility now evi-
dently established, is a strong persuasive argument of its
divine origin ; and what has been argued on these two points,

■od is
lel'use
(uders

ust as
ysical.
event
ecy, to
svledge
ieiitific
After
quired.
1 those
he free
He can
•ated in
ossible.
nb any
[il hiws,
things
I of the
jtasy is
uded, —
ception
fter be,
lesented.
nd it is
. The
ed the
ow evi-
it of its
points,

EXISTENCE OF MIRACLES.

241

in those pages, proves the christian philosopher to be more
thoroughly versed in metaphysical, physical and intellectual
laws, than the empty braggarts who arrogate to themselves
all scientific knowledge.

The existence of prophecy could be critically demonstrated.
The foretelling of an event is a sensible fact, of the reality
of which men are competent witnesses ; again, the accom-
plishment of the event, according to the prediction, is another
sensible fact. Hence, the uneducated can attest that a holy
teacher foretold that he would be put to death, and that he
would rise on a certain day, and that he really did rise. The
criterions of the value of human evidence can be applied to
the testimony, and a scientific conclusion attained. Thus
the miracles and prophecies of the christian religion, far from
contradicting the truths of any science, or being incapable of
critical demonstration, are, in an eminent degree, scientifically
demonstrable. They do not happen at hap-hazard ; they are
not unskilfully tacked on to the great web of truth,; they are
in accordance with an eternal law, and neatly interwoven in
the grand design of creation. Against them half-learned
professors may declaim ; against them the impious may rail
and rage ; against them the wavering may offer doubts.
But so long as true science finds a resting place in the souls
of the upright, so long will their possibility and existence be
proved. It cannot be too oft repeated that nowhere is to
be found such illogical reasoning, and such unmitigated
nonsense, as in the writings of our pretended '' scientific
lights." The stale and long exploded theories, the unphilo-
sophic twaddle, the shapeless crudities, of some self-styled
philosopher, are repeated, as received axioms, by a later
ligiit. Thus the putrid stream of error has flowed with
unvarying monotony, from its source and origin, him who
falsely promised wisdom, as the price oT disobedience, to the
faltering Eve.
17

1: '

Hi-

■

CHAPTER VIII.

I .

A DIVINE BEVELATION HAS BEEN MADE.

HE possibility of revelation, and its moral necessity
<5)il| were established, but its actual existence has not yet
jR^T been proved in these pages. Not only have the
C(^^ precepts of the moral order been more fully revealed,
but many positive commands, and ineffable mysteries, have
been made known to man. It is beside the scope of a work
like the present, to prove the authenticity of the scriptures ;
"we take it here for gi'anted, for no sane critic doubts, that
the books of the old and new testament are worthy of, at
least, historic faith. The former were the heritage of a
nation, zealously guarded, religiously preserved. One
striking proof of this is, that although the contents of these
books are often condemnatory of that nation, still they were
treasured as something most sacred. The new testament is
the complement and perfection of the old, and destined for
the good of mankind. Men the most eminent for piety and
learning ; and men eminent for learning alone, have exhausted
criticism, and invincibly proved these books worthy of all
credence. The odd voice of some critical vagrant raised,
now and then, against the historic value of the scriptures,
has done much toward strengthening, if that were possible,
the evidence in their favor. So puerile are the objections
against them ; so evidently impossible are the systems of

A DIVINE REVELATION HAS BEEN MADE.

243

eccssity

not yet

ave the

evealed,

es, have
a work

•iptures ;

bts, that

hy of, at

;\<Te of a
One
of these
ley were
iiment is
ined for
jiety and
xhausted
Ly of all
[t raised,
iriptures,
possible,
ibjections
steins of

ficeountiDg for them, that one who before had doubts of their
value, would, if possessed of ordinary powers of mind, reject
these doubts at once, on seeing how rotten was their founda-
tion. Just as the ludicrous assaults and feeble barking of
ill-conditioned curs, as a carriage rolls past, serve only to
draw attention to its passage, so the yelps of a Strauss, or a
Renan, only promote a deeper attention to, and belief in,
these letters from God to man.

From the bible we learn that the Jewish nation, at all
times of its history, expected a deliverer and a law-giver.
Gen. 3. 15. records a promise made by God to Adam on this
point ; to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob the promise is renewed ;
all through the books of the prophets the future Redeemer is
the grand theme. So general was this expectation that it
was a matter of fact well known to the heathens. Suetonius
(Life of Vespas) says : " an old and constant opinion prevailed
in the whole East that, at that time, persons from Judea should
rule over all." This alludes to the idea of a Messiah, who
was to be a great temporal ruler, according to the notion of
many of the Jews. Tacitus (Hist. lib. V. cap, 13) has almost
the same words as Suetonius ; and Plutai'ch (De Iside et
Osiride) has a similar passage which will be quoted in another
part of this work. From all this we gather that there was
prevalent, in the east, a constant and deeply rooted expecta-
tion of one who was to elevate mankiud ; to rescue it from
its errors and its vices, and to rule over it by well established
laws. As can be shown, this expectation arose from the
promise of God made to Adam, and handed down, by tradition,
to posterity. Now the four gospels tell us that a great
teacher appeared in Galilee, and through the country of
Judea, during the reign of Tiberius. He taught by the
roadside, on the mountain tops, and in the synagogues. He
attacked the false teachings of the Scribes and the Pharisees \

r.I

m
M

244

PniLOSOPHT OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

(

n i

he expounded the books of the law and the prophets ; he
openly proclaimed himself as sent by God, aye, as the Son
of God, and equal to his Father. His doctrine was sublime ;
it was directly opposed to the evil passions of man ; it was
consistent in all its parts. Unlike the vague speculations of
Greek and Roman philosophers, the teachings of Christ were
clear and practical. Read by the light of his doctrine the
history of mankind was no longer a riddle ; his origin and his
end were distinctly shown ; the cause of his deep degradation
was pointed out. What Cicero had dimly suspected, viz :
that man had uot been always so degraded, was established.
We were no longer creatures of chance, the sport and
mockery of licentious gods ; the world was no enigma now,
even to the very child. The human intellect, by the doctrine
of Christ, made one vast bound in scientific and supernatural
knowledge, passing the dark ways where the great mass of
philosophers fell, and clearing the dimly lighted limits where
Socrates, Plato and Cicero stumbled. Out into the clear
noon-day of truth the human reason burst ; behiud it, a dark
abyss of crime, folly and error ; before it, a well-illuminated
road of virtue and truth. Christ urged it to follow that road
and not to decline to the right hand, nor to the left. Think,
for a moment, how much wiser is the christian child than
the pagan philosopher. For the latter, the world, man and
history were unintelligible books of fate : for tlie former, the
world is a vast creation of the Almighty — man is a free
agent in his actions, but responsible to God — his history is
explained by the sin in Paradise and its direful effects. It
is only by such reflections as these that man can form an
estimate of what he has gained, in knowledge, by the
doctrines of our Saviour. Now, Christ proclaimed his
divinity, and performed many miracles in proof of it. He
cured all manner of disease, and raised the dead to life. It

A DIVINE REVELATION HAS BEEN MADE.

245

is not necessary to cite chapter and verse ; tlie new teb^ament
is filled with tin account of the wonders he wrought in Q'rect
confirmation of his divine mission. Ilis miracles were
witnessed by thousands ; his enemies examined them and
admitted them as such ; there was no room for fraud or
deception. Lazarus had been four days in his tomb, but
Christ saying : '* Father, I give thee thanks that thou hast
lieard me. And I knew that thou hearest me alv/ays ; but
because of the people who stand about have I said it ; that
they may believe that thou hast sent we," and then crying with
a loud voice : " Lazarus come forth," the dead man, obedient
to the call, came forth from his charnel vault. Friends and
enemies saw the miracle ; all admitted it, though all did not
believe. Now our argument is this : this miracle waa
evidently the work of a divine power ; Christ did it in proof
of his diviue mission ; if he did it of his own power, he was
a divine person ; if it were done by the power of the Almighty
Father, it confirmed the diviue mission of Christ, for God
would not work a miracle to give color to a lie. But if
Christ's mission were divine, his doctrine, which he taught
as being that of his heavenly father, was divine and revealeC.
Hence the miracles of Christ prove that a divine revelation
has, in fact, been made.

The rapid spread of this doctrine throughout the world, is
another proof of its divine origiu. Christ chose twelve
poor, uninstructed fishermen as his apostles. He commanded
them to preach the same truths as he had taught them. He
foretold that they would have to encounter persecution aui
perhaps, death, for his sake ; but still they were not to be
discouraged ; he would be with them always, to the end of
time, and they would succeed. Now these ignorant fishermen
went forth to a world hardened in crime ; with no earthly
help they assaulted the strongholds of error ; they beat dowQ

!!:.

246

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

i i

the barriers of human passion and crime. No persecutions
daunted them ; whip them to-day, and to-morrow they
appeared as resolute as before. The powers of this worhl,
yes, and the powers of hell combined against them. The
whole earth became a great battle-field wliereon the new
doctrine was pitted against superstition and vice. Humanly
speaking the apostles had no chance of victory, but what was
the result ? In a short time thousands, yes, millions of every
rank and state of life embraced the new creed. Honor,
riches, pleasure were gladly abandoned, and poverty and
oppression were joyfully borne by the converts to Christ's
faith. It was no passing emotion, ; the tide of revelation
swept over the world with a steadily increasing wave.
Nineteen centuries have well nigh run out their sands, still
the tide rolls majestically onward ; to-day, as in the beginning,
men are found ready to shed their blood in testimony to their
belief. Where is the school of philosophy that survived
unchanged, its founder, or that had pupils beyond the limits
of its founder's country? Outside of Christianity, none.
Here, then, is a great historical fact. A person appears,
proclaims himself sent by God, is himself God, and in
witness thereof performs stupendous miracles. He directs
his disciples to continue his mission of teaching, and without
the remotest possibility of success, humanly speaking, that
doctrine supersedes the superstitions of the past. It endures
till now ; is stronger than ever. It has softened the fierceness
of mankind ; it has ennobled his thoughts and affections ; it has
formed societies and governments which are immeasurably in
advance of ancient ones. The primitive belief and tradition
of the human race have been verified ; the regenerator came.
His works, both in themselves and in their expansion and
duration, invincibly prove his divine mission. God has
spoken to mankind ; out of the infinite depths of his knowledge
we have been taught ; a divine revelation has been made.

CHAPTER IX.

i: ='

^ladg<i

RELIGIOUS INDIFFERENCE.

HERE is a certain class oif individuals who, wishing
to prove themselves superior to the common herd,
manage to make themselves supremely ridiculous.
^, The genus Fop is an animal known in the scientific,
as well as in the fashionable worlds His antics in the latter
are rather amusing than otherwise. When he jauntily trips
along the street, arrayed in garments cut in the veiry latest
style, and with every hair brushed, twisted, greased into its
particular place, and a mosaic of odors hovering around his
person, the bystanders feel an almost irresistible desire to
laugh ; and ill-mannered urchins glance wistfully from the
mud to his spDtless linen, as if weighing the consequences of
besmearing its whiteness. Not one expression of Sympathy
would be elicited, were he to stumble and lightly spatter his-
well- fashioned apparel. The scientific Fop is not always,
though he is pretty often, amusing. He would like to be
thought abreast of every modern theorizer ; he would wish
to adopt, as his own, every doctrine that happens to be
fashionable. It must be remembered that reason does not
always rule the learned ; much less does it rule always the
imitators. Just as many persons, in most respects sensible
and shrewd, will follow some ludicrous mode of dressing,
merely because it is the fashion ; so many will adopt systems,

de.

248

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

<>. ;

rx
n

or ideas, simply because they imajifine them to be in vof^iio
amon;^ the cchicated. On every side are heard the words, —
*' modern thonj^ht " — " projijressive specuhition," and " free
thoii;^ht." Tiie scientific fop at once moults, so to speak,
intellectually, and jabbers wildly about those hi^j^h-souiwling
terms. It counts for little that he is an entire stranji^er to
thought of any kind ; or that he has no capacity for sptunda-
tion. Even as his brother of the fashionable world shines in
garments, the making of which he understands not, so he,
he thinks, may shine in literary spheres by an unknown and
borrowed light. But alas ! for him, he glimmers only for u
moment, and falls from the firmament of literature like those
unsubstantial bodies, popularly known as shooting stars. If
by " modern thought " be meant the ever-expanding intel-
lectual wave, that increases with the march of centuries,
every sensible man must revere it ; but it is too commonly
used as a taking gloss to cover a misshapen error. Again ;
if by " free thought" be meant that play of mind whicli, in
considering matters not revealed, is not confined to the
well-worn grooves, and which does not blindly follow a
master, then that is the kind of thought developed and
encouraged in great catholic seats of learning, and nowhere
more than at Rome. But too often by " free thought " is
understood the right of thinking what you please, be it ever
80 absurd in philosophy, or impious in theology. It is in this
latter sense that we combat " free thought." Just as man is
not at liberty, in a moral sense, to do as he pleases, so, in a
moral sense, he is not at liberty to think as he pleases.
There is an internal, as well as an external order ; an
intellectual, as well as a physical one. Each order was
established by God, and he exacts from us an observance of
both. Our intellect is from him, and to him it must pay
homage. That homage consists in receiving, at once, what

RELIGIOUS INDIFFEftENCE.

249

. ' I

ever
n tliis
nan is
, in a
eases,
an
r was
uce of
it pay

what

wo know to be true. God is the sourco aiul ori{»in of truth ;
when a known truth i.s rejected we injure God by clo.xinfjjour
eyes to hi.s light, and we injure ourselves by hindorinj; the
perl'eetion of our intelligence. It can never be too often
repeated that the power of erring argues a defect, and that
the mind is elevated, not degraded, by unhesitatingly assenting
to truth. It is self-evident that if it be unlawful to kill an
innocent person, it must be unlawful to wish to do it. From
this it is apparent, that thought is hedged round by a code of
laws, which must ho observed. Nothing is gained by break-
ing them, for an increase of error is no gain. There is a
divine over-shadowing around all the works of the creator,
within which all their revolvings must bo confined. Within
that sphere all is clear and well-ordered ; beyond it are
confusion and darkness. Anterior to man there are principles
which claim his subjection ; which limit his sphere of lawful
action and thought. It is, then, a metaphysical absurdity to
proclaim the mind emancipated from all law ; hence liberty
of thought must never be construed into a permission to
accept, or reject, at pleasure, an evident truth.

If, then, in metaphysical speculations the human reason
be subject to laws, how much more will it not be governed
by them in revealed truths? But it is the fashion, at present,
to pretend to rise superior to the " narrow-mindedness " of the
past, and to profess an indifference oven in religious matters.
This is a certain evidence of mental decay. We know that
our doughty champions of " modern progress " proclaim this
as an age of intellectual vigor, ever developing and gaining
strength. Scientific pftpinjays swell the cry, and would-be
large minded individuals take up the refrain. Still wo assert
there is no surer sign of mental decay than religious indilfer-
ence. The mind that fails to appreciate the difference
between cliuging to what God has revealed, and in being

.>■ lit

250

rillLOSOPIIY OP THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

i ..i

indifferent thereto, must be sadly out of tune. Whatever
God has revealed must be true. No healthy intellect can be
indifferent to any truth ; hence indifference to revelation
denotes a sickly intellijijence. But that which is of more
account is, that this indifference exposes man to imminent
danger of everlastinj^ misery. God revealed triiths in order
that we mi;j;ht believe them ; he revealed his will, on many
points, in order that we mij^ht obey it : to our belief and our
obedience he promised eternal happiness. Revealed truths
are no scientific speculations; they are not mere intellectual
pastimes ; they are facts prej^naht with practical guidances.
Being subject to God, we are Imund to serve him in the way
he may think most suitable. That way has been revealed ;
those who know this, have no choice left. No greater insult
could be offered to God than to reject what he has revealed ;
it is giving him the lie direct. 'Surely no one can suppose
that God can look with equal favor on the man who strives to
conform his actions to the rule laid down by himself, and
him who is careless whether he observes or not, this rule.
Men talk about a religion of the heart, and the moral order.
It would be all very well, provided no revelation had been
made. In a family or school, the members, so long as no
rules have been promulgated, act as they judge best ; but
Once a disciplinary code has been published all are expected
to observe it. Just so it is with mankind. Had man been
created in a purely natural state, and left entirely to the light
of his reason, he would have been at liberty to serve God in
the manner that seemed to him most fitting. But man was
constituted in a supernatural state, and a revelation was
made. Apart from the moral law, engraven on every
intelligence, the Almighty judged well to give other positive
laws to his creatures. It is folly, then, to expect to please'
him, if these laws be neglected. Of course we always suppose'

RELIGIOUS INDIFFERENCE.

251

m was
)n was

every
ositive

please
uppoae

that a person knows this revelation, or that it has hcen
sufficiently brou<»lit under his notice. In a land like ours,
everyone, we think, who has arrived at maturity, knows that
for more than eif;hteen hundred years then- has existed a vast
organized society, claiming to possess the deposit of revelation.
"We showed that Christ did reveal ; his revelations are in the
church founded and guided l^y himself. A man knowing
this must feel that he is bound to accept those truths ; ho
cannot say, " I will receive so many and no more." These
revealed truths cannot be self-destructive ; consequently a
doctrine which asserts one thing, if it be revealed, must
exclude a belief in its opposite.

Free thought, then, in as much as it means religious
iodifference, is unphilosophic and dangerous. It is abundantly
evident that a revelation has been made. It is our duty to
learn what has been revealed, and to make it the guide of
our every action. We are not to patch up a religion for
ourselves, clipping a piece here, and snatching a shred
there. The -garment of revelation is seamless throughout ;
its every part is consistent. In the whole cycle of revealed
truths, no one is opposed to any other, or to any real
scientific conclusion. The wilful rejection of one revealed
truth is an enormous offence against God ; indilFerence to
them is base ingratitude, and mental mrtdness. The one
who acts according to one's lights is blameless ; but the one
who through pride, passion, or worldly interest ([uenches the
lights rouohsafed by God, and closes one's eyes to the truth,
will have a hard reckoning when the accounts will be finally
closed.

CHAPTER X.

HOW TO SEEK REVELATION.

T is not enough to point out the po^sihillty of revela-
r) 11 tioQ, and to prove its existeuoe ; the suhject, to be
^rj^ complete, requires that tiie method of seeking it be
(3 established. Verv lew have the effrontery to deny,
openly, the existence oi revelation ; but many speak slight-
ingly of it. They endeavor to mystify the subject ; to make
it a sort of German transcendental medley of metaphysics,
chemistry, and laws of nature, with a slight leaven about
the " great unknown." The faith of the true christian is
derided ; incautious youths are poisoned in principle ere they
can reason aright. Faith is represented to them as a
superstition of the " middle ages ;" a mental slavery unbear-
able to a man of modern thought. Monks and old women
may chatter about it, but a rationalist is superior to this
weakness. Still, i*, may be submitted, that the greatest
intellects that tow«^f majestically heavenward from the ocean
of humanity, Solomon, Augustine, St. Thomas, Newton,
Milton and a host of others, were not pigmies in mind ;
nevertheless, for them, revelation was no childish superstition ;
it was the truth aiid will of God made known to man. But
a " modern thinker," whose sole feat of intelligence consists
in writing a .reatise, of questionable merit, on some physical
subject, loftily waves aside these great names, and compas-

HOW TO SEEK REVELATION.

253

revela-
, to be
g it be
) deny,
: slight-
o make
ihysics,
a about
stian is
jre they
n as a
uiibcar-
women
to this
reatest
e oceaQ
evvton,
mind ;
■stition ;
But
loonsists
)hysical
ompas-

sionates their blindness. It is hard to restrain what one
feels, when reflecting on the stupid obtuseness and intolerable
arrojiance of these charlatans of science. To see the number
who give too ready an ear to the jargon would lead a believer
to imagine that tlic day is not far distant, when, if it were
possible, even tiie elect would be seduced. Modern infidels
show cunning in their stupidity ; they know that it is a vital
question for them to control the education of youth. They
must instil their poison before the reasoning powers are
properly developed. This is their secret of success. True
christians often wonder how it is that rational beings can
hold, and defend the absurdities of modern infidels. They
will say : '' my boy of twelve could solve their foolish
objections." True ; but it must be borne in mind that these
infidels were nursed in an atmosphere of disbelief; they
inhaled a similar atmosphere at school. The truths of
religion were presented to them distorted, and through a
distorting medium. Their reasoning powers received, so to
speak, a twist in youth, and grew awry ever after. Hence
the difficulty of making them aware of their intense stupidity ;
they have iutelligenco, but their intellectual lenses have too
great a proportion of common sand. The various rays are
not clearly discriminated ; they are blondtMl in one inhar-
monious jumble. Once let the faculties be fully developed,
and no bad habits contracted, and the individual will have no
difficulty in perceiving the truth.

In seeking after any truth a method in keeping with ih^
seeker, and the truth sought, must be followed. Thus
abstract principles iind metaphysical speculations are pursued,
not by experiment, but by logical induction; physical proper-
ties are ascertained, on the contrary, by ex|>eriment, and not
by pure reasoning. Now revelation is a matter of fact,
depending on the free will of God. Between the truths

irl'^^l

254

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDTCATED.

revealed and the speculations of our mind there is no connec-
tion. Clearly, then, logical induction is not the method to
be followed. When it is asserted that Jones said Brown did
the deed ; we do not bring our logical powers to bear on the
deed in order to see how it agrees with reason ; we Mmply
seek to discover whether there be any motives for believing
that Jones really spoke, as reported. The case of revelation
is parallel. It is asserted that God revealed such a truths

We cannot bring any experiment to bear on it ; if we
attempt a metaphysical disquisition on it, we will fail, because
the fact depended from the free will of the Almighty. We
can only look around, and see if there be any motives of
credibility sulRcient to convince the mind that God ha»
indeed, spoken. If he has really vcvealed this, it must be
true, no matter though it be above our comprehension.
Even were it possible, which it is not, for all revealed truths
to be proved by reason, how few could prove tliem ! If
revelation could on"y be known by scientific arguments it
would benefit only an infinitesimal proportion of mankind.
True cliristians would form a kind of spiritual aristocracy,
very limited, indeed, in numbers. The poor, the blind, the
halt, the infirm — all those who had not received a thorough
philosophic training, would be shut out from any participation
in the gospel dispensation. Evidently, even on this account,
logical induction is not the method for acquiring revealed
truths. First, then, there is no connection between our
speculations and facts <lepending from the tree will of God ;
secondly, even if there was scarcely any could ever know
these facts ; therefore, revelation, which is for the benefit of
mankind is cognizable, like all other facts, through its motives
of credibility.

These motives may be mtiny and various. In general
miracles and prophecy are the grand touch-stouea of revela-

HOW TO SEEK REVELATION.

259

raoec-
lod to
va did
on the
►imply
lieving
elation
, truth r
if we
)ecau8C
. We
lives of
od bad
lust be
lension.
1 truths
!m ! If
nents it
ankiud.
ocracy,
ud, the
lorough
i pat ion

|l(('OUUt,

■evealed
leu our
,f God ;
!!• know
netit of
motives

general
revela-

tion. These sensible effects of a divine interposition can, as
shown, be known by all. No subtile powers of reasoning
are required to bear witness to a miracle. Hence once a
miracle has been performed in confirmation of the divine
origin of a doctrine, no one, under whose notice it is brought,
is deprived of an easy means to be certain of its truth. In
this way the truths and benefits of the gospel revelation are
not confined to a few, which they would certainly be if logical
induction were the method of ascertaining them ; they arc as
readily made evident to the unlearned as to the man of letters.
True, free will is left to man, and he may abuse that precious
gift ; he may turn aside from the light of evidence and, like
the Pharisees, though admitting tlie miracles of Christ, may
ref" e to bow to his doctrine. It is a strange eontradietioii,
yet, one often meets it in a life-time. Nov/ it is certain that
the doctrine taught b\ Christ was confirmed by stupendous
i^Mracles, and, also, by prophecy. Hence that doctrine is
divine. This is a simple and effective argument. No
sophism can escape from its inexorable logic ; no ordinary
intelligence is incapable of grasping its force. It stands out
before all, resplendent in the light of its own evidence. If
you refuse belief in the miracles of Christ, you may as well
burn every book of histoiy from Herodotus to LinL'urd,
Not one iiistoric fact has such an overwhelming flood of iiglit
cast on it by history, as has each mirac^le of Christ, recorded
by witnesses, whose simple truthfidness breathes in their
writings, lis evidently as it glows in their martyred blood,
{Starting, then, from this firm basis that Christ's doctrine is
proved divine from his miracles, the seeker after truth may
proceed another step. Ho may say ; "• can I find, in later
years, a doctrine in favor of whose truth miracles were
wrought? If I can, then that doctrine is identical with the
one taught by Christ." We would merely p<iint out to such

\W'

..ML^:

256

PHILOSOPHY OP THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

\} :

lil

a one the well-proved miracles of St. Francis Xavier, the
Jesuit apostle of India. Let him peruse attentively the
process for his canonization, and he will find his miracles as
well attested as any historic fact can be. The inevitable
conclusion would be, — his doctrine, his faith, were the same
as those preached by Christ.

Again ; unity combined with perpetuity is an attribute of
truth. It is commonly said that a lie has a halt in its gait ;
sooner or later, it is detected by this peculiarity. A system
which contradicts itself, even once, is not divine in its origin.
It may have some, perhaps maiy, divine principles in its
composition, but allied to these there is something human.
A heaven-born system is ever in harmony with itself; in all
its essential characteristics it is a? unchangeable as its author.
Length of time does not decrease its vigor ; the attacks of the
powers of hell, and persecutious by worldly princes do not
dim its light, or make it foreswear its principles. Its sails
are never trimmed to suit the shifting breezes of popular
favor ; its flag is never lowered at the bidding of a tyrant.
Fearlessly it proclaims its mission, regardless alike of the
threats of its enemies, and the dangers that human fear
apprehends. As the hour-glass of centuries runs dry, its
unity remains unbroken, and its youthful fire unquenched.
It bred martyrs in the beginning, and it breeds them now ;
it animated many to renounce, for Christ, everything the
senses hold dear, and it animates many to do the same now.
In harmony with the development of the human intellect,
and the discoveries of science, it unfolds more fully, and
defines more sharply, its principles. Ever capable of satis-
fying the wants of man, in every stage of mental culture, and
in every degree of social life, its language is modified while
its principles remain unchanged. Like the delicate rosebud
that, under the gentle warmth of the sun, unfolds gradually

er, the
ily the
iclos as
;v liable
LB same

ibute of

its gait ;
system

,s origin.

es in its
human.

f; in all

ts author.

cks of the

;s do not
Its sails

f popular
a tyrant,
;e of the
iniun fear
s <lry, its
quenched.

lem now ;
'thing the
iinuj now.

intellect,
fully, and
le of satis-
^Uure, and
itied while
[c rosebud

gradually

HOW TO SEEK REVELATION.

257

its leaves in unison with the approach of summer, until it
glints, full-blown, in the dew of a midsummer morning, so
this hwiveu-boru system, breathed upon by the spirit of
truth, expands and develops as the dctivity of the humnn
mind is increased, until it will Hnally stand confessed in all
its supernatural beauty, in the " fullness of the age of Christ."
Who linds this system finds peace.

.1 ,,\

.' ¥

1
I

CnAPTER XI.

FAITH AND REASON.

E who attentively notes how prejudice distorts the
mental vision, acquires a ^^reat insight ot humau
y^'JI character. He will find how quickly and gi'ossly au
"^ individual will contradict himself, and how serenely

O "-v

unconscious he will be of the fact. He will observe that a
man will rail against faith to-day, and to-morrow will
dogmatize with exceeding fierceness ; woe betide the hapless
wight that dares oppose his conclusion. In short, as a general
rule, man's mode of action is a strange jumble of contradic-
tions, enlivened by his ludicrous belief in his own consistency.
In this respect, pretended scientists afford the keen observer
of men and things, a greater amount of (juiet enjoyment thaa
any other class of individuals. Tiic most credulous of men
tliemselves. for they blindly follow some blind leader, they
sneer at tlie faifh of cliristians ; the moat ignorant of scholars,
for they never dive below the surface of auy science, they
laugh at what they are pleased to term the " ignorance of
the school-man." Could they but for one short moment
realize the absurdity of their writings, some hope of their
reformation might be entertained. But this they cannot do,
although any ordinary catiiolic college has, in its class of
philosophy, no U y incapable of convicting them of gross
ignorance. Does this language appear too strong? Only to

FAITH AND BEASON.

259

r 1

rts the
humau

issly au
ereuely
that a
>w will
hapless
general
lUtraiUc-
istency.
•bserver
ut than
of men
ler, they
leholars,
ee, they
•auce of
luomeut
of their
luuot do,
dass of
of grosa
Only to

those who have paid little attention to their writings will it
appear so. Few people are aware of the easy manner in
which many acquire fame. Our age is restless, and men's
minds are restless too. Those who are cut adrift from the
faith worry their intellect with unceasing speculation. Rarely
adopting a correct principle ; rarely acquiring a metaphysical
truth, it is no wonder that their minds are unquiet. This
intellectual unrest breeds a craving for novelties ; hence as
soon as any new theory is propounded it is eagerly seized
upon by these starving intellects. It plca.^es for the moment ;
its propounder is hailed as a genius of gigantic dimensions.
Scribblei's for the press, not wishing to be thought retrogrades,
trumpet abroad the praises of the .scientific star. Perhaps
not twenty men have read the work wliich thousands praise.
It recjuires gi'eat moral courage for a critic to come forward
and to dispassionately review the work of such an author.
But if one should " screw up his courage to the sticking
point," he can easily tumble the airy castle of fame around
the ears of the enthroned hero. It ap^iears incomprehensible
how any man, possessed of average talent, could look upon
Stuart Mill as a great metaphysician, or Tyndall, Darwin,
and Huxley as anything more than clever physicists. It is
as if the human intellect were oppressed by a hideous night-
mare, when we see men disregarding the heaped up testimony
of generations, the clear light of ages, and the very instincts
of our nature, to follow the glow-worm light of a few illogical
theorizers.

R.ationalists are never tiretl of repeating the stale falsehood
that faith enslaves reason. In this they are either ignorant
of the nature of faitli, or they are malicious. If the first,
they should peruse, attentively an exph: nation of faith ; if the
second, they are outside the lists of honorable controversy.
What is faith? It is a firm assent given to a revealed truth

260

PHILOSOniY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

•l£ i

on account of tlie authority of God who has revealed it.
There are two ways distinct iu priucipU; and object of
acquiring knowledge ; in the one we acquire it by the natural
power of reason ; in the other, by divine faith. They differ
in object because, by faith, there are proposed to our belief
mysteries which could never be known to us through reason
alone. Our soul is endowed with the faculty of reason by
which it acquires a knowledge limited, and at times, uncer-
tain, of natural facts and phenomena. In the process of
reasoning from cause to effect, and from effect to cause, we
are liable to err ; consecpiently our deductions are not always
true. Moreover, to draw a conclusion we must have a
principle which is either admitted, or which can be proved.
Hence, since reason, of itself, is unable to know the intimate
nature of things, it follows that it cannot, of itself, know
scientifically the effects that depend thereon. On this
account we are unable to show how the soul acts on the body,
and the body on the soul. We know, and can prove that
thei'e is a reciprocal action, but how it is, is to us unknown.
How much more, then, in the supernatural order will our
reason be at a loss ? But there is a being from whom nothing
is hidden — there is a wisdom that knows no limits — there is
a truth absolute, eternal, unfailing. If now that being
should deign to speak to us some hidden Avords ; if it should
reveal some mysteries of the supernatural order ; if it should
make known to us something of that unexplored country to
which the passage is through the tomb, oiu' mind which longs
after truth, and which is perfected by its acquisition, would
be ennobled and made more like to its first principle. Now
this has been done in revelation ; and it is that firm assent to
revealed truths, on account of the authority of God who has
revea^"d them, which is called faith. . Since God is truth
eternal, absolute, necessary, that which he reveals must be

ft!

FAITH AND REASON.

261

id it.
ct of
itural
ditfer
belief
•easoa
on by
uncer-
;ej*s of
se, we
always
liiive a
jroved.
itimate
, kuow
)ii this
e body,
vc that
known,
all our
nothing
there is
being
should
should
intry to
th longd
„ would
Now
[ssent to
ho has
lis truth
lUst be

true to-day, to-morrow, forever. Faith in the soul is, as it
were, the image of Clod imprinted on the intellect of man ;
and since God is one, faith, his image, can be but one.
Moreover, since God is the author of reason as of tuith, it
follows that ri^jht reason can never be at variance with faith,
for truth camiot contnidict truth. The object of the reason
is truth ; the object of fuith is truth ; but between reason and
faitli there is this ditfcrence, tliat may err, this cannot.
Ignorance may darken the intellect ; ])assions may corrupt
the heart ; self-interest may bias our jiulgment ; hence our
conchisions, fi'om reason, arc often eri'oneous. In the
teachings of faith this cannot happen ; once we know a thing
has been revealed we are certain of its absolute truth.
Whenever, therefore, a conclusion from reason, or science is
found to be opposed to revt^iled truth, we may be certain that
an error lias been committed in our train of deduction, and
that it can be dete(*l(Ml l)y our own, or by some superior
intellect. Faith makes known this error, even as a teacher
points out the blunder in an intricate calculation which the
scholar was unable to discover after hours of patient search.
Let this point be well uncUnvslood. We accept every demon-
strated conclusion of any science ; Ave are certain they can
never clash with revelation ; but we are not going to receive
as axlonis, nor even a'^ probable conclusions, the crude and
illogical deductions of any man, or body of men. If the
dogmas of faith be viewed in the homsg in which they are
understood by our churc^h, tl ( y will never be at variance
with the logical outcomes of any science. The apparent
contradiction arises either from a misunderstanding of revela-
tion, or from some hasty conclusion from false premises.
As an example of the former, take the cry raised against the
truth of Genesis, when geologists proved that our earth could
not have been formed in six of our days, but that it passed

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2G2

PHILOSOPOY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

through stages, or epochs of great duration. A shout of
victory wont up from infidels ; they tliought they had caught
Moses napping. Their exultation only showed their ignorance
of the sense of revehition ; our church never taught that the
days of creation wore to he understood as of the same length
as a natural day. St. Augustine had expressly taught that
these days could be taken for epochs ; and to prove his
assertion he added, that the seventh day still endures. Ilenco
it turned out that the infidels, not Moses, had been under the
influence of the drowsy god. The examples of hasty and
false conclusions are innumerable. Alluvial deposits said to
be many thousand (jf years in process of formation, turned
out to be able to boast of only two hundred years of existence.
Skulls found in caves, and asserted to be at least ten thousand
years old, were j)roved to have been the head-pieces of some
dashing Gauls in the time of Julius Ca;sar. Perverse human
ingenuity has set out with the fixed purpose of disproving
revelation ; being thus blinded by prejudice it eagerly fsei/es
on anything which appears in contradi(?ti<m with God's word.
"Without examination, without scientific demonstration it
launches forth a wild conclusion, and claims a victory. But
its dream of success soon has a rude awaking. Some cool,
logical, uuimpassioned devotee of science takes up the ques-
tion, and roughly shakes the baseless theory. Thus will it
ever happen, for the truth of God will stand all tests.

Just now a strange paragraph is going the rounds of the
newspapers. It is said a German professor has, by the aid
of electricity, composed an a^rtr^ and artificially hatched
therefrom a bird. This may astound some, and delight
others. If it be true, materialists will, in all probability, hail
it as a confirmation of their crazy theory. " Here," they
may say, " is life produced from, and by material." Not so
fast with your conclusion. Recall what was said in the

FAITH AND REASON.

2G3

of the
iho aid
ii at died

delight
lity, hail
1;' they

Not so
iu the

chapter on Life, written months before the writer heard of
this German egg. We said that in sentient beings the vital
principle was simple, and created by God ; but the law of
prodnction was, whenever by the usual process, or by the
chemical action of light, heat, or electricity, a certain
disposition and grouping of material particles were brought
about, the vital principle was infused. This explains the
production of worms in corrupting meat, or cheese ; and, also,
that of minute insects from some metallic salts when sub-
jected to the influence of electricity. The light and hcaf
acting on the meat, or cheese, disarrange the former grouping
of particles, and a new disposition is the result ; the conditions
for the operating of the law of life becomes verified ; the
creator supplies the vital principle. In the same way electri-
city verifies the conditions for the law of life by its actions
on the silicate. These chemical agents are not the authors
of life ; they are secondary causes which prepare the conditions
necessary before God gives effect to the law of life. Before
materialists can bring their case into court, they must prove
that the vital principle is produced by natural means. This
they can never do. We can always prove a sentient principle
to be a simple substance ; such a substance can only arise
by creation. If this story about the artificially produced e^i^g
be true, it will prove the professor to be an ingenious and
patient student of nature ; he will be entitled to a niche in
the temple of fame ; but it will not affect revelation. We
are well aware that all the component parts of an egg are
in matter, round about us. An exact analysis of an egg
would reveal the nature and grouping of its parts : we can
discover no impossibility in bringing about this disposition
by chemical agency. In fact, it is always brought about in
this way. Skill, patience, and care would be required for a
man, to assimilate and group the parts, but we cannot see

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264

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

1 ^

an impossibility of success. If he should succeed, what
follows ? Simply that he has brought into play ou matter a
secretive power, siuiilar to the one at work in the auimal
economy of a bird. The bird is not the creator of the vital
principle that animates the young chick ; its action is limited
to a secretion of material parts which, under the process of
incubation, assume a disposition suitable for animation.
This is just what has been done by the electric current, so
neatly manipulated by the German professor. We say this
in the supposition of the truth of the story. Perhaps it is
only an egg from 'i mare's nest. Even so, we say again we
can see no i'vipfissibility in such a thing being done: and if it
were done, it would not clash with revelation. The words
of Moses, when speaking of the creation of the lower animals,
seem to imply tliat secondary causes, probably heat and
electricity, acting on the water, and on the land, prepared
the bodies of lishes, birds, and beasts, in.to which God infused
the principle of life. Thus it would hold good that the water
and land produced them, and that God created them according
to their species.

Although the christian intellect bows to faith, its assent is
not a blind motion ; it is a most reasonable act. Supernatural
faith is not born of a scientific demonstration ; it is a gift
from on high ; still, the assent given to revealed truths is in
accordance with reason. It is a reasonable act to believe
that for the truth of which we have ample evidence ; but we
have ample evidence of the trutii of revelation, viz : the
authority of God who has revealed it ; therefore our assent
to it is reasonable. Right reason can demonstrate the
foundations of revelation ; it can expend the motives of
credibility ; it can prove, from miracles and prophecy, that
such a doctrine is divine ; finally it can prove that a divine
doctrine is absolutely and eternally true. It matters not

FAITH AND REASON.

265

i, what
latter a

auimal
Lhe vital
s limited
ocess ot
limation.
rrcut, so
J say this
laps it is
again we
: and if it
he words
[• animals,

heat and
, prepared
od iufuf'cd

tlie water

according

[s assent is
pernatnral
it is a gift
•lUhs is in
to believe
•e ; hvit we
I, viz: the
I our assent
istrate the
[niotives of
)hecy, that
,t a divine
latters uot

that the truth in question be a mystery, beyond the compre-
hension of tlie human intellect. Reason can show that God
has revealed it ; that is enough to give us an invincible
motive of certainty in its regard. It may be said ; but if the
reason does uot comprehend a truth, can its assent thereto
be reasonable ? Assuredly it can ; how many persons can
comprehend why a stone falls to the ground? why friction
produces heat? why water bubbles when boiling? Every
one knows and believes these things, and their belief is never
called irrational ; simply because thoy have sutlicient evidence
to know the /ad, although they know not its cause, or rather
.its hoio. If, then, wo can prove that God has revealed the
mystery of the Holy Trinity, our belief in that truth is most
reasonable, although we do not comprehend its hoiv. It is
strange that so evident a vindication of the reasonableness of
our faith does not occur to rationalists. Naturally there are
•two ways of acfiuiring truth, by evidence and liy authority.
We are daily called upon to believe facts of which we have
no evidence direct; we have the authority of some man, or
body of men. A poor unlearned hewer of wood who would
say, "I do not believe that the angles at the base of au
isosceles triangle are equal to one another, because I do not
comjjrehend it," would not be praised as reasonable in his
disbelief; he would, probably, be called an idiot. All
authority is against liim ; ho stands alone ; a thousand on one
side, — zero on the other. Just in the same way the man
why says, " I do uot believe such a mystery, because I do
not comprehend it," should be classed. The authority of
God who has revealed it, is against him ; it is more than a
thousand against zero. A man to whom the gospel revelation
has never beou suiliciently proposed, may doubt that it is the
word of God ; but once that you prove to him that Christ
was u divine person, which can be done from his miracles

266

rniLOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

I'! '

i' k-Ai

V I ■

and prophecies, he can no longer doubt his doctrine, unless
he wishes to be numbered among the insane. Thus it is
that those who boast most about their rationality are, when
cornered up, the greatest murderers of i"eason. They force
their intelligence to become a suicide, by using it to deny
trutlis which are surrounded by a halo of evidence.

Reason is not cramped, or enslaved by faith ; on the con-
trary, its flight is extended, its base of operations enlarged,
and its freedom made more secure. Consent to error is a
slavery from which faith protects reason ; each is a help to
the other ; and the ideal of intellectual perfection in life, is
realized when sound reason, enlightened by faith, cultivates
soberly and piously the science of divine things. Faith is
ahove reason, but not opposed to it ; it is above it, because
what it makes known is more sublime, and it is absolutely
certain ; it is not opposed to reason, because the object of
both is truth. They walk the same road, but when reason,
on account of its limitation and its defects, begins to fail,
faith raises it up, and tenderly carries it along a path which
it, indeed, sees, but whose windings it knows not. It is as
wdien a father lifts up and carries his child that can proceed
no fin'ther ; the child sees the road, and trees, and houses,
but knows them not, for never before had it been by that
way ; it is pleased with tlie fair prospect, although it under-
stands but in part the explanation of its father. The teachings
of faith being absolutely true, it follows that it must be
intolerant of error. Intolerance of error is, essentially, an
attribute of truth. The enemies of the catholic church
upbraid her with intolerance of doctriual differences. This
is an involuntary homage to her never failing truth. Were
she a mere human institution, she would have accepted, at
some time in her long career, a compromise of doctrine to
save her from the many fierce attacks which she has endured.

FAirn AND REASON.

2G7

lc, unless
bus it is
ire, whcQ
liey force
t to deny

1 tlie con-
enlarged,
error is a
i a help to
in life, is
, cultivates
Faith is
it, because
i absolutely
le object of
beu reas^ou,
[ins to fail,
path which
It is as
can proceed
and iiouses,
een by that
,<Tb it uudcr-
he teachings
it must be
iseutially, an
[lolic church
suces. This
uth. Were
accepted, at
)f doctrine to
has endured.

But no ; she changes not ; she is ns intolerant of a doeu inal
difference to-day as what she was w4ien St, Paul (Gal. 1-8)
wrote : " But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach a
gospel to you beside that which we have preached to you, let
him be anathema;" oV wheu St. John (2 Ep. 1-10) said:
*' if any man come to you, and bring not this doctrine, receive
him not into the house, nor say to him, God save you."
Being absolutely certain of the truth of her doctrine, bc<'uuse
it was revealed by God, she must be absolutely certain of the
falsity of anything which contradicts it. It is ouly wheu
there is a possibility of one's Iniing in error, that one can
admit the possibility of the truth of the opposite. But in the
teachings of faith there is no possibility of error — for God
cannot err — hence true faith can never hesitate ; it rejects
with horror that Arhich is contradictory to it. However,
although faith must hate error, it does not hate the erring.
In this lies our vindication ; we hate doctrinal error because
it is an insult to God ; we love the erring, because in thcni
we recognize fellow creatures, made to the image of God and
redeemed by the blood of the Saviour. Were these points
properly understood we would hear less about " cramping
reason," and " intolerance."

Another difference between faith and reason is the perfec-
tability of the latter and the unchangeability of the former.
Reason can be trained and rendered more expeditious in its
operations ; being finite, yet having a great latent capa(;ity,
it can be wonderfully developed. So can all its inventions.
The first attempts at telegraphy in France, more than one
hundred years ago, were clumsy and imperfect. See now
to what a high state of perfection it has advanced. Thus it
was with the beginning of everv human art. But the doctrine
of faith has not been proposed as a speculation of the mind,
which can be perfected ; it is a divine deposit, perfect already,

2G8

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

because it is the work of a God. It can have no essential

*
development ; its meaning and scope may be more fully

explained, and its lerminolo<2:y more sharply dcUned ; but its
sense and essence are always one and the same. God knew
when revealing it all the changes which would be wrouglit
by steam and electricity ; he was as wise then as now. He
revealed then what he would to-day, or centuries hence, for
lie revealed what was eternally true. The sense of his
revelation is never modified or affected by the development of
human science. Let all sciences progress ; let them use their
own methods in their own spheres ; but let them keep within
their proper limits, and accept only logical conclusions from
true premises. If this were done, all their advancement
would only tend to throw additional light, if that were
possible, on the teachings of faith. Centuries ago the doctors
of the catholic church called reason the " preamble of faith ;"
centuries ago that church solemnly asserted that " truth can-
not contradict truth," In our own day the Vatican Council
said, that the church, " far from throwing obstacles in the
way of the cultivation of human arts and sciences, rather
assists and promotes their cultivation in various ways."
We accept every proved conclusion of every science, and
every revealed truth, Avith an absolute certainty that between
them there is no contradiction, no collision, no repugnance.

essential
norc t'uUy
(\ ; but it»
■^od knew
e wrought
now. He
hence, for
ise of his
clopment of
jm use their
keep within
isions from
dviuiceraent
[• that were
the doctors
,le of faith ;"
'' truth can-
ican Council
iicles in the
uces, rather
ious ways."
science, and
[that between
repugnance.

CHAPTER XII.

FAITH IN ITS HELATIONS TO THE BODY POLITIC.

IVIL society is the result of man's social tendencies.
God did not intend man to be a rude and untamed
creature ; he did not create him in a state of savagery ;
Cfl^'c? nor did he implant in him a warlike feeling against
his kind. He gave him a nature nobler, far, than that of
any other visible creature, yet a nature more helpless, in its
early stages, than ii that of the vilest insect. Both its
nobility, and its helplessness in infancy, evidently prove that
man was not intended to lead a nomadic life, but that civil
society entered into the scheme of creation, as a natural
outcome of man's requirements, and his social qualities.
Evidently domestic society, of, at least, many years duration,
is necessary for the preservation of the human race. Tho
young of birds and beasts can soon fly, or run as swiftly as
their dams ; but not so with the infant. Months of tender
nursing must be followed by years of watchful care, before a
human being can, of itself, procure its livelihood. It requires
no length of argument to show that the Creator never intended
all the anxiety, care, and labor of providing for the wants of
the child, to devolve on the mother. Father and mother
were to share tlie task ; but to do this properly a domestic
society is required. But not alone during infancy has man
many wants ; in his mature years his requirements are

270

PniLOSOPHT OP THE BIBLE TINUICATED.

II- -i

numerous, and his capacity to supply all is often iuadeqnnte.
He may grow his corn and thresh it too ; he may pasture his
sheep, and secure their wool ; he may feed his oxen, slay
them, and procure their hides ; but can he gv'md his corn,
bake his bread, spin and weave his wool, tan and make his
ox hides into shoes? Whilst he would be engaged in these,
and fifty other necessary offices, the seed time would pass,
und his laud would lie untilled. To supply more effectually
his wants, and to satisfy, likewise, his ci-aviug for intercourse
with kindred spirits, man would naturally seek to form a
society in which a dividon of labor, mutually advantageous,
might be effected. Thus, by a disposition of divine provi-
dence, civil society arises ; in it, if properly constituted, man
can perfect his noble faculties, and acquire a large share of
temporal happiness. Now no society can exist without an
authority which will render its members secure in the enjoy-
ment of their rights. Consequently since God wishes civil
society, and since the essence of civil society requires
authority, God must wish such authority to exist. As often,
then, as a multitude of men form a civil society, there is in
that society, independent of the will of men, by divine
ordination, a civil power which is to provide for the temporal
good of the whole community. " All power is from God :"
he alone is the source andgOrigin of all legislative power, just
as he alone is the source and origin of all being. The subject
in which that power resides may be one person, or many
persons so united as to form, morally speaking, one subject.
Hence tliere are various forms of legitimate authority, such
as monarchy, aristocracy, democratic and mixed forms ; still,
the power is in each case the same, although the form under
which it is exercised be manifold. A great deal has been
said about the '■^ divine right of kings," and much nonsense
ha& been let loose oq the current of literature, through aa

FAITH IN ITS RELATIONS TO THE BODY POLITIC. 271

(lequrtte.

sture his

xen, slay

\\i coru,

mtike his
in these,

luhl pass,

iffectually

itercourse

to form a

autageous,

viue provi-

tuteil, man

;e share of

without an

1 the eujoy- .

vishes civil

y requires
As often,
there is in
by divine

Ihe temporal
'om God :
power, just
The subject
In, or many
one subject.
|hority, such
|forms ; still,
form under
jal has been
ch nonsense
through aii

ignorance of the proper sense of these words. We know that
certain persons were specially selected by God to rule certain
states ; but the civil power which they exerciseil was identical,
in origin and essence, with that exercised by any other king,
or president. The meaning, then, of the " divine right " of
kings is, that the civil power exercised by the sujM'eme civil
and legitimate authority of the laud, be it king, president, or
assembly, is from God. Legitimate civil power is always
from God ; tha subject in which that power resides is some-
times^ but not always, specially chosen by the Almighty.
Queen Victoria wields a power which is from G(^l,yet we do
not say that God specially selected her to rule ; President
Grant, though chosen by the voice of the people, wields a
}X)wer which is from God. Presidents have a " divine
right " in the same sense as have kings, that is, that their
power is from God. It is wild to talk about a "• power from
the people ;" the people may determine the subject in which
the power is to reside, but they cannot give the power.
" No one can give what he has not got," is a trite axiom ;
but no man has the right, of himself, of governing others,
nor of prescribing civil laws for himself ; therefore he cannot
give any such power to another. Only God has the right of
governing all ; hence only he can give to an earthly ruler
that power. A distinction must be made between conferring
power, and determining its organ. Only God can do the
former ; in certain cases the people can do the latter. In
short, only God has power, of himself, to rule ; he wished
civil society, and, as a consequence, wished a power to be in
it ; sometimes he determined directly the subject of that
power ; more often the subject was determined by some
human fact. In every case the legitimate subject, howsoever
determined, exercises a power which is from God.

A pre-existing right often determined the organ of civil

i<i,i I

272

PHILOSOPHY OF THE IJIDLE VINDICATED.

ii. I

ft '■
If

power. A father, settling in some hitlierto uninhabited
country, takes possession of a tract of land ; he gives a part
of this to each of his sons, but imposes certain conditions for
tlie peace and well-being of the community. His prior
right of possession determines him as tlie organ of power,
Ilis son who succeeds to his estate, succeeds, likewise, to the
rights inherent to the property, and becomes in his turn a
lawgiver. He is the instrument divine providence uses to
provide for the social good of that society ; the power which
resides in him is divine, being from God, while the fact
which determines him as the organ thereof is human. Again,
suppose many persons occupying simultaneously certain
tracts of a new country, and drawn together by social
tendencies, and for their mutual Avelfare. An authority is
necessary to decide the disputes which may arise, and to
protect each one in his rights. Since, however, no one has
a pre-existing right, the members of the community agree to
choose by vote a ruler. The ruler thus elected becomes the
organ of a divine power, whilst the fact by which he was
determined is human. The vote did not create the power or
right of making laws ; it merely determined the one who
was to be the subject of a power given by God, for the good
of that society.

The supreme civil ruler of a state (of course we always
mean if he be legitimate) is, then, a delegate of God for the
temporal good of man. Hence the honor ever shown by the
greatest and best of mankind to kings and princes. It is not
the purple garment, nor the golden sceptre, nor the crown of
jewels, that inspires a feeling of awe and reverence in a
well-balanced mind, when in the presence of royalty ; it is
the recognition of the prince's sublime office of vice-gerent, in
temporal things, of the Almighty, Disrespect for the organ
of the civil power increases in a direct ratio to the decrease

FAITH IN ITS RELATIONS TO THE BODY POLITIC. 273

inhabited
'es a part
itions for
11 if' prior
of power,
ise, to the
lis turn a
ce uses to
,vcr which
le the tact
1. A}?aiu,
ly certain
by social
Luthority is
ise, aud to
uo one has
lity agree to
ecomes the
ich he was
le power or
le oue who
lOr the good

we always
God for the
lown by the
It is not
he crown of
erence in a
fyalty; it is
jrerent, in
ir the organ
he decrease

of religious feeling. Contempt for legitimate authority is a
pretty sure index of a shipwrecked faith. Every firm
supporter of the king, or president, may not bo a religious
man ; but every despiser of their otlice may be safely classed
with the irreligious. But if civil rulers have such an impor-
tant office, it is selt-evident that their responsibilities are very
great. Power has not been conferred upon them ibr their
personal advantage ; it has been given for the good of their
subjects. They should be a reflection on earth of what God
is in heaven ; the vindicator of the wronged ; the dis])enser of
justice ; the avenger of crimes. They should bo the fathers,
not the oppressors, of their people. They stand on a giddy
height, and weak human nature may easily lose its balance.
Pride, ambition, anger, — all the evil passions of our nature
will rise up within them, to work, if possible, their ruin.
Their position is fraught with danger, still they can triumph.
On almost every throne of Europe great, wise, and just kings
have sat ; monsters of vice have afterwards occupied the same
thrones ; at the last day the former will bear witness to God's
justice in condemning these who could have been better.
Now since a king is the vice-gerent of the Almighty, in
temporal things, it follows that if he grossly misuse his
power he may forfeit his right to rule. We do not undertake
to specify the crimes which might bring about a forfeiture of
right ; but it is evident that God does not give power uncon-
ditionally to man ; consequently, there must be actions which
incur a deprivation of power. Now the question arises : is
there any tribunal on earth competent to decide when, if
ever, a king forfeits his right to rule? We who believe in
Bible revelation know that God stripped various kings of
their royal powers on account of their bad actions. By the
preaching of Christ both the civil and religious order of
things were modified. Previous to Christ God interfered

274

nilLOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

more directly in temporal and spiritiml matters than what he
nflcrwardn did. Christ Avithdrcw from the provinee of
kings Hi)iritual matters, and placed them nndcr tlie ^'nardian-
Bhip of his church. CVsar had what belonged to him, and
the church had her rights assigned. The latter was to
represent Christ to the cr^d of time ; it was to take up and
continue his nussion of teacher, guide, and judge. The old
law received its complement and perfection when the new
one was j)romulgated. God Avas henceforth to reign on
earth in and through his spiritual kingdom. The power of
Cicsar was left intact in temporal concerns, but all sjiiritual
jurisdiction passed away from him forever. A new revelation
was made ; a new dispensation Avas preached ; a new order
oi things began its course. When human society was thus
radically renovated and changed by the Saviour, can we
suppose that he left aught incomplete ? Surely not ; he came
to provide our eternal good in an effectual manner ; and, also,
to inaugurate an era of justice and peace. But if Ave assume
that there is no tribunal to pronounce on the conduct of kings,
not only in their spiritual actions, for every christian must
admit such a tribunal in the chiu'ch, but, likeAvise, in their
ofHcial duties, could avc say that everything Avas complete?
Would the temporal happiness of society be sufficiently safe-
guarded ? By no means ; it is clear that kings may grossly
misuse their power ; they may become pests and scourges of
kingdoms, instead of being their joy and comfort. There
must be a tribunal on earth before Avhich they can be sum-
moned ; and Avhich can judge their conduct. That tribunal
must be one invested Avith divine prerogatives, for it has to
try the organ of a divine power. It cannot be the subjects
of the king, for they are one of the party to the suit, and it
would be a mockery of justice to make a man judge in his
OAvn cause. It cauuot be other kings, for each is iudepeudeut

FAITH IN ITS RKLATIONS TO THE HODV POMTIC. 275

ivlint lie
ince ol*
lavdiun-
hn, uinl

was to

lip ami
The old
the new
rci^n on
power of
spiritual
cvelation
ew order
was thus
, can we
; he came
and. also,
^'e assume

of kings,

ian must
in their

•ompk'te?

•utly safe-

iiy grossly

pourges of
It. There
bo sum-

^t tribunal
it has to

|e subjects
lit, and it

Idge in his
Idepeudeut

in Ills own state ; and no one of them has jurisdiction over
the otlier. It can only be that divinely institut(!d society
Avhich was appointed supreme judge on earth, of all moralily.
We know that this conclusion will he scouted hy state-
worshippers ; but the reasoning cannot i»e gainsaid. Reduced
to a mitshell it nuiy be thus stated : kings have their power
from (jiod subject to conditions ; for the goo<l of society there
must he a judge to decide when these conditions have been
violated ; such a judge must have spiritual jurisdiction,
because he has to pronounce on a question of morality ; now
the church is the supreme spiritual jjouer on earili therefore
the church is the judge who is to dei^'lare when a king has
forfeited his right to rule. Kepresontuliv' of C'.rist, ^' IiO
lias supreme spiritual and temporal powM*, die church has a
divine in* - on to fuUil. The eternal laws of jtislice and
truth, together Aviih the deposit of revelacion, have been
placed under her guardianship. To guard them elt'eetually
she must have power to judge ivhen and how they are violated ;
otherwise G,od would have appointed a blind sentinel. It is
by a violation of the things encharged to her vigilance, that
the conditions, under which kings hold power, are trans-
gressed. Conserpiently she in competent to judge the
transgression. It seems strange that anyone helieviug in
the divine mission of the churt;h could doubt this. Protes-
tants may not agree with Catholics as to which is the true
church ; hut Protestants must surely agree with Catholics
that the true church has supreme spiritual power ; if it has
this, it must have the power of declaring a forfeiture of right
to rule incurred by a sovereign.

The existence of such a tribunal does not import a cur-
tailment of the due action of the state. T!ie civil ruler can
only become amenable to this tribunal by the commission of
flagrant outrages, which violate, at the same time, the eternal

my-

27G

rniLOsopiiY OF the niULE vindicated.

iir

laws of justice, n>orality, and rovelatioii, ami the ri<:fhta of
hia subjects. Ho liaa no ri;2;li^ to do this ; eonsecjuently
liberty, iu its })roper sense, is not rostrieted by coercting hia
evil actions. Persons inibne»l with a hatred of ehiistianity
wildly declaim a<;ainst this ideji ; they rave and tear their
hair and sliont all niaiuier of bhis{)hiMnie8. But vapid
declamation, and an;i;ry railing are not arijuments ; thciy oidy
serve, like foam on a roek-broken wave, to mark the rnjj^ing'
of a haflled force. J\lany of those selfsame men, who deny
this evident concomitant of supreme spiritual jurisdiction, do
not hesitate to arroijate to themselves, and to discontented
cli(iues, the power of doclariiiD^ that a kinij^ has forl'eited his
kinu'dom. Thus it over is ; the lawful authority of the church
is only denied by those who are anxious to attribute to them-
selves her prer()<;atives.

There are, then, in the world two divinely constituted
orders, the spiritual and the temporal ; over each of these a
divinely endowed representative presides. Each is sujiremo
and independent in his own sphere ; and the limits of each
are sharply dolined. The primary object of the civil ruler is
to procure the temporal «2;ood of his sultjects ; that of the
spiritual ruler their moral "ood ; the ultimate end of both is
the eternal happiness of their subjects. Now it is evident
that our temporal good, properly understood, can never run
coiuitor to our spiritual, and vice versa. It is the same God
who has established both orders, and linked them top:etherby
a jiolden chain. The tirst, or if you like, the last link of that
chain is fastened to the footstool of the Godhead's throne,
and runs thence, down the pathway of ages, to the last
generation. It is only when the links of that chain are
snapped, or rudely strained, that confusion, disorder, tyranny,
au<l revolution distract nations. Political disorder breeds a
spirit of irreligion, and religious torpor begets anarchy, A

FAITH IN ITS UKLATI0N3 TO THE BODY POLITIC. 277

llt8 Of

uiMitly
luj; Ilia
tiiinity
,r their
vapid
',y only^

raj^iiif?'
lo deuy
tioii, do
mteiitcd
itcd his
) cliurch
;o thom-

iistituted
"these a
supremo
of each
ruUu* h
i of tho
f both is
evident
ver run
lino God
?ther by
of that
throne,
the last
hain are
tyranny,
breeds a
chy, A

terrestrial Utopia is only poH.siblo in the supposition of a
nation, peophs and kin^, atitinj^ according to the teachin<;s of
tbe <rosp<'l ; ^ivin^ to Caesar his due, and rendering to the
church her ri;:^ht. A kinjr is not cxenij)! from obedience to
God ; he is as strongly boniid to hear tlm <^ospel, as is the
lowest of his t)eople. Now it is thronjith tlu! church that the
gospel truths are i)reached and explained ; iu^nce it is to her
that the kin«^ is to have recourse for his spiritiuil <i^ni(hvn{!e.
Hifjjh and <^U)riousas is his position ; ;;^reat as are thech'^nities
of liis oiiuHi, still, he has not a particle, or shadow of spiritual
power. Ca'sar is no lon^rer Emperor an«l Snprem<^ J'ontill";
Christ strii)ped him of that, and letl him as poor, in that
respect, as the tremblinf^ serf. He is, tluiii, clearly bonnd to
liear the church ; la; is subject to her spii'itJial jurisdiction ;
if not, he must be both a spiritual ^uide and lawgiver for
himself. Althouj^h, then, he is supreme and independent in
his own sphere, that is, in purely civil matters, lie is subject,
in s|)iritual things, to the chtu'ch. So lon<^ as he confines his
attention to the temporal j^'ood of his peojjle, there can be no
clash bebween him and the church. Once he ovtsrsteps his
boundaries, and be^j^ins to fell trees in the domain of the
church, he is met by the vifi^ilant sentinels, that ever keep
"watch on the towers of Israel. This is the ori;jfin of every
quarrel between the state and the church. Can the sttulent
of history point to a sinide instance In which a quarrel was
brou!_dit about by ai< interference of the church in purely
temporal concerns? Never, never, never.

It may be asked : how are explained the many disturbances
between the churcli and kings, during the middle ages, when
all Europe was of the one religion? In every case the
answer is the same : Ca'sar was not satisfied with full political
power ; he longed for what was unlawful. The great struggle
between Gregory VII, and that n^onstcr of vice, Henry IV

278

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

of Germany, was no personal conflict. Jt was a -war of
ideas ; a fight of eternal principles against an odious political
tyranny. Henry broke his solemn engagements with the
nation ; he trampled on her constitution ; he ravaged Saxony,
and mocked at her sufferings. But he did more than this ;
he endeavored to divorce his faithful wife ; he impiously sold
to impious buffoons, bishoprics and abbeys. His dark
catalogue of crimes is wi-itten by Voigt, a German and a
protestant. In such a crisis as this what was the duty of the
Pope ? Be it remembered that he was then the imiversally
recognized head of Christianity. The German Empire was
a creation of his predecessors ; he could not sit idly on his
throne, and turn a deaf ear to tlie groans of a suffering people.
He exhorted, reproved, advised, commanded, but all in vain.
Henry would feign repentence, swear amendment, and in a
few months begin his crimes again. The sacred rights and
liberties of the people, as taught by the gospel, were cruelly
outraged, if not almost destroyed. Human liberty was about
to become the manacled slave of a most vicious monarch.
Servile courtiers cheered him on ; a dispirited nation offered
but feeble resistence. But God still lived, and his church
had not ceased to produce heroes. One of these was Gregory,
the grandest picture in the panorama of church history. He
became the fearless champion of the churcli's riglits and the
people's liberty. It Avas a renewal of the fight between
Goliah and David, and the final issue was the same. It is
true that Gregory died in exile, but he died a victor. His
sublime idea of disenthralling the church from the usurpations
of princes, and of securing the rights of subjects against the
encroachments of tyranny, lived in his successors ; developed
under their fostering care, and laid the foundations of civil
liberty in the christian world. In our day Gregory is
maligned by those who never read his letters and his deeds.

war of

olitical

ith the

laxony,

D this ;

^ly sold

is dark

1 aud a

y of the

versally

lire was

r on his

y people,
in vain.

\ik1 in a

irhts and

e cruelly
as ahout

uouarch.

w offered

s church
h-egory,
ry. He
aud the
hetweea
It is
His
u-pations
ainst the
eveloped
of civil
l-cgory is
lis deeds.

FAITH IN ITS RELATIONS TO THE BODY POLITIC. 279

He is traduced by those who boast most loudly about the
civil ri gilts for wliich he fought. It is the blackest of ingra-
titude to denounce one of the noblest champions of human
rights, simply because he was pope. We do not mean b/
this to imply that protestants, as a body, are guilty of this.
They cannot help the snarling and yelping of that small
mongrel band of ignorant bigots who still breathe, unchoked,
the pure air of heaven. This may seem an inappropriate
digression in a work of this nature ; yet, we fain hope that
it is not. It serves to illu^itrate the proposition, that only
when the state oversteps its rights, does a conflict arise
between it and the church. The present struggle in Germany
is one between conscience and tyranny. The state interferes
with the spiritual functions of the church ; it seeks to control
the education of the clergy, and to regulate the conditions
under which they shall discharge their priestly duties. Would
any religious community consent to this? Certainly not,
unless they foreswore the christian name, and set up a new
form of idolatry, known as state worship. The catholic
conscience refuses to recognize the right of the state to
meddle in religious matters, and lieucc the relentless perse-
cution, which tends to disintegrate Gennany, and which
casts a foul blot on the hi^^tory of the new empire. Still,
men who call themselves liberal, applaud the odious tyranny
that tramples on the sacred rights of conscience, and confines
to dreary prisons virtuous and learned citizens, accused of
nothing save a refusal to subject their conscience to anti-
christian enrctments. Tiiis is a fruit of the van. itcd German
prr)gress ! It is fast leading that unhappy country back to
the degenerate day , f the Roman Phnpire. If the idea of
Henry IV lives in Bismarck and Emperor William, the
indomitable spirit of Gregory still tires his venerable successor,
aud the future historian will have to chronicle another
Cauossa.

mmmmmmmmtmm

280

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

1
1

1 '

11^

Every page of human history is blotted with the vices and
ambition of men. The war against God began in Eden, and
will last until the angel will declare time to be no more.
There is no reason, then, for wondering at the nnceasing
strife between the world and the church. Lawless passions
array themselves against the only power that opposes them
effectively. But there is reason for wondering at the sym-
pathy and applause too often given by persons calling them-
selves christians, to the persecutors of the catholic church.
It may be asked : is it possible for harmony to exist between
the church and every form of legitimate government? Un-
doubtedly it is ; civil power has to do with temporal matters ;
faith with spiritual ones. If each keep within its own
province they can work harmoniously for the common good.
How are the limits of each power to be known ? In general
there can be no ditliculty ; all that pertains to divine worship,
to the preaching of the word of God, to the r 'ministering of
the sacraments, and to the regulation of ecclesiastic discipline,
belongs evidently to the spiritual sphere. Roads, bridges,
customs, post oifices, railroads and all temporal concerns of
this nature, clearly jjcrtain to the civil sphere. There are,
we think, only tAvo subjects about which any difuculty could
arise ; and regarding even these, there needs be no struggle.
The two questions are marriage and education. To prevent
litigation, and for various civif reasons, the state may wish
to have legal proof of marriage. To procure this it is not
necessary to force civil marriage on its subjects. In every
age and nation marriage has been looked upon as a religious
action ; under the gospel dispensation it was raised to the
dignity of a sacrament. Hence matrimony, regarded in its
essence, pertains to the spiritual sphere. To wrest it from
the control of the church, and to place it entirely under the
state would clearly be usurpation. But since civil couse-

ices and

leu, aud

o more.

[iceusinp:

passions

les them

the sym-

\S them-

; church,
between

It? Un-

matters ;
its own

lou good.

n general

! worship,

steriug of

iiscipline,
, bridges,
tucerus of
"ihere are,
ilty coukl
struggle.
|o prevent
juay wish
it is not
In every
religious
led to th3
Ided in its
1st it from
linder the
Lil couse-

FAITn IN ITS RELATIONS TO THE BODY POLITIC. 281

qiieuoes depend on matrimony, the state, if it be not satisfied
with the register of the church, may demand that all marriages
be, likewise, entered on the public registry. To this the
church would offer no objection ; the end desired by the state
would be efficiently secured, and all fear of a conflict would
be over. In our free Dominion we have no conflict on this
point, and the legal proof of marriages is rendered certain.

The question of education is capable of a peaceful solution,
if statesmen only wished to respect the rights of conscience.
A believer in Christianity must be educated in accordance
with its principles. It is not enough for him to know merely
the things of the world ; he must, likewise, be taught the
science of revealed truths. His intellect must develop in a
christian atmosphere ; be expanded by christian virtue ; and
be guided by christian motives. This is the only proper Avay
to mould a true christian character, or to foster that deep
religious feeling, without which life is a misspent season, and
death a gloomy i)assage to eternal wail. Education, then, is
evidently a matter of conscience and, as such, has been
■withdrawn from the civil sphere. The state has no more
right to prescribe its nature, thau what it has to superintend
domestic cookery. If its interests recpiire a knowledge of
reading, writing, and arithmetic in its subjects, it can order
them to acquire this knowledge ; but it cannot set up so called
" secular schools," and force parents to use them. To
impose on a people this bastard system of fragmentary
instruction, is to assault tlie inviolable castle of every English
subject, and to storm the domestic hearth. Yet this is
called progress ; in good sooth it is different from what our
fathers looked upon as progressive liberty, when they fought
to maintain the immunities of the fireside. Now, two
courses are open to the state, each one avoids a collision :
either let it leave education severely alone, or come in under

282

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

its proper form of an auxiliary, not as a principal. Let par-
ents send their t'liihlren to denominational schools, if they will,
and let these schools draw a pro rata allowance for the average
attendance, provided the insi)ector tinds the pupils up to the
required stp.n<lard in nectdar knowledge. In this way parental
right,s are respected, and the st.'itc has a siifeguard that its
money is not given without due value being received. This
course which common justice indicates, is not pleasing to
men who call themselves liberal. The name of every virtue,
almost, has been abused, at some time, by being usurped to
further a wicked end ; the sacred name of liberty is now
assumed to rivtt the shackles of religious oppression. These
•' liberal statesmen " tell the people ; " you must take our
system of education, for we want to give freedom to all.'*
It is in vain for a great body of the people to protest ; iieir
sacred rights are sacrificed on this altar of counterfeit liberty.
Men, lost to all sense of manhood, perform their rude war-
dance around the accursed pile in which the violated liberties
of thousands of their fellow-citi/ens are being consumed ;
they shout for joy because those who diifer from them in
religion are oppressed ; they heap fuel on the flame, uncon-
scious that, like the Chaldean oflicials who fed the furnace
for the destruction of Sidrach, Mi; ach, and Abdenego, they
are only preparing the funeral pyre of their own freedom.
For be sure that the state which infringes on the liberty of
part of its citizens, will very soon attack that of all. History
might teach them prudence, if religion has not taught them
charity.

The true idea of life contains an element of the supernatural
Man is subject to a double order, but is destined for only
one end. The two orders to which he owes allegiance are
divinely instituted ; they are the work of the hand of the
Most High. God cannot impose on man contradictory

ct par-

sy will,

.vcvage
to the

arental

tluit its
This

i»\n^ to
virtue,

rped to

Ls now

These

akc our

I to all."

5t; 'heir

t lilcrty,

ide war-
liberties

[isumctl ;
them in
, uuoou-
turuace
go, they
Veedom.
berty of
History
■ht them

raatural.
[for onl^,
lance are
Id of the
l-adictory

FAITH IN ITS RELATIONS TO THE BODY POLITIC. 283

obligations ; hence man can fully, freely, faithfully discharge
every obligation which he has towards the civil power, and
towards the church. Just as truth cannot be opposed to
truth, so one obligation cannot be opposed to another. There
may seem, at times, to be a clash of obligations, but it is not
so in reality. The question about " divided allegiance," so
strangely raised by a great statesman, is the creation of an
over-wrought brain. Allegiance is only due to the state
within its own sphere ; in matters beyond its jurisdiction it
has no right to command ; hence, in these, we have no obli-
gation to obey. The refusal of obedience, in such case, is
not a want of allegiance ; it is a simple protest against a vain
pretention. The christian is lx)uud to give due. allegiance to
the stiite ; but this obligation does not cause him to become a
mere machine, to be worked at the pleasure of every constitu-
tion tinker. He remains a rational being, endowed with an
immortal soul, gifted with a conscience, and responsible to
God for liis actions. Conscious of his dignity, and aware of
his responsibilities, he will not become the tool of the state.
He will bow to it within its own province, but will laugh at
it when transgressing its limits. It is scarcely correct to
say that there are some laws which we ought to disobey, A
law can only be imposed by legitimate authority, in matters
of its competence. Hence ju'ts of parliament concerning
spiritual matters are not laws ; and although we disregard
them, Ave are breaking no law. A law must be a reasonable
ordinance; but the chatter of temporal rulers about spiritual
affairs is so nuich unreasoiuible vapoi-ing. Will any man of
common sense assert that we must blindly acce[)t every
mandate from parliament, or king? No ; but why? Simply
because he is convinced that there is a limit to the power of
the state. Who is to define this limit ? Not the state, surely,
else man has no safeguard against tyranny. If the st^vte can

»n

284

PHILOSOPHY OP THE BIBLE VINPICATED.

assign the limits of its power, it may pitch the stakes where
it list, and every tyrant may justify his oppressive measures
by deciding that he is acting within his right. Clearly the
Btato is not a fitting surveyor. God, the author of the order,
has fixed its boundaries : it ends where the higher order
begins. This higher order, embodied in the church, has had
its limits revealed ; it must know them, for God indwells
forever in his spiritual kingdom, vivifying its forces, render-
ing fruitful its labors, and guiding its actions. The church
knowing thus positively its own limits, must know, at least
negatively, the limits of the state. One of three things,
either the limits of each power are not known, or they are
assigned by the state, or by the church. If the first, nought
but confusion could ensue ; God could never have left such a
disordered state of things. If the second, you have no safe-
guard against tyranny, and, moreover, the inferior order
surpasses in dignity the superior. To accept either of the
two first is a manifest absurdity. It remains, then, to say in
conformity to reason, and to the christian spirit, that the
church, guided by the Holy Ghost, defining its own limits,
shows the bounds of state power.

The church ani"" state are two divinely instituted orders ;
each is for the good of man ; consequently, man's obligations
to both can never clash. Each is independent in its own
sphere : in this there is no contradiction. The territories of
two independent states are not more clearly defined and
distinct than are the provinces of church and state. Civil
power, being for the good of man, may be forfeited by atro-
cious crimes ; God has fully provided for man's temporal
good ; consequently he has established a tribunal that can
decide when a forfeiture of power is incurred. This being a
question of morality, is decided by the supreme guardian, on
earth, of faith and morals, the church. Man can be a

akes where
e measures
Dlearly the
f the order,
gher order
ch, has had
xl indwells
;es, render-
The church
►w, at least
iree things,
or they are
irst, nought
! left such a
j,ve no safe-
t'erior order
ther of the
in, to say in
it, that the
own limits,

ted orders ;
obligations
in its own
jrritories of
defined and
itate. Civil
ted by atro-
I's temporal
lal that can
rhis being a
guardian, on
Q can be a

FAITH IH ITS EELATIONS TO THE BODY rOLITIC. 285

faithful subject of both orders ; ho does not divide, or miuimi.e
h.s al,eg,auce by refusing to obo, him who has no rTgh
to ommand. Any other view of these two powers is anti
ph.Iosoph,c and unchristian ; barraclcs arc not to supertedo
churches • nor are policemen the divinely appointed semiTe
of Israel's watch-towers.

-^e«'

It. '

CHAPTER XIII.

RESURRECTION OF THE BODY.

^'c\^ continual round of jri"owtli and decay is vorlfiod In
^f>f\S ^^^^ vegetable world. The seed is cast into tlie
'Ir^ furrow; a partial corruption, caused by moisture
t) (p) '^ and heat, sets in ; the geihn of veg'etable life enclosed
in the seed bursts forth, receives increment from the soil
and the atmosphere and becomes a plant. This in its turn
withers and mingles its particles with the earth, or disperses
them thi-ough the air. Seasons come and go, and come
again ; things die but to be reborn ; only out of corruption
springs the nuiterial i)art of beings. Even during the life-
time of plants or animals there is an unceasing action going
on in their systems ; parts are being thrown off, and other
parts assimilated. Activity, fecundity, regularity, shine in
the vegetable order. The fall of the leaf does not bring an
enduring sadness, because we know that ere long luxuriant
foliage will again bedeck the trees ; the decay of our flowers
causes slight regret, because we know that in a sliort time they
will bloom again. Hope of a renewal cheers us continually
in the midst of vegetable decay. But there is something we
love more dearly to look upon than the flowers, or the fruits ;
there is something more beautiful in our eyes than the lily
or the rose ; it is the face and form of loved friends. The
mother watches her child growing up year by year ; she

RESURRECTION OF THE BODY.

287

n'ifiod in
into the
moisture
I enclosed
1 the soil
I its turn
disperses
nd come
orru})tion
the lite-
ion going
nd other
shine in
bring an
luxuriant
ir flowers
time they
)ntiuually
ething we
le fruits ;
|u the lily
H. The
ear; she

notes Avith loving pride the development of her son's manly
form, or the deli<'nte grace of her daughter. Through the
stages and vicissitudes of childhood she patiently cares for
her ofFsjjring ; in the midst of her care and anxiety, a glance
at the innocent face of her child so acts upon her maternal
affections as to cause her to forg;H her weariness, and nerves
her to undergo any hardship for 'ts dear sake. But, at
times, not^^ithstandiug all lior care ihe playful child or the
blooming youth, may be strickevi down by somu disease,
and waste slowly away like a withering flower. At letigth
its frail tabernacle of clay becomes so weakened as to be no
longer able to contain the innnortal spirit that viviHes it,
that spirit departs ; a shrunken, pale corpse alone remains.
Beep is tlie mother's grief as she takes a last lingering look
at her fading darling ; wildly she clings to it until friendly
hands bear her aAvay. AVhen the graveyard is reached, and
the first hollow rattle on the coilin, of clay saluting kindred
clay, resounds, her pent up anguish bursts forth : she now
fully realizes that her child is, indeed, dead, and about to be
hidden from her eyes. In this dark hour of nuiternal woe
is there no softening ray of hope? is there no bright beam
playing gently aroiuid the gloomy recesses of the grave, and
lessening the horror of the charnel vault. Anti-christiau
teaching says no more ; everlasting gloom is all that remains.
Bui sweetly on the ears of the afllicted christian mother fall
the words of Holy Writ : '' For I know that my Kedeemer
liveth, and that on the last day I shall rise again ; and in imj
Jicsli I shall see God my Saviour." Hope lights up the chris-
tian grave ; even as the flower fadeth and dies, and again
springs up to new life, so the human body that moulders in
corruption will one day arise to die no nun-e. This is the
consoling belief of christians ; this the thought -'hich as-
suages the pain of the bereaved mother weeping by the tomb

288

riiiLOSoruY of the bible vindicated.

of her buried chiUlren. Like almost every other truth tlila
one luis had its opiwncnts ; against them it is to be proved,
iu the first phice, tiiat tlie resurrection of tlie dead is possible.
When we say that the dead shall arise we mean ihat each
individual will come forth with all the essential parts, at least,
of the self-same body in which he, or she, quitted this life.
In every body, as in every material being, there are certain
parts which are essential, others which are merely accidental.
It is not necesstfry to determine what, or how many particles
of matter constitute the essential parts of the body ; one thing
is certain, some parts enter essentially into its idea. By death
and the subsecjuent corruption of the body not one single par-
ticle, not one atom is destroyed. The flesh corrupts, the bones
moulder away, but nothing is annihilated : part of the body
escapes as gas, — part mingles with the earth, — part floats in
infinitesimal fractions through the air. The winds of heaven
may waft to other climes the particles of the bodies of our
dead ; the waters of the ocean may cause stray bones to float
to distant shores, there to bleach and slowly waste away ;
but what then? Every atom, whether in the east or the
west, is garnered up in the vast storehouse of nature ; the
constituent elements of these bodies still exist : the same
almighty power that first called them into existence, and
adapted them to form a human body can, if it will, bring
them together again to re-form that same body. Once that
the idea is mastered that nothing perishes by corruption, that
only the component parts of the body are separated, the pos-
sibility of the resurrection of the flesh is evident. A cor-
rupted body is not unlike a watch taken to pieces ; a wheel
lies here, another there ; on this side is the spring, on that the
box. To a rude barbarian it would seem impossible to re-
unite the various parts in such a way as to re-produce the
(ticking tirae-piece he so much admired. Relatively, to many

RESLHIIECTION OF THE BODY.

289

•utli this
proved,
p«)H.siblo.
liat each
, ttt least,
this life,
c certuiu
cidental,
particles
jiie thing
By death
ngle par-
the bones
the body-
floats in
A' heaven
cs of our
»s to float
;e away ;
St or the
lire ; the
he same
lUce, and
ill, bring
)nce that
tiou, that
, the pos-
A cor-
a wheel
1 that the
lie to re-
duce the
to many

It might be impossiblo ; but the maker of it in a few mo-
ments, without one I'alse attempt, re-adjusts the scattered
wheels, puts each in its place, and the ticking once more
is heard. So it will be with the body. Its component parts
will be widely scattered ; many of them will be invisible,
but the creator by one act of his omnipotence will recall them
to their places, aiul cause the soul to re-aninuite them.

It must be borne in mind that no law of nature is abrogat-
ed, suspended, or violated by this. Elements that once com-
bined to forn» a body may surely combine again. All the
elementary forces that acted in the body during life still exist ;
an act of '' \> omnipotent can intensifiy or sublimate them;
thus inten>.iicd they could instantaneously combine and be
adapted to a union with the soul. What was said in the
chapter on miracles may be here (ronsulted.

Against the possibility «)f the resurrection only one objec-
tion of weight is brought, it is this : the particles of matter
are continually under<!;oin": a round of combination and dis-
solution ; parts of plants are assimilated and become parts
of sheep, which in turn are assimilated and become parts of
men. Hence the generations of the past nuiy have fed plants
which fed sheep which our generation eats ; consequently
parts of the bodies of our ancestors may now be parts of us.

How then can each, at the resurrection, resume the part
which was common to many ? This diflficulty, which is the
only one of any importance that can be started, is negative
rather than positive. AVe may freely admit that some of
the accidental parts of Jones become parts of Brown : but
in this there Avould be no difficulty ; in the resurrection Jones
does not require the accidental part, Brown may keep it.
But our ojiponcnts, if they wish to make out a case, must
prove that some essential part of Jones at death, was like-
wise an essential part of Brown at death ; this they can never

200

PHILOSOPHY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED.

do : hence we stand in possession and cannot be disturbed.
No amouiit of ingenuity can prove the resurrection impossible.

The sacred scriptures clearly prove that we shall all rise,
but the philosopher asks, can reason alone prove it? Our
I'eason suggests two strong arguments in its favor. During
life, body and ?oul constitute one individual ; the sictions ex-
ercised are actions of the individual : hence, although the
soul is the principle of life and action, it is the individual
who is said to merit reward, or to deserve punishment.
Therefore it seems iitting that the body should rise to share
in the soul's bliss or misery, so that the individual may be
rewarde<l or punished.

Again, the soul, naturally, has a propensity to a union
with the body ; their separation is violent : but that which
is violent and unnatural can'^ot be of long duration ; there-
fore the separation of soul and body will not be perpetual.
Neither of two things which are naturally adapted to a union,
in order to form one whole, can be perfect when separate ;
therefore in order that nothing mighn j3 wanting to the per-
fect happiness of the soul, the resurrection of the body would
be required.

We love our friends in life and desire frequently to gaze
upon their countenance ; but when the cold touch of death
has chilled their life-blood, and quenched the light of their
eye, wo are soon constrained to bear the stiffened corpse from
our homes, and to consign it to a tomb. Burial in sepulchres
and vaults Avas practised in the early days of our race. It
was a natural consequence of their belief that death was but
a temporary sleep. Just as the loving mother tenderly lays
her sleeping infant in his cot, so did friends lay their loved
dead in the tomb : the first expects an early rising of her
child ; the latter expect it only in the far future. As years
rolled on some uations began to burn the bodies of the dead,

HESUURECTIOX OF THE BODY.

291

iistiirbed.
ipossible.
all rise,
it? Our
During
ction.s cx-
lough the
individual
luishnieut.
e to share
al may be

o a uuioa
that which
oil ; there-
! perpetual,
to a uuiou,
L separate ;
to the per-
lody would

\\y to gaze
Ih of death
;ht of their
;orpse from
sepulchres
Ir race. It
ith was but
[nderly lays
their loved
ling of her
As years
Lf the dead,

and to collect the ashes into urns wliich were often preserved
in the homes of the fiimily. Christianity restored the primi-
tive use of burial undergroimd. In our day some few seek to
revive the practice of cremation, whilst others look upon it
as a flying in the face of the christian belief in the resurrec-
tion. Primitive man, ere yet idolatry had debased hira, the
Jews and the Christians all practised burial underground ;
hence cremation seems peculiarly a pagan custom. As re-
gards the resurrection it makes no ditFerence by what means
a dissolution of the component elements of the body may be
brought about. Cremation does not aimihilate any more
than does corruption ; each is but a process of dissolution ;
the first is quick in in its operation, the last is more slow.
The attemi)ted revival of cremation may be undertaken —
thou^'h of this we are not sure — as a protest against chris-
tian burial. Speaking un<ler correction, we cannot see that
this process of disposing of a corpse is incompatible with
Christianity ; it is, certainly, against its present practice ; but
if it can ever, in future years, be proved that in large cities
burial is highly noxious, and cremation safe, the church
might alter her discipline, and after the funeral service con-
sign the body to the glowing crucible. We think, however,
that ti»erci is ground enough to entomb all generations, and
enough of purifying elements to disinfect the atmosphere.

^r=^^