/f*»? ™ w .* 1 ^k vm LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. I | -cswr ,.Wi |, I ■_£ LAS4 f I UNITED STATES OP AMERICA. I 5**fe • V ^ptrituat 2Montt of tf)e CJ)urtf). With a view of removing every possible objection to the principle of "DIVARICATION," and establishing ONE only true Religion — the Religion of Christ — a course of Demonstrative Lectures will be delivered by the Author, in which will be fully explained the reason for separating the WORD OF GOD from the WORD OF MAN, and proving, to the conviction of the Infidel, the Jew, the Gentile, and the Unitarian, the Divinity of Christ, the Rationality of the Athanasian Creed, and the Truth of the Holy Trinity. Cards for the Twelve Demonstrative Lectures may be obtained on application to any of the Publishers. LP«»0tO«O»O«0«O»O«O»0t0»O»O»O»O»C»0tO»O«O«O»O«O»O«O«O»0tO*OtO»O»Ot0»O»0»O«0#O»0»O»0»0»O»O»0«O«0»Q^ T® jKap pouriHajestp, to&o ranfts preeminent among tfte reigning £>o»ereigns of foe <£artf), for Ijauing efferteti a great POLITICAL UE¥© m tue mr^TE, Itbe to see, unorr pour oenign auspices, a still greater Reform, t&e SPIRITUAL KHIFORSWI ©F THE ©HP^glHl, an& t&uss secure pour eberlasting refoarJj in peahen. C6e Stat&or* Divarication OF THE NEW TESTAMENT ^Diagmm to illusfrale Time and Eternity. . £ K x i the abode [ M OR \the sphere of the FINITE of the / v K i x v \ ru<> Boc1va> in Time, //•> Soul &* *n Eternity Publish ■ b\ T.Wtrtfnutn TUnbertmm /.,■• J ■ 'ON TESTER br (tQCARR. EXPLANATION OF THE DIAGRAM. BODY + SOUL -f CONNEXION = MAN. BODY— in TIME and SPACE, the Sphere of the FINITE. SOUL — out of TIME and SPACE, the Sphere of the INFINITE. TIME. The residence of FlNITE and MATERIAL EXISTENCES — Animals, Vegetables, and Minerals : and the container of all the mutations that take place on Earth, where every thing has a beginning, middle, and end; and depends for its existence on a determined cause — the oak and the acorn. ETERNITY. The abode of INFINITE and SPIRITUAL EXISTENCES — God, the Soul, Angels : and the depositary of every permanent and immutable principle — the Mental Elements and pure Sciences — which are now, and ever will be. TO THE RIGHT HONOURABLE HENRY LORD BROUGHAM AND VAUX, LORD HIGH CHANCELLOR OF ENGLAND, THE PATRON OF USEFUL KNOWLEDGE, THIS DIVARICATION OF THE NEW TESTAMENT, WHICH PROVES, TO THE ENTIRE CONVICTION OP €f)e Bn&Vtl, tf)e $efo, t^e Gentile, an* tfje Unitarian, THE DIVINITY OF CHRIST, THE RATIONALITY OF THE ATHANASIAN CREED, AND THE ABSOLUTE TRUTH OF THE HOLY TRINITY, IS INSCRIBED BY HIS LORDSHIP'S TRULY GRATEFUL AND OBLIGED SERVANT, THE AUTHOR. THE RIGHT HONOURABLE EARL GREY, THE RENOVATOR OF HIS COUNTRY'S LIBERTIES, THIS ATTEMPT TO SIMPLIFY THE CHRISTIAN RELIGION IS ADDRESSED WITH PROFOUND RESPECT, BY THE AUTHOR. DEDICATION TO THE gg>otittv for fftomottng £f)ri£ttan Unofoletrge antr Cljurrf) Litton. Gentlemen — In furtherance of the objects proposed by you — and to their importance no truly good man can be indifferent — / beg respectfully to cast my mite into your treasury of Christian infor- mation, by proving, on the solid basis of Reason, the undeniable fact of the "Divinity of Christ," from the evidence of the Doctrine he promulgated to the world, the absolute purity and perfect sublimity of which show at once that it could not be earth- born, but must have descended from Heaven. This desideratum once accomplished, " Church Union " follows of course ; for, where the Doctrine is universal, the community who adopt it cannot fail to be unanimous. Euclid affords us a proof of the force of doctrine, which can never be refuted, because it is established on the solid basis of Reason alone, totally excluding all sensible phenomena. Let this line of conduct be followed in " Religion ;" it is in fact the only rational one, for here we have only to do with spirits: God is a spirit, the soul is a spirit — and the subordination of the will of Man to the will of God constitutes Morality and Religion, which, as Christ says, can exist only in the heart. When this spiritual communion is so thoroughly understood that the (e Code of Laws " established by Christ is not only separated XVI DEDICATION. from the historical facts, through which it was given to the world, but assumes the strict and positive form of the "Sacred Science," then, and then only, will there be a union in the Church, never again to be dissolved; and the divine precepts of Christ will be as easy to be taught and as imperative as the axioms of Geometry. Then, indeed, shall we be enabled to exult in the fulfilment of the Prophecy — that "the Gospel shall be preached to all the nations of the earth." Shoidd this attempt merit your patronage and receive your able assistance, this glorious object may soo?i be attained. That this happy result may follow our united exertions is the pious wish of one who is devoted to truth, and has the honour to subscribe himself Your fellow-labourer in the vineyard, THOMAS WIRGMAN. CONTENTS. PAGE &po$tn»p*)* to fyt Bins — tije ^taO at tfje Cijurd) . . iii Diagram of the TRINITY — Body, Soul, and Connexion v Explanation of the Diagram to illustrate TIME and ETERNITY . . ix Inscription to the Eight Honourable the Lord Chancellor xi Address to the Right Honourable Earl Grey xiii Dedication to the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge . . . . xv Division of the "Holy Scriptures" authorised 19 Extinction of all religious sects 27 Self-examination productive of Christianity 33 CANON for deciding on DOCTRINE and HISTORY . . . . ib. Argument forthe Divarication 34 REASON is susceptible of both praise and blame 36 The precepts of Christ constitute the "Science of Morals" .... 38 Sublime view of our ultimate destination 39 PRACTICAL REASON and SPECULATIVE REASON explained 40 Conviction and Belief explained 41 Virtue is the moral strength of man in fulfilling his duty 43 Man is the Scope of Creation 44 TIME and ETERNITY explained ib. Reason and Revelation in perfect harmony 45 The "Christian Religion" established for all rational beings . . . . ib. Description of the Diagram 46 Spirit and Matter explained 47 TRINITY IN UNITY, or Body, Soul, and Connexion .... 49 Supremacy of REASON over SENSE 52 Sensation is only possible in Extension aud Succession 53 TIME and SPACE are laws of the "Sensitive Faculty" . . . . 54 Recounted Sensation is the " Word of Man " ib. Communicated Principle is the "Word of Gon" 56 The " Religion of Christ " is the victory of the good principle over the bad . 57 The Soul is spirit, its law is REASON . ib. The Body is matter, its law is SENSE ib. The motives of man are of a Spiritual nature 58 The actions of man are of a Material nature ib. Heavenly goodness — the purity of the motive — good in itself . . . . 59 Earthly goodness — the utility of the action — good for something else . . ib. Virtue can only be satisfied wit'k goodness 60 Inclination can ouly be satisfied by gratification ib. A 2 CONTENTS. PAGZ The " Moral Law" shows man what he ought to do 60 The distinction between good and evil explained ib. Obedience to the "Moral Law" is an affair of man with his Maker . . . 61 Christ's Moral Law explained ib. Conscience is the Spirit of Truth ib. SENSE is a passive faculty, which receives impressions 62 REASON is an active faculty, which generates syllogisms . . . . 63 Consciousness explained 64 Moral Certainty is produced by REASON ib. Physical Certainty is produced by SENSE ib. The Laws of Nature are TIME and SPACE 65 HISTORY is the ground of disagreement . . 67 DOCTRINE is the ground of unanimity ib. Proof of History — possibility and probability . . . . . . .68 Proof of Doctrine — Conviction ib. The "Revelation" of Jesus Christ proved divine .69 Proof of the Divinity of the " New Testament" 70 The Soul is an inhabitant of ETERNITY ib. The Body resides in TIME 71 Existences in ETERNITY are permauent, universal, and necessary . . ib. Existences in TIME are changeable, particular, and contingent . . . . ib. The "Revelation" not ouly true but divine 72 All other " Religions " proved to be spurious . ib. On the "HOLY TRINITY" . 73 The "Divine Mind" consists of a Triune Essence 74 To think is impossible without a triad ib. Mind -f- Object + Thought = Thing 75 God = Creator + Creation -f- Connexion . . . . . . .76 The idea of God involves three elementary notions 77 The mystery of the "HOLY TRINITY" explained 78 The word Coeval explained ib. Matter -4- Form + Connexion = Thing . 79 Man = Body -{-Soul -4- Connexion . 80 Some account of Stonehenge 81 Principle of Causality in REASON, permanent — in SENSE, changeable . 83 Cause, Effect, Relation, or oJtoj, stejoj, 1$6 Atheism proved to be impossible ib. God of the Hindoos a Trinity in Unity ib. Trinity in Unity proved both in the Old and New Testament . ... 12? The Divine Essence consists of only three persons 128 A Trinity in Unity pervades all Rational Nature 130 The Triune Principle constitutes the essence of the Mind .... ib. SENSE, UNDERSTANDING, REASON, the three original Faculties of the Miud ib. Theories neither alter Principles nor Facts 131 Copernicus destined to correct erroneous theories ib. The "Sacred Volume" contains both the WORD OF GOD and the WORD OF MAN 132 Sensation can exist only in Sentient Heings 133 Material objects are devoid of Sensation ib. TIME and SPACE are laws of the Mind 134 All Nature is subjected to the laws of TIME and SPACE . . . . 135 River and Pond to illustrate the Triune Principle ///. The five senses are the inlets of Knowledge L86 TIME and SPACE defined as the depositories of sensation .... 137 TIME is the law of Internal Objects I Mil SPACE is the law of External Objects ib. A 2 4 CONTEXTS. PAGE Every object present to SENSE is Intuition 139 UNDERSTANDING is the power of forming Conceptions . . . . 140 The matter of Knowledge is sensation &■ All uniting takes place under the Triune Principle ib. Every thought, word, or deed, involves a Trinity in Unity .... 141 Quantity, Quality, Relation, explained 142 Cause of sensation, Noumenon — Effect, Phenomenon 143 The constitutive use of UNDERSTANDING generates objects . . ib. The regulative use of UNDERSTANDING classifies objects . . .144 UNDERSTANDING, with its 12 Categories, explained . . . . 145 Unity involves the Triune Principle 146 A mathematical Cube explained 147 Every Object absent from SENSE is Conception 148 Conception defined as a produce of UNDERSTANDING . . . ib. Intuition joined to Conception constitutes Knowledge 149 Transcendental Philosophy the only true Philosophy of Mind . . . 150 God cannot make Nature without Man ib. REASON the originator of Syllogisms 151 HOLY TRINITY exists in all its purity in the Kingdom of Spirits . . ib. Nature is constituted by SENSE and UNDERSTANDING . . . ib. PRACTICAL REASON originates the "Moral Law" . . . .152 SPECULATIVE REASON generates the lazes of Nature .... ib. UNDERSTANDING has twelve laws — the Categories .... 153 REASON is the key to the whole Christian Doctrine 154 The immortality of the soul proved ib. Divine Revelation points out the only road to Salvation ib. A First Cause explained 155 Deism rejects Revelation . . - 156 Theism establishes the Divine Revelation of Jesus Christ .... 157 REASON and Revelation in perfect harmony ... .... 158 God the Creator, Preserver, and Ruler of the Physical and Moral world . . 159 The "Sacred Science of Religion" founded in REASON . . . . ib. Every spiritual Object is an IDEA 161 REASON, by its six laws, constructs the Spiritual World . . . . ib. Spirits proved to exist 162 Man, as a being of SENSE, is Mortal 163 Man, as a being of REASON, is Immortal ib. SENSE furnishes laws for the Body 164 REASON generates laws for the Soul ib. The laws of SENSE are Finite 166 The laws of REASON are Infinite ib. Knowledge is produced by SENSE 167 Belief originates in REASON ib. Rational Belief surpasses all Knowledge ib. Faith is Belief in things unseen ib. Mathematical figures are secured by Belief 168 The Laws of Morality are generated by PRACTICAL REASON . . 169 The Laws of Nature are generated by SPECULATIVE REASON . . ib. Laws originate in Mind, not in Matter ib. Goodness is designedly to follow the Moral Law 170 Wickedness is designedly to break the Moral Law ib. Motives originate in spirit — the Soul ib. Actions arise from matter — the Body ib. The Moral Law revealed to us by Jesus Christ . .... 171 CONTENTS. 5 PAGE Sacred Axioms explained 172 The Sacred Volume is the WORD OF GOD ib. The Historic page is the WORD OF MAN 173 HISTORY and DOCTRINE are incongruous ib. Principle springs from REASON 175 Facts are grounded in SENSE . . . . ib. SENSE constitutes material nature . 176 REASON constitutes spiritual nature ib. The Triune Principle is coeval with the Human Mind 177 ' Geometrical figures reside in ETERNITY 178 Material figures reside in TIME . ib. Resurrection explained ib. The Human Mind consists of Twenty elements 180 SENSE . . . . makes Intuitions 183 UNDERSTANDING makes Conceptions ib. REASON . . makes Ideas . ib. The right use of REASON explained 184 The Divinity of the Christian Religion proved 185 The Christian Religion the only one for all Rational Beings .... ib. REASON is legislative in the Kingdom of God ib. Conscience pronounces sentence on the mau of SENSE .... ib. God the Knower of Hearts 186 The Duty of Man to have Religion ib. The existence of God, the immortality of the Soul, and the Freedom of the Will, proved ib. The Triune Principle forms the foundation of all thinking .... 187 In Judging do not take appearance for truth ib. Judging requires subject, predicate, copula 188 Subject in a judgment is INTUITION 189 Predicate in a judgment is CONCEPTION ib. Copula is the connexion or subsumpting intuition under conception . . . 190 A Stone Wall is only a mental representation — INTUITION . . . 192 CONCEPTION is the form of all Knowledge ib. The hinderance to all enlightenment exposed 193 Logic is the author of an inveterate prejudice ib. REASON will ultimately overcome every prejudice 194 Rivers, Trees, Oceans, &c. are only INTUITIONS ib. Knowledge is wholly in the Mind ib. INTUITION is the matter of Knowledge 195 CONCEPTION is the form of Knowledge ib. Extension and Succession are iheforms of INTUITION 196 Constitutive and Regulative use of UNDERSTANDING . . . .198 Aristotle's Judgment proved 200 The twelve Categories are iheforms of CONCEPTION 201 UNDERSTANDING consists of twelve laws — Categories . . . 202 The Categories produce twelve Judgments ib. The Logical illusion of misi aking things for thoughts explained . . . . 203 Logic employed its own phraseology . 204 TRANSCENDENTAL PHILOSOPHY will have its technics . . ib. Almanacs err in saying the sun rises ib. Two distinct languages, that of Science and that of the World . . . . 205 The Mind constructs all the objects of Nature ib. The Soul is an immaterial spirit m ETERNITY 20? Nature is generated by the Categories 908 a 5 6 CONTENTS. PAGE Ideas of REASON arise from the Categories 210 Material 'World generated by SENSE 211 Spiritual World generated by REASON ib. The Word of God is communicated through SENSE 212 The "Word of Man is communicated through REASON .... ib. Logic arranges the objects of Nature 213 Transcendental Philosophy constructs Nature ...... ib. Only three unities — INTUITION, CONCEPTION, IDEA . . . 214 Immediate Judgments consist of Subject, Predicate, Copula .... 215 Mediate Judgments consist of Subject, Predicate, Middleterm . . . 216 Man is endowed with REASON — is free ib. Animal is governed by INSTINCT — is constrained to. The Jew, the Gentile, and the Infidel, made Christians . . . . 217 Copernicus corrected an inveterate prejudice ib. Every rational being made a devout Christian ib. Judgments of SENSE are instinctive 218 Judgments of REASON are deliberative ib. Syllogism consists of INTUITION, CONCEPTION, IDEA . . . 219 All Judging is grounded on the Triune Principle 220 Syllogism analyzed 221 Syllogism proved to be merely an equation 222 Logic simplified — Barbara, Celerent, Darii, exploded 223 A single thought is impossible — it must be a triad 224 Judgments of REASON produce Conviction 225 Judgments of SENSE produce Demonstration ib. God is a compound of Triads ib. The distinction between INSTINCT and REASON settled . . .226 Matter moves, Spirit thinks ib. Motion defined ib. Thinking implies Choice 227 Motion requires Compulsion ib. Matter is governed by INSTINCT 228 Mind is governed by REASON ib. The virtuous are devoted to REASON 229 The vicious are devoted to SENSE ib. Speculation explained ib. Pure Science is pure principle 230 Empirical Science is matter of fact ib. Matter and M ind exemplified — in a pair of dice ib. To fulfil the Gospel, REASON is required 231 Man has a soul to be saved, animal not 232 The nail never reasons with the hammer 233' The distinction between right and wrong explained ib. Virtue is the victory of REASON over SENSE 234 Vice is the ascendancy of SENSE over REASON ib. The freedom of the Will proved ib. Matter is impelled — moves 235 Spirit acts spontaneously — thinks ib. Matter displays the laws of INSTINCT ib. Spirit originates the laws of REASON ib. SENSE generates the laws of Material Nature to. REASON originates the laws of Moral Nature ib. The barrier between spirit and matter displayed 236 Providence adjusts the difference between contending INSTINCTS . . 237 CONTENTS. 7 PAGE Life is animated matter, Death is inanimated matter 237 No animal judges but Man 238 The Science of Mind determines between REASON and INSTINCT . ib. Matter obeys the law of INSTINCT 239 Mind obeys the law of REASON ib. Equity proved to be the law of equilibrium 240 Equity exemplified by the tale of the tubs ib. Man is conscious of his INSTINCT — Animal is not 241 Man is an accountable being — Animal is not ib. INSTINCT assumes the appearance of choice — the swan .... 242 INSTINCT obeys the law of impulse — the dog ib. Mind acts on Mind, Matter acts on Matter 243 INSTINCT exemplified in the bee ib. The objects of INSTINCT are palpable to SENSE 244 The objects of REASON are invisible to SENSE ib. REASON originates the laws of Freedom ib. INSTINCT obeys the laws of Necessity ib. The Elephant has not REASON but INSTINCT 245 INSTINCT exemplified in feats of horsemanship 246 Centrifugal and centripetal forces are laws of matter 247 TIME is the law of matter — change ib. ETERNITY is the law of spirit — permanence ib. INSTINCT exemplified by Chemical affinity 248 INSTINCT displayed in the Vegetable Kingdom 249 INSTINCT traced in the caterpillar 250 Volcanoes the effect of INSTINCT in matter 251 Physical Anatomy proves the law of INSTINCT ib. Mental Anatomy establishes the law of REASON ib. The essence of thinking is Consciousness ib. The nerves act instinctively in conveying sensation 252 The difference between Mental and Material things explained . . . 253 The eye is generated and governed by INSTINCT ib. Spirit thinks, Matter moves 254 The Stomach governed by INSTINCT . ib. INSTINCT proves the existence of God 255 REASON is the law of Spirit— INSTINCT is the law of Matter . . 256 The line between REASON and INSTINCT settled ib. Matter exists in TIME, Spirit exists in ETERNITY .... ib. Thought evinced by Syllogism 257 Matter proved by Motion ib. The pure Sciences are in ETERNITY ib. The sensible World is in TIME ib. The Infinite Spirit is the Creator of Matter ib. The Finite Spirit is the Regulator of Matter ib. Animal is animated matter — moves ib. Man is rational matter — thinks ib. The Planetary System does not think, but moves 258 Colloquy between Mercury and Venus 259 Elliptical orbits of the Planets 260 Matter exists in three states, solid, fluid, aeriform ib. Mind has three unities — INTUITION, CONCEPTION, IDEA . . 261 INTUITION forms the solid state of matter ib. CONCEPTION forms the fluid state of matter 262 IDEA forms the aeriform state of matter ib. 8 CONTENTS. PAGE Christ's illustration of spirit 262 Without REASON we should have no IDEA of God, the Soul, the Moral Law 263 REASON makes man an accountable being ib. INSTINCT is the law of God — therefore, necessary ib. God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Ghost, explained . . . . 264 God the Father is the Creator of all worlds . . . . . . . ib. God the Son is the Revealer of the Father's will . . " . . . ib. God the Holy Ghost is the Regulator of Moral actions ib. The Revelation of Jesus Christ made to the REASON of man . . . 265 Man is the Scope of Creation ib. Severe trials are favourable to virtue 266 Earthly Happiness does not beuefit the Soul ib. REASON commands us to be strictly virtuous 267 Right and Wrong explained ib. SENSE generates self-love, which leads to Happiness 268 REASON generates morality, which leads to Virtue 269 Antagonism between Virtue and Happiness proved 270 The Highest Good consists in Virtue being the cause of Happiness . . 272 Virtue is an infinite end of man in ETERNITY 273 Happiness is a finite end of man in TIME ib. REASON generates Free Will 274 SENSE produces Necessity ib. Mathematical figures are mental, and exist in ETERNITY 275 Mathematical symbols are sensible, and exist in TIME ib. PRACTICAL REASON is Free Will 277 Scriptural authority for the "Divarication" ib. To differ about a principle is impossible ...*.... 278 To agree about a fact is impossible ib. The Religion of Christ is the only true one ib. Words are signs of ideas, and only types of principle 279 Difference of opinion with regard to the Divarication 280 Facts cannot be guides for our moral conduct ib. The divinity of the New Testament proved 281 The WORD OF GOD alone can satisfy REASON ib. The doubts of the Infidel annihilated ib. Infidels must become sincere Christians 282 Bigots take the Scripture on faith ib. Authority cannot blind REASON . . ib. When Christ taught there were no Gospels 283 Superstition extinguishes enlightenment ib. The Bigot betrays moral cowardice ib. The Infidel displays moral courage < . . . ib. The True Believer acts from Conviction 284 St. Paul's is Scientific Faith ib. The Finite Mind is only possible through the Infinite Mind . . *. 285 Proof of the Triune Principle ib. The universal or Catholic Faith explained 286 The Belief in God proved to Conviction 287 The New Testament cannot be too amply displayed ib. Divarication is the key to the Sacred Truths 288 The apparent mystery in the Testament explained ib. He who is angry with his brother tvithout a cause is icrong 289 The meaning of the words Raca, Judgment, Hell, doubtful .... ib. CONTENTS. 9 PAGE Did Christ teach in Greek or Hebrew ? 290 A New Translation of the first verse of St. John, making Xoyog REASON . ib. A scientific proof of the truth of the Divine Revelation .... 291 The WORD OF GOD is pure spirit, and regards our Eternal Welfare . 292 The "WORD OF MAN is matter, and concerns our Temporal Welfare . ib. Neither DOCTRINE nor HISTORY can be dispensed with . . . 293 DOCTRINE is susceptible of Conviction, HISTORY is not . . ib. Science of Pure Morality revealed by Jesus ib. REASON leads directly to Christianity 294 The Supreme Reason is God, and revealed by Jesus Christ . . . . ib. Testimonials in favour of the Divarication 295 Critical strictures beneficial to the cause of truth 296 Morality and Religion erected into a Sacred Science .... 297 Faith is stronger than Knowledge ib. The Existence of God is the first Axiom in the Sacred Science . . . ib. The Immortality of the Soul is the second Axiom in the Sacred Science . . 298 A Future State is the third Axiom in the Sacred Science .... ib. Divarication must produce perfect unanimity among men ib. The Divine Mind cannot reveal itself to matttr 299 Superstition is the bane of Society ib. Dogmas are founded on HISTORY 300 The difference between the type and the essence explained ib. The Divine Decrees will be ratified in ETERNITY . . . .301 Superstition often mistaken for Religion ib. The Worship of the Mexicans 302 The Heathens addicted to Human Sacrifices 303 Religious exhibitions in the Temples of Mexico — Too-Calli .... ib. The prodigious effusion of blood for the name of Jesus 304 Religion cannot be founded on a Dogma 305 Worshipping material substances is Idolatry ib. Paganism and Catholicism compared 306 Purification and Redemption elaborated ib. Infidelity, Bigotry, and Fanaticism, cured by REASON . . . .307 The Elements of the Mind are now discovered ib. The CRITIC OF PURE REASON contains the Science of Mind . ib. Divarication founded on the Science of Mind 308 Christ reproves Hypocrites 309 The Providence of God exemplified it). The Science of Mind alone secures the WORD OF GOD . . .310 Key to understand the Scripture ib. Superstition is the deification of matter ib. Religion is the deification of mind 311 Christ walked with the law before him ib. The Holy Ghost — the spirit of truth — is Conscience ib. The only true Worship is a Trinity in Unity in the Godhead . . . ib. To Worship the Body and Blood of Christ is gross Idolatry . . . . 312 Christ is the Xoj/oj, the word, and constitutes a part of God .... ib. Only ONE God consisting of three persons ib. The Bible is the Christian's treasury 313 Principle of divarication into DOCTRINE and HISTORY . . . ib. REASON generates pure precept, that is, unanimity ib. SENSE produces discordant opinion, that is, disagreement . . . . ib. Wrangling and strife about Religion for ever quelled ib. The Science of Religion produces perfect unanimity among men . . ib. 10 CONTENTS. PAGE The Kingdom of Heaven is -within you 314 No Religion but that of Christ ib. All deviation from Divine Revelation is Superstition .... ib. A New and Eternal Gospel is foretold in the Scripture . . . . ib. Superstition denounced by Jesus Christ 315 Sin against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven ib. Conscience is in our own keeping ib. Religion is not founded on a Dooma but on REASON -. ... ib. REASON is a faculty which acts of itself — Spontaneity .... 316 SENSE must be acted upon — Receptivity ....... 31? Whatever acts of itself must be Spirit — thinks ib. Whatever is acted upon is Matter — moves ib. Autonomy of the Will generates Morality . 318 Heteronomy of the Will generates Superstition ...... ib. Man imposes the Moral Law on himself 319 The virtuous Man "realises the mode in which Reason acts" . . . . ib. Conscience is an internal judge who watches our actions .... 320 Free Will determines itself to action ib. Virtuous actions are performed for the sake of the law — disinterested . . ib. Vicious actions promote some other end, and are — interested . ... ib. Wealth and Power can never satisfy man ib. Ground of the never-ceasing inquiry — cut bono? 321 SENSE is the ground of experience — HISTORY .... ib. REASON is the ground of morality — DOCTRINE .... ib. Critic of Practical Reason contains the Science of Morals . . . ib. " Thou shalt not lie" is amoral Commandment 322 Belief is the measure of ignorance, Conviction the standard of truth . . ib. Every Effect must have a Cause — an axiom of our Thinking Faculty . . 323 Scientific Faith confirms the Divine Revelation ib. The Bible is a book made by hands — material ib. The Science of Morals is wholly in the mind — spiritual .... ib. Science can exist only in a Mind, not in a Booh ib. Christ employed no book to teach Morality 324 The Parable of the sower explained . ib. Whoever worships the Book sins against the Holy Ghost .... 325 Who by searching shall find out God? — every sincere inquirer . . . . ib. Consciousness decides in material things 326 Conscience decides in spiritual things ib. The WORD OF MAN is the action of matter upon matter . . . ib. The WORD OF GOD is the affair of spirit with spirit ib. Sound is a sensation produced on the nerves of the ear ib. Ring the bell under the exhausted receiver — then define sound . . . . ib. Sound produces the most delightful feelings 327 Christ used Parables, being known to all his hearers ib. Written Books might be mistaken . ib. Mathematical figures cannot be made of matter ib. Fatal error to mistake the type for the essence ib. The Quakers' notion of silent prayer 328 Worship is an act of the soul with its Maker ib. The communion of spirit with spirit is the essence of prayer . . . . 329 Want of sincerity detected by the Knower of Hearts 330 The Author's motives will be impugned ib. Christ says: — Judge not, that ye be not judged ... . . . ib. First cast the beam out of thine own eye 331 CONTENTS. 1 1 PAGE The Author warned not to Divaricate the Scripture 331 Whoever makes innovations must bear abuse ib, Time discovers truth, and posterity does justice . . , . . 332 Science crushes Superstition ib. Extraordinary zeal for the Scripture is now evinced . . . . . ib. Superstition is founded on the WORD OF MAN 333 Religion is founded on the "WORD OF GOD ib. Moral Philosophy establishes the Religion of the heart . . . . ib. Every Human Mind is a Temple of Religion . ... . . . ib. Buchanan's account of Pagan Idolatry ib, Remusat's history of the Buddhist's Superstition ib. Milton's apostrophe to Philosophy and Religion ib. Superstition is a gross error in judgment 335 Divine Revelation shall be embraced by the Savage . . . . ib. PRACTICAL REASON gives the true KaQoKiKog to Religion . . 336 SENSE informs us of the Human Nature of Christ .... ib. REASON proves the Divine Nature of Christ ib. HISTORY must be tried by possibility and probability . . . . . ib. DOCTRINE is universally proved by Conviction . . . . ib. Niebuhr proves early History to be fabulous . ib. Infidels exceed the Jews in their hatred to Christ 337 No good results from denying the existence of Christ ib. Geometry would not suffer from denying Euclid ib. The Morality in the New Testament confirmed by REASON . ... 338 The Narrations in the New Testament come through SENSE . . . ib. The birth, ministry, and crucifixion, of Jesus Christ authenticated . . . ib. Who will deny that Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea? . . . ib. The power of life and death wrested from the Sanhedrim . . . . 339 Did Caesar reign or did he not ? ...... ib. HISTORY is a record of events in TIME ib. DOCTRINE is a development of principles in ETERNITY . . ib. Divarication proves the discordance between HISTORY and DOCTRINE ib. The proof of DOCTRINE is the universal assent of mankind . . . 340 The proof of HISTORY is. the contingent belief of mankind . . . ib. The Diagram shows a trinity in light — blue, red, yellow ib. Newton demonstrates the Trinity in Unity in light .... 341 Every apparent oneness is a Trinity in Unity 342 Trinity in Unity constitutes the essence of God ..... 343 Religion is awakened by SENSE and confirmed by REASON . . ib. A medal worn by the disciples of Jesus Christ ib. Dr. Walsh's account of the discovery of this medal . . ... 344 Fae-simile of the medal presented by the Rev. Dr. Walsh .... 346 Explai ation of the Hebrew inscriptions on the medal . ... ib. The history of the medal confirmed by Lentulus 348 Publius I.entulus's letter to the Roman Senate 349 That Christians exist at present is quite certain ..... 350 The early period of Christianity proved by the persecutions . . . ib, Nero, Domitian, and others, persecuted the Christians .... 351 Christianity established by Constantine the Great, 306 A. D. . . . ib. Council at Nice in Natolia held 325 A. D. ib. Athanasian Creed voted canonical ib. The Four Gospels selected which compose the New Testament . . . ib, Primitive Christianity corrupted for worldly purposes .... 352 Divarication restores Christianity to its primitive purity . . . ib. 12 CONTENTS. PAGE Christianity established for ever by REASON 352 Infidels attempt to repudiate Christianity 353 Providence defeats these attempts by making them promote Christianity . ib. Christ is Perfect God and Perfect Man ib. WORD OF GOD — the Xoyos — is divine— proved by REASON . . ib. WORD OF MAN-s«safi'w — is human — proved by SENSE . . ib. Holy Ghost is the spirit of truth — Conscience 354 Humanity is imperfection — Divinity is perfection . . . . . ib. Christ disputed with the Doctors when twelve years old 355 Infidels prove the humanity of Christ , . ib. Christ's ministry commenced when he puzzled the Doctors . ... 356 Infidels are the true supporters of Christianity ib. Bigots convert Religion into Superstition ib. Infidels are in fact the only true Christians ib. Bigots build their Religion on an absurdity 357 Spirit can only inhabit ETERNITY . ib. Matter must exist in TIME ib. Bigots are in error when they consider themselves the only true Believers . ib. Divarication exposes this sophistry 358 When REASON ceases to act the " Moral Law" will cease to command . ib. Jesus Christ overthrew the tables of the Money Changers . ... ib. The Infidels say spirit cannot move matter ib. Infidels impeach the morality of Christ 359 Infidels prove the humanity of Christ ib. Bigots want the moral courage to examine their own Dogma 360 Divarication will rouse both Temporal and Spiritual rulers . . . ib. Divarication purifies all Religions 361 The Star Chamber would persecute the Divarication ib. The Author visited with a severe indisposition ib. The Author is summoned to give an account of his deeds ib. Is this Divarication calculated to do good or harm? . 362 The Infidel says it is immoral in Christ to take the ass and foal . . 363 The Infidel charges Christ with irreverent language . . ' , . ib. Christ declares himself to be a man ib. The humanity of Jesus Christ established ib. The humanity of Christ proved by the words, Eli! Eli! lama sabachthani! . 364 Infidelity turned against itself ib. The Infidels have proved that Christ is perfect. Man 365 This statement verified. by the Saviour himself ib. The Rational investigator of Holy Writ is the Primitive Christian . . ib. REASON is not to be shaken by Fanaticism ib. Bigotry deters honest minds from investigation 366 The worldly acts of the Saviour afford no rule of conduct . . ... ib: Religious controversy shall for ever cease 367 Christ taught One Universal Religion ib. The Man Christ was the true Messiah ib. Christ's Atonement leads to the Throne of Mercy ib. Christ proves his Divine Nature in saying / and my Father are ONE . ib. Christ begotten before all worlds 368 There are not Three Gods but only ONE God ib. Christ taught the DOCTRINE of the Trinity in Unity . . . 369 The soul is at present a member of ETERNITY ib. The principle of Causality proves a Trinity in Unity 370 Christ says, The DOCTRINE is from my Father — hence he is the Son . ib. CONTENTS. 13 PAGE He is no Father who never had a Child 370 There can be no Effect without a Cause ib. What we term things are merely thoughts ib. Principles are simple and immutable — in Eternity 371 Things are composed and changeable — in Time ib. Divinity lasts for ever ib. Humanity is subject to decay ib. SENSE, or Instinct, guides the Elephant and the Ass 372 REASON, or Freedom, guides Man ib. Christ is only divine when he identifies himself with his DOCTRINE . . ib. Christ's body consisted of matter like that of other men . . . ib. Christ's divinity is in his Morality , 373 Christ the only begotten Son of God ib. The miraculous conception of the Virgin Mary explained ib. To doubt the inspiration of the Scriptures is impossible .... 374 Inspiration is "the true light that enlightens every man that cometh into the world" ib. PRACTICAL REASON is the touchstone to try inspiration . . ib- The divine laws of Jesus Christ lead man to his Maker 375 The Holy Ghost is the spirit of truth awakened by Christ .... ib. Christ's DOCTRINE is the way to the Kingdom of Heaven . . . ib. Christ's DOCTRINE comes from God and is divine . . . .376 Christ is an example of fulfilling the Moral Law ib. Science of Mind proves the truth of Christ's Doctrine to absolute Conviction 377 The chosen people of God may look in vain for another Messiah . . . ib. Divarication separates precepts fiomfads — DOCTRINE from HISTORY ib. Jew, Hindoo, Mahomedan, and Pagan, must all be true Christians . . . ib. Man arrives at the moral law through REASON 378 Animal cannot be moral — it acts through SENSE ib. The WORD OP GOD not known till preached by Christ .... t&. PRACTICAL REASON forms no part of Nature — is free . • . ib. SPECULATIVE REASON refers wholly to Nature — is constrained . ib. Can the planets quit their course or the waters run upwards ? . . . ib. To be Reasonable is to be good, to be virtuous 379 The Moral Law is the law of God . . 380 Autonomy of the Will is the principle of the Moral Law . . . . fft. Heteronomy of the Will opposes Morality ib. Man is at present a member of the Kingdom of God ib. The destruction of vice by the triumph of virtue ib. REASON is the author of its own laws 381 Christians have split into Sects to destroy Christianity .... ib. Divine Revelation completely defined ib. Geometry is a pure mental Science 382 A mathematical line is not evident to SENSE ib, REASON originates Syllogisms 383 SENSE produces Sensations ib. The Religion of Jesus Christ is a divine Revelation 384 The Divinity of Christ proved to conviction ib. Morality prior to Christ was imperfect 385 The precepts of Jesus are convincing to the illiterate ib. Christ has awakened us from the dead, and called us to everlasting life . . ib. God is everlasting love ib. Christ says : — Love one another as I have loved you 386 God gave his only begotten Son to save the world ib. 14 CONTENTS. PAGE God's Commandments revealed by Jesus and confirmed by REASON . 387 Christ taught by parables — not by Books ib. Science of Religion is susceptible of absolute proof ib. Science of Religion is the Science of Spirit 388 PRACTICAL REASON originates Religion ib. Man is to obtain perfect bliss in the world to come 389 The cultivation of Intellect must extinguish All Sects ib. ONE only true Religion — the Religion of Christ ib. SCIENCE OF MIND dispels all Religious doubts ib. The demands of the Infidel merit complete answers ib. Divarication satisfies every scruple of the Infidel 390 Infidels are forced to acknowledge Christianity ib. Bigots take the letter for the spirit of the Holy Book 391 No religious action can be performed on earth ib. Religion consists wholly in the motive ib. Sacred Science is founded on Axioms, Definitions, and Principles . ... 392 Man the master of his own virtue ib. In the Sacred Science there is no belief — every thing is proved . . . . 393 Catechisms, Beliefs, and Formularies, only tax the memory .... ib. Axioms, Definitions, and Principles, exercise the judgment . . . . ib. Virtue and Vice defined ib. Actions affect SENSE; Motives arise from REASON ib. Man dare not presume to judge his fellow-man ....... 394 REASON commands us to effect our own Perfection and the Happiness of others ib. All Religions lead to Morality . . . ib. Bigotry and Infidelity totally annihilated 395 Primitive Christianity established for ever ib. Christianity is Rationality ib. St. Paul expounds the DOCTRINE of Christ ib. REASON crucifies the affections of SENSE 396 Science of Mind establishes the Gospel 397 Annul REASON and the Moral Law is extinct ib. Annul SENSE and the sinful lusts are extinct 398 Philosophy of Mind establishes the truth of the Bible ib. Christ's precepts are absolutely secured by the Science of Mind . . . ib. Religion ONE and universal all over the world 399 ONE eternal bond of union on all points of Religion ib. Science of Mind is called TRANSCENDENTAL PHILOSOPHY 400 Pure principles of REASON constitute the WORD OF GOD . . ib. Related facts to SENSE constitute the WORD OF MAN . . .401 Herod the tetrarch put John the Baptist in prison ib. The daughter of Herodias asks for John Baptist's head 402. The Holy Book is disfigured by inhuman recitals ib. Divarication proves the Divinity of Christ 403 Divarication proves the Rationality of the Athanasian Creed . . . . ib. Divarication proves the truth of the Holy Trinity ib. Critics say the Work is intended to deceive ib. Critics doubt the honesty of the Author's intentions ib. Critics say the work destroys Christianity ib. Critics say this is a blasphemous book ib. To these charges the Author stands acquitted in his own Conscience . . . ib. RATIONALITY IS CHRISTIANITY 404 Critics sometimes employed as Book Makers ib. CONTENTS. 15 PAGE The Author solicits an interview with the doubter 404 How did Humanity use the Son of God ! . . ib. Christ breaks the laws of Moses 405 Pontius Pilate compassionated Jesus Christ ib. The Messiah deemed a false prophet ib. HISTORY affords instances of monstrous atrocities . ... 406 DOCTRINE points out the road to virtue ib. WORD OF GOD is spiritual — arises from REASON . . .\. . . ib. WORD OF MAN is material — produced by SENSE . / . ib. HISTORY must be a faithful record of facts or it is a Fiction . . . ib. DOCTRINE is a pure development of precepts, and leads to Virtue . . 407 A Grand Inquisitor proceeds against one hundred thousand heretics . . . ib. Six thousand heretics condemned to the flames ib. Tormenting the flesh does not enforce Christianity . . . . . . ib. God was the first Grand Inquisitor 408 Adam and Eve were the first heretics ib. Jesus Christ was an Inquisitor ib. DIVINE REVELATION grounded in REASON ib. Jesus Christ crucified for speaking the truth 409 Christ sympathizes with Mary on the death of Lazarus ib. " Jesus wept " ib. Jesus betrayed by one of his disciples with a kiss 410 Christ says to his Father — " Not my will, but thine, be done" . . . . ib. The Lord's Prayer and the Crucifixion ib. Christian Dispensation proved from internal evidence 411 All efforts to establish the DOCTRINE of Christ from the Book itself abortive ib. HISTORY is the ground of endless dispute 412 DOCTRINE is the ground of absolute unanimity , ib. The date of the birth of Christ is uncertain 413 Chronologists are at variance on this fact of HISTORY ib. Miracles are addressed to SENSE ib. Our Saviour's transfiguration ib. Miracles confirm the laws of Nature 414 Miracles fill up TIME and occupy SPACE ib. The Bible confirms the laws of Nature . 415 God does not make laws to break them ib. All the facts of HISTORY can never make a principle ib. DOCTRINE neither occupies TIME nor SPACE ib. God's laws are immutable 416 Christ's DOCTRINE consists of precepts of pure Morality . . . . ib. The purity of Christ's precepts proves their divinity 417 Christ's precepts are implanted in our Rational Nature ib. Infinitude alone can comprehend the Infinite ib. Humanity can only comprehend the Finite . . . ,. ... . 418 Christ walking on the water explained ib. God is within us, and constitutes our Moral Nature 419 The temptation in the Wilderness explained ib. The darkness of the Crucifixion explained ib. Christ an example of strictly upright conduct ib. Rending the vail of the Temple explained 420 Profane HISTORY sometimes indulges in Metaphor ib. HISTORY cannot be dispensed with ib. Mathematical diagrams are symbols of pure figures 421 16 CONTENTS. PAGE Actions good, bad, indifferent, are symbols of motives 421 Man cannot decide from the action upon the motive . . . • • . ib. Manlius Torquatus killed his own son 422 Morality is the DOCTRINE of motives ■ ib. Every action ought to be submitted to the test of REASON .... H. Man the judge of his own actions '"&• Man ought to discharge his duty quite disinterestedly 423 The laws of REASON constitute Religion ib. To adore the "Book" is Idolatry *"&• " Thoughts are purely spiritual, and exist in Mind 424 Religion is purely spiritual ib. Mere ceremonials must not be taken for Religion ib. Archelaus reigned in Judea before the birth of Christ 425 HISTORY will employ the learned for ever ib. DOCTRINE will produce immediate Conviction * • • • . . ib. Triumph of Principle over Fact 426 The " Old Testament " is strictly historical, not tJieological ib. The Patriarchs and their descendants are depositories of the Unity of the Godhead , »"&• The "New Testament" contains the ark of the New Covenant, a perfect code of moral laws 427 Christ is a practical example of fulfilling the Moral Law ib. Christ is the author of the HOLY TRINITY . . . .' . . . ib. The apparent mystery of the Trinity in Unity explained . . . • • 428 Oneness is an impossible thought for man ib- Every material object involves the Triune Principle ib. Every mathematical object involves the Triune Principle 429 Every spiritual object involves the Triune Principle 430 The mystical number — three in one — accounted for 431 All human nature consists of matter, and is corruptible ib. All divine nature consists of spirit, and is holy ib. The actions of man are performed in TIME, and are not pure .... 432 The motives of man are conceived in ETERNITY, and are pure . . . ib. A conceptive circle is purer than a material circle ib. INTUITIONS occupy both TIME and SPACE 433 CONCEPTIONS occupy TIME only ib. IDEAS reside wholly in ETERNITY ... . . . ib. The "Supreme Being" is entirely free from TIME and SPACE . . . ib. The " Divine Essence" is absolutely incorruptible ib. The finite cannot comprehend the infinite 434 Cause, Effect, Connexion, constitute One notion ib. Father, Son, Relation, constitute One notion ib. Personification of the three Holy Powers ib. The Council of Nice held A. D. 325 435 The Dogma of Arius outvoted ib. Christ's DOCTRINE for ever fixed in REASON . .... ib. Athanasian Creed the finest reasoning ever offered to man . . . • 436 Where mystery begins virtue and Religion end 437 Essence of the Athanasian Creed explained in modern language . . . ib. Body, Soul, Connexion, constitute man ib. Soul separated from body is an Angel ib. Athanasian Creed is the soundest part of the Liturgy 438 Divarication separates DOCTRINE from HISTORY . . . ib. Christ's DOCTRINE expounded in modern language ib. CONTENTS. 17 PAGE REASON assures us of a future state 439 The discovery of truth is of the highest importance . . . . ... 440 When the DOCTRINE does not convince it must be transferred to the page of HISTORY ib. The Roman Catholics interdicted reading the Bible ib. Facts constitute no part of Religion 441 Two true opinions of the Bible cannot exist ib. There shall be but ONE opinion of the "SACRED BOOK" ib. Mathematical truths do not admit of two opinions 442 Principles cannot be enforced by the sword ib. Who shall exhaust the treasures of the Bible ? ib. Second Edition of Divarication shall be more worthy the dignity of the Subject . 443 ARGUMENT FOR DIVARICATING THE SCRIPTURE . 445 Conviction and Belief explained 446 DOCTRINE— WORD OF GOD = REASON 44? HISTORY — WORD OF MAN = SENSE ib. Divarication of the Gospel of St. Matthew ib. Divarication of the Gospel of St. Mark 472 Divarication of the Gospel of St. Luke 493 Divarication of the Gospel of St. John . . 521 Works relating to the principle of Divarication ....... 553 PREFACE SECOND EDITION, <®tt fyz Ut&feum of tfje Hotw &cxi#tuvt$. Until the 'principle which authorises the division of the Scriptures into Doctrine and History is fully com- prehended, this work cannot be understood, much less finally adopted. A scientific display of this principle, exhibited in the Argument for the Divarication at the end of the Introduction, furnishes a self-evident justification of the present attempt, and proves the division of the "Divine Revelation " to be not only rational, but one without which the Word of God can- not enter in all its purity into the heart, and operate upon our conduct. It will prove to be such a division as will raise the precepts of Christ to a state of con- B 20 PREFACE. viction, far surpassing the utmost evidence afforded by the pure sciences, and satisfy the mind both of their unerring truth and of their divine descent. An attentive perusal of the Arg ument above alluded to will at once remove all difficulty, and shew that a " Divine Revelation " cannot be made to the Senses, but only to the Reason of man. The proud distinction of man, Reason, which has by some been lauded as the sole arbitress of the world, and the only sure guide of our actions, and by others condemned as the weakest and vainest of all powers, and the most certain to mis- guide us in our aspirations after that kingdom prepared for us from the foundation of the world, will be found, when kept within due limits and employed solely in its practical use, to be the faculty that generates both religious ideas and the desire to act up to the divine precepts of the Gospel. The will of God revealed to his creatures through the medium of Jesus Christ is, therefore, addressed to the Reason of Man, with this happy result, that while this faculty remains in its purity no human being can refuse its testimony, which is confirmed and corroborated by the tests given by our heavenly Father to his creatures, Conscience and Conviction. Had this revelation PREFACE. 21 been addressed to the Senses, it could have affected only the contemporaries of Christ. Laws, however, are not facts ; the latter only address the Senses, but laws never can. Who ever saw his own Reason, much less the laivs which emanate from this spiritual faculty ! Whatever Confucius, Socrates, or others, may have advanced on the subject of virtue and the moral laws, Jesus Christ alone is the instrument employed by Divine Providence for the complete development and establish- ment of a Doctrine so consonant with Reason, that the more it is investigated and compared with that pre- eminent faculty of man, the more exalted and sublime will it be found. Fatal, indeed, is the mistake of mixing up historical relations with pure doctrine. They differ essentially in their nature ; neither can they be substituted for each other. Christ's doctrines are pure precepts and moral principles, which can be contemplated by Reason alone, and need only be clearly expounded to be indelibly fixed in the heart, and to become guides for our conduct even to salvation. Historical Facts, on the contrary, must have addressed the senses of the narrator, but can never constitute a universal principle , or command universal assent; as well might we hope to advance b2 22 PREFACE. the truth of the forty- seventh proposition of the first book of Euclid, by adding the well known history of its discovery. When Pythagoras, in the energy of enthusiasm at the happy effort, commanded a splendid sacrifice, he decreed a hecatomb, crying, Evprjxu! eugjjxa/ Euclid has not embellished his " Elements " with this narration, nor would it have made truth more true ! It is a universally acknowledged position that every event must have a cause ; but it is equally certain that all the facts in the world will neither make a mathe- matical figure nor constitute a pure moral principle. Never will I cease to employ my pen on this subject, whether I am seconded or not in my efforts, to establish a principle of such vital importance for the interest of Religion ; and finally I hope, like the great Hindoo philosopher, Rammohun Roy, to be able to eradicate the baneful prejudice of confounding history with principle, a prejudice more mischievous in its consequences than that of the immolation of the Indian widows, because it entails an error that subjects the " Scriptures " to perpetual cavil and misunderstanding, thus defeating the object which our " Saviour " had in view — perfect unanimity in his only true Church. This prejudice must and shall be conquered, or the " Christian PREFACE. 23 Religion" will not be what its founder intended — the " Universal Religion of Man" — because it is the Religion of Reason. This exposition of the " Sacred Book " cannot be considered as destroying one doctrine, without giving a more sublime substitute — nay, the very substance instead of the shadow ; for, by eradicating error, pure truth finds no obstacle to its adoption in the mind. The propriety and principle of this treatment of the " Scriptures " is fully displayed in the Introduction; but as it has not, from its novelty, made that impression on the religious public which its importance demands, and as this principle entirely secures the Scriptures from the mutilation so much dreaded and so justly deprecated, it is hoped that a further illustration of the principle will be greeted with that warmth which the vital importance of the subject demands, when we reflect that unanimity and concord on all religious points must be the result. An obscure feeling has long pervaded the mind, that there are certain precepts in the "Holy Book" which command universal assent ; but we have never beheld till now a decided touchstone, an unerring principle laid down, by which every individual may decide for himself, 24 PREFACE. on perusing the " Sacred Volume/' whether the text under consideration is wholly or partially a precept, a rule, a maxim of conduct, to guide us in our proba- tionary state ; or, whether the point under discussion is an historical narration of events that has been employed expressly to introduce and enforce this rule of conduct. When we have duly considered and thoroughly under- stand the distinction between facts and principles, which is pointed out in this test, and have referred each to its proper head of Doctrine or Htstory, all differ- ence of opinion must for ever cease. We may illustrate this position by a familiar instance — " Jesus went up into a mountain." Now, the act of ascending a mountain contains no rule of conduct, no precept ; but it is a most important fact, on account of the sublime doctrine that he taught his disciples and the multitude who were with them. The fact of ascending the moun- tain occurred at one point of time, and must have affected the senses of those who accompanied him to that im- portant place where our Saviour chose to enlighten the multitude with precepts whose influence is so universal, that, as principles of conduct, they being once divulged, must last through all time, and exist in absolute purity in eternity. It really seems in this case to be totally PREFACE. 25 impossible to confound two things so essentially dif- ferent in their nature. Facts occur at a certain point of time, and can never recur under the same circumstances; the evidence of their existence is a certain affection of Sense, admitted when we say— I see, feel, hear, &c. some certain thing, as "Jesus walking up a mountain." Principles, on the other hand, can neither be seen nor felt ; and, though they must be first awakened in the mind through the channel of Sense, yet, when once comprehended by Reason, where they were originally lying dormant, their efficacy is so great that ever after they constitute a definitive law to guide our conduct through life : " Do unto others as you would they should do unto you." The essential and eternal distinction between facts and principles must now be abundantly evident. The former are certain events produced by outward circum- stances, while the latter are indigenous laws of Reason, constituents of the mind, and inward guides of conduct. One would think it quite impossible to confound two such opposite things as facts and principles ; and yet it is to no other circumstance that disputes and difference of opinion in religious matters can be attributed. Of facts, no two individuals can be precisely in the same 26 PREFACE. situation as beholders of what they are viewing, neither can each say what impression it produces on the senses of the other ; here, therefore, argument would be mis- placed. Of principle, nothing can be more certain than that here argument cannot hold at all ; for it would be a contradiction in terms to call that a principle which is susceptible of even the slightest difference of opinion. Principles are universal notions, lying in our Reason, which, when once expounded, last for ever ; while no fact can ever recur, as the point of time has for ever evanesced. Hence, facts have but a limited duration, because they are in Time, which is constant change ; while Principles, which are free from the laws of time, are universally and permanently the same, because they are in Eternity. Now, we may perceive the value, the importance, the vital essence, of those moral maxims so exquisitely and beautifully expounded in the "New Testament" by our Saviour. Having shown that principles require no proof, be- cause they are self-evident positions, it is clear that on this point we must all agree ; for there is no disputing with a man who denies a principle. Therefore, on the side of Doctrine difference of opinion cannot exist. On this side, when the doctrines in the "Scriptures" PREFACE. 27 are once separated from the narrative which is essential to introduce these maxims for the regulation of our conduct, and which constitutes the History of the book, it is quite impossible to differ. This is the death- blow to sectarianism. For, when we reflect on that which founds a sect, it is quite apparent that it must be based on some disputable point. But on the side of doctrine there can be nothing but unanimity; therefore, the point of difference must be on the side of history. Here, and here alone, can difference of opinion exist. Nay, how can unanimity be produced from materials which have nothing in common, which cannot even be viewed by two individuals at the same time and in the same "place ! Neither dare we pronounce on the intensity of interest they produce on any single person, much less hope to draw universal results from outward circumstances, that shall serve as inward guides unto our eternal salvation. Vain, indeed, must be the at- tempt to obtain unanimity horn facts, which are realities that affect the senses. If a perfect agreement of opinion is not to be obtained in two individuals who are both impressed by the same outward object at the very same instant, why should we look for a coincidence of opinion when the beholders of these facts have transmitted b5 28 PREFACE. their view of the subject to others, who have recorded those events which constitute the historical part of the book ? The occurrences of the present moment, sur- rounded as we are with the facilities of communication, never accord with the nicety requisite to constitute a precept. Why, then, should we suppose that the primitive history of a persecuted sect should have been preserved with a precision that is not to be obtained with all the enlightenment of the present day ? Doubt is the most painful state in which the mind of man can remain : but to seek to resolve doubts from materials that are not capable of dissipating these painful senti- ments is really to court the mischief when the remedy is in our power. Look for unanimity only where it is sure to be obtained, and cheering certainty takes the place of desponding doubt. There seems occasionally to be something confounding and entangling in the very circumstances in which we are placed ; but we surely should not fly for relief to more difficulties, while we possess a clear and decided plan for our extrication, in the all-consoling and universally- soothing balm afforded by the sublime precepts with which the Doctrine of our " Saviour " every where abounds. Here is to be found a consolation for all our PREFACE. 29 earthly troubles ; and, indeed, under the most afflicting circumstances, this bright gem lures us to realms of bliss that await the good ! Why, then, should we seek in uncertainty and expect to find unanimity? How far preferable to employ the time that is wasted in unprofitable dispute, in the propagation of those prin- ciples that have been revealed to our reason in a god- like manner, only to produce unanimity among men ! How eagerly the infant mind will imbibe the refreshing draught prepared by the Saviour of man will be seen by offering the pure beverage of divine precepts for its nourishment, instead of entangling and perplexing it with interminable doubt. Unanimity and agreement are therefore only to be obtained from Doctrine, while discord and disagreement must be the result of the most profound and diligent search that can possibly be made by the ingenuity of man in his patient investigation into History. From the discordance of history, then, arise the numerous sects which have disgraced the annals of the Church of Christ from the earliest period of its establishment. It is, indeed, high time that a final termination were put to this factious division of the only true Church, whose character is catholic or universal SO PREFACE. harmony and divine truth. And this most happy and desirable end will be instantly effected, the moment rational beings are content to adopt the universal creed, that is, the catholic faith that the divine and com- manding laws taught in their simple and most compre- hensive form by our "Saviour" in the New Testament are not of earth, earthy, but strict revelations of the Divine Author of nature. What can be more reasonable than to follow a doctrine, the divine descent of which, or its commanding influence on our conduct here and our eternal welfare hereafter, no human being dare doubt ? That this is the object of the divine doctrine is too often reiterated by its divine founder ever to be questioned by the most sceptical mind, or disputed by the most rancorous sectarian. What possible benefit can be derived from the admixture of historical records, which can only concern events on earth, but never can verify the purity of a doctrine, which is only to be con- firmed by those inward tests, Reason and Conscience? Nay, could all the facts or events which constitute the historical portion of the " Sacred Volume " be evinced to demonstration, their total aggregate would never make one single precept, however indispensable these facts may be to the inculcation of the divine doctrine. PREFACE. 31 Neither the casting out devils, healing the sick, nor raising the dead, affords a single rule of moral conduct ; and, if any moral is to be extracted from these facts, it is the moral which lasts, while the fact itself has vanished for ever. If sectarians were dispassionately to reflect on the importance of this division — not mutilation — of the " Holy Book," honesty, sincerity, and internal con- viction, would be the wonder-workers that would totally eradicate sectarianism, and leave, in all its purity, the doctrine so frequently and so eloquently enforced in the sacred pages. This is, indeed, the religion of Christ, the religion of love, harmony, and charity, towards our fellow-creatures, and which in- culcates forgiveness of our enemies. This is Christi- anity in its primitive purity; and in this sublime sense u religion exists wholly in the heart" How, then, can it show itself on earth ? " The kingdom of God is within you, and cannot he perceived by any outward sign" Moral duties appertain to rational creatures alone, and are evidenced by a reference of the motive that induced the action to the Moral Law, which is a constituent part of the Reason of man. This is a fundamental posi- tion, which must be admitted by all religious sects. 32 PREFACE, Having discovered a point of anion for all rational beings, nothing can be more easy than to extend this happy harmony to its utmost limits. Union of senti- ment generates uniformity of conduct. This once established, the pleasing task of amalgamating sects will proceed with certainty and rapidity, and be accom- panied with the consoling reflection that no return of these blemishes, in so divine a system, is likely to interrupt the well-grounded unanimity which it has effected. Let us suppose the happy work in operation, and we shall perceive sectarians retracing their steps till they arrive at this first principle, the point of union, about which there cannot be two opinions. This once effected, a little patient investigation will soon discover the point of departure, and at the same time detect the extraneous matter that has caused the difference. Here we are sure to find that some narration, some historical record, has inadvertently been admitted to constitute that which was erroneously considered pure doctrine ; some fact substituted for principle. For, on principle we cannot differ, and it must be a rare case, indeed, to perceive a fact about which we do entirely agree. For facts are evanescent events, that last but a limited time; while principles are immutable and permanent, that PREFACE. 33 must remain for ever, even in eternity. Their very elements, therefore, are of a discordant nature, and can never coalesce. This heterogeneous mixture must then necessarily generate perpetual disunion. The natural result of this sincere and honest self-examination will be productive of more genuine Christianity than the most prolonged and vigorous argument that can be set up in defence of any favourite dogma ; and the ultimate termination of the glorious work will produce the final destruction of sects, by the detection of their errors, and the permanent harmony of the disputants, who will thenceforward be for ever united in a firm bond of holy union. Then, indeed, may Religion be dignified with the touching appellation of the "Sacred Science." May this period soon arrive ! The essential and eternal distinction that exists between facts and principles, even in their very consti- tuent elements, being now fully demonstrated, there will be no difficulty in establishing a rule for the adjustment of every religious dispute. This rule, from its absolute universality, may more properly be deno- minated a "Canon," or standard of evidence — not, indeed, a canon enacted by any council or earthly power, and enforced by earthly authority, but a canon, as a 34 PREFACE. divine gift, seated in the universal Reason of man. Who can doubt the uniformity of the operation of a 'principle which forms a constituent part of that pre- eminent Faculty of man — Reason ? Now, as Reason is a self- active faculty, it actually originates its own laws, that is to say, they arise out of itself, uninfluenced by external objects ; hence all its decisions must be both consistent and uniform. For Reason ceases to be Reason when it contradicts itself, and then we are left without a guide. This " Canon " will carry with it all the truth, correctness, and conviction, that the mind obtains from contemplating the law of gravitation, or any truth of the pure sciences which admits of no dispute whatever, and, being a constituent part of the human mind, must necessarily last as long as mind exists. This ci Canon," or general rule for the solution of all cases, is displayed in the Argument for the Divarication, in two parallel columns, under the heads Thesis and Antithesis, and, departing from the popular form, we should say scientifically ; that what- ever is ranked under the Thesis must be, a priori, pure in its nature, unmixed with any ingredients that are derived from experience ; that is to say, necessary, per- manent, spiritual, immaterial, simple, perfect, infinite, PREFACE. 35 and eternal : in shorty principles which, when embodied into a system, constitute Doctrine. But, on such sublime ideas as these, when once accurately denned and familiarly expounded, can there be two opinions ? How differently circumstanced are the affections of Sense ! Who would venture to pronounce definitively on the intensity of the sensation produced by an out- ward object on another person, or even to determine what will be the next Sensation that will impress itself on him ? Here every thing that is ranked under the Antithesis must be, a posteriori, impure in its very nature, being constructed of the very matter of experi- ence, consequently contingent, mutable, material, com- posed, imperfect, finite, and evanescent. This is the true character of experience ; and, when these multi- farious events are felt, they constitute facts, but, when related and recorded, they compose what is denomi- nated History. Here no ingenuity of man can procure uniformity of opinion, much less demonstration, for the very materials on which these records are transmitted partake of the nature of the facts themselves, and are perishable : to look for uniformity here would be vain. Reason manifests itself by the act of drawing conclusions, while Sense, being a passive faculty, is 36 PREFACE. affected by external objects, which affections are termed sensations. Now, the conclusions produced by the activity of Reason have a double reference. They refer either to facts or to principles. Thus it is evident that we are endowed with the sublime faculty, Reason, for two very opposite pur- poses : in the first place, to attend to our temporal welfare on earth, to regulate and arrange the objects of nature so as to produce the greatest comfort and har- mony in our mortal state, and without this faculty we should not be superior to the brutes who are guided by unerring instinct ; here, then, this gift is indispensable, if we are to be considered rational animals. While Reason is content to keep within the limits assigned to it by its Maker, in the speculations in which it engages for mundane affairs, it merits all the praise that can be bestowed on so exalted a faculty ; not so when that faculty oversteps the bounds of decency, and presumes, with its feeble insight, to inveigh against the arrangements of Providence, to censure what it cannot understand, because it cannot fathom the designs of infinite wisdom : — this may explain the paradox why Reason is susceptible both of praise and blame. Reason, when thus occupied, is evidently engaged with PREFACE. 37 the objects by which we are surrounded, in speculating on what will form the best combinations for certain earthly views of happiness : and here it is clear that its conclusions refer only to facts; and, as it cannot foresee what is next to happen, it is compelled to meditate and speculate how to form the best arrangements; and this faculty, when thus employed, is very properly termed Speculative Reason. On the other hand, when the conclusions of Reason refer directly to principles, the object of this faculty cannot be mistaken. That Principles, being mental or spiritual, that is, heavenly things, are the ground of our never-ceasing aspirations to become partakers of the realms of never-ending bliss, so divinely pictured by our Redeemer, is rendered manifest, to the fullest con- viction of every person who uses that divine gift, Reason, in the most limited degree. Thus, then, we are endowed with Reason also, for that sublime and ultimate end of our existence, our eternal welfare. But this faculty, in contradistinction to the former, must be termed Practical Reason, or a power which creates laws and lays down rules for a virtuous and happy life here on earth, as good earnest for the purity of the motives which induce this conduct, and carry 38 PREFACE. our aspirations far beyond the confines of sublunary things^ and induce us to approximate the purity and spirituality of the divine essence of the great Creator of Reason itself. This faculty is synonymous with Free Will : for it is determined to action by principles or precepts, which are acknowledged to be spiritual things, and wholly independent of the necessity of nature ; for they originate from this practical faculty. This spiritual freedom is taught by our " Saviour" when he says — - u The Kingdom of heaven is ivitliin you." So that the spring of all moral actions is reverence for the moral law, implanted by our Maker in our hearts, and re- vealed to us by the divine Saviour of man. When Practical Reason digests, arranges, and combines, the principles which it originates into a con- solidated mass of spiritual essences, it generates a i( Science of Morals." This science refers immediately to virtue, which is wholly inconceivable without an Omniscient and Omnipotent Being — God — who dis- penses rewards and punishments in due proportion to the deserts of his creatures. When the laws of conduct, or the precepts expounded in "Holy Writ/' are sifted from every extraneous ingredient, they constitute a pure " Science of Morals" which, considered in the PREFACE. 39 light of a divine revelation, become God's command- ments. The sincere and honest obedience to Divine Laws constitutes Religion, or the submission of the Will of Man to the Will of God. Here, Practical Reason does not overstep its limits, by constantly striving to gain that Kingdom prepared for us before all worlds, but merits all the praise that has ever been bestowed on so divine a faculty ; nay, how must every human attempt fall short of doing adequate justice to a gift, which displays to mortal eyes the ineffable good- ness and infinite wisdom of the great Author of Reason ! Practical Reason thus confirms the Revelation of our Saviour, and secures it from cavil, which is indeed all that subsequent enlightenment has been able to effect. But, in doing this upon principle, it has also accom- plished the glorious task of erecting a sacred science, the Science of Religion, which, by producing perfect unanimity among men, for ever shuts out even the possibility of ever again disputing on the subject of Religion, and thus fulfilling the sacred prophecy — u that the Gospel shall be preached to all the nations of the earth." What can surpass the sublime view thus opened to us of our ultimate destination, proving that at the 40 PREFACE. present instant of our existence our soul is an inhabitant of that abode of infinite and eternal bliss, revealed to us in the " Word of God ;" though we must pass the con- fines of the grave before that which our Reason assures us to conviction to be the design of our Creator is accomplished ! Thus, then, we are endowed with Reason, for the double purpose of attending to the interests of our joint nature, that is, of Soul and Body, without detriment to either ; and for this purpose that divine faculty is employed in two departments : PRACTICAL REASON SPECULATIVE REAJ secures regards our eternal welfare. our temporal welfare. Hence arise two distinct desires, the one ever aiming at the greatest sum of physical enjoyment, the other aspiring to absolute goodness. This exposition of our rational faculty fully accounts for the two indis- pensable desires of our nature, the one for happiness, the other for virtue. The former demands the satis- faction of all our inclinations ; the latter, the fulfilment of all our moral duties. So that man is actually in constant antagonism with himself; and the only way to obtain supreme and perfect happiness is by re- PREFACE. 41 stricting the inclinations to the sublime laws of morality, and thus establishing the supremacy of Reason. The Argument for the Divarication fully con- firms this display of human nature, by shewing the different value of the two operations of Reason, as exemplified in the following table: MAN SOUL. I. DOCTRINE. Thesis. REASON. Heaven. Laws of the Soul, VIRTUE. BODY. II. HISTORY. Antithesis. SENSE. Earth. Laws of the Body, INCLINATION. regards concerns Things of a Spiritual nature, which Things of a Material nature, which manifest themselves by Syllogisms of manifest themselves to the SENSES by REASON, and never can address the actual contact; and the relation of these SENSES ; but are firmly fixed in the mind sensations induces by CONVICTION. BELIEF, Thus : all the radii of a circle are equal ; Thus : you may believe that I wrote yet neither the circle nor the radii can these observations upon a table, a tub, or address the SENSES, but their symbol any other extended surface; but I felt can. the materials I employed. It is most certain that, while we are performing the voyage of probation here below, in order to determine our claim to higher regions, the first thing of which we are conscious is the impressions received by our 42 PREFACE. senses from external objects, and these are called sen- sations. Thus we are placed in a state that calls forth all our energies, for every sensation is accompanied by a feeling either of desire, aversion, or indifference. So that, from the moment of our birth, we are plunged into the most perplexing difficulties and trying situa- tions, and occupied, as we advance in years — if we have fortitude enough — in avoiding seductive allurements, that would draw us from our duty, or obviating appal- ling circumstances, that threaten our happiness. In order, therefore, to obtain the fulfilment of an essential desire of our nature, the gratification of our inclinations, Speculative Reason is called into play. But as, according to our exposition, the things of Sense are facts, and range themselves under the Antithesis, their ultimate object is to accomplish our happiness. Yet, not being the authors of the external world, we find it impossible ever to attain this aim to our entire satisfaction — here end the operations of Speculative Reason. Dissatisfied at the never-ceasing attempts to accom- plish an unattainable end, though an instinctive part of our nature — the natural desire for happiness — new powers are called into activity, still further to pursue PREFACE. 43 this restless desire in man. At length, the reflection raised by Practical Reason awakens man to a know- ledge of his ultimate destination, by convincing him that happiness alone is not the only end for which he is created ; but that there is something even more valu- able than life itself, to which all our endeavours and aspirations aim ; and that the only way to accomplish this second instinctive desire of our nature — virtue — is the fulfilment of all our moral duties. Virtue is the constant approximation towards goodness, that is, the harmony of the motive with the moral law seated in Practical Reason. Thus,ViRTUE is the moral strength of man in fulfilling his duty and overcoming every temptation to vice. But, as laws or principles are spiritual things, it is clear that this whole procedure regards that part of us — the soul — which already exists in Eternity, and is totally free from the operations of the things occupying Time. So that at the present moment of our existence we are actually members of the Moral World, where he only will allow himself to participate of Happiness who has rendered himself worthy of it ; but, as all this arises from precepts or conclusions of Practical Reason, our entire moral conduct, and all that is connected with it, ranks under 44 PREFACE. the Thesis. Thus, man obtains the dominion over himself, by subjecting all his inclinations to the Moral Laiv, and this for the sake of duty, whereby he proves himself to be the scope of creation. To pursue our antithesis, we should say — r SOUL is in HEAVEN. Its laws arise from PRACTICAL REASON : and regard MAN. his BODY is on EARTH. Its laws arise from SPECULATIVE REASON, and concern ETERNITY. TIME. The abode of Infinite and Spiritual Existences, God, the Soul, Angels : and the depository of every permanent and immutable principle — the Mental Ele- ments and pure Sciences, which are now and ever will be. The residence of Finite and Material Existences, Animals, Vegetables, and Mi- nerals : and the container of all the mu- tations that take place on Earth, where every thing has a beginning, middle, and end; and depends for its existence on a determinate cause — the oak and the acorn. Let it not be supposed that this rational division of the " Bible" is in any way to be confounded with the recent attempts made to mutilate the (i Scriptures;" on the contrary, it will prove to be the proper handmaid to sift out their sjriritual essence, without requiriug them to bend to its decisions, which at once manifests PREFACE. 45 the infinite wisdom of their divine Author — perfection — by displaying in the broad daylight of truth the perfect harmony that subsists between Reason and Revelation. Thus is the " Christian Religion" esta- blished for all rational beings, upon principles that will melt all sects and all Religions into one firm bond of in- dissoluble and permanent union, which will gain strength in the proportion that the internal evidence of Doctrine exceeds the external evidence of History, till at last, by its wide-extended influence and universal adoption, it will realize the Kingdom of God upon Earth ! So deeply are we impressed with the necessity of enforcing this division of the " Scriptures," with a view of commanding universal assent to the sublime truths which they unfold, that we have attempted to display the two natures of man and their respective laws in a Diagram, which is intended symbolically to represent the possibility of the union of soul and body as the constituent elements of man. It will be evident, from a bare inspection of our delineation, that the material part of man, or his body, is placed in the blue circle, which represents all Time, or the things that have existed, do now exist, or ever will exist ; thus, all existing things of nature are imbued with this c2 46 PREFACE. universal law of succession, and have consequently a beginning, middle, and end. Another law equally imperative, and which stamps its character on universal nature, is that of extension, which implies that nothing in material nature can possibly exist without filling Space. Now, nothing can be more evident than that the human body — materially considered, and palpably addressing the senses — is one of these very things of nature subjected to laws, which at the same time control all other natural bodies. And a very little reflection will soon convince us that the most prominent laws of natural objects are the laws of Time and Space; nay, so essentially requisite are these two laivs to the existence of nature, that, were we for one instant to conceive these laws either abrogated or annulled, all nature would be annihilated. This grand discovery is the guide which safely conducts us through the delicate labour of separating in the "Holy Volume" the precepts from the facts, that is, the Doctrine from the History. Hence we deduce, that whatever consists of matter and is determinable by Sense must exist in the blue field of our Diagram, be in its nature both extended and successive, for ever varying from its birth to its disso- lution, in short, must be in Time. But how can that PREFACE. 47 which is in its nature ever subject to change furnish permanent rules of conduct ? That, therefore, cannot be precept which consists of matter, and is palpable to Sense. Having, we trust, fully demonstrated that the Body is composed of matter, and subject to its laws, it now remains for us to show with equal clearness that the Soul is wholly different in its essence ; and cannot even subsist where matter exists, but must have an abode appropriate to its own pure spiritual and immaterial nature. Different, indeed, are the laws which charac- terize spirit. Here, extension and succession would be misplaced. What ! the infinite, perfect, eternal, soul of man, that emblem of its Divine Author, to be subject to the laws of matter ! God forbid that so much con- fusion should reign in any mind ! What the " Saviour" taught would, indeed, be of little avail, could his pre- cepts be subjected to the ever-changing state of matter. Our Eternal Father has really put the wisdom of his creatures to the blush, to suppose for a moment that the soul of man was subjected to the same laws which regulate his material body. How can that which we denominate spirit, and which is diametrically opposite in its nature, conform to the 48 PREFACE. laws which regulate matter? Matter is divisible and changeable — Spirit is simple and eternal. Is spirit extended? If so, it must be manifest to Sense, which, however, it is not. Neither is it successive. No 5 it defies all these laws, and claims a more appropriate set of laivs for its government. How can the infinite, perfect, and eternal, spirit, or soul, of man be subject to the laws which regulate matter and mundane affairs f The consciousness of the truth of this position — that the immaterial and immortal spirit of man is wholly free from the laws of extension and succession — is so universally admitted, that the propriety of placing the symbol of the soul in a sphere totally distinct from that occupied by the body must be more than evident even to the most cursory observer. Thus we feel fully justified in placing the soul in that part of the Diagram which represents Eternity, or the region which is wholly independent of the restrictive laws of matter. Notwithstanding the distinctness with which we can contemplate these two essences that constitute a human being and their separate laws, still another equally essential element is required, before the notion of humanity is complete, and that is, the necessary union PREFACE. 49 of body and soul. Can, we, however, conceive a more decided notion of a Trinity in Unity than is displayed by these three essences, so combined as to constitute only one man ! Our Diagram exhibits these distinctive elements of man by connecting the body, which is constrained to obey the laws of matter, with the soul, which is only subject to its own perfect, eternal, and immutable, laws, by a chain of communication that constantly supplies the animated clay with its influence, and thus governs all its motions, by the red tint, which is actually a middle tint, or the medium of connexion between the deep blue earth and the pure light of heaven. The colouring of this design even partakes of the triune essence, consisting of the fundamental colours, blue, red, and yellow, from whose combinations result all the tints which so beautifully diversify the whole face of nature. From this display we obtain these unanswerable results : that the body is subjected, with all its com- panions of earth, to the laws of matter; while the soul, though infused into and doomed to inhabit its tene- ment of clay during its probationary pilgrimage, is still wholly and entirely free from the laws of matter, and subject only to its own spiritual and immutable 50 PREFACE. laws, from which the motives are derived that govern the actions of man. " Has matter more than motion? has it thought?" Every particle of matter, from its creation to its extinction, is bound to obey instinctively the laws which it receives at its birth, and has a destined course to run in the interminable circle of nature. That which was once an acorn, passing through the various stages of oak-tree, timber, and so on, till we behold the majestic war-ship bidding defiance to England's foes, this duty done, returns to its mother earth, to give new birth to some fresh thing yet unformed, ringing the eternal change of Cause and Effect without end. And this purpose in nature is effected without the quantum of matter being either increased or diminished. The centre or blue sphere in our symbol is intended to comprehend the totality of the matter of nature, with all its instinctive and necessary laws, from which it cannot swerve, being chained down to this eternal and never- ceasing round. Our blue circle, therefore, represents the field of action of every particle of matter, together with its determinate and necessary \&ws, that constitute Sense. How differently is spirit circumstanced ! Free as air, floating in its sylph-like nature in its own invisible PREFACE. 51 regions, instead of being bound down to necessary laws ; proud of the fiat of its Creator, and, in imitation of His perfect and spiritual self, an originator of laws, and such laws to which all humanity must bow ! To the departed angels of light, which are permanent and invisible substances, simple and perfect in their nature, and imperceptible to Sense, we have assigned a distinct abode, represented in our tabular view by the circum- ambient yellow sphere, which is intended to embrace the whole empire of celestial and pure spirits, which are not clogged and impeded in their faculties by the imperfec- tions inseparable from man ; but which, though they may exist in the eternal kingdom of God in endless gradations suited to the merit of their earthly sojourn, are still free to ascend higher and higher, so as to approximate more nearly to their Spiritual and perfect Father. These free agents and originators of the moral law, by which alone they allow themselves to be governed, are not cognizable by Sense ; but are pure spiritual essences, with which, and their laws, Reason alone is conversant. From the above view of the subject we obtain this glorious result : — that the body is subject to the laws of matter, which are definite, necessary, in short, in- c5 52 PREFACE. stinctive, that is, acting without the choice of Reason, yet in strict conformity with the laws of Sense ; and that the soul is amenable to the laws of spirit only, which are quite free from and independent of any thing that pertains to matter, that is, it acts according to laws which it originates itself, and which no operation of matter can constrain. This is, indeed, perfect freedom and absolute ascendancy of sjririt over matter. And, as these laws originate in Reason, which is essentially spiritual, this proves, to the entire conviction of all mankind, the complete supremacy of Reason over Sense. This mode of expounding the doctrine of the " Scriptures" is in perfect conformity with the teaching of the Saviour of man, who says : — " I am perfect man ; I eat and drink as you do ; but the doctrine I teach is from my Father in heaven: all purity and love, it is the Koyog, the word of God, or the Reason incarnate." And St. Paul also expounds the " Scriptures" in pre- cisely the same manner, stating that " man consists of a natural body, which is of earth, earthy, and subject to the carnal inclinations of the flesh, and also of a spiritual body, which is of heaven, heavenly, and which acknowledges no other law than the Moral Law, which PREFACE. 53 is engendered by our Reason. But Reason, being purely spiritual, cannot be of earth, but must have descended from heaven. " How perfectly does this confirm the Doctrine taught by Jesus, and establish the correctness of our tabular view of man, as being a compound of Matter and Spirit, in necessary con- junction, or a Trinity in Unity ! The existence of these two opposite principles, whose union constitutes man, may be still further illustrated by the following display of their respective natures ; and then we hope that this momentous subject will be considered so firmly established as never again to raise a doubt, or to require further confirmation. Once more referring to our table, we should repeat that the objects which exist in the blue field, and constitute the whole of nature, consist of extended and successive matter, every particle of which acts according to the laws which are given to it at its creation. But this mode of action is absolutely necessary to its existence, and is properly enough denominated instinct. The action of matter, however, upon any of the Senses of man produces sensation, as the only evidence of its existence ; yet sensation can only manifest itself to the mind under the two conditions of extension and sue- 54 PREFACE. cession. Hence we may infer that these two conditions are laws of the Sensitive Faculty, and are the ground of possibility that man can have any sensations at all. For, annul these conditions, and we annihilate sensation altogether. The usual expressions by which these conditions of Sense are designated, are Time and Space ; consequently, Time and Space are the con- stituent elements of Sense. If, however, any thing on earth can be the proper affair of man, it is the sensa- tions which are constantly raised in him by the action of extended matter on his external senses. And, when one individual recounts or records a successive string of these sensations to some one else, most assuredly he is relating the state of his own feelings to his fellow- man. Can this be better expressed than by calling it the Word of Man ? Thus much for Sense, or the material part of man ! How very differently the spiritual part of man is circumstanced a slight inspection of the table will instantly display. So far from the perfectly pure, simple, and immutable, spirit being in any manner controlled by matter, on the contrary, it sets all its boasted powers at nought, defying rack and torture, either to injure or approach its purity. What, then, is PREFACE. 55 that power in man which defies all nature ? It cannot be a part of nature, or it would be subject to nature's laws. Consequently, it must be something quite distinct from nature,, and have a totally different manner of subsistence. Neither does it manifest itself to the external senses by its extension or succession ; there- fore, it cannot be an object of Sense. And yet that all-paramount and all-surpassing power needs no assist- ance from matter to indicate its existence. This power, then, can be no production of earth, but must at this very moment be an inhabitant of that celestial abode of eternal spirits — heaven. This power manifests itself by Principles alone, which are invisible and impalpable to Sense, and are the production of Reason. Now, it is notorious to the whole world, that Rational Beings alone are endowed with the power of acting from the mere representation of law r s, that is, from principles, which are wholly and entirely free from all the necessity which governs matter ; and that all Inferior Beings have their motions regulated by a determinate and necessary instinct. That part of man, the soul, which is wholly free from the restricting conditions of Sense, Time, and Space, cannot possibly inhabit the blue field in our Diagram, which is destined only for the 56 PREFACE. reception of matter, to the exclusion of spirit ; it has, therefore, assigned to it, for its sole and perfectly pure residence, the unlimited and infinite field of (C Eternity," which is represented by the endless display of interminable yellow rays. But, on the one hand, when the sensations produced in one individual are communicated to another, by the action of matter upon matter, and the result is agreed to be denominated the Word of Man : when, on the other hand, senti- ment, which is the production of Reason, is commu- nicated to the Reason of another person, surely this result may, nay, must, by way of eminence, be designated by the sublime appellation — the Word of God. For how can we form a more adequate idea of the words to be uttered by a Deity than by tracing, through the medium of syllogism, the communion which one spirit holds with another ? What, however, is more gratify- ing, and enforces our argument to the very centre of certainty, is the total impossibility of Sense to infringe upon the territory of Reason, or in any way impugn its conclusions. Thus, then, we have shown that Reason has the power both from its purity and spirit- uality to hold for ever its supremacy over Sense : and it is only when the carnal inclinations are permitted to PREFACE. 57 exert their influence beyond their proper and rational limits that any struggle for victory can arise. But the victory of the good principle over the bad is the most decided proof that the Religion of Christ has taken deep root in the heart, and that the individual, as to principle, is wholly under the influence of Virtue. A tabular view of this statement may greatly tend to facilitate the comprehension of the whole argument, which, in its simple elements, would appear thus : MAN SOUL, that is SPIRIT. Its law is REASON. BODY, that is MATTER. Its law is SENSE. When spirit communes with spirit, the When matter acts upon matter, and •suit is spirit ; that is, the raises sensation, the result is, the WORD of GOD. WORD of MAN. Thus we perceive that the "Doctrine" preached by Christ is of a perfectly pure and spiritual nature ; is not material, and cannot address the senses : it is, therefore, a proper object of adoration for man, being the evident emanation of a Divinity, and conveying to man the commandments of the "Supreme Reason." 58 PREFACE. Now, then, have we, indeed, the distinct territories well marked out, for the display of motives and actions. That motives, however, should be evident to Sense, and exhibited in the blue field of our Diagram, is quite impossible, for then they would be of a material nature, which they are not. There is, then, no alternative but that they must be of a spiritual nature, and at the present instant inmates of the celestial kingdom of divine light. How, then, can man take cognizance of these ethereal scintillations ? He certainly cannot ; the utmost stretch of his limited wisdom is to observe the action of matter upon matter, and to communicate and record the result — which constitutes the proper " History" of mundane affairs, while the ministering angel, ever -vigilant, and watching the purity of the motives, from those that raise and depress empires in our material world, down to the most unobserved and unobtrusive motives in the inmost recesses of the heart, such as those which prompt the cherishing assistance secretly afforded to the necessitous, and the dire ven- geance levelled against an offending foe — faithfully records these motives, as the earthly historian records the action, and sometimes ventures, with his con- tracted insight, to guess the motive. PREFACE. 59 It is evident, therefore, that motives can only occur in our yellow sphere, and never be inhabitants of the denser blue. So, then, is man for ever shut out from deciding on the motives of his fellow-creatures, and left only with the distinguishing privilege of noting, and, according to mundane wisdom, deciding on, the utility of the action. Man, with his double nature, is a member of both hemispheres, and, while his body is subject to human legislation, which decides merely according to the utility of the action, as far as regards his earthly welfare, his soul is subject to the purity of Divine legislation. In the former case, man rewards or punishes man according to the Word of Man, always in reference to the utility or injury of the action with relation to mundane affairs. In the latter, where the soul communes with its Maker, which is wholly beyond the ken of humanity, it is judged only in relation to the purity of the motive, which alone entitles it to its station among the blessed, and can only be ascertained by the Word of God ! The silent converse that man holds with his Maker is well expressed by the term sentiment, and may be called a moral discourse. But, when the action of matter upon matter, which produces sensation in man — such as being forcibly struck with a sledge-hammer — is related 60 PREFACE. by him to his fellow-man, this is surely a physical dis- course. THE DESIRES THE DESIRES of the of the SPIRIT FLESH are are VIRTUE, INCLINATION, and and can be satisfied only can be satisfied only by by GOODNESS. GRATIFICATION Reason is the faculty of the soul, which separates man from all the other beings of nature ; nay, it actually carries us into the regions of Eternity, thus lifting us out of nature. It acts quite independently of the laws of matter, and by this freedom it originates the Moral Law, and shows man what he ought to do, to make himself acceptable in the sight of the Lord. Accordingly, it is the only power that shows the dis- tinction between good and evil : and, by its invisible string of syllogisms, is the only criterion by which we can decide between truth and falsehood, and thus ultimately arrive at the most complete of all certainty, Conviction, which St. Paul calls faith, or the " evidence of t/wigs not seen" Since the Moral Law is generated by Practical Reason, and is wholly distinct from all the operations of matter, by what means can we show our obedience to its commandments ? Certainly not by PREFACE. 61 any operation of matter on matter. It must, then, of necessity be by the influence of spirit upon spirit. This cannot take place in the blue field of our Dia- gram, which is appropriated exclusively to matter ; but can only occur in the endless yellow sphere of Eternity. Ohedience to the Moral Law, therefore, can only be evinced mentally, and is always an affair of man with himself, in reference to his Maker. This is usually expressed by the word motive. Whatever is implied, in the physical world, by the term action, is indicated, in the Moral World, by the word motive. These spiritual essences influence our reason, and prove the value of the Rational being. Moral beings are, therefore, amenable to the Moral Laiv, with regard to the purity of their motives, as physical beings are accountable to the Judicial Law for the quality of their actions, Christ expounds this chief moral laiv, by saying : — " Do unto others as you would they should do unto you;" and every rational creature is bound to obey this commandment, or forfeit his claim to Rationality. Conscience determines at once where we may venture to place ourselves on the scale of moral worthiness. This is the Spirit of Truth, the Holy Spirit, or the Holy Ghost, which, Christ says, " I have 62 PREFACE. left with you;" this is the comforter, for, when a man has satisfied his conscience, that law of God revealed to us by Jesus Christ, he may well be comforted. For there is nothing more to be done, in order to be accept- able in the sight of the Lord. Can this discourse, which Reason holds with itself and with its Maker, be any thing but moral, that is, spiritual — and all its essence, being wholly invisible, must be mere matter of faith and reliance on the goodness and mercy of that perfect and Eternal Spirit who first gave us birth. Is not this, then, the Word of God ? Sense is a passive faculty, which receives impressions through the hand, the eye, the ear, and so on, which raise sensations in the individual, that are either ex- tended or successive, and are the true generators of the facts that occur on earth, and which can only be known because they address the Senses. These pal- pable and substantial things, which constitute physical nature, and on which common sense places so much reliance, as if they alone contained the ground of all cer- tainty, merely because they are sensible, can in no way pretend to furnish evidence that can vie with the result of syllogism. No approximation even to the certainty obtained by Sense can in any way compare with that PREFACE. 63 effected by Reason. Groping about in experience, Sense can never produce a single fact about which there can be no controversy. How came a live toad to be enclosed in a petrifaction, which geologists affirm to have been buried for centuries ? Which came first into existence, the oak or the acorn ? W A hat intensity of feeling has any certain thing produced in any individual? Suppose even two persons are viewing the same object, each has a different line of vision. Much less can I attribute my own individual feeling to another person : if I am hot, another person may be quite cold. In short, no individual feeling can be the ground of mathematical or scientific certainty. A bad foundation, this, upon which to raise a universal and permanent Religion. Though Christ was seen by his disciples, and the multitude who followed, walking up a moun- tain, however well this fact may be attested, it affords no moral precept, no universal rule of conduct ; but, when our Saviour taught, on this very mountain, the law that Reason acknowledges — " Do unto others as you would they should do unto you," where is th£ Reason that can absolve itself from this universal and necessary law ! All the operations of matter, that raise sensations in man, which are either successive or ex- 64 PREFACE. tended, that is, within the limits of Time and Space, are included in the blue field of the Diagram ; and all they have the power to do is to evince their existence in Time, in accordance with the law of time, each having a beginning, middle, and end, in time. Consciousness determines the actual presence of mundane objects, each of which lasts for a limited time, like the sensa- tions they produce. Can any thing be more human, or more decidedly belonging to man, than these sensations? And can the discourse about these feelings be better designated than by calling it the Word of Man t MORAL CERTAINTY PHYSICAL CERTAINTY is effected by is produced by REASON. SENSE. Upon the clear and evident distinction that exists between the Moral and Physical world, we establish, for ever, the 'principle on which the Divarication of the " Holy Book " into Doctrine and History is founded. Whatever regards Doctrine must partake of its purity, be permanent, and exist in Eternity. Whatever concerns History must have been fleeting in its nature, and have consisted of matter, and its action upon other matter ; thus filling up a part of PREFACE. 65 Space, and occupying a portion of Time. This dis- tinction is rendered intuitive by a mere glance at the Diagram. So necessary, however, are these two laws of nature, that, were they annulled, the whole kingdom of nature would be annihilated, and blank nothingness left, on which human thought cannot be engaged. The laws of Time and Space are, therefore, visibly stamped on all the objects of nature, which exist only for a limited period. Yet these events are capable of being noticed, because they produce new and different sensa- tions, by constantly gliding down the stream of Time. But a faithful account of all the circumstances that have occurred in Time must necessarily constitute a History of past events. This view of the subject completely exhausts every notion that we can form relative to the mutations which take place in Time, and, as far as our records reach, constitutes History. Among the most important of these events are those recorded in the "Sacred Book," the history of the Creation by Moses, and of the first man, Adam, who was made a living soul, placed in a garden, where he yielded to temptation, and thus fell. How beautifully does this allegory display the gradual enlightenment of mankind, by showing that, prior to the development 66 PREFACE. of Reason, the individual was unable to withstand the seductions of the inclinations, and that consequently Sense obtained the predominance. Hence the Fall of Man! The second part of this cc Sacred History" amply redeems this fatal overthrow. For here the second Adam, who is tempted in a wilderness, entirely vanquishes his enemy — the bad passions of the flesh — and is the quickening spirit ; for, by the efforts of his Reason, the Xoyog incarnate, he so purified himself from sensible gratifications, that he completely vanquished the arch-enemy of mankind. Thus did Christ redeem the world by displaying that obedience to the Word of God, the \oyo$, that the whole force of the inclinations of the flesh were unable to draw him from his duty; and thus did he complete the great work of Atonement. This affecting history affords a proof of the possibility of Reason obtaining the supremacy over Sense. This is the state of cultivated Reason. The moral extracted from this " History " will last as long as there are human beings to appreciate its value ; while it is doubtful if any two particles of the material on which Moses recorded his momentous story are still in contact. A sufficient proof that the moral, the Doctrine, is the permanent part of the PREFACE. 67 " Book/' because even the component parts, or its sub- stantial particles, may fade away, while the " Morality" of the Book endures for ever. Nay, with respect to the facts which it records, each individually could only have occurred at one precise point of Time, and can never recur. It would afford abundant information to the existing generation to have it proved that the serpent really talked, and actually told Eve to give Adam the apple that he might consummate his own condemnation. But, all the researches of the most erudite will never be able to produce a fact about which there cannot be two opinions. History is, therefore, the ground of disagreement, while Doctrine is the ground of perfect unanimity. The History of our Saviour, his humble birth, his ministry, and even the heart-rending recital of his crucifixion, though they convey a very affecting and most instructive moral, were each of them evanescent circumstances, about which no absolute proof can be afforded at the present day. Was there darkness over the land from the sixth till the ninth hour ? Was the veil of the temple rent from the top to the bottom ? Is it in the power of man to vouch for what has occurred nearly two thousand years ago ? And, if ascertained to D 68 PREFACE. the perfect conviction of the querist, what doctrinal point is gained by this decision ? If Adam was at all acquainted with the properties of the circle, he must have been fully aware, as it is generated by the motion of a line round one of its ends, that all the lines from the centre to the circumference must be equal. Such is the case at the present day ; and so will it remain as long as human minds exist to contemplate circles. The difference between " History" and " Doctrine," with regard to its proofs, is perfectly distinct. The former never can reach higher than possibility and probability \ while the latter affords a conviction, whose contrary is impossible. The blue sphere in the centre of our Diagram has now fully performed its office, by representing the ever- varying tablets on which are recorded the evanescent sensations that are constantly obtruding themselves on the senses. Thus it stands for a general representation of all " History," from the creation to the destruction of the world, whose characteristic is essentially marked by the things spoken of being of an extended form, and in a constant state of change, till the matter of which they are composed has lost all its tenacity, and assumed new forms — the oak and the acorn. Can this state- PREFACE. 69 ment of the case be at all impugned? Are not the feelings which have passed through the eye and the ear, and been confirmed by the touch, the proper elements of History, recording the action of matter upon matter ; and is not this discourse, the Word of Man, communicated to man ? Thus much for mundane affairs ! The numerous yellow rays — feeble emblem of Eternity — which circumscribe the finite circle of Time, will have also done their duty in symbolizing the abode of infinite spirits, and representing the depo- sitory of departed souls, as well as while these very souls are doomed to be members of both spheres. Here, also, exist all those permanent and pure prin- ciples, which are guides for our moral conduct, the most distinguished among which is the Moral Law. Whosoever strictly follows the dictates of the moral law, which God has planted in the Reason of man, does the will of his Father who is in heaven ; and, by this faith in the perfect truth of the <( Revelation" of his Son Jesus Christ, is not only made a partaker of God's spiritual kingdom, but has also secured his eternal salvation. Thus, in imitation of our great prototype, he may be said to have buried the man of d2 70 PREFACE. sin, and is regenerated unto righteousness. This double nature of man is the only ground of possibility for the exercise of Virtue. For, without the inclinations on the one hand, and our moral duties on the other, there could be no contest, consequently no Victory. How, then, can Virtue, which is an affair of spirit with spirit, ever be looked for among the changeable phenomena of nature, where instinct alone holds absolute sway, defying all freedom f — But is the soul an inhabitant of this restricted sphere ? No ! it revels in Eternity, enjoying the unlimited purity of its nature with the most perfect freedom. So that man, armed with the invincible panoply of Reason, may defy the whole world of Sense, even in single combat. Here is proof, abundant and demonstrative proof, of the purity and divinity of the Doctrine contained in the " Sacred Volume" — the Aoyoc, as Christ calls himself, when teaching the Will of his Father, who is in heaven — for our souls already form part of that kingdom of spirits which are to inhabit the world to come — thus, through Christ are we assured of the resurrection and the life everlasting. How, then, dare man presume to judge the motives of his fellow-man, when he perceives by this display that they are merely the spiritual influence PREFACE. 71 of spirit acting upon spirit, and are not cognizable by Sense, but are only affairs of man with his Maker ! Can this spiritual communion be better designated, or, can any thing more appropriately constitute what is understood by Doctrine, than this converse of spirit with spirit ? For Christ says " the time will come, and is even now, when true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth." Is not this the Word of God ! Thus have we cleared up spiritual essences. EXISTENCES IN ETERNITY EXISTENCES IN TIME are are permanent, universal, and necessary. changeable, particular, and contingent, I hope it will appear that I have sufficiently atoned for the fault of conciseness, with which the first Edition of this work is very properly charged. Should, however, this not be the case, I would willingly enter into the minutest elements on which the argument is founded, and undertake to bring them home to the conviction of any one endowed with Reason. The fault just adverted to may be attributable to my very intimate acquaint- ance with the "System," which furnishes the principle of the " Divarication " of the Scriptures into "Doc- trine and History," or, in other words, into Reason and Sense — a System, whose least claim to merit is 72 PREFACE. that of finally reconciling all religious animosities ; producing unanimity and concord among all religious sects; and, lastly, establishing the " Revelation" of Jesus Christ as the only true u Divine Revelation" — in consequence of its being in accordance with Reason, and proving that all other religions in the world must be spurious. But the higher claims of this Science are such as make man intimately acquainted with himself, so that he may try every motive, and compare it with the purity of the Moral Law ; and that there shall not exist a sentiment in the inmost recess of his soul but what may be brought to the bar of Conscience. Forty years' intercourse with this " Science" has produced such a perfect conviction of the truth and necessity of this division of the " Scriptures," that I, no doubt, fancied a mere hint would be sufficient to produce the same conviction in others. While enlight- enment is an object of importance, we may, indeed, regret that half a century should have rolled on, and the very Science which eradicates or suppresses all the bad passions, annihilates superstition, and crushes atheism, should be so little known in a country famed for its progress in intellectual advancement. It seems as if a spell were set, to prevent the introduction of PREFACE. 73 this salutary " System" into our favoured land. The sage of Kdnigsberg is the author of this masterpiece of human intellect — a perfect "Philosophy of Mind," which he has designated by the term " Transcen- dental Philosophy/' This is the " System" whence are derived all the laivs, physical and moral, which operate on body and Soul; and whence arises the belief in God, in the immortality of the soul, and in a future state of rewards and punishments. This " System" also establishes the Divine origin of the " Revelation" contained in the "New Testament." <©n tijc fHolg Crimtg. The Mystery of the " Holy Trinity," as it is termed, we have endeavoured to explain in the earlier edition of this work, but, as this explanation also has been unfortunately considered too concise to command universal conviction, we feel it a duty to go more at length into the arguments which unveil the mystery in this most vital part of the " Religion of Christ." The subject is indeed momentous. For what can be more desirable than that rational beings should have a correct and comprehensive view of the perfection, purity, and sublimity, of the God whom they ought 74 PREFACE. devoutly to worship and adore ! — But, while there exists the possibility of a difference of opinion regarding the attributes of the Divine Essence, there must necessarily also be a cloud in the mind, which obscures the pure light of science ; and even renders the laws which we are forced to acknowledge to be divine — because they are superhuman — less effective on our earthly conduct. Be it our duty, therefore, to remove all mystery which is supposed to envelop in gloom the principles which constitute this Glorious Triad. However, this must be so effectually accomplished, that no sound reasoning mind shall be able to dissent from or deny the powerful conviction afforded by the arguments we shall adduce, to dissipate and dispel every difficulty which has hitherto perplexed this only true and correct view of the Divine Mind — or the task had better not been undertaken. I affirm that the elements on which the notion of a Triune Essence is founded are coeval with the human mind ; nay, that they are connate with it, and actually constitute its very essence. This is the point I intend to exemplify, and, as I flatter myself, distinctly to prove. To think is impossible for man without a triad : for there must be, first — a mind that thinks ; secondly, an PREFACE. 75 object to think upon and, thirdly, the connexion of these two, or the thought. And, whenever we reflect upon the meaning we attach to the word thing, we shall find that this elementary trinity secretly forms the foundation of the notion. For, were we to annul any one of the elements here enumerated, we should find the thing, whether it be an object of beautiful nature that every where fills us with delight, or the contemplation of the sublime and awful Author of that very nature, still the triad is found concealed at the bottom. Availing ourselves of the simplicity of the algebraic form of expression, we should say : — Mind + Object + Thought = Thing. Though we have employed the algebraic expression, we do not mean to allow advantage to be taken of us, and to submit to the analytics and substitution of the algebraist. All we contend for is the universal axiom, that " all the parts are equal to the whole." Thus, then, our notion of a thing necessarily involves the three elements essential to its constitution, any one of which being annulled, the notion cannot exist. Suppose mind away, and we can have neither object nor thought ; and so with either of the other terms of the equation. Now, God is a spiritual thing : hence, the notion of 76 PREFACE. God must consist of three essential parts. Nothing- can exceed the truth of this proposition. That the notion of the Deity actually consists of three necessary elements, and neither more nor less, it is our task to prove. First, then, we affirm that when a person forms a notion of God it is peremptory in him to allow that, under the notion of God, he implies a Creator. But Creator is a meanless term, unless a creation has been effected. The Creation, indeed. stares us in the face, to prove the necessity of its xluthor. All we have, then, to do, is to acknowledge that what we behold is the work of Him who made it, and we have accomplished our herculean labour, and thus shown that He who did the work is virtually its Author, and necessarily stands in Connexion with his production \ whence we obtain the following equation : GOD. Creator -\- Creation -\- Connexion = Universe. If either of the elements which constitute the notion of God are annulled, all nature, or the universe, will be also destroyed. But nature cheerfully denies the fact. Then, God consists necessarily of the three elements, and exists in all his glory, ruling and directing his PREFACE. 77 mundane affairs. This mode of reasoning leads the mind to the most improving and delightful train of thought. " Can there be a more powerful incentive to devout gratitude than to consider the universe with a particular reference to the Creator ?" Every pro- duction of nature strikes a spark into the soul, and Creation every where shouts a present Deity, which the vaulted roof of heaven re-echoes. " Can any thing impart a stronger joy to the believer, or more effectually confirm his faith in the crucified Jesus, than beholding the heavens declaring the marvellous work of his heavenly Father ? " Here, it must be abundantly evident that the idea of God necessarily involves three elementary notions, none of which can be dispensed with, without universal annihilation — dreadful thought ! These notions of the Divine Essence are therefore coequal and coeternal, neither having a priority of the other, and yet these three elements only constitute one God. It must, however, be remembered that our present object is only to establish the 'principle, which must effectually be done before we attempt to apply it to its sacred office ; and this we hope so fully and completely to accomplish as to trace it through entire nature, from 78 PREFACE. the minutest particle of conceivable matter, and thence pursue its ramifications through the various objects of thought, till we arrive at Nature's God; where we shall behold it blaze forth in all its glory. The word Coeval seems to involve the whole difficulty. The complete development of this term will, therefore, unravel the mystery, which, after all, may turn out to be merely verbal. Whatever exists in nature first manifests itself to Sense, by raising sensations which represent the properties of the thing. This sets the mind to work to find out the principle, which enables these properties to constitute a single thing ; and this is the procedure of Reason. This process at once solves the difficulty ; for it says : There must exist in nature as much principle as is necessary to support nature; and so, of every individual thing there must exist just enough substance to support its properties, neither more nor less. Now, this is only establishing the axiom — that all the parts are equal to the whole. But the parts which constitute a whole must all be Coeval — all exist at the same time — or the whole cannot exist. Hence, there must be as much principle as matter in nature, and these tico must be in necessary connexion. The arranging and connecting of the parts PREFACE. 79 of matter is precisely that which constitutes its form. Thus, we obtain this equation : Matter -f- Form -f- Connexion = Thing. The smallest number of parts that can possibly be connected are two, which, with the principle of con- nexion essentially necessary to constitute one thing, make three elements. Every single thing, therefore, consists of three heterogeneous principles. To build a house we first take one brick (outqc), and then another (hspog), and cement them together; this we call con- nexion (o-uvs^ff). These three elements only make one thing, which we call the corner-stone of the building : a repetition of this act completes the edifice. The same process takes place also in mental things, as the mathematics ; and, lastly, in spiritual things, as religion and morals. If we annul the matter, the thing has vanished ; if we annul the form, the thing is chaotic and unintelligible ; and, lastly, if we deny its connexion, it is disjoined matter, but no specific thing. Consequently, every thing that is cogitable by man must submit to this mental law, and have all its parts in connexion, that is to say, they must be both Coeval and Correlative. Thus man consists of a material body quickened by a living soul ; yet, unless these two 80 PREFACE. elements are in strict connexion, they do not constitute man : for the body without the soul is a corpse, and the soul without the body is an angel. Hence the absolute necessity of their connexion to constitute man, thus : MAN. Body -f- Soul -(- Connexion = Human Being. A glance at our Diagram will render the truth of this position more evident than multiplying words will be able to do. It will be abundantly evident to the most uninformed mind that these three elements are absolutely necessary to constitute that reasoning animal, called man. It will also be clear that they must exist at the same time, that is, be all Coeval. The least number of things that can exist at one time, or be coeval, is three — two parts and their connexion ; these are absolutely necessary to constitute a thing : ovto$, erspos, (ruvsxyS) and this is a fundamental laiv of the mind, which, if abrogated, all nature is destroyed. We now come to investigate those phenomena of nature where succession is evinced. Thus, to drive a nail we employ a hammer ; the hammer, when im- pelling the nail, is termed a Cause, and the entering of the nail is called an Effect, Notwithstanding there is PREFACE. 81 an evident priority in point of time between the Cause and the Effect, with regard to things of Sense, yet, as a principle of Reason, these two notions can have none. For Reason is a faculty of the soul, and an inhabitant of Eternity, where the laws of time cannot have place, which an inspection of our table will render intuitive. Consequently, these two notions must be correlative, and stand in perpetual Relation to each other. Whatever period of time the natural production may require to evidence its resulting from a Cause — as the seed sown to produce the future tree, the oak and the acorn — still this in no way interferes with the law of the mind, called Cause, Effect, and Relation between them. Who, on beholding that famed pile of antiquity, Stonehenge, but instantly detects his mind at work to account for the origin, use, and erection, of this stupendous ruin, and feels assured that it was con- structed for some purpose or other. The incessant restlessness of Reason, in exerting this law of trying to discover a Cause for every Effect, is here strongly evinced. Nor will all the previous accounts furnished by diligent enquirers satisfy the reflective mind, nor arrest its progress in the prosecution of its ow T n indi- 82 PREFACE. genous law. Neither will it be satisfied with the supposition that these ponderous masses of stone were heaped together as a place of worship, a Druid's Temple, or a monument to the renowned Hengist ; or assume, with the legend, that they were miraculously transported from the Giants' Causeway by the patron Saint of Ireland. That which has already puzzled so many of the learned will long continue to give exercise to that ever-restless faculty, Reason ; and, as this example belongs to the department of History, it will be long, very long, before it produces conviction in favour of any one statement : — can it ever ! Thoroughly satisfied that this ceaseless searching after a Cause is an original law of the mind, we cannot wonder at finding it exercised on all occasions, even from the inspection of a mite to the profound investigation of the attributes of the Sublime Author of the Universe. So predominant is this ever- striving faculty, Reason, in its efforts to account for every thing, that we cannot behold the most trifling thing in nature without per- ceiving its active influence in operation. On seeing that well-known machine and useful time-measurer, a watch, the mind instantly flies to the notion of its Cause, and assures itself at once that there must PREFACE. 83 have been a watch-maker, who stood in relation to the watch. This may be illustrated in the following manner : CAUSALITY. REASON. SENSE. permanent. changeable. 1. Cause . . . = 1. Watch Maker. 2. Effect . . . = 2. Watch. 3. Relation between them. = 3. Relation between them. The watch may long remain in Time, a powerful evidence of the necessity of an Author. The originator of the watch may, however, have long since paid the debt of nature, and the matter that once embodied his soul may be employed in some new office. Not so the principle of Causality, whose unchangeable nature could not endure a moment in the blue sphere of our Diagram, but, on the contrary, must inhabit the yellow abode of its kindred spirits, where alone the perfectly pure, incorruptible, and permanent, nature of this prin- ciple can subsist, and be in Eternity. If the watch could not change and go to decay, it could not be a thing of nature, that is, of Sense. If a princijile could ever change, it could not be a principle, that is, a per- manent object of perfect Reason. The principle of Causality must ever have been the same, because it 84 PREFACE. is an original law of the mind — the same for Adam, for the present and for all future generations 5 always consisting of three elementary parts, qvtos, srepog, o-uvs^s — Cause, Effect, Relation. It is inconceivable what confusion of thought every where prevails for want of this necessary distinction between the operations of Reason and the affections of Sense. This distinction is so happily displayed in our Diagram as to be readily seized by the infan- tile thinker, and thoroughly confirmed by the adept in the art of reasoning. We believe that it is not generally understood that Time can have a limit ; but, if Eternity is where Time is not, how can it be otherwise ? More science will correct such errors, and then we shall approach nearer to truth in our con- clusions. Another error, whose baneful effects pervade the whole territory of thought, seems to be the sup- position that Time itself is in constant successio?i, whereas the very contrary is the case. Time is an elementary principle of the mind, and, being a mental law, must of course dwell in Eternity, along with all the other original constituents of that instrument of thought, the human mind, whose total number amount to Twenty. It is, indeed, true that the things in PREFACE. 85 Time, that is, the things of nature, or the affections of Sense, are all constrained to obey this principle of the mind — succession ; but surely, both principle and thing cannot be equally in succession. For the thing must be in Time, and the principle must be in Eternity. How admirably does our Diagram indicate this Truth, by placing viW. finite and successive things in the centre blue 5 while Time, like an imperceptible speck, is lost in the immense ocean of boundless infinitude — Eternity. We have now traced the principle of the necessary compound of three elements to constitute one thing, through the limited sphere of the affections of Sense, to the boundless region of the operations of Reason, and have in every instance uniformly found it to be a principle — that is, a fundamental and original truth, a first position from which all thinking flows, an original tenet on which all religion and morality is erected, and without which nothing at all could exist — all would be void nothingness, and blank desolation ! The essence of a principle is that it is universally ajiplicable, in all cases, and is as inexhaustible at its commencement as in its final appropriation. This essence is happily illustrated in the principle of the divisibility of space ; and may be equally exemplified in the divisibility of matter. For that cannot be matter 86 PREFACE. which does not consist of parts by the side of parts, that is, parts in extension, which fill up Space and occupy Time : and if it does obey this law, and coincide with the principle which constitutes all matter, it must be divisible, or cease to be matter. So completely does this confirm the truth of our Triune Principle, that were we to depart from it in a single instance all thinking would be annulled, and, dreadful to conceive ! the idea of God annihilated. According to what has preceded, however, we are happily relieved from this distressing dilemma by the necessity of acknowledging that all the parts are equal to the whole, and that the least number of parts that can be joined are tivo, which, together with their uniting principle, connexion, con- stitute a thing : oi>to$, hepo$, crwep^f, or the full esta- blishment of the Triune Principle. It only remains, therefore, for us to investigate the very axiom which forms the foundation of all our reasoning — an axiom that may well boast of having stood the test of ages. This principle was handed down to us by the renowned Euclid, who flourished three centuries before the birth of our " Saviour." From this great geometer, who had the courage to inform his illustrious pupil King Ptolemy that there was no royal road to the mathematics — even Kings must wade PREFACE. 87 through science to arrive at truth — we learn that this principle was in full force at his time ; we know it to exist with us in its pristine vigour ; and we may with equal safety determine, that it must have been precisely the same for Adam. Nay, being a. principle, what can escape its influence ; for, if Deity is any thing, it must consist of all its parts. Hence, the principle pervades every thing. All the improvement that the enlighten- ment of two thousand years has been able to effect with regard to this truism, is to determine with more precision what this great thinker loosely denominated parts : thus, at the present day, we should say that whatever constitutes the parts is divisible into three distinct species ; first, the unity or root of all numbers ; secondly, an indefinite number of unities, which com- pose a multitude ; and, thirdly, the summation of this amount making a totality. So that even parts neces- sarily submit to the Triune Law, in order to constitute one thing : thus — AXIOM. Unity + Multitude -f Totality = a Whole. The truth of this statement may be illustrated as follows : admitting we have counted as high as ninety nine, I call this a whole, and say, and one makes a hundred, thus : 99 + 1 + connexion = 100. Here, 88 PREFACE. unless the unity is actually connected with the former aggregate, the new totality could not arise — the olroc, hspoc, vwexfts — nor the hundred be produced. Hence, we infer that, as in the composition of every possible thing, three heterogeneous principles must combine their influence to constitute one thing, we are constrained to allow this CONCLUSION. The root of ONE is three. As the previous argument is arranged in the form of equations, it may be as well to give a familiar account of this powerful agent in the art of reasoning. Equations express the same quantity in two dissimilar terms. This may be well exemplified by a pair of scales, having a pound weight in one, olrot;, and sixteen ounces in the other, hspoq, which, being held in connexion, a-vvs^g, by the beam, are in equilibrium, or equality of evidence, in fact — an equation. Here even we perceive the Triune Principle exerting its influence by having its three heterogeneous principles all in action at once, all Coeval and Correlative, or the act of judging is totally destroyed. Suppose, for instance, only fifteen ounces were to be placed in one scale instead of sixteen, but yet that the other ounce weight was lying on the table on the same side and near this scale, still the whole PREFACE. 89 equation would be destroyed. This proves the absolute necessity that all the parts which are to be equal to the whole must actually exert a positive influence on each other, or be in a reciprocal state of action and reaction, which in objects of Sense always implies contact, as the third element or connecting link, and in principles of Reason three permanent and eternal essences in union, or a spiritual Trinity in Unity. In the formation of a Circle, these three heteroge- neous principles are very apparent. Unless we assume a centre, as a firm point about which the same straight line revolves, we cannot even commence the operation of describing a circle ; and, however far we may have proceeded with the revolution of the given line, yet, until we have reached the point in the circumference from which we started, no part of the figure bears the name of a Circle. The very instant, however, that the commencing and final points of the periphery come in contact, the figure is designated by the term Circle. This equation then arises : that, in order to generate a Circle, three heterogeneous principles are essentially necessary, and these must be both Coeval and Corre- lative, or no circle whatever can exist. Hence we obtain the following equation : Centre -J- Radius -f- Periphery = Circle. 90 PREFACE. These three heterogeneous principles, once combined, being in a state of permanent and eternal union, in order to produce one essence, is beautifully elucidated in the figure of a Triangle. Whatever priority in point of time may exist in the formation of the symbol of this figure, which is intended to affect Sense, yet, until the three principles of Reason are acknowledged in our consciousness, no triangle can exist either spirit- ually or materially. Let us draw three lines, so that when they meet at three points they will form a triangle, yet, till the actual accomplishment of this purpose is effected, we dare not call it even a figure, much less a triangle ; but, the very moment that contact has taken place at the final angle, consciousness acknowledges the presence of the three permanent principles of Reason, which have always inhabited Eternity, even though they were now first made known or revealed to man. Thus, then, we perceive that this principle of a Trinity in Unity must manifest itself in Eternity in all its purity ; not only be now and for ever more, but ulti- mately centre in the Godhead, whose very essence it constitutes, and all its parts must be both Coeval and Correlative. The result of this reasoning, with its various equations, may be conveniently disposed in the following manner : PREFACE. 91 TABLE OF MORAL EQUATIONS. COEVAL. Equation. % C + R + P = Circle. GOD. Creator -f- Creation -\- Connexion = Universe. MAN. Body-]- Soul -f- Connexion = Human Being CAUSALITY. REASON, permanent. 1. Cause 2. Effect SENSE, changeable. 1. Watch Maker. 2. Watch. 3. Relation between them . = 3. Relation between them. MIND and MATTER, settled for ever. Mind -f- Object. + Thought = Spiritual Thing. Matter -}- Form -j- Connexion = Material Thing. AXIOM. Unity + Multitude -j- Totality = a whole. CONCLUSION. .-. The root of ONE is three. Hence — a Triad of Principles is as much a law of universal nature as the law of gravitation. Maker + Soul + Relation = GOD. DEFINITIONS. MATTER is Smsation raised by external Objects in SENSE. MIND is Principle produced by Syllogisms of REASON. 92 PREFACE, <&n tfje Application of tf)e Critme principle. At length the pleasing task devolves on us of applying the principle of a Trinity in Unity to that ineffable source of life and lights the Godhead. In doing this, we must confidently presume that the details through which we have already travelled have completely esta- blished the truth — that the very act of thinking involves the triune principle inits veryessence. Should, however, this not be the case, and we have failed to fix for ever this eternal principle, still we may presume to hope that the hints here thrown out may promote the future operations of some more successful adventurer in the bold and hazardous undertaking — settling for ever that most vital point of the "Religion of Christ." But, on the other hand, if the principle of triads — without which human thought cannot exist, and which ultimately settles and centres in the very Essence of Deity itself — proves to be firmly established, and for ever indelibly fixed in every human mind, then the glorious result that we may venture to contemplate will form so pleasing a consolation and solace to our mind, as, from this blessed Conviction, to make us partakers PREFACE. 93 of the realms of eternal bliss, even while we are grovelling here below — not in light, but darkness visible. The prospective benefits that will flow from a solution of a difficulty which has agitated the religious world for nearly two thousand years, and which already flit before us in imagination, far exceed anything that the limited faculties of man can conceive ; and of their magnitude we can form no idea, as the soul is fitted for approxima- ting perfection without end. Now to the grateful task ! THERE IS A GOD ! It is absolutely impossible that nothing at all exists, while we exist who make the assertion. As nothing can exist which is not possible, it is evident that the last ground of all possibility must rest in something that actually does exist. Hence : — that " there is a God" is a position which cannot be denied. Indeed, this overwhelming truth is so thoroughly interwoven in our nature, that all argument to enforce it seems superfluous. Yet this truth becomes even more powerful, by attempting to negative His existence. If we annul all existence, we at the same time annul all possibility, and nothing whatever remains, which contradicts the fact. Therefore, an Absolutely Necessary Being actually e2 94 PREFACE. exists, who comprises in himself the last ground of all possibility; and all things else must be considered merely as consequences flowing from this Primitive and Original Source. That, however, which is merely dependent may be annulled without destroying its original Cause ; because it is contingent, and not absolutely necessary. This " Necessary Being/' then, must contain the last ground of all possibility; and, as there cannot be two last grounds, this Absolutely Necessary Being must be one. He must also be simple, that is, so constructed that, if any part is taken away, the whole is destroyed. For, if he is composed he may be divided, and part taken away. But the part which is taken away need not be necessary, but contingent. If, however, only one part is necessary, all the rest must be contingent; it is, therefore, absurd to annul part of a thing and still call it a whole. This is to destroy the internal possibility of a thing, or, in other words, to destroy it altogether. If we annul either the centre, the radius, or the circum- ference, the circle vanishes ; and if we remove the base from a triangle, the whole is destroyed. But to assert that all triangles must be right- angled is to confound the contingent with the necessary. Likewise, if we annul PREFACE. 95 all existence we at the same time destroy all possibility and all reality, and nothing whatever remains. Hence the Divine Essence cannot be divided, and is conse- quently simple. All that exists in Eternity is absolutely simple, having all its parts so connected with each other that if any, the least, particle were taken away the whole would be destroyed. Not so with the things in Time. The usual tint of vegetating nature is green ; but if this colour disappears the tree does not cease to exist. Reason is a faculty of man, which exists wholly in Eternity, though it influences the things in Time. This will be very apparent on inspection of our Diagram, where the soul is represented as existing in the outer sphere, where every thing is pure, simple, and strictly necessary, or in Eternity ; and the body is placed in the centre blue, where every thing is composed, and, as far as regards man, contingent, that is, part may be taken away without destroying the whole. Many are the instances in nature that confirm this truth. The loss of any one of the senses, or in fact of any of the members of the body, does not destroy the individual. But whatever occurs to the body can never affect the soul, which lives and breathes in a totally different 96 PREFACE. sphere. Principles are necessary, Sensations are contin- gent : thus, all the elements of the mind are absolutely necessary; and it is absolutely uncertain, being purely accidental, what sensation will next affect the Sense — which may be thus displayed : MAN 1 r SOUL. REASON. its Laws are a priori, and Original Princip of the MIND, BODY. SENSE. its Rules are a posteriori, and Derived from Sensations in the MIND, and are NECESSARY. CONTINGENT. Laws are indispensable, but the origi- Sensations are accidental, and compulsion nation of laws is in action is FREEDOM. SLAVERY. To begin a state of itself, or to commence a series of events, is freedom; and this power is Practical Reason, which originates its own principles, that arise out of its own nature. Now, as these principles are not laws of matter, which only regard the action of matter on matter, these laws must therefore regard the com- PREFACE. 97 munion of spirit with spirit, and compose a code of laws, which may very properly be termed Moral, having the Moral Laiv at their head. Hence man is free with regard to the motive which induces the action. Every object of nature is bound down to certain laws impressed upon it at its creation, and every alteration depends on a prior cause. The nail knows no freedom when driven by the hammer, nor the poor Negro who labours in fear of the lash. This is the instinct of Nature, and, with regard to man, slavery. Freedom in man depends on the exercise of his Practical Reason, and regards the purity of his motives, for which alone he is accountable. Slavery, on the con- trary, is produced by the employment of physical power to compel actions. That these opposing powers can exist together is rendered quite evident by an in- spection of the table, where the soul, or the accountable part of man, resides in a totally different region — Eternity — from that which the body occupies — Time. So that there is no contradiction in saying that man is both free and constrained. Free in the choice of the motive, but, not having full control over nature, he can never precisely say what effect the action will produce. 98 PREFACE. We trust we have fully established the position that the Divine Essence is one, simple in its substance, a spirit in its nature, eternal in its duration, immutable in its quality, all-sufficient both as to all that is possible and all that is actual — that, in fact, THERE IS A GOD ! This is, indeed, the idea of a Spirit with which nothing on earth can compare. Whatever exquisite properties we discover in the Creature, as to order, beauty, perfection, arrangement, morality, and good- ness, how much, nay, how infinitely more, must all these be surpassed in the Creator ! Who but the Creator made the Creature ! And is he not, then, the work of his Maker ? — and can either the Creator or the Creature deny the Relation that exists between both? Hence, we obtain a glimpse of the Triune Notion of a Godhead. Who will deny his Reason, and forswear his God ! Has he then lost his Reason! — that faculty which alone elevates and distinguishes man from all created beings displays its powers in the realms of infinitude ; that faculty, which is simple in its nature and eternal in its existence — which is so sublimely designated in PREFACE. 99 the " Scriptures" by those all- expressive words — "God made man in his own image ! " — No one ! For the con- sciousness of the control which this faculty exerts over the carnal inclinations is too fully acknowledged and too easily proved to be for a moment doubted. Pure Reason cannot reside among the changeable phenomena of nature — it must exist wholly apart from them, in a region entirely free from their influence, and which is the sacred abode of holy spirits. Here the Will sits enthroned on the highest pinnacle of pure intellect, defying the impotent endeavours of the whole material universe either to approach or disturb the serene and sublimely exalted station from which she authoritatively dispenses her laws to the entire " Kingdom of Rational Beings " commanding them, as they value the salvation of their souls, to act, on all occasions, in strict conformity with these pure and perfect laivs — that is, always to act rationally. Herein consists the Dignity of man, that he possesses a power to originate and to establish for his own govern- ance a " Code of Laws/' which are not only out of the sphere of nature but totally free from its influence. What a prospect does this open to the ultimate destina- tion of man ! e 5 100 PREFACE. When the Moral Law is made the determining motive of the Will 5 who can doubt the purity and sanctity of this holy law, which is the ground of the action that operates on the things of Sense ! Who can doubt the honesty and sincerity of that individual whose motives are ever drawn from this pure source — even though a chain of unfortunate and disastrous events follow the very first action he performs ? God, judging from the purity of the motive alone, acquits him wholly of all the evils he has produced : man, wanting omniscience, judges solely from the utility of the action. But to allow no other incentive to the Will than reverence for this sacred and holy law — the Moral Law — is acting from a consciousness of the objective Law of all rational beings — Practical Reason. Hence, Free Will and Practical Reason are synonymous. Actions performed from pure motives like these leave a calm satisfaction and pure delight in the soul, which defies description, and to which no earthly bliss can, in the least, com- pare. But for the twofold nature of man, Virtue would not be possible, and the victory obtained over the sinful lusts of the flesh — the highest merit of the Christian — could not exist. This is beautifully exemplified in the PREFACE. 101 " Saviour" of man, when he undertook the " Redemp- tion" of the world, and affords a practical instance of the total suppression of the desires of Sense, and on all occasions of their subordination to the supreme law of Practical Reason. The sensitive desires are created expressly to produce this struggle, and the victory or defeat in the conflict determines the station which the rational being assigns to himself in the scale of holiness. Should he have suffered the inclinations to take the lead, and thus have surrendered up his Reason to become a slave to Sense, then, indeed, may he dread his entrance into Eternity. Oh ! may this thought alarm our fears, quicken our hopes, and animate our endeavours ! If he looks back, what a melancholy prospect he beholds ! — sins unrepented, mercy slighted, and the day of judgment fast approaching ! Yet 5 Sense, unappalled, asserts its claim, and boldly demands : — Why have I these desires if they are not to be gratified ? The reason is plain — to cause the very conflict that ensures the victory. Now, Speculative Reason advocates the cause of Sense, and furnishes maxims which are subjective determining grounds of the Will of each individual, and are calculated to produce the most lasting effects, with regard to man's happiness on earth, such as : — 102 PREFACE. moderation in enjoyment prolongs the benefit; ex- cesses always carry with them their own punishment. Hence arises the Doctrine of Prudence, which obtains and employs all the means in its power to promote and prolong that natural, though sensual, end of man — Happiness. Interested motives detract from the worth of the action. We can always tell when the motive is pure ; because then all views of benefit and advantage are waved, for the sole purpose of acting in strict conformity with the Moral Law ; and the only spring to action is reverence for the law of our own Practical Reason. Then we are sure that the action is good, because the motive is purely moral, and has nothing else in view but our ILternal Welfare. On the other hand, when the action aims at some specific benefit, something that promotes our earthly advantage, we are sure that it is prompted by Speculative Reason, and that it regards our Temporal Welfare. In both cases, the actions may be legal, that is, conform strictly to the moral law ; but those actions alone are moral which entirely disregard utility, and are performed purely out of reverence for the law which we give to ourselves by virtue of our Practical Reason. PREFACE. 103 What can equal the importance of our Eternal Welfare ! — nay, for what other purpose did our Saviour Reveal the Gospels ! Now, as this object can only be obtained through the purity of the motive, which ought to be a universal law for all mankind, we feel it a duty to display this argument in the following table : ( — _ ~ MAN r SOUL. Its Law is PRACTICAL REASON, which is the Objective Incentive to the WILL, and constitutes a pure MORAL consists of. BODY. Its Law is SPECULATIVE REASON, which is the Subjective Incentive to the WILL, and constitutes an impure PHYSICAL MOTIVE. MAXIM. Let your motive be a universal law of Let your action promote the greatest sum of earthly HAPPINESS. Supreme happiness can only be obtained by subjecting the desires of Sense to the laws of Practical Reason, that is, by subduing all the inclinations to such a degree that they are wholly under the dominion of the law of Virtue. The only way, therefore, to be really good and 104 PREFACE. virtuous is on all occasions to obey the dictates of the Moral Law — " Be strictly virtuous whatever may be the consequence" — and never to allow ourselves the enjoyment of any set of sensations, until they have undergone the scrutinizing examination of Practical Reason, and are proved to be in harmony with the Moral Law. It is on this principle alone that we can be virtuous, that is, perforin actions from strictly disinterested motives, quite independently of every instinct and desire of our animal nature, nay, often to its detriment. Moral motives lead directly to Virtue; Physical maxims tend only to promote our earthly Hajipiness. But, in order to be truly accept?*ble to our Maker, when summoned to the awful presence, we must be thoroughly conscious, on all occasions, of having restricted the desires of Sense, and submitted them to the all-commanding laws of Reason. By thus securing the supremacy of Reason over Sense, we fulfil the commandments " Revealed" to us by our Saviour, and fit ourselves for that kingdom prepared for us before all worlds, and in this manner prove ourselves to be the scope of creation. After the very elaborate analysis that has been here bestowed on the reasoning faculty of man, it would PREFACE. 105 indeed move our wonder to be told that Reason does not exist. And it would still more surprise and astonish us to be informed that this sublime faculty, with all its divine capabilities — extending even to the salvation of the soul, and its preparation to inhabit its own celestial abode — could have been the effect of chance, or, what would be even much more absurd, to learn that it made itself, and consequently needed no Author !- — No ! facts speak too powerfully and too plainly in contradiction of these nugatory assumptions, and compel us with heart and soul to come forward in defence of the sublime truth, that " There is a God !" — who is the acknowledged Author of the purely spiritual and eternal faculty — Reason. How can we sufficiently pour forth our gratitude to u Omnipotence," for the innumerable benefits he showers down upon his creatures here below, and for the magnitude of that overwhelming reward which is promised in the " Scriptures" by our Saviour to those who do the will of their Father in heaven ! With what avidity does the Reason of man devour the divine truths of the Gospel, as soon as they are exhibited in all their simple and celestial purity, and for ever separated from the Historical records which first gave them entrance into the Mind ! How sublimely 106 PREFACE. grand and inconceivably beautiful and soothing is the Doctrine of Christ when he says : — "I am come as a light to the worlds not to judge but to save it ; and he who believes in me does not in fact believe in me, but in Him that sent me. He that neglects my Doctrine has that in him, o Xoyo$ — Reason — which shall judge him in the last day. The doctrine I teach is not from myself, but is the commandment of my Father in heaven, and leads to Eternal Life . ' ' What a flood of light bursts forth upon the matchless truth contained in the forcible words of the beloved disciple, when he sings this hymn in praise of his crucified " Redeemer," as unlocked by the key of Science ! — " In the beginning was Reason, and Reason was with God, and Reason was God, and Reason was made flesh, and dwelt among us in all the glory of the Father ! " Well, then, may we say that the production is worthy of its Author, and that the God who made Reason must not only be eminently rational but possess a Reason that mocks every effort of words to declare its inexhaustible fulness, which can only compare with its own infinite and Divine Essence. Every attempt of man to compare the finite with the infinite must not only prove vain, but tend to show in the plainest PREFACE. 107 manner his own insignificance in the scale of Creation. The joyous certainty that the God of Reason is u Revealed" to us by his only- begotten Son, Jesus Christ, is quite overpowering to our limited faculties ; and we owe an immense debt of gratitude to the Saviour for having taken upon himself the Redemption of the world; expounded to us the commayidments of his Father's will, and finally invited us to become par- takers of God's "Eternal Kingdom" where the good spirits revel in everlasting bliss, and the bad are con- signed to never-ending torments. That Science should at length be entrusted with the key that unlocks these endless treasures is a happiness almost too great for mortals to contemplate ; and yet, at the same time, it is a full assurance of the gradual advancement of enlightenment, and a good earnest of the further display of the prodigious wonders that still He concealed in the human mind, only waiting the steady flow of time to be fully developed. So that we may confidently look forward — not to the destruction of the world by fire — but to such an amelioration of the condition of man as may afford a faint gleam of the realization of the "Kingdom of Heaven" upon earth. 108 PREFACE. We shall now have no difficulty in displaying the Deity in His three relations, so beautifully and expres- sively set forth in the " Scriptures" under the impressive words of Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, these three persons constituting the Godhead 5 so that in all things there is a "Trinity in Unity" and a "Unity in Trinity" to constitute the Divine Essence, which, being a Moral Essence, that is, Reason, can only subsist in three distinct persons — neither more nor less — making one only true God ! We may now proceed to apply the Triune Principle in all its multiform ramifications, from that inconceivably small speck, the mathematical point, where it exists in all the fulness of perfection, to the utmost stretch of the vast immensity of the boundless universe \ and even then, leaving all these Jinites, it leaps into the fathomless depths of absolute infinitude, and there, blazing forth in never-fading completeness and sub- limity, it settles and centres in that ineffable Being, the Author of all, where its everlasting majesty and beauty shall never suffer diminution ! — in God ! Our attention is also impressively and deeply called to the consideration of the three distinct though inseparable states of the Divine Essence : 1, the Suhsistive ; 2, the PREFACE. 109 Operative ; and, 3, the Relative, none of which can be conceived to exist apart ; and which conjointly consti- tute the Deity. In the subsistive state of the Divine Essence the triune principle shines forth with transcendent lustre. How could this Divine Essence exist if it did not consist of all its parts ! The analysis of the celebrated axiom of Euclid, as already discussed, shows that all possible parts are reducible to three, neither more nor less ; and parts themselves are only possible by virtue of the triune principle. Assume a thing — it must have parts, or it is no thing. Now, the least number of parts that can be united is two ; but, unless these are connected, it does not constitute one thing ; ovto$, srspos, (rvvexys. The first part proceeds to the second, and these are consummated in the third, and thus consti- tute one essence. In order to obtain the number tivo, the whole essence of Unity must proceed to the second principle, Multitude, and be repeated ; but two ones are more than unity, yet they will ever remain detached, or separate ones, until they are connected into a whole by the third principle, Totality, which adds no additional one, but only connects those already extant, and thus makes one part communicate with the other in such a 110 PREFACE. manner as to consummate their perfection and complete- ness. Annul the triune principle, and you destroy every thing. GOD, therefore, exists only in his TRIUNE ESSENCE. The operative state of the Divine Essence appears, on a casual view, to be very prolific in displaying the triune principle : more particularly having caused a production, this secures its actual existence ; the mind being fully aware that, as there is a work, there must have been an author — ex nihilo nihil Jit. But the specious notion of an Operative Deity is a complete nonentity, unless the triune principle is fully established in the subsisting cause that produced the effect, or it would be an effect without a cause, an absolute impos- sibility. As the axiom of existence formed the foundation and explanation of the first state of the Divine Essence, so, in the present instance, the axiom of causality, as already discussed, will explain, and solve for ever, the operative state of the Deity, which must proceed from the first member, as cause, wholly and entirely to the second member, the effect ; yet nothing is effected until the third member — communication — which adds nothing to these two members, blends and unites them into one entire and complete principle, consisting of three PREFACE. Ill elements, oOroj, erspog, are ONE Person, L Jack Straw, ) I never can be convinced that three Gods are One God ! " This is a sad perversion of the 'personification of principle, and a lamentable proof of the inveteracy of prejudice. I further added that the demand was so gross an absurdity, that none but a madman would propose it — nor, indeed, was such an inconsistency ever attempted to be taught in the "Scriptures." — For Christ says : "The Doctrine I teach is not from myself, but from my Father, who is in heaven ; and it came from him to me, his Son, who now manifest it to you on earth." PREFACE. 123 When we apply the epithet, Father, to our own parent, we merely imply that he is the Author of a being in some respects similar to himself. And, in applying the same expression to the Author of the ivord, the Xoyog, or Reason, we only personify a power, and indicate that this power has made a Being in his own likeness, which personification generates the fol- lowing HOLY TRINITY. God the Father . . . God the Son . . . . God the Holy Ghost The Supreme Reason. The Reason Incarnate. The Spirit of Communion. Can any thing be more rational than this exposition of the sublime primitive, permanent, and necessary, Principle of the Divine Essence ! How consoling and satisfactory to find that the most profound investigation of the Rational Faculty really furnishes results in such perfect harmony with the " Holy Gospel,'* that to doubt the one would be to give up the other ! So that .if we are real " Christians," we may exclaim, in con- viction of the perfect truth of that divine doctrine preached by Jesus — u that God is in us, and we are in him." Under the influence of such a conviction, the highest motive that can actuate man is " reverence for the sanctity and purity of the Moral Law," which is f5 124 PREFACE. implanted in his Reason, and which forms the direct communication between man and his Maker ; and absolute obedience to this Law actually admits us into the holy fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ ; through whose mediation we are earnestly invited to deposit our souls, amended by this sacred course, in that blissful, exalted, and ever-during abode, Heaven ! We hope we have now accomplished our task, and proved the Divinity of Christ, the Rationality of the Atha- nasian Creed, and the truth of the " Holy Trinity/' not only to the entire conviction of the Infidel, the Jew, the Gentile, and the Unitarian, but to the absolute conviction of every being endowed with Reason. The term Unitarian seems to imply one who objects to the Triune Essence of the Deity, as being both incompre- hensible and absurd. But surely, if the arguments here adduced in support and confirmation of this divine doctrine are duly and attentively weighed, such a sect can no longer exist. Then this great and glorious good results : that " Christians" will in future have one firm and indissoluble bond of union — that they all worship "One God in Trinity and Trinity in Unity." I am eternally bound to the reviewers of my work, for affording me this opportunity of enlarging on the PREFACE. 125 arguments of the Introduction to the first edition. Having fully felt the force of the reasoning which produced the results there stated, and to which these leading steps will be found to conduct, I had considered that they would have been generally comprehensible ; but the kind hints of these critics have determined me to go the present length in showing the foundation on which they have been progressively raised in support of the Divarication of the " Scriptures" into Doctrine and History, the solution of the supposed mystery of the " Holy Trinity," and the personification of the three " Holy Persons" of the Godhead; which will, I presume, be perfectly satisfactory to the reflecting mind. Yet, should any doubt as to the legitimacy and accuracy of first principles, from which all the subse- quent reasoning flows, still remain in the mind of the most sceptical critic that ever entered the lists, I have great satisfaction in assuring him — to borrowan expres- sion from another science — that I am so charged with proofs for the support of the principles advanced, that let the doubter only come within the sphere of the influence of my Jar, and he shall receive such a shock as will, for ever, discharge all his doubts. After what has preceded, it would be as absurd to expunge that most perfect, rational, and complete, ex- 126 PREFACE. position of the Triune God, the " Athanasian Creed," from our Liturgy, as it would be impossible to nullify the Omnipotent and Eternal Being, or to deprive him of his Triune Essence. We must ever bear in mind that oneness is noneness : and this fact is the foundation of that ever -memorable AXIOM. The root of ONE is three. Whoever admits that his progenitor was his Father, excludes, for ever, Atheism, and allows the personifica- tion of the Deity as the only possible mode of conversing about Spirits. Who can free himself from this acknow- ledgment ! The curious searcher into the records of man's advances in enlightenment will be able to trace a high veneration for the number three among all mankind, and in all religions \ as well as a never-ceasing effort to unite these three into a mystical one, as far back as the flood. Traces are even now to be witnessed of the gigantic Tri?nurti, or the three-formed God of the Hindoos — Brahma, Vishnu, and Siva — whose colossal figure is still to be seen carved in the solid rock, which constituted a Temple of their worship, in the Island of Elephanta. The Theologian will also confirm the truth of this statement, by proving that a Trinity in Unity PREFACE. 127 is revealed throughout the whole of the " Sacred Volume/' in one uniform, continued course, from the beginning of Genesis to the end of Revelations. In the Old Testament, the following Hebrew words imply this Holy union of Persons, which is designated in the New Testament by the subjoined Greek words : OLD TESTAMENT. NEW TESTAMENT. DTfrtf • • • • God - 0£ ^ • ••• God. . . Uarrjp . . Father. ""Q"T • • • • Word. Aoyog . . . Word. . . 'Yibg. . . . Son. T T ^1 .... Spirit. Tlvev/xa . . Spirit. . . Uvevfia . . Spirit. The happy circumstance of personification enables us to embody things which never can he seen, so that we can converse as freely and as certainly on the peculiar properties of Spirits, which are productions of Reason, as we do at present on the peculiarities of the material objects of nature, which are productions of Sense. All the objects of Reason are necessarily principles, having neither beginning, middle, nor end, and can, therefore, reside only in Eternity. These objects are results of Syllogism, which is itself spiritual or mental. The objects of Sense, on the other hand, must of necessity be material, and consequently be facts, which not only address the senses, have a begin- ning, middle, and end, but could not have existence 128 PREFACE. without a passive faculty to receive their impressions, and can exist only in Time. There can be neither more nor less than three persons in the Divine Essence ; both Reason and Revelation happily unite in one harmo- nious conclusion, fully and perfectly establishing the sublime doctrine of the "Holy, Blessed, and Glorious Trinity 3" and the whole stands or falls together. Where the essence and perfections are the very*same, no inequality can be found. The triune principle is as apparent in every act of creation as in the Creator himself — one undivided and simple essence. We trust we have so firmly established this triune princijile, that no efforts of criticism, no influence of prejudice, can possibly shake this full and perfect proof of the Unity and Plurality of the Godhead as personified by our Saviour. We feel confident, therefore, that the Church will not discard this essential and fundamental truth ; but, on the contrary, will adhere to this sublime doctrine to the end of Time, seeing that it exists in all its perfec- tion in Eternity. This great and important revelation must either be true or not true. Now, if it is true, it must at the same time be rational, or something is true which is irrational, or, in other words, totally unac- countable, which is impossible. If the Divine Being PREFACE. 120 subsists only in one mode or manner, his divine intelli- gence can be exerted only in one way ; then he cannot be omnipotent ; but, if we allow that he subsists in three distinct, not separate, modes, which constitute the three Divine persons, then the Deity may be easily conceived as the Creator, Preserver, and Ruler, of the physical world, and at the same time, by virtue of his Perfect, Infinite, and Sternal, attributes, Sovereign of the entire Kingdom of Spirits, or Supreme in the Moral World ! Nor does this view of the Divine Essence in the least violate the pure idea of the Indi- viduality, Reality, and Necessity, of that adorable and ineffable First Cause ; but on the contrary firmly establishes the truth of that solemn and impressive doctrine — a Blessed "Trinity in Unity." Vast and important, indeed, will be the benefits resulting from the happy solution of a mystery which has defied ages to bring it to a conclusion. In future, speculative points in Religion will be brought to the bar of Reason for decision, instead of being contested by the edge of the sword. If the preceding reasoning proves to be not only correct, but likewise so apparent that future ages will only live to approve and confirm ; then, indeed, have we established this vital principle of 130 PREFACE. Christ's doctrine, not merely with reference to the inhabitants of our own globe — a comparative speck in the vast ocean of space — but proved, to the con- viction of Reason, that, should the countless number of floating worlds, the centres of whose systems we are at present only allowed to see, be blessed with rational inhabitants — these — all these — and all other beings endowed with Reason — nay, Angels themselves — must bow to the Triune Essence of that Deity, who gave his only begotten Son to suffer for our salvation, and who now sits on the right hand of his Father — Almighty God — " whence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead, and they shall all give account of their own works." Thus do we establish for ever, and for all worlds, the everlasting glory of God, through the mediation of his Son, Jesus Christ, our blessed P.edeemer. ^n tfye Crtunc principle, AS CONSTITUTING THE ESSENCE OF THE HUMAN MIND, evinced in its three primitive faculties, SENSE, UNDERSTANDING, REASON. We propose, now, to redeem our pledge of proving that the elements which form the notion of a Triune PREFACE, 131 Essence are coeval with the Human Mind, and actually constitute its very essence ; and that consequently the entire procedure regarding the Holy Trinity will turn out as we predicted — -merely a verbal dispute. Fortu- nately for humanity, our erroneous theories do not in the least alter either principles or facts, as they are originally created by the Almighty \ or our insignificant globe would have long found itself the solid centre of entire creation. Providence had so ordained it, that Copernicus should startle us on this physical point, and suddenly whirl us about with incredible velocity; turning every thing topsyturvy, alarming the prejudices of all the inhabitants of the earth, and endangering his own safety. Indeed, so inveterate were the pious servants of God on that occasion, that, had his life been prolonged, the Vicegerent of Christ would have placed this honest and sincere astronomer in the bonds of the Inquisition, to endure Earthly torture for the discovery of this Heavenly truth, which has made a complete revolution in science. The progress of enlightenment has since precluded the repetition of such barbarous proceedings, with a view to promote the service of God. How much better to enlighten the mind generally, and thus make m the author of the Code of Moral Laws Revealed to us by Jesus, and commands our unconditional obedience to these laws if we value our Salvation. Here nothing is uncertain, nothing doubtful : (c Thou shalt not lie," whatever may be the consequence. So strong, so true, so indelibly engraven on our hearts, is this law, that we stand conscience-struck at every transgression. Thus we perceive that our immortal Soul is a thing of absolute worth — a final end — nay, the very Scope of Creation. It is a thing of such intrinsic value and high importance, that it may not be disposed of at our will and pleasure ; so that we cannot do as we will with our own, if we obey the Moral Law. Let any one con- template suicide — making a false promise — or practising any deceit — and ask the approval of his conscience ; he will soon find that every thing in the Practical field is absolutely and unalterably determined. The reason of this is plain. These principles refer to and reside in Eternity with the eternal Soul which they are framed to govern. RATIONAL BELIEF ACTUAL KNOWLEDGE is is principle. fact. h5 172 PREFACE. Since the momentous and fundamental principles of Religion are thus suddenly transformed into axioms in the " Sacred Science," may we not confidently pre- dict the safe and rapid progress that must follow this happy discovery — in awakening religious sentiments in the infantile mind, and acquainting it with the vastness of its ultimate destination. Religious Educa- tion will now proceed on the safe and sure path of Science. It can no longer be a question whether the child is first to be instructed in the dogmas of Catho- licism, or at once initiated into the pure precepts of Primitive Christianity. In this Science, as in all other pure sciences, we are not left to a vague and uncertain choice of procedure ; but are constrained to commence with the sacred axioms: the Existence of God — the Immortality of the Soul — a Future State ; and, from these incontrovertible points, to develop the entire "Science of Religion, "establishing on scientific grounds that perfect Code of Moral precepts revealed to us in the (( Sacred Volume" by Jesus Christ, which at once preserves them from cavil, and assures us, that if we renounce that " Book" there is no other means of salvation : for that " Book" contains the " Sacred Science," the Word of God! — Will not the rising PREFACE. 173 generation have good cause to applaud the indefatigable perseverance of their predecessors in the successful investigation of the prime instrument of thought, the human mind, when scientific Truth stands boldly forward, and assures them that the " Divine Reve- lation" of our Saviour points out the only road to Salvation, and that, according to common Sense, cultivated Reason, and the u Sacred Science," there can be no other ! Hence all departure from the " Sacred Book," all disputation on its contents, and all petty divisions into sects, can only arise from incautiously confounding the History with the Doctrine, which the invaluable discoveries in mental science have enabled us in the present work completely and for ever to separate. No doubt whatever can now remain in the mind of man, which is his pre-eminent part — his Soul or his Body — the fleeting visions and fluctuating impressions of Sense, or the permanent and eternal laws of Reason — the facts that occur on earth which, when recorded, are denominated History, and are properly enough termed the Word of Man — or the principles, which are the spiritual things of heaven, and, being purified from the dregs of every thing earthly, constitute a Doctrine which is indeed the Word of God. How superior Faith is to Knowledge must now 174 PREFACE. be more than evident to the least reflective mind. Knowledge is founded on the evanescent impressions of Sense, while Faith — " the belief in things unseen " — is inherent in Reason. We have already displayed the elements of Knoivledge ; we will now show the mental elements of Belief: belief of reason. Conception -\- Idea -f Connexion = Spiritual Nature. Spirits are the offspring of Reason. How applicable, then, are the laws of the Soul, which is of a pure spiritual nature, to the laws of virtue, with which they are so congenial ! What we call Knowledge and consider so very certain is really no more than a combination of Sensations to which Understanding has given forms, and thus constituted them so many intelligible objects — Intuition — 'phenomenon — a mere mental procedure depending upon some Cause out of the mind — noumenon; whereas, in Rational Belief the whole procedure is entirely mental, and requires no foreign aid. It springs up from the very nature of Reason itself, and, like mathematical figures, is the same in the mind of a Peasant as in that of a Newton, if formed at all. Some minds are more cultivated than others ; but no mind can make a circle that is not round. So with Faith : some minds may have studied the subject more diligently PREFACE. 175 than others \ yet all minds are susceptible of equal advancement, or the enlightened only would inherit the kingdom of heaven. This scientific Faith is, with regard to Conviction, precisely on the same footing as the mathematics — both are built on Syllogisms. The marked distinction between Belief and Knowledge may be made very apparent, thus : BELIEF KNOWLEDGE arises from arises from REASON, SENSE, and is wholly and entirely •produced by and has its matter given to and its form the Mind. produced by the Mind. Conception -\- Idea + Connexion = Sensation -f- Conception + Connexion = Belief, Knowledge, which constitutes which constitutes PRINCIPLE. FACT. The laws of Reason, which are the laws of Virtue, furnish a Code for the regulation of the motives of our actions. Motives belong to the Soul, which resides in Eternity, and which, being of an infinite nature, requires infinite laws for its government. Actions, on the other hand, appertain to the Body, which occupies Time, and, being of a finite nature, requires finite laws for its regulation. As the laws of Sense and Under- standing are strictly confined to the arrangement of matter, and are consequently called the laws of physical or material nature, so the pure spiritual laws of Reason 1?6 PREFACE. regard the disposition of spirit, and must be considered as the laws of Heaven or of Virtue. The laws of Sense — TIME and SPACE — when applied to Sensation, consti- tute material nature ; the laws of Understanding — the Categories — are the formal laws of nature when in contact with Sensation. These very same laws, when abstracted from Sensation, constitute the pure mathematics ; con- sequently, nature is a compound of pure mathematical form and Sensation, which constitutes its matter. It is a well known fact, that pure mathematics are entirely free from Sensation ; consequently, the Cate- gories, which are the essence of these pure intellectual forms, must be quite distinct from the forms of Sense — TIME and SPACE. Out of these pure mental essences — the Categories — Reason constructs its ideas, which of course must be still further removed from Sensation. To what can these laws of Pure Reason apply if not to Spirits! As Sense and Understanding conjointly constitute nature from given matter — Sensation ; so Reason, from the intellectual essences of Under- standing — the Categories — constructs the ideas of the entire world of Spirits. It is the office of Practical Reason to form a code of laws for the government of the Soul, with the moral law, as revealed by Jesus Christ, at their head; and it is the business of Specu- PREFACE. 177 lative Reason to free man from the instinct of animals, by giving a far greater scope to the laws of nature than is assigned to the bees and the beavers ; thus conferring on man the entire dominion over nature, which directly confirms the "Revelation" of Moses, who says : "Thou shalt have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth." The constituent principles of the Human Mind, which have been here introduced expressly for the purpose of proving the truth of our assertion — that every thought, word, or deed, conceived, uttered, or executed, by man is bottomed upon the Triune Principle, have indeed been eminently successful in accomplishing their object. Not an atom of any one of these elements departs from this law ; but, on the contrary, confirms it for ever. So that from the minutest conceivable particle of Time to the most comprehensive and overwhelming idea capable of being formed by the Mind of man — the Triune Deity himself — all confirms, corroborates, and sub- stantiates, the everlasting truth of a Trinity in Unity. The glorious result of this reasoning, particularly as regards the supremacy of the Soul over the Body, must awaken in the mind sentiments of the deepest interest. 178 PREFACE. Of what avail are the transient gratifications of Sense and their contracted span, in comparison with the im- mutable and everduring principles of Reason : So strong is the comparison between the corruptible and contingent, which occupy Time, and the necessary and incorruptible, which reside in Eternity, that, were the whole material world and all that exists in Time for ever swept away and totally annihilated, yet not one essence of all geometrical figures, nor of all spiritual existences — which never can enter Time, but reside for ever among the universal and the necessary — in Eternity — could receive the slightest injury from the destruction of that impure matter which never could approach the sacred and holy abode of Spirits. What is all this world of vanities and its alluring pleasures % What their sum and substance here below ? A dream forgotten, or a bubble burst. But what says the dying Jesus! — "Believe in me, and ye shall never die." RESURRECTION ! — that cheering word relieves my anxious Soul, and tells of joys yet to come, whose very duration can only be measured by Eternity. Eternity ! — pleasing yet awful thought ! Here the secrets of all hearts are disclosed, every artifice laid bare. What comfort, then, in carrying an upright conscience to the awful presence, and relying on the mercy of Him who PREFACE. 179 has placed us in this world of trial, to prove our claim to brighter realms ! With what joy shall I look up when I behold my salvation drawing near ! Now, even now, my Soul clings to my Redeemer, who has inter- ceded for all mankind, and promised forgiveness to the truly penitent, and assured us of the benign Grace of our Heavenly Father ! Thus has this faculty, which God has made to declare his own glory, fully borne out our assertion — that the Divine Author of the Human Mind is not even conceivable by his own offspring under any other form than the Triune Principle. Sense, the mere passive faculty of the Mind, declares this truth in the face of day, by showing that its two receivers, TIME and SPACE, must for ever stand in necessary connexion, or the Faculty is annihilated. Understanding, with its twelve Categories — this active power of uniting Sensations into intelligible objects — with its host of Triads, leaves us speechless at this matchless truth. Finally, Reason, with its infinite series of boundless Triads, consummates the whole, and puts to shame every attempt to impugn the Triune Principle. We have now performed our promise, by showing that the three original and primitive Faculties of the Mind — Sense, Understanding, Reason — stand forth for ever in confirmation of this never-to-be- 180 PREFACE. controverted truth — a Trinity in Unity : and that it is absolutely impossible either to think, to talk, or to act, without involving this principle. Consequently, the thought of oneness is both contradictory and absurd, for it is a noneness, or a complete nonentity. We may now assuredly affirm that the whole dispute on this vital principle of the " Christian Religion ■' is merely a verbal controversy. The Faculties of the Mind, with all their triune elements, may be conveniently exhibited at one view thus : THE MIND. SENSE. 2 RECEPTIVITIES UNDERSTANDING. 12 CATEGORIES. QUANTITY. Unity, Multitude, Totality. QUALITY. RELATION. Reality, Substance and Accident, Negation, Cause and Effect, Limitation. Action and Reaction. MODALITY Possibility, Existence, Necessity. REASON. Absolute Totality. 6 IDEAS. Absolute Absolute Limitation. Substance, Absolute Cause, Absolute Concurrence. Absolute Necessity. RESULTS. INTUITION, CONCEPTION, IDEA, present in absent in out of Time and Space. Time and Space. Time and Space PREFACE. 181 We cannot but be forcibly struck on beholding only three results as the primitive effects of the three original faculties of the Mind ; and, the very instant the Mind begins to think at all, these results spring up, and are occupied in the process of thought, in the following manner. When Sense is affected by something distinct from the mind, a Sensation is generated, which, being immediately arranged under the Categories of Under- standing, becomes an intelligible object. This pro- cedure bears the name of Intuition, while we are in the actual state of Sensation ; but that of Conception when the object is withdrawn, and we refer only to its mental image. While we are viewing an object of nature — a rose — it is an Intuition ; the recollection of this flower is a Conception. Thus the combination of Intuition and Conception constitutes nature in its only two references of present or absent. Intuition -j- Conception -f- Connexion = Nature. This procedure is entirely limited to TIME and SPACE; and objects, in order to be knoivn, must not only exist within these limits but must also be finite. For the finite cannot grasp the infinite. Thus under the terms of Intuition and Conceptioyi we have entirely exhausted nature. 182 PREFACE. Nature, however, could not make itself, but must have a Cause, and this Cause may — nay, must — be infinite, or it could not accomplish its design. But where shall we find such a vast and supreme power ? Surely not among the finite objects of nature, which are its own Effects. It would, indeed, be a gross perversion of thought to confound the Effect with the Cause. In Time, therefore, we cannot hope to find the Cause of the things which inhabit this sphere, much less the Cause of Time itself. Hence we are constrained to place this Cause in Eternity, and express this infinite and omnipotent Power by the term Idea. A bare inspec- tion of the Diagram will render this notion of Infinite Cause luminously conspicuous, and show the propriety of the definition — that Idea is out of TIME and SPACE. TheTRiuNE Principle is here also powerfully evinced in the Relation of the Cause to its Production. Creator -\- Creation -j- Relation = Universe. The three primitive Results of the sublime instrument of thought— the Mind— must never be confounded with each other; and their definitions are so absolutely distinct and so completely determined that the one can never run into the other. They are such essential ingredients in all thinking that they cannot be too fully PREFACE. 183 displayed : they arise from their original sources in the following order. SENSE UNDERSTANDING REASON makes makes makes TUITIONS. CONCEPTIONS. IDEAS. It is useless to deny a truth ; for, from whatever side we view it, its evidence becomes stronger, and it is sure to confront us at last. Though the dispute regarding the Triune Essence of the Divinity has lasted for so many centuries, we must now, in all candour, acknow- ledge that it is brought to a happy and final termination. The three results of the thinking Faculty — Intuition? Conception, Idea — stare us in the face, and exclaim — "We are a necessary and indispensable Triad; we enter into the very constitution of all human knowledge, and without us there can be neither knowledge, thought, nor reasoning." Annul either of the essences of this triad, which are the results of mental activity, and the Mind is destroyed : take away Intuition, and the mind cannot connect its Sensations ; destroy Concep- tion — it cannot think ; remove Idea — it ceases to reason. We have already shown that each of these results is a triad in itself, and their sum total is also a triad. Therefore, in order to be consistent, we are con- 1 84 PREFACE. strained to retain this triad with the same pertinacity that we adhere to the necessity of three lines to com- pose a triangle — neither more nor less. Thus we have established the TRIUNE PRINCIPLE. We are not so vain-glorious as to pretend to enume- rate the endless and inconceivable benefits that will naturally flow from this right use of Reason ; nor, indeed, can we conceive it possible that the latest pos- terity will ever be able to do justice to the merits of this inexhaustible mine of intellectual wealth, the Mind, which first becomes conscious of its existence in the finite sphere of Time, but expands and perpetuates itself in the infinite region of Eternity. The Mind ! that offset of Deity — when first planted in the garden of Time, bads forth in infancy, blossoms in manhood, fructifies in death, when it is transplanted into the soil of Eternity, where it matures its fruit to its own ever- lasting satisfaction, nourishing itself on the never-fading joys which it has stored up in its progress, and where, amidst enraptured seraphs, it sings the praises of its great Creator. We will nevertheless attempt a feeble display of our mighty wisdom, by showing at least one powerful benefit PREFACE. 185 resulting from the unrivalled discovery of the TWENTY elements of the Human Mind. The Conviction of the truth and divinity of the " Christian Religion " will go hand in hand with the development of Reason, till it has reached the climax predicted by its Divine Founder — the only true and sole religion for all rational beings, not merely confined to that insignificant speck in the vast ocean of creation, our earth, but the pure, perfect, and permanent " Religion " of all rational Spirits, in all their infinite and diversified grades up to the very Throne of God ! Here we defy refutation, and challenge the detection of any hidden fallacy. Thus by treating " Religion" as a Science, and making Faith stronger and more firm than Knowledge — however overpowering these splendid truths may appear to finite capacities, yet they sufficiently vouch for the veracity of our prognostication. Reason is legislative in the kingdom of God ! This basis of Morality is the author of its own principles, and commands the man of Sense to approach the judgment-seat of Reason. Here the supreme judge, Conscience, that spirit of truth promised by our Saviour — the Comforter — pronounces sentence upon the man of Sense, and either acquits or condemns him, according 186 PREFACE. as the action merits. Thus we render an account of our deeds to the Knower of Hearts. How can we con- template with sufficient awe and reverence that Being who created us and endowed us with Reason, not only as the means of knowing all our Duties, but also to show us when we transgress and when we do our duty. This contemplation leads the Mind naturally to the idea of " Religion/' and proves that it is the duty of man to have "Religion." I cannot better conclude these reflections on Reason than by repeating some of the lucubrations which I addressed to my countrymen some twenty years since on this highly important view of the Rational Faculty. " Having effectually clipped the wings of Speculative Reason, and thus for ever prevented it from ranging about and losing itself among unattainable objects, and amusing itself with sophisms and contradictions ; and having firmly established the supremacy of Practical Reason, we find ourselves in possession of the following glorious results : the existence of God — the immortality of the Soul — the Freedom of the Will — a Future State — the only True Religion — a perfect System of Morals — and, lastly, the elevating conviction that man is the final end and Scope of Creation." PREFACE. 187 It must ever be remembered that Speculative Reason strives after the greatest systematic unity of all our Knowledge; and that Practical Reason strives after the greatest unity and consistency among our Desires. <&n tty Crturte principle, AS CONSTITUTING THE ESSENCE OF THE JUDGING FACULTY. After the proofs we have already adduced in support of our assertion that the Triune Principle forms the foundation of all thinking, it seems almost superfluous to proceed further on the subject. Yet there may be minds so superficial as not to penetrate below the surface, and content to take appearance for truth. Even these, if they think at all, must exert the Judging Faculty ; it may be well, therefore, to convince them that they cannot judge of the most trifling thing in nature without confirming all we have stated regarding the Triune Principle. The first essential ingredient in judging is to have something to judge of — and this is called the subject in the judgment. All thinking, judging, and acting, are vain, not to say impossible, without objects. Hence i 188 PREFACE. the absolute necessity of something to judge of. Logic is perfectly indifferent as to whence the objects come, or how they are produced, so long as they are present when it exercises its functions. It may, therefore, be well called a " dogmatical science" which assumes that the things are as they appear. This is, indeed, not penetrating below the surface. Thus, when I strike my head against a stone wall, I determine that the object is in fact, as denominated, a stone wall, per se. It has, however, long since been settled by science that the pain we feel is wholly in the mind and not at all in the object; that sounds, colours, and so forth, are merely Sensations in the mind : carry this reasoning one step farther, and the truth is disclosed. Say that all we know of the things which surround us is only Sensation, and our famed stone wall will turn out to be merely a mental object — INTUITION. All the objects of nature, in spite of this dogmatic Science, will, therefore, prove to be INTUITIONS, and these constitute the subject in all judgments of experience. In order to form a judgment it is not sufficient to have a subject ; we must also assert something re- specting it; that is, either affirm or deny it to be PREFACE. 189 heavy or lights thick or thin, black or white, and so on ; this is called attributing a predicate to a subject. The nature of this predicate is worthy of investigation. In all judgments of Experience, the predicate indicates some quality that we either affirm or deny of the sub- ject. Now, the subject, being the thing — INTUITION — judged of, our purpose is to distinguish it from other objects by some peculiar quality — as a red rose, or a white rose. Here the INTUITION, rose being the subject, it is quite clear that red or white is not the thing, but merely the distinctive quality. For instance, the notion, red, is not confined to the individual rose under consideration, but refers to all red things in nature. But, as we cannot experience all red things, we are constrained to conceive them ; so that the pre- dicate is a CONCEPTION. We are now most certainly in possession of two very essential ingredients for forming a judgment : the subject and the predicate— INTUITION and CONCEPTION. These are, indeed, the matter of a judgment, as the bricks are the materials for forming a house. Yet, another very essential part, without which we should neither have a house to live in nor be able to form a judgment, that is, the cement, the junction, the union, i2 190 PREFACE. the connexion — that bane of philosophical reasoning — is yet a desideratum. This stumbling-block, which has occasioned so much controversy, we trust we have now for ever removed, by showing that connexion is just as necessary to compose one thing as it is necessary that that thing should have parts. The one without the other is impossible. So that, like the three lines of a triangle, we may think them apart ; but, the moment we really take away one line, the triangle is annihilated. Thus we have proved to absolute Conviction that the Triune Principle forms the foundation of all judging and of all thinking. The ot>ro§, erspos, o-vvsxw, is here still further proved, in case what has preceded should have failed. In the Science of Logic, the name given to this connexion is copula; hence a judgment consists of three necessary constituent parts : Subject, Predicate, and Copula. The subject and predicate constitute the matter ; the copula is the form of the judgment, because it determines how the materials are to be arranged — whether affirmatively or negatively. It may now be asked what indicates the necessary connexion between INTUITION and CONCEPTION so as only to com- pose one thing. The solution of this apparent difficulty PREFACE. 191 is the key to the " Philosophy of Mind," and at the same time furnishes a full demonstration of the truth of the Triune Principle. We clearly perceive that there is a great difference between the extent of the subject and predicate. The rose for instance bears no comparison whatever with the extent of the red colour spread over the objects of nature. Now this difference in extent is expressed by the term sphere, and in all judgments the sphere of the predicate exceeds that of the subject. The rose, however, is an INTUITION, and the red colour is a CONCEPTION. Having determined that the sphere of the Conception is uniformly greater than that of the Intuition, the difficulty instantly vanishes when we see that the Intuition is comprehended under the Conception ; and this act in "Transcendental Phi- losophy " is equivalent to the copula in Logic ; thus : Subject -j- Copula -J- Predicate = Judgment. Intuition -|- Connexion -f- Conception = Knowledge. Rose ~\- ' is -{- Red = Red Rose. The proofs of the Triune Principle are actually overpowering. We cannot even speak of the most trivial thing in nature without evincing the presence of this eternal and everpervading principle. In only remarking on the colour of a rose, we find that this 192 PREFACE. principle is involved. On beholding a " stone wall" we find it again. But we have determined that the stone wall is an INTUITION, that is, merely a mental representation, which can exist only in the mind. INTUITION, which is the matter of Knowledge, is quite meanless till it is placed under a CONCEPTION, which gives it an intelligible/orm, and in fact constitutes it Knowledge. The mental process of comprehending the INTUITION under the CONCEPTION may well be called connecting the one with the other — the otfroc, hspog, (rvvs%y$y or the very essence of the "Triune Principle." INTUITION without CONCEPTION is matter without form ; the converse is too apparent which is form without matter. Both these cases are not only absurd but impossible. Hence the necessity of the absolute conjunction of INTUITION and CONCEPTION to produce the most common object of Knowledge. It must always be remembered that when the object is present — as this book — it is called an INTUITION ; but when it is out of sight it is not out of mind, for the recollected image of the absent book is a CONCEPTION. It is so strikingly evident that Sensations can only exist in the sentient being that we need not attempt a PREFACE. 193 laboured proof of so notorious a fact. If Sensations can exist only in the mind, though evidently produced by something distinct from the mind, it is quite absurd to suppose that INTUITION, which is a mere com- pound of Sensations, can be out of the mind. Yet this inevitable illusion pervades all minds that are not deeply imbued with " Mental Philosophy/' It is how- ever high time to expose this appalling hindrance to all real enlightenment — this dead stop to all intellectual advancement. In the preceding example, that cluster of Sensations, which we call a rose, is wholly in the mind, and the very matter of all the Knowledge we have of nature is actually — INTUITION. The science of "Logic'' is bond fide, and really the author of this inveterate prejudice. This Science is so careless and unconcerned whence it obtains its objects, or of what they are composed, so long as it finds objects at hand on which to exercise its functions, that in all cases it assumes that they are, in fact, as they appear. This fatal error has kept the world chained down in utter darkness and degrading ignorance from the Creation. Yet bright Spirits, like gems, have occa- sionally bespangled this profound gloom. Appearance would send the glorious orb of day round our insigni- 194 PREFACE. ficant globe : Reason at length has vanquished this absurdity, and restored things to order. Appearance would place stone walls, fortified castles, rivers, trees, continents, and oceans, out of the mind : Reason will not have it so. What !— INTUITIONS out of a mind ! Whoever seriously insists upon this must indeed be out of his mind ! What ! — Sensatio?is out of the Sentient ! Surely when we converse about these objects of nature, we only describe the various clusters and combinations of Sensation which we falsely — through inattention — consider out of the mind. But most certainly all we say about these things can only be what we know of them — and where can knowledge be if not in the mind? Certainly, no where ! Reason now thinks it high time to correct this error, and to prove that, as INTUITION is the matter of Knowledge, it must also be in the mind. Having thus finally settled that the matter of Know- ledge — INTUITION — is in the mind, we will now proceed to investigate the form of Knowledge. Here, indeed, we shall be forcibly struck with the bright effulgence of a light that has shone forth in modern days — ay, even to eclipse that splendid ray which showed the great parent of light to be stationary. PREFACE. 195 Providence is ever dispensing its goodness by sending forth superior Souls to exert their influence for pro- gressive enlightenment. In the present instance of its benignity, what thanks, what gratitude, what admira- tion, can equal the magnitude and importance of the boon conferred — a complete "revelation" of the entire fabric of the "Human Mind," and the perfect esta- blishment of its TWENTY ELEMENTS ! — Without this desideratum, the form of Knowledge, as hereto- fore, must have remained in impenetrable darkness, only to perplex the anxious inquirer after truth. But now he sees his way most clearly ; he is now furnished with a chart and compass ; and may safely steer his devious course amid the rocks and quicksands which are so plenteously strewed, though hidden, in the seas of speculation, and yet avoid all these dangers. This " Transcendent Science " defines form to be the arrangement of the parts of matter, which, in common parlance, is called giving a shape, as connecting or placing the bricks into a square, or composing an Apollo of plaster of Paris. In Knowledge, we shall have to consider form under two distinct points of view. First, INTUITIONS must have a form or mode of being, which is grounded in the nature of Sense, and i5 196 PREFACE. is either that of extension or succession, their matter always being Sensation. INTUITIONS can only constitute the matter of Knowledge when they are comprehended under CONCEPTIONS, which give them an intelligible form. Hence the necessity of analysing Conception, in order precisely to determine the nature of an intelligible form. Now, the form of every thing in nature has the pro- perties of Quantity, Quality, Relation, Modality. A thing without these essential requisites is, in fact, no thing. To determine what Quantity of things — INTUITIONS — are present, we are quite sure they must be included in the Triad — One, Many, All. Precisely to settle the Quality of the objects under consideration, we are equally certain that they must be included in the Triad — Reality, Negation, Limi- tation : for we can only pronounce the objects before us to be real things of nature — INTUITIONS — when we can assign to them definite limits ; that is, be sure they are not illusions : this, however, can only be done by negations. Lastly, in order to state positively what sort of thing — INTUITION — is before us, it must assuredly stand under the only three possible relations that connect all the objects — INTUITIONS — of nature, PREFACE. 197 under the Triad — Substance and Accident, Cause and Effect, Action and Reaction. This at first may appear a somewhat complicated process ; but the mind accom- plishes it as quick as thought, for it is the very essence of thinking, though neither sufficiently known nor accurately attended to. Thus, when I think of a rose in general, it is a CONCEPTION, comprehending all the variety of roses in the world ; but, when I pluck a particular rose, this is an INTUITION, or one that is included in the first Triad as to Number, and having certain properties and qualities comprised in the second triad as to Degree ; and, lastly, it stands under every member of the third triad, first as being a subsisting rose, which fills Space and occupies Time, and thus while present is Permanent 5 secondly, as being pro- duced by the rose-bush, it is the Effect of a Cause, and thus evanescent or Successive; finally, while held in the hand, it has its place in space fully Determined by the reaction of the hand, otherwise it would fall to the ground. This process is called giving an intelli- gibleform to the INTUITION, or placing the particular rose under the CONCEPTION, and thus constituting it a knowable object. We now say — " I know it is a rose." 198 PREFACE, It must be obvious that these are the self-same "Cate- gories" employed in a former chapter to construct the objects of nature. To this circumstance Logic, how- ever, pays no regard. Finding so many original notions stored up in the mind, it makes no scruple to employ them, without inquiring whence they came ; but it instantly uses these triads as so many CONCEPTIONS, which it predicates of the INTUITIONS, on which it exerts its judging functions. These CONCEPTIONS are the most general forms of natural objects ; that is, the manner in which INTUITIONS are connected, in order to render them intelligible objects, or they are the most general CONCEPTIONS under which natural objects can be classed. When the i( Catego- ries " are employed to construct the objects of nature, this process is called the Constitutive use of Under- standing ; but, when merely employed to classify the objects already constructed, it is termed the Regulative use of Understanding. The INTUITION, rose, being thus not only fully constructed, but absolutely determined as to Quantity, Quality, and Relation, it only remains now to show the mode of its existence, under the Triad of — being in any time, in a certain time, or in all time — that is, whether the rose is PREFACE. 199 Possible, Actual, or Necessary. Here we have no difficulty in determining the case; for, holding the rose in our hand we are sure that it is an actual rose, and must be classed among existing things in the triad — Modality. Logic, finding these twelve original CONCEPTIONS ready prepared in the mind, does not hesitate to make use of this compound of triads, and to erect them into twelve Primitive Judgments, which it also arranges under the four heads of Quantity, Quality, Relation, Modality, in distinct triads, precisely corresponding with the original triads which constitute the Under- standing. Though this perfect set of triads was collected and arranged by Aristotle, more than three centuries before the birth of our " Saviour,'' yet the roots from which they spring — the Categories — were not unfolded to us till within the last half century. The remarkable coincidence that exists between each Category and its corresponding Judgment is so striking as to require no further proof of their correctness. The Categories, however, are not left to this slender proof of their truth and completeness : they carry with them an internal Conviction of their absolute perfection ; of the total impossibility of dispensing with any one 200 PREFACE. of them, changing their order, or either augmenting or diminishing their number. This set of triads, therefore, stands forth triumphantly in proof of our assertion that the Triune Principle is coeval with the human mind, for it constitutes its very essence. The attempt to prove the absolute completeness of Aristotle's Judgments has been a very favourite occu- pation with the learned for many successive centuries. The erudition which has been bestowed on this fasci- nating investigation is almost incredible. Yet this perfect set of triads has never undergone any change — nay, when a truth or a 'principle is discovered the more it is investigated the stronger becomes the Conviction of it. How, then, can it undergo a change ! The principle of circularity must have been as perfect in the mind of Adam — if he ever conceived a circle — as at the present day ; and it can never change, so long as a human mind exists to form the CONCEPTION of a circle. So much for the accuracy of Aristotle's set of triads, or the twelve original principles of Judgmeyit. The twelve Categories, which are the aborigines, the primitive roots, the first principles, whence all nature springs — as well as the twelve original Judg- ments of Aristotle — must be absolutely capable of PREFACE. 201 producing, from their own pure nature, a conviction of their truth, so complete and overpowering as to defy all controversy : for, showing them to be principles, we at once stamp them as self-evident and necessary truths, inhabiting the infinite abode of Eternity, where error cannot exist. It v/ill be extremely interesting to see each of these Judgments growing up from its original root — " Category" — and to trace the strong affinity that subsists between them, so that the correct- ness of the long-proved table of Judgments seems, as it were, to establish the truth of the twelve original prin- ciples of intellect, which, however, do not in the least stand in need of this extraneous support, but carry with them a full conviction of their own all-perfect com- pleteness *. This absolute completeness of the Cate- gories does not in the least diminish the interest we feel in tracing the happy coincidence which occurs when truth meets truth. For this purpose we shall so arrange the table of "Categories" and the table of Judgments that on mere inspection the whole of this captivating * The whole of this procedure is formally proved and fully demon- strated in a treatise on " Logic " — which I published about twenty years since, with illustrative plates — in which the supremacy of Moral Belief, or the " Conviction of Reason," over Knowledge is also established — in the Encyclop/edia Londinensis, V T ol. XIII., page 12, Art. Logic. 202 PREFACE. similarity must be quite apparent, for it must be evident to the least reflective mind that each Judgment has originated from its primitive root, Category ; thus : JUDGMENTS of UNDERSTANDING, ARISING FROM THE APPLICATION OF THE CATEGORIES to the THINGS OF NATURE. QUANTITY. Unity, Multitude, Totality. QUANTITY. 12 CATEGORIES. QUALITY. RELATION. MODALITY. Reality, Substance and Accident, Possibility, Negation, Cause and Effect, Existence, Limitation. Action and Reaction. Necessity. Singular, Particular, Universal. 12 JUDGMENTS. QUALITY. RELATION. MODALITY. Affirmative, Categorical, Problematical, Negative, Hypothetical, Assertorical, Infinite. Disjunctive. Apodictical. Now the secret is out, why the identically same objects are considered under two very distinct points of view : "Logically" as objects of nature, per se, or as totally independent and absolutely distinct from ourselves ; "Transcendentally ,, as objects, phenomena, wholly and entirely constructed by the human mind PREFACE. 203 from given matter, Sensation, produced by a Cause, noumenon, distinct from the mind. Our rose, for in- stance, "Transcendentally" considered, is not a thing in itself, per se,hx\i merely an INTUITION, a phenomenon, in fact, a mere appearance, composed of matter given to the mind, Sensation, and comprehended under the twelve "Categories;" thus constituting it an intelligible object, and being both in TIME and SPACE a decided object of nature, under the name — INTUITION — or mental representation. This identically self- same rose, "Logically" considered, is a distinct object of nature, per se, wholly independent of ourselves, and having the self- same existence whether perceived or not. In this assumption lies the logical illusion. To assert that the rose, which is merely a cluster of Sen- sations, can exist in its present appearance out of a mind, is to affirm that Seyisations can exist out of the Sentient — totally absurd, and sheer nonsense ! What ! a Sensation where sensations cannot exist ! — worse than madness ! Now, indeed, we have detected the false tricks which Logic has practised on ignorant man — making him fancy that his own notions are objects distinct from his own mind — a more palpable absurdity than converting inanimate matter into t /miking mind. 204 PREFACE. Science, however, has at length set this matter at rest. We willingly grant to Logic the privilege of employing its own phraseology in its own way, provided it permits a more profound "Science" to translate this language so as to prevent all misconception. The astronomer is not annoyed by the unscientific language of every almanac, which states that the sun rises at such an hour and sets at such an hour, though this luminary is all the while stationary ; the illusion being- produced merely by our diurnal motion. The Logician, that is to say, the fireside philosopher, who never penetrates below the surface, will find his end fully answered in this loose phraseology, as it is the ordinary language of the world; and, indeed, it is very convenient, provided he does not impugn the more Scientific ter- minology of the Transcendentalist, who merely, with the privilege allowed to the astronomer and the chemist, translates these vulgarisms into the terms of his own vocabulary. Though common salt is dignified with the high epithet of muriate of soda, yet no confusion ensues. So, with our stone ivall, it hits just as hard when called INTUITION, and " that which we call a rose By any other name would smell as sweet." PREFACE. 205 Thus we have two distinct languages — the language of Science and the language of the world — and yet all this without causing the least confusion. It would, indeed, be a pity to disturb the quiet possession of this harmless i treasure, merely to produce a lengthened phrase, but no real benefit : as, for instance, to say, " I shall depart at sunrise and return at sunset." So, indeed, it would be equally inconvenient, in asking for the book that lies on yonder slab, to use such distressing technics as — " Pray give me that INTUITION, comprehended under the CONCEPTION, which constitutes it Know- ledge, commonly called a volume of Shakspeare; or to request that lady to pass the muriate of soda" — The nature of the two Sciences will have two distinct languages : let nature then have her way — disturb nothing, but know all — and let each revel in the delight of his own fancied happiness. The "Philosophy of Mind," as a pure and strict Science, will have its own peculiar dialect ; and, being of a Constitutive nature, it must wholly construct our rose from matter given to the mind. The first im- pressions from an external Cause — noumenon — are received by Sense in its two mental receivers, TIME and SPACE, which impart the laws of Succession and 206 PREFACE. Extension to the Sensation. Here end the effects of the Passive part of the mind — giving the form to the matter, as the mould communicates its shape to the wax. Understanding then commences its Active operations, by arranging this matter under the twelve Categories. The cluster of sensations which compose our rose is perfectly destitute of meaning prior to this subsumption, which takes place in the following order. First, the rose is a unity, being one object ; having many leaves, or parts, it is a multitude : these, being circumscribed by an outline, constitute it a totality. Here ends the operation of the first Triad. — The rose certainly addresses our senses while present, and must be considered as a reality. This is only possible by its being surrounded by negation. For, if we could not affirm that which is rose and deny that which is no rose, it could not be a knowable object : this very circum- stance produces limitation. This concludes the opera- tions of the second Triad. — But the rose, while we are looking at it, lasts in time and is permanent in space ; thus it is a substance, having accidents, that is, peculiar properties, which distinguish it from other objects. It was not always a rose, for I saw it a bud ; then it has blown on the tree, and is the effect of a cause. But PREFACE. 207 I hold it in my hand, which determines its place in space ; for the reaction of my hand counteracts the action of gravity. This terminates the operations of the third constitutive Triad. Now, then, we have absolutely constructed a rose from given Sensations, merely, though unconsciously, by the operation of these Nine active powers. This process will be best proved by analysing any — nay, every — object of nature, for we definitively pronounce that not to be an object of nature which does not consist of the joint produce of these nine constitutive powers. Try the human Soul, for instance; though its existence never can be doubted, yet it will not rank under the " Categories." Hence it is no object of material nature in Time, but a pure, perfect, and immaterial Spirit residing in Eternity. Transcendentally, we have constructed the rose from given Sensations, and thus constituted it one of the objects of nature. There is still another operation to be performed, that is, to determine how the rose belongs to nature. Objects may form part of nature, like the inhabitants of the moon, without our knowing whether they exist or not. But, as the thought con- tains no contradiction, it proves its possibility. With regard to our rose, the case is very clear ; for, as we 208 PREFACE. hold it in the hand, that proves its actual existence. Nothing, however, can exist which is not possible ; neither can it do otherwise than exist while it is present; and this proves its necessity. This final determination of the mode of existence of objects of nature is the last operation of the last Triad of Understanding. What Sense and Understanding have done in the construction of material nature, Reason accomplishes with regard to immaterial nature, that is, the Kingdom of Spirits. Here, however, a most striking difference must be remarked. Sense receives the given matter — Sensation — from a Cause — noumenon — totally dis- tinct from the mind, to which Sensation it communi- cates the properties of Extension and Succession, and, by a spontaneous act, concocts this given matter into INTUITION. This intuition remains an unintelligible object, till Understanding exerts its spontaneous activity, and arranges this given matter under its twelve Categories \ thus, not only giving it an intelligible form, but actually, by this mental process, constituting it one of the objects of material nature. In this manner NATURE is produced. With Reason the case is, indeed, very different. This pure Faculty has no occasion to wait till it is propelled PREFACE. 209 into action from without, for all its resources lie already within the mind. It need, therefore, merely exert its own pure, spontaneous activity to produce all its ideas. What, then, are these pure materials out of which Reason constructs its ideas f When we are told that they are the " Categories " — which we already know to be perfectly pure principles, for they are the very constituent essences of the Understanding — we need no longer wonder at the exquisite purity and perfection of " Practical Reason/' — That the ideas formed by Reason may be pure, the materials of which they are composed must also be absolutely pure. But, as the purity of the Categories cannot be doubted, neither can the compounds of Reason — its IDEAS — be for one instant doubted. It is a most interesting occupation to trace the generation of these ideas from their pure sources, and all this without requiring any foreign aid. This process must then be as pure as the results, and carry with it the utmost Conviction of which the mind of man is susceptible, far surpassing the accuracy of mathematical conclusions, which involve TIME and SPACE; while these pure conclusions of Practical Reason quit the field of the Finite, and construct their own pure principles, which are wholly 210 PREFACE. mental, that is, perfectly "spiritual" and reside in the territory of the Infinite alone. These laws, being once awakened in the mind, are now and ever will be, what they ever have been, perfectly pure, that is, "divine ;" in fact they are emanations from the Deity, or, as we express it, the "Word of God" — laws which must be obeyed in spite of all the alluring seductions of Sense. The following table will display at one view this very important procedure of that high gift of the Almighty — " Reason." IDEAS op REASON, SHOWING THE MANNER IN WHICH THEY ARISE FROM THE CATEGORIES of UNDERSTANDING. 12 CATEGORIES. QUANTITY. QUALITY. RELATION. MODALITY. Unity, Reality, Substance and Accident, Possibility, Multitude, Negation, Cause and Effect, Existence, Totality. Limitation. Action and Reaction. Necessity, 6 IDEAS. QUANTITY. QUALITY. RELATION. MODALITY. Absolute Absolute Absolute Absolute Totality. Limitation. Substance. Absolute Cause. Absolute Concurrence. Necessity. PREFACE. 211 Reason constructs the ideas of the Spiritual world in the same manner that Understanding constructs the intuitions of the Material world. The ideas of Reason, being wholly free from TIME and SPACE, can reside only in Eternity. Well, then, may Practical Reason be the author of the Moral Law, and all reasonable beings bound to obey its dictates, since it is the law of Reason itself. The ideas of Reason are the very roots from which all our notions of spiritual objects arise, and without which no such thoughts could enter the mind. They are indigenous in the soil of intellect. Hence the conclu- sions of Reason must be absolutely commanding for all rational beings. Thus Reason generates the ideas of the " Kingdom of Spirits " from spiritual matter already lying in the mind, and which constitutes its very ele- ments. But what can be more spiritual than the ideas which Reason constructs from these spiritual essences ! REASON SENSE and UNDERSTANDING generates the construct the IDEAS INTUITIONS oflhe ofthe SPIRITUAL WORLD MATERIAL WORLD. As neither intuitions nor ideas could possibly exist without the matter of which they are composed being 212 PREFACE. given, what stronger proof can be desired of the existence of a Creator ! Who but a Creator could furnish the materials of which both intuition and idea are composed ! Hence the portion of information intended to be communicated to man by the first mental representation — INTUITION — is accurately conveyed — the order and regularity of the phenomena in TIME and SPACE, and the constant round which they perform — the oak and the acorn. The information intended to be conveyed by IDEAS is that which is communicated through the channel of the "MoralLaw," which must be considered sacred, as emanating from the Omnipotent, who communicates his will through this perfectly pure channel — the "Categories." — They are the matter of which Practical Reason constructs all the precepts which express the will or "Word of God," as revealed by Jesus Christ. All we know of the world of Sense is INTUITION ; but we know not the Cause out of the mind which produces Sensation. Here there is something known — the Sensation — and something not known, which is its Cause : this is called Knowledge a posteriori. All we know of the world of Reason is IDEA. Here, indeed, is a marked difference : in the knowledge of Reason PREFACE. 213 all its resources lie in itself. The very matter of which it constructs its ideas is already in the mind — the " Categories ' ' — which are pure principles. What, then, but perfectly pure information can be furnished by them ! This is called Knowledge a priori, where both matter and form already lie in the mind. Logic proceeds in a very different manner. Totally regardless of this constitutive process, and finding an ample store of objects on which to exert its functions, it immediately proceeds to classify and regulate these ready-made objects of nature. It performs its opera- tions in a very simple way, by placing each finished object under only one member of each Triad. So that our rose will be arranged under its twelve Judg- ments in the .following order : QUANTITY. QUALITY. RELATION. MODALITY. Singular. Affirmative. Categorical. | Apodictical. One rose. Red rose. Subsisting rose. Absolute certainty. Logic, having established the twelve primitive Con- ceptions of Understanding as so many abstract notions, proceeds to arrange all nature into classes by its three primitive functions — Comparison, Reflection, Abstraction; in fact, it has no other way of pro- curing CONCEPTIONS from given INTUITIONS k2 214 PREFACE. than by employing these universal conditions of all CONCEPTION. Thus, for instance — I see a fir, a willow, a lime ; first, I compare these objects together, and I perceive that they differ from each other, with respect to their trunks, their branches, their leaves, and so on. I next reflect upon that in which they agree, or which is common to them, namely, a trunk, branches, and leaves. Lastly, I abstract from the size, figure, and so on, of their different parts ; and in this manner I obtain the CONCEPTION of a Tree.— So, with our rose, Logic acknowledges it to be a ready-made object of nature, and accordingly classes it under the CONCEPTION — rose in general. The Judging Faculty exercises its functions in two ways. It is not more remarkable than true, that we have but three distinct kinds of unity upon which to employ the judging power — INTUITION, CONCEPTION, IDEA. The different manner of uniting these three wholes will explain the nature of those two operations. When the INTUITION is immediately united to the CONCEPTION, the first operation is apparent; for the one is included in the other, that is to say, the INTUITION, grass, is comprehended under the CONCEPTION, green ; which, with the third member, PREFACE. 215 the copula, produces the Judgment — the grass is green. In all immediate judgments the subject and predicate are so intimately united that if you annul the one the other vanishes. Subject -f- Copula -J- Predicate = Judgment. Intuition -\- Connexion -f- Conception = Knowledge. Grass -j- is + Green == Green Grass. It must be abundantly evident that in all Knowledge the INTUITION, which is the matter of Knowledge, must stand in close and absolute connexion with the CONCEPTION, which is the form of Knowledge, or we should be reduced to the absurd position that there is matter without form — a total impossibility. Hence the necessity of this Triad. But we must also remark that the connexion of these two essential ingredients m Judging does not admit of the intervention of any other notion, and consequently they are called imme- diate judgments. They may also be called instinctive, allowing no choice — likewise Judgments of Under- standing and Sense. It will best suit our purpose to call them Judgments of u Sense," as every person perceiving "green grass" can have no choice, but must immediately acknowledge the fact, and generate our Triad as above. This fully explains the nature of the first mode of judging. 216 PREFACE. We cannot be too particular in investigating the nature of the second mode of Judging. Here all the three unities are called into play in order to constitute a mediate judgment. If I assert that " Heautontimo^ rumenos can carry a man," we have before us an affirmative judgment ; but certainly one that is neither self-evident nor instinctive ; for this judgment requires a proof in order to obtain universal assent. This proof must be sought for, which act implies choice, that is, we must select from among our stock of Knowledge a CONCEPTION that equally relates to both subject and predicate. Till this is done, all is dark and dreary nothingness. The power, however, to choose CONCEPTIONS at pleasure is the peculiar property of Reason. Here no instinct avails. In this gift we far outstrip the brute. If we are fortunate in finding the proper CONCEPTION that bears upon the case, the difficulty is solved ; till then, the thing is in utter darkness, and appears to be totally inexplicable. Thus our earth was for very many centuries considered as the immoveable centre of the universe. This judgment was firmly believed to be both correct and true ; but it was neither the one nor the other. Yet Logic was satisfied with the false appearance. At length en- PREFACE. 217 lightenment found a CONCEPTION that overturned this error, and established the truth. So, with our " stone wall " and all the other objects of nature, the CONCEPTION is now discovered that proves them to be merely mental represe?itations — technically, INTUITIONS. It is vain and fruitless to hope to give the faintest idea of the immensity and importance of the discovery, that the objects of nature are merely " mental repre- sentations." Who would think that the discovery of this CONCEPTION alone would be the means of making both Jew, Gentile, and Infidel, sincere and absolute " Christians !" But such is the fact ! If we feel a peculiar satisfaction in knowing that Copernicus found out the CONCEPTION in the one case, what shall we say of the discovery in the other, where a single CONCEPTION proves to every rational being that he must from Conviction be a truly devout and pious Christian ! Language is at fault in the attempt to do justice to a discovery like this. The being is not yet born who dare presume to anticipate results whose very extent would overwhelm him. Who dare presume to say that what our "Lord" asserted two thousand years ago shall not take place : " that the Gospel shall be preached to all 218 PREFACE. the nations of the earth!" "Oh! let our eyes be enlightened to discern the things that are excellent, and no longer be imposed upon by fantastic appear- ances, which, however pompous they may seem, will prove more empty than the visions of the night, more transient than the dream that is forgotten !" The judgment — " the gTass is green" — is decided by inspection as well by brutes as men, which is, indeed, evinced by the browsing steer, and is positive instinct in both. Not so, however, the judgment — " Heautontimorumenos can carry a man" Here the brute declines to interfere; and unless man is fortunate enough to discover the proof of the assertion, that is, the appropriate CONCEPTION — which equally refers to subject and predicate, and forms the union or con- nexion which constitutes it a judgment — his ignorance is complete. This again verifies our Triune Principle. The instant man hits upon this CONCEPTION all is light. Only explain to him that Heautontimorumenos is a horse, and he feels that the true CONCEPTION, the key to the mystery, is discovered. This second mode of procedure of the Judging Faculty we have proved to be beyond the power of Sense, and only to be performed by Reason. PREFACE. 219 Logically, this procedure is termed Syllogism, Its members are distributed into three distinct judgments, under the terms of major, minor, conclusion, and for- mally run thus : Major All horses can carry a man. Minor Hbautontimorumenos is a horse. Conclusion. . . Therefore, Heautontimorumenos can carry a man. On analysing this process, we find that it consists of only three members, repeated twice over — as displayed above. First, the INTUITION — Heautontimorumenos; secondly, the CONCEPTION— horse ; and, lastly, the IDEA — including every thing that can carry a man. The connecting link between the subject and predicate is called the middleterm. We proposed the preceding judgment to show that, until the discovery of the proper middleterm, every thing is perfectly dark and unintelligible. We also insisted that the analysis of this procedure would not only explain the difference between immediate and mediate judgments, but also display the manner in which Reason proceeds in forming Syllogisms or Conclusions, and still further confirm our assertion that it is impossible to judge either by Sense or Reason, without involving, in all cases, the very k5 220 PREFACE. essence of the Triune Principle. This analysis will fully explain the way in which Reason acts in its judgments, that is to say, in all its Conclusions. We have already stated that all the resources of Reason lie within the mind. In its Practical use, therefore, it cannot err, provided it fulfils the demands of Logic. In the affirmative judgment — " the Soul is Spirit" — we naturally demand a proof. For this purpose we search for a CONCEPTION that is equally related to subject and predicate; and, until this discovery is made, the proposition remains a mere assertion. Let us, however, try if the CONCEPTION — rational — will answer the purpose. In the first place, whatever reasons must be mind and not matter. It would, indeed, astonish us to be told that matter could reason. This is a great point gained ; for now we perceive that whatever is rational is at the same time spiritual. So much fitness we have at length discovered that the soul is not material ; therefore, it must be spiritual. On a former occasion we attempted to rank the soul under the Categories — but without effect ; for the soul, not being a Sensation, that is, matter, it was indeed a vain and fruitless attempt. By this touchstone we discovered the spirituality of the soul, that is, its PREFACE. 221 absolute immateriality . The truth of this position will be completely proved by employing the CONCEPTION — rational — as a bridge of communication between subject and predicate. The following display exhibits the three primitive ingredients of Syllogism — INTUITION, CONCEPTION, IDEA — which Logic employs in the form of an equation, by doubling each term j thus : JUDGMENTS of REASON are conclusions or mediate judgments, and comprehend an INTUITION under a CONCEPTION, and these under an IDEA. INTUITION, Subject. •pvedica^ CONCEPTION, Middleterm. IDEA, Predicate. \&Meter n ciibiect. SOUL. 1 : fnitv altitude* Totality These, Logically arranged in pairs, produce the following legitimate SYLLOGISM. Predicate .... All that is Rational is Spirit. M. P. major. Middleterm .... The Soul is Rational. S. M. minor. Subject. . Therefore- The Soul is Spirit. S. P. conclusion. The above explanation is merely logical, but yet strictly correct ; for it shows that a Conclusion consists 222 PREFACE. of three distinct judgments. In the major, the Middle- term and the Predicate are compared; in the minor, the Subject and Middleterm ; and in the conclusion, the Subject and Predicate. It must, however, never be forgotten that Logic is only a " Dogmatical Science/' which is content to assume things and take them as true. It may throw great light on this important subject to examine well into the nature and essence of a " Conclusion of Reason." If we refer to the above diagram, it will be evident on inspection that, when this intricate logical operation is reduced to its primitive elements, it turns out to be a simple equation, consisting of duplicates of INTUITION, CONCEPTION, IDEA. Now, as the proof of all equations consists in the per- fect equality of the sides, this mighty logical conundrum is thus shown to be the simplest mental act in the pure mathematics. The preceding example is, in fact, the only genuine, true, and legitimate " Conclusion of Reason," not- withstanding the immense erudition which has been lavished on this simple form of Syllogis?n, by torturing, twisting, and tormenting, these three simple elements into millions of inexplicable and useless contortions and logical figures. Bacon justly vents his spleen against PREFACE. 223 the scholastic absurdity of introducing " so many bar- barous terms and phrases into Logic, which run it so much into dry and futile subtilties, more calculated to exercise the mind in wrangling and disputation than to assist it in thinking correctly." All this useless know- ledge and waste of intellect will in future be entirely dispensed with, though the lasting memorial of this learned folly is to be traced in almost all our treatises on Logic, too well known by the distressing and miser- able doggerel Latin lines : " Barbara, Celarent, Darii, Ferioque, prioris: Cessare, Camestres, Festino, Baroco, secundse: Tertia, Darapti, sibi atque Felapton, Adjungens Disamis, Datisi, Bocardo, Ferison, Bramantip, Camenes, Dimaris, Fresapo, Fresison, Sunt quartae : at Quini, totidem generalibus orti, Nomen habent nullum, nee si bene colligas usum." Many a student has beaten his brains to a mummy over this barbaric monument of useless learning. Thus, then, have we disposed of all the idolized ginicraeks and tinse] finery that have for so many centuries occu- pied the first-rate talents and the most splendid minds, only to disfigure Syllogism and puzzle each other. They must henceforth be swept from the face of the earth.— What all? " Yes, all! at one fell swoop." Now, indeed, we have restored the only legitimate $yl- 224 PREFACE. logism of Aristotle to its pristine vigour and primitive purity. Hence it is evident that we have reduced the opera- tions of the Judging Faculty to two modes of judging : immediate, that is, instinctive — mediate, that is, deli- berative. This must be allowed to be a prodigious simplification of the " Science of Logic," which has hitherto been buried under the rubbish of a mass of incongruous terms and absurd distinctions, giving to the simplest "Science" in nature the appearance of favouring the black cert, by overreaching the unwary and puzzling common honesty, instead of employing this Canon of Understanding and Reason as the only legitimate guide to secure our eternal welfare and finally conduct us to the Throne of Grace. Here, then, the most superficial thinker is compelled to acknow- ledge that, when he judges of the most insignificant thing in the world, he is a living evidence of the cor- rectness of our assertion that a Triad of Principles is the ground of every act of his Judging Faculty, and that consequently a single thought is impossible ; for judging and thinking are synonymous, and each con- sists of subject, predicate, and copula, or to think is vain. What a powerful proof does this afford of the PREFACE. 225 Triune Principle ! Deprive either of these modes of judging of this elementary Triad and the Judging Faculty is annihilated, as is fully evinced on a bare inspection of the subjoined tabular display : JUDGMENTS of , REASON consist of SENSE THREE THREE Members, Members, Subject, middleterm, Predicate, Subject, copula, Predicate, and produce and produce CONVICTION, DEMONSTRATION, which is faith in things not seen, or the which is belief in things seen, or the evi- evidence of dence of REASON. SENSE. We surely must now have amply made out our case, and fully proved, to the absolute conviction of every individual capable of exercising his Judging Faculty, that the Triune Principle forms not only the very essence of all thinking, but that the great instrument of thought — the Mind — actually is a compound of Triads, and can alone inhabit the region of Eternity, where its Author must exist in all his perfection, and constitute the very essence of the " Divine Origin" of all thinking. 226 PREFACE. Ci)e distinction fcttfomt totmct anil 3&t%#on settled for ever. The leading distinction between material and spiritual nature is that " matter moves, spirit thinks" However strong the resemblance of the two principles of motion and thought may appear to be, yet they really are distinct essences. In order that motion should become apparent to Sense we must behold hvo material things whose relation to each other is in a state of change, otherwise we have no evidence of motion whatever. MOTION is the alteration of the external relations between any two objects of NATURE. The observance of this effect is an instinctive act of Sense, over which Reason has no control. Here the Judgment of Sense decides necessarily with its three members, suhject , predicate, copula ; and, if the object that moves is perceived by a million spectators, they must all agree instinctively. For this instinctive act our Triune Principle is indispensable. On the other hand, the act of thinking always implies choice, as we can think of what we choose, for it is the mere act of connecting, out of the store of our PREFACE. 227 CONCEPTIONS, such as will construct the object we have in view — for instance, a poem — Paradise Lost, with all its angels and ideal machinery. THOUGHT is the act of joining one Conception to another. The highest species of thinking is conducted by that unerring rule of Logic, " Syllogism $" and here it is evident that we always have a choice in selecting the middleterm that leads to the conclusion. This act requires deliberation, and is directly opposed tolNSTiNCT. Hence we may infer that JUDGMENTS cf REASON SENSE admit of choice admit of no choice DELIBERATION. INSTINCT. But, as we have already stated that matter is sensa- tion, all judgments which regard Sensation must of course be judgments of " Sense," over which Reason has no control. This marked distinction between judg- ments of Sense and judgments of Reason is not only very decided with regard to our own acts and deeds, by pointing out which part of our nature acts Instinctively, 228 PREFACE. but it is absolutely conclusive with regard to the whole creation. By this single test we are enabled to deter- mine, in the most positive and undeniable manner, that every particle of matter acts by the unerring rule of instinct, and that man alone in the gift of Judgment evinces Freedom. Animals do not judge, but uniformly act in strict conformity to their unerring guide, Instjnct. " Whether with Reason or with Instinct blest, Know all enjoy that power which suits them best ; And Reason raise o'er Instinct as you can — In this 'tis God directs, in that 'tis Man." The latter line of our immortal bard evidently alludes to Speculative Reason. Here man wanders about in uncertainty, to accomplish an unattainable end — his own Happiness. But, as he cannot accomplish it here below, he turns his thoughts to things above, and exerts his sublimer faculty — Practical Reason. What animal ever muses on a world to come, or pants for the immortal crown of glory — the reward of the virtuous? Man alone ! How incomparably sweeter are the pure feelings of the upright heart, though weighed down with trying difficulties, than those of the overbearing and unjust, even when pampered with every earthly luxury ! The virtuous on all occasions pursues the PREFACE. 229 direct line of duty, as revealed to his inmost soul by that emanation of Deity, " Practical Reason ; " while the vicious, disregarding this unerring monitor, strains every nerve in the misuse of Speculative Reason, to accomplish that unattainable object, Perfect Happiness here below. The subordination of all our desires to the law of Practical Reason alone shows the high prerogative of man. It must ever be remembered that, when we are selecting from among the phenomena of nature objects that are to accomplish our design, we are only collecting INTUITIONS, under the guidance of Speculative Reason. Thus, if we desire to augment our fortune by a prize in the Lottery, we attentively consult the doctrine of chances, or, what is more frequent, dream of the lucky number. Now, as we are not the author of nature, it is possible we may err in our choice. This has too often been confirmed by the dreadful mono- syllable — " Blank." Practical Reason, on the other hand, never can err, for it is pure Science, which is confirmed by Conviction, and whose contrary is impos- sible. Take for example the mental cube — to which we have already referred ; we find its truth and accuracy so great that it defies all cavil. The definite root of 230 PREFACE. this cube is an indefinite line, a, b, which not only forms the first line in the cube, but the motion of this line generates each of its sides, and all the measures parallel to itself are as equal as the radii of the circle, for they are identically the same straight line. This is pure Science, whose contrary is impossible. But convert this perfect cube into an INTUITION, and all its correct- ness has fled. Nature never presents us with a perfect surface or an absolutely straight line. Thus pure Science may well be said to be pure principle, and empirical Science mere matter of fact. But when Speculative Reason, in its restless sportiveness, amuses itself with this innocent mathe- matical figure — having first of all rendered it sensible by filling this mental framework with matter, as box- wood, or the more delicate material furnished by the elephant's tusk, and ingeniously numbered its sides by little dots from one to six, and then constructed a counterpart — it exclaims, "We have here a pair of dice !" The direful consequences that have too often followed an inordinate fondness for the game of dice are too well known and too severely lamented to need recording here — nay, has not suicide often terminated the life of the rash adventurer who has staked his all on the cast PREFACE. 231 of a die ! Now what is this but an inordinate gratifi- cation of Sense to the detriment of Reason ; too strong an evidence of choice in the unfortunate victim ; and a sad departure from the honest instinct of our nature ! How beautifully has our Saviour expounded this doc- trine^ when, in his powerfully impressive language, he says : " He who indulges in the sinful lusts of the flesh abandons himself to the Devil; but he that doth the will of the Father renders himself acceptable to God \" To fulfil the Doctrine of the Gospel, REASON is requisite. Of all animals man alone evinces the slightest desire to comprehend this "Divine Revelation," and for this plain reason, that others are deficient in the re- quisite faculty, having no freedom of choice, while all their actions are guided by a necessary instinct. But what Reason is it that man exerts for this glorious end? — Surely not that Reason which by excess se- duced man to his own ruin ? No ! the purer, brighter, and godlike faculty, which partakes of the very nature of our Heavenly Father, being purely Spiritual : its end is goodness, and all its acts are virtue. This Reason is the divine faculty, without which the " Holy Gospel" would be a mere dead letter, which could never raise 232 PREFACE. the soul to such aspirations as " Thy kingdom come, thy will be done ! " Hence, among all God's creatures, it is man alone who has a soul to be saved — man alone who has the freedom of choice — - man alone who pants for an here- after. Why? — Because man alone is endowed with " Practical Reason/' the sure guide to realms of never-ending bliss, which not only explains to his own soul what duties are required of him, but also distinctly acquaints him with the issue of his actions, by bringing them in review before that Sacred Tribunal, " Con- science," which either acquits or condemns, in the most unequivocal manner — not the action performed here in Time, but the motive, which exists only in Eternity. Will any one venture to affirm even that inferior animals are so superiorly gifted ! The instances we can adduce to establish the converse are so numerous and so convincing that we defy all attempts to maintain the assertion. The grand distinction between man and animal then is : MAN ANIMAL is endowed with is endowed with REASON. INSTINCT. PREFACE. 233 Now, the importance of the distinction between Reason and Instinct cannot be too powerfully enforced, for it constitutes the only ground of difference between Man and AnimaLj and proves most decidedly not only that Man is the superior Animal, but that, by virtue of his superlative faculty — Reason — he necessarily becomes the u Scope of Creation." To explain this distinction still more clearly, we should say : MAN JUDGES. ANIMALS ACT. JUDGMENT ACTION requires requires DELIBERATION. PROPULSION. Man is the only animal capable of acting Inferior animals act unconsciously, in con- front the bare representation of a law. sequence of the direct influence of a law. The nail never reasons with the hammer, even when it does not obey this law of force, its opposition being the result of another law — that of resistance. Man is conscious of his powers ; and in his moral conduct he is conscious of the Moral Law — that is, "the Word of God." This laiv commands strict obedience, and shows the distinction between right and wrong. That action is right which is in perfect accordance with the law of Practical Reason, and performed out of reve- 234 PREFACE. rence for this pure law of God. Surely no one will pretend to endow the brute with purity like this ! His most refined Instinct is but an instrument in the hand of his Creator — a hammer and chisel in the hand of a Phidias. It is true that angels have no power to dis- obey this law of their Rational Nature, wanting the seducements to transgress : hence they are Holy Beings. But man, in his probationary state, is plunged into a vortex of difficulties, to prove his claim to higher regions. Virtue is the victory of Reason over the sinful lusts of the flesh; Vice is the ascendancy of Sense, or the perversion of God's "Holy Laiv" which subjects the inclinations to the guidance of Reason. Yet let it not be supposed even that it implies any servility in Reason to obey a law. Know, then, that it obeys no other law than that of which it is itself the Author ; and it would most assuredly be very irrational to make laws merely to break them. Hence Man is Free> and has the power to fulfil the laws of his own Reason, and defy all nature to interpose. How sublimely is this doctrine expounded in "Holy Writ!" — " Love worketh no ill to his neighbour, therefore, love is the fulfilling of the law : awake then, cast off the works of darkness, and put on the armour of light. " PREFACE. 235 From the preceding reasoning, it must be abundantly evident that it far exceeds the power of matter to think, that is, to act voluntarily, being in its very nature inert and motionless till moved by other matter. Not so spirit, which waits not till it is impelled, but acts spontaneously and of its own accord. Could matter originate the "Moral Law?" — No; here we must positively have mind, and that, too, of the very first order. What but Practical Reason is capable of evolving from its own nature a law so pure, so com- manding, that nothing short of that Divine Faculty, Reason, has the power to contemplate, to comprehend, and to execute, its divine commandments ! — Here, indeed, inert matter shrinks in the comparison ; and so does animal instinct, which is on a par with matter, having been made as perfect at its creation as it will be till its extinction. In fact, the Animal, Vegetable, and Mineral, Kingdoms are all three governed by necessary and instinctive laws, leaving mind free as air to proceed in its voluntary and spontaneous course ever to approximate in purity its Divine Author, and finally to nestle and centre in the very bosom of God ! After such an elaborate argument, which permanently establishes the distinction between Mind and Matter, L 236 PREFACE. we surely may venture to display the impassable barrier that for ever separates Spirit from Matter, in the fol- lowing tabular form : SPIRIT THINKS, is FREE. SPONTANEITY. MATTER MOVES, is IMPELLED. COMPULSION. Now for our interminable string of proofs, collected from by-gone ages, and confirmed by the refulgent blaze of intellect that marks the present era. — That atmospheric air is necessary for the preservation of life no one doubts. It is also equally well known that this requisite of existence is a compound of vital air and mephitic gas. Suppose the atmosphere to consist wholly of vital air, it would destroy not only life itself but all the substances in nature. To correct this effect, there exists a portion of mephitic gas, the property of which is to extinguish vitality. The excess of either is death to every thing. Therefore, we should say that it is the instinctive property of the one air to promote life, and of the other to extinguish it. Thus the assigned quan- tity of animated and inert matter is produced by the due admixture of these opposite instinctive qualities. PREFACE. 237 This beautiful arrangement of Providence arises simply from the struggle of these contending instincts ; and is finally brought into perfect harmony by that universal law of nature, action and reaction, which not only uniformly exerts itself to produce a perfect equilibrium but still further clenches the argument we have ad- vanced in favour of the Triune Principle. LIFE is animated matter, DEATH is inanimate matter. Life, then, is matter actuated by instinctive motion j death is matter operated upon by instinctive rest. Thus we perceive that every particle of matter is impressed at its creation with a power that may well be termed instinct, being wholly free from choice or deliberation. Each particle of matter is therefore constrained to obey its own instinctive law, which amounts to absolute necessity. However prone we may be to attributey&dg- ment to inferior animals, we here evidently commit as great an error as if we were to assert that inani- mate matter exercised this function. What, then, guides our decision % — Science ! And what but the pro- gressive advancement of Reason brings new Sciences to light! In less enlightened times it was customary to regard the storm as an expression of the anger of l2 238 PREFACE. God, and its fatal effects as marking the vengeance of the Deity. Thanks to enlightenment, this prejudice has entirely mouldered away ; and Science determines that the storm is an instinctive effort of each particle of matter to obey its original laiv, and thus, by restoring a disturbed equilibrium, forwards the grand scheme of nature — a perfect equation. It would be difficult at the present day to persuade any one, on beholding those large, congregated masses of that useful and abundant element, water, that it exerts a Judging Faculty, and is actuated by direful revenge, when in its infuriate and agitated state it hurls destruction around, and seems to delight in demolishing the careful and studied labour of man, as it were to appease its wrath and assuage its anger. The fabled monsters of the deep have lost their influence, and honest instinct has assumed the reins. Yet in these enlightened times our wonder is moved to hear it said that the tiger deliberately plans the destruction of his foe — man — while he is instinctively in search of food. No Animal JUDGES but Man. The line of demarcation between Reason and Instinct is now fully determined by modern improvements in PREFACE. 239 the " Science of Mind." Thus it is : matter moves, and is impelled by some extraneous cause. Spirit thinks, and acts voluntarily from its own intrinsic cause. Matter is governed by Instinct, and is wholly uncon- scious of its state. Mind is a Judging Power, wholly conscious of its state, that is, governed by Reason. Now, as Reason is spirit, it is quite evident that it is neither extended nor successive, consequently it cannot inhabit the blue field of our Diagram, which is entirely appropriated to matter ; but it can be found only in that perfectly pure and infinite abode of spirits desig- nated by the numberless yellow rays. MATTER obeys the law of INSTINCT. MIND obeys the law of REASON. The prejudice to be rooted out is that of supposing that matter thinks, merely through inattention and taking appearance for truth. Instinctive acts, under similar circumstances, are uniform, and never show any progress or improvement. The first drop of created water made the same effort to find its level as that of to-day, and carefully sought how to effect this end. Yet it did not think ! Take the following illustration : In days of yore old iEsop made his frogs hold council and elect their king. We are not forbidden in modern 240 PREFACE. times to imagine inanimate things in deep debate. So some friendly waterbutts, willing to live harmoniously together, thus began : — " Why should I bear all the burthen, and have all my staves strained with this im- mense weight of water, while you are indulging in the playfulness of the thinner air, being nearly empty? Does not equity demand a mutual endurance of our burthens V y " Yes, surely, brother ; and if you consent not to force more upon me than justice sanctions, I agree to take my share." " Now, then, let us construct tubes of communication to effect this noble end \" — This done, the overburdened were instantly relieved, and equity was the sole law that governed this community. For nature, when the obstruction was removed, instantly exerted its favourite law, and produced a perfect equa- tion, one tub bearing the water to the same level as all the others. How nearly allied to thinking is this in- stinctive act of matter ! Man is the only animal on the face of the earth that is endowed with the power of "Judging;" all other animals only act instinctively, as they are propelled either by natural wants from within or by external impulse from without. The illusion of attributing judgment to animals arises wholly from mistaking PREFACE. 241 instinctive acts for free choice. This is, indeed, very excusable ; for our own animal part is governed by the same instinctive laws. The difference between man and animal with regard to their material part is exactly this : man is conscious of his instinctive act, the animal is not. But the essential and important truth which flows from this distinction is indeed awful. For, however similar they may be in their physical wants, desires, and inclinations, yet the marked and memorable difference between them lies in this : MAN is an accountable being, ANIMAL is not. Truly momentous, indeed, is this striking difference ; it is grounded in the acknowledged fact that man is endowed with Reason, the animal not. The material part of man moves, that is, acts instinctively ; so does the material part of the animal. Here then they are alike — both machines propelled to action by an external cause. Reason needs no external impulse, as it acts spontaneously. Hence man is free, that is, he can commence a series of events. Reason can form plans and execute them, whether they tend to promote the well-being of the world or to hurl its inhabitants to destruction — powerful evidence of absolute freedom. 242 PREFACE. Every indication of choice is exhibited to Sense in that well known toy, the magic swan. When this effigy of animality is on the verge of the sphere of attraction, the child cries — " La, mamma ! it is afraid to be caught — only look how it hesitates whether to take the bread or not ! " But, when in the full tide of attraction, the child is assured of re-established con- fidence, and yet intends to outwit the would-be swan, he suddenly reverses the pole, and discovers every symptom of displeasure in the disappointed bird. Oh ! fatal ignorance in the adult to be played upon by appearance — because the dog catches at roast beef and refuses a stone. Is there the slightest difference in the two cases ! — are they not equally acts of Instinct, grounded in the very nature of matter — to obey the law of the strongest impulse ! I have heard it asserted that mind can move matter — but surely not without the intervention of mind. The generalissimo evidently commands through the intervention of mind. At the word " March ! " — all his myrmidons are in motion. But let the same electric word be repeated to the same body of men when lying breathless on the bed of honour, and it proves entirely powerless. Hence we may infer that mind acts on mind, and that matter acts PREFACE. 243 on matter. So that to think is the proof of spirit, and to move is the proof of matter. This brings us back to the poet's query : " Has matter more than motion? has it thought?" Instinctive acts are uniform, and never show any progressive improvement. The first bee deposited its winter store in as perfect a hexagon cell as the bee of to-day, though he might have gleaned experience from the innumerable bygone centuries of his interminable predecessors. Not so man — he surpasses the instinct of animals in possessing choice, as is evinced by his daily progress in science. Adam was unacquainted with the vast and overpowering effects produced by steam, nor was the garden of Eden illumined by gas. Yet what are the boasted discoveries of the nineteenth century, when compared with the development of Reason in the two millionth ! The magnitude of the thought almost annihilates us in the contemplation, and proves to Conviction that man is endowed with a power different, indeed, in its nature from animal instinct. What is this power ? — Reason ! Now, as instinct acts from foreign impulse, and as Reason is different from this power, it must of neces- sity act uninfluenced by other powers. Hence it follows l5 244 PREFACE. no other laws than those which emanate from itself : thus Reason is wholly free from every effect of nature whatsoever, and obeys no other laws than those of its own constitution. The objects of instinct are palpable to Sense, while those of Reason, being wholly un- influenced by Sense, must be insensible, that is, imperceptible, by Sense : then they must be spiritual, REASON is the faculty of drawing conclusions. But, as conclusions have never been witnessed by Sense, they must of course be spiritual essences, confirmed by Reason. Reason, therefore, is quite distinct from the other two faculties of the mind, Sense and Understanding. REASON is a POWER in MIND, which originates laws, and produces FREEDOM. INSTINCT is a POWER MATTER, which obeys laws, and evinces NECESSITY. The importance of the subject demands the utmost attention \ for, should a fundamental error any where lie PREFACE. 245 concealed, all the reasoning we have exhibited with so much formality will be entirely abortive, and a new investigation must be instituted. This will account for our pursuing the subject to so great a length, in order to give every opportunity for the detection of hidden errors or concealed subtilties. The great fault committed in reasoning on the subject of instinct is the usual logical blunder of taking that to be true which only appears to be so, but really is not. Thus we err in assuming that the sagacious Elephant reasons, because in unloading his panniers and placing the barrels in the boat he adroitly finds a pebble to prevent their rolling apart — is this more than instinct f — No ! — it is nothing more than a direct act to obtain a certain end, and is as free from choice as the power instilled into every drop of water to find its level. Every particle of steel filings shows as much love and affection for one pole of the magnet as it does antipathy to the other. Instances of this distressing logical blunder may be multiplied to an enormous extent. A more beautiful exemplification of the instinctive power in matter cannot well be conceived than is afforded to the spectators of the feats of horsemanship in the Circus. When the horse and the rider are 246 PREFACE. quiescent, the particles of matter of which they are composed obey the direct law of gravitation, and arrange themselves in perpendicular lines to the centre of gravity. But, the instant they are put in motion, they are acted upon by two opposing laws — the centrifugal and the centripetal forces. Hence these very same particles assume a new direction, and form an angle proportionate to the velocity, with an instinctive view of preserving the great law of nature — a perfect equilibrium. What, however, is still more imposing, and also forms a more complete proof of our theory, is that if the rider is engaged in throwing up a marble, intending to catch it again in a quart bottle, he takes no pains to calculate where he shall be when the marble returns to the bottle : for the instinctive law in matter saves him this trouble. He merely throws up the marble as if he stood still — nature does the rest. How exquisitely beautiful to find even a detached piece of matter — the marble — strictly obeying its own instinctive law, though detached from man and horse ! Otherwise we should be compelled to say the horse reasoned, for he also obeys the law of nature instinctively planted in matter. He even does this with the utmost mathematical pre- PREFACE. 247 cision : for he falls exactly into that inclination from the perpendicular which secures his outward limbs from being overpowered by the centrifugal force, and his inward side from destruction by the centripetal force — and all this without the aid of Reason, yet in strict conformity with the one supreme and original law of nature — a perfect equilibrium — that is, an equation consisting of two equals and their connexion, or a "Trinity in Unity." Thus, then, when we asserted that the horse and the rider, as parts of matter, were quiescent, we merely conformed to the established prejudice of " taking appearance for truth." For how can any thing which is flowing down the stream of Time be quiescent ! Not so with spirit, which is totally excluded from this sphere, and can reside only in Eternity. If the base of a mathematical triangle is removed, will the two sides show any propensity to approximate towards each other ? — Certainly not. These two lines, being sides or principles of a triangle, will remain for ever per- manently fixed in the position mentally given to them, or we should have the radii of a circle running after one another, as the hind wheels of a carriage do after their precursors. Thus all principle, which must be in 248 PREFACE. Eternity, is permanent ; and all matter, which must be in Time, is changeable. SPIRIT inhabits ETERNITY, and is MATTER resides in TIME, and is PERMANENT. CHANGEABLE. If we only dip into the nature of chemical affinity, we shall be wonderfully struck with the surprising coincidence between the motion of the various particles of matter and the analogous operation in pure intelli- gence — thinking in spirit. The solution of copper in aquafortis, which gives the decorative green tint to the liquid in the shops, we might say exhibits the happy picture of an harmonious society, where all the members enjoy perfect tranquillity. Yet introduce to the notice of the reigning queen of this blissful state the parent of those brilliant stars so exquisitely enchanting in the pyrotechnic art — zinc — and the regal court is ex- clusively formed of patricians precipitating the plebeian PREFACE/ 249 mob to the confines of her domain; or, in humbler phrase zinc precipitates all the particles of copper, merely because the chemical affinity is the stronger. Morally we should say, we endured that society for want of more enlightened companions. Could man do more ! This divine law — instinct — infused into matter at its birth, is splendidly displayed by the fibrous roots of the vegetable kingdom, which select from the surround- ing matter only such particles as tend to nourish the parent stem, for the purpose of unfolding the embryo beauties which lie concealed in the original germ, till the fascinating flower charms the sense. Were they endowed with Reason and could think, could they do more ! The example of our own race is, alas ! fatal evidence of the contrary. Man, possessing a power to outdo nature, and ultimately to advance to the per- fection of Deity, too often debases himself below the brute. He abuses the divine gift, Reason, by the inordinate indulgence of Sense : thus perverting the very pre-eminence of his nature, and degrading his splendid prerogative, while mere instinctive matter puts him to shame. The innocent caterpillar nurtured on his native leaf, when precipitated by the rude gale to an unknown land, 250 PREFACE. instinctively regains his peaceful home by the most direct advances to the stem of his native bush — and all this without the least effort of thought. We are here fain to acknowledge that the instinctive capacity of this reptile far surpasses the utmost stretch of thinking man; nay, without the aid of experience, rational man could not even unravel the mystery of the transformation of the caterpillar into the chrysalis, and this into the butterfly, but with all his boasted thinking he would suppose them to constitute three distinct spe- cies; though, from their first creation to the present day, the instinctive law of matter has acted with uniform precision in the production of this creature. Who could imagine that a long, soft, white worm hid under the earth should produce a cockchafer, or that the hairy caterpillar should produce the butterfly, adorned with his four beautiful wings and his spiral proboscis ! Are not these powerful proofs of the different nature of the two laws, showing that Instinct obtains its end and is an unerring guide, while Reason, having the power of choice, is for ever in need of a guide ! Is it not great presumption in the Vicegerent of Christ when the Holy Father advances in grand pro- cession to sing the mountain to peace, which, in obedi- PREFACE. 251 ence to its own instinctive law, vomits forth its rivers of lava and showers of pumice-stone, to the utter de- struction of the haunts of rash man, who has intruded on the precincts of its domain, and all this with a view to restore some disturbed equilibrium in the operations of nature ! Would it not be more becoming, and a more immediate imitation of the humility of his Divine Prototype, if his Holiness taught his flock resignation to the dispensations of Providence, instead of venturing, with his feeble Reason, to arraign the Great Spirit, the " Supreme Reason," who is equally the author of our finite Reason and the unerring law of Instinct ! Physical Anatomy is particularly rich in instances which prove to absolute conviction that the law of Instinct exists, and is evinced by motion; while Mental Anatomy equally proves that the law of Reason exists, and is evinced by thinking. Now, what does the mind receive through the material channels of Sense but Sensation? — What kind of sensation can that be of which we are not conscious % — Evidently, none. The very essence of THINKING is consciousness. Whoever is not conscious of his own acts is not a man but a lunatic. Why is he not a man? — Because he 252 PREFACE. wants the spring of all thought — consciousness : there- fore he is not an accountable being. He cannot do wrong, for he does not know right from wrong. He is deprived of his personal liberty for the security of society, and exhibits merely the figure of a man, thus awakening a melancholy feeling in those who view the ruins of that noble structure, deprived of the real, true, spiritual man — Reason. All the channels of Sense are material — consist of matter. Through these material conduits, we are told, some subtile fluid is put in motion, on being itself moved by some extraneous cause, till it arrives at the sensorium, supposed to be seated in the brain. This, however, like the fluid itself — though the centre of action — is equally material. Now, a Sensation is not material, but purely mental. Hence, before a sensation can occur in the mind — or, in other words, before we are conscious of a Sensation — a leap must take place from matter to mind, and be acknowledged in consciousness ; so that what was merely the motion of a fluid in a material channel is now become an act of judgment, and by this transition is wholly spirit, or mind. But we have already shown that whatever is mental is spiritual. Every mental operation must be PREFACE, 253 accompanied by consciousness ; to show which we have established an expression that will for ever secure it from being confounded with material things — mental representation — technically, INTUITION. — After this distinction is clearly understood, the error of confound- ing mental with material things must, indeed, be a willing blunder. That very delicate optical instrument, the eye, which is the organ of vision, is totally unconscious of the service which it renders to man. Generated by the motion of matter, we find that the eye is instinctively produced, and by motion carries on all its complicated offices of informing the mind of the varied beauties of nature. The retina receives these magic pictures of the external world all inverted \ it then conveys the information to the sensorium, by means of the optic nerve, which is itself a triune cord, and is wholly unconscious of the exquisite part that it plays in the " Farce of Knowledge." Merely divide the optic nerve behind the retina, and all the delineations there depicted become abortive. The individual is then deprived of sight — strong proof, indeed, of the necessity of the leap we have insisted upon, from matter to mind, in order that a Sensation should be acknowledged in our 254 PREFACE. consciousness ! But to acknowledge a Sensation is an act of Judgment, which exceeds the power of the garden cabbage, though destined by mere instinctive motion equally to generate the caterpillar and to nourish man. All this is performed entirely without conscious- ness, or the slightest effort of Judgment. Could thinking execute this task so well ! — might it not sometimes err ! The work of the " GREAT REASON " is absolute perfection. The wonders of anatomy can never be exhausted; at every step they pour in fresh evidence of the truth of our assertion, so completely proved in " Transcendental Philosophy/ ' and displayed in our previous tables, that REASON, which is SPIRIT, SENSE, which is MATTER, THINKS. MOVES. How exquisitely does the stomach, by its instinctive digestive powers, convert the food we take into chyme, which is again instinctively converted into chyle, on meeting with the bile in the duodenum ! The im- portance of this operation, as the immediate cause of the continuance of life, cannot be sufficiently dwelt on. PREFACE. 255 The eagerness with which the lacteals absorb this curdled and separated matter, for the purpose of reno- vating the system with the vital fluid — blood — is truly wonderful. Yet all this is done without one solitary effort of Judgment, or the slightest pretence to thinking. Instinct, that law of God infused into matter at its birth, performs its operations with such wonderful accuracy and precision that it alone would stand forth as the undeniable proof of the existence of a Deity, even were all rational grounds wanting. But, so paramount are the proofs afforded by Reason, that, on merely asking itself — "Whence did I emanate? " — the obvious reply — " From the Omnipotent, Infinite, Eternal, Spirit, the Great Reason itself" — banishes all doubt. The proofs which present themselves on this interest- ing subject are so multifarious, that, to pursue the thread of the conviction they must produce would be to write the history of every particle of matter. We know that the mere instinctive motion of the blood not only generates the foetus, but that blood in motion, assisted by the particles of air inhaled by the lungs, is the mechanical cause of the life of man. We really must close this long string of irrefragable proofs, under 256 PREFACE. the impression that it has fully answered the purpose of establishing to Conviction that REASON INSTINCT is the is the LAW LAW of of SPIRIT. MATTER. The line between REASON and INSTINCT is now permanently marked out. Thus, then, is the distinction finally solved and for ever set at rest. The bare inspection of our illustrative Diagram cannot fail to convince the most sceptical mind that whatever consists of matter must exist in Time and be for ever in a perpetual state of change. The blue circle in the centre is the type of the whole material universe, in the never-ending round of rise, progress, decay. Every object of nature is submitted to this process by the simple and unerring law of Instinct, which is evinced by motion. From this order of things Spirit is for ever excluded. Yet it is subjected to a totally different " Code of Laws" — the laws of Reason : proved by thinking. Every thought must be acknowledged by consciousness, and evinced by syllo- PREFACE. 257 gism, or it is not a rational thought, but merely the motion of an animal instinct. In the pure sciences, which inhabit Eternity, and consist of mind, a principle once evolved is permanent — lasts for ever — undergoes no change whatever — the equality of the radii of the circle. In the sensible world, represented by our blue field, there can be no cause that begins to act of itself. Here there is no freedom ; the law of Instinct or necessity is the sole law, and is evinced by motion. But we do not con- tradict that powerful law of nature, Instinct, by showing that the soul — the inhabitant of the pure light of heaven, depicted by our yellow rays — may, nay, does, originate a series of events, totally independent of any influence of matter. So that spirit not only acts upon matter, but the Infinite " Spirit " is the Creator of matter, while the Finite Spirit is merely the Regulator of matter. Animal, as merely aniuiated matter, acts from the strongest impulse, and is constrained, that is, moves. Man, on the other hand, forms plans and executes them, therefore he is free, that is, thinks. Thus: Matter -f" Reason -J- Connexion = Man. Matter -J- Instinct -f- Connexion == Brute. 258 PREFACE. Instinct arises simply from the particles of matter obeying one universal law given to them at their birth. All the varied effects of nature are produced necessarily -, merely by each particle of matter striving to obey its own law — to produce a universal equilibrium — in fact, to conform to the first 'principle of the pure mathematics — equation — the only harmonizing prin- ciple of nature, and the absolute proof of our Triune Principle. The struggle of the elements is ever to be, and never to cease. For, should nature once attain a perfect equilibrium, it would be absolute stagnation — death to matter — the total annihilation of nature — and the complete destruction of the Triune Principle. Hence the opposition in the elementary particles of matter are not the effect of blind chance, but the design of a wise and beneficent Creator : " For all subsists in elemental strife ; And passions are the elements of life. The general order, since the whole began, Is kept in nature, and is kept in man." Were the planetary system gifted with thought, could these orbs perform their evolutions with more precision ! Would the eternal round of their measured exactness equal that marked by the finger of God, in PREFACE. 259 his unerring law — Instinct ! Might we not rather expect the following colloquy between Mercury and Venus I Mercury. I really think I have been long enough exposed to the intensity of the sun's rays to induce your amiable condescension to change orbits for a space. Should the trial not succeed, we can but return to our former stations — and thus restore the ancient order of the Universe. Venus. I should be most happy to make the ex- periment, but, from the delicacy of my frame, and consequent want of density, I am fearful I should long repent having made the trial, for my dissolution might ensue. Mercury. You have urged such cogent reasons, that I really am of opinion if we knew when we were well off we should prefer remaining as we are. This is a tacit acknowledgment that God's law of Instinct is a more sure guide than the deliberative Judgment of Man. Instinct is an acknowledged want to do or to enjoy something, for which we cannot account. The planet wants to proceed in a direct line for ever. The attrac- tion of the sun counteracts this necessary want in the M 260 PREFACE. planet. Hence arises the struggle between these opposing powers, which finally settles down, as it were, by mutual consent, into the elliptical orbit of the planet. This is the universal law of planetary motion, and generates the conflict between the centri- petal and the centrifugal forces, which is ultimately harmonized by the Instinct in matter to comply with the demands of both powers. It is this godlike instinct which offers to the contemplation of man the tran- scendent wonders of the spangled heavens, where pure Science reigns in full perfection, and defies the puny efforts of finite man to approximate its matchless sublimity. It is a notorious fact that matter exists in three states — ■ solid, fluid, aeriform. The solid state of matter is susceptible of the utmost accuracy of definition, having all the geometrical dimensions — length, breadth, thickness. Thus we have a solid inch, a solid foot, a solid cube. However accurately art may chisel this solid cube of adamant, still we must constantly bear in mind that the material cube is only a type of the pure mathematical figure, which exists no where but in the mind. What a happy illustration does this afford of the first mental operation — INTUITION ! PREFACE. 261 What so susceptible of definition as Intuition ! Here every thing has a determined form, can be accurately measured, and computed. As long as it remains an Intuition it retains fixed dimensions. Thus from the rude block the artist delights the eye with an Apollo or a Venus. The fluid state of matter bears a strong analogy to the second mental operation — CONCEPTION. All attempts to construct a fluid Apollo must be futile. For here, though the matter is as palpable to Sense as the solid rock, yet the power of determining its specific form baffles all our efforts. How nearly allied is this circumstance — indefiniteness — to the very nature and essence of CONCEPTION ! Even when the mind conceives a cube, that most determined of all figures, we really find that the very root of this cube is an indefinite line, a b. So that what we fancy to be so completely defined is, in fact, a concoction of indefiniteness. Nor, indeed, have we any other means of fixing flowing matter — water — than by retaining it in vessels impervious to fluidity, whose form it assumes only while there. Again, the CONCEPTION of a rose in general is a compound of indefiniteness, comprehending all possible roses ; but the INTUITION m2 262 PREFACE. which I hold in my hand is a damask rose. The cluster of sensations which constitute the INTUITION only becomes knowledge, by being placed under the CONCEPTION, rose in general. Thus does the inde- finite comprehend the finite. What can be so powerful as the impression offered to Sense in the aeriform state of matter, for illustrating the third and highest mental act — IDEA ! Since every attempt to give a form to fluid matter has proved vain, how much less practicable is it then to give a decided and definite form to that elastic fluid, the air 9 which every where surrounds us, and is so essential to the support of life, yet is both impalpable and invisible ! Now, what says the divine Jesus ? " That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the spirit is spirit. The wind bloweth whither it listeth, and thou nearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh and whither it goeth ; so is every one that is born of the spirit." The wind, being invisible, is known only by its effects j what a happy illustration is this of the spirit, which is known only by its effects in regenerated man ! If that vital fluid, air, is of such importance for the preservation of the body, how much more so is that pure spirit, Reason, for the salvation of the soul ! PREFACE. 263 Without this faculty we could form no idea of the infinite, much less of the "Great Infinite Reason" himself. Then, indeed, we should be mere machines 1 — instruments in His hands — acting according to Instinct, but not free agents — rational beings — acting according to the great law of God, the "Moral Law" < — grounded in the very nature of Reason itself, and revealed to us by Jesus Christ. This law makes man the judge of his own conduct, through the medium of Conscience. So that man either acquits or condemns the action, according to the purity of the motive ; and in this manner he renders himself worthy to be a partaker of " that kingdom of everlasting bliss," pro- mised by our Redeemer as a full and complete reward to the virtuous. How powerful has God's unerring law of Instinct been in raising the Soul to aspirations like these, merely from contemplating the Great Book — " Nature" — in its unvaried and eternal round of the three states of matter — solid, fluid, aeriform — or, which is the same thing, dwelling on the specific differences of the three original acts of mind— INTUITION, CONCEPTION, IDEA ! In fact we have no other way to sensualize IDEAS but personification. Thus we say, " God the 264 PREFACE. Father/' meaning the great Creator of all — " God the Son," the Koyog, the word, the Reason, that dwells in us and is the law of God — " God the Holy Ghost," the connexion necessarily subsisting between these two holy personified principles, who is our advocate, monitor, and comforter; " even the e Spirit of Truth,' whom the world cannot receive, because it see'th him not, neither knoweth him ; but ye know him ; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you for ever." This " Spirit of Truth" sent from our Heavenly Father to remain with us for ever is — Conscience — the only ground by which we can conduct ourselves morally, and the immediate connexion between the Finite and the Infinite Reason, through which spiritual link alone can we hope to attain " the kingdom of everlasting bliss." Thus we perceive that the three states of matter are powerful evidences of the three mental operations, INTUITION, CONCEPTION, IDEA, and produce the most positive and splendid confirmation of the truth of the System, which alone can work out our salvation — " Christianity" — and which must endure for ever, for it is already in Eternity. We have stated that the finite is comprehended in the indefinite ; but we shall PREFACE. 265 readily perceive — by the Tabular display — that both these are included in the infinite : Solid -f- Finite -|~ Connexion = Intuition. Fluid -j- Indefinite -j- Connexion = Conception. Aeriform -f- Infinite -\- Connexion = Idea. The great laboratory — nature — has been, from its first creation, operating by its instinctive powers on matter, by sublimation, dissolution, and fixation, so as to produce the never-ending round of the three kingdoms, animal, vegetable, and mineral. Here, then, end the operations of matter. Not so with spirit, which is not only free from all action of matter, in its pure and exalted state, but even now in its state of pro- bation evinces a power which far surpasses instinct in its ultimate aim — approximation to Divinity. This power — " Reason"-— acknowledged by consciousness, guided by syllogism, and wholly denied to brutes, makes Man the ultimate aim and " Scope op Creation.'' <®n tyt Dftme Ifa&elatfon. We have repeatedly asserted that the revealed " Word of God" can be addressed only to the Reason of man. As unanimity on this vital point of Religion is of the utmost consequence, we feel it an imperative duty 266 PREFACE. fully to establish this important doctrine : otherwise, whatever concord and agreement we may have pro- duced — on the "Divarication of the Scriptures'' — on the "Trinity of the Divine Essence"— on the (e divinity of the precepts taught by our Saviour " — are not complete, while the mode of conveying this moral instruction to the mind is susceptible of con- troversy. This proves that something is still wanting — " the one thing needful" — perfect unanimity, and absolute uniformity of opinion on the revealed " Word of God." When we reflect seriously on the purpose and intent of a c 5 Divine Revelation/' we shall instantly perceive that its whole object is to improve the moral part of man — his immortal soul. We shall perceive also that administering to the instincts of the body, even to the very highest consummation of our earthly happiness, does not necessarily improve the moral state of the soul ; nay, it is often found that severe trials induce a more rigid self-examination and are more favourable to virtue than a total abandonment to luxury and enjoyment. All that regards the soul is the affair of Practical Reason ; all that concerns the body is the gratification of Sense. PREFACE. 267 Practical Reason acts in a dictatorial manner. It absolutely commands the performance of certain actions, without considering what effect they may have upon our happiness. Thus it says : — " Be strictly virtuous, whatever may he the consequence," That we possess the power to obey this commandment is abundantly proved by an appeal to our own consciousness. History teems with instances of persecuted individuals who have expired under the torture of the rack, rather than sacrifice their veracity. This proves most decidedly that man not only possesses the power to obey the commands of Reason, but that all the powers of nature, even when concentrated by the hand of Science, utterly fail when an attempt is made to employ them in violation of the freedom of Reason, All moral actions must be considered as the immediate COMMANDMENTS OF GOD. What is it that takes place in the mind of the individual during this self-examination ? — a Conviction that certain actions are conformable to the u Moral Law," and are right and good ; while others directly contradict this Law, and are wrong and bad. But here we must remark that man has a twofold nature ; m 5 268 PREFACE. that is, he possesses an animal or Sensible and a rational or Supersensible nature. According to the former, all his instincts and desires are conditional; that is, he only desires something for the sake of something else : he desires moderation to promote his health ; indeed, all his desires are directed to the completion of his own happiness. All the desires and actions of man, as a sensible being, are directed to this one great object, for the attainment of which he calls to his aid all his faculties, even Reason itself, which is thus required to enter into the servitude of Sense. This principle of our nature is self-love. The actions prompted by it are strictly interested: they are such as are commonly termed useful, because they serve to the furtherance of some other purpose. This clearly accounts for the incessant inquiry after utility. Actions arising from self-love may not in- deed offend against the " Moral Law/' yet, arising from interested motives, they can never be strictly moral. Hence it is evident that the whole bent and force of our animal or sensible nature is nothing more than a constant effort to produce the greatest sum of animal enjoyment — Happiness — on the principle of self -love. PREFACE. 269 But there is another principle in our nature which is disinterested : hence arises an opposite set of desires and actions. This principle is " Practical Reason/' which is not influenced by any other power, but acts of itself. This is the only true and genuine ground of Morality, that is, the power of performing actions from disinterested motives. These actions often oppose the instinctive wants of our animal nature. Yet it is this sublime quality of our superior or Rational nature — - which separates us from all created beings, nay, even from ourselves — that distinguishes between our two natures and their corresponding desires. It is from this principle alone that we can be virtuous, that is, perform actions which accord with Reason merely because they are commanded by Reason. These actions are unconditional, that is, good in themselves. It is, however, quite evident that we are not content with barely searching after happiness, or even possessing it. We have likewise an incessant desire to be morally good, that is, to practice Virtue, which we never can relin- quish. That Virtue and Happiness are original and oppo- sing ends laid in our nature is not only easily proved, but their order even cannot be changed. 270 PREFACE. There would be no difficulty in man's fulfilling the " Moral Law/' were he merely a pure rational Being, whose ultimate end is Virtue. But he is at the same time a being of Nature, formed with particular instincts and desires, which all centre in Happiness. Now, in order to fulfil the laws of our two natures, a struggle ensues between virtue and happiness. Neither of these important ends is to be crushed by the other, since this would defeat the plan originally laid in our nature, which entirely consists in this struggle. The worth of a man is evinced solely by his strength of mind in overcoming the allurements to pleasure that militate against the Moral Law. The more the desire of Hap- piness tempts man to disobey the " Moral Law," in spite of which he still obeys and attends to the voice of Reason, the more certain he is that he acts from a principle of Virtue, and the greater is the victory which he gains in the struggle. The consciousness of having acted from duty alone is accompanied with a sentiment that may properly be termed a moral feeling. This may easily be distin- guished from every sensual pleasure, which always precedes the action ; while the moral sentiment cannot arise till after the performance of the action, and even PREFACE. 271 then only on the ground of the purity of the motive. This purity is acknowledged by Conscience, when we are certain that the action is performed entirely for the sake of 'Duty : then only is it moral. " What Conscience dictates to be done, Or warns me not to do, This teach me more than hell to shun, That more than heaven pursue." It would be absurd to pretend that our virtuous con- duct is influenced by this moral pleasure, since it cannot arise till after the performance of the act. On the other hand, it is perfectly true that the pursuit of sensual enjoyment is wholly actuated by the anticipation of the pleasure we have in view. Were this the case with Virtue, it would cease to be disinterested — it would no longer be virtue. VIRTUE and HAPPINESS are opposing ends in our nature. It only remains, therefore, for us to show that their order even cannot be changed. Suppose for a moment that Happiness were to take the lead in this arrangement, according to the plan of Epicurus. This would totally defeat one of the aims of our nature — Virtue — which would be entirely destroyed, for there could be nothing 272 PREFACE. disinterested. But restore the rational order, and make Happiness subordinate to Virtue, and we realize the entire aim laid in our nature by our Almighty Maker, and at the same time create the possibility of producing the "Highest Good," and this, indeed, only by making VIRTUE the cause of HAPPINESS. Now, then, are the predispositions of our nature in perfect harmony. This presents a sublime and celestial view of our rational nature, which is so forcible that we cannot contemplate the Author of such an arrange- ment with sufficient awe and reverence ! Reason decrees that in order to be Supremely Happy all the desires of the flesh must be restrained by the desires of the spirit. The desire of the spirit is goodness; the desire of the flesh is gratification. The contest between these opposing desires engenders a never-ceasing struggle. Common sense decides at once — and most correctly, too — in favour of Virtue, making Happiness always subordinate to this high principle. This decision can neither be reversed nor admit of any appeal. In order to be conclusive, it must, however, be scientific — that is, so proved that its contrary cannot even be conceived — or the "one thing PREFACE. 273 needful" is not obtained — perfect unanimity and ab- solute agreement. What a confirmation does this afford of the correctness of our analysis of Practical Reason ! Suppose we put the converse, and let happiness take the lead. It must here be quite evident that we are sacrificing an infinite end — virtue — the goodness of the soul in Eternity — to a finite end — happiness — - the gratifi- cation of the instincts of the body in Time. What is the contracted span of the entire duration of the body in Time compared with the never-ending state of the soul in Eternity ! Reason cannot approve of this destructive order of things — that the sinful lusts of the flesh should effect the condemnation of the soul and the destruction of virtue; thus defeating the sublimest object of our nature — " realizing the highest good." Restore the natural order, and view the consequences. Let Virtue be the cause of Happiness : then, indeed, do the predispositions of our nature stand in harmony. Thus we perceive that there is no need for the destruc- tion of either end. For the finite end in Time has fully done its duty, by evincing, on all occasions, the supremacy of the Spirit over the Flesh. What a powerful confirmation is this of the decision of Reason ! 274 PREFACE, In scientific language, we should say that actions which are conformable with Reason are permitted; actions which contradict Reason are prohibited. Here, then, we find that a principle of Reason — an invisible and impalpable essence — is all- commanding, not allowing the least evasion or subterfuge, under any pretence whatever, issuing its commandments to Free Will, ordering it to obey the laws which it has enacted, from its own Rational nature. Herein lies the dignity of humanity — that of being the author of its own laws. All laws of Freedom originate in Reason, and command man to he strictly virtuous, under all circumstances. On the other hand, a fact that addresses Sense generates certain sensatio7is, which the individual cannot even communicate to another. The highest species of evidence that can be obtained from the relation of these Sensations is first to be tried by the tests of possibility and probability . If the facts answer these proofs, we hesitatingly venture to Believe the Historical nar- ration. What a striking difference between Principle and Fact ! The one, when once uttered, is universally commanding and indubitably true. The other is indi- vidually felt, but cannot even be communicated. PREFACE. 275 Powerful, indeed, is the confirmation of this truth in the pure science of the mathematics. The mathe- matical figure formed in one mind must be as pure and correct as that formed in all others, because it is a principle which can only inhabit Eternity. Yet the symbol which raises this pure figure, however accurately executed, is but an approximation to purity, which can never reside in Time. In the spiritual " Science of Religion and Morality/' the machinery employed to effect this purpose — the development of principle — is definition, which consists of words as the signs of ideas, and, when accurately stated and clearly compre- hended, the principle is awakened. Christ says : " Do ye unto others as you would they should do unto you." This sublime law of our Saviour may be expressed scientifically thus : — u Act strictly rationally towards others, for they ought to act strictly rationally towards you" — or they cease to be rational beings. Hence is The Supremacy of PRINCIPLE over FACT established for ever! Now, indeed, have we obtained " the one thing need- ful" — absolute agreement and perfect concurrence in the Supremacy of the laws of Reason over the illusions of Sense. 276 PREFACE. That we should acquire Happiness in proportion as we have rendered ourselves worthy is the ultimate end of Practical Reason. But, though this position is regularly deduced from our Analysis of Practical Reason, it does not follow that the perfect harmony of Happiness and Virtue should take place in this life. Experience too often exhibits instances of virtuous men under great sufferings, and wicked men surrounded by luxuries and all that contributes to earthly bliss. But does Reason approve of this accidental concurrence of circumstances % — Certainly not. Reason is never inconsistent : it looks upon mankind, therefore, as placed here in a probationary state, and assures us that the ultimate views of the Deity, which it unfolds to us, will certainly be accomplished. It assures us that what does not appear consistent with a moral arrangement, in our present contracted view of things, will be shown to be so hereafter, to our entire satisfaction and to the Glory of our Almighty Maker ! These accidental circumstances, so far from diminish- ing our Virtue, afford more opportunity for its exercise, and ought to induce us to brave the vicissitudes of this life, and exert a greater degree of Moral Strength. Thus we actually become more virtuous than if we had PREFACE. 277 not been placed in these trying circumstances, and by this exercise are led to love virtue for its own sake, and so to fulfil the ultimate design of Reason . Practical Reason is synonymous with Free Will, for, being wholly in Eternity, it is perfectly free from the events and things in Time. What is this but freedom ? — That being, whose Will is necessarily in harmony with Practical Reason, is a " Sacred Being ! " — Christ says : " Call ye not me good whom ye see — no one is good but my Father in heaven, whom ye see not." Who can doubt the import of these words ! Pure goodness and perfect Spirit cannot in- habit the corruptible sphere of Time, but must breathe its purity in Eternity. The dependence of a Will not absolutely good in itself is called obligation : this cannot apply to a Sacred Being. The necessitation of an action from obligation is Duty. We are here commanded by the " Saviour " of men to perform the task attempted in this " Divarication" — for ever to separate pure Doctrine, which can exist only in Eternity, from doubtful History, which is simply a record of the events flowing down the stream of Time. Now it is clear that we have Scriptural authority for separating the production of Reason, 278 PREFACE. which is pure principle, from the production of Sense, which is mere matter of fact. Should there be any difference of opinion on this important subject, we must constantly bear in mind that no two persons are so uniformly cultivated that the same type will always raise the corresponding ideas. Hence, when we suppose that we differ in principle, this difference arises merely from the use which each individual has made of his intellect. To differ in principle is impossible. That can be no principle which is not universally acknowledged when once understood. — " Do unto others as ye would they should do unto you." This principle is all- commanding, and is as binding to the Infidel, the Jew, the Gentile, and the Unitarian, as to the Christian, because it is evolved from pure " Practical Reason," though first revealed to man by Jesus Christ. Our Saviour evidently alludes to this " absolute universality ," when he says : ei The Gospel shall be preached to all the nations of the earth;'' otherwise there would be more religions than one — " that of Christ " — which is impossible. From the present state of enlightenment, however, should any difference of opinion occur as to what we PREFACE. 279 have considered Doctrine, and placed in the yellow leaf of the book — emblem of celestial light — it must be remembered that the words employed are but the signs of ideas — mere types of pure principle- — and, till uniformly appreciated by two minds, cannot raise the same perfect principle. For that is no principle which is not universally commanding — the circularity of the circle. To obviate this difficulty, it is strongly recommended, when a case of this sort occurs, that the type in question should be transferred to the Historic page — indicated by the blue tint — proper receptacle for disputed points. " Divine Revelation," in order to bear out its genuine character, must carry with it absolute truth and perfect certainty. It must be altogether above the possibility of human invention. But what can this be but the sublime " Morality of Christ/' which it is totally out of the power of man to construct, and which can be nothing short of Divine ! — " The eye is the light of the body \ if thine eye be simple, thy body will be full of light : but if thine eye be evil, thy whole body will be full of darkness." In the infancy of the Divarication, differences of opinion with regard to the propriety of such a work 280 PREFACE. will be of frequent recurrence. For no two minds, as we have already observed, are so uniformly cultivated that the same type will always raise the corresponding idea in precisely the same purity. So that, when we suppose we differ in principle, it is only in the use which each individual has made of his intellect \ but, when we are in accordance, the same idea will con- stantly be the result. For a principle that is susceptible of dispute is no principle at all, wanting absolute universality. As Science advances, principles will be more unfolded. The truth of this position will be abundantly evident, when we reflect on the total im- possibility of facts ever being substituted for precepts. Facts can occur only at one point of time, and there- fore cannot be guides for our conduct ; while principle is an established law of our reasoning faculty, and is ever present as a constituent part of that faculty. These laws, therefore, are the real grounds which induce our Moral conduct. Why that " Book," whose office it is to introduce into the infant mind the simplest, the purest, and the most divine, Morality, should not be benefited by the rapid advances made in enlightenment in our times is not to be conceived. Are children of a tender age, PREFACE. 281 who know no difference between Jericho and Joppa, to have the purest system of morality — itself of divine origin — perplexed and encumbered with historical detail and geographical distinction s, which can never establish a single precept ? — No ! let the erudite dis- pute on these interminable difficulties ; but clear away earthly things from a " Science" of such celestial purity as the " Morality of Christ." The day is indeed come, and will be hailed with silent but deep-felt joy, when we can no longer brook confounding Heavenly with Earthly things. Nothing .short of the unmixed and pure " Word of God" will satisfy the development of Reason in the nineteenth century. Henceforth shall we possess a " Science of Religion," whose evidence will as far surpass the proofs afforded by the pure mathematics as their purity does the imposture of the empiric. Nothing but Reason can convince Reason — here authority is powerless. Those persons who are, in reproach, termed Infidels may well be astonished at seeing all their doubts and difficulties thus for ever banished from the field of con- tention. They will at once embrace "Christianity," because they are urged to do so by their own Reason. 282 PREFACE. In fact, they only differ from their fellow- men in the boldness of investigation, submitting every thing to the test of Reason. The repugnance of History too often impedes their progress. The injunction to believe all or none leads them to reject that which, when Divaricated, they must adopt. Instead, therefore, of the opprobrious epithet of Infidel, it would be more charitable as well as more christian-like to say that they were sincere searchers after truth, and only puzzled in their logic. In this character they cannot refuse truth, when offered to them in purity. Hence the whole sect of Infidels will become sincere Chris- tians. The Infidel, too honest to say that he believes that which he does not understand, evinces a high degree of moral courage, and only waits for Con- viction. The Bigot will not so readily become a convert to the primitive Christianity taught by our Saviour. He will tremble for the temerity of the individual who should venture, with his feeble Reason, to search for conviction in the "Holy Scriptures." "Take them on faith," says he, " and be satisfied ; for they contain a mystery not to be unravelled by man ! " What ! — authority to blind Reason ! That power with which PREFACE. 283 God has stamped his chosen people — Reason — (i to be wrapped in a napkin'' and left unemployed ! The only power by which man can judge of the value of his own actions, by ascertaining the purity of the motive, to be silenced by Authority ! Has the Redeemer any where forbidden the use of Reason ? — No ! — He exhorts man to its fullest exercise, to enable him to suppress the sinful lusts of the flesh. When Christ taught, there were no Gospels ; the morality was to be extracted from his divine parables. In those days there could not be any bigotted attach- ment to what did not exist. It may properly be termed a superstitious awe and authority to suppress the fulfil- ment of the " Word of God/' instead of following the divine precepts of Jesus, and vanquishing the lusts of the flesh. This blind superstition would soon bring us back to the errors of Catholicism, and finally ex- tinguish all enlightenment. The Bigot, who acts from blind belief and prejudice, displays great moral cowardice and dread of investigation. This mode of procedure lays the foundation for hypocrisy and its train of fatal consequences ; it cannot, therefore, be too much reprobated. This class will be the most severe in their strictures on the present Divarication, and N 284 PREFACE. perhaps scarcely be tolerant enough to allow the merit of a good and upright intention to its author. Is this Christian humility ? or is it a departure from the sim- plicity of the precepts of Christ ? — " Oh ! ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky ; but ye cannot dis- cern the signs of the times ! " The " True Believer" is he who believes in the existence of invisible and immaterial things from Con- viction, because, if he denies them, he cannot think at all. To this scientific faith we are exhorted by St. Paul : " Faith is the evidence of things not seen." To arrive at this faith requires the highest use of Practical Reason, under the guidance of syllogism. Hence we must have faith in the existence of mind, as we do syllogize and draw conclusions. The "Scriptures," so far from stifling our Reason, demand the utmost effort of this high prerogative of man, in order that the divine truths which they unfold should be adopted, not from blind faith, but from that rational faith alone "the evidence of things not seen" — ay, even to Conviction. Having faith in the existence of the human mind, and being well assured that a finite thing cannot make itself, we are forced to raise another syllogism, and PREFACE. 285 infer that it has a " Maker." If the faith in the existence of the Maker is not a rational faith, even unto Conviction, we are then in the state of the Bigot, who professes to believe what he does not comprehend. The most puerile mind has strength enough to infer that no finite thing ever made itself. Hence it is con- strained to acknowledge that every thing finite must be made by the " Infinite." How could these conclusions be drawn, if mind did not exist ! We have proved that matter cannot think. Nor could the finite mind be possible but for the " Infinite Mind " — the omnipotent, omniscient, and eternal " Mind," the great Creator of all — God ! The finite and the infinite minds are two spiritual essences, which stand in eternal relation to each other, proving an indissoluble Trinity in Unity. Annul the one, the other vanishes. If we annul the finite mind, we surely prove that there can be no maker of that which is not made. Annul the infinite mind, and the finite could not exist. He is no Father who never had a Child ; but, when he became a father, the three principles were generated of Father, Son, and Relation — overwhelming proof of the truth of the Triune Principle ! These tivo minds and their relation n2 286 PREFACE. altogether exist in Eternity, and are all of one sub- stance. And this is the catholic faith, neither con- founding the persons nor dividing the substance ; which faith, unless every one do keep whole and undefiled, without doubt he ceases to be a Rational Creature. None of these three principles can exist in Time, or they would be palpable to Sense, which they are not — and would have priority, which they have not. There can be no priority where there is no Time. Hence these principles can only live, move, and have their being, in Eternity, for they are principles of Reason. Thus the Existence of God, the Immortality of the Soul, and a Future State, become of necessity axioms in the " Sacred Science." That the faith in the existence of our own invisible essence — Reason — is scientific, may be easily de- monstrated. To suppose Reason away, and yet to syllogize, is impossible. Thus the existence of Reason is proved to Conviction, To suppose that Reason made itself is equally absurd. Hence we are forced by the invisible power of syllogism to believe in the existence of a " Rational Author ; " for no power devoid of Reason could construct so exquisite a faculty. Let us call this power God, and we are forced to say : — PREFACE. 287 " We believe in God to Conviction." How very different is this rational or scientific faith from that which is grounded on History and enforced by- Authority ! This scientific faith cannot err, if the logic is correct. The historic faith can never produce Conviction : but faith without Conviction is blind faith. This really is a scientific proof of the existence of God : for its contrary cannot even be conceived. To meet the case of modern enlightenment it is imperative that the " New Testament" should have all the blaze of intellectual light concentrated, with a view to extract and expound the Divine Morality laid down in the " Sacred Volume" by the founder of Christianity. The efforts of enlightenment must indeed advance far beyond their present standard before the world will be able to discern half the divine truths contained in that cc Divine Revelation." What says the Divine Jesus ? " I have many things to say unto you ; but ye cannot bear them now. Hitherto I have spoken to you in proverbs ; but the time cometh when I shall no more speak unto you in proverbs, but I shall show you plainly of the Father." Some little advantage may perhaps be obtained from the present "Divarication," which is intended to 288 PREFACE. serve as a key to unlock part of the sacred truths con- tained in the " Scriptures." The most ready way to unfold truth is to clear it from the mystery in which we fancy it to be enveloped. This apparent mystery arises from a slavish adherence to the ivords of the " Sacred Book/' instead of a copious and full display of its spirit. A striking instance of this truth may be obtained by comparing the ivords said to be uttered nearly two thousand years ago with the spirit in our modern version in the passage where our Saviour, in reproving anger, says : — " Whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment : and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council : but whosoever shall say, Thou fool ! shall be in danger of hell fire/' Being fully aware that ivords are only material types of spiritual ideas, we have selected such modern ex- pressions as appear to us to contain the whole spirit of the precept, instead of the words attributed to our Saviour, when he taught his divine Doctrine to man. Jn so doing we hope that we have facilitated the intro- duction of Christianity into the infant mind without the perplexity arising from types about which the PREFACE. 289 learned of the present day are not agreed. Thus we sincerely trust that none of the essence of the Doctrine is lost by using the more familiar type in our version where we say : " He who is angry with his brother without a cause is ivrong." Hereby we render this conduct a moral crime, and only susceptible of moral punishment, totally excluding it from Time or the Judgment of men, and referring wholly to that high moral tribunal in Eternity — the condemnation of God! It is very doubtful whether the ideas raised by the types, "Judgment," "Raca," and "Fool," are pre- cisely those that were current with the contemporaries of our Saviour. If not, the same moral instruction is not conveyed to the hearers. What the type, Raca, meant in those days seems to puzzle the learned of the present time. Nor do the English Dictionaries solve the difficulty — neither is it quite certain that the defi- nition they afford of the words " Judgment " and "Hell Fire " are precisely those that were understood by Christ's hearers. If not, then some false idea is raised in the mind, to the perversion of the pure moral they were intended to convey. Did hell fire mean burning brimstone, or the valley of Hinnom near Jerusalem, 290 PREFACE. among the primitive Christians, or merely an imaginary place assigned for the eternal punishment of the wicked ! If the modern use of the words " Thou fool " were enough to consign the culprit to eternal punishment in " Hell Fire " too many would be in danger of the "Judgment V Is it certain that our Saviour taught in Greek and not in Hebrew ? — How is this fact to be proved ! May not the words pam and fiaps, attributed to our Saviour, in fact be the Hebrew words Np*1 and fTTlD ? Let any child or even adult unacquainted with the learned languages decide which version conveys the clearest moral precept. We have no hesitation in saying that the decision will be in favour of the " Divarication." Compare the authorised translation of the Greek text with the version from the same original given in our "Divarication" generally. We beg, however, particularly to call the attention of the reader to the first and fourteenth verses of the First Chapter of St. John, where, merely by substituting the word Reason as the translation of \6yo$ — which implies ratio as well as verhum — it gives the true and honest interpreta- tion of the original :— " In the beginning ivas Reason, and Reason was with God, for Reason is God : and PREFACE. 291 Reason dwelt among us in the flesh, in the glory of the Father, full of truth." This is the Doctrine taught by Jesus Christy and its contrary is not to be conceived. For, annul the Infinite Reason, and it could not make the Finite Reason. Jf it did not make the Finite Reason, then it made itself, which is absurd. Now this is most assuredly a scientific proof of the truth and divinity of the " Revelation " of Jesus Christ, for its contrary is not conceivable. The koyos actually means the prin- ciple of Reason, or God himself — ■ as a spiritual essence — personified, which produces the same syllogism as above — the Infinite Reason and the Finite Reason in eternal Connexion, or the indissoluble Trinity in Unity — 0=irit of truth — Conscience — - and in this manner we not only render ourselves acceptable in the sight of the Lord, but we evince the Supremacy of REASON over SENSE. This exposition need only be read to be approved, and adopted as a principle to guide our conduct in this world, and prepare us for the next. All that " Science " is capable of adding to this beautiful display of the precepts of the Gospel is the source in the " Human Mind/' whence originate these fundamental laws: beyond this every effort to make truth more true must be quite powerless. It really seems almost superfluous to say that the Apostle Paul meant to designate under the term Flesh the inclinations and desires of " Sense" — that seducer from our duties ; and under the word Spirit, the law of morals ■, with which man is endowed, to suppress the appeals of inclination when they over- step the bounds of propriety, which law is founded in " Reason." Annul Reason, and the " Moral Law " becomes extinct. How, then, can it either be appre- ciated or acted upon ! Annul Sense — in what can 398 PREFACE. the inclinations reside ! How, then, can we indulge in the sinful gratification of that which does not exist ! — Flesh and " Sense/' being both properties of matter, may be considered as synonymous j while Spirit and " Reason," being both immaterial essences, must of necessity be spiritual, and may on this account be con- sidered synonymous. Thus, then, has modern Science furnished a clue by which the " Sacred Volume " shall indeed be viewed as a " Holy Book," merely by giving a touchstone for the purpose of determining, in all occurring cases, whether the text under investigation is wholly or partially "Doctrinal," and what part is most certainly merely " Historical." This touchstone is the pure, complete, and perfect, PHILOSOPHY Of MIND. In order, therefore, scientifically to appreciate the sublime Doctrine of Christ, when entirely separated from all the facts of History, no other mode of pro- cedure can be adopted, but first of all to master this perfect " SCIENCE OF MIND." For not undertaking this previous labour no possible excuse can be admitted; and, when it is successfully accomplished, there will be the same unformity of sentiment among the pupils of PREFACE. 399 the " Sacred Science " as at present exists in the study of " Euclid's Elements of Geometry." Sectari- anism must then hide its diminished head, and true " Religion " will be One, and universal all over the world ! The circle of the Sciences will be for ever closed as far as regards the " Science of Religion/' which will find itself installed among the pure Sciences — with this difference, indeed, that it not only eclipses them all in Spirituality, but that it is the very head and front of all the pure Sciences — being the first law of "Reason." A critical examination into the operations and powers of Reason will then furnish the fundar mental principles that will constitute the " Horn-book" of that Science, which will ultimately produce perfect unanimity of sentiment among all rational beings, and unite them in ONE eternal bond of union, on all points of Theology and Religion, in so permanent a manner that no time can change but all time must confirm to that high degree of excellence and purity which the perfect Doctrine of Christ demands. This " Science" — which is complete in all its parts — perfect in all its principles — that even defy either augmentation or diminution, but must for ever remain permanently fixed in their present number — consisting of the three 400 PREFACE. primitive faculties, Sense, Understanding, Reason— with their specific elements — 2 Receptivities, TIME and SPACE, 12 Categories of Understanding, 6 Ideas of Reason — making in all TWENTY ELEMENTS* — is called TRANSCENDENTAL PHILOSOPHY. Thus ends our protracted and explanatory Preface, in which we promised to atone for the fault of con- ciseness, with which we were so justly charged in our first edition. Here, indeed, we have supplied the premises which furnished that string of conclusions that constitutes the "Introduction" to the former work. We sincerely hope that this desideratum is so effectually accomplished, that the individual is not to be found who can say that we have entirely missed our aim in the glorious undertaking of Divaricating the " Holy Scriptures " — thus separating for ever those pure precepts — which alone constitute the "Word of God," and are rules to guide our conduct here below, * This " SCIENCE OF MIND " is formally displayed in a work which I published about ten years ago, entitled "Principles of Tran- scendental Philosophy," and which has been dignified by the epithet of the "British Euclid," from its close reasoning 1 and strictly logical deductions. I have just put forth a Second Edition in English and German. PREFACE. 401 and principles to secure the salvation of the soul in the " Kingdom to Come" — from all doubtful and equivocal History, which must be called the " Word of Man : '• being a record of facts and traditions that have glided down the stream of time from the remotest periods ; and which furnish neither rules for mundane affairs nor principles for spiritual regeneration. Too often, indeed, is the page of History tarnished in recording the cruel acts of despots, sullied by the vile designs of the wicked, and stained with the blood and gore of the honest, upright, and virtuous — who have become martyrs to the truth. God forbid that such recitals should be considered as patterns for imitation, or that such horrid atrocities should any longer be resorted to for settling scientific questions and differences of opinion ! Now, because similar recitals disfigure the " Holy Book," mistaken man imagines them to be the " Word of God," when the slightest reflection will prove them to be narratives of the wicked designs of the cruel and ambitious — literally, the mere "Word of Man." Herod, the tetrarch, put John the Baptist in prison, because he freely gave his opinion on the subject of his marrying Herodias, his brother's wife; indeed, he would 402 PREFACE. have put him to death, but he feared the vengeance of the multitude — who considered John a prophet. When the daughter of Herodias fascinated Herod with her graceful and beautiful dancing, in the extacy of the moment he made a vow to present her with whatever she asked. Her designing mother, in order to satiate her revenge for John's opinion, instructed the daughter what to ask for : — " Give me John Baptist's head in a charger." — This recital occurs in the " Holy Book," but it surely is never intended to mark out a line of conduct for imitation, but most certainly conduct to be ab- horred and avoided for its atrocious cruelty. Can any thing be more human, nay, even disgraceful to humanity, than conduct such as this ! — This the " Word of God!" — God forbid that humanity should be con- strained to obey commandments such as these ! — Lamentable, indeed, is it to find such conduct recorded in the " Holy Book." When this account of vice and folly is transferred to the historic page — the true record of human actions — we perceive clearly that it is the mere "Word of Man." If we have really been successful in the execution of our task, the following momentous results — which constitute the vital essence of the Christian Religion — PREFACE. 403 not only compelling the conviction of every rational creature, but assuring him of their ever-during truth — THE DIVINITY OP CHRIST, THE Rationality of the Athanasian Creed, AND THE TRUTH OF THE HOLY TRINITY, ARE Established for ever on the solid basis of REASON. We now trust that we have so fully argued our case, and so firmly established our " Mental Theory,"' that the most fastidious Critic will be compelled to acknow- ledge that there is not a single sentence vainly introduced merely for the object of display — none most certainly to deceive — though we have often been regaled by minor critics with expressions like these : — " This work is intended to mislead the unwary under the garb of Christianity, which it in fact undermines." — " We doubt the honesty of the author's motive." — Of that let God be the judge ! — " This work must destroy Christianity altogether." — The very contrary is its intent ! — "It is a blasphemous book, and the author writes with a wicked intention." — To this charge I plead Not Guilty, and throw myself on God and my Country ! — In my own conscience I stand acquitted ! s 404 PREFACE. — We suppose these learned critics have either not taken the pains or possessed the ability to comprehend the principle of the work, which is fully to prove that RATIONALITY is CHRISTIANITY; consequently, by establishing the one we prove the other. — Need more be done for u Primitive Christi- anity ! " Critics, we fear, are sometimes employed merely to be bookmakers — to write to live, not for truth alone. When, however, truth only forms the foundation of the work, castigation is mere waste of time — much better would it suit the purpose of the author to seek an interview, and discuss the disputed principle ; for it has already been too often reiterated that a disputed principle is a nonentity. In this manner a hidden error might be detected, and sound sense sub- stituted for subtile nonsense. To leave the petty affairs of this nether world, and once more ascend into that region of never-ending bliss — heaven ! — let us see how the critics and contempo- raries of the " SON OF GOD [' comported themselves towards that holy person, who revealed to them nothing but God's pure and everlasting truth given in the form of " Commandments." — Put him to death ! — Crucify PREFACE. 405 him ! — Scourge him ! — Spit upon him ! — Mock him ! — He breaks the laws of Moses ! — and calls himself the " Son of God !"— If you are the " Son of God/' save yourself and come down from the cross ! Among those who compassionated the ignominious death inflicted by the chosen people of God on the " Saviour " and enlightener of the world, we find a pagan Governor. u I find not fault in this man" says Pontius Pilate ; and he washed his hands of the whole affair, saying " I am innocent of the blood of this just person; see ye to it." — But the multitude cried the more — " Crucify him ! — and let his blood be upon us and our children \" If the History of the monstrous atrocities per- petrated by the chosen people of God on the person of the " Messiah " — whom they deemed a false prophet, and punished accordingly — which is merely the u Word of Man" — we repeat, if this recital is to be con- sidered Doctrine, because it has place in the " Sacred Volume " and on that account must be considered the "Word of God" — then, indeed, does the Religion of Christ bear a very doubtful character \ for, being Doctrine, that is, precept, it must be a strict rule of conduct. Yet such conduct would teach us to load s2 406 PREFACE. with ignominy and put to death every one who — • like the Messiah — attempted to teach men their moral duties, and thus ameliorate the condition of the world. What a perversion of true Christianity to suppose that good deeds — even on earth — should be rewarded with unheard-of cruelties ! Are not those reprehensible who presume to assert that to be Doctrine which stands in the " Holy Book" — merely because it was voted canonical by some earthly councils in the early stage of Christianity ? — and equally so in condemning all who dissent from this wise decision ? That only can be the " Word of God " which is wholly and entirely spiritual, and which never could at any time have affected Sense. Then that only which is the production of Reason can be of this character — purely spiritual. Whatever has struck the senses of men, and is recorded by them, must of necessity be the " Word of Man/' The bystanders who witnessed the Crucifixion of Jesus between two thieves — piercing his side with a spear— the blood and water that issued from the wound — his affecting address to his mother and his favourite disciple — if they have recorded these facts faithfully, are the authors of the History of the Crucified Jesus! — If not, that very PREFACE. 407 History becomes a fiction. How moral and religious precepts are to be extracted from the records of such inhuman proceeding it would puzzle a saint to dis- cover ! History — which records actions performed on earth, and is consequently the "Word of Man " — gravely informs us that the glorious persecution of heretics — who refused to imbibe the pure Doctrine of Christ, which is the " Word of God," as administered by the Vicar of Christ and successor to St. Peter — was carried on with such signal success that, under one Cardinal — who was also Grand Inquisitor-— more than one hundred thousand heretics were proceeded against and subjected to the rack and torture as a sure mode of instilling into their minds pure Science or the " Word of God " — and that six thousand were condemned to the flames, as a sumptuous banquet for the gratification of their Almighty Maker — the only just and true God ! — Oh miserably deluded mortals, to burn and torment the flesh, by order of the Holy Ghost, with a view of enforcing " Christianity !" So magnificently did these Grand Inquisitors revel in the delights of fire, sword, and bowstring — and, to crown the whole, in that splendid illumination of Christ's Doctrine, the auto 408 PREFACE. da fe — so thoroughly did they intoxicate themselves with the supreme joys they were providing for the true believers in Christ, and so satisfied were they in the holy zeal displayed at these grand spectacles — that, in enforcing the value and importance of the u Holy Office," it was said that " God was the first Grand Inquisitor — Adam and Eve the first heretics — Jesus Christ was also an Inquisitor, and commenced his mission by the death of Herod I" But a truce to these absurdities, since pure u Science" has superseded the necessity of employing the thumb-screiv to bring con- viction of the truth of the precepts of Jesus home to the bosom of every rational creature. How was the " Saviour " rewarded for the flood of light which he poured forth on mankind — " a light to lighten the Gentiles " — a " Revelation" of such per- fect purity and so grounded in the " PRINCIPLE OF REASON," that no rational being can gainsay its truth— verily, a "DIVINE REVELATION," partaking of the sublimity and exalted purity of the Maker of Reason ! Look at the gratitude of the world to the MAN who devoted himself so entirely to fulfil the mission with which he was charged — as to disregard all the threats of the men in power — to suffer the most PREFACE. 409 degrading revilings of the illiterate and vulgar — even to be spit upon and scourged by the common soldier — mocked and treated with contumely by the bystander — deserted by his disciples — at length, after being robed in the royal purple and crowned with a crown of thorns, till the blood started on his forhead, declared in derision — King of the Jews — -he suffered the most excruciating pangs as a martyr with unheard-of forti- tude — was even nailed to the tree — for the sake of truth and the " PRINCIPLE OF REASON." Not- withstanding, when he was in the agonies of death, he was soothed with hyssop, and, to assuage his thirst, vinegar on a sponge was given to the expiring Christ. In the midst of his agonies, and in the sharpness of death, he pathetically implored his heavenly Father, crying with a loud voice, Mnilty Tlu? 'bit *6n (Psalm xxii) and gave up the ghost. How touching and impressive is the sympathy and compassion of the Ci Saviour" on the painful recital by Mary of the death of her brother Lazarus ! — seeing Mary weep, and the Jews that were with her in tears, he groaned in the spirit and was troubled : and, in confirmation of his humanity, "Jesus wept." In the intensity of his mental agony on the cross, and the 410 PREFACE. height of his passion, when the sweat dropped from him like great drops of bloody he prayed more fervently, and said : — " Father ! — forgive them, for they know not what they do ! " So thoroughly did the " Saviour " anticipate the lamentable, disgraceful, and overwhelming torments that were to terminate his mission — to which he was betrayed by one of his own disciples with a Kiss — that he said to the twelve : — " My soul is ex- ceedingly sorrowful, even unto death — tarry ye here and watch with me" — and he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying : — c: Oh, my Father ! let this cup pass from me, if it be possible — Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee. — Nevertheless — " NOT MY WILL, BUT THINE, BE DONE ! » Amen ! THE AUTHOR. 1 , Park Road, Regent's Park, March 29, 1834. T II K I, () K l)\S r H A V K M , ' ■ ' ird< i On b'.ijj n n i ■ LSI INTRODUCTION. A work proving, as the present is intended to do, the sublimity and divinity of the Christian Dispensation, from its own internal evidence, will be hailed by all good men as a consummation devoutly to be wished. All former efforts to prove the divinity and truth of this heavenly doctrine, from the " Book " itself, have uniformly been considered weak and inefficacious, because they merely quoted texts out of the work to support its own merits. But a very little reflection will convince the most sceptical mind of the complete success of the present mode of proof. A very superficial perusal of the " Sacred Volume" will satisfy the most careless reader that this inestimable book contains matter of two very opposite natures ; in order to do justice to both portions of the work, it will be obvious that each is susceptible of a very different kind of treatment. s5 412 INTRODUCTION. It is unparalleled the mischief which arises from treating a subject in an improper manner ; for instance, to expect the same conviction to flow from matters of History that the mind is forced to give to the precepts of Morality. Hence the endless disputes as to the validity of a " Book," which, when resolved into its distinct elementary parts, cannot admit of two opinions. Whenever & principle is apprehended by the Reason of man, all rational creatures must of necessity assent to it ; for Reason cannot err : it is the last, it is the only standard of truth — Man should love virtue and shun vice. — The only science that in any way can compare with Morality, in point of the purity and universality of its principles, is pure Mathematics. In both these sciences, Reason decides in a universal and'Jiecessari/ manner — never to be reversed. Thus, that a circle is round receives immediate assent — so it always was, so it ever will be — if it ever was esteemed rational to be good, and irrational to be wicked, so it always was, so it ever will be. How very differently is History circumstanced ! A fact of history can have existed only at one point of time, and under no circumstances can it ever recur — for the time in which the fact took place has evanesced, INTRODUCTION. 413 and will never more return — for instance, the birth of Christ. Now this important event is placed by historians in the first year of the present era; but for the truth or falsehood of this assertion we are constrained to rely on the testimony of some individual who records the fact, either from his own observation, or from its having been related to him by some one else, on whom he is obliged to depend. Even at the present moment, chronologists are at variance as to the truth of this truly momentous fact of history ; some insisting that it was prior to the year one. Thus much is certain, that this glorious event must have happened either before, or after, or at, the point of time recorded in history, for no other case is possible. Now what universality is there when parties disagree ! The miracles even come under the consideration of History, as being events that have addressed the senses of some individual, and been by him either recorded or communicated to some one else, by whom they are recorded. Nor is it in the power of any person to prove that such circumstances have not occurred. Take for instance our Saviour's transfiguration. Here we have the testimony of three men, Peter, James, and John, who all declare that Christ's face shone like 414 INTRODUCTION. the sun, and that his raiment appeared as white as snow \ then a cloud overshadowed them, and they were all very much frightened. These facts are recorded by Matthew, Mark, and Luke, and they ail agree in the main circumstances. Surely this is authority enough to rank these events as historical facts. But what is still more in their favour is, that it is totally impossible for any human being to gainsay that these men did actually receive impressions on their senses, which produced such belief in their minds. Nor do these events or the Miracles generally imply contradictions to the laws of nature. On the contrary, they absolutely confirm and establish these immutable laws of God, that so uniformly regulate his mundane system. Every Miracle, or sensible appearance, is stated to fill up apart of SPACE, and to have occurred at a certain point of TIME. So far from the Miracles either requiring the abrogation or even the suspension of the unalterable laws of nature, they on the contrary actually confirm and fix these laws for ever — nay, even the most ancient History that we know of also con- firms these laws. The "Bible," in describing the very generation of our earth, states that every part filled up Space, and took place in Time. So fixed and INTRODUCTION. 415 unalterable are these laws of nature, that any testimony of a fact which neither fills the one nor occurs in the other cannot gain the least credit, nay, cannot even be conceived, therefore cannot form a part of history. It has been said by some writers on this subject, that it would be unbecoming the perfect ivisdom of God to make laws and then break them. Facts are realities that have actually addressed the Senses of some Individual, consequently conformed to the laws of Time and Space ; and it is only when they are related to other persons that they constitute History. But, if every fact recorded in history could be established beyond the possibility of doubt, this would not alter the nature of these facts, which are real events, having arisen and vanished in time: as the birth, ministry, and crucifixion of our Saviour, each of which occurred at some point of TIME, or they could not have occurred at all. Different, indeed, are the Doctrines taught by Jesus Christ. These divine truths, when once uttered, remain unalterably the same — the strongest proof that they do not constitute any part of the changeable phenomena of nature, or exist, where nature does, in TIME and SPACE : they must consequently be out of the sphere 416 INTRODUCTION. of things which are perpetually changing — that is to say, they are in ETERNITY, where no change can take place. Well, then, may we say that God's commandments partake of his own divine nature, and are, like his ineffable self, immutable. It must now indeed be evident that the Doctrines of Christ are precepts of a perfectly pure Morality — of universal application ; and, when once acknowledged by Reason, though never perceived by the Senses, are absolutely admitted by all reasonable creatures to form a code of divine laws, which admit of no dispute, but command instant Conviction : as, Love God with all thy heart, with all thy soul, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself — that is, be strictly virtuous whatever may be the consequences. These laws are divine laws, and placed by the Deity in the Reason of man, so that he who fulfils these commandments will feel conscious of having done his duty, and he who neglects them feel a moral unworthiness. It must now be obvious that these are pure, im- mutable, and consequently divine or spiritual, laws, and commanding not only for men but for all beings endowed with Reason — even of a higher order — as angels : for they are the very constituents of that INTRODUCTION. 417 faculty. The purity of these laws proves their divine nature, and must convince the most sceptical that they do not constitute any part of the mundane system ; consequently they can only regard the soul, which every one acknowledges to be spiritual or immaterial, and therefore cannot relate to the material substances of this world. The inference is here strikingly power- ful, namely, that these divine laws are implanted in our rational or moral nature, for the sole purpose that we should render ourselves worthy to be made partakers of that kingdom which is prepared for us from the foundation of the world. If the view here taken of the New Testament is new, it most certainly is equally true ; for that which is spiritual cannot be material, or subject to the laws of matter, much less can it be subjected to the records of history. Who shall describe or relate the particular operations of a power which they have never beheld ? Who shall record the motives which actuate the soul, which no human eye can perceive, or pronounce on its immortality otherwise than through the reasoning faculty ? He alone can describe or record the infinite powers of the soul who himself is infinite. It is therefore strikingly obvious that principles, which are 418 INTRODUCTION^ themselves infinite and immutable, require a very different kind of treatment from historical facts. To the Senses and their ordinary mode of judging they cannot be submitted, for they ever elude their grasp. No one will surely be hardy enough to say that he has either seen or felt a principle. Then how is it that we are actuated by these all-powerful and invisible essences ; that we respect and revere them more than all that can be offered to gratify the Sense f Reason must be the Faculty which takes cognizance of these perfectly pure, nay, spiritual and divine beings, which exercise such a powerful influence over our souls, and fit us to inherit the Eternal Kingdom of Christ. Those, however — if such there be — who prefer considering the Miracles as oriental forms of speech, or metaphorical illustrations of the new doctrine, instead of historical facts, have, indeed, an ample field from which to draw perfect moral precepts, always dis- playing the pre-eminence of the spirit above the flesh; thus confirming the Christian Doctrine, and esta- blishing for ever the divinity of Christ : for instance, Christ walking on the water. This is, indeed, a figura- tive exposition of the whole doctrine, indicating that the soul or spirit is so superior to the body or flesh INTRODUCTION. 419 that in all temptations it has the power of conquest, and final victory within itself : for u the kingdom of God is ivithin us," and constitutes the moral part of man's nature, which manifests itself in conscience as the power that decides whether we have discharged our duty or not, and is very properly denominated " Pure Practical Reason/' Indeed, there is not one Miracle which is not replete with moral information. The temptation in the wilderness is a forcible illustration of the power possessed by man to overcome all the seductions of the inclinations, and steadily to adhere to the moral law planted in his Reason. It also affords a powerful lesson that, in our most pressing necessities, we ought to rely upon the favour and assistance of God, and never to lose our confidence in his goodness. Even the darkness which took place at the crucifixion is a beautiful emblem, implying that the Son of Righteousness withdrew from our terraqueous globe, and wafted himself to his own spiritual abode of eternal bliss : not, however, without leaving an inde- lible example of strictly upright conduct, and of a never-failing obedience to the moral law, which ex- ample, so far from being effaced by time, is sure to become more efficacious as enlightenment advances, and 420 INTRODUCTION. Pure Practical Reason is more immediately cultivated. Rending the veil of the temple may be considered a type emblematic of the abolition of the Mosaic and the perfect establishment of the Christian Dispensation. The parables constantly employed by our Saviour in enforcing his doctrine sufficiently evince his predilec- tion for figurative language, as being a very forcible mode not only of conveying instruction but of adapting it to the plainest capacity. Nor, indeed, is it so absolutely certain that profane History does not sometimes indulge in metaphor. Poetry, we know, delights in personification, calling the sea Neptune, and the sun Apollo. The grave and sedate History of Rome very circumstantially relates of Caligula that he consecrated his favourite horse High Priest, invested him with the dignity of Consul, provided him with marble apartments, indulged him with a golden rack and manger, besides allowing him a suite of attendants. May not this be refined censure concealed under a metaphor, reflecting upon the irregu- larity of the Emperor's conduct ? Let it not, however, be supposed for a moment that history can be dispensed with, for it is as impossible to teach morality without an investigation and comparison INTRODUCTION. 421 of the actions of men recorded in history as it is to teach the mathematics without an extended surface on which to describe its Diagrams. All that we here insist upon is, that the pure part in each science is susceptible of a different mode of treatment from the empirical part. It is an acknowledged fact that the mathematical diagrams exhibited to the Senses are only symbolical representations, which raise in the mind the pure mathematical figures. These, indeed, can never be felt, or in any way address the senses. Exactly so is it in Morality. The various actions of man recorded in history and ranked as good, bad, or indifferent, are so many empirical symbols, referring each action to its motive, wherein alone its morality consists. The more accurately a diagram is described^ the nearer it approaches to the mental figure. For this, however, it never can be substituted. This is precisely the case with " Morality ;" the better the action, the nearer it approximates to its moral type, which is planted in the Reason of man, and denomi- nated the " Moral Law." Nor, indeed, can man from the action decide upon the motive : this is an affair of the individual with his Maker, and is not cognizable by man. Though thousands might witness the action of 422 INTRODUCTION. plunging the dagger into the heart, thus terminating the existence of the individual, who but God shall judge the motive! — Who shall pronounce judgment on the motive of Manlius Torquatus, who killed his own son for acting without orders ! Being deeply im- pressed with the importance of attention to orders in military tactics, he acted towards his son as he would towards any one else under his command — he dis- patched him, though his exertions were crowned with a glorious victory. Was this a crime or a virtue in Manlius % That the morality of an action depends on the motive is universally admitted. Hence Morality is the doctrine of motives, or a 6i Pure Science of Reason,' 5 where every motive is examined and compared in point of purity with the sacred standard — the moral laiv, seated in Reason, where every action we are going to perform must be first submitted to this test, and either be allowed or prohibited : thus it is we know whether the motive is good or bad. In this way, man is the natural judge of his own actions, for he either acquits or condemns himself by that divine spirit of truth within him, Conscience ; and, having acted con- formably to its dictates, nothing more can be required INTRODUCTION. 423 of him. But the very essence of Morality consists in man's discharging his duty quite disinterestedly •, that is, purely for the sake of duty. Thus Reason com- mands Morality, and gives man the power of obtaining the victory over the sinful lusts of the flesh — the carnal inclinations. When these pure and permanent laws of Reason are represented as the divine com- mandments of God, they constitute Religion, that is, a demand made on the finite being to render his will conformable to the will of God. It is a fatal error to mistake the type for the essence — to adore the " Book/' which is the work of man's hand, instead of the idea of the pure spiritual essence which the type awakens in the mind. This is, indeed, worshipping a material Deity, an Idol ; and is as gross a superstition as any that can be charged to the Roman Catholics, or even to the most savage tribes. Sciences and precepts are spiritual or mental things, and can exist only in mind, and not in matter. To teach the science of Geometry, a book is necessary, as well as to awaken religious sentiments ; yet no one would say that he had seen or felt a mathematical figure because he found diagrams in Euclid, or that he had discovered the spiritual essence of the Deity in a 424 INTRODUCTION. printed book. It is, indeed, true that matter is necessary to instruct mind; for without it there could not be any object to think of; yet thoughts raised in the mind by material objects are themselves purely mental, that is, spiritual. So, in Religion, History, which records the actions of men, is essential, in order that these actions may be investigated as to their relative purity and correctness. But, to consider any action performed by man in experience, or in time and space, as a religious act, is quite a mistake. For it is the motive alone which is of a religious nature, and which, being invisible to man, can never become an object of experience. These spiritual essences are, therefore, affairs between man and his Maker. It must not, however, be supposed that it is even hinted at, in the most distant manner, that religious forms and ceremo- nies are to be dispensed with. These essential requisites for raising ideas which inspire religious awe are abso- lutely indispensable. All that is required is, that the one should not be confounded with the other, nor the ceremonials be mistaken for the Religion itself. Our great Prototype, Christ, has taught the futility of the outward action, and shown that " true Religion can exist only in the heart" INTRODUCTION. 425 The view here taken of historical events is cor- roborated by a recent work of considerable merit, entitled " History of the Jews/' in the " Family Library." On that momentous event, the birth of Christ, this work is greatly at variance with the (i New Testament." This History represents Archelaus, the son of Herod the Great, as reigning in Judea three years before the birth of Christ, which directly con- tradicts the relation of Matthew that Herod's massacre was intended to include the infant Christ. Thus the period which has to boast of this memorable event, the " Birth of our Saviour," is involved in apparently inexplicable difficulty, and furnishes an additional proof of the necessity of dividing the labours of the inspired writers into two distinct parts — the Doctrinal, which commands instant and universal assent ; and the Historical, which will employ the researches of the learned for an indefinite period, without their ever arriving at a conclusion which can be absolutely depended upon. Fortunate, indeed, is it that the " Religion of Christ " is not built on such a sandy foundation ; but that, on the contrary, the principles of Morality which our Saviour expounds in his teaching need only be understood to sink so deep into the heart 426 INTRODUCTION. that he who feels their perfect purity and divine origin will suffer martyrdom in support of their truth — a glorious triumph of principle over fact. The excellent work just referred to has the following passage, which still further proves the propriety of the divarication here attempted. " < The Bible/ that is, the < Old Testament/ is strictly historical, not theological ; yet some will not read the most ancient and curious History in the world, because it is in the Bible ; others read it in the Bible, with a kind of pious awe, which prevents them from comprehending its real spirit. The latter look on the distinguished characters in the Mosaic annals as a kind of sacred beings scarcely allied to human nature. Writers, unfriendly to revealed religion, starting with the same notion that the Mosaic narrative is uniformly exemplary, not historical, have enlarged, with malicious triumph, on the delinquencies of the patriarchs and their descendants — perplexity and triumph surely equally groundless. The patriarchs and their descendants are the depositories of certain great religious truths, the Unity, Omnipotence, and Providence of God ; not solely for their own use and advantage, but as conservators for the future universal benefit of mankind. Hence human affairs INTRODUCTION. 427 took their ordinary course ; the common passions and motives of mankind were left in undisturbed operation. Higher and purer notions of the Deity, though they tend to promote and improve, by no means necessarily enforce moral perfection ; neither does the actual interposition of the Almighty, in favour of an individual, or nation, nor his employment of them as instruments for certain important purposes, stamp the seal of divine approbation on all their actions. Actions are to he judged by their motives, and not by their undesigned consequences." Since the " Old Testament" is the repository of these highly important religious truths, the Unity, Omnipotence, and Providence of God, even though intermingled with historical facts, what shall we say of the sacred deposit, handed down to us in the u New Testament," which contains the ark of the new covenant — a perfect code of moral laws — with a practical example of the possibility of fulfilling them to the very letter, in the sacred and divine person of their author, who, in propounding the ever-to-be adored doctrine of the Holy Trinity, has shone with a light which never man did, and has distinguished himself from every other individual whom the world has beheld since its T 428 INTRODUCTION. creation ! This only true and genuine notion of the Deity, first promulgated by Christ, partakes of the nature of God himself, and must endure as long as the Divine Essence subsists. All difficulty, which this only perfectly pure notion of the Godhead may appear to involve, will be instantly dissipated by attention to the following observations. First, it is absolutely impossible for man to think of oneness — it is a complete nonentity, consisting neither of matter, form, nor connexion of these two elements. Hence, when the human mind cogitates, it must think of something. But a thing which is composed neither of matter nor form is positively nothing. Conse- quently the word thing always implies a compound of three elements in one — a triad of principles, or in fact a Trinity in Unity. Secondly, if we think of a material object, it is quite evident that it must consist of matter, or parts which fill up Space and occupy Time, that is to say, the thing must be an object of experience, and can only be known by its addressing the Senses : for instance, a house, a horse, a tree, and so on. The materials of which the thing consists, as the bricks which compose the house, are the matter ; the arrangement of these parts of matter constitutes its INTRODUCTION. 429 shape, as round, square, or oval, and is the/orm of the house. But this form could not be given to nothing ; hence the necessity of the matter ; and neither of these can be annulled without totally annihilating the thing, with this inseparable condition — that these particular bricks constitute this identical house, with this deter- minate form. So that these two elements necessarily imply connexion ; a third, and the three together, constitute the thing called a house. This reasoning applies to the whole of nature, and quite exhausts the entire mundane system, which is composed of an endless series of triads. Now, as matter is divisible ad infinitum, it must consist of an infinite number of parts ; and no one part, strictly speaking, can exist by itself, otherwise the division would not be infinite : the least number of parts that can be connected is Hvo; but, if these two parts were not connected, there would not be a thing. The elements here are two parts, and their union, making three necessary elements, none of which can be annulled. It is quite obvious that every object of nature which fills up time and space conforms to this law of a trinity in unity. Let us carry this parity of reasoning to mental things which exist in time only. Thus, all mathematical figures equally t2 430 INTRODUCTION. conform to this law : take a line for instance ; it consists of parts in connexion, and is, in fact, a series of triads; for the smallest possible part of a mental line must consist of two mathematical points and their union — a triangle must consist of three lines united at three points, yet forming only one conception. A circle consists of a centre, periphery, and radius — three necessary elements, none of which can be annulled. This law holds with all mental operations, as substance and properties in connexion constitute a thing : Cause, Effect, and the necessary dependence of the one on the other; for that is no cause which has not pro- duced an effect, and there can be no effect without a cause : so that all mental things obey this law. We have only to ascend one step higher in the scale of reasoning, and carry this notion of a trinity in unity to the infinite, and the Christian Doctrine will be fully displayed. Infinite nothingness is a nonentity. Therefore, if the mind of man is to be occupied with a rational thought, it must think of an infinite something ; but this must consist of some infinite parts, or it would be an infinite nothing. Now, the least possible number of infinite parts that can be united is two; but, unless INTRODUCTION. 431 these two are connected by a third, they could not constitute an infinite something. Hence, even in the infinite, the same process of reasoning is required to constitute a thing, namely, three elements united in one, or a trinity in unity. Having now satisfactorily accounted for the mystical number three in one, it only remains to show that these infinites are pure and holy, and Christ's theory of the Trinity will blaze forth with the effulgence and permanence of truth itself. Thus, then, it is : every thing which pervades the sphere of nature consists of matter, is corruptible, and always changing its state, consequently, is neither pure nor holy. Nor will nature ever furnish us with matter that merits this epithet — nay, we cannot obtain a glass of pure water, strictly speaking. Hence the things of nature, which fill space and occupy time, are uniformly considered as corruptible — u What is sown in corruption is raised in incorruption ; what is sown a natural body is raised a spiritual body/' The class of objects that rank under these conditions are called objects of nature or material objects, and are only manifest to the senses because they fill up time and space. They are objects of intuitive or immediate knowledge, and may be termed 432 INTRODUCTION. Intuitions. None of these objects can be considered holy or pure, because they are generated in the soil of corruption, where every thing is mutable. Neither can the actions of man, which manifest themselves in time, deserve this sublime epithet ; for they, like man, while in time and space, are mere fleeting phenomena, whose value lies in the purity and sanctity of the motives which induce them. The next class of objects that come under consideration are the reminiscences retained in the mind after the removal of the material object. Such are the conceptions we have on leaving any person or thing ; as, parting from a friend, we retain his form in our mind, which mental form cer- tainly does not fill up any space, though it is generated and retained mentally in time. All mathematical figures conform to this law. Though these objects may be deemed purer than those which fill both time and space, yet they do not merit the epithet pure. A conceptive circle must be allowed to exceed by far the purity of one described on a material surface ; but it is not infinite ; it is always definite when it is intelligible. These are objects existing wholly in the mind, though they are derived from material objects, and may be called Conceptions. INTRODUCTION. 433 Intuitions occupy both time and space ; Conceptions, time only ; both which have their finite limits : for conceptions evidently arise and vanish in time, conse- quently are mutable and changeable, like every thing in the sphere of Nature. The " Supreme Being" is totally free from these restricting limitations ; with the ineffable essence of the Divinity every thing is infinite, unlimited, pure, absolutely perfect, and eternal. No part of this divine essence could inhabit corruptibility, neither can it exist within the changeable sphere of time and space. Hence the Deity — that is, the Creator, who is also the Preserver, that is, the Saviour, and, by the spirit of connexion between these two infinite attributes, the Ruler, of all his works — is perfectly pure, free from corruption, immutable, and absolutely sacred, and holy : this is, indeed, a true and rational Idea of the Divinity. Objects, which are perfectly pure and holy, transcend the confines of nature, and cannot exist with the changeable phenomena in time and space,but inhabit the pure and holy region of Eternity, and maybe termed Ideas : so that the class of objects which are out of time and space — if they are to exist at all — can be no where else but in Eternity. Such are the Deity, the soul, and all pure and spiritual beings. 344 INTRODUCTION. As it is perfectly clear that the finite cannot com- prehend the infinite, all that remains for us to do, in order to obtain only a faint notion of these sacred and holy spirits, is to personify them. We have a powerful proof of the existence of our own " Reason/' which is of so pure and holy a nature that, if it were separated from the inclinations which inhabit the flesh, it could only act reasonably. Of its spirituality no one can doubt. It is equally certain that this pure Faculty could not have made itself ; therefore, it must have had an Author. But that Being must be eminently rational, pure, and holy, to have communicated such qualities to his production. The instant this Cause had produced this Effect, arose the third necessary element, the relation or Connexion between the two, which com- pletes the notion of a Triune Essence. It is customary to say, when any one makes another in his own likeness, that he has begotten a son, which always implies the relationship between Father and Son. Now, if we personify these pure and Holy Powers, nothing can be more natural than to call the first the holy father, the second in order the holy son, and the necessary con- nexion subsisting between these infinite spirits the holy ghost, being of the same nature as the father and INTRODUCTION. 435 the son. But the Godhead of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, is all one — all equally infinite, holy, spiritual, and co-eternal. But without a Father there can be no Son, much less a holy and necessary Connexion between these two infinite and Eternal Spirits. This doctrine was so perfectly understood in the infancy of Christianity, that, when a fierce contention took place on this most vital point of the " Christian Religion," the council of Nice, A. D. 325, decided the question in favour of a Trinity in Unity, as the only true notion of the Godhead, and determined that the dogma which Arius and his followers wished to esta- blish was a nonentity. And it is very remarkable that all the learning and all the talent, which have been bestowed on this momentous doctrine for more than fifteen centuries, have not been able to reverse this decision. So firmly fixed in the Reason of man is Christ's doctrine, that it has not only endured through- out this long period, but it must remain to the end of time, and even be found in all its purity in Eternity. However, at the period of this hot debate, it was deemed necessary to propose some standard or test, in order to know under what banner each individual t 5 436 INTRODUCTION. ranked himself. Hence arose that superlative string of syllogisms — the finest piece of reasoning ever offered to the contemplation of human Reason — known by the name of the Athanasian Creed. The only obnoxious clauses are those two which open this matchless com- position, and the concluding sentence. Yet even these are strictly the words of our Saviour ; and, when the venom is extracted from the mere words, the sense flashes conviction upon us with an electric effect. The object of this Creed was, to be a test, not only that the doctrines of Christ were cherished in the heart of the individual professing Christianity, but of his determi- nation to act up to the purity of this spiritual faith. Christ says, Unless you believe in me, the Xoyo;, the word, you cannot be saved. Now, to believe in the doctrine of Christ is to feel such an internal conviction of its truth, that its contrary is not for a moment to be conceived ; and to act up to its divine precepts is to be morally good, on all occasions, without considering what consequences may flow from the action — thou shalt not lie — either for promised reward or threat- ened punishment. But how can any one be expected to act morally who has not the moral type indelibly fixed in his own soul f Can a man do the impossible ! INTRODUCTION. 437 — No ! where mystery begins Virtue and Religion end. Can a man obey laws which he does not understand ! Hence it is clear that these clauses only repeat the words of Christ, and this Creed most fully develops his doctrine. Thus it is impossible to do otherwise than acknowledge the Catholic Faith, and to promise to keep it whole and undenled; which, in modern language, is to say : " / am a being endowed with Reason, whose laws I ought to follow, or I cease to he a reasonable creature, and am obnoxious to my Creator. The most prominent law of my Reasoning Faculty is the ' Moral Law ; ' / am forced to consider its dictates as the immediate commandments of God, and to acknowledge that I ought to obey them strictly, in order to he acceptable to that ineffable Being ivho has given me existence." What reasonable man would shrink from this confession of faith ! — who will not acknowledge that he possesses a reasonable soul, subsisting in human flesh, which of itself is a trinity in unity, as the soul, the body, and the connexion, constitute man ! For the soul, separated from the body, is not man, but an angel or spirit ; neither is the flesh, distinct from the spirit, man : therefore, man must necessarily be the two con- joined, or a trinity in unity. Never was doctrine so 438 INTRODUCTION, expounded. What can surpass the boldness,, the fire, the energy, and, above all, the truth of this astonishing- production ; and this in the very infancy of the Christian Religion ! In fact, the Creed of St. Athanasius is the most argumentative and soundest part of our Liturgy. Those who wish to revel in the pure delight of perfect doctrine will have the satisfaction, in this Divarication, to find all the beautiful and soul-exalting precepts of Christ collected together, and prepared to their hand, entirely free from the perplexity and inter- mixture of the historical facts, as presented to us by the inspired writers. They will here be enabled to enter fully into the sublime morality of this doctrine, which is the vital essence of the Christian Religion ; they will enjoy the advantage of having this doctrine expounded in modern language^ embracing all the benefits derivable from the advanced state of science, and particularly from the high cultivation of the Reasoning Faculty. It is to be hoped that a combination of these excellencies will facilitate the labours of the truly pious, and promote their praiseworthy endeavours to reach that kingdom prepared for them from the beginning of the world, by walking in the paths of INTRODUCTION. 439 virtue and avoiding the seductions of v ice, so that they may feel the deepest conviction of having acted up to the dictates of the moral laiv, and thus be acquitted by conscience as having strictly performed their duty. Reason, indeed, would be a contradictory and illusory faculty, if it did not fulfil the promises it holds out to man : that when we have terminated our Sensible existence, and our soul is set free from the trammels of the flesh, our Rational Faculty will have its sphere of action enlarged, and become capable of those pure delights of which it shall have rendered itself ivorthy ; for no reasonable creature would be justified, nay, would deem it reasonable, to be rewarded beyond his deserts. Reason says, Man is entitled to no more happiness than is due to him from the purity of the motives that have induced his conduct ; and, therefore, disclaims all right to accept more. Now, as the pro- portion between Virtue and Happiness is not meted out to us in an equal degree in this probationary sphere, that Reason may be consistent, we must of necessity inherit a future state, in order to complete hereafter what is so happily begun here. If the maimer of expounding Christ's Doctrine in this work proves, upon full investigation, to be not 440 INTRODUCTION. only correct but the only true one, then indeed will it last as long as the u Holy Book " which it attempts to illustrate : if otherwise, let it be consigned to its fate — oblivion. " The discovery of truth ought to be the object of all true philosophy ; and the attainment of this end must, to a philosopher, be the greatest of all possible blessings. If, then, a man is satisfied that he has arrived at the fountain head of pure truth ; and yet, because the generality of men hold different sentiments, dares not avow it, but tacitly gives assent to falsehood, he withholds what, according to his own principles, it is for their good to know — he prefers his personal good to Truth — and proves that, whatever he may profess, he is not imbued with the spirit of true philosophy." Should, however, any thing occur, on the side which is devoted to Doctrine, that does not command instant conviction, the reader is requested to transfer it to the page of History. It seems to have been in sheer mercy to the laity that the Roman Catholic clergy interdicted the reading of the " Sacred Volume ; " for, as their own highly- cultivated understandings could not master the " Holy Book," little did they deem it suited to the capacity of the vulgar ; and it is very remarkable that, though so INTRODUCTION. 441 many ages have rolled on, yet we are not universally agreed as to its strict meaning. When will the period arrive that there shall be but one opinion of the " Sacred Book!" — then only when its truth is fully elicited. Whatever tends to level the Scriptures to the plainest understanding must, at the same time, tend to enlarge the sphere of their influence, and thus to fulfil the injunction — that they are to be " preached to all the nations of the world." But who can read the sublime doctrine contained in this Volume, and withhold his consent from its truth, or dwell on these sacred religious truths, and not be convinced of their divine origin ! When Religion is disincumbered from historical facts — which constitute no part of its essence, however much they may have contributed to its promotion — its adoption is compulsory on every rational creature : and when its divine truths are purified from all that is extraneous, and collected and arranged so as to form a sacred science, they will be as powerful in their appeal, and as susceptible of proof, as any proposition in the mathematics. Then will the Scriptures be fully understood, and the possibility of entertaining two opinions on this important subject be for ever destroyed. 442 INTRODUCTION. The reason why all mankind assent to mathematical truths is, because mathematics is a science of Reason. When Religion once assumes the strict form of a science, it must also be a rational science, and be fully apprehended by all reasonable creatures : then, indeed, we shall have no need of wars and massacres to establish religious truths. Principles cannot be enforced by the sword : neither can the rack, nor all the punishments threatened by the ingenuity of the bigot, nor all the powers of nature combined, with a view to torture or eventually destroy the delinquent, either confirm or refute principle. This is the calm operation of the Rational Faculty — the quiet and slow work of Reason, by the safe and sure march of syllogism, but, when once obtained, with full conviction of its truth, established for ever. The present is, indeed, but a faint attempt to display some of the treasures of the " Sacred Volume " — who shall exhaust the treasure of such a mine ! — and to suit its divine precepts, in some measure, to the advanced state of enlightenment at the present day. Should this work survive the present edition, I shall avail myself of all the remarks of the learned critics — INTRODUCTION. 443 whose severest censure I invoke — that its successor may be more worthy of the dignity of the subject. A first attempt, where every thing is new in the manner of treatment, and can be improved, developed, and perfected, by repeated efforts only, must naturally be replete with defects. It is to be hoped that this attempt to illustrate the Doctrines of Christ will induce those, whose heads and hearts are not only in unison with the author's, but who can boast superior gifts of Providence for unfolding the " Scriptures," to engage in this delightful task, so that the whole world may become enlightened with respect to this " Divine Morality." How propitious, indeed, are the present times for the accomplishment of this wish, when the march of intellect has passed the Rubicon, and must now either succeed in its glorious enterprize or perish in the attempt ! Should the arguments adduced in this little volume have the blessed effect of clearing up the doubts and perplexities that may have prevented a single individual from embracing, with heart and soul, the doctrines of the Christian Dispensation, it will then not only have accomplished its object — that of facilitating the universal adoption of the Religion of Christ — but the 444 INTRODUCTION. author will feel amply recompensed for his labour in the reflection that another member is added to those who are already in communion with Christ. That these pages may operate such conviction on the minds of those who are perplexed with doubt on this most vital subject — the future welfare of their souls — is the devout and fervent prayer of THE AUTHOR. Timberham Lodge, near Reigate, Surrey, October 6, 1830. ARGUMENT DIVARICATION OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. The writings of the " New Testament " contain the Christian Religion, and were "Revealed" by Jesus Christ for the good of man. They may be divided and arranged under two distinct heads, thus : — MAN SOUL. DOCTRINE. THESIS. Under this head are com- prised all pure principles, which are of a spiritual nature, and consequently not to be met with in Experience, that is, in Time and Space. Pure Principles are inherent in the Reason of man, and constitute the internal basis of " Religion. " BODY. HISTORY. ANTITHESIS. Under this head are com- prised those parts of the " New Testament" which record facts that have taken place on Earth. Facts are realities that have actually addressed the Senses, and, by being related, constitute "History" criterion. Principles can be contem- plated by Reason alone, and can never address the Senses. criterion. Facts are known only by their having addressed the Senses, and in no other way. 446 ARGUMENT FOR THE DIVARICATION. DOCTRINE. AXIOMS. 1. Pure Doctrinal Principles cannot be refuted. 2. True Religion must be founded on pure doctrinal prin- ciples. CONCLUSION. As true Religion is founded upon pure doctrinal principles, it follows, that true Religion is incontrovertible, and, being of a spiritual nature, is totally independent of Historical Facts. PROOF OF DOCTRINE. HISTORY. AXIOMS. 1. Historical Facts may be doubted. 2. True Religion, being of a spiritual nature, must be inde- pendent of historical facts. CONCLUSION. If true Religion is not inde- pendent of historical facts, it follows, that, as historical facts may be doubted, a Religion founded on History may itself be doubted. PROOF OF HISTORY. CONVICTION. This is a necessary or Ra- tional Belief; it must be true, because its contrary is impos- sible. BELIEF. This is a contingent credence given to Historical Facts, which may be true, because they are possible and probable. Thus, by disincumbering the Principles of the Christian Religion from Historical Facts, their universal adoption is facilitated. DIVARICATION OF THE NEW TESTAMENT DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. €f)e 4£o£peI according to |*>t. ffll&ttytby. CHAPTER I. 1. The genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, from Abraham to Joseph. 17. So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen, and from David to the carrying away into Babylon are fourteen, and thence to Christ are fourteen generations. 18. The birth of Jesus Christ was when his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph ; before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost. On this account, Joseph, who was a just man, intended to put her away privately: but, being warned in a dream, he did not do it. 25. But he knew her not till she had brought forth her first-born son ; and he called his name Jesus. CHAPTER II. 1. Jesus was born at Bethlehem, in Judea, in the days of King Herod; 448 MATTHEW DOCTRINE, HISTORY; The Word of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly, The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. the wise men came to the king at Jerusalem, and asked for the King of the Jews, saying they had seen his star in the East. I. Herod inquired at what time the star appeared, and sent them to search for the young child. II. At Bethlehem they saw the 3 T oung child and Mary his mother, and presented gifts and frankincense to him. But, being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they took the young child and his mother and went into Egypt, and remained there until the death of Herod. For the King sought to kill the young child. 21. Joseph then took the young child and his mother, and went into the land of Israel. But, when he heard that Archelaus, the successor of Herod, reigned in Judea, though he was warned in a dream to return, he turned aside into Galilee, and dwelt in a city called Nazareth ; for he was afraid of Archelaus. CHAPTER III. 2. Repent — for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. In order to ob- tain pardon for our offences, we must lead a virtuous life; and thus prepare ourselves for eternity. 6. Confession of sin, indicated by baptism. This is an outward and visible sign of the initiation of the infant into the New Dispensation, and a complete acknowledgment that as the child advances his Reason will expand, and prove to be the inward spiritual grace which will be able to quell all the undue affections of Sense. Whatever regards Sense is visible; while all the moral laws, and what- ever emanates from Reason, are invi- sible to the natural eye, though con- firmed by Conscience in their absolute truth beyond the most palpable fact. So is faith greater than k?ioidedge. I. At this time John the Baptist was preaching in the wilderness. He was dressed in a camel's hair garment with a leathern girdle round his waist: his food was locusts and wild honey. 5. And many persons from Jeru- salem and about the Jordan were baptised by him. II. John said, I, indeed, baptise with water unto repentance ; but he that comes after me baptises with the Holy Ghost and with fire. 13. Then Jesus came from Gali- lee to Jordan, and was baptised by John. MATT 449 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Spiritual, or Heavenly. Material, or Earthly. CHAPTER IV. 1. " To be tempted of the devil"; is to feel conscious that the inclina-j tions of Sense are striving to over-j come the moral law seated in our Reason. Abstinence must be con-! sidered as an admirable corrective of' 1. Then Jesus was led into the wilderness to be tempted by the de- vil; and, when he had fasted forty days, he was hungry ; and the tempter said to him, If you are the Son of God, command these stones to be all the irregular desires of Sense, andj made bread. must naturally allow Reason to as-: 5. Then the devil took him into sert its rights. Thus is man victorious! the holy city, and set him upon a in the good fight, by evincing the; pinnacle of the temple; and said, If supremacy of Reason over Sense,! you are the son of God, cast yourself making the law of God the supreme' down. — I will give you all these law, the law of spirit superior to thej kingdoms if you will worship me. law of matter, the law of Syllogism, 12. When Jesus heard that John eminently above the law of Sensation-, was in prison, he went into Galilee; — strong evidence that the invisible* he left Nazareth and dwelt in Caper- or spiritual part of man, his Reason,' naum is all-important, while the visible or material part of man, his body, is 17. Now Jesus began to preach, and, walking by the sea of Galilee, he only relative, and endures but for a[ saw the two brothers, Simon Peter finite time. 4. Man shall not live by bread; alone, but by the Word of God. 7. Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God. and Andrew, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen; and he said to them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men. They fol- lowed him. Not far from thence he serve. 17. Repent — for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. 10. Thou shalt worship the Lord saw in a ship mending their nets John thy God, and him only shalt thou and James, sons of Zebedee; he called also to them ; and they immediately left their ship and their father. 23. And Jesus went about all Galilee, preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom in the Synagogues, and healing all manner of diseases among the people. CHAPTER V. 3. Blessed are the poor in spirit, for their's is the kingdom of heaven ; and they that mourn, for they shall be comforted ; and the meek, and those who thirst after righteousness ; and those that are merciful ; and the pure in heart; and the peacemakers and those that are persecuted for righteousness' sake. 16. Let men see your good works, and glorify your father which is in heaven. 1. Jesus then went up into a mountain and taught his disciples. 17. I am not come to destroy the law, but tn fulfil it. 450 MATTHEW. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The "Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. 22. He who is angry with his brother without a cause is wrong. 28. Whosoever looketh at a woman to lust after her hath com- mitted adultery in his heart. 39. Whosoever shall smite thee on the right cheek, turn the other to him also. 43. Love your neighbour and your enemies ; bless them that curse you ; I do good to them that hate you ; and pray for them that persecute you. 47. Be ye, therefore, perfect, as I your Father in heaven is perfect. CHAPTER VI. 1 . Do your charities in private. 6. When you pray, enter your closet, and, when you have shut the door, pray to your father in heaven in secret, and not as the hypocrites in public. 7 . When you pray, use no vain re- petitions, for God knows what you need before you ask him. 9. But pray after this manner: " Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven ; give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our tres- passes, as we forgive them that tres- pass against us ; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil : For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen." 19. Lay not up treasures upon earth, but in heaven, of which you cannot be robbed : for this treasure is in your heart. 25. Ye cannot serve God and mammon : but seek first the king- 1 dom of God and righteousness. The Word Of MAN = SENSE. lil'a r,?J. or JLanhh/. CHAPTER 1 . Judge not, that ye be not judged. 12. Whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do you even unto , VII. MATTHEW, 451 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. them. For this is the law and the prophets. This is the great moral rule. On this must all Religion be founded. This is the Doctrine of Christianity, and is eminently dis- tinguished from everything that has preceded this Divine Revelation. It is the very ideal of pure spiritual sanctity. Only by practising this pure conduct can we hope to inherit the Kingdom of God. This law of G od is generated by Practical Reason, and whoever is not conscious of its purity, divinity, and validity, is not an accountable being. The " Moral Law," therefore, must form the foun- dation of all Religion. This is the law of the soul, and resides wholly in Eternity; while the laws of the body, which are extension and suc- cession, or Time and Space, can never enter Eternity. Hence the freedom of the soul horn all the restrictive laws of matter. Love and reverence for this pure law of Practical Reason constitute morality, and may be ex- pressed scientifically thus : "Follow the dictates of Reason ;" that is, on all occasions realise the mode in which Reason acts, and your conduct will always be rational. This must be the universal law for all rational crea- tures. In scriptural language we should say that these laws of Reason are the WORD of GOD, and that every narrative of a series of sensa- tions that originate in Sense consti- tutes the WORD of MAN. In " Holy Writ," therefore, the essence of Reason is God, and the excesses of Sense are the devil. 13. Vice is very seducing, and Virtue demands sacrifices ; therefore, avoid vice and love virtue. 21. Not he that saith Lord ! Lord ! shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he that doth the will of the father. The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. 28. When Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine. 452 MATTHEW. DOCTRINE, The Word Of GOD = REASON, HISTORY. The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Spiritual, or Heavenly. Material, or Earthly. CHAPTER VIII. 1. When Jesus came down from the mountain, great multitudes fol- lowed him, and he cured a man of the leprosy. And when Jesus was at Capernaum, a centurion came to him, and said that his servant was sick of the palsy. Jesus said I will come and heal him; but the centurion said, I am not worthy that you should come under my roof; only speak the word, and my servant will be healed ; and his servant was healed at the same hour. 14. When Jesus came to Peter's house, he saw his wife's mother sick of a fever ; he touched her hand, and the fever left her. Many were brought j to him that were sick, and he healed them. 18. Now, when Jesus saw the great multitudes about him, he desired them to go on the other side; but a certain Scribe said, Master, I will follow, you wheresoever you go. One of his disciples said, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father; but Jesus said, Follow me, and let the dead bury their dead. 23. He then went into a ship with his disciples, and there arose a great storm ; now Jesus was asleep, but they awoke him, and he rebuked the wind, and the sea became calm. When they had crossed over to the other side, two men came to him pos- sessed with devils ; he cast out the devils, and sent them into a herd of swine, and they ran violently into the sea, and perished in the waters. CHAPTER IX. 1 . Jesus now returned in a ship to his own city, where they brought to him a man sick of the palsy ; and he said to him, Take thy bed and go to thine house. 9. As Jesus was passing along, he MATTHEW. 453 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiribml, or Heavenly. 13. I do not call the righteous but sinners to repentance. The Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. saw a man at the receipt of the cus- toms, whose name was Matthew ; he desired him to follow him, which he did. 10. Jesus and his disciples sat down at meals with publicans and sinners, and the Pharisees wondered at it ; but Jesus explained that it was to reform them. 18. Now a certain ruler came to him and told him that his daughter was just dead ; but if you will lay your hand upon her she will live. Then Jesus and his disciples went with him. 20. A woman, who had an issue of blood for twelve years, came be- hind Jesus and touched the hem of his garment, and was cured from that moment. 23. When they had arrived at the ruler's house, he found the people lamenting, but he said to them, The maid is not dead but sleepeth . They, however, did not believe him ; and he took the maid by the hand, and she arose. 27. As Jesus departed, two blind men followed him, beseeching him to cure them ; he touched their eyes, and their eyes were opened. Jesus desired them not to name it; but they spread his fame every where. 32. A dumb man was also brought to him, and the dumb man spake. 35. Jesus went about teaching the Gospel of the Kingdom, in the villages and cities, and in the synagogues, preaching the new doctrine, and heal- ing every sickness and every disease among the people. CHAPTER X. 7. The kingdom of heaven is at hand. 23. Fear not those who kill the body, for they are not able to kill the soul. The body, as extended and suc- 1. He now gave the power to his twelve disciples to heal all manner of sickness and cure all kinds of disease. The following are the names of the Twelve Apostles : u 2 454 MATTHEW. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. cessive matter in Time, must always be subject to change, which occasions the vicissitudes of this life. The soul, on the other hand, is wholly free from all the operations of matter. This pure spirit can alone reside in the abode of the infinite, or in Eter- nity. 29. "According to your faith be it unto you." Faithisaconscientiousde- pendence on the principles of Reason', the conviction of whose truth nothing can refute. This is the true Word ! op God. How can the fallible opinions of men bear the slightest comparison with purity like this ? How then can the Word of Man ever be considered otherwise than liable to err ! 37. The love of God must exceed that with which a father loves his son, or a mother loves her daughter ; and he that does the least good action shall have his reward in heaven. The love of God is shown by obeying his commandments. This is evinced by a sincere reverence for that perfectly pure law of Practical Reason, the "Moral Law," and may be called practical love, consisting wholly in the purity of the motives which in- duce our earthly actions. Motives are spiritual inhabitants of Eternity, and totally invisible to man, being the result of syllogism. Actions are material changes in Time, and re- cognized only through sensation. The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. 1. Simon, who was called Peter. 2. Andrew, the brother of Simon. 3. James, the son of Zebedee. 4. John, the brother of James. 5. Philip. 6. Bartholomew. 7. Thomas. 8. Matthew, the Publican. 9. James, the son of Alphseus. 10. Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddseus. 11. Simon, the Canaanite. 12. Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Christ. 5. These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them to go and preach the new doctrine, heal the sick, and raise the dead. Provide nothing for your journey, but when you enter a city inquire who in it are worthy; there abide, and if they shall not receive you, nor hear the word, when you depart out of that house or city, shake the dust off your feet. 16. 1 send you forth as sheep among wolves; be, therefore, wise as ser- pents and harmless as doves. And if you are delivered up to judgment, speak according to the spirit of truth that is in you. If they persecute you in one city, go to another, and fear them not. 27. No man knows the Father bat the Son ; if you will find rest for CHAPTER XI. 1. When Jesus had finished his instructions to his disciples, he went into the cities and preached. Now John, who was put in prison, sent to know if it was Christ, and Jesus de- sired them to tell John what they had seen and heard : that the blind received their sight, the deaf heard, and those that were lame walked, the sick were cured, and the dead MATTHEW. 455 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. your souls, do the work of the Father ; that is, perform all the moral duties commanded by Reason, which is the Xoyog, or the Son, and the author of Reason is Qebg, or the Father, which generates the third member of the " Holy Trinity," or the Holy Spirit, (TvvexvQ) of connexion betweenFather and Son. All the seductions from the strict performance of our moral duties originate in Sense. The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. raised, and the poor had the Go?pel preached to them. 11. Jesus said to the crowd that were collected that there was not a greater man than John the Baptist, though from his days till now the kingdom of heaven had suffered vio- lence. 20. Jesus then upbraided those cities which had beheld his works, and yet did not repent. CHAPTER XII. 30. He who disputes the " Word of Man " shall be forgiven ; but he that denies the " Word of God " shall not be forgiven either here or hereafter. The Word of God is Reason, the Word of Man is Sense. 35. The good man bringeth forth good things, and the evil man evil things, and by these shall he be judged. The good man is always under the influence of Reason, and by evincing its supremacy he proves his goodness before God. He never allows himself the gratification of any set of sensations till they are ap- proved by Conscience. The evil man 1. Jesus afterwards went through the corn-fields, on a sabbath-day, with his disciples, who, as they were hungry, plucked the ears of corn, and began to eat. But the Phari- sees said, Is it lawful to do this on the sabbath ? 3. Jesus replied — Have you not read what King David did when he was hungry ? — he went into the house of God and ate the Showbread, which was contrary to law. 13. There was a man in the syna- gogue, who had his hand withered, and they asked Jesus if it was lawful to heal on the sabbath day ? to which he replied it was lawful to do good on a sabbath-day. And the man stretched forth his hand, and it was immediately healed. 14. The Pharisees now tried to destroy Jesus for breaking the sab- bath ; but he withdrew from thence. The Pharisees were astonished at his powers, and said, This fellow derives his power from the devil. 28. But Christ said, A kingdom divided against itself cannot stand : so that the power by which I work these wonders is not derived from Satan, but from Heaven, and those who are not with me are against me. 46. While he was talking to the people, his mother and his brethren , desired to speak with him. And 453 MATTHEW. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word of GOD = REASON, The Word of MAN = SENSE, Spiritual, or Heavenly. perverts the order of his faculties by gratifying every sinful lust of the flesh, which originates in Sense. This perversion makes Reason the! servant of Sense, and in the language of Scripture would be called the aban- don ment of God for the devotion of the Devil. Material, or Earthly. he said, Who is my mother ? Who are my brethren ? He stretched forth his hand, and said to his disci- ples, Behold my mother and my bre- thren ! For whosoever does the will of my Father, who is in heaven, is my brother, my sister, and my mo- ther. CHAPTER XIII. 4. The parable of the sower im- plies that good principles, being cul- tivated in a good heart, bring forth abundantly good actions: but, on the contrary, good principles are thrown away upon a bad heart ; and as man improves or neglects his soul, so shall he be rewarded or punished in the world to come : in this way this su- blime doctrine is levelled to themean- 1. On the following day, Jesus sat by the sea-side ; but, as the mul- titude was great, he went into a ship, and addressed them in para- bles. 10. The disciples asked him why he spake to them in parables. He replied, that otherwise they could not understand. 53. When Jesus had finished his est capacity. All the other parables , parables, he taught in the synago- have a similar tendency. The good! gues, to the astonishment of the heart implies a sincere devotion to 1 Doctors who inquired: Is not this the laws of God, as placed in our the carpenter's son? — Is not his Reason and confirmed by Conscience, mother called Mary? — Are not his The bad heart means giving way to brethren James, Joses, Simon, and all the irregular desires of Sense, Judas? — And are not his sisters all without first trying our motives by with us ? How comes he then to the test of Reason. know all these things ? CHAPTER XIV. 1 . At this time, Herod the tetrarch heard of the fame of Jesus ; but he insinuated that it was John the Bap- tist, who was raised from the dead, that did these mighty works; for Herod had put John in prison on ac- count of the reproaches he made for his illegal marriage with Herodias, his brother Philip's wife, and would have put him to death, but he feared the multitude, who considered him as a prophet. 6. At the celebration of Herod's birthday, his daughter, by Herodias, so much delighted him by dancing before him, that he promised on oath to give her whatever she would ask : MATTHEW. 457 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. 8. " Give me John Baptist's head in a charger." What is this but grati- fying the bad passion of the heart — revenge — absolutely forbidden by the Christian Dispensation, which enjoins us to return good for evil. Reason never can approve the indulgence of the sinful desires of Sense. So that such conduct can never be considered as fulfilling the Word of God, but most decidedly as being subject to Satan, and following the Word of Man. The Word of MAN == SENSE, Material, or Earthly. and, being instructed by her mother, she said, Give me John Baptist's head in a charger. 9. Now the King was much con- cerned at this request ; but, for his oath's sake, he commanded it to be given to her. John was accordingly beheaded in prison, and his head was given to the damsel, who gave it to her mother. • 12. The disciples of John took the body and buried it, and then went and told Jesus, who immediately took ship and departed into a desert place: but, as soon as the people heard of his removal, they followed him on foot out of the cities. 14. When Jesus saw the multitude that had come to him, he took com- passion on them, and healed their sick. In the evening his disciples said to him, This is a desert piace; send these people away, that they may procure refreshment. 16. But Jesus said: They need not depart ; give them something to eat. But they retorted: We have here only five loaves and two fishes. Jesus commanded the multitude to sit down on the grass, and he distri- buted the provisions to his disciples, who gave it to the multitude, and they ate till they were satisfied. 20. After the repast, theygathered twelve baskets full of the fragments which remained, after having sup- plied about five thousand with food, besides women and children. 22. Jesus then desired his disci- ples to go in a ship over to the other side, while he dispersed the multi- tude: then he went into a mountain alone to pray. 24. At this time a storm arose and tossed the ship violently. In the fourth watch they perceived some- thing on the sea, which they took , for an apparition ; but it proved to 45S MATTHEW. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The "Word Of GOD = REASON, Sjtiritual, or Heavenly. The "Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. be Jesus walking on the sea; they, however, cried out for fear. 27. But Jesus spoke to them and said — Be of good cheer, it is I: be not afraid. Peter then said, Bid me come to you ; but, as Peter approached him, he began to sink, and cried out Lord, save me ! and, on their arriving at the ship, the wind ceased. 34. When they had gone into the land of Genesareth, as soon as Je- sus was known, they brought all those who were sick and diseased to him to be cured ; and he made them whole. CHAPTER XV. 4. Honour your father and mother, that you may inherit the kingdom of God. 1 1 . Not that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man, but that which cometh out of his mouth, namely, Deceit. There can be no morality without the most sincere love, venera- tion, and reverence, for the supreme law of God — Reason — and an ab- solute determination to suppress all the sinful lusts of the flesh induced by Sense, which is the law of Man. 18. What proceedeth from the mouth comes from the heart, namely, evil thoughts: hence result murders, adulteries, thefts, false witness, blas- phemies, and these things defile the man, while unwashed hands are harm- less. Mereceremonies are not Religi- ous or Moral ; a strict attention to the dictates of Reason, as acknowledged by Conscience, alone constitutes pui - e morality, which always implies the suppression of the irregular desires of Sense. 1. The Scribes and Pharisees of Jerusalem then came to Jesus and asked why his disciples transgressed the tradition of the elders. They do not wash their hands when they eat bread. Jesus asked them, Why do you transgress the commandments of God by your traditions ? 10. Jesus called the multitude and said to them, Hear and understand this doctrine. His disciples then told him that the Pharisees were offended at what he had said. He replied, If the blind lead the blind, they will both fall into the ditch. Peter asked Jesus to explain this parable, which he did. 21. Jesus now departed, and went to the coasts of Tyre and Sidon : here a woman besought him to cure her daughter, who was grievously af- flicted ; and her daughter was made whole. 29. Jesus then went near the sea of Galilee, and ascended a mountain, where they brought numbers that were lame, blind, dumb, maimed, and others, and he healed them all. Now this multitude of people remained with him three days, having nothing to eat ; he took compassion on them, MATTHEW. 459 DOCTRINE,, HISTORY, The Word of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. The "Word Of MAN == SENSE, Material, or Earthly. and said to his disciples, I will not send them away fasting: but they replied, we have not sufficient bread in the wilderness for so many ; we have only seven loaves and a few small fishes. He gave them to his disciples to distribute to the multi- tude, who sat down on the ground, and, when they were satisfied, they collected seven baskets of fragments. The number that were fed amounted to four thousand, besides women and children. CHAPTER XVI. 16. " The son of the living God." The pure expounder of Reason can alone be rational. But, the Author of Reason, being God the Father, Geoc, the production, or the finite Reason, must be God the Son, Xoyoc, neither ofwhichare conceivable apart; therefore, the connexion between them is absolutely necessary—cri;j/€%?}f — which generates the Holy Trinity : God the Father . . . . = 0io$. God the Son = Xoyoj . God the Holy Ghost . = ic. 18. " On this rock I will build my Church." The supremacy of the Romish Church is founded on this solitary text. Now, the Catholic Church means the "New Dispensa- tion," as originally founded by Christ, in fact, " Pure Primitive Christi- anity." It is lamentable to observe the flagrant departure from this primi- tive model that has taken place in the " Romish Church," which has not only possessed itself, at times, of all temporal power, by its entire devotion to mammon, but has actually polluted the stream of pure Christianity which originated with our Saviour. 25. It is wrong to think more of this world than of the next. We must never allow the seductions of I 12. When Jesus came to the coast of Caesarea Philippi, he inquired of his disciples what the people said of him : and they told him that some said he was John the Baptist, some Elias, and others Jeremias, or one of the prophets. But what say you of me ? Simon Peter then said : Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. 11. Blessed are thou, Simon Bar- jona, this is revealed to thee by my father, who is in heaven, and I say unto thee, thou art Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and no- thing shall prevail against it. He then charged his disciples that they should tell no one that he was Jesus Christ. 21. Jesus now told his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem, and suffer much from the Elders, and Chief Priests, and Scribes. Peter then said, Far be it from thee, this shaJl not happen to thee. But Jesus re- torted and said to Peter : Get thee hence, Satan ; thou art an offence to me, for thou adherest more to the things of this world than of the world to come. u 5 460 MATTHEW. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. Sense to derogate from the purity and sublimity of the "Moral Law," the first law of Reason. 26. What does it profit a man to gain the whole world, if he loses his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul ? The one- way to save. your own soul is by a strict adherence to the Command- ments of God as revealed to you through " Pure PracticalReason," and announced in your Conscience. This conduct must be pursued out of pure love and reverence for the Moral Law, which is the only power to limit the unruly passions of Sense. 27. Hereafter every man shall be rewarded according to his deserts. Reason, that pure spiritual law of God, assures us that good conduct shall be rewarded and bad conduct be punished. Now, as this due pro- portion of rewards and punishments is not meted to us in this world, it is clear there must be an hereafter, or Reason would contradict itself. But, even to suppose such a case is to cast a censure on the Author of Reason — in fact, to make God the author of deceit — in other words — the Devil. " Spare us, good Lord ! " The Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. CHAPTER XVII 1. Six days afterwards, Jesus took Peter, James, and John, into a high mountain to pray, and was trans- figured before th em. Peter said to Jesus, It is good for us to be here ; and while he was speaking a cloud overshadowed them, and a voice out of the cloud said, This is my beloved son, in whom I am well pleased ; hear him. The disciples now fell on their faces, and were frightened : but Je- sus touched them, and bade them arise, and say nothing of what they had seen. 14. When they had descended from MATTHEW. 4Gi DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. the mountain, a certain man came to him, in great tribulation, and re- quested him to cure his son, who was a lunatic, saying that his disciples could not succeed. Jesus immediately cured him. 22. While they remained in Gali- lee, Jesus told his disciples that he should be betrayed into the hands of his enemies, who would kill him ; but, on the third day, he should rise again. 24. And when they had come to Capernaum, Peter was asked if his master paid tribute-money — he said, Yes. Then Jesus said to Peter, Cast a hook into the sea — the first fish you catch will have a piece of money in his mouth, which you can give to them, though the demand is unjust. CHAPTER 1. To become acceptable in the kingdom of heaven, you must be as innocent as a little child in the pu- rity of your motives, and thus you do the will of the Father, who is in heaven. No motive can be pure that does not spring from Practical Reason — scientifically. All pure motives a.nseirom the "Autonomy of the Will," and have nothing else in view but love and reverence for the Moral Law seated in our moral Reason. All impure motives are generated by the " Heteronomy op the Will"— the law of " Specula- tive Reason" — which urges our instincts and inclinations to commit all sorts of excess till restrained by the Moral Law. Motives arising from the "Autonomy ok the Will" are absolutely good in themselves, and produce morality. Motives arising from the " Heteronomy of the Will " give birth to immorality , are f il)M)lutely bad in themselves, when they strive to accomplish something foreign to the Moral Law seated in . XVI 462 MATTHEW. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. Reason, and further the unlawful desires of Sense. "Autonomy of the Will " is when Reason gives the law to itself : hence good motives. " Heteronomy of the Will" is when the instincts of Sense influence the motive through Speculative Reason, and search for some gratifi- cation distinct from Reason : hence bad motives. 22. Forgive each other, and your father in heaven will likewise forgive The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. you. 21. Peter asked Jesus how many times his brother should offend him and be forgiven. Jesus gave him to understand that there was no limited number of times, but that on all oc- casions he should forgive him. CHAPTER XIX, 16. " No one is good but God who is in heaven." How can frail man, the creature of Time and Space, who is always affected by the vicissitudes of Sense, be compared to the perfect purity of Reason, whose only abode is Eternity ? Even Christ, the Saviour of mankind, says that while he is the Son of Man, and affected by instincts and inclinations, he is not good. The body of Christ, being matter, must of course be subject to the law of matter, which is Instinct or Sense. The soul of the Redeemer must be an emana- tion of God himself, the pure spirit of perfect truth, seated in his Pra<> tical Reason. These divine laws he has revealed to humanity, to en- sure the salvation of the soul, and by a strict observance of them con- stitute a happy hereafter. When Christ identifies his Reason with the Great Reason, which was its author, he can be nothing short of the true Messiah and the only be- gotten Son of God — " the lamb which taketh away the sins of the world." 17. To enter the kingdom of heaven you must be strictly virtuous, and keep God's commandments, which are engraved in your heart and con- firmed by your conscience. Always maintain the supremacy of Reason 1. When Jesus had delivered these doctrines, he went from Galilee to Ju- dea, beyond the Jordan. And great multitudes followed him, and he healed their sick. 3. The Pharisees asked him if it was lawful for a man to put away his wife on a slight cause? Jesus said, He who puts away his wife, ex- cept it be for fornication, and shall marry another, committeth adultery. 16. Now a man came to Jesus and said, Good Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life ? But he said to him, Why do you call me good ? no one is good but God, who is in heaven. The young man asked whathe should do to enter the kingdom of heaven. After Jesus had told him to keep God's commandments, he said, This I have done from my youth. 21. Jesus said, If you wish to be perfect, sell all that you have, and MATTHEW. 463 DOCTRINE, The Word Of GOD = REASON, HISTORY, The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Spiritual, or Heavenly. Material, or Earthly. over Sense, and you will be strictly give to the poor ; but the young man virtuous and acceptable to the Lord, went away sorrowfully, for he had Then shall you enter the kingdom of large possessions, heaven. -29. Those who lay more store by a virtuous life than by the enjoyment! of earthly things shall inherit eternal happiness ; that is, those who on all occasions act in strict conformity to the lata of moral Reason must neces- sarily always act reasonably, that is, " realise the mode in which Reason acts," consequently, suppress the in- stincts and inclinations of Sense : then they shall inherit eternal happiness. CHAPTER XX. 11. Jesus then took his twelve dis- ciples apart and went to Jerusalem, saying that he should be betrayed into the hands of the Chief Priests and Scribes, and that he should be put to death. 29. As they departed from Jericho, a great multitude followed them ; and two blind men, who were seated by the way-side, besought Jesus that he would open their eyes, and immedi- ately they received their sight. CHAPTER XXI. 1. When they came near to Jeru- salem, and were come to Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus directed two of his disciples to go to the vil- lage opposite, and bring the ass and colt that they would find tied there. If any one interrupt you, say that I have need of them. They brought the ass and the colt, caparisoned them , and placed Jesus thereon : and the people strewed their garments and branches of trees in the way; and, when he arrived in Jerusalem, the whole city inquired who he was. The people said it was Jesus, the Prophet of Nazareth, in Galilee. 12. Jesus then went into the Tern - , pie of God, and cleared it from all 464 MATTHEW. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. 43. The kingdom of God will be given to those who bring forth good fruits, that is, who are strictly vir- tuous, always obeying the Com- mandments of God as announced in Reason, and renouncing the Devil and all his works, which are the ex- cesses induced by the irregular and sinful desires of Sense. The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. those who profaned it by traffic. The blind and the lame came to him in the temple, and he healed them. The Chief Priests and Scribes saw what he did, and were displeased. 17. He next went to Bethany, where he staid ; as he returned to the city in the morning he became hungry. He saw a fig-tree on his road, but, finding no fruit upon it, he said, Henceforth thou shalt bear no fruit, and the tree immediately withered. The disciples were asto- nished; but Jesus told them that he would give them power to do more than this, if they had faith in him. 46. When the Chief Priests and Pharisees sought to lay hands on Je- sus, they were afraid of the multi- tude, who took him for a prophet. CHAPTER XXII, 87. Love God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and love thy neighbour as thyself. Love, reverence, and adore, the law of your own Practical Reason, which is not only an imme- diate emanation of the Deity, but the only channel through which the " Divine Revelation" of the Doc- trine taught by our Saviour can be acknowledged. Thus the spiritual communication between Man and his Maker becomes a channel for conveying the Word of God to his creatures, of so pure a nature, and in such an intelligible and universal manner, as never to be confounded with the deceitful artifices of human beings, which at best are only the Word of Man. " Ye hypocrites, ye neglect the Word of God, and teach the deceitful doctrinesof men." 15. The Pharisees, with a view to try him, asked Jesus if it was lawful to pay tribute to Caesar. He perceived their intention, and desired them to show him the coin, which bore a head and inscription of the Emperor Caesar. He then said to them, Render unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's, and unto God the things which are God's. 35. A lawyer then asked Jesus what was the great commandment of the law. And Jesus gave him this doctrine (see the other column), and said, On these commandments hang all the law and the prophets. CHAPTER XXIII. 1. Jesus desired that his disciples . would attend to what the Scribes and MATTHEW. 465 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD == REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly.- 25. Purity of the heart is most acceptable to God, and consists of a firm determination never to lose sight of the law of God, which com- mands us on all occasions to " realise the mode in which Reason acts;" that is, " Do unto others as we would they should do unto us." This line of conduct must of necessity crush all the pomps and vanities of the world of Sense. The Word Of MAN == SENSE, Material, or Earthly. Pharisees said, as they sate in the seat of Moses. 23. But woe unto you Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites ! for ye pay tithe of mint, anise, and cummin , and have omitted the weightier matters of law, judgment, mercy, and faith : these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone. Ye make clean the outside of the cup and plat- ter : but within ye are full of extortion and excess. CHAPTER XXIV. 3. When the Gospel is preached universally, and firmly fixed in the heart of each rational being, then, indeed, is the end of the world of sin arrived. As the law of God, seated in Practical Reason, has become the sole law of our conduct, the laio of Satan, or the excesses of the incli- nations and desires of Sense, must be confined within due limits; this is a sign of the end of the world of sin and Sense. 35. " Heaven and Earth shall pass away, but my Doctrine shall notpass away." How can Doctrine, which consists of the "Revelation" of the principles of Reason, ever pass away ? As these principles can alone reside in Eternity, how can they undergo any change? Hence they must par- take of all the pure attributes of the Divinity — they must he perfect, in- finite, and eternal. These principles are the Doctrine of Christ, and as strictly invisible to the natural eye, though confirmed mentally to the highest possible state of "Conviction," as God himself — while heaven and earth, or this globe and its atmo- sphere, as objects of Sense, which can alone exist in Time, must be for ever in a state of change, conse- quently, every earthly thing must arise and perish, that is, have a be- 1. Jesus and his disciples viewed the building of the Temple, and he said, There shall not be one stone left upon another. And, as he sat upon the Mount of Olives, the dis- ciples requested him to say when these things would happen, and what sign would indicate the coming of the end of the world. Jesus said, Many will come in my name, saying, I am the Christ, and will deceive many, and many false prophets will arise ; but the true sign of the end of the world will be when the Gospel of the kingdom is preached univer- 24. In the mean time there shall arise many false Christs and false Prophets, that shall deceive the very elect. Then shall the sun be dark- ened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the hea- vens shall be shaken ; then they shall see the Son of Man coming in the clouds, with angels and a great sound of a trumpet, and gather all the elect. 35. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my tvords shall not pass away. Watch , therefore, for ye know not when your hour comes. 466 MATTHEW. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, The Word of MAN = SENSE, Spiritual, or Heavenly. ginning, middle, and end. " Watch, therefore, for ye know not when your hour comes." 46. Be always prepared to enter into a future state — always keep a clear Conscience, which can only be done by constantly evincing the su- premacy of Reason over Sense. Then are ye prepared to go before God ! CHAPTER XXV. 1. The parable of the wise and foolish virgins indicates the uncer- tainty of this life, and the necessity of always being watchful and attentive to our eternal welfare. 21. The meaning of the parable of a man travelling into a far country Material, or Earthly. 14. The kingdom of heaven is likened to a man travelling in a far that those who work righteousness country, who entrusted different sums will be hereafter rewarded according to their deserts, in that kingdom pre- pared for them from the foundation of the world ; that is to say, the good in everlasting life, and the wicked in eternal punishment. It is strikingly evident that, as we go out of Time, where we are in a constant state of change, and enter Eternity, we must partake of that Kingdom pre- pared for us from the foundation of the world, in the state in which we have conducted ourselves in this pro- bationary sphere. Reason recoils at the idea of our receiving rewards we do not merit, and rejects the idea of punishment for our good deeds. If Reason is not the spirit of truth, who, then, can rely upon the " Reve- lation" of the Redeemer! Forwithout Reason we can neither comprehend the Word of God nor control the sinful lusts of Sense. of money to his servants, some oi whom, by industry, doubled the amount entrusted to them. CHAPTER XXVI. 1. Jesus then told his disciples that the feast of the Passover would take place in two days, at which time ( he should be betrayed and crucified. MATTHEW. 467 DOCTRINE. HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. 26. "This is my blood, which is shed for the remission of sins, and this bread is my body." The bread and wine are only tokens of the spirit and the word. It is the spirit that quickeneth ; the flesh profiteth nothing : the words that I speak are the spirit and the life. Eat and drink this in remembrance of me. The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. At this time, Caiaphas, with the Chief Priests, and Scribes, and Elders, as- sembled at the palace of the high priest, in order to consult how they might secretly take Jesus and kill him. They determined that it would not be prudent to attempt it on the day of the feast, lest there should be an uproar among the people. 6. While Jesus was at Bethany, at the house of Simon the leper, a woman came to him and anointed his head with precious ointment. His disciples were displeased at this act, saying, It would be better to sell the ointment and give the money to the poor. But Jesus said, This act will be a memorial to this woman, wherever my doctrine is preached. 14. At this time, Judas Iscariot went to the Chief Priests and offered to deliver up Jesus for a sum of money : and they agreed to give him thirty pieces of silver. He now sought diligently an opportunity to betray Jesus. 11. The disciples now asked Jesus where he would eat the Passover ; and he directed them to have it pre- pared at the house of a certain man in the city, at which place he sat down with his disciples, and did eat, saying, One of you shall betray me, but they all protested against so vile an act. Jesus then said, He that dippeth his hand with me in the dish, the same shall betray me. As he took the bread and wine, he said, This is my blood, which is shed for the remission of sins, and this bread is my body. This doctrine is explained by St. John : they then retired to the Mount of Olives. 33. Peter said to Jesus, Though all men should be offended with you, I never will ! Jesus replied to him, saying, Before the cock crow thou shalt deny me thrice. But Peter as- 468 MATTHEW. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. It is the "New Testament" — rj Kawi) diaOrjicr) — the new dispensation, in contradistinction to the Old Testa-; ment — rj Tvakaia diaOrjKr) — given in! the books of Moses, also called the Si- naitical Dispensation. The distinction between these two dispensations is, indeed, very marked. The object of Moses was to regulate the conduct of a people in an uninformed state of mind, chiefly occupied in tending their flocks, under Patriarchs — as it were — in the infancy of mankind. How happily does this explain the proceedings of Moses, who, in all his institutions and regulations, never loses sight of the desires of Sense and mundane affairs ! His very legis- lation, even in the decalogue received immediately from God on Mount Sinai, consists of nothing but regu-; lations of an earthly nature, " till one greater man restore us, and regain 1 the blissful seat" of pure enlighten- ment in the " New Dispensation," which is wholly devoted to the de- velopmentofthelawsofRBAsoN. The Christian Dispensation is the Word of God, the pure representative of the " Moral Law" as an immediate divine commandment, entirely free from all earthly considerations, lead-, ing the soul directly into the presence of its Maker, to revel in the bliss of heaven. The Mosaic Dispensation regards, not the motives, which can alone reside in Eternity, but merely the actions of men in Time, as con- veyed to the mind through sensation. The highest reward for good actions is obtaining the land of promise, the height of sensual joys, and can only be the Word of Man. The spiritual reward of the virtuous, effected only by the purity of the motive, is, indeed, to gain the blissful seat — the Kingdom of God — prepared for us before all worlds. As spirit cannot affect Sense, The Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. sured him even if he lost his life he would never deny him. 36. Jesus then went with his disciples to Gethsemane, where he desired his disciples to remain while he went to pray. He took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, John and James. He then said, My soul is exceeding sorrowful; watch here while I pray : he went to a little distance, and fell upon his face: Oh, my father, that this cup might be averted from me ! nevertheless, thy will be done ! When he returned to his disciples, he found them asleep : he reproached them, saying, Could ye not watch for one hour? Ye may, however, now sleep on, for I am betrayed into the hands of sin- ners. 47. And while Jesus was yet speak- ing, Judas, one of the twelve, came with a great multitude prepared to seize him. He said, Whomsoever you observe that I kiss, that is he, hold him fast — they then proceeded to lay hold of him. Jesus said to them, You are come as against a thief, with swords and staves to take me. I sat daily teaching in the tem- ple, and you did not take me. 5G. Then all the disciples forsook him, and fled. Jesus was then con- ducted to Caiaphas, the High Priest, where the Scribes and Pharisees were assembled. Peter followed him at a distance, and went into the hall in the palace, and sat with the servants, to know the issue. 59. Now all the council sought to obtain false witnesses against Jesus, to put him to death. At length, they found two false witnesses, who accu- sed him of blasphemy. They deter- mined that he was guilty of death. 67. Then they proceeded to ill treat him, to spit at him, and buffet him, saying, If you are Christ, pro- MATTHEW. 469 DOCTRINE^ HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. it must of course be generated by Reason, which is wholly free from sensation, and must consequently be the only true Word of God. Now, indeed, is the vail taken away in the reading of the Old Testament, which vail is done away by Christ in the New Testament. When Moses is read, the vail is upon the heart ; but, when Christ is read, it is the spirit of the living God, not in tables of stone, but in the tablets of the heart; for theater — Sense — killeth, but the spirit — Reason — giveth life. 41. The spirit is, indeed, inclined to virtue, but the flesh is weak. Pure Practical Reason, being itself en- tirely spiritual, can be satisfied with nothing but virtue, that is, pure goodness; while Sense, on the other hand, the very generator of instincts and inclinations, can be satisfied with nothing but gratification. The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. phesy who was the first that smote you. 69. While Peter was in the hall of the palace, a damsel said : You were with Jesus of Galilee, but he denied the fact : he then went into the porch, and a maid said to them, This fellow was with Jesus of Nazareth — this he also denied. Shortly after, those who stood near Peter said, Surely thou art one of them. Then he began to curse and swear, and to declare that he knew not the man. Immedi- ately the cock crew, and Peter, re- membering the words of Jesus, wept bitterly. CHAPTER XXVII I. When the morning of the exe- cution arrived, they bound and deli- vered him over to Pontius Pilate, the Governor of Judea. But, as soon as Judas, who had betrayed him, found that he was condemned to die, he re- pented, and brought back the thirty pieces of silver, saying, I have sinned in having betrayed innocent blood. But the Chief Priests and Scribes said, What is that to us ? look to it yourself. He was, however, so much concerned at his conduct that he went out and hanged himself. 6. The Chief Priests said, It is not lawful to put this money in the trea- sury. They, therefore, purchased a potter's field as a burial-place, for strangers. II. When Jesus was interrogated by the Governor, he made no reply, at which Pilate marvelled. It was the custom among the Jews, at this 470 MATTHEW. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD == REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly, The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. feast, to release a prisoner. Pilate then asked them, Whom will you that I release ? Barabbas, or Jesus, who is called Christ ? The multitude then cried out, Release Barabbas, and crucify Jesus. Pilate remonstra- ted with the people, saying, What evil hath he done ? But they cried out the more — Crucify him ! 24. Pilate, finding he could not prevail with them, took water and washed his hands, saying, I am inno- cent of the blood of this just person. He then delivered Barabbas to them : and, when Jesus was scourged, he delivered him over to be crucified. 27. The soldiers took Jesus and put on him a scarlet robe, platted a crown of thorns and placed it on his head, and put a reed in his right hand. They then derided him, and mocked him, calling him the King of the Jews. After seriously maltreating and re- viling him, they led him away and crucified him. And over his head they placed this inscription: " This is Jesus, the King of the Jews." The people passing by reviled him, saying, If you are the son of God, come down from the cross ! The Chief Priests and Scribes also mocked him, saying, He that saved others cannot save himself. 44. The two thieves who were crucified with him also mocked him. Jesus at length yielded up the ghost. At this moment there was a great earthquake : the rocks were rent, and the vail of the temple was rent in twain. 57. In the evening of the same day, a rich man of Arimathea, named Joseph, who was a disciple of Jesus, came and begged the body, which Pi- late ordered to be delivered to him. Joseph took the body and placed it , in a new tomb, which was hewn out MATTHEW. 471 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heaven!?/. 19. Teach in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. of a rock, and placed a great stone before the sepulchre. 61. They set a watch over the tomb, because he said, In three days I shall be raised from the dead, and we shall then prevent his disciples from steal- ing away the body by night, and saying he has risen from the dead. CHAPTER XXVIII. I. In the evening of the Sabbath, Mary Magdalene, and Mary, the mo- ther of Jesus, came to the sepulchre, and saw where Jesus had lain, for they said he was risen from the dead, and he goeth before you into Galilee, there you shall see him. And, as they went to tell his disciples, Jesus met them, saying, All hail : then Jesus said, Be not afraid. II. Some of the watch went into Jerusalem, and told the Chief Priests and Scribes what had been done : and they bribed the soldiers to say, that the disciples had come by night and stolen away the body while th ey slept ; and this is commonly reported among the Jews until this day. 16. Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, into a mountain, where Jesus had appointed to meet them. And they worshipped him, but some of them doubted. 19. Jesus then said to them, Go and preach this doctrine to all nations, baptising them. Cfje Gospel according to &t #£ark. DOCTRINE, HISTORY. The Word Of GOD = REASON, The "Word Of MAN = SENSE, Spiritual, or Heavenly. Material, or Earthly. CHAPTER I. 4. Baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. "7. Baptise you with the "Holy Ghost," that is, awaken your Con- science to acknowledge the " Moral Law " seated in your own Reason. 12. "Tempted of Satan" implies that the force of the inclinations which arise from Sense require every effort of Reason to suhdue these satanic desires, the possibility of which was evinced by the Saviour. 15. The kingdom of God is at hand — repent ye, and believe the Gospel. As no individual while on 1. The Gospel of Jesus Christ, as it is written in the prophets. 4. John did baptise in the wilder- ness and preach, and many went from Judea and Jerusalem and were baptised by him. He was clothed with camel's hair, and wore a girdle of skin about his loins ; his food was locusts and wild honey. "7. John said: I, indeed, baptise with water; but there cometh one after me who is mightier, and who wil baptise you with the Holy Ghost. 9. Shortly after this, Jesus came from Nazareth, in Galilee, and was baptised by John in the river Jordan ; and, when Jesus came out of the wa- ter, John saw the spirit descend upon Jesus, as a dove from the sky, and heard a voice saying : Thou art my beloved son, in whom I am well pleased. 12. The Spirit drove Jesus into the wilderness, where he remained forty days, and was tempted by Satan. After this, John was put in prison, and Jesus went into Galilee preach- ing the Gospel of the kingdom of God. 16. As Jesus was walking by the sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and MARK. 473 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. earth can be perfectly pure — because he consists of matter, which is cor- ruptible, and is in Time — there is always room to repent for our trans- gressions in having indulged the in- clinations of Sense, contrary to the strict commandment of the Moral Law, seated in Practical Reason, which is now and ever will be in the pure abode of Eternity. To repent, therefore, is to suppress these unruly desires of the flesh, and on all occa- sions evince the supremacy of Reason over Sense. The Word Of MAN == SENSE, Material, or Earthly. Andrew, his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fisher- men ; and he said, Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men. They followed him. When he had gone a little farther, he saw James, the son of Zebedee, and John his bro- ther, who were in the ship mending their nets ; they left their father in the ship, with hired servants, and went after him. 21. They went into Capernaum, and he taught in the synagogue, on the sabbath. And they were asto- nished at his doctrine. 23. There was a man in the syna- gogue with an unclean spirit, and Je- sus commanded him to come out of him, which he did. And they were all amazed, saying, What new doc- trine is this? even unclean spirits obey him. And his fame spread throughout all the region of Galilee. 29. When they had come to the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John, they found Simon's wife's mother sick of a fever. Jesus took her by the hand, and the fever left her. He also healed many that were sick of divers diseases, and cast out many devils. He then retired to a solitary place and prayed. 36. Simon and those that were with him followed him, and told him that every body sought him : but Je- sus said, Let us go into other towns and teach there. And he preached in the synagogues throughout Gali- lee. 40. Then a man with a leprosy came to him and beseeehed him to cure him : Jesus put forth his hand, and the man was healed. He charged the man to show himself to the High Priest, and act according to law ; but the fame of this act was rumoured abroad, so that Jesus could no longer teach openly in the city. He, there- 474 MARK. DOCTRINE, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. HISTORY, The Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. fore, retired to a desert place, where multitudes came to hear him. CHAPTER II. 1, Shortly afterwards, Jesus went to Capernaum : when it was known that he was in the house, more per- sons came to him than the house could contain, and he preached the Gospel to them. They then brought to him a man sick of the palsy ; but, as they could not enter at the door, they unroofed the house, and let down the bed with the sick man. 5. Jesus said unto the sick man, Thy sins are forgiven thee. The Scribes, who were present, said : This man speaks blasphemies, for God only can forgive sins. But, when Jesus perceived that they reasoned thus, he said : Is it easier to say to the sick man, thy sins are forgiven thee, or, arise, take up thy bed, and walk ; for the Son of Man hath power on earth to forgive sins. The sick man was healed, at which they all marvelled. 13. He then went to the sea-side, and taught the multitude. On his way thither, he saw Levi, the son of Alphseus, sitting at the receipt of customs: he said to him, Follow me, and he did. 16. The Scribes and Pharisees, seeing him eat and drink with publi- cans and sinners, said to his disciples, How is this ? but, when Jesus heard it, he said, I come not to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance. 18. The disciples of John and the Pharisees used to fast ; but the disciples of Jesus did not. Jesus explained this by saying, They need not fast while I am with them. 23. As Jesus and his disciples went through the corn-fields, on the sabbath-day, they plucked the ears and ate. The Pharisees said to him, MARK. 475 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. The Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. Why do ye that on the sabbath which is not lawful ? He replied, Have ye never read what David did, when he and those that were with him were hungry — that they ate the show- bread in the house of God, which was not lawful? CHA.PTER IIL 1. Jesus taught again in the syna- gogue, and there was a man with a withered hand. Now they watched him, whether he would heal him on the sabbath, in order that they might accuse him. But Jesus said to them , Is it lawful to do good or evil on the sabbath ? 5. He then said to the man, Stretch forth thine hand, and his hand was restored like the other. Upon which the Pharisees took counsel how they might destroy him ; but Jesus with- drew to the sea, and a great multi- tude, from Galilee, and Judea, and the neighbourhood, followed him. 9. Jesus desired his disciples to procure a small ship, as the throng was so great. Then he went up into a mountain , and took twelve disciples with him, that he might send them forth to preach, and to have power to heal. The following are the names of the twelve Apostles. 1. Simon, surnamed Peter. 2. James, the son of Zebedee. 3. John, the brother of James. 4. Andrew. 5. Philip. 6. Bartholomew. 7. Matthew. 8. Thomas. 9. James, the son of Alphaeus. 10. Thaddaeus. 11. Simon, the Canaanite. 12. Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Christ. 22. The Scribes came down from 476 MARK. DOCTRINE, The Word Of GOD = REASON, HISTORY, The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Spiritual or Heavenly. Material, or Earthly. Jerusalem, and said, He hath Beelze- bub, for he casts out devils by the prince of devils. But he said unto them, How can Satan cast out Satan ? He then spake many parables in ex- 24. A kingdom divided against planation. itself cannot stand. 31. His mother and his brethren 35. Whosoever does the will of then came and called him, but Jesus God is my brother, my sister, and said, Who is my mother, or my my mother. brethren ? CHAPTER IV. 1 . He began again to teach by the sea-side, but the multitude was so great, that he entered into a ship, while the people were on land. He taught them many things in parables. 14. Christ explains the parable of the sower to his Apostles thus : The sower soweth the word of God, but Satan cometh and taketh away the word that was sown in men's hearts ; that is, the cares, deceitfulness, and riches, of this world choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. And in this manner did Christ expound all his doctrines. 35. In the evening of the same day, he went into a ship, to go to the other side; and, while he was asleep, a great storm arose, so that those in the ship were in great danger : and they awoke Jesus, and he instantly rebuked the wind, and there was a great calm. 3. The parable of the sower im- plies that good principles, being cultivated in a good heart, bring forth abundantly good actions ; but, on the contrary, good principles are thrown away upon a bad heart, and, as man improves or neglects his soul, so shall he be rewarded or punished in the world to come. In this way, this sublime doctrine is levelled to the meanest capacity. The "Word of God " implies the laws of pure Rea- son ; and the inclinations of Sense are signified under Satan, which is the impurity of humanity, or the " Word of Man." All the other parables have a similar tendency. CHAPTER V. 1. When Christ came out of the ship, on the other side of the sea, in the country of the Gadarenes,a man out of the tombs met him, having an unclean spirit, which tormented him much. But, when he saw Jesus afar off, he ran and worshipped him. Christ healed the man, and sent the unclean spirit, with others of his kind, into a herd of swine, who ran violently down a steep place into the sea, and were choked. MARK, 477 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, The "Word Of MAN = SENSE, Spiritual, or Heavenly. Material, or Earthly. 20. When the man was restored to his right mind, he went to Deca- polis, and published his remarkable cure. Jesus then returned across the sea, and, when many people were gathered around him, Jairus,a ruler of the synagogue, fell at his feet, saying, My daughter is at the point of death ; pray come and lay thy hands on her, and she shall live. Jesus went with him, and was followed by many persons. On his way, he was informed that the damsel was dead. But Christ said, Be not afraid, only believe. He took with him only Peter, James, and John, and, taking the damsel by the hand, he said unto her, Arise ! and she arose and walked about. 25. As Jesus was proceeding to the house, there was a woman in the crowd who had been afflicted with an issue of blood for twelve years, which could not be cured. Hearing of the fame of Jesus, she said, If I can but touch the hem of his garment I shall be healed ; and she immediately be- came whole. CHAPTER VI. 1 . Jesus now went into his own country with his disciples, and, on the sabbath, he taught in the syna- gogues, at which the people were astonished, and said : Is not this the carpenter, whose mother is Mary, and whose brothers are James, Joses, Juda, and Simon? and are not his sisters here with us ? 4. But Jesus said, A man is no prophet in his own country, or in his own house, for there he could do no mighty work but heal a few sick folks. 6. He, therefore, went about the villages teaching, and sent his disci- ples two by two, with power over unclean spirits, to teach, telling them x 2 478 MARK, DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. 12. Repent ye ! The Word Of MAN = SENSE. Material, or Earthly. to provide nothing for their journey but a staff, neither bread nor money. In those cities where you are not well received, when you depart, shake off the dust from your feet in testimony against them. 13. They cast out many devils, and healed many sick persons by anointing them with oil. 14. And when King Herod heard of the fame of Jesus, he said, It i& John the Baptist who is raised from the dead, the same whom I beheaded. But Herod was enraged against John, because he said it was unlawful for him to marry Herodias, who was his brother Philip's wife, and, on this account, he sought to kill him. 21. Herod, on his birthday, made a great feast, at which the daughter of Herodias so delighted the king that he bound himself by an oath to grant her whatever she might ask. By the direction of her mother, she asked for the head of John the Bap- tist. The king immediately sent an executioner to the prison, and com- manded that John's head be brought in a charger, and presented to the damsel, who gave it to her mother. 29. When the disciples heard of it, they took his corpse and laid it in a tomb. 32. Jesus and his apostles de- parted privately by ship into a desert place, that they might commune together. But the people seeing them depart ran on foot and over- took them. So that when Jesus- landed he found a great multitude, and was moved with compassion towards them, for they were as sheep without a shepherd, and he taught them many things. 35. The day being far spent, his disciples came to him and said, Send them home ; as this is a desert place, we cannot provide for them. But MARK. 479 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. Jesus said, Give ye them to eat. He then inquired what provision they had, and they replied, Five loaves and two fishes. He then commanded them to sit down on the grass ; and, having hlessedthe loaves and fishes, he gave them to his disciples to dis- tribute to the multitude, and they did eat and were satisfied. The number of persons were about five thousand, and, after the repast, they took up twelve baskets of fragments. 46. And, when he had dispersed the multitude, he went into a moun- tain to pray. In the evening, Jesus saw from the land the ship in the middle of the sea, and they were toiling in rowing, for the wind was contrary. About the fourth watch of the night, Jesus walked upon the sea, and would have passed them ; put they supposed it to be a spirit, and cried out. Jesus immediately talked with them and said : Be of good cheer, it is I ; be not afraid. He then went into the ship, and the wind ceased. 53. And when they were come to Genesareth, they brought those that were sick to be healed. And in the different villages and cities they laid the sick in the streets, and those that touched only the border of his garment were made whole. CHAPTER VII. 15. Not that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man, but that which oometh out of his mouth, namely, Deceit. 21. What proceedeth from within comes from the heart, namely, evil thoughts: hence result adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, cove- tousness, wickedness, deceit, lasci- viousness, blasphemy, pride, fool- 1. Then some Scribes and Phari- sees came from Jerusalem, and, when they saw Christ's disciples eat bread with unwashed hands, they found fault ; for, according to the traditions of the elders, the Jews must not eat unless they wash their hands and their household utensils. Christ re- plied, Ye hypocrites, you honour me with your lips, but your heart is far from me: you substitute the tradi- tions of men for the commandments, of God. 480 MARE. DOCTRINE^ HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. ishness ; all these evils defile a man. Ye honour God with your lips, but your heart is far from him. Ye sub- stitute the "Word of Man" for the " Word of God," The Word Of MAN =. SENSE, Material, or Earthly. 24. Jesus then arose, and went into a house in the neighbourhood of Tyre and Sidon, wherehe desired to remain private. But his fame was such that it was soon known ; and a woman,who had a child afflicted with an evil spirit, came to him, and besought him to cast out the devil from her daughter. 27. Jesus said to the woman, Let the children first be filled, for we should not take the children's bread and give it to the dogs. True, Lord, replied the woman, yet the dogs eat the children's crumbs. Christ then said, For this saying the devil is gone out of thy daughter. And when she got home, she found her daughter cured, and lying on the bed. 31. When Jesus left Tyre and Sidon, he went to Decapolis, where a man, who was deaf and had an im- pediment in his speech, was brought to him; he put his fingers into his ears , and spit, and touched his tongue, and the deaf man became immedi- ately healed. He charged them to tell no one, but the more he charged them the more they spread his fame. CHAPTER VIII. 1. Jesus took compassion on the multitude, who had been with him three days without any thing to eat. He asked his disciples what provision they had, and they said, We have seven loaves and a few small fishes. Christ commanded the multitude, amounting to about four thousand, to sit down on the ground: he then distributed the loaves and fishes to his disciples, and they gave them to the people, who ate till they were all satisfied. After the meal was ended, they took up seven baskets of frag- ments. He then sent them away. 10. Jesus now entered a ship with his disciples, bnt they had forgotten I to take bread for the voyage, having MAR] 481 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. only one loaf. But Jesus overheard them talking on the subject, and said, Will you never understand ? are your hearts yet hardened ? — Do ye not re- member when I distributed the five loaves to the five thousand, how many baskets of fragments were taken up ? — They replied, Twelve. And when the seven loaves were distributed to the four thousand ? — and they said, Seven. How is it then that you do not understand ? 22. When Christ was come to Beth- saida, a blind man was brought to him to be cured. He spit on his eyes, and asked him if he saw. He said, The men appear like trees walking. Christ then put his hands upon his eyes, and he was restored to sight. 27. As Jesus and his disciples were on their way to Csesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples who the people thought he was. They told him John the Baptist, but some said he was Elias, and others that he was one of the prophets. Christ then said, Who do you think I am? Peter replied, Thou art the Christ. He then charged them to tell no one. 31. Jesus now told his disciples that he must suffer much on account of the doctrines he taught ; nay, 35. It is wrong to think more of even death! But Peter rebuked him. this world than of the next. 36. What does it profit a man to gain the whole world, if he loses his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul ? Christ then turned to his disciples, and said to Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan, for you are more eager after the things of men than the things of God. CHAPTER IX. 1. Six days after this, Jesus wenl into a high mountain, and took with him Peter, James, and John, and was transfigured before them. Peter said to Jesus, Master, is it good for us to be here? And, while he was speaking, a cloud overshadowed them, and a voice out of the cloud said, This is 482 MARK. DOCTRINE. HISTORY, The "Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. 41. He that doeth the will of God shall be rewarded hereafter. The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, Qr Earthly. my beloved son, hear him. The dis- ciples were frightened; but, when they looked round, they saw only Jesus with themselves, who charged them to tell no one what they had seen. 17. When they had descended from the mountain, a man brought his son to Jesus to be cured, saying, He hath a dumb spirit, whom the disciples have not been able to cure. Jesus then asked, How long is it that the child has been thus afflicted ? From a child, was the reply. Jesus rebuked the foul spirit, saying, I charge thee come out of him, and the man's son was immediately cured. But Jesus desired that no man should know it. 30. On their way through Galilee, Jesus taught his disciples, and told them that he should be delivered into the hands of men who would kill him , but that, on the third day, he should rise again from the dead. They, how- ever, understood him not; and yet were afraid to ask. When they were at a house in Capernaum, he inquired the nature of their conversation on the way. Finding that they had dis- puted among themselves which of them should be the greatest, he called the twelve to him and said : If any man desire to be first, the same shall be last and servant of all. He then took a little child, and placed him in the midst of them, saying, Whoso- ever showeth the least kindness to one of such children not only respects me but reverences him that sent me. 38. John said to Jesus: Master, we saw one casting out devils in thy name, and we forbade him, because he did not follow us. But Jesus re- plied, Forbid him not, for he that is not against is for us. CHAPTER X. 1 . When Jesus had come into Judea , on the other side of the Jordan, the MARK, 483 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. 17. The Doctrine is pure spirit, or goodness, that is, Reason; but the Man Christ, being matter, as humanity, is subject to the inclina- tions which reside in Sense. Hence no one is good but God, the Author of Reason. 23. Whatever sufferings we may experience in this sublunary world of trial, yet we are sure of our reward in the world to come, provided we strictly obey the dictates of the ' 'Mor a l Law" — that is, on all occasions subject the demesoi Sense to the pure, spiritual laws of Reason. The 'Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly, people came to him as usual to be taught by him; and certain Pharisees, with a view to entrap him, asked him if it was lawful for a man to put away his wife. He replied, saying, What did Moses command you? They said Moses suffered divorcement. Jesus said he did this on account of the hardness of your hearts ; but man and wife are one flesh, and what God hath joined together let not man put asunder. 13. They then brought young children to him that he might touch them, but his disciples rebuked them, at which Jesus was much displeased, saying, Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not ; of such is the kingdom of heaven. 17. As they proceeded on their way, a man came running to him, and kneeled down, saying: Good Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? Jesus then said: Why do you call me good ? there is none good but one, and that is God. But, in order to inherit eternal life, you must keep God's commandments. The man re- plied : All these I have observed from my youth. Yet one thing you lack. Go sell what you have, and give to the poor; then shall you have treasure in heaven. The man, how- ever, departed sorely grieved, for he had large possessions. 23. Jesus then told his disciples how hard it was for those who are devoted to the pleasures and riches of this world to prepare themselves to enter the kingdom of heaven. Who, then, can be saved? asked his dis- ciples. Jesus told them that every one who had left his house, brethren, and lands, for the sake of the Gos- pel, though he was persecuted here, should be rewarded a hundred-fold hereafter. , 32. On their way to Jerusalem, x 5 484 MARK. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The "Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. The Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. Jesus told the twelve what things would happen to him ; that he should be delivered up to the Chief Priests and Scribes, and be condemned to death, mocked, derided, and reviled, and that, on the third day, he should rise again. Now James and John, the sons of Zebedee, asked to be per- mitted to sit one on the right hand and the other on the left, when Christ should be in all his glory. But Jesus said to them, You know not what you ask, nor is it mine to give. It will be given to them for whom it is prepared. 46. As Jesus and his disciples left Jericho, a great crowd followed them, and on their way they met Barti- maeus, the son of Timaeus, who was blind; he sat begging in the high- way. When he heard that Jesus of Nazareth was passing by, he be- seeched him to restore his sight, for he knew he had the power. Jesus then called him, and said to him : Go thy way, thy faith hath made thee whole. The blind man immedi- ately recovered his sight, and followed Jesus. CHAPTER XI. 1. On their way to Jerusalem, when they had arrived at the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples to a neighbouring village, to fetch a colt, on which no one had ever ridden, that was tied fast there, saying, If any one interrupt you, tell him that Christ has need of him. They brought the colt to Jesus, cast their garments on him, and he sat on him. In this way, Jesus entered Jerusalem, the people, strewing the way with their garments and branches of trees. 12. On the morrow, as they were coming from Bethany, Jesus was hungry. But, seeing a fig-tree afar ( off, he hoped he might find on it MARK. 4S5 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. 22. " Have faith in God." It con- sists in the conviction that the laws of Reason are almighty in suppressing the carnal desires of Sense. 25. When ye pray, forgive every one. that your father in heaven may forgive you : for if you do not forgive, neither shall you beforgiven. Reason commands us to forgive our enemies, or the first law of Reason would be nugatory — " our own perfection and the happiness of others:" nor can this obligation be reversed. It is impossible for any other person to rlo that which must be done by our- selves — perfect ourselves. To pro- duce misery instead of happiness to others is to pervert the first law of Reason for some selfish gratification of Sense. The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. some figs: he, however, found nothing but leaves, for the time of figs was not yet come. Jesus then said, So shall no man eat fruit of thee here- after, and it withered. The disciples were astonished, but Jesus said, If you have faith in God, yon shall have power to do more than this. 15. At Jerusalem he went into the temple, cast out those who bought and sold, overthrew the tables of the money-changers, and the seats of those who sold doves. Here he taught, saying, Is it not written that this house shall be a house of prayer, and you have made it a den of thieves ? But the Scribes and Chief Priests sought how they should destroy him, because the people admired his doc- trine. 27. As Jesus was walking in the temple, the Chief Priests, Scribes, and Pharisees, asked him by what authority he did all these things. Jesus said to them, If you will answer me one question, I will tell you by what authority I act. Is the doctrine of the baptism of John from heaven or of men? This question reduced them to this dilemma : If we say from heaven, he will say, why then do you not believe ? and, if we say of men, the people will revolt, for they consider John to be a prophet. They said in reply, We cannot tell. Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things. CHAPTER XII. 1. Now Jesus spake to them this parable, saying, A certain man planted a vineyard, and let it out to husbandmen, and went into a far country. At the proper time, he sent his servant for the fruits of the vine- yard ; but they beat him and sent him away empty. He then sent , another servant, and they treated 486 MARK. DOCTRINE, HISTORY,, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. 25. " In heaven they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are angels." Things in Eternity differ essentially from things in Time. In the same manner, the laws of matter are incongruous with the laws of spirit ; neither are the laws of this world adapted to the angels of the world to come, nor do the laws of Sense harmonise with the laws of Reason. The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. him worse ; they threw stones at him and wounded him ; and he again sent another servant, but they killed him. He then sent his well-beloved son, saying, They will sorely reverence him, but the husbandmen said, This is his heir, we will kill him, and the inheritance will be ours. They actu- ally killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard. Now what should the lord of the vineyard do? He should destroy the husbandmen, and give the vineyard to others. 13. Certain of the Pharisees were sent to Jesus to try to ensnare him. and they asked him if it was lawful to give tribute unto Csesar : but Christ, knowing their intention, said, Bring me a penny : he then asked them whose image and superscription was on it, and they replied Caesar's. Jesus then said to them: Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's. 18. Then the Sadducees came to him, and endeavoured to puzzle him regarding the resurrection, saying, Master, Moses has written that if a man's brother dies before his wife, and leaves no issue, his brother should marry the widow to raise up children. Now there was a certain man who died childless, and his brother married the wife of the deceased, and he also died without issue, and the next brother married her, and so on for seven brothers. We wish to know, in the case of resurrection, whose wife she would be accounted ? Jesus retorted upon them, saying, You do not understand the Scriptures; for, in the other world, they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels which are in heaven. 27. One of the Scribes then asked him which was the first command- ment of all. In reply, Jesus gave MARK, 4S7 DOCTRINE,, HISTORY. The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. 29. The Lord our God is one Lord. Thou shalt love God with ail thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength ; and thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On all occasions, not only acknowledge the supremacy of the " Moral Law " planted in your Reason by the eternal and omnipo- tent God, but suppress every desire that this supreme law forbids the indulgence of, and you will at the same time repress all the irregular desires of Sense, and evince the most perfect, pure, and spiritual love for your Heavenly Father. The "Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. them the doctrine, as on the other side. And the Scribe said to him: Well, Master, thou hast said the truth, for there is but one God, and to love him with all thy heart and thy neighbour as thyself is far better than all the burnt offerings and sacri- fices. Afterthisno one dared question him. 36. While Jesus was teaching in the temple his new doctrine, he said, Beware of the Scribes, who love pomp and show, and make long prayers for a pretence. Many now cast money into the treasury; but there came a poor widow, who threw in two mites, which are equal to one farthing; and Jesus said, This trifle is of more worth than all that has been cast into the treasury, for they gave of their abundance, but she has given her all. CHAPTER XIII. 32. Be ever prepared to enter into the kingdom of eternity, for you know not when your hour will come. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but the Doctrine, which is the prin- ciple of Reason, being out of Time and Space, and residing wholly in Eternity, never can. 1. When Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, conversing with Peter, James, John, and Andrew, he foretold many things that were to happen, and desired them to take heed for themselves, as they would be persecuted for preaching the Gospel among the nations. 22. At that time, many false pro- phets and false Christs shall arise, and show signs and wonders to seduce the people ; but I caution you to re- collect what I have told you, and put no faith in them. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my doctrine shall not pass away. CHAPTER XIV. 1. As the feast of the Passover was near, the Chief Priests and Scribes sought how they might take Jesus by craft and put him to death. They deliberated among themselves, saying, If we seize him on the day 488 MARK. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. 23. " This is the New Testament." The "Old Testament" implies the Books of Moses, which do not suffi- ciently unfold the views of the Cre- ator. The Christian dispensation so thoroughly and completely develops the natureof " Practical Reason," with all its perfectly pure and divine laws — which are a sure guide to the eternal Kingdom of Heaven— so as to leave nothing more to be required by man for the salvation of his soid. The more centuries elapse the more this truth will be confirmed, and the more scientifically this dispensation is treated the more satisfactory will be the Conviction of the truth of this ever-during "Divine Revela- tion." The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. of the feast, the people will make an uproar. 3. While Jesus was in Bethany, at the house of Simon the leper, a woman came to Jesus to anoint him with a precious ointment. But some of the disciples said, Would it not be better to sell this ointment, and give the money to the poor? But Jesus said, Let the woman alone ; she hath done a good work, and, wheresover this Gospel is preached, this will be a testimony to her. 10. Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve, went unto the Chief Priest3 to betray him, and they agreed to give him money. 12. The disciples now asked Jesus where he would eat the Passover; and he directed them to a house in the City, where they all met. And while they were at meat, Jesus said, One of you will betray me : they all became sorrowful, and inquired indi- vidually which it was. Jesus said, He that dippeth with me in the dish. Jesus then took the bread and the wine and blessed it, and gave it to his dis- ciples, saying: This is my body and my blood of the "New Testament,'" which is shed for many: and, when they had sung a hymn, they went to the Mount of Olives. 27. Jesus then told them they would be offended with him because of his new doctrine, as it would in- volve them all in trouble. Peter said, Although all shall be offended, yet will not I. But Jesus said, Nay, even this very night, before the cook crows twice, thou shalt deny me thrice. Peter said more vehe- mently, If I should die with thee, I will not deny thee, to which they all assented. 32. And when they had come to Gethsemane, he said to his disciples, Sit here, while I go and pray ; he MARK. 489 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. 37. Pray not to be led into temp- tation : the spirit is indeed pure, but the flesh is weak. The -Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. took with him Peter, James, and John, and said unto them, My soul is exceedingly heavy, remain here and watch. Jesus fell on the ground and prayed that the hour might pass from him. Father, all things are possible with thee — take away this cup — yet, nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt. When he rose from prayer, he found his disciples asleep, and said to Simon Peter, Could not you watch for one hour ? He went a second time to pray ; and, on his return, he found them again asleep. After he had prayed the third time, he said to them, You may now sleep on, for I am betrayed into the hands of sinners. Let us now go, for he that betrayeth me is at hand. While Jesus was speaking, Judas, accom- panied by a great multitude, armed with swords and staves, from the Chief Priests and the Scribes, came and said, He that I shall kiss is he; take him and lead him away. One that stood near Christ drew his sword, and sti'uck a servant of the High Priest, and cut off his ear. 48. Jesus said to them, You are come armed, as if you had come to take a thief. When I was daily teaching in the temple, you did not seize me : on this his disciples for- sook him and fled. They took Jesus, and led him to the High Priest, where were assembled the Chief Priests, and Elders, and Scribes. Peter fol- lowed them afar off, even to the palace of the High Priest, and mixed with the servants. 55. The Chief Priests and all the Council sought for witnesses, in order to put him to death, but found none, for the false witnesses contra- dicted themselves. The High Priest then asked him if he was Christ, the Son of God, and Jesus said, I am. Then the High Priest said, We need 490 MARK. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. The Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. no further witness ; this blasphemy is enough : and they found him guilty of death. 65. They now began to revile and ill use him, and the servants struck him. One of the maids of the High Priest came to the apartment where Peter was warming himself, and said to him, You were with Jesus of Nazareth: but he denied it, saying I neither know nor understand what you say, and immediately he went out into the porch, and the cock crew. He was accused a second time ; he still denied it. The third time he was accused, he began to curse and swear, saying, I know not the man of whom you speak. The second time the cock crew, he remem- bered the words of Christ, and wept . bitterly. CHAPTER XV. 1. The next morning, the Chief Priests held a council, bound Jesus, and sent him away to Pilate, who asked him if he was the King of the Jews. He replied, Thou sayest it. Pilate asked him many things, but yet he answered nothing. 6. At the feast of the Passover, it was customary to release a pri- soner, and there was one named Barabbas, who had committed mur- der. Now Pilate inquired of the multitude whether he should release the King of the Jews or Barabbas, but the people said. Release Barab- bas. Pilate then said, What shall I do to him whom you call the King of the Jews? and they cried out, Cru- cify him! Pilate said unto them, Why, what evil hath he done ? But they cried out the more, Crucify him ! Pilate, willing to quiet the people, released Barabbas ; and, when Jesus had been scourged, he deli- . vered him to be crucified. MARK. 491 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. The -Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. 46. The soldiers led him away, clothed him with purple, platted a crown of thorns and put it upon his head, saying, Hail, King of the Jews ! When they had mocked him, they took off the purple, and put on his own clothes, and led him out to crucify him. They compelled Simon, a Cyrenean, who was passing by, to bear the cross to Golgotha, and, when they had crucified him, they parted his garments, casting lots for them. It was the third hour when they crucified him. On the cross they placed this superscription, The King of the Jews. 21. Two thieves were crucified with him, one on the right, and the other on the left, and, as the people passed by, they wagged their heads and reviled him, saying, He that saved others cannot save himself : let Christ, the King of Israel, descend from the cross, that we may see and believe. . And, when the sixth hour was come, there was darkness over all the land till the ninth hour. 34. At the ninth hour, Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me ? They then gave him vinegar to drink, and he gave up the ghost. The vail of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom. 40. Among the persons who were looking on, were Mary Magdalene, Mary, the mother of James, and many other women, who had come with him to Jerusalem. 42. As the following day was the sabbath, Joseph, of Arimathea, beg- ged the body of Pilate in the evening. When Pilate found that Jesus was dead, he gave the body to Joseph, who was a councillor of note. He had the body taken down from tho cross, wrapped in fine linen, and deposited in a sepulchre, hewn out 492 MARK. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. of a rock, at the door of which a great stone was rolled. Mary Mag- dalene and Mary, the mother of Jesus, were present. CHAPTER XVI. 1. When the sabbath was passed, Mary Magdalene, and Mary, the mother of James and Salome, brought sweet spices to anoint the body of Jesus. On their way, they were debating who should roll away the stone from the door of the se- pulchre ; but, to their surprise, the stone was removed. On entering the sepulchre, they saw a young man sitting there, who informed them that Jesus of Nazareth had risen, and showed them the place where he had lain. 9. Now, on the first day of the week, when Jesus was risen, the first person he saw was Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had cast seven devils : but, when she said that Jesus was alive, they did not believe her. Afterward, Jesus appeared to two of them in another form as they were walking into the country : and, when they told this to the rest, neither would they believe it. 14. When the eleven disciples were at meat, he appeared before them, and upbraided them with their a contingent credence given to the unbelief for doubting those who had facts of Sense, and which never can seen him. Jesus then commanded produce unanimity or scientific con- them to preach the Gospel to every viction. creature all over the world. 16. He that believeth shall be saved : but woe to him that believeth not. This belief is faith; that is, a ne- cessary belief in Doctrine grounded in Reason, which commands assent from all reasonable creatures, in op- position to belief in History, which &fje Gospel accor&mg; to i?t. %ukt. DOCTRINE., HISTORY,, The Word Of GOD = REASON, The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Spiritual, or Heavenly. Material, or Earthly. CHAPTER I. 1. The account I am going to give you is such as was believed by those who were eye-witnesses of the tran- sactions here recorded. 5. In the days of Herod, king of Judea, Zacharias, a priest, had a wife named Elizabeth, one of the daugh- ters of Aaron : they were excellent people, but, having no children, they were desirous of issue. An angel said to Zacharias, Thy wish is heard; thy wife shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John, who shall be a great man and filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his birth. Zacharias asked how he should know this, for both himself and wife were old. The angel replied, I am Ga- briel, and am sent to acquaint you with your good fortune. In token of my power, you shall be dumb, and not able to speak until these things come to pass. 22. Now, when Zacharias came out of the temple, he could not speak, but only beckon to thorn, by which they perceived he had seen a vision. After this Elizabeth conceived, and, in due time, brought forth a son. On the eighth day, they came to cir- . cumcise the child, and called him 494 LUKE. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. 68. Blessed is the Lord God, for he has redeemed his people from sin, and given them salvation; so that they may serve him with holiness and righteousness all the days of their lives. The Christian dispensation has redeemed the world from sin, by the enlightenment produced by the " Di- vine Revelation" which is confirmed to the absolute conviction of every man's Reason. Thus is the road to Salvation clearly pointed out, and consists in submitting all the carnal desires of Sense to the "Moral Law" of Reason. The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. Zacharias, after his father. Bat his mother said , Not so ; he shall be called John. They then made signs to his father as to what his name should be, on which he wrote on a tablet that his name should be John. His mouth then became immediately opened, and spoke in praise of God. This was soon rumoured all over Judea. Zacharias was filled with the Holy Ghost, and preached this doc- trine, and prophesied that John should give a foreknowledge of sal- vation, by remission of sin, and that he should instruct the ignorant in the ways of righteousness. And John remained in the wilderness and grew strong in spirit. 26. In the sixth month of Eliza- beth's pregnancy, the angel Gabriel went to Nazareth, to a virgin of the name of Mary, who was espoused to a man named Joseph. The angel said to Mary, Hail, thou art highly favoured ; thou shalt conceive and bring forth a son, who shall be called Jesus. Then Mary said to the angel : How can this be, for I know not man ? to which the angel replied, The Holy Ghost shall come upon you, so that the child you bear shall be called the Son of God : nay, do not marvel, for thy cousin Elizabeth hath brought forth a son in her old age. Mary then went to Elizabeth at the house of Zacharias, and told her what had happened, and she rejoiced exceed- ingly, saying, Henceforth all genera- tions shall call me blessed ! Mary remained about three months with her cousin Elizabeth, and then re- turned home. CHAPTER II. 1. When Cyrenius was governor of Syria, Augustus Caesar issued a mandate that every body should be , taxed. Now, every one was obliged LUKE. 495 DOCTRINE, HISTORY. The Word Of GOD = REASON; Spiritual, or Heavenly. The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. to go into his own city to be taxed, which compelled Joseph to leave Nazareth, the city of his wife, and go to Bethlehem, where he was born. While Joseph and Mary remained at Bethlehem, Mary brought forth her first-born, wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger, for the inn at which they resided was quite full. 8. The angel went to the shep- herds, who were tending their flocks in the neighbourhood, and said to them, This day a Saviour is born to you. When the angel was gone, the shepherds went to Bethlehem to see if what the angel said was true : and they found Mary and Joseph there, and the babe lying in a man- ger, all which they made known abroad. 21. On the eighth day, when the child was to be circumcised, they called his name Jesus ; and, according to the custom of the Jews, they brought the young child to Jerusa- lem, at the feast of purification, to offer sacrifice to the Lord. While they were in the temple, a man named Simeon took the child in his arms, and said, Lord, now let thy servant depart in peace, for I have seen thy salvation, for this child will be a light to enlighten the Gentiles. At the conclusion of the ceremony, they returned to their own city, Nazareth. 40. The child grew strong in spirit and was filled with wisdom. They now regularly attended the feast of the Passover at Jerusalem ; and, when Jesus was twelve years old, on one of these occasions, he staid be- hind his parents, who had travelled one day's journey towards home be- fore they missed him. They turned back again to Jerusalem in search of him, and, after three days, they , found him in the temple, sitting in 496 LUKE. DOCTRINE^ HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. The Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. the midst of the doctors, hearing them and asking them questions. 48. The mother said to her son, Why hast thou dealt with us thus ? it has occasioned great sorrow to your father and myself. But Jesus said, I was about my father's work. He then returned with his parents to Nazareth, and remained with them, increasing both in wisdom and sta- ture. CHAPTER III. 3. The baptism of repentance for the remission of sins means — Bring forth fruits worthy of repentance, and you shall see the salvation of God: but woe unto those who ne- glect their duty to God and their neighbour ! 1. In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Csesar, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip was tetrarch of Itursea, and Annas and Caiaphas were High Priests, John, the son of Zacharias and Elizabeth, was preaching in the wilderness. 15. As John preached such excel- lent doctrine, the people doubted whether he were Christ or not. But John explained to them that one mightier than himself would come and preach a more spiritual doctrine, and would baptise with the Holy Ghost. 19. John censured Herod for mar- rying his brother Philip's wife, as well as for his other conduct; so that Herod put him in prison. 21. When Jesus was baptised, the Holy Ghost descended upon him in a bodily shape like a dove, and a voice was heard, saying, Thou art my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. At the age of about thirty, Jesus was led by the spirit into the wilderness. CHAPTER IV. 1. Being forty days in the wilder- ness , tempted by the devil, and , having eaten nothing, he became hungry. , And the devil said to him, If you are LUKE. 497 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. 4. Man shall not live by bread alone, but by the " Word of God." 8. Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. 12. Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God. The Word Of MAN == SENSE, Material, or Earthly. the Son of God, command this stone to be made bread. 5. The devil then took him into a high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the earth, saying, All these shall be thine, if thou wilt worship me. The devil then took him to Jerusalem, and set him on a pinnacle of the temple, and said, If you are the Son of God, cast your- self down. 16. Jesus now went to Nazareth, where he was brought up, and, on the sabbath, he read in the synagogue out of the book of Esaias. " The spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the Gospel to tbe poor; to heal the bro- ken-hearted ; to preach deliverance to the captive ; to set at liberty those that are bound." He then shut the book and gave it to the minister, and all eyes were fixed upon him. 22. The people wondered at the words which proceeded from him, and inquired if he was not the son of Joseph. 31. Afterwards Jesus went down to Capernaum, in Galilee, and taught them on the sabbath days, and they were astonished at his doctrine. 33. There was a man in the syna- gogue with an unclean spirit, and Jesus commanded him to come out of him, which he did : and they were all amazed, saying, What power and authority he hath over unclean spirits ! And his fame spread through all the neighbouring country. 38. When he had come to the house of Simon, he found Simon's wife's mother was ill of a fever : Jesu9 stood over her and the fever left her. They brought to him many who were diseased, and he cured them and cast out many devils. 42. He then departed into a desert , place and prayed, but the people be- 49S LUKE. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. The "Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earlhly. sought him not to leave them. Jesus told them that he must preach the kingdom of God in other countries. And he preached in the synagogues of Galilee. CHAPTER V. 1. When Jesus was teaching near the lake of Genesareth, the crowd • was very great, so that he entered the ship of Simon, and taught from thence. When he had done teaching, he said to Simon, Let down your net for a draught. But Simon said, We have toiled all night and caught no- thing; nevertheless, at your request, I will do it : and the net immediately inclosed a great multitude of fishes, so that the net broke, and they were obliged to get assistance from the other fishermen, and they filled both ships, so that they began to sink. 8. When Simon Peter saw this, he was astonished, and fell down and worshipped Jesus, saying, I am indeed a sinful man. James and John, the sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon, were also astonished. But Jesus said, Fear not ; henceforth you shall catch men : and they all fol- lowed him. 12. Afterthis.amanfullof leprosy, seeing Jesus, besought him to cure him. Christ put forth his hand, and the man immediately became clean. Jesus charged him to go to the priest and make the usual offering, but to tell no one of the cure ; yet his fame went the more abroad, and great multitudes came to hear and be cured by him. 16. He then withdrew into the wilderness and prayed. Once, when Jesus was preaching, they brought a man sick of the palsy : he was lying in a bed, and they sought means to bring him, but, finding the crowd so ( great, they let him down through the LUKE. DOCTRINE, 499 HISTORY, Tiie Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. tiling, in the midst of the people, be- fore Jesus, who, on seeing their faith , said to the man, Thy sins are for- given thee, and the man was imme- diately cured. But the Scribes and Pharisees, who were present, mar- velled, and Jesus, knowing their thoughts, said unto the sick man, Arise, takeup thy couch and go home. And immediately the sick man de- parted to his own house. 27. After this, he saw a publican, named Levi, sitting at the receipt of the customs, and he said unto him, Follow me, which he did. Levi made a great feast at his own house, where Jesus was seated with a great com- pany of publicans. The Scribes and Pharisees remarked on this, and Je- £us replied, Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I come, not tocall the right- eous, but sinners, to repentance. And they asked Jesus why the disci- ples of John fasted often and prayed, whereas his own disciples did not fast : and he said, Would you have the guests fast when the bridegroom is with them ? CHAPTER VI. 21. Blessed are those who weep, for they shall hereafter rejoice, and those who meet reproach for virtue's sake, for their reward in heaven will be great; and woe unto them that neglect their moral duties. 27. Love your enemies, and do good to them who hate you. Bless 1. As Christ and his disciples passed through the corn-fields on a sabbath-day,they plucked the ears and ate the corn. Some Pharisees, hear- ing of this, said, Why do you that which is unlawful on the sabbath? Jesus replied, Have you not read that David, when he was hungry, ate the showbread in the house of God, which is equally unlawful? 6. On another sabbath, when Jesus was teaching in the synagogue, a man was there with a withered hand. The Pharisees took occasion to watch him, and to see if he would heal on the sabbath-day, in order that they might .accuse him. Jesus, knowing their y 500 LUKE. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. them that curse you, and pray for them that ill use you. 29. To him who smites you on one cheek, offer also the other. 31. As you would that men should do to you, do you also to them. 32. If you merely love and do good to those who love and do good to you, there is no merit due to you, for this is acting merely from interested mo- tives. But love your enemies, and do good to others, without hoping for any thing in return, and great, indeed, shall be your reward here- after. 36. Be merciful, as your heavenly father is merciful ; judge not, and you shall not be judged ; forgive, and you shall be forgiven. In the same pro- portion as you do good to others, will be your reward in heaven. 41 . First correct the errors in your own conduct, before you find fault with others. 45. The good man bringeth forth abundantly good works out of the treasure of his heart. 48. The parable of the house built on a rock implies that, when virtuous principles are once firmly established in the heart of man, all the efforts of the wicked to seduce him are in vain, for his virtue is as firm as a rock. The 'Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. thoughts,said to the man , Stand forth , and stretch out your hand ; and his hand was instantly restored whole like the other. Jesus then said, An- swer me one thing : Is it lawful on sabbath-days to do good or evil ? to save life or to destroy it ? Jesus then went into a mountain, and continued all night in prayer. In the morning, he called his chosen twelve, whom he called his Apostles. The following are the names ? 1. Simon, also called Peter. 2. Andrew, the brother of Simon. 3. James. 4. John. 5. Philip. 6. Bartholomew. 7. Matthew. 8. Thomas. 9. James, the son of Alphseus. 10. Simon, called Zelotes. 11. Juda, the brother of James. 12. Judas, the brother of James. 12. Judas Iscariot, who was also the traitor. 1*1. Jesus, in company with the twelve, descended to the plain, where they were soon surrounded by a great multitude from Jerusalem and its neighbourhood, who came to hear him and to be cured of their diseases. 20. Jesus then taught the multitude this doctrine. CHAPTER VII. 1 . When Christ had ended all these sayings, he went to Capernaum ,where dwelt a centurion, whose servant was dying; and, when he heard that Jesus was come, he sent the elders of the Jews to him, to beseech him to come and cure the man. As they were proceeding to the centurion's house, they met some of his friends, who were sent to say he was not worthy that Jesus should enter his dwel- , ling, and that, if he would merely say LUKE. 501 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. The "Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. the word, his servant would recover. Jesus then said to the people who followed him : I have not seen such faith any where. On their return home, they found the man healed. 11. On the following day, Jesus went to the city of Nain, with his disciples, and was followed by many persons. As they approached the gate they beheld a dead man being carried out, and his mother in much grief, for he was her only son. When Jesus saw her, he had compassion on her, touched the bier, and the young man instantly rose up and began to speak ; and the rumour of his fame was spread throughout all Judea. 19. At this time, John the Baptist sent two of his disciples to Christ to inquire if he was the expected Mes- siah, or if they were to look for ano- ther. Jesus said to them, Tell John what things you have heard and seen : how the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have the Gospel preached to them. 24. When the messengers of John had departed, Jesus explained to the people the nature of John's mission — thathewassentbefore him to pre- pare the world to receive the Word of God. 36. One of the Pharisees invited Jesus to his house ; and, while they were at meat, a woman came with a box of ointment, and requested per- mission to anoint the feet of Jesus. The Pharisee marvelled at this, and said to himself, If this man were a prophet, he would have known that this woman is a sinner. But Jesus explained that, where there was no sin, there required no forgiveness. And he said to the woman, Thy sins are forgiven thee. And those who sat at meat with him marvelled. y2 502 LUKE. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Spiritual, or Heavenly. 5. The parable of the sower im- plies that good principles, being cul- tivated in a good heart, bring forth abundantly good actions ; but, on the contrary, good principles are thrown away upon a bad heart, and, as man improves or neglects his soul, so shall he be rewarded or punished in the- world to come. In this way, this sublime doctrine is levelled to the meanest capacity. All good principles spring from Reason, and are approved by the " Moral Law ; " but the incli- nations of Sense, indicated by the evil one, exert their influence to draw man from virtue, which consists in obeying the "Moral Law," out of pure reverence for its divinity. All the other parables have a similar ten- dency. Material, or Earthly. CHAPTER VIII. 1. After this, Jesus, accompanied by the twelve, went to every city and village in the neighbourhood, preaching the glad tidings of the kingdom of God. He healed many women of infirmities, and cast out seven devils from Mary Magdalene. He then spake to them the parable of the sower, and explained to them that the seed meant the Word of God ; but the evil one, that is, the carnal de- sires, come and take away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved. 19. While Jesus was preaching to the multitude, he was told that his mother and brethren desired to see him, but they could not approach him on account of the crowd. He then said, That is my mother, and those are my brethren, who hear the Word of God and fulfil it. 22. On a certain day, Jesus and his disciples went into a ship to cross the lake. Jesus fell asleep, and there came on a great storm, so that the ship was nearly filled with water. They then awoke him, and told him they should all perish. He then arose, rebuked the storm, and there became immediately a great calm. And they all marvelled, saying, What manner of man is this? 26. When they had come to the country of theGadarenes, they were met by a certain man who had been long afflicted with devils, and resided among the tombs. Jesus commanded the unclean spirit to come cut of him. The devils besought Jesus that they might go into a herd of swine, which ran violently down a steep place into the lake, and were choked . And the man was restored to his right mind. 37. And they returned again into the country of the Gadarenes, and LUKE. 503 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The "Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. the man that was cured begged to go with him, but Jesus desired him to go home and show what great things had been done for him. And his fame was spread throughout the country. 41. A man of the name of Jairus, who was a ruler of the synagogue, came to Jesus, and told him that his daughter, who was twelve years of age, was then dying. While he was speaking, the news was brought him that his daughter was already dead. But Jesus replied, Fear not, thy daughter shall revive. When he came to the house, he would suffer only Peter, James, and John, and the child's father and mother, to go in. He then took her by the hand, and said, Maiden, arise ! and her spirit instantly came, and she arose. 44. On his way to the house, there came behind him a woman, who had had an issue of blood for twelve years, that could not be cured : she touched the border of his garment, and imme- diately the issue was cured. CHA.PTER IX. 1. Jesus then called the twelve to him, and gave them power and au- thority over devils, and to cure dis- eases, and he sent them to preach the kingdom of God, directing them to provide nothing for their journey, neither bread, nor money, nor scrip. And whosoever will not receive you, when you leave that city, shake off the very dust from your feet as a testimony against them. 8. When Herod, the tetrarch, heard of all that was done by Jesus, he was perplexed, being informed that it was John the Baptist, who was risen from the dead. But Herod said, Who is this? I should like to see him, for I have beheaded John? Jesus and his disciples went privately into 504 LUKE. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word of GOD = REASON, The Word of MAN = SENSE, Spiritual, or Heavenly. 24. Whoever will save his soul, must relinquish the seductions of this world ; for what doth it profit a man to gain the whole world if he lose his own soul? To save your own soul, follow the dictates of the " Moral Law" on all occasions. Nei- ther can you plead that you know it not — for God has planted his sacred law in your own Reason, and given you his spirit of truth — Conscience — to decide in all cases how you ought to act. Thus will you effectually crush the sinful lusts of the flesh, which are purposely engendered by Sense, to prove your virtue and your claim to future reward in heaven. Material, or Earthly. a desert place near Bethsaida. When the people knew it, they followed him, and he preached the kingdom of God to them, and healed them that were sick. 12. Towards evening, his disciples came to him and said: Send away the multitude, as this is a desert place, that they may get food and lodging. But Jesus said, Give them something to eat. They replied, We have only five loaves and two fishes, unless we go and buy meat for them. But Jesus said, Make the people (who amounted to about five thou- sand) sit down in companies of fifty. They did so. Jesus then took the five loaves and the two fishes, and distributed them to the disciples, and they gave them to the multitude, who ate till they were all satisfied, and they took up twelve baskets of fragments. 18. When Jesus was alone pray- ing, he asked his disciples who the people said he was. They answered, John the Baptist ; some say a pro- phet risen from the dead. But what say you, Peter? He said, The Christ. Then he desired them to tell no one. 52. Jesus then told his disciples that he must suffer much on account of the new doctrine which he preached. 28. Eight days after this, Jesus took with him Peter, John, and James, and went into a mountain to pray, and was ti-ansfigured before them. Peter said to Jesus, It is good for us to be here : and, while he was speaking, a cloud oversha- dowed them, and a voice out of the cloud said, This is my beloved son ; hear him. The disciples now fell on their faces and were frightened : and they told no one what had hap- pened. LUKE. 505 DOCTRINE, HISTORY., The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. 48. To do the will of God is on all occasions to exercise the pure, spiritual, power of Reason, with which God has endowed you, in order to suppress the irregular desires of Sense ; and this must be done to your own absolute Conviction, or you have not satisfied your Conscience. 59. Whoever is so wedded to the pleasures of the world of Sense as to deny the supremacy of Reason is unfit fur the kingdom of God. The Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. 37. On the following day, when they had descended from the moun- tain, he was met by much people. A certain man, from among them, came to Jesus, and said : I beseech you to look upon my only son, who is possessed with a devil ; your disci- ples were unable to cure him. Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, healed the child, and restored him to his father. 46. The disciples were disputing among themselves which of them should be the greatest; and Jesus, knowing their thoughts, placed a child by his side, saying, He who acts with kindness towards this child not only serves me but doeth the will of Him that sent me. John then said, Master, we saw one cast- ing out devils in thy name, and we forbade him, because he did not fol- low us. And Jesus said, Forbid him not, for he that is not against us is for us. 51. When Jesus was preparing to go to Jerusalem, on his way he was met by a man who said, I will follow you wherever you go. Jesus then said to another, Follow me, but he said, Suffer me first to burymyfather. Jesus said, Let the dead bury their dead ; and do you go and preach the kingdom of God. Another said, I will follow thee, but let me first bid farewell to my family. Jesus said, He that is wedded to the pleasures of this world is unfit for the kingdom of God. CHAPTER X. 1 . After this, Jesus appointed se- venty, besides his apostles, to preach the Word in every city and place. And into whatever house you enter say : Peace be unto you ! heal the sick, and say that the kingdom of God is at hand. In those citiei 506 LUKE. DOCTRINE, HISTORY. The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. 27. Love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and thy neighbour as thyself. The love here spoken of is practical love — that is, a pure, spiritual determination that the motives which induce our actions should not only be in strict conformity with the law of Reason — the " Moral Law " — but spring from nothing but pure reverence for this law of God. So commanding is Reason over the inclinations of Sense in all good men. 29. This parable fully explains the import placed on the word neigh- bour, by Christ in his teaching, namely, not that individual merely whom chance has placed near you, but every one of God's creatures that stand in need of assistance ; and you prove yourself a neighbour by administering kind offices to him. Every creature endowed with Reason is the neighbour of every rational in- dividual ; for who can be so closely connected together as beings made by the same God, and actuated by the same divine laws! Thus do the pure motives of Reason assuage the sufferings of Sense. " Go and do thou likewise." The Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. where youare not well received, leave the city and shake the dust off your feet in testimony against, them. And the seventy returned again with joy, saying, We have even cast out devils in thy name. 25. A certain lawyer, trying to en- snare Jesus, said, What shail I do to inherit eternal life ? Jesus said to him, How do you understand the law as it is written? He explained the law as on the other side, and Jesus said, Thou hast answered rightly, do this and thou shalt inherit eternal life. But he said to Jesus, Who is my neighbour ? which Jesus answered by a parable, saying, A certain man went down from Jeru- salem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, leaving him half dead. A certain priest passed that way; and, when he saw him, went on the other side ; then a Le- vite passed by, who came and looked on him and went his way. But a Samaritan, who was journeying that way, saw him, and had compassion on him. He went to him, bound up his wounds, and took him to an inn, say- ing, Take care of the invalid, and, when next I pass this way, I will de- fray every expense. 36. Which now of these three thinkest thou was this man's neigh- bour ? He replied, That who showed him kindness. Then Jesus said, Go and do thou likewise. CHAPTER XI. 2. When you pray, say: Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven • give us this day our daily bread, for- give us our trespasses as we forgive them that trespass against us, and deliver us from evil. 1. As they passed a certain place, one of his disciples said unto him, Teach us to pray as John the Baptist taught his disciples. Jesus then said to them as on the other side. 14. As Jesus was casting a devil out of a dumb man, when the devil had left him, the dumb man spake : LUKE. 507 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, Tire "Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. 7. Ask and it shall be given to you, seek and you shall find: that is, whoever in the purity of his heart sincerely seeks the paths of virtue and stedfastly avoids vice, his efforts to attain this sublime object will be assisted by the inward and spiritual grace which your heavenly Father will impart to you. This is effected by Practical Reason, which not only originates the law of God, but also furnishes rules for the perform- ance of our moral duties, which are confirmed by that spirit of truth, Conscience, and thus are we assured that we have performed our duty, and constantly kept the desires of Sense in due subjection to the Com- mandments of Reason. 28. Blessed are they that hear the Word of God and keep it; that is, conscientiously adhere to the dictates of moral or Practical Reason. The Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. but some, with a view to entrap him, said, He casteth out devils through Beelzebub, the chief of the devils. But Jesus, knowing their thoughts, said, A kingdom divided against itself cannot stand. How, then, if Satan be divided against himself, can his kingdom stand ? But, if God cast out devils, you may be sure the kingdom of God is upon you. He that is not with me is against me. 37. A certain Pharisee invited Christ to dine with him ; but, when he sat down to table, he marvelled that he did not wash himself before he sat down to dinner. But Jesus said, You Pharisees make clean the outside of the cup and platter, while the inward man is full of wickedness. You pay attention to trifles, and pass over the love of God. CHAPTER XII. 33. Lay up for yourselves treasure in heaven, which cannot be taken from you. When virtuous principles have struck deep in your heart, the seductions of vice cannot eradicate them. 37. Always be prepared to enter the kingdom of heaven, as you know not when your soul may be demanded of you. This can only be effected by walking with the law before you — that is, on all occasions fulfilling your moral duties, by convincing yourself of the supremacy of Reason, and of the due subjection of the desires of Sense. 1. There was once an immense multitude of people collected, and Jesus spake a parable to them, say- ing, There was a certain rich man whose grounds brought forth most abundantly, so that he had no room to stow away his fruits. He then said to himself, I will pull down ray barns and build larger, and, having so much store by me, which will last me many years, I will take my ease, eat, drink, and be merry. How very inconsiderate was this man, placing his whole dependence on the things of this world, and neglecting the sal- vation of his soul ! Jesus said, This very night thy soul may be demanded of thee, and then what become* of ;dl thy treasures ? CHAPTER XIII. 1. Some that were present told , Jesus of the Galileans, whose blood y 5 508 LUKE. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. 6. The parable of the fig-tree implies that, though man may have strayed from the paths of virtue, yet he may be reclaimed ; and it is right ; fruit" for three successive" years. He The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. Pilate had spilt. And he said, Do you suppose that they were sinners above others, because they were sufferers? I tell you they were not; but, unless you repent, you will pe- rish. Or do you suppose that the eighteen, who perished by the fall of the tower of Siloam, at Jerusalem, were greater sinners than the rest of the inhabitants of that city ? I tell you they were not ! but, unless you repent, you will perish. 9. Jesus then spake this parable. A certain man had a fig-tree in his vineyard, which failed of producing to give him every opportunity to re pent of his evil ways, and save his soul alive. This regeneration is felt in our Conscience, when we are convinced of the sincerity and purity of the motives which actuate our conduct, and render it conformable to the laws of Practical Reason, by which alone the carnal desires of Sense can be restrained. This victory is the essence of virtue. then gave orders that the tree should be cut down, being quite useless. But the man who tended the tree said, Give it another year's trial. I will dig about and manure it; then, if it does bear fruit, well : if not, cut it down. 11. Jesus now cured a woman who had been afflicted eighteen years with an evil spirit. And, because this happened on a sabbath-day, the rulers of the synagogues sought to destroy him, saying, There are six days in which men ought to work. But Jesus said to them, You hypocrites, who, amongst you, if he were to lose his ox, or his ass, would not seek him on the sabbath-day ? 24. Vice is very seducing ; Virtue 22. Jesus then passed through many demands sacrifices : but yet avoid villages and cities in his way to Jeru- vice and love virtue. salem, teaching the Gospel. But 28. You will lament your folly some of the Pharisees came to him, when it is too late, in not having and told him to depart, or Herod prepared to enter the kingdom of would kill him. But Jesus said, I God ; which can only be effected by must do my duty, let the conse- a strict performance of your duties quences be what they will, exclaim- on all occasions, ever keeping in view ing, O Jerusalem! — O Jerusalem ! that all the desires of Sense must be who destroyestthe prophets who are regulated by Reason. sent to benefit thee ! CHAPTER XIV. 1 . When Jesus went into the house , of one of the Pharisees, on a sabbath- LUKE. 509 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. 11. Whosoever exalteth himself) shall be abased ; and he who hum- j bleth himself shall be exalted. 12. Do nothing with the hope of; a recompence, but act entirely from disinterested motives and the purity ; of the heart, and your reward will be j with your heavenly Father in thei world to come. The very contem- | plation of a reward is the complete destruction of Morality, which says — Obey the law of your own Reason, out of pure love and reverence for the law of God,' and bury Satan, who! opposes through the inclinations of Sense. 26. The love of God must exceed | that with which a father loves his son, or a mother loves her daughter ; j nay, it must exceed that with which you cherish your own life. Nothing should tempt you to forego strict j obedience to the " Moral Law." The Word of MAN == SENSE, Material, or Earthly. day, to eat bread, they watched him, to see if he would offend against the law. There was a man among them who had the dropsy, and Jesus said to them, Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath-day ? but they made no reply. Jesus immediately healed the man. 7. Jesus then spake this parable to them : When you are bidden to a wedding, do not sit down in the highest rooms nor in the best places, lest some one more honourable than yourself come to the feast, and you are requested to give place to him. Jesus then said, The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain man who gave a great supper, and in- vited many guests. But, when the feast was ready, all made excuses : one saying he had bought a piece of ground, and must needs go and see it ; another said he had bought five yoke of oxen, and must go and prove them ; another said he had married a wife, and, therefore, could not come. When the host was in- formed of their excuses, he ordered his servants to bring whomsoever would come, for many are invited that neglect the call. 7. There will be more joy in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, than over ninety and nine good men who Deed no repentance. CHAPTER XV. 1. At this time, amongst others, many publicans and sinners came to hear Jesus ; which the Phari- sees and Scribes remarked, saying, This man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them. Then Jesus spake this parable to them, saying, Who amongst you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, will not leave the ninety and nine, and go in search of the lost sheep ; and, when he has found it, rejoice on the occasion with his neighbours? 1 ] . J esus then said to them , There was a man who had two son> ; the 510 LUKE. IX3CTRINE. HISTORY,- The Word of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. younger one requested his father to give him at the present time the portion he intended for his mainte- nance. Having received it, he went into a distant country, and wasted all his substance in riotous living. At length he was so reduced that he gladly accepted an offer to tend swine. But there arose a great famine in thatland, and he was glad to feed with the hogs. He then reflected on his situation, and said within himself, How many hired servants doth my father keep, that have more bread than they can eat, while I am perish- ing with hunger ! I will even go to my father, and acknowledge my error, and solicit his forgiveness. But his father, seeing him approach, ran to meet him, and forgave him all, saying, Now let us rejoice, for I have found my lost son. The elder brother, on hearing this, became angry, and was envious of the favour bestowed on his brother. CHAPTER XVI. 9. Though it is impossible to pass through this life without having com- munication with the designing, yet he that is faithful in the least trust that is reposed in him is also faithful in trusts of more importance; and he that is unfaithful in the concerns of this world, how much less is he to be depended on in spiritual love and truth ! 15. But God knoweth your hearts, for that which is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of the Lord. Your own " Con- science," which is a messenger from 1. Jesus then told his disciples this parable : There was a certain rich man, whose steward was accused of wasting his goods. He called the steward to him, and ordered him im- mediately to make up his account, as he should instantly discharge him. The steward then said within himself, What shall I do? I cannot dig; and to beg I am ashamed. I am resolved what to do, when I am put out of my stewardship ; I will make friends of my lord's debtors, that they may receive me into their houses. Ac- cordingly, he debited them with less sums than they actually owed his em- ployer. And the Lord commended the unjust steward; because he had displayed prudence by ingratiating himself with the children of this world. 16. Until the time of John the LUKE. 511 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. God, will always tell you truly whether or not you have strictly obeyed the law of Reason, and suppressed the desires of Sense. 17. The purity of Morality is such that it forces the conviction of its truth on every rational creature; and whoever acts up to its divine precepts is sure of his reward in the kingdom of eternal bliss. Reverence for this law of Practical Reason will ensure the complete victory over the seduce- ments of Sense. The "Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. Baptist, the Mosaic law and the pro- phets were the prevailing doctrine. But, since that time, the kingdom of God is preached ; and it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than one tittle of the new doctrine to fail. 19. Lazarus, the beggar, solicited alms from a rich man, who fared sumptuously every day. They both departed this life ; but the rich man met his torments in hell, while the poor man was rewarded in heaven. CHAPTER XVII. 4. Forgive one another, and your 1. Jesus then said to his disciples, Father in heaven will forgive you. It is impossible to pass through life You are required to do your duty without both giving and receiving quite disinterestedly, otherwise your offence ; yet, take heed to yourselves, conduct is not moral, nor are you for if your brother offend you very acceptable in the sight of God. When many times, and at length is sorry you are convinced that Reason rules for his conduct, you shall forgive your motives, you are sure that Sense him. is kept within due limits. 10. You who do not the things that are commanded you are unpro- fitable servants. 11. As Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem, he passed through Sa- maria and Galilee : and, in a certain village, he was met by ten men who were lepers, and they begged Jesus to cure them, which he instantly did. 21. Morality, or the duties of One of them, who was a Samaritan, virtue, can exist only in reasonable returned fervant thanks for his cure, creatures, for it is a reference of the But Jesus said, Were there not ten motive of an action to the Moral cured, and where are the nine? But Law, which is founded in the Reason they were not found to give thanks of Man. Its dictum is " Act in such to God for the blessing. a manner that the motive of the action maybe fit for a universal law, that is, be morally good on all occa- sions, whatever may be the conse- quence." Reason commands this line of conduct, and thus is the 20. The Pharisees then asked Jesus by what sign they should know when the kingdom of heaven was at hand. But he assured them, saying, The Kingdom of God is within you> and cannot be perceived by any outward " Kingdom oj 'God within you;" and, sign. I, however, shall suffer many if acted up to, you have subdued the things, because I have promulgated sinful lusts of the fles-h originated by this new doctrine, which will never Sense. , pa-s away. 512 JUKE. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. CHAPTE 11. He that exalteth himself shall be abased, and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted. 19. " No one is good but God." How can any thing be good which inhabits the sphere of Time, where every thing is in perpetual change from its birth to its death, and where nothing can be pure! — On earth, the perfect purity of God could not and you shall have treasure in heaven; exist ; in heaven, which is Eternity, but, when he heard this, he was sor- nothing but perfect purity can be rowful, for he was rich, found. 31. Jesus then told the twelve that The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. R XVIII. 1. Jesus then spake a parable, which he intended as a lesson to those who trusted too much in their own righteousness. In a certain city i there was a judge, who feared neither ; God nor man, to whom a widow ap- plied for relief against her adver- j sary. He was unwilling to enter into the merits of her case ; but he said, | She is so very importunate that I : must avenge her in order to obtain ! quiet. Shall not God avenge his ; elect, though he delay long with ; them ? 10. Jesus then said, Two men went into the temple to pray ; the one a Pharisee, the other a publican. The former vaunted that he was not as other men, but that he attended strictly to all the ceremonies of his religion; while the publican modestly stood at a distance, and felt an in- ward conviction of his unworthiness. The man who prayed in all humility went away justified rather than the other. 15. They then brought infants to Jesus that he might touch them, and his disciples rebuked them. But Christ said, Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them I not, for of such is the kingdom of heaven. 18. A certain ruler came to Jesus, and said, Good Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? Christ said to him, Why do you call me good? No one is good but God. When Jesus told him he must keep God's commandments, he said, This I have done from my youth. Still you lack one thing to be perfect — sell all you have and give to the poor, LUKE. 513 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. 29. To enter the kingdom of heaven, you must be strictly virtuous, and keep God's commandments, which are engraved in your heart and ac- knowledged by your Conscience, and then you shall enjoy eternal bliss in the world to come. You must con- stantly walk with the law before you — that is, in all cases consult pure Practical Reasox, and it will fur' nish you with the rule to suppress the improper desires of Sense. The Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. they must now all go to Jerusalem, for many things were yet to be ac- complished ; that he should be de- livered over to the Gentiles and ill treated, nay, that he should be put to death : but they did not understand him. 35. When they were near to Jericho, a blind beggar, who sate by the road- side, hearing that it was Jesus who was passing by, besought him to cure him Jesus commanded the man to come to him, and he immediately re- ceived his sight. CHAPTER XIX. 1. As 22. This parable implies, that those who act virtuously in this world will be rewarded in the world to come, according to their deserts. As no actum in Time can constitute virtue — because virtue docs not reside in matter — it can only be the //tola-'' — Jesus passed through Jericho, Zacchseus, who was a pub- lican, and in good circumstances, heard that Jesus was to pass that way, and, being anxious to see him, which he feared of accomplishing, because the crowd was so great, and he was a man of small stature, he ran before the crowd and climbed up a sycamore-tree, in order to see him . When Jesus approached the spot where he was, he called to him and said, ZacchaBus, make haste down, for to-day I shall abide at your house. But the people murmured, saying, The Christ was gone to be the guest of a sinner. 11. Jesus then spoke a parable to them, saying, A certain rich noble- man went into a distant land, to have the sovereignty of a kingdom con- ferred on him, and then he intended to return home. Accordingly, he sum- moned his servants, and entrusted each with a sum of money. On his return, he called his servants to him, to see what they had gained by industry, and rewarded them accord- ingly. 28. On their way to Jerusalem, and when they were near Bethphage, at the Mountof Olives, Jesus direct* d 514 LUKE. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Spiritual, or Heavenly. Material, or Earthly. which is mental, that is, spiritual, two of his disciples to go to the vil- and must reside in Eternity — that ^ a S e opposite and bring a colt, on constitutes pure virtue. Hence the motive gives the value to the action. which never man sat, saying, You will find him tied there, and loose him. If any one interrupt you, say that I have need of him. While they were loosing the colt, the owner inquired what they were about, and they said Christ wanted him. They brought him, and placed Jesus upon him, and spread their garments on the way, and went to Jerusalem, the people making great rejoicing, at which the Pharisees were displeased. 45. Jesus then went into the tem- ple at Jerusalem, and drove out those who bought and sold, teaching the people daily. The Scribes and Pha- risees sought to destroy him, but the people were very attentive to his doctrine. CHAPTER XX. 1. On one of these occasions, when he was teaching the people in the temple and preaching the Gospel to them, the Chief Priests and Scribes inquired by what authority he did these things. Jesus replied by asking them whether they believed that the baptism of John was from Heaven or of men. They said they could not tell. For if they denied that it was from Heaven, they feared the wrath of the people, who believed him to be a prophet. Jesus then said, Nei- ther will 1 tell you by what authority I do these things. 9. Jesus then delivered the follow- ing parable. A certain man planted a vineyard, and let it out to husband- men, and went into a far country. When the proper time arrived, he sent a servant for the fruit of the vineyard. But they beat him, and sent him away empty. He then sent anotherservant, and they treated him t worse. And he again sent a third LUKE. 515 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD — REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. 27. The Sadducees were materialists, consequently, mustdeny resurrection, for the laws of matter cannot apply to spirit. Matter is sensation, which ever resides in Sense ; Spirit is idea, which emanates from Reason. Hence matter mast be finite — that is, fill up Time and Space ; and the abode of Spirit is wholly and entirely in Eternitv, because it is infinite. The Word Of MAN — SENSE, Material, or Earthly. servant, whom they wounded and cast out. He then sent his beloved son, saying, Maybe, they will re- verence him. But the husbandmen said, This is the heir; we will kill him, and the inheritance will then be ours. They actually killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard. Now, what should the lord of the vineyard do? He should destroy these husbandmen, and give the vine- yard to others. 19. At this time the Chief Priests and Scribes sought to apprehend Jesus, as they conceived the parable of the vineyard was an attack upon them. They even employed spies to watch his words, that they might deliver him over to the power of the governor. With this view they asked Jesus if it was lawful to pay tribute to Caesar ? He perceived their in- tention, and desired them to show him a coin, which bore a head and inscription of the Emperor Caesar. He then said unto them, Render unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's, and unto God the things which are God's. 27. The Sadducees, who denied the resurrection, then came to Jesus, and said, Master, Moses has written that, if a man's brother dies before his wife, and leaves no issue, his brother shall marry the widow to raise up children. Now, there was a certain man who died childless, and his brother married the wife of the deceased, and he also died without issue, and the next brother married her, and so on for seven brothers. We wish to know, in the case of resurrection, whose wife she would be considered? Jesus replied: — In the other world they neither marry nor are given in marriage ; but are as the angels which are in heaven. 516 LUKE. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Spiritual, or Heavenly. Material, or Earthly. CHAPTER XXI. 2. It is not the quantity of money bestowed that constitutes charity, but the purity of the motive in the dona- tion. Hence the value of the widow's mite. Sincere and honest obedience to the " Moral Law" constitutes Re- ligion, which resides in the heart, 1. While Jesus was teaching in the Temple, he said, Beware of Scribes who love pomp and show, and make long prayers for a pretence. Many now cast money into the treasury: but there came a poor widow who threw in two mites. Jesus and is the subjection of the Will of said, This trifle is of more worth Man, or Sense, to the Will of God, than all that has been cast into the or Reason. treasury : for they gave of their 34. Prepare for the world to come, abundance, but she has given her all. that you may be acceptable in the 12. Jesus then told his disciples, sight of the Lord. How can that You will be persecuted and betrayed pass away which is not in Time ? into the hands of your enemies for Whatever is in Eternitv must last teaching this new doctrine, which no for ever. Morality and its Author one will be able to gainsay or resist, are out of Time, and properly belong Heaven and earth shall pass away; to Eternity. but my words shall not pass away. CHAPTER XXII. 1. As the feast of the Passover was near, the Chief Priests and Scribes sought how they might take Jesus and kill him : but they feared the people. Then Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve, went to the Chief Priests, and undertook to betray Jesus into their hands for a sum of money. Jesus then said to Peter and John, Go into the city, and, when you meet a man caiTying a pitcher of water, follow him, and at the house where he enters there prepare the Passover. 14. Here Christ went and sat down with the twelve apostles, saying, I am desirous to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. He then took the bread, and, giving thanks, he said, This is my body, which is given for you : repeat this in remembrance of 15. Christ said, I wish to eat this me. After supper, he took the wine, Passover with you. Take of this saying, This cup is the neiu testament, cup and of this bread ; it is a type of sealed by my blood, which is shed for the " New Testament," graciously you. appointed by God for the redemption 21. Jesus then said, One of you and ultimate salvation of man, " from , who is now at table will betray me ; LUKE, 517 D.OC TRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. the fall of man to the end of the world." Repeat this in memory of me. The Old Testament may be considered in the light of earthly arrangements ; while the New Testa- ment, or the Christian Dispensation, reveals the kingdom of heaven to man, by showing that all the com- mandments of God are grounded in Reason and confirmed by Conscience, and that the sinful lusts of the flesh are inherent in Sense. Scientifically we should say, that the laws of Moses regard mundane regulations, which always refer to actions in Time, and that the laws of Christ are strictly moral, and only regard motives in Eternity. Hence the " Revelation" of Jesus Christ must be considered as a full development of moral or Practical Reason, which is con- stantly referred to as the law of God, or of the Father in heaven ; while the " Revelation " of Moses regards created matter and its mundane ar- rangements, which can only be re- cognised by Sense — in truth, matter is nothing but sensation. The Lord's Supper is, therefore, the outward and visible sign of the inward spiritual grace. 70. Christ most certainly is the Son of God, when he refers exclu- sively to the Doctrine he teaches,! and even identifies himself with these pure spiritual laws of God; which can only be made manifest to man by types which affect Sense. But the communication of these types to others constitutes History, and is not yet moral, or spiritual, until Reason, through these types, is forced to contemplate its own pure nature. Then, indeed, does it acknowledge j The Word Of MAN == SENSE, Material, or Earthly. and they inquired which of them it might be. 31. Jesus told Simon Peter that he doubted his faith : but Peter assured Christ that he would follow him, not only to prison but even to death. To which Jesus replied, Before the cock crows thou shalt deny me thrice. 39. Jesus went as usual to the Mount of Olives, accompanied by his disciples, to pray, saying, Oh, my Father, that this cup might be averted from me ! — nevertheless, thy will be done! When he returned from prayer, he found his disciples asleep ; he said, Why sleep you ? rise and pray; for I am betrayed. And while he was speaking, a multi- tude of people approached him, with Judas at their head, wdio went up to Jesus and kissed him. He then said to them, You are come as against a thief with swords and staves to take me. When I sat teaching daily in the temple you did not take me. 54. They then took him to the High Priest's house, and Peter fol- lowed afar off; and, when he had* arrived at the palace, he sat down in the hall with the servants. One of the maids, who had been atten- tively looking at him, said, This man was also with Jesus ; but he denied the fact. He was then challenged by a man ; Peter still denied. About an hour afterwards, another said, This fellow was with him ; but Peter still denied all knowledge of him. And immediately the cock crew. Peter then remembered the words of Christ and wept bitterly. 63. On the following morning, the Chief Priests and Scribes held a council, and interrogated Jesus, say- ing, Art thou the son of God ? And he said, Yes, I am. They then resolved that this was blasphemy 518 LUKE. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Spiritual, or Heavenly. Material, or Earthly, the divinity oi Christ in the purity of enough, and required no further the precepts he enforced ! witnesses. CHAPTER XXIII. 1. The council then arose, and led Jesus to Pilate, saying, We found this fellow perverting the nation, and preventing their paying tribute to Caesar, also calling himself Christ, a King. Pilate asked him if he was the King of the Jews ? He replied, You have said it. Pilate then said to the Chief Priests and the people, I find no fault in this man. But they were the more desirous to have him condemned, because he had been teaching his new doctrine, and stir- ring up the people, beginning from Galilee to this place. Pilate then inquired if Jesus was a Galilaean, and, finding that to be the case, he referred him to Herod, who was at that time in Jerusalem. Herod was desirous of seeing Jesus, having heard of his fame. But to Herod's questions he replied nothing. 10. The Chief Priests and Scribes vehemently accused him, and Herod and his soldiers reviled and mocked him, and sent him again to Pilate. But he said, I told you before that I found no fault in this man ; and, as it is customary to release a prisoner at the feast of the Passover, f will re- lease Christ. But they all cried out, Release Barabbas, and crucify Christ. 33. They then led Jesus to Mount Calvary, where they crucified him, and two malefactors, one on the right and the other on the left of him. Jesus then said, Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do. They parted his raiment, and cast lots for it. The rulers and the people who stood by said, He saved others — let him save himself. Then the sol- diers mocked him, and offered him vinegar. Over his head they placed 5. The discordance between Doc- trine and History is powerfully illustrated in Christ's teaching the new doctrine, and stirring up the people. The old doctrine was the law of Moses. Facts must be vouched by Sense, and, being recorded, con- stitute History ; while the pure, spiritual laws of Reason are invisible to the natural eye, and are only ac- knowledged in Conscience. The great law of Reason, in its application to the affairs of this world, is, promote the " Happiness of others and your own Perfection" — the con- verse of this rule is impossible: it is absolutely impossible to do that for another which can only be done by himself. This is too evident to re- quire a proof. No one can make another a mathematician ; this labour must be done by himself. It is true, we may point out the way to ac- complish this object — then we have done. So, in Morals, we may teach the " Sacred Science," but surely it must be the person's own work to be a moral character, that is, to adopt the ''Science of Motives." Do the will of my Father who is in heaven, and you shall inherit the Kingdom of God. LUKE. 519 DOCTRINE, The Word of GOD = REASON, The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Spiritual, or Heavenly. Material, or Earthly. this inscription, in Greek, Latin, and Hebrew — This is the King of the Jews. 44. About the sixth hour there was darkness over all the earth, which lasted till the ninth hour, and the vail of the temple was rent. Then Jesus cried with a loud voice, Father, to thee I commend my spirit ! and gave up the ghost. 50. After this, a certain counsel- lor, named Joseph, of Arimathaea, begged the body of Pilate. He then took it down, and wrapped it in fine linen, and laid it in a sepulchre hewn out of the solid rock, that had never been used before. The women who came with Jesus from Galilee saw how the body was laid in the tomb. CHAPTER XXIV. 1. Early in the morning of the first day of the week, the women came to the sepulchre, prepared with spices to embalm the body, when, to their surprise, they found the stone rolled away from the mouth of the tomb: and, when they entered, the body of Jesus was not to be found. Two men, who stood there, on per- ceiving them said, Why seek ye the livingamong the dead ? Youremem- ber what Jesus said to you in Galilee — that he should rise again on the third day. They then left the se- pulchre, and informed the eleven of what had occurred. 10. The persons who went to the tomb were Mary Magdalene, Joanna, and Mary, the mother of James : but the apostles considered these rela- tions as idle tales. Peter instantly ran to the sepulchre, where he per- ceived the linen clothes, but the body was not there. Two of the apostles went the same day to the village of Emmaus, not far from Jerusalem; _ and, while they were talking together 520 LUKE. DOCTRINE^ HISTORY^ The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. 47. Repent of your sins, and pre- pare yourselves by virtuous conduct to inherit the Kingdom of God. The Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. of what had happened, Jesus came to them and said, What are you con- versing about that makes you sad? Cleopas asked if he was a stranger in Jerusalem and had not heard what had happened — that Jesus of Naza- reth had been put to death. 22. As they all walked on, the stranger intended to go beyond the village; but they requested him to remain with them. When they were all seated at table, he took bread, blessed it, and gave it to them, and immediately their eyes were opened ; they knew it was Jesus, but he in- stantly vanished from their sight. 33. They all rose, and proceeded to Jerusalem, where they informed the eleven what had happened. While they were conversing about these events, Jesus himself stood in the midst of them, and said, Peace be to you. But they were very much frightened, fancying they had seen a spirit. Jesus then said to them, Be not afraid ; it is I : look at my hands and feet ! a spirit is not made of flesh and blood. He asked them for some refreshment, and they offered him some broiled fish and some honey- comb, which he ate. 50. Jesus then led them as far as Bethany, expounding the Scriptures to them, and directing them to preach the new doctrine to all nations, be- ginning at Jerusalem ; and while he was blessing them he was carried up to heaven. €3)5 Gospel according; to &t. $of)n. DOCTRINE,, HISTORY^ The Word of GOD = REASON, The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Spiritual, or Heavenly. Material, or Earthly. CHAPTER I. 1. The sublime doctrine of Christ is beautifully displayed by St. John, in making the Greek word \6yog represent the new doctrine and per- sonifying the principle of Reason, which is purely spiritual ; thus raising the idea of God, who is a perfectly pure intelligence — the Creator, Preserver, and Ruler, of moral' beings as well as of the mundane system. This \6yoc, or word, which 6. There was a man named John, who employed himself in dispelling the darkness of the times and intro- ducing the new doctrine. 19. John explained to the Priests and Levites that were sent to him from Jerusalem that a man would come after him who would very far surpass him in teaching the new doctrine. He told them that the law was given by Moses ; but that truth constitutes one essential part of the and grace would be preached by Jesus Godhead, was made manifest on Christ. earth by Christ, who preached the 25. The Pharisees asked John why new doctrine. he baptised, as he was not the Christ ; 14. And the word was made flesh, he said, I only baptise with water, but and dwelt among us ; that is, the Christ will baptise with the Holy spirit was incarnate, or, in other Ghost. words, the moral principle, which is 29. The next day, John saw Jesus spiritual, is joined to the flesh, which coming towards him, and he ex- is material, and generates a trinity claimed : Behold the lamb of God, — thus soul, l()dy, and necessary con- which taketh away the sins of the nexion, constitute man. Hence arises world! On another occasion, when a Holy Trinity : for, as the soul, or John and two of his disciples were spiritual man, requires an author, together, they saw Jesus walking, nothing short of a pure, spiritual essence could have begotten the soul, which is a spirit. These elements constitute the notion of the Deity — thus God the Father ; God the Son ; and God the Holy Ghost ; which and John said, Behold the lamb of God ! They then followed Jesus, who invited them to come with him ; and they remained with him all that day. 40. They introduced Simon to Jesus, who said : You are Simon the 522 JOHN. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The "Word Of GOD = REASON, The Word of MAN = SENSE, Spiritual, or Heavenly. Material, or Earthly. three essences are coeval and alike son of Jona; you shall in future be spiritual. Thus the Author of the called Cephas, which means a stone, Soul ; the Spirit, or Soul ; and the Connexion between the Soul and its Maker: — 6eoc, Xoyog, (tvvsxvq- and from the Greek is called Peter. 43. As Jesus was going to Galilee he saw Philip, and said to him, Follow me. Philip met Nathaniel, and told him he had seen Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph ; and they went to him. CHAPTER II. I. Shortly after this, a marriage was celebrated at Cana, in Galilee. Jesus and his disciples were invited to the wedding ; his mother was also there. In the course of the feast they wanted more wine. When Jesus found this, he converted the water, which the Jews had provided for their ablutions, into wine. II. This was the first miracle he performed at Cana. He then went, with his mother, his brothers, and his disciples, to Capernaum, and re- mained there some days ; but, as the Jewish Passover was at hand, he went to Jerusalem. 14. Here he cleared the temple of all those who polluted itby converting it into ahouse of merchandize. They inquired by what authority he did these things, but Jesus did not com- mit himself, as he was aware of their intention. CHAPTER HI. 3. Except a man be born again he cannot enter the kingdom of God, or bury the man of sin and live again to righteousness. Renounce the flesh, and encourage the spirit ; that is, suppress bad inclinations and practise virtue. Now, as the inclinations and instincts are generated by Sense, of course it requires a different power to restrain these desires, and keep them within due limits. Reason is that power. To renounce the flesh, 1. Nicodemus, one of the Pharisees, came to Jesus, saying, he was sure he taught the true doctrine of God, because he performed miracles. Je- sus now explained his doctrine ; but Nicodemus could not comprehend it. Jesus then said he was not come to punish the world, but to enlighten it. 22. After this, Jesus and his disci- ples went to Judea, where he re- mained some time baptising. At the same time, John was also baptising JOHN. 523 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. and encourage the spirit, is on all occasions to prove the supremacy of Reason over Sense. But, as Sense 1 is the faculty under whose influence we at first find ourselves, it is quite clear that until we have buried the man of Sense, and are born again unto righteousness, living under the influence of the Moral Law — the law of Practical Reason — we cannot enter the Kingdom of God. 20. Those who do evil fear de-; tection, lest they should be reproved: 1 but those who do good need not shun; the light, as they are always accepta- ble to God. The only moral reproof! we have to dread is that of the spirit] of truth — which God has planted in! our hearts — Conscience. But, when the motives which induce our actions \ are good, that is, approved by Con- science, then we need not shun the light. If the action in Time is even; reprobated by men, still, if the motive in Eternity is perfectly pure, we may confidently hope to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. 34. It behoves us strenuously, by virtuous conduct, to attend to the welfare of the soul, and thus prepare it to inherit the realms of eternal) bliss. Or, in our search after true] happiness we must never offend the ' moral law, which manifests itself in' our consciences — that is, moral Hap- i piness consists entirely in virtue, j being the cause of happiness. But this can only be effected by our sub- mitting every series of sensations that is produced by Sense to the test of the Moral Law, founded in Reason, before we allow ourselves the enjoy- ment of them. The Word Of MAN = SENSE. Material, or Earthly. at iEnon near Salem. Some of the disciples of John had a dispute with the Jews about the purification, and they referred it to John to explain, who told them that he preached the word of God ; but that Christ would make this doctrine quite evident on the face of the whole earth, by clearly pointing out the distinction between heavenly things and those which belong only to earth : or displaying, in all its exalted qualities, the supe- rior excellence of the soul, or spirit. above the body, or the flesh, and proving that the soul is susceptible of everlasting life ; either blessed or cursed according to its deserts ; and that the life of the body is a mere span. CHAPTER IV. 1. The Pharisees had heard that Jesusmade more converts than John, t and also baptised more persons than z 524 JOHN, DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. 14. Whoever imbibes the water of everlasting life will never thirst again: vain and transitory, indeed, are the pleasures of this life, compared with the endless joys of the life to come.' This ought to make us attentive to the salvation of the soul, that we may be made participators of that kingdom prepared for us from the beginning of the world. The stream that flows from pure Reason cannot fail to be everlasting, as the faculty itself is infinite, and its abode Eternity. But every sensation produced by, Sense is not only finite, but it arises and terminates in Time. He who drinks of this water must, therefore, naturally thirst again. 23. True worshippers shall wor- ship the Father in spirit and truth : for God is a spirit, and those who worship him spiritually, that is, in the genuine sincerity of the heart, will find favour with God. The only true worship is in the purity of the motive, which not only arises from the Moral Law seated in Practical Reason, but consists of nothing but love and reverence for this pure law of God. All actions ih&t affect Sense are merely types of the motive, which is known only to man and his Maker, i Types must never be confounded with their essence, or we should have mathematical figures evident to Sense, which are only the result of Reason. The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. he. But Jesus himself did not bap- tise; this was performed by his dis- ciples. 3. When Jesus left Judea, intend- ing to go to Galilee, he went through. Samaria, and came to the city of Sichar, near which stood the well which Jacob gave to his son Joseph. And, being fatigued with hisjourney. he seated himself on the well. While he was resting himself, a Samaritan woman came to draw water; and Je- sus asked her for some water to drink . The woman was greatly astonished at this request ; for the Jews and Samaritans were at variance. Jesus, then told her that, she would not refuse him a draught of cold water if she knew what consoling doctrine he could impart to her in return. 21. While Jesus was conversing with the woman, his disciples ap- proached and wondered that he held converse with a Samaritan. On their arrival, she left her pitcher and went into the city, and informed them that she had seen Christ; upon which many went to him. 31. His disciples then pressed him to take some refreshment ; but he replied : I am otherwise occupied — I have to do the will of my Father, and finish his work. When the Samaritans came to him, they be- came converts to his doctrine ; and requested him to come to their city, where he remained two days, making many more converts. 43. Two days afterwards, Jesus went into Galilee, where he was well received. He then went into Cana, where he had made the water wine. Here a certain nobleman came to him, and said his son was sick and at the point of death, at Capernaum, and requested him to go down and heal his son. But Jesus replied: Go, thy son liveth ; and the nobleman JOHN 525 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, Tee Word of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. had faith and went his way. On bis return home, he was met by his servants, who informed him that his son was cured; he then inquired at what hour the change took place, and found it was precisely at the time Christ said the words. This is the second miracle Jesus did in Galilee. CHAPTER V. 24. Whoever understands the doc- trine must be convinced of its divine origin ; and whoever acts up to its dic- tates will inherit everlasting life. No- thing within the precincts of Sense, the only depository for sensation, commonly called matter, can be di- vine, because it is always in a state of change from its birth to its dis- solution, consequently corruptible as an inhabitant of Time. Divinity would be defiled and cease to be di- vine, if it could by possibility enter the territory of matter. It must, therefore, exist only in the abode of Eternity, be infinite in its nature, and perfect in its essence. This is precisely the character of Pure Prac- tical Reason ; consequently, we must be perfectly convinced of its di- vine origin : and the laws that spring from this divine faculty must also be the laws of God, for the Author of Reason thus conveys his full com- mandments to his creatures. Who- ever acts up to these laws shall inherit everlasting life. 29. Whoever does the will of God, that is, strictly adheres to the moral law, which is in him, shall receive his reward in the world to come; and whoever disregards the warning voice of Conscience shall receive his punishment hereafter. The will of God is communicated to man through his Reason; obedience to it will receive its due reward hereafter. But a 1. Shortly after this, there was a feast at Jerusalem, at which Jesus was present. In the market-place at Jerusalem there was a pool, called Bethesda, which had five porches. In these lay a great many invalids waiting for a certain agitation of the water; for whoever went into the pool first after this circumstance was cured of his disorder. Among the invalids, there was a poor man, who had been infirm for thirty-eight years, waiting for an opportunity to enter the pool. Jesus inquired of him why he did not take the benefit of the waters. He replied, that being infirm others entered the pool before him ; and being poor he had no one to assist him down. Jesus said unto him, Wilt thou be made whole — then, rise, take up thy bed and walk. The invalid was instantly cured. This took place on the sabbath, on which day it was not lawful for a man to carry his bed. The Jews, therefore, inquired of the man who had ordered him to carry his bed. But he was unable to satisfy them, as he knew not the person who had cured him, and he had disappeared in the crowd. 14. Jesus afterwards met the man in the temple, where he conversed with him ; then he knew it was Jesus, and told the Jews who it was. They took this opportunity of per- secuting him, saying he had profaned z 2 526 JOHN. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The -Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. disregard of this divine admonition consists in an undue indulgence of the instincts of Sense, and shall meet its merited punishment here- after. 36. " My works bear witness that they are from my Father in heaven. Ye have neither heard his voice nor seen his shape. Nor have you the Word of God in you, for you believe not in me." You may easily con- vince yourself of the truth of the Doctrine of Christ, and that it can only come from Heaven, because its internal evidence is confirmed by Rea- son, and makes the same demand on all rational creatures. What greater proof can be required of its coming from God ! Sense can never pro- duce evidence like this ; its utmost strength of proof lies in its confirming the truth of a fact, which is only a truth to one individual — he that ex- perienced the fact — he that felt the sensation — which, when recorded,.be- comes History, which, in its most extensive meaning, is nothing but the Word of Man. The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. the sabbath, and sought to kill him. Jesus defended himself by stating that it was lawful to do good on the sabbath, and that he was doing the work of his Father in heaven. But they were the more desirous to destroy him, charging him with blasphemy in calling God his father, thus making himself equal with God. 33. Jesus said, You have applied to John to know the truth of the doctrine I teach: but you may con- vince yourselves of its truth from its own internal evidence. It needs only to be heard in order to be understood, and then to suppose even its con- trary is quite impossible. What greater proof can be required of its coming from God ! CHAPTER VI. 1. Jesus then crossed the sea of Galilee, and was followed by a great multitude, who had witnessed the miracles he had performed on the diseased. He then went up into a mountain accompanied by his disci- ples. When Jesus observed th* number of persons who had followed him, he said to Philip, Where shall we buy bread for these people ? Philip replied, Two hundred penny- worth will not be sufficient for them , so that each may have a little. An- drew then said to him, There is a lad here, who has five barley loaves and two small fishes, but what arc these among so many? Jesus then .said, Desire the people (amounting JOHN. 527 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly* 32. " The dispensation of Moses in the Old Testament is not from Heaven, but the dispensation in the New Testament is from Heaven." The internal evidence of the " Books of Moses" proves that all his regula- tions and laws refer only to earthly in- stitutions, while the testimony of the " Gospels of Christ" refer wholly to the salvation of the soul ; but, as the soul is spiritual, surely the Doctrine which comes from God must also lead to God. Heavenly things emanate from Rrason, and are of a spiritual nature — consist of syllogisms. Earthly things arise from Sense, and are of a material nature — consist of sensa- tions. The relation of these feelings to others constitutes History. Hence the record of the fuels which occur in the "Old Testament" are strictly Historical, while the precepts which compose the " New Testament" are absolutely Doctrinal. 63. It is the spirit that cpuickeneth ; The Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. to about five thousand ) to sit down ; he then gave thanks, and gave the loaves and fishes to the disciples, and they distributed them to the multi- tude, who ate till they were satisfied. After the repast, they gathered up twelve baskets of fragments. 15. Jesus, finding that those who were converted came to make him a king over them, he retired alone into a mountain. In the evening, his disciples went on board a ship, in- tending to cross the sea to Caper- naum ; but a storm arose, which compelled them to row : when they had gone the distance of about thirty furlongs, they saw Jesus walking on the water, and they were frightened. But Jesus said, It is I ; be not afraid. He then entered the ship, which was immediately at the desired port. 22. On the following day, when the people could not find Jesus, they took shipping and went to Caper- naum, and, when they found him, they begged to be informed what they should do to fulfil the will of God. Jesus told them that the dis- pensation of Moses was not from Heaven; but the doctrine he taught them bore evident marks of its divinity. Obey this doctrine, and you will accomplish the will of my Father who is in heaven. 41. Now the Jews did not compre- hend his meaning, because he called God, who is in heaven, his father. And they questioned one another saying, Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How is it, then, that he says his father is in heaven? Jesus al- luded to the doctrine he taught , and said, Whoever believes and acts up to its precepts will enjoy everlasting Life. 51. In testimony of the truth ol my doctrine, I will sacrifice mysell 52' JOHN. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = RKASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. theyfesAprofiteth nothing. How often does it happen that we torment the flesh — Sense — in obeying the moral law ! The more strictly we obey this laW of our Reason, the more shall we be entitled to the promised rewards inj the eternal kingdom of God. While, the desires of Sense are strictly con-; fined within rational limits, we need! not torment the flesh. This, how-; ever, can only be proved through Con- science. Thisspirit of (ruth will faith- fully decide on all occasions whether the set of sensations we propose to! enjoy are allowed or prohibited by the ! Moral Law seated in our Reason . To. obey the Word of God is always toi be strictly rational. To renounce the! devil, which means the sinful lusts: of the flesh, with the pomps and; vanities of the world of sensation, is to restrict our human desires, and: not suffer ourselves to be misled by! the Word of Man. Thus it is the' spirit that quickeneth; the flesh pro- fiteth nothing. The Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. for the benefit of the world. Jesus explained this to the Jews under the allegory of his own flesh and blood, saying, Whosoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood shall have eternal life — meaning, he that imbibes my principles, and acts according to my precepts, will be acceptable to God. 58. This is the pure doctrine which I teach, and comes directly from Heaven. The legislation of Moses only regards the political conduct of men while here on earth : but the essence of my precepts regards the future welfare of the Soul liere- after. Jesus taught these things in the synagogues at Capernaum. 66. Christ's disciples were alarmed at the severity of the doctrine taught by their master, and were about to recede ; but Jesus encouraged them by saying, Have I not chosen you twelve for my apostles, and yet one of you will betray me ! Here he al- luded to Judas Iscariot. CHAPTER VII. 16. " The Doctrine that I teach! 1. After this, Jesus went to Ga- proves itself by its own purity."] lilee; for he knew that the Jews were Now, purity can never be found in! in quest of him. His brethren, how- the world of Sense, which consists of ever, recommended him to attend at sensation, that is, matter, which can the feast of the Tabernacles, which exist only in Time; consequently, it was at hand, and show himself; but is an inhabitant of the region of Eter- Jesus declined doing this, as he said NiTY,theonlyabodeof Reason, where he had much more to do before he purity, which is wholly spiritual, can sacrificed himself, alone reside. Hence the Doctrine 8. Jesus said to his brethren, I of Christ is perfect purity, and de- advise you to go to the feast, which scended from Heaven. The History they did. And afterwards he went of Christ relates to his material body, himself privately ; for the Jews were and to the actions he performed on in search of him, to apprehend him. earth. Thus is Christ perfect God About the middle of the feast, Jesus and perfect Man: perfect God when taught in the temple, at which the he identifies himself with the divine Jews marvelled, not knowing that he Doctrine he teaches; perfect Man could read. But Jesus said, The doc - in being composed of matter, and trine that I teach proves itself by its gravitating like all other objects of t own purity ; and this is spiritual or JOHN. 529 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The "Word of GOD = REASON, The Word of MAN == SENSE, Spiritual, or Heavenly, sensible nature, our knowledge of! which can only come through His-; TORY. 24. Judge not according to appear- ances, but judge correctly; that is, do not decide from the action which you see, but from the motive which ! you cannot see. Now, as you cannot j judge of that you do not see, this J judgmentmustbelongtoGod. Things; which affect Sense are the proper objects of the senses— -facts — and of' these no two individuals can univer-j sally agree, because no two men can at the same time be in precisely the ! same part of space. Hence the point of view or the contact never can be the same. If I place my hand upon any object, and say it produces aj sensation of heat in me, this must! depend on the relative state of my j hand, and the thing which I touch. I Now a time must elapse before another ! person can lay his hand upon the same j object, during which time much of its caloric may have escaped, and the ! temperature of the other hand may i be different. Then would arise an interminable dispute — one asserting the thing to be hot, the other saying it is cold. This must ever be the case with the sensations in each sen- tient being, as generated by Sense. Hence universality can never result' about things of experience or His- tory. Not so with Reason, which ' generates its own pure laws from ' itself: a law once evolved carries with it a Conviction that defies all cavil, and commands universal assent from all rational beings. That a circle is round is admitted by every person that has the use of his Reason, for if it is not round it is no circle. Adam must have thus formed the notion of a circle, as well also the last man that is to come into existence. How different are these principles of Rea- | Material, or Earthly. heavenly doctrine; for there is no- thing like it to be metwith on earth. If you circumcise on the sabbath- day, why are you angry because I heal the sick ? Some then said, He speaks out boldly; yet they thought he was not the expected Messiah : for they said, He would certainly do more miracles than this man has done. 32. When the Chief Priests and Pharisees heard these remarks of the people, they dispatched officers to take him ; but they did not ap- prehend him. On the last day of the feast, Jesus said aloud, If any man thirst, let him come to me, and he shall drink of living water: alluding to the divine purity of the doctrine he taught. 43. The Chief Priests and Pha- risees reproved the officers for not taking Jesus : but they defended their conduct, and said, Never man spake like this man. Are you also de- ceived? they retorted. Nicodemus said to the rulers: Does the law judge any man before he is heard in his own defence ? After this they all went home. 530 JOHN. BOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. The Word of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. son from the sensations produced by Sense ! Now, as Jesus Christ has unfolded the laws of Practical Reason, and shown them to be the immediate Commandments of God, communicated to man through his Reason, what but absolutely perfect universality can result from this "Divine Revelation;" or else Rea- son would cease to be the medium of communion between Man and his Maker, and the Devil would inter- pose the authority of Sense, and overturn the "Kingdom of God" secured by Reason, and establish the " Region of Hell," generated by the sinful excesses of Sense ! Doc- trine, therefore, must be absolutely universal ; for that is no principle which admits of dispute. History, on the other hand, never can be uni- versal ; for the fact experienced by any one person never can be con- veyed to another, or fact would be- come principle. Therefore, judge not according to appearances, but judge correctly. CHAPTER VIII. 3. " This woman was detected in 1. Shortly after this, Jesus went the very act of adultery, and, ac- to the Mount of Olives, and returned cording to the law of Moses, she in the morning to the temple, where should be stoned to death." Jesus he sat down and taught. Now the said, Ye judge after the flesh; that Scribes and Pharisees brought a is, according to Sense, or appear- woman to him who had been taken ances. I judge after the spirit ; that is, according to Reason ; therefore, " I judge no man." It belongs to God, the Author of Reason, to judge of the motive, which, being in Eter- nity, no man can see. All that man can do is to judge according to the action, which is evident to Sense, but this is the judgment of appear- ances, and must ever reside in Time. in adultery, and said, According to our law, as delivered to us by Moses, she should be stoned to death. But what say you ? This they did to try him, seeking some cause to accuse him. Jesus, pretending not to hear them, stooped down and wrote on the ground with his finger. And when he raised himself up again he said: Let him who is without sin cast the In this case, says the Saviour and first stone. When they heard this, enlightener of the world — " Let him finding that they were not acquit- who is without sin cast the first stone." ted by their own consciences, they JOHN. 531 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. How can matter, which is sensation — the action — be otherwise than cor- ruptible and imperfect ; or how can principle, which is purely spiritual — the motive — be otherwise than pure perfection, as it proceeds from the Moral Law ! The " Autonomy of the Will" generates pure motives. The " Heteronomy of the Will " gives rise to impure maxims. The law of Moses is the law of Sense. The law of Christ is the law of Reason. 18. When once you understand the new doctrine, you will find it im- possible not to admit its truth, and that its contrary is not conceivable. The Doctrine of Christ is perfectly pure and spiritual; it regards the salvation of the soul, which is spirit, consequently, all its precepts are grounded in Reason. The Institu- tions of Moses are of an earthly nature, and always refer to the con- dition of mankind in the world of Sense ; their ultimate aim being Happiness, which consists of the greatest sum of sensual enjoyment, and always relates to matter or sensa- tion. Matter resides in Time; Spirit inhabits Eternity. While you con- tinue to judge after the flesh, you never can comprehend the spiritual purity of the Doctrine of Christ. 34. He who commits sin is the servant of sin ; yet may this servant be discharged : for as soon as virtue gains the ascendancy wee isdismissed. That is, when Reason holds the reins, the inclinations of Sense are re- strained within their proper limits, and the supremacy of Reason over Sense is established. Without this virtue, the " Kingdom of God " is unattainable, and we become devoted to vice, or the " Kingdom of Satan." 58. Before Abraham was / am — iyio eifii. By this expression Christ , The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. one by one left the temple ; so that Jesus and the woman were left alone. On this Jesus said to the woman, Where are thy accusers? They are gone. Go thou likewise, and sin no more. 12. Jesus continued teaching, and explained that his doctrine would enlighten the world, and whoever followed its precepts would prepare himself for everlasting life in the kingdom to come. The Pharisees objected that he bore witness in fa- vour of his own doctrine, and that his testimony might not be true. To which Jesus replied, When once you understand what I teach, you will find it impossible not to admit its truth ; for it is a perfectly pure spiritual doctrine, and has nothing earthly in it, as it only concerns the spirit, and not the flesh. But, while you continue to judge after the flesh, you never will be able to compre- hend the spiritual purity of what I teach. 20. Jesus spake thus while he was teaching at the treasury in the temple, and yet no one laid hands on him. So he continued explaining his meaning to them, by saying, If you do not adopt the precepts I teach, you will die in your sins. For you may judge from the purity of my doctrine that it comes from Heaven; and all the while you re- main in ignorance of it you are of this world. But some did not under- stand him when he spoke of heavenly things; and some became converts to his doctrine. To these he said, If you continue to practise my princi- ples, then you are indeed my dis- ciples. :«. The Jews misunderstood Jesus, when he explained that if they were not under the influence of sin, they would be free. They supposed he z 5 532 JOHN. DOCTRINE. HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. evidently meant to expound his doc- trine thus: I, the word, the Xoyog, or doctrine, am one of the essences of the Holy Trinity, which doctrine, coming from God, must have formed part of his essence before the crea- tion of the world; though now first made manifest in the person of Christ himself. The Doctrine taught by Christ came down from Heaven, therefore, it must have always ex- isted in Eternity, before all worlds. Bat God being not only the author but the essence of Reason, this Doc- trine must of necessity always have formed part of the Godhead, Qebg, or he could not have imparted it to his only begotten son, the \6yog, destined to make the " Divine Re- velation " to his creatures for the salvation of their souls. So the word was made flesh and dwelt among us; the spirit was incarnate — in other words, the moral principle seated in our Reason was revealed to us by the Saviour — "who was a light to lighten the Gentiles." But the crea- tion of a creature involves the idea of connexion — ffvve%VS — between the Maker and the thing made, the soid of man. As.however, the Maker, the Qebg, is spirit, the thing made, the soul, is also spirit, the Xoyos — surely the connexion, the avvexvg, must also be spirit. Hence the pure or " Holy Trinity," which ever was and ever will be : God the Father . . . . = ©so,'. God the Son = "koyoq. God the Roly Ghost . = ewzyps. It is true that the manifestation of this pure principle of Reason must first be awakened to us finite beings through the powers of Sense, and consequently the word must be made flesh, or matter, or sensation, or it could notaffectus in Time. If Reason The Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. referred to bondage on earth, and directly affirmed that they were of the seed of Abraham, and never in bondage to any man. Jesus replied, I know you are the seed of Abraham, yet you seek to kill me because you have not understood my doctrine, and you cannot bear the truth. But I preach the pure doctrine from God, and you follow what you were taught by your father, Abraham. 48. Those Jews who did not under- stand the doctrine of Christ charged him with being a Samaritan, and said he had a devil, meaning he was animposter. But Jesus replied, Whoever strictly keeps my precepts shall inherit everlasting life. The Jews, again mistaking him, thought he alluded to Abraham, who was dead, and said, You are not fifty years old, how then have you seen Abra- ham? To which Jesus replied, Before Abraham was, lam : meaning that, as the divine doctrine he taught came from God, it musthave always existed in the Godhead, though now first made manifest on earth. But the Jews were so much enraged against him, that they took up stones to throw at him as he went out of the temple, but he hid himself. JOHN. 533 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. is the spirit of communion between man and his Maker, these principles will become evident to us when we 1 ' shake off this mortal coil " of Sense and enter Eternity. The Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. CHAPTER IX. 1. On another occasion, as Jesus and his disciples were passing along, they saw a man who was born blind. His disciples asked him, In this case who has sinned, the blind man or his parents? Jesus replied, Neither the one nor the other. It occurred for the purpose of manifesting my mis- sion. Having said this, he spat on the ground and anointed the eyes of the blind man with the moistened clay, and then directed him to wash himself in the pool of Siloam, and on his return he received his sight. The neighbours said, This surely is the blind beggar, and inquired how he had received his sight. He told them that a man called Jesus had performed the cure. 13. The Pharisees sought to ac- cuse Jesus because he restored the blind man on the sabbath ; at first they doubted the fact, and called the parents of the blind man to prove that he was the same person. The Jews were so inveterate against Jesus, that they said, Whoever confesses that he is Christ shall be turned out of the synagogue. But Jesus said, I am sent into the world to give light to those who are born blind. The Pharisees considered that he might, allude to them and said, Are we blind also? Jesus replied, If you see my doctrine and follow its dictates yon will have no sin; if otherwise, you are blind indeed. CHAPTER X. 9. The Doctrine I teach is the 1. Jesus then spake this parable door to salvation, and whoever adopts i to them : The good shepherd enters 534 JOHN. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. it is sure to enter into the kingdom of Heaven. This Doctrine comes from God, and its truth is manifested in man's own conscience, whereby he is convinced that such pure and spiritual precepts could not arise from earth. Whoever strictly fol- lows the dictates of the Moral Law, which God has planted in man's Reason, does the will of his Father who is in heaven, and enters in at the door of Salvation. If we allow the desires of Sense to stifle the voice of Reason, we are wholly devoted to Satan. How, then, can we enter in at the door of Salvation ! But, if we make it a. principle on all occasions to establish the supremacy of Reason over Sense, then, indeed, do we obey the Moral Law, and shall enter in at the door of Salvation. 30. " I and my Father are one." I am the \6yog, the word, the doctrine, which ever constituted a part of my Father, Qebg, who is God. Hence I am the Son of God, begotten before all worlds, not made, being of the substance of the Father, who is a perfectly pure spirit, or an infinite intelligence personified: yet distinct from my Father, in having descended on earth, or in being incarnate, but always in communion with him through the Holy Spi?it of con- nexion, vvvexnQi between us. Hence arises the irrefutable doctrine of the Trinity in Unity. Thus God the Father; God the Son ; and God the Holy Ghost. And yet there are not three Gods but only ONE GOD, consisting of three Persons co-eternal and co-equal. Thus the infinite Rea- son made the finite Reason, which could notbe done without establishing the eternal connexion between them : Infinite Reason . . . = ©"V- Finite Reason . . . . = "k'oyoi . Eternal Connexion . = a-uvt^hs- The Word Of MAN — SENSE, Material, or Earthly. the sheep-fold by the door, and care- fully tends his flock , so that the sheep know his voice: he not only seeks out good pasture for them, but con- ducts them the best way to it, and sees that they are not devoured by wolves. But the stranger, who only pretends to be a shepherd, climbs over into the fold, like a thief and a robber, and when he calls to the sheep they know not his voice, nor will they follow him. The pretender comes only to steal, to kill, and to destroy: while the true shepherd preserves and protects his flock. The good shepherd will lose his life . for the sheep; but the pretender is indifferent whether the flock is de- stroyed or not. But the Pharisees understood not the purport of this discourse. 20. The Jews were very much divided about the doctrine taught by Christ; some saying, Surely this man hath a devil and is mad : while others declared that there was too much sense in his words to proceed from a madman. 22. At the feast of Dedication, Jesus was at Jerusalem, walking in that part of the temple called Solomon's Porch, and the Jews gathered round him, anxious to know whether he was the true Christ or not. Jesus said to them, I have told you and you believe me not ; let, therefore, the purity of my doctrine be witness of its own truth. Ye, however, are not my sheep, or you would know my voice. If you were, I would promise you a life of everlasting happiness ; but, while you are perverse, you are liable to eternal misery. 31. At these sayings the Jews took up stones with the intent to stone him ; but Jesus said to them, Why do you wish to stone me for teaching you good doctrine? But JOHN. 535 DOCTRINE, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. All these principles are co-eternal and co-equal, for they can subsist only in the abode of Eternity, and must ever be exempt from Time, the mere depository of sensation, commonly called matter, or things of earth. 38. I am in my Father and he is in me. That is, my pure spirit, or soul, forms no part of this material world, but at present is a member of the pure moral or spiritual region where my Father reigns. I am come down to earth to awaken your con- sciences to the truth of my Doctrine : that he alone shall enjoy eternal hap- piness who has made himself worthy to be admitted into my Father's king- dom by a virtuous course of life in this world of Sense and probation. But how could you be morally good, if the moral law was not placed in you by my Father, and my Father is the fountain of all goodness, conse- quently the moral law is also in him ? The Moral Law, or Practical Rea- son, must from all Eternity have constituted a part of God, 6t6c, or he could not have commissioned his only begotten Son , the Xoyoc, to have revealed it to his creatures in Time. This development of Reason consti- tutes the " Divine Revelation," and points out the direct road to Salva- tion, which consists entirely in re- stricting the instincts and inclina- tions of Sense within the bounds prescribed by Reason. So that those only are worthy to be admitted into the "Kingdom of Heaven" who lead a virtuous life from pure love of the Moral Low. The "Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. the Jews replied, It is for blasphemy; for that we wish to punish you, for, being merely a man, you make yourself God. The Jews did not understand the allegory which Christ employed in saying, I and my Father are one. They sought again to take him, but he escaped from them, and went beyond the Jordan, where John used to baptise, and there he re- mained some time. CHAPTER XI. 1. Lazarus of Bethany, who was the brother of Mary, that anointed Christ's l'<'', wae taken seriously ill. Mary and her Bister Martha sent word to Jesus that their brother, 536 JOHN. DOCTRINE, HISTORY. The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. 25. I am the resurrection and the life ; and whoever believes my Doc- trine shall never die, but inherit everlasting life. To believe in the Doctrine of Christ is not only to adopt it, but strictly and on all occa- sions to act up to the law which is in our own Reason, and which com- mands that we should always act reasonably: so that the motive which induces the action should be per- fectly pure ; for, as our souls are not among the changeable phenomena of nature, they already form part of that kingdom of spirits which are to The Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. whom he loved, was in a dangerous state. When Jesus heard this, he said, His illness will not be mortal. Now Jesus loved Lazarus and his two sisters, yet he remained in the place where he was two days after he received this news. Then he said to his disciples, Let us go again into Judea. 8. The disciples reminded him of the narrow escape he lately had ; to which he replied, Are there not twelve hours day, in which we may subvert the schemes of our enemies ? He then explained to them that Lazarus was dead, and that he wished to restore him to life. Thomas, who was a twin, said to the other disciples, Let us go. And when they came to Bethany, which is not far from Jerusalem, they found that he had been in the grave four days. As soon as Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went out to meet him ; but Mary remained at home. The instant she saw Jesus shesaid, Oh, if you had been here, my brother would not have died ! and I know that you have great influence with God, so that what you ask he will grant. Jesus replied, Your brother shall rise again. Martha then said, I am aware he will rise at the general resur- rection, and then went to tell her sister Mary that Jesus was near. Mary instantly rose and went to the place where Jesus was, and threw herself at his feet, saying, Oh, had you been here, my brother would not have died ! 33. When Jesus saw Mary and those who followed her weeping, he wept himself, and asked where he was buried. When they arrived at the sepulchre, Jesus said, Remove the stone; but Martha said, Lord, by this time he stinks, for he has been dead four days. And when they JOHN. 537 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. inhabit the world to come: thus, following the precepts of Christ will assure us of the resurrection and the life everlasting, in that kingdom pro- mised by Christ. That the soul, being spirit, is at the present moment already in Eternity, there can be no more doubt than that the body, being matter, is in Time. Reason generates spirit by syllogisms ; Sense produces matter by sensation. Spirit must inhabit Eternity, and matter must exist in Time. Hence the Doctrine of the resurrection of the soul, or spiritual body, needs no proof, for it is at present in the world to come, though not yet liberated from its clay. Whoever believes in this Doctrine can never die, but must inherit everlasting life. The "Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. had removed the stone from the entrance of the vault, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth. The dead man came forth. And those who were present marvelled at his power. 47. The Chief Priests and Pha- risees were at a loss how to act : for they said, As this man performs miracles, if we let him alone he will produce a commotion, and the Ro- mans will not only deprive us of our places, but we shall lose the nation. Caiaphas, the High Priest, then said, It is better that we should put one man to death than risk the destruction of the whole nation. From this time they made every attempt to secure him. But Jesus, being aware of their intention, left Jerusalem and went to Ephraim near the wilderness, where he remained with his disciples. 53. When the Jewish Passover was near, many went up to Jerusalem to purify themselves for the feast, where they found that the Chief Priests and Pharisees had issued orders that, if any person knew where Jesus was, he should give immediate informa- tion. CHAPTER XII. 1. Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, the place where he had raised Lazarus from the dead. Here they prepared a supper for him, and Lazarus sat at table with him. Martha waited at supper ; but Mary anointed his feet with costly ointment, the odour of which filled the whole house. Judas Iscariot, the disciple who betrayed Christ, said, Should not this oint- ment be sold and the produce given to the poor? Not that this disciple cared for the poor, but because he was not a man of principle, who revered the' //or"/ laic in him. The 538 JOHN. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The "Word of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. 24. Unless the seed which is sown in the ground die, it cannot produce the new plant, nor bring forth fruit. Man is born in sin ; and while he remains in sin he cannot enter the everlasting kingdom of God. As in Adam all die; so in Christ all shall live for ever. Unless the man of sin die, the spiritual man cannot be regenerated. The first man is of earth, earthy; the second man is of heaven , heavenly : but they are neces- sarily connected in this earthly state ; and these three elements constitute one man. This implies that on our first entrance into life we are under the influence of the inclinations or the laws of Sense ; but, when we begin to reflect on our ultimate de- stination, and feel the force of the mcrral law, that subjects all our in- clinations to this sublime law of our Reason, then , indeed , have we buried the man of sin, and are regenerated unto righteousness. The "Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. Chief Priests had some thoughts of putting Lazarus to death, as many Jews became converts in consequence of this miracle. 12. On the following day, many people nocked to the feast, it having been rumoured that Christ was coming to Jerusalem , and many others went out to meet him, car- rying branches of palm-trees, and crying, Hosanna ! Blessed is the King of Israel who comes in the name of the Lord ! Jesus came riding upon a young ass, accompanied by throngs of people in full acclama- tion. The Pharisees were alarmed, and said, We have not much in- fluence to suppress his doctrine, for all the world are following him. 20. Among those who came to worship at the Passover were some Greeks, who, being anxious to see Christ, asked Philip to introduce them to him ; Philip went to Andrew, and they told Jesus, who was willing to receive them. This was an im- portant time ; for Jesus was glorified at this feast; that is, his doctrine gained ground with the people. When Jesus had very fully expounded his doctrine, he departed secretly and hid himself. 42. Among the rulers of the Jews many believed in Christ's doctrine ; yet they were afraid to avow their conviction, lest they should be put out of the synagogue. These men were more intent on earthly things than on heavenly ones. And Jesus said aloud, He that believes not my doctrine cannot believe in God ; I am not come to judge, but to save the world. The doctrine I preach is not from myself, but from God. CHAPTER XIII. ] . Before the feast of the Pass- over, when Jesus was aware that he JOHN, 539 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. The Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. could not escape long the punish- ment and death that awaited him, and after he and his disciples had done supper one evening, he took a basin of water and began to wash his disciples' feet. When he came to Simon Peter, Peter said to him, Lord, thou shalt never wash my feet. Jesus replied, If I wash thee not thou hast no part with me. Peter then , in order to prove how devotedly he was bound to Jesus, said, Not my feet, but my hands and my head also. As Jesus was proceeding with his task, he said, Ye are not all clean, alluding to Judas Iscariot who betrayed him. Jesus went through this ceremony on purpose to give them a practical les- son of humility ; exhorting them to do kind offices to each other, and live in love and affection together. 21. After this condescension of Jesus, he remarked that one of them would betray him. The disciples wondered whom he could mean. A disciple whom Jesus loved was lean- ing on his bosom, and Simon Peter made a sign that he should ask him. Jesus then said, He to whom I shall give the sop when I have dipped it in the dish shall betray me. He gave the sop to Judas Iscariot, saying, What thou doest, do quickly. None of the disciples understood what Jesus meant by this remark ; for Judas was their purveyor, and they conceived he alluded to some provisions he was to purchase for the ensuing feast, or to distribute some alms to the poor. Judas immediately left them, and went out. Jesus then said to those who remained, I give you this commandment — Love one another as I have* loved you, that men may know you are my disciples. 36. Simon Peter then said, Wher- ever you go I will follow you. But Jesus replied, Whither I go yon 540 JOHN. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The -Word of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. The Word Of MAN = SENS! Material, or Earthly. cannot come at present. Peter again said, Lord, I will lay down my life for you! Jeus retorted : Peter, before the cock crows, thou shalt deny me thrice. CHAPTER 6. I am the way, the truth, and the' life, and no one can enter the king- dom of God but through me. This; implies that the doctrine I teach is] the only perfect, pure, spiritual doc-j trine, which commands man on all! XIV. 1. Jesus, being now aware of his approaching end, comforted his dis- ciples by assuring them that, if they continued to act up to the doctrine he taught, they should all meet again in his Father's kingdom. Neither occasions to obey the law established! Thomas nor Philip understood him ; in Reason — the moral law — and ifj but requested him to show them his he offends against this law how can; Father. Jesus replied, Have I been he hope to be acceptable to the; so long with you, teaching you my Author of Reason, who himself must! doctrine, and yet have not compre- be eminently Rational, and who must! hended it ! Have I not explained to abhor irrationality in his creatures!! you before that I am in my Father, Nothing can be more evident thatj and my Father is in me? If you love when Christ says, " I am the way, j me keep my commandments, and, the truth, the life,"' that he identifies ■ when I go to the bosom of my Father, himself with the perfectly pure di-j' I will pray to him to give you another vine Doctrine he teaches. Hencej Comforter, that may i*emain with his divinity is proved. This Doc-f you for ever, even the Holy Ghost, trine must be absolutely convincing! the spirit of truth, which dwelleth to every rational creature; for it is in you. the unfolding of all the principles off Practical Reason, which, beingl an emanation of the Divinity, must.- be divine. But the Practical Rea- son of Jesus Christ, in which alone consists his divinity, must have far surpassed every Practical Reason that was created and manifested in the flesh, otherwise, the Reason of some other man would have done the work that Christ was destined to finish in expounding the will of his heavenly Father. To doubt, there- fore, that Christ is the only begotten Son of God commissioned to reveal the Word of God to man would be to doubt the truth of the plainest axiom : — " that equals added to equals, the whole is equal.' 1 '' There- fore, when Christ is developing the , JOHN. 541 DOCTRINE,, HISTORY, The Word of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. principles of his own Practical Reason, he cannot do otherwise than identify himself with this divine fa- culty; and, knowing that this faculty did not make itself, but that its Author is God, he is perfectly sure that he is the " Son of God" the Sa- viour and Redeemer of the world, who, by his Atonement, became " the lamb that taketh away the sins of the ivorld." The lapse of nearly two thousand years, with all the en- lightenment which the progressive expansion of mind has produced, even till it has erected a perfectly pure " Science of Mind," boldly stands forth, with this very Science at its head, to confirm this great truth,! and to crush for ever all the enemies of the only true " Religion" — to detect their sophistry, and defeat their malice. Hence this glorious truth is established for ever — Christianity is Rationality. 20. I am in my Father, and he is in me ; and I am in you, and you are in me. While we all act up to the dictates of the moral law, we are all equally spiritual in our motives, con- sequently equally rational. But, de- parting from this moral type, we lose our purity, and have nothing in com- mon with the pure spirit of God and his son Jesus Christ. Now, it is clear, that as the soul is spirit, it cannot dwell in the world of Sense, or it would be sensation, which has a he ginning, middle, arid end, in Time. When Christ says — " I am in my Father, and he is in me, 1 am in you, and you are in me " — what can this possibly mean but that he here iden- tifies himself with the perfectly pure and divine Doctrine he teaches! Christ here evidently alludes to his own pure Practical Reason. But his Reason is pure spirit ; and the I The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. 542 JOHN. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. Author of Reason is also pure spirit ; but the beings whom he taught were also endowed with Reason, so that they are, likewise, pure spirit. Where, then, can these spirits reside but in Eternity! The spiritual communion of these spirits must then be perfect when they are all actuated by the same moral principle , all equally ra- tional in the purity of their motives. Hence may we hope, through the mediation of Jesus Christ, to enter the Kingdom of Heaven, and be made partakers of the divine grace. 16. The Holy Ghost, the comforter which is in you, is — the spirit of truth. Man, being endowed with Reason, finds the moral law para- mount in his rational or moral nature. This law not only acknow- ledges God for its Creator, but is itself the immediate commandment of God, and ought to be obeyed under all circumstances. Its mani- festation is confirmed by the spirit of truth — Conscience — which is the immediate communion between man and his Maker, and may well be denominated the Holy Ghost. — Hence arises a Trinity in Unity : God the Father . . . = Author of Reason. God the Son . . . . = Reason incarnate. God the Holy Ghost = Relation. All these elements reside in Eter- nity, and must, therefore, be pure permanent principles, simple in their essence, and eternal in their nature. The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. CHAPTER XV. 1 . Jesus continued to console his disciples, and, knowing that his end was fast approaching, he now spoke the parable of the vine to them, always personifying his doctrine, the word, by himself. Jesus said, I am the true vine and my Father is the husbandman. Every branch that J does not bear fruit he casts away; JOHN. 543 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. The Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. and the branches that do bear fruit he carefully prunes, in order that they may bear more fruit. Now you are cleansed by the word, that is, by the doctrine which I have taught you ; remain firm to its precepts, and you will be as the branch to the vine. The branch of itself cannot bring forth fruit unless it is connected with the vine. No more can you act upon my principles unless you are con- vinced of their truth : then you are in me and I am in you. And herein is my Father glorified; that you have adopted the doctrine which came down from Heaven, and which is made manifest on earth through me, and communicated by you to all the world. These things have I spoken that your joy may he com- plete. 12. Remember my commandment, Love one another as I have loved you. He is indeed a true friend who will lay down his life for another. If you are my sincere friends you will do my bidding. I have chosen you and or- dained you my Apostles, that you may preach my doctrine to the whole world ; that the more adherents you make who stedfastly believe in my doctrine and act up to its divine pre- cepts the more will God be glorified. As the Ascendancy of Virtue must in the end crush, for ever, the monster Vice, then will the work for which my Father sent me be fully accom- plished. CHAPTER XVI. 1. Christ continued to comfort his Apostles, by saying, In the service to which I have appointed you, you will meet with much opposition, you will be put out of the synagogues, and endure many hardships for my sake. And this will happen, because your opponents are ignorant of my 544 JOHN. DOCTRINE, HISTORY., The "Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. 33. I have overcome the world! In Christ we have, indeed, a practical example of the possibility of fully acting up to the moral law on all occasions, without the least regard to the consequences that may follow: resisting all the temptations of power and dominion and every thing earthly, that can gratify ambition or sooth the Sense ; and adhering strictly to the law of his own Pure Reason, which he made the sole rule of his conduct. Notwithstanding, he was persecuted, reviled, mocked, derided, insulted, and finally put to the most ignomi- nious death ; yet he rose superior to all the seductions of the inclinations of Sense, and the torments of the flesh, revering the Law of GWplanted in our Reason above all, and affording the most striking instance of a uni- formly good conduct throughout life ; constantly subduing the inclinations of Sense, and submitting them to the approval of Reason — thus leaving for the instruction of mankind an example and model which may be equalled but never can be excelled. Well then may Christ say — / have overcome the world! The Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. doctrine, and know not that it comes from God. I say these things to : you, that you should not be deterred from preaching the true doctrine which ensures to yourselves ever- lasting communion with me and my Father, in his kingdom of never- ending bliss. I . Nevertheless, it is expedient that you should go and preach the Gospel, : reprove the world of sin, and establish truth and righteousness in its stead. , And when the spirit of truth, the Holy Ghost, which is in you, is awa- kened, it will guide you into all truth, so that you shall be convinced that ' my doctrine comes from God. II. When Jesus said, In a little while you shall not see me, because I , go to my Father, his disciples did : not understand his meaning. He, : knowing their perplexity, explained further by saying — When lam gone your troubles will increase, and you will have much to endure for the sake of truth. The world, however, will be benefited by your labours, and, though you have sorrow in this world, when you join me in the king- dom of my Father, your joy will not only be great, but everlasting. 21. Jesus still further illustrated his meaning by saying, When a woman is suffering from the pangs of child-birth, her agony is extreme ; but, this important end of nature accomplished, how great is her joy that she hath given to the world a new member, to glorify God, in her newly-born infant. So, when you see me again, your work being done, your hearts will rejoice in the true spiritual joys of heaven, which no man can wrest from you. CHAPTER XVII. 1. Jesus now prayed fervently to , God, and said, My hour is come; JOHN. 545 D0CTR1XE, HISTORY,, The Word of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. my mission is nearly accomplished. Oh Gorl, who hast given me power over all flesh , that in my example the world may be convinced of the prac- ticability of strictly adhering to the dictates of virtue, even when sur- rounded with all the seductions of vice, and the torments and cruelties of the wicked. And now I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do. 6. I have manifested thy name throughout the world, by giving it the word — the Koyog — the doctrine — which thou gavest to me. This they have received, and therefore they know surely that I come from thee. Now have I glorified thee on earth. 11. Holy Father, keep my Apostles in the light of thy holy word, that they may continue to propagate the Gospel among all nations, and awaken in them the dormant spirit of truth, which thou hast placed in their Reason, for the salvation of their souls. 18. For, as thou hast sent me into the world, so have I also sent them to preach thy word — the spirit of truth. So that all who adopt my doctrine, being actuated by the same pure spirit of truth, will form one kingdom of spirits, who acknowledge no other law than the pure moral law; and, all being united by the same spiritual bond, may be said to have the same doctrine in them — the word of God — and as such to belong to God. Thus arises the glorious victory of Reason over the incli- nations of Sense, or the total destruc- tion of vice by the complete triumph (A virtue. 25. Oh, Righteous Father, the world hath not known thee until 1 preached thy word to them. I will continue until my death to declare 546 JOHN. DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly, The Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. thy pure spiritual doctrine to them. So that they may love me, as I love thee, and that they may be in me as I am in thee. CHAPTER XVIII 1. After Jesus had discoursed in this pious manner to his disciples, he went with them across the brook Cedron, into a garden, whither they used frequently to resort. Judas Iscariot was quite familiar with the place, as he oftentimes accompanied Jesus to the garden. Judas, sus- pecting they had retreated to this spot, and being furnished with officers and men by the Chief Priests and Pharisees, went to apprehend him, prepared with lanterns, torches, and weapons. 4. Jesus, seeing them approach, went towards them, and said, Whom seek you? They replied, Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus then said, I am he. Now Judas was standing with those who came to seize him. But, when they heard that Jesus said I am he, they retired and prostrated them- selves. Jesus then said, If you seek me, send your retainers away, and I will attend you. Simon Peter, enraged at the insult offered his master, drew his sword, and struck off the ear of Malchus, the High Priest's servant ; but Jesus reproved him, saying, Shall I not drink the cup my Father has prepared for me ! 12. They then bound ^us, and took him first to Annas, who was father-in-law to Caiaphas, the High Priest. It was Caiaphas who re- marked that it was better that one man should suffer than the nation be destroyed. Simon Peter and another disciple followed Jesus to the palace. As this disciple was known to the High Priest, he went in with Jesus, and also obtained the introduction of JOHN, 547 DOCTRINE, The Word of GOD == REASON, HISTORY, The Word of MAN = SENSE, Spiritual, or Heavenly. Material, or Earthly. Peter ; but the damsel who kept the door challenged Peter as being one of Christ's disciples. This Peter denied. While Peter was warming himself, some person said, Thou art also one of his disciples ; but this he denied, and said I am not. Then one of the High Priest's servants, who was related to the man whose ear Peter cut off, said, Surely we saw you in the garden with Jesus. This Peter likewise denied, .and imme- diately the cock crew. 19. Jesus was then interrogated by the High Priest regarding his doctrine and his disciples. Jesus answered, What I taught I taught openly to the world. I taught in the synagogues and in the temple before the whole congregation; in secret I taught nothing. One of the officers reproved Jesus for speaking out so boldly before the High Priest, and struck him with the palm of his hand. Jesus then meekly said, Have I spoken disrespectfully that you strike me thus? if not, I do not merit your reproof. 28. Early on the following morn- ing, they led Jesus to the Hall of Judgment, where Pontius Pilate presided. Pilate inquired what ac- cusation they brought against him. The Jews replied, If he had not been a malefactor, we should not have brought him to you. Pilate said, I think you had better take him and judge him according to your own laws. But the Jews reminded the Roman Governor that they were deprived of the power of condemning to death. Pilate, therefore, entered the Hall, and began to interrogate .lesus, asking him ?/' he called him- self the King Of the Jews/ Jesus, in reply, said, Do you propose this question from yourself, or have you been instigated to make this charge A A 5-18 JOHN- DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Spiritual, or Heavenly. Material, or Earthly. against me ? Pilate said, I am not a Jew; it is the Chief Priests and Scribes of your own nation who have delivered you over to be judged by me. Pilate again said, Art thou a King? Jesus replied, You have said it ; but my kingdom is not of this world ; I came to the world to bear witness to the truth. Pilate asked him, What is truth? He then said to the Jews, I find no fault in this man. It is customary with you at the Passover to release a criminal, shall I release to you the King of the Jews? They all cried, No ; not this man, but Barabbas. Now Barabbas was a robber. CHAPTER XIX. 1. Pilate then ordered Jesus to be scourged, and the soldiers platted a crown of thorns, put it on his head, and invested him with the royal pur- ple, crying — Hail, King of the Jews! They then reviled him and maltreated him. Pilate, seeing this, repeated, Remember I find no fault in him. And, perceiving how they were mock- ing him, he said, Behold the man! But the Chief Priests and Officers cried the more, Crucify him, Crucify him ! Pilate was yet very desirous to obtain his discharge. The Jews told him if he did not pass sentence on Jesus he was not Caesar's friend, as making himself a kingwas a crime against Caesar. Then the Jews voci- ferated, Away with him ! we acknow- ledge no King but Caesar. 16. The Jews then led Jesus away to be crucified, to a place called Gol- gotha, where they crucified him with two others, and placed this in- scription on the cross — Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews. The inscription was written by Pilate in Hebrew, Greek, and Latin. The Jews wanted the words inserted he JOHN. 549 DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. The Word Of MAN == SENSE Material, or Earthly, said I am the King of the Jews ; hut Pilate said, What I have written T have written. 23. When Jesus was crucified, the soldiers cast lots for his garments. There were present at the cross, Mary, the mother of Jesus, her sister Mary, the wife of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved, he said to his mother, Woman, behold thy son ! and he said to the disciple, Behold thy mother ! The disciple then took her under his pro- tection. Shortly after this, Jesus complained of thirst : they then filled a sponge with vinegar and put it to his mouth. Jesus then said, It is finished, bowed his head, and gave up the ghost. 31. As this was the day of prepa- ration for the Passover, the Jews intreated Pilate that he would order his soldiers to break the legs of those who were crucified, and have the bodies taken away before the sab- bath, for that sabbath was an im- portant day. The soldiers, having broken the legs of the two that were executed with him, when they came to Jesus, perceiving that he was dead, did not break his legs. But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and blood and water issued from the wound. 38. Joseph of Arimathaea, who was a disciple of Jesus, went pri- vately to Pilate and begged the body ; for he was afraid of the Jews. Joseph, with the assistance of Nicodemus, took the body and placed it in a new sepulchre, which was in a garden near the spot where Jesus was cru- cified. CHAPTER XX. 1. Very early in the morning of the , first day of the week, Mary Magda- 550 JOHN DOCTRINE, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. The Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. lene came to the sepulchre, and found the stone removed from the entrance. She then went to Simon Peter and the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and told them that the body was taken away out of the sepulchre. Peter and the other disciple proceeded im- mediately to the tomb, and found that the information they had -received was perfectly correct. So they de- parted to their own homes. 11. But Mary remained close by the tomb weeping, and, stooping down, she looked into the sepulchre, where she saw two angels clothed in white sitting at the head and feet of the place where the body had lain. They addressed her, and inquired why she wept; and she replied, Because they have taken away my Lord, and I know not where they have laid him. As soon as she had done speaking, she turned round, and saw some one standing there, who asked her why she wept, and whom she sought. She supposed this to be the gardener, and said, If you have borne the body hence, tell me where you have laid it. But it was Jesus himself who stood by her, and said, Mary! and she immediately knew him. He said to her, Touch me not, for I have not yet ascended to my Father. 18. Mary Magdalene then went and told the disciples that she had both seen and spoken to Jesus. On the evening of the same day, Jesus stood in the midst of his disciples where they assembled, and said to them, Peace be unto you. He then showed his hands and his side ; and the disciples rejoiced that they had seen their Lord. He again said, Peace be unto you ; for I now im- part to you the spirit of truth — the Holy Ghost. 24. It so happened that Thomas, DOCTRINE, The Word of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. The Word Of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. one of the twelve, was not there when Jesus presented himself. They, however, informed him that they had seen Jesus ; but he could not credit what they told him, saying, Unless I put my finger on the prints of the nails in his hands, and feel the wound in his side, I will not believe that it is he. 26. Eight days after this, Jesus came again to his disciples, and stood in the midst of them, saying, Peace be unto you. This time, Thomas was present, and Jesus said to him, Thomas, reach your finger here and feel my hands, and also feel the wound in my side. Thomas said, Now indeed I do believe. CHAPTER XXI. 1. After this, Jesus presented him- self again to the disciples on the shore of the sea of Tiberias, where were as- sembled Peter, Thomas, and Natha- niel, and James and John, the sons of Zebedee. They all agreed with Peter to go and fish, but they caught nothing that night. On the follow- ing morning, a person whom they did not know inquired what success attended their efforts. They replied they had toiled all night and caught nothing. He then directed them to cast the net on the right side of the ship, which they did, and the multi- tude of fishes was so great that they with difficulty brought them to land. The disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, Surely this is Christ. They then all came to land, dragging the net with the fishes. 12. Jesus said to them, Come and dine ; bring some of the fish you have just caught. Though the disciples felt persuaded that it was Christ, yet none of them dared ask him the question. This was the third time that Jesus had showed himself 552 JOHN, DOCTRINE, HISTORY, The Word Of GOD = REASON, Spiritual, or Heavenly. The "Word of MAN = SENSE, Material, or Earthly. to his disciples since he had risen from the dead. 15. When they had dined, Jesus said to Peter, Do you love me more than these ? Peter replied, You know, Lord, that I love you. — Then feed my lambs. He then asked him a second time the same question, and obtained the same reply. He then said, Feed my sheep. On repeating this question a third time, Peter was hurt ; for it seemed to indicate doubt. LONDON: F. SHOBERL, JUN. 4, LEICESTER STREET, LEICESTER SQUARE. as z-i9 ■Tr ■ k\. ■■ Deacidified using the Bookkeeper proces Neutralizing agent: Magnesium Oxide Treatment Date: June 2005 PreservationTechnologiej A WORLD LEADER IN PAPER PRESERVATIC 1 1 1 Thomson Park Drive Cranberry Township. PA 16066 (724)779-2111 mm * \: ,;->• • ■•• • K •>• •-!• 1 • %"' i\ ^ * r/V_ "ii) ~y~j *m %. ZM Wfc *' ^2s & ^ „ r- LIBRARY OF CONGRESS HI 014 383 784 1 # k IB*i . <— - ">>i~ *^ :; ^: ^T***V»~1S*5 H^^raB "'•''.' /^^^^ WK^-r- ^ ^-1 WB&m jpj-jS^ 5 ^^ MM &^Sp -^i : £mk P* -., ^