Governance 15.

But even if the

generalhappinessof mankind could be assignedin hypothesis,as the one end to which all our mo^al instincts tended, and though nothing could be adduced in behalf of the intrinsic authorityof the notion of justice,it would not be
allowable thence to infer the unmixed benevolence of the Divine Mind, seeingwe have actual evidences of His justicein the course of the world, such as cannot be of
to

explainedaway by
our own

nature.

argument from the analogy Should any one attempt here

a mere

repeat the process of simplificatiaondn,refer in turn Divine Justice,as seen in the world,to Divine Blenceev,oas
if reward and the one end of such a venturous speculatorbethink himself what he is essaying,when he undertakes to simplifysuch attributes of the Divine Mind, as the course of thingshappens to manifest to him. Not to insist on the presumption(asI may well call it)of the attempt,let him ask himself,merely as a philosopherw,hether there is no difference between fre-rring phenomena to an hypotheticallaw or system for convenience sake (as,for instance,he is accustomed to refer the movements of the physicalworld to gtiraonv)i,taand on the other hand undertakingto assignand fix,as a matter of fact,the real,primaryand universal principles which guide the acts of a Mind, unknown

punishment were but general good, let

means

to

knowledgeof merely one or two characteristics of His mode of acting. After all, what is meant by affirmingthat God has, strictly speaking,any end or designat all in what He does, Influence of nature preachingChrist." By which is properlymeant, not the puttingNatural Religionout of sight,nor the separatingone doctrine of the Gospelfrom the rest,as havingan exclusive claim to the name of Gospel; but the displayingall that Nature and Scriptureteach concerningDivine Providence (fortheyteach the same great truths),whether of His majesty,or His love,or His mercy, or His holiness, or His fearful anger, through
and

infinitea,nd that,from

the medium of the life and death of His Son Jesus Christ. A mere moral strain of teachingduty and

enforcinogbedience failsin persuadingus to practicen,ot because it appealsto conscience,and commands and threatens (asis sometimes supposed),but because it does not urge and illustrate virtue in the Name and by the exampleof our blessed Lord. It is not that natural teachinggivesmerelythe Law, and Christian teaching givesthe tidingsof pardon,and that a command chills or formalizes the mind, and that a free forgivenescvseonr-ts it (fornature speaks of God's goodness as well as of His severity, and Christ surelyof His severityas well as of His goodness);but that in the Christian scheme we find all the Divine Attributes (not mercy only,though mercy pre-eminently)brought out and urged upon us, which were but latent in the visible course of things. 30. (6.)Hence it appears that the Gospelsare the great instruments (under God's blessing)of fixing and instructingour minds in a religiouscourse, the Epistlesbeingrather comments on them than iten-nded to supersedethem, as is sometimes maintained.
Philosophical temper books were even written in a languagewhich he did not understand,and opened to his view an account of manners and customs very different from those with which he was familiar. The writingsof the ancients were to be collected,and their opinionsexamined ; and thus those studies which are peculiarlycalled learned would form the principalemployment of one who wished to be the champion of the Christian faith. The philosopher might speculate, but the

theologianmust
2. It cannot,

submit to learn.

then,be maintained that Christianity has proved unfavourable to literarypursuits; yet, from the very encouragement it gives to these,an oppositeobjectionhas been drawn, as if on that very

impeded the advancement of philosophical and scientific knowledge. It has been urged, with considerable plausibilittyh,at the attachment to the writingsof the ancients which it has produced has been prejudicialto the discoveryof new truths,by creatinga jealousyand dislike of whatever was ctoran-ry to received opinions. And thus Christianity
account it

has been representedas a system which stands in the way of improvement, whether in politicsce,adtu-ion, science ; as if it were adaptedto the state of knowledge,and conducive to the happiness,of the age in which it was introduced,but a positiveevil in more enlightenedtimes; because, from its claim
or

infallibiliittyca,nnot itself change,and therefore must ever be endeavouringto bend opinionto its own antiquatedviews. Not to mention the multitude of half-educated men who are avowedlyhostile to Re
to