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key to those which are obscure, these apparent contradictions would be avoided.

4. Some religious theories are so absurd in themselves—so at war with all our established notions of the fitness of things—that to suppose them supported by the bible, is to believe the bible itself unworthy of credit, as a book of mysteries, or rather absurdities, with which human reason can have no concern; and the theory of endless misery I conceive to be one of that very character. Many sensible minds have rejected the bible, because they had been taught by their religious tutors, that this dogma was therein inculcated. For, occording to this theory, God either designed the most disastrous results from the work of creation, and is therefore a Being wholly devoid of benevolence; or these results will take place in opposition to his design, which must imply that he lacked the wisdom to foresee, or the power to prevent them, and is therefore short-sighted or impotent! "Shall I believe this, or discard the bible?" is the inquiry of many a mind; to which I answer, there is another, and better alternative Cast off the influences of a false education; and bow to the simple teachings of inspiration, which are a fountain of divine truth wherein are mirrored the ineffable perfections of Jehovah; you will then find, methinks, that they are not chargeable with the lending their countenance to a doctrine, which involves a serious arraignment of all the divine attributes.

5. The scriptures must not be understood as authorizing a tenet, which by its very concequences is proved to be false; try that of endless misery by this rule, and it will be found, either that said dogma is unscriptural, or that the bible is in the highest degree self-contradictory; for allowing that it is taught in the inspired volume, we must then allow that it teaches the following incongruities-The anger of God which is but for a moment, will endure as long as his mercy, which endureth forever!-The works of the devil will exist after being destroyed, as long as Christ shall, who is to destroy them—“ God will wipe away ALL tears from off ALL faces," yet shall unnumbered intelligences weep to all eternity!"The pleasure of the Lord will prosper in Christ's hands," nevertheless, the pleasure of the devil will so far prosper against it, that where units will be saved, scores, possibly hundreds, will be irretrievably ruined! "Christ shall

see of the travail of his soul and shall be satisfied," although his blood will have been shed in vain-his mission undertaken in vain-his benevolent desires exercised in vain, in regard to innumerable myriads whose redemption and recovery he undertook. The duration of the devil shall be co-eternal with that of him, who took flesh and blood, "that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is the devil!" A large portion of that same world to which the bread of God from heaven "giveth life," shall, nevertheless, to all eternity continue under the empire of death! And although the Lamb of God "taketh away" its sin; it shall forever-more remain sinful! God "will not contend forever, neither" saith he, "will I be always wroth; for the spirits should fail before me, and the souls that I have made." "But he will contend, and be wrothful forever," saith the doctrine of endless misery, "without at all regarding the consequences to the souls that he has made." God's pleasure is “that all return unto him and live," and his truth is pledged that he will do ALL his pleasure, still, it will to ceaseless ages remain unaccomplished! His will is to "have all men to be saved, and come to the knowledge of the truth;" but an immense majority of these all men will be endlessly damned and remain in ignorance! In the resurrection God is to abolish the last enemy-to subdue, or reconcile, all things unto himself; and to be all in all, but he will have many foes after the last is destroyed-millions shall continue in rebellion after all shall be reconciled; and they shall be estranged and alienated from him forever, notwithstanding he shall have become all in all. To sum up, this dogma represents that Jehovah will be disappointed; his purposes baffled; his pleasure unaccomplished; that Christ will have died in vain in regard to millions; and, therefore, that he was not equal to the undertaking upon which he entered; and in which an infinitely wise God saw fit to employ him; that the devil will prove too strong for his destroyer and conqueror; that Christ's victory over Death, will leave to the vanquished many more trophies than to the vanquisher; that the works of satan, who is finite, will co-endure with the works of God, who is infinite; sin shall exist as long as holiness; misery as long as happiness; death as long as life; error as long as truth; and hell, for the final overthrow and destruction of which the word of

Jehovah is pledged; will be equal in its duration to heaven itself, which is the throne of God. And all this in despite of scriptural assurances to the contrary; and despite also of the means which God has employed for the fulfilment of his purposes, in the gift of his Son, spirit, ministry, word, judgements &c !!! Who can believe all-and more than all this? Can you, reader? If not, then impute not to the bible the teaching of so absurd a system as that of which these are the consequences. If you can believe all this; why, then, God help you, reader! your credulity must be quite sufficient for the belief of any absurdities which it may suit your convenience to adopt, or the interests of priestly craft to inculcate.

6. It is admitted that if a doctrine be of bad practical tendency, however plausible 12 itself, the divine sanction must not be claimed for it. This is a sound rule, reader, and I am willing to abide by it, are you? That the doctrine of endless suffering does not, on the whole, exert a beneficial influence upon mankind, is evident from reasoning a priori, and from facts. First from reason. This doctrine familiarizes the mind to scenes of horror and wretchedness more dreadful than words can portray, and must therefore harden the heart in the proportion in which it is believed; for it is an established fact that the constant or frequent contemplation of suffering tends to blunt the sensibilities, and to generate cruelty. Hence where public executions are common, they are witnessed with indifference. Hence too, the butcher laughs while in the act of slaughtering a lamb—a sight at which those who are unaccustomed to it will weep; and hence, I may further add, the most frightful denunciations of almighty wrath, are listened to with perfect unconcern, even by those who believe, that millions of the human family, including neighbors, friends, possibly immediate kindred, will to all eternity experience its dreadful weight. It is also true, that cruel laws serve to degrade and brutalize those who are subject to them; hence in proportion to the sanguinary character of a government, are the barbarousness and viciousness of the governed; and, on the other hand, a mild and free government will give birth to a virtuous and generous people. Now the doctrine of endless suffering represents the sovereign of the universe as a tyrant, who seeks to rule his subjects through their fears. "Serve me or I will

burn you," is the language it puts into his mouth, "for your finite offences I will be infinitely angry, and for your disobedience of a moment, I will punish you with the pains of an eternity." Is it to be wondered at, that such a system has generated so much drivelling superstition ?-so much morose and gloomy fanaticism? so many whining, cringing, abject, self-degrading sycophants; who lie at the feet of an almighty power, professing to adore its every act, however unintelligible the object for the contemptible purpose of screening themselves from the weight of its apprehended wrath? Such, it must be conceded, have in all ages been the influences of this God-dishonoring tenet, and such, a priori, we should judge they would be. At the same time it is cheerfully admitted, that very many, by reason of their native excellency of disposition, have proved superior to these evil influences. These exceptions, however, do not affect the general truth of the rule.

Second, from facts. The world has experimented with the dogma of ceaseless woe for fifteen centuries. What has been the result? The founders and agents of the Inquisition in Spain, Portugal, and Portuguese-India believed in it; so did the relentless persecutors of the Waldenses and Albigenses; and the perpetrators of the St. Bartholomew massacre; wherein 40,000 were murdered in one day. And those also who lighted the fires of Smithfield. It was believed in, too, by Mahomet, who laid the foundation of his system in blood and by his followers it was implicitly adopted, together with the principle that it is lawful to propagate religion by the sword. The worshipers of Juggernaut believe in it, and it lies at the bottom of all their degradations. And it is sacredly cherished by the Bedouins of the desert; with whom the power to plunder, constitutes the right to do so. What beneficial influence has the doctrine of endless misery exerted upon these? Scarcely a murderer expiates his crimes upon the gallows but he avows a belief in that dogma.* And it has been ascertained that the inmates of our

*See for proof ninety and nine out of a hundred of the printed confessions of executed criminals. Such was the belief of Washburn, Hoover and Davis, recently executed in Cincinnati; and of Cowan, who butchered his wife and two children. An attempt was made in some religious party prints to deceive the public as to the opinions of the last named person; but unluckily for the publishers it was made too soon, i. e. before he was executed; and, therefore, there was opportunity for getting at the truth of the matter from his own lips. Being waited upon by several respectable citizens, and questioned as to his belief on this head, he stated that he had ever en

penitentiaries are nearly all of them the subjects of that faith.* Surely if this dogma possessed the practical virtues which its advocates claim for it, we should not find a people vicious in proportion to the prevalency of its belief amongst them; but it is incontrovertible, that we do so find them, and therefore it has no such virtues.

7. "But in a matter of this sort," does the reader say?"it is a maxim of prudence to choose the safe side. Supposing it is; is it safer to doubt the divine goodness than to trust in it? Will God be angry with those who ascribe to him more benevolence than (according to your system) he actually possesses? And will he punish them for such an ascription? This hacknied maxim of prudence, has, after all, no prudence about it; we have no right nor power of choice in the matter of our belief-we are bound by conscience, and compelled by necessity to believe according to the decisions of evidence, and, so far as it respects our eternal state, one belief must be just as safe as another. The catholic is deterred from embracing protestant principles by the consideration, that though the latter may be better-i. e. more reasonable and scriptural-his own are more safe. "You cannot be saved out of my church if my faith is true," saith he, "whereas, by your own confession, I can be saved out of yours; prudence then cautions me to choose the safe side." The Jew, and the Mahomedan, use precisely the same argument, each considering salvation sure in his own church, and uncertain out of it; and its foundation in alr cases is the weak supposition that a dependence on the divine mercy alone is insecure. "God may be as good as you say; out then he may not; and it is the more prudent course to prepare for the worst, that in any event we may be safe." Shame on sucn distrusts of the divine goodness! and on the systems of theology which tend to beget them!

8. We must be careful how we adopt mere arbitrary interpretations of scriptural terms and phrases, or we shall casily be

tertained dubts as to the truth of the notion of endless suffering; he had for fourteen years belonged to a church, which makes this an essential article of faith.

* A few years since the newspaper vituperations against universalism, on the ground of its supposed vitiating tendencies, provoked an examination among tho state convicts of Auburn and Sing Sing penitentiaries, in order to ascertain whether this system of religion had, influenced them in their choice of a criminal course of life. The result of the investigation was, that not a singie universalist was found in either of these establishments. The author of this work visited the prison at Auburn two years ago; this is in the heart of a country abounding with universalists, and yet among its 800 convicts not one believer in this doctrine was included!!

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