something, that every man has not the moral courage to attempt, to face the reproach of his friends by throwing off the restraints of his sect, and repudiating the very opinions which he, himself, once solemnly professed before God and man. And though we may find little else in his book, to excite admiration, it is still gratifying to know, that he honors divine revelation; and that he applies his energies for the purpose of rendering its teachings more obvious, and its truths more acceptable to the human mind. To rest the defence of his theory upon the Bible critically investigated, is to deserve respect, even when both his proofs and his arguments fail to convince. But if it were admitted, that he had imbibed and maintained errors in other matters of opinion, it will by no means follow, that he is either necessarily or certainly wrong respecting the judgment. It would rather serve to confirm the remark, already repeated, that men advance slowly, and seldom explode more than one palpable error at a time. And a wider step could scarcely be taken, than that between the established opinion of the Presbyterian church, and that of the Professor, respecting the judg ment. - In reviewing his particular case, we are quite disposed to yield him the merit of originality, not that his views. of the judgment are by any means entirely or substantially new. But it seems utterly impossible that he could have acquired them at second-hand, and not at the same time have learned something more. We are, therefore, left to contemplate him, as a conscientious man struggling with the burden of his creed, and casting off a portion which had become insupportable, in the hope of being able to carry the remainder with greater ease. In this again, he has acted upon the general principle of human progress, and yielded nothing that prejudice or conscience would allow him to retain. But thus far, he appears to have gone firmly; and to his conclusions, more or less modified, his denomination is destined to follow. Nor will his subsequent mystifications avert, though they may delay, that event. The most absurd fancies, as well as the grossest errors, may attach to a general system which comprises much of truth; and whatever becomes of the errors, the truth will stand forever. There is one important feature in the moral and intellectual position of the present age, that merits our earnest and most profound consideration. It is the tendency to the practical application of principles, and to the rejection of all those not decidedly benevolent. A religion that does not make men better- that does not cherish and promote the kindlier affections, may be tolerated, but cannot long prosper, for it cannot be loved. It is no longer enough that men profess religion, and that its externals are decorously and punctiliously observed. The world demands something more, and insists that the profession of Christianity is, or ought to be, the pledge, not only of a decent, but of an elevated morality. There is a careful scrutiny into the principles of professors, as well as a vigilant observation of their conduct. And by the very unanimous consent of all parties, some of the dogmas that were once prevalent, but always revolting, have been expunged from the profession, if not from the creed, of most Christians. To give the catalogue of particulars which have passed, or are passing away, would only be an enumeration of monstrosities, that few can fail to recognize. the impressive and instructive fact, developed by this general movement, is that in every instance, the rejected dogmas have been succeeded by more benignant doctrines. The very soul of the nominal Christian world has been humanized, its formal deadness has felt the quickening power of moral life, and its exclusiveness is giving place to an expansive and ever-growing charity. One of the most prominent and interesting indications of progress in benevolent principles, is found in the melioration of the laws. These bear all the marks of a growing and diffusive humanity. And for some time past, such has been the rapidity of advancement in this respect, that we look in vain for its parallel in human history. One after another, the cold and remorseless statutes, that crushed their victims to the earth with an iron hand, have been modified or become obsolete; and man, though guilty and fallen, is beginning to be regarded as one who still has rights, over which power itself has no legitimate control. Criminal jurisprudence is directed rather to devising means and measures for the prevention of crime, than to the specification of the nature and amount of punishment. And by almost unanimous consent it is agreed, that the best moral results are obtained by the certain infliction of even light correction, instead of the more severe and relentless modes of punishment. The felon, though restrained for the safety of society, is no longer treated as if the sole object was to produce in him the constant feeling of misery. The public heart softens towards even of fenders, its sympathies are becoming deeper and broader; and while light has been let into the dungeon, words of kindness have been spoken to the criminal. The sacredness of human life has become the theme of philanthropists, and its inviolability has already occupied the most profound regard, both of legislators and their constituents. And, if we may argue of the future from the past and the present, the time is not far distant when the death-penalty will be expunged from the statute books of every Christian nation. The great fact developed and sustained by the preceding illustrations, is that there has been a perpetual and irrepressible mental effort, for the attainment of better and higher moral light - for a more benevolent and more practical Christianity. In all the instances given, and they might be multiplied to any extent, we witness the constant aspiration of the wise and the good, after the right and the true. It may be that the progress has been slow, that long years have interposed their duration before a single step was attained; and that even then little was apparently accomplished. Still, so much was gained which the circumstances demanded - so much was done that was essential to further advancement. It is the result evolved by time, which gives consequence to a measure or a movement, that otherwise might appear unimportant. It would have struck the mind of Luther with amazement and horror, could he have foreseen that his principles or his labors would have had the remotest tendency to induce the rejection of any one of the doctrines which he maintained. And yet, all unconscious as he was, nothing is more certain than that the great principle assumed by him and his coadjutors-that every man possesses the right of private judgment in matters of religion has merely been maintained and acted upon in every innovation made or attempted in the religious world, from that day to the present. Time, then, constitutes the true test of the importance of a moral movement; and a few centuries have abundantly proved, that the aspirations of an obscure monk have sent abroad over Christendom the elements of an ever growing moral power-of perpetual moral progression. If our position is correct, that men have advanced slowly in the great matters of Christian simplicity and moral elevation that their progress has been piecemeal, and by successive and isolated efforts then it follows, that the high moral and Christian privileges which distinguish the present age, are the results of the mental struggles, and toil, and self-sacrifice of many great minds and devoted men through a succession of ages. There are probably few among the many who have attempted any thing wor thy of adoption, to whom we do not owe something. Their thoughts, their conclusions, have become ours-and, however unconsciously, we have become their debtors, And, what is to us a source of proud congratulation may have cost the deepest anxiety, or protracted sufferings, or violent death. Thus it is, that "other men labored, and we have entered into their labors." It is not intended, that if those men had not lived and acted, the world would have remained stationary. Far from this. There is good reason to believe that the times would have produced such men as Wickliffe and Luther, had they never existed. However this may be, successive advances have been made, until progress has become the order of the day- reason is taking its place, and exercising its rights and its influence, and Christianity is becoming what it originally wasworthy of is divine Author, and purifying and comforting to man. Our work is not yet accomplished. There is still something to be done, and something for us to do. Each one of us has a sphere of duty and of labor, the influence of which cannot be foreseen. We should aim at progression-at the improvement of our own souls in knowledge and virtue, and the elevation and happiness of our race. But in our endeavors to advance, we should be careful not to fall back upon the gloomy errors of the past, nor sacrifice the fundamental principles,of truth by the adoption of captious and equivocal refinements. Faith should not be evaporated in speculation, nor the consola - tions of a well-grounded hope dissipated by the fallacious insinuations of a misnamed philosophy. Let not the light of divine truth be obscured by the mystifications of byegone days, nor its sublime morality cancelled by a gorgeous and useless ceremonial. Let not reason be hoodwinked or prostrated under pretence of submission to divine authority; nor elevated above revelation to hide the shame of infidelity. Let mind have its place, as the distinction and glory of man- as what alone made him the object of the divine communications, and by which alone. he is capable of appreciating their nature and importance. Let it be what God designed it should be the instrument by which revelation becomes available in imparting a just and true knowledge of our Father in heaven, of his beneficent purposes, and of the means which secure and promote the present and continued happiness of the hu man race. S. R. S. ART. V. Plato's Views of Immortality.1 It is our desire to define in this article, as fully as our limits will allow, and as clearly as the nature of the subject and our own ability will permit, the views of Plato upon immortality, with particular reference to his doctrine. concerning the condition of the soul in its disembodied state. It would seem to be an important acquisition to our knowledge, if we could understand thoroughly the faith, and appreciate the hopes, of a mind like that of the first among Greek philosophers, - a mind which had attained probably the perfection of heathen culture, and whose intellectual development may be assumed, therefore, to be the goal and limit of uninspired thought. But 1 The materials for the present article are mostly drawn from Cousin's French Translation of Plato's Dialogues, in thirteen volumes, Paris edition; and the references, accordingly, are made to that work, as the best modern version of the Greek philosopher, and probably the easiest of access to those who are unacquainted with the original. |