Jenks's Portland gazette. [volume] (Portland [Me.]) 1799-1802, 1802-08-02
MONDA1, AUcUSr 2, 1902.

NewEngland-while thofc Of France and Great
Britain have alto ihared pretty Largely 10 th-ir
calumry.
In Il eGe papers all national recommend ations
of religious acts have been treated with f1eer
and co tempt; and conlidered as calculated TO
gall and deceive the people into improper obs
dence and iubferviency TO government. In
iome, Paine's Age Of Reafon has been defendeI,
and the decade of France put in competition
with the ChrRian fabbalh, principally, on &C
count Of its adoption by nation of atheils-
that nation which the individuals of the prefcnt
dominant party, iu this country, have 70 often
joyfully hailed their Gfer republic. And think
it mutt have been obferved by every one who
pays the leaf attention to the republican papeys,
that as foon as the Chtiltan religion and her
teachers were recalled and provided form France
by Bonaparte, the Ea, with one voice, has re
probated tie meafure, and made him, who,
while he was in Egypt and called himfelf
Mahometan, had all their praife, the fubjea of
their bt;erel reproaches.
The Importers of Jeferfon feem leis anxious
to Prove him chriAian, than to defend defn.
Hence the Chronicle writer calls upon the
orator not 70 eonfound dei(m with atheifm !;
and by his interrogatory remarks, we are ma
tnrally led to conclude, that he thinks if he can
place the Proficient on the ground Of defm,
he fhail be able to defend him to the fatsfac-
ton of all rational philosophers. But what is
the practical difference upon the heart, between
the iynen Of modern 'deifm and he atheifm Of
republican France, which the Prefident is fui.
pe9ed Of favcring' Do they net both pretend
TO reverence ALMIGHTY NATURE, and nothing
ellie And how much does this fall fhort Of
downright atheilm, in its mot odious form,
when duly examined add pat into plain En-.
glib In the courfe of my preparations,
have attended at the deifical temples of rea
fon 10 hear, what, in the language Of the JSa,
is boaangly called Pure dei|a. The preacher
add etIed himielf to almighty nature, pure IA
ture, adorable nature, and iometimes 10 platte
nature ard in what took to be the prayer,
70: moi, tho not all the audience, TODD up,
Re often ipoke of nature as beautiful, wife and
good yet it was impoilible TO FAY certainly,
by the whole peTmanence Of prayer and fer
mon. whether he meant Ibis qvorld, or the whole
J6lar lyfem, or thai, and all other LIfems in the
immeatity offpace but he took care to let US
know he meant nothing different from material
OBJECTS Of fome kind and extent or other and
that the ChriRian and Jewilh revelations were
10 better than the fables and chmera Of an
cient Greece or r me- Afterwards, in CONVEX
f,tion with one Of thele preachers, as foon as
he dicov-red that fome of the arguments and
grounds Of their pretended fyfem led unavoid-
ably 70 the admil1ion Of miracle, which are
conf 1ered the fupport of the Chritan revela
lion, he appeared not littIe confounded, and
eldeavouring to wave the fubie0, frankly
acknowledged (uch was the eoniequence Of that
mode threatening on the principles which deias
had adopted but thole who call themieIves
deiGs did not perceive it, and, for his part, he
only fell in with their notions for the prefent--
the only true ground for philosophers and in
dependen, minds to Rand upon was that Of
atheifm, which mutt foue time or other become
general.
will only add, for my letter I fear will
weary you, have never yet met with con-
fiaent DEBIT if they are ferrous, AMI resfon 10
gically on their a1uned principles, they viii
Be obliged 10 admit the eAiRence Of miracles,
ADD conleqnently the chriitian religion : but TOO
proud or 100 ignorant 10 do this they generally
abandon fair reafoning and take refuge under
the gloomy ihadow Of atheilm, as was the cafe
with the preacher have mentioned.
! am yours &c.
ONE OF TIE PEOPLE.