Alexandria gazette, commercial and political. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1812-1817, 1813-08-07

ouireS that our minds snouid contemplate
the wonders of his power, that oar hearts
should cherish al attachment to his laws,
our hands be opsned to the Offices OF be-
nevolence, and our feet advancing in the
paths Of righteousness. In word, that
the whole ofour earthly and spiritual be.
ing should be esgagedin his service, In
accomplishing his purposes.
Nothing canbe more evident, than
| that we stand Indebted to de Great Be-
ing, who preserves US, in 'unccasing re-
turns of gratitude and love: we must,
| therefore, be guilty Of a strange presa-
rication, when presuming 10 enter upon
| a new day of our lives, without first pre-
sen,ing to him the homage of worship
| and snpplication. 1t is He who has
made the day and night for our service,
| who shuts our eyelids in sleep, and o.
pens them again to the light OF the
| morning; who has often snatched us
from disasters by an unexpected inter-
ference, which our reason must tell US,
was altogether psovidential :--ofteD has
the lightning been suspended over our
heads, and the yawning abyss been clos
ed beneath our feet, by the unseen hand
! of our merciful Protector. We have
seen thousands fall at our right hand,
and thousands at our left, while we have
! remained uphart amidst the precipices
and ruins. But such affecting and a"-
iul warnings are not necessary to remind
US Of our obligations towards God. The
very act of breathing, the motion of the
smallest fore, is regulated by him. If
! he Withdraw his hand, we crumble into
dust, and minglc in moment with the
soil on which we tread. What. then,
| can We think OF so many wretched be-
ines who pass their lives without ac-
| knowledging and worshipping their
Creator Lost to every awakening SEN
.ibilily, they have eyes, and see not;
ears have they, and hear not; they con.
ceive themselves placed at an innate
distance from the Deity, while every
pulsslion Of their hearts, every ray Of
their understandings, proceeds solely
from him. Could we have ever imagin-
! ed, that in the bosom of Christendon
men sEould be found thus blinded by
preiudices, or brutalized by their pas
sions They have presumed to dogma
tie amidst the blaze of that blessed re-
lision, which not content TO point out
our duties to God, furnishes us, more
over, with means and ability to pertorra
them; and by commanding US to set
aside determinate portion ct our time
for his service, brings even 10 the most
dissipated mind periodical call to Its
duty. Perhaps some shallow adept In
literature or philosophy will boldly as
sert that reason and revelation should be
always kept separate, as things distinct
from, and irreconCilable with each o.
Their: But observations of this kind
have been repeatedly confuted, and
the most ihcomprehepsib'e mysteries
have been shown to present more than one
aspect enlightened by the rays OF reason.
Thusthe mystery OF theTrlnity, at which
reason chilly revoIts, when accurately de.
fined, presents no contradictory ideas
Ignorance or impiety, have centoundsd
the term Person, with that of God, while
the numerical difference between one
and three, which removes the chief diff
6cul,y, is KEEP, out Of sight. They would
represent this mystery as consisting OF
one and of three persons, which indeed,
would be palpable absurdily. Alas
how are they TO be pitied, who refuse to
listen to the voice OF unsophisucated rea-
son How macy disciples OF Spinosa do
we not meet with. who scruPie not to
embody the Deity with the vast frame of
the universe, and yet scott at the idea of
the Eternal Losos assuming mans IA.
ture How many Materielists, who,
while they deny the possibility of the
souls acting upon matter, acknowledge
God to, be pure spirit, and the Power
that give. motion to tie heavens and the
earth? In proportion as mem rscede
from Goa, md abandon religion, the rea.
soaing faculty becomes dim and uncer-
tain all our mistakes arise from q wan
ton dissipation of mind. We have ha-
bifusted our pa,.ionstand senses to be-
come 50 approximately clamoroas, that
M other language can reach us; and
their seducing lessons, like the voice OF
the Svrens, hurry us into irregularities
degrading and iatal when the greatest
part cf life has been past, in attending
solely to the tumultuous hustle Of a world
which is forthe most part irrational, rea-
son hi rse!f will be regarded as folly. Go,
& tell yonman Of wealth, that his osfenf0.
fious bounty is no christian virtue, and
he will not comprehend what you say /;
nor will he whom scientific acquire
ment. or the voice Of popularity appear
to have raised above the level OF his fel-
low citizens, if reminded of the necessi.
" Of confederation, pay any regard to
your obseryati, Tell the woman OF