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

At the bare mention of the word God,
when accompanied with suit.ble reve-
renee, all our faculties are awakened and
lost i'm astonishmept which no language
can express the mind makes an effort
to conceive of that incomprehensible In
teliigcnce, of that substance which has
penher body, nor color, and t" mount
ID 10 that Power, which is absolutely
inaccessible. GoD What wonders,
wha, perfecuons, what grandeur arc
comprised in this woyd.. The OCEAN,
comparcd to him, is bur drop of water;
The whole earth, but grain of sand; the
sun is but spark, and all mankind as IT
they were not. He wills, and creation
springs forth from nothing; ne steaks,
arr it sinks into dust his residence is
in the deep abyss, a. well as in the high
est IL .avens and while &C is nothing
that We behold, he actuates all things
bv his presence. The rocks hear his
vice, and the winds arc his ministers /;
all The elements acknowledge him, and
death itself submits to his control -
yYitheu, auy origin to himself, he is the
Source'ot all being though immovable,
he shakes The foundations of the earth
though immutable, he changes the face
Of the universe. Il is he who fashions
the bones and muscles OF the unborn in
FAINT, and will again ceanimate them, ar
ter they shall have mouldcred for ages
ut
health aud. sickness, he atflicts and heals
at MS pleasure BY the rupture OF II
bre, he ovcrthrows the most vigorous
constitution, and arrests in moment,
the calculations of ambition. From the
minute 5, insect otbe massy elephant, all
animated nature proclaims his power, s
every pulsauon of every heastp.Y, CRATE
full homa go to his wis 'om and goodness.
But whit alas. are all these Efforts at
human lanru ,ge: what boz The dazzling
pomp Of barren phrassclogy, unless o. Z
himself dcign to enligh:cn cur souls, *
stoop to the weakness OF our imperfect
conceptions. Alas without this mcrci'
IN, condescea, we only lavish our
incense upon fading Howels, upon the
heavenly lumiaaries subject to gradual
extinction, upon animals destitute OF sen.
timent and consciousness. In a word,
we GO forth from ourselves in search OF
tha, GodFwho dwslls within US, and is
the real principle Of our life and exist
ence.
Such i. the stupidity of the atheist
such the folly ofthe libcrtinc; s~ayed by
the decisions of perverted Judgment
add corrupt heart, they disavow the Di
yin;sy that s!irs within 'hem; they tor
get, when writing or speaking to his CHS
honor, that he gives motion tn their tin-
gers ard ulterance to their tongues,
But leaving these wTctche2 men to
what are the dictates OF our
own reason on this subject! lttclis Us, \
in the outset, that il has not always ex-
is,ed; that thought arising from It's per-
ceptiSns springs from a principle very
distinct from its own ttat ITS tacuines
are the gift of some cxlraneous Being,
who nevertheless is intimately present
10 all its operations. These first d ,"n.
in.s, of reason mus, convince us of our
weakness and are Sufficient to lead US
fpsensibly To the important truths held
put BY religion The necessity OF a re
yclaiion snnn becomes evident, and 1t is
10 be found only in the bosom ct CHRIS
.ian,,y, which mey he traced to ITS source
IN the garden of Eden There was 'hs
theatre of eur u,isiartunes as well as
the cradle of our worship. II was there
that the 6rst man, in consequence OF MS
vrlania,y transg:ession, was strlft OF
Ill the prerogatives of innGeenee, ali
,hs attributes of happiness, and saw ."
-sme1iy for his misery, bat in the pro-
Mise uf a Redeemer. who snoald one
lay appear to remove the ignorance and