Martinsburgh gazette. [volume] (Martinsburgh, Va. [W. Va.]) 1810-1825, 1823-09-25


arrested by communication in your
last paper, under the double signature OF
G.. and Il Universal Friend TO Mankind.
Il am not "Teacher in Israel" nor
have any pretensipns to be better read
in Divinity, than every sincere Christian
aught to be; have, however, read and
studied enough to know that, 4
"a little icarning is dangerous thing"
This is a piece of useful knowledge,
which fear, Mr.. G. has yet to acquire.
Had he drank deeply of the Pieria1
Spring, he never would have presumed
openly to sttack the well grounded be-
lief of mankind, at the same time tina
he violated all the rules Of grammar and
composition. If / had ability, have not
leisure, nor would a newspaper afford
room, to enter into Theological dis
QUESTION of the doctrines, which Mr.. G..
has given to the world in the shape of
Queries: But these doctrines have such
4 direct tendency to strike at the root of
virtue, and to level all distinction be-
tween right and wrong, that to suffer
them to pass without receiving some
mark of Reproduction, would be kind
Of nlisprision of impiety and blasphemy.
Whether compusiye predistination
with all its levelling concomitants, the
denial of free-wiIlin man, the making of
Almighty God the author of sin, wish
to exhibit the Devil as superior to God
in the attributes of Power and immuta-
bility. or desire to incuicate the doc
trine of UNIVERSAL SALVATION
independent of the merits or dement's OF
man, be most conspicuous in these que
ries, it is hard to determine: For altho'
their author appears to possess one re-
quisite OF a writer, VIZ. the copia verbo-
rum, he is deficient in the more essen
tIai Iucidus ordo. This want of perspi.
Guilty is such as to leave his readers
much in the dark as to what he intended
to express, If indeed he had any definite
meaning in view. But perhaps, this u
niyersal Friend to Mankind, intended to
establish all the above points of doctrine
at once. really know Of no good rea-
son, why, genius vast enough to COM
prehend at one view the Eternal and
Essential objects, attributes and DEGREES
Of the Deity, and the superior excellen-
cy of the Devil proved by his introduce
ing sin into the world, might not pro-
mitigate some dozen absurdities at one
and the same time.
, IfMr. G's object in proposing his que-
ries, be information, it would be auvi-
sable for him to addict himself little to
reading. From that exercise he would
derive two fold advantage; satisfac-
tory solution of his difficulties, and such
All improvement of diction as would en-
able him to write grammattically, the
next time he is tempted to turn author.
The truth is, these objections, which
Mr.. G. has, by a rhetorical figure, plac-
ed in the shape of queries, have been
thousand times urged by iniidels, and
as often as clearly and solidly answered
by the advocates of Truth and Christi
anity. A serious answer to them at this
time, would only be supernuous repe-
tition of arguments, which every man of
ordinary information must have read.
Before taking leave of Mr. q. shall
do myself the honor of addressing him
personally, and will in my turn submit
a few heterogeneous:
Pray, sir, by what right, or for what
merit do you undertake to style your
self A Universal Friend to Mankind? Do
you errogate to yourself, this title, be-
cause in your queries, you endeavor to
convince mankind that they have not
Free VIII; and therefore that all their
attempts to be virtuous, to perform good
actions and to avoid wicked ones are
vain and nugatory? DO you found your
pretensions on your sophistical attempt
to introduce the belief, that there is no
such thing as sin or moral evil, or &C
tons displeasing to the Almighty, and
consequently that murders, robberies
and periuries are as meritorious actions,
as those which mankind have heretofore
called yirtuous3 Orisit, in fine, because,
by your scheme of Universal Salvation,
mankind would be released from the
practice of virtue, from the discharge of
all moral and religious duties, and from
the fear of future punishments, and be
invited to perpetrate the most shocking
and abominabIe crimes and enormities
without remorse' When you have an
swered these simple queries, by show
ing that your doctrines can subsist with
out involving these gIaring absurdities,
you may with less arrogance assume
your lofty title. ''Fill then it never can
he given you by any
ONE OF MANKIND.