The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1850-03-23
L.mnrtine on Atheism.

little pamphlet under this title, translated from
the French Of Lamartine, has been published by
Messrs Phillips, Sampson Co. IL is well worthy
a wide circulation. Lamartine dscaims the
charge frequently brought against him Of holding
to the dim doctrines Of the Panthcists. "Panthe-
ism," he says, (Which have always scorned as a
contradiction and as a blasphcmy, resembles
tirely the reasoning Of the man who would say, Il
see innumerabe number Of rays, therefore there
is no SUM-" very happy illustration that
Promising that his belief in God is not that vague,
confused indefinite, shadowy sentiment, which
compcls one TO see a cause, because there
tain efiects-"an evidence, not reasonable, not
hgious, not perfect not meritorious, but like the
material evidence Of light, which enters eyes
when we open them TO the day"-he admits, that
although faith, in its rudiments, may proceed from
this first instinct yet in proportion as intelligence
developes itself u goes from knowledge 10 know
ledge from conclusion to conclusion, from light 10
light, from sentiment TO sentiment, infinitely far
Their and higher, in the idea Of God. at does not
sec him with the eyes Of the body, because the In
finite Is not visible by narrow window Of flesh,
pierced in the frontal bone OF an insect called man.
but IL secs Him, with thousand times more GER
tainty, by the spirit, that immaterial eye Of the
soul, which nothing blinds"
But God is not a mere idea, a notion, an evil
dence. He is a law-the living, the supreme, the
universal, the eternal law. because God IL n law
on high, he is a duty on the earth; and when man
says believe in God " he says, Mt the same time,
:" ] believe in my duty towards God-I believe in
my duty towards man" God is government.
From this Lamartne proceeds 10 specify the duties
resulting from this Belief one OF which duties is
that towards society. He then analyses the social
system and arrives at the broad conclusion that
% To love the people il is necessary to believe in
God"
Therefore, atheism in the people is the most in
vincibe obstacle TO the establishment and CONSOLE
dalton Of that sublime form of government the idol
Of all ages, the tendency Of all perfect civilization
the dream Of every sage, the model Of all great
souls--the government Of the entire people by the
reason and conscience of each citizen-otherwise
called the republic"
nation, he contends, where each citizen thinks
only OF his own private well-beng here below, and
sacrifices constantly the general good TO bis person
nj and narrow interest--a people Having no God
but lite selfishncss no judge but interest, no con-
science but cupdty, will fall, in short time, into
complete destruction, and be incapable Of repub-
eminent Of God himself, will rush headlong into
the government Of the BRUTE the government Of
the strongest, the dcspotism Of the sword the d.
vinity Of the cannon--that last resort of anarchy,
which is at once the remedy and the death of ma
tons without God"
"But that people which forgets God, forgets it.
self. What right has IL 10 be a people, IL Il have
not it's origin and hope in Him. How can the men
OF any nation expect tyrants to remember and
respect lite destiny, If they themselves debase this
destiny 10 that Of machine with ten fingers, des-
tined 70 weave the greatest possible number Of
yards OF cloth in seventy years, 10 people many
hundred acres as possible with creatures much
10 be pited and as miserable az themselves, and 10
serve, from generation to generation, as human
manure for the land, 10 fertilize the soil Of their
birth, their life, and their graves How can the
moral sprituslism Of people long resist such the