New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1852-08-02
" SpirIfso and Immortality.

To me Editors of The N. Y. Tribune:
Icordially agree with youthat post-mortem
existence is fact of most agreeable character, and
have therefore no disposition to depreciate is. But
you must allow me to express my won Ter that
any one should need the testimony Of actual ex-
perience to convince him of il. Such pregnant
ideas of beauty and truth daily arise within the
soul, and so pray at the doors Of our external
senses or faculties, to be let out put into mate
l.al form, that | wander how any one can help
feeling the indispensable necessity of continued
outward existence, and how any one can doubt it
without instantly diabOli-ing the projections OF
Deity. Sorow-laden souls there are perhaps, so
dsheartened by adverse fortunes, so wilted and
burnt up intellectually by the glare Of a baleful
theology, that they feel no aspiration after con-
tinued existence, but would gladly rednter the
womb Of the maternal Dust, never again to
emerge from it. These persons, logically enough,
doubt the post morton existence, because they
crave above oil things selfoblivon. And nothing
will suffice to heal doubts thus established and
rational, but cordial angelic nursing and crcum-
stances so edged and repete with tenderness,
that the peace Of the grave will speedily seem no
peace, but rather the base mockery of that which
belongs only to the ruddiest life But how any
healthy soul can doubt of continued existence
how any intellect und-praved by wicked poverty
and calamity can look upon humiliation pos
sible thing-I 90 not understand. The simple
love Of life must it appears to me, forbid the con.
cepton taking root. Or if that do not suffice, the
sheer metaphy steal blasphemy involved in the
thought is go obvious 20 the least reflection, that
no inouring mind can fail to be arrested by it.
/ For he who supposes himself annhilated. or re-
duc.d to nothing, is obliged, unless he confess
| himself the dupe of mere words to say what moth
ing is. Things to his conception are determined
by their sensible qualities such as weight, color,
sound, smell or taste. Nothing, accordingly, is
uitbout these sensible qualities. In order, there
fore, to my being reduced to nothing-to my being
extingushed or annihilated-iti is necessary that
lose my sensible qualities. all those things which
make me now appreciate to your senses namely,
weight, color, sound, SMELL OF taste. But in losing
INV sensible quaties-or in be 'Oming inappreciable
TO your senses-l do not cease to be. My sepsi.
bic qualities do not give me being, or absolute ex
istence. They simply give me relative existence
or an existence apprecable to finite intel
eepce. God or the Infinite gives me being: nature
or nv finite embodiment simply makes that being
manifest II, therefore, Jon deprive me of ny
sensible or finite qualities, you simply leave mt
INV ipfnitude or God You identify me with God
Nothing, consequently, is infinite, is God. To b.
nothing, is to be God. Accordingly, he who look
forward to humiliation, implicitly delies himself
practically declares himself on the high road +
become God. But God is and does not become
Hence the pretension to humiliation, the lust q
nothingness, is not merely blasphemous bat ab
surd. IL supposes the indistinctiOn Of inhnit
and finite of God and man, or what is the SAN
thing, the suhversion of the human understand
ing, and consequently makes lunacy your onl
wisdom.
But so it is nevertheless, if we take your test
mony for the fact II your observation be just
we must no d that the fact Of post morton exs.
ence is so little CT, dted in Christendom that
pslpable demonstration Of il wo nd be Of CREATE
moment than any other fact in the recent hlstor
Of mankind" You are not a person to speak a
random, and have no DOUBT therefore that yo
know many persons 10 whop authentic intell
gfnce of this sort would be priceless boom Blu
what does this prove Only that Ln,py persons ar
smeptaoly ignorant or incredulous Oftbeir iniinit
source and accordingly crave from their mere finit
or natural ties a support and soace which these LAT
ter have no power to afford them. Convince Ns.
YOU say, THAT the husband and father who die
, last week does to-day dictate verbal messages
HIS widow and children, which are duly spelled OF
-, 70 them in far Roman characters, sud We kno
i no other phenomenon of our marvellous age so IA
. portant and interesting as this According
> tins estimate, the interest OF pcsf-morfem e.
+ istence hinges upon the circumstances OF !
|. proving an exact reproduction Of our hsppie
}. earthly experience. Heaven OF Immortality