Eastern times., 1854-03-23


new creation for it required new set of
teeth, and new set of organs. The physiol-
ogist will tell us that death is necessary law
Ofthe present physical organization.
And here, the Geologist comes in to saw
that it did exist before the fall.
We now came to the Bible; and how graf
flying it was to see that its declarations agreed
with these facts of science.
BY examining the Mosaic account. he found
evidence that the same system existed before
the fall that exists now. There was provision
made for the reproduction both of animals and
plants.
The presumption was strong that Adam
knew something of the nature of the forbidden
fruit, before he tasted it, by observing its eff
fects on animals. But does not the Bible say
that sin brought death into the world He
admitted it, but insisted that these passages
applied only to man. Some theologians main
tained that the dissolution of nature, in all
these cases, was the death annexed as pen
atty to the Divine command. Others, whom
ne named, supposed death to be a generic
term for penal evil.
But there is still another hypothesis adopt
ed by some eminent theologians. They sup
pose that sin and death are inseparable; and
that God foreseeing this, created all animals
subject to the law of dissolution and SO
mans apostacy would be the occasion, not the
cause of their death. On either of these sup
positions, the difficulty was removed.
A. Geology confirms and illustrates the
Biblical doctrines of miraculous interposition,
Providence, and prayer. This takes away all
lmprobabllity from the miracles of Scripture !;
for it shows the necessity of miraculous inter
position 10 create new life when the vital prin-
ciple has become extinct. This was the met
aphyscal argument of Hume, that miracles
were contrary to experience and observation !;
for that we see all things moving on in ac-
cordance with certain well defined laws of Ma
ture But how easy to refute this specious
argument, now that the rocks have opened
their mouth to testify against it.
But there were affiliated doctrines, also,
which found support in Geology. He meant
special Providence and prayer. 1t was main
tained by many, even by some professed
Christians, that there was no such thing as
special Providence, but that all things moved
on by certain fixed laws and that there could
be no such thing as answers to prayer, which
could only have reflex irfuefice upon the
subject But if God has so often interposed
to repeople the earth, does it not follow that
he will watch over his creatures! But fur
ther, when we find that a long series of events
and agencies have conspired to bring about a
particular result, was it not an evidence of the
special direction of an intelligent mind
But he found stronger evidence in the be-
nevolent designs which appear, in the accu-
mutations Of ages, to fit the earth for man, and
prepare, in such immense storehouses, the ar
ticles, needed by him, as lime, gypsum, salt,
&c. What could be the object Of these i'm
mense accumulations, if they were not de-
signed for the use of man!
The Scriptural doctrine Of prayer was only
a specific part of the doctrine of special Prov
idence. 1t represents God as taking an es-
pecial care of his intelligent creatures, and lis
tening to and answering their cries to him.
He could not but regard these conclusions
of deep interest for no doctrines of Christian
ity had been more assailed than these. 1t is
said that all things were subject to general
laws: and that the idea of the special inter
position of Providence, in answer to prayer,
or for the protection of individuals, was alb
surd. 1t was pleasant, then, to find one sci
ence favoring these doctrines. Many in the
Christian church ought to be rebuked for not
believing as much on these subjects as Geolo-
gy teaches.
s. Geology gives plausibility to the Scrip
tural view Of the destruction and renovation Of
the earth. He adopted the views of the early
fathers of the Reformation, and many eminent
divines of the present age, whom he named,
that this earth was to be destroyed by fire,
and reitted, as the abode of man ~ a state OF
holiness. Geology favored this idea: We
had in Geology, the evidence that the ele-
ments'T necessary to produce the result were
already in existence. Suppose there should
be crack in the crust Of this earth, how easy
for it all TO fall in, and be melted together, in
its immense internal fires He need not spend
any time in showing that the globe could not
be annihilated. But what evidence have we
that it NAV be renovated and made the fit res
idence of pure. and sinless-- beings! Analogy
leads us to infer that the next state will be an
advance upon the present, as has been the
case hitherto with every new formation
Revelation comes in to give us relief. The
| apostle Peter, after describing the dissolution
of the present state of things, in terms thai
agree precisely with the present teachings OF
chemistry, says Nevertheless, we according
to his promise, look for new heavens and a
new earth wherein dwelleth Righteousness
6. Geology affords strong presumptive
evidence Of the truth of the Scriptures. The
first ground Of the conclusion is, that in spite
of all the attempts to prove it so, the Scrip
tnres have never been found in opposition to
true science. But it is not SO in relation to
any false system of religion. Yet the Bible,
if false, would be far more likely to contain
contradictions than these systems, because il
is made up of the writings of different indi-
viduals, I'm different ages of the world.