New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1859-07-23
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RELIGION OF REASON.
A DISCOURSE BY GERRIT SMITH.
Delivered IN Psterboro, June -, 1859.

Egion known The rels ion Of people necessarily
adjusts itself TO their spprehensioDs of God. Know
they the true God then is theirs the true religion
Bot spurious is it il they know Him not. Hence The
question to the solution of which we aodfess our
selves is, What is the true God
That in knowledge and power "eo 10 INFINITE H','
he assumed. But what is his moral cn'iAc'eI
He lust. reasonable, benignant, LOVING penenceH''
n, i, lie unjust arbitrary, capricious, malignant,
;,srous' To compress the question INTO the ie"est
-o,d. Is IL in good or evil that He delights
Tn order to obtain surely right answer to this que'-
~., we must study not the opinions which are formed
.f God but God himself. We must look not at what
c.ber, tell us Of His works but at the works them
seIves We must 90 not 10 mems records of Him, but
4. Hi. own. not 10 books written by men, but to books
written by God-to such books az the sun ana STARS
AID earth. For not only ia IT true that 600 can DC
Understood by the things that are msde, out IL 10
.so tine that by no other means He be undersood
Only In this vast creation which call Nature, can
ne ind the certain evidences Of Gods nature.
Man js n part Of tlis vast creation aud 10 the ght
o5hus. and of other parts Of il, and of his relation to
then he has abundant proof that God delights IN
rood The sun, which lights and WARNS him, and the
fruitful earth which feeds and clothes him. are proofs
nj H. The returning seasons not only prove there Is a
God but that lie is loving father. 80 iuH oil lis
soodpess are they that one OF the poets them God
Though not Pantheist, nevertheless can forgive
the Pabtheistic persOnfcation into which TINS sweet
pOet IL carried when he says OF the seasons
Are sut he ssa,sd CD. Ike Sfolinsys.I
Isfal Of Thee"
Ireftrred 10 the constitution Of for proof of the
Divine eoodness. How happy lie he in obeyng and how
miserable in violating the laws OF his own being
Gboud be not then, allow himself to be convinced by
these laws that his Maker is his friend and father =
the designer OF good and not evil land that Love
Is among the ittest Of all the names given to HIM
And what il there throughout the realms OF physical
and moral government TO raise so much as one doubt
he. niytp att
Yiphteousnets and in OrdainiDg the outflow OF happ-
ness from virtue, and misery from vice, has lie not
shown that love Of the right aud the pure that benevO
lepce and goodness elements IN His character But
death is in the world is the reply; and such an evil
and such cure is it in the esteem of the theologans
that they insist need outside OF nature ana To
other rev for proof that God governs IN justice
and love. II is net true, however, that death ia
curse nor that it is much calamity That 1t Is
q pepalty is purely theological fiction. Were the
laws Of life and health properly observed, tae common
age of man. reaching probably TO a hundred years,
wead give ample time for making trial and reaplng
Abe en1ymeuts Of this state Of beng He would then
feel death TO be seasonabe. Abundantly welcome
would il he if he had observed the moral laws also
being in bis power to learn these as well as the
Dhysicsl by studying the creation and providence OF
God. Abundanty welcome, say-for then his holy
happy life would afford him the conscious preparation
for q succeeding stage of existence. add that death
in necessary TO make room for countless millions OF
haman beings who otherwise could have no existence;
ana that thus il If to be credited with swelling ln1eh-
while perpetual earthly existence would be the fore,
going Of another and probably higher life it would
also be characterized by far less enjoyment, dignity
and usefulness than is limited earthly existence.
Holman nature is slow TO be improved after its habits
are formed and fixed. The cOmmonest illustration OF
this is that the physicians over forty years OF age
rejected the discovery of the true theory OF the cHcn-
laton of the blood Had the earth, instead OF being
peopled with a succession Of young and, because
young free spirits, been the abode of men who never
die, hoary errors would have successfully conspired
against ell progress had there indeed peeh any 10
c0ntpire against OF all the inventions which cluster
upon our day, probably not one would have been
known in the whole range, from the luclier-match
which supplies the place of carrying hfe IN skillet
10 the telegraph which does in Il minute what lveor-
ever men could hardly have 6egna in month Indeed,
death seems to be as indispensable provision OF ma
ture for improving the condition and character OF man.
"a il does TO prepare the way for new and improved
races Of ANIMALS Why is L unreasonable to believe
that the of men millions of years hence VIII sur
pass what they now, quite as much as the most
finely organized and the most beautiful specimens Oh
animals in this age of the earth surpass the tobes
and other fauna the Slurian period Surely whie
We zee death TO be great blessiOg, ~e are not to
argue from that God not good but @e are rather
10 exat ourselves to such a comprehension of IT, that
We tha see it TO be among the mot needed provisions
for man. and therefore among the highest evidences OF
Abe Divine goodness. Is it said that great changes III
the earth renoered II impossible abode for those
races of animals which have disappeared Ley Us not
forget that probably great changes are sill going
on, and that probably they are continually calling Tor
in man as well as IN animals.
II is a sound rule in logic to begin with the known
and proceed 10 the unknown; to begin with what Is
sefevident aud proceed to what requires PROOF. As
such was my beginning, so l am at liberty to adj
vance TO proposition which requires little defense.
1t perhaps, however, only little explanation that 1t
requires The proposition s that nature teaches therc
lie sxopg resemblance between God aud man. They
are workers together The grand Creator worker
aud the little aue.worker suited to each other.
Man supplies what is lacking at the hand of God. He
fAke atm from her N thor ltye ler
into forms Of embellishmen aud results of higher
usefulness. The work of each in the department of
fevers shows that each has taste for besu,y and
nent The work of each in the department of food for
man and beast shows that each IL provident and be
nehc.nt The part that each has in feeding the hun
cry, and clothing the naked, proves thai both are
pitlful and benevolent. The mountain which the one
and the pyIau'id which the other builds prove that
both enjoy the sublime, and that both work for the
age. ,-,.-.--.,.,
moral nature OF God from that of man. We deiuce
the former from our knowledge Of the latter. We
know that mans moral nature Is good, aud therefore
that Gods s. Man is Loving and mercifll and appre-
ciates Truth and equity Goodness is natural 10 him.
In the narration Of Pauls shipwreckcd company of
276 persons II is said: Aud the barbarous people
shewed Us no little kindness; for they kndci fire
and received us erery one because sf the present
rain and because OF tine cold. Ii is true that this
people might have murdered ertry one. Bat they
would have done IT under some msappreheusion spring
ing up in their barbarOus ignorance, and contrary
that underlying humanity which called ON them to
and comfort ercry of their helpless guests.
The most barbaroas people on cath, could they
hear the story Of the Good Samaritan, would honor
him and condemn the Priest aud Leviie. Even such
apsope would applaud the golden rule, and would
also Acknowledge truth 10 be night and lying 10 be
wrong. l do BOT forget that such crimes as burning
the widow and casting the infant into the river are
often cited 10 prove FIAT human nature Is blind and
bad, and base. These, however, are crimes not Of
but against, human nature. They express H. pervcr