New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1859-03-02
Netu11urk Dailu Grihu,re
DR.. BUSRNELES BOOK AND HUMAN
PREEDON...II
Ts TIE Es,tc- o. Tss N. !. Tle~s<.

si1rnc Of hrtory has been 10 reconcile HUMAN TrrE-
ros with HUMAN DEPENDENCE; or 10 ,ho~ A0" ON
may Be tzee,,sE,iy ,ir,ked By God, dad get 'eua'T
uhekt, 05ly Aims,lf To the seB.uous imsgns.ion,
ire reason quickered by ser,e, THE problem is OBJ
viously hopeless paradox. Accordingly Ns,urs Rel
giop which is the child Of seLse, deals with 10 gay
utterly 70 stultfy il. II makes Freedom convertible
with ,.der.sdeHor so Welding the problem from the
very start. This putre and contradictory envissge-
meut Of tie questor on tie pat Of Ns,ufsl Religion,
grow. cut Of IFS fsbitualy regarding God and m.n as
essentially outward OF physical exi,teuoes properly
di,certe from each other in space sni time. II this
were tru. If G a were indeed physical bang, sepS
rated from bis creature by spsee and tne, thea Of
course il would be ahsurd 70 postuss the dependence
Of the latter upon the former since two bodies which
az. essentially sepsrsbe from each other 10 tine and
.psce must be- as room as such separation 10 pro
rounced, mutually Independent Of each other Every
philosophy, accordingly, which is animsied only oy
Natural Religion involves this fundamental eoatrsiic-
ton and is bcuId 10 u1ble OF into endless bewilder-
meEt.
In fact TIE problem j. wholly nsolube upor any data
siort of these furnished by REyELArIoN Itself, which,
in sfimrg the strict humanity OF Gcd, spiriiualizes
she laws of ere .tcn, or converts them iuo lsws OF
mind II, az Christianity aver, God be essential
MAN lie cannot possibly give being 10 anything bat
mar; ard cIesiop, consequently hstesd Of bsing sn
abe ute or pbysicsl event demanding mere eXer.
ton OF brute might bicones suprsmely rsiiouA
procedure or Gods part involving an orderly descest
OF natural effects ftOm spiritual causes, aud Of both
from celestial euds. Natural Religion cortemps.es
creation as incident Of space and tins. 70 makog
correlation 10 God Of necessity outward and ssryle,
or separating fro Him by all tie breddh Of Nature
and history. Christianity, ON the contrary,
mikes space end time TO be purely incidental
TO creation or declares creation to be specific Di-
vine operation within the straitest bounds Of human
nature 60 making oar relation TO God of necessity
inward and lisl. Tbs former moterlali.es creation,
by representing God as the mere author of Nature,
so shifting up the human ,oul 10 the bondage Of the
finite 10 the iron domination OF the senses. The latter
sptVuoi,ss it, by slyng Gods op'ration exclusively
with the soul thus turning the entire oite universe
the universal realm OF sense, into the doce shadow
and spps.sge of Man.
OF course, then, Revelation involves universal
philosophy All its details report themselves as the
outgroTih Of exclusively rational causes, causes as
wide az the universe of % nd. In the letter It exhibits
most economical and unostentstious apparatus.
feeble and suffering man. the scion of an Obscure and
oppressed race persists in claiming to be the son OF
God in sen,e so peculiar and emphatic as to revolt
the religious prtjudces Of bis people, aud provoke
them finally to pu, him to fconious death; from
which, however, he sfterwsrd showo himself alive.
But to their spirit these literal facts Imply the ro-
dncon of the entire spr.usl world which is the uni
versal mrd of man. to order, and the consequent uni
ton of the Divine and human natures in manner so
intimate and thorough q. tbs. the Divine Kingdom
shall heLceforth become established upon NATURAL
foundations and the Divine VIII be done upon esrth
no less perfectly than 1t has hitherto been done in
heaven.
Bot let me not anticipate Some other time, if YOU
desire, will STOW you the superb correspondence be-
tween the Christian facts ard the eternal Truth %
which they furnish the only adequate embodiment OF
revelation. At present, my occupation is primarily
critical.
Ii is purely tie fault Of DR.. Bushnells profession,
Il at he exhibits no sympathy with Christianity in tli
radical aspect of its pretsnsols. Every pulpit trad-
ton birds him TO look upon the relation Of natural and
revealed religion, not as the relation Of bsne TO anti
cote, but s that Of foundation to superSructure He
regards revealed religion not az denying, bat As
strictly sutbentcaDg natural religion, rather ss ts
potent aduyant and complement, than as ia decisive
overthrow ard contradiction. Hence you find him
throughout his book 40 necessarily ibtensfying toe
moral element in man, the element OF seeming indie
peudeLce and bringing into such vivid relief ell those
purely natural judgments Of the mind which are the
stronghold Of its dest separations, that You utterly
lose sight at last of the spiritual nature Of man. and
feel constant wonder why Dr. Bushnell sh0nd after
eli prefer Christ to Moses, the Gospel TO the Lsv
Notoipg alsys your surprise bat the conviction that
he really loohs upon Christ as properly snccsdansou'
to Moses, reg srds the Gospel as pure potentis
izeton Of the law. Christianity turns out in his hands
not delyersDce to the csptiye, bat a bond to the
free it turus cut, indeed mere fragrant expansion
ard exscerbaOn Of the native legal.m Of the heart
which instead of breaking tire o; s rebellion and
recOneilipg il to God, only intended 10 nfsne
its enmity and go f1ni-h some Boanerges Of reyi
vast al everlasting for pitching into it, and
adding fresh scalp if he is able, to ae saoguinary
gIde wherewith be is already decorated for the skes.
The wsy, accordingly, in which DR.. Il. contends for
his panacea OF the selfdetennoing power ofthe WILL
with view to justify Christian doctrine az he views
it, s profoundly instructive; though the petty insc
leIce ard yituperaton with which he incidentally
asperses from full hands as the French say those who
undervsus his panaces, furnishes quite needless
il usIation Of the unsubdued :raculencs Of the acer
dot. mind whether arrayed in the sanctfed serge of
S., Dominic, or the altogether free and-easy habi-
ments Of sam Sick. Ii ever ancient Pharisaism
blooned forth more Justify from molsrn stalk than il
doe, in these psge' have mssed the spectacle, and
moreover, 60 not repire al my luck. But, Palo
mGjOrd cdAdmus.
TIE facts Of hu nature and the facts Of Revela-
tior a.e Of course alike sccessble srd alike undenabe
10 every piEd phi'osopnic or sectarsn; it is olly
sbou! The uniorsG meaning Of th.se facts the SCI
ertfc bssrpg they exert that the sprtu,st Tor man
f scenos ers with the II ersIiat NJ MARI &c ,e-i..