Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1867-06-23

we cannot eonceivee space or time q
OtteTS0ise than infinHe. Space is not, a
some writers say, an attribute of matter
If we conceive of the total annihilatioI
Of matter, the idea Of space, and of thi
sqHlespsce, remains. You cannot conceive
9 space terminating ia any direction
! The question 4" What would be beyonC
! it9 involves q contradiction. The idei
of space is included in the word "be
| yond.N Ifthere were matter beyond,
that would be in space, because it would
/ necessarily be extended. If there wer'
| nothing, that itselfis vacuity or space
! So we cannot conceive of Time ashavine
/ had beginning, or an end. Nojuggline
with words, OF pretended definitions O.
Time and Space can get rid of these two
/ ideas of Space infinite and Time infinite
If we cannot but conceive of these
] then we may conceive of matter existing
cO-extensively with space, and OF eTist-
! e7'ee during all time. There Is no more
difficulty in conceiving of all space occii-
pied by matter, or of all time occupied
NV existence, than there is in conceiving
Sither as unOccupied.
n Vesfle suppose that there were now
..,..-.ng, except empty, void, unoccupied
,5ace, with no existence OF any Sort
khat is, one great void OF nothingness
NRnust at once admit that 1t would DC
\. nfsssible for anything to begin to exist
Nothingness, being mere negation, and
space and time not entities, there would
| be lR force, potency or energy, that couio
be ke cause or source OF anything
The csu hs4po effect without cause
Non-exister SsSa4ld not produce exist
ence. Befort 70 KnSfsng can cause OF
produce, it muSea oLe1g; .h,I II 1He P[opS, }bsy2
fore. 7 am Is defective as a de-
monstration' it at least states the
palnable fact, that to think, thai
which thinks must be. Absence OF
! existence would be mere blank, in which
no action whatever, no HOtiUe, no causa-
ton conld be. As, therefore, existence
is. It never was not: because it never
| eouId have beglf1 to be. This existence,
being without cause, must also itself be
calse. You can no more conceive OF
! Force, Wisdom, Cause, being generated
in nothingness, or beginning spontane-
/ ously to exist aud act there, than you can
conceive of life commencing there.
| Moreover, there would never be a time
when there would be any Hetc reason Tor
/ the commencement of existence 10 that
void. There never could be, hereafter,
| if the void were now all, any new con-
ditions, to be the reason Of being. II
/ being did not begin at the first instant,
l il neUer could begin. Given precisely
/ the sane conditions always, the result
| or no result must always be the same'
| Therefore there never could have been
first moment at which existence com
menced. for there would still have been
an infinite prior time in which II had not
begun, the same conditions existing.
Thus, although 1 cannot understand
! how GOp can exist without cause, l
/ EnoIU that there either is no existence
] force. wisdom, Intellect now, and that
| all is unreal, or that there always t6ef;e
/ existence, force. wisdom and Intellect.
| That there always will be, SPINoZA's
argument proves. Granted the Exist
ence, then it will always continue, un-
! less there be some power, cause or reason
| ia il or out of il, to end or destroy 1t. A
power out of it, would be another exist
ence which cannot be, because there was
none such to prevent its existence OF
cause nOn-existence and this other, II
supposed, would have to end itself also
! or existence would continue; and thu;
we would have an infinity of existencesi
one above or behind the other. For TO
each the same alternative applies. The
reason or cause Of termination must be
either in or out of each. NOthingnesi
has no mere power to destroy than %
produce. Fhat which ends an uncaused
Existence, must itself be another un-
caused Existence. Fate aud necessity
are only words. Suppose that, to' end
A, there is a B.; then to end B., there
must be q c., and 80 on al iUBHHUm'
You cannot imagine an inhnite slzc'
cessiOn of causes either Of existence OF
humiliation. Nor can the cause OF ter
nination or destruction, or its reason, be
IN the existence which always was
You cannot imagine that the conditions
necessary for It's existence at one mo-
ment viii or can ever be insufficient. Ii
they Gontnae tnR existence Tor an IN
slant, then, as there is nothing without
to diminish their energy, they must be
sufficient and continue to ast always.
You cannot conceive Of existence ami
bilating itself. As there was no cause
that produced it, there can be none tC
end it. In other words, it is of its
essence TO exist. Its essence includes OF
envelopes existence. Existence is, in
the nature Of things, eternal existence.
We lave then one or more EXistences
.
or attributes, thet-Snust belong 10 Cne o.
more OF these BIs5tences. If there are
for example, two distinct EX1S67 Az
neither of which ever was HOtf
with a separate and mdepeR mo state
we have two equal and auto6 6aroo ana
One could not be inferior Nv found 1
for want of cause of thse- fo,;r.bs - a
the conditions and ptSSoHiS Or of''ij' UeIHg o.
ooth s.esecessariIy1 The same. Now we
know az n.la - Rs we know any thing,
that tb4 HHu ehNt Use is the 4tterance Of 8
single St0dtght, the work Of a single
VIZ lust as we know that our thoughts
= y from a single soul, and not from
If a dozen independent ones. What
hg petaW equals what is above. The visi-
Sc le is the nnsE-ure of the invisible. The
beauty Of the universe, the permaRency,
harmony and regularity OF itg laws Is
owing, we know, t. a single Will aad
Wisdom. There is therefore but one
Cause and 1t is Infinite, Eternal, Su.
preme; 4nAnite Wisdom, Intelligence,
Power, Benefcence. If there are two,
there is no reason Why there may not be
a myriad. TosuppOse two infinite Exist
ences with the same attributes Is really 70
suppose but one. The attributes cOnsti-
tute the essence. To suppose them with
different attributes is TO suppose cOntrari-
ETY. and conflict, or antagOnism. To sup
pose either WithOut the power to create, OF
without the same inducement TO create,
as the other, is to suppose inferioTity
and destroy one. If there are two infin-
ite wills, they must always agree, since
if in given case they disagreed, one
would annul the other, and being equal
neither would prevail, but immObility
be the result. Neither, then, would have
infinite power. Movement Is the result
Of an alternating prepOpdeFance ol
forcees, where there are more than one,
Perfect equilibrium Of the two is immO-
bility, stagnation, death. GOD, there
fore, is but a single VIII, Power, Wis
dom and Intelligence. Nor can He be
absent from any part of space. What
ever the inherent cause of His eternal
existence, it must equally be the cause
every where. Having no conception
of the nature o. Spirit or of the Di-
vine Substance, the anc.eats cOM
pared it to Light They could not
conceive Of it as not extended
and filling all space. 1t is absurd to i'm
agine tiCO GODS, each filling the whole
Of space. We may sag that the Deity
is q spirit, apd not extended; but when
We deny Him any Ettrlbute OF matter
we do not mean to admit that He Is
nothing and no. where. He is an actu
ality, like the Human Soul and lie is
present every where. For my part, / dc
not doubt the infinity and eternity o.
the Universe, any more than doubt the
infinity and eternity of GOD. As l dc
not believe there ever was IUhen, il
which He did not think, and thinking
create; so L dc not believe there is q
aUhere, in which His Thought does moi
dwell. And, moreover, He Being the
absolute Existence, / believe there Is life
every where. The infinite power OF the
Deity must needs produce infinite effects
Even the errors Of philosophy are in.
structive. We only attain Truth through
them. Affirmation, negatiOn, discus
sion, solution lit is. thus only that Truth
/ is reached. There have been as much
error and feebleness in religious discus
sion as IN that Of metaphysics. Yet who
will say it has effected No good. YoU
cannot say that of any discussion. Truth
| comes or will come out of it in the end
Even the Scholastic Theology was no
without its use, or the casuistry O
! the Jesuits. But for the latter, weshoulC
notshave had the Provincial Letters.
believe that the false PHILOSOPHERS, like
! the false religions were necessary, to pre-.
pare the way for the true ones. Human,
itv IfLa fhe individual laarDS 90 10 orc, ,,,s,