The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1870-04-21
MR.. LlNC0LN'S RELIGION.
HE W1sNOTA CHRIsrIAN BELIEvER,
BUT A DEIST,
lie Believed In God. but not In n saviour
Did not Admit the Bible ms n Reeve alton
Did not Think III re was n HeIl-IIeld
that GoG could not Pardon n sinner.

| -Dtd not THINK III re was neI-IIeld
that GOO could not Pardon n sinner.
| Eom tie Toledo fnoer.
SrRrvGrIELD ILL.,, Feb. 10, 1s70.-Mr. Amor;
Some time since promised YOU that would senh a
letter in relation to MIR. Lincoln's religion. do so
now. Before entering on that question, one or two
preliminary remarks will help US to understand VII y
he disagreed with the Christian world in its prlnci
pics as well as in Its theology In the first place, Mr.
Line, In mind was purely LOGICAL mind; secondly.
MI Lincoln was lurelv practical man. lie had
fancy or imai nation, and not much e.nouon. lie
rule true a Sr sn 'qS cscn MIND ss nc,
T nNnn none, = ever has In tile unseen and un.
faith in things that lie outside OF the domain Of
| demonstration he was so oonstituted-so organ
i1ed-that he could believe nothing unless bis
| him law point, decision. or something fancied
he could not understand u till he took the book out
| terribly vexutiousy skepiical He could scarcely
understand anything, un ess he had time and place
| coin In 1884, aud think I knew him well 70 the
| day his de- tn. his mind when boy in Kentucky
liar spstractednets, bold and daring skepticism.
In Indiana from 1917 to 1890 Il manifested the same
iensiieJ developer itself along tSose lines IN In.
diana he came TO Illinois in 1880, and alter some
Sna s ; nSw Il ssou
| twenty miles northwest of this city.
now M BECAME A sxIPrrc
| Il was here that MIR. Lincoln became acquainted
L
before or since. They were large men-iarge in
pody ana large In MIND hard to Whip, and never to
| ne looeu. lnev we're bold, daring, and reckless
set OF men, They were men OF tueir on minds
believed what was dcmonstrable-Nc ere men Of great
common sense, With these men Mr.. Lincoln was
| thrown. with them he lived. aud with them he
moved, and almost had his being. They were skep-
tics all-scoffers some Those scofers were good
loud protests against tie folies OF Christianity.
They had never heard Of Theism and the newer and
natural skcptics, ind being boil. brave men men,
they uttered their thoughts freely They
child. l know these men we'll, and have ieit for
| mem; have done my little best when occasion
These men could conceive II possible that thr @
could be IN ono, nor one In three Coils they could
nnt believe that the Father ruined one OF his own
| lovely chi dren. This monstfous to them.
| They were on all occasions, when ouportunitY
offered, debating the various questions of Chrisani
among themselves; they took their stand
mon sense and on their own souls; and though
tneir arguments were rude and rough, no could
divines, and not unirequenty made them skeptics--
ftsbelievers as bad AZ themselves. They we're a
loNai tealtllul generous, social, true, and manly
| set OF people.
| READS voLSEr AND TOW PAINE, AND WRITES AN IN
| flDEL BOOK.
| IL was here, and among these people. that Mr..
Glanced to come V ssPo.. VoneyS RUNS s an ns
| some OF Pane's theological works. lie at once
ow being Voinsy and Pai1e became part Of Mr. as
Lincoln from 1894 10 the end OF his lite. In 1885 he
| Nrutc out a small WORK "IHtdeltN.' md in
| tended TO have IL published. The book was AN At.
| tack upon tue whole grounds OF Christianity, and
especially Was IN attack upon the idea that Jesus
was the Clris, the true and only begotten Son o.
coin was at that time In New Salem, Keeping store
| lot Mr.. samuel Hill, q merchant and postmaster of
| that place. Lincoln and Hill very friendly.
hill' .nins: was sSeptie q, that time, Llne90,
Hnl-his intimate friend. lie tried to per-
sS1dI 1uol ES not a IL mH he, ,,u puOlcnS,
Mr.. Lincoln rising man, and wished him success.
Lincoln refused TO destroy itsad IL should he pub
lished; hin swore 1t should never see the Iient OF
day lie had eye 10 Lncon's popuarity-his
present aud future success and believing that n the
be snatehcd il from LiSecn. hand ti hem Lincoln
was not expecting Il. and ran 10 Into old-fasnvn.
80 Lineoin's book went up TO the cloud. in smoke.
Is confessed BY oil who heard parts OF it that It
Of II from Mr. Liucoln's subsequent ideas and opir.
| Ions, often expressed to ne and to others In NV
Mgug cut grounded on the inIerna mistakes of
| tie Old and tie New 1estaments, and reason,
and on the experiences and observations OF men
| Tue CRITICISMS rom Internal ueIects were saarp
| strong, and manly.
DOUBTS THE EXISTENCE or A GOD.
Mr.. Lincoln moved to this city in 1887, and here
be bee me acquainted " ith various OF his own
way OF thinking. Al that time they called themselves
nee toinsers or iree thinking men. remember all
item, and was one Of them. Mr.. Lincoln Lere found
| other works, Hume. GibbOn, and otuers, and drans
Lament of his reIpiop When y NJ p rcain no con-
candidate for our legislature. he accused Of be-
ing an inhdel and OF having SAID that Jesus Christ
| WAS III Ultimate child lie never denied his opin-
| Ions nor hinehed from his relisious views; he wis a
tue man and yet 1t may be truthfuly said that in
| 1897 his religion was low indeed In his momenis OF
| gloon lie ~ould doubt II ho did not sometimes DENY
God He MADE me once erase the name OF God from
speech was about ~ make Ia 1854 and he did this
in the city Of Washington to one OF his friends. |
| In Arlington; it v III be known sometime. have
| the evidence and intend TO keepit
| CONTEST WIN PETER CARTWRIGHT
| Mr.. Lincoln ran for Congress against the Rev
Peter Cartwright, in tile year isi7 lsls In
contest he Was accused OF being nhde. II not an
| atheist lie never denied the charge-wouId rot
| would die hTst;' In tie hrst place, because he
knew It could aud would be proved on him: and in
the second place, he was TOO true 10 his own cou.
what know OF Mr.. Liocoln, and from m what at
have heard, and verify telieve, l eau say: First
that he did not believe in special creation hi. idea
being that ali creation was an evolution under law
secondly, he did not believe that the Bible was a
| specm revelation from God, the Cnrislian world
contends thirdly he did not believe in MIRACLES az
undcrstOod by the Christian world fourthly he be.
| lieyed In universal inspiration and miracle under
W; Githly, he did not believe that Jesus was tho
Chris, the Sou ol God, at the Christian world con.
tends sixtni,, he believed that All tbipSs' botn
matter and mind. were governed by laws unvort al,
absolute, and etornll. All his q cecles and RS.
| marhs in rsLingion couelusitely prove This Law
was 10 Lincoln everything and special inIcrler.
ences, shAns and delusions. know whereof
| speak. l nted to lOan him Theodore Parkeris
| works; loaned him Emerson sometimes and ether
| writer's; and he you'd sometimes road, and some.
| times would not, al supTore-udy, know.
MS OBJECTION TO POPULAR CHRISTIANITY
When Mr.. Lincoln left this city Tor Washington,
| know he had undergone no change IN his religious
| opinions or views. lie held many OF the Christian
ideas In adherence and among them there was this
| one, namely, that God would forgive the sinner
| for violation Of his laws. Lincoln main.
| Iained that God oculd not lorgiye that
| punishment has TO follow the sin; that Chris,
| tiunity was wrong In teaching forgiveness that
II tended TO make M sin in tho hope that God
| would excuse and iurtn. lii coin cuuten.
| ded that the minister should teach that God has
| nbxed punishment TO sin, and that no rsOen lance
| could bride him to remit H. In sense Of tue
| word, Sir. Lincoln was Universasi, aud In another
| sense he Was Unitarian; but lie was Theist as
| We now understand that word no was so
| fully, freely unequivocay, boldly, and openly,
| when asked Tor his views, Mr., Lincoln was suu.
posed. BY many people in this city, to be an Atheist
| aud sou still beheyeit can put shat suppo-iton
| al rest forever.
| LETTER TO ms BROTHER.
| hold a letter from Mr.. Lincoln in my hand ad-
dressed TO his brother, john ID, Johnson and
dated the 18th day OF January, loJl. lie had heard
| from johnson that his father, Thomas Lincoln, was
sick and that hopes OF his recovery were enter
| tanned Mr.. Lincoln wrote back 10 Mr.. johnson
| these words:
- sincerely hope that Father yet recover his
heClth out at all events, tell HIN to remember call
upOn and eOnhue ~ One citat ana good aud meTctul