The evening light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1881-1883, 1882-03-25

causes, religious creed is not to be desired.
But, on the other hand, religion is the only
moral agency which the universal mind recog-
nizes as competent to support it against the
temptations to evil through life, and the fear of
some vague and underlined punishment at
death. 1t is of no avail to say that religion it.
self provides the conditions by which it is
made necessary, we can deal only with the fact
that it is necessary.
l told you in my last that at death every
mind gravitates to the place for which it had
qualified itself by its thoughts and deeds
through life, but we were not then considering
those who were untitled to participate in Gods
government because fallen into vice and
crime. In these, and indeed all minds, the
ruling passion is stronger after death than in
life, and men pursue, with absolute IMMUNITY
and with lavish unrestraint, their evil ways by
availing themselves of the minds and bodies of
those here who have like appetites and desires.
You will recognize their ability to do this as
denoting an indispensable and universal law,
when you consider that this mortal life must be
lived till the development demanded by the
spiritual constitution of every individual is &C
quired, and that then only the threshold of a
higher can be reached. No title of this jour-
ney can be abated. You will hence see that
infinite Benifcence must have provided some
means of living it to those who lose their natural
bodies. The life, SO perpetuated, of one in
whom, at death, the love of vice is stronger
than of virtue, will continue to be vicious for
the very logical reason that as he may do
what he pleases, that which most pleases him
is what he will do. The criminal finds GRIM
inal, or perhaps maryland possibly many find
one-or makes them, and impels them to
crime. The human passions are as play
things, and the human mind as wax, to these
tempters, only because they have the ability
keep from discovery the secret thatthey are So
that they exist amongst us and have such
power over US. The infinite Wisdom has pro-
vided men with intelligence, which, when out of
its infant years, could not fail to be adequate to
the easy and perfect control of the passions and
Of all physical appetites and desires in every
normal situation, and under all ordinary circum-
stances. To commit murder is, therefore, not
natural instinct and never occurs but under
false conditions. These may be social condi-
tons solely, but are more often those have
described. We have murders committed daily,
many without cause and, often, unconsciously
to the murderer. The less venal sel6shness,
the inebriate, voluptuary, gambler, find their
Heaven in indulgence by these means. The
infinite Goodness, who has made mans wish
the sole law of his government, has denied to
none the Heaven he seeks. The natural idea
of Heaven consists simply in the instant graft
fication of all our wishes. This may be dis
placed by any arbitrary IDEAS it is by that of
the church. 1t is thus not against their own
vicious desires chiefly that men have to con-
tend, but against those of these immortals
who make them, at once, the instruments Of
their use and the victims of their wrong. The
world is thus governed by those who have
their earthly objects unattained, often their
earthly wrongs unavenged, and who keep So
ciety under control that they may pursue
these; that they may still crafty the passions
which belong to the sensuous world, in which
they virtually yet live and must continue to
live still indulge the tastes and cravings that
have been spilled from lies broken chalice
on fertile ground. For no immortal mind has
ever sailed through the celestial skies, Or
dwelt in the splendid cities of the Celestial
Land, who took with him the faintest CLEAN of
any desire of the mortal mind, or the slightest
trace of any memory of the temporal life.
Much that write which may be incompre-
hensible, or seem impossible, to you, few
words of explanation will probably make in
telligibe, or obvious, for which reason l de-
sire you to ask for them. My object in permit
ting my remarks to take this course is, not that
you may comprehend the law OF the existence
of these tempting spirits-which will receive
attention hereafter-but to qualify you to COM
prehend fully my answer to your question.
What seek is to make you secure through
life, whatever temptations beset you, from
these immortals, with whom this ground floor
of the earth swarms, and can not trust your
safety toyour intelligence and strength of will.
You can not yet rely on these. If you have
religious convictions that invite YOU into anv