BENEFICIAL EFFECTS OF CHRISTIANITY. 



123 



tnw God. tneir tempers moulded into the spirit of 

 the religion of Jesus, their savage practices 

 abolished, industry, peace and moral order 

 spreading their benign influence on all around, 

 and multitudes rejoicing in the prospect ofa bless 

 ed immortality. Where barrenness and desola 

 tion formerly prevailed, ana where only a few sa 

 vage huts appeared, open to the wind and rain, 

 beautiful villages are now arising, furnished with 

 all the comforts and accommodations of civilized 

 life. Where pagan altars lately stood, and hu 

 man victims were cruelly butchered, spacious 

 temples are now erected for the worship of &quot; the 

 3od and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,&quot; and 

 seminaries for the literary and religious instruc 

 tion of the young. Where sanguinary battles 

 were fought, amidst the furious yells of savage 

 combatants, who cruelly massacred every prison 

 er of war the voice of rejoicing and of thanks 

 giving is now heard ascending to Heaven from 

 the peaceable &quot; dwellings of the righteous,&quot; all 

 which effects have been produced, within less 

 than twenty years, by the powerful and benign 

 agency of the Gospel of peace.* 



Even war itself the most disgraceful and dia 

 bolical practice in which mankind have indulged, 

 and which will affix an eternal stigma on the hu 

 man character- even war has assumed something 

 of the spirit of mildness and humanity, compared 

 with the savage ferocity with which it was con 

 ducted during the reign of heathenism. Prison 

 ers are no longer massacred in cold blood ; the 

 conquered are spared, and their liberty frequent 

 ly restored ; and, were the principles of Christi 

 anity recognised, and universally acted upon by 

 professing Christian nations, the spirit of warfare 

 would soon be wholly exterminated, and Peace 

 would extend its benign influence over all the 

 kingdoms and families of the earth. The cele 

 brated Montesquieu, in his &quot; Spirit of Laws,&quot; 

 has observed, &quot; The mildness so frequently re 

 commended in the gospel is incompatible with 

 the despotic rage with which an arbitrary tyrant 

 punishes his subjects and exercises himself in 

 cruelty. It is the Christian religion which, in 

 spite of the extent of empire and the influence of 

 climate, has hindered despotism from being esta 

 blished in Ethiopia, and has carried into Africa 

 the manners of Europe. The heir to the throne 

 of Ethiopia enjoys a principality, and gives to 

 other subjects an example of love and obedience. 

 Not far from hence may be seen the Mahometan 



(shutting up the children of the king ofSenaar, at 

 whose death the council sends to murder them in 

 favour of the prince who ascends the throne.&quot; 

 &quot; Let us set before our eyes, on the one hand, 

 the continual massacres of the kings and generals 

 of the Greeks and Romans, and on the other, the 



Fora particular account of this moral revolution 

 which has recently taken place in the society and 

 other islands of the Pacific, the reader Is referred 

 to &quot;KUis&quot; Polynesian Researches,&quot; 2vols. 8vo 



destruction of people and c ities by the famous con- 

 querprs Timur Beg, and Jenghis Kan, who i avag 

 ed Asia, and we shall perceive, that we owe lo 

 Christianity in government a certain political law r 

 and in war a certain law of nations, which allows 

 to the conquered the great advantages of liberty, 

 laws, wealth, and always religion, when the con 

 queror is not blind to his own interest.&quot; 



But Christianity has not only abolished many 

 barbarous practices, it has likewise given birth 

 to numerous benevolent institutions and establish 

 ments altogether unknown in Pagan countries. 

 Let us consider the numerous schools for the in 

 struction of youth in useful knowledge and in the 

 principles of religion, which are erected in all 

 towns and villages in Christian countries, the nu 

 merous churches and chapels devoted to the wor 

 ship of God, and to the instruction and comfort of 

 individuals of every condition, age, and sex, the 

 colleges and caademies which have been founded 

 for imparting knowledge in literature, and in arts 

 and sciences, the numerous philanthropic soci 

 eties which have been formed for the relief of the 

 aged, the infirm, and the destitute sick, the edu 

 cation of the deaf and dumb, the reformation of 

 the criminal code, the improvement of prison 

 discipline, the reformation of juvenile offend 

 ers, the aiding of the friendless, the orphan, and 

 the widow, the literary and moral instruction 

 of the children of the poor, the relief of desti 

 tute imprisoned debtors, the improvement of 

 the domestic condition of the labouring classes, 

 the promotion of permanent and universal peace, 

 the diffusion of the knowledge of the Christian 

 religion throughout every region of the globe, 

 and for various other benevolent purposes, all 

 calculated to alleviate the distresses of suffering 

 humanity, to extend the blessings of knowledge, 

 and to communicate enjoyment to all ranks of 

 mankind ; and we may challenge the enemies of 

 our religion to point out similar institutions in 

 any pagan country under heaven that has never 

 felt the influence of Christianity. And if such 

 beneficent effects are the native result of the be 

 nevolent and expansive spirit of Christianity, 

 they form a strong presumptive evidence, inde 

 pendently of any other consideration, that it de 

 rived its origin from that Almighty Being who 

 is good to all, and whose &quot; tender mercies are 

 over all his works.&quot; 



In fine, Christianity is adapted to every coun 

 try and every clime. Its doctrines and preceptg 

 are equally calculated to promote the happiness 

 of princes and subjects, statesmen and philoso 

 phers, the high and the low, the rich and the 

 poor. It is completely adapted to the nature 

 and necessities of man ; its rites are few and 

 simple, and may be observed in every region of 

 the globe. It forbids the use of nothing but 

 what is injurious to health of body or peace of 

 mind, and it has a tendency to promote a friendly 

 and affectionate intercourse among men of a.. 



