48 



THE PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION. 



maxim, that the most interesting and salutary 

 trutns connected with the happiness of man are 

 neither numerous nor difficult to be acquired, 

 and are level to the comprehension of men of 

 every nation and of every rank. But however 

 grovelling may be the affections, and however 

 limited the intellectual views, of the untutored 

 ranks of society, they are capable of being trained 

 to the knowledge and the practice of every thing 

 which regards their present comfort and their 

 future happiness ; and to devise and execute the 

 means by which this object maybe accomplish 

 ed, is one way among many others bv which our 

 iove to mankind should be displayed and demon 

 strated. We have no reason to complain of the 

 want of mental energy, or of the ignorance and 

 folly of the lower orders of mankind, and to 

 despise them on this account, while we sit still 

 in criminal apathy, and refuse to apply those 

 means which are requisite to raise them from 

 their state of moral and intellectual degradation. 

 Thirdly, Mankind are on an equality, in re 

 spect of that moral depravity with which they are 

 all infected. From whatever cause it may be 

 conceived to have originated, the fact is certain, 

 that a moral disease has spread itself through all 

 the branches of the human family, in whatever 

 station, or in whatever regions of the globe they 

 may be placed. Whether we look back on the 

 &quot; generations of old,&quot; or survey the moral state 

 of the nations in modern times ; whether we turn 

 our eyes to the abodes of savage or of civilized 

 /ife ; whether we contemplate the characters of 

 the higher orders of society, or the practices 

 which abound among the inferior ranks of social 

 life ; the stamp of depravity, in one shape or 

 another, appears impressed upon the general 

 conduct of mankind. In the case of nations, 

 this depravity has manifested itself in those wars, 

 dissensions, devastations, and contentions for 

 territory and power, which have in all ages con 

 vulsed the human race and disturbed the peace 

 of the world. Among lesser societies, families, 

 and individuals, it is displayed in the operation 

 of the principles of pride, ambition, tyranny, 

 persecution, revenge, malice, envy, falsehood, 

 deceit, covetousness, anger, and other malignant 

 passions, which have infested all ranks and con 

 ditions of men. This depravity infects the 

 higher ranks of mankind equally with the lower, 

 though among the former it is sometimes var 

 nished over with a fairer exterior ; and therefore, 

 there is no rank or order of men that have any 

 valid reason on this ground for despising their 

 Tallow-creatures, or withholding from them the 

 exercise of love and affection. For &quot; there is 

 none righteous, no, not one : for all have sinned, 

 and come short of the glory of God.&quot; And in 

 this point of view, love ought to exercise its be 

 neficent energies, in endeavouring to counteract 

 the stream of human corruption, and in dissemi- 

 aating those divine principles which are calcir 



lated to raise mankind to the moral dignity of 

 their nature. 



Fourthly, Mankind possess substantially *&amp;gt; 

 same pleasures and enjoyments. It is a trite 

 saying, but it is nevertheless a true and important 

 one, that happiness does not. depend upon the 

 rank arid stations we occupy in life, nor upon the 

 quantity of wealth or riches we possess. The 

 pleasures which flow from the movements of the 

 system of nature, and from . the beauties which 

 adorn the heavens and the earth, are commor 

 and open to all the inhabitants of the globe. The 

 rising sun, the smiling day, the flowery land 

 scape, the purling streams, the lofty mountains, 

 the fertile vales, tb.3 verdure of the meadows, the 

 ruddy hues of the evening clouds, the rainbow 

 adorned with all the colours of light, the corusca 

 tions of the northern lights, ths music of the 

 groves, the songs of the nightingale and the lark, 

 the breath of spring, the fruits of harvest, the 

 azure sky, the blazing comet, the planets in their 

 courses, the moon walking in brightness, and the 

 radiant host of stars, convey to the mind thou 

 sands of delightful images and sensations, which 

 charm the cottager and the mechanic no less 

 than the sons of opulence and fame. The plea 

 sures of the senses, of eating and drinking, of 

 affectionate friendship, of social arid domestic 

 intercourse, of a cheerful contented mind, of fer 

 vent piety towards God, and of the hope of im 

 mortality beyond the grave, may be enjoyed by 

 men of every colour, and rank, and condition in 

 life ; by the inhabitants of the cottage, as well as 

 by the potentate who sways his sceptre over 

 kingdoms. Nor does it materially detract from 

 these enjoyments in the case of the peasant, 

 that his body is frequemly hung with rags, that 

 he subsists on the coarsest fare, and reposes 

 under the thatch of a miserable hut. For habit 

 is the great leveller of mankind ; it reconciles 

 us to innumerable inconveniences and privations, 

 and blunts the edge of the keenest pleasures. 

 The owner of a princely mansion frequently 

 loathes the most delicious dainties on his table, 

 and walks through his magnificent apartments, 

 surrounded with paintings and decorations, with 

 as much apathy and indifference as if he were 

 in an Indian wigwam or a clay-built cottage. 

 So that, in the pleasures of sense, of affection, 

 and sentiment, there is no essential distinction 

 between the high and the low, the rich and the 

 poor. Bui should it be insinuated that the poor 

 and the ignoble have fewer enjoyments than the 

 rich, then it will follow, that towards them in a 

 particular manner our benevolent affections ought 

 to he directed, in order that they may enjoy a 

 competent portion of those physical and intellec 

 tual pleasures which the Creator has provided foi 

 all his creatures. 



Fifthly, Men in every condition and in every 

 clime have the same wants, and are exposed to 

 the same disasters and afflictions. Hunger and 



