182 



THE PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION. 



than on him who is distinguished merely for in 

 tellectual acquirements. Hitherto, a more de 

 cided preference seems to have been given to 

 whit is termed genius than to moral accomplish 

 ments. 3. Institutions should be formed for com 

 municating literary and scientific knowledge, 

 blended with moral and religious instructions, to 

 persons of both sexes, and of every rank and age, 

 from fifteen years and upwards, particularly to 

 apprentices, journeymen, clerks, shop-keepers, 

 and others, for the purpose of calling forth into 

 action the energies of their minds, and for pre 

 venting the growth of habits of dissipation. In 

 such institutions, the manifestation of benevolent 

 affections, and propriety of moral conduct, should 

 be made the conditions of enjoying the instruc 

 tions and privileges of the association. 4. In 

 connexion with these and other means, the cause 

 of practical morality would be powerfully promot 

 ed, were the ministers of religion, among all 

 parties, to direct their energies to the discussion 

 of moral subjects, on Christian principles, instead 

 of confining their attention almost exclusively to 

 doctrinal discussions. Religion is not a system 

 merely of speculative and metaphysical truths, 

 nor does it consist in the contemplation of myste 

 rious facts, or incomprehensible dogmas ; but it 

 is a rational and tangible subject, addressed to 

 the reason, the hopes, and fears, and the common 

 sense of mankind; and therefore, its illustrations 

 should be chiefly derived from the facts of Sacred 

 History, the system of nature, and from the ex 

 isting objects, scenes, and associations with 

 which we are connected. A much greater de 

 gree of animation, and of energy, than is now 

 displayed in instructions from the pulpit, is also 

 requisite for arresting the attention, and riveting 

 impressions of moral and religious truths upon 

 the mind. If fewer sermons were delivered, and 

 a greater portion of intellectual energy concentrat 

 ed in each discourse , and if preachers, particu 

 larly among Dissenters, had fewer discourses to 

 compose, and more time for taking an ample in 

 tellectual range through the system of nature, of 

 Providence, and of revelation, a more powerful 

 effect would undoubtedly be produced on the 

 Christian world, and upon all who occasionally 

 attend on the ministrations of religion. 



I need scarcely add, that all such means ought to 

 be accompanied with fervent prayer to the &quot;Fa 

 ther of lights,&quot; and dependence on the promised 

 aid of the Spirit of holiness. But without the 

 application of all the energetic means which rea 

 son and revelation suggest, we have no reason 

 to conclude, and it would be presumption to ex 

 pect, that the influences of heaven will descend 

 upon the moral world. For it appears, in point 

 of fact, to be one part of the plan of the divine 

 procedure, that human agents shall be the means 

 of enlightening each other, and of promoting the 

 renovation of the world, as &quot; workers together 

 with God.&quot; 



CONCLUSIONS FROM THE GENERAL 



PLES ILLUSTRATED IN THIS VOLUME. 



If the general train of sentiment which runs 

 through the preceding discussions and illustra 

 tions be admitted, the following conclusions mav 

 be deduced respecting, 



I. The subject of preaching, and the grand 

 aim which the ministers of religion, in their dis 

 courses, ought always to have in view.* We 

 have already seen, that it is the great object of 

 revelation to bring into practical operation the 

 principles of love to God and to man : and, it is 

 obvious, that,what is the main object of Christian 

 ity to accomplish, ought to be the ultimate aim of 

 every Christian preacher. It is not merely to 

 convert men to the belief of certain opinions, or 

 to induce them to embrace the peculiarities of a 

 party. It is, that they may &quot; be renewed in the 

 spirit of their minds,&quot; and, &quot; made meet for the 

 inheritance of the saints in light&quot; it is, that 

 they may &quot; deny ungodliness and worldly lusts, 

 and live soberly, righteously, and godly, in the 

 present evil world ;&quot; and be &quot; united together 

 in love, which is the bond of perfection.&quot; Meta 

 physical disquisitions, respecting dogmas in reli 

 gion, have very little tendency to meliorate the 

 heart, and to promote benevolent dispositions 

 and affections. On the contrary, they have fre 

 quently produced a temper of mind directly oppo 

 site to the spirit of Christianity. They have 

 led multitudes to pique themselves on the sup 

 posed purity oftheir profession, and the orthodoxy 

 of their creed, and to point at others as heretics, 

 and subverters of the gospel, on account of some 

 slight differences in sentiment about a particular 

 doctrine ; while they themselves have never at 

 tempted to cultivate heavenly dispositions, and 

 to display that charity which &quot; suffereth long, 

 and is kind, which is not easily provoked, and 

 thinketh no evil.&quot; There are certain doctrines 

 and facts, which we ought always to recognise, 

 and to keep in view as fundamental axioms in 

 the Christian system ; such as, that&quot; there is 

 one God, and one Mediator between God ana 

 man, the man Christ Jesus ;&quot; that &quot; he died for 

 our offences, and rose again for our justifica 

 tion ;&quot; that &quot; all have sinned and come short of 

 the glory of God;&quot; and that &quot; we are justified 

 freeiy by his grace, through the redemption that 

 is in Christ Jesus.&quot; But, there is no necessity 

 for expatiating almost exclusively on these and 

 similar doctrines, as is frequently done, to the 

 exclusion of practical morality; since they ought 

 to be regarded in the light rather of first princi 

 ples in religion, than as topics which require to 



* The Author originally Intended to illustrate this, 

 and the following conclusions, at considerable 



sngth, and to enter into a variety of circumstantial 

 details ; hut, as the intended illustrations would oc 

 cupy more than a hundred pages, and as the work 

 has already swelled to a considerable size, he is 

 under ^the necessity of postponing them for tht 



