T n r. 



- U defend- 

 tarn 



V. 



ad a 



.if the ( ! dercd 



tlleo- 



wilhin it. Such 11 d lie. 



ry of then'.' 



'iteru- 



ture. But the information which would i .n this 



head will be found for the most part a 

 throi: . to which 



All that will be attempted 



point out .ul of 



which the prevailiiu 

 formed. Ihe fiis! thinir ' 



In the widest sense of the word Theoloiry, including 

 both natural and rcvcalc.l theology, we have amonir then- 



ns who reject revelation !' I of i 1 . !' 



or that doctiinc concernimr God which njeets his 



n which t 

 that God i- the Creator of till thinirs, but that havin 



d them and impressed upon them c. lor the 



ation of their future existence, commonly call.'d the 

 . '. u ft them tc eminent of 



. rn> himself no more with his ere 



-tein ackn.' -tellce 



vvhiel ; : 'i by ackilowledirill!r the 



ind. The 8 -m suppose 



: an Almighty Creator, whose existence is 



,1111111); 

 m according to which the laws 



lf-e\istent 

 of a!l the pin : and there i- no 



'ive princijile external to nature. This system 

 two dil'i'ereiit forms: .)/" "Inch makes all Ihe 



phenomena of nature to result from the ; n-tiiu- 



tion of matter itself: and the various shades M Pantheism, 

 which suppose an intelligent principle n///mu //nnn/i to 



.'onnected with every tiling 1ha: 

 to pervade the whole creation. 



There is another system which stand.- apart both from 

 Naturalism and Revelation, namely 

 inir principle of which is that in m't 



in short in all subjects which do not admit of mathe- 

 matical demonstration, certain' niable, and con- 



ntly that neitli iture nor from a MI] 



revel -ire reh'.'ious belief nor a 



.i of theolo TILISM.] 



These sv.-terns deserve notice in connexion with the 



ry of theology, inasmuch : late to thi 



class of subjects as those which are embraced in tin 

 and they belong particularly to th. 

 the' 1 



- into direct collision with 



tiav. But according to onrinoi. I dcti- 



nition of theo'" -eience which is founded upon 



a divine revelation, and moie 



;ect the reliirii. >W and Ne'.v 



A ill be found that th 



ntt'erent opinions 

 If, either with reference tn 



the i Is authority or to the mod .jirela- 



tion. 



1. With reference to the former point, ' !ij if 



thi- - 

 who 



Mi, and consequently 



IheoloL'N r I'llitteil 



and unqii. or this 



aiith> iiither inti' 



. But in . 







e included un. ! 

 'ilium and Ant 



r H :: 



ItatWitaHnn : tl ' for 



the 



cerniii >l mean?; 



but in natin 



med, while rationalism (in the the 



the Scriptures as ponessi 

 '. _-iee of iiutliorilN. and ; i]m I he v 



the elcui. 

 trut h. 



-m and lation- 



ahsiu 'Hie 



adherents of the former -\>lcm. 1houi;h they di'id 

 in;: the mode in which supernatural i - con- 



veyed to the minds of the sai : i the 



irreat priuci]ile that they did receive such information as 



:i all error in tl 



ii-ntli. HatiMiialiM.-, on the other hand, cither : 

 the doi;nia of inspiration altoirether, or undei-stand 

 nothing more than that by the ordinary provider 



itural faculties of the wrii- ronijht int 



be while they _- the 



Si-riptr.res. (u'llc-rally sjieaUinL'. the ratioii .t tlu- 



wriki-s of the Sciiptu 



; on the - other 



- could :v. .-, while r. 



tliemselvcs the I ':nt they will 1" 



and what they will disbelieve, they iipon the whole : 



..:id opinions contained in the Sciipturcs :us the 

 of their theology. [RKVBLATIO!*.] 



There is also a ilitlerence bel--. and 



Ihe mode of intcrprctinir the Sciijv 

 tnre>: the former holding that the aid of the Spirit i 

 vouchsafed to the hnnible inquirer into mill: 



the hitler denyiii'r the existence of any other me. 

 understanding the Scriptures than the natuia! 

 the human mind. 



i he many forms which rationah- 

 durinir the last. almost iiuli-tr from 



nf the form- of naturalism. [1! ^M.] 



J. Sup|)osing the Scripture to be recer My a 



divine revelation, the questions arise: Uy whom, and on 



.:re the\ to be interpreted '.' 

 Thr tins point may be called the 



terns of theology. The fundamental principle of Ih. 



'. or biblical system is that the Seriptnri - 

 iuli-i]ireted by eaeli individual reader accoidini: ' 

 ordinary laws by which the meaning; of any other book is 

 ained; while the Catholic or positive system sii; 



a jiositive moil. M, handi :1 



down liv a tradition in the visible church ' 

 of Christianity, and foimins in :anatic 



tluoloir>. fiom which no individual i- at liberty to differ 

 oiKin the evidence derived from his own research. 

 taut theoloiry may be supran. 



is the liiiL'ina of the 

 (liviin to the inquir, 



. which may be called 

 'heoloL'\ . The popular th. 



to be derived fiom the obvious meaning of the 

 ol 'Scripture, without any i theo- 



1 upon the principle that, alt 

 . humble and diligent ini|. 

 from the Bible it-e!faU i'eliu:ious truth which 

 ::cccs*ary for hi- safety that he should I 

 yet that there i:, a body of re ; 



which can only 1 applying to itsinteri 



tion all th' M'.-,:l 



! in order to the constniction of 



important difference between I'::- ' and 



l\ of 



Tin 



iistnith. In many of the autiunt Chris- 



