FIDELITY AND INFIDELITY-FREE MORAL AGENCY OF MIND. THERE is every motive for a consistent performance of the requirements, for a commensurate reward. To whom are fidelity and infidelity referable, when charged on rational religionists? The only characters presented in religion are God and anti-god. Rational religionists seek, with the most faithful fidelity, to pay their best adoration and loftiest reverence to God alone. With the utmost fidelity, they consider all vicegerentships hostile to the purity of conscience, and true allegiance and fidelity to God. With the best fidelity to God and conscience, they consider all vicegerentships prejudicial to the best morals, laws, and well-being of society, and should be read out of all codes of refined minds, distinguished by reason and reason's God. The infidelity of the anti-god will hence be silenced by the fidelity of rational religionists. When reason rules mind, all the universe will be ever faithful to omnipotence. TO FREE AND MORAL AGENCY OF MIND IS DUE THE PROGRESS OF LIBERTY. A PART of the world has become rational partially, in the right way. That part has commenced rightly in government: all must do it conclusively, in religious faith and action, that must ever agree therewith, as no principles can ever clash at all. What a great lesson for statesmen, to have correct views of government, firmly and sincerely supported. What a commentary is at the same time furnished, of the hazard of mind's perversions in government. Millions of lives have been destroyed, and freely has their blood flown, to rescue liberty's lost rights-rights of the people. These were true martyrs. How deeply and gratefully, then, ought all the free and wise nations prize their costly acquired blessings. No country is otherwise herself, as mind is not that noble gift, enriched at a nation's treasury, when lowering governments interdicted its elevated caste in freedom, and give it in mockery even the pretences of constitutional monarchy or absolutism. All countries, degraded in government less than constitutional republican representation, are necessarily degraded in morals and religion, are only amended when that highest and purest order of government, rightly constituted, and administered without fear and reproach, seeking after popular capital, gives potency and character to mind, and aid to virtue. When legislators maintain an honest consistency, without retrograding in all the great steps and progress of virtue, they exalt their sublime acts in true government for the people, and their constitutional enactments displayed in numerous wise proceedings, without binding and bankrupting themselves in the tyranny and oppression of mind, will exclude an uncourteous perfidy to sister states possessed of the same principles of government, while the truth and honesty of constitutional principles can be vindicated by the noblest specimens of humanity. Such governments are truly and only possessed of the potent elements of social and political happiness, and must diffuse the eclipsing light of such lustre over the whole world, winning mind by reason best. Freedom will wisely exercise the loftiest view, in leading the way to arrest high crimes by statutory punishment, to prevent the indispensable necessity of summary vengeance and retaliation, that are certainly objectionable, if improperly directed and executed. Every freeman has a direct and abiding interest in his government, and gives a moral potency and validity to the laws of justice. When constitutional liberty prevails none are above the laws, that should be wisest and wisely instituted to be sacredly respected. Everything is for mind on this earth, and mind must elicit her wisest institutions for mind. If the states of the world will justly punish all, in a constitutional way, citizens or aliens amenable, that come rightly under the cognizance of just legislation, then the odious feature of private vengeance, that disgraces any age of laws, always to be deprecated as most pervertible and capable of greater evils even on innocent persons, than those redressed, will cease to exist. The countries of freedom, that now numbers the spirit of liberty, in over a hundred millions of cultivated minds, owe it to themselves, to raise up the crushed part of the people to man's dignified position, and leave all the drama of religion in the best, because right hands, those of its Author. CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS OF THE WORLD. THE nations of the earth must seek the light of those that are highly favored; they must seek, all the time, the platform of reason and constitutional rights that are mutual bulwarks. The people of the world, as its sovereign, must demand of their rulers all the lights of knowledge in science funds, and must institute the best of schools to teach all the light of mind, and hold their rulers immediately responsible for the best general scholastic institutions, liberal as philosophical science, to diffuse universal intelligence among the people. Rulers of the land owe it to their constituents to promote the highest spirit of liberty, to promote the dignity of mind, to advance that dignity to sublime worth of character, the holiest aspirations of soul, to advance their people, to see them prepared for selfgovernment, the sooner the better. Before religion, they are bound in good faith, for the best promotion of their people's happiness. If they have sworn it when put into office, then they must absolve themselves from perjury, if they fail in good faith to their people. The clergy of absolutism are false and recreant, dishonored, base and degraded before God and man, all over the world, to fetter the human mind with the foul stains of superstition, with the priestly iniquities and corruptions, to defer or prevent any lights of mind, especially in pure religion, by all the best avenues of mental light. All good citizens are responsible for their influence, present and future, in corrupting or perverting the mind of the world in government or religion, on all which reason alone can decide. All civil and religious functionaries throughout the world, are duly responsible for any delay, sophistry or prevarication of this noblest subject of mind, in failing to meet candidly all essential points, and with the proper characteristics, for all false pretences, knowing them to be such, and merely adopting them as the means of advancing temporal interests, and self-aggrandizement. ENLIGHTENED LEGISLATION, Should advance and aid the morals of the people by its laws, making penalty suitable to the crime and preventive of it, if practicable, certainly reducing it to the least of evils, by a perfect independence of all respect to persons whatsoever. But laws cannot precede morals, unless legislators are themselves endowed with all proper rational light. Public opinion must be cultivated, and enlightened. The legislation must refer to, and embrace all necessary principles and nothing short of them, to reach the only full benefits, as no partial and defective legislation can secure the full confidence and protection for free intelligent minds. It is absurd to pretend, that the laws of principles cannot be executed in such society, made sensible of their nature, propriety, necessity and their essential value. Where are the judges? Make them of the proper materials, of the highest talents, and most winning, sterling integrity, not broken-down political hacks and gamblers, the creatures of creatures, but responsible and independent, on good behavior by the most meritorious rewards, but dependent censurable and degraded on bad conduct, all of which when necessary, to be recognised with due propriety and prompt good faith. Have your judges seated on their high seats, by high actions, above fear and reproach. Thus then, we have the proper security for righteous legislation, just judgment, and prompt and faithful execution. The world is only responsible to the God of the universe, not to the distortion of paganism, that mind cannot recognise nor reason adopt. Banished be liberty and freedom that are nothing but names, if we cannot attain to all they guarantee in life. Analysis enables us to appreciate with most fervent gratitude, one of the greatest gifts of deity, intended for mind's most invaluable treasure, free agency, enlightenment and permanency of principles. Analysis then endows it with self-elevation, but bible libels degrade it by a miserable deterioration. Free agency of mind, that bespeaks a proper responsibility to the creator, is best presented by the most liberal circle, free constitutional government. Absolutism that deals in faith without reason, can promise no such rightful func tions. Society is then blessed in the free rational exercise of mind, in all the subjects presented in the universe. God, who would absolve man and mind from all responsibility, presents an idea that subverts all social rights and universal order, all moral rectitude. The reason of conscience and civilization, justifies the unequivocal belief, that God interferes no more with rightful free agency of mind, than the maintenance of universal protection and providence. power. Predestinarianism is a peculiar doctrine, and befouled by its peculiar creed for People must look by mind to God, and not to sectarianism, that is antagonistic to Catholicism, and is entirely opposed to rational religion, the only plan or system that the God of the universe has given to mankind. Where is the limit of hypocrisy? In the limit of primary errors, that embrace this whole position. All are more or less sinful at times, from various causes and circumstances of temptation; then they are to refer for correction to general principles, with which their minds must be identified, that enlightened reason instructs them in, to seek consistent action accordingly. PRAYER-GRATITUDE-FIDELITY-FREE AGENCY OF MIND. FREE government alone, exempt from church and state despotism, can give free agency of mind, an absolutely necessary constituent of religion. A universal dangerous state of things arises in several ways about peculiar faith, that originates all the heresies that are absurd before the tribunal of rational mind. Prayer is communing, and is most important to express humility before and to God the author of the universe, eternity and all power, the giver of all good, who alone can excite our purest gratitude, and our best adoration, whose inspiration of mind should keep down all impiety and blasphemy towards him, and all impure thoughts in ourselves. What petition can prayer present to an omniscient Almighty? Prayer is the adoption of conservative principles. But prayer is action or communion, to abjure the faults of all, to see the deformity and nakedness of their position; to rely exclusively on their Creator, and renounce superstition and infidelity to God. Man is yet to learn the capacity of proper life, and its proper mode. Ingenuous youth would take hold of their immediate interests, if rightly directed so to do, by proper tuition of proper principles. The great truths and elements of liberty and free action, enable mind to do right, and proclaim the rightful possession and ownership in God the Creator. Then what can all prayers of words avail in peculiar faith that is unprincipled ? The only hold on the human will, is through reason, honor and truth. If you cannot decide moral justice by mind, how is man accountable? If mind be a free agent, having the freedom of action and cultivation, its acts are accountable. If the gospel of any messiahship be clearly untrue, must not mind be accountable as it is free agent, for the adoption? God has not only created mind a free agent, but he has vouchsafed to it reason and truth to build a right faith. The system of principles is the only one as that of God, that can satisfy mind, to criticise and rebuke the vices of the world, as analysis is best fortified by science, and truth is defended by facts. The minds of free intelligent Americans are the very ones to elicit all the facts; as the governments of absolutism have sought to repel all that would convict peculiar bibles before the people. Americans above all others, should prove their fidelity to God, for all their national honors and privileges, so signally and providentially awarded them. Skeptics must know that it is to learn that mind must do its duty to secure all the divine agency identified with the best results of principles, that secure the holiest interposition. This is the spirit of religion, and comprehends all practicable duty. What are you doing individually to help the world. Stop the world-intriguing and deception. Seek a correct knowledge of the world, and a right action thereon. It is most expedient to ascertain what is the highest action that mind can pay to the author of the universe. That cannot be less than the highest-minded adoration, and the exactest duty to the world. What all these are, mind must seek the highest rationality, the most refined civilization to decide. WHO ARE ANTI-GOD? ALL who assume God's attributes to impose on the world, and speculate on its credulity. Mortals of this age of the world, must have their senses blunted in deep and wilful ignorance and stupidity, to yield credence to pretensions that interfere with Deity's exclusive attributes. If they have seen such light, original or reflected, and will not acknowledge that which is God's, and assert what is rightful and reasonable, but are wilfully blind, then this position must be applied, in full force and virtue, to all such that refuse that justice. Their insincerity and bad example will rise up in just judgment against them. Above all, at first and last, and all the time, they must adore, in full, their Creator, who has endowed all rational minds with the highest proof of an Almighty, referable to their conscience. They cannot now escape this conviction, if they will. The hand-writing of God can be read and understood by mind, to which he speaks universally, not in mysteries, but in the plainest, soundest proper sense. If the soul belonged to priests and theologians, then they could implicitly dictate; but as mind has the keeping of this position, and is responsible, let it have the decision in its own right. The best proof of irreligion, is adoption of peculiar bibles, and the outrages on the world growing out of them, thus proving them clearly not of a pure source. Take away my bible, says the pope? Do you seek to strip me of my sceptre, my potent temporal power, to guide the world by infallible despotism? You cannot take my bible, says the autocrat! I am the head of my empire, and that enables me to rule my serfs most blindly; for if you take away superstition, the potent charm is broken; they will then seek the God of the universe. If you put away that bible, you put away, then, much of the false governments of the world. Do you, American, wish to retain such false bibles, bloodhound statutes, to murder up and enslave billions of the human race? To drain their blood, property, liberty, soul, virtue, reputation, life, everything, the whole world as far as can be commanded? If perjury can be consecrated, and the clergy be divine, then the world can submit to all the folly and crime of self-delusion. The whole scheme of the priestocracy is that of ungodly usurpation and monopoly. The dark ages of malign peculiar faith are about departing, on the approach of brighter rational light. In all the departments of life, the rational world is progressing, in all that is proper and essential to mind. The mighty conservative revolution of rational mind is advancing, pregnant with mighty reform, in science, religion and government, exciting the greatest blessings of mind, by its appropriate reward, the meed of merit. The absorption into sectarian and partisan views is diminishing, alike subversive of true dignity, moral worth, and rational greatness. Never, till rational mind is free as air, to seek abroad in the whole world, in all the expanse of its noble theatre-nature, can it reach its proper elevation. Confine it by the trammels of the world's despotic bibles, invade its highest prerogatives by every prejudice that self-interest, most contracted and bigoted, invents; attempt its acquiescence by force and numbers, it revolts. The God of nature will never permit it. The delusion will be seen, sooner or later, and unless weakness interrupts the decision, the fact will be then recognised, assuredly in the history of mind, the history, then, of the universe, not of this world, to which petty messiahs are dwarfed, by pusillanimous priestocracy. APHORISMS. EXCEL all in politeness and courtesy, the genuine effusions of mind, cultivated in humanity, civilization, and religion. We ought to be wiser to-day than on yesterday. Then proxy thought for us, now we think for ourselves. You may injure yourself worse than others can injure you, mentally or bodily, through imprudence. Counteract all practicable perfidy, by having the right basis. Wise legislators must counteract private vices and crimes, by removing the necessity that creates them. How miserable the ignorant often make themselves out of elements that correct science makes most, and rules subservient to man's good, and mind's supremacy. The miracles of the stupidly ignorant, are the servants of the wise. Enlightened mind rejects the trammels of partyism, that deprives principles of their legitimate usefulness. Always act with best humanity, according to the circumstances of the case. Be no party to any transaction that involves character, therefore revolve in mind. your duty first. The good society citizen seeks to be a gentleman, nature's nobleman, and always aspires to do benevolent acts. The proffer of the world has honorable exceptions, to being bought and requited by some worldly kindness. We must watch the world in its intrigues, and counteract its corruptions. Trust few implicitly, and only those well known, but be just to all. Who can defend indefensible points; of them we are to be silent-certainly not risk their identification, without proper reasons and exceptions, clearly seen. Use intelligence the light of life-the guide of reason and rational mind—above all, virtue, that triumphs over all difficulties, even of defeat. It is expedient that principles of knowledge and human nature should be exposed to the world, to its best profit. We all pay dearly for experience. Anticipate that. We can trust none too far, not even one's self, as self-interest causes much deception. How many persons have a direct interest in all they advise. The noblest position of an honorable freeman is not to permit sophistry. He must feel indignant at the propagation of superstition, from peculiar faith to fortune-telling. A conscientious man governs his impulses; a wise one looks to the remotest conse quences. A proper rational education, to direct all, is an invaluable treasure of the world. Sympathize, but rarely advise, in misfortunes, unless requested; as you may be accountable for what you could not control. To ask for true confidence is to merit it. This This is prayer. To be independent of the world, is the way to attract its highest respect and regard. No class or caste of man can possibly be the guide of the world, while principles are of paramount importance. There are no mysteries, but to ignorance. Public sentiment, unless enlightened, is a scourge, through opinion, very often. A gentle but firm handling of all subjects, may do wonders. We must make no compromise with principles. Religious fasting is not on the principles of physiology. Analyze all things, before action. Nothing is out of date with honesty but low revenge and meanness. Examine all things, before purchase or adoption, by mind, as mind and investigation, through wise minds, can. In all cases, the dishonorable view ever recoils on the originator most deservedly, or may rarely, if ever, profit. The wise man, of well cultivated intellect, makes every day that of judgment. Never fish with bait more valuable than the fish to be caught, much less be the fish caught, instead of the one hooked. The conservative companion is that which causes independent thought, for correct action for one's self and age. While some affect that others cannot honestly rise in the world, they may never rise by their own cunning and deceit. |