rather than to shew the manner in which the study can be successfully pursued. At most, his explications on the subject appear to me to amount to this,-that before the study can be begun, perception from the Lord must be granted; which perception can be granted only to those who have purified their lives and hearts by obedience to the Word, and have, at the same time acquired a knowledge of the natural sciences. If I am right in supposing that he has proceeded no further than this, the conclusion of his paper is not a correct one. It ought rather to be 'That we can attain to the capacity of studying the science of correspondence only by the union of perception and the natural sciences.' This point being conceded to him, the manner of studying this divine science remains still unexplained. But while the manner of studying it is unknown, man's ability to study it at all may be disputed.

"The ancients esteemed this as the chief of sciences; they cultivated it, and composed their writings according to it; but between us and them there is this difference: they were in a state from which they could, as it were, descend to the study of this science; whereas we are in an inferior state, out of which we must ascend before we can attain even the capacity of studying this science, much more before we can successfully study and acquire it.

"It appears from all that has been written that the science of correspondence cannot be acquired by any merely intellectual efforts whatever, before the soul be elevated to a state of regeneration, and thus raised to the sphere of Divine illumination. The question is, when this height is acquired, what efforts will be necessary, what course must be pursued, in order to trace the wondrous chain of being from the Lord to nature? For my part, I shrink from the attempt to solve this problem, and comfort my soul, for its inability to penetrate the darkness, with the assurance that when that glorious height is reached, a Divine guide will be found there ready to lead me, still upward, at the same time counselling myself to more assiduous performance of every-day duty,-to a more strenuous subjection of every-day evil,-by which to attain that innocence of life and simplicity of heart, which are the only true and certain signs of a disposition to learn of the Lord."

SPES.

N. S. NO. XIII.-VOL. II.

D

THE POWER OF LOVE.

THE practice of universal love is now lost; and, being lost in practice, the very name has become obsolete and ridiculed, because viewed not in its use, but in its abuse. The term likewise has become limited in its application to the senses only, instead of leaving it, with its own wide and universal application, to all the noble attributes of man. Love is the warm incentive to all action, the pathos of the mind, and, in its orderly use, leads man to the enjoyment of all the faculties which render his life happy. The various uses of love occasion its various manifestations, and the different characteristics of men. Love is lost sight of, because men have judged from results, rather than from causes; from the character which exhibits itself first, instead of from that which is antecedent to character-love.

To shew the power of love, let us first take the converse, and shew what power is required in the absence of love to make man such as unsophisticated love would render him; and in doing this, let us go back to that primeval age when man first yielded to an influence inferior to that of love to his fellow-man,-to the influence of self-appropriation, which was the inversion of that true love, for and by which he was created. Yielding to this he became deficient in liberality; for illiberality had its origin in man's first setting apart for himself, in preference to others, that which otherwise the world might have shared with him; when he would have required no protection, consequently no laws. But for want of liberality, he accumulated for himself; and then the false delight of possession led him to require protection, in order to retain that for himself, which, previously, love would have induced him to impart to others. In this we see that love had the power to dispense with protection, and that when mankind sought protection among themselves, they had already seceded from the love of God and their neighbor, which, virtually, is self-protection and preservation; so that, had man remained under this divine and universal love, rights and laws would have been superfluous. But man, after the fall, in order to protect the accumulation which illiberality or want of love had led him to make, uncharitably determined to secure from his neighbor what he esteemed most himself; and for want of this love-regulation he considered laws necessary, instead of directing his energies to improvement in those affections which had degenerated from their primeval integrity. The false delight of self-gratification increasing, the appetite or the senses offered their ensnaring boon; the

passion of lust bringing the mind into thraldom, and honor becoming usurped by sensuality, rights were infringed, and regulations violated. A remedy was then sought in the effect, instead of tracing it to its cause, in the departure from love and charity. Thus when regulations became violated, laws more severe were instituted, and penalties were degradingly made the substitute for charitable love. Then man endeavored to uphold his integrity by that which constrained him from love, which is the source of all integrity; by a retaliative process, decreeing that for evil there should be punishment, which, in itself is evil. All punishment originates in man, not in God. Had man retained love, penal laws would not have been established; but having departed from love, he awarded evil for evil, instead of sympathizing with the aggressor, and treating him as diseased, and providing a remedy, as for a patient; as for one vitiated in habits, therefore ill in mind and soul. For which is absolutely in the greater danger, he that inflicts evil, or he upon whom the infliction is made? Doubtless, the man of sin needs most aid and attention. The Divine injunctions are, "if thine enemy hunger, feed him: by so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head." As if the Lord had said, the heart of thine enemy would be melted and overwhelmed with the love and magnanimity manifested towards him, when he could only have expected a return of hatred. Love to an enemy is much more calculated to assuage anger, and turn away wrath, than severer modes ;"A soft answer turneth away wrath." In this then we may see that love would be more powerful than penal laws.

It might be said in opposition, that men must have some physical punishment, or they would be constantly abusing the love of the gentle and meek; and that the very act of love would be misconstrued into falseness and effeminate cowardice. Admitting that such might often be the case, are we, therefore, justified in allowing the present system to continue, without endeavoring to provide against it for the future? If such laws must remain for the present race, let us use hitherto un tried endeavors to provide better laws for the rising generation. Let them not be taught by force and punishment, but led and induced by love. Let the good affections be enkindled by an internal excitement of charity, and the tender and pliable innocence of childhood be influenced by sympathy, so that the amiable dispositions should be early elicited as being the best and most essential foundation for the man to be built upon. Let the child be taught that mutual affection and commiserating love is the ultimatum of its existence. Let the first thing cherished be affection towards others, avoiding above all other things,

evil associations, never forgetting that the organs of acquisitiveness and imitation exist in early infancy, from which they so easily become the copy of their associates. Let the evil tendencies of their nature be carefully pointed out, as being the greatest enemies to all liberal views and sentiments; and, especially let the rod be avoided in the future education of youth. If the uneducated adult cannot be corrected without it, because his noble freedom of soul has been crushed by the rigorous and harsh discipline of clumsy teachers, there can be no plea for continuing the use of it towards the tender and modulative innocence of childhood: for the child should not act through fear of the rod, but from a grateful love to repay the kindness of an affectionate and wise teacher, by obedience to his suggestions. Thus, instead of exciting hatred by punishment, and thence obstinacy instead of obedience, love to its preceptor is induced, when all precepts are permanently felt and understood. The child that acts virtually through love, deceives neither himself nor his teacher; but one that acts through fear of punishment, deceives himself when he does good, because he imagines it to be his own act; when in truth it originates in punishment for his own act of volition was at the same time against it, because all his own actions spring from his love; and wherever the love does not produce it, the act is not his own.

Many works have been written and much care taken to excite emulation in children, but of an external kind only. By emulation virtue has certainly been encouraged, and vice decried; but it has not been taught that the want of love is the cause of vice, or the departure from virtue. Much more care is necessary to teach a child by exciting emulation than by inducing love. By exciting emulation pride is produced, sometimes to a lamentable extent; but by inducing love, the right genuine power is awakened, which is at once the best principle and most cogent solicitation to action. Love has no pride,— is not inactive; nor is it occupied in useless pursuits: but having its affections turned from itself, it is ever vigilant in promoting universal good, sweetly unconscious of its own internal gratification and spiritual progression. It may be asked, how is such love to be induced? In reply, I would ask,-how is emulation excited? how effectually did the laws and endeavors of Lycurgus excite a martial character among the Lacedæmonians, and this more particularly in his mode of educating youth? It is said of him, that "he resolved the whole business of legislation into the bringing up of youth," and depending so much upon this effect of education," he forbade the Spartans to have written laws." For he knew full well, even in his time,

that were education but well enough regulated by training the hearts of youth into the right inclinations, and by establishing the right principles in their affections, written laws themselves might be disdispensed with, as not so well calculated to obtain the desideratum. For he said," the habits which education produced in youth would answer in each the purpose of a lawgiver." How effectually does the old tale of Whittington, with his three years mayoralty, produce aspiring thoughts in the child! and how much is enterprize and fortitude awakened in youth by reading Robinson Crusoe or Telemachus, and this without any coercion whatever. How effectually, then, might benevolence and universal love be educed by the like means. We want works written, the sole object of which should be to exemplify love and charity as being the primary and most essential acquisitions that man can possess, estimating all others as secondary and of less importance. For what contributes so much to the happiness of all as kindness and good feeling towards each other? and what at the same time brings us nearer to the God and Lord of the heavens and earth, who is all love and all mercy, than this principle of benevolence? To this end he said,-" As I have loved you, even so love one another, that ye may glorify your Father which is in heaven,"for loving one another is glorifying God. But, unfortunately, philanthropy is at a discount in the present commercial epoch, when all the noble attributes of man are sacrificed at the shrine of commerce or aggrandizement. Man thinks it beneath him to love universally, though he does not think it beneath him to love himself. And this is the baneful tendency of the present generation. Parents in educating children, fear to indulge them in too liberal sentiments of benevolence, lest they should not take care of themselves. Why, then, are we astonished at the present state of things, seeing the injudicious caution exercised by parents; why wonder at the present evil, since parents are afraid of their children becoming too good: afraid of their having the right affections of good, lest they should injure themselves. I say it is not so much the province of man to create love or the affections of good, as to let the divine germ come forth, to encourage, to cultivate, and to feed it; which may be found more or less developing itself in every infant. Does not the fault, then, lie in that baneful love of self, first existing in the parent, and exhibiting itself in this fear of making the child too affectionate? He first extinguishes the spark of divine love by his own selfishness, and, then wondering that his offspring should become so perverse, inflicts punishment upon the evil being of his own production.

London.

J. G.