We crave this exercise of the reader's patience with the view of bringing him to the inquiry, in a state of mind somewhat prepared for the important function of deciding for himself in so complicated and profound a subject. We propose to remind him of a few general facts and principles which ought not on such a subject to be overlooked, and which if kept in mind may facilitate his judgment, or at least guard him against inconsideration, precipitancy, and a partial view of the manifold bearings of the entire question. The subject is confessedly a great one. It involves the highest interests of truth, religion, and the human race. It deserves, and perhaps will require of most, not only hours of serious prayerful attention, but probably weeks and months of protracted consideration; and from all who would thoroughly understand it, much more reading than will suffice for the single volume now before us.

1. The intelligent Christian reader is respectfully reminded that all the principles and facts that go to constitute the entire body of universal truth are of the same essential nature, are all perfectly harmonized in the mind of the One Infinite Being,-are so in themselves, and can never be otherwise contemplated by us without implying imperfection and mistake somewhere. 'The

voices of nature, and reason, and revelation are in harmony. 'We want only that facts be correctly stated, and that the words 'of Scripture be interpreted upon the principles of just philology; and we fear hot the result. We will search out the objects of science, the works of the Lord,' by the most careful investigation and vigorous induction, as if we had never heard of his 'word: and we will apply ourselves to the study of his word, with 'the strictest observance of the rules of interpretation, just as if we knew nothing of the physical world. We do not, therefore, 'speak of bringing about a conciliation between these two lines of 'fact and doctrine; for we anticipate that it already exists.' Smith, p. 169. Undoubtedly, if we perceive a dissonance among the truths of separate departments, we do them wrong, we dishonor the Author of nature or the Author of revelation. In this state our minds cannot be at rest. Our reason feels itself outraged; our mental calm is disturbed. Every intelligent believer in revelation admits the principle, that there can really be no discrepancy between the true philosophy of nature and the true theology of the Scriptures. He may be conscious of such discrepancy in his knowledge, and utterly unable to remove it: he may adhere to the general proposition of the abstract and absolute harmony of truth, both as to its parts among themselves, and as to the perfect knowledge of the divine Mind, but he may be conscious of something that disturbs that harmony in his mind, and he may very naturally and fairly endeavor to escape from the painful dilemma into which he thus falls, by attributing the felt

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discrepancy to his own ignorance, or imperfection, or unconscious error: but what we principally wish to enforce is, that this is a painful, anxious state of mind, from which it is his duty and his interest to free himself as speedily and as effectually as he can. A real lover of truth will not remain in error, nor retain in his reason a contradiction, one moment longer than is unavoidable-just because such a state is annoying and painful to his understanding. An escape from it is sought as an emancipation from intellectual bondage-as freedom and happiness to the rational soul. He will, therefore, use the salvo of his own ignorance, or mistake as sparingly as possible, because at best it leaves the mind uneasy and disturbed-it tells it to be quiet in ignorance which it hates, or in error which it despises: it may very properly say, wait for the discovery of the whole truth'-but still the mind retains its abhorrence of ignorance and its aspirations after complete knowledge. The best, therefore, that this salvo can effect is to keep the active and inquiring faculties in a state of uneasy neutrality. Every rational being feels that it is a law of his nature to prefer knowledge to ignorance, just as it is a corresponding law to prefer light to darkness; hence to the same nature perfect knowledge is better than partial, and as far as he can aspire to this, he does it necessarily, as one of the highest means of happiness. Every mind may not have the patience, or the industry, or the resolution to follow out its love of knowledge, but all will do so who have felt it to be their happiness to aspire after it, and an essential condition to their enjoyment in it, that its several departments shall appear in harmony-or at least supply no contradictions and discrepancies to disturb their reason or offend their love of truth.

2. If the mind becomes unsettled and dissatisfied under a sense of positive disagreement among perceived truths in general, then this disquietude rises higher in proportion to the magnitude of the interests that lie at stake, or the importance of the principles that may be implicated. If the disagreement necessarily presupposes that error has been admitted into our reasonings, or imposition practised upon our senses, and if those errors may by any possibility be found pregnant with injury to ourselves, then our disquietude increases proportionably. If the highest interests are hereby brought into jeopardy, the mind endures a painful conflict to which it perceives no termination or relief. To suffer any of these positive discrepancies between our religion and our philosophy to burthen the mind by remaining unsolved, supposing any reasonable solution is proposed, or that by dint of any mental labor we might reach one, is not only injurious to the honor of our religion, but a wanton exposure of our own minds to the temptation of abandoning, in some gloomy hour, all our religious feelings and opinions as mere fallacies and delusions. The ad

versary of our souls will not fail, sooner or later, to ply us with the difficulties alleged against our religion. He will entrench himself in the proposition, that it is far more likely we have been deceived in the reasoning which has led us to credit the Bible, than in the direct and unquestionable evidence of our senses. Hence we may

be driven on towards a state of infidelity, or become bewildered in doubt and scepticism.

3. If we could reconcile ourselves to hold the truth of a religion which seems to be contradicted by science, and, at the same time, admit the truths of a science which is directly contradicted by our religion, or resort to a middle course by holding the facts of science in doubt and abeyance, suspecting that the fallacy must lie there, and resort to this rotten kind of truce for the sake of retaining that which we feel to be infinitely more precious and important to us than all the human sciences put together; yet we ought not to expect that others, who feel less powerfully and tenderly the claims of religion, will do the same. How could we ask those who are not yet convinced of the importance of religion, or of the paramount claims of revelation, to listen to our arguments on its behalf, when, in the first step of the argument, we require them to abandon conclusions which are as clearly established in their view as their own existence. It would evidently be next to impossible for religion to make good its way in the face of such difficulties, especially when it is further considered that every human heart is naturally disinclined to accept the humbling truths of christianity, and predisposed to catch at every excuse for unbelief. To be indifferent to the supposed discrepancies, were to be indifferent to the success of the gospel, and the everlasting happiness of man kind; to give up the honor and truth of the Bible; place ourselves in the predicament of believing absurdities; and leave a resistless weapon in the hands of infidelity. The world as well as the philosophers must be expected to repudiate the authority of a professed revelation which seems to contradict the combined evidence of sense and reason. They will not listen for a moment to a teacher that sets aside natural facts, or aims to persuade them by his dogmatic authority that things are not as they perceive them to be. For their sake, therefore, it is supremely desirable that the disagreements should be fully and fearlessly examined, and, if possible, so adjusted, as to leave the respective authorities of revelation and science unimpeachable in their respective departments. In fact, for any man to believe contrary to the evidence of his senses, is at once to annul the rights of reason, concede the principle of the popish dogma of transubstantiation, and sap the very foundation of revealed religion.

Hence it behoves the zealous friends of the Bible to be cautious how they use against the discoveries of science an argument that may be turned against themselves with the most disastrous effect.

If any of these should be induced to question the policy or prudence of those christian advocates who are laboring to reconcile revelation and science; and if they think that the reasonings of the geologists may be safely and honestly disregarded or despised, they may ere long come to discover, that their own reasoning against physical facts has a wider range than they suspected, and that he who will not believe the evidence of his senses, cannot consistently believe in miracles, which all have a double dependence; first on the veracity of the senses, and then upon the veracity of human testimony.

4. It is further incumbent upon the intelligent christian to bear in mind, that the questions involved in the recent discoveries of geology, have no reference to the peculiar province of revelation, and no bearing whatever on the theology of the Bible. All its religious doctrines remain untouched. Neither Judaism as instituted by Moses, nor christianity as taught in the New Testament, can be affected in any of their moral principles or religious truths by the full admission of all that the science of geology requires us to believe. We are not, therefore, in the same position as we should have been if those discoveries had clashed with our religious sentiments concerning the trinity, the person of the Saviour, the atonement, or divine influence. In these, or similar cases, the christian might justly have alleged that his views upon these subjects were so implicated with the entire texture and paramount authority of revelation, that the evidence to convince him that these were untrue must at the same time subvert his entire faith in revelation; and that, therefore, his only resource was to hold the - reasonings and facts of geology in abeyance, till he should either discover some way of reconciling the differences, or till the alleged facts had corrected themselves. But the case is in no respect thus. Not one point of any moment to what is strictly and properly religion, is at stake; not one essential truth of christianity requires to be accommodated. Let the geologist be allowed to be right in all that he affirms to be established by physical facts, and not the slightest alteration will be necessary in any man's religious opinions or feelings. The whole question is one of interpretation, and not of the text; of interpretation, too, involving passages which allude exclusively to physical facts; and, whether the popular sense of those passages be ultimately adhered to, or the amended one adopted in its place, our religion will remain just as it was before. Let no one therefore imagine for a moment that, in contending for the old gloss, he is contending for important truth, the authority of Scripture, or the inspiration of Moses. Let it not be feared that, in relinquishing the popular notions, we are either invalidating the authority of an inspired author, or abandoning truths essential to our salvation, or the integrity of the book of God. It is very probable that many ill-informed and uninformed

persons, more rash than wise, may endeavor to persuade the religious public that, in resolutely standing by the old opinions, they are really valiant for the faith once delivered to the saints;' and no doubt we shall hear trumpeted forth heroic professions of the readiness of some persons to endure martyrdom, rather than abandon to their enemies what they will sanctify with the name of truth, revelation, and God. But we intreat our readers to observe that this is all vain and irrelevant boasting; a mere empty and officious zeal, originating not in that teachableness, candor, and humility, which christianity enjoins, but in the presumptuous arrogance of the veriest dogmatism, upholding the infallibility, not of the text, but of human interpretation. It will be quite time. enough for any man to show his zeal for the Lord, and talk of martyrdom, when the integrity or authority of the inspired records is impugned.

5. The alleged discoveries of geology neither trench in the slightest degree upon the evidence of the divine attributes derived from the works of creation, nor lessen the miraculous and morally punitive character of that particular catastrophe which is represented as a testimony against antediluvian transgression. The admissions required of us bear no analogy to the neological system of the rationalists which aims to exclude miracle altogether, and reduce the momentous facts of the Old and New Testament to a mythic representation of natural causes and effects. But, if any thing, we should maintain that the recent discoveries tend to augment our sense of the grandeur and incomprehensibleness of the Deity; to reinforce incalculably the reasonings of natural theology; and altogether to expand our conceptions of that glorious Being, who appears in the pages of revelation alone commencing that one out of many series of operations, which involved the existence and the interests of his noblest creature, and there alone affording the information essential to the well-being of that race, for whose use the world had been prepared by so protracted and complicated a process. The views of the divine nature thus elicited by the recent discoveries, prove, therefore, a clear accession to our knowledge of the divine power, wisdom, and beneficence, since they demonstrate creations initiative, though still analogous, and importing unity of design; and, while in some respects inferior, yet strictly inceptive, and introductory to that which was designed to be the grand, essential, and perfect commissariat of the human population. It is to be observed, that without such a lengthened preparation, the earth could not in many respects have afforded a suitable habitation for the human race. It is perfectly true, that the Creator might have found succedanea for human necessities, in some other methods of provision, or he might have made the race altogether free from such necessities, or he might have supplied them without means, by a succession of miraculous