them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him." Now turn your thoughts to the expiring Saviour and hear him say; "Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit." To the same care, madam, you are invited to trust your beloved son, and in the same hope which sustained the blessed Jesus in death; and to take hold on the divine assurance, that "as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.". And may God, in his tender mercy, sanctify all your afflictions for your good, and grant you and your husband everlasting consolation, and good hope through grace.

There's pity in a Saviour's breast,
Compassion's in his eye;

To him, dear madam, fly for rest;
He marks the mourner's sigh.

The sorrows of a broken heart
He never will protest;
But consolation's balm impart,
And give affliction rest.

O fly to him, he's ever near;

Thy grief he makes his own;
With full assurance then draw near,
And bow before his throne.

In him you'll find a calm retreat,
And ev'ry blessing share,
While humbly bending at his feet,
Another Mary there.

I am, dear Madam,

Affectionately your's.

HOSEA BALLOU.

No. XV.

An Objection Considered.

As the evidences, which support the doctrine of Universal Salvation, multiply to the understanding of its

opposers, and as their weight accumulates in the sober judgment of men, as is natural, in all such cases, efforts are made to stigmatize a doctrine, against which, neither scripture nor reason can be made to bear testi-mony. Not unlike this kind of procedure was the conduct of the old Pharisees, who endeavored to stigmatise the uncontrovertible miracles of Jesus, as being effected by the agency of Beelzebub. Affected piety, which, like Jehu, calls on all to behold its zeal for the Lord, loudly and eloquently contends that the doctrine of Universal Salvation is dangerous to the interests of religion and morality, and that it therefore ought not to be countenanced in society, even if it be true. When learned ministers can find reason to justify themselves, in making such declarations, the many, who are in the habit of believing what their preachers say, without giving themselves the trouble of inquiring concerning the strict propriety of what comes from the sacred desk, are ready to give to such statements full and unreserved credit. It can be of but little use to try the power of the most convicting testimony and argument, to convince people, who have imbibed these notions, of the truth of a doctrine, which they are confident would demolish the whole superstructure of religion and morality. People, in general, are not prepared to see the cause of religion forsaken; they cannot be persuaded to dismiss themselves from all moral obligations, for the sake of embracing a doctrine, which they believe would eventuate in such deplorable consequences. Behind such a battery as this, the clergy who oppose the doctrine of Universal Salvation, feel themselves tolerably secure; and will so continue until the refuge of lies be removed.

The reader is now called on to consider cautiously this great and formidable objection. He is not now invited to examine the evidences in favor of this doctrine, which is supposed to be so pernicious in its effects; but to examine the objection itself, and by it

self. The question is this; is it reasonable to believe, that, if the doctrine of Universal Salvation were generally received, and entire confidence placed in its divine reality, religion would disappear, and all moral obligations be disregarded?

How shall we try a question of such importance? How and where shall we make our first attack on this most formidable fortress? Driven from every other entrenchment, our enemy has concentrated his whole force at this one single point! Here then we meet him; and here we are glad to meet him; for from this, his own chosen ground, he can never retreat. fails here, his defeat is complete and final.

If he

Reader, if you entertain any fear, you are not in a suitable condition to engage in our proposed enterprize. This very fear is all which renders our adversary formidable. Look at that huge mass, which appears like a mountain before you! There is no solidity there.Approach it, and it recedes!

Was

What is religion, and in what does it consist? It is allowed by all, that its whole substance is love to our heavenly Father and to one another.. Can a belief in God's universal, unchangeable and efficient goodness to man prevent our loving him and one another? there ever a more gross absurdity? Go to the clergy, who often reiterate this objection, which we are now considering, and ask them if a belief that our father in heaven loves all men, and has appointed us all to enjoy him forever, would alienate their affections from him, and from their fellow heirs of salvation? Will they answer in the affirmative? Then let them be honest, for once, and openly state, that all the time, in which they have pretended to desire the salvation of mankind, and in which they have offered up prayers to God, that he would graciously convert sinners, and sanctify them for heaven and happiness, they have acted the part of hypocrisy. If the prodigal's elder brother, who was angry with his father for receiving with

compassion, his penitent Son, had spent days and nights before in making supplications to his father, to have compassion on his brother, his anger would have betrayed an hypocrisy similar to this which characterises our opponents. But as the comparison now appears, it is much to the disadvantage of our adversaries. Let us admit another comparison. Suppose that those laborers in the vineyard, who bore the burden and heat of the day, had, during their labors, made many petitions, even with tears, to the owner of the vineyard, in behalf of those who were spending their time idly in the market places; suppose they had expostulated with the master, and had endeavored by all possible persuasion, to move him to have compassion on them, and grant them the same blessed penny which they were to receive; their murmuring at the good man for giving them as much as they themselves received, would have resembled the complaints which are necessarily embraced in the objection under consideration. But our modern pharisees have added one degree to the character of hypocrisy, which was reprimanded by the parables of the Saviour.

What is morality? Is it not the natural effects of our love to our Creator and to our fellow creatures? In relation to our neighbors, shall we not be moral, if we truly love them? And if the belief that our Father in heaven love them, connected with the examples of his love, will not induce us to love them, what will? If the goodness of God to ourselves, naturally alienates our hearts from him; and if the assurance of his favor to our fellow creatures will naturally incline u to hate them, then is there validity in the objection we are considering; but if the reverse is true, then is the whole objection removed.

us

Let this general subject be tried by reducing it to a practical question, in a small circle. Let the parent of a family of children, father or mother, become fully persuaded that God does, in deed and in truth, love

this whole family; that Jesus Christ is in fact the Saviour of this family; and that they are all the blessed heirs of everlasting life; will this belief render this parent unjust, unkind, and even unmerciful to this family? We know that nothing can be more repugnant to reason than such a conclusion.

Though it seems impossible to see this subject in a clearer light, we may look at it in the following shape. Let an affectionate mother be persuaded to believe that the infant in her arms is the object of divine indignation, and this mother's heart must either transform into the image of this indignation, or revolt from the being who is supposed to exercise it. And this evident fact leads us to reflect on what all history confirms; that the belief of eternal emnity in God has produced perpetual emnity in man.

It is a fact which no one will deny, who is acquainted with the history of the church, that its darkest ages have been the most free from the doctrine of Universal Salvation, and the most remarkable for impiety and immorality. And it is in sober faithfulness that we now assert, that the very image of hell has most manifestly appeared, in the unmerciful persecutions practised by those who believed in its strict eternity!

Those who urge the objection under consideration, are requested to name some sort of immorality, which has been unknown to the world, only when and where the doctrine of Universal Salvation has been believed. They are called on to hold up those impious frauds, which were never practised by a hierarchy who believed in the endless misery of millions of human beings, but which have been invented and practised by those few, who have believed and preached the doctrine of universal holiness and happiness.

While the writer of this regrets, with deep humility, the too visible want of conformity, in professed Universalists, to the pure maxims of our divine religion; he most sincerely thanks the Director of hearts, that