mong the lost. The
trouble about Christianity is that it is infinitely selfish. Each
man thinks that if he can save his own little, shriveled, microscopic
soul, that is enough. No matter what becomes of the rest.
Christianity has no consolation for a generous man. I do not wish
to go to heaven if the ones who have given me joy are to be lost.
I would much rather go with them. The only thing that makes life
endurable in this world is human love, and yet, according to
Christianity, that is the very thing we are not to have in the
other world. We are to be so taken up with Jesus and the angels,
that we shall care nothing about our brothers and sisters that have
been damned. We shall be so carried away with the music of the
harp that we shall not even hear the wail of father or mother.
Such a religion is a disgrace to human nature.

As to the second objection,--that society cannot be held together
in peace and good order without hell and a belief in eternal torment,
I would ask why an infinitely wise and good God should make people
of so poor and mean a character that society cannot be held together
without scaring them. Is it possible that God has so made the
world that the threat of eternal punishment is necessary for the
preservation of society?

The writer of the letter also says that it is necessary to believe
that if a man commits murder here he is destined to be punished in
hell for the offence. This is Christianity. Yet nearly every
murderer goes directly from the gallows to God. Nearly every
murderer takes it upon himself to lecture the assembled multitude
who have gathered to see him hanged, and invite them to meet him
in heaven. When the rope is about his neck he feels the wings
growing. That is the trouble with the Christian doctrine. Every
murderer is told he may repent and go to heaven, and have the
happiness of seeing his victim in hell. Should heaven at any time
become dull, the vein of pleasure can be re-thrilled by the sight
of his victim wriggling on the gridiron of God's justice. Really,
Christianity leads men to sin on credit. It sells rascality on
time and tells all the devils they can have the benefit of the
gospel bankrupt act.

The next point in the letter is that I do not preach for the benefit
of mankind, but for the money which is the price of blood. Of
course it makes no difference whether I preach for money or not.
That is to say, it makes no difference to the preached.