timent,
and Religious Belief as the accidental hue or posture of the mind, I am
reluctantly but forcibly reminded of a very unpleasant page of
Metaphysics, viz., of the relations between God and Nature insinuated by
such philosophers as Hume. This acute, though most low-minded of
speculators, in his inquiry concerning the Human Understanding,
introduces, as is well known, Epicurus, that is, a teacher of atheism,
delivering an harangue to the Athenian people, not indeed in defence, but
in extenuation of that opinion. His object is to show that, whereas the
atheistic view is nothing else than the repudiation of theory, and an
accurate representation of phenomenon and fact, it cannot be dangerous,
unless phenomenon and fact be dangerous. Epicurus is made to say, that the
paralogism of philosophy has ever been that of arguing from Nature in
behalf of something beyond Nature, greater than Nature; whereas, God, as
he maintains, being known only through the visible world, our knowledge of
Him is absolutely commensurate with our knowledge of it,--is nothing
distinct from it,--is but a mode of viewing it. Hence it follows that,
provided we admit, as we cannot help admitting, the phenomena of Nature
and the world, it is only a question of words whether or not we go on to
the hypothesis of a second Being, not visible but immaterial, parallel and
coincident with Nature, to whom we give the name of God. "Allowing," he
says, "the gods to be the authors of the existence or order of the
universe, it follows that they possess that precise degree of power,
intelligence, and benevolence, which appears in their workmanship; but
nothing farther can be proved, except we call in the assistance of
exaggeration and flattery to supply the defects of argument and reasoning.
So far as the traces of any attributes, at present, appear, so far may we
conclude these attributes to exist. The supposition of farther attributes
is mere hypothesis; much more the supposition that, in distant periods of
place and time, there has been, or will be, a more magnificent display of
these attributes, and a scheme of administration more suitable to such
imaginary virtues."

Here is a reasoner, who would not hesitate to deny that there is any
distinct science or philosophy possible concerning the Supreme Being;
since every single thing we know of Him is this or that or the other
phenomenon, material or moral, which already falls under this or that
natural science. In