DOI Seite / Zitierlink:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.9550#0325
NUMBER IV.
275
or rather impossiblity every one must encounter who
attempts to enforce belief upon himself or upon
others.
In the second place I take the liberty of asking
these well-meaning Gentlemen, whether it is a matter
of speculation to believe one to be three and three to be
jjnel Whether it is a matter of opinion to bring
ourselves to believe that a perfect man is perfect God,
or in other words, that a complete man is not a man ?
iWhether it is a matter of speculation to be convinced
that an object confined to a small portion of the Earth
comprehends literally all the fulness of the Deity
bodily, and spreads over the whole universe ? Is it
also a matter of speculation that God whom Christians
and their Scripture represent as mere spirit and as the
author of the universe, was of the very seed of the
Jewish Patriarch Abraham, and of Jewish King. David ?
If these be matters of opinion, what then are- matters
grossly repugnant to reason and contrary to fact ? The
almighty and eternal Being (according to these Christian
theologians) was born, grew to manhood, suffered and
■died a shameful death. Does this signify nothing ?
Does it signify nothing to degrade our faculties and
give up the use of our senses, while we are viewing
the visible object of nature? If we do so in one thing,
why not 'do it in another ? If we set out on this
irrational career, where are we to stop ? May we not
from the example set in Theolgy, lay aside the use of
reason in other sciences also, and thereby impede the
progress of knowledge and introduce incalculable evils
into the world? I therefore hope that these Gentlemen
will, after more mature consideration, discover the
275
or rather impossiblity every one must encounter who
attempts to enforce belief upon himself or upon
others.
In the second place I take the liberty of asking
these well-meaning Gentlemen, whether it is a matter
of speculation to believe one to be three and three to be
jjnel Whether it is a matter of opinion to bring
ourselves to believe that a perfect man is perfect God,
or in other words, that a complete man is not a man ?
iWhether it is a matter of speculation to be convinced
that an object confined to a small portion of the Earth
comprehends literally all the fulness of the Deity
bodily, and spreads over the whole universe ? Is it
also a matter of speculation that God whom Christians
and their Scripture represent as mere spirit and as the
author of the universe, was of the very seed of the
Jewish Patriarch Abraham, and of Jewish King. David ?
If these be matters of opinion, what then are- matters
grossly repugnant to reason and contrary to fact ? The
almighty and eternal Being (according to these Christian
theologians) was born, grew to manhood, suffered and
■died a shameful death. Does this signify nothing ?
Does it signify nothing to degrade our faculties and
give up the use of our senses, while we are viewing
the visible object of nature? If we do so in one thing,
why not 'do it in another ? If we set out on this
irrational career, where are we to stop ? May we not
from the example set in Theolgy, lay aside the use of
reason in other sciences also, and thereby impede the
progress of knowledge and introduce incalculable evils
into the world? I therefore hope that these Gentlemen
will, after more mature consideration, discover the