We have but this one appeal against irresistible power--
"Si genus humanum et mortalia temnitis arma,
At sperate Deos memores fandi atque nefandi."
Taking it for granted that I do not write to the disciples of the
Parisian philosophy, I may assume, that the awful Author of our being is
the Author of our place in the order of existence; and that, having
disposed and marshalled us by a divine tactic, not according to our
will, but according to his, he has, in and by that disposition,
virtually subjected us to act the part which belongs to the place
assigned us. We have obligations to mankind at large, which are not in
consequence of any special voluntary pact. They arise from the relation
of man to man, and the relation of man to God, which relations are not
matters of choice. On the contrary, the force of all the pacts which we
enter into with any particular person, or number of persons, amongst
mankind, depends upon those prior obligations. In some cases the
subordinate relations are voluntary, in others they are necessary--but
the duties are all compulsive. When we marry, the choice is voluntary,
but the duties are not matter of choice. They are dictated by the nature
of the situation. Dark and inscrutable are the ways by which we come
into the world. The instincts which give rise to this mysterious process
of nature are not of our making.
Pages:
347
348
349
350
351
352
353
354
355
356
357
358
359
360
361
362
363
364
365
366
367
368
369
370
371