hands of the great Architect was pronounced to be GOOD. But if man, raised from nothingness into existence, furnished with high powers of thought and action, and supported by the daily gifts of the divine bounty, was created without a principle of love to his Maker, (analogous to the other implanted affections, only that it existed in an exceedingly higher degree, corresponding to the greatness of the object,) we cannot deny that we are utterly unable to perceive in such a result the basis of so marked a commendation, as far as the parents of the human race were concerned. It would seem, on the contrary, that such a work, framed with such a disregard of the most important relations, could not be pronounced good, even in the estimate of human reason, much less in that of a reason infinitely comprehensive and divine

But, furthermore, man is expressly said to have been created in the image of his Maker. That is to say, in the great outlines of his mental constitution, he was, in the first instance, a copy, (on a very limited scale, it is true,) but still a copy, in fact, of the Divine Mind. But we must suppose that God, both in his administration of ustice and benevolence, is regulated by a wise and full consideration of the relations of things. He always loves from the very perfection of his nature, what is worthy to be loved; and if he created man in his own image, (that is to say, with affections and moral sentiments corresponding to the nature and relations of things,) He must have created him with a disposition to love himself. We are not at liberty to suppose that he could by possibility create a being who should either hate or be indifferent towards another being, whom he knew not only to be infinitely wise and good, but to sustain the relation of a Creator, preserver, and benefactor. A being thus created, so utterly wanting in those affections which are required by the immutable relations of things, could hardly be said, with any degree of truth, to be created in the image of God. We infer, therefore, from the statement of man's being created in the Divine image, that he was created with a principle of love to his Maker And the same reason leads us to believe, that the principle was paramount to every other; corresponding, as far

as the limited powers of man would permit, to the infinitely exalted nature of its object. And, in addition to this, the analogy of the other implanted principles points to the conclusion, that, like them, it possesses a twofold action, instinctive and voluntary.

§ 378. Further proof that man was thus created.

Again, many of those passages of Scripture which are addressed to man in his present fallen state, appear to contemplate the restoration of this great principle. When the Saviour, on a certain occasion, was asked, in respect to the commandments, which of them was to be regarded as having the first or leading place, his answer was: "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment." Matt. xxii., 37, 38 This language implies, to say the least, the possibility of the existence of this principle; and particularly, that in a sinless or perfect state of the human race, it is indispensable.-Finally, that renovation of our nature, which is so frequently spoken of in the New Testament under the name of a New Creation or New Birth, and which is represented as being brought about by divine assistance, unquestionably, in the meaning of the writers of the Scriptures, involves the restoration of this essential element of the mental constitution. To be what he is required to be, man must be what he was before the Fall; and in order to be in this situation, the great requisite is, what has just been mentioned, to love God with all the heart.-We feel authorized, therefore, in asserting, that originally supreme love to God was an essential element of human nature; and that, at the present moment, it is, or ought to be in every human bosom, a distinct and operative principle. Its presence, as we shall be led to see in the succeeding section, makes man what he was designed to be; its absence furnishes an easy and philosophical explanation of those evils which, in the present state of things, so frequently press themselves on our notice.

379. Relation of the principle of supreme love to God to the other principles of the pathematic sensibilities.

In giving an account, in their succession and place, of

the principles of action which go to constitute the department of the Pathematic sensibilities, we feel at liberty, from what has been remarked, to place at their head, both as most important in its results and as highest in rank, the principle of supreme love to God. If it be said, as undoubtedly it may be said with too much truth, that this principle of human action, considered as a distinct and permanent principle, is obliterated, it is nevertheles! true that it is susceptible, with divine aid, of a restora tion. If it be asserted that men are not naturally governed by it, it still remains certain, if the precepts of Scripture may be understood with their obvious import, that they ought to be governed by it.

Mental philosophy, as well as Divine Revelation, clearly indicates, that there has been at some period a great mental convulsion; that the glory of the human mind, although not absolutely extinct, is greatly obscured; and that man, in respect to his intellectual and moral condition, is truly and aptly described as a fallen being. And in this deplorable state of moral obliquity and mutilation he will continue to remain, if the views which have been proposed are correct, until the principle of supreme love to God is reinstated. The wisdom which we claim for the structure of human nature cannot be asserted with confidence to exist, except on the supposition that this great pillar of its support originally belonged to it, and may yet, by possibility, belong to it.

upon

Now supposing this principle to exist in the human mind, either by being originally implanted as in Adam, or by being restored under the name of a Regeneration or New Creation, we naturally proceed to inquire what relation it holds to the other principles in this department of the mind, and what results are likely to attend it. In point of mere rank, (that is to say, in the position which it occupies and ought to occupy in our estimation,) we cannot hesitate to say that it stands first; not only before the Appetites and Propensities, but before all the other Affections, the class with which it is itself properly arranged; taking the precedence by an incalculable remove, not only of the love of country and the love of friends, but of the love of parents and children. "He

that loveth father or mother more than me, is not worthy ɔf me; and he that loveth son or daughter more than me, is not worthy of me." Matt. x., 37. The benefic.al results connected with the exercise of this principle are such as might be expected from the pre-eminent rank it sustains. When it is in its full exercise, rendered to its appropriate object, in the language of Scripture, with all the heart, and mind, and soul, it may be regarded as a matter of course, that all the subordinate principles will be kept in their place. The appetites, the propensities, and the domestic affections still exist; but such is the ascendency of love to the Supreme Being, that every inordinate tendency is rebuked, and they all revolve in the circle which God in the beginning assigned to them.

§ 380. The absence of this principle attended with an excessive and sinful action of other principles.

Now take for a moment the opposite view, and let us see if we may not account for what has sometimes been called the Depravity of human nature, without the necessity of supposing the implantation of principles which, in themselves necessarily, and under all circumstances, are evil. If the principle of Supreme love to God be removed from the place which both Scripture and reason agree in assigning to it in the original constitution of the mind, one of the most important checks on the undue exercise of the subordinate principles is of course taken away. The love which is drawn from the great source of all good will naturally centre in ourselves, and the principles which have relation to our present enjoyment and interest will become predominant. Hence we see the disorders which all impartial inquirers, even heathen philosophers, acknowledge to exist in the human race; and which it is the aim of enlightened reason and philosophy, and particularly of religion in its instructions and its special influences, to rectify. The Appetites, which before had their appropriate place and offices, have now broken over their allotted limits, and are, on every hand, leading their victims into the various forms of excess and debauchery. The Propensities, many of which connect us closely with our fellow-beings, and in their proper exer

cise impart no small degree of strength and enjoyment to human character, have become inordinately intense in their action. Conscience, it is true, continues to repeat its remonstrances; and the Will, under the suggestions of Conscience, makes more or less of resistance; but as they are not sustained by the love of the Supreme Being, which could not fail, if it existed, to operate in their favour, the contest becomes unequal, and the efforts which they make are found to be unavailing. In this state of things, men who, under other circumstances, would have leaned, and loved to lean, on the great arm of the Almighty for support, now find their chief enjoyment in the pursuit of wealth and power, and in the unrestricted intercourse and the uncertain enjoyments of the world.-It is in such a condition of things as this that we find the true source of the follies and crimes which afflict the human race. The dethronement of God in the heart necessarily involves the predominance of principles which, however innocent and useful in their just exercise, become in their excess evil, and "only evil continually."

381. Further illustrations of the results of th, absence of this principle. The topic of the last section is one of no small importance. The section, it will be noticed, consists chiefly of a statement of facts, without any attempt at explanations. As some persons may not at first readily perceive how it happens that the suspension or obliteration of the principle of love to God is necessarily or naturally attended with the evil results there ascribed to it, we will delay upon the subject a little longer. It is sometimes the case, that a mere additional illustration, placing the subject in a new light, will have the effect upon the mind of the inquirer of an argument or proof. If the suspension or obliteration of any other principle will be followed by results analogous to those which have been described as accessory to the extinction of love to God, we shall clearly have, in this circumstance, an evidence that the results in the last case have been correctly indicated. And, on the other hand, if the extinction or utter inaction of subordinate principles be not attended with irregularity and perversion in other parts of the mind, it will furnish a strong