CHAPTER XII.

THE DUTIES OF THE INDIVIDUAL.

WE are now prepared to enter upon an inquiry into the duties of the individual man. Duty is the correlative of right; what another has a right to exact of us it is our duty to perform; and as rights are determined, defined by law, duty is simply the doing of those acts which the law commands, and the not doing of those acts which the law prohibits. When, therefore, we know the law, the right, we know the duty resting upon us; hence the great work of life is the obeying of law, is the doing of our duty. These laws, which we are to obey, are the product of the divine mind; the expression of the ideas, by which he wrought in the creation of this universe, of the material and moral worlds. happiness in the other are found, are of a perfect obedience to these laws. in conforming his whole life to these himself physically, intellectually and morally, in accordance with the divine idea of humanity, in accordance with the divine plan by which He wrought in the creation of man. In doing this man will develop himself, all his powers and susceptibilities in accordance with the law of his own being, his own nature, his own constitution. The effect of such a life, of such a development, must be moral harmony, inward concord, love, happiness.

Order in the one and possible only upon condition Man's duty is found, then, divine laws, in developing

The first duty of the individual, then, is to ascertain this law, to

take it up into his reason, to comprehend it. This can be accomplished only by a knowledge of the divine character; since in that character is found the ground and root of all his works. Law is but the expression of that character in action, since divine action must be conformed to the law of the divine character.

The first duty of the individual is then the study of the divine character, of God in His totality. The fear of God is said to be the beginning of wisdom; hence man should approach this study of the divine character with that reverence and humility which be

This state of mind

comes the creature in presence of the Creator. will prepare the man for the discovery and reception of the truth as it is found in the divine character, and its development in creation. In this reverence for God is included a worship of Him on our part, the indulgence of those feelings in reference to Him which His character and relation to us are calculated to produce in a human soul, wholly dependent for creation, preservation and happiness upon His interposition. We should also feel conscious of our own ignorance, of our limited capacities, of our liability to err, when we undertake to enter into the presence of the Infinite, and in some faint degree apprehend somewhat of His unlimited knowledge and its absolute certainty. We should then approach the study of God's character in the spirit of worshipers, as the best preparation of our own minds to apprehend it. The worship of God is then a duty resting upon every human being; a perpetual duty, which, when performed, tends to bring our minds, and thoughts, and actions into harmony with his mind, and thoughts, and actions, so far as the finite can imitate the infinite.

We must begin our study by believing, by faith, in God as a fact, as undisputable as our own existence. We also must form in our own minds a clear, definite and distinct idea of what God is; that he is a personality, an individuality as distinct from his creation as is the architect and builder from the house, which the one plans and the other erects; that He is possessed of a charac

ter, and in His action He acts in accordance with this character, and can act no otherwise without ceasing to be what He is. It is not enough to say that we do not deny any thing of all this; we must act affirmatively; we must believe, have a clear and definite belief, or faith, as to this Great Being, who is the beginning and end of all; in whom our spiritual life must begin, and toward whom it must ever tend.

This being is the source of all our happiness. He has formed us to be happy in living a life in accordance with His law, and the law of our very nature; hence we should also love Him with all our heart, and mind, and strength. Reverence and love are wholly subjective, are limited to our own spiritual life; are the development of powers with which God has endowed our spiritual nature. They are the effects which a right apprehension of God and His character, and His relations to humanity, is adapted to produce in the human soul-was designed to produce, to develop; while. a wrong apprehension of all this must develop feelings directly the reverse-1 -feelings of irreverence and hatred. Love is the fulfilling of the law, is that state of mind induced in the soul by the consciousness of having performed all our duties, lived up to the law of our own being, which is none other than the law of God.

Hence all profanity is sin, since it indicates a state of mind inconsistent with a proper appreciation of the divine character and action, and our relation to God. It indicates a thoughtless, heedless state of mind; while life is such a dread reality that earnest effort is called for at all times on our part, lest we should miss that knowledge, and come short of that life, which are the ground of our success and happiness. God is ever in earnest; never heedless or careless in His proceedings; so man should ever be earnest and careful in all his acts and doings. We must reverence whom we respect as so great and perfect; hence, while our minds are in a right state towards God we cannot be guilty of acts of irreverence or profanity. Oaths may be lawful, because, in

taking them, we appeal to God as a direct witness that what we are about to say is the truth; hence no one who disbelieves in a God can take an oath. To such a mind an oath is an absurdity; an appeal to what, as he believes, does not exist.

When the individual has thus studied the character of God, and ascertained the laws of duty, which are only another expression for the laws by which his own happiness is to be brought about, he must live up to these laws in the development of his own being, physical and spiritual. This is what is usually called our duty to ourselves. This duty is of a two-fold character, growing out of our two-fold nature, physical and spiritual, the body and the soul. We are composed of body and soul, and we have duties to discharge with reference to each.

The body is the home of the soul, where it is placed for the purpose of being developed and perfected. The spirit and its culture are the great end, the true object of human life, and the body is subordinate, secondary, a mean simply for this higher end. The body, then, is only important as a mean without which the life of the soul cannot be begun and perfected. Hence the rule of duty in reference to the body is that of maintaining it in a natural, healthy and sound condition; in that state which will contribute best to the spirit's development and culture. The spirit, the divine in humanity, cannot be successfully developed and cultivated unless the body is in such a condition. The management, then, of the body requires a knowledge of its wants, the laws of health, the means of avoiding disease. Hence the study of our physical nature and its laws becomes a part of our duty; a duty essential and indispensable to a successful culture of what is divine in us. Knowing these laws of health, we shall be able to avoid a violation of them, and thus secure and preserve that soundness of body, without which the spirit cannot be developed. Any excess, therefore, tending to impair the healthy action and growth of the body, is a moral wrong, since it tends to impair the vigorous action

of the spirit. All excess in eating, drinking, in the indulgence of any natural appetite, becomes a moral wrong, a sin, since it destroys that without which the spiritual in man cannot be developed. All our natural passions and appetites are then to be held in check, so that their indulgence may not impair the health of the body. Eating, drinking, clothing, etc., are but means to an end; not in themselves an end of life, as so many seem by their action to suppose. We are not to eat and drink for the pleasure it affords, but to provide sustenance for the body, without which it would perish. Hence all stimulating of the appetites with highly seasoned food is a wrong to the body, and through it to the soul, as its influence is to induce excess in eating. Whatever, therefore, impairs the vigor and health of the body is a moral wrong; a moral wrong, because it tends to destroy one of the essential instrumentalities by which God has appointed that the soul, the spiritual in man, should be developed and perfected.

The body is also to be provided with suitable lodging and clothing and food. Here, too, we must look to the end, and regard all these but as means to that end. The culture of the spirit is the end, and all else is but means. Now the means employed should be adapted to the end, and prepared with a single reference to that end. The mediate object is a sound and healthy body, in that condition essential to a successful culture of the moral, the spiritual in man. In providing for the wants of the body, we are not permitted to waste our time in accumulating superfluities, in making a vain show; our houses, and food, and clothing should be appropriate to accomplish this purpose; our houses should be calculated for health and convenience; our clothes not for mere show, but to subserve the wants of the body. And yet how many lose sight of their spiritual wants, and seem absorbed solely in material interest, as though houses and lands, palatial residences and gaudy dresses were the chief end of life, the only salvation for humanity. Mental and moral interests are lost sight of, the immortal in man be