CHAPTER XVIII.

SOCIAL MORALITY.

We have now ascertained the actual relation of humanity to God and His law; we find that all men do sin, do violate this law; that the human soul is born without that truth which is the light and life of it, and can obtain it only from its teachers; that it is prone ever to depart from this truth when obtained in its action; and, therefore, needs early and constant training in the way in which it should go. Society seems organized to accomplish this teaching. and training for every new born soul. It receives it on its entrance into life, into the bosom of the family, and accompanies it all through life with its influences for good or evil. Society, however, is no creature of human volition. It grows out of the very wants of humanity. The child is born under such circumstances as to render the family a necessity. God, therefore, requires parents to protect, nurture and educate their offspring. This is the plain. teaching of a morality which has God for its stand-point. And upon the family is built all the other organizations of society. We are born into society, and we cannot escape from it, if we would. Such is God's ordination, and He has fitted and adapted the human soul for society, and has rendered society necessary for it. The law, then, upon which society rests and is organized, is a divine law; and its duties are equally plain; it must provide for bodily wants, and educate the soul for obeying the law of its creation.

In this is involved the duty of teaching and training; the duty of filling the mind with God's truth; the duty, as far as it can be exercised, of leading and aiding the reason to obtain the mastery over the will. Unless this is done, humanity, born as it is, must become a slave to the understanding and nature; and the spirit remain undeveloped and uncultivated. If God thus purposed to develop the human soul, as it it is clear that he did, then society is the appointed instrumentality to carry out this purpose, to secure this end. God, too, has communicated His truth to humanity in society; it is by society that this truth must be kept, and handed down from generation to generation, by means of teaching and training. This great trust is committed to no one man, to no limited organization of men; it is committed to humanity as a unit, as a totality; so that out of a conflict of innumerable minds the truth may come forth pure and unadulterated from individual idiosyncrasies, and selfish corruptions. We see that this must be the law of God; since no other means are or have been provided for the accomplishment of this great work, this work of all works the most important; in comparison with which all other work is as the tiny hammer of the child in comparison with the mighty one of old Thor. This is the work for which the world was made, a divine work, God's work, which must be done, and done, too, in God's way.

The powers of society are, therefore, limited to its duties. Its duty is to teach God's law to the untaught, and to lead the unthinking to thought and correct moral action. Whatever is necessary to this end, it can do; but nothing against this. It can make no law of its own to supersede or override the law of God, as it has no commission from God for any such purpose. Society rests upon God's law, which law all are bound to obey; hence what every individual is bound to obey, no collection of individuals, no imaginary totality can violate; it is still the personal violation of each individual, and God will hold each responsible. Societies cannot sin; but individuals can, and as society acts through its members, it is

its members who sin, in any so called social violation of God's laws. Society, then, in all its arrangements, is appointed to enforce in time the laws of God, not to violate them. Such is the full extent of its power; He and it can show no commission for any other purpose. God is in society shaping and moulding humanity into His own image, and reconciling it to Himself. He is working through society; hence society is but God's agency to do God's work, and not the devil's work.

It has been said that society is an expediency, a compact entered into between human beings for their mutual benefit. If society is an expediency, then it can be got rid of, abolished, annihilated. Let these compact making philosophers set themselves down to the work of abolishing society. Where will they begin? How will they go to work? As they never have tried it, nor pointed out the way to do it, we may fairly conclude that it cannot be done; that there is but one way to get rid of society, and that is by getting rid of humanity. But how is society made? Has any one ever seen a society made? We think not. Society grows; it is not made; it begins in the family and grows out of it as naturally as the tree grows out of its seed. Men are born into society, and they can escape from it only by escaping from the world. Wherever there is more than one human being, there is society; these two minds must fight for the supremacy, so that there can be but one mind, or they must act together on God's law, which is common to them both. In this law is found that unity in diversity, out of which all order grows. All men are subjects of God's government, and hence in that have a bond of union; in enforcing these laws in time, there is still a bond of union underlying society and holding it together. The compact theory assumes that each man is an independent being, free to enter into society, or not, as he chooses. Is this true? Is man thus independent? Nay; rather, is he not bound to his fellow by a thousand ties of God's appointment, from which he cannot escape without violating his duty. Every human

being has duties to discharge towards every other human being. If he sees a fellow being starving, he must feed him; naked, he must clothe him; ignorant, he must enlighten him; vicious, he must labor to reclaim him. This compact theory, then, is an atheistic theory, a theory which ignores God and His laws, and sets man up for himself, acting for himself, and only going into society to secure and promote his own selfish interests. It is said that he gives up certain rights on entering into society. Man derives all his rights from God, all his duties from God. Can he strip himself of either? Can he give up his right to free thought? If so, he can escape from all moral responsibility, and avoid God's government. No man can give up the rights that God has given him, since these rights involve duties. Nor was society organized for any such purpose; its duty is to protect every human soul in the full enjoyment of its rights, and in the full discharge of its duties. Society can neither exonerate a man from doing his duty, nor rightfully interfere with him in the discharge of it. Its office is that of protection to the individual, protection against all who would violate his rights, or obstruct him in the discharge of his duties. He is to be protected as an individual in doing his duty to God, himself, and his fellow men; he is to be aided, if possible, in this; never hindered or prevented. Morality cannot be made by contract. Right and wrong are beyond human legislation, and ever will be. Society is, then, ordained of God, not made by compact; it is God's institution, not man's.

These notions of natural rights, rights of nature, grew out of atheistic ideas of the world and humanity. Man was assumed as an ultimate fact, as an independent fact; each having the rights of all, and the duties of none. On this theory, there could be no duties; there were only rights; and from one fact were all these rights deduced the fact that each man was an isolated being, entitled to pursue his own happiness according to his own notions, without let or hindrance from another human being. This idea is

the germ of all those schemes of social organization, which are founded on compact, or the assent of its members. Hence man could have no duties except such as were self-imposed. He entered into society on this theory, not in obedience to any law, but simply because he could thus the better secure his own personal ends, his own peace and happiness. On this theory war was the natural state of humanity; and strength the only legitimate authority. Now it is unnecessary to say that in all this God is not recognized as having created man and endowed him with capabilities, and clothed him with rights and laid upon him duties; because on this last theory war is not the normal state of humanity. Law exists among men, rights exist, duties exist; and by exercising these rights and performing these duties, society is organized and peace is the result; peace, then, not war, is the natural state of man. Atheism has infected all the social morality of the last hundred years; and to such an extent that even good men wrote treatises on moral and political science, not only tainted with, but founded upon, these atheistic theories.

There were evils existing, which gave this direction to human speculations. Monarchy in Europe had become an oppression; was regarded as a property, out of which profit was to be made, as out of any other property. Christian writers had presented monarchy as a divine institution, and demanded for it abject submission. Now such a doctrine contradicted human consciousness; and could not, therefore, command human respect. Every one felt that he had rights as against the government, and as they could not be found in the divine law, they must be found in natural law; the law, which human consciousness proclaimed against clerical teaching. The reäction, therefore, was towards atheism, and an atheistic theory of human society. Human consciousness was bound to vindicate itself against all devil-spun theories and wicked inventions. It therefore met this claim of divine right with a flat denial. As monarchy began its theory with God, consciousness