a Supreme Being, and of our continual dependance upon him, and the duty of imploring his direction and assistance, are set aside, as inconsistent with the spirit of the age, and with the mode of conducting a fashionable education. The superintendents of mechanics' institutions, following the prevailing mode, have likewise agreed to banish from their institutions and discussions, all references to religion, and to the peculiarities of the Christian system.

Now, we maintain, that Christianity, in every point of view in which its revelations may be considered, is a subject of paramount importance. It is every thing, or it is nothing. It must reign supreme over every human pursuit, over every department of science, over every passion and affection, or be discarded altogether, as to its authority over man. It will admit of no compromises; for the authority with which it professes to be invested, is nothing less than the will of the Eternal, whose sovereign injunctions the inhabitants of earth and the hosts of heaven are bound to obey. If its claims to a divine origin can be disproved, then it may be set aside as unworthy of our regard, and ranked along with the other religions which have prevailed in the world. But, if it is admitted to be a revelation from the Creator of the universe to man on earth, its claims are irresistible, it cannot be rejected with impunity, and its divine principles and maxims ought to be interwoven with all our pursuits and associations.

The importance of Christianity may be evinced by such considerations as the following:-It communicates to us the only certain information we possess of the character, attributes, and purposes of the Creator, to whose laws and moral government we are all amenable. It discloses to us our state and condition,

as depraved creatures and violators of his righteous laws, and the doom which awaits the finally impenitent in the world to come. It informs us of the only method by which we may obtain forgiveness of sin, and complete deliverance from all the miseries and moral evils to which we are exposed. It inculcates those divine principles and moral precepts which are calculated to unite the whole human race in one harmonious and affectionate society, and to promote the happiness of every individual, both in "the life that now is, and in that which is to come." It presents before us sources of consolation, to cheer and support the mind, amidst the calamities and afflictions to which we are subjected in this mortal state. It unfolds to us, in part, the plan of God's moral government of the world, and the reasons of certain dispensations and moral phenomena, which would otherwise have remained inexplicable. In short, it proclaims the doctrine of a resurrection from the dead, and sets in the clearest light the certainty of a future state of punishments and rewards, subjects in which every individual of the human race is deeply interested-giving full assurance to all who comply with its requisitions, that, when their corporeal frames are dissolved, they "shall have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens," where they shall inherit "fulness of joy and pleasures for evermore.'

These are only some of the important revelations which Christianity unfolds. And, if it be a truth which cannot be denied, that we are naturally ignorant of God, can we be happy without being acquainted with his moral attributes, purposes and laws? If we be guilty and depraved—which the whole history of our race clearly demonstrates-can we feel true

enjoyment, if our guilt is not cancelled, and our depravity not counteracted ? Is it a matter of indifference, whether we acquire a knowledge of those moral principles, which will guide us in the path to wisdom and felicity, or be hurried along by heedless passions, in the devious ways of vice and folly? Is it of no importance, whether we obtain information respecting our eternal destiny, or remain in uncertainty whether death shall transport us to another world, or finally terminate our existence? Can any man, who calls himself a philosopher, maintain, with any show of reason, that it is unphilosophical, or contrary to the dictates of an enlightened understanding, that such subjects should form one great object of our attention—that they should be interwoven with all our studies and active employments—and that they should constitute the basis of all those instructions which are intended for the melioration and im

provement of mankind? To maintain such a position, would be to degrade philosophy in the eyes of every intelligent inquirer, and to render it unworthy of the patronage of every one who has a regard to the happiness of his species. That philosophy which truly deserves the name will at once admit, that concerns of the highest moment ought not to be set aside for matters of inferior consideration; but that every thing should be attended to in its proper order, and according to its relative importance. If such considerations have any weight, they prove, beyond dispute, that there is a glaring deficiency in our methods of education, where a foundation is not laid in the truths of Christianity, and where its authority is overlooked, and its claims disregarded.

Let us consider for a moment what would be the natural effects of a complete separation between

science and religion-between the general diffusion of knowledge and the great objects of the Christian faith. Science might still continue to prosecute discoveries, to enlarge its boundaries, and to apply its principles to the cultivation of new arts, and to the improvement of those which have hitherto been practised. Its studies might give a certain degree of polish to the mind, might prevent certain characters from running the rounds of fashionable dissipation, and, in every gradation in society, might counteract, to a certain degree, the tendency to indulgence in those mean and ignoble vices to which the lower ranks in every age have been addicted. But, although the standard of morals would be somewhat raised, and the exterior of life polished and improved, the latent principles of moral evil might still remain rankling in the breast. Pride, ambition, avarice, and revenge, receiving no counteraction from religious principle, might be secretly harboured and nourished in the heart, and ready to burst forth, on every excitement, in all the diabolical energies in which they have so frequently appeared amidst the contests of communities and nations. The recognition of a Supreme intelligence, to whom we are accountable, would soon be considered as unnecessary in scientific investigations, and his natural perfections overlooked; and, consequently, all the delightful affections of love, gratitude, admiration and reverence, which are inspired by the view of his moral attributes, and the transcendent excellence of his nature, would be undermined and annihilated. There would be no reliance on the superintending care of an unerring Providence, ordaining and directing every event to the most beneficial purposes, and no consolation derived, amidst the ills of life, from a view of

the rectitude and benevolence of the Divine government. The present world would be considered as the only scene of action and enjoyment; the hope of immortality, which supports and gladdens the pious mind, would be exterminated, and every thing beyond the shadow of death involved in gloom and uncertainty. The only true principles of moral action, which revealed religion inculcates, being overlooked or discarded, every one would consider himself as at liberty to act according as his humour and passions might dictate; and, in such a case, a scene of selfishness, rapacity, and horror, would quickly ensue, which would sap the foundations of social order, and banish happiness from the abodes of men.

Such would be the necessary effects of a complete renunciation of revealed religion, and such a state of things our literary and scientific mode of education has a natural tendency to produce, in so far as the truths of Christianity are set aside, or overlooked, in our plans of instruction. Where should our youths receive impressions of the Deity, and of the truths of religion, unless in those seminaries where they are taught the elements of general knowledge? Shall they be left to infer, that religion is a matter of trivial importance, from the circumstance, that it is completely overlooked throughout the whole range of their instructions? It may be said, that they have opportunities of receiving Christian instruction elsewhere, particularly from the ministers of religion; but will their minds be better prepared for relishing such instructions, because the religion of the Bible has been carefully kept out of view in the other departments of tuition? Will they not rather come to such instructions, with their minds biassed against the truths of revelation; especially when we consider,