LEMUEL. Because the body decays, and the spirit cannot decay; and the spirit is not seen; Renovation and Decay. and when the spirit is gone the body cannot do any thing. MR. ALCOTT. Is it the invisibleness and the undecaying nature of the spirit, which makes it superior, then? Have you ever seen any perfect visible thing? GEORGE B. Yes; a rose. MR. ALCOTT. Did it remain perfect? GEORGE B. No. MR. ALCOTT. What thing is perfect and remains perfect? GEORGE K. Jesus' body was perfect, for it ascended into heaven. MR. ALCOTT. Is there proof that his body ascended? GEORGE K. The Bible says so. CHARLES. The Bible says the disciples saw him ascend. MR. ALCOTT. Yes, they saw him ascend; yet not perhaps his body; - and besides, Jesus' body suffered pain; and was it perfect, while it was suffering pain ? (No answer.) Can you say that your bodily senses are perfect, that they have never deceived you? (None held up hands.) When you look round the world, and see no perfect, visible thing, what do you feel? (No answer.) Sense of Imperfection. tion. Is there not something within you which measures all imperfection? CHARLES. Yes, the thought of Perfec MR. ALCOTT. By what do you measure your thought of Perfection? CHARLES. By God. MR. ALCOTT. Is the imperfection in the outward world a proof of something perfect within? (No answer.) For instance, you tell me that you have seen a person do something wrong: now, what do you make the standard? How do you know it is wrong? CHARLES. By Reason. LEMUEL. No; Judgment judges. EDWARD J. We measure by the spirit. MR. ALCOTT. what? What is in the spirit; a sense of - LEMUEL. A Sense of Good-of Perfection. MR. ALCOTT. Where is all proof, then? LEMUEL. In Conscience and in God. Standard of Per ence. MR. ALCOTT. And when Jesus utters the fection in Consci- divine injunction, "Be ye Perfect, even as your Father in Heaven is Perfect," he does but reannounce the sentiment of Duty in every conscience, which ever utters the same words. Now, do perfect things prove imperfect things, or imperfect things prove perfect things? GEORGE K. They prove each other. MR. ALCOTT. Does your spirit prove there is a God, or because there is a God, must your spirit be? CHARLES. Each proves the other. Idea of Absolute and Derivative Being. MR. ALCOTT. All proof then is in God, spirit being its own proof, because there is more of God in it, than in any thing outward. As an acorn reminds you of an oak, so does the spirit within remind you of God. Your spirits, like the acorns, (if you choose to carry on the figure,) drop off from God, to plant themselves in Time. Once they were within the oak, but they come out individual differing acorns, the seeds of new oaks. The other things mentioned are proofs of the same kind. Spirits are born out of the Supreme Spirit, and by their power of reproducing spirit, constantly prove their own existence from his existence, and his existence from their own. That there is a spirit in us all you have proofs, as you have shown. There are yet other proofs of spirit, especially the Life of Jesus Christ, which we are going to study. Historical Facts. He took a body and came into the world almost two thousand years before we did. He was seen, and those who saw and knew him, his friends,wrote down what he said and did; and their words make what are called the GOSPELS. Luke was one of these friends. He began an account of Jesus, — the Gospel of his life, that is, the Good News of his life, in these words: Mr. Alcott read THE GENERAL PREFACE TO THE GOSPELS. Pro A. D. 44. A. D. 64. Written in Achaia. MARK i. 1. Record of Gospels 1 The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus 1 Forasmuch as many have taken in hand to set forth in order a declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us, 2 Even as they delivered them unto us, which from the beginning were eyewitnesses, and ministers of the word; 3 It seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write unto thee in order, most excellent Theophilus, 4 That thou mightest know the certainty of those things, wherein thou hast been instructed. You perceive that Luke wrote this Gospel - this good news of Jesus Christ-for a particular friend. He had himself learned most of the facts from others, for he was not an eyewitness from the beginning. Credibility of Now I suppose that you can place entire confidence in these words, which are called the Gospels. You doubtless believe that they have a meaning, all of them, worth finding out; and you feel sure that they are all true. GEORGE K. There are some things I think truer. I believe those words, but I am more sure of some things. MR. ALCOTT. Of what? GEORGE K. Why-that the Stove is in the room. (See Note 11.) CHARLES. I do not believe that those words are the same as Luke wrote down. (See Note 12.) Authenticity of the Gospel Rec ord. MR. ALCOTT. Luke wrote in Greek; and these words are translated. But the Greek words are yet preserved, and those are the very words of Luke, as can be satisfactorily proved; for great care was taken of so valuable a writing, by the earliest Christians. (Some more conversation ensued on this subject, in which Charles was told that there had been a great deal of dispute concerning these writings in the early ages; and that it was now an undisputed fact, except by an individual here and there,—that these writings all belonged to the persons by whom they were said to be written. And that this was a subject he might examine for himself, when he was older.) (See Note 13.) Subject. You may now tell me what has been the subject of to-day's conversation. LEMUEL. Outward Evidences of Spirit. CHARLES. In Nature. OTHERS. And in the Gospel. MR. ALCOTT. And the Evidence for the Gospel Record. CONVERSATION III. REVELATION OF SPIRIT IN NATURE AND HUMANITY. INSPIRATION. Divine Genius of St. John the Evangelist. III. ONTOLOGICAL EVIDENCE. The Incarnate Word from the Sacred Text. -Inspiration. - Generation of Nature from Spirit. - Idea of Divinity and Creation. - Inspiration of Humanity. Animation of Nature. Inspiration of Scripture. - Idea of Perfect Humanity. - Sense of Human Imperfection. - Difference of Humanity from Divinity. Likeness of Humanity to Divinity. Sense of Perfection in Conscience. - Unity of God and Man. -Spiritual Presence. - Filial Union of Man with God. -Incarnation of Divinity. — Limitations of the Flesh. Self-Perfectibility. - Subject. Conclusion. MR. ALCOTT. Divine Genius of St. John. Another friend of Jesus, who wrote Good News of his life, was John. His Gospel is very interesting. He seemed to understand, how and why Jesus said and did things, better than the other disciples. The others seem to know what he did; John seems to know why he did it. Jesus loved John especially,—because his spiritual vision was clearer than the rest, perhaps. And this spirituality made him understand Jesus better than the rest did. (See Note 14.) See how he begins his gospel. Mr. Alcott read A. D. 97. Written at Ephesus. THE INCARNATE WORD. Inspiration. JOHN i. 1-5. 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 The same was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men. 5 And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. (See Note 15.) |