_Q._ Cannot we, by the light of Reason, discover enough of futurity and
the attributes of God, to secure our peace of mind here, and our
happiness hereafter, without the aid of a revelation?
_A._ As well might you ask, cannot a merchant freight his vessel for a
voyage to a country of which he is entirely ignorant, and the
description of which he refuses to examine and believe;---who puts to
sea without his charts because they _may_ be false, and would rather
trust to his uninformed mind for a safe conduct through shoals and
breakers to the desired port.
What is reason, or the exercise of the reasoning faculty, but the
comparison of ideas and the exercise of the judgment thereon? And from
whence can we acquire ideas, where can we acquire information relating
to a subject so important as our future existence? The works of nature
are open to our view;---these indeed are a copious source, but their
insufficiency for promoting the love of God and of our fellow-creature,
is obvious to any one who will observe man in a state of nature.---If,
then, a fund of information is delivered to us, which carries with it
all the evidence of a divine revelation, which explains and assists the
language of nature, what should deter us from seizing with avidity the
precious deposit, and accumulating facts on which we may employ our
reasoning faculty to our eternal benefit.
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