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A Series of Letters, in Defence of Divine Revelation: In Reply to Rev. Abner Kneeland's Serious Inquiry into the Authenticity of the Same. To Which is Added, a Religious Correspondence, Between the Rev. Hosea Ballou, and the Rev. Dr. Joseph Buckminster and Rev. Joseph Walton, Pastors of Congregational Churches in Portsmouth, N. H.Ballou, Hosea

Religion

A Series of Letters, in Defence of Divine Revelation: In Reply to Rev. Abner Kneeland's Serious Inquiry into the Authenticity of the Same. To Which is Added, a Religious Correspondence, Between the Rev. Hosea Ballou, and the Rev. Dr. Joseph Buckminster and Rev. Joseph Walton, Pastors of Congregational Churches in Portsmouth, N. H.

Name: A Series of Letters, in Defence of Divine Revelation: In Reply to Rev. Abner Kneeland's Serious Inquiry into the Authenticity of the Same. To Which is Added, a Religious Correspondence, Between the Rev. Hosea Ballou, and the Rev. Dr. Joseph Buckminster and Rev. Joseph Walton, Pastors of Congregational Churches in Portsmouth, N. H.
Author: Ballou, Hosea

Ballou, Hosea

Revelation; Universalism -- Doctrines

"I will only observe here that a miracle, as I conceive, must be
performed agreeable to, or else it must be a violation of the laws of
nature. If the former, whatever it might be to others, to those who
understood the means of its operation, it could be, strictly speaking,
no miracle; and if no miracle, no evidence, to them, of divine
inspiration: but if the latter, and those who performed the same were
ignorant of the power by which they were performed, I do not see how
that the performance of a miracle could give them any knowledge of
futurity. And if not, what did give it to them, and in what way was it
given?

"It will still be recollected that I do not admit the existence of
miracles, although I speak of them as though they were true, merely to
shew that even if they were true I should still have my difficulties
respecting the truth of divine revelation.

"6th. Your remarks under the sixth article are satisfactory, though
they have not convinced me of the incorrectness of my opinion; because
that which is founded in _truth_ is, after all the only thing that is
'good and nourishing' to the understanding. The sound mind pants only
after truth; and as he knows eternal truth is unalterable, he is not
foolish enough even to desire, it should be what it is not. The reason
why we often desire that which we cannot have is because, not knowing
the whole truth, we do not know but that we may have the things we
desire.

"7th. As it respects 'not even deserving a future existence,' I was
not fully understood. I only meant an _anxious_ desire, as I expressed
a little before, and as also I expressed _anxious concern_ a little
after; that is a desire which is incompatible with reconciliation to
truth whether that truth gives us little or much. Had not truth been
favourable to our existence we certainly should not have existed; and
I can see no reason to fear a truth which has been so favourable as to
give us being. It is true, a desire to exist as long as we can enjoy
life seems to be inseparably connected with our moral nature; and yet
I can see no terror in that which takes away our sensibility, whether
it be for a night, for ages, or for eternity. I should just as soon
think of being terrified at the idea of a sound and sweet sleep. If
the truth be what I suspect it is, I see no good reason why it should
be revealed to us, any more than the hour of our death! This truth is
wisely concealed from us.

Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.