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.
Ballou, Hosea
Revelation; Universalism -- Doctrines
I agree with you, that the case of this apostle comes under the rule
which you recollect I suggested in my sermon. He undoubtedly viewed
the religion which he received in room of the one he parted with the
most valuable. And to this agrees his own testimony. Phil. iii. 7, &c.
"But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ.
Yea, doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of
the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord; for whom I have suffered the
loss of all things, and do count them but dung that I may win Christ,
and be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of
the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the
righteousness which is of God by faith."
As you promise to say more on this subject, I shall _continue_ to
expect an attempt to deny the conversion of such a man as St. Paul is
set forth to have been, to the Christian religion, under all the
circumstances which the scripture account mentions; or an attempt to
show that such a conversion could _probably_ take place without
supposing the facts on which the religion of Christ was founded were
realities; or lastly, an acknowledgment that this conversion may
reasonably be allowed as evidence to us of the truth of the Christian
religion.
Should you be disposed to disallow the account which the scripture
gives of St. Paul, I will ask the favour of you to point out and show
to my understanding where in Paley's Horae Paulinae fails of proving
the truth of the scripture history of St. Paul.
* * * * *
What follows is designed to notice your sixth number; out of which the
following subjects are selected, on which some remarks are made.
1st. You observe that "when we hear things, which to our understanding
are improbable, the improbability of the facts raises a doubt in our
minds; and certainly there can be no harm in suspending our judgment,
nor yet in withholding our belief until we are fully satisfied." This
first subject regards the degrees of evidences which are required in
different cases, and the moral propriety of withholding the assent of
the mind in the case of a want of evidence.
2d. You are not disposed to doubt that many of the prophets were good
men; nor will you contend that they were not all such, and taught the
people according to the best of their abilities--And yet you hesitate
to allow the divinity of their testimony.
3d. I notice that you acknowledge that there are evidences in favour
of divine revelation, which would support it, if there were nothing to
counterbalance their testimony.
4th. You hardly know how to understand me where I suggest, that in
disproving the religion of Jesus Christ, you disprove all religion,
&c.
5th. An inquiry whether Jesus and the apostles might not be honest
men, and yet their testimony in certain cases not to be relied on!
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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