Ancient Faiths And Modern: A Dissertation upon Worships, Legends and Divinities in Central and Western Asia, Europe, and Elsewhere, Before the Christian Era. Showing Their Relations to Religious Customs as They Now Exist.Inman, Thomas
Religion
Ancient Faiths And Modern: A Dissertation upon Worships, Legends and Divinities in Central and Western Asia, Europe, and Elsewhere, Before the Christian Era. Showing Their Relations to Religious Customs as They Now Exist.
Inman, Thomas
Religions
The morality inculcated by teachers is nothing more than instructions
for mankind how to attain the greatest harmony amongst their fellows.
It is very natural for a thoughtless man to assert that one who wilfully
disturbs the general comfort of the human family during his life-time,
shall be tormented eternally after his death; and, on the other hand,
to proclaim that he who does everything in his power to increase the
happiness of his fellow-men shall be rewarded in a heaven above, with
everlasting music, or other delights; yet we may fairly doubt the
averments, for both are founded entirely upon human ideas of right and
wrong, justice and injustice. The prevalent idea is, that everything
which to some man seems to be wrong on earth, will be righted in another
sphere--Even Jesus appears to have adopted this view, for he talks (Luke
xvi) of a Dives and Lazarus--the one, a rich man who fared sumptuously
every day, and the other a beggar, full of sores, who longed for the
crumbs from wealth's table. After the deaths of these two people, we
are told that the rich man went to Hell, and the poor one to Heaven,
not--apparently--because one was bad and the other good; but simply
because misery in the present is sure to be changed into luxury for the
future, and _vice versa_. We see this doctrine distinctly enunciated by
the imaginary Abraham, in whose bosom Lazarus lay, for he remarks (Luke
xvi. 25), "Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good
things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and
thou art tormented." We nowhere find that his position was a reward to
the beggar for virtue or morality. There is also a current doctrine that
he whom we call a vile man--one who indulges his brutal desires, shall
in another world become more brutalized--meeting with, and being beaten
by, powers whose mischievous propensities are superior to his own;
whilst, on the other hand, he whom we call a saint, one who endeavours
to subdue the affections of the flesh in this world, shall be able to
indulge in any desire that he may have, in the next, unlimitedly. In
short, each individual makes a Heaven for himself, and a Hell for his
neighbours. I have heard, in days gone by, a Southern States lady say
she would not go to heaven, willingly, if she knew that she should meet
negroes there on terms of equality.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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