So this doctrine of election, in its other form, as usually taught by Orthodoxy, so harsh and terrible,—“_horrible decretum_,”—so dishonorable to God, so destructive to morality, so palsying to effort, grows lovely and encouraging when looked at aright. As one grows old, and looks back over his past life, he sees the working of this divine decree—working where he concurred with it, working where he resisted it. He sees more and more clearly what his election was, and how he has fulfilled it, how far failed. He sees himself as a youth, fiery and ardent, striving for one thing, educated by God for another. He sees how he was partly led and partly driven into his true work; how he has been made an instrument by God for good he never dreamed of to God’s other children. He says, “It is no doing of mine. It is the Lord’s doing. He chose me for it before the foundation of the world. I builded better than I knew. I have failed in a thousand plans of my own, but I have ignorantly fulfilled God’s plans. I am like Saul, the son of Kish, who went out to seek his father’s asses, and found a kingdom. I am like Schiller’s explorer, who went to sea with a thousand vessels, and came to shore saved in a single boat, yet having in that boat the best result of the whole voyage.” CHAPTER XII. IMMORTALITY AND THE RESURRECTION. § 1. Orthodox Doctrine. The Orthodox doctrine of the future life is thus stated in the Assembly’s Catechism, chapter 32:— “I. The bodies of men, after death, return to dust, and see corruption; but their souls (which neither die nor sleep) having an immortal subsistence, immediately return to God who gave them. The souls of the righteous, being then made perfect in holiness, are received into the highest heavens, where they behold the face of God, in light and glory, waiting for the full redemption of their bodies. And the souls of the wicked are cast into hell, where they remain in torments and utter darkness, reserved to the judgment of the great day. Besides these two places for souls separated from their bodies, the Scripture acknowledged none. “II. At the last day, such as are found alive shall not die, but be changed; and all the dead shall be raised up with the selfsame bodies, and none other, although with different qualities, which shall be united again with their souls forever. “III. The bodies of the unjust shall, by the power of Christ, be raised to dishonor; the bodies of the just by his Spirit unto honor, and be made conformable to his own glorious body.”