The Life of Benjamin Franklin: With Many Choice Anecdotes and admirable sayings of this great man never before published by any of his biographersWeems, M. L. (Mason Locke)
Philosophy
The Life of Benjamin Franklin: With Many Choice Anecdotes and admirable sayings of this great man never before published by any of his biographers
Weems, M. L. (Mason Locke)
Franklin, Benjamin, 1706-1790; Statesmen -- United States -- Biography
On the whole, sir, I cannot help expressing a wish, that every member
of the convention, who may still have objections, would, with me, on
this occasion, doubt a little of his own infallibility, and making
manifest our unanimity, put his name to this instrument.
CHAPTER XLIV.
"When ranting round in pleasure's ring,
Religion may be blinded,
Or if she give a random sting,
'Tis oft but little minded.
"But when on life we're tempest driv'n,
A conscience's but a canker;
A correspondence fix'd with heaven,
Is sure a noble anchor."
The time is now at hand that Franklin must die. When that time
approaches, or when only the chilling thought of it strikes the heart,
how happy is he who in looking on the withered face or snowy locks of
a dear friend, can enjoy the exulting hope that he is prepared for the
awful change. This leads us to speak of doctor Franklin on a much
higher subject than has yet engaged our attention. I mean his
religion.
I have met with nothing in the life of any great man in our country
about which there has been such universal inquiry, as about the
RELIGION OF DR. FRANKLIN.
Some, who in despite of Christ and all his apostles, will "_judge
their brother_;" and judge him too by the _letter_ which _killeth_,
will not allow that Dr. Franklin had any religion at all, because,
forsooth, he did not _believe_ and "_confess Christ before men_," in
the manner they did. But others, construing the Gospel, as Christ
himself commands, by "_the spirit_;" which teaches that, "_with the
heart man believeth unto salvation, through love and good works_;" and
that the right way of "_confessing Christ before men_" is by a _good
life_.--These gentlemen tell us, that Dr. Franklin not only had
religion, but had it in an eminent degree.
Most people seem inclined to judge of Dr. Franklin by these latter
commentators, and wind up with the words of our great moral poet.
"For modes of faith, let graceless zealots fight;
His can't be wrong, whose Life is in the right."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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