1845.] Letter to her Parents. 403 brightness and a clearness perfectly convincing to my wondering mind. I could no longer resist the mass of evidence which seemed fully to establish the superiority of the Father to the Son. I found that Christ always spoke of himself as inferior to his Father, of his power and authority as derived from his Father, - and it seemed to me that, if the case were otherwise, (with humility let me say it,) our blessed Lord had studiously endeavored to mislead us."- pp. 5, 6. "And now, when I sit down seriously to compare the system of doctrines with which I have so long been fettered, with those under the influence of which my freed spirit now joyfully springs to meet its benevolent Creator, I cannot but exclaim, 'thanks be to God, who hath given me the victory, through my Lord Jesus Christ!' My mind is disenthralled, disenchanted, awakened as from a death-like stupor, all mists are cleared away, and this feeling of light, and life, and liberty, arises from a delightful consciousness that I have learned to give the Scriptures a rational and simple interpretation, and that, on the most important of all subjects, I have learned to think for myself. My views of my Lord and Master are dearer to me than ever before, because they are more definite. He is still my Saviour, and the Saviour of the world—the instrument chosen by his Father through whom to bestow his unmerited mercy; a willing instrument, for he delighted to do his Father's will; an all-sufficient instrument, for all power was given unto him. I believe that a living faith, which will lead us to imitate him, is the only ground of our salvation; but, while I fully believe in the divinity of his character and of his mission, I do not believe that he was the supreme God himself. I believe in the efficacy of his death, the most striking circumstance of his history, for it was the seal of a new and better covenant, - an evidence of his divine commission, and of his devotion to his Father's will; without which he would not have given us such an assurance of the glorious certainty of a resurrection, by being himself the first-born from the dead; without which his work would have been incomplete, and much less calculated to affect our hearts, to bring us to repentance, to lead us to God, and to save our souls. - You cannot suppose, my beloved Parents, that I have embraced these opinions hastily or carelessly. It is painful to expose oneself to the charge of fickleness, and it is very painful to separate oneself from those who are near and dear; but God is to be my Judge; to Him alone I must answer for my opinions; to my own Master I must stand or fall; and I dare not disavow what, upon mature deliberation, I believe to be the truth. I love you, God knows how well! but I love the truth better; and your blessed Saviour and mine has said, 'He that loveth father or mother more than me, is not worthy of me.' If then I embrace in my heart the doctrine which appears to me to be taught by Christ himself, must I not avow it?"-pp. 8, 9. To a correspondent, whose arguments in behalf of Calvinism she has encountered with a masterly logic, she concludes in this elevated and impassioned strain : "After all that I have said, my dear Sir, after plainly stating to you how Calvinism appears to me now, you will not wonder that I dread and fear it. I regard it almost as I would some venomous serpent, from whose fangs I have but narrowly escaped. Too long has it been coiling itself around my struggling spirit. That its poisonous fangs have not reached my vitals, I owe to that wonderful Providence of God which has protected me from harm, and, at length, provided a way of escape. He has given me strength to struggle on, till, at length, I have thrown the monster from me. I bless God for my escape. You will perhaps think that this is unreasonably strong language; but if you only knew how I have suffered - how my whole life has been clouded over by this gloomy faith-how, even in moments when I have been joyfully welcoming the pure beams of the Sun of Righteousness, its dark cloud has frightened me from afar, its low, muttered tones of thunder have reached my ears, like a sound foreboding evil - you would not think my language too impassioned. Be it so or not, it is just as I feel. My religion is my all. Without it, what should I be, or what should I do! Without it, how, in my early years, could I have borne the changes and sorrows which have fallen to my lot? I love my religion dearly, for it has been emphatically my friend. Then, if I have been able conscientiously to give up all that was dark and debasing about it, while I keep all that is bright and elevating, how can I be too thankful? How can I speak too strongly I sometimes wonder why, before I had proved the all-sustaining power of religion in my own experience, I did not give way to skepticism, and become the victim of infidelity. I cannot but remember the shocking doubts which sometimes found their way into my mind; doubts which sometimes made me miserable for weeks together. Rebellious and unworthy thoughts of God, my heavenly Father and Friend; how they used to haunt and torture me! They grew out of my creed. To a person of my mental constitution,' if I thought about it at all, it could not be otherwise. I could not teach myself to reconcile contradictions. I could not school myself to receive, what always seemed to me absurdities. I never examined them deeply. I tried to believe them, but tried without success; or, 1845.] Subjects. 405 at most, it was a strange sort of belief, against my better judg ment. It was an extorted faith. I feared to believe otherwise. And soon the time came, when, under the pressure of deep affliction, religion became absolutely necessary to me. I clung therefore to the practical and truthful, shutting my eyes upon all the rest. I have, indeed, endeavored to indoctrinate myself— to understand what I thought I must believe, and to fill my mind with arguments for that belief; but I never before now thoroughly examined the question, whether those opinions were true. I never myself, and I confess it with sorrow, brought them meekly to the law and to the testimony, to judge, by my own reason, whether they could be found there. I was afraid to doubt. And in regard to the Trinity, I did not doubt till lately.” — pp. 131, 132. "For my part, I thank God that I am free. I breathe the air of religious liberty, and it revives my soul. I raise my unshackled hands in gratitude to Heaven, and sing aloud for joy. But still I remember the struggle the conflict between light and darkness the despairing avowal of a belief which was revolting to my very soul; it was wormwood and gall; my soul hath it in remembrance. My eyes are now opened to behold the truth, and beauty, and symmetry, of another faith than yours, and not all your declarations and bold assertions can turn what I behold, into what you assert it to be. Show me another scheme of faith, and let me compare it with the Bible, but do not attempt to frighten me by hard names and dark pictures of your own creation. It is easy to dress up a hideous figure, and call it Unitarianism, but those who are choosing for eternity will not be very readily deceived by any such imaginary creation."-p. 134. Among the letters which recur most prominently to our memory, are the fourth, containing an acute discussion with her father on the "connexion of doctrines;" the eighteenth, in which the writer detects and refutes the ingenious sophism of some religious friend, who wishes to withdraw her from the pursuit of what he considers abstract truth! the twenty-sixth, in which the author lucidly details the "method of investigation" by which she arrived at her present views-a model, as it seems to us, for all impartial students of the Scripture; and the thirtieth, or last, breathing forth the mingled tones of sorrow and joy from the depths of her own uncommon experience. But different letters, probably, will variously strike different minds. The following list of the titles of a portion of her letters, together with the recollection that under each title a number of collateral subjects are frequently started and exhausted, will convey some idea of the wide range of critical, moral, and theological disquisition pursued: - opening letter to her parents, giving a history of her "change of views;" the "terms, God and Lord;" "Scott's Notes, Whitby's retractation," etc.; "connexion of doctrines; " "investigation no crime;" "honesty-Dr. Watts;"" Unitarians do not deny Christ;" "views of atonement;" "mental freedom;" "Calvinism;" "God our Father; "signs of the times;" "truth and its consequences; "election;"" the phrase "I am";" "mental suffering;" "use of reason;""no human creeds;' "causes of infidelity;" "painful themes." An Appendix of more than forty pages illustrates the whole by several apposite quotations. It is to be hoped that the present volume is only an avant-courier for many a future one, and that Mrs. Dana's ready pen will follow new trains of speculation for the benefit of her adopted denomination, as well as the religious world at large. We congratulate our Spartan ranks on this unsought and unexpected acquisition. Votaries as we are of that calm and steadfast proselytism, which consists in an open and unflinching profession and defence of our faith, an humble endeavor to live according to its teachings, and a patient waiting for God's own spirit and providence to soften our opponents and multiply our associates, we shall not pretend to conceal the pleasure with which we have penned the foregoing pages, and recorded the event which they commemorate. At the same time, with the disappointments, exaggerated and shortlived though they will unquestionably prove to be, which this event may have occasioned among surrounding friends and connections, we profess respectfully to sympathise. We rejoice to know, that such has been the universal sentiment in the Unitarian congregation more immediately interested in Mrs. Dana's change of faith. And on the other hand, we equally rejoice to acknowledge, that the church which she has necessarily left, has neither outraged her feelings, nor dishonored its own records, nor offended the charitable, 1845.] Sumner's Oration. 407 Christian sense of the age, by any act of ecclesiastical persecution, or even censure. Would that all conscientious changes of opinion might be accompanied by similar exhibitions of charity and delicacy. Never, at least, may our own good cause acquire or dismiss its adherents, by trampling rough-shod over the sacred and tender feelings of humanity, although we are well aware that a policy so mild often tells scantily for the mere statistics of sect-building. We have all confidence in the eternal strength and unbounded growth of our principles; but whether they are to extend, as in the present instance, under circumstances of individual anguish and rapid development, or are to advance, as they have so often done, by a quiet and imperceptible expansion, until whole churches, and communities, and nations find themselves blown back by the silent breath of the Spirit to the shore of simple, primitive Christianity, may our only note of triumph ever be that, which we now tender to our neophyte friend- Welcome to a band of believers, whose prayers shall be raised for you, whose sympathies shall be with you, and who, while they wish and promise you all joy and peace in believing, will never interfere with the eagle-freedom of your thought! S. G. ART. IX.-SUMNER'S ORATION.* THE celebration of the Fourth of July was at first very naturally marked by the exultation of success. The founding of a national independent existence is an august work; the resistance to tyranny has been considered, in every age, a sacred duty. Life, fortune, and honor have been pledged to the achievement by the most gallant spirits who have illustrated the history of man. The American Revolution stands prominently forward among the great warlike and political events, which have been brought to pass by suffering, self-sacrifice and toil, and which have rewarded the actors in them with imperishable glory. The poet's lyre, *The True Grandeur of Nations; an Oration delivered before the Authorities of the City of Boston, July 4, 1845. By CHARLES SUMNER. Boston: J. H. Eastburn. 1845. 8vo. pp. 104. |