THE

PHILOSOPHY

OF A

FUTURE STAT E.

PART I.

PROOFS OF A FUTURE STATE.

INTRODUCTION.

THE sketches contained in Parts II. and III. of this work, being chiefly intended to illustrate the connexion of science. with the scenes of a future world, and the aids which its discoveries afford, for enabling us to form some conception of the perpetual improvement of its inhabitants in knowledge and felicity-I shall endeavour, in this First Part, to exhibit a condensed view of some of those evidences which prove the immortality of the soul, and the eternal destination of man.

This is an inquiry far more interesting and important, to every individual of mankind, than any other which comes within the range of the human mind. Next to the Being of a God, the doctrine of the immortality of man lies at the foundation of all religion, and of all the animating pros

pects which can cheer us in this land of our pilgrimage. Remove from the mind the belief of a future existence, and the hope of immortality, and religion becomes a shadow, life a dream, and the approach of death a scene of darkness and despair. Upon this short question, " Is man immortal, or is he not ?" depends all that is valuable in science, in morals, and in theology, and all that is most interesting to man as a social being, and as a rational and accountable intelligence. If he is destined to an eternal existence, an immense importance must attach to all his present affections, actions, and pursuits; and it must be a matter of infinite moment, that they be directed in such a channel, as will tend to carry him forward, in safety, to the felicities of a future world. But if his whole existence be circumscribed within the circle of a few fleeting years, man appears an enigma, an inexplicable phenomenon in the universe, human life a mystery, the world a scene of confusion, virtue a mere phantom, the Creator a capricious being, and his plans and arrangements an inextricable

maze.

There is too much reason to believe, that the indifference to religion which so generally prevails, especially among those who are raised a little above the vulgar throng, and the unhallowed propensities and vicious practices to which it gives rise—are owing, in a considerable degree, to the want of a full conviction of the reality of a future existence, or to some doubts which hover about the mind, in relation to this important point. There is no man, however insensible to the obligations of religion, that can fully satisfy his own mind, or the minds of others, that the idea of a future world is a mere chimera. On the contrary, the possibility, and even the probability, of the truth of man's eternal destiny, will, at certain seasons, force themselves upon the minds even of the most careless and profane.

Yet, it is amazing to consider, with what ease and indiffe. rence multitudes of this description can glide down the stream of time, under the awful uncertainty whether it will land them in the shades of annihilation, the realms of bliss, or the regions of endless woe.-" Between us and these three periods or states," says a celebrated French writer, no barrier is interposed but life, the most brittle thing in all nature; and the happiness of heaven being certainly not designed for those who doubt whether they have an immortal part to enjoy it, such persons have nothing left, but the miserable chance of annihilation, or of hell. There is not any reflection which can have more reality than this, as there is none which has greater terror. Let us set the bravest face on our condition, and play the heroes as artfully as we can, yet see here the issue which attends the goodliest life upon earth! It is in vain for men to turn aside their thoughts from this eternity which awaits them, as if they were able to destroy it, by denying it a place in their imagination. It subsists in spite of them; it advances unobserved; and death, which is to draw the curtain from it, will, in a short time, infallibly reduce them to the dreadful necessity of being for ever nothing, or for ever miserable."

To treat a subject, so interesting and momentous, with levity or indifference to exert all the energies of the soul in the pursuit of objects, which a few years at most will snatch for ever from their embrace,-and never to spend one serious hour in reflecting on what may possibly succeed the present scene of existence, or in endeavouring to find some light, to clear up the doubts that may hang over this important inquiry, and to treat with derision and scorn those who would direct them in this serious investigation— is not only foolish and preposterous, but the height of infatuation and of madness. It is contrary to every principle

on which reasonable men act, in relation to the affairs of the present world. To retain the profits of a lucrative business, or to prevent the loss of fortune, or of honour, a man will sometimes strain every nerve, stretch every faculty, deprive himself of sleep, submit to numerous privations, encounter the raging elements, and brave the dangers of the ocean. Nay, he will often be overwhelmed with despondency at the slightest inconveniences, and will pass whole weeks and months in sullenness and chagrin, for an imaginary affront, or for the loss of a few pounds, while, at the same time, he remains perfectly indifferent, and without the least emotion, in regard to the unknown scenes of the eternal world, and the danger of endless mis-y to which he is exposed. Such a conduct, and such dispositions, which are too frequently realized in the case of thousands who occasionally mingle in our religious assemblies, are obviously inconsistent with the dictates of prudence and of common sense, and with every thing that ought to characterize a rational and an accountable

creature.

When we look back into the inexplorable abyss of that eternity which is already past, when we look forward to the immeasurable extent, and the unfathomable depths of eternity to come,-when we behold Time, and all its circling years, appearing only like a point on the surface of that vast and boundless ocean; when we consider the immense spaces of the universe with which we are surrounded, and the innumerable worlds which lie dispersed in every direction throughout the immeasurable tracts of creation .; when we consider, that our existence, as thinking beings, may run parallel with interminable ages; and that, in the revolutions of eternity, we may exist in regions of space immeasurably distant from our present habitation, associate with other orders of intelligent beings, and pass through

new scenes and changes in distant worlds,-and, when we consider that our relation to time may be dissolved, and our connexion with eternity commence, within the space of a few months or years, or even before the sun shall have described another circuit around the earth-no inquiry can appear so momentous and interesting, as that which leads to the determination of our future and eternal destiny, and of those realities which await us beyond the tomb. To remain insensible to the importance of such an inquiry, and unaffected at the prospect of the result to which it may lead,-while we are feelingly alive to all the paltry concerns and little ills of life,—would argue the most unaccountable stupidity, inconsistency, and infatuation.

The man whose heart pants after substantial knowledge and felicity, whose affections centre on the Author of his existence, and who delights to contemplate his character and perfections, will enter with pleasure on every investi. gation, which has a tendency to throw a light on the scene of his future destination. He will weigh, with impartiality, every consideration, and will seize, with delight, upon every argument, by which a full conviction of his immortal destiny may be indelibly riveted upon his mind; and he will endeavour to cheer his soul amidst the sorrows of mortali. ty, with the consideration, that "when the earthly house of his tabernacle is dissolved, he has a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens."

In illustrating the evidences of a future state, I shall, in the first place, state some of those proofs which Reason, or the light of nature, furnishes, of man's eternal destination-and, secondly, those which are derived from the system of Revelation.

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