As to the inorganic matter of which the globe and the starry sphere are composed, we have not the same palpable proofs in support of their creation. Nevertheless, all that we know up to the present time authorizes us in saying that everything in the universe is mutually combined and connected and co-relative, as the parts of one and the same organization. Creation then naturally occurs to our minds, when we would account for the origin of the world. He who can create spirits, should He not also have power to give existence to what is infinitely inferior, the matter which is provided for their use? Moreover, if you suppose, I know not why, a preexisting matter, with an independent existence, you must acknowledge it to be eternal, immutable, independent; and then how should the Ruler of the Universe have bowed it to His will, in order to form what we behold? Therefore, however incomprehensible creation may be, we must either believe in it, or renounce all speculation as to the origin of things, and so do violence to our nature.

But the child will not do this. On the contrary, he is naturally curious to pry into the origin of all that he beholds; and he is incessant in his questions until he has received an account which is satisfactory, and in conformity with the rational principle which he unconsciously follows.

In our course of language we shall take care to raise his thoughts to the Creator of Heaven and Earth, whose name he learns in the creed which he repeats. We cannot, indeed, at first impart all that we have now said on this important subject; for it must be brought down to his. level, and the first rudiments of it must be imparted little by little, and afterwards developed in the course of his instruction. It is not only the mind which inquires after a Creative God, but the human heart also which yearns after Him, in order to rest in peace upon that Almighty goodness which manifests itself in creation.

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I will now add a few specimens of our exercises on this subject. I was not, but now I am; I have then been called out of nothing by a Creator. God will take

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care of me, for He would not have given me life, if He did not love me. God has created me in His own image, and I must not defile it by evil thoughts and inclinations. The Creator has written His law on my heart, and it would be vile ingratitude in me to disobey it. In the beginning of the world, the Creator said, 'Let there be light,' and there was light. If this great God, who creates and annihilates at will, be for us, who shall be against us?”

3. As Preserver of the Universe.

There is much ignorance, and consequently error, among us with regard to the continuous existence of the spiritual and material world. First, the physical world is compared to a machine framed by the hand of man-for example, to a clock; and as this, when wound up, goes of itself, men imagine the same of the universe. They take, in a literal sense, those words in Genesis, where it is said that God rested from His work on the seventh day. But if, since the creation of man, His greatest work on earth, and the centre towards which all His other works converge, God has produced no new species of creature, yet do those which He has called forth out of nothing, begin to exist by their own energy, or of their own will?

We judge of spirits by ourselves, and so we ought. Now, as we did not perceive the action of the Creator which called us into being, neither have we any consciousness of that continued influence by which He preserves the life which He first gave. And thence men conclude, with as much hardihood as ignorance, that our life (we speak of the soul) depends on itself, without need of any extraneous assistance for its preservation.

Creatures owe their borrowed existence to the omnipotent will of the Creator; and to the continuance of the same will do they owe the continuance of their existence, or of their preservation. If that will were to change, they would immediately relapse into non-entity. Their preservation is, as was well said by Leibnitz, a continuous creation; and the same thing was also expressed by the Apostle, when, speaking in the Areopagus at Athens, he

exclaimed, "God is not far from every one of us, for in Him we live, and move, and have our being."

This great truth involves two others; first, that of the omnipresence of God throughout His universe; for in order to preserve all His creatures, He must include them all in His knowledge and in His power. This knowledge and power how infinite! Then the second truth is, that though man can only see what is apparent to his eyes, God is not only the invisible witness of all our actions, but He also reads our most secret thoughts and feelings. This truth is written on our conscience, we know not how; for is it not true that innocence, when traduced by man, appeals instinctively to the testimony of God, to whom it is known? Is it not true, also, that the culprit, who has concealed himself from the eye of man, still dreads the eye of God, from which he cannot escape?

Our course of language will not fail to point out the gross error of those who, confounding the works of God with those of man, suppose that the creature, when once brought into existence, can continue it by his own agency; but this instruction must be deferred till the pupils shall have attained to some degree of developement. The inferences, however, from the great principle may be early inculcated, because they find an echo in the conscience, whose voice is early heard.

4. The Ruler of the Universe.

The idea of a God, who is not only the Contriver, but also the Creator and Preserver of the Universe, and all it contains, is grand and majestic; and though very feebly apprehended by children, it cannot fail to inspire them with that supreme and exclusive reverence, which we term Adoration. Nevertheless, one feature is still wanting to complete the picture of the greatness of God, viz., His empire throughout the whole extent of His works in heaven and earth.

Philosophy explains the mechanism of the heavens, by attractive and repulsive forces, which are, it says, inherent in matter, and which act by reason of the masses and dis

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tances which are determined by the Creator; and it rightly attributes to Him the first impulse, which is blindly followed by bodies devoid of will, as well as of intelligence and sensation. It also accounts for the vicissitudes of the seasons, of the temperature, and of the length of days on our globe, by its position in reference to the sun, and by the orbit it performs round that luminary in the course of the year. As to terrestrial phenomena, it explains them in great measure by the various elements which compose our globe and the atmosphere which envelopes it. Lastly, in order to account for the innumerable multitude of vegetables which cover the surface of the earth, and of which 60,000 different ones are now known, it refers to the seeds which each plant invariably produces according to its kind.

Our course of language, which undertakes to instruct children in the wonders of nature, in order to form their hearts as well as their minds, will avail itself of the discoveries of science, but will take care not to stop short at second causes. It will continually refer to the great First Cause, and to His empire over the material world, in order to call forth in them the tribute of their gratitude which is due to Him. It will say, in the language of Scripture, that the Creator guides the stars in their courses, as a shepherd leads his flock to the pasture. It will tell them that God has, of his good pleasure, given birth to the whole race of men, and has assigned the earth for their habitation, and has marked out the order of the seasons. will declare to them that He daily makes the sun to shine; that it is He that makes the lilies of the field to grow, and arrays them with a glory which eclipses the magnificence of the kings of the earth.

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Our course of language will also embrace other subjects, which are well calculated to inspire respect for the great Ruler of the Universe, and of our globe in particular; subjects which are often overlooked by those who think themselves learned, but which may, up to a certain point, be brought down to the level of our pupils, and will strengthen their religious feelings.

Most men are ignorant of the triple intervention directly and constantly exercised by God in the affairs of

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an intervention which has the most important influence on individuals, on families, and on society, and which proves the extent of His empire over us. This triple intervention refers to the birth of man. First, it is the Creator who, in proportion as the organs are formed in the womb, adds the soul which is to animate them. Shall it be supposed that the soul spontaneously clothes itself with our flesh? This cannot be, because it must then have had a previous existence; and it is obvious that, a stranger at first to knowledge of all kinds, it only commences life by its first element, a sort of shadowy consciousness of existence; and that its union with its organs ever remains an impenetrable mystery to the learned. Or is it the mother who infuses the soul into the organs formed within her? But this cannot be; for, to give no other reason, she is in complete ignorance of what is passing within her. The philosopher who deserves the name will here see the finger of God; and the naturalist, too, must recognise and admire it.

But see a little what results are connected with this successive incarnation of souls, which is effected by the direct intervention of the Author of life. Thus, the newborn babe obtains a mother, a father, relations, neighbours, a country, in a given place, and at a given time. He has entered into life with all the faculties of our nature, but how shall they be developed? Free-will will undoubtedly do much; nevertheless, instruction from the cradle, example, opportunity, means, obstacles, give a bias to free-will as well as to thought; so that, without being able to define the exact boundary, we know that circumstances of birth have a material influence on the character and destiny of the child; and this influence comes from above.

Now, this influence is not confined to the individual. It extends, whether for good or for evil, to families, and from families it is transmitted to society; and as to the latter, we shall boldly assert what we have heard stated, viz.: that the Author of life makes the history of states. Their destiny obviously depends on the men in whom the direction of affairs and of public opinion is vested.