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Rh instance of the manner, in which an appearance, mistaken for a reality, leads to error, and to a wbole system of errors. This error, however, being only of an external and purely scientific character, was not of a nature to lead directly to moral evil,—although we may recollect that the whole painful story of the persecution of Galileo, was an effect of this error existing in the minds of his persecutors; still, it would not have produced that effect, had there not been there the spirit of persecution also: in this case, the error was only the occasion, not the cause, of that persecution. But there are errors, founded on appearances, mistaken for realities, of a much deeper nature than this, and such as do and did lead directly to moral evil. Of this class of errors, we shall adduce at once a fundamental one—one that not only assisted in originating evil at first, but which is also still originating or confirming evil in man's heart daily. This is the error, founded on the appearance that man lives of himself and not from God; and in connection with it, the appearance that God does not exist, because He is not visible. Let us examine this point with attention.

It appears to man that He lives of Himself, and that the spring of life is within his own bosom. He does not see the golden cords that link, his spirit to its Maker, along which the vital spark is ceaselessly passing, and which, if snapped, would let him drop dead to the ground,—dead, not only for time, but for eternity. Man has no fountain of life within himself; God alone is life; He alone is the great Fountain, whence the streams of life perpetually flow into the bosoms of all living creatures; and were that stream for a moment to be cut off, they would fall instantly