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 ceit, who  will  produce,  as  their  own,  objections  to religion  as  old  as  history;  as  unanswerable,  objections refuted  thousands  of  times;  feeble,  knock-kneed arguments, as  destructive  of  that  religion  the  saints professed and  hosts  of  Christian  martyrs  defended with their  lives! How many  men  there  are,  who,  in the  pride  of  their  hearts — because,  forsooth,  they have delved  deeply  in  science,  literature,  or  art — who have  learned  everything  except  to  recognize how little  they  know,  do  not  hesitate  to  pass judgment on  religion,  as  did  Pontius  Pilate  on  Our Saviour; and  treat  her  as  he  treated  Christ — as  a  fool or an  impostor! Ignorant pride  and  human  respect. Here is  the  second  cause  of  irreligion. Pride and ignorance  are  mental  defects,  but  human  respect is a  disease  of  the  will,  a  lack  of  moral  backbone; the misfortune  of  those  who  "  are  ashamed  to  profess the  faith  of  Christ  crucified." But it  is  not  always the  head  that  is  at  fault;  more  often  it  is  the heart, and  here  we  have  the  third  and  last  cause  of irreligion — human  passion. There is  no  virtue  religion does  not  inculcate,  no  vice  she  does  not  denounce; and  sooner  shall  heaven  and  earth  pass away than  she  forego  one  iota  of  her  law  for  any  man. Hence the  sinner,  unwilling  to  give  up  his  darling devil, is,  by  consistency,  forced  body  and  soul  into the ranks  of  unbelievers,  according  to  Christ's  own words: "  No  man  can  serve  two  masters,"  and  "He that  is  not  with  Me  is  against  Me."

Brethren, I  would  not  tire  you  by  rehearsing  the arguments with  which  the  irreligious  seek  to  justify