The first lesson of every new-born spirit is to discover the laws that relate to its own enjoyment. Whenever a child chooses any thing which secures enjoyment without harm to itself or to others, it is acting as its Creator designed, and this action is therefore right. And whenever it chooses what will cause needless pain to itself or to others, it acts wrong. Most of the choices of a little child are of what is right as giving enjoyment without harm.
The grand law of God, as learned by experience, is that every mind must sacrifice the lesser for the greater [pg 146] good in gratifying its own desires. When the interests of others are not concerned, the child must always choose not what it desires the most, but what is best for itself. It is the first labor of the educator to make a child understand and obey this first part of the law of sacrifice.
But where the feelings and interests of others are involved, the law of God is, that the lesser good of the individual shall always be sacrificed to the greater good of the many. Each mind of the great commonwealth is to act, not to make self-gratification the first thing, but to make the greatest possible happiness with the least possible evil for the whole commonwealth the predominant purpose. And such is the system of the Creator that whatever is for the best good of the whole is for the best good of each individual.
Thus it appears that obedience to the laws of God, physical, intellectual, social, and moral, is to be chosen as the ruling purpose of each mind. And this is the mode by which all rational beings are to promote the end or design for which all things are made, (i.e.,) happiness-making on the greatest possible scale for the great commonwealth.
Now it is very certain that no human mind is able, by its own solitary investigations, to discover all the physical, intellectual, social, and moral laws of God.
Many of these laws we can learn by experience, but for the greater portion we are dependent on the instruction of others. Therefore truth on the part of educators, and faith on the part of the learners are as indispensable to the right action of mind as is light to the right action of the eye in seeing. Not a “dead,” [pg 147] merely intellectual belief, but a “saving faith” that controls the feelings and conduct.
We now are enabled to define the kind of inability as to obeying the laws of God, which inevitably attends every mind that commences its existence in this world. As yet there have never been perfectly true educators of young minds, while perfect faith, that is to say, “saving faith,” in the teachings that are true is as much wanting. The young child can not be made to understand, and therefore can not believe, or have faith in many of the laws of God and the penalties connected with them. This no one will deny.
Several Classes of Moral Actions.
There are several classes of moral actions. The first class includes those which in all cases destroy the best good of man. Of these are wanton cruelty to helpless creatures, and ingratitude in returning needless evil for good. In regard to such the mind, by its very constitutional impulses, revolts from them and feels them to be wrong without any process of reasoning. So also all those actions that in all cases cause enjoyment without evil, are instinctively felt to be right without any reflection.
But there are many actions that are entirely dependent on circumstances for their moral character. Thus to punish a little child in one case would be cruel and wrong, in another it might be benevolent and right. To take a woman, when not married to another, for a wife is right, but wrong if she is married. And so with thousands of other actions.