Thou, Nature, art my goddess: to thy law my services are bound.
—Shakspere.
"Philosophy teaches us to seek in Nature, and the knowledge
of her laws, for the cause of every event; when this
knowledge shall become universal, man will relinquish, with
elevated satisfaction, his attachment to supernatural and
vindictive theology." It is this theology that has destroyed
the harmony of Nature, and demoralised the intelligent
world.
LUCIAN AND MODERATUS.
MODERATUS.—In all ages of the world, the tide of human affairs hath shown that reigning opinion, however ill-founded and absurd, is always queen of the nations; and, since a man's interest and general good footing in society, are, to a great extent, involved in his acquiescence in these opinions, it is strange that you, Lucian, should venture to entertain heresies so much at variance with everything that is called orthodox. But as it is only upon hearsay that I judge of your opinions, pray let me know from yourself your notions respecting the deity?
LUCIAN.—You must first define precisely and intelligibly, what you mean by the terms deity or god: do you mean by either of them to designate a fanciful personification of the physical powers of universal matter or nature?
Mod.—No; I mean that infinite, eternal, incorporeal body in the human form*—the creator of the universe out of nothing, that is, out of himself, he being nothing, according to Christian orthodoxy.
* Zenophanes observed, that if the ox or the elephant
understood sculpture or painting, they would not fail to
represent the Deity under their own peculiar figure. In this
they would have as much reason at the Jews and Christians,
who gave him the human form.
"And 'twere an innocent dream, but that a faith
Nurs'd by fear's dew of poison, grows thereon."
LUCIAN.—I can form no conception of such a being as you describe; but such a phantasm may be very suitable for, as it is quite of a piece with, a religion that is made up of chimeras. If your term nothing has any meaning, it is the negation of matter, which is nonsense, because the mind can form no conception of immaterial existence. By the same rule, reason and common sense reject the word spiritual, because it is a term absolutely without meaning, and represents no existing thing of which the mind can possibly form any idea.* All these words have been coined in the mint of theology for the purpose of deception; and, together with the principal tool of priestcraft, called soul, make up the machinery of delusion. Everything rational is foresworn by a set of mystagogues, when they declare that their God was engendered before his mother, and is of the same age as his father!
MOD.—But laying aside these foolish inventions, which could only be imposed upon ignorance; and allowing that, to the question, "what is god," no proper answer can be given, but that "we do not know;" still, if all, or universal matter was created, it must have had a creator; and there being no materials to work with, this creator, being himself immaterial, must of necessity have created matter out of himself, that is, out of nothing.
"These were Jehovah's words:
From an eternity of idleness,
I, God, awoke; in seven days' toil made earth
From nothing; rested, and created man;
I placed him in a paradise, there
Planted the tree of evil; so that he
Might eat and perish."
And so says the church.
* Spirit is literally air, and air is matter in a gaseous or
fluid form; but this is not the sense in which the word is
used by the theologian.
LUCIAN.—That is going still deeper into theological absurdity. No axiom can be clearer than this,—"out of nothing cometh nothing." There could be no creation of that which necessarily and eternally exists in and of itself There can be but one infinite being, one nature, i.e. the boundless universe, (call it god, or by any other name you please) and this all-in-all self-existent being, produces in itself, by an internal or innate action, whatever changes matter undergoes by this essential action or motion; whether in the production of living creatures, or inanimate forms: thus universal matter is at once both agent and patient—efficient cause and subject; it produces nothing but what is its own modification. Spiritualism is supported only by fraud, and ignorance of materialism.