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MORALS. |
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MORALS.
The great law under which man is laid by his Creator is this—" Love the Lord thy God
WITH ALL THY HEART. AND THY NEIGHBOR AS THYSELF." This is the whole compass of religion. The love of God, or piety, is the object of the first branch of the law; the love of mankind, or benevolence, is that of the other. This last is usually denominated the moral law, and includes duties to ourselves and our fellow-men. Morality is sometimes considered as independent of religion, and avc often hear people speak of a moral man, as distinct from a religious man. But true morality is but a portion of religion : it has its foundation in the love of God, and exists only through that love. There is no such thing, therefore, as morality without religion—as a moral man who is not a religious man. A man may observe externally the rules of society, from a selfish regard to his own interests, and thus be called, in common phrase, a moral man: but the truly moral man is one who feels the force of the great law—" love thy neighbor as thyself," and who obeys it. because his heart approves of it, because it is a good law, and because it comes from the great Lawgiver. It is obvious that such motives of action only |
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