of man's activity, and the poetic not the least, and lament the sad and sinful abuse of what might be a crowning glory of man's mental achievements.

Must, then, dramatic literature be ignored? Not at all. Keep the distinction clear between the acted and the written drama, between dramatic poetry and the theater, and our duty is equally clear. Dramatic poetry is chargeable with no evils that may not and do not lie against every species of written composition. A drama written to be read cuts off the evil accompaniments of the stage. We then put in the plea for a written drama, for enjoyment and instruction in the privacy of a home, that shall embody the religious spirit, poetic grace, noble idealism, and the severe outline of Attic tragedy, and be animated by the Christian teachings of the age. We see no reason why the enlightened Christian mind of this age may not find fit expression in the dramatic form; fit, not for the stage-too pure and thoughtful for that-but for the parlor and study. The revival of the Greek drama is an impossibility, and not desirable if it were possible. Materials for tragedy as well as tragi-comedy and comedy are not lacking, and these can be idealized by the spirit of a Christian humanity, aided by the elevation and enlargement of view which has fallen to us in the progress of the ages.

Nor do we desire a revival of the so-called Scriptural mediæval dramas. The specific form of an art must spring from the consciousness of the times that give it birth. So will a pure drama spring from an enlightened and reverential Christian consciousness. The objection that a Christian play would shock the religious feelings by making God a dramatis persona is wholly void; for there is no need of its being theomorphous. In nearly half the extant plays of the Greek masters of tragedy, the chief actors are human only. Nor would we seriously object to a tragicomedy, seeing that the laughers and weepers jostle each other continually, and the sportive or humorous impulse, purely and truthfully directed, flings a sweet freshness over the more somber scenes of life.

A late article in the Presbyterian Quarterly so well expresses our views on this subject that we quote: "Christian tragedy must be written, not acted. In the retirement of the study or the parlor it may be enjoyed, but not on the stage. And in such a reading age as ours, when almost every child has been taught to conquer the printed page, the results may be as beneficial as if the old majesty of the Greek proscenium, baptized by a spiritual Christianity, were offered to our eyes."

ART. II.—FAITH, THE EVERLASTING BOND.

No doctrine of our holy religion has been more widely and ably discussed, explained, and defended, than Faith. The most vigorous intellects and warmest hearts have united to declare its power to enlighten and to strengthen the human soul for all high and holy action. Philosophic mind has explained its nature, its varied phases of action, as applied to different subjects in the material universe, and in the intercourse of man with man in his friendly and commercial relations. Religious mind has pressed the principle yet more widely and deeply, and adopting the basis so clearly presented by the masters of Mental Philosophy, has shown its power to "overcome the world" in the purest spiritual sense, to redeem the soul from the fetters of sin and earth, to enable it to triumph over death and the grave, and leaves it in full exercise before the throne of God. There is a class of trained mind who, clearly perceiving these mental relations, with the added spiritual light consequent on and abiding with a renovated moral nature, reach a point where doubt and fear expire, leaving the soul free to press on from "grace to grace." There is another class, the perfect antipodes of this, who do not reason at all on the subject, who never analyze and sift their thoughts or emotions; they awake to the fact that they are sinners, they are instructed to believe in Christ as their Saviour, they do so in all simplicity and sincerity of feeling, and the result is pardon and salvation. For them "it is well sometimes to be insensible of diversities which, if discussed, are more likely to confuse their perceptions of some essential difference, than to aid their decision." But there is a third class, numerous in every community, who are thus described by Isaac Taylor:

"They stand midway between the advantageous post of rude, ingenuous fervor, and that of real or unrivaled eminence in matters of science and learning. But a middle position is one of jeopardy, incertitude, timidity. By all the amount of their actual intelligence they feel the offense of the cross; and yet their intelligence reaches not the point which should set them free from anxiety in maintaining their profession; so that while the uninstructed, when borne onward by a ruling principle, forget all secondary considerations, the more intelligent, though not less steady and consistent in action, (perhaps more so,) yet continue to hold converse with reasons they have repudiated, and to traverse again and again the ground of their firmest convictions."

Standing in this rank, the writer feels the deepest, widest sympathy with struggling religious mind; and supposing past experience to be a fac-simile of thousands of other minds who are "fighting

the fight of faith" amid the mists of obscure mental vision, would throw one ray of light which may lead some to a result not otherwise gained, except by weary, personal conflict; for Taylor again says: "The elementary principle of faith receives an enrichment, a diversity of color, and an individual form, from its combination with the peculiarities of mind wherein it lodges." It is our object to show the reasonableness of faith, and why it is so mighty to conquer. We would trace some of its beautiful developments from the by-gone eternity at the point where we can take cognizance of its actings, and trace the links of a wondrously connected chain through Eden, through this fallen earth in all its upward struggles, in Gethsemane in its redeeming power, in the Christian Church, in the Reformation, and in individual experience, until the redeemed are all before the throne of God; and even there, we think, is written, "Now abideth these three-faith," etc.

First, let us picture heaven in its ancient and primeval beauty; containing myriads of angelic beings of various intellectual ranks, but all holy and obedient to the great Central Power which had created them, which sustained them, and which governed them in perfect love and wisdom. Ages rolled on, marked by increasing advancement and happiness; but we know too little of angelic natures to imagine their employments, to know their tests or their temptations. One, lofty in position, a leader among the ranks of heaven, of capacious intellect, of vast powers, of immense resources, and of wide-extended influence, became dissatisfied with his condition. We do not, for one moment, speculate upon the question, how a holy being, in a holy place, could admit an evil thought. We take the simple revealed fact: in heaven Satan doubted. He lost faith in the wisdom and love of God who had defined his position and his duties; and yielding here, he snapped the only bond which unites an intellectual, spiritual being to its Creator. This was not probably the work of a moment. It was considered well and long; the tremendous probabilities were weighed by a mind capable of vast calculations and of far-seeing vision, and it was the deliberate choice of a free-will agent. Then again, Satan influenced an innumerable host; some received, some rejected his counsel; this presupposes thought, conference, and deliberate decisions. The fact that for this fallen angelic host no redemption was provided, proves their sin to have been of a special malignity; but until we know more of the peculiarities of angelic nature, we cannot clearly perceive the justice of their irremediable sentence. The point to seize and hold is this: want of faith in God was the starting point of all evil. Unbelief laid the foundation from which arose anarchy, FOURTH SERIES, VOL. X.-24

rebellion, the loss of heaven, and the infliction of an endless hell to angels. Heaven was purged, and again glowed in unsullied brightness, and a lesson had been taught the loyal ranks of a most confirming nature.

It pleased the Almighty in his wisdom, to create a new scene of action; probably for the instruction and fuller confirmation of the unfallen myriads. At his word this earth was formed, and Eden clothed in perfect, if not heavenly beauty. A new race was created, and humanity entered on an immortal career. It would be interesting to know wherein holy and intellectual natures can materially differ; but that knowledge is reserved for a future world. The angelic and human are not alike, though the past has proved that both can fall.

Behold our first parents in Eden, a holy, happy pair. The moral atmosphere is as pure as that which pervaded heaven, and the whole being, moral, intellectual, and physical, is without flaw or stain. Another mystery we cannot solve: Satan is permitted to tempt, and they to listen, to yield, to fall. Satan had had fearful proof of what unbelief could accomplish; perhaps centuries had passed since his first experiment, and he had watched its varied workings amid the doomed ranks around him. One thing was sure, absolute ruin was the result. No marvel then that he should repeat the experiment with a race he had resolved to ruin. He could not try again in heaven, for he was too far removed; to earth he had mysterious access. He succeeded by inducing a want of faith in their Creator, God. The tie of holy union was again broken, and the human as well as the angelic nature was severed from its God, and a wide, and as Satan thought, an impassable chasm intervened; for he had no foresight of the grace that could bridge it over, and make it a highway for the redeemed.

Satan had again triumphed, and seemed to possess a sure power to ruin holy beings wherever he had access. If ever conquered, then, faith was to be the point of contest and of victory. This weapon (the power of inducing unbelief) was to be rescued from his grasp, and the opposite of that which had ruined was to restore, by gaining its original ascendency throughout the universe of God. Turning from a ruined world, let us, with solemn reverence, take a higher view, basing all our thoughts on that only which is revealed. The Triune God had resolved on man's redemption, and in solemn covenant had arranged the plan which was to retrieve earth, to confirm heaven, and to defeat hell in final overthrow. God the Father gave his only-begotten Son; God the Son assumed humanity, to suffer, to die, and to rise again; God the Holy Spirit pledged his

sustaining power to the man Christ Jesus in the tremendous conflict, and his regenerating and saving influences to the purchased Church, until the top-stone of perfect victory should be raised with shouting. The promise in Eden commenced the work. Satan heard the plan of restoration with wonder and dismay, but rallied all his energies for opposition at every point, and perhaps victory in the end, having such hope based upon the proved weakness of human nature.

Now let our minds revert to Old Testament history, and we shall find that in every conflict and in every trial, faith was the grand point of contest. Faith in God the victory of man, or unbelief the triumph of Satan. By faith Noah built the ark, and Abraham offered his son, and Moses forsook Egypt, and Joshua and Caleb gained the promised land. By faith Israel conquered in battle, and Isaiah saw Messiah's triumph, and Jerusalem arose from dust and ashes, and the stately temple was rich in sacrifice and redolent of gold and incense. On the other hand, unbelief generated idolatry with its perverting influences, and caused the deluge with its destructive power, and buried the cities of the plain. It slew the Israelites in the wilderness, lost them numberless battles, led them into various captivities, and shrouded their whole moral nature in almost impervious darkness.

In the fullness of time Jesus came. Infinite wisdom selected the place, the hour, the mode. Perfect humanity again appeared on earth, though its native Eden had departed, and the atmosphere it breathed was tainted with sin and death. Thus Satan had the decided advantage, in that he could multiply the agencies of temptation and evil as he could not have done in Paradise.

Now it is of great importance to the discussion, that we should here closely hold to the idea of the perfect manhood of Jesus. Human nature fell in the first Adam; human nature was redeemed in the second Adam. (An interesting question is here suggested. Was the second Adam in his pure manhood superior to the first, or did they stand at equal points to be tempted by the great archfiend?) At what age Jesus became fully conscious of his great mission, we do not know. At twelve we see its dawnings, and as his mind expanded, the great idea of his destiny became clear. Wider and wider grew the grasp of cause and effect, until its magnitude, its responsibilities, and its tremendous results, were mapped out before his mental vision. No wonder that he spent whole nights in prayer; no wonder that we trace a deepening sadness through all his utterances, as he advanced calmly and steadily to the great propitiatory hour. We emphasize the fact that the Divine nature seemed to hold itself in abeyance except when Jesus