MARCH XXVII.

Ignorance of Futurity.

IF we are ignorant of future events, we must not merely trace the cause to the narrow and limited faculties of the soul in its present state of existence, but we must go farther, till we arrive at the Creator himself, whose will and pleasure it is that the knowledge of futurity should be de nied us. He knew the strength of man, and the extent of knowledge his imperfect nature was capable of bearing. The knowledge of futurity, like the splendour of the noonday sun, could not be steadily contemplated; it would be fatal to the happiness of man, and dangerous to his virtue. Supposing that the future events of our life marked a bright and prosperous tract; whilst we viewed this at a distance, and anticipated that happiness which we knew certainly awaited us, our present enjoyment would cease, we should no longer be contented and cheerful, but wait with impatient anxiety for those blessings which were held up to our view. But, on the contrary, was the prospect of future contingencies gloomy and marked by affliction and sufferings, the moment we read our fate our happiness would cease; the days which hitherto had been passed in peace and tranquillity would now rise in sorrow and depart in gloom. With a known evil impending over our heads, each morning bringing us nearer to the dread moment, we should live in hopeless misery, the prey of sor row and despair, insensible of all the blessings around us. How infinitely merciful and wise then is that God who has shrouded futurity in darkness, gradually unfolding the veil as the events occur; so that we are never at once overwhelmed by the torrent of adversity, nor confounded by the blaze of certain prosperity!

Let us then never suffer ourselves to be disappointed by the delusive hopes of happiness, nor be rendered miserable and wretched by feeling the weight of misfortunes before they arrive. Let us rather thank the Almighty that our ignorance of futurity saves us from many a pang of inquie tude, and delivers us from many a throb of anxious dread and fearful despondency. If we feel assured of the grace of God through the mediation of Christ, we have just re

son to hope that futurity will unfold to us with joy and gladness; and as there is a just and gracious God, who orders and directs the universe, who knows all the events of our lives, and before whose view is continually present the circle of eternity; we may with safety, when we lie down to sleep, commend ourselves to his care, undisturbed as to what may happen during the night; and when the morning sun summons us to our duties we may trust ourselves to his protection, without anxiety for the events which are to befall us during the day. And in the hour of trial, when dangers threaten and destruction seems to impend, let us still remember the goodness of God and repose upon his protecting arm, in perfect assurance that whatever happens is for our good.

MARCH XXVIII.

Gradual approach of Night.

NIGHT is a blessing bestowed upon us by the Creator, and is wisely and mercifully directed to advance by degrees. The sudden transition from the light of day to the gloom of night would be highly inconvenient and terrific. So immediate a change would occasion a general interruption to the labours of men, and terror would be spread over the earth; all living creatures would feel its influence, and the organs of sight must suffer considerably by the suddenness of the transition. Hence it is wisely or dered, that darkness does not surprise us suddenly in the midst of our occupations, but advances by slow gradations, and the twilight which precedes it leaves us time to finish our most pressing affairs, and to make the necessary arrangements. By this timely warning, the approach of night does not interrupt or incommode us.

But whence proceeds that lingering light, which at the end of each day remains to temper and soften the gloomy aspect of night? We no longer see the sun, and yet a degree of lustre still cheers us. The atmosphere which surrounds us refracts the rays of the sun, projected on its superior surface, and it continues to receive these rays after

the earth by its rotation has withdrawn our sight from the sun; by which means we enjoy the light much longer.

Thus a bountiful Providence has not only regulated the greater revolutions of the seasons, but also the daily alternation of light and darkness in that way which is most beneficial to us, and which demands our most heartfelt acknowledgments and thanksgivings. Let this gradual approach of night remind us of the evening of life, which advances by slow and certain degrees, till almost imperceptibly the hand of death lies heavily upon us. May the Almighty grant, when the period arrives which is to close our eyes in darkness, that as the measure of our days is full, so also may the measure of our good works be completed! Let us work whilst it is day, for the night cometh in which no man can work.

MARCH XXIX.

Magnificence of God displayed in his Works.

WHY are all the works of God so beautiful and magnificent? Why do we every where discover various and innumerable objects, each clothed in peculiar charms, and outvying all the rest in beauty? Whence is it that we every where find new subjects of astonishment and admiration? Doubtless that we may be led unceasingly to admire and to adore that Being, who is so infinitely more beautiful, sublime, and glorious, than all that we can discover or delight in throughout nature. We cannot help saying, If the works are so admirable, what must be the Creator of them! If the beauty of the creatures is so excellent, how inexpressible must be the grandeur and nature of the Being who formed them, and who sees the whole creation at a single glance!

If the meridian sun has splendour, the blaze of which dazzles and confounds our sight, we may well suppose, that He who first imparted life and being to this luminary, dwells in light inaccessible, utterly removed from the penetration of finite mortals. We cannot suppose he is less wonderful than the creatures he has formed; and the more striking and marvellous are his works, the more he must excite our astonishment and call forth our admiration: could we com VOL. I.

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prehend at once the totality of his grandeur, he would cease to be God, or we to be men.

There is no better way then of enlarging our views, or gaining a richer treasure of ideas and more ample intelligence, than in contemplating God, the grandeur and magnificence of whose works are beyond the limits of comprehension. By such contemplations all the faculties of the soul acquire strength and vigour, and our capability of enjoying happiness, both here and hereafter, becomes abundantly increased; for the more the capacity of our minds is enlarged here by contemplating the Supreme Being, the more ennobled and exalted will it be, and the greater will be its power of comprehension and of enjoyment in futurity. Let us then divide our attention between God and nature, which last reflects as from a glass the image of that Eternal Being whose presence we only see from the effects produced. We may collect the various beauties and perfcctions dispersed through the creation, and when their innumerable multitudes have struck us with astonishment and admiration, we may think how little and insignificant are all these compared with the perfection of the Creator; no more than a drop of water to the ocean.

Let us regard the most lovely and beautiful of created beings, abstracting what is finite and limited, that we may have more just and exalted ideas of the infinite excellence of the Creator; and when the sight of faults and imperfections in the creatures shall tend to lesson our admiration of their beauty, let us exclaim-If the creation, notwithstanding all its defects, be so beautiful and grand, how great and wonderful must He be whose splendour, ever unobscured, is purer than light, and more brilliant than the sun! Let us then employ all our faculties in contemplating the all-adorable God; and not rest till we have taken our flight to the regions of perfection, where the most perfect of beings reigns in undisturbed felicity. Let our principal study be to learn to know God; for there is nothing so great as he is, and the knowledge of him alone will satisfy our desires, and diffuse through our hearts peace and joy, which nothing can molest or destroy; and it is in some degree a foretaste of that more perfect knowledge which shall constitute our felicity, and be our constant reward through eternity.

MARCH XXX.

Arrangement of the seasons in different Planets.

THE diurnal rotation of the earth round its axis, and its annual revolution round the sun, afford us the greatest advantages; which would induce us to suppose that the other planets enjoy similar blessings. All of them, except Mercury, have been observed to turn round their axes in different spaces of time; and most probably be is subject to the same general law, though his precise motion has not yet been determined. All the plaxets move in their orbits round the sun, and even the secondary planets make a similar revolution round their primaries. And as the diurnal rotation of our earth effects the constant vicissitudes of day and night, and its annual revolution the change of seasons, we have just reason to conclude that similar changes take place in the other planets.

Venus turns round her axis in little more than 23 hours; Mars in 24 hours 39 minutes; Jupiter in 9 hours 56 minutes; the moon in about 28 days. If we were to divide the day, that is, the time in which these revolutions are made, into twenty four equal parts, each of which shall be called an hour, the hours of Venus will be a little less, those of Mars rather greater, and those of Jupiter not half so long as the days in our planet; whilst those of the moon will each be more than equal to one of our days. We may also observe that the axis of each planet is inclined like that of our earth; whence it follows, that during their revolutions round the sun, their north pole is sometimes more, sometimes less, enlightened. It is then reasonable to suppose that they experience a change of season as well as the alternation of long and short days.

Perhaps it will be asked, Why all these reflections?'" They would be useful, if only to extend our knowledge; but they will be still more important, if we think of the consequences which must result from them. Shall we not have reason to conclude, that other planets besides our own are inhabited by living creatures? All the planets resemble our earth; like it enjoy the light and genial warmth of the sun, have the alternation of night and day, and the