LECTURE XVIII.

On the General Spirit of the Age, and on the Universal Regeneration of Society.

"I come soon, and will renew all things."

THERE are, in the history of the eighteenth century, many phenomena which occurred so suddenly, so instantaneously, so contrary to all expectation, that although on deeper consideration we may discover their efficient causes in the past, in the natural state of things, and in the general situation of the world, yet are there many circumstances which prove that there was a deliberate, though secret, preparation of events, as, indeed, in many instances has been actually demonstrated. I must now say a few words on this secret and mysterious branch of illuminism, and on the progress it made during the period of its sway, in order to complete the sketch of that period, and to shew the influence of this principle, both in regard to the origin and general spirit of the revolution (which in its fanaticism believed itself a regeneration of the world), and in regard to the true restoration of society founded on the basis of Christian justice. But there is this peculiar circumstance in this historical inquiry, that those who as eye-witnesses could best speak from their personal experience, cannot always be considered the most credible vouchers; for we never know, or can know, what their particular views and interests may lead them to say or conceal, to suppress wholly or in part. However, it has so happened, that, in the universal convulsion and overthrow of society, many things have come to light on this mysterious and esoteric clue in modern history—things which when combined together furnish us with a not incorrect, and a tolerably complete, idea of this mighty element of the Revolution, and of illuminism both true and false, which has exercised so evident and various an influence on the world. And it is

only on such historical grounds (which are quite sufficient for our purpose, and can alone be made the matter of consideration here), I am at all competent to pronounce an opinion on this subject, or, as I should rather say, to give an account of this event; and it is from historical sources, references, and facts alone, that the following sketch has been taken.

As to the origin of this esoteric influence, the impartial historical inquirer cannot doubt (whatever motives or views some may have to deny the fact, or throw doubt on its authenticity) that the order of Templars was the channel by which this society in its ancient and long-preserved form was introduced into the West. The religious Masonic symbols may be accounted for by the Solomonian traditions connected with the very foundation of the order of Templars; and indeed the occasion of these symbols may be traced in other passages of Holy Writ, and in other parts of sacred history, and they may very well admit of a Christian interpretation. Traces of these symbols may be found in the monuments of the old German architecture of the middle age. Any secret spiritual association, however, diffused at once among Christians and Mahometans, cannot be of a very Christian nature, nor long continue so. Nay, the very idea of an esoteric society for the propagation of any secret doctrines is not compatible with the very principle of Christianity itself; for Christianity is a divine mystery, which, according to the intention of its divine Founder, lies open to all, and is daily exposed on every altar. For this reason, in a Revelation imparted to all alike, there can be no secrecy, as in the Pagan mysteries, where, by the side of the popular mythology and the public religion of the state, certain esoteric doctrines were inculcated to the initiated only. This would be to constitute a church within a church-a measure to be as little tolerated or justified as an imperium in imperio; and in an age where worldly interests and public or secret views of policy have far greater ascendancy than religious opinions or sentiments, such a secret parasitical church would unquestionably, as experience has already proved, be very soon transformed into a secret directory for political changes and revolutions. That in this society the unchristian principles of a negative illuminism, veiled as they often were in sentiments of universal

philanthropy, were of a date tolerably modern, all historical analogies would lead us to suppose. On the other hand, the

Christian opinions which survived in this order (though in our times, amid the innumerable factions which have agitated this society by their contests, the adherents to Christian principles form a small minority of its members)—the Christian opinions surviving in this order partook, conformably to the historical origin I have assigned, more of an oriental and Gnostic character. The great, or at least not inconsiderable, influence which this society exercises in politics, we may discover in those revolutions which, after having convulsed our quarter of the globe, have rolled onwards to the new world, where the two principal revolutionary factions in one of those South American states, whose troubles are not yet terminated, are called the Scots and the Yorkists, from the two parties which divide the English Masonic lodges. Who does not know, or who does not remember, that the ruler of the world in the period just passed made use of this vehicle in all the countries he conquered, to delude and deceive the nations with false hopes? And on this account he was styled by his partisans the man of his age, and, in fact, he was a slave to the spirit of his age. A society from whose bosom, as from the secret laboratory of Revolution, the Illuminés, the Jacobins, and the Carbonari have successively proceeded, cannot possibly be termed, or be in fact, very beneficial to mankind, politically sound, or truly Christian in its views and tendency. Still I must here observe, that it has been the fate of the oldest of all secret societies, that its venerable forms, which are known to all the initiated, should serve as a cloak to every new conspiracy. In the next place, we must not forget that this order itself appears to be split and divided into a multitude of different sects and factions; and that on this account we must not suppose that all those fearful aberrations and wild excesses of impiety, all those openly destructive or secretly undermining principles of revolution, were universally approved of by this society. On the contrary, such a supposition would be utterly false, or at least very exaggerated. The mere notice of all the highly estimable characters, mistaken but on this point-of most distinguished and illustrious personages in the eighteenth century, members of this association-would suffice to annul,

or at least materially modify, this sweeping censure. From many indications, we may consider it certain, or at least extremely probable, that in no country did this esoteric society so well harmonise with the state and the whole established order of things as in that country where all the conflicting elements of morals and society are brought into a sort of strange and artificial equipoise-I mean, England. If now we turn our view to the continent of Europe, and even to those countries which were the chief theatre of the revolution, we shall see that there, among many other factions, a Christian party had sprung up in this society - a party which, though it formed a very small minority in point of numbers, possessed, by its profounder doctrines and the interesting fragments of ancient tradition it had preserved, a great moral ascendancy; and this, many historical facts, and many written documents, which have since obtained publicity, place beyond the shadow of a doubt. Instead of bringing forward the names of some German writers less generally known, I prefer to allege, in confirmation of what I have said, the example of a French writer, who well denotes the internal and more hidden character of the revolution. The Christian theosophist, St. Martin, who was a disciple of this school, stands in his age quite apart from the other organs of the then prevailing atheistical philosophy. He was, however, a most decided revolutionist (but a disinterested fanatic, guided entirely in his conduct by high and moral motives), from his utter contempt and abhorrence for the whole moral and political system of Europe, as it then stood-a contempt in which, if we cannot entirely agree with him, we cannot in many instances withhold from him at least a sort of negative approbation; and, secondly, he was a revolutionist by his enthusiastic hope of a complete Christian regeneration of society, conceived indeed according to his own views, or the views of his party. Among the French writers of the restoration, none have so thoroughly understood this remarkable philosopher, and so well known how to appreciate him in all the depths of his errors, as well as in the many excellent things which his writings contain, and to apply to him the necessary corrections, as Count Maistre.

This secret clue in the history of the revolution must not be overlooked, if we would wish to form a due estimate of

or

its character; for it greatly contributed to the illusion of many by no means ill-intentioned persons, who saw, wished to see, in the revolution but the inevitable, necessary, though in its origin harsh and severe, regeneration of Christian states and nations, then so widely gone off from their original destination. This illusive notion of a false restoration of society was particularly prevalent during the imperial sway of that extraordinary man, whose true biography-I mean, the high moral law of his destiny, or the theological key to his life-seems still to exceed the critical powers of our age. Seven years were allotted him for the growth of his power for fourteen years the world was delivered over into his hands; and seven years were left him for solitary reflection, the first of which he misemployed in embroiling the world anew. On the use he made of the extraordinary power that had been imparted to him-of that formidable dominion which had fallen to his lot, history has long pronounced her sentence. Never is such power permitted but in the period of, and with a view to, some awful reckoning, and a still more fearful probation of mankind. But if his restoration-that is to say, the restoration which his infatuated partisans attributed to himcertainly a false one, the question naturally occurs, whether the restoration attempted by his successors has been perfectly sound, or at least quite complete; and what may be the defects in the new system, and how they may be supplied?

was most

A mere treaty of territorial arrangements could not and can never constitute a great religious and international pacification for the whole of Europe. The re-establishment of subverted thrones-the restoration of exiled sovereigns and dynasties, will not in themselves have any security nor permanence, unless based on moral principles and maxims. After the severe unexpected lesson again inflicted on Europe, religion was at last made the basis of European policy; and we must not make it a matter of reproach that this principle still retained so indefinite a character; for this was necessary at the beginning at least, in order to remove any misconception, or any possible suspicion of interested views. And not only doth the stability and future existence of the whole Christian and civilised world depend on this bond of religious confederacy-which we can only hope may be ever more