The importance of faith is not the abuse of Christianity; it is the thing itself. Jesus taught it to his disciples, and blames them for having so little. But when Peter, his trusty servant, in a passion, cut off a man's ear, his divine Master only gave him a gentle rebuke, telling him to be careful how he used the sword, for he might have to go in mourning for his own ears.
The consistent Infidel, who renounces all religious creeds, and who views the whole human family as beings possessing the same faculties, subject to the same wants, and liable to the same misfortunes as himself, can, by the use of his reason, without the aid of revelation, discover the duties which he owes to himself, and also the true relation in which he stands to his fellow mortals. He, by what he observes around him, and by what he feels within himself, can see clearly the correct line of duty, and can, at any time, draw a just conclusion as to his moral standing in society. But it is far otherwise with the Christian, whose whole dependence is on what his Saviour has done for him. He is alternately disturbed with doubts and fears as to the ground on which he stands; and being taught, that his best efforts to attain a moral elevation by a steady course of virtuous actions, is considered by his Maker worse than nothing, he loses sight of the high responsibility he stands in, in relation to his fellow man.
In proportion, then, as faith is considered superior to moral virtue, the first is sought after, and highly valued, and the latter is neglected as of little consideration in securing happiness in this life or in that which is to come. We need not, therefore, be surprised that Christians, as a class, fall far below Infidels in point of moral rectitude. Christianity, at best, is a cold-hearted system; its followers are generally unsocial. They are taught to "_love not the world nor the things of the world._" Jesus himself says to his disciples, "_Ye are not of the world, even as I am not of the world; but because I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you._" Pride and intolerance are leading features in the conduct of Christians generally. These defects among professors of religion, arise from the belief that faith in Christ, as their Redeemer, secures them heaven; and as it respects the duties of life, they hold them very lightly, regarding them as, matters of little or no weight in the article of salvation.