DR. BINNEY ON DEISM. [To THE EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR."]
SIR,—Mr. Conway's reply seems to miss both points of Dr.. Binney's well-known retort upon the Deist. 1. The objection touched by Dr. Binney claimed that Christ- ianity, if true, ought to be universal; to which it is surely a fair and telling rejoinder to remark that, if the universality of a religion is to be made a test of its truth, Deism comes badly off' indeed.
Mr. Conway now claims that Christianity, if necessary to salva- tion, would certainly have been made self-evident; but this is au objection of a totally different kind to the above.
2. Mr. Conway's syllogism to prove Deism "nearly universal may justly be stated as follows :—All religions have their God ; Deism has its God ; therefore Deism is as universal as religion.
Deism, however, consists in the endeavour to sustain a religion purely on the naked acknowledgment of a Divine Being ; and so far from this attempt being proved by the analysis of the religions. of mankind a univeraal success, there is nothing which tells more- strongly against it.—I am, Sir, &c., All Saints' Green, Norwich, April 26. ALEX. GORDON.
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