ELEMENTS OF MITHOLOGY.

THOSE young persons who live in the present age of the world, and who are educated as Christians, often hear of other gods besides that true and only God who is represented to them as the father of all intelligent beings, and the maker of every existing thing. They learn from this, that men have not all, and always, worshipped that pure and holy Spirit, who has been represented to them as the only proper object of trust and praise: and in reading the Scriptures they perceive, that God has forbidden the worship of images. They must naturally ask, what nations have worshipped idols, and why they have worshipped them.

This question is answered by the fact, that when men first spread themselves over the habitable earth, they forgot and altered the revelation which God had made to Adam, Noah, and other patriarchs and invented new and false gods, whom they adored. It pleased God to select one nation, to whom, in order to preserve the knowledge of himself in the world, he revealed himself in a particular manner.

The fables connected with the false religions of antiquity are still carefully preserved. They constituted the religious faith of civilized nations; are often mentioned in ancient and modern history and poetry, and are often very amusing. Mythology,

ELEMENTS OF MITHOLOGY.

THOSE young persons who live in the present age of the world, and who are educated as Chris tians, often hear of other gods besides that true and only God who is represented to them as the father of all intelligent beings, and the maker of every existing thing. They learn from this, that men have not all, and always, worshipped that pure and holy Spirit, who has been represented to them as the only proper object of trust and praise: and in reading the Scriptures they perceive, that God has forbidden the worship of images. They must naturally ask, what nations have worshipped idols, and why they have worshipped them.

This question is answered by the fact, that when men first spread themselves over the habitable earth, they forgot and altered the revelation which God had made to Adam, Noah, and other patriarchs and invented new and false gods, whom they adored. It pleased God to select one nation, to whom, in order to preserve the knowledge of himself in the world, he revealed himself in a particular manner.

The fables connected with the false religions of antiquity are still carefully preserved. They constituted the religious faith of civilized nations; are often mentioned in ancient and modern history and poetry, and are often very amusing. Mythology,