ESSAY

ON THE

SCEPTICAL TENDENCY

OF

BUTLER'S "ANALOGY."

BY

Jara

S. S. HENNELL.

LONDON:

JOHN CHAPMAN,

8, KING WILLIAM-STREET, STRAND.

1859.

ESSAY

ON THE SCEPTICAL TENDENCY OF BUTLER'S "ANALOGY."

SINCE its first appearance before the world, nearly a century and a quarter ago, the "Analogy" of Bishop Butler has been acknowledged by general consent as the established orthodox bulwark of Revealed Religion; being held so perfect in its construction, and so impregnable in its position, that not even any outer-works of supplementary comment have been deemed necessary to add to its strength by his reverential followers. During the last sixty years, it has indeed shared the honour of being the standard defence of Christianity with Paley's "Evidences," which takes up a range of argument untouched by Butler; but while the later writer, incomparably more attractive to the generality of readers from the interest of historic treatment, from the exquisite perspicuity and fascinating simplicity of his style, and from the finely well-mannered liberality of his tone, has stood for one generation at least decidedly first in popularity : still there has always been an immense support to the Christian controversialist, during the vexatious skirmish