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“6 — An Examination of Hume’s Argument on the Subject of Miracles. By A.H. Lawrence. Washington: Printed by J. & G.S. Gideon. 1845. 12mo. pp. 20,” The North American Review, vol. 62, no. 130 (Jan. 1846), pp. 263–4.
Anonymous
The author of this review for the North American Review is not identified in William Cushing, Index to the North American Review (Cambridge, 1878).
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HUME’S famous argument against the credibility of miracles has been so often exposed and confuted, that a fresh examination of it at the present day seems to be little more than an exercise of logical ingenuity. As its proper effect is to establish not the impossibility of a miracle, but the impossibility of believing in one, it is practically confuted by the belief actually entertained by the bulk of mankind, — by all persons, in fact, whose skeptical ingenuity does not transcend their sober judgment. It affords a good field, however, for legitimate metaphysical discussion, and a severe scrutiny of the nature and applicability of different kinds of evidence; and it is as an exercise of this character that Mr. Lawrence has treated it. He has viewed the subject more as a lawyer than a theologian, and his remarks are therefore free from that professional bias which has injured the effect, if it has not impaired the soundness, of many replies to Hume. His criticisms are not confined to the reasoning of the arch skeptic, but extend over the ground occupied by most of these replies; and they evince a clear understanding of the subject, great logical acumen, and a remarkable power of stating his arguments and conclusions in concise, forcible, and distinct language. It is quite refreshing to find a little pamphlet so free from the verbiage, irrelevancy, and indistinctness which deform most argumentative discussions of the present day. If the writer will cultivate his powers, and choose a broader field for their exercise, he can hardly fail to acquire distinction in the practice of any profession which affords play for the nobler faculties of the intellect.