an instant, if
all that happens to him is a result of the Divine will, if man is
nothing of himself, if all the events which he experiences are the
effects of Divine decrees, if he can not do any good without assistance
from above, how can it be pretended that man enjoys liberty during one
moment of his life? If God did not save him in the moment when he sins,
how could man sin? If God preserves him, God, therefore, forces him to
live in order to sin.

LXXXVI.--ALL EVIL, ALL DISORDER, ALL SIN, CAN BE ATTRIBUTED BUT TO GOD;
AND CONSEQUENTLY, HE HAS NO RIGHT TO PUNISH OR REWARD.

Divinity is continually compared to a king, the majority of whose
subjects revolt against Him and it is pretended that He has the right to
reward His faithful subjects, and to punish those who revolt against
Him. This comparison is not just in any of its parts. God presides over
a machine, of which He has made all the springs; these springs act
according to the way in which God has formed them; it is the fault of
His inaptitude if these springs do not contribute to the harmony of the
machine in which the workman desired to place them. God is a creating
King, who created all kinds of subjects for Himself; who formed them
according to His pleasure, and whose wishes can never find any
resistance. If God in His empire has rebellious subjects, it is God who
resolved to have rebellious subjects. If the sins of men disturb the
order of the world, it is God who desired this order to be disturbed.
Nobody dares to doubt Divine justice; however, under the empire of a
just God, we find nothing but injustice and violence. Power decides the
fate of nations. Equity seems to be banished from the earth; a small
number of men enjoy with impunity the repose, the fortunes, the liberty,
and the life of all the others. Everything is in disorder in a world
governed by a God of whom it is said that disorder displeases Him
exceedingly.

LXXXVII.--MEN'S PRAYERS TO GOD PROVE SUFFICIENTLY THAT THEY ARE NOT
SATISFIED WITH THE DIVINE ECONOMY.

Although men incessantly admire the wisdom the goodness, the justice,
the beautiful order of Providence, they are, in fact, never contented
with it. The prayers which they continually offer to Heaven, prove to us
that they are not at all satisfied with God's administration. Praying to
God, asking a favor of Him, is to mistrust His vigilant care; to pray
God to avert or to suppress an evil, is to endeavor to put obstacles