Ashtabula weekly telegraph. [volume] (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1853-1873, 1864-02-06
nj HORACE GREELEY.


/ do not partake OF the spirit wherein most
criticisms on Renuu's Life If Jesus seem 20
have been conceived. hiDk mat work cal.
cua'ed 10 quicken The zeal and coD6rm the
faith Of intelligent Christians Thai the au
thor's character OF Jesus is an impossible one
that such person as be persumes Jesus
,oha We been is d solecism-a point blank
conlradic lon-that Jesus must ell her have
neen u Ieache' sent from God or II design
ing ImpuSter-l thluk Will he IN more maui.
fest and certain TO The readers of Renan
Than II ever was before. If there ever was
"a case OF definition 10y ex lusou, think
1t is demonstrated that Jesus could neAer
have beeu the person whom Renan IN
general declares aud proves him, nuleSs he
uad been specially enlightened aud guided
from on high Andl hIuk here are many
Christians who will study their Boles more,
aud with l.veIier interest, newer affec.
ton, for having read his book.
| The criticism | would make on NJ Renan
concerns rather his philosophy than his
heology-or rather his Chrislology. /
Wish 10 submit II few observations on his
sweeping denial Of Miricles--or rather, his
| vigorous dIscreditiug Of whatever is loosely
| ermed the supernatural. lie boldly and
| ,luuily says
"NoDe of the miracles with which ancient
histories are filled occurred under scientific con.
| ditions. Observation, never once contradicted f,
| teaches us that miracles occur ouly in periods
and countries iu which they are believed 10,
and before persons disposed to believe 10 theu
No miracle was ever performed before an as
sembly OF men capable OF establishing the mir
ruoulous character )f an act. Neither men of
the people nor men Of the world were ever
competent for that, etc, elc. 1T
is not, therefore, in the name of this or that
philosophy, but 10 the name Of constant expe.
rence, that we Danish miracle from history
We do not say, Miracle is impossible;' we say,
There has hitherto been no miracle proved
\ Till we have new light we shall
maiatain, therefore, this priGcipe OF sorical
criticism, that supernatural relation caunot be
accepted as such that it always implies iucre.
dulity or imposture; that the duty of the his
torian is to interpret it, and to seek [determine
what portion of truth and what portion OF er-
ror it may contain"
do not doubt that many persons concur
10 this logic but il seems 10 be scarcely
earicatured in the theorists reply TO the
objection: The facts are adverse TO your
theory: So much the worse for the facts.
UOSel vatiou, experience, testimony, are to
he dlscredited, # they point TO conclusions
which the theorist has prede ermined can
not be sound. Surely, if this is philosophy,
then Bacon was no philosopher.
The limits OF newspaper article forbid
incidental dl,qusitions ON the nature and
essence of Miracle and the real, necessary
, import Of the term Supernatural. / do
not think the latter word happily as wisely
! chosen 10 characterize occurrences like the
healing of he blind or even the resurrec
lion of Jesus. How do | know that either
of these is any less natural than The birth
OF child TO human parents, neither OF
" hom had any conscious existauce tAen'
/. " five years ago2 Birth is common; res
direction is, within my experience, un'
common; but what of that? Ii there was
error ia the philosophy of the African
t chief who rejected With indignation the
y travellers tale that iu Europe rivers al
9 times become so hard aud solid that arm
les iraversed their surface dry Shod. with
all their cannon aud baggage. who eau
safely endorse that of M, Renan He
prescribes the circumstances under winch
u merace should be performed TO render It
: convincing; adds that au experiment ough
b always to be susceptible Of Oelug repeated
;. decides of hand that meracles have neye'
" vilhslood this test, aud thereupon kick'
= them aside as auliqualed rubbish Ba
suppose the African chief aforesaid haC
said. What is true ip Europe ought 10 b'
equally true in Africa, now make the
Niger or Blue Nile SO bard this instan
= that csn march my army over il. or
will cut your head of-whereip would hi