The Richmond palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1855-1875, 1871-04-22
Two Lectures ON Free Religion.

On the evenings of the 18th and 1eth
handful of those who chose had the oppor-
tunity to hear two lectures on Infdelity at
Lyceum Hall in our city. The lecturer was
announced to be distinguished apostle Of
that creed, and so some of us went to hear
the doctrines proclaimed il their purity and
sustained in their strength. The speaker we
should take to be the fair logical sequence of
the system which he advocates. He is bold
and reckless in his statements, daring, loose
and declsmatory in what he calls arguments.
All the points he makes have been better
made by better minds, and these fully an
swered over en-! over again.
The time occupied in the two lectures was
three ard one half hours, and after the first
few minutes the mind of the listener con,in-
| ually asked the question, "What can be the
motive which actuates a man to induce him to
teach such doctrines p After listening pa
| tienily for three hours an half the conclu
sion was forced on the mind that ranity was
/ the principal. motive which must actuate the
/. minds of the Free Reiigionists. An afecta-
! ton of oddness was the most cogent reason
that could be perceived in the lectures. But
| whether the lecturer was Stole, an Epicu-
rean CT an Atheist, he was by no means GER
tain himself. Nor was his mind better settled
as to what constitutes God. if there is God.
| God-but the lecturer ridculed the idea that
God has gender-might be nature, the laws
of natu re. or the informing principle + the
things which appear at least, if there is a
God, he, she, it, must be something. or may
be, though the speaker was no, certain on
that point. And. surely, Tnfideiity was The
informing principle o! TIE two lectures-the
lecturer had no certain faith in anything. HI
is equally infiel with respect to Infidelity
and Christianity. He professed no faith il
christianity, and sloned about as little in In
fidelity. And how could it be otherwise
Ignoring all the recognized laws of belief, In
fidelity is cut in stormy sea without com
pass or rudder. Inhdeli,y is at once To.
worst form of incrednlty and the worst form
OF eredulity. II believes with the least cvi
dence that could beget belief 10 ratiorA
mind, and disbeleves where it is hard to con
ceire how more evidence could be given. In
fidelity can believe that man came from
snake, a lizard, snail, a tsdpole, but can
believe there is God, who made the world
and now governs it in wisdom, in way no
coniprehended by the developed aad improved
snail or tadpole. IF the lecturer established
any one thing beyond doubt it was that In
fidelity is creduliy run mad. Aside from
many partial and prejudced presentations o
Christian doctrines, the lecturer often shove,
positive hatred to Christianity. He EN-
ployed burlesque and ribaldry. He jeered
sneered and scoIed, and employed the mate
rial used by the less gifted of minds in til
advocacy of bad cause. One was remind
ed of the description, eighteen centuries age
anticipating such characters, telling us ";ha
there shall come in the last days scoffers
walking after their own lusts, and saying
Where is the promise of his coming TO
since The fathers fell asleep all things con
tinue rs since the beginning of creation"
As to the actual doctrines taught by th
lecturer, if he taught anything at all, or il
believes in any definite things, there W.
nothing novel or striking. Not an able ma,
with little power of analysis, less delicacv ,
thought or language, with the airs of a swas
gerer, tinctured with the manner of bragg,
docio, upon the whole the lecturers we're DO,
coarse and commonplace. He made SOU
filings at the churches, which, unhappily, al
too true; but he attributes mary things
them which belong to them only because the
are composed of human beings, and might
affirmed with equal propretY of fidelity
Inidelity. Where it suited his purpose be
to exaggerate he exaggerated, where to ia
short of stating the whole truth, part of Il
ruth was withheld. Chafering, hgglin
burlesgue, ribaliry, were unhesitatingiy e.
ployed, as the exigencies seemed to demau
In resolving intelligence, mind, God into ma
ter, thought of comfort must have been |.
% thns, who have lately laii their loved On
the grave. lie assured us that matter W
ndestruc;!',ie. and, as matter, we are ind
!ructibis, and go, a we lay the forms of O
eceased friends in the grave, we may be col
) orted by the idea tina. in the times of 9th
, ears the loved matter will not be DESTROYS
, nut will reappear TO cheer US as it cons,itut
i, part of the plants we see, the animal
rear below, or the railroad iron on which
,r our freight are carried from place to pla,
This, We thought, must be cheering inform
tion to the mother no had recently lost
oabe, or to the wife who had laid the form
/ .husband beneath the turf. To reflect Il
: III is gone but what may make rairo
ron may be one of the cheering thoughts
tnhdelity but it, with the other argume,
employed to lend attractions to this c,
i, bread, we are willing may be embraced
:, those who prefer such doctrines. Y
Happy Cal. Wagner's Mi