The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1872-09-23
Or. HALL ON DECISION OF CHARACTER.
The Rev. N. G.. Cheney and Love
to Man and God.
The Progress Of Christianity Portrayed by
the Rev. John WerS.
TALMAGE's DEFINITION OF FAITH.
LYRIC HALL.

The Scientific Test OF Prayers-Prayers
as a Substitute for Medicinc-Sermon
by the Rev. o. Il. rockingham.
Yesterday morning Lyric Hall, 1913 Sixth avenue,
was well filled by large and fashionable congrega
ton. Rev. o. B. rockingham chose for the sub
ject of his discourse prayers" He commenced:-
The doctrine OF prayers is exceedingly simple, and
is expressed in comprehensive language In the
Bible 1t says that 'To him that asketh 1t shall be
given" &c. Up and down throughout the Bible 1t
is stated that what the believer asks shall be
granted. 1t is not said that all prayers are
granted Joshua prayed The sun stood
still and the moon was arrested In her
course. Elijah prayed on the mountain top that
fire would come down and consume the woods, and
1t came. The Church prayed and Paul was released
from his prison house. This is the doctrine Of
OF Christianity, and the books of Protestant
churches abound in this doctrine. There is a GER
tain people in England who discard physicians and
depend wholly upon prayers to save their relations
and friends, as directed by the Apostle James. II
the sufferer RECEIVERS the prayer is answered.; but
II he die God intended it so. Do you not believe in
the holy word? The argument is unanswerable on
an be This an
UNBELIEvING AGE
and people should not complain because their pray
ers are not answered when they do not believe.
professor produced the following experiment to
see II prayers could save the sick He SAID let us
and let one be occupied by people who believe in
prayer and the other by people who believe in the
for 1--WE years and then see whether prayers or med
iclne will succeed. He proposed this In good faith
and sincerity Of mind. He was man OF delicate
organization, Of poetical temperament OF unusual
sentiment, and anticipated no objection to his ex-
pertinent. He thought that men OF science
But the proposition was not received. The sceptcs
did not believe, and the church people demurred
it was trick trap laid Tor them The validity Of
prayer depends upon its earnestness.
DIPLOMATIC PRAYERS,
made to order, as 1t were, are lacking in the ele-
ments which all prayers require. The first sound
and insupportable objection to this plan was that
to the viii Of God Christ cries out in his intense
agony mot my WILL but thine be DONE" 1t may
not be His win to answer these diplomatic prayers.
Five years is not enough time in which to test
the good Of prayers nor two hospital wards room
enough to hold the thousands which it requires;
Suppose the prayers were answered. Who shall
say that 1t was not owing to the atmosphere OF
temperatureY You do not know but that 1t was
the tingng OF the blood In the veins caused by
faith and intense desire that caused the recovery.
IF the prayers are granted, scientific men would
'"' '''"' " NATURAL CONSEQUENCES.
The question is this What is our idea OF God' Is
He or is He not being IKE one Of ourselves, but
vast unde6nable, unfathomabe, unsearchable-
the realm Of imposslbnity that has not
God who thinks as we do, who plans, schemes and
manipulated Is he like the superintendent of a
railroad, VINO mas u thousand trains, OF ike tne
First Napoleon, who knew everything that was
going on in foreign cabinets knew just how many
rifles Spain had, and could dictate dozen letters
at onceY suppose a case of drought all over con-
tinent from sea to sea and ocean to ocean, men
and women living under "a
BRAZEN SKY
and walking on dry earth. They poured forth their
prayers to the Almighty for rain. lie might not
make cloud, while miles and miles away there
were thousands and millions of them collected
over lakes and seas. They would move in accord
ance to the laws of nature. Suppose an
Immense conflict going on. Emancipation for in
stance. Such struggle as our Revolution against
foolish George Of England If the commander-in-
chief is i'll, in danger, the whole people pour
forth their heartfelt prayers. For with his death
their cause may be lost-they themselves may be
lost. Suppose by the natural turn OF events he is
spared 1t is no miracle. To my mind this idea
OF an individual Cod VINO sits aoft on the nrma-
ment who sees and arranges things nom day 10
day and year to year is inconceivaole. The Bible
people knew nothing about nature as we behold
1t. They had no science, no method, no system
geology, no astronomy, no history. Their worlt
was very small The whole aspect OF the worlt
changed when knowledge opened their eyes. We
dwell upon one OF the smallest darkest planets
which are scattered about in endless space. You
cannot blot out star without shaking the sun.
We have not touched the bottom Of the perplcXity.
All is under law. When one conceives the
universe 1t is evident that he ask for special
gift. Just as fast as men have begun to under
stand the world they live in they have ceased to
pray. Our prayers are anticipated and answered
before we think OF them. If prayers win save the
lick what are physicians and medicines for?