New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1872-04-18
HOME CORRESPONDENTS.
THE RosroY RADICAL CLUB.

THE BOSTON RADICAL CLUB
ESSAY BY THE REV. Mr. TEMPLE, ON AssuMP-
TONS DISCUSSION By MR.. ALooi'' '
wRfss AND THE REV. DR.. BAKroL.
rvpov rup vpor, 4, cora RspoxoRYr OF raB TRrBuSEI
BosroN. April 1o.-The Radical CluD assem-
bed for s April meeting at Mrs. sareents yeseruay'
The attendance was full, the day being prop'uo"'
essayist was a new man." the Rev MI Ienp'e' anu NC
called HIS subject Assumptions, tnoueh A"o n~
OF the souls belief In God Womb nave so'"eo, =
thought q more accurate statement VIII n'oVe vie
world ssid Archimedes "n you can furnsn resting
place for the fuIcrun Of my lever Thinking the por
.uit OF causee But we must have q starting point
You would have the world or tnouenS oocsneu' "
your beheet, you must use lever, ~h'c" d"
method and the only basis on when can
operate IA assumption. Assumption per a. mol o')ec'
tionable and only becomes pcrnieious when IL degene
rates into upmeaning dogmatism. I'VE are Obliged to
assume something The difference betweenthe FOOL and
The uisa man IL In the quality Of their assumptions As
sumptions may either conscious pr unconseons Inc
fret class furnish hint of the culture OF the
the second afford clue to the problem when mans
life Ia intended 10 solve for himself and for mankind.
RELIGION assumes God; arst uncopscously afterward
consciously BY the belief In God received
tradltionally Each nation has its own Scrip
lures These. surely, contain the word Of Godl why,
there can be doubt about the matter! DID not Moses
or Mahomet the very voice OF Deity or receive from
HIM craven recorts, tables Of stone and the nkei
How sha know that revelation Of God IN not
forreryf In there present proofP Then the trad-
tonal belief in God support itself by two props
external and internal The first attempt oegets long
series OF books-Butlers Analogy, and the like The
other attempt appealing u internal religious e1rHrl-
ence falls ysticism. The Seer Is kind or con-
Meeting link between the mystical and the speculative
belief In God There many Oejectors TO speculative
thinking who keep crying out for facts, facts racs
meaning physical facts forgetting that there IA another
set OF phenomena which they almost wholly ignore
epeculaon is not guesswork the thinker but com
prehension OF truth reached by procedure as objective
az the law Of gravitatiOn. When UNCONSCIOUS
we call 1T spiritual experience, illumination
when fully conscious this process II called the
dialectic And the diaectc IL the perfection OF method
All other modes OF investigation are embraced IN H. ana
are partial OF one-sided when carried on separately
Common crawling on all fours opposes u on the
one hand and skeptesm the other; but 1t goes
quietly on 70 prove the idea OF God assumed by re
lion only hypothesis on which assumption itself
possible II required To justify itself to the m
derstanding The organic relations of the mind are no
more taken cognzance Of by the understanding than the
circulation Of the blood our breathing tse Is the oo
eet Of constant thought the result OF Intention Inc
OF love and of reverence are IN the
the unconscious. We God perpetualiy. but
OF MISLEADING Him for thought Men
speak OF projecting their ideal OF God IRON their
own consciousness, the Infinite were PROJECT OF
theirs One II reminded Of the Lad who IN describing
his father said THE old gentleman il GOOD deal IKE
me- No God Is not Of our fashionine and knowing
what bungers should be II left 70 cut our own pat
tern OF virtue volunteered to be himself our model
and -it forever in the presence OF the soul.
Ia the brief discussion which followed Mr. Acou
was the speaker. He went back to the time when
characterization came IN. That was 40 years ago;
and a meeting like this of today would then nave Deen
civ King F wlff -
souls sat down in some quiet place 70 talk over
the new ideas. Now. from month 10 month large
audiences gather 10 listen 10 the thoughts OF
40 wears ago shaped and strengthened by the eI-
perlence observation OF the intervening time
He liked Mr. Temples term diaectic. 1t means much
to student Of Plato and Aristotle MI weiss e1-
pressed MS btedness the essayst and his pleasure
in the thought OF God as infinite morality. Character
was the one thing which always saved him from skepc
ism; put an end secret doubts Of individual i'm
mortality shut the door questioning. Character Ii
concrete therefore ndestructibe secured II advance
Dr Bartol said he always liked 10 hear the word OF
man who could not GET rid OF God God il Being who
iustihes this existence HIS morality, his rectitude
enter into the idea eternity. He did not believe there
eould lie a question ABOUT Immortality; t. ask
proves that you have fallen from grace. Such
question would mO-e occur 70 perfect
soul than a bird gaddening the young dag
with song would think OF asking Shall sing again To-
morrow Tho bird ia for the song. The Radical argu
ment interested hm little the Conservative for
this direction questioned Is God the voice -
then all tones Of II; humanity, symphony ~
God Despse creed and ritual as we may they are but
attempts 70 open a door by which mankind can enter
the ecy and We need institutions TO protect the
spirit All nature proves death 70 he Tue %ay o. ne, ana
ing the young with the youth Of unfaing fath
seemed not hard matter u believe a. be believed
l. c. n.