New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1873-11-09

|
: tians and Chaldeans had attained, even in
the glimpse we see reflected in the Jewish
mind, has been made to look like the divine
beginning Of humanity Oh earth. But d.
vine orig in is never visible and we can not
know it in its beginning, can not watch 1t
in its becoming. Doubtless all origin is di-
vine, and that has been applied to our
earthly beginning, as visible fact, through
misrepresentation on the part of the Jews
Of the Chaldean and Egyptian myths. Man
did not begin on this earth in a state OF
perfection, and has never fallen from such
condition, and the men who first forInu-
lated the myths never had any such
meaning. 1t is but Just to the Jews,
however, to point out that we do not
derive our orthodox devil directly
from theirs. According to the Jewish
record the Almighty walked and talked
with men in daily converse and nightly
vision for several centuries, and in all that
time he never revealed to them the exist
ence OF devil or hell or hereafter of
any kind, unless it be admitted, as was
maintained by one OF the earliest sect of
Chrlstlans-the Guostic Ophtes-that the
god OF the Jews, the internal IldabactO,
was most potent friend of evil Or tie very
devil himself in disguise The wiser an
GENTS, called the heather, were not SO ig-
norant of God as 20 believe in devil
Nor is the devil natural produce or in
The devil of theology is the offspring of
theology. 1t is not the result of any
| spiritual revelation. / find the origins of
the myths to be purely physical; l say
! purely, because the common notion of the
| Phalllc religion is that it was impurely
take. The Cox and
Max Mueller theory of the myths was
| then satirized strongly by the lecturer. he
| holding that the myths were not directly
derived from external nature, but we're ere
| ated in mans thought about his own ma
ture. All that was external is symbOlical
and secondary. He traced the history of
the serpent through the two religions based
on the male and female principles in ma
ture, with Egyptian, PhGnician, Assyrian |
ana Hebrew renderings, and derived the |
orthodox Satan from set" or "Sutex' of !
the Egyptians; gave an explanation Of the |
two serpents, types of good and evil, both |
OF which occur in the Penta:euch. The |
primal meaning Of Satan in the Egyptian |
root Set still lives intact, and is the same |
word as our Englist 'set," to plant or to
erect. 1t has been the same here as with
the Hebrew word "accursed," which is de- |
rived from root signifying ito be conse-
Grated" The first statement of person.
tied evil spirit behind the serpent occurs
in the Zend-Avesta. This was probably
adopted by the Jews during the Baby
lonian captivity The devil Of the earlier
conception was all through the monster of
mythology who runs through our nursery |
literature and fairyology. 1t remained for
the Observation-Disclosures. Calvin and Mil
tonic rehabilitate the devil in the popular
mind. Satan of sacerdotal belief is not a
being for God or man to kill, but an etfiyy
IN shoddy that only wants to be ripped up
to show that it is stuffed with sawdust |
There is devil enough, but of another kind
than the one We have been playing with |
and been continually whipping around the
stump. Here the lecturer reviewed the
belief OF modern Spiritualism in the devil
and hell, which consists in the natural Ne
mesis following broken laws and dOgging the
far more terrible way
OF realizing the hereafter than any ab-
stract idea of hell could afford. We
have been amusing ourselves with doll q.
devil, while inside of us and outside of
us and all around about us the real :
devil is living, working with a most Internal .
activity. ana playing the very devil with =.
his world OF ours. We have been following :
4 phantom of faith. and the yeritsble devil q
las been logging us indeed. This is not .
Satan of Gods making, not an archangel
mined who in falling found foothold on :
his earth for the purpose of dragging men !.
Town with him to that lower deep for which | l.
lie is bound but devil to be recognized by ! c
lis likeness to ourselves-the devil that is
'ur worser self, the devil of our own igno-
ance and the dedication of SELF devil be- r
Iueathed to Us by the accumulated centu-
les of ignorant selfshness; a devil to be -
rappled with and wrestled with and over "
brown and overcome and put out of exis- J..
ence. Not only is the struggle against all | ie
hat is evil in the isolated Individual life, u
ur devil has grown too big and too potent a.
II that, but by the energies of all collected q,
nd dubbed together to destroy the causes u
evil whatsoever and wheresoever these "
an be identified. III
We stand in Gods own light, and cast the evil -,
Shadow OF self and say it is the devil. VI
And then we have the blasphemous i'm
udence to make God the author OF the dark
ladow OF ourselves which we have shed on
s creation. and assumed to be an eclipse
ON another world of being. Pain, for ex-
nRe, IS consequence of imperfect condi gu
ons. 1t is the signal of the sentinel that 20
arms us of the enemy. 1t ia necessary to ~
arm U.S. or we should do things as a child 10
light but for this warning, thrust his hand L.
the liz e and have it consumed The souls LII
'alth is continually protected by this warn Gu
Z sentinel of pain, mental or cOrporeal ar
I'm Is necessary then to the perfecting of Tie
nditions. 1t is Gods reminder that there M
wrong, therefore something to re
remedled. 1t is an educating influence la
ie Hottest pleasures of our spiritual life re-
ntinuallv flow from a rOotage in the deep CO.
pam Fam is passing necessity. and lei
1t is the result of imperfect conditions it we
lows that pain Itself must pass away as ,ro
Ose conditions are perfected. God does we
{ destroy pain right off, because he intends ma
IN to get rid of it as he grows and get en-
htened enough to deal more wisely with pa
r human condition. agi
ur so;enoe rrosrs ,i,, -. r,,o.,, VIII
nd makes real half the tales of fairy land. ITO
turns the deathliest fe.or to perfume;
gives decay new life and IOsy bloom;
changes filthy to vlgiL white:
akes pure in spirit what was foul to sight. |
Ne burn the darkness and the density ing
of earthly matter, and transfigure it Sta
o glass which we can see through. We
here to apply similar process of reveal lis.
to our darkened and excavated human
so that the light from heaven NAV shine A.
ough 1t purely. This was impossible I'M SaE
the OLD creed, which taught that pain abo
suffering was the curse wherewith God low
uniustly afflicted all tor the sin of one. Res
tead OF the beneficent though stern angel are
his presence and bearer OF his blessing: Rey
{ it was an eternal decree to be executed mir
ough all eternity, instead of an awakener frOI
lme that calls to action at once tor the Tay
nging and perfecting of the present con- San
ons. God knows there is an awful deal has
suffering in the world that can not be
sldered As mere individual question:
erlng that We do not individually cause "
are not individually responsible tina,
suffering oeIueathed to us as men Flol
as members OF the State. We have to | Stat
r the accumulated burdens of centuries Mar
centuries OF ignorance or, worse still, the
'ililul crime and the burden OF the Othe
~ crushes tue Individual to the earth, in Il
the Uod OF justice appears to be blind Jon;
he special wrong. He works no imme- M
e miracle for ua, even when we suffer in n
the sins of others. Be sure he can turn fam,
eternal account if We will let him. faitl
ntime he has this lesson to convey to his :
Woltu' Iluibdultv is one, ana he has | UrOI