The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1874-03-30
PILATES SCEPTICISM.

Sermon by the Rev. DIR. Mulchnhey or
Pilates Sccpticism-TO Believe in
Truth Easier Than To Believe I'm False
hOod-The Bea uties of the Christian ms
Faith and the Darkness of Scepticism.
The services at st. Paul's Episcopal church, cor
ner OF Broadway and Vesey street, yesterday, were
OF the peculiar solemnity demanded by the cele
bration OF Palm Sunday Yesterday was the occa
sion OF the first great Christian festival since the
renovation OF St. Paups The new embelish
ments are OF very chaste and beautiful char.
acter, particularly in the chancel, where the
mingling OF blue and gold forms a very pretty
effect. The blue OF the background Is relieved
by pretty figures in gold, which are in the best
taste. Here and there monogram of the initials
OF the saint from whom the church is named may
be seen, also neatly done in gold leaf The pulpit
has been renovated, and Q sounding board.
with the symbolic figure OF the Holy Ghost In re-
heuo, adds much to the effect OF the voice. All the
appointments on the altar, as well as IN the
church, have new look and are set or by the
cleanliness and freshness OF the walls and balus-
trades OF the gallery. Last evening the Rev.
Mr.. Mulcnahey preached a sermon on the
SUBJECT OF Pilates sceptlcism, taking his
text from John xvi 3s = 'Piate saith
unto him, what Is TRUTH" The preacher said -
We cannot say with positive certainty what were
the feelings of Plate in putting this question: but
IT Is quite certain that he did not expect an
answer. He put 1t either in testing captiousness
or else in gloomy despair-either as one who did
not care whether or no there be any such thing
as truth, or else as one who had settled himself in
the conclusion that knowledge OF the truth can
not be attained with any satisfactory degree OF
certainty The latter Is the more probable. He
had before him at the time prisoner In respect Of
whom he was in grlevous perplexlty. An excited
mob were DANGEROUSLY demanding this prisoners
condemnation as Dlasphemsr against their God
and traitor to the State. And yet the whole de-
demeanor and history OF this prisoner were such
as to make Plate feel, not only that He was nnO-
cent OF their charges, but also that there might be
something superhunan in His nature. His per-
plexlty respecting Him Is shown by his conduct.
a sermon on the text "First, he hears what the
people have to say; then he asks the opinion
from Him goes again to the priests and people,
lends his ear, listens to the ferocity on the one
hand and feels tue beauty on the other, balancing
between them. And then he becomes bewdered,
as man OF the world Is apt to do who has no
groundwork OF religious principles, and hears
superficial discussions on religious matters and
superficial charges and superficial SANDERS tli he
knows not what to think" What could come out
OF SUCH procedure but that cheerlessness oil soul
to which certainty respecting anything and every
thing here on earth seems unattainabeS What
IN short but that sad mental state which Is prop
then, seems to have been mis- mood. And in such
a mood, when lie heard the very prisoner before
him speak, with CAIN, majestic serenity, OF truth
as the very end and purpose OF life; when he heard
him declare, ITO this end was l born and for this
cause came into the world, that should bear
truth heareth my voice"-oh there was nothing in
him attuned to sucn tOne and tae question:
IS truths or sss Sm him in
VINO knows anything about 1t? VINO has ita
VINO can be certain whether he has it or noJs The
rnn vn mt Tn
immediately Out and dad not wait for an answer.
1t was not put Tor the sake of rdcule. Tor he went
on to say, 81 ind no fault III HIM. There was sar
casm in II, but IL was "that m0urniul, bitter sar
casm, which hides inward unrest in sneering
wordsathat sad irony; whose very laugh rings OF
inward wretchedness." And now, In pursuing the
subject, have to say
First-rhat this state OF scepticism in respect to
religious truth is the saddest the most unhappy
and disheartening state into which one can get.
It Is better, far better, to be misbeliever than
unbehever better to be mistaken in the object of
ones faith than to have no lalth For the moment
that faith Is COLE, the moment that one settles
down into the conclusion that there Is no such
thing as truth, or no ascertainment OF It, that mo-
ment his life Is left without any guiding principle
and without any high aim; and one OF two
become mere trlfer or else gloomy and ma
lignant hater OF everything shat Is accredited as
truth o. course, he will then regard all VINO profess
to hold and believe in SUCH truth as either hypO-
critics or FOOLS and this universal dstrust Oh others
can scarcely help reacung to foster dishonesty IN
others are playing ior the same selfish ends; or
else he assumes tone OF lofty superiority; deals
out coarse and harsh invectives against bigotry
and mario w-mindedness; plumes himself on his
ltperatlty OF sentiment and his freedom from Sec
tartan prejudice and sectarian cant; while, in
truth, he is stepped to the very lips In the bitter
est mahgnity against all who dissent in the least
IRON his unDelief. What wretcned state OF mind
and hearth Who would Willingly sink into 1t? Who
would not be glad TO know and anxious to hold
last to the principles OF thought and lie which Will
preserve him from itP Give me- then, your atten-
ton while | endeavor to indicate and illustrate
be settled as fundamental and unquesti0naDe
principle that in religion, as in every kind OF
science, there Is sucE u thing as absolute truth.
There either is. or else there Is not one living ana
true God; and He either has or else He has not
made that revelation OF HIS nature and His
will which Is contained in the books OF Scripture
and proclaimed in the preaching and the Sacra-
mental ministrations OF the Church. There can be
no other alternative, no compromise which can
mitigate In the least the opposition between these
positions. one of them must be true-true as
matter OF absolute TACT altogether Independent OF
any notions Of 0urs-and the other must be as alb
sOlutey false. 1t Is not question between differ
ent sets or phrases OF opinions, either of winch
may be held or rejected in the way OF mere Specu-
laon. 1t is not balance OF suppOslttious or theo-
retlcal notions, out II is simple unmitigated
downright falsehoOd.
.Seoorad-lt must be held. therefore in the second
place, as q settled principle that belief Of the
truth and nothing but the truth In this matter Is
Of vital Importance. Pilates question Is often put
MISUNDERSTANDING put by him or nOt-in such
spirit as sheer at the folly OF insisting any de-
clded conviction In religious doctrine or fact
"What Is Truth ~ 1t is asked. 'Who need care lOr
that WHAT difference does it make whether
we believe III one God. or in three gods or in
twenty, II we only live godly' What matters 1t
whether we hold all the articles OF the Christian
faith as contained in the Apostles creed or deem
this faith no better than ANTICIPATED superstition,
provided only that our conduct Accords with good
principles Or OF what Importance can any dog
matte shades or degrees OF belief be provided only
that we are sincere in what we do hold ~
For modes of faith let graceiess zealots fight,
His can't be wrong whose life is Ia the right.
This sounds very plausible and finds an easy cur.
rency with the careless ana superficial But one
must be very careless and superficial not TO see
That its pausibiilty Is not that Of truth, but OF
wretched fallacy. For II ought to be understood
by every one who thinks at all, or assumes to
know anything, about religion, that In both its
junction aud it's subject matter latin Is something
quite distinct from, and altogether superior to,
mere opinion. There are, unquestionabV, in re-
thought, thousand subjects when are properly