Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1874-12-06
THE RELIGION OF TIE FUTURE


Ale LEV hlA rtuotattF tiltACAitA a. ili
Pantheon, Rev J 5. Thompson, of Eng
land. delivered an able address lsEt nigh
before a small but select audience In thu
lnsny-domed temple OF free religion, Oh
the question, "Wil the Coming Mar
Attend Church?' taking for his text th,
famous phrase in verse IS Of Acts vii
The church in the Wilderness Mr.
Thompson is graceful and essy-speak.
ing, possessing in a marked degree thai
peculiar power Of vocal meditation 81
characteristic Of Gerald Massey, whom
lac greatly resembles in manner, This
church Of popular theology, said thf
speaker, lie fast losing its authority over
the laity. Many Of our best thinker.
aud writer's have ignored the theological
claims OF tbs Protestant church; aud
the people have learned to resDeei
ius opinions Of the non-clericsl In
Nesn gators Of ecelesiasticsl subjects
while Il has become an undenisble fact
that science has made sad havoc
among the Gogmas. There Is q widely
prevalent belief among modern radicals
tnat ali churches are founded In error.
aud That science will finally triumph
over All the conceptions and creeds OF
our toreiathers; that as knowledge in
crosses, public worship of every form
VII gradually fall into dlsuse. In view
~ these opinions the question, "Will
Tue coming man attend church2i be-
comes an important one. Whatever
may be the various Specifications Of the
word church Ia the English language,
the church 70 which the question refers
o. an assembly, great or small, Of men
and women, for the purpose of worship
resolves Itself into the question, "Will
the coming man continue to believe ip
The existence Of GOd?u We must not
identify religion with superstition or
theology; superstition is mere erroneous
speculation. II was the only science
which the human race in lis infancy
could create. In fact our modern science
is an evolution from superstition; or
rather superstition is the babyhood Of
science. The primal savage attempted
10 form theories regarding the origin
% natural phenomena; and naturally,
more or less, erred. But the scientist Of
today may also, Snd undoubtedly does
from time 20 time, err in the attempt 10
an2lyZa the causes OF other natural phe-
nomena. The schO0lboy of to-day may
detect errors in the theories Of Newton;
SnC the schoolgirl OF the twentieth Gen.
tuG viii laugh 81 some Of the theories
ot Iyndail, Huxley, Carpenter, Wallace,
Darwin aud Agsssiz. But blunders are
the dOorwsys into the temples Of truth.
Compile, the POsiGvist, teaches that the
human race was theological in its in
fancy, metaphysical in its b0yhood, and
that i viii be scientific in its manhood.
Religion has then always been, and is
now the leader Of philosophy and sci
elce. Religion is now struggling to free
itself from the letters of the theolOgies
aud supersdtOBs OF the ages: and
science, philosophy and criticism
IL higher forms are coming TO free
their mother from the pitiless grasp
II her jSilers. And il were less
Just 10 hold religion responsible for the
crimes committed n her name, than it
would be 10 hold medical science respon-
sib.e for the thousands Of murders annu-
ally committed by charIatans. Religion
viii grow rather than decrease in the /
golden future; will purge itself from
evils; and viii bind al beings together
Ia the universal brotherhood of man.
Angus, Compile believed neither 10 the !
q XisteUce Of God nor the Immortality OF I
the soul, but he recognized the fact that I
each Individual must have something I
greater than himself to worship, and I
inst the human mind shoulders al the /
thought of anDihilstion; and he there 4
fore expressed himself satisfied that I
ulb'ic worship Of some form must 4
always exist. We all realize that there
Is power, force, spirit or influence per-
meatDg, changing modifying, moving
81 thiDgs-tbe spirit OF the universe,
.le soul u the world The HindOo calls
e BEahm; the MGh3mmedaB, Al
lab; the Jew, Jehovah; the An
( o-sax00, God; the modern scien-
.'st, Force - and some, Nature. |
This power has given Us lie. Il has
thrown man into consciousness on this
planet; it is carrying Us through the
sceuesof hfeinspite0f itself; and It will
lraw us back, absorb u into itself st
ieath. Scientists are only guessing az
rs methods Of eternal action. But re-
sign, speaking ia al ages by the thou
aud tongues Of thousand prophets,
has Taught man TO bend IN reverence be-
ore the unseen power, and murmur
Our Father THE "All-Father.n The
human heart yesrns toward that ALI
athCT, even when the human intellect
most denies him. Man, then, is a woT-
niEeT; and since, far back a. history or
cience can point, men and women
we're cOHcctiCe.y worshipers, it is safe t.
lresume they will be so in all future
lime. II has been urged sgsinst the
hove argument that 10 various parts Of
he world tribes have been found
among whom neither faith in a
lefty, OF I'm the Immortality of
he soul, prevail. But this method
If argument is fallgCiOus. There are
IGN 10 nHsa- = l.
Eti0nsl for q stranger visiting Cincin-
lati 20 assume that because the city con-
aimed hospitals and asylums all the in
labiiants must be sick or insane? Here
he speaker touched upon the good ef-
ecteG By the church ia all ages as a re-
trainer Of evil passion; as an educator; |
Is an uphOldef Of ethics, government |
nd social order. He then spoke of the I
resent struggle between scientific .
kepiicism and ancient faith a. herald /
1g tine coming Of the coming church.
ct US contrast the probable coming
buTch with the church Of the past. The
epa-tiDg church emphasizes fear as q
lOtive; The coming one will proclaim
conscience as mans best guide to
eaveu. Matter aud spirit were sworn ,
pennies in the old church; they will lie
worn friends in the new. God sat in
ire and smoke in the old church, He
iii be our Father IN the new.
be ancient church hsd but
ne devine man - Buddha, or
loses, or Jesus, OF Mohammed;
be coming one viii make humanity
iviue. THE old church had but one
11E-the Koran, The Nedas, the Zsnda-
Csta, OF the bible; the new church viii
ave all truth IN nature and in books ]
he members Of the old church belonged
D many religions; those Of the new !
lgreh viii be all true men and pure ]
'0men. To the Old church death was
ark valley, and Immortality an iucom-
reheusible enigma; in the new church
cath viii be but a birth into light. The
J church was afraid Of science aud phi
isopay; the new one will pronounce a
suedictiOn on them, and make them
Missionaries. We msy safely trus. the
estinies Of toe church in the future to
Tim who holds cur destinies in his
ands, believing that she must become |
be mighhest factor Of all progress, and
be f1sJer-mother Of ali the actual and
1ssible good that lives, though often
esply hidden, in he hearts Of men.
CONTRIBUTION TO CHURCH |