The New York herald., 1875-08-16
ALL SOULS CHURCH, BROOKLYN.

ALLOWABLE AND sALUTARY DoUBTs- SERMON BY
DIR. PoRTEoUs.
This church was well attended yesterday morning.
The discourse by the pastor-Rev. DR.. Porteous-was
upon allowable and Sautary Doubts" The text was
selected from John, Xxx, 25. Individuals said the
Doctor, like ages Some cannot believe as
much as other men, They are incapacitated by their
mental culture, by the quality of their genius, from at
tanning to the condition Of belief as their oppo
sites. Faith GIBBS and flows In periods of the
worlds history there have been times when men have
believed almost spontaneously and naturally. Other
ages have been emnenty unbelicving. Time has been
when belief in God was considered childish and belief
in immortality selfish There have been times when not
TO believe in God was considered chief virtue
Such periods doubtless, to you characteris
tic OF the last century The speaker deemed it to be
fact OF history that not to be charged with
virtue because they believed; nor were men to be
charged with vicousness because they disbeeved lie
held it to be mpertnence to tell that he must
believe thus and thus thus unless there be evidence
shown to that which appeals to his intellect No
should be expected to believe anything that does
not show
ITS FITNESS AND ITS MORAL TRUTH
to him. BE thought it equally wrong to ask a
to believe simply because truth to his mind
was not symmetrical as il was TO ask man TO believe
truth without investigation.
The speaker conceded that 10 was just as
UNHEALTHY TO BELIEVE TOO MUCH
it is to believe too litte-that there vice in
credulity quite as much as in scepticsm. There is
evident healthiness well moral culture in hold
ing the mind in suspense.
The incident told in the text is often cited adj
monitorv to the unbeeyng mind in relation to re-
lgious things The difference between Thomas and the
eleven that they had proof in the presence of the
Master, and he, being absent had no proof He said,
with my Jewish education, do not believe the womans
tale II to be contradiced by the whole tenor of
the prophecies upon which have based my belief of
the Messiah. Thomas was type of that
HARDY RACE OF AND woAEN
who have occupied large place in the religious world
that have believed too much and have found out
e souls that have relied upon reeds; souls that nave
taken TO themselves deusion; souls that say Wc shall
believe nothing but that Of which we have proof" This
is allowable. The historian OF science tells MS that
but for the condition of disbelief science would never
have progressed the arts would have gone back into
almost dotic baTbarity But for this suspense of judg
ment and this doubling mood Of mind mankind would
have relapsed into condition Of sheer credulty when
fiction and fable, when supposton could be imposed
upon mankind and be taken for facts, as among
the rugged nations of the earth Take, for example,
astronomy. What would have been the effect upon
science if Calico had believed the theories laid down
by the church, II he had not doubted he might have
postponed the advancement OF that science for cen
turies, but he pointed the way for
NEWTON
Thus sceptcism was salutary 10 the welfare Of the
world.
over every gateway of knowledge, the preacher
said, are written legible mottoes-the first for
rest the other is for truth God is hard master
with US he says if we want rest may have it, but
If want rest We cannot have truth. A who
wants rest will accept the first religion that
comes very likely his fathers or his grand
mothers; he does not want to intrude into
the domain Of science, for that means nvestiga-
tion. The who seeks for truth knows there is-no
such thing repose and from indications it would
that the world just is'very much in the humor of
those who repose. In Europe in Catholic and Prot
estant churches the cry is "Le us have done with this
debating and lyzng In the English Church the cry
is Let have ship that cannot be wreckedp And
this cry is the that sends many TO the
Roman Catholic Church They want rest; somebody
10 think for them and do all the anayzng and debating
They say the truth that satisfied their forefahers Is
good enough for them, but they tired; they do not
TO investigate Touching upon the importance Of
every seeking the truth for its sake and taking
it from hearsay the preacher concluded by asking his
hearers 20 encourage donbnot the doubt that springs
from subbornness. not the doubt that comes from
carecssness wickedness but the doubt which rises
up in the soul naturally, which is the growth of
Gods spirit within US