Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1875-07-16
University of Vermont ana
State Agricultural College.
Secenty-First annual Com
n1encenlent.

The exercises connected with the seven
ty-frst commencement of the University
commenced on Sunday afternoon, July llth.
at the College street church. with the Bac-
ealaureate discourse by President Buck
ham. The church was crowded to Its Ut
most capacity. The opening exercises oil
reading Of the Scripture and prayer, were
by Prof j. E Goodrich.
The Baceslaureate.
President Buckham's text was John vii,
AZ =. Hare anu of the rulers beilered on
HIM." This question. said the preacher
was an attempt 10 pnt the ban of the supe-
rior CLASSES on Jesus of Nazareth Toe an
swer might have been, yes, certainly tnel
3 have for we have the evangellstS WORD
for it that among the chief rulers many be-
lieved on him. There has seemed TO be too
4 great readiness 10 concede that the wise
and mighty and noble must be expected
( 10 reject Christ. and that only the poor
and ignorant will ever believe on blm- IL
could not re maintained to-day IN lace
of the long roll of Christian philosophers.
that hat lew wise men are called nor.
against the record Of English and
German mobiles and the untitled peers
of America. and honorable women not
"a few ia all Christian countries. that
NOT many noble are called. II. now. the
philosophers should ask. do any OF u believe
on iiim2 the answer Is. certainly you do
many ot the chief among you believe on
Him: and ;iii You can produce line OF IN
believers superior 10 Bacon. and Newton,
Kcpler. BOYLE, Locke. Leibnitz, Faraday
ana ller-chcl. you viii tail to put the nc
levers on Christ under ban.
Aetthe question might be put IN another
splri, and deserve another answer. As
clqSS the rulers were not with CHRIST ana
now while the common people hear gladly,
many Of the intellectual men investigate,
debate and phiiosophize about Christianity,
tail lifetime has been spent in making up
their minds and meanwhile their hearts
have become hardened into ind ference.
President Bcckham proceeded TO consider
some Of the Disadvantages OF intellectual
men. 10 respcc; 10 religion.
First. they have intelectua! and social
resources. which tend 10 make them feel.
less than other mon. the need OF religion "a
refuge from the paltr.ness and inanity OF
common life TIE plethora in one part OF
his spiritual nature. Ia the intellectual man,
NAV cause the VOID in the other part to be
less felt.
Secondly, they are IN danger OK suffering
in religious character from dwelling too
much on the intellectual aspects OF religion.
They too often stand - a >1rbed IN gazing
into the lofty truths and my stories Of Chris
tianity. that they heed not the call 10 wOr-
ship and prayer. u love and faith. to obedl-
ence and service The thinker i in danger
1T becoming professional critic Of religion.
Under this head the speaker described the
hard intelec;ua.iSm of one style Of religion,
a. exemplIfei in Matthew Arnold. He
l. one who would die. if need
be. To maintain some OF the truths
OF religion; bat he could never win
convert. from Jack OF warmth and per,ua-
siyenes, in the sterile beauty of MS religion.
Nobody wants an intellectual religion, any
more than intellectual poetry. A. poetry.
according to Milton. must be simple, sen
suOus. passionate 80 religion must he
bloOd-warm.
\ third and worse form ofinse!lectualI-n
J. What Buckle cOmmends as hardness OF
belief and what others call honest doubt.
4 certain amount of this l. useful - a
safeguard against pi01> and lmpiOuS frauds.
but al best 1t l. "a negative quality. IL
originates nothing. Such doubter> stood
in the way OF Columbus Like Erasmus
they criticized. while Luther. sometimes
wisely Sometimes unwIsely, but always cour-
ageou,'v. was pushing his way and the
c
They demonstrated the impossibIlity of the
locomotive. the ocean steamship and the
cable. Every triumph the world has won
ha~ been against such men.
Il. said the speaker. 1t falls to my
lot 10 keep my hand on the brake. rather
than ON the lever of the engine, hope To do
my duty faithfully bat will not congrat-
uate NY -e,f on IT, will envy the man
who-e hand and voice OF command accom-
phsieS something. ! will nOt sit in the
shade and sneer at the mistakes of earnest
men viii not pat forward nav lleries
when any great thing l. proposed n.the
church by men Of faith. The man of hard
aud dry intelsctualism IN his religion. J.
10 be pItlcd. The >evere>t rebuke Of oar
Lord 20 his disciples. was 20 fools and
Slow of heart To believe"
Another and probably the greatest danger
for intellectual men l. intellectual prids
The pride OF rank, wealth and power Is not
10 be- compared with the covering pride OF
intellect. But the rewards Of religion are
for those willing 70 build on foundations
already laid to fight under orders TIE
philosopher must accept the truths of re-
li-!on very nearly in tie same way a. the
child at his mother's knee. There is q
little wicket gate through which the
Cafre and the Prime Minister must
alike enter into the Christian lite.
There Is a mountain Of obedience To he /
climbed by both, staff in hand Intellect J.
too apt 10 reject the religion Of Christ. I
either, ike Mr.. Mil, because 1t Is none Of /
M making or 10 arroSate TO itself, ike /
Emerson, krd OF superior deity. cOmpe- /
tent u revise and amend the work OF God. T.
i; too often stands outside the gateway OF I
lie. too proud TO inquire the way or to /
s;CoD under IL low archway
le; it does not follow that to
he highly intellectual is calam- /
ny. Ignorance. too, has its peculiar I
disadvantages. If the intellectual man has .
his difficulties he also has his peculiar helps. I
IN comparative freedom from the gros>er I
temptations and distractions and in habit
aal elevation OF mind which brings him to
the very borders Of religion. As antdOtes
70 cOunteract the Disadvantages under
~hich the Intellectual man labors. the
speaker finally urged the duty of keeping
the soul open to heavenly influences by
mlngllng prayer with study; by going out
among men to share the sympathies and &C
tyltiesoi commonC hr!stian lfc.and BY keep
ing himsei IN close personal intimacy with
Christ When 1t can be said of the scholar.
be walks with Christ" men, instead OF
being chilled by his iutellectualism. will
gather around hun to get their own spirtual
lie warmed by the fame which fans intel
lect ard emotion into one pure sacrifice on
the altar Of God.
The discourse, which was listened to with
the deepes; interest, closed with the Gus
tomary address to the class. as follows:
ADDRESS TO THE CLASS.
Young fr,ads Of The Graduating Class.
II the question: should ever arse in YOUR
minds whether religion were one thing to
the educated and another to the uneducat-
Cd whether Christianity like some of the
ancient religions, had IFS oxOteric and it,
es0teric doctrines YOU would not be long
IN repudlating the idea as dishornrable TO
Christianity and to its author. lou would
see clearly that mans religious condition
i the condition of his conscience, his affec-
tons and has will ; of his spiritual nature
and not OF his intellect. Ana vet one of
the subtlest temptations that beset highly
educated men-and which you will be sure
10 ieel-Is the suggestion that thew are en-
titled to a religion OF a different order from
that which i adapted TO an inferior class
OF mlnds-dlherent. | mean, not merely in
the form OF presen tetion. but in character
ana substance. Such men often have the
ieellng-though they may not often express
II - that Whit she common religion
l. good enough for the people i; is
not good enough, not Intellectual. not
reconcile enough. for the highest order of
minds. Another form of the same tempta-
ton Is the idea that an Intellectual mans
religion consists mainly in solving DOUBTS.
sitting evidences. investigating the truth or
the ialslty of this OF that old or new doe :
trine- that a scholar is bound not to com
nit himself TO Christianity, or even 10 nat
ural religion, till he has gone 10 the ton
and bottom of the whole subject of religion.
and made his way clear from the begihning
to the end of the religious life. Let me ,
enireat you to guard Yourselves
against this iata. error. Here .at the thresh-
old OF your career. which | trust will be !
emphatlcally an intellectual career ,renoance
Tor ever the idea that there is a superior re-
ligion somew here waitir @ for vow dlscoverv