, 1876-03-18

/: SATURDAY, MARCH ]
Nature. Their t'cea vota n,orc divine than the
| teHchingh Of ths heavona or tho earth, or ths
lessons OF lliHtor5. md experience.
] Tlla idea. l donbt not, sprnng fu part from tho
consclouanoea OF tho human soul, especially IL,
the .iruu1ssrod degraded. Of Its ignorance and
woakncss and It's Hroas mood Of como high a,l-
thotitv 10 eeAoh It aud guido Il. This WAS nasl-
thtnga. Wo ask for tho light aud inBniratlon Of
superior minds. Wo even bow to tho authority
Of n,en. Of science, who know whcteof thoy
epotk. thongl, We may bo Ignorant Of tho pro-
el0ns.
This - well enough. And u, in all rnsttcrs
pertaining to Religion. We Ind pursued sllo
sasaS,r. ssmG vsA without ,ut"6ra nsss our
shoTity. which ovoretadowsd everything
common sonso, daily experience, and tho lessous
9! Nature, the world would haye boon saved
from OWLS and euforings Which no tongue eau
uut this QUO fact-tho position whleh Bibles,
Jowish aud othosB, havo occupied In human
thoughk-tetlB tho wholo story. And mono Of
thcHe questions which layo aalta!cd tho Chris
sihn world for ycass, Bomotimea convuls!ng wholo
nations, p!ungtug thom Into war md bloodshotl.
-nono of those bitter disputes bctwoou Catho-
lies and protestants, betwaon ArtninianB and CAL
vintsts untvcrsaliatB and partfaliste. Unltarians
DO finally sottled until wo hava aottlod tho aues,
slon that Nature ia first, Bibles aftor, biblical
ccitcssm hero is Of little avail Evcry sect claims
to stand on p}nin Scripture authority. Ttnlo has
multiplied -thcse Bocss, Instead Of decreasing
them and thoro ia no hope whatever that tho
Christian Church will evcr bo unit In doctrine,
or ohsorvanco, or spirit go long ~ tho
absurd view ia hold, that tho Db1o
tako proccdoncs Of common Bcnsc, Of tho plain
est lctatcs OF our moral nature, and all tho
teachings Of Nature and experience. For I'LL
stance, tilroo Of our senses, out Of five, iatly
dony tho doctrine Of transnbstautiation, and de-
olare that tho wafor etaimcd by tho Ca.holio
priest to bo the body aud blood Of Joaus Christ
is nothing in tho world but Water and flour.
But will tho Catholic Church abandon this doc
trfoe 30 long % Il ptacea tho Scriptures bototc
the evidence OF tho Bensea7
That the Fathof Ia God, tho Son God, and tho
Holy 0host God, threo pcrsons and yok only ono
porson, each God, and got only ono God. con-
traticss oil Tho reason and all the matlonatics
Euclid, Laplace, or Newton, or tho schooI-boy.
but, just 40 long al the ulbie is placed bofore
and abovo "Twica two arc four" Or t1hrco
tinlsa one aro thrco,'' can wo expect that tnon
will giyo up such All hbsurdity2
The doctrine Of tio Evangelical creo1s Eespact-
Ing human nature IL also AZ fatty contradictory
to gil history. and oil experience, and MI obsor-
vason of human character. - L can POSSIBLY bo
nlade. The existence OF commcres itHoif would
DO impossible II shia doctrine wnto true. Tho
idoalB Of the human race would hAve been itH
Davits fnstcsd of its Chrlsta: Logislatlon,
Religious aud literarasure. would havo e1altod
and lcgAlized evil, inRtead Of good, mud made tho
world q r1udom0nium. This mou6troBity OF
theology would sserer lave boen accepted by
sane men aud women. had they not boen taught
utterly to ignore the tcaehnga Of Nature, whom
ff,70n &f% IT. &kuftf
tho Bible. Ii they had studied the primal Bible.
tho Bho in theit own hoatts, the Bible iii tho
faces Of thoir children, aud tho great Bible Of
history aud experience. and had believed this
ancient Hebrew writings, they would nevor have
accepted Buch monsstous WOW Of human ua-
ture I'd that Of total doprayitJ.
Then, again, II Manure lad been first sud
Bibles after, in tho estimation OF mot, thht nAt
ural YOU bloody tragedy on the Cross OF Calvary
could hardly hare boon accepted by ChriBtondom
rs an al-anliicfent atoncment, or satisfaction, or
substitute for tho sins Of tho human raco. md
becono = central doctrino ina great system Of
theology. Reasoning. from Nature, from their own
expesieuce, md from what they asw all around
tlen, men would have como inevitably to tho
conclusion that thnso could no moro be q subRtt-
tuto for moral discaso thnn Tor physical dIscaso
that satisfaction could no moro 10 rnado Tor sin
iAan for ignorance that moral dcpravity lk
strictly personal and forever untrnTsfcrab!o !;
and that no boinK, human Or divine, except them
Solves could possibly bear tho degradation aud
effects Of their dishonesty. nenupess, paaHlon,
or cruelty. But the Bactiflcia types Of tho Jows,
md tho mystical language OF John and Paul. and
the Epistlo to tho Hohrows, hayo all unforta-
na1oly becn inveatod with Significance and m
authority for higher and for more commanding
than tho nlafncst facts Of everyday lie mud OK
perieboe tho world over.
Then tako that c1ovnlnB shame Of our 30
called Christian thcology,--tho doctrine OF end
loss totlneuis. Would any human being, 10 these
l1nyH with n nf humanity In tiR ami n lin
questioned his own heart, nnd not nDcicnt be-
efa.-Wond any nun inculhte o doctrine ltko
thia7 Why this growing disbelief Of the doc
tr,ne throughout Ch1istendom7 Why this grad
ual supptesoion Of It, oyon in Orthodox pulpits
Simply bocalsse tho growing acnso Of Justice In
our nature, aud the growing humanity Of our
hoasts, rebel against this doctrine as irhunlan
II Nsa9a BON nqt up sa yo sag s
an outrage as this on all that Ii Just and meIci-
full could noyor. within the last century, st least,
hayo boon formulated into o Christian doctruo.
When 1noro power, soyoreignty, stern Justice.
whom tAey had not risen above tho darnncss or
tho sentiments ct tho he1nl-Bay6Ee,--it WAS very
caay for them, It not natural, to iudorse tho
dogma OF ondlcas punlehmenk. But It VIA ns
equally great, absurdttlos wluch We ojoct to-day
without q momont's hesitation. And, II wo wcro
NJ FREQ IN Religion 81 NO are In everything else.
We should ro1ect this sem-sAvAgo doctrine OF
GuulCEb p1lllHlIQ1Dt III RtfQClOuA u0yDnQ G1pfe6.
son. But because 1t ia bolieyod 10 be in the
Dble, It iB gu1ped DOM, and every nohlo aonti-
ment Of tho heart ID mesc'lcasy crushed or mado
to Yield TO moro authority. Thus III . positive
injury done to tho bottet nature OF lnau, aud an
equal inquiry done to tho cause Of Truth itself.
Had Dlolca been essimatel according to their
rcal worth. for all tho light and truth they con-
ta!uod, and for these alone, they would hnyo
been holps to the world, without any drawbacks.
but they hAYa been made tLols, masters, lords.
Of thought. aud consciouco, aud common sonse.
Ilonce the mental slavery Of Chrstsndon.
rnonlnls among Jews aud 1ontiles. Hence
the dark history OF tho Church TO whoio
centurios. Sclenco, peruoouting
evory man who dared TO think for himself,
burning hesetlcs without stiut or mercy, and
shedding tho iuuocent blood Of hundreds OF