The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1877-02-12
LECTURE.
Delivered In Trinity Church. First Sun
day after Epiphany, 1877.
BIZ REV. HuGH MILLER THuM rsoN.

taken Judgment, tired 10 show on SUNDAY nvs,,-
Ing last That man s p aced Ia the world He IL
placed here, too said, 10 have that disease
cured That s TO pay, this life is eehoo Of urt,.
batun, college Of morals, a training institution
prepared by God, The great teacher, where this
weakness Of nature is 10 be overcome. Or II is
an hospital III which The soul sickness OF fallen
race ID 10 be eured We have no reason to Sup.
pose that In any other part Uf the universe Of
God there exists such a stste Of things, thai any
Of Gods creatures, save ME are 10 This ebn1-
lion Of needing moral cufe and of being eipa
be OF receiving IT, And We have no stad1w OF q
Etuuhd " suppose that FOR tnel that cure is Us-
eib's anywhere save here,
In examining thphB tpsti1ns we touch indeed
al every step on the pfuftundest mysteries. But
we do the came IA essuiiniug ahE question what
sntvera And the advance made IN know edge IN
ohr time has been made, according TO the wise
War laid down by ihe Master Bacon, sh1
not ty the way attempted vaiHtY bsf1re him
bat is 10 coy, instead Of foolish trying TO se.
euunt FOf the tDyse iuus facts Of nature by vain
les, We advance now by taking ths facts
fur granted. by considering The facts as fpa ana
by 60 ng according 30 the facts. Modem petenca
tilas plant growing best IN certain places. L.
esannes lie pegtliatitisH Of the plapti. finds the
ahemiesl sgsns that act In IT, and hen tells on
ps The result how tou may best produce that
plant anywhere else. n does not, that IL. enter
INTO idle spetulations OF why or how the Uhemi-
cal agents act. into idle guesses at theif origin,
thsit eattse, their essence, II takes these 40 II
finds them snd Uses them
Aha 90 With any true science ri mans moral
nature or position. II must take the visible
f'ets and deal with them. II meets nnaaswefa-
bls questions at every step as does all science
how came the facts saf Why are they so7 Why
are they not different? What motive TO make
them THE way, and NOT some other wsyY Aud
foolish people. AZ they did Of old In natural sci-
enee, 90 nos Ia moral science addle them selves il,
woray mszes, which they cali philosophy, aud
let the plain facts go.
Iu setting ouin these lectures, The foundation
principles of Christian ethos, / shall deal
simply with the visible facts Of mans nature
and position, and shall leave those who ask the
unsstionsl twhy are The facts so7" "Why are
they not diTefent7" 'Why are they not this
way. or why are they not that7" 10 tind answers
for The msslveE. They will ask, Why does vii eat
produce wheai. why is the fact so why does II
not produce barley" and be 90 islied ~ soon.
The fact is 80. You would do best 10 taks The
fact, and when you want wheat go according 30
The fact and SOW wheat.
Aod, taking the visible facts Of human life.
| say that this world Ia school for The
training back TO strength and power again
Of a weakened end distorted natnte. God hss 80
arranged IT, God might have made this world
80 that men might not need TO labor. let tis say.
bat lie has not. Men must labor, and u needs no
great power Of phosophizing TO see that though
labor might be useless morally to soms beings we
CAT, imagine, yet for tnan. being what he is aud "a
he is the law Of labor il essentially needed for bis
moral bettefment That s. there Ia the plain
faot Of mars diseased moral condition, and tb sre
s The other fact that hs is so situated that isbbr
ia necessity, and that 1t is a necessity Ia best
for him morally We know not how Il may be
with other beings: we know not how II might
be Ia other states of exist noe with man.
bnt we do know that this material universe and
this earthly life Ia to man moral school frutn
birth tn death. Bet aside all other teachers all
other influences / mean. material nature Itself
Gob's working made visible and tangible ON the
broad face Of the earth, is 10 man, being what he
Ia. n continual influence for moral good.
The eyes Of every man open upon universe
charged with the granaest and loftiest lessons Of
truth aud goodness At his birth he s ushersd
into life whose every necessity, whose hum
biest, lowest want. whose daily walks and
Use them rightly, TO help him restore his nature
whereinsoever il Ia weak. "The heavens declare
the glory of God and the armament showeth His
handiwork" but only 10 man, Of all living bsibes
on the earth. The animal secs what see. hears
what hear sses more and hears more M his
senses are more ACUTE but IL is man alone who
reads any lessons from Natures unf,ldaa scroll
That Ia msns prsfogative by virtue Of his nature.
The infinite deeps sink away beneath his feet. The
infinite heights rise blue and Ear above his head.
The inilnite spaces tloRt away beyond his
dreams towards Gods central throne. Won
dor. mystery, 7RstneAe vague and awful, sttr-
round The pilgrim tf time, Yet The dark. faced
mysteries tea'h him, FIR God holds them All in
the hollow of His great hand. if they are won.
lnfFnt ami vast and strong how wpndsrFnl spa
vast must H. be, tho maker and tho sugtainer of
them a2 Yen, tho nightly STARS from their far
away thrones send down their voices to HIS lis-
tening ear. The roar OF tho hoaying seq NJ morn
or midnight across the ta~ny sands that girdls IN
it's fury is prophets voice. Tho stiiutered
crags that rHiso tbor plnnscIes aoft 10 tho Grim
son flush r. morning, TO The purple eyes cline,
to tho paIid mDohbsams and tho shipmeriup
stsrbeam, for hgea calm aud unchanged Ia the
sileooe Of Tho upper air, are Gods awful
fingers, writing lessons on his hsart as
hg wa chos them Through the trailing
clouds. Gyds mystery and Gods power look
into his evea and deep into his heart, turn where
he will, Yet he is SECURE, Amid all the might,
powers that hsave and sway and blindly .nrge
around, his rlaes In sure. The earthnuaks rocks
his strongest torers into orumblipg heaps, the
angLy sea shakes the earth no builds upon. ihe
voidHuo huils tho melted fros aloft that ssethe
and rage below tho thin crust he builds his homo
upon. Tho world spins away through The track
less wastes fast as hs thought can fly. Yet he
is safe His place is wol prepared ana sure In the
tho heart OF the cir6ling suns Gods hand covers
him, and mose though no be, for his sake the
Great Father has made and guides 10 1his hour
all these tremendous powers. Thus the thouehts
Of God come homo TO him in his power and In his
goodness. The infinite looks into his eyes and
wasens the yearnpg for the infinie elnmbsrtnp
in bis spirit. Desires which eternity alone can
satisfy thoughts which endless beng alone can
BAtlsIp, yGhEnhH WutCu bn6 lDHDltB God alone
can fiji, are wakened by tho univorse in which
God has placed him. The immortal past and all ts
instincts after the unknowo TO co.ae
are called TO life, though it be but bindly and
dumbly by the silent voice Of things IN .teriai-
Gods works revealing God.
Ibis ts his prerogative az man, and tho higher
he grows sB man, the more he advances the
clearer thall he see Gods hand made bare ia tho
material, the more distinctly shall the dumb uni.
verso speak to his spirit.
Here are two men. One Ia merely "the ami
NAL man, as st. Paul calls him. Takon up with
his animal needs and he looks on the world % The
OK looks, somewhat. He looks about to find n
rich pasture, spot whore he can got plenty for
his animal wants. lie, indeed. may see little.
He ia in the dust, among the clods, and Of
the c!ods. He secs In the world only
o place to get good living, to got himself well
fed, clothed, housed, gratifisd, waited on. And
here 10 another who reads creasion like printed
book, to whom the leaf upon the tree or d iftIng
down the river. or the pebble at bis fyet, or the
bird upon the bough, teach spiritual lessons; 10
whom tho stnrR aeDl IN