, 1877-04-07

produced. In other words, they believe
that the laws of nature are annihilated,
or set aside entirely, in their application
to the particular case in which a miracle
is wrought. No idea more false and per
nicious in its effects upon thoughtful
minds was ever promulgated 10y any
preacher If the Word of God. 1t drives
rejecting men into the ranks of unhelict
by thousands and is nowhere authorized
by the Holy Scriptures. An able organ
of the English Church, not long ago,
contained the following langunge-sup-
posed ny mbelieyrrs and doubtless Ivy
many believers also, to he quite unortho-
Aox: "All that a miracle, assumed to
b. true, shows concerning the person
who predicts. or is instrumental in
bringing it about, is that he has either
some very unusual knowledge, or some
vrry unusual power. Whether that
knowledge is of the kind which we call
Divine, can only he decided by the con
si'Ierntion Of great number of other
circumstances, of which the moral and
spiritual drift of the events. of which It
formed part and the historical origin
and historical effect of the series of
events, are probably quite the most i'm
portant,"
The sooner the whole Church of Christ
falls into line upon this subject OF mira
Giles and takes the common sense, ren.
sonahlc, and certainly not unscriptural
ground, that miracles are certainly moi
contradictions of natural laws. the more
powerful will he her immediate influence
in the world. Gods laws are the rX-
pressions of himself; and it is absurd To
suppose that he can contradict himself
| hy ignoring or Contradicting his laws.
That is one thing which with reverence
be il said) the Almighty is NOT able to
do. ] know that miracles often seem to
contradict, and always dittr from the
usual course of nature. But why can not
good men accept an explanation which
seems almost to force itself upon their
intelligencc-namcly, that what we term
miracles--an excellent scriptural name
are caused by the introduction of new
forces or principles, subject to Super
natural Will and Power--sl pcrnaturnI
to us, but most perfectly natural to Him,
who only, in the real sense of the term is
Supernatural-the author OF nature and
| the ennCtor and entorcer of natures laws.
All this is done by Him who docth all
things according to supremest wisdom,
by the Infusion OF forces temporal or
spiritual, INTO the 30 called miraculous
phenomena, which no mind less omnis-
cient or no power less omnipotent than
the Divine, could understand or manipu-
late.
Even as the chemist can, by mngling
u given number Of substances, produce
another different from them all, aud vet
the resultant of them all, MS he can by
n little increase or dimiution OF any
one ingredient in the compound. or by
the introduction of another element, pro-
duce totally different result from that
obtained by the other compound, and
all in most perfect obedience to- natural
laws SO the Divine chemist, having all
the forces aud ingredients OF nature at
command, can and sometimes does ms
he often lid while tabernacling here he
low-intuse into any compound Of forces
aud circumstances elements unknown to
human wisdom, and 10 there is mira
cle-something not contrary to any law
of nature or Of natures Cod, but in
most perfect agreement with the regular
laws of the Great Lawgiver-hws high.
er and more etheriaI, it is true, than any
that we are acquainted with. but not
contradictory TO the most obscure and
commonplace regulation in all his uni
verse, The Chard Qvar'ery Reoiac
thus concisely states the true doctrine
regarding miracles: AL laws Operat.