The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1877-04-20
SERMON.
Science and the Bible.
BY IRVING A. sEARLEs.


THY word is a lamp unto my feet and light
unto my path-Psd. H. lOo'
The frat quotation speaks OF Gods revelation
os bimself through the works OF nature; the
second, OF Gods revelation of himself through
His written Word.
It's urged that in essential particulars these
two revelations do not agree that the orowbar
ottas deologist and the telescope OF the Astron-
omer brand as false many important declara-
ions OF Scripture. To inquire into these alleged
contradictions between Science and the Bible is
the purpose OF this sermon.
First, then, we remark that, thus far in the
worlds history nearly every important truth in
science IN It's striviDgs for public recognition
has mot the opposition OF the religious world.
1. Tho church fought THE DOCTRINE OF THE
KARrHs aoIUSpITY Theologlans arose from
the study OF their Bibles and said that the earth
was 6at. From such Scripture as the following
hey dsduced their theory Of the earth's form :
praise Him ye heavens Of heavens and ye
waters that be above the heavens. "The same
day wore all the fountains OF the great deep
broken up and the windows OF heaven were
opened" These passages are, OF course, purely
poeticsl but theologians trailing all this beau
tiful imagery in the dust lteralized them. They
thus found the earth to be vast box Of two
apartments. In the lower section the human
famlly dwet in the upper portion God and the
angels lived. The angels found employment in
pulling and pushing the sun and stars hlther
and thther to light the earth. TO them was
also eatcusted the work OF opening and shutting
tho windows of heaven" When they opened
the " Windows the rains descended when they
closed them the rains ceased st. Augustine
conceded the possibility Of the earth's rotund-
ity. but regarded as absurd the idea that men
resided on the other side Of it, assigning as the
reason for his view that Scripture speaks OF
no suca descendants OF ADAM" Thus the
Bible wac pltted against this discovery.
O. The church arose II battle array against
the liea that THE EARTH REyoLvEs AROUND THE
SUN In 1915 Calico is tired by the Roman
inquislhon. He Is charged with teaching that
the earth moves. The tribunal before whom
he appears brings in the following decision -
1.-THE ii rst proposition that the Gun is the centre
and does not revolve about. the EARTH is foolish,
absurd, false in theology and heretical, because
expressly contrary to Hoy Scripture" Thus
tho Blble ID made to hur It's anathema against
this discovery.
Q. When the telescope found other planets
thau those OF our own solar system 1t provoked
an attack from the religious world. 1t vas said
that thace could be only seven planets because
OF thee seven golden candle-sticks of Revelations
and tbs seven churches OF Asia. These candle
stiche' and d" churches were said to DO types
OF tho seven planets.
!. The church opposed the study Of anatomy
aud Medicine. st. Augustine says of medical
men With a cruel zeal for science they have
dIseectoi the bodies Of the dead and have in
humaoly prled into the secrets OF the human
body 70 learn the nature OF the disease and its
exact aoat and how it might be cured" About
the year 1850 Pope Boniface VII. denounced
dissection as sacrllegious and issued formal
edlct against it. In 1922 Rev. Edward Massey,
OF England preached a sermon on The Dan
eerous ana sinful practice of incubation" In
tue religious. literature of that cay we find
physician referred to as connected with sorcery
and IN league with the devil" In some local
ties whea doctors are making out their bills
they eeem to be IN league with the devil now.
s. ht one time in Scotland the farmer who
the Scotch church. This is the text that for
babe rt3 use The wind bioweth where il
Iisteth nnd thou nearest the sound thereof bu
canst DOT tel whence it cometh and whittier i
goeth The Scriptures say that the wind blows
Nd it p,eases. but the fanning-mill compelled
ths wind to blow in one direction
II Turning from the survey of the past le
US consider some of the present features o.
supposed collision between science and tn,
Bible
1 IL - alleged that Science and the Bible d.
not agree regarding THE AGE or OUR EARTH
We have interpreted the Bible to teach that tht
earth is about six thousand years old, but Geol
ogy I5 supposed to affirm that millions Of year
have rolled around since our planet came init
existence. In 1871 Sir Charles Lye VISITED
Niagara Falls for he-purpose OF geological re
search He found that the water in Its descen
wore away one foot of the rock per year. Tit
Falls 10 supposed to have started near Queens
town, seven miles distant. IL this supposi,loI
IL correct, the Falls have been there thirty 81,
thousand years. In 1854 in dredging LAX
Zurich, Switzerland, the remains of numbe
OF hunla- habitatlons were found many fee
beneath the bed OF the lake. Similar WORK il
that region brought TO light two hundred dis
tiDct settlements Of these lake Inhabitants
These remains were covered with kind OF pea
that ls supposed to have been of very slow for
nation. This is but mere hint of the kind o
argument that seems to call for greater an
tiquity OF our earth than six thousand years
But supposing this statement Of Geology to b
beyond question, it would not conflict wit
Bible teaching. The Scripture says that g. Il
the beginning God created the heavens and tn
earth but it no where says wten that ~ begin
ming" was. Mans Interpretation, and not tn
Bible, has set the year, and almost the day an
hour. when our earth was ushered into exist
euce
9. 1t ~ said that there rs q conflict between
Science and the Bible concerning THE MAMIE
o. THE EARrHs CREATION. We have suppose
that God made the world at once out of nothln
and then hurled it into its orbit. But Lor
Rosso with his gigantic telescope scans tn