The New York herald., 1878-11-04

some of you The root Of II is in Israel and sprung
from the hopes ensendered by the lrnetes suffer
Israel will be united gathered together again. and
Jerusalem become the most central city IN the world
This was the expectation of Christ and of his dis
cpes St Paul diverted this belief Of ancient Chris
tianty He said that Christ not coming to this
earth, but in the clouds in spiritual power
Although His disciples waited and watched for Him
Christ did not Gomez no angelic wings disturbed the
air; believers came and went with the passing ages
and things along the same as before. new the
ory was then started. 1t claimed that the Ian
guage of the New Testament was to be taken fgur
alive and allegorical only We not to suppose
that the trump viii in reality sound, or that
see the second coming-it is all symboca spiritual.
THE RATIoNALIsr's IDEA.
You ask which idea do I enf&ftain. I entertain
neither; think they are both Of them wild. absurd
and fantastic. Let however, concede that many Of
men, The coming Of Christ is, i'll their opinion the
advent of the reign of nobleness justice. truth and
corresponds to that Of the rationasts who believe in
the purifcation and perfection of humanity. The
old idea Of Christ is the theological and fanatic
one; the is that of philosophy and Of
rationasm. The authority for Christ's CON-
ing rests Scripture texts not actual
proofs These texts from book Of what is
considered good authority but they are only texts
after afrom books that have been rddled with crit
csm. No text can bear ont an idea that all nature
jects yet the expectation Of all Christianity that
will The rationalistic expectation s based other
and more tangible grounds. Men speak Of this hope
lily. the hue of cloud the geam Of star or the
glitter Of lghta something that passes away and is
seen more But the ratlonHllstc falth is grounded
an immovable adamantine foundation The rational
man has visions of hopes that dwarf all others
into nothing The world, whose rain drops are num-
bered whose very storms made tributary peace.
whose vaporous wings made to draw trains
continents and whose lightnings carry messages Of
pregnant thought from realm to realnl-this grand
nature which around us furnishes proofs upon
which the indestructbe idea is based The rational
istic vision is OF man using, not abusing. his
opportunities; of new society bound together by
the firm bands OF love and justice 1t is vision of
intellectual condition where all shall study the
truth together, where the intelligent and the simple
shall join in adding their great their little conr
buttons to the worlds stock of knowledge.
sELF-IMPRovEMENT.
The Christian religion of the future is revolution,
while that of the rationalsts evolution Jesus Him
self speaks of war when He says nation shall rise
against nation. and foreshadows tribulations hates
and fears among men. So sudden shall be the
change that of two men working in field the one
shall be taken and the other shall be left This is
revolutions and st. Paul expected it, The managers of
the present prophetic conference believe in revolution
of evolution which gives to every recognized effect
known cause. In it there is no leap.
interval chasm. Under this idea the good
and bad must hold together for
perfectly good utterly bad. The Christian
theory depends upon the supernatural the rational
the supernatural the theory of Christianity falls to
the ground. The belief in the supernatural presup
poses belief in the inventive powers Of man. One
thing is certain, that all the improvements which
around in this world due to man efforts.
Nothing has been done without him. There is
nothing Of Kindness sweetness nstness, energy that
did not originate with without supernatural
put selfshness behind prepared to enter
into heaven that await