The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1878-01-21
''THE FEARFUL PHANTOM OF ETERNAL Pun

IsHMENT"-MR. o. d. FRoTHINGHAM.
Before beginning his discourse upon nell and the
doctrine Of eternal future punishment, Mr. o. Is.
Frothing CHAM read extracts from the Hindoo, Bud
dhist Persian and Hebrew anthologles to prove his
theory that the punishment oil crime overtakcs tho
sinner in this world ana that hell ID a theological
imaginary bugbear which has no existence save In
the minds oil The extremely ignorant, croduious and
fanaticaL
A vast unbottom'd boundlcss pit
fil'd fu' o. lowin brunstane,
Wsd mel. the hardest wnunstane.
Following the effect OF this terrible image upon the
minds of otbodox listening to ministers Of tho
Gospel descanting upon the fearful phantom Of eter
nal punishment no said might be added that in tho
Tue half asleep start up wi tear
An think they hear IL rvarin',
when presently ~ does appear
'Iwss but some neebor snosin.
Tho speaker conlin uod TO say that fearful Is tho
picture OF a material hell that even the theologans
themselves apologize Tor rcsusctang IL IN these days.
In ancient times II Was myth shadow; and those
who charged Christianity with preaching tho doctrine
OF It's existence held TO DO caumniators. II has
never been part Of history, philosophy or science.
Only here and there us ghost hcaving about
the tabernacle and II was oniy the extremely bold
man who dared to matensnze ITS image on a dirk
SCREEN as the sprussts Of the present day presume
TO do with the shades Of the departed dead But tho
chthyosaurus the plesiosaurus and tho sclim
oil theology are terminated In the spectre OF
hell and walk about In midst II was only lat
summer when the speaker mot lew educated people
who proiessed to believe In lake OF lire, and II
only then that respectable New England gentleman
was refused communion Wild his church because no
was not ssoundn ia his belief that question
Theology us early the third century oil the Cnrs
tan era, by tho mouth OF Origen (AdamantiusL n
father OF the Churcn and defender OF Christianity.
taught publicly tuat tho doctrine OF iuture punish
men was with The idea OF divine Justice
and ntimated That time would come when even
Satan himself. with all his sIns upon him. would be
con saved In the ninth century John SEQ
us Ergenna hrd the identical uoctrDc OF 0rgen, and
since Thea The thcologians have taken the same
reasonable position, thus Allowing tue hideous idea Of
he'll 10 be put away Ia the closet where many moro
Obsolete antastca traditions are allowed 10 rest
undsturbed by the progress oil time lbero are these
alternatives Tor the consideration OF philosophy -
one, that there two controlling powers which gov.
the universe, God being the brignt good ana tue
beautiful, and tue devil the dark. ev aud malignant
reached, aud that all aogmatIsm upon them 10 idle
and that must cling 10 iacts and build upon them
alone. These arc the alternatives Tor philosophy 70
pass upon.
CELEBRATED CHURCHMAN'S vigws
Bishop Joseph Butler defended the hell OF Chris
tIanty upon the remarkable grounds that otter nal
punishment must be possible, Judging iron the ex-
siDle. IL Butler had set himself up az a champion OF
atheism he could not have better than ne did Ia
apparently proving that the devil rules all things
both sides OF the grave. Ccus, Voltarc, Tom Paine
nor scotus Eripena ever made out that God
| was devil. IN iact. these hrrcueI aud ashe