Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1878-01-27
HEAVEN AND HELL--BOTH OR NEI.
THER.


Beecher says, the word eternal is ''nebul-
ous.'' We do not quote him as authority,
because he has the misfortune, not only to
differ from all the writer's of the Bible, but
from all expounders of law, moral and civil,
in their construction of the seventh COM
mandment. His saying is ap1opos, however.
to the hell discussion sprung up in SO many
pulpits. Webster defines 'nebulous'' cloudy,
hazy. Is there anything hazy about
the generally accepted doctrine of
the existence of hell? As to
authority, is there not the same authority for
8 hell as for heaven? If eternal is "nebu-
lous'' when applied to hell, how is it when
applied to heaven?
Whoever, yet, has been able to grasp the
idea of the infinite? Study Victor Cousin,
dive into the mysteries of mental philoso-
ply, unravel the problems of psychology,
ponder the pages of Sir William Ham
ilton, withdraw into inner con-
seriousness, and there seek
these ideas of tho GREAT FIRST CAUSE, of the
INFINITE, startle the human mind into maze
of bewilderment. Then religion comes in
with faith, and faith is the substance of
things hoped for, and the evidence of things
not seen, and not known. Faith is the an
Choir of religion. Without it, what would
religion be? It is to the Christians
solace in sorrow, companion in Sc
olusion, resource in difficulty, sustaining
friend at all times. It supplies with enjoy
ment in the present, and is the purveyor Of
promise in the future.
But has either heaven or hell any locality?
Who ever located either? Science has made
the scrutiny of the starry armament a rap
ture, and led imagination to believe many of
those distant orbs other revolving worlds, to
beguile bereavement with the hope
that in some of these we may
yet meet the lost and loved
of by gone days, and renew associations
which have only slumbered for season to
be there revived and enjoyed forever.
Is this imagination or real? What mat
tiers? Where after all is heaven? The question
returns to perplex to mystify. And, yet who
would surrender the hope of Mrs Hemans
The blue deep glorious heavens! I lift mine eye,
And bless Thee, O my God That have met
And owned thine image in the majesty
OF their calm temple still That never yet
There hath thy face been shrouded from my
sight
BY noontide blaze. or sweeping storm of night
bless Thee, o my God!
And to pursue these non-committal sug-
gestions, Milton has always been considered
high authority on hell. Turn we to Milton:
Hail horrors! hail!
Internal world! And thou profoundest hell,
Receive thy new possessor; one who brings
A mind not to be changed by place or time,
The mind is its own place, and IN itself
Can make a hearen of hell, a hell Of heauen
The italics are ours. This, if orthodox
would seem to settle the locality Of both
heaven and hell. AS to the duration of each
the Bible was once considered pretty good
authority, and it says, St. Matthew, chapter
25, verse 49,;
''And these shall go away into everlasting
punishment: but the righteous into life eter-
nal"
And as the moral, we conclude with the
advice of the poet:
'sThe clear cold question chills to frozen doubt,
Tired Of beliefs; we dread to live without;
o then, if reason waver at thy side,
Let humber Memory be thy gentle guide,
Go to thy rth-place, and if faith was there
Repeat thy fathers creed, thy mothers prayer.