The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1878-02-01


men as Socrates and Plato, together
with great multitudes like them,
will be saved through the atone
ment of Christ because they COM
piled with the conditions of saliva
ton and lived the Christ spirit.
They were without the Bible and
died In uncertainty of Immortality
and eternal life. "Sad as Plato"
became proVerb among the Greeks.
These two men, Socrates and Plato,
are the best examples of those who
spent their lives in the study of re-
ligious problems, and yet died, the
Que with the confession "but it may
be otherwise" and the other with,
'such is my view, since you wish
to know it, but whether it be true
or not the Gods only can say" Pla-
to died at the age of SO, and contin-
ued to teach the Socratic philoso-
ply to the end of life, but in Plato
this Grecian philosophy eliminated.
But when you ask what was the re-
suit of all this reflective research,
we answer, nothing.
Ifw look into Roman history
we find the same indefiniteness.
Marcus Aurelius was wise, stud
ious and virtuOus, "yet with all
this" says Mr.. Arnold, "he was ag-
itated, stretching out his arms for
something beyond" "Give me new
consolation, great and strong, of
which have never heard or read"
was Pliny's prayer. "The philoso-
piers of the academy" says ''Cicero,' y
"affirm nothing. They despair of ar
irving at any certain knowledge"
mo man is able to clear himself"
confessed Seneca, ''let some one
give him a hand" Surely these are
not the men upon whom we can
depend for knowledge of the fu-
ture. They were appalled, at their
own ignorance. Can they help US
With increased interest we may
turn to modern Germany and study
her magnificent intellectual and
philosophical system of Rstionalism.
This system has been constructed
and reconstructed by q race of in
tellectual giants. ''From Kant to
Fichte, from Fichte to Schelling,
from Schelling to Hegel" the great
est of them all, and with him Gull
minAtiDg.
Now we may ask what were the
results? Did these thinkers come
to any conclusions? Did they settle
anything? The universal admis-
sion is they settled nothing on the
great questions of the future. Not
withstanding all the advantages
possessed by these men, they pass
ed not one step beyond Socrates
and Plato. The lamp which was
taken up by Kant and passed on to
Hegel, gave only light enough to
lead his followers, if not himself, to
deny the personality of God, rob
man of bis freedom, responsibility
and immortality and leave the race
to a shoreless future.
Whoever ventures to take up
that dim light (and no one has or
wilD will find that it cannot burn.
1t is perfectly safe to say that all
the religious light there is in Ger
many, comes from her evangelical
scholars, and believers in the holy
scriptures.
NOW turn from Germany to the
Pantheism of Mr.. Carlyle, Of En-
gland, and Mr.. Emerson OF this
country, as representative leaders.
Mr.. Carlyle has 3 warm heart, but
it is the warmth of q close stove.
1t throws out heat, but no light to
guide a disciple. No one thinks of
following Mr.. Carlyle. He wants
none to, and when hard pressed refers
all questions of the future to the
scriptures. Mr.. Emerson's is .
great God given nature, wonderful
in many respects, but his invariable
answer to questions of the future,
has been. Personally I have Jared
well enough in this life and hope to
hereafter" This will do fer Mr..
Emerson, but pray what of the poor
man who has not Jared well enough
in this life? For such no crumb OF
comfort, no light or example to lead
to a better life.
Other noted men of this school
fail utterly to help us out Of our
difficulties. Mr.. Weiss says, 81
shall be, or 1 shall not be. If it is
not be, shall know nothing about
it." Mr.. Abbott reads from Marcus
Aurelius, Ambrose and James
Russell Lowell, confessing their
sentiments are better than anything
he can say.
Frank and sad is the late con-
fession of Mr.. Parton. "Why are
we in this worldp We don't know
whence came we We don't know
whence bound? We don't know
That is to say, 81 don't know"
Touchingly does Mr.. Bartol ex'
press has uncertainty. He says,
''the boy 1 met crying because he
did not know where his father was,
expressed an anxiety as wide as the
world about vanished friends-we
are tenants at will, liable at any mo-
ment to be served with . notice C
quit, But what proofof immortal
lity? None, we must confess, bu'
hope" Now this Is no one step il
advance Of Socrates, nor indeed
quite up to It. How utterly st go
all these men leave Rs, and YET
standing on the dark borders of thI
gulf of death, into which thei
friends are falling, can they be 9th
erwise than staggered IS they per