Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1879-01-27

was written the history oil the persecu-
lions by the churches. Were the
in power the bloody heads
and quarters OF the Catholics told the
tale; and ii the Catholics ruled, the
Protestants suffered in the like cruel
manner. The church often sought
strength in an alliance WIN
the civil power, but no
where in the teachings of Jesus CHRIST
or of HE inspired apostles was this lusti..
fled. Another error was the placing OF
dogmas above III obedience 10 the
teachings at Jesus Christ.
Paul said 1.-THE greatest OF these. Is
charity" But now one man viii say
the greatest OF those is not charity, but
a correct creed Another Will say II is
belief in an endless he'll; another that
il is the assent 20 the doctrine OF the
divinity Of Christ. The result Is, men
shake their heads ominously and say;
There may be atiOd; | do not know
The Bible may be from him, but 40
not see any reason TO suppose 50. There
may be future lii0, but the recent sell
cntifc investigations Ot the nervous
system do not seem to prove 1t,
And even in the church, men SIT
rcyercntial, deyout, who in their hearts
are trying to keep down hldeousdoubts,
They are not confirmed skeptics, but
they feel the foundations OF their laiih
slipping away; and they demand !"
know why they must believe IN the
future what they have believed III the
past.
Omittiug the causes, the speaker con-
sidcrrl the results OF modern skcp-
'ucism. Tie asked, has modern skcp-
tirism rendered Incredible one OF the
fundamental principles ol the Christian
religion? The burden of proof rested
upon those who denied the truth ot cN-
listing and accepted theories, and not
upon those who believed and held To
the truth ol the theories. The position
ui the Christian apologist is: The
Christian religion is divine, and therefore
credible and true. That Of the skcptic:
Christianity is human, and therefore
incredible aud lalse hut It Is the duty
oi the skrptir, rs OF all Iconoclasts and
rriurmvrs, tu proyuhis slatumunts. This
lac assumes ~ reverse, ana attempts Ia
put thc duty I'll proving the truth OF
Christianity upon those who believe 1t.
lie SHUTS it dollly and supplies the place
Argument with loud assertions amt
vehement speech.
Several ol the fundamental truths at
Christianity were mentioned. The
aim was, not 10 prove them true,
but To show that they had got
hrrn proven ialsr. The first Of
thvsa is the existence ot Il personal, M
dependent, srli-conSclOuS, eternal Gud.
lie is neither material nor local, and
does according to the dictates OF His own
will with the armies of heaven and the
nations OF the earth. The three lines Of
argument are, a. From design:
Nothing can hu without u cause. e.
The innate, intuitive, universal hClictln
some supreme, uycrshalowing power.
I5l The assertions at the Bible, such
as: blessed are the pure ia heart, Tor
thry shall sc G0d.' "rhus saith the
high and holy One that mhabtcth EtCr-
nilv, whose name is Holy: | am the
High and Holy one. The tact that 1t
was the pure in heart that shall Sc
Gud" was dwelt upon. This is not Il
matter at the intellect, but OF the alice
tons. II is abnyr the Intellect. a.
The universal sinlulnCss at man, and
need ul divine aid for moral rcrurcra-
ton. This Is a tact. All men are sinful.
But skeptics saw this is from lack ct
knowledge, and not from u vitiatiou
Of the will. The fallacy ol this was
shown hy INSTANCES IN the speakers
4 Il oil Ia.
good they know, why Is II proposed To-
establish the whipping post in West
Virginia? Why is that woman taken
up from the bank OF the river aud ear.
rird to the dissccting table? Why Is
that man behind the prison bars, damned
socially, aud with 40 hope for eternity
but that offered by the religion of Christ.
It is not the lack acknowledges, but the
uhtuSenUSs Of the conscience and the
yitiatlon OF the will.
Another fundamental truth ui this
religion is the supcrhuman origin and
the divine mission OF Jesus Christ. On
iidcls have said: Jesus Christ was
good man Indignantly deny it. lie
Was either more than 4 good man, or
not good man at all. They had said,
lie was gifted jew: highly gifted
Jew. He was the Cunsummatc flower
ul Hebrew thought and ethics" Budha
always Impressed his readers that lac
was "A Hindu Contcmplatiyr mystic
born in Orient. IUuluCWs never wrote
a line that did not reveal that he Was
ChiuHman. Ioruastcr was a Persian and
he wrote of the Pcr~Ians for the
persians. hut Christ, who ever said Of
him, 'lIa was a Jew ?" On the con
trnry lac has been called the Son uf Man
His teachings arc asiittGd to the Orient
~ to the Occt tent, to our busy, thriving
age ~ To- the ruutcmplatNc axe, To the
hazars ul India as Wcllas the streets ul
Wheeling He contrastcl the visit oi
Socrates To- the beautiful courtrsan, and
the conduct Ut Christ when asked tu
jul.r the Woman taken Ia adultery, and
exclaimed. "Houmay kncrl to Sorra Is.
| huccl to Jesus Christ"
The third of the fundamental doctrines
uf G Christianity is that yicarious sacrifice
* divine Ii has been denounced hy
lngrr-ul q, cruel, harharous and blood
thirsty; hat remember the blood that
had been spilled 10 secure to Ingcrsoll
the right 10 curse and dcuuuncc the sys-
ten that secured him the freedom Of
speech. Life everywhere comes from
death The rock Is pulycrized Ia make
soil the soil loses its existence in that
oi the plant; animals crop these
oil, AMI then the animals are
slaughtered that man may live.
Other beautiful illustrations of this
same line oi thought were given, but
our limited space will not permit an
record Of all ui them.
The fourth essential principle is the
immortality OF the soul The lecturer
referred Ia a former discourse ia which
lac had shown that the man who would
drmulish this belief must explore the
entire universe, and rs man is not COM
pctcnt 10 do this, ho cannot hope 20
prove the theory false. Even il hc were
10 make this exploration, and
came back and reported that no spirits
existed, it would prove only the gross
ness OF his faculties.
Mr.. Thompson said he hal never
sought 10 disguise from himself or
others, that there are mysteries ia this
life. that oit-tlmcS We walk in darkness