Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1880-04-28
WHOLE NO 1865
Written for the A6E,l
A Letter ON Datsiss.


kindly lent me, and tor which thank
you. | understand Ross WinnanS
10 be q Dclst, or one who denies the
authority Of Christ ~ q religious
teacher, aud also OF any aud every
part OF the Old and New Testament !
understand you to stand on tho same
ground, with the addition OF Spirit
oalism. II you deny the authority OF
Christ aud Of the Scriptures, In my
judgment, you destroy the best proof
you have or can get, OF tho truth Of
Spiritualism. The bible, no doubt,
teaches in many places that spirits OK
listed after the death OF their bodies,
and that they appeared and communl-
Gated, but even that does not make II
certain that they do so now, and that
tho modern mediums are really and
truly inspired by spirits ] think some
of tho best OF these mcdiams are d.
yincly inspired.
Brother Lamb, you are indebted to
Christianity for all the best and most
important doctrines which You now
he)ieyc. So ia Mr.. Winnans. How
can you prove, without the inspiration
Of Gods spirit, either in your mind
or in the mird Of Others, that "God
is love-" or that his entire disposition
is goodness and kindness How can
you prove except You allow the reality
and validity OF divine inspiration, that
"The Lord is good to all, and his ten
der merces over all his works. 10th
Psalm, verse 9? How can you he
nationally convinced that God is just,
impartial and holy, without divine rev.
c)ation, Or merely by observing the ma
tcrial world, its changes. and the
events thai occur? If you deny the
reality and validity Of divine revela'
ton, except what we learn of God in
the material world, how can you prove
the universal fatherhood Of God, and
the brotherhood Of the human racer
These two principles lie at the found
alton of all true democracy, and the
equal rights of all human beings.
How do you or any other Delst
know what kind of worship or service
is acceptable to God-if he requires
any worship Or service, or duty what
ever of u.s. How can you show that
the entire moral law is all summed up
in love 10 God, and so love all men as
to do by Others as we would that they
should do by u.s.
do not claim that all the DlDle was
given by divine inspiration-only the
doctrinal, the moral laws, and the
prophecies-but I claim that God
gave his spirit to Jesus in such full
ness that l can learn more of the dis.
position, heart and moral qualities OF
the Father by seeing God IN his So"
more that is we'll calculated to 'rec.
oncile the world to God'-and induce
sinners to repent, love, trust and obey
Him-than l can learn in any way
from the material world. The person
who rejects the authority Of Christ rs
a :eligious teacher, and does not be-
lieve that the.bible "coutalns a revola-
,ior,~cf and from God, cannot prove
any Of these things. God, manifested
in and through Christ, constitutes the
gospel and its entire saving power.
The mere Deist may reasonably be-
lieve in an intelligent First Cause, but
Of his moral qualities, he can prove
little or nothing. For ought that he
can prove, God may be partly good
and partly evil; partly wise and part
ly unwise; partly just and partly un-
just. He may not be a God of love-
a kind and just Father to all. The
Deist cannot prove the final salvation
ofall souls, nor of any soul As for my
self, l do not now feel that / shall sver
stop at the halfway house of Deism.
If l renounce Christ as my divinely
inspired teacher, think l should land
in downright Atheism. But as the
Infinite Mind is omnipresent and
touches all finite minds, therefore |
believe in divine inspiration in the
minds and hearts of men. l do not
call it supernatural, but divine, super
human and supernatural. 1t is Of
God, but it seems to me as natural tor
God to INSPIRE human minds as to
give the impetus to the planets to send
them in their respective orbits around
the, sun. Yours truly,
ELI BALLoU.
Al. arnhanneo saus that tho rule ia