The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1881-02-16
Plymouth Pulpit.
RELIGIOUS DOUBT AS DEFINED BY
THE Rev. MIR. BEECHER.

has Followed the Footsteps Of
the Saviour Through all Ages Down
to the Present Day = Religion az
Large as the Universe Of God-The
Word Of God Stands Sure.
[CAutsfan Unton.
"Ard when they saw him they wOrshlped him but
some duubted"-Matt. xviii II.
This WAS y Question OF personal identity; abont
one would suppose there nred be doubt betahse
d~r!,ehded upon the lowest form OF evidence, *hicn
usually is the most rigorous. 1t WAS a gruup OF Those
had iullnwed Christ ia bis life. who oil believed
In his teaching, who had nournrd bis C %ncidxion. who
for his return, anti who doubt es would be
uus That It should b. he. Those who weru nprch.
those whose understandings moved more quickly
Ia their moral aspiration aud sense, the moment they
saw him broke out into Worship; but other. either oI
a sluggish temperament or very cautions, 1t may be
4 ON tho ascendrncyO Of love that cannot afford to mako
Il mistake and p"ur itself ont unwOrthily, doubled.
dontt has followed the footsteps OF the Saviour
tn ongh all ages down to the present day. Lam going
t" discourse, not on tie subject VI the divinity 81
Christ, IN which l very Heartily believe, buton the sinh
Of religious doubt, IT., nature. lis causes and Its
The subject is so large that / shall be
nblig-i to d"part from my usual cust1m. and make q
double sermon. This morning and this evening, there
fore. | shall cause your attenti..n to the natu e, the
and the remedies IL re-. ginus doubt.
To- u drrstand whnt we mean by doubtit Is necessary
that we should first Rsk what Is meant by t~lief or
THY bear The SAINT relation to each 9TH
or that the light OF day dues u the darkness ~ night;
"r that cold dues to heat. One Is the negation of the
other, simply.
DOUBT is MERELY NOT BELIEVING.
What, then, is belieyingt What 10 conviction 1t
Ia thu cnnsclOus acceptance, ~inwardly, Of any state
mint. any truth or any principle, on any evidence
whatsoever IN which there Is the feeling that that
statement or ruth or principle Is . f.ct. What we un.
dcrotand IT, be q cOnvicIion 0f truth Is the minds con-
sent u that t. nth. The IUwest form IL that 4 the
truth Of things-whIt the senses perceive, and what
Under this form come all mathematical facts ana
st, trments. No argument IL required To prove. that
two and Two are four. that four and four hrr eight, 0r
that eight and eight are sixteen. There Is nothing tn
be said In regard to these They are there
f"rs called axIonatic truths. truths of the senses, or
truths that everybody nccrpfs. Truths OF the senses,
or truths In the sphere In which the senses act, are re-
criyed by the understanding OF men with more Ger
rninty, ~perhnps, than any other class OF tTnths-ntnnY
rate by the unsiucaIed Mad. lido 8 not at all follow
that q thing IL a truth b. canse you believe 1t 10 true.
II do not fnllow because You have the testimony "f
your 8. nsrs thai n thing Is true that Is ST.: for the
senses are just as npt to BE- deceived. they are Just "a
falliblS, no the intellectual l,hilosnphic reasoning Of
men.
Then there are the results Of intellectual perception,
or reasoning In regard to truths OF relation. On this
ground stand arguments OF logical corrcinn, or such
presentations MS are supposed to compel the purely
thinking par: of men the intrllrct-to~ assent:O given
rrsults which urr Thought to be true; and often lines
they are SO. b t "ftrn,imrs they ae not so. Never.
the!ess, If the argument or logic prnducrs In the mind
o. man a sensr OF satisfaction rs u thu revelation Of
any truth. TO him 1t Is evidence Tint which is rvi.
dcnre to a man Of any given truth depends subj civ
" upon his nature; so that IN evidence that perfectly
SATISFIES one man, may not even face the suffice of an
other mans conviction.
4 FAR LANCER JpBHraE OF TRUTH EXISTS,
however, than that of the senses, nr that Of purely
thinking reason. Truths that have their 4, velnpment
In the sphere of social int cOuse. of love, OF trust, oi
bcnrvoIence OF Iicty, Of s, mrathy: oil truths that
In their Very nature r. quire the Intersphrring 0f
mind with mind trn'hs which rising higher, take old
on the gr, ut moral elements of right aud wrong. pllri-
t. and inpnlity. faith and hope. r. vercDce and irrevrr-
rncr-thrse urr t,utlis that Move In the .liere 81 feel
Ing. Now, in regard to all m"ral truths ~ this higher
kind. It is not In the power "i reus'r t" Convict or
convince any man anil al truths (and nineteen out o.
twenty nf wha are C He'd religious truths CONSIST 0f
tn, sr) iu whic4 thr evidence Is adiI essrd purely and
simply To the INA %hrinhtical reason. t. the intellect, "r
to the lrgi nj rrnsnI,. Come short III pr.dncing mCral
con They may produce q Logical conviction
bu: they cannot produce moral c'uyiclioh; for In this
sphere .. ruth the intellect must lave Tor 8 au1ilia.
ry some emotion. Moral truth mus. have the adjunct
OK mrral feeling.
Well, 1t dors not stop with moral truth alone. NJ
man can ne m"dr To bc.irv,, IN The Scripture sens". and
In the proper sense, In = truth Of \ high m"rul nature,
unless there Is somewhere IN his constitution a mora
feeling that vibrates t. the evidence that presents It u
his mind Tor conviction In this case comes fr0n tie
operation or intelligence. and moral sense working To
get"rr. Tile same Is true In regard to q great many
ma, urrs that are artistic. There are some men who's
way OF thinking IS 40 penetrated with artistic elements
with n Sense Gr the tdrsl md III" beautiful, III I trtiths
which ,cavr our The m"ral element, ar lrnvp out The
element OF the beautiful and ideal, do not cnne home
10 them,
The same 10 trne In regard to the poetic temp+ra
mrI t or the play OF the Imagination. There are Q
great many met who, Ike Luke, believe that
TIE IMAGiSArIos Is A FRUITFUL CAUSE OF DEcEr'
TON.
! So It Is; and there Is nothing in the human economy
that is MT u fruitful cause Of deception; There Is but
one irfall,blr man; und be lives Mt Rome; but tbs
Imagination Is no more likely tn stumble iDtn error
han g,c. Logic makes believe that IL is intalible
but Il is not, Since the world began there have mn.
wh"re been iHire ways OF error than In What Is called
The exact philosophical demonstration OF mora
On the other hand I hold that tier. has been nj
guide 50 SAT-, on the Who'll ns that which ~eavcs NOR
oil argnm nj with the element Of Imagination. Thrre
Is a large class Of people who are 50 constituted tha,
the cunsci, nee inside Of them will never respond to
that which Is true unless the truth comes IL them In
| some such slmpe That 1t Is gilded or riadc b, autiful by
til. power ul the Imagination.
THAT Is THE SECRET OF HYMNS.
Take a chapter In Calvin on any one Of the grca,
themes Of Christian experience, md yen may read II a
hundred timcsorer, and you will be like nIrn that
skate on ice. The statement is philoSophically perfect
hnt 1t makes no impression uIon Yum. II y"i ,akt
precisely the same s .ntirnent in one of Charles Wes-
legs ly iRns, and present 1t To men. they say, "Thp,
Is 20; TINT Is true" There arr hundreds II men thnl
dn not know. when they are singing, whether they are
t:aviuists" or Armtnians. All The churches TIM ever
lived In the world IRE to b. found In The hymn b o.
Tho ,ronf ii any truth may be u fact, an intellectual
statement, Nh rinotinn, or a poetic conviction. A fur,
may be irue; aud The prtsf Of 1t may he absolutely
false; but to . man who rrcriv's It It answers Its end
ALI that We want is to bring the minds Of mrn intu
truth that is true to thcm. lr 1t c.mes through the
port Of the senses. and satisfies them: II It comes
through the port OF reflective reason, and satisfies
Them IL 1t comes through the port "f form. Of c.'lnr
Of the idenl, or Of the mystic and obscure, aud satisf1rs
them, nothing mure IL required. No matter in What
way the truth comes to o man. II he settles down, and
says, " [ believe It; that Is true to me; accept It,
til is enough. This differs from tho ordinary pcpn.
l.r Id, n Of thuught Ms WILEY as the whole mind differs
from any single function Of thu mind.
1t Is plain. then, TINT although In general intellectual
argument md logic fill ! certain sphere In the pr11nc'
tim VI conviction, moral and aesthetic feeling are re-
CURED In tn. higher range Of truth; and no man who
dNs not believe this can read H.. New Testament with
profit. FROM beginning to end the great fact is devrl'
uped manhood. The one thing which the whole Bible
esehsis
TIE BUILDING UP OF A NOBLE 81 PERsAL NAN.
Tn. ins rumenls by which this manhood Is TO be
| built up uc -ecnnd Try; NAMELY, the modes Of present.
ing racl truth. In the New TtsIaln. mt, aud ~rsprcIall
10 liz life uf Christ and his teaching. and r.ised tn
double power in the Gospel o: John. you shall find that
every whore MOI al and social intntti'ns nre recngniz' d
Nd lHt uISUtbL = NCHSt w SpH Nh-ho III Sbu-
,ictinn Of the reasoning power. but the conviction vi
the emotional power In men. When Christ came Into
he temple TO dispute with his advrr>aries. his mr.
gument was; "Y"u nre Of y"lir father, The dcvi': and
ih. is the reason ynu do not believe In me-; for l am
of my F.t er, Hod: and maligniiy cannot unde' stand
brnevOIrnce, n.r can impntity understand pnri' -
Iry0l st MI bHure olr Of Titian's prctu'rs and say,
" Oh! what gorgeous colorsl" and II IN n, hrari < you,
| says, - | do not sre any color" you cannot help your.
self. You cannUt demonstrate color to . man who
does not see II. An II you say To a man :" Honesty
IS beautiful. I" and h. says, " de- not think 1t is; l hr.
long to the sch'nl Of those who do mol see any beauty
IN honesty, nm believe In Il. " there Is nth Ig nioe
tn be said under the circumsta ces. The convicti"nol
any truth ~inplirsa certain adaptation Of lts rrrsrnta-
tim 10 the wants of The nntur- u which II Is presen.
ted. heiure that nature can clasp II and make It food
for itself.
This view explains why so many nfe crrtAin OIL
their fail b who can give no reason for II. A man rays
{" IN w, | know" "l,ut," 1t is said. why do ,nd
know We IRE exhurted N scripture to as tar rs IEsst
biz give o rcasuh Tor the laith that Is IN 10 to every
man that asks"
4 THOUSAND TINES MEN HAVE BEEN TURNED
from darkness to light, and from wicxedne,s to hoii.
ness, by an electric shock; and hey shy. | have B. Ell
nj the spirit. aud these things are true to mr; but
cannot tell you how nor why the change that | have
undergone WAS wrought" Tbrna great many say
% 1t IL doubtful whether II Is genuine or not" II may
bs doubtful, and 1t may nut be doubtful To some
f"lks It is not; for man may have the moral feeling
which gives conviction, and vet may not BE- to explain
the philosophy Of It. 1t is not necessary that O mar
should understand the rh,loophy by which vinegal
tastes sour und sugar tastes sweet, in order to be sat
ishrd OF the fact that one durs lasle sweet and thu
other sour. lie Inar no know how tn look at The
papll: &c Of tn. ,ongur und SEE how they work.
80 1t Is uiten, with the presentation Of truth. "Ht
that brlievrtb with the hrart, " IL 10 said, 'hcliev. Ii
unto salvation" Although l would not strain the pas
sage, suppose that when It WIS written II WAS ineaL'
10 discriminate between Int. llect md emotion, and to
imply that u man does not rightly believe truths until
! he believes them with the heart.
This shows, also, why men may be absolutely al
one, though the SOURCES of their conviction may utterly
differ.
TITS yorYDArIoN FOR CHARITY.