Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1882-05-14
pARwrn AND rHEoLoar.

The death of Darwin has called forth ex-
pressions from the press. especially the re-
ligioussportioR of it, to the bearing of the
scientific views of which he was the origina-
tor upon the teschings OF christianity. 1t is
pleasant to see that, as a general thing, the
newspapers do justice to the great scientist,
by showing that the gross, senseless atheism
that has been connected in the minds of
many with Darwin's discoveries and system
came from no word that he penned. just as
sects in religion have been engendered by
men drawing differences from the Bible, and
excluding men from the church VINO declined
to read the Bible only in the sense Of those
inferences-which are embodied in creeds
and catechisms-so, ardent but not wise fol-
lowers of Darwin drew inferences from the
facts that great man presented, and in that
way constructed their atheism AMI asnosti-
cism. For their jargon Darwin is no more
responsible than christianity is responsible
for the demonstrations of christianity that
sanctioned the crimes of the inquisition, or
for the gatherings with truth known as
Jesuitism. The Bible in declaring its sub
lime truths, neither affirmed nor contradicted
the popular ideas respecting the operations
Of nature, it simply used the phraseology of
the people in speaking of natural phenom-
ena, using language they undo rstood; our
scientific men who speak of the rising and
setting of the sun do, to- day, just the same
thing. The teachings of the Bible were given
irrespective of science. Just in the same way
Darwin acted. He asked nature what she
had to tell him, and what she revealed he
wrote down without reference to other sub
jects, whether political, commercial, or. re-
world moved and the sun stood still, he had
no right to hide or contradict the revelation
because his church said that the Bible de-
clared the earth to be firm and immoyable.
AS a scientist Darwin minded his own bust
ness and left others to mind theirs. Some
esty nor good sense to initiate his
example, but this reflects no dishonor upon
Darwin. The fact is that the new and mag
nificent views Darwin opened up bewildered
and enthused ardent minds. With a natural
exaggeration they stretched his system be-
yond Just bounds. Not satisfied with the
mighty edifce it built up, they wanted to
exalt its fame by using it as a weapon with
which TO strike Down faiths that lowered to
the throne of God. They have not
ceeded. Christianity stands cut firm and
indestructible, as everlasting as are all the
pillars OF truth. Christianity win Withstand
all the darts of aguosticism, for its principles
are imbedded deep in the very nature of
man. Man has a religious instinct as much
as he has reasoning faculty, and the only
exterior object that can adequately satisfy
that instinct is christianity, tor no prophet,
whatever his faith, can vie with the crucifed
Nazarene. Agnosticism, the know-nothing
ism of spurious philosophy, and atheism,
its negatiyeness, are phantasms cleaning in
eyes that have gszed On a refulgence too
bright for their powers; the blindness
that comes when vision is dazzled by excess
oflight. Pasteur, the great French discoverer
and Investigator of the germ origin of
zymotic diseases, ON taking the seat to which
he has been elected in the French Academy
made a speech in which he pricked the
bubble of that kind of skepticism that leans
said: What is there beyond this starry
vault? More starry skies. Well, ami be-
yond that? The human mind, driven by
an invincible force, will never cease asking,
What il there beyond? 1t is useless to
answer, Beyond are unlimited spaces, times
or magnitudes.' Nobody understands these
words. He who proclaims the existence of
an Infnite-ani nobody can evade it-as-
serts more of the supernatural in that at
irmation than exists in all the miracles OF
all religions; for the notion of the Infinite
has the two-fold character of being ire
sistible and iHcomprehensible. When this
notion seizes on the mind there is nothing
left but to bend the knee" 4 pr'iori we see
no reason why there should be phenomena
or being at all, but as not negation but
the universe exists, that fact carries with
it the assurance of eternally existing and
active intelligence, not of blind, uncon-
sclous and chaotic elements. A universe
that has existence and order is universe
that has God.