The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1884-03-25

it. hear a great deal said about re-
sponsibility and about conscience and
about will, but the trouble is that
what you call conscience is not
force. Conscience bears the same re-
lation to man that the compass does
to ship. But when the waves are
tro powerful, when the tide is too
strong, when the winds are too fierce,
of what use is the compass? A man
may know what is right but in the
storm of passion be wrecked on the
rocks and reefs of crime. The COM
pass is.not a force if the compass does
not propell the ship, and the simple
knowledge of right and wrong is not
in and Of itself a force. And 1t
seems to me that when that doctrine
is we'll understood we will have little
more charity in the world-a little
more charity. Do you know that a
very creative will say a very large
majority of the human race are fail
ures? Everybody cannot get llv-
inr. There are hundreds and thou
sands and millions not capable OF sup
porting themselves. They are sd con-
structed, their brains are of such a
shape such a quantity, their Will l. so
weak, or there is something about them
so badly constructed, that they cannot
get living. Nobody blames a man
because he docs not write ike Shakes
peare: Why? You say it takes
genius to write like Shakespeare;
maybe it takes a certain genius to be
honest; maybe it takes a certain
genius to be industrious, and if you
don't blame anybody for not writing
. like Shakespeare. may be you ought
not To blame person for not acting
, like Christ. Where is that man great
, enough, with intellect enough, whose
: intellectual horizon is wide enough Ia
, lake into consideration all the Clrcum'
stances and all the conditions of the
: human life? Consequently | believe
E in charity. | believe in charity foI
, the most superstitious; have charity
for the minister who answers me IN
stead of my arguments, who attack;
Y me personally instead of giving req
O SON against reason, argument agains
: argument. Some time, it NAV be
0 we will be great enough and spiendiC
I enough TO know that nature pro
j duces these failures; that mature
| sows these seeds of grief an
f pain, of joy and love, of virtue and o
@ vice, and that all human failures ar
e simply children of blind chance
n and that the good and great have l
is the lottery of life drawn heart an
,e brain. Perhaps we will, but nc
r. while we believe in the Christian re
n ligion; not while we believe ever
IT human being lives under an iuhnli
:. responsibility, and that every maj
r no matter what his education MA
10 have been, no matter what the d.
II velcpement of his brain may be, mu:
o. be .ieye in a certain creed, not VIII
a. Ne bcl:eve every human teipg live
as under an infinite responsibility al
I'd ttat every man, no matter what h
X education may be, no matter whi
rs the development of his brain may b
he must believe in certain thing, or s
lie in a certain way, or be eternally los
a While we believe that doctrine v
,ss will not have true charity.
OF Now we have in orr country VIII
al, they call orthodox religion, and maj
ut people are astonished that L shou
ny say anything against the theology
ell our day. / talk against it because
'er believe it to be wrong. l talk again
n it because | believe it petrifies t
heart and petri6es the brain. ia
1e- against it because it teaches iDtelle'
| ual slavery, because it endeavors
Ter put chains upon the brains of me
lly / talk against it because it puts
Dw heaven In infinite fend who threate
/ to damn most of the children he b
on made. and while live / shall contin
,ry to talk against it. | find that
by matters of all religions, not only
ere the Christians, but ofevery other, u
a only the civilized clergyman, but t
ite savage medicine man proves his r
be- ligion in exactly the same way. L
ssh minister of to-day will say to me, ye
,gs there must be God; you will ain
We that, won't you? No, L won't. VIII,
pal Because | don't know. There m
ell be and there may not be, but L v
,ur not make my ignorance even attem
his to make it the cornerstone of !
les theology. He says there must bt
ere God. Well, / don't know. If tn
the is. and God wishes us to believe
hit. Him, it would be q very easy tn
nee for Him to convince the whole hun
ub- race. That fact might be spread
A eyery language under heaven