The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1884-10-26
THE PLYMOUTH PULPIT.
Mr.. Beecher's First Sermon After
His Summer Vacation.

Mr. Beecher preached his first sermon
in Plymouth Church on Sunday, after
ten weeks vacation. His textwas John,
XIV, Ia, Is. He said in the course of the
sermon:-To my mind thesNew Tesla
ment< without John would be very
muchdike golden candlestick holding
candle with the flame blown out. 1t
is the very point of illumination.
There is a popular impression of reli-
gion-which perhaps is necessary to the
stages of growth and development in
the human mind and Consciousness
which might almost be said to be ma
chine work; that by nature menla are sin
| full, that under certain Influences they
wake up to the Consciousness that they
I'have strokevof Joy which tells them
that they are saYable now, and then
they go on living the best-way they
know how ndexpect to get to heaven.
This is an outside and mechanical view
of an entrance of q man into the king
dom OF, Christ,
A Christian life IS an unfolding.
The earliest, IsuppOse, of all religious
impulses is that of fear; the fear OF pun
ishment-not the fear of angering the
gods if they wouldn't touch you; not
THE fear of doing wrong, but the fear of
1 doing wrong and getting punished for
lit. It's a religion of Seltishness.
/ The second Stage is the religion of
lformE This is mixture Of rules and
symbolS. 1t begins by conveying spirit
tual ideas through material forms and
lends by distinguishing the spiritual ideas
Hand leaving in, their place only the
| form!~ tIl
All these rituaiistic adaptations to the
weaknesses and the wants of men are to
!. be regarded as stairs from lower story
on them-well, nothing can be more
announcement or undesirable than taking
up ones residence on the stairs
[ The third stage is the religion of duty
far nobier, bat. very imperfect; good
hut not beautiful. The rigid reign OF
conscience never viii develop a full
orbed man.
Conscience may make man admira-
BILE, but it very seldom makes hin
lovely.
Then comes the religion of intellect
of systematic thought, a religion which
consists in being sound in regard to the
great truths. To be sound is certainly
an admirable thing, but where the EN-
phasiS is put opon orthodox systematic
correctness of belief, there is left out al
most the very soul of religion itself.
Then comes at last, next to the highes
form of development of religion in hu
man consciousness-the religion o
love.
The Christian religion begins witt
and, | might almost say, ends with TIN
doctrine of love.
Is there anything higher than that
Yes, yes, a stage still higher. 1t is low
carried TO such degree as TO produce
luminousness, moral intuition, unit
men can see something outside Of wha
? they are; until they come into some
sort of grand sympathy with things that
! are not visible, and are exterior TO them
selves. = =
The chamber of love is a chamber
where the soul meets God and under
stands Him. This is the highest reach
: of Christian experience.
, The marvel of the times, as it will be
the wonder of eternity, and is now TIT
wonder of heaven, is that sublime
silent, hidden SprOuting of the soul by
which God, with supreme evolution, is
: carrying up organic matter into vegeta
BILE life, and by vegetable life to the ru
/ der forms of animal life, and in the ru
! derforrnS of animal life progress in th'
direction of intelligence, and affection
and moral being, and in those that hav,
: advanced to the higher forms of Chris
tan consciousness, still the ripenins
process is going on-for ripening is ev0
luton beginning at the animal, .advan
; cling to the rational responsible being
| deYe'opemnt to the moral, intuitional
state, blazing forth at length fire,
: spirit-made companionable with
| God.