Wichita eagle., 1888-06-02

standing his beautiful rhetoric and perfect
rythms, We could almost wish he had died
nnsi1glng and unsung, SO completely have
his ideas become engrafted upon the theol-
ogy OF today. He sees and in his burning
eloquence, gives to us only the ''woes and
loss OF Eden" He condemns Eve as
wholly and inexcusably wrong, and
as tribute to his genius, we hear her de
nounced from every pulpit in the land.
But we hear so little in her behalf.
1t was not her lower nature to which the
appeal was made. The promise given her
was, I've shall be as gods, knowing good
and evil" Her ambition was aroused: her
spiritual nature cried out for nourishment,
and here was the means to satisfy 1t. She
did not know it was wrong. How could
she know right or wrong, knowing neither
good nor evil? She realized that punish
ment would follow. And yet, for the sake
OF being ''as gods" or assuming the pre-
rogative of duty, she dared brave the
anger of high heaven, she dared assert her
Will and break the bonds OF that most de-
grading form of slavery-ignorance She
satisfied craving of the inner nature,
compared with which hunger and thirst
would be pleasure and WEAKNESS a positive
delight.
Undoubtedly we have lost much through
the fall: but just as truly we have gained
something in its place. and in its proper
| ton. as the gain exceeds the loss, the curse
Is blessing.
BY the sin for which the human race
were driven from their first abode, we have
lost paradice, but gained heaven; lost the
chlldllke thoughtlessness for the future,
but gained self possession and reason; lost
ignoronce. but gained knowledge.
Had we remained in the Garden of Eden
| life would have passed as a long summer
day We would have been as race of
little children. living on forever, thought
fui only for the present: perfect free
dom from care and responsibility;
a happy existence, no hing more.
AS little child, regarding only the enjoy
ment OF the hour, rests his confidence in d
providence, which he has never nationally
considered, SO might we at the present
time be enjoying the freedom from care
this happy thoughtlessness, but for the SIN
in the garden. As a strong man sinking
| beneath mighty river grasps the hand
held out for his deliverance, so the human
race today, has its joys augmented by
| gratitude and its sorrows heightened by
faith Yet little children never appreciate
their happy lives. 1t is only when having
struggled with the world and grown weary
of its petty triumphs and pleasures, that
| they can regard with proper gratitude the
care that made those few years what they
We're. 1t is an acknowledged law of human
nature, that what we strive most to pos
seSs, we enjoy most when acquired. The
| hard fought battles of our earthly life with
! the evil trinity will linger in our memory
| and Argument an hundred fold our appre-
citation of the rest and reward of eternity.
And with what shall we compare the joys
OF heaven? Not with Eden surely, for eye
! hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have
entered into the heart of man the things
which God hath prepared for them that
| love him." not with travel, with science,
with worldly ease, not even with life in
the realms of thought, a life OF theorizing
and constant advancement toward perfect
harmony of mind and matter. Hear what
the poets sing of it:
go wing thy flight from star to star,
From world to luminous world so far,
AS the universe spreads its flaming wall;
Take all the pleasures of all the spheres,
And multiply each through endless years,
One moment of heaven is worth them all.
Some one, whose name l have forgotten
or never knew, said that where ignorance
is bliss, it's folly to be wise" But notice,
please, the premise, where ignorance is
bliss" 1t sometimes is not.
What would man be without a knOwl
edge of right and wrong, without a moral
nature, yet possessing a soul? Lower than
the brutes? Yes, infinitely lower, for intel
lect, like any other power, turned in the
wrong direction works havoc wherever it
goes; and brutes without mans high men
tai endowments, have still sense of moral
obligation, al idea of right and wrong, not
SO acute as we find 1t In the human species
but sufficient for their needs. You may
say that the brute creation was cursed
with man and received their ideas of right
and wrong when he did. But geology
teaches us that ages before man appeared
upon the lace of the earth different forms
of the lower animals were in existence
preylng upon each other and being preyed
upon in return. Now, this could not have
been the case had they no idea of right and
wrong; hence, while the fall may have in
tensified the primitive conception of good
and evil in the brute there was an inner
ent principle in his nature that gave him
an instructive idea of the survival of the
fittest.
And such must have been our first
parentS-perfect types mentally and
physically, but blanks morally; dead to all
the finer instincts of nature: living life
of perfect neutrality; neither SHINING nor
resisting sin: doing neither wrong nor
right. What an enigma IN human form
No wonder that an all-wise, all-powerful
Providence permitted the sin followed
by the expulsion from the garden.
While there were only two
persons living, there was moderate
chance for peacable life, but as the hui
man race multiplied and the whole earth
became tenanted, it was necessary that
some restraint should be placed upon
them. Imagine race of beings without
moral natures q wild, free, lawleSs, I'M
governed and ungovernable people. There
could be no law, for law presuppoSes a
knowledge of right and wrong of justice.
There could be no government, for govern
menJ presuppOses law. You may tell me
that there would be no need OF law in the
original state Of man, that love would
rule and harmony reign. Bat to support |
this statement, we must assume that there !
was no such thing as hatred before the
fall, and metaphysicians tell US that a be
ing incapable OF hatred is also incapable OF |
love. Surely the passive state that pre-
coded the fall could not be called love- Al !
action would be impulsive, in direct an
Swer TO the emotions, passions and desires /,
of man physically and mentally. Choice /
would become mere chance, the strongest I
emotion gaining control. There would be /
no regularity anywhere. Unable to dis |
tinguish the evil and the good even hui /
where the soul is disregarded, would be of 1
little benefit with so important part OF /
the faculty OF Judgment wanting. The !
preventative and representative powers /
would be present with, probably, their full /
force, but the reflective and intuitive pow
ers, the Of we may SO divide them more |
strictly spiritual portions of the intellect |
would be sadly shattered.
They ate of the tree of knowledge of good /
and evil: not alone right and wrong but |
of good and evil in every department. The |
infant. whose intellectual powers
lie dormant, has no cogniz- |
ance of good and evil: hence
the necessity of parental care. Would we
wish to become so dependent even for Para
disc?
Our inheritance from our fist parents,
therefore, is the one side, moral retponsi-
bility. on the other. desire for knowledge
And where ever the human race is found,
under what ever circumstances they exist.
rich and poor, civilized and uncIviiized /
hODi and fraa rheSa two aiar,aur- in, thar /