Morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven [Conn.]) 1848-1894, 1890-04-18
IN mARauAND CHAPEL.

EAo1RB @OAVHO eAO ASAsAA
isy sehool-subJecs: The Application
OF Legal Principles to she Evidences
or Christianity.
Professor Phelps delivered most interest," |
ing lecture yesterday afternoon to the Yale |
theological students on 'The Application of
Legal Principles to the Evidences of Chris |
tianity." His lecture was in substance a.
follows:
Christianity rests for Its foundation upon
certain past facts; its authority rests upon
the truth Of the narrative In the four gospels.
II substantially true in Its main features, its
authority 10 not Questioned; If not true, its
bottom falls out. It may be maintained for
. while, but It has lost Its authority. II Ia Q
question of fact, not of faith. No appeal can
be made to faith until the fact il established.
The objections to Christianity are placed on
that ground, and correctly. It is not assert
ed In objecting that the precepts of Chris
tianity are mischievous; but the claim is that
facts are without authority. Are they facts
or mott
It is acknowledged that the administration
of justice IL the most important secular work
In the world. The very existence Of society
depends upon 1t. The principles employed
in the administration of justice are the at
tainments of facts.
Jurisprudence is hypothetical, and must
be founded on facts and suppositions.
Courts are occupied chiefly in asoertaining
enough to have tribunals to settle these
questions. they must be settled in a way to
command the assent of mankind. The
theory of the administration of justice is to
have 1t understood to be justice.
How much evidence does it take to prove
facti 1t Is impossible to answer 1t in that
way. But philosophy and learning have
ID fact established. The test, the criterion,
is sought for. All facts are not disputed,
some are conceded. A class of facts are de-
termined by science, experiment, observa-
| ten, analysis, and measurement these are
physical facts and are capable of being
measured. A vast rssidium Of alleged facts
are left; how are these to be settleda
All of these turn on past fact, and are
to be settled on the evidence of men. The
evidence ID to be established on the effect
produced on the belief Of the average man.
This is the jury trial, and for this you do
not send for learned and trained men; you
ask them to listen to both sides. 1t they do
not know what to believe, that is verdict
against the affirmative; he has failed to make
no verdict and the case must be tried again;
but II they agree that settles 1t and thousands
of men have gone to their death by the agree
ment of twelve average men.
That is the test and 1t is all the test juris-
prudence has been able to discover and it is
accepted and 1t ia incorporated in the ma
tional constitution.
Now apply this test to the four gospels
| the only test that il known which stands
and what ia the results The universally of
the belief of those gospels. Millions of
| juries have sat upon the question Of the
truth of that story, and with what RESULT
Occasionally someone makes himself con-
spicuous like meteor % 1t runs across the
we'll known path. This In the only question
of fact In which everybody is interested.
No intelligent man shuts his eyes to it. He
may turn his back upon Christ and houses
of worship, but when You drive that man
| into the corner he will have interest in the
question. Every man wants q Christian
burial, he wants prayer at his grave, and
that fact proves belief. He may not act
on his belief, but 1t is there.
Suppose these four gospels were discovered
last week and were just translated, do you
think you could establish Christianity on
that basisa think not. Am I to be called
upon or any one else to try out the question
of the truth of the gospel narrativesi No,
the trace of all things is gone; but 1t ia con-
elusive from the evidence. It has had the
belief of the ages. 1t has been accepted and
adopted. It does not stand to day as a new
narrative. It has received this universal ac-
csptance and acquiescence.
Now has not the time about come when 1t
10 proper to say that the original oredibility
| of these manuscripts IL too late to be inves-
tigatedi It Is established on tho best
and only test which We have. Paley's Evi-
denoes of Christianity 10 weak; its argument
would not stand in any court of justice.
This afternoon at O'Clock Professor
Phelps will give another lecture in Mar
quand chapel on the coincidence between
the preoepts of Christianity and the funda-
mental principles of the common law.