The sun., 1891-01-11
PUNISHMENT AFTER DEATH.


IL Any Part OF the Un,verse Beyond Coos
Cares Christ Preaching co spirits II
Prison-Divine Love Mast Overcome Evil.
The story OF Dives. or the rich man and Laz-
arus, as related BY Christ, has been for all the
ages since source Of terror. OF fierce exulta-
tion, or OF the most intense grief according to
the spirit with which 1t has been received. Its
graphic picture OF tho torments in flame and
OF the impossible gull has seemed TO the
casual reader as well as many who have
studied the subject earnestly and prayerfully
as terrible as that dread gate over which Dante
saw tho inscription:
All hope abandon 70 who enter hsre
twas undoubtedly from tho study OF this
passage that the poet felt justified In taking
such tremendous liberty As this.
When this Idea OF ON unending, hopeless
misery became rooted In the Anglo Saxon and
other force northern races, who. like our early
British ancestors, drank freely from the skulls
OF their fallen enemies, It did not apparently
seem 80 inconeruous as II now does to reverent
souls truatlnR themselves wholly to the mercy
and goodness Of God. He'll, with its litoral fire
and birthstone. seemed. perhaps. to these
fierce early Chrlstlans good enough place for
their enemies: In fact. almost q necessity for .
well-constituted universe. Much OF this feel
Ing is still held by men who do not discrlmi-
nate az to their own real motives. Even the
best OF men occasionally have this feeling
when they are least conscious OF 1t. In Mrs.
Stoves story OF Uncle Toms Cabin" she
makes one Of her Quaker characters EXPRESS
the Idea that hell Is ct least necessity for the
hunters OF men.
Slavery happily ia abolished forever and
though enormous wrongs and injustice are
prevalent still. men unconsciously have out
grown the feeling OF need for hell to punish
those who dwarf manhood and debaee woman
hood In the name Of both religion and law.
Men have learned also to search the Scrip
lures more closely and zoe II In them are not
Christ plainly told bis disciples would b re. re-.
SSssiesd zeal d e them. which they were not able TO
Examining more closely this story Of future
crty to o. do 1t I That s
been: 1t teaches future retrtbution pl4inly-
be sooa 4Rere sHdsnty y inst possbs
escape , pc from the pnnishment yet y ts for good.
fruits fruits q righteousness in them that are e1er.
Look = little further in this story. OF the rioh
Imar Ioa Ib Hs main fau| seems 70 be his disrsgard
care an iota ior the troubles Of poor Lazarus.
S.sa Shsr assb aSsssR this oSbss Ss hn & st 4:
whom he saw In Abraham'e bosom. to br ne
him drop Of water to cool the torment OF his
IL to as .usr
MsHS Sns sTt 1. ts
had 9rs.t sae IN ndssi
Ing with cases like this quote it,
~ ssss
;ss n: i:S
come from thsnca
4. Note here two points, First, the kindness Of
Son !" second the gull fixed is one evidently
cape heli 10 escape punishment apd cares for
tween him and Happiness. Such M man MS is not not
6Ss, 6pDy hsss ssds. until h, he fhanFS % and
carries with him into the future life.
Note also the wonderfully prompt effect Of
sPf y on sa' fsa
sself alone, the poor spirit thought most Of his
ss s"d a' sps TO S Ss SAND. sand sh h %
neglected opportunities.
..ps TAR S I, s.S M thee therefore
70 III. esss u
With such spiritual progress as this possible
IN he'll II Is 1u much more hopeful condition f9r
than millions Of men have on earth. t lis quite
possible that the remorse whch In the future
s sssms m IKE flame or the that
change from evil to to- good more MOI IS surely % and
QUICKLY aMsE Il than il can on earth:
into the Bible meaning for the purpose Of
reading y out again. It ls believe. tie only
monizsd with what is plainly taught Of The Di-
and taat al men are fis eRildrsn. and @ that IA COD COD
What more need mon than this ''''A''''
Who shall msasurs or limit God in dealing
high as the heavens are above the earth, SO
high are Gods thoughts above our thoughts
an snd G9ds Ways above oHE Ways he probably
which modern astronomy has revealed to men,
Yet that expression 10 as true now to the de-
the poet King gazing on The stars OF heaven
from the housetops Of Jerusalem.
but thu belief ss me- shas
planet, one Of the least among the heavenly
bodies. has perhaps In the problem Of human
pon Of - nI oshef Ct
al tbs sum Of human wrongdoine Tor eIsater
asse HoW s may L. y
but were not able beceuse of their lack Of hui.
study Of thsi, own and others experIenee. to
learn better than any ono else can tell them.
This 'boint Is fully Indicated in Father Abra-
hams fnal answer TO Dives's second request:
proph.s l.. them hear shsm ''' n>'' ~'''' ~Aa 'n'
on su'
tn. A.y .ss ons oas
rose from the dead.
The obvious lesson from this is that the OK
perenoe Of one human soul can only imper-
is told. that when Goethe had become
What e s.nsfisnsol" Gosthe,s answer was
experience which . man .e,xPssrences in *.
turned on bis heel with the remark You are
fool" Years after be came TO Goethe and
reSSlyed l III ths only possible answer.
rsmorse and sufiering As missionary ground
is indicated by the fact that fresh from His
earthly experiences His spirit went to the re-
gions Of reporse and despair and preached to
the spirits there imprisoned. This Is delicate
ground: but this. think. is the only possible ex-
X. :S:s{s = ht:I seSSs SffI:t
and resurrection. and. for, sueht anybody can