St. Paul daily globe., 1892-11-21
ALI Religious and Moral Truth
Held to Lie Before the
World.
Lessons Of Life Extracted
From the Poem Of an
Unknown.

NNOAA W
read it Oh account of our limitations.
The claim that all religious and moral
truth does lie before the world may
seem at first bold statement, but if we
ply it with examination, that eXamlna-
ton will show us the truth of the asSer-
ton. But to eXtricate this truth, sup
pose we come by different way, by
taking parallel case. This parallel
case will probably be best given by
astronomy. think most of US were inn
pressed at the very first sentence of Mr..
Ebers' story of Joshua, which gives
such clear idea of what Joshua was
in his Egyptian environment. I'M
pressed by the picture OF wild
sky over which angry clouds
swept as phantom battalions are some
times said to sweep deserted battle
fields, impressed by the shaven-headed d
priest in the watch tower of old Tanis,
and the boy standing by with reed pen
and stripe of papyrus on which to write
the others observations; we are i'm
pressed because we are at once ushered
into the place where the philoS0phe L
studied the stars and Speculated about
their functions. And as we watched
this mau OF the past we recalled the
fact that he believed the earth to be the
center of the universe resting on
Imaginary Foundations,
and that the sun, moon and stars rolled
around it; that each star was filled with
a spirit that moved it as the will of the
swallow that cuts the air in its flight
moves its wings; shat as man was born
when one of these planets was nearer
than another he was afterwards under
the influence Of that particular star, an
idea that appears in all early literature,
and is even yet common expression
among people who have forgotten its
meaning, but who say to others. You
may thank your lucky stars that you
have escaped an injury from accident
by the bursting flood or the wrecked
and ruined train"
MBut if we make long stride from the
man on the watch tower to the inven-
tion of the telescope, to the discoveries
of Copernicus, kepler and Newton, we
will find that the sun has become the
center of the universe, the earth plan
ct: grayitation has supplied motive
power TO the planet and explained its
wonderful movements, doing away with
the idea of its intelligence and will;
that the world IS new world. and the
man in the observatory today having
learned much is looking for more light.
and willing to acknowledge that no one
dares prophesy what may or may not
come to pass in the future. But to the
modern man there is the same heavens.
He sees the same painting and
throbbing white welkin that the raD-
bins saw when they sat down and
said it was clear to them that in the
bright stars one could see a giant form
of light; that the giant form of light,
looking as if he was reaching with out
stretched hands and widespread pm
ions, was Sand0lphin, the angel OF
prayer; that. standing there, tireless
and faithful. he gathered the tear that
scalded the face of love and the signs
that rose from burdened hearts and
lifted them to the throne. But he
stands there no longer, nOr can we
longer call the silver cloud that floats
across the moon
The Chariot of Angels.
Our matter of fact Western ways
have abolished all these. And of them
we NAV quote: .'These mvths were
born of hopes. and fears, and tears and
smiles; and they were touched and
coIored by all there is of JOY and grief
between the rosy dawn of birth and
deaths sad night" But it was mostly
myth and poem that primitive man saw
| in the heavens; and yet the same stars
were there. the belt Of Orion and the
Pleiades were all there, and their lesson
was an open book to the man who could
read.
As in astronomy, SO in truth. God
chose nobody for his special messenger.
The sword is to him who can use it,"
is said to have been the motto of Ma
poleon, and that is the motto of God. If
Voltaire had been of higher gift than
Christ, then Voltaire would have been
the messenger of the truth to men. No
special favor marked Christ save, as a
special favor marks him vino reaches
the highest point oflove for man, love
that was finally manifested in a sacri-
flee that stands supreme. The open
book of God was before the world
Sages had tried and with more or less
success had read it. They read as they
were able to read. Christ discovered
the application of one side OF truth, that
which relates to love. He charted its
shores. He sounded its depths. He
said all of it that any ever said before
Him or will ever say again. ButiHe ac-
complished it because He was enabled
to by his endowment, not because of
any otEer reason. Truth-the truth He
taught-was always in the world. Other
men had found at least part CT its
meaning. 1t was reserved for Him, how
ever, to lay such hold on it that the
world
Became New World
after He lived. But in teaching this
idea that God was always revealing the
truth, that it was an open book TO him
who was able to read-the only draw
back being that men were not able to
read-you may be saying in your minds
about this time: This is rank heresy.
This is going altogether beyond the
boundaries that should be fixed and
over which we are not permitted to
pass. But you are mistaken. This idea
is the coming orthodoxy. L referred
at full length last Sunday to the
Andoyer idea that was placed
in current circulation. Well, that
same Andover confession says ex-
declares in plain terms, which | quote
verbatim: THAT the whole world of
facts and principles IS a revelation of
God; man is the discoverer." Nothing
can be palmer than this; nothing can
more clearly bear out the statements
that have been making; therefore, in
stead OF being entirely out of line with
orthodoxy, l am only going little
ahead of it in the grand procession up
the hills, and not even blazing the way.
but showing you where 1t is being
blazed by modern thought and scholar
ship, and the path where we are all
going to walk by and by.
But If this iGea of the discovery of
revelation has beginning, 1t has a
broadened meaning as we keep our eye
fixed on the conditions of modern life.
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