Asheville daily citizen. [volume] (Asheville, N.C.) 1890-1900, 1892-05-17
TALMAGE AND INGERSOLL
THE TWO MEN FROM A MIN.
IsrER's STANDPOINT.
Rev. George Leonard Clancy, of
the Unitarian Church, breaches
Sermon, Explaining What He
Thinks the Errors OF These Con-
spicuOus Characters.


a Sermon, Explaining What He
Thinks the Errors OF These Con-
splcuOus Characters.
billiard hall, on South Main street,
was crowded on Sunday evening, when
Rev. Geo. Leonard CLANCY, Of the Unita-
rian church, delivered his sermon on
"Talmapc and Ingcrsoll."
In discussing some Of the questions at
issue between ultra belief and ultra un-
belief, rs represented by these conspic-
uous men. Mr.. CLANCY spoke chiefly of
their views and positions about the
Bible. Mr.. Talmagc was taken as he
appears in his famous lecture on "Ingcr-
sollism." In this lecture he comes forth
as the defender of the Bible from the
attacks of Mr.. Ingersoll. The successful
defence of any threatened position,
Mr.. CLANCY said, depends largely
upon the choice of ground by
the defenders. The general who
occupies the flats and leaves the heights
unguarded will wage losing battle.
The Bible is perfectly defensible
from its heights and there is where
its really able defenders plant their
batteries. No successful attack has
eyer been made upon the position
that the world has had an intelligent
beginning and an orderly unfolding; the
binding obligation of the decalogue
whatever may be thought of some of
the reasons assigned for their keeping;)
the picty and grandeur of most of the
Psalms; the moral insight and spiritual
elevation of the leading prophets, and
above all, the spirit and life of Jesus.
But Mr.. Talmage, instead of planting
his batteries on these impregnablc
heights, salles out to do battle on the
risky fields OF secular history, civil legis-
lation and natural science. In the light
of what is known today of geology and
astronomy, we must honestly say that
the testimony of the primitive writers OF
the Bible on these subjects is not correct.
Its errors, however, are such as should
be expected from men of that remote
time. 1t is truth 70 the appearances of
nature but not to facts OF nature as they
are now known.
Imagination investing natural pho
nomena with pretcrnatural powers and
personal experience projecting its con
sciousness OF sin upon the first man,
were the source of these carly stories.
What we have in the Bible is a series of
books, indclensible as natural science,
exact history, homogeneous morality or
equal spirituality. but rising i'll Jesus and
approximately i'll Others. to teaching
and example in religion which thus far
have had no equal in the world and can
need no superior until man has come
nearer to their sublime ideal. Why not
take some such ground as that, a posi-
tion which can be held against all com
ers? Mr.. Ingersoll is too shrcwd, if
not too pious, to venture battle against
the christian heights. But with Napo-
Icons instinct for the weak spot i'll his
enemys position, he hurls his forces OF
wit and reason against the outStretched
and thin line of Biblical incrrancy and in
tallibility.
Mr.. CLANCY then illustrated what he
termed the ''evasion and sophstry OF
some of Mr.. Talmage's replies to MIR. In
gersolls attacks. Instead of meeting
them squarely and turning their point,
by appealing from Moses to Christ,
once admit the truth of what Jesus said
so distinctly, that the laws of Moses
were accommodated t o the hard hearted
ness OF his contemporaries, and you will
not be surprised to find in them many
things of temporary application, and ill.,
ferior moral value. If Mr.. Talmage had
been willing to learn of Jesus, he might
have fairly and candidly admitted the
imperfection of Mosaic law and put the
responsibility for it where il belonged,
viz: with the hard hearted generation
for whom the Mosaic code was formed.
And on the other side. Mr.. lngcrsoll il llc
could meet and see Jesus as he is, i'll place
of the zealots of one or another mistaken
view of him, would soon find his man OF
straw consumed in the clean flame of the
Masters fearless candor and truth. But
the christian world docs not meet
Ingersoll in any such way. No doubt
they think he does not deserve it, but
neither did those old Pharisecs who trict
to catch Jesus with their texts from
Moses. Why cannot Jesus way of deal
ing with unbelicvers be preferred trust
no one will accuse me of endorsing Mr.
Ingersolls views because | protest
against the folly and evasveneSs of Mr.
Talmage esreply to them. These men arr
discussing with levity and yuIgarit
subjects ofgrave concern to human hap
piness and welfare. hardly know which
is worse. the profanity of the one o
the defamity of the other. The one dc
nies God. The other detames God"
Mr. Chaney then took up in details
some of the charges of Mr.. lngcrsol
against the church, and argued that il
, one or another age of the church man
of these charges were true. "The churcl
OF today" he said, lin some of its field
is still guilty of the things charged
against it. The best way of meeting
such objections is to remove their cause
On the other hand, with all his grca
talents, Mr.. Ingersoll lacks that patienc
of inquiry and balance of .judgmen
which the love of truth inspires AM
which trained scholarship confirms. Hi
wit seems more engaged than his wis
dom, in many of his lectures. He cithe
gets laughing over the absurdity c
turning fable into sober history, or els
lie gets boiling over the indignity of as
crbing weakness and cruelty to Coo
\ and so between his wit and his tempe
} he misses the sober and long-sutferin
truth.
"Howcvcr, If he expected us to accep
his substitute for God, viz, humanity, Ii
ought never to have drawn such teari,
pictures of what humanity has don,
= With God to ovcrrule them or Sata
to share the blame of them, there migf
remain some particle OF respect for Il
humanity which has done such terrib
things. But Mr.. Ingersoll must not as
us to hate being who permits sue
things and who is ever said to inspire {
command them, and then fall down All
worship a humanity which did the
;, things, and if there be neither God IL,
devil, did them at first hand.
"The quarrel i'll modern times" sa