The Bossier banner., 1893-10-19

UlAC oOoSduASo LA bilC pAA'"oS AAOSOb
what building do they solicit? The
academy of music, the hotel public
hall, courthouse? No; the churches.
And if they want music on the sad oc-
casion, do they select the Marseillaise
hymn, or God Save the Queen" or
orr own grand national air? No; they
want the old hymn with which we
sang their old Christian mother to
sleep; they want the Sunday-school
hymn that their little girl sang the
last Sabbath afternoon she was out be-
fore she was seized with the awful
sickness that broke fathers heart and
mothers heart. Oh, you know as we'll
as | do shall not dwell on it any
longer-the. church of God, instead of
being a worn-out institution, stands
nearer the sympathies of the people
than it ever did, and eclipses all other
institutions.
But our antagonists go on and say
that Christianity is falling back, in
the fact that infdelity is bolder now
and more blatant than it ever was. l
deny the statement. Infidelity is not
near SO bold now as it was in the days
of our fathers and grandfathers.
There were times in this country when
men who were openly and above-board
infidel and antagonistic to Christianity
could be elected to high Office. Now
let some man wishing high position in
the state proclaim himself the foe of
Christianity and an infidel, how many
states of the Union would he carry?
How many counties? How many wards
in Brooklyn? Not one.
Do you suppose that this Bible
theory about the origin of life is going
to be overthrown by men who have
different theories-ffty different theo-
ries-about the origin of life? And
when Agassiz comes out and puts both
feet on the doctrine of evolution, and
says in regard to many scientists, 81
notice that these young naturalists arc
adopting as theories in science things
which have not passed under observa-
tion," Agassiz saw what we all see
that there are men who talk very
wisely who know but very little, and
that just as soon as young scientist
finds out the difference between the
feelers of wasp and the horns of a
beatle, he begins to patronize the AL
mighty, and going about talking about
culture as though it were spelled Gull
c-h-a-r-culchar!
But" say our antagonists, Christi
| anity is falling back because science,
its chief enemy, is triumphing over it. "
Now, deny that there is any war be-
tween science and revelation. There
is not fact in science that may not be
made to harnonize with the state
ments of the Bible. So said Hugh
Miller, so said Joseph Henry, so said
so SAID Prof. Mitchell.
Joseph Henry, the leading scientist
| of America, better known and honored
| in the royal societies transatlantic than
| any other American, lived and died a
| believer in the religion of Jesus Christ.
Joseph Henry knew all the facts of ge-
ology, and yet believed the Book of
tronomy, and yet believed the Book
| of Joshua, the sun and moon standing
still, Joseph Henry knew all the
anatomy of man and fish, and yet be-
| lieved the Book of Jonah.
If the scientists of the day were
all agreed, and they came up with
solid front to attack our Christianity,
perhaps they might make some i'm
preston upon it; but they are not
| agreed. 1t is often said that we reli
| gionists are failing in our advocacy of
| Christianity because we differ In our
theology. l tell you we do not differ
inside the church in theology half as
much as they differ outside the church
in science. If they reject our religion
because we differ on some minor points;
we might just as well reject science
because the scientists differ; but as far
as can tell, the war of infidel science
against Christianity is not so severe as
it used to be, because these men are
antagonistic to each other; and as far
as can tell it is going to be war be-
tween telescope and telescope, Leydon
jar and Leydon jar, chemical appa-
ratus and chemical apparatus They
do not agree on anything.
| 1t makes me sick to see these literary
fobs going down the street with COPY
of Darwin under one arm and a case of
transf1xed grasshoppers and butterflies
under the other arm, talking about
the Survival of the Fittest," and
"Huxley's Protoplasm," and the "Nebu-
lar Hypothesis" and talking to us com
mon men as though we were fools! If
they agreed in their theories and came
up with solid front against Christiani-
ty, l say perhaps they might make
some impression; but they do not agree.
Darwin charges upon Lamratk, wal
lace upon Cope, Herschel even charged
upon Ferguson. They do not agree
about the gradition of the species;
they do not agree about embryology.
What do they agree about?
Herschel wrote O. whole chapter on
what he calls the errors in astronomy.
La Place says the moon was not put in
the righ t place; that if it had been
put four times the distance from ou,
world, there would have been more
harmony in the universe. But Lion
vile comes up just In time to prove
that the Lord was wise, and put the
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