The advocate and Topeka tribune., 1893-05-03
THE FINAL QUESTION.
lCORcIuded.)

ne Will nOlu 10 bQe one anu uSSplS6 VIC ObuoI
Ye cannot serve God and mammon
Ye are they which justify yourselves before
men; but God knOWeth your hearts; for tina
which is highly esteemed among men sabom
ination in the sight OF God"
EDITOR ADvoCATE:--I am told that
am discussing this question in q very
strange manner, quite different from the
usual tone of thought on economic sub
jects. I hope SO, truly. Economics and
politics generally have grown to be re-
garded as quite separate and distinct
from theology-thst is, from the word
and knowledge of God. The study OF
anything tending toward the scknowl-
edgement of a controlling divine mind
in the universe, toward which all Of the
works, and acts, and life Of every man,
whether capitalist or "member Of the
laboring class or one Of this "unem-
ployed Margin" have final, and total,
and unique responsibility; such study
is thought to disquslify man for any
service or authority in practical poll
tics" On the other hand, l will concede
to you that the occupations Of practical
politics do quite disqualify the adept for
the study and practice of the divine life.
I will go further, and say that 80 long as
the pursuit Of wealth is business; so long
as enlightened selfshness (that is, the
primal root of all crime whitewashed
with hypocrisy that lies even to itself
and on its knees) is civilization; just 80
long no man can follow in the footsteps
Of any exemplsr Of Gods divinity, and
live in this world and Of this world.
The strange thing to you about my
argument is that, dealing with economics
and business politics, yet talk as if l be-
lieved in q God and in his utter and har-
monious truth to himself and to US. l
am not of the opinion that God can even
play upon words, can keep the word Of
promise to the ear and break it to the
hope; nor do l believe that any system
ought to or can be permanent which is
based upon the supposition that Christ
like life is an impractical ideality not
meant for this world. / expect nothing
from the church, but surely it is not too
much to hope for some good things from
men who know the Lords Prayer" and
who believe that 1t is what it claims to
be, the compendium Of what men should
ask and expect Of God. In these opin-
ions / am surely not unchristian, and l
ann not unscienti6c. Men talk of the
ideal in contradistinction from the prsc-
tical; but the scientist, the very disci-
pie Of q positive mRterialism, knows that
nothing but the ideal is possibly the per-
manently true. That is, that the ideal
only is the practical. The whole earth is
full Of the wrecks of conservatism. Every
plain is the debris Of q mountain that
could no longer be because it ought not
to be. Every rock is the tombstone Of q
race which is extinct because it could not
become more ideal race. The very de-
struction and death which is imminent
upon all the worlds is because they are
not in ideal harmony with an eternal en-
vironment. Science has even furnished
Us with definition of the conditions OF
eternal life. They are very simple and
consist only in q perfect conformity to
the surrounding and changeless life oI
God. Depend upon it, that the very
verdict Of positivism is that an abolition