The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1893-06-19
l6Is Of RELIGION.
=. Powers Lay Sermon 1t the
First Unitarian Church.
rax ON THE FUNDAMENTALS.
- which IL Divine. Cssvessaa ooA
AnsAiss. ssA Iass which 10 Hsnss
go Tvsssitsgy.

-. ,.srss oS the frs: Unitarian church
vas Esisd yesterday by Dr. u Arey Power.
n Postissd. Dr.. Poses 10 an kngiishman
- bsrsh, and ~ one time Was connected
rith league Of Unitarian !sy preachers
s his ns,svs country. Hissssrnon--or adj
1vsu. rssher--os yesterday MAS directed 70
= examination Of the fundamentals II,
,pase,op--what xas universal and abiding.
Z "A What man made, transitofy and dis
sr.ctsns. The insuficiency Of ethics. pure
aed simple. was pointed out and the need
q religion embracing ethics Emphasized
ri. Power said:
We are being constantly told from Gil
sisiss that TINS 10 IN age OF mental and
epig,tusg unrest, and il has been recently
well said that the explanation thereof lies
"A The fact that this 10 formativs period
lat the present dav religion - IN the max
ing: We are not living and enjoying the
hbors OF the past, We are preparing . Pc
ROD OF religious rest for the future. Con.
sroueutly, in the din and strife OF the pro-
cess. We are unable to enjoy the rest Of IT.
ssined perfection, or even accurately see
the outlines OF what we are building. Ali
Who kuow anything of the history OF man.
kind. know that humanity - . whole il
subject 10 great waves of activity. wherein
III IL units are more or loss compelled 10
work along given line. each according TO
his nature and capacity, and only when
the process has ceased, 70 II possible 20
take cogniyAnce Of the finished product.
In such period ws are ~ present. Can
Ne. with our knowledge Of the past.
draw any safe conclusion for
which human thought Is striving
1iverging or eonvergingf II the latter,
where will they meet? These are ques-
tons Of more than speculative Importance.
II there 10 any certainty in . forecast We
can do much 10 keep the converging lines
n true path much 10 prevent the clash
Ing Of Grant but rightintended effort.
She waste Of force that comes from want
u knowledge Of the end TO De gained.
LET ~ ask ourselves In the most serious
manner. what are thu real bases Of reii gious
heissf-thosc conceptions which are so fun
6smentai that their exclusion excludes the
VOID religion land let mo say here that
saeA words - religion. God, Christian, are
feequentiy used with different meanings
b far ~ ! have the power OF judging I
~ such with no philosophical, unitarian
~ other esotcr,c Specification, but With
he meaning they bear to the great mass
u mankind: which / apprehend il tho
soly honest way to use words. Before We
proceed TO attempt an answer TO this
question let US ask what the past said to
" II we turn to the oldes. religious Ideals,
sech a. the chaldean. the Hebrew and
Ne vedic, we meet With q funds-
mental ideality Of thought. The recog-
ntion OF personal obligation to God
(shether one or many II . side issuel a
manifested by sacrifice 10 the basis OF all
oosty thinking. Later on this conception
underwent q development. and the obfiga-
BON became restricted to some particular
God. The Hebrew selected Jahyeh from
cut OF the many he had worshiped and
made him order Thou shalt have no
chose Ormuzd. the Hindoo Christina,
bat the essential basis Of personal obliga-
0oa remained the Same in all. and 10 Ia
woethy Of note. that the Hindoo scripture,
called the Bhargara 0ita. clearly rscog-
nised this. for while making its supreme
deity declare:
Brahma. am! the one eternal God.
The soui Of souls and manifested in
divided forma. l am the Lord OF Lives.
Al come who cleave with neyer-wavering
VII OF Ermest faith owning none other
sods: all come TO me tho utternost Holi-
st." Bu. says Christina: There be those.
100, whose knowledge turned aside by this
oesire or that. cause them to serve some
aver gods with various rites. constrained
~ that which mouideth them. Unto all
zach worship. what shrines they will,
y "
faith! l am content"
We have next TO note development that
uafkedly changed the character OF rciig-
ious service while. to great extent. leav-
ING the old basis of personal obligation to
s1td untouched. ! refer to the introduc-
ssan OF the ethical ideas. With growing
Knowledge men perceived that burnt offer
lnss were scarcely necdfui TO one who
made the offering itself. With growing
. 4 ftt Ha al ~,f~
aian became more and more important.
10 the early thinkers twho, be Il re-
marked. were not pFsests) Il became more
sBd more evident that the greatest harpt-
Peas came from harmonious cooperation
III life. and this conception once rrasred
Il vas short step tn demand its general
recognition IN the name of the gods the
iauititudo worshiped. so We lind the
Hebrew prophets demand purity. not
sits. the sacrifice of self, not The sacrifice
~ others. We find the Zoroasirsan formn-
ssting the Law of Drnugi in the words
ains purely. speak purely, act purely 3"
~ end the Hindoo demanding the same
although with the peculiar analytical
feajency OF the Aryan mind he soon
Ne site Ideal. In the beautiful teaching az
Jesus OF Nazareth they were inseparahtv
na sed. and IN the masculine, Eerg zeal Of
aahommed they werestlil more docmaiic-
slsy Blended. Though the form of all
1hese religions. comprising. as they do. the
@h,'le nj humani ~ above the savage state,
&8eTing. ~ they may do, in names aud
t7snss and imagery. there Is the common
3ssel OF thinking. willing spirit Ia whom
:Ssf stood IN obligation. la the perfected
sasia 81 all these beliefs the obligation has
a*came ethical. We have here to note an
exception. The fisadoo began 10 see that
sihies VAS necessity. even though there
- 80 God. and 50 we ind the Ramayana
Esc airing that virtue il service man
ssts 10 himself. and though there were no
SsaFen or any God 90 rule the world. il
ss'e net less the binding iaw Of life. " Int
fsYssed with a belief o! this kind and tnss-
.@s no surety that prayer brought relief TO
rs Eaisefses ef the world, s,otama taught
sed man must work out his own sa.ya-
asa and Practically ignored fhe sense Of
1sss3Hal obligation ~ tod. unless. indeed,
aignisy by that name tho nexas of ire
fS<saie laws. sort Of fate that held man
~ ssrrrseni misery. until by purity and
testament trom the objects fate eon-
ssHsisa he became independent. Of lts
f"ef. hut the fate OF that system IL .
sIssaa Notwithstanding the express
sfANAins II kuddAs. has followers. un-
s<a 10 mi themselves Of the sense II
s'sHe obligation thar seems almost in
sac IA fnan, raised hlIa 70 divinity. even
a. later period the CHRISTIANS did
s~4', ~ thar Ne arrive al tnai unity Of
e2ssi - Iac hSsts Of al past and pres-
fsiig.ons. whether the Deity lie called
ss@fsA or OrmGxd, ChFishna, Bud
sss or ChT,st. whether il is
aed into three or dozen cr
'si IN 80 lndivssio.e one. 49, mere aues-
va ~ detail compared VIA the funda-
sSR'si thought that there y. outside ~
eotsd, spirit. IN The sense HAT man
Asf&rit, Aad sast - that spgrst Ne Owe
sae'sSF'es. This shen. frora a historical
alE>asn'. would appear - * the nrse
S+Sa'ssis afon which az races ~ civaliEed
80. a. etAMse rellsaan. al The tAasf or