Morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven [Conn.]) 1848-1894, 1893-03-06
WORE ABOUT rHEosoPHY

MORE ABOUT THEOsOPHY
aev. MIR. BadRer Discourses ON
SsThe0sOPhY and Liberal Christian.
ity,, at the Church of the Messiah
Annie Besant,s Logic Will Not
Hold.
Rev. Henry @. Badger of Cambridge, |
lass, who is at present supplying the pull
lit Of the Church Of the Messiah, preashed
very interesting discourse yesterday to
arge congregation on "Theosophy and
liberal Christianity" He spoke from the
words 'tThat which is seen is temporal; /
hat which is unseen is eternal" II Cor.
": 10 and Spiritual things are spiritual
y discerned," Cor. II: IA and "The light
hineth out of the east and shineth into
he west" Matthew xiv: ~. He said: |
In the liberal Christian church, which is
,ut just coming to consciousness in Amer
ca, we have confronting US four great
problems: ~ The economic or political
problem of unifying capital and labor in
Christ. (S) The educational problem or
carrying Christ into our school as well
as in our homes. ~ The worship
problem or clothing in fit ritual the vigor-
GUS bones Of Puzitanism and ~ the philo-
sophie problem of harmonizing the per
is, of showing that faith Is the
highest form or activity of human
reason. The latter I take to be the prob
lem, hope and dream of Theosophy. I am
not authorized to speak, and I do not pre-
sumo to speak for Unive-salists or for Uni
tarians. give here only private, per-
-sonal opinion and testimony to 60 for what
it ia worth.
. But the testimony would be that liberal
Christians, so far az understand the sub
ject at all, accept all the positive principles
or teachings of theosophy; and complain of
them, if at all, not because they go too far,
but because they do not go far enough.
Its theology. what there is of it. Its philso-
ply, it's physical science, much Of Its
mysticism, If not all of 1t, think intelli
gent liberal Christians accept and they add
to it u christology to which theosophy
seems not yet attained. The teachings of
theosophy not in minute details, but in
their larger objects, We should accept as
true, as important, as priceless, indeed as
fundamental to all religion.
The synagogue, the cathedral, the mod
ern and middle age theology sill testify to
the mighty power of that love of mystery
which originally built every temple that
priests have degraded and which turns to-
day to new fsiths-to spiritualiem, to the
osophy with hunger and longing that
nothing can destroy. Theosophy speaks
to-day of a faith deep set IN human hearts
which will survive and bloom when ell the
do8mas of our modern Orthodoxy" have
crumbled into dust.
Madame Besant was asked why, If she
and her followers had made the discovery
of some greas new knowledge, they did net
publish it abroad to the world What was
her reply? Listen to it:
"You people of the oocident are not
worthy to know it. You are bsnt on moth
ing but the digging for golden the utiliz-
ing of the forces of nature to get more
pswer to safety your own gross pleasures.
Look at your lives. Look at your cities,
America. Who would entrust holy mys-
tsries or sacred truth to people such as
you"
What sort Of an answer is that? Do you
see how thoroughly sophistical it iss We
accept the rebuke but reject the logic. No
sound knowledge needs to be concealed
Truth loves the light. Good news spreads
like sunshine. True Christianity hastens
| to proclaim its joy. It tells all 1t
| knows. 1t keeps its eye on the errors of
men and on it's own sins. 1t does not
keep its eye on another's sins or it's own
\ so1fows. So it claims not for itself, is not
| pulled up. 1t claims no right. 1t has no
dignity. 1t claims only the right to serve
mankind and to redeem a grovelling or de-
graded world. Yet Christianity has Its
| mysteries. Life is full of mystery. But
| dogmatism is the same evil, whethe,
/ handling a orucifx or q crucible. The
| evangelical faith, need not say, is thai
which cannot be found in the gospels.
That may be why it is called evangelical.
It is more nearly Pauline or Episcopal II
is really the faith of Paul or the faith OF
/ Christ"
Christ struggled all his brief day sgainst
gross men who wished to press conviction
on the senses. But Wa are in the midst OF
a mighty struggle between great theories
things, and only real things-mind, love
faith being only their products-perishable
many Of which man can destroy-and all Of
/ which God could cause to vanish away II
en- instant, the whole universe disappear
ing like flash.
But Faith to-day can give Science long
ODDS. She need not ask Huxley or any
gross scientist to come into the oloister to
meet religion on her own ground, to grant
that spiritual things are spiritually dis
cerned. No. That would be perfectly
fair, but Faith gives up ali that vantage
ground. She goes down to the gross
scientists own level. Science seems tc
give no limit to day that this universe
shows any force but one. Force is one
thing. Science at least Is rapidly becom-
ing both universalist and unitarian. But
| of that one force what is naturel What ia
it's soureea Where is its hiding pIacea
This ia what theosophists long to know.
When cheap science wishes to astonish
men today, or to impress the fancy, 1t be-
gins to talk electricity. tits mysterious
the mother of mysteries But what is
electricity2 Is that material thing2 Has
1t weight? Is it, as we need to say, 6
"fuid," grossmen-motormen-today cal
it "the juice" Is 1t a thing mans senses
soon detect2 Nsy, not co. It hides be-
given to man, and yet it seems to be the
means, the active agent, the angst by which
God builds up and moves this whole ma
! terial frame. But what is it?
Ask the man Of science to day. He
answers: "Electricity is the visitation of
interstellar ether" Heat, light, gravi-
/ tstion, seem to be direct products of it..
But the quivering of the interstellar ether,
! that is what electricity Ia. Science warn
you may be quite as much Sophist as
any Theosophist. But is there any such
l interstellar ether? So that anything but a
| scientific fiction made it fill up this power
full gap in human knowledges Come Thee
| sophy and welcome If you turn on thought
anew to the mighty fact that spiritual
things are spiritually discerned. But do
not attempt, o theosophists, to fool us
with talk Of any magic, any transmutation.
The metals are things for science to handle,
not for you. And do not try to
lure us away to any roseats orient, whose
misery is too remote for us to see. ''West-
ward the course of empire takes its way"
''The light shineth out of the east aud
shineth into the west" We live in the
occident. God has set us here. He has
| given us our task. he has given us our
leader He has enlisted US for the war.
And We bless God that bis divine wisdom
has made Christ Jesus our Lord to be, in
deed, for our nation and for all our hearts
sorest needs as the "shadow of great
reck in weary land"
Funeral of Miss DeSilva.
The funeral of Miss Sarah De Silva took