The Portland daily press., 1894-12-10
AT wILLlsToN.
Rev. Dwight M. Pratt breaches on the
s'Testimony of Infidelity to Christianity"

Rev. Dwight nj. Pratt breaches on the
Testimony of Infidelity to Christianity
At Williston church Rev. Dwight M. Pratt
took for his subject the Testimony OF In
fidelity to Christianity" Extracts from the
sermon follow:
Psalm rs, 10: 'sSurely the wrath of man
shall raise thee. and the remainder of wrath
shall thou restrain The attention of the
public has been called the past week to the
teachings and creed of infdelity. 1t is not
my purpose this morning to reply to Robert
Ingersoll, for with thoughtful men his utter
ances contain their own Iefutation. A
represent .tiva business man said to me
few days ago. Fifteen years ago I pur-
chased and read Ingersoll's lectures. think
ing that possibly he might have truth on
his side, but there was nothing in them"
lit would reflect Oh the intelligence of this
audience to infer that any supposed the in
fdel's oratory was re-enforced by biblical
scholarship. Never have / seen an utterance
of his that betrayed any real knowledge .of
the Bible or any conception of the nature
of Spiritual religion.
The secret of knowledge in any realm.
natural or sp ritual, is trust. and the first
great conflict in any intellect or soul is in
daring to go ahead when experience and
sense are opposed to such seemingly IRA
tional venture. The eminent scholar, Prof.
Fisher of Yale university, terms ''infidelity
a species Of cowardice." because ii is afraid
of the dark and will venture only when it
can see.
No man without faith and energy of will
will ever pass out of the limited range of
the senses and must forever be proportion
ately ignorant and skeptical. The venture
of faith either in science or religion is the
sublimest act both of intelligence and
reason. 1t is the substance of things hoped
for the evidence Of things not seen.
But what are some of the testimonies
which inidelity gives to Christianity. First.
in using the Christian Bible as a source
of revenue. No other book SO Commands
the thought of the world as to make public
antagonism there to a source either OF
wealthsoT fame.
Why has the Bible such pre-eminence9
Not because it outrivals all other books il.
biography. history. poetry, philosophy and
literary skill, although it has no peer in
these respects; but because it deals with
the rrofoundest problems that ever hal
lenge human thought. God-His nature and
His works: man, his character and destiny.
1t reveals truth never suggested in other
literature, and to conceive of which would
be utterly impossible without a revelation.
Mans attitude to bimself is Immediately
and completely changed the moment he is
made conscious of his own Immortality. and
Of his personal responsibility to God. What
interest would men take in the Bible except
for these tremendous truths? 10 assail
fn pdor oil 1ifias mi
gives an infide1 prominence. because of the
infinite Importance of the issues involved.
voltaire. Bradlaugh, Thomas Paine. and
Ingcrsoll would never had been distinguish
able from common humanity had i: not been
that the Bible was great enough to lift them
into prominence. They are now known
principally. and will be known in history
only, for their infidelity i. e. for their rela-
lion to the Bible.
Again inidelity bears testimony TO
Christianity by it's moral failures. It's work
is destruction not construction. A thought
less child can pick rose to pieces, but it
takes God to fashion and paint one.
Negations have never created men and
women with moral fibre sufficient to conquer
the temptations and meet 1.-The hard duties
of life. GrandIy has it been said that
'agnosticism never discovered a continent,
never won a battle, never launched May
flower. never founded college, never built
a chur III, never saved SOUL"
Take out of this fair city or out of any
city ON this continent its churches and its
Christian people and what would there be
left to make life attraction The force that
redeem and elevate man sIring from the
gospel. Education, upon which so many
rely. and of which they boats, is itself the
child of Ch1istianity. Men have no desire
for education except as they are morally
elevated, and consequently outside of
Christian lands popular education is not
only unknown but impossible.
The man who.-stood last Tuesday in City
hall and ridculed the Bible has, sstood il
legislative halls of our country to plead
that publishers of immoral literature have
a perfect right to spread broad cast among
the youth of our land their vile publ
cations; he has publicly advocated the
cause of free love he has also recently ad-
vocated suicide as the best relief for the
sorrows and sufferings Of those who find
life an intolerable burden.
This is the doctrine of unbelief This is
the religion of reason, solving life's prob
lens and soothing life's woes.
What an inexpressible relief to turn from
this cold and heartless and blasphemous
paganism to Him who said. Come unto me
all ye that labor and are heavy laden and l
will give you rest. Truly Christ hath trans
lated us from the kingdom of darkness in
the kingdom's of Gods dear Son. The walls
of mans natural limitations no longer shut
us in. Nature is no longer chill and ray
less prison. God has made Himself known.
the Creator is at the same time Father.
His omnipotence Is only another name for
love. He yearns over His children with
unspeakable affection. He redeems; He
saves. He creates within them clean hearts,
He renews within them right spirits. He
washes away their corruption. He makes
the unclean as white as wool; as spotless