The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1895-06-10
DIR. Johns Scrmon.

Then came the baccalaureate sermon by
DR.. J. p. ID. John, president Of the univer-
sty. who chose his theme, THE Vision
of the Invisible, Seeing Without Eyes"
taking his text from Hebrews xi, y, He
endureth as seeing Him who is invisible"
DR.. John said
You can open your eyes on a summer
evening when the sky is both smiling and
weeping at once and see a rainbow on the
black clouds of the east. II is vision OF
see. You can close your eyes by day or
by night and see a vision more beautiful
than the rainbow in the eastern sky. 1t
is the truth On which the rainbow hangs,
eternal as the very artist who passed his
brush across the clouds. A raindrop starts
from the heights toward the earth. IL be-
gins on a path of truth--God's truth. valid
before the world was and valid after the
tinues through it's fall with Gods thought
in il. ray of light, another thought OF
God. strikes athwart the drop In mdair:
il enters invisible; il is torn into q million
of threads of matchless hues, and before
the drop has reached the earth il has
served 10 mirror the eternal truth or God
upon the angry sky. IL is more beautiful 10
the soul than rainbow can be, than 10
the eve that il actually is
More beautiful than the rose is the
truth that makes roses possible. More
beautiful than the song is the truth which
mounts the crest and descends the sinus
OF every wave as IL bears the song TO your
delighted ears. Open your eyes, unstop
your ears. put forth your hands, and 10;
freighted with delights. Close your eyes,
seal your ears, Withdraw Your touch. and
full of lovelier charms and freighted with
richer delights The sight OF truth with
the rainbow The sight Of truth with the
eve of imagination is more beautiful than
the lily. the sight OF truth with the eye
OF memory Is more beautiful than song.
But there are visions vet more beautiful.
You can open the eyes OF your intellect
and see the truth OF God, sight unmatched
nv
or flowers or trees or mountain peaks or
sea or sky; a vision worth al the cost o.
its tears its sacrifices. its deaths; Tor the
sight OF truth Is a glimpse of destiny But
and see vision (shall I say it?l more beau
tiful than truth itself-a picture more beau
fu ea than ,a1sd %em9ry mpon e' or marnaon ever
gIimpsed. II is a vision OF the Invisible.
1t Is sight of the Thinker IT Is gmipse
of God. More beautiful than the picture
is the thought OF the artist; more beauti-
full than his thought is the invisible essence
How do we see The picture. Or the lily
or the rainbow? With the eye OF sense.
how do We sec the truth OF which tae
rainbow the Ills and the picture are the
mirror? With the eye OF reason; how 90
We see the invisible essence which Is De-
hind ell rainbows ana hles ioh ana i,Seu ali
rest? That is a vision seen without eyes
bv the direct and immediate gaze OF faith
Reason sees beyond sense Faith sees
beyond both sense and reason. If the
s,9ht of reason * real as that OF sense.
so is the vision of faith as real as that
of reason and the invisible itself as real
as the visible. The vision Of sense is med
late through a physical organ ana by
process o. steps. The vision OF reason re- s,nn IS
also mediate. through a process OF steps.
but without the organ or sense
The vision OF faith IS a,
re1t mneg1see na pT1see: Of steps il sweeps down
upon the truth from above Il does not
need like reason. 10 climb TO IL from be-
line IL does not need. like e4son, 10 tack
right and left TO catch the 1aEoring gaze.
There is no veil between Iaitn anu tne
the sun: reason looks undaunted at the
uncreated splendors Of truth; faith looks
undaunted at the source OF truth-the truth
/ heh'nd the truth Ii touches its face
against the essences that think ana gazes
unhurt into the very face OF God. sense
fhe same but stops not there: AZ grasps
the invisible truth OF reason. Faith does al
this. and more: IL grasps nc rntn 81
truth. Sense is limited 10 the world %
/ matter; reason is limited 10 the world
OF thought: faith i universal and unlim-
| tied In its scope. Like reason.it begins with
sense bnt II does not end there. IL con-
tinues through reason. but II stops not with
! ifs boundaries. For long after the eye
| long after the eye OF reason closes 20 the
! oncoming glory OF the invisible. faith Is
gazing without eyes upon the matchiess
sight. ,-,.r,,,,,--- ,,x-,,s
Faith sees. but IL sees without eyeA
Yea. that IL faith; seeing without eyes.
] hearing without ears. and touching with
out fingers. II is the direct and unveiled
gaze OF the soul truth and the es-
sence behind the truth. Faith T. seeing
the invisible hearing the inaudiblc and
/ touching the intangible IL l. the immediate
contact of the soul with God. with all es-
sences. and with all truth Faith Is divine
| Of the soul moved and moving by the in