The morning times., 1895-10-21

a congregation which filled every avail.
able inch of space at st. Patrick's Church
| assem- bled there yesterday morning to
hear the first sermon preached by the Rev.
| ID. j. Stafford, ID. D., after his European
trip, he having returned here about the
first of October. A notable presence in
| the congregation was the Rev. DR.. Gilbert
and several other ministers Of the Protestant
faith.
ThemasssIng was Gounod's, before which
a professional hymn was sung and after it
another hymn.
DR.. Stafford's discourse was on the sub
| Ject, why man has always had a religion
and why he has always given to 1t outward
| expression. From the pillars of Hercules
to the pagodas of China, East, West, North
and South, to their uttermost bounds the
earth is numbered with the works of re-
| ligion. Everywhere man is filled with
| this knowledge, emotion fear, beauty, or
this something which is called religion;
and its outward expression is found in the
| pyramids OF Egypt, the fanes of India, the
Doric and Ionic structures of Greece the
| temples or Rome and the grand medieval
! eathedrais, all of which further proclaim
the univcrsaiity, the permanency, the in
destructibiiiiy OF religion.
LII hi--hsO-> W
Since religion has these characteristics,
| II is necessary To reckon with il and ex-
| plain It, Shall we say with Lucretius
that fear made the gods, or with some Of
| the would-be scientists that religion is
| remnant OF superstition or shall we say
| with others that IL is a thing that has
! played its part in the social and intellec-
tual evolution OF the race, but is now to
De cast aside, since science has improved
upon IT? None of these explanations is
| sufficient, and so we must look 10 an
| other.
The reason why man has always had
| a religion is, first, because mans mind by
an 1nsuperabie necessity recognizes God
as the creator. Concede the ten billion
times ten billion years for the evolution
OF the earth, according to the geologisis
and paleontologists yet we must come to
the end OF ii, and, having arrived there,
the question still comes to us, whence
Is the wOrld?"
ton, and ii is 10 be found on the first
page OF Genesis. Conceding, gain, that
thlnSs are evolved from primeval matter;
tlat after endless ages and infinite devel-
opmentS they have arrived at their ures-
eht state, the greater must have bee the
omnipoteuce. us Mivart says. which thus
created the world in its infinite progress
sion.
Again we find that mysterious thing in
the world which is called life. Whence is
IL? After the experiments OF Pasteur' . nd
the now lamcnted Tyndal. il is an ac-
cepted fact that every living thing pre-
supposes antecedcnt life.
GO BACK TO THE BEGINNING.
Hence we must go back from one living
thing to another unit il we reach the begin
ninS' and it follows that the mind must
recognize an author, a creator Of all things.
Nor can we stop here. for this idea of God
Is clothed by the mind with attributes
and further intelligent recognition of
Him is necessary. Man lifts his voice in
prayer, and this is the beginning of religion
Secondly: The human race has always
oeen conscious of guiit i'll some mysterious
way which is, as Cardinal Newman says,
the result of original sin. Eeing conscious
of guilt. lie has sought TO pIacate the deity
through sacrifice. Next we find the priest
at the altar with, the sacrificial knife
thatthe sovereignty of God may b. acknow-
iedged over life and death: and all religions
have offered sacrifice. But in time God
who had spoken ny his profits, revealed
through Ills Son the fullnrss OF religion
and That its motive should be love, not
knowledge or fear.
The next development OF the idea Of re-
lieion came in the erection of the medlaeyal
cathcdrlls, 1.-The white vision of Milan"
OF Cologne. the golden glorics OF Venice
Canterbury, ana Westminster. 1t was the
spirit OF love that erected those, for the
erection of q cathedral was the work OF a
whole people. These walls, whose spires
pointed toward heaven, artists climbed
and mounted the scaffolds to adorn the
walls with breathing figures.
Donate!li animated by love. wept while
he carved the crucifix and Michael Angelo
rembled with emotion he seized the chisel
TO bring ont the power and ma iesty. and
beauty of Gods love.
INFLUENCE OF ST. PETERS.
Neither poetry nor music, nor any ything can
affect us as do these monuments. The
soul enarges aud expands as il stands
beneath the dome of St Peters, so mag
nificent, so stern, so beautiful. so inI-
pressivc: resting on its pillars as If in the
air: and as we look around and behold
the magnificence of the interior and feel
that below Is the tomb Of the apostle we are
lifted up TO the heights and confess the
influence and resolve to live like heroes. TO
endure like martyrs and to die like saints.
The foregoing presents only a brief outline
of very beautiful and suggestive sermon
which was heard with intense interest by
the great tassenlblagc. A greatmany of the
pew holders surrendered them 10 visitors and
the aisles were necessarily crowded TO their
DR.. Stafford spoke with unusual
fervor of manner and felicity of phrase.
During his five months abroad he visited
Rome, where he had an audience with the
Pope and assisted at the solemn vespers in
st. Peters on the feast OF st. Peter and st.
Paul. He made the tour Of the principal
places of Italy, Switzerland. Holland, Bel
gium and France, taking in also London and
parts of England and Dublin and parts of
Ireland.