The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1895-04-06


and no more, and herein it differs
from many of its sister churches.
The teaching of our church is
and since the days of Hosea Ballou
has been, the undivided unity of
God. In the words of st. Paul, that
Though there be that are called gods,
whether in heaven or in earth, to us
there is but one God, the Father"
To say that God is Father, is but
another way of saying that God is
love. For if God is Father, then He
is the highest type of father of which
the human mind can conceive. We
believe that he is Father; we believe
that he is love. To this thought we
attach far greater Importance than to
his trinity or unity. For if he is not
father, and if he is not love, of little
value to us is all other knowledge or
faith concerning him. We hold this
faith, that Gods nature is love, as
the inspiration of true religion, as
the only impulse to true piety, as
the greatest source of joy among
men, and hence this truth we regard
as the most important of all that
Jesus taught or that the human mind
has embraced. For just here, on the
believed nature of God, must hinge
many other ideas. This must indeed
be the measure of mans testimony
and the solution of life's great prob
lens. Convince me that the nature
of God is unstable, that he is pas
sionate and hateful, and will attri-
butte the disasters of this world, the
discord, the mystery, to him as the
malevolent cause. Prove to me that
Gods nature is revengeful and / can
easily believe in hell, even in fire.
Persuade me that it is infinitely re-
vengeful, and / will believe that the
hell is of endless duration for all who
incur its doom, but otherwise l will
not, for there will be no grounds on
which the claim may legitimately
rest. But when it is said that God
is not only not revengeful, but that
he is a Father, and when this truth
comes not as a perhaps, but with an
emphasis that destroys doubt, re-
moves fear and makes it to be of it.
self the voice of God, | take that to
be the measure of all DEGREES of the
Eternal. For I know that if over the
habitation of men there abides the
Shecinah of Infinite love, then there
is ever mercy seat; there is ever an
open door; there is ever welcome;
there is ever forgiveness in this
world and in all worlds, and there is
no Punishment to regions of despair,
from which the individual may not
depart in any hour when be shall
choose. Eternal love and endless
punishment are two ideas that con-
flict. More than this, they are con-
Trajectory; one is negation of the
other; full, explicit denial. True,
person may say, | believe in an
endless torment for all wrong doors
who have not come to God during
their life in the earth, but | believe
also that God is the Father and that
he is love. Does he so believe? Let
me introduce to him an earthly faith
er. Let me show him that fathers
children bruised and SCARED by i'll
treatment from the same fathers
hand. Let me show him those child
rem abandoned, starving, shivering
with cold, wasted by disease, de-
formed through cruel treatment, bod
les broken and spirits crushed, the
meaningless gaze of idiocy looking
out from sunken eyes-let me show
this and say to him, "the father al
lowed this to come upon his children
and will allow it to remain without
end, because they disobeyed him
and were not repentant upon day
stipulated, but be assured that he is
infinitely good and loving; no spirit
of hate or revenge is in his DISPOSE
tion," would anyone believe me?
No.
People would say "the statement
is absurd; that man who would so
abandon his children had not the
spirit of saint, but of demon, or
mailman. And if such man could
be found our laws would take him in
hand and speedily consign him either
to the penitentiary or to the asylum
for the insane. How can we believe
that to be good in God, which is in
excusably shocking in the character
of the individual9 Rather let us say
with Whittier, 'But nothing can be
good in Him which evil is in me-"
hope we are consistent. / certain
ly think we are, when we affirm our
faith in the fatherhood of God and