The enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 188?-1899, 1895-05-01

these on others. The present Is DOrn Ol
the past and all the laws OF heredlty oD-
tain. The future is wrapped up in the
present, and just in proportion as we are
correct students of the present, are we
true prophets Of the future. 10 know,
then whether the Son of Man will ma
faith tomorrow, we must ask, what are
the elements today existing, out OF which,
faith, if it is to exist tomorrow, will come
For this reason study Of tomorrow is a
study of today, and the forces which are
to survive until tomorrow, together with
Others, themselves to die, but to survive,
modified by other strains of ancestry anu
association, in their immediate pOsterlty.
That we may predict the morrow, what,
let us ask, are the characteristics OF to-
day, as related to the survival Of faith!
First: Intellectual honesty One
marked characteristic of this age, and
one favorable to a survival Of faith, is It's
intellectual honesty. The theological
treatises of the past have largely been
bound to certain traditions which did not
indeed make them dishonest, but circum-
scribed the sphere of their impartial in
auiry. One feels in reading not few of
them that with all their power and pene-
tration, they are in large measure eX-
amples of special pleading. Not all Of
past treatises are Of this character, nor
are treatises of this character by any
means confined to the past. But the
books which have the real influence at
the present day are for the most part
books that possess, whatever their other
failures and sins, a spirit of candOr
Many books are still written in which
nothing is so evident as that the writer
considers some theory of his own indis-
pensable to Gods glory, and whose theory
of inspiration or the atOnement or crea-
tiOn, merits well Jobs indignant rebuke,
"Will ye speak wickedly for God, and
talk deceitfully for him?. Will ye ac-
cept his personP Will ye contend for
God? Is it good that he should search
you out? or as one man mOcketh another,
do ye so mock him? He will surely re-
prove you if ye do secretly accept per-
sons" Job 13:7-10) Something of Jobs
profound contempt for sOphistry, some
thing of his conviction, that even in his
defense, God cannot accept false logic
and beggings of the question, has come
into our thinking in an unusual degree,
and the books that are read and believed
are largely books of this character
Honesty is closely related to faith. Dis.
honesty is akin to superstition. One seeks
the light and the other the darkness
The effort Of modern Biblical scholarship,
many and great as are its limitations,
wholly inadequate and one-sided If il
were to stand alone, is after all, to bring
to light much that the past has passed
over in silence, and has heard only from
enemies and then with protest none tOC
tolerant and Christian.
In obedience to this spirit the churcl
has been led into the wilderness ant
tempted of the devil. Satan has beer
busy tempting the church as he tempted
her Master, saying 1T is written thus
and sO' and the facts are these; nov
therefore, "fall down and worship me.
And the church has not done so. 1t ha
changed its opinions on score of point
that it once counted vital, and still hold
its faith in God. Never, since Chris
was tempted in the wilderness, or JOl
was stripped Of his possessions, has ther
been sublimer spectacle than the temp
tations of thechurch to renOunce her faitl
in view of the discoveries of mOderI
times.
(a) In science as related to religion
This has been an age of unprecedented
activity in scientific investigation
Amazing discoveries have been made
Each one has been heralded as a deatl
blow to faith, and at many, Satan ha
called on the church to renOunce God ant
die. Satan has said, strip the churcl
of its belief that the earth was created il
six literal days, and it will renOunce tn,
Bible" The church has received the in
formation the world was ages in build
ing. At first it seemed incredible: thel
the church said "HencefOrth | must reat
the Bible with larger vision" Faitl
remained, mistaken and stronger, ant
in all this did not the tempted one ssh
with her lips" Then Satan said "Stril
the church of the belief that the food wa
universal, teach her that man was no
created out Of the dust by a single crea
tive act, but has been evolved from lowe
forms of life, "and it will curse God t
his face" 1t would be too much to sa
that the church as whole admits thes
} claims, yet there can be no doubt tina
the trend of enlightened opinion is il
) that direction. But the sublime thin
! about it is, that faith has not wavered
4 but has grown stronger, in those VIII
0 have thus been permitted, as it seems
them, to look down long vista thrOug
: Gods plan, and think his thoughts, MOI
h Of his thoughts, after him. In all thi'
t the church has not renounced its fait
n nor forgotten its mission, nor made {
: the stones which it has been given