The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1895-07-13


remarkable declaration of Bishop
Spalding. He says, and his state
ment is in essential harmony with the
doctrine of evolution, and with the
theory that man is not fallen and
lost being: "This belief in educa-
ton is belief in the dignity and
worth of human life. We must be-
lieve that man can be made godlike,
SO whatever helps to make him SO is
good in the end. Education is the
greatest word in religion, the greatest
word in science, the greatest word in
the State, the greatest word in the
family. The more we appreciate the
power of that word, the more do we
rise in dignity of beng. Catholics
take the view that man is essentially
divine being. Taking this view, it
is our duty to make man more and
more like God" If, now, man by his
very nature is divine being, and ed
ucation is the greatest word in relig-
ion, it must be greater and more
important than the word conversion
or salvation. Indeed, conversion or
salvation, in the usual orthodox sense,
according to these teachings of Alb
bolt and Spalding, is no longer
needed or possible.
Evolution teaches that man is to
grow; he is to be disciplined, devel-
oped, trained, influenced, educated,
into all the heights of knowledge,
wisdom and virtue, into the complete
supremacy of the intellectual over
the animal and of the spiritual over
the intellectual. There is no longer
any need or possible use for Christ in
the old sacrifcial sense; but there is
far greater use for him than ever in
the educational sense, and in the in
fuential sense. He is a type of the
COOLEST man-of the God-possessed
man, of the supreme and perfect do
minion of the spiritual over the ami
NAL and over the intellectual. He is
type of what is possible to all men.
He is type of the final destiny OF
all men-of Gods final and complete
triumph; of mans final and complete
triumph. He is type of the final,
complete, and universal triumph of
the higher over the lower, of the spir-
itual over the animal. And all this
comes not by miracles, not by catas-
trophe, not by any supernatural
change or conversion, or by any spe
cal Intervention of divine grace or
power; but it comes by Gods univer-
sal method, by evolution, by gradual
processes of change, growth, habit,
training, influence, education.
That is the new religion, the new
Christianity, the new orthodoxy, the
new and enlarged Uniyersalism.
And this is very definitely what DR..
| Abbott's address teaches, if it teaches
anything-the broadcast and most com
prehensive and most incontestable
Universalism; for he further definitely
says, "What is redemption? Not the
restoration of what was lost in the
fall, not bringing us into innocence,
but carrying us forward through all
the storms of experience, of tempta-
ton and struggle, to the final and
perfect equipment, the final and per-
feet victory. Redemption means this:
the victory of the spiritual over the
animal: first in every individual and
finally the whole of human society.
The end of evolution is always the
victory of the higher over the lower;
and it does not make any difference
how small and insignificant the high
er is, it will conquer the lower in the
end. Drop the tiniest seed into the
muck heap and the seed will turn
the muck heap into lily. Always
the vital thing conquering the invita-;
the animal conquering the vegetable;
the spiritual conquering the animal"
Such declarations as these do indeed
recast and revolutionize current the
ology. They logically sound the
death knell of dogmatic orthodoxy.
They virtually proclaim Universal
ism as the teaching of the Bible, as
the unquestioned and demonstrable
averment of science and history, as
imbedded in the very nature of man
and God, and in the very constitution
of the universe.
So we see our great hope of bet
ter and more rational order of reli-
gious thought being fulfilled-if not
inside our church then outside. This
may all be as God wills, and we re-
joice. Truth is greater than any
name or any sect.
But this is indeed great day in
which the Universalist Church is
called to live and act. There is yet