The Irish standard., 1895-06-15
STEIN llEaG'IlOlIll
.'iThes Test Inlo,ny of lod Is Pledged fo1
s1:s Tuelt5 utiifuinsss Ri

81 I.ast Sunday evening Il 81. Charles
Church, Rev. M. Cleary delivered ~
interesting discourse On rs & fysteries Il in
Relis Hon, of which the following 10 2sa
|briet outline: How ircomp nsible
are God 3 Judgments and how uIlsearch-]
able his ways, Z writes ST. Paul in his
epiAtle to the Romans. For who hath
known the mind OF the Lord g. Yet lim-
tied, undeveloped, finite intellig ence, q
victim OF stupid folly often na,lrnaurs be-
cai1se it fails to comp bend the infinite
When we were children we thought as
children, and the mind Of inexperienced
youth is not expected to{grasp the mean
ling Or great problems that are plain
enough IN mature years. The unedu- q
Gated mind is not expected to compre-s
bend mysterious truths that are simple
as the alphabet to cultured Intelligence
!! "a mystery is a truth, not a fiction, that
cannot be easily understood, or perhaps
not understood at all, by the intelligence
of man. sa%s, III a. a. :8s : Z.
This circumstance is not because Of the
puzzling character Of the mysterious
truth, but because of the, limitations. Of
human understanding. Nature, with
which we are so familiar from. child
hood, is replete with mysteries that are
a constant puzzle to the inquiring mind;
The human mind has made marvellous.
progress and the development Of knowl-'
edge has solved numerous difficulties
that no longer distract the mind of man.
Yet, with all our development and prog
ress, with all the Investigations of sci
ence that reflect so much credit upon the.
| industry Of man, how much there is in
the ordinary laws of nature under our
observation every day that the most res
| fined and cultured intelligence utterly
fails to understand. The greatest prob.
lem OF all, the problem OF deepest inter-
est to intelligent beings, the problem of
! their own existence, who can understand
or explain it? Life SO mysteriously be-
gun, so mysteriously ended, such a puz-
gle to us all, is not comprehended by
man, the best and noblest part of Gods
creation. Who can explain how the seed
that is cast into the soil to. perish and de-
cay sends forth from mother earth rich
fruit for the benefit Of man? Who can
explain the growth of single blade Of
grass? But because we cannot explain
or fully understand these marvellous
truths are we, therefore, to reject them
and deny their existence?
The mind of the materialist that is puz-
zled over the mysterious problems of ma
ture and that is ever ready to surrender
its independence to- the most chimerical
claims of scientific inquirers, haughtily re-
jects the mysterious truths of religion be-
cause, he pretends, they are repugnant to
refined intelligence, simply because they
are not clearly Ineligible to his pre-
JUDGED mind. The nationalist repudiates
revealed religion because there is so much
In it's teaching that he cannot understand.
With all his lofty claims for: the rights of
human reason he appears to lose sight Of
the fact that belief is not the result Of
understanding, but is conviction fastened
upon the human mind by irresistible tes-i
tinnony in favor of any fact or truth pre-
scented to the intelligent man. We be-
lieve, not because we understand, but be-
cause we cannot possibly resist the testi-
mony in favor of the truth to which we
give the loyal allegiance of our reasoning
power. Truths that we can fully under
stand, that we clearly know, we do not
believe in; we accept them, not upon tes-:
timony, but because we know them to be
true, either from actual observation or
from the logical deductions of reason. /.
Many of the mysteries Of nature--not
all-have become clear to the mind, as
the result Of inquiry, investigation, study,
science, as we call it. Such truths. how
ever, still are marvels to- the uneducated
and uncnltivated mind. But t3ca,ise they
ars unintelligible mysteries 70 them il nc
reason, why they are not clear to the cor
rectly informed. No doubt, they seem re-
pugrant to the uncultivate reason OF tie
Inexperienced and ignorant. The repng-
nance does not exist in the truths them
SIC We. but it is found in the dark racess2s
of the uncultivated soul. @
Thus also it is with the mysterious
truths of revealed religion. Knowledge
of truths Of the supernatural order has
come to the human mind, not as the re
suit Of study, investigation or accident,
but by the spoken word OF God. In:
divers ways in times past he spoke BY
the prophets, but in these later days by
I Fills Son. Mans knowledge, therefore;
Of divine truth depends simply upon the
truthfulness of God. All mans faith
comes by testimony. Upon the nature of
the testimony depends the character Of
T the mans convictions. II the testimony
be reliable unassailable, beyond all shad-
ow Of suspicion, the faith that will fol-
low will be equally strong. Human tes-
timony begets human faith; divine tes-
timony begets divine faith.
We believe the mysteries of religion be.
cause the testimony Of God, who cannot
deceive us, is pledged for their truth /
fitness. Cod, the source and the author
Of all truth, cannot present any mystery
to the. human mind for its acceptance
that is Tepugnant to reason. No mystery
of revealed religion, therefore, is at var
lance with right reason. Man docs no
violence to his reason when he accepts
without doubling and wit hout question,
ali that Cod has made knWon, let III be
easy OF difficult for HIS Intelligence to
CRASH, Science has its nlysteri ~, SO has
faitfi. Neither demands that human sfeAl
son shall surrender its rights, but both
dem and that human reason, shall not
stubbornly resist the declaration OF I'm.
disputable authority. sss. s5. 81 & d 81.
An irish Brigade Relic. T 81.
w Col. James D. Brady, OF Washing ton
b. c. has presented to Mr. Patrick Mar