The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1896-05-10
ABBOTT'S SUMMING UP
HIS CONCLUDING SERMON ON THE
THEOLOGY OF AN EvOLUTIONIsT.
Creed OF the believers In Perpetual
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES May Strengthen
the Belief of Man I'm n God.

4 Brooklyn Eagle.
At Plymouth Church. Sunday night.
| DR.. Lyman Abbott took as his text:
"And he said, So is the xingdom
| of God, as If man should cast
seed into the ground; and should sleep and
| rise night and day, and the seed should
| spring and grow up, he knoweth not how
Mark iv. 26, q.
This. as you observe" said Dr. Abbott
sis one of Christs parallels He says that
| the laws Of the spiritual kingdom are like
| those of nature. The kingdom of God is a
| growth That is the kingdom of God is SUBJ
| ject to the law which is known as evolu-
ton"
The Doctor then thanked the press for the
| space it had devoted to the printing of this
series of sermons, and continued as fol-
| lows:
1--WE ministers have been told, and we
nave almost come 10 pelieve II, that In order
| TO attract and hold an evening congrega-
| ton we must furnish somewhat light and
| entertaining food. good deal OF music,
1 good deal of imagination, a good deal of
| dramatic action, and not much solid think
| ing. Certainly these sermons have been
| enthusiastically wanting In those qualities:
| talk to an audience of theological students,
| and your presence and your attention have
shown very clearly that the American peo-
| pie are interested in theology, if it is vital.
| Tonight desire to give, as 1t were, brief
| review of the whole course. to sum up the
| luton is not to be identified with Darwinism.
1t Is not the doctrine OF struggle Tor exist
ence apd survival of the fttest. That is
broadly speaking, the doctrine OF growth APP
piled U life. 1t Is the doctrine that life is
growth II is the doctrine that adj NE PRO pro
lower to higher stages, from simpler to more
complex stages. and by a force. or forces.
working from within. not mechanical OPP
Grating from without. This is. substantially,
| lie Conte's definition. Evolution does not
at all attempt to explain the origin of life.
| 1t simply is a history of the process of life.
The secret cause Of lit evolution has nothing
to do with. A man, therefore, may be
imtionist. That is. he may believe that the
cause is some single force. or he may be-
] lieve that the cause is a wise and benefcent
| If I were not, should not be standing in
a pulpit. 1t is hardly necessary TO say that.
Evolution does not claim to be the last
word There is no last word. There is al
| WAYS a word uttered after the last word.
Evolution itself is inconsistent With the idea
of evolution is the doctrine of perpetual
growth and therefore, every word spoken
prepares for another and further word
Evolution IL il is to be accepted at all, Is
IN he accented as. on the whole, the grand
est generalization of our age, IL not any age AZ
the best statement OF the process or Ire
that has vet been uttered. Practically, all
biologists accept evolution Practically, all
| scientists natural scientists, accept evolu-
ton. lie Conte says, think truly tna ai you
| as of an evolutionist. In the realm OF nat
ural science all men. almost without excep-
| ton are in the broadest sense or the term,
evolutionists.
THE UNIVERSAL KEY.
but that is not all. Evolution is to-day
accepted as the key by all teachers in all
departments IN all colleges and institutions
of learning History is treated as growth
political economy as growth, literature
as a growth moral philosophy as growth,
no less than the various material sciences.
Practically to-day in our colleges and high
err institutions, of learning, male and fe-
male. orthodox and unorthodoS, of every
description, the courses of education are
founded on the assumption that the history
of life Is a history of growth from lower
to higher forms, from simpler to more
complex forms, according TO laws that are
within the phenomena themselves. Now, In
this state of things there are three courses
which the religious teacher may take. II
| the first place, ne may set himself in antag
, | onism to evolution. He may enter upoI
the biological view. He may point out thai
fe eTe a ade te1e and that evolution does no
| explain everything, and he may SATISFY
himself by that course, and ne may satisIs
studied the subject or given 1t any consld
, | cradle attention; but he really, IL must p'
, frankly said, win satisfy nobody else
, expert world is moving in one direction
| the minister who is not an expert may ge
himself run over, but he cannot malt the
procession by getting in front of 1t.
|, 1.-THE second course which the religion:
.. teacher may take is to say that there is
difference between the spri ana e and in1
is the law in the natural realm, but there
, | is some other law that operates in the spir
: | crate with uniformity. Though there ar,
. | no interferences, there are no breaks in th'
| continuous general cause and effect IN ma
| and there are breaks in the general cause
and effect in the moral and spiritual realm
!. There is some reason for this He may az
| this and be rational and self-consistent
| And yet it does seem to me that, If we be
| lieve that there is one God-God of physica
) | and material nature, God of the spirtua
! and intellectual nature-we shall, at least
| be more and more inclined to believe tina
, | His method of work in the world is one
, | that He Goes not proceed by contrary
: | methods; that He does not proceed in meth
DDS that are themselves inconsistent in TIT
two realms.
evolution; to say TO the scientist, since you
have studied this subject and this is YOU
: verdict, accept 1t: now, l VIII see whethel
! | with a Christian faith or not. This is tn
5 course which I have been attempting t
D pursue these evenings. l have not beel
: | trying to make you evolutionists; / hav
> | been trying to show you that though vol
3 | are an evolutionst you may still hold fas
2 | your Christian faith. / met in front of thi
| very pulpit the other night two friends
e | one of whom said: L have been very mucl
[ | interested in your sermons on evolution,
5 | the other of whom said: No, that is
2 ; mistake; they have not been sermons Of
e | evolution; they have been sermons on tn
h | theology of an evolutionist and that wa
v | a very correct and important distinction
r / am not trying TO preach evolution; L ar
( | trying to show how one may be an evolu
( | ZIONIST and hold fast to his religious faith
For there is great difference between the
d ology and religion. To say this is not t
d / cast disrepute either upon religion on tn
: one side or upon theology on the Other
S Religion is a spiritual life; theology is tn
v science Of that life. 1t is very importan
r that we should have the science of life
d but it is also very important that we shoul
:, | understan that the science is not the life
l. The life remains. in its essential element:
v | unchanged through centuries, but the SC
v ence is continually changing.
DEFINITION OF RELIGION.
"Our studies of phenomena lead US to re
habiitate our thought concerning the Iii
:. which we have studied. Flowers bloom tc
" day as they bloomed years ago, but there
s. a new botany here. Stars shine tonight q
" they shone on the world when Christ wa
=, born, but there is a astronomy her'
lie The substances of the world are just whs
Is | tbax, x-araf aefore the spectroScope was dis