The herald., 1896-01-27
Church of the New Era


AT the Church of the New Era yesterday
Professor Bowman discussed the subject of
secret societies. He said substantially:
discuss this topic because it has been
made prominent by the recent action OF a
body of Protestant ministers in this city
who seem to have joined in with the pope
of Rome to make war on secret organiza-
tions. Without questioning the mistaken
sincerity of these ministers, let us lnveStl-
gate the wickedness of secresy first, from
their own andpoint-Christianity and the
Bible. Neither secret societies nor railroads
are treated in the Bible, and the truly or
thodox will condemn them both for that
reason, But the principle of secrecy Is
treated in the Scriptures, and SO far from
condemning it as bad they treat 1t as
sacred and excellent thing.
1t is q fayorite virtue in God himself. 1or
proverb declares: ut is the glory OF God
are called secrets. 1.-THE secret of the
Lord is with them that fear him." and "He
hides the righteous in the secret OF his
presence and his tabernacle" and "reveal-
eth his secrets unto his servants" Be-
sides, even Christ teaches that the most
sacred acts and duties are to be done in
secret His followers are to pray in secret,
yet fear the brethren forgot that injunc-
ton in opening their meeting against secret
societies. Aims are also to be given ''in
secret" But without multiplying texts,
these are sufficient to show what wicked
thing secrecy is from the Bible standpoint.
These Jealous fighters of secresy seem to
forget that the early Christians themselves
held many of their meetings in secret, not
merely with closed doors, but often in
"dens and caves of the mountains" be-
cause of persecution-the very spirit with
which the pope and the preachers-someo of
them-are prosecuting secret societies
today.
But passing from the Bible argument,
let us view the subject in the light of
rational ethics. Considered in themselves,
apart from their motives, neither secrets
nor secret societies have any ethical char
acter. Things are bad or good, morally,
only as they proceed from bad or good pur-
poses. Secreting property to defraud
creditors is morally bad. but if it is done to
defeat a robber or a thief. it is morally
good-yet the act in both cases is the same.
If secrecy were in itself wrong, the author
of nature would be the greatest of sinners.
for her whole domain is laboratory OF
secret, hidden forces from the termination
of a seed to the revolution of planet.
Human life itself is under the law of sec
recy in its most sacred aspects and rela-
tions The secret of friend is as sacred
as life. A home which keeps not its own
secrets is shame and scandal. The
most sacred and transcendent knowledge
of the world has been preserved in secrets
and impaired through mysteries. Why?
Because "holy things are not given to dogs
nor pearls east before swine." And it
must continue as long as there are dogs
and swine in the world. Let preachers
study their Bible.
Secret organizations, with purposes of
benevolence and goodness. are not only
right but necessary, and will continue to
be necessary till all the people, including
the churches and preachers, Catholic and
Protestant, are converted to true Chris
tianity and the nations of the earth are
transformed into genuine brotherhoods of
Christian socialism. And this seems a
long way off from our present warning,
competitive Babylon.