Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1896-05-30
LETTER PROM A. MARQUES.
IConcluded.l

Thus the ridiculous idea that
all the glorious nations of anti
quity "stole" their religious no.
tions from the petty, SHINING,
stiff-necked tribe of Abraham,
may have been favorite one with
the old Fathers of the Inquisition,
who condemned Galileo for say
ing that the earth was round and
that it turned around the sun; but,
in the face of undeniable modern
discoveries, they are unworthy of
preacher of the XIXth century,
who assumes to teach and en-
tighten men and women. Yet, it
is quite true that "all nations
trace their light" their religious
beliefs, to same common origin"
But that origin is not to be found
in the Hebrew tribe, since what
they did get themselves they only
borrowed or stole (as Rev. Garvin
might prefer from sources older
than themselves, and these primi-
tive sources are those to which
Theosophy itself goes back, for
Theosophy is the essence on
which all past and present reli-
gions have been built, Christiani-
ty itself being good only on ac-
count of what it contains of Theo-
sophy.
Now coming to the praise bes-
towed by Rev. Garvin on his own
sect, l have nothing to say about
that. But it is not quite apparent,
as matter of history, what the
Germans did gam by following
Luther, nor can L see that any de-
cent religion could well be proud
of such men as Luther, Calvin
and Wesley, quoted by the Bull
LETIN. Luther, we know, was a
rebellious monk who started a
''heresy," schism, for selfish pur-
poses; he may have operated a
useful reform, but he did it out of
personal spite. Calvin showed
his meek, Christ like disposition,
in most execrable manner, by
burning alive those in his power,
who happened to differ with him
on some theological subtleties, and
Wesley was only a sell
fish egotist. As for the
Washingtons, ,Franklins, Lincolns,
Garfelds, mentioned as great |
men, produced by Christianity"
the organs of Free Thought" in
New York have long ago estab-
lished, with the best of proofs,
that, though naturally religious
men, they were all at heart "free-
thinkers, with no narrow sectarian
feelings, in fact, natural Theoso-
phists. How about Washington
not allowing God or Christianity
to be mentioned in the American
Constitution /? Now to finish: in
what concerns the taunt of Theo-
sophists having no schools, aims
houses and hospitals" etc, in view
of the immense things already ac-
complished by the Theosophical
Society, it is not only incorrect,
but maliciously unjust.
Now then, as a whole, in the
presence of Rev. Garvin's evident
misstatements, could not his
text" (by their fruits, etc. be
justly applied to himself, coupled
with this other, from his favorite
authority. abOut the s'mote and
the beam?" Rev. Garvin and !
others like him may usefully de-
fend Christianity on the authority
of the new Dispensation, of the
Sermon on the Mount; they are
then on unassailable grounds.
But when they refer to the Old
Testament, with all the incon-
gruities and indecencies of its
dead-letter versions, to support
their claims, they are no longer
Christians, they become Judaists,
and they will find that they lean
on broken reed that will always
bend under them and Christianity.
And before they attempt to com
pare Brahminism, Buddhism and
Theosophy, they better go back a
few years to some school where
they can learn that, in the matter
of occult knowledge, not even the
Cyclopedia Britannica is reli-
able authority.
Yours respectfully,