The daily morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1883-1899, 1896-05-10
OUR FAITH AND OUR BODIES.

"As he Ihinketh in his heart, so is he
| Proverbs, xxNiii:7.
There are certain passages Of Scripture,
OF which this is one. whose real signif-
cance is at last being discovered.
In the diamond fields OF Africa price
less stones have remained for ages un-
known and undisturbed; and in the do
main OF spirit precious truths have lain
for centuries unrecognized. BY some
happy chance an explorer OF the African
wild stumbles on the scattered gems,
and the world is at once made richer
By an equal chance a scientist or phil
osopher announces a new principle or
truth and We find that some old prophet
or seer taught it centuries ago. and the
world has been deaf until now.
The text furnishes an apt illustration.
In vague and general way We have
always believed that mans thought
possesses a kind Of creative energy, but
we have not appreciated the practical
value and Importance OF this fact. We
have simply glanced at II, and then
passed on by the other side. The rough
diamond was under our very feet, and
We every day trod on the spot where
1t lay; but not until recent years has
any one picked it up and polished It and
shown us its radiant beauty.
At last, however. it has been revealed
TO US that in its broadest sense the
heart makes the man, and that the
words. LAS he thinketh in his heart, so
is he" are not the expression OF poeti- |
cal fancy. but of a literal and awful as
well as an encouraging truth. The basis |
OF all true reform lies in the fact that |
body and soul not only reflect each |
others moods, but that in the ideal man,
the Christ man. the soul IS undisputed .
master OF the body
Physicians assure US that mental con-
ditions produce-that is, originate-bodily
disease. Therein is one OF the profound
est problems OF the profession, and In
some cases its despair We are startled
beyond measure when told that not only |
will vicious habits result in physical de-
but that continuously vicious
thoughts have the same tendency
The world has gone wrong for many |
generations and become entangled in the |
meshes Of inherited maladies, simply be-
cause men have chosen their own way |
in opposition to Gods way. The worlds
mental attitude has been the fruitful |
source Of all the bodily evils from which
It has suffered. II the universal mind
had convinced itself in the beginning
that unselfshness is more profitable than
selishness, that purity pays dividends
while impurity lays assessments, and
had continued through the centuries TO
lovingly live along the lines Of the Gre
ator's plan, pain would be a thing un-
known, the word disease would never
have been coined, and death would be
like the sweet sleep Of childhood, rrom
which we would wake in heaven. So far
as the world is Gods world, it is perfect;
so far as 1t is mans world, it needs tie
succor OF mighty remedial agencies.
Now, since mental conditions produce
disease, then it must follow that mental
conditions may check disease and even
produce health. Let US llnger here for
a moment, for we are kneeling on the
ground as the Christ passes by and
touching the hem Of His garment. We
Ln 80 f,,t |
the value Of which cannot
be estimated. If it be true that to pos
sess the Christ spirit is not merely to
bear the ills Of life serenely, but also to
prevent them 10 a degree, then for the
first time we lift our religion out Of its
theological environment and make It
priceless, practical truth. When 1t is
forced upon US that no man can De
wholly well either in mind or body who
Is not consciously Gods child, and that
we are well or i'll in body and soul in
proportion to our flial relation to Him,
-hen we put religion where 1t belongs,
IN the strong foundation from which in
5ur ignorance of natural and moral law
We long ago removed it.
The important fact for men to recog-
lize is this-that the cardinal virtues are
the corner stones of healthy body and
/ healthy character. The spirit Of the
Christ dissipates that condition Of mind {
which produces disease, and tends TO re-
produce health AS surely IS wheat seed
( properly sowed will furnish wheat
.rop. The assertion is entirely within
he bounds Of known scientific law
hat the ideal man is he who reverenu: !
ooKs to heaven and says, I'm Him 1 i've 8
nd move and have my oeing."
Here is the grand lesson to ponder
hat faith is reporseful, that IT IS the
quivalent of strength, for 1t is the mir