The San Francisco call., 1896-04-18
THE EVERLASTING LIFE,
Professor lie Conte Considers
Immortality in the Light
OF Science.
The Belief Would Not Have Survived
the Lapse Of Centuries if It
Were Untrue.

Some of the City's leading intellectual
and social lights filled Golden Gate Hall
last night at Professor Joseph LIE Conte's
lecture on Immortality, Considered From
the Standpoint of Science" The lecture
was given uncer the auspices of the Cali
fornia Psychical Society. but many not
members, among the number a goodly
sprlnkllng OF elergymen, were present.
The veteran scientist commenced by
stating that he had been reluctant to en-
ter upon the discussion of the subject Of
Immortality, since he he had written so
much about it, burt on second thought he
had changed his mind, in view of the
probable fact that much that he had said
and written had not been even heard of
by many people.
"By Immortality" he commenced, "I
do not mean the continued existence of
the body, since death is the most certain
OF all material phenomena. Nor do 1
mean mere continuous being of the spirit
without distinct individuality. The
only Immortality worth considering is
that OF the person. This is the form of
Immortality which we intend to speak of.
THE unconscious, impersonal con-
tinuity of our spiritual part under the
form OF light, or of air, or of heat, would
be of little advantage to US. The person
would be sacrificed and the personality
annihilated. Yet the conviction OF per-
sonallty IS universal. Now, when does
this germ or principle of Immortality take
root in the human being? Is it at the
moment of conception, OF quickening. of
birth, or when the child comes to the use
of reason or undergoes tie experience
known as regeneration or new birth?
"These are hard questions to answer,
but one truth we must hold to be self-evi-
dent: There is gulf between the human
being and the brute, between the outer
world of sense and the inner world of con-
sciousness. The latter world is the
peculiar sphere of man. Man alone lives
in two worlds; in the outer world of sense
with the brute and III the inner world of
consciousness alone, or, perhaps more
truly. with God. All the great achieve
ments due to the infinite progressiveness
which Is distinctive characteristic of
man must be referred to this principle of
what we may hope is Immortality.
"In this connection | assume the truth
of the doctrine of evolution. further as
sumo the fact of the existence of God, and
still further | assume and maintain the
circulation, throughout all nature, of
divine, self-existent energy. Material in
d1viduality is common to man and brute;
but kinetic personality is one of the attri-
butes which distinguish the human being
from all inferior creatures, and renders
him like the mysterious almighty energy
which placed him as ruler over the lower
citizens of universe. Spirit ex lists in
many forms, but kinetic entity is the ex-
elusive heritage of man and the beings of
a higher order than he.
The fact OF immortality Is not mere
poetic ideal, but a truth which only needs
to be dimly comprehended in order to fill
mankind with love for that quality
which is the glory Of humanity. In the
evolution OF the human soul from the
lower phases of spiritual existence we find
some intellectual difficulties. The Patonic
view is that souls are fragments of great
self-existent spiritual principle The
orthodox view that God created the
material part of man and then breathed
into it the breath OF life cannot be enter
tanned. The scientific view asserts the
pre-existence OF the soul in embryo and
at the same time admits its creation by
natural forces.
.'By means of the brain we are able to
advance without the confines of things
material and penetrate the mysteries of
another, nobler world. This seems to me
certain participation in the divine
nature, OF which immortality is an essen
tal attribute. The belief in God and in
immortality is universal. save where it
mas been overthrown by shallow, ma
terlalistic philosophy. This belief has
persisted until our day, and is at the bot
tom OF all or nearly all the nobler traits of
humanity. This belief would not have
survived had it not been true.
Il cannot forbear comparing rational
christianity with the modern worship of
humanity. The first moral law is the love
OF God, the second the love OF humanity.
rational Christianity recognizes these
laws and traces their enactment to q per-
Sonai, ail-powerful, infinitely loving God.
Rational Christianity also presents before
us these three views of Immortality: first,
the Platonlc idea of self-existent, pre-
existing, non-creating and non-created sea
OF spirit; second. the exploded orthodox
theory OF material creation to which life
was I'm mparted from outside, and third, the
scientific conception which believes in the
Pre-ex1stence OF the soul in embryo and
lts creation as a conscious personality
Lnrougn the agency of natural forces.
view.
Il have several times referred to God as
person. The essence of God is beyond
our compre rehension; yet when wethink of
the almighty power which made us, we
naturally form an image in our hearts
ana endow that image with all that we
CONSIDER most worthy of the divinity.
conscious personality is the highest thing
which the human mind can conceive;
nence We call God a person, though we
nttie Know whether that finite term be
worthy OF the boundless majesty to which
we owe our being.''
Mount Rich, 1869 feet high, is the tallest