The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1897-11-25
GAZETTE BUILDING DIRECTORY.
THE THANKSGIVING IDEA.

few nights ago one of the most distin-
guished medical experts of this State
said to me: Il am an evolutionist in
the extremist sense of the term and
an agnostic. I believe that all forms
of life were not at one time what they
now are and that we cannot tell what
they will be-" I said to him: 81 too
am an evolutionist, but to me that /
does not interfere with the Bible &C.
count of creation; itrather emphasizes
the fact of an all pervading Providence
of God who has wisely made evolution
part of His general providence. If !
evolution, in the EXTREMIST sense, be
true, it only pushes you back into the
ininities one step further to find out
what the power behind it is which en-
dowed all living forms with the prin-
4 ciple that manifests itself in eyolu-
tionary progress
"True," said the expert, "There is a
power behind it all which call Force,
and which the theologian calls God,
but about that Force, I hold man
knows nothing aud can know nothing"
What is the Thanksgiving Idea?
The idea of a Thanksgiving Festival
above all is, Festival of the Provi-
dence of God. Since the day that our
Puritan forefathers first sat down on
Massachusetts bay and offered up the
incense of thanksgiving; since that
day to this, the free-born people of a
great nation have been found, once a
year, sitting down in the same spirit
to offer up the same prayer of thanks
giving to the same Force, which they
call God, and to the greatest number
of whom that God is a God whose
tender mercies are over all his other
works. There are practically seventy
millions of people who, from ocean to
ocean, will be found on Thursday en-
gagged in this Festival of the Provi-
dence of God. There is sacredness
about it to the trne-hearted American,
which demonstrates that America is
right at heart. Let a man arise now
and call on the nation to hold Thanks
giving this year as the Festival of the
Providence of Force, and the nation
would sit down and grin at him. 1t
may be said that the argument of the
crowd is poor argument but it is no
poorer an argument than that on
which at least the election of President
is based. It is the argument which is
as old as Rome and which has at
tanned greater fullness of meaning
in the lips of the American people
when it is expressed proverbially
"The voice of the people is the voice
+ of God."
The respected expert to whom I have
referred said: 81 cannot believe be.
cause my father believed. My father
was man,of the most simple faith and
was prepared to believe in what tradi
ton handed down to him. [ must
have facts that will confirm with my
reason and facts only can [ accept.V
concede that in all serious life the one
thing necessary above all others is tt
rest on fact. There is fact revealed
by the Christian religion; fact upor
which ALL hristendom in all times has
put it's imprematur; fact which has
wrung the tears al some time or othel
from every genuine Christian heart
namely, that those who trust Hin
God will guide, and He will nevel
guide them into wrong path. From
the earliest days of the worlds historl
till now the sentiment has been ring
ing down the ages and is believed il
more firmly to-day than it has been il
any age of the world; "Oh, Lord Coz
of Hosts blessed is the man that put
teth his trust in Thee" Sometimes il