Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1897-11-08

a thousand voices Reason takes the
witness stand and gives the same tes-
timony. Conscience gives her quiet
but powerful evidence. And above all
revelation banishes the last lingering
doubt Even science, which some foolish
people have tried to array against the
belief in a God, has given its voice in
testimony that there is Cod. Nc SCI
enlist stands higher than Edison, and
here is a recent declaration from his
lips: 81 tell you no person can be
brought in close connection with the
mysteries of nature or make study of
chemistry or the law of growth, with
out being convinced that behind it all
there is a supreme intelligence. | am
convinced of that. And | think that |
could perhaps | may some time, dem
onstrate the existence of such intelli-
gence through the operation of these
mysterious laws with the certainty of
demonstration in mathematics" 1t is
not the field of science particularly to
demonstrate the doctrines Of religion,
but here is one of the greatest invent
ors and scientists of this age of science
declaring his belief that science declares
the existence OF God. A party of
Frenchmen, among whom was the En-
peror Napoleon, sat on the deck of
vessel which was carrying them to
Egypt They had just prayed to their
own satisfaction that there was no God,
when Napolen shook their confidence
in their conclusions by pointing to the
stars of heaven and saying; 1T is all
very well. gentlemen, but who made all
these?"
Considering the lines of proof we
have for the reality of Gods existence,
it would seem foolish indeed to deny
His existence l know of no fact that
can call so many witnesses in its proof
as the fact that God exists. Yet in the
face Of all this proof there are men who
say in their hearts, "There iss no God"
Need we wonder that the Eternal
should twice declare in the book Of His
revelation that such men are fools?
Whoever is willing to believe absurd
tiles is foolish man. The world is full
of absurd theories Any theory yet de-
vised to account for creation and the
existing order of things requires far
more credulity than simply to believe
in a wise Creator and an everything
Providence. Many men have tried to
rule God out Of their minds by declar-
ing that the world and all the rest of
the universe came by chance. The
world happened to be round instead OF
square or oblong. The solar system
happened to get into uniform, regular
and systematic set of motions and laws.
The roses happened to bloom in sum-
mer time instead of frosty and ice
bound January in this latitude and
longitude. Men happened to be gifted
with speech instead Of reptiles being so
gifted. This is what the theory of
chance really leads us to believe. The
Philosopher Hegel denied the existence
of matter. Nothing really exists; this
is a world of phantasm and delusion.
For time men declared the scientific
dogma of spontaneous generation. All
life in this world, whether in the animal
or vegetable kingdoms, came by dead
matter spontaneously producing life.
These are some of the self-evident alb
surdities that men are willing to believe
instead Of believing in God. My God
has given me the authority in this text
to say that they are fools who thus be-
lieve. Lord Bacon has well said: "a
little philosophy incineth mans mind
to atheism, but depth in philosophy
bringeth mems minds about to relig
ion" The experience of men and ma
tons has proved to the world that athe-
ism is Of all beliefs the most absurd, the
most destructive. During the reign
Of terror" in France the National AS
semhly declared France to be a nation OF
atheists The Goddess of Reason was
placed upon her pedestal and it was de-
clared that she alone was worthy of
worship, for there was no God above
Then followed such a period of riot and
wantOnness and crime that the same
National Assembly rushed together and
acknowledged that it was convinced
that a nation of atheists could not long
exist. 1t declared that belief in the ex-
istence of a God was necessary to those
principles of virtue and morality upon