The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1897-06-26
PHYSICAL LIFE OONTRASTED WITH
SPIRITUAL BEING.
BY REV. G. E. W. Gossow.

BY REV. G. e. W. GOSSOW.
The most interesting phenomenon
in the natural world is life It is found
everywhere, and is alike mysterious
in the simplest and the most complex
form. What is that power which lifts
tie water from the earth through the
cells of the great oak to its very top
most twig? What is that secret po-
tency which burdens the trees with
delicious fruit? In the kernel of the
seed lies hidden the secret; we know
it is there, but it cannot be found.
We recognize life by the phenomena
of motion, assimilation and excretion,
dependent upon matter. Annihilate
matter, supposing that to be possible,
and you annihilate life with it. Life
is physical phenomenon. having its
seat in physical organisms, subsist-
ing on matter, and being capable of
transmission, only from substance to
substance. Life is confined to the
physical world, is alike in all organic
things, and exhibits the constant
process of breaking up tissue and its
renewal from assimilated elements.
Life and matter are of the earth,
earthly, and confined to its domain.
Aside from the physical, man has
psychical or spiritual nature. We
are enabled to acquire definite knowl-
edgeof our psychicalas we'll as of our
physical nature, and as knowledge
of the nature and functions of the
physical life enables us to better re-
gulate our life in harmony with the
laws of the physical world, so
knowledge of the nature and func-
tions of the spirit will help us to
more fully utilize and develop our
spiritual powers. And as practical
result of this soul-study we gain, in
short, a scientific basis for our re-
ligion. The science of the soul
is a science in the same sense as
the science of physiology or astron
omy, and through it we learn that in
human nature there is something
which cannot be accounted for on any
material ground, phases of which ap-
pear in somnambulism, mind reading,
telepathy. spiritism, mental healing,
Christian science, faith cure, clairvoy-
ance, each of which furnish proof of
spiritual powers independent of all
material relations.
We further learn that the mind is
dual, or twofold; the one objective,
the other subjective. The objective
mind employs the physical senses to
take cognizance of the objective world
and is the rational side of mind. The
subjective mind embraces the emo
tions and memory, and takes cogniz-
ance of it's surroundings by means
independent of the physical senses.
1t is identical with the soul. The
duality of the mind is proven in sew
eral ways. Dreams are the activity
of the subjective mind while the OBJ
jective is at rest. Sleep-walking is
due to the same cause. Clairvoyance
is the work of the subjective mind in
trance state. The objective mind is
mortal since its function is to deal
with the objective world through ma
terial means. This function is un-
necessary in the spirit state, as the
subjective mind, or the soul, performs
the functions independent of the
body or any other matter. A person
in the clairvoyant state needs no eyes
to see; his spiritual eye beholds all
things; he needs no time to overcome
distance; for time and space are alike
non-existant for him; he needs no
reasoning faculties, for he perceives
intuitively. These are the powers of
the soul as revealed by science, attrib-
utes which are divine and show that
the spirit of man is indeed in the i'm
age of God. The soul is endowed
with powers which can find their full
exercise only in spifitual state, with
functions which find their freest scope
of activity when liberated from the