The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1897-03-24

i
that he Is conscious of being more than
AN animal. He Ia conscious OF vital re-
lationship with being who is pure spirit
on whom no Is dependent for his life and
10 whom no Is responsible for all his
actions. Even the grossest materialism or
tho most utter depravity cannot entirely
destroy this Unborn consciousness. Modern
| science, I'm the first pride of its youth,
| thought to disprove the existence of all
forces not material, and failing in that
seemed inclined to deny them because
they are not subject To chemical analysis.
Still, mon would not abandon their belief
In God, and at last compromise or an
armed truce was agreed upon, science con-
senting To lot religion alone II religion
would cease from prosecuting her. TO the
minds OF most people the two seemed i'm
irreconcilablc conflict but here and there
a hopeful spirit foresaw the day VIXEN each
should support and supplement- the other
No truth can possibly contradict other
truth. If God exists and can be approached
by man through prayer that fact deserves
TO take rank beside other known facts, and
all will at last be found to be harmonious
But what Is prayer? 1t cannot consist
In spoken words, except as these are used
To give form To "a thought. We cannot even
come near % another human being IL we
are lying To him. Ii nc knows that we
are lying he will not even imagine that
! there is any spiritual nearncss between us.
God Is spirit and He can read our thoughts
II He exists at all. IL it can be proved that
| by bringing our thoughts into touch with
| the great, life giving Force by which we
! have come into existence we can secure
answers 20 our prayers and peace To our
| souls il follows that this Force has all the
highest attributes that man has ever con-
ccived as belonging To God, that il, that IL
| Is more than a force and Possesses intelli
| gencc and Will, goodness and love
But 1T has been supposed that proofs
| were lacking of direct answers to prayer.
| Ii requires more than an occasional
Isolated instance TO establish the prin-
ciplc beyond u doubt. Many things can
bo explained as condolences and many
J other as hallucinations which arc ac-
, cepted by the credulous as answers To
their prayers. The subject should be
taken entirely apart from emotional re-
llgion and dogmatic assertion and inves-
tigated in the impartial spirit of the ear
nest seeker after truth. This inycstiga-
ton Is now being carried on by multi
tudc OF thinkers the world over; facts are
being collected and as fast as possible
conclusions are being drawn, which will
remove the whole subject from the
domain of the empisical, and will in time
make clear how far we can control
material conditions around us by appeal
TO the Divine Power, and what are the con-
ditions To be observed in making the ap-
peal The phenomena Of mutual, or more
Piopeiiyt splfitusii
prove that answers To prayer often are
secured, for, as will be shown, later, the
concentration of thought of the pro-
fcssional healer is nothing more nor less
than prayer Further on we shall con-
slider the limitations laid upon human
power In this direction, as far rs they are
understood at present and the conditions
necessary TO effective prayer.
Prayer may be defined MS the appeal of
human thought to the divine. Yet this
docs not mean calling upon far-away
God who must be importuned to listen.
Elijah found God not in the wind
nor the earthquake, nor the fire. but in
the "still small voice. in his own soul
Before we can offer one petition, we
must enter the "soul silence where that
still, small voice is heard, and then, i'm
the holy OF holies within us, attune our
minds TO Gods will Then every desire
becomes prayer and we feel conscious
that we have been heard 1t is evident
that in this frame of mind no evil or
selfish desire could find expression there
fore, although evil thoughts have GER
tain degree of power, they are i'm no
sense prayer. Neither Is the empty repe-
tition of words prayer; Words without
thoughts never to Heaven go" True
prayer Is always concentration of thought
in the spirit of prayer. III little is said
by mental healers of that Indispensable
requisite, it is simply because they are
reserving that thought to inculcate later,
when the patient or pupil has become
sufficiently receptive TO understand IL.
How far prayer can control conditions
outside OF the physical organism is not
thoroughly understood. Instances are not
wanting OF apparent answer TO prayers
for rain and other blessings, but they are
too few to serve to establish a genial law.
1t will readily be understood that since
the spirit of prayer Is one of desire that
something should come into harmony with
the Divine Will an attempted control of
the elements involves the supposition that
they arc sometimes out of harmony with
that Will. The question Is too subtle to
be discussed here, and is besides not
part of the purpose of these papers 1t
may be said, however, that we can refer TO
Christ's miracles or IL he seems not COM
parable with other men, we can recall his
rebuke to Peter; when the latter was un-
able to walk on the water. "Table-tip-
ping and other similar phenomena
show that there is power in mind to act
upon ipanimate things and it may yet be
found that there is another power bearing
the same relation to this that mental heal
ing bears to the eccentric and capricious
mental action known as hypnotism.
Truly, 1T doth not yet appear what we
IL will not seem strange, i'm view of the
facts above noted, that some healers are
more successful than others The most
successful healer is the one who can most
readily and perfectly enter the soul-silence
and send forth with the strongest desire
and the most complete confidence his
arrow-like thought. For this Ii Is neces-
sary that one should 1.-Two habitually in the
spiritual part of his nature, that he should
believe with his whole soul I'm the Divine
principle upon which he depends, and also
that he should be- an ovcrfiowing fountain
of love and good will" TO all mankind. Ii
is not necessary that he should be highly
educated or that he should understand all
mysteries and all knowledge" I'm fact, to
habitually exercise the mind in attempts
TO solve intellectual problems makes IL
more dnficut TO enter the soul-silence
and may therefore actually detract from
n healer's power.
Another most important factor is a
healcr's personality, his power of winning
confidence and inspiring faith The whole
object of the mental treatment IL to en-
able the patients mind consciously or
unconsciously TO offer the same prayer I'm
the same spirit, and this object Is more
readily attained II be understands and can
halipye through his reason No xvelI as Inv