The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-01-02
$500
ARCADE

good enough to amuse children, but not
worthy the attention of grown-up people,
Then followed the inevitable question-why
should Hebrews 0e exempted from the same
skeptlcism that critics have applied to
Greece and Rome as we'll as to our early
American history? We all know what has
been the result. Moses was proved to be
mistaken about the miracles of the exodus
from Egypt and what not: Samson Goliath.
Jephtha, Jonah and all the old Bible
worthless have been ANONYMOUSLY kicked
under the table, and the first families in
Israel shown to have been given to lying
and other nameless vices. Then came the
very crucial question, ''are not the miracles
OF our Savior also the myths and fairy tales
of Christianity" What is a myth? Is it
anything more than the wreaths with which
grateful world crowns it's dead heroes for
the temple of Immortality? The memory
of Washington is already covered with
myths. And our Savior placed humanity
under such unspeakabIe obligations to Him
that they have covered and crowned Him
according to rationalism, with a glorious
cluster of fairy tales, one of which, His
miraculous birth, 25OOOO,OOO people celebrate
every Christmas eve.
AS was the case in Rome so in the Ger
man university town. our Savior left our
himself proceeded within. Can it be pos
sible asked Browning, that any of the
| Christ spirit could dwell among these
rationalists, who so glibly robbed Him of
His best credentials-His miracles? Can
any good come from thus divorcing our
| Savior's power from His love? And yet
| even in the hands of His enemies, Browning
finds the old German professor, after dem
| onstrating that miracles are only fairy
| tales, saying that Christ was
"A mania right true man, however
whose work was worthy a mans endeavor;
| Work that gave warrant almost sufficient
| To his disciples, for rather believing
| lie was just omnipotent and omniscient."
And advising his student:
GO home and venerate the myth
| 1 thus have experimental with
] This man-continue to adore Him
Rather than all who went before Him.
Or all whoever followed AFTER
Our poet having left the German univer-
| sity town, falls to rejecting upon the claims
of our Savior to our worship. Was this be-
cause of His supreme morality? Not at ALL
| Our Savior was far more than a teacher
and religion is far more than morality
! touched by emotion" and God a great deal
more than 1.-The power not ourselves which
makes our righteousness" The conclusion
of the whole matter as to our Savior's
| ship instead of merely an impersonation of
! wisdom.
What is the point where himself lays
stress?
Does the precept run, believe in good,
| In justice, in truth, now understood
| For the first time?-or, believe in Me,
Who, lived and died, yet essentially
Am Lord of life?'
Il thence conclude that the God function
is to furnish motive and injunction for
practicing what we knew already
Our poet is now whirled back again by the
cloud and returned by the Master to His
place in the little wretched London chapel.
He found that he had made very great
mistake in fleeing away from the poor and
forsaken to the gorgeous ritualists of Rome
or the dissecting knives of Germany be-
cause the most important of all Christ's
teachings upon the human side is and was
| the survival of the many and the most in
stead of the survival of the strongest and
the fttest. Our Savior said: THE whole
| need not a physician but the sick" and
| His mission on earth was to proclaim that
heaven is still reserved for those who have
failed here. Christmas eve is the beautiful
occasion that it is because it is a memorial
TO our Savior who came to rescue the waits
the insists and the failures of this strange
and puzzllng world. And this poverty
stricken chapel was peopled by and built for
those same failures and misfits according to
worldly standards, that our Savior referred
to when He asked: Are not five sparrows
sold for two farthings, and not one of these
shall fall to the ground without your
Fathers notice"
This poem of Christmas eve may possibly
be dramatic, but l am ine med to think
not Our poet had set before y, the three
yitt
tionalism-and the question Ms, which of
the three to choose. Ie P:oering S choice
had not fallen in fave o. -shoIoxy. even
though mingled witt bigotr: ana coarse
ness why did he not, after mis- return from
the German lecture room, fall back upon
his inner constituencies and evolve a re-
ligion TO suit his own advanced thought?
1t is a most significant fact that while both
Browning and Tennyson have rejected in
the most positive terms the two most of
fensive dogmas of neutrality-suspicious.
ton and everlasting Observation-Disclosures of
the two poets has at any time or place re-
iected the Christ and the spiritual love
and altruistic life inculcated by Him, and
which, after ALL is the main thing in Chris
tiaEity.
What immense debts does the Christian
world owe TO orthodoxy. ritualism and ra-
tiOnaliSmt OTtuOuOA9 - al attempt 10
formulate Christian thought into system,
faulty. no doubt. in spots but after all.
in the MAN. as sound as any system can
be where the finite seeks to express the
infinite Certainly the orthodox churches.
since the reformation, have been the back
bone of Professionalism. Orthodoxy is the
strong meat for man-emotionalism spoon
meat for babes. Wherever orthodoxy has
been dominant we invariably find high and
sound morals and very great Christian ac-