The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1898-04-27
CLAIMING
CONFERENCE
Opened in First COngrc-
gatiOnal Church.
REV. MR.. SLICER'S SERMON
Bond Between God and Man the
Subject OF His discourse.
REV. MR.. SLICER'S SERMON
THE RELATION is PERSONAL.

A two-days' session Cf the Goth Chan
ming conference opened In the First Con-
grega ational church, corner of Benefit and
Benevolent streets. at 8 O'Clock last
night with religious service ard
sermon by Rev. Thomas X. Steer, foi
merly pastor CT the church. Rev. Mr..
Slioer took as his topic the bond tetween
God and man. In substance he said:
There is history of r, Ilgions which Is
an effort to show tow a an has tiled to
find the toDd between mtn ard bis
Creator. All religion Is an attempt to
make roadway, IA path, to and from
Cad snd the soul Ire two great words
of religion are God and SOUL ALI else
is commen tary. We have said many
things atont God that are only our
guesses. 10 know God as theory is not
10 have n sense OF him. 70 know man
as suffering Is to have no know ledge al
ell We have built no briige. Ths
fact the word Goa Is In our vocabulary
shows His existence. and the fact that we
think OF Hin shows relation. Tue
difficulty of knowing this bond Is the
difficulty Of knowing one turn, that Is,
ue know what man 10, but we assum I
what God is. God Is the name by which
things. Twenty years ago the world OF
Thoughts passed through belt OF materi-
alisun. Pnilosophic atheism to thinking
men has now M come impossible. Psy
cEoloQy Is EoW our amusement. lt u
the reflex from the belief that mind WAR
nothing tn tbat that mind is everything
The soul now tegs tn be told what boEd
there is betw cen itself and God. We can.
not know perfectly either term, but we
may know the relation. In many ways
wo get along very comfortably without
know ing the terms. The most binding
Relations are present In our life. but the
terms on which they are held are utter ly
beyond our ken.
III ! were 10 give q name to the relation
of God tc man should make it per
sonal." We have lest oar individual Go'
and we imagine the personal God Is cead
Person Is the sum of life's consciousness
Our sole bu siIirss is the growing of q
human soul. / call God personal because
my highest apprehension is conscious
ness. Shall I say that all essence In
myself, all live In, pray in, is fancy
NO. The ground work OF civil zation IL
personality. Let the man that threatens
us testify how far from human we are.
but also the attitude of European nations
testify 10 the deep down strains ol
humanness running through our nature.
We cannot be wholly human till we have
DGI6O0hllty. n6 uc6u Oh tuls TelhtlOu If
God and man must be personal because
sorrows are personal. Unless they attain
the level OF personality they are net sor.
rows.
At this mornings session a devotional
meeting was leo by Rev. j. M. Wilson.
after which business mesting was held.
The secretary w. IA. spencer, report I'D
on the conference of n year ago at Fall
River. he sAid that IL had been very sue
cessful, reviewed the work done there and
CONN tied on the speaking and attend.
ance. Tie treasurer's report showed total
roceiv ts tor the year $3.50. 81, expenditures,
S3ss. 80 oasn o h. n !. Sab 5S. Reports for
the committee on christian work. fellow
shin. alliances, Dighton Branch aud
Women g Alliance were also received and
accepted. Ihs expenditure Of money for
missionary and charitable purposes for
the coming year was left In the hands oi
the present committees under whose con
tr oil it now is The following were ap.
pointed by the president terminating
corn M ittee to report nt the afternoon ses
sion: Rev Mr.. Frothingbam, Rev. Mr..
Lord and Mrs. Dunbar. Rev. John w.
Day o2 Hineham. was then introd duced
and delivered an address on "Vagueness
I'm Keiieion." At 2:30 coilat'on was
served