Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1898-03-11
AS TT IS IN HEAVEN.
A STORY SUGGESTIVE OF EARTH
LY CONDITIONS.

What the Petition ION Earth As
1t Is in Heaven" InvOlves-EX.
pcriencc of Il Mortal in the Land
of MANY Mansions"
My friend, the Rev. NJ. E. Savcsole
was remarkably fond of talking ON
social questions with me, for one who
could not agree with my economic
theories.
He was young and above the average
of his profession in intelligence. He
was good man, very earnest in his
religious beliefs, and sincerely regard
ed his ministry as of divine appoint
ment.
For full year labored with him
as opportunity offered, bringing my
profoundest arguments to bear upon
his "objective mind" until l had ex
hausted the repertory of points and
illustrations it was my usual wont tC
employ, without apparent results
Though bright and honest, his intelli
gence seemed stubborn. l was, conse'
quently, forced to conclude that his
subjective mind" sat enthroned
"abOve the threshold of his conscious
ness" influenced by the all powerful
"auto-suggestions" of life stepped in
conventional orthodoxy, and that il
was his exclusive. absolute and habit
ual CONTROL" until one Sunday he
preached from the text, "Thy will be
done on earth as it is in Heaven"
Meeting him few days afterward
1 asked:
Brother Savesole, do you desire
Gods will done on earth as it is in
Heaven?" To which he promptly re-
piled:
"Why, Brother Wontax, that's what
1 pray for"
"I know" said I, "and you
preached upon that subject last Sun
day. Do you believe it possibles"
Certainly" answered my reverend
friend; "Christ would never have
taught His disciples to pray for i'm.
possibilities-for the coming OF that
which could not come. That would
have been divine inconsistency. l be.
lieve the prayer will be fully answered
sometime, and Gods will ultimately
will be done on earth as it is in Heav'
en-. Whether the time be near or far
in the future will depend upon those
who live on the earth. Nothing is
more evident than the palpable fact
that His will is not done on earth now
as it is in Heaven"
81 am glad to hear you say that.
Do you think we can do anything to
hasten the coming of that better day?'
l inquired.
"Certainly; I have just said as
much, practically"
"Why do you wish Gods will done
on earth as it is in Heaven?" I then
asked, "for Gods sake, or for mans
sake?"
"Why, for mans sake, of course
replied the preacher. "The nearer
conditions on earth approach the con-
ditions prevailing in Heaven, the bet
ter it will be for mankind"
"That is doubtless true, but let us
reverse the proposition, and see how
far we are from the golden gates of
Jerusalem, and how unprepared fol
the transition you 60 steadfastly pray
for. "Just contemplate" said /, ga
state of landlordism in Heaven"
az don't know, Brother Wontax.
but that would be all right" was his
amazing reply. 1 was stunned for q
moment, but decided to make one
more effort to save him, and said:
"Now, let us see whether or not you
would think it all right if you found
upon your arrival in Heaven, such a
system Of land holding existing there
as exists here. I suppose you do not
expect to carry much wealth with
your
"Oh, no; most Methodist preachers
60 to Heaven empty-handed," he ad-
mitted, laughingly.
"Well," 1 continued, "suppose you
should die, and, like the majority of
your profession, 60 empty-handed to
Heaven. Let us imagine that you rap
at the gate and Peter lets you in. Az
you enter, vast stretch of beautiful
land breaks upon your view. The first
thing you think of is your mansion
You wonder what it looks like, and
where it is located, and feel that you
would like to 60 to it at once, not
only because you want to see it, but
in order TO rest after your fatiguing
journey up from the earth. So, turn
ing to the kindly-faced guardian oi
the portals, you say:
"Mr. Peter, will you please direct
me to my mansion?"
But Peter smiles benignly and re-
marks:
"My son, your mansion is not yet
prepared. We make it q rule here to
defer to the wishes and tastes of the
incoming angels as to the locations
and styles of their mansions. You
might want to determine those mat
tiers to suit yourself, and it is only
right that you should enjoy that privi'