The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-03-20

yirtuous and you wifi be virtuous Sin and
81 ss nhs1 were only what the modern school
" pnhosophy calls moral thoughts. Mod
sTh christian science is an inheritance from
the Alexandrian school,
now, this Alexandrian school of philos-
opny, with its dreaming about God and its
ueIlnltlon OF God, and its dreaming about
Ssn ana ITS definition of sin, passed over into
ULLeece and was found at Ephesus. And
Wnen the Ephesian Church became a Chris
az IAN 1nurch, this Oriental philosophy mixed
=. n Win the Christian dogma and the Chris
uan doctrine, and out of this intermixing
OF an intermixing, this intermixing of ORR
en ts, area aiming, Greek definition, Hebrew
ACTIVITY with Christian doctrine there grew
up what is known as the Gnostic sect OF the
early church. So far as history gives US
any account Of them, they did not grow into
utehhlte organization until after Paul. but
the signs and evidence OF their germ and
thought are found in the two epistles which
we are 70 consider tonight. 1t would seem,
inueed l must say again, as though Chris
tan philosophy and this Oriental mongrel
pnl!0sophy were absolutely antagonistic one
Iheistie. The essence of the Christian re-
hgion Is the personality of God This ORR
entansm was in thought, If not in name,
polythedstic The essence of Christianity
as or liberalism, is monothedsm. This OH
entalism regarded sin as only semblances
or as appearances, or at best only an inn
maturity in the growth development of the
race Christianity regards sin as a willful
Settlng OF mans will against Gods will.
would come back into God by a natural
process, as the clouds come back to the
ocean Christianity held that no man could
come pack to God without deliberate re-
pentance and deliberate faith Orientalism
held TO the absorption at last in the Infinite
and the Eternal. Christianity held in an
immortal personality. Still, the Orientahsm
entered the Christian Church, and really
was greater peril to it than either pagan
Ism tin1,. or Judaism. Paganism fought Chris
IIanlty: An open foe is not much to be
dreaded. Judaism would have imprisoned
christianity, and it was not impossible to
open the door and let Christianity out from
its cage. But this Orientalism entered the
Christian Church itself, corrupted it at its
very fountain, claimed to be Christian-the
supreme Christian sect-and looked down
with disdafn upon other and simpler minded
Ghrlstlans, also not altogether unlike some
thing we have seen in our own time.
NO ATTACK UPON ORIENTALISM.
Now. Paul writes the epistles to the
Ephesians and the Colossians with this
mental state of the Asiatio province Chris
tians in mind. The phrases which he uses
in these epistles, which to many of us arc
unmeaning or with little meaning in them,
We're full of meaning to those Asiatic Chris
tans. Principalities, powers, rulers, full
ness, these and kindred words were the
words Of the Alexandrian philosophy, these
secondary gods, these emanations, these
manifestations, these representations of the
innnlte and the absolute. He does not, you
VIII observe, directly attack Orientalism.
lie mas attacked Judaism, ne has attacked
Paganlsm, but he does not directly attack
Orientalsm He pursues different
method. He sets before his readers Chris
tlanlty as containing all that which is
necessary to satisfy both intellectual wants
and the spiritual wants of all humanity.
In some sense he may be said to recognize
In THESE men cropping after truth, and he
uses their own Technology and their own
phrases to show them that Christianity tul-
nils all that they seek
THE EpiStle to the Ephesians was prob
aply written as a circular letter and sent,
not to the church at Ephesus alone, but to
~ oh ,faI1
mas come down to us as the Epistle TO the
Ephesians, because it was the one copy
which was, sent to that one church. The
EplStle to the ColoSSianS was more probably
sent to the church at ColOSSi and still it
follows substantially the same line of argu-
ment and expounds substantially the same
truths as those set forth in the Epistle to
the Ephesians. 1t may almost be said to
be another copy of the circular letter al
though not written by copy of it, but re-
written IN new form by the apostle. So
L take them together. 1t is not certain
which was written first. 1t is not material
to our purpose to inquire which was written
first l will take Colo5Sians first, because
that rather than Ephesians lays the foun-
datlon of PauPS treatment of philosophical
thought In his Interpretation of the char
acter of Christ Christ he says himself
the one in whom all fullnesS dwells and in
whom all the principalities and powers are
centered. He is the image of the invisible
God, the first born of the whole creation.
Through Him-that is, by means of Him
through intermediary causes were all things
created that are in heaven and that are IN
earth, visible and INVISIBLE, whether they be
thrones or dominiofs or principalities or
powers. He does not deny that there are
these things, but he says, if there are any,
they are all created by and through Christ.
All things are created through Him, by
means OF Him and for Him. and He is be-
fore all, and in Him all things have their
unity. And He is the head of the body-the
church. He is the beginning, the first born
from the dead, that IN all He might have
the pre-epninence; for it pleases the fullness
of all to dwell in Him.
4 do not know where in Paul's epistles
you will find better statement of his con-
ception Of Christ The first born of all
Christians, the intermediary instrument
through whom the infinite and absolute
greatness the image of the unknown and
the invisible, the revelator of the unknown
and the invisible, the creator of all, the CEN
ter of all, the authority over all. And this
Christ who is thus above all principles and
powers, this Christ in whom the fullness of
divinity dwells, the fullnesS which, accord
ing to the Oriental and the theosophical
school, dwellS in all nature and makes all
nature God, this one has himself brought
together pagan and Jew and become. the
head of the church and the fullnesS of the
church, because He dwells in this church,
He dwells in the individual. He is of this
church and He dwellS in us. And because
He dwels in us and because He dwells in
all things we are not to be afraid of any
thing; we are not to adopt asceticism; we
are not to set things off from us as inner
emily and essentially evil.
REALITIES AND SHADOWS.
'Having spoiled principalities and powers
he made show of them openly. Let, there
FORE no man Judge you in meat or in drink,
or in respect of an holy day, or of the new
moon, or of the Sabbath days, which are
shadow of things to GOMEZ but the body is
of Christ. These things are the shadows,
Christ is the reality.
Wherefore, If we be dead with Christ
from the elements of the world, why as
though living in the world are yet subject
of ordinances. Touch not, taste not,
handle not, which are all to perish with the
using. Are we then to consider that we are
under no law and that we may use all
things as we will? No. on the other hand.
if we have this spiritual life we shall DC
lifted above sin. If not temptation. If we
then be risen with Christ seek those things
which are above, where Christ stitch on the
right hand OF God. Set your affection on
things above not on the things of the earth.
Put to death, therefore, your. members
which are on the earth, such as fornication,
uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil con-
cupiscence and covetousness, which is idol
airy for which things sake the wrath of
God cometh on the children Of disobedi-
ence
saThese Orientalists held that all human
relationships are but shadows. 1t is SAID
OF Ram Hushna, the modern Messiah or the