The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 18??-1935, 1898-03-04


mony of history and tradition.
Our belief that the Gospels were
written by Matthew, Mark, Luke
and John, rests upon the same kind
of evidence. The testimony which
sustains the authenticity of these
sacred books is not only of the same
kind that Mr.. Ingersoll accepts with
reference to paradise Lost" 1.-THE
Principal" and the Gage of Rea-
son." but it is much more volumin-
Gus and conclusive, because the Cos
pels have occupied a much larger |
space in the thought of the world,
and have been subjected to a more
thorough investigation.
When Mr.. Lngersoll says that no
one knows who wrote the four Cos
pels, he charges all the earliest writ
ers of Christian era who quoted from
these books, believing them to be
the works of Matthew, Mark, Luke
and John, with disgraceful ignor-
ance and stupid credulity.
CELSIUS, Porphyry and Julian
hated Christianity as bitterly as he,
but their writings abound in quota
tions from the New Testament, and
they never questioned it's anthem
ITCHY. They never insinuated in
the remotest degree that Christians
of their day were mistaken as to the
authorship of the four gospels, or
any other part of the New Testa-
ment.
defy this infidel traducer to fur
nish one jot or title of evidence to
show that any opponent of Chris
tianity, during the first four CEN
turtles after Christ, ever questioned
the eenuineness of the New Cesta-
ment, or expressed even doubt as
to the honesty of the men who
claimed to be eye witnesses of the
miracles which they recorded.
Mr.. Ingersoll says, that If Jesus
had wrought the miracles which it
is said he performed, the Jews
would not have crucitied him. This
is a speciment either of his ignor-
ance of history or of his moral in
ability to speak the truth. Every
student of the Bible knows that the
Jews did not ueny the reality of the
miracles of Jesus, but claimed that
he worked these miracles through
satanic power.
Mr.. Ingersoll does not deny that
Christ claimed to perform miracles
but declares that he was deceiver
"a slight-of- hand mana peri.
peptetic trickster, who bamboOzled
, the ignorant and unsupported rabble
that followed him.
! What respect can any ratio
man have for such an indictments
Can you believe that the man who
taught the purest morality evel
r given to the world, and who liveC
the most benevolent life that mer
ever witnessed, and who died tt
bear testimony to what he taught
r was a mere wandering vendor o
tricks he had learned from Egyptian
3 magicians? No, you cannot believ,
> it. Neither does Mr.. Ingersoi
t believe it. Why then does he sa!
r it? Ask the ticket man when yo'
a go to purchase your next admission
t to his lecture.
| Jesus Christ, in his incarnate life
: was the perfect embodiment ant
illustration of the ethics of tn
g gospel which he preached. VIVA
= was there in his life that deserves
= condemnation from any man? Be
q over against Mr.. Ingersoll's reproba
8 ton OF the morals of the New Testa
Il ment the words of Mr.. Lecky, on
of the most intellectual and learne
IA men of modern times. In his his
n tory of European Morals" he says
!, at was reserved for Christianity
p present to the world an ideal chal
If acter, which through all changes {
Is eighteen centuries has inspired tn
!, hearts of men with impassione
"a love; which has shown itself capabl
o. of acting on all nations. ages, ten
Q peraments and conditions; whic
p has not only been the highest pa
% tern of virtue, but the strongest IL
10 centive to it's practice, and has e.
A. ercised so deep an influence that
ar may be truly said that the simp
Z. record of his three short years
9. active life has done more to r.
n generate and soften mankind tina
as all the disquisitions of philosophe
a. and all the exhortations of mo
IN alists." This is the testimony of
great scholar and critic-a ms
. whose learning is as much deep
IN than Mr.. Ingersoll's as mid-ocean
is deeper than the little artificial lai
a. on the grounds of our late Tenne
al see Centennial Exposition.
nd AS Mr.. Ingersoll does not adm
an the existence of God he does n
X. believe in any universal law of b
,p man rectitude. If there be no 90
ar, every man must decide for himst
"a. what is right and what is wron
a This is Mr.. Ingersoll's doctrine.
n. Theoretically, at least, Ingers'
an is an anarchist. He is against
external government, human
al divine.
~. He is consistent with this doctri
,ot when he defends suicide. He |
LET lieves that any man who is tir
ne of life has the right to blow
he brains out, and leave his depende
, ~ wife and children to endure
he woes Of poverty. Some years a
err one of his disciples poisoned hi
he self, and beside his dead body "
nm found one of Ingersoll's books CO
ns. tanning his damnable defense
ZEN suicide.
lie "There is no God, or if there
ok one, we cannot know it. The BIZ
to is lie; Jesus Christ was a slight
hand man; whatever man belie'
or. to be right is right; death is an ct
ron nal sleep; or if there be another II