The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1898-04-12
DEATH AND FTER.
Meaning of the Festival of Resurrection
In Various Creeds.

Meaning of the Festival of Resurrection
In Various Creeds.
copyright, 1898. by American Press Asso-
ciatiOn.I
Faster as church festival symbolzing
the resurrection of Jesus Christ is the mir
acle on tho truth Of which Christianity
as a supernaturalism is founded. Regard
ed as the chief of all religious festivals, it
seems singular that many of the denOmi-
nations have not observed it, though be-
lieving absolutely in what it commemo-
rates OF late N.yaTs more and more scctS
have celebrated Easter, but it is not long
since it's celebration was mainly confined
in this country to the Roman Catholics
and the Episcoralians. All the churches
that claim to be orthodox hold faith III the
resurrection, physical and spiritual, of
.Jesns and in the conscious Immortality of
the soul.
In these days it would be difficult to
give even the names OF the numberless
churches that exist and impossible to say
what their members individually believe,
however exact and explicit their formal
profession OF faith may be. Christians at
large hope for salvation through the atone
ment Of Jesus Tor eternal bliss hereafter
in the presence OF God and the angels.
Death is to them a release from care and
pain, and they enter after it into state
of immortal beatitude. This is certainly
most comforting. Any ono who earnestly
cherishes such faith should be able TO bear
all the ills of this world, in view Of what
is in store for him in tie next. 1t seems
a pity that The whole of mankind cannot
accept it and be made happy BY it instead
IL,
of which makes the samo claims for truth
that Christianity does and regards itself
as the only true religion. Unhupi'ily, as
experience shows, belief is not dependent
on wish or will Each and every man be
1ieves az his mind and temperament com
pei, and this fact necessarily peoples the
planet with hcretics, whatever the prevail
ing religion religions.
Apart from forms of worship, so called,
there are endless differences OF opinion,
most Of them radical, about God, death
and the hereafter. The orthodox common
ly think Of God as a personal being, after
whose image we are created and who is in
effect ourselves, exalted localized, perfect
ed. The nODOrthOdOx regard him per
vading spirit, prevalent influence, per
mancnt indestructiblo principle, u subtle,
universal emanation. Metaphysicians have
Drawn All klHUS Oh liIeToEtCS ABOUT LEFTY,
and in attempting to make him intelligi
bic have made him hopelessly obscure. 1t
is often supposed, when one lLan asks
another, ''Do you believe in God:'' and
the other replies in the affirmative, that
the two entirely agree. Nothing could be
further from certainty, since one man 5
idea Of God may be altogether distinct
from that Of the other We may all have
faith in God, a God Of sCme sort, and yet
be as far apart as the poles. Believers of
ten denounce believers differing in belief
as atheists a term that those who disagree
theologically have always been inclined to
apply freely and rechlessly to each other.
Many able philosophers VINO recognize his
existence now speak Of God as unknown
and unknowable and therefore Geprccato
theology and its study worse than use
less, because a mere waste OF time
Concerning death there are as mary and
discrepant opinions about God, and nat
urally, since knowledge about either is
clearly impossible Death is rarely associat-
ed as it was a generation or two since,
with terror, except by persons OF narrow
training and convictions 1t has been re-
lieved of the old theolOgic bugbears and is
looked on in q more or less philosophic
light, even by many assuming to be ortho-
dox. All the ancient habits and feelings
connected with it have been changed
Deathbed repentance, once deemed
sential even by Protestants, has grown OBJ
solete, at least in cities. Clergymcn are
not considered in duty bound to visit the
seriously Ill, nor ara they sent for to pre-