The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-10-13
is NATURE CHRISTIAN:
Subject of the Episcopal Congress
Morning Discussion.

Subject of the Episcopal Congress
Morning Discussion.
The attendance at the Episcopal churcn
congress yesterday morning was hght DIS
compared with previous sessions. The
topic under discussion was is Nature
Christian?' and, as has been noticed at
previous sessions of the congress, the
speakers and writer's held widely differ
ent views on the subject. There was
such a diversity Of views on the topic uh-
Der discussion that when It came time 1or
the voluntary speakers on the SUBJECT
Drs Rainsford and Greer, Of New ! ork,
assumed that it was incumbent on them
to take a bold stand as against the views
expressed by one of the writers on the
subject.
'It is absolutely vital to the we'll
being of the church." said Rev. w. 8.
Rainsford D. D., of New York, with
much earnestness, "that we may not be
misunderstood J. believe that today we
must stand before men and say we be-
lieve in universe in which there is
above all, in all, and through ALL Goa
of no God at all. In discussions of TINS
kind people remember your qualifications
but not your principles. Nature is GODS
from top to bottom, from the croak of
the frog to the voice of the archan-
gel
Rev. David H. Greer, D. D., of New
York, followed Or. Rainsford as the sec
ond voluntary speaker on the topic de-
clared eff I did not believe nature
is Christian through and through L would
never speak from a Christian pulpit
again. Man stands today upon crea-
tons summit as though some voice had
spoken and said, Go in the name CT the
Son of Man. The scientists have agreed
that no force can be lost and that
physical force as such cannot persist.
There must be something beyond the
physical force and science Is retire atlng
from it's stand. 1 believe that natures
God is the God of Jesus Christ and
stand today and believe in the Father,
+ Son and Holy Ghost, and try to estab-
lish and build up the kingdom of Jesus
Christ -.l.--
THE OPENING PAPER.
Rev. Frederick, Palmer, CT Andover,
Mass, opened the discussion on the prop
osition, rs God in Nature?' or as the
question was put on the programme. rs
Nature Christian?'' He said in part:
ut is assumed by many people that
nature automatically represents COD, and
that therefore such matters as are most
generally associated with nature. as, for
Instance, the weather, are d rect indica-
tons of His will. 1t follows from Sucn
reasoning that the state OF Things as II IS,
reasoning causes opposition to the use OF
anaesthetics in surgery God had estao-
lished pain as the necessary result OF the
knife was not the prevention of pa n a
violation of natural and therefore d1Vine
conditions? In this way conditions which
are primitive came to be regarded as more
divine than subsequent ones. Let US dis
cover says the ecclesiast, what was the
primitive condition of the church and re-
establish it In reality, the fact that a
condition was primitive is presumption
re- n m6thO
a series of steps each in advance Of the
preceding. The natural comes first, the
spiritual follows later. Nature is that
which is; the kingdom of God is that
which ought to be; and between the two
there is a great gulf fixed. Nature is not
Christian; see her Indifference to pain.
her waste her lack of sympathy.
IF there is an element in nature which
is divine, how can we find it? How can
we distinguish it from that which is the
mere stuff of the spiritual? BY training
know what is spiritual when we see it.
This higher element is not something
invented by man and added to things as
they naturally are, but is someth ng
which forms an integral part of them.
Religion is not an invention of priests.
but is as essential q part or human nature
as number. ReasonableneSS is not
fancy some people happen to nave, but
is the method of Gods thought, and there
fore the law of all true thinking. If God
dwells apart from and outside the world,
it will be true that whatever is human
is non-dfvineS, But if God dwells, through
his spirit, in the plan of nature and in the
better side of humanity. then nature, m
it's largest sense has Christian element.
"Our answer to the question with which
we started Will therefore depend upon the
meaning we4ggive to the word nature
If it means the condition Of things with
out mans stamp, the current course of
events, that which is, apart from the
SD ritual element in 1t, we may say that
it is not Chris tian-then it is merely stuff
to be worked over into spirituality. But
if we claim! a larger meaning for the
word, if nature is not only the sum, but
the soul of all things, then we must tri-
umphantly declare that we recognize
through t all "a plan, a spiritual element,
a presence of GOD. which in it's highest
manifestations christian. Then we shall
Christ as something perfectly natural
TAKES ANOTHER VIEW.
Rev Joseph. Hutchinson of New York,
folio wed He took the ground that ma
ture was not Christian, but in a profound
sense was deeply antagonistic to mans
higher life. Man by nature is not bad
Mans nature is divine creation. 1t can
not be called good or bad no more than
the moon or stars. Man must create his
own character and happiness. He is not
born complete Christian The history
of civilization obeys the law of evolution.
Within this movement there is moral
force which struggles and seeks to make
perfection possible. That which makes
Christianity possible is the conflict going
On between nature and the higher life
Our childlike notions OF the ideal life is
| false and tame. The struggle is mans
own attempt to create happiness and d
character He who surrenders to nature
ruins himself Our nature IS Christian as
by struggling with 1t we are able TO be-
come Godlke. Here is the history OF
| civilza tion which obeys the great law
| of evolution, which shows spiritual
| power struggling to mako Nitself felt.
| Do not be confused because men have
gone astray in. attempting to overcome
nature They have worked in wrong
way. God has given us this material of
nature to work properly with. The crea-
ton is nothing more than God leading
| His life SCIENCE is right when 1t says
| there is no moral quality In nature Yet
| nature is Gods enature, and there is, too,
| His character 2
PULsIM aoF GODS POWER.
/ Rev. Frank, "; Baker, of New Eaven,
! Conn.,, said ineIe
"Tne ordinary man either understands
! the forces esi nature or laws of nature.
/ 1t is apparent to all that the forcss OF
nature are the rulsng of Cots pw =