The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1899-12-04

deemed q synonym for ignorance. but It
is not. II Is true that the less enlight-
encd In all the worlds history have conn
m9 naI;sr been the most supers,tn,tiouss; yet
most cultured person within my hearing
Will honestly catechise himself he viii
a ssn'a ~, that there are moments when he
deed but the reaching out of the soul for
that which lies beyond 1t Is the strug-
gle Of the soul within us to commune
haps. springs the instinct OF worship
which has existed In all ages. among all
people; our most primitive ancestors
scious struggle of the soul to worship.
Faith snd Hope Immortal.
Faith is one OF the attributes Of the
soul which bespeaks its Immortality. BY
tho term faith I do not mean simply
the mind by which We ' are convinced WINGED OF Of
the truth OF things which seem probable
or which persuade the reason, but rather
after anS 81 @ hs hna Sn or
unseen and which to human and purely
physical perception are unknown, or even
,u.n IN The faith Of the child in
strong; the faith of an army in its leader.
are all manifestations OF n faculty not
born Of reason, but akin to love. The
the providence of God and the wisdom
of hts laws Is but the outward expression
OF faculty at once human and divine,
peIonging 70 the mortal. but begotten Of
''And so likewise Of hope. It has been
said by. one who was metaphysician
at the fountain OF human emotions:
Nope springs eternal in the human
breast II does. indeed. spring eternal,
it's manifestations in human 0 life with.
out the conviction that 1t transcends the
grave ana bafiies death: that the soul
nifty and extends beyond the grave unto
"And what shall I say Of lover Love
that kindles the heart OF the .child-love
woof OF the mothers life-love that makes
the strong man tender and converts the
woman into an angel! 1t extends beyond
embraces within SIS compass the broader
principles OF fraternity and OF charity,
the principles which bind together our
Brotherhood with imperishable and Inn
mutable chains. Who shall say that love
is not divine? Who shall say that though
the heart may cease to beat-though death
may dissolve the body, the soul that in
spires and anirnates 1.-THE soul that loves.
shall not live forever?
Mercy the Strongest Evidence.
But to my mind, that attribute Of the
human soul which affords one Of the
strongest evidences Of immortalty-which
next to love, At least. is the most divine
10 mercy. 1t Is perhaps the most God-like
quality Of the human soul. What strong
and generous man has not felt its sacred
touch-who that has transgressed--who
that has wronsed another. or consciously
violated moral law. has not felt the inn
pulse to plead for mercy?" The speaker
here aptly quoted the famous speech Of
Venice" He continued:
And conscience. Who has not felt its
nonition--who has not heard its still, small
voice? The child hears 1t and by natures
instruction
wrong. The adult hears 1t and heeds or
suffers the penalty of his transgression. 1t
is planted in the breast of the untutored
savage. as well as in the breasts OF the
cultured and the wise. 1t Is the infinite
monitor. Life cannot transcend it nor
death destroy 1t.
1T have not sought to enter into any
didactic discussion. nor to invade the realm
of metaph! sizes. 1t has been my aim
to appeal alone to the simpler evidences
which come within the conscious experi-
ence of all mankind. and offer themselves
as proofs of this essential portion of the
creed Of our brotherhood--the Immortality
of the soul.
'As we here contemplate 1t, why should
we bemoan the dead? They ask not our
sympathy--they ask not our tears Their
places are vacant and we are left to fill
them. Their duties 1t Is for us to discharge
let us discharge them generously That
we may do so tho better, We seek the sun
shine-not the shadow; We are cheerful,
hopeful, happy--never forgetting the duties
we hold sacred. We esteem 1t equally a
privilege and q duty to take UP life's bur-
dens with happy hearts-to be fun-loying
and mirth- provoking. For these things
our order has sometimes been criticised.
but we bear the criticisms, for we know
they are wrong. With such faith as ours
we shrink not from the call of duty. With
such faith the brave man fears not
death, but exclaims with the heroism OF
the apostle:
40 death, where is thy sting?
o grave, where is thy victoryT
1--WE desire the esteem of others, but II
we have Il not. we snall not hesitate or
nor in the discharge of our duties to the
living. And now. my brothers. let me con-
clude as began:
others,
Sleeping, perchance, but never dead,
Will rise In ma iesty to meet Your own I, -