Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1899-11-02

Build it UP,
In thine own soul build il up again:
new course Of life begin
With fresh, unclOuded sense,
And let new songs arise
In place OF those that are silenced.
That is the task which now presses
upon every man who has claimed TO
think for himself \ faith he must
have and one that is adequate TO 81
the needs of life, for its adversely as
well as prosperity, for its sickness and
! old age as well as its youth and health,
and having refused those which have
| been imposed upon him he must build
one himself.
The demand of man today is for the
rational. If a theory, Il policy, an
action is reasonable. it commands
sympathy and support, if not. men
stand aside from it and leave it alone
We act in this way because life has
! become rational and can only move in
! the direction of what is reasonable.
And the first thing we need to
understand is the doubt that has
arisen within US. What is it? How
and why has it come? What does it
mean? Here it is, a fact of the intel
lectual life: it is folly to denOunce it:
! it is cOwardly to ignore it: we must
! not be afraid Of it, but face it. look
| into it. then what do we learn? Why,
we discover that it is the only path to
a real faith.
Now just let us step close up to this
spectre doubt and as we put few
questions you will see the ghOStly
aspect disappear unwilling an angel Of
light.
Why do doubt? Why have l lost
| faith in any old ideas? WHY not con-
tinue to be content with them? How
have | grown to be dissatisfied? | can
only find one answer to these questions,
one cause of these intellectual
changes, and that is, the presence in
! the mind of Il larger truth. \ fuller
| light has illumined the mind and re-
vealed the defects of previous think
ing. More than that, the new light
has given a glimpse of a grander
! truth. While we have lost something.
we have gained more than we lost.
The old is never doubted until some
thing better is seen. 1t is the daWning
light which reveals the darkness. 1t
is the growth of truth within us that
causes doubt. Before man can say
that is not true he must have some
knowledge of what is true. The
criticism of a belief means the
presence of a higher faith which
judges it,
The agnostic is unconscious of this
when he says, Il do not know and
cannot know anything beyond
phenomena. God and Immortality,
if they be true they are beyond the
reach of my powers.
But how does he know that? He
cannot without going over the bound
aries of bis ignorance.
The teacher gives your boy a
question to anSWer-a problem to
solve. He replies, [ cannot do it.
do not know the answer. You observe
he is conscious he does not know it.
and what is that consciousness of
ignorance? There is more in it than
we see at first sight. The fact that he
knows his ignorance is SuggeStiVe-it
implies that the realm Of knowledge
is open to him, it is the dawn OF
knowledge which reveals his ignOr-
ance-Which is d prophecy that it will
shine more brightly. The boys in
creaSing ability TO answer questions
and solve problems is proof of that.
1t is in this way that Tennysons
lines are true. There is more faith in
honest doubt than in mere creed
because in honest doubt there is intel
lectual life and earnestneSS-the
enQuiring Spirit-the search for truth,
while cOntentment with form OF
words is intellectual StagnatiOn.
And SO everywhere doubt means the
unfolding of a higher larger truth, a
voice speaks through it to the per-
picked and warns him not to rest in it
or turn back to the old life when on
the very borders of the ''PrOmised
Land" That voice assures us it is the
, beginning of journey into new lands.
every stage of which grows in interest
and delight. [ invite you to enter
with me into this wide, illimitable
domain.
"Who loves not knowledge? Who sh II raj
Against her beauty? May she mix
With men and prosper! WHO shall fix
Her pillars? Let her work prevail.