The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-10-05

who are religious in their emotions are
skepiical in their convictions-hearts and
brains working at cross purposes. For eX-
ample. Cardinal Newman was such man.
Intellectually he was an unbeliever; he
lived and died so. Emotionaiy he was a
Christian.
And iecause he could not quite give up
being a Christian in his heart" said Dr.
Parkhurst, "and could not easily be so in
his head he arranged with the Papacy TO
find a substitute for his brain-to be his
brain. lie fet for himself. but when il
came TO thinking he sublet that function
TO the Pope and the church.
Doubt and scepticism. DR. Parkhurst
held, existed in the Christian church. This
was growing every day, and Christians
found il hard to get away from their skep-
ticism and investigate the church. Touch
ing this point, he said:
II am not here TO make charges against
the Church, ancient or modern. Perhaps
the Church does not altogether understand
the world, and perhaps the word does not
altogether understand the church.
Dr. Parkhurs9 observed that sccptcsm
was due TO the advance of thinking among
people. and said:
THE pulpit to-day has to face a world
that is fairly ! believe more than usually,
honest in it's thinking and that is terribly
alert in iis thinking. Thought has a
great deal more respect for Itself than il
used to have. The tremendous victories
that il has achieved in the world of sci
entffic inquiry nave Sharpeued its sense
of intrinsic dignity and capabiity.
But" the Doctor continued, lin, view
of the magnificent victories which have
undoubtedly been humanity wrought in the
field of physical and metaphysical inquiry
reason ON religious ground is an unlicensed
iuterloper and in all religious matters Our
entire dependence must be on faith. When
a man crosses over into the territory of
the religious ID rather naturally irritates
and sours him to he told that reason is
too ordinary an implement 10 he carried
onto holy ground, and that It he wants
to enter so sacred a sanctuary he must
leave reason outside the door until he
comes out again. very much as one enter
ing gallery of choice pictures. we arc
told that we can go in by paying the en-
trance fec, but that we must leave our
umbrellas and walking-stocks In the rack
until we have finished with the museum.
Regarding faith, tho speaker said that
good many laymen are now insisting
upon knowing something of the underlying
intelligent grounds of faith. They want
to know what reasons ministers have for
believing as they do.
DR. Parkhurst closed with mild attack
on the infallibility of the Catholic Church
He said:
zone of the worst things the Catholic
Church ever did in its own interests was TO
vote infallibnity, and that too, entirely in
dependent OF the question TO whether
the Pope is or is not infallible. A great
deal of the feebleness of the Roman
Church to-day is due to the rigor of the
demands it has made on popular faith.
So long as the rank and file of the people
did no thinking the thing went along well
enough, but so soon as Intelligence began
to warm into action the masses commenced
to realize that the Church put upon them
a burden of faith for which the Church at
the same time furnished no intelligent
warrant The Church insisted upon faith
that was not an intelligent faith. Con-
sequenuy as intelligence extends among
the people the Catholic Church shows her
self TO be the mother of popular infdel-
ity Look at Spain, Italy, France and
Belgiuml
And this is entirely Independent of the
question whether the claims made upon
faith by the Romish Church are in them
selves reasonable or unreasonable. The
point Is that. whether in the Catholic
Church or Protestant Church, while faith
may reach a great way further forward
than intelligence can. faith is bound to
lose confidence after while If, upon look
ing back, it finds that intelligence is so
far behind as to be out of sight. Intell-
gence is not Christianity, but Christianity
must be Intelligent"