The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-10-24
IMMORTALITY.
The Christian Doctrine and the Pagan
spsculations.

Inc Christian DOCTRINE ana the Thkhh
spsculations.
To THE EDITOR OF THE suN-Sir: Mr..
Higgins says: The Jews originally had no
definite belief In the doctrine OF i'm mortality"
Neither In his latest nor In any other letter has
he proved the above assertion. Let us have
the proof. Isaid In one OF my communications,
when this objection was urged. that Voltaire.
Kant. and Schopenhauer and their followers
taught this. Hal6vy maintaine ed against Deren-
bourg and Renan that the jews believed In
Immortality. and he appealed to the Invocation
OF the dead and to the Valley OF the Sons OF
Hinnon. The patriarchs hoped to be gathered
to their fathers and obtain rest and happiness
In Jehovah. In Eccleslastes. xii. T. We read that
thu spirit shall return to God. The Psalmists
thoughts on the prosperity OF the wicked point
to future compensation In fact the whole
OF the Old Testament 10 incomprehensible
unless the Jews believed In imm ortality.
Yet shall admit for the sake OF argument
that the doctrine OF Immortality 10 not taught In
the Old or in tho New Testament. Surely 1t
does not therefore follow that the Jews did not
believe in the doctrine. Some future GiDbon.
or Macaulay. or Bancroft probably will not
mention the names OF Mr.. Higgins or "scho-
lasticus." Therefore future generations will
conclude they never existed!
Mr.. Higgins says: Both jews and Chris
fulness from the pagan world" Let us have
the proof. II the writer's OF the Jewish Script
ures had written treatise on imm ortality as
Plato had done. there would be some point IN
the objection But they did not.
Neither Jewish nor Christian Scriptures"
| says Mr.. Higgins. contain anywhere so cleara
statement OF the Chrttian's own doctrine as
can be found In pagan literature existing long
before the time Of Christ" Therefore. sup
1 al l.IG-
he wrote with more lucidity than the Jew.
This reasoning Is too subtle for me. But the
8 atement is not true. Plato said the soul OF
me world came from God by emanatIon. and
human souls emanated from tho mundane
soul Tia human souls committed faults and
were imprisoned in bodies. An irrational soul
| psyche diogOs-was united in the body with
soul originally rational-psyche lo0istike.
| The one was immortal. the other was
mortal Surely this is not Christian.
| Plato in ''Ph9do" and "Timpo" averred
| that the soul came from God and know all. but
it was placed in a body as a punishment. and
| then it forgot everything. and it has to learn
| everything anew. which he calls "reminiscences
| or recalling. The soul goes into the beasts or
the mans body LIB. 10. de rep) and after ten
| thousand years returns to its former body.
| Gallus said OF 1t. II began In nothing and ends
| in nothing Austin tells us that Zeno and the
| Stoics assumed the soul existed until tho body
was purified and then 1t was resolved into
| n,dtt1id prind. Then 1t vanished. fun,os evan
escere. Ovid "A Metz says that the blood
| less shades wandered without either body
| or bones. Austin tells us that many
| maintained that some souls became gods and
others devils The followers OF Pythagoras be-
| lieved In metempsychosis and palinRenesis.
| Ovid says we may take up eur abode In
| wild beasts or lodged In the breasts OF cattle.
Zeno thought the soul was Are: Xenoorates.
number: Aristocenus. harmony. Tertullian
and Hugo seemed to think It came er hdduce.
30 did Hippocrates and Avicenna. Galen as
sumes it to be tenn perature itself
| l wonder what pagan authors taught the
| Christian INN ortality. Let us have the names
OF the pagan authors who taught tho Chris
tans own doctrine" The pagans had q good
deal OF truth. Revelation" says Newman. rs
not local but a universal gift 1t would seem
there Is something true and divine!y revealed
in every religion. all over the Garth. The orig
| inal traditions have been terminated by COM
| munications from the unseen world. There
| have been poets and saRes and sbyls to GER
tain extent inspired" Bilheart says the sibyl-
| line books are not flotions OF Christians
Augustine quotes them. God. therefore.
| did not leave the pagan without light
to guide his feet. Plato sighed for the divine
| one. anu ARISTOTLE when uylnR calleu upon the
Cause OF Causes to pity him.
THE Socratic Scriptures" says Mr. Higgins.
have the fullest and clearest possible state
ment. almost II not identical with tho detailed
belief OF the orthodox Christian" In another
letter he said the popular Christian doctrine
on soul was found in tho discourse OF
Socrates. l will simply say that Socrates
has left no writings to posterity. and we
have to depend on Plato and Xenophon
for our knowledge OF his phi ilosophy We
learn from Xenophon tMemorab. l.. 4. sec. 9, 8
IV..3. sec.14l that Socrates taught that the soul
is OF a higher order of essence than any other
thing. for 1t 10 divine being. or at least par
ticlpant OF the divinity. This is certainly not
Christian teaching. But let us admit that
Socrates taught the Christian doctrine Of i'm
mortality. To my mind 1t shows God did not
abandon man in the dark night that preceded
| CHI istianity.
What the Jews and Christians finally got "
says Mr.. Higgins. they seem undou btedly to
have absorbed from these pagans." Tho ques
ton Is. did they? Let US have the proof Note
the words: Seem undoubtedly" Josh Bill
linRs would designate the wording as conser-
vative. III you are right" says that great
philosopher. you cannot be too radical II you
are wrong, you cannot be too conservative
| TRENTON. Oct. 10. SCHOLARSHIPS.