The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1899-05-18
THE TIMIDITY OF SIN.
It's Love of the Dark and Its Hy-
pOcrisy a Testimony to the Ex-
ceIIence of Goodness.

Moral evil never dares be itself. 1t
always seeks to take on the garb OF
virtue. Wickedness is naturally timid.
1t skulks and hides itself, loving dark
ness rather than light. Evils ashamed
Of itself except in the most depraved
natures; and where it ceases TO feel
shame, the fact is commonly due to its
having found an environment in which
there is nothing to rebuke it. How
commonly do the wolves of greed and
cruelty put on sleeps clothing! How
natural for Satan to fashion himself
into an angel of light!
This behavior of evil is an unwilling,
and commonly an unwilling testi-
mony to the excellence of goodness.
The evil man, by his efforts to palm off
his sin as something which is, on the
whole, justifiable, pays a forced honor
to the virtue which he would fain coun-
terfeit This is the truth which I'M
derlies the shrewd proverb: "Hypoc-
risy is the homage which vice pays to
virtue" Hypocrisy arises from fear
and dread of evil to stand forth in its
true character and from its effort to
parade in the garments of goodness
and truth. Such an effort assumes that
evil is really blameworthy and con-
temptible, and that goodness is the rea-
sonable, normal and right thing. 1t is
a tacit confession that sin has no right
in the world, that it is an intruder and
pretender. Sin is a confessed I'M
poster, who knows that his strength
and success lie in concealing his real
nature by Stimulating the appearance of
virtue
One cannot closely observe the evil
Of the world without finding these
principles illustrated. Evil is COM
PEELED by its very nature to attempt a
self-justification. The liar explains his
lying as necessary and justitiable I'M
der the circumstances, and therefore
rs good and not evil. The thief repre-
sents that he stole from stress of temp
tation. or because the world owes him
\ living. and he was, compelled to force
he collection of the debt. The monster
Of selishness points to the instinct of
Self-preservation, and explains that he
must look out for the interests of those
dependent upon him. The murderer
ills in self-defense. The drunkard ex-
suses his, debauchery by considerations
Of social fellowship and good cheer.
Evil never seeks to justify itself as
vii. 1t dare not stand boldly forth be-
! |, oil al, M 4
proclaim itself for what it is. Before
men can defend sin they must somehow
transform it, ia their ina ginations, into
goodness, or, at least, into a pardon
able necessity, which is regarded as
rood when all the circumstances are
considered. This is the fact which I'M
1erlies the saying that there can be
no eloquence in the defense of evil as
such. The advocate who would defend
criminal must seek to turn some
light upon his deed in which it shall
appear to have been right before he can
try to persuade men to condoneit.
Such considerations disclose the real
nature of sin. 1t is q perversion; it is
a wrong use of the Sivinely given fac
ulty of freedom, together with the ac-
cumulated consequences of this misuse;
it is a yielding to wrong motives and
choice of false objects; tits, therefore,
essentially unreasonable; it is the eff
fort to realize the goal of life by a
path which leads in the wrong direc-
ton. Hence sin is described in the BIZ
Bile by words which mean missing of
the mark. The import of these words
suggests that sin is failure. 1t can
not really succeed; its successes are
only apparent Sin is the effort to re-
alize an absurdity, and that can never
be done because it is contrary to the
make of the world, and the very nature
of things.
Thus it appears that sin is self-stulti-
flying. 1t cannot help confessing itself
fraud and a deception. In this re
spect, it is like any other absurdity.
Take, for example, a proposition which
contradicts the laws of thought or the
aXioms of mathematics, such as the
statement that change may occur
without cause, or that two plus two
make five. Of course, any person can
make such a statement in words who
wishes to do so. Yet we rightly say that
he stultifies himself in so doing be-
cause he affirms what is irrational and
impossible of application. All argu-
ments and conclusions which are based
upon false premises must be fallacious,
however plausible they may be made
to appear. In like manner, though evil
courses of action may secure the re-
suits which they contemplate, such as
the achievement of fame or the accumu-
lation of wealth, they can never sue
coed in attaining the true goal of life,
the true good. the best growth and
highest Happiness of man.
The ultimate reason for this is very
simple but very profound. is because