The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1902-11-24

purpose we have In loving God IL TO he
perfect even as He Ii perfect
In other words the purpose is one of
realizing our own self-hood
The promise comes therefore to the
tbs light OF the divine that all things Will
help him toward that realization.
THE GREAT PROMISE.
That is the great promise IL is the
noblest and loftiest man can conceive.
Measure II with the conception that we
can do as We please and all will end well
Measure II with the conception that tine
tendency OF the society and the world IL
on the side OF the careless and sinful
Hives and see how II towers In grandeur
above every thought or conception 70
which The mind can lend itself As the
Jungfrau towers above the foothills OF
the Alps, az Rome I'm pristine splendor
compares with the hamets on our west
tern prair.es. "a the character OF Marcus
Aurelius suspasses the character OF his
dssoluto and profilgate son. so this prom
ise eclipses the idle hopes and the deep
eclipses the Idle hopes and he deep de-
spairs OF those who on the one hand 30
not think and those who on the other
hand do not think rightly.
Individually. however. this may mean
much or little. IL all depends on what
ideal or purpose we have chosen. IL
must be Gods purpose. III our concep-
tion of the end OF life 10, TO be usheIeu
through vale OF tears without one er-
fort 10 turn the dreary waste into a
Baca. a glad and helpful oasis. and then
escap ping that To reach land OF pure ue-
light where saints immortal reign, cOIl-
cepton that I'm worth is below that or
our evolution any utilitardan ethics. this
means nothing TO US.
TWO SCHOOLS OF ETHICS
Thee are two very important schovis
OF ethics in our day and their adherents
may be numbered by millions. The one
which calls itself unitarian and classes
itself ofttimes with thoroughgving
evolutionary materialism OF the times
says that happiness Is the end OF HE.
That that Is the true goal OF living. To
secure the greatest happiness for tne
greatest number Is to be deserving Of the
plaudits OF men and the well done of The
gods.
The school OF idealism insists that tn-
realization OF selfhood Is the aim OF our
mortal struggle. IL IL necessary 60 men
tion the general trend OF thought al
where we stand. want 10 point ont
jus. here the position that some people
actually hold I'm their conceptions OF
Christian faith. In a great city We may
live for years at number 30 and not know
who lives at number ~ on the same
street. In the multitudes of creeds and
ph.lcsOl hies ard sects we may choose
one ciced. ally ourselves with a certain
r,ct without knowing what kind OF incl
lect1al neighbors we have adopted
The conception OF Heaven that has been
preached N our puipits for centuries is a
that has held out happiness.
even pleasure. an inferior term, as tue
f,,G a. ~
meant saying TO the so called sinner,
how foolish you are. You are seeking
your good time now. We are waiting
and sacrificing and we shall enjoy these
things through all eternity while you are
burning down below"
BETTER FOR HUMANITY.
Something's look grim when you push
them 10 their logical conclusion. but IL
some OF our social and political and reli-
gious creeds of today were forced to the
wall and revealed in their logical outcome
IL would be better for humanity SO far
indeed have we departed from the ideal
Of the ethics OF Jesus that we have an
Ideal that exactly corresponds with the
most heretical syster' OF ethics TO be
found I'm modern thought. The concep-
ton OF a heaven that insures all this has
been considered extremely orthodox and
we have here the remarkable spectacle OF
the most orthodox of Chris endom and
the most heret'cal OF materialism yoked |
together
The same holds true in connection with |
Calvinism. IL has been considered n |
mark Of orthodoxy to reject the doctrine |
NJ natural selection. But the exact coun- |
terpart OF the doctrine Of evolution In the |
scientific world Is the doctrine OF predes- |
tination In the world Of religion.
TO BE CONSISTENT.
In the name of truth let us be con-
sistent. III happiness alone IL our heaven
and election. our creed. let us throw one
arm around evolutionary ethics and the
other around evolutionary science and
embrace our brethren.
There is no JOY or peace or happiness
within us For that reason for those
noble souls who in meekness and humil-
ity arouse the latent divinity within them
and come forth clothed with righteous
ness. heaven the realm OF character, the
field OF realized selfhood, will be flooded
with Joy and happiness. But to seek
is to miss both. There is no true ideal
offered to men that does not include hap
piness but there is no true ideal that Is
not more than happintss. repeat that
IL Is only for those who have accepted
that goal OF self as IL is revealed I'm the
perfect man. Jesus Christ that all
things. work together to help him realize
But do they? How many men and wo-
men here who have known the sting or
crnel and hitler adversely in The hour OF
their most heroic effort Temptations
seem TO cluster and th!cken most when
We kneel In prayer or seek To tighten the
burden OF another. We start well. but
chance or accident seems 70 thrust us
into some position where we are tempted
on our weakest side and fall. IL | had
been spared the tempta ton Of that one
glass. says the drunkard. / might have
lived an honorable life. IL | had been
spared the cravings OF that one day of
hunger. SAYS the thief. | might not have
now been behind the bars OF my prison.
We fail In business, Illness racks us.
death cuts down the strongest and brav
est OF our friends. and like a ship with
her sails rent and her anchor In the
bottom OF the sea we founder and sink