Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1902-01-25
PROF, rEARsoN's DoUBrsH


bio. Tie has nor advanced anything new
on that side Of an apparently intermin-
able controversy. nor has he presented
hts arguments with more telling effect
than dld yoltaire Paine, lngcrsoll and
others. each IN his day and generation,
But the fact that MI Pearson IS an In
structor Of young men and women IN
a Methodist institute Of learning, at
tracts much attention TO his case.
The professor as quoted IN Chicago
papers. says the Bible 90 The most prec-
iou4 OF an books but rs great spiritual
treasures are in an eavthen vessel
There are tares among the Bible wheat
hs such tares he considers the stories
OF miracles inddels Always claim not
10 believe IN miracles though their very
existence may be miracle The stories
of the fiery furnace the ravens of
Elijah the dividing Of the waters and
many other miracles are especially
pointed to as "mytbs' The professor
does not hesitate TO say that ne must
be very bold or a yety ignorant man
who win assert that he believes that
these accounts are literally true And
yet the most enlightened men in every
age have believed in the Bible,
The question Of miracles Is pretty
well threshed ont In the theological lit
erature Of the ages II miracles are lm-
possible, belief IN the existence OF God
Ia absurd. For II God knows no more
about the laws Of nature than men do,
and consequently IL In his actions linz
tied to the sphere within which mortals
operate, He Is not God But If He has
wisdom and power far transcendIng the
boldest conceptions of man. then the
discussion about The possibility OF mir
acles Is idle, In fact, we are surround.
ed by miracles ON all sides. Everywhere
we perceive facts, which human Wis
dom cannot explain, nor human power
initiate
The very establishment Of the Chris
tian religion in the world 10 as great a
miracle as any recorded in authentic
sacred writ
a French writer puts this very fore
ibly He supposes meeting between
Jesus Of Nazareth ana an eminent phil
osopher, The latter asks the Master
about His plans for the propagation Of
the Gospel, and is told OF the means by
which He expected to conquer the
world, Then he exclalms
"That is TO say. you propose to en-
tighten the wise through the ignorant;
conquer the strong through those who
are weak attract the multitudes by
battling against their vices, you pro-
pose TO make adherents by promising
them suiferlngs. contempt, lgnomlny and
death. 1t IL your purpose TO dethrone
ell the Olymplan gods and 10 be adored
in their stead you, who, according 20
your own words must be fastened TO a
| cross as u malefact0r and the basest OF
slaves, Come your plan Is but folly Il
WIN he Justly, the object of public
laughter Before this can succeed hui
man nature must be recast. The ref0r-
| nation OF the moral world by the means
| YOU propose. rs az Impossible as the
change of this material world And
rather than believing In the success NJ
your undertaking. l would believe that
you could, with a word shatter the
earth and make 70 fall from the firma-
ment the sun and the stars
To human philosophy the establish
ment Of the Church by the means God
had appointed, looked about as impos-
shle as that But It was done. The
miracle was performed and history
bears record Of the fact That miracle.
which cannot be denied, could depend
only on another the resurrection Of Je-
sus, whereby He proved His divine
mission, But II the resurrection Is ad-
mtted no well attested miracle needs
TO be doubted
Prof .Pearson's position Is that held by
a great many people who believe that
their knowledge and their understand
ing are the proper standards for mea-
surfing truth, What they do not under
stand and cannot explain must, for
sooth. necessarily be myth, Testimony
is TO them worthless. They viii accept
nothing but what they have seen OF
heard themselves Necessarily their
knowledge viii be limited. Their ad.
yancement must be slow, In other
than religious matters, they are ready
enough to profit by the experience and
research Of others. but in religion they
are Thomases They must see for them.
selves, before they can believe that
their brethren speak the truth. To q
certain extent scepticIsm may be ex.
cusable and even beneficial, but II Il
detrimental to progress to carry It toe
far The wanderer that hastens on
ward to a goal still far away cannot
stop 70 look at every pebble in hii
path. though he may carefully lool
for any landmark that tells hin
whether he Is on the right road or not
And II he finds that he is following II
the footsteps Of the noblest spirits
that ever lived. including the Son o.
God Himself. he need not fear thai
he Is straying from the truth.