The Farmville herald. [volume] (Farmville, Va.) 1890-1934, 1903-06-12
THOUGHTS.

In primal ages. when man dweli alone
Aud TO the Unknown Spirit Vo'eei'Ss'
prayed,
with simple heart, halftusting' half
afraid
Each sacred sigh ascending to Gods ihf""'
Zach gentle aspiration 70 atone
Seemed by responsive trees 20 BE- delayed
Wherefore, beneath their deep mysterious
shade
Man made him humble gods Of wood and
stone.
Man wiser grown, up-looklng, little sees
BEYOND Nights sentinels IN solemn march'
But sim with sprnging arch and carving
puilt I'M .omblance OF those woodland
neom. ,bat meath fretted niche and dusky
arch
His God can better near the voice Of pf's'''
It's quite easy to understand how
idols came into existence. The early
man pulling over the mystery Of his
existence and the unseen yet powerful
influences that surrounded him, ascrio-
ed each Of the various acts Of nature 10
separate God Then being short
sighted spiritually he could not sue
cessfully imagine TO himself an unseen
God. but he could imagine a person IKE
himself or like the creatures arouhu
him. and so he moulded for hlmsei
very crudely his idea Of the Deity. Ills
next step was to ascribe power to these
things Of stone or wood and as he could
not ascribe any qualities to them eN-
cent such a. he himself understood IN
himself, the idol became gifted by MN
with human qualities exaggerated. II
the Godhead was supposed to hght' he
was the victor and not the victim; u
the Godhead was supposed to loye he
loved more ardenlly than the man.
Having ascribed to the idol human
or animalish qualities without limit
these powers given to the idol lea 10
excuses on the pa Of those worship
ing the idol and therefore deeming 1t
worthy imitation; hence, nearly all
forms Of idolatry have led to eXcesses'
some Of them SO bestial that we hard
Inv dare to think Of idolatry as 1t once
existed widely and still does exist III
heather or savage tribes.
In thinking Of the human family, IL
is altogether impossible 20 leave out OF
consideration the period ofidolatryi Tor
| il represents one Of the many steps OF
humanity upward. The man VINO
pictures to himself Deity has at least
thoughtof the Deity. That much Is
a gam. When he has progressed
spiritually, he will recognize the an
surdity Of plcturlng the Master OF the
Universe in a grotesque and lowly form.
When his heart has risen to the iull
sense Of unity with this great Mater Of
, all. he will no longer for amoment con-
slider the possibility Of interpreting MS
heart aspirations into stupid stock
or stone. When he enters into the
, thought that this universe Is con-
I trolled by an intelligent spirit, every
, where near to everyone aspiring, ne
o will see the impossibility OF picturlng
/. such a Being.
Q In other words, the worship Of IDOLS
r the decoration churches with images,
. the alteration Of sacred pictures, the
r use Of forms and ceremonies, are all
passing tendencies Of the human race
4 Those who use images to help theil
y Worship are on the road Of progress but
v are many steps behind those who neeo
no place, nor building, nor picture, mol
e image to help their aspirations towards
n Cody grandeur Of life.
,e But those who have reached The
~ higher stage cannot afford to speak jeer
Al ingIy or sneeringly Of those who an
. less high. The way to lift to the high
TO er stage those who are lower is to recog
1. nize that they belong as much to th
m aspiring scale Of humanity as thos
lt more spiritual and to honor them col
dially aud sincerely for the ideas I
y. which they have already attained
IN Generations Of men have come AM
/ gone while the idea Of God as separa'
-r ed from images has been deyelopin
and all along the way those who hay
is helped forward to the more spiritu'
in understanding are entitled to prais
aud entitled to recognition for gradu
re- ally building up the solid platform
Ter spiritual belief upon which the preseI
rh heirs Of all the ages now stand. III
an truly noble despise none of their fe
lows; they always seek for light in IL
a darkness. they always look for Il
of promise Of dawn, they ever belle'
lse that darkness is simply the absence
light and that light will dispel it.
lin To throw ridicule over the worship
at another is remote from big souled pc
lev nile. for such recognise full well that
each heart may Turk some sort OF id'
ter worshipped unseen and never interPr'
pa. ed into shape Of clay or stone or woo
of The idol Of old with evil qualities wea
lie ened the moral character Of his We
ar shippers, the idol within is exacti
ck- and can be enervating, when we la
md dethroned within all that is we
then may we harshly eriticise O
TO weaker brethren; but as showing
her Tightening effect Of higher life We lh
ch. never feel like criticising at all, kno
ing the wrench and the battle need
to place our own feet where they n
5. stand.
VII
,ore Herald and y. Y. World, Sl.GO.