The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1904-07-20
A SERMON FOR SUNDAY
AN ELOQUENT DISCOURSE ENTITLED
THE UNIVERSAL IN RELIGION"

The Rev. c. L. Palmer Directs Attention
to Certain Forms OF Doctrines Com
mon to All-Every System of Religion
Has Some Conception of God.
KINGSTON, N. Yin the Reformed
Church of the Comforter on Sunday morn
ing the Rev. c. L. Palmer preached a
scholarly discourse entitled 1.-THE Univer-
sal in Religion"
Tylor, in Primitive Culture, says: "He
who only knows one religion can no more
understand that religion, than he who only
understands one language can master that
language" By which he means, that one
cannot adequately appreciate any system
of faith and practice without some knowl-
edge of the history, doctrines and customs
of systems other than his own, any more
than one can master his native tongue
without any knowledge of its cognates.
1t Is undeniable that a study Of the various
systems discloses a religious substratum
student is willing to be deprived.
The population of the world is estimated
at 1885,, OO0, 900. Of this number l0O, 0O0, 900
are pagan or heather, which represents the
very lowest grade Of humanity. There are
supposed to be 49, 0O, 900 Brahmans. The
nominal and professed followers OF Buddah
and Confucius are estimated at 420, 1000, 900.
Mohammedans number more than 200, 900,
600. Christians, including Roman Cath
olic, Greek Church and Protestant, are
computed at 400, OO0, 900. The whole Of
Eastern Asia is occupied by the Buddhists,
India by the Brahmans, Africa, Australia
and the South Sea Islands by the pagan
tribes. Parts Of Europe, Asia and Africa
BY the Mohammedans, the largest part of
Europe and America by Christians.
The conservative classihcation5 of the re-
ligions of the world were such as these
true and false religions, natural and super.
natural, pagan and revealed, spiritual and
superstitious. Such a classification Is not
only confusing to the student Of compare
system contains some truth. A better
classification is: J.. Tribal. 2. Ethnic.
8. Catholic. The tribal includes all sys-
TENS which have no ritual, priesthood,
creed, sacred writings, architecture or
music. The ethnic religions are confined
to one nation; such, for example, was the
religion of Egypt, which for a thousand
years was limited to its national borders.
The system of Assyria was confined to
Assyria; the religion of Greece was con-
fined to the Hellenic race; that of Rome
to the Romans; of Confucius to China;
Brahmanism is confined to India, and the
faith of the Eddas was limited to the
Scandinavian or Teutonic races. The
Catholic systems, in spirit and method,
know no limit in either time or ter
ritory. They aspire to conquer the
world. Such were Moses, Zoroaster, Bud
dab, Mohammed and Jesus. Ethnic relig-
ions were evolved out of their own hfe.
Catholic systems were formulated, intro
duced and promulgated by an inspired
prophet.
It is not my purpose to trace the origin
of religion, the evolution or development,
or to compare the merits of each, but to
very briefly direct attention to certain
forms or doctrines common to all.
Such conception is either just or unjust,
true or false, right or wrong, though no
faith, even among the most degraded, is en-
tirely destitute of some truth concerning
God. Christianity is the one system which
has an adequate disclosure of the attrl-
butes of Jehovah, because Jesus became in.
rarnate the reveal the Father. He that
hath seen Me hath seen the Father" And
even Christianity cannot condense in a
single definition a comprehensive descrip-
ton of the Supreme Being, for the idea is
not simple but complex. The lowest con-
:eption of God is known as animism, which
is belief in spiritual powers as opposed to
materialism. IT. is the unformulated no.
ton of the most undeveloped tribes, and
has no place in the Christian system ex-
rept as clarified and perfected in angel
ology and ~demonoloey. Polytheism ls
found principally in the ethnic systems.
In Egypt the divine elements were seen
dwelling in nature. The Greek deities
were not presentations, but persons, d.
vine men and women. In the Vedlc
Hymns of India the forces of nature are
spiritualized into objects of reverence and
love. The most marked form of %pantheism
appears in the Hindu religion, which is
in its extreme development, that the uni
verse is God, and God is the universe.
Christian science SAVIOR of it. The doc
trine of the divine imminence may be so
forced as to eliminate the personality OF
God. Ditheism is belief in two hostile
powers which was a tenet of Zoroastrian-
ism. Triads appear in the ethnic and Cath
Dlic systems. The Christian doctrine of the
trinity is a necessary and natural eoncep-
ton of God, and becomes clear if it is
understood to represent Him as one in es-
senee but three in form. Monotheism Is
principally characteristic Of the Catholic
systems, though traces are found in the
pagan and ethnic. Deeply imbedded in
every heart is the convit- Ion of an Al
mighty personality, and that such person;
atty is back of all forms and images, and
that the latter becomes ethcacious because
of the power of God.
All possible theories about the origin Of
the universe are reducible to four. !.
That it had no beginning, but has always
existed either in its present or another
form. While the eternity of matter has
been advocated by some it has never be-
come a popular belief, and it does not ap-
peal to modern science. But among the
primitive tribes we presume, many think
of the handiwork of God without COM
mencement and elimination. 2. That it
came by a process of evolution. This the
DRY had been modified in recent years by
Biblical scholars and philosophical think
ers, with the result of a most hearty &C
ceptance on the part of some thorough
studenas and devoted scientists. 8. An
other view is that it came by q process
of emanation. The difference between evo-
luton and emanation seems to be, that the
former is o growth up to and including q
certain completeness, while the latter be-
gan with the dark abyss of infinite being,
and by means of a series of emanatlons or
fallings away from this inconceivable first
essence, gradually reached an lntellgenG
Creator and all intelligent creation" This
theory is Oriental in its origin, appearing
first in the cosmogony Of the Hindus. 4.
Conservative Christian scholars are d.
vided on this doctrine. Some hold that
God created, that is, actually made,
brought into existence, the material out
of which all things were formed. Others
hold that He simply cut, carved and fash
Toned the universe out of ~pre-existing ma
terial. 1t is difficult to say just what form
is acceptable to the majority Of Christian
scholars. Evolution as we now understand
it is certainly accepted by men whose sim
cerity we cannot question and whose schol-
arship commands universal admiration.
There is a spirit in man and the inspira-