The Olneyville times. (Olneyville [Providence, R.I.]) 1887-1917, 1904-05-20
cressing luxury and sehin6ulgenee. Tbs
i. reproduced in VARYING degrees in everv

little esteem, and the church is neglected
by thousands who once gave II their sup
port and by thousands more who, IN the
natural course Of life, should be among its
supporters In the churches there Is q
lack Of spiritual fervor and 4 decline Of
faith in God.
i think that have not mis-stated the
actual conditions. With no taint OF pessi-
mism in my mood: on the contrary. with
high appreciation OF all the good in the
present life OF our country, | am forced 10
the conviction that there is great need now
OF a revival of true religion. What does
this meang What Is the religion revival
of which we NEEDY Ii Is great and con-
trolling sense Of God. as the Creator, Sow
ereign, Father and Saviour Of the soul
The nineteenth century was distinguished
by the emergencies of a new and deeper
sense OF the worth of man. This dramatic
ally began in the upheaval OF the French
Revolution. IL was manifested IN the
growing demand for popular liberty, in the
rise OF the worklngman: IN the extension
of political suffrage IN the development of
popular education, In the rapid growth OF
the Sunday-school. in the spread of the
missionary spirit, IN new care Tor chill
dren, m prison reform, IN the breaking
down Of religious exclusiveness and the
tyranny of dogma, and IN many other
ways. The twentieth century calls for
source and law and goal Of human exist
ence, both individual and social.
We need 4 reperception Of the reality of
God in the world Avowed atheism. the
positive denial of God. is rare; practical
atheism is common. Many men have not
God in all their thoughts They have
widened idea OF law IN the universe, hut II
Is vague and impersonal. They need to re-
alize afresh the integrity of the divine gov
ernment. There is a divine government Of
the world-a government that makes for
good and against evil. that Is the founda'
ton and source Of all just human law, that
is the ground Of individual and social re-
sponsibhty and that rewards righteous.
ness and Furnishes wickedness.
This sense of God as a sovereign must
he vitalzed ty the sense Of God as the In
finite Person. If | seem 10 limit the di'
vine Being by using terms that are prop
erly applicable only 10 finite being and hu.
man modes of thought, II is 10 be said
that the term personality does not neccs-
sarly imply any limitation. We must think
of God under forms OF our own rational
and moral being, and our very nature de
mands the answer of divine person To
the persistent and illimltable needs of the
human person.
For a time many have lost the personal
God in impcrsonal law and impersona'
force. The divine immanence IL grasped
i'm way that excludes the Complementary
idea of transcendcnce. There cannot bt
real transccndence without personality
The being who thinks and wills and loves
even IN finite limits, rs greater than an I'm
personal universe Man is greater than
God If God be only law. But he Graves
deity whom he can revere and trust anc
love with all the force Of personal being
As the mind needs and demands the fun
damental conception of unity IN order 20
rational Interpretation OF the world; ai
the conscience needs and demands the
sense Of universal and inviolablc law. sc
the heart needs and demands the con
scousness Of n perfect and responsive
Coodness--the Almighty FathcT-maniiest
ing and exercising compassion, love anc
providence and revealing Himself in com
munion with His child. These expression,
must have vivid meaning as expressions OF
reality The rule Of God Is in and over the
soul as well as IN and over the material
world. and this rule is the manifestation
Of God as the Holy Spirit.
We need a renewed sense OF the reality
Of revelation az a past and present conmu
nication C. the divine will to man. A mere
historic God is remote and ineffective. He
must bc contemporary. II lie spoke once
He must still speak not in ways of thco.
phany and miracle, but in ways that are
authentic and authoritative 10 conscious
ness. This does not invalldate historic
revelation hut 1t clears IL OF error and con-
fusion Jesus represents and embodlcs
both He knew the historic revelation as
u was expressed IN the life and literature
Of the Hebrew people. and in some meas
urc formed His thought on its disclosures
of the divine nature and Will But He
knew ALSO its defects and limitations, and
He knew God Immediately, as man may
lcgtimatclv and naturally know HIM, be
cause He is Gods child. So there " need
Of new scnsc Of Jesus as man IN full COM
munion with God
We need a new sense OF the reality ot
sin, not az n Fictitious condition OF guilt
and subiection 10 penalty brought about
by the fall OF primitive man, but as an act
ual fact Of experience and quality OF char
acter-as impcrfectIon, Inharmony with the
divine law, selhshncss and wilfulness and
shame We have so recently reconcclvcd
our origin and our relation TO nature that,
for the present, the sense OF personal re-
sUonsitility Is weakened and men are prone
to charge 10 inheritance and the influence
Of environment what - chargcable 10 Their
own selhshHess and passion.
We need fresh conviction OF the reality
Of salvation, not as an escape from the
consequences Of our sins, but as fulfill
ment Of life m righteousness and love. Ihe
idea of atonCment az a device for evadipg
ucualtv. and of salvation as the result Of
fictitious imputation and forensic justin
cation, stamped the whole cvangchc con
ccptlOn with an unreahty from winch the
could not be otherwise than vIO-
lent. The vital element in the old theology
was swamped by the artificial element.
The mind revolts from n bargain with God
and a scheme that n fundamentally com.
nercial The FOul needs an experience OF
divine love and forgiveness teat awakcns
motive. rouScs the VIII and transforms
character by unfolding the spiritual nature.
Finally, we need new sense of the re-
atty OF the soul. Once men ignored the
body, save az they INDUCED or abused n.
We have come 90 appreciate Its importance
and 20 care for II IN countless ways, but II
bulks too large on our view. IL - not an
end but an instrument. The soul IL IN an
organism, but u not u nor mere atfiu-
eEce from Il. The soul ~ the man. Per
sOnality " the crowHIng fact IL means
knowledge, power, character, immortality.
II man - only a cunning organism he
needs and asks no immortality. But, be-
cause he ~ a pergDn-a spiTltual beng,
with power 10 think and Will and love,
with memory and forecast, with unmeas-
ured capacity for Joy and sorrow, with
sense for truth and rghteOusness and God
in his best moments he requires 'mmOr-
;ality that he may have scope adequate 10
his consciousness Of power, actual or at
tainable; and he takes his hunger for u az
Gods assurance that the promise Ot pres
ent experience will nave iulhllment IN the
future Ia his bassr moments, having ex-
hausted has body by labor or by dissipa-
ton. he longs only for rect from WEAKNESS
of nerves or the tyranny of appetite. Then
immortality has no charm, aud belief m II
sinks INTO a doubt and often INTO a denial
n - not science, but subJection 20 sensa-
ton tiIl 10 rules uG, that breeds the doubt
Jf Immortality. When We live on the high
=. -...... a 80. .,., ofe fsei tho resl sfg.