The independent. [volume] (Lincoln, Neb.) 1902-1907, 1904-04-07
An Easter Sermon

gregational church this morning, Her
bert S. Bigelow discussed the question,
What has Science to say about the
hope Of Immortality?"
He said, in part: Have we, as Paul
SO confidently affirmed, "a building OF
God, house not made with HANGS,
eternal in the heavens?" The conf
dence that we have, declares Mr.. John
Fiske, is ''the one thing that makes
this world inhabitable for beings like
ourselves" Yet for many the progress
of Science has destroyed this conf
dence and it is evident that the drear-
mess of life has increased with the
waning of this hope We may put on
bold front, but We cannot conceal
our heaviness of spirit. Infinitely
lonely is the universe from which God
Is banished. Melancholy Is the life
which looks forward to nothing but
death.
THE PROBLEM OF PROBLEMS.
Honest despair is noDler than dis
honest hope. If Science has destroyed
the foundations of faith, let us know
it. But has the hope of immortality
been discredited? Does Truth call
upon us to suppress the religious emo
lions and resign our 1aith in God
and the life eternal? This, as ProiCs-
sor Tyndall says, is "the problem Of
problems at the present hour"
Infallibility has been routed out of
several redoubts. 1t used to hold the
vatican. Later it was thrown back on
the Bible. The higher critics assault
ed this defense and it took refuge in
the authority of Jesus Now it is Sci
ence that is infallible. At least there
is common impression that Science
has rendered an adverse verdict and
that Faith has no appeal
MARRIAGE OF FAITH AND
REASON.
This impression has been caused by
the fact that many of the dogmas of
the church have been utterly discrcd-
tied by Science. Such valiant service
has she done and so often has the an
cient theology gone down before her
that many have come to the hasty
conclusion that there is nothing left
Of the old Faith. But just as a nation
may be strengthened by the loss of lis
colonies, so Religion has been
strengthened by the loss of her the
illogical encumbrances. When we
come out of this period of iconoclasm
It will be seen that only the useless
has been destroyed and the way
cleared for the marriage Of Faith and
Reason for which the world has been
waiting.
SCIENCES LIMITATIONS.
What has Faith learned from Sci
ence? Just this-that in all matters
which lie within the range of human
experience, the increasing knowledge
OF Science is our only guide. But i'm
mortality does not lie within the
range of human experience and there
lore Science can neither affirm or
deny 1T. But, says the material:st,
To believe in anything which lies
without the range of human expert
sence is an absurdity." On the con-
trary, scarcely a year passes which
does not give us proof of realities of
which we had never before dreamed.
There Is no faith so unwarranted as
that of the materialist who assumes
that the soul is not a fact becarse
no one has seen it under a microscope
THE SOUL THE HARPER,
Mr.. John Fiske, in his address
THE Life Everlasting, meets the
materialist in his stronghold He
analyses the doctrine which holds that
consciousness, or the soul, is a result
of molecular motion in the nerve cell.
tiers. The materialist declares that
the brain Is like a harp. Conscious.
ness Is like the music. When the harI
Is broken, the music dies. Mr.. Fiskt
with his scientific attachments, de-
tends, as no dogmatic theologian could
do. the contrary view that the con.
scious soul Is an emanation from the
Divine Intelligence that shapes and
sustains the world. and during its TEN.
porary Imprisonment in material
forms. the brain Is It's instrument o,
expression. Thus the soul is not the
music, but the harper
Science has no knowledge with
which TO challenge the conviction Of
Martlneau who declared that "a di.
vine revelation Is required. not tr
prove Immortality, but TO dlsprove Il
II II be really not true"
We may have the comfort of tnavy