Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1904-09-05
GOSHEN ON THE
LIVING RELIGION.
A FlOwery Sermon Delivered by
Pastor Of First COngrtga.
tonal Church
MEN Do WHAT THEY BELIEVE.
Says Religion Of the Future VIII Refuse
To Teach That There Is Any
Saving Ordinance

The First Congregational church was
well filed yesterday morning on the
occasion Of the return Of the pastor
Rev y. l. Goshen, from his two
months vacation. his theme was THE
Religion That VIII Live IN the course
Of his remarks, the speaker said;
Looking back along the line Of cen-
turtles aud studying closely we are sure
OF some few things. In the first place
man has been a religious creature long
before any priest walked The earth, long
before a single temple reared Cts tur-
rets toward the sun, long before culture
and refinement came 10 teach and lead,
man was religious His temple dome
was the oerarchmg sky his object Of
worship come stick or stone but kneel-
ing before that object he revealed one
great thing that his was a religious
nature and demanded some form Of
worship Crude form of religion, you
say. Yes, very crude but quite enough
10 satisfy the mind that held It, for this
man was early I'm the ascent from mat
ter 10 mind and the great labyrinth or
thought and progress lay all before.
Nowhere did this primitive man get
the desire to worship No priest taught
them. for priesthood had not been born.
No school Of philosophy by clever I'M
ductlons led them 10 worship. for phil
osophy was the result rather than the
cause Of the religious tendency
Now II science holds 10 one postu-
late more tenaclously than 90 any other
n Is 10 this-that for everything that
Is there must be an adequate cause.
Search for causes In primev0l man and
you will find that no clever device Of
3 the schools-no subtle plan " priest
no contribution Of learning or culture
made man 10 be- relglOus-ho was re-
lglous by nature and the desire for
worship was breathed into his nostrls
when God breathed into him the breath
Of life"
Towards the close Of the sermon, Mr..
Goshen said
"RelgIon Is nfe. What you do Is
what you beleye. The religion OF the
future viii exat reason enshrine faith
ana breathe love and sympathy. The
religion of the future viii refuse 10 ask
man 10 subscribe 10 articles that are
repugnant TO his reason. The religion
NJ the future will have two cardinal
teachngs-love 10 God and love 10 man,
and when he has subscribed TO these
two. she will say 20 man, fll In the de-
tails az your reason demands. The re-
lglon Of the future VIII refuse TO teach
that there Is any saving ordinance;
rites and ceremonies VIII be valuable
not IN themselves hut because OF lhs
truths that they help us 20 remember
The religion Of the future viii pro-
nounce no institution as devlne unless
that institution helps men to be mas
tors Of themselves. This was the rell-
clon that Jesus br.uc.'t and when We
find Him we find this religion.
"The corner stone Of the religion or
the future will be the fatherhood N
God; the structure win be that magnlh-
cent temple called the brotherhood OF
man. Upou such lines will the religion
Of the future be built because such
basic truths and only such can perma-
nenuy satisfy the mind Of a growing
humanity"