Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-05-07


upon earth.-Deuteronomy xi:21.
And could wish my days to he
Bound each to each by natural piety-
WORDSWORTH.
These two texts formulate for US the pro-
gram OF religion. The familiar lines OF
Wordsworth are like a lamp before the
door of the temple. to light our way to
the inner sanctuary: while the older text
stands as the benediction at the close of
service, to remind the departing worship
ers that the one aim of religion Is to
make their days "as the days of heaven
upon EARTH"
Who does not feel the gentle compulsion
Of these high words? Who does not see
how they make religion a matter Of our
everyday life; how they make religion not
a thing to be discussed, but life to be
enjoyed; how its rewards are to be found
not by transporting us to heaven but by
TRANSPORTING our earthly days until they
are las the days of heaven upon earth"
According to these two sentiments, the
feeling of reverence should be as natural
and spontaneous as the feeling of admira-
ton when we behold some masterpiece of
art. or listen with rapt interest to some
exquisite sonata. The fine arts touch the
life that now is, and transfgure and hal
low It, Precisely this is the aim of religion
AS art awakes in us the love of beauty, so
religion uuickens in us the enthusiasm for
our days may be
Bound each to each by natural piety.''
Furthermore. It should be noted that this
conception puts religion on the same f1rm
footing with the other arts of life. We
do not enjoy this sonata because OF some
legend concerning it's composer. That may
be of interest, and 1t may or may not be
true; but the feeling awakened is due to
the fact that every one Is potentially an
artist and a musician. The love of beauty
is ineradicable. So also is the longing for
holiness. 1t is as Sabatier said: Man is
incurably religious The documents and
anecdotes of religion may be of interest,
and may or may not be true; but religion
itself. the enthusiasm for the perfect, Is
nowise dependent upon these things, Il
existed before them, and will survive them
For we cannot too often remind ourselves
that it is not books and documents that
make religion. but that it is religion that
produces these as tree sheds its leaves.
Or. again, see how this makes religion Its
own reward AS we stand before the
apollo. we do not say What reward shall
7 have If 1 admire this? AS we listen to
Beethoven no one says, What does 1T profit
me? We are wise enough to know
..That II eyes were made for seeing,
Then Beauty is its own excuse for being"
A higher wisdom should teach us that the
good life carries with it day by day its own
reward Regardless Of tomorrow, religion
is its own Justification. The concern OF
religion is not to get the soul into heaven,
hut to bring heaven into the soul; to make
its days las the days of heaven upon
earth"
If it seem that this is vague matter, let
us examine the elements of this natural
n,etv" How are we to cultivate the frame
of mind nv which our common days are to
be TRANSPORTED? Just how are we to eie-
yate our religious life to the high plane
we have spoken of? The matter is less
vague than we suspect. Three things kept
steadily in mind will indeed make our days
las the days of heaven upon earth.
The first requisite is to see in our own
day the orderly revelation of God Man
was never nearer to the fountain Of life
than he is now. At the hush of the day
Cod still walks in the garden of life. las
I was with Moses, so also will be with
thee" was the promise of old He never
snake to man save as He speaks now. With
Him there is no past, no future; but one
eternal now In this real presence we live,
move and have our being. To recognize this,
to realize that we are always in the midst
of the world-process, SO see in every tender
affection the more than human love, to find
in every high thought revelation of the
one mind, to honor every honest stroke OF
labor as a part of the power that makes
the worlds, to hail every disclosure of
science as a fresh revelation of Him whose
greatness hides him; to do these things is
to forge the first of those golden links by