The Fulton County news. [volume] (McConnellsburg, Pa.) 1899-current, 1905-10-25
Fnith md the Bible.

TIE word of the Lord endureth for
ever.-I. Peter, l.. %.
Perhaps the words of the Irish hymn
writer voice the deepest religious feel
ings of to-day:
"Change and decay in all around | see;
o Thou who changest not, abide with
me-"
There has been n change in mental
attitude towqrd all things that pertain
to religion. 1'he doctrine of evolution
has unveiled a new world. And yet it
is the same old world; we have simply
revised our opinions about 1t. The uni
verse did not break up into chaos with
the downfall of the Ptolemaic system
of astronomy. We simply awoke one
day to find that in reality the earth, in
stead of sitting on a throne receiving
the alteration of the sun and stars, IT.
self paid homage and in rotation and
revolution besought the suns light and
heat and was content with the worship
of one little burnt up cinder. Simi-
larly, though Charles Darwin has
changed mems views of science and
history and of all human speculation,
the facts of life remain the same.
Now some lament that their religion
is being taken away; that the Bible
is being destroyed as Gods word to
man and its position of authority un-
dermined; that the Church, the sacre-
ments, the creeds, the ministry no long
er hold the attention and reverence Of
men. and that all authority for faith
itself is shattered. They look back
with longing to the days when there
was no higher criticism, when there
was no questioning of the dogmas of
religion, when men believed their the
ologies as they did the multiplication
table.
1t would be simple truth to observe
that those days never existed; they
are part of an ideal Imagination. There
| has always been septicism; there have
always been questionlngs. "All is
vanity and vexation OF spirit" is only
one ancient testimony
Then what must be the attitude of
the religious mind to-day? Simply to
assert more vigorously the old doctrine
| of inspiration. to proclaim with more
| defiance the old formularies? If there
is nothing better nothing surer. the
| voice must grow fainter and weaker
until finally it shall die away entirely.
For even the supposed days of simple
! faith and the unquestioning mind can
never return. You have some time,
possibly to-day, engaged in worship, in
praise and prayer and now you are
reading this. Why? Because of some
! thing alien to your nature that has
been imposed upon you by some book,
some church, some creed? No, but be-
cause of some unmistakable fact OF
your inmost being, some part of your
own nature, that finds no satisfying af-
finity with any of the transltory things
of earth. and from it's depths cries ont.
40 Thou who changest not. abide with
me-" some hunger of the soul that dis
covers no sustenance for its lie eX-
cept in communion with God.
This is the foundation of your relig-
ion. your deepest faith. No science,
no criticism. no philosophy can shake
it. Without it no religion would be
possible. no Bible, no church, no wor'
ship. Because it is there all forms OF
expression are possible, yes, newt
able. AS one of these forms consider
briefly the Bible. The main truth Is
that the Bible did not precede this
foundation faith we have just men
toned, but blossomed from it. In thu
words OF one New Testament writer
''Men spake from God, being moved by
| tne Holy spirit AS lhell hatuiV c
their generation. their habits o
thought per nitted them TO be moved
so they were moved. And what the,
spake is of value to us not as an In
fallible rule of faith and practice, bu
as an actual religious experience o
men of flesh and blood alike our own
Much we can appropriate and max
our own because our own religion
natures respond to it. Much we cal
enjoy and feed ON because 1t actual!
does nourish. 1t goes straight to tn
heart without the aid of any theory o
lration.-Romilly t. Humphries
Rector of Trinity Church, South Nor
walk, Conn.,, in the New Yory Sunda!
Herald.