Catoctin clarion. [volume] (Mechanicstown, Md.) 1871-1940, 1905-01-12
1.-THE EVER PRESENT GOD"
A Strong Sunday Sermon By the Rev.
DR.. Lyman Abbott.
The Goal Toward Which the Transition Of
Theology Should Lead Us.

Abbott occupied the pulpit in the Church
of the Pilgrims Sunday morning in the an
sence of the pastor, the Rev. Pr IL. l..
Dewey. DR.. Lyman Abbotts subject was,
"The Ever Present Cod" and he tool. for
his text, Romans, y:6-7-S: "But the right
eousness which is of faith speak keith on this
wise: say not in thy heart who shall as.
cend into heaven chat is, to bring, Christ
down from above) or, who shall descend
into the deep? THAT is, to bring up Christ
again from the dead), but what saith it!
The word is nigh thee, it is in thy mouth
and in thy heart; that is, the word OF
faith which we preach" lie said:
means, God speaking. A friend sits by
your side in absent minded meditation,
and his speech reveals the soul OF man.
SO the word of God reveals the uni known
God to us. We have not to 60 to the
depths to find the manifestation of God is
all about us and within us. We are all Ia
miliar with the statement that we are
passing through a transition in theology.
IF II we're only transition in theology It
would not disturb us much. We could
leave the theologians to study the theology
of the future for themselves. But it is also
a transition in religious experience, am
sure that the older members of this con-
gregation can trace in their lives, more or
less, a change, not simply in their intellect
ual opinions OF religion, but in their really
vital religious experience. We used to
think. in our boyhood. of God as King
sitting on the Great White Throne, with
the angels gathered about Him and singing
to Him. He was far away. We sent our
PRAYERS up to Him by a kind of spiritual
wireless tcegraphy, ask ing for things; and
sometimes lie would give us those things
and sometimes lie would not But this
was our experience of PRAYER, and that was
our notion of the answer to PRAYER: and
this farawav God, sitting on the Great
White Throne. had revealed Himself to
men through the Bible ard through the
Christ. 1t was a great historic revelation,
and we went back, more or less conscious
of that revelation Of the PARKWAY God in
the faraway historic time. and we went to
that Bible to find out what it told us re.
specting Gods law. of what was required
of us, and the things with respect to
Gods grace, what He would do for us, and
with many Of us that experience has not
chanxed. The picture OF the great kng
has grown dim and indistinct, or dsap.
pcared altogether. and remains, If 1t re:
mains at all. vs. recognized picture and
not reality. And that Christ, who
seems to us mediator between God and
man. a revelation of the PARKWAY God, has
also grown faraway. That is, we have
come to recognize that lie is great his
torc figure, and we arc more or less, per
picked as to what His revelation is OF the
i"fa"IN 'ou' anu "''' ~ ~ W.. ,i o,'r
Is ana our ptafelH NY 'n'''E," "T" o,'i
conception OF the nln'e mas t"'ne'ut , .ha
we can no longer ''ke 'tA, "". .1 - ,L .'c
hSe any IT, "i,T" ~ a, =" ''" ~, ",,,' snn,o
succeed and some fall.
What | do want this morning is to
point OUT MOI WhaI mas 'aHrn P.Ty ;' p"r -
indicate me goa' toward "H'rh .'ts ian,
non Snoul" ieau uI' Mn'I Is 'i'T
Lana lo"aru Wh'cn we H"o'lu '"oh, ""o
is inc IeI'ElouS eApsiirn'r Wv n,"H ~" ~;
LOT III the future " lENe o"e Pt"'. .h,t hn'
reIlelouS cApv,'tllr. VI ~. '"nL l";''
grown gun ana Ii'uISl',lct ".u N"'I' - "n '
nan peIieVeu. IN tne l'isv p,'Ie, an. S ~,
',lut' VINO we nHtt nteu """I, la,.o
chahge' FORCES WITHOUT Ine M n ',,,
oeeh bringing 70 rs " ''Isvl u AZ,
conception 81 You Vol vi III NV ~ WIZ ~
only through thr chUrch; ne unrI 40" 10.
speak oIE tn!ouI" 'nr p; ,I',,o ,L;@h
IS hot P.'i!ua! 'pn"uIL 'uaDs' ,a,,
w nv water OF ny - ~ o"E"' NV" ~ "'", .
ne grace OF noI uo's hHt COZ r. :" ~,
lICuh9t rl'h LIS ~ El"ce a;""'
says II aus IKE gente i"ln us IS nn,,
sali anu we nay looN o.St'ur 'Ie ."" ol,, -
an,l 'I'sns w loII 80. sar nv r,,,,',
s,nerGu ioFces .or sheltlrIs' ~, imG 10
WhIcn are giving US more l,'rI!",lr ."rt
81 rcHI'oh ana, l tl'lk' " nea''i We" ~ W
reason, am Ipniy S,"tlnI ,m' i"'o' NV
p'rt spencer mas Hu'ni,lt' w III w =
sentence "hht ny LINKS '"e i's",. W
= zen, nc IlFe't,e"lIoh an" tN,'',,c' ,,
Amid an inc mysteries ny "nItn we , are
surrounded notnine Is more cer'al, t.,a',
,n"t we are ever IN ,"e PiT,elct .; r1e,,a'
Enc 9y' , from Wn'ch az t".Hc lungs T.; .,
C@e4' VIVA, science mas taught IS lh'S,
o' are noI 10 90 oa'N 10 sle'tNH I"NT ~
ma '0a, lNouEn III Sonlc nr''oH you
,i"hcH'I 'n' WIZ" an" P"' 'i'H 'l.l'', '''
mere ana intervening now an" In'h IN Sp,,
cIa' necessity; No" arc not 10 MINK OF "2u
mat way you gre 10 InI"N oI YOU as We
cierhai energy mere '7' "S ever ~ Wv
presence OF inc tltrh3i energy aIMnt !
creating AWAY" 'ontroiling-ln the grown
4i ftelf noMr' "l" i" '"' P''l"''i'' III ''''
iIlSI'! VI every "',"' a., :; -. .,,.,
II, | 'n ,,, ""u 20 mT' "V ,hc
IL ~ neiIi ~" IL" ~ :" WV any, E,,I
II,rosperV Lars lnl5 aIverhoI,, amI i ,ha
ili-h III tlc oip"" S'r'H' 'e',r"'" w
grouhu' anu III we nIIucu W. ','"t '' Nv
splInT Is TO purst Iorsn' dot "om u ' .ho,
anu thelc - s'I sNi''a,at'?i .Li Guy ",
pnehomena OF me except III ,He 'nuM'1l',tS :
Of the Eternal II we turn rom s.lgnec TO
literature we ma m"cn Gloser "ha more
sacred ana truer ana GlNlner !n,etp i IA,
uoh OF the chan8e INA nr Is co''il,e oN w lne
thoughts OF men; me poets are All pro.
phetS' Ihey tel US nelorehahd Wnat IS
the tate mat by ana by we Sna,i come 10,
Let me read one such interpretations IL IS
from lenhNson
-, The sun, the moon the stars ,he sea
the NILS and the flowers, are NOT these, "
soul; the VISION OF lilm VINO re'ghs ;,
Dark Is the world to thee; tnySeIf art
the reason why For Is lie not all but That
which has power to teei am L!
Iiory about thee, within thee, ana slr>u
fulhiLeSt thy doom,
''Making Him broken CLEANS, and
stitlei splendor and gloom.
Speak to iilm, thou. Tor lie hears, ana