The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1907-05-14
FRANK FAY EDDY
TALKS ON PROPHETS
He Declares That Accidental
Ones Are Always Sure
to Exist.
breaches A SERMON
AT UNITARIAN CHURCH
Declares That Religious Situa-
tion Is Confused by a
Plethora of Prophets.

ReV. FRANK Fay Eddy preached n
sermon at the First Unitarian church
Sunday on Accidental Prophets -
Music was rendered by the Unity quar-
tette- Mr., Eddy's discourse was study
in prophets. He took his text from
Isaiah, xl:3l: "But they that wait upon
the Lord shall renew their strength,
they shall mount up with wings AZ
eagles, they shall run and not be weary ;
they shall walk and not faint He
said in part:
$50 spako the greatest of the He
brew prophets There is a vein Of lofty
poesy In this great prophet of the exile
Wn1ch makes his words pcrcnnlally in
spring. In spiritual sense they ring
true, though the ages intervene. But
the return of Israel to Jerusalem real
the prophet. The rebuilt Jerusalem
was thoroughly prIest-ridden and ex-
listed in cowed subJectron to greater
national powers \ great prophet he
was, not because his predictions were
literally fulfilled, but because he was
great soul and spoke the language of
the spirit.
Modern Prophecy.
Now We have prophecy in our time
weather prophecy. This is the proph-
ecy Of science, It is based on a sys-
tematic study Of evidence. From a
strictly. modern point Of view we may
study individuals who represent ten
denotes and facts In the fife of today
as having prophetic significance. They
are not necessarily those who pose as
prophets. They may be purely acct
dental prophets.
''It is never wise to take a prophet
at his word. II he could see straight
he would not be a prophet. Thus to cor
recIly place Isaiah or Ezekiel or Jere-
miah, we must not believe that they
knew altogether what they were talk
ing about. Rather we must discern
clearly what they represented.
Any age might be thus studied.
Accidental prophets there are sure to
sentative figures in the past, but our
interest lies more interblended with the
present. Let, then, the present be our
study. Above the clamor and din of
many sounds and voices certain spokes-
men make themselves heard. They may
be forgotten tomorrow. They are only
significant because they are representa-.
tive, Certain tendencies and influence,
embodied in ideas, cast in the form of
ideals, beset us and make every re-
sponsive soul conscript to their serv.
ice. We can only realize the deeper
meaning of the life of today by tracing
ont its relationships to the life of to-
morrow.
Many Religious Prophets.
"The religious situation is perhaps
most confused by plethora of proph-
cts We hear Mary Baker Eddy and
her cohorts proclaiming Christian Sci
purified and rediscoyered Christianity
On the other hand, Mark Twain, pre-
dieting its mighty growth because it is
a delusion and snare. because II has
had shrewd and unscrupulous leader
and because it has the power of wealth
behind its projects. No less loudly from
platform and press the Mormons claim
the future for their kingdom Nor is
the Catholic less modest IN assuring the
world that the one holy church and its
faith is Invinclble as well as unchange-
able And / must admit that the Uni.
tartan explains frequently that mode. ii
science and the spread of intelligence
paves the way for new statement of
religion which shall he in harmony with
common sense. Campbell with his new
theology and Crapsey and all The acci-
dcntHl rrophets of the new orthodoxy
really stand for the same thing, al
though they do not always see clearly
whittier they are tending.
(Which one of these is right? Not
blessed one of them, probably. Yet
they are all prophetic. if accidentally
so, because they are as straws which
show which way the wind blows.
Aspects of Social Life.
FOther aspects Of social life also have
their voices. There is the voice of
protest, now ranting in anarchism, now
coldly scientific after the socialism Of
Marx and Engel, now cheering with
1rno in e
Morris. The race question, and espe-
clally IN this Anerica and negro ques-
tion, has all too many prophets of too
many minds. The grave scientist most
OF all intoxicates lis with promise of
material conquests which wait on Just
4 little more knowledge.
"Will not some clear eyed phlloso-
phcr look back from the cmincnce os
the future and see certain broad lines
Of cleavage running through this pres
ent-day life OF ours? VIII he not
discern ut least three broad currents
Of religious life; ORG OF reactionary
character making much Of historic con
tinuity and ritualistic Observance, ono
of strained septimentality and credulitv
and third of optimistic common sense
responsive TO a noble rationalism?
"1u matters purely sociological will
not such a philosopher discern clearly
that the strife between the great cor.
porations and trusts and the prophets
of protest and their leglons was an in.
evitabls battle preparing for social
reconstruction otherwise impossible?
And will he not see in this America
working like yeast ouiet and hidden
forces bringing about race liberation
and race amalgamatlon? I put these
things III the form of questions because
I dare not predict. But, roughly esti-
mating the meaning of what a legion
Of accidental prophets are saying in this
clodorn America, it seems TO me thar
some such results in life will follow be-
fore the present century closes
III wo no longer hear clearly from
soiue anointed one a Thus saith the
Lord, we naed all thc more the proph
etc insight. 1t Will enable us to work
as with God. Ia TINS why We are saved
From tho prosaic and the COMMONPLACE.
On every side we hear, then, prophet
voices assuring Us that They the. wait
upon the LORD shall renew their
Bt.cnatE; they shall mount up with
w:gss as eagles; they shall run and not
he weary, and they snail walk and not
faint. -