The Farmville herald. [volume] (Farmville, Va.) 1890-1934, 1907-02-01
WHY AND WHENCE.
Rev. Or. Talmage on Wise and
Foolish Questionings.
Honest Inquiry Into the Grounds OF
Faith Should Be Welcomed.
The Case Of the In
sincere Doubter.
copyright. 1907. by Louis Klopsch.l


would cease TO strive and quarrel over
Biblical interpretations and hair
breadth differences in creeds and cere-
monies and with simple Christian faith
unite in fraternal efforts for the com
mon good. The text is Titus III, D
But avoid foolish questions"
Have YOU a fathom linef Then drop
II into the seas. Have you a telescope?
Then cleanse its lens and focus 1t /
upon the stars. Have you crowbarf
Then with it pry open the hermetically
sealed doors Of the geological libraries
and Gl.,'er the leaves Of rock and read
the genealogical histories Of the spe-
cies. Have you a microscopes Then
with the bacteriologists roam through
the corridors OF the infnitesimal and
find an aquarium in drop Of water
and exquisite beauty in the end OF a
nv's wing. God would not have placed
the wonders Of the heavens above us
and the wonders OF the deep beneath
us and the wonders Of the land about
us IL he had not meant us to explore
them and 10 try TO make the works OF
his fingers part OF our lives.
You never yet met an Intelligent
man or woman who was not continual
lv asking questions and striving to un-
derstand the unknown. The indisposi-
tion TO investigate and the unwilling
ness to attempt the solution OF the
problems of life about us are always
the signs Of an intellectual weakllng'
In the spiritual life. as well as IN 'he
political and the mechanical and the
nhilosophlcal world. the one woru
which should be most often spoken py
the human lips IS why We shou'u
be continually asking why this: ana
"Whv thatT" and "Why the o'hei
thing?" The human mind and SOU
cannot mark time. The mind mus
> either broaden out or shrivel up. Inc
Interrogation point is a golden Key
with which we should try to unioct
the manifold mysteries Of the uni
verse.
Rut there is an intelligent way oi
pushing that word "WhyT ana very
foolish way. There is a way OF asklnl
.Yhvfr which proves to the world tha
! Won are sincerely desirous to OBTAIN
knowledge. Then there Is way u
osrinq "WhyY" which proves to th'
4 world that you do not wish 10 learn
but are moved by curiosity only OF D.
desire 10 unsettle fundamental ques
= tions There never was ioreis"e
who came TO America who asked NOR
questions than Ii Hung Chang. bu
the questions which he asked were gen
orally frivolous and to our IDEAS ilhpe'
tnent He would ask aged maiue
Ladies why they never married an
how old they were. lie would ask pee
rlo why they wore false teeth. IL
would ask this question ana tha' an
DO tho other question until he made ever
ly ono around him uncomfortable. Ihu
u come neople push that word "Nhy
most ridiculous way. By tne o
cratic method they try TO argue TO
and Christ and the Bible out OF I.
minds and hearts Of their irienu
win the interrogation point the
,.o,,ld advertise TO the world tne
transcendental reasoning powers ""e
t,o,, are only advertising their tran
cendental curiosity. ,r,.,
paul in his eplstle TO young Il''
odvises him TO beware OF such irlV
~ Ions curiosity. When he tells MN
ovoid foolish questions he Is not q
c,mscribing the intellect OF this your
man by telling him not to thihk al
NOT TO Investigate. He is laying uoN
r tbe broad principle which you ana
,rorld do well to heed when he sal
"Avoid foolish questions and geneaI
, ,,,es and contentious and strlNin
ohout the law, for they are unpron'
e BILE and vain" In other worus' "''
those foolish questions and contehuo
,,hich have nothing to do with pressi
home the great purposes Of the gosl'
rive only for those divine truths Z"
u saif evident facts which will draw
,oorer and nearer to the cross OF Jes
Christ The poet expressed my in'
Dretation of Paul's meaning When
wrote:
Some read the blessed oooK-''eS w
,. -o'nabo,v - happens in their way to lie
while others read Win u''0V''''
care. ,,-.t..- .ho
~ Mt ali IN find some contradictions 'he
some read to bring themselves lh'o , ~
p, showing others how they OHn u,sa ~,
while others read because '"'"
- soe oo'I how SS' long twill take to read
II through.
Some read TO prove preauop'. -, ,
y ,rh,s understand but little what
read, 80 ,,o,, ,bev h
IN And every passage OF the Door - o.,
To make 1t suit that All il" haye o
sone people read, as nave u
,escS the book instead Of b
taught.
porl ,s saving. Titus, my son. 81
the spirit Of the Scripture ins'ea'
be letter Of the law We shoulu
ho among those Bible students VINO
spiritually nearsighted ana nolu :
- % close 10 the sacred pages
tbev can only see a sentence or a "
80 time and they do not realize
some Of the passages Of scripture
special and exclusive reference 10
times in which they were written
TO the geographical conditions OF
writer's. That would be very IN
ouate description of the beau'le
shadyside, which was limited tC
architects specification Of the de
Of the home Of the father OF Amer
\ letters. II might be absolutely co
and its measurements unimpeach
-. 80 sbould miss the spirit and