West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1908-09-10

A' H"ttcl now tonS you draw out the
process OF creation. so long as God
stands back OF # you cannot shake
my faith I'm Jehovah. In Genesis Il f.
written that I'm the beginning God
created the heavens and the earth. aud
can stand on that proposition until 1
find some theory OF creation that goes
further back than ''the beginning"
do not carry the doctrine OF evo-
luton rs far as some do. have not
yet been able 10 convince myself that
man Is lineal descendant OF the low
or animals. do not mean 10 iiud fault
with you if you want 20 accept Il. All
l mean 20 say Is that, while YOU may
trace your ancestry back To the mon.
key II you find pleasure or pride I'm do
ing so. YOU shall not connect me with
your family tree without more evi-
dence than has yet been produced. 1t
Is true that man I'm some physical
qualities resembles the beast. but man
has a mind rs well as IA body and
soul as well as n mind. The mind is
greater than the body. and the soul is
greater than the mind. and object to
having mans pedigree traced on one
third or him only. and that the lowest
third.
one does not escape from mystery,
however. 10y accepting this theory. for
II does not explain the origin OF lIfe
When the follower OF Darwin has
traced the germ OF life back to the
lowest form I'm which IL appears. and
To follow him one must exercise more
faith than religion calls for. he finds
that scientists differ. Some believe
that the first germ of life came from
another planet and others hold that IL
was the result of spontaneous genera
ton.
If i were compelled TO accept one OF
these theories. I would prefer the first,
for II we can chase the germ OF life
Off this planet and get IT ont into space
we can guess the rest or the way and
no one can contradict us, but II we ac-
cept the doctrine OF spontaneous gen
Grafton we cannot explain why sponta-
neous generation ceased TO act after
the first germ was created.
Go back as far as we may, we can
not escape from the creative act, and
II Is just as easy for me 10 believe that
God created man as he Is as to believe
that millions Of years ago he created
n germ OF life and endowed Ii with
power TO develop into all that we see
today. But l object-to the Darwinian
theory until more conclusive proof Is
produced, because fear we shall lose
the consciousness of Gods presence In
our daily life II we must assume that
through all the ages no spiritual force
has touched the life OF man or shaped
the destiny of nations. But there Is
| another objection. The Darwinian the
| ory represents man as reaching his
| present perfection by the operation OF
| the law OF hate-the merciless law 10y
which the strong crowd out and kin
off the weak. If this is the law OF our
development. then, II there Is any logic
that can bind the human mind, we
| shall turn backward toward the beast
| in proportion as we substitute the law
| of love. How can hatred be the law OF
| development when nations have ad-
vanced in proportion as they have de
parted from that law and adopted the
| law of lover
But while ] do not accept the Oar
winian theory | shall not quarrel with
you about It, | refer to it only TO re-
mind you that II does not solve the
mystery Of life or explain human prog
ress. / fear that some have accepted
! 1t In the hope of escaping from the
miracle, but why should the miracle
frighten us7 II bothered me once, and
! am inclined to think that 1t Is one OF
the est-auestions with the Christian.
Why Shouldn't Miracles Be Performed 2
Christ cannot be separated from the
miraculous. His birth. his mlnistra-
tons and his resurrection all involve
the miraculous, and the change which
his religion works In the human heart
| Is a continuing miracle. Eliminate the
miracles and Christ becomes merely n
human being and his gospel is stripped
of divine authority.
The miracle raises two questions,
"Can God perform a miracler and
"Would he want tor The first Is easy
to answer. A God who can make Il
world can do anything he wants TO do
with II. The power to perform mira
Giles is necessarily implied I'm the pow
! or TO create But would God want TO
perform n miraclei This Is the Ques-
ton which has given most OF the trou-
bic. The more ! have considered it
the less inclined I am to answer I'm the
negative 10 say that God would not
perform miracle is TO assume n more
intimate knowledge Of Gods plans and
| purposes than | can claim TO have.
Will not deny that God does perform
a miracle or may perform one merely
because 7 do not know how or why he
does it. The fact that we are constant
| ~ learning OF the existence OF new
forces suggests the possibility that
God may operate through forces yet
unknown TO us. and the mysteries
with which we deal every day warn
me that faith Is as necessary as sight
Who would have credited century
! ago the stories that are now told Of
the wonder working electricity? For
ages man had known the lightning.
but only 20 fear A. Now this Invisible
current Is generated by a man made
machine. imprisoned in man made
wire and made TO do the bidding Of
man. The miracle Is not more mystic
riOus than many Of the things with
which man now deals II IS simply
different.
It Is sometimes said that God could
not suspend ono Of his laws without
stopping the universe. but do We not
suspend or overcome the law Of gray
itation every dayf Every time we
move a foot or lift a weight VIC tenn
pOrarily interfere with the operation
Of the most universal Of natural laws,
and yet the world Is not Disturbed.
Science has taught us so many
things that we are tempted 10 con-
clude that we know everything. but
there Is really great unknown which
Is still unexplored, and that which we