The Washington herald., 1909-08-23

Regular Sunday services were held yes
terday afternoon In the Cathedral Close,
Mount st. Alban. Chaplain II. A. Brown.
Of the Engineer Corps OF the army. dellv-
cred an address. His text was taken
from the words OF Scripture and was:
In the beginning God created the heaven
AID the earth"
These are the first words OF Holy
Scripture" Chaplain Brown said, as well
as words Of first Importance in all the
Scriptures They are the first words OF
the creeds OF Christendom, likewise OF
all other religions; they are. in fact the
hook upon which ali religious faith.
philosophy, and ethics hang. Break thiS
book and everything religious drops into
the abyss of nothingness.
Some there are who would have "a
believe that the idea Of an uncreatec
being. who created all things visible. is
too great a strain for either the reason
or the imagination. AS a matter Of fact
Is not the opposite theory a much greater
strain? Is not the, idea OF God the best
explanation Of all things and more in
intelligence or benehcence outside OF per-
sonality? II we say ii is the nature of
things TO be as they are. do we not
then attribute to this nature OF things
the very same attributes that Christians
ascribe 10 God?
Child's Familiar Question.
Let US ask the ehfd's question. VINO
created God? The Holy Scriptures de-
clare Him to be uncreated. Is this a
greater strain on the reason or magma
ton than the opposite theory Let US
see.
Scripture refers to this Being as the
Eternal God. IN this statement Is in
volved the element OF time. Can one i'm
agine time ever 70 have been created
Can we. so 10 speak. ever imagine a
time when there was no time or can we
imagine a time when time shall be de-
stroyed2 Our Imagination cannot grasp
such a thought. Our reason comes 10 our
rescue. and convinces Us that time IS
eternal. hence we can speak Of the eter-
nal God without violation Of our reason.
Again He Is called the Omnipresent One.
Here is the element Of space.
Can we imagine a place where there
Is no space? Can we imagine space as
ever having been created or as ever
being destroyed? Our reason again comes
TO our rescue. and assures us that such
a thing is impossible; hence II IS no vio-
lation OF reason TO confess the existence
Of omnipresence as an attribute or God.
Again he Is called the Omnlpotent
One This is the embodiment OF power.
Scientists assure Us that no force was
cd nu q 10 Va
quire force: also that no force can be de-
stroyed. for the same reason. Why then
should one stagger at the thought OF an
omnipotent God?
He Is likewise represented unto us as
the Omnisclent One. Certainly n there
be such a thing as intelligent design IN
the universe Il Is no violence either 10
our reason or imagination 20 believe that
Il would require intelligence thus TO pro-
duce intelligent design. Truly. as some
one has we'll pointed out. we can more
easily imagine the letters OF the alphabet
being tossed into the air and coming
down a poem by chance than 10 imagine
the possibility Of all this intelligence and
order manifested on every hand with
nothing but blind chance OF inertia from
which 10 proceed. and that. too. apart
from personality from which It is i'm
possible for us TO separate IL. even in
our imagination.
Reason Not Violated.
THUS we may analyze every attribute
or God as assumed in Holy Scripture
and, while the thoughts may bahle our
imagination. they do not violate our rea-
son.
The Holy Scriptures solemnly and ma
jestically assure US that God not only is.
but that He created all things. Not
necessarily all realities. because these
attributes of Himself. omnipotence. ON
niscience. are Just as real, yea. even more
real, than the things we see or handle.
Puny man by the application of force at
his command can change the solid sub
stance to liquid. from liquid to a gas;
and who knows how many more changes
can be made by the application Of stin
greater force?
What may almighty power be able
to DO IN the creation and destruction OF
matter? What has not God done in
bringing this world from nothing tangi-
BILE to what we now see2 If man can
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