The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1909-06-21

never been shown to be equal to the duty
and responsibility which belong to that
office. There is no language that is ad-
equate to measure or express the reSpon-
sibility and duty of a God
THE human mind. after il has eX-
hausted its Imagination, has not reached
the limits of the duty and responsibility
of God. But no God has thus far been
conceived OF named who has shown any
sense Of that duty and responsibility In
eVitdbiy that office must be taken over
by man himself, and that is exactly what
it being done, and that is the mark OF
the new type of religion which holds the
future"
ut is the plain duty of a God to actual
ize justice-not merely to promise II or
put IL off 10 some future time a Coz
viii see that justice is done now and mere
A being who is called God, but who
doesn't do that, cannot be reVerenced as
COO without moral SJultlucaJoh, Slel
and women cannot believe in God unless
he does that. and they will inevitably give
their worship and their reverence 10 any
power or agency which does do that. But
than cannot be done by any Delng IOI
men; it can only be done by men them
selves for themselves. And Ii can be done
only i'm fraternal cooperation for that
purpose The dreams that nations dream
come true
An Imminent God.
"The religion which holds the future
must be one I'm which the collective man
the city. the state. the nation and the
natiOns-take upon themselves deliberate
ly and frankly those attributes and re
spOnsibiiities which men have hlthefto IN
stinctiVelV placed in the being OF an eXter-
nal deity The only God we can have is
an imminent GOd-imminent in the DOdy
and soul of society. The bishop OF Con-
necticut declared that with the recon-
stTuctiOn of society our churches can
have nothing to do I believe he was
right but it is the saddest confession
churchman can make. For the recon,
strUctiOn of society is the Immediate ana
supreme task of that new type OF rell-
gion which holds the future. Churches
are not and can not be symbols or agen-
cies of religion. Only those organizations
which include all can be the symOols anu
agencies of religion.
Mankind does not yet know what II Is
to be inspired by constructive religious
purpose. So long as religious authority
and wisdom and VIII were attrlDuIed 10
/ a being external to man. no Sucn pui-
/ pose could be known by man. just as II
! is true that so long as one man was per
mitted to have the function OF govern
/ ing, that function could not pe uhueIstvoui
or shared by the rest 80, the sdcLeuesl
| interests of our life have been LETT 10
| chance. and have lacked the motive anu
/ inspiration of religion.
Man has shown little forethouSht IN
| the production of children or in the crea-
| ton of an environment IN Whlch theZ
| could be reasonably sure OF a true anu
! harmonious development. Men ana Wo-
/ men. i'm large measure, have mated VIII
/ less regard to pOsterity than rabbits OF
/ cattle. The ugly, the diseased. the imbe-
Gle. the vicious, the criminal, have with
/ cut particle of conscience mated tor the
/ ,,,I,5I-7irior of their kind And today We
/ have the humiliating spectacle of whole
nations of men glorying in their shame
| Loudly do we boast of what is being
done for the insane. the imbeclle' t nt
/ vicious the diseased. the criminal ant
tbe poorl As if it were not a disgrace
and an Indictment of our civilization e
have insane, imbeCile- vicious, criminal
| and poor!
Genuine religion viii be marked every
| ,,-bera nv the intelligence and foresight
md moral sense which seek to preVen
| evil. to produce the highest types OF man
/ hood and womanhood. and to make TN
/ world i'm deed and truth one family. I'M
/ beginning of that religion is already here
and TO it the future belongs.