The Falls City tribune., 1909-07-02
Chureh=and State.

last century, said that the most inn
portant tact about any man or nation
OF men Is. his or their religion.
BY which he wanted il understood
thai by religion, he did not mean the
church, sect or creed he belonged TO
or professed, or whether he belonged
to any church. or subscribed To any
creed. or made any particular pro
fessiou of faith.=but what in his
heart he really believed concerning
his own existence. his relation to the
universe. 10 his fellows. and to the
all.controlling authority and power
and unknowable purposes of creation.
! do not give his language, for /
have not the work before me. but
am giving as well as | can the idea
the great man had in mind and wished
to onv as | understand and con
strue his language. Critically consid-
cred. his definition of religion will
apply to all-church members or non
church members. civilized or u%nciyil-
lied. ignorant or enlightened the
living thinking animal m~an-whether
In the wonderland of the infancy of
The race or in the broad blaze of the
twentieth century civilization, culture
and refinement.
No human being ever lived who
did not in the course of his life form
some idea satisfactory To his iudg-
ment on the subject Of his place in
creation; his origin and his possible
ultimate destiny. and that idea what
ever it may bewe must accept as his
religion according to the ineompar-
able Scotch sayaut of deathless fame.
The doctrine, if il may be called such
is not new, but is as old as man
himself hut the style in which II is
written is certainly new, and forms
the chief element of value in the com
position. AS a definition of religion.
in my poor judgment, and as | have
come TO understand it after years of
dligent study, it falls far short of
the mark. Was it Mirabeau or
Byron or both who said that words
are things? In the hands Of that in
imitable master of foreeful aud ele-
bant style. the Chelsea philosopher
here named, words were indeed
mighty things, aud were m|arshalled
by him 10 the everlasting ornamen
tation of a literature that up to his
day. had never been eqnaled in the
world OF letters. The gliding hides
many a deteet, which without it
would be patent to all.
i is net my intention in this paper
TO discuss the question OF religion, eX-
oept SO far as it is a factor in world
history and a something inherent in
human nature. The use | shall make
OF the reference mentioned, | think,
viii be sufficiently pertinent to the
purpose in hand to justify having
made it without offending against
the properties or eyineing a spirit
OF perseverance for the works of one
OF the most original of independent
thinkers in modern times.
IN the settlement of a new country.
ard the establishment of government
therein, religion has been the basic
principle OF the laws enacted to give
operative effect to such government.
This may seem a broad assertion, and
il is certain that there are those who
will deny il. But l will so further
and say, what | believe is historically
true. that without religion, civilization
itself would be an impossibility. If
! argue the point here, it will be by
suggestion and inference only.
When ! came to Nebraska fifty
one years ago there were no churches
or school houses in the country. Mel
build houses first for shelter, and for
other uses when their means will al
low and the necessities of the com
munity require them. But nearly
every person | met was either a mem
Der of some religious denomination,
or was pr~edisposed in favor of some
FolIltQldi NliuINu. TOl NY Stll L Was
friendly 10 all, but belonged to none.
The settlers were born in other states
and countries, and brought their re-
Iigion and ideas of civil government
with them,as man has always brought
his religion into the world when he
came into it himself. 1t is as much
a part of his nature as the DISPOSE
ton 10 protect himself, which is pres
ent and controlling in every m
OF his conscious life.
The Methodist persuasion was the
pioneer, perhaps for the reason hat
most of the pioneers were themselves
Methodists, and vas the first church
TO gain a foothold in the country. l
remember with much satisfaction the
many incoherpnf and rambling SER