Oxford eagle. (Oxford, Lafayette Co., Miss.) 1876-current, 1910-02-10
~
Can Human Nature
Be Changed!

4
Christ. vho have seld a.
SORT o. fandAnss;Al postzlate q
their phFlo-ophy thAt yo9 ean-ot
I charge human ratzre oes vho reads
/ ne literature % the axes carefully
wfi see that ofte1 the great stumbling
bloch fz The ray of human progress
and s-zGrcip&tioa has been this ooses-
sica Of god People SO deeprooted
kas 4 eeen hat Il has Passed into
pruEcrhs. Whatever has been mast
alsays ce- ~Nha,evsr Il. Il right.
-As is = bor 50 Is the nan and.
suc<llr an cider eynie. can a leopard
Change Ms sposs. -Tenperanent Il
Sued qzanfitF. Human nature Is the
sa=- - every aEs-- These proverbs
y las he~r IN the church that this
I sssio-osAy has ben prevalent. as well
as a=o-E The scu-s-s
Arf yst ihe fact q transfornAfion
= k1uza satare is TIE very centsr
an4 ccrs e Christ's Gospel. ami how
ais ttseigtes ecai4 ever doubS It. and
r-Eai- hts Eisctpies. Is C1s q the
zys,sries ana para1orss of history
q = st-rly arcrher o, tko<e strange
f misz-1-rssar9izEs - the Gospels that
{ ons Wirr-sse,s azocx tAos@ C1Tis;iA1s
So ru-E 40 So hat slavery E-1
4 Ch-israAnitF aH9 20 part tnSrih-T. Bu;
fh1s = ~ tks strz.EeS- tkizE Par
stranger l. ta- fact tat fully half
~ ~ Csrts-tsrs q today are stiIl
r-ter ~ sci q thts eeizs3on- Not
I ,u1x Ax1 a xrsAt writer called the At
tezrtrn q ~ so-i1 20 sAe fast ;ha, 4
f rrinrzers wcal1 czly take kEz1n N
fure a. b. -. tkey ~01l1 stop reform
in< To rs ztnt reforms c-t<izate n
an h'eahzia< q hu1an -4tzre Il eaa-
-cs staut May Christt.rs share ,h1f
vfeE o. cur ~sy soze fruz eAurSh
Sne Szn14y a go. CHRISTIAN mother.
worried - @cz@ tsE1euciss q her
yozr< hcy. remarked that she sup
Fcs-c th@re w,s 20 hope q changing
htZ e~cazss ~ Was tern 50 Yoz
f caz1ct chErSe kzz1- nature. half Of
Czr Ceristi1rs believe Nov. the
7 Ch-isti1ns q tas early ages. and even
+ q the usseIe ages. had oniy the prozi-
Sc a. tAe Gospel TO convfct them os
E errpr-and. 20 be sure. that ought to
have beca erozEh-bzt the Christians
q today have that and this fact. too.
I HAT hisforF and Eost literature Is
{ nothir< but the record q n gradual
Z transfu-uzaticr q human nature Ard
Nc, oaly IN intivids1is. bat in whole
f raticzk ans cnnuuririex For ctvfli-
=arscE h n0shinx bat the collective er-
F rrs<SEnn q Ike Auzzaa Ezture % the
cze- Th@ passing q cfvilixation from
hartarfsz 70 The seal Christian civil
rzficn of TIE Ef1Ele axes Is the his
f tory - - fransforrzatioc of hu-an
nafEre- The passage froz the eruslty
zzd feu1alisz ard vice q the middle
aEes 20 ozr uore Christian civilization
q today l. further story q the al
F cheutsffc change In the hauan heart
F - the 6esp@r and hrEer applicatiou
ard understanding o the Gospel The
. promise u Chrisgizrity Is the trans
. formation a human nature into di-
f vine nature. the s1bduing of the AMI
u-al IN nan ~ the rising. eo14gsring.
F spiritual Tkls needs no proof. Il
F i the whole asservattoa OF the Coz
T pei II II fan. thea Christianity l. a
failure Bat perhaps II might b help
fui - uS- and deepen our faith in the
power q Christianity 20 accomplish
what I; purposes 10 DO. II ~e Hnd that
history. as xe said. is the record os
the falnlnent Of this promise We
F think we can show Il Is By looking AZ
tao Or three great spheres OF human
conduct where the change has been
most manifested
There Is 4 passage In Sienkiewicz's
QUO VadiS.- where a wretch named
Chilo. Nho has been plotting aEains,
F the Christizrs-ir Is the time of the
E first Christians in Rome-faIIs into
the hands q the Christians. and one
{ OF them. the giant slave Crsus. Is
ready 10 crush him to death. when the
Apostle Peter hisss from the table
and speaks these words. The Saviour
said this 10 Us. II thy brother has
sinned against thee. ehastise him:
b1t Z be Is TsPsntant. forgive him
Then Gizucus. against whose life Chi
10 had been especially plotting. turns
10 Chic and says: May God forgive
thy oesnses. as forgive them in the
name OF Christ The point Is that
Chilo cannot believe his own ears and
eyes When a last he hnds himself
free and tells the Romans they wfH
not believe IL In every century. even
within the church. men keep on say
iEE that forgiveness Of the enemy fs
[ impossible. revenge Is the natural Iaw
OF life. Of man as well as Of the AMI
NAL. an eye for an eye. a tooth for a
tooth. IS all humanity Is capable Of.
Even today one meets Christians Who
cannot believe Il this possibility ID
forgiveness as 4 iaE Of life And We.
we find that every age in history has
been full Of exquisite Instances Of H.
We find many = soul. like So. Francis.
praeticing IT, Today there are mil
lions q Christians przcticing il. and
thousands. from Toistoy 70 the hun
hlsst apostle. preaching IL The church
snjoins 1t upon every new member
We have seen thousands Of unforxfy-
ing natures since Chri<t's day 50
transformed BY the divine alchemy Of
CRISIS GoSpel th1t they have begun
to practice il with ease II has be-
cone the universal Law Of thousands.
yet good men have said. and stIIl say.
you cannot change human nature.
As yo1 90 up and down Europe you
eEd everywhere dungeons where
slaves we're kept When Christ was
born slavery was as counoc an insti-
tution and as much accepted as in the
order OF society as marriage As the
divine lsaven of Christianity beg.r 70
eeger In men the worth and dignity
Of the human socl and the doctrine o.
brotherhood and human rights. the
prophets began 10 see the evil ot slzv-
cry and its inherent contradiction 10
the spirit Of the new religion But as
they spoke they heard the same old