Norwich bulletin., 1912-05-11
SUNDAY MORNING TALK
PROVIDENCE AND THE ORDER
 OF NATURE.

In the presence of catastrophes such as shock humanity thoughtful men find themselves asking hard questions. When earthquake overwhelms Mes sina, the dam breaks at Johnstown, or the sinking Titanic carries it's great company beneath the waves, certain staggering problems confront the earnest mind Why are such calafn- itieS, with their frightful entail of mental and physical suffering, allow ed in a normal universe? Has the Creator anything to do with these events? May we properly speak of them. as the underwriters do, as acts of God?'
 It is to be observed that the de- structive forces of nature are no re- specters of persons. They overwhelm good and evil men alike. Fire sweeps away every house that stands in it's track whatever the moral character of it's owner. In the event of the ship wreck the professional gambler and the devout missionary go down to the same watery grave. That wickednes2 should meet it's appropriate punish ment we should expect, but such tragedies seem surely no just portion of the pure in heart.
 That the universe is an absolutely orderly one no thinker can doubt. The reign of law is seen to be complete and impartial. Fire always burns and water always drowns and the pull of gravitation is always in operation Nature plays no favorites and if any man, be he saint or sinner, stands in the way of the operations of nature ht courts physical destruction. No ex- l ception is made for his innocence, his l ignorance or his good intentions Before we bow God of the scene ot human affairs. however, as being i'm. | potent or indifferent to human vel | fare, we may reflect on the evident 1 use of this unvarying physical order | that he has ordained as means ot 1 human education. We may asl whether the Creator Is not trying tC teach us something through this ma. terial scheme of things that environi | us.
 Nature is a terribly stern school. master, but the only one competent tc ! teach us such lessons as we are re | duired to learn. Because of the rigit | discipline of this teacher men hay, learned to build better cities, stronger bridges and safer ships and railways Recognizing laws of the body thel have learned sanitation and hygiene Recognizing laws of the mind the! have perfected education. Recogniz ing laws of the spirit they have culti l vated morality and religion.
 It is not true to say that God doe not care when we suffer. No heart 0 stone is enthroned at the center of tn | universe. The heart of the Eternal i most wonderfully kind. Suffering i not the lot Of man alone but abund antly shared by the Creator whel through human want of prudence foresight or knowledge. man bring penalties upon himself, God suffers fl the pain of his child. The boy wh
 cuts himself with the knife that hi father has given him for a birthda, present, wounds his father as we'll & himself. The father grieves that tn
 boy could not learn without this dis cipline Nor is it otherwise, we ma
 believe. with the Father in heaven
 Some there may be who find a sor
 of consolation in the belief that Go
 deliberately sends pain and trouble up
 on men. I prefer to believe, not thA
 he sends these, but rather that he per
 mits them. He will not oyerrid
 nature in favor of one whe breaks
 law of nature. He allows law t
 take it's course, effect following caus
 with unvarying certainty. But that i
 by nc means equivalent to saying tha
 he deliberately sends the terrible thin
 that is a source of grief to him as
 is te us mertals. Both the power an
 the levs of God may ne cempletel