Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1914-02-16
Pastor Russell's Sermon


of the world will learn righteousness"
Qsaiah 26:9.i Then wilful evil doers
will be cut off in the Second Death,
without hope OF further redemption.
while the obedient will attain human
perfection
9eeeher and Abbott Evoutionists.
Rev, Lyman Abbott eulogized Mr..
Beecher as one OF the first ministers
to accept Darwin's theory of Evolu.
ton. No doubt this is so. good
man, broad and generous, but misled
by the creeds. thought that he found
In Evolution something more rational
than the Bible taught. He endeavored
to link the two together, as others have
endeavored to do only to fail; for the
Bible throughout is In direct opposi
ton to the Evolution theory 1t dis.
tinctly teaches the fall Of man.
Jesus declared that He came to re-
cover that which was lost God sent
His Only Begotten Son, that whose
ever beieveth on Him should not per-
tsh. St Peter tells of the Restitution
Of fallen man to his former glorious
estate. In the likeness of his Creator
II Darwin's theory be correct, then
Jesus. His Apostles and all the Proph
cts, were astray.
But what is the Evolution hopper
Briefly stated, this: That some dis
tance back our fOrefathers were mon,
keys: that we have progressed in
measure but are still perishing, as did
our monkey fOrefathers. Under Dar
wins law of the Survival Of the Fit
test, disease ana death will gradually
weed ont the more stupid ana vicious
tas 1t is not doing. so far as any one
can seeD. that in the far.off future our
children may attain such perfection as
to know how 10 live forever and right
ly enjoy the blessings of earthly life.
Perhaps the Evolution hope is bet
ter than none Surely It Is better than
the eternal torment hope of the Dark |
Ages! but 1t must be far from soul-sat-
isfying 10 NIL who think deeply But
the Bible hope proposes that Messiahs |
Kingdom shall take in the entire race
of Adam. and by disciplinary instruc.
lions aud encouragements shall help
all the willing and Obedent to human |
perfection This hope for the world |
is beyond the special hope which is the |
exclusive portion Of the fully conse
Grated disciples OF Jesus
Or Abbott sympathized with as In
advance, saying, There are still some
beated preachers who endeavor to per |
sunde their congregations that Evolu
tion IL perious to the soul, and who
found their religious teaching on the
old doctrines Of finished creation, an
absentee God, and pestllence-stricken
world"
We confess that we belong to this |
class There can be no doubt that we
are living In u pestIlence-stricken |
world, and that conditions here are
not such as gracious and loving Be
ing would provide for His intelligent
creatures, Rather. as St Paul de.
clnres, the world IL under a reign Of |
Sin and Denth. which has prevailed |
since the time Father Adam was cut
Off from fellowship with His Heavenly |
Father, under the sentence OF DEATH
Romans b;l2.2l,
The condition OF the pestilence-strlck.
en- world In permitted In order to carry
out the penalty upon our convict race
The Bible declares that God IN allow
ing mankind to learn great lesson
Of their own incompetence aud help |
Iessness, which will be valuable to all |
eternity to both men and angels; that |
present trials and difficulties aud death |
will be Overruled for mans good For |
six thousand years men have been
learning the bitter results OF dlsobedi
ence to the lnws Of righteousness, and |
their need Of help Divine Only few |
yet know thHt God IN Love"
But such ~ see the true light OF |
Gods Word nS 10 the fall, the Redemp |
tlOn'prlce, the cnl OF the Church to b"
I0intheirs In Messnhs Kingdom, and |
the eventual Reign Of Righteousness,
nave Il great Joy and blessing, As for
others, we hegrudge them not whntev
er Joy or peace they cnn get ont OF any |
theory that win ibrrate from the hor
rlhle nightmare Of the DARK Ages
Was Your Grandfather an Ape2
Continuing his eulogy OF MIR Beech
er br AOhott said; "But no one any |
longer nsks surcustcully, so you think |
your grandfather was an apeT And |
few are they who still venture to de |
nounce ns atheists those who believe
IN lite Ms a process OF Divine growth, !
lnd redemption as process Of spirit
W devrlOmrut" We fear nr Ab |
uutt Is ught lhut the learned IN pulpit |
ana pew have so thoroughly lost thei |
Wth ~ the tod VI the Bible that they |
nu muprr reproach unr another with |
the tact
Rut ls the tact any the less true tol
tins rtasun' Suppuse al the great
mmd, accept the Evolution theory
thai AdAm wHs the sun ut an ape
aud oppose the Bible teaching that he
was speemi ana direct creation u
God the morul image OF MS Creator |
Suppuee all thosr decide that man
never ten trun peitecuuu, aud never
needed q redemption, Hnd that all the
Bihlp smtpmpntS respecting Jesus ny
the lhdrpulel ARE tHlse
SUPPOSE the iteUu dD mold that al
mrthly lite Is merely development
uu evolutionary pruccsS called, IN u |
complimentary sense "nivtne growth,