Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1917-10-30
A Very Worldly World NoaO
On F5re--By Bishop Gambler

George Eliot. in her little volume of
essays. entitled "Theophrastus Such, '
printed years ago an essay in which she
deprecated sharply what she was pleas
ed to call Other worldiness. She con-
demned most sarcastically the churches
and the preachers of the Gospel for MAX
ing so much of the future life and so
little of the life that now is for think
ing and talking too much of happiness
of eternity and caring too little for the
duties of time
If in those days there was any just
ground for such criticism of the chris
tian ministry and the churches, it is
quite certain any reason for censure of
that kind. The world of today is the
most worldly of worlds. In it there is
precious little of "Other-worldlinesS y
Much current christianity is itself
worldly, by which is meant that it con-
Germs itself exclusively with the things
of earth and shuts out of view entirely
the thought of eternity. 1t deals with
the relations of men to one another and
ignores utterly the relation Of the hui
man soul to God.
A great deal of the preaching, which
is most popular, is of a worldly type
that is to say. it aims at the meliora-
ton of the ills of earth rather than at
the promotion of heavenly life in the
hearts of man, and it issues from
sources that are bounded by time and
limited by sense. 1t is far more suit
able TO the lecture platform than TO
the pulpit.
But can an earth-bound christianity
preserve itself alive? Can worldly
preaching satisfy for long the souls or
men? Hardly.
We can not get along well in this
world to come. without belief in eter-
nal life we shall surely impoverish the
life that now is.
In a recent issue of the North Amer
lean Review appeared a very SUCCESS
tive article on some Difficulties in
Doing without Eternity" Throughout
the article runs a vein of subtle satire,
which occasionally shades off towards a
sad seriousness.
Among other things the writer says
with reference to the effect of the loss
OF faith in immortality upon the anec-
tions of the heart:
Eyanescence tends also to under
mine our personal affections 1t
harlv seems worth while to be over
fond of relative or friend whom
breath of wind may SNIFF out like a
fame Why should beings more
brittle than beetles so about loving
each other as If they were gods?
Morally, human frailty was often
subconsciously controlled by keeping
ourselves fit for the society we eX-
pected ultimately to enter. that or
saints and sages and perhaps OF God
himself.
In this suggestive paragraph the
writer of the article opens to view
long line of sad reflection. The best and
tenderest affections of the heart wither
in the blighting atmosphere of faithless-
ness. The noblest heroisms become
ouixotic in appearance, If they do not
cease altogether, when men no longer
believe in eternal life. Why should one
ieopardiZe. or sacrifice, for any cause
the life he has in this world, If there IS
to be no other life to come? Every SOL
der on the fields of France, fighting for
the right. might well say. with st. Paul.
eff the dead rise not why stand we in
jeopardy every hour?" An era of world
liness by it's very nature is an unheroic
period.
Doubt. or denial, of eternal life al
fects adversely even things temporal.
When men begin to say, Tomorrow we
die" they begin also to call to one an
other Let US eat and drink and De
merry" Why should they give them
selves to anything higher than physical
enjoyment, If physical life in THIS worLd
be all and the end of all? Why should
individuals or nations regard any higher
law than that of self-interest and SELF
INDULGENCE if eternal life be no more
than ar exploded fairy dream? All their
social and political life must inevitably
conform to their faithlessness.
Upon this point the writer of the ar
ticle mentioned says:
Apart from our personal pangs.