The American Jewish world. [volume] (Minneapolis ;) 1915-current, 1921-09-30
KEPTICS seize upon the fact that
! there is no positive proof of the
I'D n 1;fo

CuC1c ID IO pOSlC1Vc pIOOl VI CIlG
- existence Of God, a life hereafter
or supernatural revelation. They as
sail religion from this angle and d.
rect their neighbours thoughts to the
falsehood and folly of the church.
There are countless fallacies in the
framework Of religion, but the efforts
of the. free thinker to shatter the
faith Of the Jew or non-Jew in their
truth and authenticity are not only
futile but criminal. They are futile
because the human being dislikes
death and the hope for an existence
beyond this earthly life clutches at
his heart and overpowers it. Evil
dence of a power that is single and
arbitrary, the author of all life and
matter, is scattered everywhere about.
From many sources support is drawn
to the wish for life hereafter, buoying
our hopes and establishing our faith.
Their efforts are criminal because the
great modern civilization which brings
to our homes and the home of the
iconoclast, the peace and security
which general society enjoys, rests
upon the religious consciousness of
it's members. 1t is criminal to seek
to destroy this.
1t is the purpose of this argument
to prove these statements.
1t is understood that the mental and
moral standards Of mankind were not
always at their present high level.
The best possible index to the mental
and moral dimensions of earliest man
may be found in the study of the
savage that roams the unexplored
portions of the earth today. His in
stincts are primal and his impulses
have not been developed beyond his
instincts. His physical and spiritual
needs do not differ to an appreciate
extent from the plain wants of the
animals upon which he feeds, namely,
food and shelter.
Whether the first man sprung from
the ape or any other animal, as sci
ence contends, may never be proven.
We may safely assume, however, that
the original man, save for his outward
form and scarce mental superiority,
possessed few talents and no spiritual
refinement not vouchsafed the rest of
the animal species. This mental SUI
periority continued to develop with
the passing of time. Eventually there
came forth a man of mental develop
ment that was unprecedented in his
day. This man was the first thinker
and very likely the inspiration Of
Robins "The Thinker" This man
was not the first thinker in the sense
that he was the first Of all men to
think about the satisfaction of his
simplest wants. All animals have that
mental ability. He was the first
thinker inasmuch as he directed his
thoughts to the elevation of mans
state to place above that Of the
animal It is difficult to say which
of the many human problems was the
first to engage his serious attention.
The Bible says that his first displeas-
ure was his nakedness. Inasmuch as
the modest concealment of ones
nakedness is prerequisite in the dis
tinction of the human from the ami
NAL behavior, the Bible may be quite
right. However at some point in the
early development of mans mental
superiority the notion took hold of
the thinker that Code of Mutual
Concession, to which all members of
a community would subscribe, should
advance the peace and happiness of