New Britain herald., 1926-06-14
PASTOR CRITICIzES
 NATURE WORSHIPPERS
(Continued From Page lD

within the most beautiful cathedral in the world. At such times, l am half inclined to believe that these nature-worshipping friends Of mine are right. But the question is-are they altogether right?
 Ian Maciaren. the Scotch preach CT who wrote Beside the Bonny Bricr Bush, had a friend, who in sisted that he got more good out of a sunset than out Of all the ser mons he had ever heard But let us remember that there was not one word Of Jesus Christ in all those sunset sermons. Not one word about ithe Saviour Of mankind, And that lis the very point that I would make this morning, 1T you and I needed only the inspiration that comes from hearing Of the timelin.ss and grand leur and wisdom Of God and from witnessing the wonders Of his handi- work. then nature would entirely Isuffico us. But. the truth is, my friends, a man cannot go and talk 10 nature about his sins, his hopes lis failures and his aspirations' | When one does do that, what hap pens? You know as well as 1 that nature only laughs at us. It takes q personal friend-a God like our loving Saviour Himsclf-to listen to ones personal troubles, fears and doubts. Is it not so?
 Nature can do a very great deal ito revivify our life. She can bring back rosy tints to the cheeks that have grown pale. She can fill the lungs with fine fresh air, She can dazzle the eyes with the pristine whitoness of the snow. and the col orful rainbows of her autumn leaves. But there is in nature no picture Of the heart and character of God to ibe found in Jesus Christ. And so - say-when this weakest link in the chain of argument, which our friends the nature-worshippers have woven, snaps-then the whole struC- Oture collapses, The human heart Icries out for personal redeemer. And nature never can nor will sup ply that need.
 "All the untamed and untutored tribes of Central Africa, inc tropics of South America, and the Cannibal Isles, have dweIt face to face with the most ancient groWths of nature for ages. And what has nature taught them? In certain tribes we are told-they still sit about 1 l, and F1t each others flesh while all the beauties of nature are spread before them. But we don't have 10 go SC far away from home to prove oul ! easel Facts are stubborn things Some of the worst cases of sordid- ness, animalism and brutality are tc be found on our police and court records in isolated districts-aWay off in the country too. l know this not from hearsay but personal wit ness-for l have had to sit in or trials for seduction. incest, murder and assault among the fjords of fal off Labrador where every prospect pleascs, and only man is vile" The drcgs Of life are all not found in oul city slums, my friends. The sad truth is, that life-human life-in the country can be just as boastial as ii is beutiful And, if any of those pre-. sent here this morning have growr up on farm in some isolated com. munity, l know they. can bear me out in this statement, that men and women, whose whole lives are spen in the country at the dull, routine duties, which represent mans strug gle to wrest a living from the New Hampshire hills-let us say-ver! seldom indeed are giving to drawing their inspiration from the woods anl the mountains of their local habitat
 Let no one misuderstand m' here, l am not-for q moment-con tending that country is worst thar the city. God forbid. l am not eycI attempting a comparison. ] am sim ply insisting that there is nothing nothing-in our civilization that cal serve us apart from the Gospel 0 Jesus Christ That there is nothin; also, in all the beauty of the bust or the widest wilderness, that cal save us apart from that same Cos pei. Jesus is the only hope of tn country and the town. And the tran scendent glory Of our Churches then, lies here--that they exist first. last and always to preacl Christ, and him only
 No man will dispute the glory 0 God, to be found in the multitudi nous stars, the eternal hills, and tn
 cathedral woods. But still in tn
 contemplation of all these wonder of nature we do not know God. W cannot by all our searching find hin , there. How is 1t then that God re t yeals His greater glory? He come to us in man-and here is some thing greater than the stars them l selves. And the reason God is bette revealed to us in Christ, the rcaso
 we can find Him most perfectly re vealed in Jesus is because Christ
 not only one with God but one wit
 us also, The Christ shining forth 1 q the Gospel of John declares, I an
 the Father are one.' Yet, woven in
 to the very fabric of the New Testa
 ment is the truth"
 The needs of the world, in whicl we arc living are many and yarie' and painful. Most of all 1t need to know and find God better! Blu how can we profess a Christian faitl and fail to roe that there is onl
 one perfect way to God? And tha way is the one way the only way flo preach which he Christian church exists and has existed sine
 2S A. D. Find God in nature a
 far as you can. Seek Him there am
 everywhere. But remember this
 with all it's failures and imperfec
 tions the church of Christ is her . to cot before us what Jesus Chr ris