FOR THE SABBATH.

King Country Chronicle, Volume VII, Issue 522, 30 November 1912, Page 7

FOR THE SABBATH.

RELIGIOUS BELIEFS OF SCIENTISTS. Lord Avebury, better known as Sir John Lubbock, admittedly one of the greatest living men of science, not only represents anthropology, but the sciences as a whole. He has been successively president of the British Association, the Entomological Socipty, the Ethnological Society, the Linnean Society, and Anthropological Institute, the Ray Society, the Statistical Society, and also vice-president of the Royal Society. He is a high authority on the habits of insects, especially ants, bets, and wasps. Lord Avebury, in directing attention to his published opinions on the subject, writes: —I am afraid the subject about which you write is too large for a letter, and I must refer you to the chapters on religion in my "Pleasures of Life" and "Use of Life." At the same time I may say that men of science are not in my opinion "anti-Christian." From his "Use of Life" the following passages are selected: — The Infinite and the Absolute can never be explained, nor explained away. Goethe described the worship of sorrow as the essence of Christianity. But we may be sure that the Creator would not have made a nature beauty to the eye, and music to the ear, if we had not been meant to enjoy it thoroughly. Theology and dogma are the science, but not the essence of religion. ' Christianity," says Drummond, "has succeeded not only because it is divine, but because it is so very human." Religion in daily life is a rule of conduct, a safeguard in prosperity, a comfort in adversity, support in anxiety, a refuge in danger, a consolation in sorrow, a haven of peace. "Remember thy Creator in the days of thy youth." To die as we should wish, we must live as we ought. To the good man death has no terrors. The duty to our neighbour is part of our duty to God. The mediaeval brigand, who described himself as "the friend of God and the enemy of mankind," did not more entirely mistake the true spirit of Christianity than many who have less excuse. The love of God is best shown by the love of man. There are noble sentiments in Plato iapj^ i^4»!ißtot:le..j .:;a[nd Epictetqs, in

gion. "A new commandment I give unto you; that ye love one another." Christianity does not call on us to sacrifice this world in order to secure the next. On the contrary, "to love that which is commanded and desire that which is premised" would add to our happiness here, as well as hereafter. There is no real difference between worldly and heavenly wisdom. For religion consecrates daily life. We alone can deprive ourselves of these advantages. "For lam persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, iior d Q pth, nor any other living creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Thus, and thus only, will life be bright, peaceful, and happy. In another work, published a few years ago, Lord Avebury says he thinks that: "To attempt to add to, or improve on, the teaching of Christ seems vain and even arrogant."—The Bishop of London.

A QUESTION ABOUT ETERNAL PUNISHMENT. I remember what a difficulty this was in Bethnal Green. I remember this was a question I was asked to lecture upon to the men in 1889, for. they said eternal punishment was their chief difficulty. I will try and answer this question a little more at length. Now, the first point is that Christ the responsibility of using the strongest language Himself on the subject. If you will look, for instance in the bible and in the New Testament you will find that all the strongest things are said by Christ Himself. Th-*e is no good laying the blame upon the Church or upon the creeds. It is the Bible that is the difficulty, and the people forget that. It is Christ Who speaks about the "worm that- dieth not, and the fire that is not quenched." That is the first point. That shows, of course, that it is quite clear there is some tremendous danger of which we are to beware. Christ would never have used that language if He was not warning us with tears in His voice of some terrible danger. Then the second point is, that it is never laid down in the Bible, or by any Church decree or statement of any council, that any particular person is finally lost; and Dr Pusey says —and this may comfort some of you, because Dr Pusey is looked upon as the orthodox of the orthodox in such matters—that "No soul will ever be lost."—remember this, you who have been kept away perhaps by the thought of the harshness of God—"No soul will ever be lost who has not had the Father tnrow His arms round him, look in his face with looks of love, and has deliberately rejected Him." "They have both seen and hated both Me and My Father " That brings U3 to the third point; that hell is a state. I should he quite prepared to say with an old writer, "When self will ceases hell ceases." That is, hell id a condition of rebellion against God; it is being outside the sunshine of God's love. Therefore while a soul is rebellious, while it hasanother will that is not God'a wilt, it cannot be taken to Heaven. It would be a moral impossibility to fake some lustful, wicked man out of London and put him in Heaven. Do you suppose he would enjoy Heaven? How could he live in Heaven? All the things he cares for are absolutely opposed to the spirit of Heaven. We must not speak of what is a "moral impossibility" as if it depended on the will or whim of God. Against what then was Jesus Christ warning us? I believe this: He was warning us against the awful possibility that we might get into such a condition that we could not turn. I have sometimes seen a man who had for thirty or forty years been so consistently a drunkard, that, humanlv speaking, it was impossible for him to turn from it. Or it may be that to another some other bad habit has become like a chain. I believe in always hoping for every one, but you can imagine some one who has such a chain ruund himself that he cannot turn from his sin. That, I believe, is the danger against which Jesus Christ warns us; that is why He says: "Agonise to enter the strait gate." And it is very remarkable that when some one said to Him, "Lord, are there few that be saved?" Instead of answering the question or satisfying their curiosity, He said, "Strive to enter into the strait gate yourself." I feel this, that I can trust my God not only with my own soul, but with the soul of every one else. I have not died upon the Cross as Jesus Christ died for them, and therefore it is not for me or for you to set up yourselves to be more merciful than God or more loving that Jesus Christ. I look into my orders as an ambassador, and I see the conditions. I am told to offer salvation to my brothers, and I must stick to my credentials as an ambassador. I have boundless hope for everyone. But I should be false to my teaching, I should be fasle to my credentials, if I hid this terrible danger that perhaps you, my brother or sister, in this very church to-night, might so harden yourself against God that you can neither turn to Him in this world nor in the world to come. —The Bishop of London.