Show NOT IMMUNE TO Of REASON Religion Must Satisfy Severest Scrutiny of Man Says It Preacher NOT WOT BASED ON AUTHORITY Truly Religious Man Will be aMoral a aMoral a aMoral Moral Dynamo During His V VS S Time and Place Authority or Inspiration The The Decisive Decisive De De- De- De Question In Religion was the theme of ot the sermon preached at the Unitarian church Sunday by the Rev neve William Thurston Brown He hed he'd that religion ton based on authority external external exter exter- nal nai to life am and which does doE's not grow STOW out of the tho minds capacities and demands de de- de- de mantis mands of or human life lire is one that can moke make nothing but hypocrites Ills his g sermon rmon follows V What Is the meaning of this widespread widespread widespread wide wide- spread and growing Indifference to tho the religion of our OUI churches The rho answer an nit- Is perfectly plain anti and it Is this Any religion resting on supernatural authority any religion which directly 01 or Indirectly asks aska a kR men and women to abdicate their freedom of thinking to smother the voice of ot reason is La doomed If It our boys and girls are taught to use URe their reason In the tho public public pub pub- lic schools and in all nil Ih the ordinary affairs affairs affairs af af- af- af fairs of ot their life they y are arc IC Gol going g to use tise It everywhere P Nothing can con permanently per per- remain Immune to reason nothing can onni finally evade the severest scrutiny of the mind of ot man an and nothing cnn can maintain a genuine hold holdon on the loyalty or 01 affection or respect of or men which does doe not c. c easily and overwhelmingly convince any and every one of of- Its of-Its its truth lu l Satisfy All AIL It isn't a question of ot convincing a few Cew mei me or even a n race rac of men mell It Itis Itis itIs is a question of convincing con all sorts and arid conditions of men of satisfying th the tho unlimited capacities and possibilities tl ties lies s of the mind and life lite of ot men Religion Re flee flee- ligion based d on any authority external to life religion rc which does docs not grow GlOW out of ot the time needs and capacities and amI demands of or human life lire now now and here and everywhere a as naturally as grass foliage Mower and anti fruit grow gro out nut of th time the soil soli and atmosphere of this earth as r hl and this spring and summer nel and arid autumn as in an any past and summer Hummer and autumn since tl t began a religion lon that does docs not do that can only make mae hypocrites s. s It ItIs ItIs Itis Is i. i tribute to our OUI human nature that su suh h a tremendous majority refu refuse e to tob tobe b be be hypocrites s. s S S The very attempt to base religion on authority is irreligious The men inert W vl are aIe toda today universally V relo recognized as j the pioneers and founders of re religion re- re hg ligion on from Moses MoseR l Krishna ri Gautama an anty Jesus down n own to the tho last man who ha been the Inspirer Inspire of or his fellows ne nei or er made any such attempt Without Without With With- out exception they were irene men who tied the to no fixed authority Th They Y W we eI I s m m JT who P. P pressed se HJ In tl ly 1 1 o QI lU I 1 J f h iM th t l ji-l jilin t as asin n ln k keep kep Their tr lives in iii indo oma tm land locked harbor of ortho ortho- do lOj hut hilt as constellations to guide guideway th way to new ne and larger n tut i on the 1 boi lOi 0 88 ocean of oC moral an anI amp spiritual possibility I- I Great Gnat Ta Tasks Ta ls Mako Religion What was It that made Moses or Je Jesus us a religious man a man incarnate mean mean- na nake nate e with the spirit of or religion and anti so solan an Inspiration to all the after days lays Jut one om thing thing the the vision of or a great groat n d an and a great task It was the Ion of a great g need an and a great task which set on lire fire each of those potent souls anti and made him hint a beacon hacon anti and blessing to all nil coming time to Moses the 1 vision lon of or freedom for a race enslaved enslaved en en- slaved slave to Gautama the vision of an empire of or men in poverty of body ane anti and soul to Jt Jesus sus the vision Islon of a world feeding on oil husks strangers in their fathers father's house starving In tho the midst of plenty blind and amI dead thead to the radiant rail radi ant realities of a divine ino world The rite bIl blighting blighting- ht ng un unbelief ellef of all the ages has been heen anti and Is the Idea that any man can be religious on any other terms than those upon which Jesus Jesusi was religious that any man of us can inherit religion from front somo some other man manor manur ur or Ut get It out o of a book Time The atheism which has curse cursed the world and curses It still is that which falls fails to see and know that any ammy man mann today tOllay can have havethe havethe havethe the reH religion lon of or Jesus only as he lie gains ains tho the vision Islon of of hits his own umi world which Jesus had hall of hl his only as h he becomes for fOl the now and here herc what whaL Jesus became be be- came canie for fot the time then arid and There can he be no flO more harmful superstition than that of thinking that we ot of today 1 can rightly justly or adequately see soe our ow world or 01 know Its meaning by hy 1001 looking ln through the tho eyes of any man nian manor or on race that ever lived What hut Religion Hd Is What Is the mt meaning th then n mi of re religion no- no ligion I 1 answer answer It Is the jO Joy the tho courage the tho hope the tho enthusiasm the devotion the elf t the reverence rover rever ence enee the freedom which glorify a u. life that thaL has discovered something adequate adequate ade tue- quate to lo live 11 for lot and an anto to make that life a contagion of hope courage faith and che cheer chiCOl l' l for or nil all the world That IB is what religion Is 18 Sand and there I is nothing that thai can tul take Hike e its Us place Does that sort ort of or 1 cut a II aman aman I man of off from the vital things of ot the past Does It make mako the heroic men an and amid tho the splendid deeds of the past of ot no avail Quite Quito the contrary The men and deeds leeds of the past that are potent au and I I instead of being an authority to such a t man hard hardening n hl his life lJ by bythe i ithe Ithe the pressure of oC a mould limiting the scope CoIle of his lU life within set boundaries bound bound- aries arlen becomes to such UC I a man a mighty and Jo joyous ou inspiration To such uch n a manam man mn am and amid to him hint only dues does an anything vital vitalIn i In the past become a for all aJI Itis it H Is IB worth Th Time The onI only man who over ever effects ef of- feels any ital contact between n his own life and the thu best bert eFt of all th the past I that thaL proves pro closest kinship to Jesus i and to eV wry every r other heroic soul Is the theman I man who now nov and here is lilt himself engaged elm en- 11 I l I lu some purpose equally great grat and h beneficent and imperative j I I There never was vas a time when men professed sed so o great a reverence I for the name of ot Moses as in Pal Palestine In the thc first century But there them was not aman f a a aman I man living JIving tItan then who bore so 10 sure a resemblance to the great Tea emancipator of or Israel Isrnel as the on one man of the whole province who was waR adjudged b by hl his humid blind and amid bigoted fellows to be he an enemy of the tho religion of or orlo Moses Moses- lo J Jesus e of N Nazareth reh S 1 to l JI V There hn has never ne been ton a time In Inthe In Inthe the lie history of England when ihen the Christian ChrisI Chris Chris- I than tian church hurch of oC that country professed I such suh profound allegiance to J Jesus as asIn asin S in the days of tho the move melt ment 75 years e I ago lInt But If Ir we know anything at all toda today about that perS per per- S S 5 V I 7 i V r ft i h i f 6 Jt f Ji vv O r lod we know that the time men of England England Eng Eng- land then therm who vho were re most akin to th thIat time the great Galilean w were veme le not the leaders headers of the church were wert not the worshipers nt Ill authority but wore wor mon 1000 like JUte Car Car- lyle Ilc and Ruskin and Huxley inca Huxley men y-men men who though branded blande unbelievers ver by bythe bythe bythe the blind worshipers at nt a deserted shrine did more than all aU the priesthood priesthood priesthood priest priest- hood of England to together ethel to create a areal areal areal real religion Ir h. the souls of that and the tho following s generation It bo bu infinitely ridiculous were it not so infinitely sad this widespread widespread wide wide- spread delusion that we call cah Bequeath a religion that Gr God d himself can hand haud down a religion through the medium I of or book bool Would you ou give your our son or daughter tho the priceless treasure treasure- Ule of or religion Would you OU have hav havethe havethe the young young- men inert m n and anti the young oun women of city and country of or street and aIle al alIcy alley al- al le Icy ley of mine and counting counting- Impure house of saloon and brothel would brothel would you YO have these human lives unfold into the blossom and anti fr fruitage of religion Would you OU see eo then Christian in the only moaning meaning of that word that Is worth a moments moment's thought Must Live o for Co Something You can do 10 that In one way anti and only one You cannot do tIo it b by giving g them Bibles You cannot tb do It by InducIng in inducing In- In th them to accept any cree creed l or theolo theology ol old or new You Thu cannot do doIt doit doit it i by getting them to sing hymns or orsay orsay say a prayers or ol perform rny ny set let of or rites riles however ancient You can do it only by uy putting them In fn the way of seeing something adequate to live JIve for tOI some somo great and needed task to lo he lie performed perform perform- ed ed by making them feel the proa- proa sure on their r rouls Juls n 0 or somo some 1 aCid aC id cause causa of human freedom or ot right Once let a man gain a It vision Islon of a great task tusk and immediately all HIl th time the I moral resources of post past and present prest-nt become available a to foi him Once set a human life in jn J pursuit ur of ot an end upil nd so sor great r at so Imperative S so So beneficent that he is literally thrown 1 back upon divine resources for its accomplishment accomplish accomplish- ment mont and anti God will become a reality to that man He lIe will vIlh enter Into and anti become a part parL of the fellowship o of the prophets and Christs ts of over every a age e Hotter still he will ivill become for his I own time nn and place a n moral dynamo a n rn lI living anti and convincing cnn witness to the reality of or rt religion lon |