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Show I WORSHIP Of GOD j EXCLUDES CREATURES Religion Is the Exercise -of Edith, Cnt the Infallible Word faliibly Interpreted Can Never Give Certainty. (Written for Intonuountain Catholi.O Tlx question of religion is always one of deep intrrost to the human nice, and, as generally understood, under-stood, moans 1I10 acknowledgment and worship of i'd. To it is opposed both irreligion and supersti-j supersti-j 1 i m the former liy defect, the latter by excess. Ir- i'li?ioi is no religion, or atheism. Superstition may le the be-iowal of worship on an object that is not entitled 1o su'ih worship, for example, the ! worship paid by pagans to their idols; or it may be a false or undue worship paid to the true-God. I . In using the word worship, its meaning is often I changed to. give currency to the idea of supersli- 1 In applying the lerm to God. it means to give ,1 him divine honors. Worship, restricted to this - f meaning, can be applied to God alone. It excludes ; all creatures, oven the angels, the saints and the Blessed Mother of the Redeemer. When the word is used between individuals, it is confined to certain i lienor, respect or dignity that is bestowed on persons because of iheir good qualities, high position or civil authority. The rulers of nations, judges, church dignitaries and other expired position and Matiou in life, receive special honors. It can be .-aid of the child that he worships the parents, but " - not in the sense in which the creature worships his creator. : . Religion is the exponent or exercise of faith. . God demands faith of all his children. "Without 1 i ' faith it is impossible to please God. He that be- . i lieveth and is baotized shall be saved." To satisfv ; tlii demand and escape the possibility of its eoii- i iradietory, viz. irreligion, or its contrary, viz. su- w I perstition, or false religion, there must be some ' living exponent, who. is the accepted agent of God ; that will draw the line between the false and the Irue. v- The admission that the Bible is the inspired word of God. will not serve one's purpose in de-i de-i ' -idiug between what is false and true, because the f ( infallible word fallibly interpreted will never give I i' certainly in matters of faith. The same ohjec- j lion is somotiie.es raised against the insufficiency I of any living exponent or divinely commissioned i Mithority, to bring ertainly, IwcausO the term only, it is said, has to be adjudicated by an intellect winch is fallible. Therefore a fallible mind cannot have certainty even from an infallible authority. This objection presupposes that the intellect is fallible in all things, which is. not true. It also confines certainly to internal evidence entirely to iho exclusion of external evidence. Because "it is lnunan to err." the intellect is not fallible in all ; things. In what it knows through acquired knowl edge as well as what it knows instinctively, the i intellect is infallible, therefore certain. The im iciloet may not. bt? able to grasp as truth iho ro- 1 nudity of the earth, yet it accepts it on external Muthorhw -Universal scepticism is an absurdity, for no one can doubt that he doubt?. Admitting, as all must, that the intellect is infallible in-fallible in what it knows. Ave come to ihe solution I .f ihe objection regarding the power of man's intel- I li " i, in passing judgment on the limit or extent of authority in matters of faith, which depends on I - ihe f idem-e or facts presented. When Jcmis presented himself to the world as I a teacher, he claimed and exercised divine power pnd authority. His claims were rejected by the poople. He made no complaint. Doubtless many v. ho rejected his claim were sincere. To their in-1 in-1 olivet ihe extraordinary claim was not evident. On the contrary the intrinsic evidence which tln-v had in beholding the Word made flesh would lead mail's natural intelligence to the conclusion that "y lie wa simply man. But he persisted in his claim, and "lie thought it no roblery himself to be equal f to God." But how establish his divine mission? i Voter was convinced of it through revelation, for f he-confessed "Christ, ihe son of the living God," I jind after so confessing, Jesus said: "Blessed art f ihou. Simon Bar-Jona. Because flesh and blood , hath not revealed it to thee, but my Father who is in heaven." Here. Peter confessed, not that the j i person before him was Christ the Son of the living J God, but God himself revealing and asserling his I divinity, and that, too, by exterior evidence which ; j was distinct from Borer's own thoughts or will, be- cause "flesh and blood did not reveal "it to him." J The profession of faith was then revealed, for otherwise neither he nor the other disciples would know ihat Christ was God. But how were those, who were not inspired, to come to the knowledge that .leMis wa- God? If truth is confined to the intellect in which resides all authority, then any j external proof he may give would not he sufficient. He may raise the dead to life, or give life to his own body after resting three day? in the tomb, but . ; as tho.s?- facts are not intrinsically evident to roa- j son by its own light, this would make an act of I faith impossible. What the intellect sees by its ' own light is knowledge, not faith. The failh of ' the apostles rested on the authority of Jesus, and . ihat of the early Christians on the authority of,' the apostle who were commissioned to teach all nations. Scientific knowledge rest" to a great extent on extrensic authority. The botanist de pends on the authority of others when classifying i plants he never saw. The man who writes a geography describes countries he never saw, and ies it on the authority of others." and so of tether sciences. In all ordinary affairs of this life we accept ac-cept most things on the authority of others, and wiihout the knowledge which comes through that ! channel progress in science would come to a stand- - " The sarUe applies to religion, and more so be cause God demands faith, which, according to St. I'aul, is the "evidence of things that appear not." and which must come through God's accredited fgents. The early Christians believed in Christ, I on the authority of the apostles. They did not I V witness his resurrection, which is the foundation of ih ' r;"itv and true fnith. Faith neeessarilv pre- !! ' ' supposes infallible authority, i. 0., commissioned teachers, because it must come through hearing 'Faith eometh by hearing." To Jiear there must be a divinely commissioned and authorized preacher.' preach-er.' for "how can they preach unless they be sent." Acknowledging the existence of God, which is a fact of science, his, demand that man shall have faith, what faith is, then reason demands that we have divinely commissioned teachers Mho are authorized au-thorized to make known with certainty in what that faith consists. Otherwise, if dependisg on the intrinsic in-trinsic authority of the intellect, we would never know what is right or wrong, true or false in morals and faith. F. D. |