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Show be mmt a'd the COl'MERfEIT IN RELIGION . j,jun,-','t,i;!i Catholic: 'vu,. !;,-; I read an article entitled "True Re- J' i;-. to Science," and while I was very ;, ;, -: : it. there are some points on which the ,!,,, . -") to mo tn be correct. ',, , 1 ,.urtH o-' i'H it from the standpoint of the pro-,..,..! pro-,..,..! ...,;,!;. r. .!! 1 ani only one of the common herd, who ' ',. ... j..!. . . .a::is to find out where the truth is. ,r ;.: .1 v.:!l i:..t force my mind to a belief based 011 f !. '1 writer states that "superstition must y Jr-.iii-r; nu- religion." How? Why? How does p)vt : a n'eJ.t? He illustrates it by saying that ..,0,:,,:.;:: ...in presupiwyes a genuine coin. That is Ki 1 ..:;!: '? the parallel. A counterfeit coin is v tli- i.umv .'lid the success of the counterfeit ; .,.,.,!P niH.n :! -;; tness of the copy, and also on the 1 !. ..j. ; the genuine. ,5, , ; 1 1 : : : this illustration to religion, it would mean ,,; ,!- .'. tnx- rolfglon in existence: then someone ,! 11 rX:'' 1 ' ' tt. and practiced it, that none ,-Y. u.Zivnw. In that case, would not the imi-,.-..n. I- fij: c.py. and practiced with pious mo- ;; .; hy it.- !.l:evfrs. l e just as pood as the original? ;; tlv- other hand, supposing that after a man's ,i-::h tfcfn- .-iiculd a; -pear a dozen different wills, all pur-:,o-iir.-- t h.-.ve been signed by him. and all dated on the fry 0;' liif !e;c.h. Any reasonable person would imme-Lj,,;,.! imme-Lj,,;,.! s;iy th.it forgery had been committed. But. would f;-j-t ;!: ".- were so many forgeries presuppose the .a : ;h.t t!- l-c.:ased had ever executed a genuine will? .vfci-jf. h i:'-v-r had 'hought of making a will at all, ,;..: v- ;dl ;vele of ih,- wills were spur'ous. Might j. 'i"t a! " a;-!ly to the religions of the present day? .:, 1 I; th..' learned writer of the article referred to will th tV- irt;M to explain the points above mentioned, er"!y appreciate it. HEADER. i.'wr -'!'cir..'fI corro.-jiondont, in takintr cxTption to tu iii-ie viii. li pcrol in a 1m to issuo, has not jrvp.l tin- -nl jeet which was (rcatod. Tlic writer : icu "h;. jiiiiiot jin.l will not force his mind to a bo-iiifl.iv bo-iiifl.iv .i e-i inconclusive premises." If he could not i vi!l Me!. ( t. jiaradoxical as it may appear, he. ri,'. iv;'! it. may scent to "Mr. Header" (who is I Vi n' 1 lie common herd.") an "inconclusive propo-1 propo-1 1' mi." ;-et it is logically into. - . . -. j !V"i!-p ..vrr hi hcical defects, we come lo.Jiis 'll.-w and Why." which' apply to snper.stition r r'!:tieu crr.-r a hf-iuj; subsequent to truth, i. e., !".' relicion. lb- admits that "a counterfeit coin pre- g.-nuiiie coin." which is virtually admitting: i:;' t rut Ji imit precede error, or, to have error of f.:r. kind yen must first have truth. Truth is an af-rnan'-ii jind error is a negation. This can be as-even as-even of abst ract truths. The very assertion '...:'. :vi. jilu- two cijual three and any fraction there-' there-' i""iir aii.i any fraction, is a denial that they l"iu iu.d tlii negative assertion presupposes the truth, viz.: Two plus two equal, four. This i.ir-s i. j-roof. I? is self-evident. "";iii.-r" cannot .-ee the parallel, namely, that a Um- r.-l!n,i 'roMi;iposcs a true religion, as the coun- ;n stijoses the penuine. In paragraph ' :'"'.' K-:'." aj.j.lics this illustration to religion, say-':':; say-':':; one made stich an exact eopy of it, and t "i' i it. ;iiat none could toll the difference.' Here ;r e litioii, not premises, is illogical. The ' :v:"n. or v liat he ir-rins "an exact copy," is not ( - lm : uine. but it presupposes the genuine to ;" ''x:-ii d. i 1-c there would be no attempt at mak- ;-- ill eopy. '" rim .-atniot generate a something witliout a j ': ritst exi.-ting in the mind. An artist, j ' J '" !'': :.t a picture must have an ideal in his j "! " Logins that picture, and no matter how V ' ' it is not. the original. Our critic l.iiy ;, -.bv-r bar and coin it into silver dollars, an . '' ia'"!,-l -?. i..ued by the government. Would ' ; "i" J'!-! -- uood a.s the original f Yes, if "none 1,1 "'I ';: .h-iere,)-e." Will the critic maintain that ,' '' ''ioi 'i ;he .iifterence Though a "member of ,' '" : -: h ." lio knows too much about Federal "'!v' - !-:sd i .- ).rofieiency of our secret service to illlV ;i: 'ep; at counterfeiting. .. ll'"v -otue who will ferret out the countcr-r''u countcr-r''u '" ' " government in its rights, so, too, in '. roviled teachers who would safe-vl:.. safe-vl:.. b.ved Him and wished to serve Him. ! 1 ''' - '"rors. This p revision was so essential ,.' -i'v i!if!t Infiniie Wisdom, lemanding true j J t-r-t revealing Himself to man, has so j j,''1"''- ir' '! beginning, for such emergency. .,t, i 11 ' 1 -a Digraph five, we would say that the ..'"J;1 !!!, ;,..,, l,.r" 1;ls introduced favors,. instead 1,.'1'"1!a'!' - - -'.liii-t, the arguments adduced in the ' r' ; :" ! t... The fact that there were twelve "i.-porting to be signed by '.John Doe, r -inly establih the fact tliat John Doe ,-''i .-.....ht nf poking a will; but all twelve 'r'y .lid. the fact that all twelve knew vr v':iv Mi-i, ;, thing as a genuiin: will, which ,ri"'! imitate as closely as possible. If there ' "" 'i..-uments known as genuine, authentic, Y "' would lx- no counterfeits. 1,!";r r;i'i -xit in the mind, that has 110 actual J""""1' M-n.lhle world. The very fact that j V'' n'l! by falsehool to apprb)riatc John j , r"i" ' . -Ik.ws that there was a legal way, which 1 v j" ,n" v'::.v- of. disposing of bis property, and the t.y"i"ru''r ' i'c so thoroughly posted on the right j t,; (. tri.-d o give "an exact copy." Being ex- I "S ' ;1' ;' true and genuine will, our correspond- 1 a,, j",.1''1'"' to the common herd,'' and must, Mu,rM '"Sic in the backwoods of some distant , ' ",'l -eiisi.or ai twelve "jusl as good as the Ijj111'!) existed, or just as good as a true, 'ontinued on 1'age Two.)- TIE CERUIIE AID IHE (iirajni mm (Continued from Page One.) genuine and legal will, because all are "exact .copies." ' Mr.. "Reader." who in paragraph iiuiiiber one, could not and would not coerce his mind to believe anything 'based on-inconclusive promises," seems perfectly satisfied with "exact copies, when practiced with pious motives." No, . Mr. "Reader," error can never serve as a substitute for truth and no matter how close the resemblance, it is still error, and can not take the place of truth. If through some possible means y-ou got your silver bar turned Into silver dolars and as such passed as genuine everywhere, these dollars still remain counterfeits. No mattei-how mattei-how close the resemblance between true and false religion the latter (sincerely believed to be true and "practiced with pious motives") is not sinful; but before be-fore the moral law, before God. no matter how exact the copy, or close the resemblance, error can not be accepted as a substitute for truth. According . to' our critic's ' theory, "would not the imitation, being an exact ex-act copy be just as good as the originai?" God. who is all truth, the fountain and source of all truth, might compromise with error and become its accomplice. This logical deduction, namely, God to be an accomplice of falsehood, which is . blasphemous and arthelstical, our correspondent would reject as absurd. "An imitation," however how-ever "exact the copy." is not the orig-iml orig-iml nnd to call it :he original is a lie. and for God to sanction error, or He, is impossible. Mr. "Reader" lost sight of his own Objection in his attempt to disprove what he did not understand, viz., that error, or false religion, must be subsequent sub-sequent to true religion. The primitive truths which come, down from the beginning, be-ginning, viz.. the existence of God, the creator of all, man's existence in time and the immortality of the soul, have never been disproved. Man's conception concep-tion of God and his relations to Him, his creator, and how he has to serve Him, must be revealed to man by God. and therefore true. These primitive pri-mitive truths must also be established estab-lished prior to error, and if not professed pro-fessed by a certain class of people, another an-other class could not deny them. There could be no denial .without an affirmation affirma-tion When one denies, he -denies something that others profes The-belief The-belief that God. exists was prior to the denial of "the fool who said in his heart there is no God." |