An encyclopaedia on the evidences, or, Masterpieces of many minds

Preface

It is perhaps best that a few things should be said before entering upon the perusal of this book. Had the author only his own thoughts to offer, he would, at least, have chosen some other theme than “ Evidences. ” As it is, he feels that he can render valuable service to the reader. It had been in his mind for some years to bring together some of the conclusions of the vast and wide-spread host who have published convictions upon the themes dealt with here. There seems to be a unity of spirit and a bond of peace in the very endeavor. It is delightful to cee the conservative and the progressive — the old and the new — clasp hands. It is the historic and the prophetic merged and in solution. The tone and statement of the Christian argument is in constant growth. What was competent to meet the infidelity of Payne’s period would, of itself, be futile for the present defence ; though we confess it would be both extravagant and untrue to pronounce wholesale condemnation on very much that was wisely written a hundred or more years ago. There is an iron strength, as well as a native common sense, in the old logic, that needs to be incorporated with the flexible but delicate forms of current thought.

Moreover, the testimonise of men, more than ever before, are valued mostly for the man that stands behind them, be he preacher, poet, philosopher or politician; and, strong as the prejudice against the clerical order still remains in the quarters of the skeptic, it seems wise to allow large space to the scientific and literary masters, as well as to the many true and thoughtful theologians who continue to grace and strengthen knowledge, and do honor to mankind.

We have not scrupled, therefore, to mix our authors up thoroughly. Perhaps never before has such a motley crew been brought together for such purpose, or indeed for any purpose whatsoever. And this being so, we cannot be supposed to endorse every word or thought they present. Some are for instruction and others for admonition. Introducing them to the reader, courtesy, as well as Christianity, compels us to allow them to speak “without being molested or made afraid.” The best we could do was to select as wisely as possible. We also hazard iv

PREFACE.

the reputation that falls to the scrapper ; but we console ourselves with the fact that any work at all encyclopedic in its nature involves the same risk. At any rate, it has given us some pleasure to contemplate the possible breaking-up of some sterile fastnesses. The juxtaposition of such thinkers as we produce will tend to fertilize the mind. Their very antagonisms of character will secure this. The surprises that will burst up in the reader’s mind, as he follows a thinker of whom he had formed a peculiarly incorrect estimate, will send a glow to the brain and a rapture or pang to the heart. It will also be an effectual preventive of that narrow stereotypedness one observes in so many public and private characters. Led on, in haste, from point to point, by so many skilled guides, there will be little danger, in this case, of encrustation on the plain, though we should gaze now and then on the Sodom we escape from. And, unless we labor under a gross mistake, the harmonies of evidence here presented to the doubter’s consideration will greatly assist in melting down his difficulties. Surely, this legion of voices will not appeal to his unstable mind in vain.

Wherever it has been conveniently possible, we have verified our authors. Some, to be sure, having become the common spokesmen of mankind, seem to succeed in traveling on, without particular verification, by virtue of their own mighty momentum. We mention this, because we intend this volume to be of incalculable service to those who appear before the world in the propagation or defence of the truths of God, as well as to the secluded reader. Nor have we declined to hope that even the ambitious student, the college professor and the scientist might find it to their advantage to consult its authorities.

Above all, we present you a book laden with words of wisdom and literary gems — a thesaurus of soul-thoughts, full of vigor and vitality, having emanated from the master- thinkers of the world. By freely consulting the contents, you will easily get the range of thought so that you can find anything rapidly, although we advise that you construct your own index, from time to time, as anything especially strikes you. A private index is worth six of any other kind, because you thus eliminate from the mass what you peed.

We now send this volume forth, asking for it an honest, searching study, and doubting not that God will bless it, in doing a fair share of service for mankind and for the truths our very instincts compel us to cling to.

J. W. MONSER.

OOlsTTEHsTTS.

Chapter I. God

Pantheism and Atheism Contrasted, Pearson; The Philosophy of Spinoza as Productive of much Modern Theorizing, Pearson; A Deduction on Thought and The Thinker, Joseph Cook; Personality of God Proved from His Superiority, Garbett; A Deduction on Mind and Matter, Joseph Cook; Existence of God Proved by Existence of Being, Locke; Conclusions Drawn from Leibnitz’s Position that there is Being in every Thought, Cousin; Analogy between Man’s Soul and the Soul of the Universe, Socrates; We should Expect just what we see in the Universe, Burr; Existence of Divine Being Inferred from Existence of the World, Whewell; The Views of the Heathen, Hooker; Intellectual Nature of Creator the Basis of all Reasonings, Hugh Miller ; All Dark without God, Theodore Parker; A Cause for Uniformity in Nature, Hitchcock; Laws suppose Agents, Whewell; The Nature of the All-Ruling Power, Bowne ; Tables Turned Concerning our Reaching the Infinite, Bowne; The First Cause and the Absolute, Mivart; What the Principle of Causation Requires, McCosh ; What our Instincts Reach out for, Mansel ; Descartes’ Axiom ; Bentley on Successive Duration ; Sir Thomas Browne on God as the Soul of Causality ; Rousseau’s Beacon ; Sir Walter Raleigh’s Logical Process; God in His Threefold Attitude, A. Campbell; Likeness of Divine and Human Attributes, Christopher ; Shall we say It or He? Robertson; The Whence and the Whither, Burr; Anthropomorphism Analyzed, Braden; God Can be Known, John James Tayler; The History of Anthropomorphism, J. J. Tayler ; The Error of Anthropomorphism, Beecher ; Jesus Teaches to Infer the Nature of God, Beecher; No Antagonism between the Laws and the Will of God, Dr. Carpenter; Human Fathers and the Divine Father Similar, Dr, vi

Contents

Carpenter; Divine Attributes all Woven Together, Martineau; Grand Displays of the Divine Power, Charnock; God Penetrates All Things, Channing; God Constantly Active and Flexible to Nature and Man, Bushnell ; Splendid Paragraph on the Helplessness of a Mechanical God, Bushnell ; The Divine Personality the Chief Revelation, Dr. Parker ; I Know that my Redeemer Liveth, Robertson. - - - 20-51

Chapter II. Creation

Questions Concerning Creation, Boardman ; An Exegesis on Genesis i : 1, Dr. Murphy; Exegesis on Process of Creation, Murphy; How Moses Contemplates the Creation, Murphy ; Fundamental Ideas of Creation, Tayler Lewis ; An Exegesis Developing the “ Twenty-four Hour Theory,” Murphy ; The “ Period” Theory, Tayler Lewis ; Proofs of Genesis in the Rocks, Dawson ; Eye-witness the Source of History, Kurtz ; What the Creation Hypothesis Implies, Dawson; Physical Structures Indicative of Creative Ideas, Agassiz; Gravitation, Heat, etc., Energies of Intelligent Will, Winchell ; Max Miller’s Criticism on Transfer of Modern Words and Thoughts to Moses’ Day, J. P* Thompson; Science Proves Mosaic Record True and Pronounces it Divine, Guyot ; How the Creation takes its Place in Classes and Orders, Dana; Harmony of the Two Records, Hugh Miller; Beauty and Sublimity of Mosaic Statements — Longinus’ Eulogy, Dr. Mcllvaine; Bentley on the Eternal Sterility ; Man’s Creation Contrasted with the Animals, Hall Whatever the Method, Creation Still, Argyll ; Creation According to Patterns, Owen; Nature of Divine and Human Mind Similar, Whewell ; To Disprove Creation is to Disprove Christianity, Mivart; What the Word Creation now Means to Us, Procter; Joseph Henry on “Chance” and “Mind;” Existence Exempt from Creator Absurd, Cuvier; Creation now Viewed as an Evolving, Bowne ; Augustine Inquires of the Creation Concerning God; O. M. Mitchell’s Idea of Creation; Moses and Astronomy and Geology Compared, MeCaul ; Agassiz on the Mistakes Concerning the Production of Created Beings; Socrates’ Youthful Conception of the “Genesis;” Mosaic and Geological Days in Harmony, J. P. Thompson ; Scripture does

CONTENTS.

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not Oppose Science, Pye Smith; The Periodic Order in the Ascending Scale, Dr. J. P. Lange ; Aristotle’s Hidden Beings Pronouncing upon Creation; Isaac Newton’s Conclusion; Coleridge on the Bees and Ants Foreshadowing Humanity ; Bible Bevelations of Links in the Material Chain, Dr. Crosby ; The Uses of Creation, Bowne. .... 52-93

. CHAPTER III.

DESIGN.

Editorial Remark ; The Atomic Theory Examined and Thoroughly Refuted, Bowne ; Socrates on the Design of the Eye, Teeth, etc.; Paley’s Great Argument on the Watch; Dawson’s Criticism on Huxley’s Review of Paley, together with a Defence of Paley; Blackie’s Defence of Paley and Views of Design; How We Rise from the Facts about Us to a Belief in God, McCosh; Dr. Holmes on Design and Paley’s Reasoning ; Power, Force and Law, Holmes ; Contrivance or Purpose in Nature, Argyll; Darwin’s Theory Criticised, Argyll ; “ Silent Members ” in Creation and their Significance, Argyll; Limbs, etc., Developed by Use, Argyll; Mere Ornaments in Birds, etc., no Benefit in Struggle for Existence, Argyll ; Great Variety of Proofs of Design in Nature, WheweK ; Fallacy in Assuming that Natural Selection is a Cause, Winchell; Physicists Vainly Ticketing Nature, Braden; Prof. Stirling on Protoplasm ; Several Assumptions of Evolutionists, Dawson ; Argument for Design Lost Sight of, Sir William Thomson ; Agassiz on Mind. Creation, Eggs, etc.; Hugh Miller’s Defence of Paley and Chalmers as Respects Design; Lecky’s Rebuke Concerning Evolution ; Prof. Gray’s Concessions Concerning Evolution; Darwin’s Admissions; Vogt’s Criticism from his own Evolutionary View-Point ; Haeckel also puts Darwin’s Theory in the True Light; Tyndall finds Fatal Faults with Evolution ; Agassiz’s Conclusions upon it ; Carlyle’s Sarcastic Voice. - - - 94-141

Chapter IV. Science And Religion

Editorial comment; Winched on “Conflict:” its Plilosophy

CONTENTS.

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and Value as a Culture ; Reasons for the “ Conflict,” Winchell ; Do the Scriptures Shackle the Intellect? The Church and Science: Dr. Draper on the “Conflict ;” The Workings of Dogmatism and Rationalism, Mansel ; The Methods of Science and the Bible, and their Adaptations, Dawson ; Tyndall’s Criticism on Buckle’s Attempt to Detach Intellectuality from Moral Force ; What the Life and Death of Thought and Faith Depend on, Guyot; McCosh’s Celebrated Eulogy on the Harmony, of Science and Religion ; Herbert Spencer’s Theory of the Reconciliation ; Lecky’s Careful Criticism Concerning the Material istic Influence upon Religious Thought ; Who is it that Closes His Eyes? Hitchcock; Does the Study of Natural Science Lead to Infidelity ? Chalmers ; Herschel on the Same ; Men of one Idea apt to be Biased, Sedgwick ; Can we be Content to Remain in the Dark ? Ruskin ; Hugh Miller’s Criticism on La Place ; Why Modern Science Clashes with Religion, Pressense ; The Parley between Men of Science and Men of Religion, Argyll ; The Solution Lies in Human Life, Beecher ; Duty of Science to Respect the Religious Sentiments, Dawson; The Rights and Limits of Science, Peabody ; Spencer on the Anti- Theological Bias ; The Epithet of a Secular ” Grudged to Anything Whatever, Kingsley; What is it Bankrupts Nature? Le Conte ; Final Causes do not Disappear at the Advance of Science, Le Conte : Can Religion and Science March in Harmony? Galton; From What Quarter of the Educated World have the Main Discoveries Come ? Crosby ; Religion and Science, and Bible and Science, Different Terms, Crosby ; Illiberalism should be Properly Credited, Christlieb ; A Sharp Line to be Drawn, Christlieb ; Sectarianism Unlovely, Flint.

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