THE TORCH OF REASON SILVERTON, OREGON, THURSDAY, JANUARY 7, 1897.
Torch of Reason one
,hat b w
ould malte
“
for
ro th e r
„.-lli-hly h u g to h im -
prove them selves but w itheverv
the Christian churches who com
pete with each other in securing
self vast m illions while a n o th e r is are turned loose, and our horrible
U N I V E R S A L M E N T A L L IB lying a t Ins feet, sick and dying for cap ital punishm ent is the out- the children when they are old
ERTY,
en o u g h to becom e m em b ers of a
the w ant of a crust.
grow th of C hristianity.
church.
□ N E W O R L D A T A T IM E .
I he great task of saving the world
I t is a m ild idea o f hell.
Those
This control of our public schools
^ " P ® “ «>• intelligent, thinking ........ wi advocate eternal ponish- by the one religious sect called
The Only Secular Paper Published on the people of the m iddle classes. B ut luent bevon(l lhhi life can* easilv
Christians has not been accom
___ •
PaChiC • .......................... ........
¡ d is h e d b e c a u s e the Christians h a v e
d so k s
ur bi k tk a
■
,
i n 1 1 j i ng to convert peo* mistakes -mistakes, too, which are a m ajority, hut because of th eir
Published Weekly by the Oregon State pie of the slum s to some p a rtic u la r caused hv the low state of
stratagem and activity an d the
______
Secular Union. _______ religjous belief or by relieving their society in which men find them-
n a tu ra l inactivity of liberals who
im m ediate sufferings by ch arity . \\ e selves
are too often w illing to allow others
J. E. H O S M E K .................... E d ito r , believe in releaving
---------. suffering as ao fast
aoni \Ve are not upholding crime.
to do, as w'ell as to thin k , as they
P . W . G E E R - - - B u s in e s s M a n a g e r, as possible, but the cause m ust be re-
u i *
» e believe in doing away with please.
moved before a perm anent relief
, .
,
,
.
' . ,
,
«• . , z,
.
crim e, but cruel an d unjUbSt nunish-
But the tim e has come for liber
E n te re d a t th e postoffice a t S ilverton, c a n he effected. C onditions m ust .
,
...
,
. . .
~
i l l
sa
kzx
el such l x,
„ will , he I1)ent W,N not do away with it als to act, and as a rule they are
Oregon, as second class m ail m a tte r.
be m ade
th a t x all
while the cause is not removed. not slow to act when they are fully
com fortable and h ap p y ,—so there
We were talking with a m inister convinced th a t action is necessary
S U B S C R IP T IO N K A TES.
will be no very rich, and no very
some time ago an d advocating the in order to preserve their own
One Year, in advance..........
. . . . . . « l oo
poor.
But
can
such
a
condition
8 ix Month«, in advance............................
50
idea th a t all crim inals were unfor liberty.
T hree M onths, in a d v a n c e .....
..............
25 be brought about? Yes it
tunates and th a t we should pity
in Clnbs of 5 o r more one year, in a d v a n c e ... 75 * »,,1
,
3..»
The thing for us to do then is
,
i. 11 i. be sent . by
i registered
. . , le
. tte r or And as soon as the m
different
.Money
should
n v in ii
them an d try to help them become to arouse our slum bering hosts in
money order.
tlO llS i l l t h e r e l i g i o u s W O I'ld d r o p
P lease eend ns the nam es an d addresses of Sec- a , n :«
.• .
, better men and women, th a t a per- tim e to prevent the old rusty chains
Ur,.t»
»ho
«rx
not
regular
.u
b
«
rib
er»
.
th
e,r
m
ysterious
nonesentialn
and
n la rists who are not reg u lar su b scrib ers.
Ui”" inyhieiB»US noiieSeiltialS and HO11 who does Wrong should not be of religious slavery from being
= = ______________ _______________ get down to business.— unite anti . •
.
,
,
, •
in ju re d a n y m o re tn a n o n e who has fastened around our necks.
THURSDAY.... JANUARI 7, E. H. 297. »getner work o m ake this world 8ome c()Hta
(li
, h a t thu
If the Jew s should force their
_______________________________ _
better,—we will o e g m to d o s o m e - • ,
•
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•
i(lea Hl a bell fo r w ro n g d o e r s w a s religious doctrines, which teach
c
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a.r
thing w orthy of an intelligent Deo-
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.
,
S o m e th in g New.
g
, as bad as to have a hell for those unbelief in the divinity of Jesus,
pie. And this is the hope of the . k
a it .
i.
r
n
x Qx.
i
i x,
wno were unfortunate enough to upon our public schools, there
W hen great reform s are first S ecular church th a t by our oreani- .
,,
•
, i ..
.
, ,
have the sm all pox or rheum atism , would be a howl go up from the
in au g u rated there are alw ays m any zation w ithout an y creedal test
..
,
,
very ones who are now forcing the
th in g s to com bat, an d oftentim es we will he the m eans of finally
. .
.
„
a
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.
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such doctrines of love and pitv for Christian religion upon our defense
the greatest reform s have seemed uniting in one grand body all the .
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i
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.
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.
...
the unfortunates and scouted a t our less children in every way possible.
to be en tirely crushed, but again contending religious factions, thus • .
v
an d again the great tru th has forming the universal religion of
ClS,
w 11C 1 18 1 ,e eathen And when their creed is not openly
b u rst out upon the world in an o th er h u m an ity . Then will a higher
1 ‘ io im of c ii m - taught in violation of the law other
c
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x i a - a •
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4-
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m als, or the dungeon, the hang- ways are employed. Some of the
form and a t last it is recognized as civilization he begun and the com-
.
h
r .
4-
• i ,
, • . •
i
m an s rope and hell after d eath ?
honorable (?) ways are shown in
a living, active principle by which ing m an and woman will enter the
t ,
.
,
.
x
e
4.
,
, .
If you had a brother and he was the following from W hite’s Ped-
men are governed.
stage of action hand 111 hand and ,
‘ ...
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j
41
x
x
a a
xi
r
a
i i
1
1
xl
•
horn
w
ith
or
had
contracted
bv
Today the great tru th of m ental play well th eir parts in the great
. .
,
J evil
V1 a 8°gy: uAt least three avenues
are open for the introduction of
lioerty is again brought to the dram a of life. We m ust learn to t , •
,
notice of the m en tal slaves and unite. In united effort there is sal-
V* * 1,°, <Hlgt L conim itted a religious idea and sanctions into
would-be freemen of our great vation. W hen this great lesson has ,nulULI v' ou ' >on hke to see him all our schools. These are sacred
hung?
W’ould you be m ade a songs, the literatu re of C h risten
co u n try , by the opening of th e first been learned, and not until then.
crim inal if he was not to rtu red or dom, and, best of all, faithful and
in stitu tio n of learning ever con- will we advance rapidly,
his life taken away? No, while fearless Christian teachers, th e liv
trolled by a p u rely secular organi-
Some m ay say th a t we need never
you would w ant him restrained ing epistles of the tru th . A gainst
zation.
expect catholics, protestants and
and kept from in ju rin g others you these there is no law .”
Is the Liberal U niversity of Sil- liberals to unite, hut if you will
would w ant him fed and clothed
verton, Oregon, to he the great cli- stop to th in k you will see th a t we
fortably a and
have a11
all t the
m ax of events th a t is to in au g u rate are u n itin g every dav. People are com
‘ ' ’I,lloIlani>
n a nave
v„
L
kj
Here And Now.
a h ig h er an d better civilization?
W hy not? If the principles of
Secularism will m ake the world
better, and these principles of love,
liberty an d
tru th are
firm ly
p lan ted in the m inds of a few stu-
dents by th eir being educated in
science, m orality an d all the knowl-
edge th a t is so beneficial to us here,
•4.1
v
:
it •
• 1
w ithout h aving th e ir young m inds
xi
£ j v
£ al
r •
dwarfed by any of the confusing
doctrines x.r
of theology, why will they
draw ing nearer and nearer together
and all we w ant is to get everyone
to investigate and he honest and in
tim e we will all find the tru th .
Let us m ake our lives pure and
free from deceit and fraud: let us
be true to our higher an d better
im pulses; let us by our exam ple
and by the use of our reason help to
, .
,
.
*
bring about a condition th a t will
, ,
prove a real heaven to poor, suffer-
L
-x
ing h 1. um anity
not exert a very great influence
when they go out into the world?
A nd then if this U niversity is a
success, others m ay be in stitu ted
and soou the light of m ental free-
j
•,, . •
£
d o w w .ll sh.ne from every quar-
ter and every com m unity and every
home will be filled w ith peace and
love and joy.
Our work should begin here at
home an d after we have m ade this
earth what it ought to he, a happy
dw elling place for every hum an
being who enters it, then it will be
tune to »....Id «m ansions in the
sky.”
T " " —T —
V in d ictiv e P u n is h m e n t.
United Effort.
I he heathenish way in which
our crim inals are made crim inal
an(j then th eir horrible punish-
m ent is a reproach to an y people,
hut this punishm ent of casting
rnen. who have been wronged
more th a n they have wronged, into
prison w ithout a chance to im-
How can we effect a union of the
people so th a t we m ay work to-
gether to bring about better condi-
tions for all, b etter schools, bet-
ter physical and m ental develop-
m ent, and a stan d ard of m orality
a,
a
•,
• • „
, .
wor d a n y t
.
H ng
!
‘‘n 18 the d o ctn n e of
1 eH\g
T**
m ent
J ! ? / 7 7 m erit o t le lamb. It
1 our
as>’ um s an d ° u r
1 ’'7 ’"
7
H lotlc as>’lums
i’’” *’
V’1? ’
C° Uu aOV heathen
people do worse th<iu to advocate
,
4
,
e
doctrines th a t produce crim inals
, ,,
• n- a 1
J,
.
and then inflict unreasonable and
unjust punishm ents?
R eligion In o u r P ublic Schools.
As long as there is suffering in
the world, as long as there are m is
erable unhappy people,just so long
is there need for Secularism . Sec
ularists know’ th a t for every effect
there is an efficient cause an d there
has never been a cause of more
dissension th an the false religious
ideas of m ankind.
Now’ Secularism will overcome
all this for it is based upon the
idea of the brotherhood of m an,
and while each is allow ed perfect
liberty of thought, yet all w ill have
learned to respect the ideas of
others and to love one an other
none the less for an honest differ
ence of opinion; while everyone will
join hands in the great work of
destroying our enemies of ignor
ance and error. Come and help to
overcome the m onster evils th a t are
dam ning our race here aud now.
In order for people to be relig-
ious th e y m ust have religious
teaching when young, and no one
6
*
oue
knows this better than the lead
ers of the Christian
churches;
therefore it has come to pass th a t
our public schools are controlled
largely by tho.se who see to it th a t
the fundam ental
principles of
C h ristia n ity i. e., the ideas of God.
only begotten son, the resurection
ith a little help from each a
heaven and eternal punishm ent great work m ay be accomplished.
etc., are tau g h t to th e ch ild ren and Let 11s sta rt in the new vear bv do-
the result is very advantageous to all we can.