T orch
VOL 1
.-taw
R eason .
of
ERTOir, O! !
THURSB
AÀ. _&£¥■■«; 1SK?.
no : 12.
THE TORCH OF REASON.
old spirit of bigotry arc revived, pie assembled under religious lead- honesty «»r justice, the spirit of in­
wit b opposition to all progressive ers who believed in the old c eeds quiry or love of truth. Whatever
thought, but there is no revival of and the old methods. These con- good may result from the stimula­
moral worth.
ditions, t o , made the emotional tion of religious emotion it will he
Jn 1857Theodore Parker aroused excitement contagious. Jtextendtd more than neutralized by theinjur-
the ire of the orthodox clergy by to all classes. Many persons now ious effects of such excneim-nt,
declaring that religious revivals living remember the announce- which among the more ignorant
d d not make men more honest, i merits in the papers, of the conv»r- and mercurial, is often a kind of
The gloom was great when tru th was more faith,ul, more just, and that sions of “plug ugiies.” “shoulder intoxication, and by diverting th«*
cu rst,
what was needed was a revival of! hitters,” “dead rabbits,’’ “awful moral disposition and effort of
Ami m ight was reckoned rig h t;
moi alitv. F<»r this truthful and (Orville) gardners,” etc. It has thousand» from practical useful
T he rule of wrong has done its w orst,
sensible remark, he was prayed been stated that 100,(XX) converts reformatory work.
For tru th tu rn s on m ore light
for and prayed at. Some of the were added to the churches in the
In this great storm centre « f
Once priests and kings o rd ain ed —“ Oliey
preachers
at
a
meeting
held
in
Park
United
Slates,
as
a
resu.t
of
that
commercial activity, ambition ami
Or d eath is yours, and well
street
church
Boston,
went
so
far
revival.
Ye m ust believe, or we will slay,
greed, revival religion will not dis­
as
to
pray
that
God
would
“put
a
In
later
years
revivals
have
been
Ami send your souls to h e ll!”
turb the men who, in the interests
hook
in
his
mouth,”
and
that
God
more
sporadic.
This
fact
I
attri-
B ut science searched to find out facts,
of the public, ought to ho brought
And found those th ro n em ates frau d s; would “convert him and save him bute in a large degree to the rapid to the bar of justice: dishonest hank
T r u th ’s torch revealed th e ir roguish acts, from hell or remove him out of the decay of theological belief and the
officers, nu mbers of swindling cot-
The gleam consum ed th e ir Gods.
way.” When afterwards Parker ' progress of rational, liberal thought p »rat'oi s, wealthy bribers and tax-
In vain th e hy p o crites m ay rage,
went abroad for his health and inside and outside the church« s.
dodgers, who are no others of the
And priests read bibles stra n g e ;
died in a foreign land, some of these
The present business «lepression fashionable churches ami who will
They soon will loose th e ir hireling wage,
preachers rejoiced in the death of Un the Uni'e«l States has been very give generous y for the support of
W ith reaso n ’s ray in range.
this great and good man as an in- severe and prolonged, hut there religious revivals or any other
T hen brave the T orch of R eason l»ear,
stance of answer to prayer and an have been no such general religious movement which shall let «hem
O’er ocean, peak am i plain,
illustration of God’s method of j excitements as have prevailed in alone ami try to “save souls” by
Til, not a hu m an anyw here
dealing with blasphemous oppon- the past. Yet the strain is hegin- teaching the awful sinfulness of
Shall grope in e rro r’s reign.
J ohn P rescott G uild .
ents of religion.
ning to show its effect on many Kin ’
B. F. U nderwood .
Tvngsboro, Mass.
For centuries the belief has pre- minds; and among such, mental
Chicago, 111.
vailed
that
the
emotional
excite­
conditions are returning favorable
Religious Emotion and R evival
Freethought Advance.
ment
manifested
during
religious
to the religious revival. This the
Religion.
revivals or by individuals under religious exhorters feel and partially
What are the best methods to
Rev. Thomas Van Ness, a prom­ the influence of some religious see, without understanding the ra­
advance mental liberty, should be
inent Unitarian minister in a ser­ stimulus was the effect of the oper- tionale of it. Hence the announee-
the leading thought in every true
mon recently
•r delivered in Boston ation of the Holy Spirit. In recent ments of efforts in the largo cities liberal’s mind. In order to arrive
criticised the teachings of Moody, years this belief has been greatly and probably in the smaller com­
at a safe conclusion, it might he
the evangelist, very pointedly. He modified. Religious revivals and rnunities to inaugurate “religious
well to consider what are the great
said:
religious campmeetings are less awakenings” the efforts will no obstacles to its advancement, like a
“The whole plan of salvation, as frequent and less general than doubt succeed to some extent, hut
sagacious general before engaging
held out by itinerant preachers, is formerly. The more intelligent the result is not likely to equal
in battle, takes great pains to as­
wrong. To say tnat a man may religious leaders have come to see that of such efforts made forty or
certain the position and strength of
be saved in ten minutes is perni­ that converts added to the churches even twenty years ago.
his enemy in order to discover
cious. Mere blind emotion is not «luring one of these revivals, in­
There is more religious lil>erality where his most assailable points
enough; the head must he educated crease their numerical strength hut and catholicity now, thanks to the lie.
as well as the heart touched. lower their average moral charac- progress of science and freethought,
One of the greatest obstacles to
Another harm done is to the child­ , ter and social influence For this than was ever known before; and
the progress of Freethought, is the
ren. I would not take any one reason many of the orthodox clergy the churches have not escaped its
well organized ami carefully sys­
under 20 years of age to these even, no longer favor these excite- | influence. We expect therefore
tematized orthodox religion that
meetings. The nerves of young ments-
that the churches will work together holds man’s mind enslaved. From
girls are often affected, and hyster­
I think Mr. Mo«*dy, of late, has more than hitherto in the direction generation to generation, century
ics or even insanity sometimes re­ tried to accompany the revival of a revival and that the excite-
after century for 1900 years
sults.
Experiences are related work in which he lias been engaged ments will he less violent. The
man’s mind has been forced along
which ought never to be known with moral agencies and influences more revolting doctrines of theology,
the grooves and ruts marked out
outside the domestic circle.”
w'hich were little thought of by belief in which has so largely been for it by that giant persecuting
This is what Freethinkers have revivalists a few years ago.
outgrown, will not in the more en- monoply known as orthodox re­
always claimed. They have pro­
In the past, periods of business lightened communities be given ligion which enslaved the nations
tested against exciting “mere blind depression have always been fol- any prominence; there will be
of Europe during the Dark Ages.
emotion,” because while in many lowed by religious “awakening? fewer conversions through fear and
It wielded the secular and political
cases it is injurious to both body It was so in 1837. In 1857 the the converts, therefore, are likely
powers of the state to execute the
and mind, it fails to afford either financial disturbance ami the loss to he of a somewhat better class,
sentence of death by torture against
moral education or moral discipline. and suffering which resulted, were
Religious leaders, of course, will all who questioned its authoritv.
Appeals to superstitious fears may, followed by a religious excitement make the occasion one of use in at-
lake a glance at the history of
during such excitements, have which, oiiginating in the east, trading attention to the work of
these terrible times and note the
some restraining power while the move«! west like an epidemic and the churches, obtaining money for
many cruel wars that this church
excitement lasts, hut no sooner extended to the Pacific coast.
missionary enterprises, etc. Many waged for its agrandizement.
does that subside than the fears
Indeed the revival was an epi- good people and many who are not
I will notice two of the most
engendered ceases to exist, and the demic, and an endemic also. Men- good, win Ullite in gupporting theHe
prominent. The Crusades from the
subject relapses into the old ways, tai and religious conditions and the revivals (which are fast becoming
11th to the 13th century—eight
with the ability to overcome temp­ general feeling of loss and insecur- survivals) hut though they may
wars, eight attempts to conquer
tation weakened rather than it^ wet«* su< h as to render these ex- temporarily revive adecaying sup-
the Mohammedian Turks and cap-
strengthened. Old beliefs and the citements inevitable wherever peo-i eratition, they will not revive
( C ontinued on page 3.)
For th e T orch of R eason .
“ So long as th e torch of tru th m akes
its way it m a tters not how or by whom
it is bo rn e.” —H uxley.
The torch^of tru th is m aking way,
The powers of d ark n ess m ourn ;
Blest is th e land w ith reaso n ’s ray,
By w hom soever l»orne.
I