T H E TORCH OF REASON, S IL V E R T O N , OREGON , T H U R SD A Y , MAY 20, 1897.
and preachings are alm ost exclu
sively along this line.
Butting these things together,
E ditor Torch of Reason;
standing aloof from both sides, and
T he late diycugsion between your
looking at them without prejudice,
selves and Mr. H am ish in your is
it is easy to see why a Secular co n
sue of April 29th gives evidences of
vention should place restrictions
some differences in the ranks of co
upon the em ploying of lecturers
workers.
For, th at S piritualists
who teach the doctrine of a future
and Secularists are c o -w o rk e rs u p
life, w ithout malice aforethought or
to a given point goes w ithout say
any intention of “slapping” any
ing, and th a t they should continue
body, and I am disposed to believe
to co-operate up to the ‘‘parting of
th a t no slap was intended.
the ways” ought to require no argu
Personally I would have no
m ents.
objection to em ploying a S p iritu a l
It is said, “ Blessed are the peace
ist to lecture on Secularism if he
m akers,” and th a t I m ay enjoy
would avoid in his lectures all
th a t blessing is the hope and incen
references to a future life.
tive of this paper.
Here, probably, lies th e difficulty
Secularism is defined by G. J.
for while the S p iritu alist is entirely
Holyoake th u s: “ T h at which seeks
com patible with the Secularist u p
the developm ent of the physical,
on the affairs of this life, and as
m oral, and intellectual nature of
against orthodoxy, he is extrem ely
m an to the highest possible point
fond of his own p articu lar ism and
as the im m ediate duty of life—
which inculcates the practical suf can hardly avoid placing th a t first
as the upperm ost of all isms. In
ficiency of n a tu 'a l m o ral'ty , apart
from atheism , theism , or the Bible th is wise he m ay have done the
— which selects as its method of secular cause harm as such w ith
procedure the prom otion of hum an out in ten d in g to do so; and now
im provem ent hy m aterial means finds restrictions placed upon him .
It is a question in mv m ind, if
and proposes these positive agree
m ents as the common bond of union the Secular society would not em
ploy any good moral tem perate
to all who would regulate life hy
reason, ami ennoble it by service.” m an or woman who would agree to
There is no h in t here of a future conform to the rule in his speeches,
life, hut all effort is to be directed while in the service of the society,
to the highest developm ent and a t of one world at a time.
For certainly no
Secularist
tainm ents of th is life.
Up to this point every progress pretends to teach th a t there is no
ive S p iritu alist can join hands and future life. He may believe there
give help, for they and we all be is none, but he is unwise if he
lieve th a t he who stands a t the teaches there is none, until he can
head of his class when “ school bring the proof. He does not know
closes” here, enters “ over there”— th a t this life is all, any more th an
provided there be an “over there”— the S p iritu alist knows there is
with the sam e high standing and an o th er life, and to be consistent
honors, and takes rank accordingly. he m ust teach as tru th only th a t
True, the S p iritualist will argue, which he knows to he true.
As a Secularist I say to my
th a t to stand at the head one m ust
have com m union with the other brother S piritualist, prove to me
world before he goes over, but it the tru th of your teachings and I
m ust be rem em bered th at S ecular accept them as a part of Secularism ;
ists hold to the doctrine of “one for if my relatives and friends do
world at a tim e,” although this doc live again and can and do come back
trin e does not or should not deny to me here, then, in so far as th eir
the possibility of another. It is lives come into mine, and affect me
equally absurd to deny or affirm in here, the future life becomes a p art
the absence of evidence. But in o fth is life. It is the d u ty of all
th e m ind of every Secularist there Secularists to investigate all phe
is room for the thought, th a t since nom ena and accept as true w h at
there is alw ays a tomorrow as long ever the phenom ena reveal.
The burden of proof in the
as this life lasts, his acts should be
such today as to cause no blush of m atter of a future life lies w ith the
“Soft Words Turneth Away
Wrath.”
sham e tomorrow; no regrets, no
heartaches, no headaches, nothing
but beautiful and refreshing mem
ories. Then, if in the greatness and
grandne36 of n a tu re ’s law, there is
after our last sleep here a more
beautiful and en during tom orrow —
the possession of a well-stored
m ind, the consciousness of a well-
filled and rounded life here, assures
him recognition, and a life of use
fulness and happiness there.
S piritualists claim to be able to
see across the border land and
catch glimpses and hear voices of
those who have passed the change
we call d» a t h ; atid their teachings
S piritualist, but, the Secularist
m u s t n o t condem n until lie brings
the proof.
I f th ere is a future life it is a
n a tu ra l fact and as such may be
capable of d em o n stratio n , and no
doubt everv Seculari*t in the land
would greet th e dem onstration
with applause and accept the fact
as th e most im p o rtan t one man
has discovered. C ertainly the most
confirmed m aterialist on earth
would welcome another life, and
receive its dem onstration as the
happiest m om ent of this life.
Therefore let the S piritualists go
on searching after the proofs. Let
him if he will have houses and ap
pliances made according to “ in
structions from the spirit w orld”
th at will put him in rapport with
the spirit world, ami m ake the best
possible conditions for com m uni
cations and if possible bring phe-
nomona th a t shall prove beyond
question a future existence.
But, just now the S ecularists of
Oregon are building a U niversity,
and its success will b ean aid to all
progressive societies of the state,
its success will he the beginning of
other successes along the same line,
and we cannot afford to quarrel
over n a tu ra l differences.
The “signs of the tim es” all point
to the necessity of action; inertia on
the p art of progressive thinkers
now may be the lasting regret of
the future.
It should never be forgotten tha»
the preachers o f today are hire
lings, th a t th ey work for pay; th a t
th eir positions and th eir pay de
pend upon th eir abilities to hold the
people; perhaps to coerce them into
orthodoxy. The word “coerce” is
hardly too strong, for when our c it
izens as em ployees feel th a t their
positions as *uch <h j end upon
th eir assent to orthodoxy, and their
fam ilies are dependent upon those
positions, are they not all but co
erced to accept, at least to appear
to accept, the opinion* of those who
would em ploy them ? Tim e and
again have I heard it preached th a t
tem poral prosperity depend upon
joining the church. I bis is but an
indirect way of saying to a young
m an, “ to be popular now, you m ust
join the ch u rch .” E veryw here it
is said w ithout reserve, if you w ant
to succeed as a doctor or a lawyer,
as a teacher, a dentist, as any pro
fessional m an —join th e church. It
is popular and it pays.
W hat a com m ent upon the
C hristian religion! W hat a reflec
tion to a conscientious m inister,
th a t to m ain tain his position and
salary he m ust go on, day by day,
year by year, m aking hypocrites.
S till, he too has chosen a profes
sion, and expects it to yield him an
income sufficient to m ain tain him
self and fam ily, and w hat can he
do? If he would harbor an honest
doubt; if in reading some of the
thousands of im possible things that
abound in the Bible, his m ind
brightens up a little and he says,
“ T hat cannot h e ,” the next in stan t
his thoughts tu rn upon his own de
pendent position, and a renewed
“ fa ith ” (?) springs up where else
the honest doubt would grow, and
he exclaim s, “ Berish the th o u g h t.”
B ut what is the lesson this must
teach us? Can an y th in g be plainer
th an th a t as long as this condition
com passes us about, we m ust expect
from the clergy of th is once free
country every effort to get God in
the C onstitution, to have enacted
stringent Sunday laws, to even stop
the issuance of Sunday papers, and
in fact, and in short, to so tie up
the people of this country and of
the world th at everybody will have
to go to church, and perhaps event
ually, belong to the church?
It is not loo much to expect th at
there will not only be a union of
church and s ta te ,, but th a t the
church will swallow’ up th e state.
In nearly all the religious journals
of the day we see advocated a union
of churches. T his is w hat this
country does not w ant, for a union
of churches will he a long step to
wards union of church and state,
and the slavery of half of m ankind.
Let it echo and re-echo down the
“corridors of tim e” th at “ E tern al
vigilance is the price of lib erty ,”
and let every progressive th in k er of
whatever clan or clim e set those
wotds in “ letters of living lig h t” to
be his “ p illa r of cloud by day and
pillar of fire by n ig h t,” for “ verily,
I say unto you,” there is work to
do.
Let the U niversity be built, and
let its benign influence go forth,
and spread, and th e good work of
freedom go on everyw here until
Secularism sh all become popular.
And note th'* difference in the
popularity o f . orthodoxy and flee
thought. A m iniatu re picture of
the form er I have given, the
grandeur of the latter let brighter
men paint if they can. But it is
worth som ething to us all to feel
th a t our labors may help to bring
about a condition in which no
m a n ’s calling will be effected by his
opinions when his uprightness, and
intelligence w ill he his passport in
ail society, wh'*n his fitness by
n atu re and acquirem ents, rath er
than his church “ letter,” will
open the road to fortune or to fame.
A. A. L.
For Sale.
One h u ndred and sixty acres of
tim ber land in Tillam ook county.
One mile from N etarts Bay. House,
16x24 Sm all clearing. Excellent
water. Good bargain. In q u ire at
this office.
We give the Torch of Reason and
the F rcethought Magazine for one
year for th e sm all sum of $1.50.
Now is the tim e to subscribe.
Silverton . . .
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