Image provided by: Silverton Country Historical Society; Silverton, OR
About Torch of reason. (Silverton, Oregon) 1896-1903 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 10, 1901)
not in an effort to discover the complicated microscopic stru ctu re main reasons: firstly in the hope of Hall in Walhalla* a t h a « i tru th , h u t in an alleged “ necessity of the brain; it shows us th e true better conditions of life beyond the al ” Turks and krabs h ofemotion”— th a t is, in im agination “ elem entary organs of the soul” in grave; and, secondly, in th e hope of ham m ed’s lovely c a rd e d ? th h I and poetic conceit. As K a n t puts the ganglionic cells. The exper- seeing once more the dear and loved old Greek demi-gods and he™ it, the im m ortality of the soul is im ental argum ent proves th a t the ones whom death has torn from us. in the enjoym ent of nectar d not an object of pure reason, but a various functions of the soul are As for the first hope, it corresponds brosia at the table of Ze am ' “ postulate of practical re a s o n .” bound up with certain special parts to a n atu ral feeling of the justice of B t 1 . But we m ust set “ practical reason*’ of th e brain, and cannot be excer- com pensation, which is q u ite cor- jet’ ‘° We' eI S e rio u sly we m ay entirely aside, together with all the cised unless these are in a norm al rect subjectively, hut has no n h - . epK 118 eternal life in Paradise, “ exigencies of em otion, or of m oral condition; if the areas are destroyed jective validity w hatever. W e make >m a,n‘s ent^ ei,t >n duration. Do education, e tc .,” when we enter their function is extinguished; and our claim for an indem nity for the ' ' e Iea lze wbrtt etern ' ty m e a n s ? — upon an honest and im p artial pur- this is especially applicable to the unnum bered defects and sorrows of Un’nteJ’ru Pk'd continuance of suit of tr u th ; for we shall only at- “ organs of th o u g h t,” the four cen- our ea rth ly existence, w ithout the n r n f n ^ The tain it by the work of pure reason, tral in stru m en ts of m ental activity, slighest real prospect or guarantee ! > • ” ,, . 7 " , ° * 16 " w andering startin g from em pirical d ata and The pathological argum ent is th e of receiving it. We long for an < ° ruitless search for rest capable of logical analysis. We com plem ent of the physiological; eternal life in which we shall meet ? • Unhappy A ha«uerus, should have to say the sam e of ath an atism when certain p artso f the brain (th e no sadness and no pain, but an un- ¡ 7 ° ” appreCiate an “ etern al as of theism ; both are creations of centres of speech, sight, hearing, bounded peace and joy. The pic- a t .lt8 l ™e vulue- The best we poetic m ysticism and transcendental etc.) are destroyed by sickness, their tures th a t most men form of this l " eHl\ after a c°urageous life, “ faith ,” not of ratio n al science. activity (speech, hearing, vision, blissful existence are extrem ely cur- >'pel1 ,n dol“ g good according to W hen we come to analyze all the etc.) disappears; in this way nature ions: the im m aterial soul is placed u ** •’ .eternaI peace of Eferent proofs nroofs th a t have been herself herself m m akes akes the the decisive d e c is iv e physiol- n h v s in l- _____ i„ ... . . . H g 'a v e . L o r d , give them an different in the m idst of grossly m aterial eternal re s t.” urged for the im m ortality of the ogical experim ent. The ontogenetic pleasures. The im agination of each soul, we find th at not a single one argum ent puts before us the facts believer paints tb« en d u rin g s p le n - \ ,A " y .1'" p a r,ial 8cholar w,l° *" them is of a scientific ch aracter ; of the developm ent of the soul in dor according to his personal taste, . Ç'lu a ‘" e " " g,'" loglcal calcul- not a single one is consistent with the in d iv id u al; we see how the The A m erican In d ian , w hoseathan- " T ° ‘ *"“ e’ a ‘‘d has reilected on the tru th s we have learned in the child-soul g radually unfolds its var- atism Schiller so well depicted " ’" g 8erles of ““ ‘Hons of years last few decades from physiological ious powers ; the youth presents tru sts to find in his P aradise the ,h<i org an ><= h ' 8‘°ry «f the earth has psychology and the theory of de- them in full bloom, the m ature finest h u n tin g grounds with in n u m occupied, must adm it th a t th ecrude scent. The theological proof— th a t m an shows their ripe fruit; in old erable hordes of buffaloes and bears; notion of an eternal life is not a a personal creator has breathed an age we see the gradual decay of the the Eskim o looks forward to sun* comfort, but a fearful menace, to beHt of ,u«n. Only w ant of im m ortal soul (generally regarded psychic powers, corresponding to tipped icebergs with an inexhaus- as a portion of the divine soul) into the senile degeneration of the brain, tible supply of bears, seals, and C eal J '^ g n ie n t and consecutive m an— is a pure m yth. The cosrno- The phylogenetic argum ent derives other polar anim als ; the effem inate 8 ° an di8pUle iL logical proof—th at the “ m oral order its strength from palaeontology, Cingalese liâm es ids P aradise on ' *’*' ',e8t a,,d omet plausible of the world*’ dem ands the eternal and the com parative anatom y and the wonderful island-paradise of ground p)r ath an a tism is found in d u ratio n of the hum an soul— is a physiology of the brain; co-operat- Ceylon with its noble gardens and lhe boPe th a t im m ortality will re baseless dogma. The teleological iog with and com pleting each other, forests adding th a t there will be Ul,ile 1,8 to the beloved friends who proof—th a t the “ higher d estin y ” these sciences prove to the h ilt that unlim ited supplies of rice and curry, bave been prem aturely taken from of m an involves the perfecting of the hum an brain (and consequently, of cocoa nuts and other fruit, alw ays UH bï 8°me grim mischance. B et his defective, earth ly soul beyond its function— the soul) has been at hand; the M oham m edan Arab even this supposed good fortune the grave— rests on a false an th ro p - evolved step by step from th a t of believes it will be a place of shady proves to be an illusion on closer ism. The m oral proof— th a t the the m am m al, and, still fu rth e r back, gardens of flowers, watered bv cool in q u iry ; and in any case it would defects and the unsatisfied desires from th a t of the lower vertebrate, springs, and filled with lovely be greatly m arred by the prospect of earth ly existence m ust be ful- These inquiries, which m ight be m aidens; the C atholic fisherm an of <d meeting less agreeable acquaint- filled by “com pensative ju stice” on supplem ented by m any other re- Sicily looks forward to a daily anceH and the enemies who have the other side of e te rn ity — is noth- suits of m odern science, prove the superabundance of the most val- tr °ubled our existence here below, ing more than a nious wish. The old doctrine of the im m ortality of uahle fishes and the finest m acaroni, Even the closest family ties would ethnological proof— th a t the belief the soul to be absolutely untenable; and eternal absolution for all his inv°lve m any a difficulty. There in im m ortality, like the belief in in the tw entieth century it will not sins, which he can go on com m it- are fdenty of men who would gladly God, is an innate tru th , common to be regarded as a subject of serious ting in his eternal home; the evan- Haiirifice all the glories of Paradise all h u m an ity — is an error in fact, scientific research, but will be left gelical of N orth Europe longs for b m eant the eternal companion* The ontological proof— th a t the wholly to transcendental “ faith.” an immense G othic ca th e d ral, in s b iP of tbeir “ better h a l f ” and soul, being a “ simple, im m aterial The “critique of pure reason” shows which he can c h a n t the praises of lbeir m other-in-law . ft ¡8 more and indivisible e n tity ,” cannot he this treasured faith to be a mere the Lord of Hosts for all eternity. tban questionable w hether H enry involved in the corruption of d eath _ superstition, like the belief in a In a word, each believer really ex- would like the prospect of —is based on an entirely erroneous personal God which generally ac- pects his eternal life to be a direct b v ing eternally with his six wives; view of the psychic phenom a ; it is com panies it. Yet even today mill- continuation of »‘is individual life or Augustus the Strong of Poland, a sp iritu alistic fallacy. All these lions of “ believers”— not only of on earth, only in a “ much im proved wbo bail a hundred m istresses and and sim ilar “ proofs of a th a n a tism ” the lower, uneducated masses, but and enlarged edition.” three hundred and fifty-two child- are in a parlous condition ; they are even of the most cultured classes_ We must lay special stress on the ren- As he was on good term s w ith definitely annulled by thescientific look on this superstition as their criticism ’ nf thu i ♦ / i , ...... , ....... ...... — — „ B lueir , thoroughly m aterialistic character the V icar of C hrist, he m ust be a R- criticism of th e last few decades. dearest possession and th eir most of C hristian atl.analietn, which is ’’"•'■«d »<- be ¡n Paradise, in spite of eubiect k a d T n ,” P° rlaDCe ' he “ priCele8S ,re ‘ 8 u re ” a there- closely connected with the absurd his sins, and in spite of the fact n n ,in ,h le < t t 7 ’^ to en ter more deeply dogm a of the “ resurrection of the 'h a t his mad m ilitary ventures cost “ h l ! . Pr° ° f9 ° f " n '>’->r ‘a l 't y ” into the subject, a n d - a s s u m in g it body.” As thousands ot paintings ‘he lives of more than a hundred a brief exposition of the sound scien to be tru e—to make a critical in- of famous m asters inform uh , the thousand Saxooa. t i f i c argum ents ag ain st it. The q u iry into its practical value. It bodies th a t have risen again, with A nother (insolubledifficulty faces physiological arg u m en t shows th a t soon becomes ap p aren t to the im- the souls th at have been horn again, the aih an a tist when he asks in what pnt im I not an independ- p artial critic th a t this value rests, walk about in heaven ju st as they atage of their individual develop- f a 8" r t nCe’ bUt’ Hke f° r lbe m° Sl P1,rt’ fMnCy- the! did in this vsle of tenrs; they see ">*<•» «be disem bodied souls will I, , e lv i h ’. h l 6 r ' r g Hr anim al8’ w ant of clear judgm ent and consec- God with their eyes, they hear his "pend their eternal life. W ill th e i a n - e ereh E U" ,‘t; ,a l ° ' Uti” ‘ hoU6 h ‘- . ^ ¡" my firm and ' voice with their ears, they sing new-born infant develop its psychic * 'a r e i n s t ^ ll''c l,',n8 ’ an< these n h v s ira l mkUC • eterm ,oe by ¿ a n v of t h e n t ,em i(; a l p 7 * 8f,e8 as a n il in a t i u n ctl°ns, n t ce “ H 1° “ WS m en, P. h a h,8t" loft'<*l an?«. based on the extrem ely honest conviction th a t a d e fin ite [ hym ns to his praise with th eir lar- , abandonm ent o f these “a th a n a tist i y n x , and so forth. In fine, the ilIu8ions” would involve no p a in fu l, modern in h ab itan ts of the C hristian loss, but an inestim able, positive P aradise have the sam e dual char- ' 7 hUm 8ni' y - — ° ( b<><,y a " d ...... ’ — - M an’s “ em otional crav in g ” clings | g .n s of an earth lv body, as our to the belief in im m ortality for tw o 1 ancient ancestors had in O din’s t powers in heaven under the sam e hard conditions of the “ struggle for Kfe” which educate men here on e a r th ? Will the talented youth Wh" Ka" i0 th - " “ Concluded on Page 5.