,,the ,,ascent ,,of ,,the ,,soul  ,,by  
,,amory ,h4 ,,bradford1 ,d4,d4          
,,author ,,of    ,,spirit ,,and ,,life1 
,,heredity ,,and ,,christian ,,problems 
,,the ,,growing ,,revelation1    ,,the  
,,age ,,of ,,faith    ,,messages ,,of   
,,the ,,masters1 ,,etc4       ,,new     
,,york   ,,the ,,outlook ,,company      
#aijb    ,copyright1 #aijb   ,by ,the   
,outlook ,company     ,mount ,pleasant  
,press   ,j4 ,horace ,mc,farland        
,company   ,harrisburg1 ,pennsylvania   
,to ,the ,memory of ,my ,father         
,that each1 who seems a separate whole1 
,should move his rounds1 and fusing all 
,the skirts of self again1 should fall  
,remerging in the general ,soul1        
,is faith as vague as all unsweet3      
,eternal form shall still divide        
,the eternal soul from all beside2      
,and ,i shall know him when we meet4    
--,in ,memoriam4     ,,introduction     
,the purpose of the following chapters  
will be evident to all who may care to  
peruse them4 ,i have endeavored simply  

to read the soul of man with something  
of the care that one reads a book       
containing a message which he believes  
to be of importance4  ,while one class  
of scientists are seeking to explore the
 physical universe1 another class1 with 
equal care1 are studying the human      
spirit1 and1 already1 startling         
discoveries have been made4 ,my work is 
in no sense new in kind1 but it is such 
as one whose whole time is devoted to   
dealing with the inner life would       
naturally give to such a subject4 ,it   
hardly needs to be added that my method 
is practical rather than speculative4 ,i
 am more interested in helping the      
ascent of the soul than in accounting   
for its origin4 ,in carrying out my plan
 ,i have considered the following       
subjects3 ,the nature and genesis of the
 soul1 its awakening to a consciousness 
of responsibility1 the steps which it   
first takes on its upward pathway1 the  
experience of moral failure1 its second 
awakening1 which is to an appreciation  

that the universe is on its side1 the   
part of ,christ in promoting its        
awakening1 the sense of spiritual       
companionship by which it is ever       
attended1 the discipline of struggle1   
and the nurture and culture best fitted 
to promote its growth4 ,i have also     
sought to read some of the prophecies of
 the soul1 and have found them all      
pointing toward a continuance of its    
being beyond the event called death1 and
 toward the fullness of ,christ as the  
goal of humanity4 ,i have found a place 
for prayers for the departed even among 
,protestants of the strictest sects4  ,a
 study of the soul1 like a study of     
history1 inspires optimism4 ,it is hard 
to believe that it could have been      
intended first for perfection and then  
for extinction4 ,it is equally difficult
 to believe that any soul will1 in the  
end1 be cast as rubbish to the void4    
,in these studies ,i have tried ever to 
be mindful of my own limitations1 and   
not to forget that a fraction of        

humanity can never hope to comprehend   
the fullness of truth4 ,of that side of 
the spiritual sphere which has been     
turned toward me1 and of that alone1    
have ,i presumed to write4 ,all that ,i 
claim for this book is that it is the   
contribution of one1 anxious to know    
what is true1 toward a better           
understanding of a subject which is     
daily receiving wider recognition and   
more thorough consideration4  ,,amory   
,h4 ,,bradford4  ,,montclair1 ,,new     
,,jersey1 ,august #cj1 #aijb4           
,,contents                              
,page   ,the ,soul                      
#a  ,the ,awakening of the ,soul        
#be  ,the ,first ,steps                 
#dg  ,hindrances                        
#ga  ,the ,austere                      
#ig  ,re-,awakening                     
#abe  ,the ,place of ,jesus ,christ     
#aea  ,the ,inseparable ,companion      
#aha  ,nurture and ,culture             
#bji  ,is ,death the ,end8              
#bcg  ,prayers for the ,dead            

#bfe  ,the ,goal                        
#bhi     ,,the ,,soul       ,it is no   
spirit who from heaven hath flown       
,and is descending on his embassy2      
,nor traveler gone from earth the heaven
 t'espy6     ',tis ,hesperus--there he  
stands with glittering crown1     ,first
 admonition that the sun is down1--     
,for yet it is broad daylight6--clouds  
pass by2     ,a few are near him        
still--and now the sky1     ,he hath it 
to himself--'tis all his own4     ,o    
most ambitious star6 an inquest wrought 
,within me when ,i recognized thy light2
     ,a moment ,i was startled at the   
sight2     ,and1 while ,i gazed1 there  
came to me a thought     ,that even ,i  
beyond my natural race     ,might step  
as thou dost now3--might one day trace  
,some ground not mine2 and1 strong her  
strength above1     ,my soul1 an        
apparition in the place1     ,tread     
there1 with steps that no one shall     
reprove6                                
--,wordsworth4     ,i  ,,the ,,soul     

,subjects which a few years ago were    
regarded as the exclusive property of   
cultured thinkers1 are now common themes
 of thought and conversation4           
,psychology has been popularized4       
,materialistic doctrines are at a       
discount even in this age of physical   
science4  ,it is difficult to explain   
the somewhat sudden appearance of       
intense interest in questions which have
 to do with the life of the spirit2 but1
 whatever the theory of its genesis1    
there is no doubt of its presence4      
,this1 therefore1 is a favorable time   
for a somewhat extended study of the    
stages through which we pass in our     
spiritual growth4 ,i shall endeavor to  
use the inductive method in this        
inquiry1 and trust that ,i am not       
presumptuous in giving to these essays  
the title1      ,,the ,,ascent ,,of     
,,the ,,soul4  ,the phrases1 ,the       
,ascent of ,man and ,the ,descent of    
,man are familiar to all readers of the 
literature of modern science4 ,one of   

the most eminent of ,american writers on
 science and philosophy too soon taken  
from his work1 if any act of ,providence
 is ever too soon1 has made a clear     
distinction between evolution as applied
 to the body and as applied to the      
spirit4 ,in lucid and luminous pages he 
has taught us that evolution1 as a      
physical process1 having culminated in  
man can go no further along those lines2
 that henceforward the ,cosmic force    
will be expended in the perfection of   
the spirit1 and that that process will  
require eternity to complete4  ,more    
perspicuously than any other author1    
,john ,fiske has introduced to modern   
,english thought the conception of the  
ascent of the soul1 considered in its   
relation to the individual and to the   
race4  ,this subject naturally divides  
itself into two departments1 viz4--the  
ascent of each individual soul and1     
then1 the far-off perfecting of         
humanity4 ,i shall make suggestions     
along both lines of inquiry4 ,i do not  

know of any writer who has1 in a compact
 form1 presented the results of such    
studies1 although there have been       
illustrations1 especially in literature1
 which indicate that many thinkers have 
had in mind the attempt to trace and    
describe the progress of the soul from  
its bondage to animalism toward its     
perfection and glory in the freedom of  
the spirit4  ,goethe1 in ,faust1 has    
made an effort to follow the process by 
which a weak woman and a weaker man1    
ignorant of the forces struggling within
 them and susceptible to malign         
influences from without1 through        
terrible mistakes and bitter failure1 at
 length reach the heights of character4 
,the ,trilogy of ,dante is a study of   
the soul in its slow and painful passage
 from hell1 through purgatory1 to       
heaven4 ,perhaps1 however1 the noblest  
and truest effort in this direction to  
be found in the world's literature is   
,the ,pilgrim's ,progress1 in which a   
man of glorious genius and vision1 but  

without academic culture1 reflecting too
 much the crude and materialistic       
theology of his time and condition1     
follows the progress of a soul in its   
movement from the ,city of ,destruction 
to the ,city ,celestial4 ,the ,city of  
,destruction is the state of animalism  
and selfishness from which the race has 
slowly emerged2 and the ,city ,celestial
 is not only the ,christian's heaven1   
but also the state of those who1 having 
escaped from earthliness1 having        
conquered animalism and risen into the  
freedom of the spirit1 breathe the air  
and enjoy the companionship of the sons 
of ,god4  ,it is my purpose in a        
different way to attempt to trace some  
of the steps of what may be called the  
evolution of the spirit1 or1 in the     
light of modern knowledge1 the growth of
 the soul as it moves upward4 ,at the   
outset ,i must make it plain that ,i am 
speaking of evolution since the time    
when man as a spirit appeared4 ,given   
the spiritual being1 what are the stages

 through which he will pass on his way  
to the goal toward which he is surely   
pressing8  ,just here we should ask1    
,what do we mean by the soul8 ,the word 
is used in its popular sense1 as        
synonymous with spirit or personality4  
,man has a dual nature2 one part of his 
being is of the dust and to the dust it 
returns2 the other part is a mystery2 it
 is known only by what it does4 ,man    
thinks1 loves1 chooses1 and is conscious
 of himself as thinking1 loving1        
choosing4 ,the unity of this being who  
thinks1 loves1 chooses in a single      
self-consciousness constitutes him a    
spirit1 or personality2 and that is what
 the word soul signifies in its popular 
usage4 ,there is another technical      
definition which may be true or false   
but which is of no importance in our    
study4  ,the problem of life is the     
right adjustment of spirit and body1 so 
that the former shall never be the      
servant but always the master of the    
latter4  ,we are on this earth1 in the  

midst of darkness1 with nothing         
absolutely sure except that in a little 
while we must die4 ,we are two-fold     
beings in which there is war almost from
 the cradle to the grave1 and that war  
is caused by the effort of the body to  
rule the soul and of the soul to conquer
 the body4  ,at the gates of this       
mystery we continually do cry1 and      
little light comes from any quarter2    
indeed1 it may be said no light except  
that of the ,christian revelation1 and  
the1 as yet1 not very pronounced        
prophecies of evolution4  ,one of the   
questions1 which in all ages has been   
most persistently asked1 concerns the   
origin of the soul4 ,perhaps1 in        
reality1 that is no more mysterious than
 the genesis of the body2 but the body  
is material and we live in a world of   
matter1 and it is comparatively easy to 
see that our bodies are from the earth  
which they inhabit4 ,our souls1 however1
 are invisible1 immaterial1 ethereal4   
,there is no evident kinship between a  

thought and a stone1 between love and   
the soil which produces vegetables1     
between a heroic choice and the stuff of
 the earth1 between spirit and matter4  
,well1 then1 whence does the soul come8 
,it will be interesting at least to     
recall a few of the many answers which  
have been given to this inquiry4  ,one  
theory of the genesis of the soul is    
called ,emanation4 ,that means that in  
the universe there is really but one    
source of spiritual being1 one ,infinite
 ,spirit1 and that all other spiritual  
beings have proceeded from ,him as the  
rays of light are flashed from the sun2 
and that1 in time1 all will return to   
,him again and be absorbed in the being 
from which they have come4 ,thus all    
spirits are supposed to have proceeded  
from one source--,god4 ,as all natural  
life in the end is but a manifestation  
of solar energy1 so all human beings are
 supposed to be only bits of ,god1 for a
 time imprisoned in bodies1 and some    
time to return to the ,deity and be     

absorbed in ,him1 or in it4  ,another   
answer to the question as to the soul's 
origin is that of ,prexistence4 ,this   
may be called the ,oriental theory1 for 
almost the whole ,orient holds this     
view4 ,the substance of the teaching is 
suggested by ,wordsworth1 in his ,ode to
 ,immortality1 in the following lines3  
,our birth is but a sleep and a         
forgetting2       ,the soul that rises  
with us1 our life's star1     ,hath had 
elsewhere its setting1       ,and cometh
 from afar4  ,many ,occidentals have    
believed in prexistence4 ,one of the    
most intelligent persons whom ,i have   
ever known once affirmed that she had   
had thoughts which she was sure were    
memories of events which had occurred in
 a previous life4 ,this answer only     
pushes the question one stage further   
back1 and leaves us still inquiring1    
,where do the souls of men originally   
come from8  ,another answer to our      
question affirms that every individual  
soul is created by ,god whenever a body 

is in readiness to receive it--that when
 a body is born a soul is made to order 
for it4 ,an old poet wrote as follows3  
,then ,god smites ,his hands together   
,and strikes out a soul as a spark1     
,into the organized glory of things1    
,from the deeps of the dark4#a          
,footnote #a3 ,w4,r4 ,alger1 ,history of
 the ,doctrine of a ,future ,life1 page 
#aj4  ,the ,greek myth of ,prometheus is
 an illustration of this teaching1 for  
,prometheus is said to have made a human
 image from the dust of the ground1 and 
then1 by fire stolen from heaven1 to    
have animated it with a living soul4#b  
,footnote #b3 ,w4,r4 ,alger1 ,history of
 the ,doctrine of a ,future ,life1 page 
#aj4  ,another answer teaches that all  
human souls have been derived by        
heredity from that of ,adam4 ,this is a 
speculation found in medieval theology1 
and in the ,koran4  ,a fanciful theory  
suggests that all souls have been in    
existence since the universe was formed2
 that they are floating in space like   

rays of light2 and that when a body     
comes into being a soul is drawn into it
 with its first breath1 or first        
nourishment4 ,this is pure imagination1 
but intelligent and earnest men have    
believed it to be the true solution of  
the problem4  ,one other answer to this 
question of origin teaches that souls   
are propagated in the same way and at   
the same time as bodies2 that when a    
human being appears he is body and      
spirit2 that both are born together1    
both grow together2 and then1 some add1 
both die together1 while others believe 
that the spirit enters at death on a    
larger and freer stage of existence4  ,i
 have recalled these speculations       
concerning the soul in order to show    
that in all ages this question has been 
eagerly put and reverently pressed4 ,how
 could it have been otherwise8 ,and what
 more convincing evidence of the        
spiritual nature of man could be desired
 than that he asks such questions8      
,would a figure of clay ask whether it  

were the abode of a higher order of     
being8 ,dust asks no questions          
concerning personality2 but intelligence
 can never be satisfied until it knows  
the causes of things4  ,what is the     
teaching of the ,new ,testament         
concerning this subject8 ,the attitude  
of ,jesus toward all the great problems 
was the practical one4 ,he attempted to 
shed no light on causes1 but ever       
endeavored to show how to make the best 
of things as they are4 ,whence came the 
soul8 we may ask of ,him1 but ,he will  
tell us that a far more important       
inquiry is1 ,how may the soul be        
delivered from imperfection1 suffering1 
and sin1 and saved to its noblest uses  
and loftiest possibilities8  ,the       
reality of spirit is everywhere assumed 
in the teaching of ,jesus1 but nowhere  
does there appear any effort to throw   
light on the mystery of its genesis4    
,the distinction between spirit and body
 is indicated by the ,transfiguration1  
the ,resurrection1 the narratives of the

 continued existence of ,jesus after    
,his ,crucifixion1 by many references to
 the heavenly life1 and by the appeals  
and invitations of the ,gospel which are
 all addressed to intelligence and will4
 ,the presence of ,jesus in history is  
an assertion of the spiritual nature of 
man4 ,various philosophers have tried to
 satisfy the desire for light on the    
question of the origin of personality2  
but ,jesus has told us how1 being here1 
we may break our prison-houses and rise 
into the full freedom and glory of the  
children of ,god4 ,while inquirers have 
been seeking light1 ,jesus has brought  
to them salvation2 while they have      
fruitlessly asked whence they came1     
,jesus has told them whither they are   
going4  ,the real problem of human life 
is not one which has to do with our     
birth1 but with our destiny4 ,we know   
that we think1 choose1 love2 we know    
that we are self-conscious2 we feel that
 we have kinship with something higher  
than the ground on which we walk4 ,the  

stars attract us because they are above 
and have motion1 but the earth we tread 
upon has few fascinations4  ,jesus has  
responded to the essential questions3   
,for what have we been created8 ,what is
 our true home8 ,what is the goal of    
personality8 ,by what path does man move
 from the bondage of his will1 and the  
limitation of his animalism toward the  
glorious liberty of the children of     
,god1 and toward the fullness of his    
possible being8  ,we are thus brought   
face to face with other questions of    
deep importance ,what part do weakness1 
limitation1 suffering1 sorrow1 and even 
sin1 play in the development of souls8  
,is it necessary that any should fall in
 order that they may rise8 ,did ,john   
,bunyan truly picture the ascent of the 
soul8 ,does its path1 of necessity1 lead
 through the ,slough of ,despond1       
through ,vanity ,fair1 by ,castle       
,dangerous1 and into the realm of ,giant
 ,despair8  ,must one pass through hell 
and purgatory before he may enjoy the   

beatific vision8 ,are temptation1 sin1  
sorrow1 and even death1 angels of ,god  
sent forth to minister to the perfection
 of man8 or are they fiends which1 in   
some foul way1 have invaded the         
otherwise fair regions in which we      
dwell8  ,these are some of the questions
 to which we are to seek answers in the 
pages which are to follow4 ,i am        
persuaded that1 as the result of our    
studies1 we shall find that the same    
beneficent hand which led the ,cosmic   
process for unnumbered ages1 until the  
appearance of man1 is leading it still1 
that far more wonderful disclosures are 
waiting for the children of men as they 
shall be prepared to receive them1 and  
that the glory of the ,spiritual        
,universe1 as it approaches its         
consummation1 when compared with the    
finest growths of character yet seen1   
will transcend them as the ordered      
creation1 with its countless stars1     
transcends the primeval chaos4  ,in the 
meantime it is well to remember a few   

very simple and self-evident facts4 ,one
 of these is that human souls must vary1
 at least as much as the bodies in which
 they dwell4 ,individuality has to do   
with spirits4 ,we think1 love1 and      
choose in ways that differ quite as much
 as our bodily appearance4 ,there is no 
uniformity in the spiritual             
sphere2--this we know from its          
manifestations in conduct and history4  
,one man is heroic and another tender1  
one a reformer and another a recluse1   
one conservative and another radical4   
,the same ,bible has passages as widely 
contrasted as the twenty-third and the  
fifty-eighth ,psalms1 and characters as 
unlike as ,jacob and ,jesus4 ,indeed1   
may it not be assumed that physical     
differences are but expressions of still
 more clearly marked differences in     
spirits8 ,if this is true it will follow
 that1 as we move toward the goal of our
 being1 while all will be under the same
 good care1 we will move along          
different1 though converging1 paths4    

,there are many roads to the ,celestial 
,city and1 possibly1 some of them do not
 lead through the ,slough of ,despond1  
or go very near to the realms of ,giant 
,despair4  ,i cannot leave this part of 
my subject without dwelling for a moment
 upon two thoughts which to me seem to  
be full of significance4  ,this         
wonderfully complex nature of           
ours1--this power of thinking1 choosing1
 loving1 these mysterious inner depths  
out of which come strange suggestions1  
and within which1 all the time1         
processes are carried on which may rise 
into consciousness and startle with     
their beauty or shame with their        
ugliness--does no suggestion come from  
it concerning its origin and destiny8   
,until they pass mid-life few men       
realize the terrible significance of the
 command of the oracle at ,delphi1 ,know
 ,thyself4 ,who is not surprised every  
day at what he finds within himself8 ,it
 sometimes seems as if two beings dwelt 
in every body1 one in the region of     

consciousness1 and one down below       
consciousness steadily forging the      
material which1 sooner or later1 must be
 forced up for the conscious man to     
think about4  ,in proportion as we know 
ourselves more accurately it becomes    
increasingly evident that as spirits we 
are allied to the great ,spirit4 ,few   
who earnestly think can believe that    
their power of thought could have grown 
out of the earth2 few when they love can
 believe that there is no fountain of   
love1 unlimited and free2 and few1 when 
they choose one course and refuse       
another1 would be willing to affirm that
 they are without the power of choice1  
and have no destiny but the grave4 ,in  
other words1 is not the fact that we are
 spirits all the proof that we need to  
have of the ,father of ,spirits8 ,is not
 a single ray of light all the evidence 
which any one needs of the reality of   
the sun8 ,is not the presence of one    
spiritual being a demonstration of a    
greater ,spirit somewhere8 ,every soul  

indicates that1 whatever the process by 
which it has reached its present        
development1 it came originally from    
,god4 ,in the beginning ,god is a phrase
 which applies to the spiritual as well 
as to the material universe4  ,the soul 
is not only a witness concerning its own
 origin1 but it is also a prophecy      
concerning its destiny4 ,the more       
thoroughly it is studied the more       
convincing becomes the evidence that it 
must some time reach its perfected      
state4 ,the perfection of intelligence1 
love1 and will require endless growth4  
,the great words of ,pascal can hardly  
be recalled too frequently3  ,man is but
 a reed1 the weakest in nature1 but he  
is a thinking reed4 ,it is not necessary
 that the entire universe arm itself to 
crush him4 ,a breath of air1 a drop of  
water suffices to kill him4 ,but were   
the universe to crush him1 man would    
still be more noble than that which     
kills him1 because he knows that he     
dies2 and the universe knows nothing of 

the advantage it has over him4  ,we can 
as yet hardly begin to comprehend that  
for which we were created2--now we see  
through a glass darkly4 ,a caterpillar  
on the earth cannot appreciate a        
butterfly in the air4 ,jesus was the    
typical man1 as well as the revelation  
of ,god4 ,st4 ,paul has set our thoughts
 moving toward the fullness of ,christ  
as the final goal of humanity4 ,we may  
not1 for many milleniums1 know all that 
is contained in that phrase the fullness
 of ,christ2 but no one ever attentively
 listened to the voices which speak in  
his own soul1 no one has even asked     
himself the meaning of the fact that    
nothing earthly ever completely         
satisfies1 no one ever saw another in   
the ripeness of splendid powers growing 
more intelligent1 loving1 and           
spiritually beautiful1 without feeling  
that if death were really the end no    
being is so much to be pitied as man1   
and no fate so much to be coveted as a  
short life in which the mockery may go  

on4  ,our souls themselves assure us    
that they have come from a fountain of  
spiritual being--that is1 from ,god2 and
 they are also prophecies of a          
perfection which has never yet been     
realized on the earth and which will    
require eternity to complete4 ,but all  
are not conscious of themselves as      
spiritual beings and children of        
eternity1 and many come slowly to that  
consciousness4 ,our next inquiry1       
therefore1 will concern the ,soul's     
,awakening4     ,,the ,,awakening ,,of  
,,the ,,soul       ,there's a palace in 
,florence1 the world knows well1        
,and a statue watches it from the       
square1     ,and this story of both do  
our townsmen tell4      ,ages ago1 a    
lady there1     ,at the farthest window 
facing the ,east     ,asked1 ,who rides 
by with the royal air8             99   
99       99       99       99      ,that
 selfsame instant1 underneath1     ,the 
,duke rode past in his idle way         
,empty and fine like a swordless sheath4

             99       99       99       
99       99      ,he looked at her1 as a
 lover can2     ,she looked at him as   
one who awakes3     ,the past was a     
sleep1 and her life began4              
--,the ,statue and the ,bust4 ,browning 
,,ii  ,,the ,,awakening ,,of ,,the      
,,soul   ,the process of physical       
awakening is not always sudden or swift4
 ,the passage from sleep to             
consciousness is sometimes slow and     
difficult4 ,the soul's realization of   
itself is often equally long delayed4   
,the effect of eloquence on an audience 
has often been observed when one by one 
the dormant souls wake up and begin to  
look out of their windows1 the eyes1 at 
the speaker who is addressing them4 ,in 
something the same way the souls of men 
come to a consciousness of their powers 
and1 with clearness1 begin to look out  
on their possibilities and their        
destiny4  ,the prodigal son in the      
parable of ,jesus lived his earlier     
years without an appreciation either of 

his powers or possibilities4 ,when he   
came to himself this appreciation       
flashed upon his will and he turned     
toward his father4  ,two chapters of    
this book will have to do with thoughts 
suggested by this pearl of parables1    
viz41 the ,soul's ,awakening and its    
,re-awakening4 ,before this young man   
decided to return to his father he knew 
himself as an intelligent and as a      
responsible being2 the power of choice  
was not given him then for the first    
time4 ,long ere this he had decided how 
he would use his wealth4 ,he knew the   
difference between right and wrong4 ,he 
was intellectually and morally awake    
before he saw things in their true      
relations4 ,the wine of the senses      
intoxicated him2 the delights of the    
flesh seemed the only pleasures to be   
desired4 ,at first he did not discover  
the essential excellence of virtue or   
the sure results of vice4 ,later1 when  
he saw things in a clearer light1 their 
proper proportions and relations        

appeared1 and he came to himself and    
made the wise choice4  ,in this chapter 
we are to study the process of the      
soul's awakening to a consciousness of  
its powers1 and in a subsequent chapter 
that re-awakening which is so radical as
 to merit the name it has usually       
received1 viz41 the new birth4  ,there  
is a time when the soul first realizes  
itself as a personality with definite   
responsibilities and relations4 ,this   
experience comes to some earlier1 and to
 some with greater vividness1 than to   
others4 ,so long as we are blind to our 
powers1 responsibilities1 relations1 we 
can hardly be said to be spiritually    
awake4 ,he only is awake who knows      
himself as a personality2 who has heard 
the voice of duty2 who1 to some extent1 
appreciates the fact that he is         
dependent on a higher personality or    
power2 and who recognizes that he is    
surrounded by other personalities who   
also have their rights1                 
responsibilities1 and relations4 ,i     

think1 ,i choose1 ,i love1 ,i know that 
,i am dependent upon a ,being higher    
than myself4 ,i see that ,i am related  
to other personalities with rights as   
sacred as my own1 and1 therefore1 that  
,i must choose1 think1 love so as to be 
acceptable to the ,one to whom ,i am    
responsible1 and harmonious with those  
by whom ,i am surrounded4  ,the soul's  
awakening is primarily a recognition and
 an appreciation of its responsibility4 
,it may think1 choose1 love1 without    
realizing responsibility1 and1          
therefore1 live as if it were the only  
being in the universe2 but the moment it
 recognizes responsibility it also      
discerns a higher ,person1 and other    
persons1 since responsibility to no one1
 and for nothing1 is inconceivable4     
,the soul's awakening1 therefore1       
carries with it the idea of obligation1 
and that includes the recognition of    
,god1 of duty1 of right and wrong1 in   
short1 of a moral ideal4 ,i do not mean 
to insist that every one appreciates all

 that is implied in consciousness of    
responsibility4 ,there are degrees of   
alertness1 and some men are wide awake  
and others half asleep4  ,however it may
 have come to its self-realization1 that
 is a solemn and sublime moment when a  
human soul understands1 ever so dimly1  
that it is facing in the unseen ,being  
one on whom it knows itself to be       
dependent2 and when it discerns the     
hitherto invisible lines which bind it  
to other personalities1 in all space and
 time4 ,at that moment life really      
begins4 ,henceforward1 by various ways1 
over undreamed-of obstacles1 assisted by
 invisible hands1 hindered by unseen    
forces1 in spite of foes within and     
enemies without1 the course of that soul
 must ever be toward its true home and  
goal1 in the bosom of ,god4  ,the       
difficulties in the way of such a faith 
for the thoughtful and sensitive are    
many and serious4 ,not all blossoms come
 to fruitage2 not all human beings are  
fit to live2 processes of degeneration  

seem to be at work in nature1 in        
society1 and in the individual life4    
,apparently true and time-honored       
interpretations of ,scripture are quoted
 against the faith that in some way1 and
 by some kind of discipline1 the souls  
of men will forever approach ,god2 while
 the belief of the church1 so far as it 
has found expression in the creeds is   
urged in opposition4 ,but when ,i see   
how timidly the creeds of the church    
have been held by many in all ages1 how 
large a number of the most spiritual and
 morally earnest have questioned them at
 this point1 and how often they have    
been rejected in whole1 or in part1 by  
those who have dared to trust their     
hearts2 when ,i remember that the       
,scripture quoted as opposing is        
susceptible of another interpretation1  
when ,i remember that blossoms are not  
men1 and1 most of all when ,i see the   
,god-like possibilities in every human  
being1 ,i cannot resist the conviction  
that every soul of man is from ,god1 and

 that1 sometime and somehow1 it may be  
by the hard path of retribution1        
possibly through great agonies and by   
means of austere chastisements and      
severe discipline as well as by loving  
entreaty1 after suffering shall have    
accomplished all its ministries it will 
reach a blissful goal and the beatific  
vision4  ,the awakening of the soul is  
its entrance upon an appreciation of its
 powers1 relations1 possibilities1 and  
responsibilities4  ,what awakens the    
soul8 ,the answer to that question is   
hidden4 ,the wind bloweth where it      
listeth4 ,elemental processes and forces
 are all silent and viewless4 ,the      
stillness of the sunrise is like that of
 the deeps of the sea4 ,no eye ever     
traced the birth of life1 and no sound  
ever attended the awakening of the soul2
 and yet this subject is not altogether 
mysterious4 ,a few rays of light have   
fallen upon it4 ,i venture suggestions  
which may help a little toward a        
rational answer to this question4  ,the 

soul awakens because it grows1 and its  
growth is sure4 ,everything that is     
alive must grow2 only death is          
stationary4 ,it is as natural for us    
sometime to know ourselves as having    
relations both to the seen and the      
unseen as for our bodies to increase in 
stature4 ,the ,confession of            
,augustine#c is true of all1 ,thou      
madest us for ,thyself1 and our heart is
 restless until it repose in ,thee4     
,footnote #c3 ,confessions4 ,book ,i1   
#a4  ,the soul turns toward ,god as     
naturally as children turn toward their 
parents4 ,i know no other way of        
explaining the fact that in all ages the
 majority of the people have had faith  
in some kind of a deity2 and that1      
widely as they differ as to what is     
right1 all feel that they should follow 
their convictions of duty4 ,the various 
ethnic religions1 however repulsive1    
cruel1 and vile some of their teachings 
may be1 all indicate a realization of   
dependence1 and all1 in some way1 bear  

witness to man's longing for ,god4      
,augustine was right--,the heart is     
restless until it repose in ,thee4  ,the
 healthful soul will always move along  
the pathway of growth4 ,the next stage  
in its evolution after its birth is its 
awakening4 ,its progress may be         
hindered1 but it cannot be prevented1   
and it may be hastened4  ,the means by  
which a soul comes to its               
self-realization has been a favorite    
study with poets1 dramatists1 and       
novelists4 ,marguerite1 in ,faust1 was a
 simple1 sweet1 sensuous1 traditionally 
religious girl until she was rudely     
startled by the knowledge that she was a
 great sinner2 that moment the scales   
began to fall from her eyes4 ,in her1   
,goethe has shown how one class of      
persons1 and that a large class1 come to
 self-realization4  ,victor ,hugo1 in a 
passage of almost unparalleled pathos1  
has pictured in ,jean ,valjean a kind of
 big human beast who1 when half awake1  
steals a loaf of bread to save others   

from starving1 but who is startled into 
fullness of manhood by the sympathy and 
consideration of the good ,bishop whose 
silver he had also stolen4  ,hawthorne1 
in ,donatello1 has pictured a beautiful 
creature fully equipped with affections1
 emotions1 passions1 but with little    
consciousness of responsibility1 until  
the fatal moment in which a crime       
illuminates his soul like a flash of    
lightning4  ,such experiences are not to
 be compared with those of the prodigal 
son or of ,saul4 ,before the one was    
reduced to husks1 or the light blazed   
upon the other1 they felt the obligation
 to do right4 ,the prodigal chose       
pleasure with his eyes wide open and    
,saul was1 mistakenly but truly1 trying 
to do ,god's will even when he assisted 
in the stoning of ,stephen4  ,hugo1     
,goethe1 and ,hawthorne have accurately 
delineated single steps in the growth of
 the soul4 ,they have shown how the     
process of the soul's awakening may be1 
and often has been1 hastened4 ,it may be

 hindered by false ideals and a vicious 
environment1 and it may be hastened by  
lofty ideals and a holy environment4    
,dr4 ,bushnell1 in his lectures on      
,christian ,nurture1 has said that the  
formative years of every man's life are 
the first three4 ,is he correct8 ,i am  
not sure1 but there can be no doubt but 
what with a good environment the        
consciousness of moral obligation will  
be very early developed4  ,the soul     
cannot long be imprisoned4 ,the         
consciousness of ought and ought not    
will break all barriers as a growing    
seed will split a rock2 and1 when that  
stage of growth appears1 the soul knows 
itself4  ,when the soul is finally      
awakened1 when it realizes that it is   
indissolubly bound to a larger          
personality in the unseen sphere2 when  
it finds that it is tied to other souls1
 and that it cannot escape from its     
responsibility for itself and           
them1--what then8 ,then the struggle of 
life begins4 ,the awakening is to a     

realization of conflict with the seen   
and unseen environment1 with forces     
within and fascinations without4 ,when  
,paul speaks of the law as the minister 
of death1 he simply means that law      
introduces an ideal1 and ideals always  
start struggles4 ,law is something to be
 obeyed4 ,it is sure to antagonize the  
animal in man4 ,when our possibilities  
dawn upon us1 in that moment there comes
 the feeling that they should be our    
masters4 ,then the lower nature resists 
and becomes clamorous4 ,duty calls in   
one direction and inclination impels in 
another4 ,the period of ignorance has   
passed4 ,weakness and imperfection      
remain1 but not ignorance4 ,there is a  
conflict in the soul4 ,the law in the   
members wars against the law in the     
mind4 ,we feel that we ought to move    
upward1 but unseen weights press heavily
 upon us1 and to rise seems impossible4 
,between ,god calling from above and    
animalism from below the poor soul has a
 hard time of it4 ,the morally great in 

all ages have become strong by          
overcoming their fleshly natures4 ,they 
have risen on their dead selves to      
higher things4 ,the vision of ,god has  
reached them even in their              
prison-houses2 and it has broken their  
chains and they have begun to move      
toward ,him4 ,to the end of the chapter 
they have had a long fight1 and not     
seldom have been sadly worsted4 ,goethe 
and ,augustine1 ,pascal and ,coleridge1 
,de,quincey and ,webster--how the list  
of those who have had to fight bitter   
battles for spiritual liberty might be  
extended ,i and many have not been      
victorious before the shadows have      
lengthened and the day closed4 ,should  
they be blamed or pitied8 ,pitied1      
surely1 and for the rest let us leave   
them to ,him who knoweth all things4    
,vengeance is mine2 ,i will repay1 saith
 the ,lord4 ,men have nothing to do with
 judgment2 the final word concerning any
 soul will be spoken only by ,him whose 
vision is perfect4 ,steep and craggy is 

the pathway of the gods1 and steep and  
craggy is the path by which men rise to 
spiritual heights4  ,he who is sensitive
 to life can hardly survey this         
universal human struggle with undimmed  
eye or with unquestioning faith4 ,the   
young are driven here and there by      
heartless and1 sometimes1 almost furious
 passions2 some are weak and fall       
because they are blind1 and others      
because they love and trust2 and many   
who desire to do good mistake and choose
 evil4 ,the strong often try to run away
 from themselves but can find no        
solitude in which to hide2 and all the  
time right and truth shine in the       
darkness like stars4 ,what shall we say 
of these confusing conditions8 ,to      
ignore them is foolish2 to insist that  
the struggle is but a delusion is       
nonsense4 ,the only sane course is to   
face facts and adjust our theories to   
them4  ,the battle between duty and     
inclination1 between the ideal and the  
actual1 will continue as long as life in

 the body endures4 ,it is not an unmixed
 evil4 ,in the end right is never       
worsted4 ,the way that leads to holiness
 is long and sometimes bloody2 but it   
always develops strength and courage4   
,the fight1 for each individual1 will be
 ended only by the full and perfect     
choice of truth and virtue1 which are   
always the will of ,god4 ,the victory   
will be secure long before it is fully  
won4 ,enough for us to know that        
conformity to the will of ,god at last  
will be the end of strife4  ,it is not  
well to be overmuch troubled when we see
 those whom we love fighting a hard     
battle against inherited tendencies and 
an evil environment1 for the fight1     
however fierce1 is a good sign4 ,those  
alone are to be pitied who are drifting1
 and not resisting4 ,progress is ever by
 a steep and spiral pathway4 ,sometimes 
the face of the ascending soul is toward
 the sun and sometimes it is toward the 
darkness4 ,no man can deliver his friend
 from the forces which oppose him4 ,each

 must conquer for himself and none can  
evade the conflict4 ,from the hour when 
the soul awakens to a consciousness of  
its powers and possibilities1 its       
movement1 in spite of all hindrances and
 difficulties1 must be to the heights4  
,those only need cause anxiety who are  
not yet awake2 or who1 having been      
awake1 have turned backward instead of  
pressing onward4  ,we are now face to   
face with a momentous inquiry4 ,when the
 soul is awake1 when it realizes        
something of its descent from ,god and  
of its relation to ,him and to other    
souls1 what should be its environment8  
,intelligent and otherwise sane people  
at this point have been strangely insane
 and blind4 ,we are always affected by  
influence more than by teaching4        
,education by atmosphere is quite as    
effective as education by study4        
,involuntarily all become like their    
ideals4 ,personalities absorb           
characteristics from surroundings as    
flowers absorb colors from the light4   

,the awakened soul1 therefore1 from the 
first should have a spiritual           
environment4 ,parents and friends should
 be helps1 not hindrances1 to its       
progress4 ,i once read a letter from one
 who had changed an old for a new home4 
,the letter was full of aspiration for  
the best things1 of thoughts about ,god 
and the spiritual verities4 ,it was not 
difficult to see that the new home in   
its reverence for truth1 its loyalty to 
right1 its reaching for reality1 was    
providing the same good influence as the
 old one4 ,if1 in the environment1 truth
 and duty are honored1 virtue           
reverenced1 ,god worshipped sincerely   
and devoutly1 manhood held to be as     
sacred as deity1 the unseen and         
spiritual never spoken of unadvisedly or
 lightly1 courage always found hand in  
hand with character1 the soul will never
 long fight a losing battle4  ,the home 
should be organized to promote1 as      
swiftly as possible1 the awakening of   
the souls of the children2 and1 from the

 moment of this awakening1 everything   
should be planned to help their growth4 
,the books on the tables should tell the
 life-stories of those who have bravely 
fought and never faltered4 ,biographies 
of men like ,wilberforce and ,howard who
 have lived to help their fellow-men2   
and of women like ,florence ,nightingale
 and ,lady ,stanley1 who have regarded  
their social gifts and ample wealth as  
calls to service2 histories of          
charities1 intellectual development and 
noble achievement1 pictures like ,sir   
,galahad and ,the ,light of the ,world  
are potent forces in the formation of   
character4 ,the ideal side of life      
should ever be presented in its most    
attractive form to the awakened soul in 
its near environment4 ,because the ideal
 culminates in the religious1 and the   
feeling of moral obligation rests at    
last upon the conviction that ,god is1  
and that ,he is not far from any one1   
,jesus1 in all the beauty and pathos of 
,his earthly career1 in all the tragic  

grandeur of ,his death and glory of ,his
 ,resurrection1 in all the nearness and 
helpfulness of ,his continuing ministry1
 should be the subject of frequent1     
earnest1 honest1 sane1 and sympathetic  
conversation4  ,the awakened soul needs 
first of all an environment which will  
be favorable to its growth4 ,its        
development then will usually be        
steadily and swiftly toward ,god and    
conformity to ,his will4 ,there ought to
 be no need of any re-awakening4 ,if the
 soul opens its eyes among those who    
reverence truth and righteousness1 who  
guard virtue and revere love1 to whom   
,god is the nearest and most blessed of 
realities1 and ,jesus is ,master1       
,saviour1 and daily ,friend1 its growth 
toward the spiritual goal will be as    
natural and beautiful as it will also be
 swift and sure4     ,,the ,,first      
,,steps       ,no mortal object did     
these eyes behold     ,when first they  
met the placid light of thine1     ,and 
my soul felt her destiny divine1        

,and hope of endless peace in me grew   
bold3     ,heaven-born1 the soul a      
heav'nward course must hold2     ,beyond
 the visible world she soars to seek    
7,for what delights the sense is false  
and weak7     ,ideal form1 the universal
 mould4     ,the wise man1 ,i affirm1   
can find no rest     ,in that which     
perishes3 nor will he lend     ,his     
heart to aught which doth on time       
depend4     ',tis sense1 unbridled will1
 and not true love1     ,which kills the
 soul3 ,love betters what is best1      
,even here below1 but more in heaven    
above4      --,sonnet from ,michael     
,angelo4 ,wordsworth     ,,iii  ,,the   
,,first ,,steps   ,the first movements  
of the awakened soul are difficult to   
trace4 ,observation1 painstaking and    
long-continued1 alone can furnish the   
desired information4 ,in the attempt to 
recall our own experiences there is     
always a possibility of inaccuracy4     
,bias counts for more in                
self-examination than in an examination 

of others4 ,there is also danger of     
confusing religious preconceptions with 
what actually transpires4 ,what we have 
been led to imagine should be           
experienced we are very likely to insist
 has taken place4 ,the truth concerning 
the ,ascent of the ,soul will be found  
in the conclusions of many observers in 
widely different conditions4  ,the soul 
awakens to a consciousness of its       
responsibilities and to a knowledge that
 it is in a moral order from which      
escape is forever impossible4 ,this is  
our point of departure in this chapter4 
,the new-born child has to become       
adjusted to its physical environment1 to
 learn to use its powers1 to breathe1 to
 eat1 to allow the various senses to do 
their work4 ,in like manner the newly   
awakened soul has to become adjusted to 
the moral order4 ,the moral order is the
 rule of right in the sphere of thought1
 emotion1 and choice4 ,it is the        
government of the soul as the physical  
order is the government of the body4 ,it

 may be best explained by analogy4      
,there is a physical order ruled by     
physical laws4 ,if those laws are       
obeyed1 strength1 health1 sanity result2
 but if they are disobeyed1 the         
consequences1 which are inevitable and  
self-perpetuating1 are weakness1        
disease1 insanity4 ,if one violates     
gravitation he is dashed in pieces2 if  
he trifles with microbes their          
infinitesimal grasp will be like a      
shackle of steel4 ,no one can get       
outside the physical universe and the   
sweep of its laws4  ,there is also a    
right and a wrong way to use thought1   
emotion1 will4 ,the mind which has      
hospitality only for holy thoughts will 
become clearer1 and its vision more     
distinct2 but the mind which harbors    
impure thoughts1 gradually1 but surely1 
confuses evil with good1 obscures its   
vision1 and becomes a fountain of moral 
miasm4 ,if we choose to recall and to   
retain feelings that are animal1 and are
 the relics of animalism1 the natural   

tendency toward bestiality will gather  
momentum2 but if emotion is turned      
toward higher objects1 and we are       
thrilled from above rather than lulled  
from below1 the sensibilities become    
sources of enduring joy4 ,the moral     
order is like the physical order in its 
universality and in the remorselessness 
of the consequences which follow        
choices4  ,how does the soul become     
adjusted to the moral order8 ,this      
question is difficult to answer4 ,at the
 first there is sight enough to see that
 one course is right and another wrong1 
but the vision is indistinct4 ,gradually
 the ability to make accurate           
discriminations increases1 and1 with    
time and other growth1 the faculty of   
vision is enlarged and clarified4  ,the 
first step in the ,ascent of the ,soul  
is the development of ability to        
discriminate between right and wrong4   
,the powers of the soul are enlarged and
 vivified with the bodily growth1 but   
whether there is any necessary          

connection between the growth of the one
 and that of the other1 we know not4    
,this alone is sure--clearer vision1    
with ever-increasing distinctness1      
reveals the certainty that moral laws   
are universal and unchangeable4 ,the    
process of adjustment to the moral order
 is partly voluntary and partly         
involuntary4 ,it is hastened by the     
hidden forces of vitality1 and it may be
 hindered by its own choices4 ,as a     
human being who refuses to eat will     
starve1 so a soul which turns away from 
truth will starve4 ,the law in one case 
is as inexorable as in the other4 ,this 
consciousness of the moral order is     
sometimes dim even in mature years      
because neglect always deadens          
appreciation4 ,paul said that the law is
 a schoolmaster leading to ,christ4 ,by 
that he intended to teach that we must  
realize that we are under moral law     
before we can know that its violation   
will result in a state of ruin needing  
salvation4 ,first that which is natural1

 then that which is spiritual4 ,the     
phrase natural law in the spiritual     
world means that the consequences       
following right and wrong are as        
inevitable and essential in the realm of
 spirit as in that of matter4  ,the     
progress of the soul is dependent on the
 realization that there is a moral      
quality in thoughts1 emotions1 choices2 
that the consequences following them    
grow out of them as flowers from seed1  
and that they determine not only the    
character but the happiness and welfare 
of the one exercising them4  ,the next  
step in the upward movement of the soul 
is the realization of its freedom4 ,it  
is possible for one to know that he is  
under law1 without at the same time     
appreciating that he is free to choose  
whether he will obey4 ,i may see a storm
 sweeping toward me and know that behind
 it is resistless force1 and know1 also1
 that to step outside the track of that 
storm is impossible2 and it is          
conceivable that a soul may know itself 

as able to think1 feel1 act1 and1 at the
 same time1 be under the dominion of    
forces before which it is powerless4    
,the practical question1 therefore1 for 
all in this human world is not1 are     
there spiritual laws8 but1 may we choose
 for ourselves whether we will obey or  
disobey them8 ,until the soul knows     
itself to be free to choose1 there will 
be no deep feeling of obligation1       
without which there can be no motive    
impelling toward the heights4 ,here also
 we walk in the dark4 ,the genesis of   
the consciousness of freedom has never  
been observed4 ,du,bois-,reymond has    
called it one of the seven riddles of   
science4 ,we are no nearer the solution 
of the problem than were our fathers a  
thousand years ago4 ,but one thing at   
least we do know3 ,he who believes      
himself to be a puppet in the hands of  
unseen forces will never fight them4 ,if
 freedom is a fiction the universe is   
not only unmoral1 but immoral4 ,the     
final argument for freedom is           

consciousness4 ,i know ,i could have    
chosen differently from what ,i did4    
,but how do ,i know8 ,the process cannot
 be pushed farther back4 ,consciousness 
is ultimate and authoritative4 ,but what
 then shall be said of heredity8 ,a     
child when first born is little but a   
bundle of sensibilities4 ,its growth    
seems to be but the unfolding of        
inherited tendencies4 ,every man is what
 his ancestors have made him plus what  
he has absorbed from his environment4   
,how can we say then that any are free8 
,that man who is surly1 uncomfortable1  
ugly1 as hard to endure as a ,march     
wind1 is but the extension of his       
father4 ,when one knows the elder it is 
difficult to do otherwise than pity the 
younger4 ,he is but living the          
tendencies which were born in him and   
which are an inseparable part of his    
nature4 ,he cannot be genial and urbane4
 ,are not some born moral cripples as   
others are born with physical           
deformities8 ,are not some spiritually  

deaf1 dumb1 and blind from birth8 ,it   
cannot be doubted4 ,we are all more or  
less what our fathers were1 but our     
surroundings do much to modify us4 ,many
 men seem to be driven on wings of      
passion1 as leaves by tornadoes2 and yet
 we know that we are free1 and that all 
life and conduct1 individual and social1
 must be ordered on that hypothesis4    
,teach men that they are not free1 and  
anarchy and chaos will quickly follow4  
,no freedom8 ,then there is no          
obligation4 ,no one feels that he ought 
to do what he cannot do1 and no one will
 try to do what he does not feel that he
 ought to do4 ,if men are but machines1 
moving only as the power is turned on1  
there is no moral quality in any action4
 ,if we live in a moral world1 whether  
we can understand it or not1 we must be 
free to choose for ourselves4 ,the      
possibility of the soul's expansion     
depends on its freedom4 ,there is no    
right and no wrong1 no truth and no     
error1 if it is a slave to the          

inheritance with which it was born4     
,what gives to the invitations of ,jesus
 a quality so serious and so solemn is  
the fact that they may be rejected4 ,the
 power of choice is the most sublime    
endowment which man possesses4 ,when we 
have learned to know ourselves as free a
 long step forward has been taken4 ,the 
soul grows by a right use of the power  
of choice4  ,how may it be adjusted to  
this knowledge8 ,it will undoubtedly    
grow to it1 but the process will be     
slow4 ,it may1 however1 be hastened by a
 use of the experience of others4 ,no   
man should be allowed to begin the      
battle of life as ignorant as his father
 was4 ,each new soul should have the    
benefit of the experience of all who    
have lived before4 ,children should be  
taught by example and conversation1 in  
the home and the school1 that the       
beginning of wisdom is a right use of   
the experience of others4 ,however this 
lesson may be learned1 and however swift
 may be the process of growth1 the next 

step in the soul's progress1 after its  
realization that it is in a moral order1
 must be its adjustment to the fact that
 it is a free agent and sovereign over  
its own choices4  ,no man is ever forced
 into any course of conduct4 ,character 
is the resultant of many choices rather 
than of necessity4 ,the moral law may be
 obeyed or it may be violated4 ,its seat
 is1 indeed1 in the bosom of ,god4 ,it  
is the only guarantee of individual     
progress and social harmony4 ,its sway  
is without bound and without end4 ,to   
know how to live in a moral world1 and  
how best to use the gifts of liberty1 is
 a subject for an eternity of study4    
,that this consciousness of freedom     
comes slowly is an immense blessing2    
otherwise the soul would be dazed as1   
for the first time1 it looked around on 
the solemnities and splendors of the    
spiritual universe2 and be overwhelmed  
as it realized1 at the very beginning of
 its career1 that it was endowed with a 
sovereignty as mysterious and potent as 

that of ,god4  ,the next step in the    
upward movement of the soul is          
appreciation of a moral ideal4 ,that is 
a solemn and sublime moment when the    
newly awakened soul realizes that it    
dwells in a moral order and is free to  
make its own choices4 ,but another      
moment is equally thrilling--that in    
which1 in faint and scarcely audible    
accents1 it catches the far call of the 
goal toward which1 henceforward and     
forever1 it must move4 ,it now knows not
 only that there is a difference between
 right and wrong1 but that there are    
mysterious affinities between itself and
 truth and right4 ,later the sound of   
that far-away voice will become more    
distinct4 ,but in its infancy the soul  
is more or less confused4 ,it hears many
 sounds and does not always know how to 
distinguish between siren voices and    
those which prophesy its destiny4 ,it   
also has to learn to distinguish truth  
and right4 ,the task of making moral    
discriminations is not easy at any time4

 ,amid a babel of noises to detect the  
one clear call which alone can satisfy  
is almost impossible4 ,the mistakes1    
therefore1 are many1 but even by        
mistakes the soul learns to distinguish 
the true from the false4 ,but how is it 
to be taught to appreciate that one     
voice only in all that confusion of     
strange sounds should be heeded1 and all
 the rest disregarded8 ,the same answer 
as before must be given4 ,this          
knowledge1 also1 will come in large part
 with the years4 ,it seems to be the    
cosmic purpose to provide fresh light   
with every new step of progress4 ,no one
 is ever left in total darkness4 ,as the
 soul advances it learns to distinguish 
between the voices which speak to it4   
,the necessity of growth is the angel of
 the ,lord whose ministries and         
prophecies are the hope and glory of the
 race4 ,growth may be hindered1 but it  
can never be banished from the universe4
 ,it moved in chaos1 and never faltered 
in its march1 until under its beneficent

 leading all things were seen to be     
good4 ,it led the cosmic movement until 
man appeared2 and now it has taken man  
in hand1 with all the vestiges of       
animalism clinging to him1 and it will  
never leave him as he rises toward the  
perfection and glory of ,god4 ,the law  
of growth answers most if not all of our
 questions4 ,the soul of man must grow4 
,with its growth will come vision1      
strength1 and progress toward its goal4 
,but growth is not all4 ,the voices to  
which we choose to give heed will sound 
most distinctly in our ears4 ,here we   
face a fact which is often in evidence4 
,the earth and animalism will never     
cease to make appeal to our senses1     
while at the same time voices from above
 will call from their heights to our    
spirits4 ,to distinguish between desire 
and duty1 between truth and tradition1  
between the spiritual and the animal1 is
 a step which has to be taken1 and which
 is taken whether we appreciate how or  
not4 ,by the pain which follows wrong   

choices1 or by the intuitions of the    
spirit1 the soul comes to realize that  
its obligation is always in one         
direction2 that its choice ought to be  
in favor of the morally excellent4 ,but 
how shall it discern the morally        
excellent8 ,the process of learning will
 be a long one1 and never fully         
completed on the earth4 ,this is a realm
 that poets and dramatists1 who are     
usually the profoundest and most        
accurate students of life1 have not     
often tried to enter4 ,such questions   
can be answered only after careful and  
long-continued inductive study4         
,moralists are usually content to stop  
short of this inquiry4 ,how the soul    
comes to learn that it is obligated to  
truth and right we may not fully know2  
but that it does learn1 and that no step
 in all its development is more         
important1 there is no doubt4 ,in ,his  
dealing with this question ,jesus       
preserves the same attitude as toward   
all subjects of speculation4 ,i came not

 to explain how life adjusts itself to  
its environment1 ,he seems to say1 but  
to give life a richness and a beauty    
which it never had before2 ,i came not  
to answer questions1 but to save to the 
best uses that which already exists4    
,nevertheless1 the question as to how   
the soul is taught to distinguish the   
morally excellent is of serious         
importance4 ,if we do not recognize the 
sanctity of truth and right we may not  
give them hospitality2 and we may not   
appreciate their sanctity if we are     
ignorant of what gives them their       
authority4 ,how1 then1 does it learn    
what truth and right are8 ,are there any
 clearly defined paths by which this    
knowledge may be reached8 ,is not truth 
a matter of education8 ,and is there any
 absolute right8 ,a ,hindoo ,swami1 of  
the school of the ,vedanta1 lecturing in
 this country1 solemnly assured an      
intelligent audience that there is no   
sin2 that what is called sin is only the
 result of education2 that what is vice 

in one place may be virtue in another2  
and that in the sphere of morals all is 
relative and nothing absolute4 ,then    
there is no wrong1 for wrong and sin are
 closely related2 and no right because  
if right is not a dream it implies the  
possibility of an opposite4 ,there is   
little permanent danger from such       
shallow theories4 ,the peril from       
confusion is greater than from denial4  
,but even confusion at this point is not
 long necessary because in every soul   
there is a voice which men call         
conscience1 which never fails to impel  
toward the true and the good4           
,conscience may be likened to a compass 
whose needle always points toward the   
north4 ,when it is uninfluenced by      
distracting causes conscience always    
shows the way toward truth and right4   
,the ,spartans believed that lying was a
 virtue if it was sufficiently obscure2 
and a ,hindoo woman who throws her child
 to the god of the ,ganges does so      
because she is deeply religious4 ,are   

not such persons conscientious8 ,yet    
they perform acts which are in          
themselves wrong8 ,of what value1 then1 
is conscience8 ,that they are both      
conscientious and religious ,i have no  
doubt4 ,it is their misfortune to be    
ignorant4 ,the light appears to be      
colored by the medium through which it  
passes1 and yet it is not colored2 and  
conscience seems to approve what is     
wrong1 and yet it never does4 ,it always
 impels toward the right1 but men often 
make serious mistakes because of their  
ignorance4 ,the needle in the moral     
compass is deflected by selfishness or  
false teaching4 ,the ,hindoo mother     
might hear and1 if she dared to listen  
to it1 would hear a deeper voice than   
the one calling her to sacrifice her    
child--even one telling her to spare her
 child4 ,she has not yet learned that it
 is always safe to trust the moral      
sense4 ,superstitions are not           
conscience2 they are ignorance obscuring
 and deadening conscience4 ,every man is

 born with a guide within to point him  
to paths of virtue and truth1 and one of
 the most important lessons which the   
growing soul has to learn is that when  
it is true to itself it may always trust
 that guide4 ,the call of his destiny   
finds every man1 and1 when he hears it1 
he asks3 ,how may ,i reach that goal8   
,it is far away and the path is         
confused4 ,then a voice within makes    
answer1 and1 if he heeds that1 he will  
make no mistake4 ,that voice1 ,i        
believe1 is the result of no            
evolutionary process1 but is the holy   
,god immanent in every soul1 making ,his
 will known4 ,evolution gradually gives 
to conscience a larger place1 but there 
is no evidence that it is produced by   
any physical process4 ,it may be        
hindered by physical limitations1 but it
 can be destroyed by none4 ,why are we  
so slow in learning that conscience1    
being divine1 is authoritative and may  
be trusted8 ,i know no answer except    
this3 ,we so often confuse ignorance    

with conscience that at last we conclude
 that the latter is not trustworthy4    
,but there we mistake4 ,it is           
trustworthy4 ,it never fails those who  
heed its message4 ,that realization may 
now and then come early1 but it seldom  
comes all at once4 ,nevertheless it is a
 step to be taken before the progress of
 the soul can be either swift or sure4  
,the moment that the soul realizes that 
,god is not far away1 but within2 that  
all the divine voices did not speak in  
the past1 but that many are speaking    
now2 that whosoever will listen may hear
 within his own being a message as clear
 and sacred as any that ever came to    
prophet or teacher in other times1 it   
will begin to realize the luxury of its 
liberty1 and something of the grandeur  
of its destiny4 ,truth and right are not
 fictions of the imagination1 they are  
realities opening before the growing    
soul like continents before explorers4  
,they always invite entrance and        
possession4 ,they have horizons full of 

splendor and beauty and music4 ,they    
alone can satisfy4 ,but the soul has not
 yet fully escaped from the mists and   
fogs and glooms of the earth4 ,it is    
surrounded by those who still wallow in 
animalism1 and the sounds of the lower  
world are yet echoing in its ears4 ,but 
at last its face is toward the light2   
the far call of its destiny has been    
heard2 it knows itself to be in a moral 
order2 it is assured that1 however      
closely the body may be imprisoned1 no  
bolts and no bars can shut in a spirit2 
that before it is a fair and favored    
land1 far off but ever open2 and1 best  
of all1 that within its own being1      
impervious to all influences from       
without1 is a guide which may be        
implicitly trusted and which will never 
betray4 ,why not follow its suggestions 
at once and press on toward that fair   
land of truth and beauty which so       
earnestly invites8 ,ah6 why not8 ,here  
we are face to face with other facts4   
,there are hindrances1 many and serious1

 in the pathway of the soul1 and they   
must be met and forced before that land 
can be entered4 ,this is the time for us
 to consider them4     ,,hindrances     
,and many1 many are the souls           
,life's movement fascinates1 controls2  
,it draws them on1 they cannot save     
,their feet from its alluring wave2     
,they cannot leave it1 they must go     
,with its unconquerable flow2           
99       99       99       99       99  
,they faint1 they stagger to and fro1   
,and wandering from the stream they go2 
,in pain1 in terror1 in distress1       
,they see all round a wilderness4       
--,epilogue to ,lessing's ,laocoon4     
,matthew ,arnold     ,,iv  ,,hindrances 
,when the soul has heard the far call of
 its destiny and realizes that it may   
respond to that call1 and that it has1  
in conscience1 a guide which will not   
fail even in the deepest darkness1 it   
turns in the direction from which the   
appeal comes and begins to move toward  
its goal4 ,almost simultaneously it     

realizes that it has to meet and to     
overcome numerous and serious obstacles4
 ,to the hindrances in the way of the   
spirit our thought is to be turned in   
this chapter4  ,the moral failure of    
many men and women of superb            
intellectual and physical equipment is  
one of the sad and serious marvels of   
human history4 ,what a pathetic and     
significant roll might be made of those 
who have been great intellectually and  
pitiful failures morally6 ,it has often 
been affirmed that ,hannibal might have 
conquered ,rome1 and been the master of 
the world except for the fatal winter at
 ,capua4 ,antony1 possibly1 would have  
been victor at ,actium if it had not    
been for something in himself that made 
him susceptible to the fascination of   
the fair but treacherous ,egyptian      
queen4 ,achilles was a symbolical as    
well as an historical character4 ,there 
was one place--with him in the          
heel--where he was vulnerable1 and      
through that he fell4 ,socrates was like

 a tornado when inflamed by anger4      
,napoleon laid ,europe waste and        
desolated more distant lands1 but he was
 an enormous egotist and morally a blot 
on civilization4  ,the life-history of  
many of the poets is inexpressibly sad4 
,chatterton1 ,shelley1 ,byron1          
,poe--their very names call up facts    
which those who admire their genius     
would gladly conceal4 ,many artists are 
in the same category4 ,it explains      
nothing to ascribe their moral pollution
 to their finer sensibilities1 for finer
 sensibilities ought to be attended by  
untarnished characters4 ,it is1 perhaps1
 best not even to mention their names   
lest1 thereby1 we dull the appreciation 
of noble masterpieces which represent   
the better moods of the men4 ,one of    
imperial genius was a slave to wine1    
another to lust1 another was too envious
 to detect any merit in the work of     
others of his craft4 ,there are         
statesmen of whose achievements we      
speak1 but never of the men themselves2 

and there have been ministers of the    
,gospel1 unhappily not a few1 who have  
suddenly disappeared and been heard of  
no more4 ,into a kindly oblivion they   
have gone1 and that is all that any one 
needs to know4 ,what do such facts      
signify8 ,that many1 or most1 of these  
men have been essentially and totally   
bad8 ,or that they are moral failures8  
,they signify only that they have not   
yet risen above the hindrances which    
they have found in their pathways4 ,the 
world knows of the temporary obscuration
 of a fair fame2 it does not see the    
grief1 the tears1 the gradual gathering 
of the energies for a new assault upon  
the obstacles in the road2 and it does  
not see how tenderly1 but faithfully1   
,providence1 through nature1 is dealing 
with them4 ,some time they will be      
brought to themselves--,the ,eternal    
,goodness is the pledge of that4 ,it is 
not with this unseen and beneficent     
ministry of restoration1 however1 that  
,i am now dealing1 but with the awful   

wrecks and failures which are so common 
in human history1 and concerning which  
most men know something in their own    
experiences4 ,how shall they be         
explained8--since to evade them is      
impossible4 ,in other words when a man  
is awake1 when he feels that he is in a 
moral order1 is free1 and hears the call
 of his destiny1 why is his progress so 
slow and difficult8 ,no one has ever    
delineated this period in the soul's    
growth with greater vividness than      
,bunyan4 ,the ,valley of ,humiliation1  
the ,slough of ,despond1 ,giant         
,despair1 ,doubting ,castle are all     
pictures of human life taken with       
photographic accuracy4 ,what are some of
 these hindrances8  ,the soul is free1  
but its abode is in a limited body4 ,the
 movement of the soul is swift and      
unconstrained as thought4 ,it is not    
limited by time4 ,it may project itself 
a thousand years into the future or     
travel a thousand years into the past2  
but it dwells in the body and is more or

 less restrained by it4 ,bodily         
limitation narrows experience and       
compels ignorance4 ,it makes large      
acquaintance impossible4 ,the flowers   
beneath the ice on the ,alps are small2 
the flowers of the tropics have the     
proportions of trees4 ,thus environment 
modifies growth4 ,the body cannot put   
fetters on the will1 but it may hold in 
captivity the powers which acquire      
knowledge1 withhold from the emotions   
persons worthy of affection1 and make   
the range of objects of choice poor and 
pitiful4 ,the soul has often been       
compared to a bird in a cage1--fitted   
for broad horizons but confined within  
narrow spaces4 ,this hindrance is a very
 real one4 ,the man who grows swiftly   
must be in the open world with beings to
 love and to serve ever within his      
reach4 ,hence the life beyond death is  
often called the unhindered life because
 of its freedom from the body4 ,the old 
story of ,rasselas is symbolical4 ,in   
the ,happy ,valley a man might be as    

good1 but he could not be as great and  
wise1 as in the larger world4 ,the soul 
will meet fewer temptations there1 but  
those it does encounter will be more    
insistent and harder to escape4 ,he who 
would respond to a call to service must 
needs have about him those whom he may  
serve4 ,large views are for those who   
are able to rise to the heights4 ,he who
 lives in a cave may be true to his     
little light1 and surely is responsible 
for no more1 but he will see far less   
than the one whose home is on the       
mountaintop4 ,thus even bodily          
limitations1 to which are attached no   
moral qualities1 are hindrances to the  
growth of the being1 whose destiny is   
not only purification but               
expansion3--its movement is not only    
toward goodness but also toward         
greatness2 not only toward virtue but   
also toward power4  ,the animal entail  
is one of the greatest mysteries of our 
mortal life4 ,the soul in its moments of
 illumination feels that it is related  

to some person like itself1 but far     
higher1 and aspires to it4 ,sir ,joshua 
,reynolds' figure of ,faith in the      
famous window in the chapel of ,new     
,college1 ,oxford1 suggests the attitude
 of the newly awakened soul4 ,in        
freshness and beauty it is turning      
toward the light4 ,but in human         
experience something occurs which ,sir  
,joshua has not tried to depict4 ,a     
clammy hand reaches up from the deeps   
out of which rise suffocating clouds1   
and that pure spirit finds itself       
enveloped in darkness and fastened to   
the earth4 ,the humiliation is complete4
 ,what has occurred8 ,only what has     
happened again and again2 and what will 
continue to happen for no one knows how 
long4 ,the animal has gotten the better 
of the spirit4 ,the soul has sinned--for
 sin is little1 if anything1 but a      
spirit allowing itself to return to the 
fascinations of the animal conditions   
out of which it has been evolved1 and   
from which it ought to have escaped     

forever4 ,the animal entail is the chief
 hindrance to the aspiring spirit4 ,the 
animal lives by his senses4 ,he is      
content when they are satisfied4 ,it can
 hardly be said that animals are ever   
happy4 ,happiness is a state higher than
 contentment4 ,paul said he had learned 
in whatsoever state he was to be        
content1 but even he never said that in 
all states he had learned to be happy4  
,animals are contented when their senses
 are gratified and they are savage when 
their senses are clamorous4 ,lions and  
bears are dangerous when they are       
hungry1 and cruel when other desires are
 obstructed4  ,whatever the theory of   
evolution1 from the beginning of its    
upward movement1 the nearest1 most      
potent1 and most dangerous hindrance to 
the soul is this entail of animalism1   
which it can never escape but which it  
must some time conquer4 ,the spirit and 
the body seem to be in endless          
antagonism1 and yet the body itself will
 become the fair servant of the soul    

when once the question of its supremacy 
has been determined4 ,the tendency to   
revert to animalism has been vividly    
depicted by the poets1 and the clamorous
 and insistent nature of the passions   
portrayed by the artists4  ,the liquor  
in the enchanted cup of ,comus may be   
called the wine of the senses4 ,its     
effect is thus described by ,milton4    
,comus offers             444 ,to every 
weary traveler     ,his orient liquor in
 a crystal glass1     ,to quench the    
drought of ,phoebus2 which1 as they     
taste     7,for most do taste through   
fond1 intemperate thirst7     ,soon as  
the potion works1 their human           
countenance1     ,the express           
resemblance of the gods1 is changed     
,into some brutish form of wolf or bear1
     ,or ounce or tiger1 hog or bearded 
goat4  ,a famous passage from ,ovid's   
,metamorphoses#d represents ,acton as   
changed into a stag2 but1 if ,i read the
 fable aright1 the glimpse of ,diana in 
her bath1 while not an intelligent      

choice1 was more than a mere            
accident--it was the uprising of innate 
sensuality2 for even the ,greek gods    
were supposed to have had senses4       
,footnote #d3 ,addison's translation1   
,book ,,iii1 pages #ahh-aih4      ,acton
 was the first of all his race1     ,who
 grieved his grandsire in his borrowed  
face2     ,condemned by stern ,diana to 
bemoan     ,the branching horns and     
visage not his own2     ,to shun his    
once-loved dogs1 to bound away     ,and 
from their huntsman to become their     
prey2     ,and yet consider why the     
change was wrought2     ,you'll find it 
his misfortune1 not his fault2     ,or1 
if a fault it was the fault of chance2  
,for how can guilt proceed from         
ignorance8  ,the story of ,circe is the 
common story of those who have yielded  
to the flesh4 ,the companions of        
,ulysses visited the palace of ,circe1  
were allured by her charms1 and the     
result is read in these words3          
,before the spacious front1 a herd we   

find     ,of beasts1 the fiercest of the
 savage kind4     ,our trembling steps  
with blandishments they meet     ,and   
fawn1 unlike their species1 at our feet4
  ,the strong words of ,milton are none 
too strong3      ,their human           
countenance     ,the express resemblance
 of the gods1 is changed     ,into some 
brutish form4  ,a common subject with   
artists has been the temptations of the 
saints4 ,they have fled from luxury1 and
 what they supposed to be moral peril1  
but have found no solitude to which they
 could go and leave their bodies behind4
 ,in the silences faces have appeared to
 them full of alluring entreaty1 and    
more than one anchorite has found to his
 sorrow that he carried within himself  
the cause of his danger4  ,a singularly 
vivid painting represents one of the    
saints in the desert1 and clinging to   
him1 with their arms around his neck1   
are two figures of exquisite physical   
beauty4 ,their charms are so near and   
perilous that the pale and haggard man  

in desperation has shut his eyes1 and in
 this extremity1 with his one free hand1
 is frantically clinging to a cross4    
,the artist has accurately depicted the 
condition in which the soul finds itself
 as it begins its growth2--its chief    
enemies are those of its own household4 
,happy indeed is it for all that none   
see at the first the obstacles in their 
way4 ,faint and far shines the splendor 
of the goal2 the hindrances are reached 
one by one1 and each one1 for the       
moment1 seems to be the last4  ,but     
close and persistent as is the animal   
entail1 it is not unconquerable4 ,many a
 ,sir ,galahad1 and many a woman fair   
and holy as his pure sister1 have lived 
on this earth of ours4 ,they were not   
always so2 and their beauty and holiness
 are but the outshining of spiritual    
victory4  ,is this environment of evil  
necessary to the development of the     
soul8 ,we may not know2 but we do know  
that it can be conquered1 and some time 
and somehow will be conquered2 and that 

then men1 like ourselves1 grown from the
 same stock1 evolved from the lower     
levels1 will constitute the crowning    
race4      ,no longer half akin to      
brute1     ,for all we thought and loved
 and did1     ,and hoped1 and suffered1 
is but seed     ,of what in them is     
flower and fruit4  ,these are a few     
samples of the hindrances which the soul
 must face in its progress through the  
thicket of this world4 ,but these are   
not all4 ,hardly less serious is the    
ignorance which clothes it like a       
garment4 ,it comes it knows not whence2 
it journeys it knows not whither1 and   
apparently is attended by no one wiser  
than itself4  ,hugo's awful picture of a
 man in the ocean with the vast and     
silent heavens above1 the desolate waves
 around1 the birds like dwellers from   
another world circling in the evening   
light1 and the poor fellow trying to    
swim1 he knows not where1 is not so wide
 of the mark as some thoughtless readers
 might suppose4  ,the soul is ignorant  

and timid1 in the vast and void night1  
with its environment of ignorance and of
 other souls also blindly struggling4   
,at the same time there is the          
consciousness of a duty to do something1
 of a voice calling it somewhere which  
ought to be heeded1 and of having       
bitterly failed4  ,the solitariness of  
the soul is also one of the most        
mysterious and solemn of its            
characteristics4 ,the prophecy which is 
applied to ,jesus might equally be      
applied to every human being3 ,he trod  
the wine-press alone4 ,in all its       
deepest experiences the soul is         
solitary4 ,craving companionship1 in the
 very times when it seeks it most it    
finds it denied4 ,every crucial choice  
must at last be individual4 ,when       
sorrows are multiplied there are in them
 deeps into which no friendly eye can   
look4 ,when the hour of death comes1    
even though friends crowd the rooms1 not
 one of them can accompany the soul on  
its journey4 ,it seems as if this       

solitariness must hinder its growth4    
,perhaps were our eyes clearer we should
 see that what seems to retard in       
reality hastens progress4 ,but to our   
human sight it seems as if every soul   
needed companionship and coperation in  
all its deep experiences2 and that the  
ancients were not altogether wrong in   
their belief in the presence and        
protection of ,guardian ,angels4 ,but   
something more vital and assuring than  
that faith is desired4 ,it is rather the
 inseparable fellowship of those who are
 facing the same mysteries and fighting 
the same battles as ourselves2 but even 
that not infrequently is denied4  ,is   
this all8 ,there is another possibility 
which observation has never detected and
 which science is powerless to disprove4
 ,can we be sure that no malign         
spiritual influences hinder and         
bewilder8 ,we cannot be sure4 ,the      
common belief of nearly all peoples     
ought not to be rudely brushed aside4   
,no one willingly believes in lies nor  

clings to them when he knows that they  
are lies4 ,superstitions always have    
some element of truth in them1 and the  
truth1 not the error1 wins adherents4   
,the most that we can say1 at this      
point1 is that we do not know4 ,it is   
possible that the common beliefs of many
 widely separated people have no basis  
in fact1 that they are born of dreams   
and delusions2 and1 on the other hand1  
it is equally possible that the spaces  
which we inhabit1 but which we cannot   
fully explore1 have other inhabitants   
than our vision discerns1 and that those
 beings may help and may hinder us in   
our progress4 ,it is not wise to        
dogmatize where we are ignorant4 ,while 
the scales balance we must wait4  ,are  
the hindrances in the path of the soul  
without any ministry8 ,that cannot be2  
for then they are exceptions to the     
universal law1 that nothing which exists
 is without a purpose of benefit4  ,all 
the analogies of nature indicate that   
human limitations are intended to serve 

some good end1 since1 so far as         
observation has yet extended1 it has    
found nothing which is caused by chance4
 ,emerson says1 ,as the ,sandwich       
,islander believes that the strength and
 valor of the enemy he kills passes into
 himself1 so we gain the strength of the
 temptations we resist2#e and ,st4      
,bernard says1 ,nothing can work me     
damage except myself2 the harm that ,i  
sustain ,i carry about with me1 and     
never am a real sufferer but by my own  
fault4#f  ,footnote #e3 ,essay on       
,compensation4  ,footnote #f3 ,quoted by
 ,emerson in ,essay on ,compensation4   
,and ,st4 ,john says1 ,to him that      
overcometh will ,i give to eat of the   
tree of life4#g  ,footnote #g3          
,revelation #b3g4  ,the mission of the  
austere is the development of strength4 
,concerning this suggestion we shall    
inquire later4 ,the souls which have    
reached the serene summits have ever    
been those which have most resolutely   
faced the obstacles in their pathways4  

,even apparent hindrances always        
exercise a beneficent ministry4 ,as     
,jesus was made perfect by the things   
which ,he suffered1 so1 in the ,cosmic  
plan1 all souls must come to strength   
and perfection by the difficulties which
 they overcome and the enemies which    
they subdue4  ,what should be the       
attitude of the soul in view of the     
hindrances by which it is environed8 ,it
 should be taught to fight them at every
 point4 ,nowhere is the kindness of     
nature more evident than in the patience
 and persistence with which this        
instruction is conveyed4  ,nature       
withholds her favors until they are     
earned4 ,new light comes only to those  
who have used-the light they had4       
,strength is developed by resistance4   
,growth is for those who place          
themselves where growth is possible4    
,nature gives the soul nothing1 but she 
always waits to coperate with it4 ,this 
lesson was impressed long ago4 ,it ought
 never to require new emphasis4 ,let the

 younger study the experiences of their 
elders4 ,they will be saved many        
failures and much pain4 ,the soul can   
never be coerced1 but it may be taught4 
,milton has enforced this great lesson  
in ,comus3            ,against the      
threats     ,of malice or of sorcery1 of
 that power     ,which erring men call  
,chance1 this ,i hold firm--     ,virtue
 may be assailed1 but never hurt1       
,surprised by unjust force1 but not     
enthralled2     ,yet1 even that which   
mischief meant most harm1     ,shall in 
the happy trial prove most glory2       
,but evil on itself shall back recoil1  
,and mix no more with goodness1 when at 
last     ,gathered like a scum1 and     
settled to itself1     ,it shall be in  
eternal restless change     ,self-fed1  
and self-consumed2 if this fail     ,the
 pillar'd firmament is rottenness       
,and earth's base built on stubble4  ,no
 one should believe1 after all the      
growth of the ages1 that the soul was   
made to be imprisoned in a fleshly      

prison4 ,it was intended that it should 
burst its barriers and press toward the 
light4 ,there is an eternal enmity      
between the serpent and the soul1 and   
the serpent's head must be bruised1 but 
the soul resisting all the forces and   
fascinations of the flesh1 rising on    
that which has been cast down to higher 
things1 slowly but surely1 painfully but
 with ever added strength moves toward  
the ideal humanity which has never been 
better defined than as the fullness of  
,christ4  ,meanwhile it is well to      
reinforce our faith by remembering that 
it is written in the nature of things   
that truth and goodness must prevail4   
,this is a moral universe4 ,error never 
can be victorious4 ,it may be exalted   
for a time1 but that will be only in    
order that it may be sunk to deeper     
depths4 ,evil and error are doomed and  
always have been4 ,evil is moral        
disease1 and disease always tends toward
 death1 while life always and of        
necessity presses toward larger1 more   

beautiful1 and more beneficent being4   
,here let us rest4 ,many things are dark
 and impossible of explanation1 but we  
have already been taught a few lessons  
of superlative importance4 ,we have     
learned that the soul is made for the   
light2 that it can be satisfied only    
with love and truth2 that every         
hindrance may be overcome2 that the     
animal was made to be the servant of the
 spirit2 that the body makes a good     
servant but a poor master2 that strength
 comes to those who refuse to submit to 
the clamors of appetite3 thus we have   
been led to see something of the way    
along which the soul has moved from     
animalism toward freedom and victory4   
,and we have learned one thing more1    
viz41 that the ,over-soul is not a      
dream1 but a reality2 that the          
individual may be in correspondence with
 the ,over-soul and from it be          
continually reinforced4 ,or1 to put our 
faith in sweeter and simpler form1 we   
have learned by experience which cannot 

be gainsaid that ,god is a personal     
spirit1 interested in all that concerns 
,his children1 and anxious for their    
growth2 and that ,he can no more allow  
,his love for them to be defeated than  
,he could allow the suns and planets to 
break from their orbits4 ,how much more 
is a man than a sun6 ,therefore1 since  
,god is in ,his heaven1 all must be     
right with the world and with man1 and  
some time all the hindrances will be    
changed into helps1 all obstacles be    
converted into strength1 and all hells  
into benefit4     ,,the ,,austere       
,we cannot kindle when we will     ,the 
fire which in the heart resides2        
,the ,spirit bloweth and is still1      
,in mystery our soul abides4     ,but   
tasks in hours of insight will'd        
,can be through hours of gloom          
fulfill'd4      ,with aching hands and  
bleeding feet     ,we dig and heap1 lay 
stone on stone2     ,we bear the burden 
and the heat     ,of the long day1 and  
wish 'twere done4     ,not till the     

hours of light return1     ,all we have 
built do we discern4      --,morality4  
,matthew ,arnold4     ,v  ,,the         
,,austere   ,the soul has discovered    
that it is in a moral order1 that it is 
a free agent1 and that it has mysterious
 affinities with truth and right4 ,it   
has taken a few steps1 and with them has
 learned that its upward movement will  
not be easy4  ,it next discovers that it
 has no isolated existence1 but that it 
is surrounded by countless other similar
 beings all indissolubly bound together 
and having mutual relations4 ,with the  
dawn of intelligence comes the          
realization of relations4 ,this         
realization is dim at the first1 but it 
is very real4 ,soon the soul learns that
 the relations between it and other     
souls are so intimate that the interest 
of one is the interest of all4          
,appreciation of relations is a long    
advance in the movement upward1 and it  
necessitates other knowledge4 ,the      
realization of relations leads1         

necessarily and swiftly1 to the         
consciousness of responsibility4 ,the   
process of this growth cannot be        
described in detail1 but the path is    
clearly marked and its milestones may be
 numbered4 ,each soul is always in a    
society of souls4 ,each one1 therefore1 
affects others1 and is affected by them4
 ,it is free and1 therefore1 responsible
 for the influence which it exerts4     
,moreover1 it is bound to other souls by
 love1 and love always carries with it  
the possibility of sorrow2 for sorrow is
 usually only love thwarted4 ,it is not 
far from the truth to say that when     
there is no love there is no sorrow1 and
 that the possibilities of sorrow are   
always increased in proportion to the   
perfection of being4  ,in time the soul 
finds itself not only one among myriads 
of souls1 but it realizes that its      
relations to some are more intimate than
 to others4 ,it needs not to seek the   
causes of this fact1 since it cannot    
escape from the reality4 ,thus it finds 

itself in families1 in tribes1 in       
nations1 in social groups where the     
bonds are strong and enduring4  ,some   
souls1 more capacious than others1 have 
a richer and more varied experience1 and
 thus inevitably become teachers4 ,the  
process goes on1 and1 with both teachers
 and scholars1 the horizon expands and  
the strength increases with each new    
day4 ,the soul has found that it is not 
a solitary being dazed and saddened by  
the consciousness of its powers1 but    
that it is in a society in which all are
 similarly endowed1 and that all are    
pressing toward the same goal4 ,it has  
discovered that its growth is hastened1 
or hindered1 by its environment2 and    
that the spiritual environment is ever  
the nearest and most potent4  ,each new 
step in this pilgrim's progress reveals 
something more wonderful than the       
opening of a continent4 ,it is an       
entrance into a larger and more complex 
world4 ,a strange fact now emerges4     
,every enlargement of being1 either of  

faculty or capacity1 is attended by pain
 either physical or mental4 ,whom the   
,lord loveth ,he chasteneth1 seems to be
 a universal law rather than an isolated
 text4 ,all life is strenuous because it
 is always attended by growth4 ,the soul
 moves not only onward but upward1 and  
climbing is always a difficult process4 
,before a second step is taken the soul 
begins to experience suffering and      
sorrow2 and as its growth advances it   
never afterward1 so far as human sight  
has penetrated1 escapes from them4 ,why 
are they allowed8 and what purpose do   
they serve8  ,the soul exists in a body1
 and the body is the seat of sensations4
 ,those sensations1 whether pleasing or 
painful1 belong to the physical organs1 
but they affect the spirit1 and escape  
from them is impossible4 ,pain has a    
perceptible effect on the soul1 even    
though the latter has no other relation 
to the body than that of tenant to a    
house4 ,it suffers because of the       
intimate relations which it sustains to 

the organs through which it works4  ,the
 individual soul is related to other    
souls4 ,therefore it has plans and      
purposes concerning them1 and it has    
affinities which are inseparable from   
existence in society4 ,those purposes   
and affinities may be gratified or      
thwarted4 ,the soul sometimes finds a   
response from the one whom it seeks and 
sometimes it does not4 ,pain belongs to 
the body1 and sorrow is an experience of
 the soul4  ,the body is in constant    
limitations1 subject to diseases and    
accidents1 and the soul is affected by  
all that the body feels4 ,because of    
these intimate relationships the soul is
 limited by ignorance1 and defeated in  
its purposes4 ,it becomes attached to   
other souls1 and those attachments are  
either rudely shattered or roughly      
repulsed1 and1 consequently1 the life of
 the soul is as full of sorrow as is a  
summer day of clouds4  ,it faces its    
hindrances and rises by overcoming them4
 ,it finds pain besetting nearly every  

step of its advance1 and the constant   
shadow of its existence is sorrow4      
,along such a pathway it moves in its   
ascent and1 in spite of all opposition1 
it is never permanently hindered2 while 
sorrow and suffering continually add to 
its strength4 ,the austere experiences  
through which all pass hasten their     
spiritual growth4 ,they are ever        
ministers of blessing2 they pay no      
visits without leaving some fair gifts  
behind4  ,questions arise here which it 
is difficult to answer4 ,why are such   
ministries needed8 ,why could not the   
ascent of the spirit be along an easier 
pathway8 ,why should it be necessary to 
write its history in tears and blood8   
,inquiries like these are insistent4    
,optimism assumes that the end always   
justifies the means1 even when we are in
 the dark as to why other means were not
 used2 and that it is better to comfort 
ourselves with the beneficent fact than 
to refuse to be comforted because we may
 not penetrate the depths of the ,cosmic

 process4 ,the emphasis of thought may  
well rest here4 ,the austere is never   
merely the severe4 ,what seems to human 
sight to be evil and only evil1 always  
has a side of benefit4 ,the soul is     
purified and strengthened as it rises   
above animalism2 it is made courageous  
by bodily pain2 tears clarify its       
vision4 ,even ,jesus is said to have    
been made perfect by the things which   
,he suffered4 ,the universal            
characteristic of life is growth1 and   
growth ever reaches out of old and      
narrow toward new1 larger and better    
environment4  ,the soul needs strength1 
vision1 sympathy1 faith4 ,these         
qualities are the fruit of experience4  
,muscle is converted into strength by   
use2 and its use is possible only as it 
finds something to overcome4 ,vision is 
largely the fruit of training4 ,the man 
on the lookout discovers a ship ahead   
long before the passenger on the deck4  
,that fine accuracy of sight has come to
 him as he has battled with the         

tempests1 and learned to distinguish    
between the whiteness of flying foam and
 the sunlight on a sail4 ,clearness of  
spiritual vision is acquired in the same
 way4 ,he who can see even to the       
far-off interest of tears has been      
taught his discernment by reading the   
meaning of nearer events4  ,sympathy is 
the art of suffering with another       
without the definite choice to do so4   
,one soul spontaneously enters into the 
condition of another and bears his pains
 and griefs as though they were his own2
 that is sympathy4 ,but who ever bore   
the griefs of another before he himself 
had felt sadness8 ,sympathy is a fruit  
that grows on the tree of sorrow4 ,so   
intensely is this felt that even kindly 
words in hours of deep trial are        
ungrateful if they come from one who had
 had no hard experience of his own4 ,in 
proportion as one has borne his own     
griefs he is presumed to be able to bear
 the griefs of others4 ,he who has      
passed through the valley of the shadow1

 and who knows the way1 is the only one 
whose hand is sought by another         
approaching the same valley4 ,no human  
characteristic is more beautiful1 or    
more appreciated1 than sympathy2 but its
 genuineness is seldom trusted unless   
the one offering it is known to have    
suffered himself4  ,jesus is said to    
have been a man of sorrows and          
acquainted with grief1 and1 therefore1  
has led the long procession of the      
broken-hearted toward hope and peace4   
,there is no other place known among men
 for the cultivation of sympathy except 
the school of suffering4  ,if possible1 
faith even more than sympathy is        
dependent on struggle4 ,there is no     
other conceivable means by which it can 
be acquired4 ,it cannot be imparted4 ,no
 multiplying of words increases faith4  
,if one has been in the blackest        
darkness and some way1 he knows not how1
 has been led out into light1 it will be
 easier for him to think that the same  
experience may be realized again4 ,if   

every sorrow has had in it some hidden  
seed of blessing2 if the overcoming of  
hindrances has ever increased strength2 
if at the very moment that calamity     
seemed ready to destroy the storm has   
blown around1 and this has occurred     
again and again1 it is impossible to    
refrain from expecting1 or at least     
hoping1 that behind the darkness an     
unseen hand is making things to work for
 good4 ,faith is essential to courage4  
,he never cares to struggle who knows   
that failure is just ahead4 ,courage is 
required as the soul progresses1 and    
becomes more deeply conscious of the    
mysteries and enemies by which it is    
surrounded4 ,faith results from the     
experience of beneficent leading4 ,if   
one has been guided by love through many
 periods1 and if that love has always   
been found waiting for its object on    
every corner of life1 it will1 ere long1
 be expected1 watched for1 and trusted4 
,strength1 vision1 sympathy1 courage1   
the fair attributes of the soul1 all    

appear as it overcomes difficulties1    
fights doubts1 goes deep into sorrow1   
and thus learns to realize that it is   
being led4 ,it is easy to see how       
sorrow1 pain1 and death in the older    
legends and poetry were so often spoken 
of as beneficent angels4 ,they are like 
those ,sisters of ,charity who hide     
beneath their long black bonnets serene 
and angelic faces4 ,the austere in human
 life has never yet been explained1 but 
it has been justified millions of times1
 and will be justified every time a     
human soul rises toward the goal for    
which all were created and toward which 
all1 slowly or swiftly1 are moving4     
,these conclusions have many            
confirmations1 and with some of them it 
will be worth while to spend a little   
time4 ,every thinking man's experience  
assures him that he grows by overcoming4
 ,emerson has finely said that we have  
occasion to thank our faults1 by which  
he means limitations2 and he has also   
reminded us that the oyster mends its   

broken shell with pearl4  ,we do not    
like overmuch to read with care our own 
experiences2 but1 when we are honest1 we
 see that every struggle has left a     
residuum of added strength1 that every  
loss has been a gain1 that every        
calamity has opened doors into a larger 
world1 and that what has been dreaded   
most has really most enriched us4       
,experience is a wise teacher4  ,history
 confirms the witness of experience4    
,the strong man has always gained       
strength by struggle4 ,the story of a   
few of the preminent teachers is        
impressive reading4 ,mahomet knew the   
bitter pangs of poverty2 ,epictetus was 
a slave2 ,socrates was regarded as a    
fanatic1 if not a lunatic1 by most of   
the people of ,athens2 ,siddhartha is   
said to have been a useless and         
luxurious young man until1 wearied with 
the monotony of his father's palace1 he 
ventured into the larger world and saw  
wherever he went poverty1 sickness1     
death4 ,he was startled into activity by

 the want1 woe1 and misery through which
 his pathway led4  ,nearly all moral and
 spiritual leaders have had to suffer   
and thus grow strong4 ,mere genius has  
done little for human progress4 ,it has 
made physical discoveries1 but seldom   
touched the sphere of the soul4 ,elijah 
heard the voice of ,god in the midst of 
the terrors of the wilderness in which  
he was ready to die2 ,isaiah shared the 
usual fate of reformers and spoke his   
message into the ears of those who      
returned insult for warning4 ,the story 
of ,job is a long tragedy1--the world's 
tragedy1 the tragedy of the soul in all 
ages4 ,what deeps of anguish ,dante     
fathomed before he could begin to write6
 ,who can read the story of ,faust1 as  
,goethe has interpreted it1 without     
feeling that in it he has given the     
world in thin disguise much of his own  
life-story8 ,shakespeare alone1 of men  
of genius of the first rank1 seems to   
have learned comparatively few of his   
lessons in the school of suffering4     

,but1 possibly1 if more were known of   
,shakespeare1 it would be found that    
,lear1 ,macbeth1 and ,hamlet are but the
 expressions of lessons learned as he   
fought life's battle4  ,the ,in         
,memoriam of ,tennyson1 the ,de         
,profundis of ,mrs4 ,browning1 and the  
rich and glorious music of ,robert      
,browning could have come only from     
souls which had been profoundly moved by
 grief and pain4 ,all men listen most   
attentively to those who have gone      
farthest into the dark shadows4  ,the   
austere in human experience always      
accomplishes a purpose of blessing2 and 
the soul comes into such an environment1
 not for the purpose of being           
humiliated1 but in order that its       
strength may be developed1 its sight    
clarified1 and its powers perfected4    
,thus we reach a rational basis for     
optimism4 ,it has been said that        
optimism must not only show that        
beneficent results are being            
accomplished in human life1 but it must 

also justify the means by which such    
results are achieved4 ,it is not enough 
to show that all will be well in the    
end2 it must be shown that even grief1  
pain1 loss1 and death are ordained to be
 the servants of man4 ,this is evident  
to all who allow themselves to reach to 
the deeper meanings of their limitations
 and sufferings4  ,opposite conclusions 
have been reached by some of those who  
have studied the hard and harsh         
phenomena of human life4 ,the dreamy    
,hindu mind at first seemed to discern  
the truth that suffering is but the     
under side of blessing1 and the hymns of
 the ,vedas are full of hope and        
anticipation of better times2 but1 under
 the stress of prolonged disappointment 
and measureless calamities1 bewildered  
in his attempt to explain the mystery of
 suffering1 the ,hindu at last came to  
deny its reality4 ,but no bitter trials 
can be escaped by denial1 and in ,india1
 to-day1 disappointment and calamity are
 no less frequent than in elder ages4   

,refusal to believe in darkness effects 
no change in a midnight4 ,the negation  
of precipices makes the ascent of a     
mountain no easier1 and the denial of   
sickness1 sorrow1 and death deliver none
 from their presence4 ,on the other     
hand1 the very rocks that are the most  
difficult to scale will lift the climber
 toward an ampler horizon2 and he who   
places his feet upon his temptations and
 sorrows will see in his own life the   
increasing purpose that widens with the 
suns4  ,slowly1 and over many obstacles1
 the soul rises from its humiliation and
 presses toward the heights1 and every  
forest passed and every mountain scaled 
adds to its stature1 to the swiftness of
 its advance1 and to the glory of its   
vision4  ,the teaching of ,jesus        
concerning the ministry of the austere  
has greatly changed the popular estimate
 of the value of many of the experiences
 through which men pass4 ,sorrow1 pain1 
and death were formerly regarded as     
enemies1 and only enemies1 and they are 

still so regarded where the full force  
of ,his message is either not welcomed  
or not understood4 ,the common opinion  
in many quarters1 even to this day1 is  
that suffering is either a hideous      
mistake in the universe1 an awful       
nightmare1 or a cruel mockery4 ,paul1   
using language as men used it in his    
time1 spoke of death as an enemy4 ,that 
he was speaking popularly1 rather than  
technically1 is evident because he also 
said that the sting of death--that which
 made it dreaded--is sin4 ,jesus1       
however1 justified the method by which  
men are perfected2 and ,his teaching    
harmonizes with what may be learned by a
 reverent scrutiny of the nature of     
things4 ,the more carefully the ,cosmic 
process is studied1 the clearer it      
becomes that events are so ordered that1
 sooner or later1 everything helps      
toward richer and better conditions4 ,a 
tidal wave or a pestilence may seem to  
be inexplicable1 but even pestilence    
teaches men habits of thrift and        

cleanliness1 and tidal waves warn them  
of their points of danger4  ,what has   
made the average of human life so much  
longer than it was formerly8 ,that very 
mysterious pestilence has turned        
attention toward its causes1 and thus   
the race has been made cleaner1 purer1  
more fit to endure4 ,why do men live in 
houses with scientific plumbing1 fresh  
air1 and have well-cooked food8 ,because
 that fierce teacher1 pestilence1 has   
taught them that any other course means 
weakness and death4 ,whom nature loveth 
she chasteneth is a truth as clearly    
written in human history as ,whom the   
,lord loveth ,he chasteneth is written  
in the ,bible4 ,the true attitude toward
 the austere1 for a philosophic as for a
 ,christian mind1 is one of complacency4
 ,every severity is intended for        
benefit4 ,by wars the enormity of war is
 made evident4 ,by disease the necessity
 for observation of the laws of health  
is emphasized4 ,even death1 in the order
 of things1 at last is a blessing1 for  

one generation must give place to       
another1 or the evils that ,malthus     
feared would be quickly reached4        
,moreover death1 in its proper time1 is 
only nature's way of giving the soul its
 freedom4 ,hindrances in its path do not
 indicate the presence of an enemy but  
of a friend who discovers the only sure 
way of securing its finest development4 
,the cultivation of the philosophic and 
,christian temper1 which are practically
 the same1 would make this a happier    
world4 ,we could endure trials with more
 courage if we would but remember that  
they are as necessary to our growth as  
the cutting of a diamond is necessary to
 the revelation of the treasury of light
 which it holds4  ,the heights of       
character are slowly reached1 and1      
usually1 only by the ministry of the    
austere2 but once they are reached the  
horizon expands1 and the soul finds in  
the clearer light peace if not joy4     
,this course of reasoning does not make 
the mistake of regarding sin as less    

than dreadful4 ,every sin has hidden in 
its heart a blessing2 but sin as such is
 never a blessing4 ,it may be necessary 
for ,providence to allow a spirit to    
sink again into animalism in order that 
it may be taught its danger1 and made to
 realize that only through struggle can 
its goal be reached--but the animalism  
in itself is never beneficent4  ,when we
 say that the process by which a man    
rises may be justified1 we do not mean  
that all his choices are justifiable4   
,the process of his growth provides for 
his fall1 if he will learn in no other  
way1 but it does not necessitate his    
fall2 that is ever because of his own   
choice4 ,a spirit may choose to return  
to the slime from which it has emerged4 
,that choice is sin1 but it can never be
 made without the protests of conscience
 which will not be silenced1 and it is  
by those protests that a man is impelled
 upward again1 and never by the sin in  
itself4 ,no one was ever helped by his  
sin1 but millions1 when they have       

sinned1 have found that the misery was  
greater than the joy1 and this perpetual
 connection of sin and suffering is the 
blessed fact4 ,sin is never anything but
 hideous4 ,the more unique the genius   
the more awful and inexcusable his fall4
 ,even out of their sins men do rise1   
but that is because there sounds in the 
deeps of the soul a voice which becomes 
more pathetic in its warning and        
entreaty1 the more it is disregarded4   
,those who desire to justify sin say    
that it is the cause of the rising4 ,it 
may be the occasion1 but it is never the
 cause4 ,the occasion includes the time1
 place1 environment1--but the cause is  
the impelling force2 and sin never      
impels toward virtue4 ,satan has not yet
 turned evangelist4  ,because in the    
past the soul has risen1 one need not be
 unduly optimistic to presume that1 in  
spite of opposition1 it will meet no    
enemies which it will not conquer1 and  
find no heights which it will not be    
able to scale4 ,prophecy is the art of  

reading history forward4 ,the spirit    
having come thus far1 it is not possible
 to believe that it can ever permanently
 revert to the conditions from which it 
has emerged2 neither can we believe that
 it will fail of reaching that          
development of which its every power and
 faculty is so distinct a prophecy4  ,no
 light has ever yet penetrated far into 
the mystery of human suffering1 sorrow1 
and sin4 ,why they need to be at all1   
has been often asked1 but no one has    
furnished a reply which satisfies many  
people4 ,with the old insistent and     
pathetic earnestness millions are still 
knocking at nature's door and asking    
wherefore they were born4 ,hosts of     
others are looking out on desolation and
 grief1 thinking of the tears which have
 fallen and the sobs which are sure to  
sound in the future1 and asking with    
eager and pleading intensity1 why such  
things need be4 ,out of the heavens     
above1 or out of the earth beneath1 no  
clear answer has come4  ,as we wonder   

and study1 still deeper grows the       
mystery4 ,three courses are open to     
those who are sensitive to the hard1 sad
 facts of the human condition4 ,one is  
to say that all things in their essence 
are just as they seem2 that sorrow1 sin1
 death none can escape1 that they are   
evils1 and that a world in which they   
exist is the worst of possible worlds1  
and that there is neither ,god nor good 
anywhere4 ,then let us eat and drink1   
for to-morrow we die1 and the quicker   
the end the sweeter the doom4  ,another 
way is simply to confess ignorance4 ,out
 of the darkness no voice has come4 ,the
 veil over the statue of the god of the 
future has never been lifted1 and       
inquiry concerning such subjects is     
folly4 ,to this ,i reply agnosticism is 
consistent1 but it is not wise4 ,because
 it cannot explain all things it turns  
from the clues which may yet lead out of
 the labyrinth4  ,the other course1 and 
the wiser1 is to use all the light that 
has yet been given and from what is     

known to draw rational conclusions      
concerning what has not yet been fully  
revealed4 ,deep in the heart of things  
is a beneficent and universal law4 ,in  
accordance with that law hindrances are 
made to minister to the soul's growth1  
the opposition of enemies is transmuted 
into strength1 and moral evil resisted  
becomes a means of spiritual expansion  
and enlightenment4     ,,the            
,,re-,,awakening             ,i1        
,galahad1 saw the ,grail1     ,the ,holy
 ,grail1 descend upon the ,shrine3      
,i saw the fiery face as of a child     
,that smote itself into the bread1 and  
went2     ,and hither am ,i come2 and   
never yet     ,hath what my sister      
taught me first to see1     ,this ,holy 
,thing1 fail'd from my side1 nor come   
,cover'd1 but moving with me night and  
day1     ,fainter by day1 but always in 
the night4444             99       99   
99       99       99            ,and in 
the strength of this ,i rode1           
,shattering all evil customs everywhere1

     ,and past thro' ,pagan realms1 and 
made them mine1     ,and clash'd with   
,pagan hordes1 and bore them down1      
,and broke thro' all1 and in the        
strength of this     ,come victor4      
--,the ,holy ,grail4 ,tennyson4     ,,vi
  ,,the ,,re-,,awakening   ,as          
despondency and a feeling of failure    
comes to every soul with the realization
 of its mistakes and sins1 so there will
 some time come to all a period of      
,re-awakening4 ,this statement is the   
expression of a hope which is cherished 
in the face of much opposing evidence4  
,nevertheless1 that this hope is        
cherished by so many persons of all     
classes is a credit to humanity4 ,it is 
difficult to believe that in the end an 
infinitely wise and good ,god will fail 
of the achievement of ,his purpose in   
regard to a single one of ,his          
creatures4  ,the saddest fact in the    
ascent of the soul is sin4 ,however it  
may be accounted for1 it cannot be      
evaded1 but must be honestly and        

resolutely faced4 ,sin is the deliberate
 choice to return to animalism1 for a   
longer or shorter time1 by a being who  
realizes that he is in a moral order1   
that he is free1 and who has heard the  
far-off call of a spiritual destiny4 ,it
 is the choice1 by a spirit1 of the     
condition from which it ought to have   
forever escaped4 ,imperfection and      
ignorance are not1 in themselves1       
blameworthy and should never be         
classified as sins4 ,weakness always    
palliates a wrong choice4 ,an evil      
condition is a misfortune2 it does not  
justify condemnation4 ,sin always       
implies a voluntary act4 ,that all men  
have sinned is a contention not without 
abundant justification4 ,the better the 
man the more intensely he is humiliated 
by the consciousness of moral failure4  
,after long-continued discipline1 after 
much progress has been made1 the soul   
again and again chooses evil2 and1 after
 it ought to have moved far on its      
upward career1 it is found to be a      

bond-slave of tendencies which should   
have been forever left behind4 ,this is 
the solemn fact which faces every       
student of human life4 ,it is not a     
doctrine of an effete theology but a    
continuous human experience4 ,the       
consciousness of moral failure is       
terrible and universal4 ,this           
consciousness requires neither          
definition nor illustration4 ,experience
 is a sufficient witness4 ,who has been 
able exhaustively to delineate the      
soul's humiliation8 schylus and         
,sophocles1 ,shakespeare and ,goethe1   
,shelley1 ,tennyson1 and ,browning have 
but skimmed the surface of the great    
tragedy of human life4 ,hamlet1 ,lear1  
,macbeth1 ,faust1 and ,wilhelm ,meister1
 ,beatrice ,cenci1 the sad1 sad story of
 ,guinevere1 and the awful shadows of   
the ,ring and the ,book--how luridly    
realistic are all these studies of the  
downfall of souls and the desolation of 
character6 ,if they had expressed all   
there is of life it would be only a     

long1 repulsive tragedy2 but happily    
there is another side4 ,to that brighter
 phase of the growth of the soul we turn
 in this chapter4  ,what is the         
difference between the awakening of the 
soul and its re-awakening8 ,are they two
 experiences8 or different phases of the
 same experience8 ,the awakening is     
nearly simultaneous with the dawn of    
consciousness4 ,it is the adjustment of 
the soul to its environment--the        
realization of its self-consciousness as
 free1 as in a moral order1 and as      
possessing mysterious affinities with   
truth and right4 ,this realization is   
followed by a period of growth1 during  
which many hindrances are overcome1 and 
in which the ministries of environment1 
both kindly and austere1 help to free it
 from its limitations and to promote its
 advance along the spiritual pathway4   
,but while the soul dimly hears voices  
from above it has not yet1 altogether1  
escaped from the influence of animalism4
 ,it dwells in a body whose desires     

clamor to be gratified4 ,it is like a   
bird trying to rise into the air when it
 has not yet acquired the use of its    
wings4 ,malign influences are still     
about it1 and earthly attractions are   
ever drawing it downward4 ,it falls many
 times4 ,i do not mean that it is       
compelled to fall1 but that1 as a matter
 of fact1 its lapses are frequent and   
discouraging4 ,in the midst of this     
painful movement upward1 there sometime 
comes to the soul a realization of a    
presence of which it has scarcely       
dreamed before4 ,it begins to understand
 that it is never alone1 that its       
struggle is never hopeless because ,god 
and the universe1 equally with itself1  
are concerned for its progress4 ,it is  
humiliated by its failures1 but it has  
learned that1 however many times it may 
fail and however bitter its             
disappointment1 in the end it must be   
victorious because neither              
principalities nor powers1 neither      
things on the earth nor beyond the      

earth1 can forever resist ,god4 ,thus   
hope is born1 and he who one moment     
cries1 ,who shall deliver from this body
 of death8 the next moment with         
exultation exclaims1 ,i thank ,god      
through ,jesus ,christ1 our ,lord4  ,the
 light which shines into the soul from  
,jesus ,christ is the revelation of the 
coperation of the ,deity1 and of the    
forces of the universe1 with every man  
who is moving upward4 ,the realization  
that1 however deep the darkness1        
humiliating the moral failure1 constant 
and imperious the solicitations of      
animalism1 the nature of things and the 
everlasting love are on the side of the 
soul is its re-awakening4  ,it now not  
only knows that it is free1 in a moral  
order1 and that voices from a far-off   
goal are calling it1 but also that those
 who are with it are more than those who
 can be against it4 ,thus hope1         
confidence1 power to resist1 and faith  
even in the midst of failure dawn1 and  
will never be permanently eclipsed4 ,the

 re-awakening of the soul is now        
complete4  ,this experience is          
traditionally called conversion4 ,it is 
usually associated with an appropriation
 of the teaching of ,jesus ,christ1 and 
inevitably follows an appreciation of   
,his words and ,his work4 ,but all the  
revelations of the ,christ have not been
 through the historic ,jesus4 ,in every 
land1 and in every age1 souls have come 
to this new consciousness4 ,it was said 
of ,isaiah that he saw the ,lord2 and of
 ,melchizedek that he was the priest of 
the most high ,god4 ,the former was a   
,hebrew1 but the latter was not in what 
was to be the chosen line of succession4
 ,the assurance that they are never     
alone has found many in what has seemed 
impenetrable darkness1 and they have    
risen and moved upward4 ,instances of   
this kind are not limited to ,christian 
lands1 although they are most common    
where the ,christian revelation is      
known4 ,i cannot doubt that those who   
have not had this vision on the earth   

will have it some time and somewhere4   
,the ,divine power and purpose to save1 
and to save to the utter-most1 are      
revealed with perfect clearness in the  
teachings of ,jesus ,christ4 ,nothing   
could be more explicit than ,his message
 that ,god loves all men1 and that it is
 ,his will that all should repent and   
come to the knowledge of the truth4     
,this stage of advance may be called the
 crisis in the ascent of the soul4      
,before this it has moved slowly and    
with faltering steps4 ,henceforth it    
will move more confidently and swiftly4 
,but that does not mean that it will    
find that hindrances are all removed1 or
 that no unseen hand will draw it       
downward4 ,some of the bitterest hours  
are to follow--days and1 possibly1      
longer periods of spiritual obscuration2
 darkness like that of ,jesus in which  
,he cried1 ,my ,god1 my ,god1 why hast  
,thou forsaken me4 ,who can explain the 
appalling humiliation of a man when1 as 
if a star had fallen from heaven1 he    

sinks into awful and inexplicable       
selfishness or sensuality8 ,it is not   
necessary that we explain1 but we should
 remember that the goodness of ,god has 
so ordered things that even disgrace may
 lead to stronger faith1 clearer vision1
 and tenderer sympathy4  ,austere       
ministries are still needed2 only fire  
will consume the dross4 ,the            
re-awakening of a soul is not its       
perfecting2 but it is its realization   
that the process of perfecting must go  
on1 and will go on1 if need be along a  
pathway of shame and agony1 until all   
that attracts to the earth and          
sensuality has disappeared1 and the     
spirit1 like a bird released1 rises     
toward the heavens4  ,the law that      
whatsoever a man soweth that shall he   
reap will never be transcended1 and if  
an enlightened spirit ever chooses to   
sink once more into the slime it may do 
so2 but it will at the same time be     
taught with terrible intensity the moral
 bearing of the physical law that what  

falls from the loftiest height will sink
 to the deepest depth4  ,at last the    
soul realizes that it is in the hands of
 a sympathetic1 holy1 and loving        
,person1 a ,being who cannot be         
defeated1 and who1 in ,his own time and 
way1 will accomplish ,his own purposes4 
,that vision of ,god is the             
re-awakening1 an inevitable and glorious
 reality in spiritual progress4  ,what  
are the causes of this re-awakening8    
,the causes are many and can be stated  
only in a general way4 ,moreover1       
spiritual experiences are individual1   
and the answer which would apply to one 
might not to another4  ,the shock which 
attends some terrible moral failure1 not
 infrequently1 is the proximate cause of
 the re-awakening of the soul4 ,there is
 a deep psychological truth in the old  
phrase1 conviction of sin4 ,men are thus
 convicted4 ,some act of appalling      
wrong-doing reveals to them the depths  
of their hearts and forces them in their
 extremity to look upward4 ,hawthorne1  

in his story1 ,the ,scarlet ,letter1 has
 depicted the agony of a soul1 in the   
consciousness of its guilt1 finding no  
peace until it dared to do right and to 
trust ,god4 ,in the ,marble ,faun1 in   
the character of ,donatello1 the same   
author has furnished an illustration of 
one who was startled into a             
consciousness of manhood and            
responsibility by his crime4 ,it is the 
revelation of a soul to itself1 not of  
,god to the soul4 ,in ,donatello we see 
a soul awakened to self-consciousness   
and responsibility1 but in ,the ,scarlet
 ,letter we have the example of a man   
inspired to do his duty by the          
revelation of ,god4 ,adoniram ,judson   
was brought to himself by hearing the   
groans of a dying man in a room         
adjoining his own in a ,new ,england    
hotel4 ,luther was forced to serious    
thought by a flash of lightning which   
blinded and came near killing him4      
,pascal was returning to his home at    
midnight when his carriage halted on the

 brink of a precipice1 and the          
narrowness of his escape aroused him to 
a realization of his dependence upon    
,god4 ,the sense of mortality1 and the  
wonder as to what the consequences of   
wrong-doing in the dim unknown may be1  
have been potent forces in the          
re-awakening of souls4  ,still others   
have been given new and gracious visions
 of the beauty of holiness4 ,they have  
seen the excellence of virtue1 and in   
its light have learned to hate the      
causes of their humiliation1 and to     
press forward with courage and hope4    
,speculations concerning the causes of  
this spiritual change are easy1 but they
 are of little value4 ,observation has  
never yet collected facts enough to     
adequately account for the phenomena4   
,probably the most complete and         
satisfactory answer that was ever given 
to such questions was that of ,jesus    
when ,he was treating of this very      
subject3 ,the wind bloweth where it     
listeth1 thou hearest the sound thereof1

 but canst not tell whence it cometh1   
and whither it goeth4  ,the mystery of  
the soul's re-awakening has never been  
fathomed4 ,sometimes there has been     
flashed upon conscience1 apparently     
without a cause1 a deep and awful sense 
of guilt4 ,whence did it come8 ,what    
caused it8 ,calamities many times sweep 
through a life as a tornado sweeps over 
a field of wheat1 and when they have    
passed there is more than an            
appreciation of loss2 there is a vision 
of the soul's unworthiness and          
humiliation4 ,again death comes         
exceedingly near1 and1 in a single hour1
 the solemnities of eternity become     
vivid1 and the soul sees itself in the  
light of ,god4 ,and again1 the essential
 glory of goodness is so vividly        
manifest that the soul instinctively    
rises out of its sin1 and presses       
upward1 as a man wakens from a hideous  
nightmare4 ,the more such phenomena are 
studied1 the more distinct and          
significant do they appear and the more 

impossible becomes the effort to explain
 them4 ,they may be verified1 but they  
can never be explained4 ,they are the   
results of the action of the ,spirit of 
,god on the spirit of man4 ,is this     
answer rejected as fanciful or          
superstitious8 ,then some of the most   
brilliant and significant events in the 
history of humanity are inexplicable4   
,what caused the revolution in the      
character of ,augustine by which the    
sensualist became a saint8 ,was it the  
study of ,plato8 or the prayers of      
,monica8 or the preaching of ,ambrose8  
,we know not2 rather let us say it was  
the ,spirit of ,god4 ,who can define the
 process by which ,wilberforce was      
changed from the pet of fashionable     
society to one of the heroes in the     
world's great crusade against injustice 
and oppression8 ,such inquiries are more
 easily started than settled4 ,i repeat1
 the only rational and convincing word  
that was ever spoken on this subject is 
that of ,jesus4 ,the ,spirit of ,god1   

whose ministry is as still as the       
sunlight1 as mysterious as the wind1 and
 as potent as gravitation1 was the ,one 
to whom ,he pointed4  ,how has this     
epoch in the ascent of the soul been    
treated in literature8 ,i refer with    
frequency to the literary treatment of  
spiritual subjects because poets1       
dramatists1 and writers of fiction1 more
 than any other class of authors1 have  
studied the soul in its depths1 in its  
inspirations1 and in the process by     
which it rises and presses toward its   
goal4  ,the illustrations of this       
subject in the ,scriptures are almost   
idyllic in their simplicity and beauty4 
,there is more than flippancy in the    
remark that ,adam's fall was a fall     
upward4 ,the statement is literally     
true4 ,the fall was no fiction1 but a   
condition of enlightenment and growth4  
,the exit from ,eden was the beginning  
of the long1 hard climb toward the ,city
 of ,god4  ,the very moment when ,isaiah
 saw ,uzziah1 the king1 stricken with   

leprosy1 he saw the ,lord4  ,the        
classical delineation of a soul         
attaining the higher knowledge is that  
of the prodigal son1 who1 when he came  
to himself1 saw clearly that his father 
was waiting to welcome him4  ,the       
,idylls of the ,king are a kind of      
,pilgrim's ,progress4 ,in various ways  
they trace1 and with matchless music    
rehearse1 the growth of souls and their 
victories over spiritual enemies4 ,one  
of the most pathetic stories ever told  
is that of the beautiful ,queen         
,guinevere1 who by shame and agony      
learned that we needs must love the     
highest when we see it2 and who never   
appreciated the great love in which she 
was enfolded until ,arthur1 moving      
ghost-like to his doom1 had gone to     
fight his last great battle in the west4
  ,the world owes ,george ,mac,donald   
gratitude it will never repay2--such    
spiritual souls are never paid in the   
coin of this world4 ,in ,robert         
,falconer1 he taught his time with a    

lucidity and sweetness that none but    
,tennyson and ,browning have equaled1   
and that not even they have surpassed1  
that a loving worm within its clod were 
lovelier than a loveless ,god upon his  
,throne1 and in ,thomas ,wingfold he has
 traced with epic fidelity the growth of
 a soul from moral insensibility to     
manly strength and vision4 ,the         
description of the process by which     
,wingfold is brought to see that he1 a  
teacher in the church1 is a fraud and a 
hypocrite1 and by which he is then      
lifted up and made worthy of his        
vocation as a minister of the glorious  
,gospel of the blessed ,god is a        
wonderful piece of spiritual            
delineation4  ,with ,guinevere the      
external humiliation was an essential   
stage in her soul's development2 but    
with ,wingfold there was no public      
disgrace1--only the not less poignant   
shame of a man who1 looking into his own
 heart1 finds nothing but selfishness   
and duplicity4 ,his condition was a     

matter between himself1 his friend1 and 
his ,god2 but none the less the         
humiliation was the means by which his  
soul's eyes were opened and his heart   
fired with a passion for reality4  ,one 
result of the soul's re-awakening is the
 realization that it has relations to   
,god and that they are at once the      
nearest1 the most vital1 and the most   
enduring of all its relations4 ,before1 
it had felt the call of duty and had    
recognized that it had affinities with  
truth and right2 but now it has come    
into the consciousness of sonship4 ,god 
is not distant and unrelated1 but near  
and personally helpful4 ,in a very real 
sense ,he is ,father4 ,he is interested 
in the welfare of ,his children2 and    
,his will has now become the law of     
their lives4 ,the first awakening is to 
the consciousness of a moral order and  
of freedom2 the second awakening is to  
the consciousness of ,god and of a near 
and vital relation with ,him4 ,the path 
of progress is still full of obstacles2 

there are still attractions for the     
senses in animalism and solicitations   
from something malign outside2 but never
 again will the soul be without the     
realization that it is in the hands of a
 compassionate1 as well as a just1 ,god4
 ,i am inclined to think that the elder 
,calvinists were right in their         
contention that when the soul has once  
come to this saving knowledge of ,god it
 can never again fall from grace1 or    
from the consciousness of its relation  
to the ,one mighty to save4 ,this does  
not mean that there may not be repeated 
and awful moral lapses4 ,the soul's     
realization of ,god does not imply that 
it has become perfected4 ,it has taken a
 long step in its ascent2 it is now     
conscious of its destiny1 and of the    
power which is working in its behalf2   
but far away stretch the spiritual      
heights and1 before they can be reached1
 many a cliff must be scaled and many a 
glacier passed2 and few reach those     
altitudes without many a savage fall1   

and without frequent hours of weariness1
 doubt1 and despair4 ,the sufferings and
 the chastisements of those who have    
come to this altitude often increase as 
the vision becomes clearer4  ,the       
difference between the former condition 
and the present is this3 in the former  
there was growth toward ,god without the
 conscious choice of ,god2 but in the   
latter the soul sees and chooses for    
itself that toward which it has1        
heretofore1 been impelled by the cosmic 
process4  ,that is a solemn and glad    
moment when1 in the midst of the        
confusion1 the soul hears faint and far 
the call of its destiny2 but the one in 
which it realizes that it is related to 
,god1 and chooses ,his will for its law1
 is far more glad and solemn4 ,that     
consciousness may be obscured1 but never
 again will it utterly fail4 ,the soul  
that knows that it came from ,god1 and  
is moving toward ,god1 never can lose   
that knowledge1 nor long cease to feel  
the power of that divine attraction4  ,a

 practical question at this stage of our
 inquiry concerns the relation of one   
soul to another4 ,may those who have    
realized this experience help others to 
attain to it so that the process may be 
hastened and made easier8 ,must those   
who have been enlightened wait for those
 who are dear to them to be awfully     
humiliated by sin1 or terribly crushed  
by sorrow1 before the light can fall    
upon their pathway8 ,is there no way by 
which a soul may be brought to the      
knowledge of ,god except by bitter      
trials8  ,one individual may help       
another to acquire other                
knowledge1--must it make an exception of
 things spiritual8 ,that cannot be4     
,what one has learned1 in part at least1
 it may communicate to another1 and the 
constant and growing passion with those 
who know ,god is to tell others of ,him4
 ,all plans of education should include 
the communication of the highest        
knowledge4 ,he who seeks the physical or
 mental development of his boy and cares

 not to crown his work by helping him to
 a realization that he is a child of    
,god1 and a subject of ,his love1 has   
sadly misconceived the privilege of     
education4 ,all curricula should move   
toward this consciousness as their      
consummation and culmination4 ,geology1 
biology1 physiology1 the languages1     
philosophy1 the science of society      
should be so studied as to lead directly
 to ,him in whom all live and move and  
have their being4 ,the home1 the school1
 the church should be organized so as to
 obviate1 in great measure1 the         
necessity of learning the deepest truths
 in the school of suffering4  ,no holier
 privilege is given to one human soul   
than that of whispering its secret into 
the ears of another who has not yet     
attained the wisdom which comes only by 
living4  ,god be merciful to the parent 
who is anxious about the mental culture 
of his child and never tells him of the 
deeper possibilities of his life1 or    
never repeats to him the messages which 

he has heard in silent and lonely hours4
 ,the growth of a soul in the knowledge 
of ,god may be measured by the intensity
 of its desire to help other souls to   
the same knowledge4  ,what will the     
re-awakened soul do8 ,it will be as     
individual and distinctive in its action
 as before4 ,the divine life in the     
souls of men manifests itself in ways as
 various and numerous as solar energy is
 manifested in nature4 ,variety in unity
 is the law of the spirit4 ,every person
 will be led to do those things1 to hold
 those beliefs1 and to minister in the  
ways for which he has been prepared4    
,the experience of one can never be made
 the model for another1 and the message 
which the ,spirit speaks in the ears of 
one may never be spoken in the ears of  
another4 ,uniformity is neither to be   
expected nor to be desired4 ,the soul   
which realizes that it belongs to ,god  
will choose to live for ,him1 and in its
 own way will forever move toward ,him4 
,henceforward ,his will will be its law4

 ,this is all we know and all we need to
 know4     ,,the ,,place ,,of ,,jesus   
,,christ       ,i say1 the              
acknowledgment of ,god in ,christ       
,accepted by thy reason1 solves for thee
     ,all questions in the earth and out
 of it1     ,and has so far advanced    
thee to be wise4      --,a ,death in the
 ,desert4 ,browning4       ',tis the    
weakness in strength that ,i cry for6 my
 flesh that ,i seek     ,in the         
,god-head6 ,i seek and ,i find it4 ,o   
,saul1 it shall be     ,a ,face like my 
face that receives thee2 a ,man like to 
me1     ,thou shalt love and be loved   
by1 for ever3 a ,hand like this hand    
,shall throw open the gates of new life 
to thee6 ,see the ,christ stand6        
--,saul4 ,browning4     ,,vii  ,,the    
,,place ,,of ,,jesus ,,christ   ,in the 
ascent of the soul do light and power   
come to its assistance from outside and 
from above8 ,is evolution alone a       
sufficient guarantee that it will some  
time reach its goal8 ,these are not so  

much questions of theory as of fact1 and
 as such will be treated in this        
chapter4  ,light and power have come to 
the race in its struggles upward from   
one source as from no other4 ,in history
 one figure appears colossal and unique4
 ,whether we classify ,jesus ,christ    
with men1 or regard ,him as a special   
divine manifestation is of little       
consequence in our inquiry4 ,if ,he is  
the consummate flower of the            
evolutionary process1 then1 because of  
some unexplained influence1 that process
 reached a degree of perfection in ,him 
that it has reached in no other4 ,if it 
pleased ,god in a single instance to    
hasten the process1 the result is not   
less inspiring and illuminating than it 
would have been if the divine purpose   
had been directly and instantly         
accomplished4 ,the teachers and leaders 
have ever been helpers of their         
fellow-men4 ,in evolution1 as in the    
race of life1 some always move more     
swiftly than others2 and those who are  

far in advance may1 if they choose1     
become the servants of those who move   
more slowly4 ,one ,being has appeared in
 the midst of the ages who is so far    
superior to all others that ,he may be  
regarded as the revelation of the soul's
 true goal1 but who is1 at the same     
time1 so unlike others as to convince   
many1 at least1 that ,he is also the    
revelation in humanity of a higher power
 which is cooperating with the soul in  
its ascent4  ,in this chapter no attempt
 will be made to meet the various       
questions that the formal theologians   
have raised4 ,i cannot feel that such   
subjects as satisfaction1 expiation1    
plan of salvation are of any practical  
importance1 and ,i leave them to those  
who care for them4 ,in the meantime let 
us ask1 ,what aid does the soul need in 
its passage through its life on the     
earth8 ,it needs light and power4 ,we do
 not meditate long on the soul's advance
 without realizing that it has been     
constantly reinforced from outside      

itself4 ,this phase of our subject will 
be considered in the chapter on ,the    
,inseparable ,companion4  ,it may1 ,i   
think1 be said that what the soul needs 
more than anything else is light1 and   
that all necessary light has been       
furnished4 ,jesus said1 ,i am the ,light
 of the ,world4 ,that statement is      
literally true4 ,there may be room for  
perplexity as to the credibility of     
parts of the ,new ,testament1 and as to 
what is called the miraculous element in
 history4 ,there is also room for       
difference of opinion as to the nature  
of the person of ,jesus1 and as to ,his 
supernatural mission2 but few would deny
 that1 if they could feel sure that ,he 
was actually from above1 they would     
accept ,his message because it contains 
all the ethical and spiritual knowledge 
that men need in their earthly lives4   
,a single assumption is made at the     
beginning of our study4 ,it is as       
follows3 ,what satisfies our minds and  
hearts1 in their hours of deepest need  

and brightest illumination1 should      
always be accepted as true until it is  
proven to be false4  ,the profoundest   
subjects of thought and life are        
illuminated by the ministry and the     
teaching of ,jesus ,christ4 ,the last   
word concerning these subjects has not  
yet been spoken4 ,even our ,bible is but
 a collection of scattered rays of the  
true light4 ,what vaster revelations may
 come to men in future ages no one can  
predict4 ,as growth goes on1 the soul   
will be fitted to receive messages which
 it could not now understand2 but all   
that men need to know in their present  
stage of development is clearly revealed
 in the teaching1 and the example1 of   
the ,man of ,nazareth and ,calvary4 ,he 
is the brightest light on the deepest   
and darkest problems4  ,let us try to   
understand and define the place of      
,jesus ,christ in the ascent of the     
soul4  ,jesus ,christ has given the     
world a rational and satisfying doctrine
 of ,god4 ,other teachers have tried to 

answer the inquiry1 ,does ,god exist8   
,jesus treated that question as an      
astronomer treats the sun4 ,no sane     
scientist would fill his pages with     
speculations as to the reality of the   
sun4 ,it moves and shines in the        
heavens2 beginning with that fact1 the  
astronomer asks concerning the function 
which the sun performs in the solar     
system and in the universe4  ,jesus     
discarded speculation and found the key 
to the doctrine of ,god in the family1  
the simplest and most elemental of human
 institutions4 ,there may be wide       
differences concerning the nature of    
government1 the sanctions of law1 etc41 
but there is no room for debate         
concerning the meaning of the parental  
relation4 ,it interprets itself4 ,tell a
 child that a man is his father1 and he 
can be told no more4 ,the name          
interprets the relation4 ,in earlier    
times the vastness of the creation was  
but dimly appreciated1 and then the idea
 of ,god was equally contracted4 ,jesus 

taught that the ,deity1 whether the     
conception of ,him was small or large1  
was to be interpreted in terms of       
fatherhood4 ,what an ideal father is to 
his family ,god is to the race and to   
the universe4 ,that meant one thing when
 the father was little more than the    
protector of a tribe2 it means something
 greater1 but not essentially different 
now4 ,the conception of the universe is 
one of the most revolutionary that ever 
entered the human mind4 ,the conception 
of a tribe is larger than that of a     
family2 of a nation larger than that of 
a tribe2 of the race larger than that of
 the nation2 but the conception of the  
universe1 with its myriads of worlds and
 possible multiplicity of races1 is the 
amazing contribution which science has  
made to the thought of to-day4 ,while   
the conception of the ,deity has been   
enlarged the principle of interpretation
 remains unchanged4 ,are we thinking of 
,jehovah the ,god of ,israel8 ,he is the
 ,father of the tribe4 ,has our idea    

expanded so as to include all the       
nations8 ,god is the ,father not of a   
limited number but of all that dwell    
upon the earth4 ,has the horizon been   
lifted to take in heavenly heights8 ,are
 we now thinking of immensities1        
eternities1 and the cosmic process8 ,the
 teaching of ,jesus is not transcended2 
we still continue to interpret in terms 
of fatherhood1 and say all time1 all    
space1 all men1 all purposes and        
processes in the infinities and         
eternities are in the hands of the      
,father4 ,but when we have ascended to  
such a height what does the word ,father
 mean8 ,exactly the same in essence that
 it meant in the humblest of ,judean    
households among which ,jesus moved4    
,the father there was the one who made  
the home1 sustained it1 defended it1    
watched over it by day and by night2 in 
exactly the same way the followers of   
,jesus think of the ,spirit who pervades
 all things4 ,he creates1 ,he cares for1
 ,he defends1 ,he provides1 ,he loves1  

,he causes all processes to work for    
blessing to the intelligent beings who  
are ,his children4  ,jesus in a peculiar
 way identified himself with the ,deity4
 ,that does not mean that all the divine
 omnipotence and glory were in that ,man
 of ,nazareth1 but it does mean that all
 of the ,deity that could be expressed  
in terms of humanity were visible in    
,him1 so that those who saw ,jesus saw  
,god as far as ,he could be manifested  
in the flesh4 ,beyond that veil were    
abysses and heights of being which could
 not be expressed in human terms2 but in
 all the spaces we may dare to believe  
that there is nothing essentially       
different from what was revealed in that
 unique ,man4 ,a bay makes a curve in   
the ,atlantic seaboard2 its shallow     
waters are all from the deeps of the    
sea4 ,tides that move along all the     
seas1 and forces which reach to the     
stars1 fill that basin among the hills4 
,the bay is the ocean1 but not all of   
it2 for if we were to sail around the   

earth we should find the same body of   
water reaching out to vaster spaces4    
,even so the person of ,jesus included  
all of ,god that humanity can contain1  
but ,bethlehem and ,jerusalem1          
,gethsemane and ,calvary were to the    
,deity as some land-locked harbor to the
 immensities of the universe4 ,in ,him  
love reached to enemies1 to the outcast1
 to those who had been called refuse and
 rubbish1 to men of all classes in all  
the ages1 to lepers1 beggars1 criminals1
 lunatics1 harlots1 thieves1 little     
children2 those who appreciated and     
those who hated alike were all included 
in the infinite purpose of blessing4    
,those who have seen the love of ,jesus1
 and its ministries1 have seen the      
,father2 but beyond the love of ,galilee
 and ,calvary reach depths of love which
 even the cross is powerless to express4
 ,divine sympathy and divine affection  
bind all men in a universal family2 this
 we know1 and this is all we know4      
,that teaching is so simple that a child

 can understand it2 so profound that no 
philosopher has ever transcended it2 and
 so satisfying that neither child nor   
philosopher would have it changed either
 as to its simplicity or its fullness4  
,jesus furnishes the light which the    
soul needs on the nature of man4        
,wonderfully has ,holman ,hunt          
elaborated this truth in his picture    
,the ,light of the ,world4 ,the ideal   
humanity never had more beautiful       
expression than in that great sermon in 
color4 ,the poise of the figure of      
,jesus indicates strength and           
self-control2 the thorns on the brow    
tell their story of sorrow and pain2 the
 hand at the door shows that one man at 
least is mindful of the welfare of ,his 
brother2 the radiance on the face and   
the inspiration in the eyes are the     
outshining of the goodness which dwells 
within2 while the light from the whole  
person1 which reaches far into the      
gloom1 shows that the more nearly       
perfect the being the more beneficent   

and beautiful his influence must be4 ,is
 ,jesus ,christ the brightness of the   
,father's glory8 ,he reveals also the   
beauty and helpfulness1 the love and the
 service of the ideal man4 ,he is the   
pattern of our common humanity4 ,are we 
in the midst of a process of evolution8 
,and is the man that is to be still far 
in the distance8 ,when he shall walk    
this earth he will be the spiritual     
reproduction of ,jesus1 changed only to 
meet the requirements of other times and
 new conditions4  ,the revelation of the
 ideal humanity was hardly less         
revolutionary than that of the enlarged 
universe4 ,formerly men were regarded as
 things1 commodities to be bought and   
sold1 creatures without souls1 objects  
to be used4 ,but ,jesus taught that all 
men are children of ,god2 therefore that
 they have the very life of ,god2       
therefore that they are created for ,his
 eternity1 and will forever approach    
,his perfection4 ,this vision of the    
perfected race has been at work changing

 national boundaries1 destroying hoary  
institutions1 undermining thrones1 and  
making a new world4 ,a glance shows the 
revolutionary quality of ,his teaching4 
,slavery was the curse of every land4   
,with force on the one side and weakness
 on the other oppression was inevitable4
 ,jesus taught that even weakness may be
 divine1 and lo6 from every civilized   
land slavery has already gone1 and from 
the world it is fast disappearing4      
,according to the orthodox economic     
doctrine1 supply and demand was the law 
that should govern the relation between 
employer and employee4 ,the largest     
profit and the smallest wages was the   
watchword4 ,as the teaching of ,jesus   
has penetrated further into the dealings
 of man with man employers are beginning
 to realize that labor has to do with   
human beings2 that manhood is enduring  
and that conditions are ephemeral2 and  
that whosoever oppresses his brother1   
even in the name of economic law1 at    
last will have to reckon with the       

,almighty4 ,thus a new and more         
beneficent social order is slowly but   
surely emerging4  ,the doctrine of the  
survival of the fittest is1 even now1   
applied to men where the teaching of    
,jesus that ,providence has made a way  
for the survival of the unfit is unknown
 or ignored4 ,in all lands the          
revelation in ,jesus of the ideal       
manhood1 and of the destiny toward which
 all men are moving is changing and     
glorifying human society4 ,he is the one
 whom the low-browed beggar1 and the    
criminal with a vicious heredity1 are   
some time to approach4 ,is it difficult 
to select the one phrase of all human   
utterances which has exerted the largest
 influence in ameliorating the human    
condition8 ,would it not be1--,inasmuch 
as ye did it unto one of the least of   
these1 ye did it unto ,me4 ,the         
identification of humanity with ,deity1 
the revelation of the divine in the     
human1 the solemn truth that no one can 
injure or neglect his brother without1  

at the same time1 violating all that is 
sacred and holy in the universe is the  
culminating point in the revelation of  
man to himself4 ,in the light which     
,jesus sheds on humanity all men appear 
in their enduring rather than their     
transitory relations4  ,the life and    
teaching of ,jesus make the awful and   
insoluble mystery of suffering          
endurable4 ,he satisfies no curiosity on
 this subject4 ,why suffering is        
permitted ,he does not tell us4 ,he     
never allowed himself to be diverted    
from ,his one purpose1 which was not to 
solve problems but to improve           
conditions4 ,if any one approaches the  
,new ,testament expecting to find an    
answer to his speculative questions he  
will be disappointed2 but if he asks1   
,how may ,i so use the conditions in    
which ,i am placed that they will       
minister to my spiritual purification   
and power8 he will receive a definite   
and satisfying reply4 ,why need sorrow1 
suffering1 sin1 and death invade the    

fair realm into which man has been born8
 ,other teachers seek to answer this    
question but ,jesus is silent4 ,how may 
sorrow1 suffering1 and even moral evil  
be made ministers of an upward movement8
 ,on this subject ,jesus speaks with a  
tone of authority4 ,among the world's   
teachers ,he was the first to declare   
that while austere experiences are not  
good in themselves they may1 uniformly1 
become means of moral and spiritual     
progress4 ,the sweet may always be found
 in the bitter4 ,sorrow may always be   
made a blessing4 ,tears never need be   
wasted4 ,struggle always adds to        
strength2 and sympathy is multiplied    
when one bears the grief and carries the
 burden of another4  ,do not brood over 
what you are called to endure1 but seek 
for the secret of spiritual help which  
is hidden within1 and you will find that
 on every grief and every pain you may  
rise1 as on stepping-stones1 to higher  
things4  ,jesus was the supreme         
optimist4 ,those who study life and     

history in the light which shines from  
,him see that no human being walks with 
aimless feet4 ,they do not think of men 
as unrelated units1 but as bound by love
 to one another1 and as living under the
 eye and in the strength of ,god4 ,in   
that light sorrow and pain may be       
justified1 even though in themselves    
they are hateful4 ,the poison which     
destroys life1 if rightly used1 will    
save life4  ,apart from ,god and ,his   
purpose of love1 nothing is more to be  
dreaded than pain2 but in ,his hands    
pain becomes the servant and not the    
master of men4  ,i can think of nothing 
more dreary than the study of human life
 and history apart from the             
interpretations put upon them by ,jesus4
 ,then one generation seems to follow   
another1 and the long procession1 even  
though the character of those composing 
it steadily improves1 always ends at the
 same goal1--the grave4 ,millions live  
and die like the beasts that perish4    
,they aspire1 struggle1 and are         

determined to rise1 but just when they  
are fitted to endure1 and to enter upon 
ampler spheres of service1 the curtain  
falls on the tragedy1 the stage scenery 
is changed1 a new company of players    
takes their places1 and the farce1 for  
it is a farce as well as a tragedy1 goes
 on from century to century1 and there  
is no meaning in anything4 ,if that were
 the true interpretation of life1 on    
earth's loftiest mountain there might   
well be raised a temple in honor of     
death2 and around it all the races of   
men be invited to join in the chorus1   
,happy is the next one who dies6  ,but a
 better interpretation of human life's  
mystery has been given4 ,jesus looked   
over its apparent desolation and        
confusion and poured upon it divine     
light4 ,he taught that it is not the    
,father's will that even one should     
perish4 ,men are not being ground in an 
infinite mill1 but they are being       
refined and purified by the only        
processes which will develop in them    

both strength and beauty4 ,out of       
confusion harmony will come1 and out of 
the battle of the elements peace will   
dawn at last4  ,to those who know that  
pain and sorrow are ministers of        
strength and sympathy1 that by them     
narrow horizons are widened and deserts 
made to blossom1 human life does not    
seem so confused and terrible as it has 
sometimes been pictured4 ,jesus makes   
evident the upward movement of the race1
 and shows1 let me repeat1 that it is   
under the eye and in the strength of    
,god4 ,he was made perfect through      
suffering4 ,the thorns on ,his brow tell
 their own pathetic story4 ,the passion 
vine above ,his head1 and beneath ,his  
feet1 indicate that even ,his sufferings
 are not without a purpose of blessing1 
and therefore are fully justified4  ,and
 now we approach the saddest of all the 
dark experiences through which the soul 
passes1--the mystery of sin4 ,of its    
enormity ,i have already spoken2 but    
what about its origin1 its uses1 and its

 continuance8 ,the question of its      
origin ,jesus does not even mention4 ,it
 is not recognized as having any uses4  
,it may be made an occasion of good1 but
 it is never ordained in order that good
 may come4 ,hardly any other subject    
occupies so large a place in the        
teachings of ,jesus4 ,it was said of    
,him1 ,his name shall be called ,jesus1 
for ,he shall save ,his people from     
their sins2 and of ,him ,paul wrote1    
,god commendeth ,his love toward us in  
that when we were yet sinners ,christ   
died for us4  ,the terrible blight of   
moral evil1 whatever its genesis1 cannot
 be explained away4 ,jesus passed by all
 other questions and devoted the largest
 part of ,his ministry1 as a teacher1 to
 showing how the soul may escape from   
the power1 and be delivered from the    
bondage1 of sin4 ,this is the practical 
problem4 ,as one surveys the race the   
imperative inquiry concerns deliverance4
 ,what light does ,jesus shed upon this 
mystery8 ,he shows that sin is an       

incident in the ascent of the soul1 and 
not an end2 that it is hateful and      
unnatural2 and that all the strength and
 goodness of ,god are pledged to its    
removal4 ,the soul will be allowed to be
 in bondage only so long as is necessary
 for its complete emancipation4 ,moral  
evil is tolerated at all not because it 
is a good in itself1 but in order that  
the soul may learn that its safety and  
strength are to be found only in        
conformity to the will of ,god4  ,jesus 
reveals the way of escape and thus      
confers upon the race the greatest of   
possible blessings4 ,this he does by the
 revelation of the ,fatherhood of ,god1 
which is not only compassionate but also
 holy4 ,because ,god is the ,father of  
all souls1 when any one ceases to do    
evil and begins to do well1 or in other 
words repents1 he finds a welcome and   
help waiting for him4 ,and ,jesus       
clearly indicates1 also1 that in the    
constitution of the soul1 and in the    
inexorableness of moral law1 there is a 

deep remedial agency which is ever      
active1 giving no individual rest until 
it finds it in ,god4 ,the tragedy of the
 cross was preeminently a revelation4   
,the cross is the manifestation1 in     
terms of human life1 of the passion of  
the universe and of ,god4 ,there must be
 suffering in all who are good1 until   
sin disappears4  ,the cross is the      
revelation of the ,eternal ,god in      
sacrifice for the redemption of souls in
 bondage to selfishness and animalism4  
,jesus taught that sin is to be         
abolished4 ,by means of the revelations 
of holiness1 the sacrifices of love1 the
 remedial agency in the universe1 and by
 ,his own new life the forces of evil   
are to be broken1 and the soul allowed  
to enter into its freedom as a child of 
,god4 ,this is not a subject for        
definition and dogmatism4 ,the greatest 
things cannot be defined1 but they may  
be appropriated4 ,the light1 the air1   
gravitation and all elemental forces    
transcend definition4 ,the love of ,god 

revealed on the cross is too holy and   
too transcendent for scheme and plan4   
,it may be accepted in a spirit of      
worship1 but it can be comprehended no  
more than the process by which rain and 
soil are transmuted into nourishment1   
and light into physical strength and    
beauty4 ,the cross is the pledge of the 
redemption of the soul through the love 
and power of ,god2 and beyond that we   
have no knowledge except that wherever  
that cross has been lifted up men have  
been drawn unto truth and virtue1 love  
and brotherhood4  ,more than poetry and 
sentiment has found expression in a     
popular hymn which thrills with a power 
which has been verified again and again 
in human history3      ,in the cross of 
,christ ,i glory1         ,towering o'er
 the wrecks of time      ,all the light 
of sacred story         ,gathers round  
its head sublime4  ,jesus has furnished 
no clew to the origin of moral evil1 but
 ,he has given to the hope that it is to
 be overcome in the individual1 the     

race1 and the universe1 the testimony of
 ,his teaching and the emphasis of ,his 
death4  ,which is the greater mystery1  
life or death8 ,a satisfying answer is  
impossible1 since we cannot think of one
 without thinking of its opposite4 ,what
 is life8 ,whence is it8 ,why is it8    
,such are some of the questions which   
arise and elicit no response when one   
meditates upon the mystery of living4   
,what is death8 ,what purpose does it   
serve8 ,is it an end or a beginning8    
,such are some of the inquiries which   
cannot be escaped when one1 for even a  
few moments1 looks1 as all some time    
must look1 on the still and peaceful    
face of one who has ceased to breathe4  
,who shall answer our questions8 ,of all
 who have attempted to fathom these     
depths ,one alone has brought a message 
which is satisfying both to the minds   
and hearts of those who think4 ,does any
 light from ,jesus penetrate the mystery
 of death8 ,what others have groped     
after he has declared4 ,he taught that  

the universe is like a house of many    
rooms1 and that dying is but passing    
from one room to another4 ,in ,his own  
experience ,he illustrated ,his         
teachings4 ,he ministered to ,his       
disciples2 ,he communed with those whom 
,he loved until their hearts burned     
within them4 ,then ,he disappeared and  
has been seen no more4 ,but why did ,he 
appear at all after death8 ,was it not  
to confirm the message of the           
,transfiguration that those who seem to 
die only change the mode of their       
existence1 and continue their           
companionships and ministries even after
 they have laid aside their bodies8  ,in
 the passage in the ,gospel of ,matthew1
 which may be called the parable of the 
judgment1 ,jesus taught that the moral  
order is not changed by the transition  
from bodily to disembodied existence4   
,the thoughts which men think1 and the  
actions which they perform1 affect the  
substance of the soul4 ,evil works      
misery and virtue leads to happiness    

beyond the grave as well as here4 ,seed 
sown on the earth may grow to its       
harvest in the ages that lie beyond4    
,this is all the light on this subject  
that we need now4 ,death removes no one 
beyond the watch and care of the        
infinite love4 ,in the home of the      
,heavenly ,father ,his children pass    
from place to place1 as ,he calls4      
,jesus appeared to those who loved ,him1
 and was recognized by them1 and that   
indicates that1 whatever the changes of 
the future1 the spiritual body will be  
recognized by all who love4  ,the moral 
order is universal1 and no change will  
touch the everlasting distinctions      
between right and wrong1 or diminish the
 obligation to choose the right and     
refuse the wrong4  ,these are some of   
the lessons which are impressed upon us 
as we meditate upon the life and        
teachings of ,jesus and their relation  
to the ascent of the soul4  ,he is the  
light of all souls4 ,into the darkness  
,his glory has been extending and       

expanding from ,his own time until now4 
,if we may judge the future from the    
past1 it is easy to believe that this   
radiance will not fail from among men   
until all realize that life and death1  
time and eternity1 humanity and history1
 are beset behind and before by the     
,divine ,fatherhood2 that the goal of   
the race is the fullness of ,christ2    
that the severest experiences sometimes 
achieve the best results2 that sin will 
not forever darken the history of       
humanity2 that death is a passage not an
 abyss2 an opening not a closing2 a     
beginning not an ending2 and that beyond
 stretch opportunities of limitless life
 and immortal growth4     ,,the         
,,inseparable ,,companion       ,the    
prayers ,i make will then be sweet      
indeed1     ,if ,thou the ,spirit give  
by which ,i pray3     ,my unassisted    
heart is barren clay1     ,which of its 
native self can nothing feed3     ,of   
good and pious works ,thou art the seed1
     ,which quickens only where ,thou   

say'st it may     ,unless ,thou show to 
us ,thine own true way1     ,no man can 
find it3 ,father6 ,thou must lead4      
,do ,thou1 then1 breathe those thoughts 
into my mind     ,by which such virtue  
may in me be bred     ,that in ,thy holy
 footsteps ,i may tread2     ,the       
fetters of my tongue do ,thou unbind1   
,that ,i may have the power to sing of  
,thee1     ,and sound ,thy praises      
everlastingly4      --,sonnet from      
,michael ,angelo4 ,wordsworth4          
,,viii  ,,the ,,inseparable ,,companion 
,as the soul moves along its upward     
pathway it gradually becomes conscious  
of many inspiring truths4 ,among the    
most delightful and helpful of these is 
the fact that it is never alone1 but is 
one of a great company all pressing     
toward the same goal and all passing    
through substantially the same          
experiences4 ,in the midst of these     
companionships1 which are variable1 and 
of these experiences which can seldom be
 predicted1 it slowly becomes aware that

 there is one companionship which is    
constant1 beneficent1 and singularly    
illuminating4 ,the realization of this  
fellowship is intensely individual4 ,of 
it others may speak1 but concerning it  
they can give little information4 ,the  
full consciousness is always a personal 
one4 ,having once enjoyed communion with
 the ,over-soul it is difficult to      
imagine that any are ever without this  
supreme spiritual privilege4 ,sometimes 
the sense of spiritual coperation is so 
vivid and continuous1 so compassionate  
and helpful1 as to be almost            
startling--in those moments when it     
seems to beset us behind and before4    
,the process by which a soul becomes    
conscious that it is forever attended by
 a companion1 whose one object seems to 
be to help it toward the spiritual      
heights1 will repay the most careful    
examination4 ,to that delightful and    
difficult study we will now turn4       
,before it has advanced far on its      
pathway the soul becomes painfully aware

 of the dangers by which it is          
surrounded and of the obstacles which it
 must overcome4 ,the road before it     
seems to be infested with enemies4 ,its 
defeats are frequent and humiliating4   
,it learns much by experience2 but the  
more it learns the clearer it seems to  
discern the difficulties which it must  
meet4 ,in the midst of the confusion and
 failure it slowly becomes aware that   
warning voices are speaking1 and that   
they are loudest when moral peril is    
near4 ,this is one of those simple facts
 which may be verified by every         
thoughtful man1 but which no thoughtful 
man would ever dream of trying to       
explain4 ,so simple and elemental is    
this truth that it may best be enforced 
by commonplace illustrations1 and by    
something like a personal appeal4  ,a   
very distinguished man was one day      
walking with a friend along a street in 
,edinburgh1 when they came to one of the
 numerous wynds which lead from the main
 thoroughfare into the midst of huge and

 gloomy buildings4 ,there the man       
stopped and asked to be excused while he
 entered the wynd4 ,returning1 after a  
moment1 he explained his act by saying  
that1 in his young manhood1 he had been 
tempted to do something which would have
 wrecked his life4 ,just as he came to  
the place that he had visited there     
sounded in his ears such a vivid warning
 as made it morally impossible for him  
to proceed on his course of wrong-doing4
 ,he felt sure that that voice was from 
above1 for his whole nature1 until that 
instant1 seemed to have been set on what
 would have led to moral ruin4  ,another
 person testified that he was once on   
the verge of doing what would have      
brought him undying disgrace when1 as if
 she had been drawn out of the air1 his 
mother stood before him1 looking        
reproachfully at him4 ,thus the         
fascination of temptation was broken by 
what he always believed to have been a  
veritable spiritual presence4  ,another 
experience is perfectly attested4 ,a man

 in a distinguished position did wrong1 
and was in peril of still greater wrong 
when something1 he could not have       
explained what1 not only warned him but 
kept warning him and following him so   
that he could not escape4 ,if he closed 
his eyes his danger became more vivid2  
if he stopped his ears voices of        
reproach found their way in4 ,he loved  
his wrong and would move toward it1 but 
then invisible hands seemed to hold him 
back until the time of danger was past1 
and he was confirmed in right ways4     
,such experiences are too numerous and  
varied to be doubted4 ,no facts are     
better attested4 ,it may be said that   
they are only the usual warnings of     
conscience4 ,be it so4 ,then what is    
conscience8 ,the factors in the problem 
are not materially changed1 for the     
phenomena of conscience are as          
remarkable1 constant1 and verifiable as 
light and heat4 ,most men who have      
recorded their experiences1 and who have
 observed with care the workings of     

their own faculties1 have been conscious
 of being attended by some invisible    
presence warning them against evil4 ,the
 explanation of this phenomenon may be  
left for later consideration4  ,closely 
allied to warnings against moral danger1
 which are so vivid as sometimes to be  
almost audible1 are the evidences of    
what may be called spiritual protection4
 ,the idea of guardian angels and       
tutelary deities arose naturally and    
inevitably4 ,many who have been         
astonishingly delivered from spiritual  
peril have been able to find no other   
explanation of their escape4 ,those who 
receive the confidences of their        
fellow-men have little difficulty in    
believing such a story as was once      
confided to me4 ,an able and prominent  
man who had1 resolutely as he thought1  
turned from a course of conduct which   
threatened disaster1 found himself drawn
 toward the evil from which he supposed 
that he had been forever delivered4 ,the
 attraction seemed to be resistless4    

,again and again he was on the verge of 
falling when the fall would have been   
ruin4 ,then something made it morally   
impossible for him to enter upon the    
path which he had determined to follow4 
,the means used to dissuade him were    
various4 ,sometimes a friend would call1
 then a duty would intervene1 then some 
obligation would press until1 to use his
 own way of phrasing it1--it seemed as  
if some unseen person who could read my 
thoughts and desires was walking by my  
side and1 as fast as ,i was in danger of
 yielding to evil1 ordering events so as
 to prevent me from doing what ,i wanted
 to do4  ,few men who are trying to live
 on spiritual levels would hesitate to  
acknowledge that they have been the     
subjects of similar protection4 ,the    
peculiar feature about it all is that   
the agents used are so often entirely   
unconscious of the influence which they 
are exerting4 ,an unseen hand seems to  
be guiding our moves on the chess-board 
of life1 so as to check us every time   

that we are inclined to play falsely4 ,i
 do not mean that all are persuaded     
toward virtue1 but ,i do mean that      
enough are protected from moral evil and
 spiritual peril to justify the belief  
that such ministries are around all2 and
 that those who choose to do wrong do so
 in the face of spiritual appeals which1
 if they would but give them heed1 would
 make resistance of evil easy and       
successful4 ,if any one who reads these 
words doubts my conclusions1 let him    
study his own life1 with a little care1 
and learn for himself whether there are 
not many hours in which he is almost    
persuaded to accept the ancient doctrine
 of guardian angels4  ,this phase of the
 spiritual experience is rendered still 
more vivid when we remember that the    
souls of men are perpetually            
dissatisfied with present attainments1  
and ever eager in their efforts to      
explore the unseen4 ,the history of     
human thought1 if it could be written1  
would show that the mind has never been 

satisfied with what it has possessed1   
and that each new glimpse of truth has  
stimulated still more ardent inquiry4   
,the more it is pondered the more       
impressive this fact becomes4 ,the soul 
seems to have had just before it1 in all
 the stages of its development1 a       
spiritual forerunner opening a way into 
larger and fairer realms4 ,this         
consciousness is not akin to a passion  
for wealth4 ,a man with enormous riches 
often ceases to acquire1 and devotes    
himself to the enjoyment of what he     
possesses2 but who ever heard of a      
thoughtful man who felt that he might   
cease investigating and devote himself  
to the pleasures of knowledge8 ,such    
instances there may have been1 but they 
are not numerous and have never been    
recorded4  ,of course there are many1   
who in no true sense can be called      
seekers after truth1 who do not trouble 
themselves with questions about the     
,unseen4 ,they chew the cud of custom   
with all the placidity of good-natured  

oxen4 ,they do not live1--they simply   
exist4 ,it is possible for any man to   
shut his eyes to the light1 but that    
does not banish the light4 ,it envelops 
him1 and pours its splendors around him1
 regardless of his wilful blindness4    
,millions are so engrossed with         
selfishness1 or animalism1 that they    
catch the accents of no spiritual       
message1 but those appeals are never    
hushed4 ,the deafness of the multitudes 
who will not hear does not prove that no
 voices are calling4  ,in some way men  
have been kept dissatisfied with their  
ignorance and persistent in their search
 for truth4 ,i make no distinction      
between sacred and secular here because 
all truth is sacred4 ,scientist and     
theologian alike have to do with        
reality4 ,whether we examine the tracks 
of an extinct animal on ancient rocks1  
or bow our heads in prayer1 we are      
facing a real world which is steadily   
enlarging4 ,for centuries men have      
sought the causes of things2 they have  

been made to feel that they ought to do 
right1 and then have been inspired with 
a passion to discover the right4 ,this  
is very wonderful4 ,the being who has   
almost limitless powers of physical     
enjoyment1 whose senses are exquisitely 
fitted for pleasure1 is not satisfied   
with pleasure1 but1 in obedience to     
unseen attractions1 ever seeks for      
higher things4 ,whence does this        
eagerness come8 ,is it from man himself8
 ,then our problem is great indeed1 for1
 at one and the same time1 something    
within himself impels him upward1 and   
another something drags him downward4   
,but the point for special consideration
 now is that the soul is never satisfied
 with anything but truth1 that the      
history of thought is the record of the 
search for truth1 that every new        
discovery has acted as a stimulus to    
still more ardent exploration1 and that 
the search is always for elemental      
realities1 the causes of phenomena1 for 
things as they are4 ,the promise of     

,jesus was fulfilled long before it was 
spoken4 ,some one1 in all the ages1 has 
been leading into truth and showing     
things to come2 and the process was     
never more evident than after all these 
years of intellectual and spiritual     
progress4 ,i say some one has led4 ,by  
that ,i mean a personal spirit1 unseen1 
but ever present2 for how could he whose
 home is in the mire be supposed1       
steadily and unwaveringly1 to reach     
toward the skies unless there was some  
attraction in the skies8 ,the only      
attraction for one spirit is another    
spirit4 ,this age-long1 unwavering      
passion for truth and progress1 the     
wisest of men have believed to have been
 inspired by ,providence or ,god or by  
guardian angels--which after all are    
only other ways of stating the doctrine 
of ,jesus concerning the ,holy ,spirit4 
,another phase of this subject is the   
power1 which has seemed to come from    
outside the soul1 to sustain and help   
those who have been called to endure    

bitter and long-continued sorrow and    
pain4 ,those who feel themselves to be  
weak as water under the stress of severe
 trial1 almost without previous         
suggestion1 assume the proportions of   
heroes4 ,they endure and suffer with    
patience what would crush those who are 
only physically brave and strong4 ,a    
woman who seemed to have few resources  
in herself1 suddenly lost four children4
 ,in speaking of it1 she very simply but
 forcefully1 said3 ,i could never have  
endured it myself4 ,she believed that   
her fragility had been reinforced by one
 stronger than herself4 ,exceptional    
physical courage will account for deeds 
of amazing heroism like that displayed  
at the sinking of the ,merrimac in the  
harbor of ,santiago4 ,some persons are  
thus gifted by nature1 as others have a 
poetic temperament4 ,but exhibitions of 
physical valor1 stimulated by the       
consciousness of world-wide applause1   
are very different from the patience    
with which weak persons accept heavy    

burdens without a murmur1 and carry them
 apparently without assistance1         
sustained only by the consciousness of  
being right4  ,how shall we explain the 
singular devotion of ,monica to         
,augustine8 ,by mother-love8 ,but       
mother-love might have been content with
 the greatness of her son1 and his      
regard for her4 ,she bore on her heart  
the salvation of his soul1 and would not
 cease in her quest for his spiritual   
welfare4 ,a profligate father1 the      
degraded ideals which justified vice1   
distances which seemed to be almost     
world-wide1 did not daunt her4 ,without 
haste and without rest she sought to    
bring her gifted son to his ,saviour4   
,he had fame1 and at least all the      
wealth that he needed1 but ,monica never
 faltered in her prayers1 or in her     
service1 until her son bowed before the 
cross1 albeit for years she carried a   
heavy heart4  ,the age of martyrdom has 
passed but not the age in which men of  
vision and strength have to serve their 

fellow-men with neither pecuniary       
compensation nor expressed approval4    
,and yet the number is steadily         
increasing who quietly undertake        
herculean tasks for their fellow-men1   
knowing that they will be neither       
appreciated nor understood1 but1        
instead1 will have to suffer social     
ostracism1 which is sometimes quite as  
hard to endure as physical martyrdom4   
,when a strong and earnest man          
undertakes a service in which he must be
 misunderstood1 and seldom if ever      
applauded1 when he chooses suffering    
with joy in order that he may serve     
others1 when he is willing to accept    
discomfort1 social hunger1 physical     
pain1 and without complaint continue in 
such a path1 although opportunities of  
worldly emolument and honor make their  
appeals to him1 it is difficult to      
explain the phenomena by simply saying  
that he is finding strength in some     
hitherto unknown chamber of his own     
personality4 ,it would be easy to make a

 list of illustrations1 long and        
pathetic1 of those who have patiently   
endured tribulation1 who have accepted  
heavy burdens and carried them without  
flinching that others might be relieved1
 who have had physical deformity1       
depression of mind1 and pain of body1   
and yet who have never faltered as to   
their duty even when the way was dark4  
,the world's noblest heroes are to be   
found among those who suffer but still  
endure and aspire in the night and      
silence1 clinging to duty when no one   
understands1 and much less approves4    
,such heroisms need explanation1 and    
they have it in the inspiration and the 
regeneration which are mediated by the  
,inseparable ,spiritual ,companion4     
,phenomena like those of which ,i have  
thus far been speaking have been        
observed in every age and every land4   
,some like ,socrates have felt          
themselves warned against evil courses2 
others like ,augustine have been        
protected from moral and spiritual      

death2 others like ,sakya-,muni have    
been led to give up wealth and power for
 truth and service2 others1 who could   
draw upon no hidden source of strength1 
have been sustained in the midst of     
trials which have seemed heavy enough to
 crush2 and1 most wonderful of all1 in  
spite of all vices and crimes1 all      
darkness and ignorance1 all bondage to  
ignoble ideals and slavery to           
commercialism and pleasure1 the race of 
man has never been content with things  
as they have been4 ,as the moon draws   
the tides by unseen attractions1 so by  
unseen attractions the souls of men have
 been made dissatisfied1 and drawn      
toward truth and beauty1 love and       
holiness2 and this desire for some      
better country has never been absent4   
,the passage from ,egypt to the promised
 land is the eternal parable of         
humanity1 which is always getting out of
 some ,egypt1 with its slavery and      
tyranny1 and pressing toward some       
intellectual and spiritual ,canaan4     

,this is one of the most marvelous facts
 in the history of our race--its        
discontent with things as they are1 its 
faith in something better1 and the      
perfect confidence with which it embarks
 on unknown seas in its search for      
ampler and fairer worlds4  ,the history 
of the past is the record of the weak   
receiving strength1 of the wicked being 
made uncomfortable in their wickedness1 
of limited and provincial creatures     
reaching out to broad and high horizons1
 of weakness1 suffering1 agony1         
willingly endured in the confidence that
 relief and blessing will come at last1 
though far off1 to all4  ,moreover1     
there is no indication of any cessation 
of such phenomena4 ,in these days1 when 
we say that no man should be asked to   
affirm anything which he cannot verify1 
voices of warning and entreaty are      
vivid1 the consciousness of protection  
is distinct1 support in trial is        
frequent1 and the evidence that some    
force1 or some person1 is steadily      

leading humanity toward truth and       
righteousness is as convincing and      
constant as ever4  ,what shall be said  
of these facts which are so numerous and
 so evident as to make an effort at     
classification and explanation          
imperative8  ,four answers to this      
inquiry are possible4 ,is the old       
doctrine of ,guardian ,angels true8     
,possibly we may be1 individually1 under
 the care of spiritual beings who are   
appointed for that service4 ,that       
conviction often prevails1 although so  
far as ,i have observed1 not usually in 
association with perfect sanity4 ,a man 
of noble bearing and grave and solemn   
manner who was talking about using the  
telephone for trans-,atlantic           
communication1 once declared that all   
men living now are under the leadership 
of those who have gone1 and that the    
great of other times are continuing     
their work through those now on earth4  
,he added3 ,i am confident of my success
 for ,i am the representative in these  

days of ,sir ,isaac ,newton4 ,subsequent
 events proved that ,sir ,isaac ,newton 
must have lost most of his common sense 
since his departure from the earth1 or  
he would have chosen a more rational    
representative4  ,this theory in no way 
solves the problem before us1 but rather
 complicates it1 because it does not    
explain how the relation of souls is    
adjusted4 ,that there may be some truth 
in this speculation may be freely       
granted4 ,one text at least appears to  
give it a little confirmation3 ,are not 
their angels ministering spirits sent   
forth to minister to such as shall be   
the heirs of salvation4 ,that seems to  
teach that some who have never dwelt in 
earthly bodies are the appointed        
ministers of those who live on the      
earth4  ,many other persons dismiss this
 subject by saying that all souls1 like 
all objects in nature and events in     
history1 are parts of an everlasting and
 universal process1 and that speculation
 is useless and a weariness to the      

flesh4 ,that is the easiest way out of  
the difficulty1 but it can be taken only
 by ignoring the facts4 ,are all ideas  
concerning spiritual ministry delusions8
 ,then how shall we account for the     
imagination which is capable of giving  
birth to such magnificent dreams8 ,and  
we may venture to ask also--,who started
 this movement in which we are all      
involved8 ,how comes it that in this    
cosmic loom such a wondrous fabric is   
being woven1 if there is no pattern1 and
 no weaver1 and will be no one to enjoy 
the work when it is finished8  ,possibly
 no one is warned against sin1 impelled 
toward virtue1 supported in sorrow1 led 
into larger visions of truth2 and1      
possibly1 truth and right are also      
dreams1 and the mind itself a delusion2 
and1 possibly1 there is nothing but     
delusion4 ,then all study and struggle  
are useless2 let us go to sleep4 ,but1  
some one else says1 perhaps the         
phenomena of which you speak are1 in one
 sense1 realities but caused by         

reactions of the soul on itself4 ,first 
it imagines that some spiritual         
leadership is desirable1 and then it    
concludes that that leadership is       
discernible4 ,in other words1 sorrow1   
sin1 relief1 joy1 truth1 right1 are only
 imaginations born of other             
imaginations4 ,if any are satisfied with
 such reasoning the task of enlightening
 them is hopeless4  ,there is another   
explanation of the sublime1 ancient1 and
 world-wide facts which are before us4  
,it is the answer of ,jesus1 which is   
simple1 profound1 rational1 and         
satisfying4 ,he told ,his disciples1    
when they were grieving that they should
 see ,him no more1 that they would      
always have with them the ,spirit of    
,truth who would convict of sin1 show   
things to come1 and lead into all truth4
 ,that ,spirit in the ,scriptures is    
called by one of the sweetest and       
dearest names in the languages of       
men--the ,comforter4 ,some have wrongly 
imagined that the ,new ,testament       

teaches that the presence of the        
,comforter is a new event in human      
history4 ,not so4 ,the ,spirit of ,truth
 inspired and sustained the ,apostles   
and ,martyrs as ,he had sustained the   
,patriarchs and ,prophets and the same  
,spirit which is represented as         
descending upon ,jesus at ,his baptism  
brooded upon the face of the waters when
 the earth was without form and void4   
,jesus teaches that ,god1 as a ,spirit1 
has never been absent from ,his creation
 and never out of touch with the spirits
 of men4 ,in the beginning ,he created2 
later ,he inspired1 supported1 taught1  
comforted2 and always and everywhere ,he
 is present to sustain1 to lead1 to     
comfort1 to help1 to save1 and to bless4
 ,how simple1 rational1 and satisfying  
is this interpretation of the phenomena 
of human history6  ,we study our own    
spiritual experiences and discover that 
when we have been in danger of being    
contented with moral failure we have    
been made ashamed and disgusted by it2  

that when we have been on the verge of  
yielding to temptation we have been     
strangely and almost preternaturally    
protected2 that when sorrows have come  
which would have crushed our unaided    
strength we have experienced strange    
peace and have had undreamed-of         
strength2 and that never for a moment   
have we found rest or peace except as   
they have come to us in hand with truth 
and right4 ,a wider study shows us that 
our experiences are in harmony with the 
common human experience4 ,all forces and
 all events1 in all ages1 have been     
working for the welfare of individuals1 
society1 the whole world4 ,a steady1    
unfailing1 universal attraction has been
 drawing the human race away from       
animalism1 error1 sorrow1 war1          
separation and division1 toward         
righteousness1 truth1 love1 brotherhood1
 the life of the ,spirit1 and the unity 
and happiness of the children of ,god4  
,that attraction is interpreted by      
,jesus in a simple and beautiful way4   

,he has taught us that the same ,being  
who created the universe1 and who has   
revealed and is revealing ,himself in   
creation1 in history1 and in the earthly
 ministry of the ,christ1 is now1 always
 has been1 and always will be in the    
most intimate1 personal1 and loving     
relations with men4 ,he warns them      
against evil1 protects them in danger1  
comforts them in sorrow1 lifts their    
thoughts and desires toward the true1   
the beautiful1 and the good2 and what   
,he is doing for individuals ,he is also
 doing for humanity and the universe4   
,this is the culmination of the         
,christian ,revelation4 ,this is to be  
the consummation and splendor of the    
,kingdom of ,god4 ,all the disciples of 
,jesus are followers of the ,spirit of  
,truth4 ,the ,spirit of ,truth is the   
inspiration of all that is vital and    
enduring in literature1 art1 government1
 society2 and each individual1 and the  
whole cosmic process are being led by   
,him toward the beatitude of the        

,children of ,god4     ,,nurture ,,and  
,,culture       ,o happy house6 whose   
little ones are given        ,early to  
,thee1 in faith and prayer1--     ,to   
,thee1 their ,friend1 who from the      
heights of heaven        ,guards them   
with more than mother's care4     ,o    
happy house6 where little voices        
,their glad hosannas love to raise1     
,and childhood's lisping tongue rejoices
        ,to bring new songs of love and 
praise4      ,o happy house6 and happy  
servitude6        ,where all alike one  
,master own2     ,where daily duty1 in  
,thy strength pursued1        ,is never 
hard nor toilsome known2     ,where each
 one serves ,thee1 meek and lowly1      
,whatever thine appointments be1        
,till common tasks seem great and holy1 
,when they are done as unto ,thee4      
--,o ,happy ,house4 ,karl ,j4,p4        
,spitta4     ,,ix  ,,nurture ,,and      
,,culture   ,in the ascent of the soul  
two forces are ever at work3 one is     
internal and the other external4 ,the   

internal is that which promotes growth2 
it is resident within the soul1 and1    
while it may be modified by conditions1 
it is in no sense dependent on them4    
,but environment is a potent factor in  
all progress4 ,life necessitates growth1
 but environment determines the end     
toward which it will move4 ,environment 
in large part is composed of the        
circumstances into which we are born1 of
 the spiritual companionship from which 
none can escape1 and of the training    
which is provided by parents and        
friends4 ,so much of the environment as 
is furnished by others we will call     
nurture1 and those influences and       
instruments of advancement which the    
soul chooses for itself we will call    
culture4 ,this discrimination is not    
entirely accurate1 but it is            
sufficiently so for our present purpose4
 ,it at least indicates the lines along 
which our thought will move4 ,according 
to this definition nurture has to do    
with that period of our existence when  

we are not able wisely to make choices  
for ourselves4 ,it is for those persons 
who are in infancy and early youth1 and 
also for those whose normal development 
has been thwarted or hindered4 ,the     
influences of the home1 and of the      
church so far as they are related to its
 younger members1 are in the line of    
nurture rather than of culture4         
,culture1 on the other hand1 is         
something which a responsible being     
seeks for himself1 to the end that his  
power may be increased and his faculties
 have harmonious development4  ,the soul
 grows according to its innate          
tendencies2 it is also subject to       
attractions from without4 ,all souls are
 bound together2 and all1 whether they  
wish or not1 vitally and permanently    
affect those by whom they are           
surrounded4 ,hence nurture and culture  
alike are both conscious and            
unconscious4  ,the growth of the soul is
 largely affected by the nurture which  
it receives4 ,this is usually provided  

for it by parents1 or by those who take 
the places of the parents2 and1 where   
possible1 their unwearying efforts      
should be to remove all obstacles from  
the pathway of their children1 to       
surround them with a pure and helpful   
environment1 and to provide them with   
such training as will make their        
progress inevitable and easy4 ,the      
importance of wholesome domestic        
influences cannot be exaggerated4 ,their
 part in the formation of character is  
greater than that of all others1 because
 they touch the powers and faculties of 
the child during those years in which it
 is most plastic4 ,neither the school   
nor the university can ever entirely    
counteract the effect of the home4 ,the 
whole period of childhood is one in     
which the soul is under tutelage1 and in
 which more is done for it by others    
than by itself4 ,it can no more select  
its own environment than it could have  
chosen its parents1 or the time and     
place of its birth4 ,for a few years it 

is utterly dependent4 ,the question as  
to how its growth may most wisely be    
promoted is1 therefore1 one of          
surpassing importance4  ,the object of  
nurture is to provide an unhindered path
 along which the soul may move1 to bring
 into full and free exercise all the    
powers which it possesses1 and to secure
 for them development and harmony4 ,to  
insure for each individual soul in the  
struggle of life a fair opportunity to  
be itself is the end of nurture4        
,emerson has said that at birth every   
child is loaded with bias1 and that the 
purpose of culture is to remove all     
impediment and bias1 and to secure a    
balance among the faculties so as to    
leave nothing but pure power4 ,the same 
may be said as to the object of nurture4
 ,since impediment and bias are never a 
part of the essence of the soul1 the    
statement that the aim of nurture is to 
furnish a full and free opportunity for 
each individual to secure a normal      
development is1 practically1 identical  

with what ,emerson has said of culture4 
,what are the agencies which have most  
to do with promoting the ascent of the  
soul8 ,the first is atmosphere4 ,in a   
bright1 clear1 sunshiny atmosphere the  
body attains its most healthful growth4 
,so with the soul4 ,atmosphere is one of
 those intangible things that every one 
understands and no one can easily       
define4 ,it is composed of a thousand   
different elements4 ,the atmosphere of a
 household is the spirit by which it is 
pervaded4 ,are all reverent1 earnest1   
cheerful1 optimistic8 ,do love and      
mutual helpfulness prevail8 ,do the     
members of the family live as if ,god   
were a near and blessed reality1 and    
right and duty were more sacred than    
life8 ,then there will be an atmosphere 
of hopefulness1 devotion1 service1      
reverence1 pure religion1 which will    
affect all as sunlight and air1         
unconsciously but evidently1 grow into  
the beauty and fruitfulness of meadows  
and gardens4 ,the rare spirituality1 the

 urbane manner1 the exquisite regard for
 others1 the dignity and deference which
 are found in some persons have no      
explanation except that they have been  
absorbed from the households in which   
their early lives were passed4 ,nurture 
is chiefly a matter of mental and       
spiritual atmosphere4 ,attraction is    
always stronger than compulsion4 ,a     
child born into conditions in which love
 prevails1 where truth1 duty1 honor1 are
 reverenced1 and where all dwelling     
together seek the highest things1 will  
need neither instruction in morals nor  
motives in religion4 ,it will naturally 
turn toward truth and righteousness4 ,it
 will revere virtue and worship ,god as 
inevitably and spontaneously as it      
breathes4 ,we are all influenced more by
 the words which we hear and the        
examples which we see than by the       
lessons given us to learn1 by the spirit
 of a man1 or an institution1 rather    
than by rules4 ,persons show the        
conditions in which they have been      

reared by their choice of words1 their  
bearing1 the subjects of their          
conversation1 by their mental and       
spiritual attitude4 ,reverence is seldom
 found except in an atmosphere of       
reverence1 and sincerity grows among    
those who are sincere4 ,it is a moral   
necessity that some men should be       
earnest and enthusiastic1 and impossible
 for their neighbors to be other than   
cringing and mean4 ,the largest element 
in environment is atmosphere1 and in the
 development of character environment is
 quite as potent as heredity4 ,indeed1  
in the sphere of the spirit1 as in that 
of the body1 heredity is always modified
 by environment4 ,the chief factor in   
nurture1 therefore1 is atmosphere4 ,if  
that is healthful1 growth will be toward
 beauty and strength2 if that is        
malarial1 no antiseptic force but the   
grace of ,god will be able to counteract
 its influence4  ,next to atmosphere as 
an element in nurture ,i place ideals4  
,for these children are usually         

dependent on their elders4 ,they        
reverence what they are taught to       
revere4 ,ideals are placed before them  
by example and by precept4 ,children    
grow like those whose deeds attract     
them1 and they seek those ideals toward 
which they are most wisely directed4    
,laws are never as potent in the        
formation of character as examples4 ,men
 are made brave by the sight of bravery1
 and honorable by contact with those who
 will swear to their own hurt and change
 not4 ,there is deep philosophy in the  
saying that the songs of a people       
influence their institutions and history
 more than legal enactments1 for songs  
are usually of bravery1 of love1 of     
victory4 ,they create ideals2 they      
excite enthusiasm4 ,the ,marseillaise   
and ,the ,watch on the ,rhine send      
thrills through the blood of those who  
hear them because in the most vivid way 
they suggest patriotism and heroism4 ,a 
good man inspires goodness4             
,philanthropy makes others              

philanthropic4 ,one courageous act      
sometimes makes heroes of a hundred     
common men4 ,if a father would have his 
son physically brave1 and he is a wise  
parent1 he will not waste time in urging
 him to undertake some forlorn hope1 but
 he will read to him the story of the   
,greeks at ,thermopyl1 of ,marshal ,ney 
at ,waterloo1 of ,nathan ,hale and his  
holy martyrdom1 of ,nelson at           
,trafalgar4 ,if he would have that son a
 helper and servant of his fellow-men he
 will tell him the story of ,pastor     
,fliedner and his work at ,kaiserwerth1 
of ,florence ,nightingale at the        
,crimea1 of ,wilberforce and ,buxton1   
,whittier and ,garrison in their efforts
 to awaken their fellow-men to the      
enormity of human slavery4 ,the         
strongest force for making a young man  
brave and generous1 honorable and       
,christian1 is the example of a father  
possessing such qualities4 ,men are     
usually like their ideals1 and their    
ideals in large part are created by the 

examples of those who are most admired  
and loved4  ,but example is not all4    
,training also does much4 ,conduct is   
but the expression of thought4 ,if one  
can determine what shall be the subject 
of another's thinking1 he will have gone
 a long way toward fixing his character4
 ,this is a fact which deserves more    
attention than it has yet received in   
plans for the education of the people4  
,parents have no holier privilege than  
that of directing the thought of their  
children4 ,by their own conversation1 by
 the friends whom they invite to their  
homes1 by the books which are given a   
place on their tables1 by the amusements
 to which they take their families1 they
 determine for them the channels in     
which their minds shall run4 ,as a man  
thinketh in his heart so is he4 ,boys   
usually dwell upon the same subjects as 
their fathers1 unless the fathers by    
skilful conversation are able to hide   
the subjects to which they give most    
time4 ,children usually admire what     

their parents admire1 and shun what they
 shun4 ,the organic unity of the        
household is a large factor in          
individual and social progress4 ,both by
 direct effort1 and by the indirect     
operation of example1 it furnishes      
subjects for the youthful mind4 ,the    
personality1 whose seat is in the will1 
is never determined1 but it is very     
largely influenced both by the example  
of those who are admired and by the     
thoughts which they suggest4            
,environment in large part is composed  
of atmosphere1 example1 and ideals4 ,all
 these are provided for the growing     
child by others4 ,he has little or no   
voice in saying what they shall be4 ,and
 environment has more to do with the    
progress of the soul toward full and    
free self-expression even than what is  
called education4 ,education is more by 
atmosphere1 example1 and mental         
suggestion than by teachers and         
text-books4 ,when we speak of nurture we
 usually think of the period of         

discipline in school and church2 but we 
often make the mistake of not taking    
into account the fact that the most     
effective training is seldom that which 
comes directly from teachers4 ,it is    
rather that which is derived indirectly 
from the atmosphere1 example1 and ideals
 by which the child is surrounded in his
 home4 ,if ,i could determine those for 
a child ,i should dread very little any 
malign force in the shape of an         
incompetent teacher4 ,schools1 in       
reality1 are only for the unfinished    
work of the homes4 ,they may make the   
child better than his home1 and they may
 undo the good work which it has done2  
but1 usually1 what the home is the child
 will be some time4  ,the agencies of   
nurture1 by which a soul is helped on   
its upward pathway1 are atmosphere1     
example1 ideals1 and direct training4   
,of these the least important is the    
last1 although the value of that is     
self-evident4 ,by the intellectual and  
spiritual air that we breathe1 by the   

sight of heroic and consecrated service1
 by the possibilities of noble          
achievement the best that is in a man or
 a boy is usually drawn out4 ,afterward 
the teacher may take him in hand and1 by
 training1 remove the impediment and    
bias and thus make a balance in the     
faculties1 or take out of his way the   
obstacles which oppose his progress2 but
 he seldom does very much toward        
determining the direction in which the  
child will move4 ,that is decided by    
others in the years which are most      
plastic4 ,the soul naturally1 and       
inevitably1 grows toward truth and ,god4
 ,how could it be otherwise1 since its  
being is derived from ,him8 ,but a part 
of the mystery of growth is the         
influence of environment1 and early     
environment is almost altogether        
composed of the circumstances and       
influences into which one is born4  ,the
 question of nurture1 therefore1 is of  
vital importance4 ,what shall one       
generation do for those which are to    

come after it8 ,each soul may hinder or 
help the growth of countless other      
souls4 ,the influence of those nearest  
is always most potent for good or ill4  
,impediment is increased1 and bias      
exaggerated1 by evil example4 ,the      
effort to rise becomes easy when the way
 is seen to be full of those whom we    
love and honor going before us toward   
the heights1 and it is difficult when no
 familiar face is seen4 ,nurture is not 
so much a matter of teacher and         
text-book1 of church and catechism1 as  
of atmosphere1 example1 and inspiration4
 ,it is the effect of the contact of one
 pure and noble soul upon another2 it is
 something which father1 mother1 and    
friends give to the child2 it is the    
result of the spirit in which they      
impart instruction and of the reverence 
and consecration which shine from their 
lives4  ,the best and only enduring     
nurture is that of a sweet1 serene1     
optimistic1 and thoroughly ,christian   
environment4 ,with that1 inherited      

tendencies toward weakness and evil will
 go of themselves1--indeed will seem    
never to have had existence4  ,but all  
too soon the time comes in which the    
soul faces its own responsibility1 and  
realizes that it must choose for itself 
what its course shall be4 ,it has       
learned1 if it has observed1 that there 
is ever with it an unseen leadership1   
and it has heard1 faint and far1 the    
call of a noble destiny4 ,what shall it 
now do for itself8 ,shall it choose     
simply to exist8 ,shall it yield to the 
limitations and solicitations of the    
body8 or1 shall it seek to prepare      
itself by discipline1 and the           
cultivation of right choices1 for the   
goal whose intimations it has heard8    
,nurture1 if it has been wise1 has been 
the forerunner of culture4 ,atmosphere  
and example have inspired lofty ideals1 
but those ideals1 if they are to be     
realized1 will require training4        
,matthew ,arnold1 quoting ,bishop       
,wilson1 has said that culture is a     

study of perfection4 ,in other words1 it
 is the means which are used for the    
perfection of the soul4 ,shall we choose
 to leave ourselves to grow like trees  
in a forest1 however they may1 or shall 
we seek those conditions which will make
 progress sure and swift8 ,culture is   
always a matter of choice2 and it is    
vastly more than anything which can be  
taught in the college or university4    
,the cultured man is he who has learned 
so to use the forces and conditions of  
life as to make them minister to his    
perfection4 ,the one most cultured may  
come out of a factory1 and the man of   
least culture may be found in a         
university4 ,indeed colleges and        
universities1 not infrequently1 are     
haunts of provincialism and of dread of 
enthusiasm4 ,the object of culture is   
the perfection of the spirit to the end 
that all that hinders1 or limits1 may   
disappear and only pure power1 clear    
vision1 and full self-realization       
remain4 ,those whose growth is most     

evident are ever eager to use all       
experiences as means of progress4 ,they 
study books in order that they may      
better understand what others have      
thought concerning the mystery of       
existence2 they discipline their minds  
in order that they may the better serve 
their fellow-men2 they seek fineness of 
manner and beauty of expression to the  
end that their utterance of truth may be
 more persuasive and convincing4        
,culture and the discipline of life are 
identical4 ,consequently1 the wise man  
chooses to put himself where he will    
best be taught by the events through    
which he passes1 by what he sees1 and by
 what he may learn from others4 ,it     
matters little who have been the        
teachers1 or what have been the         
schools1--the real teacher is always    
life1 and the real university is the    
human experience4  ,i do not make light 
of the benefit which may be derived from
 books and institutions of learning1 but
 ,i do insist on the recognition of the 

deeper fact that the lessons which no   
one can afford to neglect are those     
which can be taught only by overcoming  
obstacles4 ,we can learn how to live    
only in the school of life4 ,the most   
vital books are always those which tell 
us what others have done1 and of the    
paths by which they have been led to    
power4 ,what shall the soul do for      
itself in order that it may promote its 
own growth8 ,it must first recognize    
where the sources of knowledge and      
strength are to be found1 and then put  
itself where it will feel the touch of  
the vitality which can come only from   
other souls4 ,quickly enough every man  
reaches the time in which he may        
determine his own environment4 ,when we 
are young others choose our             
circumstances for us1 but when we become
 older we select them for ourselves4    
,that means much4 ,no monarch is mighty 
enough to compel me to associate with   
those who will hinder my progress4 ,he  
only is a slave whose mind and will are 

in bondage4 ,my body may be with boors  
but1 at the same time1 my spirit may be 
holding companionship with seers and    
sages4 ,i may be compelled to work in a 
mine like ,john the ,apostle1 but ,i1   
too1 like him may hear ,one speaking    
whose voice is as the sound of many     
waters1 and whose eyes are like a flame 
of fire4 ,our real associates are ever  
our spiritual companions2 and no one can
 force another to hold fellowship with  
those who are either intellectually or  
spiritually uncongenial4  ,and we also  
select our own subjects of thought4 ,who
 can govern the thinking of another8 ,at
 the very moment when one1 who is       
stronger1 is rejoicing in what seems his
 supremacy1 our thoughts may be ranging 
through the spaces1 and finding         
companionships among the stars4 ,and we 
choose our own examples4 ,in youth they 
were put before us according to the will
 of others1 but later our heroes come to
 us at our bidding1 and no one can shut 
the gates against them4 ,whom shall we  

admire8 ,let them be men of the spirit1 
who have sought truth and hated lies1   
who have fought their doubts and        
gathered strength1 who would rather     
suffer wrong than do wrong4 ,the        
perfection of being is the end of       
effort1 therefore we will read what will
 best help our growth in vision1 in     
moral earnestness1 in spiritual         
sensibility2 therefore our books shall  
treat of subjects which will ennoble2   
our amusements shall be pure and clean2 
and our chief companionships shall be   
with the prophets and masters1 the noble
 and the good1 because by associating   
with them we shall become like them4    
,intellectual acuteness1 mastery of     
faculty1 elegance of expression1 are    
something very different from insight   
into the meaning of life4 ,the cultured 
man is he who has learned his relations 
to his fellow-men1 who recognizes his   
obligations toward them2 and his        
relations to the unseen and his duty    
toward it4  ,discipline which will      

produce such results will ever be sought
 by the awakened soul4 ,it will be      
satisfied with nothing less4  ,the      
relation of nurture and culture to the  
ascent of the soul is now evident4 ,both
 are the agencies by which all          
impediment and bias are to be removed1  
and by which the soul is to come to the 
realization of pure power4 ,they are the
 means by which complete                
self-realization is to be attained2 they
 are the study of perfection4 ,nurture  
is what is done for the soul by parents 
and friends in its plastic years2       
culture is the means which the soul     
chooses in order that its growth may be 
hastened4 ,nurture is chiefly promoted  
by lofty examples1 noble ideals1--in    
short1 by beneficent environment2 but   
culture is attained by the conscious    
effort of the individual1 by his own    
choice of healthful environment1 worthy 
example1 inspiring companionships1 and1 
perhaps still more1 by long and patient 
study of the facts of our mortal life1  

of the revelations which have come from 
the unseen1 and of the prophecies of the
 future which are within the soul4      
,there is a deep and almost terrible    
significance in the text1 ,no man liveth
 to himself4 ,every person is           
independent and free and yet is bound to
 every other4 ,most delicate and vital  
of all human relations is that of parent
 and child4 ,how far one may be         
responsible for the other may be        
difficult to decide1 but that the one   
influences the other1 inevitably and    
forever1 is beyond question4 ,in many   
ways the child is what he is made by the
 parent4 ,therefore the welfare of the  
child as a spirit1 and not merely as a  
body1 should be a continual study4 ,he  
who has dared to become a parent can    
never honorably shirk the duty of       
nurture4 ,the connection between souls  
is a great mystery1 but the mystery does
 not lessen the obligation4 ,we are     
responsible not only for the existence  
of our children1 but equally for their  

growth4 ,it is the parent's privilege to
 make sure that they start on the       
journey of life properly equipped1 and  
with no undue obstacles in their        
pathway--to make them realize that they 
are not only his children but also      
children of ,god2 and that they are to  
live not only in time but in eternity4  
,the training of the body is needful1   
and that of the mind still more so1 but 
that of the spirit is absolutely        
essential to its welfare4 ,therefore    
plans and provisions for nurture first1 
last1 and always should be to the end   
that the soul may realize that it is    
from ,god1 and that its goal and glory  
are union with ,him4  ,and those who    
realize that they are free1 that they   
are in a moral order1 that a noble      
destiny awaits them1 should make        
everything in thought1 in study1 in     
association1 in companionship1 bend     
toward the perfection of being1 the     
development of power1 and the           
realization of the life of the spirit4  

,nurture does much for every man1 his   
parents and friends also do much but1 at
 last1 when all mysteries are disclosed 
and self-revelation is complete1 it may 
be found that each one does quite as    
much for himself as any one else1 or    
every one else1 does for him4     ,,is  
,,death ,,the ,,end8       ,it's wiser  
being good than bad2        ,it's safer 
being meek than fierce2     ,it's fitter
 being sane than mad4        ,my own    
hope is1 a sun will pierce     ,the     
thickest cloud earth ever stretched2    
,that after ,last1 returns the ,first1  
,though a wide compass round be fetched2
        ,that what began best1 can't end
 worst1        ,nor what ,god blessed   
once1 prove accurst4      --,apparent   
,failure4 ,browning4     ,x  ,,is       
,,death ,,the ,,end8   ,we have been    
studying the ascent of the soul in the  
successive stages of its development1   
from the dawn of consciousness to the   
measure of progress which our race has  
now attained4 ,but a dark shadow falls  

across that history4 ,no one has yet    
lived who has reached what all have     
believed to be the fullness of his      
possible development4 ,at a certain     
period in physical history what we call 
death intervenes1 and we are left       
wondering as to whether that is the end 
of all1 or whether the soul persists and
 continues its advance unhindered by    
bodily limitations4 ,that death is the  
end of the body1 in its present form1 no
 one doubts2 but whether the relations  
of the soul to the body are so intimate 
and enduring that what vitally affects  
one affects the other is a subject      
concerning which there has been eager   
and constant inquiry1 and but little    
real knowledge4 ,job's question1 ,if a  
man die shall he live again8 is the     
common question of humanity4 ,the       
importance of the subject is attested by
 the prominence which it has always had 
in human thought4 ,philosophers have    
given it foremost place in their        
speculations4 ,science1 while seeking to

 explore every part of the physical     
universe1 never escapes from the        
fascination of this question4 ,is the   
death of the body the end of the spirit8
 ,or1 if we have not sufficient material
 for a positive statement1 is there     
enough to make a strong affirmation of  
probability8 ,we are facing the deepest 
mystery which is ever presented to      
thinking men4 ,heretofore we have been  
trying to follow a history clearly      
marked in the progress of humanity2 now 
we can only balance probabilities4 ,but 
all that has been learned concerning the
 nature and development of the spirit of
 man not only warrants1 but compels1 the
 belief that death is not the end of the
 soul2 and that to assert that it is1 is
 to deny the revelations of the         
universe1 and to insist that there is   
nothing but irony and mockery where     
there ought to be reason and wisdom4 ,in
 treating this subject ,i can but repeat
 thoughts which have been emphasized    
again and again2 but it is so vital1 and

 so near to the welfare of all1 that old
 arguments become new1 and interest in  
them increases1 the more frequently they
 are emphasized4  ,on what do we base   
our faith that the soul exists after    
death8 ,that it does is clearly the     
faith not only of religious teachers but
 of many of the latest and most eminent 
scientists4 ,many expounders of         
evolutionary philosophy unite in telling
 us that the cosmic process having      
reached man1 a spiritual being1 can go  
no further in the physical order2 that  
evolution will never produce a higher   
being than a spirit1 but that the cosmic
 force will still persist and be        
utilized in the expansion and perfection
 of spirits4  ,in treating this subject 
little attention will be given to the   
scriptural argument1 for there is little
 if any difference of opinion concerning
 the teaching of ,jesus and that of the 
writers of the ,new ,testament4 ,they   
are united and consistent in assuming   
the persistence of being4 ,that belief  

underlies all their appeals to the      
solemn sanctions of the moral law which 
they derived from the future life4      
,jesus himself said1 ,if it were not so1
 ,i would have told you2 and nearly1 if 
not quite all the ,apostles base their  
warnings and their invitations on       
motives which reach beyond the death of 
the body4 ,the masters of other         
religions have been equally positive4   
,in some form or other they have        
asserted the continued existence of the 
spiritual nature in man4  ,but we turn1 
for the moment1 from these and consider 
such evidence as may be derived from the
 soul itself1 and from what is known of 
its progress4  ,there is no evidence    
that when the body dies the soul dies   
with it4 ,it may not be possible to     
prove the reverse2 all that we know is  
that the vital functions cease1 and that
 the body decays4 ,no eye ever saw the  
soul1 and no dissection ever discovered 
the place of its dwelling4 ,is that     
ethereal something which we call soul   

simply the result of the organization of
 atoms8 ,or is the body like a house in 
which a spiritual tenant dwells8 ,at    
least this may be affirmed3 ,no one has 
yet been able to prove that the soul and
 body die together4 ,then there is no   
reasonable presumption against the      
continuance of being4 ,no spirit1 so far
 as we know1 has returned to the earth  
in visible form1 and spoken its message2
 and yet1 for aught we know1 we may be  
surrounded every day by spiritual       
beings1 moving unseen along the avenues 
upon which we walk1 and entering without
 invitation the houses which we inhabit4
 ,at this point it is enough simply to  
grant that presumptions are1 perhaps1   
evenly balanced4 ,if one asks for proof 
that the spirit persists1 the only reply
 must be a ,socratic one--,can you prove
 that it is vitally connected with the  
body8  ,belief in the existence of the  
soul after death seems to be an innate  
belief4 ,it has been ascribed to the    
influence of the superstition about     

ghosts2 but that superstition is only an
 unscientific form of the larger faith  
in the persistence of being4 ,where did 
this conviction originate8 ,we think    
only of such things as have been        
experienced4 ,no thought is ever        
entirely original4 ,even imagination    
cannot create anything absolutely unlike
 anything which ever existed4 ,all the  
fabled beings who1 according to the     
ancient mythology1 filled the spaces and
 waters1 were but human creatures       
adapted to imaginary environments4      
,faith in the existence of the soul     
after death could not have originated in
 the soul itself2 to believe that would 
be to contradict the laws of thought4   
,it seems to have been born with the    
soul1 and yet not to be a part of it4   
,the common conviction of continuance of
 being can be explained only on the     
assumption that it is an innate idea4   
,that this assumption starts1 perhaps1  
quite as many questions as it settles   
may be granted4 ,nevertheless1 it is the

 only way in which this fact in mental  
and spiritual history can be accounted  
for4  ,not only is belief in persistence
 of being innate1 but it is also        
universal4 ,it has been found in every  
land1 in every time1 in every religion4 
,dr4 ,matthewson has finely argued that 
the savage worships a fetish because he 
is seeking something which does not     
change#h4 ,he knows that he dies2 he    
worships that which he thinks does not  
die4 ,a piece of wood or a stone1 at    
first1 seems to him more enduring than a
 man2 therefore he worships the fetish4 
,gradually his eyes are opened and he   
realizes that the man is more enduring  
than the thing4 ,then the object of his 
worship is lifted from something        
material to a spiritual being4 ,the     
belief in immortality is coterminous    
with belief in the ,deity2 the two forms
 of faith are always found together4    
,the cultured ,greek1 the mystic        
,egyptian1 the idealistic ,indian1 the  
savage who inhabits the forests of      

,africa1 or who formerly dwelt in the   
forests of ,america1 alike have believed
 in some land of spirits to which their 
loved ones have gone and to which they  
themselves1 in turn1 will also go4      
,every age and every time1 alike1 have  
borne witness to the strength and       
vitality of this faith4  ,footnote #h3  
,distinctive ,messages of the ,old      
,religions1 p4 #i4  ,but still more     
convincing to me than any of the        
suggestions which have gone before1 is  
the fact that it is irrational to       
suppose that the soul dies with the     
body4 ,if that were true1 how could we  
account for the enormous waste in       
discipline and culture1 in education and
 affection8 ,what is the meaning of the 
love that binds human beings together1  
if after a short three-score-and-ten    
career it utterly ceases to be1 and     
being and affection alike go into       
oblivion8 ,how can our systems of       
education be justified1 if the soul is  
perfected only to be destroyed8 ,on     

everything else man spends time1 labor1 
affection in proportion to the          
possibility of its endurance4 ,he never 
seeks that which he knows will be taken 
from him and destroyed as soon as it is 
perfected4 ,an artist would not spend a 
lifetime on a picture1 or a sculptor in 
finishing a statue1 if he knew that when
 his work was completed it would be     
instantly sunk in the depths of the sea4
 ,we devote a large part of our lives to
 education2 we cultivate our minds2 our 
affections are disciplined2 we spend    
time1 money1 labor for years for the    
culture of our children2 can it be that 
all this preparation is for something   
which never can be realized8 ,in the    
midst of the loftiest manifestations of 
the soul's power the body ceases to be4 
,with indescribable bravery a warrior   
lays down his life1 a fireman rescues a 
child from a burning building1 a        
life-boatman goes through the surf to a 
sinking ship1 and1 at that very moment  
when he proves himself best fitted to   

live1 death comes and he is seen no     
more4 ,it cannot be proven that this is 
not the end1 but it is not reasonable to
 believe that this is the end4 ,if it   
is1 human life is utterly without       
significance1 and he is most to be      
commended who quickest escapes from its 
misery and mockery4  ,moreover the      
inequalities of the human condition are 
strangely prophetic4 ,much has been made
 of this argument in the past1--,job and
 ,socrates both felt its force4  ,the   
value of it has often been discredited1 
but without reason4 ,how shall the      
bitter injustice which is frequently    
found on the earth be explained8 ,some  
have an abundance of wealth1 some have  
literally nothing4 ,some enjoy the best 
of health and strength all their days1  
while others pass their years in        
suffering and trial4 ,some are          
surrounded by families and fairly revel 
in love and friendship1 and others lead 
lonely lives toward a welcome end4 ,some
 are strong and brave1 and able to act a

 part in the drama of life2 others are  
weak1 obscure1 unknown1 and1 for aught  
that they or we can see1 might as well  
have never been4 ,the law of heredity   
sweeps down from the past and brings a  
terrible legacy to many who spend all   
their days in trying to escape from what
 has been forced upon them4 ,what shall 
we say concerning those who are born in 
lust and must live in the midst of the  
vice of a great city1 and who1 in turn1 
give birth to a lustful and vicious     
brood8 ,have they had a fair chance8    
,will their children have8 ,such        
questions have puzzled the most earnest 
thinkers of all time1 and there has     
seemed to be but one explanation4 ,job  
seemed to be in darkness1 until at last 
there flashed upon his mind this        
question1 which is also a modified      
affirmation1 ,if a man die shall he live
 again8 ,if he live again1 then it is   
possible that what seems to be unjust   
may be righted2 and those who have known
 only suffering and pain during their   

dwelling in the flesh1 may some time    
enter into the fruition of their        
discipline in the joy and victory of the
 endless life4 ,the more this argument  
is pondered the stronger its force      
becomes4 ,it carries conviction to all  
who are deeply sensitive to the common  
human experience1 and who at all        
understand the misery and the suffering 
of human existence4 ,one in the fullness
 of his physical strength may think     
little about it1 but that deformed girl 
who asked her mother after service one  
,easter ,day1 ,mother1 is it true that  
in heaven ,i shall be as straight as you
 and father8 is a type of millions of   
others4 ,some suffer in body and some in
 mind2 some have a heredity of insanity 
or vice--they are born with shackles on 
their faculties4 ,if they ever have a   
fair chance to grow noble and beautiful1
 morally and spiritually1 it must be    
after their bodies have been laid aside4
 ,it cannot be said that they do not now
 desire benefit and blessing1 but it is 

evident that it is impossible for their 
longing to be gratified4 ,the conviction
 that this is a moral and rational      
universe compels us to believe that some
 time and somewhere those who suffer    
will escape from their pain1 that those 
who are burdened with the evil that has 
been inherited from past generations    
will rise above it1 and that the soul   
will be given an unhindered opportunity 
for growth and advancement4 ,the        
inequalities in the human condition     
almost compel us to believe that the    
death of the body cannot be the end of  
the spirit4  ,a little light on this    
subject comes from the faith of the     
world's greatest teachers4 ,as there    
are1 now and then1 those who see farther
 than others with the physical eye1 so  
there have been a few teachers who have 
been rightly called seers1 because their
 eyes have penetrated farther into the  
mysteries of the universe than have     
those of their fellow-men4 ,among the   
seers of the ages1 ,i think that the two

 whom all would recognize as being      
preminent are ,socrates and ,jesus--the 
one the finest flower of the            
intellectual development of ,greece1 and
 the other the consummation of the hopes
 and visions of the most spiritual      
people that the world has ever known4   
,both ,socrates and ,jesus believed in  
,god1 and both have taught the world1   
with no uncertain sound1 of their faith 
in immortal life4 ,the latter was       
clearly an axiom with ,jesus1 for ,he   
said to ,his disciples in effect1 ,if   
there had been any question about it ,i 
would have told you2 and almost with his
 last breath ,socrates compelled his    
disciples to think of him as immortal1  
for he told them that1 though his body  
might be buried anywhere1 he defied both
 friend and foe to catch his soul4      
,socrates and ,jesus represent the      
belief of the world's greatest seers4   
,the deep and abiding confidence of the 
teachers1 who increasingly command our  
admiration as the years go by1 is not to

 be entirely disregarded4 ,we may care  
little what those tell us who walk by   
our sides in the dark valleys or on the 
dusty plains2 but there are others who  
have climbed to the crests of the       
loftiest mountains1 and who have looked 
into a world of which we have only      
dreamed4 ,when they come down we listen 
because we know that they have had      
visions4 ,even so it is in our          
intellectual life4 ,a few men have risen
 above the common levels of humanity1 as
 the ,alps above the plains of          
,lombardy4 ,they have spoken concerning 
what they have seen4 ,they have had     
glimpses of ,god--the soul of the       
universe1 and of the persistence of     
individuals in the realm that lies      
beyond the grave4 ,i might not let my   
faith be determined by their testimony  
alone1 but when what they say is        
confirmed by many other voices speaking 
in the soul1 and sounding through the   
history of the world1 it is easy to     
believe that they have spoken of things 

which have been revealed to them4       
,another confirmation of our conviction 
of the reality of life after death may  
be stated as follows3 ,it is not        
possible for us to think of the heroes  
and singers of the ages as having less  
endurance than the words which they have
 uttered and the deeds which they have  
performed4 ,milton's and ,shakespeare's 
bodies have long been dead4 ,the great  
dramatist has recorded a dire curse on  
any one who should move his bones4 ,in  
the chancel of the ,church of the ,holy 
,trinity at ,stratford-on-,avon those   
bones are supposed to rest4 ,but the    
plays that ,shakespeare wrote are still 
the wonder of the world1 and the glory  
of the ,english race4 ,is it possible to
 believe that the man was less enduring 
than his work8 ,is it possible to       
believe that ,shakespeare's plays and   
,milton's epic will exist1 perhaps1 for 
a thousand years1 while the dramatist   
himself has utterly ceased to be8 ,you  
open a neglected drawer of your desk and

 come suddenly upon a letter written by 
a friend of half a century ago2 the     
paper is a little soiled1 but as firm as
 ever2 the ink is hardly faded2 the     
words are all clearly formed and full of
 inspiration2 and you hold that letter  
in your hand and ask yourself1 ,was the 
man who penned these lines less enduring
 than the paper on which he wrote1 or   
than the ink with which he wrote8 ,such 
questions are not arguments1 and yet    
they have the force of arguments4 ,it is
 not possible in our better moments to  
feel that the great and good1 by whom   
this world has been lifted to its       
present condition1 have gone entirely   
into nothingness4  ,it was said of our  
,lord1 ,it was not possible that such a 
man should be holden of death4 ,and it  
is not possible for us to believe1 in   
our inmost souls1 that those who become 
a part of our being1 whose love is of   
more value to us than our own lives1    
whose memory is the dearest treasure    
that we possess1 by some accident1 a    

taint in the food or the water1 can     
utterly pass from existence4 ,if it were
 possible to believe that1 then the most
 miserable creature on the earth would  
be man1 for he would know of his        
greatness1 and know also that his       
greatness is a mockery and a sham4 ,in  
hours of doubt1 let us lean hard upon   
the question1 ,is it possible that those
 with whom we have walked and worked1   
conversed and communed1 and by whom we  
have been helped and blessed1 should    
forever cease to be1 while the houses in
 which they live1 and the tools with    
which they labor1 will endure for       
generations8  ,the soul is full of      
prophecies4 ,only as there may be       
continuance of being can these          
prophecies have fulfillment4 ,the       
feeling of dependence1 the desires for  
friendship which are never satisfied1   
the powers of body and of mind which are
 capable of a development which they    
never receive on earth1 are prophecies  
of a life beyond death4 ,not the least  

among the reasons for our belief that   
death is not the end of the soul is the 
fact that the soul itself is a prophecy 
of its own immortality4  ,it is always  
best to believe the best4 ,this world   
and human life may be interpreted on the
 materialistic hypothesis2 then matter  
is all and death is the gloomy finale to
 the tragedy of existence4 ,or they may 
be interpreted according to the         
spiritual hypothesis2 then within the   
body dwells the spirit2 then the latter 
is but a tenant of the former4 ,if the  
house is destroyed the tenant goes      
elsewhere4 ,if we interpret the world1  
and human life1 according to the        
materialistic theory all the beauty and 
joy of existence on the earth will      
disappear4 ,we will then live for a     
little time2 and our loves1 our         
disciplines1 and our victories alike    
will be only delusions soon to be       
mercifully ended by death4 ,possibly    
that is true2 but1 if it is true1 then  
this universe is the embodiment of the  

most dismal1 desolate1 and diabolical   
thought that it is possible for a human 
being to conceive4 ,on the spiritual    
hypothesis all experiences are intended 
for the perfection of the soul4 ,bodily 
limitations1 physical sufferings1 animal
 solicitations1 may all be used so as to
 promote the development and perfection 
of the spirit4 ,when the body can do no 
more the soul will emerge purified and  
strengthened by contact with that which 
is physical4 ,it will then move from the
 narrow quarters in which it has dwelt  
into some larger and fairer room in the 
great palace of ,god4 ,once more1 ,i    
confess1 we cannot demonstrate the truth
 of this faith1 but it is always best   
for ourselves and for the world to      
believe the best4 ,with this faith human
 life is nobler1 and human effort more  
persistent and enduring than it would be
 without it4 ,at the end the finished   
product will be larger1 and more        
perfect1 if there is something to strive
 for than if hope is destroyed the      

moment that aspiration is born4 ,i      
should be willing to rest my faith in   
immortality upon this one argument4 ,a  
rational being should be satisfied only 
with a rational answer to his questions2
 a moral being should be satisfied only 
with a moral solution of his problems4  
,this universe is neither rational nor  
moral if the soul ceases to be at the   
death of the body4 ,on the other hand1  
if the soul passes into another and     
ampler sphere all the mysteries are     
explained1 and there is meaning even in 
the darkest passages of human           
experience4 ,all things work together   
for good to those who are willing to be 
led toward the higher things4  ,these   
are some of the reasons1 with which all 
thinking persons are familiar1 for      
believing that the soul continues its   
growth after the body has been laid     
aside4 ,evolution has opened a new vista
 in human thought4 ,there had been vague
 suggestions of it before1 but evolution
 has done much to confirm faith by its  

clear and strong testimony4 ,it         
prophesies the eternal growth of the    
spirit4 ,these prophecies are harmonious
 with those of the soul1 and with the   
positive teachings of the ,christian    
revelation4 ,this then is our           
conclusion3--in the process of time1 in 
accordance with natural law1 our bodies 
will be laid aside1 some in one way and 
some in another1 but the soul that has  
dwelt in these bodies will become free4 
,in ways of which we know not1 and of   
which it would be presumption to speak1 
its perfecting will be continued4 ,what 
teachers will take it in hand then is   
beyond our knowledge2 but we are        
confident that its individual existence 
will continue1 that its perfection will 
be along moral and spiritual lines1 that
 it will grow forever and forever in    
intelligence1 in love1 in the power of  
rational choice1 and into harmony with  
,him from whom it has come and whose    
glory will be its perfection4 ,to       
believe less would be to refuse to      

listen to the voices which speak within 
and the voices which speak without1--it 
would be to believe in an irrational and
 immoral universe rather than a rational
 and moral one4  ,our souls have a right
 to be heard1 and their prophecies have 
in them an element of certainty4 ,he who
 listens to the voices which speak      
within will never believe that the death
 of the body is the end of his personal 
being4 ,the suggestion of a state of    
existence from which sin1 sorrow1 and   
death shall be forever absent1 into     
which there shall enter nothing that    
maketh a lie1 and where sacrificial love
 is the everlasting light1 is the       
highest and most satisfying ideal for   
human life that has ever been spoken or 
imagined2 and that which completely     
satisfies the heart cannot at the same  
time be repudiated by the intellect4    
,let us1 therefore1 reverently confess  
that we believe in the life everlasting4
     ,,prayers ,,for ,,the ,,dead       
,thy voice is on the rolling air2       

,i hear thee where the waters run2      
,thou standest in the rising sun1       
,and in the setting thou art fair4      
,what art thou then8 ,i cannot guess2   
,but tho' ,i seem in star and flower    
,to feel thee some diffusive power1     
,i do not therefore love thee less3     
,my love involves the love before2      
,my love is vaster passion now2         
,tho' mixed with ,god and ,nature thou1 
,i seem to love thee more and more4     
,far off thou art1 but ever nigh2       
,i have thee still1 and ,i rejoice2     
,i prosper1 circled with thy voice2     
,i shall not lose thee tho' ,i die4     
--,in ,memoriam4 ,tennyson4     ,,xi    
,,prayers ,,for ,,the ,,dead   ,the     
wisest of men have little to guide them 
when they approach that mysterious realm
 from which no traveler has ever        
returned4 ,with humility and the        
consciousness that we must1 at the best1
 walk in the twilight1 ,i take up one of
 the most mysterious and fascinating of 
themes4 ,no one has any right to speak  

positively on such a subject1 and ,i    
shall not do so4 ,those who have the    
assurance of sight when they write about
 what lies beyond the grave are both to 
be envied and to be pitied1--envied     
because of their confidence1 pitied     
because they may be self-deceived4  ,let
 me make my exact purpose as plain as ,i
 can by an illustration4 ,a dear friend1
 one with whom you have associated for  
years1 enters the silent life4 ,the     
morning following1 as has long been your
 custom1 you offer your prayers to the  
,heavenly ,father1 and1 as usual1       
mention that friend by name4 ,suddenly  
you stop and say to yourself1 ,i can no 
more offer that petition1 for my friend 
is now beyond the need of my poor       
prayers4 ,then1 suddenly and swiftly1   
come the questions1 ,although my friend 
is called dead is he any less alive than
 when he was in the body8 ,will not all 
that constituted his personality        
continue to grow in the future as in the
 past8 ,does the death of the body do   

anything more than change the mode of   
the spirit's existence8 ,and the result 
is that you say to yourself1 ,i will    
continue to pray for my friend1 for1 if 
he is alive now1 every reason which led 
to prayers before his death justifies   
their continuance4  ,from more than one 
person ,i have heard words similar to   
these which ,i have put into this       
hypothetical form2 and because of these 
expressions of sane and sacred          
experience ,i am led to ask my readers  
to follow me in the consideration of a  
subject which is seldom mentioned1      
except with incredulity1 by most        
,protestants4  ,no one who may not      
appreciate the importance of this       
subject should be either troubled or    
heedless4 ,we learn our lessons         
concerning the profounder mysteries     
simply by living4 ,no one can be blamed 
for not appreciating what he is not yet1
 either intellectually or spiritually1  
ready to receive4 ,providence takes good
 care of us4 ,when we are prepared for  

the reception of any truth it usually   
finds us4  ,this subject has been       
regarded with suspicion by two classes  
of thinkers3 ,protestants who have      
revolted from the extent to which       
praying for the dead has been carried in
 the ,roman ,catholic ,church1 and the  
much smaller number who hold what they  
delight in affirming is the true        
theology1 and who have insisted that    
when men die their state is irrevocably 
and forever fixed1 the good going at    
once into the perfect bliss of heaven   
and the wicked into the suffering of    
hell4  ,it will be more profitable for  
us to deal with the positive side of our
 subject than to attempt to clear away  
misconceptions and half truths4  ,what  
is meant by prayers for the dead8       
,exactly the same as prayers for those  
in the body4 ,when the body dies the    
soul1 or the essential man1 is not      
touched by death4 ,the personality is   
that which thinks1 chooses1 lives4 ,your
 mother is not the form on which your   

eyes rested1 or the arms which encircled
 you1 but the thought1 the devotion1 the
 affection concealed1 yet revealed1 by  
the body1 and which use it for their    
instrument4 ,in reality we never saw our
 dearest friends2 what we saw was color1
 form1 but never the spirit4 ,that is   
disclosed through the body1 but is not  
identified with it4 ,now just as we have
 prayed for a mother1 or a child1 or a  
friend whose physical form is familiar1 
but whose personality we have seen only 
in its revelations1 so we continue to   
pray for that loved one which we do not 
see any more1 or any less1 after what is
 called death4  ,in other words1 instead
 of thinking of any as dead1 we think of
 all as alive1 although many of them are
 in the unseen sphere4 ,love and        
sympathy have never been dependent on   
the body except for expression1 and     
there is no evidence that they ever will
 be4 ,sympathy and affection1 thought   
and will1 are matters of spirit2 and why
 may not spirit feel for spirit and     

minister to spirit1 when the body is    
laid aside8 ,your hands1 your feet1 your
 lips did not pray for your child2 your 
spirit prayed for his spirit1 and now   
that his body is laid aside1 like a     
worn-out garment1 you may keep on doing 
just what you did before4 ,this is what 
is meant by prayers for the dead4  ,i am
 well aware that it may seem to some    
that these statements rest largely on   
assumptions1 but they are not baseless  
assumptions4 ,one other assumption must 
be made before we can proceed in our    
study1 and that one is the truthfulness 
of the ,christian teaching that death is
 not cessation of being1 but only the   
decay of the bodily organism4  ,how may 
prayers for the dead be justified8 ,are 
they taught as a duty in the            
,scriptures8 ,the privilege rests not so
 much on particular exhortations as upon
 the whole ,christian teaching          
concerning immortality4 ,god is the ,god
 of the living4 ,bishop ,pearson in his 
exposition of the ,apostles' ,creed has 

an impressive passage1 which ,i quote3  
,the communion of saints in the ,church 
of ,christ with those who are departed  
is demonstrated by their communion with 
the saints alive4 ,for if ,i have a     
communion with a saint of ,god1 as such1
 while he liveth here1 ,i must still    
have communion with him when he is      
departed hence2 because the foundation  
of that communion cannot be removed by  
death4 ,the mystical union between      
,christ and ,his ,church 444 is the true
 foundation of that communion4444 ,but  
death1 which is nothing else but the    
separation of the soul from the body1   
maketh no separation in the mystical    
union1 no breach of the spiritual       
conjunction1 and consequently there must
 be the same communion1 because there   
remaineth the same foundation4#i        
,footnote #i3 ,quoted in ,welldon's     
,hope of ,immortality1 page #ccb4       
,jesus taught that death is but a change
 of the form of existence4 ,on the      
,mount of ,transfiguration ,moses and   

,elijah appeared alive1 and as          
interested in human affairs4 ,if death  
is not cessation of being1 but only a   
change in the form of its manifestation1
 why should we think that human sympathy
 ends when breathing ceases1 and why    
should we conclude that mutual service  
may be rendered impossible by a snake's 
bite or a falling tile4 ,tennyson in ,in
 ,memoriam gives the ,christian doctrine
 exquisite expression1      ,eternal    
form shall still divide     ,the eternal
 soul from all beside2     ,and ,i shall
 know him when we meet4  ,jesus teaches 
the reality of immortality ,he          
represents those gone from us as not    
dead but as still living and still      
interested in human affairs4 ,if ,his   
teaching is true1 is it not as          
reasonable to try to serve those of our 
loved ones who are out of the body as   
those who are in the body8 ,so far as we
 can see1 the only way in which we can  
serve them is by prayer1 although they  
may1 possibly1 minister to us in other  

ways4  ,if immortal existence means the 
possibility of unceasing growth1 then   
every reason which prompts prayer for   
those who are bodily present remains a  
motive when they have entered the state 
which is purely spiritual4  ,but what   
efficacy will prayers for the dead have8
 ,my answer is two-fold4 ,all the       
efficacy that prayer ever has4 ,if death
 is relative only to a single state of  
existence1 and if those whom we call    
dead are living1 and still free agents1 
then they may still choose good and     
evil1 and they may still grow toward    
virtue4 ,choice always implies a        
possibility of freedom2 and freedom is a
 necessity when there is moral          
responsibility4 ,if prayer helps any    
one1 why not those who have passed from 
our sight8 ,surely we must believe them 
still to possess the power of choice    
and1 therefore1 that of choosing evil as
 well as good4  ,you ask why pray at    
all4 ,my answer is simple and free from 
all attempts at casuistry3 simply       

because we must4 ,prayer is not so much 
a ,christian doctrine as a human        
necessity4 ,it is as natural as         
breathing4 ,by prayer ,i mean not only  
spoken petitions but1 equally1 the      
longing and pleading of the soul1 either
 blindly or intelligently1 for things   
which are beyond our reach1 and which   
only a higher ,power can provide4 ,those
 longings may have formal expression1   
and they may not4 ,prayer so far as it  
is petition is the soul pleading with   
the ,unseen for what it deeply desires4 
,i do not suppose that ,god needs light 
from any mortal man1 but all men do need
 many things from ,him1 and1 as         
naturally as children present their     
desires to earthly parents1 even though 
they know them to be already favorable1 
we go with our deeper needs to our      
,heavenly ,father4  ,much time has been 
wasted in trying to formulate a rational
 basis for prayer4 ,when a child in the 
smaller family no longer asks his father
 to accede to his wishes1 when he no    

more pleads with his father for his     
brother or his sister1 then it will be  
time enough to inquire if1 in the larger
 family which we call humanity1 we may  
do without prayer4 ,until then let us   
believe1      ,more things are wrought  
by prayer     ,than this world dreams   
of4  ,leaving now the apologetic side of
 the subject1 which is alluring1 we     
observe one evident blessing which      
always attends praying for the dead4 ,it
 keeps ever before our minds the thought
 that they are actually alive4 ,it makes
 the doctrine of the communion of saints
 a sacred reality4 ,if ,i may in this   
essay be allowed to assume a hortatory  
tone ,i will say1 if you have been in   
the habit of praying for your friend1 do
 not give it up simply because he has   
ceased to breathe4 ,as regularly as ever
 continue to pray for him1 and he will  
be to you more than a memory4 ,what     
would have been but an occasional       
remembrance will then be a daily        
communion2 and what would have been only

 formal praying to ,god will be an hour1
 or a moment1 of association with those 
who will grow nearer and dearer1 and not
 farther and vaguer1 with the passing   
years4 ,the hour of devotion will thus  
be hallowed1 because it will be a holy  
tryst with absent friends1 as well as a 
time for making our requests known to   
our ,heavenly ,father4 ,who can         
exaggerate the delight and benefit of   
such an exercise8 ,what sources of      
strength are to be found in spiritual   
association with our beloved6 ,if we are
 thus helped why should we presume that 
they may not also1 by such sweet hours1 
be strengthened for their duties8 ,i    
know this may seem fanciful4 ,i ask no  
one to follow me who is not ready to do 
so4 ,i do not speak dogmatically1 but   
with great earnestness1 when ,i say that
 prayer for our beloved after they are  
gone is a privilege and a help--,i would
 fain believe both to them and to us4   
,but it may be objected that the moral  
state of men is fixed at death1 and that

 nothing that we or they can do can     
influence it by a hair's breadth4 ,that 
this has been a popular opinion is true2
 and it is equally true that many have  
supposed that all who have had faith on 
the earth are in bliss2 and that all who
 have been without faith are in misery2 
and that the beatitude of all the good  
is equal and alike1 and that the misery 
of all unbelievers is the same4  ,such  
inferences1 though held by many for     
whose scholarship and character ,i have 
profound reverence1 seem to me to be    
contrary to ,scripture1 to the analogies
 of nature1 and to the moral sense4     
,such a theory is contrary to ,christian
 ,scriptures2 for the parable of the    
talents shows that some will have       
greater and some lesser reward2 and the 
parable of ,dives and ,lazarus has      
relation only to ,hades1 or to the state
 which in the thought of that time      
intervened between death and the        
judgment4  ,this theory is contrary to  
the analogies of life on earth4 ,here   

change indicates not a finality but a   
new opportunity4 ,every crisis of life  
is an opening into a newer and larger   
world4 ,why should we say that what we  
call death1 alone of all the changes    
through which we pass1 leads to that    
which is unchangeable8  ,the theory is  
contrary to the moral sense of all      
earnest souls4 ,who does not have to    
compel himself to believe1 and that with
 difficulty1 that death determines      
forever the fate of all1 and that there 
is neither possibility of progress nor  
of going backward after the body is laid
 aside8  ,let me quote a noble passage  
from ,bishop ,welldon3 ,but if a variety
 of destinies in the unseen world1      
whether of happiness or of suffering1 is
 reserved for mankind1 and yet more1 if 
the principle of that world is not      
inactivity but energy or character or   
life1 it is reasonable to believe that  
the souls which enter upon the future   
state with the taint of sin clinging to 
them1 in whatever form or degree1 will  

be slowly cleansed by a disciplinary or 
purifactory process from whatever it is 
that1 being evil in itself1 necessarily 
obstructs or obscures the vision of     
,god4 ,he continues1 ,and this is the   
benediction of human nature1 to feel    
that1 as souls upon earth are fortified 
and elevated by the prayers offered for 
them in the unseen world1 so too by our 
prayers may the souls which have passed 
behind the veil be lifted higher and    
higher into the knowledge and           
contemplation and fruition of ,god4#aj  
,footnote #aj3 ,the ,hope of            
,immortality1 page #ccg4  ,we do not    
know that death forever determines the  
condition of the soul4 ,on the other    
hand1 as ,i grow older1 the idea seems  
to me to be opposed to ,scripture1 to   
the analogies of nature and history1 to 
reason1 and to the universal moral      
sense4  ,if any one should object to    
prayers for the dead because the        
privilege and duty seem so distinctively
 a doctrine of the ,roman ,catholic     

,church1 my only reply is that we should
 never ask who are the advocates of any 
teaching1 but1 only1 is it true8 ,each  
branch of the church emphasizes some    
phase of truth4 ,the ,roman ,church has 
given more prominence to prayers for the
 dead than ,protestants1 and because of 
that it will have the gratitude of many 
honest souls who cannot believe that    
they are entirely and forever severed   
from those whom they have loved and     
still love4  ,i am well aware that there
 are many difficult questions concerning
 this subject which it is impossible for
 me to answer4 ,some truths are clearly 
revealed and of others we have only     
glimpses4 ,concerning some we feel more 
than we know1 and feelings which are not
 selfish are prophetic4 ,what an earnest
 and inquiring spirit feels must be true
 is quite as likely to be found true as 
conclusions which seem to have been     
reached by a process of faultless logic4
  ,i fully believe that we are justified
 in praying for those who have departed 

this life1 that the good may grow       
better1 that the clouds which obscure   
the vision of the unbelieving may be    
removed1 that all taints of animalism   
may be washed away2 and that we should  
pray even for the wicked1 that the      
disciplinary processes through which    
they are passing may some time and      
somehow lead them to submit their wills 
to the love and truth of ,god4 ,we may  
pray for our loved ones1 not simply by  
way of asking something for them1 but in
 order that there may be a meeting      
place1--a time for communion and        
fellowship between those here and those 
beyond the veil4 ,that meeting place    
must be found in our common approach to 
,god4  ,does this teaching seem mystical
 and fanciful8 ,what if it does8 ,it is 
in line with the human heart's deepest  
desires1 and with the soul's immortal   
aspirations4 ,what they most earnestly  
affirm in their hours of deepest need1  
and highest illumination1 cannot be     
altogether without foundation in reason 

and in the ,scriptures4  ,the unity of  
life cannot be too strongly emphasized4 
,life is one4 ,it is all under the eye  
and in the strength of ,god4 ,it has to 
do with spirit2 death1 if there is any  
such thing1 has to do with matter4      
,spirits always grow because they always
 live4 ,the universe is not composed of 
two hemispheres1 in the upper one of    
which are to be gathered all the good   
and in the lower all the evil4 ,it is   
saner and better to believe that the    
universe is a sphere in which1 in their 
own places1 are all the spirits of men1 
some beautiful with the holiness of     
,god2 some only beginning to rise toward
 ,him1 like seed that has broken the    
soil and begun to move toward the light2
 and still others like seed whose       
possibilities are all hidden1 but which 
are not destroyed and which some day    
also will hear the divine call1 feel the
 touch of ,god's light1 and begin to    
move toward ,him4  ,we live in the midst
 of mystery4 ,in the future we shall    

probably find that our best attempts at 
rational answers to many questions have 
gone wide of the mark4 ,the most that   
any of us can do is to be true to       
ourselves1 and to respond to every call 
from above4 ,in the midst of the gloom  
of mortal existence it is safe to follow
 our hearts4  ,we long to commune with  
those who have gone1 to help them and to
 be helped by them4 ,this longing is    
natural and rational4 ,that it is not   
without reason is proved by the example 
of our ,master1 who1 after ,his death1  
is represented as ministering to those  
whom ,he loved1 and who1 we are told1   
ever liveth to make intercession for us4
  ,what our hearts desire1 what         
harmonizes with reason1 what is         
confirmed by the revelations and example
 of our divine ,teacher1 will persuade  
none far from the path which leads to   
light and felicity4  ,those whom men    
call dead1 it is best to believe1 have  
but entered upon another phase of the   
eternal life of the spirit4  ,the ,roman

 ,church has an act or service called   
,the ,culture of the ,dead4 ,it means   
the practice of the presence of those   
who1 though gone from us1 in spirit are 
with us4 ,the ,creed has an article     
which reads1 ,i believe in the communion
 of saints4 ,the ,christian year has one
 day called ,all ,saints' ,day4 ,we     
shall not be far from the traditions of 
the church when we pray for our beloved1
 whether they be in the body or out of  
the body4  ,those who would realize the 
beatitude of this privilege should      
remember the truth in this stanza from  
,in ,memoriam3      ,how pure at heart  
and sound in head1        ,with what    
,divine affections bold1        ,should 
be the man whose thought would hold     
,an hour's communion with the dead4     
,,the ,,goal       ,but ,thee1 but      
,thee1 ,o ,sovereign ,seer of time1     
,but ,thee1 ,o poet's ,poet1 ,wisdom's  
,tongue1     ,but ,thee1 ,o man's best  
,man1 ,o love's best ,love1     ,o      
perfect life in perfect labor writ1     

,o all men's ,comrade1 ,servant1 ,king1 
or ,priest1--     ,what if or yet1 what 
mole1 what flaw1 what lapse1     ,what  
least defect or shadow of defect1       
,what rumor1 tattled by an enemy1       
,of inference loose1 what lack of grace 
,even in torture's grasp1 or sleep's1 or
 death's1--     ,oh1 what amiss may ,i  
forgive in ,thee1     ,jesus1 good      
,paragon1 thou ,crystal ,christ8        
--,the ,crystal4 ,sidney ,lanier4       
,,xii  ,,the ,,goal   ,if the cosmic    
process in the physical sphere          
culminated with the appearance of man1  
and if1 since that culmination1 its     
movement has been toward the perfection 
of the soul1 it is fit and proper that  
this book should end with a study of the
 goal toward which the human spirit is  
pressing4 ,is it possible for us1 with  
our limitations1 to have an adequate    
conception of the man that is to be when
 the times are ripe and the crowning    
race walks this earth of ours8--or1 if  
not this earth1 at least1 dwells in the 

spiritual city8 ,the fascination of this
 subject has been widely recognized4    
,the answer must be secured from many   
sources4 ,only in imagination can we    
follow the lines along which the spirit 
will move in the far-off ages1 and yet  
our conclusions will not be wholly      
imaginative1 for the direction in which 
those lines are tending is clearly      
perceived4 ,under the circumstances1    
therefore1 imagination may not be an    
untrustworthy guide4 ,we are now to deal
 with prophecies1 some of them easy and 
some of them difficult to read4 ,but    
reading prophecies is not prophesying4  
,i shall not prophesy1 but rather       
endeavor to understand and to interpret 
a few of the many voices which have     
spoken1 and are speaking1 on this       
subject4  ,the soul is itself a         
prediction of what it is to be4 ,it     
utters a various language4  ,the growth 
of intelligence is prophetic4 ,savage   
tribes suggest the original condition of
 primitive man4 ,the pigmies in ,africa 

afford hints of ,adam and ,eve1 ,cain   
and ,abel4 ,from such as they1 and from 
lower types still1 the race has slowly  
and painfully risen4 ,in them a certain 
rude intelligence appears4 ,they have   
cunning rather than reason4 ,they are   
half akin to brute and half akin to man4
 ,a kind of selfish intelligence        
characterizes their thinking4 ,they lack
 a sense of proportion and relation4    
,before the ant a man looms as large as 
a mountain before us4 ,an insect does   
not see things as they are but as they  
seem to it4 ,growth in intelligence     
necessitates a truer appreciation of    
proportions and relations4 ,the pigmy   
also sees little but himself1 but years 
and experience leave behind them wisdom4
 ,the civilized races have all risen    
from barbarism and savagery--that is1   
from a state of imperfect thinking as   
well as of imperfect loving and         
choosing4 ,experience and culture bring 
larger knowledge and a more equable     
balance of the faculties4 ,no man should

 be measured by his achievement in any  
one field of endeavor4 ,he may paint    
like ,titian and be as voluptuous2 he   
may write tragedies like ,shakespeare   
and have no logic2 he may be a gatherer 
of facts like ,darwin and have no power 
of philosophic analysis4 ,the intellect 
grows steadily toward perfection of     
vision and logical strength1 and also   
and quite as significantly1 toward      
harmony in the development of all the   
powers of thought4  ,the contrast       
between the selfish cunning of an       
,african pigmy and the large and noble  
minds which are steadily multiplying1 is
 a prophecy of the man who will dwell on
 this earth when the vision is clear and
 the power of rational judgment is      
perfected4  ,the prophecy of the soul is
 not less evident in the emotional      
nature4 ,at first the soul is either so 
imperfect1 or so limited by the body1   
that it seems to be nothing but a       
creature of emotions4 ,it loves1 but its
 affections are selfish and egotistic4  

,what may be called the epochs in its   
growth are finely treated by ,coleridge 
in ,the ,ancient ,mariner and by        
,tennyson in ,in ,memoriam4 ,the        
,ancient ,mariner felt only selfish     
affection4 ,he had no love for being as 
being4 ,he killed the albatross with as 
little heed as he disregarded his       
fellow-men2 but the ministries of his   
misery were multiplied until1 at length1
 he was able to see something beautiful 
even in the writhing green sea-serpents 
that followed the ship of death on which
 he sailed4 ,that was the first sign of 
the larger interest which had long been 
growing within him1 and which was to    
continue to grow until he could say1    
,he prayeth best who loveth best        
,all things both great and small4  ,in  
,memoriam is the record of the expansion
 of a soul through its increase in love4
 ,at the beginning of his grief the poet
 sings1 dolefully and hopelessly1       
through his tears1      ,he is not here2
 but far away        ,the noise of life 

begins again1        ,and ghastly thro' 
the drizzling rain     ,on the bald     
street breaks the blank day4  ,but the  
soul is growing secretly and surely as  
wheat grows in winter4 ,the ,christmas  
bells ring out their music and at first 
are almost hated1 but they break through
 the shell of sorrow and let in a faint 
echo of the world's great suffering and 
the world's great joy4 ,thus human      
sympathy is enlarged just a bit4 ,in    
successive years the music of the       
,christmas bells is heard more          
distinctly1 the sorrow of the world     
becomes more audible1 sympathy reaches  
farther4 ,at last the poem which began  
with a miserere ends with a marriage1   
and he who could at first write that    
dreary line1      ,on the bald street   
breaks the blank day  testifies to the  
beneficence of the path in which he had 
been led in this wise and beautiful     
stanza1      ,regret is dead1 but love  
is more        ,than in the summers that
 have flown1        ,for ,i myself with 

these have grown     ,to something      
greater than before4  ,from dwelling in 
a prison with grief as a jailer he has  
caught a vision of the1      ,one far   
off divine event     ,to which the whole
 creation moves4  ,this expansion of the
 soul is not difficult to follow4       
,traces of it may be seen in the        
enlarged sympathy1 the growing          
brotherhood1 and in the rapidly         
increasing conviction that even         
nationalities are only temporary        
expedients for bringing the day when    
love shall be the universal law4 ,the   
charities and philanthropies which are  
blossoming in every city and country    
district1 the consciousness of          
responsibility for the poor and weak1   
the angel songs which are heard in the  
midst of battle1 and the gradual        
disappearance of war1 are all vague but 
true prophecies of what the soul will be
 when love is perfected4 ,the knowledge 
of past progress is an inspiration1 and 
the imagination of what will be a       

glorious hope4  ,a single clause in the 
,apocalypse has long seemed to me as    
fine a statement of the condition which 
will prevail1 when this prophecy is a   
reality1 as could be phrased1--,the     
,lamb is the light thereof4 ,light is   
the medium in which objects are visible1
 and the ,lamb is the symbol of         
sacrificial love4 ,the great dreamer1 in
 his vision1 beheld a time when spirits 
would see in sacrificial love as now we 
see physical objects in the medium of   
light4 ,to those who have studied the   
expansion of individual souls1 and who  
then have contrasted the selfishness of 
earlier social conditions with the love 
of men as it is revealed in the laws1   
institutions1 ministries of to-day1 this
 dream of the ,apostle rises in the     
distance as a new continent to a voyager
 over the wide and desolate ocean4      
,equally prophetic is the advance which 
has been made from the passion of savage
 barbarism1 or infantile wilfulness1 to 
the moral reason of the present day as  

seen in the highest types of humanity in
 civilized lands4 ,wilfulness           
characterizes the childish nature and   
passion the savage nature4 ,but with the
 growth of the soul choices are         
differentiated from impulses1 and more  
and more regularly are inspired by      
intelligence and unselfish affection4   
,this progress toward intelligent and   
unselfish choice distinguishes the      
movement toward civilization4 ,here1    
again1 the advance made by the          
individual soul and by the race are     
equally prophetic4 ,with the years the  
choices become more rational and loving4
 ,time mellows all men somewhat1 and    
forces a little wisdom into the hardest 
heads4 ,even slight growth prophesies   
that which shall be swifter when        
conditions are more favorable4  ,the    
soul is a prediction of clearer vision1 
truer thought1 more unselfish love and  
wiser choices4 ,it is a prophecy of the 
perfect man4  ,history is also prophetic
 of larger souls4 ,the stream of human  

history1 after it has been followed     
backward a few thousand years1 leads    
into the region of legend and myth--that
 is1 to a time when history could not be
 written because there was no writing1  
and when all truth was conveyed in      
symbolical forms4 ,that means toward a  
time of narrow experience1 and of       
knowledge far more limited than the     
present4 ,memory1 in those days1 was    
enormously and abnormally capacious and 
retentive1 but there was no appreciation
 of humanity4 ,few lessons from the     
experiences of others were possible1    
because the mind was filled with merely 
tribal legends4 ,what was called early  
civilization was only relatively        
splendid4 ,there was unsurpassed poetry 
but no science1 ample brawn but         
diminutive brain1 much passion but      
little love4 ,out of the darkness of the
 past the stream of history1 very narrow
 and shallow at first1 has emerged and  
steadily expanded and deepened4 ,men are
 now equally intense but far clearer in 

vision1 nobler in purpose1 and purer in 
character4 ,their laws year by year have
 become more humane1 their sympathies   
less contracted1 their institutions more
 civilized4 ,nature's secret drawers    
have been unlocked4 ,we are sometimes   
told that science has added much to the 
store of man's knowledge but nothing to 
the strength of his mind or the nobility
 of his character4 ,that is a serious   
mistake4 ,with the enlarged visions of  
the universe1 with clearer conceptions  
of our cosmic relations1 with the       
national neighborliness which is now a  
necessity1 the capacity and the quality 
of the soul must change4 ,nay1 it has   
already changed1 for we inhabit the same
 lands over which savages formerly      
roamed1 and we find in the earth and air
 what they never found2 and when we look
 up into the great wide sky and say1    
,the ,heavens declare the glory of ,god1
 we are not thinking of a tribal ,deity1
 or a partial1 and more or less         
passionate1 monarch enthroned in the    

midst of his splendors1 but of the ,king
 ,eternal1 immortal1 invisible4         
,knowledge tends to enlarge the mind by 
which it is acquired4 ,all faculties are
 strengthened by use4  ,history has     
moved along a bloody pathway1 or1 to    
revert to the figure of a stream1 is    
indeed a river of tears and blood4 ,the 
horrors of the process by which the race
 has been lifted can hardly be          
exaggerated4 ,i do not forget them while
 ,i put stronger emphasis on the fact   
that the outcome of all the struggle of 
individuals1 the conflict of classes1   
and the wars of nations has been a      
nobler and purer quality of soul1--not  
less heroic but more sacrificial1 not   
less strong but far more virtuous4  ,the
 growth of the individual soul is       
mirrored in the progress of the race4   
,when we have learned to read aright the
 history of the world1 we are informed  
as to the interior forces which have    
made civilization4 ,events are          
expressions of thoughts2 institutions   

are manifestations of soul4 ,if there   
has been progress in institutions there 
must have been an equal progress in the 
souls which are the real forces by which
 progress is always won4 ,as history has
 been the evolution of humanity toward  
finer forms1 so it is the assurance that
 the forces which have been at work in  
the past will not cease1 but steadily   
continue until the pile is complete4    
,the perfect society will be composed of
 perfected individuals4 ,history as     
prophecy is harmonious with soul as     
prophecy4  ,the future state of the soul
 has been the subject of rare           
fascination for the world's great       
thinkers4 ,nearly all religions have a  
forward look4 ,the ,golden ,age lies far
 in the distance1 but it has commanded  
the faith of all the seers4 ,it has     
sometimes been a dream concerning       
individuals1 and again a vision of the  
perfected society1 but in reality the   
two are one1 for the social organism is 
but a congeries of individuals4 ,bacon  

dreamed of ,new ,atlantis1 ,sir ,thomas 
,more saw the fair walls of ,utopia     
rising in the future1 ,plato defined the
 boundaries of the ideal ,republic1     
,augustine wrote of the glories of the  
,civitate ,dei1 and ,tennyson with      
matchless music has sung of the crowning
 race3--      ,ring out old shapes of   
foul disease2       ,ring out the       
narrowing lust of gold2       ,ring out 
the thousand wars of old1     ,ring in  
the thousand years of peace4      ,ring 
in the valiant man and free1       ,the 
larger heart1 the kindlier hand2        
,ring out the darkness of the land1     
,ring in the ,christ that is to be4     
,the common characteristic of these     
social ideals is their dependence on the
 culture of individuals4 ,with the      
incoming of the valiant man and free1   
the man of larger heart and kindlier    
hand1 there is a reasonable hope that   
the darkness of the land will disappear4
  ,with that deep look into the inmost  
secrets of human experience which sounds

 strangely autobiographical1 ,browning  
wrote in ,rabbi ,ben ,ezra1             
,praise be thine6       ,i see the whole
 design1     ,i1 who saw power1 see love
 now perfect too2       ,perfect ,i call
 thy plan2       ,thanks that ,i was a  
man6     ,maker1 remake1 complete1--,i  
trust what ,thou shalt do6              
,therefore ,i summon age       ,to grant
 youth's heritage1     ,life's struggle 
having so far reached its term2         
,thence shall ,i pass1 approved       ,a
 man1 for aye removed     ,from the     
developed brute2 a god though in the    
germ4  ,those last lines condense       
,browning's creed concerning man4 ,he is
 for aye removed from the developed     
brute1 and is a god in the germ4        
,browning holds that while in the future
 there will surely be expansion of soul1
 evolution as a physical process is at  
an end4 ,henceforward there will be no  
passing from one species to another4    
,species have to do with physical       
organisms1 not with spirits4 ,soul in   

man is but ,god in the germ4  ,emerson  
and ,matthew ,arnold have written much  
about education4 ,the one foretells a   
day when the soul1 after mounting and   
meliorating1 finds that even the hells  
are turned into benefit2 and the other  
makes his own the thought of ,bishop    
,wilson that culture is a study of      
perfection1 and that the soul must ever 
seek increased life1 increased light1   
and increased power4  ,education is the 
word of the hour and of the century4 ,it
 is believed to be the panacea for all  
ills1 individual and social4 ,but1      
precisely1 what does this passion for   
education signify if not that1 either   
intelligently or otherwise1 all believe 
in the perfectibility of the soul1 and  
that it will have all the time that it  
needs for the process4 ,the absorbing   
devotion to intellectual training       
suggests the inquiry as to whether many 
who affirm that they are agnostic       
concerning immortality are not in       
reality earnest in their faith2 for why 

should they seek the culture of that    
which fades1 as the flowers fade2 when  
it approaches life's winter8 ,but1      
whether faith in continuance of being is
 firm or frail1 few doubt the           
perfectibility of spirit1 because1      
beyond almost all things1 they are      
seeking its perfection4 ,literature1    
which is but the thoughts of the great  
souls of successive periods recorded1   
prophesies a day when all that hinders  
or taints shall be done away1 and when  
the divine in the germ shall have grown 
to large and fair proportions4 ,if there
 were no other light the outlook would  
still be inspiring4 ,it is well         
sometimes to ask ourselves what we were 
made to be--not these bodies which are  
clearly decaying--but these spirits     
which seem to grow younger with the     
passage of time4 ,i have sometimes      
thought that the very idea of second    
childhood is itself a prophecy of the   
soul's eternal youth4 ,certain it is    
that we are the masters of the years4   

,the oldest persons that we know are    
usually the youngest in their sympathies
 and ideals4 ,sorrow and opposition     
should not destroy1 but only strengthen 
the spiritual powers4 ,intelligence     
grows from more to more4 ,the sure      
reward of love is the capacity and      
opportunity for larger love4 ,virtuous  
choices gradually become the law of     
liberty4 ,these facts are index fingers 
pointing toward large and loving1       
strenuous and sympathetic manhood4 ,and 
toward such human types1 as a matter of 
fact1 the race has been moving4 ,the    
expectation of the seers and prophets1  
also1 has been of a golden age in which 
all souls will have had time1 and       
opportunity1 of reaching the far-off but
 splendid goal4 ,believing1 as we do1   
that death is never a finality1 but that
 it is only an incident in progress2    
that instead of being an end it is only 
freedom from limitation1 we find        
ourselves often vaguely1 but ever       
eagerly1 asking1 ,to what are all these 

souls tending8 ,toward a state glorious 
beyond language to utter we deeply feel4
 ,but has no clearer voice spoken8 ,at  
last we have reached the end of our     
inquiry4 ,if any other voices speak they
 must sound from above4 ,we stand by the
 unseen like children by the ocean's    
shore4 ,they know that beyond the storms
 and waves lie fair and wealthy lands1  
but the waters separate and their eyes  
are weak4 ,so we stand before the       
future1 and ask1 ,toward what goal are  
all this education1 experience and      
discipline tending8 ,are they perfecting
 souls which at last are to be laid away
 with the bodies which were fortunate   
enough to win an earlier death8 ,it     
would be impiety to believe that4 ,then 
indeed should we be put to permanent    
intellectual confusion4 ,if all the     
voices of the soul are mockeries1 then  
life is worse than a mistake--it is a   
crime4  ,the solution of the mystery is 
now before us4 ,the man that is to be   
has walked this earth1 and wrought with 

human hands1 and lived and labored and  
loved1 and passed into the silent land4 
,is ,jesus the unique revelation of the 
divine8 ,there may be many to question  
that1 but there are few1 indeed1 who    
doubt that ,he embodied all of the      
perfect humanity which could be         
expressed within the limitations of the 
body4 ,he represented ,himself as       
essential truth and very life4 ,he      
condensed duty into such love as ,he    
manifested toward men4 ,he embodied the 
heroism of meekness1 the courage of     
self-sacrifice1 the vision of goodness4 
,he was an example of all that is       
strong1 serene1 sacrificial1 in the     
midst of the lowest and most            
unresponsive conditions4 ,so much we    
see1 and the rest we dimly1 but surely1 
feel4  ,it was reserved for ,paul1 in a 
moment of inspiration1 to put into a    
single phrase a description of the goal 
of the human spirit1 as something which 
may be forever approached but never     
reached1 in these words1 ,till we all   

attain unto the measure of the stature  
of the fullness of ,christ4 ,the        
fullness of ,christ6 ,that is the soul's
 final destiny4 ,it was the far call of 
that goal which it faintly heard at its 
first awakening and which has never     
entirely ceased to sound in his ears4   
,who shall explore the contents of that 
great phrase8 ,it is a subject for      
meditation1 for prayer1 but never for   
discussion4 ,he who approaches it in a  
controversial spirit never understands  
it4 ,what are the qualities of the      
character of ,christ8 ,some of them lie 
on the surface of the story4 ,he never  
doubted ,god1 or1 if so1 but for a      
single moment2 ,he was unselfish2 ,he   
lived to love and to express love2 ,he  
had some mysterious preternatural power 
over nature--such1 perhaps1 as science  
is approaching in later times2 kindness1
 sympathy1 helpfulness1 purity1 shone   
from ,his words and actions4 ,he        
declared that the privilege of dying to 
save those who despised ,him was a joy4 

,he lived in the limitations of the     
human condition and1 therefore1 on the  
earth only hints of ,his fullness are   
discernible4 ,the full revelation is to 
be the endless study of those who are   
able to see and to appreciate things as 
they are4 ,but we may ask ourselves     
whither these lines tend4 ,when the     
intelligence1 the love1 the compassion1 
the mercy1 the purity1 the moral power  
and spiritual grandeur which only in dim
 outline are revealed in the ,christ1   
have perfect manifestations1 what will  
the vision be8 ,the very thought        
transcends the farthest flights of the  
poet's imagination and the most daring  
speculations of philosophers4 ,in the   
fullness of ,christ is the soul's true  
goal4 ,for that all men1 and not the    
elect few1 were created4 ,that is the   
revelation of the divine plan for       
humanity4 ,toward that evolution has    
been slowly1 and often painfully1       
pressing from those dim ons when the    
earth was without form and void4 ,when  

man appeared as the flower of all the   
cosmic process he started at once toward
 this goal4 ,and with great modesty1 and
 simply because ,i believe in ,god and  
that ,his love cannot be defeated1 ,i   
dare to hope that1 sometime and somehow1
 after all the pains of retribution and 
moral discipline have done their        
inevitable work1 after all the fires of 
,gehenna have consumed the desire to    
sin1 after ,hades and ,purgatory have   
been passed1 the souls which1 for a     
time1 have dwelt in these mortal bodies1
 purified and without spot or wrinkle or
 any such thing1 will be given the      
beatific vision and permitted to realize
 the height and depth1 the length and   
breadth of the fullness of ,christ4     
,that one ,face1 far from vanish1 rather
 grows1     ,or decomposes but to       
recompose1     ,become my universe that 
feels and knows4     ,,index            
,achilles1 #gd4  ,acton1 #hb4  ,adam's  
fall1 #adb4  ,adjustment to environment1
 #ej1 #eb4  ,adjustment to knowledge of 

freedom1 #eh4  schylus1 #abi4  ,ambrose1
 #adj4  ,ancient ,mariner1 #bie4        
,angelo1 ,michael1 #dh1 #ahb4  ,animal  
entail1 #gi4  ,arnold1 ,matthew1 #gb1   
#ih1 #bbf1 #cjf4  ,atmosphere in        
nurture1 #bae4  ,attraction vs4         
,compulsion1 #baf4  ,augustine1 #cd1    
#ce1 #adj1 #aif1 #aii1 #cjd4  ,austere  
experiences1 #ig4  ,awakening vs4       
,re-awakening1 #adg4   ,bacon1 ,lord1   
#cjd4  ,bernard1 ,st41 #ij4  ,books1    
,the most vital1 #bbi4  ,browning1      
,robert1 #bf1 #aac1 #abi1 #aeb1 #bch1   
#cje1 #cad4  ,browning1 ,mrs4 ,e4,b41   
#aac4  ,byron1 ,lord1 #gd4  ,bunyan1    
,john1 #af4  ,bushnell1 ,horace1 #cg4   
,buxton1 ,sir ,thomas ,fowell1 #bbj4    
,cenci1 ,beatrice1 #abi4  ,chatterton1  
#gd4  ,circe1 #hc4  ,comforter1 ,the1   
#bje4  ,companionship1 ,spiritual1 #ahc4
  ,comus1 #ha1 #ib4  ,conscience1 #fg1  
#ahg4  ,conversion1 #acc4  ,creationism1
 #aa4  ,crisis in ,ascent of the ,soul1 
#acd4  ,cross1 ,the revelation of divine
 sacrifice1 #age4  ,culture1 #bab4      

,culture1 a study of perfection1 #bbf4  
,culture and life1 #bbg4  ,cultured man1
 ,the1 #bca4   ,dante1 #f4  ,death1     
,light on1 #agf4  ,death of the body1   
#bci4  ,diana1 #hb4  ,donatello1 #acg4  
,du,bois-,reymond1 #ee4   ,edinburgh1   
,incident in1 #ahf4  ,education1        
prophecy of soul's growth1 #cjf4        
,emerson1 #bad1 #bae1 #cjf4  ,emanation1
 #aj4  ,environment1 ,influence of1     
#bah4  ,environment1 of what composed1  
#bbb4  ,epictetus1 #aaa4  ,evolution and
 ,immortality1 #bda4  ,experience1      
,individual1 #aej4  ,expiation1 #aee4   
,falconer1 ,robert1 #adc4  ,faust1 #e1  
#ce1 #abi4  ,fetish worship1 #bde4      
,fiske1 ,john1 #e4  ,fliedner1 ,pastor1 
#bbj4  ,freedom1 ,realization of1 #ed4  
,galahad1 ,sir1 #he4  ,garrison1        
,william ,lloyd1 #bbj4  ,god1 ,rational 
doctrine of1 #aeg4  ,god revealed in    
,christ1 #afa4  ,god cannot be defeated1
 #acf4  ,goethe1 #e4  ,golden ,age1     
#cjc4  ,grace1 ,falling from1           
impossible1 #ade4  ,grail1 ,the ,holy1  

#abf4  ,growth a means of knowledge1    
#fa4  ,guardian angels1 #hh1 #bja4      
,guinevere1 #abi1 #adc1 #add4   ,hale1  
,nathan1 #bai4  ,hamlet1 #abi4          
,hannibal1 #gd4  ,hawthorne1 ,nathaniel1
 #cf1 #acg4  ,helps in trial1 #aie4     
,heredity1 #ef4  ,heroism in silence1   
#aih4  ,hesperus1 #b4  ,hindu ,swami1   
#fd4  ,hindu mother1 #ff4  ,hindrances1 
,ministry of1 #hi4  ,history1           
,prophetic1 #cjj4  ,hope for all1 #cb4  
,hugo1 ,victor1 #cf1 #hf4  ,hunt1       
,holman1 ,light of the ,world1 #afc4    
,ideals1 ,influence of1 #bah4  ,ideal   
,man seen in ,jesus ,christ1 #afd4      
,idylls of the ,king1 #adb4             
,immortality1 ,ode to1 ,wordsworth1 #aj4
  ,immortality in the ,new ,testament1  
#bdb4  ,immortality in the ethnic       
religions1 #bdb4  ,immortality1 belief  
in1 innate1 #bdd4  ,immortality1 belief 
in1 universal1 #bde4  ,immortality1     
unbelief in1 irrational1 #bdg4          
,immortality and the great teachers1    
#beb4  ,inequalities in human condition1

 #bdi4  ,in ,memoriam and ,growth of the
 ,soul1 #bie4  ,intelligence1 ,growth   
in1 prophetic1 #bib4  ,isaiah1 #adb4    
,jesus the ,soul's goal1 #caj4  ,jesus  
the ,supreme ,optimist1 #afi4  ,judson1 
,adoniram1 #acg4   ,kaiserwerth1 #bbj4  
,lanier1 ,sidney1 #bij4  ,learning by   
experience should be unnecessary1 #adh4 
,life the best teacher1 #bbh4  ,life1   
,unity of1 #bhd4  ,life's mystery       
illumined1 #aga4  ,light of the ,world1 
,hunt's1 #afc4  ,luther1 ,martin1 #ach4 
,macbeth1 #abi4  ,macdonald1 ,george1   
#adc4  ,mahomet1 #aaa4  ,malthus1 #aah4 
,man1 light on his nature1 #afc4        
,manhood1 ,the ideal1 #aff4  ,marble    
,faun1 #acg4  ,marseillaise1 ,the1 #bai4
  ,matthewson1 ,dr4 ,geo41 #bde4        
,marguerite1 #ce4  ,melchizedek1 #acc4  
,milton1 ,john1 #hb1 #hc1 #ib1 #bee4    
,moral order1 #ea4  ,morally excellent1 
the1 how discern1 #fc4  ,moral failure1 
#gc1 #abi4  ,moral evil inexplicable1   
#agc4  ,more1 ,sir ,thomas1 #cjd4       
,napoleon1 #gd4  ,nelson1 ,lord1 #bbj4  

,new ,college1 ,oxford1 #gj4  ,newton1  
,sir ,isaac1 #bjb4  ,ney1 ,marshal1     
#bai4  ,nightingale1 ,florence1 #bbj4   
,nurture1 #baa4  ,nurture1 part of      
parents in1 #bad4  ,nurture1 vitally    
important1 #bbd1 #bbe4   ,optimism1     
#aje4  ,optimism1 ,rational basis of1   
#aac4  ,over-soul1 #id1 #ahd4  ,ovid1   
,metamorphoses1 #hb4   ,parents' duty to
 children1 #adi4  ,pascal1 #ba4  ,paul1 
#hj4  ,pearson1 ,bishop1 #bgb4          
,personality1 #bi1 #bgj4  ,pigmies1     
#bic4  ,pilgrim's ,progress1 #f4        
,plato1 #adj4  ,plan of salvation1 #aee4
  ,poe1 ,edgar ,a41 #gd4  ,prayer1 #bgf4
  ,prayers for the dead1 objections1    
#bfi4  ,prayers for the dead1           
definition1 #bgj4  ,prayers for the     
dead1 how justified1 #bgb4              
,prexistence1 #aj4  ,prodigal ,son1 #bg1
 #bh4  ,prometheus1 #ab4  ,prophecy1    
#aba4  ,protestants and doctrine of     
prayers for the dead1 #bfi4   ,rabbi    
,ben ,ezra1 #cje4  ,re-awakening of the 
,soul1 #acj4  ,re-awakening vs4         

,awakening1 #adg4  ,responsibility1 #cj4
  ,resurrection of ,christ1 #ad4        
,reynolds1 ,sir ,joshua1 #gi4  ,ring and
 the ,book1 #abi4  ,roman ,church and   
prayers for the dead1 #bhb4   ,sakya    
,muni1 #aii4  ,santiago1 #aif4          
,satisfaction1 #aee4  ,saul1            
,browning's1 #aeb4  ,scarlet ,letter1   
,the1 #acg4  ,self-realization1 #ca4    
,shakespeare1 #aab1 #abi1 #bee4         
,shelley1 #gd1 #abi4  ,siddhartha1 #aaa4
  ,sin always evil1 #aai4  ,sin a       
reality1 #abg4  ,sin1 ,mystery of1 #agb4
  ,socrates1 #gd1 #aaa1 #aii1 #bec4     
,sophocles1 #abi4  ,soul1 ,solitary1    
#hg4  ,souls in society1 #ajc4  ,soul1  
what awakens1 #cd4  ,soul1 definition1  
#g4  ,soul1 origin1 #i4  ,soul1 limited 
by body1 #gg4  ,soul1 full of           
prophecies1 #beg4  ,spartans1 #fe4      
,spirit evidence of being of ,god1 #bj4 
,spiritual protection1 #ahh4  ,spirits  
attract spirits1 #aid4  ,spirit1 ,the   
,eternal1 #bjf4  ,spitta1 ,karl ,j4,p41 
#baj4  ,subconscious action1 #bj4       

,sympathy1 definition1 #ajf4  ,sympathy1
 results from severe experience1 #aji4  
,suffering no mistake1 #aaf4  ,suffering
 made endurable1 #afg4   ,temptations of
 saints1 #hd4  ,tennyson1 #he1 #aac1    
#abf1 #abi1 #bgd4  ,thoughts important  
in character1 #bcj4  ,training an       
element in nurture1 #bbj4               
,transfiguration of ,christ1 #ad4       
,truth1 ,search for1 #aia4  ,truth finds
 those prepared for it1 #bfi4           
,ulysses1 #hc4  ,universe1 ,moral1 #ic4 
,universe1 ,the idea of1 #aei4  ,utopia1
 #cjd4   ,vedas1 ,hymns of1 #aad4       
,warning voices1 #ahg4  ,watch on the   
,rhine1 #bai4  ,welldon1 #bgc1 #bhj1    
#bha4  ,whittier1 ,john ,g41 #bbj4      
,wilberforce1 ,william1 #adj1 #bbj4     
,wilson1 ,bishop1 #bbf1 #cjf4           
,wingfold1 ,thomas1 #adc4  ,wordsworth1 
#b1 #aj1 #dh1 #ahb4