MIRACLES 



millions of ministers who preach on it every Sunday 

 seems to have shown a rational causal connection of this 

 death with the alleged redemption from sin and death. 

 The whole of this story of redemption has sj^rung from 

 the primitive, obscure, ethical ideas of uneducated races, 

 especially the crude belief in the propitiatory power of 

 human sacrifice. It has no practical moral value except 

 for those who believe in personal immortality — a scien- 

 tifically untenable dogma. Whoever builds on this empty 

 promise of a better life beyond may soothe himself with 

 this hope, and reconcile himself to the thousand ills and 

 defects of this world. But the man who studies this 

 life as it really is will not find that the belief in re- 

 demption has brought any real improvement. Want 

 and misery and sin are as prevalent as ever; indeed, 

 our modern civilization has, in many respects, increased 

 them. 



The third and last article of the Apostles' Creed runs: 

 "I believe in the Holy Ghost, the holy Catholic Church, 

 the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the 

 resurrection of the body, and life everlasting." In the 

 curious commentary that Luther made on this article in 

 his catechism, he said that "man cannot believe of his 

 own reason in Jesus Christ " — which is very true — but the 

 Holy Ghost must lead him thereto with his grace; but 

 how the third person of the Trinity effects this enlighten- 

 ment and sanctification he did not explain. What is 

 meant by the "communion of saints" and the "holy 

 Catholic Church" must be gathered in the light of their 

 history — especially the history of Romanism. This most 

 powerful and still influential section of the Christian 

 Church, which especially claims the title of Catholic and 

 "the one ark of salvation," is really a most pitiful 

 caricature of pure primitive Christianity. It has, with 

 consummate skill, succeeded in preaching the beneficent 

 teaching of Christ in theory and doing just the opposite 



63 



