REUNION OF CHRISTENDOM.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXII, Issue 22, 27 September 1895, Page 25

REUNION OF CHRISTENDOM.

(A Series of Lectures delivered in St Joseph's Church, Temuka, by tbe Very fiev Father Lb Menant des Chksnaib, 8. M.) Lecture 111. — Was Jesus Christ an Imposteb, Who Deceived the World by the Pbomisb of an Imaginary Future Bliss 1 Was He as Bnbmy of Society— Deified Falsbhood? Was Hb a Revolutionist, a Gigantic Democrat, the Father of Socialism and Communism ? Was Hb only a man of Gbnius, a Wisb man, a Popular Moralist, a Mahatma? Wbbb thb Apostles Deceivbd and Fascinated by Him 7 did they Deceive us? "I Believe that Jebus Christ is the Son of God." (Act. VII, 37.) In our second lecture we have teen that God spoke through Moses, the Patriarchs and Prophets ; therefore Divine revelation is not only possible but a certainty. We have now to study Jesus Christ and Christian Revelation. The enemies of Christianity may be divided into four principal classes :— (1) Voltaire, John Le Bond d'Alembert, Diderot, and all tbe Encyclopedists of the last century. For them Jeßus Christ was an impostor Who deceived the world by the promise of an imaginary futute bliss. He is t^e enemy of progress and civilisation — Deified falsehood. He should be crushed like a viper, aod no effort should be left untried to undeceive his blinded followers. ll.— Strauss, Bauer, Cousin, Vacherot, Renan, and their disciples do not acknowledge the Divinity of Jesus Christ ; however they look upon him as a man of genius, who blended together the traditions of the East and of the West with the Jewish doctrine, and from them foimed a harmonious system. He was a wisa man, a popular moralist, who taught men universal fraternity. He was a thorough revolutionist, a gigantic democrat, tbe greatest of all reformers, the advocate of the sovereignty of the people, tbe father of Socialism »nd Communism. ELt was a great medical doctor, a celebrated philosopher ; His cures were purely natural ; this is why He did not wiah people to speak about them. Later on these cures were transformed into miracles by His enthusiastic admirers. The first disciples of Jeßua Christ wrote nothing ; then a few laudatory pages were written, which— by successive additions— became the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, Tbe Gospels >>re to Jesas Christ what romance is to chivalry. Jeans Christ excited the hatred of Pharisaical aristocracy and died a victim of the noble canse he had so ably defended. His image grew as time went on ; He became the idol of His admirers, wbo'made a God of Him. The rapid spread of Christianity was quite natural, and may be perfectly explained without any supernatural agency. 111. — According to Tbeosophists— who pretend to reconcile all religion?, and unite men in a universal brotherhood, Jeaus Christ was a Mahatma, who had over nature a powar beyond that of ordinary men, and! a superior wisdom. IV. Some Rationalists pretend that the religion of Jesus Christ was a aantimental religion, defining nothing, excluding nothing. All dogmatical definitions are a ludicrous transformation of the doctrine of Jesus Christ. I.— Is Voltaire right? Are we to believe the Encyclopedists of the last century 1 Is Jeaus Ohriat an impostor, the enemy of civilisation a monster who shoald be crushed as a viper ? Infamem Oonterite." The life of Jesus Ohriat is soon told. He was born, nearly xix centuries ago, in a grotto at Bethlehem. Holy angels revealed His nativity to some poor shepherds. Warned by a miraculous star, kings from the East came to adore Him and offer Him presents. At twelve years of agt, in the Temple of Jerusalem, he astonished by his wisdom the most famous doctors of the world. When he was xxx years old, be was baptised by St John, the Holy Ghost came down upon him in the shape of a dove, and a voice was heard : " This is my Beloved Son, hear ye Him." He preached for over three years a doctrine unheard of before. He worked m )st astounding miracles. At his presence the whole universe was in commotion ; the deaf had their ears opened, tbe dumb spoke, lepers were cleansed and the lame talked. Tbe mere contact of His robe waa sufficient to heal the aick ; by a simple command, He changed water into wine ; He fed several thousand people with a few loaves and fishes. He knew the secrets of hearts and what took placa at a distance the future waa as clear to Him as tbe present ; the wind and the sea obeyed Him — on Mount Thabor Mjses and Elias paid Him homage ; the very demons confessed His Divinity and fled away at

His sight, and death gave np His victim; bere, it ia the daughter of a prince ; there, the boo of a widow ; in another place, Lazarus, who was fast falling into decay— and this Ha did as a proof of his Divine Mission, and to show that He was the promised Messiah ~so that He could say to His enemies : " If you do not believe my words, believe, at least, my works " (John, x, 68). He announced His dolorous passion and death, and His resurrection on the third day. After His resurreotion He appeared several times to His apostles and disciples. He promised to send down the Holy Ghost upon them, Who would teach them all truth, and give them the gift of mirac.es. He foretold the rain of Jerusalem, etc All these things have come to pass as He had said them, and, therefore, He is what He affirmed He was : the beloved Son of God, and the Saviour of mankind. This baing so, His promise of a fature bliss is not Tain, but absolutaly certain. The most civilised nations of the world profess Christianity. The followers of Jesas Christ are to be fonnd in Europe, in America, in thousands of places of Asia, Africa, Oceanioa and the scattered islands of the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. Millions of churches, oratories, universities, colleges, are living proofs of the sincerity and zeal of those who believe in Him. Orators, historians, poets, artias of every kind lnvo employed their genius to sing his praises. If they have all be n deceived, the most enlightened part of mankind, for nearly xix centurion, have gone astray : o! what, then, can we be certain ? Voltaire and the encyclopedists affirm that Jesus Christ is the enemy of progress and civilisation, how is it, then, that the most civilised and polished nations are precisely those which profess Christianity ? How is it that all the great monastic schools, the universities of Paris (1250), Prague (1358), Oxford (895), Cambridge (1280), Louvain (1425), Vienna (1366), Baslt, etc , were all founded by Christian scientists? The art of printing, clockmakiag, aeronaitism, ehctncty, steam navigation, telephony, photograghy, phomgraphy, typa-writin? are all Christian invantiom. Colambaa, M»sr«llan, America Vespucci Hernaudo Cortex, Jacqu ss Oartiar, etc, and other great explorers were also Christians. How then can Voltaire an! Dei9tg say that Christianity is the enemy of progress and civilisation 1 (2) Strauss, Bauer, Cousin, Ranan, etc, tell ns that Jeans was only a man of genius, a learned philosopher, Who harmoniously blended together the religious traditions of the East with those of the West and the Jewish faith. H i had a great knowledge of madiciae and performel cures, which, though perfectly natural, were transformed afterwards into miracles. Let Strama, Rinan, and their fneida tell ua where Jesus studied philosophy, theology, botany, nnteria medioi, biology, pathology, etc ? Who were the eminent professors who instructed Him? What scientific book did H) peruaa ? Until they anawer those questions in a clear, incontrovertible mirmer we may dwcard their objections as not prov?n. *• Quod gratis asseritur, gratis negatur." A mere assumption needs no refutation. If tbe rtoatrine of Jesus id of a purely human character how is it that for its sublimity preaision and completeness it surpasses anything beard of before? That it perfectly harmonises with the moat noble aspirations of our nature and ia the only oae which gives the key to all the graat problems which have perplexed ancient and modern philosophers ? How is it that for nearly nioe eeen years tha mo3t eminant scientists and philosophers have been able to add nothiog to it except a few commantaries mora or lesi impjrfect? Thit whatever ia btautiful, true and good, in any othar p ilosophical or religions system ia precisely what they have borrowed or preserved from the doctrine of Jesus Chris', as whatever is beautiful, true and good in tbe works of ancitnt philosophers or founders of religions is what ihey had preserved from the primitive revelation or borrowed from the Jews. Besideß even if Jesus had surpassed ia skill, learning an<i experience the most clever doctors moralists or philosophers it would never satisfactorily explain many of Hia miracleß, Hia prophecies and Hia transcendental and heavenly doctrine. Was Jesus a revolutionist, a gigintic democrat, the advocate of tbe sovereignty of the peop!«, the father of sosialism and communism, and the author of the religion of humanity ? I boldly affirm He was not. He preached obedience to all legitimate superiors • He declared that every legitimate power was from God. Is this the teaching of democrats, socialists and communists ? He commanded His fjllowera to obey legitimate superiors as God, even those who were harsh and cruel. Do democra's, socialists and communists believe this? He told ua to render unto Caeaar the things that are Caesar's, and unto God the things that are God's? What do democrats, communists and aocialista want us to render unto Cremr? wnat respect do they prescribe towards civil rulers ? what tribute of love, •honour, and obedience do they render to God? wbut sacrifices are they willing to make to defend the righis of Gol and of the State? Did not Jesus Christ pay the tribute money to the Roman Emperor? Sow is this to be recinciled with communism and socialism? But if Jeaus was not a socialist or a communist perhaps he was a Theoaophist, a Mabatnn 1 Theosophy is a new transformation of Buddhism, the religion most widely spread in the East. Many modern reviews and scientific books have exalted to the sky the wisdom of the Buddhists and declared it was manifest that Jesas bad borrowed many of his most beautiful moral pre-

oeptfl from them. In refuting the assertion that Jesus was a tbeosophist, I shall, at the same time give a death blow to the vile misrepresentations of the panegyrists of oriental superstition and devilry* What is Theoaophy 1 It is a newly fangled doctrine ; it pretends to have discovered the truth that underlies the various creeds of the world and to be able to reconcile them all and unite men in a universal brotherhood. Its fundamental dogma is the Karma or re-incarnation. The soulb of men are sparks of the Deity clothed with a human body. When the present life is over, after a period of repose, the boul passes into another body, and the second life depends upon the character of the first, If the soul during its re-incarnation, cultivate? its higher powers, and leads what nun call a holy life, in its new incarnation it rises higher still, untill it becomes a Mahatma. Then it is no looger subject to the body, and has a wonderful power over nature, and is able to travel hither and tbither at will. Moses, Confucius' Buddha, Jesus, his apostles and the saints of the Catholic Church were great Mabatmas. The nnmber of superior Mahatmas is very limitedSome of them are permitted to remain on earth to belp us ; others are finally absorbed into the Divinity, where they will remain for all eternity, yet without losing their identity. Those who lead vicious lives after a certain number of re-incarnations and probations, are at last extinguished and annihilated. The paradise of the Theosophist is the re-absorbtion in the Deity ; for the Christian dogma of bell, they substitute final annihilation. They distinguish between Jesus and Christ, Jcbub was a real person, but Christ it an allegorical person who never existed ; it is the celestial principle, which exists in every man, the divine spark, which it is the duty of every one to developLike Buddha, Confucius. Jesus is ona of thosi| Mahatmas who rose above their fellow-creatures and obtained great power over nature* Theosophism is uo-scientific, it rests on gratuitous assumptions which have never been proved. Woen chaleoged, Theoaophists have never been able to substantiate their increiiile statements. They will oot allow their disciples to controvert what they assert ; they are implicitly to admit it as absolutely truo and incontrovertible, and they shrink from controversy. The frauds of Mrs Blavatski have lately be n unmasksdThere is nothing reliable iv the teaching of Theosophists ; even the existence of the Mahatmas is shrouded in mystery : no one knows where they live or how they are to be approached. We have heard of Indian jugglerp, who by trickery or devilry, can — from dus' — produce the appearance of a tree or beautiful flowers, throw up a rope on high and apparently make it stand upright without any visible support, and make a little child climb up it, but a proof that this is a mere illusion is evident from the fact that no photographer has ever been able to take an image of it. The representation of the surrounding objects and of the jugglers himself may be taken but not the fantastic apparition, which leaves no impression whatsoever on the plate of the camera. To compare these illusions with the miracles of our Blessed Lord is insane and blasphemous, Jesus was not a Taeosophist. Theosophists baaish Gjd from this world; Jesus represents God ruling over all things ; they make man independent of God — according to Jesus Christ j,they depend totally upon him. "Itis Ha Wjo giveth to all life, breath, aad all things." (Act. XVII, 25.) " Bahold tha birds of the air, for they neither sow, nor do they ieap, nor gather into barns : and your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are not yon of much more value than they? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they labour n t, neither do they spin. Aal if the grass of the field, which is to.day and to-morrow is oast into the oven, God doth bo clothe : how much more yon.O ye of little faith. (Matth. VI, 26—28) Theosophists have oeed of no sacraments, no prayer, no grace to lift themselves up and bacoma Mahatmas, with superior power over earthly things." Jesus Christ says that "By grace you are all saved through faith. (Bphes. 11, 8.) We are not sufficient to think anything of ourselves ; but our sufficiency is from God." (11. Cor.

111,6.) He inculcates the necessity of prayer. " Ask and it shall be given yon : seek and you shall find : knock and it shall be opened." (Matt, VII, 7.) He instituted the Sacraments to give grace to our souls, and gave power to his apostles and their successors to administer them . Theosophists reject all these. In the doctrine of Theosophists tbe wicked have nothing to fear in the next life. After a few re-inoarnations and probations, no matter what evil they may have done, they will be ultimately annihilated, Jesus Christ threatens with everlasting torments those who will die in His enemity. "Pear ye," says Hl,H 1 , "Him who can destroy both soul and body in hell." (Matt, X, 28 ) " They who obey not the Gospel," says 8c Paul in his Epistle to the Christians of Thessaloniea, " shall suffer eternal punishment." (11, Thessal, 1 —9.) Theosophists apprehend nothing of the kind ; they may indulge in their passions, the worst that can happen to them is annihilation. Theoaophy is the revival of the occult mysteries of paganism. It flatters cariosity, pride, the passions : this explains why many easily adhere to it. Theosophists are willing to accept the Holy Scriptures provided they explain them in their own way, yet though they may quota the words of Chris*, have His image, and even that of His holy mother, yet they are not Christians, but disguise! Pantheists and Agnostics. Their God is the great unknown, the great whole, the infinite absolute, not a personal and supreme Being, author and ruler of all things. Christianity rests on solid proofs : Theosopby is nothing but imposture, jugglery, and devilry. Jesus, as we have seen, was not an imposter, a juggler. He cast out devils, was not, therefore, aa is pretended, a Theosophist. IV. — Was the religion of Jesus Christ a sentimental religion, defining nothing, excluding nothing? Are all positive dogmas a ludicrous transformation of his dootriae ? Nothing is more precise and less sentimental than the doctrine of Jesus Christ. His Church, as we shall have an opportunity to see later on, is a well organised society ; all the dogmatical definitions are only a more explicit explanation of his words, Nothing can be defined but what Jesus has said or the apostles have taught, and, therefore, dogma'ical defini'ioas are not ludicrous transformations of His doctrine. Far from being sentimental, the religion of Jesus Christ has self-denial as ita fundamental principle. Heir ye Him :—: — " Blessed are they that suffer psrsecution for justice sake ; for theirs is the kingdom of of heaven. Blesajd are you when you shill be reviled. Ba glad and rejoica for your reward is very great in he^vaa (Mattew v, 10-12). Strange sentimental re igion which sp )aks ouly of self-sacrifice, pains, and sufferings on earth, holds as a reward only a future bliss. Did the Apostles, fascinate i by Jesus Christ, mike a god of Him ? Our reply to this objection will be brief and conclusive :— lf the Messianic prophecies were not fulfilled in the person of Our Lord ; if His miracles were not certain and public, how is it that in tha space of a few years, Christianity had spread, as it were, by magic, and the Divinity of Jesus Christ was acknowledged? The apostles did not deify their beloved Master — but seeing he realised all that the prophets had fore'ol lof tna Messiah, they acknjwielgei Him as such. Having received the Hjly Ghost anl tbe gift of tongues and miracles, theypretched His Divinity; pjople seeing their admirable lives, witnessing thd miracles they wrought in proof of their divine mission, believed thjir words an I embraced Christianity ; so sincere were their converts that though many of them were very learnei and rich, they gl idly sacrificed all fjr Jjsus' saka aal became bis most enthusiastic and zjalous pmegyriits. Lat ma quote a few illustrations. Among the c rly converts to Christianity, I notice :— Sergins Paul us, governor of Cyprus ; St Denis, president of the Areopagus ; St Justin, a famous Platonic philosopher ; Athenagoras, a celebrated rhetor ; Origen, tbe greatest genius of his age ; Clement of Alexandria, a lover of science, who hal travelled all over the world in quest of knowledge ; the Consul Flavins Olement,who gave his beautiful

palace to be changed into a Christian church. Among ladies of rank, I may mention Flavia Domitilla, who employed all her richeß fer the spread of Christianity ; Pudentiaaa, who set all her slaves free out of love for Jeras ; Paala, who bid farewell to the Eternal City with her daughter Bustocbiata, and went ta Bethlehem where she bailt a convent ; Marcelia, whose palace wa^ the meeting place of charitable ladies to relieve the poor; Aglai, wh > distributed all her immense riches to the poor, etc. If Jesus was an impoßtor, if the miracles of the apistlea]warfl not above suspicion, what interest had they ia bacominsj Christians? If the promise of heavenly bliss, which Jesus held oat to His followers, was not absolutely certain, why for an imaginary blisa did tiey abandoi everything taat Wiß dear and near to them, and ooabrnca a r-Migioi which was despised, hated, and persecuted by the most inflajnUil people of the time? The single testimony of one emiaeat convert to Christianity has more Weight tban lh? objections of a thouitnl Rttionilists, beoanse unbelief flatters pride, ani dies not pat aay serious check apon the passions ; but, in order to believe and lead a Christian life, one must do viotenc3 to self, and nuke heroic sacrifices. In oar next lecture we shall examiae :— l, If the Gospels are a romance. 2, If the spread of Christianity can be explained withoat miraculous agency.