A Woman’s Story

890 IMPROVEMENT ERA.

mortals to build colleges and universities; the changes going on in the cosmos, which scientists have collectively named evolution, take place from the necessity of adapting environment to the growing and varying intelligence of God's children; to the end that they may evolve in the direction which he has planned. We "Mormons" trust the stability of creation, from the feeling that all this cosmical panorama is but the unfinished work of our

Father's hands; for, knowing with what loving tenacity we earth- spirits hold to the working out of our feeble inventions and ideali-

zations, we feel instinctively how dear to God must be the fruition of his perfect plans. And as to the reality of heaven, as localized in the revelations of scripture, if it were not essential to the existence of God him- self, (as would certainly seem to be the case with the other con- ception of God,)then we might, indeed,fear for its eternal perpetuity; but being in fact that state which is progressively the outcome of evolution, or, as"Mormons" put it, eternal progress; that state which is the sum-total at any moment of what God has achieved, — it is

a necessary part of himself, the very quintessence of his work as Creator, and without which he himself as well as we should be homeless; and consequently, it is easier to have faith that heaven will endure than not to have such faith.

By way of bringing out another important relation between Creator and created, consider this illustration: John Jones has lost his way in a blizzard. Feeling a sense of drowsiness stealing over him, and realizing its terrible meaning, he kneels down and prays. Will his life, in consequence, be spared from the fury of the storm? Before answering, take careful account of all the conditions. First, the storm is only doing the duty God appointed ittodo;that is to say, it is the legitimate outcome of law. Law, on the other hand, provides that everything in the blizzard's path that is fitted to survive, shall survive — all the rest shall perish. But John Jones asks in effect that these laws be set aside for his benefit; i. e., either that the storm be so mitigated that his natural strength may save him; or that he be miraculously raised into the rank of things fitted to survive. Suppose, in addition to praying for himself, he entreats mercy and protection for his horse, for the cattle he is seeking, for the buds in his orchard.

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Will the indwelling soul of the universe step to consider and act upon his petition? The example fairly sets forth the inner meaning of prayer, and also its conditions. If the Christianized God of Buddha can (and

will) act the roll of providence, that is, intervene and set aside the operation of his own laws, at the request of man, then it is logical to pray — otherwise not. Is it rational to believe that an infinitely diffused spirit or es-

sence could or would so intervene? Buddhism says emphatically no. God never acts as providence, but ever as of karma, the estab- lisher of law, and dispenser of absolute justice in accordance there- with; and, consistently with this view, theosophists, the modern disciples of Buddha, teach that prayer is enervating; that a man can have his way against the universe only to the extent that he himself can influence his environments; to which end let him pray — him rather assume, not the supplicative, to nothing external, let

but the compelling mental attitude: so the incarnation of shall

Deity within him, —the only God with whom psychic can his life

come into contact, — perhaps secure for him his desire. It is difficult, on a priori grounds, to come to any other con- clusion. First, there is the bigness of God and the littleness of Jones. Compared with infinitude, the solar system itself is rela- tively smaller than the smallest microscopic speck discernible to mankind. Where then does the man Jones come in? Secondly, for purposes of answering prayer, (as well as for all purposes), this infinitude must be considered unity not plurality; since, otherwise, ten thousand antagonistic prayers might be granted at once, to the undoing of the cosmos. But answering a petition involves hearing it, considering it, granting it, and setting in motion the forces necessary to give it

effect — in other words, it involves time. Now, Jones' petition is urgent: five minutes' delay may mean death to him. Will the "All- soul" of the universe suspend attention from a million other peti- tions —to say nothing of temporarily dropping out of mind such trifles as a million solar systems just shaping out of chaos — to listen to a man whose cupidity, perhaps, made him tempt the bliz- zard? But even though infinitude could do such a thing, why should

892 IMPR0VEMEN1 ERA.

it do so? By our very conception, whatever of life is manifested in Jones, his horse, his cattle, and his orchard, is merely the fleet- ing incarnation of the indwelling life of the universe. What bond of love or solicitude can be imagined between^such a creator and !

his creatures —mere limitations of himself— that he, the infinite,

should bend down and heed the selfish cry of the finite? Why should seem better to him for these portions of himself to re- it

main limited and finite than to be changed to the limitless and in- finite?

But belief in an overruling providence does not, as it may here be pointed out, result from a priori but from a posteriori reasoning —that is to say, from experience. "Ask and ye shall receive," said the Savior, and made the promise seem reasonable by this appeal to common sense: "If ye then, being evil, know how to give good them that ask ye, how much more shall your gifts to Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him!"" And millions testing the promise, have found it true. Here, then, we have again the blessed inconsistency of men holding to conclusions derived from premises repudiated, and in spite of pre- mises accepted. Another triumph for the human heart! How much better it would be, however, if man's faith in pro- vidence — that is to say, in the effectiveness of prayer, —were re- enforced by the head as well as by the heart. Observe that the God to whom the Savior pointed in the words just quoted was no spiritual abstraction, but a Father whom he compares with our earthly farents. But, it may be objected, while God's love, out of which grow acts of intervention in behalf of his children, is thus satisfactorily accounted for, by conceiving him the personal Father of our spirits; while we may readily believe that the being who created the solar system for man, would also, were it in accordance with his wisdom, modify or set aside the general application of his will in the interest of individual cases, how is such a thing possible? Millions of petitions go to the Father at the same time, each re- quiring more or less specific attention. The objection would hold were God alone engaged in listening to prayer and devising special providences. Let us, however, take a common sense view of the situation. The president of the

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United States, for instance, comes either in person or by agent,

into executive touch with every one of our eighty millions of people. Is is possible to conceive God as less resourceful?

I do not pretend to know how God answers all the prayers that should be answered; nor has "Mormonism" spoken definitely on this point.But the following conclusion may safely be inferred from well established premises in our religion: ninety-nine per cent of our prayers are probably passed upon by our guardian angels •

the rest by councils of greater wisdom, — and by Jesus Christ, or God himself, if need be. Nor would providences thus secured be any other than God's providences; for whoever, under God's appointment, does any of the works of God is to that extent exercising divine authority, which is the very essence of Deity and Godhead. At any rate, with such a rational view of the modus operandi of providence, one can draw near to God with full confidence that if his petition involves that which will be for his own eternal good, it will be granted. The thought, however, opens up a marvelous new world, a world of beings behind the veil, and their relation- ship to us, which will be discussed in a later chapter.