The Origin of the World According to Revelation and ScienceDawson, John William, Sir
Religion
The Origin of the World According to Revelation and Science
Dawson, John William, Sir
Bible and science; Religion and science
But the observer, as he looks on this web, is surprised to find that
it has in its whole extent a wondrous pattern. He rises to the
contemplation of type in nature, a great truth to which science has
only lately opened its eyes. He begins dimly to perceive that the
Creator has from the beginning had a plan before his mind, that this
plan embraced various types or patterns of existence; that on these
patterns he has been working out the whole system of nature, adapting
each to all the variety of uses by an infinity of minor modifications.
That, in short, whether he study the eye of a gnat or the structure of
a mountain chain, he sees not only objects of beauty and utility, but
parts of far-reaching plans of infinite wisdom, by which all objects,
however separated in time or space, are linked together.
How much of positive pleasure does that man lose who passes through
life absorbed with its wants and its artificialities, and regarding
with a "brute, unconscious gaze" the grand revelation of a higher
intelligence in the outer world. It is only in an approximation
through our Divine Redeemer to the moral likeness of God that we can
be truly happy; but of the subsidiary pleasures which we are here
permitted to enjoy, the contemplation of nature is one of the best and
purest. It was the pleasure, the show, the spectacle prepared for man
in Eden, and how much true philosophy and taste shine in the simple
words that in paradise God planted trees "pleasant to the sight," as
well as "good for food." Other things being equal, the nearer we can
return to this primitive taste, the greater will be our sensuous
enjoyment, the better the influence of our pleasures on our moral
nature, because they will then depend on the cultivation of tastes at
once natural and harmless, and will not lead us to communion with and
reverence for merely human genius, but will conduct us into the
presence of the infinite perfection of the Creator.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account