p. 16 | Religious Apostasy

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Oakland, California · Aug 3, 1904

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 30, No. 31.

Religious Apostasy.

We quoted recently the statement of Prof. Goldwin Smith that “no small part of educated mankind has renounced, or is gradually renouncing, the hope of a future life, and acting on the belief that death ends all.” Count Tolstoy, after years of examination, tells us: “The educated wealthy minority have freed themselves from the church hypnotism, believe in nothing at all, and look upon every faith as an absurdity, or as merely a useful means of keeping the masses in subjection.” He says further:—

Never at any period of religious decline has the neglect and forgetfulness of the chief characteristic of all religion and of Christianity in particular—the principle of human equality—fallen to so low a level as it has descended to in our time. . . . There is no doubt that never in history was such material progress made in mastering the powers of nature as during the nineteenth century. But also there is no doubt that never in history was there such an example of immoral life, freed from any force restraining man’s animal inclinations, as that given by our ever-increasing, bestialized, Christian humanity. The material progress achieved in the nineteenth century has really been great; but that progress has been bought by such neglect of the most elementary demands of morality as humanity never before was guilty of, even in the days of Genghis Khan, Attila or Nero.

These are strong words, but they are true, and are in perfect harmony with the prophetic words of Scripture for this time. Conditions are increasingly evident that the world can not save itself, and it will not accept the One who can save it—Jesus Christ. Yet will He come, and He will save His own, gloriously, eternally, save all who will trust in Him. The increasing unbelief is an evidence that His coming is drawing nigh. He Himself asked, “When the Son of Man cometh, shall He find faith on the earth?”