Chapter II: Part I: Divine Immanence

LESSON I.

(Scripture Reading Exercise.)

IMMANENCE OF GOD.

ANALYSIS.

I. Definition of "Immanent."

II. Distinction Between "Omnipresence" and "Immanence."

III. Revelation commits the Church to the Doctrine of Divine Immanence.

REFERENCES.

Any of the standard dictionaries.

The Scripture passages cited in the "Discussion" of this lesson.

_SPECIAL TEXT: "The Light which now shineth, which giveth you light, is through him who enlighteneth your eyes, which is the same light that quickeneth your understandings; which Light proceedeth forth from the presence of God to fill the immensity of space." (Doc. and Cov. Sec. lxxxviii:11, 12.)_

DISCUSSION.

_1. Definition of Immanent:_ The word "Immanent" means "indwelling," "remaining within;" "opposed to transient," or "transitive."[A] Such the definition of the adjective. The noun, "Immanence," is defined as "the state of being immanent," "a permanent abiding within"--"indwelling."[B] As applied to God it conveys the idea of essential and permanent Divine presence in all the universe. It excludes the idea of movement or transition from one place to another in order for the Deity to be at a given place, since immanence conveys the idea of Divine presence being already and constantly at every point in the universe; hence movement conceived as necessary to presence is not essential, but is excluded from the conception of immanence.

[Footnote A: The Standard Dictionary, Funk and Wagnalls.]

[Footnote B: See both Standard and Century Dictionaries.]

_2. Distinction Between Omnipresence and Immanence:_ It may be thought that "immanence" is but the restatement in another form, of the attribute of omnipresence in Deity--simply an affirmation of his every-whereness; and it must be admitted that there is at least a close resemblance if not identity between the two things for which the two terms stand. And yet there is a difference between immanence and omnipresence. The latter means merely the every-whereness of God, "present in all places and at the same time."[A]

[Footnote A: Century Dictionary.]

Immanence means that, too; but it means more than that. It means _presence accompanied by power_; or presence plus power; presence accompanied by doing, or act, leading to manifestations of God's power. In modern philosophy the word is applied to the operations of a Creator conceived of as in organic connection with the creation;[A] and we shall see presently that this is as true in theology as it is in philosophy.

[Footnote A: Century Dictionary. Joseph Le Conte, Professor of Geology and Natural History in the University of California, discussing what belief in God would be for rational philosophy, says: "It is the belief in a God not far away beyond our reach, who once long ago enacted laws and created forces which continue of themselves to run the machine we call nature, but a God immanent, a God resident in Nature, at all times and in all places directing every event and determining every phenomenon; a God in whom in the most literal sense not only we but all things have their being, in whom all things consist, through whom all things exist, and without whom there would be and could be nothing. According to this view the phenomena of Nature are naught else than objectified modes of divine thought, the forces of Nature naught else than different forms of one omnipresent, divine energy or will; the laws of Nature naught else than the regular modes of operation of that divine will, invariable because he is unchangeable. According to this view the law of gravitation is naught else than the mode of operation of the divine energy in sustaining the cosmos--the divine method of sustentation." ("Evolution and Its Relation to Religious Thought"--1902--pp. 300, 301.)]

_3. Does Revelation Teach Immanence of God:_ Here we may as well consider the question whether or not the scriptures teach the doctrine of immanence as defined above. Of the doctrine of God's omnipresence there can be no question at all. David states it beautifully:

"Whither shall I go from thy spirit, or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me. If I say surely the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me. Yea the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee."[A]

[Footnote A: Psalms cxxxix:7-12.]

Jeremiah is equally as clear in a statement of the same truth, even if less poetical:

"Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him? saith the Lord. Do not I fill heaven and earth? saith the Lord."[A]

[Footnote A: Jeremiah xxiii:24.]

Solomon said of God:

"The heaven, and heaven of heavens cannot contain thee, how much less this house that I have builded?"[A]

[Footnote A: I Kings viii:27.]

Paul declares that God is "not far from every one of us; for in him we live and move and have our being."[A]

[Footnote A: Acts xvii:26-28.]

_4. Limitations of Foregoing Revelations to Omnipresence:_ These declarations go at least as far as to establish the omnipresence of God, not of his bodily, but of his spiritual presence; but they do not quite express the conception presented in the word immanence which I have said equals the attribute of omnipresence plus divine power, and act. It was left for our modern revelations to present that idea. This is done in the revelation which first declares that "the elements"--having reference to the elements of the material world--"are eternal;" that "spirit and element inseparably connected receive a fulness of joy;" that "the elements are the tabernacle of God."[A] That is, in some way, God is immanent, ever present and everywhere present, in the universe.[B]

[Footnote A: Doc. and Cov., Sec. xciii:33-35.]

[Footnote B: The Universe: It may be well to bring before the mind of the student a brief definition of this term "universe," in which we are saying that God is immanent, in order that we may appreciate somewhat at least the largeness of things with which we are dealing. I take the definition from Haeckel:

"(a) The extent of the universe is infinite and unbounded; it is empty in no part, but everywhere filled with substance.

"(b) The duration of the world (i. e. Universe) is equally infinite and unbounded; it has no end; it is eternity." (Riddle of the Universe, p. 242.) And in this infinite and eternal universe, God, in some way, is everywhere present and potentially or actually active--immanent.]

_5. God Not Only Everywhere Present, But Power and Act:_ Our theology recognizes Jesus Christ as not only divine but Deity;[A] and this Immanence of God in the world is in some of our modern revelations spoken of as the "Light of Christ:"[B]

[Footnote A: Seventy's Year Book No. III, Lessons XXXIII and XXXIV.]

[Footnote B: A near equivalent to this phrase, "the light of Christ," is also used in the New Testament in connection with the idea of its being a vital as well as an intelligent principle--the life and the light of the world: "In him [the Christ, see context] was life; and the life was the light of men; and the light shineth in the darkness, and the darkness comprehended it not." John was sent to bear witness of that light: "That was the true light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name." (St. John's Gospel i:1-12.) See also Doc. and Cov., Sec. lxxxiv:45-47.]

"He that ascended up on high, as also he descended below all things; in that he comprehended all things, that he might be in all and through all things, the light of truth;

"Which truth shineth. _This is the light of Christ_. As also he is in the sun, and the light of the sun, and the power thereof by which It was made;

"As also he is in the moon, and is the light of the moon, and the power thereof by which it was made.

"As also the light of the stars, and the power thereof by which they were made.

"And the earth also, and the power thereof; even the earth upon which you stand.

"And the light which now shineth, which giveth you light, is through him who enlighteneth your eyes, which is the same light that quickeneth your understandings;

"Which light proceedeth forth from the presence of God to fill the immensity of space.

"The light which is in all things; which giveth life to all things; which is the law by which all things are governed: even the power of God who sitteth upon his throne, who is in the bosom of eternity, who is in the midst of all things."[A]

[Footnote A: Doc. and Cov., Sec. lxxxviii:6-13.]

And later in the same Revelation it is said:

"Judgment goeth before the face of him who sitteth upon the throne [God], and governeth and executeth all things;

"He comprehendeth all things, and all things are before him, and all things are round about him: and he is above all things, and in all things, and is through all things, and is round about all things; and all things are by him, and of him, even God, for ever and ever.

"And again, verily I say unto you, he hath given a law unto all things by which they move in their times and their seasons;

"And their courses are fixed; even the courses of the heavens and the earth, which comprehend the earth and all the planets;

"And they give light to each other in their times and in their seasons, in their minutes, in their hours, in their days, in their weeks, in their months, in their years: all these are one year with God, but not with man.

"The earth rolls upon her wings, and the sun giveth his light by day, and the moon giveth her light by night, and the stars also give their light, as they roll upon their wings in their glory, in the midst of the power of God.

"Unto what shall I liken these kingdoms, that ye may understand?

"Behold, all these are kingdoms, and any man who hath seen any or the least of these, hath seen God moving in his majesty and power.

"I say unto you, he hath seen him; nevertheless, he who came unto his own was not comprehended.

"The light shineth in darkness, and the darkness comprehendeth it not; nevertheless, the day shall come when you shall comprehend even God; being quickened in him and by him.

"Then shall ye know that ye have seen me, that I am, and that I am the true light that is in you, and that you are in me, otherwise ye could not abound."[A]

[Footnote A: Ibid. Sec. lxxxviii:41-50.]

A more complete or thorough-going statement of the ever-whereness of God in the world, accompanied with the idea of power--God immanent, dynamic, as well as present,--I do not remember to have seen.

LESSON II.

(Scripture Reading Exercise.)

NATURE AND POWERS OF THE DIVINE IMMANENCE.

ANALYSIS.

I. Relationship of the Immanent Spirit to the Christ.

II. Powers of the Immanent Spirit:

(a) Creative power;

(b) Sustaining power;

(c) Vital power;

(d) Intelligence-inspiring power.

III. The Relationship of the Immanent Spirit to an Eternal Race of Divine Beings.

REFERENCES.

The passages of scripture and other works cited in the "Discussion" of this lesson.

_SPECIAL TEXT: "H. that ascended up on high, as also he descended below all things; in that he comprehended all things, that he might be in all and through all things, the light of truth; which truth shineth. This is the Light of Christ the light which is in all things; which giveth life to all things: which is the law by which all things are governed: even the power of God who sitteth upon his throne, who is in the bosom of eternity, who is in the midst of all things." (Doc. and Cov. sec. lxxxviii:6, 7, 13.)_

DISCUSSION.

_1. The Immanent Spirit as Related to the Christ:_ It is to be observed that Immanence of God as set forth in the preceding lesson is associated with a personality; in the passages of scripture quoted in the preceding lesson, the Immanence is directly associated with the personality of the Christ. It is "The Light of Christ" that is immanent in the world.[A]

[Footnote A: Doc. and Cov., Sec. lxxxviii:7.]

_2. Creative Power of the Immanent God:_ It is "The Light of Christ" that is "in the sun, and the light of the sun, and the power thereof by which it was made."[A] It is "The Light of Christ" that is "in the moon, and is the light of the moon, and the power thereof by which it was made; as also the light of the stars and the power thereof by which, they were made; and the earth also, and the power thereof, even the earth on which you stand."[B]

[Footnote A: Ibid.]

[Footnote B: Ibid, verses 8-10.]

_3. Sustaining Power of the Immanent God:_ This "light which proceeded forth from the presence of God to fill the immensity of space," "The Light of Christ," is also the sustaining power of the world as well as the creative power--"the light which is in all things; which giveth life to all things: which is the law [i. e. power] by which all things are governed: even the power of God."[A]

[Footnote A: Doc. and Cov., Sec. lxxxviii:13. "The law and power by which all things are governed," is the late Elder Orson Pratt's foot note on the passage. See foot note "k" from verse 13.]

"The earth rolls upon her wings, and the sun giveth his light by day, and the moon giveth her light by night, and the stars also give their light, as they roll upon their wings in their glory, in the midst of the power of God. * * * Behold all these are kingdoms, and any man who hath seen any or the least of these, has seen God moving in his majesty and power"--a manifestation of God in the orderly movement of the planetary systems of the world.

_4. Vital Force of the Immanent God:_ This "Light of Christ"--which "fills the immensity of space," is also a vital, or life-giving force or spirit--"The Light which is in all things; _which giveth life to all things_."[A] "I am the light of the world," said Jesus, "he that followed me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the _light of life_."[B] "In him [the Christ] was life; and the life was the light of men."[C]

[Footnote A: Doc. and Cov., Sec. lxxxviii:3.]

[Footnote B: St. John viii:12.]

[Footnote C: Ibid i:4.]

_5. Intelligence-Inspiring Power of the Immanent God:_ Nor is this "Light of Christ," immanent in the world, creative, sustaining and vital power only; but also it has a power of giving intelligence; it inspires intelligence; it is the inspiration of God which gives to the spirit of man understanding:[A] "The light which now shined," said the Lord to his servants, "which giveth you light, is through him [the Christ] who enlightened your eyes, which is the same light that quickened your understandings; which light proceedeth forth from the presence of God to fill the immensity of space."[B]

[Footnote A: There is a spirit in man; and the inspiration of the Almighty giveth them understanding; (Job xxxiii:8.)]

[Footnote B: Doc. and Cov., Sec. lxxxviii:11, 12.]

Again, and this from another revelation:

"For the word of the Lord is truth, and whatsoever is truth is light, and whatsoever is light is Spirit, even the Spirit of Jesus Christ;

"And the Spirit giveth light to every man that cometh into the world; and the Spirit enlighteneth every man through the world, that hearkeneth to the voice of the Spirit;

"And every one that hearkeneth to the voice of the Spirit, cometh unto God, even the Father;"[A]

[Footnote A: Doc. and Cov., Sec. lxxxiv:45-47. See also St. John i:3-12.]

_6. The Immanent Spirit's Relationship to a Race of Divine, Exalted Intelligences:_ We may now say from the analysis of the scriptures so far developed that God Immanent in the world--"The Light of Christ"--the "Spirit of Christ"--is the power creative; the sustaining power; the life-giving power; and the intelligence-inspiring power. It is the active principle in all these respects; and is omnipresent.

As observed in the opening paragraph of this lesson, however, God immanent in the world is associated with a personality; it is directly associated with the personality of Christ. It is called "The Light of Christ"--it "proceedeth forth from the presence of God to fill the immensity of space." It is not then a personality in itself, that is in the sense of being of individual form, but proceeds forth from a personality; it is a presence rather than a person; an influence, a spiritual atmosphere, a power proceeding from another, and therefore is dependent on that other for its existence rather than being an independent existence; but as that "Other" on which it depends is eternal, so too this that proceeds forth from the personal presence to fill the immensity of space "is likewise eternal."[A]

[Footnote A: From the nature of things one has to develop his subject gradually, "line upon line," and the writer suggests that the student, if he finds the statement not fully established as here made, that he await its fuller statement in later pages.]

Again: This God Immanent, as we have seen, is called the "Light of Christ," "The Spirit of Christ." For which reason I have said above that the God Immanent is associated with the personality of the Christ. But if the God Immanent may be associated with the Christ, may it not also be associated with God, the Father, as well as with God the son? If God the Son has a spiritual influence, a light, an holy atmosphere radiating forth from him into space, in some manner analogous to the manner in which rays of light radiate from luminous suns in the physical world--may it not be reasonably concluded that God, the Father, also has such an influence, such a spiritual atmosphere proceeding forth from him? And if Father and Son have such a spiritual light proceeding forth from their presence, may it not be that all divine Intelligences have, similarly proceeding forth from their presence, such divine "light"?

_7. The Spirit Atmosphere of Men:_ Our discussion may be helped here by an appeal to a matter of common experience. We know that every man and woman has an individual influence, a personal atmosphere extending beyond the personal self, more or less pronounced, according to the strength or weakness of his individuality. So generally is this conceded to be true that we designate its kind, or dominating character; as good or bad; refined or coarse; intellectual or boorish; spiritual or carnal. If, then, one may argue, the intelligences we know as men possess this atmosphere of personal influence extending beyond the personal self, how much more angels, arch-angels, and the higher Intelligences who have taken on, or participated in, the Divine Nature and entered into their exaltation and glory with other innumerable Divine Intelligences whom we call Gods--with how much more reason may we expect that these may have such spiritual influence proceeding forth from their presence?

_8. The Identity of Spirit Influence Proceeding from all Divine Beings:_ From the scriptures we learn of the perfect oneness subsisting between God, the Father, and God, the Son. "I and my Father are one," is the oft repeated declaration of the Christ.[A] "I in thee, and thou in me,"[B] is the emphasis he lays upon the oneness of himself and the Father. Granting this moral and spiritual oneness--not physical oneness, for physically our theology holds Father and Son to be distinct and separate individuals[C]--but granting this moral, intellectual and spiritual alikeness--then it must follow that the spiritual influence of each, the intellectual and moral atmosphere of each, will be the same. "The Light of Christ" will be the same or identical with the light of the Father; and with the light of all Intelligences who have participated in the divine nature and become one with the Father and the Son. So that it might be properly held that the God Immanent is as much the "Light of the Father" as "The Light of Christ;" and since that light would be identical with the light of all perfected and holy beings, participating in the Divine nature, it could receive a name that would generalize it--the "Divine Spirit, Immanent in the Universe;" or, "God, the Spirit of the Gods,[D] Immanent in the Universe;" any of these characterizations would doubtless be admissible; but since it is through the Christ that the Divine nature and spirit is manifested in our world, it is but proper that this Divine Light which lighteth every man into the world--which is creative, sustaining, vital, and intelligence-inspiring power, should bear the name of Christ--and henceforth we shall recognize it as our modern revelations do, primarily, as "The Light of Christ." But there has always been a race of divine beings in existence, an eternal race, from whom such a divine influence or atmosphere has proceeded forth to "fill the immensity of space;" and that is what I meant a few paragraphs back when I said that as the source whence the God Immanent proceeded is eternal, so too is the immanence eternal, has always existed, and will always exist by whatsoever name it might have been or may be known.

[Footnote A: St. John x:30; xvii:22, et seq.]

[Footnote B: Ibid, verse 21.]

[Footnote C: Seventy's Year Book III, Lesson XXXV.]

[Footnote D: I have so treated it in my Mormon Doctrine of Deity, pp. 166-169; also in the Seventy's Year Book No. III, Lesson XXXV.]

_9. Being Whom We Call God:_ This is that Spirit which men call God, but "know no more;" that "something sacred and sublime," which men recognize as moving "wool-shod" behind the worlds; this that Spirit that permeates all space; that makes all presence bright; all motion guides; the Power "unchanged through Time's all-devastating flight"--God Immanent, the Spirit proceeding from all Divine Intelligences intermingled and harmonized into one Spirit. This the true light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world; the light of which John the Baptist was the witness; and of which Jesus, to us men, was the manifestation,[A] and to which all men have access--"The Light of Christ."

[Footnote A: St. John i:4-12.]

_10. Brigham Young on Object of Existence:_ "We are created for the express purpose of increase, there is nothing within us but that which can increase, from the birth to old age; what is there that is not ordained after eternal law of existence, for it is the Deity within us that causes increase. Doth this idea startle you? Are you ready to exclaim, what! the supreme in you? Yes, he is in every person upon the face of the earth. The elements that every individual is made of, and lives in, possesses a portion of the Deity, this you cannot now understand, but you will hereafter. The Deity within us, is the great principle that causes men and women to increase and to grow in grace and truth. The operation once begun, strict obedience to the requirements of heaven is necessary to obtain the end for which we were created, but if we never commence to propagate our species, and keep the commandments of God we cannot attain to the end in view."[A]

[Footnote A: Discourse by Pres. Brigham Young, June 13, 1852. Deseret News, Vol. 4, No. 6.]

LESSON III.

(Scripture Reading Exercise.)

MORAL AND SPIRITUAL VALUE IN THE CONCEPTION OF THE DIVINE IMMANENCE.

ANALYSIS.

I. Of the Possibility of the Existence of all the Divine Attributes in the Immanent Spirit.

II. Christ the Revelation of the Immanent Spirit, as well as of God, the Father.

III. Moral and Spiritual Effect in the Sense of the Nearness of God in the Doctrine of Divine Immanence.

REFERENCES.

The Scriptures and other works cited in the text of the lesson.

_SPECIAL TEXT: "Am I a God at hand, saith the Lord, and not a God afar off? Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him? saith the Lord. Do not I fill heaven and earth? saith the Lord" (Jeremiah xxiii:23, 24.)_

DISCUSSION.

_1. Possible Attributes of the Immanent Spirit:_ So far I have refrained from ascribing any attributes, quality, or characteristic to the Immanent God not directly warranted by the phraseology of the modern revelations which teach the doctrine of immanence; creative and sustaining power; vital force, and intelligence-inspiring power.[A] Yet if the Immanent God is the spirit proceeding from the presence of Divine Beings, to fill the immensity of space, and called for us men "the Light of Christ," it may well be regarded as true that the Spirit carries with it the whole nature of God, and in some way, reflects all characteristics and attributes of Deity, the moral attributes of wisdom, holiness, truth, justice, love, and mercy as well as the four powers before noted.

[Footnote A: See the revelations quoted in preceding lesson.]

_2. The Mission of the Christ:_ Manifestation of the Immanent Spirit: It was part of the mission of the Christ to manifest this Immanent God, as well as God the Father. He came to reveal the whole of the divine nature. He was God manifested in the flesh;[A] in him dwelt all the fullness of the Godhead bodily;[B] it pleased the Father that in him should all fullness dwell;[C] he was the brightness of the Father's glory and the express image of his person.[D] But he was also the manifestation of, "the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world."[E] Light of Christ, the God Immanent; the invisible made visible; the "Unknown God" of the Greeks made known in Jesus Christ through the preaching of Paul unto them; for whom they ignorantly worshiped declared he unto them by preaching Christ; saying that God whom he preached was not afar off--"not far from every one of us: for in him we live, and move, and have our being,"[F] making direct reference to that Spirit which fills the immensity of space, the "Unknown God" of the Greeks--the God Immanent, now manifested by the Christ whom Paul was preaching--from whose presence David could not flee; and to whom the darkness was the same as the light--to whom the night shineth as the day.[G]

[Footnote A: Tim iii:16 and marginal rendering of "manifest" in Oxford Bible.]

[Footnote B: Col. ii:9.]

[Footnote C: Col. i:19.]

[Footnote D: Heb. i:3.]

[Footnote E: St. John i:9.]

[Footnote F: Acts xvii:22-28.]

[Footnote G: Psalms cxxxix.]

_3. Moral Effect of the Conception of Immanence, Negatively Expressed:_ The conception of God as Immanent in the world is of utmost importance both as a religious and a philosophical truth. Its effect upon the mind as establishing a sense of nearness of God is most salutary in its moral effects, and uplifting in its spiritual power. To sense that one lives in the presence of the Divine Consciousness--that known unto God are all his thoughts and all his doings; to dwell with One from whom the darkness and the light are both alike; from whom there is no fleeing; for if one ascend into heaven, lo, He is there; if one make his bed in hell, behold, He is there; if one would take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the earth or of the sea--there also is this Immanent Spirit.[A] To live thus in a consciousness of the Divine Presence and Power, makes for righteousness of life. For where may sin and wickedness hide themselves? There is no refuge for them--no escape. If one shall say--"surely the darkness shall cover me," even the night shall be light about him.[B] Iniquity may not hide itself, and as sin loves not the light, negatively the moral force of consciously living in the presence of God is very great.

[Footnote A: Psalms cxxxix.]

[Footnote B: Ibid.]

_4. Moral Effect of the Doctrine of Immanence, Affirmatively Expressed:_ Affirmatively expressed, the conception and the result of it are even greater, both morally and spiritually. To live consciously in the presence of God must be a source of annoyance and vexation to evil disposed men; and even to men inclined to virtue, an embarrassment, at times, when they recall their many failures to live in harmony with their ideals.[A] But, on the other hand, for these of the latter class, when they realize that the Divine Presence is sympathetic; that He knows, not only "what's done," but also "what's resisted;" that He knows of the struggle for the attainment of virtue--the hungering and the thirsting after righteousness; that He knows the strength of the temptation, and the weakness of the tempted; that He knows the heart, "each chord, its various tone; each spring, its various bias;" and He will judge, not after the sight of the eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of the ears, but with righteousness shall He judge, and reprove with equity;[B] judging, "not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment."[C] Men can be assured of a correct registration and truthful report of their deeds, and a judgment upon them neither partial nor prejudiced; which, while it may cause the wicked to tremble, to men conscious of the uprightness of their intentions, and of honest effort in right directions, as God gives them vision to see the right--what encouragement to earnest striving this conception of living in the very presence of God must bring! What calmness it must bring in the midst of conflict! what peace! what assurance of triumph notwithstanding failures, and losses, and the sad exhibitions of human weakness--the outgrowth of a fallen human nature!

[Footnote A: Professor Joseph Le Conte, Professor of Geology and Natural History in the University of California, answering a supposed objection that one might not live and work effectively in the presence of the Immanent Deity, said: "It may alas! be true that this view [Immanence of God in the world] brings us too near Him in our sense of spiritual nakedness and short-coming. It may, indeed, be that we can not live and work in the continual realized presence of the Infinite. It may, indeed, be that we must still wear the evil of a practical materialism on our hearts and minds. It may, indeed, be that in our practical life and scientific work we must still continue to think of natural forces as efficient agents. But, if so, let us at least remember that this attitude of mind must be regarded only as our ordinary work-clothes--necessary work-clothes it may be of our outer lower life--to be put aside when we return home to our inner higher life, religious and philosophical. (Evolution in Its Relation to Religious Thought"--1902--pp. 302-3.)]

[Footnote B: Isaiah xi:3, 4.]

[Footnote C: St. John vii:24.]

_5. The Helpfulness that Comes from the Sense of the Nearness of God--His Immanence:_ Moreover, if the view point of this treatise be the true one, and all the attributes of the Divine nature are carried over into the Divine Spirit that proceeds forth from the presence of God to fill the immensity of space--being the God Immanent--then one may be assured that living at all times and in all places in the presence of the Immanent Spirit, he resides in the atmosphere, at least, of the wisdom, the love, and the mercy of God; which can but add to his comfort, to his assurance, to his strength. Such an one with David can say--

"Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me, and know my thoughts: and see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting."[A]

[Footnote A: Psalms, cxl:23, 24.]

And else he may say--

"Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for thou are near me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort mc."[A]

[Footnote A: Psalm, xxiii:24.]

Under this sense of nearness, which springs from the doctrine of Immanence, one may again say with David:

"Behold, the eye of the Lord is upon them that fear him, upon them that hope in his mercy;

"To deliver their soul from death, and to keep them alive in famine.

"Our soul waiteth for the Lord: he is our help and our shield."[A]

[Footnote A: Psalms xxxiii:18-20.]

And yet again:

"The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.

"Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the Lord delivereth him out of them all."[A]

[Footnote A: Psalms xxxiv:18, 19.]

Also:

"God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.

"Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea;

"Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof.

"There is a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacles of the most high.

"God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved: God shall help her, and that right early.

"The heathen raged, the kingdoms were moved; he uttered his voice, the earth melted.

"The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge."[A]

[Footnote A: Psalms xlvi:1-7.]

All which loving trust comes from that blessed sense of nearness of God born of the great doctrine of Immanence--God resident in the world, here and now--a dynamic power in the world--that makes for righteousness, and of which the Christ was and is the manifestation, the Revealer; and the Immanent Spirit is "the Light of Christ."

LESSON IV.

(Scripture Reading Exercise.)

THE PHILOSOPHICAL VALUE OF THE DOCTRINE OF IMMANENCE.

ANALYSIS.

I. The Immanence Conception a Result of Modern Thinking.

II. Philosophical Values in Immanence.

III. Immanence Conversely--"The World Immanent in God."

IV. Immanence Equal--Manifestation Unequal.

REFERENCES.

The Scripture passages and works cited in the lesson text.

_SPECIAL TEXT: "Thou, God, seest me." (Gen. xvi:13.)_

DISCUSSION.

_1. Modern Revival of the Doctrine of Immanence:_ On the philosophical side of this conception of the Immanence of God, we are assured that it is the result of the modern world's (i.e. _post Kantian_) thinking.[A] Of its value to human thinking and to religion itself, John Fiske--after pointing out the fact that both Clement and Athanasius among the early Christian fathers had held somewhat to the doctrine of immanence as conceived in more modern philosophy, viz--"God Immanent in the universe, and eternally creative"--says:

[Footnote A: "One can securely say that nothing of crucial import has come forward in the interest of human freedom [i.e. freedom of the human will--man as a free moral agent] since Kant started the inspiring but hitherto little fruitful conception of moral autonomy. Instead, as we have seen, the world's thinking has been absorbed in questions that thus far have ended in a persuasion of the immanence of the eternal in all things--at best the all-pervasive presence of an immanent spirit." Howison, "Conceptions of God," Introductions p. 32.]

"Once really adopt the conception of an ever-present God, without whom not a sparrow falls to the ground, and it becomes self-evident that the law of gravitation is but an expression of a particular mode of divine action. And what is thus true of one law is true of all laws. The thinker in whose mind divine action is thus identified with orderly action and to whom a really irregular phenomenon would seem like a manifestation of sheer diabolism, forsees in every possible extension of knowledge a fresh confirmation of his faith in God. From his point of view there can be no antagonism between our duty as inquirers and our duty as worshipers. To him no part of the universe is godless. In the swaying to and fro of molecules and the ceaseless pulsations of ether, in the secular shiftings of planetary orbits, in the busy work of frost and raindrop, in the mysterious sprouting of the seed, in the everlasting tale of death and life renewed, in the dawning of the babe's intelligence, in the varied deeds of men from age to age, he finds that which awakens the soul to reverential awe; and each act of scientific explanation but reveals an opening through which shines the glory of the Eternal Majesty."[A]

[Footnote A: Fiske-Studies in Religion, pp. 167-3, Works Vol. IX]

_2. The World Immanent in God:_ Still one other thought from the philosophical side of the conception of Immanence is that it enables one to see not only God in nature, but as a necessary corollary, nature in God--"Divine immanence in the world, and the reciprocal immanence of the world in God."[A] That is to say, in one view, God's presence and power penetrates and pervades nature--the universe; in another view, nature is received into the all-including spiritual presence of God: as the One indwells in the other; so the other dwells in the One.

[Footnote A: Howison--"The Conception of God." p. 96.]

Before now the student has doubtless looked into the clear depths of a crystal-like spring of water; and has seen on the sandy floor of the spring the sunlight that tells him that the sun penetrates the water, in-dwells in the water, or, in poetic terms--

"The sunshine in water lies sleeping."

And as the sunlight penetrates the water so does the water receive and hold the sunlight. As it is in the crystal spring, so is it in the ocean. And so in the universe with the immanence of God and the reciprocal immanence of the world in God. As saith the revelation:

"Judgment goeth before the face of him who sitteth upon the throne, and governeth and executeth all things. He comprehendeth all things, and all things are before him, and all things are round him; and he is above all things, and in all things, and is through all things, and is round about all things; and all things are by nim, and of him, even God forever and forever."[A]

[Footnote A: Doc. and Cov., Sec. lxxxviii:41.]

The chief value of this statement of the case--apart from the fact of it as a truth--is, it helps one to understand the completeness of the presence of God in the world; so complete is it, that the world is also in God! Also it helps one to an understanding of the more restricted view of the same principle announced in St. John, the declaration of the Christ: "Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me"; and that he and the Father are one[A]--i.e., the divine nature and spirit are one. One nature participated in by both Father and Son and finally to be participated in by those who are the disciples of the Christ; for in his prayer immediately preceding the hour of his passion--the most pathetic and soul-moving prayer preserved in human language--referring to his disciples he said:

[Footnote A: St. John xiv:11; also xvii.]

"Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou has given me, that they may be one as we are. Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; that they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us, and the glory which thou gavest me, I have given them, that they may be one, even as we are one: I in them and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one. * * * I have declared unto them thy name, and will declare it; that the love wherewith thou hast loved me, may be in them, and I am them."[A]

[Footnote A: St. John xvii. Paul doubtless refers to the same principle when he says: "For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named; that he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his spirit in the inner man; that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in Jove, may be able to comprehend with all Saints what is the breadth and length and depth, and height; and to know the love of Christ which passeth knowledge, that ye may be filled with all the fullness of God." (Eph. iii:14-19.)

And also when he said:

"Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus: who being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God." (Philippians ii:5, 6.)]

_3. One Divine Nature in Many Persons:_ One divine nature, then, is the conclusion; but a divine nature in manifold persons, many, though indeed one, because harmonized into unity of purpose, and will; one divine spirit, rising from one divine nature--though participated in by many; a spirit rising from all Intelligences who have attained to the divine nature and unity in all and through all, manifesting God in his splendor and glory, as creating, sustaining, and guiding power in the universe--both Immanent and personal.

Elsewhere I have said on this subject: One cannot help being profoundly impressed with the great truth that creation, throughout its whole extent, bears evidence of being one system: that it presents at every point unity of design, and harmony in its government. Nor am I unmindful of the force there is in the deduction usually drawn from these premises, _viz._, that the Creator and Governor of the universe, must necessarily be One. But I am also profoundly impressed by another fact that comes within the experience of man, at least to a limited extent, _viz._: the possibility of intelligences arriving at perfect agreement, so as to act in absolute unity. We see manifestations of this principle in human governments, and other human associations of various kinds. And this, too, is observable, viz., that the greater and more perfect the individual intelligence, the more perfect can the unity of purpose and of effort become for the community of intelligences; so that one need only conceive the existence of perfect intelligences to operate together in order to secure perfect oneness; then shall come the one system evident in the universe, exhibiting at every point unity of design, and perfect harmony in its government. In other words, "oneness" can be the result of perfect agreement among many intelligences as surely as it can be the result of the existence of One Only Intelligence. Also, the decrees and purposes of the perfectly united Many can be as absolute as the decrees and purposes of the One Only Intelligence. One is also confronted with the undeniable fact that inclines him to the latter view as the reasonable explanation of the "Oneness" that is evidently in control of the universe--the fact that there are in existence many Intelligences, and, endowed as they are with free will, it cannot be denied that they influence, to some extent, the course of events and the conditions that obtain. Moreover, it will be found, on careful inquiry, that the explanation of the "Oneness" controlling in the universe, on the theory that it results from perfect agreement or unity of Many Intelligences, is more in harmony with the revelations of God on the subject than the theory that there is but One Only Intelligence that enters into its government.[A]

[Footnote A: Mormon Doctrine of Deity, pp. 137-8.]

John Stuart Mill, in his Essay on Theism, in speaking of the evident unity in nature, which suggests that nature is governed by One Being, comes very near stating the exact truth in an alternative proposition to his first remark, viz.: "A. least, if a plurality be supposed, it is necessary to assume so complete a concert of action and unity of will among them, that the difference is for most purposes immaterial between such a theory and that of the absolute unity of the Godhead."[A]

[Footnote A: Essays on Religion; Theism p. 133.]

_4. Immanence and Manifestation:_ We must believe from the scriptures previously considered in these lessons that God by his spirit is everywhere and equally present, but it does not follow that the _manifestation_ of God is everywhere and equally the same. There are doubtless persons, conditions, and places, that present more favorable natures and conditions to the manifestation of this universal presence than others. Undoubtedly, if the assumption of this treatise be the right one, _viz._, that the God Immanent, for us men in the kingdom of the universe we inhabit known as "the Light of Christ"--carries with it the divine attributes of truth, wisdom, justice, holiness, and love, with the rest, then it follows, since like his affinity[A] to like, that there may be, as said above, persons, conditions and places more congenial to manifestation of the divine spirit than others. There are individual men and perhaps races of men more responsive to the Divine Presence and the divine attributes of which that presence is the atmosphere, than others; and where this is the case there will be the larger manifestation of God. Hence the difference observable among individuals and races and at variant times and places. Those who draw near to God, he draws near to them in manifestations of his presence and power; those who love darkness rather than light, because their deeds are evil, receive not the light; the manifestation of God in them either in presence or power is not possible because the conditions which attend upon that manifestation are not there.

[Footnote A: "For intelligence cleaveth unto intelligence; wisdom receiveth wisdom; truth embraceth truth; virtue loveth virtue; light cleaveth unto light; mercy hath compassion on mercy, and claimeth its own; judgment goeth before the face of him who sitteth upon the throne, and governeth and executeth all things." (Doc. & Cov. Sec. lviii:37-40.)]

_6. The Law of Manifestation of the Immanent Spirit:_ "Draw nigh unto God, and he will draw nigh to you,"[A] is the law of divine manifestation. Christ, the Revealer of the Divine, Immanent Spirit, as well as of the person, character, brightness, and glory of the Father--the manifestation of all that is divine--"Came unto his own, but his own received him not; but unto as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believed on his name.[B] He that believeth on him (i. e. the Christ) is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God."

[Footnote A: James iv:8.]

[Footnote B: St. John i:11, 12.]

"And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.

"For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.

"But he that doeth truth, cometh to the light, that his deeds may be manifest, that they are wrought in God."[A]

[Footnote A: St. John iii:18-21.]

LESSON V.

(Scripture Reading Exercise.)

DIFFICULTIES INVOLVED IN THE DOCTRINE OF IMMANENCE.

ANALYSIS.

I. Incompatibility of the Existence of Evil in the World, and the Immanence of God.

II. Reason for the Existence of Moral Evil.[A]

III. Difficulties that Arise from a Partial View of Man's Life.

IV. The Golden Age Promised--the Millennium.

IV. The Lessons from Broken Harmonies--a World wherein Reigns Evils.

REFERENCES.

The Scripture passages and works cited in the lesson text.

_SPECIAL TEXT: "Thou [God] are of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity: wherefore lookest thou upon them that deal treacherously and holdest thy tongue when the wicked devoureth the man that is more righteous than he?" (Habakkuk i:13.)_

[Footnote A: Under this subdivision of the lesson should be considered especially the matter in note m, this lesson, and the lessons cited from Year Books II and IV above and a review of the lessons cited from former Year Books in note.]

DISCUSSION.

_1. Incompatibility of Immanence and Evil Stated:_ It is conceded that the conception of God Immanent in the universe--everywhere existing and everywhere dynamic power, though not everywhere equally manifested, carries with it many and great difficulties that attend upon all forms of human thinking when seeking the harmony that one feels must exist in the things that are--in truth.

For example: one naturally would say, as soon as the conception of the Immanence of God takes firm lodgment in his mind,--"why, then, if God is in his world everywhere present, and everywhere, not only powerful, but all-powerful; not only knowing, but all-knowing; not only good but all-good, holy in fact, and cannot look upon sin with the least degree of allowance[A]--why then is there evil in the world, physical suffering, and moral wrong, injustice, cruelty?[B] Why is the sum of human misery so great?[C] Why is the sum of human happiness so small?[D] Why do the good suffer adversity? Why does prosperity so frequently, in this world at least, attend upon the wicked? In the words of the Hebrew prophet addressed to God: "Wherefore lookest thou upon them that deal treacherously, and holdest thy tongue, when the wicked devoureth the man that is more righteous than he"?[E] Why do the sins of the wicked involve the innocent--why are the innocent made to suffer with the guilty?[F] Why does truth make such tardy appearance in the world, and why of so partial rather than of universal distribution? How can freedom co-exist, that is, the freedom of man as a free moral agent, co-exist with the Sovereign will of the All-Powerful and Immanent God?[G]

[Footnote A: Doc. and Cov., Sec. i:31. Also Habakkuk i:13 and Psalms v:4-6.]

[Footnote B: "We cry out for some explanation--for some philosophy which shall show us _how_ evil is consistent with the infinite goodness." (_Le Conte_, "Conceptions of God," p. 71.)]

[Footnote C: "How terribly large is the proportion of evil? comparing the number of those who are or have been happy, with the number of those who are or have been unhappy, can we say that the great pessimist was very far wrong in calling this the worst possible--he did not say the worst conceivable--world". (Goldwin Smith, discussing "Evolution, Immortality, and Christianity," in North American Review, October, 1907, p. 196.)]

[Footnote D: "The great quest of humanity is happiness. But was the world created to make us happy? I've studied people in all places and conditions and everywhere I've found, when you get below the surface, that it's mostly the insincere individual who says, 'I am a happy man.'" (Thomas A. Edison, the great American Inventor in a Vienna-Austria Interview on "Success in Life," reported in New York World, October 25. 1911.)]

[Footnote E: Habakkuk i:13.]

[Footnote F: See Seventy's Year Book II, Lessons III and IX. Also Year