(Scripture Reading Exercise.)

THE PHILOSOPHICAL VALUE OF THE DOCTRINE OF IMMANENCE.

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.]