i ^»»a^i^aiai^^^^%^^gi^^^%^^ BR 115 .W6 C6 1887 Cochrane, William, 1831- 1898. The church and the commonwealth Zion Presbyterian Cliurcli, Brantfoi'd, Ontario THE CHURCH AND The COMMONWEALTH DISCUSSIONS AND ORATION^ ON QUESTIONS OF THE DAY. PRACTICAL, BIOGRAPHICAL, EDUCATIONAL AND DOCTRINAL. WRITTEN DURING A TWENTY YEARS MINISTRY y/BV THE REV. WM. COCHRANE, D.D., BRANTFORD, ONTARIO, AutJior of ^^ Future Pums/uuent, or Does Death End Piobation" " Christ and Christian Life'' " The Heavenly Vision" " Warning and We/come," &c., &c. WITH NUMEROUS & APPROPRIATE ILLUSTRATIONS. BRANTFORD, ONTARIO, MELBOURNE AND PORT ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA : BRADLEY, GARRETSON & CO.. 1887. Entered according to Act of Parliament of Canada in tlie Year Eighteen Hundred and Eighty-six, Ly Bradley, Garretson & Co , in the Office of the Minister of A^rriculture. PRESS OF WATT & SHFNSTON, BRANTFORD. (ryblisheF>s' (rrefeQe. ;N introducing another book to the public, by the Rev. Dr. Cochrane, whose work on " Future Punish- ment" has met with such approval, the Publishers would simply remind their thousands of readers, in the Dominion and the United States, of the principles that guide them in the selection of authors. In order to success, even in a business point of view, it is necessary to keep in line with those great intellectual, moral, and spiritual laws, which are recog- nized as essential to the highest well-being of the State and the individual, while at the same time the books chosen must be adap- ted to the necessities of the great masses of the people. These conditions, so far as can be judged by their rapid sale, are met in the writings of the author of this volume. Three volumes of his sermons, published ten years ago, have long been out of print, while his more recent work on " Future Punishment," is already in its thirteenth thousand. Our methods of business are such, that we invite a thorough examination of every new book offered by our Agents before a sale is made. That the present volume will stand such an examination we feel assured. The great variety of the topics embraced, the candid and impartial manner in which they are discussed, and the religious spirit which breathes throughout, must make it acceptable to a very large circle of readers, THE PUBLISHERS. Brantford, Ontario, 1887, (3) CONTENTS. Questions of the Day. Christian Citizenship. — Its privileges and obligations. — In- cludes individual sobriety and religious principle. — Sobriety means ten'iperance in the widest sense. — The intelligence required. — Gov- ernments are the purest where the people canvass the actions of the rulers. — In this land no excuse for political ignorance. — Reli- gious principle also necessary in order to stability of character. — Expediency a dangerous guide in religious as well as political mat- ters.— Such citizens would produce better legislators. — " Measures, not Men," a false rallying cry in election campaigns. — The private character of members of Parliament to be canvassed as well as their political views. — The future development of the nation calls for the united efforts of all good men. Page 21. Capital and Labor. — Delicacy and difficulty in speaking on the question. — Books on political economy. — Societies which claim lo control the labor of our artisan .population. — The writer a friend of the workingman. — Taken as a whole, his character as high as that of many employers. — Workingmen have a right to better their condition. — Present agitation chiefly prompted by outside influen- ces— Exaggerated statements— The workingman's condition greatly changed since the sixteenth century. — His condition in Canada and the United States. — The phrase '* Workingman " meaningless in Canada. — All are workingmeai. — Labor should be recompensed as (5) 6 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. it is profitable. — Capitalists deserving of large compensation. — Con- ferences between employers and employed. — Communism. — Boaz and his reapers. — Should eight hours be a day's labor?- — The labor question drifting into politics. — "Workingmen's Candidates" plent- iful at parliamentary elections. — Intelligent mechanics not easily deceived. Page 41. Popular Amusements. — The book of Proverbs adapted to every age. — Solomon addressing youth says, " Hast thou found honey ? Eat so much as is sufficient for thee, lest thou be filled therewith and vomit it." — Honey represents pleasure. — Must be used in moderation. — The Bible nowhere prohibits innocent amuse- ments.— Christianity not a repulsive thing. — Man's complex nature. Relaxation necessary. — Lawful pleasures must be moderately in- dulged in. — What amusements are consistent with a religious pro- fession.— No definite rule can be laid down. — An enlightened conscience the best judge. — Frivolity of Canadian youth. — Chris- tian churches guilty of promoting many of the questionable amuse- ments of the present day. Page 61. Sceptical Objections to Prayer.— Infidel sentiment of the age — "What profit should we have if we pray unto Him? — Men everywhere pray according to their special modes. — The more com- mon objections to prayer stated and answered. — Natural laws. That they are perfect, does not supersede the necessity of prayer. How God may answer prayer in harmony with the laws of nature. The doctrine of Foreordination.— Inward subjective effect of prayer. If there is a God, his ability to answer prayer must be admitted. Bryant's poem on " The wild waterfowl." — No man should argue against prayer, until he has proved that it is worthless. Page 77. Marks of a Genuine Revival.— Habakkuk's prophecy and prayer. — Revivals of religion God's own work. — The word 'revival' implies a languid state of spiritual existence. — A revival possible. To be brought about by divine and human agencies. — Results of a general revival. — Revivals to be judged not simply by the number of converts made, but by their permanent results. Page 91. Is THE Church of To-Day Apostolic ?— The Day of Pen- tecost.— Fulfilment of the promise that the Comforter would come. " The baptism of fire " predicted by the Prophet Joel. — Needed by the Apostolic Church. — Proofs of its reality. — Steadfast continu- ance in the Apostle's doctrine. — Stated observance of the means CONTENTS. 7 of f:^race. — Fellowship with the household of faith. — Pentecostal scenes regarded with suspicion at the present day. — Such occasions to be expected and prayed for. Page 105. Thanksgiving Memories. — Thanksgiving occasions in Pal- estine, Great Britain and the United States. — The Puritans of New England. — Looking back as well as forward. — The journey of the Israelites. God's goodness to be remembered in the land which he had given them. — The number and magnitude of our mercies tend to forgetfulness. — Motives to thanksgiving, personal and national. Sins to be confessed. — Neglect of God's Word. — Desecration of the Sabbath. — Non-attendance upon ordinances. — Decline in public integrity. — Extravagance in style of living. — Absence of religious training. — Obligations resting upon the Church to keep pace with commerce and civilization. Page 119. Biographical Discourses. Martin Luther. — Great and good men God's gifts. Birth, parentage and training pf the great German Reformer. — Choice of profession. — Occasion of his conversion. — -Ordination. — Professor- ship in the University of Wittemburg. — Commissioner to Rome. — Made Doctor of Divinity. — Pope Leo the Tenth. — Sale of indul- gences.— Luther shocked at Tetzel's profanity. — His famous ninety- -five propositior^s. — Controversy between Luther and Rome. — Melancthon. — The Papal Bull. — The Diet of Worms. — Escape from Worms as the hero of the German nation. — Offensive and defensive alliance of Charles the Fifth against the Reformer. — The Peasants' War.- — Closing years of the great Reformer. — His mem- ory imperishable. — Estimate of his character and work. — Germany and her men of genius. — Romanism and Protestantism. — Their future history and influence upon the world. Page 141. Thomas Carlyle. — Mission of John the Baptist — character of the age in which he lived. — ^His preaching a call to repentance. Every age has its reformers. — Those made by the times, those made for and in advance of the times. — Characteristics of John's preaching. — Thomas Carlyle to many "a voice crying in the wil- derness."— His early life. — The Annan Gymnasium and Edinburgh b THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. University. — Edward Irving and the school at Kirkaldy. — Address as Rector of Edinburgh University. — A profound worshipper of the divinity in man. — Marked eccentricities in his character. — Saw no bright spots in the pohtical horizon. — Intensely conservative, and yet intensely revolutionary. — His religious views inexplicable. — Not a philosophic Atheist, nor yet a defender of the Christian faith. — Doubt and denunciation of creeds and dogmas supplanted the simple trust of his fathers. — No merely negative philosophy can cure the world's sorrows. Page 159. George Brown. — David's lamentation over the death of Ab- ner. — As statesman and journalist, George Brown a kingly man. The times in which he lived developed his wonderful powers. — Story of his life. — Birth and training in Edinburgh. — Force of character, tenacity of purpose and intense earnestness. — Characteristics of his life.— Views on public questions, strong convictions, and downright plainness of speech. — Measures promoted by his voice and pen. — Confederation of the Provinces. — His hatred of slavery. — A Chris- tian statesman. — His private life. — Loss of such a man to the com- monwealth. Page 175. Abraham Lincoln. — The ablest men seem called away before their work is completed. — No great enterprise permanently suffers by the removal of human agents. — The Almighty not dependent on mortals. — Good men comparatively few, good sort of men plen- tiful.— Characteristics of each. — Value of good men to society and the church. — When removed by death, the prayer should be, "Help Lord." — ^Abraham Lincoln a great and good man.— Next to Washington, the greatest of American Presidents. — His part in the abolition of slavery. — Condition of the Republic in 1861. — His work in some respects greater than that of Washington. — Washington founded a new government. — Lincoln had to destroy, before recon- structing.— Results.— Slavery and States Rights buried without hope of resurrection. — Universal freedom. — Geographical and moral distinctions blotted out as between North and South. — Great Britain and America more closely united. Page 191 Pre.sh)ENT Garfield.— The silence of grief.— The death of Nadab and Abihu. — The sins of which they were guilty. — Aaron's submission to the Divine will. — " Great sorrows are silent, light sor- rows speak." — F'eeling not to be measured by the wailings of the death chamber. — The Shunamitish woman. — The Apostle of the North. — National bereavements often produce silent grief — Death CONTENTS. 9 of Garfield. — Eminently qualified to rule a great nation. — A religi- ous man from his youth. — His preparedness for death. — Alike in field and forum, a brave and God-fearing man — The awful uncer- tainty of life. — The vanity of earthly greatness. — The grandeur of the Christian's death-bed. — The best of patriots have no monu- ments to mark their graves. — They need them not, their memory is imperishable. Page 213. General Grant. — Unity of Christian nations. — Sympathy between Great Britain and the United States. — Queen Victoria's messages to the widows of martyred Presidents.— Universal lamen- tation at the death of Grant. — His rapid promotion to the Presi- dential chair. — Lowly origin of the world's noblest benefactors. The man who is called to rule men must first rule his own spirit. — "The hour and the man." — Momentary depreciation of his military genius.— His wisdom justified. — Traits of character. — Modest esti- mate of his own services. — Hatred of war. — Causes of the Ameri- can Rebellion. — Grant's eagerness to efface its scars. — Humility of the dying soldier. — Incident in the life of Wellington. — His religious belief. — His dying declarations. — A christian profession should not be postponed. — His purity of speech. — Lessons of his life. — Canon Farrar on America and England. Page 229. Character and Culture. Christian Manliness.— Many of Paul's illustrations taken from the discipline and evolutions of the Roman army. — Christian life in the first century a warfare. — Fortitude necessary in the con- test with spiritual enemies. — Erroneous conceptions of the christian life. — Elements of strength upon which men rely. — Bodily vigor. Industry. — Knowledge. — Wealth. — God the source of all moral and spiritual strength. — How to use God-given strength. — Strong in the faith. — In defending the faith. — In integrity. — The full possession of such strength the work of years. — Paul's exhortation specially applicable to young men. — Ought to be the defenders of society against moral evils. — Demands of the age. — God's ideal of man- hood.— Manly piety. — Advanced thinkers. — Object of university training. — Graduates should be men of unflinching faith and stain- less honor, purity of heart and fidelity to God and right. Page 251. lO THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. Consecrated Work.— Solomon near the portals of the spiirt world. — Realizes the brevity of a life spent largely in vanity. — Closes the mournful retrospect by exhorting the young to improve every moment. — Sowing in the morning better than in the evening. — He who masters his early hours, wins the battle of life. — This principle true in common affairs. — Capital and riches secured by industry. The foundations of eminence in science laid in early life.— Without earnestness of purpose, gifts whether natural or acquired, of little value. — Continuous as well as consecrated work necessary to suc- cess.— No false pride should prevent accepting the humblest sta- tions.— No work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom in the grave. — The end of a college course should not be the end of study. Consecrated work for God, the noblest employment for an immortal soul. Page 267. The Pattern Worker. — Labor not a curse. — No condition of existence but what affords suitable employment for rational beings. — Christ a life-long worker. — Was sent by his Father into the world. — Service in itself never degrading. — Everything depends upon the master. — Christ's life on earth a busy one, even regarded from a human standpoint. — Sustained by communion with heaven. Every human being sent into the world to work the works of God. Much talk at the present day about overwork. — Men unduly tax the brain. — Seldom overtax their powers for the good of humanity. The luxury of working for God. Page 283. Polished Corner Stones. — The true glory of a nation. — Material riches of secondary importance. — Accomplished women to society, what the polished stones were to the temple. — Special culture needed for women's gentler nature. — High attainments without conscious superiority. — Zeuxis the Grecian painter. — Eliza- beth Barrett Browning. — The title of " lady," or "gentlewoman." — True nobility stoops to the humblest vocations. — Lady Augusta Stanley. — Genius alone, however brilliant, cannot make a useful life. Page299. The True Beauty of Womanhood. — The mother of King Lemuel warns him as to his conduct and companionship. — Portrait of a virtuous woman. — The woman that fears the Lord the noblest of her sex. — A religious nature methodical in habit and abundant in labor. — No incongruity between literary accomplishments and sweetness of disposition. — Strong minded women. — Scholarship modest and unassuming. — Mary Somcrville, Caroline Herschell and CONTENTS. II Felicia Hemans. — A college training the starting point of intellec- tual life. — No one can be a universal scholar. — He who masters perfectly some one department of knowledge is truly learned. — No incongruity between literary accomplishments and devoted piety. — Those who believe most the strongest characters. Page •^ii. Decision of Character.— The kingdom of Moab.— The Moabitish stone. — The story of Ruth true to nature. — Naomi's bit- ter experience. — ^Return to Bethlehem. — Critical moment for Ruth and Orpah. — Ruth's decision. — Orpah in some respects a lovely character. — Impulsive, but unreliable. — Ruth's conduct indicates decision, affection and personal attachment— Lost nothing by her decision. — Won the heart of Boaz and became the mother of a race from whom the Saviour sprang. — Success in every profession depends upon decision of character. — Ruth not gifted above her sex. Rich in faith though wanting in the culture of the schools. — The real woman is she who under the eye of the great Taskmaster, addresses herself to the humblest employments of life. Page 323. "With the Whole Heart."— The great painter Opie.— In-'> telligence and common sense necessary in every profession. Heze- kiah, a revolutionist in church and state. — Whatever he did, he did with all his heart. — No reward offered to indolence. — Gifts and graces, and success in secular callings attained by prosecuting them with our whole heart. — Humility one of the best guarantees for future greatness. — Sufferings of the Roman women in the earlier ages of Christianity. — Harriet Martineau. — Life not extinguished when death approaches. — Scholarship unchastened and unsancti- fied, adds to unrest of mind. Pa^e 335. The Best Knowledge.— Question of the age—" What know- ledge is of most worth ?" — That which enables a man to live com- pletely ?— True in one sense, and untrue in another. — Physical and mental culture not to be despised. — Meaning of the phrase, " to know God." Speculative and experimental knowledge. — How they differ. Natural knowledge insufficient to discover truths necessary to sal- vation.— Egypt, Greece and Rome. — Athenian altar "to the un- knov/n God." — Natural knowledge cannot make man holy. — Solo- mon, Byron, Sir Humphrey Davy. — Natural knowledge evil in its effects. — Tends to pride and self-conceit. — Intellectual studies wear- isome and unsatisfying. — The objects of spiritual knowledge are above nature. — Includes cognition of things revealed. — Is spiritu- 12 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. ally discerned. — Is blessed in its effects. — Brings with it no remorse nor disappointment. Page 349. The Highest Wisdom. — Wisdom personified in the book of Proverbs. — Such wisdom beyond the range of academic teaching. — Wisdom is knowledge applied to the purposes of life. — It is genius coupled with common sense. — Its possession obtained by reading and reflection. — Fiction, its use and abuse. — Reading of little value unless accompanied by thought. — Four classes of readers. — Knowl- edge not only power, but a source of happiness. — In order to gain wisdom there must be observation. — No amount of secular knowl- edge can save the soul. — The heart and not the head controls our destinies. — Acquisitions in grace as varied as attainments in litera- ture.— Many fall short of prizes in earthly pursuits. — In christian service all receive a glorious recompense. Page 361. The One Thing Needful. — Mary the type of the contempla- tive christian.— Martha the practical and energetic. — The words addressed to Martha not condemnation of her conduct. — Not a sel- fish, worldly minded woman. — Her error lay in the reproach she cast upon her sister. — Grace does not recreate the natural constitu- tion.— The world needs both types of character. — Tendency of the present day to copy Martha rather than that of Mary. — More ways than one of serving Christ. — The Marys have their functions as much as the Marthas. — Depth of religious feeling as necessary as activity. — " The one thing needful" to live by and die by. Page 375. Relio^ion and the State. Saint Andrew's Day. — The Patron Saint of Scotland. — His history, discipleship and death — Effects of his preaching. — Inci- dents of his martyrdom. — Benevolence a part of the christian reli- gion.— Paganism and Deism have no place for it in their creeds. — The benevolent and patriotic institutions of the land recognize the brotherhood of humanity. — Communism and the Apostolic church. Twofold objects of national societies. — National pride a virtue. — Foster self-reliance. — Poverty not in itself a crime. — Emigration from the old world. — The rich need the poor. — The poor need the CONTENTS. 13 rich. — Pleasure in doing good. — Gifts only valuable as the motives are pure. — Christian benevolence, unlike secularism, looks beyond the present life. Page389. How Best to Provide for the Poor. — Poverty common to every age. — Jewish provision for the poor. — Poverty in many cases the result of indolence, drunkenness or prodigality. — The modern tramp. — Legalized pauperism. — Compulsory or voluntary charity. English pauperism. — Dr. Chalmers' opinion. — Pauperism in the United States. — In elevating the masses, the moral must take pre- cedence of the economic. — To mitigate present poverty not enough. The cause must be removed. — Evils of legalized charity. — Under- mines manlv independence. — Increases improvidence. — Lowers the status of the industrious working man. — In a young nation, com- pulsory provision for the poor unnecessary. — Obligations of churches. — Individual effort. — Illustrations of true charity. — John Howard. — Florence Nightingale. — David Livingstone.^Sympathy that exhales in tracts and talk. — Practical religion the best proof of orthodoxy. Page 405. A Religious People an Heroic People. — The Maccabees and their followers. — Courage compatible with holiness and meek- ness.— Illustrations from individual life. — Moses. — David.^ — Elijah. Paul. — Luther. — Knox. — Nations moulded by their physical sur- roundings.— To some extent true. — The color of a nation's piety affected by circumstances. — The thing itself divine. — Scottish hero- ism.— "The Solemn League and Covenant." — Drumclog — Bothwell Bridge. — The battle of Airsmoss. — Richard Cameron— John Brown, the christian carrier of Priesthill. — The Virgin Martyr of Galloway. Argyle — Presbyterianism — Calvinism — Young men standard bear- ers of the faith. — The age demands the same courage, though the martyr's crown is absent. Page 425. Religion the Source of National Blessings. — What constitutes national greatness. — The Hebrew army on the borders of Canaan. — Balaam and the King of Moab. — The false prophet blessing instead of cursing. — " How goodly are thy tents, O Jacob ! and thy tabernacles, O Israel ! " — Why such an eulogy ? — Not be- cause of their military strength, nor material possessions, nor na- tional prestige. — God with the Israelites. — The tent and tabernacle representatives of family piety and public ordinances. — Attachment to the theocracy. — Means used to foster it. — Printing and books unknown. — History handed down from sire to son. — Jewish love for 14 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. Jerusalem and the Holy Land. — Scotchmen enshrine the temples and simple faith of th :r ancestors in memory. — Every Briton glories in his birthright. — " The bells of Limerick." — The exiled Scot. — Departed worth should be remembered. — Training of the youth of the present day. Page Hi- The Old Paths and the New. — Modern changes in society not all praiseworthy. — Lessons from the past. — Meaning of the phrase " The Old Paths." — Doctrines and practices of our fore- fathers.— Unmistakable belief in a living God. — The study of God's Word in private and public. — Stern administration of the higher law. — Over strictness of the past and laxity of the present. — The Sabbath almost blotted out from the calendar of holy days. — Men then valued for what they were. — Puritans of England and Coven- anters of Scotland. — Scotland a century ago. — Scotland in the nineteenth century. — Scepticism of the age. — Feverish desire for wealth. — Prodigality and profligacy. — Arrogance of youth. — Sel- fishness.— Remedy for such evils. Page 4.57. Jewish Love for Jerusalem. — The Psalms abound in praise of Mount Zion. — All places not alike dear to the heart. — Associa- tions of the Holy City. — Grandeur of the temple. — Attachment of Scotchmen to their simple forms of worship. — Scottish piety, if less rigid and austere than in the past, more attractive and ag- gressive.— Changes in political and ecclesiastical affairs. — Union among denominations holding the same creed.^ — Church and State in Canada, a thing of the past. — Peculiar dangers of the Dominion. xA.ntagonistic faiths. — Political incendiaries. — Freedom of conscience the right of every citizen. Page 47 5. Christ's Kingdom— Its Glory and Perpetuity Much Land to be Possessed. — Canaan to be divided among the tribes. — Joshua near his end. — Speedy completion of his work necessary. — True respecting the world at large, that " there is much land to be possessed." — Population of the globe. — Christ to reign over the vast masses of heathenism. — The nations of the earth prepared to receive the gospel. — True respecting this and other christian nations, that "there is much land to be possessed." — CONTENTS. IS Civilization opening up the most distant settlements. — Silent ad- vance of the truth. — The gospel to be published in all nations, preached to all nations, professed by all nations, practised in all nations. — Indelible impressions of divine truth. — The midnight sun in Swedish Lapland. — The fall of Troy. — Success depends upon the demonstration of the Spirit. Page 489. Showers of Blessing. — Horrors of a protracted drouth. — Only partially seen in our climate. — Periods when spiritual feel- ing is abundant. — Causes and consequences of spiritual drouth. — Steals upon us insensibly. — Not the less fatal to true religion. — Promise made to the church of the latter days. — Includes both temporal and spiritual bestowments. — Primary signification, — P'inal and more comprehensive fulfilment. — Extent and seasonableness of the blessing. — Crusaders embarking for the Holy Land. Page 507. God Dwelling With Men. — Jehovah's condescension. — His majesty and glory contrasted with the creature's weakness and sin- fulness.— This thought present to the mind of Solomon. — Dedica- tion of the temple. — The gorgeous spectacle as seen by the con- gregation.-— Effect upon priest and congregation. — Prayer of the King. — At the dedication of churches the prayer should be, Will God dwell with men on earth ? — Jehovah not present to the senses. No form of Ritualism can bring the Deity into loving contact with human souls. — In different ways God dwells with men. — His pres- ence everywhere. — Specially near to his children. — The work of the Spirit. — The subject of special promise. — Insures the success of the church in every conflict. — The earnest of permanent commu- nion in the church "not made with hands." Page525. The Indestructible Kingdom. — The book of Daniel the subject of much learned ingenuity. — Diverse interpretations. — -In one point all agreed. — Christ's church and kingdom to survive all national convulsions. — Nebuchadnezzars dream. — Daniel's in- terpretation.— Characteristics of this kingdom. — Founded by Christ. Composed of all believers. — Divine in origin. — Indestructible. — Immutable. — Triumphant. — Evidences of its growth. — Erection of churches. — Growth of religious agencies.— Vast changes in the future. Page 539. Through Death to Life. — Deadness to the law precedes life in Christ.— "Crucified with Christ."— Cross-bearing.— Different from what it was in the days of Christ. — Crucifixion a lingering death. — Implies the surrender of everything that hinders the posses- l6 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. sion of the highest attainments. — Obedience to the divine com- mands.— Deadness to the world. — BeHevers alive with Christ. — " Nevertheless I live." — Source of spiritual life. — " Christ liveth in me. — This life enjoyed on earth. — Is unlike that which the be- lievers inherit by nature. — Is a life of faith. — God the author of this life. — Experimental in its character. Page 551, (Questions of the ^Hay. Christian Citizenship. "I am a man, which am a citizen of no mean city." —Acts 21, V. 39. Christian Citizenship. ^HE apostle Paul is on his way to Jerusalem, thence to Rome, v/here finally he suffered death. On his way thither, he was violently assailed by excited and infuri- ated Jews, who stirred up the people to lay hands upon him. All sorts of false accusations were made against him, the chief captain among others saying: " Art thou not that Egyptian, which before these days madest an uproar, and leddest out into the wilderness four thousand men that were murderers ?" In reply the apostle says : " I am a man which am a Jew of Tarsus, a city of Cilicia, a citizen of no mean city." We propose to speak from these words, on the privileges and obligations of christian citizenship, with special reference to the land in which we live, and of which we boast. The public mind is at the present moment, as it rightly should be, much exercised as to the coming elections. * It indicates a healthy condition of the body politic, when the character and actions of public men are closely investigated and narrowly criticised. When a nation becomes so avaricious, or so indifferent to its honor and welfare, that it allows men of no reputation to pass into office, its existence is doomed. Apart, however, from the great political • Deliveied on occasion of a Parliamentary election. 22 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. questions involved in the present contest, there are a few thoughts concerning the character and qualifications of those who are called to exercise the franchise, that may not be out of place. While it is almost universally acknowledged that the extension of the franchise in Canada and Great Britain has been an immense boon to all concerned, it is nevertheless to be lamented, that many who are put in possession of this tremendous power for good or for evil, use it thoughtlessly and unwisely. What then, let us enquire, are some of the qualifications of christian citizenship ? Christian citizenship should include in the individual, sobriety, intelligence, and religious principle. No man who does not possess in some measure such qualifications, can benefit the nation of which he is a member. By sobriety we of course mean temperance, chastity, and morality in the widest sense. No man who is unfit to govern his appetites and restrain his passions can creditably take part in the duties and obligations of good citizenship. No man can have a higher aim for his country than he has for himself He who is ignorant of what is best for his own happiness, and who acts in direct opposition to the plainest dictates of reason in his manner ot ■ life, cannot choose what is best for the interest of his fellowmen in their collective capacity. People may say of such a man, " that he is his own worst enemy ;" but this is not the fact. In our collective capacity, as members of society, every man's conduct has a bearing upon that of his neighbor. " No man liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself," is a truth engraven in every department of social life. In the commonwealth, men are not rated by their character at the polling booth or the ballot box, but by their personality, so that the most degraded and wicked man counts just as much as the purest and most upright citizen. Hence the necessity, that in laying the foundations of this new Dominion, we should insist on sobriety as one of the most prominent and valuable traits of citizen- ship. You have a direct interest and I have a direct interest in CHRISTIAN CITIZENSHIP. 23 raising- the standard of character ; in seeing to it that laws for the prevention of crime are respected, and that such measures are instituted and faithfully carried out, as shall tend to the promotion of good government in the community and nation. You cannot, it is said, make men virtuous by Act of Parliament. If so, the more urgent is the call that christian influence should be brought to bear against all that is dishonorable in the commonwealth, and that men whose character is notorious for unblushing wickedness, should be regarded as traitors to the nation and enemies to its prosperity. Christian citizenship should also include a certain measure of intelligence. Especially is this the case, where there is so much equality, that no man need despair of attaining the highest civic honors. We have a noble system of education so far as it goes, but not specially adapted nor intended to afford the higher forms of knowledge which christian citizenship demands. The intelligence of which we speak is only to be gained by experience and study. If, as in many lands, men had little or no interest in the selection of their rulers, and but little opportunity of gaining an acquaintance with social ethics, to demand such intelligence would be unwise as it would be unnecessary. But our case is vastly different. Every citizen of this country may, without the smallest difficulty, gain such an amount of knowledge as will make him an intelligent and inde- pendent agent, in every matter that concerns the commonwealth. We do not believe in this land that ignorance is a virtue. We do not believe that governments are the purest, where the inhabitants are so stupid as not to canvass the actions of their rulers. On the contrary, we believe that knowledge and intelligence are the birthright of every class, and that wherever they are general, there will be the greatest amount of individual happiness, the firmest government, and the most righteous laws. Every elector should, then, have general information on all the leading questions of the past and present. We do not mean that 24 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH every man should be a university graduate, or a scholar in the proper sense of the term ; but that knowledge should be possessed by the humblest classes in our land, in such proportion as to qualify them for the more important trusts of public life. Should not every citizen have some knowledge of history — the history of his own and other lands — of the changes that have taken place in the customs, occupations, and habits of the people? Should he not add to this some acquaintance with the political institutions of his own and other lands? How without such intelligent knowledge is he to help to make the laws and repeal them? — to frame and fashion local or general governments, or discharge all those duties which belong to intelligent and responsible agents ? On moral grounds — on patriotic grounds — we demand all this in every man who lays claim to the privileges of the nation. It is admitted that there never was a period when knowledge was more generally diffused than at present. At the same time, those who are most conversant with the literary tastes of the day, declare that there never was a period when there was less demand for the more solid and thoughtful productions of genius than there is now. Nay, were there a demand for serial publications at all proportioned to the citizenship of the nation, there would be little cause for regret. But large masses of our population have no knowledge but what comes to them second-hand ; — taken from the lips of men who are not over faithful in certain circumstances to facts of history. The extreme partizan or the prejudiced political print, or the platform orator, are the only authorities on all matters affecting the destiny of the nation. Now in such a land as ours, where books are so cheap, and where the channels of information are so abundant and free, and where there are so many inducements to rise to superior positions in society, it is a shame for any man to be contented with the mere tittle-tattle of the market-place. No man need call another master. CHRISTIAN CITIZENSHIP. 25 as regards the more common subjects that demand attention, and he who values intelligence so poorly as to put forth no efforts to obtain it, or goes about the streets gathering up the crumbs of commonplace conversation, instead of refreshing himself at the fountain-head, is unworthy to exercise the privileges of citizenship, or obtain any honor within the gift of his fellow-men. Christian citizenship should, finally, include religious principle. If a man is not guided by principle in his business, men cease to put faith in anything he does or says. It is just so in public life ; principle, stern and unbending, must control every act that has for its object the civil and social welfare of our fellow-men. Where there is no principle there is no stability of character. A man actuated by principle is not imposed upon, flattered, or persuaded, or coaxed into doubtful positions by the false representations of designing men. You are always sure where to find such a man, and you honor him for his consistency and straightforward conduct, though it should be opposed to your views, and at variance with your creed. It is often said in regard to religious matters, that it is danger- ous for any man to make expediency his guide. It is so in regard to political matters. It is no shame for a man to change his opinions, provided there is sufficient cause for such a change, and that on calm reflection his conscience demands it. But to move hither and thither at the call of this or that faction, to renounce all independence of thought and action, because self-interest, or expe- diency, or the gratification of friends demands it, lowers a man in the estimation of all who admire firmness and strength of character. Our acts as citizens, next to our public acts as christians, are matters of serious importance. Church membership we regard as a solemn transaction between the soul and its Maker. We invest it with a responsibility which every thinking man acknowledges to 25 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. be just. But we look upon actions affecting the nation in a very different light. And yet the difference is not so great after all. The same sincerity, the same honest convictions, the same purity of motive should be apparent in the one case as in the other. A man is responsible at the bar of God, not simply for his religious profession, but for the whole of his life, and where he suppresses the clear convictions of conscience for the maxims of policy, he renders himself amenable to a higher than human jurisdiction. There is no act of an intelligent man so insignificant in its results as to be beneath the notice of the Almighty, and just in proportion as the transactions he engages in are far-reaching and comprehen- sive in there sweep, embracing the destinies of coming generations and affecting the glory of God in the kingdoms of the world, do they carry with them an importance and momentousness that can scarcely be realized or weighed. When we render an account of our stewardship there will be not only a classification of specific acts, but a scrutiny of motives, a laying bare of the secret springs of action and a revealing of the hidden thoughts. If we had such citizens, what a nation would be developed within the next century I What a power would this land exercise in controlling the acts of other nations — what silent but omnipotent influence would be felt wherever her name was mentioned ! If we had such citizens, what senators, what legislators, what magistrates would represent us in our highest places of honor ! Nor is there any true panacea for the social and political evils which afflict us, in common with other countries, but a raising of the entire social structure. It is not by this or that government — it is not by mere change of political leaders and measures, however necessary at times, nor by the conflict of party, that true national greatness can be achieved ; but by the prevalence of religious principle among our inhabitants, by the spread of Bible truth, by hallowed Sabbaths and well-filled churches. A standing army is CHRISTIAN CITIZENSHIP. . 2/ good and useful in its place ; armories and arsenals and fleets of war ships may give an external prestige and grandeur to a nation ; but the best defence that any country can possess, is an enlightened, moral and law-abiding citizenship ; an intelligent, laboring popula- tion ; a free and complete system of education, so unsectarian and non-denominational, as to meet the just demands of every fa'th and every rank and condition of life. " Happy is the people that is in such a case. Yea, happy is that people, whose God is the Lord." Still further ;— if we had such a sober, enlightened, and high- minded citizenship, how easily would the machinery of government be worked ! The friction of party strife, the endless bickerings, criminations, and re-criminations which pass between respectable men ; the unseemly if not dishonest and unchristian measures that are so often resorted to for the accomplishing of certain ends, would be unknown. The voice of the community and common- wealth would frown down all attempts to fetter individual inde- pendence, and hold up to righteous scorn any man or number of men, who would vciiture to trade in the rights of citizenship. Bribery, coercion, and intimidation would be unknown. Instead of the hatred, hostility, and bitterness that prevail, there would be good-will and forbearance, sympathy and assistance, mutual love and kindness, among the different classes of society. We would come nearer and nearer to the golden age of the past, sung o. by the poet, when he says : — " Then none was for a parly, Then all were for the state, Then ths great man helpjcl the poor, And the poor m in loved the great. Then lands were fnirly portioned, Then spoils were fairly sold ; The Romans were like brothers, In the brave days of old !" Such a state of things Christianity is to produce. Not vapid declamation about the rights of man and the wrongs of the oppres- 2S THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. sed, but the healthy, healing balm of religious truth, brought home to the heart and conscience of the highest and lowest in the land. We have entered as a Christian nation but recently on a new phase of political existence* and what our future history shall be among the kingdoms of the world is very much in our own hands. Some of the young men who read these lines are destined to wield a mighty power in our civic institutions. Surely it is worth their while to seek after that knowledge and dignity of character, which is far better than the proudest title conferred by royalty. The world is not long in finding out the men who are born to command. For a time they may be overlooked, and other less worthy charac- ters usurp their place, but ultimately the sceptre falls into their hands. Rich men without intellects or moral character, and cun- ning crafty diplomats, devoid of conscience, are indeed most pitia- ble objects ; but cultured minds, directed and inspired by holy aims for the good of humanity and the glory of God, are the noblest of all possessions. And it is such minds that in coming years are to rule our land. The time is fast approaching when the only rank recognized will be superiority of mental endowments, sterling principle, and high-toned honor. Then civil distinctions shall no longer be so lightly esteemed that they must be offered to each and every man by turn, but when next to the sacred office of the ministry, the highest possible honor shall be rule and authority in the state. To bring about such a desirable state of things is surely worth the united effort of Christian citizens. It surely is worth one's striving for, to increase the reputation of this nation, and raise her to that position to which her name, her wide-spread ter- ritory, her noble ancestry and traditions entitle her ; not to seek office simply for personal gain or empty titles that perish ere they are enjoyed, but to make her the instrument of untold blessings to the world at large ; to lift up purity and rectitude and justice * Referring to Confederation. CHRISTIAN CITIZENSHIP. 2g to their rightful place in the administration of law, and make Canada, what the poet says of England, when it will be Praise and boa"': enough In every cliiue and travel where we may That we were born her children. If such a period is possible, there must be less boasting of the individual and more of the nation ; there must be another kind of patriotism than what is prevalent at the present day. Not how can I profit by the nation, but how can I enrich the nation in all the elements of manhood — in all those enterprises and projects which indicate vitality and progress ; in all those stalwart and robust virtues that ensure permanence and immortality ; such should be the question of every citizen. Your promotion and my promo- tion is H small matter compared with the general good. It is a poor thing for a man to feel that he is but so much dead weight to his country ; that but for his selfishness and indolence, she would have been further advanced in the race of civilization and more prolific of blessings to the world ; that by his personal actions he has brought upon her the reproach and scoff of foreigners, and exposed her to a rude and heartless but none the less truthful criticism. Next to the duties we owe to the church of Christ are our obligations to the nation — obligations which increase in number and rise in importance, in proportion as we have enlarged concep- tions of our indebtedness to the land in which we live. Let us then at the present important juncture in our country's history realize the responsibilities of citizenship, and act as" christian men who intend to give her such a name and standing as shall exalt our land in the eyes of the world and start her in a new career of usefulness and honor. While we love and pray for the prosperity of other kingdoms, the welfare of this the land of our birth or adoption must be the first wish of every patriot. Yes : — 30 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. There is a land of every land the pride, Beloved by heaven o'er all the world beside : Where brighter suns dispense serener light, And milder moons emparadise the night. There is a spot of earth supremely blest, A dearer, sweeter spot than all the rest. Where shall that land— that spot of earth be found 1 Art thou a man 1 a patriot 1 look around ! O, thou shalt find, howe'er thy footsteps roam, That land thy country, and that spot thy home. Man, through all ag'^s of revolving time — Unchanging man, in every varying clime. Deems his own land, of every land the pride, Beloved by heaven o'er all the world beside ; His home the spot of earth supremely blest ; A dearer sweeter spot than all the rest Perhaps they are wrong and take too gloomy a view of society, who assert that our towns and cities in Canada in many instances are retrograding in the average morality of their inhabitants. And yet the men who are often elected to office in our town and county councils and our parliaments, give occasion for such an opinion. But seldom indeed, comparatively, do virtue and sobriety assert their claims and carry their nominees. Men of easy-going morals and suspicious honesty, and who can never seek for their country a higher standard of character than they deem necessary for them- selves, are in the majority of cases elected. The mantle of charity which our electors throw over the imperfection and scandals which attach to many of our leading politicians is verily broad and accommodating. Indeed, were every christian man in our country to exercise his rights, it is doubtful if they could outnumber the masses who seem to have no regard for honesty, integrity and honorable conduct. While in Great Britain, there is a very pre- ceptible and gratifying change in this matter, here in Canada it is in notable instances the reverse. Christian men of all classes admit and mourn the fact — politicians confess it. It is the lament on all hands, that the overwhelming power and controlling influence in CHRISTIAN CITIZENSHIP. 3I national affairs lies in the hands of that portion of our citizens "who fear not God, nor regard men." The rallying cry of many an election campaign has been " Measures, not Men." Like many similar phrases, it has a ring of sincerity about it, that is apt to mislead unthinking minds. It only needs, however, a moment's reflection to show how exceedingly foolish and vicious such language is, when great interests are at stake in the future of our country ; and that Christian electors, in exercising the franchise, are bound to regard both measures and men, when choosing citizens to represent them in Parliament and othei- places of trust and honour. It is eminently right and proper to know the views of candidates for Parliamentary honours, in regard to important questions, that command the attention of all classes, and involve the prosperity and happiness of the community at large : it is also wise to canvass the votes and speeches of our legislators, with a view to a removal or withdrawal of our trust and confidence, but it is no less the duty of reflecting minds to weigh the private character of members of Parliament, and ask themselves the question, whether such conduct is an earnest of honesty, purity and unselfishness when the same man is called upon to deal with matters affecting the welfare of his fellow citizens. We lay it down as a principle that cannot be gainsayed, that no man can be more honest in public than in private life, and that no man who has consciously and flagrantly dishonored his private character, is fit to be trusted in legislating for the nation, and guarding its interests against overreaching and designing powers. One would imagine that political parties of every shade of opinion would admit the common sense of such a proposition ; but, singular to say, it is frequently called in question, if not directly denied. It is boldly asserted that a man's private character has nothing to do with his public life ; — he may be dishonest, intem- perate, unreliable, and break almost every command of the deca- 32 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. logue, and yet be our representative in the councils of the land. In regard to certain leading statesmen and politicians, how often do we hear their admirers making the remark, that " they are not just what they should be in character, not over scrupulous in their dealings, and not over rigid in their morality, not very decided or pronounced in their political faith, but such good fellows, such cun- ning, expert politicians, and such shrewd, successful manipulators of men and measures, that they must not be too severely handled,. in our criticism of their secret faults." It is perhaps wise and proper that when opposing candidates meet together face to face on political platforms or on the hustings, that public issues and public actions alone should be subject matter for debate. But it is altogether different when constituencies are called to elect men to represent them for a term of years in Parlia- ment. They have a right and they are blameworthy if they do not exercise the right of canvassing the history and opinions of these candidates, and coming to an intelligent conclusion as regards their fitness for certain important offices of trust and power. Nothing is doing so much to sap the foundatioais of moraHty and public integrity, as the theory so extensively promulgated and practiced by so-called christian men that political adroitness and trickery atone for all sorts of private sins, and that electors are to vote blindly for the standard-bearers of their party, however shame- ful is their private record before the world. In a short time, if we go on as we are doing, virtuous living will count for nothing in our country, and the veriest scapegraces occupy seats in our legislative halls. We protest against such teaching and such conduct, as unworthy of intelligent citizens and derogatory to the best interests of society at large. Let us see how such a theory works in other callings and rela- tions of life. A merchant, for example, is in want of a confidential clerk — one that can be entrusted with his correspondence — with CHRISTIAN CTTIZENSHIP. 33 his accounts — with his books — with his monies — in a word, with the entire char^- of his estabHshment. He wants a man of char- acter, who in the absence of the principal can take his place, having in view in all his transactions the profit and honorable name of the concern. Among many applicants, the situation is solicited by a plausible, smart, and withal capable-looking person, whose abilities are of first-class character, and who has in former years occupied such positions of trust and responsibility. He is thoroughly versed in book-keeping — knows all the mysteries of finance — has had an extensive acquaintance with the leading wholesale houses in the trade — and so far as knowledge and ability are concerned, is just the man for the position. But his antecedents are of a decidedly suspicious character. In fact, he has been too clever for his former employers. With all his knowledge and energy, I c has never understood the distinction between " nieuni and tiiiiui ;" in other words, between what is rightfully his own, and what belongs to his employer. As a consequence, he is shunned and rejected on all hands. Where honesty is a first requisite, no amount of tact or shrewdness can make up for its absence. A man with no other credentials but what a term of service in the penitentiary affords, is not the person to receive employment on any terms whatever. Reformation is possible in every such case, but until there is good evidence of the fact, no merchant would for a moment trust his honor or his means in the custody of such a criminal. Or the case may be somewhat different. The applicant may not be guilty of fraud or embezzlement, but of drunkenness. He is a good-hearted, genial, jovial, fellow, as the world says — generous to a fault, and a true friend to those that need the kind of friendship he has to offer. But he has no command whatever over his appetites. He can not be depended upon for a single hour. His sobriety is the exception — his intemperance the rule. Habitual indulgence in such a vice has ruined body and soul, until he is now but a wreck *3 34 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. of his former manhood. In sane and sensible moments, no man is more penitent and grief-stricken for his folly. His promises of reform and amendment are apparently firm and sincere, but when temptation presents itself again, he is prostrate. The passion for strong drink, like a very demon, asserts itself, and conquers his better nature. Such a man is certainly not beyond the pale of hope. Strong and persistent determination to avoid the very ap- pearance of evil, assisted by the grace of God, can clothe such a man in his right mind again, and make him a useful member of society, but until such a radical change has been effected, no mer- chant in his senses would trust him with the pettiest details of com- mon life, far less clothe him with the responsibilities of official work. If, then, dishonest men, and immoral men, men treacherous, crafty, intemperate and unreliable, are not to be trusted with the common business of the world, shall we elect .such men to represent us in Parliament ? We speak in the interest of no party, but in the interests of public integrity and good gov^ernment, when we unhesitatingly say, assuredly not ! If in the ranks of parties striv- ing after political victory such men are to be found, let them be left in the shades of private life, until good evidence is furnished of a decided change in their habits and propensities. Suspend them for a time, or put them on probation, as certain ecclesiastical bodies do with guilty members. Give us good honest men, actua- ted by principle, zealous for the country's good, possessed of un- blemished records in their private life and dealings, and we can trust such men to represent us, though their political creed may not entirely meet our approbation. If the choice is given us, whether to elect a sober, high-principled, straightforward man of another political faith, or an intemperate, unscrupulous, deceitful and selfish man of our own, we prefer the former. Guided by an enlightened conscience, we have no misgivings as to his course of conduct in matters affecting the national honour. CHRISTIAN CITIZENSHIP. 35 The matter before us may be put in a still stronger light. In the ranks of the clergy, as in the ranks of politicians, there are to be found unworthy characters — men who enter the office for a piece of bread, regardless of the welfare of souls. Such men may for a time, it is admitted, be the means of doing much good. So long as their hypocrisy holds out, they may by force of natural talent and an assumed earnestness and zeal, be instruments of making other men better than they are themselves. But what congregation of christians would choose such a man for its spiritual guide, whose character was open to the least breath of suspicion ? No amount of genius, or eloquence, or commanding pulpit power, can compen- sate for the want of purity and consistency, in speech and behaviour. The private life of the man gives tone to his public appearances, and commends the religion he enforces to the heart and conscience of his hearers. Apart from this, his words can have no value ; — when wrong-doing is once discovered, the idol is dashed from the throne of the affections, and branded with eternal ignominy. It is so in every department of social life but in politics. What is considered crime in every other case, is regarded in this but a petty misdemeanor, which can be easily condoned or forgiven, on account of past services or extraordinary ability ! And thus public men are not only tolerated, but encouraged in their wickedness. They may sacrifice the honour of their country for the sake of personal aggrandisement ; they may stain the purity of office by habitual and notorious immorality ; they may corrupt the fountain- head of justice by the most scandalous acts of legislation, and still remain secure in possession of their honors ! In proportion as a man is endowed with brilliant and commanding gifts, he may con- tinue to violate laws, both human and divine, and laugh at the censures and criticisms of the few who remonstrate and condemn such conduct ! Well may we say of such a state of affairs — " Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil — that put darkness 36 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. for light, and light for darkness ; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter ; which justify the wicked for reward." Public opinion, or rather prejudice, which sustains such conduct and winks at such monstrous anomalies, will gradually come over to the side of truth, and avenge itself upon unprincipled and reck- less demagogues. Our country is rich enough, as an American writer says, to afford to do without the greatest intellects God lets the devil buy, and any name, however illustrious, which links itself to abuses, is sure to be overwhelmed by the impetuous current of society. The judgment of humanity in the end is just. Men who are now fondled and courted and idolized as the political heroes of the hour, shall yet receive a just and impartial verdict at the hands of their fellow men. Of many a man thus honoured and exalted, it shall yet be said — He left a corsair's narae to other times, Liuked with one virtue, and a thousand crimes. Some of us in this country take it for granted that our nation- ality— English, Scotch, or Irish — is sufficient to make our reputa- tion, without individual efforts, — to preserve the memories and traditions of the past. The spirit of the age takes little account of a man's moral character, provided he is a success in public life. The pernicious maxim,, that "the end justifies the means," is having a damaging effect upon the stern uncompromising virtues that flourished in a bygone generation, and blinding us to the essential difference between right and wrong. Men who have been educated to believe that — " worth makes the man, the w^ant of it the fellow," — are not slow to act a part, in strange antagonism to their creed, provided place, power and prerogative are secured. Old-fashioned maxims as to honest poverty, straightforward dealings and unselfish patriotism, are laughed down as behind the age, and as uncongenial and unprofitable. It may not appear so to the superficial observer, but I venture to affirm, that never until the ethics of Christianity CHRISTIAN CITIZENSHIP. 37 are general, can we hope for commercial integrity, confidence in business relations, unselfish statesmanship, and gentlemanly con- duct in the high places of the land. The future development of this great nation calls for the earnest and united efforts of all good men, until that happy period arrives when, in the language of the poet, it can be said of this Dominion : Then the progeny that springs From the forests of our land, Armed with thunder, clad with wings, Shall a wider world command. Pcegions Cfesar never knew Thy posterity shall sway ; Where his eagles never flew, None invincible as thev. Capital and Labor. The Reciprocal Rights of Biiiploijer and Employed. " Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ." — Galatians 6, v. 2. "servants obey in all things your master?, according to the flesh; not with eye service as men pleasers." — Colossians 3, v. 22, " Masters, give unto your servants that which is just and equal : knowing that ye also have a Master in heaven.' — ^Colossians 4, v. 1. '•The labourer is worthy of his hire." — Luke 10, v. 7. Capital and Labor. 4«M ;.5FEEL the delicacy and the difficulty of speaking upon the question of Capital and Labour, and the relations of employers and employees. It is not at all likely that every statement made will be approved by all my hearers. I feel, however, that if I make the smallest con- tribution to a better feeling among the different classes in our community, the effort will not be altogether vain. I am not here to discuss in the abstract the many abstruse ques- tions that belong to the science of political economy. I take it, that comparatively few of our workingmen have ever read or studied " Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations," or the more recent works on the matter in dispute that are daily issued from the press. Their constant efforts to provide for themselves and families from day to day, preclude the leisure that may be profitably occupied by students, in discussing and solving theories which seldom come within the range of practical experience. Nor shall I refer, save in the most general terms, to the aims of certain societies which claim to direct and control the labour of our artizan population. I psss no judgment upon the motives that actuate their leaders, although I cannot help saying that the principles enunciated, when carried 140 42 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. out to their legitimate conclusions, seem in the opinion of many christian men, to lead to absolute tyranny, and to forbid all free and independent action. I speak as the friend of the workingman in the fullest sense cf the word. Naturally, my sympathies are with this class. I am one of themselves. In boyhood I knew what it was to labor from before the dawn of day till long after darkness, at wages which no Canadian apprentice would accept. My parents belonged to the humbler classes of society, but were rich toward God, if not toward men. And in all that affects, or can possibly forward the well- being of the working classes, I have taken a deep interest since my entrance upon the ministry. I feel, therefore, that above many, I can bespeak their indulgence, whether the thoughts presented pro- voke criticism or are adjudged as reasonable. Once more — I speak in no patronizing way to the toilers of society, who rightly despise all such affected condescension — far less do I avail myself of the present occasion, to counsel them as to their every day deportment. Taken as a whole, I believe that the conduct of our artizans, to say the least, is as high as that of many employers of labour. If there are instances of intemperance and shiftlessness and prodigality among them, there are crimes of not less magnitude to be found among those who rank among the higher classes ; and refuse to mingle with the masses. To rebuke the one, and not the other, is unfair. If the mechanic who neglects his family for the tavern or the club room is deserving of censure, so is the man who secretly indulges in debauchery, or lives extrav- agantly, upon the gains ot oppression and dishonesty. The rights of capital and labour, of masters and servants, is one of the vexed questions of political economy, upon which much has been written, but with very little definite results. The views of economists and partizans — the selfishness in some cases of the employer, and the unreasonableness in other cases of the employee CAPITAL AND LABOR. 43 have kept apart classes, whose interests ought to be one. It is, however, no time for repeating economic truisms, such as that the laborer has a right to work or refuse working, and the employer to employ or refuse employment. Every one admits this. The legiti- macy of organization, for the purpose of bettering the condition of workingmen, is generally acknowledged. All classes of citizens in a free country, have the right to unite in trade or labor associations, and use all legitimate means for the furtherance of their interests. But while this is true, it is none the less worthy of note, that sym- pathy with the working man ends, as soon as efforts for his im- provement pass beyond moral and lawful means. The capitalist who has been a laborer (and there are many such in Canada), and the laborer who hopes to become a capitalist and master, know equally well, that immoral and illegal means must lead to ruin. There is much to be said on behalf of the workingman in his effort to better his condition. The system of reckless competition in trades and industries, that is now pursued in almost every civil- ized country, is suicidal to the best interests of society. Merchants and manufacturers, underselling each other, are compelled to reduce wages, until existence for the workingman becomes a weary strug- gle. Such a state of things produces combinations and trades unions among workingmen. They urge their claim to what they believe is only the just reward of honest toil, while capitalists resist what they imagine is destructive of their interests. What is to be the upshot of this unseemly strife ? Shall capital subjugate labor, or labor capital ? Or, rather, should not both parties unite on some peaceable solution of their differences, to the mutual benefit of both? The present agitation has been chiefly promoted by outside influences — by itinerant vendors of stale and wornout phrases as to capital and labor, who are recent importations from the over-popula- ted continental cities of Europe to the United States, and in a few 44 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. instances by certain parties who seek the position of leaders among their fellow workmen, and assume the right to dictate to the indus- trious mechanics of Canada, on what terms they shall sell their labor to employers. In most cases these self-elected leaders are men of the most limited mental capacity, making up, however, for the lack of brains, by an amount of assurance that would indicate the very highest attainments in the science of political economy and good government. Their influence so far, where they have exercised any influence whatever, has been most pernicious upon the parties mostly interested, and the country at large. Strikes have taken place in towns and cities, resulting in almost every instance in grievous loss to the employee. For as matters now stand, labor cannot coerce capital, save in very rare and exceptional cases. Better terms and more satisfactory relations between master and servant are not to be brought about by such measures. They but widen the chasm which already exists, and foster feelings of mutual anger and resentment, which years cannot abate. Admit- ting for the moment that the working classes are entitled to greater privileges than they now possess, these privileges are not to be secured by violent tirades and inflammatory denunciations and noisy demonstrations against employers, but by the presentation in courteous terms of their reasonable demands, and the exercise of moderation and prudence, which are sure eventually to bring negotiations to a successful issue. It is comparatively easy, when facts are not tabulated, and when the present prosperous condition of the working classes, as con- trasted with the past, is studiously concealed, to make some men believe that they are cruelly wronged, and are little better than Russian serfs or West India slaves. Listening to certain speeches recently delivered, one would imagine that the working men of Canada lived under a despotism of the most debasing character, where manhood and independence were systematically crushed by CAPITAL AND LABOR. 45 rapacious millionaires for their own aggrandizement. " Life to the working-man is a ceaseless degradation, a daily martyrdom, a fun- eral procession to the grave!" says one of the champions for the rights of labor in Great Britain. Such>ialk is both false and foolish. Every one knows the wonderful ameliorations that have taken place in the lot of the workingman since the sixteenth century. Every year, through the pressure of public opinion, grievances are being redressed that hindered his advancement, and the way opened up for his physical and moral improvement. Even in Great Britain, where the privileges and remuneration of the workingman are vastly inferior to Canada, a great improvement has taken place in recent years. Any one in the smallest degree acquainted with the state of society in England in the days of the Henrys' and Charles', v/ill gladly acknowledge the revolution that has taken place in the condition of the working classes. In the beginning of the sixteenth century, the houses of workingmen were built of mud, and in many cases unfit for the shelter of cattle, not to speak of men. Their food consisted wholly of beans and peas and the coarser vegeta- bles. Wages were considered extravagant at a shilling a day, the average being but sixpence. Members of the House of Commons complained that owing to high wages paid mechanics — one shilling a day — England could no longer compete with the looms of India. Farm hands had five shillings a week in England, while in Scotland and Ireland they had less. And while wages were thus low, pro- visions were in many cases higher than at the present day. If again we restrict our enquiry to the present century, we find a gra- dual but steady improvement in the condition of the workingman- In 1800 the wages of an English stone mason were sixteen shillings per week — now they are thirty ; while the remuneration of mechan- ics and skilful workmen is more than double what it was at the beginning of the present century. These facts, which might be indefinitely multiplied, show clearly how little foundation there is 46 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. for the vague and sweeping assertions, that workingmcn do not share in the general prosperity, and that capital and capitalists absorb all the profits of the age. No one will pretend to state otherwise, than that the average condition of workingmen in Canada and the United States is in advance of the old world. Mechanics in this city, who I am told were paid 62^ cents per day, thirty years ago, now receive $2.50 and $3.00 per day ; indeed the vast emigration to the continent of America, at the rate of one thousand a day during the summer months, proves as much. These emigrants have good grounds for believing that in the new world their chances for advancement and acquiring a competency of this world's goods, are far more likely than in their native country. Friends and relatives who have pre- ceded them have vastly improved their condition, and are urging those who still remain at home to follow. They have acquired large tracts of land and herds of cattle, cleared their farms, erected comfortable dwellings, and surrounded themselves with everything that can conduce to material prosperity. Mechanics have risen to be the employers of hundreds, and servants to be masters. In view of all this, is it not foolish and criminal for any class of men to sow the seeds of dissension between employers and employed, and hinder the social advancement of all classes in the land ? What- ever anomalies still exist, are to be removed or ameliorated by mutual concessions and the interchange of kindly sentiment, not by appeals to brute force. The intelligent mechanic is just as independent as the master, and can easily work his way in spite of all opposition to place and power. Indeed the phrase " workingman," as used in the old world, is to a great extent, meaningless in such a land as Canada. We are all workingmen. Different forms of labor exist, but how few can live without hard labor and constant industry ! In some countries the term " workingman " may be used as the language of superciU CAPITAL AND LABOR. 47 ious contempt and haughty ignorance, but not in Canada. The theory that any class should be doomed to ignorance, in order to render a more servile obedience, should have no advocates, where education is regarded as the birthright of every child. New and better ideas prevail. " The body is not one member but many," says the apostle Paul. The eye cannot say unto the hand, " I have no need of thee ;" nor again the head to the feet, " I have no need of thee," And therefore, he reasons, there should be no schism in the body, but that the members should have the same care one of another. For whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it ; or one member be honored, all the members rejoice with it. Applied to social economics, these verses teach, that the law of rational creation is mutual dependence and co-operation. Every man's work is honorable, if honest and virtuous, aisd necessary to the welfare and happiness of the nation. The quarryman, who blasts the rock and loosens the stone from its sleep of centuries, is just as useful and necessary as the hewer, who prepares the carved and chiselled blocks for the building. The man who digs the foundation is as useful as the builder ; the miner as the smelter, or machinist or goldsmith ; the lumberer, who with brawny arm fells the stately oak, as the carpenter and joiner ; the compositor and pressman, as the writer ; and the ship builder as the captain and pilot. The fact, that we are apt to recognize that kind of work which is most palpable and tangible, to the exclusion of what is further removed from common observation, does not disprove our assertion, that all kinds of labor are equally honorable and neces- sary to the welfare of society. Until this idea is universally accepted, we shall not be entirely free from occasional strife and angry crimination. Until the master recognizes the workman as a co-laborer in the great field of human industry, and the workman regards the employer in the same light, there will be feuds, antag- onisms and misunderstandings. More than a mere commercial 48 IIIE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH contract should bind employer and employed together. The workmen should not be classed with the machinery — with cylinders and pistons and wheels and cranks. Brains ought not to be weighed with the dross of the furnace. Men ought to be valued and recompensed, according as their labor is profitable, and not used as beasts of burden ! At the same time it will be admitted by all reasonable men, that the responsibilities of employers are deserving of large compen- sation. We often fail to recognize the immense risks that capital- ists take in embarking in new alnd large undertakings. Men who by their energy, ingenuity and superior ability, have raised them- selves to prominent positions in the mercantile world, merit honor and emoluments. The largest possible return is often but a small recompense for the toil and anxiety undergone. Among these there are also many who are not only just, but generous, kind, sym- pathetic and merciful in all their dealings, and whose highest am- bition it is to better the condition of their workmen as well as themselves. Many families in this city, I have reason to know, have thus been cared for in times of sickness and death, when friends were few and their wants were many. As indicating the prevalence of this friendly and honorable spirit, mention should be made of the method adopted by the Messrs. Denny, the prominent ship builders on the Clyde, in deal- ing with their workmen. Some time ago it was thought advisable to revise and extend the yard rules. Instead of altering the rules to suit their own desires, the Messrs. Denny asked the assistance and co-operation of all classes of their workmen, in the task of revision. For that purpose a series of conferences were held, which were attended by the members of the firm, the members of the staff, and delegates appointed by the workers. At the final confer- ence, Mr. William Denny, addressing the delegates, said he believed such conferences were the first in the whole history of labor in CAPITAL AND LABOR. 49 which employer and employed had together discussed rules, and come to a friendly and reasonable conclusion upon them. The results of the conferences were, that they had a workable, just, and effective code of rules. He believed the code of rules agreed upon would be more efficient from the workmen having had a share in making them, and having given them their approval, and that in the future solution of the labor question, these principles would be widely recognized. I believe that the time is coming when the workingman shall receive remuneration in proportion to the profits of his industry, and when co-operation shall be more generally adopted. But such a condition of affairs is not to be hastened by combinations and strikes, and boycotting and dynamite explosions, planned in almost every case, not b}' American or Canadian oper- atives, but by infidel communists from the old world. For such lawless and diabolical measures the better classes of our workmen are, however, held responsible b}- man)' who cannot distinguish between lawful and unlawful methods, that have recently been em- ployed to adjust the differences between capital and labor. The direct tendency of such strikes is to withdraw capital and prevent new industries, while in almost every case, they far more seriously affect the workingman than the master. The teachings of infidel socialists and political agitators, so prevalent in the western cities of the United States, are the great- est curse that any civilized nation can be afflicted with. It has been well said, that "the communism that would level all distinction and sweep out of sight the inequalities that will and that must arise, if men are to be what they ought to be, is irrational and un- just. To say that private property ought not to exist, is to say that individuals ought not to be themselves. It is to put a pre- mium on idleness, and to present no adequate motive for the fullest development of one's powers. All men have a common interest in the world. It is their birth-place, their school, their workshop. It so THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. is their temporary or preliminary home. They have the same sky, and sea, and earth to look upon, and the same great problems of life to solve. But it does not follow that all men ought, therefore to have an equal share of the enjoyments and possessions of the world. Such an affirmation would be false to universal life, to the true nature of man, and to the end for which the world exists. Justice demands an impartial administration of law, and the ren- dering to every one that which is due. No one ought to be unduly favored on the ground of purely fictitious circumstances, and no one ought to be unfairly debarred from the possibility of showing what is in him, and of improving his condition." We have a very beautiful picture presented us in the second chapter of the book of Ruth, of the kindly relations that ought to exist, between masters and servants. It is an eastern harvest field, with a long line of reapers, sickle in hand, cutting down the precious grain. Boaz, the owner enters, and salutes the laborers in God's name, " The Lord be with you ; " and they respond, " The Lord bless thee." Such a mode of salutation appears to have been common in the east, but it is all the more striking in view of the relations between master and servant in patriarchal times. These patriarchs were more than masters — they asserted unquestioned supremacy over their servants, akin to the serfdom of the feudal ages. There was no appeal from their mandates, and no such personal freedom enjoyed as at the present day. And yet in instances such as the one under consideration, there seems to have been far more actual kindliness and good will than in many cases exist between masters and servants at the present day. Boaz exhibits a spirit of sympathy and kindness. Courtesy towards inferiors, costs nothing. It is not incompatible with true dignity. It does not lessen authority or respect, to use familiar terms. It does not make servants less anxious to serve their master's interests. That the working classes are so often found BOAZ AND RUTH. CAPITAL AND LABOR. 51 disrespectful, is because of their rude and inconsiderate treatment, Threats and curses more than kindly words are their lot. Thus masters and servants stand apart, jealous of each other. The mas- ter regards the servant as only useful to increase his capital, and the servant works simply because he must, but with no regard to the promotion of his employer's interest. Out of this con- dition of affairs there come combinations, strikes, workingmen's leagues and unions, social revolutions, and anarchy and bloodshed. Now what is the remedy for this and all other social griev- ances ? Not mere human adjustments, and acts of parliament, and measures of expediency, that seem for a time to silence complaint, but in the claims of christian brotherhood being more generally recognized. Better terms cannot be dragged reluctantly from unwilling and avaricious masters, nor selfish operatives driven to render cheerful service. Differences in society there must be. Equality in the communistic sense of the term is impossible. But as all ranks are necessary to work out the problem of human exis- tence there need be no jarring or conflict. The rich are as depen- dent upon the poor as the poor are upon the rich. It is bad for a nation when injustice leads to lawlessness, and brute force is demanded to suppress open riot. Religion is the grand salve for the sores of humanity — not the nostrum of politicians, but the gospel of Christ. In the body politic it teaches there should be no schism, " but the members should have the same care, the one of the other. And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it ; or one member honored, all the members rejoice with it." The spirit of kindness manifested by Boaz towards the reapers is perfectly compatible with a diligent circumspection. The faith- ful servant has no cause to fear oversight and investigation, and the master dare not neglect it. It is not good for either party to be irresponsible. But watchfulness and supervision need not be 52 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. exercised in an inquisitorial and fault-finding spirit. It should just as often lead to commendation and promotion, as to criticism. Boaz also exhibits in his conduct simple, earnest, heartfelt piety. He was not ashamed to acknowledge Israel's God, or to transact his business as accountable at His bar. Because he feared God, he loved his fellowmen. True sympathy for man takes its rise in love to God. The religion he possessed himself, he desired for his lab- orers. If the blessing of the Lord maketh rich, it also gives con- tentment to the poor. There are good masters who make no pro- fession of religion whatever. But the best ought to be found among the professed followers of Christ. Where the standard of righteous- ness and justice, as laid down in God's word, is enforced and accepted as the rule of individual action, there will be no cause for differences, and perfect accord will exist between man and man. In view of these statements, we remark : {a) That masters should have due regard to the physical welfare of their servants. The demands made upon a human being ought to be different from those made upon a machine. He ought not to be driven till his strength gives way, and until seeds of disease are sown that inevit- ably shorten life. The Christian public, as much as the employers of labor, have much to do in abridging the hours of labor. At their door lies the sin of unnecessary trading, when both master and ser- vant ought to rest from toil, {b) Masters should have due regard to the social welfare of their servants. They deserve fair remun- eration. Advantage ought not to be taken of over supply. Labor should be recompensed in proportion as it increases in value. The workmen in large manufacturing establishments are really business partners, and those above them for the time being, ought to think of them, and manage affairs in their interest as well as their own. Profit-sharing makes labor more efificient, and very materially redu- ces the expense of supervision. The temporal comforts of em- ployees have claims upon the employer. Young men coming from CAPITAL AND LABOR. 53 christian homes to strange cities, lonely and friendless, should be introduced to good companions, invited to the houses of masters, and made to feel that they are the objects of interest, beyond mere civil contracts. The gain in such cases is the master's more than the servant's. He has the choice of hands, and gains the good will of the community, in preference to unprincipled and grasping world- lings, (c) Masters should also have due regard to the religious welfare of their servants. They have a right to enjoin attendance upon ordinances, and enquire how their Sabbath days are spent. No young man is fit for any position of trust who scoffs at religion and dishonors God's day. But in order that such exercise of authority may be of value and command respect, business must be conducted on the principles of integrity. The religion of the master must be visible to his servants, and practised on week days as well as the Lord's day. There is need, it seems to me, for such truths being oft repeated at the present day. As business is now transacted, kindly relations between masters and servants is essential to harmony and good feeling. Machinery revolving at a rapid rate of sp^ed, by constant friction catches fire, and in a twinkling the entire premises may be reduced to ashes. So of society as a whole. If we cannot return to the old patriarchal habits, and begin the day by saying to our employes, " The Lord be with you," let us at least endeavor to introduce Old Testament civility into our homes and into the haunts of commerce. The cognate question, whether eight hours shall be a day's labor is a complex one, and depends upon various considerations. I have never felt that the workingmen of Canada had much sym- pathy with it, or were dissatisfied with present arrangements. The plea that it is intended for the mental and moral improvement of the workingmen will not, I fear, hold good. Certainly our com- munistic friends, who advocate the movement, are not in every case 54 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. patterns of sobriety and intelligence. That it is demanded on physical grounds, has never so far been demonstrated. Nor can it be argued on the basis of political economy. The earth will not give the same results for eight hours labor as for ten. The manu- facturer cannot produce the same quantity of goods, nor make the same profits, under the eight hours system as the ten, and it follows that if profits are reduced, wages are reduced. Not only so, but the entire commonwealth suffers, as well as the individual operative and his family. Of course, as has been well said : — If anybody thinks he can make as much money as he needs by working eight hours a day, he ought to have full liberty to try the experiment. It is simply a question of personal choice. There is no question that eight hours or even four hours per day of vigorous labor will enable mankind to live. The blanket Indian can live on two hours' work. He wears but little clothing, sleeps in a wigwam on the ground, and eats his meat without fork or spoon. The question is one of contentment. If we are willing to live on a lower plane of living, and philosophically enjoy cheap surroundings, we can do so. But the majority of healthy, ambitious young men, would rather work sixteen hours than eight, provided the extra eight hours will put them one-half ahead of their competitors. The sixteen hour men will get there first, and be able to take a rest upon the moun- tain top of success, and look down at the eight hour men plodding below for a bare subsistence. And even should the eight hour rule become universal — skill, talent, energy, brains, will have the same relative advantage as they have now. But this can never come. For a law declaring that no man should work more than eight hours a day would be unconstitutional, and if the hours were not limited by law, would not the ambitious work over hours, and so practically annul the regulation? In other words, can any rule of labor be adopted, which will prevent the most industrious from earning as much as he can, or vvhich will keep the most active, CAPITAL AND LABOR. 55 alert, aspiring, avaricious, frufral, sober and efficient men from get- ting to the top and keeping there ? No man can get something for nothing, and it is exceedingly doubtful if any new-fangled inven- tion will be able to set aside the indestructible law of supply and demand, or reduce to a dead level cf mediocrity the good and bad, the trained and the ignorant, the intelligent and the stupid, the industrious and the lazy, and all the various sorts and classes of workingmen. There are some industries where, by special arrangements be- tween employers and employed, eight hours may be substituted for ten. Where workmen are paid by the hour, there is no practical difficulty ; the only effect is reduced wages. But it should be remembered that at least one-half of all the laborers in the country, such as fishermen, miners, railroad men and farmers, are so em- ployed that an eight hour law cannot possibly apply to them at all. The workmen who clamour so loudly for a reduction in the hours of labor forget, I fear, how many toil ten or twelve hours for five days in each week, and on Saturdays till near midnight. I have great sympathy with the salesmen and saleswomen in our stores, whose hours of labor are often lengthened by the thoughtlessness of the buyers, among whom possibly are many of the men who would have their own hours of labor lessened. And what shall we say of farmers, who at certain seasons of the year toil fourteen and sixteen out of the twenty-four, and professional men who have no cessation night nor day. This labor question is drifting away from its proper field of dis- cussion, and becoming involved in politics. Very soon, as years ago, when elections draw near, we shall hear of " the workingman's candidate," and " the friend of the workingman," attached to certain candidates for Parliamentary honors by their supporters, in hope of securing the votes of intelligent mechanics. In many cases, the men who profess such great sympathy with v.'orkingmen, have hith- 56 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. crto been their worst enemies. They have spoken of them in the language of contempt — they have trodden them under foot — they have refused them the franchise — they have made laws directly against their interests. But when elections are at hand, and the votes of workingmen count for something, they represent them- selves as the true friends of the workingman. "They desire to see him raised to a higher position in society — they demand for him better wages — less labor — more extended privileges ; in a word, they want workingmen to occupy seats in Parliament, and sit side by side with Knights and Baronets, making and unmaking laws, and basking in the smiles of Royalty !" A few may be found in the ranks of our intelligent mechanics susceptible to such flattery and deceived by such absurd and insin- cere pretentions. But we are greatly mistaken if the large majority of the working classes do not heartily despise and loathe such political tricksters. The working classes, as they are called, are not so easily duped as certain demagogues imagine. They have been watching for years the conduct of certain fair-spoken legislators. That conduct they have found diametrically opposed to the opinions they profess to entertain, and subversive of the rights of working men. In these circumstances they are not likely to lend their influence, in placing men in power who fawn and flatter them, when dependent upon their votes, but who despise them when in office, and deprive them of their just and honest dues. Meanwhile let those who contribute by manual labor to the resources of the country, assert the independence and incorrupt- ibility of their character and principles, by thinking and acting for themselves, without the flatteries of time serving and insincere politicians. As the poet better expresses it : — CAPITAL AND LABOR. 57 Ho ! ye who at the anvil toil, And strike the sounding blow, Where from the burning iron's breast, The sparks fly to and fro. Oh ! while ye feel 'tis hard to toil, And sweat the long day through; Remember it is harder still To have no work to do. Ho ! all who labor, all vvho strive, Ye wield a mighty power. Do with your might, do with your strength, Fill every golden hour. This glorious privilege to do. Is man's most noble dower. Oh ! to your birthright and yourselves, To your own souls be true ; A weary, wretched life is theirs Who have no work to do ! Popular Amusements. Their Use and Abuse. " Hast thou found honey ? Eat so much as is sufficient for thee, lest thou be filled therewith and vomit it," — Proverbs 35, v 16, Popular Amusements. '--=^" HERE is no book so full of practical counsels as the book of Proverbs. It takes cognizance of every age, rank and condition of life. It points out not only the more flagrant sins of society, but also the more secret temptations against which it is our duty to guard, and '^§? gives directions, that faithfully followed, are sure to add to our happiness and welfare in the present and the future. Though written long ago, these Proverbs are adapted to every age, and approve themselves to every intelligent and candid mind. The largest proportion of these Proverbs are addressed to youth. The dark experience of Solomon and the bitter remorse that followed, made him a fit teacher of others. Like beacons on mountain tops, or light houses along rock-bound coasts, that warn of coming danger, so Solomon stands out upon the page of history, sad evidence of the fact that genius, learning and wisdom are of little avail, without the safeguard of religious principle. As ships need ballast, to steady them on the ocean, so do men need the grace of God, to keep them beyond the reach of temptation and evil. (6i) 62 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. In one of these Proverbs, the wise king speaks as follows : — " Hast thou found honey ? Eat so much as is sufficient for thee, lest thou be filled therewith and vomit it." Honey represents pleasure, — that which gratifies and pleases the mind, as honey does the sense of taste. But honey must be taken in moderation ; a surfeit of it is dangerous to our physical well-being. A little honey may be beneficial, but more than what is sufficient will make a man wretched. And so pleasures and pastimes, even though innocent in themselves, are not to be unduly or too frequently indulged in. They are intended not to oppress the mental powers, but to refresh and invigorate the higher energies of our nature ; to fit and not to disqualify for the real duties of life ; to be enjoyed in leisure mo- ments, and not to fill up the entire measure of existence. Amuse- ment is only lawful and allowable, for the sake of economising strength, or fitting us to discharge the obligations and bear the burdens of life. As a living writer says : " Mirth and music and v/it belong to the class of stimulant : they are good seasoning, but poor food. Amusement is a piece of insertion put between solid fabrics, and is ornamental in connecting them. No amusement is good that unfits you for your regular duties in life ; it must not be a rival, but a servant ; it must give an appetite for duty. Amuse- ment is a whetstone ; after it, the faculties should be sharper than they were before. The gayeties of society are extravagant, unnat- ural and unwholesome. Innocent dances under the trees in summer, or at home among friends, closing at an early hour, may be commended as not only harmless, but positively useful. But all-night parties and balls set at naught every rational principle ; they are condemned before they get half way up to moral consid- eration. They dissipate, not recreate ; they destro}' the body they do not revive it ; they are a satire on amusement. Amuse- ment should revive those faculties which regular work leaves dormant ; and not tax those powers which are overworked." POPULAR AMUSEMENTS. 6$ Solomon, then, does not prohibit pleasure, but excess of pleasure — the abuse of what is in itself innocent, and as a matter of course all pleasures that are untimely — that tend directly or indirectly to the development of the mere animal nature — that take their rise in sinful passions, or lead to sin. This teaching is in full accord with the spirit of Christianity. The Bible nowhere rebukes nor prohibits innocent amusements. It does not say it is wrong to laugh, and, although different inter- pretations may be given of the inspired penman's words, it does not say that it is wrong to dance. I am not now passing any opinion on the more fashionable amusements of the day, but simply stating what every Bible reader knows, that the religion of Jesus Christ, so far from being a melancholy, gloomy, repulsive thing, is a cheerful, happy experience ; that so far from demanding seclusion from societ}^ it recognizes the necessity of active commerce between man and man, and the fullest enjoyment of all that this fair world affords, and that our heavenly Father has provided to meet the wants of our complex nature.* I say "complex nature," for man is the most wonderful, as he is the grandest of all God's creatures. There is within him reason, fancy, imagination, taste, the emotions of mirth and gladness, grief and sorrow. He is not a mass of matter unaffected by the influ- ences of the outside world, but a delicately formed organism, *Says Talmage, speaking of Christ's presence at the marriage of Cana of Galilee : " Christ was iiot impatient with the festal joy. He was the chief of the banqueters. When the wine gave out He supplied it ; and. so I take it, he will not deny us the joys that are positively festal, and that the children of God have more right to than any other people. Christianity don't clip the wings of the soul. I take Christianity to be simply a proclamation from the throne of God of emancipation for all the enslaved. Yet men try to make us believe that God's children are on the limits, and the chief refreshments and enjoyments of life are for outsiders and not for his own children.' 64 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. capable of being thrilled by a thousand different impulses. And God who has thus mysteriously framed his being, has provided in nature, in society, in art and literature and science, in communings with the seen and unseen world, all that is necessary for his happi- ness, and conducive to his comfort. But while all men have these powers and emotions, they are variously developed. Some men are destitute of reason ; others have little or no imagination. The world to them is but a vast workshop, and beneath its barren surface they never penetrate. " There is no beauty nor mystery in the bloom and brightness or decay of nature ; the stars light up no worlds of wonder to their souls ; the seasons in their annual round wake up no sense of marvel " — as the poet has said of the unconscious, ignorant rustic who goes through the fairest scenes of nature unimpressed : — In vain through every chanoeful year, Did nature lead him as before ; A primrose by a river's brim, A yellow primrose was to him, And it was nothing more. ■* * * -x- * The soft blue sky did never melt Into his heart ; he never felt The witchery of the soft blue sky. There was a hardness in his cheek, There was a hardness in his eye, As if the man had fixed his face In many a solitary place, Against the wind and open sky. Others again are grave, serious, and solemn, not easily excited ; while many good and useful christian men and women are full of mirth — easily moved to laughter, and overflowing with good nature. Now it is not the part of the man void of fancy and imagination, to rail at or depreciate his neighbor's love of the ideal ; nor is it becoming in the man of grave and serious temperament, to denounce POPULAR AMUSEMENTS. 65 the happy and mirthful tendencies of his brother. Both are but acting out the impulses put within them by an all-wise Creator. The one perchance finds complete relaxation from the labor of life in severe studies, — the other in the private or the more public assemblies of social life ; the one finds perfect enjoyment in fellow- ship with the mighty dead, the other in listening to the sweet sounds of music, or the sparkling utterances of eloquence, all of which help very materially to sweeten the machinery of life, and make men forget or overcome the petty sorrows of existence. The hardest students and the most diligent merchants of the present day claim certain periods of perfect abandon, when books and ledgers are closed, and when unrestrained by the ordinary avo- cations of life, they can relax their energies. But for such relax- ation, nature would succumb. Undue tension breaks the bow, and overmuch travel founders the fleetest and strongest steed, and so prolonged application of mind or body ends in brain disease and madness, if not in suicide. Xo man can steadily work tor ten or twelve hours a day, from week to week, without paying the penalty of outraged nature. Mere drudgery, in which neither skill nor thought is demanded, may be performed for a much longer period, but solid work, directed by skill and demanding forethought aid steady application, cannot be profitably continued beyond a certain point. " Profitableness in work depends not so much upon the number of hours, as upon the number of faculties concentrated in each ; upon how much mind you have been able to transform into work. Four hours work by a healthy mind, is better than twelve hours by one that is not invigorated by rest and amusement. It is with thought as with an axe, the sharp edge economizes strength — if sharp it cuts; if dull it pounds. Haifa man's time well put in, is better than the whole ; it is the concentration, — it is the cutting edge that achieves." Thus far, there is very little difference of opinion among chris- tians. The necessity of recreation and innocent amusements is *5 66 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH universally admitted. So far from seeking to reduce their number, we would gladly hail their increase. There are too few opportuni- ties for healthy, rational recreation in our towns and cities. In many cases, business and mechanical pursuits, — the toils of the factor}'- and workshop, — are so incessantly pursued, as to have a most deleterious effect upon the animal vigor of the young. Em- ployers of all classes would consult their own interests and the welfare of their servants, if in some way the period of manual labor could be reduced, so as to admit of more exercise and recreation during daylight and in the open air, and thus preclude the neces- sity, which is pleaded, for devoting the hours of midnight to amuse- ments of a dangerous character. It is folly to say that the young are never to enjoy themselves ; that they are never to laugh, or romp, or play, or skate, or play ball and cricket, or indulge in the innocent pastimes of the parlor and the drawing-room. It is against nature and the wise ordination of a gracious Providence to find it so in any instance. So far from fitting our youth for the more staid and responsible duties of their subsequent life, such a cramp- ing of their physical and emotional energies would produce a race, anything but fitted to increase the happiness of society, or credit- ably act their part in life. The cares and sorrows of riper years, the responsibilities and burdens of business and home, the disap- pointments and trials that are to be met with in every walk of life, will soon enough wrinkle the brow and sadden the heart, without encroaching upon the happy days of youth. But even innocent and lawful pleasures must be moderately indulged in. Admitting that the physical and mental energies demand relaxation — ; nc portion of time when manual labor shall be suspended and study abandoned — it is also to be borne in mind that recreation ceases to be recreation when it is more than an occasional indulgence. We eat in order to continue the physical part of our constitution in health — to sustain the body and enable it to perform its functions ; POPULAR AMUSEMENTS. 6/ — not to pamper or satiate the appetite, or unduly oppress the organs of digestion. We drink when thirsty to quench our thirst, and not for drunkenness. So, in Hke manner, lawful pleasures and innocent recreations must be engaged in ; not to kill time, or infuse a momentary delirium into the spirit, but to refresh our whole sys- tem and prepare it for future exertion. It must not intrude upon the hours of business or work — it must not be of such a character as to interfere with the time and thought necessary to the main pursuits of life. It is intended only to diversify and change our more serious and burdensome employments — to afford timeous relief to the overtasked energies— but in no case to take the place which should be given to solid work. It must not even interfere with bodily repose, nor be allowed to exhaust by long continuance, nor should it be of that character which inflames and excites the passions, and indisposes us from returning to the ordinary avoca- tions of life. But there still remains the more difficult question, what pastimes and amusements are safe for christian men and women to engage in ? What is consistent with a profession of religion ? Are there any, that while innocent in themselves, should be avoided on the grounds of expediency ? There are amusements so-called, which no christian man will lor a moment defend, far less indulge in. The race-course, the gaming table, and the average character of theatrical representations, (which in our larger towns and cities pander to the lowest passions of humanity, and are often supported and patronized by men and women whose views of social obligations and whose practice of impurity are so radically opposed to the canons of morality, as to make them dangerous in any community), belong to that class. But leaving these out of sight, as matters regarding which we are all agreed, what shall we say of many others, that are rigidly condemned by some and as strongly advo- cated by others ? One class of the religious world eschew the lee- 68 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. ture room, the concert room, and all assemblages outside the brotherhood of the saints. Others deem it no sin to attend the concert room, but regard it as a grievous wrong to listen to the same singer in operatic melodies. Some relish manly field sports, but condemn all indoor amusements, while others consider them as equally innocent, and above reproach. Some think it right and proper, in their own homes, to encourage and take part in games and charades and tableaux, and delight to see their children "speak- ing their pieces," and going through their dialogues, dressed in costume ; but esteem it an oiTence against christian propriety, to countenance such amusements when put upon the stage by persons of mature age ! With such diversity of opinion, who shall presume to act the part of judge, and frame a perfect code of laws for the guidance of the christian community ! I do not imagine that any definite rule, can be laid down in such matters. Wiser men than the writer have again and again attempted to specify what amusements are or are not in accordance with christian propriety, and have signally failed in securing any- thing like unanimity of sentiment on the subject. Good men differ in regard to such matters as they do in politics and theology. Churches make rules, and profess to be guided in the admission of members and the discipline of offenders by such rules, while prac- tically they are a dead letter. And laws that cannot be enforced had far better not be made. If you cannot carry with you the individual conscience, you cannot hope to change the individual practice. In regard, then, to this vexed question, I hold that christian men and women must regulate their conduct according to the dictates of an enlightened conscience. Each to his own master stands or falls. If we feel that we are the better physically, men- tally and morally, by moderate indulgence in innocent pleasures, then whatever be the opinion of our fellow-men, or the views of POPULAR AMUSEMENTS. 69 esteemed brethren who cannot see eye to eye with us in such matters, we have a right to use them — in so far as they invigorate and strengthen us for the severer toils, and the more arduous tasks of Hfe, but no further. As it has been well put : — No amusement is innocent that hurts the participant, no matter whether it is right per se or not. Nothing is wrong in itself or right in itself, — that is right wh'ch does good, and that is wrong which does harm. What may be right for me may be wrong for my neighbor. Every man must discriminate, and select or reject pleasure, not by fashion or other people's experience, but according to its good or bad effect on himself There comes in next, the question of christian expediency. What I may or may not do is to be regulated, not simply by my own feelings or preferences, but by a consideration of the influence exerted upon the conduct of others. " No man livcth to himself" In a most important sense, we are our brother's keeper, and charge- able with his blood, if through our example he perish. "All things," says Paul, •' are lawful for me, but all things are not expedient ; all things are lawful for me, but all things edify not." The young men and women of our land should ponder well the words already quoted. " Hast thou found honey? eat so much as is sufficient for thee, lest thou be filled therewith and vomit it." Habitual or even occasional attendance upon questionable places of amusement, or undue indulgence in innocent pleasure is produc- tive of moral injury. No man can become physically strong, who lives on sweetmeats, and no man can attain a robust manhood by cultivating a taste for the more frivolous amusements of the present day. It is indeed, with certain amusements, as with the poisonous Manchineel, a tree which grows in the West Indies. Its appear- ance is attractive, and its fruit most beautiful to the eye. The apple, resembling a golden pippin, which hangs on its branches, looks very tempting and smells very fragrant, but to eat of it is 70 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. instant death, and its sap or juice is so poisonous, that if a few- drops of it fall upon the skin, it raises bh'sters and occasions great pain. The Indians dip their arrows into the juice, that they may poison the enemies they wound. So sin, partially robed in fascin- ating colors, looks pleasing to the eye ; and men desire it, eat of it, and die. Many a promising young man has thus been ruined for time and eternity. Of such an one the poet says : He was a lovely youth ! I guess The panther in the wilderness. Was not so fair as he. * * * A youth to whom was given So much of earth, so much of heaven, And such impetuous blood. * * * But ill he lived, much evil saw. With men to whom no better law. Nor better life was known. * * * ■ His genius and his moral frame Were thus impaired, and he became The slave of low desires ; A man who without self-control, Would seek what the degraded soul Unworthily admires The spirit of frivolity that characterizes a large proportion of our Canadian youth is much to be regretted. It would seem as if there was little or no inclination for employment, pursuit or recreation, that calls into existence anything beyond the most superficial qualities of mind. Fashion, custom, public display, a love of the gaudy and glittering pleasures of the moment, are the pre- vailing tastes and passion of youthful society, although the mind be left barren and void of all refinement and cultivation. To dress like the upper classes — to imitate the customs and follow the foot- steps of those who are considered the leaders of fashion — is their study. Bible classes and Sabbath schools and christian associa- POPULAR AMUSEMENTS. 7 1 tions are considered beneath their notice — an unnecessary part of modern education. What is the result ? A race of men and women are growing up, very different from the sturdy pioneers of this western Canada of ours — men and women who with strong arms and heroic hearts cleared our forests, and laid the foundations of that fresh and vigorous nation which we now possess. Our fashionable follies are raising up men and women effeminate and feeble, both in mind and body — so artificial and unnatural in their habits as to be unfitted for the sober concerns of life. There is also a wilfulness at the present day characteristic of youth, which augurs ill for their future welfare in society ; in many cases sons and daughters, by their love of pleasure more than home, bring bitter sorrow into parents' hearts ? No spot on earth should be so endearing and attractive as home, and no society preferable to a mother's. The time must come, when, with wisdom and years to warrant such a step, they shall leave the family circle and take an independent position in life ; but until that time arrives, the more frequently our young men and women are found around the hearthstone the better for themselves and the better for their friends. As society is now constituted, the years spent at home are brief at the longest, to learn those lessons of prudence, sobriety* and virtue, which are best taught by christian parents, without being unduly diminished by withdrawal to other scenes and indul- ging in dangerous sports. We speak thus with no bitterness of feeling, but in sorrow. We would have the young realize the value of life and the importance of redeeming the present hour. It is to be feared that some of our youth madly fondle pleasure and engage in unhallowed revelry, to drown the very thought of a hereafter. This sad tendency was strikingly illustrated in the case of Burton, a celebrated actor, who died a few years ago in New York. A year or two before his death he became alarmingly ill, and despaired of life. His physi- 72 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. cian told him he was affected with disease of the heart, which would inevitably prove fatal unless he abandoned the stage and gave up all his theatrical engagements. He advised him to retire on his abundant means, and lead for the short time he might be spared a life of ease, and one in harmony with his approaching end. His reply was : — " I cannot abandon the stage. It furnishes me with the excitement which I cannot live without. I should be driven to think of myself, and should go crazy." This was the secret of his continued active, volatile, and consuming life. It kept him from reflecting upon his condition, and he preferred it on that account, although it hastened his end. To forecast the future, while we moderately enjoy the present, is the dictate of reason and conscience. Those who thus act from day to day have the best assurance of a long, useful life, and a happy, peaceful death, unshadowed by dark reminiscences of mis-spent and wasted hours. Finally, let me add, that the christian churches are guilty to a great extent, in promoting many of the questionable amusements of the present day, by condescending to the use of means for raising funds, in behalf of religious objects, altogether opposed to the spirit and the practice of the gospel. Is it not true that many religious people give their countenance to tableaux, charades, lotteries and other amusements of a questionable character? Is it not true that churches are desecrated by secular concerts and foolish exhibitions, in order to procure funds for the support of preaching the gospel, or the liquidation of church debts, and that men who make no profession of religion whatever and scoff at Christianity, are impor- tuned to assist in this way, what in other circumstances they despise ? Until reformation begins in the house of God, we cannot expect that manifestoes or protests will be of any value in warning our youth against amusements — injurious and sinful in themselves, or because of their associations. Possibly I hold somewhat rigid notions regarding church buildings. Edifices erected for and con- POPULAR AMUSEMENTS. 73 secrated to the worship of God, should, I apprehend, be devoted to such or kindred objects, and not given up to entertainments that had better be held in public halls ; and churches that cannot exist upon the free-will offering of the people, have no right in my opin- ion, to extort contributions from an unwilling public, by conde- scending to the use of means at variance with the teachings of the religion they profess. ^§<-i^— Sceptical Objections TO VTyHLYBTy. " What is the Almighty that we should serve him 1 And what profit should we have if we pray unto him V —Job 21, V. 15. Sceptical Objections to Prayer. ^Hp5n the context, Job tells us that this is the language of the wicked. They see no immediate benefit in serving God, and therefore refuse him rightful homage. And what was true in the earlier age of the world, is even more strikingly exemplified in the present day. f^ There are many, who, if they do not utter the atheistic sen- timent of the text, cherish it secretly in their hearts, and live accord- ing to its belief. They have no regard for anything beyond the present The thorough selfishness and sordidness of their nature despises the better blessings of the future. If prayer would increase their riches, add to their possessions, and meet the covetous desires of their hearts, none would be more frequently in the attitude of suppliants. But inasmuch as spiritual blessings first, and temporal blessings afterwards, is the order in which God answers prayer, and that the latter as a rule are only given where there is a proper appreciation of the former, the sensual worldling exclaims, " What profit should we have if we pray unto him ?" In the face of such blasphemous sentiments, it is worthy of remark, that men everywhere, both in pagan and civilized countries, have prayed, after their special modes. The Phoenician supplicates (77) 78 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. Baal ; the Roman. Jupiter ; the Egyptian, the Nile ; and the Indian, the Great Unknown Spirit. As the poet says : His untutored mind, Spes God in clouds, or hears him in the wind. His soul, proud science never taught to stray, Far as the solar walk, or milky way ; Yet simple nature to his hope has given Behind the cloud topped hill, an humbler heaven. Rousseau, a professed atheist, speaks of a certain bewildering ecstacy which his mind experienced, as if in communion with an invisible power, causing him to cry out, " O, great Being ! O, great Being !" What does all this prove, but that in some form or other the act of prayer is inseparable from humanity. A universal feel- ing of dependence and weakness pervades all ranks and conditions of men, felt just as strongly where there is no faith in the true God as where there is, and compelling the creature to look beyond self for support. Men in the abundance of this world's favors, may affect to despise such feelings, but there comes a period in the his- tory of the most defiant sinner, when he is driven for refuge and consolation to that God, whose very existence he formerly denied Let us briefly state and answer a few of the mOre common objections to prayer, which are fittingly embodied in the language of the text. Granted, says the sceptic, that there is a God, who created and governs the world, it is foolish to expect him to listen to the cries of all the creatures of his hand. Enthroned in the highest heavens ■ — the central attraction of its lofty intelligences — independent of the homage of man or angel, and ruling with absolute and unques- tioned authority, — what madness to expect him to lend a listening ear to the prayers cf mortals ? The pure angelic spirits that bow before his throne, " may catch his eye and obtain a transient recognition," but to imagine for a moment, that he is interested in SCEPTICAL OBJECTIONS TO PRAYER. 79 the endless round of human hopes and fears, that agitate the minds of men, is to degrade and insult the character of the eternal. What is meant by such language ? It is that God cannot, or will not condescend, to hear and answer prayer : — that while he disposes of the greater affairs of the universe, he cannot or will not trouble himself with the petty and insignificant details of human experience? If it is meant that God cannot then there is an end to debate, for the very idea of a God implies an omnipotent power — ability to rule over much or over little — an utter indifference, whether it be the affairs of one or a thousand worlds that solicit his attention. If he cannot atiend to the separate wants of his crea- tures, then he cannot govern the world as a whole, for it is only by knowing the special demands of the individual that he can provide for the collective wants of the mass. Or does the objector mean that he will not stoop to listen to the myriad cries of his dependent creatures? Then in that case, he cannot be such a being as the Bible represents him to be — a God not only of matchless power, but also of infinite love — a God, who so far from creating man, and abandoning him to his fate, watches over him with an ever increas- ing and deepening interest, despite of guilt and v/ickedness which deserve the outpourings of vengeance. Or is it meant that this world is so insignificant, compared with other parts of creation, that it cannot share the interest of his infinite mind ? It is true that this earth is small compared with the collected grandeur and glory of the divine workmanship. When we survey the heavens, which are the work of his fingers, the moon, and the stars which he has ordained, one may well exclaim, what is man that thou art mindful of him, or the son of man, that thou dost visit him? But while in this aspect, our world appears insignificant, in other respects for aught we know, it may be the noblest work of God. Small though it be, it has been peopled by a race immortal in their nature. Man is but a little lower than the angels. That sun 80 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. which in its endless journey shoots forth heat and flames of Hght to attendant worlds, is not for a moment to be compared with the smallest orb that rolls in space, if but a single being treads its surface. Herein lies the moral grandeur and significance of our world. It has been, and is still to be, the arena of events more momentous far than the page of history has recorded. God in human form has tabernacled among men. Redemption has been purchased. Para- dise has been regained. Death has been despoiled of its terrors, and the grave of its victory. Yet a little while, and the son of God shall descend to crown his chosen ones with a deathless immortal- ity, procured by his sufferings. Thus we conclude, that this earth, with all its inferiority, is still the grandest of all God's works, and that He not only can, but does hear the prayers of his children, when offered in a simple confiding faith. But, continues the objector, granted that the Almighty is both able and willing to hear and answer prayer, how can He do so, in consistency with the arrangement of natural laws? Everything has been from all eternity ordained by God. Like the several links in a chain, so are the events of the world. No change can be made in a single instance, without leading to confusion in the whole. The world, like to a watch, was, so to speak, wound up by its Maker at creation. Certain laws were then established, and set in motion for the government of men and provision for their wants, and these cannot be set aside to meet every new emergency of the creature. Miraculous interposition, in answer to prayer, is thus an utter impossibility. A miracle is a violation of the laws of nature, and as our experience has established the unvarying uniformity of these laws, to believe in their suspension even for a single moment, in order that prayer may be answered, isalike opposed to common sense, as it is in direct conflict with the teachings of philosophy and science. SCEPTICAL^ OBJECTIONS PO PRAYER. Si This is just a reproduction of the doctrine of Fate, as held by the ancients. Destitute of the knowledge of God, they ascribed the government of the world to a blind destiny, or necessity, per- sonified. We, with clearer views of truth, recognize no such thing as Fate. Physical and moral laws are the ordination and creation of God. The question simply resolves itself into this : — Has the Creator no power over the thing created ? Has the machinist no influence over that which is the. work of his hand and the offspring of his brain ? Can he not modify, regulate, increase, or retard its motion ? Can he not even insert some new principle of action, without interfering with the general design and working of the machine? There can be but one answer to all such questionings. Most certainly. He who at first framed and fashioned this world, and so beautifully harmonized the laws of nature for the welfare of his creatures, can when occasion demands, change or modify their action. If you give to the mechanic the power to regulate the work of his hands, surely this much must be accorded the Almighty. If not, he has become the slave of nature. Answers to prayer, in whatever form they come, can never honestly pe described as vio- lations of the laws of nature. " These laws are nothing but the common operations of divine power in the government of the world, which depend entirely for their existence and continuance on the infinite will of the Creator. Miraculous interposition is nothing but the exertion of divine power, in a way different from that which is common," but in perfect harmony, if we could only see it with the original design which the Almighty planned for the government of the world, and the continuous supply of his creatures' wants. All are but parts of one stupendous whole, Whose body Nature is, and God the soul. He sees with equal eye, as God of all, A hero perish, or a sparrow fall ; ' Atoms or systems into ruin hurled, j And now a bubble burst, and now a world. *6 82 THE CHURCH AND THE CQMIMON WEALTH But it may be replied, that our illustration or argument is not in all respects legitimate or logical. The chronometer and the machine of the artist or artizan, are not perfect. They are not regarded so by their framers. Improvements are to be expected, corresponding to the discoveries of science. But when God made the laws of nature, He made them perfect, and the idea of perfec- tion precludes improvement. If perfection is stamped upon these laws, then prayer, however importunate, cannot induce the Almighty to change the order of the universe. Our answer to this objection is, that while fully admitting the perfection of nature's laws at creation, it does not follow that they should serve every end, or supersede the necessity of prayer. And even granting that at the moment of creation these laws fully met all the wants of the creature, it does not follow that in man's sinful and fallen condition, they are equally efficient. God has not changed, or if the sceptic prefers it. Nature has not changed, but man has changed. Man and Nature are now in conflict. His condition is no longer sinless and happy, but guilty and miserable. To meet his new wants and ameliorate his sufferings, why may not the Almighty influence nature, changing and modifying its operations, in accordance with man's altered condition ? Without presuming to enquire into the secret things of God, or be wise above what is written, one or two methods m.ay rev^erently be suggested, in virtue of which God can answer prayer, in perfect harmony with the laws of nature. * (a) God may influence the laws of nature without either arrest- ing or changing their known arrangements. We can trace back the operations of nature but a very little way. Beyond this limit, how easy it is for God to interpose without our knowledge * See The Rationale of Prayer, by Rev. Dr. G. C. Hutton, of Scot- land, where this train of thought is admirably presented. SCEPTICAL OBJECTIONS TO PRAYaR. 83 {b) Why may not prayer and its answer be joined together as cause and effect ? May not the omniscient God, who foresees every prayer that is offered, so arrange it, that the blessing asked shall come in connection with the prayer offered, while at the same time the laws of nature remain as the medium of its transmission ? {c) Or may we not believe, that prayer and its answer, form a separate law of nature — the answer to our prayers coming, as the result of laws arranged for this very purpose? If we accept this explanation, then the Almighty need not interpose by miracle or otherwise, but simply by the agency of separate laws, in perfect harmony with the operations of Nature, answer the prayers of his children. If, as has been remarked, there is a way by which God can answer prayer, without disturbing his own laws, it is safest to conclude that this is the actual method employed. If the possibility of prayer being answered is still denied — if it is affirmed, that the doctrine of foreordination is so rigid, that nothing but what is thus predestinated can happen, and that every- thing must happen, independent of human exertion or prayer, then we reply, that such a theory would put an end to every form of human endeavor. Why need a man labor, if he shall receive, inde- pendent of effort ? Why should the husbandman till the ground and sow his seed? VVliy should the merchant busy himself in his counting house or on the exchange ? Why, in a word, need any man plan for the future, seeing that all things thus foreordained must come to pass, according to the iron law of necessity? Surely the statement of such a doctrine is all that is needed to ensure its condemnation ! It is a mere pretext put forth by wicked men, to conceal their hatred of the Almighty, and their unwillingness to admit their dependence upon his supreme omnipotence, unerring wisdom, and fatherly care. But why prolong such a discussion in the hearing ot christian men? The pious heart seeks not to know how prayer is answered, 84 THE CHURCH AND THE COMiMONWEALTH. being fully convinced of the fact. Every good man knows by experience, the profit that results from communion with his Maker, For prayer is not to be valued simply by the external blessings conferred upon the suppliant. There is, besides, an inward subjec- tive effect — a composure of mind and tranquility of soul beyond expression ; — a peace and joy and rapture, which the world can neither give nor take away. The christian rises from his knees, with his countenance irradiated with heaven's glory, as was the face of Moses, when he descended from the mount. The character of the praying saint assumes a beauty, and emits a fragrance other- Mase unknown. Life, despite of its woes and sorrows, is rendered divine, and the soul prepared for the unbroken and sinless fellov/- ship of heaven. That believers have always such strong confidence in the effi- cacy of prayer, I do not assert. There are times when God seems to cast off his people — when the promise tarries — when they cry and are not heard — when their importunity seems to avail nothing — when they are so beset with trouble, and so persistently baffled in their purposes, that they almost despair and stagger on the very brink of apostacy. Weak faith cries out : Tf I could only surely know That all these things that tire me so Were uoticed by my Lord — The pangs that cut me like a knife, The lesser pains of daily life, The noise, the weariness, the strife, — * What peace it would afford ! I wonder if he really shares In all my little human cares, This mighty King of kings ; If He who guides each blazing star, Through realms of boundless space afar, Without confusion, sound or jar, Stoops to these petty things. SCEPTICAL OBJECTIONS TO PRAYER. 85 But to all such enquiries, there comes at last perfect trust and unshaken confidence. The darkness is scattered and the language of full assurance is attained : Dear Lord, my heart hath not a doubt That Thou dost compass me about With sympathy divine. The love for me once crucified Is not a love to leave my side, But waiteth ever to divide Each smallest care of mine. Beneath the skeptical sneers of the age at prayer, there lies the prior question, is there a God at all ? I know that some men who profess to have implicit faith in the existence of a supreme being, deny the efficacy of prayer, save in so far as it has a reflex influ- ence upon the suppliant. But surely if there is a God, his ability to hear and answer prayer must be admitted. We cannot philoso- phically separate the two things. If there is no God, then most certainly prayer is a mockery. But who that takes the most cursory glance at this wisely appointed and curiously fashioned material world, can deny the existence of a creating and pre- siding deity? Have you ever stood in a serene summer mid- night, under the blue dome of the heavens ? The sky is without a cloud, the moon is gradually waning at the distant approach of dawn, and the attendant stars add to the scene a brilliancy all their own. Almost imperceptibly, the faint streaks of returning day shoot across the horizon, the smaller stars like little children sinking first to rest, followed by the brighter constellations. " Steadily the wondrous transfiguration goes on. Hands of angels hidden from mortal eyes shift the scenery of the heavens until the glories of night dissolve into the glories of the dawn. Faint streaks of purple blush along the sky : inflowing tides of morning light bathe the entire celestial concave in one great ocean of radiance, until finally a flash of fire blazes out from above the horizon, turning the dewy 86 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. t^ar drops of flower and leaf into rubies and diamonds. The ever- lasting gates of the morning are now thrown wide open, and the lord of day, arrayed in glories too severe for the gaze of man, begins his course." Such a scene — one of many — that evoke the admiration and adoration of the most stolid and unimpassioned, is surely in itself overwhelming demonstration as to the existence of a God. But I am told that this first great cause has now with- drawn from all further superintendence of his works, and left his creatures to be the sport and pastime of wayward passions, and the victims ot a fierce despair, that hurries them to the grave, without a ray of light, or a gleam of hope upon their rugged pathway ! No, it cannot be. As Bryant beautifully soliliquizes, when looking at a wild water-fowl passing over him in the twilight : — AVhither, midst falling dew, While glow the heavens with the last steps of day, Far through their rosy depths dost thou pursue Thy solitary way 1 There is a power whose care Teaches thy way along the pathless coast, The desert and illimitable air, Lone wandering, but not lost. He who, from zone to zone, Guides through the boundless sky thy certain flight, In the long way that I must tread alone. Will lead my steps aright. There are some, doubtless, who have no such sceptical opinions regarding prayer, yet still neglect it. Perhaps they have omitted the duty so long, that they feel ashamed to begin again. That same cowardice, which prevents many from professing Christ, fol- lows them into the secrecy of the family. At times conscience troubles them, and they resolve no longer to live in such wilful neglect of God, but under the whisperings of Satan, that their motive cannot be sincere, they continue to live strangers to a throne CEPTICAL OBJECTIONS TO PRAYER. 8/ of grace. Others neglect prayer, because of alleged inability. Their early educational advantages have not been of such a nature as to qualify them for the exercise, in what they regard as a becom- ing manner. They have not the language in which to convey their thoughts and express their feelings. In certain families, also, dif- ferences of religious opinion between parents, or rather the lack of religion on the part of one or both, prevents family worship. To all such let me say, that neglect of known duty in the past is no excuse for continued refusal. The longer a m# has practised indif- ference, the sooner should he reverse his conduct. Repentance, however late, if sincere, is acceptable, and prayer offered at the eleventh hour can secure the favor of heaven. The value of prayer consists not in the language, but in the spirit that animates the petitioner. The unuttered breathings of the soul ; the silent sobs of the bruised and broken spirit ; the rude, unlettered speech of the half-civilized barbarian— the broken and feeble accents of childhood and infancy, are as pleasing in the sight of God as the chaste and fervent prayers of the matured christian or the scholarly divine. Finally, — No m^n should argue against the efficacy of prayer, until he has proved by infallible tests, that it is worthless. Arro- gant blasphemers content themselves with scoffs and sneers, which are of no value, as against the experience of one believing soul. If prayer is a mere form, then the scriptures are false throughout, and the testimony of Old and New Testament saints unreliable. But. it is not so. A sound philosophy echoes the poet's words : More things are wrought by prayer Than this world dreams of. Wherefore let thy voice Rise like a fountain for me night and day. For what are men better than sheep or goats That nourish a blind life within the brain, If knowing God, they lift not hands of prayer, Both for themselves and those who call them friend 1 For so the who e round earth is every way, Bound by gold chains, about the feet of God. What are the Marks OF A (^EJsri/IJNTE PiEVlVAIi ? " O Lord, revive thy work in the midst of the years : in the midst of the years make known : in wrath remember mercy." — Habakkuk 3, v. 2. Marks of a Genuine Revival. Jf^i^HE prophecy of Habakkuk was uttered some six hun- dred years before the advent of Christ. It refers to the invasion of Judea by the Chaldeans, and foretells the total overthrow of the Babylonish Empire, and the ultimate deliverance of God's own chosen people. The prophet's heart sinks within him, as he rolls back the cur- tain that veiled the future, and reveals the approaching vengeance of an angry God. " Why dost Thou show me iniquity, and cause me to behold grievance?" He next proceeds to set forth in vivid colors, the flagrant violations of God's law of which the nation was guilty. For their pride, their covetousness, their sensuality and their cruelty, it was necessary that God should vindicate His holi- ness, and visit them with judgment. Then follow the words of the text. Before, he has been addressing man, or listening in the pres- ence of Jehovah. Now he seeks relief from his agony of soul in importunate prayer. " O Lord, I have heard Thy speech, and was afraid : O Lord, revive Thy work in the midst of the years ; in the midst of the years make known ; in wrath remember mercy." The entire prophecy contains passages unequalled for sublimity of conception and grandeur of illustration, but the portion contained (91) 92 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. in this third chapter excels in the boldness and rapidity of its flights, and the magnificence of its imagery. The prophet stands as mediator between a guilty nation and an angry God. In the spirit of a true patriot, while he loves his country, he conceals not her faults. It was just possible that God might yet put forth His hand and save. True, the Chaldean army had already begun the work of destruction, but that same power, which in former days had baffled mighty armies, could defeat their plans, and bring to naught their councils. " The Lord is strong and mighty : the Lord is mighty in battle." The meaning of the prayer is obvious The work spoken of is twofold, (a) The bestowment of grace upon his chosen but back- sliding people, and {b) their deliverance from the might of the oppressors. " Perfect the work of rescuing Thy people from cap- tivity ; do not let the promises made of old to their fathers lie dead ; sanctify those terrible calamities to the nation's good, and at the same time revive the nation's piety. Now that our afflictions are at their height, put forth Thy power, and glorify Thy name." To the same purport are the words of Psalm 80, v. 14-19, when the Psalmist prayed that God's favor might again be extended to the nation, and the desolate vineyard restored to its former beauty. In its general application, the text teaches us these important truths : — I. A revival of religion is aKvays God's own work. Apart from His gracious aid, no revival is possible. It is only as churches and individuals are acted upon by the supernatural power of God's Holy Spirit, that saints are comforted, refreshed and stimulated, and sinners awakened, quickened, convicted and converted. " Restore unto me the joys of Thy salvation ; then will I teach transgres- sors Thy ways, and sinners shall be converted unto Thee." There is unspeakable comfort in this thought. The work is not man's, but God's. He is pledged to its success. It cannot MARKS OF A GENUINE REVIVAL. 93 fail. Its advancement depends not upon the caprice of individuals, but on the sworn decree of God himself Redemption in its con- ception, progress and results, is all of grace. He at first out of His infinite love, decreed salvation for the human family ; He still makes the free offer to guilty sinners, and by His spirit inclines the heart to seek after pardon. His promise to complete the work and prosper every instrumentality that has for its aim the conversion of the world, is our best plea at the mercy seat, when asking God to bless His people. " Revive Thy work ; wilt Thou not revive us again, that Thy people may rejoice in Thee." H. A revival of religion implies a previous languid, and lifeless state of spiritual existence. Where there is life and activity there is no need for revival. When a person faints away and is restored to consciousness the word is applicable. Or when the almost drowned or suffocated are restored to animation we use the same term. It is the word that can only be legitimately applied to a living being. That which never lived before cannot be revived. Those who have never had the divine life in their soul cannot properly be quickened. In their case, there must first be the implanting of the new principle of grace, before there can be any impulses Godward and heavenward. A revival of religion thus implies, that the mass of professing christians are indifferent and unconcerned ; careless regarding the progress of spiritual life in their souls, or in the souls of others. Personal piety is decaying and drooping ; ordinances are lightly valued ; private and social prayer is formal and irregular. " The eye of faith is dim and overcast, and seldom flashes with holy joy ; the spiritual countenance is hollow and sunken with doubts and fears, the tongue of praise is partially paralyzed, and has little to say for Jesus ; the spiritual frame is lethargic ; a horrible numbness and dreadful insensibility prevades the entire being. 94 THE CHURCPI AND THE COMMONWEALTH. Nor is it necessary to be in this perilous condition, that the mass of church members should be guilty of flagrant sins. Many seem to think, that so long as the Sabbath is moderately observed and ordinances statedly administered, nothing can be seriously wrong. There never was a greater mistake. Apathy and unconcern are ominous of danger. It is when the atmosphere is sultry, and not a breath of wind moves the trees, and life seems a very burden, that the elements of nature break loose, and the lightning flash and thunderbolt work saddest havoc in the world. So drooping and decaying spiritual life, is the procursor of God's vengeance and awful wrath. That we need a revival of religion who will deny ? As a nation we have for a long period been highly favored. Quiet Sabbaths, abundant ministerial service, social meetings for prayer, and Sab- bath school instruction, are but a few of our many blessings. We have worshipped according to the dictates of conscience, none daring, to molest us, and not as in other days, when God's elect ones, hid themselves in dens and caves, from the wrath of man. And yet what is our condition to-day ? Have our privileges been improved and valued as they might have been ? In some few cases doubtless, christians have entered upon the higher christian life. Here and there brands are being plucked from the burning and dry bones inspired with the energy of the spirit, but where has been the progress in spiritual things, and those ingatherings to the fold of Christ, that might have been expected ? III. A revival is possible. What is beyond man's power in the realm of nature, is easy of accomplishm.ent with God, and there are no impossibilities in the sphere of grace. That same power that raised Jesus Christ from the dead and Lazarus from the tomb, is almighty to revive His church. That church can never perish. It has in times past survived the fiercest opposition. The fires of MARKS OF A GENUINE REVIVAL. 95 persecution cannot extinguish it. The maledictions of tyrants and the anathemas of devils cannot quench the Spirit's power. But in order to a genuine revival of religion, as has already been implied, the church must look to a higher power than human agency. The vital spark comes from heaven. When the inhabi- tants of Judea sicken on the plains, they climb the hills and breathe the more bracing air of the upper regions. And so languid souls need to get nearer God. We must drink from the fountain head, and not at human cisterns. We must not rest upon the eloquence of man, but look to the great Head of the church, who anoints with the heavenly oil, and transforms human language into the voice of God. Vital godliness is never aided by excitement, by crowded meetings, by startling paradoxes, but by the opening of the win- dows of heaven, and the refreshing breezes of the Spirit. When Elijah was distressed, because of the impiety of the Israelites, and hid himself in the cave, he was commanded to go forth and stand upon the mount of God, and then mark what followed. " Behold the Lord passed by, and a great strong wind rent the mountains and broke in pieces the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind ; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake ; and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire ; and after the fire a "still small voice." It was the still small voice, and not the earthquake, nor wind, nor fire, that brought comfort and peace and hope to the prophets soul ! But it may be replied, if revivals of religion are so directly and entirely the work of God's spirit, then there is nothing for man to do, but to stand idly by and fold his arms ! By no means. Spir- itual blessings are given in answer to prayer. Revivals of religion never come to churches or individuals, who are either indifferent or reluctant to receive them. If we are to witness a genuine revival, it will be brought about by earnest importunity at a throne of grace. On our knees we must implore God's long-suffering mercy. We 90 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. must mourn and fast in godly sorrow, and seek in the language of the text, that in the midst of deserved wrath, God may remember mercy. No real revival of religion ever took place without deep confession of sin, and a sincere feeling of our utter unworthiness in the sight of God. In the moral government of Jehovah, and the administration of His affairs on the earth, there is a calling of churches and indi- viduals to judgment. He that walks among the seven golden candlesticks, marks our conduct. If year after year he has lavished upon us more than ordinary care and no fruit appears upon the branches, the great husbandman will assuredly say : " Cut them down, why cumber they the ground ?" God in his infinite mercy, prevent such a fearful end ! What then are some of the legitimate and invariable results of a genuine revival of religion ? {a). A deepening and rejoicing conviction of our safety in Christ Assurance is possible and to be sought after. Its absence, however, does not prove God's displeasure. Plants in the sunshine and trees by living waters are green and flourishing. Such should be the condition of all God's people after a season of revival. A man who has been in doubt as to his physical soundness wears a smile upon his face when assured by his physician that all is well. And so a sense of reconciliation to God, and the enjoyment of his favor should make the step firm and the heart glad. (d) More consistent living on the part of professing christians. It has been well said, that a revival that does not exalt and ennoble busi- ness life, political life,social life, and home life, is unworthy of the name. Religion is for the school-girl at her studies, the apprentice or workman at the bench, the merchant in the store, the banker at his desk, the physician in his visits, the advocate at the bar, the teacher in his class-room, the sailor before the mast, the pilot at the helm, as well as the sufferer upon a bed of languishing, or nearing the MARKS OF A GENUINE REVIVAL. 97 portals of eternity. Religion is a thing to be lived day by^ day, on Monday as well as on Sunday. Longfellow beautifully says, that the warm days in spring bring forth passion flowers and forget-me- nots ; but it is after midsummer, when the days grow shorter and hotter, that fruit begins to appear. And thus it is with seasons of revival. Their value is not always seen at the time, nor their genu- ineness proved by the numbers of professedly re-animated chris- tians, but by the character of their future lives. After a he^vy rain or freshet, the water for a while finds unaccustomed beds in isolated pools ; but when the rain ceases, if not fed by some perennial spring, the water eventually subsides to its standard level into the familiar lakes and streams, and the unsightly gulleys and gorges that have been washed out by the sudden torrent, and where so lately they carried a seemingly irresistible flood are left so many fetid and pes- tilential swamps. And so, unless the soul is continuously replen- ished by a living stream of heavenly impulses and holy aspirations, its high and noble resolutions will come to naught, until at last there is nothing left "but the unsightly gorge of memory that marks where the rills of grace so lately ran." Need I say that the preaching of the Sabbath is either inten- sified or nullified by the practice of the week. The minister by one careless act may destroy the labors of a year, and the membership by unholy and frivolous conduct bring religion into contempt and drive souls to hell. (c) Intensified, individual effort In many churches the zeal of the members is at and below zero. They have never gathered a single sheaf into the Lord's garner house, and never serionsly at- tempted it. In churches of a thousand members nine hundred are asleep. This is surely not as it should be. A revived christian is a man who is not satisfied with his own interest in Christ ; but realizing that men around him are dying unsaved, he seeks to *7 93 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. bring them into the arl<: of safety. He acts as a man in earnest to .rescue souls from eternal destruction. It is stated on good authority that the statistics of the evan- gelical churches in the United States for the past twenty-five years show an average of two souls converted every year. And in these same congregations there are on an average four or five deaths. What a commentary upon the sincerity of the christian church ! Revival work must then be judged, not by the number of con- verts made, but by its permanent fruits. The world has a right to expect, after a season of refreshing, that men and women bearing the name of Christ will be characterized by the loftiest self-sacrifice and most self-denying acts in behalf of the faith they profess : "That in the exercise of such virtue as patience, power and love they will help the helpless, comfort the comfortless, restore the erring, bring back the wanderers, and kindle fresh life in despairing souls." {d). As a result of a genuine revival, there should be a purer atmosphere in the communit}', a higher standard of honesty, more integrity, more honor, more upright dealing, greater consistency and circumspection in the ordinary details of life. It is a constant subject of remark, and not without reason, that in certain localities, seasons of extraordinary zeal and singular devotion are followed by periods of absolute disregard of the commonest laws of mor- ality ; when prominent leaders, from ministering at the altar, sink to the lowest level of the ungodly and bring grievous scandal upon the church of Christ. Making all allowance for the scoff of the infidel, who stigmatizes all religious enthusiasm as hypocrisy and pretense, and exaggerates the short-comings of the weak and erring disciple, the fact is patent, that religion is too often made a passport to position. Sudden declension from the faith, and marked irregu- larities in business life, are not the fruits of religion. The revival MARKS OF A GENUINE REVIVAL. 99 has been spasmodic, where such things are found, the product of sinful man, and not the work of God. (e) If our church and our land were to experience such a glori- ous season, our ministers, like the apostles, would preach more earnestly and more effectually. " The pulpit would become warmed up," and the minister become a flame of fire in God's service. So it was in the case of Peter. He had often preached before to atten- tive congregations, but after the " Baptism of Fire," he preached with supernatural power, and the result was proportionate to the power exerted. Our churches and congregations would not only increase, but be characterized by a spirit of earnest enquiry and alarm. Men and women, now Sabbath breakers and scoffers at religion, would feel themselves unconsciously drawn to the house of God, and would be forced to cry out, '• What must we do to be saved ?" The services of the sanctuary would become more and more impressive, and the words of the preacher pierce more keenly the hardened conscience. The house of prayer would become in- vested with a new solemnity, and the language of Jacob be that of every heart, " How dreadful is this place ! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the very gate of heaven." Our noon- day prayer meetings, and our week evening prayer meetings would be crowded. Excuses, which now keep christians away, would no longer be tenable — our prayers would be characterized by unwonted power and force — the conversation of christians would be all about religion — not about the preacher ; his style ; his eloquence ; his excellencies or defects ; but as to the application of his words to their individual souls. The prophecy of Malachi would then be fulfilled, and they " that fear the Lord speak often one to another." Every season of communion at a mercy seat would be longed for, as the most interesting moment in life, and the most blessed season of christian experience. The ungodly world would soon also reap the benefit of such a revival. Like the sceptical unbelieving Jews, lOO THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. in the days of Peter, for a while, as in recent times, it might be incredulous, and characterize it as enthusiasm and fanaticism. But, by and by, the swelling tide of grace would reach the most aban- doned sinners. Organic reformation would end in real conversion. Commercial dishonesty, reckless speculation, and political corrup- tion would in a great measure cease. Anarchy, confusion, fraternal recrimination, threatened war and bloodshed would be averted, and the nation as a unit, joined. Province to province, and brother to brother, in the bands of christian love, we would go forward for the enlightenment and emancipation of a groaning world. The church, collectively, would feel its power. Denominationalism would be lost sight of, in so far as it hinders the spread of Bible truth. Dis- putes about words and forms would be hushed to silence, and like a solid phalanx, the church would march on to victory, and storm the citadel of Satan. The clarion note from distant lands would chord with the joyous praises of the church at home, and uniting with the redeemed around the throne, swell the song of redemp- tion's dawn. Why do I speak so ? that the members of this church are worse than others? I trust not. But because we all need the quickening influence of God's spirit to make us in our individual and church relations to the world a greater power for good. Are we, brethren, satisfied with the state of religion that exists ? Are not many of God's children convinced that their attitude and example, in pre- sence of the frivilous and foolish and idle portion of the commun- ity, is not what should be expected from those who belong to the communion of saints ? At the present day, when a choice has to be made between the church and the world, the church goes under. A man is accounted a fool who leaves a secular engagement in the interest of religion. The prayer meeting has no chance as against the concert room, the theatre, or the social gathering. A decent, formal, moral life (and not, I fear, always so), is deemed sufficient MARKS OF A GENUINE REVIVAL lOI to secure entrance to and honor in the church. Those who ought to be distinguished for their sanctity of deportment and consuming anxiety for the prosperity of Zion deem it no discredit to be numbered among the vain and pleasure seeking throng, of whom the apostle says : " Many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you, even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ, whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, whose mind earthly things." No amount of professed reverence for God's house can atone for such conduct. The Almighty demands purity in the inward parts and consistency of the life. To the hypocrite and backslider He says : " To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto me ? When ye come to appear before me, who hath required this at your hand to tread my courts ? Bring no more vain oblations : incense is an abomination unto me. Your appointed feasts my soul hateth ; they are a trouble unto me ; I am weary to bear them. When ye spread forth your hands I will hide mine eyes from you ; yea, when 3^e make many prayers I will not hear." If such a condition of things exist, well may we say : " Except the Lord of hosts had left unto us a very small remnant, we should have been as Sodom, and we should have been like unto Gomorrah !" I have thus far been trying to awaken reflection in God's own people for their own safety, and arouse them to earnest endeavor to save the perishing. What shall I say to unconverted souls, ere I close ? Said Robert Murray McCheyne, when mourning over the want of spiritual life in Scotland : " Dear unconverted sinners, ye little know how much you are interested, in that this should be a time of reviving from the presence of the Lord. It is not our part to tell you of coming judgments — of fire from heaven, or fire from hell ; but this we can plainly see, that unless the Spirit of God shall come down on our parishes, like rain on the mown grass, I02 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. many souls that are now in the land of peace, shall soon be in the world of anguish. There may be no sudden judgment ; fire and brimstone may not be rained down from heaven, as upon Sodom ; the earth may not yawn to receive her prey, as in the camp of Israel ; but Sabbath breakers, liars, swearers, drunkards, unclean persons, formalists, worldlings and hypocrites, yea all Christless souls, will quickly slip away, one by one, into an undone eternity." You believe in a day of wrath, of awful moment to every immor- tal soul. Are you ready for it ? Robert Pollock had a glimpse of that day — for which all other days are made — and thus describes it : Begin the woe, ye woods, and tell it to the doleful winds, And doleful winds wail to the howling hills, And howling hills mourn to the dismal vales, And dismal vales sigh to the sorrowing brooks, And sorrowing brooks weep to the weeping stream. And weeping stream awake the groaning deep ; Ye heavens, great archway of the universe, put sackcloth on ; And ocean, veil thyself in garb of widowhood. And gather all thy waves into a groan, and utter it, Long, loud, deep, piercing, dolorous, immense, The occasion asks it, Nature dies, and angels come to lay her in her grave. Is the Christian Church OF TO-Ba^Y aS'OST'OIiIG ? " They continued stedfastly in the Apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers : daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart ; and the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved." —Acts 2, V. 42, 46, 47. Is THE Church of To-Day Apostolic ? HE outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pente- cost, as recorded in the second chapter of the Acts of the Apostles, has ever been a subject of the greatest interest to the Church of Christ and individual believ- ers. It not only proves the faithfulness of the Saviour's ^^ promise, that "the Comforter" would come, but it gives us constantly to hope for similar manifestations in all ages of the church. Before his crucifixion, the Saviour comforted his downcast disciples with the assurance that "the Spirit of truth" would come and guide them into all truth. But before His coming, it was necessary that He should depart. " Nevertheless I tell you the truth ; it is expedient for you that I go away ; for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you ; but if I depart, I will send him unto you." Again, after the resurrection, in, the evening of the first day of the week, " when the doors were shut," Christ appeared to these same disciples, and reassured them of the coming of the Holy Spirit. "Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you. Receive ye the Holy Ghost." Again, upon a mountain top in Galilee, vve find Him with the eleven disciples, giving them their commission, and uttering His farewell benedic- (105) I06 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. tion. "All power is given urto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you : and lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world, amen." But before engaging in their great work, they must wait for the Saviour's ascension, and the promised baptism of fire. They must "tarry in the city of Jerusalem, until endued with power from on high," and "wait for the promise of the Father ;" and finally, after rebuk- ing their ignorance, as to the spiritual character of the Messianic kingdom, which they were about to establish in the world, and im- mediately before his ascension, he foretells their future glorious ministry — a ministry, not to be confined to Palestine or the borders of the Holy Land, but embracing the entire world. "Ye shall re- ceive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you ; and ye shall be witnesses unto me, both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth." The second chapter of the Acts of the Apostles gives the fulfil- ment of the promise. The Saviour has now ascended. The dis- ciples are now assembled in the upper room at Jerusalem — their master has gone — their hearts are full of sorrow — but still they plead for the promised outpouring. Christ's absence did not weaken their faith, nor lessen the earnestness of their prayers • nor should the absence of the Saviour weaken the faith of pious liearts, who are looking forward to his second coming. Day after day passes> but the looked for and longed for blessing tarries. The first day of the week has again dawned upon the world, but the promise remains unfulfilled. Still they wait. Anxious as the disciples were to enter upon their work, they must abide " the baptism of fire," to confirm their ministerial v>^cation. At last, the day of Pentecost comes around. The little christian church is again assembled with one accord in one. place, when sud- IS THE CHURCH OF TO-DAV APOSTOLIC? lO/ denly there comes a sound from heaven, as of a mighty rushing wind, and it fills all the house where they are sitting. It was not the product of human power, nor felt elsewhere out of that little circle, but sent direct from heaven. A mysterious silence broods over the little company — they were all filled with the Holy Ghost — every eye glistens — every countenance becomes irradiated — every heart inflamed with love, and every tongue loosened to declare God's glory. No marvel that the multitude were confounded at such a scene, and ascribed the revival to other causes than the Holy Spirit. They had not heard the promise of the Saviour, nor did they remember the prophecy given long before by the mouth of the prophet Joel. " It shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh ; and your sons and your daugliters shall prophecy, and }'0ur young men shall see visions and your old men shall dream dreams." In the days of the Apostles there was a necessity for an out- pouring of the Spirit. Christ came not so much to fully organize and establish the church, as to select and train those who should, after his ascension. For the great work of preaching the gospel, something more was needed than a certain amount of doctrinal knowledge. Intellectual qualifications — a clear discernment of the truths of Scripture — was not enough. The disciples needed a bap- tism of the Hol}^ Spirit. It was necessary that the faith of the disciples should be strengthened and confirmed in the new religion by overwhelming evidences ; — it was necessary that the truths of Christianity, despised and reproached, should be attested by signs and wonders, not less than the conversion of souls ; and it was necessary that the little band of christian converts, who met day after day in the upper room at Jerusalem, should have their hearts encouraged, and their numbers largely increased. The reality of the day of Pentecost is not founded alone upon the mysterious transactions of that day. There is given us a full I08 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. and detailed account of the subsequent history of the Httle apos- toHc church, from which we can easily gather the permanency of the change that took place on the occasion referred to. In addition to the fact stated, that they gladly received the word and were bap- tized, it is recorded that they continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers ; that a most tender bond of christian love bound all the members together, so that they were rather members of one family than of a church ; that a common interest and sympathy pervaded all ranks and classes, and that thus carrying out into practical life the prin- ciples of our holy religion, the Lord continued to add daily to the church such as should be saved. The evidences of the supernatural and astounding presence of God's spirit on the day of Pentecost, then, are these : Steadfast continuance in the truth, regular attendance upon the means of grace and the special ordinances of God's house, and a degree of fellowship and tenderness of dealing the one towards the other, as has never before been seen in that assembly. These are still the only evidences that we can look for of a genuine revival, and they are amply sufficient to confirm our faith in the reality of the work. It has been remarked that churches and individuals, graciously revived, have been more tenacious than ever of sound doctrine. They may not have preached in a forbidden aspect, the mysterious truths of an evangelical creed, but none the less have they valued them as of inestimable importance and unspeakable comfort. A church truly revived has no tendency to laxity, it has no sympathy with that false liberalism which regards one creed as good as another, provided a man means well and does well ; it has no place for those who call in question fundamental truths, or tone down the more awful declarations of scripture against the sinner, because they grate harshly upon the delicate ear of modern society. On the contrary, piety quickened, enlightened and strengthened by the IS THE CHURCH OF TO-DAY APOSTOLIC? JO9 outpouring of God's spirit, holds with a firm grasp eternal truth, against all who attempt to undermine it, or explain away its mean- ing. Such preaching and teaching it values beyond the refine- ments of philosophy and the deductions of reason, as better adapted to the wants of sinners, and most refreshing to the souls of saints. This is the first characteristic of the Pentecostal church. " They continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine." But in addition, we read that they continued daily in the tem- ple ; — that is, they observed with becoming regularity the means of grace, and availed themselves of every opportunity of hearing the word. We would expect this, and take it for granted, were it not intimated by the inspired penman. It was under the preaching of Peter they had experienced a change of heart, and had been brought to the enjoyment of peace in believing. And now the more they heard about Christ and the glorious truths of Christian- ity, the more they desired to hear. They never became tired of listening to divine things. As often as the church was assembled, all the members were present to take part. It is also to be borne in mind, that meetings for worship in the apostolic church were more frequent than with us. The pious few went up to the temple every day, and the members of the Pentecostal church, following the good example of the old dispensation, went daily into the tem- ple for devotional exercises. Poor though they were as a general rule, and compelled from day to day to labor for their bread, they gladly devoted the necessary hours that the claims of religion de- manded, to the service of God. Looking at the matter calmly, can it be possible for any true believer to act otherwise? Can you imagine a christian satiated with gospel ordinances, — who has attained to such a state of spir- itual strength, that he no longer needs the worship of God's house, and the enjoyment of communion with God's people ? Such a thing would entirely reverse the order ot spiritual life. Should we no 'HIE CHURCH and the commonwealth. not rather expect that as years roll on, he will become more devo- ted and exemplary in religious duties ; that his longings after the divine presence will be stronger and stronger, and his attendance upon the house of God more constant ? And if in any one instance we find it otherwise, we may safely conclude that the man never had any religion to begin with, or that spiritual and fatal decline has begun its work upon the soul. The third characteristic of this Pentecostal church was their fellowship, or the interest they took in one another. This is evi- dently a matter of no small moment, for the Evangelist makes special mention of the fact that they continued steadfastly in the fellowship of the saints. It is well to have correct notions ot what this fellowship consists in. If good for the apostolic church, and if it contributed to the spiritual prosperity of the entire body, then surely it is the part of churches at the present day to follow their example. All churches recognize the fellowship of the saints, although in some instances it is exceedingly hard for them to de- fine what they mean by the phrase. According to some, christian fellowship is simply and only the breaking of bread together from time to time in commemoration of Christ's death, and in token of our acceptance of the christian faith. " The communion of the body of Christ " is indeed a binding duty upon all believers, and a most precious means of extending brotherly love in the church of God, but not by any means all that is meant by the fellowship of the saints. If a man's fellowship with God's people is not more frequent than at the sacramental table, it is of little value. Others, again, regard this christian fellowship as nothing more than the act of worshipping together in the same church, and meeting acci- dentally upon the Sabbath day. Because they sit together, and sing together, and engage in the same outward acts of devotion, they conclude that they are enjoying christian fellowship. IS THE CHURCH OF TO-DAY APOSTOLIC? 1H Now we hold very different ('iews of this matter. God's word in speaking of this fellowship gives it a far more extended meaning than churches at the present day seem to imagine, and just because we fall short of our duty in this matter, we pauperize our own souls, bring coldness and indifference into our meetings, and repel anxious inquirers from the house of God. The coldness, the unfriendliness, the haughty bearing of members of the church ol Christ, are among the- greatest stumbling blocks to a general acceptance of Christianity, and do more to neutralize a gospel min- istry, however faithfully excrc'sed, than all the infidelity that has been published from the days of Voltaire down to the present age. What then, is it asked, is the scriptural idea of apostolic fellow- ship ? Let the history of the apostolic church supply an answer. I only ask a careful and candid perusal of that age to convince every one that the fellowship spoken of was of the most liberal and comprehensive kind. Bear in mind the condition of the mem- bers of this church. They were for the most part poor, uninfluential, unknown, and destitute. They had just abandoned different forms of faith, and become banded together as believers in Christ and members of his church. They were exposed to persecution, and had doubtless already suffered for their fidelity. They had no friends in the world, outside this little christian community — none to whom they dare entrust their affairs, or in whose confidence the}' could rely. They had no opportunities apart from the meetings of the church, for counsel and conference in regard to momentous and urgent matters, affecting the interests of their religion. In times o. sickness or suffering or bereavement, — in poverty and want, — there were none beyond the membership of the church to whom they could apply for sympathy, for assistance, and all those little acts of love that sweeten the journey of life and alleviate its sorrows r they were absolutely dependent upon the mutual friendship, good will, affection and brotherly attachments of the church. If these were 112 THE CHURCH AND THEI COMMONWEALTH. denied them, their case was indeed pitiable, and heartrending in the extreme. But the fellowship of the church anticipated and provided for all such emergencies. Next to the reality of their communion with God in Christ, was their friendship for one another. The conver- sion they had experienced produced a holy fellowship. They recog- nized their duties to the household of faith ; they were members one of another, and if one member suffered'all the members suffered with it. The evidence of their faith was the exercise of love and sympathy towards the brethren, for as John says, " Every one that loveth him that begat, loveth him also that is begotten of him." That is, if the children ■ love the parent, they cannot but love one another, and desire each other's welfare. The picture presented us is not so much a church as a family, where a common feeling binds every soul together, where peace and good will, charity and self- denial are the crowning graces ; where the bright sunshine of heaven is never clouded by hatred, or variance, suspicion or distrust ; and where all are aiming at a common object, and contributing of their influence to the general good. Now, what is the church but a family of saints ? We know no distinctions here. At a common footstool and around the table of the Lord, the rich and the poor meet together, for the Lord is the maker and the Saviour 6f them all. Class distinctions and social classifications should be unknown in the church of Christ. It is no condescension for the rich man to recognize the poor, nor is it any honor for the poor man to be favored by the recognition of the rich, save in so far as he is rich in faith and an heir to the kingdom. All pride, all vanity, all haughty- looks, everything that savors of conscious superiority in one church member towards another, is out of place in the house of God. In society and the secular affairs of life, there must of necessity be superiors and inferiors, — masters and servants, — those who occupy the highest and those who occupy IS THE CHURCH OF TO-DAY APOSTOLIC? II3 the lowest rounds of the ladder, but no such accidental differences of rank should ever be recognized in the sanctuary. The peer and the peasant, the king and the subject, the prince and the pauper, should all meet as brethren in the church on earth, if they are to gain an humble place in the church in heaven. Is there such fellowship in evangelical churches at the present day ? We bring no accusations against any man or any church. But truth compels us to say that there are many who never prac- tice the christian fellowship of the apostolic age. We ask nothing impossible of any member. We do not overlook the fact that the urgencies of business and the claims of home often hinder the en- joyment of christian fellowship, where, but for these, there is a willing mind. But making every allowance, are we not all guilty in this matter? Is it not a fact that some people come to the church Sabbath after Sabbath, week after week, and month after month, without a single enquiry being made as to their circumstan- ces, residence or church relations? Is it not true that young men come and go withcut any of those attentions and friendly regards, which it is the duty of christians in the church to show to such as have not the advantages of home and the oversight of parents ? Is it not a fact that members pass each other on the street without recognition, or just with such recognition as intimates the fact that they move in different orbits, and belong to an entirely different order of society ? Is it not true that sickness and death and desti- tution prevail in families, without the knowledge or without the sympathy and assistance that should be given by professed mem- bers of the church ? Is it not imagined by some good people, that they have fully discharged their duties and relieved their con- sciences of all burdens, when they come to the church or prayer meeting, and give for the support of ordinances ? Is it not the feeling of many church members that the minister is to do all the regular pastoral visitation, all the friendly and social calls, all the *8 114 THE CHURCH and the comatqnwfalth. ministrations demanded by sick beds and funcrais, and g-ive all the counsel and advice that the endless wants of congregations impose, without the aid and support, or co-operation of a single member? Are there not in all our churches such mistaken views as to the nature and obligations of christian membership? If it were merely to cultivate a friendly spirit, or to increase congregations numerically, we should not so earnestly allude to this matter, although such a consideration is surely of some weight. But we plead for christian fellowship on higher grounds. There can be no growth in grace, where there is indifference to each other's welfare. There can be no moral influence, where there is no unity of feeling and concentration of aim. There can be no real zeal, little true devotion, and little achievement in the work of the Lord, where every man looks upon his own things and not those of his neighbor. " Bear ye one another's burdens," is the law of christian life. The strong are to support the weak, the wise to instruct the ignorant, the rich to aid the poor. The vitality of any church is based upon these inequalities in christian life, drawing forth the sympathies and affections of the soul, and thus making the entire existence a ministry of gentleness and goodness. " By one spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free ; and have been all made to drink into one spirit. That there should be no schism in the body ; but that the members should have the same care one for another," I very much fear that the scenes of the day of Pentecost, arc in many cases regarded with suspicion by christians at the present day. On account of the low state of religion in many of our churches, the exhibition of such terrible earnestness in the matter of salvation, seems little short of madness or fanaticism. We read with wonder of thousands of men and women crying out simul- taneously, "Men and brethren, what shall we do?" of additions to the church, such as have never been equalled in modern days, and IS THE CHURCH OF TO-DAY APOSTOLIC? I15 of a devotedness and zeal in the cause of God that fairly puts to shame our indolence and apathy. If we admit the facts narrated by the evangelist, then, to save ourselves from the charge of spirit- ual deadness in the Lord's work, we say, that such a state of things was altogether exceptional, that under no circumstances can they be repeated, that the days of miracles are past, that true conversion is not to be looked for in connection with mighty convulsions ot the church, and that the silent, unperceived, but all effectual work of God's spirit in the soul, is more reliable than any outward demon- strations of anxiety for sin. These statements contain some truth. We admit that the age of miracles is past, and that such an occasion as the day of Pente- cost is not the normal condition of the church. It is also true that although we have not such mighty and numerous conversions as characterized the apostolic age, we are not to conclude that the church is forsaken or that piety is extinct. But admitting all this, it is not to be concluded, that in the event of God's spirit being plen- tifully poured down upon churches and nations, we may not again witness the supernatural and incontrovertible evidences of conver- sion. They may, we hold, be repeated at any time ; the tongues of fire and the gifts of language may be absent, but loud cries of broken hearts and awakened consciences, are the natural effects of a faithful and heaven-blessed ministry. We need such an outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Ministers and missionaries need it to qualify them for their work. Learning, eloquence and orthodoxy are good and necessary, but of themselves impotent for saving souls. Theological training and severe mental discipline are not enough — the Holy Spirit must fire the heart and purify the affections, and teach the arm how to wield the weapon of God's word. The church needs it. Our services are cold ard formal — our prayer meetings lifeless — the standard of piety is low — faith is feeble — love is lukewarm, and christian effort for the Il6 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. salvation of souls, all but extinct. The faithful Israels in our congregations are desponding, and almost beginning to doubt the fulfilment of the promise. Our evangelical churches are divided. Sectarianism, denominationalism, and petty strifes are keeping pious hearts asunder, while Satan builds up his kingdom upon the ruins of the church, and error lifts up her head defiantly tov/ard heaven. The world needs it — the power of divine truth requires renewed attestation from time to time — the pulpit must be lifted to its true position, and ungodly men taught that there is a power above and beyond all human combinations. Souls at the present day in thousands are leaping blind-folded into hell, amid the shout of fiends and wail of angels. Surely we need in our land another day of Pentecost ! How are we to obtain such an outpouring of the Spirit ? God works by means in the world of grace, as well as in the domain of nature. Just in the same way as the disciples obtained the Pente- costal baptism of fire. They expected it ; they waited for it ; they continued, day after day, of one accord, in one place, and the result was that the spirit came. Only thus are real revivals commenced and carried on. No man, whatever be his talents and endowments, can savingly impress or convert a soul. Revivals, so called, begun and continued under the mere pressure of emotional excitement, produce no real reformations, and in the end react to the disgrace of the church at large. It is only by waiting upon God, by expecting the promised blessing, by lifting up the hands and voice and heart to heaven, by wrestling, struggling, and holding on to the promise, in spite of all discouragements and secret fears, that we can obtain it. If we would but sincerely expect an answer to our prayers, and think it strange if we did not receive it, and if, to our prayers we added constant effort, working, and praying and praying and working, we should soon receive such a blessing as would far exceed our most sanguine expectations. Thanksfifivine: Memories. ij^i » j^j^^fc, "Praise the Lord, O Jerusalem: praise thy God. O Zion : for he hath strengthened the bars of thy gates : he hath l)lessed thy children within thee. He maketh peace in thy borders, aiid filleth thee with the finest of the wheat. He showeth his word unto Jacob, his statutes and his judgments unto Israel." —Psalm 147, V. 12, 13, 14, 19. "And thou shalt remember all the way which the Lord thy God hath led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldst keep his commandments or no." — Deuteronomy 8, '''. 12. rHANKSGIVING MeMORIES. T" ^^^^HANKSGIVING held a prominent place in the Jewish rl^lfS religion. An undevout and unthankful Jew was an €>>m'l''j anomaly. Every year, at the beginning and close of s'' ,,J^4 harvest, the temple was thronged with worshippers to ^;f celebrate God's goodness ; while at other seasons offerings ^^ were made in token of gratitude for individual and national mercies. With glad and joyful hearts, "they remembered all the way which the Lord their God had led their fathers, forty years in the wilderness," and the fulfilment of his promises, that they should possess a land of hills and valleys, where the early and latter rain should fall in due season ; a land abounding in corn, in wine and in oil, with grass in the fields for cattle, and plenty for all to eat and be full. And just so long as the Jews remained faithful to Jehovah, were these temporal mercies continued. The covenant made with their fathers was kept to the very letter. " The Lord thy God will love thee, and bless thee and multiply thee ; he will also blc^s the fruit of thy womb, and the fruit of thy land, thy corn, and thy wine, and thine oil, the increase of thy kine and the flocks of thy sheep — thou shalt be blessed above all people." (119) 3 20 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. Every christian land, more or less, has followed the pious Jew in this comely service. Throughout Great Britain, alike in grand cathedral and humble ivy-covered chapel, there are sung the same exultant hymns of praise, while on this continent of America, from the time when the Pilgrim fathers landed at Plymouth rock in the little " Mayflower," on to the present, the day has been hailed as one for universal joy. These Puritans were not the austere men that some regard them. They had for every day a sort of joy, but one stately day of joy they set aside in every year. Thanksgiving morning rose in New England, stiff as their pines, and solemn as their granite hills. The boys who laughed, were as guilty as if they laughed on Sunday. The church bells rang- out, not cheerily perhaps, but solemnly, tolling the people to the house of worship. »They went up gravely, and awfully, and worshipped. But the ser- mon over, the old Puritan relaxed, and unclasped his buckle and threw off his belt. Merry laughter rang out from the children of the household, and the old homestead was vocal with joy. The tables smoked and groaned with unaccustomed luxuries, and with gladness and gratitude the day was closed. We must look back as well as forward. The future is moulded and directed by the past. Sailing on a river steamboat, you have noticed how the man at the wheel steers the vessel by certain head- lands that indicate his course. He looks behind from time to time as well as forward ; the bends and curves and windings of the channel through which he has passed indicate his position and mark his course. In like manner the lessons of our past lives are to be studied with reference to the future. As nations and indi- viduals we are to remember all the way which the Lord has led us in the wilderness, to prove us and know what was in our hearts, and whether we would keep His commandments or not. Moses is now near his journey's end. He is not permitted to enter Canaan. That honor was reserved for Joshua, his successor THANKSGIVING MEMORIES. 121 in command. But before parting from the Israelites he rehearses in their hearing what the Lord had done for them, and what was expected of them. During their pilgrimage in the wilderness the goodness of God had been conspicuously manifest. Bodily com- forts and spiritual provision had never failed them. The dealings of Providence in the way of chastisements, had all been directed towards their future welfare. Their condition in Egypt, leading a rude, barbarian and slavish life, was not such as to qualify them for possessing and governing Canaan. The policy of Pharaoh, like that of tyrants in every age, was to keep them ignorant of higher and nobler things, for when knowledge enters men's souls, they begin to demand their rights and assert their independence. Hence their need of discipline, that when they entered the promised land, they might do so creditably — with intelligence and courage suffi- cient to inspire them with the success of their enterprise, and their enemies with fear. Their forty years' probation life was thus mingled judgment and mercy. Their chastisements were all directed by infinite wisdom and love. If they were humbled and suffered to hunger, and fed with manna, it was that they might know that man doth not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord. During all these forty years their raiment had not waxed old, neither had their feet swelled, and now says Moses : "The Lord thy God bringeth thee into a gooq, land, a land of brooks and water, of fountains and depths that spring out of valleys and hills ; a land of wheat and barley, and vines, and fig-trees and pomegranates ; a land of olive oil and honey ; a land wherein thou shalt eat bread without scarce- ness ; a land whose stones are iron, and whose hills are brass." There was danger, not only that the Israelites would forget God and his dealings with them in the wilderness, but that their hearts would be undiriy lifted up, in view of the noble patrimony that had so mysteriously come into their hands, and that so far 122 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. exceeded their most sanguine anticipations. Take any race of slaves — more or less educated, as the case may be — and make them masters of the situation ; put into their hands the reins of government, and bestow upon them the highest honors of the commonwealth, and is there not danger that they will rule with a rod of iron, and exhibit that pride and haughtiness of soul which is the mark of foolish ignorance and degraded origin ? Therefore says Moses : " Beware, lest when thou hast eaten and are full, and hast built goodly houses and dwelt therein ; and when thy herds and thy flocks multiply and thy silver and thy gold is multiplied, that thine heart be lifted up, and thou forget the Lord thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt and from the house of bondage ; and thou say in thine heart, My power and the might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth." Such conduct would inevitably provoke God's anger and hasten their destruction. Like the idolatrous nations which the Lord had driven out from before them, so would they perish and be blotted out from the m.emor\' of men. In order then, that they might secure a continuance of national and individual blessings, constant and grateful acknow- ledgment of past mercies was necessary. " When thou hast eaten and art full then thou shalt bless the Lord thy God for the good land which he hath given thee." The very number, magnitude and regular occurrence of our mercies produce forgetfulness. It is only when they are withheld that we begin to value them. One eclipse of the sun makes a greater impression than the shining of a year. The sickness of a few days makes us more sensible of the value of health, than years of uninterrupted strength and soundness of frame. The failure of one harvest makes us realize the presence of God in nature more than the overflowing granaries of a score of years. The goodness of God in providing a gourd to screen the prophet Jonah from the scorching heat of the sun, was only appreciated when the gourd tie c3 THANKSGIVING MEMORIES. 1 23 withered and died. So long as the manna falls and hunger is met, we care not to think of the source. So long as the cistern is full, and thirst is quenched, we live in forgetfulness of Him who gathers the clouds and pours down upon the earth the refreshing rain ! Such unmindfulness of God's mercies is criminal. It evinces the basest ingratitude. Nor is it a sin restricted to theoretical atheists and materialists, who ignore the providence of God in the world, and live in utter disregard of heaven's bounties. Professing christians are often chargeable with forgetfulness of God's good- ness. Beyond a formal thanksgiving service, there is no summing up of the abundant causes for gratitude, nor becoming sacrifice of praise. To-day we are called as individuals and as christian citizens of this nation, to remember the way by which we have been led dur- ing the closing year. We are to place our mercies in review; make them stand out one by one in bold relief, so that each mercy may inspire a hymn of praise. This review of God's goodness should be a daily exercise. You cannot fill up faithfully the details of each day's transactions in your diary or ledger, if left for weeks or months untouched, nor can you once a year honestly record God's goodness. As Keble, the Christian poet, says : New every morning is the love Our wakening and uprising prove ; Through sleep and darkness safely brought, Restored to life and power and thought. New mercies, each returning day, Hover around us while we pray ; New perils past, new sins forgiven, New thoughts of God, new hopes of heaven. .Ve never forget our trials ; nay, a large number of christians make complaining and murmuring a religious duty — a matter of conscience. Every case of sickness ; every unsuccessful specula- tion ; every disappointment is carefully noted down. Had it not 124 THE CHURCPI AND THE COMMONWEALTH. been for this or that, how much richer, happier, or more prosperous would they have been ! No attempt is made to reHeve the dark picture, by throwing in the warm glowing tints of God's loving kindness and unmerited favors so unremittingly bestowed. What of all the bygone years of health? of profitable investments? of the savings laid past for old age ? of the victories achieved in the battle of life? Put the one against the other, and in magnitude and number, our trials are but a drop of water compared with the boundless unfathomable ocean of God's love. In order to prompt you to thanksgiving, think for a moment of the more common benefits bestowed upon you during the year. Continued existence and physical strength, while others have been laid upon beds of sickness, and many have been called away. Signal deliverances from danger, which have overtaken thousands by sea and land. Special favors and singular good fortune, which have . added immensely to the happiness of life, while in the case of others the common mercies of Providence have been withheld, and heart- broken, they have sunk under crushing woes. Extend your view. Take into account your social comforts ; the unbroken family circle ; the daily joyous meetings at the table and family altar ; the good night and good morning, and all the greetings of household love that have brightened and sweetened your dwelling, while in other families there have been breaches, separations, desolation and misfortune in rapid succession — the graveyard visited again and again, and parent and child laid side by side ! Surely the mere mention of such things must compel the most indifferent and reck- less to say, " Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits ; who forgiveith all thine iniquities ; who healeth all thy diseases ; who redeemeth thy life from destruction ; who crowneth thee with loving kindness and tender mercies." As christians, we have still stronger reasons to remember with gratitude the way we have been led during the closing year. Con- THANKSGIVING MEMORIES. 1 25 tinued powers of mind to mark and enjoy God's goodness as manifested in Providence and grace ; the enjoyment of gospel ordinances ; strength given to bear chastisement ; meekness and resignation given us in parting with all we deemed precious on earth, and hopes of glory brightened, when standing by the grave's mouth ; — the aid of the Holy Spirit in advancing us in the divine life ; purifying our desires ; enlarging our vision, and giving us a clearer and firmer grasp of the promised and purchased blessings of the better world ! Let us now briefly look at some causes for national thanksgiv- ing. In brief these may be stated as peace, plenty and gospel privileges. Peace — " He hath strengthened the bars of thy gateS) he Hiaketh peace in thy borders." Plenty — " He filleth thee with the finest of wheat." Gospel privileges — " He sheweth his word unto Jacob, his statutes and his judgments unto Israel." First then, we have cause for thanksgiving that we are at peace within ourselves, and with all the world. It has not been so everywhere during the year. Nations have not yet agreed to settle their quarrels by arbitration. The prophecy seems yet far distant from fulfilment — " They shall beat their swords into ploughshares and their spears into pruning hooks ; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more." The recent Afghan and Zulu and Egyptian wars, which have left behind them woe and desolation in many homes, both civilized and savage, are only the last of a long series of bloody conflicts in which christian nations have been engaged. We pass no judgment upon the ostensible causes or the probable results of such fearful concussions. But all right thinking men must regret that the policy of " peace with honor," to use the words of a British statesman, has not prevailed without recourse to brutal wars. To me, one of the saddest features of our age, is the willingness — nay the alacrity, with which christian nations enter upon hostilities 126 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. National honor is indeed a noble sentiment, but it may be main- tained at too great a cost of blood and treasure. As with individ- ual christians, so ought it to be with christian commonwealths. That charity which is not easily provoked — which beareth all things — hopeth all things, and endureth all things — is a far nobler pos- session than magnificent victories on the battle-field — the forced submission of savage tribes, or the acquisition of territory and supremacy in the far-off regions of the globe. Peace hath her victories No less renowned than War. A few years since, we looked upon a wonderfully vivid panor- ama of the siege of Paris, when the German army for long months surrounded the white-walled city with a belt of fire. So life-like was the picture, and on so vast a scale, we could almost imagine ourselves spectators or actors in the struggle, and see the shells exploding behind the breastworks. What Paris must have been during that awful period of suspense, no human being can describe. The streets silent as death, save the hurried tramp of armed men ; famishing women and children crying for bread to eat, while within and without the walls lay the unburied dead, bleaching and morti- fying in the sight of heaven. And when added to this picture of horrors, we saw the piece of bone from the shattered skull of the Archbishop of Paris, who was shot by the infuriated mob, we felt as we never felt before, how terrible is the scourge, and how great the responsibility of those who light the torch and blow the blast of war ! Napoleon, like his great predecessor, imagined he could defy the world. His immense army must have amusement, and the prestige of France be maintained. If there are no real enemies to fight with, they must be made. " Louis has had his first baptism of fire," so ran the Emperor's telegram to Eugenie, at the opening of the war. THANKSGIVING MEMORIES. I 2/ They baptized you in Jot clan water, Baptized as a Christian I mean ; But you come of the race of Caesar, And thus have their baptisms been. Baptized in true Caesar fashion. Remember through all your years, That your font was a burning city, And your water its widows' tears. But alas ! "let not him that girdeth on his harness, boast him- self as he that putteth it off." A dead exiled Emperor, and a dead Prince, lying side by side at Chiselhurst, make but a sad tribute to the praise of war. Well has the poet Covvper said : Great princes have great playthings. Some seek diversion in the tented field. And make the sorows of mankind their sport. But war's a game which, were their subjects wise, Kings would not play at. Nations would rio well To extort their truncheons from the pun} l.a da Of heroes, whose infirm and baby minds Are gratified with mischief, and who spoil Because men suffer it, their toy, the world. It might have been so with us. Our security lies not in a stand- ing army. We cannot — we would not — boast, like an American preacher, " that our soldiers and sailors are better than any other nation, and that we can oppose millions to any hundreds of thous- ands that can be landed on our shores." Our defence is not in man. Our safety is from the Lord. It is He that maketh peace within our borders — who gives us rest from all our enemies, so that the morning brings on its breeze no sound of cannon, or clash- ing bayonets, or groans of the wounded, or cries of widows and orphans, or streets and fields slippery with blood, and filled with the dying and the dead ; and the evening no invasions of foreign soldiery, or the violence and plunder of the assassin. The delights 128 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. of the sanctuary are unbroken by anarchy and revolution. We sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree, with none to make us afraid. Secondly, — We have cause for thanksgiving, in view of the abundant harvests of the year. In the words of the Psalmist, we may well say : " Thou visitest the earth, and waterest it ; Thou greatly enrichest it with the rivers of God, which is full of water ; Thou preparest them corn when Thou hast so provided for it ; Thou waterest the ridges thereof abundantly ; Thou settlest the furrows thereof; Thou makest it soft with showers ; Thou blessest the springing thereof ; Thou crownest the year with thy goodness, and thy paths drop fatness ; They drop upon the pastures of the wilderness, and the little hills rejoice on every side ; the pastures are clothed with flocks ; the valleys also are covered with corn ; they shout for joy, they also sing." " They that sowed in tears have reaped in joy ; they that went forth weeping, bearing precious seed, have returned rejoicing, bringing their sheaves with them." Our storehouses are filled to repletion with the plenteous produce of the field, and the treasury of the nation replenished by the gold and silver of other nations, who depend on us for food to sustain their teeming millions. On this day of thanksgiving we gladly acknowledge that all things are His that we enjoy. Health of body and vigor of mind — food and raiment — house and friends — the genial sunshine — the gentle rains — the distilling dews — the grateful winds — the blushing fruit — the waving harvests — the bursting gran- aries— the bleating flocks, and the lowing herds — the ocean's com- merce and the country's gain. Men may, in accordance with the teachings of a false philosophy, ascribe plenteous harvests and the revival of trade to other causes, but christian men will humbly acknowledge the bounty of the great benefactor, who maketh the sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sendeth rain on the just and the unjust. The seasons as they change are but the varied God. THANKSGIVING MEMORIES. I29> The rolling year Is full of Thee. God is ever present, ever felt In the void waste as in the city full ; And where He vital spreads there must be joy. I cannot go ! Where universal love, not smiles around, Sustaining all your orbs ; and all their suns." Brethren, when we contrast our condition to-day as a nation, with what might have been had God withheld from us his favor, and blighted and blasted our crops, or by deluges of rain, rotted them in the fields and prevented their ingathering — surely there is cause for most devout gratitude. Poverty there is in the land. Destitution still exists and will exist in spite of abundant harvests. But what would have been our condition if commercial stagna- tion had been followed by famine, pestilence and death ? Thirdly, we have cause for thanksgiving, in view of the con- tinuance of gospel privileges. This is the best of all our blessings, although not tangible. Without an open Bible, and the ordinances of religion, a nation is poor indeed. Kingdoms are great, not in proportion as wealth and power and material, or brute forces predominate, but as they excel in the higher moral and intellectual qualities, which are inseparable from a pure Christianity. When mercy and truth meet together, and righteousness and peace kiss each other ; when truth springs out of the earth, and righteousness looks down from heaven, then glory dwells in the land and the land yields her increase. The return of the weekly Sabbath, in itself is an event precious beyond computation. This one day, consecrated to communion between man and his Maker, when the looms and spindles and machinery of our great factories are silent, and the store and count- ing house are forgotten, and the maddening noise of brokers and *9 130 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH Stock exchange is suspended, supplies the life blood of a nation. Blot out this red letter day of the week, and you open the flood- gates of vice, and sap the foundations of morality. In the matter of Sabbath observance and attendance upon God's house, we are deserving of censure. The day is fast becoming a holiday — not a holy day. The sacredness which in olden times was associated with the Sabbath, is a thing of the past, and chris- tian fathers and mothers are educating their children to become open Sabbath breakers, by their own indifference to the claims of religion. I know well the usual stereotype excuses that are made by sceptics and secularists for such ungodliness. " The universe is God's temple. I can worship God anywhere. Religion does not consist of outward and audible service, but in the breathings of the heart." Not thus did the Psalmist David speak or act. As king, statesman, warrior and poet, burdened with the cares of empire, he gladly went up to the sanctuary, that the divine life within his soul might be sustained by contact with the altar fire ! Now a days, Puritanic and Covenanting Sabbaths are spoken of with derision by men unworthy to unloose the shoelatchets of their ancestors. Would that we had such Sabbaths back again, with all their austerity and severity ; when in every home, and through ever)' street, might be heard morning and evening the voice of praise and prayer, and ''when a Sabbath stillness marked the commencement and the close of each day, and a deep religious repose rested on the land !"' Do men who make light of the Bible and its hallowed associa- tions, and seek to banish it from our homes and schools, understand what this means? It means the destruction of liberty — law and government — of faith between man and man — of the eternal basis of right and wrong. It means the utter annihilation of our hopes for time and eternity, the enthronement of ignorance and superstition and barbarism in the world, and the return of dark THANKSGIVING MEMORIES. 13 I days when brute force reigned supreme, and the criminal passions were satiated by cruelty and rapine. No nation has prospered whose inhabitants have despised the word of God, profaned the Sabbath, and neglected the sanctuary. Such nations are mutable and evanescent — forever surging on the brink of revolution — fos- tering corruption among the rulers, and debauchery among the ruled. On such a day of thanksgiving, it becomes us humbly to acknow- ledge our wrong-doing as a nation. Crime increases in every form. Gigantic frauds in banking and mercantile institutions — flagrant dishonesties by master and servant — perjury, drunkenness, gamb- ling ; unbridled and open licentiousness, practised under the very eyes and winked at by our officials ; dens of iniquity sending to perdition many of our youth, and party spirit that knows no limit to vituperation and slander. Were it not for strong faith in the indestructible power of truth, and the resistless force of the mani- fold christian agencies that are at work, we should almost despair of our land. Nor is the outlook over the world more hopeful. Yet let us. not despond. The day is near at hand, when holiness shall be written upon the very bells of the horses, and when crested war- riors shall no longer dip their plumes in blood. True loyalty is not to be measured by loud and vapid outbursts of patriotic sentiment, and theretore before closing, let me point out one or two dangers to which we are exposed, deserving the serious consideration of every man who wishes well to his country and the world. No one can shut his eyes to the fact that there has been, in recent years, a very marked decline in public integrity. We have no longer to go to the United States for examples of corruption and bribery and malfeasance in office. The scandals in political life that are constantly being unmasked — the wholesale bribery engaged in at elections, where men are bought and sold at the 132 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. polling-booths, like so many cattle in the market, make every hon- est man blush for shame and hang his head in sorrow. Here, as in the United States, cunning and trickery, with wealth at com- mand to buy constituencies, are esteemed most fitting attributes for ofificial position. So thoroughly has this evil permeated our country and withstood all efforts of a reforming character, that in the estimate of many good men, our political condition is hopeless ! They abstain from all active interference in the affairs of the com- monwealth, and are loud in their lamentations over the social and political degeneracy of the age, but do nothing to raise the stand- ard of public integrity in the high places of the land. I am not of the opinion that things have become so hopelessly bad. But if a change is to be brought about, it is to be done by christian men, and not by the decisions of Judges nor acts of Par- liament. The sooner we get rid of the notion that christian men are ineligible to high position, and that church members and min- isters are to stand aloof from all parliamentary and municipal con- tests, the better ; unless, indeed, we are prepared for a condition of affairs that shall rival the neighboring republic, where civil honors and emoluments belong to the most ignorant and debased in the community — to men whose very names are a synonym for all that is dishonest and demoralizing. The terrible extravagance in style of living which is prevalent at the present day, is also matter for serious concern to every good man. If Canadian pioneers were to rise from their graves, and look at the dress and conduct of their children and their grand- children, they would be astounded beyond measure. In their days, wealth was acquired slowly but surely — a competency for old age gained by honest industry was the height of a man's ambition. Men paid their debts, or the pillory stared them in the face, without the alternative of an insolvent court. But in our day the maxims of our ancestors are laughed at as childish. The log cabin has not THANKSGIVING MEMORIES. only given place to the substantial brick or stone dwelling, but the fittings and furnishings (bought but unpaid in many cases) rival the palaces of royalty. There is nothing wrong in any man amass- ing wealth and surrounding himself with the comforts of existence, provided the money has been gained by honest industry. But in many cases the reverse is the case. Systematic fraud and swind- ling is now reduced to a science, and the man who makes an assignment and transfers his belongings to another, out of reach of his creditors, is called a wise and prudent man ! The more labori- ous handicrafts are now despised. Servant girls scorn the drudgery^ as they style it, of a christian home, and prefer the sewing machine and the factory and the freedom of town and city life, to the wholesome restraints of a well regulated family. Farmers' sons hurry from the farmstead to be clerks, and salesmen and physicians and lawyers, and their daughters go out into the world clothed in all the tinsel and finery that money can procure, but lamentably unfit to adorn a home, or become the wives of sensible men. And this is called civilization and refinement and enterprise I And we laugh at the vulgarity and simplicity and homeliness of our sires, whose practical knowledge and sound attainments in every depart- ment of literature and science, puts to shame the mere smatterings of our modern aristocracy, who bulk so largely in the public view. Once more, the absence of religious training among the young is a matter of serious thought to christian men and women of our land. The history of nations shows that Bible principles instilled into the heart of youth, is the only hope for permanent and solid growth. There is no true civilization apart from christian ethics. But this cannot be done by Sabbath Schools, however efficiently equipped, nor can it be done by common schools. If done at all it must be done by christian parents. But even supposing that all the chris- tian parents in the land faithfully discharged their duty in this respect, what of the tens of thousands of children, who are left 134 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. uncared for, born in ignorance of God — growing up to manhood and womanhood degraded and debauched— ulcers and plague spots in the community ? The time has come, it seems to me, when the Bible must be used as a text book in our common schools, and when we must have confidence in the religious char- acter of every man and woman entrusted with the training of our youth. It needs not that debated points in theology and church government be taken up, but that the high standard of christian living, which the Bible recognizes as the safeguard of men and nations, be impressed upon the plastic minds of our youth. Mere secular knowledge never has, and never can, make law-abiding subjects or real patriots. As christian men, let us anew gird ourselves to the great work of removing these evils, and evangelizing this entire nation, in its length and in its breadth. There is much land yet to be possessed. Narrowing our view to the continent of America, comprising Can- ada and the United States, the great Northwest, British Columbia, Australia, and other colonies, what fields for missionary enterprise stretch out before the eye ! Why has our place been appointed for us in this goodly land ? Not simply to increase our riches and add to our individual happiness, but that from us the true religion may flow forth to more remote and destitute portions of the earth. The church must keep pace with commerce and civilization. Distant regions opened up by the discoveries of travellers must be possessed for Christ, and the true religion planted on every citadel of Satan. Faith in the purpose and promise of God, courage to conquer, and a generous consecration of our means to God's cause, will ensure us victory. In grateful praise lies our hope of continued bestowment of God's favor. Thanksgiving is the beginning of heaven. But thanksgiving is a mockery without corresponding sacrifice. Thanks- giving is good, but a continued thankful life is better. Out of our THANKSGIVING MEMORIES. 135 abundance we are to give freely for the good of our fellow meru The liberal soul shall be made fat. There is that scattereth and yet increaseth, and there is that withholdeth more than is meet and it tendeth to poverty. " To deal thy bread to the hungry, and to clothe the naked, and bring the poor that are cast out into thy house," are the best evidences of a thankful soul. " How much owest thou unto my Lord ?" Such a question rightly pondered will make you respond, " What shall I render unto the Lord for all his benefits towards me?" God of the swiftly rolling year ! Thy bounties lie on every hand ; How rich thy varied gifts appear, While 'neath the arching skies we stand : "With countless sheaves of golden grain The joyful reapers strew the plain. Pensile from every drooping bough, Fair in the sunlight's ruddy glow, The ripening fruits are bending now — From lavish hands our blessings flow. With thankful hearts our lips repeat God's goodness to this latest hour; 0 lift to Him each voice in praise Whose bounteous love hath crowned our days. 9)IOGRAPHICAL. MARTIN LUTHER. Martin Luther. On occasion of fhe Special ScrDices, commemoratine of tlie Four Huudreth A.nni'Dersary of tlie gi^eat Germau Reformer. " A mighty, valiant man, and a man of war, and prudent in matters, and the Lord is with him." 1st Samuel, 16, v. 18. " Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage." — Galatians 5, v. 1. Martin Luther. ? ^^^?^REAT and good men are God's gifts. As such, without 1^ idolatrous homage, their deeds in behalf of humanity ought to be kept in everlasting remembrance, and the '%" lessons of their lives pondered by those who enjoy the heritage they have left behind them. There never has been a period in the history of church or state that God has not special agents prepared for special emergencies — men endowed with more than the average measure of courage, fidelity and daring, to speak in His name and defend His truth. Having found it themselves after great and sore travail, they cannot but make it known to others, that the suffering brotherhood of souls may enjoy the glorious lib- erty of the sons of God. Such a man was Martin Luther. He was born at Eisleben in Upper Saxony, on the lOth of November, 1483, and because he was baptized on St. Martin's day, he was named after that saint. His great grandfather and grand- father were Saxon peasants. His father, John Luther, was origin- ally a miner, but latterly a proprietor of mines, and chief magistrate of the city of Mansfield. His mother's name was Margaret Lin- derman. Both parents are described as somewhat rough and hot (141) 142 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. tempered, but pious, true and honest at heart, and trained their son in the fear of God, At the age of fourteen years, he was sent to the grammar school of Madgeburg, where he remained a year. From this he went to his father's birthplace, Eisenach, in Thuringia, where he continued his studies, and made such marked progress as indicated future greatness. • In 1 501 he entered the University of Erfurt, and at the age ol twenty, in 1503, was admitted Master of Arts. His determination now was to practice law, but events happened that entirely changed his plans and future destiny. The change in his choice of profession is variously accounted for. The generally received opinion is, that while walking with a companion, they were overtaken by a thunder storm, both stricken down, and his companion killed by his side. Others say that he fell dangerously ill, and feared he would die ; others that a dear friend of his was assassinated, and he felt as if the grave yawned at his feet. Melancthon says that it was brought about by alarming convictions of sin, and apprehensions of divine vengeance, follow- ing the sudden death of a companion. It is sufficient for us to know that he was by some startling Providence or the operations of grace, awakened to realize the value of eternity over all the vain ambitions of youth. The state of religion at that time was low. Our Lord's passion was regarded as a mere human tragedy ; the righteousness which is by faith was ignored ; the intercession of priests and saints and the Virgin Mary, were deemed essential to pacify divine wrath. Such as could not make atonement for sin by offerings which went to the enrichment of the clergy, were doomed, if not to hell, at Last to purgatory, until satisfaction was made. Unmeaning and grossly superstitious ceremonies, and unedifying discourses on rites and processions, formed the staple of worship, while the wickedness and MARTIN LUTHER. 143 scandalous lives of priest and people, were covered over and ab- solved by indulgences. Luther, like other awakened converts of that age, sought refuge in the monastic retreat of Erfurt, and was admitted. His parents objected. " Take care," said his father, " that you are not ensnared by a delusion of the devil." Luther insisted that he had a call from God, and persevered in his withdrawal from the world, which took place on the 17th of July, 1505. He did not, however, find peace within the convent. His con- science was greatly troubled. Fasts and penance did not meet his spiritual wants, or remove the burden that weighed upon his heart. He passed through great mental struggles, sometimes shut- ting himself up in his cell for days, and once was found lying sense- less upon the floor. At length when his mind was filled with distressing anxieties about his state, he stumbled upon a copy of the Bible in Latin, which he had never seen before. He read it with avidity, but still was far from knowing the way of pardon. Seeking the advice of an aged God-fearing monk, he was pointed to personal faith in the son of God, as the only method for the remission of sins, and after much further study and prayer and great mental conflict, was led to perfect rest by a saving applica- tion of the words : ** The just shall live by faith," (Romans i, v. 17). He now became entirely changed. The righteousness of God, which had been before this a stumbling block, became sweet to his soul, and the entrance on a blessed assurance of a full salvation. Leaving the walls of the convent, he was ordained in 1507. His ministrations at once attracted the attention of many notables, among whom was Frederick the Elector of Saxony. Next year he was appointed to a professorship in the University of Wittemberg. Here, besides teaching philosophy, he preached with such power, and presented the gospel in such a new light, that crowds were attracted to hear him. 144 THE cnuRCH and the commonwealth. In 1 510 he was sent as a Commissioner to Rome under a deep sense of the sacredness of that place, and sincere veneration for the reigning Pope. On his way thither he halted at certain convents, and was shocked at the gross sensuality and informalism that pre- vailed. Reaching Rome, he visited every sacred spot, but found his feelings in sad contrast with the levity and worldliness that he everywhere encountered. The mass was repeated with the utmost flippancy ; the priests at the altar indulged in the most blasphem- ous jests, and many of them openly avowed their disbelief of the doctrines they were ordained to preach. With strangely disturbed and conflicting feelings he returned to Germany, and in 15 12 was made Doctor of Divinity. He now gave himself up to the study of the scriptures in the original languages, and began expositions on the Psalms and the epistle to the Romans. In all he wrote or spoke, he pointed to the Lamb of God, who alone taketh away the sin of the world, and hastened to tell others how and where he had found peace to his soul. At this juncture an event occurred that hastened the entrance of the great reformer on the work of his life. Leo X succeeded to the Papa] throne in 15 13. Saint Peter's had been begun, but re- mained unfinished for lack of means. To raise the required amount of money, a general indulgence was proclaimed throughout Europe to all who should give towards the building of Saint Peter's. To overcome the objections of foreign princes, who objected to their subjects giving money to Rome, Leo promised Henry VIII a third of the Papal spoils. Tetzel was one of the salesmen of the indul- gences, and most unblushingly did he go about his business. He assured his purchasers, that this indulgence would cover both guilt and penance, and was all-efficacious to deliver souls out of purga- tory. In his own irreverent style he said, "that as soon as the money tinkled in the box, the souls of their relations received a full discharge, and bolted upward direct to heaven !" MARTIN LUTHER. . I45 Such doctrine was very different from the belief and teaching of Luther, who, although still a devout Catholic, was shocked at Tetzel's profanity. It made his blood boil. He looked upon the whole thing- as a cheat, and refused to absolve from their sins such as had bought Tetzel's indulgences. He was then attacked for resisting the Pope's authority, and in reply drew up his famous ninety-five propositions setting forth his views. He sent a copy to the Archbishop, and on the day before the festival of " All Saints," when crowds of the country people were flocking into the town, he nailed them upon the gates of the castle of Wittemberg, with his name as defender, and read them on All Saints' Day to the people in the great parish church. In these propositions Luther admits the power of the church to remit by indulgence what she has herself imposed, but nothing more. She could not deliver souls from pur- gatory, nor free them from mortal sins. These propositions were the cry of an oppressed conscience — of revolt and anguish, at the baseness of men, who could thus prostitute God's truth for sordid mammon. The great controversy between Luther and Rome now waxed hotter and stronger, until at last he was enabled like the Apostles of old, to place the authority of scripture above the church, with her Popes and cardinals and monks, and publicly to condemn the Papal See. But this radical change of opinion was not reached at once. In a discussion to which he was challenged by a noted Rom- anist, Luther, while opposing the extravagant notions entertained of the Pope's authority, did not altogether deny it. Pressed by his opponent with the passage in Matthew 16, v. 18, 19, which Rome interprets as applying to every Pope as well as Peter, but which Luther regarded as only personal to the Apostle, he* was led to further study of the pretensions of his church, and finally declared the whole system of the Papal hierarchy to be a satanic invention, and the Pope the real anti-Christ ! *10 146 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. Luther was backed by the Elector of Saxony, and at this period also, Melancthon — a man of gentle and affectionate nature, just the opposite to Luther, and yet the very man he needed, to help him in his arguments against Rome, — came as his colleague in the University of Wittemberg. Students flocked to their ■classes, and the Reformers of Wittemberg thus spread their views far and wide over all the land. The Pope now made up his mind to issue a Papal Bull against the reformer. Luther instead of being alarmed was defiant, and published two pamphlets on the matters in dispute, full of bitter sarcasm and stinging rebukes of the priests and the Papacy. Then the Papal Bull arrived and the Elector of Saxony was ordered by the Pope to deliver up the heretic Martin Luther. The question now was, what would Luther do with the Pope's Bull, and what would the elector do with Luther ? The elector remained the friend of Luther, and Luther on the 4th of December 1520, burned the Pope's Bull, and along with it all the Roman law books he could find, thus setting free, as far as he was concerned, the German nation from the jurisdiction of Rome. " Germany must abandon Rome. Liberty for ever. The die is cast." Such was the war cry of the popular German rhymes. The next event in the history of the Reformation is the Diet of Worms, opened by Charles V. on the 20th of January, 1521. At this council the accusations of Luther against the court of Rome were to be considered. Luther having been summoned before the Diet, and an imperial herald sent to bring him, left Wittemberg on the 2nd of April. His friends thought he was going to his death, but Luther replied : " Christ lives, and we will enter Worms in spite of hell and the powers of the air." Afterwards speaking of his fearlessness to the Emperor of Saxony, he said : " The devil saw in my heart that even had I known there would be as many devils at Worms as tiles upon the house roofs still I would MARTIN LUTHER. 147 joyfully have plunged among them." When Luther appeared before the Diet he was asked to acknowledge as his the books he had written against the Papacy, and next to retract the heretical doctrines therein contained. Luther acknowledged their author- ship, but refused to retract one title. " If I had a thousand heads," he said, " I would allow them all to be cut off, rather than recant a single word. If your imperial majesty requires a plain answer, I will give one with horns and teeth. It is this, that I am bound by the scriptures which I have quoted. My conscience is submissive to the word of God, therefore I may not, and will not recant, because to act against my conscience is unholy and unsafe — so help me God !" The Emperor then declared his intention to regard Luther as an heretic, and an attempt was made to violate the promise made him, of safe conduct back to VVittemburg. Indeed it was hinted that the best thing would be to burn him there and then, and cast his ashes like those of John Huss into the Rhine. But 400 knights and 8,000 footmen gave the Emperor to understand that they would defend Luther against Rome to the "Heath ! Accordingly on the 26th of April he was ordered to depart, and left Worms the hero of the German nation. " Single-handed he had fought the battle of Germany against the Pope, and endangered his life for his country." And in this victory over brute force and against mental bondage, Luther vindicated the right of every man to exer- cise liberty of thought and speech, in matters appertaining to his eternal well-being. What follows may be briefly told. Charles and the Pope en- tered into an alliance, offensive and defensive, against the Reformer. On the eighth day of May they signed a treaty, binding themselves to crush out this insurrection against Rome. The Emperor then issued an edict against Luther, condemning him to be burnt, as his books had been, but elsewhere, all over Germany, they were read 148 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. still more and more. Meanwhile Luther scattered over the land an account of the doings of the Diet of Worms, and roused popular indignation against his cruel judges. His friends carried him safely to the castle of Wurtburg, where, although silent in speech, he busily engaged in translating the Bible into German. The mob, in his absence, became wild and exasperated against Rome, and meditated revenge. Luther, hearing of this, left the castle of Wurt- burg, and at the risk of his life suddenly appeared in his old pulpit in Wittemberg to calm the excitement. The revolutionary prophets of that age were dismissed, and order restored, and before the end of the year the New Testament was translated into the German tongue, and the Bible acknowledged as the rule of faith. The peasants' war which followed, and raged for years, and during which over 100,000 perished, was strongly objected to by Luther, who opposed the use of the sword against the civil power. This war, wrongly ascribed to the Reformati^^n movement of Luther, was in reality a revolt of the poor German peasantry against the yoke of the feudal serfdom. Had timely reforms been granted^ revolution and bloodshed would have been averted. The collateral results of the Reformation in Germany, were the suppression or purification of the monasteries, and the use of their vast revenues for educational purposes, or for the preaching of the gospel to the poor. Monks and nuns were allowed to marry. The German language was used in worship, instead of Latin. The youths were taught in the schools their native tongue, and Luther's German Bible and German hymns came into general use ; and when in 1529 the Diet of Spires passed a decree, re-enacting the edict of the Diet of Worms, the Lutheran princes protested, and so earned for themselves and all likeminded men the name of Protest- ant, while Protestant schools, and states adopting Lutheran doc- trines, sprang up in every corner of the land. MARTIN LUTHER. I49 While Luther Hved, the Emperor never carried out his threat, to crush the Protestant heresy by the sword. The peace of Augs- burg followed, with its legal recognition of the Protestant states, but it was after all but a mock toleration ; for after the great Re- former's death, the German nation was plunged into the terrible thirty years' war, and to this day bears the marks of the terrible ordeal through which it passed, before her national freedom and unity were gained. The closing years of the Reformer were marked by frequent attacks of sickness, and the death of friends and relations ; and his mind was often the prey of despondency, caused by sorrow and dissatisfaction at the impiety and immorality of the age. and the conduct of public affairs. "I am an old man," he says, "and no more of any use. 1 have finished my course ; there remaineth only that God gather me to my fathers, and give my body to the worms." As the end drew near, his prayers were answered : " Pray God that He m.ay give me a peaceful and happy death." His thoughts went back to his birthplace, and his conversation, which related to death, eternity, and the recognition of friends in heaven, was unusu- ally rich and impressive. And so, on the loth of February; 1546, with his hands folded upon his breast, he repeated thrice the words, " Father, into thy hands I commit my spirit — thou hast redeemed me, thou faithful God," and gently passed away. Luther's name and memory are imperishable. His was the mighty mind which spoke for freedom, million tongued, in tones that still thunder round the world, and down the ages. He had his faults, because he was mortal, but his regal bearing and heroic deeds were sublime. His greatness is not, as has been said, of a polished work of art, but of an Alpine mountain, with towering peaks, rough granite blocks, deep abysses, sweeping torrents, fresh fountains and green meadows. His character was transparent for honesty, as the sunlight. For dissimulation and cowardice he had 150 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH the bitterest scorn. He was a son of thunder, and never gained perfect nnastery of his passion, but the age in which he Hved, and the men he had to deal with, demanded such a spirit. The man of such serene temper that nothing can excite, is not the highest type of christian character. In his own language he was rough, boister- ous, stormy, and altogether warlike, born to fight innumerable devils and monsters, to remove stumps and stones, to cut down thistles and thorns, and to clear the wild woods. But underneath the lion, there was the gentleness of the lamb. Taking him all in all, we may say of him, in the language of Thomas Carlyle : '• He was a true man, great in intellect, in courage, affection and integ- rity ; one of the most loveable and precious of men ; a right spir- itual hero ; a true son of nature, for whom these centuries, and many that are yet to come, will be thankful to heaven." To-day, both Roman Catholic countries and Protestant kingdoms unite to honor his memory, and the wide world ranks him among her noblest benefactors. On occasion of such an anniversary, we cannot but contrast the condition of the world and the church at the present moment with what it was 400 years ago. The church was then the sworn antag- onist of both political and religious freedom. Church and state were welded together by chains of iron, and the civil magistrate made to yield to the mandates of the Pope. The crown of every monarch was his gift. The hierarchy held the world in fee simple* and crowned and excommunicated kings at will. The stroke of one man's pen absolved the ruled from the ruler, and made coun- tries so interdicted scenes of desolation. The church bell was seldom heard, and the earth " was denied its office to hold the bodies of the dead." Salvation was offered for money, and not on the grounds of free grace, v/hile idolatory and superstition mocked men's reason, and rendered impossible all intelligent and rational worship of the Divine Being. A faithful devotee of the church in MARTIN LUTHER. 151. that age had his choice of worshipping the following relics : " A splinter of Noah's ark ; a finger of St. Andrew ; a finger of John' the Baptist ; the thumb of St. Thomas ; a tooth of our Lord ; a rib of our Lord ; the hem of our Lord's garment which cured the diseased woman ; the seamless coat of our Lord ; a tear which our Lord shed over Lazarus, preserved by an angel, who gave it in a vial to Mary Magdalene ; two sprigs from the rod with which our Saviour was scourged ; the crocks in which the Son of God turned the water into wine at the bridal feast of Cana ; the rod of Moses,, with which he performed his miracles ; a feather of the Holy Ghost ; a feather of the angel Gabriel ; the slippers of the ante- diluvian Enoch ; and some of the rays of the star that appeared to the Magi." If the human mind has been emancipated from such- thraldom that crushed out all manly and noble aspirations ; if the right of private judgment is now enjoyed without let or hindrance > if we are permitted freedom of speech and action, and can read from an unfettered Bible, without the fear of priestly anathema> let us gratefully remember Martin Luther in our joy. Luther lived only to see the dawn of the glorious day of intel- lectual freedom, that the world now enjoys. He passed away when; his beloved fatherland was in the pangs of national strife, and hurrying on to bloodshed. With something like prophetic eye, he seemed to anticipate sad days of sorrow, when the faith of his trusted followers would be tested, with the alternatives of death or ignominious servitude to an alien power. And in just such a crisis was Scotland when John Knox laid himself down to die, saying ; <' The world is weary of me, so am I of it." But these men planted the strong roots of the liberties we now enjoy. We gather the fruit, and prayer, and efforts of men, who, hundreds of years ago passed away with unsatisfied eyes — the hot eyes stifled after the storms of life, and the seal of death upon the faithful brow 152 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. There are some people at the present day, who think that tlic world were all the better, if such men as Martin Luther had never lived. They hate strife and deplore men of impetuous iron will, who will face death rather than yield their manhood. Not such have been the heroes of history, either sacred or profane. They were men of piety, but at the same time of large and comprehen- sive views, of executive ability, and untiring energy, who never left undone any task they had begun, and who scorned ease and luxury, if God's truth demanded self-denial and exposure to danger. They have their successors, but few in numoer. The present age is largely effeminate, compared with that of Martin Luther. It abounds in obscure, mediocre men, whose piety may be sincere, but who wield no influence whatever, over their fellow men, who busy themselves with petty pastimes and undertakings, that men of Luther's manhood would have scorned, and content- edly sit at ease, thanking God that their lot has been cast in less troublesome times ! There are others greatly alarmed lest the commemoration of Luther's birthday, should do harm instead of good. They depre- cate uncharitable utterances and ill-feeling between the members of that church, whose servile dogmas Luther opposed 400 years ago, and the present generation of Protestants. Not that they — good souls — -believe in error, but because converts are not to be made by denunciation, but by loving appeals and the exhibition of gentle lives. And so say we. But the man who thinks and tries with soft words to bridge over the chasm, that exists between such hos- tile systems of religion as Protestantism and Romanism, is a fool. We gladly acknowledge the reformation in that church since the days of Luther. Tetzel, with his whclesale offer of indulgences, would receive less toleration now than in the days of Luther. The injurious traffic which aroused the Reformer's wrath, is considerably abridged, at least in our latitude. Nor would we forget the noble. MARTIN LUTHER. I 53 simple, unimpeachable lives, that men, born and trained in the Catholic church, have liv-ed, and the value of their labors and writ- ings. Sweeter, nobler natures, than the school to which such men as Fenelon and Blaise Paschal belonged, have never breathed. The sacrifices that her priests have made for the dogmas they be- lieve in, are worthy of_ commendation. I would, too, that some of the women in our Protestant churches — without immuring them- selves in nunneries — did but emulate the self-denial and gentleness and patient tenderness of those sisterhoods, who shrink from no office, however menial, b\' the bedside of the sick and dying — whether in the hospital or in the trenches — and proffer their ser- vices irrespective of creed or country. But when all this is cheer- fully admitted, let us not forget, that it is not by ignoring funda- mental differences, that keep two great communions apart, that the cause of truth is to be served and good will continued, but by manly declaration of our belief, and unswerving loyalty to conscience. Germany has given many men of genius since the days of Luther to the world. Her seats of learning have long been haunts of stu- dents, who leave the college halls of their native land to drink the iiispiration at the fountain head, and from scholars whose attain- ments in special subjects have made them famous, and reflected glory upon the nation. Her soldiers, trained from youth for active service, are all but invincible upon the battle field. Her statesmen have achieved diplomatic triumphs that other nations envy ; but better than all these are the men and women in the humbler ranks of life, who, with a strength of will and stubborn tenacity of pur- pose, overcome all obstacles and carve out for themselves honorable positions in every walk of life. What makes them so ? Why are they not sluggish, indolent and unambitious, like the natives of more balmy climes? Why are they sought after by the people of the American continent as in the main, frugal, honest, peaceful, law-abiding subjects, and why are they invariably found, when 154 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. occasion arises, in the vanguard of the fight? Simply because the spirit of the past still lingers in the nation — Their altars and their fires, The green graves of their sires, are not forgotten. That matchless fortitude that enabled Martin Luther to dare oppression is not extinguished, but ready when called upon to maintain the right. Since the days of the Reformer, liberty of conscience has been fought for in other lands, sometimes with but partial success. The green sod has again and again been stained by the blood of brave patriotic spirits. But the day is near when the right to worship God, unfettered by state authority, shall everywhere be regarded as the inalienable birthright of every man. Stronger than brute force is the omnipotence of truth. As Lord Brougham said more than half a century ago, " Let the soldier be abroad, if he will, he can do nothing in this age. The schoolmaster is abroad, and I trust to him, armed with his primer, against the soldier in full mili- tary array." The outworn rile, the old abuse, The pious fraud, transparent grown, The good held captive in the use Of wrong alone. These wait their doom, And fresher life the world shall draw From their decay. God works in all things. Wake thou and watch ! — the world is gray With morning light ! Steadily down the march of ages, above the disputations and ambitions of despots, and in spite of the secret "machinations of crowned oligarchs, who join hands to stay the triumphal car of lib- MARTIN LUTHER. I 55 erty, she rushes on, destroying in her progress hoary systems of superstition that have long held the human soul in fetters. It can- not be otherwise, for — • Freedom's battle once begun, Bequeathed by 1 leeding sire to son, Though battled oft, is ever won. God knows, I have no ill will toward the members of the church of Rome. Many of them are my friends. Within her pale, despite of what Protestants deem unscriptural dogmas and gross idolatry, souls yearning for fellowship with heaven, may find it, and make the crucifix the symbol of their faith. I have no quarrel with her devotees, who up to the light they possess, follow faith- fully her mandates, and relinquish their reason to the superior judgment of the church, under the threat of pains and penalties that embrace both worlds. In all that relates to liberty of consci- ence, Protestants and Romanists have equal rights, but when the Pope or any other man claims infallibility and the right to dictate to others, on the pain of excommunication, what they shall believe, I resist such presumptuous demands. They may be exacted from slaves — never from free men ! I recognize the reigning sovereign of the realm, as supreme in civil matters, within constitutional rule ; I give to my maker the direct homage of my heart, without the intervention of saint, or angel, or pope ! What shall be the ultimate result of this great conflict of the ages ? Which of these great spiritual forces that have for centuries fought for the con- quest of the world, shall gain the victory, I cannot for a moment doubt. I do not depreciate the vast influence — the magnificent organization — the ten thousand agencies and emissaries and wil- ling servants that the Vatican controls. Her tactics are marvel- ously wise, and adapted to satisfy the passions of the human soul. It may be, as Macaulay says : " That she shall exist in undimin- ished vigor, when some traveller from New England, shall in the 156 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. midst of a vast solitude, take his stand on a broken arch of London bridge, to sketch the ruins of St. Paul." But it will be as a reformed church, freed from the shackles that now, but cannot always be worn, by men of intelligence who know their account- ability to God, for their beliefs and actions, and who, without intercession of priests, enter the holiest by the blood of Jesus ! God hasten that day, when there shall be but one fold, and one shepherd. A men. ^^\hLji i^\. THOMAS CxVRLYLE. Thomas Carlyle, " 111 these days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of JuJea, and saying, Repent ye, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." —Matthew 3, v. 1, 2. Thomas Carlyle. AHEN John the Baptist appeared, the world was in a state of mental agitation. The Old Testament prophets had filled and fired the Jewish heart with fond expectations of a new kingdom, and a coming deliverer. Uneasiness, discontent, and yearnings after something better, char- acterized the age. His mission was to rebuke the sinful practices of the day, and prepare for the coming of Christ. For five hundred years there had been no reforming prophet. He was the last of the race, and in many respects the greatest of all, and formed the connecting link and transition between Judaism and Christianity. The prominent feature in the Jewish religion of that period was its hypocrisy — its unreality — hollowness — ostentation — barren or- thodoxy, and formalism. The Scribes and Pharisees, howeven against whom John the Baptist directed his fiercest scorn and sting- ing rebukes, were in some respects far in advance of many profes- sors of religion at the present day. They attended with a praise- worthy diligence to all their forms of worship, and in the sight of all men performed their devotions. They were loyally attached to the doctrines and discipline of their church. They gave liberally (159) l6o THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. and ungrudgingly for the support of ordinances — not resorting to the questionable methods for raising monies, common at the pres- ent moment ; and their zeal and active efforts to make converts and proselytes knew no bounds. Their morality and righteousness was good, so far as it went, but it was regarded as sufficient for salvation, and as a ground of merit and reward in the sight of God. They boasted of their virtues, and sought the good opinion of men by performing certain outward acts of devotion, after a mechanical and routine fashion, rather than yielding spontaneously to God the sincere homage of the heart. Despising such hypocrisy, and in order to mark his contempt for the reputed leaders of the synagogue John the Baptist with- drew himself to the wilderness — living solitary and apart — brood- ing over the divine communications of heaven, which from time to time he uttered in the ears of his astonished countrymen. His education was in the desert : far from refined society, where destitute of luxuries, and living on the plainest fare, he became inured to hardships and fitted to become the mouthpiece of God to men. Thus prepared, like all great reformers of the past and present, he confronted the bitterest enemies of Christianity, and gave form and definitions to dreams of a better day, for the Jewish nation and the world. He became the interpreter of grand and startling truths, which Grecian culture and philosophy never could discover or reveal to men. The burden of his theme was repentance. He did not attempt to settle theological disputes, nor form any one school of religious thought. But he endeavored to lead men to the' practice of holi- ness, and the abandonment of sin. " Repent." " Bring forth fruits meet for repentance." " Flee from the wrath to come." These were the keynotes of his message. He sought after no refinement of manner, or delicacy of language. He listened to no excuses, he had neither smiles, nor conciliation for the formalists THOMAS CARLYLE. l6l and infidels of the age, but openly denounced their wickedness, and unmasked the secret abominations that were concealed under the garb of sanctimoniousness, and affected holiness. His mission was a solemn and serious one. The duty imposed upon him was terrible. To accuse men of the grossest crimes, and the most loathsome wickedness ; to rebuke the proud ; to uncover crooked and dishonest policies ; to pierce the conscience, awaken reflection, and produce conviction, was no easy task. Yet he did all this. Society was shaken to its very depths. Alone, unaided, and unbefriended, he overcame the passions of the Pharisees and the Sadducees, and from their ranks made converts to the truth Crowds attended his ministry, and listened with personal applica- tion of his words. " There went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judea, and all the region round about Jordan, and were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins." Such is the power pos- sessed by a sincere man, who speaks in the name of God, to disarm opposition, and overcome the bitterest prejudices. Every age has its reformers, in church and state. They are of two classes, (a) Those made by the times, (d) Those made for, and in advance of the times. Of the latter class was John. His preaching was what the age demanded. He had not the fancy, imagination, or sublime visions of an Isaiah, or the tender lamen- tations of a Jeremiah, or the cloudy mysteriousness of a Daniel or an Ezekiel, but he had the direct and telling home thrusts that pro- duce instant effect. His words, accompanied by heaven's fire., acted instantaneously upon the conscience. Such preachers are not usually welcome. In proportion as forms and rules are set aside, and the corruptions of society dealt with, and immoralities and dishonesties unveiled, the prophet and the preacher are traduced. It is said, "The servants of Christ should be meek and lowly, like their Master — their message is peace and good will to men ; the gospel should be like the falling *11 l62 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. dew, upon the hearts of shiners." All so far true. The dew is needful, but so also is the thunder peal and the lightning flash. Indeed the preacher's mission is ended when no alarm is needed. The preaching of John the Baptist was practical, searching, pointed and withering. Such was Paul's. Such was Stephen's. Such was Christ's. One of the marked characteristics of the Apostle's teach- ing, was the unconditional requisite of moral purity. The very first step towards the new life, was personal purification. They did not call u^on men to join the church, or begin a round of ceremonies, or become partizans of this or that creed or school, so much as to repent of their sins, and accept with undivided heart of the Lord Jesus Christ. John the Baptist was not a prudent man, in the ordinary accep- tation of the word. He did not speak in silken tones. He pre- ferred a good conscience to the honor and approval of men. Prudential preaching is not the want of this age. There is too much of it already. Plain, homely, earnest appeals are needed. Human nature is very much what it was in the days of the Baptist. Nominal professors are as prevalent, and the masses are as im- penitent and indifferent. Conviction of sin must be aimed at in every sermon. Invariably it precedes genuine conversion. War first — then peace : the ploughshare, then the Jiarvest : the blasting of the rock, before the building rises : demolition, before reforma- tion. The hurricane clears away the poisonous miasma, that breeds disease and death. And so the blast of God's threatenings must reach the conscience, before hardened sinners are melted into tears. John's preaching was not a complete gospel by any means.' But it prepared the way for the coming of Christ. His moral dissection made men feel their need of a physician. Like John, we call upon men to repent. What it means every man knows instinctively. Turn round. Change your purpose. Mourn over, while ye confess your sins. Hate evil and turn to THOMAS CARLYLE. 1 63 holiness. Men have power to repent, and break away from their sins. But the innate haughtiness of the human heart must first be subdued, for pride and repentance cannot dwell in the same soul. The crowds that waited upon John's ministry gave evidence of their sincerity by "confessing their sins." There is a way of con- fessing sin that is of no moral value, and indicates no moral change. Men are perfectly willing as a rule, to confess their sinfulness, and the original and utter depravity of their nature, but they dislike to confess those special acts of wickedness, that make up the deprav- ity. Indeed in many cases the fact of original depravity is pled as a valid excuse for the wilful commission of sin. Men are held to be, by a natural law of the universe, unable to avoid sinning, so that just as mighty tornadoes uproot trees and overturn dwellings so temptation prostrates men and entangles them in vice and wrong doing. It is not difficult to find men saying : *' I am a sinner — all men sin — nothing else is to be expected, but that men should sin. Sin is as universal in its grasp as the law of gravita- tion." But how few confess to particular acts of wickedness, to pride and selfishness, dishonorable actions, violations of truth and purity, envyings and jealousies, back-biting, false witness bearing, illicit pleasures, and the long dark catalogue of evils that mark the daily life of millions, dishonoring to God, while debasing to our com- mon humanity? God judges men not in the mass, but as individ- uals ; nor is pardon given but to individuals. And thus it follows, that such general confession of sin means nothing and effects nothing. It is a mere pretence to humility — a palliation to a guilty conscience — a mocking of that broken-heartedness and con- trition of spirit, which alone is acceptable in the sight of God. Nay further, a man may confess to a special sin, and yet be none the better for it. You meet with such every day in the world. " I know I have a failing. I sometimes do what I ought not to do I am sorry for it." Next day or next hour, straightway and l64 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. deliberately, " the failing " is repeated, and the man flatters himself that the confession of his special sin deserves commendation, while the sin itself is hardly worthy of condemnation. Men who are in reality sorry for their sins, put forth tremendous efforts to overcome them, and by the assistance of God's grace succeed. To all such we say, Repent — repent now. Flee from wrath to come. Bring forth fruits worthy of repentance. " The axe is laid unto the root of the tree : every tree, therefore, which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down and cast into the fire." Salvation's overtures may soon end. The Judge is at the door. Eternity is at hand. God is merciful ; — yes, but he is towards the wilfully im- penitent an angry God. Let no man deceive himself, or calm con- science by imagining otherwise. The inner consciousness asserts it, and experience teaches it. His wrath against defiant sinners i'^ unappeasable, nor can it be escaped. On another occasion, this same John the Baptist, seemg jesus coming to him, said, " Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sins of the world." Calls to repentance were in vain, without the hope of forgiveness. This is the gospel we preach, for if we confess our sins he is faithful and just to forgive, and to cleanse us from all unrisfhteousness. During the past week, * there has passed away a man who, to many of the present generation, seemed very much a John the Bap- tist— a voice crying in the wilderness. He occupied no official position, and he sought no honors. His private life was secluded ; his dwelling an humble one ; his tastes and manners simple ; and yet no man of the present century has been more widely known or more highly respected. The outlines of his life may be condensed within a few sentences : Born on the 4th December, 1795, in the * February 4th, 1881, THOMAS CARLYLE. 1 6$ small village of Ecclefechan, in Scotland— his parents in very mod- rrate circumstances, but respected for their moral worth and supe- rior intelligence — Thomas Carlyle began life with advantages perhaps superior to many Scottish youths who have risen to dis- tinction, but with nothing to indicate the grand achievements of his life. His humble parentage was his boast. " Wouldst thou rather be a peasant's son, who knew, were it never so rudely, there was a God in heaven and in man ; or a duke's son, that only knew there were two and thirty quarters on the family coach ?" This question, which occurs in one of his earliest books, was emphatically answered by his life. From the parish school, after two or three years training, Car- lyle was sent to the Annan gymnasium, where he was prepared for the Edinburgh University. Here he distinguished himself by his mastery of the subjects taught, and excelled in mathematics. Then he studied theology, and delivered a sermon before his professors, which gave high promise of future power and excellence as a preacher. Troubled, however, with "paroxysms of doubt," he felt that he could not honestly pursue the path intended for him by his parents, and so after studying law, he finally settled down to be a village schoolmaster of the old type— stern, methodical, and thor- ough. We have a glimpse of his life at this stage, when he assisted the great Edward Irving in the seminary at Kirkaldy, in which he pays a touching tribute to his dear friend's memory. He says : " I had gone through the University of Edinburgh, and had been invited by an old friend to become associated with him in the conduct of a school at Kirkaldy. It was Edward Irving— my old friend Edward Irving. Together we talked and wrought and thought ; together we strove, by virtue of birch and book, to initiate the urchins into what is called the rudiments of learning, until, at length, the hand of the Lord was laid upon him, and the voice of his God spake to him saying : " Arise, and get thee hence, for this l66 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. is not thy rest." And he arose and girded up his loins, and putting the trumpet of the Almighty to his lips, he blew such a blast as that men started up with surprise, and said that the like of it had not been seen since the days of the covenant itself. And from Scotland he came to this great Babel ; and he stood up in the pul- pit of the Hatton Garden chapel, the eyes of him blazing, and the herculean form of him erect. And the great and the learned, the high and the titled, the gifted and the beautiful, came around about him, and sat mute and spell-bound listening to his wonderful words. And they thought — for fools will ever think according to their folly, which is the law of their being— they thought that because they were looking at him, he was looking at them. He was not looking at them at all. He was trying to do what no man can do and live — trying to see God face to face. I have heard that the eagle's eye suffers eclipse ; that the curtain of darkness falls over the pupil of his eye by the steadfast gazing at the bright- ness of the sun. It was thus with my poor friend Irving. The fools said — let the fools have their way, they know no better— the fools said that Irving was daft— that his head was turned with the popular applause. He was not daft, he was dazed. The curtains of darkness fell over the eagle's eye by too steadfast gazing at the sun. In blindness and loneliness he sobbed the great heart of him to sleep." After this, Carlyle became tutor in a private family, and finally retired from contact with men, to startle the world by his quaint massive sayings, which, for more than fifty years, have made him the best known man in Britain — a name worthy of enrolment with the mighties of his age, and of a burial place in the consecrated shrine of Westminster, had he not preferred to lie in the graveyard of his native village ; for as Tennyson says : 'T is little ; but it looks in truth As if the quiet bones were blesfe Among familiar names to rest, And in the places of his youth. thomAs carlvle. 167 Referring to his early years, in an address delivered as Rector of Edinburgh University, in 1866, he says : " There are now fifty-six years gone, last November, since I first entered your city, a boy of not quite fourteen — fifty-six years ago — to attend classes here and gajn knowledge of all kinds, I knew not what, with feelings of wonder and awe-struck expectation ; and now, after a long, long course, this is what we have come to. There is something touching and tragic, and yet at the same tim.e beauti- ful, to see the third generation, as it were, of my dear old native land rising up and saying, 'Well, you are not altogether an un- worthy laborer in the vineyard ; you have toiled through a variety of fortunes, and have had many judges.' As the old proverb says, ' He that builds by the wayside has many masters.' We must ex- pect a variety .of judges, but the voice of Young Scotland, through you, is of some value to me, and I return you many thanks for it, though I cannot describe my emotions to you, and, perhaps, they will be much more conceivable if expressed in silence." No man, indeed, has been judged so variously as Thomas Car- lyle. By some he has almost been worshipped ; by others wondered at ; by others ridiculed ; but in every case his powerful intellect and weird-like prophecies have been acknowledged as a powerful factor in the social history of the age ; if not in the moulding of men's opinion, in causing reflection and turning attention to problems that are as yet unsolved in the history of nations. When we find him spoken of as the "greatest bibliographic writer of the age," and acknowledged by eminent men now living as having exerted an influence upon their style and mode of thought beyond all other writers, we can easily imagine how regal must have been his mind, and how deep the impression made upon his contemporaries. It is not necessary that we should agree with such a man in his opinions in order to unite with the world of letters in laying our humble tribute upon his grave. He sought the good of his race l68 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH in his own peculiar way, and endeavored, by a bluntness of speech and merciless castigation of all that was hollow-hearted and hypo- critical, to prepare the world for the dawn of a better and brighter end. He was a profound worshipper of what he called the divinity in man, and indulged the hope that this hidden nobleness — this internal light of the human soul — would produce a perfect man- hood, and usher in a golden age. To our mind, such a prospect is baseless, apart from the humanizing and evangelizing influences of God's spirit upon men, and on society at large. His views also regarding the treatment of criminals, were hardly in keeping with that tenderness, which, while it hates sin, loves and pities, and seeks to reclaim the sinner. The new testament certainly does not teach that " Revenge and the natural hatred of scoundrels is a correct and divine feeling in the mind." But in spite of such marked eccentricities, which he seemed to hold more tenaciously as he grew older, his downright earnestness and honesty ; his shrewd common sense ; his hatred of all shams and pretension ; his denun- ciation of selfishness ; his contempt for aristocratic birth and pedigree, when destitute of moral worth, and his oft-repeated maxim that rank, power and possession should be graduated by ability, endear him to all lovers of humanity, wherever civilization and manliness prevail. There are two aspects in which the world may be looked at in the present day — as getting worse, or as getting better. Thomas Carlyle thought the former. He saw few redeeming features, and no bright spots in the horizon. His mental vision of late years was too much confined to what was passing under his eye in the great metropolis of Britain — certainly not the best place to gain impressions of human progress. The policies and diplomacies of governments based upon mere expediency, or maintained by threats of arms ; the monster iniquities, daily committed and chronicled in the daily press ; the astounding rascalities of men in THOMAS CARLYLE. 169 high places, and the dark crimes committed under the very shadow of hoary cathedrals and within the sound of a hundred Sabbath bells ; and the frequent tolling of the knell at Newgate, as it hurried off some poor wretch to eternity ; all these things shocked his moral sense, and led him hastily and erroneously, we think, to conclude that civilization was being exchanged for the barbarism of the dark ages. To him, indeed, all things seemed unfixed, and "floating distractedly in an ocean of talk." He looked upon the present with scorn and disgust, as "days of endless calamity, dis- ruption, confusion worse confounded — days of utter despair ; there must be a new world, if there is to be any world at all 1" Intensely conservative, and yet, strange to say, intensely radical and revolutionizing, he was also in his religious views — not perhaps fickle — but, at least, undecided and inexplicable. He certainly •cannot be classed with philosophic atheists of the nineteenth cen- tury. On the other hand, he cannot be ranked among the earnest defenders and propagators of the Christian faith. His mind seems to have been in some way, and to some degree, warped, and his earlier predelictions in favor of the simple trust of his fathers changed to doubt and emphatic denunciation of creeds and dogmas- One of his critics sums up his creed as follows : Belief in the immortality of the soul, the existence of a God, and the responsi- bility of man to God ; denial of the divinity of Christ, the resurrection of the body, and final judgment. But we can hardly come to such a conclusion from his writings. Dogmatic in the highest degree himself, he had but little tolerance for formulated beliefs. But he never assailed the foundations of the christian faith, nor denied the existence and power of conscience, nor spoke irreverently of the divine being. It were strange, nay, almost impossible that he should, trained as he was by a father, who regarded the highest 'form of manhood attainable, that of the christian, and who was remarkable for his profound religious fer- I/O THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. vor.* Carlyle was a passionate admirer of the Covenanters in his boyhood days, and never ceased to cherish their memory with a strength and tenderness that developed with his appreciation of their nobihty, and assigned them a lofty niche in the gallery of the world's best heroes. If he turned away with detestation, and some degree of bitterness, from the religious life of the present, it was because of his fond idolatry of such men, and the contrast presented in our day of weakness, insincerity and indifference, both in church and state. Rugged in exterior, but tender in heart ; morose and melan- choly, yet quaint in a humor peculiarly his own ; unforgiving, yet pitying; doubting and dreaming, yet held by the moorings of his youth to an eternal, all-wise, just and righteous God, — the hoary sage, the fast friend, the affectionate husband, the marvellous word- painter, the doleful philosopher, has passed away into that far-off infinite immensity, that for years troubled and distracted his soul- He now knows all. The veiled dark portal, Goal of ail mortal, has been passed, and the stillness and fullness of eternity entered upon. Further we may not follow him. *Speaking of Carlyle's father, a writer says : " Measured by the ordinary standards of the world, how cramped it is ! how short in its ransje ! how insignificant ! What does one builder of peasants' cottages more or less matter ? But, then, can we look at that life in that way 1 Can we look at any life in that way ! It is plain to us all that we cannot, for life everywhere establishes connections and creates consequences. . . . Indeed, it is doubtful if the real sum total of any man's life can be stated until the end of all things. This humble mechanic, for instance, was the father of a son whose name is known and honored wherever the English languarge is spoken. To James Carlyle's narrow life in the vil- lage and in the kirk, and in his own cottage, must be added the sum of Thomas Carlyle's life, and the influence of his writings, ai.d the influence of the men whose thought has been stimulated or shaped by those writ- ings. And so the son himself says : " Let me not mourn for my father ; let me do worthily of him ; so shall he still live even here in me, and his worth plant itself honorably forth into new generations." THOMAS CARLYLE. I/I No further seek his merits to disclose, Or draw his frailties from their dread abode : There they alike in trembling hope repose, The bosom of his father and his God. Carlyle's life and works have not been in vain. His terse thoughts and strange axiomatic utterances will not soon be for- gotten. But the grandest life is incomplete, and the highest aspir- ations of genius remain unfulfilled on earth. So with Thomas Car- lyle. His aims were grand — who can doubt it? But of their fail- ure, who can gainsay it ? The prophet fretted away his great life, battering against shams with little tangible results. Indeed, the nearer he approached the grave, the more unsatisfactory to himself did his work appear. The more than half century spent in fiery invective against social anomalies, seemed to result in nothing. Nor can any merely negative philosophy cure the world's sorrows, or cleanse its plague spots. The graphic and touching resources of Charles Dickens, and the biting sarcasm and scorn of a Thack- eray, are helpful in calling attention to social wrongs, and unmask- ing traditional follies, but there is needed the positive, constructive regenerating power of the gospel, " to arrange the world in beauty, so that there shall be no discord and no lamentation any more." It is Divine love for human souls that alone conciliates and con- quers the world. He that would successfully elevate the masses — equalize inequalities — redress wrongs — remove cruelties, and banish wretchedness from earth, must not only cry aloud and spare not, but must point to " The Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world." GEORGE BROWN. George Brown "And tl.e man Jeroboam was a mighty man of valour." — 1st Kings, 11, V. 28. " Thy hands were not bound, nor thy feet put into fetters ; as a man falleth before wicked men, so fellest thou. And all the people wept again over him. And the King said unto his servants, know ye not, that there is a prince and a great man fallen this day in Israel." 2nd Samuel, 3, 34, 38. George Brown. jp^ HESE words were spoken by King David, as he wept '^^^ over the grave of Abner. Abner had been comman- der-in-chief of the armies of Israel under King Saul. ,±^#^sl por years after Saul's death, he maintained a fruitless warfare, in alliance with Ishbosheth, against the reign of '%^ David, but eventually, on condition that he should have com- mand of the armies of the hitherto rival kingdoms, he made over- tures to David for a re-union and reconciliation. Abner's proposals found favor with the king, and Joab, who was commander-in-chief of David's armJes, was set aside for the sake of Abner. Dreading the superior influence which such a man as Abner might have over the king, and eager to take vengeance upon Abner on account of his brother Asahel, who perished in a former feud, Joab stealthily calls Abner aside, in the gate of the palace, and under the guise of friendship thrust his sword into his body. The king, hearing of this foul crime, not only lamented his death, but gave orders for a general mourning, he and his people following the bier to the grave, and weeping aloud. The unexpected, and peculiarly atrocious manner of his death, is set forth in the words now read : " Thy hands were not bound, nor thy feet put into fetters : as a man fall- (1/5) 1/6 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. eth before wicked men, so fellest thou. And all the people wept again over him. And the king said u.ito his servants, know ye not that there is' a prince and a great man fallen this day in Israel." There has been laid in the grave, since last we assembled in the house of God, a kingly man, — one who for many years has by unanimous consent been ranked among the princes of the land. Over his grave the people have also wept, and a feeling of un- feigned sadness has possessed all hearts, because of his untimely end. As christian citizens, it surely becomes us, when the righteous perish, that we should lay it to heart, and endeavor to read and profit by the lessons of their lives. To say that the lamented statesman and journalist was a man of wonderful force of character and intellect, is what all admit. By singular energy and high aspiration, he acquired an influence in Canada second to none, — if not indeed superior to all his compeers. . His advent fell upon times most propitious to foster and develop the versatile talents and prodigious powers he possessed. So that if the man was raised up by Providence to do a special work, the circumstances of the country were favorable to the man. It has been said, and I think with great truth, that a great man is only possible under certain conditions — that every genius can be ac- counted for ; that he is the product of his time — has come forth in answer to a call — in a word, that he is a response, and not a new creation. It was the condition of the church, and the protests which had been made against darkness and bondage, which made a Luther possible. Cromwell would have farmed in Huntingdon to the end of his days, probably, had Charles been a wiser and a better king. But though a man cannot create circumstances to suit himself, and afford opportunity for becoming conspicuous, he can take things as they are, and by the force of his character change GEORGE BROWN. 177 and reform existing wrongs and abuses, until the theories and prin- ciples he has long believed in, become incarnated with the very- life's blood of the nation. This is what George Brown did in Can- ada. Doubtless, had he lived longer, he would have attempted more, but enough has been accomplished to indicate the place to which he is entitled, in the estimation of a people for whom he labored with a zeal and unselfishness that knew no bounds. It needs not that I repeat the story of his life as briefly sketched by the daily press. Born in Edinburgh, though with a dash of impetuous Celtic blood in his veins, and educated in its academies, he was surrounded from childhood with influences and favored with privileges, well calculated to, develop a naturally strong and vigorous mind. But though intended for professional life, he chose, instead of entering the University, the wider arena of the world, where until the day of his death, he manfully struggled and overcame obstacles that would have crushed and conquered feebler souls. In early manhood, as well as in maturer age, we find the same hopeful, buoyant, indomitable spirit, that knew nothing of defeat. Whether battling successfully against family reverses, or vindicating the liberty of the press against the threats of tyrants, and in spite of suits at law ; or denouncing with fierce invective dishonesty and double-dealing in men occupying high places in the land ; or vindicating the honor of his adopted country from the insults and false accusations of foreign nations : — in every condition he was the same courageous and intrepid spirit that counted not the cost, that the desired end might eventually be gained. His motto was : Dare to b-^ right ! Dare to be true ! All the world's scorning can never harm you, Stand by your conscience, your honor, your faith, Stand like a hero, and battle till death. He was possessed of indomitable perseverance. This was manifested in every action and enterprise of his life. He may not *12 178 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. have had genius, in the technical meaning of the word, but he had what is far better for all practical purposes, untiring and continuous application to the business in hand. Indeed, we may say that he possessed talent and genius combined. Genius, as commonly defined, has no doubts — leaps to conclusions, and acts by inspira- tion and impulse, while talent reasons and plods. Both are neces- sary, we apprehend, and are generally found in the nature and achievements of truly great men. Placed as Mr. Brown was in early life, genius without singular force of character and tenacity of purpose could accomplish nothing. He never waited, as some dreamy, sentimental visionaries do, upon what they blasphemously call the leadings of Providence, or in modern phraseology, "for something to turn up." But he girded himself manfully to the labor of life, and took advantage of everything that seemed likely to secure his advancement in the world, and enable him to reach an honorable independence. He firmly believed that the great Creator intended man to eat his bread by the sweat of his brow, and to exercise the talents entrusted him with diligence and earnestness, whether in the workshop or the senate chamber. Bayard Taylor, in some respects a man of kindred spirit, once said : " I have always reverently accepted, first — Labor. Nothing can be had for nothing. Whatever a man achieves, he must pay for it, and no favor of fortune can absolve him from duty. Second, Patience and forbearance, which are simply dependent on the slow justice of time. Thirdly — and most important, faith. Unless a man believes in something infinitely purer and grander than he can ever become — unless he has an instinct of an order beyond his dreams, of laws beyond his comprehension, of beauty and good and justice, beside which his own ideals are dark, he will fail in every loftier form of ambition, and ought to fail." This was Mr. Brown's creed, and how nobly he practiced it, his life declares ! GEORGE BROWN. 1 79 Having gained a commanding position in society, and become a recognized power in moulding the opinions and directing the judgments and convictions of his fellow-men, his every word and tone were marked by intense earnestness, the sincerity of a man who believed, rightly or wrongly, in what he uttered. He did not assume the role of sentimental humanitarianism, adapting his prin- ciples and ideas to the prevailing temper of the age in which he lived. Had he done so. he might possibly have become a more popular statesman with a certain class, and secured for himself even higher honors than were accorded him in life. We have no reason to doubt, as he stated to Dr. Gregg, who had been his pastor for many years, that in deciding whether he would give or withhold his support from public measures, he asked first, Is it right ? Sec- ond, Is it for the good of the country? And third, Will it benefit the party? Or, in other words, principle first ; patriotism, second ; and party last. That he often seemed impractical, unyielding, dog- matic, and imperious in his attitude, even to his best friends, arose from his strong decided convictions of duty. He was tenacious of his opinions, and seldom changed — and indeed the history of Cana- dian politics shows that he was seldom wrong. His views on pub- lic questions — once deemed extreme and violent — are now being slowly adopted by men, who derided them when first enunciated. Having patiently and conscientiously studied the great social and economic questions which effect the welfare and stability of nations^ he arrived at conclusions which seemed to him as clear as the dem- onstrations of Euclid. Opponents might scoff, and friends might advise, but in vain. His attitude and response to political antag- onists, as well as allies, was that of Fitzjames in the " Lady of the Lake :" His back against a rock he bore, And firmly placed his foot before : Come one, come all, this rock shall fly From its firm base, as soon us 1. l80 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. As a natural result of strong convictions there was a downright plainness of speech, not always acceptable either to friends or to foes. When he struck it was with the clenched hand, and with terrible effect. His denunciation was unsparing, and continued if necessary for months, without one grain of pity for his victim. He possessed that severe cast of mind, that cannot easily take into account the manifold imperfections of public men, and make allowance for their frailty, when placed amid temptations. And yet no one for a moment questioned his thorough sincerity. His attacks were open and straightforward, he never stabbed in the dark, or covertly sought the overthrow of an enemy. As has been remarked by one who knew him well ; he was an honest opponent,, who might sometimes use a bludgeon, instead of the orthodox rapier, but who never resorted to the stiletto, and never even in moments of the greatest excitement hit below the belt. Such a man of necessity made enemies. His positive opinions and assertions seemed strange and fanatical to men whose princi- ples were held for the sake of office and emolument, and who were ready to barter them at any moment for personal ends. Nor did he chafe under misrepresentation, and satire, and obloquy. He fully expected such treatment, and regarded censure and abuse as the natural consequence of the line of conduct he had adopted For as the poet says : He who surpasses or subdues mankind, Must look down on the hate of them below ; Though high above, the sun of glory glows. Kound him are icy rocks, and loudly blow Contending tempests on the naked head, And thus reward the toils which to those summits led. With all his alleged imperiousness and dogmatism, he was. emphatically the tribune of the common people, and no name throughout the length and breadth of Canada was held in higher esteem than that of George Brown. GEORGE BROWN. iSl One blast upon his bugle horn Was worth a thousand men. His political struggles were all on behalf of the masses, as against aristocratic domination, and that haughty disdain, which IB too often found associated with men who have sprung by acci- dent from poverty to place and power. The measures he inaugur- ated or promoted, by voice and pen, were ajl intended to conserve the rights of citizenship, and to give the humblest son of toil a part in the government of the country. Such questions as the "Clergy Reserves," "Seignorial Tenure," "Representation by Popu- lation," and the " Confederation of the British Provinces," in all of which he occupied a prominent place, were urged from motives of the highest patriotism. He loved his adopted country with singu- lar attachment and upheld its institutions with a fervor which has never been excelled ; while at the same time he was a staunch defender of British rule. Some of you may remember the thril- ling peroration of his great parliamentary speech on Confederation, in which he drew a glowing picture of the vastness of territory that would then be included in the Dominion by the contemplated accessions to British territory. Addressing the Speaker of the House of Commons, he said : " Look, sir, at the map of the continent of America, and mark that island (Newfoundland) com- manding the mouth of the noble river that almost cuts the conti- nent in twain. Well, sir, that island is equal in extent to the kingdom of Portugal. Cross the straits of the main land, and you touch the hospitable shores of Nova Scotia, a country as large as the kingdom of Greece. Then mark the sister province of New Brunswick, equal in extent to Denmark and Switzerland combined. Pass up the river St. Lawrence to Lower Canada, a country as large as France. Pass on to Upper Canada, a country twenty thousand square miles larger than Great Britain and Ireland put together. Cross over the continent, to the shores of the Pacific, 1 82 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. and you are in British Columbia, the land of golden promise, equal in extent to the Austrian Empire. I speak not now of the vast Indian territories that lie between — greater in extent than the whole soil of Russia, and that will ere long, I trust, be opened up to civilization under the auspices of the British American Confedera- tion. Well, sir, the bold scheme in your hands, is nothing less than to gather all those countries into one, to organize them all under one government, with the protection of the British flag." If to-day we stand in the presence of that great fact of British American Union, which its most enthusiastic promoters scarcely hoped for for many years, the praise is largely due to George Brown, who along with other eminent statesmen, sunk their politi- cal differences to gain this most desirable end. It is hardly necessary to say that he was one of the most pro- nounced and bitter enemies of slavery, in any and every form, that the age has produced. He was a disciple of Wilberforce and Bux- ton, and in thorough sympathy on this question with such Ameri- can statesmen and philanthropists as Phillips, and Sumner, and Garrison. Indeed, I can hardly conceive of any man born in the metropolis of Scotland, and conversant with the terrible persecu- tions and martyrdoms of the prelatic age, to be anything else. I can imagine the great statesman and journalist in boyhood, stand- ing on the old castle rock of Edinburgh, or on the Calton Hill, and looking down upon spots made memorable in all times coming, by the death of men who gladly shed their life's blood to conserve the rights of conscience and the cause of freedom. Yonder stands old Holyrood, where Queen Mary encountered John Knox, whom the beautiful Queen could never bend to her will by fascinations of person or speech. — of whom Morton said over his grave, that " he never feared the face of man," and who said of himself, when asked if he was not afraid to speak so boldly to his Queen, " Why should the fair face of a gentlewoman frighten me? I have looked in the GEORGE BROWN. 1 83 face of many angry men, and have not been afraid above measure." And there stands the house where the great Reformer died, and yonder is Parliament square where he lies buried. Yonder is Saint Giles, where Jenny Geddes' stool was sent flying at the Bishop's head — the first blow struck in that battle which ended in the Refor- mation and the banishment of the Stuart dynasty from the realm, — and near to this spot is the Grassmarket, where the martyrs suf- fered, and Greyfriars churchyard, where the solemn league and covenant was sealed and signed in blood, and where the dust of nobles and commoners lie side by side. With such surroundings in boyhood, we can easily understand how the great Canadian statesman could never become the apologist of slavery in any form. Possibly his pen seemed too trenchant in his attacks against slave- holders, even to men who held his views, but with his winning love of liberty, and his detestation of all forms of human vassalage and oppression, it could not be otherwise. The eloquent speech he made in Toronto on the subject of the American war and slavery, immediately after the proclamation of freedom, attracted the atten- tion of both British and American statesmen. England — aristo- cratic England, and not the masses, while holding perfect neutrality between the North and South — was suspected of a secret desire to see the Union shattered, and said little, and did less, to show her sympathy with the North in that awful war. When Lincoln issued his proclamation as a war measure. Englishmen replied, that it was not for love to the slave that freedom had been proclaimed, and that the North deserved no credit for the act. Replying to such criticism, Mr. Brown said : " I care not to pry narrowly into the motives of all those who have contributed to bring about this change in the Republic. I care not to discuss the arguments by which it has been promoted and defended. What to us signifies all this? We see before us the great fact, that the chains have already fallen from the hands of tens of thousands of human chat- 1 84 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. tels ; we see that if the policy of the present Government at Wash- ington prevails, the curse of human slavery will be swept from our continent forever, and our hearts go up with earnest petitions to the God of battles, that he will strengthen the hands of Abraham Lincoln, and give wisdom to his councils. For myself, whatever may be the result of the present strife, I shall always feel the high- est satisfaction in recollecting, that with the sin of sympathizing with slavery my hands are not defiled ; but that from the com- mencement of the struggle my earnest aspirations have gone with the friends of freedom !" But we pay our humble tribute to the memory of the fallen chief, not simply because of his mental endowments, and unwearied industry, and patriotic deeds, and love of liberty, but because coupled with all these, and adorning all, he was a christian man. Judged by those who knew him best, his virtue was spotless, and his integrity incorruptible. He was a firm believer in the funda- mental truths of our holy religion, and not ashamed to avow his faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, as the only ground of acceptance in the sight of God. He was emphatically a christian statesman, a name which I regret to say is nowadays held up to scorn, as a thing impossible in political life. It is said by men who ought to know better, that whatever be the failings of our politicians, we have no right to refer to their private, life, and that it indicates lack of char- ity, and base ingratitude, to enquire too minutely into their con- duct. Such a principle, if acted upon, v/ould sap the very founda- tions of morals, and exalt villainy to the highest heaven. If it is right to expect that the magistrate or the judge shall be men of unimpeachable virtues, is it not equally necessary that those who rule the nation, and occupy commanding positions of trust and responsibility, shall in private life command the respect of those by whose suffrages they have been elected. Public men represent the interest of society, as well as principles and policies, and in accept- GEORGE BROWN. 185 wg such prominent positions, they must expect to bear such close inquisition as the Hfe and health of the nation, and the community demand. It is unnecessary to say in the hearing of this congregation that Mr. Brown was a regular attender of God's house, and valued highly religious ordinances. During his frequent visits to Brant- ford, I had many conversations with him on the uncertainty of life and the vanity of all earthly glory. Only those, indeed, who had such opportunities, knew anything of the tender heart that was concealed under a somewhat abrupt and rugged exterior. Some eight years ago we met at Hamilton, on his way to Bow Park. He had just been speaking to one of our prominent men, who was considerably advanced in years beyond Mr. Brown. " I have just been speaking, he said, to Mr. , and remarking that both of us ought to think more seriously of the end of life, but he laughed at me, and said that he did not wish to think of death for twenty years. For my part, I feel that I am drawing near my end, nor indeed do I regret it, for if all is well, death is a grateful release to a busy life." On a Sabbath afternoon we were walking over the fields at Bow Park at the close of the service. A prominent politician had died the day before, and our conversation turned upon his life. " I sat down yesterday," he said, " and wrote out a sketch of his life and character, but as I proceeded I felt I knew too much about him to write the truth, without wounding the feelings of his friends, so I destroyed what I had written and committed the task to other hands." If he could not honestly eulogize, he would not unnecessarily pain. From all that I knew of him, I can verify what was said over his coffin, that " he enter- tained a high reverence for everything good and holy ; that he walked under the power of unseen realities ; that his anchor was cast within the veil, and that in the intense suffering of his last days, he rested upon Christ as his bright hope of that eternal 1 86 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. kingdom, into which, we trust, he has entered." To the friends and family of the departed, and to her who now mourns the death of a beloved husband, the knowledge, that by his countrymen, and far beyond the limits of this land, he is sadly missed, must be a source of consolation, but better far is the assurance that he died as a christian man can die, having, by anticipation, vanquished death and the grave through the merits of his ascended Lord. Such a memory is better than untold wealth. A good name is the best of all bequests, for a man is measured, not by what he has, but by what he is. He has passed away, and it is only now the country begins to realize her loss. ^ It is not the tear, at this moment, shed, When the cold turf has now been laid o'er him, That can tell how beloved was he that is fled, Or how deep in our hearts we deplore him. Death, removing him from the outward eye, enables us to see him inwardly and truly. Thus have we looked at a mountain and only seen the creeping mists and clouds which concealed it. But the wind moves the air, and the vapors suddenly disperse, and the pure snow summits, come out in bold outline against the blue sky. Death does the office of the wind. Passion and party strife at an end, we see the man in his true proportions. Those who were his most violent opponents cast the first garlands upon his tomb. When God places his seal upon a man, although he may be slandered and denounced for years, in the end he shines forth bright and beautiful. He may go under the waves for a time, but at last rises to the surface, stronger and purer, from the very combat he has had with them. Who shall fill his place ? upon whom shall the chieftain's mantle descend ? Let those of his own personal friends, who perchance have fretted under his supremacy, answer the question. As tor the GEORGE BROWN. 1 8/ future of Canada — for the death of such a man, must of neces- sity affect its poHcy, if not its destinies — let us be assured, that he who raised up the departed statesman to do such noble work, can furnish others to perpetuate his unselfish efforts. The lesson of his life is, that there is no royal road to greatness. To every young man there is given opportunity to make his mark in the world, and die regretted. As I stood last Wednesday gazing on that vast funeral cortege that had gathered from every part of the land to honor the memory of the dead senator, I felt that true moral worth and unselfish labor will not be forgotten. Ungrateful as both monarchies and republics sometimes are, good men do not pass away forgotten. They live in the affection of their fellowmen, and their graves are watered with their tears. George Brown well deserves a statue, but bronze or marble can but faintly symbolize or perpetuate the widespread sorrow that fills the land. His name will be handed down from sire to son as one who is worthy of imperishable honor ; as one : — Who never brought His conscience to the put lie mart, But lived himself the truth he taught. White souled, clean handed, pure of heart. He went about his work — such work as few Ever had laid on head, and heart, and hand — As one who knows, where there's task to do, Man's honest will must heaven's good grace command. And now the martyr's crown has crowned a life, With much to praise — little to be forgiven. The old world and the new, from sea to sea, Utter one voice of sympathy and shame ! Strong heart, so stopped, when its throbs beat high, Brave life cut short, just as its triumph came. ABRAHAM LINCOLN. Abraham Lincoln. " Help Lord : for the godly man ceasetli : for the faithful fail from among the children of men." —Psalm 12, V. 1. Abraham Lincoln. *^4HE righteous perish, and no man layeth it to heart ; and ^c^i merciful men are taken away, none considermg that the m;%:' righteous is taken away from the evil to come. Such was the lamentation of Isaiah, when many pious Jews suffered a violent death, and the great mass of the nation seemed quite un- concerned and indifferent. It seems strange in so many cases that God should call to Him- self His most efficient agents in the world before their work seems to be accomplished. " One soweth and another reapeth," is an almost universal law in christian enterprise. Just at the very moment when success seems to reward previous toil, and enjoyment to follow labor, does the active brain cease to plan, the busy hand to execute, and the throbbing heart to beat. God's ways are mys- terious and past finding out. " Help Lord, for the godly man fail- eth," we exclaim, while standard-bearer after standard-bearer falls upon the battle-field ; christian hearts despond, and the hosts of hell press on to what seems certain victory ! (191) 192 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. We mistake, however, in saying that God's servants are ever taken before their work is finished. In no case is it so. We, who only see but a small portion of God's providential designs, think so. The removal of useful, earnest, intelligent men from the church and the world seems to be disastrous, unwise, and fatal to the great interests in which they are engaged ; whereas, such an event may be the starting point of new life and vigor to the cause in question. The very name and memory of such men may act as a power upon those who are left behind, inspiring them with new zeal and enthu- siasm in the object to which their lives were devoted. Nor must we forget that man's immortal powers have another field for their exercise, than this disjointed rudimentary state of being. The world is at best but a training school for higher efforts, and the ablest intellects and ripest scholars are the first removed. We cannot point out any religious or moral enterprise that ever permanently suffered by the removal of human agents. Others are invariably raised up sooner or later to occupy the place of those who fall, and carry forward the work beyond the point aimed at by their predecessors. The leaves of autumn that soon will cover the ground and be trodden under foot, but give place to others that shall adorn the trees in coming spring. They filled up their ap- pointed time of life in the vegetable world, and now according to the fixed laws of nature drop off from the naked branches. So it is with man, in the more extensive field of human activity. One generation cometh and another goeth, but the vast and intricate purposes of Almighty Wisdom continue to be advanced and perfected. But should no workers rise up to take the place of those who fall, is the Almighty dependent upon the aid of mortals ? Does infinite power and wisdom need the co-operation of feeble men ? Is the hand that spanned the firmament, and set the sun in mid- heavens, and gave bounds to the ocean which it cannot pass. ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 1 93 become so powerless, that the care of the universe is a burden and the upholding of created things a weariness? Has that infinite intellect that at first planned the order of the universe and through countless centuries of duration has continued to direct and super- intend the affairs of men become so weak and foolish as no longer to be able to direct and guide, and to be altogether dependent upon the counsel and wisdom of fallible and short-sighted men ? No ; far from it. Did no human beings exist, were He left alone, as in a past eternity, without angels to adore or creatures to praise His plans and purposes would be as certain of fulfilment, as if surrounded by the hosts of heaven, and myriads of the redeemed in heaven and saints on earth to execute His commands. Old Lymian Beecher was a man not usually given to despond- ency ; but at times he almost lost his faith in God. When Dr. Cornelius, Secretary of the American Board of Foreign Missions died, one of his sons tells us he had a very dark day. " I cannot understand," he said, " what the Lord means when His work needs just such a man as Cornelius, and He takes him away in the prime of life, at a time when he is carrying on the work successfully, and there is nobody to take his place." But there was somebody ready. Dr. Wisner took it, but he only carried it on a few years and died also. " I well remember," says his son, " the morning when father was preparing the sermon to preach over Dr. Wisner. The wheels dragged heavily. He was very much cast down. Though I was quite young, he said to me : ' Henry, it is all done ! It is all done ! I cannot see what the Lord means. He is making breach after breach. There is so much to do, and so few to do it ! He is taking the best of them.'" And so perhaps we have alj felt, when year after year God smites the tall cedars ci^ Lebanon, and shatters the pillars of the church and the state. Yet in spite of these removals, the world goes on, and the cause of truth advances to completion. *i3 J94 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH David, in our text, regards the withdrawal of good men from the world as a public calamity, which should be felt more or less by all who share their friendship. The example of such men ; their lives and prayers and active labors for the good of humanity are no ordinary blessings. When these end, the commonwealth suffers a heavy loss. It indicates a low state of piety and patriot- ism, when the community or nation fail to mark such bereavements, or, as when is not unfrequently the case, the departure of the righteous is an occasion for joy. All good men feel how becoming are the words of the Psalmist : " Help Lord : for the godly man ceaseth ; for the faithful fail among the children of men." Such good and godly men are comparatively few ; w^hile good sort of men are plentiful. The world acknowledges the fact in the kind of encomiums it passes upon its friends. For once that you hear a man spoken of without qualification as a good man, you hear the expression, " a good sort of man," a thousand times. " He had his faults, to be sure," say the companions of such a man after his death, " but on the whole was rather a good sort of man — a gen- erous fellow : he had a warm heart and a sociable disposition. He was not a bad sort of fellow, after all." When we come to examine the record which these " good sort of men " leave behind, we find it in many cases the reverse of what is honorable and virtuous. The language is used indiscriminately towards the most indifferent and unworthy characters. Men who have no decided principles — who follow the customs of the ma- jority— who are timid and craven-hearted in the presence of evil, if not positive evil-doers themselves ; — who have no determination to resist temptation, and who float with the current of the age ; — these, in most cases, are what the world calls "good sort of men." It has thus become a stereotyped phrase, to conceal defects and positive wrong-doing, which the grave cannot entirely blot out of memor}'. ABRAHAM LINCOLN. I95 " Good sort of men " have no positive virtues. Their character is a bundle of negatives. Where positive immorality cannot be charged against them, they are useless for all active labor ©n behalf of God and humanity. They are so much dead weight upon the body politic. Their influence for good is of the lowest grade. What talents they possess lie unexercised. They dream existence away, regardless of individual responsibility, and imagine that "good intentions" and "doing no harm to others" entitle them to saint- ship. It is not of such that the Psalmist speaks. A good man, in the highest sense, is a man of the strictest in- tegrity. His word is as good as his oath ; his promise as reliable as his bond. He can be trusted with the gravest responsibilities His dealings are marked by straightforwardness and honesty. He is the very soul of honor. Meanness of every description he des- pises. He cannot stoop to fraud in speech or action. He takes no undue advantage of the ignorance and misfortunes of another. He speaks what he thinks, and is the same to a man's face that he is behind his back. The secrets of others, committed to him, are in- violate. If he finds occasion to rebuke a friend, it is given with candor, openly and frankly. His duties to society he regards as next in importance to those that are due his Maker. He eats hon- est bread. What he owes he pays. The obligations he is under to his native or adopted country he cheerfully discharges. As a citizen, recognizing his responsibilities as well as his rights, he bears his share of civil burdens, and obeys the call of authority at what- ever personal sacrifice. Such a man comes up to the poet's con- ception of true moral heroism : Dare to be light ! dare to be true ! All the world's scorning can never harm you ; Stand by your conscience, your honor, your faith, Stand like a hero and battle till death. A good man is also a man of the severest virtue. He loathes that laxity in speech and behaviour too prevalent among so-called 196 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. respectable men at the present day. He is pure in thought and chaste in conversation. He takes his stand upon the morahty of the New Testament, and endeavors to inculcate it upon the mem- bers of his own family — in the circle of his acquaintances, and among his fellow- workmen. Foolish jesting, unseemly insinuations and covert inuendoes he loathes and spurns with holy indignation_ In the society of the profane and irreverent he cannot live ; if he cannot change its tone, he must withdraw. Such a good man is still further characterized by the strongest benevolence. There is something in his very voice and counten- ance that tells the generosity of his nature. He strives to live for the good of others. He is not simply a man who harms no one but he seeks the positive good of his fellow-men. His ear is ever open to the call of the destitute, and his hand ever ready to give for their relief To see the prosperity of others is his delight. Envy and hatred have no place in his nature. To strengthen the weak, advise the young, reclaim the fallen, restore the backslider, and bless all men, are the motives that govern his life. Such benevolence is a daily practice. It is not abnormal or spasmodic, or called into activity on extraordinary occasions, but sweetly colors and perfumes every action of his life. A good man also, is in the highest sense a man of sincerest piety. It is deep, earnest, heartfelt. It consists not only in the acceptance of doctrines, but in the practice of holiness. An abiding sense of God's presence ; a reverential regard for His commands ; a confident trust in His promises ; and implicit reliance upon His mercy, characterize such a man. Such piety may be more or less prominent, according to gifts bestowed and opportu- nities given. In many cases it is retiring ; but even then it wields a mighty influence for good. In every case it is pronounced and patent to the world. It makes no secret of the choice that has been made and the master whom it serves. ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 197 It is supposed that this Psalm was written when Saul was per- secuting David and those who were friendly to his cause and person. It was a time when deceitfulness and cruelty were in the ascen- dancy, and no means honorable or dishonorable regarded as immoral, in order that certain ends might be secured. Flattery, dcuble-dealing and oppression were rampant — the wicked and the vile were exalted to high position, and the godly despised and trampled on. The persons spoken of are the "godly" and the "faithful." The one term indicates the inner spiritual life — the other its outward manifestation or effects. Religion in the heart is the source of all real purity and honor, and is the only guarantee for honesty and justice in society. Men who have no fear of God and no love of truth ; who think it but a venial sin to violate the sanctions of heaven, can have no scruples about human law. When once a man ignores the claims of his Maker, and becomes careless in the obser- vance of religious obligations, there is nothing to prevent the com- mission of flagrant crimes. The word of a man who sincerely professes his faith in Christianity, and consistently acts up to the requirements of his creed, is better than the oath of a man who neither recognizes nor reverences the Divine being. The feeling that every action and thought is open to the inspection of the Almighty, is the best of safeguards against the practice of dishon- esty in word or deed. When such godly men are. plentiful, the nation prospers commercially, politically and religiously, but when they are few, and the influence of the few is overborne by the vicious and depraved, the downfall of the state is certain. The death of such good men, although most keenly felt by kin- dred spirits, is not always passed over with indifference, even by men of no religious principle. " Let me die the death of the righteous," is frequently found upon the lips of evildoers, when some tall cedar of Lebanon bends before the blast. Although the 198 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. upright life of such a man may have been for years a standing rebuke against their immorah'ty and wickedness, they cannot but testify to the consistent and noble career prematurely closed. And thus it is, that religion extorts from its enemies the highest praise ; — that men are bound to honor qualities in others which they systemati- cally and wilfully ignore, and pass sentence of condemnation upon their own wanton and wicked lives. Let us briefly indicate the value of such good men to society and the church of God. Godly and faithful men are the ornaments and support of the christian church. Their life is spent in her service. Their prayers ascend for her welfare. Their means are generously devoted to her advancement. The great aim of their existence is the pros- perity of Zion and the conversion of the world. The loss of such men cannot but be felt, just in proportion to their zeal and the prominence of their labors. If, as is often the case, they have been watchmen upon the high towers, men whose daily occupation has been the sacred duties of religion, and who have planned and directed measures necessary for successful aggression in the world, the blank seem.s all the more painful and the cause all the more hopeless. The rank and file of the army look around for the well- known voice of the commander, who has so often led them on to victory, and are for the time panic-struck and crest-fallen. Such men are also the hope of the world. They adorn whatever profes- sion of life they follow. If science, they stand at the top of the ladder, reverently endeavoring to unfold the mysteries of nature to the wondering gaze of thousands less gifted ; to reconcile the teachings of philosophy with the declarations of scripture, and glorify the power and wisdom of the Creator, who has so lavishly spread before man the variegated and suggestive volume of His handiwork. If it is true that "the undevout astronomer is mad," it is no less true that the philosopher who affects to teach any ABRAHAM LINCOLN. I99 branch of science apart from the great Creator, mistakes the end of all investigation. Such men there have been, and still are, but benefactors of their race they cannot be regarded as being. To dissever God from the universe, and teach that matter is eternal, and subject to no higher law, is surely a miserable calling for any man, however gifted in intellect, or shrewd in speculation. While a passing feeling of regret may be expended on such men when they pass away, it is rather for genius misdirected and misapplied, than for the loss the world sustains. Those men who endeavor to unfold to the common gaze the majesty of Jehovah, as seen in the mag- nificence and variety of creation, are the men whose names pos- terity will not willingly let die. Godly and faithful men are the hope of the world. They adorn whatever department or profession of life they occupy^ Their integrity is incorruptible — their honesty above impeachment —their honor untarnished. In times of public distrust and agita- tion and uncertainty, when men's minds are distracted by conflict- ing opinions, and the foundations of rectitude are undermined, such characters are invaluable. Men whose daily policy is expediency; who trim and vacillate to meet the demands of popular clamour ; whose idea of office is emolument and place and power, are not to be relied upon. In times of danger, a steady recognition of a higher tribunal than that of men ; moral worth and inflexible principle united to intellectual power, are the elements which constitute good citizens and good statesmen. Blessed is the nation that enjoys such rulers ; blessed is the community that possesses such sterling men of worth, at whose death the words of the text are spoken : " Help Lord, for the godly man ceaseth : for the the faithful fail among the children of men." There is still another reason why the death of such good men is lamented. Those of us who remain feel our personal need of such characters. There are persons whose society breathes per- 200 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. petual fragrance ; whose words drop like balm ; whose gentle demeanor and spiritual conversation, raises us above the grovelling atmosphere of earth, and makes us feel nearer heaven. Thfeir life is a perpetual inspiration. Their piety is of that cheerful healthy kind, that drives away despondency, and confirms weak faith. Such characters are to be found more or less in every church. We do not value such persons when alive as they deserve, or prize their unobtrusive graces and moral worth ; and hence our bitterness when they are removed. We feel that the world has suddenly grown darker — that the path is more desolate and stormy — that our hopes arc less bright and assuring, now that they no longer greet us with their smile and enliven us by their stimulating fellowship. What, then, is our comfort, when the godly man ceaseth and the faithful are taken away? David in the text indicates the only .source of aid, " Help Lord." " God is our refuge and our strength, a very present help in trouble." Now in regard to this prayer, notice first, its brevity. It is a kind of angel's word, to be turned every way, and to be used on all occasions. The cry for help is the earliest cry upon the lips of childhood, when seeking protection from the parent, and it is the most simple and natural cry of the believing soul. It indicates felt weakness ; that so far as man is concerned, there is no remedy and no assistance po.ssiblc ; and that reason of herself can suggest no way of escape from impending desolation. " Help Lord," says a living writer, " is a very useful ejaculation, which one may dart up to heaven on occasions of emergency, whether in labor, learning, suffering, fighting, living ot dying. As small ships can sail into harbors where larger vessels cannot enter, so our brief cries and .short petitions may trade with heaven, when our soul is wind bound as to longer exercises of devotion, and when the stream of grace seems at too low an ebb to float a more laborious supplication." In going to our Maker in times of sudden grief, we need not des- ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 201 cribe every feeling of the soul, nor enter into the particulars of our sorrow. " Help Lord " is sufficient. It is the cry of the drowning man, exhausted, and hardly able to articulate ; it is the cry of the fugitive who seeks a hiding place ; it is the cry of the man surroun- ded by the flames of fire — his head already singed and his body livid with the scorching heat ; it is the cry of despairing humanity in its varied hours of want and weariness — " I am undone, oppressed, undertake for me." ;- Notice, again, its seasonableness and serviccableness. When good men are removed, we are to look to God for others to supply their place. Prayer in such cases, to be acceptable, must be imme- diate. We ought at once to betake ourselves to a throne of grace, laying the case before our Maker and confiding in his gracious aid- It is not when all other means have failed, that we are to ask the aid of heaven. Such prayers are not seasonable. To act thus, is like a man buffeting for hours with the angry billows, when the life-boat has all the while been near him, and only taking refuge in its strength and buoyancy, when at the point of death. Such a prayer is also serviceable. In many periods of the church's history, such a brief ejaculation has been more effectual than the collective wisdom of an assembly. The defeat of the Amalekites was due to the intercession of Moses, more than the military strength of the Israelites or the skill of their commanders. And no better service can be rendered the church than earnest im- portunate cries for divine interposition in times of bereavement. Those who have not the capacity or strength for active labor, can accomplish in the secret retirement of the closet more than many who participate in the contest. To such pleading praying ones we are indebted for gracious seasons of revival in times of spiritual deadness, and large accessions of laborers to reap the fields that are white unto the harvest. 202 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. Finally, this prayer is the prayer of faith. Our cries are only effectual in so far as they are sincere. True faith does not dictate ■ — it waits patiently and submissively on the will of heaven. It looks beyond human wisdom, to Him who knows what agents are most suitable, and when and where their services are most urgently required. It holds the promise fast, that God will provide the in- struments necessary to fulfil his plans, and that failure cannot pos- sibly overtake his designs. It is wrong for us to despond because good and faithful men are translated to a higher sphere. Our duty is to cultivate hope and maintain our confidence in a prayer-hearing God. The cause which is dear to us, is still dearer to him. His son gave his life for the salvation of men, and the agents necessary to hasten on the millennial day glory shall not be withheld. If Moses dies before the Israelites cross the Jordan, Joshua is ready to take his place. If Elijah ascends in the chariot of fire, the man- tle falls upon Elisha. So it has been in every age. Our prayers may not be instantly answered. Help may not at once be given ; nay, the vacant place may be left unoccupied, and the work ad- vanced by altogether unexpected methods, but the result will be the same : In some way or oth°r, the Lord will provide : It may not be my way, It may not be thy way, And yet in his own way The Lord will provide. Despond, then, no longer, the Lord will provide : And this be the token — No word he hath spoken Was ever yet broken ; The Lord will provide. The frequent removals of great and good men teach us the comparative insignificance of any one man in the field of chris- tian effort. We may not boast of our wisdom or importance in the ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 203 scale of being. How little can any one individual accomplish ! When we survey the work that awaits completion — the vast details of human ignorance and suffering that stretches out on every hand — the feeling of utter helplessness, rather than self-sufficiency, should be uppermost in the mind. We can do so little that at times it seems as if it were no use to put forth effort ; and were it not for the assurance that along with us myriads of workers are engaged in the same sublime and noble work, and that God Him- self stands behind and above us, superintending, directing and crowning all with His blessed spirit, we should despair of anything like adequate results. They teach us also, that in the successful advancement of christian enterprises and in the reforming of public wrongs, the efforts of the many are demanded, and not the extra- ordinary energies of the few. In such circumstances, it becomes us not only to cry : " Help Lord, for the godly man ceaseth," but to ask ourselves what we are doing by our example and our efforts, to ameliorate human wretchedness and lessen human woe, " Be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises." " Remember them which have the rule over you, whose faith follow, considering the end of their conversation, Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, to-day and for ever." God give us men ! Men whom the lust of office cannot kill ; Men whom the spoil of office cannot buy ; Men who have opinions and a will ; Men who have honor — men who will not lie ! A good and in many respects a great man has been suddenly called away. Abraham Lincoln, a name henceforth to be held in highest honor is no more.* It is only in the briefest possible terms that we can speak of the character and actions of the dead Presi- *April, 1865. u 204 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. dent. The more secret virtues and private graces of his character are apt to be overlooked, by reason of the exalted station he occupied : That best portion of a good man's life, His little, nameless, unremembered acts Of kindness and of love. It is not often, indeed, that we are called to mourn the loss of such a man, for only once in a century does Providence give to the world, one in whom so many public and private virtues are so harmoniously blended. As statesman, as citizen, ahd as christian, where since the days of Washington and the earlier years of the Republic, shall we find such a President ? Firm in matters of principle — cautious (to a fault it has been thought) in his public actions, unflinching in his determination at all hazards to advance the cause of truth and liberty and good government — kind and conciliating on all occasions to foreign powers and their represen- tatives— forgiving to those who for the last four years have deluged the land with blood — and pure and virtuous in his private life — his character stands out before us, a noble example for princes and presidents to copy. His public and private record, so pure and untarnished, may well be the boast of his loving countrymen, and his memory dear to liberty-loving christians throughout the world. On such an occasion as the present we are brought to realize the power of a good man's life. "He being dead yet speaketh." His influence then really begins to influence the world, and mould the society in which he moved. Why is the lamentation to-day so universal, from Maine to California, from the Atlantic to the Pacific, and through this and the neighboring British provinces? Why are there here gathered, not sim.ply members of all the different evan- gelical denominations, but of every shade of politics ? Because "a prince and a great man has fallen this day in Israel." Great- ness and goodness are not always associated in life — too seldom, ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 205 indeed, in public men. In Mr. Lincoln's case they were. He was great in the moral qualities, with which, by a kind Providence, he had been endowed. He was great for what he did in behalf of his nation. We do not eulogize him as a great politician in the now much degenerated meaning of the word. To be a politician at the present day demands neither moral calibre nor earnest thought. A man destitute of these and all the other requisites of true greatness, can speedily attain political distinction — nay, the absence of prin- ciple will be all the more in his favor, if worldly promotion is his sole object in life, provided he has cunning, deceit, and the more dishonorable and dishonest practices that stain the character of so many public men. In this sense Mr. Lincoln was not great. But he was one of the greatest statesmen of his age and country, and subsequent critics will confirm our verdict when the mists of pas- sion and prejudice shall have cleared away. America, since the Revolution, has had many great and good men in her Cabinets and in her Presidential chair ; but Abraham Lincoln, next to Washing- ton himself, was in many respects the greatest. His greatness did not consist in any one special faculty or power overtopping and overshadowing all the other elements of his mind and character, but in the blending of many amiable qualities into one, giving to his conduct a solidity and a harmony it would not otherwise have possessed. He was great for what he was in himself. As you have heard already, he was a man of prayer. His piety was of that modest and unobtrusive character that shrinks from public obser- vation, but it could not be concealed. He was no stranger to his closet ; the dawn of morning, ere he entered upon his official duties, found him on his knees before his Maker, and doubtless his last act at the close of day was communion with his God. Not only so, but the most common affairs of state were permeated by the spirit of religion. " Not slothful in business, fervent in spirit, ser- ving the Lord," was the rule of his life. To this, what may be 206 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH called the fundamental quality of his life, may be added sterling honesty, great decision of character, strong affection for all good men, genuine patriotism in the interests of his beloved land, and sincere sympathy for the oppressed. All these elements were in his character, long before he was called to the Presidential chair, and because of the existence of such elements did his fellow- countrymen (directed by an all-wise Providence) choose him for the position he has for the past four years so singularly adorned. Abraham Lincoln was indeed one of the nobles of the earth. Because of his greatness and goodness was he called to the great work of ruling thirty millions of his fellow-countrymen. He was raised up to perform a great work. Providence had determined the overthrow of slavery on the American continent, and Abraham Lincoln was the appointed instrument for its destruction. Great men are raised up and specially trained for great exigencies in society and in the church. Moses, to be the commander and leader of the Israelites from Egyptian bondage to freedom ; Calvin, Knox and Luther, to carry on the work of ecclesiastical reformation ; Washington, to achieve the independence of America, and plant on firm foundations the new Republic ; and Wellington, to drive back the great Napoleon from the conquest of the world. It was not the exalted position of Abraham Lincoln that made him the great man and the good man he was. Circumstances can do noth- ing more than develop true greatness, whether in prince or peasant. The sun and the rain from heaven cannot develop brambles into oak trees, nor can the honors of the Presidential chair transform fools into statesmen. Abraham Lincoln was by nature and grace an uncommon man, but his noble qualities were rendered all the more conspicuous and illustrious, when roused into action by the agitations amid which he spent the last four years of his earthly life. Great in himself, he was great for what he did in behalf of his nation. He prepared the nation for its baptism of blood. His ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 207 speeches and addresses in various parts of the Union, long before the end of Buchanan's Presidency, did much to foster the anti- slavery sentiment of the North and prepare for days of comins;- trial. And what has he accomplished during the brief space of the last four years ? The state of the nation when Abraham Lincoln was called in 1861, to assume the responsible duties of government was desperate. For years, the corruption that festered in and around Washington, had made the very name of American Democracy a standing reproach throughout Europe. Traitors were everywhere — in the cabinet, and out of the cabinet. To dethrone avarice — to cleanse the fountains of the national life — to elevate justice — honor — honesty and christian principle to their true position was a task seldom given to any man. In this respect, the work of Lincoln was greater than that of Washington. Washington laid the foundations of a new government — Lincoln had to destroy — cut up by the roots, that poisonous system that for years had undermined the social fabric, before the first elements of reconstruc- tion could be initiated. Chosen at the most critical period in her history since the Revo- lution to guide the national councils, how wisely and prudently did he discharge his solemn responsibilities until, at last, we see the omens of returning peace and prosperity in that sadly desolated land. He revived the purity of the Presidential Chair — abolished slavery — of which he was ever a consistent opponent. " I am natur- ally anti-slavery, he wrote a year ago to Mr. Hodges, of Kentucky. If slavery is not wrong, nothing is wrong. I cannot remember when I did not so think and feel. " And amid all the anxieties consequent upon the last four years of bloody war, he not only pre- served the integrity of the national life, but restrained the passions of more impetuous and impulsive politicians, who would gladly have added a foreign war to that of civil discord. For this of itself, Abraham Lincoln deserves the lasting gratitude of Britons as well 2o8 THE CHURL \ AND THE COMMONWEALTH. as American Christians. But now he is gone, and what are the les- sons so impressively taught us by the sad event ? His death should certainly unite Britons and Americans closer than ever in the bonds of fraternal love ; the circumstances of that death, so atrocious and repulsive to the feelings of our common humanity, should teach us more plainly than ever what certain apologists of slavery are capa- ble of And if there are any who, notwithstanding the wonder- ful progress made by the North, are still dubious as to the issue of the contest, let them now understand that the death of Abraham Lincoln means universal freedom. There can be no doubt as to the issue. Slavery is at an end — the doctrine of States rights has been buried without any hope of resurrection. A real union will henceforth exist between the North and South, or rather I should say, there will henceforth be no such geographical or moral distinc- tions as North and South. The moral influence of the United States will be greater than ever over the globe, and her conquests in the field of christian civilization greater than they have ever been upon the battlefield. And may we not hope soon to see the da\- when Britain and America, forgetting all their criminations and recriminations, shall, as in days gone by, unite together for the spread of justice, liberty and christian missions throughout the world. Abraham Lincoln has gone — but great men never die before their time. His is One of the few — the immortal names That were not born to die. He is gone — not in the natural course of disease, but by the hands of the assassin. Four years of anxious care and ceaseless toil had furrowed his brow and mellowed his heart ;but he was thus all the better fitted for the important work before him in the recon- struction of his bleeding country. " One soweth and another reap- ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 209 eth. " He has sowed the seeds of liberty, but others in more peaceful times shall gather the fruit. " They never fail, who die in a good cause." Patriot Martyr ! thy blood, so cruelly shed, has not been shed in vain. It will rouse into action the nobler impul- ses of his bereaved nation, and ring the death-knell of slavery throughout the world. ^14 JAMES A. GARFIELD. President Garfield. " And Aaron held his peace." — Leviticus 10, v. 3. President Garfield. _>JN FORMER chapters, an account is given of the pubHc ^^ilw.'^ consecration of Aaron and his sons to the priesthood. '"' The ram of consecration having been slaughtered, "^S^ Moses took the blood, and applying it to the ears, and ^^ 1/ hands, and feet of Aaron and his sons, set them apart for V the service of the tabernacle. Following this solemn act, the congregation of Israel was summoned before the Lord, and the newly consecrated priests made atonement for themselves and for the people. The glory of the Lord then appeared, and the fire came down, consuming the burnt offering and the fat upon the altar, while the congregation shouted and fell upon their faces. Everything was now complete connected with the tabernacle ser- vice. The priests had been duly robed and mitred : the sacrifice offered and accepted : the priestly benedictions given to the people, and the visible manifestation of God's glory witnessed by the awe- struck congregation. Truly it was a sublime and memorable spec- tacle : a day long to be remembered in the history of Israel, and an earnest of still better days in store. (213) 214 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. But the joy was not of long continuance. Scarcely had the shout of victory and gladness passed away, before the voice of wail- ing was heard in the camp of Israel. Nadab and Abihu had but entered on the priestly office, when in the act of offering strange fire before the Lord, they were swiftly deposed from their holy vocation. Scarcely had the fire from heaven consumed the offering upon the altar, when that same fire returned to execute summary vengeance upon two of those very men, who but a little while be- fore had ministered in presence of the congregation. " Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took either of them a censor, and put incense thereon, and put fire therein, and offered strange fire before the Lord, which he commanded them not. And there went out fire from the Lord, and devoured them, and they died before the Lord !'' What was the sin of which they were guilty ? There was, first, a wilful disregard of God's command. They set up their own reason in opposition to the divine will. There was no room left for the introduction of anything of human origin, how- ever expedient it might appear. Every part of the tabernacle ser- vice was most minutely detailed by God to Moses, and by Moses to the priests. Nor was there reasonable ground for doubt as to the meaning of the instructions given. What Gcd had commanded, they were scrupulously to follow : what he had not commanded, they were to shun. Secondly, — Not only did they burn incense without God's com- mand, but they took common or "strange fire," with which to burn it. The fire from off the altar, kindled by the flame from heaven, was alone to be used for consuming sacrifices and burning incense. But instead of conforming to the divine instructions, they took fire used in preparing the flesh of the peace offerings. In their estima- tion, the one kind of fire was as good as the other. Thus to the sin of disobedience, they added insult. PRESIDENT GARFIELD. 215 Thirdly, — There are good grounds for beh'eving that when they committed this act of disobedience, they were intoxicated with wine. In the eighth verse of this chapter God says to Aaron : " Do not drink wine, nor strong drink, thou nor thy sons with thee, when ye go into the tabernacle of the congregation, lest ye die." Such a command, given immediately after this sad occurrence, leads us to infer that, forgetting the sanctity of their office and their persons, Nadab and Abihu became for the time the slaves of that vice, which from that hour to this has again and again dishonored the ministry, and blighted the most promising careers ! How needful that God's servants, when appearing in the sanctuary, should in the quaint words of old George Herbert, pray "that nothing may befall them unworthy of that majesty before which they are to present themselves, and that how or whensoever he punish them, it may not be in the act of the ministry." To die at the altar or in the pulpit is not indeed a translation to be dreaded by the faithful minister ; but to be smitten down by fire from heaven in the manifest exercise of judgment is a death beyond all others to be dreaded. The fire did not burn them to ashes — nay, did not so much as singe their garments. Wrapped in their robes of office, sprinkled and anointed, there they lay, a fearful monument of God's anger. As the Levites carried their dead bodies through the streets of the camp, what a solemn lesson was taught the people of becoming reverence in the worship of God ? God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of his saints, and to be had in reverence of all them that arc about him." When we pass within the veil and take our places as ministering priests in His sanctuary, our inmost thoughts are disclosed to that eye that penetrates the darkness and com- passest the utmost bounds of space. He takes in at a glance the hosts of heaven and the lost in hell. 2l6 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. And this brings me to speak more particularly of my theme — " The silence of grief." What were the feelings of the aged High Priest when he saw his two sons struck down by his side, we can but faintly conceive ! What affliction comparable to his? But a little while before they stood at the altar clothed in their garments of glory and beauty ; they saw the beams of the Divine brightness darting from the shekinah, and heard the shout of adoring wor- shippers ; now they lay cold in the grasp of death! "Aaron felt that the very pillars of his house were shaken " by the thunders of divine judgment, but he kept silence. It was not the silence of stoical indifference, but of submission to the divine will. He acknowledged the justice of their doom, and bowed his head beneath the rod. And so we read : "Moses said unto Aaron, this is it that the Lord spake saying : ' I will be sanctified in them that come nigh me, and before all the people I will be glorified.' i\nd Aaron held his peace." " Great sorrows," says an old philosopher, " are silent — light sor- rows speak." There are times when silence is more becoming and impressive than language : when we cannot speak. It was well Yor Aaron that he could thus restrain himself Whatever were his feelings as a father, as God's representative he dare not give way to tears. Both he and his remaining sons are prohibited from exhibiting the usual tokens of grief " Moses said unto Aaron, and unto Eleazar, and unto Ithamar, his sons : ' Uncover not your heads, neither rend your clothes, lest ye die, and lest wrath come upon all the people : but your brethren, the whole house of Israel, let them bewail the burning, which the Lord hath kindled." And so, under the shadow of this awful sorrow, Aaron performs his duties, as the consecrated priest of the Most High. It is his part not to weep nor mourn, but to worship and silently submit. What God hath done must be right, however painful for the human heart to bear. PRESIDENT GARFIELD. 21/ In similar terms Ezekiel the prophet was commanded to abstain from mourning for his wife. " Son of man, behold, I take away from thee the desire of thine eyes with a stroke ; yet, neither shalt thou mourn nor weep, neither shall thy tears run down. Forbear to cry, make no mourning for the dead, bind the tire of thine head upon thee, and put on thy shoes upon thy feet, and cover not thy lips, and eat not the bread of man. So I spake unto the people in the morning, and at even my wife died, and I did in the morning as I was commanded." Very beautiful has a living poet described the feelings of Ezekiel, when submissively he yielded -up his " only one to the will of heaven." The clouds had parted now, The love of God was shed abroad, within My broken heart. I could not say Him nay, Nor question Him. I laid my sacrifice Upon His altar not denying Him Mine only one. I bent to kiss her cheek, And blessed her softly in the name of God, And bade h'^r go in peace. Yea, with a smile Which God had given me, I loosed mv hold, And suii'ered her to rise and go with Him. This silence of grief, then, when the heart is so full that it almost breaks, is most impressive and significant. It tells that the bereav- ed heart has gained the victory over the human passions of the soul and bears resignedly the loss, and bows submissively to the wise though mysterious decree of heaven. "Rebellion speaks — resigna- tion holds its peace." We are not always, then, to measure the depth of inward feeling by the wailings of the chamber of death in the hour of bereavement. Nor are we to conclude that where there are no tears and no out- spoken words, there is but little heartfelt sorrow. Hearts are often so lacerated and bruised that they cannot find words to express the 2l8 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. acuteness of the pain endured. The agony of the soul so disar- ranges the entire system of nature that tears cannot flow. " Better, indeed, it is in such moments to retire within one's self, to collect our thoughts and meditate alone upon the heavy loss sustained, letting our tears fall back into the heart." But in the case of Aaron, this silence was not only symbolical of unutterable grief, but it also indicated acquiescence in the bereave- ment. This is what few of us attain in the hour of trial. We are so stupified and stunned by the suddenness and apparent severity of the blow, ^hat we can do nothing else than hold our peace, but not in the spirit of the Psalmist when he says : " I was dumb, I opened not my mouth, because thou didst it. " The Shunamitish woman, after the death of her son, when asked by Gehazi, the ser- vant of the prophet: " Is it well with thee? Is it well with thy husband ? Is it well with the child ?" answered, "it is well." Madame Guyon, it is said, buried her children without shedding tears, be- cause the God who had made them smile in infancy, made them smile more happily in another land. To her the day, cloudy and dark, or sunshine, was alike precious ; winter's storm was as wel- come as summer's calm. She lived not in the narrowness of self, but in the wider expanse of the Almighty. But it is not given to us all to concur in His will, who orders every event for the highest good. We fret and inveigh against the dealings of supreme wisdom, as if the Almighty were under obligations to disclose to us the reasons of his acts and the ultimate design of his sovereign will 1 Need I say that such conduct implies distrust of God's good- ness, and lack of faith in his wisdom. To acquiesce in his provi- dential dealings, it is not necessary that we should understand at once the meaning of his chastisements :— why they are so sudden to human judgment so perplexing, and in circumstances so dis- tressing. That He has done it, should be enough to quell every PRESIDENT GARFIELD. 219 rising complaint, and hush to silence every murmur. " The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away, blessed be his holy name." Now there are just such periods when we are called upon to make proof of our submission, under severe calamities. " There are great tidal waves of sorrow, that sweep through the sea of life from time to time, and cover the soul with their dark impenetrable surge, and shut out the sunlight like a grave. They come without warning, and we cannot understand their cause. When they roll back, they leave us with changed lives. Much that we have been for a long time building up, is swept away : treasures that we counted great, are left in ruin, and all our moral nature left a stranded debris." It is in such crises of life, that we are to bridle our tongue, and keep watch over our lips. The world is quick to judge of the inconsistencies in the conduct of those who profess to be the children of God, and when they find irritability, bitterness, and revenge, where there should be quiet resignation and childlike trust in all God's appointments, they conclude that religion has no power to change the life. Dr. Macdonald, the great apostle of the North, had a son in the ministry, who at the call of providence surrendered his charge in the great city of London, to go forth as a missionary to India. Just when on the threshold of his work, he was called away. How his aged father received the sorrowful tidings is told in his memoirs, and strikingly illustrates the spirit of the text. In 1847, when on one of his preaching tours in Perthshire, and just before entering the pulpit, a letter was put into his hands. Intent upon his work, he put it unopened into his pocket. Next day as he was travelling, he recollected the letter, and on opening it found the tidings of his son's death. A few groans from a father's wounded heart, and a few tears from a fond father's eyes, and the christian triumphed over the man ; and with his heart he said, " It is' well." On reach- ing home, he preached from these words in his own pulpit. It is 220 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. well, he said, that he was born : it is well that he was educated : it is better far, that he was born again : it is well that he was licensed to preach the gospel : it is well that he was ordained as a pastor : it is well that he went to India ; and above all, it is well for him that he died : for thus, though away from us, and absent from the body, he has secured the gain of being for ever with the Lord. Such language is the spirit of the text, and such should be our attitude under the bitterest griefs, that leave the urn empty, and darken the lights of the dwelling. Give me thy joy in sorroWj gracious Lord, And sorrow's self shall like to joy appear ! Although the woild should waver in its sphere, I tremble not, if thou thy peace afford. Peace then my heart, Beyond the world's sad vibrating, and in thyself Circle me, that I may feel no touches save of thee. Thus far we have spoken of the text in its relation to personal afflictions that are beyond our ken — that perplex the profoundest thought and make the strongest faith to falter." But similar be- reavements take place in the church and nation that compel men to pause amid the busy hum of life and stand aghast, petrified as it were, under the blow that makes the ship of state to tremble and the pillars of the commonwealth to shake. High hopes are in a moment crushed. The leaders of thought and valiant champions of truth and righteousness fall in the ranks, and the host wavers in the face of the enemy. It is as when in a moment the brightness of a summer's day is eclipsed by storm and darkness, and the gentle sighings of the wind give place to the thunder peal, and the angry breath of the simoon sweeps over the plain, spreading devastation and death in its pathway. Reason stands abashed in presence of such unthought of and sudden tragedies, and can only say : " He maketh the clouds his chariots, and walketh upon the wings of the wind. He toucheth the land and it melts, and all that dwell there- PRESIDENT GARFIELD. 221 in mourn. He makes darkness his secret place, his pavilion round about him are dark waters and thick clouds of the skies ;" while faith replies : " Righteousness and judgment are the habitation of his throne. Shall mortal man be more just than God ? Shall a man be more pure than his Maker ? The Lord reigneth, let the earth rejoice." Before such mysterious deeps of providence that confound human wisdom, we must be silent. Blind unbelief is sure to err, And scan his work in vain ; God is his own interpreter, And he will make it plain. Judge not the Lord by feeble sense, But trust Him for his grace ; Behind a frowning providence, He hides a smilintj face. You can easily understand why I have selected these words for my discourse. In common with our stricken brethren in the United States, we are stunned and sorely amazed under the heavy calamity that has occupied the thoughts of our citizens and filled the columns of our newspapers during the last few days. It is indeed hard to realize that one so eminently qualified to be the ruler of a great nation ; so well fitted by nature and grace, by culture of mind and tenderness of soul — should be smitten by the hand of the assassin, and after weary days and nights of intense agony, when the courage and patience of the sufferer, and the skill and watchfulness of friends and physicians, battled against death, should at last give up the struggle and sink into that slumber that knows no waking till the resurrection morn ! To moralize in the presence of such an over- whelming grief is useless. It becomes us, like Aaron, to hold our peace, believing that what we know not now, we shall know here- 222 THE CHURCH AND THE COMxMONWEALTH. after, when we no longer see as through a glass darkly, but face to face. It is unnecessary to recite the details of his life. His recent elevation to the highest gift within the offer of his countrynncn, and his sudden, sad, and tragic end, have invested them with a singular and profound interest. His death has but reflected the fortitude and endurance of his youth and manhood, and brought into view the indomitable will that enabled him to rise superior to obstacles that overcome ordinary men. Religion was to him no new thing* We are told that when a college boy, camping among the moun- tains, he used at eventide to take out his Bible and say : — " Boys, at this time of evening I am apt to read a passage of Scripture ; if you would like to hear it, I will read a chapter now." And then one of his companions was called upon to pray, and they all knelt in their summer tent. In the war he acted as chaplain to his men. His last solemn act, before leaving Mentor for Washington, was to take the holy sacrament of the supper, while tears of emotion rolled down his cheek. On the first opportunity offered, after he was shot, he said to Doctor Sunderland that he trusted all in the Lord's hand, for he was equally ready to die or live. And not long since, when the end seemed near, his attendant physicians said : " There is no need telling him he has to die, for he said at the start he had no preparations to make." God saw fit to beat and bruise the poor body upon the anvil and refine the soul in the sevenfold heated furnace, that when at length the hour of release arrived he should at once awake in the image of his Saviour. But at last, sweetly calm, like the passing away of a strain of music, or the dying out of the light of a summer's day, he escaped from pain and weakness to rest and immortal youth. Swift was the transition from the seeming unconsciousness of the death bed surroundings to the full realization of heaven's wonders. The weary voyager stepped on shore, and that shore was paradise ; he took hold of a hand, and PRESIDENT GARFIELD. 223 found it the hand of his elder brother ; he breathed a new air, and found it celestial air ; he passed from storm and tempest to unbrok- en calm ; he awoke and found it glory. President Garfield was the product of his age and country, where, in common with our own land, the highest honors are within the reach of the humblest sons of toil. Every step from the canal boat to the White House was marked by earnest, conscientious effort. Alike in the field and in the forum, he was the same brave, self-reliant, God-fearing man. In the words of Tennyson, we may describe him as — A divinely gifted man, Whose life in low estate began, And on a simple village green, Who breaks his birth's invidious bar, And grasps the &kirts of happy chance, And breasts the blows of circumstance, And grapples with his evil star. Who makes by force his merit known, And lives to clutch the golden keys, To mould a mighty state's decrees, And shape the whisper of the throne. And moving up from high to higher, Becomes on fortune's crowning slope, The pillar of a nation's hope, The centre of a world's desire. And now, what are some of the lessons taught us by the death of such a good and gifted man ? First, — The awful uncertainty of life. Possessed of a noble physique, and a sound constitution, that had been braced and buili up by healthy exercise, and a stranger to those liquors and indul- gences that so often sow the seeds of disease in the human frame — who so likely to live to fourscore years as President Garfield ? He seemed as one who, after serving his day and generation well, would 224 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. enjoy a long evening of repose, free from the cares of public office, and come to his grave like a shock of corn fully ripe. The afternoon had just begun, When came the calm of even time ; Men said his life was at the prime ; God said, His servant's task was done. Death plies his sickle among the green grain as well as the ripe, and blights the most promising forms of manhood long before, to human conception, the life is complete and fully rounded out. Secondly, — We are taught the vanity of earthly greatness. Higher, socially and politically, he could not go. In an incredibly short space of time he had vaulted from poverty to comparative affluence ; from obscurity to the Republican throne. When he took the oath of office, amid the rejoicings of a loyal people, how bright seemed the prospect before him ! The head of fifty millions of freemen, the equal in point of influence and power and intellect of the crowned heads of Europe ; grasping the reins of office at a time when the dark lines of separation between the North and South were growing dim, and when everything betokened content- ment and harmony within the land — how grand and enviable seemed his lot ! Men regarded him as raised up and selected by Provi- dence to break down faction and blot out the party strifes of for- mer years, and heal the wounds of bleeding hearts, made by an unnatural war that decimated so many homes. Not many weeks before his inauguration as President, he was present and spoke on the occasion of the unveiling of a monument to the memory of soldiers who died in that unhappy rebellion. Among other things he said : " 1 once entered a house in old Massachussets, where over its doors were two crossed swords. One was the sword car- ried by the grandfather of its owner, on the field of Bunker Hill, and the other was the sword carried by the English grand sire of his wife, on the same field, and on the same day of conflict. Under PRESIDENT GARFIELD. 225 those crossed swords, in the restored harmony of domestic peace, lived a happy and contented and free family, under the h'ght of our repubhcan Hberties. And so I trust the time is not far distant, when under the crossed swords and the locked shields of Ameri- cans, North and South, our people shall sleep in peace, and rise in liberty, love, and harmony, under the union of one flag of the stars and stripes." Such a prophecy will yet be verified, but the lips that spoke such noble sentiments are now cold, and the heart that cher- ished them has passed away. Well may we say : Tho boast of heraldry, the pomp of power, And all that beauty, all that wealth e'er gave, Await alike the inevitable hour ; The path of glory leads but to the grave. Thirdly, — We are taught the grandeur of the Christian's death- bed. Not as a stoic, defiant of disease, and nerving himself against pain by an almost superhuman effort, but as a sinner, saved by atoning blood, did he face the enemy. The sting of death was ex- tracted— its venom removed. Some call it a manly death — it was all this and more. It was an heroic death, because faith in the in- visible made suffering easy of endurance. It is ever so. In that dread hour when heart and flesh faint and fail ; when we approach the dark mysteries of the valley ; when the eye loses its lustre, the tongue its speech, the mind its retentive- ness, and the soul its consciousness ; nothing can give assured hope of a blissful immortality but simple trust in the merits of the cruci- fied one. The consciousness that we have lived to some purpose, and that we have possibly served the state faithfully in the Senate or on the field, is of value. " To live in hearts we leave behind is not to die." But the best of patriots and benefactors have no monuments to mark their graves. Nor do they need them, for their memory is imperishable. *15 226 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. On fame's eternal camping ground, Their silent tents are spread ; While glory guards, with solemn round, The bivouac of the dead. Better far is the knowledge in a dying hour that Jesus waits us, to Efive us a crown of immortelles that never fades. U. S. GRANT. General Grant. " Whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it." — 1st Corinthians 12, v. 26. General Grant. HERE is no schism in the human body. It is so con- -^^ stituted that the eye and the ear, the foot and the arm ^ii^ are intimately connected and interested in the well- being of each other. All alike are necessary to the complete physical organization of the individual man. The bodv is one, though composed of different members. There is a common consciousness. You cannot pain the one without causing pain in the very centre of life. Thus if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it ; or if one member be honored, all the members rejoice with it. So it should be with the church of Christ. The visible body of believers is made up of individuals, not isolated nor independent, but related to each other in the closest bonds. From this union there springs sympathy — a bearing of each other's burdens — a sharing of each other's sorrows. Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep v>'ith them that weep, is the law of christian fellowship. " For whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it ; or one member be honored, all the members rejoice with it." (229) 230 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. The same ought to be true of christian nations. As the welfare of the individual state or province depends upon the conduct of the units that compose it, so the best interests of society and the world at large are served by the co-operation of christian states and nations, in all that is productive of virtue and integrity, and by each showing sympathy with the other in whatever appeals to the better instincts of our common humanity. More especially it be- comes nations that have sprung from a common ancestry, who are of one blood and one language, whose laws and customs are in the main alike, and whose institutions are founded upon a common Christianity, to testify to the world that geographical boundaries and minor differences in forms of government cannot restrain or repress that overflow of genuine feeling, when sister common- wealths suffer the loss of eminent statesmen, or stand around the grave of those who have fought their battles, vindicated their honor, and advanced the world-wide cause of humanity and freedom. Such sympathy has not been wanting in later years between Great Britain and the United States, and it is in itself one of the strongest evidences of that good feeling which exists and is increas- ing between two nations, which should mutually and conjointly seek, above their own private interests, the good of mankind in every clime and country. The touching messages flashed beneath the ocean from Queen Victoria to the widows of martyred Presi- dents and dead commanders, have done more to cement the old and new worlds in bonds of lasting brotherhood, than all the treaties and diplomacies of skilled and crafty statesmen. It is, therefore, eminently fitting that in this land and in this city and church, where many present have assembled in former years to pay the tribute of affectionate regard to the memories of Lincoln and Garfield, we should seek to know something of those elements of character that made the life of General Grant so con- spicuous, his death so lamented, and his memory so dear to the GENERAL GRANT. 231 nation that he loved and served so well. Not to speak words of extravagant eulogy over the dead, nor seek to minimize or excuse any faults and failings which may have marked the life of the dead soldier, are we met to-night, but to unite with the great heart of the world, which is ever just, in paying homage to the memory of a man, who fearlessly, faithfully and unselfishly did his duty accord- ing to the light he had ; and to magnify that grace by which he was ultimately led in childlike faith to acknowledge his dependence upon Him who made him what he was, and gave him strength to -do what he did. The death of General Grant has called forth in almost every quarter of the civilized world unmistakable declarations that true nobility of nature, independent of accidental birth and fortune, com- mands universal regard, and deserves the highest honors. West- minster Abbey (when the flags on the royal residences of Windsor and Osborne were lowered), crowded with the representatives of royalty and the bravest English hearts, all united in paying respect to the memory of one, not of their own but of another land, pre- sented a sight that only at great intervals occurs in the history of civilized and christian nations. The barriers of rank and party, and national differences, disappear on such occasions. Palace, castle and hovel are alike in tears. By men who inhabit distant lands and speak diverse tongues, the pangs of a personal bereavement are felt as they join in solemn service in memory of the dead. As Federal and Confederate soldiers lift the bier, word comes across the ocean that the nations of the earth bow their heads in silent grief. It is no blind and sudden impulse which impels such deep and wide-spread mourning. It is the verdict of mankind upon a great character (whose deeds have electrified the world), now unex- pectedly closed, after a long and painful sickness. As has been aptly said, " those who fear that religious faith is dying, and that science has shaken the hold of moral law upon the minds of men, 232 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. are staggered and rebuked by the sight." No base or ignoble passions could so move the nations of the earth. But a single life is stricken down, and a dark cloud seems to settle on the sky and obscure the sun. Men speak with bated breath. The minute gun, the muffled drum, the tolling bell, silence in senate chambers and courts of justice and halls of learning, public buildings draped in black, mourners marching by the tens of thousands with measured step to the saddest music, the land filled with lamentations " from the savannahs of the South to the snow-capped hills of the North, and from where the Atlantic moans along its ancient coast, to where the Pacific sobs on its golden shore," — all tell that a king among men is dead ! Who was this man thus followed to the tomb by a hundred thousand of his own countrymen ? I need not give details of his early life. These are to be found in the pages of biography. Like Abraham Lincoln, the rail splitter and Mississippi boatman, who finally became the most honest and God-fearing of modern states- men ; like Garfield, who, from a poor shoeless child, rose to be teacher, preacher and President — so Grant, from the tannery of Galena, became the foremost man of his age, the hero of many battles and the chief citizen of a nation, which, second to none other, moulds the civilization and directs the destinies of the world. How different the circumstances connected with the birth of men ! The birth of a prince is announced by salvos of artillery and the ringing of joy bells in city, town and hamlet ; but the poor man's son enters the world unnoticed. " Weigh them both in the scale of eternity and the difference between them is not perceptible. In both cases a life has begun which shall never end — a heart begins to throb which must be filled with delight or anguish — a soul has sprung into being which shall outlive the earth and see the sun ex- tinguished as a taper in the sky." In both cases the conduct of the individual, independent of the adventitious circumstances of rank or GENERAL GRANT. \ 233 fortune, makes the life commonplace or grand, a source of blessing or a perpetual curse ! General Grant was born in a sphere far off from the one for which God ultimately intended him. For some forty years he lived in comparative obscurity, giving but little indication of his wonder- ful genius and strength of will. But these years were not lost. During that period he was being prepared for the great work of his life, when called not simply to save a naton from dismember- ment, but to give a new direction to the civilization of the world. *' The workings of his masterful mind were hidden beneath the silence of his lips ; but when the supreme moment came, there came also an intellectual elevation, an up-liftingof the whole being, a transformation of the silent, thoughtful General, which surprised his foes and astonished his friends. He culminated at the crisis, and was at his best when most needed." It is Longfellow, I think, who says that great men stand like solitary towei s in the city of God, and secret passages running deep beneath external nature, give their thoughts intercourse with higher intelligences, which strength- ens and consoles them, and of which the laborers on the surface do not even dream. It was so in the case of Grant. He did more than was expected of him. Other men of more brilliant records failed where he was successful. Undemonstrative, taciturn and silent, he passed on from victory to victory, so unheralded and quietly as to win for him the gratitude of his own people and the admiration of the world. In General Grant's case, as in the case of many others who have served their country, it may be said : The strength that makes a nation great, In secret is supplied ; The energies that build the state, In humble virtues hide. From christian homes among the hills, The streams of influence flow ; The force that fights with earthly ills, And overcomes the foe. 234 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. The noblest benefactors of the world, in science, literature, phil- anthropy and religion, have sprung from lowly origin. Sextus the fifth from being a swineherd, was called to wave a sceptre ; Fergu- son spent his early days in tending sheep ; God called him to look after stars, and be a shepherd watching the flocks of light " on the hill sides of heaven." Hogarth, the wonderful artist and painter, began life by engraving pewter pots ; Bloomfield sat for a time on the shoemaker's bench ; God called him to sit in the chair of a philosopher and scholar ; Hawley was called from soap boiling in London, to become one of the greatest astronomers of England ; Martin Luther was the son of a peasant miner ; Virgil, the son of a potter ; Demosthenes, of a smith ; Columbus, of a cloth weaver ; Ben Johnson of a brick layer ; Shakespeare of a wool trader ; Burns, "^of a cotter ; Whitfield, of an inn-keeper ; Carlyle of an Ecclefechan farmer ; Henry Kirke White, that poetic genius, whose dust lies outside the walls of Rome awaiting a blessed resurrection, was the son of a Nottingham butcher, and David Livingstone, whose re- * mains rest in Westminster Abbey — the model missionary of the world — was, when a boy, a cotton piecer and spinner. As the poet says : These souls flash out like the stars of God, From the midnight of the mine : I No castle is theirs, no palace great, No princely pillared hall ; But they well can laugh at the roofs of state, 'Neath the heaven which is over all. Each bares his arm for the ringing strife. That marshals the sons of the soil. And the sweat-drops shed in the battle of life Are gems in the crown of toil ; And prouder their well-worn wreaths, I trow, Than laurels with life-blood wet ; And nobler the arch of a bare, bold brow, Than the clasp of a coronet. GENERAL GRAi^T. 235 Hard work and poverty, self-control and misfortune, often make self-reliant, courageous, and victcrious spirits. Rich men's sons are heavily weighted in the race of existence. " A basketful of bonds and debentures is the heaviest burden that a young man can carry. The temptations of wealth and affluence are such as to sink the most promising lives." Had such been the lot of Grant, how dif- ferent in all likelihood would have been the meridian and close of his life ! It was the early discipline he underwent and the drud- gery of mental toil that prepared him for the command of the American army, and subsequently for the onerous duties of the Presidential chair. No man can become a ruler of men, who does not rule his own spirit and deny himself ease and indulgence in early years. He who steadily and patiently applies himself to the work of to-day, and discharges his duties to his fellow-men in a spirit of unselfishness and as under the eye of his Maker, is the man who when the crisis comes is found equal to its demands. The hour came when the Republic needed a strong, calm, iron-clad will to direct its armies and save its very life, and with the hour came the man. At once he was recognized as a dominant magnetic spirit, mighty in grasp of details ; strong in purpose ; facile in execution ; not easily daunted or discouraged ; far-seeing and determined ; a man who reasoned out his campaigns, and fought them with a ten- acity of purpose that inspired confidence in his colleagues and sub- ordinates. The nation at once felt the touch of a master's hand, and the rebellion was crushed under the potency of his iron will. It was not mere good fortune or luck, as some historians have asserted, that made Grant the saviour of his country, although it need not be disputed that he was called to command at an oppor- tune hour, but " by the upward gravitation of natural forces," by inflexible faithfulness, indomitable resolution, sleepless energy and persistent tenacity, he rose step by step to the highest position a nation can offer a citizen. 236 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. And yet, like many brave men who preceded him in command of the northern army, there was a time when it looked as if he also might be recalled and added to the many who had failed to satisfy the eager, impetuous, and at times unreasonable cry for a speedy termination of the war — a war that for extent and fierceness has but seldom been equalled in the history of the world. Seward, the able and acute Secretary of State, prophesied that in ninety days peace would be restored, and on this false, though not unnatural assumption, many able generals, who had in succession commanded the army of the Republic, but who could not accomplish impossi- bilities, were consigned to private life, or relegated to inferior posi- tions. Grant's military genius suffered such momentary deprecia- tion. The nation, bleeding at every pore, and almost driven to desperation, became impatient, exacting, and clamorous for immed- iate results. But Grant heard, as if he heard it not. He had the rare grace of silence under provocation. He knew that time was essential to the mighty undertaking entrusted to his hands, and that neither civilians nor carping editors could grasp the deadly struggle in which the nation was engaged. He waited patiently for the storm to pass ; uttered no word of complaint ; attempted no explanation nor vindication of his plans ; and kept on assured of ultimate success. Like all self-possessed men, who have thorough- ly matured and mastered their powers, he heeded not public clamor. To the cry for speedy victories, he only replied : " I propose to fight it out on this line, if it takes all summer. " He did so, and the end justified the wisdom of the great General, and the means employed to crush the rebellion, and restore lasting peace and good will between North and South. Among many exceedingly pleasing traits of character illustrated in his life, may be found the following : I. The modest estimate he entertained of his own part in the war for the preservation of the Union, and the generous and un- GENERAL GRANT. 237 stinted praise which he lavished on ofifiicers and men. In the battles of the Wilderness he illustrated the saying of Wellington at Waterloo, " Hard pounding, gentlemen ; we shall see who will pound the longest :" and he won that campaign by simple pertina- cious pounding. But in the campaign against Vicksburg, an ap- parently invulnerable fortress was captured "by a combination of brilliant conception, execution and patient perseverance, against what were at first superior odds, and despite serious difficulties within his own camp, and in the attitude of both government and people behind his back." And yet so far from taking any special credit to himself for what was admitted on all hands to be the greatest military triumph of the war, he simply said : " The cam- paign of Vicksburg was suggested and developed by circumstances ; Providence directed its course, while the army of the Tennesee ex- eeuted the decree ! " II. Like all really great and good commanders, he hated wan and was by inclination a man of peace. It was not that he delight- ed in battle's stern array, that he stood in the breach at the call of his countrymen, and directed movements that resulted in the death of many foemen worthy of a nobler end. He regarded war as a ghastly monster, " whose march is to the widow's sigh and the or- phan's cry." In his London speech of 1877 he said : — " Although a soldier by education and profession, I have never felt any sort of fondness for war and I have never advocated it, except as a means of peace." This is the right view to take of war. Battles are grand to read about, when looked at from afar, and often are grand in their results, but those who take part in them and know most about them are far from lavish in their praise. Louis Napoleon, although seemingly regardless of bloodshed, had his dreams badly haunted by the slaughter of Solferino. The field of Waterloo and such scenes made Wellington detest its ravages and lament its necessity. Indeed, every rightly constituted mind must join in the Psalmist's 238 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. prayer : " Scatter thou the people that delight in war." feut bad as war is, there are some things worse. When war is the only al- ternative to redress national grievances, or end flagrant wrongs, it is right and proper, despite of its horrors. While we deprecate its evils, and pray that it may never again touch our borders, we are not of those who regard it as the greatest calamity that can afflict a nation. While war has slain its thousands, peace has slain its tens of thousands. In the breast of all noble minded men there has been implanted the feeling that war, and even death, in a good and virtuous cause, is preferable to ignominious servitude. To use the language put into the mouth of a Roman Senator : A Christian people cannot long debate Which of the two to choose — Slavery or Death 1 A day, an hour of virtuous liberty Is worth a whole eternity of bondage. If such views be correct, then that nation which prepares for war in times of peace shows the highest wisdom. In surrounding herself with the necessary elements of defence, and having ready at her call strong arms and willing hearts to vindicate the country's honor and bear aloft the flag of freedom, she ensures her safety and perpetuity. It was this feeling that prompted Grant to accept the leadership of the northern army, and fight against men with whom he had much in common. Personal friendships he sacrificed on the altar of his country's liberties. He felt that nothing but the sever- est measures could preserve the Union inviolable, and blend all its parts and parties in more indissoluble bonds than ever they had been before. It is neither the time nor place to refer at length to the war that brought General Grant into such prominence. Now that it is a thing of the past, and North and South have been welded as one over the grave of the dead hero, it is better to be silent than rake up the smouldering ashes of those fires that for a time burned so GENERAL GRANT. 239 fiercely. But this much may be ventured, that the two elements that had existed for a century in the United States (indeed prior to the revolution of 1776), could not in the nature of things con- tinue for ever. The so-called irrepressible conflict between abo- litionists and pro-slavery men, could not be put down. It meant either the annihilation of the Union, or the annihilation of slavery. It ended as we all know in the latter, in the emancipation and en- franchisement of the negro, but not as some would have it, in the humiliation of the South. Rapidly recovering from what she lost, by a system entailed upon her by preceding generations, she bids fair to become the rival of the Northern States, in all that apper- tains to the highest civilization and the purest morality. The conduct of General Grant after the war, in his eagerness to efface all scars and put an end to estrangements and bitter ani- mosities, is still lovingly remembered by the Southern States. It is well known that after the lamented death of Lincoln, President Johnson was determined to make an example of such Southern generals as Lee and others, who had been foremost in defying the Northern arms. Grant protested against and resisted such pro- ceedings. He said that the honor of the nation was at stake — that by the conditions of surrender such men could not be sacrificed. The manly courage of a soldier's heart thus saved many Confeder- ates from an ignominious death. For this, is it wonderful, that the South respected him when living, and honor him when dead ! III. The humility of the dying soldier, his consideration for those who waited upon him through his long days and nights of suffer- ing ; his chastened resignation to God's will ; his calm, unostenta- ticus, but implicit trust in the mercy of God, are among the sweet- est recollections that can be cherished of his memory. The closing days of the Duke of Wellington were marked by the same childlike simplicity and gratitude. After one of his last and greatest victories, he went to receive the sacrament, and as he 240 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. was kneeling in the church a poor man came and knelt beside him. The church warden said : "Go away, this is the Duke of Welling- ton." The great conqueror of Waterloo replied : " Let him alone — we are equal here ! " And when the Duke was dying, the last thing he took was a little tea. On his servant's handing it to him in a saucer, and asking him if he would have it, he replied in the last words he spoke, " Yes, if you please." How much kindness and courtesy is expressed in them ! He who had commanded the greatest armies in Europe and had long been accustomed to the throne of authority, did not despise or overlook the smallest cour- tesies of life. It was very much the same with General Grant. He was gently considerate of those who waited upon him, and often urged them to take rest. On the night preceding his death he turned to those who were watching lovingly by his bedside and said : " Do not stop up — do not distress yourselves on my account." To his son he said, indicating his solicitude for her, who had so long shared his humble and his grander life : " I hope mother will bear up," while to herself he said : " Do as I do, take it quietly ; I give myself not the least concern. If I knew the end was to-morrow, I would just try as hard to get rest in the meantime. Go to sleep and feel happy, that is what I want to do, and am going to try, for I am happy M'hen out of pain. Consider how happy you ought to be. Good night." And such was the tenderness of his love for her, he surprised her by a letter found upon his person after death: He had written it at intervals and secretly, and carried the missive for fourteen days, knowing that she would find it after his death. It read as follows : " Look after our dear children, and direct them in the paths of rectitude. It would distress me far more to think that one of them should depart from an honorable, upright, and virtuous life, than it would be to know that they were prostrated on a bed of sickness from which they were never to arise alive. GENERAL GRANT. 24I They have never given us any cause for alarm on their account, and I earnestly pray they never will. With these few injunctions and the knowledge I have of your love and affection, and of the dutiful affection of all our children, I bid you a final farewell, until we meet in another and I trust a better world. You will find this on my person after my demise." But it is asked, what of General Grant's religious belief? How did he meet the Jast enemy ? Was he merely reconciled to the inevitable stroke of death by a soldier's stoicism ? Were his fears all removed ? Was his acceptance of Christ and the atonement real ? Was his end perfect peace ? Was the dark valley illumin- ated by the radiance of the New Jerusalem ? I think that no one who places any confidence in the honesty and dying declarations of the dead soldier can doubt his simple faith in the merits of the Lord Jesus Christ. His best friends and admirers would doubtless have wished that long before his last illness, he had .been more pro- nounced and outspoken regarding that faith in v/hich he died. Like many who preceded him in the Presidential chair. Grant was not a member in full communion of any church. Though he regularly attended public worship and took considerable interest in congre- gational apffairs, he never sat down at the Lord's table, and was baptized but a short time before his death. Referring to this fact, Dr. Byron Sutherland, of W^ashington, in whose church General Grant for some time worshipped (and where President Cleveland attends), said in his mem.orial sermon : " On this topic, at a most solemn moment in the experience of the nation, I will not forbear to avow, what I have many times repeated on former occasions, that no more essential or important duty belongs to our public men, than making a public profession of their christian faith through the solemn ordinances of the christian church. The value of such testimony, given in such a manner to the contemporary and com- ing generations, is simply priceless. If men believe in Christ, let *16 242 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. them have the candor and courage to confess, and that in the most solemn forms which the rites of the church impose. It is not good to postpone this profession against all the chances of a sudden death, for while a man may count on the divine compassion to the last moment, he ought not to hazard the opportunity of leaving behind him the most positive evidence he can ever give of his peace with God through faith in Jesus Christ our Lord." With such manly words we heartily agree. In spite of his many noble qualities, General Grant is not held up as a perfect example. But what shall we say of the many in all our churches, who, in cir- cumstances perhaps more favorable to decision for Christ, still delay to act ? Grey hairs are upon their heads, and they know it not. And what shall we say of those, who although for many years members of christian churches, can hardly be distinguished from the most ungodly around them? In the character of General Grant, the gold and iron were mingled with the clay. But in the case of many of his detractors, there is the clay without the gold and iron. To-night, therefore, in thankfulness for what God made him by nature, and still more by grace, we bury his faults in the grave and make his virtues bloom above it. We magnify that divine spirit that enabled the hero of so many battles, even at the last to acknowledge his dependence upon the mercy of God, and cling to covenant promises in a dying hour ; while at the same time we warn the careless ones not to rest contented with the hope that they may enjoy the same. " Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my last end be like his," is a very pious sentiment, but un- less accompanied by personal faith and practical godliness, is of no avail. In this connection it may not be out of place to refer to the purity of his speech and his utter abhorrence of everything that savored of profanity. In an age like this, when oaths and reckless appeals to the Almighty, and unchaste inuendoes are found upon GENERAL GRANT. 243 the lips of men of far greater pretensions to piety than General Grant, such an example should not be without value. Even in the stress of battle an oath never polluted his lips. His speech was pure up to the standard of maidenly chastity. Mr. Pierpont, the American Minister to Great Britain in 1877, tells of one occasion when he and General Grant dined at the house of a distinguished politician. The subject of religion in some way was introduced, and one man present treated it with mockery. Grant showed his feelings by abstaining from all further conversation with the man, and on leaving said to the ambassador, "the conversation of that man so shocked me, that I could not talk nor enjoy the dinner." On the General's staff during the war, in one of his campaigns, was a rough and ready fighter, full of strange oaths and stranger vul- garities. One evening, in the presence of Grant and several brother officers, he opened the conversation in some such way as this, " I have got a mighty good thing to tell you. It would hardly do to repeat, of course, in the presence of ladies." " Well," said the Gen- eral, interrupting him in his firm, but quiet way, "allow me to sug- gest, then, tnat it might be advisable to omit it in the presence of gentlemen." Need I add to this well timed rebuke, that profanity has no possible justification. No man worthy of the name ought to indulge in it. It indicates an unclean and sensual nature where the spirit of God cannot dwell. It debases and degrades manhood. The presence of unclean lips in society — or those who curse their fellows in the holy name of the Divine being — is an immeasurable evil. No condemnation is too great for such a vice, no punishment too swift or severe. And now all is over so far as the life on earth of the great Gen- eral is concerned. Samson hath quit himseif like Samson, And heroically hath ended A life heroic. 244 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. The battles he fought and won ; the acts of his administration ; the honors paid him by the monarchs of the old world, when a few years ago he passed from kingdom to kingdom ; the skill and at- tention of physicians ; the unwearied attendance of relatives around his bedside, and the prayers of his own and other nations, all availed nothing to stay the remorseless king of terrors. The palace of the king and hut of the peasant cannot resist his summons- " Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might ; let not the rich man glory in his riches, but let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the Lord which exercise loving kindness, judgment and righteousness in the earth." Here is the true ground for glorying. Wisdom, might, and riches are at the present day sought after as affording the highest happiness. In old Testament times, strength and martial valor were regarded as pre-eminent vir- tues. Muscular prowess and the ability to lead victorious armies to and from the battle field, were accounted of far more value than mental superiority. Samson and Saul, head and sha^ilders above the people, were looked upon as demi-gods, objects of envy and wonder to the masses. And the possession of power in some form or other, is still regarded as the highest possible attainment. To exercise authority in church or state ; to control gigantic corpora- tions ; to occupy high positions in the commercial or political world, is the life long passion of millions. But neither wisdom nor power nor riches are permanent on earth. God often turns wisdom into foolishness, might into impotency, and riches into poverty, while at death they are all left behind. When men draw near the invisible world these things are of little service. Then we need a per- sonal God ; the firm hold of a hand that controls the destinies of the universe ; and confidence in his faithfulness, who is never ab- sent from the bedside of the dying saint. A Saviour slain is the only boast of a dying sinner. How weak is he who has nothing GENERAL GRANT. 245 beyond an arm of flesh to lean upon in the hour of dissolution ? How sad are the last pulsations of the mighty man, who has ruled over kingdoms or republics, and struck terror into the hearts of millions, but at last trembles at the cold touch of death! Better far is he, however poor and unknown, who, as he places in Christ's hand his weal or his woe for eternity, can say : la the cross of Christ I glory, Towering o'er the wrecks of time, All the lights of sacred story Gather round its head sublime. When the woes of life o'ertake me, Hopes deceive and fears annoy, Never shall the cross forsake me, Lo ! it glows with peace and joy. The death of General Grant, preceded by the sad and lamented deaths of such unselfish lives as those of Lincoln and Garfield, ought not to be lost upon the nation they loved and served so well. Long cavalcades of mourners are not out of place, nor will their graves be neglected. In coming years pilgrims from foreign lands will stand in reverent homage with uncovered heads around the mausoleum at Riverside, as they do over Washington's at Mount Vernon ; and tourists passing up and down the beautiful Hudson, will strain their eyes to catch a glimpse of the spot where lies the body of the great soldier. But better far will it be, if the people who lament his death, take to heart the lessons of his life, his cour- age, patience, integrity, steadfastness and love of justice. During the war one of America's most eloquent orators prophesied that the time would come when the North and South, cleansed from the iniquity of slavery, should cordially grasp the hands of freemen for freedom. That day in part has come, its full realization let us hope and pray for. Only second to that of her own people, is the inter- est of Canada and Britain in the prosperity of the* United States. As Canon Farrar said, in his admirable sermon on the death of 246 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. General Grant : " Whatever there be between the two nations to forgive and forget, is forgiven and forgotten. If the two peoples which are one, be true to their duty, who can doubt that the des- tinies of the world are in their hands ? Let America and England march in the van of freedom and progress, showing the world not only a magnificent spectacle of human happiness, but a still more magnificent spectacle of two peoples united, loving righteousness and hating iniquity, inflexibly faithful to the principles of eternal justice, which are the unchanging law of God." If at times our brethren across the lines should, in the exercise of a not unnatural pride, speak disparagingly of monarchies and boast of their repub- lican simplicity, at heart they are not insensible to the greatness and glory of the land whence they sprang. As one of their poets says : — Thicker than water, in one rill, Through centuries of story, Our tSaxon blood has flowed, and still We share with you the good and ill, The shadow and the glory. (RARACTER AND (ULIURE. Christian Manliness. " Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might." — Ephesians 6, v. 10, Christian Manliness. 7^T||:T:^^,^HEN Saint Paul wrote these words, he was breathing a ^/:V y .i!^ miUtary atmosphere, and brought into contact with all i-*' '^ 'C!^^ the minutiae of a soldier's life. The epistle was written ^^^S • from the Praetorian camp at Rome, where the Apostle was (a ' a constant spectator of the discipline, evolutions and equipment of the Roman army. There were believing men in that army to whom Paul preached, and in his addresses and epistles it was most natural that he should make use of just such metaphors as are contained in this letter. He was thoroughly aware, that in order to success in preaching, he must not only use language under- stood by his hearers, but also select his illustrations from the special walk in life in which they moved. Christian life in the first century was literally a warfare. It was not simply a conflict with spiritual enemies, but a constant encoun- ter with the civil power. No measures were regarded too severe in order to extirpate the true religion from the earth and crush its professors. Bonds and imprisonments, scourgings and cruel tor- tures, were the daily experience of all who refused conformity to (251) 252 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. Paganism. To such a life every christian was called at the very outset of his discipleship. The trials before him were well known. Nothing was concealed. He was enjoined to count the cost, and weigh well the consequences of becoming a convert to Christianity. The loss of life vvas indeed such a certainty, that Christ was accus- tDmed, in speaking of it, to promise as an offset life everlasting in the world to come. Before proceeding to enumerate the different parts of the chris- tian's armor, the Apostle insists upon strength as an essential qual- ity in a good soldier. A man to be successful in military life, whether as a private or an officer, must possess courage and bravery — a certain measure of reckless daring, and a disregard of minor consequences and hardships, which are inseparable from active duty. Strength of body and firmness of muscle, without heroism of soul, are unwieldy elements in modern warfare. To clothe a timid, craven-hearted coward in a coat of mail, is folly. Only those who are strong in themselves, are fit to put on armor or use it on the battle-field. This principle, so far as regards physical strength and perfect h?alth, is well understood and acted upon in recruiting for the army. Unless in times when conscription is necessary, and governments are all but desperate for new levies, the most searching scrutiny is made of volunteers. None that are unsound or defective in their bodily organs, or laboring under disease, are admitted to the ranks. Now, says the Apostle, what is demanded as a pre-requisite in a common soldier, is absolutely necessary in the fiery contest with spiritual enemies, to which every believer is called. The church has no room for weak, unsteady members ; for such as break the ranks through cowardice, or cause panic and alarm when she is on the eve of victory. It is not the force of numbers, but the discip- line and fortitude of the few, that achieves the mightiest results. CHRISTIAN MANLINESS. 253 Then five can chase an hundred, and an hundred put ten thousand to flight. As the christian hfe is conceived of by many at the present day, strength seems to be the very last quaHty demanded. Nothing is considered more mcongruous than such an exhortation. Meek- ness, gentleness and forbearance — a certain effeminacy of disposi- tion and backwardness of action, are recognised as the most be- coming traits of christian character, just as if these might not be united to firmness of purpose and determination of will. Nothing is so beautiful in inorganic matter as a polished pillar, but in order to stand polishing, it needs solidity and strength. It is very true that the man of God should be gentle ; not given to strife or con- tention ; a lover of peace, and an example of long-suffering and patience. But these qualities are not incompatible with the injunc- tion of the text. The scriptural idea of christian character is not a mere collection of negatives, which require but little sacrifice to practise. On the contrary, believers are exhorted to seek after the highest qualities of true manhood, chief ot which is moral and spiritual strength ; that supernatural power conferred upon God's children, whereby they are enabled not only to oveicome inherent evil, but combat successfully against the temptations and wiles of a seductive world. Never did General seek to inspire his soldiers with enthusiasm and valor on the eve of a mighty conflict as Pauj does, when addressing these Ephesian converts. But it may be objected that all natures are not constituted alike ; that in the church as in the world, there are diversities of gifts and graces ; and that it is well nigh impossible to graft upon a naturally timid temperament, the element of strength. If by this it is meant that there will always be found some who are less ardent and fervent in their manifestations of zeal, we are agreed. But if it is maintained that some men never can possess the element of strength referred to in the text, we reply that the Word of God 254 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH, teaches far differently. The strength spoken of is not self acquired ; it is not created or fostered by our own unaided efforts ; we are to rely upon the strength of God for our strength and draw from that source all the higher energies of our being. This mysterious power is the result of the union of the human with the Divn'ne, in virtue of which we can, like Jacob of old, successfully contend with the Angel of the Covenant. Says this same Apostle elsewhere, enu- merating the heroes of old Testament days : " Through faith they subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens." The usual elements of strength upon which the great majority of men rely in the struggle of life, are by no means to be despised. (a) Bodily vigor for example — the healthy action of all the physi- cal powers is not to be underValued. There is a most intimate connection between mind and body. They act and re-act the one upon the other. And thus the healthy action of the body tends to the healthy action of the mind, and is intimately related to manli- ness and morals, (l?) Industry is another source of strength ; and one that is much insisted upon in the Word of God. It produces self-reliance and independence of character, and gives to life a dig- nity and a lustre which profligacy and prodigality never can attain, (c) Knowledge is another element of strength, and one that cannot be unduly exalted. Knowledge of men and things, whether gained by study, or the result of observation and experience, is of incalcu- lable importance. In secular affairs it is head that governs the world, and not hands. Knowledge conjoined with industry raises a man to an immeasurable height above his fellows, and gives him a place among the peers and princes of earth. Embracing both means and ends it directs labor to a successful issue, and makes material objects become the handmaids of the soul. And (d) CHRISTIAN MANLINESS. ' 255 finally, I need hardly add that wealth is one of the chief elements of strength at the present day, and is likely to continue so. Nor is it wrong that money should be sought after, provided the power and influence and standing thus acquired, is expended for the good of men. It is a poor thing to rely upon wealth alone for moral strength, to gather it year by year, simply to be called a millionaire, and die bankrupt in soul while rich in material things. But if, as stewards of God's bounties, we honestly acquire a larger share of this world's goods, than tails to the lot of our fellowmen, and dis- burse them for the advancement of His glory, we can wield a power second to none other in this world for the good of men. But while all these elements of strength are recognised in Scripture as worthy of possession, the christian, in view of his higher wants, is enjoined to lay hold of that Divine strength, which is derived from com- munion with Heaven, and a continuous sense of God's presence in and around us. What men most need in the turmoil of existence* is not outward material support, but hidden resources of Almighty strength that can stand the pressure of sorrow and the shock of adversity. They want something upon which they can rely, when days of danger and darkness overtake them, and earthly friendships fail ; something that will invigorate the fainting heart in sickness, sorrow, and disappointment, and sustain in the final struggle with the King of Terrors, never once abandoning them, until the yearn- ings and aspirations of the soul are satisfied with the fulness of eternity. These remarks prepare us, I think, for a better understanding of the text. " Finally, my brethren," — to end the discussion and sum up all that has been said — " be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might." As if Paul said, " I am about to specify the different pieces of armour provided for your conflict with the Prince of Darkness. But unless you possess Divine power, you cannot wield them to purpose." It were like covering the stripling David 256 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. • with Saul's heavy coat of mail, to put into the hands of a weak and trembling saint, such mighty and destructive weapons. It needs a strong arm to wield the sword of the spirit, and a practised eye to use the shield of faith. In view, then, of what has been already advanced, we remark : First, — That God is the source of all moral and spiritual strength. " In himself," says an old writer, " a christian is wondrous weak, even vanity itself, but take him as he is built upon the promises, and as he is in God, and then he is a kind of almighty person." It is when a man realizes his own personal inability and emptiness, that he is filled with all the fulness of the Godhead, and is enabled to resist every adversary. Thus Paul says elsewhere : " We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed : we are perplexed, but not in despair : persecuted, but not forsaken : cast down, but not destroyed." " Therefore, I take pleasure in infirmities, in re- proaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distress for Christ's sake, for when I am weak, then am I strong. I can do all things through Christ, which strengtheneth me." This is not the language of boasting, but the experience of one who had endured more suffer- ing, and performed more labor in the cause of Christ, than perhaps fell to the lot of any human being. And in order that others may be incited to similar self-denial and courage, with the hope of suc- cess against abounding evils, he holds himself up as an example of what is possible to every man in every condition of life. " I ran do all things :" resist temptation, suffer affliction, enjoy prosperity, en- dure adversity, defy the powers of earth and hell — in a word, carry myself heroically in every calling and condition of life. And not to weary you with quotations, when this same Apostle speaks of his incessant labors in the establishment of the early churches, in order that all the glory and honor might redound to the Master he says : " By the grace of God I am what I am. His grace which was bestowed on me was not in vain : but I labored more abun- CHRISTIAN MANLINESS. 257 dantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me." Out of Christ, indeed, there is no real power to advance in per- sonal holiness, or benefit our fellow-men. As the heads of those rivers that ran through Paradise were out of Paradise, so the foun- tain-head of those streams that water the heart of the believer, is outside of himself As the branch severed from the tree is lifeless so man apart from Christ is barren, powerless, dead. As without the beams of the natural sun, and the constant moisture of the clouds, the earth becomes a parched and desert wilderness, so with- out the gracious influences of Heaven, and the contact of God's spirit within the soul, there can be no vigor in the higher life. As the chords of the harp must be touched by the fingers of the musi- cian before any sound is heard, so the chords of the human heart must be tuned and sanctified by God's spirit before they can sound His praise. Secondly, — Let us enquire how we should use this God-given strength. (a) We should be strong in the faith. By "the faith" is meant the gospel, which contains the foundation of all our hope for time and eternity. The Bible may be accepted as a creed, and believed in as a system of doctrine, without any real profit to the soul. Its promises may excite no more interest than the highl}^ colored and fascinating visions of dreamland, which gratify the imagination of childhood. This cold speculating way of holding the truths of revelation, is too common among professing christians. They re- gard the Bible with a sort of superstitious reverence. They accord it the highest place in literature as the words of inspiration, but they refuse to follow its counsels, or trust in the mercy it offers. There is no appropriation of its vital truths to meet the yearnings of the soul, and no reliance upon the pledges of infinite love, made over to us by the death of Christ. Baxter's words are as true to- *17 258 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. day as when they were spoken : " I take it to be the greatest cause of coldness in duty, weakness in grace, boldness in sinning, and unwillingness to die, that our faith in the divine authority of the Scriptures is either unsound or infirm. Christians in many cases receive the truth by tradition. Godly ministers and friends tell them so and so : it is impious to doubt, and therefore they believe it. Faith in the verity of Scripture would be an exceeding help to the joy of the saints." Now such a respectful regard for God's Word is of no practical value. Christian life as a consequence remains monotonous, lethar- gic, and stagnant as the slimy pools of water, that have neither current nor outlet. For in order that a man may become strong physically, his food rriust be incorporated with his .system, and as- similated to meet the demands of daily toil. And in order that man may reach the highest stage of spiritual development, there must be a hungering and thirsting after righteousness, and an actual participation in the divine life and strength. As the tendrils of the ivy cling around the old ruin, so must the powers of the soul go forth in quest of supernatural sustenance ; for, as has been well said, unbelief is no longer regarded as a qualification for eminent saintship, nor doubt and distrust the evidences of a deep experience. {b) We should be strong in maintaining and defending the faith. We live in an age of scepticism, when strenuous efforts are put forth to unsettle men's minds, and cast suspicion upon the most solemn questions that can engage the attention of immortal beings. The very word 'doctrine' in our day is repulsive. Sound theology is despised. Men who avow themselves as attached to no one creed more than another, are glorified and admired. Confessions of faith are regarded as superfluous, and those who value them, as behind the age. To charge any man with heresy or unsound views regard- ding the Atonement of inspiration of the Scriptures, is declared to be bigotry. Now whilst the enemies of religion are busy in dis- CHRISTIAN MANLINESS. 259 seminating error, the friends of truth make but little effort to coun- teract their evil influence. Many are ashamed to be known as christians. In the presence of the profane and the ungodly, they acquiesce by their silence in the most blasphemous assaults against the truth. This moral cowardice is one of the greatest hindrances to the spread of godliness. The want of the church is aggressiveness. Timidity is the curse of the age. We speak in apologetic tones when called upon to defend God's word, and vindicate religion before the world. Not thus is the day to be hastened, when Chris- tianity shall rule the globe, and sit enthroned in the hearts of mil- lions ! The darkness and prejudice of centuries will not pass away without a struggle, nor can our present privileges and liberties be retained but by the exercise of ceaseless vigilance and untiring zeal. (c) Finally, we should be strong in our integrity, thoroughly candid and upright in all the transactions and avocations of life. Religion, to be of any value, should go into a man's business, and inspire his every professional act. More especially in times when fraud and dishonesty and falsehood are accounted but venial sins, and the most sacred moral obligations are violated without com- punction, imperative necessity is laid upon every christian to main- tain his truthfulness and honor stainless before the world. It is good to be orthodox and have a name and standing in the church, and be regular in our devotion, but it is wrong to allow our religion to be in advance of our morality and forget the obligations we owe to our fellow men. " The worst heresies that lay hold of the strength of the church, and tie her hands and paralyze her tongue, and poison her atmosphere, are lying, and stealing, and avarice, and selfishness." The old-fashioned form of speech, used half a century ago in denouncing villainy, is now wholly unknown. A forger is a speculator ; a thief is a sharp, shrewd fellow ; a man who fails in business, without enriching himself at the expense of his creditors, is called a fool. Fraud is reduced to a science. The end 26o THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. ' — avaricious money-making— justifies the means ! Hence we have wheat corners, and gold corners, and bribery in high places. Every, man for himself, is the cry of selfish humanity, while God looks down upon all such unhallowed traffic, and speedy vengeance fol- lows. Assuredly if a man is going to lose his soul, he should have large returns in the present. The robber's gains need be great, for perpetual banishment from God's presence follows ! Now in tliis strength of the Lord, we are more than equal to all our adversaries, and more than able to cope with every form of temptation. With our loins girt about with the girdle of truth ; having on the breast plate of righteousness ; having our feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace ; and in the strength of the most High, wielding the sword of the spirit, we need not go faint-hearted into the battle. Greater are they that are fcr us, than all that are against us. Thus the ruddy shepherd boy vanquished his great enemy. " Thou comest to me with a sword and with a spear, and with a shield ; but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of Hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied." And thus it ever is, when in God's strength we undertake to crush gigantic evils. "Though hosts encamp against us, we need not fear. The Lord of Hosts is with us; the Lord of Jacob is, our refuge." The full possession of this strength is the work of years. Let none be discouraged, because they have not the boldness to do or to suffer all at once. The best graces are the longest in coming to maturity. The sunflower growing side by side with the sapling oak reaches perfection of growth and stature much sooner. The oak seems slow, compared with the ephemeral plant, that lives for a day. But if slow it is sure, and the results proportionate and permanent. And so by patient perseverance in well-doing the most diffident and unobtrusive may acquire firnmess and fortitude. What unassisted human nature cannot accomplish, grace can, mak- CHRISTIAN MANLINESS. 261 ing men more than conquerors. The strong men of the world are not always most conspicuous, they are often found among the poor and the weak ; having the least exterior power, they possess the most inward strength ; despised here, they wear crowns in heaven. If not great, as the world counts greatness, the humblest soul may be useful, becoming as the poet says : A chalice of dew to the weary heart, A sunbeam of joy bidding sorrow depart, A beckoning hand to a far off goal, An angel of love, to each friendless soul. I address many to-day* who stand upon the threshold of man- hood, and are soon to go forth from these halls of learning to enter on the serious business of life. It is an intensely solemn moment. What words more appropriate than these : " Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might." I trust I can add in the language of the beloved apostle John ; " I speak unto you, young men, be- cause ye are strong, and the Word of God abideth in you, and ye have overcome the wicked one." God calls you because you are strong, to greater strength ; because you are wise, to greater wis- dom ; because you are good to greater goodness — to help the weak by making them strong. Those characterized in the new Testa- ment as young men were of military age, who, in times of war, be- came soldiers. To them the nation looked for defence against aggression. But young men ought to be the defenders of society against all forms of moral evil. The times in which your lot is cast ; the culture and mental training you have enjoyed, and the moral agencies that surround you, demand lives of noble aim and holy consecration. The crisis presses on us. face to face with us it stands. With solemn lips of question, like the sphinx in Egypt sands ; This day we fashion destiny, the web of fate we spin, This day for all hereafter, choose we holiness or sin ; * Queens University, Kingston, 1883. 262 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. Even new from starry Gerizim, or Ebal's cloudy crown, We call the dews of blessing, or the bolts of cuising down. Decide not rashly. The decision made •* Can never be recalled, Choice and occasion, once being passed, Return no more. " Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong." Use your courage. Exercise your bravery. Purpose great things, and attain to them, in the strength of the Lord. God's idea of manhood is purity of heart, conversation and action : an unobtru- sive and unostentatious declaration of our principles in the face of opposition and obliquy. Many of the world's greatest heroes pos- sess this manliness, unknown and unpraised, for suffering in behalf of Christ in any form is truest manliness. I shall not attempt to answer the question, which many great minds are debating, — whe- ther after all our efforts, virtue and truthfulness are keeping pace with the scholarship of the age. One thing I think is evident, that the rugged honesty and transparency of character of former days, when culture and refinement were not within the reach of the masses as they are to-day, are too seldom met with, even in our educated men. Most significant indeed is the statement, that a friend of Marquette College, Milwaukee, has given $25 in gold to the Faculty, to be made into a medal " for the foremost student in manly piety." Does not this seem to indicate a prevalent opinion, that learning when unsanctified is apt to lead away from, rather than to God : that many of our most promising students are ashamed to acknowledge Christ as a personal Saviour, and that our advanced thinkers shrink from boldly and unhesitatingly avowing their faith in a supreme being. It ought not to be so. It has not always been so. Our forefathers not only provided for the train- ing of the intellect, in schools and colleges, but they held that no CHRISTIAN MANLINESS. 263; one could do his duty to God and man, unless he lived a pious, honest, and truthful life. " That simple, noble creed were ill ex- changed for the superficial accomplishments, which in some quar- ters pass for education. It made Scotland what it was, the home of civil and religious freedom ; it triumphed over the disadvantages of a rigorous climate and barren soil ; it sent young men of strong,, robust, manly piety to all parts of the world, to earn honorable rewards in fame and fortune, and to make the blood of a Scotch- man widely recognized, as in some measure a guarantee for integ- rity, for courage, intelligence and perseverance." It is such men that this college and university is intended to furnish for important positions in church and state, and the mould- ing of our national life in its varied and complex relations. The aim of its founders, and the efforts of all who are now engaged, directly or indirectly, in its faculty or management, is to make men of broad, strong moral natures, who shall use their scholarship in advancing the highest forms of christian civilization : — men of symmetrical, well-balanced minds, incapable of being swayed by prejudice or moved by passion : — men complete and thoroughly equipped in a far higher sense than Horace ever conceived of, when describing such an one as self-reliant and regular, and even in his disposition and desires he says : •' In se ipso totus, teres, atque rotundus." I am sure the Principal of this college is ready to endorse the language of one holding a similar office in the neighboring Repub- lic when he says — describing the true functions and objects of such an institution : "Touching the inner life, the soul and spirit, the heart of a college, it should simply be christian in the grand catho- lic gospel acceptation of the term — no more, no less. The legend upon its banner should be, Religion and Learning ; Christ and Cul- ture. In these two words is enfolded the essence of the earthly 264 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. and heavenly life — the elements of man's present duty and happi- ness, and his immortal destiny and glory. The one comprehends all that pertains to his spiritual nature, the other all that concerns him as a rational intelligent being. The one links him in blessed fellowship with the pure in heart, the other with the brotherhood of the wise and cultured. The one anchors the soul in rest and peace in the haven of faith, the other gives wings to knowledge of God through his works, and lifts the mind to mountain summits of contemplation. The one leads him forth to the fields of earthly lore, and art, and genius — to the fountains of eloquence, poetry and song ; — the other, into the green pastures and beside the still waters of the River of Life. The one plants his feet upon the immutable principia of the intellectual and physical universe ; the other sets them in everlasting security upon the Rock of Ages. The one brings the noble delights of mental conflicts and victories ; the other the grander triumph of a renewed life, and the ineffable blessedness of a soul at peace with God. The one adds beauty and radiance to life, the other brightens the dark valley of the shadow of death. Without culture a man is blind in a world of beauty, deaf in a world of song, insensible in a world of sublimity and pathos ; without religion he is a " lost pleiad," a wandering star, out of his spiritual orbit, out of harmony with the rhythmic forces of the moral and spiritual universe, drifting alone in a sunless firmament." May all the graduates of this College be men of unflinching faith, lovers of truth, stainless in honor, pure in heart, patriotic for God and the right, for as the poet says — To thine own self be true, And it doth follow, as the night the day, Thou can'st not then be false to any man. Consecrated Work, * " In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thy hand : for thou knowest not whether shall prosper, either this or that, or whether they shall both be alike good." — Ecclesiastes 11, v. 6. ' Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might.: for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom in the grave, whither thou goest." — Ecclesiastes 9, v. 10. • This and the following eight discourses were delivered to Graduating Classes of the Brantford Young Ladies' College. Consecrated Work. T^ii li-^^ man who uttered these words was, in his own esti- il^ 1~S mation, very near the portals of the spirit world. vfe\.A'^^l None more than he had enjoyed life, or indulged in ^^^^ its pleasures. Wealth flowed into his treasury ; peace ^^ blessed his reicrn, and wisdom dignified his manhood. The ^y^ civilized world acknowledged the might and majesty of King Solomon. Nor need we for a moment, in spite of his crimes and follies, deny how much his genius has blessed mankind. But when he stood almost within the shadows of the eternal world and realized the brevity of a life spent too largely in idle dreams and vanity ; when he thought how little good he had accomplished for the sake of humanity, with his vast stores of knowledge and his splendid opportunities — he closes the mournful retrospect by warn- ing those who should succeed him to improve their every moment, and use their every talent. " In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thine hand ; whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might, for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom in the grave whither thou goest." (267) 268 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. These two passages taken together may be regarded as an argu- ment for earnestness and diligence in the prosecution of the com- monest duties of Hfe, as well as the higher studies of christian scholarship and christian attainments. They exhort to timely, continuous and consecrated work, because life at the longest is brief, and the day when labor ceases uncertain. " In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thine hand ; for thou knowest not whether shall prosper or whether they both shall be alike good." That is, do good when opportunity offers and when you may not see immediate results. Work indus- triously, morning and evening, early and late in life ; work on a generous scale ; work hopefully for both may prosper ; work trust- fully, for thou knowest not the effect produqed by any act. Under all conditions, walk by faith and not by sight. If the sowing of the morning fail, that of the evening may yield an abundant harvest. Still, sowing in the morning is better than in the evening. Day- light is better than either twilight or darkness. Avail yourself of nature's aid. The mental powers are more vigorous in the morn- ing, and more and better work can then be accomplished. The repose of the night refreshes and gives clearness to the brain and nerve to the muscle. The cares and gloom of the darkness give place to hope and courage. Unexpected hindrances may come before the evening, preventing the seed from being sown at all. Before the sun is high in the heavens work can be easier done, and the rest of noon is all the more enjoyable after the early labor of the dawn. It has been well said that he who can master his early hours has won the battle of life. When the morning is lost the day is spoiled. When the first train is missed, the connections are missed. It is so with many lives. Having made a false start, or rather hav- ing delayed to start, they never came near the goal. They were CONSECRATED WORK. 269 hopelessly distanced by less brilliant, but more plodding and per- severing competitors. Men regard this principle as true in common affairs. He who has a long and arduous journey before him, rises before the sun. The farmer in spring time, just as soon as the ground is free from frost, ploughs and sows. Every day counts ; the crops will be all the sooner ripe, and the ears of corn or wheat all the better filled, if the labor is attended to at the proper time. Capital and riches are secured by industry, self-denial and pru- dence in the morning of life. They that bear the yoke in youth, can afford to rest in old age. Frivolity, recklessness, and even inno- cent pleasures, immoderately indulged in, are fatal to success. Moral ruin and social degradation follow such conduct. As every seed bears its own peculiar kind of fruit, so every thought and deed have their corresponding results. The rewards of the future are conditioned upon the conduct of the present. As duties are hon- estly discharged and honor and integrity maintained in early life, so will old age enjoy the respect and regard of men, the approval of conscience, and favor of God. Many, however, act as if in manhood or womanhood, or even in old age, they could undo the evils of youth. But this never can be done. Grafting is not a very promising method for securing good fruit. Better to sow the pure seed, than attempt afterwards to weed out the tares and thistles. The tree not only lies where it falls, but it falls as it leans. The foundations of eminence in science and letters must be laid in early life. Genius is but another name for industry. It has been well remarked that there is no man born so great that he can afford to be indolent. There is no man, though his head be as massive as Webster's, but needs to study and to ponder. There is no man, though he be endowed like Michael Angelo, but needs to be what he was — the most laborious man of his age. Though, like 270 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. Titian, one has all artistic taste, and lives to the age of one hundred years, it is not simply his genius, but the power with which he ap- plies himself, that marks his talent and registers his usefulness. A man in life with one talent will be greatly useful if he knows how to keep that talent wisely employed ; but a man with ever so many talents will be of little use if he does not know how to employ them wisely. And this leads me to remark, that it is not only timely but continuous and consecrated work that is enjoined in the text. " Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might." Alex- ander the Great, on being asked how he had conquered the world, replied, "by not delaying." True greatness in secular callings is never attained without unflagging zeal. Men never accomplish anything sublime for humanity, without intense consecration of head and heart. Astronomers and men of science have been so absorbed in their speculations and calculations, as to neglect the wants of the body. The eye has been so transfixed on far-off ob- jects, and the mind so filled with conceptions of the immensity and grandeur of the universe, that for the time being they are uncon- scious of the earthly and material. During the Crimean war, a newly arrived chaplain called upon a godly sergeant, and asked him as to how best he could conduct his work among the soldiers. " Come with me," said Hector MacPherson, the sergeant in question, "to the hill top. Now look around you. See yonder the pickets of Liprandi's army. See yon batteries on the right and the men at the guns. Mark yon trains of ammunition. Hear the roar of the cannon. Look where you may, it is all earnest here. There is not a man but feels it is a death struggle. If we don't conquer the Russians, the Russians will conquer us. We are all in earnest, sir ; we are not playing soldiers here. And if you would do good, you must be in earnest too !' It is this doing with our might whatever our hand findeth to do, that makes us achieve victories in the world of matter and mind CONSECRATED WORK, 2/1 "Madam," said a great statesman to a princess, "if the thing is only difficult, it is done ; if it is impossible, it shall be done." This indomitable spirit that rises superior to obstacles and knows no defeat, is not always found, even among educated men and women After having passed through a college course, they settle down to the lowest kind of routine life, and give no practical proof of the advantages they have enjoyed. Like the sea anemone, they hardly give tokens of intelligent action. They are but a bridge between matter and spirit. They^ contain the germs of immortality, but never rise above the lowest sensations. You shall find (says a liv- ing writer), in almost every neighborhood, men and women that have the admiration of all that know them, on account of their sup- posed capacity. It is said, " Why, here are men and women who know so much, that if they had a mind to, they could turn the world over. Their reasoning power, their genius, their ability is wonder- ful !" They live ten years, and it never drops out, and nobody sees it. They live ten years more, and yet it does not manifest itself. It is as if one should walk in a navy-yard, and seeing long rows of cannon, should say, "Oh! what power there is in these cannon!" There would be great power in them if they were only fired ; but a cannon cannot be fired without powder, and somebody must put the powder in and touch it off. These men and women who are thought to have such capacity, but who never display it, are gen- erally like artillery without powder. They have not enough animal power to propel the organization of the intellectual and moral sen- timents ; and the consequence is that they are always making an impression of capacity, but never of efficiency." Those whom I especially address are supposed to possess in some degree the knowledge and the wisdom that makes men and women useful and influential above the average of humanity. But without earnestness of purpose, gifts, whether natural or acquired, are of little value. Do with thy might whatever thy hand findeth 272 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. to do. Throw your whole soul into whatever you undertake, for success in any undertaking largely depends upon the spirit in which you engage in it. If we have little faith in its utility, if we are dragged into it reluctantly, and prosecute it mechanically, the re- sults are sure to be insignificant, if not indeed, entire failure. Such is the meaning of the poet's words when he says : The honest, earnest man must stand and work ; The woman also, otherwise she drags At once below the dignity of man. Accepting serfdom. Free men freely work, Whoever fears God fears to sit at ease. True, after Adam, work was curse ; The natural creature labors, sweats and frets. But, after Christ, work turns to privilege, And henceforth, one with our humanity. The Six Day Worker, working still in us, Has called us to work on with him In high companionship. But the text insists on continuous as well as consecrated work, "Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do." " In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thy hand." Says Isaiah "Blessed are ye that sow beside all waters." In order to do this, we ought not to be over fastidious or exacting as to this or that department of work, provided it is honest, and gives opportunity for self improvement and doing good to others. Some are never satisfied unless they can select their vocation. They prefer this or that kind of labor, they think their talents are only adapted to spe- cific professions, and as there does not appear a present demand for the exercise of their special gifts, they remain indolent and inactive. Now, it is not to be denied that in both secular and religious matters, work is the better and more speedily performed, if the dif- ferent branches are prosecuted by men and women, skilful and facile in their different departments. This the Apostle Paul recog- CONSECRATED WORK. 273 nizes in setting up the framework of the early churches. All the members of the one body have not the same office. There are gifts differing according to the grace given us, and whatever be our special gift or excellence, that we ought to exercise to the very ut- most. But should there be no opening in that special department of labor for which we have been trained, and for which we think ourselves especially adapted, let us not reject other callings where we may perhaps not less successfully serve our fellow men and glorify the Master. When a soldier enlists in the army, he swears allegiance to his sovereign and prompt obedience to the orders of his commander. It is not for him to say where he will go ; what enemy he will fight, or what place on the battlefield he will occupy. These details are arranged according to the exigencies of the case. He must go where he is sent, and endure whatever hardships are connected with the campaign, and resist though it should be unto death. And so it should be with every young christian. As re- gards our fields of labor, we should have little preference in their selection. We should lie submissively in the hands of Providence going where he directs, and working as he appoints. No false pride nor desire of approbation should prevent us accepting the humblest stations. While ever seeking after higher attainments and qualifications, and cherishing an unselfish aspiration for nobler opportunities of usefulness, let us not wait idly until, as some say, " Providence opens the door." These are always open, if we had eyes to see them and willingness to enter. Be not too proud to do anything God tells you to do. For the lack of a right disposition in this respect the world is strewn with wandering Hagars and Ishmaels. God has given each one of us a work to do. You carry a scuttle of coal up that dark alley. You distribute that christian tract. You give $10,000 to the missionary cause. You, for fifteen years, sit with chronic rheumatism, display- ing the beauty of christian submission. Whatever God calls you *18 2/4 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. to do, whether it win hissing or huzza ; whether to walk under triumphal arch or lift the sot out of the ditch ; whether it be to preach on a Pentecost, or tell some wanderer of the street of the mercy of the Christ to Mary Magdalen ; whether it be to weave a garland for a laughing child on a spring morning, and call her a May queen, or to comb out the tangled locks of a waif of the street, and cut up one of your old dresses to fit her out for the sanctuary — do it, and do it right away. Whether it be a crown or a yoke, do not fidget. Everlasting honors upon those who do their work' and do their whole work, and are contented in the sphere in which God has put them. Notice finally the reason given why we should thus work with all our might. " There is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom in the grave." Our hearts though stout and brave, Still like muffled drums are beating, Funeral marches to the grave. At death our opportunities for usefulness in this state are at an end. The record is then finished — -the account closed — the history written up. Nothing can be added and nothing can be changed. The fact of our mortality seldom distresses us. We act as if we had a special immortality. This is specially true of the young. Nor is it strange that it should be so. And yet how often are we summoned to the deathbed of the young ! One graduate and sev- eral students of this college in former years have been called away during the past few months on the very threshold of what seemed happy and useful lives. Such unexpected calls ought to make us work with unwonted zeal. The brevity of life at its longest should intensify our appreciation of opportunities for serving man and honoring God. No labor should be regarded as irksome — no bur- den too heavy to carry. Every moment should be occupied — every faculty disciplined, and every occasion turned to the best account. CONSECRATED WORK. 2/5 This is a scene of activity — not of rest ; a battlefield where victory belongs to the most courageous ; a school of training, where the industrious student gains the prize. The deathbed is sweet when filled with memories of patient work and bright anticipations of angelic greetings in the deathless land beyond the grave. How sad have been the closing hours of men of genius and in- tellect, who never seem to have realized the end for which they were born into the world, until they were ready to go out of it. Lord Chesterfield at the close of his life said : " I have recently read Solomon with a kind of sympathetic feeling. I have been as wicked and vain, though not so wise as he, but now I am old enough to feel the truth of his reflection, ' all is vanity and vexation of spirit' " La Fontaine, the poet, after his wild excesses and par- tial reform, wrote to a friend : " To die is nothing ; but do you know that I must appear before God ? You are aware how I lived. Ere you receive this note, the gates of eternity will perhaps have opened for me." Said Napoleon towards the close of his wonder- ful career: "Why did the cannon ball spare me to die in this manner? How fallen I am. I was Napoleon — now I am no longer anything. Said the guilty Borgia : I have provided in the course of my life for everything, except death, and now, alas, I am to die, although wholly unprepared." How different the closing hours of those who have been honored in saving souls ? Said Nor- man McLeod, a little while before his departure : " I am an old man, and have passed through many experiences, but now all is perfect calm and perfect peace. I have glimpses of heaven that no tongue, nor pen, nor words can describe." Said Duncan Mathie- son, the Scottish evangelist who literally wore out his physical frame in the cause of his Master, " Victory ! Victory ! Jesus only. This room is filled with the heavenly host." And as night came on — the last brief period of darkness to him for ever — he cried out " Light all the lights, and let not this be a charnel house. How is 2/6 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH, it the King tarries when the chariot wheels are so near ? Lord Jesus, come quickly ! Oh, come quickly." The end of a college course is not, I trust, the end of study to m.any of you, but to all it is the beginning of existence on a larger scale than that which you have experienced in the past. I charge you to give your earliest and best days to God. Let your life motto be — "Not slothful in business, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord." Be eminent scholars and brilliant artists if you will, but above all else, be great in goodness and sanctified attainments. Piety adorns every walk in life, and gives to its close a grandeur and glory that mere scholarship never can confer. As no one can become a proficient in any calling, without earnest and prolonged effort, so no one can reach high altitudes in God's kingdom without prayers and pains. Those who seek after an incorruptible crown, must possess an enthusiasm and courage that will equal — nay, surpass — that which has characterized their secular endeavors. Lukewarm- ness is out of place in religious matters. Those only who are in earnest can achieve anything of value to humanity. Inspired with a supernatural power, they overcome obstacles. The world may call them eccentric and singular, but it is a glorious singularity to live in the presence of the invisible, disdaining earth, honor, pleas- ures and pastimes, that degrade the moral nature. What to such are the petty concerns and troubles of the present — the downfall of empires and the destruction of thrones? They are working for the advancement of a kingdom that shall never be moved, and a seat of honor higher and more stable than that of earthly kings. I address for the last time not a few who, it is to be hoped, have such an ideal character before them, towards which they will aspire with all the energies of their being. The time has come to say farewell. Some who for years have taken part with us in the ser- vice ot this sanctuary, go hence to return no more. Pleasure and pain commingle in the thought. To leave companions and teach- CONSECRATED WORK 277 ers is trying, to enter upon the dignity of womanhood is full of joyful anticipation. While I would not unduly cloud the bright prospect that lies before them in the future, we cannot forget that soon the realities of life, with its sad memories of the past, will suc- ceed the bright dreams of youth, when the touching lines of the poet will fitly describe their feelings : Those college days ! I ne'er shall see t' »> like ! I had not buried then so many hopes ! I had not buried then so many friends ! I've turned ray back on what was then before me ; And the bright faces of my young companions Are wrinkled like my own, or are no more. There comes a time, no matter how prosperous and honored the life, when the heart yearns for something more enduring than human friendships ; when like old Bazillai, pressed by King David to make his home in the palace at Jerusalem, we feel that our strongest attachments lie beyond the grave. " How long have I to live, that I should go up with the King unto Jerusalem ? I am this day fourscore years old, and can I discern between good and evil? Can thy servant taste what I eat or what I drink? Can I hear any more the voice of singing men and singing women ? Wherefore then should thy servant be yet a burden unto my Lord 'the King?" Happy are the graduates of this college, who having been spared to such a green old age, shall be able to say : 0 God ! who wert my childhood's love, My gir hood's pure delight ; A presence felt the live long day, A welcome fear at night. With age Thou growest more divine. More glorious than before ; 1 feared Thee with a deeper fear, . Because I loved Thee more. 2/8 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. Apart from your scholastic attainments, I follow you with ten- der interest in your journey through life. I cannot but feel that to many of you my preaching has been the savor of life unto life, or death unto death. I hope to have all of you as seals of my min- istry in glory. The teacher has for his great aim to make scholars of his pupils ; the minister to make christians. The one educate.5 the mind, the other moulds the soul. I have served in both capa- cities in the college, but I need hardly say that I have ever regarded the latter as the most important part of my work. Many of the graduates of the present year have under my ministry made public profession of Christ. Several of them are the daughters of esteemed brethren in the ministry and eldership of the church, whose fellow- ship for many years I have enjoyed. Need I say, that I regard you with very tender feelings, and that I entertain very high hopes of your future career. My greatest joy will be to know that you have honored the college where you have been educated, and the church with which you have been so long identified. In order to this it is needful that your character should bear the inspection not only of companions, but also of the society in which you shall be called to mingle in riper years. The great want of the age is men and women who are not ashamed of their church membership, and whose every act is consistent with their profession ; who live as in the presence of the Eternal, and as accountable to a higher tribunal than human law ; who walk with God, commune with heaven, and make religion real and practical in the sight of men. Not a few of you, I am glad to know, have been accustomed to meet for social prayer within the college walls. Although soon to be separated, you need not forego the privilege of communion with each other. Spirits can meet and blend at a common mercy seat, though far apart, and feel the sympathy of kindred souls. The memory of such precious hours spent together should have a solemnizing and inspiring influence upon you. Of such as have thus secretly given CONSECRATED WORK. 2/9 themselves to God, a high and holy consecration is expected. While cheerful, hopeful and helpful, they ought none the less to be sober, earnest and serious — mindful of their origin and destiny. The prayer of each should be : Make me feel That in the gay and care-forgetting crowd Thou art as near me as in solitude. Keep Thou the portals cf my lips, lest words Or levity, or censure undeserved Abuse the freedom of my mirthful hours, Tin^^e my each word and action with the hue Of heart-born courage and holy love ; That in the use of every social gift The happiness of others may be mine. Or as another sweet singer has put it : Be good, sweet maid, and let who will be clever ; Do noble things, not dream them, all day long ; And so make life, death, and the vast forever One grand sweet song. " I commend you to God, and to the word of His grace, who is able to build you tip, and to give you an inheritance among all them that are sanctified." nWI/// The Pattern Worker. " I must work the works of Him that sent me, while it is day ; the night cometh when no man can work." — John 9, V. 4. The Pattern Worker. T HAS been, and is still, too much the custom to regard ■(( labor as a curse. Because after man's fall the decree 4& went forth, "In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread till thou return to the ground," it has been falsely concluded that labor, whether of the body or the mind, is a mark of social degradation, and that it is lawful, if not in- deed praiseworthy, to escape its burdens. That such an interpre- tation of the passage is opposed to the teachings of philosophy and the experience of life, it is not difficult to show. It is very true that the conditions of existence have been changed in some respects since the fall, but we can conceive of no situation in life that does not afford suitable and profitable employment for rational beings. Had Adam retained his holiness, doubtless he and his posterity would have had their daily allotted tasks — not perhaps so exhaust- ing and laborious as are the average employments of a sinful race, but not less continuous. To live without the performance of stated duties would be the most miserable of all possible conditions of ex- istence. Body and mind, from what we know of their constitution, demand regular exercise, and only in so far as they conform to this (283) 284 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. great law, do they minister to human happiness, and fill up the grand design of their Creator. Jesus Christ himself was a life long worker. His sinless human- ity was not exempted from daily toil. He became bone of our bone and flesh of our flesh, not simply as regards the finer sensi- bilities of our nature, but in respect to the humblest and most ex- hausting toils of mechanical life. In early years he bore the yoke of service, and in riper manhood he cheerfully discharged the obli- gations that appertain to the commonest avocations of life. His example thus stands before us for imitation. Let no man nor wo- man despise work of any kind, if it is pure and honorable and hon- est. The real nobility of man is determined, not by the material with which he is employed, but by the manner in which he exe- cutes his work. Angels work, and the redeemed in heaven work. It is the law of the universe, and inseparable from rational ex- istence : He only is the truly great, The only truly rich is he. Whose wealth is in his mind's estate, And child of God his pedigree. This great truth is brought before us in the text. The Saviour looks with compassion upon a poor blind man, who is soon, — and for the first time to behold the light of day. In answer to one of those profitless questions, that the disciples so frequently put to the master, Christ declares the great end of his mission to the world. " I must Vv'ork the works of him that sent me, while it is day ; the night cometh when no man can work." Notice first, that Christ was sent by his Father into the world Long before his advent, he was spoken of as the servant of his Father. " Lo, I come, in the volume of the book it is written of me : I delight to do thy will, O my God, yea thy law is within my heart." The position of a servant he regarded as honorable. " My THE PATTERN WORKER. 285 meat," he says, "is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work." To inculcate the duty and value of the humblest min- istrations for the good of others, he washed the feet of the disciples, saying : " If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet, ye ought also to wash one another's feet." And the apostle, when contrasting his earthly humiliation with his exalted glory, says : " He took on him the form of a servant, and was made in the like- ness of men, and being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross." Service in itself is never degrading. To work for the benefit of another may be as noble an occupation as to wield a sceptre or command an army. Everything depends upon the character of the master we serve, the nature of the service demanded, and the value of the reward. So long as the world lasts, and society main- tains its present order, there must be gradations ; those who com- mand and those who obey ; those who plan and those who exe- cute. Any theory that attempts to change this divine arrangement, attempts simply what is impossible. What God has determined for the welfare of his creatures, let no man dare to alter. Our conception of the grandeur of voluntary service will appear still clearer, if we imagine a case where the master has become the servant. It is seldom that a man is found, born to a noble position in life, who willingly resigns an exalted station, and cheerfully be- comes the inferior of another, for any purpose whatever. Such a case is, however, supposable. A man of royal rank and destiny may for the welfare of his country and the highest interests of his fellow-men, renounce the sceptre and the coronet, and condescend to the humblest avocations of the subject. In such a case, there is cause for the highest admiration. There is conferred upon such a servant a far greater glory than could possibly belong to a sovereign. 286 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. Now, this is what has been verified in the Hfe of Jesus Christ. Creator of worlds, supreme ruler of the universe and all the hosts of heaven, adored and beloved by the highest and purest intelligen- ces, He stooped from his lofty throne, laid aside the insignia of his power and bowed to his Father's will, that he might cairy out the purposes of redemption toward guilty man. Not reluctantly, not as forced or constrained to obey the behests of duty, nor as if the change involved what men call social degradation and obscu- rity, but cheerfully, spontaneously and eagerly did Christ become the servant of heaven and its ambassador to a ruined world. And never did greater glory surround the mercy seat than v^hen the incarnate God left for a time the place of honor at his Father's right hand to tabernacle among weak and wicked men. Service has thus been made honorable. By so much the more as it is dif- ficult for human nature to serve than rule, is the servant above the master. As old George Herbert says : Teach me, ray God and King, In all thino;s thee to see ; And vvhat I do in anything To do it as for Thee. A servant with this clause Makes drudgery divine ; Who sweeps a room as for Thy laws, Makes that and the action line. Such considerations were doubtless present to the mind of the Apostle Paul, when writing to the members of the Apostolic churches. He speaks of himself and his brethren, as servants and co-workers in the faith, as if these were the noblest of all designa- tions. " Paul a servant of Jesus Christ,'' " Phoebe our sister, who is a servant of the church ;" " Let a man so account of us, as the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God ; " As ambassadors for Christ, we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye recon- ciled to God." THE PATTERN WORKER. 28/ Whatever then may be our social differences, we are all servants. One is our master, even Christ, and all we are brethren. As such, by mutual sympathy and by faithful efforts in the departments of labor appointed us, we are to glorify the Master. In the church of Christ the peer and the peasant, the rich and the poor, the king and the subject, stand upon an equality, and shall all alike be judged by the same unerring standard. We need to be reminded of this from time to time. The same spirit of unholy ambition that mani- fested itself occasionally in the disciples, still exists more or less in the hearts of professing christians. Prosperous in business, suc- cessful in study, and more or less conspicuous in the eyes of the world for our benevolence and meritorious acts, we are apt to forget that we are at best only servants. Our time is not our own, the results of our labor are not our own. To each there is given the command, " occupy till I come." " Blessed are those servants, whom the Lord when he cometh shall find watching. Verily, I say unto you, that he shall gird himself and make them sit down to meat, and will come forth and serve them." Notice, secondly, that Christ was sent to work his Father's work. He came into this world for a specified object, and with a definite purpose in view, and with a perfect knowledge of what his mission was intended to accomplish. That work may be looked at in different aspects, as passive and active, as suffering and doing. The consummation of his life's work, was his death. Without this, all that preceded would have been vain. Toward this all was directed, and by this his divinity and the infinite value of his work was proved. The life of Christ while on earth was a busy one. Even re- garded from a human standpoint, how constant were his efforts in behalf of humanity ! Read the record of labor performed during the three years of his active ministry — the diverse and exhausting toils pressed together hour after hour, from early dawn until far 288 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. into the shadows and darkness of the night, and where can we find its equal among the busiest of the sons of men ? No call of mercy was ever disregarded. Now preaching the gospel to thousands upon the mountain side, or gathered by the sea of Galilee ; now instructing the disciples in the things of the kingdom ; now work- ing miracles in attestation of his Messiahship and the truths of Christianity ; opening the eyes of the blind, curing the infirm and paralyzed, and raising the dead to life ; and again seated in the home of poverty and sorrow, comforting the bereaved and binding up the broken in heart. Often indeed the physical nature of the Saviour was exhausted. The body, under the pressure of almost superhuman anxieties and burdens, became fatigued, but the soul maintained its wakefulness and vigor. You remember how that on one occasion, wearied with the toils of the day, he must needs cross to the other side of the Lake of Gennesaret in order to cure a man afflicted with an unclean spirit, whose dwelling was among the tombs ; and how that as he lay fast asleep in the hinder part of the vessel, he was awakened by the terror-stricken disciples, who cried out, " Master, carest thou not that we perish ?" Although his presence in the little boat should of itself have assured the disciples of safety, he murmurs not that his slumbers have been disturbed. At once he rebukes the wind, and says to the sea, " Peace be still," and then tenderly rebukes their lack of faith that produced such unnecessary fear. What matchless patience, tenderness and love ! Under such a pressure of bodily and mental anxiety, what sup- ported the humanity of Christ? Just what sustains the most emi- nent servants of God at the present day. Reading the biographies of such men, we wonder at their achievements ; how they plan, project and accomplish innumerable schemes for the well-being of their fellow-men. Weak in physical organization, oftentimes they surpass in endurance the strongest and most robust frames. We account for this by their nervous temperament, their impulsiveness, THE PATTERN WORKER. 289 and their singular adaptation to the many details of christian life. But these are but secondary causes, and in themselves wholly in- adequate to produce such results. They are simply to the man what the machinery is to the steam engine. Before motion can be reached and the wheels begin to revolve, steam power must be ap- plied. And so without constant communion from heaven no man can be an active christian worker. Christ while on earth spent whole nights in prayer. By this he was refreshed, strengthened and comforted, amid all his discouragements and trials. The work set before him was far from inviting. Yet he shrank not from it. To be adjudged as responsible for the sins of others, to be treated as a malefactor when personally innocent, to bear pain and shame of death, and the wrath of an angry God, presents us with an accumulation of woe beyond mortal conception or en- durance. There were indeed periods in his existence — especially towards its close— when his human nature seemed to stagger under desperate encounters with the powers of hell. But these were but for a moment. With a fortitude and heroism altogether unexam- pled in the history of martyrdom. He drank the bitter cup, and finished the work given him to do. No marvel that nature, at the sight of such superhuman sufferings, shook to her very foundations ; that the quaking earth, and rending rocks, and opening graves, and darkening sun, attested the magnitude of the work, and thus sig- nificantly announced the reconciliation of man to God, and earth to heaven. Notice, thirdly, that the work given Christ was to be completed in a given time. It is called in the text "a day." The period was brief, as indeed the entire life of Christ on earth was short. The brevity of his mortal existence pressed itself upon the mind of Christ frequently. There was no time for rest or leisure ; for the lighter and more congenial occupations of the day ; for the phil- osophic and speculative discussions of the schools. The burden of *19 290 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. immortal souls weighed him down. He was straightened in spirit, until his work was accomplished. The joy set before him also in- creased his earnestness. He looked forward to the moment of victory, when having trodden the wine press, he should receive the welcome of his Father, and through ranks of shining angels pass on to the mediatorial throne, and when in myriads of redeemed and glorified ones, He should see of the travail of his soul and be satisfied. And now, by way of application, let me add that each man and woman has been sent into the world to work the works of God. No one can relinquish his moral obligations. Those especially who have accepted Christ as their Saviour, are under the strongest ob- ligations to render Him efificient service. The time for work is short. We are passing rapidly to the grave. The day will soon end, and the night close in upon our labor. Now is the time to exercise all those God-given faculties with which we have been en- dowed in behalf of the sinful and the sorrowing. Living such useful and unselfish lives, our dying moments shall be peaceful and our future rest glorious. There is much talk in the present day of overwork. Men un- duly tax the brain and draw upon the vital resources of life, and strain their energies beyond the limits of safety and moderation, and fall in the prime of life victims to over anxiety and care and inordinate ambition. But how seldom do we read of men and women over taxing their powers for the good of humanity, and wearing out their lives in the service of God ? Is it not true that many professing christians hardly acknowledge Christ's claims upon their time and service? They are, as has been said, capital soldiers on parade days, but are not worth a rush before the cannon's mouth. They are loud in profession before a battle, and loud in exultation after a victory, but during the fight they are always missing. Such a state of things is wrong. Christians should be the most indus- THE PATTERN WORKER. 29I trious of men and women. Religion, so far from paralyzing effort, should increase it. From the moment of consecration there should be intelligent and continuous service. The christian worker should be a model hero, and should never dream of defeat. Through faith, he can appropriate infinite wisdom and almighty strength for every emergency. History tells us, that among the prisoners at Waterloo, there was a Highland piper. Napoleon asked him to play a pibroch, and the Highlander played. " Play a march," said Na- poleon, and he played it. " Play a retreat," again said the French General. " No, no," said the Highlander, " I never learned to play a retreat !" And so in working for God, we should never dream of defeat or disaster. Repulses in the christian life will meet us, and obstacles test our courage, but with God upon our side we are sure of victory. The night is coming to all of us — how soon we cannot tell. All men admit the certainty of death and the shortness of life, but it is only when we compare the fondly cherished hopes and plans of early years, with the small amount of actual work accomplished, that we realize its exceeding brevity. The longest life seems alto- gether too short to do anything worthy of immortality. In the morning of existence we promise ourselves noble achievements. Splendid visions of the future dawn upon the soul. After a long and busy life, we expect our own sun to set in a halo of glory, every expectation realized and every purpose completed. But how sad in most cases is the retrospect ! Cut down in the very middle of life, when we are just beginning to see the result of our labors, we ask why life is such a failure ? Or, as the poet says : A walking shadow ; a poor player That struts and frets his hour upon the stage, And then is heard no more. '"' * A tale Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, Signifying nothing. 292 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. Such, indeed, is life to the man or woman who has lived simply for its pleasures and unsubstantial honors. But it is not to those who make work for God a daily and hourly task. Measured by years and public notoriety, it may seem brief, fragmentary and uneventful, but judged by its far-reaching results, it is as enduring as eternity. Happy the man, and happy he alone, He who can c ill to-day his own ; He who secure within, can say, To-morrow do thy worst, for I have lived to-day. How rapidly the years seem to glide as we approach the end. Silently but surely, like the continuous ticking of the clock that measures moments, and minutes, and hours, and days, and weeks, and finally comes to the last minute, when the pendulum swings irresolutely and unsteadily, and then ceases to swing at all, so is the life of man ! Just as we pass milestone after milestone on the railway, one after another in rapid succession, so do we rush on from childhood to youth, from youth to m.anhood and womanhood, and thence to the grave. It is not till time with reckless hand has torn out half the leaves from the book of human life, to light the fires of passion with, that we begin to see that the leaves that re- main are few in number. But however few remain, let them not increase the accusations of a reproachful memory. Let us live lives that shall be earnest of that prolonged immortality that awaits the faithful toilers upon earth. " Dead he is not, but departed," should be the inscription on our grave stone : "Non abit, sed emigravit." the tombstone read, And 'neath it lay a hero dead, Who had fallen, fallen like a star In the summer sky, that darts afar Its golden ray of mellow light, O'er the tresses of the queenly night. Oh, if you but knew the luxury of working for God and living to purpose, there would be no need of inviting you to engage in THE PATTERN WORKER. 293 christian work. The aimless, irresolute lives, that many young- people lead, bring no satisfaction. Capacities and opportunities undeveloped and unimproved, make old age a sad retrospect, and render death unwelcome. If we do not serve here, we can neither serve nor reign hereafter. The joy of the heavenly ministry is theirs, who have labored in lonely and forbidding fields on earth, for If sweet below To minister to those whom God doth love, What will it be to minister above? His praise to show, In some new strain amid the ransomed choir, To touch their joy and love with notes of Jiving fire. Such thoughts I deem not altogether inappropriate, when ad- dressing a goodly number of young women, who having completed a college course, are about to leave, in many cases never to return. I e.xhort such to engage in some department of christian work. Rest not ! Life is sweeping by ; Go and dare before you die ; Something mighty and sublime Leave behind to conquer time. Glorious 'tis to live for aye, AVhen the forms have passed away. A Ladies' College graduate is often spoken of as one who has " finished her education," A recent writer says — although his re- marks do not, I trust, apply to Canadian college graduates : — " She has passed the usual examinations, has received the diploma of average excellence, and is now permitted to go forth untramelled and free, to do as she chooses in the great social world that seems so inviting. She understands the French phrases in the last society novel, and so she has finished the modern languages. She can play a dozen set pieces on the piano, if she has her notes, and is not out of practice ; so she has finished her musical education. She has 294 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. brought home in her trunk half a dozen crayon copies from pic- tures given her by her master, and after he has gone over them and touched them up, they present a very respectable appearance ; so she is a finished artist. She has read the First Book of Milton's ' Paradise Lost,' and parsed most of it ; so she has finished English literature. She can rattle off the names of the crowned heads of England, and knows that William the Conqueror won the battle of Hastings, that Henry VIII. was not a model husband, and that Charles I. was beheaded by Cromwell ; so she has finished English history. She has committed to memory the greater part of Butler's ' Analogy,' and recited it ; so she is finished in Moral Philosophy." " Finished !" Yes, literally so, for when a young woman imag- ines that her education is completed on leaving college, there is little more to be expected from her, however long her life and mani- fold her advantages. Do I speak uncharitably when I say that many graduates of ladies' colleges spend the best days of their lives, if not in abject idleness, in frivolous amusements, doing nothing worthy of their training and opportunities, and taking no part in the practical duties and cares of life ? Their brothers are roused at an early hour to attend to business, but the sisters having nothing particularly to do, make their appearance some hours later, and seek in the merest trifles to pass the day. Thus they grow up in- dolent, selfish and conceited, fonder of personal adornments and luxuries than industry, frugality, and the simplicities of life, which are the true adornments of cultivated christian womanhood. I counsel you to lead entirely different lives. If as in the case of many, abstruse studies are now ended, begin to work for God. Let your lives be devoted to tender and loving ministrations, not only in your own homes, but far beyond. It is not necessary that you should go to heathen lands to find scope for christian activity and self-denial. Opportunities lie all around you, and in propor- tion to the work accomplished here, shall be the joy of heaven. THE PATTERN WORKER. 295 Above, beyond tlie starry vault of heaven, Will a great God reward you. It has been well said that while society praises the adept in small talk, the world will remember only those who by cultivated intellect and purified hearts, have assisted mankind and helped to make the world better. We always think kindly of Florence Night- ingale, who by her unselfish devotion to the sick and wounded in the Crimea, made her name a household word ; of Harriet Hosmer, who, finding that she possessed talent, developed it and. became the best modeller in clay and sculptor in marble known in the history of our country ; of Harriet Beecher Stowe, whose book before it was a year old was translated into all languages, and proved an important factor in the emancipation of slavery, and hastened to uplift the whole continent to a broader and more charitable emi- nence ; and the wife of Sir John Franklin, who, lying upon what proved to be her death-bed, bade her husband depart on his voyage to the North Pole. Such women as these are spoken of after the beauties of the world are forgotten. I read recently of a dream that a young lady once had that im- pressed me much, and with that I close this sermon, leaving you to make the application. She was a good girl and a member of a christian church. She dreamed that she died and went to heaven, and that she was carried beyond all the bounds of imagination into the beauties and glories of the world up yonder. She dreamed that she was at home in the city of God, and that she was there to live evermore ; that she had passed to the judgment bar of God, and that she had become crystalized in holiness, to be forever a child of God, in the city of God, and she said : " O, what ecstacies swept over my soul as I dreamed of the bliss of heaven ! All at once, we were standing around God, the Father of us all, and were singing, 'Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches' and wisdom, and strength, and honor, and glory, and blessing. 296 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. Over the brilliant and blazing countenances as they shone forth, I saw ten thousand diadems shining in the crowns of those around me, and I turned to a sister spirit and said, ' What do these diadems represent in these crowns ?' ' Oh,' she said, ' these represent souls that we have been enabled to win to Christ.' I pulled off my crown and looked at it, and it was as black as night, and I began to be miserable in heaven, and in a few minutes I opened my eyes, and I said, ' Glory to God, if I have a few more years I will spend the residue of them doing service for Christ, and I will get my recog- nition in heaven in the sweet by and by.' " Polished Corner Stones. "That our daughters may be as corner stones, polished after the similitude of a palace," —Psalm 144, v. 12. Polished Corner Stones. "^ VVID in this psalm is praying for the highest prosperity of the nation. Material riches in his estimation are of secondary importance. Where mental cultivation and moral purity are wanting, they are dangerous to the state. The garners may be full and overflowing with the products of a bountiful harvest, and the cattle may be numbered by the tens of thousands, and all the elements of commercial great- ness possessed, but unless "our sons grow up in their youth as plants," vigorous, virtuous, and ripe for the duties of life, and unless our daughters are " as corner stones, polished after the similitude of a palace," decay and ruin will eventually overtake the nation. The figure in the text is that of a building not only strong, massive and imposing, and having good foundations, but fair in its proportions and pleasing to the eye. A building upon which the skill of the architect and sculptor has been lavished, and in which polished corner stones, set in conspicuous places, add much to the effect. The word denotes more than polished. It is cut — hewn — carved after the similitude of a palace or a temple. In all likeli- hood there is no allusion to the costly materials then in preparation (299) 300 THE CHURCH AND THE COMxMONWEALTH. for the building of the temple. No labor or expense was grudged to make the sanctuary surpassingly beautiful and attractive. And what the earved stones and sculptured pillars were to the temple, so are accomplished and virtuous women to society. Christian culture has for its object, not simply the imparting of knowledge and the exercise of the judgment, but the refining and polishing of the entire person — the development of head and heart, and all that makes character winsome and conduct praiseworthy. The larger proportion of our young women can never go be- yond the common school ; nor can there be any better training for the ordinary work of life. Those who advance no further are none the less honorable and useful members of society. Often, indeed, by sheer force of natural abilities and strength of will, they secure for themselves positions of honor beyond more favored rivals. But it is equally imperative that there should be a goodly number whose education has been carried on to a further limit, and who, in virtue of their more favored circumstances, will give tone to society and confer honor upon their sex, and become, in certain depart- ments, the ruling spirits of the age. The true queens of society are women of christian culture. They may not sit upon thrones and sway material sceptres, but their power and influence far sur- pass that which is merely inherited by noble birth and pedigree. Not within their own household merely do such women reign, but over all who come within the range of their sphere of action. They may not exercise their gifts in the rough, open world, where oft- times the strongest are worsted and repulsed ; but wherever coun- sel, decision, penetration and kindly sympathy are needed, they are never found wanting. Theirs is the power to heal, to succor, to guide and to guard. A gifted female writer of the present century, describes Christianity as making a circuit of the earth in the guise of a young maiden. She enters the hovels of the poor, and gives cheery words and sunny smiles to the weary burdened sons of toil POLISHED CORNER STONES. 301 Through great cities and humble villages alike she makes her way leaving behind a blessing. And ever as she went along Sweet flowers sprang 'neath her feet ; All flowers that were most beautiful, Of virtues strong and sweet. And ever as she went along The desert beasts grew tame ; And man, the savage, dyed with blood. The merciful became. Sometimes within the baron's hall, A lodging fche would find ; And never went she from the door, But blessings stayed behind. Such are the women the age and country demand, and the means to secure them is the training of the home and the culture of the Christian college. Blessed is the nation which possesses such daughters, and happy is that people whose God is the Lord. For thus speaking of the influence that Christian women exert upon society, women adorned with all the solid accomplishments that schools can give, and souls savingly touched with sovereign grace, we by no means advocate that superficial, showy, and fash- ionable education, which has tco long been common in certain quarters, and is still coveted by fond and foolish mothers for their daughters. It requires months and years of labor before the pol- ished stone and fluted column stand out before the admiring gaze. It also requires good material to receive a lasting polish. A good foundation, embracing English literature, the sciences and mathe- matical studies, are necessary to further accomplishments. These branches are common to the individual man or woman. But the peculiar character, relations and work of women, demand in some respect a different training from that of men. Not from any belief that intellectually they are inferior, and therefore unable to contend in the same arena, do we argue the necessity of separate schools or 302 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. colleges, but because a special culture seems more in keeping with their gentler nature. The influences which a cultivated woman ex- erts, while as potent as those of man, are more noiseless and unob- trusive. Her power is not in words, but deeds. She constrains and moulds, not so much by direct force of character, as by a gen- tle persuasion that captivates and subdues the strongest spirits. Superadded to the ordinary branches which every youth should possess, there are certain studies and pursuits which seem peculiarly her own, and which give her in every station of life an enviable supremacy and an attractive gracefulness which can hardly be de- scribed. Who has not felt the charms of Christian womanhood thus adorned ? With an ear for the harmony of sound and the touch of a fairy hand ; an eye for the lights and shadows of the ever changing landscape, and a pencil facile in execution ; with a keen penetration that discovers the secrets of nature, and minutely detects in every leaflet and wild flower the marvellous design and infinite skill of the great Creator ! Such accomplishments and mental culture are quite compatible with the retiring virtues and unassuming necessity of the sex and command respect. " Before the myrtle crown and stainless sceptre of true womanhood the world will ever bow." To possess the attainments spoken of, and at the same time be guiltless of conscious superiority over less fortunate companions, is not often found. There is an air of affectation which too frequently accompanies cultured woman that greatly detracts from simplicity of character. Genius, in its highest conditions, shows personal no- toriety, and shrinks from vulgar criticism. You have heard of the Grecian painter Zcuxis, who in pa-inting his Helen, sought to em- body in the face the ideal of perfect beauty. He sent to Crotona, famous for its handsome women, for six maidens, from the combi- nations of whose charms he hoped to secure perfection of feature and expression ; but one of the six could not be prevailed upon to POLISHEED CORNER STONES. 303 unveil her face, so sensitive was she of the gaze of strangers. When the picture was finished it called forth the rapt admiration of the people ; but the painter himself was dissatisfied. He felt that one charm of the picture was wanting, and exclaimed, " Oh, for the blush of the sixth maiden !" And how often do we feel as did the painter, when we see women of great personal attractions, and ex- ceptional culture, patronizing their humbler sisters with an air of condescension that proves the existence of secret pride, and an un- due regard for what are, after all, not the essentials, but the adorn- ments of female character. It is said of Elizabeth Barrett Brown- ing, whose writings are known in every land, but whose books fall far short of the goodness of her heart, that she was shy with stran- gers, and utterly unconscious of her almost matchless genius that gave her a world-wide fame. That woman, of whom it has been said that she never made an insignificant remark, "was a most patient, conscientious listener to others, giving you her mind and heart, as well as her magnetic eyes. Persons were never her theme, unless public characters were .under discussion, or friends were to be praised. Yourself — not herself— was always a pleasant subject to her, calling out all her best sympathies in joy, and yet more in sorrow." Of such an one, in her own well-known lines, we may say : She was not as pretty as women we know, And yet all your best made of sunshine and snow Drop to shade, melt to naught in the long-trodden warp. While she's still remembered. She never found fault with you, never implied You wrong by her right, and yet men at her side Grew nobler, girls purer, as through the whole town. The children were gladder, that pulled at her gown. The weak and the gentle, the ribald and rude. She took as she found them, and did them all good ; It was always so with her, see what you have ! She has made the grass greener, even here, with her grave. 304 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. Such a woman, crowned with the green laurels of her country- men, and illustrious alike for her learni-ng, her sweetness of temper, tenderness of heart and depth of feeling, making up a beautiful and fragrant life the world will not soon forget. Her works and alms, and all her good endeavours, Staid not behind, nor in the grave were trod. To live such lives of usefulness and unobtrusive moral worth is within the reach of all. The title of "lady" or "gentlewoman," that once belonged exclusively to aristocracy, has now a much wider meaning. The word " lady " means a " bread giver," or loaf giver — one who distributes to the multitude and helps suffering hu- manity ; not one who, as in olden times, was followed by a train of vassals, to serve and favor and flatter, but whose benignant smile and gracious deportment compel the homage of the great and the benedictions of the poor. True nobility of nature stoops to the humblest vocations. Royalty is never so exalted as when it deigns to succor the disconsolate and comfort the sorrowing. Not long ago there was laid in Westminster Abbey all that was mortal of one who gave dignity to high born rank, one who was followed to the grave by the tears and lamentations alike of Queen Victoria and the meanest of her subjects — Lady Augusta Stanley. It is re- lated of her that a few years ago, when the Westminister Hospital gathered its nurses whence and as it could, a poor woman, suffering from an acute and dangerous disorder, was admitted as a patient, and on her sick bed was succored and comforted by Lady Stanley, who was a frequent visitor to the hospital. In a sudden crisis after malady, it was decided by the physicians that the only means of saving life was by an immediate and terrible operation. The choice was submitted to her of certain death or this fearful passage to re- covery. The poor woman shrank at first from even life at such a price ; then, trembling, she said : — " I think if Lady Stanley were but with me, I could go through it." In haste a messenger was POLISHED CORNER STONES. 305, sent to the deanery, where Lady Augusta was found dressed, in; readiness to fulfil an engagement at Buckingham Palace. Without a moment's notice, she wrapped a cloak over her magnificent attire,. and went straight to the hospital. When Christ called her, in the person of His suffering poor, then royalty itself must wait. She stayed with the poor, tortured woman, nerving her to endurance by the strength of her sympathy and presence, until the surgeon's work was ended and rest had come ; and then from the hospital ward went to the palace, to apologize to the Queen for her late appearance. I think 1 can enter into your feelings as you come near the hour of parting from teachers and companions. You have looked for- ward with longing desire to the day, when, having honorably com- pleted your studies, you should go forth with the seal of our ap- proval and the rewards of honest toil. But now, when the time has come to say farewell, you dread the parting. You came to our city and college comparative strangers, but you have made many friends, whom you have learned to love. Better than all, not a ^e\v during your stay with us have found what is paramount to all sec- ular learning, the saving knowledge of a crucified Saviour. These walls have witnessed your profession of faith and the membership of the church follow you with loving memories. Seldom indeed can it be said of a graduating class, that all, without a solitary ex- ception are in Christ. My dear young friends, let not your future life disappoint the high hopes we entertain regarding you. On the margin of life's stormy and tempestuous sea, commit your destiny to Him who alone knows the way and can safely guide. Standing with reluctant feet. Where the brook and river meet. Womanhood and childhood fleet ! * O, thou child of many prayers ! Life hath quicksands, life hath snares ! Care and age come unawares ! *20 306 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. Bear in mind that talent, however sedulously cultivated, and genius however brilliant, cannot alone make honorable or useful lives, apart from genuine piety and moral worth. Consecrate to Him who made you the vigor of your youth ; whatever mental accomplishments you have, lay them at His feet, who rightly claims the homage and service of the highest angel ; prove to the world that there is nothing incompatible between devotion to art and science, and unblemished purity of soul and chastity of speech. The best security against the blandishments of pleasure and that mental indolence which enslaves so many at the present day is con^ stant employment, the maintenance of habits of study and the ex- ercise of those more tender and benevolent emotions which consti- tute the crown and glory of Christian womanhood. In maintaining a conscience void of offense between God and man, in overcoming the evil propensities of your nature, in defending at all hazards the cause of righteousness against error, in humble submission and cheerful resignation to God's will, whether joy or sorrow should form the major part of your existence: in working single handed, like brave women, who untrammelled by the ties and burdens of home, make humanity at large their debtors ; or, as the centres of happy households, shedding a quiet and benignant light on all the members — in either and every walk of life you will find much to sadden and depress. But when the goal is reached and you look back in the sunset, over the rugged pathway traversed, you will be able to say : — I have made a changeful journey, Up the hill of life since morn ; I have gathered flowers and blossoms, I've been pierced by many a thorn. But from out the core of sorrow, I have plucked a jewel rare : The strength which mortals gather, In their ceaseless strife with care. POLISHED CORNER STONES. 307 Members of the Graduating Class, let me counsel you in parting to maintain a spotless purity fn thought, conversation and action before the world. Much is expected of you. Your advantages have been great. Your privileges have been many. The good name of the college is to a certain extent in your hands. Your teachers follow you with earnest prayers, that God may guide you and guard you, and that at last we may all meet together in a sin- less world, where tears and parting are no more. Finally, my beloved young friends, farewell. " Whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely* whatsoever things are of good report : if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. Be perfect, be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace ; and the God of love and peace be with you. The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make his face to shine upon you, and be gracious unto you. The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace." ^>/^^V Beauty of Womanhood. "Favour is deceitful and beauty is vain ; but a woman that feateth the Lord, she shall be praised."' —Proverbs 31, v. 30. The True Beauty of Womanhood. p^ HE mother of King Lemuel is giving him advice and warning as to his conduct and companionship. Who he was and who his mother was, we are not informed. Enough that she was a God-fearing woman, and that her son valued and profited by her counsel. The memory ^^ of such a mother was pleasing, and to eulogise her was his delight. He was not ashamed to acknowledge that whatever good fortune attended him was due to the lessons of infancy and boy- hood. Instead of setting up his own judgment and following the inclinations of his youthful passions, he listened attentively to her admonitions and practised her precepts. In this chapter she draws for him the full length portrait of a virtuous woman. The term is not used as the counterpart of vul- garity and unchastity, but as indicating all that goes to constitute a symmetrical character. Such a woman is the most valuable of earthly blessings. Her price is far above rubies. She is not the product of schools and colleges, though these may do much to per- fect her natural gifts and excellencies, but the direct creation of the Almighty. Her many practical virtues are then enumerated. She (311) 312 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. is worthy of all confidence and her fidelity is unimpeachable. "The heart of her husband doth safely trust in her, so that he shall have no need of spoil," — v ii. She is industrious. "She seeketh wool and flax, and worketh willingly with her hands. She is like the merchants' ships, she bringeth her food from afar," — v 13-14. She is an early riser. " She riseth also while it is yet night, and giveth meat to her household, and a portion to her maidens," — v 15. She is benevolent and generous. " She stretcheth out her hand to the poor, yea, she reachcth forth her hands to the needy," — v 20. She is thoughtful in providing against the future. " She is not afraid of the snow for her household ; for all her household are clothed with scarlet," — v 21. She dresses elegantly and beconiingly. "She makelh herself coverings of tapestry ; her clothing is silk and pur- ple,"— V 22. Her influence upon her husband is elevating. " Her husband is known in the gates, where he sitteth among the elders of the land," — v 23. She is discreet and winning in her speech. " She opencth her mouth with wisdom ; and in her tongue is the law of kindness," v 26. She superintends the details of her house- hold, and takes cognizance of everything under her control. "She looketh well to the ways of her household, and eateth not the bread of idleness," — v 27. Finally, when old age weakens her activity and impairs her mental faculties, she receives the grateful venera- tion and tender ministraticns of her children. " Her children arise up and call her blessed." As the guardian of their infancy, they requite her care, by smoothing her declining years with unwearied attention to her wants, and fond expressions of their love. A woman combining so many excellencies is but seldom found. Hence we read : " Many daughters have done virtuously, but thou excellest them all." But however far any one may come short of this picture of a perfect woman, there is one thing within the reach of all. A woman that fears the Lord is the noblest type of her sex. Her religious nature is the source of her methodical habits THE TRUE BEAUTY OF WOMANHOOD. 313 and abundant labors. " Favor is deceitful and beauty is vain ; but a woman that feareth the Lord she shall be praised." Birth and pedigree, queenly deportment and artistic culture, are not compar- able to the unaffected graces of genuine piety. As the poet laure- ate of England says in one of his best known poems : Trust me, Clara Yere de Vere, From yon blue heavens above us bent, The gardener Adam and his wife Smile at the claims of loug descent. How e'er it be, it seems to me, 'Tis only noble to be good, Kind hearts are more than coronets, And simple faith than Norman blood. My first remark then is, that there is no necessary incongruity between literary accomplishments and sweetness of disposition. There is a prevalent opinion that just in so far as a woman attains a high degree of scholarship, she loses that gentleness of deportment which is the crowning glory of her sex. Certain marked instances of what the world calls strong minded women give color to this opinion. But such an idea is wholly unsupported by evidence. Such women are almost invariably found destitute of true culture. Their wearisome advocacy of certain social questions, and their un- becoming prominence on the platform and in the political arena, is the result of narrow and contracted views, as to the place and power that God has assigned them in the world. Such women are not thinkers ; " they pride themselves upon the very little that they know ; and incapable of understanding the humility which is in- separable from true knowledge, they force upon others their petty and superficial attainments." To such the words of Pope are speci- ally applicable : . • ** A litt'e learning is a dangerous thing, Drink deep, or taste not the Pierian spring ; There shallow draughts intoxicate the brain; But drinking largely sobers us again. 314 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. Your course of biographical reading thus far, has I am sure, convinced you that the women whose names adorn Hterature and science, were remarkably modest, unostentatious, and unassuming. Their simplicity of manner and gentle persuasiveness, were as con- spicuous as their untiring industry and their surpassing genius. Mary Sommerville and Caroline Herschell and Elizabeth Barrett Browning, working out in spare moments the profound problems of the material creation, or weaving into verse the far reaching questions of philosophy, were the most fascinating and winning of their sex. A sweet fragrance still encircles their memory. Ii is not the unequalled genius, but the unequalled lives of such women that make their names immortal. As Mrs. Browning beautifully said of Mrs. Hemans : Albeit softly in our ears her silver song was ringing, The footfall of her parting soul was softer than her singing. The time has gone by when women were denied the delight, and pleasure, and honors that result from the study of science and literature. They are no longer condescendingly complimented upon the smallest indication of thought and competency to spell ! They have taken their place side by side with the foremost minds of the age, as the exponents of all that is noble and elevating. To the work of perpetuating this change in public sentiment, and show- ing that there is nothing in the constitution of your minds opposed to the greatest efforts and triumphs, you are now called. Suffer me, then, ere I bid you farewell, to say a few things that may be of value in coming years. The hope of reaching and wearing the honors of a college grad- uate has doubtless sustained and cheered you for many years. When wearied and exhausted by the ceaseless strain of the mental powers, the prospect of success has quickened your flagging ener- gies— when with well-earned honors you would leave behind the THE TRUE BEAUTY OF WOMANHOOD. 315 drudgery of academic life. You have now all but gained that po- sition. Your future careers in life will doubtless be very different. Some go forth to impart to others the learning they have acquired — others for years to be the light and joy of happy homes, and others it may be to exhibit those charms which not only grace the daughter, but " adorn the wife." But whatever be your special vocation, let me remind you, that no one deserves the name of scholar who does not maintain more or less through life the same habits of diligence and perseverance to which she has been discip- lined in early life. The few years spent at college can do nothing more than lay the foundation for subsequent achievements. Your present proficiency, be what it may, is but the starting point of intellectual life. There cannot be a mistake more fatal, than to suppose that a college graduate is a complete and perfect scholar, and that such young men or women have a right to look down with sovereign contempt upon those whom Providence has less highly favored. Humility is the brightest adornment of the christian scholar. In proportion as the mind is enriched and new problems in philosophy and science mastered, and brighter points of vision gained, we should become the more impressed with our ignorance, the crudeness of our ideas, and the imperfection and meagreness of our attainments. Herein lies the modesty of true scholarship and the only certain guarantee for future greatness. Let me say further, that as no one can be a universal scholar, no student should attempt to include within his or her range of study more than they can successfully and somewhat thoroughly investi- gate. The most accomplished and comprehensive scholars are, after all, what Sir Isaac Newton said of himself at the close of his life, like boys playing by the sea shore, amused with finding a smoother pebble and a prettier shell than ordinarily, while the great ocean of unexplored truth lies all undiscovered before him. The great evil of our day is the mass of superficial talkers and thinkers 3l6 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. that abound ; inflated egotists and conceited scientists who profess to lead pubHc opinion and mould the character of society, while destitute themselves of any fixed principles of thought or action. It is not the amount of a man's learning, nor the variety of his studies that makes him really useful to the world. All this he may possess and yet be no more than A bookful blockhead, ignorantly read, With loads of learned lumber in his head. It is the perfect mastery of some one department of knowledge so as to make it available for broader generalizations in the future, and of practical value to the world that makes one truly learned. Life is far too short for the thorough study of every department of literature and science. All that you can possibly accomplish con- sistent with other duties, is to select some few topics out of the wide field over which you have hastily traversed, bringing to bear upon them all the strength of your intellect and all the resources of your mind. Go to fundamental principles — know accurately that which you are desirous of knowing, and however little that may be, upon that basis you will the more easily build up a future superstructure. * After all that has been done for you by earnest teachers, and in spite of special advantages that you may hereafter enjoy, your fu- ture position in life is to a great extent of your own choosing. Into your own hands is committed your destiny — whether to spend life frivolously and unprofitably, or to live in the esteem and affection of the truly good, and die amid regrets and tears. No graduate of our college should rest satisfied with merely passing through life with no stain upon her christian character. The aim of each should be to rise superior to the mass around them ; to act in such a man- ner that her name shall be immortal and her memory flagrant ; for thus " to live in hearts we leave behind is not to die." In the words of John Milton, " I counsel you to be inflamed with the study of THE TRUE BEAUTY OF WOMANHOOD. 317 learning and the admiration of virtue ; to be stirred up with high hopes of Hving to be brave women, dear to God and famous to all ages." I do not forget that even the most praiseworthy efforts and patient self denial, often come short of expectations. Fortune, or I should rather say Providence, seems frequently to bestow favors where they are least deserved, so that in some cases it is true, The world knows nothing of its greatest men. Patronage and influence often more than compensate for solid acquirements, and persons who are void alike of character and tal- ent are raised to eminent positions in the world. But in spite of such exceptions, it remains equally true, especially in this country, that there is no royal road to learning, and that solid and substan- tial qualities cannot long pass unrerognized and unrewarded. My second and final remark is, that there is no necessary in- congruity between literary accomplishments and the most devoted piety. " Favor is deceitful and beauty is vain ; but a woman that feareth the Lord she shall be praised." That there are notable ex- amples both of men and women, whose researches in nature and philosophy have rather undermined than confirmed their faith in an all-wise Creator and Preserver, is true. But these, whether as regards numbers or influence, occupy a very insignificant place at the present day. The leaders of public opinion in church and state — the profoundest theologians and most earnest workers for the good of humanity are men and women who love and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. That you may meet with difficulties and experience doubts in your further prosecution of the truth is not unlikely. Few minds that are at all speculative pass through life without occasional peri- ods of distress and darkness, and the only sure preservative from error or permanent scepticism is simple faith in the Saviour of men. 3l8 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. With the divinity and atoning work of the Lord Jesus Christ as the cardinal doctrine of your creed, you cannot go far astray or be hopelessly lost by the conflicting suggestions of human reason. While giving fullest liberty to those faculties which God has con- ferred upon you, let them ever be held in subjection to the declara-* tions of God's Word, however perplexing and mysterious these may be. There can be no true peace of mind where doubts exist, however honest are these doubts. Nor can we put that intensity into our work which the age demands, if constantly pressed by un- belief It has been well said: "There is no such invigorating principle as faith. Men who believe most are the strongest men. Doubt never accomplished anything. Doubters never discovered a new world, nor invented the printing press, nor steam engine, nor power loom, nor sewing machine. Doubters never constructed a pacific railroad, nor the ocean telegraph.. A doubter never won a battle nor founded an empire, nor added a statue to the temple of fame. The world's best and bravest work has been dojie by be- lievers and not by doubters. It is not necessary that you should be able to harmonize all the apparent discrepancies that exist be- tween science and revelation, nor explain the inscrutable acts of the Divine Being. Sufficient that you understand your personal rela- tions to the Almighty, and the way of safety through the cross. As the pilot of the vessel, who was asked if he knew all the rocks along the coast, replied, " No ; it is only necessary to know where there are no rocks," so in like manner, looking unto Christ, the soul is secure and beyond the reach of peril. " Favor is deceitful and beauty is vain." The opinion of the world is in many cases unreliable. Personal graces and accom- plishments, however pleasing and fascinating, are shortlived. The woman who finds pleasure in the empty flatteries of gay admirers is to be pitied. " But the woman that fears the Lord, she shall be praised." I do not ask for you, riches nor high position, but I pray THE TRUE BEAUTY OF WOMANHOOD. 319 that you may be found in every changing condition of Hfe true to yourselves and to the Master whom you profess to serve. You go forth from this college with high expectations entertained regard- ing you, and the subject of many prayers. We have endeavored to give you not only a sound education, but to lay the foundations of sound religious principles, which will be found valuable in com- ing years. As the graduates of a christian seminary, the eyes of the world are upon you. You occupy a prominent position. Your intellectual attainments, however varied, cannot atone for lack of lady-like deportment, and those higher graces which are the bestow- ment of God's Holy Spirit. Cultivate humility — purity of heart and conversation. " Whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report ; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things." While I counsel you to continue, as opportunity may be given^ a faithful prosecution of your duties, I exhort you to make full proof of your attainments in consecrated labor for God. Never was there a period in the history of the church when there were louder calls for the highest gifts and the most unselfish sacrifices than at the present day. Whatever talents you possess, use them tor the ad- vancement of His Kingdom, whose subjects you are. Are there any here who have not yet given themselves to Christ ? I beseech you with all the solicitude of one deeply interested in your eternal welfare, delay no longer. Wliatever may be }'our capacities and gifts, without personal religion they are of little value. Our efforts in your behalf will have proved a lamentable failure, if we have not succeeded in bringing you to the cross of Christ, there to leave be- hind the burden of your sins, and in heaven to cast your crowns before His throne. As you now enter upon a new stage of exist- ence, exposed to manifold temptations and varied trials, take Him 320 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. for your friend, whose love is lasting and whose sympathy is infi- nite. Say in the words of the Christian poet : I waste no more in idle dreams, my life, my soul away, I wake to know my better self — I wake to watch and pray ; Thought, feeling, time, and idols vain, I've lavished all too long ; Henceforth to holier purposes, I pledge myself, my song. Said Hedley Vicars, after his remarkable conversion, in a letter to his youngest sister : " Be sure you will feel far happier in this world even by making religion your chief business and study, than by all the pleasures and gaieties which your young heart may be longing after." With these words I close. We part, never all to meet again, as we do to-night. Oh for the time when in our seraph wings, We veil our brows before the eternal throne — The day when drinking knowledge at its springs We know as we are known. Decision of Character. -21 "And Ruth said, Entreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee ; for whither thou goest, I will go : and where thou lodgest I will lodge : thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God ; where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried : the Lord do so to me, and more also, if aught but death part thee and me." —Ruth 1, V. 16, 17 Decision of Character. |UCH interest is naturally attached to the kingdom of ^_ . Moab, and much is said concerning it in the Old Testa- f^,^fil^r ment scriptures. The Moabites and Israelites were near ■■ (^ •■ relatives. Lot, the father of Moab, was nephew to Abra- ham, and both were descended from Terah. The history of both peoples began about the same time, for Moab and Isaac, the son of Abraham, were probably born in the same year, and the histories of their descendants run side by side for nearly 1,500 years. They were also near neighbors, for part of Israel occupied a portion of the Moabitish territory, and a great body of the nation was severed from the land of Moab simply by the river Jordan. Balak, who hired Balaam to curse the people of Israel, was King of Moab. Mount Nebo, from whence the Lord showed Moses the land which he had promised to give to the seed of Abraham, was in the land of Moab, and Ruth, the faithful and affectionate daughter-in-law of Naomi, who abandoned her idols and her native land, was a Moabitess. Until very lately, however, nothing but the extensive ruins of Moab, told of her ancient grandeur. No inscription had been found (323) 3-4 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. to corroborate the page of inspiration. But some few years ago a remarkable record was found in an old basaltic stone, covered with the ancient language of the country. Attempts were made by Europeans to purchase the stone, but the Arabs finding it valuable, became exorbitant in their demands, asking as much as five thous- and dollars. Finally the various Arab chiefs, putting in their claims on different grounds, came to angry words and blows, and making a fire round the stone and pouring water upon it when heated, split it into a number of fragments. These fragments, however, have been in part recovered, and the inscription upon the stone so far as legible verifies the Old Testament scriptures. The inscription makes reference to the visitations of Moab under suc- cessive Israelitish monarchs, to certain victories of Moab when she recovered her freedom, and to the names of mountains, cities, local- ities, kings and divinities of Moab. It also mentions Jehovah, un- der whose guidance and protection, the chosen people conquered, and because of whose anger Moab suffered. All these things in- vest the history of Ruth with more than common interest to every Bible student. The story itself is touching and true to nature. Bethlehem, "the house of bread," is stricken with famine, and necessity compels a separation for a time, from the sacred associations of home and friends. People do not generally leave their native land without good cause. The emigrant on the vessel's deck with tear dimmed eye, takes the last fond look of his home and country, and with emotion that almost chokes his utterance, bids it a long farewell. But if it is hard to leave one's native soil, it is sad beyond expres- sion when emigrants in a strange land, in their loneliness and friend- lessness, are smitten by death. Such was the bitter experience of Naomi. Elimelech, her husband, and shortly afterwards her two sons, who had married Moabitish women, die in the land of Moab. Those upon whom she fondly leaned were taken from her. The DECISION OF CHARACTER. 325 strong- arm was laid low. Her counsellor, stay and solace, was no more. It was a triple grief. She was a widow, indeed, in a strange land. Bereavements at home are hard enough to bear, when we are surrounded by sympathetic friends, but to bury one's friends in a foreign land, is sad indeed ! And now the poor widow, bereaved of husband and sons, prepares to return to her native land. What more natural than that she should do so ? There was now nothing to detain her in Moab. A foreign country had no attractions, save that its graves contained her dead, and so we read : " She arose with her daughters-in-law, that she might return from the country of Moab, and they went on the way to return into the land of Judah." It was a critical moment for Ruth and Orpah, her daughters-in- law. They had lived together from infancy, and had been com- panions and neighbors from youth ; had played around the same palm tree ; sat at the same cottage door ; wandered on the same hills of Moab ; enjoyed the same religious privileges, and suffered the same bereavement. The time had now come when they must determine to go with Naomi, or remain behind. The boundary line was now reached between the two countries, when Naomi says : " Go return each to her mother's house ; the Lord deal kindly with you, as ye have dealt with the dead and with me. The Lord grant that ye may find rest, each of you in the house of her husband ; and they lifted up their voice and wept." It was a sad scene. I think I see the three women standing in the highway, discussing whether to say farewell or not. " Naomi with eyes full of eager entreaty, and lips quivering with pain ; Orpah moved to weeping, yet perplexed — wondering what decision to make, and casting a glance ever and anon back on the road they had come ; Ruth standing, grasping her mother's hand, with unwavering resolve in every line of her face and attitude." Both at first determined to accompany Naomi, saying, " Surely, we will return with thee unto thy people." But Naomi will still further test the strength of their affection and the 326 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. firmness of their resolutions. "Turn again, my daughters," she says, " why will ye go with me? Are there yet any more sons in my womb, that may be your husbands ? Turn again, my daugh- ters, go your way, for I am too old to have an husband. If I should say I have hope, if I should have an husband to-night, and should also bear sons, would ye tarry for them from having husbands ? Nay, my daughters, for it grieveth me much for your sakes, that the hand of the Lord is against me." And now comes the final decision — Orpah changes her determination to go to the land of Judah, and resolves to stay in Moab. She began to count the cost. She had a mother to shelter her, while Naomi could only bestow her blessing, and so she contents herself with kissing he*" mother-in-law, and going back to her country and her gods. Orpah was in some respects a lovely character. Had no such severe test been sprung upon her, she would have won our admira- tion equally with Ruth. She was of a gentle, affectionate disposi- tion. She had been a kind, loving wife for ten years to her now dead husband, and a tender, dutiful daughter-in-law to Naomi. Her human attachments were strong. She had that fervid, sentimental, attractive grace, which often passes for true religion, but which cannot surrender present pleasures and comforts for nobler prospec- tive rewards. She was unreliable ; with good impulses, but want- ing strength of character to sustain them. Like the maiden decked for the grave, looking lovely even in death, so are such characters. But there is no life, and the beauty and comeliness soon turn to rottenness and decay. Ruth was an entirely different character. She came unto Naomi saying : " Entreat me not to leave thee, or to return from follow- ing after thee ; for whither thou goest I will go, and where thou lodgest I will lodge ; thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God ; where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried. The Lord do so to me and more also, if aught but death part thee DECISION OF CHARACTER. 327 and me." In other words, she is prepared for poverty, for long widowhood, for exile from home and country, for all that shall fol- low faithfulness to her mother-in-law. Here we have complete identification of interests, and thorough surrender of will. She will embrace her religion, dwell, travel, die, and be buried with Naomi. In reviewing this touching story, we learn these lessons : First, — Ruth's conduct indicates great decision of character. She clave unto Naomi. It is a quality of vast importance in reli- gious matters. Vacillation, hesitancy, inconstancy, are productive of serious evils. Halting between two opmions is alike unmanly and perilous. Unreliable, wavering, and fickle natures never com- mand confidence and respect. Where duty is plain, immediate action is the part of wisdom. Second,— Ruth's conduct indicates strong affection and personal attachment. She and Naomi were kindred spirits. They had grown up into each other, as the tender vine entwines itself around the stronger oak. Their lives were bound together, so that they could not live apart. The character of Naomi commended her religion. She was spiritual mother, as well as mother-in-law, to Ruth. She was her instructor in divine things, and the instrument of winning her heart to the God of Israel. Very often, as in the present instance, the influence of a sweet and holy life attracts and decides another for Christ. Naomi made religion lovely. Ruth accepted her creed as translated in her char- acter, and was thus led to cast in her lot with the people of God. As the apostle says in writing to the Corinthian church, " Ye are our epistle, written in our hearts, known and read of all men." Third, — Ruth lost nothing by her decision. For a time, doubt- less, she and Naomi endured poverty and hardships. Their return to Bethlehem Judah, was indeed sad. A poor widow returning poorer than when she left home, seeking shelter for her lonely head after her husband's death. Such is the picture of Naomi, as she 328 THE CHURCH AND THE COMiMON WEALTH. enters the city gates. Her old companions and friends could hardly recognize her. " Is this Naomi ?" they asked, the one of the other. She had gone forth in the pride of womanhood ; now she returns with bent form and careworn countenance. These ten years had brought many wrinkles on her brow, and whitened the hairs of her head. No wonder that she said, " Call me not Naomi, call me Mara, for the Almighty hath dealt very bitterly with me. I went out full, and the Lord hath brought me again home empty." But ultimately neither Naomi nor Ruth had cause to regret the step they took. Ruth gained a home and position that amply re- compensed her for leaving Moab, and renouncing her kindred and her gods. She won the heart of Boaz, who, overcoming the preju- dice of his nation against the Moabites, married her, and Boaz was rewarded in his union to one, whose love to her widowed mother- in-law was the best of all pledges that she would be a faithful wife. Thus Ruth became the mother of a great race, including King- David, from whom the Saviour sprang. The conduct of Ruth should be copied by every young christian. What means profession of faith and sitting at the Lord's table ? Nothing less than life-long service. It is union not only for life, but beyond death. It should be the starting point for holy activity and concentrated zeal. As the hymn says : My spirit, soul and body, •Jesus, I give to thee ; A consecrated offering. Thine ever more to be. My all is on the altar, I'm waiting for the fire ; Waiting, waiting, waiting, I'm waiting for the fire. Ruth's conduct should be copied by those who are not as yet God's people. To some here this ma}- be the moment of decision. The call may never be renewed. Which of the two courses of DECISION OF CHARACTER. 329 conduct will you adopt? Orpah's or Ruth's? Will you kiss or cleave? After all the entreaties addressed you, have you resolved to go back to your country and your gods, or can you say with Ruth, " Thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God ?" While I speak, bands of angels are hovering over you, eager to pro- claim the glad tidings that another soul has been saved and added to the number of the redeemed. Straightway act. Yield to Christ. The soul expands and grows by active consecration ; doubts dis- perse ; accusations and fears cease to torment, and peace reigns within. No fnan or woman ever suffered by deciding for Christ. Present material sacrifices are more than compensated for by sub- sequent spiritual gains. Godliness with contentment is great gain, having the promise of the life that now is, and that which is to come. Finally, this decision of character is equally necessary to suc- cess in every secular profession in which you may engage. When once you have found out the proper sphere for the exercise of the talents entrusted you, prosecute your calling with singleness of aim, and seek the highest place among your compeers. Put your best intelligence into whatever you do, and regard life as useful only in so far as you are the means of happiness to others. Forget self, and rise superior to the empty plaudits of petty minds, whose flat- tery is as worthless as it is insincere. Resolve to make each day memorable by performing some good action. As Carlyle says : " Know what thou can'st do, then work at it like a Hercules." When Jenny Lind, the great singer, in the year 1850, was going through the United States, electrifying crowded audiences by her marvellous voice, she went down the Mississippi by steamboat, and as the boat stopped at various places, crowds of blacks gathered around her to hear her sing. It is said by Sir Jules Benedict, who accompanied her, that she sang on these occasions with as much conscientiousness and pains, as if she had been before one of the 330 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. most critical audiences of the metropolis. On being asked why she took such pains before such people, who could not appreciate her, she replied : *' I love my art too well to engage in any of its exercises otherwise than with all the skill I possess." This is an unfailing mark of true nobleness of mind. It is very true that the strength of woman lies chiefly in her heart ; that it shows itself in their strong love and instinctive per- ception of right and wrong, and that her noblest and most effective endowments lie within the domain of the affections, for which no amount of intellectual force or grasp of logic can be substituted. But it is none the less true, that the world needs women of culture and force of character'; — women who by their educational training, may indirectly at least mould the destiny of nations, and become potent factors in the elevation, not only of their own sex, but of humanity at large. As has been well said : " When there ccmes a generation, with minds large enough to provide impartially, ade- quately and wisely for the young of both sexes, the completer life of the household and of the race will come forward with a rush of angels' wings, like a fulfilment of Tennyson's fine prophecy: The man be more of woman, she of man ; He gain in sweetness and in moral height, She mental breadth, nor fail in childward care, Nor lose the childlike in the larger mind ; Till at last she set herself to man, Like perfect music unto noble words, And so these twain, upon the skirts of time, Sit side by side, full sunned in all their powers, Dispensing harvest, sowing the to-be, Self-reverent each, and reverencing each, Distinct in individualities — ;:: * :;; ^• Then comes the statelier Eden back to man. Student life is not finished when the college halls are abandoned. The text book is necessary and preparatory to a wider arena, where the mental powers and social sympathies may be more fully devel- DECISION OF charact?:r. 331 oped. Books arc useful and indispensable to the acquisition cf knowledge, but they are after all only the tools and materials by which we are enabled to explore new fields and enter upon untrav- ersed regions of thought. They should never be regarded as more than guide books to nature's wonders and mysteries. If we can discover the hidden path without them, so much the better. Emi- nence in scholarship is not attained by miscellaneous reading, and in picking up random scraps of information, but in the earnest and thoughtful mastery of some one subject. The sceptic is the one who sees only the pieces of things fragmentarily and detached > the believer is the one who sees things in wholes. As Lord Bacon says : " A little philosophy inclineth man's mind to atheism, but depth in philosophy bringeth men's minds about to religion." Young ladies of the graduating class, the time has come when you must bid farewell to teachers and companions, whose fellow- ship and efforts on your behaif you doubtless value. Bright as the prospect is, the hour of separation brings with it sorrow. With many of you I have been on intimate terms for years, nor have I failed to mark your growth in grace, as well as in secular know- ledge ; and now as you leave us to hear other voices on the Sabbath day, and learn from other teachers in the great practical school of life, my prayers go with you, that God may sanctify the learning you have acquired, and help you to use it for the Master's glory. The best recompense you can make your teachers, is to prove by your deportment the lasting value of their labors. Some of you will dignify christian homes by the sweet gentleness of pure and holy lives ; and is not this the most exalted and potent of all con- ditions for doirtg good ? Others of you, doubtless, enter other insti- tutions of learning, and carry forward to higher stages of efficiency the work of education in our land ; while some I trust, if called upon, will not be found unwilling to go far hence, and seek to raise their degraded sisters in heathen lands. All these are but different 332 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. departments of God's work. As the Hebrew women of old finished the old tabernacle in blue, and purple, and scarlet, and gold, so may you be honored in adorning the living temple of the human soul. Oh, Christian women, for the temples set, Throughout earth's desert lands — do not forget The sanctuary curtains need your 'broidery yet. The character I have lo-night thus fragmentarily portrayed is not beyond your reach. Ruth was not gifted above her sex. She had none of those advantages which christian women of the pres- ent day possess. She was destitute of the culture of the schools, but rich in faith. In her own proper sphere she acted a part that gained for her the commendation alike of God and man. You cannot all alike become famous, but you may all attain that sweet- ness and symmetry of deportment that renders very ordinary en- dowments of surpassing value to society. The real " womanly woman " is not the one who seeks to overstep the bounds of her sex, daring to do strange things that excite remark and challenge criticism ; but she who from day to day, under the eye of the great taskmaster, conscientiously, and with single aim, addresses herself to the humblest enterprises, who is not ashamed to say : Yes, God has made me a woman, And I am content to be Just what He meant, not reaching out For other things, since He, Who knows me best and loves me most, Has ordered this for me, A woman to live my life out In quiet womanly ways. Hearing the far-off battle, Seeing as through a haze. The crowding, struggling world of men. Fight through their busy days. With the Whole Heart. \ " He did it with all his heart, and prospered." — 2nd Chronicles 31, v. 21. With the Whole Heart. i' |HE great painter, Opie, was once asked, "What do you _ mix your colors with ?" To which he repUed' " With ^j^ brains, sir." A truth of vast practical importance is im- i]^''' plied, namely, that intelligence, devotion, zeal and com- mon sense are necessary in order to success in any and every profession. Hezckiah, we are told in the context, did that which was right before God. He repaired the house of the Lord ; cast out the un- cleanness ; sanctified the sanctuary and the people ; offered sacri- fices and made atonement ; proclaimed and kept the passover ; brake the images in pieces ; cut down the groves and destroyed the altars. He did everything with his heart, and prospered. God not only approved his deeds, but commended his zeal. He was a thorough reformer in church and state — a moral revo- lutionist. There was no temporizing nor expediency in his actions. He consulted neither the opinions nor caprices of his subjects or courtiers, but sought to know the will of heaven, and acted ac- cordingly. (335) 7,2,6 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. Such men arc often very unpopular. Fanatics, enthusiasts and destructionists are the names appHed to them. They are regarded as possessed of but one idea ; narrow-minded — ilhberal. But such characters the age demands and God approves. Let us, then, as somewhat appropriate on the present occasion, enquire into the meaning of the phrase, "He did it with all his heart." It implies that in religious matters success is in exact propor- tion as we give to them our whole heart. It is good to be zeal- ously affected always in a good thing. " My meat and mv drink," said Christ, " is to do the will of Him that sent me." " I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day ; the night cometh when no man can work." " I have a baptism to be baptized with ; and how am I straitened till it be accomplished." " The zeal of mine house hath eaten me up." Every man, then, who would gain eternal life, must set about it with his whole heart. No toil, no rest. Rest is sweet, but ser- vice in proportion to love is sweeter still. No cross, no crcnvn. God does not offer future rewards as premiums for indolence. We must agonize, and strive, and wrestle, and labor, in order to enter upon rest. As men running the rapids and straining every nerve to avoid the jagged rocks, so must we summon up all the energies of our nature to secure salvation. It follows, also, that in the attainment of specific gifts and graces, success is in proportion as we give to the work our whole heart. There is undue blame put upon God oftentimes by christians, for their spiritual deadness, when their own indolence ought rather to be rebuked. " Covet earnestly the best gifts," " Desire spiritual gifts," says the apostle. " Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect. Forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in WITH THE WHOLE HEART. 337 Christ Jesus." " So fight I, not as one that beateth the air." The testimony of scripture everywhere is to the effect that christians are not mere passive recipients of heavenly influences, but that in the strengthening and developing of their gifts and graces, they are active agents. Man is not a mere senseless block of marble, unconscious and unmoved under the chisel of the sculptor ; but as flowers open under the warming influences of the sun, so is the heart and its sympathies to respond to the touch of God's spirit. The ivy instinctively clasps and runs up the ruins, and the soul of man, once breathed upon by God's grace, is to seek after higher and nobler attainments until perfection is reached. A man in the common affairs of life cannot without application prosper ; if he is contented with the very lowest style of civilization, he need not exert his powers, physical or mental. The instinct of the animal is soon developed, but there are no limits to the possibilities of reason, and just as men aspire after something grander and loftier than mere manual drudgery, are self-denial and persistent effort demanded. A christian may thus remain at the very lowest possible grade of spiritual life, satisfied with the rudiments of Christianity, and the more elementary attainments of the babe, without aspirations after more fully developed gifts and graces and perfect manhood. The round of stated observances may be observed, and some benefit de- rived. Duties may be formally and perfunctorily discharged, and the laws of spiritual living be literally obeyed, while their spirit is ignored and all yearnings after moral excellence and superior worth suppressed and stilled. Now I take it that God never intended converted men and women to live after such a fashion. When religion is once accepted and professed, it should be the business of the life. And surely if in the ordinary employments of the age, men are honored accord- ing as they give to them their individual attention, it is becoming 338 THE CHURCH and the commonwealth. that in prosecuting the christian Hfe, they should do it with their whole heart. To be content with the lowest rank, when we might fill the highest place ; to be saved by fire, when we might even now be polished shafts, and in eternity shine as stars in the heavenly firmament, is hardly in keeping with our duty and our destiny. Every christian possesses certain gifts. But in very few instan- ces are they cultivated as they might be. And thus when called to occupy positions of responsibility, they plead unfitness and in- capacity. They have the spiritual weapons, but they lie unused. They remind one of the armour room in the Tower of London. There you see the armour of kings and dukes and nobles — the mere external forms of iron and steel of those who wore them cen- turies ago. But there is not a single arm that can be lifted up, and so christians go on parade once in a while, and flourish their regimentals, and go through certain mechanical gestures, but no one is ever killed, and no sin is ever slain. They spend a great deal of time in denouncing iniquity, but the blows fall short of the enemy. They have a certain kind of piety, but it belongs more to the cloistered cell than the busy world. They are rigidly orthodox, intelligent, truthful, and blameless, but their religion never becomes aggressive, and never closes in upon surrounding ungodliness. Now in the church, as in the world, and as it is in every well Oi-ganized army, every member should have his place. Having gifts differing according to the grace that is given us, we are to teach, or rule, or exhort, according to our individual ability, not as child's play, but with our whole heart. Five years of consecrated labor is better than fifty spent in dreamy indolence. A sharp axe in the hands of a skilled woodsman will accomplish more than a dozen amateurs whose muscles have never been exercised. It is tne spirit that prompts us to work, and the earnestness with which we engage in it, that conquers difficulties and gains results. The most honored servants of God are not the most learned, nor the WITH THE WHOLE HEART. 339 most talented, but the most whole hearted. What they do they do with all their heart, forgetting themselves in the great business of the Master, and sacrificing all personal considerations for its ad- vancement. Heart power or spiritual force is the great element in effective work. The lips touched with the live coal from the altar, and the heart warmed by the fires of divine love can do and dare what mere cultured intellect cannot undertake. The time is short and eternity is near and long. Souls are per- ishing. Be up then and doing. Your utmost diligence and devo- tion will seem all too small, when you look up the record of your lives. Find your work and qualify yourselves for it. Do something. Do it now. Where good can be done love is fertile in expedients for overtaking it. Be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises. "Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might, for there is no work, nor devise, nor knowledge, nor wisdom in the grave, whither thou goest." Be not readily nor unduly discouraged over failures. The human agents in carrying out God's plans must expect such, but the end is victory, as the poet says ; We must take our turn at the mill, And grind out the go'den grain ; And work at our task with a resolute will, Over and over again. Once doing may not suffice, Though doing be not in vain ; And a blessing failing us once or twice, Will come if we try again. The text also implies that success in secular callings is in pro- portion as we engage in them with our whole heart. There is no royal road to riches. A few are born so. Others grow rich easily — everything that they touch seems to turn to gold. But the rule is, that industry, perseverance and application win the day. Per- haps it is not theologically true, but practically it is that — 340 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. All are architects of Fate, Working in these walls of Time ; Some with massive deeds and great, Some with ornaments of rhyme. This indeed is the teaching of scripture, " The hand of the diligent maketh rich. Seest thou a man diligent in business ? He shall stand before kings. Not slothful in business ; fervent in spirit ; serving the Lord." In the ordinary business of life there is enough to tax the most capacious mind. To be equally great and success- ful in mercantile, literary and political pursuits, is impossible. The pursuit of such different avocations is not only uncongenial to most minds, but in the long run dissipating and unprofitable. Men who attempt all are failures, for any one of them demands the entire energies of the brain. Illustrations of this truth abound. In business, Budgett and Peabody ; in literature, Macaulay and Thackeray, Dickens and Carlyle ; in statesmanship, Pitt and Peel, Cobden and Bright, Bea- consfield and Gladstone. The telescope cannot sweep the heavens all at once. The angle of observation must be changed. Great names are always associated with some one enterprise or move- ment adapted to their peculiar cast of mind. Howard and Wilber- force, Mrs. Sommerville and Florence Nightingale, are evidences of this fact. In professional life men become famous in specialties. Labor is constantly being sub-divided, as civilization extends and expands. The writer, the orator, and the pleader, are now separ- ate professions. The dentist, the druggist, and the doctor are dif- ferent callings. Natural tastes determine different callings. Kep- ler, Galileo, Michael Angelo, James Watt. Christopher Wren and Gustavus Dore had a passion for their favorite studies, which began in youth. Artists are of two kinds. The true artist must paint, or carve, or play, to satisfy the cravings of the mind, and realize the creations of his brain. Not so the man who paints, or carves, or WITH THE WHOLE HEART, 34 1 sings for a mere livelihood. The former is the man of genius, and invariably attains the highest degree of excellence. The latter never gees beyond mechanical rules. But genius is nothing with- out intense heart and brain work. The soul on fire with some noble idea is for the moment inspired, and often surpasses what it proposes. Poets thus sing of the birds — their hearts are in every song. But apart from the steady application of the mental powers, genius can accomplish nothing of lasting value : Not in the clamor of the crowded street, Not in the shouts and plaudits of the throng, . But in ourselves are triumph and defeat. There are doubtless a few exceptions where men of extraordi- nary genius excel easily in everything they undertake. But these exceptions only prove the rule. It may be answered truthfully that ability, earnestness and fru- gality are not always prosperous. Abundant crops do not, every season, bless the faithful husbandman. But it is equally true that no crops whatever come in to the sluggard, save thorns and thistles. The years that are often spent in frivilous pursuits and sordid aims bring no return whatever but remorse and penury. Hence the wis- dom of the poet's utterance : Count that day lost whose low descending sun Views from thy hand no worthy action done. It follows then, from what has been said, that our range of studies and labor must be restricted if we work with all our heart. Life is far too short, and mind too feeble to gain excellence in every department. Hezekiah did not attempt the work of Solomon, nor David that of Joshua. Our mental powers are incapable of intense concentration on a vast variety of subjects. To attempt too much at first is to make life a failure. True greatness begins in small things, and moves on from one achievement to another with in- 342 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. creased power and confidence. Small duties and meagre oppor- tunities are the training schools of success, and no one gets the prize who does not take his degree in them. Many young men and women are ruined by suddenly acquiring fame. They are un- equal to the position into which they have been thrust, more by a conjunction of circumstances than their own individual merits. They do not possess the courage and endurance necessary to sus- tain them in maintaining the honors conferred upon them, and reaching forward to still greater conquests. They lack the incen- tive of a strong motive, and dream life away in common place and idle pursuits, which render no return, and neither benefit man nor glorify God. They become cold, selfish and indifferent to the wants of humanity — repulsive and unlovely rather than attractive — living and dying, undistinguished by any act of moral heroism or mental effort that might have secured for them a place in the tem- ple of fame. Young ladies of the graduating class, you have arrived at a point of momentous interest to yourselves, and great rejoicing to your friends. Your teachers have been trying To mould And fashion plastic newness into grace, To make the youthful heart heroic, And light with thought the maiden's face. You are now looking forward to years of happiness, freed from the cares and sorrows of student life. But whatever you may become will be due to what you have undergone as undergraduates of this colleo-e, of which you are soon to be alumni. As one very beauti- fully says : What were womanhood without the preparatory stages of infancy, childhood and youth. With their experiences, glad and sad, their struggles and victories, their disappointments and chast- enings, their tears and prayers and hopes and fears, their precious legacy of many memories ! The very conception of a life with such an hiatus of blankness and nothingness yawning between infancy WITH THE WHOLE Hf:ART, 343 and maturity, if not indeed impossible, is cold and weird and cheer- less. In going forth, be not over-confident of continued triumphs. Longfellow, in his poem, '• My Lost Youth," says : I remember the gleams and glooms that dart Across the school girl's brain, The song and the silence in the heart, That in part are prophecies, and in part Are longings wild and vain. Humility is one of the best guarantees for the achievement of future greatness. Nor is it unequal to the noblest endurance and self-sacrificing zeal. The Roman women, in the earlier ages of Christianity, were celebrated for their constancy and adherence to the faith. Their sufferings and death, under the most brutal and ignominious martyrdoms on the cross, or in the bloody arena, form the most touching incidents in Christian tradition. In every gen- eration, the strong religious convictions of women have been the mainstay of our holy religion. The true sisters of charity are not the women immured within the bars of a convent, or within the damp walls of a dreary cell, but such as spend their lives in active labors of love for the good of all with whom they come in contact, or can reach by their voice or pen. It were a sad thing for the world if our cultivated women were all like Harriet Martineau, who lost all faith in God and immortality, and hesitated not to say, at the close of her long and not uneventful life : " I feel no solicitude about a parting which will bring no pain. I am frankly satisfied to have done with life. I have had a noble share of it, and I desire no more. I neither wish to live longer here, nor to find life again elsewhere. It seems to me simply absurd to expect it." With all your triumphs here, it were surely a painful thought that this short period of probation was the end ; that life should be extinguished when death approaches ; that there should be no future where the intellect, that has just begun to open to the reception of the truth, shall blaze forth under the direct illumination of God himself. 344 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. In such a moment as this the joy that naturally accompanies the day of graduation, must be somewhat mellowed by the prospect of parting from companions and friends whose smile has lightaned days of toil. But what is life but change ? Like Ships that pass in the night and speak each other in passing, , So on the ocean o£ life, we pass and speak one another ; Only a look and a voice, then darkness again and a silence. Blessed be God, there is a land where the union of friends is permanent, and where no cloud shall shade the sunlight of exist- ence. Is this your hope? Are you anticipating the day when you shall be crowned with deathless laurels— when you shall enter upon grander studies than can possibly employ human thought, and at- tain a higher standing than falls to the lot of the most diligent stu- dent on earth? There is nothing that can compensate for the lack of a religious hope ; nothing that can make life attractive and death desirable, but the personal knowledge that Christ has pardoned sin, and rendered immortality a certainty, and that come what may, nothing can separate from the love of God in Christ Jesus. In leaving this church and the college where you have spent so many days, I ask for you only what a loving father sees fit to send. Riches are unstable and cannot satisfy the soul ; beauty is fading and cannot exert a permanent influence ; scholarship unchastened and unsanctified, only adds to perplexity and unrest of mind. But the conscious presence of Christ keeps the heart undismayed and stable, amid the fiercest agitations and fieriest trials. If like Esther of old, you are to obtain favor in the king's sic^ht and wear the royal crown, there must be more or less discipline in the present life.. It is related that in Germany there stood two vast towers far apart on the extreme of a castle ; and that the old baron to whom the castle belonged stretched huge wires across from one to the other, thus constructing an .^lolian harp. Ordinary winds produced no effect upon it, but when fierce WITH THE WHOLE HEART. 345 storms and mighty winds roused themselves up, and came rushing down the sides of the mountains, and through the valleys, the wires rolled out majestic music. And thus when God would make our lives sublime, He tosses us about in violent tempests, and brings out the deeper and sweeter tonesof our better nature. School days are not over with you yet. All through life, be it long or short, we are under training. Whether it be sorrow, or disappointment, or failure, all is intended to lead us to the infinite source of good, where the thirst of the soul shall be quenched forever. Then amid the glories and felicities of the heavenly state, the more painful memor- ies of the life below shall be forgotten or transformed. We are told of a mystic fountain in Florida, the purity of whose waters is such that, though two hundred feet in depth, every object is visible. Be- neath its limpid waters the most hideous objects shine with all the colors of the rainbow, as the light passes down the mighty prism of the water. Thus may it be with us in that world illuminated by the light of God, passing through the sea of glory, that all the sad memories we have cherished here shall be submerged in the sea of paternal love, irradiated with the rays of the sun of righteousness. We ktiow there may be tempests, And we know there will be showers ; Yet we know they only hasten Summer's richer crown of flowers. The Best Knowledge. " In much wisdom is much gi'ief : and he that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow." — Ecclesiastes 1, v. 18. "This is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent." — John 17, V. 3. The Best Knowledo^e, I^NE of the leading philosophical writers of the age, in dis- cussing the question, What knowledge is of most worth ? replies, that it is the knowledge that enables a man to live completely. And certainly if the phrase, " a com- plete man," is used in its fullest signification, as including the highest development of the moral and spiritual powers of the soul, the definition may be readily accepted. But when we find that all that is meant by a complete life is the mere development of the physical being, and that the culture which more directly aims at ennobling the soul, and moulding the character, is either unpro- vided for or practically ignored, we must reject such a statement as radically defective and untrue. We need not despise physical or mental culture, while exalting a higher education than the schools afford. But there is a know- ledge which lies beyond the limits of human discovery — of priceless value and of lasting importance. It leads to and embraces a change of heart, through transformation of the affections, and supreme love to our Maker. Or in the words read : " This is life eternal, that they might know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent." (349) 350 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. Mind is undoubtedly one of the most wonderful things, among the many mysteries of our nature. Scarcely less wonderful is the power of speech, by which we communicate the hidden operations of the mind. But language entirely fails to represent the different shades of thought and feeling, of which the mind is susceptible. Therefore, in all languages, the same word is used to represent many forms of thought. The heathen are said " to know God," and in other passages " not to know God." Knowledge is at one time depreciated as worthless as vanity, and as a weariness of the flesh, while again it is declared to be "life eternal." In such state- ments there is, after all, no real contradiction. The scriptures speak of two kinds of knowledge : Intellectual or speculative knowledge on the one hand, and spiritual or experimental on the other. These differ in their objects and in their effects. Speculative knowledge is called in scripture, natural knowledge, because possessed by the natural man, and discoverable by the light of nature. A knowledge of science and art ; of the productions and phenomena of the natu- ral world — a knowledge of mankind, whether drawn from personal observation or the records of history ; a knowledge of the philos- ophy of mind and morals, considered simply as matters of specu- lative enquiry, — these are included in natural knowledge. Spirit- ual or experimental knowledge, on the other hand, is distinguished by the nature of its objects and the state of the recipient's mind. It is due, in great measure, to the influences of a divine power operating upon the mind, enlarging the faculty of perception, and revealing important truths not otherwise understood by unassisted human reason. Let us briefly point out the superiority of spiritual to that of natural or speculative knowledge. I. Natural knowledge is insufficient to lead men to a discovery of those truths which are necessary to salvation. The world by wisdom, says the Apostle, knew not God, neither as the independ- The Queen of Sheba's Visit to Solomon. THE BEST KNOWLEDGE. 35 I ent, eternal, and unchangeable Jehovah revealed in scripture, nor as the Redeemer of men. For ages the world was left to solve the problem, as to what man could do untaught of God, and signally- failed in- the attempt. Egypt, Greece and Rome-— nay, th-e entire world, with the exception of Palestine, was covered with the gross- est darkness, and groaned under false religions and false concep- tions of the Deity. " Ye men of Athens," said Paul, when speaking on Mars Hill, " I perceive that in all things ye are too superstitious. For as I passed by and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with the inscription, 'To the Unknown God.' And what was true of Athens, is true to-day of the heathen world, where the light of nature but reveals the moral and spiritual darkness which prevail. II. Natural knowledge is insufficient to make men holy. No amount of it can make a man good. The mere knowledge of super- natural truths cannot predispose to a holy lite. Men talk about look- ing up from nature to nature's God, as if nature in itself were sufficient to solemnize and sanctify the soul. To the christian, it is true, all nature speaks of God, but to the infidel, nature's voices are unin- telligible. It is not by mere intellectual culture that the world is to be converted and society reformed, but by the gospel of Jesus Christ, brought by the Holy Spirit in contact with the soul of man. Need we quote the testimony of individuals, famous on the page of history, as to the worthlessness of human learning? Take the case of Solomon himself — artist, poet, naturalist, zoologist, moralist, poli- tician, and king, all combined in one — with an eloquence and wis- dom that dazzled the oriental world, and yet what is his language? " In much wisdom there is much grief, and he that increaseth know- ledge increaseth sorrow. Of making many books there is no end, ■and much study is a weariness to the flesh." Take the case of Byron, possessed of fine sympathies and susceptibilities — majestic in intellect, with a genius almost superhum.an ; and yet with a char- acter immoral, cruel, and repulsive in the last degree, trampling 352 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. down the rights of social life — " a lover, yet scorner of his race " — and listen to his own words at the close of his brief career : My days are in the yellow leaf, The flowers, the fruit of love are gone ; The worm, the canker, and the grief Are mine alone ! Listen to what Sir Humphrey Davy says, himself — orator, poet, philosopher, and world-wide renowned by his discoveries — a favored son of science, flattered by the world, and honored by the great ; yet what were his words amid these very plaudits ? " Valde viis- eiabilis ! valde viiserabilis T — very miserable! very miserable! Hear his last confession in his fatal illness : " 1 envy no quality of mind or intellect in others ; nor genius, power nor fancy ; but if I could choose what would be most delightful to me — I believe most useful — I should prefer a firm religious belief to every other bless- ing. This makes up a discipline of goodness — creates new hopes when all earthly hopes vanish, and throws over the decay and des- truction of existence the most gorgeous of all lights, and brings up the most delightful of all visions, when the sensualist and the scep- tic have only gloom and decay and annihilation." HI. Natural knowledge of itself is evil in its effects. It tends to pride and self-conceit. It puffeth up. It makes a man think more highly of himself than he ought to think, so that, wise in his own eyes, he becomes a fool. Conceited ignorance is an offence in the eyes of men ; how much more in the sight of God. Intellec- tual pride produces self-confidence, and almost invariably tends to scepticism, which results in open infidelity. As Lord Bacon well remarks : " A little philosophy inclineth man's mind to atheism, but depth in philosophy bringeth men's minds about to religion." But apart from the fact that human knowledge is utterly worthless to make men wise unto salvation, is it not true — THE BEST KNOWLEDGE. j:) J IV. That mere intellectual studies are wearisome and unsatis- fying. Much study is a weariness of the flesh. Extraordinary attainments, in any one branch of science or literature, cannot be attained but by untiring diligence — constant and prolonged self- denial. Manual labor is not, as many hastily conclude, the severest form of human toil. The sleep of the laboring man is sweet after the exhausting toils of the day, but the study and research of the man of letters is too often followed by sleepless nights and a wasted constitution. He who would gain eminence among his fellows, must not only deny himself many innocent enjoyments, but lay his account to endure positive suffering, from which the mass of men are exempted. Many are the disappointments, too, which accom- pany such a life. Success is not always gained, even when the faculties are strained to their utmost tension. Often the plodding', persevering student is mortified to find all his hopes frustrated, h:s plans thwarted, and the much coveted prize snatched from his grasp by some far less-deserving rival. Long tried experiments often end in failure ; favorite theories are exploded and overthrown, and results secured altogether trifling compared with the vast amount of labor expended. Nay, even when success rewards the diligent student, the knowledge acquired is far from satisfying. The more we know of our own character, and of the world in which we live, the greater oftentimes is our sorrow. We cannot extend our researches to any great extent, without meeting with sad evidences of the effects of sin, the inhumanity of man, and the fearful ruin of our race. Blood and carnage, cries of distress and despair, tyranny, injustice and oppression, cover many a page in the history of hu- manity. And, finally, after all our efforts, how little can the long- est life accomplish in the different departments of science and lit- erature? The more we know, but reveals the little we actually do know. The further we penetrate the secrets of nature, but reveals mysteries beyond our ken, paths we cannot tread, questions we *23 354 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. cannot answer, depths we cannot fathom ! We know but in part, and that part is very Hmited. After all our boasting as to the pow- ers of the human intellect and the achievements of the human mind, we have to confess that like children, we are but entering upon the elemental principles of all true knowledge. Were it not for the thought that a deeper, clearer, and more satisfactory insight into the works of God is before us in another sphere, we would stop short at the very threshold of our investigations. Enjoyment there is certainly in studying the works of nature, but apart from the knowledge of the true God it is unsatisfactory and transitory. This leads me to speak of spiritual knowledge. It differs from natural knowledge. I. As to its objects. These are above nature, and unattainable by the natural man. Says the Apostle : " We speak wisdom among them that are perfect — ^not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world that come to naught, but we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, for God has revealed them unto us by his Spirit, for the spirit searcheth all things, even the deep things of God." II. Spiritual knowledge includes intellectual cognition and ap- preciation of things revealed. The Scriptures do not depreciate speculative studies. They only teach that they are insufficient to sanctify and save. Intellectual knowledge is absolutely necessary. God does not enlighten men's minds in secular truth by means of miracles, nor does he spiritually illuminate a mind, where there is no knowledge. Intellectual knowledge may be said to be necessary for the Holy Spirit to operate upon. For anything we know, in- deed, the glory and happiness of the saints in heaven may be in proportion to their knowledge upon earth. Mind and soul should therefore be used together in our search after truth. III. Spiritual knowledge is spiritually discerned. The things perceived arc the spiritual qualities of the truth. The natural man THE BEST KNOWLEDGE. 355 takes account only of the intellectual phases of truth. The christ- ian sees from a different standpoint, looks with a different eye, and sees in a different light. A man unskilled in painting may look upon a beautiful picture, and yet not perceive the blending of the different colors and the proportions of light and shade that render it so perfect and pleasing. The very things which, in the estima- tion of the artist, are the glory of the painting, may have no inter- est in his eyes. So it is in regard to divine truth. Spiritual dis- cernment is due to the illumination of the Holy Spirit. It is not an objective operation, like the shining of the .sun upon the object looked at. It is inward and subjective. The spirit pours celestial light upon the eye balls ; he moves in a mysterious way, in the deep recesses of our nature, rendering the vision clear, and making the most mysterious of Bible truths simple and sure to the believ- ing soul. IV. Spiritual knowledge is thus blessed in jts effects. It pro- duces right affections toward God ; we become like God. By be- holding him we are changed from glory to glory ; and this knowl- edge of divine truth here is followed by the beatific vision hereafter. The knowledge of God is life eternal, and what is heaven but the beatific vision of God in Christ. Surely such knowledge is better than gold ; more to be desired than rubies ; all the things that may be desired are not to be com- pared to it. It brings with it no remorse, no weariness, no disap- pointment. Its ways are ways of pleasantness, and all its paths are peace ; while at the close of life it introduces to a world of sinless perfection. Young ladies of the graduating class. — The Faculty of the col- lege have diligently endeavored, during your term of study, to train you in those branches which are now regarded as essential to edu- cated womanhood. But they have done more. The Institution in which you have spent so many happy days is a christian institution. 356 THE CHURCH AND THE C0;MM0N WEALTH. It aims at something more than a secular education. It is not trammelled by statutes that forbid the reading and teaching of God's word. Unsectarian and non-denominational in the fullest sense, so far as peculiar doctrines are concerned, it endeavors none the less to emphasize the eternal verities of inspiration which lie at the foundation of all the cardinal virtues, and are the source of all true greatness. Although no longer under the direction of teachers, I take it for granted that the progress you have already made, will impel you to seek after greater attainments. Let me therefore affectionately counsel you to cultivate in all your researches, a spirit of reverence and devotion. You need divine guidance in order to appreciate the beauties of the present world, as well as to anticipate the glories of the next. While your minds are exercised in the different de- partments of science, and literature, and art, approach such studies in an humble childlike spirit, and with a sincere desire to glorify the Creator as seen in his handiworks. A firm faith in the exist- ence of God and implicit trust in His Son, Jesus Christ, will not detract from the charms of philosophy. It is very true and sadly to be lamented, that some of the greatest minds in ancient, as well as in modern times, have known nothing of God's gracious dealings with their souls. Able to compute the distances of the stars ; to read the history of our race in the records of geology, and dazzle the world with their learning and their eloquence, they have remained painfully ignorant of the way of salvation, through a living Re- deemer. But on the other hand, there are many instances of sin- cere and devoted piety, united with marvellous intellectual power, where simple faith in the blood of Jesus has shed a lustre around the sublime achievements of the scholar, and afforded sweetest sat- isfaction in the hour of death. For when called to grapple with the King of Terrors, neither our learning nor our scholarship can avail us aught. The applause and hosannahs of the multitude may be THE BEST KNOWLEDGE. 357 sweet in the day of health, but 'tis but an empty hollow sound in the ear of a dying man. But while some of you, doubtless, look forward to a life of con- tinuous study, others, and pA-haps the greater number, will be engaged in the more practical duties of life. There are few women in our land who can enjoy perfect leisure and immunity from the ordinary cares of life. Indeed a mere recluse — however vast and varied the subjects mastered — is often of far less value to the world than a less capacious mind. It is better for all purposes that the useful and elegant be combined. It is not the occupation so much as the spirit that actuates the worker, that makes the life noble. Honest effort, if it does not always reap a rich material reward, strengthens and enriches the soul. The true lady is one who can take her place in any station, and command respect in all ; who makes all around her happy by her cheerful, sunny smile and kindly acts ; who, whatever be her circumstances, can say at the close of each day that she has not eaten the bread of idleness. Where there is conscientious performance of duty, the poet's words are true : Everyday toil is everyday blessing, Though poverty's cottage and crust we may share ; Weak is the back on which burdens are pressing, But stout is the heart that is strengthened by prayer. Somehow or other the pathway grows brighter, •Just when we mourn there are none to befriend ; Hope in the heart makes the burden grow lighter, And, somehow or other, we get to the end. Finally, and ere you leave this place, where I have often spoken to you on the highest themes that can engage the attention of im- mortal beings, let me warn you against unholy alliances in after life. To choose riches without goodness is to choose perdition. I cannot say less, when so many promising young women sacrifice the fairest hopes of life upon the unhallowed shrine of mammon. There came recently under my notice a sweet little poem entitled, 358 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. " Elsie and the Lady," descriptive of the misery of a Hfe destitute of pure affection. The lady is looking forward to the day when a coronet will deck her brow, and her hand will lie in that of Eng- land's proudest peer. Elsie, who brings to her mistress her robes of velvet, and toys with her glittering hair, is to marry an humble son of toil, but yet says the peeress : Her's will be the brightest home On all the lady's land, For Elsie knows the stately brow, She binds the gems above — Unlike her own, will never wear The diadem of love. Thus musing upon the mockery of noble blood and liveried ser- vants, who come and go at her command, but destitute of sympa- thy, which the heart most needs, the peeress mournfully says : No coronet gilds Elsie's brow, Like that which g.eams on mine ; No ermine drapes her little form. Or gold or jewels shine. No lips speak loving words to me, Or stoop to kiss my hand ; The love is Elsie's ; mine the place Of a lady in the land. Some day the pageant will be o'er, And at the close of life. When death shall claim, with stern command, Both peer's and peasant's wif'^ ; Elsie may wear a crown of gold Shaped by an angel hand. And love may warm the lonely heart, Of the lady in the land. All love to her, all wealth to me. Has on the earth been given, A fairer balance will be struck Beyond the stars in heaven. May God go with you, through all the changing scenes of life, and bring you home to His presence above, to receive the reward of faithful service ! Amen. The Highest Wisdom. "Wisdom is tha principal thing: therefore get wisdom." — Proverbs 4, v. 7. " Say unto wisdom, Thou art my sister, and call understandino; thy kinswoman." — Proverbs 7, v. 4. The Highest Wisdom. ^^~JN THIS book of Proverbs, wisdom is personified. She is represented as crying without and uttering her voice ^i^jj[[gig/ in the streets, in the chief places of concourse, in the M^^^^% opening of the gates, saying, " how long, ye simple ones, ^^ P will ye love simplicity, and fools hate knowledge? " She T is represented in the text as clothed with the most attrac- tive attributes. Her merchandise is better than the merchandise of silver, and the gain thereof better than fine gold. She is more precious than rubies, and to be sought for as men seek for hidden treasures. She gives to the head an ornament of grace and a crown of glory. Her fruit is better than gold and her revenue than choice silver. To sum up all in the language of the wise man : "Blessed is the man that heareth her, watching daily at her gates, waiting at the posts of her doors. For whoso findeth her, findeth life, and shall obtain favor of the Lord." The wisdom referred to primarily is beyond the range of aca- demic teaching and training. Elsewhere we read, "the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom ; " not meaning that secular wis- dom and scholarly attainments are of little importance, but that (361) 362 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. without that higher knowledge which God's spirit alone can impart, the learning of the schools is unsatisfying — incapable of giving comfort in the hour of trial and peace in the hour of death. It is concerning such wisdom that Solomon speaks when he says : " Wisdom is the principal thing — therefore get wisdom — say unto wisdom, thou art my sister ; and call understanding thy kinswoman." If it cost thee all thy wealth it is worth more than the price paid for it. Get wisdom at any price. Cultivate habits of intimacy with wisdom and understanding. Addressing more directly on the present occasion, the students of the Young Ladies' College, and especially the graduates who are soon to go forth from its walls, let us regard the text as enforcing the value of wisdom, human and divine, in all the relations and conditions of life. Wisdom may be defined as knowledge practically applied to the purposes of life. It is that power which enables us to judge accurately and discern skilfully. It is genius coupled with common sense ; the power of turning the highest mental attainments into action at the right moment and for the best ends. In order to gain wisdom there must be : I. Reading and reflec- tion. The reading must be timely, the books select, and the reflec- tion constant. The amount of unhealthy, pernicious literature in circulation at the present day, is astounding, and well fitted to cause alarm. The greatest social evils of our age have their origin in the immaterial and morbid excitement of the imagination, caused by fictitious representations of human nature. The appetite grows as it is fed by sensational novels until body and mind are weakened, and the reason totters on the brink of a hopeless insanity. Young women especially with leisure for mental improvement are thus brought into contact with frivolity, profanity and immorality, which if met with in the living person, would be loathed and spurned. The feeling of repulsion at first experienced is soon overcome, and THE HIGHEST WISDOM. 363 the mind gradually familiarized with sip, becomes saturated with impurity, and finally, lovingly lingers over the polluted page. Are we never then to read pure fiction? Is there no relief from the severe studies of the college and the cloister, in the pages of poetry and romance? By all means. The mind needs recreation as well as the body. There is a large amount of fiction whose heal- thy tone and invigorating impetus, no one now calls in question. Poetry and fiction have a most important sphere in the develop- ment of character and the education of society. Thoi^h it may not be the direct aim of the philosophic novelist to teach morality, much that is elevating and instructive is to be found embedded in the sententious sayings that are put into the lips of humanity, as idealized in the creations of the novelist. For, to use the words of another, " Every ideal picture of human life should be so construct- ed as to bring out three things : first, the hidden greatness and wonder of life ; secondly, the unity or harmony of life, and thirdly the moral grandeur that pervades life, and the ultimate triumph of good which is involved in the condition of life." But when we have granted all this, let me add that even the best works of fiction are to be sparingly used. They should never be considered as the staple of our reading, no more than condiments and spices and sweetmeats are to be regarded as the chief sources of our physical strength. The pages of romance may refresh and stimulate a class of feelings that are apt to become callous and extinct, by the con- stant friction of business and daily anxieties, but beyond this, their use is baneful, and relaxing to a degree that unfits for the honorable discharge of the practical duties of life. It is not in the pages of the novelist that we are to learn the real woes and sorrows of hu- manity, and acquire that intrepidity of soul that will help us to conquer the uprisings of evil in the heart, and the seductive temp- tations of the world. Indeed the heart is apt to become insensible to the misfortunes and distresses of our fellowmen, in proportion as 364 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. we are amused and fascinated by the hig-hly colored and exagger- ated pictures of human wretchedness and suffering, which are painted on the page of fiction. I cannot but in the briefest terms indicate what books are best calculated to create within you noble ambitions, and render life not only useful but sublime. There are certain books that by univer- sal consent of christian scholarship are recognized as books for all time, and not for the passing hour ; books which contain truths and principles of far-reaching application ; books which illustrate the power of goodness and the dignity of self-sacrifice ; books which bring us into contact with the dead of by-gone ages, and elevate our conceptions of the importance of the present and the nobler existence yet to come. In the study and thoughtful perusal of such books, you will find treasures of wisdom. They will satisfy, while they purify ; they will strengthen, while they adorn the mind. Now, one of the principal objects of a liberal education is to help us in our choice of books, so that we may discard the frivolous and retain the good. To glance at, far less read, one thousandth part of the mass of printed matter that issues daily from the press, is an impossibility, nor would it be profitable, if practicable. Read- ing is of little value, save it is accompanied by thought. And un- less you have had your intellectual powers so cultivated as to make study and reflection inseparable from reading, your college training has been of little value. To pass dreamily over the pages without mental effort is dissipating in the highest degree. There must be assimilation, or there is no gain of strength, just as the food must be digested to make the blood. Coleridge tells us of four clasees of readers. The first like the hour glass — their reading like the sand running in and then out, and leaving not a vestige behind. The second like the sponge, which imbibes everything, only to re- turn it in the same state, or perhaps viler. The third, like the jelly- bag, allowing the pure to pass away, and keeping only the refuse THE HIGHEST WISDOM. 365 and dregs. And the fourth, Hke the slaves in the mines of Gol- conda, casting aside all that which is worthless, and retaining only the diamonds and gems. To this last class every college graduate should belong. The best of human books that come under notice demand discrimination. To select what is of immediate and last- ing value, and reject what is ephemeral and commonplace, is an attainment not reached by every one, but of supreme importance in the cultivation of the mind and formation of character. To edu- cate the thinking powers, as well as to enlarge our stock of ideas, should be the grand aim of all our reading. " Knowledge is power," says the great philosopher Bacon. It is more than this. It is a great source of happiness. Were it in- capable of nobler results than the mere gratification of the individ- ual mind, its possession would be invaluable. There is in healthy literature inherent elements of delight, worthy of being sought after, apart altogether from their humanizing effect upon society at large. Ignorance is the parent of misery and wretchedness, while know- ledge and mental culture are the springs of all true pleasure and enjoyment. The man whose knowledge is circumscribed by the events of the passing hour, has gathered no information whereby he may act his part in the world with any degree of credit to him- self or profit to his race. The other, assisted by the records of the past, lives and moves in another atmosphere, and acts his part with definite aim and purpose. Brought into contact with the leading spirits of by-gone ages, he imbibes their principles, adopts their views, and becomes associated with them in thought and feeling. The creations of intellect bequeathed to us by the mighty dead enable us to penetrate the mysteries of nature — teach us how to use the powers and faculties of the mind, and thus comprehending in some measure the glorious works of the great I Am, we are led to adore that all-wise and all-powerful Being, whose arm sustains the entire universe of existence. The pages of biography bring us 366 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. into sympathy with the noblest of the earth, with characters whose bravery, philanthropy and high-toned morality have adorned hu- manity and shed a lustre upon our race. If we have a taste for history, with all its exciting themes ; if we love to scan the suc- cessive ameliorations which society has undergone, we have only to express the wish to enjoy the pleasure. We can seat the historian by our side, and hear from his lips strange tales of former days — the birth and death, the glory and desolation of mighty kingdoms — the dark deeds of ages of superstition and barbarism, when op- posing hosts marched forth to gory battlefields, and offered up their lives on altars of mistaken heroism. Or, if we prefer the muses, we can listen to the sanctified imagination of a Milton, as he paints the angelic glory of the heavenly world, or leads us in measures grand and solemn to the gloomy depths of unutterable woe, where hope has for ever fled. Or we may take for our companions in explor- ing the secrets of matter, the Newtons and Keplers of other days, and the Bucklands, Brewsters, Lyells and Millers of our own. Guided by such teachers, we may survey the starry vault of heaven, Those immortal lights which live along the sky, tracing World beyond world in infinite extent, Profusely scattered through the blue immense, until compared with so glorious a creation, our own earth dwindles into very insignificance. Or finally, examining the geological strata of the earth, we may gather from its stony records overwhelming evidence of the truths of revelation. The knowledge thus acquired and the happiness experienced in such studies are permanent pos- sessions. Of such an one the poet has beautifully said : Enter the sacred temple of his breast, And gaze and wonder there, a ravished guest ; Wander through all the glories of his mind, Gaze upon all the treasures he shall find. THE HIGHEST WISDOM. 367 II. In order to gain wisdom there must be observation. The mind must be strengthened and disciplined from without, as well as from within. Everything that can educate the eye and ear should be sought after. Many students of books are but superficial stu- dents of nature and society. The intense occupation of the brain in private seems to unfit them for recognizing or participating in what is going on around them. Scholarly men, so far as books are concerned — learned beyond the great mass, often walk among scenes of surpassing beauty with no eye to perceive it, and no conception of the adaptation and harmonies of creation. The vastness and mysteries of life in its ten thousand forms, suggest no enquiries and occasion no surprise. The records of the earth written in the stony chronicles of the rock are never read, and the wonders of the starry heavens unfolded by the telescope are never admired. No true student will so act. The reverential and devout scholar sees God in all his works, and admires the unerring design that is everywhere manifested. The smallest flower displays His power and wisdom, alike with the most stupendous of creation's acts. Every particle of dust, in its varied adaptations and changes, bears testimony to that masterly skill and foreknowledge which regulates the world of matter and rules the world of mind. There is a lesson in each flower, A story in each stream and bower, On every herb on which we tread, Are written words, which, rightly read, Will lead us from earth's fragrant sod To Hope and Holiness and God. There are others, again, who are close and diligent observers of nature, but who are utterly ignorant of humanity, and unfitted for the demands of every day existence. They are theorists and spec- ulatists. They can, according to the laws of mental science, des- cribe the varied faculties and emotions of mind and soul in all their complexity and intricate workings, but they have no knowledge 368 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. whatever of men and the movements of society. The influence of such persons upon the great movements of humanity is of necessity comparatively small. A part of their nature is undeveloped. They never expand beyond the class-room, and never gain that practical knowledge which makes the man of letters a controlling force in society at large. Need I say, that sympathy with nature should not be incompatible with sympathy for men, nor the study of books preclude the study of men. Those who have enjoyed the advan- tages of a liberal education, should take an interest in all that ap- pertains to the well-being of the commonwealth — not only for the good of others, but to acquire that breadth of view and liber- ality of sentiment which is indispensable to all who guide public opinion. Nor is it necessary to this end, that the delicacy and refinement of christian womanhood should be sacrificed by undue contact with the turbulent factions of the political arena, or the excitement of angry debate. The gentlest characters overpower by their meekness. Soft words and kindly deeds arc more per- suasive than fiery declamation or pointed steel. But III ; Bear in mind that no amount of secular knowledge or wisdom, can save the soul or qualify for entrance into heaven. Some men speak as if the rapid diffusion of literature and science, is the panacea for all the iUs of life, and the true method for the world's regeneration from vice and sin. The power that is to restore her comeliness and make her Master rejoice, is to be found, they argue, in advancing civilization and the culture of the intellect ; in the de- velopment of man's physical and mental constitution and all the accompaniments of well ordered society. Now, it may be admitted that the more secular knowledge the world possesses, accompanied with the higher ethics of Christianity, the more likely is the gospel to be embraced by the masses. In general, the more intellectual a man is, the more capable is he of weighing the evidence which the gospel offers to candid minds, of THE HIGHEST WISDOM. 369 its divine character and claims, and the better qualified is he to ap- preciate the wisdom and greatness of God in the scheme of mercy offered for the acceptance of the guilty. But while this is granted^ it is also to be borne in mind that every human system of morality has failed — that nature and science cannot explain many of the most wonderful phenomena in the world around us, and that there is nothing within the range of what are technically termed scholas- tic studies to satisfy man's spiritual and immortal nature. Briefly then on this subject^ — for you have frequently heard the same views presented from this pulpit, — secular knowledge can never elevate men nor purify nations — it can never change the heart — it can never reach the springs of conduct — all the knowledge in the world cannot make the drunkard temperate — the licentious, virtuous — the selfish, generous or the dishonest man just. Many of the greatest philosophers and teachers of antiquity, not only pro- mulgated most questionable theories of morality, but were them- selves dissolute and debased. Egypt with her science and astrology — Greece with her statesmen and poets — Rome with her heroes and historians, and China and India with their vast systems of idolatry and superstition, never produced a pure morality. Of itself, secular knowledge helps men to hide their wickedness by simulating piety — to break human laws — and by cunning and strategy evade the penalty. It is the heart and not the head, that controls our des- tinies and moulds our lives. The lesson which all this teaches is plain. It is not schools, nor colleges, nor universities, nor literature, nor statesmanship, but the pure Gospel of Christ that is to elevate modern thought and sweeten society. It is not bayonets in heathen lands that raise men from barbarism to the amenities of refined and polished society, but the " wisdom which is from above," the truth accompanied with the spirit's power. While, therefore, we endeavor by the highest mental discipline to prepare the youth of our land for honorable positions •x-2-i 370 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. in life, it is not to withdraw their interest from that noblest of all books and that grandest specimen of all literature— the Bible. The influence of all other books upon the world have been trifling and unimportant in comparison with what the inspired volume has achieved in the past, and is destined to accomplish in the future- Make this the companion of your solitude, the director of your lives, your constant guide and counsellor, and in anticipation of that happy period, when literature and science shall be pervaded by its sentiments, and reason bow before its shrine, let us join in the prayer of the Christian poet : Return, O light, return to this thy world, And purify the human intellect. How glorious then, when every mental power. Baptized to thee, and by thy hand controlled, Shall yield its valued tribute at thy feet. Art shall adore, and science worship thee, The pulpit preach the g'ories of thy name. Philosophy majestic in her stops Shall bear her priceless treasures to thy throne. And feel herself exalted to a height Of unexampled grandeur. And poetry redeemed from infamy, Rise to the height of her celestial powers, And grasping heaven and earth in her embrace, Sing in melodious thunder, they are one. Young ladies of the Graduating Class:— I address you collect- ively for the last time from this place. Before another week you will be scattered far and wide, never more to meet again in the lov- ing relations you have sustained for these many months and years- In the hour of parting I express for myself and all my associates in Church and College work, the most earnest desire for your wel- fare. Many of you during the past two years have given yourselves publicly to the Lord Jesus Christ, and entered upon the enjoy- ments of christian life. In now passing out from the guardianship and necessary restraints of student life, let your conduct be such THE HIGHEST WISDOM. 37 1 as will assure the world that your profession has been sincere. When Hedley Vicars returned to his home in England, after his conversion, it is said " the heart of his widowed mother sang for joy, as she marked the exceeding grace of God in her son." I trust that the loved ones in your different homes may see an amiability in your conduct which mental culture never can produce- An educated woman, whose heart has been divinely possessed, has possibilities of vast influence. Her opportunities are many and her responsibilities great. Nor can she ever engage in a nobler work than devoting her highest attainments to the advancement of God's cause and kingdom upon earth. Your attainments in literature and science are varied, and so will be your acquisitions in grace. Where one gains the prize in earthly pursuits, many fall short. But in christian service there is not only a place for the humblest agent, but none come short of a glorious recompense. You may not all occupy prominent positions, but you can conscientiously do something in your different spheres to add to the sum of human happiness. The rippling streamlet moves not for itself alone, but adds its quota to the mighty ocean, where fleets of ships carry the merchandize of the world. And a soul fired with holy zeal may put in motion mighty forces, that shall move society and elevate the race. It is indeed pitiful to see how many educated women, at the close of their college curriculum, enter upon lives of fashionable folly, and act as if existence were a masquerade, and toil of mind and body rude and vulgar. Educa- tion has certainly not served its purpose, when it leaves man or woman supercilious,_haughty, indolent and sluggish ; far less, when it leads them to devote precious time and talents to trifling employ- ments that are unworthy of an immortal soul. The experience and reward of her who dreams life away in luxury and voluptuousness, and by plunging into scenes of excitement and passion strives to suppress the thought of a coming judgment, must be sad indeed. 372 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. She has chosen the world And its paltry crowd, She has chosen the world And an endless shroud ; She has chosen the world With its misnamed pleasures, She has chosen the world Before heaven's best treasures. We hope better things of you, though we thus speak. When you go back to your several places of abode, let your sunny smile and happy temperament cheer and beautify your several dwellings ; disappoint not the fond hopes of parents and friends, who now re- joice with you in your joy ; live so that you may be missed and mourned when death calls you home, and then it shall be said to you : " Well done, thou good and faithful servant : thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things ; enter thou into the joy of thy Lord." ft The One Thing Needful. "Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many thi>igs ; but one thing is needfnl, and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her." -Luke 10, V. 41. The One Thinor Needful HE narrative from which the text is taken illustrates a striking characteristic of our Lord's teaching : that of deducing practical truths, and enforcing spiritual les- sons from the most common-place occurrences of every day life. Nothing connected with humanity was beneath the Saviour's notice. Christ was on a visit to the sisters at Bethany. He was their intimate friend, and gladly shared their hospitality, giving them in return words of commendation or gentle rebuke as occasion de- manded. Mary and Martha, although sisters, moved in entirely different spheres, and were cast in different moulds. Their tem- pers and dispositions were exceedingly unlike. Mary was the type of the contemplative christian. The serenity and repose of her countenance indicated the holy calm that reigned within. She seemed too gentle for this world — one of those angelic beings, whom God sends once in a while to bless the world, before they take their flight to their native heaven. In the world, she was not of it. She was absorbed in higher themes than earth afforded. Her love had (375) 376 THE CHURCH AND THE COMMONWEALTH. heights and depths, but little outward expression. She sat at the feet of Jesus drinking in the words that fell from his lips, and in silent worship bending down before the adorable Redeemer. On the other hand, Martha was the type of an active, energetic, self- denying and self-sacrificing christian. When Christ came to Beth- any, nothing was left undone that could possibly minister to his comfort. She made the house ring with her quick flying footsteps, and with her practical turn of mind was admirably suited for the cares of the household. Both sisters were sincere followers and friends of Christ, although they manifested their love in very different ways. Mary gave evi- dence of her regard by simply listening and looking into the face of Christ — -Martha by busying herself overmuch to show kindness to her Lord. Such was the aspect of the family at Bethany when Christ uttered the words of the text. Martha had been bustling for hours, attending to the wants of the household, when she came upon her sister Mary, who was sitting in calm composure at the feet of Jesus. She seemed annoyed that she should take so little interest in what, to her, were matters of great importance ; and in a spirit of censoriousness said : " Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone ? Bid her therefore that she help me." Jesus reminds her in his reply, that while this present life demands attention, there is a nobler existence which must not be neglected. While the poor perishing body must be fed, the yearn- ings of the immortal soul must also be satisfied. For as he else- where says : " Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God." I do not understand the words addressed to Martha to be such a direct condemnation of her conduct as some affirm. Indeed, it is open to question whether Jesus rebuked Martha at all. There are two different ways in which the language may be construed. " Mar- tha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things, of fi^^^"^::^ffi'i r\^y ' ■ 'II If'Tliin if'lffj H