^_0 ^V ^^^ ^m^-- Class F 39^ Book F'n /ta SERMON, DELIVERED MAY 14, 1841, ON THE OCCASION OF >/s' 'jSIUII STimHOKTAEa If ^ § 5? RECOMMENDED BY THE PRESIDENT. BY W. H. FURNESS. PRINTED, NOT PUBLISHED. PHILADELPHIA: PRINTED BY JOHN C. CLARK, 60 DOCK STREET. 1841. a^ SERMON. 1 Pet. v. 6. Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, It has pleased God to call this nation, for the first time in its history, to suffer the loss of a chief magistrate by death. The circumstances of the event have rendered it very impressive ; and special notice of it has already been taken in all places of worship and by various pubhc cere- monies. It has, nevertheless, seemed proper to him who has succeeded to the chair of state, to recommend to his fellow-citizens, to unite in a simultaneous acknowledgment of the hand of God in the removal of his predecessor. We are now assembled, my brethren, in compliance with this recommendation. — And here let me first distinctly re- mind you that, although we have met at the suggestion of human authority, we have not come together to engage in a mere formality, to take part in an idle show, to make only a pretence of humiliation and repentance. To what purpose is the multitude of our funeral observances, either for the living or the dead, in the sight of God or man, if they do not speak from the soul, or to the soul ' that is in us; do not awaken us to those spiritual interests of our being, of whose unspeakable importance all the changes of life, public and private, and the death of kings and rulers, and the whole spectacle of mortality so solemn- ly admonish us. Our meeting here and now, pays no ho- nour — it is ;iu insult to the memory of the dead — it is an abomination in the sight of Heaven, unless we take occasion '4 to commune with our own consciences, to confront and confess the evil that is in us, and resolve with fervent and humble prayer to lead new lives, to cherish a deeper sense of our duty to God and to our fellow-man, and devote our- selves, with renewed vows, to the great work of self- regulation. Hear what God spoke through the mouth of his prophet to his ancient people when, while they were profuse in religious observances, they gave unbridled in- dulgence to the evil desires of their hearts, and forgot the sacred obligations of justice and mercy : — " The calling of assemblies I cannot away with; it is iniquity, even the so- lemn meeting. When ye make many prayers, I will not hear. Your hands are full of blood. Wash you, make you clean ; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes ; cease to do evil ; learn to do well : seek judg- ment^ relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow.'''' Let us take heed to ourselves, lest through levity and hardness of heart we now incur condemnation, and swell the account against us. And here, where we have invoked the awful presence and the searching spirit of the All-seeing, let us, with humble and seriously dis- posed minds, endeavour to learn from the event which has brought us together, to cease from evil and to do well, to increase our reverence for right, our sympathy with the oppressed, our pity for the poor and the forsaken. The lesson and warning to be derived from the sud- den death of the highest in our land, is simple and ob- vious. It is, in fact, no more than the death of every man teaches. The humblest depart, the infant dies, and under all circumstances, the termination of a mortal life tells us the same thing. It speaks to us of the vanity of those hopes which are built upon the earthly and the visible. The things which are seen are temporal. Change is the law of their nature, the condition of their existence. And when they change, as they do and must, when one, for instance, suddenly disappears, who was the centre and hope of a small private circle, or of a broad empire, the truth illustrated is one and the same. We are warned against the folly of placing our chief dependance upon those things which may disappoint us at any moment, and of the possession of which we cannot be certain for a single hour. This warning which Death addresses to us under all circumstances, has recently been uttered in our ears, in a manner peculiarly imposing. To all those who are seeking place and distinction, whose idol is personal ambition, the providence of God directly speaks. They have just seen one borne up on the swelling tide of popular favour, amidst the shouts of a great nation, to a station than which no throne on earth, though it have stood a thousand years, is more honourable. But one brief month passes away, and he who sate there, the observed and honoured of all, falls from his high estate, and now lies mouldering in the grave. To every aspirant for political eminence God now saith, 'Thou fool, this night thy soul may be required of thee, then where shall be the honours for which thou art ready to barter away the dear treasure of thine in- tegrity and peace.' Well may we pray that this dispensa- tion of Heaven may be sanctified to our public men — that they may be inspired by an ambition which looks beyond all temporal rewards, and seek to serve their country, not by a slavish submission to ignorant and factious preju- dices, not for the sake of their places, but by exemplifying the principles and spirit of true Freedom, by recognising the sacred rights of Humanity in every dweller in our land of every name and colour, and by labouring, in all wise and lawful methods, to carry out the principles of our social constitution to their full and perfect consum- mation. But it is not to the ambitious only that God hath now spoken. Only a few may be actuated by a thirst for dis- tinction. But are we not all attaching an inordinate value to some one or another combination of external circumstan- a2 B ces, seeking to obtain or preserve a certain outward condi- tion, in which we may take our ease, and enjoy the means of self-indulgence 1 Are not our affections bound up in some one or another of those things, which all the observa- tion of life warns us are transitory and insufficient] In the gifts of fortune or the promotion of our children, are we not looking for our highest good, the chief end and inte- rest of our being 1 Is not all else indifferent to us that does not tend directly to the furtherance of these] Are we prepared to listen to the claims of any truth or duty, which appears to endanger our personal comfort and exact the sacrifice of our temporal peace] Alas! it can- not be denied that the old and fatal delusion still blinds and perverts our hearts. Like the multitudes that have gone before us, we build our habitation, the home of our happiness, not in the region of life, not in the im- mortal thoughts and affections of the soul, not amidst those invisible things of Truth and Rectitude, which alone are eternal, but in the sepulchres of time and sense, in what is seen and transitory, there to lay ourselves down, and sleep, dreaming all the while that we are alive and awake. Hearken all then to the warning voice. All hu- man greatness is a flitting shadow. All human success, wealth, pleasure, friends, all must vanish, leaving us, if to -them we have given our chief regard, bewildered and miserable, with only one thing real, the bitter conviction of precious opportunities irrevocably lost and noble powers wasted, and Infinite Goodness abused. Such is the lesson of recent events. And, my friends, notwithstanding all the imposing demonstrations of public sorrow which have been witnessed, the long processions, the badges of mourning on our dwellings and in our churches, notwithstanding this day of universal humilia- tion, the heart of this people remains unreached, and it is all a hollow show, if the ardour of our devotion to tempo- ral good suffers no abatement, if, under the disci])line of God's Providence, there do not appear among us an in- creased interest in those invisible things, which alone are eternal, in Truth and Right and Freedom and Justice and Mercy. In these, in these, not in abundant possessions, not in numerous honours, not in self-indulgence and show, does the dignity and true end and business of life lie. These are the only things worth living for, the only things, of which no outward reverses, not even death itself, can rob us. It is my heart's desire and prayer that upon the mem- bers of this congregation, upon you, my kindred and friends, the teaching of God's Providence may not be without its effect. And now that we have been invited here by the head of the nation to acknowledge a great national loss, to mingle our prayers with those of the whole nation; now when the condition, prospects and welfare of our country naturally present themselves to our thoughts, and mingle with our meditations, let us, in all sincerity and earnestness inquire how we stand affected to those great invisible interests, to Justice, Mer- cy, Humanity, in the love and practice of which, the true life and honour of the nation and of every individual are bound up. You love your country ; you do well. And if it were enough to compare this land with other lands, we might well be proud. From the old world, from that great na- tion from which we sprung, what tidings are continually brought to us, of large masses, goaded almost to despe- ration by the grim prospect of starvation ! The American traveller in other lands is sickened by the tide of squalid beggary which is rolling and rising around the palaces of Luxury and Power. A depth and extent of physical suffering are revealed there and forced upon the notice of the most careless observer, of which the generahty of men here have hardly any conception. From all that we read and hear, we cannot avoid the belief that with all 8 its disorders and fluctuations, with its curse of Slavery, this country is unrivalled for the abundance w^hich it offers for the physical comfort of the people, and for the tenden- cies and means of improvement which it shows. Still it is never wise nor safe, for nations or individuals, at any time, certainly not on such a day as this, and in this place, to rest satisfied with comparing oneself with others. We may be better off in many important respects, than other countries; and this may be saying very little. Still only the deepest humiliation may become us, for we should judge and try ourselves, not by others, but by quite another standard. This nation has, in the most solemn manner, assert- ed before all the world the sacred rights of humanity, and declared that no earthly thing is so precious. And what is more, we profess a religion whose second great commandment is that we should love our neighbour as ourself, and do unto others as we would they should do unto us. Here is the standard by which we are to try ourselves. Now let us ask ourselves — Are human rights dear to us 1 Do we honestly and with an ardent and generous affection, love Liberty and Justice and Mercy? If we do, then I say, we must be wounded to the quick and humbled to the dust, when we advert to the glaring fact, that there are millions of beings in our land who, however comfortable they may be in their physical condi- tion, are nevertheless, in the plain and simple sense of the word, slaves, formally denied the invaluable rights of men, claimed, bought and sold as beasts of burden. Misunderstand me not, my hearers, I am not now pro- posing that you should lift a finger or utter a word in be- half of the enslaved. The simple point is. Do we Zoue justice and mercy] Are our hearts sound and true? Do they throb with a devoted attachment and loyalty to the acknow- ledged rights of humanity ] If they do, then we must be conscious of a feeling of hearty commiseration for those 9 who are deprived of these rights. Then we must be in- terested to study and discover, if we may, some means for their rehef But no, in truth, we dishke the whole sub- ject. We cahnly confess that slavery is a great evil, but still we insist that they who sit under its darkness are very happy ; and thus the true state of our minds is dis- closed, and we show that we think that physical comfort is a greater good than Freedom, and the things which are seen and temporal are a compensation for the things unseen and eternal, the sacred and divine rights of the mind. We can bear very quietly that millions should re- main in a state of hopeless bondage, but we cannot endure that the huge injustice should be spoken of except in the tenderest terms. Does not this show, to our shame, what spirit we are of! The true lover of Justice and Mercy re- cognises these claims in the person of the humblest, and can endure any thing, any personal suffering or sacrifice, more easily than the sight or thought of injustice or cruelty. But you will say, why agitate this subject here 1 Here in this part of the country Tire no slaves. I know it, and thank God. Still the influence of slavery is here. It has quenched the generous glow of freedom at the North. It has weakened and blinded our sense of justice. It has so mournfully biassed the general mind, that every thing in favour of oppression is eagerly listened to, while they who have laboured to awaken the nation to this great and ruinous wrong are covered with reproaches, and exposed to all sorts of opposition, although they may be the wisest and best of the land. Say you, we at the North have no- thing to do with this subject ! And what is it, pray, that admits and guards the right of property in human flesh 1 Is it not the guaranty of that civil constitution which we uphold] Has our commerce, the supply of our common wants, nothing to do with slave labour ] How many men are there this day assembled in our churches, who, if 10 they were led to take up their residence at the South, would hesitate to buy men, and women, and children, or take this human property in payment of a debt "] It is said over and over again that northern men, when they become possessed of slaves, are the most cruel masters. Do not these things show, that although there are no slaves here, the spirit and power and influence of slavery prevails? Verily, we at the north are guilty concern- ing our poor brother. It is in vain, my brethren, to disguise it — the spirit of Justice and Mercy is wanting here. We have no settled and controlling principles of humanity ; no loyal, unswerving devotion to the rights of man; and it does indeed become us to humble ourselves this day before God. Good impulses may abound, and the mercy that costs nothing may be common ; but an en- lightened and all-controlling sentiment of Right — a hun- ger and thirst after Righteousness — a readiness to sacri- fice one's darling pleasures, to incur trouble and loss and danger for the sake of serving the friendless — a sympathy that darts like lightning into the place of the injured, and makes their cause our own'— a courage that rebukes the mighty in behalf of the weak, and which the frowns and flatteries of the world cannot terrify nor bribe; where shall we look for these 1 Can we find them in our own hearts ? We must confess before God this day, that the spirit of true freedom is weak in our bosoms. Here is the great and prevailing sin of the respectable and honourable of this nation, of the guilt of which we all partake. North and South. We love our ease and pleasure and pro- perty and a good standing with the world first, and chiefly. All these things, which God's providence teaches us again and again are transitory, perishable, have our warmest regard. If any thing can be done for justice and mercy, for the enslaved and degraded, without hazard to our personal security and popularity, we are wilhng 11 feilough to do it. But if opposition is to be encountered, and angry passions are likely to be excited, we are ready to fold our arms and shut our eyes to the bondage and sufferings of millions in our land. We do not want to hear the story of their wrongs. We insist that it is greatly exaggerated, and hesitate not to denounce as fanatics and visionaries those who are disposed to beheve it. All these things show us how we fall short of the generous love of liberty, the brotherly affections of Christ, the principles of common humanity, and what a propriety and need there is for us to confess our unfaithfulness in the sight of Heaven this day. There is no political authority, no civil arm here which has a right to interfere and break the chains of the slave, as the British government has recently done. Every thing here depends upon the public senti- ment, the prevailing spirit of the land, that spirit, that moral power, to the authority of which every one of us may and does contribute, every man, who mingles with his fellow-citizens, and whose sentiments, opinions and words have an influence upon any other man, every mother whose will is as a law of God to the hearts of her children. We cannot remain silent and indifferenrand be guiltless. I have heard it distinctly asserted and reiterated by one who denounced the friends of abolition as fools and mad- men, that the agitation of the subject at the north was doing good, was meliorating the condition of the slaves. But I have needed no such testimony. I know it must be so. Are we not constantly pointed to the physical com- fort, to the kind treatment of the slaves 1 And does it not stand to reason that they who use this fact to lessen our abhorrence of slavery, will naturally strive to make it more and more evident that the enslaved are well used ] But, you ask, how can Slavery be abolished 1 What way of deliverance is there from this terrible evil } My friends, where there is a will there is a way. It is not a method or scheme of emancipation that is needed, but an honest 12 and fervent disposition to break every yoke. They who are pleading for the slave, propose no plan of abolition. If they did, they might well be accused of improper interfe- rence. They aim only to assert the principle of freedom and justice. They strive to make that principle to be ac- knowledged, not coldly, as a mere speculation, not merely in the abstract, but received and cherished as a living sen- timent, a feeling, a deep, burning feeling. They wish to break those invisible chains of custom and worldliness which bind down the moral will, and fetter the moral power of the land. Until this is done, nothing can be done. No way of deliverance will be visible, even though it should shine before our eyes and be thrown open directly at our feet. Where there is no will there is no way. But let a generous enthusiasm for freedom and right and mer- cy be awakened in our hearts, and a light shall break forth like the morning, and our darkness be as the noon-day. Then the choral anthems of the free shall break forth from every mountain and every valley, from the lowliest dwell- ing of the land, and the grievous blot of oppression shall no more deface our national glory, and the vine of liberty which the hand of God has here planted, and which the blood of our fathers has nourished, shall extend its branches to our remotest borders, and to its shelter " the chased and wounded birds" of other climes shall fly for repose and peace, and this country shall be the joy and hope of all lands, the excellency of the whole earth. I I