Portland gazette and Maine advertiser. (Portland, Me.) 1805-1818, 1814-04-02


rs predominance. Are there not many
Christians to whom, when they reflect, this
will become source of bitter self ACCUSE
lion and condemnal ion:-" Uhen the right
eous are in authority, The Ieohte rejoice, bur
when The auicked 5eoreth rule The heohle.
mourn ?"-Can there be Christian, Their,
when he rejects, that he has been instru.
mental in elevaling wicked men to places
of power and authority, whose feelings will
not be agonized at the thought, that so
far from regarding the law of love to his
neighbor, he has been aiding and assisting
by MS votes and influence 10 procure, not on
ly present evils, but to entail their fatal con.
sequences upon pos:crity, whom providence
will visit for the sins of their fathers-ior
this is as certain, as that any cause will
produce its appropriate effict. II is
melancholy prooe Of the blindness,the frsi..
t., and deprasi,y of ,hehuman heart, that
some prof-ssed Christians among us, in
regard to the most important duty to our
aeighbours, can act as citizens without any
examination of their political creed, * with:
out reflection upon its consequences. 1t
would seem impossible, did we no, Often
witness The fact, that professors OF the faith
and doctrines Of the Prince Of peace shou d
be tie open and avowed advocates OF war /;
and stranger still, that they should be advo-
Gates for carrying this war among people,
with whom we have never had any bu,
friendly relations & reciprocity Of neigh
borlY Offices. 1t is the doctrine Of anti .
christ My Brethren these things ougit
not SO to be. beseech you to reflect upon
them, to consider Of your ways, and return
to the path of duty, Let not the disciples
oil Christ pursue conduct, from mere Want
OF reflection and examination, which is di.
rect violation Of their masters precepls.
Reopen, in time, lest sudden destruction
come upon Us /; and lest, haUing taken the
ssoord, ave ferish by the srvord.
would not be understood TO suppose, that
those to whom these remarks are addressed
are deliberately * knowingly straying from
the path Of their duty. hope and believe
it only arises from want Of information, and
because they have not examined the subjec,
or sought that knowledge, which they may
| acquire. But is not this criminal! Ifhe
zvho knows his masters wiA and does it NOT
shall be beaten with many ssrihes will not
he also who is criminally negligen, in not
knowing it, receive due chas,izement Be
not deceived. Our lives should be devoted
TO active duties, and it is tlisgracefal, as we'll
as criminal, to neglect to learn them.
These remarks are not addressed to any
particular individual whatever. hey are adj
dressed to all professors, who do not set their
faces hike flint against the war in which we
are engaged and more especially against
the mode in which it has been managed.
Examine my friends for yourselves the
presidents declara,io on Of war, which states
the causes for which We entered into il.
You know that long before the news OF it
reached the enemy's country, their On ders
in council were repealed according to their
promise to do SO, when the French DEGREES
should be revoked. The other cause, and
the only other, named in the manifesto, is the
lmrressment Of Seamen. Consider wha.
this is-why, the enemy claims the right
20 the service Of her own subjects i'll time OF
war, and claims nothing more.-Mistakes
have sometimes been made, but they have
generally been rec,i6sd, as soon as they
were made to appear. And is il for this,
and This only, that many professed Christians
advocate the antichris,ian doctrine Of war
against christian nation a nation too who
were during this unnatural war, and while
they were thereby struggling even for exis.
tence, is actually doing more to spread the
doctrines OF the Gospel tn O. the world, than
every other nation, ia all past ages, includ