Phenix gazette. [volume] (Alexandria [D.C.]) 1825-1833, 1830-04-14

fifu tIe means. The object or opJo''e. %
societies are good-sometmes they WISH F." Pay
a missionary, at others. to educate younS ,an
for the Gospel Ministry, at announcer " JULY a..hr
finish house of worship-all these a'u $500 an
and good ends to be accomplished. nu.
such ends as these can neither excuse ID -.
fy ;mproper and blamcable means-lhe iaeiee
whose motives. zeal and enterprise appreciate
as hiohh as any man in Georgia, will excuse me
for nv objections 70 their fairS-thcse oplec-
tions are many. a few only Will be gwen |" ms
naper. | object to them because 1 leal 'ie,
produce only an artificial and animal charity' III.
stead of rea! and spiritual one. Gan any one
believe that MANY who bid freely. do II out OF d
free GOOD will to the cause of God, ana not irous
mere animal desire to please the applicants
In other cords. can the ladies themselves pehe'e
that the same persons would give an equai a''o"'
for the same cause. upon mere applications rest
/ cd nnon tbe merits of the interest they seek 10
serve? And if they do not, must they NOT lee'
aware that such measures only increase tue NUN,
her of artificial. and not of real friends TO uoo'
For one. do most sincerely believe that every
movement of the Church ought to be souua
example of the bire and heaithiul nature Oh GIFTS
tianity. .lo. ora
object to Fairs, because in the way 'hey are
transacted, they Smor too much OF making gan
to the Church in her charitable depar''he,'S' ~
an appeal made under circumstances, anu ny per-
sons, calculated to produce an UNDUE force up
on the feelings; and therefore IN suCh ""y' %
to prevent in great degree. botn the power Vi
resistance and The heart of denial Where is
tho man who in public crowd has his liberal
itv challenged or his feelings personally appeal
! ed to BIZ certain ones, would not, even against
his private feelings and real wants, draw heavily
upon his means? And has not such like things
been done. and that because the end proposed
was of such high interest as to justify the means
used. All this looks to me to say. we need mo-
ney, it is for a charitable purpose, the people
will not give freely enough if we take them one
by one: let us have Fair and get up lever OF
emulation. and our goods will bring more than
their yalue-and one mans pride IN bidding
will tempt another. until the advantage OF cir,
cumstances will yield us what the want OF real
charity would withhold. st. Paul says, speak
inc of charitable contributions, "jf there be ilrst
willing mind, it is accepted according to that
man hath" Contributions obtained without a
willing mind, can never bring any good to man,
and may bring upon the church many maledlc-
tons, and upon the people many hurttul preJudi-
ceS.
| object to Fairs because it has been thought
proper to couple with them sort OF jesfaCm,
which has been vended at high prices to the per-
sons who chose rather to eat than to buy, or per-
hans might deal little in both-Thus glass
of sylabub or a small sweet cake has been sold
at fifty cents-and sometimes worse than all,
there has been a dozen of these cakes brought
out and sold. with the notice, that some one OF
them contained a Gold ring; and bdderG thus
made, spring to it, with the hope of enjoying the
pride of success in this lottery. Thus does the
Church make herself chargeable with resorting TO
every artiGce that will take well with man'sweak-
ness and mans folly-his love of praise, his
pride of character, and especially his desire to
please an appauding assembly of ladies.
object to Fairs, because, think when the
Church bv any of her societies, proposes to sell
articles, she ought to dispose of them in the way
of honest aud equal justice-if the Church begs
money. let it be begging. and let such as can
give. give freely much or little. But if the
& hurch needs money. & proposes to sell clothing
or other articles in order to raise 1t, she ought
never to use any means of advantage, nor exert
anv kind of constraint, however slight-as when
an article is bid of at one dollar and the purcha
good one, he surely will never ask any change;
and so BY a kind of defenceiess march into aman's
heart. get what he never intended.
But to enter more fully into what conceive to
be the merits of the controversy, would call the
friends of these Ladies' Fairs to consider themin
the light of this text Let not then your good
be evil spoken of."-Rom. IA, 10. Indeed, 1t
seems to me that there can be but little genuine
piety where there is any want of that particular
care manifested in much of the chapter referred
to. So precious is this pnacipe OF pains-taking
carcfulness. that the Apostle says, Z" that he that
in these things serveth Christ is acceptable to
God and approved of men''-v. Is. That the
raising money for many charitable uses, is good,
no one acquainted with the benefits accruing will
deny-but the end cannot sanctify all the means
used. The means themselves must be above
just suspicion, or the use of them will tend to the
injury of Christ's cause among men-for, in the
same degree that we throw around us circum-
stances of suspicion, we not only weaken, but
poison our influence; and every one knows with
what ease and readiness suspicion passes from
man or a community to his or their hearts and
principles. Hence we see the great necessity.
and should feel the moral force of ST Paul's d.
rection, Let not your good be evil spoken of. "