The voice of freedom. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1839-1848, 1839-10-12


my people do not already know this, it is no iaul
of mine. The service Of God is perfect freedom
t and there can be no true service of God where :
=, is not.
If could consent that any topic should b
taken out of the cognizance of my pulpit l
should be some one that is NOT exciting.
: Where there is no excitement, there is-thert
can be--no progress, among a people; nay, there
can be no spiritual life for with the soul, al
with the body, life itself is a state of excitement
} While man lives, either the baser or the bette
feelings of his nature will be excited, for they
must. May no topic be discussed in a pulpit
that will excite the better feelings? And may
the baser never be reproved, admonished, or re-
buked lest they should be excited Shall the
animal be allowed to run away with the
man, because, forsooth, he frets and chafes when
he feels the bit? 1t is the very function of the
gospel to hold in the excited feelings Of our lower
natures though they may be, as they probably
will be, even more excited, for The time by the
restraint to bring under the body, and keep
it in subsection and If this is not done the
gospel is preached in vain.
If, on any subject, pertaining TO the we-being
of his people, the minister of Christ finds their
feelings already excired, and wanting direction,
! it is eminenty his duty to give them right d.
rection. If they have already taken a wrong d.
reclion, it is his duty to show them a more excel
lent wav,' and to put forth his best efforts 10 set
them right. The minister is the moral engineer
to his church, which it is his oceto direct on the
highway TO salvation which God has thrown open
in the Gospel. To say that, in his ministratons,
he is to abstain from all exciting topics, and to
handle only those upon which the feelings of his
people are cold and dead, is to say that the engi-
neer upon a railroad is to give all diligence to the
conducting of his engine while the fire is out, and
the water cold, and ii is standing still but when
its fires are all in a glow, and its steam is up, and
its wheels are laundering along the iron track
that he must not NEEDLE with it then, because of
its present excitement
May men be excited all the week without COM
paint-in their stores and in the streets, in their
business and their pleasures, every where else, and
upon every thing else-and yet must they expect
to come to church to be lulIed TO sleep, by the mu-
sic OF pleasant voice, upon the most exciting top
c under hcaven-the way TO heaven and the prep
aration for it?
No, my friends, so well do | understand the du-
ty of my office, in this behalf, and so deeply do
feel its responsibility both to God and to YOU that
so long as hold it, and wherever hold it, no top
ic, in my view involving your welfare or my free
dom--my freedom,-lhe first and last condition Of
my real usefulness to you-shal be nterdiced
to me, upon the ground that it is,-or that by so
calling il, it can be MADAM exciting topic
Thus, then, protest against the principle ad-
vanced in the document that | am considering
protest against it. do not admit it and to it
will not give place by subjection no not for an
hour 1t is for you TO say,-and | wish you to
say this nieht-whether you can bear to have me
tread this principle under my feet while | am ad-
uo,7 Won ran mt hear this God 711o7j|
show me people that can.
have done with this principle. And now, in
regard to its application to certain exciting top
les" which, yet as they stand upon the face Of the
document under notice, are exceedingly uncertain,
allow me to say, that, while by the grace of
God am what | am shall not the consideration
that by this craft we have our wealth. take from
the cognzance of any pulpit that | occupy that
most exciting topic of the present day-the GIANT
SIN that | see spreading its desoations around
me,-coming into my own flock, and Selling its
victims under my own eyes, and booming me to
witness and deplore their ruin while they yet
BREATHE and to consgn to a hopeless grave their
mangled bodies when they are dead.
For, that this is THE exciting topic, by way of
eminerce,-in the regard to the eXpediency of dis
cussing which, there is such a wide difference of
opinion between large number of the society
worshippng in Hollis Street, on the one side, and
their pastor on the other, THEY know full well
who, for two successive years, have brought before
your annual meetings these complaints relative
to exciting topics, and, by these complaints, have
striven,-to restrain the freedom and over-awe
the independence of Hollis Street pulp There
may be protestations to the contrary Of this De-
cency requires that there should be. There may
be, | know that there are, some few other and an
cient griefs, caused by the independence of the
same pulpit in years that have gone by-have
gone by themseIves,-but have left their griefs,
still fresh, and promising to be immortal. At
tempts may even, be made to show that the dis
cussion of other exciting topics than this has
been the head and front of my offending at least
to conceal from the eyes of the Christian commu-
nitywhat the handspring of these periodical move
ments is The very document under consiGera-
ton appears to me to be such an attempt, on the
part of those who framed it. But the passing
events of the daWthe proceedings Of the last year.
the pursuits & interests of those with whom these
proceedings originated, throw too much light up
on the living and the present. to leave this doubt
full matter From me, and from many of the pro-
prietors Of Hollis Street Westinghouse, who know
much less on this subject than have been made