The New York herald., 1844-12-11
RELIGION OF .fHE FINE ARTS.
IMAGE WORSHIP!
ANCIENT ICONOCLASM
and
MODERN CHURCH-BURNING.
A LECTURE,
Delivered In st. Peters Church, New York
Sunday Evening, Dec. ., ls44.
By the Rev. G. Pise, ID.

(coNTrNusp MONDAYS HERALD
Erodus 20 chapter ,, T. and part of the 18th
And God spahe all these words, and said,
am the Lord thy God, who brought thee out Of the
land OF Egypt out OF the house Of bondage
Thou shalt not have any strange Gods before me.
Thou shalt not make to thysel any craven things,
the likeness OF thing in the heavens above in the
earth beneath nor Of any thing in the waters under the
earth
Thou shalt not adore them nor serve them.
This commandment orbIds the Jews. and forbids u.s.
the heavens above in the earth beneath the
under the EARTH" Why Because, "thou shalt not
make them not not to recall to their
memories great achievements memorable deeds noble
characters, il you please but they forbidden to
make them for the purpose OF aioring them. Now do
not act in conformity with this preceptl We have
statuesso has the sculptor have pictures have
you Of your fathers mothers friends and ancestors Is
this forbidden to you? Noyou do not adore them. We
have images Of Christ Of the Virgin Mary Of and
forbidden to US any more than to you to have them
No-but IS forbidden to adore them and this is the 9th
and force Of the commandment. Now, that may make
no assertion without to the solid TRUTH
a5th chapter Of the same book, 10th verse, thus
read" And they shall make ark of shttim wood ;
and cubit and a half the breadth thereof and
cubit and a half the height thereof" Again, in the
eighteenth verse" And thou shalt make two cheru-
bins Of gold Of beaten work shalt thou make them,
in the two ends Of the mercy seat Now ii the com.
mandment-" Thou shalt not mske any craven image"
&c. literally that are not to make any great or
sacred image-then the Almighty has contradcted him
self for find by the text have read that he has given
drectionsto make the cherubm for the ak; consequent
ly 1t never was intended that the likeness Of thing
should not be made but that they should be adored
These hinges set before the eyes Of the people
Yet the people knew and adored the true God and
would transfer their worship from him. And again in
chap. 81, " i Of Exodus, we read"And the Lord spake
ano ths o so r called IL ny
And have filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom
and in understanding in knowledge and in all manner Of
workmanship, to devise cunning works, to work in
silver in gold and in brass and in cutting Of stones
to set them and in carving Of timber to work in all
him Ahoab the SON Of Ahisamach, Of the tribe Of Dan
and in the hearts Of all that hearted have
put wisdom, that they may make all have commanded
thee" Consequently the decree Of the Council Of the
conoclasts, who declared the art Of painting to be da
bolca is in direct opposition to the word Of God who
put his spirit into Bezaleel to devise those images
Of the Cherubim, and the art is therefore dia
bolical art but one ordered by the Almighty himself
In Numbers, 2lst chapter 9th verse; read And the
Lord sent among the people fiery serpens, and they
bit the people and much people Of Israel died. And
the Lord said unto Noses make thee fiery serpent and
set upon poles and it shall to pass that every
one that is bitten, when he lookeh upon it shall live"
Here then, again have the positive command OF the
Almighty given to Moses after the first dolatry Of Israel
to make and raise upon pole brazen strpen and that
It should have, through the power OF God, extra
ordinary virtue and worth, and that the people to
pay to 1t external veneraon. Consequently this pre
cpt of church to venerate sacred images stands
rmed by the appreciation, and, may say the positive
verse we read And yosbus rent his clothes and e
to the earth upon his face before the ark Of the Lord
until eventde he and the elders of Israel and put dust
upon their heads" Here we find the prophet falling
posrae before the work Of the articers hands, before
the ark Was this idolary7 When, then, in moment Of
no more guilty Of idolatry than Joshua, for we know
will ascend to heaven and becsme more lively by
the representation presented before In the second
book of Kings, 9Th chap and l4h verse; it is written
And David danced before the Lord with all his might
ali the House o Israel brought up the Ark Of the Lord
with shouting and with the sound Of the trumpet And
a. the Ark OF the Lord came into the city Of David Mi
ohal saus daughter, looked through windew and
King David leaping and dancing before the Lord and
she despised him in her heart" Was David guilty Of
idoiatry because he was dcapised by curious woman
looking through a Window And be, cause like people
feel contempt for me flr kneeling before crucifx
David Ind before the Ark am guilty Of idolaty' II
therefore guilty Of idolary, in doing that which they
would regard far differently they we're rightly affected
enter farther into this subject this evening But is il not
on racord as the command Of Queen Elizabeth and
1t not the practice Of Protestant worshippers OF
the present day. that when they hear the Of Jesus
Christ pronounced, they bend their heads. To what
do they bepdt3 To the sound II, then they be so su
persious to bend to what strikes the ear why not
as do bend before that which strikes the sight am
actuated by the aspirations in the
for the name Of Jesus 10 fact whenever you pray there
IS representation IN the imagination but do you
NIT idolatry in that When you pray God is imagined
in your mind and you cannot help t. Daniel describes
can he superstition to believe the Scripture given by
Daniels and II So where is the superstition ofembodyng
them on the canvass do not adore the object OF the
cy or the imagination, but the reality do kneel
the picture much less venerae the picture much less
adore it-but the being it represents just that being
is worshpped in my imagination and the Is great
or act Of superstition than the other Thus far have
merely opened to ysu the subject which is my inten
tion to pursue next Sunday But let leave you with
the impression the cry Of dolatry the ussges
OF the ancient Catholic Church. is at unjust nn
courteous and unkind It is unfair to involve in one
sweeping charge Of idolary. Wo know what are do
ing. We know we cannot worship pctures-that We do
not-yet still we hear the outcry against us We hear it
said poor deuded creatures they will not let them see
the Bible the serond they deluded
by their priestscrsy who leading people by the
nose. will not let them think and, perhaps engaged in
plotting the destruction Of the republic' And II not
time to raise our voices manfuy and boldly; TO let the
public know what believe and in order to carry this
out will resume the subject next Sunday
naa