Anti-slavery bugle. [volume] (New-Lisbon, Ohio) 1845-1861, 1848-12-01
A Confession.

W hultIlCdu CuuICHf " tuS W " . 'N'
Of rottenness and utterly unworthy Of the
name Of Christ. Because they did this, they
have been accused Of infdelily, Of being OPP
posed to true religion. Thanks, however, 10
the power of truth, many bearing religious
authority, and some of the church otganisa.
ions themselves, have from time TO time
been brough, 10 confession, and by their ad.
missions have fully justified the aboli,ionists
in every charge they have brought against
1.-THE bulwark Of American slavery" To be
sure, the confessions are made in their ow
language, which differs somewhat from that
used by abolitionisls, but this does no, alter
the fact. The latest we have seen will be
found in the following article on the " State
Of Religion" from the Religious Telescope.
The state Of religion in general is dull /;
revival and revival influences there are, but
these are exec tions TO the general rule
Such seems TO be the apathy Of the mass Of
minds on the subject of religion, that the
common means OF grace, such as were in
former years SO wondrously successful, do
not arrest their attention. Churches and So
cieties grow cold, freeze and die in the very
midst Of the same measure and instrumentali-
Ties by which the world was in other days
surned upside down. Why is this? Has
the Gospel Of Christ lost its power, the swo ord
of the Spirit its edge, or the trumpet IFS GER
tain sound No; but the Church, the ex-
sernal church, has lost her power; she has
iowered the standard Of holiness, has become
too compromising and ,coridiy in her spirit and
policy, There is too close an alliance with
the world-too much pride, cOretousness and
unJeiief. She must arise and shake herself
from the dust, and be clothed with the beau
tiful garments Of holiness, and keep herself
unspotted from the world. She must purge
herself of the dead carcasses which lie by
thousands in her streets.
II is useless to talk about any Thing like
revivals-deep and las,ing-while the world
with all its denominations is Struggled in the
church. Spiritual Israel can no more stand
before her enemies while the accursed thing
is in her midst, than the Jews could in the
DAYS of Joshua. AS christian churches, We
must all take higher ground, or become life
less, if not extinct. | look not for another
general revival without a sitting first" the
time is come that judgment must begin at the
house of God" Ii is not enough 10 pass re-
solutions, TO pray, and preach, and write
against Slavery, War, Freemasonry or Intem-
perance; the whole spirit and practice must
be conformed to the Spirit of Jesus Christ.
Sin, as sin, oil sin, whether organized or I'M
organized, popular or unpopular. must be put
away. Sinners must be erciuded from feAOw-
ship in the churches of Christ. Whenever
the churches bear a united, practical, and
faithful testimony against all sin, doing it
from a principle of faith and love, then let
Zion lift up her head, "for the time to favor
her, yea, the set time will have come"
The witness before US testifes that the
church has lowered the standard Of holt
ness"-that is, she has substituted for the
true a spurious religion, has stricken out Of
her code of morality some of Christ's estab-
lished laws. What right then has she 10
cling with such ~tenacity TO the name of chris
tian after she has forfeited the character, and
insist upon palming off upon the world as
Christianity that which Jesus would never
recognize as hist
We are also told she "has become too
compromising and worldly in her spirit and
policy" and what has been the result? Just
what any one might have foreseen. She
~tolerates sin, she winks at ~iniquity, and
throws her sanction over systems of crosses
immortality. The world, the flesh, and the
~deyil-which it is the mission of Christ TO
overcome and destroy-are admitted TO her
companionship. In her spirit and policy she
c~onsults the wishes and opinions Of the world
she loves It's favor and fears It's frown.-
What the world approves she approves, what
the world condemns she condemns. She
follows where the world leads, she treads in
its footsteps and echoes its sentiments. The
curse Of the spirit of compromise rests upon
her; and the lusls OF the flesh, over which
The true church gloriously triumphs, are ma
ny of them ranked among the organic sins
for which she in no wise holds herself re-
sponsible; and by and through them the de-
vii has power in her councils and authority
in her temples.
The American church has made herself a
city Of denominations, has become full Of cor.
ruption; and he Of the Telescope confesses
that dead carcasses lie by thousands in hel
streets" is she then, judged by the testi'
mony Of the witness before us, the church OIL
the living God, or a place where dead car
cases poison the atmosphere with their cor
ruptionl And the witness further specifr
caIly charges her with "pride, covetolsnes,
and unbelief," all of which are prominen
characteristics of the opposite of Christ,
church. We are not aware that the aboli
iionists have ever been accused of pride and
covetousness, but that the church abounds in
them, no candid observer will deny. They
have, however, been accused of unbelief, and
upon this charge has been rung as many chan
gss as ever pealed from the bells of Trinity
church, though a more odious word has been
used to express the idea. for unJeIief and in.
6dsLLu aLn snhsianIially HE sama ihinn