The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1851-12-04
For the National Era.
CHRISTIANITY DEFENDED.
No. It'll


No. Ill.
Christianity is Gods plan for reforming the
world This is its constructive idea On this
idea is built its Church, and around this cen
trail design. as around the living heart all its
grand and divine truths, its noble and harmo-
NOUS creed of doctrines and duties and all its
marshaled force of human and spiritual agen-
cies, stand but as magnificent framework and
machinery Without this divine purpose of
reform. Christianity is but lifeess abstrac-
ton, as useless as vast.
The world was lay .Na means dest'."." oC self
styled reformers, when the Son OF uod sulensd-
ly and authoritatiyely pronounced kis,dsciPlss
u ,e * !, - D ~ '.,',- ,r the
world and thus claimed for them the proud
place of standard-bearers in the great work OF
human reform The verdict of the eighteen
|Ncenturies, whose scornful tramp has rung over
the graves of Platonist and Pharisec and whose
splendid triumphs whether over ignorance or
wrong have all been won under the banner of
the Cross. has well justified the seemingly AFRO
CANT and pretentious claim
Christianity alone of all schemes of reform
is truly and profoundly radical Going behind
all forms of government and their abuses, be-
meath all social structures and all manifesto
tions of wrong, it alone dares to lay the reform
er's axe ut the very root of the tree of evil 1t
puts its stern interdict upon all selfshness, and
boldly bids the human heart back to its love
md service of God. Scouting with noble
scorn the whole farce of setting sclfshness to
fight .selfshness or of training mean and vi
cious seliishness up into generous philanthropy
ic, and intellectual selfishness, religion solemn
ly bids the soul renounce self and, surrounding
it with the tremendous sanctions of eternal OK
stenee, points it to the hcaven-flling glory of
the Great and Good One, as the rightiul and
fitting end of its labor and it's love. Thus neg
leeting mankind in the mass it seeks to SOW in
the hearts of men, as individuals the seeds of
reform that must of necessity spread rs leayen
| in the lump up through all combinations of so
ciety and all transactions of trade-pcrvadng
all labor and all literature-till, having exor-
cised the foul spirit of evil from every depart
ment Of human life, it shall put the broad seal
| of God-likeness on the forehead of reformed
aud respondent Humanity
But reformation 80 deeply radical, so grand
ly comprehensive is as evidently beyond tn,
power of mere human agency as it is beyond thu
scope of unaidcd human conception. Here then
is afforded sure test ofits divine origin Chris
tianty in its own stern maxim, 81 by their fruit
We shall know Them" has given the rule fo
the trial of its own truth. immaculate in th,
purity of its great moral code, and overawine
all inquisition by the superhuman grandeur o.
its all-embracing truths if open to impcach
ment, it is open only in the seeming breach be-
tween its promise and performance in this great
work of the Worlds reform.
Here would be the place, did space and time
permit, to introduce the historical argument
to track Christianity along the highway Of
passing centuries, and to show, rs we easily
might, how it has proved itself IN Macaulay
asserts, even in its darkest apostaces tho friend
of our race--how, although exposed to the
ceaseless and merciless attacks of skcptic and
scOrner, it has not only regenerated millions OF
souls, and borne them after pious and peace
full life, triumphantly through the terrors OF
the mortal hour. but has also gone forth with
n purifying power through all the complex re-
latiOnships of men, reforming many OF the
mighticst wrongs that have cursed the world,
and adjoining human society with the noble
institutions and kindly customs Of Christian
civilization-how it has smitten to the dust both
idol temple and feudal tower, silently but stern
ly driving back those hell-dogs of human tor
ture, religious superstition and political dcspot-
ism, and enshrining both on Altar and Throne
the great idea of human Observation-Disclosures in
short Christianity, like noble river of truth
and love- sweeping grandly forth from the
throne of God il washing the Earth from the
stains of sin, and strewing its living soil with
fruits of Joy and beauty; and how although
many reflucnt tide has stayed its course,
and many reflex eddy of wrong permitted
and error embraced has run counter to its gen
eral progress, and although it has too often been
forced TO follow the divergent channels Of sec.
tarianism, it has still nobly evinced the dyni-
ty of its high origin and proved again that
" God IL not slack concerning his promises, az
some men count slackDessp
But, though we have uttered thus much, this
is not the line of remark to which our present
purpose mainly leads. That Christianity in
the persons of its disciples and in the action OF
the Church, is found apparently in league with
great and evident sins, is the stumbling stone
whose removal demands our effort IL should
here DO remarked, that in defending Christi
anity and the Church, we by no means excuse
the wrongs committed or felowshipped by
Christian men. In showing how the Christian
may be only ON the road 10 perfection We do
not commend his shameful shortcomings Of
that steady and consistent progress required by
the Bible. This remark is more needful to the
scoffer without and the selfdeccived within the
Church, than to the real Christian.
No insufficient explanation of this sad breach
between theoretical and practical Christianity
may be found in the truth, urged in former
paper, that Christianity does not produce its
converts in full maturity, and the Church must
exhibit the aggregate mperiection Of its mem
bership. We have also broadly limited that
many partial evils may coexist with Christian
ty, like eddies in the stream, without mt all
dlsproying the beneyolence Of its general ten
dency and we may add it IL to be expected
that the Bible, which is " n lamp unto our feet
will fling its radiance many rod before the
advancing footsteps Of the Church, and will
reveal many wrong long before the children
of the Cross can reach or remove them.
But the grand error Of those who 10 sternly
Judge tho Church ~ pro-slaycry and anti
Christian, or, on account Of the dereliction Of
the Church, condemn religion, IL misappre-
hcnsion of the genius Of Christianity, and Of
the means by which it would effect its great
reform. Thoroughly individualzing men both
in their sins and their accountability it has
never sought to organize party nor to accom-
pIish ts purposes by force Of the combined in
lluence Of is disciples. Even the corporate
character and influence Of the Church are
merely incidental TO its organization, and cor
rupted as these more or lcss are by foreign and
unchristian elements, they are neither true
tests OF its genuinenes nor sources Of its
strength.
The Church il not commissioned 10 demolish
wrong by the mere terror of its anathema nor 10