The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1851-04-17

ties men owe 10 GOu anu 10 GOVernments ne
livered Mt the Central Presbyterian Church
Buffalo, New York, by John c. Lord, d. d
This sermon has been extensively circulated
through the country, to the no small terror Of al
persons who contemplate either passive or actV
resistance to the Fugitive Slave Law. And a!
is usual on all such occasions il is filled with tn,
idea of terrible wars and devastations as the Ger
tain consequences of its unfaithful administra-
ton confess that felt unprepared to mee
such a production from a text in every way op
posed 10 the scope Of the sermon for his text is
Render unto Cesar the things that are C@ Iar's
and unto God the things that are Gods" and
was more forcibly stricken with the palpable con-
tradictions the evident results of the conscious
ness of a great mind, lsboring to prove that
fpr9Rg and oppression are sanctioned by God The
wrong position into which he endeavors to thrust
those religious denominations &c, who have pro-
bibited by ecclesiastical enactments their men,
bers from holding any Office necessarily involving
them in the sin Of slave hunting, or in any other
manner assisting or abetting in the returning the
fugitive to his master, may be seen upon page 20,
and in the following language:
"To allege that there is a higher law, which
makes slavery pr So, sinful, and that all legisla-
ton that protects the rights Of masters, and en-
Joins the redelivery of the slave, is necessarily
void and without authority, and may be cOnsoi-
entiously resisted by arms and violence is an in
fdel position, cOntradicted by both Tesaments;
which may be taught in the gospel of can Jacques
Rousseau, and in the revelation of the skeptcs
and Jacobins who promised France half CEN
fury ago, universal equality and fraternity; a
gospel whose baptism was blood, a revelation
whose sacrament was crime But il cannot be
found in the Gospel of Jesus Christ OF in the
Revelation of Gods will to men,
This m do for n 1nrish uDOn q Th N vino
10 the Doctors congregation, and may help them
to digest other matters equally If not more alb
surd but IL cannot carry conviction TO my mind
that even the Doctor himself is in earnest My
design Is not so much to review the whole Of the
Doctors pet sermon, but only the two following
assertions:
l. "The decisions of Governments upon mat
ters within their jurisdiction, though they may
be erroneous are yet from the necessity Of the
case, absolutep-Pdge 10.
ii. "To allege that there is higher law, that
makes slavery, per So sinful, is contradicted by
both Testaments" And again the existence of
domestic slavery was expressly allowed, sane
toned, and regulated, by the Supreme Lawgiver,
in that divine economy which he gave to the He
brew State.-Page 20.
L. Are the decisions of Governments, though
they may be erroneous, yet, from the necessity of
the case, absoutel
IL might appear at first view unnecessary to
contradict such an assertion, the very expression
involving the most papable absurdities For,
first, by the Doctors remarks you would suppose
that the Apostles and Prophets had had the
Constitution of the United States before them
when writing their epistles and warnings TO the
Churches, and that everything said by them must
be in accordance with t. The whole burden OF
the remarks Of the Doctor would lead us to sup
pose that the Divine law is not worthy to be
taken into consideration, since the author of the
Constitution is higher than heaven for although
"the decisions be erroneous, yet from the neces-
sity of the case they are absolute" That the
Apostles Of our Lord commanded obedience "a
the civil magistrate, none at all acquainted with
the holy oracles will deny. And that they for.
bid fOrcible resistance to the erroneous decisions
of civil governments is also plain for, as has
been well remarked by an ancient author, "Cs.
sar usurped the Government of Rome Jeroboam
established idolatry in Israel, and Nebuchadnez.
EAR carried Judah captive yet the successor of
C@'ar was acknowledged by our Redeemer, Zero.
boam was appointed by God to be king over
Israel, and the csptives are commanded by the
prophet jeremiah to pray for the peace of the
city whittier they were carried captive for in its
peace they should have peace.-Jer xxx, T.
All this we acknowledge; and further, that
We are cOI0mhuueu 10 buOUlJ 10 every ordinance
of man for the Lords sake; whether it be to the
king as supreme, or unto governors, as unto them
that are sent by him for the punishment of evil
doors or for the "praise of them that do we'll"
And again: "Let every soul be subject to the
higher powers. For there is no power but of
God the powers that be are ordained of God"-
l Peter ii, II, Rom. xiii, l.
Now, in these passages, civil governments are
viewed in two ights-hrst, as the ordinance of
man, and secondly, as an ordinance of God And
in each sense We are commanded to render them
obedience in the Lord But certainly in neither
sense are we to consider that their wicked legis-
lation, which indeed is the abuse of their power,
is binding upon the conscience. IL we regard
civil governments as only human institutions, it
follows as a necessary consequence, that they
have no right to enact laws contrary to the law OF
God for the authority of the Creator must be
considered superior to the creature But IL we
consider civil governments as an ordinance Of
God, il is most unreasonable and absurd to sup
pose that God would give us a moral law, and
demand obedience to its precepts, under the pen
atty of eternal death, and then cothe civil govern
ors with authority to pass and enact laws to vio-
late that law, and annul it. IT, indeed, civil gov
ernments have q right TO enact laws violating one
moral precept, they have a right to enact laws
multiplying every precept Of the moral law and
the old infde precept is established, so much
contended for by Hobbies, Hume, Voltaire, and
others, that we have no moral law but the law of
the land, and therefore the gospel Of DR. Lord
is gospel contrary TO both Testaments, a gospel
whose baptism was blood, and whose sacrament
was crime, but cannot be found in the Gospel Of
our Lord and Saviour, or in the Revelation Of
Gods will to men" But DR. Lord endeavors TO
avoid this difficulty, viz: "the reaffirmation Of
n - Nj. a
by telling us that cit does not
belong TO the Church in her organized capacity,
nor to Christians, solely as such, and with refer.
ence to their religious duties, to revolutionize
Governments"
Now, let us keep before our minds that there
has been no threat at revolutionizing Govern
ments, or even dissolving this our much-loved and
Union; but only in the mean
time refusing to carry in any way, directly or In
directly the fugitive slave back to his master
and to bondage, and to suffer the penalty rather
than commit the crime; and in the mean time
we use our best endeavors TO have this law re-
pealed, and we will perceive that the Doctor has
10 make men Of straw, to act as scarecrows for
his congregation, before that he can manufacture
sermon out Of his text in favor Of the Fugitive
Slave Law But while II does not belong TO the
Church in her organized capacity TO revolution.
re state, yet the Dootor draws an unnatural
nd unreasonable distinction between man con-
idered as Christian, and the same man consid.
red as a citizen. He supposes that there are
uties belonging to citizen which would not be-
ong to him considered solely" as a Christian
Vow, would merely ask the Doctor, in what
ght does he consider the organized congregation
Ihich met on Thanksgiving Day, to adore God
Dr. the passage Of the Fugitive Slave Law Are
hey an organised Church, or are they merely
itiIens If the former what right has the Doc
Or TO lay before them duties which, "as such"
o not belong 20 them2 And IL the latter, IL
as a cold compliment paid them.
An snecdote occurs to my mind, which may
clip to illustrate the Doctors position. A GER
lin individual, in days Of suld lang syns," held