Washington sentinel., 1854-06-25
RELIGIOUS INFLUENCE.

In all ages religion has had its controlling
influence over the government of different coun.
tries. In the medieval age Of Europe, when
the icentious power of Rome had established
its control over the conscences and admins
tration Of kings, all Europe was great hier-
archy. Nor was the result materially changed
when the evils Of popery gave rise to the refor-
nation. The unity of the church being de.
stroyed by that movement, religious feeling
manifested itself in almost every shape and
form, with one great element of persecution
running through them all. The separation Of
our own colonies from the mother country had
the effect, for time, of checking this usurpa
ton of religion over political government:
but experience has taught us that even here,
the same principle often manifests itself in a
different way, and that the selfish ambition Of
the priest and blind superstition still exist, mu
tually to support and extend each other. The
disease has in some portions Of the country
assumed new type. 1t can never be en-
tirely eradicated.
Power alone is wanting to fix upon our own
free country the dreaded tyranny Of an herar-
our pulpits, whose religious creed tends to dis,
seminate the seeds Of discord and of treason
through the length and breadth of the land.
Their text ceases to be the peaceful principles
Of the gospel Of peace. The conservative teach,
ings of Him "who spake as never man spake, =
are discarded from the sacred desk, and their
place supplied by laundering anathemas against
the statesmen of the country, and vehement
pure principles Of religion have degenerated
into ranting, canting, and spurious philan.
thropy, whose system teaches its followers an
impertinent interference with the concerns Of
others and a total neglect Of their own. Their
morality is like the rocket, which sheds its
broad CLEAN from distance, but expires ere
it reaches the darkness Of its own home.
The memorial Of the notorious three thou
sand ant-Nebraska parsons, to which we have
SO often referred, was striking illustration Of
this principle
But one we would select from that fair throng,'
who considers the whole mission Of religion to
be the entire destruction of an institution which
the religion of the Bible recognizes in both
the Mosaic and Christian dispensations. In
presenting once more to the attention Of oui
readers the notorious and disgraceful name o.
Theodore Parker, we must acknowledge ouI
thanks to the able editor Of the "United States
Review" from whose article on the subject we
have drawn most of the facts connected with
his career.
We were struck in reading the article to
which we refer by the following extract from
one Of the sermons of this reverend traitor:
II take not the Bible for my MASTER nor yet the
church, nor even Jesus of Nazareth for my master
feel not at all bound to believe what the church
says is true, nor what any writer in the Old OF
New Testament declares true.'
This is sufficient to show the character of the
religious sentiment Of this distinguished divine
We owe an apology to our readers for publish
ing even this small modicnm Of the profanity
which pervades almost all of his addresses
But the extract we have given exempli6es in Q
striking manner the effect Of fanatcism upon
the mind. The man of whom we write, com
menced as an orthodox and consistent minister
Of the Christian faith; but, finding that the
Bible did not square with the sentiments o.
abolition; he renounced and denounced it a.
unworthy Of belief From such man, we ma,
expect to hear such sentiments as those quo &c
in the review to which we refer: "that pe,5ms
as often the duty q a juyman;" and that "mur
der may be properly resorted to in resistance
to la,c" The first of these propositions i,
striking, when connected with the proposed
amendment Of the fugitive slave law, that tn,
trial for the recovery Of a slave should be by q
jury--s jury possibly empanneled from the con
gregation of man who openly recommends
perjury to them The other is sentiment
which, but for the extreme mildness of our
laws, would convict its author as accessory be.