Orleans independent standard. [volume] (Irasburgh, Vt.) 1856-1871, 1860-09-28


of better country, even heavenly
While from the past is forced on US the
sense of loss, from the future rises the
nope of recovery, and faith in God
While it bids love to weep, yet wipes its
tears, just as you have seen a tender
friend seek to flood the parched eye-lid.
of despairing grief even while striving
to assuage the bitter sorrows.
We would not then, seek to make
death seem less fearful and serrowful
The religion that would rebuke sorrow
would robuke love. Unless we can freeze
up the springs of emotion, and permit
them never to overflow and fertilize our
nature, unless we can sever all human
attachments, and refuse to love what we
must inevitably lose, death will be always
terrible. And only so long as grief and
love go together, can we look for faith to
come in and take away the sting from
death, and victory from the grave. The
only resource for heart without faith.
is to be without love and consequently
the only resource of a heart with love, is
TO have faith. When therefore all the
fibers of life are wrenched and lie bleed
ing at every pore when the voices which
have become the natural music of our
lives are hushed when we pass through
the places that have now become the
shrine of reeollections and unnumbered
memories, faith alone can take the part
of comforter, and speak A." Peace be STILL"
Faith allies itself with love, and though
they walk by the tomb hand in hand,
yet the one is ever pointing the other to
the vistas of the endless life, reversing
the sadness of its sorrows, ingathering its
losses, aud invoking the healing hand of
Christ himself
The spirit of christian faith, is then
the only true comforter Of our hearts
when we mourn under the providential
bereaTements of life. Unbelief may love,
and may weep, but it refuses to be COM
forted. 1t may become indurated by
time, or hardened by the world, or its
wounds cicatrized by the cooling process
ses of a selfish life, but it can never
know the blessedness of mourning, or the
joy of being comforted of God, and
brought into almost new being, by the
healing mercies of heaven. For unbe-
lief the only JOY is to forget. For faith
the only joy is to remember and to hope.
i The one sinks into frigid composure
under Gods hand, or learns a morbid in
difference, the other slowly wakes TO new
and delightful experiences OF life and
love, or learns to mingle such songs with
its sorrows, as tell OF heart at rest in it's
serene and confident expectation. When,
therefore, God sends these sorrows upon
our hearts, and beats the tendrils of our
affections down into the dust, and breaks
the ties of strong attachments, and re-
moves the hope of our lives, and the
guardians of our rest, is that He may
rouse our faith in Him, and lead US to
flee to the refuge which He opens before
US. He would not repress our grief, but
He says, come thou, look away to me,
cast your care upon me-look away from
earth to heaven and pray and strive for
better home than earth Such, my
friends, is His voice to you this day. Be
lieve, and what thou knowest. not now
! thou shalt know hereafter. Believe, and
the hearts that are wounded here, shall
be serenely blest here after.
: But what has death left behind for us
Is it only the cold, dissoIying body O
: dust? Is that peaceful, yet even now
erumbling form all that the insatiate de-
stroyer leaves to us, and that soon to BIZ
hidden from our sight? No An earth
Il ly building is nothing, only as it is en-
9 deared to us by pleasant and hallowed
n associations. An earthly friend is moth.
n ing only for the delightful affections which
u he awakens in our minds and the powe
l. which he has over our hearts, only fo
Il the sentiments, joys, aspirations, and no
OF ly feelings which cluster around him
re All these are now your indestruetabl'
Re possession. From your eyes God take
& the form Of the object of love, but h
De cannot take the love itself. His best Of
10 fees, yea, His best offices, unchilled an
CT unalloyed, will remain with you STILL
ID His memory is your indefeasible inherit
lie ance. He has been your friend, you
rs companion. He is your father, you
st. brother, your son always. He still is, an
OF not was in all the purest and most sacre
%, services he can render to you. He Is ne
ny dead, but speakeih and liyeth in you
gn hearts.