Ashtabula weekly telegraph. [volume] (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1853-1873, 1861-09-28

\ .. ' hushnelI on the War.
On The Sabbath after the Bull Run dis
aster, Dr. BUSHNELL, Of Hartford, Conn.
preached sermon on the Need of Rcvers.
es, (since publshed) which goes more tho
roughly to the bottom Of our national trou
bles than most Of the efforts of this kind
He regards the war as the necessary result
of having turned our back upon the old Pu.
ritan idea Of government as a divine ipstitu.
ton, to the infdel plutitudes of Jefferson
touching the Social compact" as the foun
datOn of government. lie holds that the
doctrine OF the sovereignty of the people, 4
the inherent right Of the major vote are true
when used in a religious sense, but not in
the nmoral sense Of Jefferson and bis
school that in the sense in which these
doctrines are now accepted aud proclaim.
ed by politicians, they are false and danger
Gus that 10y degrees the old religious idea
ofgoyernment, as a necessity Of mans col.
dition died out of the mind Of the nation !;
that by the demoralizing effects of peace
and prosperity, aud party aud slavery, We
have had our moral tone let down, our uni
ty tilched away, till at last came the Cal.
houn doctrine Of state rights, nulliicntion,
and secession, all by regular law Of dc.
sceHt. Hence the war, as war for nation
ality and for institutions, historically sane.
titled by blood and by Providence
Dr.. Bushnell recognizes in the war OH
part of the north, q struggle of the religious
idea of government to regain its ascendcucy
This is set forth in the following manner :
"What is it shat is arming to assert and
establish the broken nationality? Not re
ligion certanly--it does not appear that
our people are conscientiously more given to
religion than they have becn-yet in ano,h-
er view, it is no other than the old historic
religions element in which our nationality
has been grounded from the first that
which has been smOthered aud kept under
by the specious fictions we have coutrivsd
to account for the government without ref
ercnce 10 God or moral ideas. 1t is this
| old, implicitly, if not formally, religious ell
emeut that is struggling out again now,
, clad all over IN arms, TO maintain the fall.
+ ing nationality. 1t Looked on the Sumter
flag, the Stars and Stripes, shot through,
and shot down by traitors, and as it look
ed, took fire. What a wonder is it even tt
ourselves to see the blaze that is kindcd
We call it loyaliy-we do not Imagine that
we had it !! What grand, rich sentiment
it is See what strength il has See
how it raises common men into heroes ! See
the bloody baptism wherewilh it is able to
be baptised, aud how it pours the regiments
on, down the rivers and over the mountains
and round the promontOries, to hurl their
bodies against the armed treason The
mere feeling, the passion, if we choose so TO
call it's not the bliss of it worth even the
cost of the war? What in fact is more
priceless to nation than great sentiments
So we bless ourselves in the loyalty of the
hour and the more that there certainly is
some latent heat Of religion in the blaze
of it.
"But more is wanted, and cd is pressing
US Oh to the apprehending of that for which
we are sp2rehended. Our passion mus
be stiffened and made a fixed sentiment, a.
it can be only when it is penetrated anc
fastened 10y moral ideas And this requires
| adversely. As the Gyers use mOrdants 10
set in their color', so adversely is the mord-
ant for all sentiments of morality The
true loyalty is never reached till the laws
and the nation are made to appear sacred,
or somewhat more than human. And that
wi not be done ill we have made long,
weary, terrible sacrifices for it. Without
shedding of blood there is no such grace
prepared. There must be rcvcrseS, aud los.
SeS, and times of deep concern. There must
be tears in the houses as well as blood in
the fields the fathers and mothers, The
wives and dear children, coming into the
woe, to fight in hard bewailings Desolat.
cd fields, proStration OF trade, discourage,
ments of all kinds, must be accepted with
unfaltering, unSubduable patience Reli-
gon mast send up her cry out of houses, TEN.
Piles, closets, where faith groaus heavily before
God. In these aud all such terrible throeS
the true loyalty is born. Then the nation
cmergos, at last, q true nation, cOusecrate ed
and made great in our eyes by the sacraG
ceS it has cost There is no way ever but
Just this TO make nation great and holy
in the feeling of its people. Aud it is nev
er raised, in this manner, till it has fought
up some great man or hero in whom III
struggles aud victories are fiIly personated
One really great man or commander W
certainly have, mercifully preserved 60 us t
be the ceutralizing head of our confidence
and fulfill his sublime charge Of tatherhoo
in the conduct of our great affairs. b.
he belongs in sense to the past, and wi
soon be gone. We want another that b,
longs more properly to the future the ne'
and great future. And such an one canno
be made to order, or by any brief hOllida.
campaigning. He must be long enoug'
and deep enough in the struggle to be crow q
ed as the soldiers of Providence. Nest
deeply do VIC want such man, a new wash
ington, only still himself man OF bis aet
aud time. And if | were a prophet, j
would almost dare whisper his name. Ex
, pectation goes before expectation prophe
, sizes. Calling out her soldier son, with bles
: sings on bis youth, she anoints him before
hand even as Samuel anointed David This
she says, is the man whom the Lord o
Hosts will accept" - '1.f z'l
True, these Washingtons are expensive
they cost how many sacrifices, how man,