Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1865-11-08
.Autichrist.


Antichris,7 Do not many things now happening
in the world denote his near approach? Terrific
and bloody wars rage; the direful and pit;les'
cholera RACES; the cattle plugue rages; firss,
murders, rapes robberics, all sorts OF wickedness,
rage. And last Of all, religious confusion ragss.
Should we coll it r'ligious confusion We mean
confusion of crseds breaking up Of sects, disrup-
ton of churches skoptioism. inddelty, disappear
anoo of Christian charity from OF the face Of the
earth.
The signs of the times convince US that some
thing extraordinary is going to happen in the re-
ligious world Should 80 :.y. religious world
We mean the world Of crcedi and churches. Per-
haps new religion j. to DO inaugura:ed with
miraclca aad wonders and tho opening of tho
heavens. The urheavals Of al the old forms and
crceds which usually announce the beginning Of
new akpensation are not wanting In this gene
ration. In England, wo and Bishop COlensO of
Natal, and his largean powerful party, deny
ing tho truth Of the Pentatcu,h, or Five Books of
Moses; and many pious pastors and authors ridi-
ouling the Thirty-niue Articles of the English
Church. In France, the subtjc and philosophical
Renan argues against the divinity of Jesus, and
gains many followers. In Germany, Strauss md
others are the eloquent aRd plausible apostles of
poetical lnfdelity. At Rome he Pope denounces
al other religions as fnlse, md praises his own
q, perfection while Protcsta,ts in their turn,
Atigmatize the Pope ms nm inpostor. In New
England, the parsons all differ each ono seeming
to consider himself, and himsdf alone, inspired
of God. The North Amerisa, Rerirto styles
Yankee preacher, Theodore P,rker by name,
modern Jesus The Mcthodist.of the South will
not hold love-fesst with thci: brethren Of the
North. The Baptists ditto. The Episcopnlians
ditto. Tho Presbytorians ditp. Tho Mormons
aso obtaining thousand of prosdytos to their new
and most fragrant crood. The Vnivcrsalists, who
believe that nobody will be damned, fraternize
cordially With the Beechetites WHO believe that
everybody viii be damned e1eopt themselves.
And to cap the climax, the Rev. Wnrd Beecher,
pastor and shepherd Of the afosaaid Beocberitos,
has discovered and promulgated that thero is
" no Hell mot even for the slave-to.turing
South Carollrians.s
Thegreatest.laSity of opinionis almost every
where allowed. Throughout Christendom it seems
to bo tacitly conceded that the Eible must not be
believed literally; which isundoubtedly tho next
thing to not believing it at all. And in the midst |
'f all this confusion of crecds and breaking up |
If sects comes he phenomenon of apirltualism,
Sisl its spirit world, aud men and dwomcn existing
after death, and dsembsdiOd spirits communica-
ing with .m,rtals, and mediums, and raps, and
ablo.tippiugs. Well, mankind have believed in
;hosss and spirits for huudrcds of years; and who
an tell them whcihor they are sonsiblc or silly
. so doing
And who cen say, after our enumeration Of the
lgna that thore Is not going to 30 now rcvela-
ION? And can say where it is going to be-
in and whe can sur,uise the name of tho mod
rp 81. John tho Dapti,t-tho prophet and fore.