The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1865-11-11

Coon SENsE.-There can be no doub, bu
wae following is the esseuce. of good sense
but We afe somewhat r,r;;srei - -st.s,. /,
With such strong endorsement in
'''"nA. The wheelhorse,
o. y '"et ten
of the Republican party. for the -
years, have been the political parsons whose
PAarisaism and bigotry has divided hall the
churches in the land, and would keep them
divided to doomsday:
1t seems as il the leaders in the Northern
Churches are hankeriug after the same sort
of victory which Grant won over Lee. L ey
want a surrender oc the Southern churches.
They insist upon formal capitulAtion. Now
this is worse than nonsense. 1t is "A great
and grave sin. We regret that 1t becomes
necessary COR a secular paper to administer
the rebuke which the religious press ought TO
give to those bodies.
In order that We NAV not be accused of
misrepresentation, We quite from the Fran
.yelist a statement of the Northern Nethodists
That paper saws:
'!Nothng more Was to be as ied frorn their
Southern brethren as the condirIon Of cor
dial union, than that they should uueqU;vO-
cally declare their loyalty t. the General
Government and accept in good faith the
fact that the seryitudc OF the cClored race
had forever ceased"
This would seem to he very easy, indeed
but not so easy after al! when We remember
the high and commanding position which the
Church of Christ ought 10 t.k- The test of
membership of that church is not a t"st OF
human politics Imagine tie soul OF a
dying to-day IN Alabama receiving at the bar
in Heaven the reward Of It's deeds If we
understand the faith oi the church. Protest
ant or Catholic, Methodist or Presbyterian.
there will be no such question put to the soul
of the Southerner as this do Won uEequiv-
ocally declare your loyalty to the General
Government of the United States ~ If we
have been correctly taught the doctrine of
salvation BIZ faith and works. or any other
method of salvation, as held by anyt Christian
Church, Unitarian Trinitarian, there will
be NO such test applied at The gate OF heaven
rs this.
What are these men, Methodists or Pres
byierans or what not. who dare attempt to
bind on earth what Sod has not bound and
will not bind in heaven? Is the Methodist
Church North so much holier than Heaven.
itself, are its robes so much purer than the
robes of those who walk in white, are its
feastS so much better than the feStal SCIENCES
At the Princes own table, that they may
make rules for the exclusion of associates
here, Which He will not make there =?
These men are making 4 grare error.
The truth is that none of US and none of
them, not man Of them, from bishop to
the last convert a; the last meeting, is fl
20 sit down at the table Of the Church on
High. If we should undertake to com
pare the fitness of Northern Christians
With the fitness of Southern Christians to he
church members, it would he found of both
that the mercy of God alone could save
them. No Pharasaical Selfrighteousness
would avail either in the sight of just judge.
Humility becomes both classes. Ii is iast
possible that both may be saved. One clas.
is quite as fit for church membership as the
other. A comparison of Northern sins with
Southern sins. would show quite as much TO
be repented of By one race as by the other.