Maryland free press., 1866-08-16
bgAiGaR EAT LET TsERa
-tP6liticai Parsons ON tho Rack
Judge Black's replyto the Rev. Doctor
r,.,irif.An,r.,; rNeyin. s,,.,.i IA, hnr..I-..
pSiitics In i the q pulpit handed IAN without u ths,u
-aca 70 sl"'i0 Gloves. - ''7''d j
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bas sssel egi oiaf i bs1levass esd !.
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11Me RereTead Alfred Netfn, ID. ID. sSnospHl
uSitisTstssSl a12,gp ,a4ylr, r.t,,sss,S;e q az Ar
....,.h IN. ph;l.dsl.h;s E..;.,.' R.JIs,a. a..
,o;S,s ne b.csuss ;d moi eYSsc, h :, ..s'
;ect. in i.ae b.t veen us,. But NJ + vonr
friends win say. svith some show of reason tbst
-, S{ca ~ .igssia Iii 1u:sSI: 81, - -,
;r;ssnhsntl = .ahaf aIl,onnos;s;an IL .csnf,Sna.S
7 ,enst therefore' sneaL freely In renv In So;na
a. mean to saw npth;ng ;nconsis,ent i,.s,S ,,ts
great respect. for your high character i'm the
ch,rcb and in the world. The .adm;rabIs stvIe
and t.mper of yoaf own cotnfnuhieation deserve
10 he Initiated. ,,.,., -, 4,,s,g;f, u, IL,
E,iIy concede tbe r;obt von claim for cioor,su cio,,u
,rs,s ~ s.ect tIe;r o,Vn themes and hand,e yi.,,
a. tbey please. You say truly that neither law.
yers OF physicians nor any other order Of men
have the least authority 10 control you HI these
nar,ieulars. | MI @ But you will not deny that this s
: nriyileee which may be abused Won expressly
admit that some clergynen hare abused IT, xsa,d
by doing 90 did more than uay other class Of me, 10
commence and cosainue the late rebelkas, ' While
therefore, we can assert no power 10 dictate your
conduct, much less TO force you, we are surely
not wrong when we entreat you 10 impose upon
Dorrselpes those restrictions which reason and
reycaation have shown TO be Necessary for The
good of the church sad the safety of civil sot ie-
ty. -
+ akknowfedpe that your commission is a very
s<oad one. 4 You must 4sdec are the whole coun-
sci of Goo, 2, TO the end of that sinners NAV be
convinced and converts built up in their most
holy faith. Truth. Justice 4 mefcy. peace. broth
erly kindness, charity--the whole circle of the
Christian virtiies-nust be- assiduo1sly taught TO
your hearers and if,anv of them bei inclined IN
the opposite vices YOU are TO denounce them with
out fear BY private adfnonition. by oper rcbuke
or by n general delivery of the law which con.
demns them. You are not bound to pause in the
performance of tbis duty because II may offend a
powerful ruler or strong political party. Nor
should you shrink from il when bad men, for
their own purposes, approve what you do, Ele-,
vate the moral character, enlighten the darkness.
and purify the hearts of those who are under
your spiritual crrge, at oil hazards, for this il
The work which your great Task -master has qiv-
an vou TO do and he will admit no excuse for
neeiectiup ii. '' i- 'l'''l '.'i .",'-
Eutthis is precisely what the polit;cal nreach-
eriis NOT in the habit of doing Hei directs the
attention of his hearers a,vav from their own sins
4, the sins real or imnuted of other neor II. Rv
teaching his CONGREGATION that they are better
than other men. he fills their heart with selEcon-
c,it. 'biuotrv sniritunl ,ride euvr bured malice
and al uncharitableness. Instead of the exhor-
t,tion, which they need to take the beam out of
their own eve he incitcs them to pluck tbe mote
from their brothers. He doss not tell them what
they shall do to be saved, but he instructs Them
very carefully how they shall act for the destrc-
ton Of others He rouse 8 and encourages to the
utmost of his ability, those brutal passions which
result in riot, bloodshed, spoilation, civil war,
mud general, corruption Of morals.
You commit prieyous error. in supposinp that
politics and religion are so mingled turetherthat
you cannot preach one without introducing the
other. Christ and his apostles kept them perfect
ly separate They announced the great f,cts of
the Gospel TO each individual whom they ad-
=. <.
was told to repent and be baptized for the remis-
sion of his sins, and afterwards 10 regulate his
own life by the rules of pure and perfect moral
itv. They EXPRESSED no preference for one form
of government over another they invoked no DO
littcal revolutions and they proposed no legal
reforms lf they had done so, they would have
flatly coutradicted the declaration that Christ's
Kingdom was not of the world, and Christianity
itself would have died out in ralf Il century. But
they accepted the relations which were created
bv human law and exhorted their disciples 10
discharge faithfully the duties which arose out of
them. Though the laws which defined the au-
tho.ity of husbands, parents, masters and mauis-
tratcs were as bad us human pervtrsity could
make them, vet the early Christians conteuted
themselves with teaching moderation in the ex-
crcise of legal power, and uniformly inculcated
the virtues of obedience and fidelity upon wives
children, slaves and subjects. They joincd in no
clamors for or against any administration, but
simply testified against sin before the only tribu-
nal which Christ ever erected on earth; that is
to say, the conscience of the Sinner himself The
vice Of polite al preaching was wholly unknown
to the primitive church. ai.t.
II is true that Paul counsellcd obedience to the
government of Nero; and am aware that mod
ern clergymen intcrprat his words as justifica-
ton of the doctrine that support of an existing
administration is "p,rt Of their allegiance to
God" Several Synods, and other ecclesiastical
bodies have solehny resoircd something to that
effect But, they forget that what Paul advised
was simple submission, not active resistance, to
endorse his atrocities merely because he was ''lhe
administration duly placed in power" They did
not 70 With him to the theater, applaud his act
ing, or praise hin, in the churches when he kid
mapped their brethren, set fire to ctv, or desc
lated a,province. Nor did they assist at his H.
bottle sis after his DEATH or pronounce funeral
sermons to show that he was greater than Scipio
more virtuous than Cato, and more eloquent than
Cicero. Political preachers would have done this
but Paul and Peter did no such thing.
There is;nothing in the scriptures TO justify the
church in applying its discipline to any member
fJr offcnscs pureypolitcal ,much less for his mere
opinions or feelings on public affairs. The cler.
gy are withoLtaut horiiy, as they ure often with
out fitness, to decide for their congregations what