Spirit of Jefferson. [volume] (Charles Town, Va. [W. Va.]) 1844-1948, 1866-10-16
sOliloquy Of a Church Member.
nY "BR1ck" poMERox.
What blessing is this Christian lOvel


Christian, 4. e., a believer in Christ Jesus, the
meek, loving and loYeable Saviour of sinners?
wonder what the Saviour meant when He
opened His mouth to inspiration, aud taught
blessed are the poor in spirit; for theirs
is the kingdom of Heaven.
blessed are they that mourn; for they
shall be comforted.
Blessed are the meek; for they shall in
herit the Garth
Blessed are the merciful; for they shall
obtain mercy.
Blessed are the peacemakers; for they
shall be called the children of God.
Leave there thy gift before the altar, and
go thy way first be reconciled to thy brother,
and then come and offer thy gift
But say unto you, love your enemies.
But IT ye forgive not meu their trespasses,
neither will your father forgive your tres
passes"
Here we have the germ of salvation, but
not any for me! don't believe in such style
Of religion. That is the old fosy STYLE That
is the foreign style. To be sure, we all pro-
Tess 1t, but that is pleasant religious gag,
iuii OF emptiness, and signifying nothin g
No church in the United States, SO called,
could gain convert on the platform of Je-
sus. That is in the play, but not in the reaii-
ty. The man who lives up to the religion of
the Bible is a Copperhead and the truth is
not In him. Why, bless us-if the Saviour
should come again on earth, and preach that
sermon on the Mount, I'd help to cruelty him
Id mob him-Pd swear he was thief, a
traitor, a Copperhead, a libert;ne, bad man,
and lover of the South
Y ou see all of US Christians have improved
on the New Testament. We attend church
for effect! There arc a few who attend and
tl,nSr I. Al
Copperheads, and we'd sooner give Christ the
lie, ignore his teachings, play hypocrite, and
tramp, tramp, tramp, through purgatory with
John Brown and others of the illustrious Alb
olltion dead than so to Heaven with Copper.
hGads, Democrats, poor people, and honest
Christians.
joined the church because it was fash
lonable. l wanted influence 1 put a false
label over my forehead on which was written
Repentance" and with sneaking, solemn,
canting, puritanical, bean. eating visage, held
out my hand for the communion, and munched
the sacred bread with the gravity of an apo
eating crackers. did it for effect. The
label repentance" deceives all but God
lie reads, stamped on my forehead-graveu
on my heart, scared on my soul-that am a
sinner, hypocrite, liar, mocker, deceiv-
er, whited sepulchre full of deceit and un-
clcanness.
wanted popularity. People think that
because man is a church member he is a
Christian Pah II can attend church
can rant, below and shout with the best
Then can go home, sleep, eat, scold fret,
post books, read political newspapers, lay
plaLs to ovcrreach my neighbors and increase
my riches. And Il can lie about my goods,
can be hoggish, selfish, dishonest, tricky and
decetIul, all the better because [ am a
church member, and church members protect
their own. There are some good men and
some good women in the churches of the
Lord, and I'll take refuge behind their char
'actcrs, bring reproach upon them, weaken
their influence, disgust sinners with chris
tianity, insult my Redeemer and finally wind
up my career in HE'LL where ought to be-
Ii was christian, real, true, honest,
conscientious christian, as the lessons of Christ
teach me to be, I'd have charity-bem
love my enemies and not seek to destroy
men and States for little difference of opin-
ion concerning matters which affect us tenn
porarily.
| am christian, so-called. But I don't
believe in Christ when he says blessed are
the meek.
don't believe in him when he says blessed
are they that mourn-blcssed are the merci-
ful-biessed are the peacc-makers.
believe Christ was Copperhead My
christianity is to hate men 1 do not know
to abuse those who differ from me in opinion
to rob, mob, torture and destroy. I'd hang
the Democrats of the North. I'd kill the
people of the South. I'd steal their goods.
cOntiscate their lands; burn their houses, raw
ish their women, starve their once happy
servants, use up their resources, cover them
with taxation, deprive them of representa-.
ton, and every time l jobbed the hot fork
of Puritanical hate into their bleeding hearts,
I'd grin at their agony and shout "Glory to
God for the joy and peace my religion brings
mel"
I'd burn churches if those who prayed
therein differed from me in politics-I'd des-
troy school-houses, steal bibles, organs, hearses
and sacred relics. I'd be head devil and
punish those did not love, lest God should
not have time to punish them after giving me
my just deserts Christ told us to take care
of the poor. So we will. We'll hold United
States bonds, and make poor people paw us
interest on them. Well build marble church
es, have rosewood seats, velvet cushions, gold
tankards for our lying lips to drink the blood
OF Christ trom-emPloy band to do our mu-
sic, and send poor people to hell for Jack of
means to worship God in a style as We hypo-
critics do. And if any one of these poor peo>
pie fall back on the Bible and its teachings
and live up to what profess to, how quick
we will hurl the bolts of puritanical wrath
u upon them, and brand them as hypocrites.-
That is strategy.
I=hate to be hypoctite. Our minister
has torsook Christ for niggerism and politics,
and we must follow suit. We are all broth
ers in wickedness. With bible strapped to
our back cup of wine in one hand-a
piece of holy bread in our mouth, aud John
Brown pike in the other hand, with our pock-
cts full of stolen articles, our hearts full of
hate and our eyes full of watery cunning, we
emerge from our churches and glorify God
by mobblng the defeneoless, shouting for