The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1867-09-30

siestical forms either in changing the old or in
The compiete unity Of the church viii come by
uniting all sects in one compact organization,
or whether IL win take place rather In sprl-
Graduating rivalry, and by spirit of love,
broad and deep, fusing them into one for all the
purposes OF communion, and retaining their
several organizations for the sake of efficiency.
But that a working unity will come, the signs
foretell, the world demands, and do not doubt.
And when IL is fully come, there is nothing to
which IL VIII not be adequate Just think what
evangelical Christians could accomplish in our
own country If they We're all more perfectly
united by the love of God and of one another
than they are now as sects. The results would
be something like the following, Prompted
tide would move with TRese tbe stren9tS Of
an ocean and the gentleness of q zephyr,
the church would follow the example of the
Master in looking up the worst classes Of
the community. Instead of leaving such
work TO uncertain philanthropy, she herself
would establish missionary Institutions for
Mpgdalenes, and similar establishments for
hopeless inehriates; missionary reformatories
for the worst classes of every description. She
would recognize In the most degraded Of these
the brothers and sisters of the publtcans and
sinners TO whom Jesus gave special personal
attention when on earth. These would be
gathered up, If possible, fast as they fell, and
The effort would be by the Gospel and its divine
charity, by bread of earth and OF heaven, to
bring Them to Christ and to health. Tue abuses
of the press would be corrected. a public
opinion would be created, before which bad
newspapers and periodicals and books would
disappear Such paper as the Police Gazette,
and portions of many others, like moles, daz-
zled blind by the pure light, would burroW out
OF sight. Impure amusements would share the
same fate. Extravaganza in dress would be.
come disreputable and the money now spent
In trails, In jewelry, and mere changes of
fashion, would feed The poor and reform the
wretched, while thoughtless matdens would be
subject to no temptation to sell their purity for
the gewgaws essential to respectabtltty. such
would be the force of virtue going forth from
the whole evangel cal church of the nation so
united, that the Government would be pene
trated by IT, II would breathe an inspiration
of purity into the public life. 1t would demand
the good and wise for Office, and our laws and
their administration, in such light, would
blush at impurtty, at injustice, or at profanity.
Our city governments, no longer controlled by
mere party interests, would make virtue their
central idea, and the officers, from the highest
to the lowest, would feel and show the power of
the ruling idea. Nay, If the whole evangelical
merging her differences in love and in the
practical aim of saving the world,
to the roots of social order, as they pre-
sented in the life of childhood. The family, the
very womb of society, would become the theme
of profoundest, sanctified study, and the object
of devout and sleepless care. AS now, it is in
the family that vices first root themselves, and,
unconsciOusly watered and warmed by over
indulgent affection, grow into strength before
we know IT; SO then the intensified force of the
divine life in the Church would make pure reli-
| gion the ruling sentiment of the fireside, and
the children, Instead OF growing up the play
| garding wealth and social position as the
greatest things, would estimate trifies at their
true value, ana 1eeI IN the divine atmosphere
| about them the dignity of goodness. This
divine idea would naturally enter and rule the
| schools, and perfect unity of Christians would
| know how to secure q system of Christian in
| struction, which would be seen TO be quite as
essential, even to common school education, as
| arithmetic or grammar. To this the love-and-
| truJh-nspred Church would add organized
| care for vagrants and destitute persons gene
| rally, gathering them like lost treasure, and
| laboriDg 10 restore them to purity and happi-
ness; This is in the very genius of Chris
| Now, brethren, suppose such united evan
gelicel church, penetratipg all the forms Of
| accumulated love-suppose such q church to be
the heritage not Of our country only, but of
| every country of Chrtstendom, and who can
| measure or limit its power? How would inter
national lazy drink in not only Justice. but
become the wards Of tho pow erfql States. to he
rapidly would the world be on the way towards
the fulhlment Of that poetry OF Scripture, in
| which "the wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and
the leopard shall lie down with the kid;
and the calf and the young lion and TN the tg iatilng
| together; and little child shall lead them"
The union of the human race has been the
dream of heroes and dynasttes, but they knew
| DO principle of unification but physical force.
Heather Rome united the nations by conquest,
| stringing them on her great sword. Papal
Rome attempted the same thing in the spiritual
| out of the broken sword OF her heathan ances-
! tors. Catholictty is right, but Its principle is
| not force; 1t must be begotten OF love and free
But is not such union utopian? Is it poss-
| BILE that all true Christians should heartily
| unite around the only saving name, with lov-
| ing appreciation of its Divine meaning? We
! answer it is not only possible, but certain. 1t
| is pledged in the prayer of Jesus, "that His
pe6pIe may be one, as de and His Father are
one" 1t is prophesied and promised in nun
dred sacred texts, and IL Is rapidly advancing
towards realization this moment, while we
speak. Think for moment Of the time, scarce
century ago, when even Protestants had not
learned the lesson of freedom OF conscience
and when to have creed involved Ihe con-
demnation of every man who rejected q single
minute point of it. Recall the still more recent
time when, liberty of conscience reluctantly
cor ceded, the principal activity OF the evan:
gelical churches was found in the department.
OF heated polemics. And behold, what an ad-
vance! Evangelical alliance, Church Diets,
Union prayer-m eetings, general sunday School
| Conventions, general CHRISTIAN COMMISSIONS, q
common creed distinctively recognized by all
| evangelical Churches as containing all essen
tial truth, and for which martyrs ceuld pe
found in all communions and as the crown Oh
all, the dawning of a loving co operation, De
| prejudice pelishes, and the various denOInlna-
| tional organizations consecrate themselves 70
| the general good, and build themselves up only
as part OF the Kingdom or ChrlsI 1i Lle VI Mno y
| does not see among evangelical Chrlstlans q
| broadening charity, an easier movement al Ine
| points of inter-denominat1onal contact u sOIU
Of quiet emptying of the streams INTO Ine OSeai @
| seems to us to need q touch OF the DlVlhe eyo-
But if this Divine unity comes, is it compe-
| tent to the work of the worlds reneWal1 IhIIe
| the ideas of the gospel, Of the lall, OF Ine Sou
man, the atonement, repentance, Iegene I
! hell and heaYen-are these, as o DIVINE teEeaa' g
tion scattered breathed out of the heaTG ~ OF an
agreeing, lahoring Church-aIe tnese i ~
Why is not this unity of the Church luVoSTeu in i
Christ's law of universal bfotherhoouY nay, IL
1t not included in ChTists spirit, IN MS eAatnp
of sacrifice Is not love, the very ille'pIeSatu
OF Christianity, an element OF moIai olnniPo,,
tenceP Is not Heaven Itself only the perLecl
bloom of the love which shall unite Iue PIIiiiS
Church? Does not the good SamarItaui " plnu
lDg up the wounds of his enemy fSPies1hII @ s1S n
work of the Church? And when Ihe Whole ol
/ the living Churches of Christ snail % pdptlHeu