The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1868-05-06

first, cannot.form any partot the religion
of the second. Now, the Book, called
Bible,. is often quoted in.support,of either
side of the question; and, it is true, it
does give evidence on both sides, just as
ones mind and ones heart incline; but
one man forgets that progressive mind
is; in fact, the life Of any religion, while
the dead, inert :letter hlleth 2 The Bible
of the Southern. people we of the North
want nothing to do with. We have our
own views and sentiments, which with US
are the Creators views and desires as to
us, and, being the stronger, we announce
.our,claim, by Gods laws, to all those men
ndstfings which come in our way. We,
therefore, claim to own, in fee simple,
every person and thing in all the South
in any wise appertaining to the Southern
people, whether white or black. The
blacks belong to us just as we'll as the
whites; and if it were our religion to buy,
sell, and work them as slaves, then it
would be done, unless a stronger religion
sbouldihterfere to prevent US.
"We. therefore, hold that the Southern
people (not only Methodists, but alp have
nosrelgion, and ought not to be allowed
to assemble either III former churches, or
elsewhere; and we have no doubt the time
is not far distant WHOM such prohibition
will be fully carried out, and that, too, by
our religion growing up among you.
"The period is very brief when any
man, much less an-cditor, can permitted
to assert that Northern Methodists 'steal
property, &c., that belongs to South
ern Methodists. The fact is. all the
tile Southern people have fallen so far
behind the progress of the age in every
.hing, not only in religion. that they arc
really ignorant of the plainest truths, as
we'll in the religion Of the present age as
in the discoveries of science, and their
daily application to the various arts of
life Religion being the essential element
OF all political progress. it must, of neces-7
sity, .partalle Of all the notifications
which the progressive and educated minds
discover totbe in accordance. with the
cIearcst lights of the present age. OR
thodox' and 'Hetcrodox' arc no olorger ar
rayed against each other Orthodox does
not, at the present day. among the truly
educated, presume to denonnce as here
teal or hcterodnX those who differ with
the formeron religion or politics. Three
persons in one God is.no more nor less
than figure of;ilI;rstralion so, Il never
ending hell taught for hundreds Of years
by all Protestan;s, is no: for Il moment
believed by the educated ot the present
day. 1T is-true many ignorant people Of
the Mcthodisls, as well as some other re.
Il, b,t
ment for the soul after death, but il is the
work OF cvery.-WelI-thinking mind 10 be
employed in removing such horrible no.
tons Doubtless the old English trans
-lations of the Bible had much 10 do with
creating this holrid. sad. and dreadful no.
;tioil. But, even the Roman Catholics
have always discarded it and substituted
Il temporary punishment (a purgatory).
from Which liberal payment OF money
will release the victim. But the whole
masses of the Sonth are stepped in the
grosscst and darkest ignorance and worse
than heathcn superstition. The whole
religion Of the Southern people may be
classcd rs the one and the same, aud that
Of the worst possible tendencies. Nor is
there much sign for hope in the future.
Better, indeed, if every house and school
house in all the Southern States were
burned to the ground, and every native
born there forever prohibited from teach
ing Q. .preaching,sas you calIit In this
event, teachers from the North would
alone give bent to the rising generation
there, and in less than half Il century
there would be Il religion worth the name.
s'Returning to Bishop Simpson, we,
who know him, are of the opinion that
bis only fault in dealing with you people
South has been in recognizing any OF you
at all as deserving to be classed as reli-
gious body. So far from considering a
Southern Methodist and Northern Me
thodst as existing in the South, the
proper way would be to disregard all
classes there alike because all are alike
any way at hcart.)
ssThe only difference being the price
we have to pay for y very poor effort on
the part of some to appear Northern in
scntimcnt-cvcn VIM. g. Brownlow, who,
of late years (sincc 1863 has professed
to be Northern in religion. yet we who
knew him best while he 'stumpcd the
Western States in 1862 and G3, are at
no loss to mcasii'c his reliability.
.eNow. have spoken plainly and cam
ddly, just what all Northern Mcthodists
feel and believe, but very few OF them
have the courage to come cut and speak
their true sentiments. Likewise the
other minor denominations Of the North
have the same opinions of the South
Tho rel;mion of the North is bound to
rnIc this continent, and those who stand
in the way (as you all do in the South,)
mnst get out of the way. Religion, to
be such, is progressive. 1t is no longer Il
dull, hum.drum. dry reading OF the Bible,
aud that after Il peculiar Interpretation
Lof past ccntGrics Nndnrn science and