The national Republican. [volume] (Washington City [D.C.]) 1866-1870, 1869-11-17
HIS RELIGIOUS LIFE and CONVICTIONS
ELOQUENT DISCOURSE by DR.. SAMSON
RESOLUTIONS OF RESPECT
Action Of Columbia Deaf aud Dumb Asylum

ltlon assembled last night at the Calvary W
aptist church, corner of Eighth and II n n,
reefs, to listen TO discourse from Rev. DR.. b
amSon, president Of Columbian College. =
he service possessed peculiar interest from \
he fact that DR.. Samson has for many years !
,ast been familiar with the eminent de- Q
ceased. The pulpit was occupied by Revs.
Dr.. Parker and Samson, and after preliml-
nary devotional exercises, DR.. Samson arose
md prcachclas follows:
For none Of Us liveth to himself aud no man
The latter part Of this declaration OF Paul,
verse, IL a truth universally recognized. II
man mar DIE possessed OF property though IN hts
Is inhuman Il he can die without this aeknowl.
edgment. II through all his lie man has
every other msn believes thst he
has such convictions aud comes to his funeral
expecting to hear illusions made to them.
There Ia a broad meaning In this declaration
OF Paul, "For none OF US llveth to himself and
no man dleth to himself" As river permits
nothing to stop aao,t on its current, and M
planets In their orbits drag their satellites
after them, so the ourrent OF an age, the indis.
soluble bonds Of human association sweeps
men on In the tide OF general conviction and
action.
As this Is true of secular reiations-the
men OF an age mtkiug and moulding each
other after common mOuld-so 10 our relation
to the religion. spirit OF mani the whole great
family OF mtnknd Is rs like In Its spiritual as
In Its bodily needs and cravings, He lives In
nnyain dream who Imagine. 'hN 10 his re-
physical nature rules, and that In his thorough
belief In future world he 10 not linked
fellow. From this dream men awake when
from above declares, to the princeiy 10 fortune
Men die with kindred spiritual con victions,
as they do with the bodily mtla lie, thu ali
are are s ,s,s exposed TO- now espeeslly Of
writes, "for none of US dleth to himself" since
he adds whether we live or die we are the
Lords" There are minds-they were met rs
exceptional case among Greek and Romans,
as Cicero Obseryes-thN profess to separate
Themselves In this respect from their kind
In our day C1m'e, the recogniIed head OF
the philosophy called positive, as opposed to
interestisl, wrote in comparative youth the
volume. Of his complete y,tem, BRINGING In,
as he then imagined, the whole range OF
science. In his mature Yeas, however, the
loss OF eompanion, who had become part OF
his very life, awakened his consc Iousness to
the positive existence OF . class OF facts which
had never catered his philosophy. He re.
wrote hts entire system, sddiug to the last OF
common to mankind that of religion. His ex.
perienee, as ours, taught that II IL OF the
utmost importance to US As beinys made for
higher than earthly ends that we realize this
possession OF = common religious nature. We
are born with, we live all our life under the
dominion OF the common religion, conscious.
ness We shall assuredly recognize ere we
die that we are msa 10 religious belief, and we
shall DO violence to our very natures II ever In
our lives we disavow It.
The LIE Of our departed friend, Hon. Amos
Kendall, Is = striking commentary on this uul.
versHl and most palpsble fact. II Is truth
which men OF thought GA great moral cues.
ton., such as American Statesmen must be,
exhibit to degree little appreciated by ordi.
nary observers, and Mr.. Kendall was marked
aud manifest example, since mis- mind and
character were peculiarly transparent and
specially sincere.
Religious truth, 1t should be always remem.
bered, 10 IN Its Intellectual Apprehension the
most profound OF all human studies. No one
cohversant with the ressonings Of the Ablest
Greek. and Romsus who, without revelation
sought settled convictions on religious sub
jeots, can have failed to observe the strugxl Of
enott OF the mind called forth, the grsppiin l
with the mysteries Of spiritual existence co N
pared with which the intrIcaeies Of physica
science are plain path. No one csn tr.c,
through the ripest Productions Of the u ttul
butts, Of Newton and Grotius, OF Fsrii,y Ant
GulEot without being overwhelmed with tn,
profunllty OF thought which renders the de
monstration OF religious truth as clear as IN a
OF 4 mathematical thofem. II was because
Mr. Rendslls keen intellect went through all
steps are here traced.
According to the suggestion of the great
apostle religious truth takes hold 90 both
the affections and the intellect: foE "fsIth Is
the substance OF thing. hoped for, the evidence
OF things not seen" Religion IL = deep expe-
rIence felt In the soul while At the same time
1t could not be sentiment 50 controlling
unless II rested on convictions clear as the
perceptions OF the senses. A constant and
ea ,I3tt stnd.nt IKE Nlooiemu, may look all
his liir into the statements OF Gops revealed
work and yet never see the Kingdom Of God, |"
since the eye that can discover II Is Implanted
when one Ia born Of the Holy spirit Yet more
religion IL life, a daily conduct couformed TO
the belief prOfessol, aud no one can lead such
4 LIE, even convinced by study and renerveJ
ChrlIts exhortation, "W atch and pray tn st y,
enter not Into temptationn
It's, therefore, for = double reason that me,
Of clear thought aud sincere spirit are ofte
reserved as to their real convlstions aad feel
ings, Aside from the Influence OF human d,
prayity, which makes men wish to disbeliev
and feign scepticlsm, there isR worthier .,
stTalnt often sealing their lips aud holdin
down upon their seat those wac would a
tlmes give up anything earthly II they coul
speak of the Joy springing from a good hop
and could consistently vow to lead life {
seli-denying piety towards Coil just as met
masters In one line OF science aud human pu
suits, are reserved when another with while
they are not conyersant ia the subject OF dl
other lines OF thought alt as stieat, ktteati,
and often peIpleNed listeners when the wi
dom that comes from above Is comm ,nded
those whose whole souls see its mystery y
more; As men eloquent In the language OF the
mother nation dare not venture to frame
sentence In ioFeign tongue, while a chi
catches 1t as II 1t were vefnscular, so 10
with that language OF the heart which VIII,
heard from the hum5lest lips assures all tn
listen; These thstthus speak have been wi
Jesus And learned OF Him"
-. once more Since Clristian life
difficult Just In proportion to the entanglit
complications whieh the world would thro
around ones pnthwNy-just -, the soldier
the line Is conf Leaf when his general
anxious, so the msn 10 public position W!
would profess his itith Ia Christ fllters VIII,
his neighbor, his wife, mis- child go unfslteri
10 the altar ofc onsecFstiOn. q, how the Chr
tian pastor, tFudtel esteem ID and loved In
city Ike ours, gctH almii5loa to the seer
chambers OF many soul that to the wor
seems as distant from 1t, hesvsnly Father
the cold formrllty eI'ential to oti:isl o
quette Is distant from the gush OF the he
unboBomed In the enieIring Intercourse
the family circle. Indeed, 1t IL true, mo o!
liveth TO himself ami no man dleth to hin
SELF" as relates to in1truotiYs All undyli
conviction OF the cardinal doctrine OF rel
glon-the conviction that there 10 = DC
able and ready TO helpi that we are innort,
and sinful creatures, and that = sure REDEEM
tion Is provided Ia the gospel Of Jesus Chris
me TOOL may say In his hear there 10 q
49, 49, PIT t every M'S VIII hs'r1 him so %
thuSeall not on the name Of the Lordr' for v
watch and observe tn1t IN the hour OF DANCE
Hhent the Chris'lSn iIcaln, there are they
those who denied G1l Ia the hour when I
need was felt "Ihere are they n great fea
where no fear 80
mind made to reach Just and honest c 0
eluiions awakened by this p,lptble proof
be y Cicero without the Bible or = Newt
with It, goes oyer cIsh Of the Argument mea
toueheli the argument from design Il creAtiO
The moral eonyIctiUnshowni Ia men'a ualgers
tehort TO prayer In danger; the testimony
historical tradition which makes men be lIe,
10 JeauA AS they do IN Washington, an last
All the methphyaIGll AemDnstr1tlDn, the I'M
OF whose connection can no more be brIki
than those OF mNthcmatieNl deduction M
men made TO grasp clear thought are held
In aHpell by the power Of those arEumeu
until their testimony bssomca ai real and
psplble as the evidence OF their owa
Is'ence.
Thence the co IrS9 OF thought, IFreslslstil
Ia lts silelt, iesp movement as the roll o
mighty river, goes suqGessIVely through
the lprtrInrs aud duties OF religion taught
HA'Irn N4l wIihtn the pases OF the New II,
hWsht. NJ man, Ia this respect, lives
hlmelti his thought sVrrpI on ia the cham
pIpnghsd Tor ages W the curfoat OF uDlyera
s'hsiillHn. Anl hlh llla GEM moro and mo
ahH9'hY ttll ne rp'nfI the pathway trodd,
By the feet gf fllpweri ut tnr Lint ~ ~
thAt washes away the slU Of the world. WI
noble army 1i sIrA witnesses the otseFvs,
ChfistlAn may slp during single generate
Ia our oenirll sItT, wdrF, sush mIni. nj
hearts cluster, gui among them, let II be I
pestei, A1os kHl 'lil va prDmlaent.
iIIbe secular pApcH hAVs spoken OF
rtgo~f 10 public AID private ~ an Gu
Monty sI.frss'Il Omar Of Goyernme
Ntl - . ntstofly munger Of great induBtFI.
Al atl IgI