The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1870-08-07


Brother Hutchinson, will be held at Brevoort Hail.
The Shakers on NIarriaxc-Wholcsalc Slaush.
ter Of the Isssiestion.
ALBANY, N. Y, August 2, 1870.
Last Sabbath G. A. Tomas preached o very In
teresting discourse upon marriage to an immense
throng of people. The Shaker ideas of marriage,
war, &C., are very peculiar, and they appear to
be sincere in them. as airy visitor to their village
at watervleit can testify. At the present time
they are coming more than usually to the front,
and their ideas are being canyassed by many
popular minds. The preacher of this discourse ia
young man originally from Brooklyn and now
occupies prominent position among this strange
people; and yet position among the Shakers is
like nearly everything elsa place Of serving
others. "He that would be greatest among you
let him be servant of ALL" 1t will be long before
any extensive hegira of Gothamites turns Shaker.
ward, but their manner of life and their ideas Of
how others live cannot fail to be interesting.
THE DISCOURSE.
ITO avoid f0raicau0n let every man have his wife,
We open this discourse with purpose of cor.
rcctng, before we close, many erroneous opinions
OF the people called Shakers. The subject chosen
Is one that is generally considered the happest Of
worldly epjoyments--one which, II worldly people
charm. and yet in marriage ninety-nine one hun
dredth's of the ills that flesh is heir to come from
this unregulated institution. 1t may seem strange
for US to remark anything favorable to marriage;
institution and, carried out as it should be- very
consistent and beautiful order on the inferior plane
ofearth; and were there no higher life, no more
heaven or earth than il obtained from marriage,
we with you, would be singing It's praises and en-
joying all the pleasure to be obtained from its re.
suits. When we are asked il we believe marriage
affirmative; and if asked what fault we Hnd
With it. we answer that it il not
with marriage that we find any fault,
but with the horrd abuses and perverted
uses that are made OF the institution. And if you
ask still further, Why we do not marry and carry
ont our ideas OF proper marriage relation our
only reply Is, we prefer to be Christians, by which
you are given to understand that we do not be-
Ieve Christians practice marriage, nor that mar
rage Is or can be Christian institution. We ore
aware that this will be news TO large proportion
or protesting ,Christians, and yet such should
know that to live celibste lives in order to be
Christians is subject now agitating moro minds
than the masses generally are aware OF. There
are those 80 greedy of sensual pleasure that they
expect to share the companionship of their hus-
bands and wives through an endless eternity,
while some look with sorrow to the time when
death will deprive them of the pleasures Of mar
riage and they have forced upon them the much
hated state OF single cursedness. Others there
are who think they can gulp down all the plea
sures carnal life will afford, and then glide into
the perfectability Of angel life with the
marry; others that they ''neither marry nor
are given in marriage" n they do marry we can
safely assert thy are not Christian angels aud If
who are striving to live the angel life now? Be-
fore proceeding further we would inquire the pur-
poses OF marriage? and We are answered. for the
fulflment Of the great command Of God, "Go forth,
multiply, replenish, &C., and we are prompted to
ask whether, in consideration of marriage, selfish
Indulgence or tue future progeny is most con-
sidered? We plead that however honest individu-
ais may be in marrying for reproduction, genera
ton belongs to the order of Adam and not to the
order Of Christ. However righteous marriage may
be in its order it is subversive to the Christ life to
admit that the orders Of Adam and Christ are
Synonymous, Tor Adam was OF tue earth earthly,
while Christ is the Lord from heaven, q quicken
ing spirit. Jesus Christ was the pattern for all
who would be Christians and is their pattern to-
day. HIS life and his teachings, both in public
and private, were antagonistic to the idea that
Christian institution. Il is falsely pre-
sumed that Jesus was divine, and there
as humanity cannot compete with nor pattern
divinity. But such IDEAS make of the author Of
Christianity very unreasonable being, to deliver
aiestimony, In Accor dance with his lite, requiring
all who would be his disciples and be saved from
impending evil to take up the same cross that he
did, follow HIM in the life tina he lived, if he knew
that his life was an impossibility for the human
family to live. 1t is not in our hearts to charge
such unreason upon our Lord Jesus Christ. In
speaking particularly of the social inst tuition
Jesus thus discusses it:-"There are some who
are born eunuchs, others are made 80 mechani-
cally but there are those who have made them.
Selves eunuchs for the Kingdom of heavens sake"
His disciples remarked, ''If the case of man be
30 and SO with his wife it is not good to marry"
"But," said Jesus, ''all men canUOt receive this
saying, they to whom it is given. He that is
able let him receive t.n And by the few who do
receive it and live apart from fleshly affections
and iusts we judge that but few are
rent lives; and this is the reason why SO few
find the narrow way, while there are many who do
feel called upon to renounce the pleasures of
carnality through llst, but will not heed the call.
Much fault is found with the people called Shakers
because they not only refrain from marriage but
persistin calling the same unchristian. There Is
no better evidence OF any PERSONS principles than
the action of life, and the Shakers acknowledge
the fault if fault it is of living continent lives and
Of testifying loudly and boldly that those who do
marry are not Christians, because marriage is Of
me world and not OF Christ. We ask Of ourselves,
Chow can we be followers Of Jesus Christ if we
do that and glory In that which he refrained from
and distinctly declared was not, nor could have q
part in the resurrection Jesus both advocated
and lived the life that we practice. Now is there
protesting Christian, man or woman, who Is will
ing OR dare derogate the character Of Jesus
because he did not marry, but taught his
immediate disciples to deny to themselves mar
riage and to "forsake the elements that constitute
husband and wife, father and mother, children,
houses and lands, and even cruelty the genera
tive life In ones self" And when the Church
fosters these, shall we not at once believe that
the Church has changed hands since the days
Of Jesus? II is said the Shakers fail to keep the
laws OF nature when they neglect to marry and
fulfil the great command. However much others
esteem marriage the law OF nature and Of God, it
has not the semblance of q command of God to us
since our conversion to Christianity, and Il it did
We should feel under the necessity of thinking the
Almighty had materially changed his mind since
sending His Son. the Christ, to demand that as
Christians we take up the cross that He did, wear
HIS yoke and bear His burden. We are reminded
OF the great truth that we cannot be His children
II we do marry. He So d, al ON the resurrection
and the life; and the children Of the resurrection
neither marry nor are given in marriage" How
many there among the nrnfeasors Of Chris