The New York herald., 1870-05-17

The Pulpit and tho BSnrriase hso'a"O"'
Puritanism Of the present day has less o'
morality in IL than of religio.% ana more
OF piety than of religion. Parsaoxical as
this may appear, it ia nevertheless true. your
real Puritan Is a combination of pretel,>'lon
and hypocrisy. Probe his sanctimoniosA5
theories and you will find vast amount OF
loose practices at the bottom. And it is note
express their convictions. They say what
they think, but say it in so circumlocutory
way that at the first glance 1t is difficult to ap-
preciate the true sentiment When, on Sun
day last DR.. Cheever rated Recorder Iackett
for his charge to the jury in the Mcfarland
case he merely reflected the peculiar views OF
the Purltans. Because the Judge charged
that If the prisoner killed Richardson in q mo-
ment Of frenzy he could not be convicted the
reverend gentleman, with upliited eyes, ex-
claimed, "Oh, what community is safe from
the demoralizing effects Of such charge !"
He did not dwell upon the demoralizlng re-
suits which would follow the disruption OF
family ties, such as brought about the homi-
eide, II they were disrupted with impunity. In
the Church of the Puritans nothing was said
In defence Of the marriage relation and its
sacredness. From Puritancal New England
came the doctrine which caused the late trial,
and 1t s not surprising that while judge is
denounced for charging that an insane man is
not responsible for his acts those other acts
which drove him insane are not condemned,
even by inference by New England Puritan
preacher.
In greater accord with the spirit Of Chris
tianity which is that of all pure morals, was
the sermon Of Rev. Mr.. Hepwortb, at the
Church Of the Messiah. But even this reverend
gentleman made a mistake in the selection Of
his text. The murder of Abel was the result Of
Gains anger, because the sacrifice of the first
was acceptable to the Lord. while that of the
murderer was rejected. Certainly, the story as
related in the Bible does not bear the faintest
resemblance to that of Mcfarland and
Richardson, unless it be held that all men who
take life are so many Gains. This would pace
the killed in the position of Abel who was
! pious, God-fearing man, which many MUIR
dered men are not. We think, then, that
| the application of the text was an error. But
on the main subject Of Mr.. Hepworth's sermon
| there was much in what he said deserving of
praise He met the question Of the marriage
relation fairly, and expressed sentiments which
| do credit to him as a Christian and clergy
man. Not often do we hear from the pulpit
| the bold declaration that ''the man who splits
the tree of marriage in the sight of God and in
the presence Of God must die Such, Mr..
Hepworth held, is the verdict Of the commu-
nifty, and, he added, sit is right royal YER
dict" Now, we may not agree with the
reverend gentleman in all of his ideas, but we
think that he is on the right track on this
question of Interference between man and wife.
We trust the other clergymen will take it up,
not using the Mcfarland case in illustration,
but advocating the broad principle that the
| ties OF marriage are sacred without reference
to particular cases. Mr.. Hepworth is right
when he says that our ideas of the mos
important act in life are too loose; that people
marry without due sense of the step they are
taking, and that their vows are uttered merely
as form. Upon the clergy rests the respon
sibility of improving public morals in thi:
respect. Let our preachers go to work, then
and uproot terrible evil which, born of the
reaction from Puritanism, is the doctrine to
which Puritans are tending. If they succeed In
doing this Christianity will recover its ascend
ancy in the hearts of the people, and we shall
hear less of disrupted homes aud aveneinl
husbands