, 1874-04-25

pulpit As his was the strongest, quickest mind
IN all the brilliant circle Of OF thinkera thar -
Boston. in his denomination aud out Of II \.
ran far IN advance Of the rest. and startled th.
boldest with his no7el poaitions.
tremendous disturbance arose, Tha Ros,,.
MiniFterial Association wished to be rid ct =.
dangerous Al agitator but to s1pel him thu
dared not venture, and withdraw he would M
linen began system OF punishment reaching
to persecution, which lasted while he 1ivad
Minister'S refused to exchange With him. Not -.
hah-dozen in all the vicinity would admit him n
their pu1pits, and many refused to accord hjr,
any recognition. He Was theuce{orth, in f.ct
outlawed by Church and Society. His pe,son,i
friends, most Of them, clung to him; but Il,
great body Of conservative men, Of eyery ser+
and class, regarded him With feelings rsnoin,
al the way from apprehension to abhorrcnoa.
bow he BRAvED THE STORM
may be gathered from q few Of his uttersncs. !.
public and private. TO friend he writes:
feel it Is great work have undertaten 1-
that far AZ the ministers concerned IN aIso
ALL ALONE But have no ambition to crafty. .s1
uaither fear tho disgrace covet tho spnlso,s
they give mo. II can spe.t the truth plain1y =
honest and earnest man, 1t il Ill asf Tha reeuh !.
Nth the God of al snd you and have no cau1s L
fenr hare received tho ready sympathy of tnteuv,t
and religious 1ay5nen, aud confcss that naates M t.i
strong.
In bis private journal he says:
once loved pleasure; aud religion kspt ms IN
loved money,-even now hare = passion for acon,a4
Hon-and once resolved to accumulate 800 ooo but
religion forbade to be rich Wills the poof uaed.d
food And the ignorant to 20 to college. loys es..:
but don't take It, Religion kecrs ma 1t this d.ei
aad p a aeads IS ne ms thoas.nd 1 thing which srsa
path that knew would te4d to infauay Ill loy liz:
and, anything s!se ever comes Of. It, will b. vbe
wholly obvious to III things. lows tha soeeT
Of cultivated people, : good name reapeet.hfatS:
aud all that: and religious condition haa a..
Rsa'ed !a nae Of i ~ made mo n outca'. nd
moro hated than any in ali New En8l.nd. ass ma
stare At me- in the street, aud paint and say "Thst
Theodore Parker j" aud look :; Is Il xars a.s.
derrr- Old friends, even par1shouers, Will not bow t.
me- in the street. an cast out Of I'll respectable NJ
ciety. know all this would come. It has come fsa
my religion; and would not forego that religion to.
al this world give. haTe borue that bon
men together till they can IN now1ss LIT up Themselves
but my comfort has been the Joy OF religion; my d..
light Il tbs infinite God Aad th1t h.s sustained ma
Elsewhere he declares: IT told my opponents
the only man who could put me down was N.Y.
self and trusted should do nothing to tzinx
about that RESULT
TIE sTuFT THAT AAKEs NAnTIns
was In Theodore Parker'a composition, md Il
Was useless to attempt to suppress him.
But he got woru in the combat, his vige:
tagged, and, in 1s49, he was glad to accept tia
bounty Of friends, Tho persuaded him or to
Europe for years rest md feoreatlon,-hopin
that, BY his return, tho excitement against him
would have subsided, or that he might losa
meantime soma Of the reformer's spirit. They
we're disappointed. He came back with vtoTs
and purposes unaltered, and his sermons in West
Ro1bury were charged with 1 more positive.
broad, and earnest faith than ever. OF his creed,
it may be said. briefly, that he denied tho ple-
nary inspiration Of the Scriptures, the divnityot
dogma Of eternal punishment; willis he taught
the existence OF God, the sanctitJ Of moral
1aw, and tho immortality Of the soul. "CAris-
tianity il humanity the declared]. Christ Ia tho
son Of man, tho nal4iest OF men; pious and
hopeful ~ prayer, but brave ~ mans mos:
daring thought. He has led tho world in morals
and religion for. eighteen hundred years, Only
because He Was tho manifest mAn in it, End
therefore the divinest. He may lead it eighteen
hundred years more. But churches do not lead
men therein; for they have not his 6pirit,-
neither that Homanliness that "ept over Jerusa-
lem, nor that nanliuess that drew down ars
from heaven to light the worlds alta1a for well
nigh two thousand yea1s."
The excitement against him Was renewed with
more viclence than before. Tha Rev. J. 7. SCI.
gent, Of Buno1k-street Church, exchanged pnt
pits with him, and, for 30 doing, Was eompslA
to resign his pastorate. The Rev. James Fres-
man Clarke, Of the Church OF tho Disciples, Alse
exchanged with Mr. Parker, and secassion from
his society Has the result. The churches Of Bos-
ton were now practically closed against him. At
this juncture, company Of gentlemen met, in
January, 1s45, and, with tho singls resolution
"That the Rev. Theodore Parker
SHALL HAYx oHANca
to be heard IN Boston," hired Melod&on Hall;
snd, On stormy day in February, his ninilt7
in the city Was begun.
For 4 year he held morning service 1t ths
Mclodeon, and still maintained his connection
NTH the church 1t West Roxbury. Ths e1paz'
rnent Of preaching in the city was so proapsrou4
hat, in the beginning Of 1848, he resigned hisoh
pa1istl, and Was installed minister OF thu Boz
Ion Society, at salary which be never Allowed
to be raised sbova 81, 900. In 1847, ho removed
bis family to house in Exeter place. whsro BIZ
widow still resides and in 1856, his church lsfs
The Me1odeon for Music Hall, the placa nth
which his fame IS preacher is associn.ed
His duties ware now excessive, and 10 COZ
tinued Until he was suddenly obliged to lay then
III aside. seven yearn later, 1t the call Of desth'
In addition to tho immense demands Of biz
PARISH one Of the hghtest Of which It
ever dis1egarded,-h engaged e1tensi' sl1 intns
profession OF lecturing, so o1 y"
Eimes, at v1.rious places in tho country, esea
season- 4 sack Of books always accompanied
im,-and t1sese not Of light calibre,-s1d ID
read and wroas without internisson - hs tsAT'
sled. It Wac in these years that the coates'
against the Fugitive SlAve Law, and agsins: tns
extension Of a1ave-terrltory in the Union, oc'
,urred- It il natter OF common history hoR sn'
argotio part nr. Parker took in these e1cans
Reforms Of everJ sort found hl1a
heir stoutest champion But oach TOOK 1foa
him some portion Of his Eigor, and the st1sog'a
If the giant began bo run Low.
H1B HEALTH TAuKD
4fter 1866. He had been, long ba1o1e'
AwAro Of its decline, but manfully st1oYe 10
conceal or dodge the fact. Consumption, u
aeritod from his mother, Wac the radica! raE
ldy, and overwork and exposure were po"sno
agencies. Heroic remedies, dns1]