The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1874-02-09

The sermon of Rev. George II. HepNorth.
which we publish to-day, has in it many bsau-
t1ui truths of profound interest to the mist
wicked sinners In the contemplation OF
jacobs vision of the ladder whose top reached
to'heaven he reads the truth that there is road
TO heaven even for the criminal, the wicked,
the doubling and the unbelieving. Out of
men, sensual passions and sins God can make
affairs OF prayer. and every man has found in
the record OF his life something supernatural.
which ne could explain only by the wondrous
power of the Lord And Mr.. Hepworth finds
in this vision also another truth-namelv.
that this road to heaven is always open, SO
that the ungodly and the sinner may enter ON
it whenever they will.
Bishop Cummins finds that there is but one
door of entrance to the kingdom of God. and
that is by the birth of the Spirit and of love-
But the Bishop finds also, that salvation is q
personal matter and that men cannot be saved
in bodies or corporations. Corporate Chris
tianity, he thinks, is a curse, while individual
Christianity is what man requires to work
great reforms.
The Rev. Henry Powers agrees with Darwin
that evolution is the law of life, but he differs
with that scientist in the Interpretation put
upon the word evolution. To Mr.. Powers it
means not God, but the method of Gods
manifestation in nature. 1t is a progression
from the simple to the complex, and by this
law the universe is governed. In this very
learned style Mr. Powers gives us specimen
of nice reading, but to men hungry for the
bread of life it must feel like stone Had
he put the last quarter Of column Of his
discourse first and thrown the rest of
it under the pulpit or kept it for the
lecture hall we have no doubt the people
would be Better fed and strengthened spirit
ually and God be gloriied. But if the sal
Walton of men is not the end sought then
the Last part of this sermon might be omitted
altogether, and the rest would constitute an
interesting lecture.
One of the best illustrations of the province
and property of faith, as distinct from the evil
dence of things reported by the senses. is
given in Mr.. Beecher's sermon, which we pub
lish this morning. The touch of sarcasm
which pervades his reference to the crea-
ton will be fully appreciated by those
scientists who pretend they know when
the world was formed He also distinguishes
intellectual faith from religious, and gives an
apt illustration in the communion of the
Lords Supper. Mr.. Beecher does not believe,
as some others do, that faith is mysterious
He believes it rather to be normal and natural.
All progress, he thinks, is toward faith. and
Of mar 10 OIL hv t1o
power of love-the love of the Lord Jesus
Christ.
The Rev. Mr.. Peabody tells us very truly
to-day that Christ's life was not the result of
philosophy, that His mission was from heaven.
and that His religion is that which the nations
of the world most desired eighteen centuries
ago and most desire to-day. But we do not
agree with him in the belief that if Jesus stood
among us to-day He would by the heavenly
luminous electric light of His mission influence
and move the world. Mankind have been
moved more by the invisible but still present
Christ than they ever were by the visible and
tangible Christ. And we do not believe His
reception would be any better or His life be
any longer had He been born in the nine
teenth century of the Christian era instead of
the first.
Mr.. Talmage leads us to infer that Jesus is
here-at least in his church-and he asks the
pertinent question, ''What Shall We Do With
Him." He appealed to his congregations
sense of honor, courtesy and culture, while
he told them what he knew they would not
do to Jesus. They could not be rude OF
abusive or discourteous to Film. They, how
ever, might look upon Him as an optician to
cure the blind eyes, an aurist, a good friend,
cheerful companion. But the safest and
best thing which he commended them to do
was to take Jesus into their hearts and into
their confidence
DR.. McGlynn gave his people an exposition
of the parable of the sower, and drew there
from the lesson that the salvation of our souls
is of far greater importance to us than the
mere passing qualification of our bodies.
From the same parable Father Kane pointed
out the folly and danger of listening to the
Word of God with Indifference. He rebuked
the pulpit sensationalism of the day, which
he intimated is opposed to the Gospel.
Father Kane goes in for simplicity in the
ministry of the Word; for, as he says, the
simplest words 60 straight to the heart And
still further, from the same parable, Father
White inculcated the duty of religiously
educating the young, and Father Garesche,
who has just opened Emission" in the
Church of st. Mary's Star of the Sea, Brook.
Ign, without this parable, called attention to
the same duty and expressed his disapproval
with Catholic parents who sent their children
to the Goddess schools
An interesting service was held on the flag
ship Roanoke yesterday in which Chaplain
Kane preached on the Importance Of decision
in matters of religion.
DIR. Wild, of Brooklyn, discoursed ON the
harmony that exists between the life and the