The Fairfield herald. [volume] (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1849-1876, 1875-05-26
we arc told that
~ hilc the lamp holds out to burn,
"a he Yilest sinner may return"

T.. , h''cHhc lamp holds out to burn,
r. nc Vilest sinner may return"
&s We arc told also that we arc un.
clcan-a mass Of wounds and bruises
and putrefying sorcs--and that we
must repent and bo saved. How can
We repent if the theory of our con-
temporary, "onco pure, always pure"
be true There is somo mis,ak
somewhere, but the question per-
plcxcs us, and We leave 1t to bo
fought out by the ministers and our
contemporary. In tho meantime we
will continue to believe in the OK
istenoe of divincly given repentance,
b. e most comfortable aud gratifying
doctrine.
There are many distinguished in
stances of repentance. The thief
upon the cross has furnished materials
For thousands Of sermons. l. has
never been argued that because he
received permission to enter into
Raradise he had never been guilty
of larceny. Contend that he was
Railways .pious man, or that ho was
not saved, and n standing argument
for: death.be repentance will be
destroyed, to tho manifest terror
Of millions Of miserable siuncrs.
The Apostle Peter was the rock on
which the mighty Christian Church
was built, and yet it has never been
denied that when the cock crew he
committed a gricvous sin, n genuine
malum IN SC. Paul was the bulwark
Of the early church, and yot bcf re
he saw that great light on tho way to
Damascus, "hc made havoc of the
church," and brcathcd out threaten.
ings and slaughter against those very
iii clplcs Of the Lord, who aftcrward
hailed Eim as their chief. Prom the
cAlot of sinners he was by repentance
metamorphoscd into u pillar of the
church.
Who would believe that Iynatius
Loyola, the founder Of the Jcsuits
AMI tho most ascetic monk of his
time, was once gay, rollioking
soldier, or that the hero of Agincourt
had ever been Il pot companion of the
beastly FalStuif, or that Martin
Luther was once submissive servant
OF the Pope, or that john Newton,
the cmincntly rious divine, was once
IL dcbauchee, rake, and a SLAYER ?
Who would dream t.. Mt Beast Butler
was once secession democrat, or
that Frank Moses had taulcd down
the flag from Sumter, or that Smiling
ColfaX had ever taken stock in credit
mobillrr, or that Susan Is. Anthony
'Nd ever rested her weary limbs on
Theodore 5 knee ! Aud yet they say
those are facts, stubborn facts. They
can be explained ouly upon tho hy.
pothcsis that there is such Il thing as
repentance, and that individuals sud
denl y awakening to the fact that they
have occn SHINING, forthwith resolve
to lead new and better life, and to
make some rcparaticn for the injuries
they have inflicted on others by sins
! either of commission or Of omission
For the reasons given above We
cannot accept the abstract proposition
advanced by our contemporary. Re-
pcntance may be Il dclusion, but 1t is
nevertheless fond delusion, and wc
must still cling to it, the more e>pc.
ciaily that is an aLsoi ute necessity for
us to do so. And whether Mr.. Cham
bcrlain be a ponitcnt or just man
that needs no repentance, wo will con.
tinuo to stand by him through thick
and thin just 50 long as VIC believe
him to be striving faithfully and
earnestly for the welfare of South
Carolina. And may We never have
cause to repent this adherence.