The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1875-05-10
MASONIC TEMPLE.
Mr.. FRoTHINoHAM on pHAR1sEEs.

Mr.. FRoTHINGHAM on PHARIsEEs.
Rev. o. B. rockingham, pastor OF tae "Inde.
pendent Society," preached yesterday morning TO
very large congregation at Masonic Temple,
corner of Twenty.thlrd streer and sixth avenue.
Before commencing mis- discourse. and In accord.
ance with his usual custom, Mr.. rockingham, In
. tone OF voice as deep and solemn as an echo
from the grave. sald, Listen 10 the readlng OF
ancient scrlpture" and read extracts from Cni-
nese, Persian and Hindoo writings the subject
matter bearing remarkable resemblance to the
New Testament story OF the Pharsee and Pub
lican. The subject OF the discourse was an
nounced to be "Pharisees" Mr. rockingham
said ~ do not mean tue Pharisee or any particu-
lar type or class. We always think OF them as
spoken OF in the New lestament-a class OF men
deserving OF contumey and TO be treated with
contempt, for they were the objects OF the
vituperauon or Jesus We ind also that
outside OF the New Testament In the
Talmud, Tor instance they are spoken Of as tile
plague OF men, az a class OF people VINO were ca
pahle OF teaching and who did teach very beauti-
full doctrines, wnIe not living beautiful lives.
But we find on investigation mat this sweeping
condemnation rs unjust, Tor they were not all OF
them deserving OF ~. Nlcodemus, VINO evidently
secret soul Of Christ was Pharisee. Joseph, OF
Arlmathca, WHO offered TOMB Tor tue body OF the
dead Jesus, was a Pharisee; and when the people
sees believed In Christ they spoke OF the class
with the most pfoouna respect. Paul was n
Pharsee; indeed he boastea Of the lact: 50 that
although denounced by Christ, we SEQ tnat me
Phatsees among the Jews were n all OF the same
class. They were not, "a is popularity supposed,
sect; they were not banded together 10 establish
certain opinions IN politics. religion or philosophy.
Their place III the slate corresponded with that
OF the
JEsuIrs IN THE RoNIsH CHURCH.
In that age they believed In the Je wish Church
through ana through. and had at heart Us per-
petuation as an institution. Their position So
cially was OF the pest. Ihey believed ~ tue union
nand IN hand. Jehovah was the ruler. lie made
their laws and the prophets we've his mouthpieces.
tie was supposed to have aellvered them from
bondage, anu consequently Jehovah to them was
tie first and last, the alpha and omega, tue all In
all. they were patriots; they had guided their
nation through times OF Serious troubles. They
hated the Roman Empire, whose yoke they bore
ana under whose heel they ere. They abhorred
the PuUhcans who were taXgatherers Tor the
Romans, ana they suspected tne Sadducees; con-
lated. Thus they dreaded the influence OF John
the Baptist, VINO IN their view was p eaching an
insurrectlon. They were conservatives or radt-
religious belief, they held strictly 10 the la OF
Moses, 10 the sacred writings Of the prophets and
to the traditions of their nation, 10 the most mi
mute detail As relirIUnlsjs they had the
SToMACHS OF oSTRlCnES,
they could swallow anything. To them every SEN
tence In tue Believes, even detached words-had
some peculiar significance. They were exceedingly
punctilious about the law on The observance OF
the sabbath, for instance, Tor there were promises
attached To tnes comm ands. 1t was no wonder,
then, that they snould cry out against CHRIST, be-
cause lie put the spirit belore the letter Of the
law-tne motive DeIore the act itself. Tney wero
Journalists by the very nature OF t1elr position.
were perfectly Just inasmucn as they related to
the typical Pnarisee. lney could not resist the
logo Of their position Il am noller man tnou;
and 1t was the result OF ther own eXclusiveness
lie point wish TO MAKE IL tnls--this spirit OF iso
lauon prevalls all over the world consequently
PHARIsEEs IN EVERY SECT.
Pnalisee is man VINO is separated from his
fellows VINO is exclusive ana who causes this ex-
clusiveness and Judges otner men from his own
standpoint entirely In the very nature OF Things
such man must become hypocriticaL There Is
the phiiosophic Pharlsee, who claims 10 be In the
possession OF truth that ordinary mortas nave
not access t.. lie lives IN an ideal sphere. lie
scorns preachers and preaching, and, wrapping
the rope o. his mental lnialliblty about MIN, ex-
claims ''Stand aside; am wiser than thou.u The
scientific Pharlsee Is he man OF science, VINO,
having got on the tran OF new oruer OF truths,
plants his loot upon them a. on a pedestal, and
rom ais position looks Gown with contempt upon
otHer mea wno are seeking after truth as earn
estly as ne. he has the KEY he tninks-no one
else has land consequently one ese Can
gain admission TO truth. Then there IS the Phari-
see u soclety-tne man or woman VINO claims TO be
oi the ehte-the oest society or to belong TO the
high and most poweriui party. 1he best type we
ever hau IN thls country was the southern slave
holder Ia the pairny DAY oi that b9rbarOus lnstl-
tuition. he was the person who was privileged.
He looked upon the tarnt and INDUSTRY OF the
North with contempt he disdalned money,
sned freely were In reality stolen from the
negroes IRen there are the Pnarlsees oil race.
The English, for instance, PLAY the Pharlsee to the
Monaghan ana African; Christianity plays the
Pharisee toward Judaism. The early Christians
called the god5 OF olher religions devils, WINE
even at TINS late DAY, with all our boosted clvliza
tton, IL is no uncommon thing to near a rough IN
QUE OF our lower wares a creature VINO never has
arisen TO the dignity OF MANHOOD,
CALL AN lsRAELITE CHRIST KILLER.
A traveher IN an Eastern country relates that
on the outskirts Oh a town he noticed a pile u
valuable goods which lad evIdently been there all
night He inquired Of the owner II ne was not
AFRAID tHat thieves would rob hm OF his treasure.
"Inieves rob me! wny there's not Christian
WITHIN twenty miles OF here.u TnIs was what a
Mosiem Phansee thought or Christian.
Every sectarian IS PharIsee. lie supposes that
nc alone mas the peal VI great price. lie THINKS
that his since OF the Gospel cake contains
tine weudIng ring, whIle All OF me otner sces are
no better tnau sWeeteueu bread. Every profess
SION mas It's Pharisees-tne law, medicine the pull
pit Mr. rockingham ghen maue several severe
on the attitude OF religious sects toward
the stage. lie claimed thai evangelical irotcs-
tanrlsln mad from the yerS Start been an enemy 10
the theatre. In Its narrow eg0tlsm II Classed the
theatre AS an institution Oi SATAN, and Whine he
was not 10 be construed Us saying tnat actors and
actresses were any better than any other profess
sional people, they were Ger amy no worse. In
he said that the one thing most needed
III the world Was intellectual sJmpatny-tnaL
broad charity which would lead man to put MIN
sell IN ms neignoors place, as Il were, and TO Judge
from his standpoint.