New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1875-10-27
THE SECULAR SIDE or 1T.

TIE SECULAR SIDE or IT.
The public attention continues to be engaged
by the preaching of Mr.. Moody and the singing
of Mr.. Sankey. This is hardly the place in
which to anayze and estimate religious emo
tons, experiences, convictions, always to be
regarded with certain degree of respect and
good will In this world we must take men at
their word. He who announces that hereafter
he means at least to try to live righteous,
sober, and godly life is entitled to our conf
depce until he has done something to forfeit
il: and perhaps he will be less likely to for
felt it if, instead of Struggling our
shoulders and predicting his failure, we
shake hands with him cheerly and wish him
well IN his new way of life. This we may DO
without any hypocrisy or pretense, even though
we may be quite unable to follow his example,
There is no surer sign of coarse and vulgar
nature than contempt for that spiritual ear
pestness which it cannot share. One may be
saturated with human philosophy, deyterous IN
the well-worn dialectics of unbelief, quite COM
Portable in his slough of negations, satisfied
with his theories of the emotions, deeply read
in the history of imposture and selt-deception,
skeptic by nature, confirmed in skepticism
by his education yet If his head has not
unite got the better of his heart
he will hear with pleasure that any fellow
creature in this wOcful and weary world has
found peace for his soul. Why inquire too
critically? why predict relapse too conf
IDENTITY why be eager to hope for it why
submit these awful phenomena to the frigid
test of the understanding why be ready with
:. .I.n rtnI
brought face to face with Judgment and an
eternal death, violates some rule OF finical
decorum as he wrestles with the enemy OF
souls and fights the battle which is to save
him, if only he can win it, from fate too
dreadful to be calmly considered
Apart from the more solemn profession of
the religious convert. is his promise that he
will be honest and kindly; that he will neither
lie nor cheat nor steal that whatsoever OF
good his hands may find to do, he will do 1t !;
that he will refrain from the vices which de-
grade and impoverish and kill that he will no
longer be selfish and ungcnerOus and that his
works shall prove the vitality of his faith.
There has been 40 much loose talk lately
about religion and churches and preachers,
that We are in danger of forgetting that all our
excellent men and women made gentlemen
and ladies by grace, full hearted and full
handed helpers of the sick, the needy, and the
suffering, doors of the work whenever and
wherever opportunity has Offered, lovely IN
their lives and credible because involuntary
witnesses of the reality of their faith. To the
number of these a season of marked religious
interest unquestOnably must make large add
tons for though the weak may fall away,
though the most vocferous may grow silent
and the warmest cold. there will always be d
remnant of stronger natures abiding to the end.
Ii cannot he denied that "revival Of re-
"ligion,r as it is called adds largely to the
merely moral strength of society and increases
the number Of those who honestly mean to do
right Every reader has known within his
personal experience more than one instance
of bad nature made better, OF a
degraded character elevated. of an I'M
wise life made true and rational, by the
ACQUISITION of religious motives. Hypocrisy,
bumbug, conceit. vanity. fanaticism-these are
words which fall easily from our tongues; but
the fact remains that hundreds and thousands
are really i'm earnest. These accessions to the
ripht-dong side of the population cannot be
otherwise than of good import. 1t is unfair to
weigh ordinary spiritual experience against
that of larger natures-Of FenelOn or of Pascal,
of Wesley or of Claiming. The real question
is, Have we here a man who has resolved to
walk uprightly in this world for the
rest of his days. If so, then society
gains good man IN the place of
a bad one or one who might at any moment
have become bad good citizen instead of a
possible fclon faithful mechanic or trades
man instead of cheat an honest merchant
instead of n fraudulent bankrupt; devoted
instead of neglectful parent; good Samari-
tan instead of a liver for self alone. These
surely are acquisitions which even the world
need not dcspIse.