Delaware tribune. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1867-1877, 1876-03-23
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filled that expectation ON behalf Of the
Wilmington Conference, this afternoon.
His text was, no apcat, 40 90 DO, -
they thas shall b. Judged b he IN OF
liberty. James, u IA.
Selecting from his theme the central idea
Of noting the oAaraetssistiss and functions
In the gradual dsvslopasnt Of particular
features Of our government - dsDonstFA-
tive Of the principle on which Ne have pro-
creased Do greatness, he spoke Arse ct tho
broadly recognized supsFi0Fity VI c0nsci-
snce in this land over authority and interest.
Although at the beginning Of AnericAn life
new era had dAwned In Europe In which
political, spiritual and ecclss,astical control
had been relaxed, no AsyluA ms Afforded
the persecueed men In principle rave In the
new Western World. Hishsr they came,
conscience sending the Puritan TO New En-
gland, tho Catholic to Maryland, the PROF.
sntant refugee 10 the OarolhaA, ~ the
Quaker to Pennsylvania, but notWithsaand-
ing their divegsity thsy were forbsAflug 10
each other 10 the 0Ain, and autuA dafsncc
and trade bound thsN in . community Of
interest. This bsRat the Declaration OF
Independence which m English author
says fought TO be hung up In The nursery
Of every King, and blax0ned on the porch
Of every palace" l.t d.-Us u.N,T4
This Declaration, willis IL gave new,
and In some respects ths greatest, nation Of
the eArsh, saved England from the loss Of
her liberties, redeemed Franco from the
oppressed people. It u tho thesis of con-
science against tho dicta OF authority in.
effAceably engraved ON the immortal mind
aud defended by eternal truth. II 10 . sec-
ton out OF the stAtnte book Of Gods great
law Of liberty, political svAngel entrusted
by the Deity to = nation which he has
called into being for the uplifting Of the
whole brotherhood Of man.
Tracing tho stages OF this developsasut
OF the law Of liberty, 1t wax found 10 ap-
pear first in desiro TO find home whore
interference And, BY affirming the right Of
representation in al matters Affecting the
Government; 3rd, that right bsipg denied,
BY An appeal to conscience 4th, the appeal
bong sustained by the formation OF gov
eminent In which the citizens are sovereign
and conscience u uufsttered-
Operating upOn.t tho question OF slavery
u gradually, by SLOW stages OF progrssa,
unmauaolsd race cursad with imaginary
natural inferiority. Sometimes tl,s dsvsl-
opmsnt led through bitterness aud almost
Oh
legal enaOtmsnls and seemingly insur-
m0untabls obstacles, but 1t WA constantly
approaching the goal. Now the nation is
free In theory aud fact, the oonstitution IL
purged, and We enter the seoond century
with the prospect of NO more OF the Strug-
glss which marked the past because Of this
evil Progression II here characterized
first by the origin of the abolition societies
to Antagonixs the slave trade In il foreign
sense and afterwards BY seeking 10 arrest
the extension OF thu domestic systsm into
now territory, resulting in the various CON-
promise measures tho marshaling Of the
tho nation and thus developing
anu-slavery church organization and the
American. Colonization Society, by psrso
s0DAl determinations In which men OF pro
ard Anl-slavery principles wsre forced to
the wall and lastly by the war by which
the Union WAS saved aud slavery slimi-
mated. .I4..,..., u.'
The law Of liberty developing . sepAra-
ton Of Church and State, which we're united
during the whole period Of our colonial OK
istence into close relationship, has . sis-
nificance which IL often ignored, If com
pretended. It was not . withdrawal Of
religion from the government, nor the en-
forcement Of any religious duty by law, nor
that the civil power 10 powerless 70 enforce
an observance of the Sabbath, nor that
Congress cannot imprison the polygamiss
who vuigarixs the nation, nor that the
Government, general and State, has NO
right to lsgislAte the Bible Into the public
schools. II meant . continuance Of the
came religious and ecclesiastical authority
but under different methods ,-in gener-
al way that the State is unauthorized to
make laws 10 determine faith, to regulate
worship, or administer church discipline,
nor vice verss that no civil officer, 40 such,
has any authority in the kingdom Of Christ
much less can any such Off ,es be the head
OF the church, nor vioe versa. And yet
this nation is Protestant Every officer,
from the highest to the lowest, every Inf
del, Atheist, Mormon or Catholic, before
his induction into Office il required to swear
fidelity to the State upon Protestant
| Bible. Still, there IN . sense in Yhiah the
| GnuICn CAuuOL Dc separated 1f0m }30 btAtee
Tho OWL power .u.t ssnt'ody 4fgely thu
spiritual power In the sense tha9 the body
of the man ID the development Of the soul
| This WAS the sense of the fathers who ro-
volted from government which attempted
sAcrilegiousiy to steady tho ark Of God.
Aud TO the Methodist church belongs the
honor OF having first established its church,
upon this principle, Wesley despatching
DIR. Thomas Coke to America, who ordained
| Bishop Asbury for the work. man who
originated from the people ~ the new gov
eminent had done.
| Summing up tho stages Of progress in
this ecclesiastical developments. they are
seen in the impulse to immigration given
| by freedom !; i'll the quiet but firm resist
ance to ecclesiastical domination, especially
by the Catholics and QuAkers /; in the grow
ing conviction that ecclesiasticism To an
| evil for avoidance In the cutting down OF
clerical revenues 30 NJ to starve out the In
cumbents Of parishes, and finally by the
overt act desperation BY excluding clergy.
men and preachers from Stats Offices
| Such = development 10 also possible oil
| demonstration in the whiskey traffic, the
delicAcies for the miscreant cormorAnts Of
which are children's hearts, aud their liba.
tons mothers tears
II the church and State have bsen sepa
rated, our solemn responsibility IL to main.
tain that separation by resisting appropria-
tons OH the part OF the State to soctariar
purposes, by demanding that no dsnominx-
ton shall be supported BY State rid. Let
| us bear in mind that there is no logical diff
ference between supporting the clergy un-
der the system which America discarded .
century sgo and that Of supporting Catholic
or other sectariAn schools in whole or in
part out OF the public treasury. Has the
law of liberty liberated four millions OF
slaves2 Then it becomes our duty 10 bring
them TO the true enjoyment Of that liberty.
| II, as has been asserted, the Methodist
| church is the most largely responsible foI
that liberation. let 1t see to it that the
church assume the guidance Of these liz.
norant and helpless souls. These arc the