, 1876-05-01
century to dtelntegtAta and destroy The rugged
character left upon this continent when tho
smoke OF the battles Of liberty frat cleared

-~F@HFN -
Dat look At all tho hfstory Of man, aud mark
thas the liconse OF the iuman mind han always
preceded tho ruin Of the Empire or Stats. That
which gave tho world tha French Revolution,
and more recently the Commune, aud which
oflcrod our country Free -Lovesm : fow years
since. Eifs which re t1,d hsd not yet fallen low
the idea Of boil from religion, and II espoused
will work tho Same havoc In the sanctuary that
1t wrought in tho domestic life Of Franco Or tn
the PALACES Of old Rome and Babylon. Roligion
and social. aud religious croaturo. and Justice Ii
tue atmosphere ho must breathe In tho midst OF
theae political. aud noctal, and religious things.
Il Ia The temperance a. the Rroat foAst. keoping
Tho momont Justice Is forgotten tho doors Of
homo, and State, and Church may bo oloHed. for
the great occupant has coAsel to 20 ia and out,
the doorsil 1onalhs 10 be crnwled over by moral
laEzaront or imbociies Right and wrong may
lndood be great Eyntories ia their doopos. analy-
sis, and that God should have made rnaa capa-
bio Of falling into wrong may bo . creator myA-
ta.y still, but tho thct remains That In tho midst
Of this Broat determination bokHeou good and
bad. right and wrong, even tho beauty OF God
Hts throne ia founded upon Righteousness: no is
called cultured who percoiycs tho daicato beauty
II tho arts. IN nntu1o, or In literature, but tho
world Alwass reserves ita highest words Of
import and whole beauty Of Justice.
From tho sudden ruin thAt has ovortakcn all
men and all nations that have dolod II, aud
from tho glory Of God that sprinae ont Of It,
splondor in this quality OF mind 1htch our poor
eyes have not yet scon tn tho dark atmosphere
OF thta world. IA no are 10 far away from tho
planets that thog oufy twinkle aa lIttlo lamps.
and aro called by tho poeta It drops OF light
and sa, could we approach thom, We should SEQ
worlds moro beautiful shan our own, 40 no
By PRACTICE, and by nature, and BY sosponsi-
bility STAND 30 fat army from iuBttco
Or Righteousness that In our heavens it wrinkles
only In cold akg, but could VIC 10 nearer what
CUT fearful eyes. In presence Of that world
which would eoem great Whlto Throne one
aorrow would I'LL tho heart,-~that we had
known our duty aud had dons 1t not.
Of thought, you will see what utter ruin will
come to religion when ANY age shall rob 1t Of tho
idoa that punishment, both here and hereafter.
or either here or hereafter, ahall follow sin.
condition, Or have boon born into such condi-
tiop that they neod SAY little Or even thIuk little
Of tho punlsAnent that will follow Hin. They
have ceased to sin willingly. Tho great quality
Of tbc,r. thought hows along. tho chan
But tho Wit majority y' of US all sid need
tho Impulse found In tho idea that
punishment atll follow ain. For the most part
you arc all allured by tho beauty Of tile good,
but thcrc aro hours when the ruins TINT sin
brlnga should llo before tho mind In all tbeir
solonsnity. Not only should ne look to tho TO-
ward ot virtue, but 1t will bo no coWartiico or
wcaknass In us II nc confess that No arc uu-
willing to risk the borrow Of transgreesion. Tho
honorable mar s commeudable. and oil bravery
along true paths IL beautiful feature in the
soul but when 1t cotnea to facing tho reaults Of
sin. facing q. God whose bonetccnt laws ono Las
willfuliy hfoken, thcIo is no heroiau IN the act.
Buch courage Is doformity compazed. with the
kneollng heart saying. God be morctful 70 mo
q s,nner." Around all, however much they
may wish to bo aured by heaven rather
than driven by hell, there uay be hoard
tho voice ot punlshnont saying. "Como not
man wrote to mo lotter Of religion, aud
among other thinga said, The great doctrine to
be bold firmly is that Of reward aud punish
ment." No trler or more useful words can Hink
into the hearts of any who car1y or preach tho
Christian religion. Tint religion must help or
compel society to walk in TINT Ct eat discttmlnh-
tiou Of right and wrong which makoa up tho
happinoss and character OF nlan and God.
Let he como now to tho eecond part Of tho
theme. I asked you to believe that society can
not endure politics or religion Of unbounded
llcenso or forgiveness or love, and mother
can 1t prosper uuder an idea OF puuish-
ment excosstve, unnar!anthblc, mystetious.
= I valuable eleaent IN religion did not moan
tho petdttion defined by Dante, or Milton or tho
Church. Tho word should Indicate the punish
mont Of sin hore and hereafter. The old tdca
gef capable OF usefuiness. There ia form Of
punishment that dofoAts the ends of Justice !:
When bloody deapot occupies throne, q Nero
or = TosquemadA dealing ont the most cruel
torturoa for the least olenans, or for no o1enso,
tho result nogcr comes in the form Of noble, re-
formed cltizous, but IN the form Of othor AZ
saseins or sycophants. or broken-down, treu1-
bling men aud Womon. Tie laah of tho s!Rye-
driver never made ulcn but broke down tho
sptrits OF those who might have beoomo men.
earthquake landa IN South America build no
good house, aud npriug up and rush forth
from their mud huts on my alarm In the
night, and at laat become children Of cowat1ice,
ths Empire OF old llussia In tho days OF tho
knout aud Siberia, noyor made noble cstizenB,
but oithor men Of dark treason OF OF broEen
hearts. Punishment, In order TO be useful ~ to
tho offender and 40 to Tue spectator. must 30
Just. 1t mnat DO such that ono may eacape 1t by
nimply doing lsa duty. This Ia thu idea Of pun
ishnlent that becomes uaaful In tho homo md
the State. lIenco this is tho only doctrine Of
holl that can hold true or bo useful In ro1igion.
The tdoa OF q hell 10 which the soul must burn
eternaIly on account Of tho ain Of 6 man Of
whom 1t never perhaps go much aB heard the
idsa OF torment that should take eternal pos-
gosston Of q mind tlat Lad not been baptized /;
the idea that God will pursue With infinite
wrath forever Tho soul that did not
sce God a. clearly IN :the dHya OF
tho flood "a Chalmers or Kao1 saw Hlu, in tho
Christian Cru tho idea Of punishment that
condemns the "more nosslfat TO tho anguish
that should doscond upon murderors and Typo
critics. 10 = vieH Of punishment that mado trem-
bling slaves Of tho Catholics and protestsnts
who onco hold 1t. and makes !p1ldela OF thoae
who ~ our century must choose between It aud
nabol!et. Fo1 things hayo injured Christianity
60 much "A tho fact that tho Church haa tried 10
carry along through our age hell that had In 1t
not the loast elemcps Of Justice.
Out OF the discrimination ot right and wrong
We have declared tLAt great characters arc made
Tho perception Of the good and tho truo has A.
ways cducated man moro than has tho poscep-
tlon Of The beautiful In tbs flco Of this most
obyions fact OF human nature, tho Church lHs
too long and too widely placed before mai .
heaven into which moan men could paBa by cer-
omony, and hell from which perhaps moral mon
and klud mon, and sono infants, could not
possibly escape. Neprosendog for the whole
world ths ideas Of right and wrong, the Christ-
Ian Church should long aiuco have hastened to