The Cairo bulletin. [volume] (Cairo, Ill.) 1872-1878, 1876-09-24

alty and religious culture of the Amcri-
can people. Like many other Republicans
he is a Sabbath school superintendent
and is. of course, in hearty sympathy
with any good Republican who Is putting
forth his endeavOrs for the advancement of
his party and the cause ofmoral and Chris-
tan progress. On learning that this great
moral reiorncr was not the unknown
man which he supposed, but was the au-
thor of IA celebrated work on theology,
he had a longing desire to read his book
and know more OF the inner life of this
Christian rcformer. so he procured the
book, "lngcrsOll's Lectures LETT the Of
flee in charge Of deputy, fastened home
and gathering his little family circle round
him, sat down to read them some eloquent
lessons OF moral instructions. Common
cling with that Incompatible text. IAN
hone st God is the noblcst work of man."
he read on page Ii, the following: IAN
that is necessary las it seems to me. to con-
vince any responsible person that the BIZ
bic is simply and purely OF human inven-
tion-of barbarian invention-is to read
it. Read it as you would any other book
think of it as you would of any other:
get the bandage Of reverence from your
eyes; drive from your heart the phantom
OF tear; push from the throne OF your
brain the cOwled form OF superstition
then read the holy bible, and you will be
amazed that you ever for one moment
supposed that being OF Intimate wisdom,
goodness and purity to be the author OF
such atrocity and ignorance. lie stopped
here and looked at the cover and the pre-
face to see If he were not mistaken; but
there was the uumistakablc signature
in plain characters. He opened in "A new
place and began again: 'oOme nations
have borrowed their gods. OF the num-
Der we are compelled to say, is our own.
The Jews having ceased to exist as a ma
ton, and having no futher use for IA god.
| our ancestors appropriated him. and
| adopted their devil at the same time.
| This borrowed god is still an object Of
| some alteration and this adopted devil
| still eXcitcs the apprehension Of our peo-
| pie. lie is still supposed to be setting his
traps and snares for the purpose Of catch
| ing our unwary souls, and is still with
reasonable success, waging the old war
against our god" Then he again paused,
wiped his glasses and said, -"Ilem."
His wife was drumming with her foot
and he said to her, This must be irony;
let us try another chapter" He turned
to that sublime and poetic description OF
| Christ's temptation by Satan. where the
| subject is treated in such a mastery
IL
grand a theme. lie read: 1.-The Chris
tians now claim that Jesus was God. If
he was God of course the devil knew that
fact: and yet, according to this account,
the devil took the omnipotent God and
placed him on the pinnacle of the temple
and endeavored TO induce Him TO dash
himself against the earth. Failing in
that he took the creator, owner and gov
ernor of the universe up into an exceed
ingly high mountain and offerd Him this
wOrld-this grain of sand-if he, the God
of all the worlds, would fall down and
worship him. poor devil, without even
q taX-title to one foot OF dirt. Is it posi-
BILE the devil was such an IDIOT: Should
any great credit be given this deity for
not being caught with such chaf: The
aeyil-the prince of sharpers-the king of
cunninG--tho rnastsr OF tinesse. trying to
bride God with grain of sand that be
longed to God.''
Here he again found a convenient stop
ping place, and called upon his daughter
TO bring him a drink. 1t was eviden,
from his countenance that new thought
had struck him, and he gave no intima
ton OF what il was. tie turns to a new
chapter, entitled Thomas Paine; will
his name LETT out the history of liberty
could not be written" aud he again essays
to read. "Who at the present day car
imagine the courage, devotion to princi
pie, the intellectual and moral grandeur
it has required to be an intidel. to BRAY,
the church, her rocks, her fagots, her
dungeons, her tongue of 1ire-to def,
her heaven and hell, her devil and hel
God : They were the noblest sons OF
earth. They were the real saviors of Oul
race. the destrOyers OF superstition, the
creators of science. They were the rea
Titans who barred their grand foreheads
to all the thunderbOlts OF the GODS lie
here again raised his eyes until they met
those of his wife, and lie beheld a look o.
mingled horror and perpleXity. He
looked for a time in meditative silence
and then exclaimed, 'Do | sleep or am
dreaming. Is this unmitigated bosh ant
demagoguery. or must the tongue o.
t Islander be again plucked from the brazer
r throat of treasont | will again satisfy
my self if this document is the genuine
: theology OF the new Daniel Webster o
the west.' lie opened i'm another plac,
and commenced again, 1.-The church Ia
e been and still is great robber. She ha
G rifled not only the pockets hut the brain
Z Of the world. She is the stone at the sep
;, ucher of liberty the upas tree in who's
shade the intellect of man withered
!. the Gorgon, beneath whose gaze the hu
b man heart has turned to stone. Unde
2 her influence even the Frustrated mothe
j. expects to be happy in heaven, while he
: brave boy who tell lighting for the right
of man shall writhQ in hell. IL has bee
unmitigated evil in all respects. 1t ha
)f been charitable highwayman-a pre-
n. ilgate beggar-a genuine pirate.
p has produced some angels and q mutt
tude of devils. Ii has built more prison
. than asylums. Ii has made a hundrc
e orphans while it has cared for one. Ii
'r one hand it has carried the alms-dish
Of and in the other the sword. lthas fount
in ed schools and endowed unversiti,
lv for the purpose of destroying true Learn
!, ing. TITLED the world with hypOcrt,
~ and zealots, and upon the cross OF its ow
is Christ it CRUSHED the individuality I
10 man." Here the postmaster raised
~ his feet and commenced walking TO an
nv fro across the room, while he continue
Of to read: "Some throw away the Old TIE
~ lament, and cling to the New, while oil
~ crs give up everything except the idt
III that there is personal God, ana that
H. some wonderful way we are the objec
ed OF his care. Even this, IN my opinion,
or science, the great iconoclast, march'
;s upward, will have to be abandoned wit
-, the rest. The great ghost will surel
81 share the fate of the little ones. The
ny fled at the first appearance OF the dawl
in and the other will vanish with the pcrie
day. Christianity has always oppose
every forward movement OF the hum;
l..