The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1876-05-21
The Centennial on Sundays.


Puritan element of America7 The Cen
NATURALLY carries the mental vision back 70
q century through all the great fields O
, thought and interest. What of politics
What of freedom, lof Intelligence, of reli
gionf What development of truth, wha
extinction Of error and bigotryf
Looking along this vista the mutabilitJ
of all things human is amply exemplified
Change is visible every where, save in one
thing only. The laws have been perpet
ually changing, the habits of the people
the condition ofthe arts, the development o.
manufacture and commerce,-all have un-
dergone a most rapid and sweeping change
Even the political constitution of the
country has been changed in several very
important particulars. Among other things,
religion, that is false religion, has been
changing and modifying until it lie
scarcely recognizable as the same monster
| now that it was then. Like the chameleon,
however,it is only in it's colors that it has
changed; in point of substance the reptile
is still the same.
Who that knew the Wesleyans of that
day, would recognize them now by their
exterior practicesf The bare barn of q
meeting house has been replaced by mag
nifcent and costly edifices, the plain board
box has given way to sumptuously uphol-
stored pews, the pious horror which ban
ished organs and all instruments of music
as inventions of the devil has subsided into
quite an alliance with that profane god
dess, Euterpe. Pictures and even statues
and, worse than all, crosses, are profusely
visible among sectarians who in 1776 would
have considered themselves in full fellow
ship with Babylon if they had encouraged
idolatry 30 openly.
But Sunday What of Sunday 1t must
be remembered that when we approach this
inquiry we are treading upon the very seat
and center of Protestant sensitiveness.
Professionalism is the resurrection, more or
less decayed, of Phariseeism. Phariseeism
was exterior worship, worship limited to
those things which would necessarily be
visible to men, worship in it's forms and
set observances most rigidly construed, ig
norng the spirit and tenaciouely main
tanning the letter of outward piety.
Thus with Protestantism. 1t seized up
on Sunday. The Sabbath as they call it,
was to be kept holy, and, in this
keeping holy was the grand oppor-
tunity of showing ones own holiness.
The man who should vigorously abstain
all the Sabbath long from certain exter-
ior acts, perfectly harmless in them
selves, would be held a most cody
parsonage, although full of envy, bitter
mesa, avarice, and selfishness. The whole
of religion, with these modern Pharisees,
naturally conferred upon the formal OBJ
servance of the Sabbath day, and the rest
of the week was left to take care of itself.
OF course, abuses and exaggerations crept
in. just as the Pharisees found fault with
our Saviour and his followers for works of
necessity and charity on that day, 80 these
Protestants scowled extirpation on any
man and his progeny, who ate a meal
cooked on Sunday, took a ramble in
the fresh air for his health on that day,
amused himself with any simple pastime,
enjoyed little music on the piano or VIC
lin, or even laughed and chatted with some
vivacity. A person who shouid do any of
these things would be set down as profane
man, no matter how pure his life, how
obedent he might be to God, how willing
to sacrifice himself and his interests to
the good of any and every one else.
And yet not one of these things was in
the elightest degree violative of the great
commandment of rest from labor on the
seventh day. They were self-imposed
burden of exterior righteousness, an arbi-
trary enactment of sectarian fansticism to
show zeal in the things of the Lord. In
the meantime, there was no ostracism of
the man who should speak disparagingly
of another, no severity towards the brother
who might see others suffer when he could
make them comfortable there was no
ccnsure for the rich man whose fortunes
had devoured the substance of widows and
orphans, nor for the violent man who had
stricken another in his anger, nor for the