, 1877-12-24
A Sermon by Prof. Swing on
THE Contribution
Box"
Rojoicings ct the First Presbyterian
Over the Payment of the
Church Debt.
DR.. Ryder Discusses the Mfxed-Up
Theology OF the gay'.-Mtssion.
School DelEcations

1Hp ASuktAt @uAlNtS kMAak A9 AH toAk*
And there cama certain poor widow which threw
IN two mites, which mako faEthng. -Hdrf, ILL.,,
This ia tho tlav on which this congregation Is
to give each one its little or much to tho best
OF all tho public charltIcs,-nos The beat one but
the best group FROM multitude. We havs all
been giving MI tho year through. Charity has
chilled upon yoh Ia your homes and in your
places OF business, aud has halted YOU on tho
strccs. Some Of you have thus given moro
largely than you can give hero to-day. But
duty and pleasure still rcmaiu-thAt Of acting
as a congregation, expressing sympathy thus
publicly With those causes to which our
friends In other churches arc accustomed to
mako annual offerings. We have lived two
years OF our present form Of lie. They have
been years Of religious happiness. This Is tho
sccond anniversary Of our churth's birth, and It
Is not possible that any congregation can look
back upon two winters and summers OF more
success and peace. Unr Sunday and Wednca-
day meetings have been full Of what seems to
us all tho worship Of God. Instead, hoNGver,
Of bringing mutual Congratulations and prntsc,
te' u. eeiobTate 10y our sna,ssrsaty ~ eft,makIns
than out cTn,-thoso Wtlosd nye can look back
or forward upon little but calalnlty or unhappt-
meas.
1enrc, and about the methods Of applylnG It 50
~ to secure tho best result; but, In the great
doctrine that n,an must hcfp hls unfortnnntc
tcllow, sll sec dvlno law Of society Society
ts one OF tho fundamental principles Of
tho perfect state. And love Of man
does not imply ne mutual love q caaals,
numb!c, Of man for man. Civilization would
not sise upon Tho world until It had confessed
the greatness Of the sentiment that man must
iovo Ills neIghbor as himself. Not All tho arts Of
the cloqucnco, not tho great library Of an Alex.
antrfa, not the beauty and intellectual power Of
tho classic world, could bs called civilization, for
whlle that err held half its nnmhors ia nb]cct
and sotnetltnes drew pleasure from seeing a
thousand captiyes put each other 10 dealh.whiie
It thus failed to sec tho tender brotherhood Of
man y had no nanhoo.is but wa only an era
mike world II they .lcaYe out universal love,
the lovc Of each for oil and all for each. Thuy
will as soon learn to grow Lowers without tho
sun Or hsss col9rs Without M light r. q M to make R
crnlt tell because 1t was love family instead
of a lore Of race. The King lovied taxes sud
wars. lie ltvea in luxury while Ills people lived
to paupeflsm,, and thus overthrow the old
thrones. Tho human race Is Qrauler than any
family OF royal blood; md hence, despot!sin
gave way beforn tho congucrinK charity, FREQ
dom Ia tic flower OF charity.
When tauizot Attempted to dearc civilization,
he confcssci the difficulty ln tho way OF per-
feet answor, hut nii.rmed II to bo tis progre.e
OF nj! the mental and spiritual powers Of man.
No answor. could be moro true; but, should you
look !nto these mental atd spiritual forces, you
would discover that tlheapprehenston aud ardcns
l0Ye OF tho prlnclplu TINT man must bo the
friend Ut laah Ia an Immense element In national
perfection and Individual worth. Wha. boAu-
tia stv,l1stcn ao Te seem to see IN tae
meeting NTH the, chief OF tho group, .:hpa,
can England, or France; or America, pofnt 10
anoblcr eompanyl ln tho abscnec 81 arts, and
SHsss and ana sHy nyenton u that
found realization cach Que had reached Of the
neaFness and deatness Of man 70 man. They
understood tho story Of "Tho Good eaman.
TAM; thsy ktew tho lesson ~ whea Christ x!fde1
gavo two mites, laoy saw tho greatncsa Of tho
act. French civilization act In when tho people
overthrow tho p2Ecantry of wicked monarchs;
l'apal civilization began Wien tho 1nqutsitto.i
when Elizabeth was covering tbs Kingdom With
gtlt, but Mhen corn WAS allowed to cuule FREQ to
the peoptc. and when tho Parliament was build
iuX up tho bas!s Of these lincs:
Slavce capnot bEeaths In England; II their lungs
| They touch our county and their shsckies fall.
such Is tho fact about this charity. It Ia the
dominant element in civilization; 30 much 80,
| the paclic., where tho natives know only the
| Golden I.ule, aud where Injury of each other
were unknown, where there W0se no fraud, no
theft, no murder, NO cruelty, wa should fcel that
| language Wera simple aud ihetr arts delactlye,-
! u they had neither statuary nor pictures.
TheFe being bone4tfl society such divine ra-
iatiou betwoen utn. thfs relation must haye its
shapcs OF duty. Tho natural philosophers hayo
| found that fr1m QUO living genus many SPECIES
come. Tbs plain plumage Of bird changes ~
| ages pass; FROM stu9ie Wild ruso come ualY
some estly grain came alt our varieties Of
| wheat. 30 the great genus, lore Tor .uau, SUBJ
divides itself and suFpasscs tho rose in maklug
,nauY from one. Here tits linaTGn.sant truth
| theEe 1t secs only wounded traveller aud car
rles tho robbed autl bleeding brother to NIL Inn; i;
hero It founds civilization, there II opens only
}attle asrluu for a lew puor, or sick, or blind;
city til ca!amity. there It makes OILY Karmont.
In ot,e spot II u only porcas, iu another q
Wilbcrforcc. Whether 1t tolls 10 obscurlty ot
rtses np ynt!l world .ees L, + !. ~ QUO un-
| el charity. Aud who ha, yct learned which Ii
the more attractive, hilltls1, modost daisy OF
build. Kreat mountain Thus this love for man
| n0yea abuut always impressive, as charming In
the skill Of 0race Darling as IN tho eloqueacs Of
Aud yet after long yeare. eycn generations
ot toll aud ttuty, there have oeen found aonle
silA,.es Of thla love that are OF unduubted
worth. As tile truo and false ars found IN all
cutners OF tho cafth,-srun and falas diamonds,
tub Whtat aud Tic tasey, the pearl anl tho mock
pear. so there are tho real and. tho misguided
charity, tns real uod.scnt bssgat aud tho mock
begg&r. Ttmo IL needed and Murh reflection to
window tho wheat from tho chat. But the
world llas bad tiIne and las thought deeply aud
Wall, aud It has found tho true pearls tu many
all instance. 1t viii no longer pour out much
money for converting the Juws, for It has
learued that thera are tuilltous Of Christlaus
who need thc Gospel more sadly; nor
can money ts ionRer wisely. glysa ior planting
\ AftA or sixth sect in u littla village Which
cannot support mors than tHo. aud which
needs religion ,uore than any new in-
yoirs OF ssctsrlaa goods. Having thrown sway
soMu Of these mock pearls. the Chratiau
public l. finding each year grand channels
Tor it, Sympathetic tears. Tps m!ss!ons, do.
mestr aud toEegu, are pure gold. For . time,
scoifcss 1t religion tnaus light orer all money
and meA scnt abroad to carry tho Chsistlau RI
.l'gion to foreign lanLs. But nelther these nor
'ths Christians themselves knew how allow a
work 1t would b., that changing ot the whole