The daily gazette., 1878-12-16
MIR. HaIdeman ON Shams.
Worldly Shams and Shdms that Dis
grdce the Church,

WuCt ttc CHUTCU.
Rev. Mr.. Haldeman, of the Delaware
Avenue Baptist Church, had a good au-
dience, last evening, notwithstanding
the unpropitious weather. aud after the
usual exercises he announced his text,
as follows: "Wo unto you, Scribes and
Pharisees, hypocutes for We are as
graves which appear not. and the men
that walk over them are not aware of
them" Luke, 11-44.
The particular part of the text upon
which the sermon was based was the
words "graves that appear not" In
opening the speaker sa d this was an age
of shams, of frauds, of unrealities and
base pretenses. There were sham3 in
society, sham ladies and gentlemen, who
had one face for the world and another
for their families-soft words and honey
ed phrases for the visitor in the parlor,
and harsh, angry CALCULATIONS for Brid-
get in the kitchen there We're shams In
the government and sham patriots-men
who prQfsssed the most exalted ideas of
patriotism and devotion to duty, aud
yet ever kept an eye open for the main
chance to advance their own personal
interests. There are shams in the arts,
where plaster of Paris Venuses ant
Apollos are palmed off for genuine
marble ; in letters, where old books are
original publications; and in business,
where domestic manufactures are sold
as foreign productions. But the meanest,
vilest, filthlest, dirtiest and most con.
temptible of all shams is the religious
sham.
1t was this latter sham that the speaker
compared with the words of the text,
"graves that appear not" Graves are a
place for the dead, and some Of these
sham religious people are the graves OF
dead profession. They are merely pro-
fessed Christians, who deem it no harm
to attend theatres and other places
Of worldly amusement. The churches
are full of the professed Christians, who
| start for glory every six months, and
take vacation the other six in order to
have good time and indulge in world.
ly pleasures generally.
As the grave is receptacle of corrup.
ton, SO are these fraudulent Christians
| the receptacles of worldly corruptions =
They are to be found at the Opera House
not when James T. Fields or some
! other like man delivers a lecture filled
with instruction and ennobling thoughts
but when "The Red Right Hand" pre-
sents its glaring and gaudy attractions
| or minstrel troupe is on hand with Its
| "bones" and "tambo," to make the peo
pie laugh. Then 1t is that these fraudu
lent christians are to be found upon the
front seats. 1t is the fraudulent christian
| who makes a chimney of his nose by the
| use of tobacco, and then comes to the
| church of God anu offers devotiOns that
are contaminated by the fumes of the vile
weed. These men, by the evil effects o
their course upon persons just entering
the path ofa Christian life, are doing
more to corrupt the world than all The
theatres and rum shops combined. They
are frauds in the church and traitors Il
the Lord Jesus whom they profess t.
| serve.
The sermon, after an able amplifcatioi
of the points above briefly portrayed
closed with an eloquent appeal for re-
turn to true Christian principles, and To-
the practice of religion that woult
prove acceptable to God, and elevate an(
purify the heart of man.
After an affecting prayer the congre
CATION united in singing "Hold the Fort,
and were dismissed with the benedic
| lion.