The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1881-03-31

| these places feet and hands outweigh
the head still as In b birbarous times. The
learned and the really cultivated seldom
look on, and more seldom participate in
them. Mostly, and certainly, men and
women of undeveloped minds and feeble
aspirations attend either.
Fifth-It ruins the genial temper and
pleasant disposition, and untiis man at
least for the time more Immediately fol.
lowing for genial society and for the ex
ercise of kindness and discretion.
Sixth-The social dance and masquer.
ade give birth to untold evils, and are
destructive of the morals of society and
the individual participant. This triplet
of popular amusements are unmistak'
ably peruiCious in their influence and
tendencies. will be able to show by
few simple rules that they are all wrong.
1t will be admitted by all that whatever
prevents or destroys good is in itself an
evil. know there is an effort in popular
pulpits to preserve alive these gods Of
pleasure. l am dealing with the subjects
of this discourse on the grounds and in
the conditions where find them. You
ask me "if good people ever go to the
dance and masquerade and participate :"
If they do, this would not prove it to be
right, for good people have weaknesses
and often make mistakes and fall into
error. My answer to your question ls
| this. Good people sometimes go, but
none who esteem character above every
thing else, will mask or dance in the So
cial dance or ball. "D1 ladies and gen.
tlemen ever 90 or dancer" Yes, plenty
of them. But what are known and ac-
cepted as such and nothing more, are
doing, morally speaking, nothing but
wrong, for their whole life is rebellion
to God and service of sin and of Satan.
But you will seldom find the pure, and
cultured lady or gentleman there. The
great body OF dancers are among those
of inferior character and doubtful NOR
ais. "Do Christians ever go to and par
ticipate in these thingsP" My observa'
| ton and convictions compel me to make
sweeping answer. My answer is an
emphatic no, and challenge you to
bring me one who would rather go to
Church than any where else,-and true
Christians would-who regularly attends
the prayer meetings; who is always
ready to publicly profess Christ and his
religion; whose conversation is in heav-
en-; whose affections are set on things
! above; who loves the Masters service
better than any other; to whom Jesus is
the fairest among ten thousand and the
one altogether lovely who loves the
Sunday School the preaching of the
word and the Bible more than any other
book, and loves to read 1t too; who
seeks for the salvation of their children
and friends by prayers and entreaties,
and for the conversion of their neigh
bors, who goes to and engag 8 in these
foolish and hurtful things which war
against the soul, 0ne of the strongest
and most forCible arguments against the
moral character of these things is that
first class Christians and those noted for
piety, never do and never desire to par
tiCipate in them, and more than this, see
no pleasure in them. Are not those
members of the Church who practice in
these things generally weak, or ignorant,
or formal, or worldlyP Did you ever
7ow one who was prominent for piety,
eminent also for danCingP Did you ever
see a spiritual Christian masked or dane
ing2 Do they not generally avoid and
| lightly esteem the more pioue and earn
est of their fellow Christians, absent
themselves from the prayer meeting,
neglect the reading of the word and in
their associations, resorts, conversation,
reading, amusements and conduct of af-
fairs, show more of the spirit of the
world than of grace. AS rule, are they
not 80 liberal in their views and habits
and speech, or 30 silent and undemon.
strative as to religion, that strangers
would never suspect their profession
Christians have more pleasant and more
ennobling work to do. They would
rather be about the Kings business.
You say, professors and Church mem
bers CO." Yes l know it. And this
makes the matter more alarming, But
you must always remember there is
pO88e8SOr-betWeen one who is a member
of one of our Churches and one who is a
member of the Church of the first born
above. You ask, "what would you do with
one of your communicates if he should
attend and participate in the dance, the
ball or the masquerade party2" The
Church would visst the offender per
discipline, and without repentance and
confession of trespass the Church would |
expel the offender and then they could |
Join some Church with fewer conscien.
tious scruples. hope none of my peo.
Pile are offenders against the law and
sentiments of this Church. l repeat it,
they are emphatiCally wrong. Let us
test this assertion by an easy rule. 1t
will be admitted we may not lawfully 90 |
where we can not take Jesus along. II
Jesus were among us as he used to be |
among men, would you invite him to at
tend a dance, or public ball, or party, |
masked or unmasked, private or public |
1t will readily be admitted that we may |
not undertake project or engage in that |
upon which we could not expectinqly |
ask Gods blessing. Could you ask the
blessing of God upon you and the dance |
while engaged in it, or do you think you |
would be pleasing God while indulgingin |
thes things? When you can get upon your
knees and ask Jesus to 90 with you to eth.
or OF these places, and can ask God to pre-
serve you while there and let his bless.
ing rest upon your amusement, and then |
mask and dance to Gods glory, you can |
safely 60. II you can not do this, you
can not conscientiously go, and if you
do you commit known sin, for "what.
soever is not of faith is sim" You all
know there is much that is evil asso.
cated with this triplet Of amusements.
And we are commanded to "abstain
from all appearance of evil"
If it is right to Dance attend balls and
masquerade parties, then you would not
care to die there and of course you would
not suppose your dying there would bar
you from glory. Thousands have gone
from these places of amusement to the
grave and to the eternal world. What a
blush must paint the cheek of one who
Coca from either Of these places of amuse
ment into the i'm mediate presence Of
God How would you like to die in the
ball room, while dancing or while under
a maskP No one can 60 respectfully
from the ball room or masquerade party
To the grave. The diving of ouT friends