St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1882-10-20
Prof. Park i'm the Pulpit.
A TIMELY SERMON On LIVE sUBJEc1


installation of Rev. Horace II. Leavitt
as pastor of the Congregational church
of Andovcr, Oct. IL, and devoted his
discourse to an able defense of the doc
trine that those men who die unrenew-
ed and unpardoned will remain unre-
newed and unpardoned forever. The
sermon, both in its contents and i'll its
authorship, is an important contribu
ton to the existing controversy, and
the audience, which was largely minis
terial, showed 10y their impressive 81
lence their appreciation of the utter
ance and of its bearing.
The preachers excuse for bringing
the discussion forward on such an oc-
casiOn was that he found in the 10th
chapter of Matthew and the 10th of
Luke what might be called the ordina-
ton sermons of the Twelve and of the
Seventy. He announced his purpose,
however, not by adducing particular
texts, but by broad consideration of
our nature and of the teachings of the
Bible. He attributed the opposite
view to certain German divines whom
ne did not name, but he repeatedly
commented on expressions which have
recently been made use of by thinkers
on this side of the water He urged
that the doctrine of eternal punish
ment is found III the very spirit and
substance of the divine law, and pro-
tested against any underestimate of
the law, since there could be neither
atOnement nor forgiving mercy with
out Il law, and this doctrine is intimat-
ed in our very moral nature, by which
a wrong act has an inherent tendency
To lay mp material for rcmOrsc Just as
long as its memory lasts. The divine
law implies the necessity of passing
through bodily death into the scene OF
legal penalty, and has respect to the
sins of this life. Men may continue III
sin hereafter, but are condemned fol
their sins here. Death is no accident
in our career; we do not shrink from
II because the last houI is painful, but
Judgment. From this Prof Park pass
ed To defend the fairness of the penal
ty, fairness to the innocent who neeC
to he deferred from sin. fairness to tn,
vicious who have deserved it, Remorse
which is Il large element of the pun
ishment, will vary in intensity accord
To the degree of light sinned against
but i'll every ease it will he everlasting
1t is well-nigh protane to say that tn,
heather have had no chance.
As to those not able to obey the law
they are not moral agents, and the law
does not promise good to them bu
threatens evil. They are like tn,
stones of the street out of which God i,
able to raise up children to Abraham
and 10 save, not only without proba
ton, but from any probation. As tn,
mother stands by the little hillocL
which covers the body of her child
is it any comfort to her to he tOlt
that her little one is exposed t,
the temptations which brought dow
the virtue of the angels? Are we t,
tell the weeping mother that her bah,
has been called away tn the same strug
giles which overthrew thrones and prin
CAPABILITIES and powers Is it not pleas
anter To think that such are charmed
away by the voices of angels calm.
them to the joys of victory withou
having ever ieOparded their souls b,
the perils of battle
The third argument for the dOctrin,
is found in the tendency of sin to per
petuate itself, from which, unless ",
have very striking evidence to the con
trary, we must believe that it will con
tinue forever. The German divines'
tell us that death will end the prOba
ton of those men who have established
their characters in sin. But every MAJ
so establishes his character when h,
commits his first sin, when he first pre-
ters evil to good, and it would remain
Intervention of God, which is in ever,
case most marvellous thing. Tn,
act of pardon is also wonderful. 1t i,
impossible on every principle of scienc,
that man who has taken the lives O
his wife and children and then die,
unrepentant could ever rise among the
angels of God, should ever cease to b,
an object of fear and suspicion anon.
his fellow saints OF should ever b.
without remorse. We have testimon,
that this can result from repentance il
this life, but we have, according to tn,
most learned eNpositors, no evidence
that it can take place after death. an,
we cannot believe it without the mos
overwhelming evidence.
The last two arguments adduce,
were based on the general teachings q
the Bible, one of them from the geneT
al impression of its utterances, the as
sumptions which underlie many pas
sages, and the other from the progress
sive nature of its teachings. The doc
trine of eternal punishment is proclaim
ed with increasing clearness As we ad
vance through the Old Testament. an
is most definitely announced by Chris
If there were hope beyond the grave
we should expect the contrary to b
true, and We should especially look fo
the mildest and most loving of all me
to modify the harsh teachings of hi