Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1882-12-19

to me, toucoed me, and said, Rise, ant
follow Me- seemed to know the voic
and insIinctively to obey it, for | arose
and In one moment, after the manner o
dreams, / found myself in our owl
church standing behind the table where
on the Supper was spread out.
Those who were not of us in profes.
sion had gone out; and as | looked al
the remainder | saw no faces knew fol
all were veiled. l stepped forward to
break the bread, when heard that voice
again saying, in tones Of wounded love
and agony, Behold the hand OF him tina,
betrayeth Me is with Me on the table.
81 turned and said to Him, Surely,
Lord, he went to his own place but
again the voice repeated in still more
grieved and agonized accents, The hand
of him that be,rayeth Ne is with Me on
THIS table
81 looked out upon the men and wo-
men before me ; suddenly one veil fell
off and showed me the dark brow, the
evil eye, the scowl with which men have
SO long depicted lscariot it was but a
moment, the aspect vanished like cloud,
and | saw the face of an elderly man,
clothed in garments of respectability,
with closed eyes and an air Of reverence.
| Was confounded, and drew my hand
across my eyes: The voice said, Look
again
And by some marvel, that yet did
not wonder at, | saw into that mans
heart. 1t was full of greed +; of hard,
pitiless greed. saw the love OF money
rule there, cruel as death | saw that
neither mercy, compassion, nor tender
pity, found place in that iron precinct.
| perceived, as if it had been writ in fiery
letters upon the hardness, that this man
had come into the church of his betrayed
Master because it was expedient, re-
spectacle, creditable to profess religion
no, from one thought of love 10 God or
man and saw q sneer on faces Of men
and women that foated vaguely about
him, and heard far off whispers say, IF
that man is a Christian we want no
Christ. Cruelty Him cruelty Him >"
Brethren, hid my face in my hands;
| could neither pray nor weep, but that
touch aroused me, and again | saw the
Judas look, the fallen veil, the open
heart in-oh, my friends, this time in a
woman"
She had come to the Supper with a
heart full of the worlds gauds and fol-
lies; her children were cared for by hire
lings, her husband driven to fraud and
crime by her reckless spending, her old
mother left to neglect and poverty and
the tongues Of men .corned at her pre-
tence Of godliness, Kissing in whispered
bitterness, This, then, is the outcome OF
religion away with it give US Barab-
bas y
Then another veil fell !: It was from
the heart of husband and father, man
upright in business-so far as the world
knew-courteou Of speech, liberal to all
good objects, but terror in his home.
There heart-broken wife shrank from
his entrance, his singing speech, his hard
tyranny fair young girls and sturdy
bows dreaded TO hear his voice or step; a
cuel, rundisciplined temper, a selfshnes'
cold as the grave, domination as arbi-
trary as an Eastern despot's made theil
home more repellent than Russian pri-
son and heard baby voice sobbing
- don't want to 60 TO Heaven if pa.
pas going there too" The little one
he had offended, tied with unconsciou,
hands this milestone about his neck, whit
should have stooC.to her in Gods stead
and as again | shuddered away from th
sight, | heard the voice say, with divin'
and awful sadness, 1t had been bette
for that man that he had never bee
born
" Next it was woman's turn. Ora
hairs were smoo.hed above her forehead
She was one who never missed meet
ing in church who was always at hand
ready TO dictate, to rule, to order in ev
cry charity, prominent in all externa
duties, and loud, long, frequent in pub
lie exhortation and prayer bu. how bit
ter and merciless was her tongue Ho'
hard her heart toward the erring or tn
sinful, In her home neither order nc
comfort reigned, her children were i'll fed
her husband shabby and lonely, ht
house cheerless; no one loved her, an
she loved no one, but she thought hel
self perfect in holiness Z; and the jeerin
whispers said, " Better lovely, loveab
sinner than such an unlovely saint
while behind me the grieving Master nj
tered the old words that fell like bloc