The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1883-04-14
MILLENNIUM COMING!
The World Growing Better In
stead of Worse.
Mr.. Beecher Dlscourses on the Law Of
Love and the Drift Of If
the Ages. !" ti 4
1rrnm the New York World 9th }

@N'-~ FN--- NNF
Every sitting in Plymouth church had
its occupant yesterday morning, and at
each door there were standing as many
people as could be crammed into the
space. The text of the sermon was the
first nine verses Of the eleventh chapter
of Isaiah. "This subject" said Mr.. Bee
cher, "may be called the drift of the
ages. IL is prediction OF the coming
of the great final age. 1t first define
ates the tendency represented by Jesus
Christ, a striking delineatiOn which
NAV be said in some respects to be a pOr-
traiture. It's administration shall be
characterized by sympathy with the
poor and helpless, reversing the history
of the world. Il had overcome all evil
proceedings from the passions or mon,
and the race of men shall attain to the
glorious proportion towards which
slowly, but surely, things are evolving.
1t is a great thing to believe that. There
seems to have been in this great turbu-
lent world no more order OF procedure
than there is when two whirlwinds on
the ocean meet; yet even in the most
turbulent storms there are inexOraole
laws as fixed as any in the universe; but
to those who look at this universal strife
and disorder, 1t almost seems as though
G06E6 WAS uO IIONNu0hOo anu nv
ing power, and to all such 1t Is great
comfort to know that slowly as 1t Is lin-
folding there is this great. tendency t.
growth, and that the termination OF II
shall surely be the blossom and the fruit
There ia to be day when that which
represents violence and cruelty Will
mfngie with that which represents in
nocence and love. The question, there
fore, Is not the coming man, but the com
ing age. Is there to be onep The com
ing age isIthat In which the law of force
Is to give way to the law OF influences
when the law of hatred will give way To
the law of love; for affirm that the cen
trail force of the universe is the law OF
love, and 1t Is that which Is slowly but
surely leaVening the world. The history
of the world has been history or Sur ug
gle. There has been one perpetual Ia
Dor pain; vast struggle OF extflcatl0n
and ascent: but there has been one con-
tinuous tendency upward, and the early
DEVELOPMENTS have been the sl0West ;the
blossom and the fruit are yet TO come.
But the tendency has all been one way.
Not that there have not been Dack
sets, rebounds; but the tendency Is away
from violence and cruelty and towards
sympathy and kindness and love. Even
war has lost half its horrors. 1t was
first war and determination; then war
and slavery; then war for power and do
uninion. then war for wealth and com
merea. then war for liberty and for
nrineinle. and thepublic sentiment con
demns any war that does not represent
Justice to the rest of the world. Tht
buccaneers could FaVage Islands anu no
one condemn 1T; but now France cannon
cross the Mozambique channel ana IN
wade MADAGASCAR, without arOus1ng ali
INDIGNANT protest from the other ma: ions
of the world. Great Britain could mol
invade and despOil India, though she "
Dermitted to retain what she Wr0ng1 uily
obtained, and war in Zululand has been
abandoned. And If this Is so in war, II
Ia of course very much more apparent
in other things. Labor Is, undergoing
a great struggle, and today the rich are
about to learn that they can't separate
themselves from the common mass
Men are not to be crowned Tor tnelr
riches, but for their use OF them. Ihe
will stand on the pillOry to morrow II
he does not give his sympathy to his Tel
"T6ere has gone at last, dust to dust,
through the grave, the spirit Of man,
honest. industrious, simple OF habits
and tastes: loving his fellow men; gath
erinp wealth, that, like the soWeF, hp
might SOW it to bring up q harvest III
every field, and all the city BOWS down
to him. He had never been king OF
prince or president; he had never ex
hibited great philosophical aeumen mol
was he a discOVerer. He has been a
manly man, that lived for his fellow
men. and for this the whole population
of the city pOuTs out and asks permis
siOn to look upon the dead, uncOvertnR
their heads in reverence and honor tOr
the man whose heart was In sympathy
with his kind, and who devoted the en-
ergies of his life to the service OF his
fellow men. May God, In his bounty
give us many such. just now, only
here and there, you shall see the crOcu
ses Deeping out, but by these rev you
know that ere long their numbers VIII
Ali the air with perfume; and 80, When
Won see a man like this, you may know
that the summer is advancing; that the
sumnner Is not far of. The age Is be
Ginning to recognize the fact that power
will not separate man from man; thar
riches are designed to carry man down
In the very bottom and root him in his
symDathies where the great mass OF
men have lived, do live, and for genera
tiOns are to live; and this Is real Christi
anity. To ninety-nine men out OF every
hundred, Christianity Is lying In the
f0mD.. no uOI hhOW VI
ia Christian. There does not live In
nv house any who is Christian accor-
ding to the ideal of Christ. am not;
don't know how to take my life and Law
il down absolutely for others as Chrisl
did. lido great many Christian things,
but whoever has yet initiated our Lord,
who for our sakes became poor that we
through his oppression might be riehp
That IDEAL of Christ yet slumbers. Be-
fore this world becomes better world
we have got to give men more equal
chance in life by better breeding. Do
not suppose that men that have learned
to breed horses for better speed. sheep
for better wool, and bullOcks for better
besf. will learn some day to breed bet
ter men? for as goods well bought are
already half sold, 50 child we'll born is
half converted. There has got to be re-
ORGANIZATION of soeietyja regeneration
of Government; and there must needs be
also a regeneration Of business. Men
must come into life better, through bet
ter families, and under better govern
ment and Institutions. All this is slow
and gradual work. There are very few
pulpits that teach it, and very few com
petent to teach IL, but it has got TO come,
and 1t is glorious work. tninK tnat