The Indianapolis journal., 1884-11-28

Christendom. The fibers of her life twine not
about atheism, nor ratonalism, but about dis
tinctive orthodox Christianity. If the American
state is to have a progressive development it
must be in the spirit and direction of the orig
lnal germ of the national life. We can not sub
stitute any other religion for Christianity and
live; much less can we grow.
Liberty clears the track of tyrants, popes and
slave-drivers giving to all men room for the i'm
provement of the mind the acquirement of prop
erty, and the pursuit of happiness. We boast of
our American liberty, and well we may, for no
nation is so free, so broad so tolerant. But the
liberty to worship God without fear of molesta
ton is of but little value if our conceptions of
Deity be false. The man who worships a tyrant
will be slave anywhere on the globe.
What is civil liberty to the traitor, to the vaga-
bond, to all men whose idea of liberty is libertn
ism and licensed All such men had just as well
live in Russia as in America. But for men who
seek the freedom of conscience, the freedom of
thought, the freedom of the church and state,
the freedom and supremacy of the man over the
animal, America holds out grand opportunities.
The ships that first came across the sea to this
country were loaded with a lofty religion, the
first building was church. the first eloquence
prayer, and the first music hymn. Our history
opened with worship and IN the midst of ali the
soemnities and beauties of religion we are
marching on to destiny The sanctuary of God
the lessons of the Sabbath-school, the sanctities
of the Lords day and the influence of the Chris
tian home are of Incompatible value as restraints
upon the freedom of life. As q fac
tor of our Christian civilization, who can calcu-
late the potency, patriotism and purity Of Meth
odisml With her three muses. of oratory,
poetry and wisdom, to awaken the intellect,
charm the heart and govern the life; with her
wise bishops and eloquent ministry, great re-
vlvals increasing congregations accumulating
wealth and multiplying agencies, who can antici-
pate the glory of her crown, and the greatness of
her organization at the close of another century,
The real history of Methodism has never been
written and never can be. True
American patriotism will seek by every agency
that is legitimate and honorable to preserve the
Union, to destroy sectionalism, and foster and
argument the national sentiment.
We are row called upon by the tide of emigra-
ton pouring in upon us, to match the trained
strength of the old worlds peoples, with whom
we are to compete in the long historic race of
civilization. We are now one of the great ma
tions. Young America is no more. When we
emerged from the baptism of blood there were
wrinkles on the brow and silver in the hair, and
we found ourselves abreast of hoary peoples,
who had marched down the centuries, and we
must endure the test of comparison with them,
feature to feature generation ago, Europe,
with its ripe civilization, critical scholarship,
and eSthetlc taste, was far-oH world, whose
echoes wandered to us, now and then across the
watery wastes, but now the two continents have
grasped right hands and are looking steadily in
each others face The electric cable is the spinal
marrow of our cosmic civilization. In Gtera-
rure law, science, theology art, and all branches
of education, we must wrestle with men who
stand on historic centuries The supremacy of
our civilization, with its peculiar Ameri-
can type, depends not only on the
education of all the people, but
the superiority of American scholarship. And
the superiority of our scholarship will be found
the result of positive religious education. The
peril of religious education was never more i'm
minent than to-day 1t frowns upon us with
fearful menace from the high places of trust and
power. Religion is prescribed and forbidden to
urge its transcendent claims outside it's own
sanctuaries and chosen affairs of devotion by
secular journalism and narrow partisan news
papers, while our entire public school system
has become so remotely separated from all re-
ligious influence as to make itself felt and seen
in the materiaistc tendencies of our civilization.
1t is time that emphasis should be given to the
fact that education without the religious ele
ment in it is violation of every recognized
principle of sound philosophy and every law of
our being. l am persuaded that the sooner we
learn and feel that the interests of man are all
one-that religion is part of politics, and poll
tics part of religion-the better it will be for
society at large. And, as the election is over, l
will venture to insist upon the essential worth,
nobility and prinacy of politics. The science of
politics is the most digni6ed and the most inn
portant of all earthly objects of study and obli-
cation.