The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1886-04-11
TWELVE PAGES.
The Sunday Journal has the largest and
Lest circulation Of any Sunday paper in In
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THE WORK OF THE PULPIT.

THE WORK OF The PULPIT
The church has done a mighty work for the
world, and for no other country more than for
America. It has taught temperance, sobrie-
ty, loyalty and patriotism. 1t has ~enjoined
cheerful obedience to the laws of the land,
and in every way has helped to make bad cit
liens good and good citizens better. 1t has
taught individual liberty, tempered with mod
Grafton. 1t has emphasized the law of liberty
by intoxicating the principle Of obedience to
the law. which is the foundation of freedom
and liberty. The church is the great balance
wheel on the engine of humanity, without
which society would tear itself to pieces by
the energy of the impetus that will not let it
stsud still. There is now a present and press
ing duty for the church to discharge. Let
TIE pulpit speak out in favor of law and order,
for law and order must eventually prevail.
The united voice of the tens of thousands OF
preachers in this country can do very much
toward restoring and maintaining peace and
order at this critical time. There are
not wanting demagogues and character
less men who would gladly see
the workingmen of the country
pushed into deeds of violence, for which there
could be little or no excuse, and absolutely no
justification. A word of friendly warning and
advice would be Of incalculable good at this
juncture, and might be the means of saving
very great distress. He is a desperate man
indeed who would not be moved to a respect
ful consideration of the advice of the min
istry. The ~workingmen of this country are
law-abiding, as a rule, and are only moved to
acts that cannot be tolerated when their pas
sions are at white heat, and they have not
time to reflect. A large number of them in
one portion of the country are now occupying
a very critical position, with imminent danger
Of being pushed into acts of hostility to the
many urging them to acts of violence toward
their late employers, and it is only their good
sense that keeps them within the
bounds of the law. There is a peace
able solution for all this dispute
between labor and capital, and 1t is the plain
duty Of the ministry to help discover it and
to help hold the men in check until such time
as it shall be made manifest. Criminals and
rufians are using their every endeavor to get
up trouble. The pulpit, as ever, is opposed
by the ~scoundrels and desperadoes that prey
upon society. The church owes it to itself,
as well as to the workingmen, to save them
from the incendiary advice of desperate and
wicked men. Let it reach out and show its
power in keeping men in the right path, and
In sparing them and the country such scenes
Of bloodshed and destruction as might easily
be precipitated but for the saving grace of
men educated above such things. Preacher
and priest owe it to the country and to the
church that they use every ~exertion to pre-
serve the peace. Now is the time to demon
strate that the power of the church is for
good, and that it is much stronger than the
power of evil to involve the people in trouble.