The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1888-07-14
THE UNIvERsALIST: SATURDAY, JULY H. 1885,

ment and law. We thus get quite a
company of elected persons for the spe-
cial purposes of governing, legislating,
judging, recording, taxing, collecting,
protecting the civil rights of everybody,
and defending the rights of all against
any. A special company, say. And
these are our elect, 4. e., our selected
ones, the chosen ones, the few, but the
corner-stones of the Republic, the
defenders of our civilization, and the
very pillars of the State.
But there are other callings which are
universal. They embrace the whole, in
classes or as citizens. For instance,
there are 100000 school bells in the
United States. These bells sound
universal call to the children of the Re-
public. The children are elected, as
body, and always while within certain
ages, to all the rights and privileges of
an education. Even a million of the
children of the blacks, and all the off
spring of the red men are welcome to
the rich stores of knowledge and wis
dom which our public schools afford.
And the call to these schools would not
be lawful if any distinction was made
ION account of race, color, or previous
condition of servitude." So also all
citizens of this country are elected and
called to the enjoyment of ''life, liberty,
and the pursuit of happiness. And to
secure these rights (this) government
was instituted among men,"
Well, are we now prepared to appre-
bend the callings and elections of the
Gospel? Some of them are special and
particular. Others are universal. Indi-
viduals, or even particular nations, are
chosen and elected to special offices, to
particular missions, while the whole
race is elected and called to the enjoy
ment of universal blessings, growing out
of the ground or dropped down from
heaven and laid at the feet of all man
kind. Out of the vast multitude of
children who observe the Children's
Sunday in our church and in other
churches, admiring the flowers, singing
their songs, offering their praises. Out
of this vast multitude some few will be
elected to special positions, chosen for
particular trusts, and picked out for
peculiar missions. But the vast major
| ity are called and elected to the common
lot and common things of the human
life.
Shelter, raiment and food,
Little or much, poor or good,
| For this we are born"
Fix it in our minds, therefore, that
callings and elections embrace two sorts,
viz, special and universal. Some are
called and elected to particular things,
but all are called and elected to COM
mon and general things. 1t may be
nationally inferred that all human
beings may breathe the air, because
they have lungs. All mankind may
eat food, because they have teeth and
digestive organs. Special individuals
may be fine musicians, great artists,
distinguished poets, orators, artisans,
and SO to the end of particular callings,
because they have special organizations
to these ends, and few people are
wanted for these purposes.
And now we are ready to apprehend
why such fatal work has been made
with the Bible, why it's callings and
elections have been so persistently mis-
understood, and have so alarmed the
people. The Bible contains so many
special callings and special elections of
particular persons to particular mis-
sions, that we have COMPOUNDED the uni
versal with the specific. The "holy
calling" in the first chapter of the sec
ond letter to Timothy is certainly the
calling of only Paul and Timothy to
preach the Gospel. "Hath called us, y
has no remote relation to anybody but
Paul and Timothy. Jesus picked out
certain Jews to be his disciples, and
Others who were not Jews. They were
the elect, his elected ones, chosen, not
of works, for they had not labored in
his kingdom, but chosen of his own
free grace and will, because he had a
mind to select them. Their gift and
calling was without repentance even,
purely of favor. He chose them by the
Spirit of God. And these were fore
known and predestinated to their call
ing. But let it not be supposed that
none others of the vast body of man
kind can be saved except called and
elected in that manner. Special people
were needed as the founders of the new