Telegram-herald., 1888-09-03
ABOUT JOHN BjAyAN
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-. Pr0gr.ss Mr. hosfdsks cA0s~ a.
hi, ssxt a eaass hon Hebrews Il a a1d !
b, H. ssinx dead yss spsAxsth." lie saia
Aul1tadss Of sreslsns ana popular
bso1s as.s asa sssir dsy fAsir his aad
iaaasacs ss1sfsa fren some h1lsaI.Sa Ia
writer's sins. or tss sQ0lset treated, - tAs
tizss IaAG gave them 0cession AID eLftE,
or ne narrowly l0csl Or prov nclAi interest
sxcilsa or ~ these coastaat AL ssAsfai
caasxes shlch s00a feo1sf acsfiY a.
Dsoxs 01s u t4ts. Bal "FilEriAs Ffo-
.rsss hss lived. powerfully innnsaesd The
~sfid i0F ever 100 au2drsd years, sEd |" as
nsssr So poPalsf. - universally feAi a.
nss Il Las oeela translated into consider
ssly more thzn one hundred languages and
goes wherever the Bible enters al lad, and
Was is ~aY into tss sfsctleAs of ths PeO-
pls
Aacaalay ranks It's author As the most
popular religious writer Ia t4e EHklssh
language" and great numbers have IA
every generation slBce, placed u ns1t 10
the Bible a Is lafiuenes fsr good.
SAYS Walter Bssant lt still seems -
me tbe book which hz- influenced the
a lad. of Esklishzes more than a5y out
side LAs covers % toe Bible, wallis u sur
,iyes sad Is read sy our boys and strls,
two OF thrss great truths will reenzla desply
barnsd into tAe English soul.
This fascinating auegory, this phsaom-
snki MASTERPIECES has a very interesting origin
Joan BGnyan vas bsra a. Elstow, Ing
laad. ia 1923 OF very hum5te parents. bis
father being Of hereditary And dsspised
class OF tiaEsrs, who were generally very
iustlv objects OF coEtsmpt on &C
count OF vsgrsnt and pilienng habits.
Ths psrisa records tell tnat With
| Ia month after MS wife and
daughter died, Johns father had placed
another woman at hls lireside. eucn cru
elty speaks for itself as 10 the character OF
the man. Jshn says nothing OF his par
snts. an omiaous silence. However, John
received eaOugh schooling 10 learn 10 read
snd writs and then becsDe tinker. Ia
/ tinates OF his early moral character snd
/ habits differ, but there Is no doubt that be
was chaste. honest and industrious. Neither
/ can il ee denied that ne Was rather wild
snd most shockingly profane. Archbishop
| Land hated the Puritans with ali the inten-
slty Of his cold and narrow heart and got
| royal edict issued requiring every clergy
man 10 send bi, people from the cnurcn 10
| the sports on the green. from which
We would shrink on q week day. By others
/ dsmoralizirg the Sabbath day IL Was in
| tended to destroy Puritanism. In this way
John BunyGn learned to desecrzte the Sab
bath.
But even 1t the age of ten his conscience
greatly troubled him. His pastor one day
| preached a sermon on the ssncIity of tbs
1 Lord s day, whica sent him home very
| miserable, yet on that very day he resumed
his wontsd pleasures.
Dr. John Newman observes: Satan s
| FIRST step in running soul IS 70 mske him
| desecrats the Sabbath aud, If instead OF
always looking for the use OF strong drink,
% the first cause OF corruption. the inVesti-
CATION we're fair. We should ind in a very
large proportion Of cases that the
| fall OF souls begins with this
growing sin OF sabbath desscration. The
| fourth commandment however, struck very
| deep into the coascincee OF Bunyan. This
| was the begin aing OF the great change
| which rescued him from the clutches OF the
| evil one.
Another interesting stage is reached. One
day he stood cursing and swearing AZ a
| neizhbor's shop window, when loose and
abandoned woman reproved him. She told
him be v,s the ungodliest fellow for swear
| ing that sac ever knew in all her life, and
that he was bad enough to spoil all OF
the young men IN the town. She charged
him with being a backyard. He was
shamed and II proved another step toward
bis conversion. even if it was curious in
stance Of Satan rebuking sin."
A further help in this direction was his
marriage to good woman, who was poor and
OBSCURE, yet hsd pious parents and a re-
ligious education. and brought with be- 10
the new home two volumes that had their
influence with him, viz: Practical Piety
and The Plain Mans Pathway TO Heaven.
His wife often commended her father !
godly example and read scripture and these
BOOKS with ner husband.
| Probably before this age he had been
lastingly impressed oy several remarkable
deliysrances from death, the most thrilling
being that when during his service in the
Psrlism entary army, st the age of IL, at the
ssies Of Leicester, Q sentinel wished to take
his place and vas killed while 80 doing
Bat in that rich autobiography "Gracs
Astounding toward the Chief OF Sinnsrs-
boos like "Augustines Confessions he
snlargss on his over hearing a. the street
corner the conversation of some pious
women Who were not engaged in gossip o
small talk. but spoke OF their own deer
spiritual experiences, in particular, OF th'
new birth. Having for some tins been a
Pharises or seli-righteous man, ne va
struck dumb, lost al confidence IN bis ovr
works and reforms and realized the sbso-
luts need Of a change of heart. He say
that by this bis mind was so turned that i
1 y
~. still CRYING out. Give. Give
During bis reformed lifs's period be be-
heysd that mo man in Engisnd coulc
please God as well "a hs,' bat u was TX.
tnueh OF the morality ssd amisbilty o
our own dsy-a so-called Christianity
. without Christ. The discovery msds at TIT
. street corner lsd him 20 a new life ia Cdris
Jesus he nOv bad new eyes for his Bible
and became sngrosssd in the study Of Teli
] cid 81 f,Hs - - IA "a ri 4
knew sy heart.
Few m.n bsvs ever rad such doubts an
fears 20 struggle through ss this convert
: For long time tsey so preyed on his mlu'
that his heath sustained az injury froa
/. which he did not recover FOR years. Bat q
the age Of =. n 1855. De finally found son
rsst and united vith the Bsptists Of Bed
account Of his gifts. bis ardor su'
bis rich aud rsTs experiences Of Ersc
70 prssch the gospel He Va
AZ once popuisr and successful ss such ure
fsrrsd nev 6elds Of labor. and that kind q
work Which tends % svsxsn snd cOnvsr
sinners The stringent and Oppressive avs
Se-izasd 70 suppress al dissenting sects
seem 70 have beer violated By this sl0
aaent, iupsssionsd and fsithfai m.sssnxsr
r,r "a ..rlF q. 1850 ne vss imprisoned 10
| hrs rsiixi0a. This 70 man 80 lsad o. hi
/ wife sad four children snd sspecis " tsnds
! ( tow.r3 hftie blind Mary, ~ss sorsly trying
yet Bs declined a. s3srs made 20 him lf b
/ vorid bat rsnsuncs as rstiEion or aus hi
prsschisx. stating thst he must not ds
, giHs. - vbich tie csssrss r-piv vas nssSr
/ True ssd yonr yia s to mend pots sn
k.ttl.s
Ia. ais II ta0se days. If no-
SEQ. vouid 81 e Win horrn-
vss thsrs hs remsRsd f0r twelv
, years teaching tse Prisousrs p-.sos