Democratic messenger. [volume] (Snow Hill, Md.) 1869-1973, 1888-06-16
TABERNACLE SERVICES.
REV. T. De WITT TAlMAGE'S SUM-
DAY MORNING DISCOURSE.


DAY MORNING DISCOURSE.
Religion Is Sanaiivc. Curative. Hygienic.
It sIay N"t fiivc Antedliuvian Longevity
to the IIu,iian Race. hut viii Greatly
Lengthen Our Lives.
HRooKLyH, June 10.-At the Tabcr-
nacIc this morning. after expounding
some passages Of Scripture In regard to
the diet Of Daniel and his abstemious
habits. the Rev. T. DE Witt Talmage, ID.
D.. gave out the hymn beginning:
Glory 20 God on high,
Irt heaven and earth reply.
IIc announced rs the subject Of his
sermon: Docs Religion Prolong Life2''
and preached from the text found in Ps.
xci. 10: with long life will satisfy
him." Following Is tho discourse in
full:
Through the mistakes OF It's friends re-
lision has been chiefly associated with
sick beds and gravcyaris. The whole
subject to many people 10 odcrous with
chlorine and carbolic acid. There are
people who cannot pronounce the word
religion without hearing In 1t tho clipping
clliscl of the tombstone cutter. Il Is high
time that this thing were changed and
that religion. instead Of being represented
as hearse to carry out tho dead, should
lie represented as n chariot In which the
living are to triumph.
Religion. so far from subtracting from
ones vitality, is q glorious addition. II
Is sanativc, curative, hygienic. Il Is
good for the eyes, good for IT,, ears, good
for the spleen. good for the digestion,
good for the nerves. good for the muscle.
When David, in another part Of the
Psalms, prays that religion may be DOM
inant he DOES not speak of II ns mild
sickness or an cmaciation. or an attack
of moral and spiritual cramp; lie speaks
Of it rs .'thc saving health Of all ma
tions;" while God, in the text. promises
longevity TO the pious, saying: "With
long life will satisfy him."
The fact is that men and women die
too soon. It Is high time that religion
joif. the hand Of medical science in
q .hpting to improve human longevity.
iam lived nine hundred and thirty
years. Mcthuseinh lived nine hundred
and sixty nine years. As late In tho his
tory Of the world as Veslmsian. there
were. at one time in his empire forty-five
people one hundred and thirty-fve years
old. So far down rs the Sixteenth cen.
tury. Peter Tartan died ut one hundred
and cighty-Gve wears Of age. do not
say that religion will ever take tho race
hack 10 antc;iiluvian longevity, hut I do
say the length uf human life will be-
greatly improved.
1t is said in Isaiah: 'Thc child shall
die hundred wears old" Now. il nc
cording ,o Scripture the chill Is to bc u
hundred wears old. may not tho men and
women reach to three hundred and four
hundred anl five hundred: The fact is
that we are mere lwarfs and skeletons
compared with sopie of the generations
that are 10 conr. Take the African race.
They have been under bondage for cen
turics. Give them aclance and they de-
vclop Frederick Douglass or n Toussaint
I'Ouvcriurc. And if the white race shall
bc brought from under the serftom Of
sin, what shall I've the body: what shall
bc the soul: Religion has only just
touched our world. Give it full power
for a few centuries and who can tell
what will In the strength Of man and
the beauty Of woman. AMI the longevity
Of all.
Nj design is TO show that practical re-.
ligion /, the friend Of long life. prove
1t. first, from tho fact that il makes the
care Of our health n positive Christian
duty. Whether We shall keep early or
la.s hours. whether we shall take food
digcstiblc ar iml'Scs,iblc. whether there
shall bc thorough or incomplete n,astica-
tion. are questions very often deferred
10 the realm of whim>cali,y; but the
Christian nnn lifts this who.c problem OF
health INTO the accountable and tho III.
vine. He says: God has given me
this body. and he has called it the temple
of the Holy Ghost. and to dcface its
affairs or mar its walls or crumble its pill
lars i n God dcfying sacrilege."
lie sees Gol's caligraphy in every page
- anatomical and physiological. He
says: ''GWl has given me u wonderful
body for noble purposes"
That arm with thirty-two curious bones
wicl,lcl by forty six curious muscles. and
all under the brains tclcgraphy; $50
pounds Of blood rushing through the
heart every hour, the heart In twenty
four hours beating 100, 900 times, during
the twcnty.four hours overcoming re-
sistanccs amounting to 224, 900, 900
pounds Of weight. during the same time
the lungs taking in iifty-scvcn hogsheads
~. .s. a.,.l Ill alt. ,,nt ,,,Ara
mighty than delicate and easily disturbed
and demolished.
The Christian man says to himself: ''lf
hurt my nerves. IL hurt my brain. IL
I hurt any of my physical faculties in
suit Gol and call for dire rctribution. :"
Why did Col tell the Lcvites not to offer
TO him in sacrifice animals imperfect and
diseased: lie meant to tell US in all the
ages that we are to offer TO God our very
hest physical condition. and man who,
through irregular or gluttcGous eating.
ruins his health. il not Offering 10 God
such - sacrifice. Why did Paul write foS
his cloak ut Troa Why should such a
great man MS Pa,:. bc anxious about o
thing 80 insignificant ~ an ovcrcoatl L.
WIS lecaus. ir knew that with pncu-
munia and rheumatism he would not be
worth half ~ much TO God and the
church as with respiration easy and foot
free.
An intelligent Christian man would
consider !; ~ alr urtiity 20 knecl down Mt
nich, and pray and a'k Gods protection,
wl,ilr 1T tlic ,amc time he kept the win
Cows ~ his lc,lrnom tight Shut against
fresh air. lIr would just as soon think
Of going nut un the bridge between New
York n,.l lr"oklyn. leaping of and then
pra, ing 10 Cod to keep him from getting
hurt. JIM, as long as you defer this
whole subject of physical health to the
realm of Xhimsicility. or to the pastry
cook. or Z" the butcher. or 10 the baker,
or tO the NJ "thccary. or To the clothier.
you arr not acting like Christian. Take
care Of III ,our physical forccs-neryous,
m,Ecular lane. brain. cellular tissue
for al yol u 1T H. brought Ia judgment.
Smn,.il. oiir rcrvons system into fti.
"A.