The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1888-11-30
The Union Services.

The Union Services.
A unique service was that made up
by union of churches and held at the
Presbyterian Church. The First Pres
byterian, Westminster Presbyterian,
First Congregational, Second Congre-
gational, Methodist and Baptist
churches united IN giving thanks to
God for the dispensations of His
Providence. DIR. McNeice acted as
general director of the servi ;es, with
Rev. Mr.. Libby assisting.
THE SERMON, which was very elo-
quent and mastery one, was delivered
by the Rev. Dewitt D. Forward, of the
Baptist Church. Following Is synopsis
of what he said:
Two hundred and sixty-fve years
ago, while our Pilgrim Fathers were
observing q day of prayer that God
would bring rain, the windows of
heaven we're opened and refreshing
showers came so abundant that the day
of fasting became day of thanksglv-
ing. The father of our country, George
Washington, of whom Gladstone said,
"He was the greatest of the good and
the best of the great" appointed in the
dark days of the Revolution, days of
thanksgiving for victories gained. After
the adoption of the Constitution he or
dered day for universal Thanksgiving.
Later Presidents occasionally appointed
days for special prayer and thanksgiY-
ing, but it remained for the lamented
Lincoln, a man of universal love, to re-
introduce and re-establish a day Of
general thanksgiving.
We have met to-day to thank God for
National prosperity. An appropriate
subject for consideration is "Our Ma
tional Wealth" l will take my text
from Corinthians, fourth chapter and
eighth verse,
ALREADY YE ARE BECOME RICH"
According to an eminent ststistician
in 1880 our national wealth was S43,-'
6I2 ,O0O, 900, or we were rich enough to
purchase all of the Russian and Turk
ish Empires, Norway, Sweden, Dem
mark, Italy, Australia, South Africa
and the whole of South America, in
other words, we could have purchased
the entire possessions of III 900 900 PEG.
pie. England is by far the Wealthiest
nation of the Old World. but in
1880 we surpassed her wealth by $780,
600 600. We are the wealthiest nation
on the globe, although the youngest
and it is natural that We should be so
for we have a wealth of seas and lakes
and lands, a wealth of magnificent
rivers and beautiful valleys, a wealth of
farms and shops, wealth in the noun
tains and health in the air, and in COM
mand of all these resources stands the
indominitable Yankee who says, II
will be rich !"
Look for a moment at Rome in its
DAYS of wealth and fashion. In the
days of Pompey the mobiles of Rome
adopted the disgusting practice OF tax
ing emetics before their great feasts.
AT this point the speaker drew moral
on Thanksgiving gluttony). A lady
appears in public robed in an $50, 900
dress, and while voluptuous Roman
the luxuries of wealth, the mig
gard of Rome, that is their poor,
many of whom were forced to live the
| life of beasts, were crying for corn
and while this cry was going up, God
sounded the death kneli, and wealthy,
selfish Rome fell prey to the physical
prowess of mere barbarians: Terrible
destruction universally followed the
| RI6aG6bL WOdlbui % 10 ohOU LII VIC LID
tories of Carthage. Spain and France
in the time of the Bourbons. Shall the
divine finger be laid upon as that are
crumble into dust? God forbid! If
America is in danger of such fearful
calamity, what can be done to counter
act the baneful influences of Mammon-
ism? The poor man must be taught
not only to honor the rich, but he must
also learn to love, and the rich man
must have both wholesome respect
for labor and a love for the man
who does his work; in short, fulfill
the royal law, Love your neigh
Dor as yourself" and obstacles to
progress will be removed. It's not all
darkness, we may thank God to-day
for our Christian homes, our
Christian schools, our Christian
church; we may thank God that we
differ from all other nations. Our 90,
100000 people are familiar with oul
mother tongue and the name of Jesus il
uniformalIy known among US. If there
is dear b of spirituality in the churches
let the church militant betak'
itself to her knees and we shall have ye
greater cause for rejoicing. Let VI
make 1t an individual matter and Sc
cure an Individual blessing before ssun
down.