The Pulaski citizen. [volume] (Pulaski, Tenn.) 1866-current, 1889-10-24

His Text Was These words-"But None
of These Thinrs Move Me'-A Powerful
and Affecting Discourse in FaiI-Large
Attendance.
BROOKLYN, Oct 20.-The Rev. #.
De Witt Talmage. d. D., preached at
the Academy of Music this morning,
his first sermon after the destruction
OF the Brooklyn Tabernacle by fire.
His audience was of vast size. and
public interest was extraordinary.
The opening hymn was:
God moves In q mysterious way
His wonders to perform;
BE plants his footsteps In the sea,
And rides upon tho storm
DIR. Talmage's subject was ''The Bap-
tism of Fire, +" and he took as his text
Acts XXX, "a, "None of these things
move me-" He said:
But Paul, have you not enough
affiiction to move you3 Are you not
an exile from your native land2 With
the most genial and loving nature,
have you not, in order to be free for
missionary journeys, given yourself
to celibacyi Have you not turned
away from the magnificent worldly
successes that would have crowned
your iilustrious geniusl Have you
not endured the sharp and singing
neuralgias, like a thorn in the fleshi
Have you not been mobbed OH the
land, and shipwrecked on the sea; the
sanhedrim against you, the Roman
government against you, all the world
and oil hell against your
What OF thatP says Paul. None
of these things move mep' 1t was
not because he was a hard nature.
Gentlest woman was never more easily
dissolved into tears. He could not
even bear TO see anybody cry, for in
the midst of his sermon when he saw
some ono weeping her sobs aloud,
What mean ye to weep and TO break
mine heart? for | am ready not to be
bound only, but also to die at Jeru-
salem for the name of the Lord Jesus"
What then did Paul mean when he
said, None of these things move met"
lie meant II will not be diverted from
the work TO which have been called
by any and all the adversities and ca
lamities"
NONE OF THESE THINGS MOVE ME. "
| think this morning l express not
only my own feelings but that of every
man, woman and little child belong
ing TO Brooklyn Tabernacle, or that
was converted there, or comforted
there, or blessed there, when | look
toward tho blackened ruins of the
dear and consecrated spot and with an
aroused faith in loving God, cry out:
None of these things move me"
When / say that, do not mean that
We have no feeling about it. Instead
Of standing here today in this brilliant
auditorium, it would be more conso-
nant with my feelings to sit down
among the ruins and weep at the
words of David: 'If / forget thee. O
Jerusalem, let my right hand forget
her canning" Why, let me say to the
strangers here today in explanation of
the deep emotion Of my flock, we had
there In that building sixteen years OF
religious revival. | believe that a
hundred thousand souls were born
there. They came from all parts
OF tho earth and we shall never
opened Why, sirs our children
were there baptized, and at those al
tars our young men and maldens took
tho marriage vow, and out of those
gates we carried our dead. When
from the roof of my house last Sun
day morning at o'clock | saw our
church in flames, l said: THAT is tho
last of the building from which we
buried our De Witt on that cold
December day when it seemed all
Brooklyn wept with my household. +"
And it was just rs hard for you to
give up your loved ones as for us to
give up ours. Why, like the beauti-
tiful vines that still cover some OF the
fallen wells, our affections ere clam
bering ell over the ruins and / could
Kiss the ashes that mark ths place
whsre it once stood. Why, now bal
think Of IL, 1 cannot think OF II as
All inanimate pile, but AS soul a
mighty soul, an indestructible soul
am sure that majestic organ had a
soul, for we have often heard it speak
snd sing and shout and wall, and when
the soul Of that organ entered heaven
l think Handel, and Haydn, and Mo
Fart, and Mendelssohn and Beethoven
were at the gates to welcome it. So l
do not use the words Of my text in a
hesrtless way, but In the sense that we
must not and will not be diverted from
our work by the appalling disasters
which have betallen us. We-will not
turn aside one inch from our determi-
nation to do all we can for the present
and everlasting happiness OF all the
people whom we may be able TO meet.
None OF these things move me. None
Of these things move you" 'Go for
wardn
When looked out through the dis
NAL rain from the roof of my house
and saw the church crumbling brick
by brick and timber by timber, / said
to myself: Does this mean that my
work in Brooklyn is endedi Does this
terminate my association with this
city, where / have been more thap
twenty years glad in all It's prosperi-
ties, and sad IN all It's misfortunes
And still small voice came TO me, a
voice that is no longer still or small
but most emphatic and commanding,
through pressure of hand, and news
paper column, and telegram and let
ter contributions, saying; "Go for
Wardr
have made and l now make appeal
to all Christendom to help us. We
want all Christendom to help, and ]
will acknowledge the receipt of every
contribution, great or small, with my
own hand. We want to build larger
and better We want 1t national
church, in which people of all creeds
and all nations may find home, The
contributions already sent in make a
srnall hearted church forever impossi-
BILE. Would not be q sorry spectacle
for angels and men II, in a church
built by Israelites and Catholics. as
we'll rs all the styles of people com
monty called evangelical, ! should
instead OF the banner OF the Lord God
Almighty, raise huttering flag OF
small sectarianism9 II we had three
hundred thousand dollars we would
put them all in one great monu
ment to the mercy OF God. Peo
ple ask on all sides about what
we shall build. | answer, II al
depends on the contributions sen'
in from here and from the ends OF thu
earth | say now TO all the Baptists
that we shall have in IL baptistery
say to all Episcopalians, We shall
have in our services as heretofore a
our communion table portions OF th'
Liturgy. ] say to the Catholics WI
shall have a cross over the pulpit ant
probably on the tower. | say TO tn
Methodists, we mean TO sing there lIk
the voices OF mighty thunderings
say 10 all denominations, we mean Z
preach religion as wide as heavel
and as good as God. We have sat
we had a total loss. But there wa
one exception. The oiSy things W
saved were the silver communion cha
ices, for they happened TO be IN Al