St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1890-12-08
CREEDS ARE SHALLOW.
Rev. William Wilkinson Argues
That Deeds Only Weigh With
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That Deeds Only Weigh With
God. J.
In st. Andrews Episcopal church
Yesterday morning Rev. William Will
kinson talked about the man who fell
among thieves. The preacher said old
time photographs of life are yet full of
useful lessons for new times. The man
who was robbed, wounded and left to
die is but resemblance in many ways
to persons who are in our midst to-day,
with this important difference - that
man had received bodily injury only at
the hands of his aSSailantS; these men
have sustained damage most serious III
mind and in Soul-but both are alike
III this, that even now the men
who ought by every principle oil
their religion, by every consideration of
high and sympathetic manhood, by
every sanction which comes of official
position and place, to give with gladneSS
helping hand to any and every man
who, in the struggle of life, has fallen
sick, sore and wounded. have passed by
on the other side, and left him TO suffer
or to die, unaided and alone. The truth
Is sad TO tell; but tract. prayer, good
advice, it may be, but more often strong
reproOf given to those whose hearts al
ready bleed. whose souls were in an
agony of despair, or far more often
ought to have been under
the care, the hopeful watchful-
ness of the church have been left by the
wayside cold and bare to fight virtues
battles alone, Or to endure sorrows OF
vice as best they could. In the midst
Of all this, in placid serenity, orthodoxy
has been engaged III defending creeds,
and anSw ering cOntending schools of
thought" which to the practical man
are OF no more value than the answer,
ii it could be found, TO the question de-
bated of old, How many angels could
dance on the point of IeedlPg" In
the days Of tiercest debate in Europe
the ariStocTacy had sunk into vice
such as their heather fathers knew
not. and the people into lg-
norance, superstition and sin
it makes noble man ashamed to think
upon. Then, as now, the debater and
the lighter, the man who has to put out
his delicate hand to steady the ark of
God. who is sure the world is going
absolutely to the devil, and VINO carries
in his little head, or in his vest pocket.
the cure for all its ills; who is the
standard of theology and of virtue. is
not the man who is, as a rule. enduring
by personal influence 10 uplift the
weary and tired man who is al the bot
tom Of society. with character as
s0lled and as dilapidated as his gar
ments. No, rather he is dressed in
garments of tile finest texture and Of
the latest fashion. his food is of the
choicest and his home place Of COM
fort. The signing of him that crieth
comes not into it. The T.oes of the
needy come not near it. 1t is exactly
as if a rich man who was also cook
should mock hungry men by giving
lectures on cooking to hungry men. or
VINO should leave them out i'll winters
storm and remind them OF what good
dinner he had. Now, these are facts
which every man can verify. They are
too plain to be hidden and tuo
painful to be pleasant to dwell
upon. What result has come of it?
Did the priest or Levite who each
passed by the wounded nah Ill Pales-
tine make their religion more beautiful
or endearing in Ills eyes? Did they by
their example bring him More regularly
10 the synagogue? If yes. he was a
model man; but he was much more
likely To say: IF that is the effect Of
your faith, please let NE be a Samari-
tan, for it was a man of that faith who
helped me-, who blessed me. VINO saved
me-" 4 man with glorious creed. with
a complete system of divinity. may, by
an omission, bring it into disrepute, not
by design. but by neglect of tile duties
it would. if followed. prompt him
to do with alacrity for the good of men,
fer the glory of his church. for the serv-
lee OF his God. On the other hand a
man with defective faith may have his
heart so full OF love for man, IA hand So
ready to help and to bless his fellow
men who suffer, that defect of faith is
not noticed in the splendor of holy
deeds SO nobly done. The elevent h
chapter TO the Hebrews recites, with an
energy which makes the language ter
rible with emotion. the mighty deeds
of men and of women who. with an I'M
perfect faith. left memorials of a mag
nlficenr life which will be read to the
latest day. Life is more than creed,
higher than praise, the ltanies of SYM
pathetic, helpful love more than the
litanies of we'll ordered invocation. To
be ChristiOn man is to follow Christ,
who went ahnuf dniuU uoOd