The Penn's Grove record., 1892-05-20
REV. DIR. TALMAGR
The Brooklyn Divine's Sunday
Sermon.


Here was a case of great domestic an
guish. The sou of the household was pos
sessed of an evil spirit which, among Other
things, paralyzed his tongue and made him
SPECIFICS. When the influence was on the
patient he could not say a word-articula'
ton was impossible. The spirit that cap.
tured this member Of the household was a
cumb spirit-so called by Christ-a spirit
abroad to-day and as lively and potent as in
New Testament times. Yet in all Of the
realms of ~sermonology | cannot find q dis
course concerning this dumb devil which
Christ charged upon my text, saying,
''Come out of him"
There has ben much destructive s~upersti.
ton abroad in the world concerning posses
sion by evil spirits. Under the form of belief
in vic craft this delusion swept the
continents. Persons were supposed to be
Jos, ssed with some evil spirit which made
them able to destroy others. In the six
teenth century in Geneva 1900 persons were
burned to death as witches. Under one
judge in Lorraine 900 persons were burned
to death as witches. In one n~eighborhood of
France 1000 persons were burned. In two
centuries 200, coo persons were slain as
witches So mighty was the delusion that
it included among its victims some of the
greatest intellects of all time, such as Chief
Justice Mathew Hale and Sir Edward Coke,
and such renowned ministers of religion as
Cotton Mather, one of whose books, Benjamin
Franklin said, shaped his life-and Richard
Baxter and Archbishop Cranmer and Mar.
tin Luther, n among writers and philoso-
pliers, Lord Bacon. That belief, which has
become the laughing stock of all sensible
people, counted its disciples emong the wisest
and best people OF Sweden, Germany, Eng
land, France, Spain and New England. But
while we reject witchcraft any man who be-
lieves the bible must believe that there are
dIabolical agencies abroad in the world.
VI hile there are ministering spirits to bless
there are Internal spirits to hinder, to poison
and destroy. Christ was speaking to a spir-
itual existence when, standing before the
afflicted one of the text, He said, Thou
dumb and deaf spirit, come out OF him."
Against this dumb devil Of the text, / put
you on your guard, Do not think that this
ag int of evil has put his blight on those who,
by ommlssion of the vocal organs, have had
the golden gates of speech bolted and barred.
Among those who a never spoken a word
are the most gracious and lovely and tai
ented souls that were ever incarnated. The
chaplains of the asylums for the dumb can
tell you enchanting stories of those, who
never called the name of father or mother
or child, and many of the most devout and
pray erful souls will never in this world
speak the name of God or Christ. Many a
deaf mute have | seen with the angel of in
~telligence seated at the window of the eye,
who never came forth from the door of the
mouth.
What a miracle of loveliness and knowl-
edge was Laura ~Bridgman, of New Hamp.
shirel Not only without faculty of speech,
but without hearing and without sight, all
these faculties removed by sickness when
two years of age, yet becoming a Wonder at
needIework, at the piano, at the sewing ma
chine, and an intelligent student of the
Scriptures, and ~contounding philosophers,
who came from all parts of the world to
study the phenomenon. Thanks to Christi
anlty for what it has done for the anchor
alton of the condition of the deaf and the
dumb. Back In the ages they were put to
death as having no right, with such paucity
of equipment, to live, and for centuries they
We're classed among the idiotic and unsafe.
But IN the Sixteenth century came Pedr o
Ponce, the Spanish monk, aud in the Seven .
teenth century came Juan Pablo Bonet,
anottor Spanish monk, with dactylo logy or
the finger alphabet, and in our own century
we have had John Braidwood and Drs.
Mitchell and Ackerly and Peet and Gallau-
Diet, who have given uncounted thousands of
those whose tongues were forever silent the
power TO spell out on the air by a manual
alphabet their thoughts about this world and
their hopes Tor the next. We rejoice in the
brilliant inventions in behalf of those who
were born dumb.
One of the most impressive audiences l
ever addressed was in the far west two or
three years ago-aB audience of about 600
persons who had never heard a sound or
spoken a word, an interpreter standing beside
me while l addressed them. l congratulated
that audience On two advantages they had
and over the most of us--the one that they
escaped hearing a great many disagreeable
things, and on the other fact that they es-
capped saying things they were sorry for at
terward Yet after all the alterations a
shackied tongue is an appalling limitation.
But we are not this morning speaking Of
c%opgenital mutes. We mean those who are
born with all the faculties of vocalization
and yet have been struck by the evil one
mentioned in the text-the dumb devil to
whom Christ called when He said, Thou
dumb and deaf spirit, l charge thee. come
out of him.
There has been apotheosization of silence.
Some one has said that silence is golden, and
sometimes the greatest triumph is to keep
your mouth shut. But sometimes silence is
a crime and the direct result of the bsleful
influence of the dumb devil of our text.
There is hardly a man or womaI in this
house to-day who has not been present on
occasion when the Christian religion
bsrame a target for railiery. Perhaps it was
over in the store some day when there was
not much going on and the clerks were in a
group, or it was in the factory at the noon
spell, or it was out on the farm under ths.trees
while you were resting, or 1t was in the
clubroom, or 1t was In a social circle, or it
was in the street on the way home from
business, or it was on some occasion which
you remember without mo describing it.
Some one got the laugh on the Bible
and caricatured the profession OF re-
ligion as hypocrisy, or a a pun out
OF something that Christ said. The laugh
and you Joined in, and not one word
OF protest did you utter. What kept you
silentf Modesty? No. Incspacity to
answer? No. Lack of opportunity No.
of the dumb devil. II some one should ma
Ign your father or mother or wife or hus-
band or child you woul flush up quick, and
either with an indignant word or doubled
fist make response. And yet here is our
religion which has done so much
Tor you and so much for the world that it
will take all eternity to celebrate it, and yet
as say: Il differ, | object l am sorry to
hear you say that. There is another side to
this.h
You Christian people ought in such times
rs these to 20 armed, not with earthly
hut with the sword of the Spirit.
You ought to have four or five questions
with which you could c%onfouni any man
VINO attacks CbrlstlanltY. a man ninety
years old was telling me a few days ago
how he put to flight a ~scoffer. My aged
friend said to the skeptic, did you ever
read the history of Joseph in the Bib!eS'
YES" said the man; lit is a fine story. and
as interesting a story as l ever read"
well, now sail my old friend, sup
pose that account of Joseph stopped
half way5" "Oh," aid the man, then
it would not lie entertaining" well.
now" said my frienA. I'VE have in this world
only half of everything. and do you not
think that when we hear the last half things
be consistent, and that then we may
find that God was righty'
Oh, friends, better load up with a few in-
terrogation points. You cannot afford to
be silent when God and the Bible and the
things of eternity are assailed. Your silence
gives consent to the bombsrdment of FOUR
Fathers house. You allow a slur to be cast
on your mothers dying pillow. In behalf
of the Christ, who for you went through
the agonies Of assassination on the rocky
bluff back of Jerusalem, you dared not face
siokly joke. Better Dad up with q few
questions so that next time you will be
ready.
Say to the scoffer: "My dear sir, will You
tell me what makes the difference between
the condition Of woman in China and the
United Statesp What do you think Of the
sermon on the mount How do you Like the