The Bolivar bulletin. (Bolivar, Tenn.) 1888-1946, 1893-09-22


for ages between Slxepticism, the PLAIN
tiff, versus Christianity, the defendant.
The scientists have been impaneled
and sworn on the jury. They have
been gone for centuries, some of them,
and they come back, and we say: Gen
tlemen of the jury, have you agreed
upon verdict" They say: mo, we
have not agreed Then we say: $50
back for few more centuries and
then come in and see if you agree-see
if you can render some verdict" Now,
there is not the meanest prisoner in
the Tombs court who would be con-
demned by a Jury that could not agree,
and yet you expect us to renounce our
glorious Christianity for such miser-
able verdict as these men have rem
dered, they themselves not having been
able to agree.
| But my subject shall no longer be
defensive; it must be aggressive. /
must show you that, instead of Chris
tianity falling back, it is on the march,
and that the coming religion of the
world is to be the religion of the Lord
Jesus Christ ten thousand times inten-
sified. 1t is to take possession of every
thing-of all laws, all manners, all Gus
toms, all cities, all nations. 1t is going
to be so mighty compared with what
it has been, so much more mighty, that
it will seem almost like new religion.
| adopt this theory because Chris
tianity has gone on straight ahead, not
withstanding all the bombardment,
and infdelity has not destroyed a
church, or crippled minister, or root
ed out one verse of the Bible, and now
their ammunition seems to be pretty
much exhausted. They can not get
anything new against Christianity, and
if Christianity has gone under the bonn
bardment of centuries and still con-
tlnues to advance, may we not conclude
that as the powder and shot of the 9TH
err side seem to be exhausted, Chris
tianity is going on with more rapid
stride?
GO back few years, when there was
not decent paper in the United States
that had not a discussion on the doc
trine of eternal punishment. Small
wits made merry, / know; but there
was not an intelligent man in the
United States that as result of that
controversary in regard to eternal pun
ishment did not ask himself the ques-
ton: 'What is to be my eternal
destiny?' and SO some years ago, when
Tyndall offered his prayer gauge,
there was not secular paper in the
United States that did not discuss the
questions: "Does God ever answer
prayer? May the creature impress
the Creator?" Are not all these
foo 70
tian and every philanthropist? Be
sides that, the rising generation are
being saturated with Gospel truth as
no other generation, by this interna-
tional series of Sunday-school lessons.
Formerly the children were expected
only to nibble at the little infantile
Scripture stories, but now they are
taken from Genesis to Revelation, the
strongest minds of the country explain
ing the lessons to the teachers, and the
teachers explaining them to the classes;
and we are going to have in this coun-
try five million youth forestalled foI
Christianity. Hear it! Hear it!
Talking with men on steamboat and
in rail-cars, 1 find they are coming
back to the comfort of the Gospel.
They say: Somehow human science
don't comfort me when / have any
trouble, and must try something else;"
and they are trying the Gospel. Take
your scientific consolation to thatn;other
who has just lost her child. Apply
the doctrine to the survival of the
fittest;'' tell her that her child died be-
cause it's life was not worth as MUCK
as the life of one that lived. Try that,
if you dare. Go to that dying man
with your transcendetal phraseology,
and tell him he ought to have conf
dence in the great ''to be-" and the
everlasting now" and the eternal
what is it?" and go on with your con-
ISOLATION and see if he is comforted.
Oh, young man, do not be ashamed
to be found on the side of the Bible.
Do not join those young men who in
this day put their thum bs in their vest
and Swagger about the streets and
stores, talking about the glorious nine
teenth century, about its light being
sufficient without any Bible, and with
out any Christ, and without any God.
The time is coming-ve may not live
to see it, but should not be surprised
if we did see it-when this whole coun-
try is to be one great church, the for
ests the aisles, the Allegheny and the
Rocky mountains the pillars, the chain
of inland lakes the baptistries and the
worship the hallelujah chorus unto
Him who was and is and shall be ever
more Oh, come over to the majority
come under the banners of Emanuel.
Vernon was the SON of an English
SQUIRE. He was brought up in great
elegance. There was a man working
on the place by the name of Ralph.
Vernon used to often talk with Ralph.
After awhile Vernon went off to col
lege, and came back with his mind full
of skepticism. He talked his skepti-
cism to Ralph the workman. After
awhile Vernon went from home
again, was gone for years, came
back, and among his first ques-
tions when getting home was:
''Where is Ralph?" "Oh," said the
father, ralph is in prison waiting for
the day of execution" Vernon has
tened to see Ralph. Ralph, looking
through the wicket of the prison, Said:
Vernon, how good you are TO come
and see me! am glad to see you.
hardly expected you would come and
see me. 1 don't blame you; l don't
blame anybody; only blame myself;
but Vernon, / want you to prom
Use me one thing, VIII you?" Yer
non replied: II will" II want you
to promise me never to talk skepticism
in the presence of anybody. You see
it might do them harm. When you
used to say there was nothing in tn,