The weekly intelligencer., 1893-09-30
CHRIST'S ANNIVERSARY.
DR.. Talmage Advises a Great
Christian Celebration.
He Proposes That the Nineteen Hundredti
Anniversary of the Birth OF Christ
BE II Great Celebration by tho
Christian World.


Christian World.
In n recent sermon at Brooklyn Rev.
T. De Witt Talmage preached sur
mon of unusual interest to vast audi
ence, the subject being '"The Nineteen
Hundredth Anniversary; n Proposition
Concerning it" The text was taken
from Isaiah tx. 9: "ro us "a child is
born" lie said:
That is tremendous hour in the his
tory of any family when an immortal
spirit is incarnated. Out of very
dark cloud there descends very
bright morning. One life spared and
another given. All the bells of glad
ness ring over the cradle. | know not
why any one should doubt that of
old star pointed down to the Saviour's
birthplace, for star of JOY points
down to every honorable nativity.
new eternity dates from that
hour, that minute. Beautiful and APP
propriate is the custom of celebrating
the anniversary of such an event, and
clear on into the eighties and the nine
ties, the recurrence of that day of the
year in an old mans life causes recog-
milton and more or less congratulation.
So, also, nations are accustomed to
celebrate the anniversary of their birth
and the anniversary of the birth of
their great heroes or deliverers or ben
efactors The 22d of February and the
4th of July are never allowed to
pass in our land without banquet and
Grafton and bell ringing and cannon
ade. But all other birthday anniver-
saries are tame compared with the
Christmas festivity, which celebrates
the birthday described in my text.
Protestant and Catholic and Greek
churches, with all the power of music
and garland and procession and dox-
ology, put the words of my text
into national and continental and
hemisphere chorus: ''To us child is
born" On the 25th of December each
year that is the theme in St. Pauls and
St Peters and st. Marks and st.
Isaac's and all the dedicated cathe-
drals, chapels, meeting-houses and
churches clear round the world. We
shall soon reach the nineteen hun
dredth anniversary of that happiest
event of all time. This century is dy-
ing. The death of one century and
the birth of another century will be
sublime and suggestive and stupendous
beyond all estimate. To stand by the
grave of one century and by the cradle
of another will be an opportunity such
as whole generations of the worlds in
habitants never experienced. 1 pray
God that there may be no sickness or
casualty to hinder your arrival at that
goal, or to hinder your taking
part in the valedictory of the de-
parting century and the salutation of
the new. But as that season will be
the nineteenth anniversary of the
Saviour's birth, l now nominate that a
great international jubilee or exposi-
ton be opened in this cluster of cities
by the sea coast on Christmas day, the
25th of December, 1900, to be continued
for at least one month into the year
1901. This century, closing December
81, 1900, and the new century, begin
ming January l, 1901, will it not be
time for all nations to turn aside for n
few weeks or months from everything
else and emphasize the birth of the
greatest being who ever touched our
planet; and could there be more ap-
propriate time for such commemora-
ton than this elimination of the CEN
turies which are dated from his nativ-
ity? You know that all history dates
either from before Christ, or after
Christ, from B. c. or A. d. 1t will be
the year of our Lord, 1900, passing into
the year 1901.
The three or four questions that
would be asked me concerning this
nomination of time and place, Iproceed
to answer. What practical use would
come of such International Celebration?
Answer: The biggest stride the world
ever took toward the evangelization of
all nations That is grand and won
derful convocation, the religious con-
gress at Chicago. 1t will put intelli-
gently before the world the nature of
false religions which have been brutal
Lzing the nations, trampling woman
hood into the dust, enacting the hor-
rors of infanticide, kindling funeral
pyres for shrie1ing victims, and rolling
| juggernauts across the mangled bodies
| of their worshipers. But no one sup
poses that any one will be converted to
Christ by hearing Confucianism or
Buddhism, or any form of heathenism,
eulogized. That is to be done afterward.
And how can it so well be done as by a
celebration of many weeks of the birth
and character and achievements of the
wondrous and unprecedented Christ?
To such an exposition the kings and
queens of the earth would not send
their representatives; they would come
themselves. The story of Saviour's
advent could not be told without telling
the story of his mission. All the world
would say: ''Why this ado, this univer-
sal demonstrations" What u vivid pre-.
sentation it would be, when, at such a
convocation, the physicians of the
world should tell what Christ had done
for hospitals and the assuagement OF
human pain, and when Christian law
years declare what Christ has done fol
the establishment of good laws, and
Christian conquerors should tell what
Christ had done in the conquest OF
nations, and Christian rulers of the
earth would tell what Christ had done
in the government of earthly domin
IONS Thirty days of such celebration
would do more to tell the world who
Chist is than any thirty years. Not {
land on earth but would hear of it an(
discuss it. Not an eye so dimmed by
the superstition of ages but would Sc
the illumination.
The difference of Christ's religion
from all others is that its one way o
dissemination is by n simple ''telling,
not argument, not skillful exegesis
polemics or the science of theological
fisticuffs, but telling" Tell ye tn
daughter of Zion, Behold, thy KIM
cometh." $50 quickly and tell Ell
disciples that He has risen from tn
dead" $50 home to thy friends an
tell them how great things the Lor
hath done for thee" when He
come He will tell us all things" A re
ligion of telling" And in what wa
could all nations so we'll be told tina
Christ had come as by such an interna
tional emphasizing of His nativity?
would be the mightiest missionar
movement the world has ever seen.
would be the turning point in til
worlds destiny. 1t would waken tn
slumbering nations with one touch.
Question the second: How would yo
have such an international jubilee col
Quoted? Answer: All arts should /
marshaled, and art in its most attrac
i've and impressive shape. First, arch
lecture. While all academies of mus
| and nll churches and all urent ha1