Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1893-09-15
REV. DR.. 4ALMAGE.
The Eminent Brooklyn Divine's Sun.
day Sermon.
Subject; "The Battle Ours"

"a
kids will SILVER and hubble together. On,
lion would conquer thousand kids. The
battle opens. There are great multi
tude OF Syrans under General Ben.
hadad, strong as lions The Israel.
ties are few and weak like two little focks
of kids. Who beat? The lions. OF course
oh, no the kids, for it all depends whether
God is on the side OF the lions or the kids
After the battle 100. 900 Syrians lay dead on
the field, and q 900, attempting to fly, came
along by a great wall, which toppled and
crushed them to death.
Which was the stronger weapon-great
Goliath's sword or little David's sling.
David had five smooth stones from the brook.
He only used one in striking down Goliath.
He had a surplus OF ammunition. He had
enough 10 take down four more giants they
had appeared in the way. II all depends up
on whether God is on the side OF the shep-
herd boy or on the side of the giant.
There have been many in our day who
have ventured the opinion that Christianity
is falling back. and that in so years it will be
extinct. They found their opinion on the
assumed fact that the Bible is not as muah OF
book rs it used to be, and that portions OF
It are repulsive TO the people l reply by
asking, Which one Of the publishing houses
OF New York, Philadelphia, Boston or Chi
cago is publishing the Bible to-day with the
omission of a single verse or chapter? Are
not our publishers intelligent men? And
would they, contrary TO their financial inter-
ests, continue to publish the Bible without
the omission OF single chapter or a single
verse If it were becoming an unpopular book
and the people did not want it,
Ii Harpers or Appleton or Scribner or Lip
pincott should publish Bible with the
omission OF one chapter they would not sell
10 copies in 10 years. The fact that through
ought Chr.stendom there are hundreds Of
printing presses printing the word of God
without the omission OF chapter or a verse
proves that the Bible is popular, and the
fact that there are more being printed in
this decade than any other decade proves
that the Bible is increasing in popularity.
20 through the courtrooms Of the coun-
try. Wherever l find judges bench or a
clerks desk find the Bible. By what other
book would they take solemn oath? What
Is very apt to be among the brides presents?
The Bible. What is very apt to be put in the
trunk OF the young man wnen he starts for
city life? The Bible. Yoltaire predicted
that the Bible during the nineteenth century
would become an obsolete book. Well, we
are pretty nearly through the nineteenth CEN
fury. The Bible is not obsolete yet. There
is not much prospect Oft becoming obsolete,
buk L nave " ltAt YOU luul ludl TOOm-lnt
very room in which VOltaire wrote that pre-
diction-some time ago was crowded from
floor to ceiling with Bibles for Switzerland.
Suppose the congress of the United States
should pass law that no Bibles should DO
printed in the United States.
l. there are 9O,0O00O0 grown men AMI
women in the country, then there would be
80 900, 900 people armed against such Law.
But suppose the congress OF the Unite
States should pass law that Macaulays
history or Charles Rea les novels should not
be read-could you get half as large an army
or the fourth as large an army In other
words, there are, as you know and know.
a thousand men who would die for their
Bibles where there are so men who would
die for any other book. The fact that there
are now more Bibles being printed than
ever before, that publishers find it a financial
interest for them to continue tho Bible,
proves that this book IS still the most popular
book on the planet.
But. say those who are antagonistic,
christianity is falling back from the TACT
that the church is not as mu,h respected as
it used to be and it is not rs influential" l
reply to that with the statistic that one de-
nOmination-the Methodist church-accort
ing 10 a statistic given by one oithe bishops
dedicates on an average a new church every
day Ofthe year. Three hundred and sixty
five new churches in one denomination in a
year and over thousand new churches built
every year in this country. Does that look
as though the church were failing in its
power and were becoming wOrnOut institu-
ton? Around which institution in our COM
munities gather the most ardent Affections
The pOstOficc, the hotel, the courthouse, the
city hall or the churches?
Why. when our old Tabernacle was burn
ing there were hundreds OF men standing in
the streets who never went to thurch tears
raining down their cheeks. II is becausethe
church Of God stands nearer TO the Amer-
can people than any other institution. Men
may caricature the church and call il a col
lection Of hypOcrltes. but when their chill
dren are swept off with the diphtheria for
whom dothey send? To the postmaster, to
the attorney general, to the aldermen, or to
the pastors Of the ehurches2 And if there
be not room for the Obsequies in the private
house what building do they solicit? The
academy Of music. the hotel public hall,
courthouse? No, the churches. And If
they want music on the sad occasion do
they select the 'Marseillaiss' hymn, or
''God Save the Queen. or our own grand
National air? No, they want the old hymn
with which we sang their old Christian
mothers to sleep They want the Sunday
last Sabbath afternoon she was out before
she was seized with the awful sickness that
broke fathers heart and mothers heart Oh,
you know as well as do shall not dwell
on it any longer-the church Of God, instead
of being a wornout institution, stands nearer
the sympathies Of the people than it ever
did and eclipses all other institutions.
But our antagonists 90 on and say that
Christianity is falling back, in the fact that
infdelity is holder now and more blatant
than it ever was l deny the statement. In
fidelity is not near so bold now as it was in
the days OF our fathers and grandfathers.
There were times in this country when men
who were openly and above board infdel and
antagonlstic to Christianity could be elected
to high office. Now, let some man wishing
high position in the State proclaim himself
the foe of Christianity and an infldel, how
many States Of the Union would he carry?
how many counties? how many wards in
Brooklyn Not one.
All. my friends, inidelity in this day is not
half as bold as it used to be. II it comes
now, it is apt to come under the disguise Of
rhetoric or fantastic sentimentality. know
if man with great intelligence does become
an inAdel and begins an attack on Chris
tianity ii makes great excitement-of course
It does, and people come to the conclusion,
sion, that everything is going overheard be-
cause some man Of strong intellect assails
Christianity.
II man jumps overheard from Cunard
steamer, he makes more excitement than oil
the 500 sane passengers who continue in the
berths or on the decks. but does that stop
the ship Does that wreck all the 500 pas
sengersY II makes great excitement when q
man leaps from platform or a pulpit into
infdelity but does that hinder our glorious
Bible from taking its millions into the skies?
tell you inhdelity is not half as bold now as
1t used TO be.
Do you suppose such things could be
enacted now as were enacted in the days OF
Robespierre when a shameless woman was
elected TO be goddess. and she was carried
on a golden chair 10 cathedral, and the
people bowed down TO her as a divine being
and burned incense before her-she 10 take
the place OF the Bible, and OF Christianity.
and Of the Lord Almighty? And while that
ceremony was going on in the cathedral. in
the chapels and in the corridors adjoining
the cathedral scenes OF drunkenness and de-
bauchery and oOscenity were enacted such
as the world had never seen. Could such n
thing as that transpire now? No, sir. The
police would swoOp on it, whether in Paris
or New York. Infdelity is not half rs bold
now as Il used to be.
''But, say our antagonists. christianity
is falling back because science, its chief
anarox- "a frir ~ ~ him, o,-ar Nou- Iopv