Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1894-09-15

me may d1splease you. Some would like
TO have minister in gown and bands
and surplice, and others prefer to have
q minister in plain citizens apparel
/ Some are most impressed when little
child is presented at tho altar and
sprinkled of the waters Of holy bene-
diction Sin the name Of the Father, and
of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost,
and others are more impressed when the
penitent comes up ont Of the river, his
garments dripping with the waters Of a
baptism which signifies the washing
away Of sin. Let either have his own
way. One man likes nonoise in prayer.
not word, not a whisper. Another
man, just as good, prefers by gesticula-
ton and exclamation to express his de-
votional aspirations. One is just as good
as the other. Every man fully per-
shaded in his own mind"
George Whitefeld was going over o
Quaker rather roughly for some of his
religious sentiments, and the Quaker
said: George, I am as thou art am
for bringing all men to the hope Of the
gospel Therefore, if thou will not
quarrel with me about my broad brim,
/ will not quarrel with thee about thy
black gown. George, give me thy hand. !"
A Cause of Bigotry.
In tracing out the religion of sectari-
anisnl or bigotry | find that great
deal Of it comes from wrong education
in the home circle. There are parents
who do not think it wrong to caricature
and jeer tho peculiar forms of religion
in the world and denounce other sects
and other denominations. 1t is very Of
ten the case that that kind of education
acts just opposite to what was expected
and the children grow up, and after
awhile 60 and see for themselves, and
looking in those churches and find
ing that tho people are good there.
and they love God and keep his COM
mandments. by natural reaction they 90
and join those very churches. I could
mention the names of prominent minis
tiers of the gospel who spent their whole
life bombarding other denominations,
and who lived to sec their children
preach the gospel in those very denomi-
nations. But it is often the case that
bigotry starts in household, and that
tho subject Of it never RECEIVERS. There
are tens of thousands Of bigots 10 years
old.
think sectarianism and bigotry also
rise from too great prominence of any
one denomination in a community. ALI
the other denominations are wrong. and
his denomination is right because his
denomination is the most wealthy, Or
the most popular, or the most inf1uen-
tial, and it is ''our" church, and our
religious organization, and ''our'
choir, and 'our." minister, and the man
losses his head and wants other denomi-
nations to know their places.
1t is great deal better in any COM
munity when the great denominations
of Christians are about equal in power,
marching side by side for the worlds
conquest. Mere outside prosperity, mere
worldly power, is no evidence that the
church is acceptable to God. Better
barn with Christ in the manger than
cathedral with magnificent harmonies
rolling through the long drawn aisle
and an angel from heaven in the pulpit
IL llerG W no ShrlSb III INC CHsluCel ulu
no Christ IL the robes.
Bigotry the Child of Ignorance.
Bigotry is often tho child Of ignorance
You seldom find a man with large in
tellect who is bigot. 1t is the man
who thinks he knows a great deal, but
does not. That man is almost always
bigot. The whole tendency of education
Nd s- tfD 1,,.s,,
of that kind Of state of mind and heart
There was in the far east great obelisk,
and enc sido Of the obelisk was white,
another side of the obelisk was green,
another side of the obelisk was blue
and travellers went and looked at that
obelisk, but they did not walk around
it. One man looked at one side, an
other at another SIDE and they came
home each one looking at only one side,
and they happened to meet, the sto1y
says, and they got into rank quarrel
about the color of that obelisk. One
man said it was white another man
said it was green, another man said it
was blue, and when they were in the
very heat of the controversy a moro in
telligent traveller came and said: "Gen-
tlemen, / have seen that obelisk, and
you are alright, and you are all wrong.
Why didn't you walk all around the
obelisk?''
Look out for the man who sees only
one side of q religious truth. Look out
for the man who never walks around
about these great theories of Cod and
eternity and the dead. He viii be
bigot inevitably-the man who only sees
one side. There is no man more to be
pitied than he who has in his head just
ono idea-no more, no less. More light,
less sectarianism. There is nothing that
will so soon kill bigotry as sunshine
Gods sunshine
So have set before you what coz
slider to be the causes of bigotry. have
set before you the origin of this great
evil. What are some of the baleful eff
fects? First of all. it cripples investiga-
ton. You are wrong, and | am right,
and that ends it. No taste for explora-
ton, no spirit Of investigation. From
the glorious realm of Gods truth, over
which an archangel might fly from etcr
nifty to eternity and not reach the limit,
the man shuts himself ont and dies,
blind mole under a cornshock 1t stops
all investigation.
Wasted Ammunition.
Another great damage done by the
sectarianism and bigotry of the church
is that it disgusts people with the Chris
tian religion. Now, my friends, the
church of God was never intended for
war barrack. People are afraid of
riot. You go down the street, and you
see an excitement and missiles flying
through the air, and you hear the shock
of firearms. Do you. the peaceful and
Industrious citizen, go through that
street? "Oh, no." you will say; "I'H
go around the block. " Now, men come
and look upon this narrow path to heav-
en-, and sometimes see the ecclesiastical
brickbats flying every whittier, and they
say; well, guess III take the broad
road. There is so much sharpshooting