The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1894-05-08
VISITATION OF BISHOP RANDOLPH
Two Interesting Services Conducted In the
Episcopal Churches Sunday.

| Two Interesting Services Conducted I'm tho
Episcopal Churches Sunday.
The annual Episcopal visitation by
Bishop a. M. Randolph, of the diocese
of Southern Virginia, was made to the
churches in this city Sunday. The Wis
| tia i IN was made to St. Johns Church
at the morning service and at Christ
| Church at night, and both services were
attended by an unusually large number
| of people.
The music at each of the churches
was excallent and the services very in
teresting. Seven persons were con-
firmed at st. Johns and ten at Christ
Church.
The topic of the bishops morning dis
course was the law Of service and sac
rifice. This" said he, was the fun
dimental principle of the religion of
Christ.
This was the law which aotuated
the life Of Christ and it was the power
that won the hearts OF men. 1t was
Chrlst's service to mankind and his sac
ri6ce of himself that made the salvation
of men possible. This great law was a
powerful force in material and temporal
affairs. Christ had said: HE that
would be the greatest Of all must be the
| servant of ALL" Those who would win
the hearts Of men must do 1t by service
and sacrifice. The politicion and the
offlce-seeker must recognize this.
1.-The man who asks for official place
| for his own exaltation should fail. Men
! are chosen and elevated for the service
they render. The operation of this law
tends to destroy the one man power and
it Is the principle which underlays free
institutions. Christ pronounced the
great principle of liberty in proclaiming
the law of service and sacrifice, and the
growth Of Christianity had resulted in
the overthrow Of despotism. Even
kings now ruled by consent and for the
benefit of the people, and those powers
that did not recognize this law were
rapidly disintegrating
He thon applied to thu family the
same rules that governed the State and
society. 1t was the dominant factor in
Christian civilization, and deserved
recognition in all the relations of life.
At Christ Church the evening lesson
was read by Rev. DR.. w. FL. Meade, and
Bishop Randolph preached most ex-
cellent sermon from this text: "Let
him that thinkoth he standeth take heed
lest he fall" Among other things the
bishop said:
"There hath no temptation taken you
butsuch as Is common to man; but God
is faithful, who will not suffer you to be
tempted above that we are able, but will
with the temptation also make way to
escaCe, that We may be able to bear it."
''St Paul was tho guide and pastor of
the church at Corinth and they had
written to him as to how to lead Chris
tian life. 1t must have been hard to
lead such a life at Corinth. The Creek
of that day was a creature OF the pres
ent. He held to kind of optimism
that refused to believe in anything OF
pain or suf ,riDg From a ma.eri al
standpoint IL was the most beautiful
civilization the world had ever seen.
The Greeks laughed at the idea of inn
mortality, and it was hard for the Chris.
tians in their midst to hold on to tho
hope and faith in the unseen when
everybody around them was worshiping
the unseen"