The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1894-09-14
COMMUNION OF SAINTS.
DR.. Talmage on the Origin and Evils
of Sectarianism.
He Recognizes the Good In Denominations
Because He Believes In the Liberty
of Bigotry Is the
Bane of All Sects.

communion OF SAINTS WAS In'
latest subject selected by Rev. L. De
Witt Talmage for his sermon to the
public through the press, the text be
ing from Judges xii. 6: "Then said they
unto him: Say now Shibboleth; and he
said Sibboleth, for he could not frame
to pronounce it right. Then they tool
him and slew him at the passages OF
Jordan" Following is the Sermon:
Do you notice the difference of pro
nunciation between shibboleth and sib
boleth? A very small and and unim
portant difference, you say. And yet
that difference was the difference be
tween life and death for great many
people. The Lords people, Gilead and
Ephraim, got into a great fight, and
Ephraim was worsted and on the retreat
came to the fords of the river Jordan
to rcross. Order was given that all
Ephraimites coming there be slain.
But how could it be found out who were
Ephraimites? They were detected by
their pronunciation. Shibboleth was
word that stood for river.
The Ephraimites had a brogue of
their own, and when they tried to say
'shibboleth" always left out the sound
of the "h." When it was asked that
they say shibboleth, they said sibbo-
leth, and were slain. ''Then they said
unto him, say now shibboleth; and he
said sibboleth, for he could not frame
to pronounce it. Then they took him
and slew him at the passages of Jor-
dan" A very small difference, you
say, between Gilead and Ephraim, and
yet how much intolerance about that
small difference, The Lords tribes in
our timely which | mean the differ
ent denomination of Christians-some-
times magnify very small difference,
and the only difference between scores
of denominations to-day is the differ
ence between shibboleth and sibboleth.
The church of God is divided into a
great number of denominations. Time
would fail me to tell of the Calvinists.
and the Arminians, and the Sabbath
rians, and the BaXterians, and the Dunk
ers, and the Shakers, and the Quakers.
and the Methodists, and the Baptists,
and the Episcopalians, and the Luther
ans, and the Congregationalists, and
the Presbyterians, and the Spiritual
lists, and a score of other denomina-
tions of religionists, some of them
founded by very good men, some of
them founded by very egotistic men,
some of them founded by very bad
men. But as | demand for myself lib
erty of conscience, l must give that
same liberty to every other man, re-
membering that he no more differs
from me than differ from him. adj
vocate the largest liberty in all re-
igious belief and form of worship. In
art. in politics, in morals, and in re-
ligion, let there be no gag law, no
moving of the previous question, no
persecution, no intolerance.
You know that the air and the water
keep pure by constant circulation. and
/ think there is tendency in religious
discussion to publication and moral
health. Between the fourth and the
sixteenth centuries the church pro-
posed to make people think Alright by
prohibiting discussion, and by strong
censorship of the press, and rack, and
gibbet, and hot lead down the throat,
tried to make people orthodox: but it
was discovered that you cannot change
a mans belief by twisting off his head.
nor make man see different by put
ting an awl through his eyes. There
is something in a mans conscience
which will hurl off the mountain that
you throw upon it, and, unsinged of
the fire, out of the flame will make red
wings on which the martyr will mount |
to glory.
propose to speak to you of sectari-
anism-its origin, its evils, and its |
cures. There are those who would |
make us think that this monster, with |
horns and hoofs. is religion. shall |
chase it to its hiding place, and drag it |
out of the cavern of darkness, and rip |
off its hide. But ! want to make dis |
tinctiou between bigotry and lawful |
fondness for peculiar religious beliefs
and forms of worship. | have no ad-
miration for nothingarian.
In a world of such tremendous vicis-
situde and temptation, and with soul |
that must after while stand before a
throne of insufferable brightness, in a
day when the rocking of the mountains
and the flaming of the heavens and the
upheaving of the seas shall be among
the least of the excitements, to give ac-
count for every thought, word, action,
preference, and dislike-that man is
mad who has no religious preference
But our early education, our physical
temperament, our mental constitution,
will very much decide our form of
worship.
A style of psalmody that may please
me may displease you. Some would
like to have a minister in gown and
bands and surplice. and others prefer
to have minister in plain citizens ap-
parel. Some are most impressed when
a little child is presented at the altar
and sprinkled of the waters of holy
benediction lin the name of the
Father, and of the Son, and of the
Holy Ghost" and others are more i'm
out 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 no noise in prayer,
not word, not a whisper. Another
man, just as good, prefers by gesticula-
ton and exclamation to express his
devotional aspirations One is Just as
good as the other. Every man fully I
persuaded in his own mind {
In tracing out the religion of secta
rianism or bigotry, l find that great {
deal of ii comes from wrong education /.
in the home circle. There are parents !
who do not think it wrong to caricature [
and jeer the peculiar forms of religion j
in the world, and denounce other sects
and other denominations 1t is {
,-a,-.- nftar, thn AGA ILL d. l La e 4: