The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1894-09-12
HE SEES EVERY SIDE.
DIR. TALMAGE's ELOQUENT PLEA
FOR CHRISTIAN TOLERATION.
He Advocates the Greatest Liberty
in All Religious Belief and Form of
Worship and scores Intolerance
and BiGOtry-A Broad Gospel Plat
form.

anu bAEOtEg-A nEOiu OOHBCA
form.
BROOKLYN, Sept s.-The Rev. Dr.
Talmage, who is now in Australia.
whence he viii shortly sail for Ceylon
and India, has selected as the subject
for today's sermon through the press
Communion of Saints" the text chosen
being 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 took
him and slew him at the passages OF
Jordan.
Do you notice the difference of pro-
nounciation between shibboleth and sib-
boleth? a very small and unimportant
difference, you say. And yet that differ
ence was the difference between life and
death for a great many people. The
Lords people, Gilead and Ephriam, got
into a great fight, and Ephrlam was
worsted, and on the retreat came to the
fords Of the river Jordan 10 cross. Order
was given that all Ephraimites coming
there be slain. But how could II be
found out who were Epnriamites? They
were detected by their pronunciation.
Shihboleth was a word that stood for
river.
The Ephriamites had a brogue OF their
own, and when they tried to say "shlbbO-
leth' always left out the sound of the
h When it was asked that they say
shibboleth, they said sibbOleth and were
slain Then said they unto him, Sey
now shibboleth, and he said sibboleth, for
he could not frame to pronounce it right
Then they took him and slew him at the
passages of Jordan" y very small differ
ence, you say, between Giead ana
Ephraim, and yet how much intolerance
about that small differencei The Lord s
tribes in our timely which l mean the
different denominations of Christians
sometimes magnify a very small differ
ence, and the only difference between
scores Of denominations today IS the
difference between shibboleth and sib-
boleth.
Uses of Religious Discussion.
The church of God is divided into a
great number of denominations. Time
would fail me to tell of the Calvinlsts
and the Armenians, and the Dunllards.and
the shakers, and the quakers, and the
methodists, and the baptists, and the
episcopalians, and the Lutherans, and
the congregarionalists. and the presby-
terians, and the spiritualists, and a score
of other denominations of religiOnists
men, some of them founded by very ego
tistic men, some of them founded by
very bad men. But as / demand for my
self liberty of conscience 1 must give
that same liberty TO every other man,
remembering that he no more differs
from me than 1 differ from him. 1 ad-
vocate the largest liberty i'm all religious
belief and form of worship. In art, in
politics. i'm morals and in religion let
there be no gag law. no moving of the
previous question, no persecution, no in
tolerance.
You know that the air and the water
keep pure by constant circulation, and 1
think there is a tendency in religious dis
cussion TO publication and moral health.
Between the fourth and the sixteenth
centuries the church proposed TO make
people think Alright by prohibiting dis
cussion. and 10y strong censorship of the
press and rack and gibbet and hot lead
down the throat tried to make people
orthodox, but II was discovered that you
cannot change a mans belief by twisting
off his head nor make man see differ
emily by putting an awl through his
eyes. There is something I'm a mans
conscience which will hurl off the noun
tain that you threw upon II, and, I'M
sfnged of the fire. out of the flame will
make red wings on which the martyr
will mount TO glory.
In that time Of which / speak. between
the fourth and sixteenth centuries. peO-
pie went from the house of God into the
most appalling iniquity, and right along
by consecrated affairs there were tides
of drunkenness and RIGHTEOUSNESS such
as the world never heard Of, and the
very sewers of perditiOn broke loose and
flooded the church. After awhile the
printing press was freed, and il broke
the shackles Of the human mind. Then
there came a large number Of bad books,
and where there was one man hostile TO
the Christian religion there twenty
men ready 20 advocate It. So / have not
any nervousness In regard 10 this battle
going on between truth and error. The
truth VIII conquer just as certainly as
that God Is stronger than the devil. Let
error run II you only let truth rum along
with it. Urged on by skeptic's shout
and transcendentalists spur, let IL run
Gods angels Of wrath are I'm hot pur-
suit. and quicker than eagles beak
clutches out a hawks heart Gods ven
geance will tear It 10 pieces.
Evils of sectnrinnIsm.
propose to speak to you of sectarian-
ism-its origin. its evils and ii cures.
There are those who would make us
think that this monster, with horns and
hoofs, is religion. l shall chase it TO its
hiding place and drag it out OF the cav
| ems Of darkness and rip OFF its hide.
But | want TO make a distinction be-
tween bigotry and the lawful fondness
! for peculiar religious belief and forms
| of worship. l have no admiration for a
| nothingdrian.
In world Of such tremendous vicissi-
tude and temptation, and with a soul
] that must after awhile stand before a
throne of insufferablc brightness, in a
day when the rocking of the mountains,
and the flaming OF the heavens, and the
upheaval 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 tenn
permanent, 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
| 70 have minister In gown and bans
and surpllce, and others prefer 10 have
a minister in plain citizens apparel Some
are most impressed when a little child
Is presented at the altar and sprlnkled
| OF the waters of a holy benedlction '1n
| the name 90 the Father. and of the Son,
and Of the Holy Ghost" and others. are
| more impressed when the penitent comes
up out OF the river, his garments drip
| ping 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 a word, not a
whisper. Another man, just as good.
| prefers by gesticulation and exclamation
| 10 express his devotional aspirations.
| one Is just as good as the other EVERY
man fully persuaded In his own mind"
George Whiteheld was going over a