The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1895-12-12

age were denounced by the Church
OF their time as emissaries Of tbs
devil, aud were made to feel, in pro.
portion 10 its power. the cruel and
enslaving hand OF the Church, which
should rather have exemplified the
free, peaceable, and beneficeut sp,r-
il OF its reputed Head. In nineteen
hundred years, the Church has INSIDE
not much progress from those Sons
OF thunder who. not comprehendiug
what manner of spirit they were Of.
were eager, till forbidden by the ac.
tual presence and word Of Jesus, 10
call down fire from Heaven 10 con
sumo an unfriendly village. Simon
Peters attempt Ia the presence of
the Lord to defend and propagate
the Gospel by the sword presents a
living picture through eighteen cen
turies of cruel Church intolerance,
deyilish persecution, bitter rivalry
and denominational bigotry, which,
more than all intidels and atheists,
have denied the world the benefits
of a Gospel of love and prevented
the coming of our Fathers Kingdom
upon the earth.
Still writes DR.. Atkins in the sym
postum: "A survey of the political
field of mankind will reveal the graf
flying fact that the freedom Of the
populations and the thrift of liberal
institutions is in direct proportion
to the prevalence of the Church's in
fuence over the masses. Our own
nation stands at the head in both re-
spects: thorough Church prevalence
and complete freedom;" to which
Mr.. Cole adds his amen in the fol-
lowing easy flowing words: 1.-THE
largest liberty, the nohlest develop
ments OF character, the enjoyment
OF the iargesE number of human
rights, are IN those lands where the
Church has had her saving and up
lifting ministry" They reduce the
question to geographical determine
ton. They forget, however, the de-
struction of ali freedom in Palestine.
Asia Minor, and Greece where the
Church did its first work, and the
present condition of all the Russias,
and Italy, and Portugal, and SPAN
the home Of the Church's most per,
feet enginery, and the American
States south Of US, where the masses
are completely dominated by the
Church The liberty lands are rathe,
those that have developed and fos-
tered magnificent revolts from
Church prevalence and crushing &c.
c,esiasticism. Then, too, if freedom
seem to be coterminous with Church
prevalence, SO does also drunken.
ness and the liquor traffic. "Chris
tendon VS.. Saloondom," said Johr
G. Woolley; land ninety-fve pei
cent. of male church members arr
on the pay roll of the drink-a.
gaugers, G, llectors, store keepers
or silencc-ksepers." What can on,
"saving and uplifting ministry" il
North Carolina say upon this point
What the world knows of Christi
anlty it learns from the Church's il
lustration Of it. Mohammedans, TO-
instance, do not distinguish, an,
more than certain nominal Chris
tians, between Christianity and tn,
Church. A recent writer in tn,
Quarterly Review claimed that prog
ress, material, moral, and intellect
ual, is everywhere coterminous will
Christianity. Ameer Ali, a Britisl
citizen and lawyer Of ability
writing upon ''Islan and It
critics ''in the September Nine
teemh Century, arrays the hoar
abuses and crimes which have ours
ed, and still curse Christendom, Il
such way as to leave the impression
that if Christianity is not directl
responsible for them, it is powerles
to counteract them. He notes tn
terrible prosecutions of the Church
the determination Of native heathe
races by Christian" nations lik
the United States and England; tn
ruin of African nations by gi
and rum by Christian nations fo
gain; and the drunkenness and pro.
titution in ''orthodoX' cities G
Chrlstendom, leaving the sad in
preston that Christianity has littl
or nothing to boast of. The wis
: editor of the Christian ;Standar
! thereupon remarks. "Such attach
will serve good purpose, if the
arouse Christians to the responsibi
tiles resting upon them to exel
, themselves more and more to estal
.. . lish the Kingdom of God and b
. RIGHTEOUSNESS Not the Churc
and its glory; the Church and its d.
:. minion; the Church and its theol
gy; but the Church and its RICH
EOUsNEss. This Moslem writ'
2 triumphs over us iu his magagir
Z encounter as the enemies of Isra
:, triumphed over them in the days
Israel's wickedness, and for Il
. same reason. Christendom is n
> keeping covenant with Gcd; not f,
= lowing loyal and .bravely the Gre
Captain Of her salvation, and is di
comfited by the enemy. If We a
= not glorylng in our shame, we a
;. glorying in forgetfulness of it,
. CYRUS THOMPSON.