The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1895-12-01
RELIGIOUS NEWS
AND THOUGHT,
GATHERED FROM THE RELIGIOUS
AND SECULAR PRESS.
Words of Wisdom and Thoughts
Worth PonderinG on Religious
and Moral Subjects.

1T is not quite clear says the New
York Outlook, that to follow Christ
is something more than subscribe 10 a
creed, share a public worship, or sup
port by money or by service the instl-
tutions of religion? that it is more imam
what we sometimes call religion Is
it not equally clear that II is some
thing more than to go about DONG
good, as occasion offers, here and there,
incidentally, in busy life? 1t Is de-
liberately to consecrate ones self to the
cause of righteousness and truth IN the
world cost what that conservation
may. to engage in a life of campaign
against every form OF lniqmty-pollti-
CAL social, Industrial, Individual
wheresoever that campaign may leao
and whatsoever it may involve. 1t Is
to determine TO seek noble ends only
by noble means; to make material CIV
illzation take its second ANA flSnt VI
place; to eschew sensational metnoos
even Tor the moral results; and, above
all, never TO compromise with evil IN
order to contend against evil, never 10
fight fire witch fire, never TO take the
standard OF ones age as ones own,
even for the purpose of improving II.
lessly, every form of corruption, Wheth-
err it be intrencehed in high places,
honored in church and buttressed by
state or whether it is embodied IN pop
ular prejudices and expressed IN popu-
lar clamor 1t means for the pulpit,
to rebuke PhariSaiSm In It's own peWS,
the press, to rebuke preJudlceS IN us
own party. 1t means for the politician,
to prefer political defeat TO dlShonora-
BILE trucking; for the lawyer, to be
minister of justice, not a mere Garner
of fees; for the merchant, to dare bank
ruptcy but never to compromise with
his conscience; for the manufacturer
and mechanic, to- hate authorizations
and mechanical false pretense.
LITTLE SINS.
Many appear to think that it is only
Important to- keep ones self from
grievous sin. If one does that he iG
white enough, they say, for this world.
The little sins which are so common,
what matters it whether we endeaVCr
| 10 guard against them or not? COD is
lenlent. He will not treasure them UP
! against us. He knows we are human,
and do not the little SIMS these almost
colcrless acts from which angels, and
! angels only, of all created beings, are
! free, simply show the weakness OF our
| humanity? This is dangerous pleading.
Sin can never be anything but otfens-
i've in the sight of God and the heaven
| ly host. The greater and more contin-
uous, the more offensive; the less
grievous, the less offensive. There are
no white sins If an act or thought is
white it is not a sin; if it is sin
| 1t is not white.
If we are to give an account fer
every idle word, il we are to keep OUR
selves unspotted from the world, if we
are to have pure religion and unde-
filed, we must not indulge loose no
tons about sins which are allowable
and sins which are not allowable. II
there is a divine law against an act
| that act is sin; and if we hold to the
contrary we impeaoh the wisdom OF
the Almighty lawgiver and accuse him
of making laws arbitrarily and without
reason. 1t may be that, with all our
watchfulness we shall not always
avoid these lesser offenses; but it is
certain that we cannot expect to live
! lives pleasing to God if we excuse our
| selves from obedience to the jots and
TITLES of the law on the ground that
| obedience or disobedience makes little
or no difference. "-Independent.