Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1895-03-20
Believing and Doing.
For was ahungered, and We gave me no
meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink.
Matthew. XIV, AZ.

saws Rev. Hepworth in the New York Herald
nut the worlds heart is somewhat out of Or
der. We know enough about Christianity,
out do not do enough with what we know.
If our practice were equal to our theory we
should not need to pray for the millennium.
1t is one thing to believe right and quite an
other thing to live as we believe.
We do as little as we can to earn what is
called salvation and expect the Lord to work
miracle by which we shall be better off in
he other world than we have any right to be.
When we pray God to help us work for our
pwn benefit we think twelve hours a short
lay but woen He asks US to work for others
Twelve hours are more than we can endure.
In our relation to the Almighty there is an
element of hypocrisy, for we do as little as we
can and ask Him to be very fatherly and do
the rest.
We would like to be saved ourselves, but we
not, either in this life or in the life to come.
If our own appetites are satisfied we cannot
understand why any one should go hungry,
and if we are well clad in winter we thank
God for His good gifts, but give no passing
thought to and feel no responsibility for our
shivering neighhor.
That kind of religion, to speak with per-
feet frankness. is more or less of sham. The
man who insists upon his rights but fails to
recognize his duties is not Christian, no mat
ter what church he attends or what creed he
processes. 1t will be safer to tell the Lord
chat you have redeemed some fallen soul than
that you have acquired million or nodded
assent to every theological dogma that was
ever formulated Your creed will be no de-
fence unless you have life of self-sacrifice
behind it. Nor words, nor prayers, nor yet a
serious face constitute your claim on eternal
happiness, but rather deeds which have cost
you something The honest life of an honest
doubter is worth more to the world than the
Christianity of a man who prays Thy king
dom GOMEZ but does not lift his hand to
make it come.
If we were to put side by side the religion
which we as a community profess and our
utter indifference to the duties which that re-
ligion imposes we should have painful reve
lation. We know that love is the fulfilling
of the law, and vet we love ourselves only
and care very little what becomes of others.
We neither hold ourselves responsible for the
downfall of human brother or sister, nor
are we willing to make any sacrifice in order
to prevent that downfall. The pulpits talk of
brotherly kindness on Sunday morning and
the pews nod assent, but for six days in the
week neither pulpit nor pew will go out of its
way to lend hand to the tempted or to res
cue the degraded. People who are really
good, terder hearted, sympathetic. will sit at
ease in their comfortable chairs, possibly sigh
Sod pity the ,or this bitter night" thank
the Lord that they are themselves warm and
go to bed with an undisturbed conscience.
Let US find an illustration. Here is young
girl in straitened circumstances She is prac-
tically alone in the world, and the world has
already crushed the buoyanoy and hopeful
ness out of her heart. What is her life worth.
either to herself or to any one else? she asks
tearfully. VINO cares whether she remains
virtuous or becomes vicious? She watches
the more favored ones, who are evidently sur
rounded by all that wealth can purchase. but
not even look of pity or sympathy is be-
no fuel in the CRATE. How the heavens lower
how her bosom heaves with anguish-friend-
less alone helpless, What shall she do?
SILVER in rags and Keep her soul pure? Go
hungry in a world single crumb of whose
surplus would give her contentment2 If she
parts with honor she can have plenty. The
temptation to surrender grows stronger as the
l. ! Izex
perish for want of food. she makes the desper-
ate plunge. All is over for her from that
moment She is outcast and recovery is i'm
possible Women treat her with scorn and
men pass her by with a leer.
But how does God Almighty look on that
spectacle of ruin? And if the dear Christ
were here, how would He bear Himself tow
ard this tremb bling, precious soul. which would
gladly have lived in honesty, but was driven
to wrongdoing for the sake ofGbread to eat?
He would take His whip of knotted cords and
lash both pulpit and pew. His "Woe unto
you. scribes and Pharlsees," would resound
through the air like the thunder from SInai
"Hypocritesl' who are robed in purple and
fine linen, who devise novel pleasures in
which to make their leisure time pass swiftly,
but never give a thought to those who are in
the pit and crying for succor. Were He to
come upon the earth once more, were He to
look down from some towering height and
see the misery below. would He tell the
Church that goes by His name to draw the
cords of creed more tightly to spend more
time in defining the difference between the
northern and southern sides of theological
hair, or would He bid us brush all creeds aside
and do good days work to make the world
what it ought to be?
Multiply the case we have cited by ten
thousand. Think of the numberless men and
women who are tried and tempted beyond
human endurance who fall, not because they
prefer wrong to right, but because cruel ne
cessity dogs their every step. Then think of a
creed over which the righteous quarrel. and
see the sorry spectacle of virtuous men, indif-
ferent to rampant crime judging it more i'm
portant to make us believe something about
God than to do Gods will by saving His chill
dren!
Religion has no value whatever if it is mere
ly speculation concerning eternal verities
The Church which talks of Christ. but does
nothing for Him, is false Church from pull
pit to door.
The man who thinks himself Christian
because he supports institutional religion, but
feels no personal responsibility for the evils
which he might either prevent or remedy,
will not stand an even chance in heaven with
the infidel who believes nothing, but does
what he can.
The righteousness of the head is well enough
in its way, but the righteousness of the heart
is what God will demand of you
The seventh heaven is not.for the man who
subscribes to the Nicene Creed, but for the
man, whether he has any creed or no. who so
loves the Father that he has done some honest
work for Him.
Your religious theory is not. the material
out of which to make Jacobs ladder but
your religious practice will serve the purpose
so well that angels can ascend it with your
prayers aud descend it with Gods blessing.
Five Italians and one American were