The L'Anse sentinel. (L'Anse, L.S., Mich.) 18??-current, 1895-02-09

y y
their health is well nigh gone, taking
not pins worth of that which be-
longs to others for themselves, though
with skillful stroke of pen they nigh
have enriched themselves, and built
their country seats on the banks
OF the Hudson or the Rhine.
1t is a mean thing in human nature
that men and women are not praised
for doing well, but only excoriated
when they do wrong. by divine ar
rangement the most of the families of
the earth are at peace, and the most of
these united in marriage have for each
other affinity and affection. They may
have occasional differences, and here
and there a season of pout, but the
vast majority of those in the conjugal
relation chose the most appropriate
companionship and are happy in that
relation. You hear nothing of the
quietude and happiness of such homes,
though nothing but death will them
part
But one sound of marital discord
makes the ears of continent and per-
haps hemisphere, alert. The one
letter that ought never to have been
written, printed in a newspaper, makes
more talk than the millions of letters
that crowd the post offices and weigh
down the mail carriers with express
sions of honest love- Tolstoi, the
great Russian author, is wrong when
he prints book for the depreciation
of marriage. If your observation has
put you in an attitude of deploration
for the marriage state, one or two
things is true in regard to you; you
have either been unfortunate in your
acquaintanceship, or you yourself are
morally rotten. The world, not as
rapidly as we would like, but still with
long strides, is on the way to the
beautitudes and felicity which the BIZ
BILE depicts. The man who can not see
this is wrong, either in his heart, or
liver, or spleen. Look at the great
Bible picture gallery, where Isaiah has
set up the picture of arborescence.
girdling the world with cedar, and fir,
and pine, and lockwood, and the lion
led by a child; and st. Johns pic
lures of waters and trees, and
white horse cavalry, and tears wiped
away, and trumpets blown, and harps
struck, and nations redeemed. While
there are ten thousand things do not
like, have not seen any discourage
ment for the cause of God for twenty
five years. The kingdom is coming.
The earth is preparing to put on bridal
array. We need to be getting our an
Tn,
hymnology we shall have more use for
Antioch than for Windham; for Ariel
than for Naomi. Let "IIarl<! from
the tombs a doleful cry" be sub
merged with "Joy to the world, the
Lord is GOMEZ" Really, if l thought
the human race were as determined to
be bad, and getting worse, as the pes
simists represent, would think it was
hardly worth saving. II after hun
dreds of years of gospelization no i'm
provement has been made, let us give
up and go at something else besides
praying and preaching. My opinion is
that if we had enough faith in quick
results, and could go forth rightly
equipped with the Gospel call, the bat
tie for God and righteousness would
end with this nineteenth century, and
the twentieth century, only five or
six years off, would begin the
millennium, and Christ would reign,
either in person on some throne set up
between the Alleghenies and the
Rockies. or in the institutions of mercy
and grandeur set up by His ransomed
people, Discouraged work will meet
with defeat Expectant and buoyant
work will gain the victory. Start out
with the idea that all men are liars
and scoundrels, and that everybody is
as bad as he can be, and that society,
and the church and the world are on
the way to demolition, and the only
use you will ever be to the world will
be to increase the value of lots in u
cemetery.
We need a more cheerful front in all
our religious work. People have
enough trouble already, and do not
want to ship another cargo Of trouble
in the shape of religiosity. If religion
has been to you a peace, defense, an
inspiration, and joy, say SO. Say it
by word of mouth; by pen in your right
manu-, ny lace IlluIHlueu WIFI u ulVlHc
If this world is ever to
be taken for God, it will not be by
groans, but by hallelujahs. If we
could present the Christian religion as
it really is, in it's true attractiveness,
all the people would accept it, and ac-
cept it right away. The cities, the ma
tions would cry out: "Give us that! Give
it to us in all its holy magnetism and
gracious power! Put that salve on our
wounds! Throw back the shutters for
that morning light! Knock off these
chains with that silver hammer! Give
us Christ-IIis pardon, His peace, His
comfort, His Heaven! Give us Christ in
song; Christ in sermon; Christ in book,
Christ in living example," AS system
of didactics, religion has never gained
one inch of progress. AS technical
ity, it befogs more than it irradi-
ates. AS a dogmatism, it is an
awful failure. But as fact,
as a reinforcement, as trans
figuration, it is the mightiest
thing that ever descended from the
heavens, or touched the earth. Elk
emplify it in the life of good man or
a good woman, and no one can help
but like it. A city missionary visited