Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1895-03-20

Connecticut went to large factory, and
saw over the door written the words, mo ad.
mittance." I entered and saw over the next
door, "No admittance." OF COURSE Ientered.
l got inside and found It Q pin factory, and
they were making pins, very ssrviceable, fine
and useful pins. So the spirit Of exclusive
ness has practically written over tho outside
door Of many church, "No admittance." -
;i And Il the stranger ente. he finds practically
tance," and II he goes in over all the pew
doors seems written, s'No admittance," while
the minister stands In the pulpit, hammering
out his little niceties Of belief, pounding out
the technicalities Of religion, making pins.
In the most practical common sense way,
and laying aside the nonessentials and the
hard definitions of religion, go out on the
God given mission, telling the people what
they need and when and how they can get it.
Comparatively little effort as yet has been
our % midst called skepdcs. and he who goes
to work here VIII not be building upon
another mans foundation. There is great
multitude Of them. They are afraid OF us
and our churches, for the reason we do not
know how TO treat them. One OF this class
met Christ, and hear with what tenderness
and pathos and beauty and success Christ
dealt with him: "Thou shalt love the Lord
thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy
soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy
strength. This is the first commandment,
and the second is like to this-namely, thou
shalt lovethy neighbor as thyself. There Is
And the scribe said to Him, "Well, Master,
Thou hast said the truth, for there Is one
God, and to love Him with all the heart,
and all the understanding, and all the soul,
apd all tbe strength Is more than whole
burnt offerings and sacrifices" And when
Jesus saw that he answered discreetly He
said unto him, ''Thou art not far from the
N nj G.n1 90 oil arti0 n xr-oa oryad
in one interview. But few Christian people
treat the skeptic in that way. Instead of tax
Ing hold Of him with the gentle hand Of love,
We are apt to take him with the iron pinchers
VI eccleSiasticism.
You would not be so rough on that man il
faith In Christianity. I have known men
,keptical from the fact that they grew up in
houses where religion was overdone. Sun
lay was the most awful day Of the week.
They had religion driven into them with 4
rip hammer. They were surfeited with
prayer meetings. They were stuffed and
.hokei with catechisms. They were often
.old they were the worst boys the parents
sver knew, because they liked to ride down
1ill better than to read Bunyan's "Pilgrim's
talked Of religion, they drew down tho COR
aers Of their mouth and rolled up their eyes.
lf any one thing will send q boy or girl to
ruin sooner than another, that Is it IT
had such father and mother, I fear I should
have been An infidel. When was q boy in
Sunday-school, at one time We had teacher
who, when we were not attentive, struck US
over the head with a New Testament, and
there is a way OF using even the Bible SO as
20 make 1t offensive.
Others were tripped up Of skepticism from.
being grievously wronged by some man who
professed to be Christian. They had a
partner in business who turned out to be a
arst-class scoundrel, though professed
Christian. Many years ago they lost all faith
oy what happened in an oil company which
was formed amid the petroleum excitement.
The company owned no land, or II they did
there was no sign Of oil produced, but the
President of the company was q Presbyterian
elder, AMI the treasurer was an Episcopal
vestryman, and one director was q Methodist
class lea Ter, and the other directors promi-
uent members OF Baptist and Congregational
churches. Circulars were gotten out telling
what fabulous prospects opened before this
company. Innocent lmen and women
who had little money to invest, and that
little their all, said, Il don't know anything
about this company, but 50 many good men
and taking stock in 1t must be almost a
good as joining the church."
So they bought the stock and perhaps re-
ceived one dividend so as to keep them still
but after awhile they found that the COM
pany had reorsanized and had a different
ent directors. Other engagements or ill
health had caused the former officers Of the
company, with many regrets. to resign.
And all that the subscribers Of that stock had
to show for their investment was a beauti-
fully ornamented certificate. Sometimes
that man looking over his old papers comes
across that certificate, and it is so suggestive
that he VOWS he wants none of the religion
that the presidents and trustees and direc-
tors OF that oil company professed. OF
course their rejection of religion on such
grounds was unphilosophical and unwise. 1
am told that many OF the United States army
desert every year, aud there are thousands
of court martials every year. Is that
anything against the United States Gov
ernment that swore them in? And
II a soldier Of Jesus Christ desert, Is that
anything against the Christianity which
he swore to support and defend9 How do
you judge OF the currency Of . sountry2 By
q counterfeit biu2 Oh, you must have pa
tence with those who have been swindled by
religious pretenders. 1.-Two In the presence Of
others frank, honest, earnest Christian life,
that they may be attracted to the same Saw
our upon whom your hopes depend.
Remember skepticism always has some
reason, good or bad, for existing. Goethe's
irrehSion started when the news came to
Germany of the earthquake at Lisbon, Nov.
1, ITS. That $4,000 people should have
perished In that earthquake and in the after
rising Of the Tagus so stirred his sympathies
that he threw up his belief in the goodness OF
God.
Others have gone into skepticism from b
natural persistence in asking the reason why.
They have been fearfully stabbed of the in
terrogation point. There are so many things
they cannot get explained. They cannot un-
derstand the Trinity or how God can be SOW
ereign and yet man a free agent. Neither
can I. They say:'1 don't understand why
a good God should have let sin come into the
world. Neither do !. You say: "Why was
that child started in life with such disadvan-
tages, while others have all physical and
mental equipment?' I cannot tell. They 60
out OF church on Easter morning and say:
'That doctrine of the resurrection con-
founded me-" So it is to me a mystery be-
yond unravelment. understand all the pro-
cesses by which men get into the dark. I
know them all. have travelled with burning
feet that blistered way. The first word which
Mamma" but I think the first word ever
uttered was: "Why2" I know what it Is to
have a hundred midnights pour their
darkness into one hour. Such men are not
to be scoffed, but helped. Turn your back
upon drowning man when you have the
that woman in the third story OF a house
perish in the flames when you have a ladder
with which to help her out and help her
down, rather than turn your back scoff1ngly
on skeptic whose soul Is In moro peril tnan
the bodies Of those other endangered ones
possibly can be. Oh, skepticism is a dark
land. There are men in this house who
would give a thousand worlds II they pos
sessed them to get back to the placid faith OF
their fathers and mothers, and it is our place
to help them, and we may help them, never
thrsugh their heads, but always through
their hearts. These skeptics, when brought
to Jesus, will be nightly effective, far more
SO than those who never examined the evil
dences of Christianity.
Thomas Chalmers was once skeptio
Robert Hall skeptic. Robert Newton skep-
tic, Christmas Evans skeptic. But when
Ice with strong hand they took hold Of the
chariot of the gospel they rolled it on with
what momentum! II I address such men
and women to-day, throw out no scoff. I
lmplead them by the memory of the good
old days, when at their mothers knee they
said, "Now I lay me down to sleep" and by
those days and nights OF scarlet fever in
which she watched you, giving you the
medicine at Just the right time and turning