The Bolivar bulletin. (Bolivar, Tenn.) 1888-1946, 1895-03-22
"a SERAPHIC DIET"
Rev. DR.. Talmage Talks About the
Isarelites' Food.
The Mama Sent from Heaven Likened
TO the Continual Feast ca be
Found In the Practice of
True Christianity.

ANue NnEAatiAuAtJs
The following discourse by Rev II.
Dewitt Talmage was delivered in the
Academy Of music, New York city, on
the subject: "A Seraphic Diet" being
based on the text:
Somewhat risky would be the under
taking to tell just what was the man
ma that fell to the Israelites in the
wilderness; of what it was made, how
it was made, and who made it. The
mamma was called angels food, but
why so called2 Was it because it came
from the place where angels live; or
because angels compounded it; or be-
cause angels did eat it; or because IL
was good enough for angels? On what
crystal platter was il carried to the
door of Heaven, and then thrown out?
How did it taste2 We are told there
was in it something like honey, but if
the saccharine taste in il had been too
strong, many would not have liked it,
and SO 1t may have had commingling
of havOrs-this delicacy of the skies.
1t must have been nutritious, for a ma
tion lived upon it for forty years. 1t
must have been healthful, for it is so
inspiringly applauded. 1t must have
been abundant, because it dismissed
the necessity of a sutler for a great
army. Each person had ration of
three quarts day allowed to him, and
SO fifteen million pounds were neces-
sary every week. Those were the
times of which my text speaks, when
linen did eat angels food" If the good
Lord who has helped me SO often, will
help me now, will first tell you what
is angels food, and then how we can
get some of it for ourselves. In our
mortal state we must have for masti-
cation, and digestion, and assimilation,
the products of the earth. Corporeity,
as well as mentality, and spirituality,
characterizes US. The style of diet has
much to do with our we'll being. Light
and frOthy food taken excl usively re-
suits in weak muscle and Semi-invalid-
ism. The taking of too much animal
food produces scnsuality. Vegetarians
are cranks. Observation-Disclosures of the
farinaceOus and the solid ordinarily
produces physical stamina.
But we have all occasionally been in
an ecstatic state where we forgot the
necessity of earthly food. We were
fed by joys, by anticipatiOns, by dis
coveries, by companionships that
dwindled the dining hour into insig-
nificance, and made the pleasures of
the table stupid and uninviting. There
have been cases where from seemingly
invisible sources the human body has
been maintained, as in the remarkable
case Of our invalid and Christian neigh
bOr, Mollie Fancher, known through
out the medical and Christian world
for that she was seven weeks without
earthly food, fed and sustained on
heavenly visions. Our beloved DIR.
lrenaeus Prime, editor and theOlogian,
recorded the wonders concerning this
girl. Prof. West, the great scientist,
marveled over it, and Willard Parker,
Of worldwide fame in surgery, threw
mp his hands in amazement at it.
There are times in all our lives when
the soul asserts itself, and says to the
body;
"Hushl Stand backl Stand down! l
am at a banquet where no chalices
CLEAN, and no viands smoke, and no
culinary implements clatter. am feed
ing on that which no human hand has
mixed and no earthly hand ever baked.
/ am eating angels food" If you have
never been in such an exalted state, i
commisserate your leaden tempera-
ment, and dismiss you from this serv-
ice as incompetent TO understand the
thrilling and glorious suggestiveness
of my text when it says: MAN did eat
angels food"
Now, what do the supernaturals live
on? They experience none of the de-
mands of corpOreity, and have no him
drance or environment in the shape of
bone, and muscle, and flesh, and hence
that which may delectate our palate,
or invigorate our poor, dying frames
would be of no use to them. But they
have food of their own. My text says
so. There may be other courses of food
in the heavenly menu that L am not
aware of, but 1 know of five or six
styles of food always on celestial ta-
bles when cherubim and seraphim, and
archangel gather for heavenly repast;
the mystery of redemption; celestial
lied music; the heavenly picturesque;
sublime colloquy; eternal enterprises;
sanity association; Divine companion
ship; celebrative jubilance.
There is one subject that excites the
curiosity and inquisitiveness of all
those angels. st. Peter says: (which
thing the angels desire to look into"
That is, why did Christ exchange a
palace for barn? Why did He drop a
scepter from His right hand to take
spear into His left side? Why quit the
anthem of the worshiping heavens to
hear the grooming of weary mothers
voice? Was straw better than a gar
land? "Could it not have been done
in some other way?" says angel the
first. ''Was the human race worth
such a sacrifce?" says angel the sec
ond. "How could Heaven get along
without Him for thirty-three years?"
says angel the third. Through that
assassination may sinful man rise in
to our eternal companionshipl" says
angel the fourth. And then they all
bend toward each other and talk about
it, and guess about it. and try to
fathom it, and prophesy concerning
it. But the subject is too big, and
they only nibble at il. They only
break of piece of it They only taste
it. They just dip into it. And then
one angel cries: Worthy is the lamb
that was slain!n aud another says:
''Unsearchable!" And another says:
Past finding outI" And another says:
'HalleluJAhr' And then they all fill
their cups Of gold with the new wine
OF the kingdom" Unlike the beakers