The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1896-07-06
BISHOP FOWLER'S ELOQUENT
SERMON ON THE DEFENSEs
Of THE CITY.
CHURCH MILITANT USEFUL.
HE DISPARAGES THE CRITICISMS
OF THE MILITARY IDEAS OF
THE CHURCH.
BULwARKs OF CHRISTIANITY
In Figurative Language the MethO-
dist PreIate EIOquentIy Pictures
the Celestial City.

Bishop Fowler preached yesterday
morning at the First Methodist church
of this city from Psalm xiii, II: Walk
about Zior. and go round about her;
tell the towers thereof" He said:
THE figure of the text brings before
me a walled city in a turbulent time,
a city that has been constructed for the
defense of the citizens, in a country
overrun by marauders ard freebooters
and invaded by hostile armies. 1t is
an easy step to the application of this
figure to our spiritual conditions. There
are people, have seen some emana-
lions from them in the public press
who criticize anything like the use Of
military terms in the organization Of
the young people into Epworth bands
and leagues for marching and organiZ-
ing after that fashion, saying that 1t is
all carnal and all of the devil and that
this is time of peace ard that we are
to preach the gospel Of peace. I don't
wish to criticize them any farther than
to say that, as l see 1t, they are a
good deal wiser than that which is
written If you want to knew whether
there is any current in the stream you
swim against 1t and not with 1t and
you will f1Kd it. Start out for right
eousness in a square, manly way, and
you will find that the matter of going
to heaven is not all goody goody, but
you have got to receive as well as to
give blows. And when I come back, in
my last analysis Of the question Of
our strifes, 1 am compelled to that con-
viction that I have very little faith in
any path leading to heaven that is not
thickly planted with crosses. So we
have in the text figure of strife ard
war against a kingdom of righteous
ness, a revolving Of the human race
against God, a rebellion in which self
is set up in the place of the Almighty,
and we have, in the spirit and tenor
Of the book, that chart by which we
are to navigate the sea of our prOba-
ton, suggestions about Christ as the
captain Of our salvation, ard we are
told to put on the whole armor of oGd
and to endure hardness as good SOL
oilers of Jesus Christ; and without
further defense or apology I wish to
put out before you this morning the
defenses, somewhat, of our Zion.
1--WE have in this country no walled
cities. We have the remnant of a gate
In one city yonder on the ST. Lawrence
the authorities have patched up from
time to time to retain the shadow of
the old wall when once it was a walled
city; but in the bosom of heathenism
you can hardly travel at all without
coming against the walled cities, they
are everywhere. They have the high
wall about the city and a moat out
side the wall, usually deep and filled
with water, that embarrassses the ap-
proach of the enemy in the old
METHODS OF ATTACK.
"They have also the draw bridge, that
makes it possible for friends to come
in and for themselves to go out at
will, which they pull out of the way.
Il want to show you the moat that is
made abou our Zion, to begin with, and
/ will make it out of our bodies I
mean this physical body. Marvellous
structurei Let me say before touching
It more, that the purpose of this part
of the argument is to show that the
emphasis placed upon our bodies has
been so great that any intelligent man
has a right to expect more, SO much
pains has been taken with this body
that we have a right to expect more
attention to that which is in the body.
It is a marvellous body, the finest
mechanism found in animal life. More
mysterious marvels in your single hand
than in all the machinery invented by
all the Yankees, and all the Parsees
and all the Jews, and all put together,
Gov oil fIr 4l14 49,
invent. The body itself is a wonder
full machine, erect, solid, firm, poised,
jointed, pliable, supple, corded by
thongs. glrded round here and there by
other cords, kept in handsome shape.
padded by muscles, covered over with
cuticle, laced about with nerves-mar-
Vicious body. The passages Inside the
hard iron walls, where some of the
great resources of horsepower are
stored, passagewaysfor the currents
of life outside this framework. carried
up In safe quarters free from possible
peril; channels cut through by the
Joints where there are engagements so
that they may not be accidentally cut
open or opened; solid shell to hold this
brain-the worse dynamite that was
ever cased anywhere in the universe
a great stout trunk, ribbed about to
hold these vitals that they may keep
on that marvellous pumping and not
interfered with; the best known ma
chine in all animal life.
More than that, mark you, not only
the best known, but, the best possible
machine. They tell us that the first
type, of life was in the fish, the next
type In the bird, the next type In the
quadruped, and the last in man. Now
mark the development of the body and
you will see that what 1 have said is
true-the best possible body. Take
the lines that mark the growth. The
spinal of the fish lies parallel with the
earth's surface and that type of life
is in the water. and that is the best
for the weakest sort of life to con-