The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1896-05-14


to copy them-when the missionary got
home he turned around and told those
people that the thing which had made
the primary institutions of America
what they were was the Sunday school
and the influences which had gone out
from it, While John Bright was telling
the English people that the Sunday
school had had very much to do with
the greatness of England,--the. Sunday
school, which enshrines and impresses
the truths of the Word of God-Daniel
Webster was lifting up his voice in this
land of ours, statesman that he was, in
the halls of congress, on behalf of our
Sunday schools. We talk about munic-
ipal reform as if it was altogether q
modern institution. Why, sixty-five
years ago, I think it was-between six
ty and seventy years ago, anyway
this historical American Sunday-School
Union, whose anniversary we are cele-
brating tonight, gave out to the world
this ringing affirmation, that they pro-
posed to put Sunday school, and
therefore the Bible, into every hamlet
and town in the Mississippi valley that
had not already q Sunday school where
the Bible was regularly studied; and
that affirmation from this society called
forth afIirmations Of approval from
men in every walk of life, and among
them Daniel Webster; because, states
man that he was he knew that the
foundation of Americas greatness rest
ed upon his possession of the Word of
God
Now the first thing which l am bring
ing to you tonight and which | want
to drop into your hearts, is this: that
we believe in the American Sunday
School Union because of what 1t is do
ing to-day and because of what it has
done in the last seventy years, to save
this land of ours, in it's magnificence
and in its strength, by putting into this
land, in it's sinews and in it's vitals, the
living truths of the everlasting Word
of God. We are told to-day by the cap
tious that YOU cannot unite church and
state; that if there Is anything that
needs to be done in America, it is to
keep church and state far, far away
from each other. That Is perfectly
true, so far as the organization OF
church and the organization of state is
concerned. But you cannot keep the
spirit of the church out of the spirit of
the state, because the moment you sub
tract that spirit which, founded upon
the Word of God, derives it's virility
and it's vigor from it; the moment you
subtract that from this state of ours.
which is a true republic, at that mo-
ment you have taken out of 1t the thing
which has given it its life, and which
alone assures it it's perpetuity in the
years that are to come. The one thing
that cannot be taken out of the states
manship or life of this republic of ours
is the influence of the Word of God,
which is bone of our bone and flesh of
our flesh, which has made us what we
are, and has left it's stamp SO deep upon
our hearts that even in the so materi-
alistic, money-loving days, we have not
yet forgotten-God grant we never
may! to stamp upon our coins, I'm God
we trust"
Now the second thing to which wish
to call your attention briefly, as a rea-
son why we should be interested in this
American Sunday-School Union, is be-
cause of it's great religious power in the
world; building up the religious inter-
ests of the world. Right here / know
that / shall be met in the thought of
some of you with this suggestion: Is 1t
not true that our various denomina-
lions are building up the religious in.
| terests of our country, SO that we dc
| not need this organization, which, in
truth, is superfiuous? This might be
| true If the various denominations OF
los, u Ep "A ali rrit orx
| between them, If there were no lnamIets
| unoccupied either by the Baptists, Of
| the Methodists, or the Presbyterians
| the Congregationalists or the Episco-
palians, If there were no hill towns ir
| which the old churches had been closed
| in every one of which the gospel was
| being proclaimed from week to week
If the denominations were adequate t
| the religious emergency which is upor
| them, then it might be said that there
| is no use for superf1uous organiZa-
| ton; but the facts are all against sucf
an affirmation. One may say, for ex.
| ample that the American Sunday
School Union divides the territory witt
the denominations. But, heaven he'll
| you! brethren and sisters! do you rea.
|
| live? They tell us that they take thf
Bay state, in which live, and the Nut
meg state, in which you live and turr
| them both over twenty or thirty times
| in some of the states of this land O,
| ours, and still have room for them tt
| exercise themselves freely without in
| terfering with the other states which
| have been put within the same enclo
| sure. They have room enough, an6
| still people are coming to us, sometime.
at the rate of one thousand day. We
| had better not be too small and draw
| our UNCONVENTIONAL lines too closely
| "Ahi' somebody says, but, in addition
to that, your American SundaySchoo
| Union diverts the money; it takes mon
| ey which otherwise would go into the
denominational treasury for the accom-
| plishing of UNCONVENTIONAL work, ant
puts it into the general treasury, fol
| the accomplishing of general work.
| Now / stand here tonight as a Congre
| gationalist; born, bred, trained ant
hoping to die in the Congregations
| faith; and / stand here as one who be
| lieves that a man ought to be loyal tt
| his denomination, and that the frs
duty of Congregationalist is to sup
| port the Congregational Publishing so
ciety, which is one of the large societies
| of his denomination. The brethren o
the Presbyterian denomination who ar
| here tonight will make the same affir
nation. But because 1 stand for m,
own denomination and her Sunda.