The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1897-04-28
Resurrection of Christ.

WASHINGTON. April IS.-iHlS stfli.'A -
DR.. Talmage will set It's readers 10 iA.nA!AS
on new lines and Will make this season o.
Easter more inspiring than ever. ne 'eN'
is John Xxx. Is. .'She, Supposla- AIM 70 'e
the gardener c,..,;..,;,..
after his resurrection For i,0le years
grim and chas,ly ,vrant had been killing
HeonIe and dragging them into his cold pal
ace. He had a passion for human skulls.
For 40 centuries he had been unkindered N
his work. He had taken down kings ana
queens AMI conqUerors- anu those without
fame. In that cold palace there were shelves
of skulls, and pillars Of skulls, and aItacs OF
skulls, and even the chaEceS al the table
were made of bleached skulls. To the skelc-
ton of Abel he had added the skeletnn Of all
the ages, and no one had disputed his right
until one Good Friday about l So years ago
as near as can calculate it. 4 mighty strans-
er came to the door Of that awtu! palace,
rolled back the door and went in, and, Seiz-
ing the tyrant threw him 10 the pavement
and put upon the tyrants neck the neel OF
triumph.
Then the mighty stranger, exploring al
the ghastly furniture Of the place and walk
ing through the labyrinths, and opening the
dark cellars Of mystery and tarrylnS Under
roof the ribs of which were made OF hu-
man bones-tarrylng for two nights and q
day, the nights very dark and the day Tery
dismal, he seized the TWO chief pillars OF that
awful palace and rocked them until Il began
to fall, and then laying hold Of the por2er-
Gus front gate, hoisted it from lis hinges and
marched forth, crying, Il am the resIrrec-
ton - That event We celebrate this Lasier
morn. Handelian and Beethoven miracles
of sound added to this floral decoration
which has set the place abloom.
There are three or four things which the
world and the church have not noticed IN
regard to the resurrection OF Christ. First,
our Lord in gardeners attire, Mary Mag
dalene, grief struck, stands by the ritied sar-
cophagus of Christ and turns around, hop
ing that she can find the track Of the sacri-
legious resurrectionist who has despoiled
the grave, and she finds some one n work
ing apparel come forth as if to water the
flowers or uproot the weeds from the garden
or set to reclimbing the fallen vine-some
one in working apparel, his garment per-
haps having the sign Of the dust ard the
Dirt Of the occupation.
Mary Magdalane, on her face the rain Of a
fresh shower Of weeping, turns 10 this work
man and charges him with the desecration
Of the tomb, when, 10, the stranger responds
finging his whole soul into one word which
trembles with all the sweetest rhythm Of
earth and heaven, saying, MARY: In that
popularity of accentuation al the incognlto
fell off, and she found that instead Of talk
ing with an humble gardener of Asia Minor
she was talking with him who owns all the
hanging gardens of heaven. Consultations
the clusters of forgetmenots, the sunaower
the chief of all, the morning sky and mid
night aurora, faring terraces Of beauty,
blazing like summer wall with coronation
roses and giants Of battle. Blessed and glo-
rious mistake Of Magdalene. ''She suppos-
ing him to be the gardener" What does
that mean? 1t means that we have an every
day Christ for everyday work in everyday
apparel. Not on Sabbath morning in
our most seemly apparel are we more at
trsctive to Christ than we are in orr every
Day work dress, managing our merchandise,
shifting our anvil, plowing our field, tending
the flying. shuttles, meading the garments
for our household, providing food for our
families or toiiing with weary pen or weary
pencil or weary chiscl. y working day
Christ in working day apparel for US in our
every day toll. Put it into the highest strain
of this Easter anthem, ''Supposing him to be
the gardener
If Christ had appeared at daybreaK with
crown upon his head, that would have
seemed to suggest especial sympathy for
monarchs; if Christ had appeared in chain
of fgold and with robe diamonded, that would
have seemed to be especial sympathy for the
afiuent; ifChrist had appeared with soldi-
er's sash and sword dangling at his side,
that would have seemed 70 imply especial
sympathy for warriors; but when ! find
Christ in gardeners habit, with perhaps the
fakes of the earth and Of the Upturned soil
upon his garments, then spell it out that
he has hearty and pathetic understanding
with everyday work and everyday anxiety
and everyday fatigue.
Roll it down in comfort all through these
aisles. 4 working day Christ in working
day apparel. Tell It in the darkest corridor
of the mountain TO the poor miner. Tell it
to the factory maid in most unventilated
establishment at Lowell or Lancaster. Tell
it to the clearer ofroughest new ground in
western wilderness. Tell it to the sewing
woman, stitch in the side for every stitch
in the garment, some Of their cruel employ
ers having no right to think that they viii
get through the door Of heaven any more
than they c d through the eye Of a broken
needle wbicn has just dropped on the bare
floor from the pricked and bleeding fingers
Of the consumptiYe sewing girl. Away with
your talk about hypostatic union, and So
teriology of the council of Trent, and the
metaphysics Of religion which would freeze
practical Christianity ont Of the world, but
pass along this gardeners coat 10 all nations
that they may touch the hem oft and feel
the thrill of the Christly brotherhood Not
supposing the man to be Cesar, not suppos-
ing him to be Socrates, but ''supposing him
to be the gardener
Oh, that's what helped Joseph Wedgwood,
toiGng amid the heat and the dust of the
potteries, until he could make for Queen
Charlotte the first royal table service of
English manufacture! That was what helped
James Watt, scofed st and caricatured until
he could put on wheels the thunderbolt of
power which roars by day and night in every
furnace .ofthe locomotive engines ofAmerica.
That is what helped Hugh Miller, toilirg
amid the quarries Of Cromarty, until every
rock became TO him a volume Of the world
biography and he found the footsteps Of the
Creator il the old red sandstone Oh, the
world wants q Christ for the Office, Christ
for the kitchen, a Christ for the shop, aChrist
for the banking house, Christ for the gar
den, while spading and planting and irrigat-
ing the territory! Oh, Of course We want 10
see Christ at last in royal robe and bedia
monded, q celestial equestrian mounting the
white horse, but from this Easter of 1897 to
our last Easter on earth we most nee! TO see
Christ as Mary Magdalene saw him at the
daybreak, 'supposing him TO be the gar
dener!''
Another thing which the church and the
world have not noticed in regard 10 the re-
surrection ofChrist is that he -Iade his first
post mortem appearance TO one who had been
the seven deyiled Mary Magdalene One
would have supposed he would have made