Virginia gazette. [volume] (Williamsburg, Va.) 1893-192?, 1897-11-27

Are Possessed OF Spiritual tapAcit9-
The New York Herald las offered a prize
% $1,000 for the best sermon. and three
subsidiary prizes aggreSatinc $1,000 addi-
tional for She three next best sermons +
Ministers Of all Denominations have been
invited 70 cOmpctefor these prizes. and the
sermons offered In competition viii appear
in the Herald's sunday edition Rev Will
lam IT. Lewis. u. D.. whose name r. op-
pended 90 the iniliatory ssrmon. g. rector
OF - Johns the largest and most fashion
able Episcopal parish in bridgepor,, conn, 4
and ie considered one of the ablcSt preach f
ers His subject is The Gift % Religious h
Consciou-ness' 90 and the sermon ia fun Is F
as follows.
TExr. And another came. saving. Lord. .
behold. here Is thy pound. which have
kept laid up in a napkin. tcr feared thee.
because thou art en- austcre man.
And he saith up 90 him. Out % thine own
mouth will Z Judge thee, thou wicked ser
want ''-Sf Luke XIX. 20 l1-
The lord of the parable. about % so
away into "far country. had given 60
each % his servants certain amount 20
make use cf while De was away. For these
three the amount givea i- peciied. hut 90
am hi- servants De gave something. "ll
each man che parable says. .necoruine 70
bis several ability. only three are Spe-
ciaiiy designated. because thcy serve as
SufIlclent illustrations ot tie highest. the
medium and the lowest gift. Each receiver
seems 10 have known that thc amount
handed him was not a gift outright bat "A
trust and that his lord would eventually
. come hack and make an accounting Zach.
A Therefore treated his trust according 20 the
8 opinion hc held oi his lord
The substance of the parable is evidently
. this--thut in every man living -taerf 81 iic-
b planted n certain spiritual capacity or
. ability. that men have this capacity I'm de-
gree. 80 that one has clear aud distinct
ideas OF God and hi- duty, another has less,
and another almost none az au- Bat the
trust of spiritual instinct OF conscious
81 nIaH
this consciousness. belongs Co all. None -
20 low in the scale Of humanity that thc
thought 90 God does not somehow enter
into ais lite and whoever tas tnts gift has
also tho intelligence 80 kaoN that be has
IL. aud TO ask himseH. ~ Least oaee IN has
nic IN oniT onre. what = So 90 With tt.
- 4. a - cOAt l,tslsttf a. - l>a ,aru tnte
couscieuce there CONES a sense cf rcsr'n-
sibuity: aud with that rhcre comes a GER
tninty 81 judgment. We fDdorsc the rea-
soniDg ~ the parable when We excuse tho
man of small capacity by saying that ht
does not know any better; Of another, that
, he ought % have known better. and of 4
, third. that be did know better. and ths
popular Judgment condemns each mar
with a severity according 90 his gift 81
capacity. his conscience. his educated oi
|, uneducnted sense OF the value of the gil
I which determines his use 81 IL. and the Vef'
worst sin 90 all In the popular Judgment d
70 have made no use ~ the gift. 10 was th'
= servant who knew h~ gift and his lord
even L4NNEA ne KNEW NlNA MlNNNANr AAt
then made no use of his gift, who excite
his lords anger.
u Make much ~ the thought. for it Ia
y much in 10. 70 We grant the universal con
e sciou~ness of God and the universal con
~ science. then every one b. bound To conduc
e I himself always under pressure ot th
e. thought that one day he will be Salle
> upon 90 answer 20 God fer his use OF thes
capacities. III "a man only recognizes Go
10 by taking His name ln vain. THAI u a recC :
rfFfnn And ina actual fact there
4 people who excuse themselves iu thelr neg
b. lect Of religion ON the very grounds %
which this man Of the parable rested h
defence viz harsh and distorted ideas
~ I God and religion. They do not see ths
al logically a man with harsh ideas ~ Go
ought 20 be the strcter ia his life for tha
RI IL be shapes his conduct by his theory an
ne III he expects God 90 Judge him by his oN
DO confession. Ii my whole idea OF religion
u that IL Il such a straight and uarrO
way that / cannot walk in it withoI
- help from above. and, knowing thi
rk / must walk IN it 10 would Do saved, ha'
OF yet never sought that help, shall care
he plead this neglect rs al excuse when
come 10 stand before righteous iudg
Whether the napkin Ia which we tie up O.
q. I religious consciousness be clean and whi
80 with the starch and biulng and ironing 81
self-satiShed morality or hlthy with :
stains Of every self-iuduleence will ma
no difference with the fact that We tied
, up and buried it. When capital combiu
Tor SCiuSn purI Io>tS We Know WHAT 10 :
OF it: when an anarchist wants divisi
OF capital FOR his own benefit We can d'
with him. But when a man puts his thC
sands in an old stocking and hides IL uut
his chimney hearth We simply call him
miser--a miserable one. Hefnay plead n
he had no faith in banks. but We cOnde'
him nevertheless. Again the comm
judgment illustrates the parable.
IN some shops you may ind a device
keep check upon business transactions
little disc springs up in fuu sight Of buy
seller and employer, records the price a
drops out Of sight again But az the eli
of the day. when The accounting is ma
a the registry i there and the balance N
agree with that. A mans conscience is /
this-every thought OF God and duty q
comes into mind is on record there-a x
thought or a mistaken thought, or a
thought IL held up It's signal Tor n nom
in the presence ofall who cared 70 look
made its Unalterabie rScord OF what '
done. When the time comes the judge
. God and conscience, and even the pOpU
y Iudgment-wiu be at the count. as q
now are at the transaction. He il a dar
an thief who with these three looking on
" trv to take money out OF the box and TIN
RS up a blank. Every thought OF God
~ duty il talent, "A pound, bringing wit
- l. a demand for interest upon the orig
eapital OF Gods first gift OF spiritual c
seriousness and conscience. When the