The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1897-06-09
DIR. TALMAGES SERMON.
SUNDAYS DISCOURSE BY THE NOTED
DIVINE.
Gods Perfect Harmony and the Dlscord
That Was Made by Sin-The Time Is
Coming When the World Will Again
Resound to Heavenly Harmonies.

Coming When the World Will Again
Resouad to Heavenly Harmonies
TEXT: "Who laid the cornerstone thereof
when the morning stars sang togesaer?"-
Job Ss, 81.
We have all seen the ceremony at the lay
ing Of the cornerstone Of church, asylum OF
Masonic temple. Into the hollow OF the
stone were placed scrolls Of history and i'm
portant documents, to be suggestive II. lOO
or 200 years after, the building should be
destroyed by fire or torn down. We re-
member the silver trowel or iron hammer
that smote the square piece OF granite into
sanctity. We remember some venerable
man who presided welding the trowel OF
hammer. We remember also the music as
the choir stood on the scattered stones and
timber Of the building about to be con-
structed. The leaves Of the notebooks
- Aluttered in the wind and we're turned owe,
AVith great rustling, and we remember
how the bass, baritone, tenor, contralto
land soprano voices commingled. They had
flor many days been rehearsing the special
programme that it might be worthy OF the
cornerstone laying.
In my text the poet Of UZ calls us to a
grander ceremony-the laying Of the foun-
dation Of this great temple Of world.
The cornerstone was block OF light, ana
the trowel was of celestial crystal. All
about and on the embankments OF clouds
stood the angelic choristers unrollinG their
librettos Of overture, and other worlds
ciapped shining cymbals while the cere-
mony went on, and God, the Architect, by
stroke Of light after stroke of light. dedi-
Gated this great cathedral Of world, with
mountains for pillars and sky for frescoed
ceiling and Towering fields for floor and
sunrise and midnight aurora for uphol-
stery. "Who laid the cornerstone thereof,
when the morning stars sang together?"
The fact is that the whole universe was a
complete cadence, an unbroken dithy-
ramb, musical portfolio. The great sheet
OF immensity had been spread out, and
written on it were the stars, the smaller OF
them minims, the larger Of them sustained
notes. The meteors marked the staccato
passages. the whole heavens O gamut with
all sounds, intonations, modulations, the
space between the worlds a musical in
terval, trembling Of stellar light quaver,
the thunder bass clef, the wind among
trees q treble clef. That is the way God
made all things perfect harmony.
But one day harp string snapped in the
great orchestra. One day voice sounded
out of tune. One day a discord, harsh and
terrific, grated upon the glorious antiphon.
It was sin that made the dissonance, and
that harsh discord has been sounding
through the centuries. All the work Of
Christians and philanthropists and reform
ers of all ages is to stop that discord and
get all things back into the perfect har-
mony which was heard at the laying OF the
cornerstone when the morning stars sang
together Before get through, II am
divinely helped, will make it plain that
sin is discord and righteousness harmony;
that in general things are out OF tune is as
plain as to musicians ear Is the unhappy
clash OF clarinet and bassoon in an orches-
trail rendering.s
The worlds health out OF tune; weak
lungs and the atmosphere in collision, dis
ordered eve and MONDAY light in quarrel,
rheumatic limb and damp weather in strug-
gle; neuralgias, and pneumonias. and con-
sumptions, and epileptics in aocks sweep
the neighborhoods and cities. Where you
find one person with sound throat, and keen
eyesight, and alert ear, and easy resp1ra-
tion, and regular pulsation, and supple
limb, and prime digestion, and steady
nerves, you flnd 100 who have to be very
careful because this or that or the other
physical function Is disordered.
The human intellect out OF tune; the
Judgment wrongly swayed, or the memory
leaky, or the will weak, or the temper in
hammable, the we'll balanced mind excep-
tfonal.
Domestic life out OF tune; only here and
there a conjugal outbreak OF incompata-
bility OF temper through the divorce courts
or f1lial outbreak about fathers will
through the surrogate's court, or case OF
wife beating or husband poisoning through
the criminal courts, but thousands Of fami-
lies with June outside and January within.
Society out Of tune; labor and capital,
their hands on each others throat; spirit
of caste keeping those down in the social
scale who are struggling to get up, and
putting those who are up in anxiety lest
they have to come down. No wonder the
old pianoforte Of society is all out Of tune,
when hypocrisy, and lying, and subterfuge,
and double dealing, and sycophancy, and
charlatanism, and revenge have for 5000
years been banging away at the Keys and
stamping the pedals.
On all sides there is a shipwreck Of har-
monies-nations in discord without realiz-
ing it. So wrong is the feeling OF nation
for nation that symbols chosen are fierce
and destructive. In this country, where
our skies are full Of robins and doves and
morning larks, we have our national sym
boil, the fierce and filthy eagle, as cruel
bird as can be found in all the ornithologi-
cal catalogues. In Great Britain, where
they have lambs and fallow deer, their sym
Dol Is the merciless lion. In Russia, where
from between her frozen north to her
blooming south all kindly beasts dwell,
they chose the growing bear, and in the
worlds heraldry a favorite figure Is the
dragon, the tabled winged serpent, fero-
cious and dreadful. And SO fond Is the
world Of contention that we climb out
through the heavens and baptize one Of
the other planets with the spirit OF battle
and call it Mars, after the god Of war, and
we give to the eighth sign OF the zodiac
the name Of the scorpion. a creature which
is chiefly celebrated for its deadly sting.
DIT oYtar oil these svrnhoIs are erSDreSsiye
of the way nation feels toward nationals
cord wide as the continent and bridging
the seas.
suppose you have noticed how warmly
in love dry goods stores are with other dry
goods stores, and how highly grocery men
think Of the sugars of the grocery man on
the same street, and in what eulogistic
way allopathic and homeopathic doctors
speak OF each other and how ministers will
sometimes put ministers on that beautiful
cooking instrument which the English call
a spit-an iron roller with spikes on it and
turned by crank before hot 1re-and
then, II the minister being roasted cries out
against it, the men who are turning him
say, Hush, my brother: we are turning
this spit for the glory Of God and the good
OF your soul, and you must be quiet, while
we close the service with:
'Blest be the tie that binds
Our hearts in Christian love-"
The earth is diametered and circumfer-
/ enced with discord, and the music that was
rendered at the laying OF the worlds cor
nerstone when the morning stars sang to-
gether is not heard now, and though here
and there from this and that part OF So
ciety and from this and that part OF the
earth there comes up thrilling solo OF
love, or a warble Of worship, or sweet