Savannah courier. (Savannah, Tenn.) 1885-1979, 1898-05-20
BLOOD is THE PRICE.
The Radical Theory of Christianity
Broadly Set Forth.
Rev. DIR. Talmase Says There was Nothing
Abnormal In Christ's Self-SacrIRce
Incident of the Principle
of Substitution.

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vlcarious sacrifice, basing it upon the
text:
Without shedding OF blood is no REMISSION
Hebrews tx. %.
John G.. Whittier the last of the
great school of American poets that
made the last quarter of this century
brilliant, asked me in the White noun
tains, one morning after prayers, in
which had given out Cowper's famous
hymn about "The Fountain Filled
with Blood" "Do you really believe
there is literal application of the
blood Of Christ to the soul?' My mega
tive reply then is my negative now.
The Bible statement agrees with all
physicians, and all Psychologists, and
all scientists, in saying that the blood
is the life, and in the Christian re-
ligion it means simply that Christ's
life was given for our life. Hence
all this talk of men who say the Bible
story of blood is disgusting, and that
they don't want what they call
"slaughter-house religion" only shows
th9ir incapacity or unwillingncss to
look through the figure of speech to-
ward the thing signifed. The blood
that, on the darkest Friday the world
ever saw, oozed, or trclSled, or poured
from the brow, and the side, and the
hands, and the feet OF the Illustrious
Sufferer, back of Jerusalem, in few
hours coagulaued and dried up, and
forever disappeared; and if man had
depended on the application of the lit
eral blood of Christ, there would not
have been a soul saved for the last Is
centuries.
In order to understand this red word
OF my text, we only have to exercise as
much common sense in religion rs we
do in everything else Pang for pang,
hunger for hunger, fatigue for fatigue,
tear for tear, blood for blood, life for
life, we see every day illustrated. The
act of substitution is no novelty, al
though | hear men talk as though the
idea of Christ's suffering substituted
for our suffering were something abb
normal, something distressingly odd,
something wildly eccentric, solitary
episode In the worlds history, when |
could take you out into this city and
before sundown point you to 500 eases
OF substitution and voluntary suffering
of one in behalf of another.
At two o'clock tomorrow afternoon
go among the places of business or toll.
1t will be no difficult thing for you to
find men who, by their looks, show you
that they are overworked. They are
prematurely old. They are fastening
rapidly toward their decease. They
have gone through crisises in business
that shattered their nervous system
and pulled on the brain. They have
shortness of breath and pain in the
back of the head, and at night an in
somnia that alarms them. Why are
they drudging at business early and
late? For fun? No; it would be diff |
cult to extract any amusement
out of that exhaustion. Because
they are avaricious? 1t many
cases no. Because their own
personal expenses are lavish? No; a |
few hundred dollars would meet all
their wants. The simple fact is, the
man is enduring all that fatigue and
evaporation, and wear and tear. to |
keep his home prosperous. There is
an invisible line reaching from the |
store, from that bank, from that shop,
from that scaffolding to quiet scene
n few blocks, a few miles away, and
there is the secret of that business |
endurance. He is simply the champion
of homestead, for which he wins |
bread, and wardrobe, and education.
and prosperity, and in such battle ten
thousand men fall. OF ten business
men whom bury, nine die of over
work for Others. Some sudden disease
finds them with no power of resistance
and they are gone. Life for life.
Blood for blood. Substitution!
At one o'clock tomorrow morning,
the hour when slumber is most unin-
terrupted and profound, walk amid the
dwelling-houses of the city. Here and
there you will find dim light, because
it is the household custom to keep a
subdued light burning; but most of the
houses from base to top are as dark as
though uninhabited merciful God
has sent forth the archangel of sleep.
and he puts his wings over the city.
But yonder is a clear light burning,
and outside on window easement a
glass or pitcher containing food for a
sick child the food is set in the fresh
air. This is the sixth night that
mother has sat up with that sufferer.
She has to the last point obeyed the
physicians prescription, not giving a
drop too much or too little, or mo-
ment too soon or too late She is
very anxious, for she has buried
three children with the same dis
ease, and she prays and weeps
each prayer and sob ending with
kiss of the pale cheek BY dint of
Kindness she gets the little one
through the ordeal. After it is all over
the mother is taken down. Brain or
nervous fever sets in, and one day she
leaves the convalescent child with a
mothers blessing and goes up to join
the three departed ones in the kingdom
of Heaven. Life for life. Substitution
The fact is that there are an uncounted
OF mothers who, after they
have navigated a large family of chill
dren through the diseases OF infancy,
and got them fairly started up the
Towering slope of boyhood and girl
hood, have only strength enough left
to die They fade away. Some call it
some call it nervous
prostration; some call it intermittent
or malarial indisposition; but call it
of the domestic circle.
Life for life. Blood for blood. Sub
stitution!
Or perhaps mother fingers long
enough to see son get on the wrong