Savannah courier. (Savannah, Tenn.) 1885-1979, 1898-07-29
Is 1T GOOD OR EVIL?
Character of Amusements Discussed
by Rev. DR.. Talmage.
Not All Popular Methods of Recreation
are Harmful, But There Are
Many Dangerous Ones
to bS Avoided.

Vhcir iHilucnce lot bOOu or evil may oe
determined. The text is:
And 1t came to pass, when their hearts were
merry, that they said, Call for Samson that
he may make us sport. And they called for
Samson out OF the prison house; and he made
them sport Judges xvi, 25.
There were 1900 persons assembled
in the Temple of Dagon. They had
come to make sport of eyeless Samson.
They were all ready for the entertain
ment They began to clap and pound,
impatient for the amusement to begin,
and they cried Fetch him out! Fetch
him out" Yonder | see the blind old
giant coming, led by the hand of n
child into the very midst Of the temple.
AT his first appearance there goes up n
shout of laughter and derision. The
blind old giant pretends he is tired and
wants to rest himself against the pillars
of the house, so he says to the lad who
leads him: Bring me where the main
pillars are The lad does so. Then the
strong man puts his hands ON one of
the pillars, and, with the mightiest
push that mortal ever made, throws
himself forward until the whole
house comes down in thunderous crash,
grinding the audience like grapes in n
winepress. And 50 it came to pass,
when their hearts were merry, that
they said Call for Sampson, that he
may make SPORT And they called for
Samson out of the prison house; and
he made them sport. In other words,
there are amLsements that are destruc-
tive and bring down disaster and death
upon the heads of those who practice
them. While they laugh and cheer
they die. The 1900 who persisted that
day in GAIA are nothing compared
with the tens of thousands who have
been destroyed, body, mind and soul,
by bad amusemcnts and by good amuse-
mcnts carried to excess.
In my sermons you must have no.
ticed that | have no sympathy with
ecclesiastical traight-jacliets, or with
that Wholesale denunciation of amuse-
unents to which many are pledged. l
| believe the church of God has made a
tremendous mistake in trying to sup
press the sportfulness of youth and
drive out from men their love of amuse-
ments. If God ever implanted anything
in us, He implanted this desire. But
instead of providing for this demand OF
our nature, the church of God has for
the main part ignored it, AS in riot
the mayor plants a battery at the
end of the street and has 1t ii. ed
off so that everything is cut down
that happens to stand in the range, the
| good as well us the bad, so there are
men in the church who plant heir
batteries of condemnation and fire
away indscriminatelv. Everything is
condemned. They talk as if they would
like TO have our youth dress in blue
uniform, like the children of an orphan
asylum and march down the path o.
life to the tune of the Dead March in
Saul. They hate II blue sash, or rose
bud in the hair, or n tasscled gaiter
and think man almost ready for tn,
lunatic asylum who utters a conun
drum.
Young Mems Christian associations
of the country are doing a glorious
work. They have fine reading rooms
kind, and are now adding gymnasium'
and bowling alleys, where, without an.
evil surroundings, our young men ma.
get physical as well as spiritual i'm
provcmcnt. We are dwindling ava,
10 "A narrow-chestcd, weak armed, fee
ble-voiccd race, when God calls to
work in which lie wants physical a
well as spiritual athletes. | would t.
God that the time might soon com
when in all DIR colleges and thee
logical scminaries, as at Prince
ton, q gymnasium shall be estat
lished. We spend seven years of hare
study in preparation for the ministry
and come out with bronchitis ant
dyspepsia and liver complaint, an,
then crawl up into the pulpit, and tn
people say: Don't he look heavenly!
because he looks sickly. Let TIL
church OF God direct, rather than al
tempt to suppress, the desire 70
amusement. The best men that tn
world ever Knew have had their sports
William Wilberforcc trundlcd hoo
with his children. Martin Luthe
helped dress the Christmas tree. Min
;stcrs have pitched quoits, philanthrC
pists have gone a-slsating, prime mir
listers have played ball.
Our communities are filed with me
and women who have in their souls III
measured resources for sportfulneS
and frolic. Show me man who new,
!, lights up with sportfulness and has II
sympathy with the recreations Of oil
ers, and will show you man who
a stumbling block to the kingdom {
God. Such men arc caricatures Of r.
ligion. They lead young people
, think that man is good in propo
ton rs he groans and frownsa and lool
! sallow, and that the height of a man
Christian stature is in proportion to u
length Of his face. | would trade o
500 such men for one bright-iaced rad
ant Christian on whose face are u
words: Rejoice cvermore' Ever
morning by his cheerful face
breaches 50 sermons. | will go furth,
and say that have no confidence in
man who makes u religion of h
gloomy looks. That kind of man a
ways turns out badly. would II
want him for the treasurer of {
orphan asylum. The orphans won
suffer
Among 40 people whom | receive
into the church at one commune
there was only one applicant of who
piety | was suspicious. He had Il
longest story to tell; had seen The mo
visions, and gave an experience
wonderful that all the other applican
were discouraged. was not SURF ris
the year after to learn that he had II
off with the funds of the bank wi
which he was connected. Who is I'll
! black angel that you call religion
wings black, feet black, feathers olac
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