Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1898-07-15

With Blood Cowper, who
shares with Isaac Watts and Charles
Wesley the chief honors Of Christian
hymnology. In hypochondria he resoiv-
ed to take his own life and rode TO the
river Thames, but found man seated
on some goods at that very point from
which he expected to spring, and rode
back TO his home, and that night threw
himself upon his own knife. but the
blade broke, and then he hanged him.
self to the ceiling, but the rope broke
No wonder that when God mercifully
delivered him from that awful dementia
ho sat down and wrote that other hymn
Just as memorable
God moves ia a mysterious way
His wonders 10 perform.
He plants his footsteps IN the sea
And rides upon the storm.
Blind unbelief is sure 70 err
And scan his work in vain.
God is his own interpreter,
And he will make 1t plain.
While we make this merciful and
righteous allowance in regard 70 those
]
ence | declare that the man who in the
use Of his reason, by his own act, snaps
J the bond between his body and his soul
I goes straight into perdition. Shall /
prove it; Revelation xxi. s, Murder
ers shall have, their part in the lake
which burneth with fire and brim-
stone. " Revelation xxi, l5, Without
are dogs and sorcerers and whoremon-
gers and murderers You do not be-
lieve the New Testament? Then per-
haps you believe the Ten Command
ments Thou shalt not kill Do you
say that all these passages refer to the,
taking of the life of others? Then | ask
you if you are not as responsible fer
your own life as for the life Of others?
God gave you special trust in life and
made you the custodian Of your life,
and he made you the custodian Of no
other life. He gave you as weapons
with which to defend it two arms to
strike back assailants, two eyes TO watch
for invasion and natural love of life
which ought ever to be on the alert.
Assassination Of others is mild crime
compared with the assassination Of your
self, because in the latter case it is
treachery TO an especial trust. IL is the
surrender of a castle you were especial
" appointed to keep 1t is treason TO
natural law, and it is treason TO God
added to ordinary murder
Biblical Rogues' Gallery.
To show how God in the Bible looked
upon this crime | point you to the
rogues' picture gallery in some parts Of
the Bible, the pictures Of the people
who have committed this unnatural
crime. Here is the headless trunk Of
Saul on the walls Of Bathshan. Here
is the man who chased little Dayid-l0
feet in stature chasing 1. Here is the
man who consulted aclairyoyant, witch
of Endor Here is a man who, whipped
in battle, instead Of Surrendering his
sword with dignity, as many man has
done, asks his servant to slay him. and
when that servant declined then the
giant plants the hilt Of his sword in the
earth, the sharp point sticking upward,
and ne throws his body on it and ex-
pires-the coward, the suicidel Here is
Ahitophel, the Machiavelli Of olden
times, betraying his best friend, David,
in order that he may become prime
minister Of Absalom and joining that
fellow in his attempt at parricide. Not
getting what he wanted by change Of
politics. he takes a short cut out Of a
disgraceful life into the suicides eter-
nifty. There he is, the migrate
Here is Abimelech, practically sui
eide. He is with an army, bombarding
a tower, when a woman in the tower
takes grindstone from its place and
drops it upon his head and with what
life he has left in his cracked skull he
commands his armor bearer, DRAW thy
sword and slay me lest men say wom-
an slew mel" There is his post mortem
photograph in the book of Samuel.
But the hero of this group is Judas
Isoariot. DR.. Donne says he was mar
tyr, and we have in our day apologists
for him. And what wonder in this day
when we have a book revealing Aaron
Burr as pattern of virtue and this day
when we uncover a statue OF George
Sand as the benefactress Of literature
and in this day when there are betrayals
of Christ on the part Of some Of his pre-
tended apostles, betrayal so black It
makes the infamy Of Judas lscariot
white Yet this man, by his own hand,
hung up for the execration Of all ages,
Judas Iscariot.
All the good men and women Of the
Bible left TO God the decision OF their
earthly terminus, and they could have
said with Job, who had a right TO COM
nit suicide if any man ever had, what
with his destroyed property and his
body all afiame with insutferable car
buncles and everything gone from his
home except the chief curse Of 1t, a
pestiferous wife and four garrulOus peo-
pie pelting him with comfortless talk
while he sits on heap Of ashes scratch
ing his scabs with a piece Of brokenI
pottery. yet crying out in triumph, "All'
the days of my appointed time Will
wait till my change comes ="
Notwithstanding the Bible is against
this evil and the aversion which il ere
ates by the loathsome and CHASTITY spec
!acle of those who have hurled them
;elves out Of life, and Notwithstanding
Christianity is against 1t and the argu-
ments and the useful lives and the Illus
trious deaths of its disciples, it is facs
aiarmingly patent that suicide is on the
ilci aase. What is the cause? l charge
upon in6delity and agnosticism this
whole thing. If there be no hereafter
or if that hereafter be blissful without
reference to how we live and how we
die, why not move back the folding
doors between this world and the next!
And when our existence here becomes
troublesome why not pass right over
into elysiumg Put this down among
your most solemn reflections There has
never been case Of suicide where the
operator was not either demented, and
.a.A4 4.I