The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1898-08-02
FORMS OF WORSHIP.
EVILS OF SECTARIAIHS DIR. tai
MAGE,S THEME.
Free Religious Discussion Has a Ten
dency to BIZ eak Down DenOmina-
tionai Baryfers-The Man Who Can
See Only One Side Will Always be a
Bi1Ot.

III MS sermon To-Day Ut. IdIndSe
shows what sectarianism really is
its origin, evils and cure. The
text was Judges xii, 6: Then said
they unto him, Say now shibboleth, and
he said sibboleth, for he could not frame
to- pronounce It right. Then they took
him and slew him at the passages of
Jordan"
Do you notice the difference of pro-
nunciatiOn between shibboleth and sib-
hoIetb? A very small and unimportant
difference. you say. And yet that az
terence was the difference between lie
and death for a great many pcopic. ing
lords people, Gilead and Eohralm' got
into a great fight, and Epnralm Wa
rIcrat4d and on the retreat came TO the
fords of the river Jordan 10 cross. Ut
der was given that all EpnralmlteS com
ing there be slain. But nov could II De
found out who were Ephra.miteS! Ihey
were detected by their pronunciation.
Shibboleth was Il word that stood Tor
river. The Ephraimites had a brogue OF
their own. and when they tried to say
"shibboleth' always left out the sound
of the ~" When it was asked that
they say shibboleth. they said sibboieth,
and were slain. "Then said they unto
him, say now shibboleth, and he said
sibboleth. for he could not frame TO
pronounce it right. Then they took him
and slew him at the passages or Jor-
dan" A very small difference, you say,
between GiIead and Ephraim. and yet
now much Intolerance about that small
NlIltItIltts 1 It " = III go
timely which l mean the different de-
nominations Of Christians-sOmetimes
magnify a very small difference, and the
only difference between scores of de-
nominations today is the difference be-
tween shibboleth and sibboleth.
The church of God is divided into a
greet number of denominations. Time
would fail me to tell of the Calvinists,
and the Arminians, and the sabbath
rians. and the BaXterianS. and the Dun
kers. and the Shakers, and the Quakers,
and the Mnthn1iCtG and the HS1utlGfG
and the Ep~iscOpalians, and the Luther
ans, and the COngregatiOnaliStS, and the
Presbyterians. and the Spiritualists. and
Il score Of other denominations of relig-
ioniStS, some Of them founded by very
good men, some Of them founded by
very cgotistic men, some of them found
cd by very bad men. But as / demand
for myself liberty of conscience | must
give that same liberty to every other
man, remembering that he no more diff
fers from me than | differ from him. /
advocate the largest liberty in all relig-
ious belief and form of worship. In art,
in politics, in morals and in religion let
there be no gag law, no moving of the
previous question, no persecution, no in
tolerance.
MANS CONSCIENCE
You know that the air and the water
keep pure by constant circulation, and I
think there is a tendency in religious
health. the fourth and six
teenth centuries the church proposed to
make people think Alright by prohibiting
discussion, and by strong censorship of
the press and rack and gibbet and hot
lead down the throat tried to make peO-
pie orthodox. but it was discovered hat
you cannot change a mans belief by
twisting off his head. nor make a man
see differently by putting an awl through
his eyes. There is something in a. mans
conscience which will hu< off the noun
tain that you threw upon it, and I'M
singed of the fire out of the flame will
make red wings on which the martyr
Will mount to glory.
In that time of which I speak, between
the fourth and sixteenth centuries, peo-
pie went from the house of God into the
most appalling iniquity, and right along
by COnSeCrated affairs there were tides
of drunkenness and RIGHTEOUSNESS such
as the world never heard of, and the
very sewers of perditiOn broke loose and
flooded the church. After awhile the
printing press was freed, and it broke
the ShackleS of the human mind. Then
there came a large number of bad books,
and where there was one man hostile to
the Christian religion there were 70 men
ready to advocate it, so l have not any
nervousness in regard to this battle go
ing on between truth and error. The
truth will conquer just as certainly as
that God is stronger than the devil. Let
error rum if you only let truth run along
with it. Urged on by skeptic's shout and
transcendentalis'S spur. let it run. Gods
angels of wrath are in hot pursuit, and
quicker than eagles beak cluthes out a
hawks heart Gods vengeance will tear
~ bi'NNp'
CURE FOR SECTARIANISM.
I propose to speak to you of sectarian-
lSm-lts origin. It's evils and it's cures.
There are those who would make us
thlnk that this monster, with horns and
ho0is, Is religion; shall chase it to it's
hiding place and drag it out of the
GaVerns of darkness and rip off it's hide.
lbut i want to make a distinction be-
tween bigotry and the lawful fondness
Tor peculiar religious beliefs and forms
OF worship. Il have no admiration for a
nothingarian.
In n world of such tremendous vicis-
situde and temptation and with a soul
that must after awhile stand before a
throne of insufferable brightness, in a
day when the rocking of the mountains
and the flaming of the heavens and the
upheaval of the seas shall be among the
least of the excitements. to give account
for every thought. word. action. prefer
ence and dislike-that man is mad who
has no religious preference. But our
early education. our physici tempera-
ment, our mental constitution. will very
much decide our form Of worship.
A style of psalmody that may please
me may displease you. Some would like
to have Il minister in gown and bands
and surplice. and others prefer to have
"A minister in plain citizens apparel.
Some are most impressed when a little
child is presented at the altar and
sprinkled of the waters of Il holy bene-
diction lin the name of the Father and
of the Son and of the Holy Ghost" and
IN nv NhNI
p%enitent comes up out of the river, his
garments dripping with the waters of a
baptism which signifies the washing
away of sin. Let either have his own
way. One man likes no noise in prayer,
not a word, not a whisper. Another
man, just as good. prefers by gesticula-
ton and exclamation to express his de-
Votional aspirations. One is just as good
as the other. Every man fully persua-
oeH in his own mind
George Whitfield was going over a
Quaker rather roughly for some of his
religious sentiments. and the Quaker
said: George. l am as thou art-1 am
for bringing all men to the hope of the
gospel. Therefore. if thou will not quar-
rel with me about my broad brim. |
will not quarrel with thee about thy
black gown. George. give me thy hand =
In tracing out the religion of secta-
rianism or bigotry | find that a great
deal of it comes from wrong education
in the home circle. There are parents
who do not think it wrong to caricature
and jeer the peculiar forms of religion
in the world and denounce other sects
and other denominations. 1t is very of,
ten the case that that kind of educa-
ton acts just opposite to what was ex-
TpCted. and the children croU I'M aDG