The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1898-04-08
RABBI CALISCH
ON EQUALITY
The Lesson Of the Passover Most
FOrcibIy Drawn.
PERFECT FREEDOM Is OBEDIENCE
The First Lesson Sounded Forth In
That Midnight Cry of Egyptian
Neutrality-suspicious. In the
Great Bank of Nature.
PERFECT FREEDOM is OBEDIENCE

At the services IN COMMUNICATION VI
the Passover, held at Beth Ahaba syna-
gogus yesterday morning, Rabbi f. n.
Calisch preached a most appropriate and
instructive sermon on the subject, What
is Equality?" lie read as his text: And
! I will put a distinction between my people
and thy people. Tomorrow shall this
sign pe."-Ex. will. 10. DR.. Cslisch said;
In the midst OF the description of the
| events that led 20 the Exodus, we have
this verse, which speaks OF a distinction
being drawn between the lsraelites ana
the Egyptians. II implies sentiment
that seems TO be IN contradiction 10 the
spirit OF the festival The feast IS feast
OF freedom, of liberty and or equality.
We are wont to speak OF this event OF the
exodus as being Gods divine protest
against serfdom and tyranny mat II
means the breaking Of barriers. the shat
tering OF ahackles and the demolition Of
letters: that no man shall lord It over
his fellows, aud 10 human being shal
be considered inferior or unequal 10
another. This we claim is tho spell
word Of this Passover festival, then but
family heard and dimly understood, but
growing louder and more comprehensive
as the circling years swept on In their
endless march. This was the nrst de-
clarstion of independence ever promul-
gated in history. to be reiterated and en-
phaszed. as man more fully realized It's
import. in almost every age and In almost
every cline. to be repeated and accen-
tuated by Leonias at ThermoDylae, by
SpartacUs and his eladiatOrs in Rome,
by the Puritans in England, by the Anne
rican Revolution I'm 1T76. by the Commune
in Paris, by the uprising Of l4S all over
Europe. by the civil war Of lsel-lS55, and
by the struggle OF Cuba to-day against
the tyranny Of Spain. Its pulse was felt
IN the magma charta that was wrested
from King John OF England, and It's call
rang out IN clarion tones from our own
Declaration Of Independence which held
this truth 10 he self-evident; that all men
are created equal"
THE TRUE LESSON
From the year 1900 before the Christian
era to the year 1900 OF that era Is fai
cry. Yet during all those three thousand
years has man been tardily and painfully
learning the lesson. which was sounded
forth in that midnight cry OF Egyptian
anguish. AND the lesson is not yet fully
learned. This nineteenth century has
swung the pendulum too far 10 the other
side 1t would degrade liberty into IL
cense and equality into uniformity.
Would we learn the lesson truly let us
read It from "the manuscripts Of Cod
In the book of nature about us. The first
essential fact 10 stare us in the face is
that freedom is not anarchy, but obe-
dionce. The world Is governed and guild
ed by supreme and inyiolable law. ard he.
whether Il he man or bird or beast or
flower is most free who is most obedient
10 the fundamental law Of cosmic neces.
sity. II is now the season Of the re-
awakening Of terrestrial life The flowers.
trees, shrubs and heritage are rousing
themselves from the annual hlbernal
sleep, and beginning 10 assert themselves.
The hepaticas, the tulips. the crocuses.
the narcissues the ionquIls and the yio-
lets. the hardy pioneers of Flora's an
nual advent have already pre- ented their
variegatcd and pOiychromatic front. The
blades Of grass feel the returning ilfo
coursing in their tiny ducts. the buds are
on the bushes and the nodulcs on the
trees are already expanding into leafy
garments to cover the nakedness OF win
ter and cloth the bare branches Noun
tain gorge and valley plain hear the tur-
bulence Of strelmlets rs they hurry from
the wintry prison 10 the arms of their
mother ocean. on every side We see l!fa
re-aleased. set free and re-awakened
Because that llfo had ohayed the law Of
It's being. When the season Of its ac-
tivity was over T. ceased 10 be active
The petals and sepals fell from the flower.
The lower from tho twis TIL lcavee re-
leassd their hold upon the branches OF
the trees and the sap ran down from
trunk and stem and stalk and blade
into tho roots below the ground. Think
you had yon rose bush disobeyed the law
Of its annual wiEtry sleep. had Il refused
10 let the sap run down into the refuge
Of tho roots aud had tried to produce
throughout all the chilling months, that
now II would be bearing that brave
bud. that holds the promise Of so much
future loyelncss7
FREEDOM IS OBEDIENCE.
The planets wheel IN their orbits. they
march and counter march along tho
camping grounds Of the Heavens and all
IN obedience 10 the commands they have
received from their all-glorous KIng.
While thrs they obey they are free.
Should they disobey. what stupendous
firmamental cataclysm would ensue. The
bird is the type OF unrestricted action
Yet the bird knows its limitations and
obeys and I'm that obedience finds its full
est freedom.
Thus too. for man are there laws moral
ethic and spiritual. which h must obey
II he would be free 20 consumate his high
est achievement Perfect freedom Is NOT
the absence Of law. hut thorough volun.
essential requisite OF life, rhe law OF right
eousncss.
In similar light must we look upon
equality. There is no equality In the
sense that men should be alike In their
THOUGHTS. speech and deeds in their
worldly station and possessions. In the
sense Of uniformity there Is no equality
either in the Heavens alone or the earth
beneath. or in the waters under the earth
or among bird. beast. FISH or man. or as
tradition tells among the angels en- Heav
en-. Everywhers are there d'stinctiors
OF class. kind and species. differences In
size. strength. weight. value, beauty. rar-
ity. power and desrability. In the cos
mic workshop no pattern is used twice.
IL is man who foolishly endaavors 10 set
IN n STANDARD and declare that all men
shall he modelled after II 10 be like II in
every detail equal In all directors II Is
on this rock that eevry Utopian ship has
foundered From the DAYS Of Plato men
have souPht 10 construct state
wherein its citizens shall all be
eonal in that they shall share
alite IN the wealth that Is pro-
duced. Believing that pOveriy was not
only the great evil OF human existence
hut the source OF innume-ahls other SIS
they have SOUGHT TO abolish poverfy bv
aholishIng property. IL l. this end thar
anarchy aims at In the abolition of law
q -c-o-o-o-o-tt->S-o- s3-o-'9-'9