The united opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1881-1970, 1898-02-18
FOR COMMON PEOPLE.
Or, TALMAGE'S WORDS OF CHEER
FOR THE LOWLY.

diery Need Especial Help-Let Us BE
Content With Gods Gifts-The Penalty
Of Greatness Outweighs the JOY.
fCopyright, 1898, by American Press Asso-
ciation.l
WASHINGTON, Feb. 13.-Dr. Talmage
in this discourse calls the roll of
faithful men and noble women i'll all
departments who are unrecognized and
unrewarded and sounds encouragement
for those who do work in spheres lncon-
spicuous; text, Romans xvi, IA, 10, "Sa-
lutte Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermas, Pa
trobas, Hermes, Philologus and Julia.
Matthew Henry, Albert Barnes, Adam
Clark, Thomas Scott and all the com
mentators pass by these verses without
any especial remark. The other 30 peo-
ple mentioned in the chapter were dis
tinguished for something and were
therefore discussed by the illusGrious ex-
positors, but nothing is said about
Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermas, Patrobas,
Hermes, Philologus and Julia. Where
were they born? No one knows. When
did they die? There is no record OF their
decease For what were they dlstln-
guished? Absolutely nothing, or the
trait of character would have been
brought out by the apostle Ii they had
been very intrepid or opulent or hlrsute
or musical of cadence or Grass of style or
in any wise anomalous, that feature
would have been caught by the apostolic
camera. But they were good people, be-
cause Paul sends to them his high
Christian regards They were ordinary
people moving in ordinary sphere, at
tending to ordinary duty and meeting
ordinary responsibilities.
For the Rank and File.
What the world wants is a religion
for ordinary people. If there be in the
United States 10000, 900 people, there
are certainly not more than 1000, 600
extraordinary, and then there are &c.
600, 900 ordinary, and we do well to
turn our backs for a little while upon
the distinguished and conspicuous peo-
nile of the Bible and consider in our
text the seven ordinary. We spend too
much of our time in twisting garlands
for remarkables, and building thrones
for magnates, and sculpturing warriors,
and apotheosizing philanthropists The
rank and file of the Lord s soldiery need
especial help
The vast majority Of people will
never lead an army, will never write
state constitution, will never electrlfy
senate will never make an important
invention, will never introduce new
PHILOSOPHY, will never decide the fate
of a nation. You do not expect to, you
do not want to. You will not be
Moses to lead nation out of bondage.
You will not be a Joshua to prolong the
daylight until you can shut five kings
in a cavern. You will not be st. John
to unroll an Apocalypse. You will not
be Paul to preside over an apostolic
college. You will not be a Mary to
mother Christ You will more proba-
bly, be Asyncritus, or Phlegon, or Her
mas, or Patrobas, or Hermes, or Philol-
ogus, or Julia.
Many of you are women at the head
of households. Every morning you plan
for the day. The culinary department
of the household is in your dominion.
You decide all questions of diet. All
the sanitary regulations of your house
are under your supervision. To regulate
the food and the apparel and the habits
and decide the thousand questions of
home life is tax upon brain and nerve
and general health absolutely appalling
if there be no divine alienation.
Needs of tho Human Race.
1t does not help you much to be told
that Elizabeth Fry did wonderful things
amid the criminals at Newgate. 1t does
not help you much to be told that Mrs.
Judson was very brave among the Bor-
nesian cannibals. 1t does not help you
very much to be told that Florence
Nightingale was very kind to the
wounded in the Crimea. 1t would be
better for me to tell you that the divine
friend of Mary and Martha is your
friend, and that he sees all the annoy
ances and disappointments and abra-
sions and exasperations of an ordinary
housskeeper from morn till night, aud
from the first day of the year until the
last day of the year, and at your call
he is ready with help and re-enforce-
ment.
They who provide the food of the
world decide the health of the world.
You have only to go on some errand
amid the taverns and the hotels of the
United States and Great Britain to APP
preciate the fact that vast multitude
of the human race are slaughtered by
incompetent cookery. Though young
woman may have taken lessons in music
and may have taken lessons in painting
and lessons in astronomy, she is not
we'll educated unless she has taken les
sons in dough. They who decide the
apparel of the world and the food of the
world decide the endurance of the world.
An unthinking man may consider it
a matter of little Importance, the cares
of the household and the economies of
domestic life, but tell you the earth is
strewn with the martyrs of kitchen and
nursery. The health shattered woman
hood of America cries out for Cod
who can help ordinary women in the
ordinary duties of housekeeping. The
wearing, grinding, unappreciated work
goes on, but the same Christ who stood