Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1899-11-25
A Living Christ.
rcopytIght, Louis Klopsch. 1891


First of all, remark that that future
religious discourse will he full of liv-
ing Christ In contradstinction to di-
dactic technicalitics. y discourse may
be full of Christ though hardly men
tioning his name, and a sermon may be
empty of Christ while every sentence
is repetitious Of his titles. The world
wants q living Christ, not a Christ
standing at the head OF formal sys-
tenn Of theology, but Christ who
means pardon and sympathy and con-
dolence and brotherhood and life and
heaven, poor nlan'S Christ, Il rich
mans Christ, IN oyerworked mans
Christ, an invalid's Christ, a farm
er's Christ, merchants Christ, an
artisans Christ. an every mans Christ
A symmetrical and fine worded sys-
TEN of theology is well enough for the
illogical classes. but ii has no more
business in q pulpit than have the
technical phrases of an anatomist or
psychologist or physician in the sick
room of patient. The world wants
help, immediate and world uplifting,
and 1t will come through a discourse in
which Christ shall walk right down
Into the immortal soul and take ever
lasting possession OF ii. filling il as full
of light rs is this MONDAY armament.
That sermon or eXhortation of the
future will not dcnl with men in the
threadbare illustrations Of Jesus Christ.
In that coming address there will be
instances of yicarious suffering taken
right out of everyday life. for there is
not n day when somebody is not dying
for others-as the physician saving his
diphtheritlc patient by sacrificing his
own life; as the ship captain going
down with his vessel while he is get
ting his passengers into the lifeboat; as
the fireman consuming in the burning
building while he Is taking child out
of fourth story window; rs in sum-
mer the strong swimmer at East
Hampton or Long Branch or Cape May
or Lake George himself persisted try
ing to rescue the drowning; as the
newspaper boy one summer, support
ing his mother for some years. his In
valid mother. when offered by gentle
man so cents to get some special pa
per- and he got it and rushed up in his
anxiety to denver it and WAS crushed
under the wheels Of the train and lay
on the grass with only strength enough
to say. oh. what will become or my
poor. sick mother now" Nicarious
suffering the world is full of it. An
engineer said 10 me on locomotive ID
Dakota: we men seem to he coming
to better appreciation than we used to.
Did you see that account the other day
of an engineer who to save his passen-
gers stuck TO his place. and when he
was found dead in the locomotive,
which was upside down, he was found
still smiling. his hand Oh the air
brake% And as the engineer said 1t
to me be put his hand on the alrDrake
to illustrate bis meaning, and LOOKED
Mt him and thought: You would be
lust as much n hero in the same crisis"
Oh, in that religious discourse OF the
future there will be living illustra-
lions taken out from everyday life OF
yicarious suffering : Illustrations that
will bring to mind the ghastlier sacrl-
flee Of him. who in the high places OF
the field, on the cross. fought our bat
ties, and endured our struggle ana
died our death. A German sculptor
made an Image of Christ, and he asked