Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1899-03-31
THE COMING OF EASTER.

THE COMING OF EASTER.
How like the beau ideal of an artists
dream-the moving frontisplece TO a poets
thought come the precious memories OF
Easter. OF all the days In the calendar,
none come 10 Us with stronger feelings OF
Joy and gladness-itis the queen Of religious
festivals, the day upon which our Savior
rose from the dead, and In His own blessed
person proclaimed the doctrine of eternal
life-of Him In whose whole history there
is not one wrAthful sentence, not one speech
of condemnation. He had sympathy and
compassion for all human inilrmities, for
sorrow, for sickness, even Tor repentant sin.
He went about healing and pardoning.
Whether it was Jarius walling over his liz
tie daughter, or Lazarus sisters weeping by
a brothers tomb, or the lame beggar who
vainly struggled TO the blessed pool Tor cure,
the gentle Jesus felt for all. Before Christ
came TO the earth the belief In the resurrec.
ton of the body was only vague dream In
the minds of the myriads peopling the world.
But when He assumed the form OF man and
after dying like the rest OF mortals and lying
in the grave for three days came forth ON
Easter morning, victory over death, 1t be-
came firmly fixed In the Christian Creed,
telling OF day 10 come when all who are
in their graves will rise again at His i'm
perial summons.
n.,No 10 frSNasa fNo Rad Ina
10 a day of joy and gladness. 1t comes TO
Us In the bright, fragrant springtime-when
the soft, misty air 10 blending every object
iuto beauty, the trailing arbutus is lifting It's
the sunny places in the deep and secluded
woodlands, and the birds are beginning 70
tune their notes Tor the first grand concert
of the year. When the land Is bright with
new born beauty, glonous with light, re.
plete with color wherever the eye wanders
When the young vines have Just begun to
uncurl their delicate tendrils, the breath of
budding blossoms weighs on every breeze
when all nature begins TO put on her fairest
garments-the lilies blooming in the mead :
ows around, the bloom Of violets open and
fill every tangled wood and nook with sweet
odor-when the air Is soft and the glory Of
the sunlight touches the ripping waters and
lends blush OF warmth and color TO the
budding flowers and Its Redeemed shadows
on the roofs catch the radiance of the heaV-
ems, and over the lily-whitened fields comes
the fragrance OF Spring, and the last muir
murs Of the days farewell. Winters gloom
is over, It's icy touch no longer chills the
Eround. Just at this time festive youths
bedsck themselves in brand new sr'ts enl
dainty bonnets rest fastid'~ oyer weyiur
ringlets and L g.lg oyas, and little boys
freN' ron Lae confinement and dut.r ID
srcf.4gol room irhued sitb gs'n f.s'
Win poclcs full % uh1y colo as.. 20
take theif Frsl lesson sbeo41iGre ssr Is
chsnoe. In fact. 10 ID dAy oi ..agla
hafiehtness aud rejoicing, and - the N,
( blooms upon the altar and lsir foSers dec
she r'a board the heart lie made ~ lee
lt uesrsal ~ q "a, once year perVade
tae CHRISTIE. world when the wondrou
...y OF Its risen Lord is told TO mortal ears
And Easter has It's lessons too, full n In
terest and advantage, If we will bear and
heed them. And chief among shem oil ls
its earnest appeal Tor self sacrifice, the halt 1t
calls upon narrow minded selfishness, and
the plea IL enters for charty and love TO men
10 their battle with the world. In hun
dred unobtrusive ways the burdens which
Others carry may be ligthened. This may
be done with but little personal sacrifice,
but the amount Of good that follows such
is beyond compute. There are neglected
duties due from man to man, which II more
generally recognized would remove much
OF the suffering that now clouds the lives Of
poor humanity, and looking back at Calvary
we may learn the grand lesson that no sac
rince ls too great, II by making it we pro
note the happiness Of our fellow men.