The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1899-06-16
TALKS ON BIGOTRY.
Rev DR.. Talmage Discusses a Del
icate Subject.
DepIOres sectarInn Inference In the
demonstrations Parents ns to
It's Evil EHec, on the
Children.
copyright. 1899, by Louis Klopscn.I


topic which will interest domestic
circles everywhere. The text is Gene
Sis Kill, s; Let there be no strife,
pray thee, between me and thee, and
between my herdmeu and thy herdmen.
Is not the whole land before thee?"'
Uncle and nephew, Abram and Lot,
both pious, both millionaires, and with
such large flocks of bleating sheep and
lowing cattle that their herdmen got
into a fight, perhaps about the best
pasture, or about the best water privi-
lege, or because the COW of one got
hooked by the horns of the other. Not
their poverty of opportunity, but their
wealth, was the cause of controversy
between these two men. TO Abram. the
glorious old Mesopotamian sheik, such
controversy seemed absurd. II was
IKE two shiHs quarreliug for sea room
III the middle of the Atlantic ocean.
There was vast reach of country, corn
fields. whey drus, harvests and plenty
Of routn ia i.,i..itable acreage. Now"
said NHra"l. "iet us agree to differ.
Iere are the mountain districts, swept
10y the tonic of sea breeze and with
wide-reaching prospect, and there is
the plain of Jordan, with tropical lux
uriance. You may have either" Lot,
who was not as rich as Abram and
might have been expected to take the
second choice, made the first selection,
and with modesty that must have
made Abram smile. said to him:
You may have the rocks and the
fine prospect; will take the valley
of the Jordan. with all its luNuriance o +
cornfields, and the river to water the
ilocks, and the genial climate, and the
wealth Unreasonable" So the con-
troversy was forever settled, and great
souled Abram carried out the suyges-
ton of the text: Let there be no
strife, | pray thee, between me and
thee, and between my herdnen and thy
herdmen. Is not the whole land be-
fore thee?"
Well, in this, the last decade of the
nineteenth century, and in this bcauti-
full land, which was called America.
after Americas Nespuciu,, but should
have been called Columbia. after its
discoverer, Columbus. we have wealth
OF religious privilege and opportunity
that positively bewildering-ch churches
OF all sorts Of creeds, and of all kinds OF
government. and all forms of worship,
and all styles of architecture. What
opulence OF ecclesiastical opportunity!
Now, while in desolate regions there
may he only one church, in the opulent
districts of this country there is such
profusion that there ought to be no
difficulty in making n selection. No
night about S yestmepts, or between litur-
e7tal or nouliturgical adherents, or as
10 baptisimal modes, or handful of
water as compared with 9 LiysEfgL i
Abrain prefers to dwell on the heights.
where he can only get sprinkling
from the clouds, let him consent that
Lot have all the Jordan in which 10
immerse himself. Let there be no
strife, pray thee, between me and
thee, and between my herdmcn and thy
herdmen. Is not the whole land before
thee?"
Especially is it fortunate when
families allow angry discussion at the
breakfast or dinner or tea table rs TO
which is the best church or denomina-
ton, one al one end of the table saving
he could never endure the rigid doc
trines OF sbyterianism, one at the
other end responding that she never
could stand the forms of Epscopacy,
and one at one side of the table saying
he did not understand how anybody
could bear the noise in the Methodist
church, and another declaring all the
Baptists bigots. There are hundreds
of families hopelessly split on ecclesi-
asticism, and in the middle of every dis
cussion on such subjects there is
kindling of indignation, and il needs
some old Father Abram to come and put
his foot on the loaded fuse before the
explosion takes place and say. "Let
there be no strife, pray thee. between
me and thee, and between my herdmen
and thy herdmen. Is not the whole
land before thee?"
| undertake a subject never under
taken by any other pulpit, for il is an
exceedingly delicate subject, and if not
rightly handled might give serious Of
tense, but | approach il without the
slightest trepidation, for am sure |
have the Divine direction in the mat.
tiers | propose to present. 1t is a ire
mendous question, asked all over
Christendom, often asked with tears
and sobs and heartbreaks and involv-
ing the peace Of families, the eternal
happiness of many souls. In matters
of church attendance should the wife
go with the husband, or the husband |
go with the wife?
First, remember that all the even.
gelical churches have enough truth in
them 10 save the soul and prepare us for
happiness on earth and in Heaven. | !
Will go with you into any well-selected |
theological library, and will show you
sermons from ministers in all demon. !
nations that set forth man as a sinner
and Christ as deliverer from sin and |
sorrow. That is the whole Gospel. Get |
that into your soul, and you are fitted
for the here and the hereafter. There |