The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-05-01
TYPES or UNREAL RELIGION,
REV. C.. II. STRONG EXPOSES THE
FALLACY OF RELIGIOUS sHAMS.

Morality. He Says, Is n Reor Sub
stitute for Christianity-Religi
of Aestheticism and Caprice-The
Eternal Question MnrlS-His Rem
edy for the EVIL of Unreal Relig-
ions. Confidence and Trust in the
Wisdom of the Past.
The subject of Rev. Charles H. Strong's
evening sermon at ST. Johns Church yes
terday was Types of Unreal Religion"
The preachers text was from James, 1:26:
This mans religion is vain" and with
this as a theme, Mr.. Strong animadverted
upon some of the shams and pretenses
that masquerade as Christianity, and
which he denounced as false, unreal and
utterly vain, and opposed to the letter and
the spirit of Christ's teachings.
Recently" said Mr.. Strong; "a theo-
logical writer has discussed this question
and given some of the types which he re-
CARDS as unreal Among these is the re-
ligion 70 hypocrisy. I cannot believe that
this base and ignoble thing is very preva-
lent, that a man will, in the face of God
and his fellows, wear as a mask a belief
that he does not feel, and with which he
has no real sympathy. cannot think
that many Of my fellow men are so utter
ly base and depraved."
But there is a form of religion, nearly
allied to this, which is met everywhere.
1t is the religion that estimates its profits
in dollars and cents or in the respectable
ity that it adds to a mans standing in
the community or in the assistance it Of
fers to the one who is ambitious for place
or preferment. 1t is the religion of in
terest and it is the garb of the selfish
schemer who uses it for the attainment
OF selfish ends. Its edherents are not alb
solutely hypocritical. they may believe in
some fashion what they profess, but their
conception of Christianity is like unto that
OF the Pharisee. who lifted up his voice
IN the temple and thanked God thai lie
was not as other men. The tribe of
Pharisees Is not extinct, and there are
many among our own people whose re-
hglon is of the market place and not of
me c-oset. who are religious only for what
they can get oug Of it, and who lack the
primal instinct of the true spirit of Chris
tianity."
There is third type of religionist who
Is attracted by the beauty of the church
services, the solemn peal of the organ,
the majestic music of the choir informing
some glorious anthem, the words of the
preacher, or the stiIlnees 90
Inc sacred place where the in
cehse OF the hearts worship is Of
Iered up to God. Theirs is the religion of
aestheIcism. They enter the church much
as some OF the devotees of Masonry en-
Ter the higher degrees of the order. be-
cause they are attracted by the solemn
beauty OF its ritual and the weird majesty
of its mysteries"
me members Of this religious cult come
10 church when they feel like 1t and the
state OF their health and the weather per
mlts' Ihey are swayed by a slight head
acne or a gathering cloud and they rarely
attend the sacrament of the holv COM
muhlon, because they feel that il brings
them INTO too close relation with the All
mlghty. They bask in the beauty Of The
church service, enjoy Its atmosphere of
nope and its sunshine of haDpiness and
MISS altogether its spirit and its true end
lhey are dawdlers along the highways
u ne ana the hoy calm of Gods temple
or" "le ana thought-ess participation in
the worship of Gods votaries therein is
a part of their scheme of amusement >,
There is yet another form of unreal ra-
hslon mat is very common, 1 had almost
Sa'd characteristic of this country Tr &c
me relslon or caprice 1t is a strange
lh-hs TO me, that we, who are descended
OF the stern old Anglo-Saxon race n race
OF nard headed and hard listed men with
OUT sentiment, practical and clear sighted
IN every vocation of life, should look unon
the most solemn of all lifes duties SO light
~ ana lrreVerently and with so little an
probation of what we owe to God orr
tend its services or participate in it's work
we come when we feel 2lke It and stav
away when we feel disposed to do so. and
IN ali the responsibilities of Christian liv
ing Io4fow the dictates of our own incliha-
ton. In religion, as in nothing else. are we
fancifui and capr:cious and without the
liked purpose and the controlling idea that
animate our every other action. we are
as unstable as the wind that bloweth where
II Hsteth and religious exhortat.on has
upon us about rs much effect as the sunn-
MGR breeze upon the petals Of the downv
rose"
Then there is the religion of morality
There are people who conceive thar If
they lead the best sort of life of which
they are capable, If they speak the ruth
and are pure in their motives and ac-
tons and honest and fair in their DEALINGS
with their fellow man, that in some wav
God VIII look after the rest and they them
selves are absolved of further respons;-
bility. Against morality or any good
action | have nothing to say. | would
not condemn anything that has as it's eff
feet the upbuilding of human Character
or the advancement of the human race
but after we have said for morality CIV.
erything that we truthfully can, how bar-
ren and dry and void of beauty and Uebt
Is life, without the glad promises thar are
given TO the Christian. Let us have Some
thing more than morality to make OF This
world place fit for mans habitation and
to give promise of better and more plo-
ricus hereafter
An finally there is the religion that &c
an everlasting question mark and whose
distinguishing characteristic is donbt IL
adherents. go through life as thougb -
was an Intellectual picnic asking ouosN
ions OF every passerby and striving 10
gain from the ashes of some dead na9o,
ism or new theosophy ray of the eternaI
truth They gather everything thai tho,,
can tind and turn up constantly with soma
religious or philosophical cult. in wbioh
everything that is new is not true 81
everything that is true is NOT ,o-- ~