The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1899-06-23

Good and Are seeking rhe Same End.
Angry ~sectarian Discussions De-
pIored.
Copyright, Louis Klopsch, 1897
In this sermon DR.. TaImaga dis
cusses a topic which will interest 90
nestle circle everywhere. The text is
Genesis xiii, 8: Let there be no strife.
I pray thee, between me and thee and
between my herdmen and thy herd
men. 1t not the whole land before
thee?"
Uncle and nephew. Abram ard Lot,
both pious, both miIlionaires, and with
such large focks Of bleating sheep and
lowing cattle that their herdmen got
int a fight, perhaps about the best pas
ture or about the best water privilege
or because the cow Of n got hooked
by the horns Of the other. Not tier
poverty of opportunity, but their
wealth, was the cause of controversy
between these two men. To Abram. the
glorious old Mesopotamjan sheik, such
controversy seemed absurd. 1t was like
two ships quarreling for sea room III
the middle of the Atlantis ocean. There
was a vast reach Of country, cornhelds,
vineyards, harvests and plenty Of room
in illimitable acreage. NOW, says
Abram, "let us agree to differ. Here
are the mountain districts, swept by
the tonic sea breeze and with wide
reaching prospect, and there IS the
plain Of the Jordan, with tropical
Iuxuriance. You may have either"
Lot. who was not as rich as ADrain,
and might have been expected to take
the second choice, made the first Seiec-
ton and with q mOdeSty that must
have made Abram smile said to him.:
You may have the rocks and the
fine prospect; I will take the valley Of
the Jordan, with all it's luxuriance Of
cornfieIds and the river to water the
flock and the genial climate and the
wealth immeaSurable." So the cOntro-
versy was forever settled and great
souled Abram carried out the suggeS-
ton of the text: Let there be no
strife, l pray thee, between me and
thee, and between my herdmen and thy
herdmen. Is not the whole land before
thee?"
Well. in this the last decade OF the
nineteenth century and in his beau
tiful land, which was called America,
after Americus Vespucius, but should
have been called Columbia, after its
COLUMBUS, We nave d oil
Of religious privilege and opportunity
thai is positively b~ewildering. Churches
of all sorts of creedS n Of all kinds
of government and all forms or Wor-
ship and all styles of architecture
what Opulence of ecclesiastical Oppor-
tunity! Now, while in desolate reglols
there may be only one church, in the
opulent districts Of this country there
is such a profusiOn that there ought
to be no difficulty in making a Selec-
ton. No fight about VeStmentS, or pc
tween liturgical or nOnliturgical adller-
ents. or as to baptiSmal modes, or q
handful Of water as compared with \
riverfull. If Abram prefers to dwell
on the heights, where he can get only
a sprinkling from the clouds, let him
consent that Lot have all the jordan
in which to immerse himself Let
there be no strife, l pray thee, between
me and thee and between my herd
mel and thy herdmen. Is not the
whole land before thee?"
ANGRY DISCUSSION DEPLORED.
Especially is it unfortunate when
families allow angry discussion at the
breakfast or dining or tea table as to
which is the best churc Of denOrni1a-
ton, one at one end Of the table say
ing he could never endure the rlSld
doctrines of PreSbyterianiSrn, one at
the other end responding that she new
Z u ICilIb NlC LOAiI'
pacy. and one at one side Of the table
SAYING he did not understand how any
body could peal the noise in the
Methodist church, and another declar-
ing all the BaptiStS bigOts. There are
hundreds of families hOpelessly split
on e~cclesiasticism, and in the middle
of every discussion on such subjects
there is a kindling of Indignation, and
it 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, L
pray thee, between me and thee n
between my herdmen and thy herd
men. Is not the whole land before
thee?"
7 undertake a subject never under
taken by any other pulpit, for it is an
exceedingly delicate subject, and L
not rightly handled might give serious
offense, but L approach it without the
slightest t~repidation, for L am sure l
have the divine direction in the mat
ters l propose to present, IL IS d Ire
mendous question, asked all over Chris
endom, often asked with tears and
sobs and heart breaks and involving
the peace of families, the eternal nap
piness of many souls. In matters or
church attendance should the wife go
with the husband or the husband go
with the wife?
First, remember that oil VI Ile
gelical churches nav enough truth in
them to save the soul and prepare US
for happiness on earth and in heaven
I will go with you into any we'll Sc
lected theological library, and | Will
show you sermons from ministers in all
denominations that set forth man as a
sinner and Christ as a deliverer from
sin and sorrow. That is the whole gos-
pei. Get that into your soul and you
are fitted for the here and the here
after. There are differences, we admit,
and some denominations we like better
than others. But suppose three or four
of rs make solemn agreement to meet
each other a. week from now in Chicago
on important business, n n goes by
the New York Central railroad, anoth-
err by the Erie railroad, another by the
Pennsylvania railroad, another by the
Baltimore and Ohio railroad. One goes
this way because the mountains are
grander; another takes this the
cars are more luxurious; another that
because the speed is greater; another