The record-union., 1899-06-12

| navigate ScCuI ely tll- Scp VI Lit civ
gain the coasts Of bliss"
The enemies of the Bible should act
upon a motto of the first Napoleon,
/ namely, ITO replace is to conquer"
You have not conquered your enemy
until you have driven hts forces out
of the field and established your army
1 in their place. To replace is to con-
uuer. We challenge the destructionsts
of the Bible to test their strength by
! this principle Let them supplant the
Bible by putting a better on in it's
place, and let them show a higher civ
| ilization than the civilization of the
Bible The religion of the Bible ac-
cepts that challenge. Christianity has
| gone into the enemy's territory and
has conquered by replacing. st. Boni-
| face Of holy memory carried the gos-
pei of Christ ages ago to Germany.
He found the people worshiping the
god Thor under the oak forests. He
cut down the sacred oaks, and with the
timber built a Christian sanctuary. and
| into it gathered the people for Chris
/ ton instruction, so that where before
they worshiped Thor, the thunderer,
they worshiped Christ, the crucified.
He conquered by replacing.
| Real ability is shown, not in criti-
cising, but in constructing. tn does not
1require much brains to be destroying
critic Small calibred men can point
out what they suppose are defects in
| the Bible. An idiot can manipulate the
muscles of his face and nose so as 10
manufacture a sheer; but he could not
| look intelligently beautiful though he
| tried ever SO hard. A tramp with his
| foul fist and club could deface and de-
stroy Venus de Milo. It would re-
quire the genius Of Phidias to replace it,
| A w-browed firebug could apply the
| incendiary'S torch to the finest archi-
| tectural structure that stands like
| frozen music before the raptured gaze
of man. 1t requires Christopher Wren
to erect such a structure. A band CT
mad nihilists could In one night de-
molish and destroy every work of art
| in the Louvre. It would require the
geniuses of ten centuries to rebuild and
replace it. An Ingersoll may let the
| lightning flash of his brilliant wit play
upon and expose the seeming defects
of the greatest epic the world ever well
| ccmed. 1t requires the genius of Mil
| ton to write such a poem. Real worth
| is shown, not by destruction, but by
construction.
| Let the destroyers of mems faith con-
quer by replacing. Let them show their
ability and their humanity in some
nobler way than by sneering and ridi-
culing the faith and hope that we now
possess. Let them give us purer code
| of morals than is to be found in the
Sermon on the Mount. Let them give US
a savior more merciful and mighty
than the Christ of Bethlehem and Cal
vary. Let them show a more sure way
| of reconciliation and peace than the
way of the Cross. Let them give US a
surer foundation to build our hopes of
heaven on than the Rock Of Ages. Let
| them do this or else in the name of all
that is reasonable and humane, let them
be forever silent. I would not tear
down the tepee over the heads of an In
dian family unless could give them a
better style of house to live in. I would
not ridicule or destroy the faith of a
Zulu in his ugly idol god, unless I could
show him the true and living God.
| The Bible holds up a high standard
of personal purity. 1t insists on clean
hands and pure heart 1t flames hot
with Indignation against all impurity CT
| thought, speech, desire, etc. In spite
of this fact you hear men object to the
| Bible because it deals with subjects
that cannot be discussed publicly be-
fore mixed audience. You will hear
| coarse, lecherous men with feigned
modesty assert that the Bible is not a
fit book to put into the hands of pure
minded maiden. Against this charge
the Bible is its own defense. Will you
condemn city because you find sewers
and scavengers' carts in it? A sewer is
| as necessary to city as marble pave
| ment. scavenger's cart is as neces-
sary as an art gallery. These are the
| things that purify city and contri-
butte to the health and vigor of the peo
| pie. The Bible deals with everything
| that affects the moral and physical well
| fare of humanity. "It makes no apol-
| ogy, draws no curtain, never turns
| aside to stammer or blush. 1t does not
| ignore facts with a goody goody blind
| ness, but faces them and proposes rem
| edies for them" 1t is no argument
! against the Bible to say that there are
| chapters that should not be read in
public. There are medical books that
should not be read in public. But they
should be read. There are medical
| lectures that cannot be given to pro-
miscuous audience, but that does not
condemn them. Sensible men know it
does not. Thy word is very pure,
| therefore Thy servant loveth it, For
| the same reason some men hate it.
| Wherewithal shall young man
cleanse his way?'' The answer is. by
taking heed thereto according to thy
word" With great plainness and with
| fiery energy the Bible denounces sexual
sins. Would you have the book silent
on these deadly and damning viceso
| Shall no note of solemn warning be
sounded out, for fear you should offend
| ears polite? Sexual sins are spoken
| of in the Bible in such a way that men
learn to loathe and abhor them. The
Story Of Ammon's betrayal and ruin Of
| lamar shows what a fiendish thing it
| is to ruin the innocent and the fair. He
who can read that story without indig-
nation and tears is polluted past re-
| demption. If a young man will read
those chapters in the Bible on sexual
sins, his soul will learn to loathe these
deadly vices, and he will be kept from
the fatal destinations Of her whose
house is the way to hell, going down to
the chambers Of death.
Samuel Johnson, one of the most emf
| nent literary men of England, gave his
testimony to the superior ethics of the
Bible in these words: Young men, at
| tend to the voice Of one who possesses
a certain degree Of fame and who will
shortly appear before his maker. Read
the Bible every day of your life" That
is wise counsel. If young man wishes