The Banner-Democrat. [volume] (Lake Providence, East Carroll Parish, La.) 1892-current, 1900-05-19
TALMAGE SERMON.
suNo1x seovRse BY THE Aslf 81.
VINE.


subject: Drama Discussed-It Cannot BE
suppressed-Christia Should Con-
troll and Reform Public Amusement-
The Church Should GO to the Theater.
lcopyright 1901
WASHINGTON, D. Cat a time when the
whole country Is In controversy as never
,efors concerning the theater and some
plays are being arrested by the police and
,thers are being patfonised by Christian
people this sermon OF pr: Ta!mage 70 OF
much interest. The text IL Corinthians
gii., 81, "They that use this world as not
abusing it.''
My reason for preaching this discourse IL
that have been kindly invited by two Of
the leading newspapers Of this country to
Inspect and report on two OF the popular
plays OF the day-to 20 some weeks ago to
Chicago and see the drama "Quo Vadis"
and criticise 1t with respect to its moral eff
feet and to go to New York and see. the
drama "Ben-Hur" and write my opinion Of
1t for public use. Instead OF doing that
propose in sermon to discuss what we
shall do with the dramatic element which
God has implanted in many Of our natures
mot In ten or 100 or 1000, but In the vast
ajority OF the human race. Some people
speak OF the drama as though IL were
something built up outside OF ourselves by
the Congreves. and the aoldsmiths and
the Shakespeare and the Sheridans Of
literature and that then we attune our
tastes to correspond with human inven-
lions. Not at all. The drama IS an echo
from the feeling which God has implanted
In our immortal souls. 1t is seen first In the
domestic circle among the children three
or four years OF age playing With their
dolls and their cradles and their carts, seen
ten years after in the playhouses OF wood,
ten years after In the parlor charades, after
that in the elaborate representations In the
academies OF music. Thespis and Eschy-
lus and Sophocles and Euripides merely
dramatized what was In the Greek heart;
Terence and Plautus and Seneca merely
dramatized what was In the Roman heart;
Congreve and Farquhar merely dramatized
what was in the English heart; Racine,
Corneille and Alfieri only dramatized what
was In the French and italian heurt;
Shakespeare only dramatized what was In
the great worlds heart. The dithyrambic
and classic drama, the sentimental drama,
the romantic drama. were merely echoes
OF the human soul.
I do not speak Of the drama on the poetic
shelf or of the drama In the playhouse, but
I speak OF the dramatic element In your
soul and mine. We make men responsible
for it. They are not responsible. They
are responsible for the perversion Of 1t, but
that work, and suppose He knew what He
was about when He made us. We are
nearly all moved by the spectacular. When
on Thanksgiving Day We decorate our
churches with the cotton and the rice and
the apples and the wheat and the rye and
the oats, our gratitude to God Is stirred;
when on Easter morning we see written In
letters of flowers the inscription, He Is
Risen," our emotions are stirred. Every
parent likes to 60 to the school exhibition,
with its recitations and its dialogues and
its drotl costumes. The torchlight pro-
cessIon of the political campaign Is merely
the dramatization of principles involved
No intelligent man can look In any secular
or religious direction without finding this
dramatic element revealing, unrolling,
demonstrating itself. What shall We do
with 1t?
Shall We suppress It? You can as easily
suppress its Creator. You may direct It,
you may educate 1t, you may purify It,
you may harness It to multi-potent useful
ness, and that 1t IL your duty to do, just as
we cultivate taste for the beautiful and
sublime.
Now, have to tell you not only that God
has implanted this dramatic element In
our natures, but have to tell you In the
Scriptures He cultivates 1t, He appeals to 1t
Ho develops 1t. ! do not care where you
open the Bible, your eye will fall upon q
| drama. Here It Is In the book Of Judges
| the fir tree, the vine, the olive tree, the
| bramble-they all make speeches. Then al
| the close of the scene there Is corona
| ton, and the bramble Is proclaimed king
That Is political drama. Here 1t Is II
the book OF Job. Enter Eliphaz. Bildad
| Zophar, Elihu and Job. The opening acI
| act Of the drama, all sunshine. Magniil
cent drama ia the book of Job.
Here it is In Solomon's Song-the region
an oriental region: Vineyards, pomegra
mates, mountain Of myrrh, flock Of sheep
garden of spices, q wooing, bride, q bride
| groom, dialogue after dialogue-intense
gorgeous, all suggestive drama Is the book
Of soiomon,s Song. Here It is In the book
of Luke: Costly mansion In the night. Al
| the windows bright with illumination. TIL,
| floor a-quake with the dance. Returned
| son In costly garments which do not very
| we'll flt him perhaps, for they were MOI
made for him, but he must swiftly leave of
| his old garb and prepare for this extern
porized leyee. Pouting son at the bacl
door, too mad to 20 In, because they arr
making such 3 fuss. Tears OF sympath,
story Of his sons wandering and suffering
and tears Of Joy at his return. When yor
heard Murdoch recite "The ProdiGal Son
In one of his readings, you did not know
whether to sob or shout. Reviyals OF re
ligion have started Just under the reading
OF that soul revolutionizing drama Of "Th'
Prodigal Son.
Here 1t is in the book Of Revelation
crystalline sea, pearly gate, opaline river
amethystine capstone, showering coronets
one vial poured out incardinating the wa
tiers, cavalrymen OF heaven galloping OF
white horses, nations in doxoloRy, ballelu
| iahs to the right OF them, halleluiahs Il
the left of them. As the Bible opens will
| the drama OF the first paradise, SO It elose
with the drama Of the second paradise.
Mind you. when say drama I do no
mean myth or fable, for my theoloRyis o.
the oldest type-500 years old, thousands 0
years old, as old as the Bible. When Ispeal
OF the drama at the beginning
mean an alleeory, but mean the trutl
80 stated that in grouping and in startling
effect It IL God given, world resembling
heaven echoing drama. Now, IL God i'm
planted this dramatic element in our ma
lures, and II He has cultivated and devel
oped 1t in the Scriptures, demand tina
| you recognize 1t.
Because the drama has again and agail
been degraded and employed for destruc
tive purposes fs nothing against the drami
any more than music ought to be accursed
into the saturnalian wassails of 1000 years
VIII you refuse to enthrone music on the
church organ because the art has beer
|. trampled again and again under the feet
of the lascIvious dance?
1t Is nothing against painting and sculp
ture that In Corinth and Hercuianeun
thcy were demonstrative OF vulgarity and
turpitude. The dreadful museum al
Pompeii shall throw no discredit on Pow
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