The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1900-01-24
PURITY IN.
THE HOME

Gilbert PresbyterianC Church. spoke
to his congreg alton on Sunday
morning on the subject, "An Ap.
peal for the Home or Family" II
was an interesting discourse as the
the following abstracts from the
talk prove:
"When you 20 below the family
unit, man is no longer figure, but
be is naught! Minus the family
and man becomes zero in relation
to the political, economical and So
cial problems of the world.
There may be fablcd Robinson
Crusoes in the Utopian dreams Of
the novelist, but as a matter of fact,
for all human purposes, the instant
he passes from figuring as an intel
lectual abstraction into any state
of activity, the moment he ceases to
be used as a metaphysi sical manlkin
and becomes alive, he is inconceiv-
able as an absolute individual and
| distinct.
Man is born in society, he is an
offspring OF community. He begins
his career in community, he can
only develop his powers in commu-
nifty. No man lives or can live to
himself alone. Hence, any scheme
that looks to the enlishtening of his
moral, intellectual or spiritual
/ powers, must include a recognition
of the society unit, the family, that
is the simplest reducible form in
which we find the complete and
fruitful exercise of all his nobler
powers. 1t is here we have the hui
man cell containing all the capaci-
ties and possibilities of humanity!
No single individual whether male
or female, constitutes CELL there
must be the union OF the two. ere we
get complete cell. This is the in
destructible unit. DESTROY the ma
ton, the state and the tribe, if you
spare the family, they will be re-
placed by other tribes, states and
nations! Let desc alton sweep from
the earth all systems, orders, COM
merce and industries, governments
and Kingdoms, tribes and nations,
but so long as the family remains
their construction is sure. 1t is the
hidden surgling spring, whence
flow all the sparkling waters of ma
tional existence, and ational great
ness. All these are dependent up
on the family. In short, all these
grow out of the family as natural
as the oak from the acorn. And as
the,oak above the ground must ever
depend upon the root TN .er the
ground for moisture, sap and fer
tility, so must the larger aggrega-
tions OF society ever depend upon
the neither society, the home, for all
its social strength, its moral purity
and national fertility. Therefore
as is the family SO will be the COM
munity; as goes the home, so goes
the state. Then whatever you
would have the community or state
to be, that make the home.
If you have an intelligent commu-
nifty, an orderly community, pa
triotic community, temperate COM
munity. pure community. then
keep the family Intelligent, loyal,
patriotic, temperate and pure! For
tits still true, 1.-THE hand that rocks
the crkas ratssSfhe world. .Tis
not 50 much the man you
see, but the invisible woman he
carries in his heart, who inspires,
directs and controls his actions. If
she is an angel of a woman, he will |
be an an angel OF a man, but if she |
be devil of woman, he will also
be devil of man.
The state and church have both
made the mistake Of beginning the
work of reformation too far down
the stream. They must go up and
cleanse the source-the family
If they would have pure state; !
they must get the ideal homes if
they would have ideal communities
and nations.
1t is the sacred holy of holies.
where is kept the divine secret of
the Lord! 1t is transcript of
heaven. The sanctum, sanctorium.
Here is developed those heavenly
lies of affection, whose bonds are
stronger than death; here bud all
he sweetest, the heavenly graccs
of the soul; the tender sympathy
and loving service, the patient for
and faithful obedience;
he essential principles of all divine
'rdcr! Aye, more, it is the divine
amily casket, where the soul-image
If God, with its capacities for inf
lite greatness is set. Surely that
Dlacc wnerc immortal souls are
:ast, is the most sacred in the
world: that relation whence sprung
he celestial image Of Almighty God,
S the most holy in all the relations
# creation!
Again if the honor and dignity of
,arentagc are the most exalted
privilege conferred upon the finite
reaturc. the reproduction of the
tcrnal is the highest honor God
an bcstow upon the finite. There
ore, the home is the most sacred )
lace, the matrimonial the most
anctiiied relation possible to any
reaturc in this world. This is the
nc human relation that was found |
'orthy TO illustrate the mystic
nion between Christ and the be-
ever: the one place on earth sacred
, the human soul by hallowcd as ,
ociations, is fit to illustrate heaven.
18th all its peace and happiness.
ndless joys and neverdying pleas t
res. e
However dcsirous may be the !
edagogue, he has no means of i
living sufficient moral stamina to
ounteract the adverse influence of
N /, Il l.E, e,