The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1900-11-08

cases here, and we are attending to
them, and when we are not positively
busy with their wounds it takes all
our time to keep the flies off," In this
awful battle with sin and sorrow,
where millions have fallen on millions,
do not let us spend all our time in TAX
ing care of few people, and when the
command comes: "Go into the world"
say, practically: "No, cannot go;
have here few choice cases, and l am
busy keeping off the fiies." There are
multitudes to-day who have never had
any Christian worker look them in the
eye and with earnestness in the ac-
centuation say: "Come," or they would
long ago have been in the kingdom.
My friends, religion is either sham
or great reality. If it be sham, let
US disband our churches and Christian
associations. II it be a reality, then
great populations are on the way to
the bar of God untitled for the ordeal.
Comparatively little effort as yet
has been made to save that large
class of persons in our midst called
skeptics, and he who goes to work
here will not be building upon an
other mans foundation. There is
large number of them. They are
afraid Of us and our churches for
the reason we do not know how to
treat them. One of this class met
Christ. And hear with what tender
ness and pathos and beauty and sue
cess Christ dealt with him: "Thou
shalt love the Lord thy God with all
thy heart and with all thy soul and
with all thy mind and with all thy
strength. This is the first and great
commandment, and the second is
like unto it, namely, thou shalt love
thy neighbor as thyself. There is
none other commandment greater
than these" And the scribe said to
him: "Well, master, thou hast said
the truth, for there is one God, and
to love Him with all the heart and all
the understanding and all the soul
and all the strength il more than
whole burnt offerings and sacrifices" +"
And when Jesus saw that he an
swered discreetly He said unto him:
"Thou art not far from the kingdom
of God" So a skeptic was saved in
one interview. But few Christian
people treat the skeptic in that way.
Instead of taking hold Of him with
the gentle hand OF love, we are apt
to take him with the pinchers of &C.
clesiasticism.
You would not be so rough on that
man if you knew how he lost his
faith in Christianity. have known
men skeptical from the fact that
they grew up in houses where reli-
gion was overdone. Sunday was the
most awful day in the week. They
had religion driven into them with
trip hammer. They were surfeited
with prayer meetings. They were
stuffed and choked with catechisms
They were often told that they were
the worst boys the parents ever knew
because they liked to ride down hill
better than to read Bunyan's "Pil.
grim's Progress Whenever father
and mother talked Of religion, they
drew down the corners Of their
mouth and rolled up their eyes. i
any one thing will send q boy OF
girl to ruin sooner than another
that is it. II had such father and
mother fear should have been an
infidel.
Others were tripped up to skepti
cism from being grievously wronget
by some man who professed to be /
Christian. They had partner il
business who turned out to be first
class scoundrel. though professet
Christian. Many years ago they los
all faith by what happened in an Of
company which was formed amid tn
petroleum excitement. The com
| pany owned no land. or il they di,
there was no sign OF oil produced
but the president of the company wa
10 Presbyterian elder. and the treas
urer was an Episcopalian vestrymar
and one director was a Methods
class leader and the other director
lporminent members Of Baptist an
Congregational churches. Circular
were gotten out telling what fabulou
prospects opened before this company
Innocent men and women who had
little money to invest. and that ittl
their all, said: II do not know any
thing about this company, but 9
many good men are at the head of
that it must be excellent, and tai
ing stock in it must be almost a
good as joining the church" S
they bought the stock and perhaT
received one dividend 80 as to kee
them still, but after awhile the
found that the company had reol
panized, and had q different pres
dent ard different treasurer and di
ferent directors. Other engagement
or i'll health had caused the forms
officers OF the company, with many r
. grets, to resign. And all that Il
. subscribers Of that stock had to sho
! for their investment was beautiful
. ornamented certificate. Sometime
that man, looking over his old paper
comes across that certificate. and
is so suggestive that he vows
/ wants none Of the religion that Il
: president and trustees and directo
- 49, cs1 nc~rorr prrfoce>d