The united opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1881-1970, 1900-10-05

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. If it be 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 is 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. 1 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
a 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. If
any one thing will send a boy or
that is it, If had such father and
mother l fear I should have been an
infdel.
Others were tripped up to skepti-
cism from being grievously wronged
by some man who professed to be a
Christian. They had a partner in
business who turned out to be first
class scoundrel. though a professed
Christian. Many years ago they lost
all faith by what happened in an oil
company which was formed amid the
petroleum excitement. The COM
pany ~ewned no land. or if they did |
there was no sign of oil produced; |
but the president of the company was
a Presbyterian elder. and the treas
urer was an Episcopalian vestryman,
and one director was a Methodist
class leader and the other directors
porminent members of Baptist and
Congregational churches. Circulars
were gotten out telling what fabulous
prospects opened before this company.
Innocent men and women who had a
little money to invest. and that little
their all, said 81 do not know any
thing about this company, but SO
many good men are at the head of it
that it must be excellent, and TAX
ing stock in it must be almost as
good as joining the church" So
they bought the stock and perhaps
received one dividend so as to keep
them still, but after awhile they
found that the company had reor-
gained, and had a different presi-
dent ard different treasurer and diff
ferent directors. Other engagements
or i'll health had caused the former
officers of the company, with many re-
grets, to resign. And all that the
of that stock had to show
for their investment was a beautifully
ornamented certificate. Sometimes
that man, looking over his old papers,
comes across that certificate, and it
is so suggestive that he vows he
wants none of the religion that the
president and trustees and directors
of that oil company protested.
OF course, their rejection of religion
on such grounds was unphilosophical
and unwise. 1 am told that many of
the United States army desert every
year, and there are many court
tials every year. Is that anything
against the United States government
that swore them in? And if a soldier
of Christ deserts, is that anything
against the Christianity which he
swore to support and defend? How do
you judge of the currency of coun-
try2 By counterfeit bill? Now, you
must have patience with those who
have been swindled by religious pre-
tenders. Live in the presence of others
a frank, honest, earnest Christian life,
that they may be attracted to the same
~ unap .xubnpo rarr a..