The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1900-04-04
DIR, TALMAGES SERMON.
SUNDAYS DISCOURSE BY THE NOTED
DIVINE.
Subject: Drama Discussed-It Cannot BE
Suppressed-Christian Sh"uld Com
troll and Reform Public Amusem ent-
The Church Should Go to the Theater.
tCOpyr!Sh. lgUU. !


before concerning the theater and some
plays are being arrested by the police anu
Others are being patronized by CHRISTIAN
paoD:e this sermon OF Dr.. Ta.maSe Is OF
much interest. The text Is Corihtalaus
vii, 81, "They that use this world is NOT
abusing it,
NV reason for preaching this discourse IS
tI,at have been kindly Invited by two or
the leading newspapers o. this country 10
Inspect and report on two OF the popular
plays OF the day-to go some weeks ago 10
Chicago and see the drama Quo 1au,s
and criticise il with respect to Its moral et-
fect and TO 60 TO New York and see the
drnmn "Ben-Hur" and write my opinion OF
II for nubIic use. Instead OF doing that
propose in a sermon to discuss what we
sbail do with the dramatic element when
God has implanted in many OF our natures
mot 10 ten or 100 or 1000, but in the vast
majority OF the human race. some peoPie
sneak of the drama as though IL were
something built up outside OF ourselves py
the Concreves and the Goldsmiths ana
tLa Shokesneares and the Sheridans OF
Iitercture and that then we attune our
tastes to correspond with human inven-
= fio,s Not at ali. 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 taree
or four years OF age playing win thelr
dolls and their cradles and their carts. seen
ten years after in tue playhouses OF Woou,
ten Years after in the par!or charades, after
that in the elaborate personations In the
academies OF music. Thespis and !Eschy-
Irs and Sophoc!es and Euripides merely
dramntized what was in the Greek heart;
Terence and Plautus and Seneca merely
dramatized what was in the Roman heart;
Copgreye and Farquhar merely dranatized
what was in the English heart; Rac!ne,
Corueilie and Alfleri cnly dramatized what
was 10 the French and ltallan heart;
Shakespeare only dramatized what was III
the great worlds heart. The dlthyramDlc
and classic drama, the sentimental drama,
the romantic drama, were merely echoes
O. the human soul.
do not speak OF the drama on the poetic
shelf or Of the drama 10 the playhouse, but
sreak OF the dramatic element IN your
soul and mine. We make men responsible
for it. They are not responsible. Ihey
are responsible for the perverslor OF 1t, but
not for the original implantation. GOO did
that work. and I suppose He kne" wnat 70
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 apd
the apples and the wheat and the rye and
the oats, our gratitude to God is stirred;
when on Easter morning we see written tn
letters Of flowers the inscription, He; Is
Risen," our emotions are stirred. Every
rarent likes to so to the school exhibition, !,
with its recitations and its dialogues and
Its droll costumes. The torchlight% pro-
cession OF the political campaign Is merely
the dramatjzatlon OF principles tnyolysd.
No intelligent man cum look In any Secular
or religious direction without finding this
dramatic element revealing, .unrolling,
demonstrating itself. What sshaAawe do
with 1t?
Shall we suppress it? You can as easily
suppress its Creator. You may direct 1t,
you may educate it, you may purify 1t,
you may harness it to multl-potent useful
we cultivate taste for the beautiful and
sublime. r.
Now, l have to tell you not only thatrGo cd
has implanted this dramatic element IN
our natures, but have to tell you In the
Scriptures He cultivates it, Heappeais to It,
He develops 1t. do not care where you
open the Bible, your eye will fall upon a
drama. Here it Is in the book OF Judges,
the FIR tree, the vine, the olive tree, the
bralnble-they all make speeches. Then ut
the close Of the scene there Is corona
tlon, and the bramble is proclaimed king.
That Is political drama. Here IL Is In
the book OF Job. Enter EliphaS, Bildad,
Zophar, Elihu and Job. The opening act
OF the drama, all darkness; the closing
act OF the drama, all sunshine. Magnif-
cent drama is 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, woo!rg, bride. bride
groom, dialogue after dIalogue--intense,
gorgeous, oil suggestive drama Is the book
OF Soiomon's Song. Here it is in the book
Of Luke: Costly mansion in the night. ALI
the windows bright with illumination. The
foor a-quake with the dance. Returned
son in costly garments which do not very
well fit him perhaps, for they were not
made for him, but he must swiftly leave of
his old garb and prepare for this ex.en-
porized levee. Pouting son at the back
door, too mad to 20 in, because they are
making such fuss. Tears OF sympathy
running down the old mans cheek ut the
story OF his sons wandering and suffering
and tears OF Joy at his return. When you
heard Murdoch recite The Prodigal Son"
IN one OF his readings, you did not know
whether 20 sob or shout. Revivals or re-
ligion have started just under the reading
OF that soul revolutionizing drama Of ''rhe
Prodlgal Son."
Here 1t Is in the book OF Revelation
crystalline sea, pearly gate, opaline river,
amethystine capstone, showering coronets,
one vial poured out ncardInating the WI.
ters, cavalrymen OF heaven gnlloping on
white horses, nations In doxolCgy, hallelu-
iahs to the right OF them, halleluiahs to
the left OF them. As the Bible opens with
the drama OF the first paradise, so 1t closes
with the drama OF the second paradise.
Mind you, when sny dramn do not
mean myth or fabie, for my theologyis OF
the Oldest type-500 years DID. thousands OF
years old, as old as the Bible. When speak
OF the drama Ysat the beginning
and close OF the Bible. do not
mean an allegory, but ! mean the truth
30 stated that in grouping and In startling
effect it Is God given, world resounding,
heaven echolng drama. Now, il God I'M
planted this dramatic element In our ma
lures, and il He has cultivated and devel-
oped 1t in the Scriptures, Iademands that
you recognize it. II.
Because the drama has again, and again
been degraded and employed for destruc-
tive purposes Is nothing against the drama
any more than music ought to be accursed
because it has been taken again and again
into the saturnalian wassails Of 1000 years.
Will you refuse to enthrone music on the
church organ because the airt has been
tramped again and again under the feet
u OF the lascivious dance?
It is nothing against painting and sculP-
ture that in Corinth and Herculaneun
they were demonstratiye f'vglgarlty and
kurpitude. The dreadful museum at
Pom peii shall throw no dlscredlt on Pow
ers's "Greek Slave" or Churok's "Heart
OF the Andes" or Rubenss "De-
scent From the Cross" or Apgelo's Last
Judgment" The very Tact that again and
again the drama has been dragged through
the sewers OF iniquity Is the reason why we
should snatch 1t up and start It out on
grand and a holy and a magnificent
mission. Let me say at this point In my
sermon that the drama will never be lifted
l to Its rightful sphere by those people who
have not sense enough to distinguish be-
ktween the drama and the playhouse. The