The St. Mary banner. (Franklin, Parish of St. Mary, La.) 1889-1931, 1900-10-06

It is Pentecost. When they fight, it is
Thermopylae. When they die, it is
J martyrdom. You find great many rose
In the gardens, but only few giants o
battle" Men say, "Why don't you hay
more Of them in the church, | say
why don't you have in the world mo-
Humboldts and Wellingtons?' God Civ,
to some ten talents, to others one.
Again, the church may be appropriate.
compared to garden. because it is
place OF fruits. That would be stran.
garden which had in it no berries,
1lums or peaches or apricots. The coarser
ruits are planted in the orchard or they
ire set ont on the sunny hillside. but the
hoicest fruits are kept in the garden. So
n the world outside the church Christ
las planted great many beautiful things
patience, charity, generosity. integrity,
but He intends the choicest fruits to be
N the garden. and if they are not there,
then shame on the church.
Religion is not mere Towering senti-
mentality. 1t is practical life giving,
healthhll frrlit-not posies. but apples.
oh" says somebody. Il don't see what
the garden of the church has Welded" ;"
Where did your asvlums come from. and
your hospitals. and your institutions of
mercy? Christ planted every one of
them. He planted them in His garden.
When Christ gave sight to Bartmcus. He
aid the cornerstone Of every blind asy-
'um that has ever been built. When
Christ soothcd the demoniac of Galilec.
He laid the cornerstone of every lnnatic
asvlum that has ever been established.
When Christ said to the sick man. Take
up thy bed and walk" lie laid the cor
nerstone of every hospital the world has
ever seen. When Christ said Il was in
prison. and We visited Me- He laid the
cornerstone of every prison reform ASSOC
| citation that has ever betn organized.
The church of Christ is a glorious garden,
and it is full of fruit. know there is
some poor fruit in it. / know there are
some weeds that ought to be thrown over
| the feffce I know there are some crab
apple trees that ought to he cut down. l
know there are some wild grapes that
ought to be uprooted. But are you going
to destroy tie whole garden because of a
little cnarled fruit? You will find worm
eaten leaves in Fontainebleau and insects
that sting in the fairy groves Of the
| Champs Elysces. You do not tear down
and destroy the whole garden because
| there are few specimens of gnarled fruit.
l admit there are men and women in
| the church who ought not to be there.
but let us be frank and admit the fact
that there are hundreds and thousands of
glorious Christian men and women-holv,
blessed. Useful. consecrated and triumph.
| ant. There is no grander collection in all
the earth than the collection of Christians.
There are Christian men in every church
whose religion is not a matter Of psalm
morning that religion will keen them just
as consistent and eonsecrated in their
worldly occupation as it ever kept them
at the communion table. There are wom-
en- with us today of a higher type OF
character than Mary of Bethany. They
not only sit at the feet of Christ, but they
90 out into the kitchen to help Martha
in her work, that she may ait there too.
There is woman who has drunken h,s-
nat!ence and courage than Ridley IN the
fire. lie was consumed in twenty MIN.
utes. Hers has been a twenty years
martyrdom Yonder is a man who has
been fifteen years on his back, unable to
feed himself yet calm aud peaceful as
though he lay on one OF the green banks
of heaven, watching the 0arsmen dip their
paddles in the crystal river
| have not told you of the better tree
IN this garden and of the better fruit 1t
was planted just outside Jerusalem a
good while ago. When that tree was
planted, it was so split and bruised and
harked men said nothing would ever grow
upon it, but no sooner had that tre' been
planted than it budded and blossomed
and fruited. and the soldiers spears were
only the clubs that struck down that
tions, and the men began to pick it up and
eat it. and they found in it an antidote to
all thirst. to all poison. to all sin, to all
death, the smallest cluster larger than
the famous one of Eshcol, which two men
carried on staff between them. If the
one apple in Eden killed the race, this
one cluster of mercy shall restore.
a Novk
thoroughly irrigated. No garden could
prosper long without plenty Of water.
1t has seemed as if Jesus Christ took !
the best From many of your households !
the best one is gone. You know that she
was too good for this world. She was the |
gent!est i'll her ways, the deepest in he's
affection, and when at last the sickness |
came you had no faith in medicines. You |
knew that the hour of parting had come,
and when, through the rich grace OF the
Lord Jesus Christ. you surrendered that |
treasure YOU said lord Jesus take tit |
Is the best we have. Take it. Thou art |
worthy" The others in the household |
may have been of grosser mold. She was
of the finest.
The heaven of your little ones will not
be fairly. begun until you get there. All
the kindnesses shown them by immor-
tails will not make them forget you. There
they are, the radiant throhgs that went
ont from your homes. throw kiss to
the sweet darlings. They are all well now
in the palace. The crippled child has a
sound foot now. A little lame child says,
MA, will l be lame in heaven:" mo, my
darling, you won't be lame in heaven
A little sick child says, Ma, will be
sick in heaven NO., my dear, you
won't be sick ia heaven" A little blind
child says, Ma, will be blind in heav-
en-" No, my dear, YOU wont be bind
in heaven They are all well there.
l notice that the fine gardens some:
times have high fences around them, and
l cannot get in. 1t is SO with kings
garden. The only glimpse YOU ever get OF
such garden is when the king rides out
in his splendid carriage.
1t is not 50 with this garden, this
Kings garden. / throw wide open the
gate and tell you all to come in. No
in religion. Whosoever will.
may. Choose now between a desert and
a garden. Many OF you have tried the
garden of this worlds delight. You nave
found it has been chagin. So it was
with Theodore Hook. He made all the
world laugh. lie makes Us laugh now
when we read his poems, but lie could
not make his own heart laugh. While III
The midst Of his festivities he confronted
l looking glass. and lie saw himself and
said: There, that is true. l look just