Connecticut western news., 1900-05-10

pastor when he Is at heme and a null sance to other pastors when he Is away from home, runs up to some man who Is counting out roll of bank bills or running up a difficult line of figures and asks him how his soul is, makes religion a dose of ipecacuanha; stand ing In religious meeting making an address, he has patroniZing way, as though ordinary Christians were clear away down below him, so he had to talk at the top of his voice in order to make them hear, but at the same time encouraging them to hope on that by climbing many years they may after awhile come up within sight of the place where he now stands. tell you plainly that roaring, roistering, bounc- ing sinner Is not so repulsive to me as that higher life malformation. The former may repent; the latter never gets over his pharisaism. The youn- ger brother of the parable came back, but the senior brother stands outside entirely oblivious to his own delinquen- cies and deficits, pronouncing his own eulogium. Oh, how much easier 1t Is to blame others than to blame our selves! Adam blamed Eve, Eve blam- ed the serpent, the senior brother blam- ed the younger brother. and none of them blamed themselves.
 Few Prodigals Return.
 Again, the senior brother of my text stands for all those who are faithless about the reformation of the dfssipated and the absolute. In the very tones of his voice you can hear the fact that he has no faith that the reformation of tire manner seems to say: '"That boy has come back for more money. He got third of the property. Now he has come back for another third. He will never be contented to stay on the farm. He will fall away. I would go in, too, and rejoice with the others if thought this thing was genuine, but 1t Is a sham. That boy is confirmed in- ebriate and debauchee." Alas, my friends, for the incredulity in the church of Christ in regard to the recla- nation of the recreant! You say a man has been strong drinker. I say, "Yes, but he has reformed" "Oh," you say, with a lugubrious face, 'I hope you are not mistaken; hope you are not mistaken" You say: Don't rejoice too much over his conversion. for soon he will be unconyerted, fear. Don't make too big a party for that re- turned prodigal or strike the timbrel too loud, and if you kill calf kill the one that Is on the commons and not the one that has been luxuriating in the paddock" That Is the reason why more prodigals do not come home to their fathers house. It Is the rank in fidelity in the church of God on this subject. There Is not house on the streets of heaven that has not In 1t a prodigal that returned and staid home. There could be unrolled before you a scroll of 100000 names-the names of prodigals who came back forever re formed. Who was John Bunyan? A returned prodigal. Who was Richard Baxter? A returned prodigal. Who was George Whitefield, the thunderer? A returned prodigal And could go out in all the aisles of this church to- day and find on either side those who, once far astray for many years, have been faithful, and their eternal saliva ton is as sure as though they had been ten years in heaven. And yet some of you have not enough faith in their re- turn! s--
 Need of Christian Sympathy.
 You do not know how to shake hands with a prodigal; you do not know how to pray for him; you do not know how to greet him. He wants to sail into the warm gulf stream of Christian sym pathy. You are the iceberg against which he strikes and shivers. You say he has been a prodigal. know 1t, but you are the sour, unresponsive. censo- rious, saturnine, cranky elder brother, and if you are going to heaven one would think some people would be tempted to go to perdition to get away from you. The hunters say that if a deer be shot the other deer shove him out of their company, and the general rule Is, Away with a man that has been wounded with sinv' Now, say, the more bones a man has broken the LuOLC hScu ut udS OI d uOSpltdl dhu the more a man has been bruised and cut with sin the more need he has to be carried into human and divine sympathy. But for such men there is not much room In this world-the men who want to come back after wander. ing. Plenty of room for elegant sin. ners, for sinners In velvet and satin and loro fnr al b{rh olo ,.IaI for kid gloved and patent leathered sin. ners, for sinners fixed up by hairdress CT, pomatumed and lavendered and CO logned and frizzled and crimped and banged" sinners plenty of room Such we meet elegantly at the door of our churches, and we invite them into the best seats with Chesterfleldian gal lantries; we usher them into the house of God and put soft ottomans under their feet and put gilt edged prayer book in their hands ana pass the con- tribution box before them with an air of apology, while they, the generous souls, take out the exquisite portemon. naie and open 1t and with diamonded finger push, down beyond the $10 gold pieces and delicately pick out as an ex- pression of gratitude their offering to the Lord-of 1 cent! For such sinners plenty of room, plenty of room! But for the man who has been drinking un- til his coat is threadbare, and his face Is erysipelased, and his wife's wedding dress Is in the pawnbroker's shop, and his children, instead of being in school are out begging broken bread at the basement doors of the city-the man, body, mind and soul on fire with the flames that have leaped from the scath- Ing, scorching, blasting, blistering, con- suming cup which the drunkard takes, trembling and agonized and affrighted and presses to his parched lip, and his cracked tongue, and his shrieking yet immortal spirit-no room!
 Oh, if this younger son of the parable had not gone so far off, if he had not dropped so low in wassail, the protest would not have been so severe; but, going clear over the Drqcipicp as the