Orange County observer. [volume] (Hillsborough, N.C.) 1880-1918, 1900-01-04

ouA " Ii oouts vi THOUSANDS OF tDH ROOd.
In Il figurative sense. rack and gibbet and
Torqueinada. The symbol Of the domestic
and social and private and public suffering
OF "A great multitude OF Gods dear chill
dren, pillars OF smoke. What an exciting
scene in India when, during the sepoy re-
beilion, a regiment OF h~ighlanders cameuD
and found the dead body OF one OF General
Wheeier's daughters, who had been Insult
ed aud nauled and slain by the sepoys.
SO great was the wrath agains, these
murderels that the : Jten regime snr
down, and, cutting of the hair OF this
dead daughter OF General Wheeler. they
divided 1t among them. and each one
counted the lumber OF hairs given him,
and each took an oath, which was execu-
ted. that for each hair OF the murdered
daughter they would dash out the life Of a
bestiol sepoy. But as We look over the
story OF those who In all ages have suffered,
for the truth. while We leave vengeance t.
tho Lord, let us band together in one
solemn VOW, one tremendous oath. after
having counted the host u the martyrs,
that FOR each one of those glorious men
and women who died for the truth an i'm
mortal shall live. NIKE with God and live
forever.
But, az I already limited in the first
sentence, 9f this sermon. nothing can he
more beaA1iiui than the figures Of smoke
on 4 clear sky. You can see What you will
Ia the contour Of this volatile vapor, now
enchanted castles, now troops Of horse
men, now hammered procession, now
winged couriers, now "A black angel Of
wrath under II spear Oh the sunshine
turned to an angel OF light. and now from
horizon TO horizon the air il Il picture
gallery filed with masterpieces OF which
God is the artist, burning clouds OF smoke
born in the sunrise and evening clouds
OF smoke laid lu the FURNISHED sepulcher5
OF the sunset.
The beauty Of the .~transagurel smoke il
"a ,}iyina cyrphnI ~ fhu baanfv Of fb..
church. The fairest or all the fair is she.
Do not call those prosecutors OF whom |
spoke the church. They are the parasites
OF the church, not the church Itself. Her
mission ia to cover the earth with n superna-
turai giadness, TO Opea all the prison doors,
to balsam all tho wounds. to moss all the
graves, to burn up the night III the fireplace
OF a great morning. TO change iron hand
cuffs into d~iamonded wri7tlets. to turn the
whole race around aud whereas it faced
death, commanding it, ''Ki2ht about face
for heaven!" According to the number Of
the spires Of the churches in all our cities,
towns and neighborhoods ars the good
homes, the worldly properties and the
pure morals and the happy souls.
Meet Ice at any depot the world over. and
with my eyes closed take me by the hand
and lead me so that my feet will not STUN
BILE. and without my once looking down or
looking on the level take me to some high
roof or tower and let me- see the tops OF
t1e rnnIcReE, anu 4 Will ten YOU tDt pro-
portion of suicides, Of arSOn-. of murders,
OF thefts. According as th8 churches are
numerous ara the crimes few. According
as the churches nre few the crimes are ma
mer0us. TIE most beautiful organization
the world ever saw or ever will see is the
much maiicnet church, the friend Of alt
good, the foe OF all evil. Fair as the moon
and clear as the sun" Beautiful in hrr
Author, beautifulin her mis- ion, the hero
inc Of the centurio9g the bride OF Christ,
the queen OF the nations.
Men may desecrate it, a5 Cromwell. when:
he stabbed his cavalry horses in st. PAul'.
Cathedral; or break off tho image Of
Christ, as did the lconocIastS in York min
ster; or hurl against it august literary an
tipathies, as did Gibbon; or plot its over
throw, rs do some in every community
whose pride ana hate and deDaurhery are
reprOved by the Ten Commandment
which il thunder. and the sermon on the
mount which its breathes. But it will
stand rs long IA the earth stands, the
same unique anu wonder working and
beatilc and miraculous thing FOR
which God decreet! it.. Small wits tax
their brain to say things that Will put
her at Disadvantages, but many OF them
viii send for its coincidence when 1y-
ing. and their children will be gathered up
under its benedictions after the parental
curse las been removed. Through her
gates will march all the Influences for good
that shall ever reach our world. Take her
membership as II mass. not speaking Of the
acknowledged exceptions, they are the
nobiest, gran1est, kindest. best men and
women Of the ages. But for them the
earth would long ago have been Il burned
olt volcano. They have been the salt that
has kept the human race from putrefac-
tion insufIerabie either to human or angelic
olfactoriel.
You lying and llypocritical world, shut
up those SANDERS about the church of
| Christ an institution which far from bpinV
what it ought to be and never pretending
to DO perfect, is 800 times better than any
other institution tlat the world ever saw
or ever dreamed Of. The highest honor I
ever had and the highest honor / shall
ever receive and the highest honor 1 ever
want Is to have my name on her records
a. n member. At her affairs | repentei.
At her sacraments | believed. In her ser
vice ieem die. From her doors let NE be
buried. O church or Godi Thou home Of
the righteous, Thou barber from tenn pest
Thou refuge for the weary! Thou light
house Of many n%ations! T1ou tyre o!
heaven! could kiss thy re-y dust with
ecstasy Of affection.
Fer her my tears shall fall,
For her my prayers ascend,
Il her my tolls and cages be given
Till tolls and cares shall end.
Oh, come into the church through Chris;
the door, a door more glorious than that
OF the temple OF Hercules, which had TIVE
pillars, and one was gold and the Other
emerald! Come in to-day. The worlt
you leave behind is a poor world. ana j
will burn and pass of Ike pillars 9
smoke. Whether the final conhagratiol
will start in the coal mines OF pennsyl
vania, which In some places have Tor manN
years been burning and eating into til,
heart OF the mountains, or whether it shnt
begin near tho California geysers, O.
whether from out the furnaces OF Cotopax
n NhIt tyo md ra,pla H. nInl
burst forth upon the astOnished nations
make no prophecy, but all geologist
| tell us that we stand on the lid OF n world
the heart OF which is a raging, roaring. aw
full flame, and some day God viii let tn
red monsters out Of their Imprisonment O
3 centuries, and New York on fire in 1885
and Charleston on Gre In 1865. and Chicag,
) on fire in 1872, and Boston on fire in 1s7
, wero only Ike one spark from "a black
smiths Jorge As compared with tina
/ last universal blaze which will be see
! III other worils. But gradually tn
{! flames will le7Sen. ami the world will