Fisherman & farmer. [volume] (Edenton, N.C.) 1887-19??, 1901-02-21
Dr.TALMAGE SERMON
THE GREAT DlVINE'S ELOQUENT
; r1ESSAGE.
Subject: Speak For the Rfght-Diabolfca1
Agencies Active-Si1ence is Not Cold
en- While There Are Evils - Be Ready
When Christianity is Assailed.
copyright 1901. }

copyright 1scll -.
WASHINGTON, ID. C.-In this discourse |
DR. Talmage calls for a more demonstra- |
tive religion and a hearty speaking out |
on the right side of everything; text, |
Mark tx, IS, Chou dumb and deaf spirit, |
Lcharge thee come out of him.
Here was a case OF great domestic an |
guish The son of the household was pos
sessed of an evil spirit, which among other |
things paralyZed his tongue and made him |
SPECIFICS. When the influence was on |
the patient he. could not say word-,ar-
dculation was impossible. The spirit that |
captured this member of the household |
was dumb spi1it-so called by Christ-a
spirit abroad to-day and as lively and po
tent az in New Testament times. Yet, in
all the realms Of serrnonoiOgy | cannot |
find discourse concerning this devil
which Christ charged upon IN my text,
saying, Come out of him"
There has been much destructive super
possession OF evil spirits. Under the form
Of belief IN witchcraft this delusion swept
the continents. Persons were supposed to
be possessed with some evil spirit which
made them able to destroy others. In the
sixteenth century in Geneva 1900 persons
were burned to death witches. Under
one judge, in Lorraine, 900 persons were
burned to death as witches. In one neigh
borhood of France 1000 persons were
burned. In two centuries 100000 persons
deluson that it included among it's vic
Tins some of the greatest intellects Of all
time such as Chief Justice Matthew Hale
and Sir Edward Coke, and SUCH renowned
ministers of religion as Cotton Mather,
said shaped his ife-and Richard Baxter
and Archbishop Cranmer and Martin
Luther and among writers and philoso
piers Lord Bacon. That belief which has
become the laughing stock Of all sensible
l. i Il
wisest and best people Of Sweden, Ger
many, England, France, Spain and New
England But while we reject witchcraft
any man who believes TIE. Bible must be-
lieve that there are diabolical agencies
abroad in the world. While there are
minstering spirits to bless there are in
fernal spirits to hinder, to poison and to
destroy. Christ was speaking to spirit
ual existence when standing before the
afflicted one of the text He said. Thou
dumb and deaf spirit, come out OF him
Against this dumb devil of the text I
put you on your guard. Do not think that
this agent of evil has put his blight on
those who by omission of the vocal or
gans have had the golden gates of speech
bolted and barred. Among those woo
have never spoken a word are the most
that were ever incarnated. The chaplains
of the asvums for the dumb can tell you
cnchanting stories OF those who never
child, and many O. the most devout and
prayerful souls will never in this world
speak the name Of God or Christ.
Many deaf mute have l seen with the
angel of intelligence seated at the window
OF The eye. who never came torCn from the
iovelness and knowledge was Laura Bridg-
man, of New Hampshire, not My without
faculty OF speech, but without hearing
and without sight. all these faculties re-
moved by sickness when two years of age,
yet becoming a wonder at needleWork, at
the piano. at the sewing machine and an
intelligent student of the Scriptures and
confounding philosophers W no came from
nomenon. Thanks to Christianity for
the condition of the deaf and the dumb.
Back in the ages they were put to death
as having no right, with such paucltv OF
equipment, to live, and for centuries they
were ciassed among the idiotic and unsafe.
But in the sixteenth century came Pedro
Ponce, the Spanish monk, and in the sew
enteenth century came Juan Pablo Bonet,
another Spanish monk, with dactylologv,
or the finger alphabet, and in our own
senturv we have had John Braidwood and
Gallaudet, who have given to uncounted
thousands of those whose tongues were
forever. silent the power, to- spell out on
the air by a manual alphabet their
thoughts ABOUT CnlS WOIIu ana InelI hopes
for the next. We rejoice in the brilliant
inventions in behalf of those who were
born dumb.
One of the most impressive audiences
ever addressed was in the Far West, an
audience Of about 800 persons, who had
never heard a sound or spoken word, an
interpreter standing beside me while
addressed them. I congratulated that au
dience on two advantages they had over
the most of us-the one that they escaped
hearing a great many disagreeable things
and on the other fact that they escaped
saying things they were sorry for after
ward.
Yet after all the alleviations of a
ehackled tongue is an appalling limitation:
But we are not this morning speaking OF
congenial mutes We mean those who are
born with all the faculties of vocalization
and yet have been struck by the evil one
mentioned in the text-the dumb devil
to whom Christ called when He said,
'"Thou dumb and deaf spirit, l charge
thee, come out of him"
There has been apotheosization OF 81
lence. Some one has said silence IS goIC-
en-, and sometimes the greatest triumph
is to keep your mouth shut. But some
result of the baleful influence of the dumb
devil of our text. There is hardly a man
or woman who has not been present on
some occasion when the Christian religion
became a target for raillery- Perhaps It
was over in the store some day when there
was not much going on and the clerks
were in group, or it was in the factory
Mt the noon spell, or it was out on the
farm under the trees while you were rest
ing, or it was in the clubroom. or 1t was
in a social circle. or it was IN the street on
1bo bo,,, from business