The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1901-07-11
every day. n other words, they

SS w. oto u az lCdSt
1900 new Christian churches built in
America every year Does that look
as though the Christian church were
fading out, as though it were a defunct
institution? What stands nearest to
the hearts of the American people to-
day? / do not care in what village or
what city or what neighborhood you
go. What is it? Is it the postofice?
is it the hotel? Is it the lecturing
hall? All, you know it is not! You
know that that which stands nearest
to the hearts of the American people
is the Christian church.
In the Hour of Distress.
You may talk about the church being
a collection of hypocrites, but when
the diphtheria sweeps your children
off whom do you send for? The post
master, the encouragement, the ho-
t%elkeeper, alderman? No. You send for
a minister OF this Bible religion. And
II o have not a room in your house
for the %obsequies, what building do you
solicit? Do you say. "Give me the fin
est room in the hotel?' Do you say,
Give me that theater?" Do you say,
Give me that public building where l
lay my dead for a little while we
say a prayer over it?" No. You say,
Give us the house of God" And if
there is a song to be sung at the obse-
quies, what do you want? What does
anybody want? The "Msrseillaise
Hymn?' God Save the Queen?" Our
own grand national air? No. Thee
want the hymn with which they sang
their old Christian mother into her
last sleep, or they want sung the Sab
bath school hymn which their little
girl sang the last Sabbath afternoon
she was out before she got that awful
sickness which broke your heart. l
appeal to your common sense. You
know the most endearing institution
on earth. the most popular institution
on earth today is the church of the
Lord Jesus Christ. A man is a fool
that does not recognize it.
The infidels say: There is great
liberty now for inidels; freedom of
platform. 1nfdelity shows it's power
from the fact that it is everywhere toll
Grated, and it can say what it will"
Why, my friends, infidelity is not half
so blatant in our day as it was in the
days of our fathers. Do you know that
in the days of our fathers there were
pronounced inidels in public author
ity, and they could get any political
position? Let a man today declare
himself antagonistic to the Christian
religion and what city wants him for
mayor; what state wants him for gov
ernor; what nation wants him for
president or for king? Let a man
openly proclaim himself the enemy of
our glorious Christianity, and he can
not get a majority of votes in any
state, in any city, in any country, in
any ward of America.
What Christianity Does.
A distinguished infidel years ago
riding in a rail car in Illinois said
What has Christianity ever done?"
An old Christian woman said: "It
has done one good thing anyhow. II
has kept an infidel from being govern
VI VI 1lllLolS. AS l SlOOQ In the
side room of the opera house of Peoria
Ills, a prominent gentleman of hat
city said, II can tell you the secret of
that tremendous bitterness against
Christianity" Said 1, What is to-,
why" said he, Gin this very house
there was a great convention to nomi-
nate a governor, and there were three
or foul candidates. At the same time
there was in a church in this civ a
Sabbath school convention, and it
happened that one of the men who wac
in the Sabbath school convention was
also a member of the political con-
vention. In the political convention
the name highest on the roll at that
time and about to be nominated was
the name of the great champion in
idel. There was an adjournment be-
tween ballots, and in the afternoon.
when the nominations were being
made, a plain farmer got up and said:
Mr.. Chairman, that nomination must
not be made. The Sunday schools of
Illinois will defeat him. That ended
all prospect of his nomination."
The Christian religion is migntier
Today than it W was. DO yea think
that such a scene could be enacted now
as was enacted in the days of Robes.
pierre, when a shameless woman was
elevated to the dignity of a goddess
and carried in a golden chair to a ca.
thedral where incense was burned to
her and people bowed down before her
as a divine being. she taking the place
of the Bible and God, while in the cor
ridor of that cathedral were enacted
such scenes of drunkenness and de.
bauchery as had never before been wit
messed? Do you think such a thing
could possibly occur in Christendom
today? No. The police of Washing
ton, or of New York, or of Paris would
swoop upon it. l know infdelity
make a good deal of talk in our day..
One infidel can make great excitement,
but | can tell you on what principle it
is. 1t is on the principle that if a man
jumps overheard from an ocean liner
he makes more excitement than all the
800 who stay on board. But the fact
that he jumps overheard does not stop
the ship. Does that wreck the 500 pas
sengers? 1t makes great excitement
when a man jumps from the lecturing
platform or from the pulpit into inf
deity. but does that keep the Bible or
the church from carrying millions of
passengers to the shores of eternal
safety?
Perfection of Christianity.