Virginia citizen. (Irvington, Va.) 1891-1921, 1901-07-12

the Christian church were fading out
rs though IL were n defunct institution
What stands nearest 10 the hearts of
the American people todayF | DO not
care 10 what village or what city o.
what neishborhood you go. What. is
III is II the pOstotliceg Is II the hotel ?
Is Il tie lecture hall? All. you know
Il is not. You know that that which
stands nearest 10 the hearts OF the
American people is the Christian
church.
n0deiity Decreasing.
You may talk about the church being
Il collection OF hypocrites. but when the
dipbthoria sweeps your children OF.
whom 90 you send for? The postnas-
ter: Tile attorney general7 Tie hotel
keeper: Aidermang No. You send for
4 minister CT this Bible religion. And
il you have not Il room in your house
for tic obSequeS. what building DO you
solici2 10 you say. Give me the
finest room I'm the hotel?" DO you say
Give me that theaterT' Do YOU say.
Give me that public building. where
can lag my dead for n little while until
we say prayer over itr' No. You
say. Give as the house OF God. And
II there il song TO be sung at the
ohseqg,cs what 10 YOU want? What
does anybody want? The "AiarSeillaiSc
Hymn :" God Save che QueenY' Our
own grand NATIONAL airl No. They
want the hymn with which they sang
their old Christian mother into her last
sleep or they want sung the Sabbath
school hymn which their little girl sang
the last sabbath afternoon she was
ont before she got that awful sickness
Which broke your heart. appeal to
your common sense. You know the
most endearing Institution on earth. the
most popular institution on earth to-
day, is the church OF the Lord Jesus
Christ. \ man is fool that does not
recognize il.
The infidels say: There Is great lib
erty now for intidels-freedom of plat
form. Iniidelity shows its power from
the fact that IL is everywhere tolerat-
Ell and il can say what it Will" Why,
my friends, iniidelity Is not half so
blatant in our day as IL was In the days
of cur fathers. Do you know that in
the days OF our fathers there were pro-
nounced infidels In public authority.
ana they could get any political posi-
tiOnT Let a man today declare himself
antGgoniStic TO the Christian religion,
and what city wants him for mayor.
what state wants him for governor,
what nation wants him for president or
for king? Let a man openly proclaim
himself the enemy OF our glorious
and he cannot get a ma
jcri,y Of votes in any state. in any city.
ina any country. IN any ward OF Amer
lea.
4 distinguished infdel years ago.
riding i'm n rail car in Illinois. said.
what has Christianity ever doney"
An old Christian woman said: 1T has
done one good thing anyhow. It has
kept an inhdel from being governor of
Illinois" As stood In the side room
of the opera house OF Peoria, Ills. a
prominent gentleman OF that city said.
IL can tell you the secret of that ire
nendous bitterness against Christian
ity" Said I, what is itT' Why"
said he. I'm this very house there was
n great convention to nominate gov.
ernor. and there were three or four can
6idatcs. At the same time there was
10 n church IN this city n Sabbath
school convention. and IL happened that
one OF the men who was In the Sabbath
school convention was also q member
of tie political convention. In the po-
ltical convention the name highest on
,he roll ut that time and about TO be
nominated was the name OF the great
champion infdel. There was an adj.
journment between ballots. and In the
afternoon when the nominations were
being made plain farmer got up and
said: Mr.. Chairman. that nomination
must not be made. The Sunday schools
Of Illinois will defeat him. That end.
ed all prospect OF his nomination"
The Christian religion is mightier to-
day than IL ever was. Do you think
that such a scene could be enacted now
Ms was enacted in the days OF Robes
pierre. when n shameless woman was
elevated TO the dignity OF a goddess
and carried in a golden chair to a
cathedral, where incense was burned
TO her and people bowed down before
her rs a divine being. she taking the
place OF the Bible and God, while In
the corridor OF that cathedral were
enacted such scenes OF drunkenness
and debauchery as had never before
been witnessed? Do you think that
such a thing could possibly occur in
ChriStendom today? No. The police
III Washington or of New York or OF
Paris would swoop upon It.
Science and Religion.
These opponents say that science Is
overcoming religion in our day. They
look through the spcctacles OF the in
ndel scientists, and they say: 1T Is
impossible that this book be true. Peo-
pic are finding il out The Bible has
got TO so overheard. Science is going
10 throw ii overheard" Do YOU be-
ileve that the Bible account of the orr.
gin OF life will be overthrow by infideI
scientists who have 80 different theo-
rieS about the origin of life? II they
should all come up in solid phalanx. all
agreeing on one sentiment and one the.
cry. perhaps Christianity might be dam
aged. but there are not so many differ
enccs of opinion inside the church as
outside the church. Oh. IL makes me
sick to see these literary tops going
along with a copy OF Darwin under one
arm and case of transaxed grasshop-
pers and butterflies under the other
arm. telling about the survival OF the
httest" and Huxley's protoplasm and
the nebular hypothesis. The fact is
that some naturalists. just as soon as
they find out the difference between
the feelers of a wasp and the horns of
beetle. begin 10 patronlze the AL
mighty, while Agasssz. glorious Agas-
siz. who never made any pretensIon TO
being a Christian. puts both his feet
on the doctrine OF evolution and SAYS:
II see that many of the naturalists of
our day are adopting facts which do
not bear observation or have not pass
ed under observation" These men war
ring with each other-Darwin warning
against Lamarch. Wallace warning
against Cope. even Herschel denounc-
ing Ferguson. They do not agree about
Ia: