Missouri Valley times. [volume] (Missouri Valley, Iowa) 1874-1931, 1901-05-30
Fanaticism.

Fanaticism.
Never since Peter, the Hermit. COM
menced hts Crusade against the Turks
to rescue the tomb of Jesus of Naz.-
reth from the intidels, has such use.
less spirit of religious fanstlcism pos
sessed the minds of y portion of the
religiun,st of thus time against secret
societies. A disposition to force crce,ds
or special tenants upon the people is
manifested by some, and u Carrie M
ton of time seems eminent.
The United Presbyterian Church Is
torn up over Its Greed, and especially
so on Election aud Secret Societies.
AT their state meeting at Des Moines,
last week, this spirit of fanaticlsm aud
religious intolerance broke out in a
most virulent form. In the debate on
secret societies, one delgAte declared:
"that no member of secret society
could ever enter heaven!' Another
good brother said: II cannot worship
along side of man who has been to q
lodge meeting the night before" The
next denounced the Masons and Odd
Fellows IS snti-Christ. Another SAID:
"Fraternalism of such societies is not
right because it is not Christian frater-
nslism," while others declared that no
man could be Mason or Odd Fellow
and at the same time be Christian.
and so 1t went, bitter denunclation and
condemnation.
All this demonstrates the fact that
the members of churches are, in many
cases, as ignorant as other people, and
sometimes more so. Masonry is older
than the Presby terrain church, its his
tory reaches back in the ages, and was
old when the holy angels proclaimed:
Peace, on earth good will to man"
Its teachings opened the door of knowl.
edge and blazed the way for civiliza-
tion long before Christ preached His
own everlasting gospel to the sons and
daughters of man, and its faith in God
aud its teaching of fraternal brother
hood was bright light along the dark
pathway sof man when the Egypticn
Pyramids reared their towering heads
toward the heavens.
Can these religious blgots stop the
march of brotherly love, or darken the
light in the thousand Masonic temples
where men assem- ble to devise plans to
further the best interest of their fellow
man: Can they stop the onward flow
of the mighty river that st arts in its
mountain ONE and rolls on and on un.
til 1t disembogues into the great ocean
at its mouth. 1t has stood the test of
time and numbered among its votaries
some of the greatest, wisest and pur
est men of the world, and is destined
Ito stand amid the wreck of matter and
the crash of worlds"
Odd-Fellowship, although not so old,
its teachings are founded upon that
eternal principal of right and justice,
with faith in God and love to man, it
can well afford to suffer denunciation
at the hands Of these who are strang-
ers to the duty of man ito visit the
sick, relieve the distressed. bury the
dead and educate the orphan" Odd.
Fellowship, although not claiming Di-
vine inspiration, yet it does the work
that should be done by those who are
claiming to be the elect to heavenly
home-too pure to be seated in a house
with Mason or Odd-Fellowl Can it
be wrong to do an act of kindness to q
suffering brother? 1t is we'll for these
"holier than thou" fellows that they
were elected from all eternity or they
would never have secured an enterance
into the celestial city. Will such men
have q secret to determine the per-
sonal character of their members, or
will they reject man whose only fault
is that he has been kind to a brother?
If in the Great Day it one of these
anti-s9cret men can be present when g
brother asks admission to the city, the
question: care you q Mason OF Odd
Fellow" would, in their estimation, set
tie their right to the fruit of the tree
of life. Better, far better for our anti
secret brothers if they would so amend
their creed so as to embrace the work
DIV done by these secret societies. Let
the church banner be raised so high
that no place may be left for human
societies, and then church membership
will increase and other societies will
decrease, but until then societies will
continue to flourish, and Masonry and
Odd Fellowship continue to honor God
and bless man.
Rome Miller came up from Omaha
this noon and is spending the after
noon here assisting in the preparations
for feeding the Indians who will reach
here st 5:25 tomorrow evening.
II. G. Mshana, of Fremont, is in
town this afternoon on railroad bust
ness.
Mrs. G. Christianson left last nigl {
for her old home in Denmark. She
will be absent from Missouri Valley
about one year.