The Weiser signal. [volume] (Weiser, Idaho) 1890-1904, 1902-02-13
Christian Citizenship.
p. w. johnson

BY request the ministers of Wei
ser took as the subject Of one of their
discourses last Sunday christian
Citizenship"
The minister at ST. Luke's based
his sermon upon St. Matthew V.
ID, and Genesis IS V. 80, pointing
out in the Introduction to his dis
course, the features OF character
marking those persons described as
the ''salt of the earth, as portrayed
by our Lord Ten such persons
would have been sufficient to save
Sodom from destruction, as narrated
in the passage taken from Genesis.
He proceeded to say:
In the economy of the divine gov
eminent mankind is divided into ma
tons, from variety Of causes, rae
ial, linguistic, geographical, as con-
sequent upon previous conquest,
etc. What is true of the whole is
true of parts of this whole. If the
pious and just are the salt of the
earth, they are the salt of the
nations into which the earth is di-
vided Without them nations be-
come corrupt and die, either slowly
or suddenly destroyed by the anger
OF God, as Sodom. In the time of
our Lord how few persons compare
lively had any active part in the
government-that of the Roman EN-
pire, OF which Palestine was a part.
Possibly not one to whom he spoke
the Beatitudes. Note, then, that an
active participation in affairs is not
necessary to the effect of the pre-.
serving principle. In the long run
the right will prevail But where
civil freedom is enjoyed the preserv-
ing influence is the more direct
and efficacious in its application.
There political institutions favor it's
inherent potency. And this leads
to the consideration of the theory
of the United States government,
originating in and administered
solely by the will of the people.
When, in the order of Divine Provi-
dence, the colonies of North Amer
lea we're separated from England,
the people adopted a constitution
prepared by sagacislfs patriots, liln-
iting their own sovereignty by it's
provisions, and delegating all state
aud national offices to persons chosen
by themselves. In their own hands
lies, therefore, the application of
the salt to the preservation of the
commonwealth. If, then, our gov
eminent should not be administered
by people who fear God and work
righteousness, the people themselves
would be to blame for it, Decline
in national greatness could not be
attributed to the wickedness of an
emperor, or of a governing class,
but to the people themselves. Never
before in the history of governments
was spectacle of popular power so
sublime and carrying with it such
momentous responsibility. And this
thought is emphasized by the
breadth of the suffrage, arbitrarily
fixed at manhood suffrage, broadly
speaking. To these voting persons,
nOeihS III anu Out ItSU Oh
the community, is committed, under
the Constitution, the destiny of the
American people. Under the prin-
ciple laid down by our Lord, as APP
piled TO the constitutional govern
ment of this nation, its appropriate
expression is Christian citizenship
a right attitude and disposition
toward God and toward man, ex-
pressing itself in political action.
This necessarily implies and includes
O A righteous choice of officers to
execute the will of the people, if
need be, to the forsaking of mere
party loyalty; and (2) In all
affairs, both domestic and foreign,
strict adherence to principles which
stand the test of moral and religious
standards. Mr.. Taylor's argument
was illustrated by references to slav-
cry, divorce, and other questions,
past and present.
All For Thunder.