Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1902-03-03

they were on earth, but the result of
the work that has been done in all the
centuries since that time. 1t means
that In spite of the failings and short
comings of the Christian church, in
spite of its lapses into sin, Christian
ity has been advancing for 10 centu-
ries, and that the Christianity of the
present would be impossible without
that which has preceded it even
though so often it has been imperfect
and faulty. We find superficial minds
to day which laugh at the past history
Of the church, which ridicule those
who have gone before for their mar
rowness and bigotry- Men speak of
the creeds which have bound the
church. Men speak of the horrible
ideas of God and of mankind held by
the church. Men saw that Fortunate
ly we have nothing to do with such
things now. But we have much to
do with these things. Men rail at
Calvin, Knox, Luther, Wesley and
the Puritans and call them narrow,
as they we're, but our Christianity
would be impossible without their
efforts. We see their mistakes and
can avoid their errors. We see where
they followed the right and we follow
in the same path, and find more truth
than they did since they point us to
the way of truth. We can live as we
do because Of the experience of the
past; Christianity is grateful to the
past for what it has made possible to-
day. Again Christianity has reac he'd
the point where it is ready to give to
each man the right to think for him
self. Human experience has taught
rs that the church as a body is just as
likely to err as is the Individual, and
probably more so, and so now Chris
tianity gives to each man the right to
think, the right to form his own opin-
ion, the right to come to his God as
he individually wishes to do. And it
Is to the glory of the Congregational
denomination that even more than
any other, it insists on this right for
the individual. Men may not agree
in their opinions of the Bible, in their
opinions of Christ, and this detail and
that Of the Christian life, but never
have men agreed as at the present
time on the necessity of serving God.
A leading minister in another denom-
lnaton recently wrote letters to a
large numb er of leading men in all
classes and professions, asking them
their attitude toward Christianity.
Of the hundreds replying, not one in
dicated an atheistic belief. All said
that they believe in Christianity, and
that the religion of Christ is that
which above all other things is to
help mankind. Very many of these
men are not connected with the
church and are not usually counted
as Christian men, and yet Christianity
influences and leads them as does
nothing else. This has never been so
true as it is to-day. Perhaps the atti-
tude of Christianity is no more signif-
icant in any respect than in it's atti-
tude toward education and general
Increase of knowledge. In the past
1t has been true that to some extent
the church has insisted that its min
istry be educated. But to day the
church tries not simply to educate the
ministry but to educate all as we'll,
and so it has planted schools and col
leges all over this land. The church
has made the common school system
what it is. In foreign mission fields
much Of the work of missionaries is
educational. The missionary to
whose support we give, is engaged in
purely educational work, but it is
educational work that will make pos
sible greater and better Christianity.
Chris ianity insists on education and
an increase in intelligence because
this means that men will serve their
God the better. Christianity conse-
crates the brain as we'll as the heart
in Gods service. When we turn to
the moral attitude of Christianity we
must at the very first notice the
change even within the memory of
some living in the sentiment on the
question of temperance. We have
come to the conclusion, in view of
the effects of the use of alcohol, that
true Christian cannot use alcohol as
beverage. Christianity has fought
for this and it has met ridicule and
abuse for it's attitude. The idea of
total abstinence has been laughed at,
but we have reached the point where
a sane man no longer dares to laugh
at it. Again we notice the effect
of Christianity on the relations
of the various classes of society and
the work that is being done for the