The Oskaloosa herald., 1903-12-17
SALVATION OF SINNERS.


of November there appeared an arti-
Gle in the Herald about the meeting
of several ministers, and IL my views
are correct it was for. the purpose OF
establishing a national reform asso-
citation and about keeping the Sab
bath holy. Several extracts were
printed. One of them was that what
complish, he succeeded to accomplish
with the help of the labor union
Another admits that however desir-
able it may be they could not COM
pei a man to worship on Sunday"
but neither have we the right to COM
pei man to work on Sunday. The
only compulsory labor l know of is
in the penitentiary, but there they
don't work on Sunday, and If there
are other places where they compel
a man to work on Sunday, will they
please explain where they are? Fur
Their on they say: Each man must
decide that for himself" but rest as
sured that if anyone works on sun
day, it is not for love of the work, or
to Intentionally violate the Sabbath
but that circumstances compel him.
Another had some very hard things
to say about Sunday newspapers. 1t
matters not what he said, but it is
admitted that, take the press as a
whole, whether it Is the editor who
issues a single sheet a week, or the
editor who issues hundreds of thous-
ands of copies a day, the press is
composed of men of high moral
standing and there never appears
anything in their papers that would
corrupt the morals of the most inno-
cent. Sunday papers are printed on
Saturday, and if there is any viola
ton of the Sabbath it Is the govern
ment who does the distributing. The
fact is that the Sunday paper is so
instructive, so entertaining and SO
full of useful information that the
absence thereof would be calamity.
l know the minister hates it because
the people find more acceptable read
ing in it than they hear in many SER
mons preached by ministers thresh-
ing the old straw over and over
again.
Another bewails the fact that there
are in Iowa over 5000 Mormons. Now
if there is it Is only so far as their
religious belief is concerned, but not
one that has plurality of wives, and
while we read in one column the dan
ger Of Mormonism spreading, in an
other we read what Mr.. Blanchard
has to say about the defects in our
divorce laws. In that able argument
there is not one word that Mr. Blanch-
ard fears the practice of having
more than one wife, but his argument
consists in keeping what God has
Joined together. No danger that po-
lygamy will spread in Iowa, for David,
the writer Of the Book of Psalms,
who had many wives and ever so
many concubines, bewails his error,
and gives us warning of such licen.
tious life in the 38th Psalm, from the
first to the eleventh verse. I quote
from the writings of another: I'VE
believe in God and in immortality
and recognize religion as a prodig.
ious force in human affairs and Chris.
tianity as one Of the most impress.
i've manifestations" While other re,
ligions are older and have endured
longer and have more followers,
none has exerted such immense in:
fuence upon government, society
and civilization. It's sanction rests
upon the example and teachings OF
Jesus, for which theologians claim
more than He ever claimed for Him.
self. PLATE, Herod and Caesar
kings and heroes, lived and died and
nobody cares whether they did or
not, but millions would die rather
than surrender their faith in Jesus
! Can we come to the conclusion that
people are drifting away from God
and Jesus? Not by any means, but
they are certainly drifting away from
the ministers, because the minister
teaches us religion so tyrannical
that denies us the most innocent
amusements. To go. to a respectable
theatre, or a circus, or dance, or to
have a social game of cards, they
consider a mortal offense Nothing
but reading the Bible, attending the
church, whenever the church is open
prayer meetings, singing doleful
songs and kneeling at the foot of the
cross all the time. Where do thes
get their authority? Not from the
Bible, for in that we see they hac
their flutes and their harps, they had
their songs and their singers, theil
dance and dancers, and amusement
often of questionable nature, and II
the book of Esther, which is full o.
nastiness, they got on a glorious
drunk that lasted not less than sever
days in succession.