Catoctin clarion. [volume] (Mechanicstown, Md.) 1871-1940, 1903-11-26
"AFTERWARO"
A Brilliant Sunday Sermon By Rev.
J. II. Lockwood.
Declares that the Whole Enigma Of Life Is
Solved at Orce When You Hold the
Keyword.

RRooKLYN, N. Y.-Thc Rev j. Ii. Lock-
wosd, pastor Of the Naugatuck Comm Nj.
L. Church, preached Sunday morning in
Grace M. e. Church in the absence of the
Lockwood is well and favorably known in
Brooklyn and on Long Island, where he
has held several pastorates, He was born
and educated in Brooklyn and studied law
before he entered the ministry. lie had
the distinction of being last year the only
clerical member Of the Connecticut Leg
islaturc. He took for the subject of his
sermon, "Afterwarl." His text WAS from
Hebrews, Xii:2: "Now no Christening, but
the present sccmcth to be joyous, but
yricvous; nevertheless, aTlcrward it yield.
eth the pcaccable fruit of righteousness
nnto them which are exercised thereby
MIR. Lockwood said:
Let US consider the single word "After-
ward" as our text. If you grasp that word
and its rich content of comfort you will
have caught the whole message of the scr
mod. and YOU will possess Il most valuable
solvent Tor lifes pc:plcXing, and often dis.
lessing, problems
Human life is Il mysterious "nlo n that
has successfully balllcd the efforts persist
Mtly made by the profoundcst thinkers Of
bur race for its solution. ''What is lilc:'
is the still puzz!ing question OF questions.
As the biologists and their fellow scientists
have not succeeded in tellino us Just what
That elusive thing we call physical life is,
neither have poets, prophets, PHILOSOPHERS,
aor even phianthr0' is been abe to tell
~ adequately what real life is.
Here is this strange thing VIC call lie,
with its many and varied phenomena. and
the more profoundly and comprchensivcly
We study it the more confused it leave lis;
There are experiences positively Joyous and
experiences positively painful, and there
are experiences partially Joyous and par
italy painful, and we look al this great
mass Of lifcs complex data AMI are quite
bafilcd TO know the meaning Of il all. Still,
with oI!r hearts, as well as with our heads,
we ask again the irrcprcSslbc intcrro2a.
tive, What is lifc?'
Are we, indeed. only lot # animals
high class animals. 10 be srI :, hui oriv ami.
mas, nevertheless, sprung from the prime
val mud and risen to our present intellect
ual and moral eNaltation and %,orv by
painful step and slow. ont io !" p,oWrI
under shortly in the great cosm's aIrcu'-
ture to serve as soil for some future crop,
a little finer grained than W.? From mud
to mud-tha is the nrOgram Of cvou' 'on.
Or on the other hand, is it some sn,Cnlid.
sweeping pan which we are III, working
out for u.s. he immortal participants. lar
more exceeding and eternal wclGht of CORY
that shall thrill the soul forever Have
we been hut blind and stupid workers at
the loom of time, weaving an imaginary
fabric that really had no existence, even as
cone that bcatcth thr air. or are we act
rallv engaged in some real work ol ma,vcI
ouS design. whose pattern we sec roi clear
|, ,rd in all lis comprehensive details. hnt
which our Master Workman knowch well?
Let us look at the three proi'crcd rIp,a
nations ~ Sc First, there is the do'cfnl
and distressing answer Of phii0sophlc pcs.
smisn which assures ne that things are
surely growing worse all the time, the
world is rolling down hill and there are no
brakes that can hC apn|ir.. The world
now is better than il will ever be hereafter
II YOU like that view. accept it. No, we
must not say il so. Not, do vou like it,
but is it true? That is the way to ~. it;
for, pleasant or rcpugnani, we must accept
what is true. But this view cannot posi-.
bly, be true unless the proposition on which
it is based is also true. the propo5ilion OF
thc fool who said in his heart, "1hcre is no
God"
And in the second place we have the an
swer Of philosophc optimism, which as
serts that things arc steadily getting bet
ter; that. whereas life to-day IS far better
than 1t was 1000 or l0,GO0 years ago, it viii
be far better 1000 or 10000 years hence.
Bat this prevalent theory is scarcely any
Improvement on the other. except to the
superficial thinker, for it makes no provi.
sion for the pcrpctuAiOn of personality.
Where will yon and be when those far
of improvements of our race arrive? Tins
matcrialistc philosophy offers us Of the
present no immortality. and hence no op-
pSrtunItv for the adjustment of Iitc'S pes.
cnt g!aring iniusticcs. am CAD to hc,lrre
that the race that shall be resident here
1909 years from now will be better race.
But | would like TO be in existence some
And even if could rise to the superb un.
seltishness like unto that which poets some.
t4mcs sing when, Temporarily. they happen
to be in Just that mood, and cond say !
was content to live and die aud ccas" TO
exist here or anywhere Csc II only, a| a
result OF my having lived a while, future
generations might be lifted a little higher;
still, one must feel that that pretty and.
after all. rather morbidv sentimental
scheme does not satisfy .hc imperative de-
nands OF our souls that wrongs shall be
adequately rightcd. that innocent sufferers
shall be compensated and that outraged
helpessness shall be avenged.
Now comes Christianity, with its amp"
answer 1t admits all the facts. the ap-
parent injustices of the present, the pros
perity of the unrightCous, the trlnmnIng
of the wicked, and, on'thc other hand, the
suffering and the seeming defeats OF God's
heroes and saints in the fierce. hot contest
of life; and then it speaks one blessed
word, "Aftcrward." and we can be pa.
tient
After we have heard that divine word
we can see the wicked spread himself like
green bay tree, and still we rest in the
Lord and wait patiently for Him, and We
refuse to fret ourselves because OF hln
who prospcreth in his ways, because OF the
man who bringcth wicked devices TO pass
The whole puzzling enigma OF lie Is
solved at once when YOU ho.d the l;cyWord |
and that word j: the single word OF the
text. "Afterwardi'
That Is to say, YOU can get no satlS1ac'
tory explanation Of this strange and some.
what feverish thing we call Ii fc, un,css you
think of what is to follow. noted Amer. |
lean orator, in famous sentence OF h'H, |
has told us that we have no lamp with |
which to guide our feet in the future eX'
cept the experience of the past He con |
tended. and rightly, too, that VIC. cannot |
properly estimate the future unltsS we
base our judgment on the experience OF |
the past. Now We may 20 on and Supp,c'
ment Patrick Henry's familiar dlctum by |
saying that VIC have no lamp to reveal tn,
meaning of the present. except the hight OF
the future "Afterward" is the word that
explains the mysterious discplinings and
ehastenings of the present. If you Will |
grasp that word with firm, athletic grip, II |
will settle for you all these difficult PROB,
lens that so frequently confront your soul
and disturb your heart.
When you come to some terrific exper.
ence in fife that all but skaters the very |
foundations of fath-whcn your soul fails
stricken and wounded on lfe's cruel bat
tlcGcld-a thousand arrows of temptation
piercing the spirit and many sword ot
III YOU can do is to cry in agony and tcr or,
"Mv God, my God, hast Thou forsakcn
mc?" Then above the tumult Of grief and
the roar of the black pillows, may God
send some nfinistering angel Of memory to
whisper with soothing voice tins one word:
"afterward:" and the soft, sweet beauty ,"i
it shall solace your aching heart and the
peace of God shall once more food your