Democratic messenger. [volume] (Snow Hill, Md.) 1869-1973, 1904-12-31
CalnaSe
Sermon
By Rev.
Frank De Witt Talmaee. d. d.

ting. and the preacher finds in it an
application To the universal needs of
our modern life. The text is Luke ii,
l0, Il bring you good tidings of great
joy
Blessed. thrice blessed. is the advent
of the messenger bringing tidings of
great joy. Benjamin DiSraeli was wei
coined back 10 Englands capital by
surging sea of happy faces, which
blocked the streets about the lord
mayors official residence as far as
the eye could see. when lie returned
from the most famous of European
conclaves of the representatives of
many nations. Why: He came back
with the memorable sentence upon his
lips. Il bring back TO You peace with
honor" No wonder the English multi
tudes applauded their premier wher-
ever he went Had Disraeli not
brought back peace with honor" Eu-
rope would have been convulsed with
an awful international war. When the
treaty of Client was signed by the
English and American commissioners
on Dec. ~. 1914. the people of two ma
tons were expecting that the war Of
1872 would soon be terminated. The
ship which bore the news. Peace,
peace with honor sailed into New
York harbor covered with bunting. 1t
was welcomed with the shouts of Il
cheering people and the booming of
war guns. which were now TO become
the guns of peace. OF course many u
tear was shed because Andrew Jack
son had fought his battle of New Or
leans fifteen days after the signing
of that treaty. but those tears did not
prevent the glorious news which the
ship brought from joyfully flying over
the country with the wings of the
morning. Everywhere the message
met with glad acclaim. Peace. peace,
peace. with honor." But, though there
have been many messengers of glad
tidings welcomed with joyful hosan-
mas. no messenger of good tidings
was ever so much needed as he who
appeared OH the first Christmas dawn
of the worlds history. That WAS the
Christmas morn when Jesus lay sleep
ing. little babe in the manager of
Bethlehem of Judaea.
Let me describe the events which
preceded the advent of this angelic
messenger. First. the topographic po-
sition of this angelic messenger. We
are standing upon the Judaean hills
- nf n
lehem. This is sacred ground. Here
Jacob mourned and would not be COM
forted Here Benjamin was born and
Rachel died. Here BoaZ watched Ruth
as she CLEANED after the reapers. Here
Samuel came to the home of Jesse TO
anoint David king of Israel. On the
night of the Nativity the Bethlehemites
could almost see the lights of Jerusa-
lem, only six miles away, and almost
hear the chanting in the temple and
the music in the palace of Herod the
Great were il not for the height of yon-
der mountain. which obliterated those
lights and stopped the echoing sounds.
Taking the Census.
On that first Christmas eve the cities
and towns were crowded with men and
women The fiat had gone forth that
a census must be taken. Caesar want
ed To know how many soldiers lie could
depend upon in the provinces and how
much taxes ought TO he paid. Rome
was then the mistress and the queen
OF the world. The Jewish census was
TO be taken by families. Thus Joseph,
the descendant of the great psalmist,
David. headed toward the little village
of Bethlehem. where once the future
warrior as IA shepherd boy tended his
sheep. played upon his harp and prac-
ticed with his sling ut mark until he
could take that deadly aim which was
TO Stay the mighty Philistine.
Joseph is now climbing the lime
rocks upon which is built the town of
Bethlehem. Footsore and weary and
sad. his face Is drawn and anxious. He
is Fastening along. dragging by the bri
die beast of burden. which. with the
characteristic stubbornncss of its kind.
is holding back. merely because its
owner jerks the head and wants TO hur-
10 ioh- anu
row Most of the houses line the one
principal street. Crowds of men stand
upon the street corners or gather in
large numbers and with vehement ges-
lures whisper curses among themselves
against Herod. vino was building Il
heather temple in honor of the Roman
emperor. The door of the inn is block
ed with rustics who are trying to find
lodgings The owner of the hotel is in
sulting the people because they will not
stop bothering him. II does not take a
hotel clerk long To get ugly if he has
more customers than rooms. Joseph
stops and asks some bystanlers where
lie can find lodgings. They all shake
their heads and shrug their shoulders.
Some ridicule him for asking such Il
question. when he can see for himself
the crowds clamoring to get into the
village hotel
Joseph turns and looks at his young
wife seated upon the beast of burden
which he is leading. She has beauti
full face. sweet face. loving face Il
pure face. She is Mary. the Virgin.
Finally some man. more sympathetic
than the rest. seeing Joseph's troubles.