The Topeka state journal., 1904-10-01
RELIGIOUS THOUGHT.
Gems Cleaned From the Teachings of
All Denominations

1
| All Denominations.
| No man truly comprehends the value
of IT. until he knows the meaning of
we The universal fatherhood of God
quering truths in religion today.-Rev.
n n. :; Z. p0tfert0n' Epis'0palian' BROOKLYN
THE SHIRKER.
The world is full of shirks. They are
in churches as well as anywhere. They
don't come around when the debt is
being paid off, but when the jubilee is
being celebrated they are on hand, and
make longer speeches than anybody
Rev. Thomas Uzzell, Independent, Dem
| yer, Colo.
Everywhere there are seen evidences
that God is giving to his church lar
ger conception of Christ's commission
than ever before and that 1t is the d.
vine purpose to save souls by saving
men and so bring about a more perfect
manifestation of the kingdom of heaven.
Rev. D. E. Martin, Congregationalist,
Asbury Park, N. j.
AN OUTSIDE VIEW.
/ am impressed with the greatness
of the United States. but am subdued
wf1en I note the agencies working to-
ward the destruction of your nation.
Undesirable immigration, outlawry in
cities, legislative corruption and the sa-
looms are the chief vices that are sap
ping the strength of the republic.-Rev.
Charles H. Poole. Methodist, New Zea-
land.
THEOLOGY NOT RELIGION.
If the world should sicken of theology
and resolve to have no more of 1t, man
would still be incurably religious. The
ology and religion are not commen-
tie religion, and you will find men VINO
nave much theology who have very lit
tie religion, and yuo will find men who
not an appreciable quantity.-Rev. ].
w. Chadwick. Unitarian, Brooklyn,
N. Y.
THINKING ABOUT GOD.
Most men considered worthy of spe-
cial remembrance by the world have
been those noted for a consideration
of the subject of God. The whole his
tory of Asia, Hebrew and Christian.
mentions only the names of four men
who have made lasting remem brance
for themselves. They are CONTIGUOUS
of China, Buddha of India, Zoroaster
of Persia and Mohammed of Arabia.
All of these are honored by the hui
man family because they were men
who thought pre-eminently about God.
Rev. John Howard, Presbyterian,
Washington.
|PHARISEES WE'RE Journalists.
The Pharfsees were good men. They
kept the commandments. They gave
large sums to the temple and to the
poor. Christ never reproached them
for any tightness of purse or any lax
ity of morals. His condemnation was
visited upon them because their right
eousness was centered all upon self;
they cared nothing for the world; they
sought only to be good; they never
dreamed of being useful. They were so
good that they made heavy the bur
dens of ceremonial law and tradition
upon the laboring man and the peas
ant; they were SO useless that they
would not with so much as with
little finger help men to bear the bur-
dens they imposed.-R+.v. Robert C.
Hull, Baptist. Taylorville, Ill.
MAN GREATER THAN THINGS.
The progress of the world has been
mainly in things MISUNDERSTANDING
outside the man and unessential to MIN.
Emerson said, Things are in the sad
die and ride mankind" But we only
reach on into the life of light and truth
and beauty when we shake ourselves
are monarchs of all we survey. Man is
himself greater than the universe which
surrounds MIN. When this truth is
once admitted then the place and
potency in our development of the prin-
ciple of faith is at once evident. What
is faith? Faith is the conviction of the
unseen, vision which lives in a mans
own soul, giving inspiration and
hill Difficulty to view the delectable
mountains which lie in the hazy dis
tance beyond-Rev. H. I. Lindsay, Pres
byterian, Allegheny, Pa.
GOD AND MAMMON
Christian morality enables the rich
man to escape the perils that menace
his class and to make for himself
friends of the mammon of iniquity. He
must conceive no base notion of the |
great virtues Of charity. An aims be-
slowed upon deserving poor brother
is not bone thrown to a dog; it is
the fulfillment of a most sacred duty
When out of the superhuity of wealth
which has flowed to him by the par
tiality of fortune-oftener by the favor
of an iniquitous legislation dictated by
mammon-he relieves the corporalneeds
of the poor he is simply making a. res
titution that is more beneficial to his
own soul than to his neighbor's body, |
and there is small reason why he should
be proud of his action. 1t should
rather humble him that he submitted
his fellow man to the humiliation |
begging what religion and sound reason
unite in proclaining the patrimony of
the poor. Let Dives, while there is still
time, bridge over the unfortunate chasm |
which separates MIN from Lazarus, the !
favored, not of mammon, but of Cod
Rev. James F. Loughlin, Catholic, Phil |
adelphia.